IMHO #1
I watch a lot of films, either at the theater or on DVD (I don't have cable. Don't bother asking why.), so I figured that I would take some time and offer My Humble Opinion (hence the name) on some movies I've seen. First review coming soon! (Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest)

Baby Steps: Part II
I went to the gym again yesterday and took some more of those "baby steps" to a healthier me. My time at the gym really solidified two truths:

1) Gym mirrors don't lie. I looked at myself in the mirror as I did some shoulder shrugs and, damn, I'm fat and ugly. I'm shaped like a 6'1" football and my male pattern baldness is making my hair look like a surreal pompadour.

2) There are few things more humiliating than lifting such light weights in a hardcore gym. This isn't a spit-and-polished Bally's that I'm at; powerlifters and serious gym rats work out here. A guy that was built like an NFL linebacker was doing hammer curls with serious weight and I'm doing upright rows with almost no weight because I have to focus on proper lifting form. I know that the heavier weights will come later and I trust my friend who's training me, but my ego is taking some hits.

Baby Steps
I have the privilege of being friends with a nationally ranked amateur powerlifter, so I'm at an advantage when starting a weightlifting program like I did today.

I actually signed up at his gym two weeks ago, but he's been "baby stepping" me into a routine. For the last two weeks I've done cardio work and today was my first weightlifting session. He said that the focus for me will be proper form, which is hard to maintain when you toss around heavy weights.

"By the time we get to the heavier stuff, your body will be used to working out and it'll lessen the pain," he said.

I marvel at the guy when I look at him. He's built like the classic Hulk from the 1960's Marvel comics; broad in the chest and shoulders and the guy squats around 500+ pounds. He's a far cry from the kid I've known since the third grade. I'm glad we're friends.

Feline Fussiness
I grabbed a broom to sweep the hallway stairs and my cat hissed at it. Weirdo.

Every once in a while I'll feel compelled to run off at the mouth (and the keyboard) about what I hold to be true. Everyone believes in something and these are things that I believe:

THE NEVER-ENDING LIST OF WHAT I BELIEVE
(Meaning that my mind won't change about most of these. You're welcome to try, but I don't think you'll be successful.)

1) That there is a GOD, that HE is a three-part Being (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), and that HE created all that there is.

2) That there are Absolute Goods and Absolute Truths.

3) That the love my wife and I share is a blessing and a real and tangible thing and not a byproduct of some psychological issue or biological need.

4) That we should all endeavor to respect public space because it makes society better for everyone.

5) That people should be responsible for the choices they make.

6) The Bachelor’s Degree has become the new “high school diploma” since you need one to even get within shouting distance of an entry level job.

7) That donuts should never be slathered in ketchup.

8) That French fries should not be eaten with mayonnaise. Hey, Europe! What happened to your taste buds?

9) That the person that decided to dip a Snickers bar in corn dog batter and deep fry it (I saw it on PBS!) should have serious psychotherapy done.

10) That men and women are different in many ways and should revel and rejoice in those differences. ¡Vive la difference! (Notice I said different. Not better or worse, just different.

11) That America, warts and all, is the best nation on this earth. Want proof? Immigration policies and issues aside (that’s a debate for another time), look at all the immigrants risking life and limb to get to this country. I don’t see other nations having this problem on the massive scale that the US does. People all over the world recognize the advantages of living in America. It’s a shame that some of her natural-born citizens don’t have the same perspective.

12) That Kevin Smith an overrated screenwriter and director. Go away, dude. Go away.

I'm not new to the internet. I've been a user since 1993. However, this is my first blog, so I'm going to try things that are new to me, make mistakes and grow in the process. I hope you're along for the ride and that you enjoy it.

First, a few facts:

Name: J.V. (Ain’t givin' my real name out!)

Age: 30-35

Gender: Male

Ethnicity: Latino. I'm Mexican & Puerto Rican.

Profession: Teacher.

Politics: My politics (as well as my social and moral views) tend toward the conservative side, with a few areas lying in the centrist area. For example, I'm politically conservative but I don't think we pay enough attention to the environment and that big business gets away with a bit too much (see Enron). I'll elaborate more in the "I Believe" section.

Hobbies: I am a pretty serious movie buff. I watch them all the time and can quote lines verbatim. Ever been to a party where there's one annoying person linking various subjects to movie lines or situations? Well, I'M ONE OF THEM!!! (And proud of it! Damn skippy!)

I also read quite a bit. My taste for reading runs from newspapers, editorials and news magazines to graphic novels (aka comic books. Yeah? What of it?!) to popular fiction to classic literature (Do tragedies get any better than Shakespeare's "Hamlet"?) to nonfiction to the occasional smattering of "artsy" authors like Oscar Hijuelos and Sherman Alexie.

A side note to all you devotees of "artsy" literature: Don't bombard me with emails listing the scores of other authors whose works have a deeper "stench" of art than the authors I've mentioned and how this proves I'm just one of the great unwashed that doesn't deserve to blog and blah, blah, blah, yap, yap, yap. . . I like what I like. You like what you like. Ain't America grand?

This leads me to another point I’d like to make clear. If you take umbrage with anything that I post, you have a couple of options: polite disagreement with followed with healthy discussion or DON'T READ MY BLOG!!! Sheeesh. . .!

WHY THE NAME?
I wish I could say that I was creative enough to come up with that, but it's from an issue of "Spider-Man." I used it here because, well, blogging -- aside from those online support groups -- seems to add up to a whole lot of nothing.

No offense to you bloggers out there, but after you use all this time, effort and computer memory to pitch, yaw, moan, groan and complain about, well, everything, what changes?

A lot of times, blogging reminds me of a line from Shakespeare. To paraphrase, it's full of sound and fury and signifying nothing. So, it's a "whole lotta nada." A whole lot of nothing.

SO WHY DO IT?
For the same reasons, I'm sure, a lot of bloggers do it: to have fun and stretch the creative muscles a bit.

There's also a bit of arrogance involved, and don't you deny it. Why would you blog (or keep a diary/ journal or write stories) if you didn't think the tale you had to tell was worth the telling? If you're one of those types that claim, "I write for the sake of artistic expression! It's art for art's sake!" then I have to say that I don't believe you. If you take hours, days, months or years to craft a story or essay or poem and then spend your spare time getting off on your genius, then there's phrase for what you're doing: mental masturbation. I believe that most people write because they WANT their work to be read by others. This desire may be covert or overt, but it's there.

Let's get right to it, shall we? I believe that the three aims of a writer are to entertain, inform and enlighten. If you're a genius -- a Shakespeare, a Faulkner, a Hemingway -- then you'll consistently hit all three aims and you leave a legacy that will have you remembered long after you're dead. If you're good, you'll hit some but not all. An average writer will hit at least one of these aims and a bad writer won't hit any.

Where am I? Somewhere between average and good, I think. With hard work, I think I could be good. It would take a miracle from GOD to make me great, but I think that's the case with all the great ones.

WHAT YOU'LL GET
My blog will be scattershot and cover a wide variety of topics. Among them are house hunting, film, literature (including comic books. Natch.), politics, a "What I Believe" section, and some personal stuff about my life.

Like I said, this is a first for me, so welcome aboard and happy reading.