Jake (to the) Holla

12/24/10

Merry Christmas (Eve)!

I wish I had used this as a Christmas card, to mail out to loved ones

12/15/10

weird Christmas facts

Stumbled upon these while searching for Christmas traditions... too good not to post:

Weird Christmas Facts:

Based on a 1999 estimated population count of North America and Europe, on Christmas Eve of that year Santa Claus had to visit 42,466,666 homes in a 12-hour period — that’s 983 homes per second.
Kris Kringel, a man in his 40s, lives in North Pole, Alaska, and delivers pizzas for a living. He drives a 1984 Ford Tempo.
A traditional Christmas dinner in early England was the head of a pig prepared with mustard.
1 in 6 men would like to get rid of all the “gift-giving nonsense.”
1 in 3 men will wait until Christmas Eve to finish their shopping.
56 percent of Americans sing holiday carols to their pets.
Christmas pudding should be stirred from east to west.
Saint Nicholas of Myra, the original Santa Claus, was the patron saint of children, thieves and pawnbrokers.

And to think... all this time I've been stirring my Christmas pudding from west to east. So foolish!

12/13/10

from greatness to WHOA... WHAT?!?

And by that ("that"... as in: the title of this particular post) I'm referring to... Twitter.

I haven't always thought very highly of Twitter. Come to think of it... I used to think it was just about the most pointless, invasive, and downright stupid trend to hit the 'net. Quick nonsensical posts about what you're doing, limited to 140 characters? Count me out, cap'n. And yet here I am today, with well over 7,000 tweets under my belt. I don't particularly remember what nudged me towards ever signing up, but whatever that reason was... I am very thankful to have jumped on board the Twitter train.

Why, you ask?

Is it the fact that I can share my random thoughts, that I often think are hilarious... but only sometimes get a reaction? Or the contests and exclusive offers sent out to followers of various bands, companies, celebrities, etc? Or maybe even being extremely up-to-date with what is happening in the world, like when someone famous dies and every single person I follow has something to say about it?

Sure, every one of those reasons definitely factors into my enjoyment of having a Twitter account... but the reason my experience has suddenly gone from "greatness" to "WHOA... WHAT?!?" is simply this :

Jon Favreau responded to my tweet.

AND he re-posted two... count them, TWO, pictures that I sent to him that pertained to the movie Elf.

*for those in need of being informed : Favreau is the director of Elf, Iron Man 1 & 2, the upcoming Cowboys & Aliens, and much more. He also had roles in Elf, Iron Man 1 & 2, Swingers, Couple's Retreat, I Love You Man, Deep Impact etc etc.

as Happy Hogan in Iron Man 2, carrying the briefcase suit o' armor

I sent him 2 pictures of some of the decorations we here @ LU's Student Activities made for our Elf-themed Christmas talent exhibition, and a cake one of my fellow staffers made of the narwhal from the movie, and he dug them enough to respond and re-post to his profile for all his thousands of followers to see. Thaaaaat is just plain cool. It definitely made the show we organized seem SO much more legit, in my eyes, knowing that the director himself was aware of what we were doing... and approved.

Yes, it's a bit trivial & ridiculous... but I'm a movie geek, and I was super amped to have even the smallest interaction with a director that I really admire.

I don't know how many of YOU are avid Twitter users... but feel free to share any crazy stories involving Twitter, whether it's like mine... or if it resulted in something happening outside of the internet, even!

12/1/10

Looking Back (At Christmas '09)

Here's a picture that basically defines my Christmas break last year...

footie pj's > snuggies

I'm eager to see what this season has in store... and yes, the footie pajamas still fit (PHEW!)

*ALSO: Christmas videos courtesy of LU Student Activities coming soon, inspired by Elf... and yes, I'm rocking the tights & the elfish get-up. Stay tuned.

11/16/10

random blurb time (11-16-10)

(been awhile since I've done one of these.... so here goes nothin!)

*Despite previously stated, I have aborted my No-Shave-November beard. I cannot reveal the reasoning just yet, but its worthwhile. Besides, I can grow it back in no time...

*Apple teased at an announcement yesterday, that would be unveiled today, that would supposedly be SO amazing... that we'd remember this day forever. It's rare, in my book, for Apple to overhype something that really isn't that big of a deal... and alas, that is the case today. The "big announcement" was the entire catalog of The Beatles hitting the iTunes store. Underwhelmed...

*Powerful message this past Sunday @ Brentwood, regarding how we react to "crazies" in our lives... especially those in our families. It sounds silly, but it was legitimately convicting.

*I caught the Harry Potter bug a couple movies ago, and Part 1 of the last book hits theaters this week. I love me a quality midnight premiere.. it reminds me of home. (also, I hear the teaser for the Green Lantern will be attached... I'm curious to see how it turns out)

*I just ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. 'Nuff said.

*Watch this video. Animals are hilarious without even knowing it.

*Here's some awkward and/or random stuff I've witnessed on campus lately :

a guy and a girl practicing self defense moves, while some girls were auditioning for our holiday campus talent show on crack (aka Christmas Coffeehouse)
2 guys having a dance-off in the parking lot, seemingly as a form of greeting
while Inception was being shown @ the Vines Center, 2 guys in full body black-spandex costumes appeared & began dancing / posing for the crowd

**Until next time! Have a splendid Tuesday, rain or shine

11/10/10

No Shave November (aka Novembeard) - Day 10

(Nov 10, 2010 - 1400 hours: day 10 of NSN in effect)

*STATIC*
Reporting in from the front-lines in the war against shaving (for a month). All is well here at my stationed post in the approximate region of Liberty University. I can't give my exact coordinates, in case any opposing forces (equipped with razors/trimmers) intercept this transmission. I've managed to gain access to a camera and will now provide a visual from today's progress.


1417 hours, in proper flannel uniform garb

If you receive this transmission, I bid you great success & safety in your progress during these troubling times. If at all possible, provide any information about your progress & whereabouts. Over and out!
*STATIC*

11/1/10

what i've been up to (photo blog)

It's inevitable each year. The semester gets overloaded with work, assignments, events, etc etc... and the blog gets thrown on the back-burner. My apologies for sucking at being consistant! To kick-start my blogging back into gear, here's a photo blog post to chronicle some highlights of what I've been up to lately: