per·cep·tion

Harry's Law is the NEW Boston Legal & I LOVE IT

2011-01-17T23:34:00.000-05:00

So after watching my favorite show, Lie to Me, I stumbled across the premier of a show that I had seen previews for and wanted to see but had my doubts. It's a show created by one of my favorite people...David E. Kelley. Never was I a fan of Ally McBeal or L.A. Law but I was a huge fan of The Practice and Boston Legal. When Boston Legal ended I felt a huge gaping hole for the Alan Shore monologue that addressed modern day issues....over the top law suits and larger than life characters like "Denny Crane" and "Jerry" the law associate with Asperger syndrome! Sometimes campy and unbelievable the story lines were never intended, in my opinion, to be taken seriously on the surface. The appeal was the underlying message. The controversial issues that it brought to light, usually in the last half hour of the show with grand monologues filled with FACTS to support the particular situation.

The show is called "Harry's Law". It seems to be based on a former corporate attorney, played by Kathy Bates, who somehow ends up setting up shop in an old shoe store located on the wrong neighborhood. Just as in Boston Legal it looks as though the characters are going to be over the top. You've got the secretary who gets the grand idea to sell the high end shoes that were left behind by the previous occupants of what is now the firms office space...to the new partner "Harry" (Kathy Bates) acquires by him trying to make amends for hitting her with his car! Wait there's the law clerk that is a recovering drug addict that landed on Harry in a botched attempt to commit suicide! Yes. It's over the top but the underlying theme is still what draws me to this just as it did Boston Legal. Underneath the campy, Broadway, Carol Burnett like comedy and sarcasm...the monologues that pit "good" & "evil" at odds is priceless! I read a few reviews and this show is not for people that are looking for something that has the dramatic feel of "Law & Order" or "The Practice". It's more of a satire.

The best part of this show will be the issues that it features, the facts that are brought to light through the fictional cases that are presented, and the ability of the characters to keep the balance between satire and just plain stupid. As long as the show can continue to address things the way it did in the pilot while developing the characters, this show will have the longevity of Boston Legal. I just hope that it doesn't end in such a dismal abyss like Boston Legal where the characters adventures become so over the top that the message becomes distorted.

Guess I'll just have to wait and see. I'm excited and anyone that enjoyed Boston Legal will enjoy this show as "Harry" is the female version of "Denny Crane" and I think this show will take it's viewers on one hell of a ride! Thank you David E. Kelly and stay tuned people...I sure am FOR NOW...

Jedi "Mind Trick"-MindFlex

2011-01-12T17:21:00.000-05:00

I've been a gadget guy my entire life! I have had every type of cell phone, pager, organizer, PDA, video game and so on. Never have I thought I would see a game like this. Evidently in my old age I am not keeping up with the innovations in the technology arena like I once did, but this month's CES caught my attention. Mainly because of it's announcements about cell phones!

Anyway...as I was reading through the various interesting and not so interesting articles I came across one about a "Telekinesis" game called "MindFlex Duel". Yes that's right. I said TELEKINESIS! Watch out Jedi Knight wannabes! It is a game that is evidently not new but actually about a year old and has added improvements over the past year or so that take it from a single player game to a multi-player experience.

To participate players use headsets equipped with EEG-like forehead sensors that measure brainwaves, and face off above a ball hovering on a stream of air. The harder they concentrate, the more each player can push the ball (by increasing the speed of a small fan that produces the air to move the ball) across the board to the opponent's end, winning the round. Who would have ever thought it? Are we closer to a Star Trek interactive holodeck than I thought? That is a gadget that I would love to play around with! Take a look at this video clip of the original Mindflex that I found on YouTube.

Irresponsible vs Character...REALLY?

2011-01-04T07:58:00.001-05:00

So I wake up this morning and am watching thee Today Show and they are talking about a US Navy Captain that made some "sketchy" videos with jokes that were "morally" in bad taste. Seriously. Let's look at a few things associated with what's being reported in this story.
The antagonist in this story is Captain Owen Honors he is a Naval Aviator.

He attended U.S. Naval Fighter Weapons School (a.k.a. Top Gun) and the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School, graduating in 1990. He has 3,400 flight hours in 31 types of aircraft with more than 700 landings on 15 carriers. He has flown 85 combat missions in three different theaters. On June 4, 1992 Owens suffered minor injuries when his T-45A Goshawk training jet skidded off the runway. He delayed ejecting until he could prevent a collision with a nearby occupied van.
He reported as executive officer of the carrier U.S.S. Enterprise in July 2005 and served during two deployments, departing in September of 2007.
In September of 2008 Honors was the Sixth Fleet's commander and captain of the USS Mount Whitney when it sailed into the country of Georgia during its armed conflict with Russia. At the time, the Americans were on a humanitarian mission; Honors was quoted as saying that the mission was, "...not a show of force—it's a show of solidarity."
On May 6, 2010 he was appointed captain of the Enterprise.
He is a recipient of the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medals, Meritorious Service Medal, and various campaign/unit awards.

Now the problem that is being presented is that he participated in the production of a series of videos in 2006-07 that had scenes considered to be unacceptable given his position of authority as XO on board the ship at the time. Don't get me wrong I'm not saying that what he did was right or WRONG. I believe that in the world that we live in people spend a lot of time passing judgement on other people's choices or beliefs.
Watch the videos, they are funny. Similar things are depicted on Late Night TV Talk Shows, Daytime Talk Shows and SNL has been doing it for YEARS!
So my question is why would something like this affect the future of this man who has otherwise been viewed as an honorable, competent, and successful leader? Why do we look at public figures, athletes and entertainers and believe that they have some greater moral responsibility than the rest of us.
People make off color jokes all the time. People in various positions of power or with varying degrees of responsibility do and say lots of things but at the end of the day in a situation such as this do we the public..the civilians or military personnel for that matter have the right to take away all that this man has done because of something that we view as unacceptable?
People are NOT so sensitive that they don't understand that things are done as jokes that are sometimes funny to some and NOT funny to others. When black people joke about black people, it's acceptable. White people joke about white people, it's acceptable. Gay people joke about gay people, it's acceptable. Some of the most successful comics ever have been able to joke about anything and everyone..and that's what makes them funny. And the list goes on and on.
At the end of the day I believe that whether this particular situation was something done in bad taste is without question, but to think that is career ending is insanity. When did we become so damn sensitive? When will we realize that we are setting a dangerous precedent of "if you are in a certain position you give up certain rights".
We won't say it out loud because we don't want to be like China and TELL people what to think, read, or say...we will just try you in the court of public opinion because that's more sensible.

In the words of the Joker..."WHY SO SERIOUS?"

Stay Tuned

2011-01-01T10:46:00.000-05:00

It is a NEW YEAR!! Time for a fresh start! Why is it that people believe that a new year should bring new and exciting things just because it's a NEW YEAR? Hmmm...chew on that for a minute...

Ok...I'm very excited about the New Year for me from a business perspective. I have finally finished re-designing the Hi! Profile Consulting Group website! There are still some things that I want to do with it and integrate into it but for now I am much more confident in the way that it flows. I was lucky enough to network with a like minded business professional that may just become a consultant with me. I'm building a strong base of clients...

I've dreamed of how I want my business to develop over the past several years and I know that this year I'm gonna start moving more steadily towards that vision....this blog is going to serve as a unrestricted look into my life from a business perspective, my opinions on various things, and from time to time some ranting I'm sure. Stay tuned...

A Thought for Today

2009-05-08T22:45:00.001-04:00

There is going to come a time when you have to do something everyday to advance yourself towards the accomplishment of whatever goal(s) you have set for yourself. What do you do each day to get closer to the accomplishment of your goals? A phone call? A letter? Reading a magazine specific to something that you would like to do? What DO YOU DO?

Think about it. If you don't want to do something...don't pretend like you do.

Is there someone or something that you love unconditionally? If so, do you remember when you first came to understand what love actually means? When you realized that it's not just saying the words. Love is an EVERYDAY expression. That unexplainable feeling when you touch, hear a voice, or just the mention of a name...that is love.

You only have this second that you are in right NOW. Nothing else is promised to anyone. So the challenge is simple, but complex. What do you do during those seconds, of those minutes, of those hours, of the days that you are blessed to be alive?

Decide what you would like to do and then be like Nike and "Just Do It". Take baby steps, but remember not to crawl. Enjoy every minute possible by expressing yourself through ACTION. Show your love to those people that are important to you. Take action to move towards the completion of your goals. Savor this moment because someone loves and cares enough about YOU to share this thought, whether they know you personally or not.

Time is a commodity that cannot ever be replenished.