Joe D’Ambrose

Do you ever realize that what happens in your life is actually very similar to what you think about? Actually, life is a manifestation of our thoughts and feelings. A couple of weeks ago my cousin turned me on to a movie called The Secret. I’ve always been one to look at the bright side of things, but this movie is much more than a self-help, think-positive film.

The Secret explores the Law of Attraction and offers some solid advice on how to go about life and achieve success in a career, business, relationships, health, and much more. Simply put… think and feel positive, think about good things that make your life happy, and those things will continue to happen. On the flip side, if you think about the negative things (i.e. debt, bad health), those things will re-appear day after day.

Signing out… and living in the positive!

- Joey D.

Doctors should ask people that question before perscribing medication to treat symptoms. A few weeks ago I met an interesting character, Richard Heft, on a train on the way back from a Yankees game. A seasoned heath expert and former acupuncture therapist, Rich has some interesting, yet practical, views on health. There are only two types of food: building (meat, eggs, cheese, etc.) and cleansing (vegetables, rice, etc.). The proper balance creates health. Period. Check out www.hotandcoldhealth.net for more info.

I know, I havn’t updated this blog in some time. Anyhow I’ve been home on summer break since May 12th… almost a month! I can’t complain. It’s always great to be home after being at college for a while, and now Normal Kings is in its busy summer months and I have time to focus on the business while spending lots of time with friends and family. I visited Vermont which was pretty sweet, and also went to a Yankees game last week.

Normal Kings moved into its first official offices! At 440 Middlefield Street in Middletown, we’re located inside Baldwin Business Park. No official lease has been agreed upon yet, but we’ve been moving in a bunch of stuff we’ve been gathering and it’s starting to come together nicely.

I’m taking an online class at the University of Phoenix… expensive, interesting, not too bad though… gotta get the credits!

Check back again soon.

 - Joey D.

So, when I re-opened my blog I decided to put more of a professional twist on it. But that can be dry. It’s been a while since my last post, so I’ll write about some of the stuff I’ve been doing this month. In the beginning of the month, I was pretty busy wrapping up some Normal Kings projects, one of which was working on a new online management system for Expedient Laundry. In addition, we had our first official meeting in a new student group I helped organize, the Sociological Thinkers of Bryant. (I know, the SToB website strangely resembles mine. Thanks to Dkret for the sweet WordPress design.)

We had a three day weekend, for Presidents Day, from the 16th to the 19th. So I flew Southwest airlines, for the first time, and headed down to Baltimore to spend the weekend with Liz & Phil, who are happily engaged. A great time, we took it easy, ate a lot of food, and watched a few movies. In a theater we saw the movie Volver, which was a really offbeat [but interesting] tale in Spanish (The first movie I’ve watched entirely in subtitles). I bought a couple of books, for once, one of which is The Starbucks Experience by Joseph Michelli, which seems really interesting so far. Oh, and I liked Southwest airlines. They are kind of funny and have decent prices.

Returning to Bryant, we’re more than a month into the spring semester. My courses are all cool except for a science class which was simply too much for me. I decided to drop the class, which is a first for me. Feels great though… it will make for a much more enjoyable and manageable semester. I’m going to do an online course at the University of Phoenix this summer to make up for it.

On another note, last week I was fortunate to attend an interesting presentation by Anthony Maione, the CEO of the Rhode Island United Way, who provided us with some great suggestions and insight for Javalids.

Finally, it seems as though I’ve been spending more time entertaining myself than in past months. I’ve been watching the first season of Lost, the popular television series… it’s addicting, but I definitely enjoy watching the episodes without commercials and on my own time.

Music! Music is life. I saw my favorite band, Everclear, on Sunday night at the Mohegan Sun… which was a free show! I’ve seen Everclear more than 5 times and I am obsessed. Art always sticks around to talk to his fans after the show. If you’re an Everclear fan, I posted the set list on this message board. Other upcoming concerts: in March I’ll see Switchfoot… and in April, Third Eye Blind! Still waiting to hear who’s coming to Bryant for the Spring weekend.

Take it easy for now!

I’ve only been back at school for a week and things are already in full swing. Ongoing projects for Normal Kings, a new semester for Expedient Laundry, and the busy beginning stages of Javalids, my first non-profit startup. (Conveniently, we are working the Javalids project into a directed study so I’ll receive course credit for that.) And four new classes, all of which seem cool. Non-profit Law, Mechanisms of the Mind, America and the Free Market, and Statistics II. Tonight I presented Expedient Laundry to the business 101 students in Janikies auditorium, and while I’m not a professional speaker by any means, I think it went well!

With these things in mind, I’ve decided to take a semester off from the ROOTS Radio show. I know this will disappoint some, but it’s necessary. I’m also no longer a student ambassador. Either way, I’m happy to be back at school and look forward to a fulfilling semester.

Since 2004, everyone’s been talking about Web 2.0, in other words, the “second generation of Internet-based services that emphasize online collaboration and sharing among users.” As if it is some very recent phenomenon. In my opinion we are in the sold-out aftermath of Web 2.0 in which everyone is trying to get their piece. I’d say eBay was the true pioneer.

I began using the Half.com shortly after eBay purchased the site in 2000. I used to join BMG music club and get “12 CDs for the price of 1″, I’d buy all the best sellers and sell them on Half.com. I would go to thrift shops and buy brand new looking books for 25 cents, and a few days later ride my bike over to the post office to ship out the sales. No listing fees, fixed prices, and ultimately, easy to sell. It was a fun way to fund my summers during early high school. Now a days I use the site to buy and sell college textbooks, and it’s also my favorite place to buy CDs and books.

Okay so I really only have three semesters at Bryant left. Insane! I can’t complain though, life is as good as it ever has been. I’m going back to school on January 19th, one week from today. Four classes this semester (America and the Free Market, Stats II, Non-profit Law, and Mechanisms of the Mind), plus a directed study in Sociology with the rest of the Javalids team. Should be a good line-up, no night classes.

I’ve always been a huge Everclear fan. I just noticed at their website that they are back on tour. I’ll have to check them out in Boston on February 22nd and at the Mohegan Sun on February 24th.

I recently heard about the new Apple iPhone, and while I’m not usually one to jump on the newest gadgets, this might be too cool to pass up. I like the iPod but with the iPhone you don’t have to carry around your cell phone and your iPod. This device seems to be unreal: internet browsing, e-mails, iPod music, photos, movies, etc. Steve Jobs calls it an “industry changing item“. I might have to jump on the bandwagon when it comes out in June. I’ve been a happy Verizon customer for 6 years, and the only downside I see so far is that the iPhone is only becoming available through Cingular… ehh.