Cru Jones Society

In most cases I couldn’t care less about the number of times I do things. I used to count the number of times I’ve seen bands, but as I started to see some bands more and more, in addition to my problem with numbers, I gave up. But recently I have become totally aware of the number of plays counter found on iTunes. I was drawn into it, completely fascinated by it. Then I got angry as I noticed it would go up even if I only listened to the last 15 seconds of a song. I do that a lot when I am making mixes. It’s important to me how a song ends and how that ending works with the start of the next song. I’m sure there some psychological disorder I can classify that behavior under.

Anyway, I started using this information when I made mixes. When I chose a song I would see how often I played that song and if I was close to too much and should choose a different song. I think that’s more of that disorder coming to the surface. Eventually this led me to figuring out which songs I have played the most. I was a little surprised by the results. Not so much in the fact that these are bad songs, but more in they are not really the ones I would have expected. Though if they were what I expected, then I probably wouldn’t have written about them.

So I now give you the Top Five Most Played Songs on Hart’s iTunes. Continue Reading »

The view from my office looks right at the State Capitol, so for the last couple of weeks I have gazed upon the vagrant tent city comprising “Occupy Denver.” I find the spirit of this movement somewhat ingratiating and their execution haphazard and mediocre at best. The night the police told them to disperse, I awoke the next morning amused and annoyed by the news report of the evening’s events.

White dudes with dreadlocks stood there yelling at police about how they have a constitutional right to protest their government and the police’s orders to disband were tantamount to tyranny. While it is legal and constitutionally protected to protest the government, it remains illegal to camp overnight in Denver city parks, which is what they were doing. The city has the right to enforce the law, and exercised that right. No one said they couldn’t protest, they just can’t break municipal ordinances. Yet, there was Dreadlocks McGee shouting at the police all blustery about tyranny.

Considering how many members of my generation participate in the “Occupy Wall Street/Denver/Kirk Herbsreit” movement, I’m reminded of how idealistic and driven we can be, but how that drive and determination can turn us into myopic jackasses. Continue Reading »

Not that I really need an excuse to go somewhere, but it’s nice when someone offers one. That’s just what I got when a friend decided to have her wedding in Seattle and invite me. Between work and school it’s hard for me to take a trip, but this was one of my oldest and dearest friends, and the pacific-northwest is awesome. So I checked the box marked “Attending,” or whatever the actual  wording was, then worked my ass off so I could enjoy three days of school-free fun. And I did enjoy those three days! Continue Reading »

Every Wednesday between now and the end of baseball season (of 2009) the Cru Jones Society brings you a new baseball movie examined for both overall entertainment value and treatment of our favorite game. This is a special edition of that series. To suggest a film, email us at staff [at] crujonessociety.com. Otherwise, pour yourself an $8 beer, crack some shells, and let’s play ball.

 Date Released: September 23, 2011
Box Office Total (as of 10/2/2011): $38,469,000
Team Featured: Oakland Athletics

“It’s unbelievable what you don’t know about a game you play every day.”– Mickey Mantle, the opening quote in Moneyball.

It’s said that being creative is seeing the same thing as everybody else but thinking of something different. Inventors do this, business leaders do this, comedians do this, and in 2002, Billy Beane did this with baseball player evaluation. Moneyball tells the story of creativity in a classically stubborn and traditionalist sport. It’s less a story about baseball, and more a story of the challenge of innovation and reward of determination. Continue Reading »