Hey All,

I'd like to take a moment to welcome myself back to the blogosphere and thank a friend for asking where I went ;) Many things have happened in recent months. Among the larger events, I have become a certified yoga teacher. Not like it was a big surprise to certain folks but I can say that I wouldn't have seen it coming a couple of years ago. I am teaching over at Atmananda studio over on 324 Lafayette St. (7th floor) in Manhattan. After training for a month I jumped into a month intensive teacher training course and then came out on the other side with a whole different relationship to my own body. It truly is an amazing tool and complements the mind so well. The difference in how they work together now is really hard to describe. Instead of opening up drawers of information it flows more like water. When you honor your body it shows. So come on by the studio and take a class. I'm teaching on Friday's at 5:15pm.

Another big development is that my little sister got married last month. Wow, that long already. It was a truly amazing day for my whole family. Patty has really found a great guy and I think they're going to do great. I even gave a speech at the ceremony. I never pictured myself up on the podium but it felt great to say something in front of my family and friends. The gist of the speech was that we all have a choice between love and fear and I obviously tried to make the case to choose the former. It was an honor to say a few words on such a special occasion. What I'm most thankful for is being about to express how I feel to my sister about how happy I was about her marriage and how much she means to me as a sister. Before I knew that my sister and I had a close bond but I know that I never really expressed how much that bond meant. Now I know that there is no question. If you ever get the chance to speak at such an occasion please do. You won't regret it.

In other news, I just started a new job at howcast.com. I am freelancing for them as an animator/director. Its definitely a challenge and their content it pretty fun. Right now I'm getting thrown jobs that they're getting from websites who need videos in order to help visitors use their site. So it working a lot with screen shots from the actual websites and then moving them around to look pretty in After Effects. Hopefully I hope to do something along the lines of their more creative titles. All in good time. I'll be sure to post some things as they come up. Until then just check out the site and start learning something. May I suggest the video below...

Labels: After Effects, Animaiton, Atmananda, Bear Attack, dream collective, howcast, Lafayette, Manhattan, matt canale, Patty, Speech, teacher, video, wedding, yoga

Once again I find myself repeating similar patterns. Funny how that happens. Falling into the places I've already been before. Especially when I remember them as unpleasant. I've realized once again that I have been traversing across the mountains fear and becoming more and more consumed with the problems that face our age. I still stand by the idea that truth is power and that this is definitely part of it. However, don't stand around in the muck longer than you have to. As I'm sure some of you know, subject matter such as the Fed can really dig in you and leave you with an unpleasant feeling. My advice it to go spend some time in the light. Walk outside for once just for the sake of walking. Being a freelancer and spending most of my day at home, it's easy to ignore the outside world. Realize that there is beauty all around (yes, even in Brooklyn!) and then go admire it. I woke up and saw the sun rise today (granted I went to bed shortly after) and it was totally worth it. I think I have seen too many sun sets. I have been staying up in the darkness for too long. Why only be awake when the day is dying when you can be there to watch it be born?! If you feel like you still don't understand the Fed and our monetary system I urge you to take the time to figure it out. However, once you've got it, keep moving onto how to put that knowledge to use. Then enjoy life as much as you possibly can! Don't let the bastards keep you down!

Labels: beauty, brooklyn, depression, divinity, dream collective, federal reserve, knowledge, light, matt canale, mud, patterns, ron paul

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Zeitgeist is almost a house hold name among anyone who's spent a decent amount of time slacking on google video. Whenever I'm checking out the most viewed videos, it's usually among the top 10. This is a promising figure considering the subject matter. Despite its sometimes over dramatic tone, it brings up many points that are not brought up in many other places. The follow up to the documentary is Zeitgeist: Addendum. The film delves into the corruption of our monetary system and how it permeates our lives. Not only does Addendum break it down in a simple to understand manner but also delves into the realistic option of adopting a resource based economy. John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hitman, also talks about his work as an economic hitman and the role the IMF plays in putting third world countries into debt. I am not totally sold on the no religion idea that is presented. I feel that it could still exist with an understanding between cultures that people can be different and that different is not bad. As always, I am just presenting this as something that I feel is worthwhile to look at. Pick and choose what you will from it. I feel that this movie is especially relevant in our current situation and I respect the fact that they try to present alternatives instead of just pointing the finger as many movies seems to do. Despite the drawn out intro and ending sequences, I feel that this is an important documentary that everyone should take a look at. If you watch it and feel the same way, please pass it on.

Labels: addendum, campaign for liberty, depression, documentary, dollar, economic downfall, federal reserve, John Perkins, monetary system, money, problem, recession, ron paul, venus project, zeitgeist

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A great view into our monetary system. It reveals the men behind the curtain. It also shows how little we really know about the federal reserve. What is even more disturbing is that we don't know the Constitution. Some people have come to believe that it is old and outdated in some respects. However, in respect to the way we create money, its easy to see that they were trying to prevent an event like the one we see today. We have created a system that can print more and more money as our dollar continues to drop. We have to become aware of this injustice and do something about it. More solutions on the way. Enjoy the cameo of Ron Paul!

Labels: 1913, bankers, banks, barry goldwater, constitution, currency, federal reserve, freedom, justice, money, ron paul

Ron Paul has been a voice for freedom since becoming a representative in the house. This video is a classic example of how little his views has changed. If you are concerned about things like "flip flopping" here's a video of Ron Paul from 1988. It's almost a carbon copy of the man that you know today. I love Ron Paul because I always know where he stands and I know that he will always tell the truth. Yes, he is a politician, but he's a politician that I can believe in. Especially with our financial infrastructure collapsing all around us, it is important to know who was there the whole time shouting alone at the top of the mountain trying to warn all of us about it. Instead of sugar coating and prolonging the problem, Ron Paul saw the problem and has done all he could to try to sway the powers that be to fix it. It's not too late to wake up and become a little more aware of what's happening with our monetary system. In an effort to do something I'm going to try to get a post out every day this week with some info on why we're in the situation we're in. Cheers!

Labels: 1988, federal reserve, freedom, government, interview, money, republican, ron paul

I'd like to send out a personal letter of thanks to the folks at Verizon. Guys, it has been great corresponding with you over the past month and then some. You have taught me so much. First off you taught me how I don't need the internet. It's nice to be connected but I really think that I saved a lot of time and was able to do what I needed to do regardless of my lack of DSL.
After talking to your representatives over the phone you have made me realize what a strong emotion empathy is. I didn't receive it as I wined and complained about this and that and how I needed the internet for my job and how I stayed home all day and a technician didn't come and boo hoo and so on. All I ever got back was, "We're very sorry for this inconvenience Mr. Canale. Is there anything else I can help you with today?" My senses were telling me that there was another person on the other end of the line but there was a part of me that knew this person was only reading lines from a piece of paper and I was never going to get the reaction from them that I thought might be appropriate. This experience made me see how often we take for granted the ability to speak with someone and have them share in our emotions.
Some might say that we are all programed by society and culture in order to function in a certain way kinda like Verizon representative guy. Although it may appear at times that life is just being read off of cue cards there is really an opportunity for so much more. You always have the option to act or react. That may seem very similar but reacting to something is just responding and acting has the act of thought attached to it and then responding. Verizon guy, thanks for making me realize how thankful I am for the ability to live life with no visible sheet in front of me although I probably wasn't think about that last week. Sometimes blessings come in the disguise of madness.

Labels: choice, dream collective, emotions, empathy, feeling, free will, matt canale, representative, verizon

My studio is located right next to a fish packaging factory. As you might imagine, the sun beating down on the the truck dock has a tendency of stinking up a little bit. The fishy juices don´t take very well to all of that heat. When I walk by the factory I think about how much I don´t want to be walking past that factory. This is coming from a guy with a pretty horrible sense of smell to begin with.
One night after coming out of studio it was lightly raining. Instead of the awful stench I had been transported to the edge of the ocean in the middle of Brooklyn. It was such a surprise but it made a lot of sense. Those little fish bits are meant to be in the water. The smell told me that water was where they belonged because it was something natural and pleasant to me. That might be subjective but I think that most would agree that the shore is better smelling than fish guts evaporating in the mid day sun.
I think nature has a great way of letting us know where things are suppose to be with out a word. Smell has a beauty to it. It told me the very simple message that fish belong in the water. That may seem very elementary dear Watson, but how many times do we do something that stinks and continue to do the same thing. Perhaps there isn´t the stench of salmon emanating from your life but maybe there´s a discomfort. Maybe there´s a feeling of something that doesn´t feel natural.
When something feels right it's good to recognize it because often times, the laws of nature allow things to work most efficiently. Maybe there will never be a way that allows you to work "most" efficiently but I would say that there are things that would allow us to function more efficiently. I think that journey starts by recognizing what smells. So, what fishy bits do you have that could use a little rain?

Labels: dream collective, fish, funny, nature, rain, smell, stench, studio