JustinBartz.com

Happiest States of 2009: The List

Justin — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 18:12:00 GMT

Live Science has published the list of the happiest states in 2009. Basically, a survey called the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index includes questions about well-being (overall evaluation of their lives, physical and emotional health, healthy behaviors, and job satisfaction).

So check it out. Minnesota came in at #4!

You betcha she's running!

Justin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:29:00 GMT

Palin says 2012 presidential bid a possibility

Please, no. Anything but this. No no no no no. Don't let this happen.

Every potential candidate always plays it mum this point in the process. Nobody is going to announce their candidacy over two years before the election, but it's not a good sign for those who aren't supporters of Sarah Palin. I'm Libertarian, but I lean "right". Regardless, there's no doubt in my mind that I would be forced to vote "against Sarah Palin" instead of "for a candidate" of my choice if she happens to be the Republican nominee. Polls show that she's the "most popular" candidate this early on in the process, but I hope that other more worthy (and qualified) candidates step up soon.

Album Review: Taking Dawn's Time To Burn

Justin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 02:52:00 GMT

Check out my latest album review... from the Sin City (Las Vegas), Taking Dawn has just released their debut album Time To Burn, and it most definitely rocks.

Also check out the music video for their first single, also called Time To Burn. (Hey look, it's Kanye West!) Check out the album on iTunes by clicking the cover below.

Nickelback, Weezer, Limp Bizkit, others featured on worst songs of the '00s countdown

Justin — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 05:36:00 GMT

Check out my latest article on the worst songs of the decade (is it the 00's... the aughts?), where it's no surprise that Nickelback, Limp Bizkit, and Weezer have entries on it. In fact, Ozzy Osbourne, Fred Durst, and Chad Kroeger of Nickelback have two entries on the list. Congratulations guys! You can still buy and sell me 100 times over. :/

RIP Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan

Justin — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:22:00 GMT

Wow, I am in shock that Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan from Avenged Sevenfold has died of "natural causes" at 28. I absolutely love(d) Avenged Sevenfold! I hope this isn't the end of them since they were supposedly working on an "epic" album. I hope it isn't drug related, but you don't often die from "natural causes" at 28.

Rest In Peace Jimmy.

Training To Run A Marathon

Justin — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 10:16:00 GMT

Well... 2010 is upon us, so it's time to look back at the past year and realize how great our respective lives were, or how much they totally sucked. Then, it's time to plan what's going to be different in 2010. For me, 2009 was both the best and worst year of my life, in different ways. It's like a ballplayer having a horrible first half and an amazing second half, although my "streaks" were more spread out throughout the year. A few of you know about my intense struggles and simultaneous triumphs and great successes this year, but most of you don't (and never will). I won't go into them here since this post will already be long enough, but needless to say, I'm reloading for 2010.

Every single year of my life, when the year is over, I tell myself that I know everything I need to know and I learned what I had to learn, confident that I'm "ready" to face the challenges that lie ahead. Then, one year later, I tell myself the same thing... obviously realizing that I didn't know everything and that there was a lot to learn, once again. This year, it's the same thing, but I know what I have to do this year, and I have a tremendous support network backing me. This isn't about me going "into battle" anymore alone. I have a lot of "troops" behind me this time as well.

When I was young, I used to live for spontaneous moments and monumental challenges. Tell me I can't do something? Not only would that motivate me enough to do it, but I'd exceed your expectations in the process. It motivated me when I was doubted and somebody told me I couldn't do something. As time went on, I slowly lost that and closed up a little more year by year. Now, over the past few years, the thought of something spontaneous or a huge challenge no longer motivated me, but it frightened me. Better to play it safe, I would tell myself. I don't want to fail, so let's just stick to the status quo and live day by day. What the hell happened?!?

I got tired of this over the past few months, because I've met some incredible people this year and became re-acquainted with some other incredible people that I used to be close with, and I'm starting to get the "swagger" back. If you want to achieve something great, surround yourself with great, supportive people. Look for others that are "better" than you in the areas you want to improve. (I always say there's no need to impress people who don't impress you in the first place.) I'm really going to be doing some big things in 2010, and some of them surprise me that I'm going to be challenging myself enough to do them.

My main goal in 2010 is to train for marathon running. This is going to be monumentally huge for me, because not only am I just getting into shape again in terms of working out, but I have horrible endurance, and it's been a long time since I've been a consistent runner... aka "never". However, a few of my close friends this year started running in the past year or year and a half, and I've seen the changes first hand that they've experienced. I witnessed my closest begin his workout plan just over a year ago and he's now competing in triathlons, has never felt better, stopped smoking, is happier, healthier, and his motivation is through the roof. There are no negatives when it comes to running for him, aside from the time investment that it requires for training. I saw it with my own eyes, because we were once in the same place... zero motivation, lazy and reactive (instead of proactive), and happy about it that way. But everybody gets the drive and the spark in different ways and at different times.

I've learned that nobody can motivate me, no matter how much they try. I have to want to do something myself, and sometimes that takes years to muster up again. I can read all the motivational quotes and talk to all the inspirational people I know, but if you don't have that black flame burning within you, all of the external influences just won't matter. I guess I finally have become sick and tired of feeling sick and tired.

So... this year, I'm going to be recording my progress with, of course, writing. I've found that in the past, when I had a goal (albeit not as serious as the ones I have for 2010), I never wrote them down, never shared them with others, and the failure rate increases exponentially this way. My ego has a self-defense mechanism like this where if I failed, it would justify it enough to make me feel like it wasn't my fault and to make sure I steered clear from the same challenge. But I've beaten that back enough where I'm able to take on something like this and see it through to the "finish line" this time. I've spoken with several people who were in the same position that I was, and I know what I have to do here. This is not going to be easy at all, but I need huge goals again. I'm shooting for early 2011 (likely the spring) in terms of running a marathon, but it could be sooner than that or later than that. Regardless, I'm definitely not going to push myself or try to be Superman... at least overnight. I'm going to record my progress and see myself changing step by step. I'm going to write about it for the entire world (all 16 people that care) to see... so this means there's no backing out this time, because everybody (all 16 people that care) are going to be watching me, and I don't want to embarrass myself in front of this crowd of onlookers (all 16 people that care). I have my early workout/training regimen planned, but any input from runners on here or prospective runners is appreciated since I'm basically starting out at square one in this venture.

So, that's that. I'd like to challenge everybody on here to choose one HUGE goal in 2010. What do you want to do? Or what do you want to change? What do you want to start doing? It would be kind of cool to have that mutual encouragement and support network when it comes to something that we thought we wouldn't be able to do, whatever our individual goals happen to be. Lemmy knows I'm going to need all the support I can get!

So... if you're up for it, share something big that you want to accomplish this year, and hopefully we can all work together to make sure we reach these specific goals. You have to really want to do this, and not just because other people are doing it and you want to "fit in" and do something too. Like me, it's taken years and years to get this motivation and drive back in my life. It took long enough! So if you're not ready, you're not ready. Maybe, just maybe, I might be able to inspire a few people to think about it in more depth as I succeed in this. I hope a few more people on here jump on this bandwagon, either to support me or to choose something that you once thought was "impossible" for yourself.

So... first, write it down, and think about it a lot over the next couple of days. Whatever you decide to do, there's no backing out now.

I'm ready to roll. 2010? BRING IT ON!

Avenged Sevenfold working on "most personal and epic" album yet

Justin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:41:00 GMT

Click here to read my latest article on Avenged Sevenfold's progress on their latest album, considered their "most personal and epic" one yet. Even though every band says something like that about their new album coming out, I'm going to go with it and tell myself that this is going to be a masterpiece. Don't let me down!

Concert Review: AFI at Epic in Minneapolis, MN

Justin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:33:00 GMT

Now that the dust has settled, I finished my review for TheyWillRockYou on AFI's show at Epic in Minneapolis on Friday night. It was wonderful getting to see the new Epic (which is the old Quest Club), but I was disappointed. Maybe it will grow on me, but it's obvious that it's more of a dance club than it is a concert venue. I saw a lot of great shows and had a lot of great memories in the old Ascot Room, but that's ancient history now. Still, I didn't let it impact my enjoyment of the show.

Check out my review on AFI's show at Epic in Minneapolis.

My 2009 MLB Playoff Predictions

Justin — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 22:58:00 GMT

Alright, I might as well get this out of the way so people stop asking me. I'd love to see the Twins and the Rockies in the World Series, but that just isn't going to happen. Here are my uninformed predictions for the 2009 MLB Postseason. While some people spend an hour or so determining their picks, I spent a minute or so. Enjoy!

ALDS: Yankees over Twins (3 games to 1) & Red Sox over Angels (3 games to 2)
NLDS: Phillies over Rockies (3 games to 1) & Dodgers over Cardinals (3 games to 2)

ALCS: Yankees over Red Sox (4 games to 2)
NLCS: Dodgers over Phillies (4 games to 3)

World Series: Yankees over Dodgers (4 games to 2)

Interview with Jyrki 69 of The 69 Eyes

Justin — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 03:20:00 GMT

Click here to read my latest Examiner article, an interview with Jyrki 69 of The 69 Eyes that I did for TheyWillRockYou.com! Then tell 10 friends to tell 716 friends about it.

Mötley Crüe's Best Album?

Justin — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 05:07:00 GMT

Hint. Vince Neil wasn't on vocals. Check out my newest article on Examiner about an album often forgotten and under-appreciated.

Iowa call center becomes first to accept texts to 911

Justin — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 21:01:00 GMT

Yahoo! Tech

FINALLY! I've wondered about this for the longest time, and it makes so much sense. If your house is being robbed or you're in a situation where you are unable to call the police (for fear that a thief/robber/attacker would hear or locate you), being able to text message 911 makes so much sense and will probably save lives. I'm surprised that this is the first location to accept them though. I hope more adopt the practice.

Ask me if I care.

Justin — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:07:00 GMT

Truth.

The Most Patriotic Thing You Can Do

Justin — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:48:00 GMT

Bust your ass and get rich.

Recycle a blog post day: the best outdoor marketing campaign ever

Justin — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 20:16:00 GMT

It's apparently "recycle a blog post day".

From a great blog post on Drew McLellan's blog Drew's Marketing Minute, here's a great piece on probably the best outdoor marketing campaign ever. I suppose I could just post this on my Twitter page, but this is great.

Did anybody in Buffalo ever visit this place before it closed down?

A look back at those in rock music that left us too early

Justin — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:15:00 GMT

Wow, what a day. Losing Michael Jackson at only 50 years of age, just months before he was going to mount a significant "comeback" was a shock to everybody, casual and devoted fan alike. I got to discussing with a colleague of mine those in the rock music world that left us too early, and I made a list of five of them that I still think about the most today, regardless of how young or old I was when they left us.

Check it out and leave your comments with the ones that impacted you the most.

Forgotten Albums: Wildside's Under the Influence

Justin — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:02:00 GMT

Check out my newest article on Examiner.

I'm beginning to write a series of articles on albums in rock music that either didn't get the credit I feel they deserved, or were entirely forgotten. This entry is about Wildside's classic Under The Influence, released in 1992 through Capitol Records.

Enjoy!

My review of Chickenfoot's self-titled debut album

Justin — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:07:00 GMT

Check out my review of Chickenfoot's self-titled debut on Examiner.com.

Expecting more, I was disappointed to say the least from this "supergroup".

In other news, stay tuned to my blog as I'll be interviewing the group Smile Empty Soul for TheyWillRockYou.com, and needless to say, THE ROCK WILL BE BROUGHT! I'll post the link as soon as it's up.

Steel Panther's Feel The Steel out now... in the U.K.

Justin — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 03:18:00 GMT

Click here to read my Examiner article on Steel Panther.

If you've been a longtime fan of the heavy metal parody band Steel Panther, then like me you're excited at the news of the release of their long-awaited album, titled "Feel The Steel". If you live in the United States, then like me again, you're upset that the release of their long-awaited album, titled "Feel The Steel" is only being released in the U.K. right now. The word on the street is that the U.S. version will be coming out in November, only... *does the math*... five months away?!?

While I count down the days until I can buy it here, check out my first article as the Minneapolis Rock Music Examiner on Examiner.com about, you guessed it, Steel Panther. And enjoy the following clips, courtesy of YouTube. (I'd have displayed "Death To All But Metal" or their "Behind The Music" episode on VH1, but embedding is disabled by request. Blah!)

My review is up!

Justin — Wed, 13 May 2009 06:21:00 GMT

Click here to check out my review I did for TheyWillRockYou.com of the Music As A Weapon 4 festival on May 9th at the Target Center in Minneapolis - featuring Chimaira, Lacuna Coil, Killswitch Engage, and Disturbed. DO IT! (The review says May 1, 2009. OOPS! Somebody typoed, but it wasn't me!)