Re: 5 Albums

Tue 14 July 2026

I saw Noisy Deadlines' recent post entitled "5 Albums," and it reminded me of fun "getting to know you" viral copypasta posts on social media before social media turned into a pile of garbage 😄.

So, here's five albums to get to know me, based on release date. Note that the last two are religious in nature.

Michael Jackson — Thriller

CD Album cover for Michael Jackson's "Thriller"

This was one of the first albums I ever owned, and I had it on vinyl (before vinyl was cool! 😄). I was a big Michael Jackson fan when I was a kid (before his image was sullied by controversy), and I remember listening to this album a lot. I also remember seeing Thriller on MTV for the first time as a kid, and it was an amazing video. It was the longest music video I'd ever seen (about 14 minutes long), and I remember calling it a "movie" at the time. 😁

Tangerine Dream — Optical Race

CD Album cover for Tangerine Dream's "Optical Race"

I listened to this album a lot in the mid-90s, but I don't think I ever owned it, myself. A couple good friends of mine that were roommates through much of the 90s had it, and I'd hang out with them, listening to it while staring at the lava lamp, because... that was entertainment when you were bored and broke in the 90s!! 😄

RCA Victor — Beethoven's Piano Sonatas — Artur Rubinstein performing

CD Album cover for the RCA Victor release of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas as performed by Artur Rubinstein

I don't remember how I got this album, but I got it in the latter part of the 90s, and I remember listening to it a whole lot (I didn't have too many CDs, anyway). I honestly think Moonlight Sonata gets a bit overplayed, and overshadows some of the other Beethoven Sonatas, which are all pretty amazing.

These recordings gave this (undiagnosed) ADHD Spectrum kid a lot of emotional language and fluency that he was very badly missing. 😄

  • Discogs link
  • (Sorry, I couldn't find this exact CD on Youtube)

Misty Edwards — Always on His Mind

CD Album cover for Misty Edwards' "Always on His Mind"

Here we get into some choppy waters. This was a favorite album of mine for many years, and still holds a special place in my collection, but I honestly couldn't recommend it today without a raft of disclaimers. It comes from a religious movement that was revealed to be rather abusive and cultic, and one which I feel signtificant antipathy towards today. If you ever see anything labeled "New Apostolic Reformation," run, do not walk, in the opposite direction.

Adam Cates — Nights at the Big House

CD Album cover for Adam Cates' "Nights at the Big House"

This is another religious album, but one I don't have any reservations about recommending. It's a really lovely live worship album, if that's your thing, and I've enjoyed it for nearly 20 years.


Next article in the July Reply series

Category: Entertainment
Tags: Beauty   Christianity   Collaborations   Content Warning   Entertainment   Music   Non-technical post  


Some Thoughts on Star Trek: Picard

Tue 27 January 2026
Warning: (obviously) spoilers abound!

I just finished watching Star Trek: Picard last night, and while this won't be a thorough analysis (I'd probably have to watch it five times to accomplish that), I did want to briefly write down my thoughts on it.

Like many older Trek fans, I'm not …

Category: Entertainment
Tags: Beauty   Content Warning   Entertainment   Life   Non-religious post   Non-technical post   Personal favorites   Science Fiction   Video  

Read More

The Mad, Joyful Chaos of the Creative Process

Thu 15 January 2026

After yesterday's unhinged, painfully cathartic threnody of a post, I really wanted to post something short, light and enjoyable. I was considering writing down my thoughts on my favorite TV show, The Good Place, but that would have taken altogether much too long, so that is going to remain a …

Category: Entertainment
Tags: ADHD   Beauty   Entertainment   Humor   Music   Non-religious post   Non-technical post   The Good Place   Writing  

Read More

The Scenes that Made Me: Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

Sat 24 May 2025

Lars looking on wistfully while ingesting his sister-in-law's retort to his rant (AVIF format) Lars looking on wistfully while ingesting his sister-in-law's retort to his rant
Video clip

Content warning: this post unavoidably and briefly touches on some "mature" topics

If you had told me six months ago that one of my favorite movies of all time would be a bout a man who …

Category: Entertainment
Tags: 100DaysToOffload   Beauty   Content Warning   Entertainment   Life   Loss   Non-technical post   Philosophy   Series: The Scenes that Made Me  

Read More

The Scenes that Made Me: Star Wars

Mon 19 May 2025

Luke looking wistfully out at the dual sunset on Tatooine as The Force Theme plays hauntingly in the background, beckoning him to his grand adventure

Luke looking wistfully out at the dual sunset on Tatooine as The Force Theme plays hauntingly in the background, beckoning him to his grand adventure

Having grown up in the 1980s, one thing random friends would often ask me (actually what family friends would ask my mom) was: "Has he …

Category: Entertainment
Tags: 100DaysToOffload   Beauty   Entertainment   Ethics   Life   Loss   Non-religious post   Non-technical post   Philosophy   Science Fiction   Series: The Scenes that Made Me  

Read More

The Scenes that Made Me: Star Trek

Sat 17 May 2025

I'm starting a new series where I recount the TV show and movies that were formative in my life. Not only in my childhood (although that will be heavily emphasized), but even recent days.

As I mentioned in a recent post, there were some scenes in Star Trek that deeply …

Category: Entertainment
Tags: 100DaysToOffload   Entertainment   Ethics   Life   Non-religious post   Non-technical post   Philosophy   Science Fiction   Series: The Scenes that Made Me  

Read More

Blog Questions Challenge: TV Shows Edition

Sat 12 April 2025

I keep finding more of these blog challenge questions, and I totally love them.

This one comes courtesy of Andreas' blog.

Like Andreas, I'm not a big TV watcher. I think I formally quit watching TV in 2003. I did watch a few things on Netflix and Amazon Prime over …

Category: Entertainment
Tags: 100DaysToOffload   Beauty   Bible   Christianity   Entertainment   Life   Non-technical post   Philosophy   Science Fiction   Video  

Read More
Page 1 of 2

Next »