exploding rock™

Stuck in the Void

I stopped trying to learn how to code again.

At this point I think I need to go ahead and take this L. I’m not sure if I’m cut out to be a programmer. Originally I embarked on this programming journey back in 2019 with Code Louisville. I barely made it through the course and when the next semester came, I didn’t sign up to continue. Fast forward to the summer of 2024 and I again tried to learn programming. This time I told myself I would stick with a particular language like Python. As I began to relearn everything I once knew, the news of job cuts in the programming sector started to arrive on my front page and my motivation started to wither.

I have always heard that being a hustler has to run in your DNA. You have to have that grit and that drive. For me? I don’t have any of it. I can go broke tomorrow and won’t have the drive to get back on my feet to make enough money to be stable again. I don’t know if it’s due to laziness or some sort of mental blockage from my previous lifetime but it’s kind of annoying. The only consistency I have in life is through skateboarding and music. But even down those avenues I’ve gotten comfy with where I’m at, only fine tuning small details that I think will stand out if I can deliver the product well enough.

I want more. I want to succeed. I want to break my cycle of laziness and engross myself in something that makes me feel alive. I want to make better music. I want to skate better. I literally just want to create something that I am capable of and feel fulfilled. Why is this so hard?

~ keep it all smiles

May 15, 2025

coding, hustle, programmer, Python, void
Did I just blink?

You know how sometimes you can wake up with a crick in your neck? Well today I woke up with one in my shoulder blade. At least that’s what I think it is. The damn thing has been bothering me all day. I haven’t let the pain stop me from my daily activities. I woke up excited about these “Blink” cameras I ordered from Amazon the night before. Days prior I was standing around my house trying to visualize where I was going to install these cameras. My pops was wondering what I was staring at when I stood at the front of our house with a stern look on my face like I was trying to solve a math equation. I’m poor at math so there’s no way I’m solving that!

The cameras arrived just before 6PM and I excitedly ran out front to grab them off the front porch. There’s an echo device installed in my mom’s room so when I heard the delivery alert, I made haste to the front door. Installation was fairly easy and I made sure to tape the camera to the wall before committing with the screws. I was sort of in a rush because my dad was about to leave the house for work and wanted me to attach his diabetic meter on his arm. I also had plans to make it by the manga shop before it closed for the evening to pick some books up I ordered.

Once I got everything squared away I launched the app to see how everything worked. I wasn’t aware of the time limit on the live video feed. You only get 30 seconds of live video before you are presented with a “continue” button on the screen. If you don’t press it, the feed cuts out and you have to reload the video. I don’t think the purpose of these cameras is for you to continuously watch what’s going on outside though. It clearly says it in the name— blink. It all made sense once I clicked on the clips tab and saw the compiled videos of everytime my dad and I appeared in front of the camera. After this realization I came to terms with the product I bought. I had no idea what I was getting into as I bought these cameras on a whim. They were on sale for $89, it was a steal if you ask me. They are also wireless so no cables to mess with. Apparently the blink camera can run for 2 years off fresh batteries. Knowing me, I’ll be the one to put that to the test. I just wonder how they will fair in the winter.

Since installation I cannot stop checking the live feed. I discovered I can turn on the microphone on my end and talk to whoever is outside. I’m really looking forward to the next door to door salesman who approaches our home so I can tell them off while I’m playing Gran Turismo 7. My phone gets alerts when I have the cameras set to “armed,” which notifies me whenever a person walks by. I don’t know about you, but to me that sounds like a fun summer 🌞.

Ps. It’s 4:24AM and my shoulder still hurts.

~ keep it all smiles

May 14, 2025

Blink, camera, manga, security
Nature over Nets

These days I come and go from my cozy little home on the internet. I settled with this cool vaporwave theme then walked away like I did some shit. I’m probably gonna change it because the text editor is hard on my eyes and reading white letters on a pink background is mad annoying.

But what’s been up with me? For the most part I’ve just been recording some new songs and taking a walk at the park. I still skateboard but I keep hurting myself so I’m taking it easy to allow my body to heal. So in my absence at the skatepark I have been enjoying nature. The park I frequent is Joe Creason. Recently some private investors made an announcement that they want to build a huge tennis and pickleball complex along with a restaurant and well… that did not bode over well with the community.

I heard about the development on the news and when I went to the park the next day the community already had signs and pickets in their yards saying “Nature over Nets.” I was pretty happy to see that this was the response from the community given that it was a private firm coming in, talking about how they want to tear up the park to build some shit nobody asked for. I remember when the announcement aired on the news, they had this lady who was a local tennis champion expressing how she was looking forward to the development. It kind of made me upset even though there was this look of joy on her face. I just couldn’t believe that they wanted to tear up such a beautiful park to create private tennis courts that you had to pay for. Not to mention the line of pine trees that they would have had to destroy for the stupid parking lot that was gonna get rid of the little natural habitat area.

The city held a community meeting that I couldn’t attend because of work, and man did the community show out. Literally hundreds of people pulled up to tell the Mayor and the investors to GTFO. To be honest, they should have known that was gonna happen considering the signage that was ALL OVER THE PLACE. Post I saw on facebook from people made some good points as well. If you are not familiar with the Louisville area or Joe Creason for those that do, it’s literally right across the street from the Zoo. During the noon hours, traffic is terrible with people going to the Zoo or simply taking Trevilian Way to get to Poplar lvl or Newburg Road. So you get the point.

ALSO! The development plans called for a restaurant. Like what? The whole entire thing was out of pocket and I am extremely glad that Mayor Craig Greenberg agreed to listen to the voices of the community and shut that goofy shit down.

~ keep it all smiles

May 13, 2025

fiction, joe creason, life, mental-health, nature over nets, park, travel, Writing
I’m trying to learn something new

In the fall of 2019 I enrolled in Code Louisville with dreams of graduating and becoming a full fledged computer programmer. To say the least, I flunked out and never tried to write code again. What happened? I’m not sure. When I tell people I usually say it’s because I wasn’t in the write head space. At that time I smoked hella weed, cigarettes, and my only ambition in life was to create cool rap music.

I still have those same rap music ambitions but I’m also 30 with a part time job at UPS. Right now I’m in the process of applying for full time positions because I’m literally broke. Hopefully I can snag one of these jobs and my financial situation will become just a little bit easier. While working towards that goal, I was sitting at home one day thinking to myself, “Why did I give up on programming?” So randomly I got on YouTube and searched up some how to write code videos with hopes of inspiring myself to try it again. I found a helpful video that suggested I check out The Odin Project and Freecodecamp for a no bullshit way of learning code.

Now here I am, almost 2 weeks in (I originally started writing this post 2 weeks ago btw lol) and I’m kind of back on the road to learning full stack web development. I initially just wanted to learn Python but I think it will look way better on my resume if I can show any future employer that I can write in multiple languages. It’s going to be rough though, I’m not the best when it comes to learning but deep down I know that I am capable of learning this new skill. I proved myself that I could do it with skateboarding and then again with music production. So surely I can hunker down and learn how to write lines of code that can become something.

What’s great about The Odin Project is that they give you resources and tips on how to learn and unlike all the other courses I tried in the past, the honest truth… You’re not going to learn this in 6 months. Yeah I know, there’s people out there that have but I’m not that kind of person. I will say that I did learn how to make beats in 6 months but that was different, I think I’m musically inclined or at least knew where I wanted to go with that. Programming is a whole new battle field full of new surprises that I have to become accustomed to.

Now that I have embarked on this journey, I’m also taking time to try and organize my life. I’m using my favorite reminder app Tick Tick to list out what I need to do on a daily basis so I can add some formality to my life. It’s been a goal of mine for a couple years now to keep an agenda or write out a daily plan for my life. I guess it’s never too late to start huh?

Anyways, lemme get back to trying to fix my life.

~ keep it all smiles

May 16, 2024

learning, life, programming
Twenty twenty fo’

Communication is hard.

Trying to convey a message or share feelings with someone never comes easy. I’m awesome at doing just that, not know how to talk to people or get a point across. Communicating has always been difficult for me. I know that sounds crazy since I make music but really, talking to people is hard sometimes.

At this very moment in my life I have several different scenarios where my communication skills are very poor. I’m a huge overthinker and just trying to get the fucking message clear in my head is sometimes a struggle. What do I do in moments of distress? I walk away. That isn’t good though so I really need to make that a New Years resolution of mine and learn how to talk better.

I mean look at me, a 30 year old male who lives with his parents with dreams and aspirations struggling to communicate simple thoughts and feelings. Assuming becomes a terrible feature as well since I just build up this weird conclusions in my head.

The world is a huge playground waiting for me to learn more from what it has to offer. Yet all I want to do is play DDR. Besides that, I think moving forward I’m going to work on being a better person and not letting myself drown in the infinite thoughts that run wild through my head. A few years ago I used to meditate and man was that a life changing experience. Guess I’ll add that to the list of New Year’s resolutions since I’m a self proclaimed buddhist.

As the songs goes “You gotta get up, get out and get something.”

~ keep it all smiles

January 1, 2024

communication, ddr, life, love, people
Remember the time.

What makes you feel nostalgic?

A long time ago back in 2009 I was on a Michael Jackson binge. Every day I was listening to a new Michael Jackson album. I went back and forth from Dangerous to Bad then all the way back to Thriller. It was a special time in my life too being in highschool and all.

During the summer of 2009 Michael passed away and it was the wildest thing in the world at that time. It felt like something was ripped away from me. How I heard about his death was even more insane because it was inside of a computer store out on the Hurstbourne (Louisville, KY). “Oh man Michael Jackson just died” yelled out the geek from the back of the store. My father’s response was “What? Really?” I couldn’t believe it myself but I was also a young kid at the time and at first it didn’t phase me until the news spread like wildfire. Mind you, this was 2009 and touch screen smartphones only had been out for 2 years or so. News spread pretty quick as it was everywhere from iPhone 3Gs, Blackberries, CNN, and of course the front page of Yahoo.

This was a pivotal moment in my life because prior to all of this I spent so much time in my room in the same exact spot that I am writing this blogpost, just listening to Michael. I had a portable CD player that I got for Christmas one year and I was just jamming to his music on there. I was mainly listening and reading the CD pamphlet so I can memorize the lyrics and sing the songs later to myself. This was a little before I got my first MP3 player which I think was Christmas of that same year.

I still remember the day after his death, I would walk outside and the ENTIRE neighborhood was listening to Michael Jackson. You couldn’t go anywhere without hearing one of his songs. From television to radio, Michael Jackson was on air 24/7. I still have his US Today edition Newspaper in my possession .

One particular song that stands out to me is Remember The Time. Back when Cj used to live next door a friend or relative of his stopped by and they had that song turned up to the max thumping the side panels of the Escalade they were riding in. When I hear that song today it brings me back to those days when I was a high schooler on summer vacation browsing trying to find a wifi connection of my Nintendo DS.

This random memory of mine brings a certain nostalgia that I love to resonate in from time to time. I can cut on any Michael Jackson song right now and it’ll bring me back to that summer of joy and tragedy. Not only can Michael Jacksons music do that but so can many other artist that I listened to from 2008 to 2012. Artist such as T.I., lil Wayne, Rick Ross, Jeezy, Danny Brown, B.o.B, and The Isley Brothers. Music is the soundtrack to my life and can always create nostalgic moments that remind me that I’m human. As a I get older the nostalgic feelings I get occur more often as I yearn for when times were much simpler. I guess life is getting harder huh?

~ keep it all smiles

December 31, 2023

dailyprompt, dailyprompt-2169, entertainment, Michael Jackson, music, review, thriller
Last day of the year

Hi internet, it’s been a while.

There used to be a time where I used to come here a lot to air out any grievances I had going on in life. But these days that new outlet is music. Whenever I’m feeling down I’ll pull out my Google Keep notepad and just write away my thoughts and feelings into rhymes and melodies. A lot of the times it never comes out the way I want it but its a nice way to just clear my mind when I’m not feeling it.

Here lately things in my head haven’t been right and I’m not too sure why. I don’t think I’m depressed or anything but I’ve just been confused. I’m confused on the new relationships I’ve built with people in my life and what they truly mean. There’s one person in particular that I just can’t seem to shake and I don’t know why. I guess mentioning that makes what I said earlier I lie but its truly not. I just wanted another place to go to other than the norm and really let my mind free because as of late I’ve been restricting myself behind the mental bars of insanity and dreaming false narratives.

Life is just weird ya know and they way we spend it at humans can be either fruitful or disgusting. As for me, it’s just a vibe that I try to ride like my skateboard doing kickflips on rough pavement. There’s nothing more enjoyable than landing a trick but when you do it on shitty pavement it means a little more. But to go back to the matter at hand, I’m trying to overcome the confusion in my brain because I know that I am human and these things come about as new challenges like in a video game. I either accept it and see what the rewards are or I can just leave it be and try to move on.

I really don’t like challenges and do my best to stay from them but when my brain is on a constant marathon of images of what I’m not to sure of I began to ponder the many possibilities which just turn into a cluster fuck of bullshit. Whenever I get frustrated I simply get sad and that overwhelming feeling of loneliness starts to creep in and I just shut myself off. I usually end up on social media writing weird cryptic messages hoping that the person or people that they are intended for read it and reach out. Sometimes it works and then sometimes it doesn’t. When it does work and they do reach out I end up lying and covering up how I truly feel and hide my emotions from them.

It gets to a point where I feel like I’m crying wolf but in all honesty I do want help or maybe someone to talk to? The point I’m trying to make is that I’ve reached this place in life where I realize that I haven’t done enough and that if I want to get any closer to what I want I have to grab it with my bare hands. All in all I know that a new 365 days is coming up soon and it’s time to realize what I want in life and take action.

happy new year.

~ keep it all smiles

December 31, 2023
I started Vlogging

Hi internet. It’s been a while… at least over here.

Recently I’ve been doing a lot of other stuff than talking about my life on the internet. One of those such things has been vlogging. I’ve always wanted to vlog but just could never find the time or even purchase equipment to do so.

Equipment was an excuse tho because I have a Google Pixel and the camera is baller. So on one random week a few weeks back I decided to start vlogging with my phone. I recently upgraded to a GoPro Hero 10 black and edit on iMovie. I’m doing this as a way build a larger audience so I can introduce more people to my music. But most importantly, I think cataloging life through video is cool.

In recent years I’ve been watching a lot of different blogs on the internet. From Luckys Wheelz and Deals, CJon32s, RelltoReal, e-ought, Kota The Yoda, and many more. I’ve spent countless hours watching the lives of these people who share their daily adventures through a camera lens. I got so inspired that I said fuck it I’m gonna do this and now here I am.

With 7 videos on the internet I’m pretty satisfied with what I’ve accomplished. I can’t remember how many subs I had before but now I’m currently sitting at 91 subscribers. VidIQ is helping me learn and stay organized so I can properly grow my channel. The journey has only just begun but its been fun so far. I’ll leave a video here for y’all to check out. I just wanted to stop by and let anyone who used to read this site know that I haven’t left.

Also if you’re wondering what my blogs are about its literally just my daily life, from work, skateboarding, music, DDR, and just hanging out with my friends. So there ya go, enjoy!

~ keep it all smiles

August 18, 2023

afrodamus, blogging, ddr, lifestyle, lifewiwthafro, skateboarding, vidiq, vlogging, youtube
Allergies Suck Ass

Its April 25th and today I woke up with only sneezing one time. Within the past month I have been sneezing non-stop when I wake up from my daily slumber. I asked my doctor a few weeks ago if I could get a refill on my allergy medicine and I got no response. To tell you the truth though, I have never been diagnosed with allergies nor do I even know what I am allergic to. Is having allergies something you get diagnosed with anyways? These are the question I ask myself as the age of 30 looms over me like a rain cloud waiting to burst.

I live in the Ohio Valley so that’s one red flag. Like I said I’m not sure what I’m allergic to but I am assuming its pollen. But here’s the kicker, from a quick Google search I have discovered that my allergic reaction can be from one of 3 types of different pollen! Do I sound illiterate now? The lack of research I have done for myself is belittling. Oh let me not forget that I’m pretty sure I’m allergic to cats and dust. Dust is a given, I have always sneezed from that but the cat allergies were new. I can remember it like it was yesterday, I was hanging out with my Buddy Eric as his house smoking some pot and his roommates cat came downstairs to greet us. “Hey Pepe,” Eric says as he reaches down to pet him. As soon has he ruffles his fur right beneath me I instantly started sneezing. I looked at Eric and said “I think I may be allergic,” which caused Eric to dramatically say “SHOO!” to the cat, lol.

All in all, I’ve been sneezing a lot here lately and my nose runs constantly. I’ve found some 24hr allergy medicine that is similar to what my Doctor gave me a year ago and I think that is helping. I just started taking it so we’ll get some real results here in a few days. Other than that I think I’m going to jot some ideas for my next blog post which will be about manga that I have been reading. I’ve been wanting to talk about manga for a while on my blog and I think right now would be the perfect time. Until then…

~keep it all smiles.

April 25, 2023

allergies, googles, ohio valley
Hello 2023 & Manga

I used to write on this site all the time but it seems here lately that I have forgotten that I even own a blog. These days I’m caught up in instagram, tiktoks, and whatever I find on YouTube to help me go to sleep. I think its time that I update everyone on what I have been up too which hasn’t been much.

Firstly I would like to discuss my recent addiction to manga. Now I have been an on and off reader of manga for a few years now. Back in Highschool (11 years ago) is when I first started looking into manga. I found this one book (which I can’t remember the name of) and read it in one day during English class. I think this was my sophomore year. It went by so quick that I wanted to buy the next book but I had no money. Fast forward to 2018 and had ShoenJump on my phone and MangaRock. I found this laid back manga called “Flat” which I thoroughly enjoyed but never got to finish because MangaRock got shut down. I also started to read “Fire Force” at the time as well. Sometime went by after that brief period and I hadn’t even opened up a manga or even tried to read one. When the pandemic hit I became a huge fan of Anime. I had already been watching Anime on and off but the Pandemic gave me all the time in the world to binge new genres that I never even thought about getting into. This is when I discovered I liked Slice of Life. For a full year all I did was watch Manga but in 2022 I kinda slowed down. I had just finished up the 3rds season to Fruits Basket and started up a new Anime which was Life Lessons with Urimichi Oniisan. It took awhile for me to finish that Anime as my life was started to pick back up and I had activities outside to do like skateboarding.

Once I started to suffer from Anxiety/Panic attacks I found myself house ridden and not wanting to leave anymore finding solace in my bedroom. Staying at home and being alone did not help with my anxiety because I would always feel on edge as if another attack was going to spur at any moment. To null that feeling I remember trying to read some manga on the ShoenJump app on my phone. I always hated trying to read on my phone because of the screen size so I picked up a Kindle Fire I gifted my mom a few years ago and sideloaded the ShoenJump app on there. Scrolling through I decided to read “Spy X Family” which kept popping up as an AD. This was waaay before the Anime came out and they were only 50 chapters in. While reading that manga I also started “Sakamoto Days” which I binged for a while. In the midst of all of this I also got really into Manhua and Webtoons.

Now here we are in 2023 and I am reading many different books. I also got into buying hard copies because I love reading the afterwards. Some of my favorites that I bought are Sweat & Soap, Living Room Matsunaga San, Crazy Food Truck, Persona 5, A Galaxy Next Door, and a bunch others.

MY FAVORITE MANGA RIGHT NOW THOUGH IS DANDADAN. I HAVE THE FIRST BOOK AND PLAN TO BUY THE SECOND BUT I’M ALREADY CAUGHT UP ON THE STORY BECAUSE I HAVE BEEN READING IT EVERY MONDAY ON MANGA PLUS APP. IT’S A REALLY GREAT MANGA AND YOU SHOULD READ IT TOO.

Well… that concludes my blog post.

~ keep it all smiles

January 15, 2023

manga