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Great year to be a Sci-Fi Geek

2009-03-03T22:12:00.000-08:00

This year is turning out to be a great year for Sci-Fi films. Watchmen is opening this Friday (going to watch it in IMAX!), DragonBall in April, and Star Trek, Terminator: Salvation, and X-Men Origins in May. That's just up to spring, Imagine the rest of the year. 2009 might turn out even better than last year which had The Dark Knight, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Indiana Jones 4, Wall-E, and City of Embers.

Back to MagTown

2009-03-03T22:01:00.000-08:00

After a couple of years I'm back in Magnolia. Wedgewood is a nice neighborhood but Magnolia is closer to downtown and work. It's also familiar having lived here for 12 years. And being close to family is always good. It is good to be back.

Make me fries!

2009-02-21T18:32:00.000-08:00

Been posting a lot of youtube vids lately. Here's another classic. The fact that I love this song makes it all the more funnier to me.

My old haunt, from a different view point

2009-02-20T21:04:00.000-08:00

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What a letdown

2009-02-20T00:11:00.000-08:00

I can't remember the first time I heard Last Goodbye by Jeff Buckley but I do remember that I immediately fell in love with it. It's up there in my list of favorite songs. It would be early 1995 when this song pretty much became my life's anthem. I was hopelessly in love with a girl but didn't have the guts to say anything. At that time I already knew that I was leaving for Seattle and knowing that I might leave without letting her know how I felt was killing me. I played this song so much I could hear it in the background in my dreams. The song seemed tailor made for my situation at the time: the haunting music, the hopelessness in the singer's voice, and the resignation to certain loss of the lyrics. The song affected me so much that up to this day when I hear it I get taken back to that particular time in my life.

Then I decided to watch the video on Youtube. As much as I love the song I have never actually seen the video until a few minutes ago. I honestly wish I hadn't. It just ruined the song's mystic for me. It's an unimaginative generic 90's grunge-wannabe video, down to the plaid flannel shirts. Talk about instantly regretting doing something.

Sigh.

Mario and Luigi would be proud

2009-02-19T15:40:00.000-08:00

I have seen some very good covers of video game songs (this one of the Monkey Island Theme is one of my favs) but this I think is the best. It's not a straight cover like the Monkey Island one but the band really pulls off the music. The accordion really takes it over the top.

Where's the pot of gold?

2009-02-12T15:53:00.000-08:00

It's confirmed, there is no pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.

The end of a rainbow.

Interestingly I've never seen an end of a rainbow eventhough I've seen many rainbows in my lifetime.

Overcaffeination

2009-02-09T20:23:00.001-08:00

Is that even a word?

The experts say the first step to quitting an addiction is admitting that one is addicted.

Here goes.

I am a coffee junkie. I'm talking about the real thing, not that milk diluted stuff Starbucks peddle in their shops. There is no time of day that I do not drink it. I think I may even drink more at night. It's gotten a lot worse since I stopped smoking. Now I don't even think about cigarettes but my body just can't go a day without at least 5 mugs (yes, mugs). It's so bad that my doctor's been trying to get me to reduce intake to just a cup a day. I can't tho. It's like I can't operate without coffee. It's my premium unleaded. It's the love of my life (I know, pathetic hehe). It's the Juliet to my coffee Romeo. You get the gist.

OMG OMG OMG!!!

2009-02-06T16:28:00.000-08:00

I feel like how I felt when I was about to have sex for the first time.

Well not quite but I'd say it's close

Signs that our species will soon be extinct #32

2009-02-06T15:57:00.000-08:00

1 very sick person and 31 very dumb ones

I'm speechless. Really they would rather have gay sex than call the police? Really? Maybe they wanted it anyway? I don't know the whole thing's just too bizarre for me. And the blackmailer, are there really people this sick? Really makes me think that we're going the way of the dinosaurs, except that we don't need the help of a meteor to do the job.

On another note, this is why I automatically block social-network-site-hot-chicks that say they want me for my body. As much as I believe it's true I have a good enough grasp of reality to know that "if it's too good to be true it is!”

Seems like it's been a long time ago...

2009-02-06T15:17:00.000-08:00

...since I last made a post. Feels like it at least. Been very busy at work plus the cold I posted about last week is still bothering me. My energy's been all over the place like a bi-polar OCD on a sugar high. Unfortunately the bill collector does not take a sick day off so must not I.

Sucks.

OK so Geeks might not be as cool as I think

2009-01-27T23:43:00.000-08:00

This shot of two LARPers has been going around the Internet. What I want to know is are there really people out there that spend their time trolling Google Street View looking for things like this?

en garde!

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touche!

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Skype to enter indefinite beta stage

2009-01-27T23:25:00.000-08:00

Rumor is Google might buy Skype from eBay. I don't use Skype so I don't really have anything to say about it. I do have this to say about Google: Google tracks and indexes anything that goes through their systems. Imagine your calls getting tracked and your conversations being transcribed and stored in their servers.

Google to buy Skype

Virile Virii

2009-01-25T22:15:00.000-08:00

I've had this cold that would not go away for three weeks. I also have this fever that comes and goes anytime it pleases. My energy has been in the crapper the whole time. I just feel really drained. The meds my doctor gave me help a lot but one of them has codeine which makes me a bit loopy when I take it. On the bright side I've been able to take a few extra days off from work.

Awwhh c'mon, now they're just being mean

2009-01-25T22:06:00.000-08:00

They just won't leave my childhood alone! If you have seen CGI Chipmunks, Garfield, and TMNT movies you would know exactly what I mean. Now the demon-spawns from Hollywood are going to do it again. They just couldn't leave well enough alone.

Poor Cat and Mouse

And the destruction of my childhood continues

2009-01-15T01:10:00.000-08:00

Will Smith is co-producing a remake of Karate Kid with, predictably, his son as Daniel san. Negotiations are also on-going to cast Jackie Chan as Mister Miyagi. The theme will remain the same but the script will be re-written.

I'm really not sure what to think of this. The Karate Kid is one in a collection of timeless movies from the 80's that define my generation - with Ghost Busters, Pretty in Pink, Breakfast Club, Nightmare on Elm Street, Some Kind of Wonderful, and Lost Boys among others. It's a movie that I have seen hundreds of times yet would watch again if I happen to catch it while channel surfing. Somehow I just can't imagine a remake doing it justice. As much as I love Jackie Chan I don't believe he'll be able to pull off a Mister Miyagi convincingly. As for Will Smith's son, well...

Drunken Master Miyagi

Proof that Geeks are the coolest people in the world, exhibit 1

2009-01-13T23:39:00.000-08:00

Things like this make me proud that I'm a geek. Seriously the coolest inventions of the last 20 years have come from the bored minds of geeks.

Percussions of Grandeur

2009-01-13T23:03:00.000-08:00

Got the drum kit set up. Been playing on it the last couple of days. For a cheap set it's actually pretty decent. Triggers are speed sensitive allowing for soft or loud play without manually adjusting volume. Not multi-zone though but that's to be expected of triggers from a sub $500 electronic kit. 8" across so it's fairly good sized; I still manage to miss the damn things though. The kick trigger sometimes get flaky but it's probably just my inexperience. The build quality seems well done, feels sturdy. It's made in China so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Overall it's much more drums than I expected for the price. I'll post some sound clips, hopefully, this weekend. Pics below.

In Soviet Russia the Guitar Plays You

2009-01-11T19:49:00.000-08:00

The latest Robot Guitar from Gibson will be released soon. Called the Dark Fire it has a built-in tuner (multiple tunings can be saved allowing the player to change tuning on the fly) and sound modeller. It connects to a pc thru a midi/firewire breakout box/port allowing for direct recording.

Suppose to be available early this year so it should start popping up in music shops within the next few weeks. At $3,500 each it costs a pretty penny. I wonder if I can get a new loan. I could use my car as collateral :D

Gibson Dark Fire

Bang it Baby! Bang it hard!

2009-01-11T18:16:00.000-08:00

Bought an electronic drum set today. Was still feeling bummed out so I decided to go out and get one. For some reason spending money I don't have makes me feel better. Until I get my credit card bill.

Anyway I'm setting it up and will post some pictures soon. Hopefully in a few months I'll be able to complement my mediocre singing and guitar playing with some mediocre drumming.

Windows 7 Beta Available for download

2009-01-09T18:54:00.000-08:00

Update: Link is now working properly. Download the beta build now while it's still available.

If you're into testing beta software check it out. Microsoft's servers are getting hammered so if you're getting error page just wait a few hours and try again.

Windows 7 Beta Download

A ella le gusta la gasolina! Como le encanta la gasolina!

2009-01-08T21:41:00.000-08:00

Driving home I passed by a gas station and saw gas was at $2.01. I passed this same station this morning and the price was at $1.85. In just over 12 hours gas price at this station went up 16 cents. Last time gas prices went up this fast it topped out at around $4.50 a gallon.

OPEC has been whining the past month over the low price of crude oil. They have been discussing lowering daily oil production to raise prices to more "acceptable" levels. That has me worried. Acceptable to OPEC usually mean 'bled dry' to drivers.

Unfortunately there's really nothing anybody can do. Not even the president of the United States, the single most powerful man in the world, has the power to force OPEC to increase oil production when they do not want to. We will have to just grin and bear it.

Or bend over and take it depending on who you're talking to. C@cksucking bloodsuckers.

Guilt Trip

2009-01-07T22:15:00.000-08:00

So here I am watching a South Park rerun (the guinea episode, "OH MY GOD I AM SO STARTLED!) when an ASPCA commercial comes up. It's the one with Sarah McLaughlin talking about lost pets while 'In The Arms Of an Angel' plays in the background. It was like everything stopped as I was reminded of my lost cat. It has been five days since she managed to run out and get lost. Since then it has snowed and rained almost non-stop.

Sigh. I can't even take care of a little cat.

Latest Apple Product

2009-01-07T19:17:00.000-08:00

Courtesy of Onion News Network.

Apple Introduces Revolutionary New Laptop With No Keyboard

Hilarious. And spot on.

The Blog Thing part 2

2009-01-06T19:33:00.000-08:00

There was a brief but interesting discussion about blogs and blogging in my email group. Somebody asked what exactly is a blog and do people actually read them. This got me thinking because I have thought about starting my own many times before. Every time I would get stumped by those exact same questions: What would my blog be and would anybody read it. My answers would be: I have no idea and no.

It's not that I'm not exposed to blogs- my favorite sites are actually blogs: myextralife.com and penny-arcade.com. Extralife is a personal blog by Scott Johnson, a middle-aged family man who grew up as a gamer. Penny-Arcade is a web-comic blog by two late 20's gamer who are now married with young kids. The common thread here is the closeness in age and love of gaming.

That is the key I think, it's all about what interests you. I've seen way too many blogs that deal primarily with the bloggers' personal lives. Well I don't want to read about other people's lives, problems and all - I have enough problems of my own. What Extralife and Penny-Arcade do right is they talk about things and events in context of how it affects them - readers can relate to those.

So what will this blog be about? I'm not sure yet. Would anybody read it? Probably not.

Here's a discussion in Menard's blog about the blog thing.

The Blog Thing

2009-01-05T23:19:00.000-08:00

So here it is I finally have my own blog. I've thought of starting one many times before. Every time I convinced myself it wouldn't work since 1.) I'm too lazy to post regularly and 2.) nobody's interested in what I have to say. But I read somewhere that keeping a journal is good for one's sanity. Considering that I just had a particularly horrid week I figure I could use the catharsis.

As for an actual post, I think I'll start tomorrow. I need to put together a coherent thought first. That might take a while.