words of ether

Hey, it only took a couple of years.

2011-09-08T21:03:00.001-05:00

It only took a couple of years for me to post again.

But the only reason I posted is that Blogger / Google FINALLY read my last post and made new templates.

That and they made an iPhone app.

Joy.

This may mean more posts in the future.

Hey Blogger/Google!

2009-09-30T01:29:00.000-05:00

Come out with some new fucking templates already.

Fucking lazy asses.

Gawd that template sucked...

2009-05-29T20:36:00.001-05:00

So look at this instead!

You are a
Social Liberal
(75% permissive)

and an...
Economic Liberal
(25% permissive)

You are best described as a:

Strong Democrat

Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid
Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

Yeah...

2009-05-28T21:58:00.000-05:00

At least this template is interesting. I guess.

Meh.

WTF?

2009-02-02T19:33:00.000-06:00

Are you tired?

The answer is still no.

2009-01-13T22:42:00.003-06:00

It starts off without a beginning then becomes an unbearable weight. It washes over me and I know regret.

For the millionth time I ask if I could have done anything differently to buy her more time.

So yeah, if I wasn't in the band I'm in now...

2009-01-13T22:14:00.005-06:00

I would love to use this thing live.

Interesting...

2008-12-17T12:09:00.005-06:00

Found out today that a local magazine wants to do a story on my band.

The thing that gets me is that it isn't a music mag, it

is the premier city magazine and is targeted to the city’s most afﬂuent residents. The magazine’s advertisers represent the ﬁnest businesses available in the area. Now entering our 2nd year of publishing, it continues its commitment
to highlighting the people, places, and lifestyle that make (redacted) a glorious place to live. Editorially, the magazine is oriented toward residents, newcomers, and visitors.

So I really can't figure out what they want with us.

Yeah, just drag the screen and shit happens.

2008-11-30T15:56:00.001-06:00

If you do video for a living then the stuff that Adobe may (or may not) be working on may (or may not) make a lot of the things you do daily like tracking, rotoscoping and other painful crap a lot less painful(or may not).

Anyway, watch the video.

Interactive Video Object Manipulation from Dan Goldman on Vimeo.

Truth 11/24/08

2008-11-24T21:07:00.000-06:00

This cartoon nails it.

Nice.

2008-11-03T12:17:00.001-06:00

SOuth Austin People

2008-11-02T15:13:00.004-06:00

Yeah... so I pretty gave up on my dream to become the Soapmaker of the Apocalypse™, but I still wish to remain cleanish.

I was paying through the ass for some really double plus good soap that I couldn't afford so I looked for a cheaper local alternative.

SOuth Austin People makes good soap that doesn't irritate my skin and doesn't force currency through any of my orifices.

Plus it makes me feel like I'm supporting local(ish) businesses.

Speaking of spineless-pig-whore-dogs...

2008-11-02T09:57:00.003-06:00

Some fucking asshole of a spineless-pig-whore-dog stole our Obama sign. They also stole one of our neighbor's signs as well.

Funniest thing was that the boy referred to the culprits as "Savages". He's never seen "The Road Warrior" so I don't think he has any reference point.

Evidently we're not the only ones with this problem, Peter Frampton's sign keep getting ripped off.

Yeah, so I had a deal...

2008-11-02T09:45:00.004-06:00

I ordered the single 12" version of the Crate V18 tube amp from Musician's Friend a few weeks back because at $150 it was a steal for a tube amp.

Demand was really high due to the price and they said they wouldn't have any for 2 - 4 weeks. No big deal, I can wait.

Well, earlier this week they cancelled the order like the spineless-pig-whore-dogs that they are.

I CURSE YOU MUSICIANS FRIEND!!!

So now I'm hitting the clearance page there trying to get a returned one at $113.

1936 - 2008

2008-10-12T21:26:00.006-05:00

My mom died in the afternoon of October 9th.

Her birthday was last Friday, October 3rd and we spent it in the ER. She'd been feeling sick for a couple of days, hard time breathing and coughing. It took a couple of days to finally convince her to see a doctor.

My mom had a hard life and was really frail. She looked all 85 of her 72 years. So when we showed up in the ER they took her at once.

They did the usual; took blood, EKG and X-Rays. After about 3 hours a doctor came in and talked to me while my mom was in the restroom. She let me know that they found what appeared to be a tumor about the size of my fist between her lungs pushing her windpipe out of whack. She let me know that they couldn't be sure without a biopsy but that there really wasn't anything else it could be.

After my mom returned I let her know.

She acted surprised, but I don't think she really was. She had been a lifetime smoker who'd had another type of cancer almost 40 years ago.

About 30 minutes later another doctor came by to re-deliver the news. We all agreed that she should be admitted and get a biopsy so we could really see what we were dealing with. About 3 hours later she was admitted to the hospital. After spending a couple of hours with her and making sure she was asleep I went home. Our house is only 4 minutes away if you don't hit a red light and at 4am I really needed the sleep.

At 7am Saturday morning my phone rang. It was a nurse calling me back. My mom had ripped out her IV, left her room and didn't know where she was and wouldn't believe she was in a hospital. She was at the nurse's station when I arrived about 10 minutes later.

I was able to get her to her room and we talked. She was very disoriented and had no idea why she was in the hospital. She didn't believe me when I told her she was sick. I didn't mention the tumor. I was able to talk her down a little and they sedated her so she would be able to get some sleep. Then they let me know that she would have to be restrained when I wasn't there because she was so frail and shaky they were worried that she'd fall and break something.

So I stayed.

She woke a few times and was still confused. I told her where and why we were a few times hoping that she'd remember but it didn't happen. That was how we spent Saturday and Sunday. She'd wake up lost and I'd tell her what was going on. I told her about the tumor when she asked, but stopped after a couple of times. It just was too hard to deliver that kind of news over and over. Looking back, this was probably the toughest thing I've ever gone through.

Besides the disorientation she was also aspirating, fluids were building up in her lungs. She was scheduled for a bronchoscopy and biopsy on Monday morning but they cancelled due to her condition. They also stopped all oral food and fluids. Late Sunday night one of her doctors prescribed a nicotine patch hoping that it'd help her mind a bit.

She snapped back on Monday and that was about the coolest thing ever. But I had to deliver the news again.

The whole time she was in they were giving her oxygen and every day they had to increase the amount.

Tuesday afternoon she was able to have food again and was doing much better, so the bronchoscopy and biopsy was rescheduled for Wednesday morning.

We spent an hour together before she was taken down for the procedure. They showed me where to wait and told me it would be about an 30 minutes.

About 90 minutes later the doctor came out and let me know was going on. She had reacted badly to the anesthesia and her blood pressure plummeted. Then he showed me pictures of what they'd found. It was lung cancer and it had invaded her windpipe. I'd seen pictures like this before but noting prepares you.

He tried to discuss treatment, but my mom already had said she'd never take chemo. So that was that.

Breathing was very difficult for her and she spent most of the day knocked out.

Later Wednesday afternoon they moved her to a private room so I knew they didn't think she was going live throughout the night. That night family came to say goodbye by wishing her well. She couldn't talk but she was able to smile. My sister and her husband were able to make it to town and we all stayed until 11:30 that night.

I came home and ate and went back up at Midnight.

At about 1:00am she tried to get out of the bed. I tried to stop her but she wasn't going to be stopped, so I helped her up on her feet. We stood and hugged for a few minutes and I laid her back down. About 30 minutes later she tried again. I helped her up and we hugged again.

About 1:30 she fell asleep and I left at 2:00.

My wife took off work and we went to the hospital around 9:00. Mom was drifting in and out, sometimes she'd try and communicate. One of the doctors came by and told us that she was too weak to survive the day. Mary left to get the boy. I stayed and held my mom's hand and cried.

My mom awoke when Mary came back with the boy. She couldn't talk. She made the sign of the cross. She wanted last rites.

Mary called the closest church, they told us that the priest was on vacation and offered nothing else. So Mary hunted down the chaplain at the hospital.

After my mom received last rites we waited and I called my sister.

As my sister was entering the hospital mom's breathing changed. It had been hard fought but now it seemed to smooth out. It wasn't so desperate.

I remember holding her hand and kissing her on the head a few times, but if you asked me to when she died I couldn't tell you. She just faded away and stopped breathing.

We cried.

She wouldn't have been able to handle the treatment because she was so frail so this is much better than letting the cancer take her over the next 2 months or so.

We had a good relationship, we got to say goodbye and she passed quickly.

It's been a week since she passed and I'm on vacation. I've caught myself thinking of calling her on the phone a couple of times.

I think the hardest part of the whole thing is going through her belongings and papers and finding helpful little notes for me.

Even in death she's still helping me out.

People with a dream making it happen always get to me.

2008-09-29T20:05:00.001-05:00

I damn near cried watching this.

Maybe I just don't understand...

2008-09-21T10:21:00.003-05:00

Do people really think that John McCain is at the top of his game?

Really?

My wife doesn't like me to say...

2008-09-18T20:42:00.007-05:00

"Your show about the 3 hookers and their mom is on."

This reminds me of the time...

2008-09-08T19:36:00.006-05:00

It was '71 or around then.

We lived in a seedy part of town. Looking back it felt like how a lot of those Blacksploitation movies looked; too bright during the day, just dark enough during the night to hide things. When I went back as an adult I was able to point out what I now suspect was a whorehouse and a corner where a guy would sell drugs to cars all day long.

My mom was driving us near our duplex or apartment (we moved a bit within the neighborhood) when we came to a red light. We were in the left turn lane with the right lane open.

I remember my mom loving the red '70 Ford Maverick. She'd been able to buy it on her meager wages because it had been a rental. She finally had the luxury of air conditioning. Our home didn't have Ac, just one of those water air chillers, but our car did!

Anyway... so we're stopped in the left lane at a red light when another car pulls up to our right and stops. My mom looks over and sees something she doesn't like, reaches past me and locks the door.

I look over to see a black man in a wide brim hat looking over at us. He saw what my mom did, looked at her then looked at me (I remember smiling at him) then looked back at my mom.

All of a sudden he busted out laughing, reached over with his right hand and locked his door too.

Of course, I didn't realize what was going on. But even at the age of 6 I couldn't pass up the opportunity to laugh with somebody so I started laughing too.

I don't know what kind of effect the whole exchange had on my mom. She may have thought it was funny, but I'm pretty sure it didn't change her way of thinking.

New visualizations for iTunes make me seasick! (Not really, they fucking rock!)

2008-09-05T20:24:00.001-05:00

Magnetosphere revisited (audio by Tosca) from flight404 on Vimeo.

Hey look! Another thing I want!

2008-09-03T21:33:00.004-05:00

Saw this goofing around on the web.

3 of these lined up on stage would look pretty damn cool and pretty much set the tone.

Since they're only about $150 we could prolly swing it before our next gig.

I'm not suggesting you do anything...

2008-08-25T20:41:00.002-05:00

Local Gentry :: Beatles Purple Chick

I'm glad I live in the USA, where I'm protected from stuff like this! [/sarcasm]

2008-08-20T21:38:00.001-05:00

New U2 songs leaked by... Bono? (subtitled: turn your stereo down asshat!)

2008-08-16T10:17:00.005-05:00

TorrentFreak has a great story about some leaked U2 songs from their next album that got leaked because Bono played his stereo too loud!

Some mooks recognized his voice blaring from his villa and quickly recorded the new songs. I'm sure the quality sucks but rabid fans won't care.

I know that U2 are still huge, but my question is do they matter anynore?

Actually, its called corporatism.

2008-08-13T15:21:00.001-05:00

Nobody likes paying income tax, you just do so the wheels of society keep turning. I know that if I could skip a couple of years or so it would really help out my ledger.

But if I actually skipped paying income tax for a year the GOVT would have IRS agents knocking on my door asking "WTF?" Then I'd be hauled off to the hoosegow!

But what if you're not really a person, can you get away with it?

Yes, you can.

Study says most corporations pay no U.S. income taxes | U.S. | Reuters: "Most U.S. and foreign corporations doing business in the United States avoid paying any federal income taxes, despite trillions of dollars worth of sales, a government study released on Tuesday said."

Now I know that corporations aren't people, but legally they are. I think that the heads of these corps should be hauled off to the hoosegow and forced to serve time.

But, that'll never happen.

Holy crap! You can see the shockwave! Holy crap!

2008-08-12T21:37:00.003-05:00

Huge Propane Tank Explosion and Shockwave - Watch more free videos

One of the things I learned from "Mad Max"...

2008-08-11T20:42:00.006-05:00

The one thing I took from the "Mad Max" movies is that the deathlands we'll live in after the fall of society will be populated by dirty, smelly, sweaty, dangerous people.

So in an effort to make myself a little more valuable to the powers that be in the post-apocolyptic wasteland and to make those powers smell better, I have taken it upon myself to learn how to make soap.

Teach Soap seems to have the most information for the novice soap maker. It may be too light hearted for a soap maker of the apocalypse.

Free Recipes for making soap from scratch has everything you'd want to buy to make your own soap, but the website looks "crafty". Meh.

How To Make Soap is exactly what I was looking for. Actual instruction on how to make soap from fucking scratch.

I'll keep you up to date on how long it takes me to blow this off.

This just in...

2008-08-10T11:48:00.003-05:00

WTF is it about power that makes otherwise intelligent men think they can get away with fucking around on their wives?

Dumbasses.

I use...

2008-08-09T15:15:00.006-05:00

I like web 2.0 sorta things but I hate doing them through the web.

Kinda weird I know, but there it is.

So after trying a couple of Twitter apps I have settled on Twhirl.

But I need another guitar...

2008-08-03T19:44:00.003-05:00

Actually, I could use another guitar. My Squier Telecaster isn't holding up very well when I have to use it as a backup. My Epiphone Goldtop really has some meat to it because of the P90 pickups and the Squier just can't measure up.

The SX SJM-57 PBU is a sucky name for what appears to be a good guitar.

It comes in a couple of different models and colors so I might end up getting a red one.

Here's a vid of Nick Curran from the T-Birds playing one.

Who puts the ASS into NASA?

2008-08-02T23:21:00.005-05:00

WILLIAM SHATNER SINGS ROCKET MAN
by super8monsters

I was sooooo against this video until I saw Bernie Taupin's endorsement.

Hey look... a video!

2008-07-31T23:17:00.001-05:00

Yeah, you might have to change that script we talked about yesterday...

2008-07-31T22:44:00.002-05:00

Met with a client yesterday to talk about the creative for his commercial.

The client is a mid 60s South Carolinian gentleman with gobs of money. His accent is a lot like Foghorn Leghorn with about 22% less Mississippi. Salt of the Earth with a strong handshake.

We talk for a couple hours and make long term marketing plans. Meeting done, the salespeople and I leave.

Today the lead salesguy (starched shirt, middle management, a closer) gets called back to the client's business. His fear is that the deal is off. Not a good thing when we're looking for nickels in the couch cushions so we can make budget.

Salesguy comes back to the station, shirt still crisp, and lets me in on the know; the deal is still on except instead of mega-hyped sale with big fonts, the concept has changed to a "going out of business sale" spot with big fonts.

So much for long term plans.

MUST HAVE!!!

2008-07-28T21:00:00.003-05:00

Blorp, blorp, bleep, bleep, bleep!

All I need is the kit from Bleep Labs and build my own Thingamapoop.

I have no idea how to fit it in to our music though.

Please do me a favor and pass "Last-Of-Iraqis" on to your friends.

2008-07-25T20:28:00.003-05:00

Last-Of-Iraqis: "I know I have said before that I don't want to have children in Iraq and this pregnancy was not planned but I can't describe how happy I am…the feeling of fatherhood is great, it's really great specially if the baby is inside my one and only love…feelings of love are overwhelming me…I love the whole world but it can never be compared or even be the smallest fraction to the love for my lovely wife and my son.
May god protect them from any harm and keep me alive and healthy to take care of them…Thank you god for your blessings."

I like how none of these web test things ever display correctly in my blog.

2008-07-25T20:20:00.003-05:00

What philosophy do you follow? (v1.03)
created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Justice (Fairness)

Your life is guided by the concept of Fair Justice: Everyone, yourself included, should be rewarded and punished according to the help or harm they cause.

"He who does not punish evil commands it to be done."

--Leonardo da Vinci

“Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace.”

--Dwight D. Eisenhower

More info at Arocoun's Wikipedia User Page...

Justice (Fairness)

75%

Hedonism

70%

Existentialism

70%

Utilitarianism

65%

Kantianism

25%

Apathy

15%

Strong Egoism

15%

Divine Command

10%

Nihilism

Yeah, told you so...

2008-07-24T22:32:00.004-05:00

We got our Avids about 3 years ago. Last week we replaced 2 of those with BTTW Final Cut Studio systems. Yeah, the same thing I suggested to the powers that be 3 years ago.

So here's the first thing I've done in HD on Final Cut Pro.

I am addicted...

2008-07-22T19:42:00.002-05:00

Vimeo seems to be fulfilling all of the promise that YoutTube pissed away.

Something sparkly is in your future from Ian Cameron on Vimeo.

Rock and/or Roll!

2008-07-21T20:08:00.006-05:00

Here's a shot of me and the boys playing at the Republic of Texas Biker Rally.

It was... interesting.

Google images for "ROT Rally". You'll see.

I AM NOT HOT HEADED!!! STUPID FUCKING QUIZ SUCKS!!! I'M GONNA KILL IT!!!

2008-07-17T20:48:00.001-05:00

Your results:
You are Green Lantern

Green Lantern		70%
Superman		65%
Spider-Man		65%
Supergirl		55%
The Flash		55%
Catwoman		50%
Iron Man		50%
Wonder Woman		45%
Robin		45%
Hulk		45%
Batman		40%

Hot-headed. You have strong
will power and a good imagination.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

For some reason I got nostalgic...

2008-07-17T20:21:00.004-05:00

I had an AM radio when I was a kid. It was how I heard the stuff that shaped my life.

All that mid 70s AM gold was like... uhm... gold to my ears.

So I went ahead and ebayed the radio in the picture.

Too bad most AM stations in my area are talk now.

I like big bass and I cannot lie...

2008-07-16T12:16:00.010-05:00

I've always wondered how to build a room-sized sub-woofer.

Now I know.

They missed that your food may have been on the floor.

2008-07-13T21:15:00.002-05:00

Everything on this list is true.

Just trust me on this, okay?

New and free? WIN WIN!

2008-07-09T21:53:00.001-05:00

I'm a cheap bastard. I haven't gone early-bird dinner yet, but I seem to be on my way. So imagine the thrill I got after finding Free Albums Galore.

Free Albums Galore is run by some guy named Marvin who takes the time to chase down legal free music sources. Now, your not going to find much (read any) mainstream commercial stuff linked, but you are more than likely to find music that you've never heard or heard of before.

Most of the links go directly to artists' sites that have free DLs. Some of the artists ask for a small donation if you like the music, which is more than fair to offset bandwidth costs.

From the FAQ:

I won’t link to files that require site registration before downloading, or to files with restrictive DRM. I also won’t link to albums with seperate tracks hosted as a single, inseperable track.

So, I was looking on the internet for a new car...

2008-07-06T19:11:00.006-05:00

Internetting I found Green Vehicles.

My fave thing is that the Moose looks just like an old Astro Van!

So anyway...

2008-07-05T22:14:00.003-05:00

The other day I found that I had a preference for bath soap.

I'd gone my entire life without ever thinking twice about the soap I used. What soap did I use when I was growing up? How about when I was single? To be honest, I can't name the soap I was using 3 months ago.

I think part of it is that real men don't care what soap they use because it's always Lava. And if they're out of Lava at the store they'll just use a wire brush and gasoline to clean their privates and be done with it.

For whatever reason, the words

see how lemongrass, pine, orange and patchouli essential oils can turn a boring shower into a truly groovy experience. You might think patchouli is only for hippies as it smells just a little too earthy. Well, flower child, you are so wrong! The scent is gentle and lovely but the full effect won't hit you until after your shower... when you experience a moment of true clarity.

sounded good. Even relaxing.

So I ended up trying Karma. And I liked it.

Now I fear I may be turning into a dandy.

So much for the punk cowboy thing.

This just in!

2008-07-05T20:03:00.003-05:00

I really borked my layout and I don't know if I really want to go through the bother of making it right again.

EDIT: Evidently I'm wrong.

DAMMIT!!! I had it fixed and now its borked again!

FUCK! WAAAAAH!

Yeah, so I pretty much just post videos now. I guess I'm just a lazy bastard. In any case, on with the show!

2008-06-09T22:03:00.001-05:00

SNAKE Game in the Student House - The most amazing bloopers are here

Golly!

2008-05-02T21:12:00.005-05:00

EDIT: Yeah, I don't know what happened to the video either.

My journal...

2008-04-23T21:23:00.003-05:00

I've been writing a journal for just over a year now.

I'm not really a journal type of person thought. I don't consider my days worth saving on paper, but for some reason I started jotting down small things in a Moleskine, and even though at times my writing has slowed I still write in my journal.

I write about things that I can't bring myself to talk about to another person, or even discuss here. Things like my fear of being found out (trust me on this, in some ways I am a total sham). Or about my failure at being a brother (remember the sister I found out about a year or so ago?). You know, my inequities.

But for the most part I write about good things, about things that make me smile. Like about the cartoon drawing of a dog on the inside of our 1st floor elevator door. I've sketched it and other things in my mole as well.

Besides that stuff I also have about 40 fortunes collaged in the pages.

I guess the reason I'm even talking about it is that I was wondering what people would think if they found my journal... and all I could think was "WTF?"

Ignore this as well.

2008-04-20T21:15:00.006-05:00

TAKE NO NOTICE, EITHER!

2008-04-20T20:56:00.000-05:00

TAKE NO NOTICE!

2008-04-19T13:22:00.004-05:00

This is just a test.

Who likes free stuff?

2008-04-19T13:08:00.001-05:00

How many times have you wondered if there was a place that kept track of Apple's Free iTunes Downloads?

If you're like me that number is exactly 8 times.

Because on the 8th ocurrance of this thought I finally made my lazy ass do a search on Google and found Free iTunes Downloads.

I like free shit.

Thanks FiD for making my life 37% easier!

Bullet points!

2008-04-13T14:25:00.004-05:00

•Everything is fine, life is kinda busy.

•Band is looking for a bass player with big gigs coming up.

•2 of the wife's books are now published.

•The boy is doing fine in school, but needs to learn how to drive and start looking at colleges.

•I want to win the lottery.

EDIT:

Oh yeah, I was a delegate in the Texas Democratic caucus and Senatorial convention for Obama.

Hey!

2007-12-03T21:48:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the lack of posting. But don't think that means nothing is going on.

I ended up joining a country/rock/punk band about a month and a half ago and it is taking up a good amount of my time.

More when I actually get time to put my thought together.

I laughtered.

2007-10-07T18:41:00.000-05:00

It's supposed to be one vote, right?

2007-09-28T12:42:00.000-05:00

Found this video over at Digg.

It shows the Texas State Legislature hard at work voting on bills. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing underhanded going on here. Just business as usual.

In fact, unless you are against elected officials stealing votes to get laws passed is not only illegal, but immoral as well then there's no reason to even click the play button.

To be honest, I'm just glad that they aren't letting any votes go to waste.

[end sarcasm here, start rage]

Definition

2007-09-26T12:04:00.000-05:00

terrorism - Definitions from Dictionary.com:
"terrorism [ter-uh-riz-uhm] –noun

1. the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, esp. for political purposes.

2. the state of fear and submission produced by terrorism or terrorization.

3. a terroristic method of governing or of resisting a government."

I don't think the majority of the United States fully appreciates the irony of our situation.

What the new iPod Touch needs.

2007-09-10T14:54:00.001-05:00

After several hours of just looking at the new Apple iPod Touch on the internet I have come to the conclusion that while the iPod Touch is a giant leap forward, it still could use a little improvement.

First and foremost, the iPod Touch needs a phone.

That's right, a phone.

Apple really messed up on this one. How hard could it have been to just slap a decent cell phone to the back of this thing?

Just imagine being able to listen to music, watch video, surf the net and voice calls all wrapped together into one gorgeous device. Hell, while they're at it, throw in Mail and YouTube. That my friends would be the very definition of innovation.

And think about all the telcos that line up to be the official carrier for this "Apple iPhone". There's got to be millions of dollars in a deal like that.

Now, Apple can keep its head in the sand and keep denying that people would kill for this UberPhone and I'll watch from the sidelines as Apple goes down in flames.

As turns out, at least Nokia is listening to consumers.

That's right, fucking Nokia.

Meh.

2007-09-06T12:59:00.001-05:00

66%

FilmCritic.com - Movie Reviews

I like chairs! v.2

2007-08-20T07:07:00.000-05:00

Thanks for the sage advice on the previous version on this post.

I went to the audition and I feel pretty good about it. I think I have the gig. But then again, he has been pretty fickle in the past.

We'll see.

So, I finally did it...

2007-07-09T18:19:00.000-05:00

So I finally got the Epiphone '56 Gold Top Reissue last week.

Initial likes: everything.

Initial dislikes: nothing.

So far this guitar is a winner. The action was seriously screwed up with a major back bow. All kinds notes were fretting out all over the fretboard. Adjusting the truss rod a couple of times and taking the action back down at the bridge turned it in to a real joy to play.

It doesn't play like a $499 guitar, it really feel and sounds like it should cost at least triple.

In my exctiement though, I forgot to order the case!

Going up?

2007-07-09T17:58:00.000-05:00

Yeah, so I'm on vacation this week and we'll be spending time in Dallas this week as my wife attends a national convention for romance authors.

So what does this mean? It means that she'll be hanging out with her writer pals and spending most of her waking hours going to meeting and such.

That leaves the boy and I to fend for ourselves; which isn't a bad thing. Instead of being stuck in an estrogen palace we'll be looking at guitars. Dallas is a big guitar town and we plan to hit every music store we can find. This isn't a buying expedition but really more of a sight seeing tour, just looking at big game and dreaming.

While we're in the hotel I plan on trying this hack:

How To Hack An Elevator - Watch more free videos

I remember the first time I learned about elevator's secret presses about 12 years ago at our main library. The combo to get to the basement was "2-B-2-B-2". The way I remembered it was by singing the doo-be-doo-be-doo part in "Strangers in the Night".

39 Ways to Live

2007-06-20T07:21:00.000-05:00

Every so often I forget.

Every so often I lose track of what its all about.

So every so often I need to be reminded.

39 Ways to Live, and Not Merely Exist at Dumb Little Man is the reminder I needed. It's all common sense really

Thje only thing that had me wondering was 39. Why 39? Why not a nice even 40? Was 40 a throwaway?

Will I stop asking questions? No. Wait... aw, damn.

BTW, the comic hits it right too.

Nations fall, life goes on.

2007-06-14T20:56:00.000-05:00

"Zimbabwe will collapse within six months, possibly leading to a state of emergency."

This scares me. Things like this can spread like a cancer.

Chaos is the natural order of things and we seem bent on letting it have its ways with us.

I sound like where?

2007-06-13T14:33:00.000-05:00

What American accent do you have? (Best version so far)

Midland

("Midland" is not necessarily the same thing as "Midwest") The default, lowest-common-denominator American accent that newscasters try to imitate. Since it's a neutral accent, just because you have a Midland accent doesn't mean you're from the Midland.

Click Here to Take This Quiz
Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

We got it, you're the President. Now can you quit fucking us over?

2007-05-31T19:51:00.000-05:00

This should surprise me, but it doesn't.

Georgie Anne Geyer: A spreading terror | Dallas Morning News:
"Friends of his from Texas were shocked recently to find him nearly wild-eyed, thumping himself on the chest three times while he repeated 'I am the president!' He also made it clear he was setting Iraq up so his successor could not get out of 'our country's destiny.'"

This scares me for a couple of reasons.

If you have to tell people that you are in charge, then you aren't in charge. That's not how power works. It's like telling people how cool you are; if you are, you don't.

But the part that really bothers me is that he has chosen our destiny and we will be forced to follow it no matter what. What if "We the people" want out of this destiny? I thought we kind of showed that we wanted a change, did you not get the memo?

This newest revalation begs the question: have we ever had a president removed for being crazier than a shithouse rat?

I truly believe that our president dillusional and needs to be removed. But what can we do? Are there protocols for this? Is there a manual in the Whitehouse that plans for this sort of thing?

To be honest though, I don't beleive that he'll leave office after the next election. I think he'll break in his new, self granted emergency dictator powers and it'll take a coup to remove the madman from office.

New Moleskine!

2007-05-25T23:09:00.001-05:00

This evening after dinner we went to Borders.

I love going to the bookstore. I always get a buzz off of it. It's not like I've had time to read lately, I just wanted a new book.

Books have weight. Books matter. So even if I'm ignoring a book, at least I'm ignoring something great (hopefully).

On this ocassion though, I wasn't really looking for a book but a new Moleskine.

I love my Moleskine, it is my blank slate, my confidant, my one indulgence. I carry it everywhere and scribble throughout the day. Sometimes notes, sometimes lyric ideas, but lateley I've ebeen sketching. Just simple sketches of the things that surround me. My clock, a speaker, the head light on a truck are in my mole.

But the paper rips easy. So... the sketchbook.

I think I'll still use my personal mole for roughing out ideas, but the new mole will get the finals drafts.

MoveOn.org Political Action: Stop Price Gouging

2007-05-22T20:59:00.000-05:00

BREAKING NEWS: GAS PRICES ARE AT AN ALL TIME HIGH!!!

Story breakdown: while you are paying record prices for fuel, oil comapnies are growing fatter with record profits.

So what can you do?

Click on over to MoveOn.org Political Action:
Stop Price Gouging, fill in a couple of blanks and let your government know what you want done.

Enough is enough!

A bill in the House would make gasoline price gouging a federal crime, and it could pass this week!

Can you help be sure it does?

What do you have to lose?

Thanks to Richard for the head's up.

Putting it all into perspective

2007-05-14T20:48:00.000-05:00

Sometimes its hard to really know what numbers mean.

Quantities in small numbers are easy. Everybody can imagine the amount in a six pack. Even a baker's doezen isn't hard, but how about a gross? Can you really imagine what a gross of anything looks like?

No, me either.

So a round of thanks needs to go to Chris Jordan. He was kind enough to put a few numbers into perspective for us.

So maybe I still have a chance for FCKBSH. Hmmm...

2007-05-08T20:25:00.000-05:00

Good news.

Heather Moriah gets to keep her South Dakota license plates the read "MPEACHW". This is pretty damn cool. I really expected that they'd show up at her house and pry the plates off her car.

Two things bother me though.

I wonder why they changed their minds and I wonder how long it'll take before some good old boy shoots her windows out?

36 0D C2 EC 52 86 1E EC 05 39 66 B6 2D 35 E1 0B

2007-05-07T20:13:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Freedom to Tinker I now have my own 128-bit integer! And if I catch anybody using it I'm gonna sue ur azzez!

If you have no idea what I'm talking about click here.

MPEACHW

2007-05-05T10:32:00.000-05:00

7 letters.

That's all it took to cause touble for Heather Moriah.

The letters in question are "MPEACHW" which are located on her personalized South Dakota license plates. The trouble is that after a single complaint the SD DMV want her plates back. DMVs typically have a list of offensive letter and number combinations that they won't allow to appear on plates but they're usually more offensive in nature. Things like "3M TA3" and "N05H1T" are on the red list and get refused right away, but since "MPEACHW" is a little harder to decode for anyone below a 2nd grade reading level it got through the system.

Here's where things get sticky: South Dakota wants the plates back, Heather wants to keep her plates. Heather says that her plates should be protected under freedom of speech. South Dakota thinks that the plates are offensive and that since the plates are owned by the state, they think that some may see some sort of state endorsement of her views.

Here's the best part, if Heather doesn't return them willingly the state will be forced to send law enforcement to get the plates from her.

See? Trouble.

Here's how I see it. Since the state issues and own the plates they can at any time revoke the license to the plates and ask for their return. IMO Heather should just return the plates and get the free replacements that South Dakota is offering.

Now before you get all mad and question my beliefs, I WHOLEHEARTEDLY SUPPORT THE MESSAGE, but the medium is wrong. Allowing her to have "MPEACHW" on her plates does in fact imply some sort of state endorsment. However, if she were to have the same plate in Vermont then all'd be cool.

The biggest problem I have with the whole story is that some fucking prig without a life even bothered to called and complained to the south Dakota DMV in the first place.

that person needs to be shot.

One day, I'm not going to learn how to play drums and piano.

2007-05-04T19:54:00.000-05:00

I said what?

2007-05-01T18:29:00.000-05:00

Don't you hate when somebody uses your own words against you? I try not to be put in that position, but sometimes it happens, especially if you have a teenager.

Think Progress was able to dig up this nugget from the June 5, 1999 Scripps Howard/Seattle Post-Intelligencer where then Texas Governor George W. Bush said:

I think it’s also important for the president to lay out a timetable as to how long they will be involved and when they will be withdrawn.

I'm sorry, what?

Time-whatle?

Now, if only someone in big media could grow some balls and call him on it. What could he say? He'd hem and haw but he would know that he'd been stuck.

What's scares me with this guy is that he's going OJ on us. He really believes the shit he's feeding us.

And so it appears do a good majority of the forces fighting in Iraq.

Zogby International published the findings of a poll conducted with Le Moyne College’s Center for Peace and Global Studies and the findings are troubling.

Almost 90% of the troops polled believe they are in Iraq because of Saddam's hand in 9/11. That's right, even though we know who planned and committed 9/11 they beleive Saddam is to blame. I wonder where they're getting this info from. Are they being told this in the feild?

Again, this is something that big media should be looking into, but they're too busy collecting Murrow Awards.

Savenetradio.org

2007-04-29T00:47:00.000-05:00

If you're like me (and of course, you are) you grew up with radio. Before corporate radio I used to love listening to all of the different kinds of music I could find on the FM dial. With just a quarter turn of the dial you could go from listening to Asleep at the Wheel to Rachmaninoff.

Those days of course are gone.

But I still get the same experience from internet radio... at least for now.

To make the story short, internet radio's royalty costs have been raised between 300 to 1200%. These outrageous rates will kill internet radio.

But there is hope...

The future of Internet radio is in immediate danger. Royalty rates for webcasters have been drastically increased by a recent ruling and are due to go into effect on May 15 (retroactive to Jan 1, 2006!). If the increased rates remain unchanged, the majority of webcasters will go bankrupt and silent on this date. Internet radio needs your help! H.R. 2060, The Internet Radio Equality Act was introduced by Representatives Jay Inslee (D-WA) and Donald Manzullo (R-IL ) to save the Internet radio industry. Please call your congressperson to ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 2060

So please head over to Savenetradio.org and join the fight to keep internet radio alive.

So, I searched for Jesus Christ...

2007-04-26T23:11:00.000-05:00

And found that there are 6 adults with the name "Jesus Christ" living in the U.S.

HowManyOfMe.com

There are
6
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

What the fuck were their parents thinking?

YOU HAD 9 MONTHS TO COME UP WITH ANOTHER NAME AND YOU WENT WITH THE FIRST NAME THAT POPPED INTO YOUR MIND?

I checked my name and found that they could only find 1 with my name. I wonder if it's me or one of the other 2 guys with my name?

BTW, I checked. There are currently no "Adolph Hitler"s living in the U.S.

Moleskine Hard Drive Geekery

2007-04-26T21:03:00.000-05:00

After becoming infactuated with my Moleskine a couple of months back I've searched for others who share the same illness.

My latest find is an entry on the zonageek: blog.

Imagine my joy... no, my utter elation at finding instructions on how to build The Geekster Moleskine, a portable hard drive encased in a Moleskine! Oh my, this is the perfect marriage of tech and that big word I used a few posts back!

All I need is that Moleskine hard drive and a Steampunk Keyboard and I'll be set.

I swear.

If only there was some way to watch TV shows on the internet...

2007-04-20T18:49:00.000-05:00

TV Links has a bunch, and I mean a bunch links to television shows for you to watch from the comfort of your internet browser.

Grey's Anatomy?

Yup.

Battlestar Galactica?

Uh huh. The new one and the original, though thankfully not Galactica 1980.

In fact, with the eclectic collection of links there's gotta be something for almost any taste.

I can't imagine that it'll be around too much longer so click while you can.

One day, when I'm creative...

2007-04-18T22:41:00.000-05:00

Jim Woodring is a right bastard, he is. Trust me on this.

Fine! See for yourselves!

This jerk has combined my 2 fave things: pop-up books and moleskine notebooks into one great activity.

GRRR!!! Why is he doing this? Is he trying to make look and feel bad? ;-)

Anyway, stop by and look. It's cool.

Hidden message

2007-04-17T20:28:00.000-05:00

To the woman I almost met with my car...

2007-04-17T20:13:00.000-05:00

That thing you blew by on the access road as I was exiting the highway is called a Yield Sign.

It lets you know that you need to yield to traffic exiting the highway. If the powers that be had wanted you to merge at that point in the roads they would have placed a Merge Sign at that location instead of the aforementioned Yield Sign. Actually, a Merge Sign might have forced you to acknowledge the cars coming off the highway.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that you have no idea how close that Yield Sign was the last thing you didn't see in your life.

Maybe though in the future you will.

The Top 7 or so Austin Punk Videos I could find with very little work.

2007-04-12T21:39:00.000-05:00

After finding the show flyer in my last post I went scrounging YouTube to see what I could find. There wasn't that much but I did manage to find some old stuff and some reunion stuff.

This is some of the music and people who bent me into what I am.

Big Boys - Live / Austin TX punk, 'Funk Off' / 'Baby, Let's Play God

Big Boys - Live / Perkins Palace, Pasadena CA

The Huns (live in Austin, TX 1979)

The Huns (live in Austin, TX 1979) Pt 2

POISON 13 at Emos, Austin, Texas, Feb. 24, 2006

The Delinquents - Do you have a Job for a Girl like me?

The Dicks @ 710 Club

Notice

2007-04-04T21:36:00.000-05:00

I wonder if this was written by a model or the gamesman?

Either way...

>insert title here<

2007-03-17T22:12:00.000-05:00

filed under:Punk and Austin

I was poking around teh internts and I came across this flyer. I love old punk flyers. They never look the same, sometimes with multiple designs for single gigs and there's always something that grabs your attention. In this case it was "Missile sandwich" because I remembered it.

This is a poster for a big rock show that took place on 9/4/81. The 3 headliners were pretty damn good. If I remember correctly, this was a gig for the MDA. While Jerry Lewis was doing his thing in Vegas on the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon these bands put on a show and all the profits went to the MDA.

The Big Boys may have been the best band on the planet. They headlined because nobody could touch them. They were the first skate-punk band that often toured with a funk horn section. Great stuff.

The Dick Gas 5 were a just barely contained explosion. Mixing noise with more noise and a beat poet adlibber their sonic collage would assault you, take your wallet and leave you wondering why your pants were around your ankles. a couple of weeks later they changed their name to Butthole Surfers.

the rejects was my band. Denise was 18, Mark and I were 16. We were kids.

What surprised me about finding this flyer is that somebody actually saved it. My mom doesn't even have it.

So yeah... something, something, something.

3/14

2007-03-13T18:43:00.000-05:00

My Visual DNA

2007-03-10T12:52:00.000-06:00

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

So, I got this going for me...

2007-03-06T09:44:00.001-06:00

Now with pretentiousness! Yum!

2007-03-01T19:57:00.000-06:00

I finally broke down.

After years of hemming and/or hawing, I have finally purchased a Moleskine.

For those who don't know, a Moleskine is one of those (mostly) little black notebooks with the elastic strap that artists, writers and other creative types use to jot down ideas and whatnot.

Allegedly.

Anyway, I've always been enamored with them. There's something about them that suggests they carry content of weight, that whatever is written inside their black covers matter. I think part of it is that I've always prefered to write with a fountain pen because it felt like it lent weight to what I was scribbling, like I was creating.

Quality in anything comes at a price, so after passing by them in the stores for years I finally made my purchase.

Almost at once I started wondering what was hidden inside for my pencil (until I find the right pen) to uncover.

I've already used 4 pages just on random things, but it feels like I've found a muse.

UPDATE:

I found THIS after looking for some tips. HAH!

Here's a cool FlickR stream.

Oh yeah..

2007-02-19T18:48:00.000-06:00

Uhm... I kinda forgot that I had this place.

I swear I'll post some sort of update soon after I unlazy myself.

I swear.

If this had been an actual post...

2007-01-11T20:49:00.000-06:00

filed under:Meme and Queen

I'm 'Any way the wind blows'!

Which Line from Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody Are You?

Found at Electronic Ephemera. Thanks again Richard!

Live Macworld Keynote Links

2007-01-07T10:09:00.000-06:00

filed under:Macworld and Apple

Yeah, if you're an Apple fan you're probably going to be paying attention to what goes down Tuesday morning during Jobs' Macworld Keynote speech. This is where he throws out all the cool stuff and "one more thing" that Apple's been working on.

Anyway, here're some links to "live" feeds of Jobs' speech.

www.macrumorslive.com

http://arstechnica.com

live.macobserver.com

dailytechtalk.com

uneasysilence.com

www.worldofapplelive.com

Listen

2007-01-02T20:01:00.000-06:00

filed under: rock and roll, guitar, home studio and DIY

My son's band recorded in our living room on New Year's Eve.

It sounded like this.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-01T13:42:00.001-06:00

Enjoy this picture of an Gold Top Epiphone Les Paul!

I CAN'T RESIST!!!

2006-12-25T20:57:00.000-06:00

filed under:guitar

I am really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really thinking about signing up for a Guitar Center credit card and picking up one of these with a cheap hardshell case.

I don't consider myself a Les Paul kind of player, but I tried one last week and I haven't been able to keep my mind off of it.

Must obsess now.

English Channel

2006-12-12T09:43:00.000-06:00

Here's a picture of the English Channel that I finally finished.

It gets you real close to the sound of a Vox AC30 for about $1,000 cheaper.

The clean sound is like the early Beatles sound, but the dirty sound actually sounds more Marshall like than it should. I probably need to go inside and re-bias the transistors a little closer to the specified voltages.

It plays well with the 250, Phase 90 and my BYOC Delay but it hates my Distortion+ and Tremolo pedals. But this might be fixed with the re-biasing thing.

The boy kinda freaked on how close it sounds to a real Vox. He even hinted that he'd like one.

Maybe for a bday present.

Finally...

2006-12-09T21:50:00.000-06:00

filed under:guitar, DIY and stompbox

For months I've been working on The English Channel from the good people at runoffgroove.com.

The English Channel is a FET pre-amp that is supposed to sound like the Vox AC30.

I started building mine way back in August or so. After assembling it over a weekend it didn't work. Yea!

That's not the entire truth. It did make a rather loud squeeling (for the record, it is not supposed to make a loud squeeling).

Not really wanting to pick up the soldering iron I let it sit.

And sit.

And sit.

It sat collecting dust until about 2 weeks ago when I became interested in the circuit's potential again. I took it to work to let a couple of engs look it over but they couldn't find the prob either.

So I let it sit.

Until last night. I went over the pcb with a volt meter for a billionth time. I re-re-re-biased the transistors again, plugged it in and it worked.

It worked. WTF? I have no real idea why it works, but it do.

It makes my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe and Tele sound real close to an AC30 and a Tele. Real close.

The problems I had with the project are a reflection of my lack of skills and not any shortcomings of the circuit design.

In short, The English Channel fucking rox0rz your box0rz and while it can't replace a Vox AC30 it is about $2,000 cheaper.

We're supposed to get a new HP tomorrow so I'll post pics soon.

One man's trash...

2006-11-26T15:09:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago the boy and I came back empty handed from a gear quest. Not that we have any money to actually buy gear, but the hunt is fun.

As we pulled up closer to our driveway I noticed that our neighbor had put a small guitar amp to the curb for trash collection.

The boy grabbed the amp and brought it in to the house for inspection. It turned out to be a DOD Grind IT practice amp. At first look the amp didn't seem to be in bad condition. The terminals on the speaker were missing, just broken off. The wires connecting the amp to the speaker were just twisted together. Also the clean/dirty switch was broken and unable to latch to dirty. Other than that the amp was dirty but in good physical condition.

After attaching a speaker terminal and soldering the leads from the speaker coil to the terminal I powered it up. The sound was pretty lame; as in very bad indeed.

Since I don't need another amp I gave it to the boy to use as a very terrible/experimental keyboard amplifier.

So I guess the moral of this story is "One man's trash is another man's".

EDIT / UPDATE:

So the amp sounds cool with some effect and a crappy keyboard going through it!

Also, I offered the amp back to the neighbors and they didn't want it.

TiVo skip commercials hack!

2006-11-09T18:48:00.000-06:00

filed under:TiVo

In an effort to end my TiVo n00bness, I started searching the web for all things TiVo and found a whole world of TiVo hacks. The hacks ranged from the pretty hard like upping the hard drive for extending recording capacity to the very, very easy.

The thing that I hate about watching recorded TV is the commercials (ironic, no?).

When I stumbled on the 30 second jump hack I jumped for joy! Not really...

So in an effort to spread the word, here's the "TiVo commercial skip" hack I found at bigmarv.net.

Grab your TiVo remote. Bring up any recorded program. (I believe you have to be watching a recorded program rather than "Live TV" in order to enable the feature.) On your TiVo remote, key in the following sequence:

SELECT PLAY SELECT 3 0 SELECT

If you've successfully entered the code, you should hear three "bings" in succession to let you know that you've successfully enabled the 30 second skip feature. The skip-to-hash button on your remote will now skip forward 30 seconds during playback. The previous function of the skip to hash button (that is, jumping to the next "hash" mark on the playback progress bar at the bottom of the screen) can still be accessed by first pressing fast forward or reverse. Press the fast forward button and then press skip-to-hash and the playback will advance to the next hashmark (or the end of the program if you're close to the end of playback.) Press the rewind button and then the skip-to-hash and you jump back to the previous hash mark, or the beginning of the program depending on your place in the playback. Skipping past the end of the program takes you back to the start of playback.
Note that you'll have to re-enable this feature any time your TiVo is rebooted (such as after a power outage or a software update.)

Should you not like the 30 second skip, you can disable it by re-entering the Easter Egg exactly as you did to enable it.