Just a couple random pics from my my pics folder, cause I'm a bit bored
-800.jpg)
So I thought I would make a little comment on the qualit of the pictures. I realize the quality of them is kind of low, on the moblog normally I am able to use the "It was a phone camera what do you expect?" defense.
For these pictures on the other hand I actually did use a Sony Cybershot 32. megapixel camera. I know this camera to be capable of some just awesome pictures, in fact I've taken one or two that I think rock myself.
So for the Italian house prayer the quality is all my fault, I take the blame for it being a bit wonky. Taking the picture was kind of spur of the moment thing. While unpacking it and trying to decide where to hang it an argument over what it meant ensued. Naturally I went to the internet to find out, that is when I grabbed the camera and mangled the photo with a flash glare.
As for the quality on the picture of the sky I have a far better excuse, a few of them actually. First the picture was taken from a moving car, a difficult task but since I was going freehand I think I held the camera pretty straight. Another thing is I used a program to downsize the picture automatically, I do still have the large sized file on my end and I assure you it does look a bit better.
I need to dig out the book on my camera and see if I can set it to save in a format other then jpg. Going through some of the stuff I've shot with this camera made me realize photography can be really fun, especially when you can actually take a GOOD picture.
And so we climb out of the pit of self loathing and for a brief moment stop plotting magnificent revenge on clueless siblings. Onto something hopefully a bit more entertaining.
Podcasts, we know what those are now don't we? By we I of course mean you, I obviously know what they are. Could you imagine if I didn't know what a podcast was though? I mean what are the odds that if I didn't know what one was that I would randomly throw the word Pod and Cast together into one and ask if we know what it is?.. Ok revealing too much random thought.. must.. get.. back... on... track...
So we are all cool with the idea that a Podcast is basically an mp3 or audio file similar to a radio program of some sort or the other right? Yeah I'm pretty sure some podcasters don't really like that explanation because it's more than that but I like to keep things easy around here (it helps with my own fragile sanity). Well we also know that now there are Videocasts, or Vidcasts, or Video Podcasts, or umm... Video's that are kind of meshed in with Podcasts now right? Gotta thank the iPod video and iTunes for the meshing, not that the mesh is a bad thing.
What am I getting at here? Oh yeah, I thought it would be an interesting idea to share the podcasts that I have subscribed through iTunes. Note that I said interesting not good or bad. Also I should say I am aware there are many good podcast retrieval programs out there, I happen to use iTunes simply because it's convenient and easy to keep everything organized.
So, here is what I listen to and watch in no particular order.
Command N (Video) A tech news show hosted by Amber MacArthur and Mike Lazazzera.
It's a good cast, I watch it when I'm looking for a geeky good time.
Diggnation A podcast rounding up the top stories of the week from Digg.com. hosted by Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht.
This show is great, you put Kevin and Alex in front of a mic for any reason pretty much and you certainly hat my attention. This one is also available in video form I generally stick with the audio version but once in a while something happens that you just have to go back and grab the video to see.
dl.tv (video) IPtv show hosted by Patrick norton and Robert Heron. Similar in some aspects to the old ScreenSavers show (back when Patrick Norton was a cohost) Lots of techy goodness.
A very good show. Give it a watch, you just might learn something.
Family Guy Foxcast Freakin' Sweet!!!
Happy Tree Friends (video) Animated woodland creatures that usually meet a horrific and hilarious demise.
This may not be for everyone, but I'm not too proud to say that my mind is twisted enough to find this to be hilarious.
Infected with Martin Sargent I'm still not quite sure what exactly to make of this one, I know it's funny and it's filthy. Just like Martin.
Security Now! Hosted by Steve Gibson and Leo Laporte. Straight up very good and important information in the realm of digital security.
I wasn't sure if I would really want to listen 40 minutes of talk about security, I'm glad I decided to give it a shot, I now listen to this one pretty much immediately when a new episode is released.
SWGack A weekly show covering pretty much all aspects (good and bad) of the MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies. Hosted by Alex Albrecht and Joshua Brentano.
I had quit SWG for a while, decided to take a break and all that. A few months passed, I kind of forgot about how fun it was. Then this little podcast came along and reminded me how much fun I had in the game. Again I'm pulling the put a mic in front of Alex card and I'll listen. Even if it is Alex's fault that when I started playing again I went towards being a Creature handler in game only to have the profession completely ripped out of the game pretty much as soon as I got up to it. I also credit this show with keeping me level headed enough to stick with SWG through the NGE.
This Week In Tech Do I really need to say much about this one? If you remember the old ScreenSavers tv show, or you like tech of any kind or any of that fun stuff just do yourself a favor and check it out.... as if you haven't already.
Weezy And The Swish Comedy-casting at it's finest. Hosted by Louise "Weezy" Palanker and Laura "The Swish" Swisher. They bring in the funny and they slice like a [expletive deleted] hammer!
I Love stand up comedy, especially when done by intelligent people. Weezy and The Swish never fail to bring forth laughter.
Radio Free Burrito The newest addition to my subscribed casts. This is Wil Wheaton's latest attempt to remind everyone that in fact he is a bigger geek than you, and he could totally Pwn you at any given moment. All your base are belong to Wil
Seriously though Wil's podcast is pretty cool so far. It'll be pretty interesting to see where he heads with it from here, Give it a listen, totally worth the time. Also I was being truthful, all your base really are belong to Wil.
Thats all of the pretty much for now, there are a few others I have downloaded an episode or two to test out, but to be honest if try to listen to any more then I already do I'll have to invest in some caffeine pills or something so I can thwart my bodies attempt to sleep.
Now the hard part, I wrestle with myself in my mind as to whether or not I should publish this or trash it because I am sure it is a completely muddled confusing conglomeration of random rants and inane conjecture. I should really clean it up, but it's far to close to 4 am for editing.
And thats all I got to say about that.
Somewhere between the ages of 10 and 12 I was treated quite seriously for stress induced stomach ulcers. The pains I had were actually very easy to describe, like a sharp knife cutting in and occasionally twisting. Pretty awesome for a kid that age to be that stressed out isn't it?
Something about the holidays always seems to remind me of those times.
So I am a fan of this short lived TV show called Firefly, I may have mentioned this once or twice. You know Firefly don't you? The television predecessor to the movie Serenity a movie I enjoyed, again I may have mentioned this.
So, I totally forgot to mention on here the soundtrack situation for both movie and show. So here is the deal, I finally got them both
First impressions. Lets start with the Soundtrack for Serenity The Motion Picture (as it was released first)
23 track
49 minutes and 9 seconds or so worth of music in total
3 minutes 56 seconds for the longest track.
So my first thought was woah hold on! I'm pretty darn sure the movie was just about two hours long, they couldn't scrounge up more then 50 minutes worth of music? Seriously it seems like a total waste of space to me to leave that much emptiness on a disc, throw in some movie quotes or something if you have to just give me something fun to listen to. A little bang for my buck you know?
So already we were off on the wrong foot.
Onto the actual music. What I noticed while listening to the soundtrack was how it really did remind me of watching the movie. When I saw the movie I hadn't actually thought I had payed attention to the music, but it's such a subtle thing that it does creep into your mind, which is good. I realized that as a movie soundtrack this did the job pretty well. However, as a stand alone CD I don't think this soundtrack has all that much appeal. Sure the music is decent, but it's not a melodic type thing, it has more of an emotional zing to it which if you don't have the context of the movie you will probably miss much of what you are meant to feel. The reaver related tracks however if you Do have the context really rock. Again if they would have used the free space on the disc to mix in some movie dialog to help set the feel for the tracks it might have gone a long way in making it better.
Bottom line. I'm glad I have it, but only because I collect Firefly and Serenity related items, and I am a huge fan of the series. If I were not I don't think there would be much here.
next up The Original Television Soundtrack for Firefly.
25 tracks
1 hour and 30 seconds or so of music
3 minutes 27 seconds for the longest track.
Again why so short? You can't tell me that out of 14 episodes of hour long TV that there wasn't at least 80 minutes worth of music you could have pulled. Or if not different tunes how about extended versions of some of these? I don't know, maybe I expect to much.
So the music of Firefly is one of the things about the show that I just absolutely fell in love with. Such a beautiful mixture of genres and cultures and styles, done in such a way that it just totally works. Yes much like the movie soundtrack the music on this disc also can remind you of the episode or scenes that it is representing. However the difference with these tracks is huge, that being you do not have to have seen the show in order to enjoy this music. Yep thats right I said it, the Firefly soundtrack I believe can stand on it's own as a very nice little score of music. Oh sure, some the only song with lyrics on the disc (The Ballad of Serenity) won't appeal to everyone, but most of the other stuff is very melodic, soothing at times, and most importantly good.
I do have some gripes on this one though. Why can't the music be in order from episode to episode on the CD? Maybe it is just me but I like things linear. I like when A leads to B leads to C leads to D. It's not a big complaint, but it's there. Also again, some of the tracks just seemed a bit short. I understand they were created for a television show which of course meant they needed to work in short doses, but a little reworking and you could have had some very very nice full pieces of musical awesomeness.
For the record my favorite track on either disc is from the TV soundtrack, song 23: Rivers Dance. Such a fun energetic tune, it totally works. Although I gotta be honest track number 16 nearly won simply on it's title alone "Book's hair/Ready for Battle" I mean come on Book's Hair! Ok that may be one of those jokes you have to be a fan of the show to get. But seriously you should be a fan of the show....
Bottom line on this one, Very very good in my opinion, worth the buy even if I wasn't a fan of the show (which I am)
P.S. I would like to take this opportunity to remind you all that I am still hoping for a free something or the other as you can see by the column to the right here. I also would like to point out that I found out while checking status the other day that the Free iPod offer has been bumped up to a video iPod or a $250 iTunes gift certificate. Come on, I only need 2 more completions and I can shut up about that particular offer!!! You do want me to shut up don't you? Of course you do, I hear it all the time, people are constantly asking me to shut up. My silence is on high demand. I must be popular.
A fair warning to those who accidentally read anything on my page. Grammar, punctuation, and continuity all take a nap about 2. am. right now it is about 2:40 and I am still writing. Good luck and fair journey my friends.
So here is the deal. About seven months ago I was minding my own business, surfing the net, reading my favorite pages (ratemyparentsbasement.com, Thesunburns.org, and WilWheaton.net of course)
when all of a sudden I found myself reading through a post, a post which contained a link, a link to a site which could very possibly shake the very foundation that this entire world universe is built upon... or it might just jolt you enough to make milk shoot from your nose. Either way you better check it out.... just in case.
Little known fact, Jessica Stover is single handedly responsible for reminding me what an awesome word awesome is.
So why bring it up now? It's been seven months, get over it right? Well heres the thing, I did something I don't often do. I opened up my wallet, I put in my order for J.Sto's book. I suggest anyone out there who hasn't already done so hurry up and see if there are any left.
You know come to think of it Festivus is just around the corner and a book would make a sweet gift.
Why get the book? If you have to ask you have obviously never been to the wonderland that is www.jessicastover.com. For if you had been to JSDC you would know that she not only is a gifted storyteller with a vivid imagination and a nearly impeccable eye for detail. But she also is destined for great things. Plus doesn't your bookshelf need a little more awesome?
Oh yeah, and she might have kidnapped your mom.
Excelsior!
Yes I know, it has been a while since I last opened up my mind and let the letter fall to the keyboard. I don't have a real reason as to why it has been so long, I've just felt drained lately, no creative feelings whatsoever, in fact no energy or drive towards anything at all to be honest. It's not a great feeling, so I am making an effort to push myself. We will see how it goes. I do have a few things I would like to say, hopefully I can get them out in an understandable manner.
So lets go back a couple of weeks, back to Sunday November 13.
Why do I know that date so specifically? Because on that day something happened that hit me very hard. In fact (and rightfully so) it hit many many many people very hard.
On Sunday November 13th a man passed away. A man named Eddie Guerrero.
I have always been honest and clear with myself and others when I talk about wrestling. It isn't for everyone, I don't think someone should judge someone else because they do or do not like it. But if you are someone who doesn't particularly care about wrestling I still feel that a man like Eddie deserves your attention.
So what made Eddie such a special person? Many things;
Eddie had a charisma on the microphone that is very rarely matched. When Eddie wanted to be the good guy you loved him, when he wanted to play the bad guy you loved to hate him.
In the ring Eddie had the ability to make you forget yourself and just watch. He had that certain intangible ability that again not many truly have that allowed you to suspend disbelief and just watch the working and be amazed and entertained. When Eddie came out you knew you were about to witness some good entertainment. Eddie could tell you his stories in the ring wonderfully. He could convey drama, comedy, suspense, etc... and he conveyed it with apparent ease.
When Eddie passed away he was on 4 years of being sober. That itself is a very powerful thing, if nothing else you need to respect him for that. Actually no what you really should respect is not only the strength he had to stay sober for 4 years but you should really respect what gave him the strength to do that. Eddie had love for his family, a love strong enough to keep him sober, a love strong enough to keep him happy.
To be honest there is no way that my words can bring justice to the amazing story of Eddie Guerrero, so really why try, What I can do is hope that I convey through my muddled views and thoughts that Eddie has brought me (and millions of others) many great hours of entertainment and inspiration. Just because I never personally met Eddie doesn't mean that his passing didn't hurt, that should tell you a bit about Eddie itself. I never met the man and when I read the news it left a pit in my stomach that to be honest still has not gone away.
To close this I would just like to say one thing, Thank you Eddie. You will be missed very much and truly you will never be forgotten. I hope you have found peace at last.
Let me ask you this, why is it that I as someone who lives in the Pacific time zone am constantly being treated as a non entity by the Internet and TV?
Seriously, this happens all the time, anytime there is a big secret happening on a show, or say an elimination or something of that sort. Lets take a good example, let's randomly pick a scenario. How about ohhh I don't know, a show goes to repeats for three weeks, during those three weeks the next new episode is hyped a lot, in that hype they tell you that someone from the cast is not going to survive the episode. You avoid all kinds of spoilers for 3 weeks, then the day of the show about 15 minutes before start time you forget your rule of being Very careful on the net when it is within 3 hours of the show and SLAP the surprise is ruined.
Ok you got me, that wasn't random, that happened to me tonight. My homepage is www.myway.com a decent page that keeps you updated with AP news stories in categories. Here is the problem, I accidentally opened up to my homepage and in the title for one of the stories in the Entertainment section there was a Huge spoiler that gave away tonight's episode of LOST. Seriously this was 15 minutes before it aired in my market, how lame is that? I just don't understand, why on earth is it so important to blurt out the surprise in the title of your article, seems to me if you just say that you reveal the secret in the story it's more of a reason for someone to click on and read your writing. Shame on you Internet, shame shame.
