Frank Herbert was a barefooter!

Here's is proof. In the book Dune when Paul at 15 is challenged by Jamis. Jamis is one of Stilgar's men and apparently a bit of a hot-head. Paul is getting ready for the duel and he's just in trunks and barefoot. It was one of Duncan Idaho's training tips:

When in doubt of your surface, bare feet are best.

Flea is a Barefoot runner!

The post title is the link to the Runners World article. There's a video showing Flea in his VFF's.

Go Flea!!!

(\_/)
(o.o)
(___)o

GD

p.s.
There's a QR code now on the blog for those of you who may want to copy it.  I'm just having fun with it.  For shitz'n'giggles I may be posting hidden messages in the QR code.  But those will be in the regular post.

Here I go again!

If you can see the previous post, you'll notice that I haven't done anything since 2008 on this blog. No reason for it, just didn't.

If you're curious as to how my Dell Ubuntu experiment went, well let's just say that I've recently upgraded to Lucid Lynx (Ubuntu 10.04). That's a Long Term Support version and that puppy is going strong. It's become my primary pc. I'll jump onto my newer Win7 box when I need to get on iTunes or something proprietary like that.

But we're not here for that . . .

A couple of years ago, I had a bit of a scare. For several weeks I had been feeling pressure in my chest. It got so bad that I actually thought I may have some sort of heart problem. After one night of terror, I went to see a doctor. He gave me a physical, drew some blood and installed a portable EKG on me to monitor my heart for 24 hours.

I went back the next day and found absolutely nothing on the EKG. The blood work was done wrong because I hadn't been told to fast. So I didn't eat anything that day and the morning after I had my blood drawn once more . . .

Let me go back a bit . . .

My diet before all this hadn't been all that great. I was still eating like I was some sort of high school athlete. I wasn't really an athlete because my grades were never that great. But I loved to go on training runs with the wrestling team and the coaches would have me spar with the team because I was good. Not bragging, I just was.  The coaches were pissed that I would put the effort to train HARD, but not the effort to get my grades up. I was 5' 6" and probably 170 lbs of hard muscle.

Like every kid in high school, I had problems that couldn't be resolved. Thinking back now, I was just lazy. Yeah, I did have problems. But I could've focused that energy into schoolwork. But as I've heard it said, hindsight is 20/20.

Whenever the wrestling team was done for the season, I kept training.  From junior high to high school.  15 mile runs were warm-ups before the sprints and hill runs. Uncountable push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups . . . and all the variations of those. I made up my own workouts just to keep moving.  I think I was doing Cross-fit before there was Cross-Fit.

I never watched what I ate because I couldn't afford tot. I just threw shit together at home and wolfed it down. Which back then, was pretty frickin smart. We could only afford shopping for groceries at the flea market. Which meant lots of fruit, veggies, and cheap meat, poultry or fish. All the basics a growing boy needs, along with all the other mexican staples of beans, rice, tortillas . . .

The whole point of this is that I kept on keeping on even after high school. But the training tapered off. Slowly a first, then full stop when I got to Phoenix.  It's was too fucken hot there to do anything physical for too long.  But I went to live on my own (with roomates) and study.

17 years later, I'm still 5 foot 6. But I'm tipping the scales at over 290 lbs. I know how I got here, I just didn't realize it until it was almost too late.

When I went to see my doc for the results, he wasn't there but another was doc was there. She asked if I was fine with a female doctor. Nervous as I was, I said only if she was qualified. That broke the ice some and we both had a chuckle. What she told me was that my blood work showed that I was at near diabetic levels. She told me that if I wanted to begin taking meds and eventually start using insulin, to keep doing what I was doing.

I was like, uuuuuum. No. What do I have to change?

No sugar.
No fruit juice (fruit was better)
Stay away from processed foods. . .

Wait, this is all starting to sound like the way I used to eat when I was a kid! I also had to start moving. That pretty much came as no surprise.

I walked out completely sobered. I was going to have to change my life DRAMATICALLY. I had one last binge and another restless night.

And then one more with my friends. Because I wasn't just gonna stop hanging out with them just because of a little diabetes. That night was the worst. And then I got to work.

I took all the crap in my cupboards and fridge and asked people if they wanted any of it before going in the trash.

You wanna know what I had left? A gallon of milk, kraft singles, some lettuce, eggs, bacon (she didn't say anything about greasy foods!), corn tortillas and I think that was it.

I went to the flea market that weekend and I learned another thing that day. I couldn't walk for SHIT! I was winded after 10 minutes of wandering around the flea market! I got a bunch of veggies and some fruit and went home.

The next day at work, I began walking during our lunch hour. That first month was an experience I never want to go through again. Too embarrassing to have gotten so winded on such short walks there.

I work in an ag lab that has it's facilities on a farm that used to be part of a county park. As such, the fire trails are always kept clear and people use them for walks and runs. All nice and hilly. A little over a mile and a half on one of the trails (good walks, awesome runs).

I think the hardest part for me to change was the coffee. Not the pain of atrophied muscles being used again, but the coffee. I used to load up that cup with 8 packs of sugar and and so much cream, you'd ask if I wanted some coffee with that.  But there was someone who helped me transition from crappy store bought coffees, to better local roasted ones. Unfortunately, it also twisted my tastes in beer. I couldn't drink the fizzy yellow stuff anymore. So I started experimenting with different beers. Now I'm a die hard Arrogant Bastard / Stone Brewery fan!

So I was eating healthier and taking walks. I wanted to elevate it some more. I wanted to run again. I tried it during a lunch hour once and tore a muscle in my calf. I still don't remember how I got back to the lab.  I had to stop walking for a while so it could heal. A bit depressing.

I still wanted to do more, be faster so I researched and bought a Surly CrossCheck. It's a cromoly steel cyclocross bicycle. A cross of road and mountain bike. Steel for strength and flexibility. Won't pound you like aluminum or titanium.  It's much heavier, but a much more comfortable ride.  Also much cheaper than carbon fiber which would give a similar ride.

I wanted a comfortable bike. And she still is! Love that bike.

But it wasn't running.

I would ride for hours and I dropped weight. I'm at 240 lbs now and have been floating around there for a while. People tell me I should be proud of that.  I am. Sorta.  But I wanted to RUN!

Last year around early spring, I was working at my moms taqueria when I read in The Californian (local Salinas paper) that the YMCA was going to have a free training program for anyone who signed up for the inaugural Salinas Valley Half Marathon.

I signed up and began the program. It was a great program! Once a week, you'd meet up for either a track session or class sessions where we'd get training tips or guest speakers. I highly recommend attending if you're near. The informational meeting for this year is March 30th, 2011.

With the program, I got up to four miles non-stop. But always ended in pain by the time I stopped. Horrible shin splints. They felt like I was going to break something if I kept going. Walking hurt. I was told they'd go away. To through them.  My muscles would strengthen.

During one of the class sessions, we had someone from Fleet Feet come in. It's a great little shop.  We were told that we needed to get properly fitted to maximize our running efficiency and comfort.  They were talking about pronation, stabalization, motion control . . . whoa.  Also not to buy running shoes at Big 5 because those shoes they sold were old stock from the manufacturers and the cushioning was aged and brittle. So that weekend I visited Fleet Feet.

I was made to walk and got checked out by a hottie.  Unfortunately it was just to find out what my strut was like to get fitted.  After saying some stuff about pronating and motion control and more cushioning because I was a big boy, I was fitted into a pair of Saucony Progrid Omni 8's. A huge, heavy shoe that stabilized my foot. I needed the cushioning because I was a "big boy". 36 years old here.

They felt great in store. My first run was good.

Then the run got BAD. My shin splints would get worse. My feet felt as if I was standing on a ball. You know, like I was balancing on a ball and my feet were tilted oddly. I think I used them for about 30 miles.  I never used them again.

I went to a local shoe store and bought some Nikes. They were lighter and what could be considered a neutral shoe (no arch support). My feet are relatively flat. I ran my half marathon in those.  I completed 6 miles non-stop.  I ran/walked the rest for a 3:30 time.  Too. Damn. Long.

But I still hurt.

I kept running for a while after just so I wouldn't lose it.

But I still hurt.

Winter came around and my running tapered off so that I would run about once every couple of weeks. Usually for about two miles (20minutes).

But I still Hurt.

During this time I was looking for things that could be causing my shin splints. All I kept finding was explanations as to what was happening and remedies like taping, different shoes, deep tissue massage and some other shit I can't remember.

Until I clicked on a Running World forum about barefoot running.

There was a bunch of info there about why people did it.  But one member had posted something that came up in my search and had similar experiences as I did. And then there was mention of a book that possibly explained and had a good argument for barefoot running. A book by Christopher McDougall called Born To Run.

I went in search of it and found nothing locally. No one had it in stock. I wanted a physical copy, but ended up purchasing an ebook for my Sony Reader. Not to sound like nutcase, but that book literally changed my life. Only one other book has done that to me, but another story for another time.

I did a lot more reading online and started using the tips mentioned in the book and forums. Now I'm completely convinced I'm doing the right thing.

I haven't gone full monty yet, but I believe I may get there. What I have done is pick up some minimal shoes (Merrell Trail Glove and NB Minimus Trail) and used the techniques described everywhere on the Internet.  And I'm running more.

But I don't hurt.

Not one bit. I mean other than typical soreness you'd expect from using muscles you are using for the first time.  And I'm having fun running again. Can you imagine a 5'6" 240 lbs fat guy running by you on a dirt trail with a smile on his face?

I can't.

And I'm the one doing it!

(\_/)
(0.o)
(___)0

GD

They Finally Here! Unboxing PICS!!!!!!!! (56K UNFRIENDLY)

As promised (though late), here are the unboxing pics:

Here's the box. They really do put A LOT of information on that label. It even had my phone number on it!



Hm, Malaysia . . .



The whole top . . .



Beginning the incision:



If the leaves were cubes, it'd be a 4th dimensional cube.



Opening the first inner box. That's allll you get.



Here's the all important second box containing the laptop proper:



Dell really makes sure it's yours!!!!



. . . and here are all the inner boxes and their stuff . . .



Pretty, ain't she?



Here's the bios load screen. It's a bit too glossy for my liking, but easy to work around it I guess.



And here's Dells' EULA:



. . . loading Ubuntu 8.04 / Hardy Heron.



The setup is pretty self-explanatory, even this part:



. . . and that's better!



Word of warning: If you order a Dell laptop, I think this cord is standard. I think I remember hearing that you can get a longer cord though.



Here we are at the login screen. After this is the password screen.



And here's the standard Dell/Ubuntu desktop.



And the homepage when you open Firefox.



And that's pretty much it! There were a few more photos, but I didn't think they were needed. I believe I may have bogged down enough of your system with this set.

GD

Leave me ALONE!!!

I know, I know . . .

I promised unboxing pics and I've still to do it.

Here's my excuse: I recently decided to change the theme of my setup to Ubuntu: Satanic Edition. I'm not some crazy evil bastard or anything, I just like the whole look of the thing. Click on the link. The front page is NSFW for the nekkid lady on there. It's the only page she is displayed prominently.

Well anyway, the problem occurred when I finally finished setting up the theme. For some reason I had lost both the restart and the shut down options. After a day or so, I finally quit and went to Ubuntuforums.org.

I posted my problem, some misunderstandings occurred and all hell broke loose (pun intended). If you read through the post, it was a fairly simple problem with a simple fix But being that I'm a n00b and even some more experienced users didn't quite understand what was going on, it took a while to fix.

Now that THAT problem is fixed, I have another problem before I had even installed Ubuntu:SE. I have DSL through AT&T. I've had it a few years and it's good enough for what I do. The problem now is that the DSL package that I opted for came with a 2Wire modem/wireless router. Every time I try to connect to the router, the router crashes, knocking everyone off, including the wired connection.Now, apparently after googling Ubuntu, 2Wire and 1000HW (2wire model) , I found that a lot of people have a problem hooking up to the router. I've found a fix for it, but I have to find a couple of drivers to use ndiswrapper with. I've never used that before, so I don't even know if I can use that fix. And to add to aggravation, I don't have the original disk that came with the DSL package which happens to contain the drivers for the router!

Anywhere else I go, I have wireless access. The only other option I have (and I don't know if it'll work) is to buy a separate wireless router/switch and plug that in to the 2Wire. It sounds logical to me, but I'll try it out and hope it works.

In the meantime, I use the wireless at work or at Rollicks Internet Coffee Shop (decent coffee). I hope some Uber-Ubuntu wizard figures it out soon before I drop some more cash on the problem.

GD

p.s.
I WILL have the unboxing pics up tomorrow evening . . . promise.

Summa ma bitch!!!!

Ok. Sorry for the kiddie cursin'. But, summa ma bitch, my router don't like my new 1525n!

I also want to apologize for not havin' the unboxing pics up yet. They're done, but I've got to resize them to make them viewable on a typical screen. As they are now, they are HUGE and wouldn't fit on my 19" moniter.

I may have them up late tonight, but most likely not until tomorrow afternoon. I've gotta hit up a coffee shop and download a whole mess of updates for the 1525.

FYI, the first night I had it I was completely frustrated with Ubuntu. But that was the n00b in me. After about four or five hours messin' with it yesterday, I must say I'm very much surprised. I know I'll rankle a few hides with this next comment, but it's very windoze'ish. Well, not too very. But very enough for a tech-geek to work his way around.

AND, when you have a compatible router that'll actually cooperate, it's very much plug'n'play. Ubuntu found the wireless, I entered it's WEP-hex key and I was up'n'runnin'! That's when I found out I have a "whole mess of updates" that I have to download. Where I work the connection is comparable to my DSL connection at home, which is to say not very fast . . . or less than 600kbps down and 300kbps up.

That's why I've gotta hit up a good coffee shop to download about 700mb of Ubuntu updates to my new Dell 1525n! Hopefully with those updates I'll be able to hook up to my home router so I can edit and update my unboxing pics so I can post them up and ALL you billions of readers can see what pulling a laptop out of a box looks like . . .

Wish me luck!

GD

Wedge "Ubuntu" Antilles: "Almost there . . ."

I apologize for the Star Wars trivia quote, but that's what I thought when I saw that Dell had shipped my lappy yesterday and will be arriving sometime today. It's almost a full week early, which is AWESOME! I can't wait to get my hands on that thing.

I'll post again later this evening when I get home.

You know what? Seeing as how popular unboxing posts are, that's what I'll do!

Keep your feelers on this blog folks. I'm calling the next post . . .

Dell / Ubuntu 1525N: THE UNBOXING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By gosh golly! What's that?!

I'll be keeping my old posts up for now, just for laziness sake.

Just want to give a quick update for ANYONE who may have read the previous post on some type of regular basis. This blog will change. Read the title all the way at the top and you'll see what it'll be about.

Anyway . . .

So last weekend, I got home after a bit of alcoholic binge-ing (i.e. heavily buzzed) and I logged on to check out my mail. I wandered the interwebs for a bit and decided to do a bit of a search on Ubuntu. Earlier in the week I had become obsessively curious about Dell's and Linux. The obsession really kick in that night!

Back in '02 or '03, I had graduated from Heald (hey, stop laughing I actually got something out of it!) with an AS in Computer tech. During the program we had a to do a senior project with a group. I really pushed my group into making a bombproof server. In other words, a linux box. I busted my ass on that project and swore to myself "Never AGAIN!!!". But hey, that was the young me and now I'm bored at work and need to play with something that I can learn all over again.

By the way, I'm gonna be 35 come August.

Back to Saturday night:

So there I was, reading up on the latest stuff about Hardy Heron and I remember that Dell was only pre-loading Gutsy Gibbon. But I Googled Dell and 8.04 and lo-and-behold! Do my eyes deceive me? Dell was now offering a few select pc's and laptops with Hardy Heron!!!

I hit the link and there were three options available: A tower, an Inspiron lappy and an XPS lappy.

Since I hadn't touched Linux since I was in school, I decided to pick the Inspiron lappy. Below are the specs

Inspiron 1525
Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, 2GHz, 800MHz FSB, 2MB L2 Cache
fancy, dancy, black shell
4GB, DDR2, 667MHz, 2 Dimm
15.4" Widescreen WXGA LCDTrueLife
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
120GB 7200 RPM SATA with Free Fall Sensor (better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it)
Ubuntu 8.04 with DVD Playback
Integrated 10/100 NIC
8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer
Integrated High Def Audio (2.0)
Intel 3945 WLAN (802.11 a/g) Mini-card
Six cell battery

There weren't that many upgrade options available, but I upgraded what I could. Except the webcam and Harddrive. Don't need the webcam, and I plan to use external storage anyway.

Backup all the time and backup your backup. You can NEVER backup enough.

Oh, and for those of you considering this or any Dell pc (or HP, Gateway . . .), search for coupon codes. Needless to say, in my inebriated state I purchased the damn thing. This set up would've run me about $1100, but using one of the Dell codes available with a quick search saved me 25%. It came out to about $870, shipped!

Keep and eye on here, I plan to post up my experiences. Constructive comments and suggestions will be appreciated. This is a whole new game for me. I'll need the help.

GD

p.s.
Don't expect anything here for a bit about the laptop. I have an estimated delivery for the first week of August.

Motorcycles

It's time for my yearly update!!!

As I once posted before, I appear to have some type of OCD (comics, recumbent bikes, razors . . .). Now I appear to have moved on to motorcycles.

The first weekend of January, I took the MSF (motorcycle safety . . .something-or-other) course. Highly recommended if you are considering motorcycling! With the type of commute I have now, I'm pretty sure I would've killed myself by now without the training I had in the class.

Since then, I've accomplished getting my Class C/M1 drivers license and getting insured. My dads Boulevard C50 has been sitting for a couple of months because it's been too cold for him to ride. Not for me!

I've been using his bike to ride to work and have had some pretty good "oh-sh!t" moments. I've learned from them and have been reading the forums to absorb more information to think about for my conditions. I've also been researching what type of bike I want in the long run. I think I've decided on the 2006 Kawasaki 650R.

If anyone reads this and has an opinion, let me know what you think.

GD

p.s.
i'm just posting. not checking on grammar or spelling right now. maybe later . . .

Now for something a bit different

It's been over a year since I last posted here. The whole bike thing never really worked out. I do have the plans, the equipment and most of the materials, but I just don't seemt to have the skill. I need a LOT more practice before I even consider trying my hand on using my welder on the cromo tubing.

What I have done is order a brand spanking new bike for me to use. It's a Surly Cross Check. I picked that one for several reasons. One, I'm a big boy (now at 250 lbs down from 285 back in January). Two, it seemed to be the bike to get according to the folks at Bike Forums. Specifically in the Clydesdale and the Commuting sections.

I'll be posting pics up as soon as I have in under my feet. I juset need to decide what type of pedals to get on it. I think I've already decided on the Crank Bros. Mallet pedals. They'll allow me to use the bike as normal without having to clip in. I've never used clips, but I've always wanted to try. This'll be my chance.

More soon . . .

Is it a case of OCD?

So, I'm a collector. I was an avid collector of comics years ago. I had it so bad that I was easily spending over two hundred bucks a month. And I would rationalize it by saying I wasn't as bad as some other collectors that I know. The fact still remains, I'm a collector.

I may not collect comic books any more, but other things now occupy my life. For the past year, it's been razors. I'm talking about old style safety razors. Or as they are known by those-in-the-know, DE's.

DE's as in Double-Edge razors. There are others I'm interested in such as Schick Injectors and some straight-edge razors (aka - cut-throats). I've got it bad, too. I've hit up antique shops, flea markets and I've even asked old folks if they may have razors in their possesion.

Family members know that I collect razors and they are always buying me razors. And so far they just happen to be the wrong, uninteresting ones. I tell them how cool it is so as not to discourage the practice, though. They may one day come across one that I 'need' and purchase it for me and I'll be one happy fool.

Trust me when I tell you, I do use a couple of the ones I've found. I've three in particular. A Merkur Slant, and old Gillette adjustable Fat-boy and a recently aquired Krect Spiral razor. The latter I just used this morning after cleaning and sterilizing in an autoclave. It's a little worse for wear, but it's all cosmetic. I can probably nickel-plate it myself later, but very likely not. I don't know what to think of it yet. A few more shaves with it and I should have a more solid opinion.

If your a guy (hell even a woman), you may be interested in the art of Wet Shaving. Now don't be dirty. Wet shaving is the whole process of shaving the 'right way'. Think back on those old movies where the guy would shave with a brush to lather up and use a straight razor to shave. Or if possible and more close to home, your dad or grandfather shaving with that type of set-up. It didn't necessarily have to involve a straight though. It most likely was a DE.

For the women out there, it could have been the same memory with the added one of maybe your mom or other female adult shaving their legs with a DE.

Today we have cartridge razors.
Plus: Easy, safe and convenient.
Negative: Irritation and razor burn (one and the same?), expensive cartridges!

Wet shaving:
Plus: Less irritation, meditative practice, lot's of information available if you know where to look, and (BIG plus) much cheaper in the long run!
Negative: Time consuming, slight learning curve.

Wet shaving is a whole involved process. It can be done fairly quickly, but you'll still be taking more time with it than you would with a cartridge razor.

If there is one thing that I would recommend before going all-in, I would say dump the canned goop. That stuff drys your skin and adds to the discomfort. If you have a Target nearby, they recently began selling Proraso shaving products as well as some others that I'm not to confident on. Go to Target and pick up a five or six dollar tube of Proraso shaving cream and also the twelve or thirteen dollar Boar hair brush. It's a good size brush and a lot of wetshavers like it.

Now I'm not a guru or anything. There is a lot more information out there that I'm just scratching the surface of. Below are a couple of links where if you do a bit of searching, you'll find a lot of answers. Feel free to ask a few questions there as well. 99% of the members there are real laid-back and freely give advice. If I change one persons life because of this, I've done well.

Shave My Face Forums - Great forums. Ask and you may be able to get a good deal on a razor and such!

The Wetshavers Group - This is another forum with a lot of info. They ask that if you sign up and you post, sign off your posting with your first name. Helps bring it into more of friendly environment. You'll feel more comfortable.

GD

Who cares if it's been a while!

The reason I'm posting is because I was going through the stories on Digg when I spotted one that was kinda interesting. I've always wanted to buy a Roomba to mess with and see what it exactly it was capable of other than just roaming a room and sucking up dirt!

These guys at the South by Southwest Conference (SXSW) had a couple of Roombas laying around thinking about the same thing as me. Except they took it a step further and made Roomba Frogger!!!

You guys have to read it. It's flippin hilarious!

GD

Merry Christmas!

I've heard the facts on Christmas. I don't care.

Many of the traditions of Christmas may have been 'pagan' traditions, but it just showed what the Church was willing to do to try to get the bigger message across.

The Holy Church knew it had to adapt to the enviroment. It was Darwinism at it's most basic. Find out what the local beliefs are and use them to convince people that 'our God is the same God as your God . . . but better' (ok, I exaggerated a little).

I don't agree with the whole matter, but I kinda' understand why it was done.

I will admit that I'm not a practicing Catholic, but I have my reasons. Some of it is pretty obvious from my previous statements.

The whole point of this post is to state that the season of Christmas is meant to remind us that the Lord Jesus was born during some hard times, and that Mary and Joseph made sure that Jesus was safe and comfortable. In other words, Christmas is a time for family.

It is a time to give of yourself if you haven't already. Almost a kinda' like a time to redeem yourself for what you may have not done for others yet.

You don't have to go out and buy gifts for others. If you do, buy the gifts for the kids! Spend time with family and friends.

Now, I'm not sure what other religions do, but I do know that other important Holy Days occur for those other religions at this time of the season. I'm pretty sure a lot of it is about family and God as well.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Peace, love and God bless you all!

GD

Yeah, I'm a blog thief.

Taking a cue from Erin, I took the following test:

You are Agnostic

You're not sure if God exists, and you don't care. For you, there's no true way to figure out the divine. You rather focus on what you can control - your own life. And you tend to resent when others "sell" religion to you.

What's Your Religious Philosophy?

I answered the questions honestly, and the test was still wrong . . . on one point.
I know God exists and I do care (at least for myself).

The rest of it is true.

GD

The Birthday Massacre . . . Kick Ass!!!

So as I'm having to fill in for one of my vacationing employees, I've got the computer free and I decide to load up Pandora.com. It's a pretty nifty music website that kinda streams music (to your hard drive, not RAM) of a whatever style of music you feel like listening to (ie: type in a band you like, similar music plays).

Anyway to the point of the title . . . so I load up Pandora and there is nothing on my list that I really feel like listening to, so I type in Voices Carry by Til Tuesday. One song loads up and it ok, and few more play until it hits Nevermind by Birthday Massacre. Wow, I thought it was a band from the 80's, but I'd never heard of them.

They're not. They formed in this century as Imagica for a few years, had a change in members between then and The Birthday Massacre and BAM! Badass music.

This happened this afternoon and I've already ordered the Violet album and I'm on the hunt for the Nothing Nowhere album.

Check out the following website, it has a couple of clips from Violet. Let me know what you think!

Oh, and the clips don't really do the music justice. The other songs I heard really do sound like they're from the 80's! The clips aren't bad though.

Metropolis Records: The Birthday Massacre

GD

I feel dated now . . . <: (

Stolen: Meme #15

I've stolen another meme from Erin. Thank you Erin!

Meme #15

Would you rather:

Have a head that looks like a lollipop OR hands that are three times their normal size? Hands! Imagine the possibilities. It's just more likely you'll get caught!
Have sweat that smells like bacon OR like a flowery air freshener?
Hm. Tough one. I'd have to go with the air freshener
Tell your deepest sexual desire to a complete stranger once a day OR clap your hands in a highschool cheerleader style everytime somebody says "OK"?
Clap, and I'd move to Zimbabwe or something.
Dress like elvis at formal functions OR dance like him?
Too easy, I'd dress like Elvis. He had his moments of lucidity.

And to end on a lighter note . . . after two years, we finally received our raises! Woo hoo!!!

GD

Yes, I am a gamer . . .

. . . and I found something I thought was funny seeing as how it applies to me. I don't really game online or anything, I mainly do the console thing (xbox, ps2, gamecube). Let me know what you think.

Here is the actual link to the site that has the article:
http://www.joystiq.com/entry/1234000733067601/

and here is the article:
29 no-nos for gamers over age 30

Posted Nov 11, 2005, 9:57 AM ET by Vladimir Cole
Related entries: Culture

The ESA says that the average gamer is 30 years old. It’s time that those of us who are 30 or older realize that some of the things we grew up doing as gamers are no longer really appropriate, cool, or kosher given our new demographic bucket. Here, then, is a helpful guide to 28 things a gamer should never do past the age of 30.

1. Participate in LAN parties with minors
2. Quit your job to pursue a pro-gaming career
3. Start a Star Wars themed PC case mod in the living room
4. Ever use the jargon OMG, BBQ and WTF together in the same phrase
5. Pirate games - shouldn’t you have an income by now?
6. Find the idea of teamkilling funny
7. Choose a female avatar so that you can try to upskirt her
8. Refuse to play games that are rated lower than mature
9. Tea-bag a downed opponent in Halo 2
10. Play any game with Princess Toadstool in it
11. Choose a gamer handle including any form of the words “hell,” “killer,” “death,” or ”-inator”
12. Yell “pwnt” in a public virtual space
13. Play a female character in an MMOG in order to troll for “Crying Game” victims
14. Disconnect when losing at Starcraft or any other RTS
15. Ninja loot
16. Get your gaming news from a print publication
17. Replace the letter S with a dollar sign when writing Microsoft, Sony, or PlayStation
18. Live in your parents’ basement to support a gaming habit
19. Break mice in a fit of rage after being served in an FPS game
20. Try to win an argument in a gaming forum
21. Pretend that movies like Doom and Tomb Raider are anything but crap
22. Carry softcore anime porn on your PSP to show the guys at work
23. Hadoken someone as a greeting, complete with hand motions and sound effects
24. Play competitively against anyone under the age of 10
25. Read or write fanfiction
26. Yell or type, “Laggg” when losing an online game
27. Bogart the controller
28. Work at GameStop “just for the discount”
29. Type liek JeffK

My version of Meme #13

I'm lazy (anything different?) and I'm gonna answer Erins Meme #13.

1. How many times a day do you wash your hands? Before I walk out of the restroom and everytime I mess around with mushrooms and mushroom related products. Pretty much means prun(e)y hands.
2. How often do you get the flu that's going around? Flu . . . been a couple years
3. How often are you really "sick" when you take a sick day? Whenever I'm "sick and tired" of work.
4. Who would you like to see in a cage match? Michael Moore and Rush Limbaugh
5. Name 3 things you absolutely love: Tesla (my car), Baby (matriarch of my chihuahuas), and an engrossing book.
6. If you had to give 2 of them up which would they be (and why)? Telsa and the book, because nobody puts Baby in the corner (sorry).
7. Name 3 things you absolutely loathe: Annoying dogs and night, annoying cats at night, and a really fucked up ending of what was a really good book (read Snowcrash, Neal Stephanson)!
8. What is your all time favorite memory EVER? You want me to think that far back?!
9. What is the one thing that happened in high school that would make you avoid your class reunion? This is a stupid question!
10. What is your dream job, no matter how untrained you might be or unrealistic and bizarre it might be? Being Alan Moore!
11. If you could write yourself into any tv show, which show and how would you do it? I'm gonna be a typical guy and say Las Vegas. I would be the only guy to make Sam Marquez (Vanessa Marcils' character) fall in love. God I'm such a dork!
12. If you could replace anyone on a tv show, who would you choose to replace on what show and why? The James Caan character (Ed Deline) on Las Vegas. Hey, he's a badass!

Meme repost . . .

I figured since I put all that time into it, I might as well repost my answers to Erins Meme thing. Get ready to do some readin'!

1. What is your occupation?
Analytical Supervisor / Research Assistant
2. What color is your underwear?
White (and blue).
3. What are you listening to right now?
My typing.
4. What was the last thing you ate?
Oatmeal.
5. Do you wish on stars?
Nope.
6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Green.
7. How is the weather right now?
Flippin' cold and cloudy
8. Do you like the person who sent this to you?
Hey, I'm just visiting. And yeah.
9. What happened to question 9?
It was written.
10. How old are you?
32, and happy birthday erin!
11. Favorite drink?
Non-alc: OJ, Alc: Beer
12. Favorite sport to watch?
Hockey and baseball.
13. Have you ever dyed your hair?
What?! Am I a chick (no offense)!
14. Do you wear contacts or glasses?
Contacts out and about, glasses at home.
15. Pets?
Dags-Chihuahuas: Baby, Chiquita, Gorda, Pee-wee, Princess (in that order)
16. Favorite month?
June (not birthday month like some people).
17. Favorite food?
Chicken w/rice.
18. What was the last movie you watched?
High Tension (gory and fun).
19. Favorite day of the year?
July 4th!
20.What do you do to vent anger?
Draw, read and walk (not in that order)
21.What was your favorite toy as a child?
Believe it or not, my imagination!
22. Fall or Spring?
Spring!
23. Hugs or kisses?
Too touchy feely!
24. Cherry or Blueberry?
Cherry.
25. Do you want your friends to email you back?
Sometimes, if necessary.
26. Who is least likely to respond?
My mother, she'll call.
27. Who is most likely to respond?
My brother, always online (Birthday today - 10/27).
28. Living arrangements?
House, rent.
29. When was the last time you cried?
???
30. What is on the floor of your closet?
Boxes of books.
31. Who is the friend you have had the longest?
Huerta, since high school.
32. What did you do last night?
Hung out with little bro'.
34. What inspires you?
Too much.
35. What are you afraid of?
Pain.
36. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers?
All of the above.
37. Favorite car?
Maclaren SLR!
38. Favorite dog breed? Irish wolfhound (agreed!)
39. Number of keys on your key ring?
Several keyrings, max of 4 on one.
40. How many years at your current job?
8 years.
41. Favorite day of the week?
Duh, Friday.
42. How many states have you lived in?
Two
43. How many cities have you lived in?
Two
44. Song that lifts your spirits?
Lots!
45. Alternate career choice?
Writer for Cartoon Network!
46. Who made you laugh 'hard' recently?
My brother.
47. Sunrise or sunset?
Sunset.
48. What book are you reading now, or what was the last book you read?
Brimstone by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.
49. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Doing my bosses job!
50. What is the most surprising answer above?
The Irish Wolfhound.

It's almost Friday!

\Bike update
I can't seem to get the geometry right on the frame I'm building. Everything works out great until I'm about 3/4 of the way through. I've gotta figure out what's wrong. It's a good thing I haven't started on the expensive material yet. I've been using spare bike frames and such. The last frame I almost finished, then it went horribly wrong. It was just a small little error that seemed to multiply exponentially. The next frame should be completed now that I know where all the little problem areas are. Wish me luck.
\Bike update

A couple of weeks ago I picked up a new cell phone. My two year contract with Verizon was up and I needed to upgrade my plan and phone. I liked my Motorola C343 but it was beginning to crap out on me. After doing some research to find the best phone available that I could play with (i.e. hack) and not break the bank, I decided on the Motorola e815.

The e815 through Verizon is hobbled. You have Bluetooth, but you can only use for wireless headsets. You can transfer files to your computer, as long as it's only contacts and dates. I wanted it to be completely open to me, so I found some websites and links to get the software I needed to break the e815 and make it whole again.

After some nervous hacking, I am now able to transfer files wirelessly, play my music and videos on it and store files on it. The amazing thing to me is that it comes with 40mb of onboard memory. And you can pick up a transflash card to expand it's storage capacity. By January of '06, you'll be able to intall 1gb of memory into the phone. I've got a 256mb card in it right now, I'll be picking up the 1giger early next year.

Luv my phone!

GD