Quantum Entanglements

Fussy Eater

2009-12-06T17:52:00.003-05:00

My older brother was like this--always hated the crusts!

Which Way To The Bank?

2009-12-02T20:27:00.007-05:00

Oops! Guess President Obama made a wrong turn on his way to the bank! He should have Googled the directions or used GPS to locate it. Is this bank he was taking it to one of the ones that got billions of taxpayer dollars so they could give their top executives nice fat bonuses?

But don't worry--this war escalation will only cost another $30 billion or so--a drop in the bucket! It can be paid for by that income tax surcharge named the "Share The Sacrifice Act" that several top members of Congress (Mr. OBEY, Mr. MURTHA, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. FARR, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCGOVERN, and Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California) proposed recently. The full text of this war tax is available here at the Library of Congress site.

H. R. 4130

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish a temporary surtax to offset the costs of the Afghanistan war.

Afghanistan is known as the "Graveyard of Empires", because previous attempts, (from Alexander the Great in the year 372 to the Soviet invasion in the 1980's) at conquering this country have failed. An excellent article on Afghanistan's history, written by the former CIA station chief in Pakistan from 1986 to 1989, Milton Bearden, is available here. A recent book on this subject, In The Graveyard Of Empires, written by Seth G. Jones, a RAND Corporation political scientist, is for sale on Amazon.com. I haven't read it yet, but just ordered a copy to be sent to my Kindle eBook reader. It looks to be an interesting and informative book.

Let's just hope the American empire isn't the next one to be brought to its knees, with all our military adventures and economic calamities.

Kanye,Beyonce,& Taylor: Who Cares?

2009-09-15T18:36:00.003-04:00

I normally don't really care for all the celebrity gossip and news that appears on TV and the internet, but all this commotion over the VMA awards incident seems pretty overblown to me.

I think the whole incident was planned and staged, just to generate controversy and get people talking about the VMA awards show. Seems like every year at these awards, something like this happens. Anyone remember the Howard Stern incident, when he appeared as Fartman, with his ugly bare butt showing? MTV then pretends it was "surprised" that something like this happened. Howard himself said MTV executives knew what was planned.

People who don't normally even watch the VMA's heard about this and the artists involved, getting publicity for all of them. And people who like Kanye will continue to buy his music anyway, while Taylor Swift and Beyonce come off looking like innocent victims. The music companies behind each artist gets millions of dollars worth of free publicity on all the news and talk shows for days. Sounds like a win for all involved. This is about as "real" as all the so-called "reality" shows. Which is to say, not at all real--just TV!

Personally, I have never bought music from any of these three performers and don't plan on doing so in the future. I would like to see the sales figures for Kanye, Beyonce, and Taylor Swift for the next week or two, because I believe the controversy will probably increase their sales for all of them.

Change?

2009-09-07T21:48:00.000-04:00

The names change, the party in power changes, the terms used to describe their actions change, but, in truth, nothing really changes. It's all just a cleverly disguised game to give the illusion of change, to convince people that things are different now. Now that a new President, a new Congress, and a new administration are running things. But look beneath the surface, peek behind the veil, and you'll see the same people, doing the same things, fighting the same wars, involved in the same corruptions, telling the same lies, over and over again.

When will we see real change?

When people wake up, turn off the TV set, put down the videogame controller, set aside the celebrity gossip magazine, and open their eyes to the truth. As Thomas Jefferson said, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance". And it's not about liberal/conservative, Democrat/Republican, or any of the other false divisions that are used to keep people arguing amongst themselves while the so-called "leaders" carry on, giving themselves more power, amassing more wealth, and ignoring the laws they expect everyone else to obey.

We need to obey the Supreme law of the land--the Constitution of the United States, which was designed to limit the power of the government, and restrict those holding elected office from taking power from "the people". The people being the citizens, who hold the true power in this country, even though they may not realize it. Governments fear most of all an informed, active citizenry, who will stand up and question the authority that those elected officials claim they hold. Read the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the many other writings of the Founding Fathers of this country, and you will soon realize that the massive, intrusive government we now have is not at all the type of government that was intended for the United States of America.

Too Hot To Blog, But Here's A Comic!

2009-08-20T14:38:00.005-04:00

This comic explains why I don't go to see a Doctor....'cause I'd probably hear the same words!

By Jim Unger
Now I'm going outside to enjoy the rest of Summer.

Testing BlogPress App

2009-07-12T15:03:00.000-04:00

Just testing BlogPress app on my iPod Touch to see if it works. It got mixed reviews in the iTunes store, but only cost .99, so I thought I'd give it a try. So far it is working OK-will now see if this posts to the blog correctly. It allows you to add pictures as well-here's one from my iPod.

-- Post From My iPod Touch

Heal The World (R.I.P. Michael Jackson)

2009-06-26T01:06:00.005-04:00

What a week this has been! First, Ed McMahon, then Farrah Fawcett, and now Michael Jackson.
Most shocking to me was to hear of Michael's death earlier today, as it was the most unexpected. After all, Ed McMahon was 86 years old, Farrah Fawcett had been battling cancer for some time, but Michael Jackson was planning to hold a series of concerts in London in July. There was even talk of a possible "Jackson 5" reunion tour.
Generally, I don't listen to a lot of music, and don't keep up with all the latest artists, but I have always been a fan of Michael Jackson's songs, and his dancing was amazing. Being neither a singer nor a dancer, my opinion may not count for much, but I doubt there will be another talent like him for a very long time.
I chose the following video as a tribute to Michael Jackson, as well as a call out to all people of the world, to work towards peace and freedom for all the people of Earth. In particular, I am thinking of the brave protesters in Iran who have been risking their lives to achieve a greater degree of freedom. My previous post here (below this one) is an account by an Iranian Twitter user, who has not been heard from in more than 24 hours, and the last few "tweets" seemed to indicate some possible trouble. I hope this is not the case.

Michael Jackson may be gone now, but the spirit of his music can live on and inspire everyone to try to "Heal The World"!

Diary Of An Iranian Student

2009-06-20T20:27:00.003-04:00

The following is an account of the day's events in Tehran, Iran as told by a University student, relayed via Twitter. No changes have been made in spelling or grammar. The term IRG means "Iranian Revolutionary Guard", and the Basiji are a militia group acting in support of the government.

I, like many others, have been following the accounts offered by these courageous people who are risking their very lives in pursuit of greater freedom for themselves and their fellow citizens.
Each line was a separate "Tweet", but taken together, provides an emotionally moving tale of those who are fighting against an oppressive regime.

it was a nightmare, I can barely breath & my face is burning, Masood got shot in the arm & Shayan's brother is missing

I don't know where to start with, first they attack our peacful memorial gathering in front of the university with water gun

the university's doors were close, we couldn't run everywhere! & then they start shooting tear gas at us

they were so many! riot police, normal police, intel, IRG, Basij! I managed to scape, but they captured so many people

all routes to Azady square were blocked & if anyone stopped walking or walking slow they hit him/her brutally

there was no safe path, people were walking in cycles between all variety of security forces
I think they made fun of people, don't go here, go this way, not that way & for no apparent reason suddenly attacking random people

we tried our best using all known shortcuts for reaching Azady SQ were mousavi was, but ended up in face to face with IRG

they weren't just the ordinary police or motorcycle riot guard, they were soldiers holding MP5 supported by reinforced military cars

we didn't realize for a moment they started shooting at people, the gun's sound was like a toy gun, not loud & the soliders were smiling

I was going to tell masood they are using fake guns for scaring people! until people started screaming in agony

we were at Nosrat st, and that part of that damned street had no were for covering
we ran as fast as we could in the opposite direction, at the same time basiji bastards started to hit fleeing people

I think I saw 2 or 3 people lying on the ground in blood & IRG started to move them, probably hide them.

I lost masood in the crowd in upper streets of Nosrat the irony was everything was calm there & people overthere shocked by the looks of us

it was the biggest disadvantage for us today, police & basij managed to cut off people and prevent them from gathering

they also attacked & arrested anyone with any green symbols or mousavi's pictures

damned government also armed street thugs & Afghan workers with anti riot shields & wooden or electric batons

most of them wearing in house clothings & I think they were really enjoying attacking people

apprently when I was wandering in Laleh Park searching for water Shayan managed to take Masood to a local Doctor

I'm safe, and last time I checked masood he was at a friend's office with some of the students & he was ok.

it looks some people are still out there, I can hear a chopper passing by

Sea Of Green

2009-06-17T16:59:00.002-04:00

Protests continue in Iran over the disputed election results, as hundreds of thousands of people march in the streets. There have been a number of deaths and many more injured. While the protesters have tried to maintain a peaceful manner in their march, pro-government militias and military have fired into the crowds. Reports from Twitter users in Iran state that demonstrations will continue tomorrow as they march in memory of those killed. It's being referred to as a "Sea Of Green", because people are wearing green as a symbol of change and solidarity.
Below are a series of photos from Iran from the past few days. Be aware that some of these photos contain graphic images.

History Repeats Itself

2009-06-16T10:48:00.004-04:00

My previous post about the attempted uprising in China 20 years ago seems to be replaying itself this week, only in the country of Iran. After an election that many people felt was "rigged", protesters took to the streets to demand a recount. Tensions have escalated, with both pro-government supporters and backers of the opposition candidate demonstrating. As with the "Tiananmen Square Uprising" , many of the protesters are college students, alongside many others, calling for more freedom and a fair election.
Earlier today, the Iranian government banned all foreign journalists from reporting on the streets, threatening them with arrest. Other foreign reporters have had their visas revoked and must leave Iran. Some Iranians are using Twitter and other internet tools to try to get the news out to the outside world, but the government is blocking more and more of those methods. I just read a recent Twitter update from saying that pro-government militia, known as the Basiji, are approaching a college dorm in Tehran. Another Twitter user in Iran says there are reports that Tehran University will be attacked tonight.
All this seems eerily similar to the events 20 years ago in China. News blackout, followed by a brutal crackdown on protesters--I sincerely hope the events in Iran don't end up in a massacre in the same manner as happened in China.
I have been trying to get news updates on CNN's and Fox News' live feeds on their websites, but they both seem to be more interested in blabbing on about celebrity gossip and other nonsense, than reporting any "real news". The Huffington Post blog has a "live blogging" going on that is updating fairly often and is a pretty good source for news right now.
Oddly enough, I am off in a few minutes to attend a local "Tea Party " protest outside the New York State Capitol in Albany. But my thoughts are with the brave citizens of Iran who are trying to gain a little freedom and fair elections.

Tiananmen Square Massacre-20 Years Later

2009-06-04T20:10:00.003-04:00

It's hard to believe that it has been twenty years since the Tiananmen Uprising that lead to the brutal crackdown by the Chinese government that resulted in the deaths or imprisonment of thousands of Chinese citizens. Many of the people gathered in the Square were college students and others who were staging a demonstration calling for greater freedom and democracy in China. Over a million people gathered in Tiananmen Square in an effort to be heard by government leaders in their plea for greater freedom.
I remember this day well, back in June 1989, because I was watching CNN report on the growing protests. At that time, CNN had a news bureau in Beijing and was reporting live on the demonstration. As I watched I hoped that this massive demonstration would lead to some real reforms and more freedom for the Chinese people. It felt like what I imagine the early days of the American Revolution may have been when a small group of dedicated men risked their lives to throw off the oppressive rule of a despotic King George III. At one point, the students even raised up a replica of the Statue of Liberty, right there in Tiananmen Square! I stayed up all night, until about 4 AM Eastern Time, not wanting to go to sleep until I knew how this would turn out. Chinese authorities then cut off all outside news sources and CNN was forced to turn off its direct broadcast from Beijing.
It wasn't until the next day that the true horror of the massacre began to be known.
Many people today were either too young to remember this event and even those who were old enough seem to not be concerned since it happened so far away in a country they knew little about.
Below is a video made as a tribute to and reminder of the Tiananmen Massacre:

BBC News has an excellent timeline of the events in Tiananmen Square here.

This is a very significant historical event and needs to be studied and remembered for a number of reasons. The most important being that all people on this planet have the right to be free from oppression and live their lives as they choose.
Throughout history there have been governments and so-called "leaders" whose lust for power and control over others has lead to horrible oppression , wars and the death of millions of people.
Second, but equally important, is being aware of the nature of governments to restrict the rights and freedom of its' citizens and to insure that it does not happen. As Thomas Jefferson said, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."

At the time of the Tiananmen Massacre, George H. W. Bush was President, and I keep expecting him to come forward and make a speech, perhaps warning the Chinese government against a violent crackdown on the demonstrators, but he said nothing, until after the brutal slaughter was over. Perhaps it would have made no difference, but I felt that a strong word of protest from an American President might have at least made the Chinese government temper its response to the protesters.
Most Americans don't think that such a thing as this brutal assault on the citizens could ever happen here....in the "Land of Freedom". But just take a long look at some of the things that have happened in recent years, right here in the United States. An undeclared war, started on the basis of lies and propaganda, illegal unwarranted wiretaps and spying on peoples' phone calls and emails, the torture of "suspects", held without benefit of legal counsel or trial, and many other violations of the Constitution.
Most of these unconstitutional infringements on the liberty of Americans was instituted under the Bush/Cheney regime, under the guise of protecting us from "terrorism", all the while restricting or eliminating the rights of the people. In the last election, we were promised "change", but our new President, Barack Obama, has done nothing to reverse these abuses of power and unconstitutional laws. He has supported the use of unwarranted wiretaps, protects those who used torture by refusing to even investigate those responsible, and continues wars of aggression, even expanding those wars into neighboring countries, such as Pakistan.
Maybe its time for the American people to take to the streets, as those brave Chinese did 20 years ago, and demand that their government and their leaders restore the rights guaranteed to them in the Constitution of the United States.

Kindle! Kindle! Kindle!

2009-06-03T21:54:00.007-04:00

No, that's not some kind of "war cry", nor have I gone crazy (more than usual, anyway). It's just my excitement at finally being able to place an order for the Amazon Kindle2 eBook reader. Been wanting one of these since I first saw the original Kindle when it came out in 2007. Now that the new Kindle2 is available, I couldn't hold off any longer. Well, I did have to wait until I was able to afford it, otherwise I would have gotten one the first day they went on sale back in February 2009. As an avid reader and lover of books, as well a major tech geek, this device combines two of my favorites things.
The Kindle2 can hold up to 1500 books--that's like a small library you can carry with you! You can also get newspapers, magazines and blogs on it, and it even plays mp3 files (should you want to listen to music while you read). And one of the coolest features is that you can order and download a book on the Kindle in about 60 seconds! From almost anywhere, since it uses the Sprint's Whispernet service and it has a simple web browser as well.
Lots of other great features too, but I'll probably post about it again when it arrives. Got an email from Amazon yesterday saying it has shipped, so it shouldn't be too long before I have it!
Woo-Hoo!!

So You Think You Can Dance?

2009-05-25T20:53:00.002-04:00

Well, so can this cool, break-dancing little robot. It won't be many more years until the robots have taken over control of Earth, and they will do it with style, if this guy is any indication.

I, for one, welcome our robotic overlords! All I ask is to be keep around as a robot's pet Human. Feed me, take me for a walk once in awhile, and I'll spend the rest of the time lying around, watching TV, like a good pet should. (And I'm already house-broken !)

Blast From The Past !

2009-05-20T23:34:00.003-04:00

As a public service, I now present this instructional video from 1949 On :
"Dating: Do's and Don'ts"

Zombie Flu !

2009-05-04T22:50:00.003-04:00

Have you seen this story that was posted, but quickly pulled from the internet, about a new strain of the swine flu that turns people into zombies?!
I managed to get a screen capture of the story and the page is also posted here.
Is this some kind of government cover-up or even a secret experiment gone horribly wrong?
Why haven't any of the major news organizations reported this, and why was the story taken down so fast? If I didn't spend so much time online, I would have missed it because it only appeared for a brief time.
There needs to be an investigation into this, before its too late, and we are faced with hordes of zombies roaming the streets, spreading this terrible "Zombie Flu". Perhaps the whole "swine flu" panic was created as a cover-up to hide the real truth of what is going on!

Click the image for a larger view.

Thanks For Being A Friend, Bea Arthur

2009-04-26T09:46:00.004-04:00

Legendary actress Bea Arthur died yesterday, but has left behind a legacy of her work that will live on forever. A stage performer for many years before being "discovered" after appearing on "All In The Family" as a cousin to the Archie Bunker family, Bea Arthur went on to star in her own series "Maude" and of course, later the incredible TV series "The Golden Girls".
Here are a few clips of her, displaying her comedic talents, and a brief interview segment.
The program "Maude" was very controversial for its time, touching on topics not previously talked about on television, such as this clip, in which Maude is considering whether to get an abortion.

Here the ladies from the Golden Girls are trying to make a discreet purchase at a drug store.

The following is a segment of a longer 2-hour interview, conducted by Karen Herman on March 15, 2001. On December 9, 2008, Beatrice Arthur was inducted into the Television Academy's Hall of Fame.

Vintage Cigarette TV Ads

2009-04-23T21:46:00.004-04:00

Before they were banned, there were lots of cigarette ads on television. I remember seeing many of them when I was a kid, but now they just seem comical. The ads tried to make you believe you'd be healthier, sexier and more popular by smoking a certain brand of cigarettes. Despite viewing all those ads, I never once smoked a cigarette. Hmmm....maybe that explains why I'm not sexy or popular!

I particularly like the line in this ad which says:
"Pall Mall is longer,yes, but greater length is only half the story"
And the look on the woman's face as she puffs on the cigarette is priceless!
One thing I never understood is that the name of this cigarette is spelled "PALL MALL" (with an 'a'), but pronounced "PELL MELL".

Well, if doctors smoke Camels, they must be good for you! My Mother always smoked Camels (unfiltered, of course), although I don't know if her doctor recommended that brand. She preferred the unfiltered cigarettes as she said you didn't get enough smoke through the newer, filtered cigarettes.

I most definitely remember this ad, and probably even went around the house singing "the taste of Kent" as a kid. It was a catchy little tune, after all! But my Mother wouldn't have liked this brand--those stupid filters blocked too much of the smoke!

Buy My Book !

2009-04-09T22:28:00.003-04:00

To help people through these tough economic times, I've written a book designed to save thousands of dollars in unnecessary medical bills.
NO medical insurance-NO problem! Just do-it-yourself....it's a breeze, if you simply follow along with the easy-to-understand instructions provided.
Assemble your friends and family into your very own medical team....it's educational and FUN for all !
AND there's a FREE scalpel included to get you started !
All this for only $19.95!

Cool Myspace Generators

Soon I'll be announcing the GRAND OPENING of my new discount medical clinic...where I will perform ANY operation for only $99 !

*(Disclaimer: Organ transplant operations require you to provide your own donor organs)*

And Now, A Brief Musical Interlude....

2009-04-09T00:09:00.002-04:00

If you are not impressed by someone doing 32 songs in 8 minutes, watch this video anyway, because the guy is really cute.

Here's the link to his YouTube page.

Bartender, One For The Road !

2009-04-01T17:44:00.003-04:00

This is not an April Fool's Day joke, despite the date on this post. Just a funny news story I ran across earlier this evening in my web wanderings. You have to give this guy credit for cleverness--he can ride his barstool right to his favorite watering-hole, and always be sure he'll get a seat once there. I'd love to hear the 911 call he made after crashing his "vehicle".

Ohio man arrested for drunk driving on a homemade vehicle

MARCH 31--In a law enforcement first, Ohio cops this month arrested a man for drunk driving on a motorized bar stool. That's right, a motorized bar stool, which can be seen below in a police evidence photo. According to cops, Kile Wygle, 28, crashed his bar stool near his Newark home earlier this month and called 911 due to his injuries. When an officer arrived and asked Wygle what happened, he answered, "I wrecked my bar stool." According to a Newark Police Division report, a copy of which you'll find here, Wygle's homemade ride is powered by a Briggs & Stratton lawnmower engine. Wygle noted that the bar stool could hit nearly 40 miles per hour, but that he was only going 20 when he wiped out late in the afternoon on March 4 (a witness told police that he spotted someone driving a "strange motorized machine" before the crash). A plastered Wygle, who failed a series of field sobriety tests, was charged with DUI and driving with a suspended license, both misdemeanors. His bar stool was not impounded.

Amazing Panoramas !

2009-03-15T16:50:00.002-04:00

Ile Aux Canards Coral Reef Noumea in Noumea

This site {360cities.net} has some stunningly beautiful panoramic images--you have to see them!
Its almost as good as being there...as least for me, as I'll probably never have the chance to actually visit any of these places.
Bring this image up full-screen and use your mouse to move around. You can even zoom in and out with the mouse scroll wheel. Right-click to bring up a menu with other viewing options.
Another site with panoramas is panoramas.dk.
Now if I could just have a holographic image of places like this projected right into my apartment, that would be perfect!

The First Superman Cartoon

2009-03-01T14:19:00.002-05:00

It's a bird...it's a plane...NO...it's Superman !!!

&amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.joost.com/05970p2/t/Superman-The-Beginning"&amp;amp;gt;Superman: The Beginning&amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;gt;

There have been many SuperHeroes over the years, from Atom to Zatanna, but Superman is still the greatest of them all !

(And I'm not just saying that 'cause I've had a crush on him since I was a little boy.)

100 days, 100 songs, 100 locations, 100 dances

2009-02-18T06:10:00.005-05:00

BOOMBOX from Ely Kim on Vimeo.

This guy is funny...he kind of reminds me of "Gene, Gene, The Dancing Machine", from the original Gong Show, hosted by Chuck Barris. Speaking of which, The Gong Show was one of the funniest shows ever on TV. And Chuck Barris was just plain nuts! I loved him, 'cause you never knew what he would do next.

Here's a video from "The Gong Show", featuring "Gene, Gene, The Dancing Machine".

Oh, and if you're curious about the songs in the video, here's a list Ely Kim provided:
100 Dances / 100 Songs

001. Heart of Glass / Blondie
002. Jimmy / M.I.A.
003. Deceptacon / Le Tigre
004. Im on Fire / 5000 Volts
005. Je Veux Te Voir / YELLE
006. The Way I Are / Timbaland
007. Too Young / Phoenix
008. Over And Over / Hot Chip
009. Stick It To The Pimp / Peaches
010. Say My Name / Destiny's Child
011. Pin / Yeah Yeah Yeahs
012. Geremia / Bonde Do Role
013. Let Me Clear My Throat / DJ Kool
014. Point Of No Return / Expose
015. Bubble Sex / The Seebach Band
016. Pump Up the Jam / Technotronic
017. Let's Make Love And Listen To Death From Above / CSS
018. Hella Nervous / Gravy Train
019. Me Plus One / Annie
020. Don't Go / Yaz
021. Bootylicious / Destiny's Child
022. Electric Feel / MGMT
023. Boys Don't Cry / The Cure
024. Lose Control / Missy Elliott
025. Ride The Lightning / Evans And Eagles
026. Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough / Michael Jackson
027. Hearts On Fire / Cut Copy
028. Tainted Love / Soft Cell
029. Between Us & Them / Moving Units
030. It Feels Good / Tony Toni Tone
031. Polaris (Club Mix) / Cyber People
032. You Never Can Tell / Chuck Berry
033. Huddle Formation / The Go! Team
034. Pump That / FannyPack
035. My Love / Justin Timberlake
036. Hung Up / Madonna
037. Justice - D.A.N.C.E (MSTRKRFT Remix) / Justice
038. Cybernetic Love / Casco
039. Creep / TLC
040. When I Hear Music / Debbie Deb
041. B.O.B. / Outkast
042. Bubble Pop Electric / Gwen Stefani
043. Miss You Much / Janet Jackson
044. You Spin Me Round / Dead Or Alive
045. Slide In / Goldfrapp
046. Kelly / Van She
047. Mine Fore Life / The Sounds
048. Disco Heat / Calvin Harris
049. Nighttiming / Coconut Records
050. Club Action / Yo Majesty
051. Pogo / Digitalism
052. Lip Gloss / Lil Mama
053. Heartbeats / The Knife
054. Enola Gay / OMD
055. Goodbye Girls / Broadcast
056. Kids In America / Kim Wilde
057. Kiss / Prince
058. Tenderness / General Public
059. Push It / Salt N Pepa
060. Circle, Square, Triangle / Test Icicles
061. Day 'N' Nite (Crookers Remix) / Kid Cudi
062. Shadows / Midnight Juggernauts
063. Paris (Aeroplane Remix) / Friendly Fires
064. Out At The Pictures / Hot Chip
065. Me Myself and I / De La Soul
066. AudioTrack 10 / Diplo
067. Girls & Boys / Blur
068. Heater / Samim
069. I Wanna Dance With Somebody / Whitney Houston
070. Hands In The Air / Girl Talk
071. Limited Edition OJ Slammer / Cadence Weapon
072. Meeting In The Ladys Room / Mary Jane Girls
073. NY Lipps / Soulwax
074. Lex / Ratatat
075. Gravity's Rainbow (Soulwax Remix) / Steve Aoki
076. Once In A Lifetime / Talking Heads
077. Leave It Alone / Operator Please
078. Half Mast / Empire Of The Sun
079. Hardcore Girls / Count and Sinden feat. Rye Rye
080. Dance, Dance, Dance / Lykke Li
081. Never Gonna Get It / En Vogue
082. Blue Monday / New Order
083. Crazy In Love (Featuring Jay-Z) / Beyoncé
084. 10 Dollar / M.I.A.
085. Love To Love You Baby / Donna Summer
086. Steppin' Out / Lo-Fi-Fnk
087. Karle Pyar Karle / Asha Bhosle
088. Love Will Tear Us Apart / Joy Division
089. Straight Up / Paula Abdul
090. My Drive Thru / Santogold, Casablancas, NERD
091. Like A Prayer / Madonna
092. Freedom 90 / George Michael
093. Black & Gold / Sam Sparro
094. B-O-O-T-A-Y / Spank Rock and Benny Blanco
095. Great Dj / The Ting Tings
096. In A Dream / Rockell
097. Don't Stop the Music / Rihanna
098. Hong Kong Garden / Siouxsie & The Banshees
099. It's Tricky / D.M.C.
100. Bizarre Love Triangle / New Order

In Geek Paradise

2009-02-18T04:27:00.004-05:00

Here I am, blogging at 5 AM in the morning, and why? Because I have been up all night playing with the new tech toy I just bought yesterday afternoon. Yes, the geek in me finally overruled the more sensible part of my brain and went out and got an Apple iPod Touch (16 GB). I just couldn't resist the lure of all that cool gadgetry any longer. Even though I've been telling myself that it was too expensive, some extra holiday pay from my otherwise crappy job was enough to convince me to go for it. So out to the Apple store at a local mall I went, cash in hand, before the more frugal part of my brain had a chance to complain.

Up to now, I've been using my little Creative Zen Nano 1GB MP3 player and it works fine. But it doesn't automatically sync to iTunes , nor can it do video, or any of the other things the iPod Touch is capable of doing. Ever since the iPhone and then the iPod Touch came out, I've been reading and hearing how remarkable they are, and I can now see what people were raving about. I don't listen to a lot of music, but I love podcasts and have been downloading them with iTunes and dragging and dropping the files onto my Zen. Of course, when I plugged in the iPod, it began to sync immediately and transfer them without me doing a thing. Very nice!

There are video podcasts, such as "DiggNation", that I download as well and now I can watch them right on the iPod Touch. And since I spend quite a bit of time waiting for, and riding buses to and from work, this is an especially cool feature. Not to mention the games you can add to it!
Can you tell I'm impressed by this piece of technology? I may have been a bit late in "hopping on the iPod bandwagon", but no doubt will make up for that lost time! I spent most of last evening browsing through the iTunes store looking for some of the free aps that are available and got a few games and other useful or fun little aps. There are many more available for a price, but I figured I'd spent enough for today.

And I have not even used the built-in WiFi on the Touch yet ! I have a wireless router, but don't have it connected at the moment because I only had a single desktop computer, so connected it directly to the cable modem. But now, with the iPod, and my little Acer netbook computer I got a few months ago, I'll have to get that router working. Then when the weather gets warmer, I can go outside to a tiny little park outside my house and still be able to log onto my internet connection. Now I need to start ripping songs off all those CD's I have and never listen to, 'cause I'm too lazy to get them out and put them into a CD player.

Well, its now 6 AM, so no sense in going to bed now. Luckily, I don't have to work today as the university I work at is closed for a 'winter break' this week. YAY....more time to play with my new toy !

Sorry, Jason !

2009-02-16T01:10:00.004-05:00

I guess you've lost your touch, Jason....you just don't seem to frighten people like you used to back in the old days.

I went to see the "Friday the 13th" remake movie this Friday the 13th, since it seemed the appropriate time to see it. It was OK, but I wasn't that impressed. It was the typical slasher movie, with a lot of people running around between bouts of being hacked up.
And from the audience's reaction, I guess I wasn't the only one that wasn't too impressed, because there was very little reaction from the crowded theater. There were a few teenage girls sitting behind me who screamed at a couple of scary or brutal scenes, but the rest of the audience was surprisingly silent. It was mainly a younger audience, teenagers/college-aged people; (sadly) I may have been the oldest person in the theater.
Are today's young people so used to such violent scenes, from horror movies, TV, video games and the internet (not to mention the daily news) that they are just not shocked by such things anymore? I'm not making any kind of judgment, I only found it a bit odd that there was such a lack of reaction to scenes that were meant to shock or frighten? But, of course, I didn't react to it, either, but then I'm old and jaded.
I remember going to the original Friday the 13th movie many years ago, and the audience then had a much more vocal reaction. It was kind of why I went to see this movie, because I thought the audience's response would be fun to experience. But it turned out not to be the case.

So "Sorry, Jason", maybe it's time to hang up your hockey mask and machete and retire to the "Old Slashers' Home". Don't feel bad, Jason--I'll brew you up a nice cup of tea and we can talk over "the good ol' days".