First off, say hi to our new backyard. It’s not big - quite the opposite really. Just a patch of concrete, a Weber grill, then forest - but it’s nice.
Secondly, with a gag purchase I’m now more then ever aware of my wedding, just 2 months away!
Pink & Black Bride & Groom Can Koozies
Thirdly, yesterday Mishka surprised me with my very own PSP: God of War edition! Yay!
PlayStation Portable: God of War Edition
And lastly - if you’d like to volunteer somewhere, the State Fair is a great place to do it. And the MN chapter of the ACLU is looking for people to staff their booth. I’ll be there, will you join me?
Today’s tune Tuesday features the adrenaline pumping prog-rock ballad by the English trio known as Muse.
Formed in 1994 as the “Rocket Baby Dolls”, Muse quickly went on to win a “Battle of the Bands” compeition at their local University. They entered as a protest, and destroyed their instruments during the show - when they won, they thought they might have something - and the rest is history.
I first heard them sometime in the late ’90s - probably ‘98 - ‘99. I was moderator for the MTV UK chat room and, besides learning a lot of weird British slang, picked up on a lot of wonderful music before it went stateside. These guys were one of those jewels that had me downloading on Napster and listening to religiously for several weeks in a row.
This week’s song is “Knights of Cydonia” , track 11 from their 4th and latest album “Black Holes & Revelations”. It’s a typical example of how they blend modern rock, progressive rock and electronica with interweavings of classical and Italian music. It starts slow, almost haunting - and quickly picks up the pace. It’s an excellent song for anything fast paced - running from the cops, realizing you’re a Deity, paying your mortgage, stalking JACC - whatever it might be.
Muse - Knights of Cydonia From Black Holes & Revelations
Come ride with me through the veils of history,
I’ll show you a God falls asleep on the job,
How can we win when fools can be kings?
Don’t waste your time or time will waste you
No-one’s going to take me alive
The time has come to make things right
You and I must fight for our rights
You and I must fight to survive
No-one’s going to take me alive
The time has come to make things right
You and I must fight for our rights
You and I must fight to survive
No-one’s going to take me alive
The time has come to make things right
You and I must fight for our rights
You and I must fight to survive
Anyway, there probably isn’t any way possible to abuse this, but there’s a website called HannahMontanaCalls.com. You click on ‘register’ and it asks for your name and phone number and your child’s name and phone number. You set a time, and a call type - you can choose from a wake up call, a “don’t forget to buy school supplies” message or one of a dozen different canned messages (My favorite is “Don’t forget today you have Cooking Club”).
Sounds fairly nice, until you realize it uses the number you used as your number as the originating number - meaning it shows up on the caller ID as calling from whatever number you entered. So if you were an asshole you could, for example, set a 3am or 4am wake up call to your boss, with the originating phone number the CEO of your company - or any equally high level exec that your boss is sure to have in their phone book.
Just really really busy. I’ll get back on track soon, I promise. In the meantime here’s a time-lapse video of us moving out of the old place on the 18th. No music, no fancy editing, just quick & dirty.
Today’s tune is from Dogs Die in Hot Cars. From their, well, only album. Released in 2004 and titled “Please Describe Yourself”. This Scottish group plays your stereotypical Britpop but they do it wonderfully. I was saddened by their announcement in September of 2007 that they were ending their work on their second album and going their seperate ways. But then in April they announced “The Second Album Project” which includes some downloads - sounds very promising.
The song I’ve chosen is “Paul Newman’s Eyes”. Not one of their popular songs, it’s nonetheless a quite catchy tune with a wonderful chorus that you’ll be humming to yourself all day. So listen to the song, check out the lyrics, and buy the CD.
I wish I had Paul Newman’s eyes
And every day came with some surprise
I wish I had Paul Newman’s eyes
That would be nice
Look at those houses, big houses over there
Look at those suits spending money without a care
Here comes the stars with perks around their arms
Here comes the sports car that carries so much charm
But I’m just a nothing that doesn’t have a lot
And I asked for your life but look at what I got
So sick of seeing, don’t want to hear no more
And you can amputate my limbs
And starve me to death whilst I beg for freedom
Away from a life which is this
But I wish I had Paul Newman’s eyes
And every day came with some surprise
I wish I had Paul Newman’s eyes
That would be nice
Look at those setters, those setters of the trend
Look at that band, they act so confident
Here comes the movies with dialogue so cool
Why did they never tell me to speak like that in primary school
So sick of seeing, don’t want to hear no more
And you can amputate my limbs
And starve me to death whilst I beg for freedom
Away from a life which is this
But still I wish I had Paul Newman’s eyes
And every day came with some surprise
I wish I had Paul Newman’s eyes
That would be nice
So sick of seeing
Can’t stand to talk
And I’ve no compassion
Or thought
What did I do this weekend. Well, first off I replace the front brakes on the ole ‘Woo. I had new rotors for her to, but the caliper mounting bracket bolts weren’t budging and considering I was on an incline, I felt it not wise to attempt to use too much force.
Also, I learned how important it is to ensure the jack you bought will fit under your car.
And also, I learned that the previous owners of the vehicle stole the lug nut wrench and the jack handle.
Which meant I had to use the only tool left, a screwdriver, to raise the car’s own jack. No, it wasn’t really fun.
I was actually disappointed the brake pads had as much left on them as they did. I was hoping my soft brakes were the cause of next-to-no pad left. I was wrong - but in a week or two I’ll tackle the rear brake pads and rotors - hopefully those are the ones causing the issue. The guy at Napa, in a super casual glance through a hole in the rim assured me that “Yeah, they’re shot”. So if you can’t trust that, who can you trust?
Then, on Sunday, I went through all of my computer parts and electronic packratting. I managed to go from 4 large plastic bins down to 2. I threw away a lot of things, some of which were:
17 computer power supplies (Out of 19, I kept the 2 AT ones for use as bench power supplies)
5 cell phones of varying age, the newest being about 5 years old
11 hard drives, with a combined storage total of 9GB!
Batteries for a laptop I don’t have any more
Batteries for several cameras I don’t have any more
Easily 300 feet of coax cable alone - plus about 200 feet of misc cable
A ginormous box of obsolete electronic devices from a local school district. A lot of Mac gear.
2 complete PCs, not anywhere near powerful enough to do anything of much use these days.
I also have something like 35 12 foot long brown extension cords.
All of this is part of my “One Project, One Trip” mentality. If I have a project to complete, I’ll buy the main parts of it and anything else I think I need but don’t know if I have.
So I think I’ll start making a home inventory system for the office. Keep all my cables tagged and organized. Same with the tools. And if I’m going to do that, I might as well make it web enabled, so I can query it from Home Depot and see that yes, I do have a 25 foot long S-Video cable. And if I’m going to do all that, I might as well throw my barcode scanner into it, so I can just scan things when I get them and know what they are right away.
Ain’t technology great?
I’ll have some pictures of the brake action later, but forgot to take some of the cable action. However, I will be taking timed pictures of the move out date, so I can make a neat little time-lapse movie about it.
Anyway - big move happens this Friday. And I think we’ll be ready.
To give you a sense of scale, since I applied to the beta, I’ve:
Lived in 2 cities
Met, then proposed to, my Mishka
Had 4 different jobs in 3 cities
Been published in 4 magazines and 2 newspapers
So yeah, you can say I’ve been waiting.
And sadly, I’ll need to wait a little longer, too:
Only 25% done downloading after 3 hours.
But that’s A-OK with me because I FINALLY HAVE BETA ACCESS! HOT DAMN!
I mean, look what I’ll be playing soon, so very soon.
And I’d love for you to join me too - if you pre-order the collectors edition (I’ve ordered 3) then you get an automatic invite into the open beta which will be coming up in a few months - AND you’ll be able to play with ME! So do it!
Sometimes I really get awesome speeds from my Comcast internet connection.
PS: If you have a USB thumb drive sitting around, I heartily encourage you to check out PortableApps.com - all the apps you can carry around your neck. Works wonderfully, too.
Today’s Tunesday we lately1, and proudly, present a song from the E’s band, Eels. It’s actually hard to write that. I want to put “The Eels”, but that’s not correct.
Anyway, Bus Stop Boxer, from their 2001 album “Souljacker” is a hauntingly beautiful song about proving yourself. Of all his songs, this has to be one of my favorites. So listen in, read the lyrics, buy the album so I get money, and enjoy!
And forgive the quickness - we’re in the process of moving so 90% of my music is packed or on one of my shut down machines - so I have to pick and choose. And if you’ve ever tried to copy music off your iPod by going through the indivdual folders, you know my pain today!
I don’t miss where I came from
But each night I dream about being back home
When I wake up in the morning
I’m too tired, tired of being alone
So I get up and go downtown
And pick me out a little piece of ground
Where I can prove something to the world
I can prove something to the world
Don’t look at me
I’m the bus stop boxer X2
Daddy put us in the truck and
Dropped us off and said good luck, then
One lucky kid waiting for the bus
Made a winner out of one of us
Don’t look at me
I’m the bus stop boxer X2
Going down by the railroad tracks, where
People know that they better not relax
I’m the man, baby, I am the man
This is where I can make you understand
I’m the bus stop boxer
Don’t look at me X2
Footnotes listed in the above post:
You help a friend install her air conditioned in an attic apartment in 90 degree heat with 80% humidity in the rain after a 2 hour work out. [↩]
Dogs Die In Hot Cars - Please Describe Yourself
Pre-Order Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning Collector’s Edition
Eels - Souljacker - Bus Stop Boxer