Well - I'm jacked!
I've found this feature of Yahoo! messenger that I'd passed over a number of times in the past without even checking it out.
Launchcast radio is a system of delivering music striaght to your computer, streaming over the internet. You rate genre's, artists, albums and individual songs. Launchcast then goes and plays the ones you rated high. It also looks at the stuff that you rated high, that other people also rated high, then plays their favourites to you. Giving you a chance to hear new music that fits similar tastes to your own.
Sounds simple, but Launchcast does it well. Operation is easy and both the music and the interface are of exceptional quality.
Friday, October 29, 2004
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Star Wars
Got it!
Yehaaa!
The Star Wars original Trillogy is finally out on DVD, and it's just awesome. The wrap gift I got from my Locations Manager at the end of Dead Like Me this season was a voucher I was able to spend on DVD's. ANd Star Wars released about 6 weeks after wrap. I was able to sit on the voucher that long without it burning a hole in my pocket.
We'd moved by the time it actually hit the shelves. But Virgin were awesome, they shipped it to me. (They were supposed to send me a shipping invoice first . . . I must send them a cheque.)
There are four DVD's in the pack, the threee original movies, and a Bonus Disc. :D The Bonus disc contains four hours of interviews, behind the scenes, and all sorts of amazing and intriguing Star Wars information. I watched it as soon as I could get the DVD player working and loved every second of it.
Then there's the commentary - I've seen all the movies so many time I don't really need the sound. So having George Lucas, Carrie Fisher, and the sound and visual effects artists talking me through the movie was just awesome! So much cool stuff! And of course the movies look just awesome. It amazes me that the effects can stand up to many of todays movies and hold their head high, and it's 28 years since A New Hope was released.
Yehaaa!
The Star Wars original Trillogy is finally out on DVD, and it's just awesome. The wrap gift I got from my Locations Manager at the end of Dead Like Me this season was a voucher I was able to spend on DVD's. ANd Star Wars released about 6 weeks after wrap. I was able to sit on the voucher that long without it burning a hole in my pocket.
We'd moved by the time it actually hit the shelves. But Virgin were awesome, they shipped it to me. (They were supposed to send me a shipping invoice first . . . I must send them a cheque.)
There are four DVD's in the pack, the threee original movies, and a Bonus Disc. :D The Bonus disc contains four hours of interviews, behind the scenes, and all sorts of amazing and intriguing Star Wars information. I watched it as soon as I could get the DVD player working and loved every second of it.
Then there's the commentary - I've seen all the movies so many time I don't really need the sound. So having George Lucas, Carrie Fisher, and the sound and visual effects artists talking me through the movie was just awesome! So much cool stuff! And of course the movies look just awesome. It amazes me that the effects can stand up to many of todays movies and hold their head high, and it's 28 years since A New Hope was released.
Friday, October 8, 2004
Tooth Post
Oh my
My kids are growing up!
Cameron lost two teeth before he had to go away for the summer, then two more while he was there, and now has two more loose ones. We may have to start him on baby food soon.
Maia lost her first one just a week ago.
And now I hear Aleisha has her first loose one. And that she's keeping a close eye on it so the tooth fairy doesn't come and take it without leaving cash!
They all grow up so fast, and I miss the ones I don't get to see every day. Miss them so much.
My kids are growing up!
Cameron lost two teeth before he had to go away for the summer, then two more while he was there, and now has two more loose ones. We may have to start him on baby food soon.
Maia lost her first one just a week ago.
And now I hear Aleisha has her first loose one. And that she's keeping a close eye on it so the tooth fairy doesn't come and take it without leaving cash!
They all grow up so fast, and I miss the ones I don't get to see every day. Miss them so much.
Thursday, October 7, 2004
On Being Dad
Ella goes to pre school twice a week. It's a co-op preschool, which is cool, much like I went to. That means that two days a month I have to volunteer as a 'parent helper' for the day.
As I showered this morning, Ella came into the bathroom.
"Dad," she said, "Dad."
"Yes, my love?" I called as I bent down and cracked the shower door open.
"You can drop me off today. But I don't want you to stay. OK?"
"Yes my love." I grinned to myself.
As I showered this morning, Ella came into the bathroom.
"Dad," she said, "Dad."
"Yes, my love?" I called as I bent down and cracked the shower door open.
"You can drop me off today. But I don't want you to stay. OK?"
"Yes my love." I grinned to myself.
Tuesday, October 5, 2004
Politics (*gasp**cringe*)
Here I am, living in America (as Richard would say, it's a beautiful place, shame about all the American's) and supprting, not just chosing the lesser of two evils, but actually supporting a left wing politician.
In New Zealand there is the right, and the left. Basically the right (National) support the country's economy by encouraging business, and the left (Labour) support the country by taking care of welfare type issues. Neither is wrong, and both incorporate both approaches, in different proportions. You have Labour supporters, and National supporters, they disagree, but I've never seen a polarisation of the population like here and now.
Here you have the added issue of Conservatives and Liberals. In essence (and I'm biased here, so it will proably come out in the way I word it) liberals want every individual to make their own choices about themselves, conservatives want the government to lay down a list of acceptable behaviours.
What I find strange is that the conservatives go with the right wing. So the people that want a more hands off approach to state services, want a more hands on approach to state control. Liberals want the state (ie. taxes) to pay for all sorts of services, but not to tell people what to do with their lives. Not strange I suppos, but an interesting dichotomy.
And then there is 'The War'. *sigh* Oh how I hate Bush for that. Anyone who knows me, probably understands that I have right wing economic views (lower - flat - taxes, user pays), and believe in pro-choice when it comes to adults deciding about them selves (marriage, abortion, assisted suicide). If it were'nt for the conservative aspect over here, I can't imagine ever considering a left wing politician. And George 'Dubya' Bush is the worst of the conservatives, or perhaps his prime minister Dick Chayney is. To this day they claim that the war on Iraq is part of the war on terror, and the ignorant average american who wants to believe that America is the greatest nation in the worl, and infallible, goes right along for the ride. Sadam Hussein was involved in the attacks on Sept 11, Sadam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, there are terrorists in Iraq, the war in Iraq is going well, we have apointed a government - but they aren't pupets. What a joke.
Iran and Saudi Arabia were involved in the attacks, but no one went in there. Osama Binladen remains at large. Hussein had no WMD, but kept up the talk because it was his 'cold war' against Iran - UN weapons inspectors were most of the way to provng this before the US opened hostilities. The terrorists in Iraq started arriving after the US invaded the soverign lands of a nation which, while hostile in attitude, posed no threat to them. Right now, the terrorist population is growing because of the hate American actions engenders. Terrorists are able to flood into Iraq because the borders are wide open since the invasion destroyed the infrastructure. Even if you count Iraq as part of the coallition - the US bears about 66% of the casualties and 90% of the US$120B cost. "We have appointed" yeah, not pupets. Alawi may be leading the country, but he does not have the support of his own people. Lets see how he does when these 'elections' are held.
This is the issue which polarises the nation. A war which Dubya has pursued because he:
In New Zealand there is the right, and the left. Basically the right (National) support the country's economy by encouraging business, and the left (Labour) support the country by taking care of welfare type issues. Neither is wrong, and both incorporate both approaches, in different proportions. You have Labour supporters, and National supporters, they disagree, but I've never seen a polarisation of the population like here and now.
Here you have the added issue of Conservatives and Liberals. In essence (and I'm biased here, so it will proably come out in the way I word it) liberals want every individual to make their own choices about themselves, conservatives want the government to lay down a list of acceptable behaviours.
What I find strange is that the conservatives go with the right wing. So the people that want a more hands off approach to state services, want a more hands on approach to state control. Liberals want the state (ie. taxes) to pay for all sorts of services, but not to tell people what to do with their lives. Not strange I suppos, but an interesting dichotomy.
And then there is 'The War'. *sigh* Oh how I hate Bush for that. Anyone who knows me, probably understands that I have right wing economic views (lower - flat - taxes, user pays), and believe in pro-choice when it comes to adults deciding about them selves (marriage, abortion, assisted suicide). If it were'nt for the conservative aspect over here, I can't imagine ever considering a left wing politician. And George 'Dubya' Bush is the worst of the conservatives, or perhaps his prime minister Dick Chayney is. To this day they claim that the war on Iraq is part of the war on terror, and the ignorant average american who wants to believe that America is the greatest nation in the worl, and infallible, goes right along for the ride. Sadam Hussein was involved in the attacks on Sept 11, Sadam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, there are terrorists in Iraq, the war in Iraq is going well, we have apointed a government - but they aren't pupets. What a joke.
Iran and Saudi Arabia were involved in the attacks, but no one went in there. Osama Binladen remains at large. Hussein had no WMD, but kept up the talk because it was his 'cold war' against Iran - UN weapons inspectors were most of the way to provng this before the US opened hostilities. The terrorists in Iraq started arriving after the US invaded the soverign lands of a nation which, while hostile in attitude, posed no threat to them. Right now, the terrorist population is growing because of the hate American actions engenders. Terrorists are able to flood into Iraq because the borders are wide open since the invasion destroyed the infrastructure. Even if you count Iraq as part of the coallition - the US bears about 66% of the casualties and 90% of the US$120B cost. "We have appointed" yeah, not pupets. Alawi may be leading the country, but he does not have the support of his own people. Lets see how he does when these 'elections' are held.
This is the issue which polarises the nation. A war which Dubya has pursued because he:
- Likes oil.
- Wants to get out of daddy's shadow (Daddy lead the coalition which kicked Hussein out after he invaded Kuwait, but didn't invade Iraq "because there was no viable exit strategy.")
- Declaims himself as 'A War President' and likes the way that sounds.
- Is stuborn as a mule.
- Couldn't catch the real bad guy, so went after someone who he felt he could blame - and catch. But had no plan for the peace after the capture.
And he's managed to make the who election about that war. Because he has nothing else to come to the table with. Economically and socially he is ruining the country, and that's his four year record. But Americans who don't like him, and don't believe a word he says, will still support the troops on the ground. The oposition has been painted as anti war, and not supporting the troops or the allies. That is why the nation is polarised.
Friday, September 10, 2004
I'm shocking
Just proves how terrible I am at keeping anyone up to date on my life, including myself.
Well, I landed a show working with Bob, who was my key on the first show I shot (Perfect Score) and I was pretty happy about that. Bob is great at his job, someone I always wished I would be like when I keyed.
A week into the show, (a non-union show, low budget, with Tom Green and Brooke Shields called Bob the Butler) the video assist guy decided the pay wasn't enough and quit. In the mean time he had reccomended me for the job after finding out it was what I was trying to get into.
That was very cool. Cabling, solving technical issues, finding and playing back from previous days. I think I did well too, the producer was impressed.
Two or three weeks into the show, Crysta got a job offer. Eek. Gota pack, hell, the packing. I'm not sure if it's Crysta or me, or just some sort of synergy, but we generate a crap load of useless stuff and paper, paper, paper!
Ha. So that';s my life for August. 4 short paragraphs. -sigh-
Looking forward to being a stay home Dad, looking after the kids, the house and hte e-bay. We'll see how it goes, and how much I share. At least I should have more time to keep my blog up to date, I may even get political. Good bye to 80 plus hours a week away from home.
Well, I landed a show working with Bob, who was my key on the first show I shot (Perfect Score) and I was pretty happy about that. Bob is great at his job, someone I always wished I would be like when I keyed.
A week into the show, (a non-union show, low budget, with Tom Green and Brooke Shields called Bob the Butler) the video assist guy decided the pay wasn't enough and quit. In the mean time he had reccomended me for the job after finding out it was what I was trying to get into.
That was very cool. Cabling, solving technical issues, finding and playing back from previous days. I think I did well too, the producer was impressed.
Two or three weeks into the show, Crysta got a job offer. Eek. Gota pack, hell, the packing. I'm not sure if it's Crysta or me, or just some sort of synergy, but we generate a crap load of useless stuff and paper, paper, paper!
Ha. So that';s my life for August. 4 short paragraphs. -sigh-
Looking forward to being a stay home Dad, looking after the kids, the house and hte e-bay. We'll see how it goes, and how much I share. At least I should have more time to keep my blog up to date, I may even get political. Good bye to 80 plus hours a week away from home.
Monday, August 2, 2004
Fahrenheit 9/11
Wow. We just got home, what an event.
Crysta and I left the theatre, found the car and drove half way home before either of us said a single word. Whatever you can say about it, it affects you. Crysta just said "I can't believe we're thinking such completely different things about that movie." So true.
As an outsider, (and I always get in trouble with the insiders for my opinions, especially strongly held opinions) I loath and always have loathed Bush and his regime. But now I loathe Michael Moore too. This documentary disgusted me.
One of the parts to the documentary was an analysis of how the 'alert status', television coverage and warnings were skillfully manipulated to maintain a tension in the American people. Tension that erodes, and controls. Talking about skillful manipulation . . . Moore has taken so many clips from so many sources and strung them together in such a way that his caricatures say whatever was on his script.
By taking publicly available footage no one can doubt the facts, but I for one doubt the greater conclusions he asks us to draw by the strings. The segments that dealt with longer interviews and extended news coverage were enlightening, moving and frightening. The spliced together clips reminded me of a Simpson’s episode, or perhaps a three ringed circus.
Bush is corrupt and his regime a risk to the whole world, and particularly America, which for all my ribbing, is quite conceivable the greatest nation of our times.
Crysta and I left the theatre, found the car and drove half way home before either of us said a single word. Whatever you can say about it, it affects you. Crysta just said "I can't believe we're thinking such completely different things about that movie." So true.
As an outsider, (and I always get in trouble with the insiders for my opinions, especially strongly held opinions) I loath and always have loathed Bush and his regime. But now I loathe Michael Moore too. This documentary disgusted me.
One of the parts to the documentary was an analysis of how the 'alert status', television coverage and warnings were skillfully manipulated to maintain a tension in the American people. Tension that erodes, and controls. Talking about skillful manipulation . . . Moore has taken so many clips from so many sources and strung them together in such a way that his caricatures say whatever was on his script.
By taking publicly available footage no one can doubt the facts, but I for one doubt the greater conclusions he asks us to draw by the strings. The segments that dealt with longer interviews and extended news coverage were enlightening, moving and frightening. The spliced together clips reminded me of a Simpson’s episode, or perhaps a three ringed circus.
Bush is corrupt and his regime a risk to the whole world, and particularly America, which for all my ribbing, is quite conceivable the greatest nation of our times.
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