Archive for October, 2006
10/1/2006
It’s 11:50pm at the time I start this one and whenever possible I always like to throw out a Sunday blog, mainly due to the reason that hardly anyone does it, even though it will be well into Monday by the time this gets posted - but it’s the THOUGHT THAT COUNTS.. right? Right. :-) The title of this entry is a (very) obscure reference to this song (the lyrics suck but the song rocks).
—
MySpace follies
I get a few musicians and bands who request that “add a friend” thing every so often. So I check ‘em out and usually deny them. :-) For the latest two that I kicked to the curb, one of them was a band that did not have any music whatsoever with a blog post that said “songs removed because we’re recording a studio album, blabbity blah blah..” and the genre of what they do was something I don’t even like. Denied. The second was some dude who had 1200+ friends already and wanted to add me to his friend list just for promotional purposes. Um, no. Denied.
I will only add musicians, artists or whatever if I think the music is cool. Otherwise, no way. I’m actually more interested in personal contacts on MS rather than the pro or trying-to-be-pro ones. MySpace is supposed to be “a place for friends”, not “a place where you can take your crappy band and whore yourself out”.
Can you tell I have absolutely no faith in MySpace’s “networking” whatsoever? :-)
—
Avoiding the fatness
For the second time, a flyer has appeared on my door for a local food place. The first time it was from some Chinese food joint. This time it was from a pizzeria (with a web site no less).
Everything on the menu is overpriced crap. In addition, you have to buy at least $10.00 worth of food to have it delivered, and pay a “delivery charge” (which is bullshit) and tip the delivery moron besides that.
No thanks. Enjoy the web site link with the negative review, assholes.
—
Slowly building my monster entertainment center
Over the weekend I was able to dig out my old DVD player at Pop’s house and brought it back to my apartment so I could hook it up to my small tv. As I write this I have Shrek 2 playing. I like having the DVD played on an actual tv instead of my laptop.
Eventually I’m going to get a better television but as I wrote here just recently, that’s not something on my high list of priorities. :-)
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/2/2006
Current Time: 9:57pm
Current FL weather: Seventy-nine degrees F and awesome as usual.
I mention the time and temp at the front of this entry as yet another reminder to myself I’m not in Connecticut, where it is currently fifty-one degrees F at the time of this writing and outright cold. The days up there are semi-okay at the moment, but the nights will freeze your ass off.
Want an example of the unpredictable nature of New England weather? A few days ago they were having forty degree nights with sixty degree days. Right now it’s ten degrees “ahead”. But by Wednesday there’s going to be a fifty-five degree day followed by a thirty-six degree night.
A twenty degree shift in two days? You betcha. That’s the nature of that region. Up, down, up, down.. weather is just a really weird animal up there.
I am totally not used to the ultra-predictable weather here in FL. Not at all. My New Englander senses are still “warning” me all over and my brain is talking to me which goes something like..
Dude.. don’t go outside in a t-shirt.. bad news, man.. seriously. You’re gonna freeze your balls off. Okay, fine. Go outside, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Then I go outside. And it’s warm and lovely. Yes, I said lovely. My brain gets confused.
Wait a sec.. this is October. It’s not supposed to be like this. I like it, but you know that ANY DAY NOW IT’S GOING TO BE A FROZEN ICE BUCKET OF DOOM OUTSIDE, YOU FOOL! AH HAHAHAHAHAAA!
And yes, the evil laugh exists.
But you know, it just doesn’t happen that way here. It never freezes. Ever. Granted, I don’t like my brain calling me “fool” or laughing heartily at my expense, but what can I say.. thirty years of Connecticut living will do that to you. :-)
I’m fairly certain that those “warnings” will always be there whenever this time of year comes ’round, whether I want them or not. :-)
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/3/2006
One thing I’ve always entertained the idea of doing (but never had the balls to do it) was to make the entire site look “1999″. I have an affection for really old web pages because back in the day, no one used HTML editors like Dreamweaver of FrontPage. Everyone used Notepad, because honestly there wasn’t anything else. Animated GIF’s were everywhere, along with frames, background music and tons of JavaShit JavaScript.
Believe it or not there are still web pages out there like this. I remember a really, really long time ago I used to go on undernet (with mIRC, of course) and chat in the #wavaddiction channel to grab all the cool WAV sound effects I could. One of the guys who was an “Op” (a.k.a. channel operator/admin) went by the name Asmojay. His web site still exists but hasn’t been touched since 1999. It’s probably safe to assume that he’s not using that ISP any longer and maybe has no idea that the web page still exists. Who’s to say for sure. But it’s cool it’s still there just for nostalgia. :-)
Menga.net in 1999 form will probably never exist, however, here’s what it could look like:
Menga.net in “1999″ form. Enjoy the cheesy background music (which may or may not work depending on how your browser is set up) and spinning logo. I’ve set it up so that it updates the same time the regular home page does.
The funny part is that some people will actually prefer the 1999 look and think Hey! That’s COOL! Trust me, it’s not. Annoying cheeseball animations and background music make for a very, very crappy web page. :-)
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/3/2006
Above: My Garmin StreetPilot c340 equipped with a GlareStomper.
Sun glare was a problem for my GPS unit. I was faced with the decision of buying a newer StreetPilot with a “daylight readable screen” which would have cost almost $500, or buy the GlareStomper for fifteen bucks.
So yeah, I went with the ‘Stomper. Now my GPS looks like Darth Vader (hence the title of this entry). The big question: Does it work? Yes, it does. It does stop the glare (mostly) and makes the screen much more readable in bright sunlight.
Thankfully it doesn’t look that cheesy. :-) I’m glad they made this in black which mostly matches the look of the StreetPilot.
Installation was easy. Just stick on the velcro that comes with it and put the ‘Stomper on top. Easy enough. Easy is good. :-)
posted in gps, photos | No Comments »
10/3/2006
And then there were eight
If you didn’t know, we no longer have nine planets in our Solar System. Sucks to be Pluto, who incidentally wins the award for “Dorkiest Named Formet Planet”.
Your (Florida) tax dollars at work
City of Tampa “All Crimes” Map. Grid by grid you can see what kinds of crimes are goin’ on. Nice to know that most of the area is clear. There are only a scarce few “bad” parts, which is good.
Re-do your bathroom the cheap way, as in free.
Got a parking ticket or two? Pay it online.
Get a listing of all parks and playgrounds.
There’s a lot more, but I swear, Tampa (and Hillsborough County in general) impresses the crap out of me with how much stuff you can do online, and also that you can get information you can actually use. I mean, heck, I scehduled an appointment with the frickin’ DMV online. When my plate comes due for re-registration, that can be done online also without ever having to go to the DMV at all.
I just like it when I get to experience things that are paid for by taxpayer dollars that work. It’s a great feeling to know the money is being put to good use. And in all seriousness, the Tampa Florida web site is really good all around.
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/4/2006
Current weather as of noon today
There (Dayville CT): Sixty-three degrees F and overcast with patchy fog.
Here (Tampa FL): Eighty-six degrees F with scattered clouds and clear as a bell.
Wow, I really enjoy rubbing in the t-shirt weather factor here, don’t I? YES, I DO. :-)
—
Sibling
My sister Maria will be arriving at TPA tomorrow evening where I will be picking her up and the cat she’s bringing.
Cat?
Yes, cat. Pop is getting a cat courtesy of my sister. After I pick her up, we have to make a quick run to a Petco for some animal supplies, then trek on up to Inverness.
I have set up my spare laptop for her use while she’s here. This way she will not have to use Pop’s computer. I will have my laptop, she will be borrowing my spare and Pop has his.
—
Don’t touch me
Pop’s Garmin StreetPilot 2720 has a touch screen that for some reason decided to stop working.
However, after calling Garmin, they issued a return authorization since it is still under warranty with no hassle whatsoever. Good deal there.
And it gets even better: There’s a West Marine (Garmin Dealer) near Pop in Crystal River (that’s a town) which is only something like ten minutes away or so. Since Pop already has the RMA, he can bring it to them, they will ship it out and Pop will receive his replacement 2720 in seven to ten days after arriving at Garmin.
Excellent.
I find it interesting that the touch screen failed in the 2720 considering he takes immaculate care of the unit, and also considering the 2720 is literally twice the price of my c340. A weird instance considering it is billed as a “premium” unit.
But like I said, Garmin did not give us any hassle whatsoever about replacing it, so I’m very pleased about that. Garmin proves once again that they kick ass in all the right places - including consumer support.
Before I take the 2720 to West Marine I will be hooking it up to my laptop via USB to export all the waypoints to MapSource first, so when the new one arrives I can just import them into the unit without having to set them all over again. Shouldn’t be a problem.
—
Have hoody will travel, literally
After using the GlareStomper in very bright sunlight while driving around (see what it looks like), I can say again that yes, it does work.
—
Living deliberately
The only reason I have a regular land-line phone is because my DSL requires it. The only time I ever use the phone is to make local calls only.
The answering machine on it is purposely set to “announce only”, meaning it will not take messages, but rather play the greeting then hang up. I change around the greeting every so often, such as having the Brady Bunch theme or whatever. My most recent one is me reading Life in the Woods.
Sounded good to me. :-)
—
I just like using the word “thwart”
Upon inspection of my server logs, many attempts have been made by spambots to spam the forum. My new system thwarted all attempts. :-)
Rock, rock, rock and rock some more. :-)
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/4/2006
Before starting this one: To all lurkers out there (and there are quite a few of you), you don’t have to lurk, you know. You could, oh, I dunno.. get a forum account and post a comment or two. Just a suggestion. :-)
—
This is a sorta/kinda geeky/nerdy/techy/whatever music related post, so um.. deal with it. :-)
Some of you out there may have been wondering (and if not, now you don’t have to) why I have not released anything on CD since Failing Equipment.
Short answer:
CD’s don’t sell.
Really long answer:
I don’t know anyone who buys compact discs any longer. The fact you can just hop on to iTunes or even Wal-Mart’s web site to download music legally these days (aside from doing it the illegal way with a peer-to-peer program) makes you wonder why anyone would push CD’s to begin with.
I made a conscious decision after I bought my Alesis Fusion to release some free-for-download tunes. It was the best thing I ever did professionally - no doubt about that. A lot of people downloaded the tracks (they’re here by the way) - including Alesis themselves - and it really worked out well. I figured “getting the name out” was more important than trying to make a buck, and I couldn’t have been more correct in that respect.
I’ve also been studying the whole Brent Simon phenomenon. As most of you know I just recently produced his album which is scheduled for release in the near future. The decision has already been made that CD’s will be pushed, however it won’t be CD’s alone. Other stuff will be included such as stickers, a t-shirt and maybe some other things along with the disc. Although sales are more or less guaranteed “in the bag” as they say, this stuff pretty much has to be included to give people a reason to buy the disc in the first place. So in effect, they’re not buying the disc. It’s more like they’re buying a shirt, some stickers and other possible collector’s items with the disc included as a bonus, strange as that may sound.
Side note: Honestly speaking, anyone who buys Brent’s disc is getting a really good deal because Jeff is a well known pro artist - so it’s not going to be some cheeseball thing. The end product will be all-pro all the way.
Anyway, my point is that the disc itself just isn’t enough. I seriously doubt I’m going to release any CD’s of my own unless people literally ask for it. I figure it’s just better to offer straight pay-for-download thru iTunes. It only costs a buck a song (sometimes even less) and people can push that into their iPod or other portable MP3 player or their computer. That is what people are doing these days and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.
Additionally, considering the time and effort it takes to make discs and market them - it’s almost pointless to do it since people are going to convert them to MP3’s anyway.
So in the end, when my next for-sale release comes out (whenever that happens), there will not be any discs. Not unless there’s a great demand for it. Or unless a distributor wants to distro my stuff and needs some physical media of some kind. If that were the case that’d be cool, no doubt, but I think it’s safe to say that won’t happen. :-)
And yes there will always be some freebie MP3 downloads here as long as I can afford to do it, bandwidth permitting.
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/5/2006
Is it a word or not? Let’s find out. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary has been used for fact checking.
Email
Is this a word? NO. E-mail (note the dash), on the other hand, is.
Website
Is this a word? NO. It should be web site because it is two words, not one.
Lappy
Is this a word (in reference to a laptop or notebook computer)? NO. As a matter of fact, it doesn’t exist - period. Although I love H*R, I wish they had never coined the phrase “lappy” in reference to a laptop computer, because there are some idiots out there who believe it literally does mean that.
IM
Is this a word (in reference to an “instant message”)? NO. It’s a made-up abbreviation. Doesn’t exist. Thanks for playing.
‘puter
Is this a word (in reference to “computer”)? NO. Granted, I myself have used this made-up word on a few occasions. And I vow never to use it on this blog ever again.
Google
Is this a word (in reference “to search on the internet”)? YES. It’s true, these guys do exist in the dictionary.
Just shows the power of Google now, doesn’t it? :-)
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/6/2006
There’s this little war-only-in-my-mind going on with the parking spaces in the apartment complex where I live.
I’ll explain.
About fifteen feet (literally) next to my apartment are the first three parking spaces that start the row. The first one is slightly too skinny for my truck. The next one is mich larger and fits my truck very nicely. All the rest after that are normal sized.
This asshole in his piece-of-shit Chrysler PT Cruiser (or as I call it the “Pop Tart” Cruisier or “Pick-a-Turd Cruiser”, take your pick) always parks his COMPACT CAR in the big spot. There is literally a half-a-car width on either side when he parks there. This leaves me to park my notably larger truck in the skinny spot (which sucks) or the other side father away from my apartment door.
Today, fortune smiled. I got what I deem to be my spot. :-)
Even better: That asshole in his Pop Tart Cruiser arrived literally minutes after I got here today. Screw you, pal. Take your pop tart compact car and piss off.
The reason I call it a “war” is because it’s always either him or me in that spot. When I get it - I’m always happy.
Today, I rule. :-)
—
My sister successfully arrived at TPA yesterday, where I picked her up and transported her to Inverness to see Pop. After staying overnight I decided to come back home to avoid any would-be arguments with her about petty things (which always happens). It is better that everyone is happy, and Pop is in good hands.
—
Speaking of coming home.. I love it when I can come back to my apartment where everything is left exactly as it was before I departed. It is such a wonderful comforting feeling when I walk inside and everything is exactly as it should be.
I have a few friends who are desperately looking for a place to live to call their own - and I understand how every one of them feels all too well. Everyone is territorial and it starts when you’re a kid, to the tune of “This is MY ROOM - stay out“ and goes from there. All of us value our private space very dearly. It doesn’t matter if it’s small or large, ritzy or a shack, what’s yours is yours.
—
I’m working on a funny little side project called the “girlfriend application” form, which will appear on this site later, possibly today. I think it’s funny. Watch for it later on. :-)
posted in blog | No Comments »
10/6/2006
posted in photos | No Comments »
first time here?get notifiedcontact rich
more info
contact rich
rich@menga.net
Rich's Facebook Profile
Rich's Flickr Photostream
Rich's YouTube Channel