keeping sane, one word at a time
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Male; Age 25; Likes Ultimate Frisbee;
Here's a favorite quote of mine from Tropic of Cancer p.99, "I have found God, but he is insufficient. I am only spiritually dead. Physically I am alive. Morally I am free. The world which i have departed is a menagerie. The dawn is breaking on a new world, a jungle world in which the lean spirits roam with sharp claws. If I am a hyena I am a lean and hungry one: I go forth to fatten myself."
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Wednesday, December 24, 2003
back in the Peg. successfully sold off all possessions (mostly to kitty). I'm now completely mobile at 4 boxes, 1 bike box, and 2 bags full of clothes...
9:36 PM
Thursday, November 27, 2003
Okay, so here we go:
Currently I am revising my thesis. I expect to have the bulk of the revision done before I leave (on the 23rd of December). I have discussed a schedule for completing my thesis with my current advisor (Dr. Benabdallah) and we both agree that it'll take place after christmas, before the spring (May). I have talked with my future advisor, Dr. Wild in Victoria, and I've agreed to start my research in the Mech. Dept. at UVic without formally applying for the PhD until May. This arrangement seems to be for the best. I will fly back for the oral component (the defense) sometime after christmas, but before the spring. This type of thing is common.
On a completely different note: I've found an interested party for the compound-miter saw. Now I just have to sell off everything else I own. This is pretty exciting.
4:17 PM
Wednesday, November 19, 2003
First draft is complete. Revision process now underway. Still have not told current advisor of interest to jump ship and hit the west coast. I think about this often, and as long as he's not pressing to know more, it's best to get the revision process done.
75orless.com is a cool source for album reviews.
4:49 PM
Saturday, November 15, 2003
Some "Kitty phrases":
"I might be messy, but i'm no dirty!"
"I've gotta catch my bus, choo-choo!"
2:02 PM
Thursday, November 13, 2003
South - "Same Old Story" from the album "With the tides".
diggin it
Oh yeah! the body of the missing cadet washed up on the shores of RMC campus sometime last night with the storm. He's been missing for about a month.
5:11 PM
Wednesday, November 12, 2003
Glorious sunshine. Dawn of a new day. A day that's one step closer to a finished thesis. I can almost taste that salty Victoria air.
5:28 AM
Sunday, November 02, 2003
so, U Vic is in sight. A Ph.D, but I don't really think of it as that. Just a chance to do some practical research with a cool Prof in a cool setting. So, I'm looking at roughly 17 G's plus a TA-ship. Hopefully a little over 20 when it's all done and said. Should be quite do-able, Vic is probably a little more expensive a city to live in, but with proper budgeting it shouldn't be an issue.
Now, need to give my landlady, my library job the 2 months notice and need to sort of keep my mouth shut about the whole thing. My RMC prof shouldn't find out about this till (ideally) the very end. This whole thing should light a fire under my pants though; maybe finish the first draft in 2 weeks, revise for a couple more and defend early december? Shit, better get writing!
5:36 PM
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
The body is 70% water, our blood, 90%. We need to consume 1.5 - 3 litres of water per day. Insert quote from environment canada: "Over 360 chemical compounds have been identified in the Great Lakes. Many are persistent toxic chemicals – alkylated lead, benzo(a)pyrene, DDT, mercury and mirex – potentially dangerous to humans and already destructive to the aquatic ecosystems." I guess we can think of our bodies as "Britas" for filtering out these chemicals.
5:21 AM
Tuesday, October 21, 2003
I also forgot. Apparently they're re-releasing ALIEN in the theatre on the 29th of October. It's supposed to be a director's cut. I'm crossing my fingers that ktown gets it.
9:30 PM
i think i'm going to apply for IEASTE tomorrow. It's an international internship program with 70 sponsor countries. If i apply tomorrow i might be able to get a January or May posting. It's a little pricey at $325 for the initial application, only $225 of which is returned if they don't find you a job... it's a nonprofit organization and the nice thing is the headquarters for canada is on campus at Queen's. You make $1500 dollars a month, which is pretty tight, but it's a damn good experience. Plus you get to travel. The only tough thing is you have to cough up the cost of transportation.
so much craziness: i've got a lease potentially running out in 2 months, grad funding that could end whenever, a thesis and side projects that need finishing, and a library job that will last till april, but that i should give notice if i'm leaving early.
9:21 PM
Friday, October 17, 2003
some days it's nice to be alive just to see the sunset splash its colors across the campus buildings on the other side of the river. today, the buildings almost look on fire, with a deep blue sky for a backdrop. got "memory gospel" from moby, in the background.
3:08 PM
Tuesday, October 14, 2003
Overconfident? I've decided it's not possible to be too self-confident. It's a tough, punishing world for the ego. So hold on to whatever you've got and collect more regulary. Build an army of self-esteem, a battalion of self-respect and a small division that keeps a watchful eye on complacency. And march through life with your head held high, Damn it!
Terranova - A few dollars more
5:57 AM
Saturday, October 11, 2003
Fav song of the day: Grant Lee Buffalo - Bethlehem Steel
Note to self: logic can be found in the extremes.
- example hopefully to follow -
10:40 PM
Thursday, October 09, 2003
never take yourself too seriously.
6:12 AM
Wednesday, October 01, 2003
I remember tree-planting back in '98. You were wasted by the end of the day, having planted hundreds of trees. But damn it! I felt like I'd accomplished something. It was so simple. Plant trees, complete puzzle, make money. Work hard, play hard, die hard.
6:47 PM
Tuesday, September 30, 2003
The Rapture - House of Jealous Lovers
exaggeration is a key component of a good story
6:18 AM
Friday, September 26, 2003
misanthropy: hatred or distrust of humankind
2:44 PM
I'm applying for an Alcan internship. You know, the guys who make aluminum foil.... Apparently they're in the market for a tribologist for an 8 month term. Just gotta cross the fingers I guess.... I'd really really like to get this job. It's a good company and it would be industrial research, which means: real problems, real budgets, real testing equipment ---- REAL CASH. Enough with student life. I'm through.
I need to go for a run.
2:26 PM
Tuesday, September 23, 2003
I live across the street from a senior's complex. In their front playground they have a 25-foot pole with canadian flag. Sometime during the night, through highwinds, the flag was shredded and entangled around the pole. Which is why I awoke to the sound of what seemed to be someone rhythmically slapping a stick on the ground. On closer inspection, it was Joe Senior, who decided to take on the task of freeing the shredded flag this morning around 7:45 am. The rhythmic slapping is Joe shaking the pole back and forth in a feeble attempt to loosen the flag's grip.
He reminds me of a chipmunk. He stands with head cocked to the side, under an unwilling "tree", in an effort to solve the puzzle of freeing the last nut. He's scurries anxiously around the tree, looking for that new angle that will solve his problem, but with no luck.
It's now 9 am and Joe's smoking a cigarette and pacing back and forth in front of the flag-entangled pole. He's tried unsuccessfully to shake the flag free in 10 minute intervals since 7:45 am, he's tried an 8-foot aluminum ladder and he's now called upon the help of a fellow senior, Sidekick of Joe.
It's now 9:15 am, Joe and Sidekick of Joe have attained a honking 15-foot aluminum ladder and are successfully cutting away the flag remnants. A job welldone. The chipmunk always wins.
5:55 AM
Friday, September 19, 2003
song of the day: rhett milller - come around
6:05 AM
Thursday, September 18, 2003
the deadline for the final copy of my thesis is due oct. 4. the deadline for the application to convocate on nov. 15 is due tomorrow. i won't be ready in time and am not too concerned about it. i guess i didn't really start writing until July, so that's only 3 months of writing so far and since i'm a slow-ass bitch...
kitty says ALCAN is looking to hire interns and they apparently research in tribology. i think i'll apply. in the meantime i'll have to talk to my advisor about my failure. it's not a big deal, he's hinted at the fact that he doesn't think i'll have enough time already. he'll use extending my pay period as leverage to convince me of the absolute bliss one gets from completing a PhD, or maybe he'll say get lost.
after rather dismal feedback on my technical writing, i've turned to a number of self-help books on the subject and am enjoying renewed interest in my thesis writing. i can now write with confidence!
8:55 PM
Tuesday, September 09, 2003
In an attempt to finish my written thesis by Oct. 4, I've sworn off trying out for the Queen's ultimate frisbee team. Maybe i'll come out for practice a couple times, or pickup for regionals or maybe not. Maybe it's time to move on, or maybe i'm being retarded. Ah well, I've still got hope that my thesis will be completed in time. Plus, there's always Goosebowl at the end of October!
9:50 PM
Wednesday, September 03, 2003
Went to Scott Schillinglaw's cabin this past weekend - sweet setup. "Cliff" Jumping, horseshoes, Fennis, Frolf, beer, steak, Minigolf and Euker were all on the menu. Plus Scott's getting married to Christine. Pretty crazy.
Man! gotta reinstall Win2K. I upgraded to SP4 only to realize that it's rendered ANSYS 6.1 (program key to finishing my thesis) useless. When window's asks if you'd like to backup files when upgrading to SP4 be sure to do it...
Started the library job this week, pretty sweet. Wish I could have had this job at the current wage earlier.
1:16 PM
Friday, August 22, 2003
Steadman - Carried, fav song of the day. South - Paint the Silence, second fav song of the day (been a good day:).
My employment with radioshack is officially terminated on the 15th of September, nearly one year from when it started. Could it be my last minimum wage job?
10:33 PM
Thursday, August 21, 2003
Rain, beautiful rain.
I spent 3 hours the other day tuning my bike; she absolutely purrs now. Found a new lubricant. I love a smooth running machine. I'm reading "Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood". Chemistry was never so interesting....
8:54 PM
Sunday, August 10, 2003
From the 0 to ~1100 A.D. humans thought the earth flat.
From 1100s on humans thought the earth spherical.
From the 1900s to some future date, humans will be remembered as thinking the earth infinitely large.
2:37 PM
Wednesday, August 06, 2003
so, high-powered lasers used to treat radioactive waste - completely inert in under an hour. If nuclear goes green we're saved.
11:04 PM
Recipe for a Long Term Forecast.
Forecast each day of the week using descriptions like: Variable cloudiness, Cloudy with sunny breaks, Partly cloudy and Cloudy periods and consider these different predictions.
Got some new cleats for Ultimate tonight (it better not rain). Brought my old ones to a cobbler to see if anything could be done, but he pronounced them dead as soon as I got them out of my backpack. Hope these last a little longer.
6:50 AM
Monday, August 04, 2003
"your girl, she's a renegade, a hurricane that's keeps you there, safe"
My new fav song, Stars - Look Up
was taking in a little DUNE on the space channel. LONG LIVE THE FIGHTERS! that would be a damn slick halloween costume if i could get my hands on one of those "desert suits" and maybe some glowing blue contacts...
9:28 PM
Saturday, August 02, 2003
We're on the verge of a number of revolutions. I was under the impression I'd have to grow old with nothing more than the latest version of the Ford Thunderbird or remake of Superman to look forward to, but it looks like we might actually be in for some interesting growth.
For one, numerous governments across the planet have begun investing millions into nanotechnology research. And we're already starting to see its influences in RAM (Random Access Memory) and others. Two, fuel cells are beginning to take off. I'm living in what's becoming a major canadian fuel cell hub; there's currently research at Dupont, RMC, Queen's and Fuel Cell Technologies - all located right here in Kingston. Three, Canadian competitors in the X-prize are looking promising (davinciproject.com) and the X-Prize will most likely be won sometime this year. Four, this is longer term, but we've only got around 15-20 years of oil left in current reserves for the planet. It'll be a regular hoot to see how our generation deals with this, cause we'll be in command when the shit hits the fan.
In short, woooohoooooooooooooooo! If for some terrible reason I was horribly disfigured or paralyzed and committed to a wheelchair I'd still have something to live for:)
New thought:
I was listening to a radioshow on KEXP.org this morning and this dude was discussing an upcoming "Take-back-your-time" Day (US). He's studying how much other industrialized countries work and has come to the basic conclusion that North Americans are working too many hours, well he was probably talking about americans. He was quoting figures from Norway, about how much less they work and how much more productive they are in those hours. The most interesting point of the show was his viewpoint on the GDP of a country. How too many countries are obsessed with increasing it and how lacking it is as a test of a country's health. His examples, if divorces were to increase across a country and cause families to need two homes the GDP would go up, more houses would need to be built, furnished, powered, etc, or if large-scale environmental damage were to occur, the GDP would go up, cleaning crews, products, etc would be needed. This scenario is more directed towards americans, but i think it's still relative here. I think i'm going ot have to read about it some more. One of his last points was that we're living unsustainable lives as is, so do we really need to be producing all this shit? I work at Radioshack, there's not one thing in the entire store that anyone actually needs. It's all crap and it's all plastic, which all comes from petroleum.
Sleep is good.
10:08 PM
Wednesday, July 23, 2003
I'm going to start writing "kittyisms". Kitty is my housemate, she's originally from Hong Kong and has spent a good portion of her life in Canada, but still makes a few funny mistakes with idioms.
Kittyism for the day: "I'll be back in a gypsy." (I'll be back in a jiffy)
Update on Montreal: An amazing time. We stayed downtown at a "friend of a friend's" house; he was a super host. There was a thunderous fireworks display on saturday night that set off car alarms throughout the city.
We battle the pink colored team in frisbee tonight. They're supposedly ranked 3rd (to our 6th), but I don't see them giving us too much trouble - we're steamrolling the entire tier! Well, we'll see anyway.
1:08 PM
Friday, July 18, 2003
To Montreal. To toss disc for the weekend in the tourney "As You Like It". Co-ed teams are WAY more fun.
More good news: Will be getting library job back come september, except the wage is now $19 / hr. (for sure this time!) At 12.5 hours a week that's a cool grand per month, which means radioshack can go to HELL baby!... but not just yet:)
Found analytical solution to my exact thesis problem and FEM solution is now jiving! This is good.
Plus, my ultimate team in kingston is sooo much fun this year. We're 7-1, have beaten almost all the teams in the league and we're currently itching to steal 2nd place overall (out of 12 teams). The neatest thing is most of the players are beginners, so individually we're not much, but as a group and using my "junk" defense strategy we're unstoppable. Good times.
7:20 PM
Monday, July 07, 2003
Shit, haven't written in a bit. Well, I think cam is in town (for all those who know cam). He's been offline for a while and i got a random "Hi"/"Bye" message on the phone - which means he's close:) probably within a 200 Km radius.
Hey T3 was ENTERTAINING! far exceeded what i thought it would be. The chick terminator doesn't talk, what a good descision by the director!
Been sailing off and on these past couple weeks, on a Kirby 30'. It's a rather fat boat, but still fast. A couple interesting rig differences, like "tweakers" for guiding the guy and sheet for the kite and it's also got "running backs", extra shrouds that have to be tightened everytime one tacks.... kind of annoying. One thing I'm learning is that Ktown's got wind! We blew a jib halyard out last race.
If I had a drink I'd raise it up to LONG summer days, sweet ultimate fields and skimpy summer wear.
6:22 PM
Sunday, June 29, 2003
Batman is by far, the greatest superhero. It all starts with the fact that he's human, with no unexplainable phenomena surrounding his body. He doesn't leap over buildings, shoot web from his wrists, casually throw 70 ton tanks; he's 100% human. He trains to be strong, trains to be stealthy. He carefully studies his enemies and builds all his own weapons. All this sums up to one inspirational dude. He represents. I think Wolfgang Peterson might be making "Batman vs. Superman". You can count me in.
10:24 PM
Sunday, June 22, 2003
I thought I'd share the book I'm reading, "Senor Vivo and the Coca Lord" by Louis de Bernieres.
If I had to summarize in one sentence:
An outrageous black tale on the Columbian drug trade, marked with a veraciousness that catches you laughing.
7:30 PM
Saturday, June 21, 2003
Okay. So I'm starting to figure out just what side of the family my body hair is from, my mothers. I'm going to be the spitting image of my grandfather, bald with a gorilla chest. This is because I've started to get small amounts of chest hair. And, as an added bonus, my hairline is receding. At this point I'm not sure by how much because I've just noticed. Anyway, I was checking out the Rogaine webpage to learn more about my disease and found some pretty funny quotes:
"To ensure the solution fully covers your scalp, you may want to rub Men's Rogaine into your scalp with your fingertips. However, this step is not necessary to receive the benefit of Rogaine. Be sure to wash your hands with soap and water after applying Rogaine. " <-- this one self-explanatory:) MR. Hairy Hands.
and the classic side-effects:
"Stop Use and See A Doctor If You Get:
chest pain, rapid heartbeat, faintness, or dizziness.
sudden unexplained weight gain
swollen hands or feet <---- that one is kind of interesting.
scalp redness or irritation that continues or worsens. "
So, if you're really unlucky, you could have swollen hairy hands;P
7:12 AM
Tuesday, June 17, 2003
Function will never go out of style. Simple and practical will always be cool, will always be sexy. Take my new watch for example, with one glance everything's purpose is very clear. The analog face is simple, from the chrome "hour" notches to the "time setting" knob on its right all gently attached to the wrist with a black leather band. Pure and simple. Some might say minimalistic. Yes, a minimalistic functionality. You have to include that, or else you lose something. The bulky sports watch, with all its clutter, is functional but not cool. The Swiss Army knife is very useful, but lacks the integrity of the clean, unserrated, single-bladed "buck" knife. A drawn buck knife has only one purpose.
1:45 PM
Sunday, June 15, 2003
The Fast and the Furious decided to close the street in front of my apartment and park itself over the weekend. Yes, you guessed it, a suped-up import car rally. I don't see the pretty metallic paint, the turbochargers, or the mag wheels. All I see are mobile stereo amplifiers, tuned into the latest pop and capable of outputting enough bass to rattle windows and organs. Ah, all of them in such a small area. With one concentrated attack I could rid myself of that racket for most of the summer.
Attack Plan #1: One pass with an M1 Abrams Attack Tank (60 tons)
Attack Plan #2: Simultaneous placement of ~50 bags of thermite on the hoods of all cars. (Thermite burns at 3000 C)
Attack Plan #3: Drive a busload of SARS patients into the area and tell them they've each won one of these cars, the first into the driver's seats gets to take it home.
Attack Plan #4: Grenade Launcher (self-explanatory)
Attack Plan #5: Electro-magnetic Pulse (EMP)
Attack Plan #6: Commandeer a nearby Water Bomber; 2-3 drops should be enough.
Any one of these should work by itself, but a combination would be 100% effective. For example, Plan #3 coupled with Plan #1 (in that order) would rid of the city of two scurges at once.
good night.
9:10 PM
Thursday, June 12, 2003
Does anyone actually like popcorn? I mean, if popcorn were to take human form, would anyone be its friend? I don't think so. We tolerate it, but no one would call it up to hang out. If chocolate were in trouble I'd definitely be the first on the scene to help out, but popcorn just doesn't satisfy. It's as light as air, you get more energy from breathing in bugs. There's no point to it.
7:45 AM
Violet Jessop was a stewardess on all of the White Star Line's three sister ships: Olympic, Titanic and Britannic. Olympic was never sunk, but eventually scrapped. She survived Titanic's maiden voyage. And she survived being sucked into the rotating propellors of a sinking Britannic. Some people like boats; I like sinking boats. There's no story in a boat that floats:) If I could make regular trips back in time and hide within the bodies of other people hers would be high on the list.
6:25 AM
Tuesday, June 03, 2003
I use this program called ANSYS on a regular basis these days. It's an absolute monstrosity, capable of modelling things I have no comprehension of. Today it gave me an error message as such, ". . . (insert babble). . . You are using this program in an unconventional way". I find that pretty hilarious - maybe it's just been a long day. Either way, it's my new favorite error message. This is officially a lame post.
9:04 PM
Friday, May 30, 2003
I'm kind of hung up on the future lately.
CUBE
The year is 2084. After years of testing, from the simplest forms of mammalia right up to human trials the Cube was finally introduced. The Cube is capable of raising a human embryo from the earliest stages of egg-sperm fertilization the full nine month term until maturity. And it does the job better than a human. Boasting a modest neural network it carefully nourishes and with a fuel cell is never needs to refuel or worry about power outages. This represents the last great hurdle between the sexes - the ability to reproduce.
When I was younger I was very aware of the fact that men were losing their identity, in the conventional sense. Whether through equality or sperm banks, things were changing. It never occurred to me that women were losing their identity too. I'm convinced we'll look back at these turbulent times and laugh at ourselves. Racism, religous wars, they're so irrelevent. Imagine being concerned with an interracial marriage. We're becoming a unisex and people are worried about a slight mixing of ancestry.
And the irony of it all is that Men and Women will do everything in their power to strengthen their sexual image. I can't deny that a sizeable percentage of the time I spend in the gym is for that very reason. I want to be a strong, healthy male. It's undeniable. Breast implants have never been more popular; they represent the single most defining mark of the female body. So here we go. It seems to me we're in for one hell of a roller coaster ride until we come to grip this new reality. You'll still find me at the gym tomorrow;)
An afterthought that was spurred on by the above post: "Fate is always ironic, be suspicious of anything to the contrary"
10:47 PM
Been playing around with names for my blog. I think i like this one. "freeflow" was too........something, maybe pretentious and "The Diary of an Engineer"? who's going to read that?:) Anyway, this is my favorite food on the planet earth, straight from cold, crisp Lake Winnipeg waters. Served in large quantities with a slight chill and no utensils. Enjoy.
6:28 AM
Wednesday, May 28, 2003
Life is so full of up and down. You're perfectly content one moment and insanely unsatisfied the next. I'm convinced my hairline is receding, but I can't tell for sure. I don't feel so invincible anymore, but i've never been stronger. This defines the "peak" of my physical existence. That's scary. Enough of that shit.
We won our frisbee game today. Lots o beginners. Gotta remember to keep my cool - way too "passionate" about these things. Winning isn't everything. Right.
I remember those cartoons and movies where a devil and angel would perch themselves on opposite shoulders. When I was younger I always thought it ridiculous, now it seems to make more sense. Two, or more personalities warring within the body. I suppose a healthy mind would contain many equally strong parties, each fighting for their own stake.
New Radiohead is good. I especially like "Go to Sleep". . . speaking of which
10:16 PM
Monday, May 26, 2003
THE KINGSTON WHIG STANDARD, May 26th, 2003:
"RadioShack Employee Slowly Cuts Head Off Store Manager; Rolls it Down Princess Street."
After an intense psychiatric evaluation, Mr. Olender was found to be quite sane during the event. Sources say he continued to sell cordless phone batteries for a good while after . . .
9:22 PM
Thursday, May 22, 2003
Just finished Fahrenheit 451. It's really neat to see how Mr. Bradbury managed to basically predict the future 50 (written in 1953) years in advance. Empty, shallow, self-destructive, speed hungry and constantly waring, these are words to describe the society found in Fahrenheit 451, but I could have easily finished the sentence by comdeming our society for such evils. I suppose things aren't that bleak. It makes me wonder if anything modern I've read or seen will be as accurate 50 years into my future. If I had to pick purely technology, ignoring pyschological and socialogical differences, it wouldn't be Star Trek, but maybe a collage of scenes from Minority Report, Blade Runner and Time Machine. A couple things that struck me in Miinority Report were the fact that all cars looked the same. As far as I can tell, all cars will eventually look the same; I'm sure most will admit to the fact that if one were to remove all the fancy name plates off any of the new floor models you wouldn't have a clue who made it. They're reaching a 'design equilibrium' that might change a little with new fuel sources and new engines, etc, but as things go on I'm positive you'll just see a sort of design oscillation around the mean - buick's will look or will have looked liked honda's will look like cavaliers will look like camry's ad infinitum. Blade Runner's got the cyborgs. And Time Machine has an interesting scene in New York (I think), that has about a zillion bicyclists. They also mention moon development. Speaking of planetary development, do I dare mention Total Recall? I think not. I'd talk about the gritty future of Aliens before I did that:) It's also interesting to note here that instead of turning to books for predictions I immediately jumped into films....
9:37 PM
Wednesday, May 21, 2003
I tried to get a "Western" sandwich at Subway today. The Western is on the breakfast menu. The breakfast menu ends at 11:00 am. It was 11:05 am when I requested the sandwich. I got an all-smiles response, "Sorry, it's 11:05". I thought he was joking - he wasn't. I went up the street to Burger King and got a Whopper:) As I was eating I looked across the street and noticed Dairy Queen was selling hamburgers. Now, if Dairy Queen can sell hamburgers, you'd figure McDonald's, A&W, Subway, and whoever else could consider keeping the breakfast menu on all day; or at least a little more flexibilty. This isn't possible, the "breakfast barrier" is too great a hurdle for the fastfood industry.
7:57 PM
Friday, May 16, 2003
Saw the Matrix sequel the other night. Damn good! A special effects bonanza. Why was it so impressive? I'd start by saying most action blockbusters seek to amaze with booming explosions and dazzling speed, and Matrix: Reloaded is no different. But all those scenes were done in such a way as to reveal every last detail of the action (as opposed to hiding it), from the gravitational physics (or lack of it) to some of the bigger structural failures; everything was researched to the nth degree. This movie allows us to see the matrix in its fullest form, as a wild playground for its elite inhabitants.
7:30 PM
Saturday, May 10, 2003
Crescent I spent most of the day replacing components and tuning of my bike. Still need to replace the front derailleur, cables and it looks like a new cassette as well - unless I can live without 4rth and 5th gears. May 24th was too long to wait. Need to pick up an extra shift at the Shack to cover these expenses.
Through the repair I spent much time loathing the crescent wrench. It's a tool designed to do everything, poorly:) It reminds me of a friend whom I used to argue with over the pros and cons of using your computer to play video games, versus buying a console like the xbox. First off, I'm a practical minimalist, who would rather carry a swiss army knife instead of a tool box. In this case your computer is the crescent wrench. Loading a video game can be a pain in the ass, it's never guaranteed. And if you want to realize the full potential of your game's graphics the latest video card is needed. The console always works, without fail; it's that 15mm wrench the crescent is posing as. And nothing else is really needed for normal play (on a side note, the accessories and games are where ALL the money is made on consoles). His main beef was just the ease of use factor. You can sit down and play a game when you want, without any driver, cpu speed, etc hassles. Well, in this case, I had to actually go out and buy a 15 mm wrench, but don't count on me buying an xbox - even if i did have the cash. My computer will continue to do everything now and into my future, it'll be my all-in-one home entertainment unit.
6:18 PM
Friday, May 09, 2003
Tunes of the Good Type: DJ ZTrip & DJ P - "Starwarsmegaphatmix", password is: my hometown.
A damn cool song for Star Wars phans...
6:37 PM
Just about every component on my bike needs replacing.... winters are far too harsh. The abrasion from the street sand is pure evil. My new plan is too wait for the police auction on the 24th and see if I can find a bike with the components I need for a steal:)
5:50 AM
Tuesday, May 06, 2003
A withdrawn celebrity, it moves in many hidden social circles. It's invited to all the hippest parties, requested to speak at many an exposition, but it rarely attends. When an appearance is made, it never goes unnoticed. A flirt, it whispers the fantastic into the ears of many wide-eyed fans. Those familiar with tracking its movements are more skeptical of its tales. The Future has many friends, but no intimate relationships.
10:16 PM
Thursday, May 01, 2003
From time to time I like to think i'm capable of devising some rules to live my life by - a super casual religon. The rules should be simple and universal. To pass they must stand up to a variety of different situations. "Balance from moderation", is an earlier example of one. I try and live my life like a mutual fund, trying not to invest in too much of the same thing, hoping all along to weather bear markets. My latest, simply put, is that you should finish what you start. This of course, isn't a revelation for most, but to actually make a point of it is important. You can never lose by finishing what you start, whether job, school or some other project. Up until now I'd constantly been arguing with myself that although finishing something you may not be interested in is good for the sake of principle, you have to also consider that it takes a lot of courage to realize you've made a mistake and move on. Cowardly wading through an uninteresting project out of the fear of change under the dillusion of principle is a terrible state of affairs. That said, it's survived a number of important periods in my life and I think it's a keeper. Besides, it goes well with my stubborn personality:)
5:49 PM
IDLE There's been extensive road repair on a small bridge connecting suburbia with downtown Kingston. The traffic congestion winds for miles and miles in either direction as people wait their turn to cross the bridge in the remaining open lane. I wait for no one; I'm fortunate enough to be able to bike to work. It's beautiful. As I zoom by all the idling cars I can't wipe the smirk from my face. SUCKERS!.... is what i'm thinking. But I can't voice my opinion too openly for fear one day of having to join them myself. It's a scary thought. I'll bend backwards to try and avoid it.
5:37 PM
Saturday, April 26, 2003
Update on the RIAA vs. Grokster/Kazaa/Morpheus trial: Peer2peer Wins! (from WEEDS)
On a different note, i've recently been introduced to a typesetting program named LaTeX. Most are familiar with the popular MS Word typesetting program; LaTeX is far more capable. Word is what's called WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get), while a LaTeX file looks more like a programming language with bits and pieces of sentences (or whatever you're writing) sandwiched between typesetting commands. Of course, the finished product is as professional looking as something in a book. An amazing piece of completely free software. I'll try and use LaTeX whenever I can from now on.
Media of the Good Type: Here's a link to my ftp server, password is: my hometown. I recommend "apology_256", "honda_120" and "Star". Real Player, Quicktime and Windows Media are needed.
9:01 PM
Tuesday, April 22, 2003
HAMMERTIME I'm going to a part-time job tomorrow to "have a little chat" with the boss and i think i'm going to be fired. It'll be the first time for that. I don't much like certain aspects of the job, or the boss and my true feelings have surfaced in a number of ways - some subtle, some not. To top it off, i have to pay almost 500 bones in income tax this year. And I blame easter. Holidays interfere with routine. I love the routine. However, life seems to prefer to shape us with the demolition sludge over the pocket-sized rock hammer. Actually, i might have stumbled across a way better part-time job for the summer, more money, less hassle. But it's not guaranteed yet, so i'm wondering if i have to grovel tomorrow or not. I'm not the grovelling type, but daddy needs a new rear derailleur.
8:25 PM
Friday, April 18, 2003
HYENA I can't go one run, bike or stroll in this town without getting yelled at by motorists. It never fails. The guys typically yell clever phrases like: "FAG!", "LOSER!" and just today i think it was "GEEK!" (that ones pretty rare). As they drove by screaming I ran out into the street and challenged them, but they didn't stop or turn around - they never do. It's because they're cowards. It's funny because I can remember the guys who used to do it when I was growing up. I bet they're still cowards today, that doesn't change. You can't change it. I think about it now and pity them, but in the heat of the moment I won't remember that. I'll only see red. I'm going to carry a stone in my right hand now, a nice, sharp throwing rock. Now i won't have to wait for them to stop. The stone WILL fly true... and hopefully marr their car (or parent's car) in some way. If i'm really lucky they'll stop:) and you can bet they won't have to chase me.
Here's a favorite quote of mine from Tropic of Cancer p.99, "I have found God, but he is insufficient. I am only spiritually dead. Physically I am alive. Morally I am free. The world which i have departed is a menagerie. The dawn is breaking on a new world, a jungle world in which the lean spirits roam with sharp claws. If I am a hyena I am a lean and hungry one: I go forth to fatten myself."
6:40 PM
WEEDS I remember the good ol days of the original file-sharing programs. It was my first year of university and the mp3 craze was slowly blanketing the campus. Of course the most notorious program was Napster and as soon the RIAA caught wind of Napster and profit margins were threatened the big guns were pulled out for termination. Napster had to die! Napster's popularity grew out of its combination of a simple GUI and reasonable file transfer protocol, but it had one fatal flaw - all files flowed through a few major servers. Which meant, after a trial Napster's plugs could be and were pulled and the RIAA sat happy, no doubt satisfied with the outcome. For the general mp3 population this was definitely a 'blip' in the timeline, a moderate set back that pushed users to all sorts of alternatives. One of the alternatives would turn out to be the nastiest of weeds for the RIAA; a weed, based on a program called Gnutella, that would eventually flourish with all sorts of names like: Morpheus and Kazaa. Kazaa and Morpheus are peer-to-peer file transfer programs, which basically means no main servers exist and there aren't any plugs to pull. And even if the RIAA could manage to find the companies or the people that own and manage these programs and try and sue them, there'd be no way to shut down the home user without shutting down the internet. I guess you can look at it as a 'natural selection' of the fittest program and the RIAA as a catalyst for the evolution. They kicked themselves... hard:) and spent lots of time and money doing it. There was a critical paradigm shift that never happened in their boardrooms and offices; they needed to realize that we were in love with the technology and not the free music.
2:02 PM
Saturday, April 12, 2003
Melodies of the good type: Fading Collection - the Prince, Echoboy - Comfort of the Hum
9:57 PM
The long days of summer are back. I'm thinking about scheduling more rock climbing into my weekly activities. It works a nice balance of muscles and works them hard. Ive been climbing once every two months or so for some time now and appreciate it more everytime. We've got a pretty good local spot for indoor climbing and i've got a good bunch of cats to go with. It's been 3 days now and my forearms are stilling stinging from my lack of technique:) Currently my technique can only be described as one lengthy chinup that lasts much of the climb. Climbing shoes are bloody expensive. The ones i'm looking at are $119 - $135 depending on where you buy them. Man, for what you're paying, we're not talking about a lot of material. We'll have to wait and see what Mr. Income Tax Refund has to say.
6:09 PM
Wednesday, April 09, 2003
Spring Forward and lose an hour. It's like jetlag without actually going anywhere. Really digging Invisible Man now. Can't put it down. Can't write blog. Ahhh!
9:05 PM
Saturday, April 05, 2003
Don't have much time to liberate any thoughts tonight as it's already 1 AM. I'm listening to the song Halcyon and On by Orbital. This same song has been in my mp3 playlist for years and i've never once grown tired of it. I've been known to get stuck in musical ruts, but this isn't the case. That damn song is just that good. Nine minutes and twenty-one seconds of pure goodness. It's honey. It's a cherry covered in honey:) It carries you far far away. It's a song for the escapist. Of course, i'm aware Halcyon is the name of a drug, but i've never taken it. And i can't see that drug doing this song any justice. I imagine it akin to those pills popped in Brave New World. I can barely remember it now. Something about travelling to the moon and back. Yeah, moon pills.
10:05 PM
Friday, April 04, 2003
I was reading a story about a CNN medical journalist who performed brain surgery in the field. I feel like I know more about the status of every single journalist and THEIR story, rather then the real people of this war. It's funny, these news networks seem to be shining more light on themselves. And they cheapen the sacrifices of everyone else. I'd be surprised to hear if any of the soldiers cared for their presence. Can you imagine? You're there risking your life, running full-tilt towards Baghdad with machine gun in hand and you glance to your left to see a body-armored Dan Rather crusing alongside in a golfcart, catching a little air off the tops of dunes. Or you're an Iraqi civilian, you've been witnessing the destruction of your city, maybe the death of family and there's Dan Rather and his golf cart, trying desperately to hide his eagerness at all the potential stories. I have no sympathy for war correspondants of the "buckaroo" type. I've devoted it all to the real victims of the war, the Iraqi people and Coalition soldiers (this is hypothetically speaking, if i was going to devote anything cause this war really doesn't affect me at all). The first Gulf War brought us the "smart" bomb. The second war has brought us the "embedded" journalist. One of them was a good idea.
9:06 PM
Thursday, April 03, 2003
The Status Quo: for posterity
A war, or better term: invasion, began fifteen days ago in Iraq that has divided the world. On the one side, the invaders, the American and British. On the other side, France and Russia. And somewhere in the middle lies the rest of the globe. And while people are dying in Iraq, both Coalition and Iraqi, back home the world is following the very pulse of the frontlines; America is boycotting anything French and France is boycotting anything American; Canadian MP's have recently been engaged in all sorts of sillyness, regularly being quoted as slandering Americans, or America's motives. And as all this is going on, all eyes trained on the gulf; a quiet, lethal virus named SARS is nipping at the heels of a distracted race. And of all the motives, of all the reasons for all the actions currently in circulation I think SARS' has the purest.
6:58 AM
Wednesday, April 02, 2003
We will discuss the freak. I've had this idea in my mind for quite some time, so bare with me. It's going to take some time to sort it out properly. The freak can be obvious or shrouded. But I'm mostly concerned with the shrouded type. This freak is a product of fear - the fear of being discovered. When properly harnessed, the freak can be a great source of power, the power to focus. This makes the freak a valuable resource at times because in this age focus is a rare commodity. I believe a great many 'improvements' to the race have been made on the back of this freak. Which is kind of ironic, because the freak would be considered an outcast, an 'undesirable' state of being, something to be shunned. Which brings me to the conclusion. Our race is, on many occasion, thrusted, propelled forward in art and science by a creature that nobody wants or likes. I wonder if this will make any sense in the morning?
9:03 PM
Tuesday, April 01, 2003
As one who's never believed in the stereotype that separates the sexes as two completely different entities - finding one an insensitive map reader, while the other an emotional chef. I think I've finally straightened out the model in my mind enough to leave it alone for the rest of my life, the whole scenario summed up in one phrase, "the same conciousness trapped in two different bodies under varied circumstance". There! Done! Don't have to ponder it ever again......... yeah right!:)
9:27 PM
Sunday, March 30, 2003
As someone who spends quite a bit of time reading, whether studying or for pleasure, there is a definite call for stimulus from time to time. I can't say i've really ever considered caffeine an adequate solution to my intermittent lethargy as it usually seriously inhibits any rational thought. So, when i came across a tidbit of an article declaring the apple superior over the tried and true coffee bean I was skeptical. Having always been a fan of apples, and always having a bag of fresh macintoshs in my kitchen it didn't take much time or effort to test the theory. The apple wins hands down. Enough "oomph" to gently peel back those eyelids and damn tasty too. It's funny that i'd never really noticed it before. I've also heard somewhere that the net result of hot chocolate is to leave your body cold? Hmmmmm.
4:48 PM
Saturday, March 29, 2003
Caught a little TLC this aft, became reacquainted with the mystery of giant squid. A real brute of a fish. It's staggering to think how little contact we've had with them. A handful of "glimpses", a few tentacles and other body parts brought up in nets and this weak showing spread out over half a century. It's a good feeling to know that we haven't explored every nook of the globe. I was reading an article in New Scientist about a 'flying' submersible called "Aviator". It has inverted wings to provide a down force to pull it's naturally bouyant body to 1500 feet. Its creator sees it as, among other things, a good vehicle for catching the giant squid in action. It's unknown what their preferred depth is, but those aforementioned nettings occured near 2000 feet. Might make for a nifty holiday, a "Squid Safari".
8:30 PM
Friday, March 28, 2003
i've just re-emerged from the world of Ralph Ellison, The Invisible Man. I can't really say I've much in common with the main character, but we'll see, he's growing on me. I usually like to take away at least one quote from a story and i think i might have found one for this case, "I imagined I heard the fall of snow upon snow", page 262. It doesn't really have a point or anything, it's more of a 'state'. After having spent much time in the company of falling snow I've forgotten its calming value. I've spent yet another winter beside a large lake and i can't say i've got any patience left for it. Lake winters are different from the prairie winter. They seem weak in their resolve, constantly flirting with the winds, creating a rollercoaster of temperatures. I remember the prairie winter as unrelenting in its crescendo - gripping you from the first snowfall and pulling tighter and tighter through the months until March. Ah, it's hard to say what's going on climatewise anymore.
9:39 PM
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