It's that time of year again!

Ahem...
































GO SUNS!



That is all

Once every 100,000 Years or so...

So I was thinking the other day... as I often try not to do. You know what they say a room full of free thinkers will use up all the oxygen in the room in 20 minutes because they won't stop their yammering. As a direct result of that statement I try not to think to much.

So I was thinking... you never realize it how good you have it until it's all gone. Well I'm happy to report that I have realized how good I have it and I'm apperciating every minute of it. And you know me Mr. Always look on the bright side... things only look to be getting better.

Any questions?

Yes you in the back?

How many beers have I had tonight?

The proper answer to that question is not how many beers have I had it's how many beers haven't I had.

Who are you to wave your finger?

Wow concerts are so much better when you know all the words to all the songs...

TOOL May 6th 2006 Gammage Theater... holy crap that was cool.

3,300 people... small warm up show... 3rd show of tour.


I'm still just in wow of it all



moving on.... askaninja.com I recomend the following episodes

Special Delivery 1, 2, and 3 along with Questions 17 and 18

Go and understand that I have way to much time on my hands.

He had a lot of nothing to say....

Worked from home today.... It's a interesting feeling... Getting up at my usual time.

Making a pot of coffee

Having breakfast

Surf the internet

And sit at my kitchen table for the next 8 hours because I don't want to work in my office since that is where I game.. And I don't want to associate gaming with work.

Why did I work at home... I was getting my AC serviced... Why because it's old. How did that go? Well lets just say I'm not entertaining the thought of high efficiency cooling units.

I will be comfortable this summer... May not be able to do anything else but I will be comfortable.

On the bright side the new TOOL and Pearl Jam albums came out today. I already had pre-purchased Pearl Jam on iTunes... I downloaded it first thing this morning.

Good stuff, go get if you have anything more then a passing interest in Pearl Jam... Then again most of you really like their crappiest song that won alot of awards and haven't moved on. Oh well.

TOOL on the other hand is not down with the internet music thing. So that required me to get out and go to Borders... OK not a huge deal I haven't been to Borders in a while and it's a cool place.

So off I go to Borders, it's a Tuesday afternoon about 5pm. It's dead silent, it is a book store after all, and there are maybe 30 people in the whole joint not including employees. I wander around for about 10 minutes. No new books that I'm real keen on picking up just checking things out. There is someone about every 3rd aisle or so. I make it over to the CD section.

It's abandoned... Seriously there are no employees over there at all it's all just sitting there. Things are dusted but that is about it. I start looking for the new TOOL CD. Takes me about 10 minutes... But I have a ritual I go through every time I buy a TOOL CD. The first TOOL CD I bought was Ænima in 1997 (yes Cody I was a late catching the TOOL bus). I found Ænima by going through every rack at a Best Buy in Las Vegas because for what ever reason the Best Buy method of alphabetical does not match up with my grade school definition of alphabetical.

So I start my ritual... I can't help but notice that most of the bins are half empty some are almost completely empty. It's been a while since I bought a physical CD... Actually it's been something like 3 years. I've bought music it's all been on the internet though. Now I don't know if the bin situation is a normal thing but maybe part of the music industries problem is they can't keep fucking product on the shelf. Never mind that about 90% of it is crap to begin with.

So I get the TOOL CD... pay for it and head home.

Once I get home what is the first thing I do ? Yep I rip it to my computer to put on my iPod because I FUCKING BOUGHT A CD AND I WANT TO LISTEN TO IT ON MY FUCKING iPod.
Well 60 minutes later it's done ripping and it's not even a usable rip... It keeps skipping which my computer can handle but will cause the iPod to choke and it sounds like crap when it skips.

So that was my day... For those of you keeping score at home...

A/C unit... 1 down
2 Albums bought... 1 really good... 1 Artistically good... Technically leaves something to be desired.

One can only hope....

Happy Viente Nuevo de Abril!

With Cinco de Mayo quickly approaching I decided to celebrate my own personal diversity.


So I bought a selection of beers at Safeway today.

Guinness for my beer loving welsh/English/non Irish heritage.

Corona because a man can not live by beer alone occasionally he needs water and it's a good beer for Mesa.

Sam Adams... I don't think I had any ancestors fight in the American Revolution but you can never be to sure... and really since I've lived in the U.S. my entire life what is heritage day with out a little self heritage pride.

And Herminger Premium Bier from Germany (thanks Cody) to celebrate my oh so white northern European/German/Austrian ancestry.


Or maybe it was just a good excuse to buy a lot of beer that was on sale and I'm a sucker for a good deal :)

The Maltese Falcon.

So I've been taking a break from EVE (the game not the wife of a friend of mine). What have I been doing with this break? Watching movies, doing stuff around the house (read as cleaning) and generally trying to become more human again. I know I have a highly addictive personality.. You know a personality that lives and breathes something for a period of time and then falls out of it. I think I'm through the living and breathing thing of EVE I did this exact same thing with SWG but I blame that on other things. Things that we won't discuss here.

So in my procrastinate on cleaning the house ( if you say you don't procrastinate then you are lying to yourself and everyone else. Procrastination is like masturbation... No one owes up to it but everyone does it). I was reading ye olde tyme blog I have going on here. I do that from time to time.

And some time ago I wrote about TV piracy and my proposed solution. A iTunes like service that you could download TV shows from. Low and behold someone took my idea and ran with it and has forgotten my royalty check for coming up with the iTunes TV studio... OR I took the next logical step of a business model already out there and plans were in the works long before I dreamed up my thing.

Anyway point is you can purchase and download TV shows from iTunes and several other outlets on the internets. How many have I purchased?

Zero.

Yes I'm a huge fan of Battlestar Galactica. Which quite honestly is the only show on there that really interests me. Lost probally would get me too if I would give it a chance.. But see 3 paragraphs ago about addictive personality.

So why haven't I purchased any Battlestar Galactica's (BSG) for download?

Short answer it's stupid for me to pay $1.99 for content with no added value.

Long answer BSG is a fantastic series, I want it to grow and flourish I want others to grow to love this show like I have. I want other people to have debates about the larger context of the show and how it relates to our current situation in contermpary EARTH. I want other people to talk about incredibly evil Dr. Baltar is and how you really can't but help to hate the character but see what he does next. I get all of this for the $40.00 I give the friendly folks at my cable company every month. Actually I get Multiple showings of BSG and I get my choice between HD and Regular.

But $1.99 a episode is to much to pay for just a show. No commercials, no additional content, no second track with commentary.

$1.99 is to much to pay for a piece of video that I can watch on my computer but I can't burn to a DVD and watch on my huge TV with surround sound.

$1.99 is to much to pay for DRM codecs that may or may not be around in 5 years and I'm stuck with data that may or may not be intact.

$1.99 is to much to pay if I lose my hard drive because someone is to cheap allow multiple downloads of something I purchased.

Will I buy BSG season 2 when it comes out on DVD? You betcha! Will I pay $100 for it? Hell no! Will I pay $50 for it? OH yeah. Why because it has added value above and beyond the original. There is commentary (yes I'm one of those fan boys), I can watch it on any TV that has a DVD player hooked up to it.

Once again the pissed off ramblings of a random blogger that no one will ever listen to.

I would talk about my lack of a sex life.. But that would really get pretty boring very quickly.

Until next time kids.

10,000 minutes

Birthdays are a funny thing... Every year I don't say a word about the silliest day of the year (or the 3rd holiest day of the year depending on who you are... And every year with out fail people remember. It's really kind of disturbing. I mean I can barely find their houses and here they are remembering a random day in April.

I guess that is how you figure out who really gives a crap and who doesn't it would appear as though I have more people then I thought who give a crap.

Yes that is me being nice... Take it for what it's worth... And considering how often I'm "nice" well at least in this medium.

Ok moving on to things of a more technical nature....

PDA's

And I'm not talking about sticking your tongue down someone's throat in the middle of a public place.

I recently sold my iPaq to Curtis. Why you ask? Well it's simple he was going to use it way more then I was and the price was right. Of course the bitch of it is now that I don't have the stupid thing I realize just how much I did use it. Granted it was mainly for stupid things like lists and calendar but still I actually used it quite a bit.

Why don't I just buy a new one? Simple I'm waiting for the Treo 700p so I can make a choice between that and the 700w. I'm a gadget whore, get off my case and let me have my technology.

Anyway, in a fit of desperation and because my blonde hair is in no way or shape a dye job. I found a notebook that was of the small form factor. Holy crap it's a life saver. But that is not why I'm writing. When I found the notebook it was in the center console of my truck (which a year later still does not have a name) and started looking through it. It was the my old notebook from KRMC. It was interesting to flip through it and see what my notes to myself where like a year or so ago (SHC has provided with a laptop for work which for all intents and purposes is my PDA... A very large one but a PDA none the less). I also thought it was interesting that the last date that I used it was was June 21, 2005 also known as the day that everything changed for me.

Blatantly stolen from Kristina....

I stole this...

Yes I'm a bad person....

Yes it was worth it!

PHOENIX, ARIZONA

1. You must learn to pronounce the city name. It is: "FEE - niks".

2. The morning rush hour is from 5:00a to 10:00a. The
evening rush hour is from 3:00p to 7:00p. Friday's
rush hour starts on Thursday morning.

3. The minimum acceptable speed on all freeways-I-10, I-17, U.S. 60, Loop 202 -- is 85 mph. You may only exceed that speed on Loop 101, where the speed is allowed to match the highway number. Anything less is considered wussy.

4. Forget the traffic rules you learned elsewhere. Phoenix has its own version of traffic rules. Cars/truck with the loudest muffler go next at a four-way stop. The truck with the biggest tires go after that. (Note: East Valley cell phone-talking moms ALWAYS have the right of way.)

5. If you actually stop at a yellow light, you will be rear ended, cussed out and possibly shot.

6. Never honk at anyone. Ever. Seriously.

7. Construction is a permanent fixture in Phoenix. Detour barrels are moved around during the middle of the night to make the next day's driving a bit more exciting.

8. Watch carefully for road hazards such as drunks,
skunks, dogs, barrels, cones, cows, horses, cats,
mattresses, shredded tires, squirrels, rabbits, crows,
vultures, javelinas, roadrunners, and the coyotes
feeding on any of these items.

9 . You must know that Maricopa Freeway, Papago Freeway and the I-10 are the same road.

10. To find anything in Phoenix, it is required to know where Central and Washington are. This is our Alpha and Omega-the Beginning and the End.

11. If someone actually has their turn signal on, wave them to the shoulder immediately to let them know it has been accidentally activated.

12. If you are in the left lane, and only driving 70 in a 55-65 mph zone, you are considered a road hazard and will be flipped off accordingly.

13. Ground clearance of at least 12 inches is recommended for city driving.

14. You are allowed to wear potholders to protect your
hands and fingers during summer driving.

Of all the nerve...

On the subject of work recently.  I'm still loving the job down in Scottsdale so I'm not going to bitch about that.  Instead I'm going to bitch about....  A article I read recently about hiring a good PACS application specalist.

Understand that it seems like PACS is the bastard step child of most hospitals.  It's this hugely important application that is run enterprise wide.  And how many people typically support it?  In Kingman it was yours truly and 1 GE Field Engineer... And the GE Field Engineer left 2 months after go live.  So it was me and me alone for the four months between her leaving and my leaving.   Of course PACS wasn't the only thing that I supported but it took up a huge chunk of my time.  Actually in retrospect things should have gone down diffrently in Kingman.  But that is another diatrabe for another day.  

At the current healthcare system?  There are 5 of us (4 employees plus the GE Field Engineer).  I still support other apps and PACS still takes up a huge chunk of my time.   Other hospitals in the Phoenix area?  Well of the other folks that I have met so far there is typically 1 or 2 people for the entire healthcare system down here.  So a healthcare system may have 3 or 4 facilities (not nesscarily all of them full blown hospitals) that are taking care of PACS systems.  These aren't small healthcare systems either. 

And when I say 1 or 2 people I mean 1 person full time and maybe someone part time to help out.  

As far who controls a PACS system it seems to be split between x-ray departments and IT departments.   A few places actually seem to have some sort of workable arraingment for sharing employees and resources (Kingman had real issues with this). 

Getting back to the article.

So this article was put out in a publication aimed at Computer proffesionals in imaging.  Both technical and clinical users.   This list was presented in the form of a "Top 10" and number 8 was something to effect of:
    "A good PACS administrator should be personalbe and able to communicate effectivly" 
OK I know I'm not the greatest communicator in the world but I like to think I'm somewhat approachable.  Granted somedays I'm about as approachable as a porcupine but still. 

Well #8 goes on and the last line reads;
    "Highly technical but sometimes socially inept IT administrators" 

That last line in #8 is was really irks me.  Yes I've met my fair share of IT folks that have real issues relating to people about things other then computers.  But come on do we really need to be perpeuating this stereotype?     I've also met people from other walks of life that had real issues relating to people.  And in a couple of cases were actually worse then some of the IT folks I have run into in my time. 

Really it's that last line that has me bugged the most.  I still consider myself a IT guy, though admitatly I have specalized in one particular type of application for a particular sector of IT. 

It still pisses me off.

If you get the chance...

Go rent (or buy) "Audioslave: Live in Cuba"

Good music (of course) but it's really intersting for how Audioslave did their former bands songs (Soundgarden and Rage Against The Machine). The Rage guys do a pretty good job of doing a soundgarden song. And Chris Cornell is no slouch on the Zach Delarocha lyrics.


Highlight of the DVD?

"Black hole sun" Acoustic with just Chris Cornell.

Lowlight?

Some dude in Cuba is waving a flag for the state of Texas for the first 20 minutes. It's the only thing I can watch while it's on the screen.

You will never know...

What the truth to anything is until you have looked yourself square in the face and have made peace with yourself.

Have I done that?

NO.

Will I?

I don't know I going to have to get back to you on that one.

However now in the mean time I bring you the drivel that is my writing. It would appear that a few of you have missed it. More like one of you has so guess that is not really a majority. The fact that anyone reads this still boggles my mind.

So I've decided that myspace is particularly evil. It's even more evil when a friend subscribes to a music group. Now granted that in of it self is not a bad thing. Let me present the following evidence. I have 14 friends (rough number I don't know how many I actually have as I'm to lazy to look and I'm trying to prove a point). Since this one "friend" joined a group I have gotten no less then 40 friend requests. Since Friday of last week (this is being written on a Monday evening).

So what is the take away from this? If you join a group make damn sure I'm not in your top 8.

I have nothing else to bitch about. So I'm going to leave you with the bewilderment that is my new TV.

CHEERS!

Don't you...

Whish I posted a bit more?


NO?

Tough Shit!


I will return when I have something meaningfull to say.

NOOOOOOOOO!!!

NNNNNoooooooo!!!!!


I just kicked off the pod cast to episode 20 of the second season of battle star galactica!!!!


Ricker was so disturbed when he heard it that he jumped to death (again)


At least I was able to stop it before I heard anything!


P.s. not much else is going on... can you tell?

Owe... it burns the flesh!

Holy crap it's March already?  

 

I think I've been playing a little to much Eve....

 

I don't' know is 4 hours a night to much?

 

Some people would say yes.... I say... it's either play a game that utilizes my mind and forces me to interact with people to achieve a common goal.  Or veg out and read a book / watch television. 

 

That is the thing that gets me about online gaming... people are very down on it... a lot of the comments I get tend to be of the flavor of

 

-It's anti-social

 

-It's violent

 

-Gaming makes you dumb... or some how seem less intelligent.

 

Anti-social.... This is a two edged sword here.... in the traditional sense of the Console game, yes it's very anti-social.  It's you VS the computer.  In the world of MMO's and Online gaming it actually very social, your main opponents are real people and for years now games have included apps that let players speak to each other.  Most groups however then to use Ventrilla or Team-speak as their preferred method of communication and use the in game voice client for working with mixed groups.   As a direct result of the MMO's I play, I have made several friends.  (Friends defined as people I would like to hang out with on my personal time) (Personal time being defined as the most valuable of my time and for me to use at my discretion)

 

Violence... yes some games are violent.  It's a not a graphical violence (outside of the realm of the FPS).  It's more of a cartoonish violence.  One could argue that the board game Battleship is violent, or any of the various versions of Risk that are out there.  Violence in the MMO's is no worse then what you would find in a Old school Saturday morning cartoon.

 

Gaming makes you dumb?  I still don't understand why people feel this way.   I can read 1,000 books and have all the knowledge in the world.  If I can't communicate that knowledge, well who is dumb now?  This point goes back to my first point "Gaming is Anti-social".  You can turn your mind onto cruise control while reading a book or watching tv just as easily as you can playing Tetris.  You can also have alot of brain activity while watching tv or reading a book.  The difference is in the MMO you have alot of the cognitive higher brain functions going on then you do when participating in other forms of entertainment. 

 

Ok that is my diatribe... so hopefully this little f-list blogger will move to the E-list some day.

 

Your normal drivel will return with the next post.