400 Posts

A couple of days ago I made a list of things I wanted to get done this weekend, and updating my blog was one of them.  My dad told me that people are more likely to accomplish their goals if they actually write them down, and I don't know if this serves as evidence in favor of that or not (correlation does not equal causation, as we all know) but here I am, updating my blog.  So that's gotta count for something, right?  Anyway, this marks the 400th post on this blog and even though I don't update it nearly as often as I used to I plan on keeping it going for quite some time.  Maybe I'll hit 500 posts someday too!

A few weeks ago my wife and I took a trip to Washington DC to collect data for her research at the Library of Congress, and just like the first time I visited DC a couple years ago I was struck by so many things about it.  The history, the locations, the buildings, and the people all add up to a confluence of so many aspects of our country that really is unique.  Add to that the singular trait that the district is the seat of our country's government and you have a place that is quite like no other.  As we strolled down the National Mall and walked past the Supreme Court and Capitol buildings, we sort of marveled at the fact that whether one agrees or disagrees with the individuals in power, and the policies they are enacting or laws they are debating, it's pretty remarkable that it all happens in such an open and pedestrian fashion.  Congressmen and national leaders dine at the same bars and restaurants, just up Pennsylvania Avenue, as firemen, policemen, and even the custodians that clean the very buildings in which they work.  The halls of our government buildings are, for all intents and purposes, fairly accessible to the public.  And should one choose, he or she can stroll right up to the offices of their representatives and present an opinion or offer advice.  Granted, our government can be a mess of inefficiency and gridlock, not to mention partisan bickering and stonewalling, but seeing the National Archives and reading the very document that was signed by 39 representatives over 200 years ago which lays out the foundational tenets of our system of representative government helps restore a bit of faith in the overall system.

Not sure what this was, but it's right next to the Capitol.
I like to think it's a secret fort some congressmen use
for playing Cops 'n Robbers.

We were able to attend a Wednesday service
at the National Cathedral.

On my birthday my wife took me to the Air and Space Museum.
(That is the real Space Shuttle Enterprise)

A row of houses near the Capitol. You don't really
see houses like this in Oklahoma  :)

The Metro--the only way to travel in DC.  It looks
almost exactly how it does in Fallout 3, too.

Overlooking the National Mall.

Last weekend I was in Nebraska for my dad's 60th birthday, and it was cool seeing lots of relatives, playing cards, and pretty much spending the day just hanging out with family and friends.  At night I went to see my buddy Nick's show down at Knickerbocker's, as it was his band's final gig with their drummer Matty who is moving away to Phoenix for college.

Still one of the best venues for local shows in Lincoln.

Along with posting on my blog, I have a lot of other things on my list for today so that's gonna just about do it for now.  :)

And Ye Shall Receive

Living in an apartment is nice, though my wife and I long for (ok, look forward to) the day when we can own our own house. It won't happen for at least a year, though, and until then we like our place well enough. It's got a lot of nice perks, as far as apartments go, such as a pool (which I used after a long day of work outside today), convenient indoor mailboxes, and a helpful management staff. And we hardly ever have problems with the neighbors, nor they with us, but last night the people below us engaged in that perennial cause of Apartment Strife: loud music. It's usually not too bad, but last night we could not only hear, but feel, the bass thumping on the floor. And had we been watching a movie or otherwise actively distracted, it might not have been too bad, but we were both trying to get work done, so it was kind of annoying.

And wouldn't you know it, the bass was continuing today. So I figured I would go down and ask them politely to turn it down. I shirked my PJ pants in favor of jeans, donned an old pair of sandals, and descended the stairs to their apartment door, mentally preparing for the worst. I knocked on their door and half a minute later a guy about my age opened it, and I started to expound extemporaneously regarding the volume of his tuneage. He beat me to the punch, though.

"Is the music too loud?" he asked politely, catching me off guard.

"Yeah," I responded in kind.

"Sorry about that, man. I'll turn it down," he said, appearing positively friendly at this point, and even looking a tad guilty for bothering his neighbors.

"Thanks, man. I really appreciate it."

And that was that. Pretty cool what a bit of politeness will get you.

8 Pint

Today I got my much-sought-after One Gallon Pin after donating as many units of blood over the course of the last few years. I still can't watch them stick the needle in my arm, though. My dad and I both get squeamish around needles, and I once saw my dad nearly faint after seeing a good deal of blood in the aftermath of one of the many accidents we had as kids. They actually do blood drives in the building next to my work, so it's easy to go donate after work whenever they do these blood drives. I still have a way to go in order to catch up to my brother Andy, my uncles Tony and Pete, and other people I know who donate, but it's a start...

I am finishing up one major video project right now, and in the next two weeks I will be starting, and finishing, several more. It's a lot of work, but the ability to do some of this on my work laptop has been outstanding. I don't remember how I did all this editing last year on my eMac alone, but somehow I did. My goal is to make enough money this summer from video projects to pay for Apple's high-end 20-inch iMac, which will blow my oooold eMac out of the water. Yuss! I'm also learning a good deal about Final Cut Express, thanks to the reference manual my wife got me for Valentine's day, as well as just using it.

Having missed the CD release of my friend's band,The JV All*Stars, I've been listening to their "Girls Forget Your Boys/Boys Forget Your Girls" album recently, as well as some of their more recent stuff over at PureVolume. Keep 'em coming, guys. From Nick's basement on 63rd street to headlining shows in Japan...it's been one crazy ride, eh? And if you're ever in the Twin Cities, gimme a holler..

Something old, something new

A while back I stumbled across a web site called Pandora that I thought was fairly interesting, but filed it away in my mind and went about my usual daily internet-surfing routing of slashdotting, digging, IMDBing, and the like. In the past few weeks, though, I have, oh, how should one say it...rediscovered what it has to offer. See, there's this thing called the Music Genome Project that is, in a nutshell, an effort to analyze "genes," or building blocks, of songs. Apparently there's something like 400 individual qualities that music can be judged by, and the guys at MGP have basically broken down all the music known to mankind, or at least a healthy chunk of it, and interpolated it based on these 400 characteristics.

Pandora, then, is an extension of the efforts of the Music Genome Project. You go there, type the name of a song or an artist, and you are presented with either the song you typed, or a song that epitomizes the essence of the artist you requested. You listen to the song and click a button saying you like or dislike it. Pandora then generates a new song, by a new artist, that shares similar "genes" with the original.

So, basically, Pandora helps you find new music that you will probably like. It's awesome, and free, and you should check it out, like, right now. I have been using it a great deal these past few weeks, and it is pretty impressive.

On a totally different note, I went shopping on Black Friday last week, and while I did not go to any stores until about 8am, I found the entire experience to be interesting at the least, and, dare I say it, enjoyable at its best. I found a nice knife set for $20, some cheap DVDs at Circuit City, and other typical BF-type items. In the interest of full disclosure, I have to qualify that I went with my wife and her friend, and on my own it probably would not have been as fun. My recommendation for next year? Give it a try. You might like it.

And finally I have to say Hi to my aunt and cousin who came for a visit last weekend. We all had a great time with you, and I'm so glad we got to spend thanksgiving with you two.

200

As I write this I'm listening to the song "Say the Words," by DC Talk. When I was a kid I had a game for our Mac LCII called "Hellcats Over the Pacific," which I used to play endlessly. It was one of the most simplistic flight sims around, but I enjoyed it immensely. I used to listen to the album this song is from, Free At Last, on my GE portable tape player, while playing the game, and to this day every time I hear any song from it (particularly the one I'm listening to now) I am bombarded by images of blue seas, green fields, a grey cockpit, and Zeros honing in on my position.

You ever have that happen? It's cool when it does, man. Like, this other album, Flood, by They Might Be Giants, was the soundtrack to my paper route when I was in ninth grade. I would blast it through my tiny little Sony earbuds (from the same old tape player) while delivering papers through rain, snow, and the gloom of afternoon, pausing it only long enough to refill my 52-ounce mug with Pepsi, and get a pack of Sugar Daddies, from the Kwik Shop on Fremont and Touzalin. Now, every time I hear any song from that album I can immediately picture all manner of images from that route I traced every day after school with my bike rack stuffed full of newspapers.

Kind of neat when memories sneak up on you and smack you straight across the face, eh? Nice.

I'm on my third cup of hot chocolate today, mostly because it's delicious but also because the bitter chill of winter shot an early warning volley across our bow last night. In fact, we went to look for one of those oil-based space heaters at Target today, and they only have one heater in stock. It's coming, folks, and we want to be ready. But forecasts say we'll hit 70 again this coming week, so maybe we can stave it off a bit longer.

Ok now, back to work. And then to Metroid Prime 3, which continues to be one of the most outstanding video games I have ever played.

By the by, this is my 200th post here on The Brighter Side. It is also the debut post of my new title bar icon, which I drew myself (all 256 pixels of it!) using GraphicConverter. Thanks for reading, everyone! *lifts mug* Here's to many more!