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Friday, February 15th, 2002
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6:57 pm - And there was much rejoicing...
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Problems 2 & 3 are solved! It turns out, my browser was causing the problems. All I had to do was get a new one. As it turns out, that's easier said than done. The only browser on my computer is Internet Explorer 5.5, which can't be uninstalled from WinME, and it's dead. All I have on disk is a copy of IE5.0, which won't install because I already have 5.5 on the computer. After a moment of panic, I turn to Travis for help. He suggests using FTP to download Netscape 6. After some putzing about, 2 attempts, and one major system crash, Netscape 6 is operational. And it works like a charm! There's only one problem... I don't like using Netscape. So the first thing I do is download Opera, install it, and fire it up. And get nothing. It won't connect at all, to any site. I played with it for about half an hour, with no results. So I gave up on it.
Next up was to see what operating system updates were available, so I headed over to the MS update site, only to find out that you had to use IE. Well, okay... I download the .exe for IE6.0 and start that up. But it won't connect to anything to download the files for install. Perplexing. So I take a look at the settings it's using, and it's using 127.0.0.1 as a proxy server. Oops. So I take off the proxy server, it connects, and now I'm up and running with a functioning IE.
Back to the OS upgrades, where, come to find, I have a very large download to look forward to. About 20 minutes later, when that finishes, it's time to reboot again. So now I have a fully updated (albeit crappy) operating system and functioning web browser. The first thing I do is download WinAmp to see if maybe updating my OS fixed the odd musical problems I've been having. Sure enough, it works wonderfully.
You know, for not doing much today, I sure have gotten a lot accomplished...
current mood:  accomplished
current music: Reliquary - Winter World v0.5
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| Tuesday, February 12th, 2002
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9:37 pm - What the...?
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I just saw a commercial for the new Nissan Pathfinder, and they're using a Ramones song. What's next? The Sex Pistols selling cheap American beer?
Well, life has been pretty boring as of late. I'm still unemployed, and the increasingly desperate job hunt continues. So far, major casualties include my bank account and the majority of my confidence in my job skills.
School has been a bit strenuous lately. There's been a barrage of new information to absorb and process, and it's all unfamiliar. This is a new experience for me. Usually, I have at least a basic grasp of the subject matter being taught, but in my Electronic Music and Studio Recording classes I'm on completely new ground. I'm even on unfamiliar computers, since the Music building is entirely run on Macs and I haven't used anything but a PC since the Apple //e. Ah, well. It'll be fun to learn, right? Right?
I've been watching the Olympics this week, and there's the usual drama going on, especially with the pairs figure skating. But more interestingly, I watched the mens halfpipe snowboarding. While the Americans sweeping the event was interesting, what really caught my attention was a young Finnish snowboarder... with a foot long mohawk. I was rooting for him, simply to see a mohawked 17 (I think) year old on the podium. How cool would that be?
current mood: poor
current music: Mission UK - Severina
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| Tuesday, January 15th, 2002
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8:07 pm - help...
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This computer is driving me absolutely mad... I can't even deal with the problems it's developing. My 3 major gripes of the moment:
1) It is unable to reboot or be turned off. For some gods-forsaken reason, someone decided that since computers do that nifty thing where you hit shutdown on your Start menu and the computer will turn itself off, there's no reason for the power button to turn the computer off. Unfortunately, mine doesn't do that. When I shutdown or reboot this thing, it shuts down the OS and goes to a black screen with a little white blinking cursor in the top left. The only way to turn it off is to shut off the power switch that the computer is plugged into. Rebooting is simply turning the computer back on after you turn the power switch back on.
2) My 'high-speed' internet access is a joke. Most of the time, it won't load pages at all. The times it does, it takes about 4-5 minutes to pull up any text and will only rarely pull up any images. Now if I'm transferring files via ftp, or simply saving, say, Reliquary mp3s to my hard drive, it works just fine. But for browsing, I'm sure I'm being outpaced by the average 28.8 modem user.
3) This one I just discovered, and I'm baffled. When my computer boots, there's no sound. So I click on the speaker in my systray, and the wave volume is all the way down. Okay, so I pull it back up to about 60-70%. Click on winamp. Start playing a song. The volume cuts out. Pull up the system volume again, and the wave volume is all the way at 0. So I turn the volume back up. I listen to the rest of the song. When the next song starts, the volume cuts out. Guess what? The wave volume is back at 0. I don't even know where to start on this one.
Help?
The worst part is, I had a really good day today, and it's being killed by dealing with this crap...
current mood:  frustrated
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| Saturday, January 12th, 2002
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3:35 pm - Home Sweet Home
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6:50 am - It is far far too early...
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Especially to be already up and packed and leaving for the airport. On the other hand, the sooner I leave, the sooner I get back to 70o+ weather. But it's not even bright yet... That's not right...
current mood:  tired
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(2 peanuts in the gallery | be a joiner)
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| Wednesday, January 9th, 2002
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10:57 am - They come in hordes
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| Tuesday, January 8th, 2002
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11:16 pm - This is just no good
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It's a bad sign when the best thing on the radio is Stone Temple Pilots...
current mood: tired
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| Monday, January 7th, 2002
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11:48 pm - I want a lightcycle
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I saw a commercial today for the 20th Anniversary Edition Tron DVD. I must have. It's got lots and lots of bonus goodies. And lightcycles. I've wanted a lightcycle for as long as I can remember.
Today was a good day. Slow, restful, and filled with food. Exactly what a birthday should be.
current mood:  relaxed
current music: Concrete Blonde - Happy Birthday
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12:57 am - Well it's just another day
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another dollar
another nail in the coffin
another reason to feel smaller
-Wally Pleasant
24 years to the minute. I don't really feel old, per se, although I certainly don't feel young... The best way to put it is: I feel behind. It seems like I should have accomplished more by now. Instead, I'm at about the same place I was 5 years ago, albeit much more self-assured. And warmer.
Every year, it seems I make the same promises to myself. This will be the year things change. This will be the year I do things right. This will be the year I start busting my ass, and getting my life lived. And every year, I look back on the last year and realize how little I did. So let's recap, shall we? Yes, I know everyone else does this at New Year's, but New Year's is for drinking. Birthdays are for reminiscing.
- The Good
- Moved to Phoenix
- Made some wonderful new friends
- Finally got to meet a lot of the people I've read about online, both on the AZGoth list and elsewhere
- Got my own apartment
- Got through my first semester of school
- Saw more great shows this year than the rest of my life combined (many, many thanks to Suriel & Loki)
- The Bad
- Didn't do as well in Interpersonal Communication as I would have liked
- Spent 7 of the last 12 months unemployed
- Ate way more raman than any one person should ever consume
- Lost touch with most of my old friends
- Hit one of the worst creative slumps I've ever had
So, yeah. There it is, in black & white, or whatever color scheme is currently in effect. Certainly not a bad year, all things considered. In fact, it some aspects it was the best so far. Not that I don't have a lot of things that need work. That's what the coming year is for. And this year, I'm going to start busting my ass, and getting my life lived.
current mood:  thoughtful
current music: a collection of tracks from Sinder
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| Saturday, December 29th, 2001
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6:22 pm - You know what I miss?
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A good old fahsioned tabletop RPG campaign. I haven't been involved in a game in years. Unfortunately, I don't really know that many gamer geeks (or the people I do know haven't revealed themselves as such).
I've been playing a lot of Dark Age of Camelot recently, but it's not the same. There's something to be said for getting together with a bunch of friends, ordering a pizza, and doing some serious role-playing. You don't get that with online games. Half the people playing aren't even sure what role-playing is.
Hmmm... when I get back to Phoenix, something will have to be done about this. I don't have anything important to do on weekends anyways. And damnit, I'm sick of staying at home and being bored.
current mood: geeky
current music: Dee & Travis playing the Harry Potter CCG
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| Saturday, December 22nd, 2001
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12:11 am - That was worth the wait...
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So I went to see Fellowship of the Ring tonight (I know everyone is calling it Lord of the Rings, but if I do that, what do I call the next two?). It was every bit as good as I hoped it would be.
I had my first exposure to Lord of the Rings when I was very, very young. My Dad read it to me every night as a bedtime story, roughly a chapter a night. I've read it on my own a few times since then (although certainly not as much as my Dad). The last time I read it was a few years ago, so I was a little fuzzy on the details going into the movie. Now I'm going to re-read it, and then go see the movie again to see exactly what they left out, glazed over, and changed.
I had the great fortune of going to see the film with my Dad, and we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner after the movie (mmmmm, cinnamon butter) and went over all the odd little details in the movie. Most of it was stuff I had forgotten about until my Dad mentioned it, although some of it I did notice during the movie. None of it detracted from my enjoyment of the movie one bit, though.
I'm ready for The Two Towers, now...
The previews shown were an entirely different matter. There were 4 (if memory serves correctly):
1-The Scorpion King - The Rock (a professional actor anyways) reprises his oh so short role from Mummy II, which I never saw. A fairly generic Conan-esque story.
2-Spider-Man - This just looks silly. Over half the preview was CG animation, and not great CG at that. It looks like a cartoon, except when they needed closeups of actors talking. They at least stuck with a old-skool Spider-Man villain, though (either Hobgoblin or The Green Goblin, it was hard to tell).
3-Yet Another Mind-Bogglingly Stupid Austin Powers Movie - Not the actual title, but it should be. This isn't the worst series of movies I've ever seen (okay, I've only seen the first one. It was horrid). That honor goes to Scary Movie. It ranks really really high, though. And this one looks even worse.
4-Attack of the Clones - I'll go see this, not necessarily because it looks like a great movie, but because it's Star Wars. Call me a sucker, but I'm not ready to give up on George Lucas yet. Cheesy name or no, I'll be there for this one. It has Mandalorians!
current mood: full
current music: Apoptygma Berzerk - Near (Banilla Dream)
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| Friday, December 21st, 2001
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3:55 pm - Can it be true?!?!
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Woo-HOO!!!
Concrete Blonde is playing in Tempe on 19 Jan 2002!!! Thank you  silverarm. If I had missed this, I don't know what I would have done. It wouldn't have been pretty, that's for sure.
In case you're new here, Concrete Blonde is one of those bands who's music touches my soul. I have previous entries giving a bit more detail, if you're interested. Suffice it to say, this show will be a major event in my life...
I so can't wait...
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12:16 pm - Great, now where're my nuts...
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current mood: squirrelly
current music: Blutengel - Warriors of Destiny
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| Tuesday, December 18th, 2001
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6:37 pm - Brrr...
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First off, a very happy birthday to silverarm. You're not old yet...
For those of you as yet uninformed, I'm in Michigan until 12 Jan 2002. While the weather is unseasonably warm, it's still much colder than I'm used to. There's no snow (yet) but the temperature hovers in the high 30's - low 40's. And my wardrobe is much better equipped for Phoenix summers than Michigan winters. Needless to say, my one sweater is getting much use.
I have plans tomorrow to meet some old friends. It's been awhile since I've seen a lot of these people, so it should be fun. As long as we stay indoors.
current mood:  cold
current music: various songs off the Projekt Christmas CDs
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| Thursday, December 13th, 2001
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12:39 am - This would explain why I hate strobes...
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| Thursday, December 6th, 2001
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9:58 pm
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I'd only come here seeking peace.
I'd only come here seeking me.
It seems I came to leave...
current mood: contemplative
current music: VNV Nation - Darkangel (Azrael)
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| Tuesday, December 4th, 2001
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8:39 am - Rain!
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Woo-hoo! It's wet outside! And cloudy! Yay! And... and...
And I have to walk to class... Ah, well. There's a downside to everything. It'd still rather have this weather for a while. It'll be a nice change, that's for sure.
Hmmm... I better grab a coat...
current mood:  bouncy
current music: Inkubus Sukkubus - Paint It Black
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| Monday, December 3rd, 2001
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12:49 pm - Interesting...
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 | If I was a work of art, I would be M. C. Escher's Lizards. I am a bizarre juxtaposition of the real and the unreal. Based in the realm of mathematics, my two-dimensional appearance belies a complex and free-willed behavior which both delights and confuses people. Which work of art would you be? The Art Test |
current mood: scaly, evidently...
current music: De/Vision - Dress Me When I Bleed
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| Sunday, December 2nd, 2001
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11:15 am - The noise...
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For the past 15-20 minutes, 2 of the 3 lanes of eastbound Thomas have been filled with motorcycles of all kinds. From standard Harley city cruisers to Honda Goldwings, crotch-rockets and tricked out trikes, custom choppers and (fittingly enough) a police motorcycle escort. I have never in my life seen a parade(?) like it. I've seen motorcycle rallys, but traditionally they are held by motorcycle clubs with specific bikes. This was every type of motorcycle imaginable.
They've just finished up. A total time of about 20-25 minutes. If anyone in the Phoenix area knows what this little event was for, let me know. I think it was something Christmas related, since a fair minority of the bikes were tinsel covered or decorated in some manner. Santa on a Goldwing trike was a bit of a giveaway, too.
Let me tell you, that's a heck of a way to wake up in the morning...
current mood:  awake
current music: The Cruxshadows - Happy Christmas (War Is Over)
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| Saturday, December 1st, 2001
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10:45 pm - I can see my house from here!
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Here we see the horrible effects of light pollution. Can you find your city?
current mood: bored
current music: Thanatos - The First Noël
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