Archive for February, 2007
Ear Plugs
Feb 28th
Ear Plugs (2/28/2007)
I don’t care about a thing you say
Cause everybody knows it’s true
And I don’t ever have a thing to say
It’ll never get to you
Cause I’m a loser
Drug abuser
Did you have something to say?
I’m a winner
And a sinner
Choosing deafness in my own way
Hey, hey
I see the people on your MTV
They never have something to say
Hit me baby, I’m begging please
Before I’m old and go insane
Cause I’m a loser
Drug abuser
Did you have something to say?
I’m a winner
And a sinner
Choosing deafness in my own way
Hey, hey
Another chemical to plug my ears
One more drink to shut you up
A lot of bottles to calm these fears
I think my stock is going up
I think I’m going
I think I’m going
I think I’m going up
I think we’re blowing
I think we’re blowing
I think we’re gonna blow our world up
Cause I’m a loser
Drug abuser
Did you have something to say?
And I’m a winner
And I’m a sinner
Choosing deafness in my own way
Hey, hey
Hey, hey
Hey, hey
Hey, hey
Notes: I actually like these lyrics. To picture the beat, think back to some of those Nirvana songs that had a lively, almost fun sounding beat to them. This would follow that trend perfectly. While the lyrics are no where near his level of writing, I could picture Cobain singing to this song.
My Dream Girl
Feb 27th
My Dream Girl (2/27/2007)
I just had a sweet dream and there you were in it
I can’t even describe it, forget it, or spin it
Everything was simple and good and complacent
Just a smile on your face, it was hard, but I’ll take it
Cause I never get to taste it anymore and I miss it
I would scream it to the world, but I’d hate them to listen
An admittance of weakness on behalf of my own self
I guess my pride’s in the way while I’m stashed on this lone shelf
Looking down at the world with contempt and some hatred
This is not who I am, but my decisions have made this
Young with no patience and no wisdom to gather
To take in the world and the things that still matter
But there you still stood, you approached me with beauty
Your eyes and your smile, you could always look through me
I don’t understand why I dreamt up this vision
Though I’m glad that I did, I’ll pretend you still listen
I talked for a bit about something or other
I don’t really remember, but I spoke with no stutter
No butterflies fluttered, no knees bowed to weakness
There was simply contentment and a bit of completeness
God, I want you to read this like you would in a movie
Where this imperfect speech would bring you right to me
I’m simply writing cliches, but what else can be said?
I just don’t understand why I can’t clear my head
You won’t go away, you just pop up at random
Perhaps I’m escapist and you are my tangent
I’d try hard to hate this, but I think that I need it
I guess you center my sights, though I don’t know the reason
Notes: Ok, I was a bit impatient with my original description. Yes, it is sappy and cliched, but not in an attempt to be lovey dovey. This is basically an exact retelling of a dream I had last night and the resulting thoughts that I dug through all morning.
StevoFC’s Photo Blog
Feb 25th
One of my online buddies, StevoFC, recently set up a photo blog and was showing it to me. Honestly, I was blown away by the quality of his shots. I’ve been thinking about getting a mid range camera and trying my hand at it (once hours at work balance out) and this just further motivated me. I really think you guys and girls need to take a few minutes to check it out. Some of those shots are just gorgeous to look at.
What do you want to see?
Feb 22nd
More and more, I’ve wanted to make this site more interesting to visit. Usually, I get the most hits when I post some video from YouTube, but I’m hoping that we can work together and bring people in for more original content.
So, as the title suggests, what do you guys want to see? I was thinking maybe some more techy posts along the lines of complimentary posts to my usual expressed opinions on the weekly NeowinCAST. Also, I was thinking that I should get rid of the shoutbox and replace it with something that promotes posting (something like ‘Top Commentators’ which would allow the top people to get links back to their own sites). Then again, I’ve always liked the Shoutbox.
What are your ideas? I’m more than willing to consider anything even slightly feasible.
Wordpress 2.0.9 and 2.1.1 Released
Feb 21st
Both Wordpress 2.1 and 2.0 have been updated. Each update contains a security update along with minor bug fixes here and there. If you have Wordpress installed already and only wish to update, only the following files were updated:
2.0.9 Updated Files:
- wp-includes/cache.php
- wp-includes/wp-db.php
- wp-includes/version.php
- wp-includes/js/tinymce/wp-mce-help.php
- wp-includes/js/tinymce/tiny_mce_gzip.php
- wp-includes/classes.php
- wp-includes/functions.php
- wp-includes/rss-functions.php
- readme.html
- wp-admin/edit-form-advanced.php
- wp-admin/link-import.php
- wp-admin/link-categories.php
- wp-admin/user-edit.php
- wp-admin/options-permalink.php
2.1.1 Updated Files:
- wp-includes/post-template.php
- wp-includes/cache.php
- wp-includes/formatting.php
- wp-includes/category.php
- wp-includes/post.php
- wp-includes/version.php
- wp-includes/js/scriptaculous/wp-scriptaculous.js
- wp-includes/js/tinymce/tiny_mce_config.php
- wp-includes/js/tinymce/wp-mce-help.php
- wp-includes/js/tinymce/tiny_mce_gzip.php
- wp-includes/capabilities.php
- wp-includes/cron.php
- wp-includes/functions.php
- wp-includes/bookmark-template.php
- xmlrpc.php
- wp-admin/admin-ajax.php
- wp-admin/admin-functions.php
- wp-admin/custom-header.php
- wp-admin/options-general.php
- wp-admin/edit.php
- wp-admin/index-extra.php
- wp-admin/options-reading.php
Now, if you don’t wish to upload the entire archive or sift through the files yourself, TechTites offers “update packages” containing only the changed files.
As always, Xpression has been updated.
No Longer Building Firefox
Feb 19th
I’ve been doing my own builds of Firefox for almost three years now and I think it’s time to say goodbye. For those of you who may not know, Firefox is an open source web browser meaning anyone can download the code and make it to their liking. Five days a week, I would download the code and compile it (put it together to make it a usable program) while also choosing to optimize it a bit more than the default version you get from Mozilla. Thankfully, through curiosity and a basic understanding of batch files, I was able to automate most of the process as the years passed.
So, why quit? Well, since updating to Windows Vista, I have had nothing but problems getting the process to work and it came to a point where I realized I wasn’t enjoying it anymore. I want to thank everyone who has helped me, over the years, deal with problems that I was incapable of overcoming myself (like djeter showing me where to find the call for precompiled headers that I needed to remove to enable all of my optimizations). Thanks for the support guys. Maybe I’ll get back into it all, one day, but, at the moment, I simply can’t find the fun in it.
Money spent, little earned
Feb 18th
Hey boys and girls. Long time no talk.
Well, to start things off, I finally bought myself an Xbox 360. Right now, I only have Project Gotham Racing 3, though I plan on getting Crackdown on Tuesday or Wednesday and, of course, MLB 2k7 on March 5th. I may even skip Crackdown and just wait for MLB, but I’ll see. Either way, I’m loving the system. I have it connected to my PC monitor for picture and computer sound ard for audio and it’s perfect. If any of you ever want to add me to your friends list, well, it’s easy to guess my Gamertag. It’s bangbang023, duh.
With money spent, well, I haven’t been earning too much. I hour drought at work continues, though it’s supposedly going to end in March (the end of the fiscal year). It’s killing me, though. To go from 35 – 40 hours a week, down to an average of 15 is almost impossible to manage. I’ve cut back all other spending (I’ve saved for the 360 for a while) so I won’t go broke, but this is not a fun period of time for me. Hopefully, in a few months, I can apply for and get a full time spot that may be opening up and, thus, guarantee myself steady hours.
Other than that? I don’t know. I can sum up a few things, I guess. I had a good week of writing, with “Amorphous” being a favorite of mine. I’m talking to Maria again, though only half assed since it’s obvious she’s not willing to try for anything more. I do enjoy my new job when I actually get to work it. That’s about it. Expect an announcement from me in a day or two regarding my Firefox builds, though.
Bush “Glycerine” at Spring Break ‘96
Feb 16th
I love this song and, on top of that, this is an amazing performance. It was raining with lightning and thunder and, even though the band didn’t want to go on for fear of electrocution, Gavin went on and played the song alone. He knew the risk and simply said, “It would be a romantic way to die”.
Amorphous
Feb 15th
Amorphous (2/15/2007)
Sometimes, when I’m bored, I drench myself in these flames
To ignite away the substance and burn away the shame
As embers dance away and carry off the stress
I clench tightly at my chest, swimming in this sweat
Cause it’s hard to be a bottle, containing my existence
I can hold on to the world but not the skill to listen
I can pour out what I’m feeling, but I’d soak it up again
And all I’d do is shatter, cause this glass can never bend
I can only snap instead and hide inside these corners
Exposure to the world would only bring about disorder
With these shards inside my hand, I’d scratch away my face
A mask of a every nothing that I use to shroud my pain
But I see you standing there, a witness to this play
Eyes glued upon the stage as I writhe inside this fame
The lights burn away my skin, I’m left feeling so damn bare
So I close my eyes to you and I hope you’re never there
But then you know me, I simply need to take a peak
I need to see the sky and the sun that leaves me weak
Now I’m exposed all day to the point I wish to break
I just want to get away without a second thought of hate
I want to run away and return back to the beach
Melt me back into the sand, another grain beneath your feet
Cause I can not comprehend, this is not the man I am
I’m not good at being seen, I’m not good to understand
Cause all I really am is the total of my past
One crack upon my skin and I get thrown beside the trash
Imperfected am I, it’s the only shape that I know
And when I melt inside the fire, I give a sobering red glow
Notes: I realize that, lately, I’ve been a bit more convoluted in my writing, so I thought I would explain this one. This piece is about the feeling of being transparent and fragile and how when someone tries to see through you, you only want to get away and return to being just another person to them.
Syndication Feeds Changed Around
Feb 14th
I’m not sure how many people actually pay attention to the RSS/Atom feeds on the site (see them at the top right corner?), but I decided that it’s a possible area of growth for me. Let’s face it, I make no money from this site since I refuse to inconvenience you with advertisements, so the monthly hit count is the only real payment I get out of this (other than the venting aspect, of course).
So, let me get to the point. I have added the feeds to Feed Burner in a hopes of getting an understanding of who uses these feeds and how they use them. For the sake of the ease of transition, I have made it so the old addresses, /wordpress/feed/ and /wordpress/comments/feed/, point to the new addresses, so this possibly large change will be completely transparent.
At this point, I’m sure some people are asking themselves just what the hell am I talking about. Well, RSS feeds allow you to “subscribe” to any site and get information about new updates without having to visit the site directly. Both Internet Explorer and Firefox (also, Opera, but few of you use it) support these feeds and there are many other programs that do too. In Firefox, the feed becomes a bookmark that acts as a folder. When you hover over the bookmark, it opens up showing you all the latest posts on the site in question. For instance, here’s a shot of my bookmark for the RSS feed from Yankees.com:
In Internet Explorer, you can open up the “Feeds” panel and view the feed in a prettier, more informative way as such:
I’m not sure if I explained it well enough or just ended up confusing some people more than they were, so here’s a link to a Wikipedia article about the RSS format:
RSS (file format)
Try the feeds out and see what you think. I’ll make sure to post more often so you can really get use out of them 
