Friday, January 23, 2004
Please God, help me cleanse the computer of viruses and evil photographs which disturb and ruin my work, so I may be able to cleanse myself (of sin)
That was a Jewish prayer against email spam and Internet porn, apparantly. In related news...
I'm not sure what's funnier, that Microsoft took offense at someone's name, that they offered him 10 measly dollars to ditch the domain, or that they got angry when he asked for 10 gees.
My floor lamp has a first name, it's N-O-T!
Seriously, the IKEA people sure can come up with names for stuff. From the Poang chair to the Not lamp, there's everything from the "definitely Swedish" to "downright silly". I mean c'mon! The "Not" lamp?
Name notwithstanding though, it is in fact a very handy lamp. Manages to illuminate almost all of my apartment, and it has a handy little reading lamp on the side to boot. Of course, finding a bulb for that lamp took me a while, but it works now. Slightly more comfy to sit in, however, is my chair. I believe the name is... well, I can't remember the name, nor is it in the catalog, nor is it on the website, but it's just like the Poang, but starts with a "B" and is half the price. What they don't tell you in the store though, is that despite it's very comfy nature and good lookingness, it is a total pain to put together. See, the chair is basically an upholstered metal frame with wooden arms/legs (it's a cantilever chair, so they're the U-shaped things). But the trick is that the upholstry over the metal frame is tight as a freaking kettle drum, and when you do finally manage to pull both layers onto the frame, all the little holes need to line up, or you don't get to screw the rest of the chair on. This angered Calculon to no degree, until Calculon integrated some beer and calmed down. Once assembled though, the chair is simply mah-vellous to sit in. You can play Game Boy really good in it too!
That last GBA line is significiant, since that's how I've been getting all my gaming in so far. My PS2 has sat neglected in either a suitcase or a drawer like a lost little puppy since I -
er... I mean like a lost little puppy would if you were the kind of monster who keeps puppies in drawers and suitcases which I am not. Anyways, I have been SSX3 and SoulCalibur 2 deprived for the past 3 weeks. What's worse, is that the magnificance of ICO and Jak 2 were bestowed on me for Christmas, and I have not been able to play them. The reason for all this videogame abuse is that I have no TV. This should be remedied by tomorrow though, since I am going to Costco to get a TV with my aunt (since she has a car and I do not). The voices from the closet will soon be quieted and appeased like a Mexican blood-god.
Eraserhead
Some of you know I like weird movies. Some of you also know that I like really weird movies that make other people want to recoil in terror, like Brazil. Now Eraserhead is indeed a weird movie, but to leave it at that would be total understatement. Eraserhead is the product of David Lynch, and this is the guy that came up with Mulholland Drive and the red room from Twin Peaks (well, all of Twin Peaks really, but that was the big highlight), so it stands to reason that the movie would make no sense. Again, that is an understatement, since this movie actually manages to lap reason. What does that mean, you ask? Well, in a race, when you lap someone, you pass them, and then proceed to go all the way around the track and pass them again to make yourself a full lap ahead. To lap reason then, would mean to start at "normality" (the opening credits), go completely to "insane as all madness" (approx. 5 seconds after the opening credits, when the sideways man opens his mouth and a fetus (or something... I'm not sure) comes out, and then back to "normality" only to start again. The movie mostly makes a sort of underside of sense, where things are almost normal and then something odd happens that is just a little out of place (like hearing this weird squelching noise combined with a buzzing and a whining that happens to be the puppies suckling their mom, or the way everyone seems to talk normally and then lapse into awkward silence for no reason, or Mary suddenly having a seizure and being beaten back to being normal without even a pause in the ongoing conversation). Unfortunately, just when you think you're adjusted to the way the movie-world works, something completely non-sequitur happens, like showing the "man in the planet" (still don't know who that is) struggling with the levers. Don't even ask. If you're curious, go rent the movie, or let me know and I can make you a computer copy. You really have to see the movie to believe it.
Blink!
Do yourself a favor and get a T-shirt from these folks. You won't want to wear them to school (or at all), but just knowing that you own something as shocking as this is reassuring.
Warning! I diagnose thee with IDS -- get yourself to a doctor immediately! This illness is highly contagious! Everyone around you may already be infected!
So apparantly Bush isn't a total screw-up. Sounds hard to believe, but the guy makes a strong case. Don't ask why I'm almost paying attention to American politics either... maybe I have this weird thing about watching the world go to Hell in a handbasket or something. It's also odd how I figure our country is totally faultless. Could be we're just as bad, but look good in comparison, or perhaps they've brainwashed me.
Try this. You won't be able to stop.
Also try this. Enter your favorite band and follow the trail off into new music! I managed to map from Nightwish to Michelle Branch all the way to AC/DC! ¶ 5:42 p.m.
That was a Jewish prayer against email spam and Internet porn, apparantly. In related news...
Microsoft takes on teen's site MikeRoweSoft.com
SOURCE
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) -- It's Microsoft versus Mike Rowe-soft.
Rowe, a 17-year-old high school senior and Web designer from Victoria, has angered the software giant by registering an Internet site with the address www.MikeRoweSoft.com.
"Since my name is Mike Rowe, I thought it would be funny to add 'soft' to the end of it," said Rowe.
Microsoft, however, is not amused.
It has demanded that he give up his domain name. In November, Rowe received a letter from Microsoft's Canadian lawyers informing him he was committing copyright infringement.
"I didn't think they would get all their high-priced lawyers to come after me," Rowe said.
He wrote back asking to be compensated for giving up his name. Microsoft's lawyers offered him $10 in U.S. funds. Then he asked for $10,000.
On Thursday, he received a 25-page letter accusing him of trying to force Microsoft into giving him a large settlement.
"I never even thought of getting anything out of them," he said, adding that he only asked for the $10,000 because he was "sort of mad at them for only offering 10 bucks."
Microsoft company spokesman Jim Desler said Sunday, "Microsoft has been in communication with Mr. Rowe in a good faith effort to reach a mutually agreeable resolution."
Rowe is keeping his sense of humor.
"It's not their name. It's my name. I just think it's kind of funny that they'd go after a 17-year-old," Rowe said.
I'm not sure what's funnier, that Microsoft took offense at someone's name, that they offered him 10 measly dollars to ditch the domain, or that they got angry when he asked for 10 gees.
My floor lamp has a first name, it's N-O-T!
Seriously, the IKEA people sure can come up with names for stuff. From the Poang chair to the Not lamp, there's everything from the "definitely Swedish" to "downright silly". I mean c'mon! The "Not" lamp?
Name notwithstanding though, it is in fact a very handy lamp. Manages to illuminate almost all of my apartment, and it has a handy little reading lamp on the side to boot. Of course, finding a bulb for that lamp took me a while, but it works now. Slightly more comfy to sit in, however, is my chair. I believe the name is... well, I can't remember the name, nor is it in the catalog, nor is it on the website, but it's just like the Poang, but starts with a "B" and is half the price. What they don't tell you in the store though, is that despite it's very comfy nature and good lookingness, it is a total pain to put together. See, the chair is basically an upholstered metal frame with wooden arms/legs (it's a cantilever chair, so they're the U-shaped things). But the trick is that the upholstry over the metal frame is tight as a freaking kettle drum, and when you do finally manage to pull both layers onto the frame, all the little holes need to line up, or you don't get to screw the rest of the chair on. This angered Calculon to no degree, until Calculon integrated some beer and calmed down. Once assembled though, the chair is simply mah-vellous to sit in. You can play Game Boy really good in it too!
That last GBA line is significiant, since that's how I've been getting all my gaming in so far. My PS2 has sat neglected in either a suitcase or a drawer like a lost little puppy since I -
er... I mean like a lost little puppy would if you were the kind of monster who keeps puppies in drawers and suitcases which I am not. Anyways, I have been SSX3 and SoulCalibur 2 deprived for the past 3 weeks. What's worse, is that the magnificance of ICO and Jak 2 were bestowed on me for Christmas, and I have not been able to play them. The reason for all this videogame abuse is that I have no TV. This should be remedied by tomorrow though, since I am going to Costco to get a TV with my aunt (since she has a car and I do not). The voices from the closet will soon be quieted and appeased like a Mexican blood-god.
Eraserhead
Some of you know I like weird movies. Some of you also know that I like really weird movies that make other people want to recoil in terror, like Brazil. Now Eraserhead is indeed a weird movie, but to leave it at that would be total understatement. Eraserhead is the product of David Lynch, and this is the guy that came up with Mulholland Drive and the red room from Twin Peaks (well, all of Twin Peaks really, but that was the big highlight), so it stands to reason that the movie would make no sense. Again, that is an understatement, since this movie actually manages to lap reason. What does that mean, you ask? Well, in a race, when you lap someone, you pass them, and then proceed to go all the way around the track and pass them again to make yourself a full lap ahead. To lap reason then, would mean to start at "normality" (the opening credits), go completely to "insane as all madness" (approx. 5 seconds after the opening credits, when the sideways man opens his mouth and a fetus (or something... I'm not sure) comes out, and then back to "normality" only to start again. The movie mostly makes a sort of underside of sense, where things are almost normal and then something odd happens that is just a little out of place (like hearing this weird squelching noise combined with a buzzing and a whining that happens to be the puppies suckling their mom, or the way everyone seems to talk normally and then lapse into awkward silence for no reason, or Mary suddenly having a seizure and being beaten back to being normal without even a pause in the ongoing conversation). Unfortunately, just when you think you're adjusted to the way the movie-world works, something completely non-sequitur happens, like showing the "man in the planet" (still don't know who that is) struggling with the levers. Don't even ask. If you're curious, go rent the movie, or let me know and I can make you a computer copy. You really have to see the movie to believe it.
Blink!
Do yourself a favor and get a T-shirt from these folks. You won't want to wear them to school (or at all), but just knowing that you own something as shocking as this is reassuring.
Warning! I diagnose thee with IDS -- get yourself to a doctor immediately! This illness is highly contagious! Everyone around you may already be infected!
So apparantly Bush isn't a total screw-up. Sounds hard to believe, but the guy makes a strong case. Don't ask why I'm almost paying attention to American politics either... maybe I have this weird thing about watching the world go to Hell in a handbasket or something. It's also odd how I figure our country is totally faultless. Could be we're just as bad, but look good in comparison, or perhaps they've brainwashed me.
Try this. You won't be able to stop.
Also try this. Enter your favorite band and follow the trail off into new music! I managed to map from Nightwish to Michelle Branch all the way to AC/DC! ¶ 5:42 p.m.
