March 19, 2006
Around the World in Thirty Days
There's a really neat UD study abroad program I read about today. Either I'm going to try and go on it, or we may jsut do it on our own.
You know all those places you want to go but maybe not spend an eternity in? Lots of people want to see the pyramids, but not so many want to stay in Egypt for weeks. And who wants to go with an unfun tour group? Not me.
That's why I'm orgnaizing an Around the World trip with Daniel. The 'with Daniel' part makes it more fun. Let me know if you're interested in being a part. Tentitive date: Jan 2007. Here' s the itinerary I'm thinking about:
Depart from Philadelphia Dec 29 and be in Rome for New years 2007. Visit the Forum, Coliseum, Vatican, and stuff. Then off to Cairo, Egypt. There we will see the Great Pyramids at Giza, Sphinx, I'd also really like to see Abu Simbel and the Museum of Antiquities too. Then New Delhi, India for the Taj and Red fort. On to Cambodia for Angkor Wat. Then Bejing, China for THE WALL, Forbidden City, awesome terra cotta warriors, and other fun. Home after.
Other possible stops:
Paris
Jerusalem
Sydney
Moscow
Bangkok
Aukland
Malta
Jakarta
Canton
Easter Island
Peru
Lima
Caracas
Fun Version:
The plan is obviously historical emphasis on this one, but I'm torn between doing as much as these places have to offer and doing seperate trips to do ecological wonders and more modern crap. Like Australia would be fun for the Great Barrier Reef and Stuff, but a little out of the way. Other obvious concerns on any trip this long with this many legs include luggage. There are strategies in place that can be detailed if you're interested. Participants will be required to dress in uniform so as to be more easily recognized. Says me. Anyhow, it'll be a blast, and I'm going even without you, so come anyways. Email me.
Posted by Daniel at 09:38 PM | Comments (2)
Police Against Prohibition
A little belated, but I went to an excellent Lecture by Law Enforcement Against Prohibition about a week ago. They had some very interesting things to say about the War on Drugs and the illegality of all sorts of consensual activity between adults. Basically, they want to get rid of Schedule 1 and open a national debate about what should and shouldn't be useable. I know I'm going to explain this wrong, but apparently there's a universal rate of drug abuse in primates of like 10-15%. Another 70-80 will use recreationally and an additional 10-15% will abstain. I think it's interesting and would like to see more research on it. Also, most cocaine users are white middle class men, so why are all the people in prison poor black men? Fun stuff on how drug rings are busted and how A.D.A.'s suck too. Read the literature.
Posted by Daniel at 09:30 PM | Comments (0)
February 04, 2006
How Bout those nice religious people...
As churches burn in the south, Scandanavian embassies burn in Syria. So not cool. In support of the right of papers to print whatever they like withthe understanding that if you dson't like it, you won't buy it, I will also be placing the offending cartoon on the top of everything I do until I feel my point has been made. I hope that whoever made it will pardon the use. It's all about journalistic integrity.
Posted by Daniel at 04:25 PM | Comments (0)
January 26, 2006
Uncool Phone Things
Two absolute gems for you today. Firstly, my friend Jen got a threatening call from someone who thinks she's messing around with their boyfriend. Which she isn't, mainly because she doesn't know who the alleged boyfriend is. Most likely her number was misdialed by the caller. Anywho, we got all KGB last night and busted out the recording gear, so here's the message for your listening pleasure. There has already been a dialectical analysis of her AAVE (African American Vernacular English) which has placed her as a resident of Philadelphia, Dover, and Wilmington. If you can offer any asistance in this matter, please contact me.
And just because I'm feeling angered with corporate telephone people, here's a fun cheat sheet. Have a happy day.
Also: If you know anything about the snails painted on the sidewalks of Newark, or are interested in writing about how everything is Bangladesh's fault, email or IM me.
Posted by Daniel at 10:36 AM | Comments (1)
November 08, 2005
Lack of updates
So West Wing was pretty darn amazing. If I were a nice person, I'd not only post my copy of the east coast broadcast, but also a selection of quotes and all the nice things they did that'll never happen in real life. But I'm not. If you're somewhere west of the mississippi, let me know, and i'll burn you a dvd of the east coast version.
There is no end to the wonderful writing on that show. It makes me proud to be a liberal. They get out so many great ideas that no one could ever talk about in the real world (universal health care, happy endings) and manage to find a way to make everything work.
I've been incredibly busy lately, but will try to update more frequently. Hopefully we did well in the elections tonight. I found a new friend who cared as much about the giant squid photos as I did, so I'm in a chipper mood from that. I hope everyone elsee is experiencing similar joys in their own private realities.
Posted by Daniel at 11:23 PM | Comments (0)
October 12, 2005
Upgrade Complete
Sorry about the errors eeryone was getting in the 500 block for the past few days. The software upgrade is finally complete. Maybe I'll even get around to making things prettier soon. We'll see. Anyhow, Sorry for any inconvenience or downtime related to my issues. Aren't permissions fun?
Posted by Daniel at 12:28 AM | Comments (0)
October 08, 2005
Stop Calling Me
Someone thinks it's fun to call my house asking for what sounds very much like "Krishna." I don't think it's a joke, but it sounds like the same person on a number of occasions. Krishna doesn't live here anymore. I'd post my number to let people know where not to look for their dear friend and deity Krishna, but I feel like that might make matters worse. I'm going back to watching Firefly now.
Posted by Daniel at 03:07 PM | Comments (0)
September 27, 2005
Prostition in Delaware
UPDATE:More crazy govermnet interferance in animals and sex: Pandas at the BBC. Check it out.
This is just too good Kara from CHAD sent this to me, she'd heard about it on WILM. I mean, how amazing is that? Delaware is putting photos of people online that they've arrested for prostitution. just wow. really.
Posted by Daniel at 02:20 PM | Comments (1)
September 11, 2005
Delicious Library
I'm really enjoying scanning the ISBNs of every piece of media I own. It's kind of liberating to know what I have, what I don't, and know that henceforth, I'll know who 'borrowed' the missing items and where to reach them. Fun, no? You can see the sample library I created here. It's a sample of what was lying within arms reach. I'll have to come up with some sort of a plan for scanning all of the books as they're put onto shelves. I recommend you all try it. Software: Delicious Monster.
Posted by Daniel at 06:44 PM | Comments (0)
September 05, 2005
The Supremes
I really only realize how bad of shape the world is in when I watch The West Wing. Today's holiday marathon on Bravo included my favorite episode, "The Supremes." The premace for the show is that one Supreme Court Justice has just died and another retires. Instead of replacing both with confirmable centrist nominees, the senior staff concocts and implements a plan to fill the seats with one liberal and one conservative. The idea being that their individual differences and visons would help to create debate and preserve the Constitution.
Today we are faced with a similar situation: two seats on the Supreme Court to fill and a country divided on how to do so. However, the American people are without the genius of the screenwriters at NBC. Instead, we have a president who's intentions are at best misguided and at worst malicious. In the past, we were faced with three options: a conservative, a liberal, or a centrist. A centrist would hope to preserve the status quo, while someone positioned at either far end of the spectrum would have a vastly different perspective. Either radical or reactionary would help to move the country forward, unafraid of writing controversal decisions or new inturpretations of the Constitution.
American judicial history can be divided into two mutually exclusive categories: liberal activism and mistakes. Decisions either spur the nation onto a new future, or attempt to preserve a mythical past. Although those decisions which challenge the status quo can prove for a difficult social and legislative change, they inevitably help create a more free and hopeful future that can be seen in hindsight as the impetus for positive change. Those decisions which try to preserve what the justice views as a safe path, unlikely to cause trouble, frequently can be later recognized as unethical and damaging to America.
Recently, under the Bush Administration, a new breed of neo-conservatism has been born. Members of this idealogy often believe that certain sacrifices of liberty can and should be made to 'preserve the security' of the people. I have no doubt that in the years to come, this period in American idealogy will be understood to have been incredibly harmful to all involved. I can only hope that those appointed to the vacant seats on the court will not be of this neoconservative mindset. Should the union survive long enough to be able to look at its past, these decisions will be recognized as failed chapters in our history.
Posted by Daniel at 06:59 PM | Comments (2)
August 29, 2005
Moved in (sort of)
I'm almost fully into the new house now. Classes start tuesday as well. I have lots and lots to do over the next few days but I (and the radio show) should be back online, right soon. I'm waiting for DSL activation, and FiOS seems to be being installed everywhich-where. Once all that happens, I'll be more visible and such. See you all soon, and check back over the next few days for the radio program. I'm thinking that the first show will be live to tape for the benefit of staff.
Posted by Daniel at 07:51 PM | Comments (0)
August 21, 2005
Zombies
People need to take the living dead more seriously. I've just finished reading Max Brooks' The Zombie Survival Guide. In the period since I finished, I have discussed the topic with many individuals, none of whom took the issue of a zombie incursion remotely seriously. After considering Mr. Brooks' advice, I for one am prepared to create and implement large-scale plans for when the dead rise. Since government officials seem unwilling to admit the gravity of the situation, individuals must take matters into their own hands. I fully intend ot begin fortifying my home against an attack by the living dead. I certainly don't want all of you flocking to me when you've seen the terrible events now fated to come. Education is your only protection.
Posted by Daniel at 11:25 PM | Comments (0)
August 11, 2005
Seattle Friday
I'll be leaving friday morning for rural Washington state and shall remain out of communications until at least tuesday night. I'll respond to all communications upon my return. Have a pleasant weekend.
Posted by Daniel at 11:02 AM | Comments (0)
August 09, 2005
SciFi News
I love reading headlines that make me feel like we're a society with real technology. Anything in the "BLANK returns safely to earth" falls into that catagory. Like Discovery today. I think NASA's pretty much given up on reusable spacecraft now. That leaves the door open for private corporations to get into it. I'm waiting for my Honda Insight to launch off. They could sell an aftermarket kit or something. Maybe someone's got one on ebay.
Posted by Daniel at 01:49 PM | Comments (0)
August 08, 2005
News
Sorry about the total lack of updates, but I have been very busy since I got back. CHAD is digitizing all of our archives, so we've been meeting with the nice people from the library. I'm leaving for Seattle on friday to see family, and the big news for those of you who haven't heard yet, I'm buying a house. We should move in before the start of school, which will be nice. Lots of shopping and the like to get ready. And RadioDaniel will be ressurected once I move in. New name, sae wonderful programming. Onl this time, I'll have help. Hopefully, two staff reporters to help me comment on the wonderous workings of the world. I'll llet you know about my staff and the name of the show once everything is finalized. Photos of the house to come once I move in. And for those of you to whom this means anything, it's right by Independence school. Like practically on top of. I'll write again soon, I promise.
Posted by Daniel at 10:37 AM | Comments (0)
July 28, 2005
London, Montreal, Philadelphia
Okay, almost home now. Left early, and apparently I have a house now. I'll be home at 5 pm on the 29th of July for anyone keeping track. I'll be reachable on my mobile shortly after that. See all the delaware people soon.
Posted by Daniel at 08:48 PM | Comments (0)
July 27, 2005
Arrived in Monaco
But internet sucks. Have to get it in random hotel. Internet cafes nonexistant. I'll try to get on once more before I leave, but be patient with me and email. Initial impressions: this city seems to be surviving entirely on nicotine, alcohol and cheese. Yeah. Anyways, I'll be arriving back on 3 August for those of you keeping track but then I head off to Seattle on the 11th. Plus I love that whenever I log onto facebook from different places, everyone's got saved logons. For example "jakedale@uga.edu" in the Fairmont Hotel Monaco. Hi Jake. See you all soon (readers, not Jake.)
Posted by Daniel at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
July 26, 2005
On to Monaco
Alright, I'm leaving London tomorrow morning for the Principality of Monaco. The UK's been great, and I got to see a bunch of fun people, some great shows and the usuals. I've been visiting hotels in my spare time to scout out good catches for jan '07. However, I was shocked to find that a nice hotel I had stayed in before has been turned into something of an art modern piece. It's all blue and quiet inside. It looks like it belongs in Reykjavik.
Also, I need to havea chat with the Krispy Kreme folks. Their staff in Harrods was very concerned that I had a camera anywhere near their corporate logo. I think we still own stock in them, too. And it's not like I didn't get fourty or so copies of their logo when I bought a doughnut there last week, so what's the point. In other corporate news, I went into the Regent Street Apple Store. It's ginormous. They have one of those nice theatres where they give lessons, too.
Okay, I'm not sure where I was headed with this entry, but I'm tired and leaving tomorrow morning. I'll try to post from Monte Carlo, but if its too censored or something, you'll have to wait until I get back.
Posted by Daniel at 12:33 PM | Comments (0)
July 18, 2005
Car Count
People in Kensington have too much money. here are the current totals:
Update: Two more Bentleys and a very pretty Rolls to add to the count. Plus a nice BMW six series. (I've also seen several 1 series' here as well.)
Aston Martin: 2
Bentley: 3 (Including a GT continental in a city where no one gets over 40 mph)
Rolls Royce: 3 (only one phantom, too.)
Insight: 3 (2 green)
Prius(es/i? someone help me out with the plural): 2
MINI's and Smarts are too plentiful to count, and more Mercedes than can really be justified anywhere.
Who owns these cars??
Posted by Daniel at 03:02 PM | Comments (1)
July 16, 2005
Six Down, One to Go
Just read book six. Really, really not cool. No spoilers, I promise. But there's an incredible lack of coolness. How's that for syntax?
Posted by Daniel at 04:08 PM | Comments (0)
July 13, 2005
I'm here
Not so much all that interesting yet. Getting around is more walking based than usual. My favorite line on the Tube was the one that got hit the worst and is completely non-functional. More switches and creative manuvering than what I'm used to. Also in the middle of a rare European heat-wave. Not the world's best time to be walking about.
Looks like it'll be a good theatre season this summer. Everything at the national seems worth attending. Besides that, nothing too earth shattering. I'll update when something happens.
Posted by Daniel at 03:11 PM | Comments (0)
July 11, 2005
Leaving on a Jetplane
Fortunately, it's just the one this time. I'm leaving for the airport in an hour. Everything's all set. I don't know how long it will be before I check online again, but I'll try. If you need to get in touch, send anything to danielsiders@gmail.com If you don't hear from me within three day, post a comment here or try a different address. That one ought to be best.
Posted by Daniel at 03:15 PM | Comments (0)
July 04, 2005
Live 8 and London
This has been a crazy week and it's only going to get worse. Tori and I went to Live 8 last saturday and experience the total zoo that it was. Nice concert. Horrid crowd control. No bathroms. Not going to help poverty. Natalie Portman. That about sums it up. In other news, my Hitachi Microdrive broke. Don't know quite how or why, but let me tell you--it's virtually impossible to find anything like an 80x 2gb cf II card in delaware. Thank you B&H photo and video! Finishing up my art projects before I leave. If any of you want something fun to do, head on over to BluePrintables.com for some exciting cyanotype action. I'm allegedly finishing my Polaroid transfers and emusions today, which should be joly good. I don't know why I just used 'jolly' in a sentence. And then I need to get to London on July 11th. Without my laptop or an ipod. It's going to be an interesting trip/ But I have bought the largest suitcase in the world. It's a Victorinox, and I think It'll take more than a nuclear attack to take this thing down. Since everything I do is web-based (MovableType and now Gmail) I shouldn't need my laptop. Right? Those of you who I'm supposed to see before I leave need to make sure you do. And quickly.
Posted by Daniel at 08:56 PM | Comments (0)
July 01, 2005
Parking and Other Transportation
Okay, so I had what has to be my favorite run-in with the University police yesterday. So I get this ticket. Even though I have my parking permit clearly displayed. They write on the ticket that I have a parking permit. Okay... The ONLY thing different about it is that I didn't attach the ticket to a window as requested, I somply displayed it prominantly on the dash. Why? because the permit is good for four weeks, and that's not worth polluting my car for. The university sells permits that hang from your rear view window, but they are only avail for longer term permits. That means that they are not opposed to looking in the front of your car. If they were still unsure, my permit is registered to a red honda hatchback with my license plate, a.k.a. the car that GOT THE TICKET. So if they check, it will be clear that I am allowed to park where I did. Finally, if there was any doubt left, the parking lot was only half full. I was alowed to park there with my permit, but even had I not been allowed, they should have let me. I don't get it.
So I'm going to Live 8 in Philly tomorrow.
I'm a little confused as to why they're having one in Philladelphia when we have real first class cities like New York and Los Angeles as well as a number of excellent second class cities: Boston, Chicago, Washington D.C., and San Francisco. However, I live a nominal tewnty minute car ride from the Art Museum in Philadelphia. So I can't really pass this up. Of course, It'll more likely take two hours to get there by car, train, and walking. Then I'll be there at six AM and the concert doesn't start until noon. So that's going to not even end until 6 PM. Twelve hours after arrival, we'll begin the process of leaving, and I'll be surprised if we get so far as the train station in two hours. Hopefully I'll be home by 11. That's going to be a long day. But I'll get to see:presenters:
Will Smith
Salma Hayek
Natalie Portman
Chris Tucker
Jennifer Connolly
Jimmy Smits
Kami
artists:
Alicia Keys
Black Eyed Peas
Bon Jovi
Dave Matthews Band
Def Leppard
Destiny's Child
Jay-Z
Josh Groban
Kaiser Chiefs
Keith Urban
Linkin Park
Maroon 5
P Diddy
Rob Thomas
Sarah McLachlan
Stevie Wonder
Toby Keith
So far as I'm concerned, anything's worth seeing an HIIV+ muppet...
Posted by Daniel at 08:22 AM | Comments (2)
June 24, 2005
Pinholes and Gasoline
That's the first nice image I've gotten off of my Canon EOS 20D pinhole camera. Digital pinholeing is quite an adventure. The photo was taken in Trabant University Center during the Annual DelaWorld 101 program that treats entering freshmen like toddlers. It's fun for the whole family. And you get a free tote bag. Unfortunately, there was a slight problem with the senson--e.g. it wasn't clean, so there are some small marks which need photoshopping.
In other news, my Honda Insight passed it's first energy test today. For those of you not suffering from insanely high gas prices, let me tell you, it's not fun. Or so I hear. I filled up today with a weekly average of 47.9 mpg, which is almost 2.5x better than the average rate of consumption. Way to go auto.
Posted by Daniel at 04:24 PM | Comments (0)
June 21, 2005
Katamari!!!
Wow. Most innovativee, amazing, super-cool game ever. And absolutely Japanese. You just roll stuff around on a katamari to a plot line tha's clearly inspired by a very powerful acid trip. You all must play it. It's on PS2. Amazingness.
gotta catch the Royal Rainbow out of here...
Posted by Daniel at 09:22 AM | Comments (0)
June 18, 2005
Marathon 4
So I finally joined the 21st century and bought Marathon 4 (that's HALO for the unaware). This also gives my G5 something to actually think about. I've been insulting it with simple tasks like Mail, Adium, and Safari lately. I let it get a run in the park and spin up its fans on Photoshop whenever I can, but it's not that easy. It's an indoor computer, no open fields of data to cluster. Sometimes I feel like just rendering video to give it a real workout. But this at least will allow me to abuse my 23" Cinema Display and graphis card, which I entirely forget the specs for. See, here's my problem: I'm not a gamer.
I've tried and failed several times. DnD, PS 1&2, every incarnation of Nintendo, all things Macintosh. Just doesn't work. There were quality games on NES and SuperNES, sidescrollers on Mac OS 7.5ish, things like that. I'm just not a gamer. There are games I like, but certainly not enough to get serious about them. I was always left out of the Goldeneye parties, never did Marathon 2 on networks, and didn't care enough to research nintendo cheat codes. I tried, it's just not for me. This is the first computer game I've bought since Mac OS 8. Scary? I think so. I've had to hunt down technicians at conventions to get serial numbers for old games--who can forget F/A 18 Hornet. Tetris in it's original incarnation is amazing. I never could get the hang of pong, though. I do, however, want to have a Diplomacy party. Best boardgame ever. Ever. Expensive, for what it is, but luckily, I already own a copy. Come play.
Posted by Daniel at 06:35 PM | Comments (2)
June 17, 2005
Marathon 2
I started playing Marathon 2 again today. Thanks to Bungie Software who released the sw for free. I had it a few years abck on my snow iMac as a relic from my original iMac and that was from some previous PowerMac system. I've never played another first person shooter I liked so much, exceept maybe for the original Goldeneye on N64. I don't like the new games and systems. And what I really want is my 2D side-scrollers back. I'd forgotten how much fun they are. Kudos again to Bungie, and the great people carbonizing apps! I'm going to build a time machine and go back to 1997, I swear. Then I'll be cool.
Posted by Daniel at 05:40 PM | Comments (0)
June 07, 2005
Recent Randomness
This may be premature, but I believe that my life may now be complete.
Final confirmation awaits on two events: Washing the cords I have on and waiting for OS X to be individually packaged for use on ex-Wintel machines.
Here's where this is coming from. Firstly, I believe that I may have found the perfect pair of jeans. I've been in a difficult love/hate relationship with denim for a while, but I think I found my soul mate. Levi's Skinnner is darn near perfect. Just waiting to see post-wash shrinkage. Now onto things that matter to more than just me.
Apple+Intel a.k.a. MacIntel. Craziness and Conspiracy. It would seem that one Steven Jobs has been fooling around with us all. Since his initial exile from Apple Computer Inc, following the days of Apple's reign of the personal computing industry and majority market share, he's been scheming. Those paying attention discovered long ago that the much-praised Mac "OS X" is really just a prettier version of the NeXT Step opperating system that cost vast fortunes and didn't go anywhere. Stevieboy rebranded it and moved back to Apple when it seemed to be dying. All the while a plot grew north of the sea of black mock-turtlenecks.
Turns out OS X has been designed to run on an Intel platform the whole time. Also turns out that he may be planning to sell the OS to PC users to install on their current machines!!!!!!! Insanity. Essentially, if they can now steal StarOffice/OpenOffice or somehting with a real word processor (and no, Pages doesn't count. Not yet, at least.), and they can kill Microsoft. Five years. That's what it'll take. June 2010 and Microsoft could be history. This would amuse me greatly.
In other news, the people at the car wash think that my vehicle is solar-powered. Wow.
Posted by Daniel at 07:57 PM | Comments (0)
May 29, 2005
Holiday...Celebrate...
I'm going on hiatus from the site for a few weeks. I need a vacation. If you want to keep up to date, use the RSS feed at the bottom of the sidebar. It'll keep you fullly aware of any updates and when I return. I leave on July eleventh for London, so keep that in mind as well. T.T.F.N.
Posted by Daniel at 10:37 PM | Comments (0)
May 27, 2005
A Brief Update
So there's been a serious lack of updates recently. I've been busy finishing the semester and moving home for the summer. Finals are over and I moved out of my room today. I also went to see Crash today. Excellent film--go see it. It's really great and basically just about how everyone's poor and racist. I now have zero desire to go to Los Angeles. I'm also gearing up for my thirteen hour twenty eight minute star wars marathon in a few weeks. Let me know if you want to come.
I'm also excited about classes for the beginning of summer. Definately in screenprinting and possibly in photo II. That should be all sorts of fun. Neat T shirts coming soon. July 11-Aug 3 I'll be in London and Monte Carlo. Come visit. Hope everything's goood with all of you. Don't forget to write. Hopefully I'll get back into an update mood soon.
Posted by Daniel at 10:47 PM | Comments (0)
May 19, 2005
Star Wars: Revenge of the Spectators
So yeah, I did the midnight Star Wars thing. Interesting night that left me very confused. First off, my dear friend Tommy got shot by one of the Fett's. I never can tell them apart. (He wasn't working as an extra, just at the movie theatre, and when he came in to give a warning about putting away all "Star Wars memorabilia and weapons, the Fett guy stood up and shot him to the thunderuos applause of the audience, or so I'm told.)
Here are my impressions of Episode Three, and I've lost track of all the titles. First of all, George Lucas is still off his rocker and barely literate. The scripts are gettign worse each time. In all the romance scenes and basically anything with Anakin, dialogue is painful. Unfortunately, for the first time, this carried over into the more dramatic and important scenes with Yoda and the Emporer, which really wasn't cool. He did his usual let's see if we can use a cliché even though it's a different galaxy...
The whole movie was really epic, but lacked any kind of climax. There were a bunch of lightsaber battle things, but none of them seemed all that major. CG was stunning, score was fantastic, space battles were really neat. I don't understand what General Grevious is supposed to be, and what the character's for. He just doesn't make sense, like much of the plot.
Lightsabers. They should be different colors. They were not. All blue with a few red. I'm hoping for a fix on this in the inevitable Special Edition Super Stellar Remix of all six which I'm sure the ILM and LucasFilm boys are already working on. Best thing about the movie: continuity. It all finally makes sense. And I'm considering watching all six in a row now. Maybe. We'll see. The biggest problem with the film? This hurts to say, and really bothers me, but Natalie Portman was awful. For the first time I have serious concerns about her ability as an actor. And she's not the only one. There must have been serious directoral problems, because all the people in this film (unlike previous installments with such screen gems as Jaky Lloyd and Ahmed Best [Jar Jar].) She was downright awful. Mind you, she doesn't deserve all the blame, but she seemed like the worst since she's normally so great. It's very disturbing and parents should use discretion. Oh, last thing. Hayden as Vader. Too slim. By a lot. He doesn't look right in the suit. There's all sorts of dimension issues. And there's a theory working its way around about mixing his voice in with James Earl Jones instead of going straight. Questionable. Check it out.
Posted by Daniel at 01:00 PM | Comments (1)
May 02, 2005
The New Vehicle
Isn't she cute? This is my new Insight in pretty Honda Red. We bought her on Sunday, but now she's hiding at home fo a week or so until I figure out how to deal with parking on campus. I drove miles yesterday and averaged 52 mpg, only because of a nasty series of trips down kirkwood highway. Neever again. In my trip around Hockessin, which included quite a few starts and stops, I managed to get up to an average of 64 mpg. Amazing. Once I figure out how ot accellerate uphill using less gas (I can't decide wether to go slowly or quickly and wich gear ratio to use) I should regularly be exceeding EPA estimates. I've also submitted a request for a five digit plate (DE residents know what that's about), but I'm not holding my breath. Floor mats arrive soon, as well. I also intend to tint as much of the vhicle as possible to keep air conditioning costs down, and if i can keep power consumption and weight low, I'll add a new set of speakers and head unit. Eventual navigation system and either a Mac mini or powerbook mount as well. I'd use Sirius, but I'm afraid about the drag an antenna would create. current drag coefficent is 0.25, but I can get that down if I remove the antenna or mirrors. I could easily replace the side view mirrors with ccd's and a pair of lcd monitors in dash. all things told, I'm expecting to get up to 70 or so wh en things are said and done. Energy crisis? No more petroleum? Not for me.
Posted by Daniel at 08:11 AM | Comments (1)
April 23, 2005
I'm a Teenage Pin-up.
So yeah, it's been an interesting 20 hours or so. Last night I get a random call from Missy to go see her girlfriend sing. I go to visit, nice meetup with the NZ folks (only half of which were drunk--for them a big imporvement). Apparently Adreinne and Missy neglected to mention that the performance was part of Trnas Awareness week or somesuch thing. Which was great because I got to hear on of my fav UD performers, Innocence Bello. One tiny problem with this. In the middle of her performance she looks at me and points (we have not met or spoken in our lives. I saw her once at the Vagina Monologues and that's it.) Then she asks me (like ten minutes after I've walked in) if I "was in the paper two years ago for art or something," I reply that I was, but not for art, although I understand why she might have thought I was displaying a small pewter sculpture. (f you'd seen the photo, you'd understand. It's not so hot.) She then informs me and the rest of the audience that she's had my photograph in her cubicle for the past two years. Wow. Horribly embarrassing. And horrid photo. So that started things off oddly. The night progressed to the point where the drunk NZ girls were yelling at the top of their lungs for Missy's girlfriend, Kelly Ricketts who claims she enjoyed the new groupies. (It was supposed to be a dry event.) I walked back to the netherland of Laird with Adrienne who told me that I and her Jewish friends were all going to hell and that I had sinned aproximately 4 billion(!) times in my life, and that she wouldn't go out on a date with God. Also, despite my water-tight argument, she did not believe that Orlando Bloom could ver well be God. This morning, I woke at 8 AM (a mere five hours since I went to bed) to discover a vaguely familiar high pitched sustained beep in my room. I went back to sleep as it continued for several hours. Finally aroudn noon I began to search for the source. It was my UPS. Not like a box that gets shipped, like an APC UPS powerbackup for my computer. It's power had been interrupted or something and wanted to make sure I knew. Thanks UPS. Odd events of the past few hours, even for me.
Posted by Daniel at 01:21 PM | Comments (1)
April 19, 2005
New Zealand Photos have Arrived!
Dear me. This took a very long time and a lot of work. A PowerMac G5, 23" Cinema Display, fireWire Harddrive, iPhoto, 1and1 webhosting, JAlbum, and about ten hours. Some very odd things happened while I was trying to get this straightened out. Seems that iPhoto somehow duplicated all my photos but the originals were about three thousand pixels wide, while the duplicates were about 200 pixels wide. had to sort that out. Then titling all of them. Anyways, HERE they are. Have fun.
NOTE: When I posted thist, it was all uploading, it might take until ten or so to send it all up. be patient and don't send me error reports until tomorrow.
P.S. I'd like to advise everyone to NOT click on the purchase button. You do not want prints from 800x600 shots. Email me with the serial number of the photo(s) you want. I'll post the actual files for the requested files somewhere. I need rest now.
Posted by Daniel at 08:41 PM | Comments (2)
April 12, 2005
How I feel about hybrids
I have now driven the Toyota Prius and the Honda Accord, Civic, and Insight. All hybrid models. The systems vary slightly between models and brands, but the theory is the same. Combine an electric motor and a gasoline engine to create bettter fuel economy. Well, it works. Sort of. With the exception of the Accord (and it's 255 bhp), all the vehicles were significantly slow on the uptake. The Insight (first on U.S. roads) compensated by giving the maximum torque below 2000 rpm. This allows for quite speedy acceleration at low speeds. Essentially, driving around town is fine, it only feels underpowered when merging onto I-95. The Prius was just oo busy. Toyota tried too hard to be techy. The displays for everything are located in places that are simply too much of a diversion while driving to be of much use. I also had the most trouble with rear visibility in the Prius. I think what they all need is a nice propane jet engine to help with the 0-60 bit. I think I'm going to aim for the Insight on my next car purchase. but a California or New York model. Better emissions. Check it out. I'm still waiting for Hydrogen fuel cells. I want to get rid of gasoline entirely.
Posted by Daniel at 06:02 PM | Comments (0)
April 11, 2005
Sightcasting
Another Update: So, BBC ran a piece on podcasting in the next election. Check it out.
Update: See my sample SightCast!
Podcasting sucks. for those of you who haven't been exposed to it, count yourselves lucky. In a nutshell, it's an audio blog. People record themselves talking about their lives and opinions instead of just writing. Why is this a problem? Because I listen to iTunes while I'm online. So to listen to this glorification of on-demand radio, I have to pause iTunes and listen to poorly recorded audio.
I'm all about multimedia. I just think that it should ddo more or not be used. I'd be all about Sightcasting (Using an iSight to record audio and video for online consumption). That'd just be neat. Why don' we see more of that? This could be just video of the person talking, which I think would provide a fun personal touch, or it could entail actual editing, and real video could be incorporated. Even if it's just still images. Just something to think about.
Posted by Daniel at 05:00 PM | Comments (4)
April 09, 2005
Ways to generate web traffic
Trafffic has doubled in the past week due only to the brief mention of Toby Lehman, from the Levi's ad. We're the second result for the name on Google at the moment, and much of our traffic is coming from that simple search. Just to let everyone know, we are not affiliated with Mr. Lehman in any way. There was some feedback that suggested people might have been confused about our relationship to JetSet Models or Toby Lehman. One person even asked about autographed photos. Their best chance would be to contact his agency directly. They are located in La Jolla, California, and to the best of my knowledge, Mr. Lehman resides in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Someone needs to start a fansite for this kid. Even amoung local friends, there's been a stir. Jennifer Westfall of Newark, Delaware wants to engage in highly illegal activities with the child, while she herself has been investigating Zoophile.net and has recently aquired two gay male rabbits who routinely engage in some of the activities for which rabbits are best known. For more information and photos, click here.
In other news, I have an appointment to testdrive a Honda Insight today. This will round off my hybrid testdrives. I've already driven the Civic, Accord, and Prius, but the Insight has long been my favorite. I'll post a full review of all four when I'm done. It will, however, contain no mention of Toby Lehman. Have a pleasant tomorrow.
Posted by Daniel at 12:28 AM | Comments (2)
April 07, 2005
Car Shopping Fun (or not)
I am entering the final days of my automobile search ans shopping. I really just want to pick something and then deal with finances. In the process of the past few years, I've looked at pretty much every method of transportation, and have very few final contenders. I wanted something small with excellent performance, handling, fuel economy, and emissions. This left me with two paths, the hybrid vehicles of Honda and Toyota and small sports coupes. Frankly, what I'm really interested in is a more powerful version of the Vandenbrink Carver, but they're not street legal here. I've test driven the Prius, Civic Hybrid, and Accord Hybrid. I was unimpressed with pickup in both the Prius and the Civic, but the Accord was more than amply equipt in this area. Then aain, it is significantly larger than I'm loking for and has essentially the same gas mileage as a MINI Cooper. I really like the Insight by Honda, but no one has one in stock to test, and the acceleration worries me. Now I hear rumors of a redesigned update on the Insight capable of up to 90 mpg, which might be worth whatever sacrifices are made in the 0-60 range. Also, many vehciles sold in California seem to have significantly lower emissions, which makes me consider purchasing a vehicle there and driving it back here. in any event, I have decided that there is no perfect vehicle at present, and I want the flying cars that we were promised years ago. Or at least Hydrogen fuel-cells. Where's an FCX when you need it?
Posted by Daniel at 12:38 AM | Comments (0)
April 05, 2005
The wonders of personal web publishing
I spent a lot of my day today working on some seemingly simple problems, which it seems had actually simple solutions, which I took the long way around. But you'll notice some neat little changes to the site with lots more to come soon. Mainly, and this is the one I'm most proud of, there's no longer either a forwarding page or a long filepath. It's just DanielSiders.com Isn't that simpler and nicer? It makes bookmarking so much easier. You should all update your bookmarks.
Another tidbit for the curous, I thought it went along well with the recent news. I bought this a few months ago when a friend was in town. I literally couldn't stop laughing for several hours. Here it is!
Help Wanted Anyone who has any ideas about what they'd like to see here during my redesign, or on content, please let me know.
Posted by Daniel at 03:23 AM | Comments (0)
April 04, 2005
Who is Toby Lehman and why is his "Impression" in my magazine?
See the FULL SIZE ad that started it all. It's rather gratuitous size-wise, since it's a 20D image.
Posted by Daniel at 09:01 AM | Comments (12)