The Social Club

I find it kinda riduculous the way in which most of these new Web 2.0 services rely on the exclusivity of their sign-up process to lend some cachet to their product. It's hopelessly cliquey, and I hate cliques. And I don't know if I'm exactly buying this idea that invites are meant to ease the flow of traffic to a particular site to alleviate any growing pains. That being said, I do love being able to scrounge an invite to the newest it service or application. :P It's the law of the land, so what can you do? Although, I don't go crazy for every invite that comes my way. Some of these services I can't believe exist. Can someone explain to me why they would want to use a service like Gleamd? I just don't get it. :P

I was pretty happy when I was able to score a Pownce invite very early on. Which was pretty funny... and by "funny" I mean very hypocritical of me to accept it. :P I received an invite a few days after I had first heard about it... and during that time I had spent a good amount of energy bemoaning yet another new invite-only Web 2.0 service. But when one came my way, I quickly changed my tune. :P

Gee, my left wrist is really bothering me right now for some reason... I think I'm gonna have to call it a night. :( Anyway, I probably wasn't going to type much tonight... I just wanted to let you know that I did get my hands on another invite tonight. Some guy on Virb° asked me if I had any more Pownce invites left... and I did, so I sent one along his way. He returned the gesture by asking if I was interested in a MailPlane invite. I had heard the name before... at least I thought I did. It was a very vague memory, but I accepted for the hell of it. Anyway, turns out that MailPlane is this really great mail app for OSX that integrates Gmail's web interface into a desktop client perfectly... I'd seen it previewed on The Unoffical Apple Weblog before, but must've forgotten it since I knew it was in private beta. Well it's not for me anymore. :P I'm loving it right now... granted, I only just installed it a couple of hours ago, but so far I'm in love. :P

Fuck my wrist hurts! *LOL* I'm gonna headout. ;) Take care guys... Later later...

DS333, owie! :(

Benevolence & Banality

I'm hoping the Gods are with me tonight. They appear to be restless. While I wasn't expecting it, Thunder & Lightning have decided to show their faces. I've always loved lightning and thunder, ever since I was a wee lad. Love 'em still if only because they usher in the beauty that is Rain, my eternal lover. :D It's only recently though that I've developed a slight fear of 'em, and not because I've a fear of the sights and sounds. I'm more fearful at the thought of what ruin they could bring upon my precious electronics, especially my iMac. Ever since I got my iMac, I've been more sensitive to the gravity of brownouts and the ravages of electrical shorts. I'm terrified at the thought of my motherboard being fried. I don't know what I would do without my iMac. It's my first Mac... I love it. I don't wanna lose it. So here's hoping tonight's divine ruckus leaves us unharmed. Ironically enough, I've named my iMac "Kongo-Rikishi", after the Japanese Thunder Bolt Guardian. Here's hoping that counts for something and the Fates are benevolent.

Aside from hoping for divine benevolence, much of my time tonight will be spent in a routine of banality. I've been plugging away these last few nights trying to learn the Dvorak layout as quickly as possible. While I'm not a master of multi-tasking... I find it quite easy to divide my attention between absorbing podcasting content and getting a handle of these new keys. Usually I can't retain anything I listen to if I spend that time composing something as well. I certainly can't write an e-mail or blog post while listening to a show and enjoy it. It's gotta be one or the other. But since I'm not formulating any solid thoughts while I'm mindlessly typing away, I'm able to enjoy my podcasts. It's pretty awesome... at the very least it's efficient. ;)

Anyway, I don't wanna spend much time typing in this QWERTY fashion, so I'll leave it at that. Nothing much to talk about tonight. Goodnight you little devils.

DS333, reaching.

001.069.365

• I've been having the wildest dreams these past few days.
• I was supposed to work on my Dream Journal the other day, but instead wound up getting work started on my next "Jerry's Book" project.
• I wanted to try the new Blueberry White Tea Lemonade the other day at Starbucks, but mistakingly ordered a plain ol' White Tea... actually it was more the barista's fault. :P
• I had the most amazing beef stir fry today. Yummy. :D
• Progress on my whole Dvorak project is working out nicely. I'm quite surprised at how easily I've been able to retain a mind for both keyboard layouts. :D
• Added a couple of podcasts today.
• I'm trying to catch up on "FLOSS Weekly" and "Futures In Biotech". I'm only a show behind for each.
• I need to transcribe some of the dreams I've had lately. They'll make excellent pieces for my Dream Journal.
• Today was surprisingly tolerable... as far as the weather was concerned. I was expecting a huge spike in the temperature.
• "Metroid Prime 3: Corruption" was released today... but I still stand behind my Apple Keyboard purchase as the way to go this month. :P
• I really need to dig through my Wii Owner's Manual to get my Wii online. I'm dying to check out the Virtual Console.
• I love my new Apple Keyboard. :P ;)
• There are some things I'm dying to listen to so I'm having a hard time concentrating on this post. :P
• I really need to plow through my huge pile of GQ magazines so I can get back into reading actual books.
• I really want to finish up "The Joseph Campbell Collection", especially since I found out on Amazon that they no longer carry new editions of "The Hero's Journey"! :(
• I really need to buy "Myths Of Light" as soon as possible; maybe having it in my possession will light a fire under my ass and get me reading all that I need to.
• I was recently reminded of how awesome "A Brief History Of Time" is... I wanna re-read that as well.
• I really wanna do a lot of things, huh? :P ;)
• I really wanna end this post. :P

DS333, Fin.

Gluttony

I'm copping out with a horribly short post tonight. ;) I've really been consumed with consumption. Consuming media. More so than usual that is. More and more I'm finding that there aren't enough blogs or podcasts out there for me. When those things fail me, you can find me lurking around social-networking sites looking for updates in comment threads and forums... it's horribly pathetic. :P I don't know what's gotten into me, but I crave data. Media. Input. I want it all. I've even been contemplating firing up Skype and taking random chat requests from strangers. :P Luckily, I haven't become that desperate. ;)

Anyway, I'm incredibly happy tonight because I just scored a torrent for "today's" The Howard Stern Show... which came in late, and just so happens to be a "Mammary Lane" special. It came as a huge relief since I was worried it wouldn't be coming out at all, given that most of the posters have given up on seeding episodes of "Mastertape Theatre". It's totally scratched my gluttonous itch. ;)

So yeah, I'm gonna go listen to that now... and I'm pawning off this short post on you 'cause I'm horrible at multi-tasking, which means I can't formulate a more proper post and listen to the show at the same time. :P Forgive me, won't you? ;) Happy consumption all you little Content Piggies. :P

DS333, ravenous.

Projected Projects > "Dvorak Simplified Keyboard"

I mentioned this in passing in a previous post, but I thought I'd take the time to go more in depth about my latest little experiment.

So I've decided to go ahead and take the plunge and learn how to type using the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard layout. For those of you who are unaware, DSK is, save for a few keys, a totally different layout for your standard QWERTY keyboard. You can find a more thorough explanation about the layout on Wikipedia, but the gist of the article goes on to explain how the traditional QWERTY set-up was designed to slow down your typing speed so as to not jam the typewriters of old. Dvorak was developed by an educational psychologist, for whom the layout is named after, who studied the physiology of our hand movements and letter frequency within the English language to develop a layout that was meant to imporve typing speed and overall physical comfort.

It was only by chance that I decided to give this a go. I was on Virb° the other night when I decided to join some more groups to dress up my profile page, when I decided to go looking for a "Cranky Geeks" podcast group. But when I came up empty, I decided to search for a general "John C. Dvorak" group. Still nothing. So I searched for an even more general "Dvorak". Then I came across this tiny group of users of the Dvorak layout. I visited the aforementioned Wikipedia article and I was hooked! :P

I did my research, found some tutorials and given my new love of my Apple Keyboard... I felt that it was somehow destined. :P I'd heard of the Dvorak method before... but never looked into it, although I was intrigued. And some months back I remember falling in love with a Dvorak mod for a MacBook I saw on "The Unofficial Apple Weblog". I thought it was the coolest thing ever! In so many ways I've fallen hard for Dvorak. For one, I think it's the most 1337 thing ever. I love mods. I absolutely crumble at the thought of improving my typing speed. I love the exclusivity of the community. I love the idea of learning a new "language". I love the geek cred. :P I don't know, there's just so many things to go crazy over.

Besides everything else, OSX makes the transition a simple one. There's a simple configuration you can make in the International panel of the System Preferences to switch between the traditional QWERTY and Dvorak layouts. It was easy as easy can be. What was surprisingly easy was learning the new method. So far, I've just about mastered the Home Row, thanks to this great online tutorial I've been frequenting for the last couple of days. I imagine I'll be more or less proficient in the new method come the following week. Which reminds me, I really need to take a typing test soon so that I can compare scores once I'm fully entrenched in the Dvorak camp. I'd be very curious to see any difference, seeing as how fast a typist I already am. *shrug* We'll see. If anything else, I'll have all the bragging rights of a Dvorak geek... plus a pretty sweet mod for my Apple Keyboard. :P Which by the way, I did the other day. It looks wild. And it too was surprisingly easy to switch up. Easy is apparently the watchword of this little project. ;)

DS333, "<>PYF. ;)

001.066.365

• I had a lousy night's rest last night, which I think I should credit to the huge sugar intake I had yesterday.
• I watched "High And Low" yesterday, more on that in a future "Film Fetish" post. ;)
• I just noticed that when I use the ;) smiley, I tend to wink in real time. :P
• Today was glorious! It was overcast, so we didn't have to suffer the Summer heat... it was beautiful.
• After a bit of online consulting and a visit from my brother, I was able to rearrange the keys on my new Apple Keyboard to a Dvorak Simplified Keyboard layout.
• I've started taking some online lessons on the Dvorak method. I've just about mastered the home keys... not bad for the first day.
• By the way, I'm typing this post... and I imagine a few of the future posts strictly in QWERTY, at least until I can get a better handle of the Dvorak beast. ;)
• I'm sleepy, I actually had to pull myself out of the bed so that I could make this post... I haven't missed one yet and I'm not about to start now. ;)
• Today was very boring, at least as far as tech news was concerned. My RSS feeds all went and dried up on me. :(
• My Sis brought over another Kurosawa flick, I'm nearing the end of my retrospective. :(
• I think Time Warner Cable (my cable internet provider) is throttling my bandwith, or better (worse) yet doing some deep packet analysis of my traffic and cutting me off whenever they notice I start to torrent. Grrr!!! >:O
• Drinking a left-over Frap right now. Pretty good.
• Not much going on today. Actually I was really hoping to speak to one of my friends today... I feel very much in the mood for a good little chat.
• Okay, I'm gonna head out... nothing much to say really... I'm feelin' kinda "blah".

DS333, King Of Blahtterdam.

Latest Love <3 "The New Apple Keyboard"

So if you've been living under a rock, or maybe just not all that interested in what Apple is up to, you may not have heard of their new slick & slim Keyboard. They unveiled the new piece of hardware along with their new iMac revision just a few weeks ago. Of course I love the new iMacs, but I'm not exactly in the market for a new iMac since the one I have now suits me just fine (thank you very much! :P) and I'm not exactly rolling in money. ;) But the new Keyboard was something else, something I could afford... and something I've been wanting for the longest time. Well maybe not the longest time...

You should know that the new Keyboard takes a design cue from the MacBook and MacBook Pro keyboard, which were released, I believe, over a year ago. And when those machines were unveiled, I was all over the new keyboard design. I fell in love with the new look... and more importantly the new feel. I'll all about tactile feedback and response, and when I first laid my fingers on those keys I felt like I was in heaven. :D I can't exactly describe the feeling I had when I first typed on that keyboard, but it was unforgettable. And of course, I had to lament on the fact that I couldn't yet own a new MacBook, and therefore would never type on those keys until that time. :(

It was about a month or two ago, though, that rumors started to fly about a revision to the iMacs that would include a revision to the keyboard. And all the rumors pointed to the "chiclet" design of the MacBook keyboards as a reference point for the new iMac keyboard. I started getting really excited. Then, my excitement reached new levels when photos leaked on the Net of the new design. The supposed new Keyboard looked gorgeous! Far beyond my wildest imaginings. It was a perfect amalgamation of the MacBook design and the old iMac keyboard layout. At that point I began to panic, because I let myself fall into the rumor trap. All of this could've been a hoax, and yet I had already fallen in love with everything I'd seen and heard. I felt like I was setting myself up for heartbreak. But then Apple unveiled their new iMacs, and delivered on the promise of all those rumors. My keyboard was real! :D


Of course, I'm sure to have killed any sort of suspense I would've hoped to have created by now. I of course am now a proud and happy owner of the new Apple Keyboard. :D Oh Keyboard, how do you I love thee? Let me count the ways...

First off, I'm still in awe of how thin the sucker is. This push to design everything as thin as physically possible always manages to knock me off my feet. I often catch myself ogling The Thin Man (2nd Gen iPod Nano) and marveling at the technological wonder of packing so much in so little. I can't get over it. Likewise, my iMac, does the same thing. Especially is you've grown up with the archetypal PC form in mind, the iMac design seems like something akin to witchcraft. It's awe-inspiring. The new Keyboard continues this tradition. I'm simply in awe of what they've managed to acheive.

Thanks to the new slim design, and a move to anondized aluminum for the body, the keyboard is now as light as a feather. Holding up the old keyboard along with the new, is like night and day. It's so much more functional now. And sexy to boot. You hold it as you might a lover. It so delicate and... elegant. It's amazing that they've somehow managed to make a keyboard an object of desire.

On a technical level, I'm glad to have regained some functionality I lost with my old keyboard. For some reason, during one of the many System Updates in the life of my iMac, my keyboard lost the ability to eject DVDs. I have no idea why. But the new Keyboard works like a charm. And while, hot keys were always an option with the old Keyboard, I do love that the new one has dedicated Exposé and Dashboard keys that have these cool little icons. I'm also overjoyed at the ability to control my Display's brightness level directly from the keyboard, thanks to another pair of dedicated keys (with requisite cute, awesome icons :P). But the true stand-out has to be the new playback keys. In certain applications, in FireFox for example, I now have the ability to control iTunes with a skip-back, pause/play, and skip-forward key. It's turned my world upside down. :P Revelatory!

And of course there are all the little things to fall in love with. The way that they've incorporated the two USB ports in the keyboard's base stand is ingenious! It's practical, it saves space and it looks elegant. Beautiful. I don't know why, but I love that the aluminum is cool to the touch. Apple has nothing to do with that of course, it's more a consequence with the laws of physics, but it's still nice. It's very sexy, I find myself molesting my keyboard all the time. :P I also love the new font they're using for the keys... which I believe is Lucinda Grande. It looks far more elegant and practical, practical in that the keys seem easier to read. Not that the old keyboard was like reading hieroglyphs, but again, it's just a little thing. Oh yes! Also... I love that the function keys are reduced in size. They've been cut horizontally, and look beautiful and take up less space.

I could go on and on about the Keyboard, but I won't, I've done enough. I just love it. Everything about it. I haven't a single complaint. It's far and away the best keyboard I've ever used. And for some reason, I feel like I type much faster now than before. Which of course, is another benefit of the design, given that the keys don't need to be pressed as deep to register.

Okay, well... that's all I wanted to say. I'm in love, yet again. ;) If you've thought about buying the keyboard, I suggest running over to the nearest Apple store or Apple reseller and giving it a test run and if you like it... well why not buy it!? It's amazing. :P

DS333, in love.

The Satellite Unmasked!

Hey everyone. Simple post today. I've just been in dire need of a little corner of the web where I could post a photo of myself that wasn't on Flickr. I'm not looking to post any personal photos on Flickr because that photo library is linked to my Virb° profile, and the idea of people so easily finding a photo of myself or my family is kinda creepy. Well not kinda, it is. So for the most part, my Flickr library is somewhat innocuous to my little endeavor. Look, I'm not naive... I know nothing is really private on the web. I'm sure there a lot of things people could find out about me if they were even the least bit determined to do so, but why make it easier for them? And why compound the offense?

Anyway, one main reason for posting a picture of myself... in a public forum, is to do just that again, post it in a public web forum. I've been frequenting this one thread where site members share photos of themselves... and I feel a bit like a slimy voyeur for not having participated yet, especially when I consider how often I've visited the thread. And I've noticed new members beating me to the punch, so I figured it was time to get off my ass and post something. Anyway, until I get my personal website underway... this will have to do.

So here I am. Took the photo about a year ago, and in keeping with the Joey ethos, nothing much has changed in that time. Actually I grew my hair out since then, but I cropped my hair not too long back, so I'm back to square one. It's only a tad longer now than it is in the photo. And you can still find me wearing my trademark headphones just about anywhere I am. :P What can I say? I love media. Beep beep.


DS333, naked.

001.063.365

• I had a wacky sleep schedule today, so I've been a bit out of sorts.
• Had to get up early to meet a Building Inspector, who I thought was going to conduct an examination but only wound up setting an appointment for next week.
• Did some laundry today. Which I sometimes enjoy, but found it somewhat annoying today. Must've been the whole sleep thing.
• Thank the maker! The next few days are expected to be a respite of sorts from this horrible Summer heat. Today was actually enjoyable! :D
• I got into a little tussle with a couple of folks in a blog comment thread. Which isn't at all like me. But given my whole "community experiment" I thought I'd try my best to experience the most of that world. They were assholes, and I called them on their asshole-ity. One of them told me to die. All in all, a positive experience. ;)
• I met this really cool Swiss guy over the last few days, and again I was truck by the enormity of our digital revolution. I've been a seriously active member on the Net since I was 16, and nine years later I'm still in awe of the ease in which we can communicate with people the world over. And it's not as though the concept is so foreign to me. I've grown up in L.A. my entire life, so the new and the modern is nothing unusual... but even still, I get struck now and again by the... mysticism of technology. It's amazing stuff. And they're amazing people out there using it to connect with one another. Amazing! ;)
• I fully seeded Tori's Paris, France show from June 2nd, which means I finally got down to converting the files to mp3 and adding them to my iTunes library. I'm listening to the show right now as a matter of fact, and it's just as amazing as the Florence, Italy show. I'm in looove with this new live version of "Garlands". It's one of the most beautiful songs of all-time. *swoon* :P
• Speaking of great tunes, I bought a few track from the iTunes Store the other day. Most of them... uh, well... actually all of 'em were recommendations of sorts from "The Howard Stern Show". Never let it be said that that man doesn't have great musical taste. So I got Joan Baez's cover of "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You"... so heart wrenching. Amy Winehouse's "Rehab" is such a slick take on the Motown sound. I also picked up the acoustic version of The Plain White T's "Hey There Delilah". And finally two tracks from Tommy James And The Shondells: "Hanky Panky" and "Crimson And Clover". :D
• I finally got around to filling out more of my profile at Last.fm, and I've even begun making a concerted effort to participate in their forums and such. ;)
• I shaved my head yesterday... which by the way probably sounds more extreme than it should. I'm not bald per se, I forget what number cut it is... but I've got a tiny bit of length. Anyway, it's kinda frustrating that I've a few stray hairs that sorta dodged the razor's edge. :P I hate when that happens. ;)
• I wore a shirt sans undershirt today. I hate when that happens as well. :P Luckily it wasn't very noticeable. Actually, not noticeable at all. But still, the fact that I know what's going on is enough to make it "unacceptable". :P
• I'm so excited about seeing the remake of Rob Zombie's Halloween. It comes out next Friday!!! :D
• Nothing makes me quite as happy as seeing new blog posts via Google Reader. I get so excited when I see that little number enclosed in parantheses in my FireFox tab. :D
• Listening to "Garlands 06/02/07" - Tori Amos (American Doll Posse World Tour 2007)
• The other day I met this guy at the bus stop whose faith in humanity and civility was reaffirmed when he found the bag he left there unharmed. I felt quite happy about that. :)
• I found $6 on the street the other day, but walked right past it. I wonder if its owner ever came back for it, or even found out that it was missing. Whoever wound up taking it... I wonder how it was used?
• My back's kinda hurtin'... maybe I should call it a night.
• Goodnight all you little Net Critters. ;)

DS333, pondering.

Film Fetish: "Sanjuro"

Sanjuro (1962)
- directed by Akira Kurosawa

In this follow-up to Yojimbo, Toshiro Mifune reprises his role as the sly ronin, Sanjuro. Set in nineteenth-century Japan, the wandering Sanjuro encounters a group of nine clansmen who become the target of a corrupt official when they decide to expose him. Sanjuro steps into the fray when he saves the men from certain death at the hands of the official's army. Along with their new ally, the clansmen set out to rescue their leader's uncle who's being held captive by the corrupt official who hopes to extort a confession which would exonerate him and his men from any wrongdoing.

What can I say? It's Kurosawa, and it's a "sequel" to Yojimbo, and Toshiro Mifune is reprising his role as Sanjuro? What more could I want? What more could you want? :P This is a great movie, and in its own way, you might say a better film than Yojimbo. But I don't want to say that. They're great films in their own right, which means this turns out to be one of the best samurai films around. It's packed with more action than it's predecessor, and has a more involved, intricate story. Given the success of Yojimbo, the Sanjuro character is the true focus of this film, more so than before. Which is a great thing. Mifune is so charismatic in the lead role. A true treat. Able to play both the comedian and the action star with such deft subtlety, Mifune's performance is more than worth the price of admission. A must-see for Kurosawa and samurai film fans alike.

8/10 A fantastic follow-up to Yojimbo. Toshiro Mifune at his best. An absolute treat for even the most casual samurai film fan; actually a treat for any admirer of great filmmaking.



* Spoilers *

While I've already said that Mifune's performance is more than enough to warrant a viewing, the real stand-alone draw should be the film's ending. More specifically the final duel between Sanjuro and the master samurai who led the official's army. It's filmmaking at it's best. Charged with tension, it's the most exciting minute of just about any movie you'll ever see. And best of all, it's the most gore-tastic piece of action I've ever seen, which is saying something given the time in which this film was made. You've gotta see it any way you can. :D

DS333, The Decadent.

Explained, "Latest Love"

Here we go again, yet another feature. :P What can I say? I love to keep things organized. When all is said and done, and this blog really starts rolling I'm rather fond of the idea that a reader can easily determine whether or not they'd be interested in a post based soley on its title. Care to read a movie review? Well then "Film Fetish" is just for you. Wanna know about what I'm creating lately? "The Art" is pretty self-explanatory. The list goes on, and is sure to grow. I know in some way it's a bit annoying to keep seeing all of these "Explained" posts... but as I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm trying to create a framework with these first group of posts. Hopefully it'll be a solid framework I can work off from later on down the line. I'm just trying to establish some sort of order here. The idea that the blog itself, it's structure, were to be as free flowing as my stream-of-consciousness posts detests me. There needs to be structure. Order. If only from a user experience perspective. I want it to be as easy as possible to dive around the blog and find posts of interest. Don't even get me started on tagging... that's going to be a nightmare when I actually decide to go back and begin that process. *sigh*

So what's this "Latest Love" bit all about? Well I wanted a venue in which I could gush over my latest little obsessions. Which could range from anything. Maybe there's a new drink I've discovered and have fallen in love with. Maybe it's a restaurant. A piece of clothing? A person? :P Who knows... it could be anything. It's not as though I haven't talked about the things I love in an off-hand fashion already, or that I'll stop. But I'm gonna try and limit these Latest Love posts to new obsessions. Also, I plan to fawn over things worthy of a somewhat lengthy post. It's gotta be something special if I wanna make it a point of focus. ;)

Anyway, that's the plan. And of course I already have a slew of things to rave about... but you'll just have to wait. Be patient. They say it's a virtue. ;)

DS333, raving mad.

001.060.365

• Feelin' pleased as punch today. Peachy keen. I'm the bees' knees. :D
• Guess what I got my grubby little paws on over the weekend? The new Apple Keyboard!!!
• I'm in love with my new keyboard, so much so that it definitely deserves its own post. :P
• Latest instance of synchronicity? WordPress... the blogging service. Of course it's been around for ages, so it's hardly a meme. But for some reason it's been hitting me on all fronts lately. What does that mean?
• Things I can't get out of my head? Tom Wilkinson's line from the "Michael Clayton" movie trailer starring George Clooney, "I am Shiva god of death." Beautiful delivery. Also a tiny lyric from Björk's "Vertebrae By Vertebrae" on the recent "Volta" album, "She came here to lose face."
• My sleep schedule is spiraling out of control, I believe I'm an actual victim of insomnia? Probably not. I don't consider it serious, and it's not a hindrance. I've always had a wacky sleep schedule... but there's something about this new one... I can't quite put my finger on it.
• I'm dying to own "Zodiac" on DVD, but I recently learned that they're going to release a 2-disc Director's Cut of the film on DVD in 2008. I don't plan on enjoying the wait. :P But I suppose it'll make the acquisition all the sweeter. ;)
• I'm finding the release of different DVD versions to be a real pain.
• I've been deciding whether to buy the recent 2-disc release of "Silence Of The Lambs", or get the Criterion version instead. I know where I can get a pristine copy of the Criterion, which includes audio commentary from Demme, Hopkins and Foster... but the visual digital transfer is horrid compared to the latest release. :( Decisions, decisions...
• I really wish Criterion would release more Wong Kar-Wai films...
• I'd fuckin' die if they ever released Criterion versions of "Days Of Being Wild" and "2046". OMG! Better yet, a set that included them along with "In The Mood For Love". *faints* *sigh* A guy can dream can't he? :P
• "Metroid Prime: Corruption" is going to be released at the end of the month for the Nintendo Wii, but I don't think I'm gonna swing it. I'm not sure. The replay value of the Primes seems minimal. I've had a hankering for some DVD purchases. Grrr! I wish I had unlimited funds. But don't we all? :P It'll all boil down to the reviews I suppose.
  
• I'm not all that hungry today... haven't been for the last few. Which I find very odd. I'm usually a glutton, but I've lost my appetite... I've only been eating because I know I should/have to. *shrug*
• I wonder when I'm going to look into sprucing up my Blogger page. My supposed tech-illiterate sister totally has her Blogger page pimped out. She's hyperlinking all over the place. She's got widgets, directories, etc. I'm so ashamed. :( ;)
• I'm wearing my oxfords today. Just thought I'd throw that out there. ;)
• I looove leather. And patent leather is a favorite... or at least one of 'em. :D
• I am Agni, god of fire! I am consumption. I am desire. I am want. I am need.
• I want those antique Corcoran Jump Boots, I need them!... now talk about sexy leather. ;)
• I think there are talks of putting an air-conditioner in my room. Despite my hatred for Summer and its whore heat, I much more hate the idea of consuming more power than I already do. I'm a power consumption conscious freak. Turn off your lights! :P
• I need to set up my website. If only to temporarily use it as a photo dump site. I don't feel right about using other online services like PhotoBucket or Flickr for this specific instance. Especially not Flickr 'cause I'm thinking of using the site more for miscellaneous images... Flickr needs to maintain a more coherent album feel. I have a domain and the space... I just need to get crack-a-lacking with my "HTML & XHMTL..." book.
• I need to pee.
• I had root beer today.
• Oh my god, I had the most amazing shake you will ever have. Well maybe that's a bit much, but it's definitely one of the best. I hightly suggest you order the Oreo Cookie Shake the next time you're at Applebees (by the way, I hate all those "types" of restaurants).. christ was that good! You know it's something special when you're still thinking about it days later. :P
• You know what I've had a craving for for the longest time now? Raw Brazil Nuts from Trader Joe's. *smacks lips* Mmmm... I can taste them now. I wish there was a Joe's close by. :(
• I feel no guilt whatsoever about making this such a long post. Why? 'Cause I love typing on my new keyboard, duh! :P
• I've a few movies in my possession that I need to watch. I rented "Pan's Labyrinth", "Little Children", "High And Low" and "Red Beard". Not a bad selection, huh? :D
• I peed. Not my pants, I went to the bathroom. ;)
• While I was in the bathroom, I was thinking about editing. As it pertains to my earlier posts... I have this vision of what my earlier posts should've been like and how, if I had the chance (which I do), would I remake them. Then I started thinking about the danger of Revision & The Artist. I'm not a fan of revision. I'm much more a proponent of pre-drafting, drafting and perfecting. An evolution instead of a complete erasure of earlier work.
• Listenin' to PJ Harvey... while I wouldn't consider her one of the greatest artists of our time, she's really fuckin' talented. Just read what I wrote, that sounds a bit harsh. I mean to say that her art isn't as grand, as "mythic" as the truly great. Still, she's a fuckin' awesome artist... one of the best around.
• I'm totally suffering from a lack of digital media. I've exhausted all of my feeds... text, audio and video. I don't want to add to them just yet... I suppose I should watch a movie but I don't want to force it. Well I suppose I wouldn't, I do feel in the mood. Maybe I will.
• I need to watch an online documentary, maybe I'll do that. Oh, I think I most definitely will... I just went to check out the link so I could get the title and the first few seconds just got me in the mood. :P I believe it's called "Guys And Dolls" (that could just be the title the poster chose) and you can find it on Google Video. It was mentioned on The Howard Stern Show and it explores the secret lives of men who collect, love and obsess over Real Dolls (expensive, realistic, full-sized, hand-made love dolls).
• I'm having one of those surreal online revelations. Just this idea of connectedness that strikes me now and again. I'm exchanging messages with this guy from Slovakia of all places... can you imagine? It's pretty wild when you think about it. For some reason, I always bring to mind the idea of my ancestors trying to accomplish the same task... and it's impossible. It's amazing how far we've come. How convenient things are. How advanced. And sadly, how it's all taken for granted. I frequently have these moments of revelation and often wonder if I'm alone in that respect.
• As usual, I could go on and on about what's going on in my head... but that's the province of the few and privileged, or tortured... depending on your perspective. ;) :P
• Goodnight you little fish.

DS333, happy.

Film Fetish: "Yojimbo"

Yojimbo (1961)
- directed by Akira Kurosawa

Set in nineteenth-century Japan, a wily and cunning ronin known as Sanjuro wanders into a small town under the oppressive rule of two warring gangs. Sanjuro, seeing an opportunity, decides to play the two gangs against one another by proffering his services as a yojimbo (bodyguard). Is his sole motivation personal financial gain? Perhaps a noble display of selflessness to free the town? Who will come out on top in the end?

I should let it be known that I'm a huge fan on Akira Kurosawa, and usually find no fault with any of his work. That being said, I think this is a film that anyone could enjoy. It's pure entertainment from start to finish. It's all at once a comedy, a samural film, an old-time western and a bit of a drama. Toshiro Mifune, a longtime collaborator of Kurosawas, is as compelling as ever as the titular samurai. The story is solid and inventive. The action holds up well after all these years, which is something to marvel at given the kind of choreographed action sequences we've become accustomed to seeing in modern martial arts films.

8/10 A great Kurosawa film! A solid samurai film. Something of a gripping "western". And not a bad comedy to boot! A must-see for sure. :D

DS333, entertained.

Explained, "Projected Projects"

I thought I'd throw another "feature" into the mix. :P I thought "Projected Projects" could be a place... or posts in which I could let you in on long-running projects I've been working on, or projects I desperately want to get underway. I've already mentioned my "Books Of The Art" projects, which are the probably going to be the focus of these posts. Although, maybe not... since I really intend "The Art" to be a forum for detailing everything going on with my art. Project Projects I envision being something like a digital whiteboard. Simple updates about the current progress of all my projects.

I really can't stand people who only ever plan, and never get anything done. Worse still, people who get started with something, but never finish. I think it's safe to say that I'm both of these people. :P Then again, maybe being one of the latter people contradicts being one of the former. But I think you know what I mean. There are things out there that I really want to do and learn, but haven't yet committed myself to fully. And there are things that've begun, but have left on the back-burner. I really have a problem with... not necessarily being unmotivated... but with just being terribly lazy. 'Cause I do have an interest in getting these things done, I do care. There's just this horrible inertia I'm battling with right now. It's worse than ever. I think I'm making some headway though.

Anyway, for the sake of these posts let's hope I start making greater progress. ;) So what else do I want to get going? So of course there are The Books Of The Art, all three of 'em. I desperately need/want to get the third one (I haven't spoken of this one yet) underway. And one thing I've really wanted to get started with is delving into HTML. I've always wanted to learn a programming language of some kind, and I thought I'd go old school... work from the ground up. So I bought the "HTML & XHTML: Definitive Guide" from O'Reilly, and really haven't done much with it. I was making some strides. I downloaded Taco HTML Edit (an HTML editor for the Mac) and made my way through the first few pages of the book and then boom... I just stopped for some reason. I gotta get that started again.

I also bought the "Piano For Dummies" book, for obvious reasons... I want to learn how to play the piano! :P My mother bought me a Panasonic electric keyboard a few years ago, and I haven't made much use of that either, despite having a great desire to play. Much like my HTML venture, I got started... was making some progress, and then boom! I stopped. I don't know why. I'm horrible about staying on schedule I suppose. When it comes to learning things like these, it's very important to stay consistent. If you lose your routine, you sorta need to start all over if you wanna retain anything. Having been flaky about keeping up with them, I obviously forgot what I had learned... and the prospect of retreading the waters seems daunting, and somewhat boring. But that's my fault. I will get into it.

Anyway, there are plenty of projects to keep myself occupied with. Those are just a few of the things I need to get done, and I'm hoping to keep you up to date on how well or poorly I'm doing with them. ;) Hopefully these posts don't fall by the wayside as well. :P I don't think they will though. The need is too great. The desire and inspiration are burning a hole through me, it'll come out eventually.

DS333, hopeful.

001.057.365

• The heat is killing me more than ever.
• I hate Summer so much.
• Deliver me from the Summer heat. :P
• I installed some programs very early this morning.
• I finally installed iWork & iLife '08. :D Although, I haven't tinkered with them much.
• I also installed Max, which is a pretty versatile file conversion program.
• I finally converted some Tori Amos concert files from .flac to .mp3. I'm now enjoying them on iTunes. :D
• I bought some Odwalla Super Protein juice... or something like that the other day, christ does that shit suck. :P I was liking it for a while... but now I can't stand it.
• Still plugging away with "Big Brain Academy". I'm attacking individual exercises right now. ;)
• I saw the most amazing video of this guy getting a cyst on his back removed. One of the most sickening things you will ever see. ;)
• I'm too hot to do much right now. I feel this post coming to a close. :P
• Ate some spaghetti today.
• I'm loving the honey dew and cantaloupe combo I polished off today.
• It's so hot. :P
• It's more stuffy than anything. Above all else I can't stand high humidity. I could die right now. :P
• I need to watch some movies. But I'm saving them for just the right occasion.
• I think I'll go now. ;)

DS333, suffering.

Decisions, Decisions

I'm really having a hard time deciding where I should draw the line between the personal and impersonal, as far as these posts are concerned anyway. Obviously, all of these posts are personal on some level... so I guess the real trouble lies in trying to figure out what's innocent and what's harmful. What's too personal? I have other outlets on the Net where I can be incredibly personal... but they're not tied to the rest of me, my online identity. In a sense they're anonymous outlets, which isn't very fun. It's great as a sounding board. But I'd much rather prefer the meat of things appear here. There'd be something awesome about it.

I love raw honesty. I gravitate toward people who are true through and through. It's always better having a really deep, candid and personal conversation rather than a superficial, vacuous and contrived one. And why shouldn't this place be a place for great conversation? I could argue that I don't know who's out there... and the dialogue's only one-sided, so it's not really a conversation to begin with. But that's a cop out. I'm dying to be honest here, but I don't think I can be. Well that's not true... I'm always honest here... what I really mean is that I can't be as open as I want to be. Which is normal I guess.

It just strikes me as odd to have a normal reaction of any kind. The things that bother, irritate, offend, stimulate, etc normal people don't usually have the same effect on me. I always figured given an outlet to speak, I'd be totally unfiltered. Sadly that's not the case. :( I suppose I just don't want to shock, irritate, annoy, frustrate, offend, etc. anyone I know in my personal life. Some conversations are for one-on-one consumption. Which I guess is what I'm only now realizing. :P Even the people who I admire for being "totally unfiltered", have their own limits. So I suppose I shouldn't feel so bad. Anyway, I've never named any names... well a few. :P

My mind's all over the place tonight. I was trying to figure out what I was going to talk about. Not that there wasn't anything to conjure up, in fact the problem was that I had too many thoughts to choose from. I guess I felt this was the most pressing. I'm still trying to figure out this animal. This whole self-publishing thing. This form of communication. How my dialogue should flow. It's constantly changing. And to what end? I feel like I'm setting up a story... a great one, that I'm unaware of. I don't know how to explain that, since it's a part of another idea I had tonight... but I can't get into that now. ;)

So many decisions... I'm sure it'll all work out eventually. In fact, one of the ideas I had about this blog... the idea that I'd be blogging for 365 days, was that I'd evolve it over certain periods of time. In thirds of course. 122 day increments. Each day I become more and more comfortable with this platform. With my voice. Anyway, we haven't yet reached the first 122-post mark, which I consider The Infancy. I'm still learning, still getting a handle of my limbs. I'm sure I'll have a pretty good idea of where I can go and where I can't by that time.

Anyway, I don't want to get too into that. It'll become redundant. Anyway, I'm just trying to find my voice tonight. Christ, I'll feel so good when this "project" is done with. :P If only because I can imagine seeing a time after this first year when I continue blogging, but not on a daily basis. Which means it'll allow me some time to formulate more coherent and cohesive thoughts and ideas to post. Right now, it's just an endless stream of verbal diarrhea. :P Really, I feel as though I'm cheating whatever audience I currently have. :P I'm such a connoisseur of blogs that I can be objective enough to realize how subpar my posts have been. I hardly think they're entertaining. And they're far too long. Then again, this all goes back to decisions I need to make. I don't know where to go right now. Which is the story of my life right now. :P *sigh* Decisions, decisions...

DS333, pensive.

Bleeding Eye Of The Tiger

I'm absolutely consumed with "Big Brain Academy" for the Nintendo DS. I don't own the system, but I was able to borrow it from my sister over the weekend. Lucky for me Big Brain Academy was one of the first games she bought for the system 'cause it was the one game that made me fall in love with the system. Well, that's not exactly true. I suppose "Nintendogs" was that game. There are a few actually... like "Electroplankton". But after playing the demo for Big Brain Academy for the first time all I remember was wanting to own the system so much it hurt. :P It's another in the long series of "brain training" games for the DS. Although, it's much more slick than the rest of 'em. I love the art direction of the game most of all. Dr. Lobe (your guide in the game) is one of the most awesome character designs in video game history. He's odd... maybe somewhat unsettling too. You have to see him.

Anyway, I didn't meant to fawn all over Big Brain Academy. The focus of my post is more about my obsession with obtaining the highest score possible. I'm more or less doomed if you present me with a game of any sort that gives me a personal score that I can approve upon. I'm consumed with perfection. Big Brain Academy is one of those games. You can obtain an overall grade for a group of brain exercises... or you can compete for medals in individual rounds of all the various games. The medals, I thought, ranged from bronze, to silver and then to gold. But I found out tonight that there's a legendary platinum medal. Oooooh... ahhhhh... So of course, I'm consumed with earning platinum medals in an many games as I can. It'll be nearly impossible. But that's never stopped me before. Which is unfortunate 'cause I inevitably take my obsession to such a point that the game no longer becomes a game... meaning it loses all fun. :(

The game's still fun. And I don't believe I could push myself to the point of making the game an unpleasant experience. Oddly, it's not so frustrating playing an exercise over and over again and "losing". Perhaps I'm growing? Who knows. I'm still competitive though. I haven't lost the fire, which is good. Well gee, I guess there isn't much more to say than that. In fact, I didn't even know where I meant to go with this post. I thought it would've grown into something... guess not tonight. ;) It's nice to challenge yourself, and I don't believe I'll ever tire of it. It's quite fun. :D

Oh! One last little aside before I go. I thought it was funny when I went to the bathroom earlier tonight and caught a glimpse of my left eye in the mirror. I popped a few tiny blood vessels in my eye! *LOL* Well "popped" maybe sounds more serious than it should. Y'know how it can get sometimes I'm sure. It looks like my eye's bleeding. I think it definitely had to do with my obsession in earning the platinum medal in all three difficulty settings (easy, normal and hard) for the "Matchmaker" game in the "Identify" category. I've been playing that like a madman tonight and it requires the most intense visual focus. Guess there are consequences to every obsession. ;) On the plus, I earned two platinum medals! (easy and normal. I'm coming for you hard) :D ;) :P

DS333, striving.

001.054.365

• I've been utterly consumed with trying to "add pounds" to my brain in "Big Brain Academy" on the DS. I borrowed my Sis' system for a while. :D
• My brain weighs 1,290 grams. I've been graded as a B- student. And I've been classified as a conductor. :P
• My left wrist is hella sore... which I think is a consequence of playing with the DS. I'm right handed, so it's not using the stylus that's fucked me over. I just think I've a weird way of propping up the DS.
• My stomach hurts. :( Bad frappuccino?
• Fixed some steak sandwiches... with pita bread, but now I'm not so hungry.
• Just watched "Seraphim Falls".
• Rented "Seraphim Falls", "Little Children" and "Pan's Labyrinth" today. I'm a happy kitten. :D
• Getting ready to watch "Pan's Labyrinth".
• Had a slushee of sorts from Target, damn was that thing sweet.
• Familiarized my parents with the DS and helped them give their synapses a jolt. I just love seeing older folk using new technology. :)
• I've yet to install iWork & iLife '08. I think it's true what some people say... I'm all about delayed gratification. ;)
• Also downloaded a new program for converting .flac audio files... I hope it's the godsend it's purported to be. We'll find out as soon as I install it. It's called "Max" by the way.
• I'm dying to get the new Apple Keyboard. I don't think I've wanted a piece of hardware sooo bad. Not since the current iMac I'm using. :D
• Speaking of objections of desire. I found the most amazing polo tee! I want it sooo bad. It ties together my love affair with all things Japanese and my cosmic connection to the number 3. I just don't have $125 to spend on a polo right now. :P
• I've always wanted a piece of clothing with the number 3 on it. That polo might be the one... ah! I want it so so bad!!! :P :D
• I'm a modest man, I don't need much. I realize they're trivial things... so I'm not exactly dying not having them. I have so much as is. Every day I look over at my possessions and fall in love all over again. ;)
• Although that keyboard and polo would be nice additions. :P *L*
• "Hell's Kitchen" wrapped up its season tonight. I won't spoil it, but suffice it to say that it wasn't what I wanted. :(
• I wonder when "The Biggest Loser" will return to NBC.
• I can't wait for Tori's concert. I can't... this feels like torture... I keep imagining what it'll be like. *L* And it's not like I haven't seen her before. I figured this would be the sixth time I've seen her perform.
• I've seen Tori Amos perform at two t.v. tapings (for "The Wayne Brady Show" and "The Sharon Osbourne Show"), one in-store appearance (at a Tower Records), and two concert shows (for "The Strange Little Tour" and "On Scarlet's Walk Tour").
• Damn, my wrist really does hurt. :(
• There's no way I could ever stop typing.
• Howard Stern is back from his vacation... thank the maker! :D
• My frap's melting and my sandwiches are getting cold... funny how that works.
• I'm singing along with iTunes right now... Aimee Mann's "Save Me" from the Magnolia Soundtrack. Such a great ending song for that movie.
• I love "Magnolia", but don't own the DVD. :(
• There are tons of DVDs I wish I owned. :(
• I love the DVDs I do own. :D
• I've been meeting some really cool people online. Which is such a relief since I'd been in a period of disgust as far as my view of humanity was concerned. :P I can be a real cynic sometimes... that I close myself off from the world during bouts like that doesn't help. I cut myself from meeting the people who contradict that sentiment. They're some really beautiful people floating around out there...
• I'm babbling. :P
• Babbling is always a cue to leave. Who knows what I might end up saying... there's no censor here. No governor here. :P

DS333, self-censored.

Zero Point

By the way, I thought I should mention at the outset of this post how tricky I'm finding it to be to maintain a dialogue on all my online presences. Well maybe not all of them, but certainly this blog. I suppose the problem lies in my expectation of whatever audience I have to be aware of the rest of my online identities. 'Cause I found it tricky enough trying to find a particular stance or posture to write in when I first started posting on this blog. I thought the easiest thing to do was to imagine having a dialogue with this phantom figure who wasn't only ignorant of everything going on in my little corner of the universe, but the universe at large. I wanted to speak to the Cosmic Baby. But the problem I'm finding with that is deciding whether this cosmic phantom has a great short-term or long-term memory. Should I expect that you've read every blog post thus far? Or even more insane, every post on every micro-blog, forum or comment thread??? No way...

I think the responsibility falls soley on me to keep things straight. Basically by keeping track of everything I post, and with that knowledge in mind... referring back to posts via hyperlinks. Which sounds like sooo much work! *L* I'm dreading it, but I know I'll have to get around to it eventually. I mentioned before that I'm sooo new to this whole online publishing world... in any capacity. I've always only ever been a user and consumer. I know nothing about being on this side of the table, which I am... oh well...

Anyway, I only brought that to mind since I wanted to mention something about Last.fm. I know I haven't talked about it extensively on this blog, but mentioned it here and there in an offhand fashion. Anyway, Last.fm is another of these amazingly crazy online social networks... this one centered on the idea of keeping people aware of what you're listening or watching to throughout the day. You can upload this data in a variety of ways, and one of 'em... a problem called iScrobbler is a plug-in app for iTunes that enables users to "scrobble" (upload metadata about songs you listen to to the Last.fm servers) video as well. Anyway, I've been trying to get iScrobbler working for what seems like months now. It's been a real bitch mainly because there was confusion as to what version I should've been using. That got squared away earlier this week, which I was ecstatic about!

Ya'see it was only a few weeks ago that I had decided to scrobble podcasts to Last.fm. As soon as I had started using the service I was deadset about making sure I only uploaded data about actual songs to my profile. I didn't want to mix in things like Howard Stern shows or podcasts because I just... well I have a massive OCD problem, and trying to explain to you why I didn't think it was "right" would only make me sound crazy... and in this instance it'd take a hell of a lot of time to convince you of that. Just take my word for it, I'm a bit nuts. ;)

Anyway, once I subscribed to Virb, and installed their VirbTunes plug-in (another scrobbling app) I thought it was a bit redundant to have to services which keep track of the music I listen to. To make sense of things in my own head, I thought I'd differentiate the two by making one keep track of strictly my musical interests and the other everything I listen to or wath. Given that VirbTunes can't scrobble video, I decided I'd open the floodgates for Last.fm.

But I only decided upon this like... gee, y'know... I'd spent months creating this very specific picture of my listening habits. To shift tracks midway through the process... well not even midway, it was worse than that. But anyway, I hated that the data was now forever skewed. I could try to scrobble as many podcasts and radioshows as I wanted to, but they could never equal the amount of music on my profile. I want as clear a picture about the type of "consumer" that I am. If only because it would be interesting to see who my neighbors (people with similiar listening habits) would be.
So the other day I decided to set things right and I cleared out all my data on the Last.fm servers. Although, I think I did. It's a bit suspect since my profile still lists something like 11,000 playcounts. At least my charts are cleared away, which is a start.

Anyway, I'm very excited about this new beginning for some reason. It should prove interesting. And more than anything I just like having things in order. The way I want them to be anyway. I'm fuckin' over the moon about finally getting iScrobbler to work. That was vexing me to no end. I was mentally distressed by that little episode *L*. Anyway, if I were more proactive I'd send you a link to my Last.fm but you can just track DevSatellite333 there... you should find me. ;)

DS333, scrobbling.

Explained, "Jerry's Book"

Jerry's Book is the second book in my Books of The Art art project series. Just as the first book, David's Book, had a subtitle (The Blue Book), so too does Jerry's Book. It's also known as The Brown Book. Superficially it's so named because the cover of the Strathmore Drawing pad is brown. The first book was paired with my oldest brother... I mean to say, that specific type of sketch book was paired with my brother because it's the one I remember him using the most. Jerry though, my second oldest brother, had no real ties to one book or another. In fact, the Strathmore books were a second favorite of David's.

I gave Jerry The Brown Book because growing up it's the one color I associated him with. If only because it was a favorite of his, as far as clothing was concerned anyway. Everything about his complexion also brings the color to mind. His hair, his eyes, his skin... all brown.

Now as far as the direction for the book goes, it's very much tied to who Jerry is as a person. Jerry's Book is all concerned with rules, boundaries and mathematics. It's about defined spaces and ideas. Distinction. Discrimination. If David's Book is a counterpart to the fire principle, than Jerry's Book is of the earth. Of man. Of ego. It's not nature untamed, but controlled. It's order. It's higher thought. It's critical thinking. And it should be known that Jerry is a really sharp guy. Incredibly intelligent. Very skillful and technical. He's a mind of mathematics. He's ordered. He's very right-hand. And while Jerry never took art as seriously as David did, he still had a talent for it. But his technique, like the philosophy behind The Brown Book, was very much concerned with planned, controlled movements. It was always very technical and precise. David was impressionistic, and Jerry's realistic. I wanted to define the books as I have the people.

So every piece in Jerry's Book is planned out long ahead of time. I tend to use rulers and guides to create each symbol. I try my best to stay within the lines, within the social order of the book. Nothing about it should strike of eccentricity... or more, of the chaotic. Or in the language of social order, anarchistic. And while most of my work is already very precise and "perfect"... the pieces in The Brown Book have to be even more so. There should be no mistakes.

Now I should say that the language I've been using shouldn't be viewed as negative... or... not spiritually informed. Both books are two sides of the same coin. They personify the pair of opposites principle. Both are divine. Only clothed in different costumes. The artist or the eccentric (David) needs the community or society (Jerry) to define him, and in turn define them. There is no separating the two. They are eternally bound. And I feel, no better idea to cast upon my brothers. The are the Moon and the Sun, respectively. They are my Moon and my Sun. Heavenly bodies who forever inform my existence in this plane.

DS333, orbiting.

001.051.365

• Wow, today's a bit of a blur.
• So... the tickets for Tori Amos' Dec. 16th show here in Los Angeles came in the mail from TicketMaster!!! It's at the Nokia Theatre and I just checked the seating chart... OMFG!!! We've got the best fuckin' seats in the house!!! I'm so fuckin' excited. The wait will kill me for sure. :P
• I'm wearing my jacket 'cause I've got the fan blowing right on me... and it's a bit cooler tonight than usual. I think the Summer's finally dying off. I hope at least. *crosses fingers*
• I hate Summer. ;)
• I reset my Last.fm meta database tonight. I finally got iScrobbler working, which means I now have the ability to scrobble video. Anyway, I felt that the data was skewed since I never scrobbled audiopodcasts from the beginning, and only just started with video.
• I'm excited about creating a more accurate Last.fm profile, with which I'll be able to more easily stumble upon geeky users like myself. ;)
• Had dinner at Hometown Buffet. I hate that joint, but I suggested it nonetheless. I had my reasons. ;) I actually enjoyed myself.
• Stopped over at Starbucks afterward. Tommy wasn't there. :( Although, I did meet this new barista who looked so much like Shia LaBeouf à la "Transformers". Wild. :P
• I need to polish my black steel-toed Doc Martens... I've been putting it off for weeks... ummm... months. :P
• I'm hovering around the 154 lb. mark... my 162 lb. goal is sooo close. :)
• My brother dropped off iWork & iLife '08 the other day... but I've yet to install it. Probably after this post!? :D
• I need to pee.
• I'm hungry too... but I don't want to actually make something, 'cause that could entail making something larger than I could finish right now. I want a small snack, but there isn't much. Nothing I want right now anyway.
• I haven't shaved in like four days, I can't wait till tomorrow. :P
• Watching the "Cool Hunting" video podcasts are always sooo inspiring. I need to get off my ass and create. Seriously!
• I usually think of something my old friend Veronica said about her ex-boyfriend when they were going through some trouble whenever I feel this way. He was an artist and he stopped during this time and she said something along the lines of... "He's an artist and he doesn't create. It's the saddest thing".
• I don't want to be sad. :P Although I don't feel bad about not outputting anything recently since I'm using that time absorbing. But I'm doing too much of that, I'm off-balance. I do need a pen or pencil in my hand. It's only natural.
• In some way, I wonder if all this output on the internet via all my online presences is hindering my motivation to continue my art?
• I'm not hindered by anything but my current dangerous laziness. I can do it, I'm just not. Even though I want to, I just dont' want it bad enough I suppose. I'll get on it though. I can't not create. That doesn't make sense.
• I wonder when Jeremy and I will speak next. Feels like forever.
• I still need to pee. :P
• Wow, this is my 51st post... I don't know why, but that strikes me as somewhat monumental. Only 314 more to go. *gasp* Maybe that's it! 314. 3.14. π?
• On that topic. I hate sites that don't support unicode... I know that pi symbol won't make it on Virb. >:O
• I hate developers who don't adhere to web standards! i.e. Everyone who's not Apple! >:O I love you Apple. *cuddle*
• I hate virtual forms of affection. Except when I do 'em. :P When I do it, it's cute. When you do it, it's lame. ;)
• Lately I can't stop thinking about the Stand Alone Complex. Both the anime and the social phenomena. I really need to get on that post.
• There are a lot of things I need to get on. *wink wink* :P :D
• Okay... I think things are starting to spiral out of control. :P G'night whoever you are. ;)

DS333, spiraling further away from coherency.

Explained, "David's Book"

If you've read my The Art posts, you're somewhat familiar with David's Book. For now, as far as my art projects are concerned, everything can pretty much be categorized into three distinct groups. Three books. As an homage to the great Clive Barker, I call these The Books of The Art. The original Books of The Art, of course, referring to his Quiddity Trilogy (The Great And Secret Show, Everville and ?). Anyway, the first book in my trilogy is David's Book, also known as The Blue Book.

You'd be unaware of who David is because I don't think I've talked about him on this blog. Although, I may have... I'm just too lazy to go and check right now. ;) David was my oldest brother. Was being the operative word. He died some years ago. Not too long ago, although it does feels like ages. During my high school years. Funny thing about his death... or maybe about my memory of his death... I have a steel-trapped mind when it comes to most details, but for whatever reason I can never retain the date, nor the year of his passing. It's very vague in my mind. I can never grasp it fully. I don't know why.

Anyway, I loved my brother, and I'd never... at the time, made an effort to formulate a project of some sort. Given that my brother was an amazing artist, and a great source of inspiration, I felt it only right to christen my first project under his name. Nothing I could create would ever do his work justice, but in some way I would hope he'd feel honored by the gesture.

David's Book is also known as The Blue Book because it seemed like a perfect idea to have a subtitle of some sort for the books, and seeing as how I'm obsessed with color theory and symbolism, The Blue Book seemed like a perfect option. Superficially, The Blue Book is a reference to the blue Mead 'Académie' Sketch Diaries that David loved to use most often. There were other mediums, but the memory of one specific book that's tied to him in my mind is that Mead book. In another context, the blue is supposed to represent a stillness of mind. In Navajo mythology the South is usually tied to the color blue, and the South is the point at which the setting and rising Sun are seen as equal. There's this idea of revelation... breaking through the illusion of the universal pair of opposites into transcendence. Given that my brother is no longer here, but everywhere... and no where... it seemed fitting.

As far as my direction for the project goes, David's Book is meant to be sketches and drawings created in a totally free-flowing manner. It should be symbolic of life, it should evoke spontaneity. Nothing about what it contains should be measured or quantified. I want to fall back as far as possible from using guides and rulers. Everything should be amorphous and emotional. Everything on those pages needs to be... mind. Just raw source. Raw thought. Raw emotion. Ungoverned and innocent. It should be unspoiled by critical or rational thought. I need to feel as much as a spectator as possible. I suppose that's because in some way, since it is David's book, I want to feel as though I'm channeling him. But he no longer exists as I knew him, or anyone for that matter, so he's apart of the... the unknown. He's apart of the source, the radiance... which is the place I tap into whenever I create. So I want to deliver as unfiltered an experience as possible so that in some way, I can render him, his memory and his energy on paper. I want to be a conduit. A link. My influence should be minimal. I kinda feel like I'm putting on my documentarian's hat whenever I work in David's Book.

Anyway, that's probably as far as I should go into David's Book. I feel that pretty much covers all bases. Well, save for the last two books... but I had already planned to make those separate posts all their own. ;)

DS333, blue.

Under The Wire

I love the synchronicity of this post. In terms of the context of its content. Because I was watching a "recent" "Cranky Geeks" episode, and John C. Dvorak was going on about the early days of blogging and how annoyingly pathetic it was for early bloggers to blab on and on in lengthy posts about missing posts. They'd apologize endlessly to their audiences for not maintaining a certain schedule, and for what reason? It's not as though anyone is really hanging on our words. Certainly not mine. It's all garbage in its own way. Well maybe not garbage, I do have some pride in the shit I'm spewing. :P But I mean seriously, the world wouldn't end if I missed a post.

Luckily I'll never have to test that theory, at least not yet, 'cause I didn't miss tonight's post. But this is definitely the "latest" I've ever put one out. I usually like to get them in, around, or before the 3 a.m. hour. For some reason that didn't happen "today". I say "today", 'cause in reality "today" is "tomorrow"... but given the way I've set up these posts, they're sorta shifted a day ahead. I know, this is incredibly fascinating. :P

But yeah, I've just been utterly consumed with media in the last few days. More so than usual. I think it's because I'm all out of audio podcasts, well I'm outta audio period. So I've been spending a lot of my time tethered to the iMac consuming video. I've already mentioned it, but I'm really making a dent in all the back-logged episodes of "Cranky Geeks" I've got saved. I'm LOVING those. It's definitely in my top three favorite video podcasts. By the way, I hate the term "vlog", you'll never "hear" me use it in any serious fashion. But uh... yeah, I'm digging the video stuff... and unlike audio, it's much harder to hold-off on once you start going. Once I finish one show, I gotta go right into the next. You know how it is once you get into a "zone" of any kind, it's so hard to pull yourself out of it. So what's why I'm posting so late. I couldn't unglue my eyes. ;)

Anyway, I'll hopefully get that under control seeing as how I don't plan to screw up my posting schedule, and I also don't plan on letting up on all the video I'm watching. In fact, it should get more crazed since I'm looking to add more video feeds into iTunes once I catch up with "Cranky Geeks" and "Cool Hunting". I'm thinking I'll finally have some time to dedicate toward scaling the mountain of unwatched video that is, "Diggnation". :P Oh by the way, if you haven't checked it out already you should check out "Webb Alert", Morgan Webb's new 5-minute vidcast... it's short and sweet. A beautiful short-form alternative. Ooooh, speaking of kick ass tech chicks, I'm dying to see what Veronica Belmont's new podcast will be like, I think that's suppose to debut sometime this month if I'm not mistaken. I saw her on one of the older "Cranky Geeks" episodes I was catching up on, and yowsa, if I were straight... I'd be totally obsessed. She's amazing. :P Anyway, time to head out. I think I've done this post proud. ;)

DS333, utterly consumed.

001.048.365

• Woke up late enough to catch full coverage of Apple's Mac announcement.
• As expected, they rolled out beautiful brushed-metal iMacs. :D
  
• Sadly, there were no Mini MacBook announcements. :(
• Surprisingly, they unveiled updates to iLife & iWork.
• More surprisingly, after watching the keynote address I was more in awe of iLife & iWork '08!
• The new low-end MacMini is more powerful than my iMac, both in terms of processing power and HD space. :(
• Tallied the amount of my dream iMac... does anyone have $3,400 they're looking to unload? :P
• Brother came over, and we geeked out over the new updates.
• I was envious of him since he was stopping over at the Apple Store in Pasadena on his way home to see if the new hardware was on display.
• It wasn't, but he did manage to score the new iWork '08. :)
• I've been catching up with a hell of a lot of "Cranky Geeks" episodes. I'm up to episode 65 now. I should be caught up real soon.
• Re-subscribed to "Cool Hunting" video, there are a few podcasts I've yet to resubscribe to since I re-installed my system. I'll be playing catch up with them as well.
• I'm all out of audio podcasts, which isn't unusual considering the Howard Stern gang is on another week-long vacation. :( That cuts out about 6 hours worth of my listening-time.
• I'm really hungry right now, there are a few Hostess Cupcakes in the fridge with my name on 'em. :P
• Mmmm... and a tall glass of ice-cold milk.
• I had to kill a shitload of ants that found there way from the window sill onto the kitchen table. >:(
• Shaved my head tonight, and my chest. Sometimes the actual process of grooming is a toss-up between heaven & hell. But the outcome is always heaven. I feel great. :D
• I should head out. I could go on, but that defeats the purpose of these quick draw posts, no?
• Oh yeah, one last thing... I REALLY want one of those new iMac keyboards. *dying* They look gorgeous beyond all reckoning!
• I kinda don't wanna stop typing. :(
• Today was a good day.
• In the immortal words of Dawn Micelli (and sometimes Drew Domkus), "Goodnight inkernet!" ;)

DS333, in heaven.

Mystery & Intrigue

Guess what time it is? It's that sweet, lovely, divine time just before an Apple announcement. I'm basking in the eve of anticipation. For those of you not in the Apple loop, the company sent out invitations to various members of the tech community a few days ago to attend a product launch that wouldn't include iPhone or iPod updates. This announcement would center solely on the Mac line. This isn't exactly ground-breaking news, in that the tech community's been abuzz with iMac update rumors for months now and the August 7th launch day has been thrown around for a while. While it's not surprising, it's certainly welcome news.

I've been dying to see what a new iMac would look like for the longest time. I think I've been wondering about it well before the general populace has been asking for one. It's certainly not because I'm unhappy with the line as is. I think the new iMacs look gorgeous. I own one afterall. Well not the new ones, I don't have a built-in iSight cam or anything, but it has the same case design. My desire for a new iMac is probably rooted in my admiration for all the work that Jonathan Ive's done for Apple. He's such a talented industrial designer. Which actually sounds too clinical for my taste, I'd much rather label him a plain ol' artist. An artist of the highest order. He's amazing. In my world, a demigod. :P So I'm always hungering for something new from his camp.

I remember the first time I was struck down by his work. It had to have been during the rollout for the lamp/pedestal iMacs. It totally changed the way I thought about computers. The thing looked more like a piece of art than anything else. I'm sure it doesn't seem like much now. But at the time, to have seen anything so streamlined, compact, and elegant in one single package was beyond insane. I couldn't believe my eyes. And more than that, the press video that accompanied the new iMac excited me in a way about the Apple way of life that hasn't left me since. The watchword was elegance. I'm always struck down by the elegance of their hardware. Don't even get me started about the iPod Nano... how people aren't in constant awe of the thing is beyond me. I look at mine at least once a day, lost in a state of amazement.

Anyway, you can tell that I'm very excited about tomorrow. I just know that there's going to be a "Mac" update. Which is very vague. Perhaps they'll do nothing with the iMac, which would go against all the rumors. But if they don't, that'll be fine. They can knock me over with a new MacBook or MacBook Pro announcement too. Oh yeah, it should also be known that whatever the update... whether it's for the Mac Pro, iMac, or MacBooks... the thinking is that we're in line for a new product design. A new look. I'd be crush to see anything else. As the machines stand now, they're powerful enough. I could really care less about processor, HD, or graphics card revs. I need to see a new design. And I'm almost sure Apple's gonna deliver on the iMac front. I'm already excited about the supposed redesign of the keyboard, to make it more in keeping with the MacBook "chiclet" keyboard. God I hope that turns out to be true. But I can't even begin to guess how the iMac itself will look.

I'm getting too excited! I was grinning like a fool during that last sentence. 'Cause I'm imagining gently fading out my sweet slumber... turning to my iMac, and typing www.Apple.com into FireFox's location bar and pressing "return". The moment before I press that button, imagining that moment, is too much for me to bear. I feel like I'm going to explode right now. *L* It'll be everything. It'll be waiting for that page to load... it'll be taking in that first image... it'll be reading the specs, etc. Everything will be to die for. *L* I can't wait!

DS333, dying! :D

Film Fetish: "Letters From Iwo Jima"

Letters From Iwo Jima (2006)
- directed by Clint Eastwood

Set in the World War II Pacific Theater, the battle for the Japanese island of Iwo Jima is recounted through the eyes of a lowly farmer and the legendary General Tadamichi Kuribayashi.

This is the companion piece to Flags Of Our Fathers, and much like that film, this film more or less disappointed on the same level. I enjoyed all the elements of the film on some level, except for the editing. It all seemed very jumbled. And again, I'll repeat that I'm not one to get obsessed over the technicality of something like jump cuts, etc. But when they're done in such a way as to confuse the viewer... well I'm gonna notice, and I'm gonna harp on it. Sadly, it really detracted from the overall experience. Given that I have somewhat of a Japanese fetish... I'd always imagined I'd fall in love with this film. While I enjoyed it more than Flags Of Our Fathers, I wouldn't exactly say I loved the movie. It was okay, for all the same reasons the other movie got a passing grade. The majority of both films deal with the same material, and so I more or less feel the same about both.

7/10 On par with Flags Of Our Fathers, if not, it was certainly better. Worth a viewing if you're in the mood for a wartime film.

DS333, confused.

001.045.365

• I really hate the way french fries from all these fast-food places get suffocated by the steam and get all soggy.
• Had some take-out from Pioneer Chicken. I'm constantly amazed at how their fries remain crispy the entire ride home.
• I need to hit up Banana Republic and get some more tees, I'm in love with the yellow layer-tee I'm wearing now.
• Finished up the "Ghost In The Shell" manga early this morning. The ending was a bit muddled compared to the way it was handled in the movie. :\
• NickStarr is alive, and I'm surprised by Shooby's tweet venting his frustration. I wish I were all-knowing.
• My sister dropped off the first volume of the "Crying Freeman" anime series. I have the other two, I'm planning to watch all of 'em later tonight.
• Just had some hot dogs. They were left over from a BBQ earlier today, and I reheated them in the oven. Mmmm... ash...
• Realized that my clean re-install of Tiger wiped out my copy of AppleWorks... I gotta look into recovering that somehow. I should be able to install it from the Panther disc.
• In love with my latest music purchase: Meredith Monk's first album, "Key". Also my first Monk acquisition.
• If I could go hog wild in any store... it'd be a toss-up between an Apple Store and Amoeba Music in Hollywood. Probably Amoeba. *gasp* :O
• Feeling restless.
• My heart wants to pop out of my chest... similar to how I feel when I need to draw. But different.
• Mmmm... I have a Frap chilling in the fridge as I type.
• I need to buy more DVD's. A lot of my "must haves", I just don't have. :P
• Really wish I purchased the "Zodiac" DVD when I had the chance... then again, I wouldn't have the "Ghost In The Shell" manga.
  
• Did some system clean-up the other day... god how I love that feeling.
• Saw the new "Futurama" trailer today, that was apparently shown at Comic-Con. Holy shit, I can't wait till that's back on the air! :D
• I can't wait till "Lost" and "Battlestar Galactica" return. And "Heroes".
• I am Kali.
• I'm in a creative mood.
• Time to call it a night. ;)

DS333, stewing & brewing.

The Art - "Tolkien's Ring"

Tolkien's Ring

approximately 7"x7"; ink on paper.


This is the eighth piece in my 70-part "David's Book" project, also known as "The Blue Book" project. Although it's the eighth piece in the series, it's only the second to have been completed to satisfaction. This may seem odd, but I fell into a trap early on during the initial stages of this project, I procrastinated. I really need to strike while the iron is hot, so to speak. Since all of these pieces are birthed from my mind in a very spontaneous way, I can easily lose the thread or the spirit of an idea if I let it linger in the ether. I sometimes enjoy likening it to tracking a beast. You must stay on it's trail, you can't let yourself be distracted. But it's not all about keeping an idea fresh and alive, more often than not, it all boils down to time. It takes me a while before I complete one of these works. And I don't necessarily mean feeling out the picture in my mind, that comes easily enough, the actual work of putting pen to paper is incredibly time-consuming. Because I work with ink, I have to be incredibly careful not to smear or smudge any of the work that's already been laid down. Moreover, keeping a focused mind and a controlled hand really makes for slow work. I haven't yet found a way to maintain a hard edge on my line work, without using extreme pressure on the pen. After some time, my hand gets really cramped and strained. So working on my art only comes in spurts. The mind is willing, but the body is weak... as they say.

The first "completed" piece isn't something I'm particularly proud of on an... I was going to say emotional level, but that's not quite right. I just wasn't able to keep on "track". I lost the scent, and yet managed to finish my work. In its way, it seems perverted to me. It's malformed. A convergence of two ideas from two different perspectives. I have the idea in mind now, and it's nothing like what's been commited to paper.

This second one however, is much more on the mark. That's probably due to the fact that it's not entirely an original idea. I mean, it is... it's all mine. But I mean to say that the inspiration wasn't wholly mine. It was heavily inspired by a drawing done by J.R.R. Tolkien. Funny enough, even though it was heavily inspired by that work, the two have almost nothing in common visually. I wish I could show you the drawing I'm speaking of, but I don't know where it is. I don't even know, for sure, where I saw it. I had figured since I only own one Tolkien work, the leather-bound edition of The Lord Of The Rings, it must've been from there. But I looked, and couldn't find anything. So I figured I must've seen it online, but I haven't been able to find it there either. I'm almost sure now, that I saw it in person. At a Barnes & Noble, while I was checking out the leather-bound edition of Tolkien's The Hobbit. Since it's been years since I saw it, my memory of it might be totally off. But what I do remember is that is depicted a pastoral landscape, complete with trees, mountains and I believe cloud. Tolkien's work is very appealing to me because of his use of line. It's very simplistic. Very stark. In a vein with my own style. Which is probably why it struck me so. More than just the landscape itself, Tolkien used this little device to set his work apart. He placed an invisible vertical line in the center of the piece, to act as a point of symmetry, so that the right side of the picture was nearly identical to the left... and all things converged to a central source.

That idea of "centeredness", "source", "nature", "landscape" and "symmetry" got my mind working. I thought I'd make a play on his most famous work, The Lord Of The Rings, visually. I wanted to create rings of setting and landscape. Of course, originating from the center... from a source. I knew everything would expand from the center. Literally everything would. Because I didn't want to create a strictly terrestrial view. I wanted a view of the universe as a whole. I wanted water, air, heaven, space and spirit. In a way, I imagined symbolizing "The Big Bang"... or more than that, the idea of creation. Of life.

Working with circles also lended the idea of creating a mandala. Which is why I decided to frame the piece with the four stages of life, symbolized as the rising, shining, setting and negative Sun. The rising in the East (at the right), the shining in the South (at the bottom), the setting in the West (at the left) and the dark in the North (at the top). In this context, the piece as a whole came together. The Mandala should be used to gain focus and clarity, to center ones self with the world at large, both internal and external. I had all these ideas in mind. All of which are hard to marry to one another... but I think it came together rather well. As well as it could, at the time. I know I can improve upon this idea and the symbols within the piece. There wasn't enough space to work in everything I wanted. But it acts as a symbol should... the meat of the idea is there. For now, it's all about the broad strokes. I can always refine later. Doing so would make it more personal, and so I imagine that's why I'm fine with making this public. The idea is everyone's. The universe not mine, nor yours... but ours.

DS333, centered.