Calvin and the Snowmen

My friend Diego sent me this series of Winter-themed Calvin & Hobbes strips. Enjoy!

Andy Kaufman - Mighty Mouse

The famous Mighty Mouse performance by Andy Kaufman

Net neutrality letter from my State Senator.

I got an email awhile back from eBay, supporting Net Neutrality laws. They had set up a sort of email form letter that I could just sign, and they would send it on to my State Senator, Orrin Hatch, in support of Net Neutrality. I went through with it, because I'm definitely in favor, and never gave it another thought. Until I received the following letter from Orrin Hatch.

It was not sent via email, by the way, I transcribed the whole thing so I could post it. I thought it was kind of an interesting look at political formalities, and it was nice to see that our representation in Washington does actually take time to respond to us. Check it out.

September 1, 2006

Dear Mr. Curran:

Thank you for contacting me to express your support for network neutrality legislation. I appreciate hearing from you and welcome the opportunity to respond.

As you are aware, on June 28, 2006, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee passed S. 2686 in the form of a substitute to H.R. 5252. This legislation would require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to perform a five-year study of net neutrality issues and practices in the marketplace and report back to congress with legislative recommendations. The bill is now awaiting Senate floor consideration.

As you, I believe it is important for incumbent providers to ensure they do not and will not discriminate against consumers or consumer choices on the internet. Fostering competition and prosecuting anti-competitive practices will ensure that consumers benefit from a competitive marketplace. That is why I encouraged Senate Judiciary Chairman, Senator Arlen Specter, to hold a hearing on "Reconsidering Our Communications Laws: Ensuring Competition and Innovation" on June 14, 2006. During the course of the June hearing, several witnesses expressed concern that broadband providers will eventually exert more and more control over their networks to the detriment of consumers as well as content and application providers.

I agree with your assessment that the five-year study prescribed by S. 2686, does not go far enough to address the needs of consumers. Per your request, I will continue to work with my Senate colleagues to find a solution to the potential problems caused by market concentration in the broadband industry. I believe that an appropriate Congressional response to the network neutrality debate could protect consumers, foster innovation, and create jobs.

While I am hopeful the Federal government will not be forced to take too active a role in prescribing what can and can't be done on private networks, I believe it is important that Congress foster competitive integrity in the offering of broadband and video services.

Again, thank you for writing. Learning your thoughts and opinions is extremely helpful to me as I seek to represent you in Washington. I hope you will continue to provide me with your thoughts on the many issues confronting Congress.

Sincerely,
(signed)
Orrin G. Hatch
United States Senator

Some Crummy video clips of The Strokes

More from The Strokes Sept. 29 at In the Venue.

The Strokes at In The Venue, SLC, UT

My wife and I went to see The Strokes this past Friday at In the Venue in Salt Lake City, UT. It was a very cool show, and we had a great time hanging out up in the balcony with an awesome view of the band, and no sweaty teenagers scrunched up against us. Sorry about the low quality of all these photos. I took them with my camera phone.

Owen plays the Gishtar

My son Owen, making history, playing the guitar for the first time. It won't be long before he's rocking the stadium circuit and selling millions.

Hey Honey, get me one of these for Chistmas!

The AeroAce Remote Control airplane is around $30, but it looks like its worth a Million in fun. I'm not sure where to buy one though.

Edit:
You can get them at Toys R Us

Review of "The Protector" with Ong Bak's Tony Jaa

I left a few hours early from work this past Friday, so my friend Travis and I could go see The Protector with Ong Bak's Tony Jaa. I thought I'd share a few thoughts.

I first saw Ong Bak about a year ago, when a friend of mine let me borrow it. I didn't expect much; it seemed too foreign to enjoy, but after watching it I was absolutely blown away. The stunts were plentiful and eye-popping, and the didn't rely on wires, as most martial arts movies of late do. The fighting sequences were unbelievably intense; I'd never seen moves like those, where the knees and elbows were used with such devastating impact. The acting was cheesy, and the plot was thin, and most of the editing looked amaturish, but it was easy to forgive all of that and just enjoy the action.

When I saw previews for The Protector, I was immediately sold. I called up Travis and said, "It's movie time." We had to go see this on opening day. Travis and I have similar taste in movies, so he agreed, even though he'd never seen or heard of Ong Bak, he took me at my word that this Tony Jaa was the new Jackie Chan - and then some. We both left early on Friday and showed up at the theater stoked and ready.

To start with, I bought the premise. Tony Jaa's character (Kham) is known in Thailand as a "Protector", one of those chosen and trained from days of old to look after the country's most cherished posessions, their Royal Elephants. This may sound a little silly, but imagine it's a tradition passed down through countless generations, and held up to be as important and meaningful today as it was 1000 years ago, and it's not that hard to buy. When two of these most precious Elephants are kidnapped and taken to Sydney to be the main course at an underground restaurant that serves endangered species', and Kham's father is killed by the kidnappers, Kham pursues, to get revenge and secure the return of his pachyderms. Kham soon finds himself doing battle with Sydney's Thai mob queen and her vast number of curiously un-armed guards and henchmen. Several impressive fight scenes follow, but none capture the raw and devastating, brutal energy that was everywhere in Ong Bak. These scenes felt, mostly, like a Jackie Chan movie, but without the charm and humor.

There was a pretty cool unbroken steady-cam shot where Kham fights his way up several flights of stairs, often throwing bodies to the floor below, culminating in a lukewarm fight with Johnny (one of the mob queen's top men). The climax of the film involved - what felt like - twenty straight minutes of Kham taking on - what felt like - 100 + of the the Queen's curiously unarmed guards and henchmen (one at a time, of course). It was one long bone-crunch-athon, as each of them stepped up in turn and hit the floor in a broken painful heap. Did I say it felt like 20 minutes? Make that an hour, it got silly. Imagine Kill Bill with no swords, no style, and no clever choreography.

Following that, Kham took on three WWE rejects, and really looked like he paid for it. Eventually, they were dispatched after Kham found a clever new use for splintered Elepahnt bones, and uncannily got them to take turns too. As a finale, Kham took a death defying leap off the top of the building to give a knee to the chest to the soon-to-be departed mob queen (breaking her grip from the rescue line of her getaway-copter). They both fell through a skylight. She died, he walked away, because, you know, he's the hero.

So, that was all the good stuff. In between, was lots of dumb, wierd, and just moronic stuff. For instance, in a scene in which Kham's policeman friend is talking on his cell phone on the side walk, a nameless character steps into the foreground and draws attention to himself by looking around, taking a swig from what looks like a medicine bottle, before giving an audible "ahh", and walking out of the frame. And get this, that guy is mentioned in the credits. That's not all either. There's a scene where Kham bumps into a stranger just after getting off the airplane. That stranger, who looked a heck of alot like Jackie Chan turns around like he wants to fight for a second, and then says "It's alright..." and continues walking. Was that Jackie Chan? I don't know, but HE didn't get mentioned in the credits. I won't even mention the watergun wielding Thai kids that take on Kham's younger elephant early in the film. There was also the fact that Jaa had almost nothing to add to the film verbally. He had pretty much two lines: "You killed my father!", and "Give me back my Elephants!"

To sum up, it was a fun movie to watch for the fight scenes, but I'm really glad I only paid for a matinee ticket. More than anything, watching The Protector just made me want to go out and rent Ong Bak, if for no other reason than to sit through it with Travis and say, "See, this is how good The Protector should have been".

Voltron got served!

Diego's Big Announcement!

I just got this email from my old pal and bandmate Diego:

After much sweat and tears I would personally like to announce that I am finally done with my undergraduate work!!! I’t about FREAKIN time no?

I have officially earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Information Technology from the Universityof Phoenix. Although the commencement ceremony will not be until May ‘07 (it’s dumb, I know…) there’s most definitely still reason to party! And you are all invited!

I would also like to thank all of you who have supported and put up with me throughout. I would especially like to thank my family, Chippy and 63 for being the best roomies ever and keeping it quiet after 10:00 PM. Larr-dog for moving to Hawaii so 63 and Chippy could keep it quiet after 10:00 PM. Shawn Linseth for holding me in times of need. Courtney (the love of my life) Forester for, well, just being you, and last but not least, Dale Williams for the hiphop…

I know I’m forgetting some people, and although I may not mention you by name, my mother thanks you, my father thanks you, and I thank you.

Love you all,
Diego

Congratu-freakin-lations man.

NOW CALL UP ONE OF YOUR 3.9 MILLION CURRENT GIRLFRIENDS AND GET MARRIED, DANG IT!!!

IKEA Draper, to open in Spring 2007, will be 1st IKEA store in Mountain West

I found this press release on the IKEA website about the store currently under contruction in Draper, UT. It's kind of old news, but I hadn't read it yet, so I thought I'd post it. I'm pretty excited for this.

Contact:Joseph Roth 610-834-0180x6500

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA, November 29, 2005 – IKEA, the world’s leading home furnishings retailer, today announced plans for a store in Draper, UT, increasing the Swedish retailer’s presence in the Western U.S. (In addition to stores in Arizona, California, and Washington, a future store is planned in Portland, OR.) Pending permits, construction of the future IKEA Draper can begin next spring, with an anticipated opening in Spring 2007.

As part of a 40-acre project, the approximately 310,000 square-foot future IKEA Draper and its approximately 1,300 parking spaces will be built on 22.5 acres at the northwestern corner of I-15 and Bangerter Highway, and will reflect the same unique architectural design for which IKEA stores are known worldwide. In addition, IKEA will be selling approximately 13 acres that will be available for complementary retail and restaurant uses.

“We are thrilled about entering Utah at this site in Draper where we can build on our presence in other Western states,” said Doug Greenholz, IKEA real estate manager. “We know IKEA Draper will allow us to be more convenient to existing customers while also introducing the unique IKEA family-friendly shopping experience to new customers throughout Utah. Plus, with the additional retail parcels to be developed, we are confident a strong retail destination will emerge here in Draper.”

Besides nearly 10,000 exclusively designed items, IKEA Draper will feature three model homes, 50 room settings, a supervised children’s play area, as well as a 300-seat restaurant serving Swedish specialties such as meatballs with lingonberries and salmon plates, as well as American dishes. Other family-friendly features will include a ‘Children’s IKEA’ area in the showroom, baby care rooms, preferred parking and play areas throughout the store.

In addition to jobs created during the construction phase, approximately 300-350 coworkers would join the IKEA family when the new store opens. IKEA Draper will provide significant annual sales and property tax revenue for local governments and schools. “We also look forward to being a partner in the local community,” continued Greenholz.

IKEA currently has more than 225 stores in 33 countries, including 26 in the U.S., where it plans to open approximately four or five stores a year. Other stores are being planned in: Brooklyn, NY; Canton, MI; Dublin, CA; Portland, OR; Round Rock, TX; Somerville, MA; and West Sacramento, CA.

Since its 1943 founding in Sweden, IKEA has offered home furnishings and accessories of good design and function, at low prices so the majority of the people can afford them. For three consecutive years, IKEA has been named to Working Mother magazine’s annual list of the “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers” and Training magazine’s annual “Top 100” ranking of companies that excel at human capital development – as well as to this year’s FORTUNE’’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list. IKEA incorporates environmentally friendly efforts into day-to-day business and continuously supports initiatives that benefit causes such as children and the environment. To visit the IKEA Web site, please go to http://www.ikea-usa.com. For information about working at IKEA, please visit www.ikea-usa.com/jobs.

MyChingo.com

This is the coolest free web based service I've seen in a long time. I'm brainstorming right now about how to feature this service on SingingBirthdayCard.com

MyChingo is a web based voice recorder/audio feedback system that you can implement on your website for free. I'm pretty excited about it.

a king wothout a crown

More Hip Hop Reggae Hacidic Jewry from Matisyahu.

Matisyahu

If you've never seen an Hacidic Jew get funky, you're about to. Check out this video of Matisyahu.

Top 10 things they never taught me in Design School

Interesting read for all you aspiring designers out there on what it really takes to be a successful Designer.

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How To: Start your own Podcast

It's surprisingly easy to join the ranks of Podcasters. In fact, you probably already have most of what you need. Once you've recorded your broadcast, you simply put it online and distribute it to others through an online syndication technology called RSS (Really Simple Syndication).

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Trade Your Old CDs For A Free iPod

MillenniumMusic.com is a used CD retailer based in Charleston, South Carolina. You need to send 35 cds for an iPOD shuffle. They'll give you a 2 gig Nano for 65 cds. The top of the line video IPOD will cost you 175 cds.

I just got my 30 gig iPod in trade for 160 CD's (many were accepted at half value) plus $18 cash.

I learned about this site over a month ago, but I didn't want to post the story about it until I knew they were legit. Well, I just got my 30 gig iPod in the mail from them today - so - yeah, they're legit. I sent in 160 CD's and 5 dvd's.

They gave me partial credit for a bunch of the cd's, and rejected a few. In all, they credited me for about 127 CD's. So, I paid another $18 and got my iPod. I'd reccomend this service to anyone with a ton of great CD's or DVD's that they're willing to part with (sort of - you can rip everything to your hard drive first), but not a lot of cash to spend on that iPod they've been wanting.

One thing to keep in mind, you do have to pay to ship your stuff to them, and 160 CD's are kind of expensive to ship.

Do a little research on the sales history of your titles before packing them up. If the album is pretty new, by an artist whose getting some airplay (not neccesarily top 40), or if it has one or two songs that charted once upon a time, and it's in good shape, You're likely to get at least partial credit for it.

Be smart about it. Don't send in cd's from local/regional bands, or bands you know no one has heard of. It might help you to know that all of the 9 cd's of mine that they rejected were movie soundtracks, so keep those out of the box no matter how many good songs are on them. They do take DVD's, even ones you got cheap. I picked up Spinal Tap for $10 a year or so ago, and got full credit for it, same with the old edition of Tron.

Also, they do call you once they have your cd's, and you can use that opportunity to haggle a little. I ended up emailing back and forth with my sales rep for an afternoon, and made sure I got double credit for some double cd's they had apparently counted as singles, and I convinced him to give extra credit for a CD/DVD special edition set. I was impressed with their willingness to negotiate.

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Awesome unique barcode designs

Barcodes are usually pretty boring, these guys are changing that. Check out their unique designs.

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John Aldrich - Freelance Jingle Writer

I think I'd like to try my hand at this.

Fitness Jumpsite!

I found this simple, basic, and very useful site dedicated to fitness. It's got alot of great information about getting and staying fit. Now, if only I can put some of this information to use.

Check it out.