sic.biscuitus.disintegrat

even more ipod talk

2006-04-03T23:05:00.000-04:00

apparently it's all i have to post about right now, but just thought i'd provide further updates on the ipod talk concept, having run across it on the internet:

www.vestaldesign.com

and another one, which is just so similar that i'm led to think it's a total rip-off. but it could be a coincidence, i suppose:

www.thedesignworld.com

also, there's a slight possibility that it could end up in the next edition of the book by the guy that does wired's blog 'cult of mac,' by the same name. that would be pretty cool.

ipod talk

2006-02-27T19:35:00.000-05:00

an update on the iPod talk: i submitted it in engadget's 'what would jobs do 3' contest. They recieved over 350 entries, and happily my iPod talk submittal was among the 10% they included in their gallery. thought you'd like to know...

further update: someone said something nice about it on engadget, in response to favorable comments about a slider phone entry:

"98. oh, and btw: the iPhone? Come on guys, the iPod Talk is so much cooler. That's what an Apple Phone should look like. Very slick design.

Although I assume it's a pain in the ass to (jog)dial a number...

Posted at 4:54AM on Feb 28th 2006 by Hessi"

so, um, thanks for sticking up for the talk, hessi.

i sing a song of ipod

2006-02-22T20:40:00.000-05:00

so, been watching the Olympic thingy in Tu/orin/o a bunch, and i can't help but notice that a lot of the athletes be sportin' the white earbuds. Especially the renegade snowboard types, whom listened to their choice music during competition, (and maybe taking phone calls as well?) having been reportedly supplied with some sweet jackets.

this extensive ipodery is all well and good, but what are these people listening to? how did the itunes music store miss out on getting the celebrity playlists of the hippest Olympic athletes? Inquiring minds want to know, don't they?

in completely unrelated news, i also thought i'd send a little shout-out to a few of my current favorite podcasts. So here.

-and did we mention our disco? - some kinda dance club in london or something has some music from their friday night sets. sometime it sucks, but sometimes it's neato, and it's always an interesting idea.
-kcrw's morning becomes eclectic - smooth-talking brit nick harcourt gets some playtime with bands like arctic monkeys months before i hear anyone else talking about them. it's eclectic.
-ebert & roeper - it'd probably be better if it were just roeper and some other smarmy bastard, but it's funny when they argue.
-npr: wait wait...don't tell me! - another smarmy bastard i'm never awake to listen to at whatever time he's on the radio, but it's the best way to get your news a week late.
-escape pod - some geek in his basement reads submitted science fiction stories. real. cool.
-kcrw's design and architecture - some stuff i'm into.
-the ricky gervais show - the boss i love to hate interrogates the 'global village idiot,' carl pilkington.
-real time with bill maher - occaisional hits from very funny/political hbo show.
-the onion radio news - 'nuff said.
-the president's weekly radio address - almost ridiculous enough to be the real president. burn!

is that a southern thing or just a building industry thing?

2006-02-02T16:08:00.000-05:00

Happy Groundog Day. I think. I wonder if the groundhog will grant us ANY winter at all this year.

Today, I had to get up ridiculously early to attend a seminar about attic ventilation. But it was surprisingly interesting, because the speaker was a maniac. And, I got breakfast out of it. And that's not all.

Today, my job got me a "Buck" knife. And it's bitchin'. So look out, fool. I'll cut you.

watching: autocad
listening: all things considered
sipping: petro's iced tea

one toe over the line...

2006-02-01T20:51:00.000-05:00

I daresay all are aware of the dangers of 'Drinking & Driving' and, to a lesser degree, 'Drinking & Dialing,' a sure-fire way to make a social pariah of oneself. But only very, very recently have I become aware of the relatively new hazard of 'Drinking & Downloading.'

The rapid accumulation of pay-per-click downloadable content has resulted in more than one occasion of trying to sort out all the receipts in my mailbox the next day.

"I bought how many episodes of MacGyver?!?"

But the way entertainment is accessed is changing - one evidence of this is Soderbergh's Bubble and the uproar it has caused with the ginormous cinema chains. And by refusing to screen the film, they have decided not to make any money from it.

Chains are afraid people won't bother coming to the theater anymore, so they complain and boycott, but where are the efforts to make the cinema experience better? Why do I have to listen to people talk over the movie? Why do I have to get to the theater early to catch the '2wenty'? Why not have an internet tie-in to view & download content exclusive to a code printed on my ticket stub? And why, oh why, can't I get a beer at the theater??

At least then I would have already paid before drinking.

Watching: America's Ballroom Challenge (duh)

"How are you gonna make a bomb? With chewing gum??"

2006-01-30T19:45:00.000-05:00

"Why, you got any?"

While watching MacGyver today, I got to thinking about the values expressed by the show - stylish and fun-loving, MacGyver is a role model of yesteryear - he's a nice guy who always finishes first and preaches peace. The warmongers he goes up against are always sleazy and hateable. But this formula is secondary to the show's importance.

MacGyver is endlessly inventive - the main draw of the show is his command of a variety of engineering knowledge and his ability to think on his feet. However inaccurate the show's science may be, it's always rooted in fact and the ability of the protagonist to solve problems is the source of his glamour.

What other show has done so much to make science and creative thinking cool? And how many budding engineers today owe their initial interest in problem-solving to MacGyver? Paint me nostalgic, but nothing I can think of on television today glamourizes anything except the attainment of celebrity status and embarrassing oneself for vast sums of money. At a time when the Eastern world is exploding with scientific talent for low, low prices, it seems like we could use a few more 'thinking idols' in the living room instead of efforts to drive scientific theory from the classroom.

watching: MacGyver (duh)

it's all about the mustache, baby

2006-01-29T20:40:00.000-05:00

Sooo, yesterday I went to see The Matador with girlfriend Cara, and friends Mike and Scott. It was very funny and witty. Pierce Brosan's character was neato - a lot of fun to watch stumble around. I think we all enjoyed the movie, and I think it goes to show that movie experiences are always enhanced by burned-out pedophiliac boozers bursting into every scene do socially unacceptable things. I guess what I'm saying is, more people should invite me to see movies with them.

Also, spotted a conveyor sushi bar, which I have every intention of checking out for midnight sushi next weekend. Or maybe sooner. Hmm...maybe tonight?

That's the way...

2006-01-29T19:23:00.000-05:00

Hmm...Well, as much as I disapprove of the whole thing, 'blogging' seems to be the wave of the present, so get used to it, right? It seems like I can't even talk to my friends anymore, being an outsider, as it were. So, here I present sic biscuitus disintegrat for the gratification of the blogging community.

It seems like quite often I'm reading something on the internet, and then there's always some kind of 'post-a-comment' or 'review' section. And whenever I read these sections, I always get really annoyed with all of the comments that I think are stupid. And obviously, I'm not the only one, because then there will be about ten other people that respond agrily to the first commenter, with things like 'You are stupid and so is your mom.' And then the first commenter will post again saying something like 'YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK!'

This gets me thinking. All these people suck. But if I posted this, it would be sinking to their level. I would appear no better than them. And this would be a big problem, since I am better than them. Much better.

I don't know what exactly will happen here, but I imagine it will probably be mostly a depository for my musings on popular culture, at least as long as I don't have a more complex thought in my Pretty Little Head. If I do, I imagine it could get quite preachy, so if anyone actually reads it and has a problem, then they'll just have to leave a comment, like all you little blogging people like to do.