Perth is behind us. Heydi (Hey-Dee and not Hi-Dee) and I met up and decided to travel together for a while. We're flying to Melbourne on the 3rd and we'll see how long until we split, she's staying longer in Oz than I am and has thus another agenda. We took off from Peth on monday, Christmas eve, to hitch-hike our way down south of Western Australia.
Our first stop was Bunbury. Nothing's really worth mentioning about this place except for Jen, the CSer that took us in for 3 days. Yes, we spent christmas with her and her family by the pool. We really did not have a choice, people here either have a pool, a spa (jacuzzi) or both.
In the beginning, telling people we'd be hitch-hiking put an expression of surprise and fear on their face, we were then warned that WA is not the best place. As always, that is quite a subjective piece of information and we ended up having no trouble at all. The first guy (big jeep), who showed up after we barely waited for 10mins, told us we were not on the best road for h-hiking. He dropped us further down the highway and it took us 5 mins to get those 2 cool guys (and a big jeep) who took us right to where we needed. Again, we can't really complain. Fact is, H a girl, which accelerates the process of finding a ride. Me and my 5-day beard, must be able to give assholes a second thought about giving us a ride. A match made in heaven:)
In one of these cars, Heydi and I were deciding about what to do next, Jen was cleaning the garden and we heard the beaches here were fab. We chose to be good people and show up sooner to help her with the cleaning. I think we deserved our little place for those 3 days, the place just outside their house where we were having the BBQ looked fab after our work.
So, after the h-hiking, the BBQ at christmas and nights by the pool, we're in Margaret River, which is a world renowned place for its wine. We're going on a winery tour tomorrow. After some tips, we know which companies to avoid. It looks like 80 aussie dollars will get us a tour through 3-4 wineries and a brewery with lunch included. I can't wait:)
The CSer we're staying at right now is 5* (he has a big jeep). He took us to the beach where he met up with some of his folks (and their kids) and we had a great time, all were really cool and relaxed. I got a special treat during our time there. While snorkling, I spotted a stingray! Just 2 meters away, I saw what I thought was "just" a big fish, it was in fact one of these beautiful flying creatures (one of the kind that killed Crocodile Hunter this year).
I might get my tan before flying over to the east coast after all. Not only did we have a sunny christmas, it was a BOILING one, something not seen in a looong time. I was twice at the beach today. On the first time, I could feel the roast effect of the 1PM sun, 40degrees, ouch!
Being the good boy that I (can be) am, I already contributed with some computer troubleshooting at our CSer's place. So tomorrow, after a day spent at the wineries, I'll enjoy a time in the spa... yes, he's got one!
One of the oddities I will bring back home (as dumb as it sounds) is a Stubby Holder. It's a neoprene cup for botttles and cans. Come on, how can they not have this in Portugal? It looks really... stupid... but it DOES keep the beer fresh longer:) and even avoids the can/bottle from sliding down your hand.
Our time here is getting short, H has got a bad cough and fever (she's recovering in the guest room while I compose this post) and we still want to hit down south to Walpole, Denmark and Pemberton for the karri tree forests (Valley of giants) and its Tree Top Walk. After all that, we're going back to Perth and get ready for a new year party.
cheers
n.-
P.S.: No pics, I am sorry... later on, ok?
Dec 26, 2007
Dec 20, 2007
the first photos are in...
I made some movies which I did not upload, so I only picked some pictures of my camera. Narcissism and Photography do not mix unless the pictures are taken in front of a mirror. I don't expect to see myself very often.
Here's the album:
I was warned and I have to now report that it's true, women here in Perth are just fabulous. Amazingly good-looking and surely veeery self-couscious about it too.
I slowly understand what a german couple told me while we were in Brunei. For their 1-year trip around the world, they chose to skip Aus because this is NOT a cheap place. And it's VERY TRUE!
Nevertheless, Perth is a good looking place. There is an economic Boom which seems to be accelerated by the mining industry, so many young folks show up with some serious cash in their hands. Housing is more expensive than London I heard (I'd doubt that though). The christmas shopping fever is FULL ON which is noticeable by the people swarming the streets. There are no christmas presents for anyone, I am a believer that the real (and almost only) good thing about this festive time is the family gathering. Back then, when I still was a child, I had the chance to experience and enjoy them. This is no more the case. This is now a time of 2 opposites, the really lonely people and the ones surrounded by a big part of their family. Here, I will be an adopted child for one night.
It's not hot around here, not at all. I will just call it "warm", but do not get me wrong, I'd prefer if the temperature would not rise above the felt 27oC during the day. The nights could be warmer though, it's impossible to not freeze without a jacket out there. I still have the same number in my mind, 38oC for Christmas day, let's see how reliable these weather forecasts are.
I'll meet the traveller tomorrow, I missed her today as my cell phone's battery died:( That was a bad thing to happen. On the other hand, I now have an aussie number, which means I am reachable. Just ask for it but avoid calling me between midnight and 9AM (GMT+8+DTS).
Cheers,
n.-
Here's the album:
I was warned and I have to now report that it's true, women here in Perth are just fabulous. Amazingly good-looking and surely veeery self-couscious about it too.
I slowly understand what a german couple told me while we were in Brunei. For their 1-year trip around the world, they chose to skip Aus because this is NOT a cheap place. And it's VERY TRUE!
Nevertheless, Perth is a good looking place. There is an economic Boom which seems to be accelerated by the mining industry, so many young folks show up with some serious cash in their hands. Housing is more expensive than London I heard (I'd doubt that though). The christmas shopping fever is FULL ON which is noticeable by the people swarming the streets. There are no christmas presents for anyone, I am a believer that the real (and almost only) good thing about this festive time is the family gathering. Back then, when I still was a child, I had the chance to experience and enjoy them. This is no more the case. This is now a time of 2 opposites, the really lonely people and the ones surrounded by a big part of their family. Here, I will be an adopted child for one night.
It's not hot around here, not at all. I will just call it "warm", but do not get me wrong, I'd prefer if the temperature would not rise above the felt 27oC during the day. The nights could be warmer though, it's impossible to not freeze without a jacket out there. I still have the same number in my mind, 38oC for Christmas day, let's see how reliable these weather forecasts are.
I'll meet the traveller tomorrow, I missed her today as my cell phone's battery died:( That was a bad thing to happen. On the other hand, I now have an aussie number, which means I am reachable. Just ask for it but avoid calling me between midnight and 9AM (GMT+8+DTS).
Cheers,
n.-
Dec 19, 2007
G'day mate
And so starts the aussie adventure.
We landed 5 hours ago in Perth, after a 6-hour long flight from Brunei.
I confirm, Brunei is a very boring place and Malaysia is certainly worth the trip. People are always very friendly although they tend to say "OK" or "yes" to everything we ask about. We later do notice that they did not understand the question at all. No worries though.
Our last night in Brunei was particular. We stayed in the same (and only) Youth Hostel in Brunei, where I met Kaku, a japanese backpacker, Arnaud and Severine, a french couple, a german bloke and some bruneian kids. The night was spent with some heavy Poi and Juggling practice at the hostel entrance. All 4 of us, Kaku (learning Poi), Beck, Bron and I taking the whole area for ourselves. Portishead was the right music for the moment, a slow and moody beat influencing with some drama the improvised choreographies (my Behind-The-Back 3 beat weave is half through).
Aus is much drier and for the present being, cooler (as in cold) than Malaysia. They are optimistic and expect 38˚C for christmas day:D
Going through aussie customs was... fun. I was submitted to a small interview in order to make them understand what I am doing here. Illegal immigration is a problem, my actual visa is only valid for 3 months and I am not authorized to work. If I'd want to move in here (which may well happen), the sponsorship of a company might be required to obtain a bigger or permanent visa.
Other than that, they did not like our juggling balls. After opening a stitch of one of them and seeing that they are filled with seeds, these got confiscated. Now the funny side is, my swiss army knife was in my hand luggage and they just ignored it. They are seriously more worried about pests brought in by travellers than about people trying to hijack a plane with a McGyver knife.
Tomorrow's a big day, I want to meet up with another traveller and see if we can establish a travel plan to ride together. I hate traveling alone (even if backpacking involves meeting heaps of people along the way).
Still, pics are for later...
Cheers mate,
n.-
We landed 5 hours ago in Perth, after a 6-hour long flight from Brunei.
I confirm, Brunei is a very boring place and Malaysia is certainly worth the trip. People are always very friendly although they tend to say "OK" or "yes" to everything we ask about. We later do notice that they did not understand the question at all. No worries though.
Our last night in Brunei was particular. We stayed in the same (and only) Youth Hostel in Brunei, where I met Kaku, a japanese backpacker, Arnaud and Severine, a french couple, a german bloke and some bruneian kids. The night was spent with some heavy Poi and Juggling practice at the hostel entrance. All 4 of us, Kaku (learning Poi), Beck, Bron and I taking the whole area for ourselves. Portishead was the right music for the moment, a slow and moody beat influencing with some drama the improvised choreographies (my Behind-The-Back 3 beat weave is half through).
Aus is much drier and for the present being, cooler (as in cold) than Malaysia. They are optimistic and expect 38˚C for christmas day:D
Going through aussie customs was... fun. I was submitted to a small interview in order to make them understand what I am doing here. Illegal immigration is a problem, my actual visa is only valid for 3 months and I am not authorized to work. If I'd want to move in here (which may well happen), the sponsorship of a company might be required to obtain a bigger or permanent visa.
Other than that, they did not like our juggling balls. After opening a stitch of one of them and seeing that they are filled with seeds, these got confiscated. Now the funny side is, my swiss army knife was in my hand luggage and they just ignored it. They are seriously more worried about pests brought in by travellers than about people trying to hijack a plane with a McGyver knife.
Tomorrow's a big day, I want to meet up with another traveller and see if we can establish a travel plan to ride together. I hate traveling alone (even if backpacking involves meeting heaps of people along the way).
Still, pics are for later...
Cheers mate,
n.-
Dec 15, 2007
Seramat Pagi
The first name of our SE Asia passage was Brunei, which is a waste of time if staying more than 1 day. It's a very wealthy Sultanate and besides the town on water, the monkeys and the mosque, there is not much to see.
So Malaysia, namely KK (Kota Kinabalu) was an easy choice. It's the capital of Sabah (the northern malaysian part).
It's hot and humid here (duuuh, we're just above the equator line). It rains everyday around the same time in the evening but there is no real rush to run into cover.
Terima Kasih is our word of choice to make the locals giggle. It means "thank you" and us being some of the few westerners around, it's easy to understand why.
This place is not overly touristy (yet) and prices are (very) decent. We can eat for 5-10 Ringet, which converts 1:5 with EUR.
A normal routine goes around, taking a boat to a nearby island and enjoy its beach, snorkle and/or dive, come back, have dinner while seating outside next to the ocean followed by have an hour-long massage, stroll through the markets, have some local snacks...
I'll go more in depth the next time, I can't spend too much time online right now and post pictures.
n.-
So Malaysia, namely KK (Kota Kinabalu) was an easy choice. It's the capital of Sabah (the northern malaysian part).
It's hot and humid here (duuuh, we're just above the equator line). It rains everyday around the same time in the evening but there is no real rush to run into cover.
Terima Kasih is our word of choice to make the locals giggle. It means "thank you" and us being some of the few westerners around, it's easy to understand why.
This place is not overly touristy (yet) and prices are (very) decent. We can eat for 5-10 Ringet, which converts 1:5 with EUR.
A normal routine goes around, taking a boat to a nearby island and enjoy its beach, snorkle and/or dive, come back, have dinner while seating outside next to the ocean followed by have an hour-long massage, stroll through the markets, have some local snacks...
I'll go more in depth the next time, I can't spend too much time online right now and post pictures.
n.-
Dec 3, 2007
Dedicatória
O que precisava era mesmo alguém assim como tu
Eras o estilo certo para mim, quero ficar contigo até ao fim
Nunca tive ninguem como tu mas sempre the procurei
Agora que te encontrei, que te vi, quero ficar contigo até ao fim
Good old times of 1997 when good rhymes and low budget walked hand in hand.
n.-
Eras o estilo certo para mim, quero ficar contigo até ao fim
Nunca tive ninguem como tu mas sempre the procurei
Agora que te encontrei, que te vi, quero ficar contigo até ao fim
Good old times of 1997 when good rhymes and low budget walked hand in hand.
n.-
Nov 29, 2007
The time has come...
... (again and) today ! At least for some of the details of my departure.
I hate goodbyes, I have this strange and uncomfortable feeling, having to say goodbye and spending a day or two seeing people, do this, do that... If only it would all go so fast as a snap of my fingers. So I am doing what I can to achieve this while also not leaving people upset. It's not really an issue to not say goodbye, my feelings about the people don't change when I don't visit someone or don't send a letter/e-mail etc... but then again, emotions do have to be expressed, how else are people know you will miss them.
But this feels like I will be away forever! I better ignore my own complainin', the amount of stuff to do, pack or organize is just driving me nuts. I better just lift my arse and go see people before I leave. People can't really guess how much I can miss them, not everyone has the gift/curse of telepathy.
DISCLAIMER: If anyone is reading this and I did not bid farewell, it means I just forgot about you for a moment, because I was already thinking about so much more stuff.
As a personal reminder, something worth engraving in my stubborn head, I have to express feelings to the people I love, to the girls I love. I don't mean saying "Je t'aime", "I love you" or "Amo-te" every single day, I mean expressing it more than with just a look once in a while. It's about avoiding being boring/predictible/repetitive and still showing there is care coming out of the pounding chest for them.
I always wanted to write someone a love song. I never decided on anything decent because my lyrics were just too plain and direct, they had no (good) little word tricks, metaphores or insinuations. I will have 2 months to stop thinking about computers, my job and customers... and spend some time with some books, a moleskin, a sketchpad, my MP3 player and my digital camera. I'll see if there is enough freedom to let it flow...
n.-
PS: How often did I tell myself that I am just loving Bat for Lashes and that they'll go with me to Australia?
Nov 24, 2007
Only you
We suffer everyday, what is it for
These crimes of illusion, are fooling us all
And now I am weary and I feel like I do
It's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
The size of our fight, it's just a dream
We've crushed everything I can see, in this morning selfishly
How we've failed and I feel like I do
It's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
Now that we've chosen to take all we can
This shade of autumn, a stale bitter end
Years of frustration lay down side by side
And it's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
It's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
These crimes of illusion, are fooling us all
And now I am weary and I feel like I do
It's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
The size of our fight, it's just a dream
We've crushed everything I can see, in this morning selfishly
How we've failed and I feel like I do
It's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
Now that we've chosen to take all we can
This shade of autumn, a stale bitter end
Years of frustration lay down side by side
And it's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
It's only you, who can tell me apart
And it's only you, who can turn my wooden heart
Nov 19, 2007
klaxons
This was a speed job, I just showed up late, waited 10 mins in the exctatic crowd and experienced a 1hr or so long (short) concert.
My hopes were the lowest possible. How could they not be, after watching so many crappy live performances on youtube?
But here's a dedication to today's effort. Of course we (munich) were not treated any better than any other location they played at, but I appreciate the relatively good surprise. The crowd liked it a lot though, judging from the jumping and crowd-surfing.
Here's "It's not over yet" in some of its several shapes;
A Klaxons studio recording:
... out of tune maaaan! Get your singing sorted out or stay out of booze and drugs!
The original (unless you did not know, klaxons covered the song),
pretty much an 80-90s reminescent dance song and very typical video.
... and tonight's performance:
... pretty much okay, isn't it? I thought so. I have some samples of "Golden Skans", "Magick", "Two Receivers" and a single not included on the album.
The pics look pretty shit, here are the best ones anyway:
n.-
My hopes were the lowest possible. How could they not be, after watching so many crappy live performances on youtube?
But here's a dedication to today's effort. Of course we (munich) were not treated any better than any other location they played at, but I appreciate the relatively good surprise. The crowd liked it a lot though, judging from the jumping and crowd-surfing.
Here's "It's not over yet" in some of its several shapes;
A Klaxons studio recording:
... out of tune maaaan! Get your singing sorted out or stay out of booze and drugs!
The original (unless you did not know, klaxons covered the song),
pretty much an 80-90s reminescent dance song and very typical video.
... and tonight's performance:
... pretty much okay, isn't it? I thought so. I have some samples of "Golden Skans", "Magick", "Two Receivers" and a single not included on the album.
The pics look pretty shit, here are the best ones anyway:
n.-
Nov 17, 2007
Interpol
Showing up late at the venue, I barely managed to see the Blonde Redhead, but I will definitely be (re)searching about them and add them to my ToDo list.
This was also the night to put my camera to the test. I was pretty impressed... this means I'll be carrying it to concerts quite frequently.
After working through some SMS and the crowd, I finally met the people I was supposed to. Joanna even managed with a subtle perseverance to get the setlist.
The performance was really good, sound was fab, all to make it quite a soul-penetrating experience without the need for drugs or alcohol. Some guy decided to smoke the strongest joint ever and all the smoke twirling around us might have influenced... I can't really tell.
And now some video memories of the event.
Upcoming, Klaxons on sunday and Joshua Bell on monday.
n.-
This was also the night to put my camera to the test. I was pretty impressed... this means I'll be carrying it to concerts quite frequently.
After working through some SMS and the crowd, I finally met the people I was supposed to. Joanna even managed with a subtle perseverance to get the setlist.
The performance was really good, sound was fab, all to make it quite a soul-penetrating experience without the need for drugs or alcohol. Some guy decided to smoke the strongest joint ever and all the smoke twirling around us might have influenced... I can't really tell.
And now some video memories of the event.
Upcoming, Klaxons on sunday and Joshua Bell on monday.
n.-
Nov 16, 2007
Ich glaube ich könnte kotzen
Anger management
No more mr. Nice-guy-oh-Munich-is-just-so-nice attitude!
This morning, I thought I could just break somebody's neck/face/ with a nice long kung-fu blow!
Jeeeesus! When these guys (germans) strike and they tell us there are backup measures, I will stay at friggin'home.
I need 2 transportation means btw home and work. A subway followed by a train when going to work, and vice-versa on the way back.
Not only is that train the most delayed train in town, but there's a 2-day strike going on too. I had everything planned, I would take the subway at a specific time, which would allow me to be at the train station and wait max 10mins for the train, which is expected to arrive every hour at the same minute. I considered the actual climate, COLD ,when thinking that I did NOT want to wait outside too long! Murphy's Law stepped in... and there were no subways... at least when I needed them... Maaaan, does this shit happen in Barcelona, Berlin or Paris?
I felt like I was in a country with a lesser transportation system where the companies would not inform their customers about the shit that was going on...
The more I write about it, the more I have the feeling I am making a storm in a glass of water (as we say in portuguese)...
I had to relieve my tension and I had nowhere to release it upon... until now.
Done, I feel better already!
Definition of the day, here.
n.-
No more mr. Nice-guy-oh-Munich-is-just-so-nice attitude!
This morning, I thought I could just break somebody's neck/face/
Jeeeesus! When these guys (germans) strike and they tell us there are backup measures, I will stay at friggin'home.
I need 2 transportation means btw home and work. A subway followed by a train when going to work, and vice-versa on the way back.
Not only is that train the most delayed train in town, but there's a 2-day strike going on too. I had everything planned, I would take the subway at a specific time, which would allow me to be at the train station and wait max 10mins for the train, which is expected to arrive every hour at the same minute. I considered the actual climate, COLD ,when thinking that I did NOT want to wait outside too long! Murphy's Law stepped in... and there were no subways... at least when I needed them... Maaaan, does this shit happen in Barcelona, Berlin or Paris?
I felt like I was in a country with a lesser transportation system where the companies would not inform their customers about the shit that was going on...
The more I write about it, the more I have the feeling I am making a storm in a glass of water (as we say in portuguese)...
I had to relieve my tension and I had nowhere to release it upon... until now.
Done, I feel better already!
Definition of the day, here.
n.-
Nov 14, 2007
(healthy) time wasting as my doctor said
Images
Wow, this fellow sure applies some effort to his creations. http://www.chris-anthony.com/
Music
I am a member for a short time and still in the slow charming process of Last.Fm. Not tired of sharing online a whole wealth of shit and (shitty) oppinions on stuff (facebook, blog, forums, etc...), this platform allows me to share:
Wow, this fellow sure applies some effort to his creations. http://www.chris-anthony.com/
Music
I am a member for a short time and still in the slow charming process of Last.Fm. Not tired of sharing online a whole wealth of shit and (shitty) oppinions on stuff (facebook, blog, forums, etc...), this platform allows me to share:
- my taste, by specifically choosing songs;
- my listening habits, by letting iTunes, WMP and XBMC put in the "Recently Played" category the songs they play.
Tonight, after handling some burocracy at home while listening to some Kanye West (Flashing Lights is so yum...), 50cent and DJ Danger Mouse, I started the (Last.Fm) console, right-clicked on the first of my Neighbors and choose to play her radio...
Maaaan, I haven't heard Mew in so long, then comes Klaxons, digitalism... wow, this listener is cool.... then some unknown names show up, Tiger Lou (Sweden), Shiny Toy Guns (US), Plain White T's (US)...
This reminds me of the times of my search for music when I knew nobody that liked what I did. Back then I used a prog that would almost randomly propose me some stuff and that was when I listened to Fela Kuti, Louise Attaque and others I can't remember... audio-grabber... -scrobbler... -something... yeah, I think it was something like that...
Oh, juuuust great! By listening to Burning from The Whitest Boy Alive I noticed I just took it mistaken for a Kings of Convenience song for a little while now. As I listen to Radar at work (details posted here) and they don't display what they play, this kind of correction's pretty welcome and let's admit it, I don't like to be mistaken for somebody else either... except if his surname is Pitt and has an amazon as a wife.
And now (still on Last.Fm) this...
... the sound quality is pretty shite but it still is the sound of unavoidable shaking...
Aaaarrgggh... I'm dying because I can't get off the hook... ENOUGH! I'll disconnect, just add some more characters, a couple of CRs and call it a day!
N.-
Nov 8, 2007
Lights
I still love the light oh baby
Keeps me awake but I don't mind
Everything I always wanted
Is right there but soon it won't be
If fortune favors the brave
I am as awful as they come
I got a million things to say
I got a million things to
I still love the light oh baby
Keeps me awake but I don't mind
Everything I always wanted
Is right there but soon it won't be
If fortune favors the brave
I am as awful as they come
I got a million things to say
I got a million things to
I still love the light oh baby
I still love the light oh baby
I still love the light oh baby
I still love the light oh baby
If fortune favors the brave
I am as awful as they come
I got a million things to say
I got a million things to
A million things to say
A million things to say
Yesterday's concert was great! With a fab first half, a mild second one and a small negative note to Munich, I still loved it. Tom Smith did bring a lot of the brio to the show.
n.-
Keeps me awake but I don't mind
Everything I always wanted
Is right there but soon it won't be
If fortune favors the brave
I am as awful as they come
I got a million things to say
I got a million things to
I still love the light oh baby
Keeps me awake but I don't mind
Everything I always wanted
Is right there but soon it won't be
If fortune favors the brave
I am as awful as they come
I got a million things to say
I got a million things to
I still love the light oh baby
I still love the light oh baby
I still love the light oh baby
I still love the light oh baby
If fortune favors the brave
I am as awful as they come
I got a million things to say
I got a million things to
A million things to say
A million things to say
Yesterday's concert was great! With a fab first half, a mild second one and a small negative note to Munich, I still loved it. Tom Smith did bring a lot of the brio to the show.
n.-
Nov 7, 2007
Keep it central I said
NAS
I should start consulting and selling (*) home media storage hardware. I am an evangelist of storing media (music/movies and any kind of doc) centrally at home.
With the amount or people I have at home, I can't just stop smiling at them when I tell them that my WHOLE media library (my personal docs stay personal, no way they can access that) is accessible to them if they bring their laptop. Just plug it to the network, and bang the share'o-rama can start.
MS had the Windows Home Server in the baking for a while, but the truly interesting side is that hardware vendors like HP are releasing hardware bundled with the software. The machine looks reeeeaaallly cool and considering its features, the price does not seem that high. Uk guys, tranquilpc, actually built a fanless device, meaning, a dead quiet one.
15mins (hardware) and 18mins (the features) of one's life to see and listen to some guys talk about it.
How I see it, the ability to backup (during the night) a whole laptop/computer's config to HS will be a life/time/nervous-breakdown/marriage saver.
I love my home network setup which still amazes me by the (so far) unreplacable XBOX1 + XBMC2 = media center.
I am not THAT a geek am I?
n.-
(*) I think I just found a personal job I'd love to do. Need to work on my marketing on that now:)
I should start consulting and selling (*) home media storage hardware. I am an evangelist of storing media (music/movies and any kind of doc) centrally at home.
With the amount or people I have at home, I can't just stop smiling at them when I tell them that my WHOLE media library (my personal docs stay personal, no way they can access that) is accessible to them if they bring their laptop. Just plug it to the network, and bang the share'o-rama can start.
MS had the Windows Home Server in the baking for a while, but the truly interesting side is that hardware vendors like HP are releasing hardware bundled with the software. The machine looks reeeeaaallly cool and considering its features, the price does not seem that high. Uk guys, tranquilpc, actually built a fanless device, meaning, a dead quiet one.
15mins (hardware) and 18mins (the features) of one's life to see and listen to some guys talk about it.
How I see it, the ability to backup (during the night) a whole laptop/computer's config to HS will be a life/time/nervous-breakdown/marriage saver.
I love my home network setup which still amazes me by the (so far) unreplacable XBOX1 + XBMC2 = media center.
I am not THAT a geek am I?
n.-
(*) I think I just found a personal job I'd love to do. Need to work on my marketing on that now:)
Patrolling white and cold
Music
I was angry with myself again. I listened to something I should have paid more attention to when it was released, but just the fact that I am taking it in and enjoying it makes that bad vibe fade away.
Ina Marie played Snow Patrol's (yes, an Irish band) "Eyes Open" album on my home stereo. I recently placed the album in the adequate folder on my NAS, she found and played it.
They're famous for their singles (Spitting Game..) but their true value is in the lyrics. I was sitting in my room and when "Set The Fire To The Third Bar" (feat Martha Wainwright) came on, I had to stop and lay down... All sorts of emotional memories came in, just as if emotional blocks were removed and sadness and happiness poured like water of a broken down dam.
Allmusic's review on this album has some truth in it, something anybody will know as soon as they listen to them: "... the kind of band that embraces simplicity as beautiful and human flaws as art".
Better late then never they say...
n.-
I was angry with myself again. I listened to something I should have paid more attention to when it was released, but just the fact that I am taking it in and enjoying it makes that bad vibe fade away.
Ina Marie played Snow Patrol's (yes, an Irish band) "Eyes Open" album on my home stereo. I recently placed the album in the adequate folder on my NAS, she found and played it.
They're famous for their singles (Spitting Game..) but their true value is in the lyrics. I was sitting in my room and when "Set The Fire To The Third Bar" (feat Martha Wainwright) came on, I had to stop and lay down... All sorts of emotional memories came in, just as if emotional blocks were removed and sadness and happiness poured like water of a broken down dam.
Allmusic's review on this album has some truth in it, something anybody will know as soon as they listen to them: "... the kind of band that embraces simplicity as beautiful and human flaws as art".
Better late then never they say...
n.-
Nov 2, 2007
Dans la merco Benz
Petite princesse
Ma beauté, ma promesse
Ma petite faiblesse
Ma plus belle histoire de fesses
Dans ma mercedes
C'est de l'espoir que je caresse
Souvenir suprême de mon plus beau problème
Dans ton abdomen, tout nouveau spécimen
Joue à la crème
C'est de l'espoir que je promène
Mon amour hélas
Le temps passe
Mon amour hélas
Petite princesse
C'est pas l'heure de la grand-messe
Charmante hôtesse
Qu'as-tu fait de ta jeunesse?
Dans la Merco Benz
C'est de l'espoir que je caresse
Petite connasse
Pourquoi tu fais ta radasse
Petite pétasse
Qui montre rien en surface
Qui veut qu'on l'embrasse encore
L'embrasse encore
Mon amour hélas
Le temps passe
Le temps passe
Mon amour hélas
Mon amour hélas
Le temps passe
Dans la Merco Benz
Ma beauté, ma promesse
Ma petite faiblesse
Ma plus belle histoire de fesses
Dans ma mercedes
C'est de l'espoir que je caresse
Souvenir suprême de mon plus beau problème
Dans ton abdomen, tout nouveau spécimen
Joue à la crème
C'est de l'espoir que je promène
Mon amour hélas
Le temps passe
Mon amour hélas
Petite princesse
C'est pas l'heure de la grand-messe
Charmante hôtesse
Qu'as-tu fait de ta jeunesse?
Dans la Merco Benz
C'est de l'espoir que je caresse
Petite connasse
Pourquoi tu fais ta radasse
Petite pétasse
Qui montre rien en surface
Qui veut qu'on l'embrasse encore
L'embrasse encore
Mon amour hélas
Le temps passe
Le temps passe
Mon amour hélas
Mon amour hélas
Le temps passe
Dans la Merco Benz
Oct 30, 2007
Tequila!!!
Ta da, ta ta ta da da... tequila!!!!
... I am not sure if it's the The Champs or the Los Lobos version but that's fiiiiine... :P
Thanks to Pablo F. for reminding me of what to look for and cheering my afternoon up a bit! (even I notice that I am lately regularly in need of being cheered up, some things just are not the same since I got back from Lyon)
And now something a little bit more more texmex:
... it's taken from Feast of Wire, but the single was the this one (if it wasn't... it should have been):
n.-
... I am not sure if it's the The Champs or the Los Lobos version but that's fiiiiine... :P
Thanks to Pablo F. for reminding me of what to look for and cheering my afternoon up a bit! (even I notice that I am lately regularly in need of being cheered up, some things just are not the same since I got back from Lyon)
And now something a little bit more more texmex:
... it's taken from Feast of Wire, but the single was the this one (if it wasn't... it should have been):
n.-
Oct 29, 2007
open a can of laughs
Some folks have the natural talent with a small amount of words to cause a huge amount of laughs (ie. mine) anywhere I could be reading their shit. Some precious examples I got for now are portuguese:
- souburro.blogspot.com (headshot with almost every post)
- axpegix.blogspot.com
- a casa do maluco
- exactamente (thanks Mary Jane)
- and last but not least sopanobide (where I got some of'em from)
cya,
the-n-that-wishes-he-would-be-funnier
Oct 24, 2007
Ladies enjoy Lederhosen (some say...)
The MTV EMA 2007 are held in Munich and their poster is just soooo Munich!
Believe it or not, Snoop Dogg, is NOT the only black dude with Lederhosen! Ozzie, my friend the tour guide also has the major bavarian look and gets some serious glaring eyes around here!
Well, some guys just look good in leather!
n.-
Oct 22, 2007
sin and enjoy
Music
Jes** Christ, I sinned!
The latest 50Cent single (Ayo Technology) is killing me in the best way possible. The high-tech video adds quality to the tune. I admit (for a log while now), I am less of a snob music appreciator than I act like. I look at my library and I see Timberlake, Gwen, some HipHop... I used to be an Eminem fan and still think Britney's Toxic is just too good.
Another Wow, Kenya's Stronger's video is... aweeee.... just... a beautifully mashed "Akira-Daft Punk-Tron-cyberpunk-manga" video. Let me keep a link to story of its making. The song is pretty good too!
Travel
Another weekend came and went, it rushed by like a warm and fast imaginary southern wind. Lyon was cold, not as cold as Munich, but enough to make us (me and the over-french-sweet Marie) shiver more than once. The City is really gorgeous and again more time (on another trip) is needed to see and live more of the place. Traversed by 2 rivers, there is an "almost-island" (presqu'ile) in the middle. It's a good place to cross by foot. Food is excellent, french people are... french (I just love'em) and the city is bright, old and broad. Being in France, I saw the usual extra amount of cops and security folks everywhere and even got the chance to walk past a demonstration (they cultivate them like flowers).
Breathing from the whole ambiance and inspired by Marie's taste, I decided upon a new hair style... the scruffy hair-up mess. It could also be called... the pseudo-artist look.
For real, I will keep the memories and what I felt during those 3 days for ever. I was cracking and enjoying every damn single moment of it. You got a special place in me Marie!
Looks like CS is saving our ass and Bron has got a place for us in Brunei! We shall not stay long at that guy's place but at least we have a little base to start from.
I am so eager to leave for 2 months. Travel with friends, see a whole new continent and country, meet new people... but then very nervous about leaving my appartment, afraid of forgetting to deal with a little bureaucratic detail, afraid that someone I rent this place to does some stupid shit.
My excellent experiences have effectively been possible because of the people I meet, or better, I am introduced to.
Not being the very outward talking guy I would not just go to someone and chit-chat. I'd rather meet friends of friends. If not through friends then through opportunities like CS meetings or even CS itself. I admit it is a capacity I lack, the one to just talk up to folks, but I have not been able to overcome it, sorry.
I wish, but I don't believe that this great upcoming trip will be much different from any previous one. I already know some folks in Aussie-land, in Perth at least, and will rely on them to expand the mesh of my very fresh and ephemeral network.
Sometimes I ask myself, if I was really in a really lonely situation, would I change my behavior? Rewinding the 2 last years back, I reckon I won friends by establishing connections after having them introduced to me. From Susan, my crazy landlady, to Hazel, to Babsi, Manu, Couchsurfing, Ilka, Bron, Beth...
Coming to think of it, the only person I know from 1st contact is Barth, the groovy french dude I met at the LCD Soundsystem concert.
Oh well, I will survive. If I wouldn't, I would not be here now.
Ina Marie, my current CSer went out to visit a room to rent. A very friendly girl, she's been quite busy for the last 2 nights looking for a place to stay for her 6-month internship!
I'm feeling a very happy bunny (booooooooooooooring I know). I'll keep on remembering last weekend for a while (it's amazing the things a girl can do). The Little Miss Sunshine OST is playing in the stereo and I got back home with my hair cut.
I'll try not to be a night-owl tonight, I'll just check out the anime Whisper of the heart (Mimi Wo Sumaseba) and try to find out why it has such a high quality rating.
Allez hop, posting, closing and putting the blasted computer to sleep.
n.-
Jes** Christ, I sinned!
The latest 50Cent single (Ayo Technology) is killing me in the best way possible. The high-tech video adds quality to the tune. I admit (for a log while now), I am less of a snob music appreciator than I act like. I look at my library and I see Timberlake, Gwen, some HipHop... I used to be an Eminem fan and still think Britney's Toxic is just too good.
Another Wow, Kenya's Stronger's video is... aweeee.... just... a beautifully mashed "Akira-Daft Punk-Tron-cyberpunk-manga" video. Let me keep a link to story of its making. The song is pretty good too!
Travel
Another weekend came and went, it rushed by like a warm and fast imaginary southern wind. Lyon was cold, not as cold as Munich, but enough to make us (me and the over-french-sweet Marie) shiver more than once. The City is really gorgeous and again more time (on another trip) is needed to see and live more of the place. Traversed by 2 rivers, there is an "almost-island" (presqu'ile) in the middle. It's a good place to cross by foot. Food is excellent, french people are... french (I just love'em) and the city is bright, old and broad. Being in France, I saw the usual extra amount of cops and security folks everywhere and even got the chance to walk past a demonstration (they cultivate them like flowers).
Breathing from the whole ambiance and inspired by Marie's taste, I decided upon a new hair style... the scruffy hair-up mess. It could also be called... the pseudo-artist look.
For real, I will keep the memories and what I felt during those 3 days for ever. I was cracking and enjoying every damn single moment of it. You got a special place in me Marie!
Looks like CS is saving our ass and Bron has got a place for us in Brunei! We shall not stay long at that guy's place but at least we have a little base to start from.
I am so eager to leave for 2 months. Travel with friends, see a whole new continent and country, meet new people... but then very nervous about leaving my appartment, afraid of forgetting to deal with a little bureaucratic detail, afraid that someone I rent this place to does some stupid shit.
My excellent experiences have effectively been possible because of the people I meet, or better, I am introduced to.
Not being the very outward talking guy I would not just go to someone and chit-chat. I'd rather meet friends of friends. If not through friends then through opportunities like CS meetings or even CS itself. I admit it is a capacity I lack, the one to just talk up to folks, but I have not been able to overcome it, sorry.
I wish, but I don't believe that this great upcoming trip will be much different from any previous one. I already know some folks in Aussie-land, in Perth at least, and will rely on them to expand the mesh of my very fresh and ephemeral network.
Sometimes I ask myself, if I was really in a really lonely situation, would I change my behavior? Rewinding the 2 last years back, I reckon I won friends by establishing connections after having them introduced to me. From Susan, my crazy landlady, to Hazel, to Babsi, Manu, Couchsurfing, Ilka, Bron, Beth...
Coming to think of it, the only person I know from 1st contact is Barth, the groovy french dude I met at the LCD Soundsystem concert.
Oh well, I will survive. If I wouldn't, I would not be here now.
Ina Marie, my current CSer went out to visit a room to rent. A very friendly girl, she's been quite busy for the last 2 nights looking for a place to stay for her 6-month internship!
I'm feeling a very happy bunny (booooooooooooooring I know). I'll keep on remembering last weekend for a while (it's amazing the things a girl can do). The Little Miss Sunshine OST is playing in the stereo and I got back home with my hair cut.
I'll try not to be a night-owl tonight, I'll just check out the anime Whisper of the heart (Mimi Wo Sumaseba) and try to find out why it has such a high quality rating.
Allez hop, posting, closing and putting the blasted computer to sleep.
n.-
Oct 17, 2007
stitch the world a little bit tighter
Australia
My big trip to Aussie-land is getting closer and closer, there are still so many (little) things left to do.
As a sidenote, it's really funny to see how people think we and Bron are a couple. We just get along really well, which does not mean we don't get pissed off at each other:) That situation type can be a fuck-blocker, but after clearing up that detail, the individual runways are back to a clear and open state.
Even with available places to stay, Couchsurfing and/or hostels are not out of the scheme, at all!!!
Before reaching Perth, we're staying 9 days in Brunei, which will be a great opportunity to get some tropical fun and organize a CS meeting with the half-dozen members living there!
Music
Radar was playing a decent musical choice this morning (quite usual for Lisbon's best radio station) but I am currently looking for a stream of Smashing Pumpkin's latest Zeitgeist.
Techie
Yoohooh!!!... MacOSX's Leopard is so much secure, or as we could call it "HOWTO: use long-worn keywords to fill out Security Bullshit Bingo". It's an effort anyway, I am not complaining. Let's just say that marketing people use whatever they can put their polished hands on to pack a webpage with juicy details.
Techie II
I can't stop looking at the OLPC XO laptop. There's a fun review (direct link: Geeksugar -> New York Times) from a well known tech reporter. Here's the video:
n.-
My big trip to Aussie-land is getting closer and closer, there are still so many (little) things left to do.
- Having somebody stay at my place (and pay the rent) while I am away would free me from that nasty bill - let the search begin!
- The last banking and legal details should be setup in order to not become an issue while I'm on the other side of the globe - It's awful to have so many dependencies...
As a sidenote, it's really funny to see how people think we and Bron are a couple. We just get along really well, which does not mean we don't get pissed off at each other:) That situation type can be a fuck-blocker, but after clearing up that detail, the individual runways are back to a clear and open state.
Even with available places to stay, Couchsurfing and/or hostels are not out of the scheme, at all!!!
Before reaching Perth, we're staying 9 days in Brunei, which will be a great opportunity to get some tropical fun and organize a CS meeting with the half-dozen members living there!
Music
Radar was playing a decent musical choice this morning (quite usual for Lisbon's best radio station) but I am currently looking for a stream of Smashing Pumpkin's latest Zeitgeist.
Techie
Yoohooh!!!... MacOSX's Leopard is so much secure, or as we could call it "HOWTO: use long-worn keywords to fill out Security Bullshit Bingo". It's an effort anyway, I am not complaining. Let's just say that marketing people use whatever they can put their polished hands on to pack a webpage with juicy details.
Techie II
I can't stop looking at the OLPC XO laptop. There's a fun review (direct link: Geeksugar -> New York Times) from a well known tech reporter. Here's the video:
n.-
Oct 14, 2007
It's too positive to be true... but it is!
I woke up, identified the room and quickly jumped out of bed. I wasn't running away, but looking for my cellphone to check the time. One curse (because the blasted thing turned itself off again) and after a few seconds I notice I am kind of late. Well, not really, it's just that I am waking up 40mins past the target time.
After a quick brushup, a rapid packing of my stuff in my little travel case and there I go (after kissing Mary Jane goodbye) to catch my plane out of Lisbon.
Sitting in the cab, I am allowed to contemplate how happy and fulfilled I felt. The week I just spent in Lisbon was a blast, something to light fire to the love for this city. I can only confirm that it's due to what people brought to it. There is no way to feel how I did without having been with the friends I was with.
I want to thank them all, the whole time deeply marked my heart, I will keep those memories and eventually pick and appreciate single ones out of the collection of good times.
How fabulous can it just be to wake up on a sunny saturday and have a short coffee to then shortly after leaving home, have lunch at a nice restaurant on one of lisbon's hills. While we're sitting in the sun, having those glorious rays heat our faces, the flavours of the meal flourishing in our mouths, the very enjoyable company keeping the mood up and the view over the city with the river constantly attracting and distracting.
Right after that, a coffee with another glorious sight over the city, almost as if there is nothing else to appreciate that day... but there is, we just did not want to take much more, what we had was already so good and enough.
The day continues until the night takes its place, which then goes on until we get back home at the very common 2, 3 or 4 o'clock (I don't remember) in the morning.
Describing the initial part of the week would take ages. It was an all Portugal-dedicated time, made out of the city, food, drinks, friends, the sea and sun. I haven'd had an all-positive week for a long time. How often can I say that? How often can anybody say that? It was almost a vacation week, but not all only free time and fun. Taking care of 12 people does have its challenges:)
My return back home to Munich was spent as I expected, sleeping for 3hrs in the plane (have I mentioned that I HATE flying alone?). Another 3 hours after arriving and sorting my things out at home, there I was (again) on the Wies'n (Oktoberfest) for a last drink at the last day of the festival. I was glad that this event came to an end.
The following day, a new week started, this one would have as an interlude a little trip to Berlin. I do not know what is going on, but in those 2 days and 1 night I was charmed and amazed!
Sidenote: Work went perfectly well (despite only sleeping 2 hours before flying there in the morning) and I met a great girl from work. We immediately clicked and I will keep take care of keeping in touch with her. I reckon this is how friendships or at least good relationships are built.
In a 2-week period, I fell in love with a second city! This was my second time ever and my eyes could not believe what I just missed during the first visit.
The buildings, the colors, people (girls) on the street, well, the whole feeling, the mood made me feel at home. I took great joy during this little time up there (it's "only" 600kms away from Munich) visiting a good friend of mine that I already hosted twice. Could it have been the mild/cold temperature, the autumn-ish colours, the nostalgia of people saying goodbye to the summer?
It hit me so much that I would consider moving up there. Not just for the kicks, but at this moment, and again in my life, I have not much holding me back except for friends.
Again, this year has been my CouchSurfing year during which I met fabulous souls. Susi was the most superb host and she set me the hospitality bar pretty high! I learned that after a long night having (red) wine (and excellent italian food), Grappa is NOT welcome:S
This week will be shorter, I am taking a couple of days off to visit a friend from France I made while hosting. A long time has passed since my last art classes and I am taking my markers with me and practice some more on ourselves.
I am Ice-man, a man who can freeze his heart stone cold and burry it very deep out of reach of anybody. I feel so good lately, people and simple things have contributed to this warming up. At this moment, it's out of the box, thumping and thawing. I am hoping for the winter coldness to just freeze my nosetip and nothing else, I am enjoying myself too much, I have the feeling that some untold promises are looking around the corner (not trying to be optimistic, just keeping on wishing and trying to stay normal).
n.-
PS: again, Zero7 is a great soundtrack to finish the weekend under a dim light.
After a quick brushup, a rapid packing of my stuff in my little travel case and there I go (after kissing Mary Jane goodbye) to catch my plane out of Lisbon.
Sitting in the cab, I am allowed to contemplate how happy and fulfilled I felt. The week I just spent in Lisbon was a blast, something to light fire to the love for this city. I can only confirm that it's due to what people brought to it. There is no way to feel how I did without having been with the friends I was with.
I want to thank them all, the whole time deeply marked my heart, I will keep those memories and eventually pick and appreciate single ones out of the collection of good times.
How fabulous can it just be to wake up on a sunny saturday and have a short coffee to then shortly after leaving home, have lunch at a nice restaurant on one of lisbon's hills. While we're sitting in the sun, having those glorious rays heat our faces, the flavours of the meal flourishing in our mouths, the very enjoyable company keeping the mood up and the view over the city with the river constantly attracting and distracting.
Right after that, a coffee with another glorious sight over the city, almost as if there is nothing else to appreciate that day... but there is, we just did not want to take much more, what we had was already so good and enough.
The day continues until the night takes its place, which then goes on until we get back home at the very common 2, 3 or 4 o'clock (I don't remember) in the morning.
Describing the initial part of the week would take ages. It was an all Portugal-dedicated time, made out of the city, food, drinks, friends, the sea and sun. I haven'd had an all-positive week for a long time. How often can I say that? How often can anybody say that? It was almost a vacation week, but not all only free time and fun. Taking care of 12 people does have its challenges:)
My return back home to Munich was spent as I expected, sleeping for 3hrs in the plane (have I mentioned that I HATE flying alone?). Another 3 hours after arriving and sorting my things out at home, there I was (again) on the Wies'n (Oktoberfest) for a last drink at the last day of the festival. I was glad that this event came to an end.
The following day, a new week started, this one would have as an interlude a little trip to Berlin. I do not know what is going on, but in those 2 days and 1 night I was charmed and amazed!
Sidenote: Work went perfectly well (despite only sleeping 2 hours before flying there in the morning) and I met a great girl from work. We immediately clicked and I will keep take care of keeping in touch with her. I reckon this is how friendships or at least good relationships are built.
In a 2-week period, I fell in love with a second city! This was my second time ever and my eyes could not believe what I just missed during the first visit.
The buildings, the colors, people (girls) on the street, well, the whole feeling, the mood made me feel at home. I took great joy during this little time up there (it's "only" 600kms away from Munich) visiting a good friend of mine that I already hosted twice. Could it have been the mild/cold temperature, the autumn-ish colours, the nostalgia of people saying goodbye to the summer?
It hit me so much that I would consider moving up there. Not just for the kicks, but at this moment, and again in my life, I have not much holding me back except for friends.
Again, this year has been my CouchSurfing year during which I met fabulous souls. Susi was the most superb host and she set me the hospitality bar pretty high! I learned that after a long night having (red) wine (and excellent italian food), Grappa is NOT welcome:S
This week will be shorter, I am taking a couple of days off to visit a friend from France I made while hosting. A long time has passed since my last art classes and I am taking my markers with me and practice some more on ourselves.
I am Ice-man, a man who can freeze his heart stone cold and burry it very deep out of reach of anybody. I feel so good lately, people and simple things have contributed to this warming up. At this moment, it's out of the box, thumping and thawing. I am hoping for the winter coldness to just freeze my nosetip and nothing else, I am enjoying myself too much, I have the feeling that some untold promises are looking around the corner (not trying to be optimistic, just keeping on wishing and trying to stay normal).
n.-
PS: again, Zero7 is a great soundtrack to finish the weekend under a dim light.
Oct 9, 2007
I really need to swipe the dust away
Several things are in my head but not in an orderly way, all perfectly stored and organized in a nice shelf. No! They're spinning around like the neutrons and electrons around an atom.
First, I want/need to update my blog, blow some dust away, open and polish it up.
Second, last week I had the best time in lisbon! There is no way I can forget it and the people I met.
Third, a header picture is needed... I am still looking out (when I remember) for a picture representing the theme I want it to have.
Forth, ...
This still is and will remain a blog with a very limited audience, basically only friends of mine know about it. But I know it's publicly posted on the internet, thus there are no restrictions to its access and theoretically the *whole* online community can view it. 99.99999% of the online community has more to do than to read my stuff, so I am pretty sure that the audience will keep on being the people I actually know/met.
If I am wrong, DO let me know!!
Pursuing to polishing up in a slightly geek way... Today I took a little moment to add a ClustrMaps map. While in the office, between effectively working and handling non-work related sites, this was a very short and simple project. (believe me, writing this post took a hell lot more time... sorry about that boss!)
I cannot handle the description of my week in lisbon as of now, my brain cells need to be whipped back in order and the slave master just happens to be on holiday. I will keep that for later on.
I will take this chance to add some items I got in touch with in the course of last week:
A big, big hug and a huge, huge kiss to Mary Jane.
over and out, I have work to do!
n.-
First, I want/need to update my blog, blow some dust away, open and polish it up.
Second, last week I had the best time in lisbon! There is no way I can forget it and the people I met.
Third, a header picture is needed... I am still looking out (when I remember) for a picture representing the theme I want it to have.
Forth, ...
This still is and will remain a blog with a very limited audience, basically only friends of mine know about it. But I know it's publicly posted on the internet, thus there are no restrictions to its access and theoretically the *whole* online community can view it. 99.99999% of the online community has more to do than to read my stuff, so I am pretty sure that the audience will keep on being the people I actually know/met.
If I am wrong, DO let me know!!
Pursuing to polishing up in a slightly geek way... Today I took a little moment to add a ClustrMaps map. While in the office, between effectively working and handling non-work related sites, this was a very short and simple project. (believe me, writing this post took a hell lot more time... sorry about that boss!)
I cannot handle the description of my week in lisbon as of now, my brain cells need to be whipped back in order and the slave master just happens to be on holiday. I will keep that for later on.
I will take this chance to add some items I got in touch with in the course of last week:
- part of the SugarInc website (quote: "Our vision is to be the definitive online media company for trendsetting, passionate women ages 18-44"), geeksugar.com is a very nice feminine way of being and behaving like a geek;
- the ultimate gossip perezhilton;
- Just like a memory of a moment I wish I experienced, David Fonseca (check out the "80's" song on his myspace) is playing on my radio, it's the "Our Heart Will Beat As One" album;
- (ADDED) Minuscule, the *funniest* mini-clips with 3d insects on real sceneries. Youtube for "minuscule" and choose "insect race";
A big, big hug and a huge, huge kiss to Mary Jane.
over and out, I have work to do!
n.-
Sep 25, 2007
music on the wire and through the air...
... or vice-versa.
- FIQL - (new) an online playlist site, upload a playlist and you can listen to the songs and watch the videos online (asx .b4s .m3u .pls .wpl .xml .xspf); (kudos to giavasan)
- Anywhere.FM - (new) upload music (iTunes only for now) and listen to it when you want to with the available player; (kudos to giavasan)
- last.FM - famous online radio site, similar to Pandora, it goes for music close to the preferred songs/artists (works with XBMC 2 too;));
- Pandora (US only) - the music genome project, a fabulous invention but with short legs now that they limited diffusion to US and Canada only (the Squeezebox streams from the user profile);
I'd like to evaluate them for personal purposes, but I am "stuck" on the bootlegs made available by the Smashing Pumpkins on their official website (1988-2007). (kudos to stereogum)
n.-
Sep 9, 2007
the techy challenge of checking how greener the grass is on the other side
I like to give back, to friends, non-friends, people I don't like and mainly people I like a lot. Love is the (only) one I have been failing to do so with.
(music) Artists are the valid targets of a payback too. I am a music downloader, I confess, but it's all in a try-before-you-by philosophy. I know people who (seem to) follow the same mind stream and thus deserve to get the best means to reach the music.
MySpace is excellent but you need to be online.
Triple J actually has some MP3s available, but they're all from aussie (new) bands (nothing wrong about that though).
Stereogum has regularly some good MP3's, considering it's an indie-oriented site, some of the tunes are quite... hum... alternative:p
So a combination of magazines and friends giving band names and/or track titles, myspace for an initial listening, allmusic to get a comprehensive discography/Bio, a decent p2p software and the seek&enjoy can start.
As some of my friends are (moving) into MacOS, my best source of songs, soulseek, does not seem so easy to setup, so today I found one and it worked really well, ssX (mind the subliminal message).
Download, install, setup and download. Bang, there you go!
I made a happy puppy out of my friend Bron. I know she spends money on artists and actually buys the albums of her favorite ones.
It's not that ethical to actually influence somebody into music downloading, but considering that she would get into it anyway, I prefer to supply her with decent and "safe" tools. Fuck emules, edonkeys and other kazaa-like shit, they're all only good to download viruses, not to forget the immense exposure to the public and supposed artist copyright protection organizations.
So we spend a couple of hours on my couch this morning, connecting her nifty MacBook to my home network and exchanging/learning stuff on MacOS.
A mental post-it to Mac obsessed:
(music) Artists are the valid targets of a payback too. I am a music downloader, I confess, but it's all in a try-before-you-by philosophy. I know people who (seem to) follow the same mind stream and thus deserve to get the best means to reach the music.
MySpace is excellent but you need to be online.
Triple J actually has some MP3s available, but they're all from aussie (new) bands (nothing wrong about that though).
Stereogum has regularly some good MP3's, considering it's an indie-oriented site, some of the tunes are quite... hum... alternative:p
So a combination of magazines and friends giving band names and/or track titles, myspace for an initial listening, allmusic to get a comprehensive discography/Bio, a decent p2p software and the seek&enjoy can start.
As some of my friends are (moving) into MacOS, my best source of songs, soulseek, does not seem so easy to setup, so today I found one and it worked really well, ssX (mind the subliminal message).
Download, install, setup and download. Bang, there you go!
I made a happy puppy out of my friend Bron. I know she spends money on artists and actually buys the albums of her favorite ones.
It's not that ethical to actually influence somebody into music downloading, but considering that she would get into it anyway, I prefer to supply her with decent and "safe" tools. Fuck emules, edonkeys and other kazaa-like shit, they're all only good to download viruses, not to forget the immense exposure to the public and supposed artist copyright protection organizations.
So we spend a couple of hours on my couch this morning, connecting her nifty MacBook to my home network and exchanging/learning stuff on MacOS.
A mental post-it to Mac obsessed:
- whoever gets an iJesus (aka iPhone) just because it's new (and promises to change the world), is definitely a religious zealot;
- never mind the bullocks, updating a new MacOS required 2 reboots;
- updating iTunes, now bundled with Quicktime, can involve reboots (on Windows) and a 30MB download each and every time; Don't get me wrong, the automatic detection of updates is a must and very welcome. I don't feel a false sense of security anymore, like Apple products are frequently supplied with;
enough for today's rants (while listening to Morphine on Radar)
n.
Sep 3, 2007
Monday recovery
I have a compelling need to tell the world when a moment of brilliant happiness tags my mood. It can be the most simple and ridiculous event where its simple share can be the most overrated testimony to the world.
It usually has no deep meaning at all. What does this mean? Or what can this mean?
Just that I can get satisfaction from very superficial moments. As superficial as it can be, it's still satisfaction.
Does it mean that the world (at least part of it that listens to me) cares about it? Not at all, it's only my satisfaction.
Does it mean I care about what I tell people? In some measure, yes, but then I forget to control myself:D
In the end, it was just about 2 links or better, an online resource, Radar and one song they were playing from The Gossip.
There, I said it and I can shut up again.
It usually has no deep meaning at all. What does this mean? Or what can this mean?
Just that I can get satisfaction from very superficial moments. As superficial as it can be, it's still satisfaction.
Does it mean that the world (at least part of it that listens to me) cares about it? Not at all, it's only my satisfaction.
Does it mean I care about what I tell people? In some measure, yes, but then I forget to control myself:D
In the end, it was just about 2 links or better, an online resource, Radar and one song they were playing from The Gossip.
There, I said it and I can shut up again.
Aug 29, 2007
project "Rock'n Roll in a pocket"
One little 1GB display-less MP3 player in a pocket. Two minimally decent earbuds(*) and 9hrs battery playtime.
The motto: deep down growling guitar suffering Rock'n Roll.
Which bands should be part of that Rock-Pot-In-A-Pocket? The nominees (on tuesday night at 00:30) are:
The motto: deep down growling guitar suffering Rock'n Roll.
Which bands should be part of that Rock-Pot-In-A-Pocket? The nominees (on tuesday night at 00:30) are:
- The Black Keys (thanks Harald)
- 22-20s
- Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
- Year Long Disaster (thanks Chris)
- ...
I'm not considering adding aussie bands like Wolfmother or The Datsuns; although the latter has one foot in the list and one out of it.
Such list will never finish, research and suggestions will make it bigger and better! Let the filling begin!
An evening trip on ShoutCast (using XBMC of course) or another online rock radio should help find out some heroes. A couple of friends, some wine or dope and "le tour est joué"...
* (fuck the iPod ones, they suck big time) a pair of Shure Sound Isolating Earphones would be sweet, but my money has right now another designated purpose. I'll stick to my SONY 25EUR in-ear buds for now.
Aug 27, 2007
Be creative or not...
I need something (or somebody) to bring me back to drawing/painting. I've been severing from a chronical lazyness!
I can't remember the last time I sketched something interesting:(
My last brightest moments were achieved on my boss' TabletPC and the Sketchbook Pro license I bought from eBay for 50% of the retail price. I used to carry the 3kg heavy laptop with me in the train back and forth from home to the office and would eventually open it and use the 20mins ride to sketch something. But then again, those were sketches and no real drawings.
I love concept design and there are some amazing online references out there. My favorite one, displaying Work-In-Progress and Finished art is Sijun. Another good place to spot what "famous" artists are doing around the world is ConceptArt.Org.
Some of (almost all) those artists have their own site and some of them have some tuition videos, being the most famous (and probably the best) ones those from Gnomon School of Visual Effects (located in Hollywood) and their Workshop department.
They have the most amazing DVDs, Scott Robertson and Feng Zhu are among my favourite teaching artists.
Hazel has some references to some Graphic Competitions and one looked particularly interesting:
I can't remember the last time I sketched something interesting:(
My last brightest moments were achieved on my boss' TabletPC and the Sketchbook Pro license I bought from eBay for 50% of the retail price. I used to carry the 3kg heavy laptop with me in the train back and forth from home to the office and would eventually open it and use the 20mins ride to sketch something. But then again, those were sketches and no real drawings.
I love concept design and there are some amazing online references out there. My favorite one, displaying Work-In-Progress and Finished art is Sijun. Another good place to spot what "famous" artists are doing around the world is ConceptArt.Org.
Some of (almost all) those artists have their own site and some of them have some tuition videos, being the most famous (and probably the best) ones those from Gnomon School of Visual Effects (located in Hollywood) and their Workshop department.
They have the most amazing DVDs, Scott Robertson and Feng Zhu are among my favourite teaching artists.
Hazel has some references to some Graphic Competitions and one looked particularly interesting:
- Mumendi (Mexican Museum of Design) International Poster Contest
- http://www.graphiccompetitions.com/
... a bit too short-termed I guess for the speed I have been doing things:P
I also have some in-job graphical challenges, I am on the process of creating a logo for a joint-team, the result from joining ours and another team. Fact is, ours has a logo and the other needs one.
It's funny, I do not consider myself that creative and still I am along with another fellow the most creative from the team. So much for creativity amongst ITs:)
The challenge here is also to use the tools made available, namely Microsoft's Expression Suite. In this case, only using Expression Design. There are some very sweet features in it!
(UPDATE) I need to get some new T-shirts:
yours truly (... not creative)
Aug 23, 2007
A day picking up daisies
I passed my CompTIA Security+ exam today.
It was so easy that I got scared and actually thought I would not pass! I wasn't really feeling like being challenged or anything. It took me 1hr to answer all 100 questions and do a brief review.
I am in a very happy mood and the success at the exam is a major contribution. After postponing it once, I was determined to take the exam today and not delay it any more. Every scheduled/obligatory element I have on my agenda is such a weigh on my mind. Gradually relieving myself from those weights puts me in a *very very* positive mood. It's like dropping a giant boulder from my back.
Speaking of boulders, I just reminded I need to find Boulder Dash for my PocketPC! It was THE coolest game on C64! (yes, it's my geek side talking)
Being in such a happy mood, I took a stroll on the internet and collected some nice daisies.
It was so easy that I got scared and actually thought I would not pass! I wasn't really feeling like being challenged or anything. It took me 1hr to answer all 100 questions and do a brief review.
I am in a very happy mood and the success at the exam is a major contribution. After postponing it once, I was determined to take the exam today and not delay it any more. Every scheduled/obligatory element I have on my agenda is such a weigh on my mind. Gradually relieving myself from those weights puts me in a *very very* positive mood. It's like dropping a giant boulder from my back.
Speaking of boulders, I just reminded I need to find Boulder Dash for my PocketPC! It was THE coolest game on C64! (yes, it's my geek side talking)
Being in such a happy mood, I took a stroll on the internet and collected some nice daisies.
Dan's building a home server, so I recommended him to make a NAS out of it and proposed FreeNAS;
- According to the description, this 36MB large package does just what one needs and its FreeBSD distro can surely be completed with some more features;
- SMB, NFS, Live boot, RAID, web admin console => major coolness!
- bundle (if possible) mt-daapd to it and you got your music library streaming to iTunes;
- there are other free media streaming software solutions (GNU, linux), a couple of searches and you're there.
UPDATE: This guy built a NAS based on Ubuntu and a series of other server-related apps, nifty stuff!
Hak.5 is a mediatic (australian?) hacker/modder group that regularly make some nifty videos (podcasts) covering themes like :
- hacking iPods to install linux on it;
- setup a computer with FreeNAS;
sidenote: They like a little bit too much to whack MS Windows, but that's almost expected from a group of linux loving hackers/modders (more on that in another post).
There are a couple of very good radios out there and I've not been able to play their online streams on XBMC. Today I found out what I was doing wrong and I will try the solution as soon as I am at home:)
- Radar Lisboa - Probably the best alternative radio in lisbon (stream)
- FM4 - the best alternative radio around here, it's broadcast from austria (stream)
- Triple j - I was told it's the best (publicly funded) australian radio (stream)
- m94.5 - the alternative station in and from Munich (stream)
The same goes for online streaming videos. There's a script that (seemingly) allows XBMC to browse the very complete http://www.tv-links.co.uk/. There are other similar sites of joyful time wasting, although I do not know if there are XBMC scripts for them. Anyway, any web browser should be able to make anyone enjoy them:
UPDATE: tv-links.co.uk on my XBox (XBMC) kicks MAJOR ass! From Japanorama to The Simpsons, passing by Afro Samurai, it's just plain fu**in' amazing to watch stuff on my TV without any computer or tv or satellite connection. (requirements: XBMC/XBox and a fast internet connection)Today, I'll be welcoming a couple of australian CSers and will try to go out and have a nice steak or sausage chomp! Let's see where we land.
My geek side will definitely want to setup the different online streams this evening:)
Aug 7, 2007
Techy's in the house!
This is how I cooked myself a little music/movie player based on the following hardware pieces:
- Network Attached Storage (NAS), 1 of 2 slots with a 320GB hdd (for now);
- modded XBox 1 with XBox Media Center 2.0 (XBMC), free Open Source application
- Stereo
- small 7'' LCD (a TV is optional but recommended for movies:))
A NAS is basically a computer-in-a-box with a hard disk which allows to store and share files.
The XBox is an old one where I added a chip (without having to solder it) which then allowed me to add a smaller hard disk and use an alternative software, XBMC.
XBMC is the best multimedia player for the XBox, it plays music from all formats known to me, including online Shoutcast streams, all movie formats...
I use one XBox controller to handle the interface and the small LCD to display it. This allows me not to use a full-blown power-consuming TV.
XBox is connected to my Stereo on the AUX input.
- My home network connects computers, NAS, Xbox to themselves and the internet;
- I store my MP3s, AVIs, MOVs, etc... on the NAS;
- I turn XBox, LCD and Stereo on;
- XBMC is displayed on the LCD, I control it with a game controller and the sound comes out on the Stereo;
Extra notes:
- If I want to watch movies on a bigger screen, I just turn off the LCD, and plug the video RCA cable to the TV and turn it on;
- The best party music mode is to just select an adequate Shoutcast stream and let it play all night (either BIGUPRADIO for Dub or Boulevardurock.net for indie);
- It's also possible to control XBMC from a computer through a web page with XBMCAJAX (only works decently with Firefox though);
I would love to get a device like the SlimDevice's Squeezebox, which would replace the XBox, but it's DAMN EXPENSIVE, 350EUR for the wireless version and 300EUR for the wired one. The major problem is that the online radio Pandora is not available outside of U.S.A. anymore and guess what online radio the Squeezebox connects to!
Pinnacle has the Soundbridge M1001 (also called Roku Soundbridge), which is cheaper and looks good enough (to please me), and recently the wireless module also supports WPA encryption:D Here's a review.
I am not terribly geeky, but with the amount of media one can store and listen to, why not make life easier and set such an environment. I just LOVE the feeling of arriving home, opening the door and having music playing! And for barely 170EUR, it looks more and more appetizing.
More about QNAP, iTunes server, Yamaha E810, XBMC, wireless music another time...
Cheers,
norbs
Aug 6, 2007
Tous les garçons et les filles de mon âge
... se promenent dans la rue deux par deux.
Those were the times of fabulously tender and also exciting music...
The german record company Panatomic, tied to the very cool Atomic Cafe, releases the French Cuts samplers one, two and three, these babies are *packed* with good oldies!
I felt a sudden urge for a 50s french pop dance night. Didn't you?
norbe (à la française)
Those were the times of fabulously tender and also exciting music...
- Françoise Hardy - Tous les garçons et les filles
- Claude François
... great dancing, I WANT to do that!
- and another Claude Francois
The german record company Panatomic, tied to the very cool Atomic Cafe, releases the French Cuts samplers one, two and three, these babies are *packed* with good oldies!
I felt a sudden urge for a 50s french pop dance night. Didn't you?
norbe (à la française)
death and music
Even at work, I use the blog format to keep links of stuff I like, without having to use locally saved Bookmarks.
I saw Death Proof yesterday evening. No comments about the movie, go watch it yourself. The soundtrack deserves a note, a special mention to the closing score even:
I saw Death Proof yesterday evening. No comments about the movie, go watch it yourself. The soundtrack deserves a note, a special mention to the closing score even:
- April March - Chick Habit
The original tune is french, written by Serge Gainsbourg and interpreted by
- France Gall - "Laisse tomber les filles"
The movie's soundtrack is definitely a must-have!
Reference: http://www.aprilmarch.com/
Jul 31, 2007
disclaimer and intentions
First and foremost, any of my personal oppinions are as such, personal and thus do not represent any other entity's (being it corporate, or governmental) view on a specific theme.
I needed an easy place to put down some of the things I've done or that happened to me.
From all other resources like Facebook, Myspace, Spaces.MSN, getjealous, I picked Blogger, easy does it.
It will be tied to my shared Google calendar, a place where I put in the concerts I'd like to attend.
I do not really expect people to read my stuff, it's more about putting my stuff down in an easy-to-reach spot.
I should write about music, friends, hosting, life of an expat, technology applied to these topics, ...
cheers and prost,
norbs
I needed an easy place to put down some of the things I've done or that happened to me.
From all other resources like Facebook, Myspace, Spaces.MSN, getjealous, I picked Blogger, easy does it.
It will be tied to my shared Google calendar, a place where I put in the concerts I'd like to attend.
I do not really expect people to read my stuff, it's more about putting my stuff down in an easy-to-reach spot.
I should write about music, friends, hosting, life of an expat, technology applied to these topics, ...
cheers and prost,
norbs
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