Global Warming is Here!

The Northern Hemisphere is warming up, on account of it being summer.

My mac is messing with me.

I fear for the health and safety of my data when I get error messages like this.

Smokin' Retro Fonts

Yes, today is one of those rare design topics. I stumbled upon this link today while trying to identify some old typefaces: Font Spotting the Thank You For Smoking Titles

The right typeface can tell a viewer quite a bit about the attitude of your design. When I am designing for myself or freelancing, I put a lot of emphasis on good typography. Often, type is the single most important element of a piece, and so you should choose your typefaces carefully. For those who may be curious, the font for my blog title is Rosewood Fill, and curiously enough, I have been seeing it everywhere lately. Want to see my latest discovery? Here it is: Gotham Bold (Looks best all caps.)

I'm Really A Democrat?

I guess this isn't really a surprise -- I think people should take care of each other, but not be forced to. I just wish I weren't in the same spot on the chart as Kerry. (Note: the important questions come AFTER the test.)
Take the test* (OKCupid.com)
*Warning: User-driven content: Possible objectionable material. (PG-13)

A Dinosaur Search

I wish them the best of luck, because the only thing cooler than dinosaurs is living dinosaurs.
Ninki-Nanka

Microsoft Fined By EU

According to BBC News, Microsoft has been fined 280.5m euros ($357m; £194m) by the European Commission for failing to comply with an anti-competition ruling. You read that right: anti-competition. For those of you not familiar with economic theory, Merriam-Webster defines competition in business as "the effort of two or more parties acting independently to secure the business of a third party by offering the most favorable terms." (source: Wikipedia) Competition is that device which keeps prices low and quality high, and is generally percieved as a good thing for consumers. However, the EU apparently doesn't think so, so they have fined (rather randomly, if you ask me) Microsoft for failing to comply with an order to reveal trade secrets about their operating system, Windows XP. I know Microsoft hasn't always been the nicest corporation in the world, but I think this ruling by the European Commission is ureasonable and stupid, and will lead to higher prices and lower quality for EU consumers.

Article

Trucks & Trailers

Why is this not televised worldwide?

A Busy Week Is Over

Last week was the busiest week of my life. Monday was Katie's high school graduation, Tuesday was Independence Day, Wednesday I worked overtime till 7:30 pm, Thursday was Joe & Rachael's wedding rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, Friday night was Juniors (as always), Saturday was worship practice at 10 am, wedding music practice at 11, wedding setup, the wedding at 1 pm, small reception following, and then the big reception from 6:30 to 10:30, and finally Sunday I was up at 7:30 for worship practice, then two Sunday morning services, then off to Geneseo to an airshow (very cool) then to a car show (also very cool) then to Abbott's for ice cream (poor girl working there was by herself) then to Beth & Adam's where I finally took a nap and ate hot dogs and watched TV. It was a fun week, and maybe I'll post some pictures, but I kept forgetting my camera everywhere I went so I only have pictures from Katie's party and Joe's wedding.

Some Sad News

I know I've been disappointed with the low horsepower and lack of options for the Acura RSX, but this isn't quite the solution I had in mind.
Acura discontinues RSX (Edmunds.com)

Dylan in Rochester?

That's right. THE Bob Dylan is coming to THE Rochester, NY in August. He and some other folks are touring the nation's minor league baseball fields, and we are fortunate enough to have one. Course, he can't sing, play, or write music anymore, but he's still Bob Dylan. Tickets go on sale at the Frontier Field box office on July 15, at 10:15 am. Anybody want to go with me?

A Strange Day

It is a strange day indeed that finds me listening to and immensely enjoying mariachi.

A New Post

I am alive, soon to be deadpan.

Photoshop Quits While Saving (OS 10.4.6)

This seems to have solved the problem so far.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=2292832#2292832

Of course, this is good fodder for another rant, but I'll save that for another time. Has anyone else out there had the same trouble? It must be widespread.

A Small Rave About a Musical Discovery

I'm not much of a "pop" person, and I get bored with the consistently anthemic pop sound of popular Christian music. However, I have to make an exception with Starfield's new release, "Beauty In The Broken".

I discovered Starfield a couple years ago when they did a cover of U2's "40" for the Africa benefit CD "In The Name Of Love", an album of U2 songs covered by different Christian artists. I'm a big U2 fan, but I still like their version better than the original. So when I saw they had a knew CD out, I decided to take a chance.

Since then I've become a fan. Their songs are loaded with "infectious hooks" and "soaring soundscapes". Lead singer Tim Neufeld can hit the high notes without sounding operatic or feminine, and the lyrics are original and uplifting, with relatively few worship clichés. (e.g. You are worthy of our praise, I lay down my life, etc.) Highlight tracks include The Hand That Holds The World, Captivate, Love Is The Reversal, Shipreck, and the rest of the songs on the CD. I highly recommend it. This band might could be huge.

A Small Rant About the Software Industry

Does this make any sense to anyone? How is the company that makes your operating system vulnerable to hackers going to make an anti-virus software package that's any more secure? (In other words, they want to charge you $50 a year to fix their mistakes.)

Not that Macs are much better. They are quite secure but yesterday alone several programs quit multiple times. Acrobat twice, Photoshop three times, Illustrator four times, FreeHand once, and I'm sure that if I was doing work with any other programs, they would've quit too.

A Small Rant About the Music Industry

So for the last few days, the top downloaded song on iTunes has been "Promiscuous" by Nelly Furtado and some guy called Timbaland. First of all, does anybody know what promiscuous means? (Hint: not a good thing.) Second of all, does it seem at all likely that the birth-control industry and the music industry have a synergistic relationship? Third of all, why are people buying songs they can hear on the radio every 45 minutes? Finally, am I the only one in the world who knows that Top 40 stations exist for the sole purpose of killing popular music by overplaying it so that new music can enter circulation?

Volkswagen vs. Lambourghini

Adrian showed this to me while I was in Florida.

Crosstown Traffic

Here's what it's like to drive with me. (Only one of these photos was taken while I was in motion.) The top two were taken during a park-your-vehicle-and-get-out-and-pick-some-wildflowers kind of traffic jam, between Montgomery and Birmingham, AL. The bottom left is Interstate 65 with Nashville in the background, and the dreary one on the bottom right is Cincinnatti, OH. And here's a helpful hint for driving on the Interstate: stay right except to pass, and if you must drive in the left lane, please try to go at least the speed limit! It's just common courtesy.

A Shorter Pensacola Beach

Photos of Pensacola Beach, taken on Thursday, May 11. Hurricane Ivan did a lot of damage to the Pensacola area, especially to the beach. Most of Santa Rosa Island is inaccessible by the main road, including Opal Beach. Something about the "Road Closed" sign is an appropriate symbol of the whole vacation experience. I had anticipated this trip for quite some time, but when it actually happened, it was different than I had planned. Fact is, I’m not a college student anymore, and neither are any of my “college buddies”. We are all getting older, moving away from that time and place. In thirty years, my most significant memories shared with college friends may not be of college at all. Maybe they’ll be of camping trips in the mountains, or days out on the lake, or family picnics in the backyard. The longer I live, the more I realize the future is a mystery I can’t predict with anything resembling accuracy, and the past is just that – the past, gone forever, but I still haven't learned how to truly appreciate the present.

Centennial Park

In Nashville's Centennial Park, there is a full-scale replica of the Parthenon of ancient Greece. Utmost attention has been paid to authenicity, including the signs warding off ancient trouble-making teenagers.