Thursday, January 31, 2008

If you think you're smarter than a 5th grader

Then you should figure out how many 5-year-olds you could take out in a fight.

I'd finish off 17 before the rest gave me the ol' Glass Joe treatment.

• Posted by Brian at 8:18 PM
• Comments (9)
• Category: Random

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

My quest

I have discovered that transferring data between a Mac and a Garmin eTrex Vista is comparable to walking on the moon or scoring with Eva Longoria in three ways:

• It is very difficult - but not impossible - to accomplish.

• Only a handful of lucky souls have ever done so.

• Even if one succeeds, few believe the tale.

Back to the task at hand, there are two obstacles one must overcome:

1. Finding a serial to USB connector that actually works. I first tried a generic one I got on eBay. It didn't work, but considering my $1.99 winning bid, I wasn't terribly surprised. I purchased the second - from usually reliable Belkin - because it featured the happy little "Mac compatible" face on the package. And it is Mac-compatible. With OS9, which I haven't used since early 2002. Maybe the forthcoming Keyspan adapter will do the trick.

2. Finding software that actually works. I think I found a serviceable app in GPS Babel, but I'm still blocked by reason #1.

I am aware that neither of these would be an obstacle if I simply plugged into a PC. However, doing so would equate failure, and I will not settle for that. Did Armstrong and Aldrin settle for simply orbiting the moon? Of course not. Did Tony Parker settle for one of the lesser Desperate Housewives? Hell, no!

So it will be with my quest. I will prevail or perish in the attempt.

• Posted by Brian at 9:16 PM
• Comments (1)
• Category: Tech/Geek

Thursday, January 24, 2008

He's in presidential candidate heaven now

Best quote I've ever heard about Dennis Kucinich was uttered today by a copy editor: "He's like Harvard. It's nice to dream but you gotta pick someone as your Cal State-Long Beach too."

And on a completely unrelated note, the actor who plays Kenneth the NBC page is not only the best thing about "30 Rock," but eventually he'll look a hell of a lot like John Edwards.

• Posted by Brian at 9:11 PM
• Comments (0)
• Category: Politics

Monday, January 21, 2008

The list is out

My first reaction to the 2008 Coachella lineup announced today was "Eh."

Two headliners (Jack Johnson and Portishead) don't appeal to me at all, and the third (Roger Waters playing "Dark Side of the Moon" in its entirety) is novel in the out-of-left-field sort of way, but not terribly exciting to me. At least these headliners should ensure a much more relaxed vibe than 2007's testosterone-fest of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Rage Against the Machine. (As a side note, the only band name my dad recalls from when I was in high school is the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He therefore mistakenly believes Flea & Co. is still my favorite band.)

Unlike last year, when the Decemberists played, there was no band on there I was giddy with excitement to see. Sure, there's the Breeders (even though I think they're sober now) and Death Cab For Cutie. And when the Black Kids offered their songs free online, I dug them quite a bit.

But as I look over the lineup again, I find that I've heard of some of these bands but never actually heard them. There's a bunch more that are completely foreign to me, and now I have to listen to them to figure out who I want to see. And that is the best thing about Coachella: finding the new gems to plug into the ol' iPod. Well, that and the fact that I get to go because of work.

• Posted by Brian at 10:56 PM
• Comments (4)
• Category: Music/Movies/TV

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

The cure for procrastination

There was a yellow box of some kind in the middle of Indian Canyon Drive on Sunday night, and I hit it square with my front left tire. Almost immediately, the car began pulling left ever so slightly. "I'll go in Monday on my lunch break to have it checked out," I thought to myself at the time.

Fast forward to today - Wednesday - and as Debz and I were heading back from lunch, I said, "My car's still pulling left. I should get that looked at. I hit that thing pretty hard."

No more than two seconds later, I heard a hollow pop, followed by a telltale flapping as the car sunk slightly on the left side. I have no doubt that my car, tired of my empty promises to mend its ailing appendage, pulled the plug on the dying wheel to spur me into action. "Here we go again," the beleaguered Neon surely thought. "It's just like the time we skipped over two scheduled oil changes. I'm not putting up with that shit again."

The Neon, fresh from Midas with a new tire and realignment, is now resting comfortably in the garage. Although it's still friggin' filthy. I'll wash it this weekend...

• Posted by Brian at 10:37 PM
• Comments (0)
• Category: Random

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Know what really grinds my gears?

People who back into parking spaces.

I'll be more specific. People who back into parking spaces and take approximately 8-12 weeks to do so.

If you can back into a parking space in the same amount of time it takes an average driver to pull forward into one, have at it. More power to you. I've even met one. I've yet to meet the other. But if you're lining up for your 10th crack at backing in, don't get mad at me because I'm honking at you to get out of my way. Be ashamed of yourself for purchasing that tank of an SUV that probably would take you at least four tries to park forward successfully.

Why do you need to back in anyway? I can think of only one reason: you're robbing a bank and need to make a quick getaway. But if you're simply returning a movie to Blockbuster, and it takes you longer to reverse-maneuver your Honda than it took you to watch that copy of "Titanic," I have one word for you: Netflix. And get better taste in movies.

And that's what really grinds my gears. Back to you, Tom.

• Posted by Brian at 11:41 PM
• Comments (4)
• Category: Rant

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Oh-eight

In 2008, I resolve to give up cauliflower, horse tranquilizers and belching in public.

Unfortunately, these are three of the things that Debz finds particularly attractive about me. I hope our young marriage can survive this first crisis.

• Posted by Brian at 2:41 PM
• Comments (2)
• Category: Random