How Time Flies...

...when you're having sleeping problems. Howdy, intrepid standard readers. There is much to report and commentate upon:

• NYC: Went up to the big city to help VV and his blushing bride move into their new "flat" (or apartment) on the east side of the big island. Nice neighborhood and all, but I'd say that the place really needs more shelving. Yes, and more Ikea chairs which are deceptively difficult to put together. But, VV, that aero-bed was freakin' awesome. Additionally, ELV and I visited one of her old friends residing in Brooklyn. Good peoples.
• Thoughts about NYC: I have a theory that New York causes people to draw inward into themselves. Perhaps due to the constriction in space due to living in small spaces, walking on packed sidewalks, and standing in jammed subway cars, New Yorkers seem more self-involved (for lack of a better word, since I don't mean to say involved in a negative connotation). How does one keep their sanity in the crush of humanity? Answer - pop in the ear buds, pretend that no one else exists as you talk too loud into your cell phone, bumping into people and mutter death to those who cross your path. Then again, maybe I'm just a country bumpkin who just wants people to be a little nicer in the big apple.
• According to ELV, the cupcakes from that place featured in the "Lazy Sunday" video aren't really that crazy delicious.
• Why do my iPods break down do frequently? My current theory is that my car adaptor unit may be fluctuating, thus frying the hard drive (or at least giving it a solid tweak that makes iPod fritzy).
  
• The Tenacious D concert at the Patriot Center (D.C.) was fantastic. "Wait a minute, Chuck," I hear you saying, "aren't they a joke band? Isn't it a played out joke? How could it be a good show?" Well, dear reader, often times with rock concerts, I find myself a bit bored. There's nothing really to look at unless you like oogling band members, which doesn't happen unless I'm at a Metric show, and most bands just play their songs with little to no banter, speeding through their set with about as much energy as Proust having a madeline. Yeah, excitement isn't hipster, but most hipsters tend to be boring schmucks who need to have their socks rocked off. The Tenacious D show featured most of the songs from the band's two full length releases, which if you are familiar with the songs you know that there's ample scatological and sophomoric humor. The magic of the show lies in other things: the musicianship of Kyle Gass' impressive acoustic solos, the collective skill of the backing band (Colonol Sanders on drums, Charlie Chaplin on bass, and the freaking' Antichrist on lead guitar who can shred), the set design featuring a replica of Gass' "duplex" and a stage setup of a hell bound rock band, complete with triple bass drum set on risers WITH a gong. The comedy between songs ranges from scripted banality to improvised genius, and Black fluctuates between outrageous over the top nonsense and complete heartfelt rock stardom. That's the beauty of the D; they are mocking their true love of metal. Its a mash note to Dio, Queen, the Who, and the Zep. In fact, the covers of Zep and Who, especially the incredible "Pinball Wizard" cover ending the show, demonstrated the hilarious seriousness that the D pours into their show. That love shines through, making the show both inspiring and entertaining. Best show of 2006.
• Poker home game note: spent a night fluctuating up and down, coming out a couple dollars short of even. Yeah, no big win, no big loss, just even. Here's a suggestion: if you've got a home game, don't be hard asses and institute casino rules. If the table is collecting a rake and you're serving unlimited drinks in scantily clad waitresses, then proceed with the rules about burn cards, money on table, and table talking. Otherwise, remember, its supposed to be a gathering of friends playing a damn game.
• This just in from the CBS morning show: "Sexual health is a part of general health." Thanks, Julie Chen.
• Music: apparently the Tom Waits album "Orphans" is quite good. I'll get a chance to listen to it soon and you'll read a report. Got the "Stranger than Fiction" soundtrack, and the album is pretty darn good. The Spoon contributions are excellent, and I'm glad I caught up with such an important footnote in one-hit wonders, Wreckless Eric's "Whole Wide World." DOWNLOAD THIS: Spoon "Book I Write"
• Got interested in science/technology postings on YouTube...here's the best of the lot I've found:
• Ever teacher/prof has had this fantasy. God, this is awesome!
• Some lucky SOB's seen this in real life (Vini sits back with a smug grin), but its beautiful.
• Speaking of Vini, old man DeBay would be interested in a 22 caliber disguised as a cell phone, right? Perfect for shooting rabid cats...
  
• This software is interesting, but the professor needs to jazz up his presentation skills. Maybe draw us Rube Goldberg contraption with your magic computer screen and then we'll freak out.
• Dopey Spanish television demonstration of a non-Newtonian fluid.
• The floating computer display screen is silly, since its basically a really expensive fog machine with a projector. However, when it is a interactive, touch screen fog machine, I'm more liable to wet myself.
• The damned Japanese get this kind of elevator display, and all we get in the states are pasty white boys wearing genius t-shirts.
  
• Those folks at Carneige Mellon have come up with software to convert 2D photos into three dimensional projections.
  
• Finally, there's a guy named Lasse Gjertsen who has done some interesting video editing projects. Here's my favorite two: Amateur and Hyperactive.

OK, that's enough of this.