http://www.communitymx.com/blog/?cat=9 Community MX Member Blog admin@communitymx.com en-us My Dad is a kid at heart. A big, six foot, three inch kid. At Christmas time it just gets worse, and my family loves him for it. When we were kids, my siblings and I would be awakened by our father by 5:30am at the latest. He'd be shouting "Ho Ho Ho!" walking up and down the hallways, making sure that everyone knew that he was awake and wanted to get to the festivities. He hasn't changed a bit in the last 40 years. I typically stay at Mom and Dad's place on Christmas eve, like I'll be doing again this year. My brother and my sisters arrive on Christmas morning, since they live close by. But even though we're all adults now, my Dad makes sure we get the same treatment we got as children. He'll wake me up with his bellowing "Ho Ho Ho!" after making sure that he's got some coffee apologetically brewing. After making fun of how hilariously groggy I look at 5:30 in the morning, he proceeds to call everyone in the family that hasn't arrived yet - which is pretty much everyone, since no one in my family sets their alarm on Christmas morning. Thanks to Dad, they don't need to. Everyone gets the familiar "Ho Ho Ho!" followed by something like "Santa ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=891 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=891 Mon, 24 Dec 2007 08:45:24 GMT I just completed a 9 day trek deep into the Sierra Nevada wilderness, where many interesting things may be seen. I'll spare you the usual tedious mountain peak shots and proceed directly to an amazing phenomenon rarely caught as an image. Below is a photograph of the elusive mountain ape in its natural surroundings (Evolution Lake in this case), where you can clearly see three prime specimens "displaying" for the females. What superb luck to witness it!   The females appear to be using body pigments of some kind (perhaps colored mud), revealing a hitherto unsuspected sophistication. Do the males wash off this pigment as part of the display? Alas, I arrived too late to view the early part of the ritual, and was soon compelled to retreat due to the risk of being discovered myself.Exhausted by the exertions of the trail and the giddy excitement of my discovery, I had to rest upon a high slab near Muir Pass. Next year I hope to return and learn more about these magnificent but endangered beasts. Until then...  ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=876 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=876 Wed, 15 Aug 2007 01:21:30 GMT Last year, I made a blog post here describing a certain holiday song/story that my brother and I used to listen to on a holiday album my mother used to have. The story was by Red Skelton and it was called "The Littlest Christmas Tree". Since that post last year, I have received so many personal e-mails and responses to my blog from people telling me how they too had listened to that story on that same album and how they thought they'd never be able to find it ever again. Needless to say, when I did my very thorough internet search last year for this Red Skelton story, I never thought I'd get the response that I have. Last year, I was just trying to find out if I could still purchase the story some where or if that old holiday album even existed any more. Apparently, the album has been re-recorded but the story has been left off. I found a lot of Red Skelton stuff - CDs and DVds but nothing that gave definitive proof whether this story was included on any of his collections. But I did find a web site that had a WAV file of the story. It was here: www.albertarose.org. If you go to my original blog, you can get the direct link from there. But what I thought I'd do this year... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=811 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=811 Sun, 24 Dec 2006 17:02:53 GMT Burnout is a very ugly thing. That's why I have taken the decision this summer to accompany my brother and his friends on their annual excursion into the high Sierra Nevada wilderness. It's really neat. 75 miles in 11 days, over hill and dale, flirting with hypoxia at 10000ft and above. Not to mention a planned 20 mile detour cross-country, if you can call a solid rock landscape above 11 grand a "country." At least there are glaciers and former glaciers (called "lakes") scattered about, to break up the rather intimidating mineral scenery. Of course, death marching isn't our only goal, there's eating too. A whopping 1500 calories a day! Yum. Also there's sleeping, one of my favorite things after a rousing day of death-marching in the statosphere. Technically it's called "comatosing," but that's a quibble. I suspect that after a day or so I will welcome the attentions of any bears that happen along, altho they may be put off by all that moaning and groaning. Still, the camera will be happy, and that what really matters, right? Heck, after a few days of far too few calories, those bears may have to look pretty sharp themselves. Even the marmots could be at risk. ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=726 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=726 Tue, 01 Aug 2006 19:53:58 GMT Well, what can you say? Another heartbreaking loss for the senior league in last night's All-star game. Brought back memories of two years or so ago when the National League had their best closer on the mound at the time - Eric Gagne - and he ended up blowing a save opportunity. I know a lot of people probably enjoy a higher scoring all-star game but last night was an enjoyable game to watch. At the same time though, it also proved to be exactly why I tend to dislike the American League so much. Last night proved exactly how meaningless the DH is - or, at least, how meaningless it SHOULD be. Big Pappi DH's because, apparently, he can't play defense yet he made a couple of outstanding fielding plays last night and, obviously, he played first base when the Red Sox beat the Cardinals in the World Series two years ago so why does he HAVE to be a DH? That's the thing I hate about the American League - and, with the American league winning the All-star game last night, the DH is going to again play a major advantage in the World Series this year since the American League will have, potentially, more games at home then the visiting National League team. The nice thing is that the Nati... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=720 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=720 Wed, 12 Jul 2006 14:55:23 GMT You would have thought no one ever saw someone eat 3 lbs. of crabs before... Hey folks... I've been back from TODCON almost a full day now (got back into Washington DC at 7:00pm last night). So I thought I'd give you a brief synopsis of my trip and what I did, what I thought and what I experienced the last couple of days at TODCON. Thursday (leaving for Orlando): My one big purchase for this trip was a Washington Nationals baseball jersey. I promised myself I wouldn't purchase any Nationals merchandise until Major League Baseball got their proverbial act together and named an owner and, since they did that two days before I had to leave, I was good to go with my capitalistic morals still intact. Got to the hotel a few hours earlier then everyone else, so I got my room and walked around the lobby where I ran into Ray and Danielle Mickey. So, we helped Ray set up the registration table with all the books, t-shirts and name tags for all the TODCON attendees. For the t-shirts, I PROMISE I'll put the t-shirt design up on my web site today or tomorrow (I swear!). While Danielle and I were organizing the name tags, I grabbed Tom Green's name tag and re-inserted the generi... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=705 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=705 Mon, 22 May 2006 16:03:36 GMT My sudden obsession with Callie (Sara Ramirez) First off, let me explain that one of the things my wife and I enjoy doing is talking about our "secret" celebrity crushes. She's never made it a secret how much she has the hubba-hubbas for a certain bald Starship Enterprise Captain (Patrick Stewart). And likewise, she's always known about my own hubba-hubbas for Stevie Nicks. But lately, a new celebrity crush has slowed entered my realm. A celebrity crush that appears (mostly) in the background of a certain Seattle Hospital ever Sunday night. I am, of course, talking about Sara Ramirez' character, Callie, from Gray's Anatomy. I have to admit though that I'm not a long time fan of the show. I only recently started watching it right after the Superbowl (The Bomb episode) but even then, I almost took an immediate fascination with the Callie character - the dark haired, big bodied beauty played by Sara Ramirez (Spamalot). And my fascination has only increased since then. I'm not sure exactly why I'm suddenly fascinated with Callie though. Maybe it's because I see so much of me and my wife in the George and Callie thing. My wife was Callie when I first met her in... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=704 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=704 Tue, 16 May 2006 21:59:02 GMT I am so fed up with snail mail junk mail I thought I'd have some fun. I recommend this for anyone who hates junk mail! Say you get two sets of junk mail, you know the ones they have pre-paid envelopes inside so you can get your "cost the earth" credit card or perhaps the latest kitchen... Here is what you do.... You put the kitchen blurb in the pre-paid credit card envelope and send it to the credit card company and then you put the credit card blurb in the kitchen company's envelope and send that to the kitchen company.. I'm sure you get the idea. It means that each has to pay to have a load of rubbish sent back to them, highly recommended and great fun! You never know, if enough people do it it might kill the junk mail altogether!... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=691 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=691 Thu, 20 Apr 2006 22:03:16 GMT As you can see from today's strip, I am indeed 39 today (March 21st). Thanks so much for all the kind birthday wishes and e-mails I've received so far. My mom and dad reminded me today that 39 years ago, it snowed in Virginia. That's funny because today - in Virginia - they are calling for snow. Maybe not much but it's still kind of a weird sign, huh? Especially given the fact that my birthday also fell on a Tuesday this year. :-) But anyway... just the other day, I bought Journey's live version of "Don't stop believing" from iTunes. And maybe the combination of my birthday and listening to that tune have put me in a bit of a reflective mood as I can't stop thinking about the fact that I never got the chance to see Journey live. I've seen a lot of great concerts live but every time I hear a Journey or The Cars on the radio or CD, I can't help but think "man, that would have been so cool to see them live just once"... you know, the big arena rock concerts... hearing the thunderous high pitched sounds of Steve Perry's voice mixed in with the great guitar and pounding piano and synthesizer sounds that were the signature of their Escape album... But ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=677 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=677 Tue, 21 Mar 2006 18:17:37 GMT Yes, it's finally happened. Someone thought I was worthy enough to be interviewed. That person is Dan Smith. Dan and I got to know each other from being members in Webweavers - a Google Group e-mail list for everything related to web designing (and ruled with an iron maiden thumb by our very own Stef! LOL!). Anyway, Dan hosts and creates audio interviews on his blog. He thought it would be interesting to let people know what I sound like and had the crazy notion others might be interested in hearing what my thoughts were on the wide variety of topics we discussed. It took a while to get all the logistics worked out, but you can finally hear our interview today. The interview consists of a wide range of topics such as how I got into web design, information about the two books I helped write with Tom Green, the 'Bots autistic benefit book I participated in (and wrote a blog about not too long ago) as well as some of my thoughts about web comic strips - including CMX Suite! - and a whole bunch of other stuff! So if you're interested in hearing what I sound like, now your curiosity can be appeased. :-) - Chris ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=669 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=669 Fri, 24 Feb 2006 15:51:18 GMT I just thought I'd mention that the stylized self-portrait of myself in the second panel of today's CMX Suite strip ("The CMX Zone") was done entirely on a Wacom tablet. I've been reluctant to use a Wacom tablet because, in the past, the Wacom tablet and I have pretty much had a hate-hate relationship. But I was pretty pleased with the outcome of this particular illustration. It is, by far, the best Wacom tablet illustration I've ever done thus far. I think the biggest reason that might be is because, in the past, I had always used Photoshop when practicing and doodling with the Wacom. But this time, I decided to see what would happen if I used Freehand. For me, personally, I had found using Photoshop and the Wacom together was very frustrating. I found I had trouble controlling the line width of whatever I was trying to draw. Lines didn't stop or end where I thought they would. I'd end up getting big "paint blobs" when I pressed too hard on the pen. For the most part though, I still couldn't grasp what made the Wacom so "special"... I was finding that it would usually take me two or three times longer to draw something using the Wacom... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=657 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=657 Tue, 31 Jan 2006 12:45:11 GMT It's the little things that get you. The day started normally, as I arose to go fetch a load of horse dung (from a friend who owns several of the big guys), for use in this spring's garden. The air was crisp, the sun was shining low, and all was right with the world. I arrived on time, and Les was inside his house practicing on his saxaphone. We both play in the same band. Les is so experienced that he sometimes serves as director, and a hard taskmaster he is. Knock knock, and he comes out, insisting on helping me bag. What a guy. We got straight to work, and commenced to engage in deep intellectual discussions, whilst scraping up the stuff not mentioned in those exciting western epics. The time flew by. Soon there was a big pile of bags. When we had a full load, I threw the bags in the van. The physical work done, we got down to serious dicussifyin', and then it happened. There was something tiny in my throat, and coughing was not helping. After a while the tickle eased up, but a new problem appeared. I realized I was rubbing my left eye far more than usual. It got worse. And worse. Soon the right eye was involved too. Not being the panicky kind, I broke in, to "men... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=647 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=647 Wed, 11 Jan 2006 00:43:16 GMT So this Christmas, I seem to find myself in a very nostalgic mood. Last night, while getting some last minute gifts - okay... after desperatly searching for that ONE %$#&^% gift I still haven't been able to find - I came across a Christmas CD called "Oldies but goodies". One of the songs happened to be an old childhood favorite of mine that I very rarely ever hear on the radio any more. It was "Snoopy's Christmas" by The Royal Guardsmen. My brother and I used to listen to that song on the radio all the time on Christmas Eve as we were trying to keep ourselves desperately awake in order to see Santa. And even though I didn't care for the rest of the songs on the album, this one was worth getting so I plunked down my $5.00 and happily strolled out the store. Along the way home though, listening to Snoopy fight the Red Baron during Christmas time got me to recall another long time tradition my family used to do on Christmas eve. There was an old Christmas album my mother loved. There were a ton of songs on it but there was one selection that always seemed to hold a special place in my heart. It was a touching... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=639 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=639 Fri, 23 Dec 2005 14:45:36 GMT Hello everybody. Today, I thought I'd write another movie-related blog since I've seen so many over the years. But I thought I'd do something a little bit different. I thought I would list all of the wonderful knowledge I have accumulated over the years thanks to Hollywood. Consider this a "Guideline to life according to Hollywood (and Chris Flick)". THINGS ACTION ADVENTURE MOVIES HAVE TAUGHT ME: 1) If you're going to be a bad guy, you must have a British accent. Preferably, to be REALLY bad, you should also be German but have a British accent. 2) When approaching your car, you should always drop your keys to the ground. I mean, seriously, how else are you going to notice the blinking red light of the bomb that's been planted underneath your car? 3) Bad guy uniforms always come in a "one-size-fits-all"... After all, that's why it's so easy to penetrate the evil bad guy's lair. 4) Pistols or hand guns are better weapons then automatic rifles. Everyone knows when bad guys shoot automatic weapons, they don't hit diddly-doo-doo, but our hero always hits his target with his trusty hand gun. 5) Always make sur... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=631 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=631 Thu, 01 Dec 2005 04:23:42 GMT The news has been so bad, and only seems to get worse. But even amidst the carnage of Man and Nature, life finds a way to keep going, somehow. This little guy got tired of waiting for help and took things into its own paws. The escape of one tiny kitty from the flood won't change the problems facing others, but it does show that nothing is ever a "total" disaster. As the old saying goes, "This too shall pass." What amazes me is how such a small cat made such big waves! New life wants to live, and won't be denied. Like that cat, the ravaged land and its survivors will endure, and somehow pull thru. That's just how life is. ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=597 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=597 Sat, 10 Sep 2005 06:04:33 GMT As a confirmed Spacebug, I'm always aware of the gadgets we humans send careening or crawling around the neighborhood. Cassini is performing its massively pre-choreographed 4 year loop-dance around Saturn with dizzying precision, playing tag with the various moons and rings. Other probes are snapping the Sun, capturing the Cosmos, and roughing up innocent comets. This is the real Golden Age of space exploration, folks. But one achievement surpasses all others of recent memory. At this very moment down on the dusty surface of the Red Planet, two ridiculous six-wheeled contraptions are driving around, imaging, sampling, and spectrumizing for us, and they have been doing this in a cold harsh alien enviroment for almost a full martian year. That's about two Earth years, kids. "So what?" I hear you say? Well, prior to this mission, Mars was known as the "mission graveyard," swallowing up two thirds of the machines we sent its way. But we got both rovers down on the surface in perfect condition, despite scary last minute changes to adjust for dust storm activity. Then once down, a software glitch nearly killed off Spirit in the first month of service. Only a... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=590 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=590 Sat, 20 Aug 2005 06:05:53 GMT Ooops. Just noticed that Tom Muck has passed the baton over to me. I really haven't got that much to share since I was only a Team Macromedia Member for a short time, but I have received a few goodies over the past couple years: 2 long-sleeved shirts (one of which I traded with Angela Buraglia due to size concerns) A great box of chocolates. I don't remember the brand, but man, they were good. 1 flash drive. It's come in handy a couple of times. 1 T-shirt A Brand New Car! OK, that's a dirty lie, but it was fun to say it. My favorite was actually the chocolate. I cannot emphasize enough just how good those were. I would have paid more attention to the brand and bought myself some, until my wife told me how expensive they were after checking online. Free chocolates are much better than paid-for chocolates. The most unusual would be one of the long-sleeved shirts. They sent me one that was the perfect size, and another that I would've popped the buttons on had I actually tried to button it. Five people I'm passing the baton (but they'll have to read this blog to know they've been passed to) Laurie Casolino Chris Flick Linda Rathgeber-Stewart Jim Babbage Heid... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=572 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=572 Thu, 04 Aug 2005 05:48:36 GMT Since "Batman Begins" has been doing so well at the box office of late, it seems sad to mention the recent passing of one of Batman's more popular artist as Jim Aparo - a popular artist during the comic book highs of the 1980's - has recently put down his pencil for the final time. Although Jim continued to work in comics all the way up until a few short years ago, he probably became best known for his work on "Batman and the Outsiders" - a book which teamed Batman up with five little used DC comic heroes at the time. Although the book never reached the popularity scales as John Byrne and Chris Claremont's X-men or George Perez and Marv Wolfman's Teen Titans did during that same period, it did reach a high point where Batman and the Outsiders took on the Teen Titans in a two issue series. It was during that two issue story that Robin (Dick Grayson) began to break away from the identity of being Batman's kid sidekick and helped propel Robin into more of an individual character like the one created on film by Chris O'Donnell. Here is a duplication of the promotional piece for the Batman and the Outsider's comic... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=555 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=555 Wed, 20 Jul 2005 21:29:40 GMT As I write, Nasa is moments away from giving Temple 1 a really good poke in the eye. It is being delivered in the form of 2/5ths of a ton of copper arriving at 10 kilometers per second. Nasa site Normally Astronomy is a staid, sopoforic endeavour, but this one time they will get a chance to actually make something happen "out there". Tonite every amateur and professional Astronomer will be united in the primal desire to WHACK THAT PUPPY! Yeah. Talk about a defining moment. Only problem is, once these geeks get a taste of direct action there will be no holding them back! Before we know it, there will be pockmarks on every solid object within reach. We have to head this off while our beautiful solar system remains intact! I urge all to join with me in the "Hands Off Our Celestial Bodies!" campaign. We must bring home to those soon-to-be-wild-eyed telescope jockeys the understanding that the cosmos is NOT their personal shooting gallery! Geeze, why don't they just go play paintball or something? ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=545 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=545 Mon, 04 Jul 2005 05:44:00 GMT Well, Forbes put a little slide show together to show if you got the cash, baby, ANYBODY can be a self-made super-hero. Of course, many of us aren't born into a life of luxury like Bruce Wayne was, so those of us who are missing a few screws loose upstairs but still want to fight SUPER VILLAINS... well, they are just going to have to do it on the cheap. Forbes not only tells you HOW it can be done, they also tell you HOW MUCH it's gonna cost you. So folks, it's time to pull out your handy-dandy check book and write out that $3,365,449 check to the super-hero's union guild. What? You say you don't have $3,365,449 laying around? That's okay. I hear that Tom Green fellow has a few bucks to spare. I'm sure he wouldn't mind giving you a loan. Of course, he might make you paint a symbol of a bag of milk on your chest but those are the consequences you have to live with when you borrow so much money from a Canadian. ;-) But speaking of rich, fictional characters... Forbes also made an interesting list of the top 15 richest fictional characters. You should check out their slide show to see where (or if) your favorite fictional character ranks ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=539 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=539 Wed, 22 Jun 2005 22:11:12 GMT You've all seen them, the "puzzle" games. Myst was the trailbreaker, leading to a mess of other titles. Some of them are very good and some stink on ice. They all shared one factor tho, namely that they were applications, and therefore a bit complex to create. This had the effect of restricting the pool of talent that could be applied to the art. Well, those days are over. Thanks to the spread of Flash, huge numbers of folks may now turn their hand to the interactive puzzle format. Things are starting to happen in a big way. Maybe you have seen "The Crimson Room" and other similar escape room puzzles. Those are great, but some truly insane artist/fiends have recently begun to produce exceptional work that goes way beyond mere "rooms". Take for instance Hapland and Hapland 2, created by a nameless Brit maniac. This twisted individual seems to understand what puzzle people really like, and has created two games with only that stuff. These are really hard! Oy. In a more artistic vein (but not an easier one) is The Archipelago, an amazing example of how rich Flash can get. Jonathan May is the author, and he's also got "The Dark Room&quot... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=535 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=535 Tue, 21 Jun 2005 07:38:35 GMT Sorry, but for some of us (okay, me!), TODCON '05 is still alive and well. You don't believe me? You should see my sketchbook! :-) No, really! I'm serious. Actually, all of the TODCON '05 CMX Suite strips you've seen so far were done on the plane during my flight home. I guess that's one advantage to being a "traditional" artist in the sense that as long as I have my sketchbook, pencils and eraser, I'm never at a lost as how to spend my time on long trips like Molly was recently asking advice for before she took her trip to Japan. The problem for me though isn't always how to spend my time but rather will inspiration magically flow onto the white pages starring blankly back at me? Sometimes, that's the most maddening - and intimidating - part. Just starring at a blank page - or maybe a blank Fireworks canvass - and HOPING an idea will instantly spring out of your head and explode out of our finger tips or mouse. Sometimes it comes and sometimes the blank page (or electronic canvass) just laughs at you unmercifully. Fortunately, that was NOT the case with my plane trip back home. TODCON filled me up with so much inspiration,... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=500 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=500 Tue, 24 May 2005 13:39:35 GMT Okay, I have a friend in my office who just turned 40 so I drew him a little B-day card with the Village People Indian (well, a slightly overweight Village People Indian - since he's of the overweight variety as well) and wrote this on the inside of the card: If you all like song parody's, you might enjoy this. By the way, I'm not so far off from "40" myself - 2 more years to go. So you could say this will soon be MY theme song as well! :-) ############################ Sung to the tune of "YMCA": Old Man, yeah you, the one laying on the ground... I said, Old Man, if you had a cane you wouldn't fall down I said Old man, that robe really looks like a tattered gown It's not wonder why at your age you're so unhappy Old man, don't you realize there's a place you can turn to Especially when you're so broke and feeling all blue Just fill out that membership card and you will find Many, many others just like your kind... They'll make you realize there's no more to enjoy As they complain about no longer being a young boy You're finally joining the A-A-R-P... You're finally joining the A-A-R-P... You've fallen and can... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=497 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=497 Fri, 20 May 2005 20:58:53 GMT Damn baton! stupid idea :~) I've been batonised at least three times today, so decided to give in and blog it... Total Volume I have no idea how much I have on my machine, not much for sure. I tend to be a CD buyer. Last CD Bought Le Roi EstMort, Vive Le Roi! by Enigma Translates to the "The King is dead, long live the King!" should you be at all interested. Sort of trance electronic music, nice to chill out to. Song Playing Right Now Heroin - Lou Reed from the live Rock'n'Roll Animal, album, cool song gets up and bites your ass! Five songs I listen to a lot, or that mean a lot to me: All the songs that mean a lot to me are the ones I listened to when I was a kid. Heroin - Lou Reed Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven Mountain - Nantucket Sleigh Ride Hendrix - Machine Gun Steppenwolf - Born to be wild Five People to Whom I?m Passing the Baton Holly Bergevin Brian Edgin Danilo Celic Derrick Ypenburg Joel Martinez ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=489 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=489 Thu, 19 May 2005 16:13:23 GMT In response to Stephanie Sullivan's hit-and-run... um, I mean Musical Baton, here are my answers to the Magical Musical Baton questions. Total Volume: 5.48 gigs. No filler. Just a bunch of great music. Last CD Bought Eric Clapton's "From the Cradle." Yes, I know it came out a few years back, but I don't by CDs very often. Actually, my last musical purchase was a record (yes vinyl- you remember those big, black, flexible things?) by Sweet that I found in a flea market in Memphis. Song Playing Right Now Elvis Costello's "Beyond Belief." It's a good bet that you'll hear Elvis playing a couple times a week in my office. OK, maybe more than a couple times a week, but who's counting? Five songs I listen to a lot, or that mean a lot to me: That's awfully personal, and I'll thank you to butt out of my affairs. Alright, I'll bite. Oliver's Army - Elvis Costello Down to the River to Pray - O Brother soundtrack (no religious reasons. I just dig the harmony) The Way - Fastball (My buddy Tony's in the band. Gotta support my homies) Melody Lee - The Damned Hellhound on my Trail - Robert Johnson Five People to Whom I?m Passing the Baton Ang... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=484 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=484 Thu, 19 May 2005 05:53:22 GMT High school was finally nearing its long, drawn out preclusion to the summer days. All through the hallways, kids were already preparing for their beach trips or their summer vacation plans with their families as they walked the hallways decked out in their Ocean Pacific attire. Everyone could taste the sweet smell of summer - even the school administrators admitted this by relaxing the rules and letting the kids play music on their "boomboxes" around their lockers - from Journey's "Don't stop believing" to Michael Sembello's "Maniac". Oh yes. Summer was in the air. You could hear it. You could taste it. You could feel it. But before any of that happened - before summer could OFFICIALLY begin that year - some more important things had to be answered first. Answers that couldn't be found in any text book or a final exam sheet. Answers that no school administrator, teacher or counselor could help you with. Answers that plagued you for three and a half years... Made you crazy with anticipation. And so it was May 1983 and I found myself agreeing to something I never thought would be possible - I was about ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=481 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=481 Tue, 17 May 2005 11:55:39 GMT Holy Web Horrors, Batman! Can you believe what's happening with Bill and that "special lady" friend of his? Whew boy! Well, let's see if we can make him forget about his troubles for just a bit as I finish up my long promised second part of my "Baseball Movie" blog. This time, as promised, are the baseball movies I consider to be the worst. Now remember, we're not talking about the acting or even the overall entertainment of the movies themselves. Instead, I'm judging them foremost on the baseball SKILLS depicted in these movies. Then comes the acting, the plot, the actors, etc., etc., etc. Also, they aren't listed in any particular order either. Anyway, for your enjoyment (and debate if you'd like): 1) The Slugger's Wife I managed to make it through this entire movie thanks to Rebecca DeMornay but there wasn't any "Risky Business" to be had here, that's for sure. 2) The Babe Liked the story. Liked the movie, even but John Goodman playing baseball? The best thing in this movie was that he's been the only one that seems to have been able to imitate The Babe's unique running style. 3) Bang the drum slowly (remake) As I mention... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=441 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=441 Tue, 05 Apr 2005 19:03:40 GMT Steve Fossett is now passing to the north of Hawaii, and is only a few hours away from landfall on the continental US. Then it's just an "easy" 1000 miles or so to where he took off, over 50 hours ago. Okay, so this attempt ultimately means nothing, and yes it may be a "guy thing." I just admire any human being who prefers spending three days without much sleep (if any) in a tiny, lonely cabin, for the purpose of doing what has never been done, rather than enjoying that chateau in the south of France. Steve knows that creature comforts are for creatures, and a thinking human wants a little more. Sure, Steve is a bit mad, but it's a divine madness, one that no single "record" can ever satisfy. He is doomed to press against barriers, one after another, until circumstance or old age finally defeat him. He will never surrender though. Our dreams always exceed our reach; That is what makes us human. When one of us cheats the odds even a little, many feel that tingle of hope we need to keep going. Thanks Steve. ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=418 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=418 Thu, 03 Mar 2005 04:19:38 GMT As these words are being written, Steve Fossett, the man who would break all avation records, is crossing India, and is approaching Calcutta at 300 knots. Altitude is 46,801 feet, and just now the crawl announced that Steve has reached the halfway point in his quest to fly 'round the world in 80 hours, alone. I'm following along, courtesy of the world wide web: http://www.virginatlanticglobalflyer.com/MissionControl/Tracking/ I grew up on science fiction many many moons ago, but I never dreamed the future would be this cool! The same people who made Steve's airplane are currently taking reservations for the first sub-orbital tourist trips. They have over 100 customers already lined up. Good luck getting insurance, guys! By the time you read this, Steve may be far out over the Pacific Ocean, feeling pretty groggy no doubt. Still, it's a heck of a lot faster than his balloon circumnavigation, even if that ended up only 19,000 miles long. Hard to steer those balloons, y'know. It's noon in India right now, so at his altitude the Himalayan wall, 300 miles to the north, must be clearly visible above the horizon as a pure white jagged line. The intense flat ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=417 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=417 Wed, 02 Mar 2005 07:06:04 GMT Here in the heart of the Great American Southwest, our usual and highly prized aridity has been rinsed away this winter, by an unseemly and continuous train of supercharged subtropical rainstorms. Everything is turning green, and squishy sounds are heard across the land. Yes, the soon-to-arrive desert flower display will be awesome, but those flowers are there for a reason. Bugs! Sure as God made little green chiggers, those hard-shelled interlopers will see the high humidity as a mandate to go utterly hog wild. Oh lordy! And then.. and then, will come the Locusts. Oh yes, unstoppable hordes, munching across the emerald desert floor. Their legions shall darken the sun, and the people will tremble at the sight! But then, at long last, Old Sol will complete his journey to the north. This rocky land will dry and bleach once more, and the wild frenzy of Spring will be but a memory, as the Creatures of the Night reclaim their domain. ... http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=406 http://www.communitymx.com/blog/index.cfm?newsid=406 Mon, 21 Feb 2005 03:07:36 GMT