tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85235962024-03-07T20:31:47.824-06:00C & C LoWelcome to the world's second greatest blog.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.comBlogger234125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-22285941685288492622012-02-20T22:05:00.000-06:002012-02-20T22:05:20.501-06:00SetbacksWe started out with 12 chickens, 11 babies and a hen. One got sick and we put it out of its misery. One got killed by a dog. That was last fall. One was eaten for Thanksgiving. So we had 9. Then 2 were run over by a car, at least that's what we think, about a month ago. The weekend before last, a dog killed two and injured one so severely that I had to kill it. So now we have four chickens left, which are just not enough for it to be worth the hassle, so we are getting some more in the Spring. We haven't worked out all of the logistics yet, but I'm sure we will get there. We learned a few lessons and will make some changes to the way we keep the chickens. They are not going to be completely free-range anymore, thanks to irresponsible dog owners that refuse to contain their dogs, but assured me that their dog does not attack any animals at all, even after I followed him all the way to their house from where we keep our chickens. I hate the idea of changing the way we do things because of someone else's ignorance, but we realized that we need to pen them up for some other reasons as well. Such as preventing them from tearing into out flower garden and the veggie garden we're planning to have, and from leaving their droppings in our driveway. And sadly, there is more than one free-roaming dog in the neighborhood. Christina found some simple chicken pen plans for making them out of PVC pipe, and we will give that a try. If it works well, we will make several that we connect to have one really big one, and it will be easy to move it. And when we're outside in the summer, we will let them out as well.
On top of all that, one of our cats, adventurous Gator, was lost all day yesterday, and didn't show up at night either. It was such a huge relief to see him at the back door this morning as if nothing had happened.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-22392253843648061992011-11-28T21:50:00.001-06:002011-11-28T22:20:16.709-06:00Yeah, this is turning into one of those blogsTime for a chicken update people. We butchered one of the three roosters the Sunday before Thanksgiving, and Christina's Granny used it to make homemade chicken and noodles. Very delicious. The offspring of the mother hen have also started laying eggs, and we have been getting 2 or 3 every day instead of just one. On Sunday, there was a total of 5 eggs, which is the current record for eggs in a day. The heaviest egg we had so far weighed 68g. That's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_egg_sizes">officially an extra large egg</a>. But it's not all fun and games. One night, when I went to close up the house, all the chickens, except two, were not in their house, but sitting under a lean-to by our barn on a bale of straw. They were fast asleep and were not going to move for anything. So I had to pick them up one by one and carry them into their house. The two remaining roosters put up a little more resistance and were more awake, but we eventually managed to get them into the house, not without the two of them getting into a fight in the barn. Last night, when we came home from visiting Christina's parents, they were all still inside the barn, awake and lively at least. I half expected this to happen, since it was a dark and rainy day, and I left the light on inside the barn, so they would have a dry and well-lit place for the day. It wasn't too much effort to get them to go into the house that time. On top of that, they have taken a liking to coming up to the house and scratching mulch and rocks from the flower bed onto the lawn, but it's pretty easy to have them follow me back to their designated area by breaking a heel of a bread into little pieces, calling them and feeding them the bread. Now they even come just when I call them, though with more hesitation.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-16804300887804826182011-10-22T23:26:00.001-05:002011-10-22T23:29:34.834-05:00IISure, <a title="This is a good review site for 60s and 70s stuff in general." href="http://www.warr.org/zep.html#Thieves">there are plenty of things they can be criticized for</a>. I've been a little obsessed with Led Zeppelin lately, which seems to happen occasionally, but I won't bother anyone for a while after this. To start out, check out this thing I saw on <a title="It's where I see a lot of cool stuff." href="http://kottke.org/11/10/michael-winslow-gets-the-led-out">kottke.org</a> to set the mood:<br /><br />
<iframe width="460" height="264" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QxcCC2g1Ke0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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And that mood is awesomeness! It may just be that I'm a sucker for the use of stereophonic effects, but <i>II</i> is my favorite Led Zeppelin album. The opening song alone just blows my mind every time, starting out as a straight-forward rock riff song, and then drifting into a psychedelic episode just to remind you what year it was when the album came out. Those damn hippies. It's more than just a collection of great songs; the first album feels like that to me quite a bit. The succession of songs makes sense, and when you listen to it on vinyl, even the A and B side selections and their order seem to have been chosen deliberately. There are not a lot of albums that feature an excessive drum solo, wrap it in an alibi song, and don't disturb the flow of the whole thing by doing so. I just love the dynamics throughout, both within and across songs, and the diversity of sounds and influences. It's the kind of album you should listen to without distraction, and if you do, pay special attention to the bass.
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The bass playing is amazing throughout, but on "The Lemon Song" and "Ramble On" it really stands out. In my opinion, too few albums feature the bass prominently enough in the mix, and you sometimes have to strain to hear it at all, let alone the nuances. Led Zeppelin is not exempt from this, but the second album is an exception, and the bass is mixed as an equal along the guitar and drums. (The first Black Sabbath is also mixed in a way that lets the bass parts shine, but not all of the later ones do.) I think that bassists are underrated anyway, partly because of the aforementioned mixing practices, partly because bands can get away with having mediocre bass players. But truly great bands will have great bass players, according to my theory. Listen to the first and second Foo Fighters albums as proof of this. Both are great, but on the second album, they didn't just play the guitar parts on a bass, but added a proper bassist. And <i>The Color and The Shape</i> is still my favorite Foo Fighters album. Easily. So indulge in the bass playing courtesy of John Paul Jones on <i>II</i>.
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I have one bad thing to say, and that's the cover art, especially the stuff inside the gatefold. They did much better on the next two though, and an argument could be made that the cover art for <i>Physical Graffiti</i> is the best thing about it.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-9471742106657724002011-10-06T20:47:00.001-05:002011-10-06T20:47:39.841-05:00If only they wouldn't defecate everywhereAs you learned in our previous post, we have three awesome kittens that are capable of catching mice. Okay, all of these "I'm a Mormon" commercials are really strange. And why are there always two in a row? Anyway, their names are Mustard, Gator and Dr. Paws. Mustard is a girl, the other two are boys. And if you are on the fence about whether cats are totally awesome or insanely awesome, <a title="Does liking NPR mean I'm getting old?" href="http://www.radiolab.org/2010/sep/20/taking-plunge/">check out this story from Radiolab</a> Christina and I heard while driving to her parents the other day. Pretty amazing.
Also, our roosters have started to crow in the morning. And since three are two too many, we are getting very close to having a chicken dinner.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-4923280398281396132011-10-04T21:04:00.002-05:002011-10-04T21:04:38.158-05:0060 eggs and a mouseIn case anyone was wondering, today was the day our hen laid her 60th egg. Her offspring aren't quite there yet, and we may not actually get any from them this year, depending on the weather and how fast they mature, but their mother has only skipped 2 days since she started laying again. Heck of a hen.
Also our kittens had a dead mouse in the garage this morning, which is where they stay at night since they are still too little to fight of the 'coons and possums at night. That's what we think anyway, and we are a little more careful after what happened to our first batch. Anyway, I'm not sure if the mouse kill was a collaborative effort or a solo heroic effort, but that thing was at least 4 inches long. That's a big mouse in my book and a lot better than the grasshoppers they have been catching this whole time.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-36991029921767943682011-09-15T10:09:00.000-05:002011-09-16T09:17:00.240-05:00Dreams of you all through my headIs it just me, or are Led Zeppelin slightly out of time at about 45 seconds into Black Dog, as performed on the 4th album? I'm not an expert on this in any way, and keeping time has actually always been my biggest challenge when playing the trumpet. I'm the guy playing right through the pause and missing the cues and playing four quarters in succession all at different lengths. So listen to Black Dog for me, and tell me what you think. I know the song is intentionally complex, but that section of the studio recording seems out of time, even to me, but it could just be that it's way over my head and I simply can't process the complexity of it.
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And while we are on the topic of Led Zeppelin, I'd like to conduct an informal survey. This is one of those questions where it's impossible to not have an opinion, and it is essential for every person to know the answer to this question, so that they know who they truly are. On the inside.
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<b>Which is you favorite Led Zeppelin album?</b>
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And if your answer is something like "I don't know", "I don't care", "I don't have one" or "What cookies?", you better start making up your mind. The answer to this question is more essential than Elvis vs. Beatles and may forever determine your fate, and the fate of the world. I will reveal my favorite, with a detailed explanation, once there are some responses. This is not a threat.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-30544417603329579142011-08-29T21:23:00.006-05:002011-08-31T07:47:53.670-05:00It's not a bird, and it's not superman neitherI was flying in an aeroplane a couple of weeks ago, and had put my phone in the front pocket of the shoulder bag in which I carry my laptop and laptop accessories. I did this before boarding, and when the flight attendant reminded the passengers to turn off all their electronics devices, including cell phones, portable music players, and anything with an on/off switch, I forgot all about my phone. It was nestled close to a box of mints. About 20 seconds after take-off, mid-ascent, I did suddenly remember, and quickly and inconspicuously turned it off. The Feds didn't catch me, and my phone did not accidentally engage <a title="Learn something new every day." href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thrust_reversal">thrust reversal</a>.
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<br />Then on the next flight (this was a two-legged trip) our old friend <a title="Ok, learn two things today." href="http://dict.leo.org/?lp=ende&lang=de&searchLoc=0&cmpType=relaxed&relink=on&sectHdr=on&spellToler=std&search=Schicksal">Schicksal</a> peeked around the corner. I was seated in the aisle seat of a row with three seats on each side, no one was in the middle seat, and a young woman, probably in her teens, especially judging by the relationship problems she discussed on her phone, was sitting by the window. When it was time to turn off the electronic devices, she put hers up, as expected, but as soon as the flight attendants took their seats, she pulled it back out to listen to music on it. On the ascent I thought maybe she just didn't know, or thought it was ok to listen to music on the phone or simply forgot. On the descent, however, the flight attendant specifically told her that she would have to turn it off, but she just put it in her purse to pull it out again shortly after. And on purpose too.
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<br />So my question is, what do you do in this situation? Do you politely tell the person to turn off their device? Do you inform the flight attendant if they still keep their device on? Is the risk of leaving them on really that serious? As far as I know, the main risk is interference with the airplane communications system, which could be pretty serious depending on what exactly happens. I'd hate to make a big deal out of nothing, but leaving the phone on could be disastrous, and I don't think it's ok for one passenger to decide how much risk everyone else should take. What would you do in this situation?Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-24082674307433964232011-07-08T07:51:00.004-05:002011-07-08T08:07:45.956-05:00Only on Independence DayOn Monday we went to a 4th of July celebration with a carnival, food, fireworks and music. As we were eating our food, a local band was playing cover songs, and one of those songs was Cee-Lo's "Fuck You". Well, technically it was "Forget You" as they played the radio-friendly version. I don't really have a problem with that per se, as this was a diverse crowd with families and people of all ages, though I do find the widespread censorship of music that occurs on the radio and through retailers abominable. The weird thing occurred after the song was over, when the singer of the group thanked the crowd and expressed how glad she was to live in a country where they can get on stage and sing naughty words because of all the freedom they have, and that this is not something to be taken for granted, as there are a lot of other countries where it wouldn't be possible. Either this was a genius and highly subversive criticism of the self-inflicted censorship that musicians in their position have to participate in, or it was the most ridiculous case of cognitive dissonance that I have witnessed in real life.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-59673062297488213242011-06-14T23:18:00.010-05:002011-06-21T22:06:39.491-05:00Samsung TVs and their customer service - a tale of cautionWe bought an LCD TV about 2 1/2 years ago, in November of 2008. It was a Samsung LN40A650. We figured it would be worth spending a little extra for something that should last us a good while and will be used almost daily, and thought it was really awesome. Christina's parents bought a similar model because of our recommendation, and her grandmother also has a Samsung TV now.<br /><br />We did buy an extended warranty for the TV, which we did not end up using, and I later read that it's not recommended to get them for LCD TVs. Well, we should have gotten an even longer one, because a few months ago, the TV started to have some serious picture issues. The left 3/4 of the screen were very dark and blurry, and it looked like each image was retained for 20 seconds, and all the images overlayed, causing the blur and dark picture. After a few minutes it would simply go away in a blink, but over time it started to take longer and longer, until about 3 weeks ago it just would not snap out of it anymore, and the thing was just unwatchable altogether.<br /><br />Around the same time, Christina's parents' TV, a very similar model bought around the same time as ours, as mentioned above, had the same exact problem. Lucky for them, it was still protected by an extended warranty, and they were able to fix it in two attempts. I think they ended up having to replace the panels, which is a repair that usually costs more than buying a brand-new set. We were told our TV would require an equally expensive repair.<br /><br />So crap, this can't just be a coincidence we thought. I looked up reviews and forum posts about ours and other Samsung TVs, and there seem to be quite a few problems with Samsung TVs, though our problem wasn't the most common. Of course searching for issues with any brand will yield a lot of bad reviews, given people's tendency to leave more negative than positive feedback, and this post only confirms that. But! I found many more complaints about Samsung than any of the other major brands, and even some describing our exact problem. One person <a href="http://www.badcaps.net/forum/showthread.php?p=156417#post156417">even seemed to have found a homemade fix</a>, which I will not dare to try myself. On <a href="http://www.consumeraffairs.com">consumeraffairs.com</a> there are plenty of negative accounts about any brand, but Samsung is the only one that made it necessary for them to not just have the <a href="http://www.consumeraffairs.com/home_electronics/samsung_tv.html">regular complaints page</a>, but also <a href="http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/07/samsung_tv.html">two separate</a> <a href="http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/01/samsung_tvs.html">articles</a> on the problems people are facing with these TVs. I also noticed that there were significantly more Samsung TV complaints added for the current year than for Sony or LG. In other words, they seem to be selling junk TVs at premium prices.<br /><br />So at this point, I was pretty upset. Christina and I both have Samsung phones as well, she has a Samsung laptop, and her Granny even has a washer and dryer from them. My brother bought a TV from them some years ago, and we have several friends who also have Samsung TVs. So I was hoping that maybe their customer service department would be able to provide some information or help. Everybody else seemed to chuckle at the idea, but I thought it was worth a shot. I mean, aren't corporations supposed to care about loyal, long-term customers who recommend electronics to their friends and family? Even though the customer service agent and her manager were friendly and knowledgeable, Samsung's policies did not allow them to make any efforts whatsoever to try to keep me as a customer or alleviate my problem with their product. Nothing at all. This wasn't even bad customer service technically, since nothing was done at all. And offering to schedule an appointment for service does not count. They could have offered to help me with the cost of the repair, offered a discount for purchasing a new Samsung TV or any kind of other little gesture just to show that they understand I was a good customer of theirs, and they regret my bad experience. But their lack of effort is just laughable. So not only do they sell sub-par products, they also refuse to stand behind their products. Which actually confirms their lack of faith in their products. I guess I should not have expected the TV to last much beyond the manufacturer's warranty, let alone 10 years, which I thought was the minimum it would be with us.<br /><br />I realize that I'm making sweeping generalizations about Samsung products based on my one bad experience. Some of the things I found on the internet confirm my opinion, but of course I was looking at it with a strong bias. And I wouldn't be so upset about this had their customer service at least made some sort of effort, but the bottom line is that they couldn't care less whether or not I ever bought another product of theirs again in my life (and I can assure you that I will not), and that they don't seem to be very confident in the quality of their TVs. Where are those one million Twitter followers when you need them?Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-42217908652982327472011-06-02T20:35:00.004-05:002011-06-02T20:48:29.205-05:00I'm ill, literate, you illiterate100 bonus points if you know the song that the lyrics from today's title are from. And I mean know as in you have listened to it. If you like <a href="http://www.theonion.com">The Onion</a> at all, you may also like <a href="http://www.literallyunbelievable.org">this little collection</a>. I found it via <a href="http://www.kottke.org/11/05/taking-the-onion-seriously">this post</a>.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-31970164550794761112011-05-23T13:22:00.002-05:002011-05-23T13:30:46.416-05:00TTFKASTI was going to post a picture of us in (or on?) one of the Sky Ledges at Willis Tower in Chicago (you may know it as Sears Tower), but I haven't downloaded them from our camera. So use a mental image.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-86763787602533299752011-04-26T20:30:00.004-05:002011-04-27T19:16:34.066-05:00But wait, there's more!Check this out, we found even more mushrooms right in our yard. There are 15 total, probably weighing almost a pound, but we didn't pick them all yet. These are the three we noticed yesterday, plus three from the pasture, one of them being the biggest we have on our property:<br /><br /><div class="imagecentered"><a href="http://i102.photobucket.com/albums/m107/mrgoober03/Miscellaneous/6mushrooms.jpg" title="Yummay"><img src="http://i102.photobucket.com/albums/m107/mrgoober03/Miscellaneous/6mushrooms.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-90846788097323749702011-04-25T21:27:00.008-05:002011-04-25T21:58:33.470-05:00Service now the mushroom boyA little known fact about me is that I'm a big fan of Monster Magnet. To me, they are the continuation of psychedelic rock into the 90s, with all the crazy lyrics and spaced-out guitars and nuances you only notice after listening closely a few times. Tool on the other hand, is more in the tradition of progressive rock, like Yes. I have a suspicion that the mushrooms Monster Magnet mention in "All Friends and Kingdom Come" are not the same ones we found.<br /><br />Today.<br /><br />While picking up two little branches that were leaning on our fence.<br /><br />In our freaking driveway!!!<br /><br /><div class="imagecentered"><a href="http://i102.photobucket.com/albums/m107/mrgoober03/Miscellaneous/Mushrooms.jpg" title="Yummay"><img width="400" src="http://i102.photobucket.com/albums/m107/mrgoober03/Miscellaneous/Mushrooms.jpg"></a></div><br /><br />This is so awesome, I don't even have a lot of words for it. I must have walked by them 5 times before I saw them today, and I can't wait to have them for dinner. And I urge you to listen to some Monster Magnet at maximum volume this week, keeping in mind that their early work is more enjoyable for most people.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-8942018654407617542011-04-16T19:34:00.002-05:002011-04-16T19:48:25.943-05:00Don't call it a comebackI finished watching Inland Empire last night, and I did not like it. Mostly because I did not get it. Don't worry, there is no way to spoil it by me saying this: I did like how the descent into madness was portrayed, but I felt like the motifs did not really serve a purpose. Again, that's probably because I just did not get it. I had to read a plot summary afterwards just to be able to make heads and tails of it.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-11955208531146298892010-10-23T00:27:00.004-05:002010-10-23T00:46:39.519-05:00Sleeping BeautyYes, this thing is still on. The bad news first. I saw <a href="http://www.boingboing.net/2010/10/14/piracy-jesus-did-it.html">this on Boing Boing</a> and though it was really lame. Sure, it gets a short giggle, but to me the comparison really does not work at all.<br /><br />The good news is that even though I am not keeping up with the skateboarding world very much these days, <a href="http://kottke.org/10/10/parkour-on-a-skateboard">this little video is freaking awesome</a>.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-33138999036518507242010-07-01T22:12:00.003-05:002010-07-01T22:18:59.769-05:00Done couting cars...Did I mention that we left the Garden State and now have a garden of our own? Only flowers so far, but after the inside of the house is done, we might be able to do some fall planting. We will also get two kittens tomorrow. More exciting news ahead.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-13566224702513125482010-03-17T17:51:00.010-05:002010-04-06T21:33:16.556-05:00To steal or not to stealI saw <a href="http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/17/home-taping-is-killi.html">this on boing boing</a> and was reminded of a highly controversial post I was going to write. Yes, you heard right: controversy! In an unprecedented move, I started making notes and organized them in a meaningful way, in order to present coherent arguments and to expose the hypocrisy and idiocy of so-called file-sharers. I even had <a href="http://www.tinymixtapes.com/features/myth-diy">some</a> <a href="http://www.tinymixtapes.com/features/2009-fuck-love-let8217s-make-dystopia">supporting</a> <a href="http://www.tinymixtapes.com/features/2009-no-honor">viewpoints</a>, and read the comment sections in a series of argument and counter-argument articles published on the German news site <a href="http://www.zeit.de">Die Zeit</a>, which once again would allow me to demonstrate the unbelievable pretense, delusion and illogicality with which file-sharers defend their behavior and position. <br /><br />To say that major record companies are not without their dark side is an obvious understatement, but that's no excuse. And that video that was posted on boing boing contains such obvious apples-to-orange-magnet-letters-on-a-fridge comparisons at the end, that the comments applauding it become even more inane. But I think that in the end, all the people involved know wrong from right, and the people participating in the theft of music are merely trying to justify their behavior. And that's the real key, if what they were doing was without a doubt just, lawful and ethical behavior, there would be no need to vehemently defend their behavior. For somebody not participating in file-sharing, it really is a black-and-white, clear-cut issue: You don't steal. And then you don't have to justify what you're doing either.<br /><br />But the truth is, that stuff's been sitting on my desk for a few months now, and it would bore you more than a snail race in the desert sand to have to read all that junk now. And it would bore me to write it. Maybe I'll reveal some tidbits here and there instead, and with the overwhelming participation in the commenting function on these humble pages, there is a non-zero chance we might discuss one of them one day. Maybe.<br /><br />Update April 6, 2010:<br /><br />Henric, thanks for commenting even though my post was a bit on the hostile and accusatory side. I watched the presentation you referred to, and I liked how clearly he stated that he does not endorse the wholesale distribution of material whose copyright belongs to others. And I definitely think that it should not be illegal to creatively use copyrighted work to create new work, as long as you don't financially benfit from it.<br /><br />I guess I don't really know what kind of business model you have in mind for the music industry that makes more sense. As I said before, I'm not a huge fan of the music industry, but the basic business model coulnd't be much more straight-forward. You sing a song, and they distribute a recording of that song as widely as is profitable or within their means, and charge the customer for that effort. Then you get a share of the profit. The medium that carries that song is only secondary and (I would guess) represents the smallest fraction of the total cost of production and distribution of the content, but there has to be some kind of medium: Be it radio waves, cables, optical discs or magnetic tapes.<br /><br />Just because you can steal something easily doesn't mean it has no value. Illegally acquiring music simply is extremely easy with today's technology. It's also fairly easy to steal a pack of gum at a gas station or an old lady's groceries. For some people it's easy to steal cars, but you wouldn't argue that cars don't have any value. I think the difference is, that it's much harder for someone to get caught when downloading music for free.<br /><br />And I strongly disagree that there is no such thing as intellectual property. Passing off somebody else's original ideas or creations as your own is dishonest to a high degree. That's why dissertations have to include a discussion of exsiting literature and you have to provide sources when quoting other people.<br /><br />The statement that most artists would give away their art for free simply does not hold up. Why would they even sign record contracts in the first place then? Even street musicians have a little hat or cup for you to donate. And even if most artists would prefer to work for free, it's no reason to steal from the ones that do want to get paid for their efforts. I think that art has already been turned into a successful and profitable business. The music industry is trying to come to grips with an unprecedented level of unauthorized duplication and distribution of their original products, but that's about it as far as I can tell. This is not a revolution.<br /><br />Again, I really appreciate your comment. There are a lot of interesting sides to this issue.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-34797337737123459302010-02-21T17:46:00.005-06:002010-02-21T18:31:55.460-06:00All thanks to the awesome power of commercialsLet's see a show of hands for people who like getting a song stuck in their head that they don't like. Anyone? Okay, I'm going to assume that everyone kept their hand down purposefully, and did not accidentally have them glued to the table. It's okay, we've all been there. And superglue is an underestimated menace. Especially when you stick something to a wall with it, as you risk tearing down the whole wall when trying to pry it off with a truck and some chains. At least that's what I remember from the ads. But it's even worse if it's not a real song, but just a jingle from a commercial. It also sucks when commercials try to use some catchy song, and then have the artist's info at the bottom so you can relive the awesome moment of watching that commercial by purchasing the song and become part of the community. It's hard to tell for me how much this is a calculated move, and how much is just coincidence, and I believe my fellow countrymen will remember a certain Bacardi commercial in horror. Or maybe not, judging by how popular that song was. But there have been two commercials recently, where the use of well-known songs did not completely annoy me, but reminded me that I hadn't listened to them, and the albums they're on, for way too long.<br /><br />The first one was that Tuesday afternoon one (I think the proper title would be: The Afternoon: "Forever Afternoon (Tuesday?)") from "Days of Future Passed" by the Moody Blues, and the other is "Perfect Day" by Lou Reed off the "Transfomer" album. Both are really great albums I think, even though the somewhat indulgent classical parts on "Days of Future Passed" had to grow on me a little bit, and there are disappointingly few songs about shape-shifting robots on Lou Reed's album.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-18125610109881263102010-01-29T18:28:00.008-06:002010-01-29T19:16:08.123-06:00BIG news!Who of you thinks they have more than enough online accounts? I definitely do, and I don't see them getting any less. I certainly don't keep track of all of them, and created some just to check out something or to take advantage of some one-time type thing. So who knows how many I really have and how many have been orphaned. But do I really need an account that collects all my chat accounts? I fail to see the point, and don't like having to trust a company with my collected information in that way. And where will it end? Another account to collect my e-mail accounts? One for the different shopping sites? And then one to keep all of those account-keeping accounts in.<br /><br />That's why, after realizing that you have to have an Astra account with the latest version of Trillian, which I neither want nor need and prefer to make a decision about autonomously, I decided to switch to <a title="Probably not gonna become a Creole." href="http://www.pidgin.im">Pidgin</a>. And I like it.<br /><br />Also, this is funny:<br /><br /><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YtGSXMuWMR4&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YtGSXMuWMR4&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-62253604432135954332010-01-24T09:19:00.004-06:002010-01-24T10:16:05.885-06:00Stating the obvious or: I don't even wanna know what prompted thisThere was a paper sign on the dressing room at the gym today, reminding people that the showers are, in fact, not co-ed, but for men or women only. Very interesting.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-79057481734145458232010-01-14T18:38:00.002-06:002010-01-14T18:49:11.255-06:00Eating dirtI can't even imagine how much people are suffering in Haiti right now, and the fact that the destruction prevents much-needed help to arrive make this so much more tragic. PBS repeated <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/blog/haitis-poor-eat-dirt/4242/">this report</a> yesterday, which serves as a reminder of how wealthy we all are and how much Haitians have already been suffering every day before the recent earthquake.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-35729208212101279242009-12-20T17:45:00.007-06:002009-12-20T19:06:09.670-06:00Come senators, congressmen please heed the call...I was very sad to hear that the outcome of the summit on climate in Copenhagen ended with what seems like no result at all. I think this teaser from the WSJ's website sums it up nicely:<br /><blockquote>"The United Nations summit on climate change ended Saturday with a fractious all-night debate over an agreement brokered by China and the U.S. that has no legal force, and is vague on crucial details."</blockquote><br />The key words here, are "no legal force" and "vague". The <a title="" href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126121757461498569.html#articleTabs_interactive">full article is here</a>. Now I haven't read a whole lot of on the details of the accord, but the German news reports that I did consult, are much harsher in their criticism than the Wall Street Journal (who point out as a negative, that the accord will make it hard for companies to make investments in carbon-reducing technologies, since it's not legally binding; take that however you want to). The German reports call it a "fiasco" and the "miserable end" of the summit, which approximates my opinion pretty well.<br /><br />I could go on a big rant on how China should really not be considered a developing nation any more, or how the Western countries should lead the way much more affirmatively by setting good examples, but really, I just wanted to communicate the sense of hopelessness this leaves me with.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-47245356610068090002009-12-17T19:53:00.004-06:002009-12-17T21:08:14.385-06:00Ice, ice baby.Do you like ice cream? Well I love it. And Christina loves it. And we have it way too often. Or not often enough, depending on how you look at it. One thing's for sure though, we're living the dream. And that dream just got a whole lot sweeter because we have found ice cream scoop bliss.<br /><br />When I was a kid, my parents had, and still have I believe, one of those scoops with the mechanical handle, where a piece of metal would release the ice cream from the scoop and into your bowl of waffle. It was nice, but of course the mechanical part is not that easy to operate sometimes, and has the potential of breaking. When we moved to the US, we thought we'd get a nice scoop, and went with Kitchenaid. The scoops they had looked nice and we thought we were getting great quality. It made pretty round scoops too, but to get the ice cream out of the scoop I had to use a teaspoon to help it. And not before long, the shiny chrome-looking coating was nicked and started to come off. Huge letdown. Then Christina got another nice scoop from a company named Wilton, that makes all kinds of great baking tools and accessories. It worked pretty well, but because of it's shape it was really difficult to get into the corners of the ice cream containers and impossible for me to make anything that even resembled a nice round scoop. Might as well have used a simple spoon. We've looked around some more, but none of the ones we saw really looked any better. They either had that chrome coating or a funny shape.<br /><br />And then we went to the city last weekend, to witness some of the madness and get a few last gifts. And inside the MOMA store, we found a scoop that very much appealed to us: a great shape, made out of aluminum alloy (so even if the ice cream sticks, using a spoon wouldn't hurt it) and made in the USA since 1935. Oh, it also uses a scientific principle to help the ice cream come out, namely a heat-conductive fluid. I assume that your hand warms the fluid in the handle, which then provides heat to the scoop part and melts the ice cream into your bowl or cone. And best of all: It really works! I am amazed by this ice cream scoop and it was well worth the price. Beautiful round scoops that come out of the scooper absolutely effortlessly. Ladies and gentlemen: <a title="Completing the ice cream experience." href="http://www.zeroll.com/products/originalicecreamscoop.html">Zeroll Original Ice Cream Scoop</a>.<br /><br />Well, that pretty much reads like a comment somebody who's being paid by the scoop's manufacturer would leave on an online shopping site or review page, but I just had to share the great news.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-27880063721634994242009-12-03T20:42:00.008-06:002009-12-03T21:22:47.808-06:00Spreading it on too thinPantyhose are not the same as regular pants. This becomes especially obvious when the sun is out. And people can all too clearly see the tattoos on your butt as you walk into a fast food restaurant.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8523596.post-47217607164748903222009-11-05T21:06:00.004-06:002009-11-05T21:26:53.435-06:00It's like déjà vu all over againWe carved pumpkins for Halloween and gave out candy, and we also watched Scream, which I had actually never seen before. And there is this really hilarious, possibly embarrassing, line by Neve Campbell in the movie, which I used as the title for this post. So remember folks: careful when using those fancy words, unless you're 100% sure what they really mean, especially when you use them in a sentence.Christophhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14969563803303368829noreply@blogger.com1