Quantum Void

2012-03-03T00:29:00.007-06:00

Chessmaster

My Dad always used to beat me at chess. Well look at me now! Should've used the rook, but not bad :|

2012-02-11T11:22:00.000-06:00

Acts of Kindness

Though absent long,
These forms of beauty have not been to me,
As is a landscape to a blind man's eye:
But oft, in lonely rooms, and mid the din
Of towns and cities, I have owed to them,
In hours of weariness, sensations sweet,
Felt in the blood, and felt along the heart,
And passing even into my purer mind
With tranquil restoration:—feelings too
Of unremembered pleasure; such, perhaps,
As may have had no trivial influence
On that best portion of a good man's life;
His little, nameless, unremembered acts
Of kindness and of love. Nor less, I trust,
To them I may have owed another gift,
Of aspect more sublime; that blessed mood,
In which the burthen of the mystery,
In which the heavy and the weary weight
Of all this unintelligible world
Is lighten'd:—that serene and blessed mood,
In which the affections gently lead us on,
Until, the breath of this corporeal frame,
And even the motion of our human blood
Almost suspended, we are laid asleep
In body, and become a living soul:
While with an eye made quiet by the power
Of harmony, and the deep power of joy,
We see into the life of things.

- William Wordsworth

2011-12-22T01:44:00.003-06:00

Welcome Back Blog

Well I have moved to California and taken on a new job, which is very challenging and I am loving, and puts me within reach of realizing the dream of this cartoon (click to enlarge).

2011-06-11T14:15:00.002-06:00

Rose Poem

Oh dear rose, why did you have to die?

Stupid rose.

2011-04-21T08:38:00.001-06:00

Storm Season

Time for spring weather in Oklahoma, aka tornado alley. Took this picture from my porch while playing with the high dynamic range (HDR) option on my camera.

2011-04-19T14:15:00.022-06:00

Norway!

Finally got a chance to take a mini-vacation, but it was nothing near restful. It was however a great adventure that few will ever experience.

Starting out, here is a picture from Copenhaven airport, getting near the destination. Beautiful woodwork everywhere.

Onto Norway and the land of Vikings. Norway, though officially "neutral" during WWII, aided the Allies and was invaded by Hitler. It is interesting to note Norway has the largest capital reserve per capita of any nation (unlike some *cough cough*).

A satellite map of BodØ, Norway, my initial destination. BodØ is within the Arctic circle and the largest city in Nordland, Norway. Being on the coast, the ocean keeps the temperatures moderate, and it never went below freezing.

Showed up unannounced, and checked into the Radisson Blu hotel, very good accommodations.

Had some fantastic fish for dinner at the Bryggeri Kaia. Ate there the next night also and sampled some whale meat!

Of course had to experience the local night life, like here at the Public, a Rock'n'Roll bar.

On Saturday, a beautiful day, took a drive to the Saltstraumen, the largest tidal eddy current in the World.

First picture here you can notice a faint rainbow in the sky. This is due to an atmospheric phenomenon where tiny rectangular ice crystals high in the atmosphere align and create the rainbow.

Another nice picture from the Saltstraumen. You may notice some waves in the background, but it wasn't the right time of day for the full tide.

A view from our hotel window on the 11th floor.

A suspicious looking camper with horizontal line of sight communications dish parked below.

Time to escape on the midnight ferry then! Just us and a half dozen truck drivers.

The view at midnight, looking to the bow of the ferry. Very wavy in the ocean waters, and the engine power started going out at some point (lights dimming, strange noises, etc.) As they say in Norway, "No problems", and we survived.

Arrive in Moskenes Lofoten Islands, even further North in the Arctic circle, a few hours later (lower left of map).

After driving around for a few more hours, we ended up "crashing" these upscale red cabins, Reine Rorbuer. Totally recommend for anybody who take the proper preplanned measures to stay there.

Did not get an opportunity to see the Moskstraumen, another giant whirlpool, but we had already become the maelstrom.

Pictures never do justice to the majesty of nature (click on picture for larger version, one of my faves(.

All over the islands, they air dry Cod fish, the only place in the World it is possible because of the climate. Did I mention they STINK and STINK everything you own!? I had a chance to take a shower, but my friend Steve did not. As we were on the flight back to Copenhaven, I overheard the flight attendant say in Norwegian, "I didn't know there were any fishermen on this flight!", but in a very good natured way, as is pervasive in their culture.

One of my favorite things was driving on their roads. So fun through all the curves and hills. Many roads get reduced down to one lane (and could hardly be considered 2 lanes wide normally) and you need to be aware when to pull over at intermittent ditches to let traffic through. God knows how they even made them through all the rocks and obstacles.

This sign means drive 60km per hour. Obey it very strictly.

This sign means no regulations! Mini autobahn though cliffs and mountains! YAY!

My friend Steve near one of the white sand beaches (background).

Final trip back to Tulsa from southern Lofoten was almost 2 days pure travel time I figure, with very little sleep. A little frazzling to say the least. Good to be back and hope you enjoyed my story!

2010-12-01T19:03:00.018-06:00

Atlanta

Recently stayed in Atlanta, Georgia for a week. Checked into the Artmore Hotel, a Spanish design building from 1924, right in the heart of Midtown.

Very artsy and trendy place, the concierge desk:

My room as I walk in, with an old time movie playing and Audrey Hepburn on the wall.

The Studio Bar.

Fountain with flame in the courtyard

Next day is time to start my class at the Georgia Tech Global Learning Center.

OK, time for dinner, took a cab to the Westin hotel, one of the tallest buildings around, with a spinning restaurant at the top. Elevator goes on the outside of the building! Wouldn't recommend for the food, but the service is good while rotating around.

Next night walked to the South City Kitchen and had the specials of the night, crab bisque and grilled snapper. Not normally a fish person, but the snapper was very fresh, perfectly cooked, and yummy!

Might as well head over to the W hotel Midtown. The "W" supposedly stands for "whatever, whenever".

Looks like the swanky and exclusive Whisky Park is right up these stairs.

*snooze* OK time for some more educational endeavors, The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta has a free museum on the first floor. Lots of neat exhibitions of bank notes, gold coins, forms of money, and counterfeits throughout history. A glass window lets you see into a room where bales of worn out bills are being shredding to remove from the money supply. Even got a packet of shredded bills to keep as a souvenir .

Also went to the Atlanta High Museum of Art. Salvador Dali's later works were the main attraction. I think I like his earlier works better, and the exhibit was so crowded I did not really get a chance to examine things. The rest of the museum, with modern and renaissance sections (including a lot of furniture), was much more peaceful and enjoyable.

Later went to Nickiemoto's and had some fantastic Sashimi. Again, I am not usually a big fan of sushi, but this was really fresh and subtly seasoned with soy sauce and jalapeno.

Met some guy who claimed to be a Grammy winning artist and songwriter (David Tesh), but never heard of him. Anyway, we crashed some rockstar reunion party at the The Center Stage.

Got this classic photo of a member of the band November in the "green room", which is clearly red.

Well that's most of the exciting parts. Atlanta is clearly a vibrant, multicultural, and prosperous city. Some call it the capitol of the South.

Oddly enough, it actually feels good to be back in boring old Tulsa.

2010-11-26T02:28:00.004-06:00

Thanksgiving

Just me and my friend this Thanksgiving.

I made roasted Cornish hens (slathered in butter and spices), on a bed of brown rice infused with sautaeed chillies, butter, and green onions. Add a surrounding crown of white wine and garlic steamed green beans. It should be obvious why we were both thankful.

2010-11-08T23:49:00.006-06:00

Comfort Food

I've had this nasty cold for about a week now, and Saturday I decided I wanted some good ole' fashioned Shepherd's Pie.

Read a few recipes and improvised for what I thought my tummy wanted. I will summarize the recipe here. These steps can mostly be done in parallel, though I saved the meat part for last.

Boil four peeled and cubed large potatoes for about 20 minutes (lower heat to simmer after initial boil). Drain and mash with half a stick of butter and enough milk until reaches the right consistency. Cover and save.

Steam package of frozen peas and carrots, heap of minced garlic, and a small portion of beef broth covered in the microwave for about 6 minutes. Stir, cover, and save.

Set the oven to 350 degrees so it is preheated when done with the next step.

In a skillet, brown a pound of ground beef and a chopped onion (be sure heat is not too high!). Add seasoning (i.e. salt and pepper) and Worcestershire sauce to taste. Stir as needed. Add some sliced mushrooms when beef about halfway browned. When fully browned, drain fat, then pour in approximately half a can of the beef broth and lower heat to a simmer. Add small portions of flour and stir until liquid consistency is lost.

Finally, in an about 10"x14" baking dish, put an even layer of meat, then vegetables, and then smooth mashed potatoes over the top. Put in preheated oven and cook for about 40 minutes.

Just finished by myself eating up the last of all of it now!

2010-10-13T13:55:00.008-06:00

Earthquake!

Was at work in Tulsa about 9A.M. this morning and then inexplicably, I started slightly bouncing up and down in my comfy chair for a seconds. A few of us were like, "What was that?"

Turns out there was a 4.3 magnitude earthquake near Oklahoma City. Not high enough to normally do any damage but definitely unusual for this part of the country. There is a recently discovered fault line in eastern Arkansas though, and they have had quite a few tremors lately.

Was my first earthquake that I ever felt and was kinda fun.

UPDATE: The Oklahoma Geological Survey has rated the quake as a 4.7 and was felt in Wichita, Arkansas, and Dallas . The second largest recorded in Oklahoma. HURRAH!

2010-10-01T18:42:00.004-06:00

The Story of Tesla as Told by a Drunk

Wow! I love Crispin Glover. Anyway, the rest are all actors, Crispin is the real thing.

Fell a little short on the end, but maybe a sequel?

2010-09-15T21:59:00.012-06:00

Austin Trip

Well I finally got around to posting about my awesome Austin trip.

Flew from Tulsa to Dallas, and after sitting on the plane for an hour and a half on the plane while still in the terminal in Dallas (broken toilet in first class), finally made it to Austin and was picked up at the airport by my cousin Ibby and Aunt Pru.

Was taken to the swanky Hotel Saint Cecilia where I had a private bungalow near the pool.

I was quite hungry, so we walked to the nearby Snackbar, which I thought had some really good fresh and simple food. I had the American salad and spiced beans. Actually thought it was some of the best food of the trip, but maybe I was just really hungry!

Next we went to check out Ibby's place, and then onto Uchi for sushi, sake and great service. Next went back to the hotel to lounge by the pool. After a while, I say, "Hey let's go up to the lounge, there might be a movie star there!"

Well we go up to the lounge, and just as we walk in, Ibby spots Sean Young who starred in movies like Blade Runner, Fatal Instinct, Stripes, and No Way Out.

Drank some fabulous drinks which had fresh strawberries and stuff and met up with I's friend. We all went back to my room before going to dinner.

Walked over to dinner at Botticelli's, I had the yummy mushroom Pansotti.

After everybody went home, I remembered that while on Congress that I had seen a poster for Texas Industrial Fest. Flagged down a cab and off I went. One of my favorite bands was Virus Filter.

While playing, the singer threw his placard into the crowd. Nobody seemed to notice, so I picked it up and wore it. It said "BAND" on it, though not sure if I fooled anyone as I was the only one not dressed head to toe in black.

The next day we drove around to see the different areas of town, lots of nifty areas. Also had some food at the 24 Diner, where I had a waffle sandwich.

Ibby's friend's invited us out to her house in the country, and when we arrived, had some amazing queso that her friend's husband made.

Later, went to Angel's Icehouse, where I thought it was my duty to try the deep fried bacon with lettuce and tomato.

Was getting late, but we had tickets to the Alamo Drafthouse Theater. What is nice about the Alamo, is that you may order drinks or food (good menu) while watching the movie. There is a long bar/table set up in front of every row. We saw the movie Inception. Really liked it, but you have to pay attention 100% of the time or may lose track of what is going on. I am still confused about a couple things. A small criticism is was that there was too much gratuitous gunfire and explosions to fill in the complicated plot.

Next/last day (Sunday), we went to the Eastside cafe, which has their own farm and chickens, and what they don't raise, is bought from local farms. I simply had some great asparagus soup.

After that, drove to an old industrial area on the near east side where I had some iced coffee.

With some time to burn, went to the Four Seasons Hotel and hung out along the riverbank.

Finally, we went to the Whole Foods Market flagship store, which has its own underground parking garage. This place is HUGE and has a giant fresh bakery, deli, ethnic food selection, salad bar, and more, including much more and better quality of everything else of your normal grocery fare. I bought a mini-cheesecake, a cup of cucumber salad, and a couple of slices of steak Wellington to eat before heading off to the airport.

Thanks to the great tour guiding and patience of my family, I made it back to the airport and home!

2010-07-26T20:05:00.004-06:00

Braised Chicken with Green Peppers and Tomatoes

Here is a super great scrumptious meal that I made from the recipe-a-day calendar that Bob gave me for Christmas. It is really easy to make other than some prep time. After that you can pretty much let it simmer as long as you like, the longer the better! Also would go well over some noodles or rice.

6 SERVINGS Chicken thighs remain tender even after cooked through, so they work better in braises than chicken breasts, which can become dry if overcooked.

INGREDIENTS:

4 tablespoons (approx) extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs (about 12)
1 large onion, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh Italian parsley
2 green bell peppers, cut into 1-inch squares
6 whole tomatoes from 28-ounce can, drained, chopped
1 cup dry white wine (I used a Chardonnay)

HEAT 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Working in batches, cook chicken until golden brown, about 4 minutes total, adding more oil as needed. Transfer chicken to platter (reserve skillet).

ADD onion, garlic, and parsley to same skillet; saute until onion is soft, scraping up browned bits, about 4 minutes. Add bell peppers, tomatoes, and wine; return chicken to skillet. Cover, simmer over medium-low heat 30 minutes. Uncover; cook until chicken is tender and sauce is reduced, about 15 minutes (I did much longer on a low simmer, is fine as long heat is not too high, lets flavors sink in and gives time to leisure about or do chores). Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Not my picture, but you get the idea. YUMM!

2010-06-06T01:18:00.020-06:00

Weekend Cali Adventure

Went to California last weekend to visit my best friend from grade/high school, Bill.

As soon as I get to the airport, the automated computer thingie tells me that my flight is delayed and that I will miss my connecting flight. The programmed options that I was given weren't very appealing, so I gathered the attention of the lady behind the desk and decided the best option was to get a flight out of the connecting city the next morning, off to Los Angeles for the night then!

I meandered around the terminal in Tulsa for a while, had a couple beers, and then went to my gate. Everybody was still sitting around and the flight wasn't due to leave for another half hour. I went to the restaurant next to the terminal and ordered a Sam Adams. Tap was empty, no problem, I'll wait. In the mean time I talk to an Okie girl sitting next to me who apparently didn't understand my accent when I said, "Do what?" (an Oklahoma phrase meaning "what?") and replied, "Do what?". After attaching a new barrel and dumping a half dozen buckets of foam later I finally get my beer. After a couple sips I lookover and see that my terminal is empty, throw some money on the table and run over to hear the gate attendant on his walkie takie stating that, "Alexander the Great is not here." "Here I am", I say. "Cancel that", he reports. I wasn't that late, there was still a line getting on the plane.

{Insert story about hot Latino women I was surrounded by in my seat here}

So I get to LA and while waiting for my luggage I walk over to the information booth. I ask the guy sitting behind the counter if he has a map of LA. He says, "I don't work here but the girl who usually does has maps, but I don't know where she keeps them." Hmmphh. OK. Pick up my luggage and head back to the information booth (non-working guy is gone). They did have a map of the airport taped to the table, and I knew about the UFO shaped (Encounter) restaurant, so found that and made a beeline towards that as I knew somebody there could help me.

I arrive and see a couple people standing outside the door. On closer inspection I see that one of them is Charlie Sheen.

I act casual and smoke a cigarette. Finally I get up the nerve to walk over and ask, "May I ask you guys some advice?" I explain my situation of my missed flight, no place to stay, and looking for something to do. Mr. Sheen's friend did most of the talking initially, saying there were hotels near the airport, and then maybe Sunset Blvd. "Oh no", I said, "Been there done that, and I don't feel like staying at the Beverly Hills Hilton again.". It's true but still, LOL.

The whole time I hadn't really acknowledged Mr. Sheen or let him know who he was (getting a few of the famous "Do I know you?" winces). I hear stars prefer it this way, besides I was actually looking for true guidance. Mr. Sheen pipes in and suggests Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica. As they head back into the restaurant and he walks away, I whisper to him, "Thanks Charlie!"

Into a cab and onward to Santa Monica and Shutters!

I arrive and don't even know if they have any rooms available, a grim statistic for a holiday weekend. I go up to the concierge and ask for a room. He thinks he might and starts tapping away on the keyboard. I say, "Well Charlie Sheen said this is a good place." "He hasn't been here for a while", he says. "You talked to him?", he asks. "Yes", I say. Clickity ... clickity ... clickty .... clickty. "Here is your room sir, enjoy."

I go walking around looking for some dinner. Finally I find a place that is not too pretentious or low brow. The Ma'Kai lounge is where I arrived.

I asked if they had a table outside, and the only one available was a grand table that sat ten people, so I stretched out while drinking some Sauvignon Blanc and eating avacado mango salad and steak asparagus skewers. Finally I ask the couple sitting next to me (on the two foot square table) if they knew of nightlife in Santa Monica. We got talking, and turns out this guy named Taylor grew up in Tulsa!

Left the lounge and did my typical city area perusal and was just about to give up when I walked past a door playing the music of Depeche Mode. I did a backtrack and waltzed into Copa d'Oro.

Though I was trying to stay sober, I had to try one of their amazing signature martinis made with ground mint, red bell pepper, and other amazing herbs. Almost healthy and definitely yummy.

Ate a falafel at a place next to the place I ate earlier and got a ride back to the hotel, and of course it is always a good thing to have a TV in the bathroom while you enjoy your Jacuzzi.

Had to try out the magic 8-ball spinner like thing that was attached to the desk, it said, "today"

Wake up early the next morning and took a Prius taxi to the airport. His route was much shorter and cheaper than on the way out. Hmmpphh.

My flight arrived much earlier than scheduled. I gathered my luggage and looked for my friend. Went outside and borrowed the phone from a TSA employee who had to dial the number for me because I haven't used an iPhone for at least a month. As it turns out it was perfect timing! 20 seconds later my friend drives up and we have a joyful handshake and reunion.

Drop my things off and head off for some lunch. Bill suggests Sushi and I agree. I do not usually partake in sushi as I live in the Midwest, but coastal sushi is trustable and turns out most of it was pretty good, especially the blue fin tuna which he recommended.

Next we went for a hike near the bay in Freemont.

Bill

Me

Next we go to a Peet's coffee, WAY BETTER coffee than Starbucks. Head on to the supermarket next door to buy some ingredients for supper. The food is so FRESH there. Went to my supermarket today and nearly barfed from the slim and decayed selection of vegetables.

Bill ground and seasoned his own beef for hamburgers, his wife chopped and seasoned broccoli, and I made some salad bleu cheese vinaigrette salad dressing and chopped up items for the salad (including avocados, yum!) We grilled all of the items (not the salad, duh!), also including fresh corn on the cob. So simple yet so delicious.

Later that night we drove a long and twisty road to the top of Mount Hamilton where the Lick Observatory resides. Originally this was the location of the largest refracting (lens) telescope in the World.

Bill and his daughter

Another view of the Bay Area coming down (about half way).

The next day we all go for Dim Sum. There were many diverse shrimp/beef/pork dumplings and rolls, but the mussels in a spicy sauce with peppers and onions were pretty good, the tea was really good, and the lemon cream filled sugar rolls at the end were the best.

Bill then takes me go-cart racing. Turns out we had the entire track to ourselves. That guy ending up lapping me in the final race. Bah.

All good things must come to an end, so my friend drives me to the airport, and then informs me that he has saved up points that will expire soon for United Airlines. First class for me on the leg back to Tulsa!

2010-03-17T14:20:00.003-06:00

Stock Market One Year Later

Almost exactly a year ago I decided to invest in some stocks. This is how my portfolio did.

2010-02-22T23:02:00.005-06:00

Quick Easy Awesome Healthy Snack

This is a staple of mine and beats a bag of chips any time I have the munchies. It may seem too easy and obvious to be gourmet, but that is the beauty of it.

Gather your favorite frozen vegetables, olive oil, minced garlic, and seasoned salt (I am using steak seasoning here). Pour vegetables into a microwave safe bowl.

Mix together vegetables, seasoning, a liberal scoop of garlic (the strongness WILL cook out), and drizzle with olive oil. Top off with a smidgen of water. Cover (I use an upside down saucer) and cook on high in the microwave for 4 minutes. Let stand for another minute or two, and PRESTO! Yummy veggies for your tummy!

2010-02-06T16:34:00.008-06:00

Paris Clouds Time Lapse 1-4

TIP: To prevent stuttering, hit pause after play to give the HD video time to load, then play after loaded

2009-12-12T12:27:00.003-06:00

Give it Back

Make the mummy happy. Yeah, just give it back, mmm'kay?

2009-12-04T17:30:00.007-06:00

Hanlon's Razor

I discovered a new idea today.

Hanlon's Razor states that, "Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."

Extracted from Wikipedia: A practical observation on the risks of stupidity was made by the German General Kurt von Hammerstein-Equord in Truppenführung, 1933: "I divide my officers into four classes; the clever, the lazy, the industrious, and the stupid. Each officer possesses at least two of these qualities. Those who are clever and industrious are fitted for the highest staff appointments. Use can be made of those who are stupid and lazy. The man who is clever and lazy however is for the very highest command; he has the temperament and nerves to deal with all situations. But whoever is stupid and industrious is a menace and must be removed immediately!"^[5]

[5] Condell, Bruce; Zabecki, Major General U. S. Army David T., eds (2001) [originally published in German as Heeresdienstvorschrift 300: Part 1 (1933) and Part 2 (1934), softcover]. On the German Art of War: Truppenführung. translation by Condell and Zabecki; foreword by James S. Corum. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers. LC 2001019798, additional OCLC 469812750. ISBN 9781555879969. OCLC 46704038

If you are wondering, I was inspired by this post.

2009-12-01T18:56:00.002-06:00

Blah

blah blah blah blah

blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah um, no, blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah however, blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah.

In conclusion.

Blah

2009-10-23T19:22:00.002-06:00

Machinarium

This is a fun and really artistically made point and click adventure that I recently played. There are a few tricky logic puzzles, but if you get really stuck, help is available just a click away in just as impressive hieroglyphic form. Come to think of it, there were NO WORDS in the entire game.

You start out as a little robot who gets "accidentally" dropped into a junkyard. The story pieces itself back together as you go on.

Oh, did I mention the MUSIC? Fantastic ambient electronica.

The demo may be played here

Enjoy

2009-09-26T15:28:00.005-06:00

New ToyI have a very nice SLR camera, but everything is going digital these days. Normal teeny digital cameras just don't cut it though. The tiny aperture on most cameras result in blurry jittery pictures, and don't work well in low light conditions.

I just pre-ordered this Pentax K-X. Will be shipped sometime in October. It has some really nice features:

Can take HD movies @ 720 resolution and 24 frames per second.

Has automatic High Dynamic Range (HDR). What this does is take 3 exposures at different integration times, and then smartly puts them back together into a single picture. This allows seeing extremely dark and bright areas in a photo all at the same time.

Uses normal AA batteries. Part of the reason I stopped using my SLR camera is that I never seemed to have the right special batteries to put in it. Plus it was too bulky.

12.4 Megapixels. Roughly thats 3500x3500 pixels, way better than any TV or computer monitor out there.

100-12800 ISO rating! That means works well in dark environments.

Oh yeah, also has unique white body and lens color.

Coming to a holiday near you soon!

2009-09-26T15:23:00.002-06:00

Amaxon.com

I accidentally typed in Amaxon.com while trying to go to Amazon.com. I was instantly rerouted to Amazon.com.

What shall I do next o' robot overlords?

2009-09-23T18:22:00.003-06:00

Little Kittens Song

I debated posting this for a few days, but it is just too funny and therapeutic to resist. I mean who doesn't love kittens?

2009-09-18T20:26:00.002-06:00

Oh Yea

75 Percent of Oklahoma High School Students Can't Name the First President of the U.S.

... About 92 percent of the people who take the citizenship test pass on their first try, according to immigration service data. However, Oklahoma students did not fare as well. Only about 3 percent of the students surveyed would have passed the citizenship test. ...

2009-09-18T19:00:00.004-06:00

Boogie Maths

Hehe, got a kick out of this, and is consistent with blog title. Done by the legendary Cyriak whose videos I have posted before.

2009-09-13T02:43:00.005-06:00

SOTD 2

"Let me hear you make decisions, without your televisions, let me hear you speaking just for me..."

2009-09-05T19:44:00.001-06:00

Song of the Day (SOTD #1)

Diorama Logic Friends

Industrial poetry. Enough said.

2009-09-03T19:13:00.012-06:00

Gave Up On This Post

Blogspot.com editing and display features suck.

2009-08-17T22:50:00.006-06:00

More Favorite Websites

Well it is hard keeping up with the interwebs these days, but if you know the few concentrated places of everything that exceed the norms of everything else, the job becomes much easier.

Probably Bad News

Dedicated to news headline reports that were created by stupidity, accident, or just slyly perpetrated wit. Some commentary is given but is usually not needed.

Replacements are Needed

Item Not as Described

All the good free things you can find online, and how desirable they are. Usually Craigslist stuff, so be sure to check frequently so that you don't miss out on an opportunity in your town. What is the best of course, is the author's and other people's comments.

Spooky Chair

Mighty Optical Illusions

Finally, on a more upbeat note, this website highlights the latest optical illusions that have been invented, or has articles that play on the classics of the past. Below is an ad by Range Rover. It took me a while to figure it out. (HINT: Don't try so hard)

Maasai Landrover Freelander Illusion

2009-07-24T18:19:00.003-06:00

97.98% Profit

Well I was really waiting for the 100% mark before I made this post, but most likely we are at the peak of what is called a "suckers rally". Surely I will beat this percentage as time goes on, but for the short term this is where I am.

All of these stocks were purchased back in March (or later), so a four month doubling of money isn't bad by most standards.

Really wasn't a lot of deep mathematical analysis involved, just a lot of hunch, researching the possible candidates, and good timing.

2009-07-02T20:51:00.004-06:00

Happy 4th of July!

At this time of celebrating our Country's declaration of independence, I bet you are wondering what is bigger and better than fireworks? Well I will tell you what, REAL ROCKETS EXPLODING! So enjoy, and remember the reason for the holiday!

2009-06-01T19:14:00.010-06:00

Recent Favorite Websites

Somehow they are all related to the mocking of failure. Guess that is somebody else's job to explain psychologically.

5 Seconds Films

Reckless Relative

New 5 second film everyday. Some are dumb but some you could watch over and over for 2 hours!

FailBlog

Parenting Fail

Hey, I've been there (look at sign in background)! Wasn't me, you can't prove anything!

Keyboard Cat

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

M - Th 11p / 10c

Daily/Colbert - Keyboard Cat

thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Economic Crisis

Political Humor

The latest internet craze, of which you are not missing out on now that I (and Colbert) let you in on it.

2009-04-03T22:38:00.003-06:00

Little Red Riding Hood (Sponsored by Volkswagen)

Little Red Riding Hood as told by engineers. Don't worry, knowledge is power.

2009-03-12T20:22:00.007-06:00

The Epitome of Special Effects

If you haven't seen it yet, this video is great on so many levels. The music is wonderful, the graphics are well, you already know, beyond comparison, and the message, full of love.

On a technical level, I can barely fathom how most of the effects in this video were done. The seamless computer generated lighting, landscapes, oscilloscopes, and blur effects, integrated with real people is incredible. If you like pretty pictures and cartoons, don't worry about it. Regardless, this video gets the Quantum Void "Epitome of Special Effects" award.

2009-03-08T00:24:00.002-06:00

Best Ice Cream Ever Saw this today at Food Pyramid and picked up a pint for dessert after rib eye steaks, cucumber salad, and sweet potato fries.

J. and I both individually thought this could be the best ice cream ever. Similar views can be found here.

2009-02-28T02:19:00.003-06:00

Quite Unusual Awakening

This morning while sleeping, I was awoken to a an unexpected soundtrack. I at first thought my downstairs neighbor may have been watching a dramatic movie or something, but then I heard no more. My immediate thought was "the way the morning broke was quite unusual." Now you can see the true inspiration (no neighbors included).

2009-02-20T00:04:00.007-06:00

Not a Number (NaN)

After doing some online banking today with Banko de Americos, I was asked if I would like to do a retirement account prediction calculator. I fell for the ruse and entered my personal information. Here are the results (click on picture to zoom in).

NaN means "not a number" in computer terminology. Usually happens when a divide by zero (see any zeros above?) happens. By the way, anything divided by zero is INFINITY, so guess my retirement is all figured out. Have a nice day.

2009-02-15T00:37:00.003-06:00

Tropic Thunder

You have until the end of this video to guess who the actor is dancing... (ignore title at beginning)

Oh yeah, just saw this movie, pretty good comedy.

2009-01-23T23:35:00.012-06:00

Current Events

Went shopping the other day to go check out the Circuit City going out of business sale. After realizing that was a complete farce, J. convinced me to go to Ultimate Electronics. Turns out they weren't even open yet, but still hoards of people stood outside waiting to get in. No sale, no nuthin, just really bored people apparently. Anyway, we get in after everybody else breaks down the door, and start looking around. I ask a few intelligent questions to salesmen and actually get a few intelligent answers. OK, game on.

To make a long story short, I had been wanting a new TV the past few years since the one I won I got at my Christmas party in '95 (21" Panablack(tm) by the way) was a little outdated. Decided on this little beauty below, a Samsung 750.

46 inches, 1080p, 120Hz, 50,000:1 contrast ratio, 178 degree viewing angle. Yup, not bad. Welp, howaboutaz an accessory?

Sony S-550 Blu-ray! Got a big discount because somebody opened the box, but otherwise brand new.

Gotta say TV and movies are AMAZING on this thing. To add pizazz to pizza, my sister gave me a 6 month subscription to Netflix. Well it turns out, for only a dollar a month more, I can upgrade that to Blu-ray DVD's, and so, let the movie watching begin....

In other news, J. and I attended my Christmas party at the Petroleum Club in Tulsa.

That is where I won 2 round trip tickets on American Airlines to the Caribbean!

Not all is good though, my car battery has been repeatedly dying. I just bought a new one a few months ago, so either:

1) Something is draining the battery, which I will check with my ammeter tomorrow
2) The alternator isn't keeping up and broken
3) Lame POS low quality battery

That is all for now.

2009-01-04T01:59:00.003-06:00

Poem by Jerilyn

The heaviness
of a December ice storm
stumped a large pear tree
for shoots
from roots
and weeds
sticking out of the ground
like victory flags.

Shiny sharp loppers
held captive
in hands determined
not to surrender
whack furiously through
green and brown overgrowth
woven together
like a primitive tapestry.

Time stands still
or rather
moves forward
and backward
in one motion,
as green gloved fingers
gather the fresh cuttings
sifting through old dirt
the dust of ancestors
left to feed
weeds and pear trees.

2008-11-24T22:46:00.022-06:00

Vienna!

NOTE: This is a work in progress, so will be updating and refining first cut with more details as time goes on. Areas are marked PLACEHOLDER where there is more to be written.

Well I finally got around to making my Vienna blog. Good things come to those ... blah blah blah.
I recently took a trip to Vienna, and here is what I have to tell.

PLACEHOLDER: German language study

Vienna has been and is a center for artistic and cultural advancement. As an example, musical masters such as Mozart, Beethoven, Hayden (one of my favorites), Schubert, Brahms, and Strauss (Blue Danube) have either been born there or lived there at one point.

PLACEHOLDER: Artists, Klimdt ...

Something I recently learned is that Austria is "permanently neutral", something along the likes of Switzerland.

Below is a satellite image of Vienna centered on the InnerStadt (innercity), courtesy of Google. The Danube River is in the NE corner.

The first thing I noticed while flying in was all the windfarms that crossed the country. Apparently Austria is non-nuclear (though they willingly accept nuclear energy from their European Union (EU) partners in the grid).

PLCAEHOLDER: Nice family I stayed with...

OK, on to so sightseeing. We have the Hapsburg palace of the Hapsburgs who ruled for a good long time. At least we should think so because it is named after them.

This is where Hitler gave his speech from the balcony after invading Austria.

The Ratthaus, plenty of events going on here.

There are plenty more of amazing sights (churches, museums, shops) in the InnerStadt, maybe more on them later.

Of course we all get hungry, but being an American I need some good old fashioned fast food. This is when I came upon WienerWald (hot dog world roughly translated). Had a big piece of schnitzel, pommes frites (french fries), and a salad. The salad was quite good with a mixture of cucumber, saurerkraut, and lettuce. Won't find that at Mc'D's.

PLACEHOLDER: French Chef, goulash, stuffed peppers...

Who likes Coffee? I do. Apparently so did Sigmund Freud. Landtmann's is where he had his morning coffee everyday. The service is on par with the travel guides, so let us just say rudeness is the norm if you don't plan on spending at least 5 hours at the place (many people stay at a coffeehouse all day once they have their spot, so the waiter is in no hurry to get the check).

How about a little trip to the United Nations? Apparently nuclear energy policy is decided there (remember Austria is anti-nuclear) among other things. Waited in line (OK not really, knew somebody :) ) and got my pass to tour the place. Quite amazing how much of World politics can be concentrated in one place.

Alrighty, time for a little side trip. Lets go to the hometown of Arnord Schwarzenagger, Graz, Austria.

PLACEHOLDER: Park and town plaza

This looks quite familiar. Maybe where the shopkeep convinced me that the Cashmere jacket I bought looked quite fine upon me. Moving on...

Hello good woman, can you recommend a place to find a beer around here? (spoken in German by me.) Sure buddy, go up that hill over there (politely spoken in German back).

That is where I was standing, but had no idea of how high that hill was. Let us just say that is the closest I ever came to having a heart attack after climbing it. (Turns out it was Schlossenberg hill?) There is a castle and a restaurant on top.

After a couple drinks, and willing to move on, a kind soul informed me that there is a tram that goes down the hill (and also up DOH).

The next morning, I walked from my hotel to the Mur Island. Had some Eier (eggs) and stuff.

Back in Vienna, here is the inside of Stephansdom church. Not sure if they had unions back then, however they built things that lasted forever. We got to look at the cannonballs from the attacking Turks that got stuck in the walls like putty.

Time for a T&T from the exclusive Do&Co hotel. This is what is looks like sitting there.

I was always facsinated by this object. Turns out it was an incinerator designed by HunderWasser, a famous artist. They incinerate garbage and actually end up recieving more energy than they put in.

PLACEHOLDER: Hundertwasser house

PLACEHOLDER: Market and Pumpkin oil.

And finally, it is time for gifts. I get my girlfriend one of these handmade altmann & kuehne hand wrapped bon-bon thingies.

2008-11-21T21:10:00.001-06:00

Pachelbel Canon

My Mother's favorite song. Hope she doesn't mind it has been modernized.

2008-09-22T20:41:00.002-06:00

Aspirin

The other day I wasn't feeling so well so I went to the local Walgreen's to get some old fashioned aspirin. Well when I got to the drug aisle, I was confronted with a WALL full of modern day pain killers, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, and multiple variations thereof. All by itself way down in the little bitty right hand corner was what I was seeking, 500 tablets of Walgreen's brand aspirin for $3.99.

Now somebody please explain to me why generic brand aspirin that is just as effective or better pain killer (and largely natural) than the rest (and has many other beneficial properties) is now a hard to find item?

Yes I would rather much pay 3.99 for about 10 pills of ibuprofen. NOT! Just because aspirin is not a copyrighted item anymore, money can't be made off of it, so guess what, nobody sells it (except Bayer if they boost it with caffeine)!

2008-09-19T00:00:00.001-06:00

Best Adapted Screenplay

The best-selling book comes to terrifying life.

2008-09-11T19:37:00.029-06:00

Computer Generated Art

I came up with a way to algorithmically generate "power law" images. Power laws show up everywhere in nature, including but not limited to; clouds, coastlines/topography, occurrence of natural disasters, the stock market, and the internet. A power law is considered to have a frequency power spectrum proportional to 1/f^alpha, where the alpha variable is the slope of the power spectrum in log-log space. In addition I generate a random color scheme using another algorithm I developed.

These images are completely randomly generated, and I picked a few of the more aesthetically pleasing ones to share. Some of them look as if you could even see the artist's brushstrokes.

Definitely some people will dismiss this as not art because it does not accurately recreate real life situations such as an ant crawling up a dogs nose, and I will admit this is quite abstract. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg, and there are surely more permutations and improvements to be made.

I really think (and have made) some of these pictures the perfect Windows(TM) wallpaper. They are modern, artistic, and soothing to the senses due to their natural mathematical basis.

You can click on the picture for the full sized image, and then right click to download into your Windows(TM) folder. After that right click on your desktop background and select properties (or personalize in Vista). Select the image of choice and checkbox the "stretch image" option. Though these images are tileable (another neat feature), they still have a border around them so they don't quite look right if you do so.

Though I don't want to sway the artistic interpretation of viewers, as some people do, I will give names to all of the creations.

Green River

Crowded

Purple

Granite

Flag

Abyss

Venusian Dawn

Balance

Forest Fire

Lightsaber

Fun

Chess

Clouds

Who's Your Daddy?

Bamboo

Spectrum

Island

Dichotomy

70's

Bleeding

Rebel

What Are You Looking At?

A Silver Lining

Venusian Waves

Armageddon

A Fly Crawling Up a Fly's Nose

Alpha/Omega Reunion

2008-08-26T23:27:00.004-06:00

Bite the Hand that Feeds You?

I heard that Nine Inch Nails (the band in video) may be coming to Tulsa!

2008-08-22T23:00:00.002-06:00

Driving This Road Until Death Sets Us Free

By the band Zombie Zombie from France, this video is a stop animation creation using GI Joe figurines, based upon the John Carpenter movie "The Thing". Never saw it myself but may not need to now.

2008-07-03T20:45:00.004-06:00

Phantom of the Opera

Recently J., as a graduation present, got some tickets to Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera at the Tulsa PAC.

Now being country folk, I am not naturally fond of Broadway, but seeing that this is the longest playing musical ever, it is definitely something that needs to be checked off on the list of things to do. Thanks J!

The seats were very good, 7th row to the left. My only complaint is that maybe the acoustics weren't so good where I was sitting, much of the sound was too loud and got muddled together. The story is very good, though somewhat predictable. Pyrotechnics (one that seemed to singe my eyebrows) and other special effects make this definitely an enjoyable experience.

Here is an "improved" techno rendition of the theme song. That voice just sends shivers up my spine, wow! Also included in the video are pictures of the amazing theater in France where the story takes place.

2008-06-10T21:54:00.008-06:00

To Buy or Not to Buy, That is the Question

Well I apparently have been watching too much HGTV lately. I have been having a hankering for owning a house. Not just having my own space but for the apparent investment opportunity it has over throwing money away on an apartment. Now mind you, not being in debt for tons of money and being able to pack up and leave town on a whim also has its own unwritten value.

Interest rates are LOW, but seem to be going back up again. Should I wait for further bursting of the bubble or will it be too late?

Was looking around online today, and found this 4 bedroom 3 bath with 3762 square feet and 2 car garage on top of a hill in a nice part of town that looks right up my alley, but probably out of my price range.

Carpet would have to go but assume there is wood under there right? Would look great with oriental rugs and fancy paintings all over?

Just one of many views of the large bright open spaces.

Droooooooool ......

Kitchen is not quite up to my tastes, but quite spacious, needs some more color somehow.

Oh well, if anybody wants to donate a huge sum to the Quantum Void housing fund, you probably know how to reach me. I can dream can't I?

2008-05-30T22:01:00.003-06:00

I am a Martian

Well not really, but I am on Mars. The recent successful touchdown of the Phoenix Mars lander carried with it a silica-glass mini-DVD from the Planetary Society which contained the name of thousands of others along with mine. The DVD also includes many other things like a certain story by H.G. Wells for future travelers to discover.

The people who were lucky enough to find out about the free opportunity to sign up to have their name sent for free to Mars, received a certificate like this. I think my nephew may be on that list!

So nah-noo nah-noo and beedebeedebeep. See you in space!

2008-05-23T18:13:00.003-06:00

I Made This

A little late, but Jerilyn made me a kaleidescope for Valentine's Day, so shortly afterwards I asked her where the materials she used were and went to work. The same night with her help I soldered together random pieces of cut stained glass to make this heart for a present in return.

2008-05-01T19:45:00.013-06:00

Movie Review - No Country for Old Men

It goes without saying that this movie has been nominated for and won MANY awards. That said, this is one of those movies that keeps you on the edge of your seat and thinking about it for long after.

I still really haven't figured out what the "moral" of this movie is or what the many symbolisms are, but it all starts out with our hapless hero hunting in the desert of Texas. Soon afterwards a symbolic dark cloud glides across the sky casting a shadow upon the land in front of him.

Our Hapless Hero

One of the best things about this movie of course is the "villain". Is he psychotic? Maybe. That will be left for the viewer to decide, but J thinks that he is symbolic of death, so his actions are justified.

Our Evil Villain

At the end of the movie, I wasn't sure what to think. There were a bunch of old people babbling about morals and stuff that I just couldn't understand. Maybe that is why it is called "No Country for Old Men".

UPDATE: Since everybody is too afraid or "busy" post a reply, here is a trailer of the movie. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED, WATCH THIS MOVIE!

2008-04-26T20:59:00.005-06:00

WAR

A little history lesson for you kiddies and some more industrial music.

UPDATE: For those of you who don't speak germanic, here are the lyrics;

And suddenly there was war
We didn't remember it
A long time forgotten
There suddenly was war
And suddenly there was war
Our children are dead
Burnt in the ruins
That were left by war
War

And suddenly there was war
And the mothers they screamed
For revenge and reprisals
For another war
And suddenly
And suddenly
And suddenly there was war
With spoiling and death
And you fight alone
If there's another war

Whole life is war
And whole life is pain
And you will fight alone
In your personal war
War

This is war
War

UPDATE 2: The last phrase beginning with "Whole life is war" is extremely representative of Buddhism.

2008-04-26T19:52:00.004-06:00

Ministry - Stigmata - You've Run Out of Lies

Classic ground breaking industrial music. NOT SAFE FOR KIDS (or Lutherans).

UPDATE: Um, LIES!

2008-04-24T21:53:00.003-06:00

New Book

Well I decided I wasn't quite versed enough in the general relativity realm, so got this very easy to read and informative book. The thing that bothers me of course is the tensor math. Yucky rules that must be remembered. In itself the book is a great tutorial of the rules and applications of general relativity.

Whether the general theory is true or not, it does predict:

Perihelion of Mercury: Measured very accurately and proven many times. This is due to the different flow of of time (relative to us) near the gravity of the Sun.

Bending of Light: Light according to relativity follows a "geodesic", which then can be measured by a star occulting the Sun. Again this angle has been verified to great precision. A similar and my favorite related effect though is "stellar aberration". This means a star's relative position will shift depending on our relative velocity about the Sun.

Black Holes: The math allows for a singularity in space, in the 80's and before a speculation, has effects now which are pretty much an accepted reality in the centers of most galaxys, measured by expected x-ray and gamma radiation.

GPS satellites: These reliable accurate position keepers of our life need to be continually updated because their clocks run at different speeds outside our ground level gravity field.

Gravity Waves: Pulsars orbiting each other have been discovered and their orbital period decreases enough to account for the gravitational wave energy.

This is all nice, so none of this "proves" anything, but certainly must be on the right track. I still think tensors are too cumbersome to work with. There are some alternatives like Hestene's geometric algebra which can reduce Maxwell's Lorentz covariant 4 equations into 1.

2008-03-25T22:20:00.003-06:00

Pommes de Alexander

Here is a yummy potato recipe I just made up the other day. I won't list the ingredients ahead of time as they should be a staple of any good cook.

* Slice desired amount of potatoes (I used red but any kind should work) thinly sideways (about 1/2 cm)
* Into a large skillet, pour enough olive oil to cover about half the pan
* Dump in a teaspoon of minced garlic
* Heat on medium to medium high until garlic starts to brown
* Toss in potatoes
* Season generously with salt, pepper, and herbs de provence
* Stir and toss with tongs or spatula until potatoes are golden brown on both sides (about 10 minutes)
* Turn off heat and lightly grate Romano cheese upon. Stir until mixed

EAT!

2008-03-14T19:31:00.001-06:00

Frozen Grand Central Station

I approve of this art.

2008-01-11T22:13:00.001-06:00

Supreme Fallacy

Here is a follow-up to a video post I made a while ago in May called, "Supreme Dexterity" with cool guys doing seemingly impossible acrobatic sunglass throwing tricks.

2008-01-08T23:04:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year

For the unbelievers, you know who you are.

2007-12-22T00:33:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas from the Empire

And Fred

2007-12-10T19:00:00.000-06:00

The Great Tulsa Ice Storm of 2007

We all knew it was coming, and boy did it come.

It all started last night around midnight. I was at Jerilyn's watching her newly fixed cable TV. We were watching Tom Brokaw's special on the History Channel about the year 1968. During a commercial we did a quick switch to the local weather channel to see what was happening (besides the loud pounding of freezing rain on the roof.) A few seconds into it, Bzzzzzt, power gone, back on ..., off ..., on for a few seconds, bzzzzt, off. Hmmm. About a minute later, a quick on and final bzzzt. Power gone permanently. Luckily Jerilyn had picked up some logs for the fireplace (already burning) so we had light and heat, and it was actually quite cozy.

Standing outside in the darkness, one could hear the eerie thunder and see the flashes of lightning. Every once in a while, seen by me and others I talked to (even through the evening today), would be a green flash, representing another power transformer blowing up.

Power Transformer Blowing up Caught by Skycam 6 - Tulsa

Seeing as we weren't going to see the rest of the Tom Brokaw special, we hunkered down by the fire, scraggly dog "Alfie " in tow.

We both awoke at the same time to a loud snap, followed by what seemed to be only a few feet away of loud cracking, snapping, and crashing. The whole time praying it didn't come down on us. When it stopped, we went outside to assess the damage. Her tall and old pear tree had broken down the middle into three pieces. A large one falling on the wooden fence, pretty much destroying a large part of it, the second tipping sideways onto and being supported by her and her neighbors gate's fence, and the third resting itself right across the roof, only causing what luckily appears to be some gutter damage.

Our part of town did not seem to get hit as badly as the North side though, apparently whole trees uprooted is common there. Here is an amazing video from a local news channel A tree snaps right behind Channel 2's Julie Chin (raw video).

They are now saying that there are about 180,000 people without power in the Tulsa area, and the Public Service Company of Oklahoma saying it could take up to a week to restore power to everyone. One statistic has even said, "One in three people in Oklahoma are without power." A hard worker and friend at work said today that he was "having lot of company tonight." Later he got a phone call notifying him that his power was out also.

The Tulsa airport was closed today, everything in or out canceled, no power, and of course no de-icers for the airplanes.

AP News

The happy ending is that my place of work (where today I figured out the folly of my ways of confusing sidereal time with solar time), and my apartments on the hill, both have power (for now *knock knock*) Is very strange though as nearly everything across the street from them (my grocery store looking out my window is running on generators), in between of, and looking out from is as black as night. Quite peaceful actually.

A View of Tulsa Mayhem

UPDATE: To celebrate Armageddon, Jerilyn just came back with a gingerbread house making kit.

2007-10-30T01:07:00.000-06:00

Onion News Flash

2007-10-29T18:15:00.000-06:00

Monterey Part II

Took another trip to Monterey, California recently. Of course there was lots of news about the wildfires. Here is a NASA image of how it looked the day I flew up the coast from LA. The Santa Anna winds eventually changed direction and now they have the fires under control.

After getting settled in, some friends and I had dinner at the Mission Ranch in Carmel. Apparently it used to be owned by Clint Eastwood. I had the clam chowder which was deliciously light and good textured, and the fillet mignon, which was pretty much average in my book. The atmosphere sitting on the terrace was delightful though.

The next day, got some fine coffee at Plumes Coffee Shop.

Later, headed back to Carmel by the Sea and the restaurant simply named The Grill. Ordered the roasted artichoke appetizer and walnut crusted chicken on top of squash tortellini and ginger for the main course. Very good service and top notch food.

After a night of debaucheries, I headed back down to The Wharf. Bought my friend a nice but very reasonably priced silver pendant with amethyst stone and silver chain at the Monterey Bay Silver Company. Next went to a very touristy restaurant called Rappa's at the "End of the Wharf". Can't complain about the idea of eating fried artichoke hearts and award winning clam chowder though.

As it got later, I found some nightlife. Ending up meeting a movie star named Rick Irvin who is starring in the just released horror flick Ghost Month. His line in the trailer is, "Is that a crime?" hehe

Onward down the street I meet some gentlemen with a big sign that says, "If you were to die today, would you go to hell?" I candidly tell them, "yes", and proceed to lecture THEM for 15 minutes about the quantum void, with many passerby stopping to listen.

Ironically, when I leave they hand me a pamphlet that has many interesting ideas and the following quotes that affirm everything I told them:

"But the modern view of the vacuum is not that of emptiness and void. The vacuum seems to be a boundary layer, a substratum or interface, between the physical and the spiritual realms of creation." ... "It is the invisible dimension of the spiritual world where God himself dwells." ... "For one thing, something has gone wrong in the original material creation which produces death and decay, corruption and disentigration." ... , and then something about some guy who already knew all this stuff way back when.

Ex Nihilo Nihil Fit ("Out of Nothing Nothing Comes")

2007-10-17T04:47:00.000-06:00

Quantum Void

2007-10-03T02:48:00.000-06:00

Zero Point Energy

Was reading an interesting article today about the zero point energy (ZPE), and came across these amazing facts:

"In order to appreciate the magnitude of the ZPE in each cubic centimetre of space, consider a conservative estimate of 10⁵² ergs/cc. Most people are familiar with the light bulbs with which we illuminate our houses. The one in my office is labelled as 150 watts. (A watt is defined as 10⁷ergs per second.) By comparison, our sun radiates energy at the rate of 3.8 x 10²⁰ watts. In our galaxy there are in excess of 100 billion stars. If we assume they all radiate at about the same intensity as our sun, then the amount of energy expended by our entire galaxy of stars shining for one million years is roughly equivalent to the energy locked up in one cubic centimetre of space."

...

"The physical vacuum of space therefore appears to be made up of an all-pervasive sea of Planck particles whose density is an unbelievable 3.6 x 10⁹³ grams per cubic centimetre. It might be wondered how anything can move through such a medium. It is because de Broglie wavelengths of elementary particles are so long compared with the Planck length, L*, that the vacuum is 'transparent' to these elementary particles. It is for the same reason that long wavelength infrared light can travel through a dense cloud in space and reveal what is within instead of being absorbed, and why light can pass through dense glass. Therefore, motion of elementary particles through the vacuum will be effortless, as long as these particles do not have energies of the magnitude of what is referred to as Planck energy, or M* c² ('c' is the velocity of light). Atomic particles of that energy would simply be absorbed by the structure of the vacuum. From the figures for the density given above, the energy associated with this Planck particle sea making up the physical vacuum can be calculated to be of the order of 10¹¹⁴ ergs per cubic centimetre, the same as the maximum value for the ZPE."

... More information on the Casmir effect, why atoms don't self destruct, the variable speed of light, and galactic redshift can be found in the original article here.

2007-09-07T21:00:00.000-06:00

High School Musical Trumped

Can't say I know much about Disney and Life, but do know that I like R.E.M. Back to the old-school Sesame Street!

2007-09-04T22:01:00.000-06:00

Cartoon of the DayFrom my desktop New Yorker cartoon calendar.

2007-08-24T19:25:00.001-06:00

Bacon and Cigarretes

So my friend and I are sitting around thinking about what to eat for dinner. Turns out I have a stash of red potatoes and white onions left over from the wonderful corn beef and cabbage she cooked a week before. "Maybe some protein?", she queries? "Yeah sure, some bacon would be good too!", I say.

So I send her off on her merry way to Walgreen's across the street to get some necessities.....

She gets to the counter with the bacon, and asks for the other item du jour ... cigarettes. "What?", says the Hawaiian dyed hair minimum wage cashier. "Bacon and Cigarettes?", "HAHAHAHAHAH!" ...

End of story: We roasted red potatoes, and grilled onion with garlic, and bacon to have the most yummy meal ever.

2007-08-16T18:02:00.001-06:00

Falling in Love with St. Paul

No, not in a priestly way, but a way that transcends logic and consciousness, well OK maybe in a priestly way.

First stop, the St. Paul Hotel. Top rate and even advertised in the Northwest Airlines in-flight magazine.

Their restaurant is rated best in St. Paul, so we had dinner there after a long day of working, traveling, and sleep deprivation. Needless to say, the food, service, and environment were top notch.

All rested up and time to go to the wedding of Kerry Jane and Gordon. Was a very inspiring service and had a cute couple to boot. Best wishes KJ&G!

Reception was held at the 317 on Rice Park. This historic place definitely takes the "wedding" cake in style, so to speak.

Couple of brain cells later, it is time to get up and meet my sister and her husband for lunch.

We finally decide on the Great Waters Brewing Company. Comforting grilled cheese and wild rice chicken soup for everyone. My family left on their merry way so was time to go on an adventure.

Hmmmm, I wonder where this bridge goes? (Not that one, looking across from another one.)

What is this? Some sort of Irish festival?

St. Paul skyline as seen from the park.

My aforementioned friend Jerilyn (Keep smiling :) ).

Some naughty song singing Irishmen.

Back across the bridge and back to the hotel to get our bearings. Where next? The capitol of course!

I make a cameo in this shot.

Onwards to the St. Paul Cathedral! This place was amazing! As you can maybe tell, the entire place is built out of pure granite and marble (and travertine)! Completely awe inspiring on the inside and out! (!!!)

Some stained glass windows. Apparently they like the guy in the middle.

Lots of other stories to tell, but they are not rated for the digital world.

PS, all pictures taken by me were uploaded at full 1600 resolution, so just *click* on them to see all the pixelated goodness.

2007-07-30T17:12:00.000-06:00

New Glasses!

Has been about three years since I had my prescription updated so was time to go out and buy some new glasses. The first pair I just got today are the fashionable IC! Berlin Wildeshausen frames (pictured above), with thin and light high index of refraction anti-reflection, anti-scratch, and anti-UV lenses. As soon I put them on I said, "I can see!" The innovative thing about them is that the hinge has no screws, but implements a patented way of putting two pieces of ultra-light sheet metal together.

Wilde translated from German means wild, but I could find no word for shausen. Looking up Wildeshausen on Wikipedia turned up this interesting piece of info of the city of Wildeshausen in Germany:

Alexander Church

The founding of the Alexander - Church goes back to 814. In 807 Waltbert, a grandson of Duke Wittekind, brought the relics of the sainted Alexander from Rome by way of the Alpine mountains to Wildeshausen. Alexander died, as well as his mother and 6 brothers, as martyrs during the persecution of Christians in the first century. They were executed. Waltbert donated a "Chorherren Stift" (it is a sort of monastery, where the cleric lived to the rules of the Benedictines) named "Alexander Kapitel". It was to be used as a mission for the surrounding area (called Lerigau, or Largau). Wildeshausen became an important place of pilgrimage, which gave the town an economic upswing. Church and "Stift" owned many valuable treasures. The church and "Kapitel" were richly decorated with pictures. Before the completion in 1270 a long time of construction must have preceded it. During renovation artistic and historic frescos were discovered. The Alexander - Church is the only basilica in the area of Oldenburg. The style documents the transition from the late Roman to the early gothic style of the 13th century. The Alexander Church is the greatest work of art in Wildeshausen, well known far beyond the area. Connoisseurs of church music appreciate the organ concerts on the newly installed (1970) Kleuker Organ.

That may not be completely relevant, but hey at least you learned something?

Keep tabs on the Quantum Void to read an update on my alternate pair of frames that I bought, but needed to be special ordered because the manufacturer puts the custom lenses in. They should be ready in a couple of weeks.

2007-07-28T19:09:00.000-06:00

Kashe Li (It's Hard)

I really like this guy's hand drawn animation. His name is Roy Iddan and he made this animated video for the Israeli rock group Jirafot (The Giraffes)

2007-07-11T21:12:00.000-06:00

Weekend in Madison

Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but have been quite busy with life and work. I spent a weekend a couple of weeks ago in Madison to celebrate the life of one of my best college friends, Mike McLean. Apparently he had a fatal affliction since birth that is still incurable to this day that finally caught up with him. I never was told of his problem until now, but knew that I liked him right away when I met him, because he lived ever day as it was his last. I Don't know that I've ever been to a eulogy that has lasted two hours and needed to cut people off at the end due to time constraints.

So, back to my old stomping grounds, the University of Wisconsin Madison, where I was educated among the world class from all cultures. This was the place of many of the highest highs and lowest lows in my life. It feels good to be back. Hello Bucky (which I had a stuffed version of as a child, who says subliminal influences don't work?)

The Wisconsin State Capitol. Second largest dome in the country behind the capitol building in DC.

My hotel, the Hilton Monona Terrace. Nice digs, except for the false 4am fire alarm that I had to wake up to and exit down the stairs from the 8th floor on my last night there.

I had a luxury suite overlooking Lake Monona and the Monona Terrace. The Terrace is a convention center and a Frank Lloyd Wright design that did not exist while I lived there.

The after-memorial service was held at the Brocach Irish Pub. Just as Mike had decreed in his last wishes, everybody was having a toast to his fine existence in this world.

The next day, I sat on the patio of Brocach again and drank some "Haas." I watched people for some time and after awhile decided that I was sufficiently "crazy" enough to jump back into Madison culture. What comes next is discovering a whole new part of Madison that frankly I before was too poor and naive to experience before as a student.

The Ocean Grill Champagne Restaurant. Great place to drink some bubbly (ahem, at $30 a glass if you want the real stuff) and soak up the sun, which by chance, also looks great shining through a $30 glass of bubbles.

My best friend Steve (traveling from DC, also close friend of Mike's) and his wife call and want to go to dinner. OK, where to? Well there could not have been a better choice. The Muramoto presents a tapas-style Japanese dinner. I cannot praise this place enough. The cuisine was perfect in texture, color, temperature, and of course taste. On top of that they have a full selection on bottles of Sake. Apparently Sake is only served warm if it is the cheap kind. We ordered some G-Joy, which tasted better than any Chardonnay I can remember. Pictured is the owner and chief chef.

Onward to the Maduro Cigar Bar, one of the few places left exempt from Madison's newly initiated anti-smoking laws. Cigars only please. Turns out I accidentally left my debit card there (had run out of cash reserves), but after calling them, they gladly sent my card back to Tulsa with a note that sweetly said, "Until we see you again!" (Kinda unlike the guy in Tulsa working at a hotel counter that kept my card and went on a Walmart shopping spree.)

Cheers Mike!

2007-06-01T21:11:00.000-06:00

Pyromaniac Rube Goldberg

2007-05-25T20:00:00.000-06:00

Fun with Numbers

Otherwise known as 99 bottles of beer on the wall. See any movies you recognize?

2007-05-25T19:35:00.000-06:00

Supreme Dexterity

Definitely CGI, but entertaining.

2007-05-25T18:26:00.001-06:00

Miestas
Another point and click puzzle game. Not too hard and some casual jazz to boot. Something to do while existing in the void. Miestas.

2007-05-15T20:28:00.000-06:00

Burn Baby Burn
This may not be a good time to vacation in Florida.

2007-04-25T19:02:00.000-06:00

Submachine
I love point and click puzzles. The Submachine is a great series. Start out on the first and learn how the author thinks, then work your way up. Submachine 4 is definitely tricky. Walkthroughs are available online if you get stuck.

Submachine
Submachine 2: The Lighthouse
Submachine 3: The Loop
Submachine 4: The Lab

2007-04-13T19:35:00.000-06:00

The Best Movie Ever Award Goes To

As the biblical reference title implies, it is about the lack of communication between people because they now speak different languages. Maybe not just language, but in some cases the lack or presence of humanity and understanding. Brilliantly directed with soul seeking depth in every frame. Just watch it.

Non-Quicktime 7 friendly movie trailer can be found here

2007-02-28T04:12:00.000-06:00

Blogging
It's not so difficult. Watch and learn.

2007-02-28T04:06:00.000-06:00

Meaning of Life
What is the meaning of life? Solomon said "nothing" or "42", I can't remember.

2007-02-28T03:58:00.000-06:00

Money
I like money. They say you can't have God and Mammon, but what does anybody know?

2007-02-28T03:54:00.000-06:00

Stuff
Some stuff I like. Some stuff I don't. It all really depends.

2007-02-28T03:47:00.000-06:00

GuyThere was a guy. He got in my way. It made me mad.

THE END

2007-02-13T19:46:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

2007-02-10T23:10:00.000-06:00

Kooler than Jesus

I don't believe you're listening

P.S. This band's leader is from Kenosha Wisconsin.

2007-02-10T17:39:00.000-06:00

Goodbye IzzeIzze was my favorite drink you see, that was until now. I just went to the local "Quick Trip" and found that is is no longer on the the shelves, instead replaced by another sugar water wannabe. Izze was great, it was just fruit juice with sparking water (and some coloring) with awesome flavors like clementine, blueberry, and pomegranate. I figure that they may have been just test marketing it here. Was a little expensive for Tulsa tastes too, about six dollars for a four pack. Oh well, another sign of the apocalypse.

2007-02-01T21:35:00.000-06:00

New MonitorRecently on a whim I decided to go out and purchase a new monitor for my computer, as the old one's picture was fading, had too small of a display compared to what I use at work, and took up a lot of space. I got a Samsung SyncMaster 204B (20.1") and run Windows in a native resolution of 1600x1200!

2007-01-27T17:41:00.000-06:00

WinDirStat
Here's a handy little utility I thought I would pass along. It analyzes your hard drive(s) and then displays a color coded spatial representation of where files are, what type they are, and how big they are. Very useful for deleting large unused files or remembering just what one has accumulated over the years! You can download it for free from windirstat.info

2007-01-26T22:29:00.000-06:00

Driving in Iraq

Kinda makes me want to enlist!

2007-01-20T17:27:00.000-06:00

Another MovieDefinitely worth watching. Suspense thriller with plenty o' violence.

2007-01-19T18:46:00.000-06:00

Comet McNaught
Incredible, I've never seen anything like this. Comet McNaught is making it's pass near the Sun and has yielded some wonderful photographs. I think Mom is appreciating this very much.

2007-01-16T18:41:00.000-06:00

Party at the White House

A certain member of my family was invited to the White House over the Christmas season for one of their parties. I believe they hold the parties in the east wing?

Above is a picture of some random people with aforementioned family member.

I am the gingerbread house, you can't catch me, I run as fast as I can! (Probably only applies if you are another house.)

2007-01-12T19:31:00.000-06:00

Factotum

Factotum is an old word meaning a general servant or a person having many diverse activities or responsibilities. It was made from the Latin command (imperative construction) fac totum ("do/make everything").

Just watched this movie from my favorite film makers, (IFC.) Is about a guy who, well, ahem, drinks too much. Watch it if you want to understand the quantum void...

PS. Co-stars Marisa Tomei whom my cousin introduced me to while we were doing the LA restaurant scene.

2007-01-03T20:15:00.000-06:00

The Crystal Method - Keep the Hope Alive (Star Wars)

Star Wars video, Crystal Method music, Thai sub-titles and a moral, it doesn't get much better than this.

2006-12-23T01:07:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas!

Blogger season is going to be a little slow for the holidays, but for now, merry Christmas and a happy new year!

2006-12-17T01:57:00.000-06:00

Robert F. Kauffmann

Here's an artist who I came across whose work I really like. It is Escheresque but also has roots in computer algorithm generated art.

Beethoven

Android

Bifurcating Fish
Celtic Dragon
Magnetic City

2006-12-15T22:57:00.000-06:00

The Reflection

A fable written by one of my blogger groupies, hope you like it:

____________________________________

There was an old man who had a house in the woods. He ate in the house. He slept in the house. And he spent his days in the house. When he was a young man he lived in the woods with his wife, but she died years earlier and now he just existed.

One day the man went to the stream by his house, as he did everyday, to get water for his porridge. The man bent over the stream and noticed that he had no reflection. He thought that he should be concerned, but he wasn’t. He thought that he should feel surprised or upset, but he didn’t. The thinking tired him so that he simply felt he could not move and he lay down by the stream and slept.

Later (he didn’t know or care how much later) a speeding squirrel ran into him and woke him up. The man was so tired that he could hardly open his eyes, but when he did he saw the squirrel running frantically in circles. He thought nothing of this, as he was too tired to think.

The squirrel said, “Man, I cannot stop running. If I run towards you will you catch me and stop me.”

The man just groaned and closed his eyes.

The squirrel who was not satisfied with this response ran toward the man and into the man and toward the man and into the man over and over again.

The man didn’t care. He groaned and started to roll over. As he did, the squirrel ran into the man’s hands and the man caught the squirrel. The man instantly felt stronger. He stood up and began to walk. He noticed that he was still holding the squirrel and he sat the squirrel on his shoulder.

The man walked and walked. He thought or felt nothing, as he was still too tired for thinking and feeling.

A fox approached the man and said “Man I think that the world might be round (it was a very long time ago and it was believed that the world was flat). And I think this because I’ve traveled far and have never fallen off. And I was looking at the flowers and I wonder what their purpose is? I wonder why we are here. I wonder why it is hot in the summer. I wonder why it is cold in the winter.” And on and on he went pondering the universe.

The fox was so deep in thought that he paid little attention to anything else. Consequently, he zigzagged in front of the man several times almost tripping him. The man was so driven to walk that he impulsively picked up the fox and tucked him under his arm in the very midst of a zig and a zag. At that moment, the man began to think.

He thought about the flowers and there purpose. He thought about the hot and the cold. He thought about his house. He thought about his wife. And on and on the man went walking and thinking.

A rabbit hobbled up to the man and said “Man” and then began crying so hard that he could not speak.

Although the man did not care that the rabbit was crying, he was intrigued by its sadness and said, “Rabbit, why are you crying?”

The rabbit sniffed and wiped his eyes with his tiny paws. In a quivering voice the rabbit said, “My house was on fire. I ran to the stream with my bucket to get water and my bucket had a hole in it. When I finally got water it was too late. But, I threw the water on what was the fire anyway. I lost my balance, slipped in the mud, and broke my leg. I have nothing—nothing, but a broken leg.” And the rabbit fell to the ground sobbing.

“Interesting,” replied the man coldly and continued walking.

The rabbit was taken aback by the man’s reply, but he could not bare the thought of being alone. So, he stood up and hobbled along side the man crying loudly as they walked.

The rabbit’s crying was distracting the man from his musings. He thought about being distracted and reasoned that if he carried the rabbit, his shirt might muffle the crying. So, he picked up the rabbit and tucked him under his other arm. He immediately began to feel.

The man thought about the flowers and their beauty filled him with a sense of awe and wonder. The man thought about his quiet house and was filled with loneliness. The man thought about his wife and cried tears of joy for his memories and tears of sorrow as he longed for her company.

Just then the man heard a beautiful melody. A bird was singing in its nest. The man said, “Bird, please come sit on my shoulder and sing.”

The bird flew down and landed on the man’s shoulder and the man began to sing. The man sang and sang. His song expressed awe and wonder, loneliness, joy, and sorrow. He sang loudly and with great passion. His song was beautiful and filled the woods.

The man sang and sang until he felt calm and at peace. The woods were growing dark and he decided to return to his quiet little home.

He walked with his shoes off as he wanted to feel the dirt, the grass, the pebbles, and the leaves. He wanted to feel everything.

Fully aware of his hunger and thirst the man stopped by the stream to gather water before going inside. He bent down and saw his reflection. From that day forward the man lived in his cozy house in the woods by the sparkling stream.

2006-12-14T23:01:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday to Me
As supermom pointed out, I recently had a birthday. Here is a picture of the cake which included a layer Jamocha ice cream on top of a layer of chocolate cake, YUM!