I've blogged about this man before. He literally is an angel. I've ran his project over and over in my head for months now and I just don't have the capability of putting together this kind of operation.
Yesterday's post had a very spirited debate that followed it on Facebook. Everyone had their say. So evil conservative that I am, knowing I'm greedy, self centered, and loathsome I choose to write about this man again.
Today is about Jorge Munoz. He is one great guy. If you want someone's example to follow, make it this man. If you want to donate to a cause, make it his. He doesn't care who you are or what you do or don't do, he'll feed you.
He makes seven hundred dollars a week driving a bus during the day. He comes home, takes a ten minute break and then starts cooking to make meals until nine thirty. Then he delivers the food to hungry people. According to the video he spends roughly half of his weekly income on food and packaging.
He is not a man of means. He is a man of passion and desires to help his fellow man. He is an incredible example of man's humanity to man. Jorge Munoz, God Bless You Sir.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
No Kidding
First and foremost I want to offer my deep affection to my Northern Brother who has turned forty today, it's not bad, not as bad as I was thinking it was going to be after I turned twenty. Miss you and thank you so much for last Summer! You'll never know how much it meant to me at that time.
Now onto our regularly scheduled rant against the Obama regime, as it turns out HHS Secretary and former Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius hid this report from the Medicare Actuary about Obamacare raising costs instead of the promised decreasing costs.
No kidding, really? Obamacare is actually going to raise insurance costs?!?! I had no clue that was going to happen
"The reason we were given was that they did not want to influence the vote," says an HHS source. HHhmmmm, didn't want to influence the vote against this terrible Obamagenda of gobbling up or taking over private industry. I read this last night and I really felt physically ill that this was crucial information that would have swayed many votes against this horrible bill.
Want to know what's in the report without clicking over to it to read a lot of legaleze? Here is the link to an article and summary.
Here is the summary of the report that Kathleen Sebelius HID from everyone! I want to make that clear, she HID an important report that would have stopped Obamacare.
Grace-Marie Turner of National Review Online summarizes the report that Sebelius buried until after the Obamacare vote:
1. People losing coverage: About 14 million people will lose their employer coverage by 2019, as smaller employers terminate their plans and workers who currently have employer coverage enroll in Medicaid. Half of all seniors on Medicare Advantage could lose their coverage and the extra benefits the plans offer.
2. Huge fines for companies: Businesses will pay $87 billion in penalties in the first five years after the fines trigger in 2014, partly because they can’t afford to offer expensive, government-mandated coverage and partly because some of their employees will apply for taxpayer-subsidized insurance.
3. Higher costs for consumers: Tens of billions of dollars in new fees and excise taxes will be “passed through to health consumers in the form of higher drug and devices prices and higher premiums,” according to Foster. A separate report shows small businesses will be hit hardest.
4. A program created to fail: The new “CLASS Act” long-term-care insurance program will face “a significant risk of failure,” according to Foster. Indeed, he finds, “there is a very serious risk that the problem of adverse selection will make the CLASS program unsustainable.”
5. Spending increases: Under the new law, national health spending will increase by $311 billion over the coming decade. And instead of bending the federal spending curve down, it will move it upward “by a net total of $251 billion” over the next decade.
6. “Free-riders”: An estimated 23 million people will remain uninsured in 2019, roughly 5 million of whom would be undocumented aliens; the remainder would be the 18 million who decline to get coverage and who will pay the penalty.
7. Spending reductions are fiction: Estimated reductions in the growth rate of health spending “may not be fully achievable” because “Medicare productivity adjustments could become unsustainable even within the next ten years, and over time the reductions in the scope of employer-sponsored health insurance could also become an issue.”
8. You can’t keep your doctor: Fifteen percent of all hospitals, nursing homes, and other providers treating Medicare patients could be operating at a loss by 2019, which will “possibly jeopardize access to care for beneficiaries.” Doctors are threatening to drop out of Medicare because cuts in Medicare reimbursement rates mean they can’t even cover their costs.
9. Coverage but no care: A significant portion of those newly eligible for Medicaid will have trouble finding physicians who will see them, and the increased demand for Medicaid services could be difficult to meet.
This is an objective report by administration actuaries that shows this sweeping legislation has serious, serious problems.
And there’s more: Joint Economic Committee Republicans explain in a new report the impact of a rarely mentioned $14.3 billion per year tax on health insurance, effective in 2014. They find this tax will be mostly passed through to consumers in the form of higher premiums for private coverage. It will cost the typical family of four with job-based coverage an additional $1,000 a year in higher premiums and will fall largely, and inequitably, on small businesses and their employees.
Ok, now that you are awake and hopefully riled up this morning I want to hit you upside the head with this revelation. Obamacare will RATION your health care, this is plainly admitted by Peter Orszag. Google him to find out who he is.
He clearly states that there will be an Independent Payment Advisory Board established to push efficiency over quantity. I was going to add in the world quality as Mr. Orszag uses but everyone knows that that just doesn't exist in a government run program. This will place a panel of bureaucrats between you and your doctor's decision to treat you.
The IPAB will have more power than literally Congress over health care matters and can ONLY be held accountable by a vote of sixty seven votes in the Senate. That's more than a super majority, it is a super super majority. It is difficult enough to reach the sixty vote magic number (well hopefully until November comes around) but sixty seven is improbable in the least.
This bill was evil, it is evil, it must be repealed before it does more damage that can't be undone. The way the Obama regime has railroaded this debate was of Maoist proportions.
If I wasn't loud enough before and got your attention maybe this will wake you up out of your liberal induced Kool-Aid Obamacoma. There is the plan that Congress has set aside for itself and then the plan for you, me, and everyone else: Republican, Democrat, Independent, Green, or Libertarian. We are all in one boat of the non-elite together, remember that. There is the ruling elite and then everyone else and you and I, your neighbor, your friend, your mom and dad are everyone else.
If you were wanting a free ride, Medicare for all, and free health care provided by Obama and his taxes on successful people, think again. Nothing like that exists despite his promises and assurances. Health care costs can be brought down by market forces and be made competitive like any other product if a different path is followed.
The path Obama has set us upon is a path towards financial ruin and the dissolution of our nation if not sovereignty. This man cannot be voted out of office soon enough, we are currently witnessing Jimmy Carter: The Sequel.
Our country is now set upon dangerous ground, ground we have never tread before. It will take the next President eight years to undo the damage that was started in 1913 but escalated to new proportions in the last year. Obama has fulfilled the progressive's dream of Woodrow Wilson, FDR, and LBJ all rolled into one in less than two years.
Wake up America and vote this regime into retirement at every turn.
Now onto our regularly scheduled rant against the Obama regime, as it turns out HHS Secretary and former Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius hid this report from the Medicare Actuary about Obamacare raising costs instead of the promised decreasing costs.
"The reason we were given was that they did not want to influence the vote," says an HHS source. HHhmmmm, didn't want to influence the vote against this terrible Obamagenda of gobbling up or taking over private industry. I read this last night and I really felt physically ill that this was crucial information that would have swayed many votes against this horrible bill.
Want to know what's in the report without clicking over to it to read a lot of legaleze? Here is the link to an article and summary.
Here is the summary of the report that Kathleen Sebelius HID from everyone! I want to make that clear, she HID an important report that would have stopped Obamacare.
Grace-Marie Turner of National Review Online summarizes the report that Sebelius buried until after the Obamacare vote:
1. People losing coverage: About 14 million people will lose their employer coverage by 2019, as smaller employers terminate their plans and workers who currently have employer coverage enroll in Medicaid. Half of all seniors on Medicare Advantage could lose their coverage and the extra benefits the plans offer.
2. Huge fines for companies: Businesses will pay $87 billion in penalties in the first five years after the fines trigger in 2014, partly because they can’t afford to offer expensive, government-mandated coverage and partly because some of their employees will apply for taxpayer-subsidized insurance.
3. Higher costs for consumers: Tens of billions of dollars in new fees and excise taxes will be “passed through to health consumers in the form of higher drug and devices prices and higher premiums,” according to Foster. A separate report shows small businesses will be hit hardest.
4. A program created to fail: The new “CLASS Act” long-term-care insurance program will face “a significant risk of failure,” according to Foster. Indeed, he finds, “there is a very serious risk that the problem of adverse selection will make the CLASS program unsustainable.”
5. Spending increases: Under the new law, national health spending will increase by $311 billion over the coming decade. And instead of bending the federal spending curve down, it will move it upward “by a net total of $251 billion” over the next decade.
6. “Free-riders”: An estimated 23 million people will remain uninsured in 2019, roughly 5 million of whom would be undocumented aliens; the remainder would be the 18 million who decline to get coverage and who will pay the penalty.
7. Spending reductions are fiction: Estimated reductions in the growth rate of health spending “may not be fully achievable” because “Medicare productivity adjustments could become unsustainable even within the next ten years, and over time the reductions in the scope of employer-sponsored health insurance could also become an issue.”
8. You can’t keep your doctor: Fifteen percent of all hospitals, nursing homes, and other providers treating Medicare patients could be operating at a loss by 2019, which will “possibly jeopardize access to care for beneficiaries.” Doctors are threatening to drop out of Medicare because cuts in Medicare reimbursement rates mean they can’t even cover their costs.
9. Coverage but no care: A significant portion of those newly eligible for Medicaid will have trouble finding physicians who will see them, and the increased demand for Medicaid services could be difficult to meet.
This is an objective report by administration actuaries that shows this sweeping legislation has serious, serious problems.
And there’s more: Joint Economic Committee Republicans explain in a new report the impact of a rarely mentioned $14.3 billion per year tax on health insurance, effective in 2014. They find this tax will be mostly passed through to consumers in the form of higher premiums for private coverage. It will cost the typical family of four with job-based coverage an additional $1,000 a year in higher premiums and will fall largely, and inequitably, on small businesses and their employees.
Ok, now that you are awake and hopefully riled up this morning I want to hit you upside the head with this revelation. Obamacare will RATION your health care, this is plainly admitted by Peter Orszag. Google him to find out who he is.
He clearly states that there will be an Independent Payment Advisory Board established to push efficiency over quantity. I was going to add in the world quality as Mr. Orszag uses but everyone knows that that just doesn't exist in a government run program. This will place a panel of bureaucrats between you and your doctor's decision to treat you.
The IPAB will have more power than literally Congress over health care matters and can ONLY be held accountable by a vote of sixty seven votes in the Senate. That's more than a super majority, it is a super super majority. It is difficult enough to reach the sixty vote magic number (well hopefully until November comes around) but sixty seven is improbable in the least.
This bill was evil, it is evil, it must be repealed before it does more damage that can't be undone. The way the Obama regime has railroaded this debate was of Maoist proportions.
If I wasn't loud enough before and got your attention maybe this will wake you up out of your liberal induced Kool-Aid Obamacoma. There is the plan that Congress has set aside for itself and then the plan for you, me, and everyone else: Republican, Democrat, Independent, Green, or Libertarian. We are all in one boat of the non-elite together, remember that. There is the ruling elite and then everyone else and you and I, your neighbor, your friend, your mom and dad are everyone else.
If you were wanting a free ride, Medicare for all, and free health care provided by Obama and his taxes on successful people, think again. Nothing like that exists despite his promises and assurances. Health care costs can be brought down by market forces and be made competitive like any other product if a different path is followed.
The path Obama has set us upon is a path towards financial ruin and the dissolution of our nation if not sovereignty. This man cannot be voted out of office soon enough, we are currently witnessing Jimmy Carter: The Sequel.
Our country is now set upon dangerous ground, ground we have never tread before. It will take the next President eight years to undo the damage that was started in 1913 but escalated to new proportions in the last year. Obama has fulfilled the progressive's dream of Woodrow Wilson, FDR, and LBJ all rolled into one in less than two years.
Wake up America and vote this regime into retirement at every turn.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Half Way
After today we are on the downhill slide of things. Auditions went well last night, the cast list will be up this morning for people to see what parts they get in Julius Caesar.
Thing 2 enjoyed herself and will be at the theatre tonight to go through the script with a resident Shakespeare expert to cut some parts out of the script. That'll take it from a three hour show to a more pleasant two hour show.
There will be mosquitoes at the park in late June, there always are. It's always better to have a shorter show for the comfort of the actors and audience, especially when its outside.
I just read that the Thunder lost to LA last night. I watched the first quarter and saw they went 0-some amazing number from the floor for the first shots of the game. They couldn't get anything to fall and I remember their first point coming from a Durant free throw. The Lakers were on and the Thunder wasn't. They'll get better though as they are the youngest team in the NBA. Durant will develop into the best player with more experience.
They had a world of improvement just over last year by making the playoffs. They'll get a stellar free agent or a solid draft pick and be better next year.
Thing 2 enjoyed herself and will be at the theatre tonight to go through the script with a resident Shakespeare expert to cut some parts out of the script. That'll take it from a three hour show to a more pleasant two hour show.
There will be mosquitoes at the park in late June, there always are. It's always better to have a shorter show for the comfort of the actors and audience, especially when its outside.
I just read that the Thunder lost to LA last night. I watched the first quarter and saw they went 0-some amazing number from the floor for the first shots of the game. They couldn't get anything to fall and I remember their first point coming from a Durant free throw. The Lakers were on and the Thunder wasn't. They'll get better though as they are the youngest team in the NBA. Durant will develop into the best player with more experience.
They had a world of improvement just over last year by making the playoffs. They'll get a stellar free agent or a solid draft pick and be better next year.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Auditions Last Night
Thing 2 is the intern director for Julius Caesar this year for Shakespeare in the Park. After coming off a teen Shakespeare show as well so it's back to back shows for her!
The show isn't until the end of June so she has lots of time to rehearse as it's my job to take her to and from rehearsal. Shakespeare in the Park is an enjoyable production, its very different from the other shows that I'm involved in.
The show is rehearsed at the theatre then on the show dates, which there are only two or three, the set is loaded up in a truck and hauled to the park and assembled. Then after the show it is torn down and brought back that night. Then repeated the next day until the show run is over.
It is like a traveling troupe of actors for a brief time.
I go back for the second round of auditions tonight, I was mainly hanging out with Teehee, Hollywood Actor, and Red. Teehee isn't auditioning but he should, he has a great feel for Shakespeare and can emote the message of his character very well. The Date even wants a non speaking extra part which would be great and make it more of a family affair this season.
The show isn't until the end of June so she has lots of time to rehearse as it's my job to take her to and from rehearsal. Shakespeare in the Park is an enjoyable production, its very different from the other shows that I'm involved in.
The show is rehearsed at the theatre then on the show dates, which there are only two or three, the set is loaded up in a truck and hauled to the park and assembled. Then after the show it is torn down and brought back that night. Then repeated the next day until the show run is over.
It is like a traveling troupe of actors for a brief time.
I go back for the second round of auditions tonight, I was mainly hanging out with Teehee, Hollywood Actor, and Red. Teehee isn't auditioning but he should, he has a great feel for Shakespeare and can emote the message of his character very well. The Date even wants a non speaking extra part which would be great and make it more of a family affair this season.
Monday, April 26, 2010
One Client
With the potential for maybe six more! I'd say it was a successful showing at the home show even though I was shooting for two clients (I also lined up two PSA's for non-profits) and here is why.
The client we did get wants more than one commercial. In fact they want a demo video shot for a tornado shelter and its installation but also a safe room and its installation! The commercial itself will play in four states!
We are scheduled to start shooting late this week as the owner has to get permission from one of the installation sites first before we shoot. She was very excited about the prospect of having new promotional material shot for the site and for TV and thought the prices were more than reasonable.
That is why I consider the show a success after three days. It would have been a total failure if it weren't for the efforts of Beersnob though. I pretty much stayed at the booth all day while he took flyers, cards, and his personality and walked around to all of the booths and talked to people. That's something I'm just not comfortable with doing. He loved it though and because of his efforts we have as much interest as we do.
We had a celebratory cigar and drink after the show closed and I'd say it was earned.
The client we did get wants more than one commercial. In fact they want a demo video shot for a tornado shelter and its installation but also a safe room and its installation! The commercial itself will play in four states!
We are scheduled to start shooting late this week as the owner has to get permission from one of the installation sites first before we shoot. She was very excited about the prospect of having new promotional material shot for the site and for TV and thought the prices were more than reasonable.
That is why I consider the show a success after three days. It would have been a total failure if it weren't for the efforts of Beersnob though. I pretty much stayed at the booth all day while he took flyers, cards, and his personality and walked around to all of the booths and talked to people. That's something I'm just not comfortable with doing. He loved it though and because of his efforts we have as much interest as we do.
We had a celebratory cigar and drink after the show closed and I'd say it was earned.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Now That Was A Day!
I got up at six AM, got all showered, blogged, and ready for breakfast. The Date got up followed by Thing 2. We headed out to meet Beersnob, we were naturally early because the girls were hungry and yet we waited anyway as I knew Beersnob would be about five to ten minutes later than the agreed upon time.
We ate and I came home to take the girls back and get my vendor pass. I arrived back at the booth and Beersnob has already set everything up and is ready for the day. About ten minutes there he gets a call from Mrs. Beersnob about their hot water tank leaking out of the garage and into the driveway. Ironic as that happened to us a very short time ago. So he heads home to take care of that for a short while.
The home show went well. I stayed mostly at the booth as people ignored me in droves. The ShamWow guy is next to me (not Vince Offer but an associate) the other booth is a nonprofit for senior citizens. The ShamWow guy has a long haired chihuahua in the booth with him, very friendly dog who just sits there and adores all of the attention it garners from the passers by.
Just around the corner and a couple of booths down is the county democratic women's association and I kept thinking about how cool it would be to be located next to them. Alas that didn't happen though. Beersnob had a great time walking around and talking to local vendors, he was truly in his element and loved doing it!
He can talk to anyone and have a grand conversation which is one of the many reasons I like him so well. Around one thirty I leave to go to the charity show that Thing 2 has been intern directing for. It went very very well. The cast was on, the crowd was lively and had fun, it was just a great event and hopefully raised a lot of money for the underprivileged youth.
I returned to the show and Beersnob reported how many people he had talked to and laid out the best prospects he had thus far. It was an exciting list of people who might call us and request our services!
We are a niche business and I really wasn't expecting business contacts to stream to the booth. We talked before hand that our business would come from the fact that we'd be walking around and talking to people who could use us.
After the show closed I took The Date a hot fudge sundae for a treat because she had a rough day. Then I came home and fired up the Egg and put on a pork shoulder for lunch today at the show.
We don't have to go in until eleven today so we'll be good and ready for some lunch when we get there. I put it on around seven thirty and pulled it off around midnight while The Date watched McLintock! The Date said it tasted Heavenly and while I do hope I can continue to cook in Heaven I doubt if I can get anything to taste that good:)
Today should be another good day but shorter as the show ends at five. That'll leave me plenty of time to decompress before going to bed and returning to the grind of weekly work tomorrow.
We ate and I came home to take the girls back and get my vendor pass. I arrived back at the booth and Beersnob has already set everything up and is ready for the day. About ten minutes there he gets a call from Mrs. Beersnob about their hot water tank leaking out of the garage and into the driveway. Ironic as that happened to us a very short time ago. So he heads home to take care of that for a short while.
The home show went well. I stayed mostly at the booth as people ignored me in droves. The ShamWow guy is next to me (not Vince Offer but an associate) the other booth is a nonprofit for senior citizens. The ShamWow guy has a long haired chihuahua in the booth with him, very friendly dog who just sits there and adores all of the attention it garners from the passers by.
Just around the corner and a couple of booths down is the county democratic women's association and I kept thinking about how cool it would be to be located next to them. Alas that didn't happen though. Beersnob had a great time walking around and talking to local vendors, he was truly in his element and loved doing it!
He can talk to anyone and have a grand conversation which is one of the many reasons I like him so well. Around one thirty I leave to go to the charity show that Thing 2 has been intern directing for. It went very very well. The cast was on, the crowd was lively and had fun, it was just a great event and hopefully raised a lot of money for the underprivileged youth.
I returned to the show and Beersnob reported how many people he had talked to and laid out the best prospects he had thus far. It was an exciting list of people who might call us and request our services!
We are a niche business and I really wasn't expecting business contacts to stream to the booth. We talked before hand that our business would come from the fact that we'd be walking around and talking to people who could use us.
After the show closed I took The Date a hot fudge sundae for a treat because she had a rough day. Then I came home and fired up the Egg and put on a pork shoulder for lunch today at the show.
We don't have to go in until eleven today so we'll be good and ready for some lunch when we get there. I put it on around seven thirty and pulled it off around midnight while The Date watched McLintock! The Date said it tasted Heavenly and while I do hope I can continue to cook in Heaven I doubt if I can get anything to taste that good:)
Today should be another good day but shorter as the show ends at five. That'll leave me plenty of time to decompress before going to bed and returning to the grind of weekly work tomorrow.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Busy Day Behind And Ahead
Yesterday was busier than I expected and I watched as much of one channel as possible to see my commercial and yet it did not happen. I learned that every single show on that channel during the day is a Judge X show.
Daytime TV sucks. There is nothing on worth watching and if it had not been for the large amount of work, including an unexpected trip to the dump, I would have gone to DVR'd shows.
Alas I watched and watched Judge So and So met out TV justice to people with disagreements. I kept mental notes on the commercials though and I feel that I can do any daytime TV commercial there with the exception of a couple of the more wealthy car dealerships who had some CGI happening. Everything else was simple stills, some stock footage, and an announcer. I feel I have a massive leg up on those announcers though as I have Skate on retainer, his booming voice will be gracing area commercials for a long time to come!
Today will start off with a breakfast before hopping one block over to the expo center for the rest of the day. I'll have Beersnob with me all day for conversation and sales while I'm not much of a talker in person. Now if I were able to type out a sales pitch in real time, that's a different story.
The Date will be there to help us with the customer side of things for a while before heading to a charity event that Thing 2 has been working on for the past two weeks. Thing 2 has been an AD (assistant director in theatre lingo) for the first time for the teem program. Today they will do their well done and well rehearsed show for an event to benefit underprivileged youth.
I'll be getting out of the home show this evening. It'll be a long long day ahead. If I get bored I might blog about weird things I've seen at the show:)
Daytime TV sucks. There is nothing on worth watching and if it had not been for the large amount of work, including an unexpected trip to the dump, I would have gone to DVR'd shows.
Alas I watched and watched Judge So and So met out TV justice to people with disagreements. I kept mental notes on the commercials though and I feel that I can do any daytime TV commercial there with the exception of a couple of the more wealthy car dealerships who had some CGI happening. Everything else was simple stills, some stock footage, and an announcer. I feel I have a massive leg up on those announcers though as I have Skate on retainer, his booming voice will be gracing area commercials for a long time to come!
Today will start off with a breakfast before hopping one block over to the expo center for the rest of the day. I'll have Beersnob with me all day for conversation and sales while I'm not much of a talker in person. Now if I were able to type out a sales pitch in real time, that's a different story.
The Date will be there to help us with the customer side of things for a while before heading to a charity event that Thing 2 has been working on for the past two weeks. Thing 2 has been an AD (assistant director in theatre lingo) for the first time for the teem program. Today they will do their well done and well rehearsed show for an event to benefit underprivileged youth.
I'll be getting out of the home show this evening. It'll be a long long day ahead. If I get bored I might blog about weird things I've seen at the show:)
Friday, April 23, 2010
Busy Day On Tap!
I've got to get a DVD of the commercial burned so I can set it on a loop for the home show.
The Date has made some killer flyers for the show so we can pass them out.
I've got to get my brothers truck serviced and then take it to the theatre so we can load up a set and take it to a retirement community for a one off teen show.
I'll have to buy some blank DVDs.
Today is payday so I have to pay my bills online.
Beersnob and I have to get the booth together at three so we'll be set up and ready to go, tomorrow is the big day.
Yeah, a busy day! I'm ready for it though because I took off and I'm prepared to get it all handled!
The Date has made some killer flyers for the show so we can pass them out.
I've got to get my brothers truck serviced and then take it to the theatre so we can load up a set and take it to a retirement community for a one off teen show.
I'll have to buy some blank DVDs.
Today is payday so I have to pay my bills online.
Beersnob and I have to get the booth together at three so we'll be set up and ready to go, tomorrow is the big day.
Yeah, a busy day! I'm ready for it though because I took off and I'm prepared to get it all handled!
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Earth Day?
Um, who cares?
Look I'm all for conservation, clean water, big trees, and all of that. No one would be against all of that. However in today's day and age the environmental nutcases have taken Earth day too far, especially when they start pushing their agenda to regulate your freedoms with such things as Cap and Trade taxes.
CO2 is good for plants, it is not a pollutant. You exhale CO2, plants convert that to O2 which you breath. The volcano in Iceland has expelled up to 300,000 tonnes per day of CO2, that's a lot and it's natural. It's the Earth expelling that kind of CO2 not man, not you, not me. Just search for it, you'll find lots about how much CO2 it is producing.
Now here is one of my favorite articles about one of the founders of Earth Day, Ira Einhorn. It would seem Mr. Einhorn wasn't a nice, tree hugging guy after all as he killed his girlfriend, Holly Maddux in a jealous rage.
I wanted to link to this article though to give my liberal friends easier access to this article about the Unicorn Killer.
While a lot of people see Earth day as some celebration I see it as a stepping stone by agenda driven politicians to curtail your freedoms. If Cap and Trade were implemented it would be on top of the ending of the Bush tax cuts (which EVERYONE who paid taxes got a big break in their taxes and many on the lower end of the pay scale were taken off of the tax rolls) and on top of the possible VAT which would tax everyone again on products they purchase.
So how many taxes are enough? There will be a definitive answer to that question in November when the people speak up and lend their voice to the discussion. It can't come soon enough for me.
Look I'm all for conservation, clean water, big trees, and all of that. No one would be against all of that. However in today's day and age the environmental nutcases have taken Earth day too far, especially when they start pushing their agenda to regulate your freedoms with such things as Cap and Trade taxes.
CO2 is good for plants, it is not a pollutant. You exhale CO2, plants convert that to O2 which you breath. The volcano in Iceland has expelled up to 300,000 tonnes per day of CO2, that's a lot and it's natural. It's the Earth expelling that kind of CO2 not man, not you, not me. Just search for it, you'll find lots about how much CO2 it is producing.
Now here is one of my favorite articles about one of the founders of Earth Day, Ira Einhorn. It would seem Mr. Einhorn wasn't a nice, tree hugging guy after all as he killed his girlfriend, Holly Maddux in a jealous rage.
I wanted to link to this article though to give my liberal friends easier access to this article about the Unicorn Killer.
While a lot of people see Earth day as some celebration I see it as a stepping stone by agenda driven politicians to curtail your freedoms. If Cap and Trade were implemented it would be on top of the ending of the Bush tax cuts (which EVERYONE who paid taxes got a big break in their taxes and many on the lower end of the pay scale were taken off of the tax rolls) and on top of the possible VAT which would tax everyone again on products they purchase.
So how many taxes are enough? There will be a definitive answer to that question in November when the people speak up and lend their voice to the discussion. It can't come soon enough for me.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Half Way Through The Week!
It is supposed to be all rainy and thundery the rest of the week now. I mowed the majority of the lawn last night since we likely won't be able to until Sunday.
We are getting ready for the weekend and the home show expo. I traded a booth there for the commercial I shot for them. We will very likely make lots of business contacts there and gain lots of work from being there, well that's the hope anyway.
It has been nice not to have anything to shoot this week, been a super busy run since February and a break is welcome at this point. I'd like to get to the point where I shoot two projects a week though, I can safely handle that and get that amount easily edited.
Once that is rolling I can increase the schedule to what I'm comfortable with until Beersnob gets back home in December. This weekend will be huge for the business and if we get a good response from it then I can better gauge how large of a client base we have to draw from.
I'm excited about the opportunities this business presents!
We are getting ready for the weekend and the home show expo. I traded a booth there for the commercial I shot for them. We will very likely make lots of business contacts there and gain lots of work from being there, well that's the hope anyway.
It has been nice not to have anything to shoot this week, been a super busy run since February and a break is welcome at this point. I'd like to get to the point where I shoot two projects a week though, I can safely handle that and get that amount easily edited.
Once that is rolling I can increase the schedule to what I'm comfortable with until Beersnob gets back home in December. This weekend will be huge for the business and if we get a good response from it then I can better gauge how large of a client base we have to draw from.
I'm excited about the opportunities this business presents!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
The New IPhone!
Here it is iPhone lovers! Yeah there is a long story about how this prototype fell into the possession of these guys but they believe it looks, feels, and is legit!
I hope so too! This thing would rock!!!!
Take a look at the video and review about what this baby has on it and I think you'll be as amazed as I am! This will be my next iPhone purchase for sure in a few months when it is officially released!
I hope so too! This thing would rock!!!!
Take a look at the video and review about what this baby has on it and I think you'll be as amazed as I am! This will be my next iPhone purchase for sure in a few months when it is officially released!
Monday, April 19, 2010
Busy!
I edited ten interviews and four versions of a commercial spot for the marketing company this past weekend. The interviews were for the Diva show that'll be streaming clips on a site, likely this week.
The marketing company spot will be shown at the local ball park for the duration of baseball season. It was a lot of work, more than I thought actually but I did it! Now I officially have no jobs to do except get materials ready for a booth this coming weekend.
Beersnob will be manning the booth for the most part but I'll be there lots as there will be filming done for next year's commercial. Hopefully we can pick up some jobs and get this business rolling!
I do think since we are the only game in town that will cater to the small company and the needs of the small business that we have a giant advantage over the other company. They have gotten very big and very successful over the years and have the ability to turn away clients now if they don't have the time to do a job. We aren't big, we have experienced a modicum of success, and we do want the small business to come to us so we can sit down and tailor a spot for your business.
I'm excited about the possibilities that lie ahead!
The marketing company spot will be shown at the local ball park for the duration of baseball season. It was a lot of work, more than I thought actually but I did it! Now I officially have no jobs to do except get materials ready for a booth this coming weekend.
Beersnob will be manning the booth for the most part but I'll be there lots as there will be filming done for next year's commercial. Hopefully we can pick up some jobs and get this business rolling!
I do think since we are the only game in town that will cater to the small company and the needs of the small business that we have a giant advantage over the other company. They have gotten very big and very successful over the years and have the ability to turn away clients now if they don't have the time to do a job. We aren't big, we have experienced a modicum of success, and we do want the small business to come to us so we can sit down and tailor a spot for your business.
I'm excited about the possibilities that lie ahead!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Productive Saturday!
At first I thought we were sunk when it came to the footage I shot on Friday. Turns out it was just the playback head in the camera but the record head is fine! Whew...! Close one!
Here's the story, I borrowed Beersnob's camera and mic set up for the Diva shoot on Friday afternoon/evening. The mic set up is far superior to mine on my camera as it is cabled and not the cam mic. My subjects can walk around with the mic and talk into it and all of the area noise will not bleed onto the tape. Perfect!
We were walking around, they were doing interviews and I was keeping the frame and a rough time schedule to keep within the two minute clip window my clients wanted for this project. Afterward I went home and took Thing 2 to rehearsal for the special teen show.
Long story short there I just didn't get the footage digitized Friday night but as I had until Monday I wasn't sweating it too much. I knew that I'd have the house to myself on Saturday night and that'd be the perfect time to get this job finished.
Saturday night rolls around and I'm alone in the house so it's working time now. I hook up Beersnob's cam to the pc to digitize the footage and the footage was strewn with pixelated artifacts, making it unwatchable. I panicked almost immediately as a very sick feeling overcame me and my stomach. I want to do the best job I can on projects like this and if something isn't right I do take it personally, it affects me physically, literally.
So I call my client and talk to him a couple of minutes, he reassures me that technical problems happen and if nothing worked right we still had a great practice run for next time.
Instead of just giving up right then and there though I decided if the footage is ruined I'll still edit it for practice anyway. I hook up my camera to the pc and put the tape in. The footage is intact and pristine! As I said earlier the problem isn't with the very important recording head and only the playback portion! I'm thrilled but I'm going to look into getting the head repaired anyway.
I digitized the footage and have six good interviews now and I've got two more to go to finish this project!
Here's the story, I borrowed Beersnob's camera and mic set up for the Diva shoot on Friday afternoon/evening. The mic set up is far superior to mine on my camera as it is cabled and not the cam mic. My subjects can walk around with the mic and talk into it and all of the area noise will not bleed onto the tape. Perfect!
We were walking around, they were doing interviews and I was keeping the frame and a rough time schedule to keep within the two minute clip window my clients wanted for this project. Afterward I went home and took Thing 2 to rehearsal for the special teen show.
Long story short there I just didn't get the footage digitized Friday night but as I had until Monday I wasn't sweating it too much. I knew that I'd have the house to myself on Saturday night and that'd be the perfect time to get this job finished.
Saturday night rolls around and I'm alone in the house so it's working time now. I hook up Beersnob's cam to the pc to digitize the footage and the footage was strewn with pixelated artifacts, making it unwatchable. I panicked almost immediately as a very sick feeling overcame me and my stomach. I want to do the best job I can on projects like this and if something isn't right I do take it personally, it affects me physically, literally.
So I call my client and talk to him a couple of minutes, he reassures me that technical problems happen and if nothing worked right we still had a great practice run for next time.
Instead of just giving up right then and there though I decided if the footage is ruined I'll still edit it for practice anyway. I hook up my camera to the pc and put the tape in. The footage is intact and pristine! As I said earlier the problem isn't with the very important recording head and only the playback portion! I'm thrilled but I'm going to look into getting the head repaired anyway.
I digitized the footage and have six good interviews now and I've got two more to go to finish this project!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Successful Shoot!
The shoot went very well last night! We worked out a couple of bugs and I know that this would be a difficult shoot as it was moving from booth to booth and interviewing people in a big crowd.
Noise wasn't as big of a factor as I had dreaded, the pace was lively, and interviewees had fun! It was a success!
I'll break down the footage into two minutes apiece today and get them formatted into a package for the newspaper to use. This will be a time consuming job but decently easy as well. There just isn't room for a lot of graphics or special effects.
It was a fun shoot and my job will be to have that part come out in the editing!
I'll be starting soon after I rustle up some breakfast.
Noise wasn't as big of a factor as I had dreaded, the pace was lively, and interviewees had fun! It was a success!
I'll break down the footage into two minutes apiece today and get them formatted into a package for the newspaper to use. This will be a time consuming job but decently easy as well. There just isn't room for a lot of graphics or special effects.
It was a fun shoot and my job will be to have that part come out in the editing!
I'll be starting soon after I rustle up some breakfast.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Finally Friday!
I worked for nearly five hours last night on the local marketing company spot. I got two versions done, there are differences between them but they are minor.
This afternoon I'll embark upon another foray into paid film work as I will be at the local BBQ contest and filming the "Diamond Divas" for a couple of hours. The weather today is supposed to be rainy and as I look at the radar it is basically here already!
We'll be filming inside as I'll have Beersnob's camera and mic this afternoon and I don't want anything in the world to happen to it! So Dry is the word of the day!
I'm going to start around three thirty when I arrive there and then it'll be up to the on screen talent to put on the show that I film. I'm basically just the camera guy and responsible for keeping the frame and editing the piece. I'm kind of glad that I don't have a creative responsibility for this piece right now. We'll see how it evolves over the next few months.
This afternoon I'll embark upon another foray into paid film work as I will be at the local BBQ contest and filming the "Diamond Divas" for a couple of hours. The weather today is supposed to be rainy and as I look at the radar it is basically here already!
We'll be filming inside as I'll have Beersnob's camera and mic this afternoon and I don't want anything in the world to happen to it! So Dry is the word of the day!
I'm going to start around three thirty when I arrive there and then it'll be up to the on screen talent to put on the show that I film. I'm basically just the camera guy and responsible for keeping the frame and editing the piece. I'm kind of glad that I don't have a creative responsibility for this piece right now. We'll see how it evolves over the next few months.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
It's Airing!
On local cable channels the commercial is airing! I feel like a massive weight has been lifted from me now that I know I have taken a commercial from nothing but notes to a completed project that airs on TV.
It's really a pretty nice feeling and I know that my skills will get better over time as more clients come to have commercials made for them. Tonight will be full of working on the Marketing company spot in Premiere Pro as I just don't have the skill yet to accomplish their vision as they laid out to me in After Effects.
I tried everything I knew how to do to find a mentor to ask questions to but no one seems to have any kind of professional level skill with the program sadly. I went through the Lynda tutorials and while it was excellent and helped me get a great grasp on the program what was required in this spot wasn't anything they covered.
In a few months I'll be able to pull it off but now, well I'm not there yet. I need more practice to make it work well.
Alright if you are tired of this type of stuff, scroll down a little bit more and read about the squirrel adventure at work yesterday! It was a double post day and in case you missed it, it was fun!
It's really a pretty nice feeling and I know that my skills will get better over time as more clients come to have commercials made for them. Tonight will be full of working on the Marketing company spot in Premiere Pro as I just don't have the skill yet to accomplish their vision as they laid out to me in After Effects.
I tried everything I knew how to do to find a mentor to ask questions to but no one seems to have any kind of professional level skill with the program sadly. I went through the Lynda tutorials and while it was excellent and helped me get a great grasp on the program what was required in this spot wasn't anything they covered.
In a few months I'll be able to pull it off but now, well I'm not there yet. I need more practice to make it work well.
Alright if you are tired of this type of stuff, scroll down a little bit more and read about the squirrel adventure at work yesterday! It was a double post day and in case you missed it, it was fun!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
The Great Squirrel Hunt
So there I was in my shop working away when Bub, ling time readers will recall him from a previous story, opened the door and called me, my coworker, and our supervisor to his office to search for a squirrel that was allegedly under Bub's desk.
After a thorough search of the area we concluded that Bub had been hallucinating as no squirrel had been located.
The teasing commenced.
While we all knew that it was possible for a squirrel to find it's way into the building and possible that said squirrel could find it's way to Bub's office and hide under his desk it was simply more fun to tease Bub.
I mean where is the fun in upholding a search for a possible squirrel and be serious about it?
Lunch time came and still no squirrel. I cane to my area to find Bub in our office and again talk of the squirrel came up as the teasing started again. Good natured and Bub was laughing as well:)
I decided to fill up my water bottle from the drinking fountain in the hall when what do I see? A squirrel dashing back and forth down the long hallway searching for a way out!
I yelled for all of my colleagues to join me in the hall to witness the found and not imaginary squirrel. The task quickly dawned on us, "how do we safely remove the squirrel from the building without injuring us or it?"
I ran down the hallway shutting doors to cut off escape from the furry invader and by the time I got the big door open it had changed course to the opposite end of the hall. Squirrels being simple minded can't see a massive opening behind them and three coworkers in front of it trying their best to get it to run back to the huge open door.
Instead it runs right by them as they all leap out of the way like little girls of the ferocious beast, a baby squirrel. Yes dear readers, it was a baby squirrel.
The chase commenced to head into another shop with a small crack under the door. This surprised everyone in the shop as they quickly joined in containing the baby squirrel.
The baby squirrel darted behind some cabinets and we gently moved them out and a fearless squirrel hunter with a cardboard box stood at one end while I stood at the other to direct the squirreling into the box.
I made noise, the squirrel went as planned into the box and we closed the top slowly as not to startle the ferocious beast.
We then returned it safely to the outside world as a very smug Bub enjoyed not being crazy.
-- Post From My iPhone
After a thorough search of the area we concluded that Bub had been hallucinating as no squirrel had been located.
The teasing commenced.
While we all knew that it was possible for a squirrel to find it's way into the building and possible that said squirrel could find it's way to Bub's office and hide under his desk it was simply more fun to tease Bub.
I mean where is the fun in upholding a search for a possible squirrel and be serious about it?
Lunch time came and still no squirrel. I cane to my area to find Bub in our office and again talk of the squirrel came up as the teasing started again. Good natured and Bub was laughing as well:)
I decided to fill up my water bottle from the drinking fountain in the hall when what do I see? A squirrel dashing back and forth down the long hallway searching for a way out!
I yelled for all of my colleagues to join me in the hall to witness the found and not imaginary squirrel. The task quickly dawned on us, "how do we safely remove the squirrel from the building without injuring us or it?"
I ran down the hallway shutting doors to cut off escape from the furry invader and by the time I got the big door open it had changed course to the opposite end of the hall. Squirrels being simple minded can't see a massive opening behind them and three coworkers in front of it trying their best to get it to run back to the huge open door.
Instead it runs right by them as they all leap out of the way like little girls of the ferocious beast, a baby squirrel. Yes dear readers, it was a baby squirrel.
The chase commenced to head into another shop with a small crack under the door. This surprised everyone in the shop as they quickly joined in containing the baby squirrel.
The baby squirrel darted behind some cabinets and we gently moved them out and a fearless squirrel hunter with a cardboard box stood at one end while I stood at the other to direct the squirreling into the box.
I made noise, the squirrel went as planned into the box and we closed the top slowly as not to startle the ferocious beast.
We then returned it safely to the outside world as a very smug Bub enjoyed not being crazy.
-- Post From My iPhone
My Flirtation With Baseball
I'm not a fan, used to be before the 1993 strike/lockout. It's hard to choose a sympathetic side when everyone is a millionaire and they are arguing over being paid more at the expense of the fans who actually buy the tickets.
Over the years I've caught the occasional game now and then, mostly post season or if there was a compelling storyline like rooting against Barry Bonds or the Cubs. Bonds I didn't like because he clearly wasn't living in denial so much as he was living on another planet apart from the truth, the Cubs because my co-worker loves them and it's my natural contrary attitude to root against something he wants out of good humor.
My main problem is that in baseball they have swept so many problems under the rug for attendance numbers...which they wouldn't have had problems with if they didn't stop the game in '93.
Yes the game is hard to watch as there isn't a lot happening at the time. We as a country are more accustomed to watching faster moving sports. Our country has been so successful over the decades of manufacturing entertainment that we have more options to have our free time filled than anyone ever in the history of the planet.
Baseball was once the national past time, now due to the dominance of the NFL it is going the way of a relic in the wake of the years of the steroid scandal. It'll still be relevant, not saying that it belongs in a museum of sports we used to play, I'm only talking about the once high position of relevance it held as our national sport and how the baton was handed to the NFL without the MLB noticing it had lost ground.
While in the NFL practically any team has a chance any year to be a contender if they make the right off season moves and has a good draft. In the MLB a lot of teams are eliminated from post season play by the first of June.
Regardless I decided to give a former flame another look. I purchased the MLB iPhone app so I can listen to games. Yesterday I listened to the Dodger's home opener, mainly because I like listening to Vin Scully call a game. The guy is a legend and can paint a picture of what's happening in the game like no other. This is possibly his last season so I am going to try to catch more games he calls this season.
I'm not a Dodger's fan, not a fan of any team really but I do favor the AL over the NL, yes I know that the Dodger's are a NL team but the AL doesn't have a Vin Scully.
This might last a week or it might last all season, reigniting a former love, time will tell.
Over the years I've caught the occasional game now and then, mostly post season or if there was a compelling storyline like rooting against Barry Bonds or the Cubs. Bonds I didn't like because he clearly wasn't living in denial so much as he was living on another planet apart from the truth, the Cubs because my co-worker loves them and it's my natural contrary attitude to root against something he wants out of good humor.
My main problem is that in baseball they have swept so many problems under the rug for attendance numbers...which they wouldn't have had problems with if they didn't stop the game in '93.
Yes the game is hard to watch as there isn't a lot happening at the time. We as a country are more accustomed to watching faster moving sports. Our country has been so successful over the decades of manufacturing entertainment that we have more options to have our free time filled than anyone ever in the history of the planet.
Baseball was once the national past time, now due to the dominance of the NFL it is going the way of a relic in the wake of the years of the steroid scandal. It'll still be relevant, not saying that it belongs in a museum of sports we used to play, I'm only talking about the once high position of relevance it held as our national sport and how the baton was handed to the NFL without the MLB noticing it had lost ground.
While in the NFL practically any team has a chance any year to be a contender if they make the right off season moves and has a good draft. In the MLB a lot of teams are eliminated from post season play by the first of June.
Regardless I decided to give a former flame another look. I purchased the MLB iPhone app so I can listen to games. Yesterday I listened to the Dodger's home opener, mainly because I like listening to Vin Scully call a game. The guy is a legend and can paint a picture of what's happening in the game like no other. This is possibly his last season so I am going to try to catch more games he calls this season.
I'm not a Dodger's fan, not a fan of any team really but I do favor the AL over the NL, yes I know that the Dodger's are a NL team but the AL doesn't have a Vin Scully.
This might last a week or it might last all season, reigniting a former love, time will tell.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
It Returns Tonight!
The best reality show of all time is back starting tonight!
The Deadliest Catch!
I've been a fan of this show since Discovery did a documentary episode on it called The Deadliest Season, it served as a spring board for the current show.
Deadliest Catch documents the lives and struggles of crab fishermen on the Bering Sea in Winter. Frequently ships become disabled due to the horrible conditions around them. Men stay up for thirty hours at a time or longer to finish a string, nerves are shot, and the weather is always below freezing.
They start with king crab season and then when that ends it is time for snow or opilio crab season which is worse weather wise as the pack ice comes south into the crab grounds.
My dad loved this show. After a new episode aired we would discuss it the next day. You long time readers will recall the time I almost called his number a few days after he had passed last year after the night's new episode. I caught myself before it rang though.
This season will have a more melancholy tone as Captain Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie died a few months after my dad did. The fleet will continue to go out with the Hansen brothers with the Northwestern, the Hillstrand Brothers and the Time Bandit, Harris's sons with the Cornelia Marie, and Keith and Mouse with the Wizard.
Yes, this is one of the only shows I watch as it airs instead of a season at a time like most others.
If you haven't seen it, watch it.
The Deadliest Catch!
I've been a fan of this show since Discovery did a documentary episode on it called The Deadliest Season, it served as a spring board for the current show.
Deadliest Catch documents the lives and struggles of crab fishermen on the Bering Sea in Winter. Frequently ships become disabled due to the horrible conditions around them. Men stay up for thirty hours at a time or longer to finish a string, nerves are shot, and the weather is always below freezing.
They start with king crab season and then when that ends it is time for snow or opilio crab season which is worse weather wise as the pack ice comes south into the crab grounds.
My dad loved this show. After a new episode aired we would discuss it the next day. You long time readers will recall the time I almost called his number a few days after he had passed last year after the night's new episode. I caught myself before it rang though.
This season will have a more melancholy tone as Captain Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie died a few months after my dad did. The fleet will continue to go out with the Hansen brothers with the Northwestern, the Hillstrand Brothers and the Time Bandit, Harris's sons with the Cornelia Marie, and Keith and Mouse with the Wizard.
Yes, this is one of the only shows I watch as it airs instead of a season at a time like most others.
If you haven't seen it, watch it.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Good Weekend!
Yesterday I got a lot of Lynda watched, I've still got three chapters left in After Effects Essentials. After that I move onto their advanced course which is about four hours long after the six hour long Essentials course.
I'm getting there and I feel more confident now than I was before about this program. Yesterday I made lasagna and for supper I grilled hamburgers and corn on the cob. The Date and I enjoyed them:) Thing 2 thought I said corn dogs and didn't want to pick corn out of her braces.
The Date did a spectacular job of cleaning up the patio ala spring cleaning and our neighbor brought over his bobcat and a ton of dirt and leveled out the low parts of our back yard.
Well my restful weekend is over with and now it's time to earn the rent for another week. Day one is up to bat and day two is on deck.
I'm getting there and I feel more confident now than I was before about this program. Yesterday I made lasagna and for supper I grilled hamburgers and corn on the cob. The Date and I enjoyed them:) Thing 2 thought I said corn dogs and didn't want to pick corn out of her braces.
The Date did a spectacular job of cleaning up the patio ala spring cleaning and our neighbor brought over his bobcat and a ton of dirt and leveled out the low parts of our back yard.
Well my restful weekend is over with and now it's time to earn the rent for another week. Day one is up to bat and day two is on deck.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Surprised!
So there I was, about to go have a quiet drink with The Date and a couple of friends at The Blue Note after a somewhat busy day of dad stuff.
I did notice Filmmaker friend Chris's car in the parking lot but I've seen others like it so I thought, eh, not him since he doesn't drink. I knew that J and T were going to be there and I saw T's car. I walked in and a lot of my closest and dearest friends yelled, "Surprise!"
I was genuinely taken aback and it did scare me a bit! They did their jobs perfectly! Jamal was the lookout who was giving, Red, Hollywood Actor, J, T, and Filmmaker friend Chris the signal. After a few minutes Skate and The Invader showed up followed by Teehee, and later still by Beersnob, and Mrs. Beersnob.
I got hugs all around, wonderful birthday wishes, and had a wonderful time! I honestly thought my 40th was done and over with after the water heater incident. I was good with that as I don't particularly like attention much less the center of attention.
We all hung out until midnight at least so this lasted a good four hours!
In other news Prom Night happened successfully. Thing 1 actually got home before curfew. Thing 2 had a school function to attend in another town so I dropped her off and picked her up for that.
And that was my day!
I did notice Filmmaker friend Chris's car in the parking lot but I've seen others like it so I thought, eh, not him since he doesn't drink. I knew that J and T were going to be there and I saw T's car. I walked in and a lot of my closest and dearest friends yelled, "Surprise!"
I was genuinely taken aback and it did scare me a bit! They did their jobs perfectly! Jamal was the lookout who was giving, Red, Hollywood Actor, J, T, and Filmmaker friend Chris the signal. After a few minutes Skate and The Invader showed up followed by Teehee, and later still by Beersnob, and Mrs. Beersnob.
I got hugs all around, wonderful birthday wishes, and had a wonderful time! I honestly thought my 40th was done and over with after the water heater incident. I was good with that as I don't particularly like attention much less the center of attention.
We all hung out until midnight at least so this lasted a good four hours!
In other news Prom Night happened successfully. Thing 1 actually got home before curfew. Thing 2 had a school function to attend in another town so I dropped her off and picked her up for that.
And that was my day!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Prom Night
I don't think I'll survive today. It is prom night for Thing 1. I've got some dad things to do, I think. If not then I'll have to support The Date in her efforts to make this Thing 1's best prom ever.
Everything is going well right now. Tomorrow I'll be working on a spot for the marketing company. It'll be playing at the ball park in town for all of the baseball games.
To start the day out right we are heading to a breakfast restaurant, not IHOP, and going to have a nice breakfast:)
Everything is going well right now. Tomorrow I'll be working on a spot for the marketing company. It'll be playing at the ball park in town for all of the baseball games.
To start the day out right we are heading to a breakfast restaurant, not IHOP, and going to have a nice breakfast:)
Friday, April 09, 2010
Friday!
Payday Friday in fact! I'm glad, it's been a long week. I need a weekend to recharge a bit.
Work has been weird, it's goes from busy to slow to busy again. Hopefully it'll smooth out to a steady pace again soon. I can handle a steady pace, I know what to expect and can plan it out. It's when you don't know what's going to happen is when things get off track.
Regardless it's Friday now and no work for two days. That's what I'm excited about!
I am guessing my commercials are going to work as I've uploaded one of them to the channel's FTP site according to their guidelines and I don't know about the other one. They didn't have a FTP site, so I gave my client a DVD. I don't have the means to distribute it another way.
I asked the ad-reps at the channel to contact me if there was a problem and that was two days ago and they haven't so it must be great:)
Work has been weird, it's goes from busy to slow to busy again. Hopefully it'll smooth out to a steady pace again soon. I can handle a steady pace, I know what to expect and can plan it out. It's when you don't know what's going to happen is when things get off track.
Regardless it's Friday now and no work for two days. That's what I'm excited about!
I am guessing my commercials are going to work as I've uploaded one of them to the channel's FTP site according to their guidelines and I don't know about the other one. They didn't have a FTP site, so I gave my client a DVD. I don't have the means to distribute it another way.
I asked the ad-reps at the channel to contact me if there was a problem and that was two days ago and they haven't so it must be great:)
Thursday, April 08, 2010
It's All Good
Last night I finally got to play my evening of celebratory WoW!
In the midst of my glorious fun I knocked over my cup of water, spilling it onto my iPhone.
I dried it off and turned it on. It worked fine but after a while I noticed that I couldn't hear the text message sounds. I tried the iPod feature and it wouldn't play unless I had the headphones on in which it played great.
So I got a bag of dry Minute Rice, stuck the iPhone in there and left it over night. I Anxiously turned it on this morning only to find...IT WORKED PERFECTLY AGAIN!
Yay iPhone! Yay Minute Rice!
Just after ten o'clock I hit level sixty two with my warrior. I'm happy about that as I have eighteen levels to go until level eighty which is the cap until the expansion comes out later this year.
In the midst of my glorious fun I knocked over my cup of water, spilling it onto my iPhone.
I dried it off and turned it on. It worked fine but after a while I noticed that I couldn't hear the text message sounds. I tried the iPod feature and it wouldn't play unless I had the headphones on in which it played great.
So I got a bag of dry Minute Rice, stuck the iPhone in there and left it over night. I Anxiously turned it on this morning only to find...IT WORKED PERFECTLY AGAIN!
Yay iPhone! Yay Minute Rice!
Just after ten o'clock I hit level sixty two with my warrior. I'm happy about that as I have eighteen levels to go until level eighty which is the cap until the expansion comes out later this year.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
One Busy Day
Yes I'll get this out of the way first, it was my bday. Yes I'm another year older. The Date tried as hard as she could to make the day special and it was! She made a great cake for me, all chocolate, all the way through!
I went to work but I was going to take off at noon so that I could drop off the new DVD proof of the commercial I've been working on. You can see it here. Skate does a great job of narrating this spot!
The second part of the plan was to play WoW in celebration of my first commercial that was going to air very soon on TV.
Alas it was not to be. The Date texted that the carbon monoxide detector had been going off in the morning. I was sure that it was the high gusting winds catching the hot water tank's flu system from the right direction and forcing it back down. We are talking about forty mile per hour gusts too.
I got home but she had gone to class already so I check the hot water tank out and found that it needed replaced badly. So my new project for the day was to replace it. I called my brother and he got me a good deal at a warehouse supply store on a new tank. He is a licensed plumber so he gets discounted prices on his supplies. The general public can't walk in and buy things but he can, it's that kind of place.
So I'm off to get his truck to pick up the new tank. I switch vehicles, pick up the tank and head home. My brother's best friend and someone who has helped me out more times than I can count, Fat Plummer (his X-Box 360 ID) comes over after he gets off of work and for the next four hours we change the tank out.
We size up the old tank, and get it drained which took the longest. Then we head to get the supplies to replace the tank with. The actual tank changing didn't take long, maybe an hour at most. By the time we were done it was nine thirty and I just wanted to do nothing but rest.
So that was my day:) Thank you again to my love, The Date for her valiant efforts to make the day special for me:) It was, we are safe from deadly carbon monoxide now and the tank will last us for another six to ten years:)
I went to work but I was going to take off at noon so that I could drop off the new DVD proof of the commercial I've been working on. You can see it here. Skate does a great job of narrating this spot!
The second part of the plan was to play WoW in celebration of my first commercial that was going to air very soon on TV.
Alas it was not to be. The Date texted that the carbon monoxide detector had been going off in the morning. I was sure that it was the high gusting winds catching the hot water tank's flu system from the right direction and forcing it back down. We are talking about forty mile per hour gusts too.
I got home but she had gone to class already so I check the hot water tank out and found that it needed replaced badly. So my new project for the day was to replace it. I called my brother and he got me a good deal at a warehouse supply store on a new tank. He is a licensed plumber so he gets discounted prices on his supplies. The general public can't walk in and buy things but he can, it's that kind of place.
So I'm off to get his truck to pick up the new tank. I switch vehicles, pick up the tank and head home. My brother's best friend and someone who has helped me out more times than I can count, Fat Plummer (his X-Box 360 ID) comes over after he gets off of work and for the next four hours we change the tank out.
We size up the old tank, and get it drained which took the longest. Then we head to get the supplies to replace the tank with. The actual tank changing didn't take long, maybe an hour at most. By the time we were done it was nine thirty and I just wanted to do nothing but rest.
So that was my day:) Thank you again to my love, The Date for her valiant efforts to make the day special for me:) It was, we are safe from deadly carbon monoxide now and the tank will last us for another six to ten years:)
Tuesday, April 06, 2010
Now I Think I'm Finished!
I took the DVD proof over to my client yesterday at lunch. I was going to wait until after work but it was killing me whether she was going to like it or hate it. Turns out she liked it and after a couple of tweaks that she wanted I'll be bringing her another DVD proof today.
That should finish this project once she looks at the new proof and approves it.
If the most difficult project is the first one then it should be smooth sailing from here. This has been a nightmare project. Last night I even had to get a new DVD burner as mine quit working. I don't know why, it just wouldn't read anything anymore.
Nevertheless that problem was overcome and now I shall spend the evening playing WoW before starting to work on the new project tomorrow evening.
Everything is working out, sometimes the road can be a bit bumpy but it's working anyway!
That should finish this project once she looks at the new proof and approves it.
If the most difficult project is the first one then it should be smooth sailing from here. This has been a nightmare project. Last night I even had to get a new DVD burner as mine quit working. I don't know why, it just wouldn't read anything anymore.
Nevertheless that problem was overcome and now I shall spend the evening playing WoW before starting to work on the new project tomorrow evening.
Everything is working out, sometimes the road can be a bit bumpy but it's working anyway!
Monday, April 05, 2010
Finished!
I'll take the proofs over to her after work and she can tear into them. She forgot to send me a sponsor's logo so she emailed it to me while I was there picking up the tropical music she picked out. I gave her a frame by frame breakdown of what this commercial looks like and why I did what I did. She wanted a ton of information in thirty seconds, I mean a ton.
The commercial from last year used a steady background and placed the information all around it, they used small pictures, I'm using individual backgrounds and the pictures are full screen. There isn't as much information being thrown at you at a time but you can turn the volume off and get the full message. The sponsor's logos are much bigger than last year's commercial and the main thing she wanted highlighted has three individual title cards.
I saw a commercial that a California firm had done for her recently and she explained how she didn't like it. I thought it was pretty good, the graphics were clean and sharp, the backgrounds were bright, it was a nice commercial other than a gaff that had the same picture on the screen twice.
I came home, nearly ready for a heart attack when The Date told me that it wouldn't matter what I'd do for any commercial she wanted she wouldn't like it and would find something bad about it. Oddly enough that made me feel better.
This will be a commercial that after a year of doing this, I'll look back on and see how crude it is. My skills will grow and I'll get better so I know I've got a lot of room for improvement.
Thank you Skate for doing the voice over. It was golden! Your tones shall grace many future commercials in this area:)
The commercial from last year used a steady background and placed the information all around it, they used small pictures, I'm using individual backgrounds and the pictures are full screen. There isn't as much information being thrown at you at a time but you can turn the volume off and get the full message. The sponsor's logos are much bigger than last year's commercial and the main thing she wanted highlighted has three individual title cards.
I saw a commercial that a California firm had done for her recently and she explained how she didn't like it. I thought it was pretty good, the graphics were clean and sharp, the backgrounds were bright, it was a nice commercial other than a gaff that had the same picture on the screen twice.
I came home, nearly ready for a heart attack when The Date told me that it wouldn't matter what I'd do for any commercial she wanted she wouldn't like it and would find something bad about it. Oddly enough that made me feel better.
This will be a commercial that after a year of doing this, I'll look back on and see how crude it is. My skills will grow and I'll get better so I know I've got a lot of room for improvement.
Thank you Skate for doing the voice over. It was golden! Your tones shall grace many future commercials in this area:)
Sunday, April 04, 2010
Almost Completed
The commercial that has given me some restless night, inspired my normally calm stomach to start aerobics, and tap danced on my last good nerve is 95% finished.
I need to call Skate later to do the voice over track and the client is looking for ukulele music for the final seconds. I felt like the world had been lifted off of my shoulders as I put the final clip into place. I felt so good that Beersnob and I went outside and enjoyed a victory cigar. If I hadn't completed it then it would have been a nerve calming cigar but nonetheless it was a victory cigar.
I plan on having another victory cigar when she accepts the commercial sometime this week.
Happy Easter! The most important holiday of the year for any believing Christian and the close of Holy Week. Death itself was conquered and as believers we were given real hope. That life is meaningful and just the beginning. That there is a structure to the universe and not chaos. We are not left in the hands of random chance but in those of a kind and loving God.
He is Risen!:)
I need to call Skate later to do the voice over track and the client is looking for ukulele music for the final seconds. I felt like the world had been lifted off of my shoulders as I put the final clip into place. I felt so good that Beersnob and I went outside and enjoyed a victory cigar. If I hadn't completed it then it would have been a nerve calming cigar but nonetheless it was a victory cigar.
I plan on having another victory cigar when she accepts the commercial sometime this week.
Happy Easter! The most important holiday of the year for any believing Christian and the close of Holy Week. Death itself was conquered and as believers we were given real hope. That life is meaningful and just the beginning. That there is a structure to the universe and not chaos. We are not left in the hands of random chance but in those of a kind and loving God.
He is Risen!:)
Saturday, April 03, 2010
My Day With Lynda
Yes Lynda.com is on my slate today.
I subscribed to Lynda after work yesterday. I went through nine chapters of Essential After Effects tutorials before bed. I've got another thirteen chapters to get through today before moving onto the advanced tutorials.
Lynda is a software learning site. They teach you complex software titles in a relatively short amount of time for twenty five dollars per month. A bargain compared to the slower progress in a classroom.
However fast this may be and yes it will get me through the current commercials I'm doing I still would prefer a mentor I can learn from and ask questions to. There are lots of projects out there that I might have to do that just aren't covered here.
I want to get better at this program, upgrade it and master the next version as well. I'm going to be a great editor and I'm going to make this business work. Beersnob is back in town as he safely arrived home Thursday. He will be assisting soon and I want to be able to get him up to speed on what and how to edit.
That will be the biggest help to me, to have two people who are capable of taking a client's request, shooting it, editing it, and giving back a finished, polished product that they will love.
So no World of Warcraft today unless I finish the Expo commercial. I'm using that as a reward system for myself. Business before pleasure. After I deliver a solid commercial to my client then I'll treat myself with a few quests with the guild, Skate, Teehee, Bobo, and the others.
I subscribed to Lynda after work yesterday. I went through nine chapters of Essential After Effects tutorials before bed. I've got another thirteen chapters to get through today before moving onto the advanced tutorials.
Lynda is a software learning site. They teach you complex software titles in a relatively short amount of time for twenty five dollars per month. A bargain compared to the slower progress in a classroom.
However fast this may be and yes it will get me through the current commercials I'm doing I still would prefer a mentor I can learn from and ask questions to. There are lots of projects out there that I might have to do that just aren't covered here.
I want to get better at this program, upgrade it and master the next version as well. I'm going to be a great editor and I'm going to make this business work. Beersnob is back in town as he safely arrived home Thursday. He will be assisting soon and I want to be able to get him up to speed on what and how to edit.
That will be the biggest help to me, to have two people who are capable of taking a client's request, shooting it, editing it, and giving back a finished, polished product that they will love.
So no World of Warcraft today unless I finish the Expo commercial. I'm using that as a reward system for myself. Business before pleasure. After I deliver a solid commercial to my client then I'll treat myself with a few quests with the guild, Skate, Teehee, Bobo, and the others.
Friday, April 02, 2010
A Strong Possibility
Starting on the sixteenth my little business could wind up with a full time gig every two weeks.
This is a show that will be going around to area businesses and will be around a half hour of shooting time plus editing and time to set up and strike the equipment. It will be labor intensive for the first couple of shows and then the bugs will be worked out and we'll have a good produced show on my end.
I'll have a filmed intro and everything. It's really pretty cool because it'll probably be the job that pays for the next upgrade I need to get and that's Adobe software.
After that it'll be camera and then a new powerhouse PC.
The Expo commercial should be finished this weekend and I'll have that off of my plate. That's the most nerve wracking commercial I've ever done because they requested a ton of information and themes to go into a thirty second spot and it's going to be publicly viewed. I'll get used to it but for right now it is killing my last good nerve.
This is a show that will be going around to area businesses and will be around a half hour of shooting time plus editing and time to set up and strike the equipment. It will be labor intensive for the first couple of shows and then the bugs will be worked out and we'll have a good produced show on my end.
I'll have a filmed intro and everything. It's really pretty cool because it'll probably be the job that pays for the next upgrade I need to get and that's Adobe software.
After that it'll be camera and then a new powerhouse PC.
The Expo commercial should be finished this weekend and I'll have that off of my plate. That's the most nerve wracking commercial I've ever done because they requested a ton of information and themes to go into a thirty second spot and it's going to be publicly viewed. I'll get used to it but for right now it is killing my last good nerve.
Thursday, April 01, 2010
A Quarter Done
Amazingly 2010 is now officially one quarter finished. How has that happened?
I'm still getting used to writing the date starting with a "1" instead of a "0", I know I've got an entire decade to get it right before I change the "1" to a "2" though.
I guess the decade is now officially one fortieth finished, that sounds a little bit better.
Yesterday really felt more like Summer than Spring. It was quite possibly ninety, I know the last time I looked at a thermometer it was eighty eight. Two weeks ago it was snowing and now it's Summer. One thing is for sure, we will soon be having some massive thunder storms soon. Tornado season is upon us!
I shot the final footage I needed last night for the first real commercial I've ever done last night. I'm very nervous about this but promised the client that it would not be a clone of last year's commercial which she has grown to love. I explained I had watched the old commercial literally and without exaggeration a hundred times by now and there is way too much information being thrown at the viewer to comprehend in thirty seconds.
This one will be slower paced, a little information at a time, and if the viewer turns the volume down the point will still get across. That's the kind of commercials I want to make. I hate watching them and that's one of the main reasons I like watching a season of a show at a time either on DVD or DVR when you can skip the commercials.
Ironic huh? I'm now trying to make the same thing I don't like to watch. It's alright though I think I've got a handle on them for the most part and will get my skills in the software up to par in a very short amount of time!
I'm still getting used to writing the date starting with a "1" instead of a "0", I know I've got an entire decade to get it right before I change the "1" to a "2" though.
I guess the decade is now officially one fortieth finished, that sounds a little bit better.
Yesterday really felt more like Summer than Spring. It was quite possibly ninety, I know the last time I looked at a thermometer it was eighty eight. Two weeks ago it was snowing and now it's Summer. One thing is for sure, we will soon be having some massive thunder storms soon. Tornado season is upon us!
I shot the final footage I needed last night for the first real commercial I've ever done last night. I'm very nervous about this but promised the client that it would not be a clone of last year's commercial which she has grown to love. I explained I had watched the old commercial literally and without exaggeration a hundred times by now and there is way too much information being thrown at the viewer to comprehend in thirty seconds.
This one will be slower paced, a little information at a time, and if the viewer turns the volume down the point will still get across. That's the kind of commercials I want to make. I hate watching them and that's one of the main reasons I like watching a season of a show at a time either on DVD or DVR when you can skip the commercials.
Ironic huh? I'm now trying to make the same thing I don't like to watch. It's alright though I think I've got a handle on them for the most part and will get my skills in the software up to par in a very short amount of time!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
NIce Ride
It was great driving the Tahoe to work and home. After getting home The Date and I went and stocked up on groceries then came home and ate while watching The African Queen.
Neither She nor Thing 2 had seen it yet. Obviously they thought it was amazing as it is a great movie.
Today and tomorrow I'm at work alone. It'll be fine, we haven't been too busy lately. Tonight I'm going to shoot some footage for the main commercial I'm working on. This is the commercial that makes me nervous.
I want them to really love it but it isn't like they are used to so far. It'll be far different than what they have been getting, and it's going on TV so everyone will see it and decide for themselves if it's good or bad.
Tonight Beersnob should be arriving back at home from his one month deployment and will be helping from now until Summer when he leaves again for a while. But by Summer I should have everything down and will easily be able to produce a commercial in a few days easily.
Neither She nor Thing 2 had seen it yet. Obviously they thought it was amazing as it is a great movie.
Today and tomorrow I'm at work alone. It'll be fine, we haven't been too busy lately. Tonight I'm going to shoot some footage for the main commercial I'm working on. This is the commercial that makes me nervous.
I want them to really love it but it isn't like they are used to so far. It'll be far different than what they have been getting, and it's going on TV so everyone will see it and decide for themselves if it's good or bad.
Tonight Beersnob should be arriving back at home from his one month deployment and will be helping from now until Summer when he leaves again for a while. But by Summer I should have everything down and will easily be able to produce a commercial in a few days easily.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Stepping Out Of The Diesel
Yesterday was a good day. I got to work to find that pretty much everything was caught up and I really didn't have anything to do. They were going to start cutting out a large square piece of concrete in the shop next to us, a very long and noisy process, and I wanted to go talk to a bank.
These three things conspired in my head to lead me to take off work. So I asked my supervisor to have off six hours. He gladly said yes and off I was to start the day.
My sister in law had offered their 2001 Chevy Tahoe to us for an unbelievably low price of two thousand dollars. You have to understand this this a top of the line Tahoe, leather seats, third row seating, the whole nine yards.
I quickly did a mental calculation of how much it would take to get my Suburban running at full capacity again, one thousand for the transmission, maybe two hundred for the brakes and master cylinder, another three hundred for the glow plug controller to be replaced, and all of a sudden I wasn't too far from upgrading to this much newer vehicle.
So I went to the bank, no hassles, no long negotiations, nothing. Twenty minutes after walking in I could have signed the papers. They had a real estate deal going on so they weren't able to get the paper work done until four that afternoon. So I went and changed my insurance from the Suburban over to the Tahoe after the loan was secured.
I called my brother to see if he wanted to go on a road trip that evening, he said he would, he called his friend, Fat Plumber and all three of us drove to Norman. We left town here a little after six thirty.
We met my sister in law, signed the title, got the keys, and hugged good bye. The three of us went to fuel up the Tahoe and that gave Fat Plumber (who is also a darn good mechanic) a chance to raise the hood and look it over.
He was very impressed with the amazing condition of the vehicle. Very well maintained, and has been kept on a scheduled maintenance plan since it was bought.
This new vehicle will serve us for a long time!
After topping off with gas we headed back home, arriving back to the house around eleven o'clock. I promptly kissed The Date and headed to bed exhausted from the turn around drive.
Morning came way too soon but I feel good!
These three things conspired in my head to lead me to take off work. So I asked my supervisor to have off six hours. He gladly said yes and off I was to start the day.
My sister in law had offered their 2001 Chevy Tahoe to us for an unbelievably low price of two thousand dollars. You have to understand this this a top of the line Tahoe, leather seats, third row seating, the whole nine yards.
I quickly did a mental calculation of how much it would take to get my Suburban running at full capacity again, one thousand for the transmission, maybe two hundred for the brakes and master cylinder, another three hundred for the glow plug controller to be replaced, and all of a sudden I wasn't too far from upgrading to this much newer vehicle.
So I went to the bank, no hassles, no long negotiations, nothing. Twenty minutes after walking in I could have signed the papers. They had a real estate deal going on so they weren't able to get the paper work done until four that afternoon. So I went and changed my insurance from the Suburban over to the Tahoe after the loan was secured.
I called my brother to see if he wanted to go on a road trip that evening, he said he would, he called his friend, Fat Plumber and all three of us drove to Norman. We left town here a little after six thirty.
We met my sister in law, signed the title, got the keys, and hugged good bye. The three of us went to fuel up the Tahoe and that gave Fat Plumber (who is also a darn good mechanic) a chance to raise the hood and look it over.
He was very impressed with the amazing condition of the vehicle. Very well maintained, and has been kept on a scheduled maintenance plan since it was bought.
This new vehicle will serve us for a long time!
After topping off with gas we headed back home, arriving back to the house around eleven o'clock. I promptly kissed The Date and headed to bed exhausted from the turn around drive.
Morning came way too soon but I feel good!
Monday, March 29, 2010
Spring Cleaning Has Begun
Anyone who knows me knows that cleaning isn't one of my strong attributes. The Date however has done a marvelous job in getting the yard up to par as well as tackling the garage.
Yesterday was spent cleaning and moving things to the curb. I've got to admit she and Thing 2 did an amazing job.
I'll have a busy day today. Lots on my mind and future plans. I can deal though as long as The Date is there:)
Yesterday was spent cleaning and moving things to the curb. I've got to admit she and Thing 2 did an amazing job.
I'll have a busy day today. Lots on my mind and future plans. I can deal though as long as The Date is there:)
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Wonderful Night!
The Date and I went to Jamal's for his big, rocking, blow out, birthday bash! What a splendid time as well! We had only planned on staying less than an hour and we wound up leaving at midnight!
Everyone was laughing, and having a great time as the music dictated and elevated the revelry. I confess to talking a small amount of business at the party when a client I'm doing a project for, the marketing company he runs, asked me about the status of his project. He gave me a time line of a month. That's cool, I've got most of it laid out already but have to learn the camera effects they want.
He said that he was glad I was doing this business now and a lot of business would come my way. He is happy to have another company to turn to to get commercials made instead of the one that is in town.
That gives me confidence I can do this job:)
Everyone was laughing, and having a great time as the music dictated and elevated the revelry. I confess to talking a small amount of business at the party when a client I'm doing a project for, the marketing company he runs, asked me about the status of his project. He gave me a time line of a month. That's cool, I've got most of it laid out already but have to learn the camera effects they want.
He said that he was glad I was doing this business now and a lot of business would come my way. He is happy to have another company to turn to to get commercials made instead of the one that is in town.
That gives me confidence I can do this job:)
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Smoking Away
Last night around eight thirty I put a brisket on and a pork shoulder or Boston butt to smoke over night. I set the draft vents on the big green egg when the fire reached the temperature of two twenty five which is where I wanted it to cook over night.
I got up a little bit ago to find I had closed the bottom draft vent a bit too much and while there were still coals burning the temperature had dropped to around one twenty. I just opened the vents and the fire is building to where it should be again.
The meat looked done but not quite tender yet, it requires some more cooking. I won't be able to pull the pork apart until maybe another two hours of cooking. It was my first overnight cook on the egg and I was trying really hard to lock the right temperature down.
The egg is remarkable in that it will hold whatever temperature you put it at for long hours. I misjudged and played it a little to close this time. I learned and now I know next time where the vent should be.
I got up a little bit ago to find I had closed the bottom draft vent a bit too much and while there were still coals burning the temperature had dropped to around one twenty. I just opened the vents and the fire is building to where it should be again.
The meat looked done but not quite tender yet, it requires some more cooking. I won't be able to pull the pork apart until maybe another two hours of cooking. It was my first overnight cook on the egg and I was trying really hard to lock the right temperature down.
The egg is remarkable in that it will hold whatever temperature you put it at for long hours. I misjudged and played it a little to close this time. I learned and now I know next time where the vent should be.
Friday, March 26, 2010
It's Friday!
I'm so happy! This weekend, actually starting tonight before bed, I'll be smoking a brisket and a pork shoulder for pulled pork!
I can't wait, I love this stuff! I bought the rub and sauce yesterday as well as the meat. I probably screwed up on the brisket because I purchased one that was already trimmed. That's ok it just doesn't have the fat content I'd rather have.
Their full brisket selection left a lot to be desired so I had little choice in the matter. Regardless it'll produce some amazing results come tomorrow and I take them off of the big green egg!
I can't wait to get started tonight! First a full day of work though, have to keep those bills paid:)
I can't wait, I love this stuff! I bought the rub and sauce yesterday as well as the meat. I probably screwed up on the brisket because I purchased one that was already trimmed. That's ok it just doesn't have the fat content I'd rather have.
Their full brisket selection left a lot to be desired so I had little choice in the matter. Regardless it'll produce some amazing results come tomorrow and I take them off of the big green egg!
I can't wait to get started tonight! First a full day of work though, have to keep those bills paid:)
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Didn't Edit
At all last night. Instead I went to a link supplied to me by The Date's friend in Houston. Online tutorials from start to finish on the basics of After Effects!
This will help me get up to speed quickly and I'll be doing that this weekend. It is a subscription based service which is fine. It'll take maybe a week to learn the basic skills I'll need to make the commercial I want to make.
Things are in the right order according to the page of instructions, I just need to make it flashy now.
It's all good news and it won't be long before I'm cranking out a job a week or more!
This will help me get up to speed quickly and I'll be doing that this weekend. It is a subscription based service which is fine. It'll take maybe a week to learn the basic skills I'll need to make the commercial I want to make.
Things are in the right order according to the page of instructions, I just need to make it flashy now.
It's all good news and it won't be long before I'm cranking out a job a week or more!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Editing Away
I've got two projects I'm currently editing on now. After Effects is a very complex program and the tutorial I'm watching for a motion typography piece is very complex. It's the second video down if you care to take a look at what I'm attempting.
The guy is German and this is clearly for an advanced user but I'm rewinding and following along as best as I can.
I could really use an AE mentor here who knows this program in and out. However that's not likely to happen. I had someone come over and we went through some basics and that was about the limit of her ability as she hadn't used AE in quite some time. She was also from the same marketing company that I'm doing this for as a calling card for them.
There likely isn't anyone in town that can do what I'm trying to do here sadly.
It's alright, it might take me some time but I'll get through it and make a very good product by the time I'm done!
The guy is German and this is clearly for an advanced user but I'm rewinding and following along as best as I can.
I could really use an AE mentor here who knows this program in and out. However that's not likely to happen. I had someone come over and we went through some basics and that was about the limit of her ability as she hadn't used AE in quite some time. She was also from the same marketing company that I'm doing this for as a calling card for them.
There likely isn't anyone in town that can do what I'm trying to do here sadly.
It's alright, it might take me some time but I'll get through it and make a very good product by the time I'm done!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
The Confession Of A Racist, Homophobic, Closed Minded, And Mean Spirited Conservative
Perhaps this could be my manifesto however I'd say that my manifesto has been written out over the past few years and comprises just over one thousand eight hundred and fifty some posts.
In my lifetime I can't recall as much political drama that is going on now. The Clinton years were child's play compared to the past year and couple of months. All eight years of Clinton.
Obviously I'm a conservative. Perhaps some don't know what that means or only believe the caricature I used in my title. Yes I'm a cold blooded, mean, nasty, racist, homophobe who only wants everyone to starve to death if they can't support themselves.
Yes I want no government, no taxes, no public schools, and kids to starve at school because I don't want any school lunches. The elderly should work until the day they die and never enjoy any kind of retirement and how dare they think about asking for social security, a program they spent a lifetime contributing to.
Now with all of that established about how evil I and my beliefs are let's talk about what a conservative should be. In an idealistic, perfect world that is.
Now I'm sure you are chuckling about conservatives being dead and all of that but lets try not to be so dark at the moment.
Let's start with liberty. Our founding documents are riddled with references to liberty, justice, and equality. So let's go right to America's darkest dark spot on history, slavery. There is simply no defense. It was wrong but it took a country as great as America to get it right and set the right example for the rest of the world. We fought a war over it and Americans died to correct it.
Yes the President was from one party but I won't mention which as I know he was a horrible, racist, homophobic, blah blah blah. Let's fast forward to nineteen sixty four for a minute. The civil rights act of 1964 voting record:
House of Representatives:
Democrats for: 152
Democrats against: 96
Republicans for: 138
Republicans against: 34
Senate:
Democrats for: 46
Democrats against: 21
Republicans for: 27
Republicans against: 6
For those of you keeping score at home that's:
69% of Democrats and 82% of Republicans supported the bill in the Senate.
61% of Democrats and 80% of Republicans supported the bill in the House.
Among those voting against the legislation was still serving former Klansman and Senator Robert Byrd.
Let's talk about life now. A conservative, contrary to popular belief, values life very highly. In fact we value it so high that if you decide to take a life you might very well forfeit your own life. We like to protect those who can't protect themselves such as the unborn. Unless the life of the mother is threatened, or in cases of rape or incest then we despise the procedure.
As some of you will recall I did a documentary about a play and an adoption a while back. I really don't think those proud parents would have considered either of their children as a nuisance, unwanted, or a poor choice. Those two children have a very loving home and are far better off now than they ever would have been through the miracle of adoption.
How about one of the most divisive issues of our age, gay rights. This one is a bit tougher as some of my gay friends tolerate my loathsome homoophobic presence but I'll give it a shot. I believe this is a state's rights issue not a federal issue. If the citizens of your state vote to allow it as some have then live, be free, and have a good time with it. If the state votes not to allow it then the people have voted.
Many people view this as a moral issue and feel very strongly about it, their voice counts as much as those who those who are proponents of gay rights. The fairest way is for everyone to be heard and have your vote counted, if you are passionate about it then sway people to your side, both sides. Not by hate or divisiveness but by heartfelt walking and talking to people no matter what side you are on.
Taxes? Let's give it a shot! I don't mind paying a reasonable percentage of my earnings for the public good, especially the military. I believe that if you serve in the military you should always be exempt from paying income taxes and have your health care paid for. Half of that is law today. I'm even more for a fair tax style of system where all income taxes are done away with in lieu of either a flat tax for everyone or a national sales tax on everything except on food and clothing.
No capital gains tax, no tax deductions, no IRS, everyone pays the same amount. No sin tax on cigarettes or beer. No fat tax on big macs. No hidden taxes anywhere, everything right up front and for everyone to see and understand.
If that doesn't bring in enough money then obviously spending must be cut. The federal government must learn to live the same way the citizens live, within their means. Including Congress members who need to be placed into social security with everyone else and not exempt themselves. Personally I'd like to opt out, I've paid in over twenty years of contributions to SS. I'd sign a paper today saying you can have all of that money if I never pay in one more penny. I'll get much more by contributing it to an IRA or 401k fund of my choosing for my remaining years in the work force.
How about another tough subject? Immigration. Now the real racist in me comes out! I'm very pro-immigration. I want everyone to come here to better their lives, legally. I want the immigration system to be streamlined so that it is easier to come here but I don't want open borders. We do have to protect our sovereignty. If you legally come here by the book, welcome! It's the Great American Melting Pot! Learn the language, it'll help you succeed, learn our customs, they'll help you assimilate into your new life! Take pride in the gift of being an American, you are welcome to come and raise your family here.
I oppose any amnesty, that is outright unfair to all of those people who worked to get here legally and by the book. It won't be very long after health care reform has been passed that you will see a major push for an Immigration (amnesty) bill. They have alienated a large voting bloc and now need new voters for either the mid-term elections or the Presidential election in 2012. Just watch it happen.
I'd also like to clear up one thing about name calling. Lots of people associate the right wing with Nazis. Probably because of the Klan, Neo-Nazis, etc. I'd like to point out that those groups are actually LEFT WING groups as the only right wing thing they believe in is the first and second amendment.
They love free speech and the right to bear arms. Other than that they are socialists, the Nazi party was the National Socialist Party, an extreme left wing group. They did not believe in the power of the individual regardless of race, color, or creed. They suppressed those whom they disagreed with, much like any left wing group does. They believed that the individual should serve the state, a very close analogy to today's modern Democrat who believes in more social programs, higher taxes, less relative freedom, and more state control over the individual.
These groups are largely marginalized now and have few members. They'd be hard pressed to fill up a small town compared to their heyday when Democrat Robert Byrd was openly a member.
Our country, America is a great country. We have progressed further faster than any country in the history of the world. We are the shining city on the hill, the beacon of freedom the world should look to, we are the only country that will go to war to liberate your citizens from oppression. Love us or hate us it matters not but you will respect us. One one hundredth of our military can destroy most countries out existing today so don't talk about us being imperialists. If we wanted your land for colonies, we'd have it. If we wanted your oil Saudi Arabia, we'd take it. Instead we value open markets and trade. We want everyone to have a piece of the every increasing size of the pie.
That leads me to my final confession. I want everyone to have the best life they can have. I don't want to bring the rich down to the level of everyone else. I want the barriers removed so that anyone can be rich through their own hard work. I don't want to penalize anyone for being successful, I want to encourage everyone to be successful. Class warfare is the main tool for the left, remember this. Sharing the wealth is code for taking from you to give to another. You are successful, that is unfair, we are going to cut you down to size.
Everyone should be as successful as they can be, keep what they earn, and live the life they choose to live.
Unless you fall upon hard times. Then there should be a responsible safety net for you. Charity is the greatest of many virtues, you are responsible for helping your fellow citizens if you can afford it and sometimes when you can't. The greatest country in the world should never let any citizen suffer hunger. Any hand up should be temporary and not be designed to make the citizen a dependent upon the government.
That robs them of their abilities to succeed and of their full potential. That should be a real crime. Yes there are those who will refuse to work and only want to abuse the system, there should be means testing as well as drug testing in place. All of the fraud can't be stopped but it shouldn't be encouraged to continue either.
Be generous in your giving and do it in secret, forced charity is not charity, especially when the IRS takes it with threats of prison and penalties.
Read our founding documents and take a look at the political landscape as it exists today, you might be shocked at what you learn.
This brings my confession of a racist, homophobic, closed minded, mean spirited conservative to a close. I hope you find it enlightening:)
In my lifetime I can't recall as much political drama that is going on now. The Clinton years were child's play compared to the past year and couple of months. All eight years of Clinton.
Obviously I'm a conservative. Perhaps some don't know what that means or only believe the caricature I used in my title. Yes I'm a cold blooded, mean, nasty, racist, homophobe who only wants everyone to starve to death if they can't support themselves.
Yes I want no government, no taxes, no public schools, and kids to starve at school because I don't want any school lunches. The elderly should work until the day they die and never enjoy any kind of retirement and how dare they think about asking for social security, a program they spent a lifetime contributing to.
Now with all of that established about how evil I and my beliefs are let's talk about what a conservative should be. In an idealistic, perfect world that is.
Now I'm sure you are chuckling about conservatives being dead and all of that but lets try not to be so dark at the moment.
Let's start with liberty. Our founding documents are riddled with references to liberty, justice, and equality. So let's go right to America's darkest dark spot on history, slavery. There is simply no defense. It was wrong but it took a country as great as America to get it right and set the right example for the rest of the world. We fought a war over it and Americans died to correct it.
Yes the President was from one party but I won't mention which as I know he was a horrible, racist, homophobic, blah blah blah. Let's fast forward to nineteen sixty four for a minute. The civil rights act of 1964 voting record:
House of Representatives:
Democrats for: 152
Democrats against: 96
Republicans for: 138
Republicans against: 34
Senate:
Democrats for: 46
Democrats against: 21
Republicans for: 27
Republicans against: 6
For those of you keeping score at home that's:
69% of Democrats and 82% of Republicans supported the bill in the Senate.
61% of Democrats and 80% of Republicans supported the bill in the House.
Among those voting against the legislation was still serving former Klansman and Senator Robert Byrd.
Let's talk about life now. A conservative, contrary to popular belief, values life very highly. In fact we value it so high that if you decide to take a life you might very well forfeit your own life. We like to protect those who can't protect themselves such as the unborn. Unless the life of the mother is threatened, or in cases of rape or incest then we despise the procedure.
As some of you will recall I did a documentary about a play and an adoption a while back. I really don't think those proud parents would have considered either of their children as a nuisance, unwanted, or a poor choice. Those two children have a very loving home and are far better off now than they ever would have been through the miracle of adoption.
How about one of the most divisive issues of our age, gay rights. This one is a bit tougher as some of my gay friends tolerate my loathsome homoophobic presence but I'll give it a shot. I believe this is a state's rights issue not a federal issue. If the citizens of your state vote to allow it as some have then live, be free, and have a good time with it. If the state votes not to allow it then the people have voted.
Many people view this as a moral issue and feel very strongly about it, their voice counts as much as those who those who are proponents of gay rights. The fairest way is for everyone to be heard and have your vote counted, if you are passionate about it then sway people to your side, both sides. Not by hate or divisiveness but by heartfelt walking and talking to people no matter what side you are on.
Taxes? Let's give it a shot! I don't mind paying a reasonable percentage of my earnings for the public good, especially the military. I believe that if you serve in the military you should always be exempt from paying income taxes and have your health care paid for. Half of that is law today. I'm even more for a fair tax style of system where all income taxes are done away with in lieu of either a flat tax for everyone or a national sales tax on everything except on food and clothing.
No capital gains tax, no tax deductions, no IRS, everyone pays the same amount. No sin tax on cigarettes or beer. No fat tax on big macs. No hidden taxes anywhere, everything right up front and for everyone to see and understand.
If that doesn't bring in enough money then obviously spending must be cut. The federal government must learn to live the same way the citizens live, within their means. Including Congress members who need to be placed into social security with everyone else and not exempt themselves. Personally I'd like to opt out, I've paid in over twenty years of contributions to SS. I'd sign a paper today saying you can have all of that money if I never pay in one more penny. I'll get much more by contributing it to an IRA or 401k fund of my choosing for my remaining years in the work force.
How about another tough subject? Immigration. Now the real racist in me comes out! I'm very pro-immigration. I want everyone to come here to better their lives, legally. I want the immigration system to be streamlined so that it is easier to come here but I don't want open borders. We do have to protect our sovereignty. If you legally come here by the book, welcome! It's the Great American Melting Pot! Learn the language, it'll help you succeed, learn our customs, they'll help you assimilate into your new life! Take pride in the gift of being an American, you are welcome to come and raise your family here.
I oppose any amnesty, that is outright unfair to all of those people who worked to get here legally and by the book. It won't be very long after health care reform has been passed that you will see a major push for an Immigration (amnesty) bill. They have alienated a large voting bloc and now need new voters for either the mid-term elections or the Presidential election in 2012. Just watch it happen.
I'd also like to clear up one thing about name calling. Lots of people associate the right wing with Nazis. Probably because of the Klan, Neo-Nazis, etc. I'd like to point out that those groups are actually LEFT WING groups as the only right wing thing they believe in is the first and second amendment.
They love free speech and the right to bear arms. Other than that they are socialists, the Nazi party was the National Socialist Party, an extreme left wing group. They did not believe in the power of the individual regardless of race, color, or creed. They suppressed those whom they disagreed with, much like any left wing group does. They believed that the individual should serve the state, a very close analogy to today's modern Democrat who believes in more social programs, higher taxes, less relative freedom, and more state control over the individual.
These groups are largely marginalized now and have few members. They'd be hard pressed to fill up a small town compared to their heyday when Democrat Robert Byrd was openly a member.
Our country, America is a great country. We have progressed further faster than any country in the history of the world. We are the shining city on the hill, the beacon of freedom the world should look to, we are the only country that will go to war to liberate your citizens from oppression. Love us or hate us it matters not but you will respect us. One one hundredth of our military can destroy most countries out existing today so don't talk about us being imperialists. If we wanted your land for colonies, we'd have it. If we wanted your oil Saudi Arabia, we'd take it. Instead we value open markets and trade. We want everyone to have a piece of the every increasing size of the pie.
That leads me to my final confession. I want everyone to have the best life they can have. I don't want to bring the rich down to the level of everyone else. I want the barriers removed so that anyone can be rich through their own hard work. I don't want to penalize anyone for being successful, I want to encourage everyone to be successful. Class warfare is the main tool for the left, remember this. Sharing the wealth is code for taking from you to give to another. You are successful, that is unfair, we are going to cut you down to size.
Everyone should be as successful as they can be, keep what they earn, and live the life they choose to live.
Unless you fall upon hard times. Then there should be a responsible safety net for you. Charity is the greatest of many virtues, you are responsible for helping your fellow citizens if you can afford it and sometimes when you can't. The greatest country in the world should never let any citizen suffer hunger. Any hand up should be temporary and not be designed to make the citizen a dependent upon the government.
That robs them of their abilities to succeed and of their full potential. That should be a real crime. Yes there are those who will refuse to work and only want to abuse the system, there should be means testing as well as drug testing in place. All of the fraud can't be stopped but it shouldn't be encouraged to continue either.
Be generous in your giving and do it in secret, forced charity is not charity, especially when the IRS takes it with threats of prison and penalties.
Read our founding documents and take a look at the political landscape as it exists today, you might be shocked at what you learn.
This brings my confession of a racist, homophobic, closed minded, mean spirited conservative to a close. I hope you find it enlightening:)
Monday, March 22, 2010
Snow Is Melting
Yeah, after snowing all of Saturday most of the snow has melted off on Sunday. It's still chilly outside but overall not too bad at all.
It was a lazy Sunday for sure. I made spaghetti, watched a ton of C-Span online, and didn't do much at all. The mini-series Life started last night and we watched that. It was filled with lots of fabulous slow motion footage of animals, insects, and plants doing amazing things.
It was some incredible stuff!
I'm not going to mention the health care bill because I already said how it would damage people without insurance and people who have good insurance already. There was still a lot of celebration from the left and I am positive that many states will enact legislation to block their citizens from being forced to buy insurance or pay a fine.
The taxes start immediately while the benefits don't start until 2014, wonder how many will call up insurance companies today and ask for free insurance?
It was a lazy Sunday for sure. I made spaghetti, watched a ton of C-Span online, and didn't do much at all. The mini-series Life started last night and we watched that. It was filled with lots of fabulous slow motion footage of animals, insects, and plants doing amazing things.
It was some incredible stuff!
I'm not going to mention the health care bill because I already said how it would damage people without insurance and people who have good insurance already. There was still a lot of celebration from the left and I am positive that many states will enact legislation to block their citizens from being forced to buy insurance or pay a fine.
The taxes start immediately while the benefits don't start until 2014, wonder how many will call up insurance companies today and ask for free insurance?
Sunday, March 21, 2010
We Survived, America Might Not!
Yep, it snowed all day, winds howled like a banshee, and yet we lived through it despite all of the hype that Jerry Bruckheimer could have made an end of the world movie about yesterday's storm.
I watched with unbroken attention as the liberals on The Hill shot down the Slaughter Solution and went with an up or down vote on the Senate bill today. Essentially what they were going to do is vote on a reconciliation bill (all of the changes they wanted to make in the Senate bill) and then deem that the Senate bill had passed without voting on it. Speaker Pelosi would then break out the Senate bill apart from the voted on reconciliation bill and send it to President Obama to be signed into law. A clear violation of The Constitution Article I section 7. (free app on the iPhone, carry it with me all the time now)
This decision avoided tons of lawsuits and challenges which would void the bill in court. Unless it wound up in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals it would be struck down instantly.
Ok just to be fair here I'm going to post this summation of the HCB from a liberal site. They break down the myths and facts from a liberal viewpoint. I'd like to point out that neither side is happy with this bill which is why it should be started over.
I particularly like this tidbit from the bill.
"The bill will impose a financial hardship on middle class Americans who will be forced to buy a product that they can’t afford to use.
A family of four making $66,370 will be forced to pay $5,243 per year for insurance. After basic necessities, this leaves them with $8,307 in discretionary income — out of which they would have to cover clothing, credit card and other debt, child care and education costs, in addition to $5,882 in annual out-of-pocket medical expenses for which families will be responsible."
When I say I like this tidbit I mean to say that if you support this bill and don't know what you like about it then you deserve to be stuck with it. So instead of finding ways to reduce the cost of private insurance for families they instead mandate you must carry it OR pay a fine of 2% of your annual income. Congratulations on your victory today as it will seemingly pass The House today.
Health care is something that needs desperate reform, no one disagrees but to tax families who are struggling as it is in this economy with gas prices that are nearing three dollars per gallon, high unemployment, and a meandering focus on the economy.
Reforms like interstate competition and choice are no where in this bill.
Now if you are like me and already have good if not great insurance then we are faced with this, "The excise tax will result in employers switching to plans with higher co-pays and fewer covered services.
Older, less healthy employees with employer-based health care will be forced to pay much more in out-of-pocket expenses than they do now."
Hardly compassionate, wouldn't you agree?
I'm just saying, if you celebrate today because this monstrosity passes then you are misinformed about what is being voted on.
I watched with unbroken attention as the liberals on The Hill shot down the Slaughter Solution and went with an up or down vote on the Senate bill today. Essentially what they were going to do is vote on a reconciliation bill (all of the changes they wanted to make in the Senate bill) and then deem that the Senate bill had passed without voting on it. Speaker Pelosi would then break out the Senate bill apart from the voted on reconciliation bill and send it to President Obama to be signed into law. A clear violation of The Constitution Article I section 7. (free app on the iPhone, carry it with me all the time now)
This decision avoided tons of lawsuits and challenges which would void the bill in court. Unless it wound up in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals it would be struck down instantly.
Ok just to be fair here I'm going to post this summation of the HCB from a liberal site. They break down the myths and facts from a liberal viewpoint. I'd like to point out that neither side is happy with this bill which is why it should be started over.
I particularly like this tidbit from the bill.
"The bill will impose a financial hardship on middle class Americans who will be forced to buy a product that they can’t afford to use.
A family of four making $66,370 will be forced to pay $5,243 per year for insurance. After basic necessities, this leaves them with $8,307 in discretionary income — out of which they would have to cover clothing, credit card and other debt, child care and education costs, in addition to $5,882 in annual out-of-pocket medical expenses for which families will be responsible."
When I say I like this tidbit I mean to say that if you support this bill and don't know what you like about it then you deserve to be stuck with it. So instead of finding ways to reduce the cost of private insurance for families they instead mandate you must carry it OR pay a fine of 2% of your annual income. Congratulations on your victory today as it will seemingly pass The House today.
Health care is something that needs desperate reform, no one disagrees but to tax families who are struggling as it is in this economy with gas prices that are nearing three dollars per gallon, high unemployment, and a meandering focus on the economy.
Reforms like interstate competition and choice are no where in this bill.
Now if you are like me and already have good if not great insurance then we are faced with this, "The excise tax will result in employers switching to plans with higher co-pays and fewer covered services.
Older, less healthy employees with employer-based health care will be forced to pay much more in out-of-pocket expenses than they do now."
Hardly compassionate, wouldn't you agree?
I'm just saying, if you celebrate today because this monstrosity passes then you are misinformed about what is being voted on.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Snowpocalypse
Well here we are on the first day of Spring and there is about three inches of snow on the ground and a heavy snow coming down. The storm appears to be moving slowly across our region now and might very well drop another three inches on us today.
Yesterday I heard estimates from two inches to fourteen inches. With all of the hype that was going on with the local news I tend not to believe it until it happens though. So I usually nod and agree or say we'll see.
I stocked up on some food yesterday though just in case:) I got bratwurst and spare ribs to cook today. Yeah, it's twenty eight degrees outside and a twenty mile per hour gusting wind, my Big Green Egg can handle that with no problem at all!
It could be zero outside and a forty mile per hour wind and I could cook a steak at seven hundred degrees without a hitch! The BGE loves adverse conditions to cook in which was one of my deciding factors over a steel grill. Even a thicker Weber steel grill will use more fuel and not be able to reach the high temperatures that a BGE can reach in bad conditions.
So who would want to cook in bad conditions? Dude, I'm going to have bratwurst and spare ribs today! It's freaking twenty eight degrees out today, don't tell me that doesn't sound good on a snowy, blustery day!
Yesterday I heard estimates from two inches to fourteen inches. With all of the hype that was going on with the local news I tend not to believe it until it happens though. So I usually nod and agree or say we'll see.
I stocked up on some food yesterday though just in case:) I got bratwurst and spare ribs to cook today. Yeah, it's twenty eight degrees outside and a twenty mile per hour gusting wind, my Big Green Egg can handle that with no problem at all!
It could be zero outside and a forty mile per hour wind and I could cook a steak at seven hundred degrees without a hitch! The BGE loves adverse conditions to cook in which was one of my deciding factors over a steel grill. Even a thicker Weber steel grill will use more fuel and not be able to reach the high temperatures that a BGE can reach in bad conditions.
So who would want to cook in bad conditions? Dude, I'm going to have bratwurst and spare ribs today! It's freaking twenty eight degrees out today, don't tell me that doesn't sound good on a snowy, blustery day!
Friday, March 19, 2010
March Madness
This is my second favorite sporting event of the year and this year I've only filled out one bracket. I'm eleven wins and five losses which probably puts me at the middle of the pack.
Usually I go with four or five brackets but this year for a variety of reasons I only did one in the office pool. There are probably fifty or sixty entries though, maybe more. I won the entire thing the last time Duke won a national championship! That was pretty cool!
I picked up the free ESPN app so it'll alert me at work when games start and the scores. That's really handy since the shop doesn't have a radio since I turned Sirius off during the strike and haven't turned it back on yet. Otherwise we'd be listening to all of the games at work.
It's fine though, sometimes we have to work at work.
Usually I go with four or five brackets but this year for a variety of reasons I only did one in the office pool. There are probably fifty or sixty entries though, maybe more. I won the entire thing the last time Duke won a national championship! That was pretty cool!
I picked up the free ESPN app so it'll alert me at work when games start and the scores. That's really handy since the shop doesn't have a radio since I turned Sirius off during the strike and haven't turned it back on yet. Otherwise we'd be listening to all of the games at work.
It's fine though, sometimes we have to work at work.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Odd Dreams
The past few evenings I've been haunted by a bizarre reoccurring dream. First let me preface this by saying I've never been to Mexico and I've never had many reoccurring dreams in my life.
I'm traveling South. From where I don't know, just South. I get to the Southern border and it is very sandy. There are no border guards, nothing but a highway and an invisible barrier. I get out of the car and then I'm hit by an oppressive feeling of dread. There really isn't a barrier, it is just a feeling that if I go further, well I really shouldn't.
The streets are dusty, sandy, and hot. If they were made of asphalt they would be melting. I get back into the car and drive into the blast furnace of a barren landscape.
I push further and further. There is really nothing around for as far as the eye can see. I feel I'm coming up on an ending to the journey soon though. As far South as I can go there are the ruins of a town. A town that could have been actually.
I get out and investigate a little. There aren't any residents there, the remnants of a big steak house, thousands of houses, newly built and never lived in now falling into ruin. A brick main street, broken street lights. A central building that had a faded banner about buying a house in this new perfect community.
Most of the streets were nothing but sand and deep sand at that, it had blown for years and years building up in every corner and doorway. Everything was eroded and wind worn.
There really isn't an ending to this dream, I just look around at the ghost town and envisioning what the founders envisioned and why and what happened. I get odd feelings, violent feelings, sad feelings, unfulfilled dream feelings.
It's a place I'd really like to visit again though.
I'm traveling South. From where I don't know, just South. I get to the Southern border and it is very sandy. There are no border guards, nothing but a highway and an invisible barrier. I get out of the car and then I'm hit by an oppressive feeling of dread. There really isn't a barrier, it is just a feeling that if I go further, well I really shouldn't.
The streets are dusty, sandy, and hot. If they were made of asphalt they would be melting. I get back into the car and drive into the blast furnace of a barren landscape.
I push further and further. There is really nothing around for as far as the eye can see. I feel I'm coming up on an ending to the journey soon though. As far South as I can go there are the ruins of a town. A town that could have been actually.
I get out and investigate a little. There aren't any residents there, the remnants of a big steak house, thousands of houses, newly built and never lived in now falling into ruin. A brick main street, broken street lights. A central building that had a faded banner about buying a house in this new perfect community.
Most of the streets were nothing but sand and deep sand at that, it had blown for years and years building up in every corner and doorway. Everything was eroded and wind worn.
There really isn't an ending to this dream, I just look around at the ghost town and envisioning what the founders envisioned and why and what happened. I get odd feelings, violent feelings, sad feelings, unfulfilled dream feelings.
It's a place I'd really like to visit again though.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Not Quite Breakfast
But last night before bed I put the fixings for Italian Beef sandwiches into the crock pot for a slow overnight roast. So I had to indulge myself this morning with a spicy sandwich!
It has a small kick to it but not bad at all. These will serve as lunch and supper for us as well! A very simple recipe:
1 roast
1 jar of sweet Italian peppers
1 jar of hot and spicy giardinier
a couple of envelopes of Italian dressing seasoning
some water and a crock pot
Serve on Italian bread rolls.
Simple meal, filling, and very tasty. Give it a shot sometime!
It has a small kick to it but not bad at all. These will serve as lunch and supper for us as well! A very simple recipe:
1 roast
1 jar of sweet Italian peppers
1 jar of hot and spicy giardinier
a couple of envelopes of Italian dressing seasoning
some water and a crock pot
Serve on Italian bread rolls.
Simple meal, filling, and very tasty. Give it a shot sometime!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Monday DVR Night
Last night The Date had to work so I caught up on some quality DVR time. I watched Dinoshark and had Thing 2 watch it with me. She didn't think it was very good, neither did I but I still rewound all of the Dinoshark jumping footage for her benefit. A few times:)
Then it was onto Food Wars! I saw the Italian Beef episode and the Buffalo Wings episode. In both episodes the underdog, the new kid and not the originator won. Well the Model T was first, doesn't mean it was the best car ever made. I want to make some Italian Beef sandwiches! Man I love the Food Network!
Then it was onto Madhouse. The story of a small North Carolina town that faithfully goes to Bowman-Gray racetrack every weekend to watch the drivers settle their grudges, on and off the track.
I am really digging Madhouse! It is filled with real life human drama, race cars, and crashes. Everyone has an agenda and that is simply to win races. That's really about it too. I don't see many of the drivers working a regular job or anything. They work on their cars during the week in preparation for the race. Their wives generally go neglected as is the case with points leader Tim Brown. It is a bit sad but it is also what they signed up for when they married their drivers.
I'd recommend any of the above shows for anyone to watch, except maybe Dinoshark...
Then it was onto Food Wars! I saw the Italian Beef episode and the Buffalo Wings episode. In both episodes the underdog, the new kid and not the originator won. Well the Model T was first, doesn't mean it was the best car ever made. I want to make some Italian Beef sandwiches! Man I love the Food Network!
Then it was onto Madhouse. The story of a small North Carolina town that faithfully goes to Bowman-Gray racetrack every weekend to watch the drivers settle their grudges, on and off the track.
I am really digging Madhouse! It is filled with real life human drama, race cars, and crashes. Everyone has an agenda and that is simply to win races. That's really about it too. I don't see many of the drivers working a regular job or anything. They work on their cars during the week in preparation for the race. Their wives generally go neglected as is the case with points leader Tim Brown. It is a bit sad but it is also what they signed up for when they married their drivers.
I'd recommend any of the above shows for anyone to watch, except maybe Dinoshark...
Monday, March 15, 2010
It Begins Again
When I was in high school The KATT would have every day marked with some kind of special music day.
I forget Monday. Tuesday was Two for Tuesday, which they still do I believe. I forget Wednesday. No Repeat Thursday. I forget Friday and Saturday. And then it was The KATT's Seventh Day in which they played seven complete albums in a row, which they still do.
Now I kind of mark the days of the week by TV shows. Monday is blah. Tuesday is Dirty Jobs. Wednesday is Ghost Hunters. Nothing really on Thursday. Friday is channel surfing night. Saturday is Operation Repo. Sunday is a plethora of fine TV like Ax Men, Madhouse, and a few others.
Well now Tuesday is going to be Justified on FX, it'll take the place of Sons of Anarchy until they return. Have only seen the previews but it looks very good.
Growing up in a small town South of here in pre-Internet times, the only thing you had was the radio and it was huge. You felt like you knew all of the DJs and waited endlessly as they hyped up new releases. You knew their shifts by heart.
Now you can have streaming music on your phone without commercials for free. You can listen to any radio station that streams their music...world wide! The world has gotten smaller in a very real sense.
Sometimes I wonder if its a good thing or not to have unlimited amounts of information at your fingertips. I wonder the effects it'll have on imagination, creativity, and social skills. It could be very good or it may not be. It'll be interesting to find out though.
I forget Monday. Tuesday was Two for Tuesday, which they still do I believe. I forget Wednesday. No Repeat Thursday. I forget Friday and Saturday. And then it was The KATT's Seventh Day in which they played seven complete albums in a row, which they still do.
Now I kind of mark the days of the week by TV shows. Monday is blah. Tuesday is Dirty Jobs. Wednesday is Ghost Hunters. Nothing really on Thursday. Friday is channel surfing night. Saturday is Operation Repo. Sunday is a plethora of fine TV like Ax Men, Madhouse, and a few others.
Well now Tuesday is going to be Justified on FX, it'll take the place of Sons of Anarchy until they return. Have only seen the previews but it looks very good.
Growing up in a small town South of here in pre-Internet times, the only thing you had was the radio and it was huge. You felt like you knew all of the DJs and waited endlessly as they hyped up new releases. You knew their shifts by heart.
Now you can have streaming music on your phone without commercials for free. You can listen to any radio station that streams their music...world wide! The world has gotten smaller in a very real sense.
Sometimes I wonder if its a good thing or not to have unlimited amounts of information at your fingertips. I wonder the effects it'll have on imagination, creativity, and social skills. It could be very good or it may not be. It'll be interesting to find out though.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Operation Repo
One of the shows that The Date and I enjoy the most is on Tru TV. Operation Repo chronicles the day to day struggles of Luis, Sonia, Froy, and Matt as they repossess cars in Southern California.
Luis is the owner. Sonia is his sister. Froy is the main repo agent and used to be married to Sonia. Matt is the hothead muscle that keeps the people at bay while others work.
There was a mini marathon on last night that was about six hours. Last week we watched Matt get taken down, tasered, have a gun pulled on them, and sprayed with chemicals from an exterminator. Last night they were shot at, threatened with a baseball bat, a pipe wrench, found a car up for repossession wired with a car bomb, and encountered a few drunks.
This show is thoroughly entertaining! They have repossessed a helicopter, private jet, motor home that a band bought and took to Canada for thirty years, so many cars it is insane, a tractor, and a hot air balloon.
If you ever need something to watch and it should happen to be on, by all means give it a look:)
Luis is the owner. Sonia is his sister. Froy is the main repo agent and used to be married to Sonia. Matt is the hothead muscle that keeps the people at bay while others work.
There was a mini marathon on last night that was about six hours. Last week we watched Matt get taken down, tasered, have a gun pulled on them, and sprayed with chemicals from an exterminator. Last night they were shot at, threatened with a baseball bat, a pipe wrench, found a car up for repossession wired with a car bomb, and encountered a few drunks.
This show is thoroughly entertaining! They have repossessed a helicopter, private jet, motor home that a band bought and took to Canada for thirty years, so many cars it is insane, a tractor, and a hot air balloon.
If you ever need something to watch and it should happen to be on, by all means give it a look:)
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Making Coffee
Braum's has pretty good coffee beans! I'm kind of surprised at the quality actually! I think Dunkin' Donuts probably has the best whole bean coffee but Braum's is darn close!
Last night was really nice, The Date was off of work but she goes in today. So at eight thirty we headed to the Blue Note. Skate, The Inavader, Court, Red, LA Actor, Teehee, and T showed up to hang out with us. Always a great time! We chatted for about three hours before heading home and for bed.
The new AC unit looks really nice sitting outside where the old and broken one used to sit. I can't wait for a ninety degree day so we can turn it on! The heat is amazingly fast, and efficient. I hope the AC is just as fast and efficient!
Today I'm going to start organizing pictures for the Expo commercial project. Cigar Dave comes on around eleven o'clock on the radio so I'll listen to that and learn about new brands out or coming out:)
It'll be a chill day.
Last night was really nice, The Date was off of work but she goes in today. So at eight thirty we headed to the Blue Note. Skate, The Inavader, Court, Red, LA Actor, Teehee, and T showed up to hang out with us. Always a great time! We chatted for about three hours before heading home and for bed.
The new AC unit looks really nice sitting outside where the old and broken one used to sit. I can't wait for a ninety degree day so we can turn it on! The heat is amazingly fast, and efficient. I hope the AC is just as fast and efficient!
Today I'm going to start organizing pictures for the Expo commercial project. Cigar Dave comes on around eleven o'clock on the radio so I'll listen to that and learn about new brands out or coming out:)
It'll be a chill day.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Quiet Heat!!!!
Yes I came home yesterday after visiting a client and picking up a CD full of pictures and logos for a commercial late this month. The brand new Trane heater was on and it was so quiet and the door is still off of the closet where it is setting! It'll be quieter still once they button everything up!
It is amazing how fast it warmed up the house! You can hear it running but compared to my last heater it is about a thousand times better! It sounds like a wooshing sound instead of a turning electric motor sound!
Now they are going to start on the AC unit outside and get that all fixed up and we'll be ready for Summer!!!
It is amazing how fast it warmed up the house! You can hear it running but compared to my last heater it is about a thousand times better! It sounds like a wooshing sound instead of a turning electric motor sound!
Now they are going to start on the AC unit outside and get that all fixed up and we'll be ready for Summer!!!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
No Heat
Yep the house is without heat this morning but a brand new Trane unit is now standing where the thirty year old one used to. It'll be hooked up today and ready to heat this house in record time!
I also got another film job yesterday and I just sent an estimate on what it'll take for me to shoot it. If he accepts I'll be going to an arena in Guthrie and filming the vendors for their home show. The footage will likely be used next year as this is its inaugural year for this expo. These jobs are falling into my lap, it's insane and quickly proving more than one person can handle.
I'll be happy when Beersnob gets back from San Antonio as I'll need another pair of hands working these projects with me, very soon. This is an exciting time but it stresses me as this is all new to me as well. I'm not used to my own business, its foreign to me.
I'm sure I'll be able to handle it later after I learn the ropes a bit better:)
I also got another film job yesterday and I just sent an estimate on what it'll take for me to shoot it. If he accepts I'll be going to an arena in Guthrie and filming the vendors for their home show. The footage will likely be used next year as this is its inaugural year for this expo. These jobs are falling into my lap, it's insane and quickly proving more than one person can handle.
I'll be happy when Beersnob gets back from San Antonio as I'll need another pair of hands working these projects with me, very soon. This is an exciting time but it stresses me as this is all new to me as well. I'm not used to my own business, its foreign to me.
I'm sure I'll be able to handle it later after I learn the ropes a bit better:)
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
The Ballad Of Alex Jones
If Fox Mulder's paranoia were ever to turn into its own human that human would be Alex Jones. Alex Jones is the owner and operator of Infowars and Prisonplanet. He operates from Austin and has quite a following.
Alex Jones sees conspiracy in everything, he freely uses words such as "shadow government", "global banker elites", "new world order", "police state", and my favorite "staged event".
Here is the thing though, his show is some compelling radio! I can't stop myself from listening to it at work on my favorite app, Wunder Radio. There is also a free Alex Jones app on iTunes if you don't want to spend the rather cheap fee to hear thousands of radio stations from all around the world.
If you are the least bit paranoid about the government not being square with you, this is your show.
If you are the least bit paranoid about the direction the world is taking, this is your show.
If you are worried about politicians becoming too powerful and not working in your best interest, this is your show.
Alex is not a conservative, not a liberal, in fact politically I don't know where paranoid is on the left/right spectrum but he has it in spades. Despite that I like Alex. He is an alarmist, a radical, some believe he is the Paul Revere of his time, and completely sincere. His gruff voice rings the alarms to wake up the sheeple and make them aware of their surroundings and what he feels is happening to you and your freedoms.
I don't really share that belief as conspiracies on the scale he talks about would just be impossible to keep a secret. I fall along the line of thought that the simplest explanation is probably the correct explanation. Bad events happen because of bad guys with bad intentions.
You have to be careful when you listen to his show as it is deceptively enticing...well not exactly. While I don't doubt Alex in his sincerity of his beliefs it does appear that everything has a conspiracy behind it. I'm not talking about knee deep in conspiracy, I'm talking Challenger Deep type of conspiracy.
From air dispersal of Valium to make the population complacent to a police state all the way to the legendary Illuminati and Bilderberg group and how they are going to rule the world...someday. That day hasn't happened but by golly it's coming, right?
I do love the idea that Alex Jones promotes of being self sufficient. Living off of the grid, LOVE that idea! I'd love to have a year of food stored, be able to make my own water from the humidity in the air (Not kidding) have a big wind generator coupled with solar panels. Yeah I think all of that is a good idea on many levels and for most citizens too. Total independence from the utility cartel elitists (sorry just made that up on the fly) is what I'd love to live like someday!
Natural disasters, power outages, the occasional zombie apocalypse of doom, there are many reasons for being self sufficient and it is about securing your safety and that of your family and friends. Surviving a police state takeover of the USA? Not so much.
It'll be interesting to see what happens to Alex Jones over the years. Ok check it, if everything he says is correct then the government/elite world bankers/Illuminati can't afford to let anything happen to him as his untimely demise would cause his believers to go berserk over his martyrdom. If he is a raving lunatic then he will eventually give himself enough rope to hang his career.
He is sort of in a no win situation from my point of view as he is loved, hated, and everything in between but I'll continue to listen because he is just so darn entertaining!
Alex Jones sees conspiracy in everything, he freely uses words such as "shadow government", "global banker elites", "new world order", "police state", and my favorite "staged event".
Here is the thing though, his show is some compelling radio! I can't stop myself from listening to it at work on my favorite app, Wunder Radio. There is also a free Alex Jones app on iTunes if you don't want to spend the rather cheap fee to hear thousands of radio stations from all around the world.
If you are the least bit paranoid about the government not being square with you, this is your show.
If you are the least bit paranoid about the direction the world is taking, this is your show.
If you are worried about politicians becoming too powerful and not working in your best interest, this is your show.
Alex is not a conservative, not a liberal, in fact politically I don't know where paranoid is on the left/right spectrum but he has it in spades. Despite that I like Alex. He is an alarmist, a radical, some believe he is the Paul Revere of his time, and completely sincere. His gruff voice rings the alarms to wake up the sheeple and make them aware of their surroundings and what he feels is happening to you and your freedoms.
I don't really share that belief as conspiracies on the scale he talks about would just be impossible to keep a secret. I fall along the line of thought that the simplest explanation is probably the correct explanation. Bad events happen because of bad guys with bad intentions.
You have to be careful when you listen to his show as it is deceptively enticing...well not exactly. While I don't doubt Alex in his sincerity of his beliefs it does appear that everything has a conspiracy behind it. I'm not talking about knee deep in conspiracy, I'm talking Challenger Deep type of conspiracy.
From air dispersal of Valium to make the population complacent to a police state all the way to the legendary Illuminati and Bilderberg group and how they are going to rule the world...someday. That day hasn't happened but by golly it's coming, right?
I do love the idea that Alex Jones promotes of being self sufficient. Living off of the grid, LOVE that idea! I'd love to have a year of food stored, be able to make my own water from the humidity in the air (Not kidding) have a big wind generator coupled with solar panels. Yeah I think all of that is a good idea on many levels and for most citizens too. Total independence from the utility cartel elitists (sorry just made that up on the fly) is what I'd love to live like someday!
Natural disasters, power outages, the occasional zombie apocalypse of doom, there are many reasons for being self sufficient and it is about securing your safety and that of your family and friends. Surviving a police state takeover of the USA? Not so much.
It'll be interesting to see what happens to Alex Jones over the years. Ok check it, if everything he says is correct then the government/elite world bankers/Illuminati can't afford to let anything happen to him as his untimely demise would cause his believers to go berserk over his martyrdom. If he is a raving lunatic then he will eventually give himself enough rope to hang his career.
He is sort of in a no win situation from my point of view as he is loved, hated, and everything in between but I'll continue to listen because he is just so darn entertaining!
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
One Re-Edit
My clients wanted to move two clips to the end of the four minute piece. Not too shabby for such a big project on a very short amount of time! They loved the piece and in four minutes fourteen seconds of video to only have one small re-edit is pretty darn good!
I found an invoice template and typed one out as I believe that they should be happy and that is a final product. If they come back though with another request I'll take care of it as well though. I want to be good to my clients.
Today will also be my first day of daily fantasy sports. It is a new concept in fantasy sports playing. You pay a small fee for one day like three dollars for a team. In my case a basketball team for tonight. Then you are put into a league with two other owners. You are allowed so many points to pick each member of your team. The best players are worth more points so it eats into your salary cap faster but you have to fill out an entire roster. Two players at each position except center.
Tonight when the games end you'll either win the league or not. It pays one place, first! As if any other place matters! Win or go home! This should be interesting to see how it goes! I'm excited!
I found an invoice template and typed one out as I believe that they should be happy and that is a final product. If they come back though with another request I'll take care of it as well though. I want to be good to my clients.
Today will also be my first day of daily fantasy sports. It is a new concept in fantasy sports playing. You pay a small fee for one day like three dollars for a team. In my case a basketball team for tonight. Then you are put into a league with two other owners. You are allowed so many points to pick each member of your team. The best players are worth more points so it eats into your salary cap faster but you have to fill out an entire roster. Two players at each position except center.
Tonight when the games end you'll either win the league or not. It pays one place, first! As if any other place matters! Win or go home! This should be interesting to see how it goes! I'm excited!
Monday, March 08, 2010
One More Week!
Today my proof is viewed by the company that ordered it from me! I'm excited about it, The Date loved it. The producer of the video loved it. Now lets hope the bosses love it as well!
I had until tomorrow to get it finished but as I blogged earlier I like to be ahead of schedule if possible in case I have to make changes to it. I do expect one or two but I don't know where at in the video as everything we talked about is in there. It meets all of the criteria that I read on the submission website.
I'm taking a small hunk of bacon to work this morning with me to grill up and share. It'd be nice to get an objective opinion on how it tastes.
Another week to go, another week full of possibilities, maybe another week with another job to get started on! Maybe there will be a couple of jobs come my way this week!
I had until tomorrow to get it finished but as I blogged earlier I like to be ahead of schedule if possible in case I have to make changes to it. I do expect one or two but I don't know where at in the video as everything we talked about is in there. It meets all of the criteria that I read on the submission website.
I'm taking a small hunk of bacon to work this morning with me to grill up and share. It'd be nice to get an objective opinion on how it tastes.
Another week to go, another week full of possibilities, maybe another week with another job to get started on! Maybe there will be a couple of jobs come my way this week!
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Is Over
For now.
Last night I smoked the two slabs of bacon and delivered one quarter slab to Jamal and the other quarter to Filmmaker friend Chris. That leaves one half of a full slab for my family and believe me it's a ton of meat.
The taste is rich, sweet, and very good. After tasting it I believe it would make better sandwich bacon than breakfast bacon. The lighter tasting lettuce would be an excellent contrast to the richer, meaty bacon. It is really meaty and surprisingly not a lot of fat after frying. I could eat a lot of IHOP bacon for instance but I couldn't eat as much of this bacon because it is filling and meaty.
I started the smoker before seven last night and let each slab smoke for just over an hour and a half. I'll have to make a different smoking apparatus for next time though as my electric charcoal starter caught the wood on fire after I opened the lid of the Big Green Egg. It was just too much oxygen and it was too hot.
No big deal though, I pulled the meat from the newly formed fire and wrapped it in foil before removing the starter and closing the lid which extinguished the fire.
Yes I'll be making more bacon as The Date said it tasted amazing and said we will do all of our bacon this way from now on. It tasted better than I had hoped it would and it definitely has that bacon flavor that everyone loves.
I spent the rest of the day editing the business video I had shot on Friday. I had until Tuesday to get them a proof but I don't like to wait until the deadline to get things finished. Chianti gave an OK to the first proof, offering a few suggestions for changes. I made a DVD copy and headed over to her house to approval. I forgot to put a lower third placard on the tour guide and she made a suggestion for music over the opening title.
I got up at six this morning to make those two changes and now the final cut is rendering away as I type this. She liked the cut I made before the last two changes, one of which I just overlooked. It's good to have an extra set of eyes looking at something you have spent hours working on. You just overlook things sometimes.
It is a successful first project! Now this cut will go to their corporate people for approval and I might have to make a few more adjustments before it is ready to send off to the company. I expect at least one or two more, I just don't know what they would be yet.
Last night I smoked the two slabs of bacon and delivered one quarter slab to Jamal and the other quarter to Filmmaker friend Chris. That leaves one half of a full slab for my family and believe me it's a ton of meat.
The taste is rich, sweet, and very good. After tasting it I believe it would make better sandwich bacon than breakfast bacon. The lighter tasting lettuce would be an excellent contrast to the richer, meaty bacon. It is really meaty and surprisingly not a lot of fat after frying. I could eat a lot of IHOP bacon for instance but I couldn't eat as much of this bacon because it is filling and meaty.
I started the smoker before seven last night and let each slab smoke for just over an hour and a half. I'll have to make a different smoking apparatus for next time though as my electric charcoal starter caught the wood on fire after I opened the lid of the Big Green Egg. It was just too much oxygen and it was too hot.
No big deal though, I pulled the meat from the newly formed fire and wrapped it in foil before removing the starter and closing the lid which extinguished the fire.
Yes I'll be making more bacon as The Date said it tasted amazing and said we will do all of our bacon this way from now on. It tasted better than I had hoped it would and it definitely has that bacon flavor that everyone loves.
I spent the rest of the day editing the business video I had shot on Friday. I had until Tuesday to get them a proof but I don't like to wait until the deadline to get things finished. Chianti gave an OK to the first proof, offering a few suggestions for changes. I made a DVD copy and headed over to her house to approval. I forgot to put a lower third placard on the tour guide and she made a suggestion for music over the opening title.
I got up at six this morning to make those two changes and now the final cut is rendering away as I type this. She liked the cut I made before the last two changes, one of which I just overlooked. It's good to have an extra set of eyes looking at something you have spent hours working on. You just overlook things sometimes.
It is a successful first project! Now this cut will go to their corporate people for approval and I might have to make a few more adjustments before it is ready to send off to the company. I expect at least one or two more, I just don't know what they would be yet.
Saturday, March 06, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Day Eight And A Half
Yeah it is now coming close to seven o'clock and I just put a slab of bacon on to smoke. I rigged up a foil pack with wet hickory chips in it. I put that inside my Weber charcoal starter and put the electric charcoal starter inside as well.
So the foil pack is up against the charcoal starter and it should get plenty hot enough to burn the wet chips and cause lots of smoke.
The slab of bacon is on the grate above the smoking apparatus.
The bacon should be done and smoked by nine!
So the foil pack is up against the charcoal starter and it should get plenty hot enough to burn the wet chips and cause lots of smoke.
The slab of bacon is on the grate above the smoking apparatus.
The bacon should be done and smoked by nine!
Operation: Making Bacon Day Eight
Today the bacon has been curing for seven full days. I'll likely not have time to smoke it today though. Smoking won't take long to do. I'll make a foil pouch, fill it with wet hickory wood chips. Put that and the electric starter in my Big Green Egg and let it smoke away! After two hours the bacon should be smoked bacon as we all know and love except home made!
The shoot went very well yesterday. I spent around five hours prowling around the business's facility getting the best shots I could. Filmed an event, interviewed two community pillars, and got some general and specific shots to edit together. I can make this look good.
I'm confident that I'll have a happy client by the time the editing is done.
The shoot went very well yesterday. I spent around five hours prowling around the business's facility getting the best shots I could. Filmed an event, interviewed two community pillars, and got some general and specific shots to edit together. I can make this look good.
I'm confident that I'll have a happy client by the time the editing is done.
Friday, March 05, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Day Seven
Despite this being day seven in the bacon making adventure it is really only day six of the cure. When I purchased the meat it was frozen solid and had to thaw before curing.
The good news is that I purchased what I needed yesterday to complete the cold smoke. I bought an electric charcoal starter, a wood chip pan, and some hickory wood chips. I really wanted maple wood chips but could not find any. Hickory will do very well though.
The heat/air guy called me yesterday. He will be starting things on Monday! Turns out the code inspector is out of town and won't return until Monday. So next week the new system will be installed!
This morning I will film my first video piece for profit. I've done this for years for free and as you loyal readers know recently decided to turn it into a side business. Independent filmmaking is expensive and for the most part few people see your work. Yeah, that's what you call a labor of love, it might be the very definition in fact.
Over the years I've developed my skills to the point that now I believe I can run a successful commercial enterprise. I had spent literally thousands of dollars on equipment, software, and this computer. I've paid my dues to learn my skills and they have been years in the making. Just around twelve years now as it was around ninety eight or so when I started the process of learning about framing a shot, lights, software programs that did magical things, directing actors on film, writing, editing, and cheap special effects.
All of that and I've never made a dime off of these developed skills. I guess maybe I didn't have the confidence in myself to attempt such an endeavor until recently.
Today is officially day one. The first day of shooting the first frames for a profit. March 5, 2010 and I'm open for business!
The good news is that I purchased what I needed yesterday to complete the cold smoke. I bought an electric charcoal starter, a wood chip pan, and some hickory wood chips. I really wanted maple wood chips but could not find any. Hickory will do very well though.
The heat/air guy called me yesterday. He will be starting things on Monday! Turns out the code inspector is out of town and won't return until Monday. So next week the new system will be installed!
This morning I will film my first video piece for profit. I've done this for years for free and as you loyal readers know recently decided to turn it into a side business. Independent filmmaking is expensive and for the most part few people see your work. Yeah, that's what you call a labor of love, it might be the very definition in fact.
Over the years I've developed my skills to the point that now I believe I can run a successful commercial enterprise. I had spent literally thousands of dollars on equipment, software, and this computer. I've paid my dues to learn my skills and they have been years in the making. Just around twelve years now as it was around ninety eight or so when I started the process of learning about framing a shot, lights, software programs that did magical things, directing actors on film, writing, editing, and cheap special effects.
All of that and I've never made a dime off of these developed skills. I guess maybe I didn't have the confidence in myself to attempt such an endeavor until recently.
Today is officially day one. The first day of shooting the first frames for a profit. March 5, 2010 and I'm open for business!
Thursday, March 04, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Day Six
Going to flip the bacon this morning. Haven't done it yet so I threw a curve ball in there at you loyal readers! While it is day six in the bacon making odyssey it is actually day five in the curing process.
I'm off work today in order to start producing a video for a local company. They require a three to five minute piece on their company but they have a strict timeline and I'll be very busy tomorrow evening. I'm waiting on a phone call today so that I can get things underway.
If I can get the majority of the footage done today then I can probably start rough cutting the piece and maybe get them a proof before they requested one at the very least I can digitize the footage. This company, my company will be about serving the client. I want to get to know what their needs are and match that up with my skills as best as I can.
I've been going over the tutorials and trying to prepare for all of the things I need to get done in the final edited works. It's a bit overwhelming at this stage but I know it'll get easier.
I'm off work today in order to start producing a video for a local company. They require a three to five minute piece on their company but they have a strict timeline and I'll be very busy tomorrow evening. I'm waiting on a phone call today so that I can get things underway.
If I can get the majority of the footage done today then I can probably start rough cutting the piece and maybe get them a proof before they requested one at the very least I can digitize the footage. This company, my company will be about serving the client. I want to get to know what their needs are and match that up with my skills as best as I can.
I've been going over the tutorials and trying to prepare for all of the things I need to get done in the final edited works. It's a bit overwhelming at this stage but I know it'll get easier.
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Day Five
Flipped the meat again this morning! That's all you have to do for a full day! Bacon is so easy to make.
Remember the post the other day and I asked you to do some research on the term "reconciliation"? Well it's getting there now as President Obama wants his bill. He has too much at stake for this to fail now.
From what I've read, heard, and watched on MSNBC the left says the election losses in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Virginia are because they haven't passed this monstrosity yet. I put a question on Facebook a week ago and got a ton of responses and articles from a liberal friend of mine.
The real fact is that the American public doesn't want this by double digit margins in some polls.
Everyone can agree on this, there are some problems with health care insurance. There are also solutions to these problems including limiting the lawsuit lottery that many ambulance chasing lawyers make their bones with.
What is being offered is the worst case solution, a government take over of health care that is a giant step forward towards a single payer system. A system that works so well in Canada that an official came here for his heart surgery instead of going through their system.
I don't blame him really. Their system is a mess. That is the system that the left wants us to force upon the majority of the public. So I ask you my liberal friends, where will you go after this system is destroyed by these kinds of politics?
Remember the post the other day and I asked you to do some research on the term "reconciliation"? Well it's getting there now as President Obama wants his bill. He has too much at stake for this to fail now.
From what I've read, heard, and watched on MSNBC the left says the election losses in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Virginia are because they haven't passed this monstrosity yet. I put a question on Facebook a week ago and got a ton of responses and articles from a liberal friend of mine.
The real fact is that the American public doesn't want this by double digit margins in some polls.
Everyone can agree on this, there are some problems with health care insurance. There are also solutions to these problems including limiting the lawsuit lottery that many ambulance chasing lawyers make their bones with.
What is being offered is the worst case solution, a government take over of health care that is a giant step forward towards a single payer system. A system that works so well in Canada that an official came here for his heart surgery instead of going through their system.
I don't blame him really. Their system is a mess. That is the system that the left wants us to force upon the majority of the public. So I ask you my liberal friends, where will you go after this system is destroyed by these kinds of politics?
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Day Four
I flipped the bacon once more this morning. It's coming along nicely! I can't wait until it's finished!
Yesterday I had a meeting for the commercial business right after work. Initially I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to make their deadline but they explained that I had a month to do their commercial. I took the job! This spot will actually run on TV so I'm a little nervous about that part but I'll do the best I can to make this a quality commercial and to please the customer.
I've had another meeting last Friday on a website spot and I've found the format that they want it to look like. I can do it too without much of a problem. It'll be more time consuming but I can accomplish it as the steps are easy just time consuming as I said.
I'm honestly shocked at the speed at which these jobs are coming at the business so far. I've not done any advertising, it's just word of mouth and very little of that. It's good though, it really is good because I know that it'll most likely support itself and I won't have any cash outlay to keep it going. The one purchase I've made so far for the business will be paid for by these two jobs and after that it'll be time to put the money towards the Adobe upgrade! After the software upgrade it's time to save for the new camera!
Yesterday I had a meeting for the commercial business right after work. Initially I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to make their deadline but they explained that I had a month to do their commercial. I took the job! This spot will actually run on TV so I'm a little nervous about that part but I'll do the best I can to make this a quality commercial and to please the customer.
I've had another meeting last Friday on a website spot and I've found the format that they want it to look like. I can do it too without much of a problem. It'll be more time consuming but I can accomplish it as the steps are easy just time consuming as I said.
I'm honestly shocked at the speed at which these jobs are coming at the business so far. I've not done any advertising, it's just word of mouth and very little of that. It's good though, it really is good because I know that it'll most likely support itself and I won't have any cash outlay to keep it going. The one purchase I've made so far for the business will be paid for by these two jobs and after that it'll be time to put the money towards the Adobe upgrade! After the software upgrade it's time to save for the new camera!
Monday, March 01, 2010
Operation: Making Bacon Day Three
I flipped the meat this morning, the brine has formed. All it has to do now is keep getting flipped over in the two gallon ziploc bags every morning until Sunday! Then I'll take it out and smoke the newly made bacon!
I can't wait!
Team USA had a very good game yesterday against Team Canada in hockey. We played for gold and had previously beaten Canada earlier. It looked like we were going down two to one when with under a minute left we scored and tied the game! It was then overtime hockey. First team that scores wins.
It was fitting that Sidney Crosby, the NHL wunderkind, scored the final goal against us. We won silver which is pretty good in this very tough tournament.
Over the next few weeks you'll hear the term, "reconciliation" bandied about in the political landscape. Pay attention to when it is being used. You'll see liberals talk about how the GOP has used reconciliation more times than anyone else to pass legislation. Just pay attention, I'll get more into this in another post.
Do a little homework and research the term and how the procedure was used then and how it is being talked about being used now.
I can't wait!
Team USA had a very good game yesterday against Team Canada in hockey. We played for gold and had previously beaten Canada earlier. It looked like we were going down two to one when with under a minute left we scored and tied the game! It was then overtime hockey. First team that scores wins.
It was fitting that Sidney Crosby, the NHL wunderkind, scored the final goal against us. We won silver which is pretty good in this very tough tournament.
Over the next few weeks you'll hear the term, "reconciliation" bandied about in the political landscape. Pay attention to when it is being used. You'll see liberals talk about how the GOP has used reconciliation more times than anyone else to pass legislation. Just pay attention, I'll get more into this in another post.
Do a little homework and research the term and how the procedure was used then and how it is being talked about being used now.
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