Archive for December, 2009

 
Dec
31
Posted (Van Santos) in Just Stuff on December-31-2009
It is that time of year once again, a time where everyone reflects on the last year.  Much like last year I am using this time to highlight 12 posts, one from each month, that really resonate with me on one level or another.  There is no theme, no common string, just posts that that make me smile for some reason.
That said, I give you 12 posts for 12 months.

It is that time of year once again, a time where everyone reflects on the last year.  Much like last year I am using this time to highlight 12 posts, one from each month, that really resonate with me on one level or another.  There is no theme, no common string, just posts that that make me smile for some reason.

That said, I give you 12 posts for 12 months.

January - My grandfather never really had the option of asking “What do I want to do for a living?”

February - Religion, Skepticism…and the need for objectivity

March - The Psychic Paradox

April – Happiness is…

May – “We uphold our fundamental principles and values not just because we choose to, but because we swear to — not because they feel good, but because they help keep us safe”

June – Pixar, you’re a class act – Fills dying wish to see ‘Up’

July – In case you missed it…Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice take their place in the Hall of Fame.

August – The Hooded mystery called foreskin and H.I.V.

September – Is something security related brewing?

October - The economic reality we live in

November - A thought on Karma

And to end the 12 posts…

December – The Power of Love

Thank you to all of those who read the blog on a regular basis, as well as to all who gain something out of my writing (as rushed and poor as it may be at times).  I wish you the best in 2010.



 
Dec
30
Posted (Van Santos) in Blogging Tools on December-30-2009

So it looks like there is a major bug in Wordpress 2.9. Anyone who utilizes the scheduling a post option is well aware of this.

A quick search via Google pulls up the wordpress.org support forum where users, and I think a developer or two, are discussion the problem. It looks like the problem was isolated to the http.php file. The resolution appears to be the following:

Replace

$timeout_ms = (int) ceil( 1000 * $r['timeout'] );

with

$timeout_ms = (int) ceil( 1000 * max($r['timeout'], 1) );

That said, I make no promises as to what this will do to your site/system. If you do opt to attempt to fix your system using this mod you do so at your own risk. It is also important to note this appears to be addressed in Wordpress 2.9.1 RC 1, so you may want to use that version to fix the problem.



 
Dec
28
Posted (Van Santos) in Music Downloads, mp3s on December-28-2009

Yet another reason as to why I enjoy Erasure  - the group has provided a free download of A Little Respect for the Holiday season.

I just get the feeling Vince and Andy ‘get it’ when it comes to fans.

Thanks for this!



 
Dec
24
Posted (Van Santos) in Life on December-24-2009

As a youngster you most likely had the excitement and joy that only such a holiday can bring. The seemingly magical time of the year when all of your hopes and dreams could come true late one evening or early one morning.

While the excitement and energy of your youthful Christmas days not longer consumes you, a new sensation has developed. Perhaps it is a feeling of deep satisfaction, or a calming sense of fulfillment. Or maybe, just maybe, there is a sensation of your childhood creeping back into your behavior as you watch your Child experience is first Christmas – one where he begins to understand some of the tradition going on around him.

Whatever sensation you have today as you sit with your family, or closest of friends, take a moment to remember your childhood. Remember the sensation you experienced so many years ago then appreciate what you have today – the conversations, the connection, the love – and remember just how lucky you truly are.

Such is the true magic of this holiday…

Merry Christmas.



 
Dec
21
Posted (Van Santos) in Just Stuff on December-21-2009

Oh, yes, I am sleepy today.

No, maybe that does not fully express the anguish I feel from my lack of rest. The lack of sleep from yesterday evening has placed me in a ‘waking coma’ of sorts. Everything seems to be move very, very slowly. At times my eyes take longer to focus, and I swear that sounds seem to be “far off in the distance”.

For some reason I simply could not sleep. Yes, there were a few things on my mind but nothing out of the ordinary, nothing overly stressful but, as usual, the mind would not shut down. This became problematic or… I don’t know… right around 4AM. Immediately upon realizing the time I quickly calculated how much sleep I would have gotten if a fell asleep at that VERY moment.

That was a pipe dream as it didn’t happen.

I seem to remember looking at the clock one last time at 4:4pAM, at which point I believe my body simply waved a little flag and said “Oh, I give up” as the next think I know it was time to wake. Trust me, this whole scenario was highly disappointing and quite a de-motivating way to start the work week – regardless of how short it will be.

What is even more de-motivating than waking up with 3-ish hours of sleep knowing that you face full work day is the fact that, oh no, you cannot run home and nap. No… while napping will mean I run the risk of replaying some scary version of this story the truly de-motivating aspect to this whole maddening sleep story is the fact that, most likely, when it comes time for bed this evening – say it with me – I will not be sleepy.

How messed up is that?

So is life, just have to make the best of it. Today making the best of it means experimenting with scallops wrapped in bacon.

In the end can one really complain about that?



 
Dec
19
Posted (Van Santos) in Movie Thoughts on December-19-2009
When I first learned about Avatar I thought “Hey, cool concept” but as the advertising become prevalent I quickly soured. I cannot explain what exactly made me go south on a seemingly cool idea, maybe it was the marketing that made the movie seem borderline cheesy…  Well, after much consideration I took a number of co-works to see to move… in IMAX… and 3D.
OH GOD! Seriously, OH GOD!
All the comments on how this was going to change movies were right, if not underplayed.  I could easily see how the technology and methods used to produce this movie will change production from this point forward.
Make no mistake, the story was nothing groundbreaking.
At times it was very, very predictable.  From about 10 minutes into the film one can easily figure out what will end up happening.  Roughly 5 times during the movie I thought to myself “Ok, we’ll see x happen because of this…” and it did.  That is not to say the writing was poor by any stretch, it was simply predictable. Also, there were several shots at the political world – specifically the war on terror. The funny thing is the story in and of itself was all that was needed to hammer that point home with grace, they didn’t need to write in the “hit you over the head” type of rhetoric to make their point.
Even with the predictable writing and political preaching the movie was flat out fantastic. Sitting down to the movie one has to wonder if they will buy into what they are seeing – will the mind get past the CGI, will you “believe”?  For me, the answer was yes.
Roughly everything about the alien world was believable. A number of times I was sitting in the theater thinking to myself that, indeed, this place exists and such a conflict is taking place.  There were no typical CGI issues  - bluing, misplaced shadows – everything blended together.  The clouds looked as if Jame Cameron plucked them from the sky and put them on film, the plants looked like they were alive, the animals looked flat out realistic for an alien world.
What this movie managed to do that very few have done previously, and have never accomplished on a scale such as this, is to create a believable CGI world that did not look as if it was a cartoon or myopic comic book world. Avatar truly created world and did so on an unbelievable scale.
Like I said, I was skeptical.  A close friend even posed the question “Didn’t Jurassic Park accomplish this oh so many years ago?” I thought it was an outstanding point. I didn’t know the answer until I actually saw the movie… no Jurassic Park did not accomplish this…. No one accomplished this.
This is the all around movie experience, even with a story that follows a writers “how to create a typical Hollywood movie” guide.  If you have any doubt just give it a chance, and if you have the ability to see it on IMAX and/or 3D do so.

When I first learned about Avatar I thought “Hey, cool concept” but as the advertising become prevalent I quickly soured. I cannot explain what exactly made me go south on a seemingly cool idea, maybe it was the marketing that made the movie seem borderline cheesy…  Well, after much consideration I took a number of co-works to see to move… in IMAX… and 3D.

Holy Christ!  Seriously, holy Christ! James Cameron now knows what God felt like when he created the universe.

All the comments on how this was going to change movies were right, if not underplayed.  I could easily see how the technology and methods used to produce this movie will change production from this point forward.

Make no mistake, the story was nothing groundbreaking.

At times it was very, very predictable.  From about 10 minutes into the film one can easily figure out what will end up happening.  Roughly 5 times during the movie I thought to myself “Ok, we’ll see x happen because of this…” and it did.  That is not to say the writing was poor by any stretch, it was simply predictable. Also, there were several shots at the political world – specifically the war on terror. The funny thing is the story in and of itself was all that was needed to hammer that point home with grace, they didn’t need to write in the “hit you over the head” type of rhetoric to make their point.

Even with the predictable writing and political preaching the movie was flat out fantastic. Sitting down to the movie one has to wonder if they will buy into what they are seeing – will the mind get past the CGI, will you “believe”?  For me, the answer was yes.

Roughly everything about the alien world was believable. A number of times I was sitting in the theater thinking to myself that, indeed, this place exists and such a conflict is taking place.  There were no typical CGI issues  - bluing, misplaced shadows – everything blended together.  The clouds looked as if Jame Cameron plucked them from the sky and put them on film, the plants looked like they were alive, the animals looked flat out realistic for an alien world.

What this movie managed to do that very few have done previously, and have never accomplished on a scale such as this, is to create a believable CGI world that did not look as if it was a cartoon or myopic comic book world. Avatar truly created world and did so on an unbelievable scale.

Like I said, I was skeptical.  A close friend even posed the question “Didn’t Jurassic Park accomplish this oh so many years ago?” I thought it was an outstanding point. I didn’t know the answer until I actually saw the movie… no Jurassic Park did not accomplish this…. No one accomplished this.

This is the all around movie experience, even with a story that follows a writers “how to create a typical Hollywood movie” guide.  If you have any doubt just give it a chance, and if you have the ability to see it on IMAX and/or 3D do so.



 
Dec
17
Posted (Van Santos) in Business on December-17-2009

This is stunning.



Now realize that you are, in effect, watching 31 Million jobs just vanish. 31 Million people who are no longer living the life they once knew…



 
Dec
17
Posted (Van Santos) in Yeswecook! on December-17-2009

Oh, another sinfully good post up at Yes, We Cook! This time it is Chicken and Port Lettuce Wraps.

Enjoy.



 
Dec
16
Posted (Van Santos) in Music Production, mp3s on December-16-2009

Part of the reason I really haven’t had any significant updates in the last week is due to work, part due to my writing for Yes, We Cook!, and part to the fact that I have finished off Demo track number three for “Arrangements for Sex, Vol 2″

I finished off “In Your Arms (Hold Me)” late yesterday evening, and with a few minor tweaks this evening, I’m ready to call it “go” for the official demo.

So, here you go: In Your Arms (Hold Me) <—- the bold is a link, if you didn’t know



 
Dec
15
Posted (Van Santos) in Video on December-15-2009



AND