Predator - A Hip-Hop Narrative

This ranks very high on my "cool-o-meter".

Creating a Targeted Pandora.com Station

When you create a new station station using several similar songs that you like as song seeds, you can never be 100% sure that the common attributes Pandora uses for creating the station, will be the specific ones you are looking for.

Although Pandora usually does a great job, sometimes you don't already know enough songs that have the attributes you'd like to listen to. With the method below you should be able to created a pretty targeted station almost assured to contain songs containing a list of specific attributes.

1. Using this list of Attributes on the Music Genome Project Wikipedia page, pick several Attributes you would like for your new station.

2. Search google using the format below to return a list of songs that all contain the Attributes you identified.

site:pandora.com "attirbute1" "attribute2" "attribute3" inurl:song

For example I used the query below to generate an Indian Influenced Downtempo Ambient station.

site:pandora.com "Indian Influences" "ambient soundscapes" "downtempo influences" "electronica roots" inurl:song

3. Use the list of returned songs as Song Seeds for a new station.

4. Profit

Note: I find it best to start with a couple of attributes from the Influences section first, and then slowly add some other attributes until you are left with a couple of pages worth of hits.

Philippine prisoners perform Thriller

Truly impressive. Philippino men either have great rythm and motivation, or the guards are packing sub machine-guns.

Original poster at youtube.

Netflix, Ahead of the curve

I got this message in my email this morning, and although I had already read about the price reduction on the web, getting an unsolicited email stating that the price has been reduced, for just about anything, is always a good way to start your day!

Harder Times

Great photo taken of a 27 year old lumber worker and his wife in 1939 over at Shorpy.

Times were harder back then, and arguably so were the people. I'm struck by how much older than I he looks as we are both the same age.

Makes me wonder if he had a great head start on life experiences at 27, and I'm lazily slow-poking my way through life. Maybe I should just count myself blessed to live in such times of relative ease and prosperity.

Actually, it probably has more to do with the fact that he could actually grow facial hair at this point in his life...but I think I'm going to stick with the "harder times" thesis : )

1000 Nights at Sea

So I've been recently following the unfolding adventure over at 1000daysatsea.blogspot.com. A guy and his girlfriend are setting have set out on what may prove to be a record breaking voyage; 1000 days nonstop at sea.

I've been following them since before launch and although I love the idea and hope they are able to see it through to completion, a couple of things stuck out to me as possible pitfalls:

1. Possibly the most obvious is the potential for relational strains between the captain Reid Stowe and his girlfriend/sailing partner Soanya Ahmad. I'm willing to be that you could take the best of couples and put them out to sea for 2.5 years nonstop...alone and start to see some strain.

taken from here

2. Sprouts. Their only source of green is various bean sprouts that they plan to grow themselves. And although I love me some sprouts, I would bet that the FDA has some warnings against sprout overdoses.

So I've joked with my friends for a couple of days about what the Blog for the voyage could look like after a hundred days or so and after many laughs and much brainstorming, I've started the counterBlog; 1000 (Drunken) Nights at Sea. The first post starts:

Day 100 - Frostbitten at Sea

Soanya and I are still fighting, haven't spoken in weeks. She remains on her half of the boat almost all the time. I swear shes colder than the wind-driven nighttime spray coming over the railing; How I hate sleeping on the deck.

I'm beginning to worry about what to do as the controls are on Soanyas half of the boat and weve been sailing south for several weeks now. Theres no way I'm venturing onto the dirty side to steer us northerly though. Its getting colder day by day, and we've had frost twice now... the sprouts are beginning to look beleaguered.

Needless to say the satirical nature is clearly evident. Im now just interested to see what the response to this is as it seems (from some comments left on the official Blog) some others have had the same thoughts.

Check it out.

2006 Richmond Highland Games and Celtic Festival