birthdays ... Today is my mom's moms' birthday. I didn't know that until today. Pretty touching to see your mom crying softly while doing the incense burning. My grandma died when my mom was 10 so I never got a chance to meet her.

Anyways, go hug your mommy.
  ¶ 11:29 PM 0 comments

  Ruminations .... Wow I pulled that topic word out of nowhere. Nice!

3rd time is the charm. I configured a fresh linux server config in about one hour, running into only a few minor hiccups (iptables firewall). The first time, I was trying to mess with an already installed config. After a few days I couldn't even get php to work, extremely frustrating. The second time was setting up a mail server, which was a pain as well. Linux is extremely finicky and the ability to follow directions to a tee really really helps :P I like it a lot better now I know about the common trip-ups. Still haven't gotten SSL working yet, I'll have to see about that later. Here are a few helpful links.

http://www.brtnet.org/linux/lamp.htm

http://www.qmailrocks.org

Anyways, my knowledge of Linux has increased a ton .... it'll be very useful for startup projects. Must keep learning!

I played basketball a few times this week. My jumper is still off. Handles are much better tho, I definitely improved in that area. Thanks to ANKLEBREAKERS! Now got to work on my throwing, how the heck does Ichiro do it. Oh yeah Boston won. Yippee. I'm really thrilled ... really. It's just that this series was so anticlimatic compared to the ALCS. I'm sure the die-hards don't give a damn. Scott Rolen should dig a hole in the ground and hide for the next 6 months. I think Foulke should have been the MVP instead of Manny. Pitching was the key for Boston in this series, and Foulke was lights out. Interesting rumors about Pedro coming to the Giants to be the closer, and Cabrera also joining. This of course due to the Felipe question. Considering how miserly the ownership has been, I doubt this will happen.

Recently saw a Conan re-run (w/ guests Kristin Davis and the british guy from AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS) and it just blew me away. Hilarious almost all the way through. Conan is just great at recovering when jokes don't go right. I wonder how much of the show is really improvised (maybe it's good writing!). Conan >>>>> Leno. Letterman still good but not as crazy anymore.

Was watching the Indy Bonus Features DVD the other day. Alison Doody really reminds me of Grace Kelly, too bad she retired for a while. Lots of good nuggets about the Indy trilogy, I wonder if they'll ever follow through and make a fourth.



  ¶ 11:28 PM 0 comments

  random update Red Sox are in a very good position after winning games 1 and 2. Of course they can't take anything for granted. Winning game 3 wouldn't give them an insurmountable lead, ever since their stunning comeback against the Yankees rewrote history. Hopefully Schilling won't pitch again in the series, so we'll be spared the million close-ups of his bloody sock. That guy epitomizes "gamer" (and a bunch of other superlatives).

Went to wal-mart recently and bought a bunch of snacks for around $5. Way too cheap which makes me eat unhealthly :( Then I went to Safeway and got lots of clam chowder for $1 a pop. Yummy. I really need to eat healthier food and get back to running regularly.

I also vow to utilize my time more wisely. Aka spend a little bit of time each day to learn something. Or get rid of junk that I don't need. Clean your room!!! I'm off to a decent start, selling a old HSF and Hero documentary DVD.

Recently saw Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Charlie Kaufman is a great writer, having written Being John Malkovitch and Adaptation as well. This film had less quirkly humor than the previous two films and delved more deeply into the nature of relationship. Thought-provoking as always, worth another watch. Jim Carrey again shows that he's more than capable in a dramatic role. It's always neat (for me) to see how a film might work its title into the dialog. Especially if it's particular long title. My mind just goes "ding-ding-ding there it is."

  ¶ 5:25 PM 0 comments

  Unbelievable .... Additional proof why baseball and sports in general is the greatest reality show. Curt Schilling gave a courageous performance with 7 strong innings. His ankle was bleeding and yet he still fired 90+ mph fastballs at the yankees. Of course the red sox were STILL in a position to blow the game at the end. The final innings of these last few games have been like a bad car wreck. Horrifying to watch but you look anyways. At least I did, my dad was secluded in his room - too nervous to watch at times.

The reason playoff baseball is so compelling is because of the format of the game. With no time limit, the game is in the hands of the pitcher and the batter. In all other sports, at least we know that there will be a final outcome when time expires. In baseball there are no such guarantees, greatly adding to the tension. The game can end instantly with one swing of the bat. I was amazed and relieved when Foulke finally struck out the last batter. After all, the stage was set for another typical Yankee walk-off homer. His fastball only reaches 88-90 mph but he locates the pitch well and has a great change.

Of course it all could be for naught as soon as tomorrow. Hopefully game 7 will be as thrilling as the past three.

Hmm, on the other hand, screw that. I hope Boston wins 20-0.

I also have to give tremendous props to the umpires, who took the time to get two crucial calls correct. Both were split-second, especially the A-rod play (cheater!). Sure they missed some balls and strikes but they got the calls right when they counted.

I'm on the edge of my seat and I'm just a Yankee hater.
  ¶ 11:31 PM 0 comments

  Bestest series ever.... If the sox come back in win! The last two games were just incredible, and I'm not even a true BoSox fan. If it were the Giants I would definitely have heart palpitations.

Been really bored lately, mired in a funk. I need to do something different. Lately it's been raining a ton...

Odd thing - I noticed that I've been recalling a lot of vocabulary lately. Using words that I actually have to go look up in yahoo because although I use them, I'm not entirely sure that I'm using them correctly. But usually I am correct. Weird.

Oh yeah, I was almost going to buy a DELL laptop today. Very tempted, because of the $750 off coupon code. However John told me that it was likely refurbished and when I looked at the actual options, the config I wanted would be more expensive than I had thought. Pretty crazy, one second I was willing to blow $750, then my mind started working properly again. I don't even really need a laptop and a better investment would be a LCD screen or high-end gfx card. But all I could think of was "this deal is too good to pass up!"

It's like when I go to Safeway and they have the big huge "safeway select" price tags. Then after I buy 2 of whatever for X dollars, I look at the receipt and see that I've saved 20 cents.
  ¶ 3:57 PM 0 comments

  oink oink Just ran out to Safeway and bought granola bars, sour cream pringles (1/3 less fat but still fatty!), crossandwich, and strawberry milk!

Yeah I'm a pig. Need to run, I haven't done cardio in a while. The last ten pounds are always the hardest to lose. Actually I don't want to lose weight, just convert fat into muscle. 160-170 range should be good for me.

I went to the gym after only two days rest and tweaked my right shoulder a bit. It was stupid to lift again so soon after my last workout. Gave it a shot tho, since I wanted to take advantage of the 3-day trial. It's my fault for procrastinating and not using it earlier enough. Instead of three good workouts I got two and a lame shoulder. Almost ran straight out of the gym at that point but decided do some other exercises. How disappointing. Having a gym membership makes no sense for people that don't do cardio. Building muscle requires a week or so of rest anyways, so I'd be overpaying for the time I actually spend there. Looking for another free trial deal ...

Recently checked out the season four Simpsons DVD. Conan is on two of the commentary tracks - Marge vs Monorail and New Kid on the Block. Hilarious stuff, check them out. The guy is way funnier than Leno and it's about time he got the Tonight Show gig.
  ¶ 4:56 PM 0 comments

  2046 http://www.monkeypeaches.com/041014A.html

Curious that 2046 DVD has already been released. I didn't hear much about the release in Taiwan/China. The plot has been shrouded in mystery for a while, all I know about it is that it has a ton of big name stars.

Seems like the Asian film scene is picking up, with House of Flying Daggers set to be released this fall, Infernal Affairs getting remade by Scorsese of all people. Of course a lot has to do with lots of Americans lusting after Zhang Ziyi too, heheh.

  ¶ 3:55 AM 0 comments

  LINUX Finally got this webserver configured right! Linux is a bitch! Or as Pedro says "Linux is my daddy." My theory is that they made it purposely hard to get everything working right the first time. By the time it finally works you think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread.

All this euphoria over seeing a little info.php work. :p
  ¶ 2:22 PM 0 comments

  notes to self ok, definitely need to clean room, saw a big spider and freaked out. Nothing motivates me like the sight of huge arachnoids. I really need to sell off a bunch of stuff that I have lying around and no longer need. Time to get down to the bare essentials. Thank you giant spider.

Citibank actually approved my credit card request! Amazing. I remember Ken and I both got rejected a year ago for whatever reason. It's a CC, we are making YOU (Citibank) money. Sheez. Well actually not that much money since I always pay off my amount in full each month. I was set up for disappointment since I couldn't feel the card in the envelope, but they will be sending it out imminently. Anyways, going to be cancelling my MBNA and Bank one cards unless they offer some super platinum rewards card (which they will). Ah, the threat of cancellation. Helped me void a couple late fees that were entirely my fault, hehe. One important lesson that I learned from my dad about dealing w/ customer service. Whatever they say they can't do, they really can. So don't back down and use the cancellation card!

Been thinking of setting up Windows Media Edition 2005 on my box. 90% of the time I'm perched on my bed watching TV or movies on my computer. Requires a remote + DVR card. Or I could just get the ATI-Remote wonder.

Hope Cal destroys UCLA :D

  ¶ 11:39 AM 0 comments

  Kobe Phil ripping Kobe

too good if it's all true.



  ¶ 1:21 PM 0 comments

  Star Wars DVD Star Wars Trilogy DVD -

Ok, someone put out a hit on George Lucas, "Weesssa Free!!!!!" is now in ROTJ. Actually I find ewoks to be much more tolerable compared to the gunguns. A LOT MORE.

+ cleaned up visuals look amazing. I can only imagine how much better it will look after Lucas releases 23423904 more versions of it (HD-DVD baby!). You've never seen it look this good.

- color balance is wack. Everything is noticably brighter, and I almost had an epileptic attack during the prison corrider shootout. The lights on the spaceships are especially bright.

+ cleaned up the SE work, new CG jabba, new emperor in ESB, erased rancor matte lines.

- ALL THE EXTRA/TWEAKED NEW SCENES. Whatever initial "cool factor" they had has long since departed. Han/Greedo, Jabba scene, numerous inserts of CG whatevers. Had Lucas merely retouched scenes w/ better effects and cleaned up the print, lots of people would be happy. But he had to go on and change and add scenes. I basically hate every additional scene that he added. Especially Vader returning to the Executer in ESB, totally ruining the pace of the final scene. Boooooo

My only hope is that GL will make SE's of the prequel trilogy, ironing out many of the bad scenes and dialog that people hate.

Extras - Only one disc, which pales in comparison to the LOTR packages. Just wait til HD-DVD or Blue-ray dvd, tons of gigs for people to fill up. Anyways, all the features are pretty interesting, especially the Empire of Dreams documentary. I really like the "Return of Darth Vader" featurette on recreating the famous mask and helmet. Obviously a lot more could have been added as there are tons of old material missing. Oh yeah, the menus are nice and in line with the prequel menus. Nice job by Van Ling.

Overall it's a nice set... and good marketing by Lucasfilm to hype the upcoming Episode III. Lucas is smart. He realized that he couldn't wait to miss out on selling millions of DVDs before DVD is phased out.

  ¶ 11:34 AM 0 comments

  notes to myself Finally found a decent way of RCing the funky kick... gotta just press and release LP+LK hella fast. Press it at the d/b position. It comes out a lot now, need to make sure that if I mess up I get RC jab fireball, not roll. It's fun to abuse RC funky kick. Paint the fence still hella inconsistent, gotta remember to hold the motion at F so that it registers while you are buffering. Also gotta be lined up or else my qcf won't be precise enough, make sure you are going to F everytime, not D/F. My new team is A-Ken/Bison/Blanka.

Tiger Woods -6 on Emerald Dragon, hard to beat that. I need to get Counter-strike Source.

TGIF!
  ¶ 3:21 PM 0 comments