I Wish I Was A Little Bit Taller, I Wish I Was A Baller April 30, 2008
Posted by Andrew in wish list.add a comment
A few weeks ago I got the idea from Dharmalars to make an Amazon.com wish list, because I’m always forgetting things I want to buy and end up buying something else. So lately I’ve been adding pretty much anything that I have interest in owning to my list, and It’s about 3 pages right now.
If anyone feels the need to send me anything because you just want to be a nice person, go right ahead.
P.S.: My dad fixed the computer.
The System. Is Down, Whum Bum. The System. Is Down, Whum Bum. Doot Doot Doo-Doot! Doot Doot Doo-Doot! April 29, 2008
Posted by Andrew in computers.add a comment
My good buddy Zaq with a Q got on MSN about an hour ago and asked me to send him a song that he sent me a long time ago, but lost the file. I was on my laptop, and all of my music is on my desktop computer, because I don’t have room for 12+GBs of music on my 60GB laptop that’s almost full. So I say, “Sure Zaq, let me switch computers real fast.”
I jump on the big compy. My dad has his “profile” running, and I decide that now would be a good time to take advantage of him leaving his profile on. There are a lot of unnecessary icons on my desktop because I can’t get rid of them, seeing as I don’t have admin privileges. The one that’s particularly bugging me is the “HP Camera Share-To-Web Upload Folder” icon for that HP camera that we don’t have anymore. So I right click it to send it to the recycle bin, and the desktop freezes, right there.
But I find out that the “start” button still works. So I’m able to log out of his profile without anything freezing for good. I leave his profile and click the little button with a guitar on it that says “Andrew,” to go to my desktop. However, when I open my profile, all I see is my background. Windows says that I’m logged in. And I am. But all of my desktop icons are missing, and the taskbar (the thing where all your windows are and the start button is) is gone.
So all I see is my background image, which is solid green. I’m trying to open MSN and iTunes so I can copy and paste that song and send it to Zaq. But with no buttons to click, how do I open the programs? Well, I found out that control+alt+delete works. But the “processes” tab shows that everything is working the way it should. The taskbar program is even running. It’s just not there.
One thing that control+alt+delete does is has a button that says “New Task.” If I know exactly the location of “iTunes.exe,” or “MSN.exe,” I can open it. Unfortunately, I don’t. Fortunately, theres a “Browse” button, so that I can find it myself. UNfortunately, when I click this, everything freezes and I can’t click on anything at all.
So I unplug my comptuer and restart it manually, and see if it will work a second time. maybe I just messed up something because my dad’s screen froze. But, no. The same exact thing happens. And restarting again makes the same thing happen.
I’ve also tried running the computer in safe mode. If I do THAT, scrolly text goes down the screen then freezes infinitely, and I never get to where I’m going.
HELP ME
BitTorment? April 28, 2008
Posted by Andrew in computers, music.add a comment
I’ve been having Torrent trouble lately.
Usually, I don’t download albums. I buy albums because I want to support musicians, and because I like to have a hard copy of the album in case my computer ever goes berserk or my files get lost. But, when there’s an album that I don’t really care about, but would like to listen to to see what it’s like (Bjork’s “Post” comes to mind), I’ll torrent it. Or, if I want to download a particular SNL skit and put it on my iPod. I’ll torrent it.
And usually, I use uTorrent. But all of a sudden, it just stopped downloading. I dunno if my computer blocked it or something, but it just became useless overnight. Downloads nothing. So I uninstalled it, and got BitComet. That worked ONCE. But then it quit on me. After that I tried Azerus. I just hated the interface and the way everything was laid out. So I uninstalled that. And now I have the original, BitTorrent. It’s working. But everything is
super
slow.
I’ve been downloading an album, and I’m 27% done, and the estimated time says I have 4 and a half hours to go.
WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME.
Motivation For The Soul April 27, 2008
Posted by Andrew in motivational pics, the mars volta.add a comment
At The Mars Volta’s web forum, in a general discussion part of the site, there was a thread where people posted their favorite fake motivational pictures. After a while, they started making their own. A whole lot of them were way too inappropriate to be shared on this blog, but I went through a few pages and downloaded some of my favorites, to share with the rest of the world.
elephants
lobster knife fight
bottled water
sense
stupidity
stingrays
invisible sandwich
so I was in the shower
the internet
wargarbl
…and, my favorite.
(DO NOT CLICK IF YOU DON’T WANT TO READ SOME VERY EXPLICIT LANGUAGE)
vacation
Gunslingin’ April 25, 2008
Posted by Andrew in andrew in latin, music.add a comment
Theres a new song on the Andrew In Latin myspace that I recorded this morning, about 2 hours ago. I’m pretty proud of it. It’s called “Gunslingin’” and you should check it out.
I’m still trying to find out how to upload music to the blog post itself. Hopefully that’ll happen in the near future.
Hot water April 24, 2008
Posted by Andrew in water.add a comment
Oh, people who buy the trendy, expensive, and bad tasting water.
Why can’t I be more like you?
I Like The Way You Brawl April 23, 2008
Posted by Andrew in blogging, brawl, friends, video games.add a comment
I had two friends come over yesterday (that’s why I forgot to blog), and at about 1 in the morning, after playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl for hours, we made out own way to play. Two people will be using Gamecube controllers, and one will be using a Wii Remote & Nunchuck (or whatever controller he’s worst with), and then you’ll have one computer player. You’re going to need to make 3 new “profiles,” or names for this Brawl.
Make a new name called “Blind,” one called “Foot,” and one called “Screw.” Whoever is “Blind,” is always Sonic, whoever is “Screw,” is always Ice-Climbers, and whoever is Foot is always Olimar. In this mode, the 3 players will take turns being Screw, Foot, and Blind.
Whoever is Blind/Sonic, has to use a Wavebird Controller or a Gamecube controller with an extension cord, and has to play the game while facing away from the television, using only his ears to tell where he is and if he’s hitting anyone.
Whoever is Foot/Olimar, obviously sits the Gamecube controller in front of him and plays only with his feet.
But Screw/Ice-Climbers is the fun character. Whoever is going to be Screw has to leave the room, while the other players go into “Options,” and change his control scheme to whatever they think would screw him up the most. He cane come back in the room when they’re done, and then it’s almost time to Brawl.
Now, set up a computer character, who is always Mr. Game & Watch, always on level 1. Set the rules on a 2-minute time match. Let Screw and Foot agree on what stage to play at, and do not tell Blind where it is. After the Brawl is over, save the video to your Wii and let Blind and the rest of the players watch it back. I can almost guarantee that it’ll be a riot.
This mode will probably be funniest if played past midnight, when everything’s funny, though.
The Roo’s (Colber’ Joke, Ha Ha) April 21, 2008
Posted by Andrew in music.add a comment
I’m a huge fan of the Colbert Report, and this week as part of his Doritos Spicy Sweet Pennsylvania Primary Coverage: “The Land Of Brotherly Crunch” week-long event, he had a band called The Roots play twice on the Report. Normally, he never has a musical guest. But he makes exceptions every now and then, and this exception was necessary.
They played his opening theme (awesome as well), but the best part of the show was their song at the end. They played The Star Spangled Banner instrumental, and it was amazing. Watch this video, and make sure you see the end.
So I looked them up and I found out that usually, their a hip-hop group. They changed their line-up around a bit to do this. I listened to some of their hip-hop stuff, and its pretty freaking good. I bought, “Dynamite!” and “Spark” off of iTunes, and I think that I’m gonna buy one of their albums. It also turns out that they’re playing in a city near me next month.
Thinkin’ about it.
Stagedive (Photos IIX or VIII) April 20, 2008
Posted by Andrew in photography.add a comment
“open the floodgates”
Theifery April 19, 2008
Posted by Andrew in poetry.add a comment
lie cheat and steal my life
too bad the good is gone
the dark is where the light is s’posed to go
oh, no
you’ll never give it up now
your understanding’s warped and extra slow
always
thinking
of what you could be slinking
through the floorboards with
keeping all the gifts for you alone
din’t you know they weren’t for you at all
and you know who you are
–
if I were to catch you
red handed
with my left hand
theifery would be the charge you’d be accustomed with
be convicted
be restricted
be omitted from the rest of everyone
and you know who you are
–
why are you
always committing theifery
and why are you
always so real to me
–
just to think, that someone else is running around with my backpack, my jacket, with my ipod, is enough to make me sick.
I just hate you so much.
and you can bet on your life that my door’ll never be locked again, dirt.
Mr. Blue Sky April 18, 2008
Posted by Andrew in my day.add a comment
I had a really good day today. Or at least, a day that I don’t think anything went wrong during. Except seeing a certain someone with a certain someone else. But it’s minor, it’s minor. Today has been pretty darn good. In first period, I got to play Mexican folk songs with my bearded friend, Julian.
Then, in second period, I played Pokemon cards (you know it’s fun) with my friend Travis, and won, with my amazing two Dragonairs. They never fail. never.
In third, I got to listen to music the whole time. I ended up trading iPod’s with my friend Kathy, and I listened to some Tenacious D that I had never heard before, and about died laughing. “One Note Song” rules me.
In fourth, I had to take a test. Kind of lame, but I think I did pretty good. Also, I had no homework, for the first time in fourth-block-history. So that’s good.
After school, while I was waiting on my hair appointment, I went to the library and found out that you can “check out” music. There we’re only two CDs I wanted, but I ended up only getting one. “Is This It?” by The Strokes. It’s an album I’ve been wanting for a long time, because I’ve always been a casual Strokes fan. But I just got to check it out for free. And put it on my iPod. Sweet.
Then, I went and got all my hair cut off. Which is something I’ve been meaning to do for a while. Since I was about 12 or 13, I’ve had this big bushy long hair, that looked pretty cool most of the time. But lately, it had been starting to get where I had to take care of it too much, or it would look terrible. So, I got it all cut off.
Now I have almost no bangs at all, and a near buzz cut on the sides and the back. It’s pretty cool, and it’s always the same. I don’t have to worry about hair anymore. One step further in simplifying my life. I’ll talk about that sometime.
After I got m hair cut, I went to Blockbuster and rented a lot of movies I want to watch. “There Will be Blood,” “August Rush,” “Juno,” and “Lars And The Real Girl.” Also, my friend Spenser is bringing over “Sweeny Todd” on Tuesday. So that’s more. Really excited about “There Will Be Blood,” though.
After Blockbuster, I went home and watched two very hillarious episodes of The Office. Such a good show, such a good show.
Then, I went to Gondola, and ate a very delicious Charbroiled Chicken Parmesan, and listened to my new Strokes album on the way there.
Then, I came home, watched August Rush, was blown away by the ending of it, then went to my room to watch a freaking awesome live recording of my favorite band, The Mars Volta. And now I’m writing about it. Nothing to complain about.
Theives April 17, 2008
Posted by Andrew in hate, theft.1 comment so far
There’s absolutely nothing I hate more in the world than stealing. I mean, sure, I’d rather people not kill people. And I don’t really like the Disney channel. But I hate, hate, HATE stealing. I don’t really know how to go into it without rambling and not making sense. This is a quote from the book “The Kite Runner,” and I agree with it, but I don’t think that theft is the only sin. Though, when I say theft, I mean the normal version of theft: taking a physical thing that belongs to someone else. Anyways, this is a good line.
“Now, no matter what the mullah teaches, there is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. Do you understand that? When you kill a man, you steal a life,” Baba said. “You steal his wife’s right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone’s right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness. Do you see?”
Optimus Rhyme April 16, 2008
Posted by Andrew in music, optimus rhyme.add a comment
It’s one of my life-goals to start a band that plays other people’s rock covers of rap songs. A rock cover of a rap song is exactly that. It’s different depending on the band, but most bands make the song faster and more beat-heavy than the original, and sometimes even change the harmony, only leaving the original words. Some bands that have done it are:
Bowling For Soup – London Bridge
Sum 41 – Get Back
Incubus – Still Not A Player
The Automatic – Gold Digger
The Racontuers – Crazy
Travis Morrison – What’s Your Fantasy
The Gourds – Gin And Juice
Zolof The Rock And Roll Destroyer – Ridin’ Dirty
The Vines – Miss Jackson
Lorene Drive – Hey Ya!
Just Surrender – SexyBack
Ben Kweller – Ice Ice Baby
Editors – Feel Good Inc.
Some of these songs would be interesting to do, especially the Incubus and The Vines ones. My old band, Slur, played Ridin’ Dirty by Zolof to end our shows, it was a lot of fun. Which is where I go the idea of a rock rap cover band. I already have someone who agreed to play bass if the need ever arose, and I would do the singing parts of the songs and the guitar. So I’m lacking another guitar, a drummer, and rappers. I would probably want a keyboard player, too. I would actually like to have a different rapper for each song that still has actual rap in it. To mix it up a bit, you know?
I would name my band Optimus Rhyme, and it would rule the world.
Wingolias! April 15, 2008
Posted by Andrew in church, music, praise band.add a comment
So yeah, over the weekend, my youth group’s praise band (which I call Wingolias, even though we have no name) performed about 4 times in 3 days, and it was pretty killer. We played “I Am A Friend Of God,” but we really made it our own, and added in a 2nd guitar part and a really cool outro. We Played “Holiness (Take My Life),” and I don’t know if the original is like this or not, but ours was a Reggae song, and it ruled. Also, we played “Breathe,” which was a very chill song, with my favorite effect in it…sweep echo! You gotta love sweep echo. It’s just the best.
Another song we did was “Enough,” and the band as a whole simultaneously screwed it up, but I probably did the worst. I was supposed to be doing these very subtle phaser notes in the background of the song, but then went overboard and it was too loud and fast and…yeah. It didn’t go so swell. Other song’s we did that were just kind of average were “Hallelujah (Your Love Is Amazing),” and…another one that I can’t think of right now.
There was also a song that wasn’t ready to be played yet. It’s called “Agnus Dei,” and it’s easily my favorite song of the bunch that we know. It’s probably one of the only praise and worship songs that has a good intro, and the intro really makes the song. Try and find it online if you can. Good song.
Also, our youth leader, Dan, wrote a song called “Fork In The Road,” that was going to be our theme song, back when the band was going to be called “The Electric Fork Band.” We put all the music of it together over the weekend, and that’s another song that I really like, and that I’m excited about. I was expecting playing in a praise band to be pretty boring, but I actually like it a lot.
himynameismark Is Back! April 14, 2008
Posted by Andrew in himynameismark.add a comment
I checked my iTunes today to put a new song on my iPod, and I checked my podcast subscriptions so that I could listen to the new Dharmalars, and lo and behold, hmynameismark is back! Before I started listening to Jay And Jack and the Dharmalars, this was my favorite podcast for a very long time. The guy who does it is Mark Hoppus, who used to be the bass player for Blink-182, who also used to be one of my favorite bands.
This thing has been dead for about a year, and I figured that he gave up on it. Really glad to have it back. It’s hilarious. Mark is a beast. Basically what he does is talk to his friends the whole time, and in between conversations, he plays songs from independent bands that he wants to get out there. But the main thing is that Mark is funny.
After Bananas Curdled Dastardly… April 13, 2008
Posted by Andrew in Uncategorized.add a comment
So I missed two days blogging. But I didn’t mean to. I went on a youth retreat with my church, and the newly formed Praise Band that I’m in played every day. I brought my laptop to blog with, but there was no signal there so I couldn’t get on the internet. Oh well. I’ll talk about the praise band soon, but I have something interesting to share tonight.
On the way home, I was riding with the rest of the praise band, myself, Kaysee (right spelling?), Dan, and Devin. Devin had an idea for a game, where we would take turns adding words to make a sentence, and the words have to start with whatever the next letter of the alphabet is, in order. So it’s a 26 word sentence, in ABC order. This was our sentence.
After bananas curdled dastardly, everything fell graciously heavenward instantly, just kinda like Marcy Nunchakus on P.C.P., quivering restlessly, sobbing, trembling under vacant waterfalls, xylophoning, yelling “ZEPPELIN!!!”
Amen.
I Am An Expert In Knowing How To Not Hook Up A Genesis April 10, 2008
Posted by Andrew in Uncategorized.add a comment
It’s true. I struggled hooking up my “new” 2nd edition Sega Genesis. That’s a lie. I struggled a whole lot. It took me two days. Granted, two days of not trying very hard, but still, it took way too long for a fan like me to get the thing together. I googled it a lot, which never actually gave me the answer, but led me to finding my own solution. Turns out, a lot of people are having this problem. “Hook up a Sega Genesis” lends google 27,000+ results.
So! I am breaking this news right now. This is the definitive way to connect your 2nd edition Genesis to a newfangled television. With a lot of pictures. For dummies.
“There are a lot of different Genesis consoles out there”, said Wikipedia to myself. And to do what I’m describing, THIS is the kind of console that you’re going to need. Sorry if you we’re looking for instructions on how to hook up the 1st edition or later versions. But this is what I’ve got.
Mmk. Here’s what you need to do it. Genesis, TV with an ANT plug (the plug that you put your cable TV into), RF cord (the thing with the box in the middle of it), ANT cord (cable television cord) ANT wall plug (not pictured), and Genesis power cord (also not pictured). And a game to make sure that what you’re doing is working.
First, plug your Genesis into the wall with the power cord, and then plug the side of the RF cable that fits into your Genesis. Take the cable/ANT-cord and plug one side into the wall plug. Plug the other side into the part of your RF cord that says ANT IN.
Now, take the wire that is coming out of the RF cord that is labeled TV OUT. Plug that into where you would normally plug your ANT/cable-cord into, on the back of your TV. Now the Genesis is hooked up to where you can watch TV and have the Genesis plugged up at the same time.
Next, turn your TV on, and put it on either channel 3 or channel 4. Theres a switch on the RF cord that goes back and forth between the side labeled 3 and the one labeled 4. Put yours on the same channel that your TV is turned to.
Last, put a game in your Genesis, and turn it on. If you did all this right, your TV should switch from whatever you we’re watching to–dun dun da daa–16-bit Sega glory! You win!
(By the way…my Sonic 2 was being stubborn and I had to switch it for Earthworm Jim for the second photo.)
Time To, Time To, Time To Echolocate April 9, 2008
Posted by Andrew in music, review, the ebb and flow.add a comment
I love this album.
A band that I’ve been really into lately is The Ebb And Flow. I saw someone request a download of it on a forum that I visit, and I like the title of their album, so I listened to some 30 second clips on iTunes. I liked what I heard, so when I got an iTunes card over Easter weekend, I had nothing else on my list but this, and downloaded it.
The band that I think The Ebb And Flow most remind me of is The Doors. One of their singers (I’ll get to that later) sounds a lot like Jim Morrison, and they have a lot of organ-ish sounding keyboards that live in the background of their music, and give it kind of a constant “flow”, pardon the pun. Their guitar sound has a real southern/folk vibe to it, which are both genres that I like.
They also have two singers, and they do about the same amount of work. One is a guy, and the other is a girl. Surprisingly, I like listening to the girl singer just as much as I do the other, which is strange because I usually don’t like to listen to bands with female vocalists, with a few exceptions. She sounds like she has a British accent, but I’m not sure where the band is from.
I don’t just like the songs that this band does, I like this band. I like the way their songs are constructed, I like the way their music progresses, I like all the vocals, I like all of their melodies, I really like the lyrics, and the music itself is extremely entertaining. I can’t stop praising this album enough, and it really deserves some credit. I’m pretty picky wen it comes to what I will listen to, and I’m having a hard time finding any flaws here.
Anyways, you probably have no idea what I’m talking about. I have a pretty bad way of explaining things, especially music that someone hasn’t heard before. So please, do yourself a favor and find this album somewhere, listen for yourself.
Oh, Woe Is Me April 7, 2008
Posted by Andrew in annoyance, complaining, the rec park.add a comment
I’m going to whine for a little bit.
I hate going to the rec park. It’s where all the baseball and softball teams go every night for their games, and my dad’s a softball coach. So we’re always up there. And I have a little baby sister who’s three, and likes to run around rampant. And my mom is busy being the scorekeeper. So I’m left watching my sister the whole time. I have to kind of keep her…away from everyone else, who she wants to socialize with. We’re usually up there for 2-4 hours, so it’s pretty frustrating. Especially when she doesn’t want to do anything I say.
But my main complaint about the rec park is that no matter where you go, its dusty. Like the dirt on the baseball diamonds? That’s everywhere. It has to be in the air or something. I usually take my iPod, and lately my laptop, and my hands always get all grimy and nasty. You can’t leave the place without feeling like Pigpen.
That is all.
[COLORBAR] April 6, 2008
Posted by Andrew in camera, photography.add a comment
My camera is broken. It’s been broken for like a week now. The same thing happened to my friend’s PSP, it really blows. What happened was… I had it in my pocket of some tight fit pants, and I guess the screen was facing opposite my leg. It must’ve bumped against something pretty forcefully, and cracked not the screen, but the LCD screen behind the screen. So now, half of my camera’s screen is colorbar instead of picture. Sucks.
So I called Casio (my camera company), and they said that even though it’s under warranty, technically it’s my fault. So, they want to charge me $119 to get it fixed. That’s about $85 that I don’t have right now. So my mom’s taking the camera up to Wolf Camera in Knoxville tomorrow, to see if they can fix it for any cheaper. And if they can’t, tough, I guess. I’m going to have to get it fixed anyways, so I guess I’ll have to get someone to loan me the money to fix it.
I love my camera.
I Think I Have Blogger’s Block (Photos VIII) April 5, 2008
Posted by Andrew in photography.add a comment
“mic”
“explosions”
“lamp”
“UFO”
New Andrew In Latin Song April 4, 2008
Posted by Andrew in andrew in latin.add a comment
This has been up for almost a week now, but I figured I’d share. The song is called “Good Idea” and can be located at the Andrew In Latin Myspace. I recorded it a lot differently that I’ve ever recorded a song. I experimented and recorded keyboard first, even though I don’t really know how to play keyboard, nor do I know any keyboard theory at all except that I can tell you what note is what.
But anyways, I made a part up and then started playing around with it and making it sound like a jumbled mess in the middle. Then I put a pre-set beat over it at the right moments. (Lame, I know, but I can’t play drums on a keyboard) Then I figured out a guitar riff that sounded good. Actually I’m thinking that it would sound good as a vocal melody. But whatever. I have what I have.
I’m happy with the song, though, it’s fun to listen to.
Big Choir Show April 3, 2008
Posted by Andrew in choir.add a comment
The choir that I’m in had their big production tonight. It’s called “Cinemagic!” and all the songs are medleys from movies, old and new. I think this was the tracklist:
Thanks For The Memory
Beauty And The Beast
The Lion King
Hairspray (First Song)
A Chorus Line
Grease
Mary Poppins
Hairspray (Last Song)
Dreamgirls
Across The Universe
Sweeney Todd
Titanic
Stomp The Yard
Rent
Yep. I played the intro to our Rent medley on guitar, because I didn’t have a solo. I think it was kind of awkward looking, I’m going to try and clean it up for the next show. This was a really good show, though. I feel a lot more comfortable with my dancing this time around. It seems like we crammed a lot of practicing at crunch time, then kind of pulled the show out of our butts at the last second…but the audience doesn’t know that. Two more shows, tomorrow and Saturday. Wish me luck!
Help! April 2, 2008
Posted by Andrew in Uncategorized.add a comment
Calling everyone: I need help. The other day, my computer went all crazy Windows were freezing and my pointer wouldn’t bring anything new up, and I was clicking like mad. When it finally unfroze, my “user name folder” (the green folder in vista with your name on it that contains Documents, Music, Pictures, etc..) had been changed. It used to be named “Andrew,” and now it’s named “S.”
S? Oh, well. I forget about it for now, and promise myself that I’ll change it back soon. So today, I decide to do something about it. But, it turns out that the user name folder is un-renameable. So how did I accidentally change it before? I have no idea. But I want to change it back. And google is doing nothing for me right now. So somebody help me out.
Adventures Of Power April 1, 2008
Posted by Andrew in adventures of power, trailer.add a comment
This video was already posted on www.himynameismark.com, but it’s extremely awesome. Plus, it being April fools day, I figured I’d post something goofy. It’s the trailer for a movie called “Adventures Of Power,” and it looks awesome.
