Archive for the 'Misc.' Category

Update hey hey

Published at May 11, 2007 in Misc. and Announcements.

Well, things have been up and down these last few weeks. To begin with, I celebrated my birthday three weeks ago, that was fun…. I think. I’m tired of gettign older, I think it’s high time I grow younger now. Or something. Heh.

Lets see, more recently, my car has been giving more trouble. The passenger-side window decided to stop working on me. It rolled down, and figured it wanted to stay that way. Unfortunately, while it might be a good idea to air out my car, it unfortunately makes things difficult with regard to, you know, security and keeping the elements (like rain) out. Speaking of rain, someone mentioned how they never see me angry and probably never would. Basically, what is the point in getting upset over things? I’d rather just fix whatever problem it is, and then get on with enjoying life. With that said, I discovered that my new favorite song of the moment captures my perspective perfectly. Here is where I tie it all together: The song is called “Rain” by Bishop Allen, and it can be downloaded directy via Pitchfork Media. Listen to it!

Anyway, moving on to other things … I’m in a chef-like mood all of the sudden. Buying food is becoming a hastle, so I’m playing with the idea of coking more of my own food. I love to cook, I just hate the clean up work and the fact that I never seem to have all the ingredients available, thus causing extra work on my part. Meh, but I’m gonan give it another shot. I’ve been on a tomato soup kick recently, which would go well with a simple grilled cheese sandwich… mmm, now I’m hungry all of the sudden.

You know I just realized, well, not just, but still… I keep coming to the realization that I do my best thinking when I’m tired. It’s so odd… when the sandman calls, I can barely form coherent sentances, but at the same time, I get these fantastic ideas or have these awesome flashes of inspiration. I usually forget to write it all down, and of course, by morning, I’ve forgottn most of it, except maybe the vaguest of ideas. I really need to work on cultivating this state of mind.

Ugh, I need a new external HD just to store video assets for a project I have planned. Anyone got $100 they’d be willing to toss in my general direction? That would be swell!

Oh hey, lookie, it’s raining outside… =D

-Thom

Yet another (soon-to-be) failed attempt at the GREs

Published at March 30, 2007 in Misc. and Personal.

So the main thing I’ve been holding off on with regard to taking the GRE is that fact that I don’t have the tie to go through a massive word-list. Seeing as there are no word-list / flash cards available for the Mac, I’ve been kind of shit outta luck. Enter Mental Case. So far, the execution is excellent and it is easy to add information to memorize. I wish there would be a nice GRE “mental case” already made up, but I’m taking this as another learning experience. I need to add the words to the word-list before I start reviwing them through the application. Kind of time consuming, but I think it will be more beneficial over time. I just hope I can stick with this plan.

Ok, that’s all there is, hopefully my narcotic-addled mind was ledgible … =P I’ll have to share my Wisdom Teeth story another time.

-Thom

myspace is a parasite… and my teeth hurt

Published at March 30, 2007 in Misc. and Personal.

Oh. My. God. MySpace just sucks more and more each and every day. Not a day seems to go by where I don’t have to deny/ignore 3-6 friend requests from non-people. Such a waste of time. Ugh…

Anyway, ahem, I just had two of my wisdom teeth removed and they kinda hurt a little. The two lower teeth were impacted, so it took two hours of drilling, cutting, crushing, and pulling to get them out. Percocet is now my friend, yay! Anyway, I have to keep this short, because I’m finding it difficult to stay awake for an extended peroid of time =P

-Thom

Languages, xTorrent, Tiguan, and life in general

Published at February 15, 2007 in Misc. and Personal.

So I’ve got a few things I wanna talk about today. Nothing important, but I figured I should post more often.

To begin with, I’ve finally started sitting down and learning some programming languages. Everything I’ve taught myself with regards to Python and Lisp have atrophied since they have gone unused. As a result, I’ve started to read some very interesting FREE books that teach those languages. For posterity, I thought it would be prudent to post some links to them here. For Python, I’m switching my time between the excellent Dive in to Python and Think Like a Computer Scientist. The first “book” is very hand’s on, and throws you right in to the language, the other starts from the ground up covering Computer Science material and illustrating it all with Python code. Both are really cool! For Lisp, I’m falling back on the wonderful Practical Common Lisp. So far, it is well written and you can’t beat the price!

I’ve started using BitTorrent again, and I wanted to point out Dave Watanabe’s new xTorrent. It doesn’t like to connect to all of the trackers I enjoy using, but the user experience is great, and it is in beta. Hopefully the problems get ironed out. I plan to send feedback to the developer, since the search feature alone makes this little app well worth the cost!

Buying a new vehicle is not something I plan to do in the near future, but whilst surfing the vast interweb, I did take note that Volkwagen has a new concept SUV that has caught my eye. In general, I’m no fan of the SUV, but that is purely for environmental and fuel efficiency reasons. That said, the Tiguan is a compact SUV like the Honda CRV and will come with a Diesel option. Oh yeah, and it looks to be going in to production. I think I know what my next car will be! Still, maybe I can hold out for the concept T to go in to production…. yum! Since I’m talking about vehicles, let me state that I still have my eye on the Honda 599 if I ever get around to buying a motorcycle.

Now that I’ve got all that stuff outta the way… what about the life of Thom?

Hrm, my love-life has taken a turn for the interesting! Only time will tell I guess. I’ve taken one step towards moving to San Fran, but it also looks like I might have taken two steps back as well… ugh! Maybe I should have read up on policy and procedure a bit more. Oh yeah, and my back is fuckin’ killing me. I’ve been walking around like an old man for the last few days, but finally it is getting better. Shovelling snow did nothing to help my situation, but otherwise, it is slowly healing. Big ups to my brother for letting me crash at his place … my back thanks you and Callie!

Anyway, I know this whole post was random. Hopefully I can impose some more order to my chaos in short time. Hope everyone is having fun doing whatever you are doing! I know I’m trying.

-Thom (the “h” is for hentai ;)

What’s new?

Published at February 5, 2007 in Misc., Personal and Otakon.

Wow, as an astute reader pointed out, it has been a while since I last posted to this site. I guess I’ll have to change that, eh?

So, what is new in my life? I think I’ll hold off on anything related to my romantic life, since, well, I honestly don’t know. Need to work on that I guess.

In other news… I’m seriously considering the move to San Francisco! All I need are a few things to fall in to place, and I might be moving there in a month or two. I’m really excitied about the prospect of moving to the west-coast, but at the same time, I’m a little scared. I didn’t quite realize it, but I’ve spent 17 years in MD. More than half my life. My family, friends, everything, are here. But, I’m not getting any younger, and a change of scenery would be awesome. Plus, I could look in to taking Graduate courses at a nice Silicon Valley school (Berkeley would be sweet). So yeah… that is probably the most interesting thing I can post about at the moment.

What else? Hrm, let see, I’ve been reading more comics recently… heh, reverting to my geeky ways! Speaking of geeky ways, I’ll be going to the Dir~en~Grey show at Ram’s Head Live in Baltimore. It kinda, just… happened. I’m not even a huge fan, but considering my last two girlfriends were in to J-Rock, I’m familiar with their music, and I think it’ll be kinda fun to go. Also in the realm of geekiness, I am currently in the middle of playing Final Fantasy XII … oh it is so good! Best. Final. Fantasy. Ever.

Oh yeah, Apple announced the iPhone, needless to say, it will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine. I so desperately need a new phone, it hurts. ::droll::

Meh, I dunno what else to put for now, so I’ll just leave on that note. Hope things are going well for the few readers I’ve got =P

-Thom

Free Music!!!

Published at October 17, 2006 in Misc..

So here is the deal, yo. My musical preferences teeter-totter back and forth between rock music (or some variety) to techno music (of some variety). Right now, I’m on a techno kick, specifically Breaks and House. The cool thing about Breaks and House music, I have some good sources of free mixes online and as a result, I’d like to share with everyone some choice sets I’ve been grooving to lately. Click on the links and download the sets. They are most definitely worth it. I’ll add some commentary as I see fit. Enjoy!

Micah - Ruhnsong009 (2006-09-26): excellent set, I guess this fits in the Progressive House category. For lack of a better term, it’s a really chunky selection of tunes, and with the exception of a slight lull at about the 1/3 mark, it’s very upbeat. Rhunsong 008 is also good too, yo.
Way Out West - Remix & Original: this is a mix dedicated to the group, Way Out West, whom I’ve loved for a long time. I’ll probably be breaking out my copy of “The Fall” as the leaves turn colors more. This mix is a good sampling of their works, but the opening track “Melt (No Beats mix)” is worth the download alone.
Greg Benz - Aurium July 2006 Mix: excellent mix of House and Breaks tunes, not much more to add, ‘cept that you should listen to it!
DJKira - ThE SPiRiTUAL MiX (2006-08-21): excellent Progressive Breaks set, kinda slow at a few points, but there are some excellent tracks that make this one worth it.
Nick Warren - March 2006 DJNickWarren.com Website Mix: good set… I’m tired of thinking of good things to say. Music Good! Tom Tired! Argh. =P

Check this out if ya have the time… or ignore me… like you all always do =D

An Inconvenient Truth

Published at June 3, 2006 in Misc..

On the various Mac-related blogs I frequent, there has been a decent amount of buzz about Al Gore’s presentation/documentary An Inconvenient Truth. For those who are curious, Mr. Gore used Keynote for his presentation, which was initially how I started to hear about this film, but I’ve also come to hear that the documentary has garnered critical acclaim at Cannes.

I’m still a little on the fence with regard to Global Warming (the topic of the film and presentation). In the past it seemed like Global Warming was the hand-wavey answer to everything (much like El Nino), as such, I have not given it much thought. Still, the weather patterns as of late have made me re-consider my initial skepticism. That is not to say that I changed my mind, but I have read over the movie’s site and plan to watch it when it comes to my area.

Anyway, I don’t plan to talk about politics, since that just turns out ugly sometimes, but I thought I’d point all of you to the subject of my interest for the last couple of hours. Check out the links, and watch the movie if your interest is piqued.

-Tom

new music wednesday!

Published at May 31, 2006 in Misc..

Well, I just wanted to briefly post about my current music obsession, a little band called Stars, specifically their album Set Yourself on Fire. OMG! Such a good album. If anyone decides to check them out on iTunes or maybe download it illegally (whatever), I suggest Your Ex-Lover is Dead, The Calendar Girl, Soft Revolution, One More Night, and Ageless Beauty. Yes, those are all iTunes Music Store links. Your Ex-Lover is Dead is perhaps the best song I’ve heard in a long time.

Ok, I’m done gushing, just check it out dammit! =P

-Tom

I’m baaaaaack…

Published at May 22, 2006 in Misc..

Well, two weeks have passed and now I’m safe and sound back in Baltimore. California was great, the weather was fuckin’ awesome the entire time I was there. I got to hang out with Oki for a few days and we partied it up in San Francisco (aka: “The City”) and I got to meet some of his friends. I also got to see Emily while there, which was cool, since my trip coincided with her birthday. All in all, it was fun times. I didn’t get to do the trip through the Redwood forests, but I had a great time none-the-less. Of course, I got to visit the mothership (ie: Apple’s campus). I also geeked out by visiting Pixar and Google… I was in nerd-heaven! Whooo!

I’ll perhaps have some pics up from my adventures on the Left Coast, but until then, here is a moment of Zen (yes, I’m the goof-ball on the left):

Well shit…

Published at May 19, 2006 in Misc..

Well, the MacBook came out this week, and dammit, it is teh SEX. Man, I suck. Time to go drool…

-Tom

haha

Published at May 5, 2006 in Misc..

So I went out to deposit my paycheck and whilst doing so, I picked up some food. I ate it in the car, and when I got home, I collected all the trash and deposited it in the large trash bin outside my hose. Not too long after, I realized I was missing my phone! As you can probably guess, I accidentally threw my phone out with the trash. Good thing I caught it when I did. My trash was the only thing in there, and right after I retrieved my phone, Hope came home and immediately took out a LOT of trash that had been piling up for the last few days (years, actually, since she was throwing out some old things she did not want anymore ;). Needless to say, my phone was rescued in the nick of time.

-Tom

brain dump…

Published at May 3, 2006 in Misc..

I have nothing in particular to write about, but that’s just as well. I figured I’d start writing and let the things fall in to place.

Firstly, I just picked up a book called House of Leaves and while I am not quite done with it, it is pretty damn awesome! I’ve heard it be described as “post-post-modern” fiction, which really tells me nothing, but alas, it is good, and complex, and I like that.

I leave for sunny California in a few days! I plan to bring my camera with me, and if luck holds out, I’ll be taking a ride up the Redwood Highway and perhaps will visit where my dad was born and raised. Aside from taking pictures of trees and maybe driving through a few of them, I also plan to take part of my trip through the coastal highway and get some good shots of Pacific Ocean. I hope the weather is good the weekend I plan to make my trip.

Oh yeah, I lost my iPod nano. I took that thing with me everywhere I went, so I guess it was bound to happen. Alas, I will miss thee, but I do have a third generation iPod that I can use in the meantime.

Speaking of iPods, and more specifically, music, I am currently on an indie rock kick. I’ve also supplemented my library with some odd Cocteau Twins, New Order, and the random Paul McCartney and Mary Prankster. Odd, I know, but ohh soo gooood.

In other news, my parents bought a new house today. It’s really sweet, and there is a slight chance I’ll be living there, in some fashion or another. We’ll have to see. It’s pretty sweet though.

I think I could take a moment to mention that there is a girl I’ve been hanging out with recently that I like, but… I don’t like talking about those things on a public forum. So yeah, blah.

Recently, there has been a flood of friend requests on MySpace from camgirls wanting to… be my “friend.” Of course, I deny the friend requests, but it’s really funny to see the guys who comment on these camgirls’ MySpace pages: “oh! thanks for the add! how are you?” Like these girls really care, it’s just advertising for them. Speaking of MySpace, my brother has set up a group to combat the plague that is BMPS (Bad MySpace Page Syndrome), I encourage anyone with a sense of style, or at least decency, to join us in our cause! =P

I still love me my pr0n!

Ok, I think with that final sentiment, my brain dump is pretty much over. =D

-Tom

P.S. - at work, I go by the name “Thom”… just thought you’d all wanna know that.

about names (girls)

Published at April 30, 2006 in Misc..

Well, my last post was about boys names I’d consider when/if I ever have kids. Both names I suggested might lead me to be punished by the karma-police were I ever to actually use them, but I honestly think they are cool names. That said, I guess I should throw out two girls names I’d use, just to balance things out a bit. So without further ado, here goes:

Imogen - I really like this name! If you are curious, it is inspired by my love of Imogen Heap’s music. The name was first used for Shakespeare’s character Innogen from his play Cymbeline, which was mis-printed, resulting in the name I have chosen.

Sophia/Sophie - Greek for “wisdom”, and a pretty name.

If I was more masochistic, I guess I could consider Ishtar, but I’m not that hung up on the name =P

-Tom

about names (boys)

Published at April 27, 2006 in Misc..

Heh, I started reading Wikipedia for a couple hours and I think I have two idea for names, if I get around to having kids =P I think they’d be cool first names, but for my children’s sanity, I think I’ll reserve the names for middle-name status. I know no-one really cares, but I just felt like blogging about SOMETHING. Anyway, here goes (btw: both boys names):

Ptolemy - Ancient Greek bad-ass! Oh, how he shall be picked on.

Enoch - got the idea from a character from a book I like. It’s got a cool ring to it, and the name has good roots. My wife will hate this name =D

Perhaps I’ll follow this post up later with girls names. BTW, in case you are wondering, why would I wanna name my kids after such bland names like Tom or John =D

-Tom

Child of the Lens

Published at February 23, 2006 in Misc..

Before the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and before Narnia and Harry Potter, I cut my teeth on the stories of the Lensmen. Many may not be aware of this series, but the Lensman series of books were the shit. It defined the space opera genre, a genre I’ve always enjoyed (apparent in my love for such anime as Macross and Yamato/Starblazers). Granted, the series was primarily written back in the 30s and 40s, so the science is far from accurate. Still, the story is epic and the characters are interesting. I enjoyed it back when I was 10 and I still enjoy it today.

So why am I writing this post? No big reason really. I’d enjoy it if the few readers of my blog picked up the books, but I’d enjoy it more if you all picked up the books for me ;) They are currently published by Old Earth Books, right here in Baltimore. Maybe I should swing by and beg… yeah. Seriously, if you have not had the pleasure of reading this series, check it out.

-Tom

double black-diamond is teh suck

Published at February 14, 2006 in Misc. and Friends and Family.

So I went snowboarding this weekend, which was awesome. I went only twice last year, and if my rate keeps up, I’ll only go once this year. I think I need to work on reversing this trend. Anyway, I was supposed to hang out with my brother and some other friends at Whitetail but the snow was so bad, the state closed all roads when I was supposed to have left. As a result, I got a much later start than anticipated. Good thing my friend Joe came, otherwise, I would have been at the slopes by myself… my brother bailed on me because he missed the closures and was already done by the time I made it to the resort.

Anyway, after a quick trip to the bunny-slope, and realizing quickly I had not forgotten anything with regard to snowboarding, I started tackling the intermediate-level slopes. I had a great time, but Joe and I decided we wanted to go up the bigger slopes. I dunno how it happened, but we ended up on a double black-diamond slope (ie: hard) and that kicked my ass. It was also the last time down, so my legs were already really tired. On one hand, this was fun, on another… I was in pain, and crashed a decent amount.

And how did I end my evening? hanging out with some coworkers in a “gay hipster” bar. Not my crowd, but I had fun with my friends and their friends. Not the evening I expected, but I enjoyed myself (well, except for the fact that I could not hit on any of the girls there ;)

-Tom

what’s new…

Published at January 26, 2006 in Misc., Random Thoughts, The Job Hunt and Announcements.

Well, to begin, I upgraded to WordPress 2.0 a few days ago, and I’ve switched back to the “plain” version of the K2 mod/theme I’m using. I need to get some Photoshop time in so I can get a new image banner and play with the CSS to make the site more… “Tom-like” in appearance. I keep saying I’m gonna do this, but I have not had the time.

Speaking of time, I’ve just come to a realization that I’m at my most creative in the last hour or two before I go to sleep. It’s weird. I’m too tired to form complete sentences most times, but I come up with cool theories and other niftiness. Too bad I also don’t remember half of what I thought up when I wake the next morning, because I never write anything down. That said, most of my best writing is done during this time. Much must be done on my part to read and re-read what I’ve written to check for grammatical and logic errors, but the end result is usually the best I produce… usually.

That leads me to another thing I’ve been toying around with. In the near future I am seriously gonna consider addapting my body to a polyphasic sleep schedule. I’m not interested in it to get more waking hours to “play” with… I’m wondering if I can get more clarity with my thoughts. Just an idea.

Oh yeah, I guess my blog would not be complete without mentioning my job situation. I’m still not sure what the hell is going on, but I may have a job coming my way in the very near future. I can’t name names, but I’ve gotten past two interviews and a background check. Now all that is left is to see whether an opening exists for me. The problem here is, the person who makes that determination is someone I’ve come to fear is not good at following up on tasks… so we’ll see.

Ooh, another thing, I’m back on my search to go to grad school. I keep saying I’ll do this, but I never got around to it during my week of freedom, mainly because I was too engrossed in re-learning Lisp. But, after playing with Lisp, and reading articles on Genetic Programming, as well as some fiction, I think I’m leaning more towards doing research in Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning. The significance of all this is that I now have an idea of what kind of schools I want to target. Now I just need to get past my fear of rejection and apply to some schools (that poor GPA thing, entirely my fault, kind of makes it harder to go to the schools I want). Meh.

Anyway, I’m outta here, thanks for dealing with my rambling.

-Tom

SQLite 3

Published at December 13, 2005 in Misc. and Work.

Some of the ideas I have running through my head require a database, and I’ve been frustrated with the idea of either creating a flat-file/archive or finding a way to implement a database server of some form in my projects. Granted, I have not yet delved in to the world of Core Data… I’m still a neophyte with regards to programming with Cocoa.

Big Nerd Ranch recently posted some info on their blog about SQLite 3, which is a great way to implement a database, without having to require a database server. Woohoo! Core Data actually uses SQLite, but the blog article mentions reasons why you may want to not use Core Data (backwards compatibility, possibly faster access times). Either way, it makes me want to learn Core Data more, and at the very least, I can brush up on SQLite as a means to accomplishing other tasks.

-Tom

As Christmas approaches…

Published at November 10, 2005 in Misc., Personal and Friends and Family.

I thought I’d drop some not-so-subtle hints as to what kinds of things have recently caught my eye. Interestingly enough, most of it has to do with decoration… which is kinda absurd considering where I currently live, but mayhaps that will all change when I get a new job. So without further ado, here are some nifty shopping ideas:

Feel Seating System by Animi Causa, price: unknown. I think this is totally cool, it can be used as a bed, chair, etc… but being from a well-known designer, I’m sure the price will be more than I can afford.

Go Bike by some Japanese people =P, price: uh… dunno. I already have a bike, but if I lived in a big city and needed a small folding nike, this would be it.

Storylines bookshelves by Studio Frederick Roije, price: not sure if this is commercially available yet. The bookshelf itself represents the “ups and downs” of a story. Pretty cool if you ask me.

Fafa Wall Hangers by Fafa?, price: roughly $24 each. Heh heh,

Blik surface graphics by Blik, price: varies. I’m a big fan of the “Wall Decals” and “Blik Prose”, but these are totally un-usable in my currently living conditions. Still, one day…

And finally… Guitar Hero for the PS2 by RedOctane and Harmonix, price: $70. Cuz I rock, baby!

Oh yeah, I’m know I’m like, a year behind everyone, but please check out Sigur Ros’ new album, Takk…. It is, quite literally, The Shit. As in, you won’t know what hit you, but you’ll like it, and ask for seconds. The video for one of the songs, Glosoli, should be enough to get your attention. For most of you who know me, I don’t get excited over bands like this very often, so please check them out.

-Tom

Tom goes back to school…

Published at October 27, 2005 in Misc., Random Thoughts, The Job Hunt, Friends and Family and Announcements.

So I was looking at how much Paid Time Off I’d accumulated since my last “vacation” (which was not very relaxing) and I found that I had two weeks of time saved up… so pending my last-minute vacation request going through… I’m going back to school for a week!

I plan to take next week off and I’ll be spending most of that time at UMBC. Here is what I have on my agenda for that time. I plan to put in 8 hour days for the 5 weekdays, and I’ll try to actually relax on the weekends…

Mon-Fri (UMBC Library):

  • 3 hours learning and coding in Cocoa/Objective-C [text: Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X by Aaron Hillegass]
  • 1 hour job hunting, making use of the Shriver Center on campus
  • 3 hours learning and coding in Lisp [text: ANSI Common Lisp and On Lisp by Paul Graham]
  • 1 hour researching and applying to grad schools
  • Extra Credit: hitting on cute undergrad girls and studying algorithms


    • NOTE: I think the school library will be a lot more conductive to me learning than sitting at home with a bajillion distractions (like pr0n ;) and the desks there are better set-up for study (ie: no bed to beckon to me)

    Saturday (wherever):

    PARTY!!! … and maybe brush up on Unix/Linux system admin.

    Sunday (Prince Frederick, MD):

    Visit the Parental Units

    Wish Me Luck!

    Beyond Cyberpunk

    Published at September 26, 2005 in Misc. and Random Thoughts.

    Boing Boing just pointed me to the now online version of Beyond Cyberpunk. This is a web-translation of the famous HyperCard stack. I’m kind of sorry I was not a Mac-head in the pre-OS X days, when things like HyperCard were popular. I’ve heard the praises for Hypercard sung high and low, and it makes me want to develop a homebrew or OSS implementation. Meh, just an idea. Still, HyperCard aside, I was (and am) a huge fan of Cyberpunk literature (and all of it’s derivative and descendants). While I was not fortunate enough to be a “user” of Beyond Cyberpunk, a lot of this was the shit I was in to back in the day. Brings back some good memories. Take a gander at it.

    Watch your six, Ace!

    -Tom

    OMG!!!

    Published at August 30, 2005 in Misc. and Otakon.

    I so need to get my friend, Taka, a pink Flying-V ukulele.

    -Tom

    PS: it also comes in black and white.

    Dragons in Tibet

    Published at August 11, 2005 in Misc..

    I was browsing Warren Ellis’ blog and he posted about pictures of two dragons photographed in the Tibetan sky. I’d repost those pictures here, but uploading images to my web server is difficult here at work… more work than I want to invest. Still, check out the links. It’s pretty amazing… even if it’s just cloud cover, it’s an impressive sight.

    -Tom

    Valkyrie on my PowerBook

    Published at July 29, 2005 in Misc. and Anime & Manga.

    So I found out about this place called ETCHamac that laser etches customer images on PowerBooks and iPods. I’m pretty certain I’ve posted about this site before in a previous post (but I feel lazy right now). Either way, I figured out what image I’d like to have laser engraved. Let me know what you think:

    20th Anniversary Macross Valkyrie

    I’m still toying with the idea of engraving Ishtar’s face tattoo, but maybe I’ll do that on my iPod =P

    -Tom

    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

    Published at July 18, 2005 in Misc..

    I got my copy from Amazon in the mail late on Saturday, and after getting very little sleep and reading it mostly straight for the last day and a half, I’m done. Wow. I have to give mad props to J.K. Rowlings for surprising me, even though I was pretty damn certain I had it all figured out. Then again, I did have my suspicions that I would be fooled at the last minute… which I was. I won’t be too specific, since this is not a book review, nor do I wish to introduce any spoilers. I’ll just say this: In some respects, a lot of people will be happy, and in others, people may very well be upset with what happens in this book. Either way, the word “slut” is used in the book, which thoroughly amuses me =D

    -Tom