General: Summertime!

_{Posted by Todd at 4:43 PM - Wednesday, June 29, 2005}

Is this thing on? Of course it is, I wrote it :)

I haven't had much to write about lately, at least nothing that anyone would likely consider interesting. My consulting business is slowly gaining momentum, and should eventually allow me to move back to Saskatoon. I've been playing a lot of World of WarCraft, and even started writing my own AddOns via the game's programming system. (You can visit my guild website here.)

This past weekend was the first, hopefully annual, SLARPcon, a weekend dedicated to all things LARP. A lot of fun was had by all! Hopefully this success will generate more interest so the event can grow.

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General: Looking Up!

_{Posted by Todd at 10:37 AM - Tuesday, November 30, 2004}

I just talked with my new employer today and he's getting an initial small contract lined up for me to do. I'll be working here in Regina, from home, but they are lining up some new funding so I can return to Saskatoon soon.

I guess a little persistence does pay off!

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General: Distractions

_{Posted by Todd at 1:00 PM - Sunday, November 14, 2004}

I've been a little distracted this week by a couple of things:

• More consulting work for Bob Horton (always a good thing)
• Playing the free demo for World of WarCraft

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General: Blizzard Humour

_{Posted by Todd at 9:54 AM - Monday, November 1, 2004}

Once again, Blizzard Entertainment brings us some free audio humour. This time out, we get to follow the Invincible Legion of Unconquerable Vanquishing Gnomes in their World of WarCraft Hallowe'en adventures! Enjoy!

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General: Kudos!

_{Posted by Todd at 1:43 PM - Saturday, October 30, 2004}

I just wanted to publically give thanks to Michael, David, and Amy for putting on an enjoyable Hallowe'en party on Friday night. A great time was had by all!

For those who didn't know, it was a Cthulhu themed party, set in the roaring 20's. You missed out on a lot of fun...

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General: Get Lost

_{Posted by Todd at 4:49 PM - Tuesday, October 26, 2004}

My parents watch a lot of television. Since I'm living at home at the moment, I tend to "hear" a lot of television while I type away on my computer. (Unless I happen to have my headphones on while I play Enemy Territory of course!) As a result, it was hard to avoid hearing the massive TV campaign promoting a new TV show called Lost. They seemed to be making a big deal about trivia such as Dominic Monaghan and Terry O'Quinn being part of the cast, as well as a bunch of other actors I don't really know.

Anyway, my mom was really keen on watching the two-hour pilot for the series. I happened to turn my head at the right time to see what was going on.

Opening scene: we see a man in a suit, lying amongst some trees in a jungle. He looks like he's been in an accident. A few moments later, he gains consciousness and we watch a few seconds of confusion as he pulls himself together mentally. He gets up, still a little shaken, and wanders out onto the nearby beach, to meet...

Chaos.

The beach is littered with wreckage from a 747-sized airplane, apparently the midsection. We see people crying, screaming, dying all over the place. The man in the suit, who conveniently turns out to be a medical doctor, begins doing what he can to save as many people as he can.

For someone who is as jaded about television as myself, I was surprised about how well the disaster drama concept was being handled. There is a lot to enjoy about this series:

- A five-second intro (little more than the series title on a black screen)
- Interesting and varied characters, despite a couple of expected stereotypes
- Very little music, with the focus being put on more appropriate audio and dissonance
- Storytelling from multiple points of view, as we learn what happened to each character before, during and after the accident

I suspect the biggest appeal with audiences is the mystery of it all. Where are they? So far, clues have been dropped here and there, which so far have only added to the mystery. There is also a wildcard here; the jungle holds a powerful creature that no one has seen and survived to describe it.

The first few "real" episodes are just as well done as the pilot; hopefully the rest of the season will continue to be good. It will be interesting to see how the series endures, since a story of this type must be linear and will lose its impact over time.

If you'd like to check it out, the whole series can be downloaded via BitTorrent. It's pretty easy to find, but be sure to watch the shows in order!

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General: Quiet Week

_{Posted by Todd at 8:56 PM - Saturday, October 23, 2004}

It's been a quiet week while I wait to hear about my new job, so I will provide you a little humour:

Dork Storm: The Annihilation

The Ten Geekiest Hobbies

I'm five out of 10. Yay!!

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General: Good News and Bad News

_{Posted by Todd at 1:48 AM - Monday, October 18, 2004}

The Bad News:

My new job has been delayed due to the Public Service Alliance of Canada strike actions. Part of the funding for the work I'm supposed to be doing comes from the WEDC, which has not processed my new employer's application yet. Fortunately, this is only a delay and shouldn't affect my position, only the date on which I will start work.

The Good News:

This weekend was a fun trip to Saskatoon. Early Friday evening, I attended the Saskatoon Scandinavian Club monthly social with my brother and my parents. Not only do I get to visit with my Norwegian and Swedish relatives, but I get in my essential monthly doses of acquavit and herring on rye bread!

(Note to self: be sure to attend next's month SSC, and Norway is on the menu! Lefse is a treat not to be missed.)

I was also able to participate in some of the events at the Hero's Gambit Convention, also in Saskatoon. Layne and I left the SSC early to attend the Sabbat Vampire LARP. Mucho fun was had by all; I must give kudos to Wade for another excellent game. I see that Carrie has a few photos already up from the event. I hope there are more to come; I want to see how my blue hair looked!

I didn't participate in Saturday's Kingdom Come LARP, but I did get to watch and enjoy some of it. Layne managed to play not one, but two NPC's for that game and got both of them killed (as did a few other NPC players).

I even got to see a few friends at the convention that I haven't seen in years!

On Sunday, Layne, Trent, Alina and I played out the side scenes preceding our character's return to Saskatoon in the Dark Bridges Sabbat LARP.

Overall, I'd say this weekend turned out pretty well!

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General: Best Jon Stewart Interview EVER

_{Posted by Todd at 12:47 PM - Saturday, October 16, 2004}

This is just too good to pass up.

Jon Stewart recently appeared on CNN's Crossfire to promote his new book. Instead of discussing that, he used the opportunity to slam all media coverage of the upcoming US election. When a comedy show becomes a better source of information than "real" media, what does that say about media coverage of anything?

The video is now available via BitTorrent. Here's another one.

Slashdot coverage

Fark comments thread

It looks like Becky has some comments on the matter too!

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General: A New Look at World Pollution

_{Posted by Todd at 11:54 PM - Tuesday, October 12, 2004}

I discovered this fascinating New Scientist article today, found via die puny humans, the weblog of Warren Ellis. Here's an excerpt:

A global map of nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere has revealed the most precise view yet of pollution hotspots around the world.

The map, based on 18 months' worth of satellite data, shows very high levels of NO2 above major European and North American cities and across much of north-east China. South-east Asia and Africa also have raised concentrations of the gas due to their burning of vegetation.

But perhaps more surprising are the oceans. "Ship tracks are visible in some locations," says Steffen Beirle, one of the research team at the University of Heidelberg, Germany. "Look at the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean between the southern tip of India and Indonesia."

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