Thursday, March 26, 2009

and again....

the other day i told you the tale of Poorly Educated Dumb Fuck. well, tonight, THEY CALLED BACK!

i got all excited as i grabbed a piece of paper and a pen as i was going to be the uber-friendly person to see just how much information i got get out of them.

and dammit, wouldn't you know. i couldn't get more than a SINGLE question out.

Another Poorly Educated Dumb Fuck: Hello? This is client services.

me: {uber-chipper mode} HI! What company is this? {/uber-chipper mode}

Another Poorly Educated Dumb Fuck: *CLICK*

me: {rejected & dejected mode} dammit {/rejected & dejected mode}

part of me is pleased that i managed to get Another Poorly Educated Dumb Fuck off the phone with a single question (an improvement over last time where i repeated the same question, technically a single question, but it took two pitches). but part of me was looking forward to stringing Another Poorly Educated Dumb Fuck along. i guess i'll have to take the concerned and frightened tact next time.


Read More......

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

you IDIOTS

this morning NRP had a quick blurb on how 3 families from MA were heading to new york today to ask a judge to declassify documents related to the security at logan airport on 9/11, but the government is citing national security (blanket) as why they don't want to. any time that i hear someone blaming security at logan airport relating to 9/11, i get annoyed.

first, like many people, especially in the northeast, the events of 9/11 affected me deeply. but when details started coming out about how the events unfolded, everyone seems to forget one SIGNIFICANT detail. not all of the fucktards who were responsible for flying the planes into the towers started their day in boston.

at least 2 of the fucktards flew out of the airport in portland maine. they took a commuter flight from portland to boston. they then met up with the other fucktards who parked a car at logan airport and then boarded one of the two flights that ultimately took the towers down.

has it ever occured to ANYONE (aside from me thus prompting my annoyance) that the two fucktards who started in PORTLAND were the ones who carried the box cutters through security? the airport in portland is a small airport compared to logan, and the footage of the fucktards walking through security is everywhere. they BREEZED through security at a SMALL airport.

now, assuming that they breezed through security in portland, carrying the box cutters, they boarded their flight which landed in boston. when you are flying a multi-airport flight, once you have landed at the next airport (in this case logan), you DON'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH SECURITY. the assumption is that you were screened at your originating airport and anything questionable would have been stopped there.

THEREFORE, the fucktards originating in portland, breezing through security, carrying box cutters NEVER WENT THROUGH SECURITY IN BOSTON. how is this a failure of security at logan? based on my own experiences flying before the events of 9/11, security in logan was MUCH more restrictive than it was when i flew out of an airport that is probably comparible in size to portland. and do you know what? i've carried a leatherman type multitool on my belt for years. and i ALWAYS carried it through security when flying. i never packed it, even when i flew to and from ENGLAND.

and guess what? when i flew to atlanta on 9/9 (two days before the events of 9/11), i carried my leatherman through security at logan airport and they didn't say anything. as i had in the past, i took it out, placed it in the little plastic basket to be x-rayed, stepped through the metal detectors, retrieved my bag and plastic basket which contained my leatherman and headed towards the gate to wait for my flight.

i have done this in boston, new york, atlanta, chicago, washington DC, newburgh, memphis, charleston, albany, syracuse, manchester and london. and the only time i was stopped was when i had it in my backpack (not on my hip) flying out of london. and the security officer there took one look at it and handed it back to me without batting an eye.

so these three families want to blame security at logan? the problem isn't with the security arrangement at logan on the 11th, it was how security at ALL airports was handled (which is why i think the government is crying national security). they didn't have orders to prevent knives and sharp objects though security. they only stopped people who were carrying something that was larger than a pocket knife or illegal. and do you want to know something else? prior to 9/11, i have also breezed through security with a box cutter. no one every said anything to me about it. so even if the fucktards who flew to boston from portland didn't carry the box cutters through security, the fucktards in boston could have carried them through security without much difficulty (which is what i'm sure these families believe and why they have their panties in a twist).

i'm sorry you lost family members on 9/11. but you need to understand that the fucktards who orchestrated this took advantage of security at multiple airports. they preyed on the fact that airport security wouldn't question knives over a designated size and used that to their advantage.

what did we learn? a lot. i no longer fly with my leatherman (checked or otherwise). and if there is a chance i won't be checking anything, i won't even bring a pocket knife, even my little swiss army knife. going through security now is a pain in the ass, and i understand that. but the security measures that were implemented as a result of 9/11 should have been in place years prior. but look at where the airline industry was in 2001, where it was when it was regulated, what changed when it was de-regulated. taking all of this into account, security may have been relaxed in an attempt to encourage people to fly. no one likes going through security, and i'm sure a percentage of people would cite that as a reason for not flying. but if security is a breeze to get through, then why not fly?

in the end, it doesn't change anything. on 9/11, the fucktards struck a blow that affected us all. you lost family members. you aren't the only ones who lost family members. thousands of people were directly affected by the events, so what makes your claim any better than anyone elses? what do you want the government to say? they fucked up? the reality of the situation is they don't have all of the answers. and i doubt that any answers you think are in those documents will give you any solace. but your insistence on not looking at the reality of the situation, only validates their belief that they won that day.

you still lost. you still lose.



Read More......

Thursday, March 19, 2009

you dumb fuck

had a call just as i sat down to dinner. some unknown entity is calling and leaving messages on my answering machine about the interest rate on my credit card. i'm on the federal no call list, but that doesn't seem to stop them. and i don't believe i have done business with them before, nor are they a political party, therefore they should be fined for calling me. the problem is i'm never home when they call so i just get irritated and delete the message.

so tonight i figured i'd try and talk to someone so the call went along the line of this:

poorly educated dumb fuck: i'm calling regarding the interest rate on your credit card.

me: which credit card are you calling about?

poorly educated dumb fuck: i work for both master card and visa

me: which of my credit cards are you calling about?

poorly educated dumb fuck: oh god *click*

yes, he was a poorly educated dumb fuck.

fortunately, i was able to get back to my lovely corned beef dinner (leftovers from last night. yummy.) before it cooled off. the only thing i should have done is asked for the company before then tearing into him. but not too shabby - i asked the same question twice and got a hang up. i wonder what it would take to do it in one question....


Read More......

musical confusion

the other day i posted a linky linky to molecast volume 1. here's a linky linky to molecast volume 2.

explanation time. volume 1 was a semi-random experiment. volumes 2-4 are a more random experiement.

volume 1 was born out of hearing Song of Seraphim on Top Gear. so i decided to see how quickly i could throw together a mix. i just grabbed a stack of songs and tossed them into the blender and that turned into volume 1.

volumes 2-4 was done differently, using my original idea. load a boatload of MP3s into Winamp, hit shuffle and the order in which Winamp picked 15 songs is what now makes up volumes 2-4.

no major editing (maybe a little fine tuning, boost volume, etc). 15 tracks. mashed into a single 160k MP3. tag it and throw it to the world. the only criteria is no artist can have more than 1 song on there.

why 15 songs? most songs average out to ~4 mins, so it should run ~1 hour. long enough to enjoy, short enough you don't get bored and turn it off.

why so random? why not and maybe i'll find or rediscover something. i'm not looking to censor anything, so be prepared to hear some weird shit. altho i must say that volumes 2-4 aren't that crazy.

unlike volume 1, i don't plan to post the songlist, but you want me to identify a particular song, feel free to ask.

i have 4 volumes so far. i may do more. i may not. i don't plan on keeping things posted for too long, so grab them while you can.

to quote Front 242:

W.Y.H.I.W.Y.G

what you hear is what you get.

molecast volume 1
molecast volume 2



Read More......

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

an experiment

just an experiment i've had in mind. if it works, great, if not, no matter. explanation to come later.

volume 1 is a little different than plans for later volumes should this work. similar concept, but later volumes will be different. feedback is welcome, good or bad, preferably after you listen.

Clicky Clicky
~90mb, 76 mins.

not safe for the easily offended.

i will expire the link in a week or two.

fin.



Read More......

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

and where do i go?

received the following email from microsoft and it confuses me (not that difficult i guess)

From: Windows Live for Mobile
Sent: Mon 3/02/09 8:11 PM
Subject: New mobile services from Window Live‏

Stay connected while hanging with the guys
Windows Live goes mobile. Stay in sync from the road on your web-enabled mobile device with the all-new Windows Live™ for mobile services!

Windows Live Homepage
Your online life, at a glance.
- View and update your personal message
- See what's new in your network of friends
- View your pending friends requests
- See how many unread emails you have

Windows Live Photos
Save, share and view photos wherever you're online – right from your phone
- You can upload new pics on the go
- Create albums and name your pics
- Even leave comments for your friends!

Windows Live Hotmail®
Get your email on the go and stay connected
- Send & receive emails
- Access your contact list
- Manage your folders


now this is all fine and good, however i have copied the exact content of the email, including any and all links that were included with the email.

i don't see any links or any information to tell me what to plug into my web-enabled phone. not a single shred of information. so, thanks for telling me, but as you neglected to tell me WHERE to look or WHERE to go, i guess you'll just have to miss out on my using your services as i don't know WHERE to to tell my phone to go.

sure i could look it up and figure it out, but you know what? like most people, i'm lazy and have to be told where to go. therefore, this is nothing short of a FAIL.


Read More......

Monday, February 16, 2009

ain't technology grand?

this weekend i bought me a new TV. it's been in my budget for a while now and on saturday afternoon, i bit and bought a nice little 46" sony LCD. now i'm in the midst of trying to figure it out.

upgraded my cable service and swapped my cable box for an HD cable box (there was a difference) and i can say that the channels that are in HD, look pretty good. but i've discovered that it really depends on what is airing at any given moment in time varies in what i see. with the HD channels, i get a full 16:9 picture. some commercials are in 4:3 ratio (standard non-widescreen tv) so i'll see the black bars on the left/right sides. then some commercials (watchmen trailer just aired and did this) and it is widescreen, but scaled to fit within the 4:3 ratio, not my full 16:9.

now, my new cable box will switch between various settings depending on the channel (480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i) but my tv doesn't seem to understand when to use what scaling. typically, both 720p & 1080i (tv supports 1080p, so i'm good there) will display in widescreen. but if i goto a SD (480i/480p) channel, the tv will stretch the 4:3 screen to 16:9. so, with a few quick flips of a button on the TV remote, i can put it back into 4:3, but i haven't figured out yet how to tell the TV to use the proper aspect ratio depending on the channel.

ooo...lobotomies



Read More......

Friday, January 30, 2009

parking

back on the 19th of december, i posted a series of pictures of our first snow storm that fell upon us on the previous day. well, according to one of the local weather people (i forget who) made the comment that in the boston area, we are on track to surpass last years total which was over 100" of the fluffy white shit that is the bane of us all. currently, we are just over 70" total snowfall, so there is a good chance as the metorological 'winter' season ends at the end of february this will come true. so as a matter of curiosity, i present the following:

taken on 12/19/08, ~700am



taken on 1/29/09, ~715am


you can clearly see where i was parked in december vs. where i am now parked (assuming i pull forward) in january, 5 weeks later.

we've had a fair amount of snow. and stinky's daughter (and sperm donor) seem to be upset by this. so to the two of you, i have the following to say:

FUCK YOU

look at stinky's renter agreement which i'm sure looks like mine and you'll discover that you don't have a legal leg to stand on. our landlord has to provide written consent (which i have in my renters agreement) to parking, so if stinky doesn't have it (which would delight me to no end), you have no legal recourse.

i, as a renter, have no right unless defined by the landlord to parking. your tirade the other day where you thought (being the operative word) that stinky was legally entitled to parking is in a single word, wrong.

so, i shall repeat because you may not have understood what i said a moment ago.

FUCK YOU

if you don't like it, talk to our landlord.


Read More......

Saturday, January 24, 2009

the glasses situation

not that anyone cares, but here's what happened - tuesday night M&i were at the gym. i was on the treadmill listening to music, and rather than stare eyelessly at the tv, i'll sometimes take my glasses off and put them in the little holder thing. this way i can stare eyelessly at pretty much anything and it will be a pleasant blur.

while i have shitty eyesight, i can make out shapes and recognize people if i know what blurred colors to look for. i spotted M moving across the gym and decided to see what machine she was headed for to determine how soon she would finish relative to how much time i had left on the treadmill. so i grab my glasses and flip open the right temple (as i have done countless times in my life) and *pop* goes my temple. thankfully i didn't drop my glasses out of surprise and promptly step on them.

so a quick stop the treadmill, survey the situation, recover the temple and off to find M i go. we wrap things up and head home. thankfully, i had suggested she pick me up rather than meeting her at the gym, so after dropping me off, quick shower, in go my contacts and out the door i go.

fortunately, 13 minutes later i pull into the parking lot of the pearle express i had bought them from originally and i walk in. there isn't anything they can do at that time and i discover (to my dismay) that the maker of my frames last year made some changes to the way the sunglasses connect magnetically which means they may not have the parts to fix mine. so i leave them for someone to look at the following day and after lunch i call to find out what the skinny is.

he had just been called and told that parts for my frames were not in the warehouse (somewhere in the west coast time zone - he couldn't call until 11a as they weren't open) which left me with a single option. fortunately, the lenses i have will fit into the 2008 model of my frames (that wasn't redesigned - just the temples/magnet bits) so the only thing i could do was order a set of replacement frames. i was hoping that they would come in yesterday, but no call was made to me, so i have to wait until next week.

the upside is that my eyes have adjusted to full time contact wearing (which is a good thing) so i'll actually wear my contacts more now. usually in the winter i'll back off wearing them as it is really dry, but the last few days haven't been as bad as i had expected. today could be interesting as it started out at 39 degrees (according to my little weather station) and is expected to fall into the teens with wind. recipe for eye clawing.

and the other week when i flipped rooms in my apartment, i found my previous pair of glasses and last night i figured i would see how they work, knowing they aren't my current prescription, but they seem to do ok. they work better if they are on the end of my nose which isn't comfortable, and i won't drive with them (unless absolute emergency and no time to put my contacts in) but for the moment, i can actually see. closer is easier, farther away isn't as good, but for milling about w/o my contacts in, they help.



Read More......

Thursday, January 22, 2009

tv shows

right now my two favorite tv shows are:

Battlestar Galactica
Burn Notice

thankfully, new episodes are on tv right now.

w00t!




Read More......

Monday, January 19, 2009

changing of the guard

well, tomorrow comes one of the most anticipated changing of the guards in a long time. i can't say that i'm sad to see our Monkey Führer departing, but i can't say that i quite knew how to describe what my thoughts were on the incoming administration. i've made now real bones about how i'm not thrilled with the incoming, and how a lot of it has to do with the cult of personality (i do believe he is a charismatic person, but he is a politician) so i've been trying to find the words to describe what my thoughts are on the subject.

thankfully, someone i respect has the answer.

"I haven't had this kind of hope, bliss, and anticipation for change since . . . New Coke."
- Penn Jillette (on twitter)


bravo. that sums up my feelings quite nicely. i tip my hat to you sir. thank you.


Read More......

Friday, January 02, 2009

the half-assed molius 2008 year in review

huh. after looking at the first post that TK had for the year, i thought i'd see what i said and realized that i had actually done some sort of half-assed wrap up. so, as 2009 is now nearly 2 days old, i figure i'll rip the basis of my 2007 year in review and see what i could cobble together.

so, here is my half-assed 2008 year in review.

molius musical find of the 2008: none really. musically, there wasn't a whole lot that caught my attention. the last few years i've found some great music, but 2008 was pretty sad. sure some good stuff came out, but it was all stuff from bands i already was familiar with. i suppose the closest i get to musical finds are more the rediscovery of songs i like. Ghost Riders In the Sky and Where Did You Sleep Last Night? (a.k.a. In The Pines & Black Girl) being the two most recent re-discoveries. House of the Rising Sun is another that is on the list. (past winners: 2007 - Porcupine Tree, 2006 - Tom Waits, 2005 - The Residents)

runner up: none

molius album of 2008: none really. some really strong efforts, some really good discs, but nothing that truly stood out. i think the closest i get would be The Residents - Bunny Boy.

molius concert of 2008: a toss up. i'm not one for going to concerts, but i saw two significant ones and i loved each for different reasons. and the best part is i saw them within a month of each other.

The Residents - Bunny Boy (Foxboro, 10/12/08)
one of the most cryptic bands in the world unleashed The Bunny Boy and decided that they would tour. so much to the delight of TK & i, we had a chance to witness an incredible concert only feet away. The Residents put together one hell of a show that really did take you on an emotional trip. and in the end, we were left walking away thrilled, sad, elated, frustrated. it truly was an incredible experience.

Nine Inch Nails - Lights In the Sky (Manchester 11/08/08)
a band i have loved for years, and the chance to see what Trent Reznor put together and it was well worth it. a show that was well worth the price of admission. the band, the lights, the effects, the songs, the flow, everything was well done. after the show, i walked back to my car wondering why i hadn't bought a ticket for the following night.

molius movie of 2008: The Dark Knight. i'm sure that it is a semi-hacky selection, but i really did love it, even if my ass hurt when we left the theater. my favorite scene by far was the disappearing pencil trick. The Joker summed up in a single moment.

runner up: i'll pick two - Iron Man which was just pure fun from the beginning. my second choice is In Bruges. a very funny movie that was enhanced by the simple fact that M&i had visited the lovely town only 6 months before we saw the movie. a dark comedy, that was very funny created around an unfortunate happening.

molius (over)hype of the year: election 2008

it never ended. and when it did, it was rather anticlimactic.

molius disappointment of the year: the lack of financial vision. i have been saying for some time that we were long overdue for a correction, but when it finally happened, everyone was saying "I NEVER SAW IT COMING!"

bullshit - you were blinded by greed and you knew damn well that you were fucked. who the fuck thinks that just because i say i make minimum wage i can afford a $500k mortgage? banks are fucking stupid and people are fucking stupid. and now i get penalized for your stupidity. so now we have this umpteen billion dollar bailout plan, the housing market fucked, the big 3 american automakers crying for help and who gets to pay for it? thanks a lot you assholes.

molius personal discovery of 2008: cute kids aren't all that scary. in fact, they can be kind of fun.

to my small circle of friends: i said it last year and i think it sums up my thoughts.

thank you. thank you for your friendship. thank you for your support. and you need only to ask.

happy 2009.


Read More......

what a pain in my ass

the other day i got an email that i thought was spam (and it was to a degree, but now it really is) from redboxdvd. as i wanted to make sure it wasn't anything dangerous, i read the message on my phone and then marked it as spam.

then i received 3 messages today and now i realize that some asshole fucked up their email address and i get the benefit of that typo.

so this is what i received:

Dear NOT_YOUR_FUCKING_EMAIL_ADDRESS_ASSHOLE

Your copy of "Wanted" was successfully returned on 1/2/2009 7:35 PM.

Your return was on time. You will receive a receipt via email when we process your account.

Thanks for using Redbox!

Return Details
Barcode: 008404269
Transaction ID: 215776023

Return location: McDonalds (view inventory here)
501 Frederick Rd
Catonsville, MD 21228-4624

Rent date/time: 1/1/2009 3:38 PM
Due date/time: 1/2/2009 9:00 PM
Return date/time: 1/2/2009 7:35 PM


Questions? Comments? Contact Redbox Customer Service
Phone: 1-866-REDBOX3
Email: questions@redbox.com
FAQ: http://www.redbox.com/Help/Faq.aspx



DVD rentals cost only $1.00 + tax until 9:00 PM the next evening, then $1.00 + tax for each night thereafter. After 25 days, rental charges will cease and the DVD is yours to keep.


they also rented Tropic Thunder and The House Bunny (what the fuck is that one?)

so because some asshole plugged in the wrong email address, i now get their dvd rental information.

i'll try and remember to post what rent just for shits and giggles.

oh yeah.

happy new year.


Read More......

Monday, December 29, 2008

today just sucked.

the only bright spot of the day came tonight when i was invited to dinner tomorrow night. at least i now have something to look forward to tomorrow.



Read More......

Saturday, December 27, 2008

stupid news

i have the WBZ news on this morning and i was thinking that it's a bit more straight forward news rather than the usual hacky-try-and-crack-a-joke news we usually see.

but then they ran a quick story on the whole digital tv conversion in february. and in typical fashion, they neglect to point out the most important fact.

Does the DTV transition affect TV sets that are connected to cable services?

No. If you subscribe to cable service, the DTV transition should not affect any TV sets that are connected to your cable services. The DTV transition applies only to full-power broadcast television stations – stations that use the public airwaves to transmit their programming to viewers through a broadcast antenna.


and to make this answer even more clear - if you have a cable box (comcast, verizon, roadrunner, direct tv, whatever), then you are FINE.

you do NOT need to buy the converter box.

this only applies to anyone who watches tv using rabbit ears. if you don't use rabbit ears when watching tv, then this will not affect you.

but of course, nearly every single news story i have seen that talks about this neglects to mention this important fact.


Read More......