iGeekdom continues

Ok...so i got my ipod touch and it's pretty frigging cool. I love how it feels like I'm using technology right out of minority report. I do have some problems with it, what I call the "New York Subway" issue.

I get freaked out any time I have to show any new toy on the subway. I think some weird stalker is watching me and figuring out a way to follow me off the train and eventually cut me up to get my first rate electronics. So when I get a new shiny toy I try my best to keep it hidden. With the older ipods, you could keep it in your pocket, and could sense where the controls were, so it was no problem to go to the next song, lower the volume, or hit pause. Here, there is no contextual touch point to turn off the iPod touch, hit pause, or what not. If there is, I don't know how to do it yet, that's for sure. Apparently I hear that the iPhone's headphones had a button that stops and starts, but seeing how Apple's headphones traditionally suck, I use my Bose in-ear headphones. So that's my only gripe.

The plus side is the thing is frigging cool. I love it for the ability to show pictures and it's like a walking digital album. I've been showing off my wedding pictures and other assorted things so i Love it.

I've also enjoyed putting videos on it, TV shows I've burned but also videos I've shot with my digital camera and then transferred on via iTunes.

Now, being a big digital junkie, I also am a huge TV fan. i work in advertising and like to keep my finger on the pulse of pop culture. I have Time Warner DVR, and I find myself taping a gazillion shows I never got to watch. It seems a waste that I had a digital recorder and yet no way to transfer the shows into a playable format on my ipod. (Screw paying $1.99 an episode for something I'm already paying for). So today, my brother sent me a link to this new toy called the iRecord. Basically, my understanding is that it allows you to transfer files from your DVR to your iPod. So now when i'm travelling, I can watch all the shows I don't have time to see on my couch but might be able to when I'm sitting around waiting around to do nothing.

Then again, it is $199.99, so one has to ask yourself where it stands on the priority list. Still pretty cool.

Fed Ex doesn't understand dates or "My iPod Touch breaks the space-time continuum"

So luckily my complete dork-dom didn't kick in and I didn't buy an iPOd Touch while my iPod touch is on its way. Take a look at where my iPod has ventured. Apparently it started the day (Sept 23) in anchorage Alaska, then left for Tennessee where it somehow went forward in the space time continuum to September 24, where I'm guessing it was at my home although the tracking system doesn't actually say where it was on the 24th, only to correct itself and end up back in Tennessee on the 23rd.

Awesome work, FEDEX.

Anywhere else

So I will start my diatribe today on how I don't believe man is destined to spend his life indoors.

Ok, i get that we are indeed supposed to work for a living, but it feels like most of us live our existence of working side by side strangers in uncomfortable joint working rooms with no privacy to make some money and live in a small apartment in a cramped city we can barely afford but we think we like it so we just keep on working in this weird cycle. But it does seem odd that in this age of technology, where things are supposed to be easier, we just find ourselves working harder and harder, and faster, and instead of taking time to do things great, we work fast to do things fast, and then we set a standard of doing things fast that it becomes all we know and what people expect from us at all times. And suddenly, you become conditioned so that you don’t even know who you are anymore or what you really want, you just are someone who wants things done quickly and fast, and if given time to slow down you don’t know what to do with yourself, like some person who after getting out of prison is so scared of the great unknown they’d almost prefer to be back in their tiny cell where it’s safe and it’s all they know.

And I can’t help but believe there’s a way to break out of that mindset, to not be just another ant marching or another cog in the machine.

A quick email exchange with an old friend.

Matt to Ian: so where's ur office? mine's in hells kitchen? where u up for meeting and waht time u thinking?

Ian to Matt: Hey man...

Maybe 7? I think I can do that, have a meeting at three will determine. Not much later than that though.Lets just meet at zum. I work in soho

Matt to Ian: dude, zum is an absolute nightmare. anywhere else that is remotely closer?

Ian to Matt:
Dude Zum is not a nightmare.A nightmare is getting picked up for a routine traffic violation, getting set up for a drug bust, assaulting the police officer, killing the police officer, getting 25 to life, going to jail, getting raped, and subsequently dying of AIDS in prison cell. All alone. See you at 7!

Ian to Matt: Ok. That's another way to put it.

Wednesday Morning Rant

Nothing Big to report, other than it's wednesday and I've spent the better half of the morning with the song "Manic Monday" stuck in my head. Not sure where it came from, but it's caused this chain reaction in my head of thinking of the song "hazy shade of winter"the version performed by Bangles but it actually was written by Simon & Garfunkel. One of those odd things you never knew. Kind of like when I found out that Because the night wasn't written by Natalie Merchant's band (the group is escaping my mind right now) but Bruce Springsteen. Oh, and he also wrote Blinded by the light. Interesting stuff.

What else Can i tell you about? My fantasy football league is in full swing. And for anyone who cares, this is my team, an otherwise solid lineup.
Jon Kitna, QB
Larry Johnson, RB
Lamont Jordan, RB
Edgerrin James, RB
Roy Williams, WR
Donald Driver, WR
Jeremy Shockey, TE
Shayne Graham, K.

As of now, I'm 1-1 which is a fair start. And while losing our first game by merely a few points (and the fact that the only other team other than the one who beat us had highest points) once all our players start performing then we should be unstoppable. (Annoying though, to know you'd be 2-0 had you faced any other team).

And...in case you didn't know, I'm superbad.

iTease (alternate title: iCry or iLame or I'm Lame)

So I'm still seething about calling the apple store yesterday and having them tell me the iPod Touch is in stock. yes, i'm one of those early-adopting geeks who just has to have something the minute they see it (but I did fight off the urge to drop Verizon and pick up AT&T and get screwed over to pay a $700 iPhone) and the moment I saw it for sale I admit I ordered it online. But, I'm not one to wait for it to be delivered so when I heard that the flagship store had some in stock I raced over, only to find out that they had indeed sold out like 30 minutes ago. This would not have bothered me if not for the woman telling me they "had plenty in stock, so no worries."

It got so bad that I actually went on to ebay and saw all the scumbags who were trying to sell the iPod Touches they got for a $100 or even $200-$300 over the cost. I almost bid on one but then when I realized that I would be paying more for an 8GB than I would for the 16GB, reality jumped in. Well that and my bank account and my realization that I'd rather eat dinner tonight then watch the movie Diner on my iPod Touch. Guess I'll wait until the end of the month.

And We're baaaaack!

So my now wife has informed me that it has been over a year since I even tried to make a post on this thing, so I'm trying to start it up again, and maybe it's just like riding a bike. Apparently though, it's gotten much easier to do blogging since I was here a bit ago, and apparently much easier to add in pictures and video, which is good because I am a fan of both.
Anyhow, here's the initial launching campaign, and a picture from my wedding.

I want to write something clever and smart, and funny, but that comes later.

What is inspiration?

Nothing short of promise.

That's it, plain and simple. It's the belief that creation is possible, and that it can come from you Inspiration is the world at large calling to you telling you that what was created thus far, for better or for worse, is simply not enough.

The conduit is you, and you are obligated to respond. Because if you don't, you'll become locked up, quiet, desperate and longing to scream.

So scream, when inspiration calls.

Point of Contact

red eye
Originally uploaded by msgfarb.

I do wonder who was the creative genius who thought it would be interesting to take a piece of plastic and put it in your eye to see BETTER!

I'm not complaining, b/c after wearing contact for a few days i can see a bit better, but i've still yet to come to terms with trying to get a piece of plastic in my eyeball. What i'm really curious about was how they pitched the idea in the first place and who was the guinea pig who agreed to try a pair of contact lens in the first place.

"this won't hurt a bit."
"Are you sure?"
"No not really, you are the first one to try them on"
"Well how do you know they won't hurt?"
"I don't, i was just making small talk."
"Is that plastic?"
"Sort of."
"Sort of?"
"Well, we took ur prescription, put it on a shrinky dink type material, through it in the oven until it shrunk...now hear, jam this thing on your eyeball."

I digress.
I love contacts, b/c with eye drops, it's like instant emotion. if my girlfriend tells me something tragic that i'msuppossed to cry about that I can't cry about, i can just pour some tears in. It's kind of funny..."I've got these feelings..."

JOB FRONT

So after 4 months of serious looking, still nothing concrete in sight, although there are 4 bites on the proverbial employment fishing rod.

SPOOKY TOOTH
I'm pretty sure my dentist is incompetent. I've had half a tooth for two months and the first molding they did, they had a gold tooth prepared for me...i guess they wanted me to be all crunked out. Then when i went to get the real tooth put in, it didnt fit, so they had to do a new mold...and then the temp tooth fell out...ok i swallowed it. Wonder what that will look like coming out of my intestinal tract.