Tim and the Tin Titan

29.9.03

Trailers for Geeks
Lord fo the Rings: Return Of The King
Low 9 megs, Quicktime

The Matrix: Revolutions
High 49 megs, Quicktime
Med 28.5 megs, Quicktime
Low 14.1 megs, Quicktime

It's the same everywhere...
Rules for shopping at Costco. I think I was behind them last time I was there...

From best of craigslist, from the hilarious to the stupid to the touching.

[update] Another good one:
spell-checking is sexy and 10 other aphrodisiacs

Neo I am not...
try2hack is a hacking contest where you try to find ways to get around the login/password asked for each level. While the first one is pretty basic, they start to get complicated fast... I broke level 1,2 and 3 but am stuck on 4 and I think I have reached the end of my web coding skills. Any takers?

Old Wisdom
'Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. And when the drums of war reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has 'closed', the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all their rights unto the leader and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. AND I AM CAESAR.' --Julius Caesar

It seems so strange that words written so long ago can still ring true today.

Found in this Metafilter thread.

23.9.03

Side I vs Side P, Fight!
They didn't allow each other real names, because they each refused to formally recognize the other's existence. Side I was the ultimate unassimilable ethnic group. Side P, which should have been doing at least as well as, say, the Lebanese or the Cypriots, preferred hating Side I to building a functional economy, civil society, or government.
...
The Wall is a practical solution of sorts - better than war and a lot more psychologically realistic than outsiders' blather about peace. After all, Greek and Turkish Cypriots, who once slaughtered each other's children with gusto, erected a wall in 1974, and it has mellowed them considerably. The DMZ between North and South Korea is now a wildlife refuge. The Great Wall of China is a tourist attraction. So what could be wrong with the Great Wall of the Holy Land, besides the fact that it fails to adhere to UN-recognized borders, traps innocent Side Ps in Side I territory, screws up the water table, and wastes useful farming acreage?


An interesting op-ed peice by Bruce Sterling in Wired about the wall that is being built between Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Ain't that the truth!
Nerve.com's The Unsexy List

41. Flavored lube. If God wanted us to taste like kiwi, he would have made us kiwis. (Also applicable to lip gloss.)

[Update: Chatting with Dante]
D: "5. Lord of the Rings. The movies are fine, but did you know that if you read the trilogy three times in a year you actually get your virginity back?"
D: A lot of people in high school must have had double or triple virginity.
T: :) I like that one too
T: triple virginity :) sounds like something that is hard to break in...
D: Or a cocktail. "I'll have the triple virginity with a twist of lemon."
T: :)) indeed
D: Wait, isn't triple virgin a type of olive oil?
T: it should be the name of a waterproof seal: "new waterproof case featuring patented TripleVirginity Seals (tm) "
D: Wow, it won't ever get wet.
T: LOL
D: I couldn't resist.

22.9.03

Brand Watch
LucJam.com's American Brandstand is not your average "Top Chart". It is a chart of the top brand names mentioned in the Hot 100 Billboard chart. And as would be expected, the brandname dropping is almost exclusively the domain of hip hop acts. While the top three are not surprising (Mercedes, Lexus, Gucci), there are some unexpected entries (Payless Shoe Source, Burger King, Ramada Inn). Interesting to see what is considered the ultimate in bling bling.

Oh no, not again...



Found in a restaurant bar.

18.9.03

Change, for the better
I can say that I am proud of my country's politicians these days. It's not often I will say that but the recent votes and decisions to support gay unions shows that there might be some good in these people after all. First came the defeat (albeit by a very narrow margin) of the Alliance motion to redefine marriage as "the union of a man and a woman" [Washington Post] and now the passing of a bill to extend hate-crimes protection to homosexuals [CBC].

It just makes me feel good to see some social progress here while seeing the reverse happening in many part of the US. I just think that the state has nothing to say what two consenting adult are allowed to do in the privacy of their relationship. Also, if people want to make a commitment to each other, with the rights and responsibilities that go along with it, I don't see why the fact that they are of the same sex or not should matter. Many opponents of gay marriages say that "it will weaken the notion of marriage and the family". I cannot fathom how what other people do can possibly weaken your own union. Will more people embrace the "gay lifestyle" as a result of these decisions? Probably, yes, but they will be people who were already gay but closeted and terrified of the social stigma still attached to being gay. The religious right would rather have these people live in denial and pain all their lives to appease their own righteousness. Homosexuality is not a disease, you do not become gay being around gay people, but it does make it easier to come out if you are in a supportive environment and that's a good thing.

Between this and the legalization of marijuana, we will become the Religious Right's worst enemy; a position that makes me think we are on the right track :)

This is what every amateur movie should be
Art of the Saber is probably the best amateur movie I have ever seen.

A light saber fight sequence with the flavor of a Hong Kong martial arts action movie. This short is set in a dense forest of an unknown planet, where a young Jedi, eager to fight to help the Revolution, clashes with a Sith Lord in a battle where only one will remain standing. Music by Hans Zimmer and a monologue extracted from an authentic Civil War love letter written in 1861, help to set the tone for this movie.

It is very well made and the ambiance is just great. You can see that some though was put into this instead of just "lets fight with light sabers". It's a hefty download at 43 megs [direct download link] but well worth it.

11.9.03

This Is New...


[Translation: Parking for Pregnant Women]

From the parking lot of a grocery store on Wellington street in Verdun. I have seen parking for the handicapped, families (at Ikea) and large vehicules (in the states) but this is the first time I see one for pregnant women. Strangely, there were no pictograms of women with big bellies painted on the asphalt :)

9.9.03

Feeling Lost?



The directory computer in my building's lobby.

National week of what?



Next Week: National Week of People Just Doing Their Job

6.9.03

56k of Caribean Love
Just tought I'd be a total geek and post from here in Cuba, while on honeymoon :) I don't think it gets better than this.

The weather is just great, the resort is wonderful and we finally finished our scuba diving certification. It's all good...

The digicam is getting full but our flight is tomorrow so we'll be alright. I'll have plenty of pictures from the wedding and honeymoon when I get back and can get them sorted.

See you soon!