Buff Terror

Another weird dream

What is with this?

I had another dream last night/this morning about being in school. This time though it was high school, and I was waiting for my dad to drive me there. That's the only detail I recall. What's this aboot, eh?

Music Nerd Stuff

I've put together a playlist using the Dream Theater "meta-album" beginning and ending tracks. For those not familiar with the meta-album, Wikipedia describes it as such:

...the last note or noise of one album is the same or similar to the beginning of the next. The Dream Theater meta-album spans 4 albums, from Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory to Octavarium. Octavarium ends the meta-album by having the same piano note at the beginning and end of the same album, with the last lyrics stating "This story ends where it began."

Here are the tracks in the playlist:

1. Finally Free (Final song on Scenes From a Memory, ends with static from a phonograph)
2. The Glass Prison (First song on Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, begins with the static that closes Finally Free)
3. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence VII. About to Crash (Reprise)
4. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence VIII. Losing Time / Grand Finale (Final song on Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, fades out on a sustained E chord played on a synthesizer)
5. As I Am (First song on Train of Thought, opens with the same synth chord that closed Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence)
6. In the Name of God (Final song on Train of Thought, ends with a single note (F) played on a piano)
7. The Root of All Evil (First song on Octavarium, opens with the piano note that closed Train of Thought)
8. Octavarium (Final song on Octavarium, ends with the same piano note that opened the album, completing the meta-album cycle)

I may fill out the playlist more now that the framework is in place, but it's already quite long (8 songs spanning 1.5 hours). The next step is to edit the Finally Free and The Glass Prison mp3s with Audacity to make the transition seamless.

Crazy Dream

I had some crazy dream last night that I was still in college. In the dream I was freaking out because I realized there was a class that I hadn't been to but once all semester. I was frantically searching through my book bag to find my class schedule, because I couldn't remember what time or where the class met. Then I woke up and realized that I graduated from college 10 years ago.

I wonder how much a "blowbo" costs

Today's Penny Arcade is the hilarity:

"A Carnival of Delights"

I'm guessing the price of a blowbo is negotiable.

QotD: Sunday Funday

What's your favorite thing about Sunday?

It's not Monday. Yet. 

And that brings me to my least favorite thing about Sunday; it's almost Monday.  Unless of course Monday is a holiday, then Sunday is like a second Saturday.

SMS Snooping

Text message snoop? Study says beware

SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - Can't help checking your partner's text messages on the sly? You're not alone, with an Australian survey showing one in three mobile phone users are text message snoops, and the consequences can often be heart-breaking.

The online survey, conducted for telecoms service provider Virgin Mobile Australia, shows that women are more likely than men to check their partner's phone in secret.

It also revealed that 73 percent of these sneaky text checkers have found out things they later wished they hadn't, and 10 percent ended their relationship because of SMS snooping.

As far as I am concerned text messages are no different than email, diaries, etc.  It's personal correspondance, and you don't go reading it unless the owner gives you explicit permission to do so.

People: what is wrong with them?

Fun size my ass

Why are miniature sized chocolate bars always called "Fun Size"?  What the hell is more fun about getting less candy than you would with a normal sized bar?

What a load of crap.

WTF, Mate!?

I have been trying to pre-order the new AC/DC album from their online store.  I was able to register an account with my Australian address.  Yet, when I fill out the order form, USA is the only option for a country, so of course the form validation does not recognize NSW as a valid state.

WTF!?!

AC/DC is an Australian band. Wouldn't they want people in Australia to be able to easily pre-order their new album?

I want to break something.

Hell Rules

My copy of The Rules of Hell Black Sabbath box set arrived this morning:

The Rules of Hell

Black Sabbath

It takes so damn long for things to get here from Amazon's US store.  I really wish they'd open an Australia or Oceania store.  I guess they've decided that it is not economically viable.

CSS Tips

Stumbled on this article earlier:
10 Principles of the CSS Masters

Lots of interesting tips, like keeping declarations on one line to make the document more readable (this is debatable IMO) and reduce the size of the style sheet, and using the correct doctype.

As an aside, I have found Eric Meyer's CSS books indispensable for learning various "tricks of the trade."  I have copies of the CSS the Definitive Guide (1st edition) and More Eric Meyer on CSS (and the original Eric Meyer on CSS is on my Amazon.com wishlist).