http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/ en Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:47:17 GMT vBulletin 60 http://forums.biorust.com/images/misc/rss.jpg http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/ http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/264-shameless-semi-self-promotion.html Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:26:35 GMT www.femrecords.com



A social networking section, forum (must register before you can see the forum) and store.

MySpace is here: www.myspace.com/femrecords

(No, I'm not one of the artists) ;) ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/264-shameless-semi-self-promotion.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/262-power-people.html Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:16:49 GMT Before making digital music gained mass appeal and every kid with a computer could glue together pre made drum loops with pre made riff loops, and upload it to the world wide web, there were musicians - real musicians. Not all those musicians were professionally trained, many couldn't read music, but they could play, they could sing or they could write. And way back then there were the mighty record labels who would seek out the real talent and serve it up to the masses on vinyl. Some of what the mighty record labels served was sh*t, but it was filtered sh*t. Cream of the crop sh*t, if you will. Being one of those elite record label artists was the goal of every kid with a guitar because it was the only way you could get your music to Joe Public. With the advent of digital, the filter's defeated, the flood gates are open and Joe Public is drowning in sewage.

So I look to the comfort of books. At least those are still controlled by the mighty book publishers. At least the sh*t they serve up is still filtered, still quality sh*t.
But technology wins again.
Yesterday I stumbled across an online on-demand book publisher where every inept witless dolt with MSWord can be a printed author. No proof readers, no editors, no continuity checks, no damn filter! Someone opened the damn flood gates again!

At least I've got the internet where I can post my malcontent on a public blog! ;) ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/262-power-people.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/256-rats.html Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:03:55 GMT Yesterday my daughter came home with a small box - I knew something was up by that little glimmer in her eye. When she opened the box I was very surprised to find an itty bitty pink shape wiggling around inside. She found this 2/3 day old pink baby rat alone in the middle of the grocery store... Yesterday my daughter came home with a small box - I knew something was up by that little glimmer in her eye. When she opened the box I was very surprised to find an itty bitty pink shape wiggling around inside. She found this 2/3 day old pink baby rat alone in the middle of the grocery store parking lot. She picked it up with a napkin and took it to the pet store which is right next door. They said that they couldn't take it because it was not domestic, however, they did fill a latex glove with warm water and put it in a box with some bedding for the little runt. They also gave her a little can of condensed milk.
So here we are with this little pink rat, no bigger than a quarter, that we're feeding every two/three hours. I've contacted a couple rescues to see if they'd take "Lucky" in, but so far no luck. It's a rat after all, and not a domesticated one.
What to do, what to do.

** We've located a local wildlife preserve called Walden's Puddle that's agreed to take the little bugger. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/256-rats.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/253-carnivale.html Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:38:08 GMT A friend stopped by with a few items he thought we might be interested in. A Genesis box set (mildly interesting, not a big fan of the Phil Collins years), an inspirational book (he's very religious and takes every chance to convert), and a two season DVD box set of an HBO series called, "Carnivale". He made it a point to warn us that it has a lot of gratuitous sex scenes. Gratuitous Sex! Now we're talkin'! We had to see what our righteous friend was so determined to warn us about, so that night we watched the first episode.
I was hooked in the first scene. So David Lynch-ish! So dark! So well done! Well thought out characters, scenes and plot. We liked it so much that we watched two episodes each night (three on the weekends, 24 total episodes).
It's set in the dust bowl of the 1930's centering on the plight of a rundown traveling carnivale and a small town preacher's ascent to evangelist with a flock of 17,000.
Good vs. Evil, with a twist.
The story isn't just handed to you on a silver platter. You see bits and pieces that might not fit the puzzle for several episodes. You have to think while you're watching - which is probably why it was cancelled after two seasons.
The series was written to span 6 seasons. Each episode cost 4 million and the first year went well, however, the second year's viewers slacked off and unless they could do each episode for 2 million they were going to have to cancel it. Thus, the last two episodes are a quick wrap-up and although they were well done, they couldn't answer everything.
I'd still recommend watching "Carnival" if you get the chance.

http://www.hbo.com/carnivale/

Ps: I can see now why our friend gave the Carnival box set away. ;) Oh, and the "gratuitous sex" was very tastefully done. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/253-carnivale.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/252-fly-must-die.html Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:28:19 GMT It must belong to an elite squad or undercover surveillance team - obviously of black-ops origin. Sure, it's pretending to fly around all confused, bumping into the windows and walls - but I wasn't born yesterday ... like it was. I know a spy fly when I see one. No doubt it's carrying high speed video that feeds directly to it's HQ. No ... no it would bounce over several servers so it couldn't be traced. Tricky bassturds.

I know how it got into the house too. Cleverly pretending to be caught in the spider web by the back door - it waited, oh yes, it waited until the hounds wanted out, then zoom!

There it goes again! Dive bombing my computer screen! Having the audacity to land on my hair! Buzz off!

Here it comes again ... that's all right, I'm ready this time. I'll exercise my right to bare arms with this useless fitness magazine! Whack! Damn, it's quick. Whack! Oh, ... well, I'll clean that up later. Whack! Whack! Whack! Nothing on the mag, damn. But it's quiet. Too quiet.

Off sulking? Strategizing? Tending your wounded .... ego?
Apparently you don't know who you're messing with!

Until next time, Monsieur Fly ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/252-fly-must-die.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/250-grumble-grumble-grumble.html Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:06:47 GMT I Farging hate designing websites.

Basic HTML isn't good enough anymore and sites made entirely in FLASH can't be updated by the client easily, so what's the oh-so-cool latest trend? CMS websites. Content Management Systems. I'm learning Joomla and man oh man, I'm just burnt out. How much more insanely convoluted could it possibly be? Extensions, Module Manager, Plugin Manager, Front Page Manager, Media Manager, Section Manager, Article Manager and Components (calendars, news feeds, banners, galleries, polls ... etc). Must create a category to put your sections in which hold your articles which contain your extensions .... AARRGH! And after you get the damn thing organized there's all the tweaking! Torturous hours niddly fiddling with individual module configurations and CSS.

I think I'll just shave my head and save myself the trouble of ripping my hair out one clump at a time. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/250-grumble-grumble-grumble.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/248-windsong-stays-my-mind.html Tue, 26 May 2009 13:20:02 GMT It was short, but sweet. Last Thursday we ventured out to a rental cabin named, "Windsong" nestled in the Smoky Mountains near Gatlinburg. The edge eroded single lane roads leading to the cabin were long, steep and twisted. We didn't exactly get lost, but the instructions were pretty sketchy and the roads weren't well marked and some of them not at all. Once we found it, it turned out to be a really nice cabin clinging to the side of a foothill. Even though there are hundreds of cabins around the area we could barely see any through the vegetation - and that was nice. There was a postcard view of the Smokies from the balcony, albeit limited by the surrounding trees. The reason we were there was because "boyfriend-in-law" (my daughters boyfriend) wanted to go to an Opeth (yuck) concert in Knoxville and we thought to just make a weekend of it. We were joined at the cabin by boyfriend-in-law's friend and her daughter whom were Opeth fans too.

Unusual for us, we slept with the windows open and were greeted at sunrise by a symphony of birdsong. We made the trek to Clingmans Dome and even though the view was somewhat obscured by thick clouds it was beautiful to behold.

We wanted to skip the Gatlinburg commercialism and tourist crowds (and it was insanely crowded) so we asked the locals for some recommendations on their best local restaurants. We took their combined advice and went to an expensive one. The place was populated by the geriatric crowd (which should have been a big red flag) and the food they served was bland bland bland. We were all disappointed. We agreed that it must have been a fluke and decided to try another local recommendation after we checked out on our last day. Bland again. At least this time it was cheap. We concluded that the entire "local" population of the Gatlinburg area must be 70 years old and up, have no gallbladders (or teeth), and enjoy food that's been run through the deflavorizer.

Aside from the restaurant blues, the trip was really nice - even if it was for only a couple days. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/248-windsong-stays-my-mind.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/247-21-years.html Wed, 13 May 2009 18:19:57 GMT Twenty One years ago today I stood in front of Judge Ann Lacy Johns in Nashville's Criminal Court and be came a wife. That May 13th fell on a Friday. I never wanted that massively expensive "biggest day of my life" kind of wedding - and my husband has been eternally grateful. I watched both of my older sisters go from happy, loving post-college giggly girls into stark raving, post-apocalyptic mutant yetis over their weddings. I firmly believe in learning from others mistakes.

So here I am 21 years later. Am I happy? I think so. Well, most of the time. I wouldn't say it's bliss, but it's not exactly hell either, although there have been a couple brief ventures into the eternal fires - but there have also been good times. Most of the time it's, what? It's just what it is. It's marriage.

When I was young I swore I would never get married and I would absolutely never have children. I also swore that I'd never get involved with a musician - especially one in my band - didn't keep that promise either. Sometimes we just don't really know what we want. But as it turns out, having children is wonderful. Being married is pretty good too - even if it is to a musician that was in my band.

So here's to my first 21 years of marriage. May we survive 21 more. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/247-21-years.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/224-rocking-boat.html Thu, 26 Feb 2009 17:21:59 GMT It's been 3.5 years since I became a staff employee and my pay rate has never changed. Last November I asked for a raise and was told that it's not a good time, ask again in January. Now it's almost March and I can't bring myself to ask again. I'm afraid to ask. I need it and think I deserve it, but with the economy as it is I'm afraid to open that can of worms. They've cut many jobs, cut hours and closed clubs because of it.

It seems simple. I call my boss and mention the raise again. I know they like what I do, he said that when I asked in November. But ...
What if the answer is no. After all, I was one of the many people that got slapped with the 50% pay cut a while back and I had to fight like a cornered badger to keep my regular pay. So a flat out refusal is half expected anyway. Then what? They'll know they have a disgruntled employee and what do companies do in that situation? They find a replacement. A younger, cheaper replacement - and graphics / web people are a dime a dozen. Granted, I'm the Supervisor, Manager, and Grunt for the entire Internet and Graphics division of the company (yeah, it's just me) but nobody is irreplaceable.

In light of my fears, I've been scouring graphics & web jobs to see what's out there. You know, just in case. I've even tossed my hat into the ring on several openings and haven't even received a "thanks, but no thanks" response. just nothing. I've come to realize that I'm just not marketable. It doesn't matter that I've been using Photoshop since version 1.x or that I've got some impressive projects under my belt or that I can take criticism, work well with customers, or any of the stipulations they require. And hell, I'm not half bad either. But none of that matters. What matters is that I don't have the degree. A degree in digital arts didn't even exist in 1981 when I went to college.

Unless, I'm just kidding myself and I'm really only mediocre (or worse) and that's the whole tamale.

Seeing now that I couldn't even get another job, do I rock the boat on the one I have? ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/224-rocking-boat.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/206-duma-key.html Wed, 07 Jan 2009 21:50:47 GMT Just finished reading Stephen King's "Duma Key". I know it's cliche, but once I got started I couldn't put it down (to my family's chagrin). I really enjoyed the interaction between the two main characters and the humor between them. Lots of little sarcastic jabs that struck my funny bone. Kings central character is more often than not an author, but in this book his main character is a construction guy turned artist after a near death on-the-job accident. His paintings however, are inspired by and become a portal for something evil.

"Yeah, and?" I hear you say, Ok, my description sums it up in a remedial fashion, but it's a good read.

This one definitely ranks up there as one of my favorite King books. :woot:

Edit: I just read some reviews of Duma Key and they were scathing! They hated it - said King's gotten old - washed up - predictable. I must be one simple minded, easily amused reader. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/206-duma-key.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/201-lord-rings.html Fri, 02 Jan 2009 19:24:23 GMT As a comparison, after having seen the movies for "Lord of the Rings" a long time ago, I decided to read the book and watch the movies again after I completed each section of the book. I'm glad I had seen the movies first, otherwise I would have been lost reading the book. Even so, I still had to refer to the 'map' several times to figure out where the characters were. Also because each place had several different names, as well as each character had several different names.

I'm no literary scholar but I like what I like, and I think the story is great, but Tolkien's writing style drags. Much too much description of the surrounding landscape and not near enough for the action or emotion/interaction of the characters - for my liking. Too often in the dialog he would use exclamation points, yet the character was being solemn or whispering. "Queer" is way overused in the beginning and each time it popped up it was like being poked in the eye.

I liked the parts that were missing from the movies, although I can understand why they were left out. All in all I think the movies did the book justice.

I haven't read "The Hobbit" yet, and I think I will do so before I watch the movie(s)this time. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/201-lord-rings.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/176-cooking-skillz-test.html Mon, 10 Nov 2008 23:50:17 GMT My darling daughter's boyfriends parents (and an aunt) will be coming down to spend Thanksgiving with us. I rarely cook for anyone but my family (to avoid law suits), but "boyfriend" will probably end up being "husband" at some point anyway, and our visitors will become in-laws. So I'm in the frying pan. The menu will be the same as last year ( Thanksgiving Dinner ) but can I pull it off for 8 people?

My dining table only seats 4, so to accommodate 8 people, we'll be hauling in the patio table & chairs and dining in the living room (I doubt it will be warm enough to eat outside, although that would be very cool).

The day before, the boyfriend will be whipping up another French dinner, although this time it will only be 9 courses instead of 11. I should buy stock in dishwasher nuggets.

Anyway, wish me luck. :) ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/176-cooking-skillz-test.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/169-motivation-gone-bad.html Mon, 03 Nov 2008 01:38:23 GMT If I could, I would plaster my walls with these: http://despair.com/viewall.html There is now a Battle using the same idea! Make your own depressing poster! If I could, I would plaster my walls with these:

http://despair.com/viewall.html

There is now a Battle using the same idea!
Make your own depressing poster! ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/169-motivation-gone-bad.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/160-horror-story.html Sun, 19 Oct 2008 22:32:18 GMT A while ago I wrote a story based on the theme, "Horror at the Circus". It didn't fair well in the competition, but I thought I'd post it here in the spirit of Halloween.


Falling to pieces.


Mark rolled his eyes. He never liked the dark or freak shows and being dragged to Big Birtha's Traveling Circus for the late show spiked his creep-o-meter to eleven. But he knew when Randy got something in his head there was no changing his mind.

The big tent was chock-full of thrill seeking spectators. Every eye was on The Magnificent Willy Squire - King of the High Wire as he peddled his unicycle while juggling fake bowling pins. He bounced and teetered out in the center of the high wire that spanned the two main support poles of the huge circus tent. Below him the midget clowns streamed endlessly out of the tiny clown car while canned circus music crackled through the speakers.

Randy and Mark found a place to sit about half way up the crowded wooden risers. Randy reached in his back pocket and produced a flattened Snickers bar. Mark wrinkled his nose and said, "Geez, Randy, that looks like dog sh*t."

"Yeah, nice gooey brown dog sh*t, ya jerk." Randy snickered then shoved a melted piece in his mouth, deliberately smearing some chocolate on his lips. "You know, you aughta be kissin' my royal tush. I saved us fourteen bucks by slipping in under the fence."

"Yeah, well I wanted to watch the space shuttle come in. It's coming in tonight, ya know. The astronauts had all these problems after take off. They ––"

"Big deal." Randy said waving his hand as though Mark's words had become annoying flies. "You can see that any ol' time, but the Circus? Dude, it only comes in once a year! Now quit yer yammerin', ya jerk."

Magnificent Willy was balancing a chair on his forehead when a distant heavy thud-rumble shook the stands. Willy wobbled a bit but didn't let it interrupt his finale. Another huge thud-scrape, like a hundred cars skidding on gravel, shook the stands violently. Whatever had pounded and slid on the ground had now come to rest high on the side of the big tent and it's weight was slowly crushing an outer support pole.

The crowd fell into a suspended hush. Magnificent Willy had proven his superior balance and now stood bewildered on the high wire. Mark heard a loud twang that reminded him of the sound a low piano string makes when you pluck it with a screwdriver, then swoosh. The main guy-wire snapped and whipped the air slicing cleanly through Willy's torso then through the tent roof before connecting with the transformer outside. The crowds gaze followed this series of events in numb silence. The stupor continued as Willy's top half slid off with a squishy wet smack, bounced once on the safety net and plopped right on top of one of the midgets. His legs followed suit but got caught in the net forming a sort of floppy V shape. It wasn't until the flickering lights finally went out that the crowd went into a screaming hysteria.

A stampede of frenzied spectators knocked Randy clean off his feet. He landed hard on his left shoulder them tumbled like a rag doll to the bottom of the stands. Mark hunkered down and wrapped his shaking arms around his head. Another loud twang-swoosh silenced everyone standing in a ten foot radius of him. One by one body parts started dropping off until an avalanche of fluid squirting bodies slumped to the floor.

The deafening shrieks continued, but they too were cut off mid scream as several more guy-wires were drawn taunt until they snapped. Frozen in the blackness, Mark desperately wanted, no, needed to find Randy. Randy the rock. Randy his best friend. With his fear of moving slightly less than his fear of staying, he made a cautious approach, feeling his way down the bleachers. Crawling over a blood soaked riser, his hand slipped and sunk wrist deep into the warm brain of a half sliced skull. He screamed, jerked his hand out with a stuttering sucking sound and fell backwards onto the semi-decapitated body. He lied there paralyzed with fear until he felt the body beneath him begin to twitch, and that's when the last threads of sanity snapped.

Mark sprang to his feet and ran, slipping, sliding, down the risers. He'd almost reached the bottom when his left foot hit a body that sent him tumbling. Still seeing stars, Randy groaned, "Owwww, why'd ya have to kick me in the shoulder, ya jerk!"

"Randy, Christ! Randy is that you?" Mark hollered with a quivery wave of relief. "We've gotta get out of here Randy, we've gotta go Right Now!"

The sputtering transformer gave up the ghost in one final explosion that sent sparks dancing all over the side of the tent. It didn't take long for the old dry fabric to become a massive funeral pyre.

Mark hooked his thumbs under Randy's arms and dragged him around what was left of the former king of the high-wire to the abandoned clown car and shoved him in. He turned the key and the little car sprang to life. It rocked violently as the tiny wheels rolled over homeless arms and legs. As he punched the clown car through the side of the burning tent the entire framework collapsed in on itself.

About a quarter mile away, Mark pulled over and looked back at the burning tent. The black smoke of a thousand broiling bodies billowed out from the tent forming a putrid lake. Engulfed by flames and drowning in the rising fetor, was a huge mass of twisted white metal with fire licking around the letters, NASA. ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/160-horror-story.html http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/157-politics-oh-boy.html Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:23:17 GMT Without any intention of ruffling anyone's feathers, I want to share this link - because it's funny as hell!
Click everywhere (and more than once!).

PalinAsPresident.com

Only in America (and, unfortunately, right here in TN):

NewsChannel 5.com - Nashville, Tennessee - Tenn. Baby Named Sarah McCain Palin

I bet you thought I was going to preach. :lol: ]]> MoodsR4Cattle http://forums.biorust.com/blogs/moodsr4cattle/157-politics-oh-boy.html