|
Seriously. I haven't had the telescope out for ages. I was hoping to use it when my niece and nephew were visiting from NZ, but the weather wasn't cooperating.
I finally found it through the scope (it's really obvious to the naked eye) no thanks to my crappy viewfinder which was off by a good two degrees of sky or so...
I couldn't make out much detail, but it was clearly a disc and not just a spot like a star. I could see two moons close to it, and one further away on the other side. Checking my astronomy software, the two closest moons were Io and Europa, and the furthest out one was probably Callisto.
Awesome, in the true sense of the word. |
|
The phrase you are looking for is "fast tracked" or possibly "fast-tracked".
What you don't want is "fastracked". This implies a rack that is fast.
Please fix your promos forthwith.
|
|
In no particular order;
- Editing my wedding video - 20%
- Editing Adam and Trish' wedding video - 10% (still waiting on those photos, folks!)
- That contemporary-apocalyptic RPG idea - 20%
- That post-apocalyptic RPG idea - 15%
- That set of new textures for Tribes: Vengeance - ABANDONED
- Those unfinished multiplayer maps for Tribes: Vengeance - 5 complete, 4 ABANDONED
- The painting of the Captain Cook bridge - 20%
- Those CDs I have so far failed to sell on eBay - 23 of 31
- The Zom-B-Gon video project - 5%
- My apocalyptic-montage video - 20%
- Getting all the 4TOD material onto DVD - 5%
- Scanning all my old photos - 20%
- Commenting all my photos, old and new - 10%
- That video clip for "Mandlebrot Set" - 10%
- Repainting my Bioshock figurine - 0%
|
|
I've had a lot of time recently to do all sorts of interesting things, but I have invested a large chunk of it in watching rented DVDs.
This is a good thing in some ways, as I've been able to finally see some classic films that I have never seen before, for example Taxi Driver and Deliverance.
But it also means that occasionally I make a bad decision at the rental shop and end up with some clangers...
|
|
It's time again for the annual Relay For Life, organised by the Cancer Council of Australia to raise funds for cancer research, and awareness of cancer generally.
Anne and I will be hoofing it as part of our team of twenty, named "Pam's Party". The team will have at least one person walking the track over a period of two days. Our team did very well last year. It's an even bigger team this year, so we're expecting to do even better - but we need your help!
The whole thing is run on donations and we want your money. You can go to this site to learn more about the Relay and to make a donation.
To make a donation straight to our team, go here.
To make a donation straight to me, go here. All the cool kids are doing it!
Every little bit helps, so dig deep and give cancer a kick in the unmentionables. |
| » Your Excellency |
|---|
|
His Excellency Mr Hassan Talat Nazer
Your Excellency,
I am writing to express my serious concern over the treatment of the victim in the Qatif rape case.
Charging the victim of such a horrendous crime does not serve justice. This poor woman has been assaulted in the worst possible way, and instead of offering her protection and support your government has seen fit to punish her.
Woman all over the world suffer too often from assumptions that they are somehow culpable in cases of sexual assault. Should we blame a victim of a robbery for walking at night? Or the victim of a burglary for owning a house? Similarly to these examples, charging a victim of a rape with some form of wrongdoing seems nonsensical. It is certainly unjust.
I also have great concerns about freedom of speech in your country. Anyone – man or woman – is entitled to their opinion and should be able to express it without fear of reprisal. This is especially true of government – citizens should be able to be vocally critical of their leaders and their leaders' decisions without repercussion. I believe this to be a fundamental right.
I look forward to the day when your country reforms its judicial process, and where victims of any crime can expect compassionate treatment, instead of further victimisation.
Sincerely...
You can write a letter to the Saudi ambassador to Australia yourself at this address; His Excellency Mr Hassan Talat Nazer
PO Box 9162
Deakin ACT 2600 Thanks to KateO for the update.
Dec. 7th, 2007 @ 09:22 am
|
| » Computers ain't idiot proof. |
|---|
And now here's Andrew with a tip for those of you planning to open up your computer and prise the heat sink off the CPU so you can clean it;
Nov. 27th, 2007 @ 03:30 pm
|
| » T:V maps |
|---|
I've gone through the maps I've been working on for Tribes and identified the ones that are actually worth continuing to work on. As a result I've deleted four, leaving me with another four to finish. One has already been finished and released.
Even though the game is three years old and isn't played by anyone I still derive a great deal of pleasure constructing maps for it :) I should be learning how to do 3D modelling, as it would open up a whole new realm of mapping possibilities, as well as being a highly-marketable skill should I ever want to return to the games industry.
Nov. 21st, 2007 @ 09:35 am
|
| » (No Subject) |
|---|
Project Finish What You Started proceeds anon. I've dumped - er - given away some 23 of the CDs I had to friends. That only leaves 8, and most likely I'll give them to the Vinnies.
Unfortunately I have to now add another project to the list - repainting my Bioshock figurine. I thought I could do this fairly quickly and with minimal fuss, but investigation and advice (thanks Craig!) makes this more problematic.
The figurines that came with the Special Edition of the game are pretty cool but they've been very badly painted, hence my desire to do it right.
Nov. 19th, 2007 @ 12:03 pm
|
| » The Road by Cormac McCarthy |
|---|
The story of a man and his son travelling the road searching for food and safety following some global apocalypse.
Bleak, haunting yet lyrically beautiful.
Highly recommended.
Nov. 9th, 2007 @ 09:20 am
|
| » Unemployment - Day One |
|---|
To paraphrase Bart Simpson, the video games industry is a hideous bitch goddess.
Now that's probably unfair, but I'm seriously pissed to have been forced into the position where I need to quit my job for the sake of my marriage and my sanity. It shouldn't have to be this way - people working in the games industry are entitled to the same expectations of quality of life as anyone else.
Some companies will be well-run and some... not so well. But the overarching theme behind working in the industry is one of exploitation. Unreasonable demands, impossible deadlines, no remuneration for extra work, and low pay for skills and talent that would receive top dosh in any other industry.
People work in the games industry because they have a passion for it. They're willing to put up with the exceedingly long hours because they want to be part of something fun. And making games should be fun too.
I salute the incredibly talented and dedicated people I've worked with, and I implore their employers to not take their presence for granted.
Magic Wishing Hat: When I run a games company it'll have strict limits on hours, full remuneration for any extra work done and a satisfying work-life balance for all concerned.
Nov. 9th, 2007 @ 08:21 am
|
| » Portal in Valve's Orange Box |
|---|
If you haven't bought this one and played it already, I highly recommend you do. It's a fantastic game.
It's also a great example of a simple game concept being leveraged thoroughly throughout the game. It's a highly focussed affair.
It's also very, very funny and has an interesting story that's hinted at throughout. Plus there's a surprise song over the end credits by one of my favourite artists.
Oct. 15th, 2007 @ 08:13 am
|
| » The 22 Most Awful Moments in Science Fiction on Something Awful |
|---|
"The second worst monster to appear on Dr. Who? That goddamn theme song that implants itself in your skull like some sort of Amazon River brain fluke opened a techno club in your hippocampus."
Heh.
http://www.somethingawful.com/d/most-awful/most-awful-scifi.php?page=1
Oct. 6th, 2007 @ 12:03 pm
|
| » ELO + Daft Punk = Midnight Juggernaughts |
|---|
Just got their new album Dystopia yesterday. Very funky, very strange.
Aug. 9th, 2007 @ 06:30 pm
|
| » The Simpsons Movie |
|---|
Saw the Simpsons Movie this morning. Anne and I usually go to the earliest Sunday screenings of films we want to see, and the theatre is usually nearly empty. This morning it was quite full, which tells you how popular this film is going to be.
I enjoyed the film immensely, though the first half is better than the second half - it kind of loses steam. Still very funny and well worth a look, even if only for Ralph Wiggum's rendition of the 20th Century Fox music.
At one point Anne was laughing so hard I thought she was choking.
Jul. 29th, 2007 @ 05:25 pm
|
| » More like ARSEwood |
|---|
But then Arsewood isn't an anagram of Doctor Who.
Seriously, I really, really want to like this show but it is marred by poor writing, sloppy direction and editing and mediocre acting. It has no sense of pace whatsoever.
I'll be surprised if it survives in it's current incarnation, or if it will need to be thoroughly overhauled.
Jul. 24th, 2007 @ 01:18 pm
|
| » Livin' Large |
|---|
What an exciting weeked!
On Saturday we went and bought a new television for the bedroom (no snickering), and I bought a new digital SLR camera. I've been thinking about getting a decent camera for years so I finally took the plunge.
On Sunday morning we had to call the fire department to douse a blaze we spotted in a dumpster out the back of the local bowling club. It wasn't a small fire by any means, but thankfully it was more or less contained within the metal dumpster. The biggest risk was that a wire mesh skip full of recyclable cardboard was sitting right next to it. We stayed until the fireys arrived - Anne was very excited, she'd never phoned emergency services before :)
Then we went to the movies and saw this film about these robots that could TRANSFORM into vehicles and back again. Whenever there was trouble they would TRANSFORM to fight or to run away. I think it was called "The Robots Who Couldn't Sit Still".
Jul. 23rd, 2007 @ 08:07 am
|
| » Ronald's Unfinished Symphony |
|---|
I went to McD's the other day, through the drive through. Now it can be a bit of pot luck sometimes - I've had them forget dipping sauces, forget drinks, even forget whole menu items. But this is the first time I've actually had them forget the bottom bun of my burger.
Seriously, my burger only had one bun. The top one. The bottom one was nowhere to be seen. The burger had been placed in its little cardboard clamshell as if nothing was amiss, the meat in direct contact with the container.
I can only assume the kitchen jockey hoped no one would notice.
Jul. 20th, 2007 @ 07:27 pm
|
| » Sadness |
|---|
I got an e-mail over the weekend to say that one of the guys I went to university with had taken his own life.
I worked with Justin on at least two short films while we were studying. He was a great bloke, young, passionate, creative, and quite ocker. He had some issues with depression not long after uni, and I visited him in hospital at that time after he'd made an unsuccessful suicide attempt.
After that we didn't keep in touch. His parents sent out a blanket e-mail to everyone on his hotmail contact list to inform of us of his passing. I recognised quite a few of the e-mail addresses of fellow uni-goers.
My thoughts are with Justin's family and friends during what must be an incredibly difficult time.
Jul. 15th, 2007 @ 06:47 pm
|
| » Bronchopneumonia! |
|---|
Bronchopneumonia! Yee-haw!
I''ve been off work now for about two weeks fighting this lung infection. I've had chest x-rays, then a cat scan... the diagnosis; bronchopneumonia.
Now this is worse than bronchitis, but not as bad as full-blown pneumonia. The reason this has taken hold so quickly, and is being extremely stubborn, is my diabetes. Too much blood sugar = food for bacteria + impaired immune system.
This has been a real shock to me. This kind of thing could kill me in the long run, I can't afford to get infections like this especially at this stage of my life when I have a whole world of possibilities just opening up.
I have to get my diabetes back under control. No, not just under control, I have to get rid of it altogether. It's doable, and the first step is to lose a bunch of weight. I started well last year and lost a few kilos but I've been very slack this year. Ironically being ill has put me off my food.
May. 13th, 2007 @ 10:59 am
|
|
|
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
irritant01's journal