Online Shopping Woes....

'Tis the season...

• to lose your packages due to etail screwups
• find that missing package off the porch and in the snow
• re-order a better deal just in the nick of time

then, take a deep breath and...

• forgive
• remember the greatest gift
• spend time with your dearest loved ones (in person, on the phone, in a blog, exchanging photos, on a youtube video... whatever works.)
  

This entry was going to be a rant about my least favorite etailer... but in the end, it just seemed more important to re-focus on the Big Picture--Peace on Earth, Good will Toward All.

Hallelujah.

Wiimote Control Woolz!!!

Okay, in typical blogger fashion, I'm now going to advocate a new product--the Wiimote. There is a very ingenious fellow at Carnegie Mellon named Johnny Chung Lee. Johnny has produced the most amazing youtube video of his wiimote infrared camera interactive whiteboard. The Wiimote is the Nintendo Wii Remote Control (and really is called the wiimote.)

This is so cool and it will basically be my hobby and time sync until I have the demo running here at home.... and at work... and at LCHS.....

And even though Wiis are sold out nationwide, getting a wiimote is just a trip to the nearest retailer....

Watch his VIDEO. He has also done some other things with the Wiimote akin to Minority Report. See this very informative Finger Dance.

Rambling

Trying to think of something to write. Maybe a weekly round up....

• Spent some time working on ikeys, remote access, and vmplayer
• Met Martin Michlmayr, former DPL. Known as tbm in all the right places
• Spent some time educating staff at LCHS about email
• Need to spend some time streamlining what may be very fouled up machines at LCHS

The machines at school a r e s o o o o s l o o o o w that they are unusable.

The Famous Diary

LCHS went to see The Diary of Anne Frank at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. A couple of comments....

• If you live north of Denver as I do, getting to the DCPA is a snap. Just take Speer off I25 and look for the signage. It's just like going to Elitch's.
• The Denver Center (as the DCPA is usually known) puts on high quality productions.
• Bring $CASH$ for parking in their garage. It's quick, convenient, but non-free.

The 2007-12-07 performance was quite good. I'd never been to the Space Theater before. It's a theater-in-the-round and as the cast themselves said, it gives every section an entirely different show. Depending on where you are sitting, you may be face to face with the lead or face-to-tail with one of the supporting actors.... but they do tend to move around so you'll likely be adjacent to someone saying lines sooner or later if you are in the front row.

I mentioned above, "...as the cast themselves said...", and I should explain. After the shows (at least all of the matinees I have been to), a subset of the cast appears on stage to address a largely school-age audience and their questions. For about 15 minutes, anything goes--from

• How can I become an actor?
• Is that your real hair?
• Do you make a lot of money?
• How did you get the part--how many people did you have to beat out?

as well as any technical, directorial, etc questions.

This was also my first exposure to the play and I don't recall reading the book/play back in my youth. So, it was all good.

Tokyo Rocks... well Shakes

Just got back from a biz trip in Tokyo. Arrived late Monday, 2007-11-26 and experienced my first earthquake in a couple of decades. This was followed by another a few days later--2007-11-30.

The rest of the trip was largely uneventful--much as these two mild quakes were uneventful. Yakiniku (Korean BBQ) in Tokyo is a delicious alternative to more sushi. The Tacos at the Royal Host in Narita's Terminal 1 airport are edible and the burger there is actually quite good. There is no division between the smoking section and the non-smoking section. However, overall there was much less smoke on this trip to Tokyo than my trip two years ago. That's a good thing.