It isn't the greatest looking font, but at a regular size is quite usable. And you can download it for free.
4.2.09
Saving Ink!
Spranq, a Dutch company, has designed the Ecofont. Depending on your software and your printer you could use up to 20% less ink. Their idea was to reduce each letter as much as possible while still rendering them legible. The font looks like this:
It isn't the greatest looking font, but at a regular size is quite usable. And you can download it for free.
It isn't the greatest looking font, but at a regular size is quite usable. And you can download it for free.
Just Say No!
Apparently this video was taken after the kid was at the dentist.
I don't think kids should be doing drugs.
I don't think kids should be doing drugs.
27.1.09
A Trip to the Record Shop!
I've since bought two more records:
V/A-Vancouver Complication purchased at Neptoon Records.
Fleet Foxes-Fleet Foxes purchased at Audiopile.
V/A-Vancouver Complication purchased at Neptoon Records.
Fleet Foxes-Fleet Foxes purchased at Audiopile.
The Vinyl Resurgence/Revolution.
See what I did in the title there? I made a pun. Kind of. Records...they revolve. Wow, tough crowd. Anyhow...
Two weeks ago I purchased a new turntable, the first I've had since I moved out to Vancouver. When I left Ontario I had boxes and milk crates filled with records that I left behind. I was never quite sure what to do with them all, but last fall, 13 years on, I decided to actually buy a record player and ship the records out here. I went back to Guelph in December for Christmas. While there I boxed up all the records for shipping and as soon as the weather warms up a bit they'll be on there way.
The record player, a Rega P-1, came in last week. The kind folks at Hifi Centre lent me a CD player while I waited for the turntable to arrive so that I could at least play music through my new amplifier and speakers (Rotel and Bowers & Wilkins respectively). (That will, of course, work in their favour because, damn, that CD player sounded A WHOLE LOT better than my current bookshelf unit.) So, having a brand new turntable and only 4 records to play on it, there was only one thing to do...go record shopping!
That's me buying my first record in about 14 years. It's Prince Buster's Fabulous Greatest Hits. Sadly, when I got it home there was a nice big scratch from centre to edge on both sides, rendering it unplayable. (It was still in shrink wrap, so there was no way to check it. The record store, Highlife, is ordering me a new copy.) Luckily I bought another record as well, John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, on 180 gram vinyl.
It's psychological, I know, but there is something much more satisfying to me about shopping for records than CD's. I, like many people, am tired of CD's. There isn't much exciting about them beyond the music. And we all know that we don't need to buy the CD to get the music. With records though, I actually feel like I'm getting something for my money. Beyond the fact of better sound quality, listening to vinyl is a much more visceral experience. Partially it comes from having a better stereo than I've ever had, but the act of listening to records, actually playing and listening to records, as opposed to having background music on, has me more excited about music than I have been in a long time.
Two weeks ago I purchased a new turntable, the first I've had since I moved out to Vancouver. When I left Ontario I had boxes and milk crates filled with records that I left behind. I was never quite sure what to do with them all, but last fall, 13 years on, I decided to actually buy a record player and ship the records out here. I went back to Guelph in December for Christmas. While there I boxed up all the records for shipping and as soon as the weather warms up a bit they'll be on there way.The record player, a Rega P-1, came in last week. The kind folks at Hifi Centre lent me a CD player while I waited for the turntable to arrive so that I could at least play music through my new amplifier and speakers (Rotel and Bowers & Wilkins respectively). (That will, of course, work in their favour because, damn, that CD player sounded A WHOLE LOT better than my current bookshelf unit.) So, having a brand new turntable and only 4 records to play on it, there was only one thing to do...go record shopping!
That's me buying my first record in about 14 years. It's Prince Buster's Fabulous Greatest Hits. Sadly, when I got it home there was a nice big scratch from centre to edge on both sides, rendering it unplayable. (It was still in shrink wrap, so there was no way to check it. The record store, Highlife, is ordering me a new copy.) Luckily I bought another record as well, John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, on 180 gram vinyl.
It's psychological, I know, but there is something much more satisfying to me about shopping for records than CD's. I, like many people, am tired of CD's. There isn't much exciting about them beyond the music. And we all know that we don't need to buy the CD to get the music. With records though, I actually feel like I'm getting something for my money. Beyond the fact of better sound quality, listening to vinyl is a much more visceral experience. Partially it comes from having a better stereo than I've ever had, but the act of listening to records, actually playing and listening to records, as opposed to having background music on, has me more excited about music than I have been in a long time.
Fire!
Exactly 25 years ago today, Michael Jackson's hair caught on fire while filming a Pepsi commercial.
Remember that? Yeah, well, you're getting old.
Remember that? Yeah, well, you're getting old.
22.1.09
NFB Screening Room
The National Film Board has launched an online screening room where you can view full length NFB films. And it's all free. There are feature length documentaries, shorts, animation, and more titles will be added each week. And they have The Sweater.
16.1.09
The Best Albums of 2008
I know that January is more than half over. What of it? I play by my own rules, man!
Anyhow, here we go again, still playing fast and loose with release dates.
Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes
I think this album was on everyone's list. I was sitting in a coffee shop one day and they played a fantastic song that I didn't know. A few weeks later a friend told me that this band Fleet Foxes was coming to Vancouver and that it would be a great show. I hadn't heard them so I started listening to their myspace page and there was that awesome song I'd heard in the coffeeshop (White Winter Hymnal). Nice. I couldn't get tickets to the show, sadly. But the album is excellent.
Made in Dakar by Orchestra Baobab
This Senegalese band's afro-cuban-pop-whatever just makes me feel happy. Listening to the album makes the world feel like a better, warmer, happier and funkier place than it really is.
Glasvegas by Glasvegas
Another friend recommended band, these guys remind me of Jesus and Mary Chain. Not a bad live show either. (I talked to the lead singer...woohoo!)
Creation Rebel by DJ Spooky
Normally I don't go for the remixes, but this one really works. DJ Spooky knows what works apparently.
An England Story: The Culture of the MC in the UK 1984-2008 by Various Artists
A Soul Jazz release, this chronicles the blah blah blah, you read the title of the album already. It really shows the influence of Jamaican music on British music, dancehall in particular.
In the Future by Black Mountain
The opening of this album is enough to merit a spot on the list. It says to me: Rock and roll is alive and well.
The Stage Names by Okkervil River
My brother recommended this in the comments section of last year's list, so obviously it came out in '07. Or he can see into the future...you didn't think of that possibility, did you?
Man Descending by Justin Rutledge
Simple folky sounding singer-songwriter stuff, but it's good at that. Greenwich Time and Alberta Breeze are my favourites of the bunch.
Soft Airplane by Chad VanGaalen
When I first heard the song Willow Tree I fell in love with it at once. What's not to like about a banjo driven death dirge? I bought the CD at the concert and he was right there so I got him to sign it. Instead he drew a picture on it. Thanks, Chad, you ruined my album cover. *
Some honourable mentions:
Mr. Love & Justice by Billy Bragg
Cardinology by Ryan Adams and the Cardinals
Chances by Jill Barber
Kensington by The Constantines
Proof of Love by Old Man Luedecke
Mountain Meadows by Elliott Brood
Some eagerly anticipated in 2009:
New Great Lake Swimmers Album...New Great Lake Swimmers Album...New Great Lake Swimmers Album...New Great Lake Swimmers Album...
That's all folks.
*He didn't really ruin the cover; I actually quite like it.
Anyhow, here we go again, still playing fast and loose with release dates.
Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes
I think this album was on everyone's list. I was sitting in a coffee shop one day and they played a fantastic song that I didn't know. A few weeks later a friend told me that this band Fleet Foxes was coming to Vancouver and that it would be a great show. I hadn't heard them so I started listening to their myspace page and there was that awesome song I'd heard in the coffeeshop (White Winter Hymnal). Nice. I couldn't get tickets to the show, sadly. But the album is excellent.
Made in Dakar by Orchestra Baobab
This Senegalese band's afro-cuban-pop-whatever just makes me feel happy. Listening to the album makes the world feel like a better, warmer, happier and funkier place than it really is.
Glasvegas by Glasvegas
Another friend recommended band, these guys remind me of Jesus and Mary Chain. Not a bad live show either. (I talked to the lead singer...woohoo!)
Creation Rebel by DJ Spooky
Normally I don't go for the remixes, but this one really works. DJ Spooky knows what works apparently.
An England Story: The Culture of the MC in the UK 1984-2008 by Various Artists
A Soul Jazz release, this chronicles the blah blah blah, you read the title of the album already. It really shows the influence of Jamaican music on British music, dancehall in particular.
In the Future by Black Mountain
The opening of this album is enough to merit a spot on the list. It says to me: Rock and roll is alive and well.
The Stage Names by Okkervil River
My brother recommended this in the comments section of last year's list, so obviously it came out in '07. Or he can see into the future...you didn't think of that possibility, did you?
Man Descending by Justin Rutledge
Simple folky sounding singer-songwriter stuff, but it's good at that. Greenwich Time and Alberta Breeze are my favourites of the bunch.
Soft Airplane by Chad VanGaalen
When I first heard the song Willow Tree I fell in love with it at once. What's not to like about a banjo driven death dirge? I bought the CD at the concert and he was right there so I got him to sign it. Instead he drew a picture on it. Thanks, Chad, you ruined my album cover. *
Some honourable mentions:
Mr. Love & Justice by Billy Bragg
Cardinology by Ryan Adams and the Cardinals
Chances by Jill Barber
Kensington by The Constantines
Proof of Love by Old Man Luedecke
Mountain Meadows by Elliott Brood
Some eagerly anticipated in 2009:
New Great Lake Swimmers Album...New Great Lake Swimmers Album...New Great Lake Swimmers Album...New Great Lake Swimmers Album...
That's all folks.
*He didn't really ruin the cover; I actually quite like it.
15.1.09
Pizza of the Day!
Actually it was the pizza of a couple days ago. It had mozzarella, cheddar,pecorino and parmesan cheeses, halved cherry tomatoes, broccoli florets, tofu, olives, artichokes, and little dollops of pesto. It was good.
14.1.09
12.1.09
Happy Birthday!
Fifty years ago today a man named Berry Gordy founded a company called Tamla Records with an $800 loan from his family. The following year it was incorporated as the Motown Record Corporation. The rest, my friends, is musical history.
9.1.09
Snow-Cold=Slush
Vancouver has been dumped on numerous times over the past few weeks. For my part, I have enjoyed having what feels like proper winter weather for a spell, in spite of the havoc it has wreaked upon this city. There are still cars buried in snow up to their windows. But alas, the weather has warmed, the snowfall has turned to rainfall, and the accumulated snow is turning to slush. A lot of slush. In an unprecedented move, I have embraced my status as a citizen of this rainy, wet place and shod myself with these:
Stepping into deep puddles of slush with these can best be described as...FUN! Hooray!
Stepping into deep puddles of slush with these can best be described as...FUN! Hooray!
19.12.08
17.12.08
1970's Football Fashion
I found this on With Leather. Just watch. No questions. I couldn't answer them anyway.
15.12.08
A Betamaxmas!
Here is my new favourite holiday themed website: A Betamaxmas. It's a crappy old TV set in someone's rec room, a clicker, a tv guide with Different Strokes on the cover, a couch with a knit blanket, and best of all, rabbit ears that need adjusting. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to drink some hot apple cider and watch A Very Brady Christmas for the seventh time.
6.12.08
TI99/4A
Today on boingboing, I came across the Obsolete Technology Website. I absolutely love the collection of pictures of outdated computers, but I also love that I found this:
This is the Texas Instruments 99/4A which just happens to be the first computer I owned. It attached to a television and had a cassette drive. It's language was basic, but you could upgrade to extended basic with a cartridge. Awesome. From the TI99/4A I upgraded to this:
The Commodore 64. Classic.
This is the Texas Instruments 99/4A which just happens to be the first computer I owned. It attached to a television and had a cassette drive. It's language was basic, but you could upgrade to extended basic with a cartridge. Awesome. From the TI99/4A I upgraded to this:
The Commodore 64. Classic.
20.11.08
I Think Therefore...
Happy World Philosophy Day, which takes place this year in honour of the 60th anniversary of the Unversal Declaration of Human Rights. Think about that.
18.11.08
Santa Maradona priez pour moi!
Diego Armando Maradona, arguably the greatest to ever play the beautiful game, scorer of two of the most famous goals in football history, has taken the reins of the Argentinian national team. Tomorrow is his managerial debut, albeit in a friendly against Scotland.I normally have very little interest in international friendlies though I would be curious to see how this one goes, only because of the new manager. With Diego, you just don't know what you're going to get. It could go so well, or all so horribly wrong. I'm hoping for it to go well, but I won't deny a certain joy to be had in watching the other. Of course, one friendly match against Scotland will be much to soon to tell, but tomorrow is when it begins.
As a minor sub-plot to tomorrow's proceedings, the assistant manager for Scotland, ex-England defender, Terry Butcher, who was playing in the 1986 World Cup quarter final against Argentina, has said he is unable to forgive Maradona for the first of the two aforementioned goals, the "Hand of God," though I suspect his anger probably has more to do with being made to look a fool in the second.
3.11.08
Lost in Translation
Official road signs in Wales are bilingual, so when Swansea Council wanted to put this sign up, they sent it to their translator, got the reply and posted the sign. Unfortunately for them, the "translation" reads:"I am not in the office at the moment. Send any work to be translated."
The sign has since been removed.
Here is the story.
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