Tuesday, June 29, 2004
Anna-Maria's Wild Drive Home
Anna drove her brother Josh back down to the States this weekend. Apparently a great time was had by all, until it came time to drive home. She told me her plan was to come home yesterday but she just couldn't pull herself away - so she didn't. Early this morning she took off for Home Sweet Canada, but alas the Road Gods had different plans for her. One of her front tires went flat about 9 miles north of Idaho Falls - which she drove back to, to change her "donut" tire for a real tire. She'll be home late this evening. I, for one, can't wait.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/29/2004 07:40:33 PM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Canada Voted 2004
I took part in the federal election yesterday. Paul Martin's Liberals ran surprisingly strongly and will form a minority government in Canada, with the balance of power held by Jack Layton's New Democrats.
I voted for local NDP candidate Melanee Thomas. It was fairly certain here in Lethbridge that the conservative party would win, but nevertheless I feel disappointed that it wasn't even close.
The sad thing is, it probably doesn't matter who gets in. I realize it's not good to be this pessimistic about voting at such an early age but I think Gary put it best, with his government Cat & Mouse analogy. We're all just mice voting for the cats whom are perceived as the least hungry.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/29/2004 10:02:41 AM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Sunday, June 27, 2004
Gmail Invitations Being "Eaten" By Hotmail and Yahoo
Hotmail and Yahoo are sending Gmail invitations to the trash. I'm wondering how many of my invites are actually making it to their destination because I have many unanswered invitations out there.
There is a way around it though. If an invitation you have sent is diverted by the Hotmail Spam Gods, then you can go into your Gmail Sent folder and forward the message back to the recipient. I just wish there was a way to view all of the "unanswered" invitations so I could either resend them, or send them to someone that is actually interested in having Gmail.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/27/2004 10:14:29 AM
Comments (4) (Permalink)
Thursday, June 24, 2004
Election Questions For Local Lethbridge MP Candidates
Things are turning political in Canada.
While perusing a Boing Boing article this morning I decided to imitate an idea I found there. An astute Canadian has written the MP candidates within his constituency asking four simple questions.
I followed suit and emailed the Lethbridge constituents. Here are their responses, edited only to fit in with each other on this posting. The text has not been changed.
Reply Legend (in alphabetical order):
Light Blue - Rick Casson (Conservative Party of Canada)
*Green - Erin Matthews (Green Party of Canada)
*Red - Ken Nicol (Liberal Party of Canada)
Orange - Melanee Thomas (NDP of Canada)
*-indicates the candidate has not yet responded.
1) There has been a lot of talk of a Canadian version of the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) Would you support this? and why?
Currently we are researching with Conservative national office your inquiry regarding the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
I would not support a Canadian version of the DMCA because many Canadians are personally and legally using music and other mediums on-line with intent to not infringe copyrights. I think that laws like the DMCA violate freedoms of expression and that there are better ways to balance copyrights and expression in law.
1b) Do you support changes at all to our existing copyright laws?
I do not support anything specific at this time. I would have to do more research on this subject. If you have any feedback or ideas on this topic, I would be interested in hearing what you have to say.
2) Mr. Martin says he supports the change to allow gay marriage, while Mr. Harper says he would put it to a free vote - How would you vote?
I believe marriage is the union between one man and one woman.
I would vote in favour of equal marriage. Sexual orientation is a "personal immutable characteristic" and is inalienable from a person, therefore, we need to write laws that protect them, not unlike how we have law to protect people based on their religious beliefs or gender or race.
3) Do you support the Kyoto accord? why?
Koyoto Accord is Not a made in Canada solution. We will become an environmental world leader by focusing on clean air, clean water, clean land, and clean energy Canadians know we are fortunate to live in the most beautiful country in the world, a country with the world's largest fresh water supply and abundant natural resources and wildlife species. But we also know we cannot take this natural environment for granted. We must be responsible stewards of our land, water, and air.
We need results, not just talk Paul Martin and the Liberal government have long talked a good game on the environment, but delivered little. While he was in office, Paul Martin's own shipping company, Canada Steamship Lines, was charged with polluting Halifax Harbour. As the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development has demonstrated, Canada faces "an environmental and sustainable development deficit" caused in part by the "gap between the commitments the federal government has made and the results it has achieved." Canadians must demand better stewardship for their environment. They must demand a government that will be less interested in flashy announcements at international conferences, and more interested in environmental results.
A Conservative government will work with Canadians to address real environmental problems and develop a longterm vision for a healthy, sustainable environment as a trust for future generations.
The Plan
A Conservative government will implement the commitments of Stephen Harper's February 2004 paper, "Towards a Cleaner Canada," including:
I support the Kyoto accord for several reasons. First, I enjoy hiking in Waterton Lakes National Park (which is in the Lethbridge constituency), but I do NOT enjoy looking out over the prairie vista from a mountain top and seeing smog. Air tests have indicated that particles and pollution from China have blown across the jet stream to settle in our area. This indicates to me that we need a global solution to pollution and climate change. My generation is being left with an environmental debt that I don't know how we're going to pay off.
One other reason why I support Kyoto is the result of the activities of two petrochemical corporations: Suncor and Beyond Petroleum. Both companies have implemented their Kyoto commitments, and both companies are MAKING MONEY. This is evidence that making our business environmentally sustainable and making our buildings, etc environmentally friendly creates jobs and boosts the economy.
4) This is the most important question, how will you make sure that your voice is the voice of Lethbridge while you are MP?
The most important issue(s) for an MP to address are the ones which interest, impact or are of greatest importance to his constituents. By being connected to his constituents through personal contact, or telephone and e-mail communications a wide-range of diverse, often complex issues are brought forward. Since being elected Lethbridge Member of Parliament in 2000 I have attended in excess of 500 functions also attended by thousands of constituents. During each event opinions, ideas and general thoughts are shared on national and regional topics, yet in all cases the bearing an issue has on a local level is of greatest significance.
I will actively seek out the positions and opinions of all constituents, including those who are not traditionally NDP supporters. Lethbridge very clearly has a plurality of opinions, so it is important to be open about my own moral code and worldview so that constituents know where I am coming from as well. I have already committed to quarterly meetings with several important community groups if elected, which will help keep me in touch with the community as well. Above all, I plan to continue with canvassing and door knocking because I've found that people are most open and honest and upfront when asked what is important to them. That kind of feedback needs to be sought out, and I am more than prepared to make that a central part of my
job as MP.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/24/2004 01:52:39 PM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Jeff Milner Movie Review: Dodgeball: A TRUE underdog story
Watching actors take rubber balls, wrenches, and other miscellaneous objects in the face can make for a very entertaining evening. Dodgeball (Apple Trailer | Rotten Tomatoes) opened last Friday and Anna-Maria, her brother Josh, and I took in the comedy at the newly remodeled Galaxy Theatres here in Lethbridge.
Dodgeball does aim low, but it certainly hit the mark with me. There is something about its unapologetically rooting for the über-nerds that make Dodgeball the feel-good, if lowbrow, movie of the year. I should mention that I found Ben Stiller's performance a little much - ok a lot much at times. His sexual obsession with food crosses the line. Nevertheless the writers are aware that it's not that great of a movie, but periodically they take advantage of that fact. If you found the advertisement amusing, and like seeing grown-ups repeatedly take real shots to the head from big red rubber balls then I'm thinking you're probably going to like Dodgeball. I loved it.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/24/2004 12:08:03 PM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Link to Me and Get a Gmail Invitation
Have a blog? Want a Gmail invitation? I will send you one if you link your blog to me. Then just comment under this post with your name, the email address that you use now, and you blog address. I'll be sending them out tomorrow. No anonymous posts please.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/23/2004 09:17:19 AM
Comments (8) (Permalink)
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
MSN Messenger 6.2 Upgrade
I upgraded my MSN Messenger to the newest version today. The MSN site explained that there were security problems with their older versions that upgrading would fix. When I actually installed version 6.2, a screen from the installer gave me the option to install three "features." Good thing I was paying attention and unchecked the default options.
First off, the irony in offering a pop-up blocker for Internet Explorer (IE) is fairly striking. Why does the Redmond giant need users to install an add-on to their product through messenger to make it better? Why not just include the pop-up blocker with IE instead of trying to manipulate upgrading users into using it? The real question is, why didn't they include a pop-up blocker option with IE in the first place? I believe Microsoft thought blocking pop-up ads was bad for business. Advertisers might not like the fact that they can't sell you X10 cameras from every webpage you visit if your browser can easily block their ads. Not to mention the fact that Microsoft wouldn't want Internet Explorer blocking even their own Hotmail pop-ups. Is nothing sacred? I assume that it is Google's popularity (specifically the Google Toolbar - which, by the way, is excellent) that is signaling Microsoft that maybe now is the time to get on the ball and offer a product worth using.
Which brings me to the second "feature". Make MSN your default search engine. Why? So we can spend twice as long searching and then end up searching again on another site anyway? Google is the fastest, most reliable, and most entertaining search engine out there. Millions of people worldwide use it as their home page.
Which may be exactly why Microsoft has another default check in front of their third choice, "Make MSN Home your default home page." They want people to read their ads, use their search engine, and basically do everything Microsoft wants them to.
So was this upgrade specifically to fight off Google? Maybe, maybe not, but reading the Technical Description made me think that this mandatory upgrade isn't very mandatory at all.
And the nitty-gritty from their security bulletin site:
Technical description:
A security vulnerability exists in Microsoft MSN Messenger. The vulnerability exists because of the method used by MSN Messenger to handle a file request. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a specially crafted request to a user running MSN Messenger. If exploited successfully, the attacker could view the contents of a file on the hard drive without the user's knowledge as long as the attacker knew the location of the file and the user had read access to the file.
To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would have to know the sign-on name of the MSN Messenger user in order to send the request.
Mitigating factors:
- An attacker must know the sign-on name of the user
- If the user has blocked receiving messages from anonymous users not on their contact list by placing "All Others" in their block list, the attacker's messenger account must be on the user's allow list to exploit the vulnerability.
- The attacker could access files that the user had read access to. If the user is logged into the computer with restricted privileges this would limit the files that the attacker could access.
It looks like this is a pretty minor vulnerabilty. Someone would really have to have it out for you - and know a lot of personal information before being able to exploit this bug.
On the other hand, there are a couple of noteworthy changes in this version. Mobile users now appear with a yellow avatar instead of the standard green, as well their is an option to create custom emoticons or use a selection of new animated MSN ones. The best new feature appears to be an option to create a share folder which makes it easier to share files with other users.
So despite my complaints my advice is this - unless you are completely satisfied with your current version, don't be shy; go ahead and upgrade. When you do, just remember to turn off the default checks for other MSN "features".
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/22/2004 08:20:10 PM
Comments (2) (Permalink)
Monday, June 21, 2004
Gmail Invites
The invites from the contest have been sent. Sorry it took me so long. I've been busy travelling to Medicine Hat for Father's Day and tonight I finally did the taxes. Looks like I'm even getting a refund.
Despite the money and the quality limericks (thanks guys), my head aches. I'm going to bed.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/21/2004 11:02:46 PM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Saturday, June 19, 2004
Jeff Milner's Free Gmail Account Giveaway - Part III
I have 6 more Gmail invites today. This time you only need to write a limerick but posts must not be posted anonymously. Read last time's entries for ideas. The limerick can be about anything - ones about me or stuff I like are a good starting point if you have writers block. I will give 5 invites away and save one for a cousin I went kayaking with today.
Now onto your limerick writing. Remember Gmail invites are waiting; contest ends Sunday at Midnight with prizes awarded next week.
If you already have a gmail account but are interested in the fine art of limerick writing then you might be interested to know about some dedicated limerick writers that are rewriting the Oxford English Dictionary in limerick form.
Update Monday June 21st, 2004: The contest is now closed. The results will be posted shortly.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/19/2004 11:20:39 PM
Comments (6) (Permalink)
The Roommate Situation - Part 2
Last time on Jeff Milner's Roommate Situation:
"...it turns out that when a NSF cheque bounces, they mail it to you - which means I have to wait until I get it in the mail before he will pay me back."
Now the exciting conclusion!
When I received the bounced cheque in the mail I called him up and later that night he returned me my cash.
The End.
(I love happy endings.)
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/19/2004 08:06:03 PM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Kayaking Down The Belly River - My head hurts
The picture below was not from today, but it was taken on the same river I was kayaking down today.
The water was cold, ice cold. The kind of cold that hurts your hands when you put them even near the ice cold ice-ness that is the Belly River. It makes sense that the water is chilly because it's coming directly from the melting snow up in the Rocky Mountains - about a half hour drive from where we put in.
The water level wasn't as high as it could have been, but there were still plenty of good features. On about the third really big hole I got stuck for a moment while the water thrashed me about like a rag doll. The water is tricky like that, it pulled me in gently then whipped me around quickly wrapping my head on the large rocks below. This is the first time I've ever had my helmet save me from serious head injury but, oh my, I certainly felt happy to have it. I came away with a small headache. The helmet came away with its shiny yellow finish marred in several places with large white scratches.
The incident wasn't actually that much of an incident and we had a great time the rest of the afternoon. We just cruised down that cold, cold river, playing in the waves, and having a blast. My cousin made some short movie clips of us on his digital camera. I'll post them when I get them.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/19/2004 07:16:41 PM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Friday, June 18, 2004
Jeff Milner's Free Gmail Account Giveaway - The Results!
It's the moment I know you've all been waiting for ... All 6 of you. The results are in and without further ado here they are:
Matt Oneiros:
25 / 25 for explaining why you think I should give you a Gmail invite
200 / 200 for first and last name and email address
15 / 15 for being a blogger account holder and not posting anonymously
5 / 5 for having a blog
70 / 70 for posting both a regular link and a permanent link to my site
35 / 50 for the limerick. You didn't get a full score because shock and cough don't really rhyme. :)
Matt's total: 350.
Melinda Anderson
25 / 25 for explaining why you think I should give you a Gmail invite
200 / 200 for first and last name and email address
15 / 15 for being a blogger account holder and not posting anonymously
5 / 5 for having a blog
70 / 70 for posting both a regular link and a permanent link to my site though the permanent link should have been to http://www2.memlane.com/jmilner and not to the specific post but that's ok you still got full points.
45 / 50 for the limerick, missed out on a perfect score because of one extra sylabel in the last line.
Melinda's total: 360.
Richard Biggs
25 / 25 for explaining why you think I should give you a Gmail invite
200 / 200 for first and last name and email address
15 / 15 for being a blogger account holder and not posting anonymously
5 / 5 for having a blog
20 / 70 for posting a link to my site
50 / 50 Nice poem Biggs.
Richard's total: 315.
Chris Newhouse
25 / 25 for explaining why you think I should give you a Gmail invite
200 / 200 for first and last name and email address
15 / 15 for being a blogger account holder and not posting anonymously
5 / 5 for having a blog
70 / 70 for the links. I would have given you more for this one but I clearly stated my max was 70 - and I'm sad that I can't because you really went the extra mile, thanks Chris!
35 / 50 The syllables are a little off and I'm sorry but skull and soul don't rhyme - and I'm just curious but what does a foot killing a skull have to do with anything? :)
Chris's total: 350.
Alex Ware
15 / 25 for explaining why you think I should give you a Gmail invite
200 / 200 for first and last name and email address
0 / 15 Weak Alex... setting up an account takes seconds and you don't have to have a blog to have an account.
0 / 5 for not having a blog. Remember it's never too late to start a blog.
0 / 70 no links
15 / 50 Interesting structure and an ok poem but not really a limerick.
Alex's total score: 230.
CJ Castillo
25 / 25 for explaining why you think I should give you a Gmail invite
200 / 200 for first and last name and email address
15 / 15 for being a blogger account holder and not posting anonymously
5 / 5 for having a blog
70 / 70 for posting both a regular link and a permanent link to my site
45 / 50 I can't justify a perfect score, because even though you went the extra mile to include the fact that I am a lifeguard there are too many syllables on the second last line.
CJ's total score: 360.
And the final results:
1st place: Melinda Anderson & CJ Castillo
2nd place: Matt Oneiros & Chris Newhouse
3rd place: Richard Biggs
4th place: Alex Ware
Since you guys were all good sports, and since I know someone else with extra invites, you all get an invite! Some of you said you would "do the right thing" and give your future invites to strangers on the web also begging for accounts, but I say they are your (future) invites so do with them as you please. :)
I hope every time you check your Gmail you'll think to yourself - Jeff Milner is such a great guy. Actually no, make that every time you check your new Gmail account you can think to yourself how much better you are than all the other people who had a chance to be a part of Jeff Milner's Gmail giveaway but were too lazy to come up with a limerick. Thanks again guys for being in my contest. Look for another contest when I have more invites.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/18/2004 04:10:42 PM
Comments (9) (Permalink)
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
Jeff Milner's Free Gmail Account Giveaway - The Rules!
It's another new round of Gmail invites. This time I have a total of 5 accounts to give out. The contest ends Thursday night at Midnight 10pm MST (I'm excited to give these away and don't want to wait until Friday) with prizes to be awarded on Friday Thursday night or Friday morning.
There are a few relatively easy things you have to do in order to win a Gmail invite from me. You don't have to do them all, but the more of them you do, the more points you get, and the people with the most points get invites.
#1 - Post a comment explaining that you would like a free Gmail account and why you think I should give it to you. (Worth between 1-25 points at my discretion)
#2 - Include your first and last name in the comment. I'm no longer going to make up first and last names for people I am sending the accounts to. Also it's manditory to include your current email address. If you want you can include the word "at" for "@" or the word nospam, which (don't worry) I am smart enough to figure out and send the invite to the right address.
(Worth 200 points)
#3 - Be a Blogger account holder at the time you post your comment. (Worth 15 points)
#4 - Have a blog. (Worth 5 points)
#5 - Post a link on your blog to my blog. Permanent sidebar links are worth more. You may get double points on this if you post a link in addition to having a permanent link.
(Single posts are worth 20, Permanent links 50, up to a total of 70 points!)
#6 - Compose a limerick about me, my site, things I'm interested in, or Gmail. (10 - 50 points)
The person with the most points who posts before 12:00pm10:00pm MST(as recorded in the comments) will get the first invite, and the person with the second highest score will get the next one and so on until I am out of account invites.
Update June 17, 2004: The contest is now closed. Please try again next time. I haven't added up the scores but I will do that shortly and have the results in my next post.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/16/2004 10:46:11 PM
Comments (10) (Permalink)
Jeff Milner's Gmail Account Giveaway!
I've given away all of this round's Gmail invites. This time I only had 3 people post comments so I gave all 3 accounts to them. Don't worry if you are just learning about my contest now, there will be another one as soon as I get some more invites. It's also more like begging than a contest - so it's not that hard. Also you could continue to beg in the comments of this post because I know for a fact that Anna-Maria and a few other of my friends have invites and most likely no one to give them too - it's a shame when invites go to waste. They read this site often, so you could try. No guarantees of course. Oh and in the future all posts asking for Gmail accounts must include a first and last name.
Update June 16, 2004: Actually the next round of Jeff Milner's Gmail Account Giveaway will be more like a contest than begging. Though begging helps. Just to give you a taste of things to come - having a blog helps, and it's going to involve poetry.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/16/2004 09:07:38 AM
Comments (11) (Permalink)
Tuesday, June 15, 2004
Another 3 Gmail Accounts to Give Away!
As I stated in an earlier post, I'm going to continue to give out gmail accounts to those interested parties that comment with reasons why they deserve the account. Don't be shy, even crappy reasoning can win you a Gmail account. Also please note that last time I had more demand than accounts, but instead of going back and just giving them the accounts, they are free to post again and be re-entered into my contest.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/15/2004 04:46:31 PM
Comments (7) (Permalink)
Monday, June 14, 2004
The Roommate Situation
I've been short on roommates lately. I have two empty rooms to rent and I haven't had any roommates in the last couple months - which makes paying the mortgage pretty hard. So a couple of weeks ago I put an ad in the paper. The very first day the ad ran I had two people call me. The first person, I'll call him Joe, said he would like to take the room but just needed a couple of days to get the money together. The second person, I'll call him Victor, told me he loved the place and wanted to take it. Victor couldn't move in until July 1st, but told me that he would write me a cheque for June anyway to hold the place for him. Things were looking up.
A day or two later I got a call from Joe. He said he couldn't get out of his current lease as quickly as he had thought and so he wanted to let me know he wouldn't be taking the room. Joe seemed like a cool guy so I was disappointed but life goes on.
Later I stopped off at the bank to cash Victor's cheque. They gave me cash and everything seemed cool; so things were still looking up.
That day, just after returning from the bank, I found a message from Victor on my answering machine. It said, "About that cheque I gave you - someone gave me a bad cheque and so it might not clear, so if you haven't cashed it yet I'll bring you some cash and get it back from you."
Well I had cashed it already and the bank didn't seem to have a problem with it, I explained to Victor. He figured he must have had enough cash in the bank even with the bad cheque he'd gotten and advised me not to worry about it. Things were a little odd, but still looking good. I was still getting calls for my other room - they seemed like sketchy characters and I didn't take them but at least people were looking.
Suddenly the phone rang, Anna-Maria picked it up. Victor couldn't take the room anymore, he said he was on his way over to get back his $350 and he would explain more fully when he arrived.
I told Anna-Maria that I don't really have to give him his money back, after all he paid me to hold the room and that's exactly what I was doing. But I also said that I wouldn't be a jerk and give him it back since it had only been a couple of days.
His explanation boiled down to the fact that the contract he had signed for his previous place said he had to live there for 6 months before he could break the contract and move out. Also he had to give 30 days notice before leaving. He thought he could give his 30-day notice before the end of the six months but his landlord said no. Even though I thought it sounded like his landlord was just screwing him over he just said he didn't want the hassle and was sorry for the inconvenience he caused me. He would take back his money but leave me $50 for my trouble. So at least I would have some cash for another ad if needed.
Days past. I was pursuing my bank account status over the Internet and was shocked to discover that I had been debited $350 for a cheque that never cleared! Oh hell - I think I have been scammed.
I called up Victor and explained the situation. Luckily he seems pretty apologetic and sounds like he wants to make everything right. He says we'll go down to the bank together, get the cheque back, and then he'll pay me back and any charges the bank may have given me. He specifically mentioned that he needs his cheque back before he will pay me for it. I called the bank this morning to find out if they do, in fact, still have the cheque and if I can get it back. It turns out that when a NSF cheque bounces, they mail it to you - which means I have to wait until I get it in the mail before he will pay me back.
Needless to say this is all a very big headache.
On the other hand I have two new roommates - one of whom moved in on Saturday and another one is moving in on the 25th. We'll see how this bounced cheque situation works out, but for now things are looking good again.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/14/2004 09:32:41 AM
Comments (3) (Permalink)
Kayaking in the Windy City
After almost 11 months of no kayaking, Anna-Maria and I packed up the boats and headed out to Park Lake for some extreme kayaking fun. She had just purchased a new wet suit and was eager to try it out. What we didn't realize, for some unknown reason, is that Lethbridge is perhaps the windiest place on the entire earth - well I've never been to Kansas during tornado season but this had to be close.
When we arrived at the lake the white caps from the waves did somewhat intimidate Anna, but I told her there's nothing to worry about and we pressed on.
As it turns out there really was nothing to worry about. We kayaked across the lake, got wetter and colder from the wind blowing water up onto us, but really it wasn't that bad. I tried surfing some of the waves in my kayak but then after a moment decided I didn't want to have to paddle all the way back against the wind. We ended our adventure about a half an hour later and again packed up the boats.
Later that night we went out to The Blarney Stone with some friends where I ate approximately 1 million 15 cent wings. They were so tasty except for TEX-MEX flavored ones. They needed less TEX and more MEX.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/14/2004 09:19:25 AM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Saturday, June 12, 2004
Jeff Milner Movie Review: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Last night Anna-Maria and I took in a movie at The Mill. The show we saw, though I had my doubts going into it, was "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind". (Apple Trailer | Rotten Tomatoes) With a star studded crowd, including Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst & Elijah Wood, and a script by Charlie Kaufman it turns out this movie is actually one of the most original romantic comedies I've ever seen. The film itself is brilliant, an endlessly clever, humorous and strangely moving story that will leave you with a warm heart and smoke curling out of your ears. However, the thing that is so astounding about it is the fact that it is, at its core, a clean and simple story about ordinary human desires and weaknesses that anyone can identify.
I can't say this movie is for everyone (in fact when my parents saw it, they walked out - they said it was just too weird) but if you like the type of scripts that writer Charlie Kaufman is famous for, such as "Being John Malkovich" and "Adaptation" then this is a movie you'll love. Oh and if you've already seen it and would prefer to forget it, you could always book an appointment with Lacuna Inc. and have the memory erased forever...
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/12/2004 07:53:54 PM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Friday, June 11, 2004
Stairway to Heaven Backwards Full Lyrics
Because I've noticed some people searching for the "full lyrics to Stairway to Heaven reversed" and probably find my backmasking page lacking in that regard, I will post an email that I received this morning, partly here and partly in the comments. (It's too long to include the whole thing on the main page.)
Well, you have certainly caused a stir here. It seems that everybody is flocking to your site. Nice work. I must tell you, though, you have it wrong. Here are the lyrics to the part that you have on your site:
So here's to my Sweet Satan.
The other's little path
Would make me sad,
Whose power is faith.
He'll give those with him 666.
And all the evil fools,
they know he made
us suffer sadly.
I have discovered that the ENTIRE Stairway To Heaven is a full and COMPLETE backwards message. EVERY word from start to finish is undeniable and distinguishable.
[more]
Granted the lyrics he provides are possible, but I still hear the lyrics I originally posted. I listened to the whole song backwards with these "full and complete lyrics" in front of me and yeah a lot of them you can hear - the power of suggestion is pretty strong. But a lot of the words are hard to hear imagine, even when you know what you are listening for. Let me just finish by saying that anyone who believes this whole Stairway to Heaven backmasking thing is anything more than a neat coincidence is not the sharpest crayon in the box. Sorry guys, I know its fun and everything but let's get real.
For example, I had a different person recently thank me in an email and tell me about how she was throwing her old albums away because of it...
Dear Jeff,
Thanks for your Stairway to Heaven (and other songs) backwards! I'm putting my old Led Zeppelin albums from the 70's in the trash straight away!
Much appreciated!
Rita
I can hardly believe it. Next time you or anybody you know, wants to throw out collectors items including their old Stairway to Heaven vinyls, please send them to me instead.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/11/2004 09:40:21 AM
Comments (91) (Permalink)
Thursday, June 10, 2004
Gmail Stopped Working - Stuck on Loading...
Just as I was preparing to hand out a bunch of Gmail accounts to the random people posting comments asking for them, I found I could no longer log into Gmail on this computer. Anna's tablet PC let me log right in, but I could only get as far as the loading page on this computer.
Being the computer technician that I used to be (I used to work at a computer store) I figured that the problem had to be software and that it was a scripting problem, in addition to the page just saying "loading..." there was that handy dandy broken script icon at the bottom of the page. So I went to Microsoft's Internet Explorer page and reinstalled my copy of IE 6.
Miraculously I can now log back into Gmail, and I will be awarding the free accounts today. I expect that next time I have free accounts to give out more people will comment on why they deserve it - and I'll happily give them out again!
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/10/2004 08:22:17 AM
Comments (3) (Permalink)
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
Gmail Invites
Anna and I each have 3 gmail invites. I don't know who to give mine to. I have perused the gmailswap.com pages, I'd still rather give it to someone I know - or at least someone who asked me specifically. I know my Dad and brother also have gmail accounts and for sure my dad does not have anyone to give his 3 invites to. I think the way google is going about letting the users decide who gets to join is the coolest thing ever. Please leave your comments below with a return address and an explanation as to why I should give you a gmail invite.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/8/2004 09:58:05 PM
Comments (5) (Permalink)
The Calgary Flames
I got called into work last night because the guy who was supposed to come in didn't know it was his shift and claimed he was too drunk to be able to work anyway. I don't know, but I'm thinking if he doesn't get fired I'm sure he will be skating on thin ice.
Speaking of ice, it sure was disappointing that the Flames didn't win the Stanley Cup last night. I came home to find Anna sprawled out on the couch looking particularly devastated (ok maybe not that bad but I, like her, like to dramatize things). I told her that even though we would have been really happy and celebrated if they had won, the best thing to do now is just put it behind us. That's exactly what I'm going to do - and to start I'm going to shave off this beard!
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/8/2004 09:55:21 AM
Comments (2) (Permalink)
Monday, June 07, 2004
Calgary Flames in Game 7
Tonight is the final game of the Stanley Cup. Anna and I bought chips and other food for the game tonight and in case you thought I am just jumping on the band-wagon at game 7, well would a band-wagon jumper have a fine play-off beard? (Caution, some of you that have not seen me in awhile may not recognize me in the following picture).
I plan to shave it off tonight after The Calgary Flames beat The Tampa Bay Lightning. Go Flames Go.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/7/2004 02:28:05 PM
Comments (3) (Permalink)
Coyote at University of Lethbridge
Anna-Maria and I saw a coyote on campus at the University of Lethbridge this afternoon. As luck would have it I happened to have my digital camera with me; so here is the photo.
I don't know much about coyotes, but I looked up some info on google and here is a quick summary:
- Only 5-20% of coyote pups survive their first year.
- The coyote can run at almost 40 mph.
- Coyotes can breed with both domestic dogs and wolves. A dog-coyote mix is called a "coydog."
- The coyote is more likely afraid of you than vice-versa.
- Coyotes maintain their territory by marking it with urine.
This particular coyote was not running anywhere near full speed, but he did look somewhat afraid of us. I can't really blame him though because we were in the Jeep which, in my humble opinion, is enough to put a great deal of fear into any pedestrian - member of the canine family or not. He wasn't afraid to the point of "marking his territory" however.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/7/2004 01:51:44 PM
Comments (5) (Permalink)
"The paranoia," he said, "has gone a little too far."
In addition to photos of bridges being off-limits, you can add this tourist photo below, (taken by my Dad in 1997), to the type of images soon to be illegal if the NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority's proposed ban on taking pictures in the subway system is approved.
Apparently they are planning a general prohibition against photography and videotaping in any of the Big Apple's subway systems as an anti-terrorism measure.
A group of about 100 photographers held a small protest recently taking pictures of each other taking pictures in the subway.
From the NYTimes:
There was a tense moment when the crowd decided it would photograph a transit police dispatch station at 14th Street. A startled officer came out and suggested that they leave.
"You didn't say 'Cheese!'" one of the cheekier photographers said.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/7/2004 07:59:30 AM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Sunday, June 06, 2004
Anna-Maria's Francophone Blog
Anna-Maria and I have spent the afternoon working on a new blog for French-Canadian actors working outside of Quebec. It's purpose it to help unite the people across Canada working in French theatre. Unfortunately for English speaking folks like myself, it's all in French, but hopefully you can enjoy the image of my apple tree in the header.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/6/2004 09:15:15 PM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Thursday, June 03, 2004
Cancer VS. The Genetically-Modified Virus
Cancer cells beware: A new study by researchers in the UK has shown that a certain genetically-modified virus has the ability to multiply rapidly only in cancer cells killing them off while leaving normal cells alone. The team plans to test the genetically-modified virus in clinical trials in people in 2005.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/3/2004 10:09:40 AM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Quixtar - Missed Opportunity?
A couple of years ago a newly acquired "friend" of my mom's asked her if she could set up the kids (meaning my brother and me) an interview with a recruiter for Microsoft that was coming to town. We were somewhat computer literate - I had worked at the computer store, and so did Gary but she didn't know that. It was odd to say the least. Then it got more suspicious - they were holding these so-called interviews at Humpty's restaurant for crying out loud.
The spider senses were tingling but we were just so curious as to what was really going on that we had to go. That was my first and thankfully last encounter with Quixtar. Needless to say we didn't sign up.
MSNBC has an interesting report about Quixtar's shady practice which sounds exactly like that first meeting:
Greg Fredericks: "If you're somewhat serious, all I mean by somewhat serious -- if you invest maybe, say, 10 to 15 hours a week in your business. This is your own business -- you could generate in the next 12 to 18 months, an extra quarter of a million."
Tim Sandler [Dateline producer]: "I'm sorry. How much?"
Fredericks: "A quarter million."
Sandler: "You're making more than $250,000 -- quarter of a million?"
Fredericks: "Umm hmm."
The funny thing for us was, the guy was trying to tell us that if we had a webpage selling goods we were going to be RICH RICH RICH. They were comparing their sales to that of Amazon.Com and Ebay. We knew it was a scam so just for entertainment purposes we went to their website, not only was it not spectacular it wasn't even working. Now Quixtar has bigger problems than an out of service webspace:
Both the FBI and the criminal division of the IRS are making separate inquiries into at least two top distributors not focused on in this [MSNBC] report.
It's probably not too late to get signed up with Amway, or Quixtar, but if you want you could always wait for the next reincarnation of the giant pyramid sales scheme organization. Thanks for the job lead mom! j/k ;)
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/3/2004 09:48:45 AM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Pictures You Can't Take Anymore - Or Can You?
Pictures like this one that my dad took of me in 1997 at the Brooklyn Bridge are no longer allowed to be taken according to an over-zealous police officer in New York.
From a PBase photo gallery:
Due to security concerns you cannot legally take any photos taken ON or near a Bridge without permission. My friends and I were taking photos of the sunset near the Verrizano Bridge in January 2004 when we were asked to show our ID to the cops and told not to take photos.
...The reason we have to get permission to take photos now is because of the distruction [sic] of the World Trade Center.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/3/2004 08:28:24 AM
Comments (1) (Permalink)
Mobile Phone Gets Innocent Man Arrested
A member of a Clash tribute band was arrested yesterday after a text message he sent was intercepted and traced back to his phone. Apparently he used his mobile to text the lead singer with the words to the song Tommy Gun, which the singer had forgotten. The text said "How about this for Tommy Gun? OK - SO LET'S AGREE ABOUT THE PRICE AND MAKE IT ONE JET AIRLINER AND TEN PRISONERS". One month later he was arrested by Special Branch officers.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/3/2004 08:22:01 AM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
The Film that Disney Blocked
Lion's Gate is going to distribute Michael Moore's controversial new film "Fahrenheit 9/11".
The distributors plan to start showing the movie in U.S. theaters on June 25, with pay television rights to be handled by Showtime, a partner of Lion's Gate, AFP said.
The film, which won the Cannes Film Festival's Palme D'Or last month, criticizes President George W. Bush's response to terrorism and also highlights ties between the Bush family and Saudi oil families.
Update: Fahrenheit 9/11's trailer is now online. Also check out reviews from IMDB. Apparently you don't need to actually have seen the movie to say whether or not you liked it.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/3/2004 08:10:00 AM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
Wednesday, June 02, 2004
Rance's Mystery
A writer over at The Museum of Hoaxes, is convinced that Rance is just some cartoonist/filmmaker/screenwriter named Keith Thomson. That's right - a nobody as far as celebrity is concerned.
I guess Rance won't be buying anyone a new Dodge Viper anytime soon, no matter how many riddles they solve, essays they write, or otherwise earn DVP's (Dodge Viper Points).
It's too bad. I don't mind that Rance's secret identity has been revealed, it's just disappointing that he's not any kind of celebrity at all, and that basically everything he said was a lie. I guess I am just a sucker for wild claims via the blogosphere.
posted by Jeff Milner at 6/2/2004 04:33:07 PM
Comments (0) (Permalink)
