This will be my last post here for some time. It’s been over a year since I have had the inspiration to blog here, this place is not what it once was to me. As of this post I am going on “indefinite hiatus” from the blogging world. It’s not that I am depressed or sad because I am not, life is just taking me on a new path now and I intend to see where it goes. I am not the same man I was when I started blogging almost ten years ago. So much of my life has changed as well as so much of myself. Today I have been reading some of my old posts I had printed out, time seems to change everything and nothing at the same time. I realise at this point I am speeking to an empty room, However I am placing this note here so that if you happen to passing by you know that yes I am okay and no there will not be any updates for some time. So this is it, this site will stand like it always has to surve as the center of my online life. So, if your interested take a look around otherwise I will see you sometime later. As always I am greatful for all the memories you have given me over the years, Thank you.
As most of you know, I live and grew up in Houston Texas. As such, NASA and space exploration gets into your blood. For those of you (like me) who had not yet been born when Apollo 11 launched in July of 1969 this video is for you. If you did see the launch live, here is your chance to relive it again.
As far back as I can remember I have always had at least one Sci-Fi show I obsessed over. In the beginning it was The X-Files, then later Star Trek: Voyager, Stargate SG-1 and then Stargate Atlantis. Since the cancellation of Stargate I have been searching for my new fix, finding it on broadcast TV was not something I expected. For those of you who have not already guessed, In my opinion the best Sci-Fi show currently on TV is……….
FRINGE
It’s like revisiting the X-Files but with a much more sophisticated and, quite frankly interesting approach to the unexplained. Goodbye Syndicate hello Massive Dynamic. I am just 13 episodes in and am completely hooked. Now before I get comments I should explain, I am not a mindless J.J. Abrams fan. I really don’t care for Lost or am I really interested in the new Star Trek: 90210 movie to be coming out later. But if you like good Sci-Fi, try Fringe.
This is just a little shout out that my favorite TV show on this side of the atlantic will be returning on January 22 on USA. If you have never seen the show, you owe it to yourself to check it out. It’s about a spy who is a cross between James Bond and MacGyver. Anyway I don’t want to make a big post over this. However, if your Tivo is looking a little bare without your weekly Stargate fix try this, you just might like it. It certainly has the geeks covered with the legend Bruce Campbell and (reportedly) more appearances this season by Michael Shanks. (Shanks played Daniel Jackson on Stargate SG-1) Not to mention the MacGyver factor is pretty high on this show.
With the cancellation of Stargate Atlantis the slot for my favorite TV in the world was up for grabs. However I recently discovered the best show on TV, British TV.
Top Gear
Now I know what your thinking, me and a motoring show? Yes, I know it’s strange, but I will give you four reasons to watch.
1) The Hosts – Not since Bond has being British looked so cool.
Jeremy Clarkson – Speed freak
Frequently known for his unusual car reviews like outrunning baddies in a Corvette inside a shopping mall and mounting a beach assault with the Royal Marines in a Ford Fiesta. He is also known for his hatred of the electric or hybrid cars and his love of speed and power. If you think speed cameras are a good idea and you see Jeremy coming, run.
Richard Hammond- “Hamster”
Known for (at least in my opinion) for being the most level headed and practical of the trio. Recently he was referred to as a “Secret American” for his love of American muscle cars. It should also be mentioned that he recently almost died in a jet car crash, but returned to continue working on Top Gear. Now that is loving what you do.
James May – “Captain Slow”
James is the nerdiest of the bunch. He frequently thinks style, technology, innovation and luxury trump speed and horsepower. It is obvious he is an avid history buff as he seems to know many seemingly insignificant details about every car he tests, as well as the history of the brand. Just don’t get him started on the war. Or the Germans. How nerdy is James May? He calculated how many revelations his Porsche made in 20 years and keeps a brush in his Fiat Panda so he can brush the dust out of his dash. Naturally, I almost always agree with him.
The Stig – “Tame racing driver”/ International man of mystery
The identity of “The Stig” is a mystery. Every week after doing a review of a car it is handed over to the Stig for a high speed lap on the Top Gear test track. He has raced everything from a Bugatti Veyron and formula 1 cars to small Fords and Fiats.
2) The Races – Cars vs. Trains, Plains, Boats and Athletes.
Top Gear is known for it’s epic races such as racing a dog team to the north pole in a Toyota pickup and the Aston Martin DB9 vs the TGV 200 mph super train. To date, they are the only group in the world to drive to the north pole. They also raced the Nissan GT-R against the 188 mph Shinkansen bullet train in Japan. For a list of Top Gear races click here.
3) The challenges – Can you cross the british channel in amphibious cars you made yourself?
It’s Motor Trend meets Mythbusters. Some of the challenges include, Helecopter gunship evasion in a Lotus Exige, Can you turn a Reliant Robin into a space shuttle? (not kidding), Can you build your own amphibious car? and Can you drive a £1,500 two-wheel drive car across Africa? Here is a list of the challenges.
4) The Appreciation – They truly love the automobile.
I have always loved computers because I always loved how a single (sometimes incredibly simple) idea could change the world. It is obvious that they feel the same way about the car. The show has a real appreciation for science and engineering just below the surface. Sure, on the surface this show appears as a macho speed freaks only display of sheer testosterone. However I think this is Discovery Channel level stuff. Every so often this appreciation sneaks out. Don’t believe me? Watch this:
In conclusion, this is a fantastic show and you would be doing yourself a favor to at least give one episode a try. It’s available on BBC America in the states or you can go to FinalGear.com to find more ways to watch.
Contrary to popular belief I have not been stranded on a strange island after a plane crash or living it up in the pegasus galaxy. In addition I should tell you that no, I am not The Stig. Now that we have all the vague references over with I can tell you what really happened. While most of the events of the past two years will remain private, the later parts of this year were spent creating a new company. A few months ago I launched Katy Budget Websites here in Katy Texas. We are a small company focusing mostly on small business and personal sites. What does the future hold for me? I don’t know, but I am closer to where I want to be than I have ever been before and I have a plan for the future. I will be posting here again, but the content will not be as geeky as it once was. I realize that most of my original readers have left and are no longer reading this site or feed, that’s okay. I don’t expect to make blogging my vocation anymore, but technology is still my passion. Site stats and adsense are a thing of the past for me. From now on, I will blog when I feel like it not when I feel like I have to. Forcing myself to blog gave me major burnout and is one of the contributing factors to my two year silence. This is to let you all know that some things have changed, others have not. Either way I am back, just not in full force.
*This is a repost of my last entry before the crash.*
The other day I read an article saying tattoo shops are opening in shopping malls because they have become so mainstream. Soon it will happen again, I will have one of the things I hold dear, one of the things that makes me who I am stripped from me. It will be replaced with a label that reads “My generation.” Let me explain.
I love computers and science more than I can describe in words. However quite frequently when I get asked for advice or fix someone’s computer I usually hear the following. “Wow, your generation sure is fluent with the computer.” This is when my blood starts to boil in my veins. When other kids had toy cars and trains I was disassembling motherboards. When they were just starting what they called “Chapter Books” I was reading MSDOS manuals. When they were playing outside I was dialing BBS systems. While they watched after school cartoons, I read Michael Crichton. Don’t believe me? Ask my mom, she still has a pin from an EPROM chip in her foot. (She stepped on it in my room at about 3 am one night) It feels like all my love and passion, all my struggle and work vanishes under the vail of the “your generation.” statement. When I was in school, I chose the clothes that I wore because I liked them, the music I listened to because I thought it sounded good and so on. I was so happy when those days were over because (among many other reasons) I was constantly told I was a “poser” and just did the things I did to fit in. Sometimes it feels like those days are back.
One of my other passions in this world is tattoos. I can’t explain it, but I have always been fascinated by them. Until a few years ago I never really talked about it (or could afford to get any) but I have had a love of the art since I was very young. I currently have two and much to my parents dismay, I plan to get more when I can. Many more. I have been collecting tattoo pictures on my computer for many years and have several thousand now. Then I start to read how they have become mainstream. At first I thought “ Great! Now there is no need to hold back or hide them.” Then it happened again, someone upon seeing my ink responded “Well, you are definitely the tattoo generation”. My heart sank. It was as if I was just a ghost, a shadow of a person. No individuality at all, just an empty shell.
Everything that makes me who I am, gets a big “my generation” sticker slapped on it and in essence stolen from me. Even the fact that I am an internet entrepreneur gets the label. It’s like we live in a society that wants to group everyone together and abolish personality. Why the hell can’t people just be who they are without having to be part of a larger group? We are all individuals, it is our differences that make us alike. I would like to thank the media and all the others who use the “my generation” label for turning the world into one large high school lunch room. So what group are you in? After all, it seems that uniqueness is a dinosaur.
Go back to your shops in the shady parts of town tattooed people, or we won’t be who we are much longer.
-TachyonXero
Geek and Tattoo lover till death.
P.S.: When all the girls with the “tramp stamp” tats and the guys with the tribal armbands and koi fish start hating theirs later in life, I will still love mine. Because I got mine to be more of myself, not to be someone I am not. Some people don’t like that I have them, and I am sorry they feel that way but I made a decision. I would rather regret a choice I made, then regret a choice I could have made. That’s why I have the words “live now” tattooed on the inside of my left wrist. I am myself, I don’t have time to be someone else.
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