therobots.org blogs

What I Learned From Europe

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:15:33 +0000

Things the United States needs to import from Europe

Public transportation

People respect left driving lane more

Semis always stay in right lane

Option of a half flush on a toilet

Bike lanes / Bus lanes

Paying for parking before you leave the lot

Pay-for-use Breathalizer built into bar

Clean pay-for-use bathrooms

Use of 1 and 2 dollar coins

Tax is always included in the price of a product

Roundabouts

Orange kissed cola / bionade

0.5 liter and liter beers

JPT Scare Band

Sun, 09 Aug 2009 15:22:30 +0000

I just discovered this band JPT Scare Band while researching some heavy psych rock from the early 70s. Imagine my surprise when I discovered they were from Kansas City, MO. They're actually still playing and recording and call themselves "Lost Pioneers of Heavy Metal". Check out this amazing video for their song "Ramona", completed with some amazing animation and old clips of Kansas City. I believe that is the Nelson-Atkins Museum at one point in the video.

Surprise Birthday Party

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 20:07:44 +0000

So my birthday was two months ago and I totally forgot to post this. It's a photo / video collage put together by my bastard friend Luke aka Lou. This was from a surprise birthday party at my own house. Thanks for throwing that guys and you couldn't have asked for a better host, err wait...

-ick!

He-Man

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:05:12 +0000

Thanks to Josh for finding this one. I think I'm a bit obsessed...

-ick!

Moving

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 03:43:35 +0000

I've started blogging sporadically again, but on tech topics only. If you'd like to follow that discussion, head on over to the new site. There's an Atom feed as well.

Best Albums of 2008

Mon, 06 Apr 2009 16:17:53 +0000

This list is a little bit late but at least I made my personal deadline of getting it in before baseball opening day. 2008 was a decent year for music. There weren't too many albums released that absolutely floored me but I still found some albums that I thoroughly enjoyed. Bradford Cox had an impressive year with two releases that made my top dozen with his bands Deerhunter and Atlas Sound. Kansas City locals The Republic Tigers put out one of the most impressive albums the city has ever heard. Mainstream favorites Beck, Santogold, MGMT, Vampire Weekend, and The Raconteurs put out albums good enough that even the biggest music snobs could also enjoy. I heard some interesting new electronic projects such as Starfucker, Crystal Castles, High Places, Empire of the Sun, Tussle, Ladyhawke, and Tobacco. More than anything though, I think I enjoyed hearing some of the releases put out by artists that have been around for a while but had slipped my attention before: Deerhunter, Mount Eerie, The Mae Shi, The Kills, and Thao with the Get Down Stay Down. My three finds of the year (stuff you probably haven't heard) would have to be Finnish collective Paavoharju, Absolutely Kosher weirdos Little Teeth, and San Diego rockers The Muslims - a band so fresh, they had to change their name to The Soft Pack after releasing their first album. Enjoy the list, feel free to comment, and here's to an awesome 2009!

*****Top 100 Albums of 2008*****

1)	Deerhunter	Microcastle
2)	Why?	Alopecia
3)	MGMT	Oracular Spectacular
4)	Mount Eerie, Julie Doiron, Fred Squire	Lost Wisdom
5)	Portishead	Third
6)	Bon Iver	For Emma, Forever Ago
7)	Hot Chip	Made in the Dark
8)	Paavoharju	Laulu Laakson Kukista
9)	The Republic Tigers	Keep Color
10)	Little Teeth	Child Bearing Man

Films Watched 2008 Part 3

Sat, 03 Jan 2009 00:22:33 +0000

Here is another batch of reviews for films that I have watched...

AFI Top 100
The Grapes of Wrath (1940)	8	The classic John Steinbeck depression-era novel adapted for film, with Henry Fonda and John Carradine.
Fantasia (1940)	6	I saw this as a kid and had forgotten how truly bizarre this film actually is. Basically it is Disney making a film showcasing classical music under the direction of Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra set with video to random Disney animated shorts. Everyone remembers the famous Mickey Mouse segment The Sorcerer's Apprentice, but there is so much other truly bizarre animation in this one. Do you remember the section about the natural history of the Earth from formation to the evolution of the first lifeforms into the creation and eventual extinction of the dinosaurs? Do you remember the section about Greek mythology times and centaurs and (sometimes topless) centaurettes? Do you remember the Night on Bald Mountain segment where the demon Chernabog summons fire and lava to destroy the damned skeletons, witches, dragons, ghosts, and demons he has created? If not, then you might want to watch this one again. This is one of the strangest Disney films ever I feel and one that I had mostly forgotten about.
Bonnie and Clyde (1967)	9	We're all familiar with the story of Bonnie and Clyde but this film does a great job of profiling the young bank robber couple and in brilliant color. It also showcases the young acting talent of Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Gene Hackman, and even Gene Wilder.
The Wild Bunch (1969)	7	This western, starring William Holden and Ernest Borgnine, is a pretty good excuse to watch some amazing gun fights. I can't say that I especially cared for the plot but the shots of the wild west, railways, Mexico, and battle scenes made this one worth my while.
Sophie's Choice (1982)	9	Meryl Streep, as Sophie, accomplishes one of the best female acting performance ever (she deservedly won the Oscar that year too). I was blown away with how great she pulled off the Polish accent and I was immediately drawn to her sad sad character. This is a pretty depressing one (aren't all holocaust survivor dramas?) but I highly recommend it.
Tootsie (1982)	7	I rewatched this one recently since I hadn't seen it since I was a youngster. Sydney Pollack directs this film about struggling actor Michael Dorsey (played by Dustin Hoffman) who is out of work and assumes the role of Dorothy Michaels, a spunky say-what's-on-your-mind red-haired soap star. A young Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Bill Murray, and Geena Davis appear in this one, as well as Pollack himself. This film is moderately funny but probably not worthy of the AFI Top 100.

Flashback to The Year In Music 1998

Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:27:27 +0000

Stealing an idea from my friend Holly and Tripwire.com, I thought it would be good to take a look back at the albums released 10 years ago. This was a pretty pivotal time in my auditory life. It spanned my first and second years of college, a time when I devoured new music and discovered that there was so much other music out there instead of what they play on Top 40 radio. I'd known this for years but had yet to take that plunge. I tried out for my campus' free-format radio station and failed the interview process twice before finally being accepted. Some of the stuff on this list was actually still on the new rack when I started at the radio station, some of it I discovered a few months later, and some I didn't listen to for years. So yeah, 1998 was a pretty good year in music overall I think. My favorites are near the top. Feel free to comment any of your favorites...

Chimpanzee Riding On a Segway

Sat, 20 Dec 2008 19:29:59 +0000

Dang you They Might Be Giant's-style song for getting stuck in my head all week.

-ick!

Bollywood Thriller Rip-Off

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 13:18:22 +0000

This video is hilarious. I especially love the faux English translations.

-ick!

Nerd Anniversary

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 15:59:54 +0000

This week is the 40th anniversary of the "Mother of all Demos", Douglas Engelbart's presentation of a new computing system called NLS (or Online System) at the Fall Joint Computer Conference at Stanford University. Why is this important? Because it is the demo that first introduced the world to the concept of the computer mouse, hypertext links, and on-screen text editing. This demo is amazing in the fact that it combined video monitors and cameras with computer images. Check out the video of this historic demo.

-ick!

Elk River Camping

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 05:40:02 +0000

Here are some pictures from a recent camping / float trip on the Elk River in Noel, MO. Despite the last minute change of locations because of flooding in Missouri and the heavy rains during the night, it was a pretty good time. I suppose this will probably be the last time I go camping this year as its starting to look more and more like fall every day.

-ick!

Creepiness

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 06:36:16 +0000

Jimmy

-ick!

We Had the Best Time At Your Party

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:57:16 +0000

Last Sunday I got to see one of my favorite bands Ween play an outdoor concert at the Crossroads venue outside of Grinder's. This was the first full show I've seen them play in about 3 or 4 years as I missed them the last time they came through Lawrence. I had seen a couple short festival sets so it's not like their live material was completely foreign to me and a lot of their songs they have been playing for years anyhow. This wasn't the best show I've ever seen them put on but it was still a good time. The show ended a bit abruptly, I am used to their standard two encores but they only played one this time. Their last song morphed into the introduction from the new album "La Cucharacha" at which point Gene Ween left the stage and the rest of the band was left to try and figure out at what point they should finish the song. Rumor has it that they played for another two hours in a small warehouse behind the stage but it must have been a closed door event or something because I don't

Films Watched 2008 Part 2

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 23:25:27 +0000

AFI Top 100
Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages (1916)	7	Epic film about the repercussions of intolerance by D.W. Griffith. This film follows four plotlines; religious rivalry in ancient Babylon, the condemnation of Jesus, the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, and the modern day morality police's destruction of a young couple. This film is groundbreaking in terms of production, content, and film techniques but the winding plots can make this one a bit hard to get through. It's considered a classic and Griffith's masterpiece but at the time of its release was mostly a failure.
Duck Soup (1933)	9	Classic Marx Brothers' film about dictator Rufus T. Firefly and his declaration of war with neighboring country Sylvania. It takes a lot to make me laugh and this film got me rolling. My favorite line was when Chico was on trial and Groucho tells him "I say we give him ten years at Leavenworth or eleven years at Twelveworth." The mirror gag and battle scenes make this one great. It's basically everything you love about Bugs Bunny only on film.
On the Waterfront (1954)	9	Marlon Brando and Eva Marie Saint star in this film about an ex-boxer's turmoil with standing up to his corrupt union bosses. This film is amazing visually in it's sad and dreary black and white but the acting is what makes this one a necessary viewing.