Burnerblog

I want to wish everyone that reads Burnerblog a Happy New Year!

This will mark the fifth year that Burnerblog is in existence, in all its incarnations. What will happen in 2006? I have no idea… but you can rest assured that ol’ blue and green Burnerblog will be here chronicling the life of Edge along with the cast that makes up the show that is my life.

I wish you all a safe and Happy New Years eve and day, and I hope that you get to spend yours with someone you love. And, as the old song says, if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.

Wanna be REALLY cool? Make a New Year’s resolution to learn the Rat Pack lingo.

I will describe my new Palm in five words:

The coolest damned PDA ever.

Bluetooth and 802.11b wireless built in make this the uber-PDA that I’ve been waiting for. Coupled with the latest in battery and screen technology makes this literally the PDA I’ve been imagining that PDA’s could be ever since I got my Pilot 1000. This is my 7th Palm. To date, I’ve owned:

Pilot 1000
Pilot 5000 (two of them, one given to me by USR as I sold more Pilots than anyone else in SoCal at the time)
Palm III
Palm V
Zire Z71 (in related news, I found my Zire in my backpack stuck in a nook I thought I had checked numerous times.)

The T|X syncs through the network with amazing speed and ease, and hooks up with bluetooth devices in a snap. Compared to the PocketPC’s I’ve had (three), Palm wins hands-down in ease-of-use with networks (and everything else, for that matter). The interface of the new Palms “borrows” from PocketPC, but only the best parts. This is truly one serious PDA.

I enjoy using this one… more than I ever thought I’d enjoy using my PDA.

Well, now Christmas is over, and the loot has been tallied. I received some really nice and thoughtful presents from everyone, and some which completely blew my mind. One of these was a 60gb iPod Video. My 3rd generation iPod (40GB) was performing well enough, but I’ve had my eyes on the iPod Video. Well, I now have one.

I have so far already found software to transfer my TiVo shows onto my iPod, and I’ve been putting some of my favorite South Park episodes onto my iPod as well as some music videos I really like. I’ve also subscribed to a few video podcasts, but that part is still kind of wonky.

Since we’re talking about iPods, my 3rd gen went into the Apple store for service: the battery is very near the end of its life, not wanting to charge. I should have it back by the end of the week, which is good, as it’s my car iPod (the new one doesn’t fit very well into the iPod cradle). I also bought a product called “Ice Creme” for my iPod which is supposed to be the best way to restore the finish on iPods. I saw the guys at the Apple store use it, and I couldn’t believe how well it worked. The 3rd gen really needs this.

So… I’m iPodding my way around the house, and having some fun doing it. I can’t believe a stupid little gadget could be so much fun.

I should probably use the “Shuffle” feature on my iPods more often. As my family can attest to, I have been on quite the Metric kick lately. Even finding new songs I haven’t heard of (demos and old EP songs) fueled the fire, so to speak.

Anyway, while here at work, I use my 40 gigger 3rd gen iPod (my car iPod), and yesterdy, I decided to just put it on shuffle. What a treat it’s been! I have over 5600 songs on this one (over 9800 on my 60 gigger iPod video), so it’s like having my own radio station loaded with songs I picked by artists I like. I have noticed that the shuffle doesn’t do a very good job of randomizing, though… I’ve heard lots of Elvis Costello, Eminem, and Beck today. That’s all good, though… I don’t listen to those as much typically. It was funny when a Metric song made it into the shuffle… it felt like a brief trip back “home.”

Someone left some Truffles in the refrigerator from our Christmas party. Apparently, no-one liked ‘em, or were afraid to try ‘em. They’re the real deal, and were still wrapped up nice and tight in the box it came in. Since there are only two other people left in the office with me today, and they empty the refrigerator on Friday nights, I took ‘em. I have them here on my desk, and I’ve been going through them… slowly. They are sooooo delicious it defies words. They’re also very rich, but not in a way that makes one’s teeth hurt. They taste as if a gallon of flavor were put into these small bite-sized candies. The coffee flavored ones were to die for, and the cherry flavored truffles are delicious as well. I have yet to go for the plain chocolate ones yet; I am saving what I consider to be the best for last.

MMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…

Wow… I finally brought this dinosaur up to date.

I lost my Zire Z71 about a month ago. I just don’t remember where I put it… I remember seeing it on the table of a restaurant I went to eat at, but after that, it’s vanished. The problem is, I just started work last week, and I live and die by my PDA. So, I went out and bought the Palm T|X.

The funny thing is, I wrote that yesterday, and had to cut it short because the person whose desk I was using at work came back and I was done for the day anyway.

What did I find on my doorstep when I got home? My new Palm! It’s WAY cooler than I thought it would be, and as simple to use as my very first Pilot 1000. That’s why I keep going back to Palm (I’ve owned a Pilot 1000, Pilot 5000, Palm V, Zire Z71, and now the T|X); they know how to do PDA’s right. I tried and dabbled with the PocketPC versions a few times, but they are just too… clunky. Palms just seem intuitive.

Anyway, I love the new T|X, and the wireless works INCREDIBLY well. My PocketPC’s used to have wireless capability (as long as I slipped a cradle onto it which then took a huge PCMCIA wireless NIC, eating up batteries like you can’t believe), but it was never this fast, this intuitive, and this easy to setup and use. I’m smitten.

As some of you may have noticed in a comment left by a former Marine friend of mine, a Marine that we were stationed with and worked with at MCAS Tustin, Doug Richardson, was killed in Iraq on November 30th of this year.

I knew Doug about as well as a SSgt can know a LCpl, which is to say that he was always respectful, courteous, and hard-working, but also mischevious and fun-loving. He was what we called a “Hard Charger,” and I always respected his work ethic and attention to detail. What I didn’t know was that he continued on in the Corps, rising to the rank of Staff Sergeant. He was married around two years ago to a Marine Officer, but from what I know, they hadn’t had a chance to start thier family yet.

I have one picture of him that I took on an event called a Mess Night at MCAS Tustin in 1996. It’s poor quality, but it’s the only one I have:

He was always fun to be around, and I enjoyed having him work with me whenever I got the chance to do so. I know his family and close friends are crushed, but so are those of us that were lucky enough to know this guy. Knowing the world lost such a great guy makes me sad for us all, ’cause he still had a lot to give.

Semper Fi, Doug.

I work for a company that does documentation for many major corporations around the world. I specifically have been creating training documentations for one of these companies in an area in which I’m very familiar. Initially, I was brought in to do a quick “cavalry” response to assist with their developers and tech writers that were overwhelmed with a huge project with a very short deadline. However, they’ve since added about another month’s worth of work, and I was told that they want me to go through their regular interview process for a more permanent job there. This is a good thing, ’cause I can use a more permanent position.

The company has a great culture and work ethic, and the people are fun, and very friendly. The work seems to change almost week by week, and you’re never bored. These are all good things, and I hope to be able to work there for a long time.

So… without giving out too much specific info, that’s what I’m doing and where I’m working in a nutshell.