So first off, let me say thank you very much for getting me Guitar Hero, co-blogger. It was an awesome Christmas present that I truly wanted. I have had hours of fun galore. Yet it is ruining my life! Every song I listen to, I imagine if it would make a rockin’ guitar hero song. And when I hear the songs from the game, it is all I can do to not start doing an awesomely (lame) air guitar hero along. Now it is creeping into my work life too. After reading about the Devilish Debate to End Church of England, it took more restraint than you might think to only scream “6-6-6! The Number of the Beast!” (which I screech every time I play the Iron Maiden tune) and not put it up on the homepage. Also, I think it is giving me carpal tunnel syndrome. Where is the Hero to rescue me from this game?

On the upside, at least I enjoy the humor of its constant references on TV:

Related: Conan plays real guitar as staffers play Rock Band:

Google search results for term “change” on some of the presidential candidates Web sites.

Obama: 109,000

Hilary: 4,350

McCain: 608

Rudy: 806 (bonus: 9/11 = 1,860)

Is it wrong that I find this clip hysterical?

Or that when I caught it on TV, I immediatedly recorded it and watched it like 12 or 13 times? For those who don’t remember the Kool-Aid man, here’s a memory-jogging parody that also teaches when not to call him:

Yashica Electro GSN

Originally uploaded by alf sigaro

Toby and I were walking to grab a bite this afternoon and we popped into the Ditmars Thrift Store. I spent a few minutes looking through records and Toby headed for the book section. While she was reading the 2007 Guide to Las Vegas, I spotted a Yashica Electro GSN in the display counter.

I asked to take a look and everything seemed to be in working order. I couldn’t find a scratch on it and everything clicked like it should. The guy wanted $15 for it, which seemed like a pretty fair price to me.

I didn’t know much about it beyond the fact that it’s a rangefinder camera, but a little bit of research tonight told me that people really seem to love theirs. It’s known for its ability to take pictures in low light and its sharpness. We’ll see once Toby or I shoot some stuff with it.

… but not to the day…

I watched this live on TV that night and pretty much knew that was it for him. Yeee-ahhh!

Richard is a SAG member and thinks that Letterman is a “pig” for going back to work, even after carving out a deal with the WGA.

As he told me, he "starred" in the Billy Crystal/Robert De Niro movie "Anaylze This." Here’s his official Web site

Some guy from Letterman called the cops on him and the police officer made him go up the block a bit.

Vidiot pointed out in my Flickr comments that he was once profiled on This American Life.

“Act One. Self-Deception. This American Life producer Alex Blumberg tells the story of an ex-con-turned-actor named Richie Castellano. After a bit role in the movie Analyze This, he moved to a small town and got dozens of people to invest money and time in a movie that never premiered. Why so many people bought into his grandiose dreams, and what they learned about him—and themselves—after they got burned for it.”

Toby and I both appear in Peter Bochan’s “A Shortcut Through 2007.” This is my first time being in the year-end show. I guess it’s just another benefit of marrying the producer’s daughter.

Here’s a link to listen to it.

It will start playing automatically and you’ll get to look at all sorts of ads. It’s 59 minutes long, but it moves right along.

Here’s a description of the show:

An hour-long retrospective of the year–an explosive, emotional mix of the sounds, music and events of the past twelve months, “A Shortcut Through 2007″ opens with an introduction by the late sonic pioneer, Karlheinz Stockhausen and ends with a coda from Pakistan’s Benazir Bhutto. Blending the concerns with our fragile social and ecological state with the clash between celebrity and fame at any cost, the perilous drive to succeed in politics, business and sports by any means necessary, with answers to the question-”What will you remember about 2007″

Featuring commentary from Art Buchwald, Norman Mailer, Kurt Vonnegut, Marcel Marceau, Phil Rizzuto, Jerry Falwell, Gerald Ford, Woody Allen, Ricky Gervais, Alec Baldwin, Don Imus, Oprah Winfrey, Rev. Al Sharpton, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Brad Pitt, Tony Soprano and family, George W. Bush, Michael C. Hall, Baraka Obama, Joe Torre, George Mitchell, Barry Bonds, Larry King, Roger Clemens, Anna Nicole Smith and many others.

Music from Amy Winehouse, Radiohead, Arcade Fire, Dre Dog, Bruce Springsteen, The Real Tuesday Weld, Peter Bjorn and John, Forro In The Dark (featuring David Byrne), Iron and Wine, The Sandpipers (with Phil Rizzuto, Tommy Henrich, Roy Campanella & Tommy Henrich), Boots Randolph, Boris “Bobby Pickett, Freddie Scott, Oscar Peterson, Ike & Tina Turner, Max Roach, Joe Zawinul (Mercy, Mercy, Mercy), Robert Goulet, Luther Ingram, Dakota Staton

Tributes to Luciano Pavarotti, Lady Bird Johnson, Porter Wagoner, Lee Hazelwood, Hilly Kristal (CBGB), Evel Knievel, Grace Paley, Don Herbert (Mr. Wizard), Ingmar Bergman, Michelangelo Antonioni,
Merv Griffin, Tom Snyder, Joey Bishop, Tom Poston, Calvert DeForest (Larry Bud), Charles Nelson Reily, Al Viola, Denny Doherty, Eric Von Schmidt, Teresa Brewer and many more.

Produced by Peter Bochan

Pretty good:

Here’s a question I’ve had to address more than once: Could a morbidly obese goalie shut out an NHL team?

Well, Todd Gallagher did the research for his book, Andy Roddick Beat Me with a Frying Pan.

And it’s funny! Read it!

A friend asked a few questions about Flickr and I wrote up a response. I thought I’d post it here as well. Feel free to add more pointers in the comments.

Hey Matt, do you think you could give me some tips on how to use flckr to its potential? Just maybe a quick map of your workflow (how many photos you put up at a time, whether you use plug-ins to get them there, and if you cull your pics before/after the upload? things like that?) Because I have no idea what I’m doing, and I haven’t really given myself the time or space to experiment…

It really depends on how you want to use it. Some people just use it as a photo dump and upload everything they shoot. Other folks use it more as a photoblog sort of thing. That’s what I do (did?) and that’s how I like other people to use Flickr. Why clutter the site up with 100 pictures of the same tree, ya know?

Back when I paid more attention to what I was putting up, I’d put up 2 or 3 a day. They generally went together in some way (similar content, similar colors, similar composition, from the same event, etc.)

On my old computer, I used the uploading client located at http://www.flickr.com/tools/. It was pretty good, but I haven’t bothered installing it on my new computer. It makes it really easy to upload your photos. You don’t even have to go to Flickr to upload and you can tag and add photos to sets right from the client.

As far as workflow, it pretty much breaks down like this.

Shoot pictures -> look at what I shot -> take the “good” ones and put them in a folder called “keepers” or something -> go through keepers folder when I want to post something and find some (2 or so) to post -> edit them (if needed: crop, adjust color, etc.) -> post -> tag -> add to sets.

Tagging seems stupid now, but you’ll thank yourself later when you want to find a picture of “movie” or “meat” or “trees” or “tunnels” a year from now. Toby is much better about tagging than I am.

I tend to avoid putting things in groups, but it’s a really good way to give your pictures more exposure if that’s something you want. Avoid putting them into too many groups. That’s annoying and just bad form.

I have a pro account, though I probably don’t need it. I just like knowing that I don’t have to worry about any sort of restrictions getting in my way.

Any other questions, let me know.