Last Monday I was in a car accident. I rear ended another party. It wasn’t a gentle hit; by the time I realized the slickness of the road it was too late. My breaks locked and I skidded pretty hard into the gal in front of me. I’m a bit beat up, hurting still, but overall, I’m all right. Thank God, so is she.

One thing is sure, I’m sticking to driving SUVs. I love my car and how it protected me through the ordeal. If I drove a compact I doubt walking away would have been as easy.

The accident really pushed me to accessing things in my life. Life is very short. Very short. Wasting it should be a sin. Whether in matters of love, enjoyment of life, work, etc, each moment should truly be spent living and loving what you do, being around people who lift you up, make you happy, complete you. Your actions and thoughts should give you pleasure, energy to take on the day. Why waste your time on anything that’s otherwise?

2008 is definitely a year of change for me. I’ve been stuck in a rut for too long, turning bitter and cynical by empty and meaningless words that in the end aren’t worth the breath that spent uttering them. I find it so funny that people can’t read when enough is enough and that nothing they say after a certain point actually matters because it no longer hits the soul. Problem is however that even if they begin to mean what they say, the words don’t penetrate. Why should they? You know the saying: “you fool me once, shame on you; you fool me twice, shame on me.”

guess the trick is to withstand the affect of the few while still opening yourself to others in believe that they won’t screw you as well. Part of my charm has always been the innate love to trust people, no matter the consequences. I’ve realized that I begun loosing that ability lately. Like I said earlier, it is time for a change…..

Mostly, I Would Like to Be Remembered
As someone who was passionate for life.
The days of unsought ecstasies are numbered,
However long we linger in the light.
I was one who cultivated wonder,
Less of one contented to explain,
Delighted by the promises of hunger,
Enduring for their joy the years of pain.
Gifts I had aplenty: Some I savored,
Others sacrificed for others’ needs.
Remember me as someone who was favored,
Despite constraints, to tumble in the leads,
Ocean to what winds I could not be,
Nightrider through what worlds I could not see.

His suffering ended with the day,
Yet lived he at its close,
And breathed the long, long night away,
In statue-like repose.

But when the sun in all his state
Illumed the eastern skies,
He passed through Glory’s morning gate
And met his love at last.

She waited for him patiently,
Bright smile on her face.
He kissed her fully on the lips
And spun her in the air.

Eyes misted with the tears of longing
Now finally dried away.
They locked their fingers tightly then
And walked in Paradise.

A marriage celebrates a new beginning:
A couple starting out as man and wife.
The wide world now has narrowed to a garden
In which they will their pleasures plant and reap.
The outlines of their character will harden
According to the promises they’ll keep.
Their joy will soon become a melody
In counterpoint to those for whom they care,
Seeking a profounder harmony
Than any they alone could know or bear.
So shall they find a greater grace within.
With their union let the new begin!

Today begun the first day of a new phase in life for two of my dearest friends. As a married couple they embarked together on new adventures before them. Today also a candle was extinguished as a dear friend joined his beloved in the on a final journey in the world beyond…His candle may have burned out but his legend ever will.

 Ken and POP - Calaveras

Ken and POP- Valhalla

Every asshole in the world says he loves somebody. It means nothing. What you feel only matters to you. It is what you do to people you love that matters. It is the only thing that counts. So, stop talking about love. Show them you love them through your actions. “

Noirciret Blanc Club in Paris, France. A sanctuary for every weirdo that considered himself or herself unnatural, or in touch with the spirit world, and those who actually were. Knowing Jessica’s passion for the occult I should have expected something like it, but just the same I was taken aback by this dimly lit dungeon and its patrons. Read the rest of this entry »

I just got an IM from David that he barely survived a car accident earlier today. Now, ok, i’m worried, right? But then he says he hasn’t been to the doctor! Now I’m pissed.

Last year I started a year with a funeral and I ended it with one. Granted, both parties that passed on lived to their prime, but that does not mean that their loss means any less than that of a young person. Renaissance world is such a small, close knit family and yet I’ve seen so many pass on.  So when I hear someone not taking their life seriously enough to at least go and see a doctor, i get angry.

I’m not sure what he expected from me. Motherly  comfort? Perhaps. I’m full of it, but not when one wastes their life or takes it for granted. I’m not willing to open up myself to the consequences of ignorance or arrogance. Not today at least.

It’s one of those turns of fate that is as cruel as it is sad.

While everybody has been enthusing about seeing Heath Ledger as The Joker in the new Batman film The Dark Knight, the shock news came through this morning that Ledger was found dead in his home in New York, apparently of a possible drugs overdose.

Police confirm that his housekeeper discovered Ledger in his bedroom face down on the floor, surrounded by prescription sleeping pills.

In The Dark Knight - the sequel to Batman Begins and slated for local release soon - Ledger plays opposite Christian Bale’s Batman. Ledger recently described the experience of playing The Joker as “the most fun I’ve had with a character”, and the blockbuster role signalled just how much Ledger’s profile had risen in Hollywood. Ledger is currently appearing in the Bob Dylan biopic I’m Not There.

The Perth-born actor worked hard to establish himself as a versatile and occasionally daring actor, pursuing films that were alternately popular and risky.

Along with Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett and Toni Colette, Ledger was part of an Australian wave of actors making a huge impact on the international film scene.

While eager for success overseas, Ledger made good on an early promise to maintaining a strong presence in local films.

After starring in the adventure TV series Roar and the ABC series Sweat, Ledger had a supporting role in the dark 1997 Australian teen drama Blackrock before bouncing onto the film scene in 1999 with two notable films.

In 10 Things I Hate About You, a modern teen take on William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, Ledger played a high-spirited Romeo. The film was a huge hit with teen audiences.

More impressive, though, was his role in the Australian crime comedy Two Hands, in which Ledger played Jimmy, the none-too-bright apprentice crim who ends up on the run from King’s Cross crime lord when he misplaces $10,000. It stills stands as one of Ledger’s best performances.

Ledger’s international rise was boosted by his role in 2000 film The Patriot, in which he played the son of Mel Gibson, who selected Ledger after extensive auditions. His work opposite Halle Berry and Billy Bob Thornton in Monster’s Ball was widely hailed.

Ledger also appeared in: the British epic The Four Feathers; with Matt Damon in the Terry Gilliam fantasy The Brothers Grimm; the medieval comedy A Knight’s Tale; as the legendary lover in the romp Casanova; as a priest in The Order; and Lords of Dogtown, in which he did memorable work as an ageing stoner skateboarder.

Locally, Ledger headlined opposite Abbie Cornish in the 2006 heroin drama Candy and played the long-coveted title role in the revisionist bush ranger epic Ned Kelly, made by Two Hands director Gregor Jordan.

But it was Ledger’s breakthrough performance in Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain (2005) that won him the greatest acclaim. As Ennis Del Mar, Ledger played a soft-spoken Wyoming cowboy and family man who embarks on a secret, decades-long romance with fellow rustler Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal).

Ledger’s work drew plaudits from around the world and earned him an Oscar nomination for best actor. His portrayal was widely credited as being one of the most empathetic portrayals of a mainstream gay character in modern film history.

Ledger had recently separated from his partner and Brokeback Mountain co-star Michelle Williams, with whom he had a two-year old daughter, Matilda.

Though eager to publicize his films and grant lengthy interviews in which he was refreshingly frank, Ledger was averse to celebrity culture and, thus, had a testy relationship with the tabloid media. At the 2006 Sydney premiere of Brokeback Mountain he was “attacked” by photographers with water pistols on the red-carpet as an act of “revenge” for his disdain of their tactics.

Given that his film career lasted less than a decade, Ledger leaves a formidable and diverse filmography that belies his youth. His performances crossed genres and styles and, despite his blossoming fortunes in Hollywood, his career trajectory obeyed no guiding principle other than a dedication to his art.

Ledger often spoke of how he sought out roles that would stretch him, and his legacy is testament to that. The range Ledger displayed and the commitment he demonstrated to his work merely compounds the tragedy of his loss.

I love this guy’s writing style… Its quirky, sarcastic, cynical, absolutely on the point and from Inquirer? Nicely done guys.http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/01/21/ten-things-beware-2008

IT’S EARLY in a new year of IT warfare. It’s time for new alliances to be forged and great battles to be fought. While scrutinizing the murky waters of the IT future can be difficult at best, we have seen from the past years that what goes around, comes around and, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. So where do we head from here? Since we’ve just entered 2008, some more or less cautious assumptions are in order. Stakeholders shouldn’t put their fortunes on this though.

1. Blu-ray’s popularization
Although not entirely surprising, Blu’s almost assured victory in the world of HD content will be a thing of the past soon. The HD initials will still haunt us because the disc itself will still mostly be used for storing High Definition content, but that’s about the only thing which will remain from the poor old HD-DVD acronym. As soon as the dust settles over this long and tiresome debate, we’ll be invaded by plenty of burners and the corresponding media upon which to inscribe data. Prices will drop and it shouldn’t be long until we’ll all posses units which merrily burn zeros and ones with blue-violet lasers.

Still, there’s one memory of a certain incident which happened a few years ago concerning one rather eminent member of the Blu-ray Disc Association. It’s that old rootkit squabble which brought Sony under the crosshairs of both hardware and software analysts. A pity for the people at the Repression of Information Association of America (RIAA) that Sony failed to get away with that. Let’s just hope they don’t get any funny ideas on “expanding the capabilities” of the Blu-ray disc.

2. Intel’s hibernation
After wiping the floor with AMD in the past 18 months, Intel has it easy these days, almost too easy. It’s obvious to see what the absence of proper combat in the CPU arena brings: boredom. The lack of sparking innovations in this sector got most hardware websites reviewing budget CPUs and writing articles about o verclocking God-knows-what. AMD put a brave face and got back to the drawing board and we can expect them to recover nicely. But until then, Intel has the crown, whether we like it or not. And they know that. That’s too bad, because whether it’s because of design problems or simply because they don’t have a serious competitor, they keep a rather relaxed timeline on new top products. Intel simply doesn’t have any reason to hurry things up. And that’s ok for now, since uber-CPUs are up or grabs at bargain prices.

AMD on the other hand will probably use 2008 to pick up the gauntlet and teach Intel some comeback lessons. Some claim the new Opteron isn’t so bad, especially in the power consumption segment, while the Phenom proves to be an able contender in the value sector. But what will happen with AMD’s financial situation? While Intel can afford three more market defeats, AMD can barely handle one. Let’s all hope we’ll have a serious competition out there at the end of this year, no matter who’s the winner.

3. Less freedom
The past years have statistically proven that efforts are continuously mounting towards an all-out offensive against all sorts of online or real life liberties. While an Orwellian society is still out of the question, we should all expect the big names in DRM and such to push things even further against online information sharing. And, as some money hungry leaders get even more preoccupied with controlling the masses and everything which moves online or offline, expect less freedom everywhere.

4. XP’s triumph over Vista
The number one question is… will we really be forced to switch to Windows hasta la Vista? Even though Microsoft is putting all efforts into that, apparently, the more money they invest, the greater the resistance to their born-handicapped child. Will really pulling the plug on XP this summer solve anything? First of all, there’s still a good chance that Microsoft will change its plan. Secondly, millions of people across the world use XP without the need for live updates and such without the slightest problem. Even Windows 98 lingered on a while at good percentages after it got its ticket to heaven from the Vole. 2008 may very well see the good old XP holding the front against the lumbering sack of confirmation dialog boxes also known as Vista.

5. The rise of SSD
If 2007 represented the commercial introduction for end users of the Solid State Drives, 2008 may very well be the breakout year for these devices. Last year was dominated by the first attempts of various companies to produce and market SSD and things were rather chaotic, with very confusing price ranges, availability and performance. It is to be expected that this will all be sorted out until the last days of this year and, as the hardware manufacturers iron-out some of the imperfections of the technology, we will see a much broader offer in both spectrums of interest, price and capacity. In the future, we’ll probably use SSD for our OS partitions and magnetic drives to store high volume data.

6. More physics mania
It should come as no surprise to anybody when all the following games, especially First Person Shooters, will all feature physically realistic environments where the gamer can indulge in the use of fancy weapons which manipulate objects. After games like Doom 3 and Half Life 2 popularized the stuff, in-game physics, fancy effects and real-world behavior of objects has become the norm for any respectable game. So what of the companies which hope to squeeze a profit out of this?

Right now, Ageia is still in the game with Intel preparing some heavy assault now that they got Havok in their pocket. Envy-dia and DAAMIT would have hoped for some piece of the pie when Havok announced that they’ll enable their SDK to work on the GPUs produced by the two companies. Too bad Intel decided to scrap that and now the reds and the greens are left scratching their heads in search of other competitive solutions to enter the gravity gun hungry gamers segment. Nevertheless, 2008 will definitely see the heat in this battle step up a notch. Today, physics is clearly the trend to follow, as it was in the past few years.

7. Video boredom
In a striking similarity with the CPU arena, the DAAMIT camp lies somewhere in the far corner, beaten and licking its wounds. Nobody contests that the new video cards based on the latest evolutions of the RV chipset are giving nVidia a run for their money in the value segment, but the number 1 spot is still firmly in the clutches of the GeForce 8 series… and the number 2 spot, and the number 3, and so on. This situation is likely to change somewhere in the summer if we don’t get more delays from Canada, but even so, Envy-dia isn’t too alert these days. They’re too busy messing with the naming of their products. As if it wasn’t enough that in the past years ATi named their products using the Chaos Theory.

8. MySQL to shine
Sun’s acquisition of MySQL puts them in a very comfy position in the world of software developers. Java is still being used across the globe with a constant popularity, defying Microsoft’s monopolistic efforts. The fact that MySQL now has such an illustrious master will probably be good for everybody. Sun became quite open saucy lately and this seems to be working out nicely for them. What’s most important is that Microsoft’s SQL Server might be facing some very heavy fire quite soon. MySQL was popular enough without Sun’s involvement, but a good capital injection together with some know-how, strong business partners and vast opportunities might bring MySQL to heights not previously suspected.

9. Apple to fool more people
Never underestimate the power of fruity marketing. Apple, the company which spawned the telly computer and made a hard disk sing mp3s and then gave it a fancy name to sell millions will most likely be just fine in 2008. Even though the iFoam doesn’t have the predicted success, the Fruit has plenty of momentum and there are a lot of people out there which didn’t yet realize that the device which Apple is selling is a bunch of restrictions packed together under a shiny hood. Just a bit less annoying than Vista, the iPhone is trailing almost all the other PDA-Phone producers not only in features but also in price, since the gizmo costs a lot more than it offers. Alas, here’s to the power of seemingly smart naming and powerful marketing strategies.

10. That incredible news
Haven’t you heard it? It’s unbelievable, fantastic, shocking, amazing and unexpected. You bet we’re going to hear about it sometimes this year. It’s impossible to guess what it is and will come out of the blue and strike us all senseless. Each year in the IT world holds at least one of these bombs. That’s the beauty of the game, not knowing when it’ll hit.