Archive for the 'General' Category

The New Twenty

Today is my thirtieth birthday.

A couple of observations:

1. New Year’s Resolutions are bullshit. I’ve already forgotten mine, and chances are, you have too. That’s because they come every year, for chrissakes. I mean, who can keep up with something like that? On the other hand, 30 comes only once in your life. Trust me, you are going to remember that shit. So I’ve decided to have a 30th Birthday resolution: I’m gonna get ripped like my buddy Weston. To that end, I hired a trainer, twice a week, until my trip to Greece in July. Let’s see how that goes.

2. The urge to celebrate has definitely been taken down a notch. Usually I have a big shitshow party for my birthday. Not this year. This year “I’ll be somewhere calmly/Listening to R&B.” Gon git dat fiya up in Jaaaaaamaica!

3. Going to Babbo for dinner, my favorite restaurant in NYC. I can’t wait for the tasting menu!

Here is some Jay-Z for yah in honor of my Dirtieth:

Restoring my faith

At Disability Awareness Day at Fenway Park, a young autistic man sings the national anthem. When he stumbles, the entire crowd helps him along to the end.

This movie did a couple of things for me.

1. Renewed my faith in humanity. Sounds cliche, but it seems that generally, people are good.

2. Renewed my faith in America. It is still great to be an American. America, Fuck Yeah.

3. Surprised me. Turns out not all Red Sox fans are douchebags!

Prince Alwaleed, you are awesome.

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What is it about Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al Saud that captivates me so? Is it that serious “I will buy and sell your whole family” look that draws me in? The Wayne Newton hair? Those dope tinted aviator eyeglasses? The Ron Jeremy porn-stache? Or is it all of the above?

No, its the fact that according to him in a recent interview, he mentioned that he bought his roughly 180 million shares of Citigroup at an average price of $2.75 a share. The last time it was around that price? 1991. And he has the balls to gloat about it! What a badass. Even at its current prices, that is still over a 10X gain on his money.

When discussing a possible successor to Chuck Prince, Alwaleed had the following to say:

Q: Do you have anybody in mind?

A: Frankly speaking [and he LOVES to say "frankly speaking"], I don’t have anybody in mind….My recommendation and advice for them is they don’t hire anyone unless this guy has expertise in banking. I told them, next time no lawyer, please.

Ouch. Guess I should withdraw my resume.

Finally, a wireless solution for digital cameras!

A couple of my friends have started a “one a day” photo project, which I am thinking of joining. However, I didn’t want to deal with the hassle of uploading a picture every single day, so my laziness won out. As a result, I started to look into Wireless Digital Cameras. Basically, you had three options.

1. The Nikon Coolpix S50c (old model, $210) or S51c (new model, $264). 4126zd1pakl_aa280_.jpg These are the most recently released wireless cameras. While it was nice to have an wireless 8 megapixel camera (on the S51c) combined with a small form factor, there was still a huge problem. The wireless component only allows you to upload to Nikon’s proprietary image hosting site, myPicturetown. From there, you must log on to a computer to transfer those files to Flickr or your imagehoster of choice. So there’s that additional step you have to take, and all the while, your photos are inaccessible to your friends.
2. The Canon SD430 ($250). 41n3xe45rl_aa280_-1.jpgWhile it has the good optics that we’ve come to expect from Canon’s digital lineup, the problem with this model is that it is old. Originally designed as a response to Kodak and Nikon’s original offerings, the technology in this camera is dated, with only 5 Megapixels. There’s no image stabilization on this model as with Canon’s newer models. But you can upload directly to Flickr. Again, on balance, not the ideal solution.
3. EasyShare One ($240). 41kw0b1dvbl_aa280_-1.jpgThis camera is so old Amazon doesn’t even sell it anymore. Worse, in order to get it wireless, you have to buy a separate Kodak Wi-Fi Card that sits in a second slot in the camera. Finally, it is only 6MP, with no image stabilization.

Moreover, the problem with all these cameras is that the technology in them will ultimately become obsolete.

Enter the Eye-Fi SD Card. 51cbxrk-q4l_ss400_.jpgIt is, in my opinion, a terrific solution to the mediocrity of today’s wireless digital cameras. It is a 2GB SD Card that, when configured properly, will upload to a plethora of different photo websites, including your own website with Gallery installed. It is compatible with almost any SD card-based digital camera. Now I can use this with the camera I actually want to buy, the Canon SD870IS ($325). And if that camera breaks or becomes obsolete, I can still use the Eye-Fi with the next one. Gizmodo says the Eye-Fi works flawlessly. I think I am going to bite.

ANGRY!

Goddamnit.

Me: so that stock I was talking about…I never pulled the trigger. Its up 30% today
Friend: nice.
Me: fuck ME.
Me: @!#$?@#$!@#$

Friend: some you win, dimsum you lose

sad.