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Dragon*Con 2007 :: Wrap-Up

Olaf — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 14:58:54 +0000

Upon arrival at DragonCon Friday evening, I was met by a frantic Jeff at the Hyatt hotel. It would seem that the hotel doesn’t actually guarantee two beds in reserved rooms. A curious approach, as we had booked the room for quad occupancy. To make matters worse, the room presented to Jeff had a window between the main room and the bathroom. Even if this room were used for an individual, It can’t justify a large window into the bathroom. So Jeff put the manager to task on finding us an alternative…and another bed. The hotel was out of beds, so after some time we made do with what they provided. It was actually a nice enough deal, though the time it took to straighten everything out took several hours. They did finally find another bed, but it was a single (small) roll-out bed and not incredibly useful to us. The ladies, arriving later than Jeff and I, picked up an air mattress on their way and saved the day.

Having spent the next couple of hours working around impetuous security personnel at the Hyatt hotel (you’d think it would be a little easier for actual guests to check-in), Jeff and I had fully unloaded three cars worth of supplies and costumes. It was a grueling effort even though we were parked only two blocks from the hotel. Finishing that, we had time enough to grab a quick dinner before the wife and I hit the DragonCon drum circle scene. I usually enjoy this very much and this was my inaugural jam to start the weekend off. As such, it was a little lame. The circle was in full force, but diametrically opposed. There was a small niche on one side that seemed to be taking it upon themselves to run the group. This is all well and good, except that they had formed a sub circle of their own – one that was not large enough to accommodate any dancers. That, and the other side of the room was cut-off and unable to hear their rhythm through the throng of dancers in the room. So they attempted to follow along only to create a contrast to the rhythm. It was also proving difficult running the circle on the star drummers that had taken the lead. Burn-out drummers, I can say. The type that crank up a really great sound up front, but drive everyone else to play faster. It just creates a chaos in the end that is destined to burn out. The larger the circle, the more definition needed to highlight the rhythm distinctions. The group that puts this on is in discussions on the subject for next year.

DragonCon in general proved to be more than the three hotels could manage under heightened security measures. Security was tighter than in years past and the con suffered for it. Despite there efforts however, some people did manage to slip through and attend the panels they had paid to see. We didn’t manage to see many panels ourselves, but only because we were busy doing other things. We did catch the Star Trek Reunion panel in which the audience asked some questions that the celebrities didn’t answer. Some of the questions were kind of lame, but the three cast members of Star Trek attending the con this year should have made more of an effort to answer the questions. Humor the geeks, mkay. If they do something like this in the future, the coordinators should really work up some questions before the panel and present them to the talent beforehand. That way proper answers can be prepared, and good questions often lead to more.

Masquerade this year was really good. Grant and Kari hosted the annual costume ball this year. They did a good job together. Grant was showing off his over-the-top nerd trivia. The guy knows his Sci-Fi! Spazz and Fox were also in the masquerade this year. A first for any of us! They dressed as the Duct Tape Pirates – also a first at DragonCon as far as any of us know. Their costumes were perfect! When they first entered the stage, the crowd gave them complimentary “oooohhhh’s” to the detailed description of their ornate costumes. Feathers, ornaments, lace, etc. At the end – we planned the description just right – they dropped the duct tape bomb on the crowd. It was smooooooth. They went wild. It was one of those roars of excitement that can only build from thousands of people. The girls got kudos everywhere we went that night and they deserved it. If not for the fantastic effort they put into their costumes, then for walking around in uncomfortable duct tape costumes while smiling for their adoring audience.

There’s too much for me to get my mind around, so I’ll just close this up with a link to the pictures. This year, Flickr really exploded after the event with DragonCon photos. If you want to see thousands more, check the tag dragoncon2007.

Flickr: Olaf’s Dragon*Con Set (Multiple Years)

Tips for Blogging, Puddin’ Brain

Olaf — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 21:03:21 +0000

I was just reading “16 Tips for Blog Idea Brainstorming” to try and kick myself out of my latest dose of writer’s block. I’m slowly coming to the realization that it’s not writer’s block that I’m experiencing, but rather “pudding brain” (or some scientific explanation therein). Pudding is a wonderful substance. It has great things mysteriously captured within it and converted into the silky, sweet bliss that is puddin’. It’s worthless really, but wonderful in the moment. At some point though, you may realize that you’ve eaten 13lbs of pudding and now you’re having trouble getting up from the couch…let alone back to solid foods. So pudding brain is something like that. Others may refer to it as a sort of mental hiatus. But when you’re on a mental hiatus, you can only come up with puddin’ brain.

Tangents aside, the 16 tips that John Pozadzides offers are decent enough, if not mostly well known. I did find one real error in John’s ideas. It doesn’t take into consideration those afflicted with Pudding Brain. I hit Thoof on his list of aggregators to read – one I hadn’t seen before – and got really stuck. It’s one of those new-fangled aggregators that automatically load more items as you get closer to the end of the scrolling page. You can waste a lot of time there!

There’s something to be said for focus. Hitting the hot spots on the web for news is well and good, but it’s probably more productive to focus on those places that can offer you something to comment on, rather than simply steal your attention away from what you came there to do. Sites like YouTube, Thoof, and even Digg (though less so for me) are real time sinks. When it comes to blog idea hunting, I have more success trusting my own RSS aggregation. It may have a lot of the same stuff, but it’s interspersed with other sources and is slightly less accessible because RSS is abstracted from the website. I also like the idea of hitting the unpopular sites our there with very specific information to get ideas. It’s more likely to be original and it’s probably something you’re very specifically interested in.

Now, that said; I haven’t been inspired to write about much lately. But it’s not so much about my sources as it is my own intentions. The number one tip for blog idea brainstorming is this:

Take an interest in what you have to say.

If you have no interest, you have no story. You can see right through a post that is paying lip service to its readers by reposting content someone else has written. John mentions in his tips that he goes the extra mile to do some research on topics he is reposting. That’s exactly the right idea in my mind. He’s taken an interest and is providing original commentary on a popular topic.

So in between original content I fill in with interesting things I find elsewhere, or current news events. But I don’t just re-post other people’s content.

Birthday Cheers. Skål!

Olaf — Sun, 25 Feb 2007 16:40:15 +0000

…And upon the third decade of life, such an elaborate scheme was laid upon the woolen eyes of their victim.

Never before have I been so bewildered and pleased in the same breath. Here’s the skinny on one of the greatest sting operations of all times.

Jeff calls me early in the month of February to schedule me for a stilt-walking gig on the Saturday after my birthday. He asks me if I’m doing anything then and I tell him that it’s the day after my birthday, so not that I know of. Jeff is sketchy on the details as usual, but it’s nothing unusual. Amy even feigns irritation at Jeff’s inability to offer up all the details of an engagement. When my birthday finally rolls around, nothing much happens. I mean nothing. I turn 30 and there’s no recognition, no hazing, no free coffee at Starbucks. “Oh well,” I think – not a big deal. I planned to leave early Friday because it was my birthday. I got out at 3:30pm – big whoop! Traffic was painful, but I get home in time to have daylight that I need to work on my brakes for the Mazda3. It doesn’t go well and I’m stuck in the end with a caliper that I can’t fit back on the rotor. But that’s another story. We meet Jeff and Amanda for dinner, ice cream, and a Darth Vader costume fitting (in that order), but I tell them I need to get back home to work more on the brakes. If I don’t get the brakes done, I won’t have a way to get to the stilt-walking gig Saturday evening. Saturday morning breaks early and I’m off to AutoZone to equip. The boy insists on “helping,” which any parent of a 4-year-old understands the purpose of air quotes around that, so it takes a bit longer than it should. I prepare all my stilt-walking gear and costume and head out to drop Balthazar off at the in-laws for baby-sitting. Pick up some coffee, grab a bite to eat, and drive like the wind to make it to StarTime for a supposed corporate event in which I will be entertaining drunken employees. I call Jeff as I arrive in the parking lot to coordinate logistics. He tells me he doesn’t know where we’re going to be setting up and that he’s looking for the client to get information – wait outside and I’ll come to you. I’m game, because that means he’ll help me load gear into the building. While I wait, I notice a red Toyota Prius near my car that looks just like Isi and Missy’s car. I didn’t check the license plate, which proudly reads “LORAX,” but I don’t really assume it’s their car. I even have half-a-mind to call them to see if they happen to be at StarTime where I’m doing a stilt gig. When Jeff finds me, he tells me that we’re an hour early instead of 30 minutes early so decide to just go in and check the place out – maybe play some games while we wait. As we enter the building, I start eying the ceilings and flooring to gauge the relative ease of transitions and where I can and cannot walk with stilts. We get to the Funny Farm, where everything is going down, and I see a girl taking pictures through the door that looks like my wife…and she’s a photographer…how ironic is that? Even as my mind slowly realizes that it is my wife, I continue to structure my perverse reality and include her in it. Hmmm…that’s weird. Jeff must’ve hired Amy to come out and take photos at the party. Even as thirty people scream “SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY” from across the room, my mind is still sizing up the room and my obstacles for the night. It’s not until I see Missy’s hot pink hair that I finally realize I’ve been duped. The cogs in my brain slam against each other and break a few teeth before finally reversing. I can’t believe how oblivious I was for weeks! I can’t believe how well my friends kept their major secret. Turns out, I almost broke Amanda at the Dairy Queen on my birthday. I told them it was my birthday at the DQ and they had to act like they didn’t remember. Amanda didn’t want to be the asshole friend and it nearly stripped her of her secrecy.

So kudos to everyone in on this – especially my esteemed wife! Thank you one and all for my birthday surprise…and thank you for not making it a Batman costume gig in favor of stilt-walking. I couldn’t have hoped for more than a room full of friends and laughs for my 30th birthday.

And now I will seek out the people of the world that share a wonderful day with me to wish them well on whatever year they have successfully reached…

Fresh Dose of Heebee Jeebies

Olaf — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 03:30:25 +0000

Neatorama shares with us six of the more horrific parasites encountered within the the world. I’ve seen some of these already and I know of others that certainly deserve their fair attention in the top 10. This article however, has some pictures that left me noticing slight skin twitches with some unneeded apprehension.

Six Horrifying Parasites

Syndicate

Olaf — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 19:32:56 +0000

Some of you may remember the greatest years of gaming as a dynasty ruling from the late 70′s through the 90′s. When graphics took over the mainstream competitive edge, companies began disregarding “fun gameplay.” Today, computer games and even some console games take 100′s of hours of investment to actually beat or become a badass in any of them. World of Warcraft has no limit to the time you can spend on it, and you pay a premium for this greatest of time wasters. Enter childhood memories -=> Isi, Jason, and I just recollected on memories of the great games of just 10 to 20 years ago. We also found DOSBox, a classic DOS emulator for Windows XP. This paved the way for us to actually play things like Syndicate, SimCity (Classic), and Doom. Now these were games you could finish in a weekend, tops! That’s the joy of gaming. You get in, you play, and you’re done. There’s something to be said for the simplicity of a more innocent time in which games were there to entertain, not entrench you.

The Return of the Season

Olaf — Sun, 05 Jun 2005 05:12:18 +0000

It’s been relatively cold and rainy since my return from Florida. Today was the first day that we’ve received a good dose of sunshine and heat. It felt like Georgia in June. Our Great Pyrenees, Yang, nearly melted. I don’t know what she’s going to do in August. Tomorrow we’re heading out to Roswell in the evening to meet with some fellow Flickr’s for a stroll. It should be fun, and we anticipate getting to know some new people. I’ll link to the Flickr set created from that stroll later.

Free Heroin

Olaf — Tue, 22 Mar 2005 12:39:14 +0000

Vancouver is one the three sites in Canada to try a government-supported drug program. This program, unlike others, is aimed to push drugs rather than to eliminate them. Their plan is to offer medically administered drugs to people that will show up three times a week for the dose. In doing so, addicts will not have to go to desperate measures to get their drugs (e.g. theft, blackmarket, murder, etc.). They also hope that they may have the opportunity to help some addicts to clean up. There are mixed reviews from the drug using community:

“Some think it’s the government’s way of killing them, while others say they can’t wait for the free dope.”

I guess either way it isn’t such a bad thing. I mean, the drugs will eventually kill you anyway. Why not make it easier and cheaper in the mean time? No reports yet on when heroin will be available in elementary school vending machines.

W00t W00t!

Olaf — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 15:35:00 +0000

At one time, there was only one crack of choice. Today, woot.com products replace the tired old, used goods of yesteryear that were once purchased from the old flame, eBay. eBay still has a place – I still need to sell my woot.com warez to unsaavy individuals, but now woot.com takes first place in online shopping addictions. It’s cool that they have really great bargains on stuff I like (technophile), but they also keep the advertising appealing. Their writer(s) deserves bonus kudos. This morning, I see they’re selling the much acclaimed Rockford Fosgate Omnifi bundle. It’s been done before – only a few days back in fact. I’m so glad they’ve put it back up. My birthday present came late, but I’m patient. Thanks to Gordon and Dean for the birthday cash that helped me with my purchase.

I’m talking with my friend Sean, who bought one as well. I’m all jittery with anticipation. Now I just have to wait for shipment.

SeanW says:

but the car unit syncs with your PC at night via wireless

Olaf says:

Is that scheduled or something?

SeanW says:

yeah, i think so

SeanW says:

you have software on your computer

SeanW says:

i’m assuming it tries to connect to the wireless

Olaf says:

I’m guessing that the car will have all the crap it can hold and I’ll never get to hear the good stuff.

Olaf says:

20GB woes.

SeanW says:

yeah, i’m thinking the same. Hoping to get a TON of audiobooks too.

Olaf says:

Oh yeah! Good idea.

SeanW says:

one thing I like though – as you are listening, if you start something that isn’t id3 tagged right, or you want to delete it, or anything… you can mark it. Then when you sync, the mark will come over and remind you to do whatever it is you wanted to do

MadLib Biographies

Olaf — Wed, 16 Feb 2005 03:49:10 +0000

My friend, Jason D., sent me a chain-letter to fill out and send to a million people for good luck or something. I am against such things, but I like Jason and wish to at least better his luck. Instead of emailing everyone with my MadLib biography, I chose to post it here on my blog instead. I hope both of my readers enjoy this and are inspired to meme it themselves.

What is your full name on birth certificate? Olaf Gradin
What color pants are you wearing now? blue (denim)
What are you listening to right no? The sound of a computer fan and the distant drier
Favorite music? Sad or reminescent tunes
What was the last thing you ate? Zaxby’s Kickin’ Chicken Basket and fried mushrooms
Favorite food? Scandinavian split-pea soup
If you were a crayon what color would you be? Yellow
What is your favorite color? Yellow, but that has nothing to do with the previous question
How is the weather right now? Cool and foggy
If you could be anywhere, where would you be? Titan
Where would you most want to travel? Space, but I’ll take Sweden
What has been your favorite vacation? Alaska
Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Jason D., though *technically* we text’d
Talk on the phone, write letter, or email? Email
The first thing you notice about people? Ethnicity
Feature on others you most look at? Skin
What is your best feature? Height
Do you like the person who sent this to you? Even when he sends me chain letters
What has been your most memorable moment with friends? 7th grade
How are you today? Recovering from an illness…still
What is your favorite day of the week? Any day but Monday
Favorite Drink? Coffee
Favorite alcoholic drink? NyQuil
Activity you most enjoy on the weekends? Woodwork
Favorite sport to watch? Martial arts and gymnastics, though I rarely see either except in the Olympics
Favorite sport to play? Racquetball
Hair color? Strawberry-Blonde
Siblings? Henning Gradin, deceased
First Car? Toyota Tercel (hatchback)
Car you would most like to have? Nissan Frontier
Favorite month(s)? September-October
Last movie you watched, all the way through? Dodgeball
Favoite movie? I’m sure I don’t know, but Stargate comes to mind
Are you too shy to ask someone out? I’ve been married for eight years; I don’t remember
Summer or Winter? Winter
Rain or snow? Snow
Hugs or Kisses? Hugs
Chocolate or Vanilla? Vanilla
Do you want your friends to write back? I want my friends to comment
Who is most likely to respond? Sean W.
Who is least likely to respond? Everyone else
Living arrangements? Starter home with wife and child
Living arrangement you would like most? Custom timber-frame home on a nice plot of land – with Amy and Balthazar too, of course
What books are you reading? More Eric Meyer on CSS
Favoite book? Dune
What did you do last night? Ate dinner at home with the family – an unusual treat
What inspires you? Problems
Favorite cookie? Snickerdoodles, remember them?
Favoite treat? Fried cheesecake

Don’t Panic!

Olaf — Wed, 26 Jan 2005 15:39:53 +0000

Douglas Adams’ Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is coming to theater’s in live-action glory soon! You may have seen the original movie or read the book (wasn’t there a cartoon also?), but a new movie just seems apt after the abysmal 1982 rendition. Since Adams’ untimely death in 2001, proper reverance has yet to be shown. With the release of yet another try on this story, Adams’ spirit will finally be satisfied.

May 6th, 2005 marks the release.