cftopper.com

Sam sent a few of us this newspaper clip theived from the fantastic www.pressdisplay.com website:

Interesting reading - so flying Ryanair will become even more irritating.

Aer Lingus should say nothing, wait until this takes off, then advertise
how their same low cost flights don't irritate, "way better".

Surely Michael O'Leary means that this will increase their revenue rather than "decrease [their] costs". 

• Awesome pavement drawings
• Albert Einstein Robo

This is awesome. I was crying with laughter:

• http://www.glumbert.com/media/kevinsmith.html

Ever have one of those days where you just wake up and your automatically in a bad mood - everything seems to annoy you, every person seems to annoy, the universe is conspiring against you?

Well I am. :( Don't misunderstand - i'm not depressed as such, just having one of those days.

A few of us went to the Curraheen dog track last night - it's good craic. Highly recommended. I had a good night and got lucky on the last race winng €55. It's not about the amount of money, just the satsfaction of winning; hey - I feel better already.

More good news - the long awaited BattleField 2142 demo is here. That might cheer me up even more. I've asked Sam to install this at AREA51 - I'll submit my initial impressions later.

Wow. I stumbled across this interesting video. Nod to John Handelaar.

Back in Ireland and back to reality. Throwing myself into my work with wild abandon.

I have to get the new Digital Crew website up and running, the existing one is embarrassing - its five years old and is never updated. I added a.. um, nice!.. sneaky!.. interesting.. hidden feature to the new website over the last 2 hours - it rocks my boat - look for it when we launch the new site in a few days. I'll say no more.

It seems the rare good weather in Ireland ended the moment I touched down. I miss being too hot in Boston already. The new airport at Cork is pretty fancy by the way - I like it. I kept thinking that it'd make a great Digital Crew headquarters in a few years. Nice wood panelling and glass.

Sam was showing me a new game Dark Messiah earlier - it looks amazing. I tried the demo on my laptop - it works but chugs along and was therefore promptly removed. The game is definitely one I'd be interested in getting my claws into if I could find the time.

Which reminds me of two things: 1 - my laptop badly needs to be reinstalled... or maybe its time for an upgrade (although I'd like a laptop with a web-cam built-in) and  2 - I still haven't found the time to complete the amazing game Oblivion - I might have a bash off it now - who needs the pub and alcohol! (I do! - tomorrow night!)

I came across Traineo and registered an account yesterday - it's a very well designed website that helps people attain their fitness or weight loss goals and is completely free. I've been getting back into 7AM jogging about the lough over the last few days, accompanied by 30 reps of heavy dumbbells morning and evening.

And that also reminds me - Myself and Edward went snorkeling in Nohoval Cove again. I'm getting better at diving and staying under but Ed is a master; near the end of our 2 hour adventure, he dived down some 8/9 feet and rummaged about for an eternity before resurfacing with a terrifying and terrified-looking monstrosity of a spider crab upside down in his out-stretched hand. Snorkeling is outstanding - the views in and around Nohoval Cove are majestic, especially from the sea. Ireland is beautiful; we need to get off our collective asses and appreciate it more.

Which reminds me, I must buy diving gloves and a diving hood - it's bloody cold in that there Atlantic. So enough rambling - I just felt I had to post something here, it's been a while.

Update

I finished Oblivion. Well, the main quest anyway. Girls should play these games more, whats wrong with them?

I've been reading the most fantastic book: The October Horse by Coleen McCullogh. Colleen is a historian as well as an author. She brings the Roman world to life allowing us to live inside the heads of all the great names of Rome circa 40BC - Cesar the Great, Antononis the brute, Octavian the Clever, Brutus the Coward, Cicero the Talker, Dollabella the fool, Servilla the bitch etc.

I admit it, i'm a slowish reader - I've been reading this 800 1000 page epic on and off for a month now. But wow, what a book. Love, honor, betrayal, plotting, war, politics, retribution ... the book has it all. Get it - you won't be disappointed!

One website led to another and I find myself reading about a grotesque creature known to the world as Paris Hilton. Seriously I can't see the attraction.

Anyhow, what I want you share with you is the fact that I read Conrad Hilton's autobiography and he was an impressive character with high moral values. Conrad, Paris's grandfather built the Hilton empire through hard work and self-belief. I have massive respect for Connie.

But I'm sure poor Connie is turning in his grave. I guess money and fame inevitably corrupt:

• EXHIBIT 1: Paris Hilton is NOT a Slut

Linux XGL/Compiz Graphics to Apple Aqua & Vista Aero

An apt title I think - It heralds the start of my personal blog showing that I am free to post what I like.

So I'm in Boston, just had another great night out with my darling sister Beverley.

Earlier on tonight I put some good tunes (read: Linkin Park) on and hacked the code for www.cftopper.com to allow me to have this personal blog. I wanted a personal blog because I am slightly crazy, tapped in the head so to speak and much of what I want to post wouldn't suit my ColdFusion development blog. Now I want to make it clear to anybody who cares that this blog is purely a selfish effort. It might as well be a diary. I'm going to post anything and everything that matters anything to me in my life. If you don't like it don't subscribe. I'm not out to please anybody here.

I'm over in Boston; well in Fitchburg which is a 'city' about an hour from Boston visiting my sister for a few weeks. Only a few days left but I've had a blast. Been to six flags, Hampton, water country, New York and last night I even went rodeo riding...

Let me tell you the story:

So I was quite happy watching Law & Order: SVU (it rocks) when Jen, my sisters good buddy called and insisted we go downtown to some mechanical bull riding compo.

We got there and it was pretty empty. The bouncers of the club, Karma, were having goes on the bull to encourage people to get on. The mech bull was setup middle stage at the back of the open bar. Nobody was giving it a go.

Jen got brave and gave it a shot... 8 seconds. I thought, "fuck it" and had a shot. Not bad - 30 seconds. Some more patrons had a go, some we're very bad - 1 second, 5 seconds - tee hee. All going well. Good fun. Good atmosphere. The dj was a lot of fun - he had a few goes and was shocking.

Then some guy got 40 seconds - the new record. Not to be beaten I got back on the horse... well the bull. The fucker threw me about but I held on like a motherfucker. I did it cowboy style with one hand for a few seconds at the start and remember the DJ saying "whoooaa, we've got a cocky one".

The trick is to get a good grip below the first knot. I got a fantastic 60 seconds, something happened the timer - It went off the clock. I thought that was it: I am the rodeo king.

Feeling satisfied with myself and more than a little sore I sat back down, still grinning and the focus of everybody's attention. The DJ was bellowing - wow!

I think everybody was afraid to have a go after that for a while. Yeah I know I sound cocky but thats the truth - nobody got up for 10 minutes. Eventually some newbies came in and the DJ harassed them into having a go. All were utterly useless.

THEN...

Then came the cocky portorican guy; throwing shapes. He got on the bull and was doing well. I thought the controller was giving him an easy time of it when it came to the 50 seconds mark. I was getting worried. The controller started to throw him wildly about the place at 55 seconds and he hung on before being thrown nicely at 72 seconds. A new champion. Needless to say I was disgusted.

Now to add insult to injury, this guy was COCKY. I don't know how to describe this type of guy. Not quite gangster. All attitude. He pranced about - I'm the man. Home boy. Baggy jeans, would shoot you before talk to you type of mo-fo. He hung around the bull throwing attitude, 'advice' and comments to anybody who'd listen. I should mention to counteract your mental picture that he wore glasses.

I was livid but cool. I felt cheated: that the controller gave him an easy time of it. So I made up my mind there and then I'm going to beat this asshole if it kills me.

My arms were still aching from the last go. I decided to give them as much time as possible before the big one. About 30 minutes later the girls decided they want to go elsewhere. I had thought of little more than strategy for those 30 minutes but didn't feel quite ready.

Fuck it, few were taking up the challenge so I threw off the shoes and steeled myself for the task ahead. I jumped on that bull and gripped on with both hands below the bottom knot as hard as I could. That bull can kick! I kept thinking "I have to beat that asshole". That did the trick and got me through the swirl and jolts. My hands were killing me, the bull was spinning so fast, then wham, it would switch direction and jolt me forward. I hung on for all I was worth. I glimpsed the clock. 55 seconds. All I had to do was hold on for a little while longer. No no no... thrown at 100 miles an hour. I was happy. Surely. Turning to the timer, I was certain...

Can you believe it - 71 seconds! :( 1 second under the mo-fo. After all my hard work. I was wrecked. He was still the champion. Everybody, well the few people in the place were cheering - I was happy yet disappointed. I probably haven't described the very well but it was all good fun.

The girls wanted to go. They went for a cigarette outside while I finished my Bud. Some other guy got on. He got 9 seconds. I was thinking "no way". I put down my drink and made my way back bull-ward.

Again I gripped the rope with all my might - two hands below the first knot. I understood that what was it's all about. It doesn't matter how much your are thrown as long as you don't leave go and keep under that first knot. I nodded at the controller and it started. Immediately I felt I was screwed, something wasn't quite right.

I was so determined.  Again I was thinking over and over - "Beat that cocky prick". It wasn't too bad until the 50 second mark - I caught a glimpse of the timer during a tiny respite. I knew, just 20 seconds more. I knew this was the hard part. This was the part when I had to grip with all my might. Just then, the deadly swirls that get everybody began; my hands strained. Then the other way... wow, nobody can take this. I could hear the crowd (well few people that were there) roaring"Yeaah!"... and was encouraged. Another tiny respite while the bull changed direction allowed me to quickly redo my grip.

It was really like the controller was using every bit of power in the bull to throw me. I just kept thinking, no way, no way, no way, no way is he beating me.

And WHAM - I went flying! hahahaha - I was pad out on the air cushion laughing madly. I knew I had to had it. Surely. Surely this time. I got up and Jen and my sister were grinning and smiling at the edge. I looked.

91 seconds!!!! Yeeeehaaaaaa. Ride 'em cowboy.

We moved on, confident that I was the nights champion. I'm just sorry that I won't be there for the cash competition next Thursday. Some guy told me I should enter but Ireland beckons.