This American Life - Harold
Tuesday, February 01, 2011
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Venture Bros., I Already Miss You
Playing around with Rainmeter, Customize.org, and generally missing Venture Bros. has led to a pretty cute desktop. Behold.
I could honestly be doing something more constructive, but why?
If you're still sleep, catch up with the show from the beginning on Adult Swim at 8:00 p.m. (central time) on Sundays.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
My First Computer Build
Yeah, I've swapped parts or been minimally involved in other computer builds, but this is my first, and it was successful!
My old HP m8200n Media Center PC was dying, and I figured I'd spend money starting over rather than spending money to upgrade. So, for less than $500 (much less after I send these rebates in), I have a nice quad core system with nice graphics and good amounts of space all because I spent a few hours not being lazy.
THE PARTS - I've provided links, but prices have mostly gone up since the holiday. They're still pretty good, though, and Newegg's shipping is fast.
Power Supply, OCZ Falat1ty 550W Modular - I guess I could've gone with more power, but I checked my needs against the parts I purchased, and this is more than enough. I'm happy that I got a modular model (one that has removable connections, so you can use only the cords you need) because the cord situation got a little crazy. It's also 80 PLUS certified and is ATX12V compatible, which is good since these features maximize energy efficiency and output.
CPU, AMD Phenom II x 4 955 Black Edition - So far I haven't really done anything labor intensive, but even with rudimentary tasks I can tell the difference from my old Athlon dual-core processor. I could've gone with an Intel, but for the extra money it just wasn't worth it for me.
Motherboard, Asus M4A88TD-V EVO/USB 3 - Nice motherboard for a cheapskate who wants to skip an extra graphics card but have HD capabilities. For my old system, I bought an Nvidia 8600 GT to get dual monitor capabilities, but there's no need with this MOBO. I currently have my flat panel monitor and LCD television hooked up and it's just fine. (There's a VGA, DVI, and HDMI out; the last is awesome since you don't have to have a separate cord for audio if you use it.)
Memory, G. Skill 4 GB DDR 1333 Dual Channel - It was well priced and highly rated. So far, so good. Since I'm finally using 64-bit architecture, I'll probably add additional memory at some point.
Case, Rosewill Destroyer ATX Tower - This was probably my biggest deal. This thing is huge and roomy and has three fans, located so that your system stays cool. I had absolutely no problem building inside this thing. Best of all, it was $39.99 when I bought it. Love it!
I finished it off with an LG DVD player and a Seagate 1 TB hard drive. Unfortunately, the Western Digital Caviar Black I bought arrived dead, so I had to run out to the Tiger Direct to grab one.
The 64-bit version of Windows 7 Professional I used was super cheap since I'm a student (see http://www.microsoft.com/student/en/us/software/windows/default.aspx for details. You just need an e-mail address ending in .edu.)
So yeah, I'm pleased as punch right now.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Top Five Halloween Viewing
My favorite holiday of the year is a-coming, which provides a perfect excuse to make yet another list of horror movies that I enjoy. In addition to the old stand-bys, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Halloween, there are hundreds of other films fit to make you laugh, cry or puke. Why not let them entertain you?
Top Five Horror Films (in no particular order)
TO MAKE YOU LAUGH
3. Black Sheep
5. Werewolf
TO GENUINELY CREEP YOU OUT
1. The Exorcist
2. The Thing
3. The Birds
4. The Ring
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Isaach de Bankole
Other than being fantastically talented and a mathematician on the low, he is absolutely, undoubtedly, most positively the most gorgeous actor working today.
My favorite performances of his can be viewed in Chocolat (not the Juliette Binoche/Johnny Depp vehicle but the 1988 film), Ghost Dog, and The Limits of Control.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Curvy Kate & DimitySO Review
So, I did a post a minute ago about the shortcomings of the retail lingerie market here in America ... or something like that. Anyway, since I discovered some overseas brands, I've been buying more foreign lingerie. Freya, Fantasie, Lepel, and Pour Moi? have been my staples, but two recent companies have piqued my interest. Meet ...
Curvy Kate, a UK brand that specializes in pretty bras for the smaller-backed, larger-cupped lady. I ordered three of their signature styles from Brastop.com (another UK company that offers some of the best lingerie around at discounted prices. Shipping to the US is pretty fast.).
Thrill Me, Fuschia/Orange
From the Spring/Summer 2010 Showgirl collection.
Love it! It looks like much too much, but it works. The band on this one seems a bit stretchy, so you may be able to order down a size. (I'm usually a 30 in the band, but I think I could've easily fit the 28.) Otherwise, the cups are true to size and fit pretty much like Freya and Fantasie. (You may have to go up one or two cup sizes if you're used to US sizes only.)
Tease Me, Black/Lemon
From the same collection. Another winner. Same fit as above--stretchy band, TTS cups. Gorgeous and, incredibly, suitable for everyday wear.
Criss Cross, Teal/White
From an older collection, '08 I think. This one has a much more snug band, so you don't have to order down a size.
****
Now DimitySO is a brand I just discovered a few months ago. They're an Australian company that also specializes in small bands and large cups. Launched this year, they focus on a more simple and pretty look.
Glum Pixie, After Dark/Buff
You've seen this one before, but I've actually had the chance to try it out. The band runs pretty TTS; unfortunately, the cup I wanted wasn't in stock, so I tried a few others. It seems my size would fit perfectly. As cute as it is, the support is just okay. Any sort of jumping around might find you knocked out by knockers. (I'm a hoot! -ers. Zing!)
So, yeah, I'm still on an underwear kick. Of course I'm all about sharing the wealth, so I'll list a few great online shops for my fellow shopping addicts.
(Pictures from curvykate.com, brastop.com, and figleaves.com)
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