I recently made the change over to running my own blog through wordpress at www.joshbcarter.com.
That is where I will be posting all my new content. Hope to see you there.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
On the Benefits of Work
I've had a lot of time to myself lately. Living overseas I thought I spent a lot of time by myself. Don't get me wrong, I've been spending a pretty good amount of quality time with people, but my days consist mostly of working by myself.
I'm not sure what this means but it sure has brought along some clarity. What is it about working with your hands on something that doesn't involve your entire brain?
Maybe I just appreciate this more now that I am unemployed and living with my parents.
Whatever it is I look forward to it everyday. Not just because it is something I think is pretty cool. It centers me. I find that lining up floor boards and driving nails with a hammer cathartic. Perhaps strangely so.
I'm reaching the end of the project now and not sure what I'll be moving on to next. Hopefully something equally as good. Probably won't start out that way...
I'm not sure what this means but it sure has brought along some clarity. What is it about working with your hands on something that doesn't involve your entire brain?
Maybe I just appreciate this more now that I am unemployed and living with my parents.
Whatever it is I look forward to it everyday. Not just because it is something I think is pretty cool. It centers me. I find that lining up floor boards and driving nails with a hammer cathartic. Perhaps strangely so.
I'm reaching the end of the project now and not sure what I'll be moving on to next. Hopefully something equally as good. Probably won't start out that way...
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
On Moments
It's been a while since I've posted. Like, over a month. I'm having to force myself to write. That's probably the only way I am a writer. I am forcing myself to write as opposed to reacting to inspiration, but that's a discussion for another time (I am not a writer).
Life has been a struggle since I've returned home. I lost my job, I've had to adjust to living at home again, I don't really have too many prospects ahead of me, and relationships have been somewhat strained since I've been home.
I find, however, in these moments of stress, moments of "clarity". My car hasn't been running as great recently as it could. I tried my durndest to fix it but sadly I wasn't able to remedy the malady.
Another problem I had to deal with.
I took it in and found that it was a simple procedure, that I wasn't quite capable of, to fix that problem. A day later I had my car back, running well, and sunny skies lighting the road ahead of me.
Couple with this the smooth flowing tones and melodies of Muse's new album and I had a moment of escape. A glimpse of something else. Something greater.
It's amazing how elements that are seemingly unrelated can culminate in a moment that reminds us of how small our problems are. I cherish these moments, and thank God when he sends them my way. What are your moments of "clarity"?
Life has been a struggle since I've returned home. I lost my job, I've had to adjust to living at home again, I don't really have too many prospects ahead of me, and relationships have been somewhat strained since I've been home.
I find, however, in these moments of stress, moments of "clarity". My car hasn't been running as great recently as it could. I tried my durndest to fix it but sadly I wasn't able to remedy the malady.
Another problem I had to deal with.
I took it in and found that it was a simple procedure, that I wasn't quite capable of, to fix that problem. A day later I had my car back, running well, and sunny skies lighting the road ahead of me.
Couple with this the smooth flowing tones and melodies of Muse's new album and I had a moment of escape. A glimpse of something else. Something greater.
It's amazing how elements that are seemingly unrelated can culminate in a moment that reminds us of how small our problems are. I cherish these moments, and thank God when he sends them my way. What are your moments of "clarity"?
Saturday, August 8, 2009
DIY: Paper Wallet
That's right, a paper wallet. Wallets can be made out of just about anything. I've seen wallets made of duct tape, cassette tapes, and even dollar bills themselves. For this one though you'll only need the following items:
1 sheet of Paper (color and weight according to personal preference)
1 Pair of Scissors
To start the alchemical task of turning an ordinary piece of paper into a place to store your moneys, fold the piece of paper in half length ways (folds are outlined in blue marker).
Now fold it inward again so that it's divided into fourths.
Fold the outer sections to the middle and repeat so that you have a single strip. Fold this in half (again lengthways) like so.
Now comes the only tricky part. In the picture below you will see sections marked out in blue marker. You will need to cut these out with the scissors. The cuts are as follows: a diamond shape from the second section from the bottom, for your driver's license or credit cards (got to have that plastic), and corner cuts on the second and last sections. I like to make the corner cuts 1cm into the page and .5cm along the edge.
Almost done. Take the sections that you didn't cut the corners and fold the edges in. Nothing too complicated.
Two more steps. Fold the sections back into the single strip same as you did earlier.
Finally take the tabs where you cut the corners and fold into the opposing side's slot. 1 into A and 2 into B according to the picture below. Rinse and repeat on the other side.
Believe it or not you are done. I made my first one about a week ago and I've been pretty impressed by how well it's held together. One thing you can do to customize it is to cut out a section so your drivers license is visible when open. Also I've attached a PDF to make the instructions a little more clear.
1 sheet of Paper (color and weight according to personal preference)
1 Pair of Scissors
To start the alchemical task of turning an ordinary piece of paper into a place to store your moneys, fold the piece of paper in half length ways (folds are outlined in blue marker).
Now fold it inward again so that it's divided into fourths.
Fold the outer sections to the middle and repeat so that you have a single strip. Fold this in half (again lengthways) like so.
Now comes the only tricky part. In the picture below you will see sections marked out in blue marker. You will need to cut these out with the scissors. The cuts are as follows: a diamond shape from the second section from the bottom, for your driver's license or credit cards (got to have that plastic), and corner cuts on the second and last sections. I like to make the corner cuts 1cm into the page and .5cm along the edge.
Almost done. Take the sections that you didn't cut the corners and fold the edges in. Nothing too complicated.
Two more steps. Fold the sections back into the single strip same as you did earlier.
Finally take the tabs where you cut the corners and fold into the opposing side's slot. 1 into A and 2 into B according to the picture below. Rinse and repeat on the other side.
Believe it or not you are done. I made my first one about a week ago and I've been pretty impressed by how well it's held together. One thing you can do to customize it is to cut out a section so your drivers license is visible when open. Also I've attached a PDF to make the instructions a little more clear.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
On Manners vs. Zombies
The 80's must have been an amazing decade. Neon Clothes were ok to wear, Disco was finally dead, and there were Mullets. Lots of Mullets. Then there was a new art form (some might say) emerging in the form of the mix-tape.
No longer were people relegated to telling there friends about there favorite songs, why not give them the songs? People suddenly had a say in not only what they listened to, but also were able to orchestrate a pleasing blend of music to make others listen.
As with a lot of things (especially in the States) if something is good, more is better.
Not necessarily. The Mix-tape in its various forms that extend beyond music has become so prevalent in our society that originality as a result is suffering. Reboots and High-Concept films dominate the box office. Music artists like Girl Talk have put a new spin on the mix-tape by actually combining the songs themselves. Sandals with Bottle openers on the bottom. It's everywhere. Everything is something mixed with something else.
Take for instance a book I am currently reading. This past weekend I had a discussion with a good friend about the merits Jane Austin. I usually can't stand Jane Austin. She's a great writer (no argument there), I just can't read it. But, A title caught my eye in the Washington DC Airport Borders. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Catchy little number isn't it.
The book follows much the same plot as the original novel (checked through my girlfriend, I haven't read the original) except that there are Zombies thrown in just for fun. Elizabeth Bennett is not quite as proficient in the oral arts as the martial ones. Manners is replaced with Kung Fu.
You get the idea. It's a really fun read, but does that make it original? It certainly is a combination out of left field. Roger Ebert once said of Quentin Tarantino's blending of old movies, that it's not that he is not creative, it's that he is too creative. I disagree. Sadly I think the old days of originality are gone. At least for a time.
No longer were people relegated to telling there friends about there favorite songs, why not give them the songs? People suddenly had a say in not only what they listened to, but also were able to orchestrate a pleasing blend of music to make others listen.
As with a lot of things (especially in the States) if something is good, more is better.
Not necessarily. The Mix-tape in its various forms that extend beyond music has become so prevalent in our society that originality as a result is suffering. Reboots and High-Concept films dominate the box office. Music artists like Girl Talk have put a new spin on the mix-tape by actually combining the songs themselves. Sandals with Bottle openers on the bottom. It's everywhere. Everything is something mixed with something else.
Take for instance a book I am currently reading. This past weekend I had a discussion with a good friend about the merits Jane Austin. I usually can't stand Jane Austin. She's a great writer (no argument there), I just can't read it. But, A title caught my eye in the Washington DC Airport Borders. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Catchy little number isn't it.
The book follows much the same plot as the original novel (checked through my girlfriend, I haven't read the original) except that there are Zombies thrown in just for fun. Elizabeth Bennett is not quite as proficient in the oral arts as the martial ones. Manners is replaced with Kung Fu.
You get the idea. It's a really fun read, but does that make it original? It certainly is a combination out of left field. Roger Ebert once said of Quentin Tarantino's blending of old movies, that it's not that he is not creative, it's that he is too creative. I disagree. Sadly I think the old days of originality are gone. At least for a time.
Monday, July 6, 2009
On Love and Art (intense right?)
I had the immense pleasure of watching a movie two nights ago that has stuck with even through the last two days. I struggle with delving into the story and dissecting from it the subtext without giving away the story. My family used to hate me for ruining the ends of movies. But I'll try and be good.
Do I Love? How do I know if I Love? I've based my ideas of Love upon Books, Movies, and relationships I have had throughout my life. But is my idea of Love really Love? How can people have such vastly different definitions of Love? The questions are endless so I'll stop.
The movie, as most movies at their core, dealt with a few of these questions. Mainly it toys with the idea that we cannot, in and of ourselves, Love. Love comes from something outside of us. Specifically the movie centered around Art and creation (small c). As someone who enjoys making things, this hit me pretty hard. It's in my nature to build and make things. If something exists I feel the need to dismantle it and discover its how's and why's. You might say I love to do this.
Where did this come from? Goodness knows I wasn't conditioned to view the world this way (fond memories of my father asking his eight year old son to fix the TV spring to mind). No this comes from somewhere else. Somewhere that gifts writers with words, musicians with tunes, and carpenters with hammers.
God blesses us all in various ways, different ways. But most importantly He blesses us with the ability to Love and be Loved. He Loved Mankind enough to make Mankind.
To Love to is to experience. Whether it be a weekend project or a life long relationship, Love allows us to Experience (yes, big E) the Essence of things. To see the invisible.
Perfume: The Story of a Murder is a great, weird, beautiful movie. But I could be wrong about what it's about.
Do I Love? How do I know if I Love? I've based my ideas of Love upon Books, Movies, and relationships I have had throughout my life. But is my idea of Love really Love? How can people have such vastly different definitions of Love? The questions are endless so I'll stop.
The movie, as most movies at their core, dealt with a few of these questions. Mainly it toys with the idea that we cannot, in and of ourselves, Love. Love comes from something outside of us. Specifically the movie centered around Art and creation (small c). As someone who enjoys making things, this hit me pretty hard. It's in my nature to build and make things. If something exists I feel the need to dismantle it and discover its how's and why's. You might say I love to do this.
Where did this come from? Goodness knows I wasn't conditioned to view the world this way (fond memories of my father asking his eight year old son to fix the TV spring to mind). No this comes from somewhere else. Somewhere that gifts writers with words, musicians with tunes, and carpenters with hammers.
God blesses us all in various ways, different ways. But most importantly He blesses us with the ability to Love and be Loved. He Loved Mankind enough to make Mankind.
To Love to is to experience. Whether it be a weekend project or a life long relationship, Love allows us to Experience (yes, big E) the Essence of things. To see the invisible.
Perfume: The Story of a Murder is a great, weird, beautiful movie. But I could be wrong about what it's about.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Website Update
I revamped my website and added a few things like a photo gallery and a video gallery. Take a look and let me know what you think...
thisisthacarter.com
More to come.
thisisthacarter.com
More to come.
Monday, June 22, 2009
New Videos
I finally got a chance to get some more videos uploaded. The first is some shots from around Warsaw and Turon, Poland before the wedding. Poland is such a beautiful country.
The Second is some video of the wedding itself. Congrats again Amy and Pito.
The Second is some video of the wedding itself. Congrats again Amy and Pito.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
A story
As I haven't had much excitement in the last few weeks and I have yet to find a reliable internet connection where I can upload another of my videos, I thought that I would tell one of the many stories that I have accrued.
My roommate and I had gotten in the habit of using the same group of taxi drivers for rides home. These guys post up at the top a hill next to a metro station, so it is a bit of a walk, but they understand that each time they will get 5 manat and we get a ride home without having to barter over the price. We've had several interesting run ins with cabbies since we've been here, so having working out a mutual understanding makes the walk worth it.
So after a long, hot day I made the trip up the hill alone, as my roommate was currently on vacation back in the states and hailed one of the cabbies while offering the other drivers in the group (people here hang out in groups of four most everywhere you go, haven't quite figured out why yet) a "Salam". The cab was actually one of the better ones in the group so I slouched down into the rather comfortable back seat grateful to be sitting down again and on my way to my apartment.
Before I go any further I need to explain something about the cabs here. None of the cabs work for actual cab companies. They don't have yellow cabs. They don't even have cab meters (hence the bartering over the cost of the cab ride). Any person with a car can run his own cab service, and from what I gather, they so quite well for themselves. The only way to tell a cab is the magnetic light on top the car that says "taksi" which is connected to the battery by a wire that runs through the firewall and up to the roof.
Back to the cab. We started to pull away from the front of the metro station and I turned to look into the on coming traffic. When I turned back, the car was completely filled with the most foul smelling, thick black smoke. I didn't panic, but I didn't really know what to do either. Should I jump out? I opened the door so I could breathe a began to furiously waft the smoke out. Steadily things began to clear and that is when I caught sight of the flame along the A pillar of the cab (the A pillar is the part of the car where the windshield and the front doors meet) and the panicked cabbie batting at it with his open palms. He patted the flame out and turned to me with a smile on his face to say "problem no, problem no". He drove me the rest of the way home without incident and I got out and laughed al the way up the elevator.
I couldn't help but laugh. I know this is like joke you tell where you say "I guess you just had to be there", but stuff like this tends to happen here quite regularly. How many people can say that they were in a cab when it caught fire?
My roommate and I had gotten in the habit of using the same group of taxi drivers for rides home. These guys post up at the top a hill next to a metro station, so it is a bit of a walk, but they understand that each time they will get 5 manat and we get a ride home without having to barter over the price. We've had several interesting run ins with cabbies since we've been here, so having working out a mutual understanding makes the walk worth it.
So after a long, hot day I made the trip up the hill alone, as my roommate was currently on vacation back in the states and hailed one of the cabbies while offering the other drivers in the group (people here hang out in groups of four most everywhere you go, haven't quite figured out why yet) a "Salam". The cab was actually one of the better ones in the group so I slouched down into the rather comfortable back seat grateful to be sitting down again and on my way to my apartment.
Before I go any further I need to explain something about the cabs here. None of the cabs work for actual cab companies. They don't have yellow cabs. They don't even have cab meters (hence the bartering over the cost of the cab ride). Any person with a car can run his own cab service, and from what I gather, they so quite well for themselves. The only way to tell a cab is the magnetic light on top the car that says "taksi" which is connected to the battery by a wire that runs through the firewall and up to the roof.
Back to the cab. We started to pull away from the front of the metro station and I turned to look into the on coming traffic. When I turned back, the car was completely filled with the most foul smelling, thick black smoke. I didn't panic, but I didn't really know what to do either. Should I jump out? I opened the door so I could breathe a began to furiously waft the smoke out. Steadily things began to clear and that is when I caught sight of the flame along the A pillar of the cab (the A pillar is the part of the car where the windshield and the front doors meet) and the panicked cabbie batting at it with his open palms. He patted the flame out and turned to me with a smile on his face to say "problem no, problem no". He drove me the rest of the way home without incident and I got out and laughed al the way up the elevator.
I couldn't help but laugh. I know this is like joke you tell where you say "I guess you just had to be there", but stuff like this tends to happen here quite regularly. How many people can say that they were in a cab when it caught fire?
Thursday, June 4, 2009
In the midde of nowhere
Technology is awesome. Right now I am sitting in a car in the middle of Azerbaijan, writing this on my laptop which is hooked up to the internet through a cellphone. Why am I here? Why am I taking the time during my workday to write a blog post about technology? All valid questions.
You see, today ended up not being like very other day. Our company is looking at a new project here in Azerbaijan so we decided to take a field trip out to scout locations for our road. Seems simple enough. Drive out to the middle of nowhere take some pictures and some GPS coordinates and drive back home. At least that was what was supposed to happen.
We drove out to the first location we had planned and took our pictures, got harassed by the local police, and took our GPS locations. Nothing too exciting (except for the police harassment, trying to explain to a cop that you are just taking pictures of the land and power lines for a road that doesn't exist when he doesn't speak your language is not easy). We got back into the car, flipped it into gear, and...went nowhere.
Upon investigation we discovered that not only was the transmission low on fluid, but there wasn't any fluid in the transmission to begin with. So we checked underneath and sure enough we had left a long trail of red fluid behind us. We weren't going anywhere.
So here I sit, and have been for the last hour and a half, waiting for another car to come and pick us up. Our driver keeps telling us 5 minutes and has been for the last half hour. I'm starting to not trust these people, they're all a bunch of con-men. But as I type this a white Toyota is pulling up. Looks like we are saved after all.
You see, today ended up not being like very other day. Our company is looking at a new project here in Azerbaijan so we decided to take a field trip out to scout locations for our road. Seems simple enough. Drive out to the middle of nowhere take some pictures and some GPS coordinates and drive back home. At least that was what was supposed to happen.
We drove out to the first location we had planned and took our pictures, got harassed by the local police, and took our GPS locations. Nothing too exciting (except for the police harassment, trying to explain to a cop that you are just taking pictures of the land and power lines for a road that doesn't exist when he doesn't speak your language is not easy). We got back into the car, flipped it into gear, and...went nowhere.
Upon investigation we discovered that not only was the transmission low on fluid, but there wasn't any fluid in the transmission to begin with. So we checked underneath and sure enough we had left a long trail of red fluid behind us. We weren't going anywhere.
So here I sit, and have been for the last hour and a half, waiting for another car to come and pick us up. Our driver keeps telling us 5 minutes and has been for the last half hour. I'm starting to not trust these people, they're all a bunch of con-men. But as I type this a white Toyota is pulling up. Looks like we are saved after all.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Google Wave
Seeing as I have a lot of time on my hands and limited resources as to the projects I can undertake, I spend a lot of time surfing the internet. I have a blog, a facebook page, a website, but the one thing that I had wanted was a better way to stay in touch with friends and family.
Right before I left home a friend of mine mentioned that he thought it would be an awesome idea to start a blog and give all our friends the password to it so that we could tell each other stories without having to check 50 blogs or deal with app requests in facebook that offer the incredible ability to send all the people you're not really friends with a smiling face. It was a great idea.
The main problem I have with facebook is that it has become so bloated. It's no longer a website for people to stay in touch with friends. It's become a way for people a world away to pester people they've never met. But this, this could be cool. Something streamlined. Most importantly this would be private. We could restrict the people who could add to it.
Back to me having too much time on my hands. I started to develop an idea of what this could look like as a new social networking site. One that doesn't allow apps or any of that other crap. Almost like a private forum. I thought and thought and thought. And just as I was about to contact a friend of mine who is very into venture capitalism...Google unveiled Wave.
This is the next big thing. Mark my words. You heard it here first. This is going to revolutionize not only the way people communicate on the internet, but also the way that businesses are run. There is no limit to the possibilities.
Wave is a real time email/chat/document editor web service. You start a wave (similar to an email) send it to your friends and they can respond by simply clicking reply when they receive it (just like email). If it happens that two people are on at the same time they can chat inside of that wave in real time. You literally see the words as the person types instead of seeing "suchandsuch is typing". You can upload rich text documents (similar to word or excel) and each person that you allow to see the wave can edit the page simultaneously. In the demo that I saw, eight people were editing a business document at the same time. What would take days to get done now only takes as long as you need to type.
Ok, so this sounds cool. Yeah! I can do my email and chat just like gmail, but with a little document editing thrown in. But this is where the kicker comes in. It's open source protocol, which means that you can host it on any server. You don't have to log into google to use it. Any website with a server can host there own private version, allowing those they want to participate to participate and being invisible to people outside of the group.
So I'm a little disappointed that my friends idea and my additions to said idea didn't make us millions, but I can't wait to get my hands on Wave. And you better believe it's coming to thisisthacarter.com
Right before I left home a friend of mine mentioned that he thought it would be an awesome idea to start a blog and give all our friends the password to it so that we could tell each other stories without having to check 50 blogs or deal with app requests in facebook that offer the incredible ability to send all the people you're not really friends with a smiling face. It was a great idea.
The main problem I have with facebook is that it has become so bloated. It's no longer a website for people to stay in touch with friends. It's become a way for people a world away to pester people they've never met. But this, this could be cool. Something streamlined. Most importantly this would be private. We could restrict the people who could add to it.
Back to me having too much time on my hands. I started to develop an idea of what this could look like as a new social networking site. One that doesn't allow apps or any of that other crap. Almost like a private forum. I thought and thought and thought. And just as I was about to contact a friend of mine who is very into venture capitalism...Google unveiled Wave.
This is the next big thing. Mark my words. You heard it here first. This is going to revolutionize not only the way people communicate on the internet, but also the way that businesses are run. There is no limit to the possibilities.
Wave is a real time email/chat/document editor web service. You start a wave (similar to an email) send it to your friends and they can respond by simply clicking reply when they receive it (just like email). If it happens that two people are on at the same time they can chat inside of that wave in real time. You literally see the words as the person types instead of seeing "suchandsuch is typing". You can upload rich text documents (similar to word or excel) and each person that you allow to see the wave can edit the page simultaneously. In the demo that I saw, eight people were editing a business document at the same time. What would take days to get done now only takes as long as you need to type.
Ok, so this sounds cool. Yeah! I can do my email and chat just like gmail, but with a little document editing thrown in. But this is where the kicker comes in. It's open source protocol, which means that you can host it on any server. You don't have to log into google to use it. Any website with a server can host there own private version, allowing those they want to participate to participate and being invisible to people outside of the group.
So I'm a little disappointed that my friends idea and my additions to said idea didn't make us millions, but I can't wait to get my hands on Wave. And you better believe it's coming to thisisthacarter.com
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Abu Dhabi & Dubai
I've already talked about my trip to Abu Dhabi and Dubai a little. Now you can see what it's like. Enjoy.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
On possibly biting off more than you can chew
In my last post I talked about my difficulty learning to write html code. It was a fun and simple project to undertake, but I tend to be excitable about things I get interested in. Sometimes this is not a good thing. Other times it leads to me see things through that I normally wouldn't. I think it's a fair trade.
What does this have to do with my last post? Simple, I took the next logical step. I started my own website. I researched how difficult and expensive it is to host a website through a webhosting provider. I finally decided, through a friend's recommendation, on dreamhost.com. I paid my $90 for the year and I was off and running. Or so I thought.
Immedidately there was a problem. Somehow Dreamhost had charges me for two accounts. So what should have been an expensive, but doable, $90 turned into an outrageous $180. A quick email and and hour later and the problem was fixed. I pieced together a little code and through it up on the website (after another little bit of trouble, which was again resolved quickly). Boy was I proud. I couldn't believe it. I had my own website.
Imagine then my shock and heartbreak when I discovered the next morning that it had disapeared. I checked my panel at dreamhost and could no longer see my website. I didn't feel heartbreak in that moment, but it must have something like it. Thankfully another quick email resolved the problem (if you ever commit to owning your own website, I highly recomend dreamhost.com, their support is outstanding). Apparently they had erased both accounts instead of only the extra one.
Now the real fun began. My friend who recomended dreamhost also told me about worpress templates and how I could use them to quicly throw up a website. "Nah," I said, "I want to design one from screatch." That was the point, I think, where I went from enjoying my project to completely choking on it. I'm pretty capable with computer programs like Photoshop and Illustrator, but designing a working webpage was much more complicated than I intitially thought. I spent the past week designing, troubleshooting, getting so frustrated that I contemplated throwing my computer against the wall, and then eventually, finally, finding a way to make it work.
If you had asked me two hours ago. I probally would have said that I wanted my money back (dreamhost actually has a 30 day warranty where you can get a full refund if you're not satisfied with your account). But I really wouldn't have. That would have been quitting. I'm glad I saw it through to the end, and hopefully, as I spend more time with it, it will grow and become something I am really proud of. Now I am simply content to have it exist for the time being.
Oh, and you can check it out at www.thisisthacarter.com.
What does this have to do with my last post? Simple, I took the next logical step. I started my own website. I researched how difficult and expensive it is to host a website through a webhosting provider. I finally decided, through a friend's recommendation, on dreamhost.com. I paid my $90 for the year and I was off and running. Or so I thought.
Immedidately there was a problem. Somehow Dreamhost had charges me for two accounts. So what should have been an expensive, but doable, $90 turned into an outrageous $180. A quick email and and hour later and the problem was fixed. I pieced together a little code and through it up on the website (after another little bit of trouble, which was again resolved quickly). Boy was I proud. I couldn't believe it. I had my own website.
Imagine then my shock and heartbreak when I discovered the next morning that it had disapeared. I checked my panel at dreamhost and could no longer see my website. I didn't feel heartbreak in that moment, but it must have something like it. Thankfully another quick email resolved the problem (if you ever commit to owning your own website, I highly recomend dreamhost.com, their support is outstanding). Apparently they had erased both accounts instead of only the extra one.
Now the real fun began. My friend who recomended dreamhost also told me about worpress templates and how I could use them to quicly throw up a website. "Nah," I said, "I want to design one from screatch." That was the point, I think, where I went from enjoying my project to completely choking on it. I'm pretty capable with computer programs like Photoshop and Illustrator, but designing a working webpage was much more complicated than I intitially thought. I spent the past week designing, troubleshooting, getting so frustrated that I contemplated throwing my computer against the wall, and then eventually, finally, finding a way to make it work.
If you had asked me two hours ago. I probally would have said that I wanted my money back (dreamhost actually has a 30 day warranty where you can get a full refund if you're not satisfied with your account). But I really wouldn't have. That would have been quitting. I'm glad I saw it through to the end, and hopefully, as I spend more time with it, it will grow and become something I am really proud of. Now I am simply content to have it exist for the time being.
Oh, and you can check it out at www.thisisthacarter.com.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Custom email signature
This is going to seem like a weird post. That's because it is. I got the idea to create my own email signature from scratch for use with gmail. The problem is, I don't know how to write html code (html code is the computer language that comprises about 99% percent of the internet). So with plenty of free time at work I got started learning what I could. I got pretty far, but eventually ran into a snag in finding the images I wanted to include in the signature on the internet. I wanted to include a symbol for my google profile:
A symbol for my blog:
and A symbol for my youtube channel:
I didn't want to start a flickr page or something along those lines, because really I don't take that many pictures. How to find the exact images I wanted without uploading them to some strange website? Simple, upload them here. From now on, hopefully, the images you have just seen above will be referenced in my email signature. Problem solved.
A symbol for my blog:
and A symbol for my youtube channel:
I didn't want to start a flickr page or something along those lines, because really I don't take that many pictures. How to find the exact images I wanted without uploading them to some strange website? Simple, upload them here. From now on, hopefully, the images you have just seen above will be referenced in my email signature. Problem solved.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Baku City Wall
A few weekends ago my roommate and I decided to do some exploring in the city. Two months of spending your weekends in the same places caused me to become a little bored and resentful of Baku. The city has such potential, but they just don't really put forth the effort to make this a marketable place to visit.
Anyway, I had wanted to visit inside the original city wall for a while, and so we made our way down through the city to the main gate. Inside the wall was peaceful and quiet. The government restricts the car traffic through the wall and as a result the environment lends itself much more to exploring. Back through alleys and over the top of buildings we made our way through the old city, enjoying every minute of it. Overall the experience brought about a new found love for the city of Baku and coupled with it a heartbreak that they do not make the effort to clean up the rest of the city and make it more like the old city.
Anyway, I had wanted to visit inside the original city wall for a while, and so we made our way down through the city to the main gate. Inside the wall was peaceful and quiet. The government restricts the car traffic through the wall and as a result the environment lends itself much more to exploring. Back through alleys and over the top of buildings we made our way through the old city, enjoying every minute of it. Overall the experience brought about a new found love for the city of Baku and coupled with it a heartbreak that they do not make the effort to clean up the rest of the city and make it more like the old city.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Azerbaijan II: Azerbaijaning Harder
Here is another little video I threw together showcasing some of the interesting things I've found around the city of Baku. My favorite part was getting to go to the Azerbaijan National Auto Show and seeing the tremendous amount of european cars there. Just see for yourself. Also featured are my roommate Thomas and our translator/fellow engineer Volkan. I'll be posting another video soon showcasing the inside of the city wall, so stay tuned.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
'...'
This past weekend I had the good blessing to see two things which I am not exactly qualified to describe well. One of which I am pretty confident I will never see again. I was flying on a plain from a dismal week of work in Baku and toward the promise of a free weekend in Abu Dhabi. Coming into the city of Dubai the Persian Gulf was lit by small oil rigs and fishing boats, an amazing sight to be sure. I saw a firework firework burn out almost level with the plane, and thought, 'who's shooting fireworks at 2 o'clock in the morning?' And then it hit me. It wasn't a firework at all. It wasn't a rocket or another plane. It was a shooting star. In the clear desert night sky over the persian gulf I got to see a shooting star up close. I saw it streak across the atmosphere and fizzle in a shower of sparks. I couldn't believe it. I don't even know how to describe it in a way that will remotely convey how cool it was. This I will never get to see again.
Still flabbergasted from my spotting of the shooting star, the plane continued it's descent into Dubai. Which brings me to the second amazing sight from this weekend. Towering above the city was the world's tallest building, the Berj Dubai. I have been to New York and I have seen the Empire State Building, but what makes the Berj so unique is the fact that there is nothing around it. Even the tallest buildings around are only a third of its height. A fact I was reminded of by my cab driver when I returned to Dubai three days later.
I think it is awesome that I went into trip wanting to see Dubai and came out of it hardly having been impressed by what I saw, all because the most brilliant of manmade constructions couldn't compare with the amazing beauty of God's creation.
Monday, April 13, 2009
On what is allowed
I don't mean to make it sound like I'm making a transistion into a philosophical hobbiest. Spending large amounts of time away from everyone and everything I know just tends to bring it out in me. I don't have much to occupy my time other than a little bit of work and a lot of free time to read, doodle, and shoot some occasional video. Which brings me to what I've been thinking about a lot lately. Freedom.
I read this book called Little Brother. I had heard about on a couple blogs I frequent and their praise, coupled with the fact that it was one of a handful of english books available here, had me intrigued. To say the least I was blown away. This book is fun, way fun. If you have ever had any interest in tinkering with things, computers, or the internet, you might want to pick this book up. I seriously geeked out. Everytime I sat down to read I had my computer there with me and every couple of pages I ended up googleing something with the thought of 'you can do that?' running through my head.
Sadly the book doesn't exactly deliver on the narrative front. It eventually runs out of steam and drags itself up to a climax that is a whimper compared to the solid first act. Part of the reason is that the author makes the decision to preach to the reader in what I can only assume is the hope that they will accept his point of view without the processing the argument that he is delivering. He repeatedly 'Bush bashes' (Bush isn't a character in the novel, I'm just using that to summerize his overall contempt with the Department of Homeland Securities policies) and I found myself thinking, 'I can't agree with this.' I am not a staunch liberal detractor that thinks he tried to burn our country to ground, nor am I a hard core Bush supporter, but I prefer to give the man the benefit of the doubt. He's the President. He knows more about this country than you and I will ever know.
But I've gotten off topic. Freedom is...to tell the truth I'm not exactly sure what it is. To each person it may mean something different, but when it comes to political freedom and individual rights I have to draw a line right down the middle. I don't think that everything in the Patriot Act was justifiable, but I do feel that the Goverment has some amount of athority to tighten security in certain key areas. "Certain key areas" being the operative words. One example from the book is a reference to a court case in the early 90's. The case was Bernstein vs. The United States. In it, the Government argued that the computer code written by Daniel Bernstein for his doctoral thesis on applied mathmatics was illegal because they couldn't crack it. The brightest minds working for the NSA couldn't crack it so obviously this was dangerous right? Well you might be suprised to learn that you have at one time or another used Daniel's encription. If you've bought anything online using your credit card or paypal you've used it. If you've managed your bank account online you've used it. It keeps your information from falling into hands that you'd rather it not fall into. What the government didn't approve of ultimately bettered the lives of the American people, it made them safer. But there are numerous times when a particular device or loophole the government didn't approve of has killed thousands of people. It's hard to draw this line, and it is never a straight one, but it is important to think about. To have an opinion.
In the end I think the best view point to have is to actively seek dialogue on the subject. Everyone is going to think something different than their neighbor and I believe that only by confronting the opposition head on can you justifiably rest in your beliefs.
Friday, April 3, 2009
On Imitation
It has occurred to me that my English has gotten worse. I could point to the fact that I haven't written a paper in five years, or the fact that I haven't read a really good novel in a while, but I think there is another reason. I've started to imitate the local people.
Many people here speak fragmented English, which for some odd reason I have adopted when speaking to them. Automatically my brain slices and dices my sentences and they come out sounding remarkably similar to how an Azeri person would speak. Whether this is helpful or degrading to Azeri people, or people that don't speak English well, is a mute point, but what this got me thinking about was how people tend to imitate others.
It seems that in societies that are blessed with the ability to be somewhat decadent and able to neglect utilitarianism there is a tremendous pressure upon people to be creative. Be different. Go against the grain. Think outside the box. Those that we look up to, are those that create. They give us something we never would have conceived of, or better yet something we think we should have.
It occurs to me in writing this that this topic could get very complex very quickly. I could branch off into philosophizing about how our imitating things really hearkens back to some basic instinct of wanting to be creative and thus imitating God, or how there are no new stories, only new characters, but I won't.
What really interests me is the thought that learning comes through imitation, especially in regards to language. You want to influence people, just change the way you talk around them. See how long it takes them to adopt your words (Parents know just how influential their words can be on there children, for better or worse).
We imitate. There are no if's, and's, or but's about it. It is kind of suprising that people have such an aversion to something they practice regularly and have gained so much from. Or maybe it isn't. I don't know.
Many people here speak fragmented English, which for some odd reason I have adopted when speaking to them. Automatically my brain slices and dices my sentences and they come out sounding remarkably similar to how an Azeri person would speak. Whether this is helpful or degrading to Azeri people, or people that don't speak English well, is a mute point, but what this got me thinking about was how people tend to imitate others.
It seems that in societies that are blessed with the ability to be somewhat decadent and able to neglect utilitarianism there is a tremendous pressure upon people to be creative. Be different. Go against the grain. Think outside the box. Those that we look up to, are those that create. They give us something we never would have conceived of, or better yet something we think we should have.
It occurs to me in writing this that this topic could get very complex very quickly. I could branch off into philosophizing about how our imitating things really hearkens back to some basic instinct of wanting to be creative and thus imitating God, or how there are no new stories, only new characters, but I won't.
What really interests me is the thought that learning comes through imitation, especially in regards to language. You want to influence people, just change the way you talk around them. See how long it takes them to adopt your words (Parents know just how influential their words can be on there children, for better or worse).
We imitate. There are no if's, and's, or but's about it. It is kind of suprising that people have such an aversion to something they practice regularly and have gained so much from. Or maybe it isn't. I don't know.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Azerbaijan
I recently took a job in Azerbaijan. Yeah, I hadn't heard of it either. The trip over was long and in total I stayed up for almost 30 hours straight. Now that I'm here and have had a few days and nights to adjust, I can finally sit down and post a new blog. Azerbaijan as a country is pretty cool. Their isn't a lot in the way of national history that is important in a global sense or that I would have heard of in school, but the city is old. There is a temple here that is among the oldest religious structures in the world (they worshiped fire back then in case you were wondering). The people seem to be polite if somewhat apprehensive about interacting with Americans, definitely not the same as the more western European countries. The food, oh the food is outstanding. All the produce is very fresh and they love simple meat and bread dishes with a side of veggies. I threw together a short video of my first few days here. Hope you enjoy. There will definitely be more frequent updates from here on.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
DIY: Paperback Book
A couple of weeks ago a fellow blogger, that just so happens to be related to me, told me about a website that will take your blogs over a period of time and compile them into book form. I'm not quite sure how the transition happened(it may have something to do with her email or watching too much "How It's Made" on Discovery Channel), but I started to research how involved it would be to make my own paperback book. Turns out it's pretty easy.
Just like in Mcgyver episodes the first thing you need to do is figure out what you'll need to build your book:
Glue (preferably flexible, but must be strong, so hot glue is out)
Paper
Exacto knife
Clamps
Card Stock
For this project I wanted to make a pocket design booklet out of graph paper. Cut the graph paper down to size and tap it on a table like a stack of cards to line everything up, then clamp it together using binder clips.
To get the pages to hold to each other as well as the binding you need to get glue between the pages. To do this simply fan the pages out by folding the free edge over like so:
Once you have done this simply apply glue(I like to use Gorilla Glue which requires you to dampen the surface before applying the glue) along the exposed areas and repeat in the opposite direction.
Next just press the stack with some weight for an hour or so to let the glue dry. Once that is done it's time to attach the binding/cover. Place the free edge of the paper stack along the edge of your card stock and crease and fold the card stock along the glued edge with backside of the exacto knife.
I like to add a extra crease about a quarter of an inch from the first crease for mark the edge of where the glue will go on either side of the cover.You're going to want to measure the thickness of your insert here and make another crease and fold where the back will line up. Once you have made all your creases just apply glue to this center portion and press it once again. When finished it should look like this:
I like to add a extra crease about a quarter of an inch from the first crease for mark the edge of where the glue will go on either side of the cover.You're going to want to measure the thickness of your insert here and make another crease and fold where the back will line up. Once you have made all your creases just apply glue to this center portion and press it once again. When finished it should look like this:
Finally all you have to do is cut the card stock down to the appropriate size. A nice little notebook that's much cheaper than store bought you can personalize it all you like.
I also printed and made a full size screenplay. I won't say which movie I picked, but it was easily the best movie I saw this year.
I had to apply the colored band on the edge because I couldn't find card stock that was big enough for printer paper. Oh and by the way the website that my fellow blogger pointed me to was blurb.com if you're interested, but I might just try and make my own.
I had to apply the colored band on the edge because I couldn't find card stock that was big enough for printer paper. Oh and by the way the website that my fellow blogger pointed me to was blurb.com if you're interested, but I might just try and make my own.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Watchmen
It finally happened yesterday. I made the trip over to the local cineplex with much anticipation to see Watchmen. The commercials have looked incredible and Warner Bros. certainly upped the advertising budget, perhaps hoping for another The Dark Knight. It just so happened that I saw the movie with two friends that hadn't read the book and one friend that had, so I was very interested to hear the perspectives of those that came into the movie knowing nothing about the story.
Spoilers Follow:
As far as a movie goes I would give it a B+, 3 out of 4 stars, whatever rating system you prefer. The visual pop of the film really sets it apart from previous comic book adaptations or even surrealist sci-fi films. Say what you want about Zack Snyder, the man knows how to work a camera. I guess that is what they mean by "visionary". Unfortunately, some of the special effects and make up completely fall flat. At several points during the film the actors appear obviously before a green screen, and I won't even get into the portrayal of Richard Nixon. It was sad to see them handle his character, even though he is a minor one, with so little care.
Which brings me to the music. Wow did Mr. Snyder drop the ball here. Some moments work extremely well, Bob Dylan in the opening credits, and others sound like a bad mix tape, "Sounds of Silence" at the Comedian's funeral. He gives snippets of familiar songs but only just enough for you to get a chuckle out of it or to say, "Oh, I love this song!" The original music is exciting and works great in the action sequences and I wish that he had done something similar to what he did in 300 and used more orchestration with and used familiar songs more sparingly.
The actors do a decent job of playing their perspective roles, especially Jackie Earle Haley and Billy Crudup. The only problems with the characters arise form the changes to the original story with regards to the nature of the characters. Dr. Manhattan is made into a redemptive character through a convenient plot device that prevents him of having knowledge of Ozymandias's plan. In the novel he is completely detached from world and even though he knows what Ozymandias will eventually do, he does nothing, he sees the logic of it. A logic the movie completely disregards. Another small nitpick is the way the movie spends too much time building up an energy crisis (a plot point I could clearly see a studio executives fighting for thinking people will be able to relate to without having read the source material or understanding the extent of Dr. Manhattan's power) and not enough time on the finer aspects of the character development. It skims over the reasons that people would fight for justice in the first place and that prevents the characters from having any inherent nobility later in the film.
End Spoilers
Overall the film was enjoyable for myself and the people I saw it with. It should be noted that the two people that hadn't read the novel left the theater slightly overwhelmed by the complexity, weight, and bleak nature of the story. These are certainly not the same kind of super heros that have 12 year old kids lining up to see it. When all the hype has settled the film will leave studio executives disappointed, audiences confused, and long time fans ultimately pleased. Strangely enough I think that this fits the nature of the comic better than it had been a monumental block buster. Those involved in the production that truly understand the source novel, I think, realize that this isn't for everyone and those that allow themselves to get involved in philosophical discussions about human nature and Machiavellianism will find a movie that will really get there blood red juices flowing.
Spoilers Follow:
As far as a movie goes I would give it a B+, 3 out of 4 stars, whatever rating system you prefer. The visual pop of the film really sets it apart from previous comic book adaptations or even surrealist sci-fi films. Say what you want about Zack Snyder, the man knows how to work a camera. I guess that is what they mean by "visionary". Unfortunately, some of the special effects and make up completely fall flat. At several points during the film the actors appear obviously before a green screen, and I won't even get into the portrayal of Richard Nixon. It was sad to see them handle his character, even though he is a minor one, with so little care.
Which brings me to the music. Wow did Mr. Snyder drop the ball here. Some moments work extremely well, Bob Dylan in the opening credits, and others sound like a bad mix tape, "Sounds of Silence" at the Comedian's funeral. He gives snippets of familiar songs but only just enough for you to get a chuckle out of it or to say, "Oh, I love this song!" The original music is exciting and works great in the action sequences and I wish that he had done something similar to what he did in 300 and used more orchestration with and used familiar songs more sparingly.
The actors do a decent job of playing their perspective roles, especially Jackie Earle Haley and Billy Crudup. The only problems with the characters arise form the changes to the original story with regards to the nature of the characters. Dr. Manhattan is made into a redemptive character through a convenient plot device that prevents him of having knowledge of Ozymandias's plan. In the novel he is completely detached from world and even though he knows what Ozymandias will eventually do, he does nothing, he sees the logic of it. A logic the movie completely disregards. Another small nitpick is the way the movie spends too much time building up an energy crisis (a plot point I could clearly see a studio executives fighting for thinking people will be able to relate to without having read the source material or understanding the extent of Dr. Manhattan's power) and not enough time on the finer aspects of the character development. It skims over the reasons that people would fight for justice in the first place and that prevents the characters from having any inherent nobility later in the film.
End Spoilers
Overall the film was enjoyable for myself and the people I saw it with. It should be noted that the two people that hadn't read the novel left the theater slightly overwhelmed by the complexity, weight, and bleak nature of the story. These are certainly not the same kind of super heros that have 12 year old kids lining up to see it. When all the hype has settled the film will leave studio executives disappointed, audiences confused, and long time fans ultimately pleased. Strangely enough I think that this fits the nature of the comic better than it had been a monumental block buster. Those involved in the production that truly understand the source novel, I think, realize that this isn't for everyone and those that allow themselves to get involved in philosophical discussions about human nature and Machiavellianism will find a movie that will really get there blood red juices flowing.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Baby Bro
This past weekend my Baby Bro won the State Championship in basketball. It was awesome to see the seniors on his team reach the level that they did. This year will only be the second graduating class from their high school and most of the seniors were on the very first basketball team at the school. Congrats guys on a great year and an impressive win in the Finals. I threw this video together using footage I shot from the stands, unfortunately YouTube is having a copyright dispute with the record label that owns the rights to T.I.'s "Slide Show" which is the song that I used, so they deleted all of the audio. I'll work at is and hopefully I'll follow this up with an update with the audio fixed.
Update: I fixed the audio and swapped it out for Outkast's "So Fresh, So Clean". Also tweaked some of the title cards.
Update: I fixed the audio and swapped it out for Outkast's "So Fresh, So Clean". Also tweaked some of the title cards.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Is the book better???
It's an age old debate. Is the book always better than the movie? I would say that in most cases, yes it is. There are rare exceptions to this (His Girl Friday vs. The Front Page being only one), and there are even cases where the existence of both adds to the complexity or entertainment value of the story (Fight Club, The Bourne series). Now that Hollywood is stuck in an era where every other movie is a comic book adaptation this adds a new complexity to the problem. In most cases the movies exist simultaneously with the book just as another story line adds to the myth of the character.
Now an adaptation of one of my favourite books, Watchmen, is coming to the big screen in a week and the outlook is...underwhelming. Don't get me wrong, the trailers look amazing and I think that Zack Snyder took the art of the comic to another level of brilliance, but that is only half of the reason that Watchmen is brilliant. Alan Moore's writing, and his writing alone, earned a spot on Time's top 100 novels list. The complexity of the characters and the cohesiveness of the plot is uterly amazing in the comic. There is no way that the movie, at least in it's theatrical version will be able to match the impact of Dr. Manhattan's recount of his life or the not make the characters, themselves serious characterizations of existing DC heros, cheesey and overplaid (something that Snyder's directing has struggled with).
Overall I think that it will be an enjoyable experience of seeing a very direct adaption of one of my favourite novels, but I also don't think that it will be successful enough for it to be warranted as a classic or even revolutionary.
Now an adaptation of one of my favourite books, Watchmen, is coming to the big screen in a week and the outlook is...underwhelming. Don't get me wrong, the trailers look amazing and I think that Zack Snyder took the art of the comic to another level of brilliance, but that is only half of the reason that Watchmen is brilliant. Alan Moore's writing, and his writing alone, earned a spot on Time's top 100 novels list. The complexity of the characters and the cohesiveness of the plot is uterly amazing in the comic. There is no way that the movie, at least in it's theatrical version will be able to match the impact of Dr. Manhattan's recount of his life or the not make the characters, themselves serious characterizations of existing DC heros, cheesey and overplaid (something that Snyder's directing has struggled with).
Overall I think that it will be an enjoyable experience of seeing a very direct adaption of one of my favourite novels, but I also don't think that it will be successful enough for it to be warranted as a classic or even revolutionary.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Test Blog (Yeah!)
Ok I'm finally here. I've wanted to start a blog for a long time, and soon I will be moving thousands of miles away from friends and family, why not now? Hopefully in the future you'll see pictures and videos from my travels, thoughts and reflections on various (and I mean various, I'm a bit schizophrenic when it comes to hobbies and interests) subjects, and other things. I hope you enjoy my blog. Until next time, Peace out!
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