Ozone is Good

2004.07.30

Earth's ozone depletion is finally slowing

We're always hearing about how people are destroying the Earth, so for once it's nice to see that our efforts to save the environment are actually working. There is very little on this planet that is as important as the ozone layer, and ever since we've stopped using CFCs is seems as though we'll be okay. Nightmare visions of a future where people can't walk outside without being burnt in a matter of seconds don't appear as likely anymore. Even better still, scientists predict that the ozone layer will actually start to recover in 30 or 40 more years. That could mean that someday, a couple of hundred years from now, using sunscreen outside might make sunburns almost unheard-of.

Wouldn't that be nice?

Flying

2004.07.29

Well I'm back from my vacation, at last. It was nice to get away I suppose, but I certainly don't like to be without a computer for a week.

My flight home left Ottawa at 7:55pm local time, just as the Sun was starting to set. We arrived in Vancover at 9:55pm local time, just as the last hint of sunlight was disappearing over the horizon. The flight lasted nearly five hours, and since we were flying west, we were treated to a five hour sunset. I couldn't help but wonder at what the Wright brothers would think about that.

Flying is cool. Speaking of which, the Abbotsford International Airshow is coming up next weekend. I can hardly wait. I'll be sure to make a full report.

Week Off

2004.07.18

I'm going on vacation tomorrow and won't be back home until the 28th, so I won't be making any posts next week. I will however, leave you with a couple of interesting articles to read.

No Flies on Bush by Mark Steyn

Defaming Islam - One bomb at a time by Jonathan Kay

Editing

2004.07.17

I've been busy cutting my demo reel, and it has certainly given me a new appreciation for what editors do. I can only imagine how complicated and difficult it must be to edit a feature film, making single frame adjustments on a piece of work that's over two hours long. I'm having enough trouble with two minutes.

More Safety

2004.07.14

NASA creates independent safety centre

This seems like a step in the right direction for NASA. For a long time NASA has really needed some more people dedicated to safety, since safety has never really been that much of a concern for the NASA folks themselves. It also creates another critical layer of management underneath which the few remaining NASA employees must work. I'm sure this will force them to be safer than ever before.

It's amazing to me how a manager's solution to a problem is to pass the problem on to a lower level of management. This is essentially what the NASA big wigs are doing: admitting that they aren't capable of administering safety, and passing the job off to someone else. It's an entirely new management department devoted to safety, so it must mean things will be safer from now on, right?

Is there anyone who works for NASA anymore who isn't a manager?

Terminated

2004.07.14

I saw Terminator 3 a while ago with my friend Chris, but I've refrained from posting about it until now. I just wasn't sure what I thought of it. Here's the deal: it's good; go see it.

The biggest problem with the movie is the cheese factor. There are lots of bad jokes and one liners which are definitely a couple of notches above the similar stuff in T2. I didn't really have many problems with the movie otherwise. It was fun. The ending is the best part. I don't want to spoil it, but I'm glad we weren't treated to another film ending where the hero places an explosive device at the centre of the bad guy's fortress and is chased out of the building by the ensuing explosion, escaping just in time (usually requiring a running jump to safety). Finally we get something different, something that wasn't expected.

The effects are good too, so you can go and see it just for that, if you're still not sure.

Gallery Notes

2004.07.11

I've finished the gallery notes and they're all uploaded. I've also added one new image in the 3D gallery, replacing another. Hopefully I won't have to tackle any more large website tasks for the next little while.

On a side note, taking your car into the shop sucks!

More Updates

2004.07.10

I'm working on adding some notes to the images in the 3D gallery, and I'll hopefully have those ready to upload later today. Once that is done, I'll be pretty much finished with the website updates I wanted to get done. Now it's on to doing the demo reel.

It's far too easy to become lazy when you aren't working, and I'm trying to avoid that. So far I'd say I'm having a moderate amount of success.

Reading Makes Me Kill

2004.07.09

Teens' alleged plan to kill linked to violent games

Here we go again. There is one very important difference between this story and the many others where killing sprees are blamed on video games, however. These kids weren't playing Counter-Strike, Doom, Quake or Unreal. According to the article, they were playing a game called Warriors of Freedom, and "Internet-based combat game". What the article fails to mention is that this "Internet-based combat game" is a medieval themed, TURN-BASED, TEXT-ONLY RPG!!!

No fancy 3D graphics. No images of heads being shot off, or arms being mutilated by edged weapons. No sounds of screaming gunshot victims. Warriors of Freedom is played entirely with words. It is even more primitive than the age old Dungeons & Dragons. These kids got the idea for a shooting spree from a text-based role playing game?

Give me a break.

Small Greenpeace

2004.07.07

Greenpeace opts out of 2010 games plans

I thought Greenpeace was supposed to be one of the largest environmental groups in the world? I could be wrong of course, since I really don't care about them, but I certainly got that impression. Greenpeace was founded in Vancouver, so it seems odd to me that they wouldn't want to be a part of the environmental watchdogging that's going to happen as the games are put together.

I guess they're a little low on cash, or something. I don't see how keeping an eye on the games could possibly be a big operation for them, but they can't afford to do it? I wonder if fighting for the environment isn't paying as well as it used to?

Happy Birthday

2004.07.04

Just wanted to take a quick moment to wish all of you Americans a happy birthday today. You get a nice long weekend, so have a good time! I bet you're even going to have fireworks! What a concept that would be!

I don't know what it is about birthdays that people find so special. I mean, I know the significance of them, don't get me wrong, but lately I haven't really thought of them as being very important. Birthdays of countries, celebrities and formerly important but currently dead people have never interested me all that much. Sometimes I think I would forget my own birthday if I didn't have people around to remind me.

Maybe it's just another human excuse to unwind and have some fun. I certainly know that we need a lot of those occasions.

2010 Winter Olympics!!!

2004.07.02

Well we won. Vancouver will host the Olympic games in 2010. Much like my friend Chris, I too am reveling in the defeat of the anti-Olympic, anti-globalization hippie crowd. Now they can shut-up about the Olympics, because they have no say anymore. It's done.

Of course, there's always something. I'm sure we'll be hearing about the evil, Satan worshipping BC Liberals again soon. Wait, they never did shut-up about that. Never mind.