I need a hobby I have decided. I see way too many things on Hack A Day that I would love to do if I had the knowledge. One of my personal favorites is this POV Clock. It spins a series of lights in a circle so fast that it makes an image. Perfect for an interactive clock. That is what a lot of people use them for. I personally would like to see this used in a car as the speedometer and the RPM gauge or as an interface for the radio (placing a touch panel over it though of course). If spun fast enough and designed correctly, maybe it could be used for video too?
What I do right now as a "hobby" is mostly just computer stuff. I write web pages from scratch for fun. I spend hours just playing with them figuring out new stuff to add and debugging the pages when I do something wrong and break it. If I knew a little bit more about them, I don't think it would take me as long to do a lot of the stuff.
Other things I like to do is to do stuff a lot of people don't do with their computers. I switch between operating systems as if it were nothing. Currently I am using 100% open source software am my laptop (including the operating system. I currently run Ubuntu 11.10). I usually reformat my laptop every few months because it speeds things up quite a bit and it gives me a chance to clear out all the useless crap I had accumulated over the months. I also like to experiment with Mac OS X and put it on PCs. I have a project PC sitting under my desk waiting for me to buy more parts so it will work right with Mac right now.
I also like to work on my Jeep for fun too. Nothing too big has been done with it yet. However I do plan to do a lot of things with it. I plan to make it my "Weekend Warrior" in the next few years. Swapping the engine, more lift, new tires, new paint job, and a bunch of other things. Right now the only thing stopping all this is lack of money. So this is a project that will take a few years to finish.
Geo caching is another thing that I have been meaning to get into. I tried finding some of the ones in the Malad Valley (there are a lot of them actually). Here is a map of what caches there are in and around Malad. I couldn't find the ones I tried. I will look more this summer though.
I guess I have more "hobbies" than I thought. Can't hurt to add more though right? Ha
Monday, February 27, 2012
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Money... "It makes the world go round"
This is a problem. Before money, society used to use a system of trading. You had something you wanted (say a loaf of bread), you would have had to trade it for something of equal value (a rug). In this system, nothing is created out of thin air. Even if you were a baker who used their own wheat to make their bread, the process still requires time and work to make. Thus the bread wasn't created from nothing. Today however, you can make money from doing nothing (stocks, interest, investing in a start up company, government printing it, etc). Where does this end? In this system, you have terms such as inflation and deflation. In the old system (trade), you had a similar concept as well. The difference being the "inflation" and "deflation" was on a per item basis. In our current system, if the money inflates, everything does as well. This is bad. It makes the money worth less sense most of the time the amount people are paid doesn't go up either; making everything cost more. Why couldn't deflation fix this? Same problem. The money value would go down, but at a different rate than the pay rate.
This system also goes directly in the face of many laws of physics. One is "energy cannot be created or destroyed." Now you may say what does this have to do with physics? Nothing really. However, how can you make money by selling something for more than you payed for it? Easily. BUT, you can't do this forever. Something like this isn't stable and it puts value on everything and makes people greedy and uncaring. Why do we have thieves? Money. Murderers? (Life insurance fraud) Money. Why does society have any negative things in it? Maybe not all of it has to do with money, but a large part of it does. Our government is controlled by money. If a big business is financially threatened, all they have to do is send money to the government (not exactly but in a nut shell) and they will more than likely be taken care of. The SOPA and PIPA bills that almost passed are perfect examples of this. We even have proof the media companies were bribing them. Here I was blown away when I read this.
I also think the current system we are in is stalling us as a society. The automobile isn't improving because the oil companies buy the rights to patents that increase the efficiency of gasoline engines (look at the U.S. patents online and you will find tons of patents for this like this). As a result we still have the majority of our cars still getting under 30 mpg. We will also never have the miracle cure to cancer. Even if it does exist, the drug companies will never let it out unless they find a way to make into a yearly vaccine sort of thing. They would go out of business. We aren't advancing ourselves into space because of why? You guessed it, money. We don't have any to do that...
If everyone was working to better society and to make a living for themselves, we would be a lot better off. With this thing we call money, we will never get there. People always like to hoard it and they turn greedy as a result. Yes it is a lot more convenient to use money over trading stuff straight across, however it won't last. Especially with all the mismanagement countries and large corporations are doing with it.
I would seriously like to see a place made to try out this "free and open" society. Instead of money, there would be a form of trading and people would have to make their own contribution to society. It would be like the old villages society used to live in. I don't know if this system would work in this age though. We have the Internet which makes it so much easier to share and contribute. However, due to greed by the large media companies, we may soon loose that. This will stagnate society even more...
Hopefully you see now that money is source of the major problems we as a society have today. It is the main cause for greed, people take advantage of other people for it, and it is a way to control people (try living without it). We can't live without it though so I don't see an easy way of fixing it without having a group of people (a small "start up" created for the sole purpose of demonstrating this is about the only way I see of trying it out...) test this out and even then I doubt it would prove anything.. Maybe this is what society has become; full of greed, power hungry, and just evil. If there was a way to make it in this world (without being a homeless person) without making money and just making good contributions to society, I think I would try it out for awhile. I don't think there is though. All I can do is live in this world and hope enough people think about this and start taking power back so we can change society as a society, together. I would rather this then have a bunch of greedy, power hungry small group of people making changes to society that only benefit the people paying them...
Well, rant off. If you have something to say or something you would like to add, post a comment or send me a text or email. I do hope this has at least made some of you ponder about the system we are in.
This system also goes directly in the face of many laws of physics. One is "energy cannot be created or destroyed." Now you may say what does this have to do with physics? Nothing really. However, how can you make money by selling something for more than you payed for it? Easily. BUT, you can't do this forever. Something like this isn't stable and it puts value on everything and makes people greedy and uncaring. Why do we have thieves? Money. Murderers? (Life insurance fraud) Money. Why does society have any negative things in it? Maybe not all of it has to do with money, but a large part of it does. Our government is controlled by money. If a big business is financially threatened, all they have to do is send money to the government (not exactly but in a nut shell) and they will more than likely be taken care of. The SOPA and PIPA bills that almost passed are perfect examples of this. We even have proof the media companies were bribing them. Here I was blown away when I read this.
I also think the current system we are in is stalling us as a society. The automobile isn't improving because the oil companies buy the rights to patents that increase the efficiency of gasoline engines (look at the U.S. patents online and you will find tons of patents for this like this). As a result we still have the majority of our cars still getting under 30 mpg. We will also never have the miracle cure to cancer. Even if it does exist, the drug companies will never let it out unless they find a way to make into a yearly vaccine sort of thing. They would go out of business. We aren't advancing ourselves into space because of why? You guessed it, money. We don't have any to do that...
If everyone was working to better society and to make a living for themselves, we would be a lot better off. With this thing we call money, we will never get there. People always like to hoard it and they turn greedy as a result. Yes it is a lot more convenient to use money over trading stuff straight across, however it won't last. Especially with all the mismanagement countries and large corporations are doing with it.
I would seriously like to see a place made to try out this "free and open" society. Instead of money, there would be a form of trading and people would have to make their own contribution to society. It would be like the old villages society used to live in. I don't know if this system would work in this age though. We have the Internet which makes it so much easier to share and contribute. However, due to greed by the large media companies, we may soon loose that. This will stagnate society even more...
Hopefully you see now that money is source of the major problems we as a society have today. It is the main cause for greed, people take advantage of other people for it, and it is a way to control people (try living without it). We can't live without it though so I don't see an easy way of fixing it without having a group of people (a small "start up" created for the sole purpose of demonstrating this is about the only way I see of trying it out...) test this out and even then I doubt it would prove anything.. Maybe this is what society has become; full of greed, power hungry, and just evil. If there was a way to make it in this world (without being a homeless person) without making money and just making good contributions to society, I think I would try it out for awhile. I don't think there is though. All I can do is live in this world and hope enough people think about this and start taking power back so we can change society as a society, together. I would rather this then have a bunch of greedy, power hungry small group of people making changes to society that only benefit the people paying them...
Well, rant off. If you have something to say or something you would like to add, post a comment or send me a text or email. I do hope this has at least made some of you ponder about the system we are in.
Music and Me
In my "About Me" thing on the right side of the page I make mention of liking basically all forms of music. Why is this the case? Well I made this "discovery" a week or so ago while listening to some music. No matter what I listened to, every single song I could find some kind of meaning to it. Most of the songs had a good meaning to them; meanings that could impact the listener's life if they listened to it.
Another reason why I like almost all forms of music is because just one kind of music gets boring to me after so long. Some genres get more boring to faster than others. With instrumental music, I can usually feel it flowing, and I start to "visualize" what the music is doing. If it is an up beat song with lots of drums hitting (the halo soundtrack comes to mind), I think of a fight or some other intense type of scene. Or sometimes a song will have certain things in it that will give me goose bumps every time I hear it. Like in the Halo 3 Soundtrack that song "Roll Call". Around 1:50, there is a series of string instruments playing that just takes me away for some reason. I have always loved that part. If I need to calm down and think, I usually play a form of instrumental music.
I am not a fan of rap music really though. No reason really. I just don't like most of it. There are a few exceptions though..
Another form of music I like even though a lot of it doesn't make sense or have a reason to it is Dubstep. I like hearing what other people have created, even if it isn't 100% their own work. A lot of what people make isn't the best, but there are some that are just awesome. I don't know what it is about low hitting bass that we like but that is what dubstep is all about. It is basically just remixed songs with some other sounds thrown into the mix. One of my favorites is made by Skrillex called "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites". Link The "Oh my gosh" is actually from this if you were wondering. (My brother noticed that. I didn't even know of it. Ha)
Some other music I would like to listen to more is the stuff that people release for free. Why? It may not all be good but they actually wanted to write it and they are only doing it for themselves. (This is actually going to create another topic for me to talk about in another post. Ha). I just wish more people were like that. Giving their work away instead of selling it for profit. I realize they have to make a living too. I will post a longer discussion about this in a later post.
At any rate, I love music. It is my life. There is a reason why every single culture in the world has some form of music. It makes us who we are.
Another reason why I like almost all forms of music is because just one kind of music gets boring to me after so long. Some genres get more boring to faster than others. With instrumental music, I can usually feel it flowing, and I start to "visualize" what the music is doing. If it is an up beat song with lots of drums hitting (the halo soundtrack comes to mind), I think of a fight or some other intense type of scene. Or sometimes a song will have certain things in it that will give me goose bumps every time I hear it. Like in the Halo 3 Soundtrack that song "Roll Call". Around 1:50, there is a series of string instruments playing that just takes me away for some reason. I have always loved that part. If I need to calm down and think, I usually play a form of instrumental music.
I am not a fan of rap music really though. No reason really. I just don't like most of it. There are a few exceptions though..
Another form of music I like even though a lot of it doesn't make sense or have a reason to it is Dubstep. I like hearing what other people have created, even if it isn't 100% their own work. A lot of what people make isn't the best, but there are some that are just awesome. I don't know what it is about low hitting bass that we like but that is what dubstep is all about. It is basically just remixed songs with some other sounds thrown into the mix. One of my favorites is made by Skrillex called "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites". Link The "Oh my gosh" is actually from this if you were wondering. (My brother noticed that. I didn't even know of it. Ha)
Some other music I would like to listen to more is the stuff that people release for free. Why? It may not all be good but they actually wanted to write it and they are only doing it for themselves. (This is actually going to create another topic for me to talk about in another post. Ha). I just wish more people were like that. Giving their work away instead of selling it for profit. I realize they have to make a living too. I will post a longer discussion about this in a later post.
At any rate, I love music. It is my life. There is a reason why every single culture in the world has some form of music. It makes us who we are.
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Been Almost A Year...
It has been almost a year since life as me and my brothers and dad knew it. Still cannot believe the way I found out. It was the day before spring break on a Thursday. I was going to the last class of the day which was band. Mr. Bennett asked me into his office. Didn't think nothing of it. Me and him were pretty cool. He asks what was going on. I asked what he meant. He said Allen and Tyler had checked out of school that day. I think he immediately realized I didn't know about this. My reply was "She actually went through with it then.." Basically we talked about what had been going on. I had an idea that she still was thinking about leaving my dad. She only talked to Allen and Tyler about it though. At this point, I got the idea that my mom had somehow "brainwashed" them into thinking it would be awesome down there. (It was far from it as we found out later..) I came into band. I swear I probably looked really stressed but I was somewhat calm. When school got out, I drove home, came through the door. Saw my mom on facebook (whole other story about that..), and just let her have it... First and only time I cursed at her. (May not seem like a big deal but I believed it showed them respect by not cursing around my parents. So it was a big deal) Kyle joined in on the "conversation" at this point. He was clueless as well. Basically it ended with me packing my stuff and heading to Spencer's house for a day or two. After that I went and helped her pack. What else was I supposed to do? I had to make sure she didn't take everything we had so that me and Kyle could survive until my dad got home. However she did take most of our food.. When she left, I can't even remember what happened... It was quiet with only me and Kyle there.
Sad thing is, we were already sort of used to living on our own. My mom pretty much became a "leech" a year or so before. A lot of the time we had to cook our own dinner and I usually had to clean the house before my dad came home so that he wouldn't get mad. She would spend her day on the computer playing games or talking to people on facebook.
After a few weeks, we were sort of used to it. One of my friends didn't know the whole story and thought me and Kyle were moving too. It was all a messed up situation... Allen and Tyler came up for the summer. We had a hard time sometimes. We all usually got along but there were times when we would fight. Thats what brothers do though. Allen had to go back early for something. Tyler stayed up there for a little. We went all the way down there instead of halfway (which is what is supposed to happen). Mainly to see the condition of the house they were living in. It wasn't good... The outside was horrible. There wasn't a yard (actually there was, trash...), the roof didn't have tar paper or shingles so it leaked, and the back of the house had a lot of structural damage. Honestly, if my dad wanted to, he probably could've had a social worker sent there to evaluate the house and had them out of there. The inside was a little better. It was at least painted and redone a little. We then took Tyler down a few weeks later for school.
Not long after that, Allen decided to come up. I still don't know the whole story but I guess he had had enough. I went down in my Jeep and picked him up in Green River, Utah ("half way") and brought him home. We went to Lagoon the next day and had a lot of fun. He has been a lot happier up here.
Tyler might come up here soon by the looks of things. I should probably talk to him more. I do miss him. My mom I guess isn't getting any better. I don't know what is going on down there. From what I am reading on Facebook though isn't good. Tyler needs to come home though. If he doesn't, I have a bad feeling he is not going to turn out well. That is NOT a good environment for him down there. It is just too unstable. My mom doesn't have a job and from what I have been told, she drinks a lot and has no intention of getting a job.
Like I said on Facebook, it is amazing what can happen in a years time. I did see myself living in Ogden. I did see myself living at my aunt's house and going to Weber State University. I did see a lot of things happening. One year ago today, I sort of saw all the above coming. However, once my dad stopped drinking for a long time, I thought that maybe stuff would work out. Guess not...
In some ways, we are all better off I guess if you think about (well, almost). My dad is happier than he has been in a long time. The only people who have a net negative outcome I guess would be Tyler and my mom (however she would say differently)... Hopefully he will make his way back up here..
This sums up the story of what has happened in the past year with my family. A lot is missing but the general stuff is hear. I'm sorry if I go off on a tangent on some spots or if some parts don't really make sense. I just wrote this as it came for the most part. Seemed like the thing to do. Hopefully "happier" items of my life will be posted on this blog for now on...
Sad thing is, we were already sort of used to living on our own. My mom pretty much became a "leech" a year or so before. A lot of the time we had to cook our own dinner and I usually had to clean the house before my dad came home so that he wouldn't get mad. She would spend her day on the computer playing games or talking to people on facebook.
After a few weeks, we were sort of used to it. One of my friends didn't know the whole story and thought me and Kyle were moving too. It was all a messed up situation... Allen and Tyler came up for the summer. We had a hard time sometimes. We all usually got along but there were times when we would fight. Thats what brothers do though. Allen had to go back early for something. Tyler stayed up there for a little. We went all the way down there instead of halfway (which is what is supposed to happen). Mainly to see the condition of the house they were living in. It wasn't good... The outside was horrible. There wasn't a yard (actually there was, trash...), the roof didn't have tar paper or shingles so it leaked, and the back of the house had a lot of structural damage. Honestly, if my dad wanted to, he probably could've had a social worker sent there to evaluate the house and had them out of there. The inside was a little better. It was at least painted and redone a little. We then took Tyler down a few weeks later for school.
Not long after that, Allen decided to come up. I still don't know the whole story but I guess he had had enough. I went down in my Jeep and picked him up in Green River, Utah ("half way") and brought him home. We went to Lagoon the next day and had a lot of fun. He has been a lot happier up here.
Tyler might come up here soon by the looks of things. I should probably talk to him more. I do miss him. My mom I guess isn't getting any better. I don't know what is going on down there. From what I am reading on Facebook though isn't good. Tyler needs to come home though. If he doesn't, I have a bad feeling he is not going to turn out well. That is NOT a good environment for him down there. It is just too unstable. My mom doesn't have a job and from what I have been told, she drinks a lot and has no intention of getting a job.
Like I said on Facebook, it is amazing what can happen in a years time. I did see myself living in Ogden. I did see myself living at my aunt's house and going to Weber State University. I did see a lot of things happening. One year ago today, I sort of saw all the above coming. However, once my dad stopped drinking for a long time, I thought that maybe stuff would work out. Guess not...
In some ways, we are all better off I guess if you think about (well, almost). My dad is happier than he has been in a long time. The only people who have a net negative outcome I guess would be Tyler and my mom (however she would say differently)... Hopefully he will make his way back up here..
This sums up the story of what has happened in the past year with my family. A lot is missing but the general stuff is hear. I'm sorry if I go off on a tangent on some spots or if some parts don't really make sense. I just wrote this as it came for the most part. Seemed like the thing to do. Hopefully "happier" items of my life will be posted on this blog for now on...
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