Jim Steinman/Meat Loaf

I was listening to Total Eclipse of the Heart (Bonnie Tyler) the other day, and decided to look up more info about it. Then I found out that it, along with Making Love (Out of Nothing At All) (Air Supply) were both written by Jim Steinman, who had given these songs to Meat Loaf, his long time collaborator, first.

Apparently, the two have had a troubled relationship, and when they reconciled in 1986, he gave the song It's All Coming Back to Me Now to Meat Loaf to use in his then new album, but they decided to use I'd Do Anything for Love (but I Won't Do That), instead, putting it on the backburner for another album further down the line in the future.

As most of us know, it became a hit for Celine Dion when she recorded it in 1996. And as you can see, Meat Loaf did eventually record his own version in 2006, as a duet with Marion Raven (formerly of M2M).

Since all of these songs have been made famous by other people, it may be kind of hard to imagine Meat Loaf singing them. But listening to I'd Do Anything for Love (but I Won't Do That), I get it--they're all power ballads, which Meat Loaf does pretty well. What exactly is "that" which he won't do? It's actually all there in the lyrics...

Total Eclipse of the Heart... do some parts of the video seem a bit too literal to you? It does to me.

Making Love (Out of Nothing At All) is lyrically similar in structure to I'd Do Anything for Love (but I Won't Do That); in Making Love, the singer lists the things he knows, or the things he can do, then follows them quickly by something he doesn't know or can't do ("I don't know how you do it, making love out of nothing at all"). Likewise, in Anything for Love, he lists the things he'd do, then follows them with things he won't do ("But I'll never forget the way you feel right now, no way")

SDHC

My SanDisk 4GB Extreme III SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) arrived today. Well, technically, yesterday, since it is now technically "Saturday morning." I did not get it from Dell, as mentioned in my earlier post, however. Apparently Dell had trouble getting the card in stock, and after needing to delay the shipment a second time, they informed me that they must obtain confirmation from me to keep the order, or they would have to cancel it, due to some law or regulation. As I also did not want to keep waiting for who knows how long, I placed an order from J&R on Wednesday, who I've ordered from before through Amazon, and opted for the 2nd Day Air shipping method.

Why "Extreme III"? Well, it has a transfer speed of 20MB/s, or 133x. For recording videos, Panasonic recommends a card with at least a transfer speed of 10MB/s, and SanDisk's next class of SD cards are "Ultra II," which are 10MB/s--10MB/s read, 9MB/s write. That's pushing it a bit close for me, so in my opinion, it's better to go high than low. Plus, with a 7.2 megapixel camera, the pictures will mostly be larger in size, so having a higher transfer speed never hurts.

With the transfer speed, there's something important to note--Officially, SDHC cards have three class ratings--Class 2 for at least 2MB/s, Class 4 for at least 4MB/s, and Class 6 for at least 6MB/s. Anything faster than that are all Class 6, which is why you see a "6" enclosed in a larger "C" printed on the card. It also means both the "Ultra II" and the "Extreme III" are "Class 6" cards. Which is why the "Class 6" rating doesn't hold too much meaning these days. If you need a certain transfer speed, it's better to find a card that either lists the megabytes per second rate, or a multiplier rate (such as 133x, where x is "multiplied by 150 kilobytes per second"). If neither values are available, and you need a card that transfers faster than 6MB/s, move on.

Incidentally, SanDisk is not the only manufacturer that has these high speed SD cards. At present, I know of Panasonic and Transcend SDHC cards that are 133x and 150x, respectively. Have not yet found an 8 GB SDHC card with that transfer speed, however.

You'll also notice in the picture that the card came with a "MicroMate" USB card reader. That's because SDHC is a new standard, so while devices that support SDHC can use either SDHC or SD, older devices that can read SD probably can't read SDHC cards. So the USB reader fixes that problem. Plus it's USB 2.0. For some strange reason, Panasonic did not deem it fit to equip the SDHC-supporting TZ3 camera with USB 2.0 compatibility when connecting to the PC.

The card also comes with a neat little carrying pouch for the USB reader, a case for the card, and SanDisk's RescuePro software, which can be helpful in trying to retrieve data from a corrupted card, or accidentally deleted data.


I've only taken a few pictures with it, but I like it. The transfer speed is fast, and the USB reader makes the card (or any SD/SDHC card) double as a flash drive.

The curse of the just-washed car

So after the rain last week, I waited for the weather forecast to confirm that there won't be more rain in their extended forecast, and finally washed my car last night.

And wouldn't you know it? Just after I got back from buying lunch, a bird (or birds) have dropped not one, not two, but three bombs on my car. I even purposely parked away from trees and power lines. Ugh.

New camera

I ordered a new camera last weekend, and it just arrived today. This makes it my fourth digital camera.

I've wanted a new camera for a while, ever since I've had need to have better optical zoom from my ultracompact Minolta. The Minolta was a big compromise for me, since I really liked having a powerful telephoto lens like the 12x (35-420mm equivalent) I got from my Panasonic DMC-FZ1.

I originally got the Minolta (DiMage X50) for two reasons:

1. The FZ1 was too big to carry around, and I wanted a camera I can take with me everywhere.
2. The FZ1 was only 2 megapixels (compared to the X50's 5mp)
   

I figured that since I rarely had the opportunity to make use the ultra-zoom I got from the FZ1, I wouldn't miss it all that much. Well, I kinda did. Plus despite its lower resolution, the pictures I got from it typically looked better than the X50's (when sized-down).

So I began looking for a middle ground--something that was more compact, but provided a higher zoom than the 3x optical found on most digital cameras. Eventually, I decided on the Panasonic DMC-TZ3, a compact (though not ultracompact) 7.2 mp, 10x optical zoom camera (28-280mm equivalent).

Here we have a size comparison with my very old, regular-sized Olympus camera, and my ultracompact X50. As you can see, it's a good size bigger than the X50, but still much smaller than the average point-and-shoot camera. The FZ1 was much larger than the Olympus, so lugging it around was no picnic, although there are plenty of larger cameras out there.

This should help put it into better perspective--compare the sizes with a "credit card."
(It's actually a refrigerator magnet that looks like a credit card, courtesy of American Express.)

Obviously, it's also not as slim as the ultracompact cameras. Still, it's not bad, especially considering that it has 10x optical zoom. The lens does extend out once you turn it on, and will extend even more when you push it to the full 10x, but the point of a compact camera is so that you can carry it around with you with more ease, which means the "off" position is what you'll have it on while you're going from place to place... so the extended lens size wouldn't be a factor.

Now, compared to the FZ1, it may not be as noticeable from the front how much larger the old Panasonic is...

...but if you look from the different angle (or see them in person), you can immediately tell the difference. Even when turned off, the FZ1 has quite a long barrel (compared to traditional telephoto cameras with the same amount of zoom, however, it was quite small).

Even when fully extended, the TZ3 is still slimmer than the FZ1 when off. With both fully extended...


Along with the camera, I also ordered an additional battery (from the same site), a 4 gigabyte, Extreme III SDHC card (from Dell), and a carrying case (directly from Panasonic). The camera is the first to arrive, the carrying case is on its way, and the memory card has not shipped yet. Normally, this is the part of the blog where I start bitching about the online store's service, but not this time. See, this time, Dell was very prompt in informing of the shipment delay, so I know exactly what to expect. The other stores I complained about never bothered to let me know of any shipping/stock issues, leaving me in the dark regarding the status of my order--that's what I was really complaining about.

So for now, I'll be using my older, 2GB Ultra II SD card in my new camera.

Christmas, Santa Claus, etc.

It's that time of year again... when we ponder the age-old question: "What does Santa Claus have to do with Jesus?"

What will it be this time?

Decided to get lunch earlier today... and wouldn't you know it? My car won't start. Cranked it several times, it just won't turn over. There was a faint smell of burnt plastic coming from under the hood. Never a good thing.

Can't be the battery, as I had just gotten a new one a few months ago, plus all the electronics in the car still seem to work fine. It's might be the starter, but that was also just replaced only a few months prior to the battery...

I guess it might be the alternator? I've had the battery and oil indicators flash on and off from time to time while I was driving, and I'm told that such is the typical indication of a bad alternator.


I'm gonna have to jump it later and pray that the car starts. After that... I hope the car shop is open tomorrow.

Last-minute Christmas shopping

Did my annual last-minute shopping today.

First, I went to Fry's Electronics. Long line of cars waiting to turn into the parking lot was really the only thing that was markedly different from usual, and an indication of other people also doing their last-minute Christmas shopping. I was able to find a good parking spot almost immediately after turning into the lot, so things were good.

I didn't find the exact things I was looking for, but acceptable substitutes were available, so that was that. The checkout line was only slightly longer than usual, thanks in no small part to them opening up many more checkout stands than usual.

Next stop, Bed Baths and Beyond. Not as many people come here looking for Christmas presents, apparently. Although I've pretty much been getting the same things for my mom and my sisters for the past three years... without any real idea if they actually like these gifts or not. Hopefully they do. Luckily, we mostly subscribe to the idea of "it's the thought that counts," so no major problems there.


So, despite getting my shopping done at only a few days before Christmas, it was relatively painless. Whee.

On the Run

These are music videos for Jay Chou's recent album, "On the Run" (literal translation is "I'm very busy").

1. 牛仔很忙
2. 彩虹
3. 陽光宅男
4. 我不配
5. 扯
6. 最長的電影
7. 青花瓷
   

Jesus in the Himalayas

I caught part of this documentary on Discovery HD yesterday. It seemed interesting enough, so I recorded it on DVR, and watched the full program today.

It investigated the possibility that Jesus may have travelled through the silk road to India and Tibet before he began his ministry, and after his crucifixion. Nothing conclusive was reached, but it offered up some possible evidence, chief among them were:

1. A tomb in Kashmir purported to be the tomb of Jesus after his crucifixion, because a small cross was found within it, and there was a food sculpture that seems to depict wounds on the foot that could correspond to Jesus' wounds from the crucifixion.
2. An ancient manuscript that detailed the life of Saint Issa, whose story was very similar to the life of Jesus as depicted in the Bible (except the part about traveling to India and Tibet).
3. The similarities between the Buddhist prayer beads--the Japa mala, and the Catholic rosary beads. Both have 108 beads, and these are the only religions with prayer beads.
   

The most important of these arguments is the ancient manuscript, according to the program. Unfortunately, it has long since vanished, not long after its translation was transcribed by Nicolas Notovitch. This document is what sparked the idea that Jesus went to India and Tibet. Without it, there is no way to prove that any of this actually happened. I don't know that even with it, would it offer irrefutable proof that this Issa is the same as Jesus.

The problem I have with the tomb theory is that it had a cross. The cross didn't become associated with Christianity until the second century AD, so there's no reason why Jesus would be buried with one.

The program then states both the Japa mala and the rosary have 108 beads. But this is not true--while the Japa mala traditionally does have 108 beads, rosary beads typically have 150.

It then further states that Christianity (Catholicism) and Buddhism are the only religions to use prayer beads, implying that Jesus brought the idea of using prayer beads to his followers due to influence from Buddhism. Yet this is also untrue, as there are several other religions that use prayer beads. Also, it is said that rosary beads were brought to St. Dominic by the Virgin Mary, not Jesus.

I'm in love with...

Warning: Porfanity

Not geeky at all

Found this picture while looking for Spaceballs pics online. That can't be comfortable.

They spinnin, they spinnin'!

Due to the nature of Blogger's image upload function, you'll have to click on the above image to see the animation. But when you do, take note of which direction she is spinning. It's supposed to tell you if you're looking with your creative (right) brain (if she spins clockwise), or your logical (left) brain (if she spins counter-clockwise).

Where's the magic?

If You Come Back to Me
Bowling for Soup

You were right
All along
You know I hate that--admitting I was wrong
So I don't answer the phone
When it's you
It's funny when I see
The caller ID that shows the phone line's still in your dad's name

So hey
I'm doing okay
And I'll get back to you if you come back to me
Your voice is so
Marilyn Monroe
It's funny how that
Makes me wanna smash the phone
I wonder if JFK ever felt this way

All alone
Like summer when it snows
So out of place
So out of those fake smiles
I used to do so well

And here's the part of the song where I start
To break down like my broken heart
But it's not gonna matter
The lines are all down
From a hurricane they should've named after you
Maybe I should get a Scorpions ringtone
To remind me of you

And hey
I'm doing okay
And I'll get back to you if you come back to me
And oh
Here we go
Just like a broken record skipping apart
That we both oughtta know by heart

We were right there, and now it seems so tragic
No happy ending, now this whole thing seems so drastic
You ask me twenty times where we could find our magic
Ask David Copperfield or even Ric Ocasek

David Blaine (Where's the magic?)
Lance Burton (Where's the magic?)
Harry Potter (Where's the magic?)
I used to think pop rocks were magic
Siegfried and Roy (Where's the magic?)
Shaquille O'Neal (Why'd you leave the Magic?)

You asked me twenty times, or was it twenty-eight?
And then your greatest trick ever was your great escape

So hey
I'm doing okay
And I'll get back to you if you come back to me
And oh
Here we go
Just like a broken record skipping apart
That we both oughtta know by heart
And I still can hear you singing along

Computer virus

My ex-girlfriend's work computer has been infected. I only know this because this virus is trying to propagate itself through her MSN Messenger contact list, and it tried to "contact" me.

We haven't really "talked" much after our breakup, so naturally I was suspicious when I received a send file (photo.zip) request from her Messenger, along with the following message in IM:

Hey just finished new myspace album! :) theres a few kinky ones in there!

Given that I'm her ex-boyfriend, there were only two possible explanations for such a message:

1. She meant to send the message and file to someone else, but accidentally sent them to me, instead.
2. It's a virus.

Not that I would mind if she did want to send me "kinky" pictures, but obviously a virus is the much more likely scenario. So I accepted the file, then had Symantec AntiVirus scan it when the transfer was complete. It didn't find anything.

Opened up the zip file, and sure enough, it had the tell-tale sign of being a virus: A command file (.com) thinly disguised as a JPEG.


So I IM'd her about the virus. But apparently she does not have administrative access to her computer at work, so her virus removal options are quite limited. I also remember her telling me while we were going out that she was not supposed to install any IM software, so that's probably preventing her from getting their office tech to fix it for her, since I still got a random message from her Messenger earlier today, although it didn't try to send me any files.

Al sandwich

I've read transcripts of the Weird Al/Avril Lavigne "interview," but have only recently got to watch it on YouTube. He usually has these on his Al TV stuff, when he has a new album out.

The interview below is pretty good, too. He basically made Eminem eat his own words.