Confession: Your Pet Project(s)

[Rasix]

Air conditioning + women in skimpy clothing year 'round makes it pretty tempting.

If you're into senior citizens, yes.  If you want to see younger women, I recommend southern CA.

You seem to be forgetting ASU and it's larger than the state of Wyoming enrollment.  I'm not sure what state stereotype pamphlet you picked up, but you were fed bad information.

[Viin]

How about some pictures to rectify this grave error in factoid information?

[Nebu]

You seem to be forgetting ASU and it's larger than the state of Wyoming enrollment.  I'm not sure what state stereotype pamphlet you picked up, but you were fed bad information.

As a professor, I wouldn't be allowed to dip into that well were I there... shame that.  Also, you assume I've not spent a LOT of time in the Phoenix area. 

[Signe]

I thought all the oldies were in Scottsdale.

[Soln]

Short: get some stuff done, change jobs

Mid: do some more stuff, make sustainable income for self and friends, wonder how far along Lum's game is

Long: rework playerep, do some other stuff, play Lum's game, bitch :)

[Strazos]

Damn you people, and your damn ambitious dreams and such.

Well, I guess I only have one I guess...

 - Gain a commission from the USAF. Preferably as an Air Battle Manager, or a Navigator on a fighter. Unfortunately, the process is mostly a waiting game. And then, if/when I get in, graduate extremely high in my OTS class so I can choose to go overseas to Yokohama for the start of my training (about 2 years).

It's either that, or teach in Japan if it falls through.

[Riggswolfe]

Short: Get rid of my ADHD-like inability to write a story longer than 20 pages without getting distracted by a new idea. I'll start by trying the write everyday thing and settling on a genre once and for all.

Medium: Finish a novel. Just one damn it!

Long: Become an author and write books about how it's never too late to start. Finish my epic trilogy. Have "Tolkien who?" on my gravestone.

[WayAbvPar]

Old people? What? In Tempe?!

What?

Seriously. Scottsdale is the old rich folks (still a lot of hotties too), but the closer you get to a college campus, the better the viewing.

[Sky]

Longer Term (5-10 yrs):  Brain Imaging of Music

I spent many years as neuroscientist before moving into investments and then pharma in private sector.  I would like to go back to my roots of basic research someday.  Currently, I am very ignorant - but I am intrigued about doing a brain imaging study (functional MRI - brain activity) of global changes in a person's brain in response to music - and how that changes over time as they become familiar with the music and their emotional response to it.  Hard to get funding for such basic research oriented project - so raising financing for this will be just as challenginging as designing the study... if I pursue it.

Just read an interesting book on the subject.  http://www.amazon.com/This-Your-Brain-Music-Obsession/dp/0525949690

I have about seven albums worth of song material sitting around. I'd like to cut one album's worth all on my own. Then I can be one of the cool kids that posts his own music on MySpace.

My setbacks have mostly been financial/technical. Not creative.

Man, grab one of those Fostex MR8HD units I just got. They are great. Not sure what your financial constraints are, but one of those plus a cd burner in your pc is all you really need for a basic cd.

In fact, that's one of my pet projects for the year (we'll call it 'short term'): recording a cd of actual finished tracks. Actually, finishing a track is my first goal. I'm really bad about that, I like to do one take and live with it. So far the track list is: Can't Be Satisfied by Muddy Waters, All Your Love by Otis Rush, Kind Hearted Woman by Robert Johnson by way of George Thorogood's slide version. I probably won't finish my spanishy jam by the end of the year, and it wouldn't fit the songlist anyway.

Another short term project is building an uberpc in a couple months (without using all the money I've saved for a mortgage!).

Viin - I almost bought a house bordering a private airstrip. Thought the planes would drive me nuts. :P

My middling term projects are many and varied. Buying a house is my main thing, and has been for a while now. I don't make a lot of dough, so I qualify for a SONYMA dealie where they pay closing costs and get me a sweet rate. So hopefully that'll happen this year. Along with the house is fleshing out my nascent recording setup into a more serious studio to do some projects for myself and others. Also with the house is a woodshop (Hi Ched!). I want to start out with mostly handtools, make some furniture and whatnot. Nothing fancy, a lot of rough wood and stumps. Finally, garden. I miss my garden-fresh veggies and herbs (not that herb you degenerates, though I would if I could!). In another ten years, sell that house and buy a place in the country with some forested land that I can't afford now.

Long term, just enjoy my hobbies. Hopefully retire some day. Viking funeral plus Irish wake.

[stray]

Man, grab one of those Fostex MR8HD units I just got. They are great. Not sure what your financial constraints are, but one of those plus a cd burner in your pc is all you really need for a basic cd.

I still have my trusty old PowerMac for recording, but I sold my mics awhile back. And I'm picky about mics. Almost as picky as I am with guitars. The only thing I can record right now is MIDI/synth. I've yet to put this amp I have in a recording, and that's what I want to do (the Fender VK I posted some time back). As for the songs I have on the backburner, they were all recorded with a handheld and either an acoustic or my cheapo Vox. Just scrapbooks really.

I have some older stuff on file that I used to do for my brother's multimedia firm, and an old demo album for a friend's metal band too. I'd post them, but I'm not too proud of that stuff. It's not really me ;).

[Sky]

Meet me at camera three. (the guitar thread ;))

[Fargull]

Short | Get back in shape for some heavy hiking.

Mid | Finish the short story I have got banging around in my head and then figure out if I want to tackle a novel

Long | Pick a location to open a coffee shop and retire

[MrHat]

Short Term: Finish my basement and lose 10 pounds (I need to lose 60, but this is a good place to start).

Mid Term: Get 3 promotions so that I can work from home (I want my 5 1/2 hours per day back dammit).

Long Term: Get my patent law degree, start a family, move back to CO.

[Signe]

Long | Pick a location to open a coffee shop and retire

Next door to me.  Please.

Short:  Buy some sort of machine that makes me thinner every time I use it. (like one of those bicycles or walky thingys)

Mid:     Use the machine.

Long:   Outlive the rest of my family.

[voodoolily]

Since Sauced and I joined a gym in November, I've lost 2.3% body fat, 3.5" off my waist, 2" off my hips and 1.5" off each thigh (for a total of only 7 lbs). I've been doing a lot of weights and getting very tight and buff. My triceps are so cut, yo! Too bad I didn't think to do this before the wedding, but whaddyagonnado.

The elliptical machine is my favorite because I hate running and it allows me to watch tv. It's amazing how fast 1/2 hour of cardio goes by when you're watching the food network.

[Signe]

It should have a little table attached in front so you could eat while you sweat. 

[Polysorbate80]

Long:   Outlive the rest of my family.

There's more than one way to accomplish that...

[Azazel]

Short -

Start a martial art to lose some weight while enjoying myself instead of being bored senseless at a gym. I've found a convenient place that does Muay Thai. Once I get a bit fitter, there's also a Gracie Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu place not far from the Muay Thai place so I'm thinking of doing both in parallel. Being able to physically destroy people if needed is also a nice byproduct as well.

Build a new kickass computer.

Buy a bunch of other useless shit that I'd like to get. Full-sized Star Wars Helmets, a couple of Roman and Ancient Greek helmets, that sort of thing.

Pay off debts.



Medium -

Build or buy a house

Maybe go back to Uni and start a masters so I can go on to a doctorate later on. Might look into that in more of the shorter-term timeframe. Dunno.

 
 
Long -

Um, not sure yet. I reckon I've got enough in the short and med-term stuff to take care of.

[Yegolev]

Do you mean that you want to make your own martial art?

[stray]

Once I get a bit fitter, there's also a Gracie Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu place not far from the Muay Thai place so I'm thinking of doing both in parallel.

The transformation won't be complete unless you also look like a bald ape ;)

[NowhereMan]

Short - Write undergraduate thesis, sit exams, get a highly classed degree

Medium - Apply and get on to a Masters programme (preferably Cambridge but probably not)
             Get my Dive Leader qualification so I can do some more fun SCUBA diving.
             Finally do the whole driving licence thing.

Long - Not sure right now, guess I need to decide on a career. Either getting into law and becoming a barrister or going into something high paying and soul sucking in finance. Either that or try and put things off by becoming an army officer or doing a PhD (depending on how the Masters goes). Lots of options.
         Guess also learn a foreign language of some sort, got a basic knowledge of a few and would like to master at least one other at some point.

[Cheddar]

Short: Unfuck some mistakes.  Quit smoking.  Future is doubtful.

Medium:  Get a house this year. 

Long: Not looking past my 5 year plan.  Things are too in flux currently.

[Evangolis]

Short term: Get a Job

Mid term: Write something and sell it.  Anydamnthing.

Long term: have a long term.

[Azazel]

Do you mean that you want to make your own martial art?

No, just know how to hit people properly and how to break them into little bits if I'm on the ground.

The transformation won't be complete unless you also look like a bald ape ;)

Yeah, those MMA fighters are an overall ugly bunch. Except Frank Mir. He's purty.

[Shavnir]

Short-short term :

Finish this history paper I keep putting off.

Short term :

Study my kanji more
Try and not forget all the CS stuff I spent 3 years learning

Medium term :

Try and find a job with a combo of CS and a Japanese degree
When that fails, try and get a Masters in CS through some place with a notable name

Long term :

Try and get a good job with a Masters in CS and a Bachelor's in Japanese
When that fails say 'fuck it' and become a professor of one or the other.
Maybe spend a year with JET or one of the many many English schools here.  Maybe.

[stray]

Yeah, those MMA fighters are an overall ugly bunch. Except Frank Mir. He's purty.

Btw, the guy in that pic is Wanderlei Silva. Probably the most successful Muay-Thai/Jiu-Jitsu fighter at the moment.

Muay Thai clinch plus Jiu Jitsu takedown = Little you can do about it.

[voodoolily]

Short term: Buy house (March '07), then promptly try to save $5K for a trip to Japan in '08.
Mid term: Finish my cookbook, bear Genius Progeny #1. Genius Progeny #2 will be considered, depending on results of Genius Progeny #1.
Long term: Retire early/wealthy, open Happiness of the Katakuris-style bed and breakfast (sans grisly murders. or perhaps avec grisly murders, depending on my mood.)

Now if I can resist blowing my load at Ikea and Home Despot maybe Japan will acually happen.

[Sky]

Now if I can resist blowing my load at Ikea and Home Despot maybe Japan will acually happen.

See...this would sound totally different if a man said it.

Anyone catch the Louis CK thing on HBO? My poor girlfriend. Last week I was telling her every sentence ended with "in your vagina", until I didn't have to actually say it, just look at her. She'd ask "Do you want to have lunch?" and I'd crack up. She'd roll her eyes and walk away. Thanks to Louis CK, this week's silent ending is "and then jizz on it." Doesn't work as often, though. Might have to go back to "in your vagina."

[stray]

The only vagina thing I remember from Louis CK was the "duck vagina" bit.

Err..Well, that was his standup. Haven't seen the sitcom.

[Sky]

No, the "in your vagina" was my thing. Louis tells some story where he beats a guy up. And then he adds "and I jacked off on him." "What? Too much?" From his new standup on HBO, Shameless. He reminds me of me about ten years ago.

[stray]

Oh...Well....You've got to see his standup then.

He talks about weird foods from different cultures, then segues into how he saw a bucket of duck vaginas for sale in Chinatown.

[Sky]

I just said it was his standup. Including duck vaginas.

[voodoolily]

I liked when he was talking about what an asshole his 4-yr old daughter is, and he wanted to kick her out a window.

[WayAbvPar]

Short term: Buy house (March '07), then promptly try to save $5K for a trip to Japan in '08.
Mid term: Finish my cookbook, bear Genius Progeny #1. Genius Progeny #2 will be considered, depending on results of Genius Progeny #1.
Long term: Retire early/wealthy, open Happiness of the Katakuris-style bed and breakfast (sans grisly murders. or perhaps avec grisly murders, depending on my mood.)

Now if I can resist blowing my load at Ikea and Home Despot maybe Japan will acually happen.

Anywhere but Home Depot. They were #1 or #2 in GOP contributions in 2005, if memory serves.

[voodoolily]

Tme to dump those shares, then, methinks.

Yes I own stock in Home Despot. I bought it when the housing prices were at an all-time low, thinking I'd make my fortune in people fixing up houses. I always liked Lowe's better anyway.