What Should I Do For My Birthday?… Top 5 Responses

Sorry I was a little late on the post, the resort that the family is staying at had some technical difficulties… server wise.  Anyway, as I promised, here are the top 5 responses. By the way, this was sort of a social experiment and I thought it would be a little fun as well.  Now here we go, starting with the best:

1. Brett Gerstenberger, via Facebook
“I think you should buy as many rolls of duct tape as you can find, then roll them all into one giant ball and then start bowling for humans with it. or squirrels. squirrel bowling with a giant duct tape bowling ball would be a memorable way to spend a birthday.”

I don’t know about the bowling for humans, but I think squirrel bowling would be awesome!  Now to try to find some duct tape…

2. Byrde Nez, via Facebook
“Make your own birthday cake-from scratch, invite all your friends to have an all-outcake fight.”

I don’t know why I liked this one, I think it was an original idea… probably the all out cake fight sold me on this one.

3. Tanya Brown, via Facebook
“Happy Birthday! Lanny and I both agree that you should get a butter knife and go nuts!”

Okay, this one is sort of an inside joke.  Back when I went to NAU Music Camp, in high school, a friend of mine who shall remain nameless was telling a small group of people that I like to run around campus with a butter knife, and gullible as they were, they believed it.  People that know me well will attest that I am a nice, harmless person and running around with a butter knife would be the last thing that I would ever do.  I am as harmless as a butterfly… or maybe in this case, a butter knife!

4. Stacia Lane Eagle, via Facebook
“well today…your the man! so wear some cocky message shirt and walk with a gansta gimp. go out to eat and ask for the waitresses’ phone number and if she won’t give it too you…it’s her lost because today..your the man!! lol or if all else fails, dance in your room like you’ve never danced before!!”

Hmm… I don’t know what to say about this one…

5.Kyle Hartfield, via Facebook
“Burn down Jason’s Deli”

Well, I wouldn’t burn down the deli… where else could a get a great Reuben sandwich this side of the Mississippi?  (Unless the slicer cuts the corned beef along the grain… and consistently, then maybe)…

Until next time…

YouTube Friday: “Kathleen Battle & Wynton Marsalis – Baroque Duet”

Today’s YouTube Friday is from a couple of classical performers that I admire very much; Kathleen Battle, soprano and Wynton Marsalis, trumpet.

Also as a bonus, here is a clip of Wynton Marsalis playing the infamous trumpet piece, “Carnival of Venice”, with the infamous John Williams (of Star Wars and many, many other movies fame) directing.

Until next time…

P.S. – I have previously wrote a post on Wynton Marsalis, but with his jazz ensemble.  You can check them out here and here.  Enjoy!

YouTube Friday: “Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005″

Kicking off my first post in months is… you guessed it folks… YouTube Friday!!!

As of recent news, Steve Jobs is back at Apple Computer after months of medical leave; after a successful liver transplant.  I have read extensively on various business leaders in history, but no one stands out as significant as Steve Jobs.  So if you are reading Steve, glad your back and in good health, and many more years of good health.  Here is a clip from the Stanford Commencement 2005.  Enjoy!

Until next time…

YouTube Friday: “Big Buck Bunny”

Today’s YouTube clip was made on a free, open source 3D application program called Blender.  Blender is used as an animating and rendering tool for 3D models.  You can also download “Big Buck Bunny”, keep track of other productions, or buy a DVD to enjoy as well here.  Enjoy!

P.S. — I would advise to watch in HD and on a full-screen…

Until next time…

YouTube Friday: “Twitter in Plain English”, + a surprise!

I figured the last post was sort of about Twitter, so here is a Twitter chaser.  I bumped into this clip and I think it best describes what this social application is all about.  For the folks that still don’t know what Twitter is… this is for you.

Well, if that clip was a little dry for you, here is a bonus!  This is a video podcast that I enjoy by Gary Vaynerchuk.  His web site, Wine Library TV describes his reviews of various wines.  Awesome podcast, an expert on wine, and a Jets fan, you HAVE to check it out… perhaps you will become a part of the “Vayner Nation” and YOU with a little bit of Gary, are going to change the wine world…

Until next time…

An example of Twitter @work: US Airways Flight 1549

This topic has sort of been circling my mind in the past few days.  In case you have been living under a rock, or like a friend of mine that has shunned anything media last week, the crash of US Airways flight 1549, and how miraculously there were no fatalities and the extraordinary efforts of the pilot, crew and others around.  One stream of information that caught my eye was from this article from Silicon Alley Insider.

I actually heard of the plane crash on Twitter.  All of a sudden, I got multiple (by the order of 20-30 tweets per minute) tweets on how a plane just crashed into the Hudson, and the uncertainty of the crash.  I remember a specific tweet saying something in the matter of: plane crash on the Hudson River, no coverage on CNN yet.

That in itself astounded me, sort of a “citizens journalism at work”.  I wrote a previous post last year, “The Power of Twitter“, and on mentioning that in the next few years, Twitter would become the next Facebook.  Now whether Twitter would follow the same kind of model as Facebook, or would be eventually bought up by a company of the likes of Google or Microsoft, that has yet to be determined.  I think that Twitter is a powerful tool to keep in touch with friends, but also in touch with what is going on in the world.  I have heard it called “New Media”, and it is changing the face of how we communicate and pass on information in a changing world.

I will be looking forward on how this new media will effect a changing world, the business and social aspect.

Until next time…

Top 3 searches from themelvinator blog of 2008

Well, here we are, at the eve of 2009.  I figure I would share the top search terms for 2008, (terms used from search engines to find this blog).  Let’s start with number 1:

1. Ruben Simeo (with more than 230 hits) :: I did a post of Ruben Simeo earlier this year.  If you don’t know already, Ruben is a truly gifted trumpet player, with a tone and extraordinary proficiency beyond his years.  Also did I mention he is like 16 years old!?  He has played in various trumpet competitions and orchestras all over the globe.  I see him as an awesome performer to watch in the future. Here is a recent clip of him playing in Japan, with a version of “The Flight of the Bumblebee“: 
2. Battlestar Galactica (with more than 70 hits) :: I am a huge fan of the SCIFI channel’s version of “Battlestar Galactica”.  In case you have never seen, I would encourage anybody to check it out.  A lot of people I have talked to think that the show is a “geeky”, or “nerdy” show… and maybe it is, but it is so much more.  With a great story and some complex characters, it is FTW (For The Win, if my parents are reading this)!  This all-star cast includes Edward James Olmos (“Stand and Deliver”, “American Me”) and Mary McDonnell (“Independence Day”, “Dances  with Wolves”), and some fairly new talent of the likes of Jamie Bamber, Tricia Helfer and Katee Sackoff.  I would only advise that if you are first starting out, start with the first season DVD, and watch the 4 part Mini-series first, which is in the first season DVD pack, then go from there. This season is half-way though it’s 4th and final season, closing out a wonderful saga.  Here is a clip (Warning: could be a spoiler for newbies, so don’t watch if you want to “go in fresh”, or watch, if you dare: 
3. Studying playlist (with over 20 hits) :: This post is something I wrote as a lark, the reason being that I wanted to share some of the music I listened to.  The list is all comprised of classical music.  I would listen to this if I wanted to do some “hardcore” reading and studying.  The majority of hits occurred during the month of May and recently in mid-December, which is evidence that people are desperately looking for playlists to optimize the studying for finals.

These were the top searches on themelvinator blog.  I am looking forward for next years top searches, and a bit curious.

I guess this will wrap it up for this years posts.  Hopefully, I will post more content in 2009 (and they will be interesting… I promise).  I wish everyone a Happy New Year!

Until next time…

The “After, after, after Christmas party”

I hope everyone had a great Christmas.  The Nez brothers and I went to Sedona on Christmas Eve.  The funny thing is that we don’t actually have relatives in Sedona, nor family.  It was sort of a spur of the moment thing, stemming from when the family met on Thanksgiving.  Normally, we meet either at home (Leupp, AZ) or at my aunt’s house (Prescott Valley, AZ) for Christmas.  Overall, the holidays was great; spending some time with relatives, EATING LOTS OF FOOD, and catching up.

Christmas morning in Sedona

What I got for Christmas was a gourmet tea brewer, some tea (from Adagio Teas) and a scarf.  I enjoy iced tea and some hot teas, but all the teas I have drank have been bagged.  For me, tea:

1. Tastes good, but some teas are definitely an acquired taste.
2. Good for you, health-wise.
3. May give you an air of sophistication.

I look forward in enjoying many cups of hot tea in the future.

As for the scarf… it is awesome!  The design sort of looks like it was clipped off a robe of some sort and it is made of wool, but it is quite stylish and keeps me warm.

We took a day trip to Flagstaff the day after Christmas, mainly to see some snow and perhaps do a little shopping.  And snow it is we saw.  For the most part, the roads were good, but we did encounter a few cars that slipped off the freeway, including one truck that was flipped over.  We arrived to Flagstaff unscathed.

We did a little shopping at the Flagstaff Mall.  It only took 5 minutes to walk from one end to the other (the mall is that small).  The one thing I do love about the mall is the kiosk that sells roasted almonds, called Old World Style Almonds.  Roasted almonds has always been synonymous with Christmas in the Nez family and we had to order a few bags.

We had lunch at La Fonda’s Mexican Restaurant.  Always wonderful; I don’t think I had ever had a bad meal here.

After lunch, we headed back down to Sedona to drop off my father and headed back down to Tucson.

Christmas time is always great, especially seeing relatives and friends that you normally don’t see on a day-to-day basis.  I hope your Christmas was as awesome as mine.  Anyway, happy holidays and have a great new year!

Until next time…

YouTube Friday: “Snoop makes Mashed Potatoes”

I hope everyone had a great Christmas, will post something soon on how my holiday season went.  This clip is Snoop Dogg making mashed potatoes on “The Martha Stewart Show”…  I thought this would be sort of appropriate for the holidays.  Enjoy!

Until next time…

YouTube Friday: “Mario Kart – Remi Gaillard”

Thirteen days until Christmas and I am getting very excited!  I was referred to his clip by one of my favorite video podcast, the Buzz Report with Molly Wood, and I laughed out loud.  This weeks clip is loosely based on the game “Mario Kart“.  Enjoy!

Until next time…