22.June.2008 » Almost forgot .. June 5th was the site's » 8th anniversary. Happy birthday to Radified.
Radified's 8th Anniversary
Was a little distracted at the time. No wonder I missed it. Everything turned out okay, tho. (So we're good to go.)
This is where I usually review the site's origins, philosophy, milestones & future. But I recently revised the About page to include this (+ inject more Rad techno-ego).
Eight is a long time in web-years. We were just getting started back when the dot-com industry was melting-down. Consequently, a small percentage of sites on the web today are older than 8.
This is our first b-day at our new VPS. Maybe someday we'll host on a dedicated web server, or at least a hybrid.
Besides a new web host, this past-year we got an open source version of Movable Type, a new table-less layout for the home page, a new Rad URL (compliments Apache mod_rewrite), and numerous upgrades to the forum (compliments YaBB).
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » Radified's 8th Anniversary
21.June.2008 » Summer arrived like God shut the breaker. Seriously hot yesterday/today. (No wonder the polar ice caps are melting.)
Hyperwarp » Mid-Summer
Took the Bug swimming today » "Uncle Tom's" pool.
Of all the cool/fun things we do, he seems most enchanted with aquatics. I mean, we're talking squeals-of-delight. (There's something hyper-gratifying to see that magical look on your kid's face.)
He reminds me of my brother (whose nickname was the Frog). Only way to get him to come out » drain the pool.
The Bug jumps in the deep end (!) and swims back to the ladder & climbs out (by himself). Fearless. (Too fearless.) When I try to help him, he waves me away and tells me he wants to do it himself. (He does however, let me toss him high in the air.)
After the pool, we took the kids (+ Tom's daughter) to a rock-climbing gym (Bug's first-ever trip there) where he wore a real climbing harness. (Tho he didn't climb very high.)
My buddy Tom worked his way thru college by teaching rock-climbing. So he constantly emphasizes safety, and knows how to make it seem less scary to put distance between you and the ground. He doesn't push kids any higher than they're comfortable climbing.
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » The Bug's First Trip to Rock-Climbing Gym
20.June.2008 » First day of summer. The exact time when the sun reaches its northern-most point (stops moving north), and begins heading back south is » 23:59 UTC (Greenwich Mean).
First Day of Summer
If you live here on the Left coast (like me) that would put the beginning of summer at (-7 hours) 4:59 PM .. if my math is correct.
For our friends who live south of the equator, today's the first day of winter. Don't worry .. we'll send the sun back your way (after we're done playing at the beach for a few months).
Today is the longest day of the year. Starting today, the days begin to shorten .. a few minutes every day. The word solstice means "sun stoppage," cuz it appears as if the sun stops moving for a few days. From InfoPlease:
For several days before and after each solstice the sun appears to stand still in the sky, i.e., its noontime elevation does not seem to change from day to day.
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » First Day of Summer
15.June.2008 » Knew I wouldn't have the Bug today. Unfortunately, Father's day didn't fall on one of my weekends this year. So I celebrated last weekend.
Father's Day 2008
I normally take him to church on Sundays, cuz (frankly) Mariner's has the most coolest stuff for kids to play with .. per square acre of any place I've been. Playgrounds galore, everywhere you turn.
I realize it's not the most spiritually-minded reason (but give me points for honesty).
After exiting the parking lot, you find a football field, covered with hundreds of balls of various size & color, along with inner-tubes that little people can roll inside of. Fun-city². (Did I mention the frisbees?)
Before playing however, we go inside and sing some songs together. Normally I sit up front, where he can see everything. (Bongo-drums are his favorite instrument.) There I hold him in my arms and tell him (in his ear) a 3-year-old's version of what they're singing about.
When service starts, the curtains lower and stage-lights illuminate. (Dramatic.) Two giant hi-def screens are mounted on either side of the wall behind the stage.
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » Father's Day 2008
14.June.2008 » Here's a copy of Armin's latest » State of Trance intro (40-sec, 192-kbps mp3, 1-MB). Cool way to launch a set.
Armin's New Intro
Armin is worldwide. Every time I listen, seems like he's electrifying a different city (currently Sydney).
Good jammin' music. Pop in the ear-buds and get down to business. Armin takes you there with energy. Hails from Holland.
Today's micro-entry is duplicated in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » Armin's New State-of-Trance Intro
13.June.2008 » Friday the 13th. Updated the forum script last night .. to YaBB v2.2.2 (released June 5th).
Upgraded Rad Forum Script (YaBB)
Stayed up 'til 1AM. Kinda tired this morning. (Would never chance it on an unlucky day like today, so I wanted to finish last night.)
This is the fastest-ever I upgraded the forum (a few hours), which included installing a few mods (manually), such as the Quick-Reply mod.
Normally it takes a few days to dial-in everything. I've done it so many times now that I know the drill. (Hasn't always gone well.) Or maybe it was the Puttanesca I made last night.
Only made one mistake .. copying (via Linux command line) /Members and /Messages files (from old- to new-script directories) to wrong directories. Dang.
I copied these folders *inside* pre-existing folders .. instead of first deleting (or renaming) the destination directories. That mistake cost me an hour or two. (Takes a while to delete 15,000 files .. even on a fast server.) Next time I'm just going to MOVE the files (instead of copy-n-delete).
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » Upgraded Rad Community Forum Script (YaBB v2.2.2)
10.June.2008 » Micro$oft has a cool program that enables students worldwide to download expen$ive software for FREE » DreamSpark ..
Free M$oftware 4 Students
.. which includes applications of both development (US$800) & design (US$700).
Smart move by M$, since students can't afford expen$ive software, anyway. (It's not like they're gonna forfeit any revenue.) "Indoctrinate them early & often,"
I always say. Believe M$ launched program Feb '08. All downloadable programs li$ted » AQUI.
Speaking of free software (freeware) from M$, here's a link to some cool program that you DON"T need to be a student in order to download » Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 Express Edition.
And also speaking of free software, I'm really enjoying learning PHP/MySQL. Finding it surprisingly math-y .. and I love math. I especially like that it MAKES SENSE (.. since many things in my life don't).
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » DreamSpark: Micro$oft's Free Software (Freeware) Program for Students Worldwide
05.June.2008 » Learned today that, sometimes, when it seems like very bad things befall you .. that these can actually be good things in disguise (.. tho it might be hard to see at the time).
but God meant it unto good
I am exhausted today .. way deep inside. Adrenaline lasts only so long. Then you crash. I could sleep for a week.
Today's micro-entry is duplicated in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » but God meant it unto good
02.June.2008 » Laggin' on entries lately. Been busy with "legal" stuff. In fact, I just got back from the courthouse. Spent the morning there. (Have to return later this week.) Not a fun place.
June Extra Gloomy
Won't bore you with the details, but it's pretty ugly. Imagine the ugliest situation possible, and you're probably in the ballpark.
Since I can no longer afford an attorney, I'm getting killed in the courtroom. (Experienced lawyers know legal tricks.) I do my best. That's all I can do, really. (And pray.)
If I do my best and lose, that would suk, but I could live with that. But I couldn't live with not trying. Still, I'm kinda perplexed by a system that seems to encourage this insanity.
But this is nothing new. Been dealing with this drama for years now. Friends can't understand how I handle it.
I should probably be stressin' more than I am, but (sadly) you kinda get used to it after a while. (Been there, done that.) "Ho hum, here comes more insanity."
The decisions are out of my hands. So fretting does no good. I simply wrap myself in emotional teflon and go with the flow.
Many pages from this web site have been entered into the court record. So I'm intentionally being vague. Hard to believe people are that interested in parsing what I have to say.
Today's entry continues in Ye Olde Rad Blog III .. see here » June Extra Gloomy
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