I enjoy all kinds of music, for sure - some of my disparate favorites are “Amy Grant”, “N.W.A.”, “No Doubt” and “Shania Twain”. Nor is the majesty of ‘classical’ music lost on me, or even a good broadway musical now and again (I could watch “Les Miserables” every day).

But the music that really moves me? Really stirs something deep and primal? Really slams me up, down, and sideways and reminds me I’m alive?

Heavy. Fuckin’. Metal.

(Sorry tender-ears; it would just be too un-metal to censor that, I can’t do it).

(Read on …)

(Prior to the post, here is a shameless plug for a real server host!)

As ridiculously incompetent as “DRG Servers” is, I probably would have succumbed to my chronic lethargy and never got around to filing a complaint with the BBBOnline - except that I’m so angry and frustrated (and concerned) about my father right now that I felt the need to channel some aggression. So for those following along at home, below is the Better Business Bureau complaint filed against them, seeking the refund of our $25.00:

(Read on …)

(Prior to the post, here is a shameless plug for a real server host!)

I’ve dealt with a lot of companies in my day. A lot. Online and offline, obscure and mainstream, big and small, I’ve dealt with them all. Steve Jackson Games has been my favorite company for years and years - I buy anything I can through them. Great products, great prices, and, most importantly, exceptional customer service (seriously, the absolute best).

Which brings me to the point of this post. I don’t consider myself a particularly difficult customer - in fact, my expectations for customer service in these days of universally lax civility are actually pretty low. But I have a new “Worst. Company. Ever.” for my list - DRG Servers. I believe that if you read through the following email exchanges I had with the company you will reach the same conclusion. (But get comfy, it’s a hella long post.)

(Read on …)

I was chatting with a friend of mine about movies the other day, specifically about formats: “letterbox” vs. “pan & scan”. It reminded me of something I posted waaay back on the subject, when TheMook.Net still smelled like a new baby, so I dug it up. It was originally posted on May 21, 1999, on my “Soapbox” page:

————————————————————————————-

“Okay, I know that this rant isn’t exactly a burning world issue, or a hot topic of today’s society…but hell, it’s important to me and this is my soapbox…

Lately I’ve been absolutely swamped with people decrying me as some sort of movie heretic, for the unpardonable crime of…preferring to watch videotapes that are in Letterbox format over the usual “pan & scan” crap.

(Read on …)

I’ve been puttering around “a bit” (read: hours and hours of geeky fun!) with the WordPress theme “Blue Horizon” - I quite like it, but decided I prefer a three-column layout. Since I couldn’t find any three-column themes I like as much as the two-column “Blue Horizon”, I decided to just hack it up and see what I could do.

The result is the theme “Cybermook”, the one you are looking at right now. I’ve tested it a bit on both Firefox and Internet Explorer, at resolutions 1280 x 1024, 1024 x 768, and 800 x 600, and haven’t noticed anything breaking. Please let me know if you notice any formatting issues, broken pages, etc. If the theme seems stable enough, I’ll eventually release it for others to use.

Forum Discussion