Most horror movies explore how many different ways someone can die. The  victims are typically stupid characters we wouldn’t miss while adding them to the darwin awards.  As a result we cheer on the villain as they cue that familiar horror sound.  It’s a horrible statement but true.  Like a kid overcoming his fear of the dark, most of us have become desensitized to this stuff.  No more over the top villains killing senseless teens in a camp, a cabin, their dreams, on a highway or any of that stuff.  They’re typically not scenarios you can relate to.

Lately, horror movies try to relate to us by exploring ways your father, mother, brother, and/or sister can die right before your eyes.  Not the quick death but these movies attempt to make us a bit squeamish by forcing us to watch a prolonged death.  The one second scream is now presented to us through several minutes of audible agony.  Mainstream movies like House of a 1000 Corpses, Saw and Hostel are examples of these.  They definitely made us feel something a little bit different from old horror movies.  I guess you can call it torture porn but all of them have villains who are relatively insane.  What’s insane?

Martyrs…yeah.  Martyrs is insane.  What can I say about Martyrs?  Not too much because I don’t want to give anything away.  I came into it without seeing a trailer or reading up reviews and that’s the way I typically like seeing them.  This movie is definitely the best horror-esque movie I’ve seen in a while.  Not only is it a rollercoaster of blood and guts it makes you doubt what kind of movie is really is.  There are several times throughout the movie my mind (the one that has been brainwashed with typical horror movies) tries to figure out what’s going to happen next and Martyrs pleasantly proves me wrong.  Well, not pleasantly haha.  That’s the worst word I could have used.  There’s actually one point in the movie where my mind recalls Mike Tyson saying, “What the *uck?! What the *uck?!” as he’s describing his first fight with Evander in Tyson’s recent documentary.  It’s interesting because it’s different.  After watching the movie, I searched online to find out more about it.  It’s a movie that get people talking so please watch it so we can talk about it!  Oh, also it’s a French movie so don’t watch it if you don’t like reading subtitles or seeing blood.

Photos taken with the lens detached from the camera but held in place and moved around to focus. This also lets extra light in sometimes causing light leaks and giving a vintage look and feel.

Also:
* Gives extra bokeh by shrinking the area in focus (apeture is 0)
* Allows for super macro shots
* Delicious light leaks
* Tilt-shift effects

Flickr member lukeroberts coins the term freelensing. People have probably been doing this for some time but I’ve only come across it just recently. Some dslrs won’t allow you to take a photo without a lens mounted on the camera. I’m not sure if there’s a way to force the camera to take a photo. This technique only works well with a prime lens. You’ll have to focus the lens to infinity and experiment with your distance to subject and the len’s distance and angle from the camera. You can probably expect dust to get on your sensor so make sure you can clean it. My only prime lens is an 85mm f1.8 and the following are some examples. I wonder what other lenses can be used.

Mike Tyson documentary (the older one) – Mike Tyson was always in the media when I was growing up.  I remember playing Punch Out! on the good old blow-the-cartridge-and-insert-but-not-all-the-way NES, hearing about him going to jail, and the infamous biting incident.  Basically, I just witnessed him on his decline in boxing.  This documentary showed me why he was a great inside the ring and maybe not so much outside the ring.  It leaves off with his time in jail which leads us into the next documentary to cover the rest.

Tyson (the newer documentary) – This one is more of an autobiographical interview of Mikey’s life.  You’ll hear his take on what went on in his past.  I found it hilarious and interesting.  A sign of a good movie is when I start to reinact lines from it and I’ve found myself doing that with Tyson.  Good watch!

Discovery Channel’s Rise of the Video Game – As I said, I was playing Mike Tyson’s Punch Out! and became very frustrated trying to beat Soda Popinski.  Even before that we had a Sega Master System which has a built in maze game.  After the NES I grew up using a Gameboy on long drives and mastered Mario Kart on the SNES.  We skipped the N64 and got a Playstation and loved Symphony of the Night.  The last console was the beloved Sega Dreamcast and had burned an entire collection of games.  I was done with consoles but then again I had Counter-Strike to take up my time.  I used to play hours and hours for an entire year!  Where’s that skill now?  Rise of the Video Game is a six part series chronicling the advent of the video game and major milestones in its evolution.  Since I haven’t been a serious gamer in years, it’s interesting to see how it all began and where it’s going.  I had a blast when it covered the timeframe when I was into gaming.  If you’ve grown up playing games, this is a must see.

BBC’s Soul Deep – This documentary series was recommended by my brother.  Many of my music favorites have been recommended by him and this documentary is no different.  Soul Deep chronicles the advent and evolution of popular black music.  The series talks about many famous artists such as Ruthie Brown, Etta James, Jaime Fox, I mean, Ray Charles, Sam Cook, Little Richard, Otis Redding, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, and many others.  My parents played soul and R&B music while I was growing up.  I remember my dad trying to play Roberta Flack’s Killing Me Softly on his electronic keyboard.  As I grew older I found I knew words to songs who’s artist’s names left me clueless.  Funk and soul music prevailed in my teen breakdancing years.  What are serious relationships without slowjams?  How could we have slowjams without popular black music? haha.  Well, we’d have some but with less feeling.  I have a piece of art hanging on my living room wall.  It states, “music comforts the soul” and Soul Deep comforts my musical mind.  Also, the Beyonce audio board feed is funny but apparently false.

If there’s anything you should get from this post, it’s to watch the Discovery Channel and BBC.  HBO’s good too.  Now, find these videos!  You tube them while watching ninja videos to train against torrents.

“What program do you use to stream music on your Blackberry?  What? You don’t stream music on your Blackberry?”

That’s a common mini conversation I’ve encountered.  I’ve heard Slacker Radio is pretty good but your SOL if you’re not a US resident.  So what’s left for the rest of us?  FlyCast is one of the few online streaming applications for Blackberry phones.  On Thursday, March 19, FlyCast released an update for its Blackberry users.  My favourite new feature is the ability to search Shoutcast streams and play from your preferences rather than the ones included in FlyCast (not that there’s anything wrong with their preloaded streams).  I can stream Cerritos Allstars now on my phone!  How cool is that?  FlyCast has had this feature for the iPhone for a while now but I know more people sporting a Blackberry instead.  Now, how do I get WJAM The Breeze playing on FlyCast?

Finally, after months of drifting and listening to one main online radio station, I’ve come across something else I can listen to and not get sick of.  There is a catch, however.  It’s all slow jams all the time and you have to be a romantic and a little older to appreciate the music.  The station is WJAM The Breeze Radio.

WJAM 104.3 is an online radio network providing four stations catering to old school, r&b and soul music.  I’ve only listened to the Breeze Radio and luckily listened to a playlist of songs that brought me back to my more romantic days haha.  This station plays a variety of soft music and offers a ton of songs I’ve never been exposed to before.  Sure, you’re heart won’t melt to all of the songs and some hours might all be saxo-mo-phone tracks but then, when you least expect it, one of “your” songs sneaks up on you and makes you smile!  It’s radio, right? And it has to have its high and lows to keep you interested.  Now sing it, baby! Haha.  Hope you enjoy WJAM The Breeze Radio.

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Appreciating Beer

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer Connoisseur

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer Mania

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer and Food

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Crafting Beer

Beer: An Insider’s Guide – Beer Culture

My first memories of going ice skating is ironically in the Philippines years ago.  “A filipino ice skating in the Philippines?” you ask.  Yes, at Mega Mall.  Again, I will say years ago and I must stress on the word years.  I figured ice skating would be a breeze.  Well, not quite but simple enough for me to take my camera along so I can kill two stones with one low fat diet (you know what I mean!).  Boy was I wrong!  I was skating very cautiously to protect my camera from my big ol’ bum.  My skating ablities were probably worse than a 4 year old.  I needed a walker!  Well, maybe not that bad but maybe that bad.

Anyway, last summer YouTube cured my case with my swimless ability.  I can now officially say I can swim!  Thanks, YouTube!  Just don’t ask me to save someone if they were drowning.  Yes, I had a test run with a friend and I couldn’t save her haha.  So if YouTube helped me then I’m sure he can help me now!  Without further ado (I had to look that one up.  I thought it was adieu.  Could still be adieu.  The internet sometimes isn’t a very reliable place.) my YouTube Skating Class 101.

This is a series of 9 ice skating lessons for beginners.  The reason why I chose this video is because I initially found it a little funny but I still soaked in everything he was pointing out.  The first lesson is how to skate.  I was like, “So the left foot moves are called steps and the right foot moves are called skates.”  Very descriptive hahaha.  I know I’m being a bastard and I’m sure he can be much more descriptive in Hungarian but it was a little funny.  I’m sure my intro ice skating video in Hungarian would be worse.  I’m sure I’d get tons of hilarious looks if people saw me slowly going down the river crouching and standing (one of the exercises).  If you do see me doing these exercises though, don’t laugh.  That’s the way my buddy does it in Budapest!

That clip is such a good spoof it took me a while to realize it was fake.  The comments are also hilarious as it gives anti-Apple people an excuse to call Apple a bunch of idiots.  Who’s the idiot?  I guess I am for believing in such a thing.  I was thinking there must have been one crazy intuitive feature that they weren’t advertising for all those downsides to it.  The MacBook Wheel must read your mind or something!  I went through it again to read the headlines panning across the bottom and they were just another reason to call this spoof.  Good job!