My new desktop wallpaper...

And will remain so for a great while:

New banner

Ewww.

It's comical how abruptly I realized that the old ManCalledSun banner was butt-ugly. It shot down my spine like a jolt of electricity. I'm almost embarrassed that it stayed there to so long. So, I made another one. It's serving more as a place setter right now and is an idea that may get built upon. Something, anything than that previous atrocity. I'm currently going for a different look; something that doesn't scream, "HEY CHECK IT OUT I'M USING PHOTOSHOP WEEEEEEEEE!!!!! DISTORT IMAGE DISTORT TEXT DISTORT DISTORT DISTORT"

In all honesty one of the main motives behind creating this blog was to give me a reason to finally learn Photoshop. The covers for the Monthly Mix Brigade are also good practice. It's all in good fun.

p.s. I cannot get enough of the new MELVINS album.

Emily Post - Shmemily Post

I like to think of myself as a civilized fellow. I make eye contact, have a hearty handshake, say please, say thank you, strive to keep my elbows off the dinner table... that sorta stuff. But this lady, and her influence on innocent women - like my poor wife - make me want to revert back to barbarianism. Say hello to "Miss Manners" herself - Emily Post:

Emily Post lived a million years ago. She was born into affluence which apparently gave her the notion and ambition to dedicate her life to being annoying about etiquette. At some point in MIZZ Post's life (Her husband left. Take a wild guess why) she basically crowned herself the world's leading authority in what is and what is not frikkin PROPER!

In One Trillion Million B.C. she even created the "Emily Post Institute" intended to draw other people (mostly WOMEN who nag their husbands about not blowing snot rockets at the dinner table) into the fold of etiquette snobbery. Within the walls of this sanction they came up with a gaggle of other ideas and concepts for other modern uptight socialites to live by. Like this:

A proper place setting? PROPER? says who? YOU!? HA! Gimmie a wooden bowl, a cork on a fork, a Stein of Grog and sit me at the kiddie table, thank you. We'll bark Clutch songs in unison, toast to our barbarianism, and start a totally awesome food fight while you folks, with raised pinky fingers, sip your dainty little tea cups and discuss fancy ornamental bureau's and dog breeding or whatever.

Then Emily Post died. Her followers took it upon themselves to continue her legacy. Part of the curriculum is learning how best to badger and nag people who don't walk on egg shells wishing to be proper during every passing second of every passing day. Modern-day outlets of high-brow education and naggery include podcasts, seminars, college classes, the central hub of a universe full of hassle and frustration: Emilypost.com, and a newly-completed biography on the evil one herself:

Oh good, a paper weight for all the research I'm doing on the Crusades - something way awesomer than salad forks and doilies...

HELLS YEAH!!!!!!

Hey, look what I found

Pictures! I took these during the course of the summer about three years ago - or was it four? Whichever. My pappy was generous enough to lend me his Cannon yadda-yadda-yadda and gave me a brief run through on camera mechanics. I was using standard 400-speed film and shot three or four rolls. The pics I have posted here are a few of my favorites.

I really enjoyed going out with a keen eye. It wasn't my intent to capture romantic settings but more so get crazy with shutter speed and aperture width. With film there's always the thrill and hope that the picture will come out as you intended. Sometimes it doesn't develop how you wanted, it turns out better!

The Nebula/Dozer split on a 12" LP convincingly dyed to mimic flames. With this I was more interested in how the drawing in the center would turn out with a slower, but not too slow, shutter speed. Good tunes. Oh man, good tunes!

Don't remember what I was going for in this one. Still cool, I think.

This was shot downtown on Superior. My intent was a flat still life but at the last second the camera autofocused on the reflection in the puddle.

Outside the Rock Hall. This was towards the end of my afternoon and I was weary of walking around so much. I basically took this just for the heck of it.

Cruising down lake road approaching a group of trees. I really like how this turned out - very... Pastel, whispy... or blurry if you wanna be a prick about it.

Totally just messing around

At the Old Field in the Chagrin Metro Parks. I love it back there. Why not bring a camera and see what catches my eye?

I forgot what I did here

A personal favorite. I don't know what it is about this one but it just tickles me.

Stupid

Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid

Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid Stupid

Mitchell encounters a foreign language

What the?!? These directions are in frikkin French! How am I supposed to know the correct dosage?! That's it, I'm going back to the pharmacist to demand directions in a language that NORMAL people can read. France - what a joke!

Conquering the ancient world ain't easy

Europa Universalis: Rome is a historical grand strategy game made by Paradox Interactive, and it will be the end of me. Like most Paradox-developed games there is a steep learning curve, but once you catch on to the basics and slide into the groove the ancient world is yours to conquer. Players assume the control of a selected country and deal with almost every aspect of it's inner stability and outward conquests - in other words: hella micromanagement. This game has worked it's way under my skin. It's gotten to the point that whenever I'm away from the game I'm spending a great deal of my mental processes contemplating and calculating my Kingdom's next course of action. Sad?

NO! I CONQUER! I CRUSH THE SKULLS OF MINE ENEMIES!

I'm only making this post because I just recently learned how take screen shots... and to brag - there, I said it. Though my country has been on a roll, I'm unsure of what to do next...

Ok. Check this out... I am playing as the country PONTUS - located in modern day Turkey. This map shows the political boundaries at the start of the game. Pontus is purple.

Tee hee, how cute. What a cute little purple country. Purple is awesome. But look at the rest of this map! What a mess. What we need is stability! We need a country that can solidify the land, put it to good use. We need might to be rid of the barbarians (grey area)! We need a country to crush the petty quarrels of lesser provinces (Lands with stripes.) Go Go Gadget: PONTUS!

POW!! Purple is beautiful! What eye candy! And it took almost 100 game-years. Not too shabby. I just finished a war with Armenia (RED in the above map) so, naturally Pontus is recovering some much-needed Manpower.

This down provides me with the opportunity to figure out my next course of action - a matter that is going to take some extensive planning. Which way shall the borders expand? This is a tough call.

Southeast is a possibility. All the yellow belongs to the Seleucid Empire. We USED to be allies but they broke ties with Pontus five years ago - sonsabitches. The Seleucid military force is mighty but not nearly as big to adequately cover the entire empire. So I could slowly begin to move southeast and pick off yellow provinces as I go - I'd start off with that big yellow ZIT that is right smack dab in the middle of my current empire. Seleucid's stability is pretty low and civil wars break out all the time, so it may be possible to kick 'em while their down. The downside is that they have other allies with other big scary countries like Egypt. Egypt has war elephants. You don't mess with war elephants.

Or...

I've entertained the notion of going North/Northwest, but really only because... it's there. The land is pretty useless and not very populated - hence, poor tax income. I'm also allied with the olive green and blue countries. Breaking alliances with them would result in higher infamy points for Pontus, which ups the threat of other countries being all like, "Hey, you're a big jerk. I'm gonna rally up my hombres and come and gitcha!" I fear this reaction the most from the Seleucid Empire because their hombres have war elephants. You don't mess with war elephants.

Or...

You're still reading? wow. Well... since you're still interested I'll give you some breaking news: I was leaning most with going west, but Rome is on the other side of the Greek isles - and that is a beast I don't even want to disturb right now. Typing this post has helped me to realize that the Seleucid Empire (The butt ugly yellow country... oh man Yellow is so annoying and ulgy) is currently the greatest threat. Dissolving an alliance with me was their single biggest mistake. It's on, baby.

I was originally going to ask your ignorant opinion on any advice or ideas, but screw you, I've got it all figured out. Thanks anyways... bum.

Forecast FAIL

LAWL!!!!!!!11

As Above So Below - July '09 BRR Mixtape Brigade

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=CIAX6GBV

“As Above So Below” originates from an ancient school of philosophical thought and refers to the observation that nature – reality – mimics itself on every scale imaginable. I include “imaginable” because: though science can compute, deduce and evaluate, it takes some good old fashioned humanoid wonderment to even get to the point of scientific discovery and concrete understanding. We have limited perspective, yes, but imagination and inspiration transcends all. All it takes is an abstract idea - to have the power to ask, "What if..." and work upwards from there.

Neal A. Maxwell: “Appreciative affirmation of the central realities is the mark of the astute, while tardy acknowledgment is the response of the naïve, the proud, or the wicked… With a sense of perspective comes a sense of proportion about life. Proportion would help us with our priorities.”

A mix CD is an offering by its creator. Sometimes the motives are more involved. Other times it's just a simple way of saying, Hey, I think these songs are super-sweet, I shall share them with you! With July's mix... well, I guess it's the both of these. I hope that its vibe and majestic grandeur will open channels of imagination and inspire you to some conclusion in life; to bring things into perspective; to feel the joy of riding these musical updrafts. Likewise, I also think that these tracks are absolutely stunning...

I shall share them with you!