Floppy Disk Letter Opener

Floppy Disk Letter Opener
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Atop a stack of mail.

Lamborghini At Red Light

Lamborghini At Red Light
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

This guy pulled up next to me on my way to lunch today.

Twitter Week In Review 2009-07-04 To 2009-07-11

My 4th of July PM Project: editing together my Future Fest video footage from last weekend http://bit.ly/1a51I3

11:55 PM Jul 4th from Tweetie

Just realized I had an insane # of tabs open in Firefox due to continuing research for my iPhone Unlock/Jailbreak paper. Total # of tabs? 92

10:24 PM Jul 5th from Tweetie

Spent day working on research paper for Ethics; not done yet but I predict it'll be good enough to blog-post soon; I <3>

10:46 PM Jul 5th from Tweetie

Posted this week's JW/Electronica Classic: Erick Morillo & Harry Choo Choo Romero 2000 Essential Mix ; house me! http://tinyurl.com/pyku2g

11:28 PM Jul 5th from TweetDeck

Slow Mon @ office but a solid 5 hr research paper wrap-up sprint in PM; just need to do final proofread @ lunch tomorrow, then summer vacay!

11:47 PM Jul 6th from Tweetie

@gabetax It might be related to this: http://bit.ly/JKt51

9:04 AM Jul 7th from Tweetie in reply to gabetax

Just e-mailed in my final paper for Information Technology Ethics; now a 5 week break before I start my final class prior to graduation. :-)

12:01 PM Jul 7th from Tweetie

Picking back up w/the Stanford iPhone dev class vids after taking a couple of months off to finish my real "for credit" Auburn MBA courses.

10:33 PM Jul 7th from Tweetie

Such a balanced day: husband, brother, friend, student, entrepreneur, athlete, learner, enthusiast...I aspire to hit all of these everyday!

11:05 PM Jul 7th from Tweetie

Snap: Google is going for the knockout punch against Microsoft! RT @google: Introducing the Google Chrome OS http://bit.ly/N1rNZ

6:09 AM Jul 8th from Tweetie

The Top 50 Bars In New Orleans: http://bit.ly/15r7rE

6:15 AM Jul 8th from Tweetie

I'll be upgrading my MacBook Pro harddrive from a 160GB 7,200RPM Hitachi to a 500GB 7,200RPM Seagate on Sat; got my drive/tools in yesterday

12:02 PM Jul 8th from Tweetie

Totally exploiting my extra free time in evenings during school hiatus; grilled out, worked out, learned for fun, & helped Ash w/her paper.

10:53 PM Jul 8th from Tweetie

@dsilverman 802.11n via an upgrade to an AEBS about two months ago.

2:18 PM Jul 9th from Tweetie in reply to dsilverman

Hit up Baker Street Pub @ lunch today for coworkers' birthdays; did 3 mile run in this crazy TX heat in PM; zapped energy, but still had fun

11:38 PM Jul 9th from Tweetie

Hit up Kobe Sushi @ lunch today w/my buds Alfred & Ebach; getting ready to head to Rich's for Damian Lazarus w/@ashleyzw & @MattWestern

8:03 PM Jul 10th from Tweetie

Up after only a couple hrs of sleep; Damian Lazarus show last night was fantastic; headed to go look @ 7 houses this morning.

9:44 AM Jul 11th from Tweetie

JW / Electronica Classics 021: Julius Papp Test Press July 2000

I ran across this mix during the early summer of 2001 after seeing Julius Papp perform at Freak Fest. A few years have gone by since I last thought about it, although I always remembered enjoying the mix starting off with the lyrics, "Tonight, gonna leave the 9 to 5 upon the shelf, and just enjoy yourself."

Having never listened to all of Michael Jackson's earlier work, I was laughably unaware that those lyrics were sampled from the title track of "Off The Wall." As I've caught up on the entirety of Michael Jackson's catalog in the last few weeks following his death, this mix from Julius Papp sprang to mind and seemed like a fitting addition the weekly Classics series.

My attempts to hunt down a track list or other information on this set online have yielded no results. For you house music lovers, feel free to add track IDs in the comments if certain songs jump out at you.

Julius Papp - Test Press 2000-07-13
Megaupload Link / Rapidshare Link

Detailed Car

Detailed Car
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Spent 5 hours today cleaning the interior, then washing, using a clay bar, + waxing the exterior.

Damian Lazarus

Damian Lazarus
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Poster from the show at Rich's on Friday. What a great night out.

A Very Sushi Lunch

A Very Sushi Lunch
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

A Crunchy Roll & Crawfish Volcano Roll from Kobe Sushi led to a rather sleepy afternoon.

Gelato

Gelato
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

My favorite gelato in The Woodlands: a mix of Vanilla Bean and Cappuccino from Hubbell & Hudson.

JW / Blog June 2009 Summary

A new feature I'm running on the blog is a monthly wrap-up that highlights all the stories, pictures, or other articles I've featured during the month. If the daily flow becomes too noisy, this monthly recap may be more digestible for your tastes.

Music

JW / Electronica Classics 017: Parks & Wilson Essential Mix 2000
JW / Electronica Classics 018: John Digweed Live At Massive
JW / Electronica Classics 019: Thievery Corporation Live at Vienna Jazz Fest

Twitter

Twitter Week In Review 2009-05-30 To 2009-06-06
Twitter Week In Review 2009-06-06 To 2009-06-12
Twitter Week In Review 2009-06-13 To 2009-06-19

Photos

Delaware
Stairs
Fun With Grammar!
Computer Books
Lake Woodlands
Corporate Chardonnay
Puggles & Pig Ear
Dead Power Supply
Glorious Grilling
Cube Farm At Dawn
WWDC Keynote 2009
Sweet Elixir
Trance Revival
Bat
Packages
Texas Summer
Milestones
Brilliant Or Texas Fanboyism?
Le Tourment Vert
A Loyal Companion 1
A Loyal Companion 2
iTunes
Miller Outdoor Theater
iPhone Home Screen June 2009
A Stern Puggle
Puggles And Ashley
Mellowing Out With Trombone Shorty
Ponderous
Old Rave T-Shirts
Familiar iPhone Sight

Grillin' With Puggles!

Grillin' With Puggles!
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

The little guy checks out my Shiner Smokehaus & plate of portobellos + brats while we jam out to Off The Wall via AirTunes on the boom box.

Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 7

Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 7
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

To celebrate the end of my summer class, I pulled out one of my last 2 Divine Reserve 7's, which has been aging in my beer fridge since the day after we got power back following Hurricane Ike in September 2008.

Reflections of Knowledge

Reflections of Knowledge
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

The final paragraph of my research paper, as reflected upon my physical desktop.

Twitter Weeks In Review 2009-06-21 To 2009-07-04

Fri was awesome; hit Baker St Pub @ lunch, Trombone Shorty show in PM @ Miller Theater, then dinner/drinks @ Katz's on Westheimer @ 1AM.

12:01 AM Jun 21st from Tweetie

Spent 12 hrs today catching up on school videos/reading assignments; wrapped up evening w/hour long phone convo w/my old Air Force boss, TW.

12:05 AM Jun 21st from Tweetie

Disappointed in new Facebook 2.5 iPhone app; no push notifications, & Inbox is still broken w/blank msgs. http://twitpic.com/7zhkz

12:59 AM Jun 21st from Tweetie

This video is making me consider a 3GS after all. I'll prob still wait until Sept though in hopes of a 64GB iTouch http://tinyurl.com/lbbjsx

1:10 AM Jun 21st from TweetDeck

@ephekt I've got a single MP3 of it and my CD copy is still in good shape. Do you still have the tracklisting? I can update ID3 tags & u/l.

7:18 PM Jun 21st from Tweetie in reply to ephekt

@Cheryllaw While I really like the Pre, it's still a 1st gen device. I'd say get an iPhone 3GS now, & then look at a Pre in a year or two.

7:21 PM Jun 21st from Tweetie in reply to Cheryllaw

@ephekt I'm uploading the individually tracked version now. Between your memory, Google & Shazam we can probably piece the info together. :)

7:42 PM Jun 21st from Tweetie in reply to ephekt

@ronniehiggins Heh, same missing tracks in my tests, too. @ephekt I'll DM you the zip; maybe you can fill in the gaps.

8:10 PM Jun 21st from Tweetie in reply to ronniehiggins

John Digweed's Global Underground Sydney album is so awesome Another favorite of mine to toss on the iPod while running.

9:14 PM Jun 21st from Tweetie

Posted this week's JW / Electronica Classic: Thievery Corporation Live at Jazz Fest Vienna 2005; worldly tunes! http://tinyurl.com/meyrga

9:58 PM Jun 21st from TweetDeck

All day spent gathering data for my Ethics research paper; hopeful I can knock out the actual writing within the next 3 days or so.

11:11 PM Jun 21st from Tweetie

Eclectic Transitions hr 1 mix from @djjohndigweed this week; heavier on the vocal/experimental tracks than usual; definitely worth a listen.

9:49 AM Jun 22nd from Tweetie

@mintyone What are your first impressions of the new hardware?

12:55 PM Jun 22nd from TweetDeck in reply to mintyone

RT @voodooexp2009: #voodoolineupscramble: tecjisu (Wow, this looks like Justice will be at Voodoo!)

1:02 PM Jun 22nd from Tweetie

Geez, I never thought I'd say this, but traffic is BRUTAL on Research Forest in The Woodlands today. It's taken me 25 mins to go 2 miles.

5:32 PM Jun 22nd from Tweetie

Just bought the new BeejiveIM 3.0 which supports Push Notifications. Let's try it out! Also, I got it for $9.99. Don't know if that'll last.

7:47 PM Jun 22nd from Tweetie

Wow, this Texas vs LSU game is turning out to be a great one.

9:16 PM Jun 22nd from Tweetie

A busy Mon @ office; home in PM for 3 mile run, College World Series on TV w/Ash, testing out BeejiveIM, & now schoolwork at 11:30...score!

11:26 PM Jun 22nd from Tweetie

Lots-o-calls today @ work; BMW light repair @ lunch; worked late to finish a proj, then class reading & 2 hrs of videos in PM; come on Fri!

11:01 PM Jun 23rd from Tweetie

This is making me second-guess a post-work run this afternoon. http://twitpic.com/8b6ag

3:42 PM Jun 24th from Tweetie

The 104-degree temperature made me wuss out on running; doing schoolwork before the LSU vs TX game, then retiring to the living room.

6:20 PM Jun 24th from Tweetie

Wings w/Ash this evening as we watched her alma mater take home the CWS title; also wrapped up final class vid of summer; 2 tests/paper left

11:32 PM Jun 24th from Tweetie

Yep, time to cue up Michael Jackson's "History" album. RIP you wacky, wacky man.

7:29 PM Jun 25th from Tweetie

@pineoaks @ashleyzw It'll be one of these! http://www.flickr.com/photos/justonwestern/3661817532/

9:58 PM Jun 25th from Tweetie in reply to pineoaks

In top form @ office today; spent evening prep'ing for my trip to Austin this weekend & catching glimpses of CNN coverage of Michael Jackson

10:45 PM Jun 25th from Tweetie

Just placed my pre-order for Windows 7 Pro w/Amazon for $99. Not a bad price, Microsoft!

11:21 AM Jun 26th from Tweetie

Austin!

11:00 PM Jun 26th from Tweetie

Great last few days in Austin w/my buddy @pineoaks; I'll have pics & stories posted later this week; gotta get unpacked here in H-Town now.

9:24 PM Jun 28th from Tweetie

Studying for tomorrow's Ethics exam w/a few Mark Farina tunes & a kiss of Jack on the rocks. Almost done with the Summer semester.

9:52 PM Jun 29th from Tweetie

Whoa, The Pirate Bay being sold for $7.8m & going legal: http://bit.ly/6fhUK

5:56 AM Jun 30th from Tweetie

Firefox 3.5 = Blazing, especially on my MacBook Pro. Well done, Mozilla team.

9:36 PM Jun 30th from Tweetie

Discovering the Michael Jackson songbook today; Ash can't believe I'd never heard 'PYT' until last Fri; almost time for slumber.

10:31 PM Jun 30th from Tweetie

Just set up my gdgt profile: http://user.gdgt.com/juston/

6:09 PM Jul 1st from Tweetie

Snap, I'm 1 photo away from 22,000 pics uploaded to Flickr. What should mark the occasion? http://www.flickr.com/photos/justonwestern/

10:34 PM Jul 1st from Tweetie

Busy @ work, and an evening spent studying for tomorrow's exam(s); looking fwd to this 3-day wknd, w/an iPhone research paper + music events

10:53 PM Jul 1st from Tweetie

This might be the oddest voicemail I've ever received. Seriously, what the heck? http://tinyurl.com/mnfssq From 800-786-4867. Is it Enya?

5:47 PM Jul 2nd from TweetDeck

22,000 http://flic.kr/p/6Bt7mA

6:21 PM Jul 2nd from Flickr

Slower day @ work; had lunch out @ Pie Town; home in PM for TV w/Ash, Blackboard postings, MPB hard drive ordering & overly loud electronica

10:44 PM Jul 2nd from Tweetie

Dang it; the Flickr upload 2blog e-mail functionality seems to be broken since I linked it up to my Twitter account earlier today.

10:51 PM Jul 2nd from Tweetie

Heh, the MySpace Mobile iPhone app just got updated; it's almost startling how quickly Facebook made MySpace such a non-starter.

10:54 PM Jul 2nd from Tweetie

@mintyone Wow, amazing shot! That auto-focus on the 3GS seems to really work well. Otherwise we'd probably just see that dude's hat. :-)

11:18 AM Jul 3rd from Tweetie in reply to mintyone

@mintyone Ha, I just looked at the pixel dimensions. That's definitely NOT a cell phone pic. ;-)

11:19 AM Jul 3rd from Tweetie in reply to mintyone

Really digging the new Gmail drag & drop labels; this new implementation is much more intuitive than the drop down menus.

12:43 PM Jul 3rd from Tweetie

If anyone was looking for Christmas gift ideas for me: http://themanwall.com/the-man-wall/

1:05 PM Jul 3rd from Tweetie

Just got done sketching out my 17-week training plan for the Jazz Half Marathon in NOLA on Halloween; 13.2 mi in AM, then Voodoo Fest in PM.

2:26 PM Jul 3rd from Tweetie

Headed out to dinner w/Ash, then to the CWM Pavilion for Houston Symphony + Fireworks; maybe downtown for Julius Papp later tonight?

5:00 PM Jul 3rd from Tweetie

Amazing 1st round of HR Derby...24 home runs by lead off batter!

1:41 PM Jul 4th from mobile web

@dudesy916 Ha, that must've been it, then. I'm still impressed, some 4 yrs later. Suppose 4 yr lag would explain nightfall @ 1PM. ;-)

2:49 PM Jul 4th from TweetDeck in reply to dudesy916

One of the better MIchael Jackson remix compilations I've run across: http://tinyurl.com/kmm4ek

3:08 PM Jul 4th from TweetDeck

@netfuel Be sure not to use your cell phone while driving on base. Those Security Forces guys love to snipe you if you've got it on ear.

8:51 PM Jul 4th from Tweetie in reply to netfuel

JW / Electronica Classics 020: Erick Morillo & Harry Choo Choo Romero Essential Mix

Inspired by this past Friday's Independence Day Essential Mix from Erick Morillo, I couldn't resist pulling out this gem from late 2000. I recall my suite mate at Tulane during sophomore year absolutely loving this mix, and his enthusiasm admittedly influenced my appreciation for it.

My apologies for the lack of Classics posting last weekend. I took a road trip to Austin to visit an old college buddy and check out a fairly large electronic music event, so it zapped my availability for blog posting. For those interested, you can view the video recap of the show I put together here.

Erick Morillo & Harry Choo Choo Romero - Essential Mix 2000-12-24
Megaupload Link / Rapidshare Link

Ron Carol - The Sermon
Minister De La Funk - Believe
Spiller - Miami (Grooovejet)
M&S - Salsoul Nugget
Lucy Pearl - Dont Mess With My Man
EBTG vs Soulvision - Tracey In My Room
Rui Da Silva - Touch Me
Thick Dick - Welcome To The Jungle
Georgie Porgie - Life Goes On
Halo Varga - My Sound
Bass Toy - Running
Eddie Amador - Rise
Plastikman - Spastik
Daft Punk - One More Time
Azzido Da Bass - Doomsnight
Kings of Tomorrow - Finally
B-Series Vol. 1 - Feelings
Africanism - Tourment DAmour
Harry Choo Choo Romero - Beats Vol. 1 (Beetle Mix)
Mongobonix feat. Inaya Day - I Will (Congobonix Dub)
Harry & Alex - So Lonely (Original Demo)
Soul Providers feat. Michelle Shellers - Rise
Simon - Free (At Last)
Hatiras - Spaced Invader
Afro Medusa - Pasilda
Bob Sinclar - I Feel For You (Spiller Vocal Remix)
Alan Braxe & Fred Falke - Running
Various Artists - Essential Punishment
Modjo - Lady

Research and Learn

Research and Learn
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

While researching for my iPhone Unlock/Jailbreak paper, I figured I learn & test out Evernote in the process. Initial impressions? An intriguing piece of software.

Independence Day 2009

Independence Day 2009
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

This picture so perfectly captures a great American moment.

Star-Spangled Salute

Star-Spangled Salute
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Checking out the Houston Symphony at the Cynthia-Woods Mitchell Pavilion for their annual pariotic music performance.

Catholic Perks?

Catholic Perks?
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Apparently I upgraded Ashley's AT&T plan to the Divine Package (TM).

Portofino Fountain

Portofino Fountain
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Picturesque fountain, as seen exiting Pie Town.

Pie Town!

Pie Town!
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Had lunch here today. Most people found it odd I kept emphatically reciting the restaurant name à la Taco Town from the SNL skit.

Seven Oh One On Seven Oh One

Seven Oh One On Seven Oh One
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Fun with numbers!

Familiar iPhone Sight

Familiar iPhone Sight
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

The Google Reader website is the single most-used "function" of my iPhone. I'd estimate I consume nearly 80% of my daily news/information via this method.

Old Rave T-Shirts

Old Rave T-Shirts
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Pulled some old favorites out of the top of the closet to have some choices for Future Fest in Austin this weekend.

Ponderous

Ponderous
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

I imagine he's mulling over the finer points of mid-20th century jazz compositions since we've left the Music Choice Jazz channel on for him each day this week.

Mellowing Out With Trombone Shorty

Mellowing Out With Trombone Shorty
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Listening to one of his live recordings I tracked down online last week in preparation for his performance in Houston.

Puggles And Ashley

Puggles And Ashley
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Hanging out on the couch watching the College World Series.

A Stern Puggle

A Stern Puggle
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

This was the look I received from Puggles after I chose to crank up the volume on my Global Underground Sydney album tonight. He either doesn't understand or doesn't approve of Digweed's earlier work. Puggles has always struck me as perhaps more of a jazz aficionado than of electronica. To each his own, Texas Ranger.

Twitter Week In Review 2009-06-13 To 2009-06-19

Wow, kind of have chills watching the minute-by-minute updates from @Change_for_Iran in the middle of the riots. #iranelection

11:19 PM Jun 13th from Tweetie

Still chugging along on this most academic of weekends; just popped open a 16oz Red Bull...probably another 9 hrs of class work to go.

1:08 PM Jun 14th from Tweetie

Posted this week's JW/Electronica Classic: John Digweed Live at Massive 2000; a truly unique set from the master! http://tinyurl.com/mtd3fw

9:42 PM Jun 14th from TweetDeck

Really did great this weekend in knocking out schoolwork; wrapped up Spring '09, & even squeezed in a much-needed hand car wash for my BMW.

10:16 PM Jun 14th from Tweetie

RT @dsilverman: Wow. Twitter reschedules downtime to be available for use in Iran http://bit.ly/OpjwS

6:56 PM Jun 15th from Tweetie

Busy @ work + Best Buy, FedEx, Smoothie King lunch run; PM spent on school msg board postings, reading, & Sasha/Digweed's Northern Exposure.

10:48 PM Jun 15th from Tweetie

RT @mashable: BREAKING: TweetDeck for iPhone Launches at 9pm PT TONIGHT - http://bit.ly/6jm6i | And it will be FREE. (via @dsilverman)

5:08 PM Jun 16th from Tweetie

Wow, the new Tweetdeck for iPhone is great! Love the intense competition in this app category so far in 2009.

10:11 PM Jun 16th from TweetDeck

4 hours of Info Sys Ethics reading this evening in the living room w/Puggles; looking forward to the iPhone OS 3.0 release tomorrow!

10:14 PM Jun 16th from Tweetie

Downloading iPhone OS 3.0 now.

1:09 PM Jun 17th from Tweetie

I hope this means Gmail is about to integrate with Google Voice. This phone icon is new in my Gmail Inbox: http://twitpic.com/7o2eo

7:11 PM Jun 17th from Tweetie

@pineoaks Welcome back!

7:26 PM Jun 17th from TweetDeck in reply to pineoaks

@mwikkid It looks like Joe loves him some dubstep! :-P Really enjoying these making-of videos, man. Keep up the great work!

9:58 PM Jun 17th from Tweetie in reply to mwikkid

Spent all evening reading and then playing around with the new iPhone OS 3.0. Loving the copy/paste & Spotlight search the most.

11:44 PM Jun 17th from Tweetie

@mintyone No, I picked up my 3G last October (the day my Sprint contract expired), so it'd cost me $499 to upgrade to the 32GB until 3/28/10

5:55 AM Jun 18th from Tweetie in reply to mintyone

@prosynk @gabetax W/GVoice you can't actually port your AT&T # over yet; I just told all my contacts my GVoice # but AT&T # didn't change.

9:50 AM Jun 18th from Tweetie in reply to prosynk

@prosynk @gabetax I really just worry about Ash losing her AT&T-only # if I attempted to cancel/re-up the acct. I just see them bungling it.

9:51 AM Jun 18th from Tweetie in reply to prosynk

Brightening up the afternoon with some Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue tunes.

1:02 PM Jun 18th from Tweetie

First Sling Box, then Sirius XM: 2 iPhone apps that could've been great, turn out to be second-rate b/c of decision making by committee. :-/

10:23 PM Jun 18th from Tweetie

Successes @ work; library run @ lunch; watched rave movie w/Ash in PM, then research before bed; Trombone Shorty show tomorrow night!

10:39 PM Jun 18th from Tweetie

@CCC10k How about Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue?

8:59 AM Jun 19th from Tweetie in reply to CCC10k

Headed down to Hermann Park to see Tombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue w/Ash then out for drinks w/Brian & Claude in the Heights; hooray Friday!

5:55 PM Jun 19th from Tweetie

Out @ the Miller Outdoor Theater for the Juneteenth Concert. http://twitpic.com/7us9h

7:32 PM Jun 19th from Tweetie

JW / Electronica Classics 019: Thievery Corporation Live at Vienna Jazz Fest

Today's selection showcases one of my favorite electronica acts of all time: Thievery Corporation. As you can see from my Last.fm artist ranking page, I've listened to these guys more over the past 4 years than any other musical act. What can I say? Their music suits me both when I need to study & when I need to relax.

I've had the pleasure of seeing their live act twice: once at the French Quarter House of Blues in 2003 as part of their "Richest Man In Babylon" tour and then at the Voodoo Music Festival in 2008 (pictured above) as they were promoting their "Radio Retaliation" album.

I ran across this particular show recording about a year ago. From what I've read, this was taken directly from the sound board during their performance in Vienna, Austria, at the 2005 Jazz Fest Wien. Enjoy!

Thievery Corporation - Live at Vienna Jazz Fest Wien 2005-07-08
Megaupload Link / Rapidshare Link

01 - Omid (Hope)
02 - Facing East
03 - Lebanese Blonde
04 - Shadows of Ourselves
05 - So Com Voce
06 - Sol Tapado
07 - Liberation Front
08 - 38.45
09 - Meet The Band
10 - Illumination
11 - Revolution Solution
12 - Wires & Watchtowers
13 - Exilio
14 - The Time We Lost Our Way
15 - Marching The Hate Machines

iPhone Home Screen June 2009

iPhone Home Screen June 2009
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Here's a snapshot of my iPhone's home screen post-3.0 upgrade. Perhaps unsurprisingly, I'm launching all of my apps not on the main screen via the Spotlight search now. Until a Push Notification-enabled app wows me, I think the Spotlight feature is the most significant update in iPhone OS 3.0 (although copy/paste has already proven most useful).

Miller Outdoor Theater

Miller Outdoor Theater
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Hanging out at the theater in Hermann Park for the Trobone Shorty performance at the Juneteenth Festival.

iTunes

iTunes
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Yeah, it's kind of a hobby.

A Loyal Companion

A Loyal Companion
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Puggles gets to be the subject of my first multiple-photo e-mail upload (using the widescreen keyboard, no less!) in the new iPhone OS 3.0. Let's see if this creates two blog posts or one blog post with two photos.

A Loyal Companion

A Loyal Companion
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Puggles gets to be the subject of my first multiple-photo e-mail upload (using the widescreen keyboard, no less!) in the new iPhone OS 3.0. Let's see if this creates two blog posts or one blog post with two photos.

Le Tourment Vert

Le Tourment Vert
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

The fourth brand of Absinthe I've tested this year. Probably the oddest flavor of the bunch, although the exquisitely designed bottle was arguably worth the price of admission.

Brilliant Or Texas Fanboyism?

Brilliant Or Texas Fanboyism?
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

I'm still scratching my head on this one. Is it a parody in the same vein as Government Motors, a legitimate albeit unfortunately conspicuous misspelling, an attempt at meshing car brand loyalty with political loyalty, or a new Ford marketing technique aimed at those nostalgic of the historical election of last year?

Milestones

Milestones
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

And by bundling up my 53 page Marketing portfolio in a FedEx Overnight Pak, so ended my Spring 2009 semester.

Twitter Week In Review 2009-06-06 To 2009-06-12

@connerrrr Coolest cake ever!

9:08 PM Jun 6th from Tweetie in reply to connerrrr

Spent day reading/cleaning while I re-ripped some of my old electronica CDs from the late 90s/early 00s...they deserved some 320 kbps love.

9:15 PM Jun 6th from Tweetie

My desktop PC's power supply went up in smoke (literally) shortly after lunch; ran to Best Buy, grabbed a new one, & rewired. RIP Antec 430.

2:51 PM Jun 7th from Tweetie

Posted this week's JW/Electronica Classic: Parks & Wilson 2000 Essential Mix; the bridge b/t trance & prog house. http://tinyurl.com/qpm7yb

7:20 PM Jun 7th from TweetDeck

Weird Sun; up @ 6AM for school work, grilled out for lunch, computer PSU blew up, bought/installed new PSU, grilled out again, then writing.

8:21 PM Jun 7th from Tweetie

Got to check out a coworker's Palm Pre this morning...color me impressed! Really hope they release a PDA version; I don't need 2 phones. :-)

9:45 AM Jun 8th from Tweetie

RT @dsilverman: Want to track some liveblogs for WWDC? I compiled a list of 12. http://bit.ly/htTWp How's that, @esinglet?

11:29 AM Jun 8th from Tweetie

Into work early, home @ lunch for Apple WWDC coverage, VW dealership trip in PM, followed by 4 mile run & letter writing to my bro @ AF trng

10:31 PM Jun 8th from Tweetie

Into work early again; library/grocery run post-work, then school work all evening; and yes: a made-for-TV movie is already in the works. ;)

11:35 PM Jun 9th from Tweetie

In less mundane news, the new Facebook vanity URLs launching this Fri are a nice touch; it'll be a land-grab for you John Smiths out there!

11:39 PM Jun 9th from Tweetie

Slower day @ work but filled w/meetings; Ash convinced me to dine out for a Mexican dinner...delicious; computer work & class reading in PM.

10:25 PM Jun 10th from Tweetie

@nongobi Wow, what kind of connection are you on?

5:36 PM Jun 11th from Tweetie in reply to nongobi

Did a Best Buy/Chick-Fil-A run @ lunch today; home in PM for class work & to study for tomorrow's midterm; can't wait until July break!

10:51 PM Jun 11th from Tweetie

@dudesy916 Which truck did you end up buying?

11:12 PM Jun 11th from TweetDeck in reply to dudesy916

Short day @ office; took Ethics midterm in afternoon, got haircut, went for a 4 mile run in the 100 degree heat, now a school-filled weekend

8:52 PM Jun 12th from Tweetie

Stayed up to grab some prime Facebook real estate at 11:01PM. Hoping I can get my first choice!

10:54 PM Jun 12th from Tweetie

Got it! http://www.facebook.com/juston

11:01 PM Jun 12th from Tweetie

JW / Electronica Classics 018: John Digweed Live At Massive

I must admit I'm quite excited about this week's selection. That's because while researching the track listing for this set, I stumbled upon a longer version of the performance than the one I added to my collection nearly a decade ago. I also learned that this set had been distributed under an incorrect name, so it's also refreshing to learn its true identity.

Most fanatical John Digweed set collectors are familiar with the recording that was widely shared on Napster back in late 2000 under the name "John Digweed - Live at Massive Germany". This performance has the somewhat unique distinction of blasting out of the gate at 100 MPH. Digweed's typical approach to constructing a set is to build slowly, until by about hour two or three he's warping your mind in an un-Earthly vortex of sound. Conversely, this Live at Massive set is like a 40 foot tidal wave that you see approaching on the horizon for only 54 seconds before it crashes on top of you & sends you deep into an abyss of sound. (Of note, the only other Digweed set from the past decade that I've run across to follow a similar "destroy you from the outset" pattern is his Live from Amnesia performance recorded last August in Ibiza.)

Similar to last week's Parks & Wilson classic set, this Digweed performance sits neatly between the trance sounds of the late 90s and the progressive house sounds of late 2000 and early 2001. You'll notice in the track listing below that there are a few tracks in this performance that also found their way onto Sasha & John Digweed's "Communicate" album that was released later in 2000 & very indicative of their style honed during their monthly residency at Twilo in Manhattan during this period.

As I mentioned earlier, this set is widely known as "Live at Massive Germany", but upon further investigation, it was actually recorded in Holland. Perhaps the foreign-language announcer in the recording or the name "Jaarbeurs" in the accurate title confused the original uploader in those heady, turn-of-the-millenium days. Whatever the reason for the mis-titled ID3 tags, the quality of this set remains. The second hour is a new treat for me, since the version I had until yesterday was only an hour long. Be sure to keep this one in a safe place. It is exceedingly worthy of the label "Electronica Classic".


John Digweed - Live at Massive Jaarbeurs, Utrecht, Holland 2000-02-26

Megaupload Link / Rapidshare Link

Boyd Westerman - Loop Life (Escape Mix)

Novy v. Eniac - Pumpin? (Bluefish Mix)

Online - Automatic

POB - WAAH! (Seismix)

Killahurtz - West On 27th

DJ Gogo - Ajuna

Unknown

Unknown

Tsunami - Mode Confusion [System F Mix]

Salt Tank - The Energy

Bedrock - Voices (Dj Remy??/Slacker's Dumbstruck?? Mix) (unsure which)

Luzon - The Bagiou Track (Bedrock Mix)

Breeder - Tyrantanic (Slackers Kingdom Come Mix)

Berock - Heaven Scent (John Johnson Remix)

Timo Maas - Ubik (The Dance)

Unknown

Texas Summer

Texas Summer
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

This is the first time I've seen the triple digits on the thermometer this year.

Packages

Packages
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

We have a new stack of boxes waiting for us at the door almost everyday when we get home from work lately. My parents use our TX home as a consumer goods staging area for when they make trips back from Saudi Arabia.

Bat

Bat
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

This baby bat was just hanging out on the sidewalk when I went for a walk earlier this afternoon.

Trance Revival

Trance Revival
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

I've been on a big retro-electronica kick this month, and what better illustration than my definitive trance compilation from the turn of the century: Kimball Collins' "Generation Trance 2000."

Sweet Elixir

Sweet Elixir
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Finishing off the day with my favorite beer from Delaware...gotta love the Dogfish Head.

WWDC Keynote 2009

WWDC Keynote 2009
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Home at lunch to have 3 screens & a bigger data pipe for the Apple blog coverage & live streaming audio from TWiT.

Cube Farm At Dawn

Cube Farm At Dawn
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

Apparently not all lights are enabled when you show up in the office at 6:45AM.

Glorious Grilling

Glorious Grilling
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

After a week of a smoothie only diet, it was exceedingly satisfying to throw 2 Filets & an Italian Sausage on the new grill this afternoon.

Dead Power Supply

Dead Power Supply
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

This Antec True Power 430 literally went up in smoke shortly after lunch today after roughly 6 years of 24/7 service. A quick run to Best Buy & $125 later, though, has the JetaMachine back online with a new 650 watt Antec Power Supply.

JW / Electronica Classics 017: Parks & Wilson Essential Mix 2000

Today's choice really brings me back to my freshman year of college. I can't recall exactly how I stumbled across this duo's productions that year, but it didn't take me long to uncover their Radio 1 debut once I did.

Parks & Wilson are two-thirds of the production outfit Tilt, along with John Graham (also known as Quivver). These guys were really pushing the envelope of what the trance genre could be at a time when most producers and DJs were frankly basking in the trance glow at the height of its popularity. I find this mix most compelling if you approach it as the bridge between the anthemic trance that dominated in the late 90s and the darker progressive house sound that came into vogue in early 2001. At one end of the spectrum you have Paul Oakenfold's "Tranceport". At the other you have Deep Dish's "Global Underground 021: Moscow". This Essential Mix falls neatly in between.

Listening to this mix some 9 years later, I'm pleased to say it's aged quite gracefully. Check out the download links below to add it to your collection.

Parks & Wilson - Essential Mix 2000-04-09
Megaupload Link / Rapidshare Link

Jin Long Uen - "Bow To Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva"
Tilt - "The Dragon"
Science Department - "Persuasion [Domica Mix]"
Andy Ling - "Fixation [Tarrantella & Redanka Mix]"
Soul Drivers - "Innerspace"
Halo Vargo - "Future"
Innate - "Changes [Louise Strange Remix]"
Rue De Silver & Chris Coco - "Cossa Noisa"
Leftfield - "Snakeblood"
BT - "Fibonacci Sequence"
Steff, Pako & Fredrick - "Magic Shop [Voyager Mix]"
Souldrivers - "Narcotic"
Innate - "Changes [Tranzition Mix]"
Origin - "Wide Eyed Angel [Oliver Lieb Mix]"
Pete Lazonby - "Sacred Cycles [Quivver Mix]"
Odessi - "Moments Of Space"
Mr Flash - "Extreme Exhilaration [Ian Wilkie Dub]"
War Of The Worlds - "Eve Of The War [Tilt Remix]"

Twitter Week In Review 2009-05-30 To 2009-06-06

@brianthiggins Ha! "What do you mean my $200 netbook from Wal-Mart can't run Photoshop CS4?!"

9:32 AM May 30th from TweetDeck in reply to brianthiggins

Jerry Seinfeld's standup was awesome! Anyone who can make me cry from laughing & pick on iPhones, Twitter, & coffee in 10 mins is a pro. :-)

9:35 AM May 30th from TweetDeck

Fri graciously slower @ work; b-day luncheon for coworker out @ Olive Garden; Seinfeld show @ Jones Hall in PM, then Italian dinner w/Ash.

9:36 AM May 30th from TweetDeck

Been running my dual-band AEBS for 2 wks now; difference is night & day from circa 2005 Linksys WRT54G; crazy speeds, no reboots...awesome!

5:43 PM May 30th from Tweetie

RT @dsilverman: http://bit.ly/nYJaI Apple working on a networked TV, using the iPhone OS? Download apps to get the programming you want.

7:33 PM May 30th from Tweetie

Sat spent working on Mktg & Ethics papers + class videos; also organized some of the new tunes on my iPod in PM & watched 30 Rock eps w/Ash.

12:13 AM May 31st from web

Posted this week's JW / Electronica Classic: Sander Kleinenberg Live from Everybody; cool & mellow progressive. http://tinyurl.com/lnr39y

1:06 PM May 31st from web

Academic day around the house; 70+ pages of reading in Ethics txt, Aristotle paper, class videos, & a little music listening/housework, too.

9:56 PM May 31st from web

@dsilverman How is your Apple hardware faring w/it? I'd like to pick up one soon, but this comment gave me pause: http://tinyurl.com/lv2rap

1:04 PM Jun 1st from web in reply to dsilverman

@dsilverman Thanks for some first-hand confirmation, Dwight!

1:36 PM Jun 1st from web in reply to dsilverman

http://twitpic.com/6fem7 - Space opening 09 (via @DJJohnDigweed)

5:21 PM Jun 1st from web

Day 1 of a wk-long smoothie only diet; work was low-key, errands in PM, 3 mile run, quick car wash, 2 class videos, now turning in early.

10:16 PM Jun 1st from web

RT @GuyKawasaki: My review of the Sprint MiFi card. http://adjix.com/ejp6 Pls mark "found useful" if you did.

9:13 PM Jun 2nd from Tweetie

RT @mwikkid: Help me get my New Orleans/electronic music project off the ground http://tinyurl.com/electronola - just over 1 day left

8:53 AM Jun 3rd from Tweetie

@baldbobbo That's awesome. I'm looking fwd to seeing Trombone Shorty later this month in H-Town; been jamming his album for years now.

8:06 PM Jun 3rd from Tweetie in reply to baldbobbo

@prosynk Got a general set of steps you follow when wiping/reinstalling your Mac? I'm looking to do so for the first time this summer.

8:19 PM Jun 3rd from Tweetie in reply to prosynk

A bit listless after 3 days of steady school work, exercising, & smoothies; great prog on all fronts but pizza/wine are infinitely more fun!

9:37 PM Jun 3rd from Tweetie

For those of you looking to pick up a Palm Pre on Saturday, might want to check out this inventory listing: http://tinyurl.com/olpl7a

8:09 AM Jun 4th from TweetDeck

An all-too-routine kinda day; into work early, worked through lunch, came home to do school work...on the bright side, WWDC is next week!

9:50 PM Jun 4th from Tweetie

Going retro this AM w/Oakenfold's Resident 2 Yrs at Cream album; Armin Van Buuren's E-Mix reminded of it when he closed with "Blue Fear".

9:00 AM Jun 5th from Tweetie

@prosynk Good call on that set. One of the few Drum & Bass shows from Kiss100 in my collection. Do you have their recording from Zoolu 8?

9:56 AM Jun 5th from Tweetie in reply to prosynk

@prosynk Here you go! Ed Rush & Optical - Live at Zoolu 8 in New Orleans 2002: http://tinyurl.com/q46zeo

10:25 AM Jun 5th from TweetDeck in reply to prosynk

Fri spent catching up on old tasks @ work; 3 mile run in PM, followed by grilling out burgers for dinner w/our neighbors across the street.

1:38 PM Jun 6th from Tweetie

Chris Fortier's Bedrock album is one of the greatest DJ mix compilations ever assembled. This thing still blows me away 7 years later...wow.

2:11 PM Jun 6th from Tweetie

My little bro headed off to Air Force Field Trng today for 4 wks; it'll be the longest we've gone w/o talking since my '02 training...weird.

2:15 PM Jun 6th from Tweetie

Puggles & Pig Ear

Puggles & Pig Ear
Originally uploaded by Juston Western

The Texas Ranger, getting his Saturday evening snack on.