More pictures from the trip so far are available on my Flickr account. I'll add a devoted gallery to this site once the trip is over.

This video is entirely NSFW (that means not safe for work for those new to this Interweb thing) and if you are my mother, you probably shouldn't watch it either. But then again, it was shown on national television (Saturday Night Live), so I guess it can't be too bad. But seriously, if you're easily offended DO NOT WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW!!!!

Just a quick note... I made it to Lake Placid this afternoon, but already wish I hadn't come. This will officially be the last trip I ever take with a member of my family; I'm tired of all the crap and baggage that is associated with it. I think we lasted maybe 30 minutes this time. It's the classic argument that I don't appreciate the fact that I don't pay for anything (even though I have offered before only to be turned down), and I think they treat me like I'm ten years old. Needless to say, all I wanted was one nice relaxing week before the semester started again, but that is now impossible and I might as well be going back to work on Tuesday. It is going to be a very long week...

Oh, and to make things even better I forgot the battery for my camera... we'll see what pictures I can get to post up here. We'll see what happens tomorrow, but I wouldn't mind just going off by myself and clearing my head. According to the snow report, they received an additional 6-8" tonight and opened more trails. I believe they will have at-least 26 open tomorrow, and maybe more. They are definitely making more snow tonight. Anyways, everyone enjoy their New Years; I'm not sure what I'll be doing but I can almost guarantee it won't be as exciting as what you are up to!

Well, the day has finally come... I'm leaving early tomorrow morning with my family for our annual snowboard trip. This year we picked to go East again, and will be spending some time at both Whiteface in Lake Placid, NY, and Stowe, VT. I'm really looking forward to both resorts, and am excited as they are calling for the possibility of major snow on New Year's Day. Also, I am very interested in seeing all the Olympic attractions in Lake Placid (the Winter Olympics were held here in 1932 and 1980). I'll have internet access, so check back daily for the latest news and pictures from the slopes!

In other related news, the Toledo Blade posted an article this morning on their website about the current state of the ski resorts in both Michigan and Ohio. So far, this has been a tough season for them, but here's to hoping they can rebound in January! Click here to read the article (Adobe Acrobat Reader required).

I just noticed an email from the iTunes Music Store alerting me to a new selection being offered by David Gilmour. Entitled Arnold Layne, the EP features two live versions of the title track (one with David Bowie, the other Richard Wright), and another live track named Dark Globe. At only $2.97, this should be a no brainer for any fan of the classic Floyd sound. You can check out samples of the tracks, as well as purchase it via iTunes by clicking here.

EDIT (12/31/2006): Below is a video of one of the performances featuring David Gilmour, Rick Wright, and David Bowie on lead vocals.

If you've talked to me in the past couple weeks, you probably know that I have been more than a little worried about the amount of snow that would be at Whiteface and Stowe when we get there this Saturday (Sunday will be the first "on snow" day). Well, after many sleepless nights, I'm happy to report that the resorts will both be open and have a number of trails available. Starting today, Whiteface actually opened the main Whiteface summit with three trails coming from the top and more promised as they continue to make snow. Temperatures at both locations are going to be ideal for the rest of this week and into 2007 for snowmaking, and there will be a couple of chances of real snow falling. If you want to keep informed about the mountain conditions while I'm away, you can check out the resort websites by clicking the links below.

Stowe Snow Report
Whiteface Conditions

As a bone-fide switcher of almost a year, I've found a number of great applications that I believe every Mac user could benefit from having. All of the mentioned applications are Universal Binaries, meaning they all run natively on the new Intel CPUs, and are currently installed on both my iMac and Macbook Pro. This is by no means a complete list, or should be considered the definitive list of programs; this list is just my opinion on some of the great software that is available for this platform. 2007 looks to be even better as Apple releases Leopard (10.5) and the Mac community continues to grow in size.

1.) AdiumX (Freeware, http://www.adiumx.com)
Much like Trillian on the Windows platform, AdiumX is the application for those who wish to have a program that can manage multiple Instant Messenger accounts and still have access to the majority of the features found in the original client packages. One advantage AdiumX has over Trillian -- it's completely free and open source. While a stable version has been available for a number of months, the developers are hard at work on building a 1.0 client for release hopefully in 2007. With a number of skins, styles, and more available, AdiumX is a great (and free) alternative for those looking for a little more in a IM program.

2.) Parallels Desktop ($79.99, http://www.parallels.com)
When Steve Jobs announced that the Macintosh computing platform was going to transition to using the Intel microprocessors, one of the possibilities whispered around the web was that someone could take advantage of the new technology in the CPUs to allow Windows and other operating systems to run at almost native speeds within a virtual machine on the OSX desktop. Parallels arrived on the scene shortly after the first Intel Mac was released, and they haven't looked back since. Always quick to add new features, the latest beta allows users to use the same configuration as Boot Camp (Apple's dual boot solution), and also added a new Coherence mode that allows virtualized programs to run as if they were launched directly from OSX (think Citrix). Furthermore, the company has promised 3D support in the near future, making it a very interesting solution for Mac users who want to play the latest 3D games.

3.) NetNewsWire ($29.95, http://www.newsgator.com)
The concept is pretty simple: RSS (really simple syndication) feeds allow you to subscribe to a website and be alerted of additions as they are posted instead of having to manually visit the site throughout the day. While Safari offers some built-in support for RSS reading, NetNewsWire takes it to the next level with advanced features such as podcasting support and synchronization between a number of various devices. I recently purchased this program in hopes of solving a huge problem I was having: keeping podcast subscriptions synchronized and eliminating the unnecessary downloading of files that I have already received on my other computer. So far, it seems to be working nicely, and I'm also able to post all of my subscribed RSS headlines to this website thanks to the free one year NewsGator Online subscription that comes with registration. Educational discounts are also available.

4.) Growl (Freeware, http://www.growl.info)
Growl is a program that may not strike you as being particularly useful until you actually see it in action. Growl is used by numerous programs (including AdiumX listed here) to pop screen events onto the desktop in a uniform and consistent manner. Depending on what the registered programs allow, Growl will post a number of different pieces of information. Included in the installation file are a number of scripts, including one that will pop information whenever a new email message is delivered to the Mail application. Again, there are numerous skins and customizable settings so that users can configure the screen pops to display exactly how they want them to.

5.) Synergy Classic (~$6.50, http://wincent.com)
Along the same lines as Growl, Synergy Classic is used specifically to control iTunes. The first feature of this program that caught my eye was the customizable screen messages that appear when the currently-played song changes. Next, it can add buttons to the menubar to control the basic functions of iTunes. Finally, you can assign a number of custom hotkeys to further control different functions without the use of the mouse. While Growl may have been able to handle the screen message windows, the additional functionality of this program make it an excellent purchase for iTunes users.

LATE ADDITION: I don't know how I could have possibly forgotten about this application as I believe it is the first program one should install after getting their new Mac up and running. This program's name is QuickSilver (Freeware, http://quicksilver.blacktree.com/) and it does so many different things it's almost impossible to write a good description of it. At its most basic level, it is an easy way to launch applications without going to the dock, or (even worse) navigating through the Applications folder. But, where this program really shines is how it can be used to make more effective use of your time by allowing you to interact with various programs without launching them (think find a contact in your address book and send them an email, all without opening either application). This is definitely one program the Apple engineers should look at before releasing 10.5 next year.

Honorable Mentions

I hate to make yet another post today, but I felt like I had to mention this. While it does not directly impact me yet as TiVoToGo is not enabled for any TiVo Series 3 box, the company is actively working on getting it certified by CableLabs. While TiVo promised a Mac client over a year ago now, they have been very quiet on the issue as of late. For those that don't know, vaporware refers to a product or service that was announced, but has yet to see the light of day. Click here for the original article.

2. TiVoToGo for Mac
Got a show on your TiVo you want to watch on your computer or a mobile device? Great! Just fire up TiVoToGo and take Grey's Anatomy with you on your commute. Oh, you're a Mac user? Nevermind.

This software update -- which would enable Mac users to easily transfer recordings from the set-top box to a laptop, an iPod or a DVD -- was promised by mid-2006, but it still has yet to materialize. Windows users have no problems, but Mac users are stuck using third-party workarounds.

As reader David Randall points out, "For years, TiVo said it was 'working on it,' but new features have come and gone and still nothing."

TiVo made our list last year (No. 10) for its failure to produce an HD set-top box and TiVoToGo for Mac. The high-def boxes arrived this year, but Mac users are still waiting for their own version of the content-transfer suite.

Another honorable TiVo mention from reader Dave B.: "TiVo as Comcast's DVR software. It was announced to happen about a year and a half ago, and that it would be replacing Comcast's existing, far from good DVR. Then ... nothing."

As I said in an earlier post, it has been awhile since I've brewed anything, and my stocks are starting to run a little low. I'll probably be running out of both the Honey Raspberry Wheat and Hard Apple Cider any day now, and I only have one batch in reserve -- a milk stout. So, as I'm kinda bored today, I started looking around to try and find an interesting recipe to try in the new year. Below is one that caught my eye, and I'll be buying supplies sometime next week if I can find some time while I'm away on vacation. Sounds pretty tasty to me!

Carmel Cream Ale

Over the years, I have not been the biggest F1 fan in the world. Sure, the cars are fast and they rev up to something like 14,000RPMs, but the series seemed so disconnected from racing. My impression had always been that the series was all about money, and the insane amount of cash thrown around by the manufacturers. Of course, having Ferrari dominant the sport for the past couple years hasn't helped this vision much. This might all be changing however as F1 Championship Edition ships in Japan for the Playstation3. The screenshot below is just one example of how incredibly life-like the game looks and, before anyone asks, it is not from a pre-rendered sequence. I'll be waiting another couple months to pick up the U.S. version (released sometime in March) as this version will include online play (a feature missing in the Japanese version).

You might have noticed that I added a News Headline section in the left menu bar. This will let you see the latest news from a variety of websites that I check regularly, just in case you were curious as to what news I try and keep up on.

This page is generated using RSS (really simple syndication) feeds and a service named NewsGator Online. I recently received a free subscription to this with the purchase of NetNewsWire, a popular RSS reader for Mac OSX. The nicest part about the whole thing is that it is updated regularly and automatically, with no intervention from me. So, check it out if you have some free time, and/or just want to stay up on the latest news.

If you have any trouble viewing the video above, you may need to update the Flash Player software on your computer. You can do so by clicking here.

I'll probably post some more content here tomorrow, but I thought I'd take a couple minutes to go ahead and publish a couple pictures of me and Phoebe that were taken over the Christmas weekend. In order to view them, you'll need to surf over to my Flickr page (as I'm not adding them directly to this site), which you can do by clicking this link, or the Flickr button in the right menu bar. While I'll usually post something here if I publish a lot of interesting pictures, you may want to check that page out every week or so in case I put something up and don't mention it.

Things have been quiet on the brewing front, but that's expected to change quickly in the new year! Once I return from my vacation (where hopefully I'll not only get to snowboard but sample a few microbrews from the northeast), Brad and I have already decided to start a Bells Two Hearted Ale clone, and probably another one before the end of the month. I'd like to do some recipe experimentation again soon, so I might play around with the second batch a little bit. Anyways, I just wanted to post a quick note in case anyone was wondering why I haven't had any brewing news on either this site or madriverbrews.com. Finally, I believe that I am going to just post any brew news/notes here instead of continuing to maintain the second site using iWeb. At some point, I'll try to transfer over some more of the info already posted there.

As this will likely be the last post here before Christmas (since my parents believe paying $19.95 a month for internet access is crazy... good thing they don't see my monthly bill), I hope everyone enjoys the holiday and a little time away from work. Check back early next week as I hope to film a test video just to see how well the iSight will work for making a video blog entry.

If you haven't seen them yet, you should definitely take a second to check out the latest Apple Macintosh commercials, which Apple has made available here. I went ahead and posted the latest one below, where the Mac (Justin Long) and the PC (John Hodgman) agree to put aside their differences for the holidays.

In other news, I think I am going to experiment with shooting some video with the iSight camera that is built-in to my Macbook Pro while I am away on vacation in just over a week. I will probably test things out before I leave, so look for something here in the next couple days. I will most likely use YouTube to store the video and allow easy playback via their Flash-based player; mainly so I don't get a bunch of emails and calls asking how to play the videos. =)

Final grades for the fall semester are in, and the results are VERY good if I may say so myself. This'll make two semesters in a row on the Dean's List...

Accounting for Decision Making (BUAD-6100): B+
Strategic Marketing & Analysis (BUAD-6300): A-
Human Resource Management (HURM-6750): A

Final GPA: 3.667
Cumulative GPA: 3.567

In other news, I'm going to go check out the Lights at the Zoo tomorrow night with Cheryl; I haven't been there in a couple years so it should be fun. If I remember to grab my camera, I'll take some pictures of the lights. Also, a Christmas miracle may be in the making; it's supposed to get cold at both Whiteface and Stowe next week. Hopefully they'll be able to get more lifts/trails operational before we get there. I've already got a couple microbreweries picked out to stop at so it should be a good trip regardless. =)

Here's a pretty neat picture, taken by the astronauts as they work on the International Space Station. I believe the land in the background is Australia and New Zealand, but don't quote me on that. Click on the picture to download a high-resolution version (this is already the desktop on my Macbook Pro).

This was just the weekend that I needed after a stressful semester... the snow might not have been the best, and my board was a little slow due to some wax remaining on the board, but I was able to get down to Mad River Mountain and get out on the snow. The new trails are nothing to write home about, but it does make the ski resort look a lot bigger. I'm hoping that it'll get cold enough that they'll be able to make snow and get things back to normal by Christmas. By the way, my new bindings are excellent! Plus, by some miracle, my keys that I lost somewhere on the mountain were turned into the office; thank god!

Saturday I went down with Cheryl to Bowling Green and a party with some of her friends. I was especially happy because I was finally able to find a local place that had Breckenridge Christmas Ale available. Anyways, after a quick tour of the town/campus, we went to her friend's apartment for a little while. After some good food and games, we left and stopped by two of my favorite places; Starbucks and Chipotle. All in all a great night and I have a lot of fun.

No school this week; I don't know what I'm going to do with all this free time! =)

Well, I just finished two exams earlier today, and I for one can say that I am extremely happy that this semester is over. This was definitely the most stressful one of my graduate career, but I'm pretty sure I made it through fine. Now, I have almost a month of not worrying about classes or exams; but that means no more getting out of work on Tuesday and Thursday. I'm hoping that I get to enjoy at least a little snowboarding in-between semesters... I'll be at Whiteface (Lake Placid) and Stowe the first week of the new year.

Next semester is already shaping up to be a fun one: Results Based Management, Performance Management, and Marketing Ethics.

For the first time in four years, NASA launched Space shuttle Discovery into orbit at night Saturday evening. While weather had already scrubbed earlier attempts and threatened the launch, the shuttle had a flawless launch and officials say no problems were detected. This shuttle's mission includes more work on the international space station. Before this program ends in 2010, I have got to get down to see one of these in person!

Just wanted to send a quick congratulations to Jon and Tera on the birth of their baby boy. His name is Aiden Karl Kunze and, as far as I have heard, everything is going fine. You can find pictures and more info on Jon's blog by clicking here.

With the rumor-mill starting to grind out stories about how we'll be seeing the iPhone and iTV (project name) released in just over one month at MacWorld 2007 in San Francisco, I started to think exactly what Apple needs the iTV to be. While it's pretty obvious that this will be Apple's official solution for getting content purchased via the iTunes Store into the living room, little else has been said about what else it will be capable of doing. At its very basic level, it's a streaming device that aggregates content from workstations (both PCs and Macs) on the local network and presents everything using an updated Front Row interface. But, making a device that does just that does not seem to be the Apple way, and this is where they could stand to learn a lesson from Microsoft.

Recently, Microsoft added a television and movie service to its Xbox360. While some may say I'm a Sony fanboy, I decided to pass on this console and wait for the Playstation3 to be released. What makes this service so great is the fact that you don't have to run to a computer, purchase the song/show/movie, wait for it to download, and then run back to the couch to start playback; it's all done through the Xbox Live service on the console itself. Apple needs to take the iTV one step further and make it an extension of the iTunes Store itself. Instead of just bringing already-purchased content to the living room, have the ability to make impulse-buys (ie. me in iTunes) right from the couch. While an easy-to-use interface for a store as large as what Apple offers would be a challenging task, no one is better-suited for the task than the engineers in Cupertino. When the product was introduced earlier this year, Jobs made sure to note that the little information presented was not as a complete list of the features that would be in the final product. I can't wait to see what surprises Apple has in store for us in January.

So, it is getting late and I've still got some schoolwork to finish before I can even think of going to bed. However, I took a couple minute break and found this on Google Video. If you have never seen this skit, or haven't watched it in awhile, click the link below and check it out!

Jim Carey - The Lifeguard (Saturday Night Live)

I never imagined a Monday morning would start like this. Things starting pretty typically with a quick shower and getting ready for work. Little did I know that my life was about to change forever. As I was driving out of the complex, I noticed quite a bit of smoke coming from one of the buildings. As soon as I parked my car I saw it: one of the bottom floor apartments was engulfed in flames. I quickly dialed 911 and ran around to the front of the building; what I saw then is something that I will never forget. Hanging out of a 2nd story window was a father and his baby, desperately trying to get away from the smoke and flames. The mother had already jumped to the ground, and the man was getting ready to drop the baby. Between myself and the woman, we caught the baby and the man soon followed.

At this point, things felt like they were moving in slow motion; here I was, the first outside person on the scene and was now faced with a decision as to what to do next. Some other people had come running up and were buzzing the doors trying to get people out of their apartments. While the hallway was already filled with thick black smoke, I decided to see what I could do and ran into the building and began knocking on the doors I could see. However, the smoke quickly filled the hall and I was forced to exit the building. I also helped get an older woman and her daughter out of a bedroom window on the first floor.

I was interviewed by all the news stations, and the common question was always "Do you feel like a hero?" And my response was simply that I did not feel like a hero and that if I would have been in that burning building, I would have prayed that there was someone on the outside trying whatever they could to help me. This was definitely an eye-opening experience and it puts things into perspective. I have posted a couple pictures that I took from the scene, and provided links below to the various stories about the incident that mention my name.

My Photos
NBC24 Website Report
WTOL Website Report (Link to online story with video, interviews)
Toledo Blade Front Page Copy

The temperatures have finally gotten to the point where they can finally start making snow down at Mad River Mountain. I received a call Friday evening from the parents that the lights were on and the guns were shooting snow as quickly as they could. I asked if they could snap a couple photos and email them to me, and this is just one of them that arrived in my mailbox. It looks like they've got a good start already, and with temperatures remaining cold all week, I can only imagine that they are aiming to open for the season this coming Friday. It's pretty safe that I plan on being their as soon as I possibly can Friday night. Keep an eye on the snow cams on their website, you might just see me coming down the hill!

I made it home from Akron a couple hours early, and after a quick power nap, am about to tackle some of the schoolwork that has piled up. Also, Gradkowski is on FoxHD against the Stealers, so maybe I'll try and catch a minute or two. When I get a chance, I'll post some pictures up here from the festivities.

Source: 1up.com:

Since Gran Turismo HD was shown as a demo at E3 this year, gamers all over the world have been left puzzled as to whether it would eventually be released as a game or not. Prior to the PlayStation 3 launch, SCE began listing it in their PS3 release schedule, and instantly everyone assumed it would be released at retail, similar to Gran Turismo 4 Prologue (which released at the end of 2003 in Japan).Well, today SCE and Polyphony Digital have announced that Gran Turismo HD Concept--note the name change--will be made available as a free download at the PlayStation Store, starting from December 24. The real driving simulator will be available to download for a limited period, and will feature a choice of ten cars and two layouts on a single course. There will be two modes of play included--Time Attack and Drift Trial mode. The demo will also have a Network Ranking feature, presumably for the Time Attack mode.Running up to the release of Gran Turismo 5, the "online car life simulator", it's possible a number of other concept releases will be released, but nothing is set in stone right now, including the release date of the finished game. But it's clear Kazunori Yamauchi and team are pouring their focus into the final game, rather than a cut-down preview. Still, it's free--surely PS3 owners around the world are rejoicing at the prospect of getting behind the wheel of the latest iteration in the 46 million-selling series. The download is currently only announced for Japan, but it's likely to follow in the US soon.

Looks like an early Christmas present for PS3 owners out there!