Crowded and Choked

My hard disk is currently crowded and choked with files. Mostly video files because all I do these days is just download anime episodes and "other" video files. I even removed all of my ripped mp3s from my computer to free up some space. Speaking of mp3 files, my mp3 player is almost full as well. I knew that 30 GB won't be enough for me. Hopefully, I can save some money by November for a portable external hard drive, and for a new mp3 player next year.

Comics -To- Animation

I've been zealously practicing with some guitar exercises (courtesy of John Petrucci's Guitar Discipline video) for almost a week now. However, the exercises involves a lot of finger stretching. It's quite tiring and can be a little bit too much for a rusty guitarist like me. So, when the cramping and aching starts, I take breaks and watch episodes of the Justice League instead.

The Justice League

Justice League is one of my favorite comics-to-animation. Even though the creators of the series didn't actually play it as close to the books, the changes they made were welcomed. One change that I like is having Hawkgirl as part of the team instead of Aquaman. While the king of Atlantis is a real bad ass, he's still a fish that can't hang in a base that's orbiting in space. Plus, Hawkgirl adds gender diversity to the team. Another change, and the most interesting one, is the flirtations between Batman and Wonder Woman. I never thought it's possible that Wonder Woman, an amazon princess who thinks less of men, and Batman, a lone warrior who considers women as distractions, could actually have a "thing" for each other. I guess opposites do attract.

Anyways, here are some of my other favorite comics-to-animations:

• Batman: The Animated Series - I can't afford any comics back then, so I don't know Batman that much. This cartoon, however, introduced me to Batman and made me realize that he is best fictional character of all time.
• Spawn - This was on HBO when I was still in college. This is one serious animation and, plus, it's Spawn. Need I say more?
• X-Men - This was a very cool cartoon series. It showcased a lot of important events from the comics, such as the Phoenix Saga. It even showcased an ending where the X-Men actually graduated from Xavier's School.
• X-Men Evolution - Another X-Men cartoon in the early 2000, that is loosely based on the Ultimate X-Men (I think). Most of the X-Men are still in their teens and Wolverine is actually one of the teachers in the mansion.

Shaking off the Rust

I woke up early today and tried the new amp. I was blown away by what the little thing can do. It's packed with some nifty features. It comes with 4 channels (1 clean and 3 distorted) and 6 effects (chorus, flanger, phaser, tremolo, echo, and reverb). Each channel comes with a preset sound but I didn't like any of them. So I tried to fiddle around with the knobs to find my own sound. Although I wasn't able to find a fat and round distortion, that I used to with my Marshall Valvestate 8020, in any of the distorted channels. The clean channel, however, produces this thick and warm sound that I really love.

Plugged and Played.

Anyways, I think I'm getting comfortable with the sound of this amp. So I started downloading some basic instructional videos, that I found in the internet, to get me started again. Hopefully, going back to the basics will shake the rust off of me and will eliminate some bad habits. I also want to learn the song "Rusty Cage" by Soundgarden just to get into the whole theme.

"I'm gonna break my rusty cage and run." --Rusty Cage, Soundgarden

Amplified

I was thinking of getting a new hobby these past months, and for some reason I decided to delve into the magic of photography. My mind was so set on it that I started conceptualizing themes, subjects that I can photograph, even without a Digital SLR camera. But, last Wednesday, when I was finally holding a box of Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT I asked myself: "why buy a $600 camera?" and "why photography?". I couldn't answer it. So I gave the box back to the store's clerk, before reaching the checkout counter, and just went home.

Back at home, I watched TV, unconsciously flipping through channels, while I pondered on why I should take photography as a hobby. I tried to answer it but, somehow, my answers just brought in more questions. So, I finally resigned and dismissed the idea of getting into photography. I was about to do same with my search for a new hobby when a TV ad for Guitar Center went up on the screen. Suddenly, serendipity came knockin' on my noggin. I need a guitar amp.

It was always at the back of my mind, the guitar amp. So I figured out that I should get one for my birthday instead of a camera. Of course, I asked myself the question again: "why?". But only a resounding "why not?" came in response. Yes, why not? Albeit my skills had already atrophied for years of stagnancy, and my guitar is all dusty and its strings are all rusted, I still know guitars more than a camera. Besides, a guitar amp is much cheaper than a Digital SLR camera. So I hastily went online and started browsing for, and reading reviews of, several guitar amps. An hour later, I was done looking. I wanted a Line 6 Spider III Modeling Amplifier.

Amp Sweet Amp.

So today, after my birthday dinner party, me and a couple of friends headed right to the nearest Guitar Center to pick up my guitar amp (a $200 damage to my wallet). I didn't had a chance to fiddle with it at the store since they were already closing. Afterwards, we went to another bar to celebrate more of my birthday. It was almost 1:00 AM by the time I got home. I didn't try the amp because I know the neighbors won't be too happy. So, unfortunately, as of now, I only took out the amp from its box and turned the power on to see if it's working (and it is). Anyways, I'm really glad that I got it. I'll try it out tomorrow and maybe write a review about it sometime soon.