This entry is going to get long. I have a lot to cover.

Okay, first things first. I have 3 out of 4 computers in our apartment hooked up to the network and running perfectly. Fabish's damn computer is the one that doesn't want to work. I don't know what the problem is, but it's pissing me off.

Secondly, I figured out the codec problem with Shrek and Jay and Silent Bob. Apparently they were compressed with an out of date codec, that was released for only a couple of months during a beta stage of Windows Media Player, and hasn't been in use since. So I had to find an old (and illegal, since Microsoft decided not to support it anymore) codec and install it, and the video played with no problem.

Shrek looked and played perfectly, but there was a problem with Jay and Silent Bob. I downloaded the movie in 2 chunks... part 1/2 and part 2/2. Part 1/2 turned out to be the first half of Pearl Harbor. Part 2/2 turned out to be the second half of Scarface. I was a bit pissed. But I still had Shrek, so I was happy.

I had to compress and uncompress the movie several times to get it into VCD format for my DVD player. But I finally got it working, took disc 1 out to my living room and gave it a shot. It worked the first time. Well, sort of. The video worked perfectly and looked okayish (as good as you could expect from a downloaded movie that had been compressed 3 times), but the sound was just a loud, high pitched hum. Eventually the hum stopped and it just started clicking on and off millions of times. I'm not sure which was more annoying.

So anyway, during one of the compressings of Shrek, it said it would take a little less than 2 hours. So I figured I had some time and I was going to go to Circuit City to check out the new DVD releases. On my way back to the DVD section I crossed the digital camcorder section and stopped to take a look for a few seconds.

I saw an open box buy of a JVC camera. I had been doing a lot of research on which camera to buy on the internet, and this JVC certainly wasn't at the top of my list, but it was a really good camera for around $800. The open box buy was $400. It was missing it's lens cap, one of the covers to a couple of switches, and some random cable used to hook it into your TV for a picture slideshow that I would never use. How could I pass the chance to get an $800 DV camera for $400? Well, I couldn't pass on it, of course. I bought the camera, a firewire card and cable, a few tapes, and was going to buy a better battery but they were out. The camera is fantastic. I love it.

And with my pimptastic new computer, I'm planning on making some movies and such with it. I just need a good idea. I'd love to play with compositing in some special effects and animation and such. It would also be good if I could shoot it in a day with as few extras as possible, since it's hard to find loyal movie makers who will do it for free.

I'm thinking about making a short little 5-10 movie of a spaceship landing outside the apartment building or something. Something weird like that.

And I'm down to my last 2 days at work. Tomorrow some people are taking me out to lunch at La Fiesta, which will be nice. The whole office is invited, but not everyone will show up, I'm sure. Today I'm going to back up some of my work and things I want to keep and take home whatever personal things I have laying around my cubicle. Tomorrow it's real work again, trying to wrap up the test on that blasted CD. It seems strange though.

Iona has supported me for over a year. It's allowed me to not have to ask for handouts from my parents or anyone else. It bought me a new car, got me an awesome apartment with an awesome TV and a ton of DVDs (yeah, I know I don't have as many as you, Wolford). It bought me that camcorder I bought last night. It seems strange to just turn my back on all that. It seems strange for me to tell them I don't need them. But I did, and I am.

I didn't think I was the type to leave security like that because of the rhetoric nonsense going on in my head. But it's good to see that I did leave, in spite of a raise. It proves that I can still surprise myself, and that I can still take steps to improve my life without just accepting everything that comes my way. It's good to be able to surprise other people too.