Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Brent

Bat Out of Hell was the first cassette that I got when I got my first large portable stereo.  Jim Steinman’s lyrics and music combined with Meat Loaf’s vocals are completely over the top in the best rock opera fashion.  That combined with a sharp sense of humor made it a favourite of mine:

On a hot summer night.
Would you offer your throat to the wolf with the red roses?
Yes
I bet you say that to all the boys. 
 

I actually wore out the first copy I had, and had pretty much worn out my second cassette copy when I bought it on CD.  I think some of the things that made it such an appealing album to me was the length of some of the songs, three of them come in at over 8 mins, which was really unheard of on the Pop radio stations that I was listening to at the time. And one of those, “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” actually made it onto the radio as a single, although in a somewhat abbreviated format.

Bat Out of Hell ranked number 343 on Rolling Stones Top 500 Albums of All Time.

Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell came out sixteen years after Bat Out of Hell, and I like it almost as much as the first album, if not more.  Apparently the songs on the first Bat Out of Hell weren’t long enough, two of the songs on BOHII come in at 10:16 and 12:00 minutes compared to 8:29 for Paradise. And, there are five additional songs that come in at over six and a half minutes. 

The interesting thing about Bat Out of Hell II is that many of the songs were previously released by other people. Jim Steinman put out a solo album in 1981 called “Bad for Good” which contained “Lost Boys and Golden Girls”, Out of the Frying Pan (And Into The Fire)”, and “Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through”.  “Love and Death and an American Guitar” from the “Bad for Good” album was renamed to “Wasted Youth” on the “Bat Out of Hell II” album. Two additional tracks from “Bad for Good” ended up on “Bat Out of Hell III”

“Good Girls Go To Heaven (Bad Girls Go EveryWhere)” and “It Just Won’t Quit” appeared on the album “Original Sin” by the group “Pandora’s Box” which was written and produced by Jim Steinman in 1989.  That album also contained a version of the song “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” which was later done by Celine Dion and then again on Bat Out of Hell III.

I do own several of Meatloaf’s other CD’s  including “Bat Out of Hell III” and they are decent enough, but he really shines when teamed up with Jim Steinman. Several of the songs on Bat III were written by Steinman, but he wasn’t invloved in producing it and I think it really suffered because of that.

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Favourite Music

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Brent

I’m planning on posting a new set of articles on my favourite music.  This may be a particular album or cd, or an artist in general, or possibly even an individual song.  I’ll probably start with some of the albums that I listened to repeatedly when I was younger and then move into more recent material.

I like a large range of music, everything from Classic Rock, to 80′s  New Wave, to Folk and just about everything in between.  I’m not a fan of hard core Heavy Metal, Country, Opera or Classical but even with those there are exceptions.

I’ve got a large enough CD collection that I  spent a few years when I was younger as a DJ, doing staff parties, weddings and things like that.  And I actually had a larger collection of Cassette tapes than I had of CD’s.

In fact, I still have a large collect of tapes that I’m slowly ripping to ITunes.  Strangely enough I’ve got quite a few that don’t seem to be available in CD format or on ITunes.  Or, they just aren’t quite good enough to buy a new copy of, but not quite bad enough to just throw out.

Some of the CDs and artists that I’m planning to write about (in no particular order) are:

  • Meatloaf – Bat Out of Hell
  • Beatles – Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
  • Adam & The Ants – Prince Charming (and others)
  • Tears for Fears – The Hurting / Songs from the Big Chair
  • Duran Duran – Rio (and others)
  • Dire Straits – Love Over Gold
  • Queen – Greatest Hits (Classic Queen)
  • The Police – Synchronicity
  • Peter Schilling – Error in the System
  • Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer
  • Kiss
  • Fred Eaglesmith
  • Kate Bush
  • U2
  • 54-40
  • Doug & the Slugs
  • New Order

As a bit of an aside, one of the things I’d like to do at some point is figure out how many of the Rolling Stone Magazines Top 500 albums I actually own.  I can say that I’ve got four out of the top ten, all of the Beatles albums :)

But, that’s it for the moment, back to doing school work, less than three weeks left!

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Back to School – Pt 3

Posted on August 6, 2011 by Brent

As can probably be determined from my lack of updates, going back to SAIT has kept me pretty busy.  However, I have been really enjoying it even though it is a lot of work.  It’s been really fun to get back into learning new things.  I’m now into the last three weeks of the Business Intelligence program and have been getting straight A’s so far.  Hopefully this will help when I’m out looking for a new job.   That search has just begun again.

I sent off applications for six different postings this past week, although it turns out that two of them were actually for the same job.  Hopefully I’ll hear back on at least a couple of them soon.

I’m keeping this update short, but hopefully I’ll find some time to do a more detailed one soon and describe some of what has been going on in the classes and life in general.

 

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Back to School – pt2

Posted on May 8, 2011 by Brent

Well, after a few lost and found sets of paperwork, I’m all registered and ready to head back to school tomorrow.  Hopefully there are no further issues with getting the funding I’m expecting from the Govt, but the paperwork is with them now and it could still be a few weeks before I find out for sure what the details of that will be.

The courses start tomorrow with an orientation session, where they give us a bit of an introduction to each other and the courses and take us for a tour around campus.  Then on Tuesday things start in earnest.  We take one course at a time, completing each one before starting the next, with the exception of a project that looks like it starts sometime after the first couple courses and continues until the end.  The first date listed for the Project is June 23rd, which also happens to be the last day of my CPRG 255-A .NET Development w/ASP.NET course, which is the last course I need for my .NET Development Certificate of Acheivement.  If that actually is when we start the Project, the timing will work out well because I will have just finished my project for my .NET course.

The actual courses that I’ll be taking as part of the Buisness Intelligence program are:

CPSY 201-B – Intro to Data Management
MMGT 205-B – Business Analysis for B.I. Apps
CPSY 203-B – Architecture and Design
PROJ 212-B Applied Bus. Int. Project
CPSY 205-B – ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)
CPSY 207-B – Reporting and Analytics
CPSY 209-B – OALP (Online Analytic Processes)
MMGT 206-B – Performance Mgmt Applications

It looks like I’ll be in a class with ten other people, which I find is a good size and I’m looking forward to getting started on it.

Looking back over the last three months of unemployment, I’m a little suprised at how little work I’ve done on projects on my computer.  Most of my computer time was spent on job searches, and the rest of my free time on putting the basement back together after the flood we had last July and helping Mom get ready to sell her house.   I didn’t write any new articles for the Guild Companion or ICE, and I didn’t spend much time playing with my mapping software or with Photoshop.  I also didn’t end up watching alot of T.V. or reading alot of books, at least not anymore than I usually did while working.  This isn’t disappointing in any way, just interesting.

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Back to School

Posted on April 20, 2011 by Brent

It’s been a long time since I’ve been a full time student, but it looks like I’m going to be again.  I haven’t had much luck in finding a new job since getting laid off at the end of January, one of the hazards of working at a company that used a programming language that isn’t used by anyone else in the area I guess.

In my searches for a new career, I noticed that there seems to be a high demand for Business Intelligence Analysts.  While this may initially sound like an oxymoron, I decided to look into it a little more.  It seems to be a fancy new term for a Database Analyst. You do some work in maintaining databases and some work in extracting information from the databases and doing reporting on the information.  I’m sure there is a little more to it than that, but that’s the short version.

I found out that SAIT offers a Fast Track program called “Business Intelligence: Data Analysis & Reporting” which starts on May 9th.  Normally you are supposed to apply for it 6 to 8 weeks ahead of time, I started the process with about 4 weeks before the beginning.  I fired off an email to make sure there was still room in the program, got an answer back the next day saying there was, emailed in a resume and called to make an appointment with the Program Coordinator.  I got an appointment for early the following week and fired off a letter of intent explaining my background and how I thought the program would help me with my career goals.  I then arranged for my educational transcripts to get sent to SAIT, which can all be done on-line now, which was handy.

The interview went well and I was accepted into the program, so then it was time for the next step, which was sending in some initial information to the SIP (Skills Investment Program) department at SAIT to arrange so I could get EI Benefits while taking the courses, otherwise it would be extremely difficult financially to do the program.  That was on Wednesday April 13th.  I also found and spent about half a day filling out a couple more forms that would be needed once the SIP Dept responded to my initial application.

On the Friday the 15th I got a letter saying that the fees for the program ($9500) were due on April 9th (!), so I called the Registars Dept and explained my situation and got that extended to April 25th.  I got answer back from the SIP dept on Tues April 19th, fired off the “Skills Investment Career Research Package” and “Job Search Record” documents that I had prepared earlier, along with a copy of my resume.  A couple more emails back and forth that day and looks like I will be able to get my EI benefits while taking the program as well as getting a substantial portion of the tuition covered as well. 

I’ve got a meeting with the SIP Coordinator for 10:00 tomorrow morning, presumably to do the final paperwork and get the actual numbers, then hopefully I can finish up the registration process and be ready to dive into the course.

I will also still be finishing up my .NET Development Certificate of Achievement, the fourth course finishes up next week and the last course, “.NET Development with ASP,NET” runs from May 03 to Jun 21.  The Buisness Intelligence course runs Monday – Friday from 8:30 to 4:30 from May 9 to August 26, the .NET course is Tues and Thurs from 6:00 to 8:50, which will make for some long days in May and June, but I discussed it with the Program Coordinator and she also felt that it was best to finish the .NET program now rather than waiting to take the last course.  Some of the material will overlap and with my background the first few weeks of the Buisness Intelligence program shouldn’t have too much of an extra workload so I should be okay.

It will be interesting to see how it goes and I’ll try and post some updates, assuming I have any sort of free time for blogging :)

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Brent’s Sweet and Hot Chili

Posted on February 14, 2011 by Brent

One of the dishes that I like to cook is Chili.  I’ve been messing with various combinations for years and I have come up with one variation that people seem to like alot and I’ve decided to share.  Now, I will say that I very seldom actually follow a recipe, so keep in mind that any amounts listed below are estimates at best. I also tend to raid the fridge and throw in extra items that seem like they might be interesting.
This particular recipe makes a sweet tasting chili which has some heat that kicks in shortly after.
I’ve listed a couple of particular brands for some of the ingredients for the items where I think it makes a difference.  Chances are that those items might not be available everywhere, but I’m sure an appropriate substitution can be found.

1 bottle or can of your favorite beer or other beverage.  Some people like to add this to their chili, I don’t, it’s just for drinking while stirring the pot.

1 kg (2 lbs) of Ground Bison, Beef, or Turkey.  Other meats may work well too, but these are the ones I’ve tried.
2 cans Campbells Tomato with Basil & Oregano Soup
2 cans Heinz Maple Style Beans (398 ml)
2 cans Red Kidney Beans
1 can Pineapple Tidbits
250 ml (1 cup) Cattle Boyz Honey Hot BBQ Sauce
75 ml (1/4 cup) Renee’s Gourmet Roasted Garlic & Honey Sauce
15 ml (1 Tablespoon) Chipotle Chili Powder
75 ml (1/4 cup) Dehydrated Onion Flakes
400 gr (14 oz) Fresh sliced White Mushrooms

Brown the meat on high, adding in the Mushrooms and the Dehydrated Onion Flakes.
Once the meat is browned, add in the rest of the ingredients, stirring to mix.  I include the juice from the Pineapple Tidbits, but if you are short on time you can remove the juice first to keep the chili thicker.

Once the Chili starts bubbling, turn it down to medium or low and simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

I like the Renee’s sauce because it has a fairly high garlic content, if you end up using a different Honey Garlic sauce you might want to add some additional roasted garlic.  Someday I’ll come up with my own Sauce from scratch to replace the Renee’s and Cattle Boyz but that’s way down the road.  I used to use Uncle Bens Sweet and Sour Stir Fry sauce and added garlic, but that particular brand got discontinued.
The Chipotle Chili Powder is the primary source of heat, so if you prefer a hotter chili you can add more of that. The amount listed makes for a fairly mild heat content.
Some people prefer a stronger tomatoe flavor, an additional can of Tomatoe paste or soup can easily be added, I’ve also found that adding a cup of Medium Chunky Salsa works well too.

Posted in Random Thoughts | Leave a comment

THE PLAN

Posted on January 26, 2011 by Brent

THE PLAN

In the beginning was THE PLAN
And then came THE ASSUMPTIONS
And the assumptions were without form
And the plan was completely without substance
And darkness was upon the face of the employees
And they spoke amongst themselves, saying
“It is a crock of shit and it stinks”
And the employees went unto their supervisors,saying
“It is a pail of dung and none may abide the odor thereof”
And the supervisors went unto the managers, saying
“It is a container of excrement and it is very strong
such that none may abide by it”
And the managers went unto their directors, saying
“It is a vessel of fertilizer and none may abide its strength”
And the directors went unto their executive directors, saying
“It contains that which aids plant growth and is very strong”
And the executive directors went unto the general manager, saying
“It promotes growth and is powerful”
And the general manager went unto the board of directors, saying
“This new plan will actively promote the growth and efficiency
of this organization and these areas in particular”
And the board of directors looked upon the plan and
saw that it was good and the plan became policy.

This is how shit happens.

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SAIT .NET Courses

Posted on December 8, 2010 by Brent

I recently decided to take some Continuing Education Courses at SAIT, working to earn their .NET Development Certificate of Achievement. This is a set of five courses, each course runs twice a week for three hours a night for seven weeks each.

I had actually taken four out of five similiar courses back in 2004/2005 but never finished the last course.  There were a few reasons for this.  The first was financial, the company I was working at paid for the first three courses but then hit some financial difficulties and wouldn’t pay for the last two.  I paid for the fourth course but wasn’t willing to cover the last one.  The other problem was that when I had originally signed up for the courses, they were supposed to be In-Class courses, but they decided to make us the guinea pigs for the new On-Line courses that they were setting up at the time.  Despite the fact that I actually did really well in the courses (A+ in all of them), I really found the on-line process to be quite frustrating.  I didn’t have many problems with the difficult parts of the assignments, planning the programs and figuring out the logic, but I could get hung up for hours on something that would turn out to be a simple syntax issue.  I’d have to spend half an hour describing the problem in an email and sending it off to the instructor, and then wait an indefinite amount of time for an answer, all for something that could have been answered in a minute or two in a classroom setting.
I also found that it was more challenging to set aside the time to work on the course at home.  There were always multiple distractions and it was just too easy to put things off.  I find having a set time where you are supposed to be in a classroom much better.

Looking back, I really should have found the money and spent the time to finish off that last course and get my certificate but as they say, hindsight is 20/20.

Needless to say, this time I’ve opted for the In Class courses and not the On Line.  I’m still having a bit of trouble putting aside some extra time to do some studying and extra projects, but overall it is going very well.

I’m really enjoying the courses and have realized that I’ve missing the learning process.  In most parts of my life, particularly at work, I really haven’t had to stretch to learn anything new, things have basically been in maintainance mode and quite frankly that gets pretty dull after awhile.

I’m at the point in the courses now that I need to come up with some sort of project to work on, for the first course I did up a version of “Zombie Dice” from Steve Jackson Games, now I need to come up with something for this course.  We haven’t started doing Database’s yet, so anything I do can only use more basic file types.   Our final assignment class is next Wednesday, so I should come up with something soon, or at least get some practice coding done so I don’t get stuck on some simple piece for too long.

How the final project works is we go in for the last three hour class, we get a list of items that our project needs to contain, and a few suggestions on what sort of program we could write, and we have three hours to come up with it.  It’s open book/open internet and you can prepare some stuff ahead of time if you want.

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Books, CDs and Movies

Posted on November 23, 2010 by Brent

One of the things I’ve been using Facebook for and would like to switch over to using WordPress for is tracking which CDs, DVDs and Novels that I own.  Ideally with a way to flag them as waiting to be watched/read/listened to, already read, currently reading and perhaps some sort of rating system.  I’d also like to be able to attach a cover image, preferably one I can upload myself rather than a link to Amazon or some other site where the cover image might vanish. 

So far I’ve only done a quick search for existing plugins and widgets, one that looks promising is http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/now-reading-reloaded/  I think the only thing it might be missing is the ability to use your own images

I know I could hack something together similiar to what I’ve done on my ICE Webring site, but I’d rather use something that is already written.  So, if anyone has any suggestions, I’d be happy to hear them, otherwise, I’ll be going back to searching.

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Importing blog entries into Facebook

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Brent

I’ve finally been able to get back into the settings in Facebook that theoretically will show posts that I make here in my blog show as Notes in Facebook.  I had this setup before but it seemed to stop working.  I figured a simple solution might be to simply turn it off, then reset it.   Turning it off worked okay, but I got an assortment of different interesting errors when I tried to turn it back on.   I did a bit of Googling and this doesn’t seem to be a unique problem for me.   I did finally end up logging it as a problem with Facebook about three weeks ago.  I never did get a reply back from Facebook, but when I made my weekly attempt today, it actually let me change the setting and it pulled in the existing blog entries.

It remains to be seen whether this new entry gets picked up or not, and if it does, how long it takes.

For those that are interested in doing something similar, log into your Facebook account, click on your name beside your photo to get to your profile page. 

Find the “Notes” tab on the menu bar under your name and click on it. 

Near the bottom of the left hand column you should find a link labelled “Edit Import Settings” which will take you to a screen where you can enter the URL for an RSS feed for your blog.  With any luck, after you enter the path and click the appropriate button, it will import your blog entries.

Posted in Facebook | 2 Comments