What program did you use to burn it? I usually use Toast.

Yeah I know, the person who wrote that tutorial really goes into detail... which is good if you have some time on your hands, hehe. Are you busy with school stuff? Like midterms and such?

Hullabaloo, yay! Yeah, you're right, there's quite a bit of mellow stuff on there. "Recess" and "Map of Your Head" are my favorites off the b-side portion. I'm a recent believer in "Hyper Chondriac Music" too... something about me with slow songs, being half asleep, and being on the bus (like what happened to me with "Words So Leisured")... something just clicks. Though I prefer "Hyper Music"...

Hmm, I shall check out Pendulum. I listened to some samples and they sound like a mix of dance and rock music. Sounds like good stuff!

And yes, the thing with my former teacher (I realized yesterday she was also our senior class advisor) was very sad. I went to the candlelight memorial at my old high school yesterday. Very moving. I kind of lost it when her husband and two little girls arrived outside the cafeteria. Just the thought they won't be seeing their mommy...

Her husband is so strong; he told everyone not to be angry about it because anger wouldn't bring her back. And he said that this was like a part of us was dying and being reborn, and to use this as an opportunity to better ourselves so her death wouldn't be in vain. Then he made us laugh when he told a funny story about how they went to Sam's Club and she snuck a whole bunch of Twilight books for the silent reading library into the cart he was pushing. He said he looked back and there were no books left on display. (I didn't know she liked Twilight until yesterday, but it sounds like she recommended reading the books and not see the movie. Phew.)

Quite a few alumni (including some of my old classmates and coworkers) got up in front of everyone to share their memories about her. I would've spoken if I knew exactly what to say. Instead, when I got home, I wrote a short blog about her. If you'd like to read it, it's here.

Hmm... I would think the brown colored layer in saturation mode wouldn't work in all cases. It really depends on the picture you're working with. I haven't figured out a formula for determining what color works or doesn't work, but playing around with different colors and trying each blend mode (and opacity) helps!

I have a couple of LiveJournal icon tutorials saved that I'll point you to:

http://community.livejournal.com/__belfrycons/4439.html (this one was done in Paint Shop Pro but should also translate to Photoshop, GIMP, etc.)

http://community.livejournal.com/color_freakshow/1692.html

They really break down each step and help set a foundation for giving photos that "look." But again it really depends on the photo you have, as you might not need to do all the steps for certain photos.

Man I really hope they come here next tour! Those BAMP guys better get on it and beg on their knees for Muse! Speaking of which BAMP haven't gotten back to me yet about Franz...

I was gonna make the heart pink but I'm not a pink kinda gal. Purple's a nice color, though right when you said "purple heart" I thought, "oh crap like the military medal!"

Yay, the after photo looks sex-ay! That NME photo cracks me up! Good job on finding the same steps on GIMP! Was that difficult at all to find the tools since they're in different places?

Gah, I know! Muse, bring it on already!

Two of my favorite gentlemen in one av... and it's a real pic! (as opposed to a Photoshopped, combine-two-pics-in-one pic!)

Did you see the video of Muse recording in the bathroom? First thing I did at work today. Yay for Twitter and Musewire/Muselive.

OMG are you serious! That's awesome! I just hope they aren't just saying that! *crosses fingers in hopes that it will someday come true*

I went to Hot Topic today and looked and looked for the Muse shirt you told me about. I finally found and extra-small one on top of a stack of Underoath shirts. I thought it wouldn't fit but I tried it on and it's just right! I guess because it's a men's shirt and all, but with an extra-small it fits like a girl's t-shirt. Anyway, I asked the guy at the register if they had any more Muse shirts and he said that was all they have and that he knew that because someone else came in earlier asking the same thing. (Then I wondered if it was you and if there was a Hot Topic at Kahala Mall. I hope you were able to buy a shirt!) That's crazy to think that they actually sold out of Muse shirts and I happened to buy the last one. I didn't think they were that popular here... then I thought "those damn Twilight poser kids."

In light of this happy Muse news, I have some devastating news too. I learned this morning that the woman who was randomly stabbed at the Ewa Beach Shopping Center yesterday was my freshman English teacher in high school. Here's a link to a news story if you're interested: http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/14534/40/. You know when certain information doesn't hit you until you're by yourself and able to think? That's what happened to me. Didn't hit me until I was making my way home on the bus. I cried to myself silently for part of the bus ride. Then I was mad at whoever took her life away; I'm almost certain the guy was on drugs. Now it's a combo of those feelings + regret, since I hadn't visited her at all since I graduated, though I saw her somewhere once not too long ago. I know this news is completely unrelated but I just need someone else to share this with. Mrs. Yamashita was one of the nicest people I've ever had the chance of knowing and one of the best teachers I've ever had.

Yeah exactly! It's great that they have consistently been recognized for being an awesome live band, at least in their home country. I would absolutely LOVE to catch Muse live!

The whole Franz/Phoenix thing isn't a guarantee but the prospect of going there to see them is very tempting and exciting! Just checked out the Franz thread and saw the messages about Phoenix. I guess that makes sense for a lot of Cali fans who aren't in the Bay Area or able to attend Coachella. I'm not sure if I would fly out there by myself if my friends aren't able to go. Maybe I could meet up with the Musers there, but it's kind of awkward for me because I still feel like a n00b here!

Haha, yeah I know, I'm sorry. I think I also just ran out of things to talk about! But yeah, you have a point. They did only play a few shows last year. But they were high profile shows, so probably another example of "quality over quantity."

That's cool! I wish I had friends that liked Muse. I have a few Apple coworkers who dig Muse but it's hard making friends with people you only work with once a week.

I'm trying to put together a trip, possibly to Phoenix, with a few of my friends from high school. I'm trying to make it so that it's the same weekend in April that Franz Ferdinand will be performing there but it's tough because of the different schedules we have. We're trying to do a weekend trip so we don't have to worry about taking leave. My one good friend is a teacher and my other two friends are bank tellers, so you can imagine the challenge. But it would be so cool, especially if we got to see Franz! Oh and Arizona stuff too. I've only been there one other time so it'd be nice to go back.

Hey Kylee! I've been okay, just busy with meetings and cranking out website designs. I know, I'm so proud of the guys! Someone sent me a link to that interview through Twitter this afternoon so I was watching it at work . Thanks for sending me that link though because I couldn't hear some of what was being said. (Didn't want to turn it up too loud because there was a client meeting going on in the other room.) Plus I left my earbuds and phone at home which was a bummer. But yeah, I'm glad they won best live band, though I wasn't that surprised! =D Best album art and Matt as sexiest male too! (I love the look on Matt's face when the interviewer said he won - he looked so shocked! "I'm too short to be sexy!" )

How've you been doing?

Oh btw, I was going through AFI's website the other day and I caught your friend's shoutout to you and your dad on his blog. I noticed he spelled your name wrong though! I bet that must be common for you. It's right here: http://begintransmission.afireinside.net/raine. Lucky he got to meet and record with them! =)

Yeah I'm pretty sure they were iPod versions! I'll PM you the links to the video files I converted.

Great, you got YCHISMB! That was pretty much all I was listening to for a bit, but right now, I've been listening to their first album more. And yes, thank goodness we like a legitimate band!

I was reading in my room earlier, and I heard "No You Girls" on the TV in my sister's room. I lit up and rushed into her room. I had asked her earlier if she saw the ad yet and she said she didn't, but when I came in her room, she said she "heard the ad before."

I wonder if I'll be hearing more of the song at the store now.

Damn. The thing that sucks is that you can't even watch it in peace when you burned it on DVD! And you can't watch the DVD you burned on your computer? I'm sorry I can't help much because I'm not familiar with DVD burning software for the PC.

The iPod versions of the Muse vids I sent you worked though, right? I'm trying to do the same with the RAH DVD right now, and it looks like it's converting. I can send you a download link to it. I'm already converting it, might as well.

I understand what you mean about the Franz boredom. I guess that's what happens when you start listening to an album before it comes out eh? Haha. But thanks a ton for tipping me off to download Tonight... it's all your fault! I just wish I got into them when I got their first album. I don't know why I didn't; it's a good album. But better late than never.

The book is so loaded with Franz facts! It's I like how it's organized; each chapter is dedicated to a particular topic, like one on music videos, one on album art, one on bios of each of the band members, that sort of thing. And it's a coffee table book, so lots of photos as well as reading material. You should add it to your wish list!

Thanks, my av cracks me up!

I have yet to see the iPod ad on TV. I'll be tuning in to "Lost" tonight, so maybe I'll see it!

Hopefully you'll figure something out with the DVD! And it doesn't play when you open one of the video_ts folders with your computer's DVD player?

I was seesawing between Franz and Muse phases the past few days but it looks like Franz has won out for now. Especially since I got their book An A-Z of Franz Ferdinand today, which looks like a nice chronicle of the band's history and pretty much all things Franz. I got it off Amazon at a reasonable price.

BTW... looks like one of my employers has good taste in music. http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/gallery/ads/

Oh no, that sucks! Hope your friend is all right! Are you still grounded?

The interview was funny; see for yourself! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoN8_GBGE9Q&feature=channel_page

And they ended up performing "Ulysses": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pd7ersrc8Dc

Did you manage to get the RAH DVD working? I finished downloading it today and it seems like it's playing all right using my laptop's DVD player.

Oh shucks! Have you tried downloading VLC Player on your computer and using that to play it?

Oh really? Well in that case I should get to downloading it!

Muse in wizard outfits, even better!

I actually torrented the RAH DVD a few months ago because of what I've heard about it. From what I saw I wasn't really that impressed by it. I don't know, I don't usually watch bootlegged concerts because I get irritated when something isn't shot professionally. I'm so picky.

I know, Franz Ferdinand in wizard outfits ! Apparently a couple of the guys from Radiohead and Pulp's lead singer ended up replacing them. They were actually a rock band/wizard group in the movie. (I Googled it lol.)

Four-day weekend?! Lucky you! Did you have yesterday off or are you having Tuesday off? Is it a waiver day of something?

Matt does have an "oooh" expression in that pic! Nick looks bored or even a bit upset.

Speaking of an upset Nick... Did you know that FF was supposed to be in the one of the Harry Potter movies as a gang of witches? I'm not familiar with Harry Potter at all, but I happened across a few old news articles during a Google search for Franz Ferdinand posters (I know, random). Here's one of the articles I found. They couldn't do it, though, because of scheduling conflicts and possibly (according to that link anyway) Alex and Nick got into a fight or something. It's so funny because you wouldn't want to think of band members in any of your favorite bands in a fight, especially if they don't give off that sort of persona, but we are all human. Especially when you spend that much time around the same people, like having roommates.

Anyways, hope you enjoy your Valentines Day and three-day weekend. I don't have an S.O. to celebrate the former with, but I have the day off tomorrow from my Apple job, and will be having lunch with a good friend from high school.

Yeah they had all of them, at least when I went there to buy the CDs. If anything, you can go to borders.com, search for each album, and check store inventory to see whether they have it in stock or not. When you click on the item, there's a little space on the right for you to type in your ZIP code and it'll check the store inventory of nearby stores. This might be a little surprising, but I just did a search for Showbiz and it looks like Borders Ward has it in stock. When I went there to buy it over the summer, I literally took the last copy that was in the rack!

Did you know we got hail too? Well not recently, but I remember someone telling me a while back that Pearl City got a freak hailstorm a long time ago.

And the pic's on Microcuts: http://www.microcuts.net/gallery/details.php?image_id=5475 Paul and Nick are in there, too, as well as (I believe) Rich Costey, who produced and mixed YCHISMB, Absolution and BHAR.

"Ich heiße Super Fantastisch!"

Yeah, now I understand what you were saying early on about Alex. Not super-special as far as looks (but not bad either)... but he has that charisma.

It was funny because I bought all of Muse's albums at the same time. The cashier at Borders was like, "So, you're just getting into Muse, huh? They have a new album out or something?" And I said I just got HAARP so I'm catching up.

I guess that would make sense that Alex's prose would sound like FF lyrics. I either read or watched an interview of him explaining how he likes to start off with prose first, then whittle it down to lyrics.

Here's the first story I saw on the tornado. They have a video on there too that's a bit surreal. http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/14019/245/

Thanks. I was gonna change it just now to a pic I found of Matt and Alex together (gasp!) but I guess I'll wait until the current one gets old.

I actually prefer "Darts of Pleasure" too, but the other day I was listening to "Words So Leisured" on the bus. I was feeling a bit tired and the song came on and I was like, "Oooh, he sounds really sexy on this." Hehe.

Hope you get all that stuff for your birthday! If not, you could get the Muse stuff for your birthday and the Franz stuff for Christmas. Or vice versa.

I'll let you know about Sound Bites. I just ordered FF's DVD too, so I'll let you know how it is too.

OT: Tornado in Kapolei today. First heard about it through Twitter, then my coworker said he passed by it right when it was happening. Strange weather we've been having... what's next, hail?

Shucks. Well don't get caught because I'd hate to have you grounded even further!

Exactly! A Scottish poi dog, haha. That's cool he seems so down to earth. I wouldn't mind meeting him too. I just bought his book, Sound Bites. I'll get to reading it as soon as I finish a couple of other books I should've been done with by now!

"Words So Leisured" is a b-side that was on the special edition of their first album. It's acoustic and slow, and Alex sounds really sexy. It has reworked lyrics from "Darts of Pleasure," like how Tonight has "No You Girls" and "Katherine Kiss Me."

Aw. =( So does that mean we'll be seeing less of you on the boards because you're grounded? Or is it more not being able to go out?

I know, I love how he talks! It's neat because it's not a straight Scottish accent because of his mixed heritage too.

I love how he sounds on "Words So Leisured."