Errors and omissions

Okay, so I left a few albums off my Best Of 2006 list that need mentioning:

• Hot Chip - The Warning
  
• Junior Boys - So This Is Goodbye
  
• French Kicks - Two Thousand
• Menomena - Friend and Foe

The (Obligatory) Best Albums of 2006

It's that time of year again, isn't it? Well, in no particular order, here's my top ten:

• Mute Math - Mute Math
• Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
• Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope
• Tokyo Police Club - A Lesson In Crime
• Hank Williams III - Straight To Hell
• Belle & Sebastian - The Life Pursuit
• The Black Angels - Passover
• Oh No! Oh My! - Oh No! Oh My!
• Phoenix - It's Never Been Like That
• TV On The Radio - Return To Cookie Mountain
  

If you're looking for a #1, I'd have to give it to TVOTR and/or B&S. Deal with it.

In case you're curious how they made my list, here's my slipshot, entirely subjective criteria:

• published this year (duh)
• be an original album or ep release (no remix, best of, or collection albums)
• be a solid listen through the whole album (no one or two song wonders)
• have kept itself on heavy rotation on my iPod at some point during the year (gotta love it)
• ... but still be able to relisten to it when the initial sheen wears off (staying power!).

Behinds the scenes at the Zune Design Laboratory

Have I mentioned how ugly I think those things are? RIP DOA Zune.

New job!

Howdy all! I just accepted a position at the University of Chicago to do full-time Linux systems administration. I'll be managing a couple of computation clusters that analyze data from the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Switzerland. Yeah, that's right, my dream job. No more Microsoft. Living in a bash shell.

So, on the flipside, if anybody wants to be an IT manager for a division in the Northwestern Med School, let me know. ;)

All the father's men | Salon.com

It's like Dallas, but hundreds of thousands of people have died and we're trillions in debt. All so "Sonny" can show daddy what a man he is. *sigh*

Blondie Hanging On The Telephone

Debbie Harry is so incredibly fucking hot!

Even more good news!

Jesus Camp is closing it's doors!

Not as dumb as we look

Holy cow. Rummy resigns, we take bake the House, and for all intents and purposes, the Senate as well. Has hell frozen over? Six of the longest years of my life are over. Hot damn! Congrats Democrats!