the g.i.g.o. effect

today's title references my 5th grade play in which the world of computers was explored from the viewpoint of the 80s. g.i.g.o. stands for garbage in, garbage out. playing a "glitch cheerleader", i can recall one of our chants that summoned "glitches, glitches is our cry! dirty power, do or die!" the deets are escaping me, but i know the storyline primarily surrounded a group of kids (they always had a gang of speaking parts in these elementary shows) trying to save the world from the glitches taking over our gigantic computer systems. and i do mean, gigantic. i love to see some old skool technology representin' because everything was so huge. computers with their gargantuan hard drive towers, big ass video cameras and my personal favorite, the car phone. we didn't call those talking wonders no cell phone because they were housed in strapped bag (coincidentally about the size of a handheld camcorder today) that you literally stuffed under the seat of your car, to have on hand in case of some vehiculer drama. i wasn't about to drag that car phone bag out and about trying to chat up my friends because it was like hoisting an infant around, and who needs a baby that can't hold no charge?

thus, it is with great pleasure that i announce Agent99's arrival into the modern age as she types this entry from her own computer, sitting inside her crib atop a splendid new glass-top desk. gone are the days of mooching word processing and internet services from employers (although, let's be real, that really isn't going to stop), but at least i now have the home system on hand to toy with at my leisure. have to hand it to the Mole for insisting that it was time to update his raggedy laptop and get something fierce that we both can use. once i get with the blogging program and start including pictures here, i'll show you our darling iMac G5 that is on course with the shrinking technology of today. the entire system consists of a keyboard and 17" monitor that houses all the guts of the machine. that's all. just these two pieces and i'm sitting pretty with net capabilities and the garageband program that will allow me to record my v/o auditions and turn them into mp3's in the blink of a wink, amongst other techno treats. i realize a computer is not at all a big thing for, well, most of the nation, but since i've never wanted to make this investment and have been content with using school, work and even net cafe's systems, this is an enormous step for me. i'm already glad my man jumped in and made this purchase, and this is just the first day of having it up and running. i know that an iPod is going to be in my not so distant future and i'm *so* looking forward to exploring tunes aplenty again. feel like i've been in survival mode for a long time and have been letting much of the world turn around me in some ways, so it's a good, good thing to jump on the apple train. this dsl stuff is damn speedy, but i can tell that come september when this contract ends with sbc, we'll be jumping ship in lieu of the cable connection. while i was bootlegging last year, i could no longer utter my standard cry of "but i ain't got no cable!", but once again, we are sustained on damn near nothing but pbs. i really have no problem with that because i view the vast majority of television as another unwelcome connection to the dreges of the red states, but it probably is time to reintroduce myself to the joys of tv beyond the drab networks. and to actually pay a bill this time instead of helping myself.

taking a wheel of fortune spin through my pen & paper journals and have randomly selected a volume covering april 15, 2003 to may 21, 2004. let's see what kind of thoughts appear from a flip of the wrist. mid september 2003 and i've just started working with Abzu, so there's alot of song lyrics here. i'd just gotten back from that pr mission for my last (and *final* ad agency employ) where i'd hit 10 states in two weeks. tiring, but hands down the best experience i had there because i was by myself and doing what i do best without being sucked into client drama.

two quotes of note:

"never say never. wait 20 years and say didn't" -- IrishEyes, on the regrets of past relationships

"and it starts with, 'little joey works at target and lives with his brother for free.'" -- Neesia, describing a song he was writing. i recall laughing my ass off about this when he read me the lyrics over the phone one day.