I am excited to announce the open beta of A Clockwork Green, a side project I have been working on in my spare time.

A Clockwork Green allows you to keep track of time you spend on different projects by simply starting or stopping the clock, and providing a description of what you worked on during that time. It started as a tool I was using myself for my freelance projects, but I decided to open it up so others could use it and help with ideas to improve it.

This first release is very basic and doesn’t provide much reporting, but I plan to use feedback and feature requests from beta users in order to determine what direction I should take with new features.

Please take a minute to try it out. http://aclockworkgreen.com/

So here I am again. I have reapplied for the PHP Developer position at Last.fm.

Ever since May 2007 when I first visited Last.fm I knew it was the place for me. I applied and interviewed, but ultimately did not get the job because I had very little experience and no visa to work in the UK. One year later, I’ve got a year of real working experience under my belt and a path to a visa if necessary.

The year I have spent at Mobile Messenger has been an extremely valuable one. I have learned so much, not only about web development and the business world, but about myself as well. I have grown as a web developer and as a leader, and while I know I have a much more to learn in both areas, I feel I have much more to offer than I did a year ago. I am grateful to MM for this experience, but I’m ready to move out of LA.

If Last.fm is interested I would love for them to sponsor me for a visa. This path would be much less risky for me, and be much easier in the long run. However, I am fully committed, and would apply for a High Skilled Immigrant Programme visa which would allow me to move to the UK without first obtaining a job. Of course I wouldn’t go through this trouble unless I had a shot at the job, so I’m holding off on that one until I hear back from them.

So few things in life do I allow myself to truely want. I usually shelter myself from rejection and disappointment by convincing myself that “it would be cool if this happened, but if not…no big deal”. This is something that I have decided I truely want, and I intent on putting myself out there, even if I am crushed.

Now, if I could only apply that attitude to other area’s in my life…

Ok, I am set on going to SXSW 2009 next March. Anyone else interested?

I’m planning on attending the interactive festival, but I’d like to catch a couple of the films and definately as many music acts as I can while I’m there.

A few years ago I found the album “String Tribute to AFI” at Amoeba Records in Berkeley and, being a huge AFI fan, I was intrigued. I wasn’t necessarily a fan of strings, but I felt AFI would make for some rather interesting string covers, so I bought it.

I thouroughly enjoyed it, and even found “String Tribute to The Killers” shortly after, which I also really liked. After a while I forgot about these awesome string covers and went about my business.

…until this week.

I stumbled upon the Last.fm page for Vitamin String Quartet, who performs all these string covers.  I was surprised to learn that they have over 250 albums of string covers of bands from Metallica to Kelly Clarkson.

I went through and found my favorite covers and added them to a playlist.  Unfortunately, I can’t play or embed this playlist until I have “45 songs by at least 15 different artists”, so I’m going to work on that one, but check it out:

Brad’s Strings Playlist on Last.fm

Update: I added additional artists and tracks so I could asctually get an embedable playlist:

]]> http://brodrigu.net/2008/09/23/vitamin-string-quartet/feed/ http://brodrigu.net/2008/08/13/mib-make-it-brad/ http://brodrigu.net/2008/08/13/mib-make-it-brad/#comments Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:37:31 +0000 Brad http://brodrigu.net/?p=189

Somewhere along the line there must have been complaints, as particularly picky customers asked for one smoothy at a location new to them, and got the version of that smoothy that particular location was making (as I mentioned the recipes did get modified slightly along the way). This may or may not have involved alergies and lawsuits, but Jamba Juicers will not longer make these drinks simply by ordering them by name any more.

Anyway, now that you have some background on the “secret menu,” I will share with you my favorite item off this “hidden” menu, the White Gummybear. As it’s name suggests, its flavor mimics that of a white gummybear. The first one I ever tasted was at the Davis Commons Jamba Juice in Davis, Ca. It was the best smoothy I had ever tasted. I have been ordering this smoothy at different locations I visit, and it definately varies from one to the next. Even ordering it at the same location on different occasions results in a unique smoothy experience. It could have been my wonder and marvel at this new and delicious flavor, but I can never get a White Gummybear that tastes as good as the first one so many years ago.

I mentioned that you can no longer order off the “secret menu” by item name (unless you are really cool with the person behind counter, and they know what you are talking about, of course). So now that I have got you wanting to taste this delicious beverage, how can you order one? I asked this question to my friend who made me my first White Gummybear, and she told me I could order it if I had the recipe. I have kept this recipe secret for a long time, but today I am posting it for all to see and enjoy:

White Gummybear

• Light Soymilk
• Light Peach Juice
• 1 Small scoop of every ice cream except sorbet
• 1 Scoop peaches.

Pretty simple I guess, although unless you know exactly what ice cream is availble to the crew at Jamba Juice, it is unlikely you will be able to reproduce this at home (if anyone tries it let me know how it goes).

So what led me to releasing this information now? I’ve been carrying this recipe around in my wallet for some time, and decided it was time to take it out as it was becoming unreadable. Instead of risking losing it forever in my desk drawer, I wanted it on the internet so everyone could enjoy it, and I could find it again in case I lost it.

Enjoy.

The party hats are out and the drinks are mixed, but, before the festivities begin, stop and ask yourself: why are we celebrating a battle that happened 150 years ago and 1,500 miles away in Mexico? The answer : we are celebrating the very American values of freedom and democracy triumphing over the forces of despotism and slavery. To understand, let’s go back to the origins of the celebration, during the dark days of the American Civil War.

Early in 1862, all over the North American land mass, the supporters of freedom and democracy were on the ropes, close to being knocked out of the fight. On the Atlantic coast, the Union Army had been beaten again and again, as the Confederacy appeared to be the quick victors. And in Mexico, heartened by the example of the Confederacy, the French Army was slicing quickly across the landscape, racing to Mexico City to topple the constitutional president Benito Juarez, and re-institute slavery in the very country that had been among the first to outlaw that “peculiar institution”.

Then, with the force of a lightening bolt, the electrifying news arrived in California—far away in Puebla, the gutty, outgunned Mexican army took a determined stance, and against all expectations, stopped the mighty French army cold, and threw it back. For the first time since the canons had fired on Fort Sumter, the forces defending freedom and democracy had stopped the forces of despotism and slavery, the first victory of Good over Evil. And it happened in Mexico first.

Overjoyed at striking the first blow for freedom, tens of thousands of Latinos up and down the state of California celebrated the unexpected victory with bonfires, canon salutes, parades and impromptu speeches. They were the state’s strongest supporters of Lincoln and the indivisible Union, as well as of Juarez and the constitution of Mexico. The Californio statesman general, Mariano Vallejo, had one son, Platon, serving as a surgeon with the Union troops on the Atlantic coast, and another one, Uladislado, serving on the front line with Juarez in Mexico opposing the French. Andres Pico (of Pico Avenue fame in Los Angeles) raised and personally paid for equipping four troops of Spanish speaking Native California Cavalry raised in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Jose and San Francisco, who then rode to Arizona Territory to stop a joint Confederate- French takeover of the West.

One war, two fronts. Euphorically, Latinos in 129 locations in California, Nevada and Oregon organized a network of juntas patrioticas (patriotic assemblies) both to raise funds to enable Juarez to continue his fight against the French, and to rally voters for Lincoln’s embattled re-election. Times were hard, money was scarce. But, for five years, the juntas used the anniversary of the first Battle of Puebla to raise spirits, and funds, and the Cinco de Mayo was established as an institution in California as an incentive to provide support for the forces battling despotism and slavery, both in the Atlantic states and in Mexico.

And when the conflicts finally ended, the flags of liberty waved over the two countries once again at peace, the lands of the brave and the homes of the free. Since then, for 150 years, Latinos have commemorated this crucial period in the histories of both the US and Mexico.

So, during this year’s festivities, take some time off from the margaritas and mariachis, and remember the key reasons why Latinos are celebrating: the victory of freedom and democracy in the North American land mass.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

When I was living in Ireland I remember watching this anti-speeding public service announcement. I was surprised at how graphic it was for something shown on regular TV. Check it out.