*Updated 31 Jan*

So, after using my “old” laptop as a paperweight for over a year after a reformatting disaster, I decided to enlist my brother’s help in getting the machine back in working order.

This all came about after a painful upgrade of my desktop to Vista, which took 2 Blue Screens of Death and 71 updates to get running smoothly.

We met up at the Parental Storage Unit for the usual escapades of Guitar Hero, gaming, and torturing our family.

Right from the beginning, things went awry. I forgot to remind my brother of the software I would need, so it was forgotten. After a good amount of pain and an ultimately futile scouring of the ENTIRE house, it turned out that what we needed was under our noses. (Actually, it was under the laptop, in our father’s desk drawer.. In plain site)

Getting the machine up wasn’t too painful after a small diagnostic was performed. While it’s no gaming machine to say the least, it will run most programs I use for artistic purposes. This will ease the pain of the all-nighters I sometimes get to pull!

Of course, it can’t end happily…

Upon return to my house with both my desktop and laptop in tow, I plugged in my desktop to find my fresh install of VISTA locking up (Yay, Vista)

A quick reboot left me with a sexy beep code, of which I could not find a solution to.

So, the “High Speed Gaming Machine” is in the shop, while I plunk away at the dinosaur laptop.

I hate computers….

*Update*
After multiple DIY diagnostics checks and a few phone conferences, it was deemed an impossible situation for me to resolve.
I made a few calls to various computer repair shops, starting with one large chain. You know the one.. It’s the “best” place to “buy” computer stuff!

70 bucks just to look at it! I think not..

I found a local shop that did the same thing twice as well, for 15 dollars.

After a few days of waiting, the bad news came back. The motherboard was fried.

Then came the really bad news. Being an HP, a part that normally costs no more than 50 to 60 bucks actually costs 250 to 300 bucks! That’s thanks to HP using proprietary hardware to ensure return business and WORLD DOMINATION!

I dunno about that part, but it still sucks!

So, I’ve ordered a “regular” motherboard that will support all the components of my HP. I’ll do a full transplant, and reformat the hard drive again to eliminate all traces of HP..

Except for the case…

It seems my musical partner has been getting requests for tablature on a piece he recorded and posted on Youtube based on a Final Fantasy tune.
He didn’t wanna post a super-long tab on Youtube, so here it is!

1. rhythm for 0:18 - 0:28, for 0:40 - 0:58 move up 1/2 step

E: —————————————————————————
B: ——————————————————12—–11—–10—–
G: ————————–10—-13——–12—-11—-10—–9——-8—–
D: 10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10—————————————————-
A: -8–8–8–8–8–8–8–8—–8-8—8-8-8-8—8-8—8-8———————-

2. lead for 0:31 - 0:40 ( ^ = hammer on or pull off ) ( t= left hand tap)

E:————————————————————————
B:————————————————————————
G:————————10—–13———12—-11————15-16^15–
D:10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10——————————15-17-18———–
A:-8–8–8–8–8–8–8–8—-8-8—-8-8-8-8—8-8————————-

E: ————————————————————-
B: ———————————————-15-17-18-17-18-
G: —————15-16^15————–15-16-17—————-
D: 18-17-15-17-18———18-17-15-17-18————————

t t
E: 15-16-15-16-18-19^18^16^13^20^18^16^13-21-20-18
B: ————————————————
G: ————————————————
D: ————————————————

E: ———————————————————–
B: 21-20-21-20-18-17-18-20-18-17—15-17-18——————-
G: —————————–17 ———17-15-17-15——-
D: —————————————————–18-17-

3. chords for 0:58 - 1:23

G: ———————————————————————
D: —–2——-4—3————8——-2——-4—3———–8——
A: -4—0—6—2—1—3—6—-6—4—0—6—2—1—3—6—6—2–
E: -2——-4———–1—4—-6—2——-4———–1—4—6—0–

4. tapping lead at 1:25 ( / = slide )
t t
E: ————————————–
B: ————————————–
G: 9^12^16/17/16^12^9^12^16/17/16^9——
D: ———————————10^9-
A: ————————————–
E: ————————————–
t t
E: ———————————————-
B: ———————————————-
G: ———————————————-
D: ———————————————-
A: 10^9^7^10^14/15/14^10^7^10^14/15^10^7———
E: ————————————–8^7^3^2-

I swear that I know you
From a dark shadowed corner of time
Are you cast in imagination
Or were you a part of my life?

Some clouded revelation
A lost chapter I may never find
Will the haze break away and bring light to the day
Or will mystery prevail in my mind?

Now I hear you in my dreams
And I feel you in my soul again
From what depths you’ve risen
I may never know

So I’ll keep you in my dreams
And attempt to hold you safe within
Until my mind’s eye will
Let the clouds unfold

As my memory awakens
A vision meets me in the night
Of misery dressed up in sadness
As water flows free from her eyes

Draped all in crimson
Body and cloth flow as one
The gleam of the blade and the pain it has made
Burn hot as the noon day sun

What is this hell I’ve walked up on?
She lies there silently, and cries in the night

I know there is no way to save her
Or to comfort her
So I’ll hold her close to me
Until all the pain has died

Now I hear you in my dreams
And I feel you in my soul again
All the pain you went through
I may never know

So I’ll keep you in my dreams
And attempt to hold you safe within
As my memory haunts me
With a life that’s been thrown
Away..

I awoke from a power nap with a full song’s melody stuck in my head.

I tracked it quickly to prevent losing it, and wrote lyrics the next day..
I’ll post the song once it’s finished!

Fair is an interesting word. By definition, it is, beyond all doubt, a strictly human idea.

I watch my cat and dog interact daily. “Fair” is not in their vocabulary. The dog believes, “What’s mine is mine, and what’s yours is also mine.” It is not fair; it’s nature.

I’ve come to realize “fair” holds NO weight in the animal kingdom.

I will eat you because I’m hungry; and I can.

You are weak and cannot keep up with the herd. Goodbye.

I will push you out of the nest because you’re retarded. You won’t survive on your own, and I don’t have the patience to take care of you forever.

*Retarded: Occurring or developing later than desired or expected; delayed. Having only a limited ability to learn and understand*

Retardation is both mental and physical. It’s another word, not an insult. Get over it.

“Fair” is a word created by crybabies and the supporters of crybabies. It’s one of the first “politically correct” words, before polically correctness was “in".

The ONLY place “fair” has a place is where “rules” are involved. However, “rules” is another of the “human only” ideals.

In the animal kingdom, if two creatures fight each other and one loses, the loser doesn’t sue the winner or accuse him of cheating. He’s usually eaten by his cousin.

Oh, that’s not FAIR!

Well, the world is not fair..

Unless you’re a human; then fairness is expected and demanded.