I'm really not a big fan of Facebook (see item #3 below). Furthermore, I normally ignore this type of thing when it comes into my inbox, regardless of the source.
This time around, I figured I'd break down and participate. Here are 25 random things about myself that you may or may not know (or even care about).
1. I type around 100 wpm. A side effect is that I'm way too verbose when I type (good luck reading all 25 items!).
2. I love animals. Especially dogs.
3. I hate Facebook. Seriously. I'm really glad it's gotten me back in touch with Surge and Chad (though I need to email them both), but I don't like the spam from all the different apps, don't like the pitiful security, and don't understand people who refuse to communicate online via any method other than Facebook.
4. I love snow. One of my best friends (Jeff) once said he's never seen me get as excited about anything as I do Christmas and puppies. He should have included snow.
5. I'm a realist. Many people consider me annoying pessimistic, and an equal number consider me annoyingly optimistic. Both groups are wrong. I consider myself a realist. I usually play "devil's advocate," and I value balance. It's important to see all sides of an issue and to see things as they really are.
6. I've spent most of my adult life dealing with Social Anxiety Disorder. Yes, I know, that might seem odd for someone who's a host on four podcasts, has conducted interviews, and has been interviewed himself. However, as of about five years ago, it was nearly crippling.
7. I run a podcast network at the site RandomChatter.com. The main show, named after the site, covers primarily entertainment-related news. MovieChatter is primarily movie reviews. LostChatter is dedicated to the ABC television show "Lost". TechChatter covers gadgets and technology.
8. I love classical music, but I hate opera. I love techno but hate disco. I don't like reggae or country. Bluegrass actually makes me feel violent. Otherwise, I enjoy just about every genre and style of music.
9. I love science fiction. I prefer future-based sci-fi, but I enjoy all sci-fi's subcategories. There's nothing in the world quite like a good sci-fi story.
10. I don't read nearly enough -- primarily because I have a hard time finding authors I like. My favorite book is "Ender's Game". My favorite short story is "Second Variety" by Phillip K. Dick, though generally I prefer Asimov. I prefer ebooks to physical books -- the benefits of portability and a back-lit screen are awesome.
11. I'm a movie buff. My favorite movies are Star Wars, The Matrix, Blade Runner, Dark City, Serenity, Memento, the new Batman films, Donnie Darko, and Kung Pow.
12. I don't watch much television, but I'm very dedicated to the shows I do watch. Current favorites: Lost, BSG, The Office, Scrubs. Favorites no longer aired: Firefly, Babylon 5, Arrested Development, Stargate Atlantis, MST3K.
13. I can solve a Rubik's Cube in just under a minute (on a good day). I can solve the Rubik's Revenge (4x4x4) and Professor's Cube (5x) in under 5 minutes and 10 minutes respectively. Haven't had the opportunity to try a V-Cube 6 (6x) nor a V-Cube 7 (7x).
14. There are many classic movies I've never seen. Were this to get out, I'd endure endless ridicule. These include such films as The Godfather, Cassablanca, Jaws, most of the James Bond movies, Shawshank Redemption, and The Big Lebowski.
15. I failed every year of English in high school except my senior year, which I almost failed. I went to summer school between each year. Why did I fail? Chronic writer's block. I didn't turn in any essays nor complete any essay tests. I could never get past the first paragraph before tearing it up and starting over. If only we could have used computers back then... and if only I'd applied myself more while I was in school...
16. Even though I've always worked in tech-related fields, primarily IT, my major in college was Psychology. I wanted to eventually have my own practice.
17. I'm a night owl. I have a hard time going to bed earlier than midnight. I also have a hard time with early mornings, no matter how much sleep I may have gotten.
18. While I stand by my statement that my Apple TV is the best gadget I've gotten in recent history (perhaps besides my iPhone), and while I look forward to building up a library of content for my media center that can be accessed on-demand, I still prefer watching high-definition content, even if it means breaking out a physical disc.
19. I hate talking on the telephone. To anyone. No exceptions.
20. I have an embarrasingly large amount of trivia knowledge about Star Wars, Babylon 5, and Lost.
21. I don't like sports. I enjoy going to hockey games, but that's it. Don't like football, baseball, soccer, basketball, etc.
22. I've never had a nickname that's stuck.
23. My wife and I are about to have our first chlid. I've wanted to be a father for ages now, though I'm not sure I'm ready for it. And, of course, I'm scared. I hope that's a healthy sign.
24. I used to be an avid comic book reader. I miss comics. My favorites were Batman, Deadpool, Nightwing, Bone, Cerebus, and the late-80's/early-90's X-Men.
25. As much as I rip on Microsoft, I don't actively get into the whole "Mac vs. PC" argument. However, I plan to only buy Macs for the foreseeable future. Why not, when it allows you to run both operating systems?
Thought I comment and inquire further..
3. What do you mean poor security? I’m not a huge Web developer so maybe I missed something. As for the other parts, meh it is a great time waster.
6. What changed? (if it is not too personal) Just wondering since it is so surprising.
10. Got a Kindle? I got my aunt one for Xmas and she can’t put the thing down, she hated ebooks though.
13. Video or it didn’t happen…No but would be interesting to see. Does it have something to do with Number 6.
14. JAWS, you didn’t see JAWS! The rest meh, but JAWS!
18. Blue ray plug?
19. I hear you on that, but what guy doesn’t…but recently on TC you said you don’t Text…so what do you do with your iPhone?
22. Mint Condition didn’t, or Mint for short.
25. Meh it is like the console wars, people just love to fight. Personally the only reason I stick with PC is because I can upgrade it, as far as I know you can’t upgrade a MAC. Anyway for laptops it is all about Mac, after 2 PC notebooks I think I will keep buying Macbooks.
3. There have been reports since FB’s creation of various security leaks. They’re probably resolved now. Still, I don’t trust them, and I certainly don’t trust the third-parties who use their API.
6. Not really sure. Things started to improve after my divorce (2003), after which I had an incredibly bad year. The following year (2004) went much better. I got off of the medication I had been taking for the S.A.D. Not really sure what changed at that point, but I got better.
I won’t say it’s not still an issue. I do better in a professional setting now than I used to, but I can still be abnormally shy around people I don’t know in casual settings, especially at parties and large gatherings.
And #19 is a result of the S.A.D. I *REALLY* hate using the phone. Like, I get stressed out if I have to make phone calls. When I order out for delivery, 75% of the time it’s through some place that takes online orders.
10. Had thought about it. But I’ve been using eReader.com for years now, so when they came out with an iPhone app, I started using that again. And now Stanza. I’m sure I’d be happy with a Kindle (though no backlight, right?), but I don’t want to carry multiple devices.
13. “Video or it didn’t happen.” Heh… You know, eye-witnesses are still permissible in a court of law. ;) You’ll likely never see a video of me doing anything (I’m camera shy). And why post a video of me solving it in 60 seconds when you can watch far cooler ones of someone solving it in 14 seconds? Or 7 seconds?
14. [sigh] I know, I know…
18. Wasn’t trying to be format-specific, but sure. :) Still, HD content from iTunes on my AppleTV is great. I’m installing Boxee on my AppleTV this weekend, and once Hulu does HD, that’ll be great too. And at some point I’ll probably get a Roku box (I hear they’re HD now too).
It’s less about the specific format, but yes, Blu-Ray is what triggered this preference in me. I’m just finding that I like high-definition content enough that I’ll sacrifice some convenience for it.
19. I do text, just very rarely. Usually to Ren. And 99% of my phone calls are to Ren.
What else do I use it for? Listening to podcasts while driving. Streaming radio while at work. Television shows while at work or at lunch. Task management wherever. Email, both work and personal (a lot). Tracking finances. Ebooks. Grabbing text-heavy websites for offline reading (Instapaper). Games. Looking stuff up (Google or Wikipedia). Looking up the nearest _____ to my current location. Spontaneously adding something to my Netflix queue. Plus the “normal” stuff (calendar, contacts, etc.).
25. You can upgrade a Mac if you get the regular “Mac”. But nobody does. They get the iMac or a laptop. Still, I agree with your point. PCs are generally easier to upgrade.
I’ve owned (or been assigned via work) seven laptops now, if you count Ren’s netbook. My MacBook has easily been my favorite so far. The netbook is second.
My “OS Wars” thing is mainly just that I’ve always had issues with Windows’ design and stability. To be fair, it’s difficult to make a plug-and-play OS with that many different third-party devices and programs. I respect that. I just see a billion ways to make Windows better (now that I think about it, I really miss Litestep).
I have less issues with the Mac OS’s design. But most importantly, I can also run Windows on it. And with recent hardware improvements, I can even do Windows gaming on it. And like it or not, I very much live in both worlds. So I’ll be getting Macs exclusively for the foreseeable future.