I have been working on a remix of the song “Gathering Pebbles” by Dredg for a competition. This is my first full song remix I have ever done and I’m really stoked on how it turned out.

I’m calling the remix the “Natural Remix” because I decided that I wanted the remix to keep the natural Dredg feel. So instead of over warping the tracks and adding synth drums, I mixed the music so it would sound like an original Dredg song but not stray to far from the original that it would be an abomination.

Please give it a listen and let me know what you think. You can also vote on it and share it with other people. Enjoy!

Here is a screenshot of the intro, I did the entire remix in Adobe Premiere and used 20 separate tracks to complete it.

Click here to check out all the other remixes.

I’m on health kick and I’m using the point system that Weight Watchers has developed. Evidently, you have to be a Weight Watchers member to have access to their points calculator. So here is a simple Weight Watchers point calculator that I made so I can check points anytime, from my phone, pc, or any other web enabled device.

http://www.zachbarrett.com/points

As you might already know, I have the Motorola Droid smart phone. About a week ago while browsing through the Android Marketplace I stumbled upon a sweet app that shows you all the recent earthquakes on a map that happen around the world. Within the first hour after installing the app, it alerted me about 4 separate earthquakes in different parts of the world that had more than 5 magnitudes. For a moment I thought the world was coming to an end. So I did what any other person would have done, I rushed to my computer and started looking up earthquake data and came to the following conclusions:

Apparently, large earthquakes are happening all the time and it is not unheard of to have over 30 significant earthquakes (over 2.5) in a day. We only hear about earthquakes when they do insurmountable amounts of damage or have large death tolls. The earth is as dynamic as it was 2 million years ago, and 2 million years from now it will remain as dynamic (BTW: I have no facts to back that up).  It’s kind of cool when you think about it and take it all into perspective.

Rising Tide Solutions is an information technology business located on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. RTS specializes is graphic design, web development, application development, networking and IT technical support.

The Rising Tide Solutions team consists of Chad Heller and me, Zach Barrett.

Recently the Rising Tide Solutions logo was redesigned. Along with the new logo we will be redesigning our website. The main goal of the website redesign is to better showcase our services and to make it easier for our current and future clients to connect with RTS. The new site will leverage popular social media and a unique clean design.

Some of the exciting new features of the site will include:

• An extensive portfolio showcasing the design and innovation that Rising Tide Solutions produces.

• A self help section, where users will have everything they need at their fingertips to ward off computer viruses and malware and even request remote assistance.

The new website will launch Tuesday, November 17 at 1:00 AM EST.

We have a Night-Blooming Cereus in our office and when the bud appeared we decided to set up a cam to capture a time lapse of the bloom. Here is the video. Enjoy!

Music
Artist: Dredg
Track: Stamp Of Origin: Pessimistic
Album: The Pariah, the Parrot, the Delusion

A long time ago, about 4 years or so, my good friend Chad Heller started to teach me how to surf. After I was hooked we would often plan morning surf sessions before work, where we worked for the same organization. At the time I lived in a small development called Captains Cove and Chad lived in the large suburb, Modest Town, VA. Every morning would start off with dragging my lifeless body out of bed and to a computer to check SurfLine only to hear Dennis with the local report say the waves suck.

One day I decided that there must be a way that we could get the report before getting out of bed. So I looked into buoy data sources and weather station data sources and saw that NOAA was updating all their data and letting anyone access it. So I instantly started programming.

The first part I programmed was just a basic display of the current conditions in tabular form that used the data from the Deleware Bay buoy. The data was off by a foot and sometimes two. I didn’t take into account how far out to sea the buoy was and how far away Assateague is from Deleware Bay.

Utilizing Chad’s knowledge of the surf, I developed an algorithm that pulls data from the Deleware Bay buoy, the Virginia Beach buoy and multiple weather stations along the cost. After much tweaking the data became more and more consistently correct.

My next task was to somehow get the data sent to our cell phones early in the morning so we could check our phones and roll back over and go back to sleep. Once I figured out how to achieve the task a set it up and let a few other friends join in. Everyone seemed to really like the reports, so I thought maybe other people might find it useful as well. So I registered the domain, surfassateague.com, and the site was born.

I set it up to allow people to sign up for 3 different reports; 5am, Noon, and 5pm. I set up the main page to display the current conditions and the tide info. Shortly after that I started adding webcams to the site. Sadly no webcams exist for Assateague on both Maryland side and Virginia side, so I was forced to use Ocean City cams and broaden the report to include Ocean City.

Since its initial development Surfassateague.com has not changed much beside a couple features added here and there such as; a tide calendar, the beach cam array, a tropical weather section. Surfassateague.com became my hobby site where I would tweak and adjust little things just to make life a little easier for surfers and myself.

I have often flirted with the idea of shutting the site down now that SwellInfo is around and almost every cell phone can browse the web now. Surfassateague.com was never meant to compete against any other site. The only purpose it has and will ever have is to be simple and free and to fill a niche that allows me to sleep in.

The future of Surfassateague.com is SurfDelmarva.com. Using the same basic algorithms developed for SurfAssateague.com. DelMarVa will be broken down by beach with its own report and web cams. SurfDelmarva.com will use a completely different approach to web development by utilizing the mainstream social media sites. One of the new and exciting features will be Scout Reports, which will let anybody who has signed up to submit a live report, photo, and even video from the beach with their cell phone.

SurfDelmarva.com and Surfassateague.com will always be free and always remain humble no matter how awesome they become.

For more information on SurfDelmarva.com check out Surf Delmarva’s Facebook.

1. Blackberry Messenger 5: Avatars, bar codes (QR codes), and links to BB contacts. Get it via BlackBerry Rocks (read the disclaimer). BBM5 has not been released yet so the download links may disappear pretty soon. *Got BBM 5? Click here to add me.*
2. ÜberTwitter: An amazing twitter app, supports multiple accounts, image and video thumbnails, and so much more. Get it for free or Ad free for $4.99 via ubertwitter.com.
   There are only two downfalls:
   1. The free version has ads, but they are few and far between and the way they integrate with the time line is the most elegant way, so I actually don’t mind them.
   2. It uses its own image hosting service instead of TwitPic, so I am forced to email my pics to TwitPic. If ÜberTwitter ever starts to support TwitPic uploads, I would defiantly buy it.
3. TetherBerry: Allows you to use your BlackBerry as a modem without having to pay for the tethering service by using your phone’s data service. The app has two parts; one you install on as many desktops as you want and the other part that you install on your BlackBerry. It costs $49.95 but that’s a onetime cost that practically pays for itself in two months. Get it via tetherberry.com.
4. Facebook: I love the integration with the message inbox, and the picture browsing. It is a superb app. Get it for free via BlackBerry App World.
5. Google Maps: Because of Latitude, lets you see where your friends are. Get it for free via Google.
6. Nintaii: The best Blackberry game ever! Get it for $6.99 via BlackBerry App World.
7. Force Radio On: – Lets you force the radio on when your battery is too low. You can also do it by checking for updates but this way is two clicks quicker. Get it for free via the CrackBerryApp Store.
8. Verizon’s Visual Voice Mail: How did I live without this? Downloads voicemails and lets you click on whichever one you want to listen to, also ties in with your contacts so you can see who the voicemail is from instead of just a phone number. Well worth the $2.99 a month. It should already be installed on your BlackBerry if you are a Verizon Wireless customer. If not, you can download it via the Application Center on you device.
9. WeatherBug: This is not the best weather app but it’s in my favorites because it is free and it updates it’s icon with the current weather. That’s really all I want in a weather app. Get it for free via the BlackBerry App World.
10. BlackBerry App World: A must have for every BlackBerry owner. Allows you to browse and download applications directly to your device. Get it for free via BlackBerry.com.

BONUS!

• QuickPull: If you are a Storm owner or for some reason your BlackBerry device gets bogged down, you probably end up popping the battery out to give your device a quick refresh. The QuickPull application simulates the battery pull. It also allows you to schedule a restart. I set mine to reboot at 3am so my BlackBerry is ready to go. Get it for free via the CrackBerry App Store.

It all started a couple of days ago while Lori, Noel and I were all in the living room. Noel was sitting at her little table in front of the television eating a cut up hot dog and macaroni and cheese. On the television was a kid’s show called Max & Ruby.

Max & Ruby highlights the interactions of a three year old brother, Max, and his seven year old sister, Ruby. Each episode revolves around the solitary word that Max can say for the entire episode as Ruby is always trying to accomplish something completely opposite of what Max aspires. Ruby is always trying to get Max to go play quietly somewhere else by himself so Ruby can entertain her stuffed animal tea party or play with a friend. During each episode Ruby makes multiple bad judgment calls when acting as guardian to Max. Absolutely no adults are present with the exception of their grandmother whom resides down the street and rarely stops by for more than a few minutes. On some occasions an adult might make an appearance, such as a next door neighbor to comment on Max playing with his shadow or a bus driver which evidently will wait 15 minutes for Ruby to run back and forth from her house as she remembers individual items that she forgot, only then to realize that she doesn’t have enough money to ride the bus, as her grandmother shows up because she grew weary of waiting for Max and Ruby to show up on the bus at her house. But I digress…

While Lori and I were sitting there we started poking fun at the cartoon by mocking the voices or trying to guess what word that Max was going to say for the episode. So as any “normal” person would do, I sent out a simple tweet that at the time was meant to poke humor at one of the many idiocracies of the show. The tweet stated the following:

I personally think that Ruby is not a suitable guardian for Max. Join the fight against child neglect. Boycott “Max & Ruby“

Shortly after that I started to get replies and facebook messages that could generally be summed up by “LOL! I Agree!” I was both surprised and intrigued at the general consensus which evidently leads to me blogging the subject.

Throughout my viewings of the show I have picked up on quite a few somewhat small but largely irritating flaws (if you will) with the show. So like any blogger knows, the best way to get your point across and get more readers is to make lists. So here is a list of things that bother me about the show Max & Ruby.

• Ruby is seven years old, Max is three, and there are no parents to be found. In some states there is a legal limit for what age your child must be before leaving him/her home alone. That limit averages to be about 12 years of age.
• Max only gets one word per episode. I have a three year old and she can say more than one word per day. Perhaps if Max could say more than one word, Ruby could neglect him more efficiently by knowing what he is talking about and mitigating the problem so she can send him back into solitude.
• There is no possible way that the fences around their house can physically stand. There are no supports and each section of fence has a peculiar puzzle like end that looks as it would interconnect with the next section but the sections are separated by a large gap.
• Max has no friends; he has gravity defying toys, but no friends.
• The toys that Max plays with do everything but follow the rules of physics. If you seen the show you will know what I mean.
• Max & Ruby wastes electricity. In my case, a fifty inch DLP tuned to a standard definition television channel, such as Noggin, is not completely utilizing the television but is in fact using the same amount of electricity it would viewing high definition programming.
• I some cases, such as Max & Ruby marathons. Bleeding from orifices such as the ears and nose has occurred. If you experience this, contact emergency personnel immediately. (OK, I got carried away on this one.)

This blog post is meant to be a satire and should really not be taken seriously, or should it? Although annoying, “Max & Ruby“ is nothing more than a show produced for kids, or is it?

Ever hear a song and think to yourself  “I have heard this before somewhere”. Well a long time ago I saw this video and at a Dredg show in Philly on 4/16/2009 before the latest album was released they opened with this song and I remember how familiar it felt.

So without further ado, here is a video of Dredg performing “Heckler” on 11/09/2006.  “Heckler” is now know as “Ireland” on their latest album “The Pariah, the Parrot, the Delusion“. Enjoy!

Click here to watch the video on YouTube.

If you liked this video be sure to check out their performance of “Same Ol’ Road” from the same show.

1. “day blessed life”
   
   • Meaning: An interjection used to express surprise or pain etc.
   • Location: Chincoteague Island, VA
   • Example: Day blessed life, the tide hasn’t been this high since ‘62.
2. “christ Almighty”
   
   • Meaning: An interjection used to express surprise or pain etc.
   • Location: Tangier Island, VA
   • Example: Christ almighty judge, you can’t tong clams in ninety foot of water.
3. “like the dickens”
   
   • Meaning: A lot.
   • Location: Eastern Shore
   • Example: Good god almighty, that hurt like the dickens.
4. “jibblets”
   
   • Meaning: Another word for knickknacks, a small trivial article usually intended for ornament.
   • Location: Tangier Island, VA
   • Example: Look at all those jibblets sitting there collecting dust.
5. “talk a flood tide down”
   
   • Meaning: Talking a lot.
   • Location: Eastern Shore
   • Example: Jenna could talk a flood tide down.
6. “went up”
   
   • Meaning: when something breaks or quits working
   • Location: Eastern Shore
   • Example: I had to head up to WalMart to get me a new air conditioner because my old one went up.
7. “pack of nabs”
   
   • Meaning: A small six pack of crackers of any brand.
   • Location: Eastern Shore
   • Example: Hey Bryan, could you pass me a pack of nabs?
8. “spigot”
   
   • Meaning: A faucet.
   • Location: Eastern Shore
   • Example: I got to hook this here hose up to the spigot so I can water the horses.
9. “frigidaire”
   
   • Meaning: Another word for a refrigerator.
   • Location: Eastern Shore
   • Example: I just put some cokes in the frigidaire, they should be cold soon.
10. “zink”
    
    • Meaning: sink.
    • Location: Eastern Shore
    • Example: I need to do the dishes, the zink is overflowing.