Yeah… Really. I’m not going to stop writing here, though. I’ve been wanting to write about tech news, products, and people for a while now, but didn’t think that that content would really fit on my personal blog. Yeah, once in a while, it’s fine, but if my personal blog became all about tech news… I just don’t think that would be a good use of this space.

So, I’ve launched beigealert.com (layout and features still being worked on). There I’ll be writing about the world of technology, the Internet, video games, and anything in between. The one stand-out feature of beigealert.com is how I categorize each story. Instead of categorizing a story about Google’s and Facebook’s knowledge of our personal information like this,

Google, Facebook, privacy, Internet, Social Networking

I’ll be putting each story into only one of three categories:

Good

Evil

Neutral

That’s it. So the story about Google and Facebook would probably go under Evil since it’s kind of scary thinking about how much information a company like Google or Facebook has on us. But, it could also go underNeutral since yeah, it’s scary, but if it makes searching for restaurants in my area that suit my tastes, then it’s kind of cool! So, it really depends on the story.

Beigealert.com is up and ready for your perusal. Check it out and if you wish, let me know what you think!

Our webcomic Boy-vs-Girl, has grown up been updated!

It’s now AJAX based, so switching between comics is really quick since basically the only things that have to load -after the initial load- are the comic and the write up. It’s a welcome change because the old site ran kinda too slow for our tastes. Like this site, it ran on a WordPress back end, but because of all the plugins and straight up hacks I installed, it was too heavy to run efficiently. Basically, it was over encumbered.

In case you don’t know, or remember, boy-vs-girl.com is a site built by me, drawn by Davy Bell, and written by Heather Whitney. It’s more than 2 years old… That’s pretty impressive for a hobby project, innit?

Go check it out,

Thanks!

I’m currently in between jobs with some time on my hands, so for a quick and dirty project, I created this jQuery clock. It’s using jQuery to animate the digits and, because I said, “Hey, why not” it’s using CSS3 animations to animate the background which creeps up every second and fades into the ether every 10 seconds.

It’s not perfect, though. It’s not optimized for mobile… at all. And it’s because I made it for a debatably useless purpose: to display the time (and only the time) on my aging iBook G4. Yup, there’s an iBook G4 in my bedroom that’s sole purpose is to display the time in a fancy manner and in a web browser. No judging.

Take a look: Fade Away clock (jQuery + CSS3)

I’ve been living here for a little more than two months now, and I’ve enjoyed just about every single moment. One thing that makes this possible is the way in which my living accommodations have been set up for me.

I do not live in a single apartment (which I’m sure would have its advantages). Instead, I live in a dorm-like type building with seven other English teachers from around the world. I think I got lucky that everyone I live with is super awesome. They listen to good music, watch good movies, and party hard. So who do I live with? Let’s name drop a little, shall we?

Continued after the break… click “more”

Representing the USA…

Brian (Boston)

Lisa (Boston)

Jehan (Chicago) - I stole the above and below pictures off of Facebook profiles. Jehan doesn’t have Facebook

Representing England…

Neil (Liverpool)

Cassie (Liverpool)

and Representing Canada …

Viviane (Montreal)

Matt (Nova Scotia)

So that’s everyone.

Now, I’ll walk you through our Fortrastle (couldn’t decide between Fortress of Castle. Instead of me describing where I live through writing, I have uploaded a video walk-through of the Fortrastle. So, parts 1 and 2 are embedded below:

Part 1

Part 2

I’m really proud of the school I’m teaching at in Busan, South Korea, so I made a video walk-through of it. I explain a lot about the school in the video, so there’s not much to really write here. It’s a little lengthy, coming in at almost 20 minutes, but if you’re interested at all, it’s worth a watch. This school is pretty darn impressive. Tell me if you agree.

I’m also currently writing a post about my first few weeks in Korea. It’s taking a while and I may end up splitting it into many parts since it’s so tightly packed with… words.

ANYWAYS, Part 1 and 2 of the video walk-through are posted right after the break. So hit the “more” link and watch!

Part 1

Part 2

Now, I’m a pretty proud nerd. I’m not embarrassed in the slightest about it. I just never realized how many nerdy things I actually do. There’s a lot. A lot more than 50. That’s for sure.

I decided to list them.

There are some things in the below list that you may believe are not that nerdy, but I included everything that I believe makes me nerdy. So read on, and if you can think of other nerdy things about me, let me know about them in the comments section.

50 Totally Nerdy Things About Me

1. I made an iPhone stand(rotates between portrait and landscape mode) out of Lego

2. I also made one out of paper, and affixed an Apple logo on it.

3. I listen to podcasts regularly (Joystiq is my favorite).

4. I read comic books (100 Bullets is my favorite).

5. I have a subscription to Wired magazine.

Click the “more” link to see way more.

6. I’m an Apple fanboy.

7. I’m an expert user of both Mac OSX and Windows.

8. I have installed Linux on my PS3.

9. I own a PS3, 360, Wii, PSP, and two DSs.

10. At the moment, there are over 20 devices plugged into outlets all over my room.

11. I’m on Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, and a bunch of other social networks.

12. I read Digg daily.

13. I have a midi keyboard and I use it with programs like Ableton Live, Garageband, and Reason.

14. I record my own music on my computer.

15. I play the guitar, piano, and drums (super novice on drums though).

16. Except on Rock Band where I’m able to play hard and expert difficulty on drums.

17. I own 4 Apple devices and I’ll most definitely be acquiring more in the future.

18. I have a jailbroken iPhone.

19. I own three different kinds of headphones because I’m very particular on how I use them. I have one fairly expensive pair of cans for home use only, one pair of cheap $20 cans for outdoor use, and a pair of iPhone earbuds with the microphone built in for portable use and for talking to people if I bike somewhere.

20. I own the box set of Home Movies.

21. I enjoy both Buffy and Dollhouse.

22. I make websites for money and just for fun.

23. I know many programming languages. Some are HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Java, ActionScript, PHP. Oh, and Visual Basic!

24. I have movie posters of “The Magnificent Seven”, “Fight Club”, and “The Girl.”

25. I have read at least 5 books by Chuck Palahniuk.

26. My Mac is always running at least 6 programs at once. Usually, more than 12 are running.

27. I modded my Xbox to install and run Xbox Media Center. The mod involved hot swapping hard drives.

28. My current desktop set up includes two monitors.

29. I know the names of many video game developers, companies, and even journalists.

30. Before seeing most movies, I check their reviews on Rotten Tomatoes to make sure it’s worth seeing them.

31. I loved university and almost all of my classes.

32. I own the 2001: A Space Oddyssey soundtrack.

33. Each day when I wake up, I reach for my iPhone and check Twitter, Facebook, my email, and my RSS feeds. All before even getting up out of bed.

34. I had (now gave away) over 30 Rock Band t-shirts.

35. I can tell the difference between MP3 and CD quality.

36. I regularly control my computer remotely, either through another computer somewhere else, or through my iPhone.

37. I video chat through iChat regularly.

38. I warn my new girlfriends about my love for video games. So they know what they’re getting themselves into.

39. I played Magic: The Gathering card game for a while.

40. I’m contemplating getting the $150+ Prestige Edition of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for the included night vision goggles.

41. I get called by many friends asking me questions about video games.

42. I keep the boxes of all of my gadgets and show them off on a bookcase.

43. I routed a 50ft Ethernet cable through my house to plug in the 360. Kept it wired so there would be no lag in online games.

44. I hate wires so my keyboard and mouse are both Bluetooth enabled.

45. I own a record player that I use a lot. I update my library frequently.

46. I used to work at a video game store.

47. I used to work for a music and movie store.

48. I have videogame soundtracks.

49. I want to work at Google.

50. I made a list of 50 things that make me nerdy and I posted it on my blog.

Like I stated earlier, there’s probably much more, but these are some that come to mind right away.

I love you,

Adam Sawicki.

I have a beer gut. It’s not huge, but it’s there. And it’s definitely noticeable. I knew something had to be done about it, because not only do I not look as good as I used to, I don’t feel as good as I used to either.

I have wanted to start a regular workout for a few months now, but I have never been able to keep myself motivated enough to keep at it. That’s where technology and a little magazine called Wired comes in. Wired’s July issue, titled Living by Numbers had a lot of great articles detailing just how tracking your workout can help you burn fat, gain muscle, feel better, look better, and teach you a lot about yourself. If you’re curious, check out this article which was also published online: Know Thyself: Tracking Every Facet of Life, from Sleep to Mood to Pain, 24/7/365.

So what am I doing, using, and monitoring to help me feel better? First of all, I have to say that without Apple’s iPhone, this routine I’ve started could never have come to fruition. Check it out (after the break):

To monitor my food intake, I use a free app found on Apple’s iTunes App Store called Lose it (Warning: iTunes link). I use Lose it mostly to monitor my daily calorie intake. The app sets out a daily calorie budget based on the information you provide (your weight, your goal weight, your age, how much weight you want to lose per week), which you should not go over to maintain a weight loss. It also tracks nutrient information, like how much fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, etc you consume, but I’m not that hardcore about it. At least not yet.

Basically, if I eat something, I input that food or drink into the daily log, and the app then tells me how many calories I have consumed. This eats away at my daily calorie budget. I then only have a certain amount of calories left to consume for the rest of the day. BUT, if I go on a jog or a bike ride, I can input that exercise into my daily log, and the app will then tell me how many calories I’ve burnt. This will of course increase the remaining calories I am allowed to consume for the rest of the day. It’s not just about eating less, it’s also about exercising and burning calories.

Here are some screenshots of Lose It!

That’s how I keep track of my food intake. Now what else do I do?

I use an app called RunKeeper (Warning: iTunes link) to track my running, biking, and rollerblading workouts. This is actually one of my favourite apps on the App Store. It’s free as well, but there is also Pro version available for $9.99.

RunKeeper is not only an iPhone app but a web app as well. On the iPhone side, RunKeeper uses GPS to keep track of where you ran, how fast you ran, how far you’ve run, and updates you on your status through your headphones while you’re running. You don’t ever really have to look back at the screen. You just start your music in the iPod app on your iPhone, switch over to RunKeeper, click Start, throw the phone in your pocket, and start running.

After your run, the app asks you if you want to save your workout. After you click yes, it uploads all of the info it collected onto RunKeeper.com, where you’ve set up an account. At the site, there’s a boatload of information for your perusal. It’s absolutely insane how much information there is for you to absorb. The best part: the app uploads your route onto Google Maps so you can see exactly where you’ve run and how far you’ve run. The cool thing is that it doesn’t try to stick the route onto roads. If you ran through a park, it’ll show that you’ve run through the park, not the road beside the park. It’s awesome. Have a look at the interface by checking out a 24.3km bike ride Heather and I went on yesterday:

And here’s a closer look. It’s also through the “hybrid” view of Google Maps:

Not only does it track some of the statistics you saw in the second last screenshot, but it also tracks your speed based on elevation and how long it took you to complete each kilometre. I’d upload more screenshots, but I think the bombardment of images in this post is complete.

I use these two apps almost religiously now. They keep me motivated. I didn’t think tracking my food intake and workouts could be so motivating, rewarding, and helpful in achieving my goals, but as soon as I saw the impressive technology at my (and ANYONE’S) disposal, I immediately got drawn in to tracking my body’s improvement.

Apart from feeling more healthy, I’m also amazed at just how technology STILL impresses and excites me. From video games to working out, technology has yet to cease to amaze me. It’s absolutely mind boggling to think that I can do all of the above (and much much more) with a device that fits into my pocket and an internet connection.

Right now, mobile technology and the internet are my two favourite things. And they’re helping me get (and hopefully stay) in better shape.

I found the above fortune in a Mandarin fortune cookie earlier today just hours after receiving my double degree in paper form. I think this is a good sign.

More important than fortune cookies and Chinese buffets is the fact that I have graduated! It took me four years, but I did it. Most people aren’t aware that I wasn’t at just one campus for my entire university career. Because the New Media program I was accepted into was a joint program, I moved around quite a bit.

So actually, my first 2 years were spent at the University of Toronto at Scarborough campus, the next full year was spent at the Centennial College HP campus, the summer after my third year was spent first attending an internship course at the Centennial College Centre for Creative Communications and second, attending summer school at the University of Toronto St. George campus while simultaneously interning at a small new media company’s office as a junior producer, and my final fourth year was spent back at the University of Toronto at Scarborough campus. What a ride.

In total, in the four years I attended university/college classes, I attended 4 different school campuses and 1 work place as a student intern. Why am I giving this so much attention? Because after reading the above fortune and reminiscing about my education for a little bit, I realized that this constant change-up of location greatly enhanced my education and has given me more experience in a rapidly changing and evolving world than I asked for. And that’s good!

I’m now ready for almost anything. I can’t wait to see what my future holds in store for me. Without a doubt, the options presented in front of me are expanded considerably because of my time at University of Toronto. So yeah, thanks UofT!

Click the More button to see a somewhat awkward jumping picture of me celebrating my freedom from sleepless nights of essay writing and hair pulling days of coding.

Last night, Davy Bell, Heather Whitney, and I launched a new website. It’s a webcomic about relationships. It’s pretty funny, I think. I’m pretty sure you’ll find it funny too. So, if you haven’t already scooted over to boy-vs-girl.com, you’re probably just waiting for me to describe the site a bit more. Well, for you, and only you, I’ll quote our talented writer’s description of our website:

After sitting down and discussing relationships we realized, that despite how wrong everything can go, in the end, relationships are funny…to someone. This site was created in the hopes that you, who have been in a relationship or two, or are in one now, recognize the similarity between yourselves and the characters in our comic… and from there you can begin to laugh with or at us.

We’re going to be updating the site on a weekly basis, so definitely check it out and keep coming back.

Love,

Adam Sawicki.

*Photo credit: Heather Whitney

I’m free. See that sailboat? See how free it looks just floating ever so freely? It’s untethered, unconfined, unchained, unrestrained, unrestricted, free and clear. That’s me. I’m the boat. Before metamorphosing into this boat, I was tethered, confined, chained, and restricted by school. Now the thing is: I enjoyed my time at university and I believe that my time there has been beneficial to me, but it kept me away from friends, family, and my own ideas and projects that I wanted to create, explore, and work on.

Enough with the complaints! I’m done! I have a lot of time on my hands right now. A LOT. One of the things I’m currently working on is just about to launch. It’s a project between me and two friends of mine, one of whom is more than a mere friend to me. Heh. If you know me, you’ll hear about this project very soon. Keep an eye on this space, my Facebook, and/or my Twitter account.

What else? Well, I want to create more and more! If you’ve got any ideas, let me know.

That’s it for now, I guess. I’ll be updating this here blog much more often now. Actually, you know what? Let’s try to update this blog daily. I’m up for it. Yes! Here we go…

Love,

Adam Sawicki.