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September 7, 2010

The Uncanny Secret of TworDash the Chinchilla

Filed under: Original Writing — Tyler @ 8:39 pm

TworDash the Chinchilla - Can you figure out his secret?

TworDash the Chinchilla paced around his icy lair while caressing his wizard’s hat. “NO one will be able to figure out my secret! I don’t care if I have to freeze in this ice prison for an eternity.” Then his assistant, Mastikator spoke through his walrus tusks, “But master, if you don’t tell the Citizens of the Ice City how to melt the ice soon, we will die here.” TworDash pulled at his whiskers, “If the Citizens of Ice made my Iced Latte correctly in the first place, I wouldn’t have had to freeze their entire planet in the first place.” Mastikator started crying and his tears froze before they could hit the floor. As they shattered, TworDash came up with an idea. “I have a plan, Mastikator. Stop your blubbering and start the engine on my Subaru.” TworDash and Mastikator hopped in the Subaru and drove deep into the heart of the Ice City. There TworDash double parked in front of the Official Office of Prince Ferdinand. The receptionist greeted TworDash and Mastikator as they entered the blue double doors. “I don’t think Prince Ferdinand can see you now sirs. I think he’s in a meeting.”

TworDash concentrated and his Wizard Hat began to glow. He then stared directly at her Styrofoam coffee cup. The cup hovered in the air and then gently flew into TworDash’s little claw. He took a few sips, “Hmm. Hazlenut Drip Coffee, with a couple Moo Milks added to the mix…Quite delicious. I’ll be taking this off your pretty little hands.”

Mastikator clapped his flippers together with excitement, “Oh! If Prince Ferdinand is in a meeting…when do you think he’ll be done?”

The receptionist pulled a long piece of gum out of her mouth and said, “Well, since time has slowed down because of how cold it is around here, I’m guessing Prince Ferdinand will be done in about two thousand years.” TworDash gulped the rest of the coffee and then threw the cup on the floor, “We don’t have time for that. I’m going to have to make you explode now.” Then the receptionist exploded. The giant wooden door to Prince Ferdinand’s office blew open and TworDash and Mastikator walked in side by side with their arms folded. “So,” Prince Ferdinand said, “You exploded my receptionist. This must be important. Sandra do you mind coming back on Tuesday?” Sandra packed up her briefcase, “No Prince, I don’t mind.” Prince Ferdinand straightened his high collar on his regal jacket, “Ok. Now that we are alone. What do you want, Twor-Dash?”

TworDash smiled, “Well Ferdinand, it seems like we both have something the other wants. You want the  secret to my Chilling Spell and I want my Spaceship Leviathan unearthed.” Prince Ferdinand frowned, “What are you proposing?” TworDash pointed at Mastikator, he finished eating a slimy barracuda fish and then said, “Master TworDash is proposing that you dig up his spaceship using the labor of your citizens and put the Spaceship Leviathan on top of the mountain of ice that’s created from the digging. Then and only then, will Master TworDash give you the secret to undoing his Chill-Spell.

Prince Ferdinand looked at the blueprints and diagrams of the operation, “Interesting indeed. But why don’t you just tell me the secret now and then melt the ice. Then we can simply tow  the Spaceship Leviathan to shore?” TworDash slapped the blueprints out of the Prince’s hands. “Are you trying to trick me, Ferdinand?” He twitched his whiskers. “Do you think I was born yesterday? Stick to the plan or it’s NO DEAL!”

With a few strokes of his quill pen, Prince Ferdinand signed into law that 10,000 of his citizens would be sentenced to hard labor in the excavation and repositioning of TworDash’s spaceship. “It seems I have no choice. Very well, TworDash.”

For 40 days the citizens of the Ice City labored in order to unearth the Spaceship Leviathan. Many citizens grew weak and froze in the cold. Then, on the 40’th day they finished digging the spaceship out of the ice and they dragged it to the top of the newly created ice mountain. It’s peak sat atop a mighty mountain. It stood miles upon miles high. So high in fact, that the Spaceship Leviathan was now practically in orbit of the Ice Planet. Then TworDash and Mastikator drove up the mountain using the all wheel drive in the Subaru and they double parked at the apex next to the spaceship. Prince Ferdinand spoke, “Citizens. This is a glorious day. We have toiled and labored and it has been painful work but well worth it. For we have now bargained for our salvation!” Prince Ferdinand walked from his podium up to the portal to the Spaceship Leviathan, where TworDash and Mastikator were standing in the door. “All right, Twor-Dash. We have done what you asked. Now, tell us how to break this Chill-Spell on our world!”

Then TworDash and Mastikator went inside the Leviathan and shut the door behind them. “Mastikator, hit the engines! Let’s hope we’re high enough in altitude that we can escape this wretched planet’s gravity.” Mastikator pushed a purple button and the Leviathan began to lift away from the mountain of ice. Then TworDash rolled down his window next to Prince Ferdinand and yelled, “HA! I’ll never tell you my SECRET!!!” And then the Spaceship Leviathan blasted off into deep space heading toward the Horsehead Nebula.

…TO BE CONTINUED…

-Tyler

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Prepare to open binaural Portals

Filed under: Music-Downloads,Music-Reviews — Tyler @ 3:28 pm

Have you heard of Binaural recording techniques? It is a technique that uses small spherical microphones on a fake human head in order to get amazing results. In the case of this short set of Portals, if you listen to the track on headphones you will seriously feel like you are smack in the middle of the live performance. From the very first seconds I could hear the talking of people in the audience and it really felt like I was standing waiting for the show to begin. It is crazy because the Binaural recording combined with headphone playback gives you this surreal 3D effect without needing a surround sound 7.1 speaker set-up. The set is slightly experimental with definitely psychedelic themes. The band has amazing mastery of complimentary, dynamic, and syncopated beats. The combined effect mixed with the three-dimensional movement around the listener’s perception creates an experience that could be best described as Trancendentory. I literally felt like I was moving out of my chair when I listened to Portals. My spirit was buzzing with energy.

There was a part where the drums were hitting this rhythm that was a little uncomfortable, but then when it released I was taken into this swelling and mind dunking, aura twisting audio journey. I using some pretty good Sennheiser headphones to listen to the music. They cover the whole ear and I like that style more than earbuds. And since there is a great deal of depth to the music I recommend listening to Portals with higher quality headphones. But really you need to just straight up listen to it. The cool thing is that you can actually download Portals for free via Soundcloud by clicking HERE and choosing the download button near the “share” button.

Is Portals aggressive in parts? Yes. But the aggressiveness comes through with the persistence of the communication. The vocals used near the end are very inviting and sense-stimulating. I am so glad I listened to this. It will definitely take a special place in my music collection. The cool thing about Portals is that it is music that pulls you out of the normal routine. When I started to listen to it I took a break from what I was doing and got completely sucked in. This isn’t dance music or punk rock. This is something different. I think trying to pigeon-hole Portals into a specific genre might be doing it a disservice.

What happens at the six minute mark is so unique that it reminds me of communication with an entity that is outside the regular realm of consciousness. I’ve never heard anything like it.

-Tyler

The Fine Mesh Grill Pan is great for cooking Swordfish

Filed under: Cooking,Reviews — Tyler @ 1:36 am
Mesh Grill Pan

Mesh Grill Pan from Williams-Sonoma

The Fine Mesh Grill Pan from Williams-Sonoma is an excellent grill accessory for anyone who grills Swordfish. If you have ever cooked swordfish on the grill before then you know that it can get flaky on the grill and can sometimes crumple and get overcooked on the thick grill bars. Well the Fine Mesh Grill Pan does a great job of distributing the grill energy all around the fish so you can a thoroughly  yet not-overcooked piece of fish. One thing that I noticed with the pan is that it got very ugly and burnt after the first few uses. This is OK. You can clean it to get most of the chunks of the pan and so it is safe to re-use. But this is not supposed to be your most glamorous piece of kitchenware. It ain’t supposed to look pretty. It is just there to do its job. And it DOES do an excellent job of producing scrumptious pieces of Swordfish, and other fish as well. My main trick to cooking swordfish on the Fine Mesh Grill Pan is to season the fish first.

How I season the fish is I first add some good quality olive oil to both sides of the swordfish. Make sure that your hands have been washed and you are safe to touch and prepare food.  Then I choose the side that I want to season. Usually I pick the side that isn’t as visually appealing. I add some sea salt and rub it in nice and easy. You don’t need to much to do the trick so don’t overdo it. Next I smother some paprika on the side that I decided to season. You shouldn’t add too much, just use enough to give the fish a nice, mildly reddish tint. Then I add some cracked pepper for some kick and texture. After that I put some ground savory seasoning on it. It should add a greenish-black color to the fish. This flavor is excellent once you grill it up. Another thing to add is ground oregano bits. This is mostly for macro texture and it isn’t really for the flavor. Besides most of the oregano will get burnt anyway. But the cool thing is that it will help create the crispiness and the tiny bit of crunch that will make your swordfish scream with delectability.

Here’s the trick: When you are ready to grill the swordfish or other fish of your choice, MAKE SURE that your grill is nice and HOT first. You don’t want to have a variable temperature when grilling your fish. AND ANOTHER THING: Grill your fish on the Seasoned Side first! This may be counter intuitive, but if you don’t disturb your fish and let it cook for a few minutes or so depending on how thick your piece of fish is, you will yield good results. How long you cook your fish is up to you, but remember these things have all sorts of bacteria and critters living inside them so you might as well stay on the safe side and cook your fish thoroughly.

The best way I’ve found to grill swordfish is to only flip the fish once. That means that you need to look closely at your piece of fish and see if it has grilled 60% or so as far as you want to go. Then when you flip it you should only need to cook it for about 30-40% more time. If you flip your fish too much you will break it apart and it will be more spongy and less visually appealing. It may taste more rubbery if you flip it too much also.

One thing that you’ll need with your Fine Mesh Grill Pan is a long, sturdy spatula. This way you will be able to quickly dislodge and flip the fish. There is a good chance that the fish will resist you from scraping it off the grill pan at first. Be persistent and use quick yet strong thrusts in order to avoid damaging the fish and to preserve as much of the crispiness and integrity of the crust as possible.

A cool feature to the Fine Mesh Grill Pan is that Williams-Sonoma includes a detachable handle that is very sturdy. You take the handle off when you aren’t placing or removing the pan on the grill. That way, when you want to remove the grill pan from the grill you won’t have to worry about burning yourself. The quality of metal is very nice stainless steel. And the Fine Mesh Grill Pan costs about $30.00 and I think it is well worth the price due to how you can improve the finished quality of expensive fish. Let’s face it, it can easily cost more than $30 – $50 for some good quality swordfish depending on how many people are eating. So if you are going to spend that kind of money on lunch or dinner, you might as well drop the extra cash to have a high-quality accessory that can assist in cooking it with perfection.

You can use the Fine Mesh Grill Pan for things other than fish. My family and I have used it for vegetables and other edible items. But I think it really shines on grilling up swordfish.

-Tyler

September 6, 2010

DJ Layla and Alissa dont wanna loose you

Filed under: Music-Reviews — Tyler @ 11:38 pm
DJ Layla

DJ Layla

What’s better than two beautiful Romanian girls with great haircuts? Take those two same beautiful girls and let them make some top notch positive dance music! DJ Layla bumps a totally loving life feeling dance track called, “I Don’t Wanna Loose You.” The song was composed by Radu Sirbu who is featured in several of DJ Layla’s music videos and the enchanting Alissa does the vocals. I am a real sucker for dance music and especially trance music, but when there is good female vocals on it I am totally sold. “I Don’t Wanna Loose You” does so much for me when it comes to a poppy dance track. You can totally hear the Romanian accent/localization of the English verse in the song. There is a part where Alissa says, “My heart…my heart’s bleeded…” and I think it is completely adorable. Who cares if they don’t speak perfect English? That’s not the point. The beat is so mellow dance that it is perfect while drinking San Pellegrino. It is so cool checking out the YouTube video of their music and reading the comments, especially from Romanian and other European people. Instead of the traditional American comments that I read that are super critical of artists and their style and their sexual preferences. People say things like, “…you girls are amazing keep it up & follow your dreams 5***** & greetz from the NL…” NL stands for Netherlands just in case you were wondering.

This isn’t my most intense and serious music that I write my most epic posts about. It is something fun and fresh that puts me in a good mood. Do I listen to this song over and over again on repeat? Yes I do. And it’s not for the music video/slide show either. It is a good, cute, song. Music like this needs to be shared because it has such a chill vibe. One thing I like about the song is that it has a very short intro that gives the listener a preview of the theme melody of the song and then it immediately gets into core of the vocals. The chorus is repeated several times. This isn’t a very lyrical song. It is mostly repetition, and I really have no problem with that.

It looks like the official genre for this type of music is: Eurodance. And this is perfectly fitting. I wouldn’t have been surprised to hear this kind of song when I was vising dance clubs in Rome or Vienna or even Amsterdam back in the day. Well, maybe not Amsterdam, the clubs I went to there were a little heavier and grimier.

I love, “I Don’t Wanna Loose You” by DJ Layla and I think Alissa does a great job with the vocals. She has great tone and the way she shapes her vowels and sings with such a relaxed sensuality is extremely pleasing to the ear. I love the readers of overidon.com and so I’m going to share the video with you here…courtesy of the DJ Layla official YouTube Channel.

-Tyler

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