Sore Throat, iTunes 7, The Amazing Race, and A Word or Two.

[10:15p]

I. Sore Throat

I went to sleep around 1:30am last night. This morning I woke up feeling miserable. My nose was stuffed up and my throat was sore as ever. It hurt to swallow... and it felt like I needed to swallow ever couple seconds because my mouth felt so dry.

I haven't been sick since I've been back from the Philippines, but I don't welcome the feeling.

It's so weird too. Last night, I felt perfectly fine. 8 hours of sleep later, I feel like my head is detached from my body.

This is not good.


II. iTunes 7

If you're not already using iTunes, you're really missing out. The functionality that comes with this Apple software is priceless. It really makes organizing your mp3 library so much easier.

The coolest feature of the new version of iTunes 7 is what they call CoverFlow. What it is, basically, is just another way to browse through your library by cover art. I've spent a lot of time gathering the cover art images to my music, so for me, it's really neat.

Also new with iTunes 7 is that whenever you rip a CD to iTunes, it automatically finds and attaches the cover art to the songs. Very cool. No more looking up CDs on Amazon.com and copying and pasting CD artwork to each individual song!

Another one of my favorite new additions to iTunes 7 is that the pause time between songs is eliminated. Now you can listen to a fully ripped CD the way it was meant to be heard. For example, Justin Timberlake's new CD Futuresex/Lovesongs has a lot of interludes that lead into the next song without interruption. Prior to iTunes 7, there would be a slight pause inbetween as it switched to the next track. Now it goes uninterrupted.

Anyway, you can tell I really like iTunes 7. It does run slower than the previous versions, but it's worth it.


III. The Amazing Race

First off, if you've never seen The Amazing Race, watch this video... and if you have, watch it anyway.



Tonight the 10th (wow!) season of The Amazing Race premiered. I remember watching the first season years ago and being so entranced by the show. It's amazing where they take these people. Seeing the different locales around the world is just breath taking. I stuck with the show for the first 4 or 5 seasons, but haven't really watched it since. Tonight, I just happened to be flipping through channels when I saw it on CBS.

The one and a half hour season premier was incredible. The teams set off from Seattle to Beijing and in a twist that has never been done on an Amazing Race premier, 2 teams were eliminated tonight.

The show is incredible, not only for the places they go, but for the growth you see in these people. It's really interesting to observe how many of the teams really change throughout the experience. One of the contestants has an artificial leg and in one challenge, she had to scale a wall. It looked very grim at first, but she overcame and made it. It was an emotional scene.

I've only known one person in my life with a prosthetic leg. His name is Ben and he is one of the strongest guys I know. We went to school together and in Junior High he got in an accident where a SUV overturned onto him and his friends on a street corner. His leg had to be amputated as a result of the accident. Since then, Ben's been an inspiration to so many. He volunteers to help kids with learning disabilities, he's landed some roles doing acting work, and he's a skilled athlete. Just a great guy. It's amazing what some people can do despite hardships and obstacles.

The second team that got eliminated, in tears shared that the experience, though very short, was an incredible journey for them. They learned more about each other and that the only thing that matters is trust and love. Beautiful.

Here's a promo for The Amazing Race 10 with a short intro of all 12 teams.

IV. A Word or Two

One of my good friends from High School recently started a blog of her own. Althroughout school, she jokingly criticised me and Justin for blogging. Calling us nerds and the like; vowing never to blog. Ever.

Come fall 2006, and Emily has to blog for one of her classes. I laughed at first seeing that she actually succumbed to the fabulous lifestyle of the blogger. Her blog is called A Word or Two and is primarily an academic blog focusing on different aspects of literature. Go have a read if you're into that.

We were talking on the phone tonight because she needed help embedding a YouTube video onto her blog. We talked about her professor and her frustrations with the class. Somewhere in the conversation she mentioned that blogging is, interestingly enough, a form of art. It's a creation. It isn't just some essay you slap together, but rather a culmination of visual and written expression.

Rock on, Em.


[11:15p]
Cy