I Saved Latin

Cool, But Not Ready Yet

The new Windows Media Player came out in Beta yesterday.  I was pretty excited to get it, because unlike the rest of the world, I want to see iTunes go down.  Yes, I use it and it's good.  It's just that I love the subscription music model - which is only supported by Windows Media DRM (digital rights management) - A.K.A. "Plays for Sure"

The new player launch coincides with MTV's Urge music store - which is a subscription service that will compete with the likes of Rhapsody, Y! Music Store & Napster.  The interface is much better than any previous WM player, but so far, I keep getting buffer overflow errors, which tend to crash the player every 5 minutes or so.  Not quite what you're hoping for when you want to listen to music while you're working.

Clearly, Microsoft is trying to take the learnings from iTunes' interface and bring it to the Windows world.  Throughout the store there are references to their recommended players - which are "Plays for Sure" compatible.  Hopefully, this will start driving more awareness of subscription music offers and get people to realize that iTunes is a very restrictive service.

Where in the World Was I? (Round 2)

Now for our next installment of "Where the F*CK was Drew?"  This location is typified by large trucks such as the one pictured below.

NOTE: I will not accept responses such as "Exit 196" - that's obvious.  I will be lenient with this one, though.

Jocks vs. Geeks

The other day I was watching TV programming on United Airlines (about the only TV I have time for anymore) and they ran a reality program called "Knight School" or something like that.  Basically, the premise is that the show follows a group of kids who are trying out for the Texas Tech basketball team under coach Knight.

As the kids stood lined up in front of the coach, he asked them who among them were regular readers.  Nobody raised their hands. 

I found this to be strange, actually.  None of these guys considers themselves a reader?  When I was growing up, I read all the time, voraciously.  In third grade, after reading time was over, I didn't want to stop, so I pretended to be so engrossed in the book that I didn't hear the teacher announce the end of the period.  The teacher actually talked with my parents about this, and they got the girl in the seat next to me to tap me on the shoulder, as though I needed to be awakened, to get me to put my book away.

I was thinking about this in the shower this morning (where I do my best intellectual work) and wondered if people who are genetically configured as atheletes were also programmed to be less interested in reading.  I don't mean to say they are less intelligent, but is there a direct correlation between athleticism and lack of interest in reading.  Of course, I'm also assuming the reverse is true - and if you've ever seen me participate in sports, you will know that I'm extrememly average in sports requiring coordination and agility.

I tagged this post as 'science' - just because this will truthfully be the end of my research into this area.  It does make me wonder, though.

Picture Says It All

Mom, this does not imply an official stance on the institution.  It's funny, that's all.

We Have A Winner!

So, Vince Johnson of Seattle, WA is the winner (sort of) of the Where Was Drew photo contest.  I say "sort of" only because he was too specific.  Vince guessed baggage claim at Chicago O'Hare.  It is actually in the tunnel that connects concourses at O'Hare. 

Great job, Vinny!

Where in the World Was I?

I will give a prize to the first person who guesses correctly where this picture was taken.

What prize, you ask?  I don't know yet.  The prize will probably vary depending upon who wins.  Leave your answer in the comments section now!

Pros and Cons of Business Travel

I don't really consider myself a road warrior, but I've been on the road quite a bit over the last month.  Mostly, I've just been working at our Denver office, since I'll be relocating here in the next few weeks anyway.

This week, though, I have had an inordinate amount of travel for my job.  I don't mind travel in general, despite the fact that the actual flight is pretty much miserable for me.  You see, when you are 6'3" and, well, not the slimmest guy in the world, those airline seats are pretty miserable.  I've just started flying on United, but don't have the level of status yet that gets you upgraded to the (relatively) comfy seats.  I get automatic first class upgrades on Alaska, but I just don't fly their routes much anymore.

The cool part is that I can say that this week I've been in:

• A state on the Pacific ocean (California)
• A state on the Atlantic ocean (North Carolina)
• A state on Lake Michigan (Illinois)
• A state on the continental divide (Colorado)

Ok, maybe it's not COOL but it's something.