Pickabar Blog

This blog is basically a web accessible diary for yours truly. A dusty diary…but I digress. It’s also my attempt to contribute to the global knowledge store. If you’re not hooking up your home theater, this post probably won’t make a lot of sense. See you next month!

I’ve been trying to use HDMI to connect the Scientific Atlanta 8300HD PVR cable box to my Westinghouse 42w2. The HD channels were showing up fine, but switching to SD channels caused me to lose video and audio. Both worked over component input.

I’m a Time Warner customer in NYC, so after a couple of hours banging my head against the screen I called them. Zero help, as expected. I called Westinghouse, and they were similarly polite but unhelpful.

After trying a brute force search of the options, I was able to determine that 480p output has to be disabled in order for the SD channels to be displayed. I was under the impression that only 480i had to be disabled. I’m not sure I understand why it works, but I now have picture and video across all of my channels.

…you’re dying. We’re all dying.

My Dad told me that about a month ago, and I’ve been thinking about it since. It’s the cold hard truth. We’re all dying. Right now. For some of us the end is coming today, for others it might be another hundred years before their last drop drips. Regardless, the end is coming for all of us. It’s funny how a simple thing put just the right way can have such an impact on you.

To be honest, I’ve never felt better. A month with no smokes, running a few times a week, and I just ordered a new idiot box. I’ve been living under the impression that I’m a profligate, but it turns out I’ve my savings have been building slowly but surely over the course of the last few years.

I’m dying. I spent most of Saturday and Sunday putting it to music and now here it is in mp3 glory:

Lyrics if you keep reading…

You’re Dying

A war against a concept in the name of self defense
It’ll cost a trillion dollars but it doesn’t make a bit of sense
They tell us to be wary of crimes terrorists may commit
And they offer us a cure-all loyalty to the president

But we’re all dying
Anyone who says anything else is lying

A war against substances in the name of public health
But peak behind the curtains and you’ll see it’s all about wealth
There’s money in new prisons and profit in new drugs
A pill for every problem ten million alcoholics shrug

Chorus

A war against maturity fought with Botox and creams
We’ve lost all sense of dignity we’ve forgotten what it means
To grow old gracefully with head held up in pride
At the wisdom and contentment that fills our hearts with time

Chorus

A war against reality superstition is our king
Our eyes squeezed shut to avoid the truth that’s plain for all to see
Well our time on this planet is over in a blink
There’s no time for fantasies the end is closer than you think