I was a little disgruntled at having to buy a new scanner, since my old scanner worked just fine with my old computer. And it used to work fine with my new computer... until I added a Windows XP service pack that made it incompatible. I spent hours searching for a new driver, and talking to HP - who told me since it was out of warranty, I'd have to pay $40 to technical help. Finally, I stumbled across some message boards with people who had encountered the same exact problem as I had... nobody had a solution except to give HP the finger for advertising the old scanner as compatible with Windows XP, but not making new drivers to keep up.Have I lost my four loyal readers yet?
I finally broke down when I went to Fry's for new printer ink and disks so I could complete a project I've been working on for my family. Fry's was selling a Canon scanner, ultra thin, for $50. I decided it was close enough to my birthday to consider it a gift, but was skeptical that it would be any good.
Anyway, it was well worth it... its a third the thickness of my last scanner, and doesn't need to a seperate wall plug... its powered through the USB cable. Most importantly, it scans a lot faster than the last one and with crisper images. The OCR software that it came with also rocks. So, I've been spending some time tossing in random crap between tasks on my current job.
Way above, as you can see, is a picture of me with my childhood idol, George Lucas. A few weeks after working my ass off on a project for MTV one of the executives called me up to see if I'd like to go up to Skywalker Ranch to "help out" at a celebrity screening of "The Phantom Menace" a few days before it opened. A die hard Star Wars fan since I was 5, I nearly had a stroke. I was being PAID to go
to the Ranch. Funny thing is I'd already stood in line for 12 hours to buy nearly 20 advance tickets for the opening day of the movie. When I arrived at the Ranch the only job I was given was to make a couple photo copies and cover for the coat check set up as people entered the screening room. I ended up sitting next to the boys from Hanson, who earned my respect only because they were as excited about being there as I was. Before the film began, I turned my head to see who was kicking the back of my seat, to see it was George Lucas himself... so, technically, he was kicking the back of HIS seat. I smiled and said nothing.At the reception after, I was asked to put on some music, and was surprised that the Skywalker Ranch had an old, dusty stereo system to work with. I ended up having to MacGyyver the wiring together to make it work, laughing that I was fixing the sound system for the people who created THX.
The next pic is of me and Harry Knowles, the dude behind Aint It Cool News, at the after party for the premiere of "The Green Mile" (I was working in publicity at Castle Rock at the time). He was a bit of a bore, citing jet lag. But the bigger disappointment of the evening was Quentin Tarantino, who was letting everyone take photos of him all night until I asked, when he said using his hands to accencuate, "I'm just not really in a picture taking kind of mood."
Finally, the last photo was taken long ago in a galaxy far away, when, on a whim as senseless as the nude photos being taken, I had Dina from the flower shop dye my hair blonde. For shits and giggles. I hated it, and dyed my hair black a few days later. After my mom saw the pictures (that either I mailed to her or one of my sisters) she gave me the cold shoulder for some time... something about insulting my lovely head of hair. Its a good thing I was never more rebellious, for her sake I guess.Anyway, more scans as I dig through my piles...
