Picking up new clients is always a good thing, but in the case of yesterday, it was a great thing. I had the privilege of recording his new song, Peculiar, and it was very refreshing.  It was a simple tune with some great acoustic guitar work, and vocals.  Jason Jones added some percussion accents, and the song came to life. Knowing...

I was just looking at the timestamp on these chapters, and realized that Amalickiah went from being a Nephite citizen, to the king over the entire Lamanite nation in approximately 1.5 years.  How freaking crazy is that? Also, one thing I failed to mention about chapter 47 is the last verse.  A very interesting verse, that is.  Once...

Playing this song was a joy, until I realized I'd been playing wrong for so many years. Trying to do the cover as a true cover was freakin' hard for this song.  I hope I did it justice, though. There were a few points where I totally fubbed hits, but there were only a few. So... Here it is.  Let me know what ya think....

Man...  Amalickiah... I'm more and more convinced that this guy is the epitome of evil in the flesh. I wonder what would have happened with the entire history of the Nephites had Captain Moroni caught Amalickiah, when he was chasing him and his armies last chapter. I really believe that had he been caught (and appropriately dealt with), much...

 Wow...  When I wrote this in March of 2009, "During this year, I both think and feel (logically and spiritually) I will be stretched more than I've been stretched in years.  This one's gonna be a toughy.  As for now, I feel anxiously optimistic.  Yup..  That about hits it on the head."  I had n...

 I thought I wouldn't do anything today... Mostly because I was feeling a bit ill...  But, I figured there was no better way to usher in the new year! Happy New Years 2010 to everyone!  And hope you enjoy AdvancedOnlineDrums' version of Green Day's Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Click for video. ...

Will the craziness ever end?  I thought for sure, I'd be too busy today to do another cover, but around 4:00pm, I got bored, the kids were occupied or asleep, and my wife was reading, so...  Down to the studio I go! Hope you all like this cover.  It's one of the better ones I've done.  I missed a couple of hit-accurate fills,...

I guess I can't get enough of these covers.  I had no intention of doing one tonight, but I was so in the mood, I ripped this out on the 2nd take. I take a lot of liberties on this, and there are a few slight timing issues, but I thought it was a great show of the "groove" inside music. Good times. Enjoy the video, and be su...

 Good times.  I thought this one would be tough, but I've played it so many times over the past decade, it came back to me rather quickly. In the ending, there were quite a few hiccups, but I thought it turned out quite nicely. Click here to view the video....

Haven't even started reading this yet, and I know I'm in for a doozie.  Amalickiah, in my estimation, is one of the truest Nehor-ites in existence.  Absolutely no morals, no regard for anyone but himself - even if it means killing many people who he claims to love.  One of the most dispicable humans ever to live on earth.  Now, ...

I read Mosiah 18 yesterday and found that due to the mindset I'm having now of an overall perspective, it was hard to get into all the details of what Alma was saying.  This is a great chapter for new members, or people who are trying to understand baptism. One question I have always had with this scripture is, "Where did Alma get the ...

It's been a while since I just sat down to write about whatever comes out of my fingers.  I now have about an hour of free time, so I think I'm gonna do just that. It's been kind of interesting that in various points in my life, I've wanted to get rid of the thoughts of doing something musical professionally, but it always seems to come back...

Herod the Fink is a Christmas collaboration project between Jesse Crowley and Jason Jones which has been going on now for 3 glorious years at Advanced Budget Studios.  This year's offering is a 4-song EP. The music this year ranges from a bluegrass crossing punk style of "Joy To The World" to an introspective look in to each of our...

Today during gospel doctrine, our teacher brought up a point I'm not entirely sure I knew or not. When Nephi states that he is keeping the record for a "wise purpose" in God, yet Nephi openly states he doesn't know what that purpose is, I've always assumed that purpose is the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. And I was right...&nb...

I had forgotten that in this chapter, Nephi sees the Lord descend from heaven to the people who would be born from Nephi. I put myself in his situation, and quite honestly , I have no idea how I would react.  It would be so supremely surreal - seeing your kids' kids' kids' kids, and then seeing the Savior of the world show himself unto them....

Just encountered this list:  Seems like a good list for those of you who are considering Linux as an alternative to Windows. Just a quick FYI....

It's chapters like these that get me thinking about the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ and the "end of the world".  Reason is, is that this chapter happens just a few years before the 1st coming of Christ.  For some reason I analyze these chapters to death, and each time I do, I find more things that seem to parallel what may (or ma...

Hmm....  I'm wondering how I can write this entry without offending anyone, so... if you are offended by it, I'm sorry.  What is going to be said has to be said, and it will, hopefully, enlighten at least someone. Due to this wonderful blog, I've been feeling quite pensive lately and liking the change.  Midst this change, I asked on...

So, the very first thing which came to mind this time around was from the first verse.  Ether seemed to be a fairly amazing person and a great prophet.  So... How did he get to be that way?  I'd love to hear the story of Ether's conversion - especially considering the environment he grew up in - being born in captivity.  Interes...

I find it interesting how Satan is described throughout scripture. In this chapter, through verses 13 - 20, Satan is seemingly exposed as the weak fraudster he really is.  Verse 16 is quite potent, written from the standpoint of people who were tempted by him, when shown his actual person, are amazed at the frailness of Satan.  They say...

I take no credit whatsoever for the following content, but I thought it was too incredible to simply link it.  Here is the link to the original page, but just in case that site ever goes down, I want to make sure to keep the content around.  It's just too beautiful. "Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail b...

Using The Gimp to remove low frequency data from an image. When I take a picture of something I would like to use for texture, there is often a slight change in the color across the entire image. I want to keep the detail, but make the overall color even across the image. This is a picture of dusty rain marks on the hood of my car: It is l...

Okay... I don't have much time to write this, so, let's cut to the chase. This article is freakin' hilarious.   This one is less hilarious, but more informative.  Both articles are simply awesome. Heh....  Some things which I absolutely love about Linux are the following:     1. They got the windowed scrolli...

Wow...  It really is amazing what a good night's sleep can do to one's attitude.  I don't know if everyone is affected this way, but man...  Yesterday, it was all I could do to keep myself from just walking away from everyone and going to sleep.  I was irritable, quick to frustration, and a general jerk to pretty much everyone. ...

First, a question. In verse 15, Nephi states that he delights in the scriptures, and that he writes them according to the spirit.  Well...  That leads me to question whether or not he realized he was a prophet or not.  Very interesting, and possibly stupid, question (maybe he already knew about D&C 68:4). Now, the chunk of ...

The answer to that question in today's world is "Not on your life." However, in a perfect utopia, the answer would definitely be, to a degree, "yes". A couple of days ago, I was really gettin' down into myself and thinking about things, when I started thinking about the state of the world. Holy cow, that could open, not only a can of worms, but ...

Beyond yesterday's post, I haven't posted anything in awhile.  I guess it's because nothing really interesting has happened lately. My kids are growing like weeds, and I try to enjoy them when want to, and I'm trying to want to more often.  That's kind of a sad statement, but I don't believe I am a "born-to-parent" type of guy...

What a whirlwind, I tell you what. The usual cliche's about this being the busiest time of my life seem to pale against reality, so I'll just dive into the thick of it all. I've spent the past 3 weeks working intensely on getting the new studio up and running. Thanks to the help of my brother Ryan, my dad Ray, and a good friend, Jeff Stock, th...

Whenever I do credit card checking, I always end up searching for longer than it would take me to create it myself, so...  without further ado, here's the Luhn, or "Mod 10" algorithm for validating credit card numbers. function mod_10($cc) {     $reversed_string = strrev($cc);     $string_array = str_sp...

I just got back from a lunch with a long-time friend.  You know the type...  The type of friend who has shown true colors throughout the years, and whose colors you've grown to love. Yeah..  Anyway... We got to talking about some pretty cool stuff that I thought I'd write down, just so I can go back and read them again. The ...