A partially blind cat with a somewhat-large CD collection

[nyankoframe]

But first, a random link:

Me, 'Person of the Year'? No thanks

This is an interesting counterpoint to the "Person of the Year: You" issue of Time magazine and the subsequent coverage focusing on the power of social networking sites and their users. (Sites like MySpace, YouTube, Google, FaceBook, LinkedIn and so on.) The author of this article argues that it is true that users do have a lot of power, but that they are also being profiled, data-mined, and marketed to; so they are not necessarily the ones who have the most power:

But to quote the Who, "Who are You?" Are you the sum of your consumer preferences and MySpace personae? What is your contribution worth? It’s worth money to someone, if only as part of a whole.

...

The important movement online is not about "you." It’s about "us." It’s about our profound need to connect and share. It’s about our remarkable ability to create among circles —  each person contributing a little bit to a poem, a song, a quilt, or a conversation.

...

And ever since the rise of radio producers realized the value of the "real," the authentic, and the common. Audiences love to hear or see people whom are no more talented or important than they are. It’s comforting to know that with a little luck someone might care what I think.

...

User-generated content, whether via low-power radio or community blogs, only goes so far to fill the void. And if the subject of that content is "you," instead of "us," we gain nothing from the new medium.

This fits in with my own observations and is the reason why I won't (at least for the foreseeable future) join any more social networking sites (LJ can be considered as one in some sense). The other reason is that I'm also lazy in terms of making the investment needed.

On another note, my eyesight has deteriorated by 50 degrees in the left eye and 75 degrees in the right to -1175/-1200 degrees respectively. Part of this might be because my lenses have become scratched and thus more blurred, so my eyes have to work much harder to maintain the same distance. I've noticed lately that I tend to get more headaches and eye strain after working at the computer a lot or reading a lot of scores. Right now I'm deciding whether to get a new pair of lenses before leaving or do that once I'm in the US; a new pair of lenses will cost more than $200 here.

I've been going through and rearranging my CDs, and inspired by kamenreader and his manga collection, I decided to sort them out. Here are the results behind several cuts. This is, as far as I know, my complete CD collection, though in the process of rearranging my room and packing I may discover more CDs, and it's possible I may buy even more before going. :P

Artist	Album	Genre	Year
Allan Browne's Australian Jazz Band	He's Not Much… But He's All He Thinks About	Jazz	2005
Astor Piazzolla	Adiós Nonino	Tango	2005
Billie Holiday	Holiday For Lovers	Jazz	2002
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Romantic Lounge	Lounge	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Parisian Lounge	Lounge	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Mediterranean Lounge	Lounge	2006
Britney Spears	Oops!...I Did It Again	Pop	2000
Cecile Licad	Louis Moreau Gottschalk: Piano Music	Classical	2003
Diana Krall	From This Moment On	Jazz	2006
Eugene List, Igor Buketoff, Samuel Adler, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Trinidad Paniagua, Jose Alberto Esteves, Pablo Garcia, Cary Lewis, Brady Millican	A Gottschalk Festival	Classical	1990
Glenn Miller	The Very Best of Glenn Miller	Big Band	1997
Henry Mancini	Trail of the Pink Panther	Soundtrack	1982
Hirai Ken	SENTIMENTALovers	J-Pop	2005
Jacques Loussier Trio	Jacques Loussier Trio Plays Debussy	Jazz	2000
James Buswell, Marin Alsop, Royal Scottish National Orchestra	Samuel Barber: Violin Concerto	Classical	2001
Love Psychedelico	LIVE PSYCHEDELICO	J-Rock	2006
Michael Jackson	Invincible	Pop	2001
Michael Jackson	Blood on the Dance Floor	Pop	1998
Michael Jackson	HIStory	Pop	1995
Miles Davis	Miles Davis…At His Best	Jazz	2002
Nelly Furtado	Loose	Pop	2006
Nelly Furtado	Whoa…Nelly!	Pop	2000
Olivia	A Girl Meets Bossa Nova 2	Bossa Nova	2006
Olivia	A Girl Meets Bossa Nova	Bossa Nova	2005
Peter Schmalfuss	Frédéric Chopin: Nocturnes no. 1-12	Classical	1992
Richard Rosenberg, Hot Springs Music Festival	Louis Moreau Gottschalk: A Night in the Tropics	Classical	2000
S Club 7	7	Pop	2000
Shaggy	Hot Shot	Reggae	2001
Silje Nergaard	The Essential	Jazz	2005
Silje Nergaard	Nightwatch	Jazz	2003
Silje Nergaard	Port of Call	Jazz	2000
Stan Getz	Getz Plays Jobim: The Girl from Ipanema	Bossa Nova	2002
Stephen Hough	The Piano Album	Piano	1998
Stewart Goodyear, Keith Lockhart, William Tritt, Erich Kunzel, Cincinatti Pops Orchestra	American Piano Classics	Classical	1993
The Four Aces	The Best Of The Four Aces	Vocal	2000
Various	2006 CD Calendar / Sampler (2 copies)	Mixed	2006
Various	Big Band Collection (3CD Set)	Big Band	2003
Various	The Encyclopedia of Jazz	Jazz	2001
Various	BEST 2000	Pop	2000
Various	The No. 1 Jazz Vocals Album	Jazz	1999
Various	The Only Jazz Album You'll Ever Need!	Jazz	1999
Various	The Best of Bond… James Bond	Soundtrack	1999
Various	Mozart for the Morning Commute	Classical	1997
Various	Reader's Digest: 250 Years of Great Music	Classical	1994
Various	Debussy: Poetic Impressions	Classical	1993
Various	The Best of Vivaldi	Classical	1989
Vince Guaraldi Trio	A Boy Named Charlie Brown	Jazz	1989
Vladimir Ashkenazy, André Previn, London Symphony Orchestra	Favourite Rachmaninov	Classical	2002
Zdeňka and Martin Hršel	George Gershwin	Classical	2006

Artist	Album	Genre	Year
Glenn Miller	The Very Best of Glenn Miller	Big Band	1997
Various	Big Band Collection (3CD Set)	Big Band	2003
Olivia	A Girl Meets Bossa Nova 2	Bossa Nova	2006
Olivia	A Girl Meets Bossa Nova	Bossa Nova	2005
Stan Getz	Getz Plays Jobim: The Girl from Ipanema	Bossa Nova	2002
Cecile Licad	Louis Moreau Gottschalk: Piano Music	Classical	2003
Eugene List, Igor Buketoff, Samuel Adler, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Trinidad Paniagua, Jose Alberto Esteves, Pablo Garcia, Cary Lewis, Brady Millican	A Gottschalk Festival	Classical	1990
James Buswell, Marin Alsop, Royal Scottish National Orchestra	Samuel Barber: Violin Concerto	Classical	2001
Peter Schmalfuss	Frédéric Chopin: Nocturnes no. 1-12	Classical	1992
Richard Rosenberg, Hot Springs Music Festival	Louis Moreau Gottschalk: A Night in the Tropics	Classical	2000
Stewart Goodyear, Keith Lockhart, William Tritt, Erich Kunzel, Cincinatti Pops Orchestra	American Piano Classics	Classical	1993
Various	Mozart for the Morning Commute	Classical	1997
Various	Reader's Digest: 250 Years of Great Music	Classical	1994
Various	Debussy: Poetic Impressions	Classical	1993
Various	The Best of Vivaldi	Classical	1989
Vladimir Ashkenazy, André Previn, London Symphony Orchestra	Favourite Rachmaninov	Classical	2002
Zdeňka and Martin Hršel	George Gershwin	Classical	2006
Allan Browne's Australian Jazz Band	He's Not Much… But He's All He Thinks About	Jazz	2005
Billie Holiday	Holiday For Lovers	Jazz	2002
Diana Krall	From This Moment On	Jazz	2006
Jacques Loussier Trio	Jacques Loussier Trio Plays Debussy	Jazz	2000
Miles Davis	Miles Davis…At His Best	Jazz	2002
Silje Nergaard	The Essential	Jazz	2005
Silje Nergaard	Nightwatch	Jazz	2003
Silje Nergaard	Port of Call	Jazz	2000
Various	The Encyclopedia of Jazz	Jazz	2001
Various	The No. 1 Jazz Vocals Album	Jazz	1999
Various	The Only Jazz Album You'll Ever Need!	Jazz	1999
Vince Guaraldi Trio	A Boy Named Charlie Brown	Jazz	1989
Hirai Ken	SENTIMENTALovers	J-Pop	2005
Love Psychedelico	LIVE PSYCHEDELICO	J-Rock	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Romantic Lounge	Lounge	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Parisian Lounge	Lounge	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Mediterranean Lounge	Lounge	2006
Various	2006 CD Calendar / Sampler (2 copies)	Mixed	2006
Stephen Hough	The Piano Album	Piano	1998
Britney Spears	Oops!...I Did It Again	Pop	2000
Michael Jackson	Invincible	Pop	2001
Michael Jackson	Blood on the Dance Floor	Pop	1998
Michael Jackson	HIStory	Pop	1995
Nelly Furtado	Loose	Pop	2006
Nelly Furtado	Whoa…Nelly!	Pop	2000
S Club 7	7	Pop	2000
Various	BEST 2000	Pop	2000
Shaggy	Hot Shot	Reggae	2001
Henry Mancini	Trail of the Pink Panther	Soundtrack	1982
Various	The Best of Bond… James Bond	Soundtrack	1999
Astor Piazzolla	Adiós Nonino	Tango	2005
The Four Aces	The Best Of The Four Aces	Vocal	2000

Artist	Album	Genre	Year
Henry Mancini	Trail of the Pink Panther	Soundtrack	1982
Various	The Best of Vivaldi	Classical	1989
Vince Guaraldi Trio	A Boy Named Charlie Brown	Jazz	1989
Eugene List, Igor Buketoff, Samuel Adler, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Trinidad Paniagua, Jose Alberto Esteves, Pablo Garcia, Cary Lewis, Brady Millican	A Gottschalk Festival	Classical	1990
Peter Schmalfuss	Frédéric Chopin: Nocturnes no. 1-12	Classical	1992
Stewart Goodyear, Keith Lockhart, William Tritt, Erich Kunzel, Cincinatti Pops Orchestra	American Piano Classics	Classical	1993
Various	Debussy: Poetic Impressions	Classical	1993
Various	Reader's Digest: 250 Years of Great Music	Classical	1994
Michael Jackson	HIStory	Pop	1995
Glenn Miller	The Very Best of Glenn Miller	Big Band	1997
Various	Mozart for the Morning Commute	Classical	1997
Stephen Hough	The Piano Album	Piano	1998
Michael Jackson	Blood on the Dance Floor	Pop	1998
Various	The No. 1 Jazz Vocals Album	Jazz	1999
Various	The Only Jazz Album You'll Ever Need!	Jazz	1999
Various	The Best of Bond… James Bond	Soundtrack	1999
Richard Rosenberg, Hot Springs Music Festival	Louis Moreau Gottschalk: A Night in the Tropics	Classical	2000
Jacques Loussier Trio	Jacques Loussier Trio Plays Debussy	Jazz	2000
Silje Nergaard	Port of Call	Jazz	2000
Britney Spears	Oops!...I Did It Again	Pop	2000
Nelly Furtado	Whoa…Nelly!	Pop	2000
S Club 7	7	Pop	2000
Various	BEST 2000	Pop	2000
The Four Aces	The Best Of The Four Aces	Vocal	2000
James Buswell, Marin Alsop, Royal Scottish National Orchestra	Samuel Barber: Violin Concerto	Classical	2001
Various	The Encyclopedia of Jazz	Jazz	2001
Michael Jackson	Invincible	Pop	2001
Shaggy	Hot Shot	Reggae	2001
Stan Getz	Getz Plays Jobim: The Girl from Ipanema	Bossa Nova	2002
Vladimir Ashkenazy, André Previn, London Symphony Orchestra	Favourite Rachmaninov	Classical	2002
Billie Holiday	Holiday For Lovers	Jazz	2002
Miles Davis	Miles Davis…At His Best	Jazz	2002
Various	Big Band Collection (3CD Set)	Big Band	2003
Cecile Licad	Louis Moreau Gottschalk: Piano Music	Classical	2003
Silje Nergaard	Nightwatch	Jazz	2003
Olivia	A Girl Meets Bossa Nova	Bossa Nova	2005
Allan Browne's Australian Jazz Band	He's Not Much… But He's All He Thinks About	Jazz	2005
Silje Nergaard	The Essential	Jazz	2005
Hirai Ken	SENTIMENTALovers	J-Pop	2005
Astor Piazzolla	Adiós Nonino	Tango	2005
Olivia	A Girl Meets Bossa Nova 2	Bossa Nova	2006
Zdeňka and Martin Hršel	George Gershwin	Classical	2006
Diana Krall	From This Moment On	Jazz	2006
Love Psychedelico	LIVE PSYCHEDELICO	J-Rock	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Romantic Lounge	Lounge	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Parisian Lounge	Lounge	2006
Bobby Durham, Lorenzo Conte and Massimo Farao	Mediterranean Lounge	Lounge	2006
Various	2006 CD Calendar / Sampler (2 copies)	Mixed	2006
Nelly Furtado	Loose	Pop	2006

Comments

[itsacz.livejournal.com]

1)Glasses might be covered by the employer here >o
2)I never kept track of the CDs/DVDs I have. Perhaps I should. Maybe in some (MySQL/SQLite) database. >O

[testing4l.livejournal.com]

wrt glasses -- get them sooner rather than later. It may be expensive to do so, but you'll be happier.

Out of curiousity, why don't you consider livejournal to be a social networking site?

[nyankoframe.livejournal.com]

I paid the deposit on the lenses, so I'll be collecting them on Tuesday (and paying the balance of $150), and my glasses (same frame) with the new lenses the following day (at worst).

I actually consider LJ to be a social networking site, just not in the same league as MySpace, Facebook or other "newer"/"Web 2.0" sites. One of the things I like about LJ is its simplicity. ^_^