This looks like it's been around for quite some time, but Dan Renner, our computer networking guy, pointed me to Wolfgang's Vault, a website where you can view videos of past concerts, mostly rock.

Now, while the name may not be recognizable to many, I immediately recognized the photo on the home page — Wolfgang is actually Wolfgang Grajonca, who later changed his name to Bill Graham. The same Bill Graham concert promoter extraordinnaire who had so much to do with the San Francisco music scene in the 1960's, and on. Bill Graham, of the Fillmore (East and West), Winterland, etc. Sadly, Mr. Graham passed many years ago, but his legacy lives on.

At any rate, Wolfgang's Vault contains many concert videos — want to see past live concerts of Cream or Jeff Beck or Jimi? You'll find those videos there. Mind you, live concerts are not usually as polished as recorded material, but then you get the added experience of seeing the musicians performing their music in its live, raw state.

Wolfgang's Vault also has a store where you can buy "Extraordinary Rock Memorabilia". And also the Wolfgang's Vault forums where people debate on. Note: if they disagree with me, they're just plain wrong. :)

Kidding, of course.

Our friends at Maui Real Estate have a fantastic blog — as this recent post (article) illustrates well:

Since then, I had my own pretty amazing whale experience on Monday. While stand up paddle surfing an outer reef, a small pod of whales came within 100 or so yards of the lineup. The gentle giants spent the better part of forty minutes rolling on the surface. Every once in a while we were treated to a breach. Perhaps they were inspired by some of the more distant pods of whales that were breaching repeatedly. It was amazing being so close to these wonderful animals.

Well, that's one way to live; we should be so lucky!

Enjoy: Maui Whale Photos

Our friends at ActionPublishing recently published a new book entitled The People's Guide to the United States Constitution by Dave Kluge. This book is short and sweet, and a must-read.

Why, you ask?

In order to GUARD one's freedom against a government that wishes to oppress its own citizens (that means you and me), it's a good idea to know that government's constitution — in our case, we are talking about the United States Constitution.

Now, I don't know about you, but when I was sixteen, I went through a class in high school called Civics. And in this class I was "taught" about the US Constitution. The only problem was that it was quite confusing to me at that time. I remember feeling like I was going to fall asleep. more »

Wow. Tell us this isn't both useful and entertaining — Design My Room allows you to upload a photo of a room and then design it, right there online.

The website also has "community" — discussion forums — where you can share information, get tips, and … design.

This is a terrific use of the Web to do things we might like to do from the comfort of our homes.

Pretty cool stuff, if you ask us. Find out how Design My Room works.

And thanks to MarketingVox for the hat tip.

Just a quickie — after jumping through some hoops to try to track where UPS might possibly have a package we'd ordered, we found a neat website … you guessed it: gethuman.com has lists of companies, their telephone numbers, and how to actually speak to a human when you call. more »

We were tickled to find Japan It Up, a blog written by an English-speaking resident of Japan (we don't know where he's from; he didn't say) who, with his girlfriend, moved to Japan for a "short stay". Of this, he says: more »

Not sure if everyone's keeping up with the threat to raw milk in California. As we've stated on our WeWantOrganicFood.com blog:

October 8, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed AB1735, an amendment to the food laws that requires that milk sold in California contain 10 or less coliform bacteria per milliliter — despite the fact that most coliform bacteria are not harmful and/or are beneficial. Strangely, it does not require that milk be tested for pathogens (disease-causing micro-organisms such as bacteria and fungus).

This news was sprung on us as a fait accompli. But there's still time.

The issue here is that coliform bacteria could include e-coli, and that raw milk contains more than 10 or less coliform bacteria per milliliter. So it's reasonable to assume that this amendment was intended to cut down incidences of e-coli illness — that is, it's reasonable *if* you don't look at the facts staring us all in the face: more »

Not exactly sure where this fits into the grand scheme of things — sadly not being a part of The Industry — but, as residents of Los Angeles, we feel we simply must carry the word that the Hollywood Reporter magazine has announced a downloadable application (program) — Hollywood Reporter direct that will bring the latest bulletins and updates right to your desktop.

How does it work?
You will receive an alert window on your desktop each time we send a news bulletin or update. Alerts come directly to you, not through the Web or e-mail. You can view each message right away or when you want, and saving them is easy, too.

Can I control what is sent to me?
You choose what types of content are sent to you. All bulletins and video can be saved to your computer.

Pretty cool stuff. We assume it's a handy application for industry folk — including all the ancillary Los Angeles industries (lawyers, agents, casting, etc.). And for anyone who just wants to know. <grin>

Thanks to Marketing Vox for the tip.