Chris Alleaume's Blog

My new Riff

2011-08-25T21:27:00.001+02:00

I was recently inspired by Kirk Hammet as I listened to master of puppets.With this beefy flavour of music in mind, I worked on a riff of my own. After a bit of creative work, this is what I came up with on Athena. It's not a work of art quite yet, but I still think this rudimentary version rocks! Let me know what you think :)

Athena is mine

2011-05-05T13:46:00.002+02:00

Wake up. Normal day. Play guitar / practise. Alexis is beautiful, as always... Snap E string. Feck. Practise ended prematurely. Shower, leave, see client. Visit chiropractor. Pain. Moo. Drive to Music Mate. Acquire new set of gauge 10 electric strings. Enquire about loop pedal. Sales person directs me to amp with built-in loop feature instead. Ohh. Look. New effects. Need to test. Ask for

iPhone 5, iPad 3 and a bag of potato chips...

2011-03-09T12:02:00.003+02:00

Apple, Blackberry, HTC, Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, Windows Mobile and the ever popular Android O/S are all fighting for some attention in the mobile marketplace. Which is the better phone? Which is the better O/S? Why? It's mostly speculation. What is great for some is crap for others. It all boils down to a matter of choice, really. A choice influenced by budget constraints, brand

My new favourite restaurant

2010-12-17T17:15:00.002+02:00

Aromas pour from the small kitchens in the quaint restaurant. Contemporary French food with a hint of the big apple's ambience and vibe. The owners display their vested interest in their patrons as they describe the tantalizing menu specials at every table. Customers smile and laugh as they enjoy their delectable gastronomic pleasures. As my starter of duck livers arrived, I was pleasantly

Peri-peri friends

2010-12-14T10:15:00.001+02:00

Do you have friends you haven't seen in a while? Friends who were once close perhaps, or acquaintances that climbed the ranks only slightly? People we see occasionally, but not with great desire or eagerness? You know, those people you've just seen after a while, to whom you can't actually say "it was good to see you"? Most of us will read this with a nod of cognisance. We tend to cross paths

How to be a proper Scuba diver

2010-10-26T08:59:00.003+02:00

There are, as I'm sure you're aware, ways to do most things.Photographers conform to a set of guidelines and rules to make their photographs more impactful using composition and lighting, racing drivers adopt techniques to make them faster than their opponents. Scuba diving, albeit for recreational puproses, also has a set of guidelines that set good divers apart from "the rest".I've seen

Endurance drinking

2010-09-21T09:59:00.002+02:00

Going out and having a good time with friends often (more often than not) involves the consumption of copious amounts of alcohol. Pace yourself. Drink slowly. Know yourself.Yeah yeah, we all know this. We've heard it before. What? Really? How long you last without setting your own underwear on fire or mistaking your host's wash basket for the toilet is almost entirely dependent on the ratio

Hmmm... Large Pizza or Medium?

2010-09-03T14:51:00.001+02:00

Some time ago, an analyst I worked with posted figures on whether it made more sense to get a large or a medium pizza. Today I was faced with the dilemma again, and wanted to figure out which offers better value for money and by how much... So, I worked on a formula quick that will help determine this so that next time I will be able to make a more informed decision. A certain well-known

Time reveals all

2010-03-26T07:46:00.005+02:00

Colours of blue and red and yellow begin to fade to shades of grey. As if the receptors in your eyes have changed to accept only black and white. I believe it's quite normal for us all, as fallible humans, to share a little icing to sweeten the cake that is us. Sometimes, however, certain people tend to accompany their cake with too much icing or icing that just doesn't match - like chocolate

The Crazy

2010-02-22T09:14:00.005+02:00

"Because I like money", she said in response after I asked why she promotes shooters.My reaction was probably like that of a brick wall to a ping pong ball.Quiet. Unmoved."Is that it?", I thought to myself; "That's the best she can do?".She looked at me, smiling, clearly awaiting some reaction.I nodded, turned, and walked back to the group of people we were sitting with.A few minutes later,

My work on ZAZZLE.com

2010-01-27T10:01:00.000+02:00

create & buy custom products at Zazzle

Underwater Naturalist

2010-01-27T08:23:00.001+02:00

Naturalist. Not Naturist, no nakedness involved.The air bubbles leave my lungs and escape in a rush past my ear. The only sound is the air rushing through the valves in the regulator followed by a sequence of air bubbles hurrying for the surface.20 metres deep, every object in this world, both living and inanimate, adopts a blue hue.My pulse quickens as I observe in awe the sheer beauty of these

Sheer Driving Pleasure

2009-09-20T13:27:00.005+02:00

The bedside clock alarm goes off. 5 AM, Sunday morning.Time to get ready to test the limits of my recently acquired toy.We meet at our spot at 6 AM for a breakfast run.The air is cool, the wind nippy - good for intercoolers and turbochargers.Some moisture in the air would be better but this will do.__________________________________________________The key inserted into the slot, a click releases

Finally - A commendation for service!

2009-09-01T19:37:00.003+02:00

I recently sent an email of commendation to my insurance brokers.That, alone, is not something we see or hear of often.We all take the time to lodge complaints or moan when things don't meet our expectations, but I felt perhaps I should make an effort to improve the frequency at which I commend good service. After all, commending people for good service - telling them what we like - will motivate

Public service is a mystery

2009-08-11T10:37:00.006+02:00

7 seconds.That's how long it takes for an average teller to stamp a document.If you need to find the misplaced stamp, add another 10 seconds.If you have run out of ink, add 50 seconds more to obtain a new ink pad from stationery.Add another 5 seconds in case you are visually impaired.In fact, add 5 more minutes to redo the whole process, in case you botched the first document because you happen

6 areas of pleasure

2009-07-08T08:27:00.008+02:00

I gently place my hands on her neck and body. My fingers softly press on her neck, sensually, as I exert a little more pressure. She makes a feint sound as the pressure increases. My breathing stablises. My hand steadies, my fingers press down again at different points. She releases a pleasurable tone as I move my hands and fingers, this time with a little more pressure. Her smooth neck is

Hold still, this won't hurt a bit

2009-06-17T10:32:00.005+02:00

Ironic how life often throws curveballs for which we either duck in time or find ourselves picking our teeth up off the floor.Life is made of experiences, both good and bad so that we can learn from mistakes and learn that good things are possible too. I get that. Totally.Just ironic sometimes, how we wonder how bad we must have been in a previous life to deserve something that shatters hope,

Into the fire

2009-06-17T09:57:00.002+02:00

I recently upped the ante for my photography, having started Macro work. My only bane is the limited depth of field with the extra-sharp wide apertures. My lens supports f/2.8 all the way to 105mm focal length. Great, yeah, but there's enough depth of field to capture the head of a small ant and the rest is blurred.Great for shooting pics of curved credit cards.Don't get me wrong - the usefulness

G.O.L.F stands for what?

2009-02-02T11:11:00.012+02:00

The time is now. The little white ball awaits propped up on a tee, ready to be abruptly sent off into the distance, heading for a green runway of well trimmed grass - the fairway.I focus on the lessons I've had over the past few years.I rehearse my technique and go through all the points to a successful, consistent golf swing: Adjust your stance; square up your feet; keep your left arm straight;

Skiing in Ischgl, Austria

2009-01-18T18:17:00.012+02:00

It's been a while since my last post, and thought it might be good to express my experiences in Ischgl as a first-time skier... "Can you wiggle your toes?", "Can you lift your heel?" are the last questions I heard while trying my ski boots on. I learned pretty quickly that the skis are much of a muchness, but the boots you wear play a vital role in your ability to ski! The fact that I've come

I want a world globe, counterfeit sunglasses and one of those hippo thingies too

2008-09-26T16:52:00.005+02:00

You're stopped at a traffic light. Traffic is hectic. It's hot.You're busting for the toilet.You just want to get home.A troop of hawkers streams to your slightly lowered window and each person begins an attempt to convince you that you NEED a car charger, a fake Nike cap, counterfeit D&G sunglasses, a wooden hippo, a spinning globe and a handbag.Oh, and a flyer, just in case you haven't said "NO

Mediation on Meditation

2008-09-16T10:14:00.004+02:00

Meditation is a subject that has become relatively popular in the modern times.Eastern cultures and practices are quickly being adopted by the western world.Often referred to as "alternative medicine", these practices are being recommended by western doctors because they tend to supplement (and even replace) western treatments.I thought I might give some pointers I've learned (again, Chris-style)

How to speak Swahili and Japanese

2008-09-03T08:31:00.004+02:00

Ok, so most of us have had the honour of meeting "The Parents"... There's a fair deal of pressure normally - subconsciously or not. And, of course, there are certain ways to behave when meeting people whom you respect. The instructions, however, to speak a fluent combination of Swahili and Japanese are as follows: Start off with a few glasses of bubbly. A few hours later, once you've finished a

Communication, eh?

2008-09-02T12:10:00.000+02:00

"Communicate, elaborate, collaborate"Hmmm... You're frustrated. You can't seem to get something across to someone you're dealing with either in a business or personal capacity.I'm pretty certain this applies to most of us. I certainly often fall within this category.I can also easily offer some advice that I don't often take myself :)But here's a different, Chris-style approach on how to

iPhone 2G 2.0.2

2008-08-30T11:29:00.005+02:00

I almost had a heart attack trying to upgrade from 1.1.4 to 2.0.2 using the latest Winpwn 2.5 tool...The guys have done a sterling job on jailbreaking the iPhone with the greatest of ease.Just don't do what I did.So I followed the instructions, and then at some point I realised that I forgot to press "Shift" while restoring the iPhone from IPSW. Pressing Shift allows one to browse for your