gregorymarshall@outlook.com

27 Jan, 2023 gregorymarshall@outlook.com

Ticketmaster is making going to concerts a bummer.

Ticketmaster is a total fucking monopoly and the government is doing nothing about it. Surprise huh? I read an article the other day where the ex Ticketmaster CEO blamed the public for higher prices stemming from people no longer buying music and downloading for free. Duh….dumbass…music is streamed now…so not very many people want to amass a huge collection of CDs (just ask me) anymore.

Ticketmaster and their affiliates, Livenation are jacking up the prices of concert tickets to the point I will no longer be going to pay for and see some of my favorite artists. Metallica, forget it. Mr. Bungle, forget it. Jerry Cantrell, forget it. Their monopoly results in a crappy experience when buying tickets…and ensures that the bots get tickets before the general public….and then the bots folks turn around and sells tickets on stubhub.com for a hefty profit. Who loses? The fans lose. I refuse to pay extorted prices any longer. I’ll catch the show on YouTube since most people film shows these days anyway.

The government does nothing to dismantle Ticketmaster. Makes you wonder who in the Senate has a shareholder stake in the whole scam. Thanks for alienating your fan base.

26 Jan, 2023 gregorymarshall@outlook.com

Virtual Reality and Quest 2: Part 1

So, I picked up a Quest 2 VR headset from Meta and have spent the last two weeks exploring the experience. I’m blown away at how different the experience has been compared to the VR headset I had used – you know, the VR headset that you have use your cell phone as the screen – It’s slow, not always consistent viewing VR 360 content.

Eager to start, I setup the device by drawing a boundary in the space around me – I chose stationary and used the hand controllers to draw a perimeter around myself – Doing so defines the screen viewing area. Once this is setup, you can start browsing all the apps, games and configuration settings in the control panel. Pretty easy.

The first thing I watched was a tour of San Francisco.. via YouTubeVR. As soon as I clicked on the thumbnail, I was immediately standing on a cliff over looking the San Francisco bay and the Golden Gate bridge. Spectacular! I could look around and actually went on a street car and looked around at the scenery. Pretty awesome.

The next 360 VR video I watched was using the television app that included a winged suit flight over the Swiss Alps. I was standing up in a helicopter over the snow drenched Swiss Alps and felt like I was going to lose my balance looking around. Once the wing suit flyer jumped out of the helicopter, I was on his back, flying down the mountain. It was so spectacular…..I loved it.

Stay tuned for Part 2.

22 Jan, 2023 gregorymarshall@outlook.com

My Resume

GregMarshall-Resume-2023-1

22 Jan, 2023 gregorymarshall@outlook.com

With some friends, you gotta cut your losses

Earlier this week I decided to cut off a friendship I have had with, let’s call him “John” because the way he chose to interact with me was subpar from what I expect from my so-called friends. The bar I set is pretty reasonable and he crossed the line. There’s nothing quite as lame as a friendship based on being fake. When everything a person does is transactional, is not there at a time when you may encouragement or support, and they practically ghost you after you’ve told them you have been diagnosed with cancer. Didn’t hear from him for a year..and then suddenly when he decided to move back to Ohio, he surfaces again….only to ask you if you could store a bunch of stuff while he treks across the globe. I don’t warm up to being anyone’s self-storage.

Fast forward to this year..and surprise! He’s back in town….and is now getting married! This is his 3rd marriage. It left me dumbfounded that he ended up getting married since the last time I spoke with him, he was calling her a psycho and going on and on about how its not working out, etc. I think some men (like my father) need to have a female in their life either due to mommy issues or the security they get by having someone take care of them. Oh, and he also now has an 8 year old son. Was weird when he bragged about being a father when he didn’t participate in the process. I’m happy to weed out people in my life who take away from me emotionally. Adios, Johnny Bravo!

19 Jan, 2023 gregorymarshall@outlook.com

What’s in my bag – An alternative to AI music curation

With AI officially curating the music you listen to, its getting increasingly harder to discover new music and new bands. Luckily, AMOEBA records in Hollywood / Berkeley has a great YouTube show called “Whats in my Bag?” Musicians like us are born to write songs, find melodies and try everything possible to make songs unique and memorable. Us musicians are a serious lot. We value an honest relationship with our music, our bond….and for any company or entity to try and take that away is major disrespect.

By listening to the musicians interviewed for “What’s in my bag?” I have discovered a lot of new, old music such as Scott Walker, Agent Orange, Bomfuck MC’s, Baby Metal, and Nirvana. Each episode I watch always has a key takeaway artist I have never heard of but yet they sound as familiar as the good ones. If you are stuck in a musical rut, be sure to tune into Amoeba’s “What’s in my Bag” and get ready to explore!

17 Jan, 2023 gregorymarshall@outlook.com

Welcome to 2023!

I am happy to start the new year off right, so I celebrate New Years with two of my dear friends. Without them, I wouldn’t be where I am today without their support and encouragement.

Moving forward….