Today I did something I’ve wanted to do for a while. I rode my bike into work. According to Google Maps the route clocks in at 9.2 miles. My speedometer quit working 1/3 of the way (dirty contacts) through the trip. So I couldn’t get the exact mileage. I cleaned the contacts so hopefully it will work on the way home.

The route I got from Google Maps was excellent. It kept me off busy roads the entire trip. I started in East Atlanta, went through Cabbagetown, Clifton through Emory, Lavista and ended up on Druid Hills. Druid Hills was the only place I used the sidewalk to ride because that road is extremely dangerous. From there I got to Briarcliff which is right by the office. The ride took about 50 minutes since it was mostly uphill. So hopefully going home will be lots of coasting.

The best part, as well as the most dangerous, was riding through Emory. I had to negotiate students, busses, cars and other cyclists. I enjoyed seeing the students walking to class. In other words, yes I saw some hot female Emory students.

I’m hoping I can avoid getting the bicycle shorts but I may have to, my buttocks are a little sore. Yes let the jokes commence!

I’m estimating I burned between 400 to 500 calories one way, so I could potentially burn 1,000 calories every day I bike into work. The benefits speak for themselves.

So I have proven that I don’t need MARTA or a car to get to work. I’m thinking about trying variations for the commute using the bike and MARTA to see how that works. My goal is to keep this up 2 times a week. Some days I have to drive. Still biking has proven to be faster than MARTA and does not cost me one cent.

Millions of websites. Here are some I use every day.

1. Digg
I love Digg. Kevin Rose’s brilliant idea creates a site where users determine the top stories. There is a community there. It’s a little hard to tap into but it’s there.

2. Netvibes
I use Netvibes for my RSS feed reader. With Netvibes you can organize all your feeds with tabs.

3. Twitter
When I first heard about Twitter last year I admit, I didn’t get it. Earlier this year I did and I’ve been a Twittering freak ever since.

4. Regator
I met the 2 folks who started Regator at the first Atlanta Tweet Up a few weeks ago. Regator is similar to Digg in that they organize the massive amounts of content on the web. Users vote on stories and send them to the Front Page.

5. Gmail
I love Gmail. I love how emails are in threads. I love that I can label emails. I love that I can add other accounts so that I can check them in one place. I love that there is built-in IM window.

6. CNN
I like CNN.com for news. They’re biased but every major news outlet is biased because they are corporations which sell advertising. I like their reporting style. I like watching the videos of certain stories.

7. AJC
The AJC’s quality has gone down noticeably. They’ve recently released many of their veteran writers. I hate the design of their site, it’s horrible. However there aren’t many other places to get local news.

8. Facebook
Not a huge fan of Facebook but it is good for keeping in touch with actual friends. I like that I can create an event, invite friends and then get an idea of who may attend. I also like that you can create groups on things that interest you.

9. Scottrade
I use Scottrade for trading/buying/selling stocks, plus trades are $7. Not bad.

10. Fark
I love Fark, it’s hilarious. Here you’ll find the weirdest, most insane stories on the web. The great thing about Fark is that the headlines are hilarious. I also love the tags for each story, especially the “Florida” tag. Those stories are sometimes unbelievable.

What are some sites you use every day?

I know I’m behind the times when it comes to Rock Band. I’ve never been a big gamer. I’ve seen the game and it looked fun but last night was the first time I’ve played it. I played all the instruments, drums, guitar, bass and sang.

When you have a group of folks at a party playing this it is so much fun. I sang a lot so in many ways it was like a karaoke performance. The game grades your pitch accuracy when singing. Of course me being the “pro singer” and all I tried the expert level on some pretty hard songs, “Roxanne” and “Black Hole Sun.” I was glad when I got to 85% on the first try. I also sang, “Brass In Pocket,” “Limelight,” and “Say It Ain’t So.” On the Weezer tune I sang and played drums at the same time.

The drums were somewhat realistic. The feel is cheap and the pads do not rebound at all. The kick drum takes some getting used to. However once you get the feel for the game it’s fun and you begin having fun immediately.

I loathe the guitar controllers on these games. I’ve played Guitar Hero before and the controllers on Rock Band are the same. At least with the singing and drumming you are close on the reality. The guitars nowhere approximate what it’s like to play guitar, it’s nothing but hand-eye coordination.

There are some good songs on there. There is a good mix of classic rock as well as new rock. There are cheat codes that unlock more songs but we were unable to get them to work. You can also buy new songs for $1.99. I just read on Rock Band’s website that the entire Rush album, “Moving Pictures,” will be available soon. As if Rush needs more money. However what a great way to make new fans. Kids aren’t listening to radio but they’re playing Rock Band. Well played my Canadian friends.

Almost every song on there is good. To me it shows the power of well-written, well-played song. A good song captures emotions and hearts and engages everyone.

To play this game you will fork out some cash. The PlayStation 3 is $399 and Rock Band, with all the controllers, is $149. So by the time you pay taxes you’re probably out $600. For that much money you could buy a real drum set or a guitar and amp, take lessons and learn to play.

The game is fun for all ages. At a party with 20 and 30 somethings we all had a blast playing the game. Everyone learned how to play quickly and many laughs were had. JamSmooth approves, however JamSmooth approves more of playing an actual instrument!

Funny little ditty about Web 2.0. Sums up how I feel.

(h/t to Maigh)

Thinking about the election and all I see are desperate people salivating over power. Politics in the 21st century were aptly described in this 20th century song from the great band Living Colour. This performance is from 1989 on the Aresnio Hall Show. Good times.

JamSmooth doesn’t endorse Obama/Biden or McCain/Palin. They all fail. I have no hope in any of them.

Seems to me that the busier you are, the more productive you are. You have more things going on, more excitement and more creativity.

When you’re idle, you seem to have less happening and unfortunately, less creativity.

Reasoning would say you’d be more productive when you have more time.

What do you think?

I suggest you head over to I Hate Orange for a hilarious and entertaining story of a prank involving a UGA fan vs. a SC fan.

It features writing on cars and then crackheads washing cars, mysterious $5 bills and detective work.

Tomorrow is the first test of the season for UGA. 3:30 p.m. on CBS. Go Dawgs!

My brother recently started grad school at Georgia Tech, ya know the small trade school on North Avenue?

Here’s a photo he took from the Architecture Department bathroom. Where’s the love? Oh wait, there is none.

This is one of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen.

(via Ragamuffin Soul)

This video is making the rounds on the Net and I figured I’d share it with you. It’s pretty extraordinary. Also it takes skills to sing and play bass at the same time.

(via Ragamuffin Soul)