Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Database Creation

Recently I had to take an .MDF file, and create a new database in SQL 2005 with it. So, initially, I went to the SQL Management Studio, and created a new database with the name I wanted, stopped the SQL service, navigated to where the .MDF files are stored on disk, and replaced the newly created with the one that contained all the data. This didn't work, so I took to Google.

I lost this gem once, and I don't want to lose it again. So. To restore a database from ONLY an .MDF file, issue the following query:

EXEC sp_attach_single_file_db @dbname = '[databasename]',
@physname = '[path to your .MDF file]'

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Skumlove @ The Roxy, April 26th, 2008

Last night was pretty dang cool man! Skumlove played at The Roxy with Heroes of the F.E.D.E.R.A.T.I.O.N., Operation Downfall, Otto's Daughter, and one other band that we missed. Angel and I got there for Operation Downfall - great band! They really had their shit down. Then, Heroes went on stage, and boy - what a stage presence D has! He was one big ball of energy, and very entertaining!

Now it was Skumlove's turn to hit the stage, which is what I had been waiting for. It's awesome to see a band like that playing at The Roxy. The songs were great! I screamed along to the ones that I knew, participated it holding up countless crowd surfers - the very last one being Skum, the frontman himself!

In-between Skumlove and the last band to hit the stage for the night, Otto's Daughter, Skum had invited us backstage to kick it with the band and their friends. That was really awesome of him. That was a real treat. I met D'ablo - who was the former guitarist of Skumlove, and also Skumlove's staple photographer, Devilman. There were other people there too that I didn't know, but all totally cool. It was awesome to go backstage where so many greats have been.

After having a beer, we went back out to check out Otto's Daughter. They were awesome too, and put on a great show! We hung out for a little bit after that and headed home. All in all it was a great to see some local Hollywood bands play; a very spectacular night!! My thanks goes out to Skumlove for all of their hospitality!!

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Driving

For the sake of everything that you hold dear in your hearts, readers, please hear my plea.

My name is Natalie Wiser-Orozco, and I have the most awesome family in the world. It consists of my mother, father, and brother, and we are all the best of friends. Sure, we have our fights, our quirks, our shortcomings just like every other family, but the bottom line is that I love them so much, I would give my life in a nano-second to keep them from harm.

The relationship I have with my brother is a very special one. We joke around that we were twins born five years apart, because we think the same way, like the same things (for the most part), share the same moral values, and whenever we are together, we are certainly a force to be reckoned with. We are greater than the sum of our parts. To be his sister is the biggest honor I have ever known.

Erick is a great guy. He's very sharp witted, sensitive, athletic (played Varsity baseball all four years of high school), and just overall fun to be around. About 6 months ago, he was in a car accident. He was 24 when it happened.

I talk to my brother every day after we get off work. This particular day in October was no different. We were both talking to each other on our bluetooths, when all of a sudden I hear a muffled bang. I could hear him talking/yelling but he seemed so far away. I have great ears, so I decided to try to listen to what he was saying/yelling, when I realized he had been in an accident. I turned into hysterics knowing this - and luckily I hadn't quite put the key in my own ignition. I was screaming for my brother through the phone, unrelenting. I screamed until my voice had gone hoarse. He was talking to witnesses; I could make out parts of conversation, but not all. The nightmare had begun.

He, having the right-of-way, had stopped to avoid a driver trying to cross the road who was seemingly oblivious to him and all of the other oncoming traffic. He had avoided an accident. The lady who was behind Erick was not so attentive. Completely un-attentive as a matter of fact, as she hits Erick going 50 mph without even attempting to brake.

So, big deal, you think, right? He got rear-ended. Get over it and move on. Wrong.

At first the pain was bad. Time off work. Chiropractor. Physical Therapy. Enough pain meds to keep you flying for a good long while. Lawyers. After awhile pain is still there, but it seems to be getting better... Yet still, my now 25 year old brother, cannot even lift his grocery bags for fear of further injury.

About 2 weeks ago, Erick wakes up screaming. The pain is worse than what he started out with. Pain in his neck and back. Shooting pains down his arms/legs. Absolutely cannot work. Can't turn his head. Zero range of motion.

He gets spinal injections this friday, and it is 99% likely he will have to have 2 surgeries - once on his neck, and once on his spine. My brother's life will never be the same because one person failed to realize their surroundings while behind the wheel. What does she suffer? Nothing. Her ticket for hitting my brother got reduced to a parking ticket.

Now, I know life is not fair, and I'm not here to get sympathy from anyone. After all, shit happens, and you just have to deal with that which you are dealt. The reason, therefore, for this post is a request for everyone (myself included) to pay more attention on the road. Before you engage the movement of your vehicle, make sure you have what you need. Make sure your phone headset or bluetooth is in your ear and ready to go, so your hand is not attached to your ear for the duration of your journey. Make sure your lipstick is on. Make sure your kids/pets are strapped in tight. Look in your mirrors frequently, and check that blind spot! Be attentive rather than passive!

I say this because I love all of you, and to hopefully spare you and your family from the suffering that mine endures daily. I know that the situation my family is experiencing could be so much worse, and I'm thankful (believe me) that I still have my brother here with me. Just, please be careful out there all of you.

On a side note - if you are able, increase your under-insured motorist coverage on your car insurance. This is something I need to look into myself. God forbid any of you get hit by the likes of the lady who hit my brother - who was under-insured. This way, more money will be available to you to better cover whatever medical bills may result from injury.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Ahhh Technology

I personally feel that I am not up to par with keeping up with what is going on in the technological world. As one can see, this is my first post in over 6 months! That first post that I wrote so long ago, I speak of "coming out of my shell" and making an honest effort to "join the blogging world". I have failed in that respect for the past few months, and am trying to make amends.

This post is to bring to you - in case you haven't yet tapped this particular functionality of Google(seems they keep coming up with endless cool stuff) - the Google Reader. But first, a little background...

In an attempt to keep myself more "in tune" with the technological world around me, I need something that makes the information extremely accessible, and forces me to read it. I made iGoogle my homepage, I don't know, about a year or so ago, and I find that I'm more in tune with the news, popular Digg articles, weather, email, and other things. When I faced this problem of needing a way to keep up to date with the technological world, my quest started with one of my former colleagues.

He always seemed to be on the bleeding edge of everything, and I always envied that. He would always tell me about new and up-coming cool stuff. I wanted to be on that edge just as he was, so I started with the blogs he read. Instead of creating bookmarks everywhere (because I knew that I would not visit them), I decided to subscribe to their RSS feeds. I don't have an RSS reader installed on this machine, but it prompted me to use Google's reader. I thought "what the hell, it's worth a shot", and voila! Google Reader was discovered! After poking around a bit, I was really impressed! The organization is really great.

This, however, was still not enough to force me to read the articles that I had subscribed to. Since I *love* my iGoogle homepage for keeping me up to date, and knowing the thoughtfulness of Google, I queried the gadgets for my iGoogle home page, searching for a Google Reader Gadget. Again, Google comes through! I now have the reader gadget on my homepage, and will be able to get updates every time I open a new browser. I'm a happy camper! So happy, in fact, that it inspired me to write this entry.

P.S. Happy Earth Day!!! Please try to reduce your carbon footprint today, more than you would normally! Help keep Mother Earth alive and thriving!!