1. Make at least a 3.0 in the Spring 2010 semester – yeah…that didn’t happen. I did do better than last semester though. I ended up with a 2.2. I’m really disappointed in myself, so this resolution will be sticking even stronger for the fall. And it WILL happen.

2. Get in shape – This is going fairly well. I’m a month into Insanity (the workout program similar to P90x). No results are really visible right now, but I definitely feel better. I can get through almost the entire workout now whereas before I could barely push myself through the warm up. We’ll see how the last month of it goes. Hopefully the results will really start to come out.

3. Get un-broke – Hasn’t happened yet, but I am doing better. I’m not taking any classes this summer (first time since starting college) so I will be working full time the entire time. Hopefully by doing this I can get my bank account up a bit.

4. Do better at work – I’d say I achieved this. There were a few times where I was late towards the end of the semester, but that’s about it (I think).

5. Finish beer pong table – Hopefully will be starting back up on this soon, along with a robot.

Recently, my favorite local radio station (104.9 KNXX) added the online streaming to their newly updated website. Not only did I love this addition because I could listen to the station whenever and wherever, but I could listen to it without all the static I usually get on a regular FM radio (it’s not a very clear channel at times). Not only that, they now support the use of an iPhone/iPod touch (and I guess the damn iPad). Now, even though I had to pay for the app, I was more than happy to pay for it since I could get 104.9 whenever I wanted very clear and also because it offered many other good local radio stations through the app.

So what is this app and how good is it? Well it’s called TuneinRadio, and it costs $1.99 which is very reasonable. There really isn’t much to the app, but it does what it has to do. When you first start it up it locates you so it can find all the local stations available around you and lists them in Local Stations. You can also browse radio broadcasts by category.

Radio category listings

Playing a live radio stream

When I first started using this app, I thought it was going to just be a regular streaming app. But as I used it a bit more, and delved into the features of it, I found some pretty cool things I could do. For one, you can actually record the live broadcast within the app and listen to it later. Now, you can’t share the recording or save it to any place outside of the app, but the fact that you can record is pretty nifty.

Recording a live stream

List of recorded radio

Listening to a recorded radio clip

Now one of the coolest features I’ve found with this app is the ability to play the stream in the background. The way it does this is by opening a page in Safari with a link to the stream in Quicktime format. When the webpage is opened, the Safari Quicktime viewer is opened. When you press the home button on the iPhone or iPod Touch, it keeps the music playing in the background and allows you to use any other apps on your phone. When I saw this I got very happy. I usually like to use the Pandora app on my phone, but it doesn’t let me text or check my email while listening to the music. Now I can listen 104.9 on my phone while texting, or hell, playing Bejeweled.

Options when listening to live radio stream

"Opening this link will exit TuneIn Radio and start the currently playing stream in Safari. Once the stream is started, you can then press the Home button to start another application."

Live stream playing in the Quicktime player in Safari

When you press Done, the Quicktime player is closed and you see this webpage which you can bookmark within Safari or on the Home Screen to play the radio stream without opening TuneIn Radio.

Tweet

1. Make at least a 3.0 in the Spring 2010 semester – So I did slightly terrible this past semester (Fall 2009) and I REALLY need to bring my cumulative GPA up to (a) keep TOPS, (b) get re-approved to work 25 hours a week, and (c) not get laughed at when I apply for an internship. I think this is a very plausible goal for this semester. For some reason, I always do much better every Spring semester anyway. Plus, I just found out my work schedule and even though it kinda sucks as far as when I have to work (every Sunday evening which means I have to miss out on family dinner) it gives me sooo much time to study and do homework. Plus, I have somebody who is gonna help/make me stay focused…just because she has to do the same

2. Get in shape – I have told myself I am going to do this so many times before, but it never lasts long. The last time I started working out was the longest I’ve ever stuck with it and I got some pretty good results from it. I don’t want to get buff or anything (I know I’m too lazy for that), but I just want to get toned (I know, sounds gay but deal with it). I’m getting back into the routine I was in a few months ago. Now the only thing I need to do is start eating better again. So I brought most of the candy I had to work, and I will either pack my own lunch or not eat a lunch during the semester. I need to find some motivation to make me stick with this though…

3. Get un-broke – I had a good bit of money last May so I decided to buy myself a new car. I did some calculations and decided I could afford the payments and still be able to survive. Little did I know I would get a girlfriend a few months later who “suggested” I get a new bed (I was still sleeping on a twin mattress back from when I was 10). That was fine though, I did need a new bed. I still had money after that. Then came time to pay my car insurance (I pay ever 6 months) and even though it was cheaper than I thought it would be, it still wiped me out a good bit. But it was good, still had money. Then the first of the year came around and I had to pay my brother rent for 6 months and that’s when it got real bad. I’m pretty much completely broke now which is not good at all. So now I am not eating out anymore, anything I do has to be free or under $10, and I am only getting necessities when I go grocery shopping (basically Cheez-its). I have to be really strict with myself so I can save up my money again. This is the least amount of money I’ve had since…8th grade? Yeah, it’s bad.

4. Do better at work – I used to be really good at work, but lately I’ve been majorly slacking. Sometimes not even going in because I didn’t feel like getting out of bed. See, usually I’m on the phones helping people, but for the break I had the task of making Windows 7 videos for the LSU online knowledge base. So I wasn’t scheduled for actual hours and I could come and go as I pleased. Well I’ve been going more than coming and that’s hurting my #3 resolution :-/

5. Finish beer pong table – Me and a friend of mine have an idea for a beer pong table with lights, sensors…all kinda cool shit. We’ve started on it, but it hasn’t really taken off. We’re using an arduino to control the lights and everything we’re doing on it so I got one for Christmas so I can play/learn with it. So my goal is to have it completely finished at the end of this summer (I don’t want to work too much on it during the Spring semester so I can focus on school – the #1 resolution).

6. Learn to dance – Yeah, not really.

Well…there ya have it. 5 new years resolutions that I really hope I can accomplish. I’m pretty confident on a few of these just because I’ll have help (#1, #3, and #5), but the others may be tough.

*crosses fingers*