Welcome to the redesign! So I noticed today that Google had completely overhauled the Design portion of Blogger, and since I was bored out of my gourd today at work, I decided to give my blog a new (and hopefully refreshing) look.
It's most assuredly brighter if nothing else. Being that I was at work while I was doing this, I got interrupted several times and it took most of the day to finish what should have taken no more than an hour tops. If you notice any discrepancies with the color scheme or boxes or anything like that please let me know in the comments section so that I can fix it.
Enjoy!
Friday, October 15, 2010
The Pain that Keeps on Giving...
Not many of you know this, but I have had a hurt back for the past fourteen years or so. It started as a sports injury that hurt for a while then went away after resting and didn't bother me again for five or six years. Then I re-injured my back, thankfully after I came home from Panama, in another sports accident. Since then, it has been an on again, off again recurring pain. In 2009 however, it stopped doing the "off again" portion and became a continuous pain that only wavered in level of relative pain.
So I finally decided to do something about it. First, six months ago, I went to a general family doctor and he prescribed me Gabapentin. This is a medicine for Epileptics to control seizures. It is also used to control nerve pain. The most interesting thing about this drug is a sentence from the medical information page that comes with the drug when you pick it up. It reads, "It is not known how Gabapentin controls seizures or reduces nerve pain." This sentence is printed directly after the paper tells me that this medicine is used to control seizures and nerve pain. Damn, I love modern medicine.
Last week, after switching insurance from my company's sucky one to Vanina's amazing insurance, I got an MRI and went to a back/joint specialist (all covered). He reviewed my MRI and told me that I have Herniated Nucleus Pulposus (Spinal Disc Herniation) with nerve impingement in my L4.5 disk (my sciatic nerve). Basically this means I am in pain all the time but my pain spikes and shoots down my leg when I bend over forward or lift objects weighing more than a few pounds.
The doctor has prescribed me to get a Spinal Injection (yes think Epidural) of Cortisone, and go to Physical Therapy afterward. Hopefully, the injection will reduce the inflammation (and pain) in my back allowing me enough time (months) to complete my physical therapy regimen and strengthen my core muscles so my back won't return to the way it is now.
I'm scheduled for this spinal tap on Thursday. Wish me luck.
So I finally decided to do something about it. First, six months ago, I went to a general family doctor and he prescribed me Gabapentin. This is a medicine for Epileptics to control seizures. It is also used to control nerve pain. The most interesting thing about this drug is a sentence from the medical information page that comes with the drug when you pick it up. It reads, "It is not known how Gabapentin controls seizures or reduces nerve pain." This sentence is printed directly after the paper tells me that this medicine is used to control seizures and nerve pain. Damn, I love modern medicine.
Last week, after switching insurance from my company's sucky one to Vanina's amazing insurance, I got an MRI and went to a back/joint specialist (all covered). He reviewed my MRI and told me that I have Herniated Nucleus Pulposus (Spinal Disc Herniation) with nerve impingement in my L4.5 disk (my sciatic nerve). Basically this means I am in pain all the time but my pain spikes and shoots down my leg when I bend over forward or lift objects weighing more than a few pounds.
The doctor has prescribed me to get a Spinal Injection (yes think Epidural) of Cortisone, and go to Physical Therapy afterward. Hopefully, the injection will reduce the inflammation (and pain) in my back allowing me enough time (months) to complete my physical therapy regimen and strengthen my core muscles so my back won't return to the way it is now.
I'm scheduled for this spinal tap on Thursday. Wish me luck.
Friday, October 08, 2010
1st Anniversary!
It's hard to believe that it has been one year already, but it has! Vanina and I were married one year ago this sunday (two days from now). We will be celebrating this momentous occasion privately, at the Waldorf-Astoria here in Utah.
We are SUPER excited about this weekend! I hear wonderful things about this Hotel, and will be sure to report on it after the fact.
It has been getting colder and colder here, and raining alot this past week. We are hopeful that Saturday will prove an exception to this though, as we would very much like to hit up the Mountain resort to play on their Zip lines and slider coasters during the day. If it is raining this won't happen, as wet and cold don't mix very well at all.
No matter the weather, Park City has much to offer. In fact, I have yet to visit that city during the warm months but have been there numerous times during the winter (for film festivals and snow activities mostly).
I hope everyone who reads this has a wonderful weekend planned as well.
We are SUPER excited about this weekend! I hear wonderful things about this Hotel, and will be sure to report on it after the fact.
It has been getting colder and colder here, and raining alot this past week. We are hopeful that Saturday will prove an exception to this though, as we would very much like to hit up the Mountain resort to play on their Zip lines and slider coasters during the day. If it is raining this won't happen, as wet and cold don't mix very well at all.
No matter the weather, Park City has much to offer. In fact, I have yet to visit that city during the warm months but have been there numerous times during the winter (for film festivals and snow activities mostly).
I hope everyone who reads this has a wonderful weekend planned as well.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Free Advertising
So Vanina and I went to Costco last night for dinner. She was actually craving Chinese food, but she also wanted a Chicken Bake and she opted for the latter.
When we got in line to order, we noticed a new item on the menu: "The Carne Asada Bake." Vanina decided to give it a try. I'm so glad that she did. After one bite of that thing, my polish dog and combo pizza no longer seemed appetizing.
Now, I have long since stopped eating chicken bakes. I no longer like the taste, but this new Carne Asada Bake has restored my liking for the bakes. I am a Mexican food junkie and this thing hits the spot like nothing else on Costco's menu (not to mention the fact that it tastes better than most things on some Mexican food restaurant menus).
If you love Mexican food like me, do not pass go, do not collect $200, go straight to Costco and purchase a Carne Asada Bake for lunch.
Oh, and a little bonus tip for you: if your Costco membership is expired (like ours is) you can still use the card as a "Show Me" (little Fringe joke there) to get into the store and then go purchase food (which does not require a card).
That is all.
When we got in line to order, we noticed a new item on the menu: "The Carne Asada Bake." Vanina decided to give it a try. I'm so glad that she did. After one bite of that thing, my polish dog and combo pizza no longer seemed appetizing.
Now, I have long since stopped eating chicken bakes. I no longer like the taste, but this new Carne Asada Bake has restored my liking for the bakes. I am a Mexican food junkie and this thing hits the spot like nothing else on Costco's menu (not to mention the fact that it tastes better than most things on some Mexican food restaurant menus).
If you love Mexican food like me, do not pass go, do not collect $200, go straight to Costco and purchase a Carne Asada Bake for lunch.
Oh, and a little bonus tip for you: if your Costco membership is expired (like ours is) you can still use the card as a "Show Me" (little Fringe joke there) to get into the store and then go purchase food (which does not require a card).
That is all.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Nostalgia, Cheese steak, and Home...
This past weekend my wife and I went to a place called Moochies here in Salt Lake. Moochies is a little hole in the wall italian deli style food place. Just so you get my meaning, the place is attached to a pottery store and there is a sign inside that says "For restrooms please go next door to Circle Pottery." That's how hole in the wall it is.
Nevertheless while growing up I would always eat really good cheese steak subs and I have been craving one for some time now. So, I did some searching online and found that Moochies' cheese steaks were rated number two in SLC. The number one place was too far to drive just for a cheese steak (like 20 minutes one way).
The website I found online was NOT wrong. The cheese steak subs we ate were really good, if a bit pricey. It totally reminded me of home and growing up and my grandparents (who loved eating out at little hole in the wall sub places). So for the memories, tasty food, and good feelings the price was not too much.
As long as it's not too often, because I'm sure that sub was terrible for me! It tasted oh soooo goood though!
Oh, and if you happen to be in my old neighborhood check out one of the deli's I used to go to: Gina's, you won't regret it.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
A Day in the Life...
7:50 am - Woke up ten minutes before my alarm. Looked at my wife who was still sleeping soundly. Cuddled up next to her to warm her up for a few minutes before I got up.
8:01 am - Alarm went off. Rolled out of bed and said my morning prayers. Entered the living room and sat down at my computer. Checked my email, spam, spam, more spam, rejection letter, rejection letter, facebook spam (just to mix things up), another job rejection letter...love the job search.
8:22 am - Got up from desk to stretch. Getting old, so gotta keep my body limber somehow.
8:43 am - Sat down to read some comics, they always make my mood brighter at the beginning of the day. I'm currently in the middle of the comic version of some of my favorite novels, Homeland, Exile, and Sojourn by R. A. Salvatore. If you like fantasy you might want to check it out.
9:15 am - Started the job search for the day. Prepped it by setting up all the websites I would use later on. Began search.
9:43 am - Went back into the bedroom to read scriptures with my wife. We are nearing the end of Mosiah, where Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah show up and is trying to destroy the church, then an Angel appears to tell them to knock it off. Lots of good stuff in there.
10:22 am - Walked into the kitchen to make breakfast for my wife and myself. She wanted cereal, Honey Nut Cheerios, and I decided to eat leftovers from the night before. Vanina doesn't like leftovers so I thought I'd save her from having to look at them in the fridge.
10:34 am - Began my french lesson for the day. I recently got the Rosetta Stone program and it is awesome. Je aprende le francais.
11:05 am - Wife left for some kind of modern day tea party at her best friend's place. Decided it was time to let off some stress/steam by chopping some heads off in Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 on the PS3. This game not only has out of this world graphics, but it is also pleasantly challenging.
12:30 pm - Decided to eat again, yes it's only been two hours but I am only partially the master of my stomach. It was leftover time again, last night's pasta tasted even better today.
1:00 pm - Job hunt kicks into high gear.
2:02 pm - Wife calls to tell me she's gonna be late, she's going to hang out with her sister for a while.
3:00 pm - High gear can only last so long. Turned on the Tivo to watch Eraser while I continue applying and searching. The search continues...
3:30 pm - Wife comes home and fills me in on how her day has gone, and how her sister Vanessa is having a terrible day.
Sometime between 3:33 pm and 5:40 pm - It's almsot like an episode of Lost except with a whole lot less retarded time travel and a whole lot more job searching. So I guess it wasn't so similar to Lost except that I felt lost in my job hunt.
5:44 pm - Went to get ready for my date with my wife.
5:55 pm - Got sidetracked in getting ready...
6:33 pm - Finished getting ready.
6:36 pm - Left for our date.
6:56 pm - Arrived at Crown Burgers for dinner. Ate good food. Greasy, fast-food, and terrible for us, but oh so good.
7:25 pm - Purchased useless tickets at the electronic ticket booth in the theater. Walked right into the theater without ever seeing the ticket checking person. Watched The Blind Side.
9:10 pm - Got some dust or something in my eye and it started watering like crazy.
9:32 pm - Left the movie theater and returned home.
10:53 pm - Finished my blog entry.
Thats a day in the life...
Monday, January 18, 2010
I'm black so I could be President, but I'm unemployed...
Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. day!
I had a crazy dream last night, it was essentially a new Mark Wahlberg film. He was a small time crook working for his Dad, who owned a deli in the inner city (what city? no idea). Then this new type of mafia showed up and Mark's Dad wanted him to help him find out who they were. See this new mafia was super secretive they used fear to keep control of the streets and no one knew who was controlling who. Meanwhile, Mark meets this woman (Scarlett Johansson) and begins a relationship with her, but she ends up falling into the whole mess with the crime and the new mafia and it causes problems with their new relationship.
Yeah, it was pretty crazy.
So the job hunt continues, no surprise there since our economy is full of milk and honey right now. Or was it full of Fail and Recession? I get confused on that point sometimes.
As you probably know I live in downtown Salt Lake City. I've lived here for about 8 months and periodically (maybe once a month) I see some strange things as I travel around the city. Today I went out to run some errands and saw a man in the median on 700 e in between South Temple and 100 S. As I passed by he laid down in the median, placed his backpack on the ground and proceeded to use it as a pillow while he crossed his legs and laid full out in the median. Now, let me remind you it was 35 degrees outside at the time. This guy didn't look homeless, he was an older man, but he was most definitely crazy. He was laying there like it was the middle of summer or something.
I probably shouldn't be surprised seeing things like this anymore since crazy stuff like this happens all the time around here.
Thats all for now, cheers!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Traveling...and remembering...
I just got back from Vegas (this being probably my tenth time to Sin City). A bunch of my east coast friends decided to come out to visit, so I couldn't really stay away. We ended up going out to the Grand Canyon and that got me thinking about America's landmarks. According to this website, I have now been to 8 of America's Top 10 Landmarks/Monuments. I fail.
I have yet to visit the Liberty Bell or the Hollywood sign even though I lived near both of these locations for more than a year. I need to stop sucking and remember to be a tourist in my own town sometimes. I think we miss out on much of what our hometowns have to offer. I can at least say I have visted every major museum and landmark in Washington, DC though (where I was raised). I guess I lost that sense of wonder after moving away.
Anyway, during my daily surfing I came across some funny stuff. Well, whether you find it funny or not is subjective I suppose. First up is a list of foods that will make your mouth water...and your heart explode! My favorite is the Big Mac-Chicken with Cheese. My body is giving me the "mean mug" just thinking about eating it. It's like, "Nigga please! You even bring that CLOSE to me and I'll put you in cardiac arrest before you can say 'Clear'!"
Next up on our surf is a group of foods that will make you cringe (and if they don't you need to get your head examined). I can't imagine eating any of these foods. Honestly though, people really will eat anything so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. The sheer insanity boggles the mind though. The Casu Marzu one makes me laugh though, why the hell would you want to eat something that you have to protect your eyes from as you eat it! I mean come on!
In other news, there may be a new way for Men to ensure that their women is taking the "Pill" which is: Take it instead of having your woman do it! The new drug has already started human clinical trials and looks very promising. The bad news? Many idiots out there will equate the pill with protecting them from STDs as well and will end up spreading more STDs as a result. I've said it before (and no doubt will say it again): Everyone should be allowed to kill one stupid person in the course of their lives. It would solve so many problems.
Anyway, thats it for today. Happy surfing everyone...
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Utah...or the Thrice Cursed Land of Frost
Today, it snowed for most of the morning. The flakes started out really small, then gradually got bigger and bigger. I had all these great aspirations to go out and get my errands done today...then I saw the snow and had no desire to do anything.
Instead I waited around all day till the snow finally let up in the afternoon, then got some stuff done. One of those things was going to Institute. One of my friends invited me to attend this specific institute beacause it has people more our age. The topic today was some of the prophecies of Isaiah. It was pretty good. I still don't really know anyone there, but I wasn't feeling particularly social so that didn't really change tonight.
On a darker note, last night someone stole Danny's car. It was parked in our driveway here at the Bohn's house. I feel really bad for him, because he only had liability insurance and it won't cover the theft. He basically has to go car shopping now since it is highly unlikely that the police will be able to find the car. You'd think that in such a small place as Utah they would, but they didn't sound too hopeful about finding it. Useless.
Vegas is approaching, and I want Danny to have a good time on his birthday (particularly since he just lost his car) so hopefully I can help with that, since I'm pretty much useless when it comes to the whole "car got stolen" thing.
It makes me wonder, if my car hadn't been parked in the garage last night would they have stolen it instead? I mean it is about 13 years newer (a 2005 vs Danny's 1992). I guess we'll see tonight, since I'm parked on the street in front of the house tonight. Although, statistics say its very unlikely that the robbers will be back here anytime soon.
Bastards...
Saturday, February 07, 2009
New Pet Peeves...
So, I was perusing facebook to look at some people's pictures and I realized there are some things I freekin HATE about people posting pictures on facebook:
1. When people post pictures of their missions but fail to mention where their mission was.
2. When people post pictures of me that I hated (and then tag me in them).
3. When people post pictures of building's or landscapes and don't post anything about it.
4. When people decide it's a fabulous idea to post drunk pics from their mobile phone.
5. When people use photoshop to edit and "enhance" a picture for facebook.
There are actually many other things facebook doesn't do right, but many of them have nothing to do with facebook users.
I'll just have to remember to not look at a friend's facebook pictures unless I trust they won't be retarded about posting.
Thursday, February 05, 2009
It was retarded...
So I was talking to a friend last night, not about anything in particular but about "anything and everything" instead. It made for some interesting topics.
One of the topics was how we seem to got blamed for the misdeeds and "Faux Pas" of our friends when they would screw up during our formative years. Those doing the blaming are usually parents but sometimes significant others and siblings too. It made me laugh when after considering the myriad ways that these people could have gotten themselves out of the situations that (arguably) we helped put them in she just sumed it all up by saying, "It was retarded."
I havn't laughed that hard in some time.
Speaking of laughing hard, I was reading a blog post from a professional blogger on Cnet. The post refers to a PMS tracker men can use to keep track of the women in their lives. I didn't start laughing until I got to the part where it starts explaining about competing products in the market. Here is an excerpt:
"Take the competing app PMSTracker. "Tired of your wife/girlfriend/sister/mom/secretary biting your head off unexpectedly once a month?" the app summary on iTunes asks prospective buyers. Another one, called uPMS, markets itself as "an application for all guys out there suffering the monthly Psychotic Mood Shifts from their better halves."
Another winner is IAmAMan, an app for "your private life planning." Like PMSTracker, it lets men track cycles of multiple females, but has the additional handy feature of offering passwords for each female so that if one of them "accidentally bumps into this application and makes you enter the password--she will be the only one to appear on the list." Good thinking!"
Oh man, I started laughing pretty hard. I'm not sure everyone will appreciate the humor I find in this type of application, but to those people I say, "Lighten up!"
Anyway, I'm back. I'll try to post on a much more regular basis now.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
L.A., Clubs, and Bouncers...
Ok, I'm back...after a hiatus of I don't even know how long. Doesn't matter though. All that matters is I'm here and I'm writing. Still alive and kicking.
Anyway, life is good. I'm just getting used to being out in the LA area. I moved out here in April and love it.
Anyway, there's not much to tell on that front, just a lot of personal drama and what not, but I ended up out here and its all good.
Ok, so last night we decided to go to a Club in LA. It's called DV8 and we have been there before, a few years ago actually. It's a pretty nice club and we liked our last visit. Kim managed to snag four free tickets to the club so we didn't have to pay the $20 cover charge (way too much), which was really nice.
When we got there, and got to the front of the line, the bouncer checked Kim's name and marked her hand and gave her a wristband. He did the same for me and then looked at Kim's sister and her husband and said, "Are you on the list?" They weren't and he said that only Kim and I could get in because we were on the list. Kim calmly explained that each person on the list could bring in one guest. The bouncer (who interestingly enough had a British accent) shook his head and said, "No." He showed her the list of the names and showed her that there was no "+1" next to our names. She peered over at the list, calmly pointed to the top of the list and read to the bouncer the line printed there that read: "All are plus one." He stared hard at the list and then at Kim and said, "Well, uhm, look at that. Ok, then." He proceeded to show the other bouncer what Kim had pointed out, they both laughed and then he gave Kim's sister and her husband wristbands and let us through.
I just had to document this story because it made me laugh really hard. I just thought it was the funniest thing that Kim had to show the bouncer how to read the guest list. Anyway, for his part the bouncer guy was really cool about it and not at all belligerent.
As for the Club, it turns out that the club is a shared space and on Friday nights it is "Club Level 3" and then on Saturday nights it is DV8. Didn't matter much to us, as the club looks the same and still plays great music on Friday. We danced and enjoyed ourselves immensely.
Anyway, if you are in the area and love Rap/Hip Hop/Dance Music then check it out.
Well, thats it for this post.
Anyway, life is good. I'm just getting used to being out in the LA area. I moved out here in April and love it.
Anyway, there's not much to tell on that front, just a lot of personal drama and what not, but I ended up out here and its all good.
Ok, so last night we decided to go to a Club in LA. It's called DV8 and we have been there before, a few years ago actually. It's a pretty nice club and we liked our last visit. Kim managed to snag four free tickets to the club so we didn't have to pay the $20 cover charge (way too much), which was really nice.
When we got there, and got to the front of the line, the bouncer checked Kim's name and marked her hand and gave her a wristband. He did the same for me and then looked at Kim's sister and her husband and said, "Are you on the list?" They weren't and he said that only Kim and I could get in because we were on the list. Kim calmly explained that each person on the list could bring in one guest. The bouncer (who interestingly enough had a British accent) shook his head and said, "No." He showed her the list of the names and showed her that there was no "+1" next to our names. She peered over at the list, calmly pointed to the top of the list and read to the bouncer the line printed there that read: "All are plus one." He stared hard at the list and then at Kim and said, "Well, uhm, look at that. Ok, then." He proceeded to show the other bouncer what Kim had pointed out, they both laughed and then he gave Kim's sister and her husband wristbands and let us through.
I just had to document this story because it made me laugh really hard. I just thought it was the funniest thing that Kim had to show the bouncer how to read the guest list. Anyway, for his part the bouncer guy was really cool about it and not at all belligerent.
As for the Club, it turns out that the club is a shared space and on Friday nights it is "Club Level 3" and then on Saturday nights it is DV8. Didn't matter much to us, as the club looks the same and still plays great music on Friday. We danced and enjoyed ourselves immensely.
Anyway, if you are in the area and love Rap/Hip Hop/Dance Music then check it out.
Well, thats it for this post.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Insomnia
It is currently 4:19 am EST March 11th, 2008...and I am awake. This would not be odd were it not for the fact that I went to bed AND FELL ASLEEP at 11:59 pm EST March 10th, 2008. At about 2:40 am EST I woke up from a pretty strange dream that went something like this:
I was a teenager again, living with my Grandparents. They were fighting, as they sometimes did, and I was in the living room trying to make myself scarce. Then after the fireworks were over I was on the phone with my girlfriend (my current one, not one from when I was a teenager...yeah I know, dreams don't make sense) and I got really thirsty while playing the Video Game Battlefield 2142 (Which wasnt released until a few years ago, again not during my teenage years). So I went to the kitchen where there was a pitcher of cold water in the fridge. I began drinking directly from the pitcher, just like I used to do when I was a kid and my girlfriend started giving me crap about it. Then at about the time I was taking my last gulp and telling my girl that drinking from the pitcher was the most direct and efficient way to get the water...I woke up THIRSTY!
So, at 2:40 am EST I got up, went downstairs and stole a bottle of water from my roomate, because I'm totally out of anything to drink right now. Then after drinking I came back upstairs and tried to get back to sleep, until I decided that sleep was not gonna come to me at all, so I might as well write in my blog.
Yeah, so this sux too, cause I have work tomorrow (I have to be up in about 3.5 hours). My mind won't shut down though, I keep thinking about stuff and usually that puts me to sleep. Not tonight though. Tonight, it has been keeping me awake.
Writing about all the things I've been thinking about won't help, so I won't bother with that. Instead, I'll just finish this short post now and surf the web for a while, hopefully all the inane nonsense to be found on the web will make my mind tired...goodnight.
I was a teenager again, living with my Grandparents. They were fighting, as they sometimes did, and I was in the living room trying to make myself scarce. Then after the fireworks were over I was on the phone with my girlfriend (my current one, not one from when I was a teenager...yeah I know, dreams don't make sense) and I got really thirsty while playing the Video Game Battlefield 2142 (Which wasnt released until a few years ago, again not during my teenage years). So I went to the kitchen where there was a pitcher of cold water in the fridge. I began drinking directly from the pitcher, just like I used to do when I was a kid and my girlfriend started giving me crap about it. Then at about the time I was taking my last gulp and telling my girl that drinking from the pitcher was the most direct and efficient way to get the water...I woke up THIRSTY!
So, at 2:40 am EST I got up, went downstairs and stole a bottle of water from my roomate, because I'm totally out of anything to drink right now. Then after drinking I came back upstairs and tried to get back to sleep, until I decided that sleep was not gonna come to me at all, so I might as well write in my blog.
Yeah, so this sux too, cause I have work tomorrow (I have to be up in about 3.5 hours). My mind won't shut down though, I keep thinking about stuff and usually that puts me to sleep. Not tonight though. Tonight, it has been keeping me awake.
Writing about all the things I've been thinking about won't help, so I won't bother with that. Instead, I'll just finish this short post now and surf the web for a while, hopefully all the inane nonsense to be found on the web will make my mind tired...goodnight.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Practice Makes Perfect...or Nub-sauce Unite!
[It's RANT time! Yay! Seriously though, I'm about to go off on some little thing that probably doesn't mean squat to anyone but me and a few other people out there...so feel free to skip this one.]
Ok, so the other day I was at home and I was bored so I thought I would hop on on PS3 and play some "Rock Band." Now, for those of you who don't know what this game is...well, get a clue.
It's much like Guitar Hero (and if you don't know what that is you better hit up this link, cause I ain't about to explain it) but you have 2 guitars, a microphone, and a drum set. It's a four player game where everyone gets to pretend to be a rock band and play together. Its pretty much the funnest (and possibly funniest) pretend thing since they invented arcade sim games.
Anyway, the creators of the game realized that you won't always have four people at your house for impromptu jam sessions. As such, they put in an online multiplayer feature. That way when I wanna play, but am all by my lonesome, I can hop online and find three other players to rock out with.
So I was doing this very thing the other day. I logged on and was playing the "Bass Guitar" part of the band. Now, when the band leader selects a song, everyone gets to select what difficulty they want to play the song on. The difficulty are as follows:
Easy - Any reasonably coordinated monkey could play this setting on any instrument.
Medium - Requires some concentration and a bit of coordination, on all instruments.
Hard - If you can't connect your brain to your legs and hands independantly dont even try drums, and if you can't "WTFPWN!" Medium on the guitar, dont even try. Also, if you are a "Shower Singer" only, then please don't try the Microphone on this setting either.
Expert - OMFG we're all gonna die! If you don't belong on MTV (or at least YouTube) with your skills then please, please, leave Expert alone.
Now, having explained that, the first group of Nubs that I hooked up with started out on Medium. They did alright, but nothing special. I was playing the Bass part on Hard because I can cut that just fine. At the end of three songs they both had completion rates in the low 90's and I was averaging 98% complete.
After that song, they both decided (one playing drums and the other playing Lead Guitar) that they would switch to Hard so they could keep up with me. Idiots. About 20% into the first song they both failed out like the College rejects they are. I was left playing by myself for about 15 seconds before the crowd boo'ed us offstage.
Now at this point my rage hadn't boiled over into "Wrath of God Destruction" yet, so I figured whatever they tried it and we will go back to what was working on the next song. The leader queues up the next song and...we all choose Hard.
At this point I just sat there blinking, thinking: "WTH? Did they just do what I think they did?" And, lo and behold, they failed out again and instead of cursing at my TV I just left the band and rejoined the "Find Players" queue.
I found a new band, and we all jumped in and chose Hard on the first song. My first thought was, "Sweet, some players who have Skillzz!" When they both failed out of the song about 30 seconds later and I was left holding the fort down (until the crowd boo'ed us offstage again), my rage moved back to "Curse at the TV" zone.
So, I left that band and rejoined the "Find Players" queue AGAIN! Third time's the charm right? Wrong. In this third set, the drummer was the one with delusions of grandeur. He kept dying and the rest of the band would eventually get boo'ed offstage (because your band cannot survive without all the players who joined at the beginning). Everyone HAS to make it to the end or we ALL have to start over.
After a few more songs the drummer got the point and chose a setting he could always succeed on, thank goodness. However, this problem shouldn't exist at all.
People...PEOPLE! Come on now, get a clue! The SINGLE-PLAYER mode is for PRACTICE! The online multiplayer is for FUN! Now, while it may be "fun" for you to choose a setting and then fail miserably at it while other poeple look on, that IS NOT fun for the rest of us. So please, when you go online to play "Rock Band" and you are about to choose a setting that is out of your skill range remember this: I'm from the "Smack-a-Hoe" tribe and I WILL smack you upside the head!
Ok, rant done...'nuff said.
Ok, so the other day I was at home and I was bored so I thought I would hop on on PS3 and play some "Rock Band." Now, for those of you who don't know what this game is...well, get a clue.
It's much like Guitar Hero (and if you don't know what that is you better hit up this link, cause I ain't about to explain it) but you have 2 guitars, a microphone, and a drum set. It's a four player game where everyone gets to pretend to be a rock band and play together. Its pretty much the funnest (and possibly funniest) pretend thing since they invented arcade sim games.
Anyway, the creators of the game realized that you won't always have four people at your house for impromptu jam sessions. As such, they put in an online multiplayer feature. That way when I wanna play, but am all by my lonesome, I can hop online and find three other players to rock out with.
So I was doing this very thing the other day. I logged on and was playing the "Bass Guitar" part of the band. Now, when the band leader selects a song, everyone gets to select what difficulty they want to play the song on. The difficulty are as follows:
Easy - Any reasonably coordinated monkey could play this setting on any instrument.
Medium - Requires some concentration and a bit of coordination, on all instruments.
Hard - If you can't connect your brain to your legs and hands independantly dont even try drums, and if you can't "WTFPWN!" Medium on the guitar, dont even try. Also, if you are a "Shower Singer" only, then please don't try the Microphone on this setting either.
Expert - OMFG we're all gonna die! If you don't belong on MTV (or at least YouTube) with your skills then please, please, leave Expert alone.
Now, having explained that, the first group of Nubs that I hooked up with started out on Medium. They did alright, but nothing special. I was playing the Bass part on Hard because I can cut that just fine. At the end of three songs they both had completion rates in the low 90's and I was averaging 98% complete.
After that song, they both decided (one playing drums and the other playing Lead Guitar) that they would switch to Hard so they could keep up with me. Idiots. About 20% into the first song they both failed out like the College rejects they are. I was left playing by myself for about 15 seconds before the crowd boo'ed us offstage.
Now at this point my rage hadn't boiled over into "Wrath of God Destruction" yet, so I figured whatever they tried it and we will go back to what was working on the next song. The leader queues up the next song and...we all choose Hard.
At this point I just sat there blinking, thinking: "WTH? Did they just do what I think they did?" And, lo and behold, they failed out again and instead of cursing at my TV I just left the band and rejoined the "Find Players" queue.
I found a new band, and we all jumped in and chose Hard on the first song. My first thought was, "Sweet, some players who have Skillzz!" When they both failed out of the song about 30 seconds later and I was left holding the fort down (until the crowd boo'ed us offstage again), my rage moved back to "Curse at the TV" zone.
So, I left that band and rejoined the "Find Players" queue AGAIN! Third time's the charm right? Wrong. In this third set, the drummer was the one with delusions of grandeur. He kept dying and the rest of the band would eventually get boo'ed offstage (because your band cannot survive without all the players who joined at the beginning). Everyone HAS to make it to the end or we ALL have to start over.
After a few more songs the drummer got the point and chose a setting he could always succeed on, thank goodness. However, this problem shouldn't exist at all.
People...PEOPLE! Come on now, get a clue! The SINGLE-PLAYER mode is for PRACTICE! The online multiplayer is for FUN! Now, while it may be "fun" for you to choose a setting and then fail miserably at it while other poeple look on, that IS NOT fun for the rest of us. So please, when you go online to play "Rock Band" and you are about to choose a setting that is out of your skill range remember this: I'm from the "Smack-a-Hoe" tribe and I WILL smack you upside the head!
Ok, rant done...'nuff said.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
New Blog...
Ok, so I have a new blog dedicated to my writing. I've started a new and exciting story just for this blog too. Go check it out, I promise to bring you story updates at least once a week.
Enjoy!
Silver Siade
Enjoy!
Silver Siade
Growing Pains
You ever get that feeling that life is crushing you under its iron heel? Yeah? Well don’t worry you aren’t the only one that has had that feeling on occasion. I only write this now because I’ve been feeling that way lately (mostly because of my job). It’s been putting a strain on every other part of my life (including my writing; which is why I haven’t updated in forever).
There really isn’t any “fool proof” way out from under this crushing feeling that life gives you sometimes. None that I know of at least. I woke up this morning and prayed really hard about what I should do about this feeling. I got my answer and even though from what I understood of that answer the relief from this crushing feeling won’t be immediate, it didn’t matter to me; I felt better almost immediately. The day went smoother, life didn’t seem so stressed, and I even had the energy to write. No it had nothing to do with the writers strike being over…funny coincidence that though.
About that though, the whole strike was about the writers wanting the right to get paid when people watch their shows online. I don’t really think there’s anything wrong with that either, I mean they should get paid for what they do, no matter where someone tunes in to see it. A funny thing happened while the writers were striking too: People started watching more online videos. So basically, the writers staged a strike to get paid for when people watch stuff online and the strike itself caused people to go watch stuff online because TV became boring (or rather more boring that it already is).
Now that’s what I call good strategy!
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Video Game Difficulty: A Philosophical Debate
So I took a fun and informative test today, see my results below:
"You are a 59% Video Game Addict.Video games are a big portion of your life, maybe too big of a portion. They are not a means of social interaction, despite what you might think. Go outside."
Take theVideo Game Addict Test@ FualiDotCom
So, today's discussion is on Video Game Difficulty. This is a matter that weighs heavily on everyone (world leaders included). Yes I know, its hard to believe, but to quote my favorite Radio Disc Jockey, "You best Beleee' dat!"
Anyway, there are two camps on this issue. Camp number one, we'll call them the "Noobs" (not to be confused with Boobs) think that video games should have something that video game designers invented almost 20 years ago: the ability to select the game difficulty. These people have also been known to cheat off the smart kid in high school.
Now, the second camp, we'll call them the "Haters" (not to be confused with Haxxors, although some of them might identify with that comment). They believe that games should all be played at whatever difficulty the game designers arbitrarily decide to set. These people are also known to bite themselves in random places to see how much pain they can take without screaming or crying (or both).
Ok, there may also be a third camp, we'll call them the "WTF!? Who cares?" camp, but we don't talk much to them (or about them really) because mostly they have no imaginations, watch professional wrestling, NASCAR, or spend all their free time watching professional sports (or all of the above). These people have also been found dead after jelly leaked out of their ears (this jelly was later found to be the melted unused residue of their brains).
Now, I fall in somewhere in the middle between the "Noobs" and the "Haters." I say this because there are some games where I would prefer there to be no setting, but other games where I want to have a difficulty setting. As for the tough games, well, anyone who has ever played a VERY challenging game and been tempted to join the FBI, go through weapons and secret agent training, sign on for undercover sniper ops, then get reassigned as an office counter-intelligence worker just so he could find the game designer who made the game and sneak up on them and kill them in their sleep without going to jail knows EXACTLY what I'm talking about. Not that I've ever considered such a thing...ever...really!
Most of the games that don't need difficulty settings are designed in such a way that the game either auto-adjusts the difficulty or is super easy. This second category of games is what makes the "Haters" become...well "Haters." They say that if a game is too easy it's not even worth playing. Whereas I say if a game is too hard WHY THE HELL would I want to play it? Life is already hard enough, I don't need some damn video game (a part of one of my favorite pastimes) to remind me. I play video games to NOT think about how hard life can be.
Anyway, chime in on the comments section and let me know what you think.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
There’s something terribly wrong with the transportation system here in the
Now, if I want to take public transportation from here to D.C. it costs me almost TWICE what it costs to drive. The round trip tickets are $130 and that doesn’t even get me all the way to my family’s place. I still have to take another train to get within 20 miles of home and then have them pick me up there. After all the driving to train stations, parking, taking a second train, and driving the rest of the way the total time is nearly six hours one way and the total round-trip cost is about $140. That’s just ALL WRONG!
It should be backwards. The cost of the slower, public transportation should be half of the cost of driving. In fact, in most countries the train would be faster, but that would just be a miracle here. I look at the
The thing that really annoys me the most is that, if we had a train system similar to the Japanese one, I could live in D.C. and commute to New Jersey every day for work and it wouldn’t take me more than an hour and a half to get to work. I drive nearly that amount of time today and would gladly commute that far if it meant living in my home town.
I’m baaaaaaack…
Note: I wrote this post back in the middle of November using Word. Just never posted it until now.
So, I haven’t written in a long while. I’ve been back from India for almost exactly two and a half months. In that time I’ve been all over and done a ton of stuff. Most of it had to do with getting settled here in New Jersey and in my new job. I managed to fit in some really fun stuff in between though.
The first hurdle to jump upon getting back from India was the housing hurdle. I actually found the place that I was to end up in on the first day I looked but the guy who owned the place dragged his feet about letting me move in so I had to wait a week and a half before I could move in to my new place. That pretty much bit the big one, as I felt like a vagabond for the whole time I was “homeless.”
Once I got settled, in I started to work on feeling comfortable at my job. That has taken some time, and I honestly don’t think I have “arrived” yet but I feel much better about what I do and my work in general than I did when I was just recently returned from India, so that is good.
Wow, this blog entry is like, SUPER boring. I’m sitting here typing it and I’m bored. That’s just terrible. Here, lets change gears and see if we can’t make things interesting.
The other day I was at Taco Bell and I ordered some food and a drink. When I went to fill up my drink I tried the ice machine once, and nothing. The second time…again nothing. Now, usually I only want a few cubes of ice, as I don’t like my drinks really cold; I prefer cool. I could hear something rattling around inside the damn machine so I tried a third time thinking, “Third times a charm, right?” Well, on the third try the machine decides to make up for the two previous barren attempts by spitting out enough ice to drown in.
I grimaced as the ice almost filled my cup and thought to myself, “I HATE these damn machines.” I swear they were designed by some nerdy, demented engineer who had no friends and nothing better to do than design a machine that will torment poor innocent people like me who are just trying to get a few cubes of ice in their cups.
There, that was much more interesting. I suppose you could say it's pretty sad that my rants about different things I hate are more interesting than the last two and a half months of my life. If anything, that probably means that I lead a boring life. Hmm, if the realization that I lead a boring life really fazed me at all I might change my life, but it doesn’t so I won’t.
So, I haven’t written in a long while. I’ve been back from India for almost exactly two and a half months. In that time I’ve been all over and done a ton of stuff. Most of it had to do with getting settled here in New Jersey and in my new job. I managed to fit in some really fun stuff in between though.
The first hurdle to jump upon getting back from India was the housing hurdle. I actually found the place that I was to end up in on the first day I looked but the guy who owned the place dragged his feet about letting me move in so I had to wait a week and a half before I could move in to my new place. That pretty much bit the big one, as I felt like a vagabond for the whole time I was “homeless.”
Once I got settled, in I started to work on feeling comfortable at my job. That has taken some time, and I honestly don’t think I have “arrived” yet but I feel much better about what I do and my work in general than I did when I was just recently returned from India, so that is good.
Wow, this blog entry is like, SUPER boring. I’m sitting here typing it and I’m bored. That’s just terrible. Here, lets change gears and see if we can’t make things interesting.
The other day I was at Taco Bell and I ordered some food and a drink. When I went to fill up my drink I tried the ice machine once, and nothing. The second time…again nothing. Now, usually I only want a few cubes of ice, as I don’t like my drinks really cold; I prefer cool. I could hear something rattling around inside the damn machine so I tried a third time thinking, “Third times a charm, right?” Well, on the third try the machine decides to make up for the two previous barren attempts by spitting out enough ice to drown in.
I grimaced as the ice almost filled my cup and thought to myself, “I HATE these damn machines.” I swear they were designed by some nerdy, demented engineer who had no friends and nothing better to do than design a machine that will torment poor innocent people like me who are just trying to get a few cubes of ice in their cups.
There, that was much more interesting. I suppose you could say it's pretty sad that my rants about different things I hate are more interesting than the last two and a half months of my life. If anything, that probably means that I lead a boring life. Hmm, if the realization that I lead a boring life really fazed me at all I might change my life, but it doesn’t so I won’t.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
India - Bathroom Hazards
NOTE: If you are queasy in any way, shape, or form. DO NOT read this post. It deals with things better left unsaid. I, however, have diarrhea of the mouth and have to say it anyway.
Today seemed to be all about the bathroom. Things started off normal as I went into work and finished my first project after only an hour. That was making it seem like a great day. After a while I had to use the restroom so I went over there to do so. As I was walking into the bathroom I clipped my Blackberry on the corner outcropping (my Blackberry is holstered on my belt...yes, like the geek I am) and barely caught it before it dropped to the floor.
Later, back at home, I was standing before the pot doing my usual "Mother Nature requirement" thing and I happened to glance down into the toilet as I reached forward to flush it. This turned out to be a mistake. You see, what I saw at the bottom of the toilet bowl both scared the hell out of me AND brought back terrible memories. Memories I thought I had repressed.
There was something small, cylindrical, brown, and MOVING at the bottom of the toilet. At first I thought it was just leftover debris from some business I had taken care of about half an hour previous, but it was too small for that. And the fact that it was moving gave me pause. The object could only be a worm. It was about half a centimeter long and scared me more than a large North American Grizzly Bear.
I promptly flushed the toilet again because I couldn't stand to look at it anymore. All I can do is pray that it didn't come out of me and that it came up through the pipes or something.
The reason this brought back bad memories was because while I was in Panama, I contracted various different types of parasites during my stay there. One of those types gets killed by a pill that you take with food. Then when it dies, all of the dead bodies (and larvae) get expelled out of your system...and not through your mouth.
If you have never sat down to do your business, got up, and saw that you just gave alien birth then you cannot possibly fathom the horror.
As I left the bathroom after washing my hands something else struck me as odd. My shower curtain is missing. I guess the housekeeping staff decided that I don't need one because I am so tidy when I shower....? Riiiiiigght!
So yeah, it was just a day where I should have stayed out of the bathroom altogether.
Today seemed to be all about the bathroom. Things started off normal as I went into work and finished my first project after only an hour. That was making it seem like a great day. After a while I had to use the restroom so I went over there to do so. As I was walking into the bathroom I clipped my Blackberry on the corner outcropping (my Blackberry is holstered on my belt...yes, like the geek I am) and barely caught it before it dropped to the floor.
Later, back at home, I was standing before the pot doing my usual "Mother Nature requirement" thing and I happened to glance down into the toilet as I reached forward to flush it. This turned out to be a mistake. You see, what I saw at the bottom of the toilet bowl both scared the hell out of me AND brought back terrible memories. Memories I thought I had repressed.
There was something small, cylindrical, brown, and MOVING at the bottom of the toilet. At first I thought it was just leftover debris from some business I had taken care of about half an hour previous, but it was too small for that. And the fact that it was moving gave me pause. The object could only be a worm. It was about half a centimeter long and scared me more than a large North American Grizzly Bear.
I promptly flushed the toilet again because I couldn't stand to look at it anymore. All I can do is pray that it didn't come out of me and that it came up through the pipes or something.
The reason this brought back bad memories was because while I was in Panama, I contracted various different types of parasites during my stay there. One of those types gets killed by a pill that you take with food. Then when it dies, all of the dead bodies (and larvae) get expelled out of your system...and not through your mouth.
If you have never sat down to do your business, got up, and saw that you just gave alien birth then you cannot possibly fathom the horror.
As I left the bathroom after washing my hands something else struck me as odd. My shower curtain is missing. I guess the housekeeping staff decided that I don't need one because I am so tidy when I shower....? Riiiiiigght!
So yeah, it was just a day where I should have stayed out of the bathroom altogether.
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