Random Notes

Holding Pattern

2010-04-29T09:18:00.000-07:00

I haven't updated the blog in ages. I'm debating what to do about it. A lot of my online social/communication needs are being met by Twitter and Facebook at the moment, but there's a lack of permanence there that kinda bugs me. Sometimes I need a bigger space to rant than those sites can give me.

I'll figure something out. Stay tuned.

Avoiding the Health Care Debate

2010-03-21T11:39:00.000-07:00

I watched about 20 minutes of C-SPAN's coverage of the health care debate in the House of Representatives before I decided it would probably be better for my physical and mental health if I got out of the apartment for awhile.

I'd planned to take my Nook up to the Quincy Hill park overlook and read for awhile, but I walked past those steep steps and made one long circuit through some areas I never have an excuse to be on. I went past Trans-Allegheny Books, wandered down toward the Blennerhassett and the floodwall, along the trestle, and headed toward the Belpre Bridge. I toyed with walking across but decided to save that for another day.

According to the iPod, I'd listened to 50 minutes of the "Babylon 5" podcast by the time I made it back to my apartment. The Pokewalker pedometer said I'd walked 7,134 steps.

I love that Nintendo integrated pedometer support into the latest Pokemon game. Before I left, I transferred Gigan (a Lv. 30 Anorith) over to the Pokewalker. By the time I got home, he'd gained a level. Nine more walks like that and he'll be ready to evolve into an Armaldo.

4-8-15-16-23-42

2010-03-17T07:57:00.000-07:00

"Two players. Two sides. One is light, one is dark."
I've been having a Lost marathon these past two weeks. I blazed through the first season over the course of a weekend, spent last week watching the second season a few episodes at a time before work, and then finished the third season late Sunday night.

My goal is to get completely caught up before the series finale. I'm probably shooting myself in the foot by doing this, since I'll be working at the newspaper when the finale airs and will almost certainly have everything spoiled when I put the story on the entertainment page. It'd probably be better to go through that without having a context for what I'm reading.

I still think the first season is one of the best ever made for television. They lost me during the second season because it felt like they were spinning their wheels, and that couldn't compete with Final Fantasy XI. I enjoyed the second season a lot more this time around, knowing they were actually going somewhere with it.

I'm creeping through the fourth season this week now that I have Pokemon SoulSilver to distract me, but I'll likely marathon through them this weekend.

The Journey Ends: July 29, 2004 - Feb. 23, 2010

2010-02-23T08:46:00.001-08:00

The Manaclipper passes a whirlpool.

After

A clot rode the boat with me.

months of inactivity, I finally logged on to Final Fantasy XI this morning to cancel my Content IDs. I'd popped on a few times to finish selling my gear. In the end, I had 3.5 million. I gave a million each to Dalamar and Poring and kept the rest for myself in case I ever get nostalgic enough to go back to Vana'diel.

I did not delete Halifirien. I'm too attached to that character and that world to commit that final act. He's still there if I ever get the urge to reactivate the ID and start punching and dancing my way through enemies again. I don't see that happening -- too much of my pleasure in the game came from playing with Kristofer as Neyla -- but you never know.

For my final voyage, I tossed on the beach clothes and rode out to the Manaclipper dock for a ride to Purgonorgo Island. I wandered the sands a bit and then warped home to Windurst. The moogle can watch over my home, 'cause Hali doesn't live here anymore.

So long, folks!

The GOP Theme Song

2010-02-16T07:52:00.000-08:00

(H/T: John Aravosis)

Valentine Weekend

2010-02-15T08:14:00.000-08:00

I used my slide day from New Year's Day so I could take a three-day weekend at Mom and Dad's, the first time I'd been home since Christmas. It felt good to be back in Boone County and recharging my batteries; I get antsy when I'm in Parkersburg too long. The weekend was largely uneventful.

I took the Xbox so Andy could play Left 4 Dead 2. He put it on Easy and slaughtered his way through countless waves of undead while I was there, sometimes bringing Laura or Emma along for the ride once I'd explained the co-op settings. I had a moment of heartbreak when I played a clip from Dawn of the Dead and he asked "Where are the zombies?" because in his univserse zombies are runners. I have to fix that.

The main adventure came Saturday when April and I saw Avatar. I woke up that morning wondering if I really wanted to sit through it again, but finally seeing it in 3D was totally worth it. She didn't text during the movie this time, although she whipped out a quick "James Cameron wins" tweet as the credits were rolling.

We went to GameStop to buy a PlayStation 3 for the kids but none were in stock. I'd read there were supply problems, but I didn't realize they were that bad. "Nobody in the valley has been able to stock them since Christmas," the guy at the counter told us. "We got three the other day and they were gone in 45 minutes."

Instead of reserving one and waiting, she bought an Xbox 360 and Left 4 Dead 2 instead.

We hit a few other stores -- she used her iPhone to take obscene photos of garden statuary while we were in Lowe's -- and then spent and entire hour just trying to get out of the parking lot. The traffic situation at the Southridge Center is abysmal; they really need to add another exit. We'd been inching along 45 minutes when I pointed to the right and said "Isn't that where you bought the Xbox?"?

Besides eating all that home-cooked stuff I never make for myself in my apartment, I mostly read Stephen King's Danse Macabre and reminded myself I wouldn't buy any more ebooks. I mostly kept that oath.

Rahm it Home

2010-02-08T09:52:00.001-08:00

Keene Weekend

2010-02-07T19:23:00.000-08:00

"Snowmageddon" blanketed the area in snow, but it didn't stop me from going to the mall Saturday to pick up the second season DVDs of Veronica Mars and use my Nintendo DS to collect the Pikachu-colored Pichu pokemon at GameStop. As a bonus, a cute guy on the bus asked me about the PSP Go, since I was playing Final Fantasy 8; his enthusiasm was matched by his girlfriend's disdain.

I caught up on some episodes of The Vampire Diaries and spent most of the evening playing Mass Effect 2, which is one of those "just one more mission" games where you keep telling yourself it's time to stop playing and go to bed, but there's always some other little thing to finish.

I imagined I'd spend today playing the game and avoiding any mention of the Super Bowl. Instead, I blazed through Brian Keene's Dark Hollow. I'd started Ghost Walk the other day, but then I found out it was a sequel to Dark Hollow and doubled back. It's a good thing I did, because three more pages of Ghost Walk would've spoiled it for me by revealing the fates of all the characters.

I also made a big pot of spaghetti sauce, finally using the meatballs my sister left here during her stay. It'll keep me fed most of the week, I have no doubt.

Exciting times.

My Nook Nerd Boner

2010-02-03T10:39:00.000-08:00

The Nook finally made it.

like gadgets, but it's rare that I get a raging nerd boner for a piece of electronics. The iPod was one, and the PSP Go was another. The visceral desire to own a Nook eReader caught me by surprise because I was never enthusiastic about Amazon's Kindle. I think the right mixture of wanting more books and having a small apartment pushed me over the edge.

After a month of frothing at the mouth, checking my e-mail and my B&N account to see if the damn thing had finally shipped, it's here. It's a pretty device, all sleek and practically begging to be touched.

The packaging wasn't as difficult as I'd been led to believe by forum posts. You can get it open if you know how to read the instruction sheet. I realize that there's probably a certain failure of design philosophy if you have to include an instruction sheet so customers can open a box, but still... it wasn't so bad.

Jonathan Adler's Punctuation cover arrived in the same box. With the Nook inside, it's like holding a small hardcover. The entire thing fits easily into the back pocket of my cargo pants.

I've got it plugged in and charging, although I did take a minute to register it to my B&N account and start downloading the books I've already purchased. I'll connect it to the computer and load up my wallpapers and screensavers before I go to work.

We now return you to your regularly-scheduled program of shame and indifference.

Nook On Its Way

2010-01-30T21:54:00.000-08:00

ding*ding*ding*ding*ding* We have a winner!

I just got my shipping notice from Barnes and Noble. The Nook is waiting to be picked up by the carrier, which means I should have it in my hot little hands by Wednesday.

I Live the High Life

2010-01-30T14:22:00.000-08:00

I've got a monster sub from the deli and the Rifftrax version of The Matrix Revolutions, plus some Ben & Jerry's ice cream in the freezer. Then, later, I'm going to wade back into Steven L. Kent's The Clone Republic and try to finish the first half before I pass out in my chair.

In other news, April called earlier. It was her first call on her shiny new iPhone. I'm semi-jealous. I'm still fine with landlines, but the iPhone is probably the way I'd go if I ever decide to break free.

Dexter

2010-01-30T13:18:00.000-08:00

K and I have been having a Dexter binge over the past week or two, blazing through the third and fourth seasons. We just watched the finale and I can only say one thing: GODFUCKINGDAMNIT! Wow.

Give me a fifth season, please.

iPad Attention But Fell Asleep At the End

2010-01-27T19:27:00.001-08:00

I tuned in to Apple's big announcement of the iPad (insert tampon joke here). My primary interest was to find out if it really was a "Kindle killer" that would cause me to cancel my Nook eReader order. Whew. Not even close.

Apple has made a spiffy machine, no doubt. I could see myself buying one primarily for web surfing, gaming and movies -- I watch a lot of video on my iPod and PSP -- but I don't think I could use it as my exclusive eReader. A backlit screen like that would cause strain on my eyes that an e-ink display will not.

If I decide to take the plunge later on, the Barnes & Noble eReader iPhone app will work on the iPad, so my entire library could transfer over without a hitch.

It's definitely a machine I wouldn't mind owning, but it's not something I feel I need in a visceral way. I'm content to wait for a second-generation machine that adds a camera/microphone combo for stuff like Skype. If I bought one, I'd go for the 64GB model, and $700 is a bit much when I could be buying a desktop computer to replace my piece-of-shit machine instead.

Naturally, I hope everyone else ahead of me in the Nook shipping queue has decided to cancel their orders and go with the iPad so I can get my machine faster. It's scheduled to ship Monday, so here's hoping.

Co-Op: Reflections 2009

2010-01-26T18:55:00.000-08:00

Video game year-in-review discussion from the folks at Co-Op, RebelFM, etc.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Why I'm Not In Charge of Rainbows and Unicorns

2010-01-19T14:20:00.000-08:00

News that Baltimore's mysterious "Poe Toaster" went missing this year gave me a small sense of elation. This is one of those idiotic tourist trap "mysteries" that manages to piss me off every single year when it flies into my radar.

It's not a "mystery." It's just lazy reporting directed by editors who would rather preserve some stupid tradition instead of getting at the truth. The only mystery is why someone didn't just walk up to the guy and ask "What's your story?" instead of offering the same hushed-tone campfire story every single year.

Nook Screensaver Dudes

2010-01-17T10:42:00.000-08:00

The

You can't go wrong with a shirtless Andy Roddick.

idea of a book requiring wallpaper and screensaver makes me laugh a little, but tht's part of the Nook experience. I found a site called Nook-Look where people have been posting their stuff. My favorite is the LCARS one which replicates the Data Padd look from Star Trek.

I decided to adapt it for my Nook by removing the quadrant map and replacing it with assorted pictures of cute guys. Even in the future of Star Trek, one can assume there's still people surfing the 'net to find pictures of half-naked dudes... assuming they're not masturbating themselves blind to holodeck fantasies, anyway.

I downloaded a PDF of the Nook owner's manual and read most of it to torture myself while I wait for it to ship. I learned some interesting stuff about how it works, and it should help me dodge some of the user pitfalls that have been mentioned on one of the forums.

The answer to one of my questions was nowhere to be found, so I e-mailed their reps to find out how many machines you can download your e-books to. It turns out there's no limit. As long as I sign in with my account, you can put read 'em from as many machines as you like. Handy.

When you register the Nook, there's a space to give it a name. I plan to name mine "Nookronomicon."

Pat Robertson is an Idiot

2010-01-13T17:43:00.000-08:00

Again,

Robertson shouldn't have watched "Devil's Due" before the show.

some favorite Tweets. These come from Pat Robertson's idiotic statement that Haiti's massive earthquake is probably part of a curse from a pact with the devil meant to drive away the French. I think the Brady Bunch Tiki idol is just as likely, but then I'm not making millions by fleecing gullible Christians.

TheBloggess: I thought "Pat Robertson" was trending because was dead. Turns out it's just because everyone wishes he was.

@BluePomGirl: Having made his pronouncement, Pat Robertson has slunk back to Mordor to polish his Precious.

yeti_detective: Akshully, Pat Robertson, the voodoo gods sent the earthquake because of the widespread Christianity in #Haiti.

dex3703: Pat Robertson and Haitian earthquakes: noise from a flimflam man selling salvation from his cardboard suitcase. Give unto Caesar indeed.

funnyordie: Pat Robertson has no idea how pacts w/ the Devil work. You make them for fiddle lessons, not earthquakes. Dumbass.

CcSteff: Pat Robertson is every bit as christian as you. You just cherry-pick different bits of bullshit than he does.

GaryJBusey: Isn't Pat Robertson the guy from those Twilight movies?

remarkablogger: Pat Robertson must think it's cool how God set oceanic tectonic plates shiftin millions of years ago to punish Haiti now.

secularearth: Christians annoyed at Pat Robertson because you think your pretend beliefs are less rediculous than his pretend beliefs.

And, just for balance:

death1sMyGift: Pat Robertson is sending a shitload of money to Haiti to help out. What have you fucktards done? #nohate

Confessions of a Potential e-Book Addict

2010-01-12T21:08:00.001-08:00

I ordered the Nook last week and it won't be here until February, but that hasn't stopped me from buying a few books to read on it when it arrives. I'm officially calling a halt so I don't break my budget in advance. I've mostly been buying from the "Under $5" category, but that adds up.

So far I've bought The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Anita Blake #1: Guilty Pleasures, Watchers, The Running Man, Way of the Wolf: Vampire Earth #1, and Ghost Walk. That should hold me awhile.

I saw they also have just about everything Louis L'Amour has ever written, which is handy. I'm not a fan of westerns in general, but I've always liked his stuff.

The machine can't get here fast enough.

Later...

In other news, the maintenance guys were trying to do some electrical work in the apartment above and didn't realize they'd knocked mine out. It must've been later in the evening because yesterday's episode of X-Play was on my DVR. It took them awhile to find the problem and fix it, but they brought an extension cord so I could get the fridge running again while they solved it.

I didn't have a lot of time to play Dragon Age, but I made another run at the Brood Mother. I almost got her this time. I kept my AoE spells going on her while my party focused on destroying her tentacles and her summoned mobs. The rest of my party died, but I had her health down to about 5% -- enough for another AoE spell to whittle her to death -- when she got in a good hit that finished me off.

I Hate That Foul Cow

2010-01-11T21:13:00.000-08:00

I've been playing Dragon Age: Origins again. I just want to give a hearty "Fuck you" to the Brood Mother. She won this round, but I will take that foul bitch down eventually. I retreated from the Deep Roads and worked on some side quests for awhile to cool off.

Later...

I'd planned to go for a rematch after work, but I came home to find the power out in my living room and bedroom. Well, mostly. Everything on what I think of as "the crap circuit" with the ancient wiring was out. In contrast, "the good circuit" was fine. The bathroom had light and power, and the outlet powering my computer was fine.

It's not an unheard of problem, although it's been months and months since the last time. I'll call first thing in the morning so they can do their maintenance magic. Hopefully the stuff in the fridge will be okay for a few more hours.

Bullshit Meter Off the Chart

2010-01-09T06:03:00.001-08:00

Why anyone still pays attention to this creepy goblin when he slithers out of his cave to howl at the villagers is beyond me. Maybe he drags their children back to his cave and crunches their bones if they ignore him too much. Anyone who can say with a straight face that "Bush kept us safe" needs to be kicked in the nethers.

(Cartoon h/t: Matthew)

The Nook Waiting Game

2010-01-08T08:04:00.000-08:00

What

Gimme my Nook!

finally pushed me over the edge into ordering a Nook eReader was the sight of my poor old PDA huddling on the headboard shelf. Sure, I kept names and addresses on it, but mostly I was using it as an eReader for years. Now that it's finally dead, I want a dedicated device to fill that electronic void.

I've been reading reviews and surfing forums for the past few days, trying to decide if I wanted to take that plunge. The recent firmware update seems to have addressed a lot of the complaints people were making about sluggish page turning. The modders and hackers have already rooted the system and added a web browser. Progress is being made.

I may curse myself later for being an early adopter, but I doubt it'll be a problem considering how much use I was able to wring out of my beloved Dell Axim.

The expected shipping date is February 12. We'll see how it goes.

"Carriers"

2010-01-07T18:36:00.000-08:00

When I saw the Carriers DVD at the mall, it had the look of a "before they were famous" movie trying to cash in on someone who'd since achieved stardom. In this case, Chris Pine of Star Trek reboot fame.

I was correct. The movie was made back in 2006 and has been languishing on a shelf ever since. Now that Captain James T. "Set My Underpants to Stun" Kirk is all famous, they made his image much bigger than the rest of the ensemble for the DVD cover.

It's actually pretty good. The story is a post-apocalypse tale of four young people in a car, driving around and trying to avoid a plague that's wiped out most of humanity. If you can watch it and not think of Stephen King's The Stand, you've been living under a rock for the past few decades. The only thing missing was a series of dreams about Randall Flagg or Mother Abigail. In tone, it's closer to King's short story "Night Surf," which was about a group of teens on a beach while Captain Trips turned the world to coughing shit.

I can't imagine the budget was very high, but they squeezed every cent out of it. The movie looks great, the acting is pretty decent, and the story doesn't really disappoint, although it's a bit grim. I described it to a co-worker as "the quiet apocalypse."

On Hands and Knees

2010-01-07T17:30:00.000-08:00

I slipped in the snow Tuesday on my way to work. I'd just crossed Juliana at the light and was almost to the pawn shop when I went down hard, twisting my right ankle and thudding down hard on my hands and knees. My lunch bag went flying head of me.

I stood up and dusted myself off as best I could. My ankle felt like someone had stuffed it full of kerosene-soaked cotton and then struck a match. The back of my left knee felt tight, and my right knee was giving off a dull ache. I slowly worked my way over to my bag, hoping like hell none of the passing drivers had seen me fall. Pain is easier than being embarrassed.

I was close to the office, so I got to my seat and stayed there most of the evening. Walking -- to the budget meeting, to the fountain, to the break room -- was always an adventure.

Paul was gracious enough to give me a ride home when the paper was out. Despite my protest that it wasn't necessary, he followed me into the building to make sure I could get up the stairs okay.

"I'll try to catch you," he joked.

"Dialing 911 will work," I laughed.

I didn't go to work Wednesday, figuring it would be best to stay off the ankle. I kept it propped up and iced it every so often -- the bag of frozen meatballs my sister left behind were perfect.

The time seemed ideal for catching up on Dragon Age: Origins, but it didn't work out. When the recliner goes back, I invariably start to doze off. It's like tucking a chicken's head under its wing to put it to sleep. That gaming failure lasted all of five minutes.

I spent the rest of the day curled up in bed and watching Seinfeld DVDs. I also finished reading Dark Force Rising and then waded through a Punisher paperback Kristofer loaned me called "Six Hours to Kill."

While flipping channels, I saw One Tree Hill was coming on Soap.net. I'm not averse to a few minutes of ogling Chad Michael Murray, so I stopped to watch. Turns out it was the pilot episode, and I was intrigued enough when it was over to start pricing DVDs on Amazon.

The ankle was much better this morning. It's still a little stiff, but it takes my weight and doesn't hurt. The bruise on my right knee is starting to yellow and should be gone in another day or two. I shouldn't have any problems getting to work. If I have a rough time getting down the stairs, I'll ride the bus and get another ride home.

Update: I didn't have any problems walking to work. I was a little slower than normal, but that's okay. It just meant more time for listening to the latest Rebel FM podcast.

eBook Temptation

2010-01-05T10:43:00.000-08:00

Paying my bills this morning, I realized this week's paycheck is what I like to call a Super Happy Funtime Check. It's not specifically geared toward bills or rent, so I can buy myself a game or other toy without real concern for my budget.

I'm seriously tempted to order a Kindle or a Nook eReader. The Nook has a higher drool factor, but wouldn't ship until February.

HIV Travel Ban

2010-01-04T17:54:00.001-08:00

I may bitch about Obama from time to time because he's as human as the rest of us and hasn't waved his magic wand to solve the world's problems. No matter how grouchy I get about his snail's pace on gay rights and his look-the-other-way approach to the systemic torture of U.S. prisoners, he's still better than the Crypt Keeper and Mooseburger Barbie.

Score one for the good guys: The HIV travel ban ended today. I don't believe in hell, so I'm denied the certainty of Jesse Helms eternally drowning in a boiling kettle of shit... but it's still a fun image.