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Once more unto the breach dear friends . . .

So, without realizing, it's been a year since I posted on this blog. I guess part of that is a factor of life - it happened. Rather than try to catch up on a year's worth of events and details of my life, I'm going forward regardless. Instead of the introspective and self-reflective blog I tried to make in 2006, I am going to write something that is truer to myself here in 2007. What will follow in the days and weeks to come will be my thoughts on video games, technology, tv, movies, and of course life as I live it.

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Today, I want to talk briefly about my newest purchase, which is plugged into my laptop as we speak. Yesterday, I purchased a 4gb Sandisk Cruzer Micro USB Key from Best Buy. Already owning several keys in differing sizes of storage capacity, I purchase this one based somewhat on size but mostly on price alone. There is a sale this week, and the 4gb model is selling for 50 bucks! The 2gb model retails for $75, so that right there should be an indicator of how good a deal this is.

I'm using this USB key mostly to try out a new feature in Windows Vista - Ready Boost. Having only just started using this feature, I cannot report fully on its uses and usefulness yet, but will talk more after I've had a chance to really test it out. In a nutshell, Ready Boost allows you to plug a memory device (USB Key, SD Card, etc.) into your Windows Vista PC and use the capacity of the device (up to 4gb) for what basically amounts to extra virtual memory for the system. Apparently, I can significantly speed up performance - I'll have to see how functional it is in real world terms.

I use my laptop all the time now, what with taking notes in class 5 days a week, and want it to be as versatile and useful as possible. I purchased a Toshiba Satellite P105-S6104 several months ago (just after classes started for the semester) and have since upgraded it. I installed additional RAM, bringing the system up to 1.5gb of memory; and, I installed a copy on Windows Vista, the newest operating system for the unit. I will talk in future posts about Vista and its benefits and drawbacks, but suffice it to say that I love a lot of what it does. In many ways, the operating system seems to complement many of the features of my laptop. In fact, my only complaint about my laptop at all is the battery life. Being a dual core PC, I didn't expect too much, but usually I get between 2 to 2&1/2 hours before needing to plug in. I am currently looking to purchase an extended battery for the PC, but am trying to weight all my options first. As it stands, I don't think I could get more than 3 hours out of even the extended battery, so I'm not sure of the point right now.

Anyway, that's it for today because it's almost 70 degrees and I'm going outside to enjoy it!

So this is my first blog entry from my new phone, and I have to say that this thing is pretty damn cool! My new phone is the LG "The V", and it is surprising in its multitude of capabilities. Obviously, there is the web browser, which is infinitely more useful with the benefit of the full size qwerty keypad. There is the requisite 1.3 megapixel camera, but that camera has a business card reader function! The camera takes a high-quality capture of the card, uses OCR software to parse out individual strings of text, and will auto insert the information into a phone contact. How sick is that?

Today was my first real shift as a server (earning tips and all), but I'm not going to talk about that now. Instead, I want to relay some thoughts I had over this past weekend at my brother's bar-mitzvah. As an aside, I had a great time, seeing my family and spending time with my siblings and cousins.

Every time I go back to my Dad's and/or go to family events, I find myself living in the shadow of who I used to be . By that, I mean that my family and my father's friends can't seem to separate their memories of me as a child/young adult from the man I am today. On some level, it's nice to be reminded of my past and to revisit fond memories with friends and loved ones. At the same time, I lost track of the number of times my conversations began with "I remember when you were only this big, this old, etc . . . " this weekend. There was a point where I seriously (albeit largely due to alcohol) wanted to shove a fork in one guy's eye. He wouldn't let me walk away from him until I assured him that I remembered a particular time when we had had some interaction when I was 'only as high as his knee'.

Great . . .

I am officially a server now. I passed my roleplay meal, and am cleared for the floor. When I get back from Chicago, I will finally start making tips and earning the money my roommates do. It feels good to have finally gotten over the hump of training, and it's funny how much things changed at work as soon as I did. Even though my training was only just complete, the trainees from the evening shift started looking to me for answers to their questions.

At first, it threw me a little, but soon I felt more comfortable with the role. It was fun, because it showed me that I knew more about the job than I had allowed myself to realize. I guess worrying about passing my roleplay kept me from seeing how ready I am to serve. It was a nice feeling, to be honest. And, it was very nice not being the newest guy at work anymore ;)

Snoooooooooooooooooow!!!!!!!!!!!!

Even though it is coming down hard outside, I am still getting ready to go in for my last training shift. I mean seriously, we are expecting over a foot of snow, there is no visibility, and the roads are covered, but Joe's is still open. The natick and braintree malls are both closed, but still Joe's is open. Oh well, at least I can't expect it to be too busy tonight. I'll blog more afterwards, and see if anyone even showed up . . .
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So, yeah - it was supah dead. The most guests of the day were the plow drivers who came in after 6pm. Everyone who came in (except for a handful of people) went straight into the bar/lounge, so my dining room training was a complete wash. In fact, the most exciting part of the day, was dealing with a gentlemen who appeared to be to drunk to leave on his own. He tried to drive away, and couldn't even get out of the parking lot! By the time the cab we called for him arrived, it took two of us to even get this guy into the cab - he was completely passed out. It turns out he forgot to take his blood pressure medication, and that was what made him that way; but, at the time it was damn funny! Anyway, I'm off to enjoy some Olympic coverage with my roommates . . .

I think the thing I miss the most about my old job was the respect and authority. I'm not saying I always have to be in charge (though it was nice), but that was probably the hardest thing to deal with after losing my job: not having anyone looking to me to make decisions. I didn't notice how much I missed it until I finally got into the swing of things at my job.

It started to get hectic in the kitchen when I was helping run food, and I wanted to step in and direct people when I saw them obviously losing focus, and needing direction. But, when I tried to step in, I realized I was the new guy, nobody was going to listen to me (assuming I even knew what I talking about), and I needed to step back and let those in charge sort it out themselves.

It was a weird feeling, both the realization that I wasn't in charge and the realization that I wasn't qualified or experienced enough for anyone to look to me either. I miss the money I was making as a manager. I also miss the familiarity of the job - being able to know what a week would be like, just by the normal tasks/duties of the day. The job was by no means easy, in fact far from it; but, having worked there for so long made it easier. The sheer amount of time I worked in that same store made my job that much easier. Now, starting over at a new job, in a new field, I realize just how much I took all that for granted. In fact, I think I miss that MORE than I miss the money I was making. I can always make more money, but experience - well, that is very hard to come by.

I know that if I want respect and authority at my new job I'll have to earn it, but I still resent the fact that I have to. I feel like I already spent a lot of time doing that, and now I just have to do it again. But, on some level I think this is my own fault. I always said I never wanted to end up working in retail as my career, and yet I stayed there for much longer than I had wanted. So, the fact that all of my experience is retail-based is of my own doing. In fact, I don't want to end up stuck in the restaurant business either. So maybe I should stop worrying so much, and just try to earn some money . . .

I am blogging quickly today, as I am only home now during the break between my two training shifts. The nice thing about work being so close to the house, is that I can actually use the 2 plus hour break between shifts on a double. Depending on the section I'm in (or more accurately the section my TRAINER is in) , and when the last guests leave, I could have almost 2 and a half hours off between my two shifts. Plus, working a double means I would get cut first in the evening (over the single shift people), and could be home as early as 8:30 or 9!

Anyway, I am going to run across the street and but a drink and a snack before I have to head back in. Later y'all . . .

Today, I started my training at the restaurant. I have to work several shifts, before I can start earning tips; but, I do get a free meal at the end of each training shift. All in all, I have a lot to learn, but am looking forward to earning the money my roommates do!

That's it for now, since 24 is about to start, and I need to jump in the shower. Until tomorrow . . .

Once more dear friends . . .

For anyone reading my blog now, and wondering about the 3 month gap in postings, here is the quickest recap I can muster:

My boss finally got fired, and I got another raise and promotion. I was making real person money (over $43k a year), and got into a good groove at work, just before thanksgiving. I was working ALL the time (with one scheduled day off a week), but was still excited at having my own store. The lease for my store was up at the end of January, and corporate decided not to renew. My store closed for business effective December 26th. I was given a severance package (including payment for unused vacation time) and sent on my way. I filed for unemployment, and, no new job immediately presenting itself, I got myself hired as a server at the restaurant my roommates work at.

With that said, I am rededicating myself to blogging as much as possible, and make the most of the blog as I can.

No actual posting today ( I am off to the movies in just a second), but tomorrow I regale all of you with my many tales of unemployed madness . . .

So . . .

Its been a few days, so here's a new entry for y'all out there. Today, I will talk about some new video games and music I have been checking out. Without further ado, here we go . . .
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First, I want to share my newest musical favorites - a little reggae, some smooth jazz/vocal, and absolutlely amazing guitar. Intrigued?

Matisyahu is an orthodox-jewish reggae artist - no wait, let me explain before you scroll down! Appearances notwithstanding, this dude kicks ass! He has been touring with Trey from Phish, and his live album has been consistently selling out. Most of his music has a religious bent to it (track six is dedicated to the anceint temple in Jerusalem), or at the very least references god several times per track. A lot of the lyrics have hebrew words and phrases peppered throughout. But, listen to the tracks and his flows are just ridiculously good, infectious even. The cd has some videos stored on it - you can see Matisyahu go crowd surfing while holding his yarmulke on! I unequivically recommend this one, and my favorite track is #5 (King Without a Crown)

Jamie Cullum's new album dropped a few weeks ago, and I love it. His brand of music definitely borders between Jazz and Easy Listening, but I dig it all the same. The easygoing flow of his music and lyrics really soothes and relaxes me, making for some damn good driving music. His new album, continues the trend from the last one of being mellow and smooth and just plain cool. I get a very rat-pack-cool feel whenever I listen to vocal jazz like this. I recommend tracks 1 & 2 on the album as the best (Get Your Way and London Skies), but there are many good ones that I'm sure people will love.

Santana's most recent album, All That I Am, releases next month, and it is , quite simply, amazing. I have already listened to all the tracks several times, and each one is very well done. Many tracks feature famous guest vocalists or performers, like his other recent releases. Everyone from Michelle Branch, Steven Tyler, Robert Randolph, Joss Stone, Mary J. Blige, Sean Paul, and Los Lonely Boys help round out this amazing album. I would point out particular tracks that I loved, but who's kidding? I love and recommend thw whole album!
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Gaming section to come after my dinner break!

Just a quick post today - way too tired after work to go into too much . . .
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I will be reviewing several games for the tomorrow/Tuesday edition. In addition, mostly to keep Aloma happy, I will also attempt to review downgrading a PSP from V2.0 to V1.5 (hopefully I don't fry mine!), which should allow me to play homebrew code once again . . . Several new albums have recently come across my desktop, and I'll give you my two cents on those as well. All in all, next time looks like it will be super action packed. Till then y'all . . .

P.S.: If I'm not rooting for any of the baseball teams still playing, shouldn't I be allowed to watch the regularly scheduled programming instead? I want to watch Prison Break tomorrow night, but Baseball is going to interrupt. It's like pouring salt on a wound - not only did the Red Sox not make it, but now we're forced to watch the other teams play instead of our favorite shows?!?!?! Weak dude, weak . . .

Today, I want to blog briefly about my love of the bastard-pop mash ups. Basically, when a DJ or otherwise interested soul combines the vocals and/or backing music from two or more pieces of music to create a composite work from all the sources. The end results are much more satisfying than my description lets on. The most obvious examples of the form would be Danger Mouse's The Grey Album (Jay-Z's Black Album lyrics on top of music remixed from the Beatles' White Album), and also the Collision Course Album MTV put out with Jay-Z and Linkin Park collaborating and mixing their music together live on stage.

I am also getting my weekly (and sometimes even more often) fix of mash-up love via my podcast subscriptions. I am not going to go into podcasting in detail (it's been done to death everywhere else), but I will say that I love the fact that I can automate the process and have free new music waiting for me every time I sync my Ipod up with Itunes. Between the podcasts from Mashuptown.com and my own searching I have more bastard pop than I know what to do with.

My favorite sites right now are the ones for djBC and Lenlow. There is a wealth of music, info, and link to many other mashers via these websites. I personally recommend "Can't you hear Biz knocking?" from djBC and "Mercedes Beck" and "Oooh Cheers" from Lenlow, but I'm sure you will all find tracks that you love. The best thing about any of these tracks is that they explore new directions in the music most of us already hear and know. Hearing how parts of different songs (oftentimes from completely different genres) fit together really intrigues me, and every new mash-up I hear only makes me want to find more of them.

Enjoy y'all, and until tomorrow . . .

First Off -

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUSIE!!!!!!

It's my sister Susan's 22nd Birthday today, so if you haven't already, wish her well! And now, on with the blog . . .
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I will start with a quick update - there is some new content on the Tenacious D movie website. It's mostly just footage of them performing at the 2005 ComicCon, but whatever. Any new D stuff is better than none!

And, for any of you Lost fans out there who just can't get enough, you should check out this site. I haven't seen anything earth-shattering or super exclusive, but it's cool if you can't wait until the next episode to get your Lost fix! The coolest thing is the two 'secret' websites involved with the show: The Hanso Foundation Website and the Dharma Initiative one. (There is also this alternate dharma page I found while trolling)

I can't even begin to explain either site or its secrets, but I will eventually. If anyone has any info please feel free to share; and, when I get farther I'll post updates to the blog.

To everyone who is fasting, I want to wish you an easy fast!

Today's topic will be my newest diversion - Total Overdose, for the Xbox (also available for PS2 and the PC).

This game is not the best game I've ever played. The graphics are not the best the Xbox has to offer, the camera sometimes works against you, and some of the missions are slightly repetitive. But damn is it fun nonetheless!

The storyline is hilariously demented and over-the-top (you play as yourself, and then your evil identical twin when your first character gets injured), and I love that. The action steals elements from just about every great action/shooter game of the last few years, and makes for a truly enjoyable experience. This is not Socom or a Tom Clancy game, looking to evoke the realest of realism. The main point of this game is to kill the bad guys in as many imaginative and deadly ways as possible, chain all of those impossible shots and deaths together to earn more points and unlock new special moves, to keep right on killing the bad guys!

The music is sometimes weird, but when it hits the mark, it is excellent (and evocative of the setting like the GTA series) and oftentimes humorous as well. Your choice of weapons is perfect, ranging from pistols and sawed-off shotguns to rifles, rocket launchers, and good old sticks of dynamite. There are many secret points and powerups scattered throughout the sprawling, GTA-esque open areas of the Mexican city you traverse in the game. You can earn doubles of most weapons in the game, starting with double pistols and moving up from there. To me, this game seems setup to play like the best of the best and worst action movies. You can explode every vehicle you see in action movie fashion, complete with the last second jump from the open driver's side door. Your character can cartwheel off the walls ala the Matrix and drop two guys at once before his feet touch the ground again.

As my roommate Chuck often says, sometimes you just feel like watching a movie where a lot of shit blows up and people get gunned down. This game is prefect for people looking for that kind of thrill. And with that, I am going back to earn even more spicy moves, and try to nab some new sombreros! Till tomorrow . . .

Back Again . . .

So, It's been a little while since I've blogged, but now I'm back! I guess we'll go light on the first new post, and save the deep thoughts for a little later. Just a simple observation for now. Apple is a company of geniuses. The Ipod and Itunes are cool. The Ipod Nano is absolutely amazing, and the new Video Ipod that has just been made avaialable for order seems like it will be a winner too. But, just how far is Apple going to position itself as the premier media company of the future?

For any of you that have Itunes, check out the two new sections of the music store: Pixar and TV Shows. The first is cool enough, offering downloads of several Pixar short films for only $1.99 a piece. This section is definitely a work in progress; and, when it has more than a half dozen short films available, I am sure Apple will see some money from people wanting to have Pixar content. But, the TV show section is truly inspired.

For a $1.99, you can download the latest episodes of 3 adult shows and 2 kids shows currently (Lost, Desperate Housewives, Night Stalker, The Suite Life, and That's So Raven), with I'm sure many more on the way. For those who don't have a TiVo or the know-how to get shows off the internet, apple is stepping in with a great service. I am sure many people would pay $2 per episode to download and rewatch the new season of Lost at their leisure. Also, the store offers the complete first seasons of Lost or Housewives for only $34.99, which is much less than the retail price of the DVD box sets. I can very easily see this as the wave of the future, or a great precursor to IPTV.

I will not be at all surprised if the TV Show section of the Itunes store grows exponentially over the next few months. With the Video Ipod coming out soon people could buy shows, and download them directly to their pods for on-the-go tv. But, even more importantly the studios will jump onboard if they're smart. They can use this as a way to make an immediate monetary return on their shows. Lots of people would pay on a weekly basis to download their favorite shows. And, people would still buy the DVD box sets after the season is over, provided the studios offer enough extra content to compete with Apple's immediate availability. This could be very win-win monetarily, if done right.

Well, like I said, that's it for today. More new stuff tomorrow!

I have just started playing Tiger Woods 2005 on the XBOX, and am in love. The controls are relatively intuitive, and there are so many mini-games and challenges, that I don't feel bored by the game at all! And, I have to admit, that the many sponsors and the choosing of different apparel and accessories is becoming addictive as well. I will give a more complete report in a later posting, because I have to get back to 'reviewing' the game! (he he)



Until then . . .

Bitches!

Our house was broken into yesterday. Luckily, they only took a small amount of stuff. The only thing I lost was a small container of loose change (with about $30 or $40 worth in there), but my other roommates did not fare quite so well. One of my roommates lost a container of change that had several hundred dollars worth in there (he'd been saving it for a LONG time); and, my other roommate lost several hundred dollars in cash. Several implements of relaxation were taken as well.

We are convinced that it was out upstairs neighbors, or one of the skeevy friends of the upstairs neighbors. One of them just got let out of jail for petty theft. The cops are always around because of them - they broke up a party here about 2 weeks ago. I have even heard of one of the skeevy friends starting a fight by throwing bottles at the guy who lives across the street!

We called the landlord, and he is coming today to install chains/ deadbolts on all our doors. Whoever got in here did so because the upstairs people either forced our back porch door open, or they unlocked the deadbolt in the basement that we share.

I was going to blog about something else today, but I am still very upset by this whole thing . . .

So, today I got a raise. Yeah. I'm still trying to process that. My district manager called me this afternoon, and told me he got me an almost 10 and a half percent increase - over $3000 a year. He said he believes in paying people what they're worth, and that he knows how hard I'm working and he thought I deserved it. Then, he told me that I was probably still going to get my normal increase at the end of September as well. I am honestly flabbergasted and speechless about the whole thing.

Don't get me wrong, I think I deserve this, and I think it's a little overdue. But still, the way he did it really threw me. No real preamble, just 'by the way, here's some more money, and thanks for all the hard work'. I think I've gotten to know my DM relatively well, and he isn't the kind of guy who would hold something over my head, or expect excessive thanks or something like that. But, the way he did this was so incredibly laid back and nonchalant that it made the act itself seem that much more touching and important to me.

I had plans to blog about stuff today, but I just don't feel like it. I'm gonna make some food, and relax instead. In fact, I'm putting on some Peter Gabriel and lighting incense as we speak. Till later then y'all . . .

Hello again . . .

I am currently 'reviewing' the new PSP game Death Jr. for my next edition, but in the mean time I thought I would share something funny I found.

So . . . I stumbled across this the other day, and at first glance thought it was a joke and/or a hoax. Then I thought it was for real. Now, unfortunately, I know that it is once again just a rumor. But, how cool would that have been???

I could just see the 'more cow bell' bill being pushed through Congress . . .

Or President Walken's first State of the Union being both the highest watched political address ever, while also being the most intense/creepy as well . . .

Well, I guess that will never be. Or will it . . . ?