Category: friends

Just another GEAR in the machine….

So as I’m sure most of you know by this point I went out and purchased a Xbox 360 just over a year ago now.

Much to my surprise it hasn’t blown up on me yet as most of the media reports in the gaming press would have believe at this time last year.

The main reason for the Xbox was I wanted to expand my menu of games on their native platform, outside of Valve FPS and alot of RTS and RPG games there isn’t much that comes out directly for the P.C. these days.  Most of what does come out is ported from our friends in the console realm and most of that tends to be of the craptastic level for quality. It doesn’t help that I have this thing for if I’m going to play a game I don’t want to play it on a ported platform I want to play it on the platform it was developed for.

The Wii being the major exception for this rule most all of the games that came out for it that I wanted to play showed up in 2007 so I still have it and does very well sitting there just like the Gamecube did before that and the N64 before that… hmmm I’m starting to see a patern with the Nintendo stuff.

Anyway…

I’ve bought a few games over the course of the last year for the old Xbox… GTA IV (Awesome story, gun play and driving need work but the physics model is top notch so I won’t get that down on it) Rock Band 2 (also awesome and a game that is popular enough that everyone under 30 can play it) Fallout 3 (I don’t RPG’s that often.. I will get back to you on this one once I get into it some more) And of course the two games that everyone and their brother who owns and Xbox and considers themselves a “real gamer” as…. Halo 3 and Gears of War / Gears of War 2

Lets talk about Halo 3 first… up until I bought this game I was a Halo virgin.  I honestly don’t get what the big deal is with Halo?   I know it was a launch title for the first Xbox way back when but honestly I don’t get it.  I don’t know if it my lack of understanding of the entire Halo universe and the overall story of Halo 3 and not understanding the various interactions of some of the main characters.  I honestly didn’t get it.  I think Curtis summed it up best when he said “You know if your going to play Halo 3, you may want to check out the first two before you do that”… I don’t know if it would have made a difference.  Also beating the thing in a afternoon didn’t help it’s cause.

Don’t get me wrong I had fun with Halo and I do enjoy occasionally popping on to Xbox Live and wasting someone but honestly I don’t get what the big deal is.

Now lets talk about the Gears of War games…. obstinately the original Gears of War was the tent pole title for the Xbox 360 in 2006.  Thing of it as the big blockbuster summer movie of video games that year.  Think of it like “Independence Day” good enough the first time through, a passable way to kill a couple of hours of time every time you watched it after that.  That is what Gears of War aspires to be… Honestly this is the first game that it felt like a chore to get around to finishing it, seriously on my to do list for the last 3 months for weekend would be something like;

Laundry

Clean kitchen / bathrooms

Yard work

Beat Gears of War

I think it was made all the worse that I knew I was only about 45 minutes of game time from the final boss, but would have to depend on my skill to beat the game since there are no cheat codes (yes I know I shouldn’t use cheat codes but some of us play games just to play games and not to improve our overall skill).  I knew the Gears was really a chore when Curtis and I had a choice we could either play a 6 hour game of “Sins of a Solar Empire” and we knew it would last that long with the both of us working together or play Gears of war CO-Op for 3 hours and beat the thing from start to finish.   We chose the 6 hour RTS game and loved every minute of it.

Which brings me to tonight’s reason for posting, the 45 minute save point to the end took me about an hour to get through it to the final boss.  The final boss took me probably 2.5 hours of trying to finally kill.  And in the end it was a lucky shot that did it (which pisses me off more then you will ever know).  Now why was I so obsessed with beating Gears of War? Simple I already had Gears of War 2 and I wanted to have the full experience of beating Gears of War when I got into Gears of War 2.

Imagine my surprise when I get into Gears of War 2 and it’s basically a stand alone game!  And the more I think about it the more it pisses me off.

What is the payoff you ask?  Other then a few Xbox live achievements? Not a whole hell of a lot it would seem.

Not to pull your halo down…. or talk you to the ground….

I hate the first two weeks in Feburary, it’s just a crappy time across the board.

Mean while I have nothing but good mojo for the first two weeks in March, mainly because the weather turns consitently good, but not hot.  It’s the perfect time of year to live in Arizona, until summer arrives and find myself hibernating indoors from June until sometime in late September.

So I guess at somepoint someone said you can pick your friends your stuck with your family? Really that is news to me!  I guess I’ve always lumped the two groups together for better or worse they are the same in my book… which really makes the holidays kind of a pain in the ass.  If that is my biggest complaint though I guess I don’t have much to complain about.

And the winner is…

OK so the big game is over… the Pro Bowl is done (not that I watched it) and I have finally coughed up a couple of boxes of Nilla Wafers so that some long running jokes can finally be put to bed…. or at the very least be made to suffer with a few other jokes that should have died along time ago… like “YOUR MOM!!”

Exactly…

I do have a couple of ponderous thoughts for you loyal readers this evening so won’t join me for a few moments and ponder these thoughts….

1. Why can I not get 2GB of RAM on a Windows XP based Dell netbook?   Just curious really I can get 2GB if I went with Ubuntu but that defeats the purpose of me getting a USB HD TV adapter and using the thing for tailgating next year.  Since all of the damn adapters only support Windows and not Linux… also note that this will probably be the only time you see me preferring Windows over anything.

2. How come there is no cheap pay as you go wireless data infrastructure?    I’m looking for 3G wireless data speeds and not wanting to pay $60 a month for it… I would like to do something similar to a pay as you go phone and only pay for data on days that I use it and when I pay for data I don’t want it to be a 10MB cap or something small like that I want it to be a 500MB or 1GB cap you know so I could actually get some work done if I had too.  Also I want said data network to cost me in the neighborhood of $5 a for 24 hours of usage and be reasonably reliable.

3.  I hate Phoenix sports writers… I don’t know if it’s just the teams this year but I seriously am starting to dislike all of them.

4.  Also my loathing of the MPAA and all thing that involve me not having control OVER MEDIA I LEGALLY PURCHASED WITH MY OWN MONEY… grew to new levels. So this has generally made me think that this is the only measure I can really take to make sure my stuff is open and compatible.

Its so right on sooo many levels.
It's so right on sooo many levels.

Watch out for those souped up grills…

So as most all you know that I have this thing with watching cars turn left and I really like it when cars turn left here in Phoenix.  Well I like it to the point that I go and camp at the track for a couple of days every time they come to town.

Yes I know it’s a sickness… your also talking to someone who’s been followed the Cardinals since 1993 and fan since 1998 (you know the first bandwagon)… well not so much talking as reading the ramblings of said person.

Anyway at the spring race last year as we are packing up Greg gives me his old gril and tells me “It’s a good grill, but Beth wants to get me a new one for fathers day” well I being the cheap bastard that I am said “sure”.   Greg later informed me that he made a few “upgrades” to the grill while he owned it.   What kind of upgrades you ask?  Just some new burners nothing to terribly special.

That was April of 08 and the grill has sat in my garage since then, mainly because I already had a grill and didn’t want to give up a lot of patio space.  So tonight after my old grills flame went out for the third time in 5 minutes I decided to drag Greg’s old grill out and fire it up.

And fire it up I did… this is the first grill I’ve ever used that lit on the first press of the igniter and burned my eyebrows almost clean off… and if my patio cover was any lower I’m pretty sure I would have burn marks on it too.

Ok so the burners were upgraded a bit but how much?

Well after 10 minutes on medium the grate on the bottom that holds the briquettes was glowing red.

That’s also a first for me….

Did I mention Greg’s nickname is “The Foreman”?

No?

I think that may have something to do with it all.

Imperialistic house of prayer…..Conquistadores who took their share

So as the new year begins it’s spin up and the year that was 2008 lurches to it’s final moments lets take a look back and forward at some things….
Looking Back….

Well the economy isn’t totally screwed up… it’s completely fucked up, which makes one wonder how long it will take to get back to doing what economies do?

The Cardinals made the Playoffs and win the NFC West… Miracles do happen

The Light Rail Opened in Valley on time, on budget, and with no deaths.  Remember kids the Light Rail always has the right of way.

A couple of births… you know future Cardinals fans in the making (wait you will see 😀 )

And someone finally has a light at the end of the tunnel! Though it could be a oncoming light rail because he ran a redlight and didn’t see the Light Rail warning signal.

Looking Forward to 2009…

The Cardinals win their Wild Card game against the Falcons, Goto New York and win in a last second 50 yard field goal with the ball going into the win.  Sales of Neil Rackers Jerseys go through the roof… once again I’m ahead of the curve.

In a upset at the AFC title the San Diego Chargers beat the Pittsburg Steelers after Ben Rothelsburger gets distracted by his rumored new girlfriend in the stands Jessica Simpson.

The Suns will lose to the Spurs in the playoffs for the third year in a row….

The Phoenix Metro area will discover that they didn’t plan on one thing when building the new light rail Snowbirds pay the $2.50 for a all day pass and ride the train back and forth all day long because they have nothing better to do.  Commuters to downtown Phoenix never use the Light Rail again.

And I finally find happiness with a cell phone… not so much with my love life though.

Letters to Santa…

It’s that time of year again… when lots and lots of snow flakes fall and we all bundle up against whatever cold has come our way.

So in the spirit of the Season, I now present to you “Letters to Santa if he answered them honestly…”

——————————————————————————————–

Deer Santa,
I wud like a kool toy space ranjur fer Xmas.  I’v ben a gud boy
all yeer.

Yer Friend, Billy

Dear Billy,
Nice spelling. You’re on your way to a career
in lawncare.  How about I send you a book so you can learn to read and
spell?  I’m giving your older brother the space ranger.  At least HE can
spell.

Santa

*****************************************************

Dear Santa,
I have been a good girl all year, and the only
thing I ask for is peace and joy in the world for everybody!
Love, Sarah

Dear Sarah,
Your parents smoked pot when they had you,
didn’t they?

Santa

****************************************************


Dear Santa,
I don’t know if you can do this, but for
Christmas, I’d like for my mommy and daddy to get back together.
Please see what you can do.

Love,
Teddy

Dear Teddy,
Look, your dad’s banging the babysitter like a
screen door in a hurricane.   Do you think he’s gonna give that up to
come back to your frigid mom, who rides his ass constantly?   It’s time
to give up that dream.

Let me send you some Legos instead.

Santa

****************************************************


Dear Santa,
I want a new bike, a Playstation 2, a train,
some G.I. Joes, a dog, a drum kit, a pony and a tuba.

Love, Francis

Dear Francis,
Who names their kid “Francis” nowadays?  I bet
you’re gay.  I’ll set you up with a Barbie.

Santa

****************************************************


Dear Santa,
I left milk and cookies for you under the tree,
and I left carrots for your reindeer outside the back door.

Love, Susan

Dear Susan,
Milk gives me the sh!ts and carrots make the
deer fart in my face when riding in the sleigh.   You want to do me a
favor?   Leave me a bottle of Scotch.

Santa

****************************************************


Dear Santa,
What do you do the other 364 days of the year?
Are you busy making toys?

Your friend, Thomas

Dear Thomas,
All the toys are made in China .  I have a condo
in Vegas where I spend most of my time making low-budget porno films.  I
unwind by drinking myself silly and squeezing the a$$es of cocktail
waitresses while losing money at the craps table.

Hey, you wanted to know.

Santa

****************************************************


Dear Santa,
Do you see us when we’re sleeping, do you really
know when we’re awake, like in the song?

Love, Jessica

Dear Jessica,
Are you really that gullible?  Good luck in
whatever you do.  I’m  skipping your house.

Santa

****************************************************


Dear Santa,
I really want a puppy this year.  Please,
please, please, PLEASE, PLEASE could I have one?

Love, Timmy

Dear Timmy,
That whiney begging shit may work with your
folks, but that crap doesn’t work with me.

You’re getting a sweater again.

Santa

****************************************************


Dearest Santa,
We don’t have a chimney in our house.  How do
you get into our home?

Love, Marky

Dear Mark,
First stop callling yourself “Marky”, that’s why
you’re getting your a$$ whipped at school.  Second, you don’t live in a
house, you live in a low-rent apartment complex.  Third, I get inside
your pad just like the boogeyman does, through your bedroom window.

Sweet dreams,
Santa

Walk on by…

So as mentioned in the post last night I was on vacation for a couple of weeks.   So part of being on vacation is stopping your mail.  And in Phoenix when you ask to have your mail stopped it actually stops and just doesn’t pile up in your box even though your mail man know your elk hunting and you put in multiple requests to the post office.

I digress… so I’m looking through the mail which is mostly coupon flyer’s and shoppers guides (spam), bills, and credit card offers (more spam)

/sidebar/

Why is it’s perfectly acceptable to get credit card spam in the post mail and penis offers in email but not the other way around?

/endSidebar/

So as I’m sifting through the mail I notice a post card extolling the virtues of wind power to make beer… signed by one “J. McCain”

I look closer and the beer bottle on the front of the post card is a Fat Tire beer…. which is odd because I always had Mr. McCain pegged as a Budweiser man.

Take what is mine…. bury what is mine…

So one nice thing about the WordPress blog is I found a add on that updates the whole back end for me auto-magically.  And after having used it a couple of times I can say that honestly it works way better then the old method.  You know me FTPing everything down to the MAC… uploading the new files… enabling the new files… making sure I didn’t bork anything in the process.  I like this auto upgrade feature way more then the old manual method.

Yes folks this is what you get for a update when I’m on vacation… A update about how easy the plug in to update the blog is to operate.

Oh btw I’m on vacation and I have Internet access!  Which while is exciting it keeping me from paying attention to the election… No wait this Internet on vacation is just what the doctor ordered!

So what does a vacation for Tom look like… well it looks like one of the following

– Camping in the high grasslands of Arizona looking for Elk.

– Hanging out in Williams while looking for Elk/Deer

-Hanging out in Kingman while kind of looking for Deer and drinking alot of beer (this is the one I’m currently on)

– Camping on the dark side of Catalina with six kids and 5 adults… guess who doesn’t have any kids and was having no part of the kids.

-Camp at NASCAR while drinking beer (this is next week)

So all and all when I go on extended runs of vacation I tend to camp and drink beer.

Maybe I should expand my horizons, you know maybe take a trip to another country and drink their beer.

Man that sounds expensive… I think I will keep camping and drinking my own beer.

Who knows maybe while I’m out looking for Deer someone I know personally will post *cough*curtis*cough* *cough*eve*cough*

You know stranger things have happened like me coming back with something…

Prolonging the magic….

I work in I.T. which I’m pretty sure all 3 of you know. I’m sure all 3 of you have called me up at various intervals in the last 7 years and heard me utter the following phrase “I can’t come out I’m on call”.

Call at Scottsdale isn’t nearly as bad as it was in Kingman. The call volume is much lower and I get paid to be on call. Lower volumes and paid or not it’s still damn annoying to be on call. Mainly because it puts my social life on hold for a whole damn week.

I know what your thinking right now… Wait when did Tom get a life? It happened a long time ago but those are details that you don’t need to know.

Finally this week I threw caution to the wind while “On Call” and said fuck it, I’m going to continue my social life “On Call” or not. Now I’m not a dummy if your going to talk the talk you have to walk the walk, so to that end I took advantage of several “perks” of being on call for Scottsdale. Namely a laptop (which is actually my daily usage computer for work) and a celluar broadband card (you know those nifty data cards you people with when your in the park because the park doesn’t have free WiFi yet). Laptop and Broadband card aren’t the only things you need when your on call you also need your pager (yes pager because in my particular line of IT work cell phones are still new fangled technology not to be trusted), Cell Phone (of course your personal cell phone because other then the random grandparent who doesn’t have a cell phone these days), blue tooth head set (have to type when your on call), and since you have so much crap anyway why not throw in a backpack for good measure. Oh and don’t forget the Keyfob because it looks really bad if you can’t dial to fix a problem when your on call.

OK now that we have our “On Call” kit built lets go out to dinner on a Friday night at (rolls 100 sided dice for dinner location) Rula Bula! And for kicks lets round out our party with the usual D&D sterotypes (Ogre, 2x pixies,rouge on a motorcyle, and a Paladin). OK good so we have our party established (IT Geek, Ogre, 2x Pixies, rouge on a motorcycle, and a Paldin in a pear tree) off you go to dinner…… ***BUZZZ*** ***BUZZZ***

FUCK! the pager just went off…. and you are like a block from Rula Bula!.

Drop off your party and tell the rouge on the motorcyle that you have to work. The Ogre gets the laptop booted before he bails, thank you Mr. Ogre. Once again you are alone and call into the help desk to find out what the problem is, oh this is a two for one special and you are going to need to dial in. So you find a nice parking lot and log into your laptop and fire up the broad band card which con…. dammit it won’t connect.

Reboot the laptop, login, restart broadband card (throw the dice to see if it will connect this time….) and nope no connection. Repeat this act 4 more times in the next 10 minutes. While rebooting also throw a dice for how helpfull the report from the helpdesk is… not very.

So at this point it’s very apparent that your laptop isn’t going to work with the broadband card, start looking for a Starbucks. Hey look a Borders! They have WiFi and are always quiet on the inside. OH look all the inside tables are full, but there are a few out side that open it’s only 100 degrees and you won’t be dialed in for long. You sit down and start looking for WiFi score you found some! Your finally logged in to work have your bluetooth rockin this problem (throw dice for ambient noise…) This is when you notice the following things… The water fountain built in to the ground… the two guys who are far to faboulus to the left… and the two women who have hair cut to a #1 blade… both couples are not being quiet neither is the water fountain and (roll for help desk volume) the help desk is speaking in a very soft voice as well.

Damit…

Your quest for a quiet place begins again… after several minutes you find (roll for location…) the drive through of a Bank of America. So with laptop, bluetooth, and empty drive through you begin your quest to start fixing what ailes your caller. So starts your saga… (roll for time to fix problem…) 1 hour later in the same bank of america drive through you finally fix the problem (roll for problem fix…) by rebooting the whole damn server.

You close the laptop, and deposit all of the items into your back pack of IT trinkets and stash the bag in the truck. You find your way to Rula Bula! to rejoin your party. Upon rejoining your party you sit down (roll for action….) and drink the Ogre’s beer.

The Ogre is not pleased.

The one with alot of words…

No I haven’t been watching friends… there is no gratitous nudity in that show. And I’m on a Led Zepplin kick so it’s kind of hard to use a line from one of their songs.

Why?

Because there are 3 other posts in the last 4 years with some sort of Led Zepplin refrence. Ok here’s a game for you, find two of the three titles with lines from Led Zepplin songs and you will win dinner on me… and when I say on me I will meet you at like a Chilli’s in a strip mall some placy buy you a beer and dinner. I’m not really going to let you eat dinner on me unless you 20 something cute and female in which case goto town.

Now your probally asking yourself why only 4 years for this game Tom? Well that’s easy that is about how long I’ve been on blogger you don’t honestly expect me to expect you to search all 8 years of this shit do you?

Wait 7 years? Oh good lord it has been 7 years… December 1, 2000. I started blogging in the 20th century! There has to be some sort of award for that. “And now to present Tom with the award for the most pristine and occasionally amusing pile of shit on the intertubes is Kate Beckensile” (and if Kate Beckensile isn’t around snag Cylon Model Eight aka Boomer aka Athena to present the award) This pile of crap is older then some of my friends kids and is defitnaly older then all of their marriages.

I wonder if it’s time to graduate from blogger to a honest to goodness domain name and some sort of open source web2.0 social networking esque website with a content managment system that would allow me to blog in real time as I thought of something, post pictures when ever I saw something that was amusing to me!

Or I can have another beer and go get some books packaged together for more friends having their first peanut.

I think I’m going to do that, personal jesus would be proud.