Moving On

Does anyone else have an addiction to a legalized drug that they accidentally keep falling back into? That drug for me is caffeine. For those of you who don't know, I don't drink any type of coffee and I never have, but I used to drink the crap out of Pepsi and Coke. But in August of 2001, I decided that my addiction was too much. If I went two or three days without it, then I would start getting the shakes, a loss of patience and a really bad temper. So, it was time to stop, and I did...cold turkey.

Then came the game of what can I drink, what can I eat and how much of it is within my limits. Well, I found new drinks to consume. Ginger Ale, Sprite, and Sierra Mist became my new best friends. In fact, everyday for the past 7 months, I have had a 24 oz of Schweppes Caffeine Free Ginger Ale on my desk to drink. But that hasn't completely solved the problem. There is one substance on this planet that I can't resist, no matter how hard I try: Chocolate. Chocolate is now my Achilles Heel, and one that I don't think I can avoid...I just like it too much.

Response to 100 to Nothing

Thanks for the responses. First of all, I had only read what was on FoxNews and never got to the details that appeared on my blog yesterday. I would like to say that, yes that does go a long way to explaining things further. But I would like to point out a couple of things.
1. The probable reason that the score went up to 100, which may be pointed out but I'm not aware of it, could be that the Ref's wouldn't call the game until that point.
2. The teams seemed pretty equal to me. No they weren't going to the pro's in 4 years, but they were there to play.
3. What is defined as "special needs". In high school, I was skinny, lanky and had asthma, but when I played basketball and when I lost big (which was often), I didn't ask for a forfeit, or complain. I accepted the loss as just that: a loss. There was no clause in PE that said asthma kids can't play sports.
Do I feel sorry for the group that lost, yes, but I still don't think the other kid should have been fired for doing his/her job. Nor do I think that the winning team should have to forfeit the game. Just my 2 cents.

100 to Nothing

Why are so many people making a big deal about a high school girls basketball being beat 100 to nothing? Why? What's even worse is that the team that won, their coach was fired for saying that they weren't sorry. Why should he/she (I'm not sure) be sorry for his team winning? One thing that professional and most college sports teams know is that there is no trophy for coming in last place. Did the Cowboys get a trophy for not making the playoffs and coming in third in the division? No, they didn't. I don't know why we, as a society, have to pamper the feelings of our youth. I didn't win every championship in Tee-Ball, but I was handed a trophy that was little and was called the loser's trophy. In fact, getting that trophy was the worst thing you could get because that meant that you DIDN'T WIN!

That coach shouldn't have fired. The team that won shouldn't have to forfeit. That team was prepared, they executed and they won. They beat the pulp out of a team that obviously didn't care enough to give a little bit more effort to score just ONE goal. Not ONE! Stop coddling our youth, especially high school aged youth, and treat them like the adults that we want them to grow into. Because when they get into the real world, they are in for a very rude awakening.

A Week into Facebook and...

I've been on Facebook for a full week now, and I have to say that my opinion has near completely changed. The reason: it has completely revolutionized the way I keep in touch with my friends who are on Facebook. For instance, I talk to my wife in person all the time, but since Facebook, I get IM requests from her when she is sitting next to me on the couch. Spark and I can now chat over IM and better organize how and when we will be doing podcasts.

Another thing that has been great is that I have reconnected with friends that I haven't seen in years (none from my high school as I have yet to befriend one of them). One person, whom I will not mention, was one of my best friends when I was growing up, and I haven't heard from her in years. Well, she joined Facebook over the weekend and added me as a friend. When she is on chat, we can now talk. Her father is also someone that I haven't talked to in years and can now that we are both on Facebook.

But that's not all. Being a part of GeezerGamers, I've become friends with a lot of people who I've only know as GamerTags. With Facebook, I've gotten to know them more as a person: I know their real names, seen pictures of them and their significant others and realized that there is more to them than playing games.

Family member that live in other states/counties/cities/countries are easier to talk to also. I can now see what they are up to and comment on their status'. In fact, I think commenting on their status is one of the more interesting things that I enjoy about Facebook. And my wife, has her fun in this department also...

So overall, I don't regret joining Facebook...yet. I do, though, have to be careful of my status when I am talking about a co-worker, because a lot of them are on Facebook also.

Historic Week

This has truly been a historical week. We all know the headlines, but do we know what has actually happened. Have we let it sink in yet? We have a new President of the United States of America. The leader of the free world, and the most powerful man in the world (I bet his wife is in for a shock on that one). But what does this mean for us? Does this mean that I will get paid more? No. Does this mean that my job is more secure than on Monday. No. What this means to me and you is that fresh leadership is now in the White House (I avoided the words 'better', etc... because I think those are very subjective words).

And another thing that is historic is that we had a transition of power that is unequal in this world. No riots (except from the people who wanted to see Obama speak), no troops on the streets (except those protecting Bush and Obama) and no deaths occurred moving from one form of leadership to the next. And as I look back, this transition was far more graceful than the transition from Clinton to Bush. Do you remember when all of the "W" keys were removed from keyboards in January of 2001? How about the lunch that Bush had with Gore that lasted 10 minutes? Bush showed me something that I knew he had in him: Gracefulness.

He was graceful throughout his presidency. And I think that will be Bush's legacy. Okay, I'll be the first to admit that all his policies weren't the most popular, but I honestly believe that he was a good man and trying to do the right thing. A lot of people called him a buffoon, but he had to make a lot of tough decisions in order to get us past some VERY traumatic times in our nations history. I, for one, will miss him.

Another historic thing that I think is being overlooked is that this is the first time in our nations history when I was able to watch a live stream of the inauguration directly from my laptop at work. This is also the first time formats such as podcasts, video podcasts and live streaming has been used by politicians. Will Obama podcast every State of the Union address? Will he set up a podcast feed for every speech that he gives? How about press briefings from secretary and himself?

This is a new era. This is the new media era, where politicians will have to start embracing new media formats and new ways to communicate with America. Wake up Republicans, the new era has begun.

Number of Things to Post

I have a number of things I want to post blogs about, but these day's I just don't have the time. Please be patient and I will be back with interesting dribble that you are all interested in. Peace out!

The New Year Started Monday

I had this long post about how wonderful the transition of power was from the Bush White House to the Obama White House, but today, I realize something. I've got my swagger back. You know what I mean right? In case you don't, what I'm talking about is having the want and not need to keep things updated, reviewing. Christmas and the New Year completely took it out of me, and now I've got it back. Right now, I am dancing to music in my cubicle and IT IS WONDERFUL!!!!

Welcome

Due to the inauguration of the new President, my regularly scheduled post will be delayed until tomorrow.

Opening Old Wounds

Over the weekend, I caved into peer pressure and joined Facebook. It wasn't necessarily that I was narcissistic and needed to be everywhere. It had more to do with me being able to connect with friends that I haven't seen in years. So, I signed up. And then I got the shock of my life...a lot of the people that I went to high school with and wanted to connect with again...I realized where a-holes and I had no want to talk with them at all. In fact, as I was browsing them, I started to get a little upset at a couple of the people when I saw their names and pictures. It REALLY got me mad. And so far, I have not asked a single person from my high school to be friends, and knowing some of them, I bet they were saying "This guy is a total hanger-on and he'll send us an friend invite" or "I'm going to wait and see if he wants to talk to us."

As far as I am concerned, they are all dead to me, and I'm in no way, shape or form ready to re-connect with them. On the flip side, I have connected with a couple of old friends that I haven't talked with in years and a lot of my family and my wife's family are on Facebook and it will be interesting to see how well I get to know them, now that I can talk with them.

Circuit City Closing?

First, read this.

Now, let's discuss. They are actually asking for a bankruptcy court to liquidate their assets, which in essence means that they will be closing all their stores. What does that mean us? Best Buy has no real competition now, as far as I can tell. Richmond, VA (the city in which I live) is going to be going through an even tougher time with the real estate and job markets because 10,000+ people will probably be laid off. What this means is my beloved Richmond, VA will continue in this economic downturn for years to come.

It's a sad day in Richmond.

But I can say that Circuit City had it coming. Over the past couple of years, I have had nothing but bad experiences when I go there to shop. What used to be my favorite place to shop became my least favorite. They did it to themselves. But I'm sorry to see them go, because competition breeds competitiveness.

What Is Your "Best Job"

I have to say that when I saw this, I was a little skeptical, but I do have to say that I love this opportunity. Who on this Earth wouldn't want to sit on a beach, snorkel, live in a million dollar villa and get paid to do it? Would I quit my job for this opportunity? HELL YES!!! But I'll never get to do it. I'm just not that lucky. Good looking, yes...that lucky, no. Thousands of people are doing everything in their might to get that job, and I would love to be the one that is reviewing the video's people are sending in.

But what would you do to get this job? Would you consider this the "Best Job Ever"? Would you quit your job if you were offered this job and only had it for only six months?

Tulu

:~)

Picked Up

Last night was a blast. A lot of good things came out of last night. The first of which was that the wife and I had a great night of just laying down and watching a movie. Not the greatest movie of all times, but it is one of the funnier movies that I like to watch. I played Left 4 Dead, a VERY repetitive but GOOD game, and picked up two more achievements worth 40 GS total.

But the most exciting thing to happen was that I picked up Guitar Hero: Aerosmith for $20. I remember posting earlier that I thought it was a good idea of a game, but at a $50 or higher pricetag was just too much for too little. Well, it finally dropped to a price that the wife and I could agree on and picked it up. And I have to say that I am so looking forward to playing and unlocking some of those achievements.

Got Scammed?

I think that I got scammed yesterday, and fortunately, no harm has come from this. It all started on Sunday, when I logged into my Xbox and saw a message from two friends. It said that a profile with my Xbox 360 gamertag was created and that I should claim it. Well, I went to the site, and checked it out. It looked really cool. It was like my "360 Can Blog" but cooler. Better graphics, darker colors, and it looked like something that was made in this decade. So, I threw caution to the wind and signed up. I thought it was REALLY weird when it asked me for my passport e-mail login and password, and I HAD to send all my friends on my Friends List asking them to sign up. But I did it, even though I knew that my friends wouldn't be happy about it (I get 1 2 spam messages a week, and never send them out on non-holidays, so I thought that I could get away with one). I then finished set-up of my profile and briefly forgot about it.

When I returned home last night, I saw a message from one of my friends (CyberKnight) on my 360 saying that it was a spam site and that I should change my password, which I did immediately. Do I think it's a scam sight? Maybe, but with my password changed and me not updating the site, I think I might be okay.

Also, thank you CyberKnight. I appreciate you giving me the heads up.

Control

One of my co-workers is given a lot of grief because his wife won't allow him to buy from 5 Guys Burgers and Fries because it is too expensive. Another of my co-workers won't get an XBL 12 Month Gold card because it's too expensive. In today's economy, I can sort of understand that, but is that the real reason?

No, I think the real reason is that their wives control the spending around the house. I personally think that those who control the finances in the household, controls the household.

And before you ask, I control the finances at my house.

Tired

I am pretty tired today, so this one will be short...

Pacman Jones was released from the Cowboys. GOOD! He was a blight on this team and now, he's gone. Joe DeCamillis was hired as the Special Teams coach to replace Bruce Read. This is a GOOD thing. My estimation of the Cowboys going 6-10 next season has gone up to being 7-9. I think they will win one game due to their special teams.

Fresh Ears

The other day, I head this song that I absolutely loved. It was fresh, upbeat and very catchy. I wanted to download it to my Zune immediately, but then I realized something. I haven't listened to music in the past week. Why? Well, I listen to more podcasts these days than I do music. Then the shocker came. Its not just the music that I'm neglecting. It's movies too. And it all has to do with new/fresh content. Songs, movies and TV episodes never change. With podcasts, there is new content with each one. They are cheap to make and cheap to distribute. With movies, I can now stream new content whenever I want with Netflix and Hulu, so what's the point of watching the same movie again and again, when I can steam something new whenever I get the chance. I can't wait for the next 3 years to see what technology I will be using then.

And, just to let you know, I didn't download that song...yet.

They Are Back

My podcasts are back to normal. The two week period of Christmas and New Years led to a near void of new daily podcasts because they were on vacation. Now, the vacations are over, and everyone is back on their normal schedule. My ears are happy!

Death of a Childhood Memory

Like so many that had come before it, one of my last childhood memories was destroyed over the weekend, and it came in the form of a movie. I can't describe the disappointment that I felt after watching the move Death Before Dishonor because it brings up such a familiar fact of my life: things I cherished in childhood have turned into nightmares at this time of my life.

Take my childhood home as an example. When I was growing up there, that house had the feel of a castle with numerous cavernous rooms. I could run all day and not be able to find all the hiding spots, nooks and crannies available to hide in. It wasn't until years later, after we moved out of the house (in 1988) and my sisters re-purchase of that house in 1999 that I realized how differently that house was from my memories. Cuby(?) holes that I could lay flat in, returned to my conscience as a place that I would have to get into a ball to fit in. My old room, then a huge place to play G.I.Joe in, looked about the size of my current full bathroom. The kitchen that seemed like a dinner that was always ready to feed a dozen people, couldn't sit five at one time.

It was to this disappointment that I was greeted when watching Death Before Dishonor. Let me preface this with saying that it had been at least 20 years since the last time I had seen that movie, and that was putting a conservative estimate on it. What did I remember from this movie when I was in single digit age that made it such a majestic movie? Dead American's being thrown out of a van to be left on the street in front of an American Embassy and a lone Marine who would dealt swift and dutiful punishment to the defenders of evil. A lone American Marine swiftly, silently and thoroughly killing every perpetrator against America. A lone Marine restoring hope and honor to a desecrated flag and uniform in the name of justice and the Marine Corps motto Semper Fidelis (which means: Always Faithful). A lone Marine that was fully armed and REALLY dangerous. That Marine was more than a movie Marine, he was a Marine that I once saw in my father (a one time Marine, who wore the same uniform): a heroic man whom I could idolize.

What I got, though, turned out to be more like reality. The same run and gun mentality that seemed to perpetrate all military movies from the 80's and 90's. A since of a good guy running through waves of enemies with little to no regard, miraculously coming out of the battle uninjured. Yes, it made for an exciting movie when I was 8 or 9 years old, but Saturday, it turned out to be exactly like my dad: dated, old and not worth believing. As I write this, I can't believe that at one time I idolized that movie, but thinking back to those days, it sure was something that I could believe in, and even though the movie was a footnote in Hollywood, that movie did shape my life. But my expectations that it would be the same mystic movie were wildly unjustified.

Changes

Okay, so my insistence for Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett, Offensive Line Coach Hudson Houck, and Conditioning Coach Joe Jurazek need to go, hasn't yet come to fruition, but Special Teams Coach Bruce Read has been fired from the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff and that is a good move. Special teams has been an absolute disaster for the Cowboys this year. From week one on, it has been absolutely atrocious. There has been no excuse for why it has been this bad for two years in a row. Now, things will change. But, who do you bring in?

Joe DeCamilla of Jacksonville would be a really good choice, and so would Joe Avezzano, but he's been retired for a few years and would probably not want to come out of retirement if asked. So, the questions begin.

But I will make this prediction. Next year, the Dallas Cowboys will have a 6-10 record.