Well, we’re back now in the desert wasteland and the heat is here waiting for us. The trip to Show Low was very needed. To sum it up in a word, it was rejuvinating I think for both of us. We’ve been talking about how much that place does for us since 2001 and I feel the same way still. It’s really pretty perfect for us. It has all the amenities we need, and the climate is more mild in both the summer and winter. Heidi would get her four seasons, and I would get my solitude. Now, to make it happen. We’re crafting a plan as we speak! :) heh

We got to visit with our friends up there which was nice, and we got some family time too which was also nice. It was nice to spend time as a family and not worry about all the crap we worry about here at home. So, at the very least we’ve vowed to go up there once a month or two.

That is all… I have to get back to work around here. I just heard my wife say, “It isn’t working…” referring to the Media Center… Ahhhh tech support… Chat at you guys later.

So, Heidi and I decided to get some R&R up in Show Low. It’s been way too long since we’ve been back up here. We’ve vowed to try and get up here every other month or so at least. It’s cheap, it’s beautiful, and it’s not where we live now. ;)

We’re staying at some Mom and Pop roadside motel here, and I must confess I was a bit worried it would be your typical roadside Mom and Pop motel. I haven’t had the best experiences at these places, but I suppose that should be expected down in Studio City.. I suppose… !? Maybe I just made poor choices. Hey, Stu, remember that damn joint in Studio City when we went to LA!? OMG!

Anyway, so we got here and must say we were very surprised with the quality of this place for the price! Very nice room. Very clean. Very cheap. ;) I have WiFi and a desk, so I’m happy. :) Heidi has cable, a bed, and a remote control, she’s happy. Rhys has his own bed that he can jump on, and nobody is yelling at him for putting toys in the refridgerator so he’s happy. LOL

Life is good. Now, to kick it into high gear to get moved out here. :-D We tried once, and that plan was quickly derailed. Let’s see how Move to Show Low v2.0 goes. ;)

Life has been pretty busy lately, and I haven’t had as much of a chance to write as I would have liked. So, I will give a quick update to things goin on in my life.

Happy Dad’s day to all the dads out there. I had a pretty good day — hung out with family and just tried to relax. Heidi and Rhys got me a really nice Fossil watch, so that was freakin awesome! Rhys did a very good job keeping the secret from me, much to our surprise. He mentioned that he had a “surprise” to give me on “Mother’s Day” a few times, but never gave away the secret. :)

I’m still not smoking! WOO HOO! I have a few patches left to go if I want to finish out the program, but honestly, I’m pretty much done with it. I tried to put a patch on today and it didn’t stick very well, so I just tossed it. I think I’m truly done with the whole smoking thing! Feels good to be done with that shit. OMG. I still get cravings, but I have enough will power to fend off the cravings this time. I just gotta keep my exposure to smokers limited for a time, else I know I will fall.

I have been thinking of taking up online poker again. It’s an online game that 1) I like to play, 2) takes little time, 3) doesn’t have a monthly cost, 4) can actually win money! So, we’ll see. I noticed that Poker.com seems to have turned into a portal of sorts. I used to play there when it was a gaming site. I know the US Govt has frowned on online gaming, so I will have to check into the current laws, etc… BOOO

That’s about it for now. I’m gonna get to work, and try and enjoy the day! Chat at you guys later!

There was a time when I would definitely call myself an avid gamer. I’d still like to call myself that. But, lately every game I play seems to fall short of that proverbial mark — whatever that mark is. Perhaps the problem is I am not aware of the mark I am trying to hit.

I just LOVE Massively Multiplayer Online games. I’ve loved them since the days when we mudded on terminal screens at the University…

I’ve played a lot of MMOs since those days: EQ2, Planetside, Dark Age of Camelot, Eve, Tabula Rasa, Guild Wars, Second Life, and now Age of Conan… Some of these did well to capture my attention, some did very poorly. However, lately, it’s as if no games are capturing my attention at all! Not sure what that is about. I mean, the latest MMO I’m playing is Conan… Yeah, CONAN! I should be all over that like white on rice, but somehow I’m not…

The reigning theory is that the heat is rolling in and we all feel a bit lethargic. Gotta love the oppresive summers here. Well, I have thirty days on Conan and we’ll see how it goes. I might just stick to Angband… ;)

Ok… Well, two out of three ain’t bad. I’m hanging at Drew’s place. We’re geeking out, pretending we are accomplishing something, when actually all we are accomplishing is killing off his Private Stock Captain Morgan’s rum, which, by the way, is quite tasty! ARRR! And, it’s not even Talk Like A Pirate Day!

We just installed Windows Core, and found that we don’t have credentials to login… Yep, that’s right, it didn’t give us a place to set up our Admin account… DOH! More likely, we missed it in our drunken stupor… YAY for drunken stupors! :) Boo for work in the morning!