HA! I made a play on words… No, I’m not watching Pulp Fiction right now, but, hey, GOOD IDEA!

So, let’s play ‘ketchup’. Everything’s the same! I can’t believe I’m too boring even for a personal blog like this. Even *I* don’t want to read this drivel. But, I’m writing for posterity… It’s my generation’s version of a photo album and journal wrapped into one…

Ok, it’s not all the same. My Tito Rudy is in the hospital right now. I’ve been visiting with him, and with family that I haven’t seen in such a long time. I seriously regret my part in allowing that gap of time to pass between now and the last time we all had a chance to talk. Seeing Tito Rudy brings back some pretty heavy memories about my dad. I am, however, glad to see Tito Rudy in good spirits, very alert, and quite well it would seem. It’s nice to get the chance to talk with him, and with the family, so I’m am definitely grateful for that.

We’re still looking to take advantage of this down housing market, without shooting ourselves in the foot. The first house we put an offer in on, went into electronic bidding… What that means is, some other company out there is providing realtors/banks a means to put a house up for bid… And then charging them $5,000 per completed transaction — which of course the bank/realtor is passing off onto us. So, when that happened, we lowered our offer by $5,000 and were promptly out bid…

The second house we put an offer in on is MUCH better. We’re still waiting to hear back from that one. Hopefully we will hear on Wednesday — or sooner. It has a pool, fireplace, big office, great room, and none of that wasted space people seem to call the “family room”… or whatever.. You know, the space up front that people put furniture in and never use? So, we wait…

My mom is still in the Philippines and seems to be having a good time there. Eating good food, and catching up with her sisters. She has tasked me with purchasing for her the $79 18″ LCD Monitor for her computer. After pointing out that this delusion of her’s did not in fact exist, I will be more likely getting her a $179 19″ LCD Monitor. :D

Rhys and Heidi and I are fine otherwise. Just doing the do. :) We’re starting the process rolling on getting our house rented. Hopefully we will have some news on that front soon.

Here’s a random hit I found on the internets. ;) Enjoy!

Stop Motion Musician

I just wanted to vent about the emotionally charged arguments you get from the Dems and the Reps during election time. It saddens me to see this type of thing every time. I’m involved in a political talk show right now. One of the things I like about the show is that it actually seeks to explore the substance behind the rhetoric (if there is any at all to begin with).

“Palin’s daughter is pregnant! That’s just AWESOME! Hilarious!!” I’m told… Let’s look deeper? What are the circumstances? What’s the context? Talk to me about WHY this makes her unfit to serve.

“McCain stopped his campaign! OMG He’s scared!!!” Has he said as much? Ok, let’s just take the statement at face value and run with it. That’s smart.

“McCain isn’t familiar with email and other technology!!” Ok… !? I’m sure he doesn’t know how to build a nuclear bomb, either… Or make a proper pot of kimchi… Or do a cartwheel…

“McCain can’t even do a proper, energetic thumbs up!” Jeebus, don’t get me started on that one.

There are equally as many for Obama, and I’m not trying to deny that — so spin down those email clients if you are about to remind me of that.

And my god, could each side just quit taking pot shots at the other? How about campaigning? Just campaign… Don’t campaign AGAINST the other person. We’re all Americans. Let’s stand together for once…

I call it the FOX effect! :: makes jazz hands :: I don’t claim to be the smartest person politically at all, but I can pick out substance on both sides if I see it. Both candidates have issues, and I’ll acknowledge them, but I just HATE it when people bring me emotionally charged rhetoric that has no substance at all. It’s retarded, and you are just making yourself look like a fool.

On another note, I would love to know what each candidates’ stances are on technology issues! Anyway, that’s my small afternoon rant. Happy Thursday, folks!

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… ;)

Well, the Thought Dumpster is back. It’s not in full glory at the moment, but it’s functional! :)

Heidi’s in Phoenix right now taking Rhys to the eye doctor… Yeah, we have to go to Phoenix to find a doctor who is both (1) worth a damn, and (2) covered in our health plan… As a bonus, she gets to go to a concert, and get a massage while she’s up there. Yay for grandparents (thanks guys, she really REALLY REALLY needs a break — even though she won’t say so)!

For me, this means I got some time on my hands to get some stuff done. I decided this time to use my time for productive things — instead of getting very drunk and very hungover. I’m going to buckle down into .NET crap and see if I can find my “click moment”.

I gotta go bug hunting too… Not software bugs, but the genuine creepy crawly kind of bugs. Seems we have a spider problem again… The last time, I inspected our 8 legged intruders and found they were black widows… Great. They nested underneath Rhys’ play picnic table. Yeah, good times. YAY for the desert. I think this time I will actually venture into my attic to see what’s up there. Honestly, I’ve put it off for so long, I have visions of that scene in Aliens when they realize all of Ripley’s Bad Guys were in the ceiling. Maybe I’ll set up a cam to record the hilarity that I’m sure will ensue…