10 Years Later

We will always remember 11/18/99. The 12 lost, the dozens injured, the uncountable lives that were changed. Here.

This is the first Bonfire Remembrance video I saw. I think I originally found it on the campus hub. It's the one I continue to watch each year: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWWrCu_uPt8


This is a new one put together by The Batt. They incorporated Aggie symbolism, which is fitting as Bonfire embodied the Aggie Spirit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIP4LW4g5yY&feature=youtube_gdata

Recent Trips

This is a shot of where my GPS tracker has caught me over the past 6 months.
















I like to use this tracker for this very reason. Just so I can pull up a map and look at it. It chronicles my adventures. Not too exciting, but somewhat interesting to me alone.

I'll be expanding this map pretty soon with an upcoming trip to Seattle/Vancouver. Most of this map is obviously centered in Texas, with brief trips to NC and Florida. I'll be expanding the Florida portion real soon also. I did make a brief trip to Nevada and a short stop in Arizona this year, but that was almost 11 months ago.

Favorite Trip? North Carolina. I enjoyed the rounds we made to the different Universities and visiting the "College Towns." Though, not as high profile as the others, I liked the hospitality at NC STate. The campus at Duke was the nicest I've seen.

Favorite Trip in Texas? I always enjoy the trips to Alpine. I got a short visit when I was there last, though the Holland Hotel was closed for renovations without informing me. Punks.

Favorite New Trip in Texas? I've been to Boerne before, but never stayed over night. I enjoyed the quaint city. Lots of interesting people, good food and finally a nice hotel!

Least Favorite Trip? Well, Laredo is not on there (I went early in the summer), so it's got to be Beaumont. I'm there way too often. It's the worst. At least I got to stay clear of the panhandle.

How About This

How about I don't resolve to start posting more. How about I just post when I feel like it. No matter how infrequent that is?

Cubivore

39 Poll

I saw this on TV.

The question: "How often do you text?"
"Text your answers to 39 News"

Magical

My foil turtle agrees that opening day at Freebirds is a magical time.

I'm engaged!

She said yes!

Wait A Second...

"Hey... If Chris hates Twitter so much, why is he using his blog like
Twitter??"

Shut It.

Sent from my mobile device.

Open At 9AM

The local Taco Bell boasts with a large sign "Open At 9AM." Some
people find Taco Bell appitizing as I do, but who's got that hankering
at breakfast time?

No thank you to that!

Sent from my mobile device.

It's Summer!

I just got my first "Is it hot enough for ya?" of the season. It came
in the parking lot at work as I headed out for some Burgerfresh (the
workd's best burger). Sharp wit my man.

Sent from my mobile device.

Have A Nice Day

The cashier just told me to "Have a good evening.". It's 8AM. She
didn't correct herself or try to take it back so I guess she meant it.

I will. I'll compound that though and have a good day too. Thank you.

Sent from my mobile device.

When A Bumper Sticker Won't Do

I saw this in the Taco Bell parking lot. Certainly a sleek alternative
to bumper stickers for your political opinions and short stories.

(Note the Ironic spelling of "idiotes.")

BEST VIDEO EVER

I recorded Jimmy Fallon’s show because Mark Paul Gosselaar was on. I watched it today. It was the best interview EVER!!

It made me go back to look at old episodes. Jimmy Fallon is orchestrating a Saved By The Bell reunion. The first 3 episodes are at the bottom of this page:

http://tvseriesfinale.com/articles/saved-by-the-bell-jimmy-fallon-reunion/

They’re great, especially the third!

Then the fourth, the one from last night (the peak of late night TV):

http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/blogs/2009/06/zack-attacks-late-night-signs-on-for-the-reunion/

Fallon should retire now. He, nor anyone else, will ever top that last video.

Conan's Set Is From The Mushroom Kingdom

Seriouslunch.blogspot.com determined that Conan's set looks like it's from Super Mario Bros.

Pretty funny when you overlay it. Click for a wider image:

Sippie Cup

I'm at our big annual customer conference. We have small group
sessions where we break up into groups of 20-30. Yesterday, someone
left this in my breakout room, it's sitting on my table right now..
Keep in mind that my clients are grown individuals.

No one has claimed it yet.

The Understanding

Last week, Penny and I took in the Houston Symphony. They were playing at the Pavilion in The Woodlands and were accompanied by different types of dancers for their "Dancin' Beneath the Stars" theme. It was actually a good time.

I expected it to be a little different than it was. Most things are like that I suppose. For instance, I thought people in The Woodlands, especially those that go to the symphony had a little class. The group behind us must have followed me down from Conroe though or even worse, Willis. They were throwing back beer and chowing down on plates of nachos. Be sure to lick your fingers off when you're done. Oh...you already have.

And as I previously stated, I enjoyed it. That came as somewhat of a surprise as well.

How did we end up at the symphony? Well, it all goes back to an understanding that Penny and I have. We split the year into 3 seasons (rather than the typical 4 that people recognize or the 2 that Texas experiences (Summer and Cold Fronts)).

Our 3 seasons go like this: Football, Basketball, Off Season.

"Football Season" is a 4 month stretch from September through December in which I have free reign over the calendar. I get to call the shots and make our plans. Those plans typically include a trip to College Station every weekend for Football and Soccer and some healthy doses of NFL.

"Basketball Season" is a time from January through April that Penny and I both enjoy. Since we like to watch basketball, we compromise and once again end up in College Station most every weekend for Aggie Basketball.

Now, the "Off Season" (named by me obviously) is a tricky time because there's no constant theme that drives it. We do what Penny wants from May through August. This is when I broaden my horizons and is the specific reason we ended up at the symphony that night. It could also be a good time to save a little dough as free mezzanine seats at the Pavilion are considerably less than season tickets at Kyle.

I am not a cheap date.

Gun Blast from the Past

I found this note in a box when I was moving. Aaahh....let's reminisce.

Over The Hump

"AAAAAHH"

I shouted with excitement when I saw the sign pictures below. (That's
a Freebirds going in with a Woodlands address!!)

Pics Are Up

Here you go Hombres, home pictures are uploaded on webshots:

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/571972489KLXIuN?vhost=home-and-garden&action=refreshPhotos&albumID=571972489&security=KLXIuN

I'm still waiting on furniture and such to be delivered.

In other news, Jimi the Llama is doing well and is hanging in the dining room until we find a final place for him to go.

Emergency!

We've had one accident. Emergency surgery is required.

I'm A Home Owner

Closing is done. I have a home.

(Better Pics to Come. Sent from my iPhone.)

Closing Time

Closing time, time for me to buy the place that I will be from.
Closing time, this home will not be mine 'til the seller and my Realtor come.
So gather up my socks and then pack them into boxes, let's move out of my apartment,
Closing time, every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.

Yeah, I know where I want to make my home.
I know where I want to make my home.
I know where I want to make my home.
Sell me my home...

Throwback Graffiti

Some hoodlums from a 1980s arcade tagged up my park.

Honestly though, you can tell be their work that they didn't actually spend much time at the arcade. Inky (the ghost) is going the wrong way, he should be attacking Pac Man since he can't be eaten in his light blue state.

Critiquing graffiti: one more service I offer.

ATX

I enjoyed my visit to Austin, it's a great city. I enjoyed getting to see everyone. I miss that.

It was fun, a full writeup can be found here. Thanks for all that made it fun. After a final count of points, it was determined that everyone wins! (Actually, I won, but I don't want anyone to feel bad). Well done!

Best Childhood Toy Ever

I saw this at Wal-Mart and it all came back to me. This has to be the
best toy for small children ever!

Best Code Ever

One of the most well known Cheat Codes in Video Games was the Konami Code (Contra Code) from the late 80's. Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, AEntering it on your Nintendo earned you various rewards.

The best Code on the internet may be the same code. Go to ESPN.com's Registration Page and enter that code on your keyboard (don't click anything). Once the code is entered, start pressing Enter.

It's truly magical.


(EDIT: It looks like they fixed it on registration, but it still works here http://sports.espn.go.com/rodeo/index. This is what it's supposed to do.

Swine Flu

I enjoyed my trip to CS this weekend and getting to see Matt and Clinton among others.

Too bad I was sick all weekend. Good news though. It's not the Swine Flu. Google is tracking all outbreaks HERE and there are none in Montgomery or Brazos county. That means I'm clear.

Still I should get vaccinated for the Farm Animal Trifecta (Bird Flu, Swine Flu, Bovine Flu).

Name That Movie

I loved Name That Tune, but never knew any of the old songs they played on that show. They need to remake it with In Da Club and Africa (Toto) and so on...

I also enjoy Wheel of Fortune. I've registered to be on that show a few times and have not yet been picked. But I will. Just you wait.

Last night, Penny and I went down to the Waterway for dinner. It was a toss-up between Baker St and the Goose's Acre, so logically we ended up at Which Wich (ok food, cool idea). As we were walking back to my car, I spotted a girl doing the coolest job there is at the movie theater. She was changing the Marquee in front of the theater in preparation for Friday's new movies.

We stopped for quite a while watching her get the "PG-13"s in place and wrestle with individual letters. It was great. 2 people in front of a mostly empty theater watching a nervous girl struggle with a long pole, now shaking, trying to get letters in place. What could make it better? Making a game out of it and throwing in a few cheers.

Category: PG-13. "I can name this movie in 2 letters."

The letters slid into place. An "F" was placed on the board. "Fighting." I got it thanks to the non-stop previews I've seen on TV. As the IGHTING slid into place I celebrated.

The next movie was a little bit harder and it took me "THE SOL" to come up with "THE SOLOIST." Still, I celebrated the same.

The girl descended from her platform and I went home with a 2-0 victory. No prizes, no fanfare, no obscenely large check. I'm just honing my skills until I need them to earn me some cash and prizes.

High School is for Losers

From ESPN.com:

Jeremy Tyler, a 6-foot-11 junior, has dropped out of San Diego High School and says he will skip his senior year to play professionally in Europe, The New York Times and Yahoo! Sports reported on Wednesday.

Tyler, 17, will become the first player born in the United States to leave high school early to play professional basketball overseas. He is expected to come back in two years, when he is eligible for the NBA draft.

Tyler had made a verbal commitment to Louisville. He has not signed with an agent or a professional team, but he probably will play in Spain, the Times reported, although clubs from other European leagues are showing interest.

"Nowadays people look to college for more off-the-court stuff versus being in the gym and getting better," Tyler told the Times. "If you're really focused on getting better, you go play pro somewhere. Pro guys will get you way better than playing against college guys."

Point guard Brandon Jennings, a Los Angeles native, graduated last year from Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) and became the first high school grad to skip college and play pro ball in Europe. He is wrapping up his first season with Lottomatica Virtus Roma in Italy. Jennings is projected as a high pick in June's NBA draft.

So the kid wants to drop out High School because the level of competition is beneath him and he wants to develop his game in Europe. What do his parents have to say? Well, Yahoo reports that his father fully supports him because the high school level "bores" his son. The NBA has an age requirement to enter draft, typically requiring a High School graduate participate in at least 1 college season. Basically, he's getting around the HS and College Requirement by heading over to Europe for a couple of years.

Awesome plan my man. Awesome plan.

Let's forfeit a couple of years of FREE education for a payday now. That's really what it boils down to. If you're bored in High School, how about focusing on your studies and character development? (I guarantee he's lacking in the character department and hasn't even considered weighing his options.) Nah, money is more important than that. As for his dad going with him, it sounds to me like he's trying to cash in as well.

He wants to go to some European team for development rather than going through the standard transition that is college. I'll take Rick Pitino over any coach that Europe has to coach me up and sharpen my skills as well as my character. Though not professional ball, the Big East would have turned the competition up for you.

But you know what? Being a HS hero and a college star certainly have nothing on being thrust into strange surroundings with 30 year old teammates. Sounds like a blast.

Who needs HS or college? You'll get your education overseas. You might learn a new language and an appreciation for wine and cheese.

I'm not saying that he won't come back and be a lottery pick in the NBA, I just think that he's not going to be ready for the transition to Europe and I imagine we'll see some character issues arise in the future.

Don't Shake THAT Like A Polaroid Picture

From The Houston Chronicle:

"Apple gets rid of ‘Baby Shaker’ app after complaints

Apple has apparently rethought its decision to allow an iPhone application that lets you to shake a baby to death to quiet its crying.

“Baby Shaker,” a simple app from Sikalosoft, was first released Monday for 99 cents. It shows pictures of babies with the sound of them crying and a stop watch. To stop the crying, you shake the iPhone hard and then little Xs appear on the eyes of the baby, who will presumably never cry again.

Apple apparently pulled the app sometime Wednesday afternoon after blogs and sites such as TechCrunch and Cnet caught on to the story.

Patrick Donohue, founder of the Sarah Jane Brain Foundation, which fights pediatric brain injuries, took Apple to task in a letter, saying, “As the father of a 3-year-old who was shaken by her baby nurse when she was only 5 days old, breaking three ribs, both collarbones and causing a severe brain injury, words cannot describe my reaction.”

Apple has had a strict policy on screening apps for content, which has not always been popular with developers. Apple has approved apps like “Beer Goggles” and a raft of gas-passing apps. But the company has also denied apps that dealt with sexual themes, drug use or violence, even in apps designed as games."

Apple is pretty strict on some of the Apps that get through, so I'm amazed that this App got yanked only AFTER complaints stopped pouring in.

I can't imagine the developer saying "Ah yes! This will open a whole new market for Sociopath Games!"

Then after development (and revisions and bug fixes no doubt) Apple warmly receiving the Application and putting it on their App Store.

I wonder how many downloaded it. Awesome use of 99 cents, bro.

Monkey Fighting Snakes

Long ago, the FCC determined that the public must be protected from certain words coming through their TV. The use of curse words is very popular in mainstream movies, however. Especially action movies. And especially Action Movies featuring Samuel L Jackson.

When Movies collide with TV, the dubbing that is done is nothing short of genius! The old standards such as Die Hard's "Yippee-Ki-Yay Melon Farmer" have been surpassed by the dubbing for the recent TV Premiere of "Snakes on a Plane."



Check me out. A post that isn't about Twitter or Twizzlers or the like...

Twitter Litter

Ok, the time has come for me to address Twitter. Over the past week I have been asked about Twitter by many people. Over the past months, Twitter conversations and media attention to the brand has been shoved down my throat. Today I will answer that question that literally makes me reply "AHHHHHH!" (*In IM Conversations)

"Hey Chris, do you use Twitter?"

In short (as if the opening tone didn't answer the question already): No I don't. Nor will I ever.

Let's go back a few months. Twitter hit the scene in 2006, but did not really hit mainstream until 2008. The growing demand for social networks via cell phone and the popularity of Apple's App Store is what I believe really set this market off (not to mention the recent media sign off on all things Twitter). Since I think I'm cool with my iPhone and display some social network snobbery (Facebook rules and MySpace is for sexual predators), I decided to investigate what all the "Tweeting" was about.

Twitter went over my head (or below my head, however you look at it), so I had to ask my brother what this new youth movement was. He explained. I still didn't get it. Why would I want to communicate what I am doing at all times? And who freakin' cares? (We'll look over the hypocracy that is this blog where I write about me...)

I decided to test it out with a free App from the App Store. I sent out fewer Tweets than the chorus of Rockin' Robin contains just to test the waters. I looked at the mindless stuff that people were sending out updates on (Sweet! Minute-by-Minute updates on how close to the front of the line you are for the Batman premiere...). America seems so wrapped up in themselves to understand that No One Cares what you are doing!

Ok, call my disdain for Twitter a sign of old age, but before you do, let me metephorically go out on my front lawn in my robe and shake my fist at twittering kids. What happened to the old standards of simple conversations or phone calls to let me know what you're doing? Or even the new standards of IMs, Texts, Facebook Statuses or Blogs? I don't need minute-by minute updates of your boring daily routine.

Now the media has caught hold and pushed this even further by "providing insight into the lives of your favorite celebrities." Even ESPN has grabbed onto this and provides constant feeds proving that it's not just for E! Still, why do I care? I don't know these people and most of them I couldn't care less about. An exception is Martellus Bennett, whose wit and Aggie-ness form an entertaining script. Still, it's so hard to follow with all of the other conversations going on that I don't bother.

I hate Twitter. If you use it, you're too self-involved. I just don't get it. Nor will I ever. The Twitter movement should wrap up in time for some Google driven product to take the scene and continue to ruin America.

So put that in your pipe and Tweet it.

Twizzler Appeal

The Twizzlers didn't deliver like I thought the would. The Lemonade straw was the lone bright spot (in color and taste). The most disappointing part of it? The Red Twizzler wasn't even original flavor...

Afternoon Snack

I'm not much of a candy eater nor do I snack much. However, I saw this sweet pack at Hastings and had to have it.

















I'm about to dig into them. I have to do so quietly as to not draw attention to my office. (I don't want to share.)

The Other Side of the Pillow

Now the hotel is nice for what it is, a place to lay your head in unfamiliar territory. It lacks some comforts that I desire though.

Although it's familiar, the pitter patter of feet above my room is not comforting. I do not like hearing my neighbors especially in the late hours. This is a problem at my apartment too. Luckily this problem will be solved in a couple of weeks when I move into my house.

There are always irritating sounds at night that come from within my own room (That sounds like a scary movie... The sounds are coming from...inside this room!!!). The main one is the buzzing of the A/C. Believe me, I assaulted that thing to try and get it to stop last week.

Also present are strange lights. I identified 5 lights that would interrupt my sleep. I closed the curtains to eliminate the first. Easy enough. Next to the window was a microwave with a bright display. Smothered that banshee with a pillow. Moving back towards the door with a blanket to seal the hall lights out, I conquered light #3. Closing the bathroom door eliminated the orange glow from the hair dryer and light #4. Number five was a light I tried ignoring. It was a bright light radiating from the fire alarm. It was so bright I would see it with my eyes shut. Action had to be taken. I thought quickly, but moved groggily back to the bathroom. I peeled off the label from my toothpaste and returned to my bed. I jumped over to my sitting bed with one leg and kept one stationed on my sleeping bed. I folded the sticker over and then hopped enough to position the sticker over the green light of terror. Light 5 taken out. Mission Accomplished.

Back In The Saddle

Well I'm on night 3 in my week-long trip to Midland. It seems like I'm at the Midland/Odessa Airport every other month nowadays. Good restaurants is one thing Midland does have going for it. And that's about it.

Something I enjoy about hotel rooms is the luxury they provide. Housekeeping is nice (suggestion box: I wish the ironed my clothes). Breakfast waiting for me in the morning and cookies sitting out in the evening are both good things. I like the little toiletries fairy that comes and replenishes my shampoo and soap. For reasons unknown to me, I enjoy that my toilet paper ends are folded into little triangles each and every day.

Nothing can beat having 2 beds though. I love having my sitting bed that I can stretch out on, do some work on and set my things on and then move to my sleeping bed that is untouched and still cool, ready to put me to sleep (well hopefully... I only got 2 hours of sleep Sunday night...)

Well, back to living it up and ironing my own clothes out here in West Texas...