I've been quite for a good long while.
My wife and I went on vacation to North Carolina 2 weeks ago and I kind of checked out of life in the lead up. I hadn't been on a real vacation in probably 9 years and I was way overdue for it. Needless to say, my brain totally checked out of life in the lead up so a lot of things went to the wayside, including this blog.
It was a good vacation. We hit the beach several days and romped in the ocean. We hit Myrtle Beach for an evening. And we generally relaxed and let the stresses of our lives leave us for the brief time we spent there.
We also survived our first week back at work and this week it's time to get back into routine. Time to start exercising again, time to get the house back under control and time to generally be an adult again.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
Transformers #81 Regeneration One
In my 20+ years of comic book buying and reading there have been 5 constants throughout. The X-Men, Avengers, Iron Man, Justice League and Transformers. Those books, I've almost always stuck with. The original Transformers series had just ended right before I really started getting into comics. Generation 2 came out and I grabbed that series and remember enjoying it. I have a lot of fond memories of diving into the back issue bins at the local shops and piecing together a pretty complete run of the 80 issue Transformers series.
IDW has had the license for about 7 years I think. The series have all been pretty good. The Marvel series was kind of a mixed bag. It was tied in heavily with the toylines at the time. So you constantly had characters dying and coming back as the new toy and characters just appearing and disappearing to tie in with the toys. I have a lot of nostalgia for that series but I don't know how it would hold up to a modern viewing.
With that said. This book takes up 21 years after that series left off. The War of Cybertron is over and the Autobots have settled into being the dominate power on the planet. IDW works the Wreckers in which were never used in the Marvel books. Kup and the Wreckers become displeased with how Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus are running the planet and head off for adventure. I don't want to spoil the events of the book so I'm not really going to go to indepth on the plot.
The book was okay and I think I will give it a couple of issues and see where it goes. I'm a little annoyed at the series as I don't feel that the original series really needed to be revisited. Plus, there's a disconnect here. It feels like an IDW continuity book with the Wreckers. I didn't really feel a lot of connection to the Marvel series.
And as I stated before, the Marvel series was just a mess towards the end. I don't see why they thought this would sell or be in demand. I guess they suckered me in for a couple of issues. Check it out if you have fond memories of the old Marvel Transformers.
IDW has had the license for about 7 years I think. The series have all been pretty good. The Marvel series was kind of a mixed bag. It was tied in heavily with the toylines at the time. So you constantly had characters dying and coming back as the new toy and characters just appearing and disappearing to tie in with the toys. I have a lot of nostalgia for that series but I don't know how it would hold up to a modern viewing.
With that said. This book takes up 21 years after that series left off. The War of Cybertron is over and the Autobots have settled into being the dominate power on the planet. IDW works the Wreckers in which were never used in the Marvel books. Kup and the Wreckers become displeased with how Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus are running the planet and head off for adventure. I don't want to spoil the events of the book so I'm not really going to go to indepth on the plot.
The book was okay and I think I will give it a couple of issues and see where it goes. I'm a little annoyed at the series as I don't feel that the original series really needed to be revisited. Plus, there's a disconnect here. It feels like an IDW continuity book with the Wreckers. I didn't really feel a lot of connection to the Marvel series.
And as I stated before, the Marvel series was just a mess towards the end. I don't see why they thought this would sell or be in demand. I guess they suckered me in for a couple of issues. Check it out if you have fond memories of the old Marvel Transformers.
Friday, July 6, 2012
Wait... this is Ohio right? Not Florida?
If you live outside of Ohio, you probably haven't heard much of the storms that tore through the state a week ago. The media likes to pretend that New York, DC and L.A. are the only cities in the United States. The storm also hit DC so that's been the exclusive focus of the coverage.
My wife and I went to dinner at W.G. Grinders that night and my wife had mentioned that there was a severe weather advisory in effect until 5:30. The sky looked pretty clear and we went about our business as usual. We left a pet store around 5:15 and the sky had become black as night.
We decided to head home and the storm hit. The winds were 80 MPH and the rain was literally coming off the ground in waves. I was speeding down the back country road we often take because I feared the power lines might blow over. It was a battle to just control the car. We safely made it to our neighborhood but trees were falling in the road and we had to keep detouring because of blocks. The visibility had become so bad that my wife had to help me look for things in the road.
We made it to our house and rushed in. The power was out and would be for about 5 days. We were drenched to the bone from the going to the car to the house. Something like 600,000 people lost power in these storms. It was crazy and was probably the worst natural event that I've ever lived through. It was for all purposes a hurricane in wind levels and such.
Thankfully, our house made it out of this with no damage. We stayed with my parents for the days we were without power so we didn't have to suffer through the 100 degree days with no AC. Our biggest loss was all the food in the fridge and freezer. Below is what survived:
Driving through the area is still surreal in a lot of ways. There are giant trees that have just been blown over or split at the top. On a part of a major road 15 high tension towers came down during the storm. It was an interesting experience to say the least.
That was the last week of my life... may I never live through it again.
My wife and I went to dinner at W.G. Grinders that night and my wife had mentioned that there was a severe weather advisory in effect until 5:30. The sky looked pretty clear and we went about our business as usual. We left a pet store around 5:15 and the sky had become black as night.
We decided to head home and the storm hit. The winds were 80 MPH and the rain was literally coming off the ground in waves. I was speeding down the back country road we often take because I feared the power lines might blow over. It was a battle to just control the car. We safely made it to our neighborhood but trees were falling in the road and we had to keep detouring because of blocks. The visibility had become so bad that my wife had to help me look for things in the road.
We made it to our house and rushed in. The power was out and would be for about 5 days. We were drenched to the bone from the going to the car to the house. Something like 600,000 people lost power in these storms. It was crazy and was probably the worst natural event that I've ever lived through. It was for all purposes a hurricane in wind levels and such.
Thankfully, our house made it out of this with no damage. We stayed with my parents for the days we were without power so we didn't have to suffer through the 100 degree days with no AC. Our biggest loss was all the food in the fridge and freezer. Below is what survived:
Driving through the area is still surreal in a lot of ways. There are giant trees that have just been blown over or split at the top. On a part of a major road 15 high tension towers came down during the storm. It was an interesting experience to say the least.
That was the last week of my life... may I never live through it again.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Geocaching II
I've continued to adventure and look for more caches in the general area of my house. Kelly even joined me tonight as we headed off to a local park and bike trail. I'm sitting at a total of 8 official finds with a 9th one that I have to answer some questions for.
Sunday Night:
Find #3: Sunday night I realized there was another cache in the park where I made my first find earlier that day. So I rushed back and quickly found it in the roots of a tree. There were no goodies in this one as it was quite small. Signed my name and was happy with to notch another one in my belt.
Find #4: This was one that I had tried earlier in the day but needed pants and shoes to go for. I returned and found this one in a matter of seconds. The cache was awesome as it was carved into an actual log and left there. Signed and fled this park as quickly as possible. Supposedly the back of this park is a hook up for local perverts and I wanted out of there as quickly as possible.
Monday Night:
Find #5: This one was hidden in a tree on a soccer field. I had tried this one Sunday but there were police hanging around the area and I didn't want to appear suspicious so I moved on. Came back and grabbed it on Monday. This one was quick and easy. Honestly, prying the paper out of the tube was harder than finding the thing.
Unofficial Find: This is an Earth one. You go to the spot and answer various questions. This one is going to require some creek stomping to get an answer so I just need to get motivated.
Monday was a little tough as I missed 3 others after this. One I just looked in the wrong spot and two others had people buzzing about so I gave a fairly shallow search.
Tonight:
Kelly wanted to see one of the nature trails and there were nearby caches so I had a partner in crime for this adventure.
Find #6: This one was a short way off of a bike trail. Kelly spotted the hollowed out tree trunk. This one was a huge jar with all sorts of goodies inside. Kelly's favorite was a little eraser animal.
Find #7: This is one that I had missed the previous night. It was in a hollowed out tree. I looked and looked and couldn't find it. I suddenly looked up and there it was. I felt kind of silly for having missed it the previous day.
Find #8: This was on a different part of the trail and Kelly and I decided to make the trek as this one would be fairly easy to get. The terrain was a little rough to navigate once we got there but I spotted it in a tree. Grabbed it and signed and we headed home for the night.
Great night tonight. 3 for 3 which had me feeling better considering Monday wasn't as productive. The weather is unfortunately going to get much hotter so I will probably lay low until the weekend rolls around again. I may snipe one or two gimmes through the week but I probably won't attempt multiple finds for a few days.
The verdict so far on geocaching is that I'm loving every minute of it. I can't wait to get home and go out looking for a new cache. I've also gotten in a ton of exercise the last three days which is awesome. I would recommend this activity to anyone that's interested.
Get out there and find some buried treasure!
Sunday Night:
Find #3: Sunday night I realized there was another cache in the park where I made my first find earlier that day. So I rushed back and quickly found it in the roots of a tree. There were no goodies in this one as it was quite small. Signed my name and was happy with to notch another one in my belt.
Find #4: This was one that I had tried earlier in the day but needed pants and shoes to go for. I returned and found this one in a matter of seconds. The cache was awesome as it was carved into an actual log and left there. Signed and fled this park as quickly as possible. Supposedly the back of this park is a hook up for local perverts and I wanted out of there as quickly as possible.
Monday Night:
Find #5: This one was hidden in a tree on a soccer field. I had tried this one Sunday but there were police hanging around the area and I didn't want to appear suspicious so I moved on. Came back and grabbed it on Monday. This one was quick and easy. Honestly, prying the paper out of the tube was harder than finding the thing.
Unofficial Find: This is an Earth one. You go to the spot and answer various questions. This one is going to require some creek stomping to get an answer so I just need to get motivated.
Monday was a little tough as I missed 3 others after this. One I just looked in the wrong spot and two others had people buzzing about so I gave a fairly shallow search.
Tonight:
Kelly wanted to see one of the nature trails and there were nearby caches so I had a partner in crime for this adventure.
Find #6: This one was a short way off of a bike trail. Kelly spotted the hollowed out tree trunk. This one was a huge jar with all sorts of goodies inside. Kelly's favorite was a little eraser animal.
Find #7: This is one that I had missed the previous night. It was in a hollowed out tree. I looked and looked and couldn't find it. I suddenly looked up and there it was. I felt kind of silly for having missed it the previous day.
Find #8: This was on a different part of the trail and Kelly and I decided to make the trek as this one would be fairly easy to get. The terrain was a little rough to navigate once we got there but I spotted it in a tree. Grabbed it and signed and we headed home for the night.
Great night tonight. 3 for 3 which had me feeling better considering Monday wasn't as productive. The weather is unfortunately going to get much hotter so I will probably lay low until the weekend rolls around again. I may snipe one or two gimmes through the week but I probably won't attempt multiple finds for a few days.
The verdict so far on geocaching is that I'm loving every minute of it. I can't wait to get home and go out looking for a new cache. I've also gotten in a ton of exercise the last three days which is awesome. I would recommend this activity to anyone that's interested.
Get out there and find some buried treasure!
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Geocaching and Me!
This is an activity that's been on my radar for probably about 11 years. I first came across the idea in an issue of Knights of the Dinner Table. The writer wrote an editorial on it in one issue and the characters became obsessed with it around the same time. It sounded like a cool idea. Alas, it was 2001 and I was a college student and a GPS was a pricey item. So I forgot about the idea for a long time until I heard it mentioned on some random podcast. I remembered what it was and I was excited and wanted to go home and look it up. I forgot about it for another 4 months as life just kind of happened.
Until this week.
I guess before I go into things. I should mention what Geocaching is. If you don't want to read that much. It's essentially a GPS powered treasure hunt. People hide containers in various places and post them to a site. You then use your GPS and a series of clues to find the container. You then sign a log book and you can leave some little item for the next person to find it.
I set out this morning and spent a few hours trying this out. For starters, it was great exercise, I came stomping back to the house a sweaty mess and my Nike Fuel Band had almost 1500 pts. built up on it. And my wife said she hasn't seen me this excited and happy about something in a very long time.
Cache #1: I made the strategic error of wearing shorts for this one. I found where it was hidden but there was overgrown plant life and I didn't want to risk poison ivy so I passed and decided to come back at a later date.
Cache #2: I wandered a little bit back and forth looking for this one and then I saw it. A giant hole in a tree. I got a little closer and there it was. A little black container. I pulled it out and shook the dirt off. There was a little flashlight, a piggy toy, a mint and some other various things in here. I signed off on their logbook and headed off. I made my first Geocache find!
Cache #3: This one was on a little trail near a pond. Unfortunately it had been found and destroyed. The destroyers ruined a perfectly good David Bowie cassette too! Jerks. Oh well, I kind of sort of found this one. So 2 successes on the day.
Cache #4: I realized there was a second cache in this park so I walked towards it. My GPS was flipping out on this one a lot so there was a lot of back and forth. I found a tree with a big hole in it but it was going to be a blind reach and grab so I backed off from it. I checked when I got home and that's where the item was. I may go back for this one more in the fall. The overgrowth was pretty bad and I want to make sure there aren't any animals lurking in said tree.
I spent about two and a half hours of my day doing this and I absolutely loved it. I was outdoors, I saw some places I would never have seen before. I had to use my brain to find the various hidden caches and I got a load of exercise out of it. Earning almost 1500 Fuel Points like that is no easy feat.
I realize I need some gear for this. I should probably make a little kit with a knife, pen and some goodies to leave in the caches I find. Being prepared for the situations is always good. After #4, I will probably make sure to research any cache before I go for it. It's not that I didn't enjoy the chase, I might have just waited on that one considering where it was hidden.
I went 2 for 4 on my journeys. I know where the other 2 are and it will just be a matter of getting back to them. There's numerous around where I live so I think I will have a lot to keep me occupied until I decide to branch out a little more. I plan for this to be something to do early on my Saturday and Sunday mornings. I plan to tackle 1 or 2 a week depending on what's going on.
Stay tuned, I will keep posting updates as I continue to explore this new hobby.
Until this week.
I guess before I go into things. I should mention what Geocaching is. If you don't want to read that much. It's essentially a GPS powered treasure hunt. People hide containers in various places and post them to a site. You then use your GPS and a series of clues to find the container. You then sign a log book and you can leave some little item for the next person to find it.
I set out this morning and spent a few hours trying this out. For starters, it was great exercise, I came stomping back to the house a sweaty mess and my Nike Fuel Band had almost 1500 pts. built up on it. And my wife said she hasn't seen me this excited and happy about something in a very long time.
Cache #1: I made the strategic error of wearing shorts for this one. I found where it was hidden but there was overgrown plant life and I didn't want to risk poison ivy so I passed and decided to come back at a later date.
Cache #2: I wandered a little bit back and forth looking for this one and then I saw it. A giant hole in a tree. I got a little closer and there it was. A little black container. I pulled it out and shook the dirt off. There was a little flashlight, a piggy toy, a mint and some other various things in here. I signed off on their logbook and headed off. I made my first Geocache find!
Cache #3: This one was on a little trail near a pond. Unfortunately it had been found and destroyed. The destroyers ruined a perfectly good David Bowie cassette too! Jerks. Oh well, I kind of sort of found this one. So 2 successes on the day.
Cache #4: I realized there was a second cache in this park so I walked towards it. My GPS was flipping out on this one a lot so there was a lot of back and forth. I found a tree with a big hole in it but it was going to be a blind reach and grab so I backed off from it. I checked when I got home and that's where the item was. I may go back for this one more in the fall. The overgrowth was pretty bad and I want to make sure there aren't any animals lurking in said tree.
I spent about two and a half hours of my day doing this and I absolutely loved it. I was outdoors, I saw some places I would never have seen before. I had to use my brain to find the various hidden caches and I got a load of exercise out of it. Earning almost 1500 Fuel Points like that is no easy feat.
I realize I need some gear for this. I should probably make a little kit with a knife, pen and some goodies to leave in the caches I find. Being prepared for the situations is always good. After #4, I will probably make sure to research any cache before I go for it. It's not that I didn't enjoy the chase, I might have just waited on that one considering where it was hidden.
I went 2 for 4 on my journeys. I know where the other 2 are and it will just be a matter of getting back to them. There's numerous around where I live so I think I will have a lot to keep me occupied until I decide to branch out a little more. I plan for this to be something to do early on my Saturday and Sunday mornings. I plan to tackle 1 or 2 a week depending on what's going on.
Stay tuned, I will keep posting updates as I continue to explore this new hobby.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Being sick
2012 hasn't been the greatest of years for me healthwise. I started off the year with a good old fashioned ulcer. Then a couple of weeks ago a spider bit me and gave me cellulitis. I was also randomly losing hair on my body and head during this time so I got that checked out. Turns out I have borderline low iron and low thyroid hormone production... yippee!
The main lesson I've learned from the various tests performed on me is that...
NURSES SUCK WITH NEEDLES!!!
I had to have blood taken today and she left an ugly bruise on my arm. And this is after a nurse left a hand sized bruise on my arm after a failed IV attempt earlier this year. Seriously, I've learned to really appreciate the nurses that get in there, do a minimal amount of damage and send you on your merry way.
So if you're a nurse and reading this. Either you suck and I hate you or you're awesome, please come and do my IV because you won't maim me in the process.
Rant over for today. Tune in later for your regularly scheduled program.
The main lesson I've learned from the various tests performed on me is that...
NURSES SUCK WITH NEEDLES!!!
I had to have blood taken today and she left an ugly bruise on my arm. And this is after a nurse left a hand sized bruise on my arm after a failed IV attempt earlier this year. Seriously, I've learned to really appreciate the nurses that get in there, do a minimal amount of damage and send you on your merry way.
So if you're a nurse and reading this. Either you suck and I hate you or you're awesome, please come and do my IV because you won't maim me in the process.
Rant over for today. Tune in later for your regularly scheduled program.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Eating Healthy
Food. I would say food is probably my biggest vice in life. I love food that is bad for me. I love pizza, potatoes, hamburgers and various other things of badness.
Food is the real battle when it comes to weight loss for me. Exercise? That's easy. If I get in the habit of exercising, I do it no problem. Plus, I like exercise. I like going outside and walking or otherwise doing physical activities. I'm a better person when I'm exercising and being in shape makes even simple everyday things easier.
Food is tough though. I'm not a big vegetable guy. I don't like greens so salads are right out the window for me. I like fruits but I'm very picky. I'm picky with apples and bananas to the point that I just avoid them. There's nothing worse than going to the effort to pick out some fruits at the store only to get them home to realize they weren't that good.
It's really a battle for me to find healthy choices for food and to not want to murder myself after a few days. This time around I'm doing okayish on the food front. I'm eating these Emerald breakfast nut blends. Those usually run 180-190 calories and have a variety of nuts, dried fruits and yogurt covered raisins. I'm trying to do soups for lunch a and mixing in a sandwich here and there. On a good day, I get through my first two meals only using about 600 calories.
I could still do better. I still drink Coke Zero which is bad for me. I should drop it but I've made so many other food sacrifices this year and that turns into an excuse to not stop. I eat too much Fast Food. I make better decisions when I go for Fast Food but Wendys is my go to "I had a crappy day, I want to stuff my face" eatery. I eat too much red meat. I'm always going to eat too much red meat though, red meat is delicious.
Eating healthy for me is a daily fight. I have to get up when that alarm goes off in the morning and tell myself that I have to watch what I eat that day. Otherwise, I'll just do whatever I want.
I've really liked being 20+ lbs. lighter and the stress is on to keep it off now. It's a daily grind, a hard daily grind but for me, if I want to keep the weight off I have to do it. That's my life. I want something, I have to do the work for it.
Food is the real battle when it comes to weight loss for me. Exercise? That's easy. If I get in the habit of exercising, I do it no problem. Plus, I like exercise. I like going outside and walking or otherwise doing physical activities. I'm a better person when I'm exercising and being in shape makes even simple everyday things easier.
Food is tough though. I'm not a big vegetable guy. I don't like greens so salads are right out the window for me. I like fruits but I'm very picky. I'm picky with apples and bananas to the point that I just avoid them. There's nothing worse than going to the effort to pick out some fruits at the store only to get them home to realize they weren't that good.
It's really a battle for me to find healthy choices for food and to not want to murder myself after a few days. This time around I'm doing okayish on the food front. I'm eating these Emerald breakfast nut blends. Those usually run 180-190 calories and have a variety of nuts, dried fruits and yogurt covered raisins. I'm trying to do soups for lunch a and mixing in a sandwich here and there. On a good day, I get through my first two meals only using about 600 calories.
I could still do better. I still drink Coke Zero which is bad for me. I should drop it but I've made so many other food sacrifices this year and that turns into an excuse to not stop. I eat too much Fast Food. I make better decisions when I go for Fast Food but Wendys is my go to "I had a crappy day, I want to stuff my face" eatery. I eat too much red meat. I'm always going to eat too much red meat though, red meat is delicious.
Eating healthy for me is a daily fight. I have to get up when that alarm goes off in the morning and tell myself that I have to watch what I eat that day. Otherwise, I'll just do whatever I want.
I've really liked being 20+ lbs. lighter and the stress is on to keep it off now. It's a daily grind, a hard daily grind but for me, if I want to keep the weight off I have to do it. That's my life. I want something, I have to do the work for it.
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