October 2003

Happy Halloween!

October 30, 2003: Yes, actually the 31st is Halloween, but you and I both know I won't be updating my site till sometime this weekend, if that. So how goes it with you? As for me, I just saw a great episode of Survivor. It definitely rocked, and if you missed it, I taped it, let me know. We'll talk. Anyways, thankfully tomorrow is Friday, and then it's the weekend. Aren't you glad I'm telling you the perfectly obvious? Yeah, I'm sleepy and I need to go to bed, and then go exercise in the morning. Joy. But tomorrow's Friday!!!!
In randomness, the weather here in Vegas is screwy. Today was completely Azores-ish in the fact the wind was outta control. So first smoke, now wind, and then tomorrow the high is supposed to be in the 60s. Hello? We were in the high 90s on Monday. Freaky.
What's New? Survivor Page is up.

My favorite teacher has died

October 29, 2003: I just got a call from my friend Roni and she told me that my favorite teacher from high school died this past weekend. Mr. Jansson, my 11th and 12th grade honors English teacher and the yearbook staff advisor. It doesn't seem real. This man was an amazing instructor and I feel so lucky to have known him and to have learned from him. I regret never seeing him again after high school, although I heard about him every now and then. From his love of Dylan Thomas' poetry to the way he'd bring up the most random, but interesting topic of discussion, it's sad to think there will be no more lessons from Mr. Jansson.

<cough, cough> It's getting thick around here....

October 29, 2003: The fact that California is burning up is finally affecting Las Vegas, as today the ash and burning smell invaded our humble little valley and made it look like yellow fog had settled in. And it smells gross. This is a nasty situation, and I can't even imagine how much worse it must be in SoCal. Yuck.
So what's the latest with me, you ask? Well, let me tell you. First, I had a great visit with the folks when they were up here. On Friday, I didn't do that well at the casino, but I didn't get wiped out. I've actually learned to walk away now before the casino takes ALL your money. That's one of the things that Advanced Craps book talked about - some times you're gonna lose, but you don't have to lose it all, because when you do, you feel even worse. But the next night, when we met at NY NY to see Rita Rudner, we had time before hand to gamble, so I went to the blackjack table (I don't play craps unless I can play with a proper bankroll, and I didn't have that at the time). I got $100 and went to make my fortune. Picture it! So the first table (only $10+ at this place) I go to, it's just me and the dealer. Well, the dealer was nice but her cards were bitches. I lost $50 like That and I decided to walk away and find a nicer place in the sun. So I sit down at this one table with just two others, who tell me immediately that the table has been working them. So, I sit down, because a challenge is a challenge! Immediately I get a blackjack. And they all win too. And after that, the table was our bitch. It was great, and the people I was sitting with were fun and knew how to play blackjack appropriately. I had to finally leave because Rita was starting, but I walked up with $50 and walked away with $250. NOT TOO SHABBY, eh? The show was great, and the folks had a good time. Rita Rudner really is a funny lady and very easy-going with an audience. It's cool. I said goodbye to mom and Harv after that, because I knew I wasn't going to come back out on Sunday. They made it back safe to LA as they went back on Monday morning, and the roads had been opened temporarily when they drove back. But otherwise I had heard that sometimes the roads were closed and the drive could reach 8 hours or so. Uh, NO THANKS.
Then the work week started, me without my SSgt, and let me tell you, it sucks so far. It has been nothing but busy, things went wrong when they shouldn't have, but surprisingly, a lot of things have been working much to my surprise and relief. It's just been really really busy and I have taken for granted having two people to handle stuff. She better enjoy her vacation!
In TV watching, 24 premiered last night and I enjoyed it, but I am wondering where it will go. Each season it starts with some crisis but usually evolves into something much bigger and much more threatening. It was great to see Jack overcome his heroin addiction, at least for the time being. And what is up with the President? I think his doctor is not to be trusted. Oh, hell, no one can be trusted in this show. Nina, anyone?
Remember Survivor is tomorrow(today, if you're reading this Thursday) - and it should be a doozy of an episode. Don't miss it! You'll be the loser at the water cooler going "huh, what?"
So, that's the recap - not much else going on and the next things to look forward to is next month. I wonder what that is.....?
What's New? Nothin, just wanted to check in. I've been reading Robbie's page and I gotta say I like his page a lot. Go check it out. I like his commentary on music and the dvd stuff was great, as I had never seen that MTV knock-off of the LoTR clip before that was hidden on the FOTR:EE. Nice! In other new stuff, I got my INDIANA JONES DVDs finally! Another milestone has been reached!!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!

October 23, 2003: Okay, it's actually on the 24th, but most people won't read this till then anyways. Mom and Harv are up here in town, of course, for Mom's birthday and to enjoy the good slot machines on the strip. They both have unnatural luck at slots. It's awesome. I have no patience for slots - for the most part. Some are fun - the Wheel of Fortunes of course, and some nickel machines. But I'm a table guy for sure. So I'll be seeing the folks tomorrow night for birthday dinner, and then on Saturday I bought tickets to go see Rita Rudner at New York New York - that should be good. And if you didn't see Survivor, you missed out. You most definitely don't want to miss next week's Survivor though - the ultimate twist is supposed to occur, and it should be a doozy.
What's New? Episode 6 of Survivor is up!

Is a cracked windshield bad luck?

October 21, 2003: Hell nah....just look at how good the weekend was. But I must admit that getting a crack in my windshield pissed me off something good, especially considering how many times I've done the drive to LA and not had anything like that happen. And to top it off, I got the crack while in the LA area, not out in the desert. Damn crazy flying debris! So, I had my windshield replaced today for a mighty expensive price - I guess it's worth it, but man, that could have been money for gambling, drinking, sinning, you know, the fun stuff!!!!! <sigh> So, since I can't afford to do anything fun now (I've been tapped out going to concerts - Gloria and Rita Rudner upcoming, buying airfare to Puerto Rico, spending a healthy amount on the cruise), I guess I get to stay home, work out (gotta catch up to Jason who's been working out a lot apparently - what a jerk), and play Rush Hour, the expansion to Sim City 4, which is a freaking genius addition to this game. It makes Sim City 4 fun to play and much more immersive, as you now get to drive vehicles in your city and you can win buildings, money, etc. Also, it's much clearer to understand how your residents get around and to plan out mass transit, which I was never good at. Anyways, yes I'm a geek (but a FUN geek, which makes a difference), but if you like Sim City 4, you've GOTTA get the expansion pack.
What's New? I've got some more DVDs for you (just purchased today, in fact), and my pictures from the cruise are up. I think I'm going to be getting CDs of the other pictures soon, and those that I deem acceptable will go up as well. Also, forgive me for not updating the link to the Survivor page on the front page. I didn't test that out adequately yesterday. I'm a horrible horrible horrible webmaster. Psyche. I'm the coolest evah!!!

A weekend on Ecstasy!

October 20, 2003: So, it's been a while since I've updated this. I've been busy, man, I've been busy! I went to see Gloria Estefan at the Colosseum at Caesar's Palace (very sweet!) with Fran, which was a great show. Gloria can sing, and it's amazing to think that this woman is the same woman who get nearly paralyzed by a bus crash years ago. Impressive. Then of course I went on my first cruise this past weekend - that was a blast, but I'll talk more about that when I put up the pictures page. Needless to say though, lots of drinking, dancing, dining and debauchery. And I think I've seen more than I ever wanted to at Papas & Beer in Ensanada.....
What's New? I finally put up my Survivor page, and I promise to have my cruise pictures up shortly. I am hoping to get other peoples' pictures as well, although I can guarantee you not even all of mine are gonna be posted up. Some things just should not be seen by the general public.

I Like the Wheel of Fortune machine again

October 13, 2003: Why, you may ask? Well, because it treated me nice again. I went to Boulder Station to go see Kill Bill (read review on the movie page) and I had to eat lunch as I have absolutely nothing in my refrigerator (sad, isn't it?). So I went to Burger King and I still had time to kill, and something was telling me "Go play Wheel of Fortune, Go play Wheel of Fortune!" Who am I to ignore strange voices? Ha! So I immediately found a Wheel of Fortune 5-Times machine, and sat down expecting to lose $20 as usual. But, after about 6 bets, I got a Spin, and then I got another, and another, etc. I didn't get too big of rewards on the Spins but it was enough to keep me going. I started with 80 quarters, cashed out with 240. $40 profit? I'll take it. And then I went and saw Kill Bill. Great movie, and now I'm here having just finished my wedding picture page. I'm ready for some fun. See ya! (I love days off from work).
What's New? I put up my wedding pictures from this weekend, as well as reviewing Kill Bill Vol 1 (excellent).

The Rubi Wedding was a success

October 12, 2003: So, I'm back from my 4-day trip to Los Angeles to go see Jason & Wendy get married. It was a blast, but damn tuxedos can keep you so damn warm. By the end of the day Saturday(the wedding), I was exhausted because it was so damn hot. I took plenty of pictures but I have not processed them yet. Since I found out that I actually get the day off tomorrow (5 day weekend - woo hoo!), I'll put them up then. And I'll get into what happened during the weekend then. Till then, you can keep entertained on the site by looking at the Survivor page.
What's New? The Episode 4 Survivor page is up!

Censorship sucks

October 7, 2003: I was told I had to remove the front page picture that was up yesterday because the subject hated the picture. Physical violence was threatened as well. Just see the guestbook. So I've put up a much more tame picture. I will admit that yesterday's headline and picture didn't really go all that well together. Oops.

I just now saw this movie on DVD called "The Virgin Suicides". What a bizarre movie. Interesting, and definitely holds your attention, but damn, it's pretty depressing. And just weird. So go check it out!!!!
What's New? My DVDs have increased by one.

Money was definitely spent this weekend

October 6, 2003: So how was money spent, you may be asking? I went clothes shopping this weekend with Marian at one of the outlet malls here. I've officially been infected with the joy of outlet shopping. It's amazing what you can find at these places, and the prices are unbelievable. I wanted to get some more dressy type clothes because I'll be going on the cruise in two weeks and I don't think I want to dress like a shlub the entire time. Part of the time yes, but when I'm playing craps at the table, you gotta look good, right? So, I did a few hundred dollars worth of damage there, and I now have a sweet wardrobe. And we found out that Wednesday is locals day and you get 10% off at any store in the mall - oh yeah!!!! On Sunday I then went out to Valley of Fire, which is an amazing natural formation of bright red rocks just in the middle of the desert. It's not just one or two rocks, but a huge amount of red sandstone rocks that is amazing to see in person. I have pictures in the album below - enjoy!

I only have a three day work week this week! Jason & Wendy's wedding is Saturday, and the festivities start on Thursday, so I gotta be there. I AM a groomsman, you know. I can even try out the new wardrobe there. Aw yeah!!! ;-) By the way, I highly recommend that you check out Robbie's website. It's coming along nicely and he has some cool pages there, including a Music page with mp3 links (I was thinking of doing that myself....) and some photo pages. Ignore the resemblance to my page, because I am seeing the evolution and I have a feeling it'll get a lot different looking as time goes on.
What's New? Pictures, get your pictures here! I have pictures from the farewell party a week ago, and also from Valley of Fire. Surprisingly, no new DVDs - although there will be tomorrow when Lion King comes out. And then Indiana Jones is coming out in mere days!!!!

No Ergo for me

October 3, 2003: The tester never showed up, so will have to be rescheduled. Aww shucks!!! In other news, I got my correspondence materials for Squadron Officer School. I wasn't selected to go to the in-residence school this go-round, but I may get chosen the next cycle, which starts in March of next year. So I will have to finish the readings and tests that you have to do in the meantime. Also, I was notified that I won CGO of the Quarter for my unit, Det 1 28 TS, so that was a nice thing to find out today. Cool! Also, a notice came out for applications to the Air Force Institute of Technology, which I think I'll submit this time. I would love to get paid to go to school, and if I could get a Masters that way as opposed to thru University of Phoenix, all the better!!!! The application is due the end of November, so I have a little time to work on the application and to take the GRE. So, that's something to work for.
What's New? Updated my Ep 3 page with Byron's thoughts; Also updated my DVD page.

Joy - the Ergo test is on Friday

October 2, 2003: Well, as anyone who knows me well knows already, I do not do well at the Ergo test. I think I now psyche myself out when I take it now. But whatever. Here's to me trying to pass it once again. It would be nice to finally pass this test though.
What's New? Survivor: Episode 3 is here! And what a great episode it was! Plus I have some more DVDs...

Shoot me an email if you want to. I may respond. (okay, you know I will - what else have I got to do?)