Achmed the Dead Terrorist

Jeff Dunham is hilarious.

Beowulf

We went to see Beowulf last night. I liked it a lot though Niki seemed underwhelmed. The CGI was amazing and I found myself repeatedly thinking "How can that not be real?!?". The voice-acting was very good, particularly from Anthony Hopkins and Crispin Glover. Action scenes were intense and visceral.
There were two very important lessons to be learned from Beowulf:
1 - Don't have sex with demons.
2 - Angelina Jolie is hot even in CGI.

Good News/Bad News

The good news is a release date has been set for Punisher: War Zone (9-12-08). The bad news is Thomas Jane will not be returning to play Frank Castle again. He has said he does not believe in the film.
It doesn't bode well for a sequel when the star of the original has no interest in being involved. I guess this shouldn't be a huge surprise considering the original was not held in high regard. I really liked it but I have a soft spot for comic book movies. I even liked the Dolph Lundgren version. I will watch Punisher: War Zone but my expectations are set pretty low.

Xmas plans

No matter how hard I try, I can't figure out a way to make it to Cali to see James during his visit. Niki's parents will be staying with us for the holidays so there is no way for me to get away. I don't suppose there is a possibility of you guys making a yuletide pilgrimage to Vegas?

PS3 backward compatibility warning

For those of you considering a PS3, there is a fact you should be aware of that is not widely publicised. Not all PS3s are created equal when it comes to backward compatibility.
There are three incarnations currently selling in stores including 40GB, 60GB, and 80GB models. The older 60GB ($499) model uses hardware emulation making almost all PS1/2 games work. The newer 80GB ($499) that comes bundled with Motostorm uses a less capable software emulation that works with many PS1/2 games (presumably the most popular titles as code has to be written for each). The 40GB ($399) budget model that was just released recently offers no backward compatibility whatsoever.
I was totally unaware of this issue and I'm a little surprised considering how strongly Sony pushed backward compatibility as a selling point when the PS3 was released last year. I didn't find out until I bought the 80GB this week. Sony's official PS3 website has a list of which titles are compatible for each model. Strangely, there is no mention of Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro Am. I'm hoping it will be included in the next firmware update.
Adendum: I forgot to mention... the "fully" backward compatible 60GB model has been phased out and will not be available once stores sell their inventory.

Happy Birthday Niki!

Now you're old like me.

I ROCK!!!

And its all of yous guys' fault! You all totally made me get into guitar hero. Dammit now I'm addicted and I don't think there are any support groups out there for me!! LOL I am so proud of myself for beating Lou! I even did the Dragonforce song and didn't do too badly. It's unlockable on easy. I still haven't tried to go up to medium. I am still trying to get all 5 stars on all of them. I know that "Raining Blood" will be absolutely impossible. I got 3 stars after about 10 failed attempts and I never want to do it again! Oh yeah, and I hate sonic youth. WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP! That is all for now. I'm sleepy. My puppies are gone and I didn't sleep at all last night. I woke up every hour after finally falling asleep around 5am. :(

Damn cool

You are looking at the AG Riffmaster Guitar Hero controller. It is made from a real electric guitar body so it looks and feels like the real thing. Too bad it looks better than it plays. At $400, you wouldn't see me sporting one any time soon anyway.

I'm back.... unfortunately

My vacation was good and relaxing though far too short. At least I only have to work eight days before I get another week off.

Here were the highlights:
Excalibur - Niki surprised me by getting us a room with a jacuzzi and we had a lot of fun. I got a royal flush while playing Pai Gow for a $500 bonus.
Guitar Hero 3 - I bit the bullet and got GH3 even though Halo 3 is still fresh. Niki is really getting into it. We both beat the career mode on easy. I got 5 stars on every song but Raining Blood (way too hard) and earned my first perfect score on My Name Is Jonas.
Bratwurst with Sauerkraut - I have been addicted to these lately and ate a lot of them.

And the moments I'd rather forget:
190 Octane - I drank far too many at Excalibur and suffered the consequences. 'Nuff said.
Paranoid - I almost got a perfect score on Paranoid (the first time I played it) only to blow it on the last note.
Goodbyes - Niki's parents came for a visit and took the dogs with them so my mom can puppysit while we are in Pleasanton for Thanksgiving. Two weeks without them will be tough.

Format Wars update

The CEO of Sony says the HD-DVD/Blu-ray struggle for dominance is at a stalemate now that Paramount has switched to HD-DVD exclusivity. Sony tends to talk a big game so an admission of stalemate from them translates to loss to the rest of world (my own interpretation).
Another factor is the cost of equipment. 90,000 HD-DVD players were sold in just a few days last week when a price battle between stores caused prices to drop below $200. Prices are back up now but you can bet we'll see more of that going on as we approach Xmas. Blu-ray players are still much more expensive.
Sony's market share of players only looks good if they count PS3s which don't have as good an attachment rate. (Translation: Owners of HD-DVD players are much more likely to buy movies than Blu-ray owners) Things are not looking good for Blu-ray.
We won't even get into the porn factor.

The well connected man

I now have 3 cell phones (1 for work, 2 personal) to carry. My Sprint contract doesn't expire for 2 months but I found a deal I couldn't pass up on the phone I had been lusting over. A rapid phase out of the Sprint # would be best but it always takes a while for word to get through the grape vine. Please update your address books with my new # (702-686-2230) and call/text me there from now on. The sooner I can rid myself of this dead weight the better.

Opportunities Lost

It is with much regret that I announce the death of an icon. Bun Boy is gone! I shall never know the pleasure of the "Bun Boy Burns". This is a tragedy.
As we passed through Baker on Friday night on a mission to procure natures perfect food (Del Taco Shredded Beef Combo Burritos), I got the feeling something was missing. I realized that I hadn't seen Bun Boy. I turned around looking for that unmistakable Bun Boy divining rod, the World's Tallest Thermometer. I spotted the thermometer but there was a distinct lack of Bun Boy at it's base. Instead, there was a Big Boy.
Oh fate, I have felt your cruel sting. Why did you have to take him? Why couldn't you have taken The Mad Greek instead? Parting is such sweet sorrow.

Wanted

Some of the best movies from the last couple years have been based on graphic novels (mostly by Frank Miller) like V for Vendetta, Batman Begins, Sin City, and 300. Prepare yourself for yet another! Wanted looks awesome. How can you go wrong with Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman?

Smokin' Aces

We watched Smokin' Aces last night and I enjoyed it quite a bit. It came highly recommended by several co-workers so my expectations were high. The plot and action were good. There were several interesting twists though one was predictable from early on. Ray Liotta, Jeremy Piven, and particularly Ryan Reynolds played their parts very well. I really liked the ending.
My only complaint was with Andy Garcia. I wish he would give up on the accents. He's just not good at it at all.

Avenged Sevenfold at Vegas HOB

Avenged Sevenfold put on an amazing show last night. They made it clear that talented musicianship is not completely lost from popular music. M. Shadows belted out the vocals without restraint and never missed a beat. Synyster Gates, the star of the show for me, nailed his solos and looked as though he was born with a guitar in his hands. Zacky Vengeance, while in the less glamorous position of rhythm guitar, made it clear that he is a guitarist to be reckoned with as well. Syn and Zacky played their harmonies flawlessly. Johnny Christ on bass and The Rev on drums (and backup vocals) also brought their A game.
My only complaint was with the length of the set. They only played for approximately 1:10. It was a good mix of the old and new with 4 songs off the new CD, 3 from City of Evil and 3 from Waking the Fallen. I just wish they played a couple more songs.
I was a little surprised by the age of most of concert goers. I felt like one the oldest people there who wasn't a chaperon. It makes sense considering this a band who played on TRL (and had the most requested song for a while) but I expected to see more people from my age group.