This may be wildly inaccurate, but I do believe that the Indian's have to have the worst pitching in the league and if not they rightfully should. I simply cannot understand what has happened to the Indians this year and I can't blame it on a team that seems to be kicking their offense into high gear of late. Perhaps this is an unconscious reaction to their own shoddy pitching. Even though they are scoring alot of runs I cannot find solace in a win that is 9-7 like it was yesterday. We need more lopsided victories for me to feel confident at all.
I don't know if a new manager is the right decision as I genuinely like what Wedge has done for the team. Unfortunately, like a new coat of paint on an old house, sometimes change is absolutely necessary. In any case it is clear that something needs to be done and it has reached the point where we are all legitimately concerned for the season.
On the other hand, this season sees the Kansas City Royals in first place in a division in which they have traditionally been stored in the dank cellar! Just one year after the improbable World Series appearance of the Tampa Bay Rays, it is definitely interesting to see that baseball seems to be turning more and more into a game where ANYONE has a shot (with the possible exception of the Baltimore Orioles). As a baseball fan, I can't help but feel excited for the game in general in an era where the looming threat of steroids has dampened many a baseball fan's spirits. But I still wish the Indians would do something.....
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
The Pains Begin Again
I'm not a fairweather fan and I know its early on in the season but I'm already starting to lose hope for this season with the Indians. Cliff Lee pitched 8 shutout innings and the Indians couldn't score a run until the 9th inning against one of the most feared closers in the game, Jonathon Papelbon! This kind of inconsistency is strange to say the least and to me signals that the players heads just aren't in the game anymore. It really seems like they are going up there one at a time trying to be a hero and hit the ball out of the ballpark and they are losing because they have forgotten that baseball is now and has always been a team sport.
Maybe I'm just getting cynical but I'm just tired of seeing this every year. Things need to change soon and I hope that Shapiro and everyone else in that power structure does what is necessary to bring a championship back to Cleveland. It has quite simply been way too long!! With that said, I don't know what the right call is but the biggest weakness is quite clearly coming from their relief pitching. Today was a prime example as they gave up 3 runs in the ninth (I mean who does that?). Rafael Perez and Rafael Betancourt have been pitching for too long to still have the same old problems. Either demote them or trade them. Something needs to be done to fix this!!
Maybe I'm just getting cynical but I'm just tired of seeing this every year. Things need to change soon and I hope that Shapiro and everyone else in that power structure does what is necessary to bring a championship back to Cleveland. It has quite simply been way too long!! With that said, I don't know what the right call is but the biggest weakness is quite clearly coming from their relief pitching. Today was a prime example as they gave up 3 runs in the ninth (I mean who does that?). Rafael Perez and Rafael Betancourt have been pitching for too long to still have the same old problems. Either demote them or trade them. Something needs to be done to fix this!!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Final Fantasy XIII - A Preview
Final Fantasy XIII is scheduled for release at SOME point in the near future and it has been announced to come out on the xbox360 which will save me from having to pick up a PS3. As other FF fans can attest to I would have HAD to pick it up if it was exclusive to the PS3. Lucky for me that it will make its way to the system I actually own. Though I did not start out as a fan of final fantasy when it originally came out as I was maybe 5 or 6 years old at the time (not sure of the exact date and I'm too lazy to find out). Indeed, I never owned any of the Nintendo incarnations and I never owned a playstation until I was in college.
Final fantasy has become a cultural phenomenon since its original entry back in the '80s well before all the fancy and new-fangled graphics capabilities of today's modern systems. It was a completely new gameplay experience at the time and many, myself included, have fallen in love with both the gameplay and the overall experience. There are many people out there who cannot quite fathom why these games are such a success and I cannot quite explain it myself. There is just something about the way that the Japanese create their RPGs that is just a great deal of fun to play. Most western style RPGs focus seem to focus more on frenetic combat while the JRPGs (Japanese RPGs) favor the more deliberate pacing of turn-based action. See the two different takes on the genre below.
Personally I enjoy both types but I get a greater sense of accomplishment through playing many JRPGs because they seem to require more tactics than some of the western RPGS which feel more bash-em-up at times. With this background I am extremely excited from what I have seen with FFXIII not only from a visual perspective but also from a gameplay perspective. The video below is a preview of the game from IGN that has me really excited.
The first and most obvious thing is how gorgeous the game looks!! I consider myself somewhat of a graphics whore in that I just love it when games look incredible in action, especially as concerns water for some reason. I just love running around in puddles in games that I've played lately. Back to FFXIII I just love what I am seeing so far in the gameplay footage. With these games, which often have off the wall characters (thank you Japan for having a sense of humor even if I don't get it all the time) as well as fantastical settings it is important these days to really portray the characters onscreen in a living and breathing tableau. I've been honored to play many of these games and I will readily admit that Square-Enix has some of the best designers in the field and I often catch myself staring at the amount of detail that they have always been able to cram into their games. The images below are just a couple of examples of the scenery in the games.
The second big thing that I noticed from the trailer above is that they have once again tweaked the combat from its past iterations in their neverending quest to find the perfect combat for Final Fantasy. The combat here takes cues from past entries in the series as well as other games such as Knights of the Old Republic where you can queue up moves and unleash them at your will. One thing that I didn't notice in the trailer is whether or not their will be the ability to freeze time and reassess your actions. Call me old-fashioned but this is one of the reasons I enjoy turn-based games because I'd rather have some time to do that. Now I suppose I could just "Pause" but I would like to see an option similar to past Final Fantasy games allowing for those like myself to play without worrying about the enemy taking too much of an advantage when I'm sorting through my inventory looking for that vital potion that I need. A minor gripe, but I would like to know if that will be an option in the game.
The last thing I want to mention in this preview relates to the characters themselves. While the trailer is in Japanese you can get a sense that they behave differently and act differently from one another. This level of characterization, while still difficult to tell, is something that I have grown accustomed to in past games. While the american voice actors may get on player's nerves sometimes the writing has generally been well above average and in games that routinely top the 60 hour mark (for the main story alone) it is important that we care about these characters or else we have no real incentive to keep playing after the initial period right after starting a game has worn through and the real grind begins. The video below shows some of these fanciful characters who always seem to be just the tiniest bit at odds with my western sensibilities but I can't help loving it.
My favorite part of that last clip is definitely the black dude with the chocobo in his afro causing the little child to laugh. I really hope that in the final incarnation of this game little moments like this that make you laugh or cry are liberally spread throughout the entire game. Sometime in the future can not get here soon enough!!
Final fantasy has become a cultural phenomenon since its original entry back in the '80s well before all the fancy and new-fangled graphics capabilities of today's modern systems. It was a completely new gameplay experience at the time and many, myself included, have fallen in love with both the gameplay and the overall experience. There are many people out there who cannot quite fathom why these games are such a success and I cannot quite explain it myself. There is just something about the way that the Japanese create their RPGs that is just a great deal of fun to play. Most western style RPGs focus seem to focus more on frenetic combat while the JRPGs (Japanese RPGs) favor the more deliberate pacing of turn-based action. See the two different takes on the genre below.
Personally I enjoy both types but I get a greater sense of accomplishment through playing many JRPGs because they seem to require more tactics than some of the western RPGS which feel more bash-em-up at times. With this background I am extremely excited from what I have seen with FFXIII not only from a visual perspective but also from a gameplay perspective. The video below is a preview of the game from IGN that has me really excited.
The first and most obvious thing is how gorgeous the game looks!! I consider myself somewhat of a graphics whore in that I just love it when games look incredible in action, especially as concerns water for some reason. I just love running around in puddles in games that I've played lately. Back to FFXIII I just love what I am seeing so far in the gameplay footage. With these games, which often have off the wall characters (thank you Japan for having a sense of humor even if I don't get it all the time) as well as fantastical settings it is important these days to really portray the characters onscreen in a living and breathing tableau. I've been honored to play many of these games and I will readily admit that Square-Enix has some of the best designers in the field and I often catch myself staring at the amount of detail that they have always been able to cram into their games. The images below are just a couple of examples of the scenery in the games.
The second big thing that I noticed from the trailer above is that they have once again tweaked the combat from its past iterations in their neverending quest to find the perfect combat for Final Fantasy. The combat here takes cues from past entries in the series as well as other games such as Knights of the Old Republic where you can queue up moves and unleash them at your will. One thing that I didn't notice in the trailer is whether or not their will be the ability to freeze time and reassess your actions. Call me old-fashioned but this is one of the reasons I enjoy turn-based games because I'd rather have some time to do that. Now I suppose I could just "Pause" but I would like to see an option similar to past Final Fantasy games allowing for those like myself to play without worrying about the enemy taking too much of an advantage when I'm sorting through my inventory looking for that vital potion that I need. A minor gripe, but I would like to know if that will be an option in the game.
The last thing I want to mention in this preview relates to the characters themselves. While the trailer is in Japanese you can get a sense that they behave differently and act differently from one another. This level of characterization, while still difficult to tell, is something that I have grown accustomed to in past games. While the american voice actors may get on player's nerves sometimes the writing has generally been well above average and in games that routinely top the 60 hour mark (for the main story alone) it is important that we care about these characters or else we have no real incentive to keep playing after the initial period right after starting a game has worn through and the real grind begins. The video below shows some of these fanciful characters who always seem to be just the tiniest bit at odds with my western sensibilities but I can't help loving it.
My favorite part of that last clip is definitely the black dude with the chocobo in his afro causing the little child to laugh. I really hope that in the final incarnation of this game little moments like this that make you laugh or cry are liberally spread throughout the entire game. Sometime in the future can not get here soon enough!!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Susan Boyle - Britain's Got Talent
I have been increasingly skeptical of reality television over the past few years as it just keeps getting stupider and stupider in my opinion. Rubbish like The Apprentice and Keeping with the Kardashians continues to stay on the air year after year when a whole slew of great scripted television shows continue to appear and quickly disappear because their audience seems more captivated with the inanity of much of reality television. I was very skeptical of its use until I saw a Youtube video of a matronly old woman (about 47 so not too old) walk onto stage and bring an entire audience to their feet and the judges to tears. Truth be told, I was weeping as well because she not only sang one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs ("I had a Dream" from Les Miserables) but she sang it brilliantly. I encourage everyone to watch this video and just enjoy the beauty that can come from the smallest things.
The next time the news of the economy bums you out watch this and remember that there are still surprises around every corner and you never know what will come next. When you have bad news come up I would encourage you to take a peek at the bravery of Susan Boyle. I know it seems like I'm being a bit over the top with this but this video really touched me and brought many feelings to the surface. Again, please watch.
Apparently I can't embed the video in the body of the blog itself, but here is the link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY.
The next time the news of the economy bums you out watch this and remember that there are still surprises around every corner and you never know what will come next. When you have bad news come up I would encourage you to take a peek at the bravery of Susan Boyle. I know it seems like I'm being a bit over the top with this but this video really touched me and brought many feelings to the surface. Again, please watch.
Apparently I can't embed the video in the body of the blog itself, but here is the link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
MLB Season, Week 1
Yesterday I went to go see the Cincinnati Reds play the Pittsburgh Pirates. The sunburn that i received was not the only pain of the game as I had to sit through a 10 to 2 rout. It seemed within grasp until the reds gave up two homeruns back to back, the first of which being a grand slam!! In addition to this, I saw very little offense to make me feel very comfortable for their chances throughout the season. I just finished watching a complete game shutout by Aaron Harang and I still don't feel positive because the Red's only managed 2 runs.
In addition to this, the Indians are currently in a 5 game losing streak which means that they have yet to win a game at all this season. The culprit generally seems to be that the pitching AND the hitting are not going very well right now at all. This actually puts a team that many picked to win the World Series LAST year and finish first THIS year in danger of having a cellar-dwelling season. I only hope that Eric Wedge survives this season because I generally like him as a coach.
In order for either team to have a chance in hell this season, they need to figure something out fast. I am definitely not a fairweather fan but I'm not going to use up my free time on a lost cause. I know its only the first week of the season but both teams need to start proving themselves to me.
In addition to this, the Indians are currently in a 5 game losing streak which means that they have yet to win a game at all this season. The culprit generally seems to be that the pitching AND the hitting are not going very well right now at all. This actually puts a team that many picked to win the World Series LAST year and finish first THIS year in danger of having a cellar-dwelling season. I only hope that Eric Wedge survives this season because I generally like him as a coach.
In order for either team to have a chance in hell this season, they need to figure something out fast. I am definitely not a fairweather fan but I'm not going to use up my free time on a lost cause. I know its only the first week of the season but both teams need to start proving themselves to me.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Food and Photos
A friend of mine has recently starting seeing an explosion of popularity on his blog, Imagine a Different World. If you like food and you like staring at pictures of food then you will really enjoy this site. He is an exceptional photographer and also includes quite inciteful looks at his Sunday Dinner creations. I honestly never thought that the history of grilled cheese could be so interesting and I look forward to what he will do now that he has the popularity to go with his interests. I encourage anyone who takes a peek at this blog to add him to your reader for an inciteful and witty commentary on Sunday Dinners.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Review of "I Love you, Man"
Many comedies these days, romantic and otherwise, are rife with cliches and quite honestly just aren't as funny because of them. While I do agree that some of these are necessary as a base from which to jump off but those comedies that rely on cliches are doomed before they even get off the ground. The cliches that I am referring to are such things as certain sight gags that are used over and over again or that character who shows up in every comedy with the same attitude and the same role. I think that the most nefarious movies that use these of late are the string of horrible movies that started with Scary Movie and has culminated with such atrocities as Epic Movie and one I just learned about today, Dance Flick. They even need to change the title to separate it from the rest.
Thankfully, "I love you, Man" seems to escape for the most part an over-reliance on these kinds of tactics. If you are beat over the head with the same joke over and over it just ceases to be funny! This movie follows in the footsteps of other great comedies that instill a sense of humanity into the comedy instead of strictly parodying that same human condition. There are several moments during the film where I could quite literally feel the movie slipping dangerously close to this over the top point only to be saved at the last minute by a scene that actually made you empathize with the character.
Paul Rudd is his usual self really, and as such he's quite good. He really does have a great ability to humanize his roles and make the audience feel sorry for him yet not too sorry for him. He is, in other words, the consummate lovable goofus. He is the main character, but he isn't left with the lion's share of the plot as Jason Segel and Rashida Jones play comfortably off of his character and create a believable triad. For anyone who has seen Forgetting Sarah Marshall or How I met Your Mother they really won't see anything new in his performance but his chemistry is quite good with Rudd. Rashida for her part avoids the ultimate cliche in my mind which is the significant other (usually a woman in these movies unfortunately) who is overly sensitive about ANYTHING that the main character does and turns her nose up quite frequently. Her character genuinely wants to see her fiancee find that male friend that he has been lacking for most of his life.
This brings me to the part of the movie that I was most impressed with. It takes a very critical eye on the difficulty with establishing male friendships in this culture. From my viewpoint it seems extremely easy for women to strike up lasting friendships but when men try to do this it can be extremely awkward. Perhaps this has to do with homophobic tendencies among males of this society but whatever the cause it is extremely prevalent. To this date, most movies and television shows depict relationships between two guys as effortless. Poker nights or drinking a brewskie in front of the football game are prevalent depictions. As someone who has for one reason or another always had better relationships with women I can certainly see how difficult it can be to establish a permanent friendship with a guy that didn't start in diapers or soon thereafter. Once we leave pubescense it can be very difficult indeed.
As a pure comedy I would recommend this movie to everyone. As an r-rated movie there is plenty of vulgarity and the all-powerful sexual innuendo but no nudity (which should appeal this puritanical society!). It's not an award winner by any stretch of the imagination but the characters are three-dimensional with few exceptions and the plot is believable enough. In the end the writing elevates this otherwise formulaic comedy to a good time had by all.
Thankfully, "I love you, Man" seems to escape for the most part an over-reliance on these kinds of tactics. If you are beat over the head with the same joke over and over it just ceases to be funny! This movie follows in the footsteps of other great comedies that instill a sense of humanity into the comedy instead of strictly parodying that same human condition. There are several moments during the film where I could quite literally feel the movie slipping dangerously close to this over the top point only to be saved at the last minute by a scene that actually made you empathize with the character.
Paul Rudd is his usual self really, and as such he's quite good. He really does have a great ability to humanize his roles and make the audience feel sorry for him yet not too sorry for him. He is, in other words, the consummate lovable goofus. He is the main character, but he isn't left with the lion's share of the plot as Jason Segel and Rashida Jones play comfortably off of his character and create a believable triad. For anyone who has seen Forgetting Sarah Marshall or How I met Your Mother they really won't see anything new in his performance but his chemistry is quite good with Rudd. Rashida for her part avoids the ultimate cliche in my mind which is the significant other (usually a woman in these movies unfortunately) who is overly sensitive about ANYTHING that the main character does and turns her nose up quite frequently. Her character genuinely wants to see her fiancee find that male friend that he has been lacking for most of his life.
This brings me to the part of the movie that I was most impressed with. It takes a very critical eye on the difficulty with establishing male friendships in this culture. From my viewpoint it seems extremely easy for women to strike up lasting friendships but when men try to do this it can be extremely awkward. Perhaps this has to do with homophobic tendencies among males of this society but whatever the cause it is extremely prevalent. To this date, most movies and television shows depict relationships between two guys as effortless. Poker nights or drinking a brewskie in front of the football game are prevalent depictions. As someone who has for one reason or another always had better relationships with women I can certainly see how difficult it can be to establish a permanent friendship with a guy that didn't start in diapers or soon thereafter. Once we leave pubescense it can be very difficult indeed.
As a pure comedy I would recommend this movie to everyone. As an r-rated movie there is plenty of vulgarity and the all-powerful sexual innuendo but no nudity (which should appeal this puritanical society!). It's not an award winner by any stretch of the imagination but the characters are three-dimensional with few exceptions and the plot is believable enough. In the end the writing elevates this otherwise formulaic comedy to a good time had by all.
Friday, April 3, 2009
The Moment
My life is one of great complexity these days. My girlfriend of three years (three glorious years if you ask me) just dumped me out of the car going sixty down a country road. Now... some might view this as an overreaction but I've come to accept it as simply a reaction. I mean it could have been worse. I couldn't have been wearing any clothes, for instance. She at least did me the kindness of allowing me to dress myself (mostly) before trundling me into the car and then springing the door open at sixty miles an hour while I wasn't even wearing my safety belt. Take that as a lesson, always remember to wear a seatbelt when driving around with the love of your life... you never know what might happen. As I fall, in rather slow motion (how else would I be able to internally dictate this!) I can't stop thinking about her hair. It is so shiny and smells so nice, and yes I'm aware the smell is artificial and not really coming from her.
What brought me to this deplorable state you ask? That is quite a long story, wow that's cliched. Just had to say it, didn't I? Every good story is a long one, unless its not. This story is really quite short and may inform the reader why I am not really angry at her at all. I mean, I may very well die after this fall has concluded but perhaps I'll just break a couple of bones. Maybe if I'm really lucky, in the split second before I hit the ground an alien spacecraft that has been lying dormant for millenia (under my very feet no less) will sense my impending doom and spring to life enveloping me in some bubble that will absorb all of my weight. No.... I suppose that has a very slim chance of happening but it always helps to be an optimist. The problems started this morning when I came home completely plastered. Before you judge me, it was my bachelor party.
...Did I forget to mention that my girlfriend and I were going to be married today? Hmm, I certainly need to bone up on my storytelling abilities. Anyway, I was wasted still from my bachelor party the night before and I was having the hardest time in the world waking up. Dreams were haunting me, literally, as I walked around trying to get ready for the big day. I could see my mother, who is long dead, following in my footsteps as I went into the bathroom to take a shower. The next thing I knew, Johnny Kruger (Freddie's twin.. made him up long ago) was trailing me with his banana fingers of doom - my mother wouldn't let me watch scary movies as a kid and she edited her bedtime stories quite severely. It was only much later that I realized how strange that, even edited, she deigned it appropriate to tell me the story of Johnny and his penchant for sending kids away to military school where they learned to be happy and productive members of society.
Where was I again? ... Oh, right, I was drunk. Check that, I was hungover. If I was still drunk this morning perhaps things might have gone slightly differently (actually they probably would have been far worse). Hold on, I need to check how close I've come to the road and the agonizing pain and/or death. .... I should be fine to finish the story, I have about 5 inches to go. At this current life flashing before your eyes timeline that should give me ....
"Coming up on News at 9. Joan the panda has given birth to quintuplets!!"
"Wow, that is something. Thank you John. In sadder news, a local man was thrown out of a car today on old interstate 7. Authorities have his ex-fiancee in custody now who claims that she threw him from the car because he stayed out too late at his bachelor party. She claims she didn't realize the fall would take his life."
"Tsk, Tsk. Let that be a lesson to all you men out there."
"..."
What brought me to this deplorable state you ask? That is quite a long story, wow that's cliched. Just had to say it, didn't I? Every good story is a long one, unless its not. This story is really quite short and may inform the reader why I am not really angry at her at all. I mean, I may very well die after this fall has concluded but perhaps I'll just break a couple of bones. Maybe if I'm really lucky, in the split second before I hit the ground an alien spacecraft that has been lying dormant for millenia (under my very feet no less) will sense my impending doom and spring to life enveloping me in some bubble that will absorb all of my weight. No.... I suppose that has a very slim chance of happening but it always helps to be an optimist. The problems started this morning when I came home completely plastered. Before you judge me, it was my bachelor party.
...Did I forget to mention that my girlfriend and I were going to be married today? Hmm, I certainly need to bone up on my storytelling abilities. Anyway, I was wasted still from my bachelor party the night before and I was having the hardest time in the world waking up. Dreams were haunting me, literally, as I walked around trying to get ready for the big day. I could see my mother, who is long dead, following in my footsteps as I went into the bathroom to take a shower. The next thing I knew, Johnny Kruger (Freddie's twin.. made him up long ago) was trailing me with his banana fingers of doom - my mother wouldn't let me watch scary movies as a kid and she edited her bedtime stories quite severely. It was only much later that I realized how strange that, even edited, she deigned it appropriate to tell me the story of Johnny and his penchant for sending kids away to military school where they learned to be happy and productive members of society.
Where was I again? ... Oh, right, I was drunk. Check that, I was hungover. If I was still drunk this morning perhaps things might have gone slightly differently (actually they probably would have been far worse). Hold on, I need to check how close I've come to the road and the agonizing pain and/or death. .... I should be fine to finish the story, I have about 5 inches to go. At this current life flashing before your eyes timeline that should give me ....
"Coming up on News at 9. Joan the panda has given birth to quintuplets!!"
"Wow, that is something. Thank you John. In sadder news, a local man was thrown out of a car today on old interstate 7. Authorities have his ex-fiancee in custody now who claims that she threw him from the car because he stayed out too late at his bachelor party. She claims she didn't realize the fall would take his life."
"Tsk, Tsk. Let that be a lesson to all you men out there."
"..."
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
To PhD or not to Phd - APRIL FOOLS!!!
It's been a crazy month for me because I had what I'd like to think of as an epiphany a couple of weeks ago. For a brief backstory, I was sitting at my desk "doing work" when a thought suddenly popped into my head that had my jaw resting firmly on my desk for a solid minute. I thought to myself, "what's the one thing that is missing from my life right now?". I decided then and there that I would continue to pursue my goals of being a professional Archaeologist that I gave up on midway through my Master's degree in New Mexico.
I know this probably isn't the best time to do something like this, given the state of the economy and my wedding coming up in such short order, but I think it will be best in the long run. As such, I've made some preliminary inquiries into OSU to see if their program would suit me for what I want to study. For anyone who doesn't know, I studied the geospatial arrangements of fauna remains at the site of Isla Cilvituk in the Yucatan and I am looking forward to starting something similar with my PhD work. Unfortunately, it doesn't look plausible for me to pursue these goals at OSU.
After some more time passed I finally found a good school that has exactly what I need to pursue my research in California. There program, and the reliance of the archaeologists on GIS software, makes this an ideal candidate for me. Obviously I cannot pursue this in 2009 so I'm looking towards 2010 to begin my research. This will mean moving, once again, completely out of my comfort zone and into a completely new geographic region. Jess and I have discussed this in great length and agree that this is the best course of action for me and my career goals and being that it's California she won't have a problem with finding a new job.
I'm a little nervous about doing this once again but I can't balk at every sign of difficulties in life. Between now and then I have alot of decisions to finalize and plans to make. Wish me luck!!
I know this probably isn't the best time to do something like this, given the state of the economy and my wedding coming up in such short order, but I think it will be best in the long run. As such, I've made some preliminary inquiries into OSU to see if their program would suit me for what I want to study. For anyone who doesn't know, I studied the geospatial arrangements of fauna remains at the site of Isla Cilvituk in the Yucatan and I am looking forward to starting something similar with my PhD work. Unfortunately, it doesn't look plausible for me to pursue these goals at OSU.
After some more time passed I finally found a good school that has exactly what I need to pursue my research in California. There program, and the reliance of the archaeologists on GIS software, makes this an ideal candidate for me. Obviously I cannot pursue this in 2009 so I'm looking towards 2010 to begin my research. This will mean moving, once again, completely out of my comfort zone and into a completely new geographic region. Jess and I have discussed this in great length and agree that this is the best course of action for me and my career goals and being that it's California she won't have a problem with finding a new job.
I'm a little nervous about doing this once again but I can't balk at every sign of difficulties in life. Between now and then I have alot of decisions to finalize and plans to make. Wish me luck!!
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Lord of the Rings Online Review
I posted a little while ago about Star Trek online, but lately I've been much more enamored with another online roleplaying game: Lord of the Rings online. I don't believe that there are many people throughout the world who have never heard of this monumental achievement in literature. The books almost single-handedly established the modern genre of fantasy and I am hard-pressed to name ANY fantasy novels published since that don't have a core that shares elements with Tolkien's work. The amount of history that he was able to pack into his fiction is inspirational for anyone who has ever considered sitting down and writing.
Because of this insane amount of detail that Tolkien included in his writings, which include more than just the trilogy, the creators of the Lord of the Rings Online didn't need to stretch too far to find inspiration for this game. From the moment I set foot, figuratively of course, inside the world created on the computer I was mesmerized by the scale of it all. With the help of my new memory card, which finally started working thank God, it looks absolutely amazing on my 22" widescreen monitor. All I want to do is visit all the places that I loved from the books and the movies (though this game legally has no ties with Warner Bros and the movies) but this isn't possible right away except through pictures and clips posted all over the internet.
The gameplay is fairly standard for anybody who has played World of Warcraft, they borrowed a great deal of the mechanics from this industry giant. I was pleasantly surprised by the writing and the polish that seems evident throughout the game and I can only imagine that it gets even better throughout the rest of the game. There are a few technical issues that I have noticed that seem to make certain things difficult to accomplish such as finding one Quest giver out of a sea of NPCs (Non-player characters) and there doesn't appear to be an option to zoom IN on the little mini-map in the corner of the screen.
Another thing that gives me some pause is that the world doesn't seem as populated as I would have hoped with human players. However, I did see enough and from browsing the internet I have no cause for alarm as the game appears to be going quite strong and the latest expansion, "The Mines of Moria" sold quite well and even garnered a few awards with its content.
I have yet to meet anyone from the movies, with the exception of a brief appearance from Elrond, or interact with any scenes straight from the novels but I have been assured by many articles that it is only a matter of time. This brings me to what I think is the single greatest strength of this game: longevity in the market. So many people are knowledgeable about the books (thank you Peter Jackson!) and they know the plotline that Turbine's decision to have the game parallel the events is absolutely inspired. What is even more inspired is how they have chosen to do it.
When the game first came out about two years ago the epic storyline (which loosely follows the plot of the trilogy) ended around the same time period as the council of Elrond. Through a series of free updates (nice!!) and larger expansions to the game, the developers would seem to have a very long timeframe in mind. For instance, they just released "The Mines of Moria" which sees the Fellowship into Lothlorien where they meet Galadriel for the first time which is still within the first book of the trilogy and it has been out for two years!! At this pace, they won't get anywhere near the conclusion of the saga for at least a decade which is simultaneously scary and really fun to consider.
In the end, I really like this game and am looking forward to being able to feel a part of this preeminent fantasy epic. Anyone who likes WOW should at least try this and get away from the potty-mouthed children who always seem to play World of Warcraft. The people playing seem more mature and willing to help a noob like me.
Because of this insane amount of detail that Tolkien included in his writings, which include more than just the trilogy, the creators of the Lord of the Rings Online didn't need to stretch too far to find inspiration for this game. From the moment I set foot, figuratively of course, inside the world created on the computer I was mesmerized by the scale of it all. With the help of my new memory card, which finally started working thank God, it looks absolutely amazing on my 22" widescreen monitor. All I want to do is visit all the places that I loved from the books and the movies (though this game legally has no ties with Warner Bros and the movies) but this isn't possible right away except through pictures and clips posted all over the internet.
The gameplay is fairly standard for anybody who has played World of Warcraft, they borrowed a great deal of the mechanics from this industry giant. I was pleasantly surprised by the writing and the polish that seems evident throughout the game and I can only imagine that it gets even better throughout the rest of the game. There are a few technical issues that I have noticed that seem to make certain things difficult to accomplish such as finding one Quest giver out of a sea of NPCs (Non-player characters) and there doesn't appear to be an option to zoom IN on the little mini-map in the corner of the screen.
Another thing that gives me some pause is that the world doesn't seem as populated as I would have hoped with human players. However, I did see enough and from browsing the internet I have no cause for alarm as the game appears to be going quite strong and the latest expansion, "The Mines of Moria" sold quite well and even garnered a few awards with its content.
I have yet to meet anyone from the movies, with the exception of a brief appearance from Elrond, or interact with any scenes straight from the novels but I have been assured by many articles that it is only a matter of time. This brings me to what I think is the single greatest strength of this game: longevity in the market. So many people are knowledgeable about the books (thank you Peter Jackson!) and they know the plotline that Turbine's decision to have the game parallel the events is absolutely inspired. What is even more inspired is how they have chosen to do it.
When the game first came out about two years ago the epic storyline (which loosely follows the plot of the trilogy) ended around the same time period as the council of Elrond. Through a series of free updates (nice!!) and larger expansions to the game, the developers would seem to have a very long timeframe in mind. For instance, they just released "The Mines of Moria" which sees the Fellowship into Lothlorien where they meet Galadriel for the first time which is still within the first book of the trilogy and it has been out for two years!! At this pace, they won't get anywhere near the conclusion of the saga for at least a decade which is simultaneously scary and really fun to consider.
In the end, I really like this game and am looking forward to being able to feel a part of this preeminent fantasy epic. Anyone who likes WOW should at least try this and get away from the potty-mouthed children who always seem to play World of Warcraft. The people playing seem more mature and willing to help a noob like me.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Computer Woes
Yesterday I couldn't wait to get home and play with my new computer! Geeky, I know but there you are. I had been checking all day to see if my new video card had been delivered and around 3 oclock I received notification that it had been dropped of on my doorstep. Needless to say, the last couple of hours were difficult to get through. I could see myself playing games at levels I hadn't experienced with computers before because I'd always had laptops which don't have the best video cards. With visions of this dancing around in my head I went home, became deliriously excited when I saw it on my porch, and fell flat on my face when I couldn't seem to install the damn thing!?!
Granted, I was probably getting a little cocky with how easy it all seemed to be at first but I didn't expect this at all. I should have, but like I said.... cockiness! Lesson learned. After the first couple of tries with nothing to show from it (a blank screen, in fact) I gathered myself and proceeded to try many different things with many different settings..... FOR SIX HOURS!! I'm laughing about it now because I feel like I still had fun while doing it and I know alot more about how computers work now than I ever did by reading. I'm laughing because I was seriously pissed off last night when it didn't work. All I really wanted to do last night was download a game that I had been waiting anxiously to play and see it in glorious 1650 x 1080 with all the graphical options tuned to their highest degree. Instead I spent as much time on the floor fiddling with connections and inputs, which is no small feat for someone still healing from a broken leg! Jess will be happy to note that I did wear my boot for the duration of it.
I don't know what's wrong with it even now. I've been reading forum posts and information from the manufacturer's website but until I can get back to the computer and try some things out its all speculation. I'm hopeful that I can get it working during the weekend, and I can only hope Jess is prepared for me sitting in front of the computer for long stretches..... OUTSIDE of work! If I still haven't figured it out, my IT guy at work is going to run a diagnostic on it to make sure that the card itself isn't malfunctioning. Quite nice of him, I think.
This is all part of the ongoing saga of a man who thinks he knows all confronted by things he knows nothing about!! :) Peace y'all.
EDIT: After working with a Facebook friend from High School I have figured out what the problem is. Now to go home and test out this new hypothesis.
Granted, I was probably getting a little cocky with how easy it all seemed to be at first but I didn't expect this at all. I should have, but like I said.... cockiness! Lesson learned. After the first couple of tries with nothing to show from it (a blank screen, in fact) I gathered myself and proceeded to try many different things with many different settings..... FOR SIX HOURS!! I'm laughing about it now because I feel like I still had fun while doing it and I know alot more about how computers work now than I ever did by reading. I'm laughing because I was seriously pissed off last night when it didn't work. All I really wanted to do last night was download a game that I had been waiting anxiously to play and see it in glorious 1650 x 1080 with all the graphical options tuned to their highest degree. Instead I spent as much time on the floor fiddling with connections and inputs, which is no small feat for someone still healing from a broken leg! Jess will be happy to note that I did wear my boot for the duration of it.
I don't know what's wrong with it even now. I've been reading forum posts and information from the manufacturer's website but until I can get back to the computer and try some things out its all speculation. I'm hopeful that I can get it working during the weekend, and I can only hope Jess is prepared for me sitting in front of the computer for long stretches..... OUTSIDE of work! If I still haven't figured it out, my IT guy at work is going to run a diagnostic on it to make sure that the card itself isn't malfunctioning. Quite nice of him, I think.
This is all part of the ongoing saga of a man who thinks he knows all confronted by things he knows nothing about!! :) Peace y'all.
EDIT: After working with a Facebook friend from High School I have figured out what the problem is. Now to go home and test out this new hypothesis.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
New Computer
I just checked online and the new computer that I ordered has finally arrived, piecemeal as it is. I'm really looking forward to building the computer as much as I am actually using it. I know that Jess would love me to build it as fast as possible so we can finally have a computer with a little more speed than either of us is used to. As I've never done this before it will be very interesting to see how long it takes though I don't anticipate it being a major problem. Mostly, I just hope that the computer components all work!! That would be great.
As soon as I get home I'll start to delve into it but tonight is Lost night so I really won't have much time during the evening. I might be staying up late though..... More on this computer later.
As soon as I get home I'll start to delve into it but tonight is Lost night so I really won't have much time during the evening. I might be staying up late though..... More on this computer later.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Watchmen Review
I've heard many different people saying many different things about the Watchmen movie and I am quite frankly confused. I went in having never read the book, intentionally, and having no idea really of the plot, also intentionally. I think this gave me a good perspective of the movie and allowed me to view it free from preconceptions. This is something I did not have when I went and saw the Lord of the Rings trilogy and I sometimes wonder how my take on those movies might have differed.
Watchmen is indeed a difficult story to tell with its emphasis on different time periods being interwoven. As it is a piece of graphic fiction, it is an extremely visual movie that Zach Snyder (of 300 fame) used quite well. Again, I hadn't read the book before seeing the movie but I could certainly tell that certain scenes were most likely pulled straight from the novel as they weren't your traditional cinematic camera angles. For the most part, and I'm discussing this first because it is such an integral piece to the movie, the visual style of this movie is flawless. There are some less than desirable shots that sometimes pull you out of the movie a bit but they are so few and far between that I simply didn't care.
The acting in the movie was overall a mixed bag which is par for the course in a movie that employs relative nobodies in the lead roles. The standouts in my opinion were Rorschach, the walking talking Rorschach test, played deftly by Jackie Earle Haley and the Comedian played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Of all the onscreen personas they made me the least aware that they were acting. They became these characters to such a degree that it was truly a sight to behold. Going briefly to the Lord of the Rings parallel I drew before I would hold this up to Sir Ian McKellan's flawless performance as Gandalf (with one small irritating moment at the Mines of Moria aside!). The rest of the cast were adequate individually. As a whole, however, I truly felt they all did a commendable job for such a difficult piece of fiction.
Now, some of the detractors for this movie have made such a fuss over showing Dr. Manhattan's anatomy a little too much. I agree that it was onscreen much more than most fans of American cinema are used too but with his character it made no sense for him to cover up anymore. He simply doesn't care anymore. The book may have been better at hiding this particular feature of his anatomy but those camera angles wouldn't have made as good of a film cinematically. You can't handicap the cinematographer simply to deal with our over-sensitive take on nudity. I certainly didn't hear many, though there were some, complain about the amount of female nudity in the movie.
The other big complaint I kept hearing about the movie is that it is difficult to follow the storyline. Again coming from the point of view of someone who has never read the book I must say that I didn't have a problem understanding the plot. Is it intricate? At times it is but the movie does a very good job at leading the audience through the plot to its conclusion. Perhaps if people would quit texting during the movie or checking box scores they might come to the same conclusion. The problem here isn't the movie, I feel like the problem is that we as a society have such a small attention span though I think that may be the topic of another blog posting entirely.
The success or failure of any movie is tied in with how the movie comes together as a whole. Small miscues here and there can be forgiven if the core of the movie is strong enough and if the audience gets sucked in. At 2 hours and 45 minutes the movie is long but other than the strong urge to pee I couldn't say that I was completely aware of the length. I was mesmerized by much of what was going on, though I was surprised at the level of violence. There were times where I felt like a little boy looking out into the vastness of the universe and truly beginning to comprehend it. This may seem a bit out there but most of these times have to do with Dr. Manhattan who is a truly unique character in cinema.
If I am forced to distill this experience into a five star rating I would have to give it a four, which many websites say means excellent. You may go to this movie and have a completely different experience which is one of the great achievements of this particular medium. I would caution, however, against taking negative reviews at face value as they are misleading and will keep you from judging for yourself.
Watchmen is indeed a difficult story to tell with its emphasis on different time periods being interwoven. As it is a piece of graphic fiction, it is an extremely visual movie that Zach Snyder (of 300 fame) used quite well. Again, I hadn't read the book before seeing the movie but I could certainly tell that certain scenes were most likely pulled straight from the novel as they weren't your traditional cinematic camera angles. For the most part, and I'm discussing this first because it is such an integral piece to the movie, the visual style of this movie is flawless. There are some less than desirable shots that sometimes pull you out of the movie a bit but they are so few and far between that I simply didn't care.
The acting in the movie was overall a mixed bag which is par for the course in a movie that employs relative nobodies in the lead roles. The standouts in my opinion were Rorschach, the walking talking Rorschach test, played deftly by Jackie Earle Haley and the Comedian played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Of all the onscreen personas they made me the least aware that they were acting. They became these characters to such a degree that it was truly a sight to behold. Going briefly to the Lord of the Rings parallel I drew before I would hold this up to Sir Ian McKellan's flawless performance as Gandalf (with one small irritating moment at the Mines of Moria aside!). The rest of the cast were adequate individually. As a whole, however, I truly felt they all did a commendable job for such a difficult piece of fiction.
Now, some of the detractors for this movie have made such a fuss over showing Dr. Manhattan's anatomy a little too much. I agree that it was onscreen much more than most fans of American cinema are used too but with his character it made no sense for him to cover up anymore. He simply doesn't care anymore. The book may have been better at hiding this particular feature of his anatomy but those camera angles wouldn't have made as good of a film cinematically. You can't handicap the cinematographer simply to deal with our over-sensitive take on nudity. I certainly didn't hear many, though there were some, complain about the amount of female nudity in the movie.
The other big complaint I kept hearing about the movie is that it is difficult to follow the storyline. Again coming from the point of view of someone who has never read the book I must say that I didn't have a problem understanding the plot. Is it intricate? At times it is but the movie does a very good job at leading the audience through the plot to its conclusion. Perhaps if people would quit texting during the movie or checking box scores they might come to the same conclusion. The problem here isn't the movie, I feel like the problem is that we as a society have such a small attention span though I think that may be the topic of another blog posting entirely.
The success or failure of any movie is tied in with how the movie comes together as a whole. Small miscues here and there can be forgiven if the core of the movie is strong enough and if the audience gets sucked in. At 2 hours and 45 minutes the movie is long but other than the strong urge to pee I couldn't say that I was completely aware of the length. I was mesmerized by much of what was going on, though I was surprised at the level of violence. There were times where I felt like a little boy looking out into the vastness of the universe and truly beginning to comprehend it. This may seem a bit out there but most of these times have to do with Dr. Manhattan who is a truly unique character in cinema.
If I am forced to distill this experience into a five star rating I would have to give it a four, which many websites say means excellent. You may go to this movie and have a completely different experience which is one of the great achievements of this particular medium. I would caution, however, against taking negative reviews at face value as they are misleading and will keep you from judging for yourself.
Star Trek Online
I've recently become rather addicted to the new Massive Multiplayer Online Game Star Trek Online. This is particularly odd because the game hasn't even come out yet but the website, at www.startrekonline.com, is very good with alot of great information for fans and non-fans of the series alike. There is so much history behind the series, that has been created through 10+ movies and 5+ series (if you include the animated series) as well as multitudes of novelizations, that a game based on this information is quite exciting.
I'm also kind of looking forward to starting an online game like this from the beginning to see how it changes over time. All of this will be moot of course if I don't get a computer that will be able to handle the graphical requirements which I am currently in the process of researching. I don't honestly anticipate this game to come out before the end of the year but I'm hopeful. I know this earmarks me as a nerd but I'm okay with that.
The other concern that seems to pop up with any online game is the potential to become addicted to it. I've been playing games for years and I can honestly say that any addiction to it has never interfered with my normal life though I'm sure there are some out there who feel that this may not be true. Regardless, it is really sad that some people do escape so inexorably into these shady dimensions and imagined worlds that they sometimes DO neglect the outside world. This brief musing aside, I will certainly never get to this point.
In the end, this should be an interesting experience once it finally comes to fruition. There is something so magical about what video games provide with their escapist notions that I am genuinely surprised that more people aren't into them.
I'm Baaaack!
Well, a lot has happened since I last took up the digital pen and scribed on this here blog. By my reckoning its been about 7 months! That is a very long time indeed and I have very good reasons why it has been so long but it all really amounts to laziness. Honestly, my computer at home is so much of a hassle just to start up that I hate starting it up. Luckily, I've started the first stages of building my next computer so I'm very hopeful that I will soon have a computer that will take less than 10 minutes to start up (with 4 Gigs of RAM at least this better not happen).
In other news, well alot has happened. Work is going pretty well and I generally enjoy what I do on a day to day basis. I've been struggling with keeping my hobbies a part of my life which is mostly a concern because it seems like I have a million things that I like to do that I end up doing none of them as much as I would like. Between video games, tv, reading books, writing, etc. there never seems to be enough time to do what I want. It really is quite frustrating in the long run and starting up this blog again is part of my current push to force myself to manage my time better so that I have a better life in general.
I'll end this post here but promise that I will continue writing on at least a semi-regular pace. Stay tuned and make sure you use RSS feeds or Google reader to keep track of little old me. All I want is some friends (cute puppy dog face emoticon --> I have to write it because this site has no emoticons that I know of).
In other news, well alot has happened. Work is going pretty well and I generally enjoy what I do on a day to day basis. I've been struggling with keeping my hobbies a part of my life which is mostly a concern because it seems like I have a million things that I like to do that I end up doing none of them as much as I would like. Between video games, tv, reading books, writing, etc. there never seems to be enough time to do what I want. It really is quite frustrating in the long run and starting up this blog again is part of my current push to force myself to manage my time better so that I have a better life in general.
I'll end this post here but promise that I will continue writing on at least a semi-regular pace. Stay tuned and make sure you use RSS feeds or Google reader to keep track of little old me. All I want is some friends (cute puppy dog face emoticon --> I have to write it because this site has no emoticons that I know of).
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