Retro Computer Ads

I just saw these on www.techEblog.com and thought it was pretty funny. Looking back is always interesting.

Good news got even better

Yesterday morning, I spoke to my "relationship partner" (the partner I can talk to about anything), and she gave me some great news. This was a tough few weeks to wait after the news that I was getting a promotion. She told me about my compensation and benefits...which I think are pretty decent. I was happy with the percentage raise and by bonus. It was my understanding that some of the associates getting promoted, that got rated the same as I did, did not get a bonus or did not get a great bonus. So, I guess I just consider myself lucky...and glad that I'll have the money to pay for the vacation we just took. :)

I'm still alive!

Yes, I know it has been a while since I have posted, and I assure that I am alive and well. I've been in LA (Louisiana, not the city in California) for work the past few weeks.

This week Julie and I are on vacation...which is so nice that I wish we could be on vacation all the time. :)

So, right now I am laying down on my bed in a Hampton Inn in San Antonio, after a long day of adventures. (You can see more about our adventures on our JustinAndJulie blog...when I write about them in the near future)

I have also been lusting after the new pocketPC from Sprint. I have the PPC-6700, but have been trying to see if complaining about it will make the Sprint service center techs give me a new PPC-6800, also known as the HTC Mogul. My most recent attempt this past Saturday only resulted in the rep saying they could send mine in for repairs, and I would get the new/fixed one on Friday. As the store I went to is located in Austin...I decided against it. The rep actually recommended that I go to forum.xda-developers.com and install a newer ROM. So I did, and I like the one I found...mainly because it allows you to intall some of your favorite apps in ROM. I'm still playing around with it, as I'm trying to add some apps of my own to the ROM.

Anyway, that's it for now.

Good 'ole Slingbox

Last night, Julie had to come pick me up from the Metro bus transit center, because both of the buses I catch to get there were running horribly behind. The last bus to the Park-n-Ride leaves the transit center at 7:14pm. The bus to the transit center didn't get to my stop until 7:10 or so. I had been waiting almost half an hour for it.

Anyway, Julie left to pick me up from the transit center and take me to the Park-n-Ride to get my car...and we both got to the transit center at the same time, which is sad because we live a good distance away. The plus side was that we were able to take the HOV lane.

As she left somewhat precipitously, she did not set up the DVR to record a show she normally watches at 8pm. (Here is where the Slingbox comes into play. ). On our way home she asked if I could set up the DVR to record that show...which I did. I was able to accomplish this amazing feat due to the fact that my wife is amazingly wonderful, and bought me a Slingbox for Valentines Day. The Slingbox connects to the audio/video of our DVR and our Internet router, and has its own infra-red sensors which you place on the DVR, which all combined...allow for over-the-Internet control (and viewing!) of what is on your DVR. Enjoy your cable/dish/whatever that you are paying so much money a month for, whenever/whereever you want!

Ah, I love technology.

Paintball

Where I work, the group I am in is split up into sub-groups. The staff are all split up among the partners. The partner's group to whom I belong is a fan of paintball. Prior to that first paintball game with his group, I had never played paintball before. I remember hearing some of my friends talk about their paintball experiences, back when I was in college. But, I had never been invited and didn't really have the inclination to play.

As the partner picks up the bill...when I heard that we were going to play paintball, I was pretty excited. I like to shoot, but have really only shot BB guns and 22s. I have a BB gun, but haven't used it in many many years. I haven't shot a 22 for just as long. The more exciting aspect of paintball is that you aren't just shooting at paper targets or soda cans....you are shooting at your friends/coworkers.

The first game I ever played was a scrimmage between members of our own group. The next one was our first battle against another partner's team. They claim we beat them 3-2, but we think it was really 4-1.

Well, last Wednesday was our most recent game (my third time playing). We played another partner's team...and, we won 4-1. They won the last game...mainly due to our time running out.

It is a pretty fun sport. I usually dress all in black and don't mind getting a bit dirty from crawling/diving/etc.

Here is a link to our most recent battles: http://picasaweb.google.com/robophill/PaintBall4407?authkey=KPw68lSHoX0

Strange Fear

I was driving down the road the other day, on my way home from work, and came across an interesting billboard. It had a cartoon-like drawing of a person's head with the hair standing on end and the mouth was sort of frowning...needless to say that it was depicting someone who was scared. The rest of the verbiage indicated it was advertising a vertical MRI.
The large bold lettering said: "AFRAID OF CLAUSTROPHOBIA?"...

So, apparently...if I am afraid of the fear of being in confined spaces, this is the MRI for me.

Would the proper medical term be "Claustrophobiaphobia"?

Ponder, my friends.

Good 'ole YouTube

I was recently made aware of a video on YouTube. Apparently, someone thought Mary Poppins would make a good horror film. The put together a trailer for what appears to be a rather dark movie about a nanny that comes out of the sky and makes strange things happen.

I got a big kick out of it. :)

Charbroiled Oysters

I am not the biggest seafood fan. As a matter of fact, other than shrimp, crab legs, and maybe halibut, I try to stay away from the stuff. The week of Jan 21st was a new milestone for me, I ate charbroiled oysters. I was in Houma, LA at a client for work and I went out to lunch with one of the Accounting Managers, the Controller, and the CFO. We went to one of their favorite local restaurants: Big Al's. The CFO ordered up some appetizers, which you have probably guessed, ended up being the charbroiled oysters. I was a little apprehensive about eating them, but I do like to at least try something once. Plus, I didn't want to offend the client. So, I took the two that were alloted to me and scooped out the meat (covered in cheese and seasonings) and ate it. It actually wasn't too bad.

I don't think this will be a trend for me, and I'm definitely not interested in eating the raw kind. I'll stick with shrimp and crab legs, which is the extent of my seafood palate.