Thursday, September 25, 2008

Our Costumes

Everyone wanted to know so much about mine and Stacy's costume ideas, that I decided to write a blog about. But first I warn you, Stacy and I are nerds. Our characters are from a video game called Bioshock. Stacy and I both agree that it is one of the best video games we've ever played (and thats saying a lot). The story of the game is that a mad scientist, frustrated with the morality of the world, and wanting to further his scientific work without the bounds of the law, decides to build a city under the ocean. He invites all scientists to join him, to continue their work and reach the ends of their imagination. They do and they make some amazing scientific discoveries....until everyone begins to go insane. Without going too far into it, what is valuable in this under-the-ocean world, is a substance called Adam which grants the user some amazing abilities. This Adam can only be harvested by little girls, and because of the danger from the insane people in the city, these little girls (or Little Sisters as they are called) are protected by what are called Big Daddies, which are men who are in huge armored diving suits, and carry big guns. So, that is what Stacy and I are going to dress up as, if we can figure out how to do my suit. Here's some pictures. Any ideas as how to make it?



Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Things I've Heard From People

I have compiled a list of various rumors and facts I have heard from various people and sources. They have no order and no relevance to each other.

1. Even if the government pays the enormous bailout of $700 billion, the country will eventually go into recession anyway. (From an economics student who almost has his degree)
2. The Beck concert was awesome (I can confirm this)
3. Ticketmaster's tyranny must be stopped. A $9 service charge? Are you kidding me?
4. Sarah Palin believes that dinosaurs became extinct 6000 years ago which fits neatly along with her belief in the creationism theory. (I heard this from a very credible conservative source)
5. Albums that have come out this year have been very mediocre.
6. The season premiere of Heroes wasn't that good.
7. The two-party system needs an overhaul.
8. The electoral college needs an overhaul.
9. I need a job. (This is from my wife, family, friends, and myself)
10. Two movies are going to soon hit theaters disparaging two different Republican presidents. One about George W. Bush directed by Oliver Stone. Another about Richard Nixon. There is not a coincidence that these are being released so close to an election.
11. We should be grateful that pretty dresses survived the Great Flood. (from my niece)
12. Splenda is not good for you. (from my wife and mother)
13. V8 is good for you but tastes disgusting.
14. The Cowboys shouldn't have a problem against the Redskins on Sunday.
15. The new layout of Facebook sucks. (from everyone)
16. Nothing will ever change, no matter who we elect. (Sadly, I've heard this from a great deal of people)
17. Gas is going to skyrocket soon.
18. Our bank accounts are going to plummet because of the skyrocketing of gas.
19. Joe Biden thinks paying higher taxes is patriotic.
20. Gamestop takes the word of their managers without even a slight inquiry, even though those managers are treating their employees like crap.
21. People will vote independent this year just because they do not want to support either of the other two candidates.
22. Obama supports partial-birth abortion, which is horrible.
23. McCain supports no abortion, even in the case of rape or incest, which is also horrible.
24. The topic of abortion is irrelevant because it will neither be banned nor be totally freed with the election of the next president.
25. All congressman, senators and representatives alike, should not ever be allowed to be re-elected, so that they might always do whats best for the states they are serving rather than doing what is best to be re-elected.
26. It is scary that our nation is staring at a recession.
27. It is good that we will soon hear a Prophet speak.
28. The recording of my friend and I's CD is going well.
29. Tacos al pastor is a delicious dish from Pastorero's, but only if you squeeze lime juice onto the tacos.
30. My wife and I's costumes for Halloween are going to be awesome provided that 1)We can pull them off and
2) We actually have something to wear them to and
3) At least some people understand who we are trying to be.

There it is. Take it as you will. And remember, these are not my thoughts but things that people have told me.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Another Night With Nerds (I can't help myself)

Last night, despite what I have said in previous posts of days gone by, I attended another midnight release of a video game. But not just any video game. It was a Star Wars video game. Many of you might not know this but the Star Wars nerd is a different kind of breed from other nerds like D&D nerds, World of Warcraft nerds, or Trekkies. There are certain things which distinguish them from others which I will soon explain.
I arrived at my local Gamestop at about 11:15. There was a good amount of people there but it was not as bad as other midnight releases such as Halo 3, Grand Theft Auto IV, or Super Smash Bros. Brawl. This is a good thing. It made the wait much easier to bear. As I walked up to the store, I saw that there were various Stormtroopers spread throughout the parking lot, a Jedi with a purple lightsaber, Boba Fett, and Darth Vader patrolling the streets. I expected myself to be disgusted by this, but frankly, it was just too cool. Their suits were amazing. They were of movie quality, and when the stormtroopers talked they even had that raspy radio voice that they do in the movies. Vader never spoke but he did have the breathing spot on, and his suit had various lights on it that would light up. All of them were really nice, even posing for pictures with people, with them in poses torturing men or even children. It was really funny. What I later found out is that the store booked them to come to this event. Apparently, they do a lot of Star Wars events.
The store was offering free pizza for the event, and there were people walking around the crowd offering it to us. One of them offered some pizza to Vader. He looked at it with a finger to the chin of his mask, and after a moment's hesitation, pointed to his mask, shrugged his shoulders, and moved on.
I went and stood in line and because I was by myself, I got to thinking. Star Wars nerds aren't that bad. Because the Star Wars canon is always expanding, most Star Wars nerds have to read the books constantly to keep up. This is one reason its puts them at a stock above the rest. They read! And they want to! Most of the ones you will meet in your life are thoughtful and calm, (though annoyingly, if you say anything that is out of step with Star Wars canon, they will greedily jump into correct you). And they don't smell too bad. I base this not off of any scientific data I have collected but merely what I smelled when I was standing in line.
At midnight, I collected my game and went home. Honestly, it was one of the best midnight releases I've ever been to. The crowd was not unnerving like it was for Grand Theft Auto IV, where you wondered if the people gathered there were actually trying to live a life similar to the criminals in the Grand Theft Auto series. It was not filled with kids like it was at Super Smash Bros. Brawl, running around screaming, all talking about how good they were. This one was fine. Everyone was in good spirits and nobody was trying to be mean to each other just to be funny, most notably, myself.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Goodbye Matheson

My job at the airport, working for Matheson Flight Extenders, is finally over. There is a certain dignity that a person gains when they leave a job on their own terms. This was the fourth job I've had and I have left all of them on my own terms. I have never been fired and I intend to always keep it that way. I've seen a lot of people get fired over the years, how nasty it is, how people get angry and argue and yell nasty things as they leave. But when I quit a job, it is always all smiles. I left today no different than any other job I have ever left. At the end of the shift, I shook hands with everyone and told them that I wished them well. I also told them (which is a sort of tradition I've started with myself that I say when I leave every job) that all of them were better than the job that they had, that they could do better, that they should leave this place and go do something more fulfilling with their lives. Though I say it at every job, I always believe every word of what I'm saying.
One of my co-workers was especially sad to see me go. He is an old Mexican man, probably somewhere in his mid to late forties, who speaks very little english and works two full-time jobs. He always liked me cuz he could see that besides him, I was the only other one who worked really hard. On my first day on the job, he even joked that he had never seen a white guy work so hard. He always would joke around with me (as much as he could), and even if it wasn't funny, I would try to be accomodating and laugh because I could see that he was really looking for acceptance. When he said goodbye to me, I could see that he didn't really know what to say. I told him to take care of himself and to go home and sleep, since I always joked with him that I had no idea when he ever slept. It made me feel good to leave that horrible job in a way that was strikingly dignified. Everyone was sad to see me go but happy for me that I was moving on.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

About Time (I Guess)

Well, I have finally broken down and went to a temp agency for some work. I accepted a job with Accounting Principals and they are supposed to find me some work within the next two weeks. The lady I met with was very nice and I was glad that she talked to me straight and didn't beat around the bush. She told me that even though I have a bachelor's degree, I need what she likes to call "resume builders" which are just some things, more on the experience side of a resume (seeing that my only experience up to this point has been horrible forms of manual labor), that makes my resume look better. She said just some general office work would do the trick and that I should expect to be doing it for the next 6 to 12 months and then she is sure she can find me something better. I will be starting at somewhere around $11 or $12 an hour. Initially, I was a bit upset over this. That is because at my current job at the airport (the horrible manual labor I mentioned earlier), I'm making $12.79 an hour. But what it came down to is that I can't waste time at the airport any longer. I need more experience somewhere and the airport can't provide me with that. Not to mention that my job at the airport is only part time and I desperately need to work full time. So, I'll grin and bear it at $11 or $12 an hour and I feel really great about it. But I want to take this time to personally thank all of you who were praying for me to find a better line of work. I truly appreciate it. I am still a bit clueless as what to do with myself in the long-term careerwise but I honestly felt like I needed to do this before I could more heavily think about the long-term. So thanks again.