the dishwasher: dead samurai

I realized that I forgot to continue my little foray into XBL Arcade demos. Let's just forget that I said I was going to do N+ as the next one, since I have no idea what the hell you're suppose to do in N+ or why on earth people find it so much fun.

I wish I could say I played through the full demo of The Dishwaser: Dead Samurai but to be perfectly honest, the game on normal mode was almost too hard for me to continue passed the first boss! I 100% love that about this game. It's a challenging and fun little platformer with simple graphics and simple rules.

The combat is a little button-mashy, but it's in the way that Ninja Gaiden games are button-mashy rather than the boring way that the new Prince of Persia was button-mashy. You basically attack like mad and try to hit the right combos at the right times. I think the reason I had so much trouble at the first boss was that I'm inclined to shoot my way through games and ignore combos. You just can't do that in this game. You have to exercise at least a little bit of combo cunning to make it to the next stage.

The game has no preamble - you died, now you're alive, go kill the people chucking swords at your face. This background information suits me and the game just fine.

Admittedly, I haven't yet picked up the full game. Why, if I like it so much? This is precisely the sort of game that I think Major Nelson would put up as a Deal of the Week. I'm not sure why I think that...I guess maybe because the game seems like it's utterly underrated. However, at only 800 Microsoft Points I might have to just suck it up and put out for the full version.

I need something awesome to keep me occupied until I finally break and move Ninja Gaiden 2 into my Amazon shopping cart.

the pantech matrix phone - review

I am admittedly a bit behind when it comes to mobile phones. My only requirements were small and flippy so I could stick it in my pocket, which worked out quite well until my Razr started to die.

My brother had excellent timing and joined the iPhone craze, so I was able to steal his old phone before mine bit the dust. This is how I recently wound up with a Pantech Matrix.

I'd actually been wanting to switch to a QWERTY phone for quite some time, but never had the energy to go on a phone search for a good one. The Matrix is a sturdy breed of QWERTY. When quickly sliding it in either direction I never feel like the two halves might snap apart at any moment. Plus, it has so far survived my classic accidentally dropping my technology on the cement several times tests.

I like the camera - it's a decent one and you actually hold the phone like a camera and click a button on the top to take a picture. The look of the phone in general is pretty cool. I have never had 3G before, so the fast connectivity is nice plus it comes with built in GPS. The auto-key lock is superb. You can set it to any amount of time you like and not have to worry about accidentally dialing random numbers in your purse. Battery life seems pretty good.

Perhaps the best thing about this phone is the ability to slap in an SD card for storage. Very nice feature for my purposes. On my old phone I was constantly having to delete pictures and music tones in order to have enough space to do anything. Now I can use the phone as a music player and go completely snap happy if I was so inclined. I read that it also has built in radio, but I have yet to try it out.

Bad things:

My biggest beef with this phone is that for a self-proclaimed messaging phone, it's pretty stupid to not have threaded text messaging. I thought that it had this feature, but was disappointed to find that it did not. Just because it has a QWERTY keyboard, does not mean it's completely built for messaging, just slightly more convenient than keypad. This is no messaging phone.

The buttons on the front of the phone to call/cancel/navigate are inexcusably small. I have small hands but I hate having to press those tiny buttons to do anything. The QWERTY keyboard is also very cramped, so this phone would not do for anyone with even slightly large hands. I am just barely able to navigate the keys without too much frustration.

The only email and messaging networks built in do not include any Google services, rendering a possibly neat tool completely useless to me.

In the end, it's a decent phone that does a decent job. Perhaps not what I would have picked out for myself, but it makes for a good hand-me-down phone.

It has both sparked my interest in and made me afraid of getting a more powerful smart phone with apps. Even on my dumb phone, the 3G has enabled me to always be connected to facebook and twitter, which can not be good for my mental state.

Well, when the AT&T network isn't completely toast in awkward areas of the city anyway.

The Proposal = HILARIOUS (no spoilers)

When Kendall and I went to see the pre-screening of The Proposal tonight, we were expecting a sappy decently written romance movie with your average happy ending. We were not expecting to be laughing so hard throughout the entire movie that it became difficult to breath.

You almost wish that the few bits of romantic "awww" moments would hurry up and pass just so they can get to more comedy. The writing is seriously brilliant and the acting pulls it off without a hitch.

Betty White continues to be a class act. Class. Act. She is brilliant.

Ryan Reynolds is delicious, per usual, and doesn't disappoint with his classic taking the shirt off just a little slower than normal so that the women in the audience have time to drool. He needs to make a trip to Seattle, stat, so that I can kidnap him.

Sandra Bullock is gorgeous. There's a sort of not really naked scene moment (all the important bits are covered) and if that is not a body double, I am jealous. It's nice to see a woman with an actual body rather than a disgustingly stick thin actress we usually get now-a-days. Plus, her comedy bits in this movie were delivered so fantastically that they hit you harder than they regularly might. I was floored.

Oh, Oscar Nunez. You may recognize him from The Office. Brilliant. Comedy GOLD. He had some of the best moments in the movie.

Don't let the previews fool you. This would be a great movie for a fun night out with friends, and yes, even your reluctant guy friends will be howling with laughter.

LOVED it.

Release Date: 19 June 2009 (USA)

happy birthday Batman!

Detective Comics issue #27. Published in May 1939. 7o years ago.

I'm not sure what else to say, except that I will love him forever.

5-second films

I love Epic Default for pointing these things out to me. This is hilarious:

The Changeling from 5-Second Films on Vimeo.

(note: you might not see the embedded video if viewing via Facebook note)

Surf their site, it's awesome! I am thoroughly impressed with the ingenuity they put into making me laugh hysterically from 5 seconds of film.

i just invented "strip bowling"

Strip Bowling rules:

• Gutterball = lose a piece of clothing
• Spare = gain a piece of clothing
• Strike = either gain a piece of clothing OR choose someone to lose a piece of clothing
• Least points at end of game = lose one additional piece of clothing
• Most points at end of game = choose someone to lose additional piece of clothing

And this is what we're doing for my birthday this year. I'll work out the accommodating bowling lane details later.

long live the geek

This has been the year of the geek. I've seen it everywhere from commercials to controversies to magazine articles.

I just had to re-blog this very hot video game art from my friend Yum's blog:



SPACEINVADERS by =Surround on deviantART


Long live the geek! (And you know we're all really this smokin hot, inside and out! Don't you ever let anyone convince you otherwise!)

more clarification on germs vs viruses

We had another discussion during at a work meeting about stocking up on hand sanitizer and the like. I tried to explain that alcohol based sanitizers do not kill 99.9% of viruses, just germs, but my argument fell a little flat because I needed to get my definitions right.

So, to clarify, here is what I am able to gather:

A virus is - Viruses consist of two or three parts: all viruses have genes made from either DNA or RNA, long molecules that carry genetic information; all have a protein coat that protects these genes; and some have an envelope of fat that surrounds them when they are outside a cell.

A germ/bacteria is - A microorganism or microbe is an organism that is microscopic (usually too small to be seen by the naked human eye). Most microorganisms are unicellular (single-celled), but this is not universal, since some multicellular organisms are microscopic, while some unicellular protists and bacteria.

Some microbiologists also include viruses, but others consider these as non-living.^[1][2]

If I'm not completely reading this wrong: A virus is something that takes over cells, where as a germ is an actual cell itself. Which is why a germ can be "killed" with alcohol based sanitizer, and a virus is not necessarily that easy to get rid of.

I find it interesting that there seems to be a disagreement about whether or not a virus is considered living and therefore would in fact be considered a germ (microorganism). This is probably why there is such little and poorly presented information on the matter when it comes to hand sanitizers. However, I think it's a mistake to assume one way or the other. There is only one sure fire way to try and avoid getting sick from touching something that is virus ridden:

WASH. YOUR. HANDS.

100 rad things comics!

Yay! I'm so proud of myself, I had to do a blog post! Sorry! XD

I managed to update my Rad Things Webcomic 100 times! Of course, if I had actually kept to my update days, this would have happened a lot sooner...but we'll ignore that little fact.

HUGE thank you to Julia! The whole reason this exists is from us talking about how silly our IM conversations would be via webcomic.

Thanks to anyone else too who I might have stolen silly conversations/words from - you guys are all hilarious! And that's just one of many reasons why I love you. :)

(click for larger image at Rad Things)

conchord hunting season in Seattle

They are downtown RIGHT NOW.



So far Twitter is clogged with news of their next season, but if you spot them, holla!

Sadly, I could not attend. Hopefully they will grace Seattle with their presence again, and I will be sure to blow off all other plans, sleep, and food in order to see them.

star trek zero - set phasers to awesome (NO spoilers)

When they said "re-boot of the series", they were not kidding. Not gunna lie - I am sad that this is a movie rather than the two hour pilot episode of a new Star Trek television series.

The movie is complete fan-service, and it's not corny, it's not worn out - it's absolutely perfect. Every bit was written for fans of the original Trek.

Non-fans will enjoy this movie as well, don't get me wrong, but it was truly written for those who waited for specific lines, characters, and scenes. It's all there, and it's fantastic.

It feels like watching an episode of original Star Trek. A feeling that will keep you smiling, on the edge of your seat, and thrilled throughout the entire flick.

dear internet, stop letting Purell trick you

Had an interesting conversation with a co-worker today. Yesterday we had an all staff meeting and our big boss said, "Oh, and don't forget to wash your hands to stave off H1N1! Alcohol based sanitizer does nothing!"

Not entirely true, but close enough.

Hand sanitizers like those happy little Purell bottles you've all been hording will not kill most viruses. In fact, some disinfectants, like Lysol spray, will tell you exactly which viruses they can get rid of.

Germs and Diseases DO NOT EQUAL Viruses.

Which is why you should all stop being so lazy, and just follow the CDC's numero uno advice and wash your dang hands.

Yes, hand sanitizers help. Are they as effective as washing your hands? NO. NO NO NO. This is why you always hear "when washing hands is not available, sanitizers will work." That does not mean work as well. That just means they are the next best thing to your hands being disease ridden if you just can't make it to a sink. That little bit of hand sanitizer will only kill about half of the germs. Better than nothing? Of course!

Washing your hands with warm soapy water coats your skin and makes it slick. The longer you keep your hands under the water, the more virus icky you will wash down the drain.

Remember those signs you saw in elementary school with the evil germs getting washed down the drain? Yeah. That was not an exaggeration...well, except maybe the personification of the germs. I don't think they actually scowl.

Now you know. And knowing is half the battle.

The other half of the battle is looking things up rather than believing the media hype.

falling for Fallout 3

Fallout 3. Why did I not own this game already? The game mechanic is amazing. You can choose to completely ignore the main quest and run around from town to town as you please destroying irradiated monsters and highway bullies. Or, you can choose to follow the main quest the whole way through, which keeps to a storyline that is engaging and not at all over done, despite how easy it would be to ruin. OR, you can go on multiple side quests and build yourself up to be a hero or villain amongst your post-apocalyptic peers.

Of course, I believe most people do any combination of those three options which makes for a game that feels like it was custom built just for you. Of all the "choose your own adventure" type games that have come out (Fable2, Mass Effect, Oblivion, etc.) this is the first one that actually does it correctly. I find myself obsessing during the day about where I'm going to find ammo for my favorite gun and/or when it's the best time to head out to the next town so I don't get stuck traveling at night. (Of course you can always press the little "back" button to the left of "start" on your 360 controller - perhaps select on PS3, not sure about PC - and choose to "wait" for any amount of time. I don't like overusing it though, neat as the concept is.)

The customization of you character is also fantastically well done. Who you choose to be and how you build your character effects what kind of game you'll be playing. Will you choose to shoot your way from town to town and steal every item that comes across your path? Will you sneak around passed monsters and find every hidden area of the vast wasteland? Maybe you'll choose to talk your way out of every situation and help those in need without ever lifting your gun? Perhaps you'll choose to put all your points into "strength" and none into "speech" giving the "speak softly and carry a big stick" saying a whole new context.

It's entirely up to you. There is no right or wrong way to play, and I guarantee you'll have an engaging and, most importantly, fun experience every time.

Not to mention, ever releasing DLC has been known to make the game even better, which you will not believe is possible until it happens. Consider your mind blown.

PS: If this is your first time playing a Fallout game (as it was for me) you will be needing this. It's been a great help!

Masked Adventurer: eye-shuh

Masked Adventurer: eye-shuh by ~ Lillejord on deviantART

I've been wanting to post this for a while, and Derick finally stuck it up on DeviantART so now I can! (I really, really need to get a new scanner already!)

This is one of the most awesome birthday presents I've ever gotten.

Derick is a fantastically talented artist, and I am currently trying to encourage him to get back into the swing of things and produce more pieces.

I had previously bugged him about "making me a pretty picture", and as you can see, he went well beyond just a pretty picture. I mean, look at it! That's ME. I mean, of course it's me, but it's the essence of eye-shuh! It's perfect!

I'll cherish this forever! Thanks Derick!