If I made the video for Thriller, I am sure it would look something like this:
January 2007 Archives
I finally had a chance to play the new Nintendo Wii. I now understand why it is outselling the PS3 - and it is not just the price. Never have I seen a gaming system that is so easy to use. I picked it up right away and we all had a blast playing the Wii Sports program. I actually worked up quite a sweat and now understand why people have been saying that they can lose weight by playing Wii Sports for 30 minutes a day.
This system is not about the graphics and it shows. I am sure some of the other games will look nice and combined with a classic style controller you will be able to play the more traditional games. I like the fact that for some driving games you hook the Wii Remote into a steering wheel and just drive with it.
If the PS 3 was less money I probably would select it - primarily for the graphics as well as the Blue Ray player. However, if I was just looking for a fun game system, the Wii would be my choice. I am waiting for the eventual Wii-DS linked game that is played on the Wii and you can join in with your DS unit. Perhaps broadcast to the neighborhood kids?
Daniel suggested a Most Haunted Wii game where you use the Wii Remote like the night vision camera on the series and try and find ghosts and poltergeist activity. Yvette/Karl are you listening?
IMG_6584
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.
Daniel and I visited the newly refurbished Griffith Observatory last Saturday. Overall it is very well done. The new planetarium is very nice, however I wanted to see more of a star show rather than the lengthy computer generated video that they were showing. Most of the exhibits, especially the new space below the front lawn are top rate and contain the latest and greatest information on all space things.
A few smaller finishing touches are still being added here and there, but nothing major. There has been heavy usage of the observatory and there are some signs of wear already. I sure hope they get a good maintenance budget so they can avoid all the problems that led to them having to refurbish in the first place.
The Observatory is free, but if you do not want to hike in for free, you have to pony up $8 for the shuttle bus. It is a bit steep for a 15 min trip, but hopefully the money goes to maintenance.
Visited the dentist today for my semi-annual cleaning and checkup. I never mind going to the dentist, because I like the feeling in my mouth after everything is polished. I had a different person this time then the previous two and she really gave me the hard sell on flossing. She also noticed that I miss a spot when I brush my teeth and I should try and do a better job brushing.
Mind you, when I went in at the end of 2005 after skipping the dentist for two years, I didn't get any lectures at all. Oh well, at least they are not prepping to drill for cavities. Another hard sell was an electric toothbrush. I have never been sold on them since there are so many different varieties out there and I have no idea where to start. The dental assistant gave me some pointers and afterwards I headed out to Target with my coupon.
I wasn't about to get the $100 version, so I settled on a sub $20 version that ended up being less than 15 after my coupon. I chose the Oral-B Vitality Sonic since I always liked it when my dentist in Davis would clean my teeth with an ultrasonic device. I charged it up when I got home and took it for a spin. It takes some getting used to, but I am willing to give it a go and see if there is a nominal difference in July when I have my next check-up.
Today the company threw the Class of 2001 a nice luncheon at the Disneyland Hotel Marina ballroom. Over the years, people reaching the 5 year milestone received everything from crystal to chocolate. This year is the last 5 year luncheon that the resort will hold so I did not go into it with any sort of expectations or demands. After all, it was a free lunch which is just fine with me.
We had one of the Disneyland Ambassadors as the emcee and they showed clips of everything that has happened at the resort in the last five years - from the opening of Disney's California Adventure Park to the 50th anniversary and Year of a Million Dreams Celebrations. A lot of stuff has happened in the time I have been at the resort, and I look forward to what is coming.
We also listened to someone from Walt's Hometown of Marceline, MO. Walt only lived there for four years but it had a tremendous impact on his life and the shape of Disneyland. It was a great presentation and it made me want to go visit Marceline and visit the Walt Disney Hometown Museum in the future for inspiration. I really have no idea how that related to our 5 year luncheon, but I just rolled with it. I was hoping that as part of the Backstage Magic portion of the YOMD that one of us would have won a trip for two to Marceline. Oh well it was not to be. There is always the 10th Anniversary celebration.
Seeing all the photos made me go back through my archives and look at some of the photos that have been taken of me or by me in the 5+ years of working at the resort. I am going to upload some to Flickr in the next week and post a link here so you can relive the magic with me.
Here is to another 5!
I love the movie Inland Empire and recently discovered the Italian Trailer which some (including me) think is better than the original. You decide:
Italian:
American:
After drooling over the $400 deluxe weather station at Fry's, I settled on the $19.95 LaCrosse Technology WS-9013U. It is pretty basic, but does provide MAX/MIN storage and wirelessly transmits up to 330 feet (without obstruction). I think when I do eventually get a house I will upgrade to the pro station that automatically updates current weather readings to the internet, but for now I am happy.
The device is currently calibrating with the US Atomic Clock and also calibrating the outdoor sensor so by this time tomorrow it should be running on its own.
Last week at this time I was noting how hot it was. The high temperature was 80+ degrees and we were all wondering what happened to winter. Well, the old man heard us and now the lows are in the low 30s and the highs are barely making it into the 50s. Supposedly, the weather should return to normal sometime at the end of the week, but I am not holding my breath.
One of the things I would like to get is a wireless weather station. I used to have one of the old corded ones many years ago. I would think that 20 years later they would all be wireless, but alas, they are still made. Actually prices for full-fledged professional weather stations are in the low $200s and we were talking at work about getting one complete with the deluxe anemometer and self-emptying rain gauge for the lead office.
But until then, I would like to be able to monitor the Climate Change from inside my apartment.
After years and years of using Cafe Press and not selling anything but the occasional T-shirt to myself, I finally put together a calendar. I have always wanted to do a "Best of Gorn" calendar, but there is so many photos out there I would always get overwhelmed and stop midway through creating it. The last time I finished a custom calendar was in 1995 for the Dome to Dome Twice Official Calendar.
This year I did not receive a calendar for Christmas, so I decided the time was right for me to make one again. I decided to get together some photos of my Australian trip last March and viola!
I do wish Cafe Press allowed me to customize the dates a bit more to put relatives birthdays etc. on it, but I am pretty happy with the result. There are a few photos that ended up a tad blurry since they were taken at night, but most are crisp and sharp.
Here are the monthly photos:
January - Sydney Opera House
February - Twelve Apostles, Victoria
March - Uluru at Sunset
April - Skyrail, Cairns, Australia
May - View of The Basin from Coasters Retreat
June - Melbourne from Rialto Tower
July - Kangaroo, Euroka Clearing, Blue Mountains National Park
August - Manly Beach
September - Trolley Car, Melbourne
October - Sydney Harbour Bridge at Sunset
November - Barron Falls
December - Melbourne at Night
One may wonder why there are no Great Barrier Reef photos in the calendar. When I was assembling the photos, all the reef photos were taken with the disposable underwater camera and are not the same resolution as the rest and would have stuck out like a sore thumb. Oh well, there is always next time.
Would you like to get a 2007 Australia Calender - a Club Josh Exclusive? You can order it at the Club Josh Galleria. Enjoy!
Daniel finally was able to get a Nintendo DS lite and as a result, he has given me his old Nintendo DS so I can play along with some of the games he has. I am not one to play video games - I have neither the time nor the patience to devote to most games. One weakness I do have is driving games.
When Coder was staying at my place for awhile, he had his Playstation 2 and Gran Tourismo 4. I loved racing with him and also playing around on my own. I can't wait to see what the PS3 version will be like.
So I was happy to find a driving game for the DS. I did not know that some DS games can be downloaded from one unit to another and played while others require both units to have the game card. I was hoping the driving game ASphalt Urban GT was one that we could share, but alas both have to have the card. It was pretty inexpensive at Best Buy, but I think I will play it a bit more before I decide if Daniel should get a copy.
I also bought Brain Age. I guess it is a game, but in reality it is a bunch of mental exercises that keep you sharp. So far my brain age is in the 50s and it needs to get down into the 30s. I really like the puzzles and challenges it has - save the one where you have to memorize words. I have never been good at that and it usually drags down my score.
Another game that Daniel and I have played is called Elite Beat Agents. It is like Dance, Dance Revolution but for the stylus of the DS. It is pretty addicting once you figure out how to make the thing work. After 5 tries I finally was able to win a round or two. I think we will be playing this one for awhile. Tiffany is coming over on Saturday so hopefully the three of us will play together.
Steve revealed the iPhone today. Paul and I were watching the live text updates on macrumors.com for the two hours of the Keynote address and loved every minute of the announcement. Personally, I think they are way off on price point and that it should be $299 or even $399 for the 4GB model. Paul was disappointed that it did not have iChat capabilities. All in all it looks like an awesome product that I will be seriously considering when it comes out in June.
The Apple TV did nothing for me and also looks like Wall St. didn't like it either since the stock was tanking while they were talking about it. Fortunately, they revealed the iPhone and the stock shot up. Next time I will buy stock before the Macworld Expo.
It is January and it is 80 degrees outside. It is the same temperature in LA as it is in Sydney, Australia and they are in the middle of their summer. I do not know what is going on except Nathan reports that it has yet to snow in New York this winter. Of course the year I went to NY it had a record blizzard.
I have never been one to jump on the Global Warming/Climate Change band wagon but lately I do wonder what is going on with the earth. Of course, I still hold out for the fact that we are just at the peak of warmness and then we will be heading towards an ice age. "Day after Tomorrow" anyone?
One of the other things we are overdue for is a re-orientation of our magnetic field. This phenomenon switches the North Pole with the South Pole and usually wreaks havoc on just about all aspects of life. Maybe the reason we are having Summer in the middle of Winter is due to the fact we are really in the Southern Hemisphere.
Then again, maybe we really are messed up and I need to find some property that is at elevation 25 feet and start planning beach-front condos.
I do hope that Northern California gets hammered by rain and snow so that we at least will be able to drink water this summer and be able to flush the toilet whenever we want.
In direct competition with my desire to get my financial house in order, this week will prove to be a tough challenge. Three of the biggest events that appeal to me will occur this week and I will have to be very restrained!
First up is the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. I love cars, especially new ones and concepts of what is to come. Edmunds really got me hooked on these auto shows and I can't wait to see what is coming down the horizon. Of course, all I really want is an Acura RDX, but until they have some sweet leasing plans, I think my next vehicle might be an updated CR-V. Volvo will be introducing the Volvo CX-60 which is on par with the CR-V, but I think it is based on that Mazda CX-7 and Ford Edge platform. I also really like the new BMW 3-series convertible with the retractable hard top. At any rate this show is something I will be watching closely.
Second up is the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. I am dying to see what the latest and greatest gadgets galore are going to be. Also, I want to see if there area any cool TVs coming out soon. I really am not in the market for one since I love my 36" Sony, but it weighs 250 pounds and it would be nice to have something nice to hang on the wall or on a stand to give my front room a more elegant look.
Finally, the Macword Expo in San Francisco promises to be full of electronic goodness. I have a 2+ year old iPod that is not even in color and it would be nice to upgrade to something that plays video. I am hoping there will be the full screen iPod soon. Paul keeps trying to convince me to look at Mac computers, and I am not opposed to one since Daniel has one so I can get some good software. My issue is that they are pricey and I still think I can get a better PC equivalent. On the other hand, after reading about Microsoft Vista, I am not to keen on getting it. So time will tell. I think my other issue is that I have both a desktop and a laptop so I would have to decide if I wanted a new Mac desktop or a laptop.
Never mind the fact I cannot afford any such expenditure. This is all about lust anyways isn't it?
One of the things I wish to accomplish in 2007 is to get my financial life in order. I don't expect to become completely debt free in 2007, but I at least want to have a plan to reduce my debt and start planning for retirement. I have about 30 years plus of productivity left in me before I decide to live in a mobile home and travel the world.
One of the things I have had since I was a kid was savings bonds that my dad and grandfather gave me every birthday and Christmas. They are tucked away in a safe deposit box so I rarely think about them. I have half of the original bonds since I had some financial difficulties in 1994 which forced me to cash some of them. This morning as I was looking into various online financial stuff, I decided to check the balance of them. I keep an inventory of the bonds in the house and when I looked it up, I realized the last time I checked the bonds was in 1999. Since then, four of the bonds have matured and are no longer earning interest. The rest have dropped from 6-7% interest to 4% in the last 7 years. It looks like I need to cash out those bonds and roll them into something more dynamic. What? I don't know.
Also, I have a few thousand in an old Edmunds 401K that is not really doing anything for me other than keeping me from spending it on a new Sony Bravia TV (a good thing).
My plan is to get all these misc/other financial resources together and see what I can do about getting a much higher return for my investment. One thing I would love to get is a house. I think I could get a pretty good return in real estate, I just need to get over the hump of down payment and then figure out an affordable monthly payment.
Whatever happens, I will need to have a plan in place by October!
Looking back on the past year, I can honestly say it was a pretty good year. I always get nervous saying things like that because invariably the other shoe drops and things just snowball downhill. But some pretty amazing things happened to me this year and only a smattering of negatives cropped up. I hope 2007 is the year that things go to the next level on several fronts.
Highlights of 2006:
Australia with Mom and Gary (which contained many, many moments in itself)
Meeting Charo, Bob Iger, and Ed Grier
Seeing Matt and Steve again
Two brand new states
Two friends getting married
A Lead at Buzz
Project Lead!!
Lowlights:
The passing of my grandfather
Cyst removal and the ensuing scar
Weight gain from cyst removal
Stupid Left eye
Manhattan size earwax removal
Hmm it might seem like I had a plethora of health issues this past year, but in fact I did not miss a single day of work due to sickness this year. Even when I had the cyst removed I did it over my weekend and thus was back to work the next day - although I did bleed through a few Buzz costumes. I also gained at least 10 pounds from inactivity and probably age related issues. For the first time in years I am actively pursuing ways to loose weight. I am over 200lbs for the first time in my life and I would love to be back in the 180s. I will try and eat better and walk more. I will see how it goes and if push comes to shove I will bite the bullet and get a personal trainer so I look hot and cute for the attraction premiere in June.
I do miss my grandfather Bill, but I do know that he is in a MUCH better place than where he was the last few years of his life suffering from a form of Parkinson's and other muscular degeneration.
As for travel, I did visit a new country and two new states in 2006. I did not get a chance to see Kris or Nathan, but I did see Alex and Mark for the first time in ages. Susie and Mark got married this year (not to each other, but to fine spouses) and I could not be happier for both of them. It always makes me reflect on my relationships, but I know my time will come someday and it is not something I really want to rush.
So here is to 2007! It looks like the first 6 months will be VERY interesting and full of things to learn.
New Years 2007
It has been a few years since I posted my list of things I have done on New Year's Eve, so I figured that it was time:
1990-1995 Disneyland
1995-6 Universal CityWalk
1996/7 Disneyland
1997/8 Club Universe
1998/9 Dad's House
1999/2000 The crazy disco Hollywood sign affair
2000/1 Santa Barbara
2001/2 Working at Disneyland
2002/3 Working at Disneyland/Horrible Club in Hollywood
2003/4- Quality Time at Home
2004/5 - Sick at Home
2005/6 - Working at Buzz
2006/7 - Quality Time at Home
I think I should plan on doing something next year. I am overdue for going out and having a blast ringing in the new year. I should note that it was sad to see Dick Clark struggling to speak on the set of New Year's Rockin' Eve. I think it is just a matter of time before this constant in my life is gone.
My brother, his wife and my nephew braved the New year's crowd at Disneyland. I was a bit jealous - I had wanted to go with them, but these days I like to spend my weekends recharging rather than going all out.
As for New Year's resolutions, I am still working on them, but I think I am going to give up candy. In the last few months in the office I have been snacking on them a lot so I really want to cut it down.
I will reflect on 2006 a bit later.
