A long absence..

Hey guys, it has been quite a while since my last post. I've been away from the blogging scene for.. wow, I just checked and it has been eight days today. :| feels kind of weird being away from the internet for so long, but nonetheless it has been an exciting and eventful week.

Just some laughs..

I read through the headlines of the day, and my god, people.. have you guys seen some of this? lol

A twenty-five year old 'beauty queen' killed a man today. Not just any man, this was a home invader. And she shot him with not just any gun too, but a pink .38 caliber handgun. You've gotta wonder how many other colors she has.. I mean, a girls got to match, right? -_-

Tell me, if an old lady befriended you and demanded a kiss, would you kiss her? How about if she was ninety-two years old? But tell me, if she threatened to shoot you, would you do it now? Apparently, a man in Florida had to answer that question yesterday. Shots fired.. suspect is a 92 year old female, considered armed and dangerous. xD


Hey, now this is just some general advice.. If you ever receive a ticket for drinking and driving, try to be on time to your hearing. Oh, and just in case you were considering it, don't bring beer. Although I should say an hour and a half is on time enough if the dude is bringing beer. :) Who is with me on that one? :P

Always crazy happenings going on in the world.. I tried to keep it a bit lighter for you guys, considering all of the bad news I've been posting, and all the bad news going on in general.

Cheers! ^_^

Admitted: Radiation Leak Serious Enough to Kill

Well, the title says it all. 'They' have finally admitted that the nuclear situation is more serious than previously believed. We already knew the radiation was going to cover the entire Northern Hemisphere, but now they are finally admitting that the radiation will be serious enough to cause deaths at home.

The INES classification has been upped to level 5.

Those working relief are essentially on a suicide mission if you ask me. They have moved the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES) classification from a 4 to a 5, putting it in the same category as the Three Mile Island accident, where ironically enough, the people were lied to as well.


Well needless to say perhaps, but I will, this upsets me. Not only will there be additional loss of life, but the callous nature of government officials and nuclear energy executives has the gall to hide it from the public for so long.

I wonder how many will needlessly die as a result of this.

I'll close with another descriptive chart contained within the article, this one detailing the aftermath of the quake.

I guess all we can do now is help as best we can and hope our prayers are answered. Oh, and hope for some transparency from the bureaucrats.

UCLA Undergraduate Comments on Asians

As this video has been out for a few days already, you guys might be surprised to hear that I have just now seen it, and oh my god.. My reaction is just.. WTF? I'm not even Asian and I'm shocked by this.

As an American, I want to apologize to all of the Americans (because I'm sure she won't do it, or even know why she should) who will be inaccurately assumed to be similar to the girl in this video. This is the sort of thing we have to deal with. This is it, right here. Being clumped into a category with this girl. What makes me cringe even more is my experience with this kind of ignorance. I have myself had to deal with people like this the entire time I was growing up. This may be considered unrelated to the topic, but I remember one girl thinking that Africa was a country in Europe.

Yeah. You read that correctly. Africa, a country in Europe. Needless to say my jaw dropped in disbelief, and my faith in public education was effectively shattered.

Sure, I could be overreacting. If we take out her "ching chong ting tong" remark, and subtract "hordes of Asians" and well.. all of the other essentially racist comments she made, then basically it's a video of a blond girl who had trouble studying in a library because someone was using a cell phone.

I mean, I just don't get it though. Was this supposed to be a joke video? Was she trying to get a reaction? Apparently she issued an apology, saying "I cannot explain what possessed me to approach the subject as I did, and if I could undo it, I would..." Sure, now she wants to apologize. I mean, did she even know about the earthquake?

In a way I feel really, really bad for her.

Cheers guys. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods.

Turmoil in Japan

I've been keeping up with the news from Japan these past few days, and nothing positive is really developing yet. From a now 9.0 magnitude quake, to nuclear reactors possibly melting, to the earth literally spinning faster and her axis being nudged a few inches.. yeah doesn't seem too great.

Also, some sources think Japan is suppressing the scale of the crisis.

Apparently this whole 'nuclear situation' is getting worse, and if the meltdown becomes too serious then it will be a global problem. The nuclear fallout shouldn't be life threatening, but a worst-case scenario, is the Northern Hemisphere being polluted by a meltdown (similar to Chernobyl).

Let's not forget that they expect additional aftershocks, even one that is supposed to hit at least a 7.7 magnitude...

Crazy things going on in the world today.. I'll keep updating as major breakthroughs happen. Let's hope for something positive.

Just got home!

Wow, this has been a most interesting week. It's been six days since my last post; easily my longest hiatus. I wanted to start off by saying sorry to my loyal followers for my being absent as long as I was.. this past week happened to be one of spontaneity, fun, but loss as well. Two good friends of mine are on their way to California.

I just got done helping my two friends in their move. An east coast to west coast move is always an arduous preparation, yet an exciting contemplation. Now of course I didn't go with them to their destination (in-fact they just left a few minutes ago), but we spent the past six days hanging out just like old times. Six days away from computers, fast-food, paved roads, and well... pretty much anything that the western world is used to.

My friends lived in a cabin in a nearby wooded area, and spontaneously decided that they wanted a change and they were going to move out west. They aren't even sure where they are going, but the calling had arrived, and their decision was made. I was surprised with a knock at the door and informed of their decision, and immediately we left for their cabin to spend a week together.

These two have been together for a long time now, and it's always wonderful to see a man and a woman who just fit so well together. You can just look at them and know, you know? lol it's really hard for me to explain, but they just make a great couple. I'm happy they're on their path, but I'm still sad that they are leaving. Sure I'll visit them one day, but it's hard to see someone go, especially so when you grow up with them. :/

Well, this week has been a long and fun one, but very tiring as well. I'm going to check out what I've missed this past week and then probably take a nap lol. Thank you all for waiting and reading! ^_^

Friday!

Well it's finally Friday everybody.. it's safe to celebrate the end of the business week. This weekend is looking somewhat busy for me, but I've been increasingly lethargic these past few days so I'm not looking forward to the weekend with much excitement.

I've been looking for ways to give myself a boost but nothing seems to really work, at least not for any significant length of time. I've tried coffee, tea, energy drinks (really don't help with the crash), and next on my list is a product called 5 Hour Energy. I've never tried it, but I have heard some really good things, so why not?

Anyone else having trouble staying awake? Maybe it's something to do with my sleep... apnea, perhaps? :o Coffee is not a long-term solution, and I don't think 5 Hour Energy will be either.. stuff is pretty expensive.

Well, nonetheless, happy Friday everyone! Have a fun and safe weekend. :)

Bartending School

Hey guys, I decided to make a short update. Basically I am thinking about pursing a career as a bartender o_O. I've been doing some research on the topic and I've found out a few different things:

1. Bartender school - expensive, but seems to be worth it in terms of the amount of material you learn, as well as immersing yourself in the bar/club experience and using real materials etc.

2. Online course - much cheaper, but lacking the hands on experience/expertise you will have from an in-person course.

3. Neither? - I've read that some establishments take on inexperienced  prospects and train them themselves.

I haven't found anything that specifically states I would need some kind of credentials, and that's basically what I'm trying to figure out now..

Do any of my readers bar tend? How did you get into the field? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks guys :)

Stick RPG 2 Info

OK so apparently the game has been out for quite a while.. The game came out sometime at the end of 2010, before Christmas I'm told (around November I believe). I tried playing it last night, and it runs on this computer, but I have frame rate problems.. The game runs fine I'm sure, I just have to use a very old laptop, and it just doesn't seem to cut it.

Initially when I saw the game was available, my heart filled with nostalgia thinking back to playing the original in class. I haven't gotten too far in the sequel just yet, but it's looking to be a fun and interesting game with potential. I think it's still in beta so that says a lot. The only problem I am having is the lack of literature, only being able to find one 'stickied' guide of any kind. The forum dwellers look helpful though, so not all is bad. :)

Anyway I am going to check this game out a bit more and upload anything I can figure out. I urge you guys to go check it out! Thank you for reading ^_^

Stick RPG 2!

OK I don't know if you guys know yet or even if you care, but Stick RPG 2 is finally out!!

I have been awaiting this release for years... I am going to check it out right now, and I'll probably post an update later on or maybe tomorrow detailing what I've found out/what I think about the game.

For now, gonna play some  Stick RPG 2!!! :D

More Crazy News

OK wow guys.. I just read these and I cannot believe the stuff that goes on in this world. If these aren't hilarious to you, then I don't know what will be :P.

A mattress on the floor...

How many of you guys are lazy? Well, most westerners are at least somewhat lazy, but I mean really lazy? I sleep on a mattress on the ground, but I've had a bed-frame in a box sitting in my room for over a month now.

LASIK vs. LASEK

Hey guys. So I did a bit more reading on LASIK this morning and found out there are quite a few procedures which are all relatively similar and almost the same thing.

LASIK

OK! So after reading everyone's suggestions, I have decided to do a little bit of research on LASIK. I feel like I'm a pro on the subject now that I've done my homework, so I'll try to explain what I've learned. ;)

Ohy my god, what happened?

Ugh.. don't even know what happened last night. This is a written reminder for me to never drink that much again. I just slept for like.. I don't know, twenty hours? My head is throbbing and if I try moving it.. well let's just say moving my head is painful.

Sorry for not being around these past two days. I started drinking early on Saturday and just recovered now lol. Ugh, seriously dude don't ever drink that much again (another reminder for me).

Well either way I read all of your comments and I actually grew a bit intereested in LASIK (laser assisted in situ keratomileusis). Now, glasses and contacts are not out of my mind just yet, but I feel I owe it to my readers to do a bit of research on the procedure, considering I know pretty much nothing about LASIK as of right now.

Well thanks again for reading guys. ^_^

May your weekend be hangover free! :)

New Glasses or Contacts? Medical Insurance?

Well it's about that time to visit the eye doctor. I usually go in January but this year has been kind of busy. Luckily, my eye care professional is located a few minutes from my house and I won't be needing a vehicle.

100 followers!

w00t! I have finally reached one-hundred followers!

This is just to thank all of my loyal readers, and of course any new readers I have picked up. :)

Thank you guys so much! ^_^

Layout Feedback

OK everyone. Today I am going to be asking a few questions about my layout.

I have noticed a lot of the blogs I follow are filled with colorful backgrounds and titles, and I just feel  that this is not for me. My blog has a very simple/minimalistic view, and I want to know what everyone thinks about this.

Personally, I love looking at my blog lol. It's very easy on my eyes (although maybe the white is a bit too bright.. o_O) and easy to read. I just prefer the whole minimalist look as it doesn't overindulge the eyes.. I tend to get distracted when there are a lot of things to notice xD.

But! I am not the one that will be looking at it. So I ask you, my loyal readers, what do you consider aesthetically pleasing in a blog? I understand that everyone is different in preference, and so I'd like to get an idea of what my readers are looking for when they read mine and other blogs.

Are you happy with my minimalistic style? Are you disappointed by it? Perhaps indifferent?

All feedback is welcome :). As always, thank you all.

The American Dream

I spent another night without sleep thanks to my acid-reflux so I'm going to make this short.

I have a video I saw a while ago that I would like to share. Very entertaining yet educational at the same time.

If you haven't seen it yet then I hope you guys like it. If you do enjoy it then I ask that you share it with others that you know.

The American Dream:

In other news...

How many of my readers read the news daily? I'm sure most people are keeping up to date with the main stories of what has been going on in the world, but sometimes  the strangest things happen in other news.

Acid Reflux Disease

Couldn't sleep at all tonight.. Heartburn has been keeping me up. I've been dealing with heartburn since I was a little tyke.. nasty ailment it is. My largest irritation, really. What's worse is the lack of any long-term acid reflux treatment.

New Oblivion Char?

Woke up at like 1800 hours today.. Wow it's late lol. Not much to do today so I figure I will make a new Khajiit thief in Oblivion. Not much going on for me today.. I hope everyone had a very good weekend! Good luck on Monday :P.

I hope all of my readers are interested in what is going on in the world. Here I'll post some videos concerning the happening in America. Please watch

Quantitative Easing Explained:

Bank Bailouts Explained:



^^^ A complex issue explained very simply so that anyone can understand. Share and enjoy! ^_^

These videos can be found on http://omidmalekan.com/. I take no credit for the production of these videos. All I am doing is sharing them with my readers. Thank you for reading!

Broken Strings... Broken Dreams

Ugh... Broke a string on my acoustic today... Nearest store to sell them is like twenty-five minutes away. Being as how I don't have my license..

The Lottery

So my friend won the lottery the other day... Nothing too major, just half a million... lol. Looks pretty major to me. But it got me thinking..

Alpha Centauri

Still no DMV test.. Beginning to drive me crazy -_-. But! In the meantime there are a few other things I am going to be talking about...

Raptor: Call of the Shadows

Soo.. another day or so till the test. Illness can be time consuming. Oh well, I'm not really in any hurry to get the test done.. I just hate hurrying up to wait.

Meanwhile I am about to play an old game called Raptor: Call of the Shadows. I don't know if any of you guys have ever heard of it but it's old vertical-scrolling shoot-em-up game made back in 1994. Why am I playing this ancient thing? Well it was a great game.. and I had a case of nostalgia the other day and I just had to find it and play it again.

Anyone remember Duke Nukem? And not Duke Nukem 3D.. I mean the first three (I think there were three) side-scrolling shoot-em-ups? I seriously fell in love with those back in the day.. they came with 3D and I kind of liked them more in some ways :P. I managed to find that CD and am going to try to play that one too.

Seems like it's retro game Wednesday for me lol. Thank you guys for reading! ^_^

Another day, another day.. wait, how many more?

Ugh.. So DMV test didn't happen today. Apparently my sister fell ill and was unable to take me. In the past I would've gotten more upset than I am now, but meh. Not in my control, and a day or two to wait won't hurt. I feel bad having you guys wish me all of this luck for a test that didn't even happen! :/

Anyway... Thank you all for the support and encouragement anyway! I have the power to carry over all of the wished luck for the actual test taking day, so no worries ;). If anything I have a few more practice tests I can take in the mean time.

So I have been thinking about performing a two week water fast. For those of you who don't know, fasting is when you stop eating solid food. It's supposed to aide you spiritually, mentally, and physically. I'm still undecided as I have family telling me it can be dangerous and numerous trusted sources telling me it can be very rewarding. Looks like I'm going to do some more research and get back to you guys about this.

Have any of you ever tried a fast before? If so, what was the nature of the fast, and what results did you see? I'm going to put a link to some info below. Let me know what you guys think! :)

http://www.erowid.org/spirit/fasting/fasting.shtml

^^ Fasting info.

Big Rock Candy Mountain

Well last night was one of those "never again" nights. Woke up with a huge headache and a black tongue. Yeah I flipped out too until I found out it happens sometimes when you take Pepto-Bismol.. still pretty freaky to wake up and see a black tongue in the mirror lol.

The game was okay, I didn't end up paying too much attention to be honest. I see we have mixed feelings about Christina's performance :P. I thought it was meh, but that's just me.

So I finally have that DMV test tomorrow.. going to study a bit right now before I hit the sack to gain additional confidence. I have a feeling I will do well. Kind of can't wait now that I think about it; I've been wanting to drive for a while.

Thank you guys for the feedback in terms of my blog ideas. I have decided to write a bunch of info before even starting anything online, just so people can learn/play at their own pace. Hopefully I'll have it up in a week or two, but I can't make any promises.. my schedule has been all over the place. Fitness is a good idea as well and that is something I can upload pretty soon. My goal is to have user-friendly knowledge in a step-by-step sort of display, for the benefit of anyone interested. Clear language, simple diagrams, etc.

Well again I'd like to thank everyone for reading and providing feedback. Wish me luck! ^_^

PS: I looked up at the title and I almost forgot! My favorite song.. for today. :P

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12cbF8FXadQ

Ready for kickoff!

w00t. Ready for the game.. Christina Aguilera is about to sing the national anthem.. kind of surpised there but meh. Hmm some chick from Glee just came on, Lea Michele? Never saw the program but she has a powerful voice.

Anyway.. I've been thinking about starting a few more blogs. As you guys know I am becoming a bit of a fitness freak. I thought it might be a good idea to make a blog to demonstrate my progress and techniques.. things like exercises, nutrition, motivation etc. Also, I want to make a blog teaching people to play the piano from scratch, as in no prior musical experience. It would be arduous and difficult but it's something I haven't been able to find online yet... A quality, come from nothing, step by step guide to learning to play the piano. Definitely at the top of my list.

Let me know if any of you guys would be interested in something like that.

Well all of that aside, thank you to all my loyal followers :). If you're watching then enjoy the game! If not then enjoy your Sunday night regardless ! ^_^

Pizza, Wings, and Football Americano

WADDAP!? Just got done eating a delicious homemade pizza.. Cheese, eggplant, mushrooms, onions.. was gonna throw some sausage and beef on there but unfortunately it was frozen at the time of my preparation.

I am getting ready for tomorrow's game(the Superbowl.. Green Bay vs Pittsburgh) with some homemade pizza and buffalo wings. I am a fan of many sports, my favorite being soccer. Sadly we don't have the Russian Premier League over here in the states, but we do get some great matches nonetheless (La Liga, English, Serie A, Bundesliga.. some good international play as well), and even sadder, I can't really say I belong to a club as I wasn't brought up with one and I don't want to join a family without some kind of sentiment involved.

Naturally, after being such a great host for a number of World Cup games, I have decided to host tomorrow's game as well :). Looking forward to kicking back with a few buddies and just chilling and enjoying the game...

How many readers of mine are sports fans? Also, for any readers living outside of the US, what is your take on American Football? I understand it's most generally an American market, but I have heard that we have some foreign interest. Who's gonna be watching tomorrow? :)

Car Insurance/Vehicle

OK.. So as you guys know I am going to be taking my DMV test pretty soon.. probably tomorrow actually. Now I'm at the point where I need to start thinking about what car I am going to be getting and what insurance provider I will be using. Now I know many of you will say "6 months with a permit don't need a car etc" but I will need to begin saving up, and I am trying to work out a goal to save for.

In terms of a vehicle, my main criteria for a car would be gas mileage and safety. I was thinking maybe an old Honda, or an old Volvo.. But I don't know too much about cars in general :x. Just looking to get from a to b without spending too much or god-forbid dying.

My second concern being insurance.. What am I looking to spend here? I heard that a male first time driver is looking at a worse rate than a female, but what exactly does anyone in the Northeast pay, gender aside? I won't be able to afford any good coverage I'm sure.. Just going to stick with liability.

Any feedback on a car or insurance would be greatly appreciated. :)

DMV Knowledge Test

Ugh.. So I am studying to take the DMV Knowledge Test.. Twenty years old and I've been putting it off for.. what, four years now? Pathetic of course, but I never needed to drive until now. Public transportation is a very useful thing :).

I'm disappointed that there aren't any decent practice tests or resources out there. Maybe I'm just not looking hard enough. Either way, I have a hard copy of the manual in my hand and am dreading taking notes. Soon I will have to shop for auto insurance. Shop for auto insurance.. What a dismal activity :|. Perhaps soon I will have to shop for life insurance. God and one day shop for homeowners insurance.

Why is it mandatory in some states to have auto insurance? What are everyone's thoughts on driving in general? If permitted would you stick with public transportation, or would you rather opt to go the expensive albeit more rewarding (considering possibilities) route of purchasing a vehicle, insurance, etc. I'm interested in your thoughts :).

American Reject 2012

I found this a while back and it still makes me lol. I'd recommend watching it from the beginning.. It's basically about a man whose wife left him because he was getting too far into conspiracy theories. Appalling, grotesque, quirky... There are so many words to describe this channel but most of all I find it absolutely hilarious.

Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/user/AmericanReject2012

Men don't exist

I just watched a very interesting Youtube video on how men are portrayed in the media. I'm actually going to have a closer look at this entire channel.. Very, very, very, interesting stuff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZAuqkqxk9A

Exercise for the win

I have recently started an exercise routine. I perform calisthenics almost daily.. A mix of many variations of push-ups, crunches, bodyweight squats..

I ready a book by Matt Furey titled, "Combat Conditioning". I have begun experimenting with some of the exercises in the book and have begun what he calls the "Royal Court", which consists of Hindu sqauts, Hindu push-ups, and the "king", the back bridge. I've noticed quite the difference in my body as of now. I plan to being a jogging routine as well, once this snow decides to leave... -_-

Anyway, I recommend everyone to try to get into shape. Most people these days live almost entirely sedentary lives. We didn't evolve to sit in front of a desk all day.. I say get moving and get healthy. You can never be too healthy.

Read more.

I want everyone to begin reading again. I feel like it's such a dying pastime that more people use corded phones than read anymore. We're progressing so far with technology that the wonderful ideas of the past (book, things on paper in general, ramps even) are being taken for granted and actually forgotten. I understand you can get a book on a computer or an e-book but I can't be the only one who enjoys sitting down with a nice hardcover from time to time.. can I?

I say throw out your television and pick up a book :).

Happy days will be had.

An apple a day..

I just ate an apple and thought how amazing it is that such a thing as fruit even exists. I mean come on, watermelon? Grapes? Kiwi!? So delicious and at the same time somewhat good for you. Life in general is amazing. We are on a planet. Like.. Earth is habitable.

Think about that for a minute.

Just blows my mind.

1974 Marshall Half Stack

I have a 1974 Marshall Half stack sitting in my room. Sad thing is I haven't picked up an electric guitar in ages. This amp is worth a bit of money I'm told.. I prefer my acoustic, as I'd rather play a mediocre acoustic than a mediocre electric (I have some Ibanez GAX series.. kind of trashy).

I use it to amplify my phone's mp3 player when I exercise. Most expensive speaker I've ever used :).

Toilet Paper Eating Woman

I saw a show on TLC the other week about a woman who eats toilet paper. Shocked, I continued to forward my family and a few friends to a Youtube clip of the program. Met with either disgust or disbelief, I want to share it with anyone who might read this blog some day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kdTZK3-fcY

Some really weird stuff. o_O

The Power of Now

I read a book recently that really changed my life.. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle... Basically it's about the ego-centered world we live in.

Every word just resonated with me.. We all spend too much time remembering/forgetting the past or pondering the future that we completely forget about now. It's amazing really. The past is useless, and the future is uncertain; the only thing that is certain or we have any control over is now.

Whether you're eating a donut, drinking bottled water, listening to the radio, watching tv, paying taxes, looking for auto insurance... Doing anything!! Do it now. Forget the past and the future.

Great book. I recommend anyone to check it out.