We Are Piolts

Shiny Toy Guns... I LOVE this song...

"Holding close my secrets
Naked broken pieces-from the madness in what you do
The fingers point right back at you
What about my problems?
The people try to solve them
I guess I’m under the weather...
Since no one else belongs here, with me

Hello mother,
Some news for you
I’m really not that crazy.
Hello father,
I'm curious?
Why you think there's something wrong with me.
Sunday I cried all night...
And it hurt so bad
But if you try to understand--
This is who I am.

Color coated sweetness
Swords beneath my clean dress
I'm making sense of shattered dreams
Because I want you to be proud of me
What about my problems?
The people try to solve them?
I guess i’m under the weather
Since no one else belongs here with me...."

Drink of the Day: Pink Tea

Pink Tea

2 oz. Ciroc Vodka
1 oz. Pama Liqueur (Pomegranate Liqueur)
Build in a tall glass filled with ice
Fill with soda
Top off with a splash of 7-UP/Sprite
Garnish with a lime wedge


Yummie. It's also good to try it with Absolut Pears Vodka.

Dallas Cowboys '08 Football Schedule

Regular Season

Sun 9/7 at Cleveland 4:15 pm
Mon 9/15 Philadelphia 8:30 pm
Sun 9/21 at Green Bay 8:15 pm
Sun 9/28 Washington 4:15 pm
Sun 10/5 Cincinnati 4:15 pm
Sun 10/12 at Arizona 4:15 pm
Sun 10/19 at St. Louis 1:00 pm
Sun 10/26 Tampa Bay 1:00 pm
Sun 11/2 at NY Giants 4:15 pm
bye
Sun 11/16 at Washington 8:15 pm
Sun 11/23 San Francisco 1:00 pm
Thu 11/27 Seattle 4:15 pm
Sun 12/7 at Pittsburgh 4:15 pm
Sun 12/14 NY Giants 8:15 pm
Sat 12/20 Baltimore 8:15 pm
Sun 12/28 at Philadelphia 1:00 pm

They Might Be Giants!

Birdhouse in Your Soul. Anyone remember this from '90? Hello? Is anyone reading this blog?

15 Commandments!

I love Mel Brooks.

Minimize your own impact on global warming

WE has a list of actions that any individual can take to minimize their own impact on global warming that can be found here. This got me thinking, what other steps can we as individuals take to help minimize global warming as well as help preserve other aspects of the environment? Here's my list:

There are toilets on the market which allow a consumer to determine how much flush is needed... you know depending on what's in the bowl. If this step is a little out of your price range you could update the old toilet that dumps 40 gallons of water each time you flush it to one that only dumps 10 gallons of water per flush. If this option is still out of your price range you could adopt Timmy's favorite toilet philosophy: "If it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown flush it down."

STOP DRINKING BOTTLED WATER! I'm serious. For one thing studies have shown that the contents of bottled water are no more pure than what you can simply drink from the tap (and it's REGULATED whereas the bottled water industry is NOT). Even more importantly it is estimated by the World Wide Fund for Nature that approximately 1.5 million tons of plastic are used in the bottled water industry every year. Now think about this, what is used to produce bottled products (a petroleum product)? Oil. What is used to transport bottled products? Oil. Where do most bottled products end up? In a landfill. I know it's convenient to purchase and carry bottled water but I think this is one luxury we should and can give up! Here's some other reasons to give up bottled water.

Purchase or rent "An Inconvenient Truth", it will scare the crap out of you. As the jacket for the DVD says: "watch it. share it. donate it."

Here in Oklahoma vote, contribute, and volunteer for Andrew Rice. He's running against Senator Jim Inhofe, embarassment to many Oklahomans for saying: global warming is the "greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people". Do a little research, there's a myrid of reasons this man should be thrown out of the Senate!

These are just a few suggestions by me. What do you think?

The dream is over...

For all those concerned, I am now employed again. I start on Friday, dark days are ahead...

We Can Solve It

We Can Solve It

Al Gore on 60 Minutes

For anyone that missed it 60 Minutes did a story on Al Gore last Sunday. I especially enjoy Gore's reaction to the current Vice President's beliefs on global warming at the 10:56 point. Enjoy!

Lyndon Baines Johnson

"I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president..."

Johnson uttered these words in a televised speech forty years ago tonight. How unfortunate that his legacy has been so severely tarnished (rightly so) by the escalation of the Vietnam War under his tenure as President. Let us not forget some of the good that came durning his Presidency: the "Great Society", the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the apppointment of Thurgood Marshall to the Supreme Court, the first African-American to be appointed to the high court, to name a few.

Click here to read more about LBJ.

How many could you take?

23

Dance Dance Revolution

Somehow Frank managed to talk me into buying Dance Dance Revolution today for the Wii. He's got until Mario Kart Wii is released (April 27th) to get it out of his system.


The collection, this and last generation.

How sweet this would be...

Click here for the story.

With Obama weakening and Clinton going off the deep end could Gore be the party's savior? Highly doubtful but one can dream...

Have I mentioned how much I love Al Gore?

Air New Zealand Pink Flight

"Quotes"

"If Tyrrany and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy."

"The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home."

-James Madison, 4th President (1809-1817)


"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

-Ben Franklin, founding father 1755


"It's not tyranny we desire; it's a just, limited, federal government."

-Alexander Hamilton, father of capitalism and my favorite gay founding father

Smash Brothers!

A week from tomorrow Super Smash Brothers Brawl will be hitting the shelves for the Nintendo Wii. Here's a funny commercial for the original Smash Brothers game for the Nintendo 64.

Estoy Aqui

Nintendo Wii in 2008 Part 3: Mario Kart Wii

Mario Kart Wii is listed as a Q2 release but considering the limited amount of information on the game I wouldn't expect to see a release this spring. Most likely Nintendo will unveil more information on the game at this years E3 conference and move the game to a fall release just in time to cash in on the holidays.

Mario Kart games are simple. Race to the finish line on a variety of tracks against multiple Nintendo mascot opponents using an arsenal of weapons such as banana peels, heat seeking shells, and blocks. Choose from a multitude of racers with varying skill sets including weight, acceleration, and top speed. Player modes have included circuit racing, time trials, battle modes, and split screen multiplayer racing. The game has appeared on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), the Nintendo 64, the Nintendo GameBoy Advance, the Nintendo GameCube, and most recently the Nintendo DS sporting a great online multiplayer feature.

Rumor has it that the latest entry in the Kart series will go back to its roots featuring one racer per kart (Mario Kart: Double Dash for the Nintendo GameCube offered two racers per kart giving the gamer the ability to switch between racers depending on the situation). Also rumored is the return of the power slide ability for advanced racers (a must for time trials) and an online multiplayer option that will allow you to race with up to 12 people from all over the world all at one time. Finally the game is to be packed with a steering wheel accessory that will cradle the Nintendo Wiimote for a more immersive game play experience (I think I'll stick with a more traditional approach with the game using a standard controller). See the video below for an explanation of the steering wheel accessory.

Reggie Fils-Aime's Comments on Mario Kart Wii



Mario Kart 64 is one of my favorite games of any generation and I'll be in line to try out Nintendo's latest Kart offering later this year.

Nintendo Wii in 2008 Part 2: Wii Fit

One of the next big releases projected in 2008 is Wii Fit. The game is still listed as TBA 2008 but I would expect a release earlier in the year rather than later. The release in Japan in Decemeber has already yeilded over a million units sold. So what is Wii Fit? Again I refer to our friends at IGN:

"The hit combination of Wii Sports and the Wii Remote brought golf swings and tennis serves into people’s homes. Now Nintendo turns the living room into a fitness center for the whole family with Wii Fit and the Wii Balance Board. Family members will have fun getting a "core" workout, and talking about and comparing their results and progress on a new channel on the Wii Menu.

Lean to block soccer balls, swivel hips to power hoop twirls or balance to hold the perfect yoga pose. As users stand on the Wii Balance Board, included with Wii Fit, their body’s overall balance is tied to the game in a way they’ve never experienced before. Wii Fit also uses the Wii Balance Board for daily tests. These evaluate two key measures that a household can track via progress charts."

Sounds a bit bizarre huh? Those crazy Japanese!

Wii Fit Trailer


Will this kind of "gaming" go over here as well as it has in the land of the rising sun? I would be willing to bet that indeed it will given Nintendo's track record of reaching out to and capturing casuel gamers over the last year. Will this be a game and peripheral that I would purchase? Unsure; however, the prospect of leaning left and right on the Wii Balance Board heading down the ski slopes sounds promising.

Nintendo Wii in 2008 Part 1: SSB Brawl

Similar to what I did before the release of the Nintendo Wii last year I want to take a look ahead to the games of 2008. 2008 promises to be another banner "sold out" year for the Wii. It's hard to imagine that a new year can top the offerings of last with the likes of a Zelda game, a Metroid game, and a Mario game, not to mention countless other titles! We'll be discussing the projected major releases through the year in each post. First up, Super Smash Brothers Brawl.

Of course we have to start with what will be a monster release slated for March 9th. The third installment in the Smash Brothers series looks to be the biggest and best yet. If you're not familiar with the series it's basically a fighting game with a "king of the hill" mentality. Stay alive and deal as much punishment to your opponents to survive the round. Here's what IGN has to say about the title: "Super Smash Bros. Brawl is a brawling, battling, action-packed video game that features a varied roster of characters for four-player simultaneous melees! This Wii entry in the popular series features a number of new additions, including an Adventure Mode (with co-op play), a wealth of new characters and stages, and online combat for multiple players to face off against each other from anywhere!" So be prepared to round up some friends at home or online and duke it out using a completely customizable control scheme for your Wiimote, GameCube remote, or Wii classic controller.

You can brawl your way to victory with a wide assortment of Nintendo mascots including old favorites like Mario, Link, and Fox McCloud, as well as newly added brawlers like Pit from Kid Icarus who hasn't graced a Nintendo game in 15 years. What may be more exciting about the line up is the addition of characters not held by Nintendo, namely Solid Snake from the Metal Gear franchise and Sonic from the Sonic the Headgehog franchise.

The title has already released to long lines in Japan with an amazing sale through rate. The same should hold true here in the states where previous installments sold tremendously totaling over 10 million copies on the Nintendo 64 and the Nintendo GameCube.

Super Smash Brothers Brawl Japanese Opening Cinematic



Super Smash Brothers Brawl Japanese Game Play



More information can be found here on the Wii Brawl page or here at the Smash Bros. Dojo.