Review of the State of the union address

I have no life so i watched speeches tonite. Altough i will refrain from analyzing the content (CNN, MSNBC, FOX are on top it), i still have some tought about them. And here they are.

State of the Union

Things I didn’t like.
- Excess clapping -- seriously there was a ridiculous amount of clapping. I seriously think it double the length of the speech.
- Honoring one soldier’s family members over others -- Over thousands American soldiers died in Iraq. I really don't it's fair that one soldier's family get recognized over the others.
- Mispronunciation of words and making up words -- Enough said.
- Emphasis on God -- Believe or not some people who are also citizen of this country do not believe in god or God. A speech on the state of the union should not have so much emphasis on god/God. I really hope the next president move away from the Regan goodbye line.
- The order of the speech -- The state of the Union speech should first focus on the State of Union first. I think that National issues should have been addressed first and then moving on international issues.
- Spitting out stats -- We all know that stats can be in many different ways to defend make one's point.
Things I liked
- He mentioned one non-Muslim African country -- Sometimes i think the Bush foreign policies seem to focus on the Middle East and terrorism.
- By partisan clapping on major issues -- Mainly supporting the soldiers and dealing with corruption on the hill.
- No Laundry list -- I felt that the president did a good of "addressing" a range of issues without turn it into a laundry list of to do and promises that will never get done.
- Tone of the speech -- Sounded confident and un-apologetic (even though he is/was wrong) about many policies.

Democratic Rebuttal.

Things I liked
- Tim Kaine - New Face for the democratic party.
- Explored a range of issues with concrete examples - They didn't focus on Iraq.
- Focus on Bi-partisanship - It's good for business. - Less focus on god/God - I still think the goodbye line. But much better than Bush. Things i didn’t like
- Too much blame - Enough said.
- Too focus in VA - really VA is not that great. Let’s get serious. They just have more money that most states.
- Giving Democrat too much credit - If they were doing so well they would be in power.
- Still not presenting Democrat concise Democrat plans.

State fo the Union drinking game

"He shall from time
to time give to the Congress information of the state of the union and
recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and
expedient." -- U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section
III

[ drinkinggame.us ]

Since there will be nothing on tv tonight except for the state of the union address, you might as well make the best of it and have fun while watching it. Grab (buy) several bottles of booze, get some friends and enjoy.

p.s. Word on the street is that one gets really hammered playing this game. Keep that in mind if you have to work tomorrow.

Philly Weekend

I finally got a chance to leave DC this weekend for the first time in a long time. My first destiniation of 2K6 was the great town of Philly. The girl took me to my first Ice hokey game. Flyers vs. Tampa Bay. The new rules of the game are little foggy but I will brush up on those during the upcoming olympics.The game was pretty hot except the flyers got dominated by by Tampa Bay. The final score was something like 6 - 0. The philly fans lived up to their hype of being absolutely ruthless. I think they were Booing their own team by halftime. And most of them left with 12 minuters left in the third periond (granted the score was 4 - 0). After the game, met up with the girl's parents for dinner. I've done the meeting of the parents before, but that was on my own turf and on my terms. To Meet parents on neutral turf is just another ball game right there. I'm hoping everything went fine. The one rub was that her dad was a republican, and clearly i'm not one. And of course i can't keep my mouth when it comes to politics (Damn NPR). And of course a trip to philly is not complete without cheesesteak. No Pats and Geno this time. It's all good i'm make up for that when i'm up there this summer.

Monthly resolution update: Updated 2K6 resolutions

Terps' McCray out for season

"Maryland senior Chris
McCray, the team's leading scorer, is the latest player to lose his
eligibility to a three-year-old rule that demands a 2.0 grade-point average in
the first semester in order to play in the second".

[ ESPN.com ]

How did he manage to screw this up his last year? Especially with his hopes of getting drafted at the end of the season? Jones (who will be replacing McCray) can shoot 3 pointers like whoa, but his defense his suspect. I hope this doesn't put too big of a dent in terps plans to make it to the big dance. Ever since i've been a terp fan, we haven't missed the tourney 2 years in a row.

Vanilla Creme not Frappuccino

I’ve a slight irritation with American restaurant/bistro/café places that borrow words for other languages for their menu. At first this seems really harmless and makes the establishment seems really chic but I’ve come to find this more annoying than anything else. As a native French speaker, when I see a French word on the menu, I have the tendency of pronouncing it in French. But unfortunately for me that means that 9 out of 10 people serving me will have no idea what I’m saying and will most likely get the my order wrong by writing down what they think I said instead of writing down what I asked for.

Most recently this happened to me at a Starbucks. I ordered a vanilla crème, which is basically heated milk with whipped cream. It’s actually pretty good. Somehow after saying ordering a vanilla crème, I ended with some form or frappuccino with extra vanilla. I’m not really sure how that was at all similar to my order.

Call me crazy, but I don’t think any eating/coffee place establishment should use words that their employees do not how to pronounce in its original language. I really have a hard time believing that they would mess up “Hot milk with whipped cream”

MacBook Pro

"Yes, this is the one you've been waiting for (unless you've been holding out for an Apple tablet PC).
It's the first Intel-powered portable from Apple, and it's called the MacBook Pro. That's right. Breaking from its
long-standing PowerBook and iBook labels, Apple has created a whole new brand to commemorate its first Intel-based
portable. As expected, the new portable is powered by an Intel Core Duo processor at either 1.67 or 1.83GHz, 512MB -
2GB RAM, built-in iSight, FrontRow, FireWire 400, two USB 2.0 ports, ExpressCard/34, MagSafe power, 802.11g (AirPort
Extreme), Bluetooth 2.0 EDR), gigabit Ethernet, backlit keyboard, Apple remote input, 15.4-inch 1440 x 900 display, ATI
Mobility Radeon X1600 with either 128 or 256MB of RAM and dual-link DVI (for 30-inchers), an 80GB or 100GB drive, and
dual-layer DVD burner. It'll cost $2,000 or $2,500 to start. It's an inch thick. It weighs 5.6 pounds. It'll run
Windows. We think we're in love."

[ Endgadget ]

Steve Jobs did not disapoint. Releasing the MacPro today has me sold to buy a Mac Latop as my next computer. And it runs windows too, I' have been waiting for that for years.

2k6 Resulotions

Now that 2k5 is officially over (with the loss of USC to Texas in the rose bowl a.k.a the Vince Young Show -- although LenDale White didn't get the memo. ), I suppose it is time to move on and look forward to the new year.  I've been thinking about my goal for this year and here they are.

1.  Go the doctors/dentist -- after a two year hiatus from doctor's office I think it's time to go back.  If there is one thing I learned last year it that, just because you're healthy doesn't mean there is nothing wrong internally.
- Jan 30th:  I've been to dentist, orthopedist and physician and got all sorts of task done. I need to go back to the dentist one more time before i can be done with tihs call.
2.  Go on 4/5 Vacations -- After spending most of last year in the office, I got a ridiculous amount of vacation time for this year.  I actually plan to go on a vacation outside my apartment. I know this is tough sell for those of you who know me but I’m really set on this one.  Tentative locations are Florida, Atlanta, Camping trip or Cruise, and One international location.  If you know anything about cheap tickets or have any recommendation...holla.
- Jan 30th:  Visited Philly on the weekend of 1/28
3.  Get my U.S. citizenship -- Bitter sweet moment.  But I finally decided to become an American, now hopefully America will want me.  However this by no means means that I will start like mash potatoes or anything of that sort.
4.  Become more financially savvy -- This is something I did a good job in 2k5 and I would like to improve on that.  Don't need to be rich to live well.
- Jan 30th - Came up with savings plan.
5.  Consolidate my web presence/revamp Makembe.com -- something nerdy.  If there is something you'd like to see on the site beside more blog updates, holla.
6.  Read 6 books -- I think I found out that I actually enjoy reading last year.  That was a huge discovery to me too.  Who would have thought?  But I have already started on this.
- Jan 30th:  Currently Reading "Time Traveler's Wife"
7.  Build Two Commercial Website -- This is tough one but I think it can be done.  I think it will help me work on my project management skill and give me practice on running a business and something to do after work. This is clearly another excuse to buy more badass computers.
8.  Be more organized -- I know kind of vague.  Again this something I highly improved upon last year but I think there is more room for improvement.  It helps with planning and stress.  And clearly a reason to get more electronic gadgets (i.e. new smart phone...taking suggestion for those of you who have one)
9.  Gain 10lbs -- There is no reason why Brady Quinn is bigger than me.  Enough said.
10.  Last but not least, make a 5 yr plan -- I think it's about time I start planning a little ahead. Clearly living month to month & year to year planning is no longer so smooth.

Of course they are smaller goals and more details on how to accomplish the ones that've listed here. But i won't bore with the deatails.