Currently listening to...

I found out about predo the lion while reading this entry from the plugg.  They seem to have something similar to what I've been doing the past couple of Fridays, where each of the contributors picks the song of the week.  I listened to all the  recommendations but  Options, by Pedro the lion, caught my attention more than the rest because of its' lyrics that were posted on the entry.

I can never divorce you
Without a good reason
And though I may never have to
It’s good to have options

But for now I need you…

I don't know why but the those lyrics speak volume to me and made me want to listen to the rest of the album.  I rhapsodied (that's a new word) them and listend the rest of the album, Control,  and I couldn't get myself to stop listening (maybe because I was at work and I was busy).    The all knowing from Rhapsody categorize them under on the indie rock. If  I had to describe their sounds I would say more emo than anything else.   

Rhapsody says:

Pedro the Lion are the brainchild of David Bazan, who proves himself to be a thought-provoking, ambitious songwriter. He even makes a "concept" album about the machinations of a scheming, self-righteous politician and his drunkard of a brother sound like an intimate confession of personal tragedies and foibles. His voice is full of a tangible world-weariness, and his metaphorical lyrics jump out with real power. The band's music is spartan, as Bazan arranges many songs for only his voice and guitar: other tracks find him playing bass, drums and simple keyboard lines. This minimal setting allows for the dynamic shifts to have greater impact as he alternates between folkie, melodic tunes and up-tempo rockers rife with lovely, intertwining harmonies between the guitar, bass and vocals. Other numbers are slow and melancholic, sometimes recalling the austere work of Bedhead. Bazan's music doesn't always hand the listener answers on a silver platter, but for those willing to invest a little time, this is rich and rewarding Indie Rock.

- Will Lerner

On a parting note, If you like indie music, The Judge and I remcommend that you check out Daytrotter. They have alot of content about indie music as well as MP3s that you can download free of charge. And their albumg reviews are much better than mine with spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. On the off chance that you also like to attend concerts and you have itunes, you should download iConcertCal, it will create a personalized calendar of upcoming concerts in your arear based on your music library. I love when geeks come up with usefull stuff.

Currently listening to...

There's nothing in hip-hop that has the impact of Biggie's voice. Instantly familiar yet always awe-inspiring, his deep baritone is the sonic equivalent of a mean mug, seemingly sneering at his enemies and critics. But there is also a sensuality there. While it's hard to believe a 300-pound, cross-eyed ex-crack dealer from Brooklyn could be a sex symbol, "Big Poppa" and "One More Chance" are among hip-hop's smoothest hustles, layering silk-sheet tenderness on top of swaggering braggadocio. This comp was released on the 10th anniversary of his death, and he'll be forever missed.

[Sam Chennault]

I couldn't have said it any better. I do question some of the choices on the album but I think they did a good a job finding the right balance between the hardcore hip hop listener and the mainstream/party hip hop.

300

The day has finally come. Too bad no imax showings around here. Another movie I will be checking out is namesake (IMDB).

African leaders continually do the continent a disservice

Nigerian ruling party presidential candidate heads to Germany for medical treatment

LAGOS, Nigeria: With just weeks to go before Nigeria's presidential vote, the governing party candidate arrived in Germany on Wednesday for medical treatment and was in stable condition, his spokesman said.

[ International Herald Tribune ]

To most of you, this headlines doesn't mean much. Who cares if a Nigerian presidential candidate went to Europe to get some medical treatment? Well to me and  a couple of others out there it means much more. It means that this guy who is about to be elected president of one of the most oil rich country in the world doesn't trust his own country's health care system to get a simple check up (On a radio interview yesterday with the BBC, he confirmed that it was his annual check up). Can you imagine how embarrassing it would be for the American health care system if Obama, Kennedy, Guliani, or McCain were to fly to another country to get a simple check up?  It's really pathetic that with all the oil profits over the last few years, the country can not build one hospital deemed good enough by its political leaders to get a simple check up.  What is the average Nigerian who can't afford to fly to Europe going to do?   And why would a  Nigerian doctor practicing abroad go back to practice in his/her birth country when it's quite obvious that the members of the elite class have no faith in the practitioners and the system.  To be fair to this guy, he is not the only African leader to do this.  It's a pretty prominent practice amongst African  leaders.  The point I'm trying to make here is that this is deplorable.  At some point, African leaders will have to stop fleeing to Europe for all their needs/wants and will have to invest in their respective country and show some faith to in their fellow country men's skills and abilities. If they do not do this, the brain drainage in Africa will continue and the continent will never realize its potential. 

What to keep and what to shred...

One of my goals this year is to become more financially responsible and therefore increase my net worth.  Part of becoming financially responsible means keep track of papers and such, especially for those days the computers are feeling sick.  I'm always debating whether or not  to keep certain pieces of paper.  In this article, the author recommends that the following be kept:

Your will, living will and durable power of attorney.

Life insurance policies, including policies with your employer.

Insurance, and any death benefits that are due you as a veteran of the armed services.

Retirement plan documents from your pension, profit sharing, 401(k), and IRAs, along with annual statements.

Records of nondeductible contributions made to your employer-sponsored retirement savings plan or IRA.

Separation and divorce documents.

Real estate deeds, titles and property surveys.

Military records.

Tax returns and supporting data for at least the last seven years after the original return is filed.

For investments, keep buy/sell trade confirmations to show when each security was bought and sold, the price you paid and commission charged.

Dividend reinvesting statements (for seven years after you file your tax return showing a gain or loss( Receipts for major purchases like jewelry, furniture, etc.

Receipts for items under warranty until the warranty expires.

Pay stubs – until the end of the year when you compare the year end totals with the amounts shown on the W2 form you get from your employer.

While I agree with most of the list, I think one should also keep school transcripts, medical records and other major contracts (i.e. Student load terms, car loans terms). Other than I say have fun with your shredder. I know I enjoy playing with mine.   In another article on the same site, another article has suggestion of items that you want might want to keep in safe.  Those include:

Copy of your will

Copy of insurance policies

Titles to your house and cars

Detailed list of bank and brokerage accounts, CDs and credit cards

Marriage license / Divorce decree

Expensive, rarely-worn jewelry

Birth certificates

Family heirlooms

Stock and bond certificates

I've thought many times about getting a safe, especially one with multiple bolts like the one in the movies, but I've not been able to justify the expense to myself. But not I have all sorts of reasons.

Currently listening to...

Judge says:

This week's installment of "Currently Listening to..." is a recommendation from another friend whose cd collection I would gladly trade for mine.  The Bees (U.S.) 2006 release "High Society" is rated as Power Pop by Rhapsody, a rating that makes absolutely no sense to me.  I really can't tell power pop apart from most adult alternative.  I guess it's pop music that rocks a little bit.  Maybe more drums?  The first two songs sound more like the Eagles than anything else and the third is reminiscent of some Beach Boys songs.  Their best song, Imaginary Girl, I suspect is secretly a Beatles song.  Fun fact: The Bees is also a band in England and so The Bees ( U.S.) is their official band name.  You can visit them at www.beesmusic.com.  I'd probably spend the money on this album.

Can't decide what to do...Leave it to wheel

It has happened to all of us. You want to go out for drinks but you and your friends can't decided where to go.  You want to go get food but can't decided if you're craving Chipotle or  Sushi.  Well, a computer geek has come up with a way to help you make the decision. The wheel of food.  Enter your Zip code and enter the activity i.e. bars, food, lunch and spin. Then go where the wheels says.  Sometimes the wheel will tell you to "Skip Lunch", I say just spin again.

[via Lifehacker]

Currently Listening to...

While watching Grey's yesterday, I was surprised by how little music the was in the episode.  However, as always, Damien Rice made the cut. At this point I believe he has a contract signed with them.  He most likely has the most appearances by any artist on the show so far.  But of course I'm making up that stat.  I digress.  Although I appreciate Damien Rice as much as the next fan, the song that caught my attention last night was The Lake by Aqualung a.k.a Matt Hales.  I went on the a search this morning but could not find the song through legal means.  I soon discovered that the reason I couldn't find it was because the album, titled Memory Man, with that song is yet to be released.  Apparently it's not coming out till March 13.  I decided to listen to some  his stuff that was already out and legally available.  I was pleasantly surprised by his latest full album titled Strange & Beautiful.  I think most people have heard the first track on the album but the rest is also pretty solid.  My favorite tack on the album was Track #4, titled Better than Sunshine.  Rhapsody lists Aqualung under Brit Rock although I believe he should be listed on under singer/songwriter.  Coldplay is listed as one his contemporaries so you know it's has to be good.  Check it out and let me know you what you think.

Currently Listening to...

The judge had another good review of some stuff he has been listening to but I wanted to share this song. It was my athem while driving through California this summer.  I'm not a big fan of anything Garden State but I would buy the soundtrack just to listen to this track over and over and over again. For the longest time, I only knew this song as track #7 on the garden state soundtrack and track #3 on the Califiornia CD #4.  The song is actually titled Fair  and it's by Remy Zero.  Accrding to their website the band has been put to rest though.  (click here if you don't see the embeded video)

Al Franken for US Senate..Why not Jon Stewart for President

Apparently comedian Al Franken decided to run for the U.S. senate for the state of Minnesota(MN).  I don't know much about him nor where he stands on the issues, nor will I care until I think he is a real contender. Then again MN did elect Jesse Ventura as their Governor.  But the real question that I have about Al Franken running is "Why isn't Jon Stewart doing the same?"  The guy is probably as well known as any of the presidential candidates in '08.  And with the race as wide open as many say it is, why not?  A lot of people get our age get their "political news" from his "Daily Show" .  I believe he would actually get the 18 - 25 years olds to go to the polls. So I say Jon Stewart for president in '08.  However he should wait to enter the race till after everyone experiences Obama fatigue.

Does this remind anyone else of the movie Man of the year?

Currently Listening to...

The Judge says:

I've known about Bloc Party for a little while now, you've probably heard their song "This Modern Love" off their second EP Silent Alarm.  Their new album, A Weekend in the City, came out this week.  Rhapsody sent me an alert and since I have their earlier album, I was interested to hear the new one.  For the uninitiated, Bloc Party plays upbeat, alternative rock that borders on a punk sound.  The punk part might just be because they have British accents and that sounds punk to me.  Maybe it's just Brit Rock?  Put it this way, it's meant to be played loud. 

ANYWAY, the new album is actually quite good with one problem: Rhapsody won't let me listen to all of the songs.  "The Prayer" is climbing the charts, according to their website, (which probably means it's climbing the charts in England).  It could be a good song but I would have no idea since Rhapsody refuses to play it for me.  Otherwise, my favorite song is "I Still Remember".  If you're not going to be in a hyper-major city in the US or Europe (no visit to DC planned) you're going to have to wait to see them live; their tour schedule is mostly European stops.  I'd buy this cd, especially so I could hear the whole thing.  Stupid Rhapsody.

If you want something mellow for Valentine's Day, check out The Weepies "Say I Am You".  It sounds like a cross between Simon and Garfunkel and Joni Mitchell.  It's a quiet, mellow cd that sounds a little depressing but actually has some hopeful, romantic songs on it.  It's one of my favorite cds, I don't care if that makes me a wuss.

I say:

I listened to the tracks available on Rhapsody and it's definitely worth listening to. To me some of tracks sounded more like house music played over punk with a bit a Keane thrown in. But like the judge said maybe all Brits just sound alike when they sing.  The sounds reminded my of postal service more than anything else. I do agree that the tracks are definitely meant to be played loudly.  With bloc party, I faced the same issue that I faced with Postal service; That is I don't really know where on play list they would go if I was to listen to them on the regular. They kinda get lost between the depressing/mellow stuff and the hot party bangers beats as my friend JK would put it.  I would not buy the entire CD but a few tracks off of Rhapsody or Itunes wouldn't be a bad deal. And if you're looking for something for Valentines day, I say go with the Barbershop Quartet. Classy and Cheesy all in one.

Web 2.0 Explained....

As a programmer and someone to likes to keep up with the hottest and new things on the web. I have been inundated with the number of web 2.0 apps that have been springing up over the last few years.  Yet when I asked my other geek friends what exactly is web 2.0;  None of them were really able to explain to me in concrete terms.  And What makes and app 2.0 instead of 1.0 or 1.5 for that matter? (There isn't a web 1.5 just in case you were wondering). Using Ajax, User generated content? tagging? using OpenID? Organizing an insane about of data to look pretty or ugly?  Allowing object to be embedded? Loading faster? simpler UI?  The weird names?  Making the Web 2.0 directory? The label "Web 2.0" seemed to be arbitrary to me and I did not readily accept as some of my other geek friends did.  This morning, when I walked to my desk and began to read my rss feeds using google reader, I found a blog entry by Scott Hanselman I figured I should share.

Who types that fast?  Although, It did not answer all my questions and I'm still  rather skeptic of the label "Web 2.0",  the video did a good job explaining some of the concept behind the label "Web 2.0".

Currently Listening to...

Last week's big musical excitement for fans of the indie/OC/Scrubs/Grey's scene was the release of the new Shins album, "Wincing the Night Away".  Unfortunately, I've seen quite a few glowing reviews of it.  This reviews combined with the general catchiness of the first single, Phantom Limb, lead me to believe that you will not be able to avoid this song for approximately the next two months.  Thankfully, I tend to stay out of the Gap and don't listen to the radio (I don't have a car).  For longtime Shins fans, back to "Oh, Inverted World" and "Chutes Too Narrow", this cd completes their gradual transition to a more mainstream sound.  Honestly, their first LP sounded a lot like it was recorded in someone's basement.  Their newest offering still provides clever lyrics and quality songs but has superior sound quality.  If you aren't familiar with a lot of their music, I would recommend sampling the entire cd, via Rhapsody or some other music player, before buying the entire album.  I would purchase the cd.

Rocco Deluca (UK) has been in the national spotlight lately, going on tour with Mat Kearney ("Nothing Left to Lose") as part of the VH1 "You Oughta Know" tour.  In my opinion, you ought to know that the album is a mixed bag, with VH1-type romantic songs mixed in with more standard blues-rock fare.  Either on their own are good but present such a striking contrast with one another that the overall cd suffers.  I would not purchase this cd.

Lastly, I've recently become a big fan of Ray LaMontagne's album "Till the Sun Turns Black".  It was recently a featured selection on BMG, which hopefully means that BMG is actually picking good music for the featured selections and I won't accidentally get stuck with any more Switchfoot albums.  It's listed by Rhapsody as "adult alternative" which I guess means that it's not electric.  It's a very stripped down, bare sound.  It's a pretty mellow, semi-depressing cd, which one would probably expect with a title like "Til the Sun Turns Black".  If you're looking for something that rocks, look further.  His show at the 9:30 club in DC was a seated show.  It's much better for drinking red wine with a date than beers with your buddies.  My sister and I agree that he can probably sleep with any woman he wants on the strength of his voice alone.  I would pay for this cd, but not the $21 you have to pay when you forget to send in the reply card to BMG.

[ Props. to the Judge]

Currently Listening to Damien Rice

I started liking Damien Rice after watching the Closer, starring Clive Owen, Julia Roberts, Jude Law and Natalie Portman. He makes frequent appearances on Grey's Anatomy episodes soundtracks. I seriously believe he is one of the most depressed people on the planet but his music makes it all worth it. I pretty sure I listen to at list one his tracks every day. My Favorite used to be Blower's Daughter but I like some tracks on this album much better but I haven't decided if a favorite one yet. Take a Listen (UK).

My thoughts on the State of Union Address

Tuesday, unlike most people, I spent some five hours watching the state of the Union by President Bush, the democratic response by Senator Webb of the commonwealth of Virginia, and countless hours of the Analysis on CNN, Fox, and NBC.  After watching all everyone else and their mom share their thoughts on speech, I thought  I would go ahead and share some of my own.

I felt that the speech was very well written.  Of all Bush's televised speeches, I think this one was the best.  The words were chosen carefully,  and the paragraphs constructed is such a way to simultaneous praise (sometimes forcefully) from both democrats and President.  The words were less decisive, less forceful and less macho.  Although the wording of the speech was fantastic, the delivery was less than memorable.  At a time where the president needed to inspire to nation to rally behind him, he barely managed to keep members of house and senate awake for the 50 minutes.  He sound flat, tired, disconnected, and irresolute. 

The content of the speech was not of made of up anything great either.  Social security, Health Care, Energy dependence, immigration and etc...These are all great issues and things that we as a country should be working on.  But I don't see it coming from this president.  After claiming last year that "America is addicted to oil", he then spent the next 11 months doing nothing about it.  He made a attempt to do something about social security, but failed to sell that plan to the American public.  Although I agree with most of his plan with immigration, he was unable to strike deals with member of his own party.  So Basically I don't believe he will do anything.  Not because he doesn't want to, but because most of the time will be spend defending his policy abroad.  I think he will try to get to ball rolling on some of these, because like every president he is conscious of his legacy.  And although 9.11.01 and the Iraq war will largely define his presidency I don't believe he wants to be it. 

I was impressed that the president mentioned Africa, Darfur in particular and fighting the AIDS epidemic that is affecting the entire continent.  I hope he can back those words with some actions and not tie the donation dollars to religious organizations and or Abstinence programs.  As impressed as I was that the president mention Africa, I was shocked beyond belief that he failed to mention the gulf states that were devastated by Katrina and are still recovering.  If nothing else, i believe that the he should have taken ownership of everything that went wrong with FEMA and pledge continued support from the Federal government.

Overall, well written speech, average delivery, but too big of a wish list that will barely be touched.

When I heard that senator Webb tore up the speech written for him by the Democratic Party to write his own, I was shocked.  I certainly thought he was going to make a fool of himself on TV.  I had not been impressed by any of the speeches he had given during his campaign against Allen.  But I was pleasantly surprised by his speech.  His speech was short, passionate, personal, and straight to the point. Office title aside,  He commanded more attention and respect than the president.  He refuted what the president while at the same leaving room for negotiations and laying out the issues the democrats are ready to get ball rolling on.  I look forward to see what he does in the senate this year.  He is def getting drafted on my fantasy congress team.

View video of both speeches

Currently Listening to Blind Rhetoric

You can Listen to some of their music on MySpace or PureVolume. And if you like them, Don't hesitate to buy the EP

2007 Goals

Every year  I like to set goals and and go back at the end of the year and see how I have done.  I believe the more concrete your goals, the more achievable they are. I  think most people fail to achieve their goals for several different reasons.  1. They set too many goals, 2. They set unrealistic goals, and 3. They have no tangible way to measure them.  Before I go on further on a tangent about setting goals, here for my goals for the this year.

1.  Start a Grad degree program or Take the LSATs - Although an undergrad was a great achievement, in today's job market that is not nearly enough if you're looking to move up the  ladder or make a career switcchange.
2. Volunteer 100 hours - I follow politics and I always complain that politicians don't do enough to help people at in our society that find themselves in difficult situations.  But When asked what I have done lately for that same segment of population, I'm find myself not saying much.  So this year I will change that.
3. Read 6 books - I really like this goal from last year because it drove me to read more last year.  Half these books will be in french.  And One of the book will be in the History and or the current situation in the Middle east.
4. Increase my Net worth by 25% - This really means paying that my school loans.
5. Visit 5 new places/Visit friends in other cities - As much as I like DC, it's good to travel and visit new places.
6. Reconnect with my family abroad - Time to grow up. This is probably my most challenging goal for next year.
7. Create 2 Commercials Websites/Freelance More - This is something I failed at last year but I'm going got to give it another try.  I feel like this is the only way I get to stay on top of the latest technology and the latest tricks in the world of programming.
8. Be better a friend - This year it was brought up to my attention that they are are few things I could work on that would make a me a better friend and a better person in general. Although, this is kind of vague goal it's still something I should work on.
9. Not to buy a bigger TV - Resisting the temptation.  With everyone buying a bigger better TV, this one is going to be hard.  Especially when it's in my face a everywhere.  But in the name of being more financially responsible, I will forgo buying a new TV.
10. Monthly update on my goals on here - I tried this last year but wasn't successful.  So I'm going to give it a go again.

Wish me luck.  I will update you at the end of February to let know you know how I'm doing.

Currently Listening to...

Here is something else, I found really funny.

That's all. I'm off to ATL for the weekend. Pictures to be posted when I come back. Enjoy your weekend.

2k6 Yearly Goals Reviewed

The good thing about having a blog is that I can always go back and look at goals that I set for myself at the beginning of the year and see how I've have faired.  Ideally I would look at them throughout the year and gage as my progress.  But the world isn't ideal ... so too bad.

1.  Go the doctors/dentist .  I visited the doctor, got through physical therapy for my knee and went to the dentist twice and even got one tooth pulled... Not a fan of that.

2.  Go on 4/5 Vacations.  This year was very exciting in terms of travel.  I wish I would have done bit more but I did enough.  I went Philly, OBX for a week, and California for a week.  I didn't get any international trips done though, which was a bit disappointing. 

3.  Get my U.S. citizenship (Started).  I have applied for my citizenship and currently awaiting to hear back from DHS. 
  
4.  Become more financially savvy - I have a better understanding of personal finance.  Although I'm not where i would like to be financially i think I've made great strides in personal finance and I have put in place to have do even better the upcoming year (barring any huge emergencies)

5.  Consolidate my web presence/revamp Makembe.com (somewhat completed) -  I redid the website.  As for the first part of that, now that i reread this I don't even know that this is possible.  I basically don't like the fact that by paying $99 to some random company on the web you can find out alot of me.  It really bothers me.  But the HP case has brought more light to some of the illegal ways people can obtain information about you whether you like it or not  and whether or not it's accurate.  I hope this issue is not forgotten.

6.  Read 6 books (half done) --  I read four books this year.  Middlesex, The dreams of our father, Time's  Traveler's Wife and some random book that was so bad  that i don't even remember the title

7.  Build Two Commercial Website (failed) -- I completely failed at this. Hence the portfolio part of my website is still not up.

8.  Be more organized -- I don't really know how to judge this. But the simple fact that I've paid all my bills on time is a testament that I'm better at keeping track of things. But now I don't get any more mail.... booo.

9.  Gain 10lbs (Failed) -  Brady Quinn is still bigger than me.

10.  Make a 5 yr plan (Started).  Basically the market forces me to go back to school. My goal to have obtain two more degrees before the age for 30 (They say it's the new 20 so i have some time to party after that).  A JD being one of them.  The other would be a Master in Business Administration (preferably with an International Component) and or a Master's in Public Policy or Government

Overall I think i fared well.   For 2k7, i will have more concise goals that build on the ones that I have accomplished this year.

After 3 years, I finally decide to build the photos section of my site.  Take a look and it when you get a chance.  Maybe I will actually doe the other sections too this time around.

If you’ve been reading my blog for while, you know I have a rocky relationship with the Sports Guy of ESPN. I think he’s overrated, over hyped, and his wife, the sports Gal, might actually be funnier than him. For all the moronic things he says, his addiction to Vegas, and his outright refusal to write intelligently about soccer (MLS, EPL, La Liga…. Pick a league), he surprises me every so often with a good article. This week he wrote about the impending trade of A.I. of the Sixers. In his article he actually defends and praises Iverson, something that 99% of sports columnists have failed to do, even though Iverson is arguably the most ferocious guy playing the game right now. His article received an insane amount of responses thanking him for writing the article. I would go as far as calling him the only voice of sanity in sports (which someone did), but I will give him credit for not following to the trend of other sorry sports writers. So I will resume reading his articles (and suggest that you do the same) till he pisses me off or says something stupid about soccer.

[JibJab]

Simply hilarious.

Lately I’ve been craving lobster. I’m going to on the record that I have never had
lobster (I’m not a big sea food guy). Since I have a lot of friends from the New England,
I kept asking a recommendation of restaurants in the city where I could get some good
lobster. They all informed that it wasn’t lobster season and I have to move to New
England to get a good lobster. Clearly that was not good enough.  So After shopping
for some work clothes in Georgetown,
I decided that I will find a seafood restaurant and have some lobster.  After
walking around for a bit my "friend" and I settled for for Manhattan
Seafood Grill.  Located on M street, it was easy to find.  When  I
first walked in I very impressed by the decor and ambiance.  The
right touch of lighting, heat (I don't know about you but i don't want to
be freezing or sweating while I'm eating) , and music.  

At first glance this seems like the type of place you would want to take a girl
out date to impress her.  But let's face it I'm not in the business
of that.  The service was friendly and timely, which was a big change of pace
from the last few times I've eaten out.  The Menu was simple and very readable
if you get can get pass the prices. I didn't not take a look at the
wine list.  We ordered for Crab, Spinach, and Artichoke Dip as a Appetizer. 

And quiet frankly I was very disappointed.  I was by far the worse artichoke Dip
that I've ever had. It was too salty, not enough crab meat and I don't even know what
else was in there. But was plain awful.  I was tempted to recommend that they
a borrow recipe from a couple a friends that make a much better Dip.  For an
entree, we ordered a Surf & Turf.  I was very excited because I thought I
was going to have the best of both world. My excitement subsided after my first bite
of the lobster.  I can not say that the lobster was good or bad since it was
my first time. So I will move on.  The steak and grilled vegetables slightly
made up for the bad appetizer and less than impressive lobster but were still sub
par for a fine dining institution. To review,  

Pros:

• 
  Location, Location, Location
  
• 
  Ambiance  & decor
  
• 
  Service

Cons:

• 
  Food
  
• 
  Food
  
• 
  Food
  
• 
  Price (for the quality of the food)

Needless to say I don't think will be dinning at Manhattan Seafood grill
in the near future.

My friend says:

Let me begin this by saying that I am by no means a connoisseur of fine dining, as
chipotle is my usual fare. However, I do have enough sense to know that the meal that
I ate last night wasn't, by any stretch, fantastic. It wasn't even good, especially
for the price. First off, the appetizer we ordered, "Crab, Spinach, and Artichoke
Dip" wasn't horrible but it was too garlicky and salty to taste anything like crab,
spinach or artichokes. Disappointing and for 7 dollars, I could have had a burrito…

a damn good burrito. And I would not have needed the somewhat bland, very expensive
Surf & Turf entrée. Once again, no grave complaints, but nothing extraordinary,
except maybe the potatoes. But no one should ever spend $37 on decent side dishes.
The lobster looked blah and the steak tasted like meat. Overall, a pretty un-thrilling
meal. But the ambiance was nice and the company was great, so I can't complain too
much. For all the restaurants on M street though, I won't be returning to Manhattans.

Other Reviews:

• 
  City
  Guide (washington Post)
  
• 
  Brien's
  DC Dining Review
  
• 
  Washington
  City Paper
  

I'm going to wait till all those people with interest only loans sell their homes. how wrong of me!

WASHINGTON (AFP) - People who consume alcohol earn significantly more at their jobs than non-drinkers, according to a US study that highlighted "social capital" gained from drinking.

[ Yahoo! NEWS ]

The moral of the study is to go to happy hour. It's good to know that i've been ahead of the curve.

    I have a friend doing a piece on American youth and debt.  And she is looking for young, hip people like you to interview. 

Hi guys,

I am doing a story on Youth and Debt for my next TV piece. The story will focus on American youth (18-30 yrs olds) and how they are falling into deeper and deeper debt thanks to credit cards, student loans and the rising cost of living. I know we all struggle (to different degrees) to make ends meet as young, just-out-of-college professionals.

What I'm asking from you is this- do you, or anyone you know, want to be profiled for my story? I'm not going to make you look bad, and you don't even have to come out and say, "I'm in $50,000 over my head". Even if you're just paying back your student loans or struggling with the high interest rate on your credit card, I just want to showcase young people dealing with money issues. Even if you're not in any debt but are struggling to make ends meet. Perhaps a shop-a-holic who can't stop using his/her credit card?


If you know of anyone who may be interested in participating in this story, please let me know. My deadline is in a week, so I need to shoot this ASAP. It's fun and completely painless- plus, you'll be an international SUPERSTAR!

If this sounds like smoething you are interested in contact my friend and help her out. Thanks.

After what seems like forever my apartment is now livable.  This comes at a good time because my office it now going to be virtual and I'll be watching sportcenter all day long working from home all day.  My time at the Envoy apartments was enjoyable and full of good times.  But moving the the Croydon was a financially and pratically sound decision (I hope i don't regret because of the crazy lady across the hall).  With that said let the fun at the Croydon begins.  The bar is not yet open, but feel free to come visit.

"LOS ANGELES --Southern California basketball player Brynn Cameron will miss the upcoming season because she is expecting a baby with Arizona Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart, according to her father."

[ Boston.com - sports ]

I've never heard of this news organization so i don't believe it. However it's true, as one of my friend said "it's going to be one good looking kid."

Watch the world cup online

Stuck at work?

Rather be watching the world cup?

Click here...

Yea there is a god.

p.s. unlike march madness, you don't have to do any work this month.

World Cup games will be broadcasted online

"All of the BBC's 2006 World Cup matches will also be broadcast exclusively live on the BBC Sport website."

[ BBC Sport ]

There is a god. Although the article says that "The service will be available to UK broadband users and will mirror terrestrial and interactive coverage." The statement doesn't not restrict the viewing to british broadband users ONLY. And if it does i'm sure someone will have find a way to hack around that. I will follow this very closely post any updates. I pray that they are alot of american soccer geeks (oxymoron...i know) that will work a hack if necessary.

Sport guy goes over the top

I love everything ESPN; the commercials, Sportcenter, PTI,
front page (finally starting to get used to the redesign), Page 2, and even
Page 3.  Their covering of “sporting” events is usually second to none;
from bowling to curling, including ice skating.  This year, they decided
to have a live coverage of the 75th Annual Spelling Bee Competition taking
currently taking place in DC.  And I can understand why... most of ESPN
addicts (like me and my friends) are at work at that time and really only stay
at home mom and dads are currently watching.  But I can not understand why
the sport guy has a live running diary of it.  I can take running rants
about poker (and various form of betting gambling) on us, I can take the
rants about Sport Mom and Sport Gal but I can't take a running diary of the
Spelling Bee.  Is that really necessary?  To invest any amount of
time to the Spelling Bee competition at the Eve of the worlds' biggest sport
event (the FIFA World Cup) is sacrilegious... To spend in even an ounce of a
second writing about online should be criminal.  So I'm back to boycotting
the sport guy till covers more soccer (MLS and foreign leagues) and dedicates
the live running diary to the world cup final in a month.

Free Music

Tech site ExtremeTech picks eight of the best music recommendation engines, including Pandora, Last.FM and Liveplasma.

The picks were based on navigation, community and media (text lists
versus streaming music) among other criteria. I've had great success
with Last.FM recommendations - which makes sense, since they know a
whole lot about what I like to listen to, though Pandora's nice because
it streams recs on the spot. What's your favorite destination for
discovering new music? Let us know in the comments or at tips at
lifehacker.com.

Extreme Tech [via Lifehacker]

I personally use rhapsody to listen to music, however these various services are a excellent way to discover new artists. If you want to save the music to you computer for personal use, you can use software like replay music to record them while they are streaming.

World cup rules for (female) signicant others

Extremely important advice and recommendations to be passed on to
wives, girlfriends, fiancés, mothers, sisters, daughters, etc. (to all
women in general) These rules are to be communicated prior to the World
Cup in June/July this year... FAILURE TO ADHERE TO THE RULES STIPULATED
AS PER BELOW WILL RESULT IN SEVERE REPERCUSSIONS.

List Of Rules.

1. From 9 June to 9 July 2006, you
should read the sports section of the newspaper so that you are aware
of what is going on regarding the World Cup, and that way you will be
able to join in the conversations. If you fail to do this, then you
will be looked at in a bad way, or you will be totally ignored. DO NOT
complain about not receiving any attention.

2. During the World Cup, the television is mine, at all
times, without any exceptions. If you even take a glimpse of the remote
control, you will lose it (your eye).

3. If you have to pass by
in front of the TV during a game, I don't mind, as long as you do it
crawling on the floor and without distracting me. If you decide to
stand without clothes in front of the TV, make sure you put clothes on
right after because if you catch a cold, I wont have time to take you
to the doctor or look after you during the World Cup month.

4. During the games I will be blind, deaf and mute, unless I
require a refill of my drink or something to eat. You are out of your
mind if you expect me to listen to you, open the door, answer the
telephone, or pick up the baby that just fell from the second
floor....it wont happen.

5. It would be a good idea for you to keep at least 2 six
packs in the fridge at all times, as well as plenty of things to nibble
on, and please do not make any funny faces to my friends when they come
over to watch the games. In return, you will be allowed to use the TV
between 12am and 6am, unless they replay a good game that I missed
during the day. This rule however is discretionary. (please refer to
rule 2)

6. Please, please, please!! if you see me upset because one
of my teams is losing, DO NOT say "get over it, its only a game", or
"don't worry, they'll win next time". If you say these things, you will
only make me angrier and I will love you less. Remember, you will never
ever know more about football than me and your so called "words of
encouragement" will only lead to a break up or divorce (not necessarily
in that order).

7. You are welcome to sit with me to watch one game and you
can talk to me during halftime but only when the commercials are on,
and only if the halftime score is pleasing me. In addition, please note
I am saying "one" game, hence do not use the World Cup as a nice cheesy
excuse to "spend time together".

8. The replays of the goals are very important. I don't care
if I have seen them or I haven't seen them, I want to see them again.
Many times.

9. Tell your friends NOT to have any babies, or any
other child related parties or gatherings that requires my attendance
because:
a) I will not go,
b) I will not go, and
c) I will not go.

10. But, if a friend of mine invites us to his house on a Sunday to watch a game, we will be there in a flash.

11.
The daily World Cup highlights show on TV every night is just as
important as the games themselves. Do not even think about saying "but
you have already seen this...why don't you change the channel to
something we can all watch??", the reply will be: "Refer to Rule #2 of
this list".

12. And finally, please save your expressions such as "Thank
God the World Cup is only every 4 years". I am immune to these words,
because after this comes the Champions League, Italian League, Spanish
League, Premier League, etc etc.

[props to Yaty]

Now you can't say you haven't been warned.   Currently looking for people to spend the month at lucky bar... inquire within.

Gaydar Malfunction

For the last month or so, I started attending to the gym in the middle of the day.  It’s less crowded, splits the work day in two and allows me to enjoy the weather for a hot second.  Yesterday, during my work out I noticed a gentleman was looking at me. Not thinking much of it, I gave the customary head nod followed by “what up”.  And he responded. No big deal.  Then it occurred to me that the same gentleman was also checking me out last week.  But I again I didn’t think much of it, because I usually look at the other people when they are doing an exercise I have not seen before or if I want to make fun of them when they are using way too much weight.  I finished my work out, showered and got dressed.  On my way out the locker room, the gentleman approaches me. And our exchange goes as follows:

<guy holds my right arm>
Guy: “Can I introduce myself?” 
Me: “yeah”
Guy: “I’m {insert name here}”
Me:  “Henri, Nice to meet you”
Guy:  “Can I take you out for drinks some time?” <holds out a white piece of paper that I’m assuming had his number or email written on it.>
Me: "nah I’m straight” <no pun intended>
Guy: "Aight."
Me: "Have a good one."
<guy exit stage left, me exit stage right>

Seriously???!?!  What part of me screams gay?  The only brain exercise I get these days is thinking about WOMEN (except when playing/watching sports).  It’s true that I’ve been accused of being very metro at times but never gay.  And even so that was about a year.  Not in recent times.  I knew my gym was full of gay people (nothing wrong with that) but I thought they all had a “gaydar.” I guess his must have been malfunctioning or something.

On the other hand part of me is flattered.  It’s not every day that you get asked out for by somewhat attractive man.  Part of me was considering taking the offer; I do drink a regular basis and to have drinks paid for once in while by a member of either sex is not such a bad thing, provided they don’t expect anything in return.  I have to the give the guy credit for the having the balls to ask me out for some drinks, but there in lies the rub:  he had balls.

I will keep my workout schedule as is but I will ask my female friends for some better rejection lines just in case.

Freet TV shows

"Not sure who is responsible for this or what kind of jailtime wish they
have, but the PeekVid web site is offering hundreds of television show
episodes for viewing and download for free."

PeekVid [via lifehacker.com]

Free tv shows on the web, slightly suspusious but worth enjoying while it lasts.

Immigration: Losing sight of the real issue

I’ve grown very frustrated with the new Immigration movement over the last few weeks (one of the many reasons I paused on my series on immigration).  Why you ask?  The first part of my frustration stems from the fact that we are letting the opportunity to make serious changes across world turn into a U.S. vs. Mexico issue.  Seriously is the American public that clueless about our immigration issue as to believe that it only revolves around people entering the country from Mexico?  The fact that the journey of people from South and Central America to this country is more documented than the journey of other immigrants groups does not mean by any way, shape or form that are the only immigrants.  If you haven’t noticed yet, not all immigrants to this country are Hispanics. There are people here from Africa, Asia, East Europe and more. There are people in all these groups that are also here illegally.  Just because Hispanics (not even Mexicans) comprise the majority of the immigrants (legal or not) here does not mean they are only one we should be paying attention to.  To do so will fail to address the immigration problem in its entirety.

The other part of the frustration is rooted in the media coverage.  On every radio talk show (including NPR), evening news and etc all the panelists are either Hispanic “leaders” representing “Let everyone in” model and or someone equally idiotic person representing the “Law enforcement” model.  Is that really all we have to throw at this issue?  What happened to trade laws? NAFTA?  Addressing poverty? Addressing corruption?  Come on people!

With all that said I’m glad we’ve got a debate started on Immigration.

UPDATE:

• More on Immigration in the U.S.
  
• Various proposals currently on the table

Related:

• Immigration: Who is to blame?

Bo Sox Fans 1986 Nightmare Re-Enacted in RBI Baseball

"So last week had the first day since I've been keeping the blog that I missed an entry. I felt bad about this lack of discipline, and no doubt you were upset as well. I wanted to post the little project that I was working on that diverted my attention from posting about music. I decided that I wanted to enter this YouTube Cybersmack contest and win $25,000 for creating the best internet viral video, so I decided to re-enact Game Six of the 1986 World Series in RBI Baseball, my favorite video game of all time. Game Six is one of the most surreal, unbelievable displays of sports in history, and hopefully now that the Sox have emerged victorious in the World Series, it can be seen more as an utterly stupifying comeback, and less of a devastating choke job."

click to watch the video...[ SanDiegoserenade.com ]

This is by far the best of use of old school nintendo i've ever seen. Granted it brings back nightmares for Bo Sox fans.. who cares? This was pure genuis at work. You can also download it here.

Immigration.. Who is to blame?

Since our elected officials can not seem to come to some sort of understanding about the immigration issue, I figured I’d take a stab at it.  I will have a mini-series on immigration (3 – 4 entries).  These are my thoughts on the subject do not reflect the thoughts of my employer, friends, and family.  In this entry I want to talk about who is the blame for the immigration problem in U.S. and across the world (except for France…personal vendetta).  Before I go any further, I would like to state that I’m an immigrant.  I’m originally from the beautiful country of Cameroon, located in central Africa.  In three days, I will celebrate my ten year anniversary of my arrival in this great country.  So who is blame for the immigration?

1.  You and I – go ahead go take a look in the mirror.  How you ask?
   
   
   
   •    We want more money in our pockets.  When we buy cheaper jeans, cheaper cars, cheaper computers, and etc… most of the times it’s not because some company has come up with a more efficient/innovative way to make the product that we are buying, it’s because they were able to find labor for less than a $1 a day.
     
   • nbsp;We don’t invest in a socially irresponsible matter.  When you pick your funds for your 401k, 403b, IRA, Roth IRA or if you just buy stocks, you obviously buy the highest yielding stock/fund.  When is the last time you asked yourself how come company X or Y is outperforming everyone?   Again it most likely because they are found cheaper labor in some foreign country.  In some sectors of the economy those questions are not relevant, but in others they should the first thing that we ask ourselves/financial advisers.
   
   
2.  Our political System.  The way our political system does not have give our law makers enough time to do anything about the immigration. Immigration as well as most social issue will take more than a decade to solve. Our elected officials are short sighted whenever they attempt to craft a solution to the problem because about halfway through their term they have to have start worrying about the next election.
   
3. Law enforcement.  There are laws in the books that would penalize any employers of illegal immigrants.  But these laws are not enforced.  Local police refuse to enforce them because they claim that it will create a wall between them and the immigrants.  Valid point… But they are still not enforcing the laws and therefore immigrants already here encourage their family members to also cross the border.  And we all already know most federal agencies are just a big waste tax payer’s money.  However the paper pushers know where all the good happy hours are. So that’s something.
   
4. Corrupt Foreign officials – It’s okay to skim of the top for foreign aid, everyone does it.  But really it would nice if at least 50% of the aid makes to the people of the country.
   
   
5. Stupid NGOs.  As exotic as it sounds to go to some remote African/South American village to build a church and school for a tribe that primarily rely on hunting to feed themselves; it is seriously one of the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard/seen. It’s what I call the discovery channel effect.  The money would better spend teaching the urban population of “major” cities how to build low cost water filter and pumps.  I digress…
   
6. nbsp;The immigrants – Why are they to blame?  They take the “easy” way out. As miserable as conditions are in their respective country, there is something to be said about staying in your country and trying to improve things.  America and the rest of the developed world did not become this way by everyone bailing out.  Every country has to go throw its growing pains.  And it’s people to stick around and come up with solutions on how to make the country better.

There you have it so now you know who to blame for all the immigration problems.  Next episode… “Immigration: a deeper look”.

 

Some School Pride...

"Overtime belongs to Maryland. So does the NCAA championship. Kristi Toliver hit a 3-pointer at the end of regulation to cap a 13-point comeback, then the freshman made two free throws with 35 seconds left in overtime on Tuesday night to give the Terrapins a 78-75 victory over Duke and their first NCAA women's basketball title. Maryland (34-4) is 6-0 in overtime games this season - the first five on the road and the last in the championship to complete the second-largest comeback in a women's title game."

[ Umterps.com ]

First there was (W)Field Hockey, then there was (M)Soccer, and now the (W)Basketball....Fear the Turtle.

Chain letter(s)

Because chain letters are now done over blogs...

Four Jobs I've Had
1. Sales Associate
2. Office Assistant
3. Bouncer
4. Web developer

Four Movies I Can Watch Over And Over
1. About a boy/Love Actually
2. Bad Boys II
3. Good Will Hunting
4. Rome & Juliet

Four Places I've Lived
1. Douala, CMR
2. Nkongsamba, CMR
3. Rockville, MD
4. Washington, DC

Four TV Shows I Love
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. West Wing
3. Sportcenter
4. Squawk Box

Places I've Vacationed
1. Daytonna, FL
2. Ocean City, MD
3. Mt Tremblanc, CA
4. Montreal, CA

Four of My Favorite Dishes
1. Supreme Pizza
2. Omelettes of all sorts
3. Captain crunch/Frosty Flakes
4. Anything my mom makes

Four Sites I Visit Daily
1. Bloglines
2. WAMU
3. Google
4. Craigslist

Four Places I Would Rather Be Right Now
1. Soccer field
2. Golf course
3. Shower
4. Douala

And to Kill two birds with one stone....

My Nickname: Black,  Jig, Patou, Brandi(frat life).

My Hometown: Douala, CMR

My Team: Terps Athletics, CMR athletics,

My Theme Song: My Own Prison(Acoustic) - Creed

My Drinks: Miller lite, sprite

My Spare Time: Code, TV, lisen to music.

My Hiding Place: shower, soccer field.

My Books: The DaVinci Code.. made reading exciting.

My Fake Heroes: Will Smith.

My Real Heroes: My Dad... good thing he doesn't use a computer.

My Tags: Greg, Femi, Don.

Two things...

1. I would seriously pay an insane amount of a money for a cell phone with a breathalyzer…

2. It should be illegal for people to take pictures at bars.

enough said.

UPDATE:  They do exist...Props to G$

Days by the beach

I’ve been on blogging hiatus because I’ve been out of town. I was in Florida visiting my one of my buddies. When it was planned the trip was supposed to be more couple friendly, since we both were involved at the time. But after my break up, there was a slight change in plans. After being stuck next to some lady who was snoring like it was her job on the flight, I got in Daytona Thursday night and we went straight from the airport to the bar. It was a pretty chill night because we had to drive home. The most memorable moment of the night was when we got to Denny’s. For some reason or another, my buddy got extra plate of sides. I called the waitress over and calmly explained to her that I felt discriminated against because I didn’t get an extra plate of sides. Of course I was joking, but the waitress played along and brought me an extra plate of sides. We tipped her well.

Friday, I attempted a sport white folks refer to as “surfing” a.k.a drink as much whale pee as possible (I was later informed that I makes you dehydrated so you get drunk faster… can someone check on that?). After swallowing about 2 gallons of whale pee, I gave up and concluded the following: Surfing was invited by white people for white people. Why you ask?

1. Black folks dominate every non-water sports(this include frozen water)


2. . Any black man not suffering from testicular cancer can not fit in the wet suit.


3. Historically black people don’t do well with water, mostly because as a race we don’t have nothing good ever happened at sea

Okay maybe the last one is pushing it, but three points is a good round number. To be fair to the white folks, I tried to get in the water after only a two minutes lesson. I did pick up some new terms like “pure wave” and “choppy wave”. And I even know how to put wax on your board.
After the surfing we decided to go out and get completely retarded. I could attempt to tell you the stories but the memory is choppy, a condition that was clearly alcohol related. Plus some things better when experienced than when told. And with a lot of future doctors (my buddy is in med school ish) involved in the debauchery, no photo evidence is available. As cliché as it may sound, what happens in Florida, stays in Florida.

Saturday, I attempted the whole surfing thing again without much more success but less whale pee in my stomach. After which we had a bbq at a friend’s of my buddy place. At the bbq, I was introduced to an amazing concoction called “Gin Bucket”…(1) Handle of Gin, (2) 2 litters of 7 up, (1) can of concentrate lemonade, some lemons and sugar. It’s a dream when well made. Along with the “Gin Bucket”, I was also introduced what could easily be the third best drinking game (first one being Beruit, the second one being asshole): Polish horseshoe. It’s a bit difficult to explain, but requires some “athleticism” (the extra calf muscle came in handy) and some coordination. The only downfall is that it also requires a backward. Saturday night was slightly more belligerent than the night before. But really what did you expect?

Sunday was detox day. It was too windy to “surf”, so we laid on the couches and watched every DVRed shows from the week. Absolutely my favorite day. The flight back on Monday was pretty legit but I could have done without the crazy kids running around, shouting and crying.

I really enjoyed my visit down there. Even with all the debauchery, the best part of the trip was driving around with my buddy, listening to music, telling stories and caching up.

Next trip… ATL, capital of the dirty south.

Better Safe than sorry

"Results of the Torn-Up Credit Card Application
experiment show that a bank may issue a credit card when the
application is received on a taped-together form, so shredding such
documents is a much better approach."

[ Lifehacker]

The fact of the matter credit cards are a necessary evil.  If you don't have credit history, you don't have a credit score, and if you don't have a credit score you can't buy anything.  Paying in cash will work for a while till you get accused of being a terrorist, part of the mafia or a drug dealer.  Due some level of paranoia, I currently rip my financial letters, burn part of them (I know my fire engineer roomate is shaking his fist at me now), and seperate the rest in different trash bins around the apartment.  Call me crazy, but if a seven year old can have his identity stolen, I really don't know why/how mine would be spared.  Anyways i've been debating getting a shredder for a month or tow now.  After reading that article, I've getting one from Amazon.   Better safe than sorry.  This is the bad part about growing up.


UPDATE: G$' Thoughts the matter are here

Late nite cheese steak run

One of the many advantages of living alone is the fact that I can convince myself to something absolutely ridiculous without having anyone to talk me out of it. Of course this can be both good and bad but not matter what it usually makes for a good story or a lesson learned.

Last night, I decided to stay in and do some work on a personal project to meet a self imposed deadline (they suck worse then the one imposed by clients). With a ball games on each computer and another one on the TV, I geeked (I just made it a word) the night away. After the games were over, I found myself in need of some new background noise. That’s when I stumbled upon Harold and Kumar Go to white castle. Even though I wasn’t paying much attention to the movie, by the end I was in the mood for white castle’s burgers and a road trip. Since I don’t know of any white castle around here I went for the next best thing, Philly cheese steak. Luckily for me, I’m not the only insomniac in town. At 2:30 AM I had partner “in crime”, and by 2:50 AM we were on the road get some cheese steaks from Pat’s (Geno's is too Las Vegas for me). But before we left we devised the following plan (some people think planning is essential but I personally beg to differ… but this time I made and exception).

Formula for a 3AM of the night Philly cheese steak run:
- 2 hours for the drive there (average speed of 80mph)
- EZ Pass (very Tight on time)
- 15 minutes to get lost (Because Philly might be slightly more confusing than DC)
- 45 minutes to eat (Because the Irish guy will tell you not bother him because it’s St. Patty’s day and will make fun of you for about 10-15 minutes…If you’re taking a rookie also allow time for them to learn the proper way to order)
- 2 hours for the drive back (average speed of 90mph… there is something about the sun being up and realizing that you have at work in 2 hours that makes you drive faster)
- 1 hour for rush hour traffic (Because the beltway sucks)
- Music
- $30.
- Mountain Dew/StarBucks so you can make it through work without sleeping at your desk when you make it back.
- A friend you can actually stand for 6 hours in confined space (Of course it would preferable if you actually enjoyed their company… but at 3AM your choices might be slightly limited).

Needless to say got back safe and sounds. The only negative about the trip is that I didn’t get chance to talk to my sister while I was up there. All in all, good times. Time go enjoy my favorite Irish holiday.

NCAA Tourney on Demand

My company went away from the directTV to the xbox in employee lounge. But really how usefull is an Xbox during Tournament time? Luckily the internet has made great progress and you can stream things. So i will be watching/hearing everthing on NCAASports.com for FREE.... Thank god (which ever on you chose) for the internet.


Don't forget to do some work during this month.

Grey's Anatomy Season 1

Testing the blogging Feature of Rhapsody... geek moment.
Grey's Anatomy Season 1:
1. Cosy In The Rocket - Psapp
2. Portions For Foxes - Rilo Kiley
3. Super Cool - BANG sugar BANG
4. They - Jem
5. Ready To Rise - Vaughan Penn
6. Life is short - Butterfly Boucher
7. You Wouldn't Like Me - Tegan and Sara
8. Sister Kate - The Ditty Bops
9. Live And Learn - The Cardigans
10. Wait - Get Set Go
11. Somewhere Only We Know - Keane
12. There's A Girl - The Ditty Bops
13. I Won't Be Left - Tegan and Sara
14. Wishful Thinking - The Ditty Bops
15. Fools Like Me - Lisa Loeb
16. Could Be Anything - The Eames Era
17. Let Myself Fall - Rosie Thomas
18. Break You Heart - Get Set Go
19. Truth - Vaughan Penn
20. Sunday - Sia
21. Where Does the Good Go - Tegan and Sara
22. Wake Up - The Ditty Bops
23. Evil - Interpol
24. Edge Of The Ocean - Ivy
25. Save Me - Jem
26. Walk Or Ride - The Ditty Bops
27. Never Leave Your Heart Alone - Butterfly Boucher
28. Wish I - Jem
29. Downtown - Tegan and Sara
30. Hummingbird - Wilco
31. Fix You Up - Tegan and Sara
32. Rapture - Laura Veirs
33. David - Nellie McKay
34. Big As The Sky - A.M. Sixty
35. End of the World Party - Medeski Martin & Wood
36. The Dog Song - Nellie McKay

James Blunt Live

After a basketball filled weekend it was a time for some change, I went to see James Blunt at the 9:30 club last night. I have been going through a Rice/Blunt/Grey’s Anatomy Soundtrack(s) (Yes... I also watch show although it does interfere with Footballer’s Wives on BBC) music phase for the last couple of months. So when the chance came up to see Blunt live I was ecstatic but more importantly I was hoping he didn’t suck and I was also hoping that the place wouldn’t be filled with twelve years old girls like the John Mayor concert (that was slightly annoying but I had great seats). We got there at 9:30 (the girls that I was going with decided it would be cute to meet at the 9:30 club @ 9:30 pm), which was good because I didn’t have to watch some band I didn’t know of nor care to know about as of yesterday. Despite some annoying kids in front of me, the concert turned out to be pretty good for more reasons than one and definitely going in the books as one of the top 3 of all concerts I’ve attended. He played all the tracks from his current album and several tracks from what I’m assuming are from his upcoming album. I’m def looking forward to when it comes out. The best part of part of the concert is that in a weird way it kind of provided some sort of closure to the ex situation (hey I said it was weird). After a great concert, another chapter of my dating life’s closed and hopefully stays that way.

ACC Tourney - Finale

Similar to Day 2, Day 3 also started with a wicked hangover. Unlike Day 2, the M club didn’t have a breakfast for us. Since most Terps fans had left after the abysmal loss to B.C., it is understandable why they didn’t have breakfast. Denny’s hit the spot just as well as resort’s breakfast. We then headed to the Arena to see the Duke game. As much as I dislike J.J. Redick and his sappy poetry, he is amazing to watch. I’m considering rooting for him when he gets to the NBA. After the game we sold the tickets for the championship game.

That evening we had dinner at Bert’s Seafood. The place was rated best seafood in North Carolina. Although is NC really renowned for its seafood? Despite the very complicated and confusing menu, the food was great. After dinner, we attended another Gentlemen’s club. Can’t you tell there is nothing else to do in Greensboro? There I bought private dances for the other guys in the group as a thank you for taking me to down to the tourney. Who needs thank you cards when you got “dancers”? Again I was talking to one the dancers all night (I think sense a pattern developing here) while watching the ‘Cuse vs. Pitt Game. It turns out that this dancer also had a day job where she is manager and was just dancing for fun (I’m starting to sense a scam amount these dancer… or “independent contractor” as she referred to them). The other guys mistook my curiosity about why women dance for interest in the girl. So they bought me two private dances. It turns out I’m really uncomfortable getting private dances… who knew.
(in the middle of the second dance)

Me: Umm… Can you please stop?
Girl: Yea… Is everything ok?
Me: yeah.
Girl: Do I do something wrong?
Me: No… just not my style. Can you just sit till the end of the song then we will head back to the table. Thanks.
Girl: Ok.

I get back to the table say thanks and proceed to buy them more private dance. What can I say; I really want to come out on top of the private dance buying. Later MP bought me another private dance… this time I didn’t even let her start...

Me: You don’t have to do this.
Girl: Ok. Do you have a girlfriend or something?
Me: No. Told you this is just not my style. Why don’t we just continue the conversation we were having and go back to the table in a few?
Girl: Sure.

I know I’m sad. I felt bad about the money for the dances but really how do you say no to a private dance? I did get golf balls from the establishment… that counts for something right?
The tab at the end of the night was slightly ridiculous. And I had more dollar bills than I know what to do with (since I didn’t use any).

The next day we woke up and drove back that down while listening to the game. Overall good weekend. I Might be slightly “basketballed” out for a couple of days though. Now I have to get rich so I can to do it all over again next year.

ACC Tourney Day # 2

Day 2 started out with a wicked hangover. Do the service ladies really need to bang on the door when they are trying to service the room? It really hurts when you’re hung over. One of the many Maryland alumni associations had a breakfast for the Terps fan staying at the resort. Once we get down there, my name is the only one missing (tiny reminder I’m not really important). So no one in the group wore their name tag. Solidarity. When we walked in the place we were the only people not wearing red. I seriously think the other people looked down of us for that. During breakfast Barbie and I were a bit rude, because we got up in the middle of Mote’s speech to get seconds. But really we couldn’t take the lies and the bad jokes anymore. I remember being a fan of him when I was an undergrad…. Now not so much.

After breakfast, we bummed around till the game time. We watched the second game of the first session. To pass time during the break and the first session, we decided to attend an adult entertainment establishment. Saying that the girls were nothing impressive, would be giving them a compliment. Most looked like they were 3 months pregnant and had been visiting the Taco Bell next door way too often. I was talking to one for while and found that she was graduated college with a 3.9 and just didn’t like her office job after college and that’s why she was dancing… she didn’t like the word stripping. I must the only idiot that actually talks to the strippers. Can you tell I don’t attend often?

At 7pm, we went to watch the reminder of the games. Unfortunately, the Terps got manhandled by B.C. I didn’t except us to win, but I at least expected to show up to play. The beating was so bad we left in the middle of the second half. Can we say NIT?

Back at the hotel bar, the discussions got a little rowdy. A hardcore republican (MP) and a “liberal” (me) talking about politics, the economy, foreign policy and such is just bad. Then you add Greygoose and tonic, a bad loss, and two very stubborn personalities…and you know things are going no where good. No one had to be escorted to their rooms, so think it all ended well. Post bar debate, Barbie, a friend and I made another run and continued drinking till wee hours in the morning. Good times.

ACC Tourney Day # 1

Characters Involved in the trip:
Da King – my friend’s dad (his phone says so… I swear).
MP – my friend’s dad’s friend (make sense?)
Barbie – my friend.

On Monday, Barbie called me and asked me if I wanted to go to the ACC Tournament.  Really how do you say no to that?  The only problem was that we would be leaving early on Thursday morning.  Since I had already Friday off for what was going to be a trip to Boston with the Ex (sad face), I struck a deal with my manager where if I could work 40 hours by Wednesday, he would try to get me Thursday off.  So I spent all the first days of the week at work.  I think there was a cot underneath my desk.  I got the 40 hours in (actually 38.5, but who is counting) and off to ACC Tourney I was.... I did bring the laptop just in case something needed to be done in between games and (hotel) bar hoping.
Wednesday night after watching the Constant Gardner (good movie but I got beefs with it.  Another entry for another day), I packed, got a hair cut and stayed up till 5 am watching cheesy movies and sportcenter.

The drive down (for some reason I thought there was a plane involved at first) was pretty cool.  The necessary road trip nap was awesome not because I was tired and going on 2 hours of sleep but because I’ve extensive experience sleeping on leather.  So I felt right at home (except it was moving at about 70mph).  We stop at Denis for a brunch, where a retired Marine (not with us) felt the need to remind that I was black and too old for Armed services (believe it or not it was not a racist comment, just a little weird).  We also stopped at a gas station to fill and get some drinks (non-alcoholic ones unfortunately).  The people in the gas station were so country it was unbelievable.  It was so shocking to me that I was like “Whoa… they do extist!” (like in the M&M Christmas commercials where they meet Santa Clause). The rest of the drive was pretty chill and relaxing, couple of conference calls, talking about cars, sport and making fun of Barbie (easy target).

Once we got down to NC, we checked in a ridiculously nice resort; a bit intimidating actually. After drop our stuff in our respective rooms (we each have a separate room with some sick view of the golf course… which is equally as sick), we made our way to the hotel bar.  There were four hot girls sitting at the bar, clearly Barbie and I were trying to figure their deal what there deal was.  Da King took a look at them once and suggested that they were “working girls.”   I protested, hot girls likes sports too. Sure enough when the bar filled up, the ladies were hitting on every guy in place.  I felt like such a Rookie (rookie moment # 1). 

We eventually made our way to MD vs. GTECH game.   Barbie and I first try to get media passes so we can meet up with a friend of ours who works for a news station down here.  That was not a successful endeavor, but we stumbled on a VIP area where they served alcohol (they didn’t serve any in the rest of the coliseum… stupid NCAA rules).  We tried to bribe our way into the VIP area, but the man with missing teeth was having none of it.  After we got back to our seats, some guys came to schmooze Da King (he is part of the M club), and ten minutes later we are in VIP area boozing (rookie moment # 2). We finished boozing and went back to our sits to watch the game.  GTECH fans really didn’t show up.  They must have been expecting to lose.  Terps Fans on the other hand travel really well.  I was impressed.  Clearly Terps Dominated…. Mike Jones (who?) and   Nik Caner-Scrappy both played really well.  After the game, we headed back to the hotel bar.  And yes they ladies were still working (rookie moment # 3).  After Da King and MP headed to bed… we hit the town with our friend that resides here.  We got a round of beer, got in a mandatory fan scuffle (the other guys got kicked out).  Last call is at 1:30 around here… Seriously? I was really disappointed.  And since I’m rookie around… there was no after party spot that I knew of. So we called it a night.  Overall first good day.

Introducing..

Intelligent, Witty and hillarious.. but don't take my word for it, read it. Everything Greg

Unlike me he uses spell-check, and since English is he first language is you can expect less grammatical errors.


UPDATE: Unlike my other posts, the errors in this one are intentional.... really i swear.

How to reformat your hardrive

"Hey, Windows XP users: The blue screen of death got you down? Missing dll errors making you frown? Frequent software crashes leave you yearning for that fresh, new PC you unpacked with glee three years ago? If you’ve scrubbed for spyware and viruses, defragged, chkdsked and done the requisite rain dance but things are STILL wonky on your computer, it may be time for extreme action"

[ Lifehacker ]

Since all the non geeks i know are proned to want to reformat their computers every couple of months because they have a "virus" and call me when everything goes here a good artible on how do it correctly.