Okay a couple of things to blog about...the first on the list is Brian changing his hairstyle...so do you look like Jeff now? Second of all you know that you can change all the exterior stuff you want, but until you deal with the NAPS inside your heart...you will forever feel like you are lacking. Just like Jon and his buttons. Haha.

Next thing to rip into is Brian's top 10. I'm not sure if we can let you into the future video game store anymore with that kind of list...but I'm sure we can let you hang out with the rejects in the parking lot waiting to get in. For example...Ulala? There are so many fione ass girls in videogames and you choose Ulala? Let's say I was turned into a video game character that looked just like a 15,000 polygon model of Brad Pitt. I'd head right on over to the DOA and have myself a little Fight Club with all those slutty vixens. Yeah. Out all all the ninja turtles you choose the one that represents Jon? I hope you two have a nice wedding. We can get both bachelor parties out of the way in one go round. Awesome. Ocarina of time is where the game started sucking?!? When it takes you five minutes to ride Epona from the village to Garudo villiage...that is when you know that you were in Hyrule the way it was supposed to look. I'm not one to agree with a bunch of fanboys...but OOT is probably one of the top five video games EVER MADE. I'll give you the rest of the people on the list...highly creative without being to obvious...to bad your list is tainted with mediocre gaming knowledge. HAha!! So when you coming down for some serious Poker?

Next: Suckin Pak or whatever the fuck her name is was on MTV talking to other asians about what it was like to be discriminated against and blah blah blah. My question for her is why not get the perspectives of asians that have been here for awhile and see how they feel. The bottom line is that everyone gets discriminated against...it is how you deal with it that makes you better than most. Besides all she talked to were the typical all wearing black dresses with too dark of the makeup with golden arches as eyebrows with straight black hair that looks like Morticia...all while eating Kimchee at some fucking restaurant that has too many floating zeros in it's name...and to make matters worse the group of friends look like they can be found at Santa Clara billiards on Saturday night. "I hate it when I got the...oh look it's Bruce Lee's wife Miss Ching chong ching chong". Haha that's funny. Let it go. It's funny because we all know that Bruce Lee's wife was Lauren Holly and if you had the name Miss. ching chong ching chong...you are probably a pretty good porn star. Either way why not ask someone like me who haven't really experience discrimination because I had cool friends and was in a cool neighborhood...and when I did get discriminated against...sometimes that shit was funny. Now the difference between let's say my grandparents getting racist comments is that at the time it could have turned violent...and the whole Pearl Harbor thing...but nowadays I feel that since my great grandparents on down got racist comments thrown at them...I better return the favor to the FOBS. It's not my fault they are jungle monkeys. Man, good thing she didn't contact me...she would have edited everything I just said out. Bottom line is that I know that is a weak argument to be a little racist...but EVERYONE IS FUCKING RACIST...BESIDES MISS. PAK...I SAW YOUR FAMILY ON THE SHOW...EVEN BRYANT SHOULD FEEL ASHAMED AT HOW YOUR FAMILY ACTED...haha!

The third second (also known as thirdly) of all is some poker tips. Now you have heard me talk about suited connectors and everyone besides Jon might be a little confused as to when you can play these. In fact I do remember a couple of you guys asking why you would want more callers with somewhat weak cards such as a 78suited. Here is the thing...in case you are wondering...the reason you want to call with more people in the pot is because the odds of you making a winning hand is pretty fucking minimal. You want percentages...here you go...if you want to flop a straight then you have about a 310 to 1 chance against making it...if you do the math then you are looking at a .32 percent chance of making it. If you do get some kind of draw on the flop you are still looking pretty minimal...if you have the way with it then you are looking at an openended straight draw (HOPEFULLY YOU ARE DRAWING ON THE IGNORANT END OF THE STRAIGHT) then you have 8 outs...this is not including your flush draw if you actually have it...but with 78 you aren't looking to good for the flush anyway...these eight outs translate into a .85 to 1 odd. This is HUGE. That's over fifty percent. So why the fuck do you call when you know with that many players someone is probably holding two faces or god forbid...AK or AA, KK...so on? The reason is this...the importance of playing these is that you should play them the same amount everytime if you have the way with your cards. You can't sit down and be like, "well suited connectors didn't work for me last time so I'm going to tighten up my game". Since the odds of you even getting a draw on the flop are minimal...you have to make sure than when you do FINALLY win a pot with this...it makes up for all the times that you missed before. You need to make sure your pot odds are at the very least fucking even for what you are drawing for. Jon might argue with this...about playing these...but he even knows that if you get a straight...you are looking at a huge pot if you played it right. Secondly I know Jon puts stock in these suited connectors and I know he knows when to play them...if he going to have any thing to argue in this paragraph it will be because my percentages are off or he thinks I put too much stock in suited connectors...but that is a personal judgment on his game. We all know Jon is a better poker player than all of us so there you have it...perhaps Jon can actually blog about this confusing topic in a simpler manner! Thirdly, if you play agressive and tight then you should be up in money to take some chances like this. When I win with a AKsuited and walk away with a 30 dollar pot (which is atually quite small for 3/6) then I'm willing to spend at least 20 of that to see the flop or even see fourth street to see if I can DRAW to a DRAW. Sounds fucking crazy, but like I told Bryant...there have been times at Garden that I flipped over "10 high" and laughed it off...you can bet those fuckers gave me some action...I know this above paragraph is full of contradicting statements...but that is how I play my suited cards...I'm even known to raise with a 7-8suited to make sure my pot odds are enough for me to even be in the fucking hand...and that is dangerous...but more dangerous to other players when they find out I raise with 78suited, in their minds for "shits and giggles".

Another poker observation...and I do not recommend this, but I have found for me...when obseving the right players and listening to your gut (if it is proven correct fairly often) you can bluff about slowplaying. Now there have been situations when I had at least top pair, but at the beginning of the hand I felt I was beat...perhaps a flush draw came or a straight...whatever you know the situations...so I do this when I at least have something to backup my semi bluff...and ALSO REMEMBER THAT I ONLY EXPERIMENTED WITH ABOUT 100 DOLLARS IN ORDER TO SEE WHERE THIS WENT...I would act like I was slowplaying. What does this mean exactly? I will check to see if I'm beat...if someone else bets then I will call. Now when the fourth and fifth come out I am looking for ANY SIGN that he didn't make a hand...and in a way I'm hoping that something comes on the board that either HELPS ME IN MY HAND OR MAKES THE BOARD SCARY FOR HYUNG DING PHAN SITTING ACROSS FROM ME...often times I will check if i'm first to act since I would be happy to have him check...I at least have top pair...but if he bets...and I feel that I'm beat...I will come over the top of him and represent what is on that board. I know I made the right decision when he starts to fucking think. THIS DOESN'T HAVE MUCH PLAY IN A 2/4 GAME...BUT even in low stakes games like 3/6...the guy is still thinking about the 12 dollars he is about to lose if he calls (since in his mind I could have made the flush draw). Anyway the results of the experiment is that I probably made about 50 or so bucks just by raising on the river. If you are playing against some nervous fuck sitting down for the first time...or your table image is that of someone who plays only premium cards...this could work for you. Of course this all depends on how you read the person...I have been wrong and have lost pots in occassions like this...but just as the suited connectors...I have the money because my game was on either earlier that night or last session...where I can take chances like these...Jon's gonna hate this paragraph...its like sticking dirty thoughts into your guys' heads. Hehe. This totally goes against the belief of "if you know you are beat then fold", "don't throw away good money after bad" and blah blah blah...but all good poker players know that these rules aren't set in stone...it all depends at the table you are at and how confident you are at observing other people.

Bottom line is this...if your bankroll is hurting you do not play suited connectors to begin with...it is risky and is only worth while if you have the money to throw away...you can easily just build up a bankroll by playing the top ten hands...the second paragraph on poker is just an observation. I don't want you guys fucking calling and raising then blaming me for the shit not working...because I will just say that the guy you tried it against was either a player like you who plays only quality shit or you totally misread him...either way be more fucking observant. Hehe. I was actually going to blog something insightful tonight...but fuck it...I need a shower.

Oh yeah.
I forgot to post something in my last blog. I AM NAPS NO LONGER. Last week, I went to get my hair cut, and decided I had it with the puff look. It's all gone now, and I look like a Buddhist Monk. Not quite what I had in mind, but at least it's a change. Ahh well. In about a month it'll be back to the 'fro I'm sure. Gah, more work. More to come.

Video game characters
This one is kinda hard. Never really gave it any thought, but here we go. My 10 favorite video game characters (In no particular order.):

1.) Prince Laharl - (Disgaea) This guy had quick wit and a perfect demon attitude. If I had the time I'd educate all of you on the wonders of the game and explain why I spent 80+ hours playing it. Short version: He's an anime character that makes fun of anime, RPG's and uses japanese humor to express his hate. How can you not go wrong?

2.) Sora - (Kingdom Hearts) Another RPG game with a great character. He feels like a native Final Fantasy character, one with a noble quest to save a childhood friend and find his girl. Actually, come to think of it, it's pretty generic. But never the less, his upbeat attitude is fun to watch, and some of his experssions are priceless.

3.) Parappa - (PaRappa the Rappa) You all know him and love him. I don't know why he's not on everyone's list. A rapping dog? An onion rap master? To this day, I can still remember select lines from the game. "Crack, crack, crack the egg into to bowl..." "In the rain or in the snow, I got the funky flow, but now I really gotta go." Word up.

4.) Gordon Freeman - (Half-Life) The man. Sure, the guy never talks, but the world seems to revolve around him. Move through a doorway, and something happens. Yay for scripting. Forget the chainsaws, if you give this guy a wrench, he'll tear shit up. He's the only scientist crazy enough to travel to an alien world, face off with face huggers, and MARINES.

5.) Kerrigan - (StarCraft) She's one bitter woman. Enough to give Steve a run for his money :) I understand where she's coming from though. If I were stranded to fight hundreds of thousands alien-esque type creatures on my own, I'd be a little pissed. She goes on to unite the 3 other races and destroys their leaders one at a time. Brutal.

6.) Donatello - (TMNT: Turtles In Time) I wasted so much money on this game, it's not even funny. Not to mention the time spent with TMNT II. Donatello was the best turtle. He was the smartest and had the longest reach weapon (Or so I thought at the time. I was later proven wrong by a now former friend :D And Don was the only one pimp enough to wear purple. Kinda like Samuel L. Jackson and his lightsaber.

7.) Ryu - (Street Fighter II) I'll stand behind the Japanese Warrior... In the glory days of SFII through SFII Hyperfighting, Ryu would waste Ken any day of the week. Unfortunately, as the games progressed, he would have a little more trouble in my eyes facing his "friend." He always has the same moves. Oh, forgive me, he gets a RED FIREBALL that knocks opponents down. What does Ken get? A crazy-ranged FLAME DRAGON PUNCH. Where's the justice in that?

8.) Link - (Zelda II) A lot of people hated this game for some reason. This was my first entry into the Zelda series and I loved it. If I had it my way, I'd be fighting Ironknuckles all night long. He had a large task, to place 6 crystals, get the Triforce of Courage, and wake Zelda who is sleeping when you first start the game. The third game was fairly fun, but then when it got to 3D the series started sucking. I have no desire to play as kid Link.

9.) Pac-Man - (erm. Pac-Man) Alright, so I'm starting to reach a bit. But I gotta give it up to old school characters as well. This was such a simplistic character whose job was to eat these dots. Why? Who cares! Just don't let the ghosts touch you. Through the years, his look changed. He gained hands, feet, eyes, and even eyebrows. He had a cartoon, and his own cereal for a time. Not too many others can boast such achievements (Zelda and Mario... Is that it?)

10.) Ulala - (Space Channel 5) I'm out of ideas so I'll go for the wacky. I know you guys won't admit it, but I bet you played SC5 at least once in your life. "Up, chu, down, chu, up, chu, chu." Alright I'm going to stop. I've emberrassed myself enough for one night.

top ten game characters
I'm not a hard core gamer. Today I'm just a has-been, amazed and horrified by the amount of time some people (i.e. you guys) devote to staring at the game screen. But... I used to be a heavy enthusiast, spending hours after school every weekday... whole weekends whiled away at Golfland, Nickel City, and even Tilt... playing Street Fighter Anyversion until the doors were closed. Those who know me best know this: I am a fighting game freak, and when Capcom enters the arena there is simply no contest. But even before SFII changed the world, Capcom was putting out fun games with cool characters. So what I'm saying is I've got the Capcom list on lock, and the rest of you can choose your chocobos, stupid green alien light guns, farm hands, and duck characters that resemble your ugly friends.

(1) Mega Man - I only had and played Mega Man 2, but that game is awesome, with unforgettable music. Mega Man blows you up, takes your weapon, and uses it on your friends. Served.

(2) Bionic Commando - Slow-moving bullet coming straight at you? Jump, you idiot! Aw shiet, this fool has NO hops. But this ain't retarded no hops like Mr. Big from Art of Fighting. Instead, he shoots out a Doc Ock arm and it pulls him along. This took a little getting used to, but that's what innovation is about. After a few tries, you're swinging like Tarzan, blasting Nazis like no other. The best was when you'd bounce on a guy's head and he'd be frozen and you could turn around and shoot him. The worst was when you'd bounce on a guy's head and it'd send you straight into a hole with nothing but a wall to futilely try to claw-grab three times before you fall and die.

(3) Guy - Before the one-on-one fighting games... there was Final Fight. And the coolest character was Guy. He had a ninja style outfit and a weird name. It sucks how doing his flying spin kick took off life, but when the hookers are on you, you do what you gotta do. Remember the ending? Cody saves Jessica, so she's grateful. Guy doesn't care for the unfair rationing of tats, so he gives Cody a final beating and flips away. FRIENDS! Okay so he doesn’t get the ladies like the white man (who ends up in jail, apparently, from SFA3), but he's still badass. And his return in Street Fighter Alpha was awesome. Korezo... bushinryu! Eeyooooo! Word.

(4) Hiryu - Strider. Dope looking. Red face cloth thing. Cypher slash. Triangle jump. If only the NES version looked more like the arcade version. Speaking of the arcade game, that upside-down stage was too easy, why even put that in there? Let's climb down the wall and see if it goes anywhere AW DEAD.

(5) Blue guy & Red guy - Forgotten Worlds… this was a great game, one of the few I had for Genesis. It’s like floating Contra with satellite weapons, coins to hog, and of course pretty lady selling you items. Probably the main reason I’d be looking into emulators.

(6) Dhalsim - Obviously I love the whole SFII cast, but let’s look at the original and intriguing Dhalsim for fun. Perhaps not the deadliest force or easiest to combo with, but for interesting characters to talk about and laugh at... Dhalsim! How racist is Japan? Most of the characters were humans with cool powers... fireballs, flying/spinning moves... I guess India's just got FREAKS. Clearly on the hungry side, with stretchy limbs that go across the screen? He wears a skull necklace of course, and his only friends rooting him on are frickin elephants tooting in the back of his living room. Do you remember how ridiculous the Yoga Mummy looked? Oh geez and Yoga Nugie... YOGA! YOGA! YOGA! He actually has to yell out "yoga" every time he punches your head, because apparently HE'S THAT INTO YOGA. Well he's from India what do you expect they're all like that.

(7) Akuma - Oh man... take Ryu and Ken's best moves, add air fireballs and warping, and you've got yourself one of the toughest opponents possible. Then on top of that, later add a Guy-style flip'n'throw, a super air fireball, and of course the 15-hit "shungokusatsu" slide-in-and-beat-shiet-out-of-you-with-flash-of-light super combo. He had so many moves and combos to use, domination was never a question.

(8) Dan - Heheh. Still puts a smile on my face. For those that don't know the story, Capcom was not blind to the fact that numerous companies were trying to make a profit off of their success with Street Fighter II by putting out absolutely shitty imitations. SNK was far from the worst, but they did some serious biting with Art of Fighting. Ryo and Robert, two friends, one Japanese one white, trained in the same style of karate, have fireballs and rising uppercut punches. Hmm. So a Capcom artist drew a picture of Sagat holding the head of a beaten body with a combination of Ryo's orange gi with black undershirt, and Robert's pony tail. In Street Fighter Alpha, he was introduced as a secret character named Dan. He has lame watered-down moves based on Ken and Ryu (“gadoken”, “koryuken”, “dankukyaku”), wears pink or lime green, and his super move is the flurry attack, bitten back from Art of Fighting. Nice counter, Capcom. Speaking of counters, Dan had the lame all-red counter in Puzzle Fighter. So he's the joke character that always rolls around, gets beaten up and made fun of, and cries for his dad. Gotta love it. Hyahoooo! Oyajiiii!

(9) Shoma - Ah, Rival Schools. I love this game. The characters, the moves, team-ups... all put together perfectly. Shoma's the little baseball player with the humongous bat. I never get tired of seeing my opponent get set and spiked into a home run swing, then fly across the screen so far you have to zoom way out. Or you can just chuck a hardball in their face, that works too. Honorable mention goes to Steve's dad, AKA Hideo, the teacher with nerd glasses, fighting gloves, and M. Bison shoulder pads, the Ryu/Ken of Rival Schools. That's the only reason I don't talk more shiet over at Steve's house.

(10) The Hulk - Okay not an original game character, but come on. How fun was it to fight with this guy. Big round punch sends the other guy flying. Or you can grab his head, swing him around like a windmill a few times, and fling. Or best of all, JUMP UP AND GRAB A METEOR AND BRING IT DOWN ON THE OTHER GUY'S HEAD. It's gotta be fun to design these games. I used to read comic books, and I love what Capcom did with all the Marvel characters.

Honorable mention (i.e. I cheat):

(A) 3 green jets (Combat) - Ah, Atari. Classic. Remember this one? Most uneven match ever. 3 green jets each shoot a bullet, for a wide range of shot. The other guy gets to shoot one bullet from one long red jet that's pretty much just a huge target to put smiles on the green army's faces. Tough choice, but I'll take the SURE WINNER.

(B) Buckets (Kaboom!) - The Mad Bomber. That relentless muthafacka. Dropping bombs in a steady stream but trusty old Buckets don't ever fill up. If the first one missed, the second or third will take care of it. Teamwork. Where's the 3D multiplayer version of this?

(C) Elf (Gauntlet) - Shoot enemies from far away, then run in and steal all the items. I grabbed that joystick first for shizzle.

(D) Bub & Bob - I think those were their names... the Bubble Bobble heroes, before they sold out with Bust-a-Move/Puzzle Bobble. The game was fun and addictive, and these guys took care of business with nothing but spit bubbles and smiles.

(E) Samurai Shodown and Darkstalkers characters - These games deserved way more of my attention than they got. Both had excellent and stylish design, as well as innovative game play aspects.


dance contest
The Best Dancer in the Bay contest, presented by the Flavor Group, took place at DNA Lounge in SF on February 28. I found out about it at the nustudios forum. Occasionally at clubs I've seen dance circles with people getting down for a crowd, and wondered if I could hang. Usually I'd only do mini-exhibitions for friends at parties when they egged me on enough. I hate looking back with regret wondering if I could've done this or that, so I decided I would sign up for this contest and see what the funk I got.

I reviewed my dance tapes and practiced popping (it had been a while). I didn't tell a lot of people about it (besides a Friendster post that no one saw)... this was really a personal trial and I was ready to go it alone. But I invited a few friends who I thought might be interested, and when the time came, Bryant came along to see me compete. He got to hold my keys, wallet, and watch when I went on stage--thanks man. When we got there a few people were warming up, and I didn't see anything too impressive, but I could tell it was better than the typical night in a club. I was a little nervous, not knowing what to expect, but it was that exciting kind of nervous that we should all feel once in a while.

I was #22 in the order for the 24 first round entrants in the contest. Everyone got 30 seconds to dance to whatever the DJ was spinning at the time... mostly hip hop and house beats. As people did their thing, I thought some were pretty good and had some style. It seemed like a lot of people had basic popping skills, but I didn't see a lot of really hard, sharp popping. Then it happened. I was near the stage, and I swear #20 was on stage, but then they called out my name. "All right switch it up... J Pop... J Pop where you at?" I was behind a few people next to the stage, and had to raise my hand to make sure they didn't skip me. I squeezed through the crowd and got on stage, but at that time I felt rushed to get myself up there, and when I started dancing... ... I was on autopilot. I was definitely NOT focused like I should've been, instead I was just kinda throwing typical dancing moves out, nothing I'm proud of. There was one point that I realized this, and threw a little more leg moves in, but by then it was too late. Soon my 30 seconds was up and I was done for the night. When I got off stage a guy patted me on the back and gave me a "nice job" head nod. He was Asian, so I think that's why, heheh.

After my failed attempt at making a strong debut performance for myself, the battles began. 7 people plus the returning champion Jamar made the second round. Eventually it was down to two guys, Madd Chadd and J Rock. Madd Chadd did some slow robot moves the whole time, but he was damn good at it. J Rock was very versatile, with various styles including popping and locking. Madd Chadd ended up winning, probably largely due to his slow-mo ground moves into windmill trick, which was tight. It turns out the two guys are roommates who drove up from LA.

So in summary I stunk up the place, but it's still better than never having tried. I learned from it... a little about how battles like this are run, and what judges are really gonna look for. And I know without question that I could do way better than I did, I just have to get used to performing and the judging aspect, and focus on busting out impressive and entertaining moves. If anyone wants to get in on this let me know and we'll have some practice sessions. Otherwise... I need new friends dammit.


Gambling on TV: the WSOB
Okay have you guys seen this? I did just today... The World Series of Blackjack. ... ... Come on now. Blackjack is a guts-or-numbers game. Either you have the guts to bet a lot and hope you get lucky, or you play by the numbers and master a probabilistic strategy. The only reliable way to win is to count cards, and even so a tremendous amount is left up to chance. What you do really has no effect on the other players, except if you hit they have one more card to count. But they've got this show set up all dramatic and competitive, with commentators explaining the rules, etc. One player was spouting off probabilities ("I was 70% to win that") and even trying to READ THE DEALER after she checked her hole card for a blackjack. Please. In poker, you can read players because they have something at stake. They want to win the pot... THEY CARE. Blackjack dealers DO NOT CARE. It's not their money at stake. They're probably bored out of their minds, and only find amusement in stupid-looking, talkative, or extremely bad gamblers. But anyways, you watch the players make their decisions, and the double down cards aren't revealed until the end OOOOH SUSPENSE. The only interesting part is that the players just need to have more money than the other players when it's over. So they can bet whatever amount they want. If it's near the end, and someone figures it's all or nothing, he might get lucky on an "all-in" bet. That's not skill. That's Jeopardy. So in summary it's stupid and I don't recommend it. But keep an eye out for the WSOPaiGow.

Since I am the foremost authority on video games (don't argue with me Andy...you know I'm right) I will give the best top ten character list EVER created by any man. While this isn't true, it sure does seem like it...because I am that awesome. Here it goes...if you disagree with any of them...you are entitled to your own opinion...even if it is gay. I did top 12 because I'm that damn good.

11. Sonic the Hedgehog. While some people didn't like these games...they probably didn't play Sonic and Knuckles and/or Sonic CD. Both of these games were some of the most fun platform games I have ever played. On top of that...without Sonic and his bullshit blast processing scam, SEGA wouldn't have become a stable in the video game community. However it seems that stable has been reduced to one of those small, teeny, weeny paper clips that couldn't hold two post it notes together. Anyone remember Sonic Pinball? Still the best pinball game ever made.

10. Soldier from DoomII. Okay so I could have been proper and awarded this spot to B.J. Blazkowicz from Wolfenstein 3D but it was DoomII that solidified first person shooters as a legit genre. Shit I couldn't have given this title to Duke Nukem who I spent more time with than the soldier from Doom, but bottom line you have to respect the roots and this game singlehandedly kept those pimpled face nerds from ever coming out of their houses and procreating with someone else...including myself.

9. Samus Aran. I wish this intergalactic fox could be higher on my list, but the fact of the matter is that you couldn't play without her suit except in the first Metroid. As much as looking at a bikini clad babe with only a four color pallete and square boobs was intoxicating...I think I would have liked to see her in a nice makeover on the Gamecube. Overall though, Metroid was one of the hardest games I have ever played and I am proud to say I finished it. If Metroid Prime II is top notch...Samus will be bumped up a few spots. Speaking of video game babes...

8. Jill Valentine. Interesting that she is in the same exact spot as Tony's list. That was not done on purpose mind you, but let's face it. Resident Evil series. The only reason why Derek hangs out with a heretic like me. Without Resident Evil there wouldn't be survival horror games (No...Shadowgate does not fucking count) and Derek and I would only have God in common. Miss Valentine in Nemesis...was...well fine as hell. And she was a smart ass. And she could shoot the heads of zombies (only when I controlled her...Derek on the other hand would get eaten up and use one of our precious herbs). I would like to recommend that Jill gets into skimpier clothes so she can run away faster...and if not then Tryant will take her spot because he runs around naked.

7. Cloud Strife. FFVII. Is this game overrated? You bet your ass. Was it good though? You bet your ass. This game was good. I give Kylie a hardtime for liking it so much..."what's that Kylie? I can't understand you with Cloud's cock in your mouth..." but the reason why Cloud makes it on this list is because he was one of the first characters with a darkside to him in any RPG. (One could argue that FFIII for the SNES had dark characters...while this is true...they weren't developed as well.) Without Cloud we wouldn't have our typical anime type heroes for all Square games to come...while this is a good thing and a bad thing...Cloud nevetheless deserves a spot on this list.

6. Simon Belmont. Okay so why not Trevor? Why not Alucard from Symphony of the Night. Simon started it all and had the most success in killing off the Count. The first Castlevania was just about impossible to finish and the sequel, Simon's Quest was so good that my mom played that game. Holy Water, flame whips, boomerangs...this guy could do it all. Castlevania still needs a remake that will truly do it justice, but if they keep trying and never forget that it was the exploring...the vast enemies, the central character himself...they can't fail...even though it seems they kind of already have.

5. Leisure Suit Larry. The king of Sierra games. The king of all PC games. Even Call of Duty. Even Tapper. Larry was awesome. The way he thought...the way he acted...and the beauty part about that is that he acted just how you wanted him too. This was an adventure game that was shown in beautiful EGA graphics and you had to type in what you had to do. "Knock on door" "Buy a drink" "Sit on stool" "Stare at tits" "Touch her tits" "Put on condom" I know Andy and Bryant remember the first one. "Hey this freak wants to buy a SPEARMINT FLAVORED, POLKA DOTTED, RIBBED FOR HER PLEASURE, LUBRICATED CONDOM!!" Or how about the sequel..."FUCK THAT...YOU DON'T NEED A GROTESQUE GULP...GOD DAMNIT IT...RESTORE...sigh....20 hours later....SHIT...WHAT AIRSICK BAG...FUUUUUUUCKKKKKKKK!!!!" Even the latest installment where Larry was cartoony...and we got to hear his voice for the first time. Memorable...and I will never forget the frustration and the rewards of playing "Larry, Larry Laffer..hehe".

4. Ryu. So if I had to choose a SFII character I would have to pick Ryu. He symbolizes everything that made Street Fighter II. Classic fireball movement...the shouryuken that no can pronounce...for all you crackers out there...I mean the allyoucan. Or his high flying spectacle, "kyapyapyapyakyukya" thing. Either way someone from Street Fighter had to go on this list for what it did to the gaming world. Every single fighter that comes out will always be measured up to how it changes the genre just as SFII did. If your pissed I chose Ryu over your favorite character, then insert favorite character after number 3.

3. Megaman. I don't necesarily mean MegamanX or Megaman without the helmet, but I'm talking about the original blue bomber. The original Rockman. Okay so it took awhile for Megaman to catch on here in the states. The reason why is because the awesome Capcom artists (and I do mean awesome in a non sarcastic way...they are top fucking notch) had too much sake one night and decided to fuck up the Megaman cover for the NES. If you don't remember what it looked like...basically it had a realistic looking guy that was properly proportioned with a shitty excuse for a Tron suit on the cover. I think he was dodging discs or something...I have no fucking clue...all I remember was that the cover was stupid and I passed it up for something shitty...probably Spelunker. Either way I first got into Megaman with the sequel and then bought the first one. He literally defined the platform shooting, item upgrade game. Oh yeah and I'm not talking about the lame ass crumbs Megaman from Captain N.

2. Link. The first game to introduce a battery in the game cartridge that would keep your data even after you turned off the system. Forgive the shitty marketing on Nintendo's part. I know you remember that commercial..."ZELDA!!!" "ZELDA!!!" Meanwhile she isn't coming out because she doesn't want to be rescued by some white fuck with a mullet in black tights and a tight black shirt. Aside from the commercial (which will play on our television screens in the video game store for nostalgia) Link is badass because he is a small guy with big intentions...fucking up Ganon every single time he decides he wants to rise again. With the Master Sword and his trusty Ocarina...he is unstoppable. Quick quiz...if you know it..answer it on your next blog...this person was the first person that told Link he had to go rescue Zelda...it was his destiny. No it was not the fucking old man, "it's dangerous out there...take this..." Cue item grabbing jingle. "Thanks for the wooden sword you dirty old bitch. What the fuck am I going to do with a wooden fucking sword. (I beat Zelda with the wooden sword.)

1. Tony got it right. If he or anyone else does not put Mario up on top...you are idiotic garnished with retard. In fact maybe you are a retard pretending to be Canadian for Halloween...either way Mario is the icon of video games. If videogame was a legit church...Mario would be God. I could go into why Mario is dope ass...but he started out as a LCD watch game and got his big break with Donkey Kong. The rest as they say is history. Shit I guess Mario could also be replaced with Shigeru Miyamoto. If you don't know who he is either...well we got your termination papers for Pooky on your way out. Hehe.

0. The fuck from Spelunker. Tony laughed at me one time when I threw down the controller after getting hit by three green shells and one red shell followed by lightning bolted in Mario Kart: DD. I told him that I wasn't always like that...until I met the fuck from Spelunker. If you don't know the story with Spelunker...you probably don't know me, but in a nutshell...he is the reason and cause for all my frustration and stress. To this day I am trying to cope with the demons of the past. Some people get felt up by God's workers. Some kids get beat. I get fucking Spelunkered. Until the day I die I will always try to please the Spelunking gods. "WHY THE FUCK CAN'T I FALL 6 FUCKING INCHES YOU FUCKING ASSHOLES. FUCK BORDERBUND. I HOPE THEY WENT OUT OF BUSINESS FOR THEIR SHIT. FUCK THEM AND FUCK THEM AND FUCK THEM AND FUCK THEM UP THEIR SPELUNKING ASSES...

ahem...

So there is my list. Take what you want from it because it is the list to beat. By the way on a quicknote...Dawn of the Dead was a cool film that doesn't take itself too seriously. If you got nothing else to do and don't want to be caught thinking in a movie theatre...this is the film for you. I think it is what Resident Evil should have been (well with the addition of Tryant or Nemesis).

haha Brian, Today was pretty slow at work today so I started compiling my list of games off the top of my head. I will post a link soon =)

While I do that I can think of my favorite characters as well.....

I was bored.

I should have saved my money all those years. *sigh*

Small update since we haven't posted anything for a month now! What the hell is up with that?

Anyway, Pokerroom is back in full swing. They sure have changed stuff since I've been away. Now there are multi-table tournaments going on almost every hour. I was able to participate in one this last weekend. There were about 200 people signed up and the top 10 walked away with some cash, I think the 1st place came away with $500. Anyway, I lasted about an hour and a half only to be bumped out at 53rd place. I decided on my last hand that a KJo was a strong enough hand to go all in. I should have known I was going up against an AK, but whatever. Flop comes Ace and 2 junkers. So I walk away a loser.

Speaking of losers... There are still a lot of them on the regular tables. Thank god for the WPT being televised :) So I'm back to playing a little bit of poker til we get our sorry butts to Vegas.

Road trips: I know not everyone is interested, but Nobuo Uematsu (The Final Fantasy music guy...) is coming to LA on May 10th to perform music from Final Fantasy with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. I'm considering flying down that day to see this. I mean, who doesn't want to hear Final Fantasy music conducted by the man himself? Anyone else interested? I can only go for that day since I've got a final the next day. (Studying? Whatever.) But the press release is here for those interested. The website also has 2 awe-inspiring rock remixes of FFVII's battle music and FFV's major theme (Uh, i think.) Front seats have been taken already, and they're asking around 80 for the next seats up.

Hope you all are doing well... Jon, you better hurry up and log about that damn dance competition, I'm getting sick of waiting for the news of Bangs Vs. FluidGirl :D

And does FF: Crystal Chronicles actually end? It's starting to get a bit repetitive.

Double post. I just wanted to remark on the DDR remix on OCR. It's an interesting take on the original, but the sucky rap is still there. The added groove sounds nice, and I've always liked the little melody in the background. Bottom line, it gets a point for creativity and another for a well done mix, but I'm not impressed. There are better things on OCR to listen to.

"Someone get this fricken duck away from me!"

Happy belated birthday to both Bryant, and Tony! Damn, yeah. Where has time gone anyway? Pretty soon we'll all end up as grumpy old men. Like the movie.
...
Guys? Herro?

First blog of the new year, gotta make it stupid.

Classes are as stupid as last year. No, amend that. I have stupid people again. This one chick in my Organizational Behavior exists just to piss everyone off. The first 5 minutes were hellish. "So 3 midterms and no final? *ponder* What about our final? DO WE HAVE A FINAL?" Straight from the horses mouth. She then proceeds to interrupt the professor with one of her stories about her friend. The class groans collectively. It's going to be a long semester.

You know, I really need to find a job that works regular hours. I'm getting sick of this no socom, no ffxi, no chill time schedule. The only thing that is keeping me going right now is the car. As long as I can stick it out for a year, I could get one. WRX? Maybe. I believe Jon said it best when he said "ValueBangs vs. GreedyBangs/CarpeDiemBangs. A clasic match-up." Can't say it any better than that man. But look what he did... He got the best of both worlds. Gah.

If you were wondering if I memorized that little line from him, I didn't. I was going through the blogs of early days, and found it amusing. All of it. Right down to the big video game debate and the poker trials and tribulations. One year and a couple months, still going energizer bunny style.

What does this New Year hold for all of us? New jobs? New lives? Anyone have anything interesting coming up this year? I want to get to Vegas this year. THIS YEAR. All the other years were just in preparation for this trip. We're going! Now if only I can get the time off from work. heh heh heh.

Oh yes. Life is good. I'm still playing with the gifts from Christmas, thank you all! Socom is slowly eating away my time, the Atari brings back memories, and the mag subscription is good reading. I couldn't have asked for a better way to end what was a crappy day at work :) And it was good to talk to you Steve... Missed those stay up til 6 am talking about everything and eat all your food :D Oh, and for all that have moved away from Yars' Revenge, I suggest playing Adventure. And after a through game, go to homestarrunner and click on homepage #13, and mouse over the e-mail option. My bro showed it to me and I got a good long laugh.

Happy Birthday Tony!!!!!!

I have more to right, with little time....

Jon reminded me that I once said, "The plan is to buy a cue stick with the winnings I make in Poker." I also said to Bryant, "If you buy such and such, I will buy my DefTechs for my television." But Jon makes a very valid point. Bryant just likes to watch me spend money! Haha! So I think I will finally set the new G5 aside for now and look for a cue stick. After all I have spent numerous hours in pool halls and too much money to not get my own, legit cue stick. Sure I have a cue stick (that black one), but I might just keep that at Jon's house since he is the only one that plays with it anyway. On the other hand my dad made me realize that the cue stick that I use...is well...his. He said he will pass it along to me when he dies. I will probably cremate it with him so he has something to do wherever the hell he goes after he dies. I just realized that I am not making sense in anything I have just written...to make a long story short, I think it is time to buy a cue stick. What does one look for in a cue stick? Well I got it narrowed down to two choices...

Balabushka or Szamboti.

Then I woke the fuck up and realized that until I make my first real blockbuster film...NONE OF US CAN AFFORD THESE CUES...shit we can't even put our money together and get one. These two cue sticks have fetched as much as...get this...250,000 dollars each. Truly works of art, but out of my price range by about 249,500 dollars. Oh well. So I have no clue why I blogged this other than to hint at Jon that maybe he can afford to put a Szamboti on layaway for the celebration of his new pool table that he will eventually get sooner or later. Peace.

food poisoning. I had that yesterday. I won't go into the gruesome details, but lets just say that from now, vomiting will be no big deal for me. I couldn't even keep water down yesterday. Wonderful. Imagine having a stomach ache and nausea that lasts for 24 hours straight. You can't eat or drink anything (that's hell already) and you can't sleep even thought ur exhausted. I'm a bit cracked out right now, as i haven't eaten anything in over 24 hours, and have just started drinking water again, so im a bit dehydrated.

sorry i haven't updated IisB for a while..i'll start up my daily updates as soon as i finish my grad skoo applications.

Brian, also take note of the Chevrolet Prism LSi. It make look like a piece of shit, but don't be fooled! It goes from 0 to 60 in at least 15.5 seconds. Who needs power when ur driving??? Apparently no one who drives this car! I should be glad this POS even comes with a spare. i shouldn't complain tho. Sure beats public transit.

I agree with brendan. The chart makes me feel poor. Then i watch MTV cribs and i feel even poorer.

Thanks for the gifts
I got no one anything this xmas. NO ONE. No one got SHIT from me. I couldn't afford it. And yet, you bastards got me gifts. How much of an ASSHOLE did i feel like when i got to the horiuchi house and found a pile of gifts waiting for me. ARgh. you guys are too much. Thanks so much for everthing guys. One of these days i'll get u guys ur xmas gifts, one of these days. i have already watched Swingers ten times. anD fuck that STUPID FUCKING DASH in YARS REVENGE!!! It's worse than the fucking snake in Pitfall that doesn't move AT ALL and YET YOU STILL HIT IT SOMEHOW BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO TIME UR GODDAMN JUMP PERFECTLY!!!!

Happy bday to bryant. sorry i couldn't have been there. I'm sure it was a blast, as all korean birthdays are. Haha. hope you had a good one man.

goddamn i'm hungry. Popeye's would be good right now. or peas porridge hot, nine days old.

I think the wit level of this group is amazing. The best kind of wit comes when you don't try at all (another area where i am dead last). I was chuckling for quite a while after reading about how the celica's back seat was "cruel joke on your friends". Or maybe it's cuz i'm just stupid. one or the other. Nah, it's probably cuz i'm stupid. Yeh fuck it. nevermind.

aight. back to work. this data ain't gonna enter itself.

lates

Fuck this. That chart makes me feel inferior amongst my friends who are "rich". How about Sunday morning we all drive down, get some coffee and biscotti and go car shopping and don't stop until we all have one we like! Haha! Good luck Brian on your car! See I was smart...I bought mine when I was so poor that my option was either a civic or my car. Needless to say we didn't need to see another civic of any sort. Oh yeah and Jon you forgot about the Enzo. I'm sure Brian will notice your little flaw though.

Further note...when Brian blogs like two paragraphs, his shit stays up for about 3 weeks. When I blog something that is full of shit and nothing...and is the equiviliant of about 10 page paper...Jon comes in with his HTML bullshit skills and on ups me with all his ugly colors...artwise...not sure about the yellow ocre green with the camdium yellow. Might wanna fix that. Gwahahah....sigh...I think I'll post up my long one again just go get your flashy graph outta here. See ya!

Trading in the tractor
This is a special section for all you farm hands out there. I told you the next update to jhiro.net would be a Cars section to help with your search for the next BeMani-mobile. Anyone can see that this was a lie. So here's something to keep you aware of your best options.

It seems like you're looking for something sportier than another Civic, which I must say I agree with. The WRX and the Evo are excellent performance values, but pricey nonetheless. Sorry to say, but the ordinary Lancer will not come close to your plans to "one-up Lockheed guy over there". In other words, don't even think about it. So how about something in between. Fortunately for you, now is a good time to shop for sport compacts with economy car prices. Even though I already impulsed my car and love it, it's still impressive to look at some of what's available now and soon. In a few years I'll be wishing I had leased just so I could keep on top of the new shiet. Point being, you get to benefit from my continued research. Here's the short list of sport compacts for now (a small clipping from my OCD homemade spec sheet, colorized for your enjoyment):



Expect another $800-900 for an automatic. M* means automatic is not even an option... it's just that damn sporty.

Now for my custom-made-for-Brian personal recommendations...
- The STi and Evo are too expensive, and you will not be able to utilize them to their full potential. Unless you go to an even more lame, secluded area. Or a racetrack. In this price range you could get a G35, and they only let you buy those if your pants have "FANCY!" stamped all over them. Besides, you can still get crazy speed with the normal WRX for thousands less.
- Ah, the TSX... I sat in one at the Moscone Auto Show. They are very nice in all respects, but for the high price I'd want more power. Speaking of power...
- WRX, original sauce. The price is dropping and temptation rising. This was the first car I test drove, and I must admit I still miss the amount of pull it had when the turbo kicked in. Getting on the freeway would never get old (w/o traffic). It's stylish without being too flashy. I'm not sure if you want to spend this much, but I'd love to take a ride in one of these. And there's definitely some one-up action if you spring for this. In the end it's all about beating your friends. Yeaorgh!!!
- RSX and Celica... both good cars, but the RSX style is a bit suped-up-Civic-esque, and the Celica rear seat is a cruel joke on your friends. Either way, at this point I'd spend a little more and get the WRX.
- The Protege always got respect for its great handling, but had a weak engine. In Mazdaspeed form it finally has some power, so there's nothing left to complain about.
- SRT-4. A ridiculous performance bargain... about in the same league as the WRX, but again for thousands less. The style is funky and the interior cheap, though.
- Ah, under $20,000... nice. Here we go... the possible purchase date is getting closer and closer up in hya!!!!
- VW and Focus. Volkswagens probably have above average interiors and features. Plain looking but I've gained respect for them. The Focus gets amazingly good reviews, but looks amazingly bad (not that I ever see the SVT on the street).
- The Ralliart and SE-R are pretty close. Despite the numbers, the Ralliart was somehow faster and won in a comparison test. They both have good performance and cost about the same as a Civic EX. I drove Ricki's SE-R once and it was a lot of fun... I was ready to buy one, but they were all sold out. I don't think you'd be disappointed with either of these... if you can stand the thought of "coulda had a WRX" for the duration of ownership, heh.
- The Mazda3 is very cool. A mini Mazda6 (half the car for half the man hehehe wheee), it's setting a new standard for economy cars--replacing the Protege, it has power, handling, and a nice interior and features (steering wheel controls, even optional navigation). I could've waited and got one of these, if the Silver Bullet weren't trying to kill me.
- I think the Ion Red Line and Scion tC look like they'll be contenders. I never liked Saturns before for any reason, but this one has a whole lot of power and doesn't look bad. I'm guessing it'll cost about $20k. The tC really impressed me when I first saw it, but maybe just because Scion's current cars look... unusual. It will probably fall between the SE-R and the Mazda3.

Based on what I've heard from you so far, the choice is almost obvious. Part of you wants superperformance (WRX/Evo), and part wants to just go cheap (Lancer, standard weak version). The perfect balance between the two? I say go with the Lancer Ralliart. The style is a slightly softened Evo look, which isn't bad. And it has sporty performance for a reasonable price. The Sentra SE-R, Spec V or not, is also a good choice.

If I overshot it, and you want to spend less, definitely go with the Mazda3. You can get a lot--power, handling, style, and nice features--for a very good price (about as cheap as possible without making a big mistake, on new cars that is).

And if you decide you really need to get to the harvest superfast, and make friends jealous, and don't mind turning into AzN*RaCeR, and are ready to pay for it, get the WRX. Or the SRT-4 if you can stand the look and feel of it.

And of course, when the time comes, test drive all your considerations before impulsing like an idiot. Who does that?! Mang!!!!!



Ah, Capcom
I like Mega Man music more than most people.
Two meanings.
Both true.



"Thank you"s

I think I will attempt to write the longest blog ever so I can fill it with so much crap that you won't want to read it all. Well not in one sitting. How long can a blog be? Steve hates long, boring blogs...unless it is filled with ramen and curry. I don't blame him though. Nevertheless I have decided to blog...and in order to make up for my lost time here, it will be long. So how to sum up the past month...gwahaha...and yes boys, "gwahaha" is under copyright.

How much rock and roll is too much?

Apparently whatever was played at the Dave concert. I think my family and I enjoyed it a lot more than the rest of the guys. Nothing wrong with that, just not everyone's cup of tea. However, I think everyone will agree that Tim and Dave are fucking ridiculous. The second song they strung was Crush and that was worth the 62.00 for the tickets. I could have left and been happy. I will admit the concert did get a little too guitar-ish towards the end, but I figure that is because it is the last show for the tour. Kind of like how in the senior year of high school you took as many fucking pictures as you could...except for me. Fuck Prospect. They were all just jamming like they didn't care and I thought it was cool. Dave danced more than I have ever seen him...and that is combining live and on the television set. Overall I enjoyed this concert throughout the show, and I'm glad he stretched "Trouble" to what seemed like 8 minutes or so. I am so jealous that his little girls get to hear him sing at home...I bet when they are older they will think their dad's music is old shit.

A completed list...at long last.

Natalie Wood - Okay so my mom kept bugging me about her and constantly asking if I bought West Side Story. I saw her in The Searchers and said, "wow she's pretty". With West Side Story, I remember the film, but not as well as Hapachan knows The Wizard. However, after watching this one film she instantly zapped into one of my favorites. I always knew she was considered beautiful, but she has a presence on screen that you rarely see these days. She died a very tragic and mysterious death, it would have been interesting to see where she would have taken her career. For my friends that think I obsess to much about old actresses that are A. wrinkly and pruney in reality and/or B. are dead, Natalie Wood's daughter got a lot of helpful genes...

Jennifer Connelly - Okay so this is kind of a wild card and if I could change the list a bit (I don't remember if I ranked them, but I don't think I did, but just in case) I think she would go a little bit lower, so please don't assume that she is number 3 on my list, but she is very, very good. Forget all that other bullshit she did before Requiem. That performance in Requiem what breathtaking to say the least. Then in A Beautiful Mind. Perfect for that film and while the Oscars are rigged, I really think she earned that one. I want to see A House of Sand and Fog, but that isn't exactly a film that you call your friends for...so I guess I'll wait till it comes out on DVD.

Naomi Watts - So how do you choose between the two best friends of Kidman and Watts. I had to sit and think about this one, but in the end I thought that Watts did awesome in Mulholland Drive which is one of the darkest, most mind boggling films ever. We saw her go from this Hollywood dream to down and out actress. Truly powerful. Then The Ring. Forget all of you who didn't like it or didn't think it was disturbing. A lot of people that dind't think it was scary found it to ridiculous. Yet Freddy vs Jason made a shitload in the box office...and Blair Witch is scary...so fuck all those people. 21 grams is another film that you don't call your friends for, but she is getting a lot of critical acclaim...and the role focuses around tragedy. Sounds perfect.

While none of these are really ranked in order...I won't have to tell you who my absolute number one is...and I guarantee you this now...this will never, ever change...ever. Even if Kristin or Jessica wises up and marries me. I will still tell them that they ain't got shit on her...how ridiculous does this sound...? I feel guilty for putting the word "shit" and "her" in the same sentence...

"She has authentic charm. Most people simply have nice manners"

Say what you will. The Captain says if I get another Audrey photo he is going to seek help for me. Yet the Captain has never seen an Audrey film. If I accomplish anything in this little paragraph it is my hope that you actually see what I mean for yourself. After all, she is still considered one of the best that Hollywood and humanity have to offer. Here is a small list of why you should check out some of her films.

Presence on screen is...too hard to describe. Perhaps its the faces she makes, perhaps it's because her eyes can speak lines of dialogue, perhaps it how she speaks so smooth and so precise. Maybe it's her gestures, the subtle movements that jump out at you. Maybe the scary part about it all is that she wasn't acting. True, I can't say I knew her personally and everyone has their down moments, but if this is the case, why is there not ONE book out that is filled with gossip about her or the life she lead? Simply put, she had nothing to offer the gossip papers. She never blamed anyone else for her misgivings. If something didn't work right on the film, it was because she could have tried harder. She wasn't a princess of any sort, but she was treated by people as if she was...not because she demanded it, but because they would have felt guilty if they hadn't. She was a triple threat. She can sing, she is a classically trained ballerina and can act. She thought wasn't pretty and never understood what "all the fuss was about". She didn't like jewelry because she thought inner beauty was more important. She quit her acting to raise her sons because she knew the only legacy that was important was the one she passed onto her kids. Even while she was dying of cancer she stilled traveled the world to raise money for UNICEF to save hungry children. She didn't just make speeches, but rather went to Somalia to witness first hand what world hunger is. Days before her death she still worried about those she will leave behind. Bottom line, I understand that it looks like an obsession. I have done numerous portraits of her, bought more coffee table books than I have coffee tables (none). Yet you have to realize that all Audrey fans hold her on this pedastal. I can't tell you why. Even if you don't like classical films and you might not even like the film that she is in because the story is a little old fashion, I guarantee you that you will at least see why she is different than ANY OTHER ACTRESS YOU HAVE SEEN. Give it a go...it can't hurt. Unless you want to see Torque...then I don't want to even see you watching an Audrey film...in fact don't watch any films and don't give me any criticisms on my favorite actress...haha!

MAME arcade cabinet...

God damn, did I want to finish this project by now. However, the new room is taking a lot more work out of my carpenter than we once thought. So until the room is finished, no more new projects for him. This is a good thing...and a bad thing. The good being that I will be able to put more time into it and it won't be rushed by my grandpa in assembly. The bad part is that we will not be playing SF2 at least for another month or so. Oh well. Perhaps I can put that money towards a Definitive Technology set...we all know that ain't gonna happen. Yet now I have a room that can occupy that kind of sound...how enticing.

LAN parties run amuck

Holy shit do we play a lot of Halo. It seems everyone is on the bandwagon here. And even though BLeeDat and Cop hate this statement and I know exactly why, "Halo is a newbie game". Let me explain. Before I used to give answers that stepped on the toes of us that are good at it. This is why Bryant and Andy don't like this comment. By me saying that Halo is a newbie game is to take away the skill and dedication that we put into the game before it blew up. It is kind of like me saying that I am very lucky at the card tables since I am winning. It is taking away from me being skillful. So let me rephrase this since I have now had a change to organize my thoughts. HALO IS NOT A NEWBIE GAME IN TERMS OF HOW MUCH SKILL IS NEEDED TO PLAY IT. It is rather a NEWBIE GAME BECAUSE SO MANY PEOPLE PLAY IT NOW. Take for example the fact that Halo is getting a shitload of awards on those wack ass television awards shows. No one cared about Halo before (except for videogamers...I would go even as far to say that hardcore game players understood how good it was before everyone really knew how good it was) it blew up. All of a sudden the Xbox drops in price and people start to hear about it...this is why it is a newbie game. Now here is where the thin line is...Bryant and Andy at least have to admit that I am aware that Halo has good controls...for a console shooter. Nothing will replace the skill of using a mouse (which both Bryant and Andy are also awesome at). The fact that all these new people who are new to First Person Shooters are doing good at Halo will not be as good in any different type of shooter. For example...Bryant, Andy and played Doom...and I joined in with them with Duke Nukem. This was our set of newbie games...a shitload of people jumped on the bandwagon and they became popular outside of computer nerds. Yet the bottom line is that we picked up Halo easily. By the first two days of playing it we were good. Medal of Honor we could pick up and be decent. Call of Duty we can pick up and be decent. Quake we can pick up and be decent. Half Life we can pick up and be decent. Bottom line: Those people that can play Halo with their friends are are considered good amongst their friends (and who don't play shooters that often) will often get eaten alive during any other first person shooter. Look at Jon's friends...haha. Kevin who played Halo one time before was able to walk in and get 74 frags in one match.

This again does not step on our skills. Yes I think Fatal Equilibrium is skilled at Halo, but my point is that it didn't take long for us to reach that point...where as Socom took us about 2 months and then some. I am not taking away anything from my friends either. Halo being a newbie game isn't as negative as I portrayed it to be. Without Halo, Derek and Tony wouldn't be playing with us. They are becoming better and better with every session...even if Derek hides in a little corner because he knows he will get shot. My dad is getting better and now Ricki is showing promise. Haha...thats the perfect argument...c'mon if my sister shows potential at Halo...it has got to be a tad to easy....hahah!

This goes into my next point that Bryant keeps on stressing and which I find absolutely true...

Socom2 can suck a cock, but it is still fun...and we aren't half bad.

I know this blog has seen enough of my Socom2 is bullshit and what not....I even got the Captain to believe me on this one...even though it took some nudging. Bryant is correct to say that we aren't as bad as we once were when we got the game. We have all accepted that it is a little bit sloppier done and the energy sucks, but now we have found away around that. We aren't going out all crazy styles like we used to, we are know shooting at enemies in groups. That one night we played the only match we really lost was because of the game type and the stupid grenade launchers...other than that I haven't laughed like that during a Socom2 session in awhile. It is because we all worked as a team and we have started to adjust to the game...and it's ridiculous play. A lot of funny shit happened during that session, too much to go into, but lets just say it was like we were playing Socom1. I hate to admit it, but BLeeDat was right. Socom2 may suck, but it is still fun and we can still get good at it...even with all it's flaws...because we are starting to learn teamwork...I can't believe the Treasurer of Fatal Equilibrium had to keep me and Captain in check! Haha! So when we playing next...and this goes out to Kevin...

JESUS, KEVIN...JUST PLUG IN YOUR PS2 AND YOUR ROUTER AND GET YOUR SHIT ONLINE...OR ELSE WE WILL HAVE TO FIND A NEW SECRETARY...A GIRL PERHAPS...THAT WILL ACTUALLY GIVE US BLOWJOBS WHEN WE ASK FOR THEM...GWAHAHA.

This goes into my next section and the last of videogames for all those who hate videogames...

Halo is awesome, but I got two copies of Unreal

Derek likes Unreal. I like Unreal. Tony wanted to see Unreal. I couldn't find my first copy of Unreal...so Derek and Tony went to go buy me a second copy while I took a shit. I will find my first copy so now I have two copies...perfect for a LAN party don't you say? I know what you are saying...Unreal is wack, but it's not. Isn't faster? Yeah. Isn't it harder? Yeah. But it really does remind me of the fast combat of Duke Nukem...how can you not like it? And I am going to say this...I can only play Hang Em High so many times...we all will admit the multiplayer isn't what makes Halo so grand...Halo2 will most likely blow the socks of the first Halo in terms of multiplayer, however Unreal I feel is better for multiplayer...if not just for the level designs. These levels have been designed for a multiplayer game...I dunno...I think we should try it one night. I bet you anything some of you will be complaining about it...just like I did Socom2...but it really is a different type game...maybe one night we can divide it in half...Halo and Unreal all in one night...shit all we need now is Mario Party 5 and 10 frames of Monkey bowling...and we are done.

For all those who like art

Okay so normally when I do portraits, I use layers. Anyone who knows Photoshop understand how nice layers are to work with...however my latest portrait only had two layers...one for the pencil sketch and one for ALL the paint. This might not seem like a big thing...but it is very hard to build up colors all on layer...you have to worry about smudging, contrast...getting small details without ruining the bottom layer of paint...it truly is like working on a canvas...and I did this one that way...it took about 3 hours to complete...one long session of painting and I didn't get out of my new seat until I was done...enjoy!

http://www.mentalabstraction.com/Posts/NatalieWood01.jpg

Thank You's

Jon - Thank you very much for the old school games. You wouldn't believe how nice they look on the Wega. Even though my screen is still a bit jacked...that score you posted for Yars if fucking ridiculous. I'm with Steve...fuck that little dash...that thing pisses me off so fucking much...The Poker book...how did you know I would need a tournament book...perhaps because I'm gonna go play in one at Garden City pretty soon...It truly is good...one that you will have to borrow to keep up with me and my advanced techniques. Haha. The Bon Jovi CD is fucking awesome...a bit of acoustic, a bit of electronica, a bit of ambience. It really is a cool CD with a lot of songs that I like. Also thanks for the family gifts...when we gonna play? Fuck Bryant and that Solitaire game...only you two have competition amongst each other...the rest of my family just likes to look at cards...haha! Pictionary...we will find out who draws betters, Jhiro or MentalAbstraction...not fair if I get "hands"...but fair if I get "peeing penis hands". Oh yeah...(in a smooth tone)...PS: You should see my mom play Dig Dug...she gets all fucked up.

Bryant, Kevin and Andy - The fucking Wizard. God damn. How did you know...didn't I tell you that it was impossible to find! IMPOSSIBLE! I watched it that night on my little television and it is fucking awesome. Derek remembers way too much from that movie. Mana is awesome. It brings a tear to my eye because I remember the good old days of playing with my mom and taking all the treasure from her. Good times was Mana and good times in class this Mana will be. The director's chair. I still dont' see what is wrong with my old one, but I will thank you nonetheless...haha! I actually use it on my computer since we haven't played Socom in awhile, but we better hop to it. KEVIN READ THE MESSAGE ABOVE FOR YOU ONCE MORE.

Brian - You also need to get on Socom2. Thank you very much for the Blue Man group CD and the Soulive CD. Both are my type of music. The Soulive one gets played everytime we play cards...one of the tracks has the tune of September on it by EWF. That is money in my book. Also the Blue Group has some cool beats on it with that ambient, electronic feel to it, which is just what I like to listen to. Also thanks for stopping by even though it was late...wouldn't have been Xmas without Farmer Bri. How's the mouse?

Derek - I think I got the best shirt out of everyone. Everyone just goes to that site for Strong Bad...and who else should get it...but me! I know your a working man and all, but you didn't have to get me anything...well yes you did...haha! I must say that you thought of the perfect gifts for eveyrone. I know you were also busy, but the clan is happy you made it. Next Unreal game is when?

Tony - Thank you very much for the Turok game. I like what you wrote on the receipt. That was very clever indeed! Haha. I'll open it next time you drop in and we'll play it. I just haven't had the time between Halo/Unreal/Socom2 and drawing nude girls on the computer. That sort of thing. That was very thoughtful of you to get me a gift even before you landed your big gig at YMCA.

Kyle - aka Kylie aka my Halo bitch - Thank you very much for the Audrey Hepburn's Charade film. Even though I already have it, the one you gave me is a different version and has a documentary of Audrey and Cary Grant on it. That was very considerate of you and very surprising. Keep up the good work on the points...my birthday is March 12th. Haha! Thanks again for bringing your Xbox over every single time I ask for it...and thank you for taking my sister out of the house...she started to stink.

Steve - Okay so your gift didn't come in physical form, but my family and I were all very glad you were able to come up to boring San Jose and spend the holidays with us. I know you got other friends here in the Bay Area, but you spent your time with us. We really appreciate it. See not all San Jose people are bad...some are even better than your San Diego morons...Brendan is definetely > "Tom"

If I forgot anyone - I hated your gift. Hahah! J/K. or am i? da da dahhhhhh....

My family enjoyed the holidays and your guys' company. Thanks again for making the Xmas party a blast. I konw you could have gotten drunk at some other party, but seriously...what better way than to spend it than with the Horiuchi's. Next year though it's at Jon's house...with the pool table and Mrs. Hiros made from scratch mochi and Mrs. Tamekuni's butter salmon...damn that salmon...you don't even know...

For those who like Videogame music and/or MegaMan2 music...especially Dr. Wily's theme aka Jon's favorite videogame music

Check out OCRemix. Look for the latest mix by Star Salzman using Mega Man 2's Wily's theme. Its fucking sick...just give it a go...I'm sure it'll be a keeper for you to go with your AE mixes of MM2. Check it out. BTW I didn't forget about NYX 4. It just got delayed to February so don't think I'm trying to cheat you...speaking of cheating...watch that clip in the Sting again with Newman playing cards...I just popped that in my DVD player to go to sleep to and I ended up watching the whole frigg'n movie. That part is classic shit. "Four Jacks"

My sister needs to give me a haircut so I have to cut this short. So I hope you enjoyed it...although Jon is probably the only one reading it right now...take care and let me know when we are playing Unreal. Peace.

Hey guys,
Just wanted to say thank you to you guys for making my birthday very memorable. As I get older, I always think my b-day will just be the same ol' thing, people taking you out for dinner and boom it's gone. Not much to really remember, not much to be considered eventful, but this year was different.

This is the first time I had a surprise party thrown for me and I enjoyed it. I was so happy to gaining another year and sharing my special event w/ my friends.

Tony and Derek - Thanks so much for the baseball gear. We need to get out there and play now. I have the arm bands and I have the batting gloves, as Tony would say..."Let's play some ball!" Yes Derek on buying an Xbox. You two are getting a lot better. From my perspective, the only thing I would say you might want to work on is being more aggressive, not standing still when firing, and maybe aiming quicker. For the most part you guys are improving and I can't wait to play some more Halo.

Brendan, Jonathan, Brian and the rest of the Horiuchi's - Thanks for the camera, as you can see I carry that bad boy with me everywhere and I love the present. You guys have always given me what I've wanted for X-mas and I appreciate the effort taken to give me such a great present. I hope to make you proud by putting some kick ass pictures on my site.

Andy - Thanks for the champagne and oj. That was an awesome gesture!

Alright boys, well I just wanted to end this by saying that I got some of the best friends a guy can ask for and thanks for making me special on my b-day.

I wish Steve and Brian could've been there, but it's all good, we'll all celebrate in Vegas someday =)

I don't like Derek's resolution. His blogs may be short, but they all have some life to them. It's funny because I think Derek can go on forever about certain topics, but I believe he's just too lazy to write about them...or short on time...which is always the case with all of us isn't it?

I will continue, though late to say thanks to the Horiuchi clan for letting us raid and parade around in your house. I had a great time and all of the food was excellent. Couldn't think of a better way to spend the holidays.

Halo kicked some serious ass, I hope we play more.

Web site got updated, one new section for us Pookiers, even the ones that don't blog as much. I have a lot more pictures to put up and I will do that hopefully soon.

I can't believe I'm turning the big 2 - 4. I'm about a little past the quarter mark for my life. 25 is going to be the true sign that I'm older. With being older I really want to try and finally become responsible. This means not staying up so late on week nights so that I can be well rested for work, this means saving up my money and truly saving. Not being stupid with it. Only buy things that are truly necessary. I would like to buy a house sometime, so that means I really need to save up. After talking with a friend, I got a ballpark where I need to be at and I'm no where close boys. I truthfully can say that I am not very mature. I might have the worst discipline out of any of us in spending money and I want to get out of that rut. So I am not focused on paying off my credit card debts and move into saving territory. I hope in a couple years a house could be on the way. That's my major New Years Resolution - grow up.

I probably will act the same, but behind the scenes I will try and plan for my future more and try to be smarter in the any actions that I take. If any of you want to remind me in certain situations and help me with my goal, I would appreciate it. Monetarily I don't want to be a tight wad, but I also don't want to be free spending either. Gotta learn discipline.

Also another resolution is to become a little more healthy in my eating habits...not eating out as much...exercising regularly, this will start after my b-day, so I have in theory have a couple days of freedom left =).

Alright, well that's my blog for today. Hope everyone is well and it was awesome seeing you guys!

Wait a minute...didn't you already complete your New Year's resolution last year? I'll blog later...I'm tired.

Thanks for the good times this past week. The chicken dinner was top notch, and the halo carnage that followed soon after was quite fun too. We should do it again sometime.

The conversation at the dinner table was fucking classic and i think would have made for an awesome screenplay for a movie simply called "Lessons in Being Witty".

Thanks everyone for the gifts. They all rock. I needed all of the DVDs i received very much so, as well as the gift certificate, which be used to buy even more DVDs.

I had a good break this year, which sucks cuz i could only stay 6 days. For the first time in a very long time, I missed home as soon as i got back to SD. I look forward to next august when i'll be back for a more permanent basis. Till then, stay on the edge of your seats.

That minus sign in Yars Revenge can fucking kiss my ass, that little bitch.

Holidays
It's been a while. Thanks again to the H house for hosting the Popeye's feast and gift exchange. Good eats and decent company.

Ten Top Movies
I've got my list, but I cheated with a few rules:

1. Omit The Trilogies. Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Back to the Future. In my mind, these nine are classics from my childhood, and therefore instant locks for a top movies list. If you grew up in the 80s, you should agree. Individually, one in a series might have lacked something, but they all come together extraordinarily well... the whole is greater than the sum of its parts... kinda thing. No, this does not include the Star Wars prequels. No, I don't hate on Back to the Future III. Anyhow, if I decided to include all three trilogies I'd have one spot left to fill, and that'd be a tough choice. So let's say my "ten top" is a list of hall of fame candidates, while these already made it.

2. Omit subtitles. Drunken Master II... Dragons Forever... Shaolin Soccer... these are definitely among the movies I'll enjoy every time I watch them, but I'll limit my list to domestic product. Hong Kong action is a whole other list.

3. Omit the cartoons. Robots, fireballs, and tentacles... although high in entertainment quality, animation is likewise saved for a different list.

4. Omit standup. There have been highly entertaining movies that are just standup acts: favorites that come to mind are You So Crazy, RunTelDat, and The Original Kings of Comedy. But again, this is a different type of show.

With that said, on to the list. These are all movies that I can and will watch many times over the years. They likely have solid beginnings, middles, and ends, and the music was suitable. They are not in ranked order, that'd be crazy overestimation of decision-making capabilities.

fun movies: These movies have some combination of comedy and action, and it works out well. Great fun any day of the week.

Bad Boys - Unfortunately I missed this in theaters. I saw it in a hotel in Reno when I figured out how to get the pay channels without paying. (Now that was a good time.) The action is pretty cool, but the comedy is what really got me to love this movie--it's just full of great lines. "Don't be alarmed, we're negros." "I'll drive off this fuckin cliff, you keep fuckin with me. Then we'll just be two bitches in the sea."

Can't Hardly Wait - I usually don't expect much from the teen comedy movies, but this one hit the mark. Definitely among my top comedies ever. Just about every character in the movie was played perfectly. And those of us who were (are) nice guy suckas definitely empathized with PresTONE. I know Steve liked Kenny Fisher... "Why y'all gotta waste my flava? DAMN!" "I'll kick everyone's ass in this room!"

Friday - I didn't see this movie til long after the hype, but a few viewings and I understood. Chris Tucker made this movie funny, and the other characters had their moments. "Why you bringin up old shit?" "I got mind control over Deebo. When he say shut up... I be quiet. But when he leave... I be talking again." "(My grandmama gave me that chain...) He gon' cry in the car."

Jerry Maguire - This movie is a lot of fun with some serious subject matter. "I don't like black people? I am Mister black people." "D'you know the human head weighs 8 pounds?... D'you know that dogs and bees can smell fear?... D'you know my next door neighbor has three rabbits?"

Nothing to Lose - I went to the theater with a friend wondering why he wanted to see this. I left fully satisfied. Social commentary along with Martin and Tim Robbins as an awesome comedic team, plus we got an early taste of Dr. Perry Cox's style of girl-name insult humor. "I bet you sold the most cookies in the entire Girl Scout troop, didn't you? What were you calling yourself back then? Yolanda, you little bitch?" "Freeze sucker bitch!... What's a sucker bitch?" "It was only one time... I'ma one time yo ass!... That's what I'da told the bitch." "I'm in a car with a psycho freaky Jason hack-killer motherfucker! Hey please don't kill me freaky Jason."

The Rock - One of the best action movies ever, with some good laughs too. Nicolas Cage being corny with Sean Connery a killing machine... how can you lose. Plus a little bit of Vanessa Marcil, with and without pigtails... my god. I'm loving it. Great music. The Michael Bay Shot before it was played out. "I'd take pleasure in guttin' you, boy... SHAME ON THEM!" "Whaddaya say we cut the chit-chat, A-HOLE!" "Womack! Why am I not surprised you piece of shit!"

Swingers - The first time I saw this I didn't see what the big deal was, but with repeat viewings the characters' humor really grew on me. Now it is of course a classic. It also makes valid points about dating and relationships. "Who's the big winner here tonight at the casino? Mikey, that's who! Mikey's the big winner! Mikey wins!" "Pause the game... Wait I'm gonna do my thing with the thing." "Look at you... you wanna kiss me" "What're you kickin me for? All right I'll ask! Ma'am, where do the high school girls hang out in this town?"

subject-driven movies: These movies were well done, but it definitely helps that I'm so into their subject matter. (Or maybe it's the other way around.) They don't have any excessive amount of comedy, action, or drama but instead rely on interesting characters and situations. They leave me wanting to do what the characters were doing, and wishing I could do it as well as them.

The Color of Money - Besides being about pool and hustling, something I can't describe really appeals to me about this movie. "Money won is twice as sweet as money earned."

Poolhall Junkies - I've only seen this a few times, but I like the style of it. It combines pool hustling with the fulfill-your-destiny theme with the camaraderie of a few good friends. And Christopher Walken, likeable as always. "You said it Joe, shoot it all!" "Maybe he's gay... I think he might be... I'm NOT GAY!... a little loud"

Rounders - Of course. The first time I saw this, I didn't understand a lot of the lingo. After becoming a poker freak, it's all understood and the movie has probably spent more time in the DVD player than any other. Good acting all around, and ugly sweaters to boot. It also made me like Matt Damon and Ed Norton, and no one can forget Malkovich as KGB. "It's like the saying says: In the poker game of life, women are the rake. They are the fuckin' rake... What the fuck are you talking about. What saying?... I dunno. There oughta be one." "Layz down ai monstr. Shud hef payd me off on det. De FUK did yu lay det down?!" "You guys cops?... We're not cops... You want a twirl then?" NO WE DO NOT.

So that's it. No movies pre-1985 here, mainly because I haven't seen many of them and 2001 put me to sleep at least five times in a row. I still haven't seen a lot of the classics. I didn't choose any serious dramas that make you cry. Even though movies like Braveheart, A Beautiful Mind, and Glory are outstanding achievements and great entertainment, you have to be in the mood for them. My list is made up of what I might call "anytime movies".

Actresses
Vanessa Marcil has gotta be the most physically flawless woman I've ever seen. Watch the Rock again, or check out Las Vegas for a glimpse of truly fine. She's got the goods to make Head and Shoulders one of my favorite shows. Salma Hayek always gets the blood pumping. Have you seen Desperado?... !jesucristo! I want one dammit. Do you prefer cute, pretty, beautiful, or sexy? Halle Berry is all of these and more. Before T-Mobile and infuriating marriages to old men, Catherine Zeta-Jones was incredibly appealing in The Mask of Zorro.

Okay so my list may at first seem shallow and superficial, but there's an Emmy, two Oscars, and more in the mix, so I enjoy the view with integrity intact, as should you.

WRX
Yes, Brian, get it. It'll be fun getting rides even if you bust up your stereo again. As long as Da Di Di Dam is accompanied by the turbocharged freeway on-ramp thrust madness that this car was made for.

Back to the normal routine! I can't believe school is almost out, time has gone by pretty quickly. I'm so not prepared for finals this year. I will not be taking 19 units again any time soon.

So I just beat FF X-2 today... It was an interesting ride. For those that want to hear about it: The intro was well done, but never really felt like Final Fantasy. It was loud, and had attitude to say the least. I wasn't really feeling the game until about half way through, when things started picking up. It's way too open though. I never really minded the linear path Final Fantasy usually follows, but with X-2, it seems like everything is optional. If someone played just the core game without all the optional things, they'd get a 5 hour game with a very weak story. So optional really isn't that optional here. As it stands, I only completed 85% of the game, and I had to assume a lot to fill in the story. And to top it off? I got the "Normal ending." Damnit, now I have to play through again.

On the plus side, the soundtrack seems really strong, especially the theme song. Most of the music is upbeat, and very bouncy. There are a few somber tracks, but the ones that are there are beautiful. I think I'm going to buy the sound track...

But Final Fantasy is getting a little old. They really are hurting for new ideas. This game has you doing so many little mini-games it's annoying. What happened to the good old dungeon crawl? I can almost create my own Final Fantasy game... Start off happy and peaceful, put in one small trivial problem, cascade it into a end of the world problem, throw in a love story and a song, and in the end make a monster so big you have to kick it's ass 3 times. And there you have it.

Taking a queue from Penny Arcade I downloaded napster today. I've been toying with the idea of buying into one of these services, and with this free trial, I'm in heaven. Stream random songs all day? No problem. In about an hour I had enough songs to listen to for the rest of the day. It's awesome. I might actually break down and pay the 10 dollars a month to continue this madness. I mean, it's like a personal jukebox, except that I don't own the songs. Where else can you get Jon B and Mint Condition? I realize there are a few songs that can't be found still, but I'm over it. I'll let you know what I decide next week.

My friend Peter brought up a good thoughabout these journals. He couldn't figure out why some people don't get the fact that these journals are PUBLIC and that anyone can see them, even those that you are talking shit to. Was that Microsoft guy even thinking when he posted pics? Anyway, good call on the removing links from Mental Abstraction. I mean, these two sites, I Love Stupid and Mental Abstraction are two entirely different things. Recreational fun vs. Serious stuff. Besides, Bendan is different from all of us :) He's gonna be famous, while I'm completely happy living in obscurity. Or as the Rat. Whatever. Bottom line is that famous people have to watch what they say 'cause you know some ass hole is going to bring that crap up when you least expect it.

I know no good actress... Unless you want to count Nicole Kidman, I give her props because of the crazy roles she's been in, and she can do stage stuff. Talent.

I'm out of ideas, and it's class time. Good seeing you guys for Thanksgiving, especially Steve since I haven't seen that bastard since, what? Last year some time?

I was going to finish this list up of my all-time leading female actors...however with the recent blog post on the homepage and also a valid point that my mom brought up WITH the addition of a cool story that I must tell...it all adds up to some very interesting points. So the list will wait for now, but I promise to bore you all with it on a later post.

First off the blogger that got someone (and a lot more than we probably don't know about) fired from their jobs. If you read the example on the homepage before you logged in, you would have noticed how this guy put on a picture of Microsoft headquarters getting in a shipment of band new dual 2.0 G5's. (The same computer that I will have soon) Now we all know how much power those computers have...even MS is buying them...however because this guy posted the picture on his weblog, he got terminated for not following the confidentiality agreement that he signed when he first got employed. At first I was like, "that's retarded". Then I realized after thinking rationally about it that Microsoft was probably in the right to do so. Not just in the right as in it is in their contracts, but rather it brings up a very important point that this blog and every single other blog is public domain. If you looked further into the story you would have also seen that major corporations are now learning of these weblogs and how popular they are becoming. They in turn are looking into their workers lives to see if they are broadcasting anything about the company and/or office politics on their blogs. Now for part two.

My mom wondered if I should take off the links to my friend's sites and also Pooky on Mental Abstraction. MA is about to reach 100,000 hits which is a milestone for a stupid personal webpage that is full of nothing but opinions and cheap photoshop shit. (Not that you are shit Adobe if you are reading this...hehe) So my mom has a very valid point. At first I was like, "well they decided to make their shit public so why can't I link to it?" Of course something like jhiro.net is a bit different than let's say Bryant's for this very reason. Jon is putting up his artwork and leaving very little room for personal photos. Just like when I started MA I decided that it would be better to leave out my friends in case this website started to get some decent hits. So I don't really have a problem linking to Jon's, however Bryant's on the other hand has photos of all of us that anyone can access from my site. A very interesting point indeed...and I hope you don't think I'm bragging. I can give a shit about the hits...MA was made so people can see what I'm up to and what I'm doing creatively...but the fact is that people are visiting the site...total strangers that have access to who we are personally. Especially on this blog. Especially with me. Which goes into my next story.

My production class thinks that Ari and I are complete assholes. So they are psychic. No big deal. However, it is a problem if your teacher thinks that you are lazy and shouldn't be in film. Now she never really told us this to our face, but we got the distinct feeling that she thought little of us as filmmakers. From the first day when we were introducing ourselves and I said I was looking forward to the day that I could sell out and make my millions. Artsy farsty people don't go into filmmaking for the money...shit I know this. And I didn't get into filmmaking for the money. I got into it because when you are shooting time goes by so fast...then I figured hey...time goes by fast when your having fun...what if I could do this for a living and also somehow get my opinion to transcend past the film reel onto the silver screen and somehow enter inside the audiences' brains?

So the advanced production pool is a pool of people that are accepted into the rigourous part of production at SFSU. Now getting in isn't too hard and I would imagine that Ari and I were in...but the fact of the matter is that some people...well a lot of people get rejected. You have to submit a 2-3 minute reel of your stuff that shows you are serious about filmmaking. Your reel is screened by a bunch of cinema professors that make up the department that is on the top ten list in the country. Anyway to get to the point about my teacher not liking me or Ari...she is also the one that screens these reels and her opinions on us also reflect if we get into this advanced production pool.

So we walk into class on Monday filled with idiots and people that Ari and I don't take seriously. These groups started shooting their final projects in class and essentially we are two weeks behind everyone else. In fact we haven't shot one roll of film yet...but that's because we had a schedule and we like pre-production. For the past two weeks our teacher, our classmates and our teaching aid have been saying this kind of shit...

"Wait you haven't started yet? Haha..you guys are screwed!"
"You know it is due on the 15th of December...perhaps you guys should stop procrastinting."
"GWAHAHAAHA...man you guys are crazy. How you gonna get it done?"

Basically all this shit in as many different phrases that you can think about. I just smile and nod. In my head I'm saying...

"No we haven't started you fuck off. Maybe your mom is screwed..by my cock you fucking ass fag."
"I know when it's fucking due. Why don't you worry about your shitty props and your shitty actor and get off my dick"
"GWAHAHAHA...man you're a bitch. Just wait till you see ours you filthy slut."

Anyway this past Monday it was all put to rest.

Ari and I stumble into class with no film and no camera. We know we aren't shooting today. After the daily ritual of these bitches asking where the fuck are shit is the teacher pulls us aside. Here we go. Yadda yadda where's your shit...yadda yadda...but she stops for a second...looks at us and tells us this little story.

"I watched your demo reels for the pool. It was beautifully shot, the story was moving, the acting was great, the sound was awesome...why didn't you show us the film in class? It was awesome. It looked professional."

Ari responds, "It was a rough cut and we didn't like how it turned out...we know we could do better." Now at this point we are getting praised by the teacher...however like I told my dad, it's like a Helen Keller telling you that your film is beautiful. While my teacher is saying this all I can hear in my head with the image of her moving lips is..."waaawaaa...waaa waaa". She then opens her lips again and says...

"Everyone on the panel was asking, 'Who are these guys'? How come we haven't seen their work before? Whose class are they in? Where did they come from...? Everyone loved it and thought it was excellent work. You aren't supposed to know this yet...but you guys are definetely in the advanced production pool. Your guys' demo reel was the best hands down out of all the submissions."

Ari and I are completely speechless.

...

Then we noticed some of our classmates turning their heads because they overheard. They love to see people get in trouble...especially us...but this wasn't no rant...this was being praised by not only our teacher, Helen Keller, but by the panel of judges that like I said earlier, make up the department of one of the top cinema departments in the nation. Yet this is the weird thing. Even though we were a little shocked...we weren't suprised. You can call us over confident...you can call us big headed...but the bottom line is this. So far at this school I have seen what teachers think is good (by showing other student films)...I have seen my classmates work (viewed in class) and I knew that I was better than that. I knew Ari was better than that. Together we deserve this kind of praise. Call it what you want. But after hearing all this shit from our classmates...by our teacher...it's one thing for your friends to like your shit...its one thing for your classmates to like your shit..but when these people who have been in the industry and still are in the industry say they like your shit...a lot...I don't take their opinion lightly...perhaps...maybe just maybe...I have a gift for this. Only time will tell. The only thing that can stop me is Mario Kart DD.

So now to tie all these together. Bottom line I have decided to take Pooky off my links this weekend. If for some unseen reason I become a good director...and I do become successful...this blog can have its consequences. By the first story we now can see that this is public. And while it would be hard for people to see or even find this page...it is public and people can dig up some shit. Shit even you fucks might sell me out. Haha...I'm serious. Haha. No but really. So this doesn't mean that I am going to lay off my comments or my rants. However it will be in the back of my mind that this could come back to haunt me. I would like to say that I'm not scared or care what anyone else thinks...but this can affect me and you guys also if some of this shit gets out...(However I know I am the more racist poster on this blog). Boo for censorship...in this country you have the right to free speech...but the public has the right to judge you for it.

I also want to show my appreciation to all you guys and all my family and family friends that think I will make it. I was always confident that whatever I chose I will excel at it...but let me tell you something...when you are recognized...that confidence turns into something more...it turns into determination to prove those people right...

Tony would like to know who are favorite female celebrities are. If I can remember correctly I believe we already did a list like this, but it was written like “name some females that you think are attractive, but doesn’t get a lot of play from either your friends and/or media”. However Tony did pose an interesting question because finding ten of your favorite actresses might actually be harder than finding your ten favorite films. Kevin even listed them in order which is bonus points. I heard Jon has compiled his list together and is just waiting for the right time to publish it. I have no clue when that is, but I’m sure he’ll have some good picks in there. Please no Matrix. I beg you. So after careful thought and consideration I’ve decided to start my list of my top ten, however there will be no way I can finish it in one blog. I could give simple descriptions of why I like them, but I have a feeling I might go overboard. So another list starts on Pooky. Some of you might find this boring, but I think it is very interesting and believe it or not, I read every single one of your guys’ lists. It makes for wonderful conversation. Overall we had some very interesting choices, but I think we can at least all agree that most of these films listed are in fact entertaining.

Shout out to Kevin for sticking on Casablanca and the wild card of sorts, It’s a Wonderful Life. I’m trying to get into the Christmas spirit too. So feel free to get my presents NOW. Now on to my list of my favorite actresses and with it…a flame war of sorts I’m sure. This list of course is not based on attractiveness alone…but I would be lying if I said it didn’t help.

Maura Tierney - A very low key actress that popped up in News Radio. I’m not sure if all of you are big fans, but I know Steve likes that show. Maura then appeared in Liar Liar I believe. Then good luck shined upon me and she was cast as Abby on my other favorite show, ER. I like how she doesn’t over dramatize her parts and in her craft there lay a subtlety that I just find irresistible.

Grace Kelly - Another actress that has that natural quality about her. She was first a model and decided to give acting a try. Hitchcock loved her and when viewing Rear Window you can see why. Nothing dramatic. In fact not even the best acting I’ve ever seen, however she is one of those actresses that can speak with her eyes and that kind of dialogue is more memorable in my mind.

Annette Bening – I loved her performance as Sydney in The American President and her crazy role in American Beauty. There is something very genuine in the way she presents herself on screen and off (well at least in interviews that I’ve seen). She seems to know when her role isn’t the lead and doesn’t try to make it more than it is. Again the fact that she can take something complex and break it down into something that comes off as simple amazes me.

Halle Berry – Okay so for some reason a lot of people don’t think she deserved that Oscar for Monster’s Ball. I don’t really understand why…she came off as an erratic, depressed mother whose life is falling apart. She made me empathize with her and that is why she made it on this list. Another reason (besides the fact that she is absolutely stunning) is that even after her Oscar she wasn’t afraid to take on different roles even if it wasn’t Oscar material. She played Storm and will continue to do so. Now she is Catwoman. This shows she doesn’t think she is too high for these fun roles.

Jodie Foster – In Silence of the Lambs she seemed vulnerable, yet believable enough to catch a serial killer. In Maverick she played the part of Annabelle to perfection. She was conniving, sweet and just a little bit naughty in that film. Maverick didn’t get on my top ten for nothing, and Jodie Foster did her part to put it there. On a quick note, even though I cannot say I enjoyed Contact, I did appreciate her performance in it…and it was the only thing keeping me awake.

Well I think that it is it for now. Overall I think I can sleep comfortably knowing that I put names that I truly believe bring something special to the screen rather than just the typical, “yeah she played the part well”. As you can tell I like simplistic acting better than crazy, dramatic shit…which is actually ironic considering that I am getting into these older films when the acting was much more “fake”. Oh well. I bored you enough. Enjoy and the next installment will be soon…