I say time because it's technically over already. Linds and I hosted my side of the family at our place this year. We were a bit touch and go there (for cooking dinner) but everything made it out on the table at the same time and was hot! This was the first time we have hosted where there was no pre prep we made everything on the day. It worked out though, but it wasn't easy.
Today I advanced two full chapters in a video game. It took at least as many hours. It's a battlefield strategy game so there's a fair amount of trial and error. So in the real world I didn't do much, but in my own little one I put my issues aside and helped save the world, cutting off one supply line at a time. the game is Japanese so the dialogue is a little off, but I'm enjoying it. The game is Valkyria Chronicles and I've started thinking of it as the little tank that could.
I wish actual progress was so clearly defined. i'm feeling a but lost these days, it will pass, but in the mean time I feel like I'm walking around in the dark.
On Saturday, December 3, Kevin and I went to his work holiday part at the National Building Museum and just like previous years, it’s was beautiful! All of the free food, booze and desserts! you could want. And the night wouldn’t be complete without a prom-style photo. Here’s my iPhone photo-overload from the night
Christmas November was a busy month. Normally i don't do anything (just ask around its true), but November this year I successfully completed my 3rd NaBloPoMo and failed my second attempt at No Shave November, and actually I wasnt thinking about it, but we had a No Heat November too. I was told by management today (lindsay) that November is more than over and the heat is coming on.
more later.
-kb
So the National Christmas Tree Lighting was a barrel of laughs, who would have thought that? Did you know the U.S. parks department oversees nearly 400 parks?....me either.
Also and you might want to sit down for this one kids. Santa's real name is Brad. We were shocked too. Carson Daly found his way out of the 90's to host the event...it was a blast.
I have to say this. Kermit stole the show, but my highlight was Kermit and Michelle Obama reading 'twas the night before Christmas.
The we went to dinner to warm up, and a good night was had by all. We spent a lot of time whistling and singing what more could you ask for?
Tomorrow is December 2nd the countdown to Christmas has begun. I haven't started shopping, or really seriously thinking about gifts....why do i do this to myself every year. I've been that jackass on Christmas eve, I've given people pictures is stuff that's in the mail or back ordered....I hope to start this Saturday and be done by Sunday.
-kb
No Shave November. Kevin (almost!) made it.
By encouraging men to go to the doctor, No Shave November/Movember aims to increase early cancer detection, diagnosis and effective treatments, and ultimately reduce the number of preventable deaths. Besides getting an annual check-up, the Movember Foundation encourages men to be aware of any family history of cancer, and to adopt a more healthy lifestyle
kevin Today is the last day of noblopomo! That marks three years of successful posts for me I'll have to get this years badge, (or make one) for some reason darth was my all time favorite.
So as always I'll promise to post to the blog more, but I think I'm coming to a crux. If I don't post... why do I have this outlet? I'm sure when we have kids it's going to be an easy place for everyone to get bianco family news, but until then it's just a hackneyed story of us. I assure you 4 minutes with us would tell the story better.
I'm a head in the clouds fool, whose best day on the earth is when I caught Lindsay's attention. She is pure joy, after almost ten years I'm starting to suspect that she runs on Christmas cheer.
There are some days I'm beside myself. A year and a half ago we were married, I feel like I've been put in charge of overseeing a gift.
I promise to post more often.
-Kb
Peace and love to all.
Linds and I have events every night this week one of which is the national Christmas tree lighting! I think I'm most excited to see Kermit. When pressured I will sing a bit of rainbow connection. It's been so many years I don't know any other things he says, so I can't really practice doing his voice...which is kind of funny but I remember the song from the movie, so I default to that. I didn't know this was going to become a post about lackluster impressions but I can do a convincing ernie if your not paying too much attention, but again I just haven't seen the show recently enough to have a vocabulary beyond a catch phrase or two.
Anyway, Kermit will be at the lighting and so will we!
Someday we'll find it
That Rainbow Connection
The lovers the dreamers and me
-kb
by a 41 cent fuse! we will see if it makes it all the way to Christmas. I have this feeling that I'm going to have to doctor this tree up to get it through the big show. when I was growing up we had these lights he big old glass ones. I swear there were 30 strands and my dad and I would put them up along the roofline of the whole house. No matter how carefully he would cool and drop them into separate bags and twist tie them shut, these lights upon hitting the cold (almost always night air) turned into square and sheep knots. it would take forever to finally get them unraveled. Omg we had them in he bushes too. To look like the cheaters have now where all the lights are on a net and you just toss it over a shrub we stood there and placed lights so it looked nice from the street. We lived on a block of two circled roads with two entrance points on opposite ends...not many people saw these lights. Anyway, as the years went on and the lights got into their early 20's they started to get a little wonky. Certain strands would blow the fuses of anything connected to them.
The last year I can remember us putting them on the roof I was finally old enough to go on the ladder for the low section of the roof 8 feet or so and my dad did the upper section like 20 feet. When we got to the final strand of lights. Literally the house is covered and they are all clipped in place, to ensure that none droop down. We are talking clean painstaking lines here...and the fuses kept blowing out. I remember my dad telling me to go get some tinfoil. He had to say it like 3 times, but here was the solution. He rolled some tin foil and shoved it in the contacts for the fuse and it didn't give us any trouble the rest of that year.
So our tree goes out the other day and I had to ask myself am I the type of person that would know that putting tinfoil in the place of a fuse wasn't going to instantly set the house on fire?
I quickly concluded that I'm not.
-kb
So I've been trying to get my sega and super Nintendo hooked up to our new tv to see how it handles them. As part of my putting it through its paces. It hasn't been going well. I've masterminded two or three potential ways to hook together the odds and ends I happen to have on hand. None of them work. So I started to doubt that my consoles were in working order. It took all of two minutes to get everything put together on our CRT. My guess is that the new tv is too smart for its own good. Modern composite video is 3 wires red white and yellow(2 sound one video), but pre late 90's composite was 2 wires (One video one sound). So my first guess is the tv doesn't like the free wire...I could look for my splitter, but I'm pretty sure it goes in the other direction. So that's what I think the dead problem is the Nintendo is more of a pain. I only have the rf switch to hook that up. I normally hooked everything up using composites, rf in my mind...involved switching the signal, where if I had it connected through my VCR I felt more confident leaving it on while paused for hours a part of gaming that I do not miss. Not to mention coaxial connections are not sturdy. Just break or bend badly enough that single pin and my dad would have to be called in to fix it. So don't have a lot of experience with it. Apparently it can be set on channel 3 or 4 what difference would it make? anyway the super Nintendo has uni task trademarked connections that now means id have to search amazon, craigslist or eBay in order to get something new.
So they are hooked up to the CRT. I've got a pretty sweet setup. Here are a few quick observations
1.The music of skitchin is still awesome, it looks horrible...worse that I could have guessed.
2 Super Mario world still draws me in (what a fun game)
3 if final fight must the grandfather to streets of rage cant believe i didnt notice that before. I will add that I remembered final fight very fondly, and I'm now wondering why. The Streets of Rage games are way way better games.
I haven't given up on the HDTV yet...but I might running out of ideas.
Kb
Linds has done up the whole house. Sort of amazing really, since we are still 4 days away from December.
Anyway here's a few shots of the place..
So I've been trying to get my sega and super Nintendo hooked up to our new tv to see how it handles them. It hasn't been going well. I've masterminded two or three potential ways to hook together the odds and ends I happen to have on hand. So I started to doubt that they were in working order. It took all of two minutes to get everything put together on our CRT. My guess is that the new tv is too smart for its own good. Modern composite video is 3 wires red white and yellow(2 sound one video), but pre late 90's composite was 2 wires(One video one sound).
Lindsay has christmas in her heart, there's no other way to explain it. Here's our tree, we decided to get a real one every other year for a while. Up until two months ago it was very possible to step on a needle in the living room. We must have vacuumed it a 39 times, but one would always slip through the system and after we stepped on one it's now tradition to angrily frustratedly grumble "merry christmas".
Anyway we aren't finished yet but here's the progress of day one.
I had a rough day today.
1 I fell off a ladder
2 I broke the ladder
3 I spilled water on a power strip
4 I dropped a whole container of blue berries
5 I tripped over the laptop cord
6 while catching my fall I shattered a glass Christmas ornament.
It's time for bed before someone gets hurt.
Linds and I had a really nice time at her brothers house for thanksgiving this year. It was their first time cooking everything and it went really well. This year as well as others...I'm thankful for Lindsay, whose influence in my life has made immeasurable amounts of joy.
I recently told my friend Jeremy that it's akways been easy to find Linds in a crowd. If one corner of the place seems to have more joy I wander in that direction and she's always right in the middle of it.
In addition to Lindsay, for after which I really need no other blessings I'm thankful for my friends and family. I'm lucky to have so many thoughtful people in my life.
wishing you all well tonight
-kb
Ps on a lighter note I watched kung fu panda tonight, so I'm also thankful for that.
It was a nice day at work today, but i have a bunch if stuff on my desk that I'm going to try and forget about for the holiday.
Tonight's work out was good, I'm tired as all get out. I'll post a picture or something tomorrow.
I bought a bunch of beer for a 'tasting' of sorts. Hopefully I won't bore everyone to death.
Kb
I just finished uncharted3 and I have to say I wish there was a bit more detail in the story about the main characters relationship. They sort of hinted that drake and elena were married but didn't give a time frame until the very last scene (which felt short by the way). If all 3 games fit inside a 4 year time line then he and Elena couldn't have been married over a year or something. Therese a line about her still wearing the ring, never mind we meet up with her half way around the world. Anyway spoiler alert.....they get back together in the end without any real resolution or acknowledgement of whatever drove them apart... Sure adventure was hinted to be the problem, but again no specifics.
I think I'm no longer your average gamer, but if games are 60 dollars they aren't really for kids anymore...and with this how cinematic they are getting....I want a story, not just waves of bad guys to beat up/shoot at.
There was something special about the second game that this installment doesn't have, i haven't put my finger on it yet, but the pacing of this one felt faster and I think overall it didn't have as many character set pieces as it did action sequences.
Maybe my favorite section in a game ever was a two level part of uncharted 2 where there is no combat and almost no dialog. The main character is in a mountain village and doesn't speak the language. It felt like in was with the character experiencing it as it happened. it was scripted but inventive and genuine. this game didn't have a section like it. The puzzles were easier to solve and not as time consuming. It was of they sat down and decided to downplay y favorite parts in favor of big Hollywood action scene type moments.
So after finishing I started watching the featurettes and the main designer said they write the story as the my build levels and on occasion they have tech they need to use and they write story around it vs just telling a story and building that world. I'm guessing that was also true for uncharted 2, but he difference is that in uncharted 3 it felt that way.
Anyway, maybe more on this tomorrow.
Kb
There's nothing as nice as coming home after a long day and hanging out with Linds. I have to figure out a way to make everyday a "weekend day".
Thanksgiving is coming up, but there is a ton of work to be done first. I think the 11th item on my list might be the most important. because someone wishes we had a christmas tree up already.
Oh do the black ipa was brewed on Sunday if I didn't say do and is currently bubbling away. The only issue is that it's not black it's a pretty dark brown, bit not black. So I'm thinking I'm going to call it "the almost" or botched black ipa....seems fitting
Kb
So I tried to play uncharted 3 in 3d today, what a horrible mistake that was. At first everything was ok, even a little interesting, but soon after the nausea helped the novelty wear off. To be honest the adverse effects stuck with me a bit longer than I would have liked and my eyes feel tired. So while I'm not writing the longest blog posts these days...for tonight I'm going to sum it up quickly.
3d = bad
-Kb
