Timmer – Page 15 – The Daily Brief

Why I Love My DVR

21. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: My Head Hurts, Technology, That's Entertainment!

That’s Digital Video Recorder for those of you who don’t pay attention.

It’s September. Football Season has kicked off. There’s a nip in the air. The new shows are hitting the major networks. There are new episodes of our old favorites shows. Survivor is weirder than ever.

When we first moved here and decided to try the DVR with our cable package, we didn’t think we’d use it much. I mean it was nice now and then to record something that was going to be on later that night so you could watch it at a reasonable time. Recording Letterman to watch at 6 P.M. because I simply can’t watch O’Reilly work himself into a lather over some other imagined offense made by a hippie no one else has heard of. That’s an invention I can live with. Recording Glenn Beck at 7 P.M. because he is a sick, twisted freak and I like that in a person.

Tonight is a prime example of why DVRs were put on this earth. 7 P.M. My Name is Earl/The Office is on opposite Survivor is on opposite Grey’s Anatomy. 8 P.M. Deal or no Deal is on Opposite CSI is on opposite another episode of Grey’s Anatomy is on opposite the UFC on Spike. 9 P.M. This is evil at it’s purest. What the hell were the networks thinking? ER is on opposite Six Degrees is on opposite Shark. In some time zones, I understand the second episode of Grey’s Anatomy is on at 9 P.M. making this all the more evil.

Why do the networks do this? Every damn year I get comfortable watching good shows on different nights. I’m fine with this. I’m guessing you all are fine with this. And then the networks decide they’ve got to muck it all up. They’ve got to get in there and mess with a good thing. Let’s put THIS really good show up against THAT really good show and make America decide which show is better. I don’t want to make that decision. I want good television, which is a rare and wonderful thing, spread out through my week. I want sprinkles of brilliance, not clumps. STOP PUTTING ALL THE GOOD SHOWS ON THURSDAY NIGHTS. I swear, the next thing you know, BSG will be on Thursday night. I can only record so many shows at once. There are only two hard drives in my DVR.

And then there’s the classic; Take a really good show that’s too expensive to shoot and bury it in a time slot that no one will watch. This killed Third Watch and almost killed NYPD Blue before they put it out of its misery.

So my DVR will be getting a work out tonight. The problem with this time of year though is when to watch everything you record. Do you stay in all day Saturday to get caught up? I don’t think so. I mean come ON, it’s only television and we haven’t started really hibernating yet.

So, my questions to you are simple. Which new show are you most looking forward to? Which old show are you ready for more of? Me? I’m already hooked on Smith. The bit with the ankle bracelet and the cat killed me. Didn’t you think the cat was gonna die? Come on, that was just funny stuff. And I have to say I’m a Grey’s Anatomy fan. That’s got to be one of the best ensemble casts ever put together. It reminds me of how good ER used to be and how badly it’s sucked the past few years. I KNOW it’s a soap opera, but it’s a FUNNY soap opera.

You’ll notice Battlestar Gallactica isn’t my most anticipated old show. No. I’m still pissed at the way last season ended and the previews for this season, aren’t filling me with anticipation but with dread. I might be done with it. It’s not even on my top five. I’ll have to see what’s up on Friday night or see if I’ve got any space left in my DVR.

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

19. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: General Nonsense

Wow, I completely missed the fact that it was International Talk Like a Pirate Day.

I guess that’s what happens when you have a job and you can’t read blogs until you get home.

Hey Rosie!

18. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: GWOT

Ya wanna know the difference between Fundamental Islamic Whack-Jobs and Christians?

Sister Leonella, 65, muttered the words ‘I forgive, I forgive’ in Italian after being targeted by gunmen in an apparent execution-style killing, father Maloba Wesonga told The Associated Press at the nun’s memorial mass in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on Monday.

I have no words to express my outrage at this attrocity. This woman obviously spent her life dedicated to helping others less fortunate than herself and because the whack jobs got their little feelings hurt, they killed her.

Tell me again that Islam is a religion of peace. I dare you.

Crossposted at Enlisted Swine.

Once Again For Your Gloating Pleasure

18. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Fun and Games, That's Entertainment!

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Bears.

First Look at Prey

17. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Fun and Games, That's Entertainment!

At first glance Prey is just another first person shooter where some aliens abduct humans for food. Our hero is trying to find his way through the alien spacecraft to save his girlfriend. Start bashing monsters with your handy wrench and then pick up bigger weapons as you go along, yadda yadda yadda. Jump around from one area to another via “portals.” Been there done that…wtf?..just what the hell is that ugly monster doing walking on the ceiling?

And to me that’s just one of the things that makes Prey a bit different than the rest of the games you’ve already played. Gravity can be altered. First you have to figure out how to alter it, and then you have to figure out when to alter it.

Yes, there are puzzles in this game, and I freaking hate two things in my first person shooter, puzzles and jumping challenges. However, I’ve been playing for about three hours and I haven’t found anything that me and my trusty sidekick, the ghost of my childhood pet falcon, Talon, haven’t been able to figure out. The puzzles aren’t too annoying and it actually makes sense that you’d have to figure out how alien technology works. What’s the ghost of my childhood pet falcon doing on the alien’s spacecraft with me? That would be giving away some of the storyline, and there’s just not much there so I’ll let you find that out for yourself.

The hero, Tommy, is Cherokee. This makes a difference in the gameplay because Tommy is forced to accept the “spiritual mumbo jumbo bullshit” that his grandfather has been trying to teach him all his life in order to survive. Tommy’s spiritual side, can walk away from his body and manipulate some things. This comes in handy and is absolutely necessary to progress in the game. When you die in this game, you go to the spirit world and battle demons with your bow and arrow. If you kill enough of them, you return to your body and you return where you left it, not back at the beginning of the level. That is just sweet because the auto-saves seem few and far between in the game. Hit F5 often in case you really suck with a bow and arrow.

As in other FPCs many of the monsters die better and faster if you can nail a headshot. This game’s version of a BFG is rechargeable at various stations and the stations determine what the discharge will be. So far I’ve run into “Hot, Cold, and Lightning.” Depending on what monsters you’re facing the discharge does make a difference. And, as with all FPCs, learning how to shoot accurately while you move equals survival.

I didn’t think we were buying a game that was going to be this different, I was just tired of the FPCs that we already have. Both the ability to manipulate gravity and the spiritual plane make Prey different enough that I’ll be looking for expansion packs once I’ve beaten it.

There Can Be Only One

15. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: That's Entertainment!

I have one dollar. Just enough for one song off iTunes.

Tell me the one song that you would tell me to get, the one song that no iPod should be without. Discuss.

Stolen from Skillzy.

Some Bloggy Blogging…Stuff

15. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Site News

How to Dissuade Yourself From Becomging A Blogger.
Hat Tip to Margie commenting at the soon to be non-venomous Kate’s.

Faster Than the World is looking for even more writers as Michele and Turtle realize that writing every day sucks…again. In case you simply can’t dissuade yourself and CAN write, submit sumthin.

Enlisted Swine is a new Mil-Blog collective that you can sign up to write for also. I like them, they use “fuck” as more than a verb.
Via Blackfive.

Andrew Olmsted has a very thoughtful piece called “Beyond War” that’s well worth your time. I was wondering when someone would notice and start whispering “Pssst, the War on Terror? Not so much a war…pass it on.” He says it better than I could have.
Via Enlisted Swine up above.

I Stand By The Pope

15. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Good God

Yeah, I know, you all can close your mouths now. You KNOW I’m not a fan, but sometimes you have to call bullshit when bullshit is bullshit.

This is what the Pope said direct from the Vatican’s Web Site.

If they can pull offense out of that, then folks, Islam is just plain nucking futs.

And I have to say it was actually a pretty good speech theologically speaking.

Okay…it was a pretty good speech for a guy who’s aiding and abetting child molestors…there…feel better?

Caption This One (060915)

15. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Fun and Games

(US Air Force photo/Maj. David Kurle)

Sorry, weird day, knew it was Friday, forgot what that meant. Ever do that?

Today’s “What the Hell Are You Listening To?”

14. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: That's Entertainment!

The Mars Volta.

Why do you ask?

The New iPod Shuffle & iTunes 7.0

13. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: That's Entertainment!

Have you seen how small this thing is?

JFC. If this keeps up, the iFlea isn’t too far behind.

Oh…and iTunes 7.0 is out with some very nice auto-updating features, like automatically downloading album art for the CDs you ripped into iTunes and it’s doing something right now called “Gathering Gapless Playback Information” which is very encouraging. You know what I’m talkin’ about, The Cars’ Bye-Bye Love should flow effortlessly into Moving in Stereo.

Which is probably my favorite cross-fade I can think of at the moment…what’s yours, just off the top of your head, the one that playing on your iPod has just pissed you off time and again because, THERE’S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE A BREAK THERE!!!?

Oh wow…iPods are gaming platforms now…and not just any games, some of Beautiful Wife’s favorites, Tetris, Zuma, Mahjong. She’s gonna need a bigger battery.

And you no longer have to leave iTunes to update your pod, it does it right there in the iTunes interface now…’bout freakin’ time.

Update: Actually, the entire interface with your pod is MUCH more user friendly and even MORE intuitive than it was before. I’m liking this.

Taking The Long Way

12. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: That's Entertainment!

I haven’t downloaded the Dixie Chicks’ latest album yet, but apparently, they’re not as “over” as many folks said they’d be when this album came out back in May. Their album is Number 3 on iTunes. I noticed them creeping up, but I found it suprising when they broke the Top 10 and being at Number 3 is nothing to ignore. Somebody likes them.

Pay No Attention to All Those Un-Related Symptoms

12. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Veteran's Affairs

Gulf War Syndrome doesn’t exist:

U.S. and foreign veterans of the Gulf War do suffer from an array of very real problems, according to the Veterans Administration-sponsored report released Tuesday.

Yet there is no one complex of symptoms to suggest those veterans — nearly 30 percent of all those who served — suffered or still suffer from a single identifiable syndrome.

“There’s no unique pattern of symptoms. Every pattern identified in Gulf War veterans also seems to exist in other veterans, though it is important to note the symptom rate is higher, and it is a serious issue,” said Dr. Lynn Goldman, of Johns Hopkins University, who headed the Institute of Medicine committee that prepared the report.

Go read the whole thing and try to figure out if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

Oh, And Before I Forget…

11. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Fun and Games, That's Entertainment!

Has Islam Become the Enemy?

11. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Good God, GWOT

The idea that Islam, as a religion, is the enemy is growing here in the United States.

Is this a radical idea that’s drifted into the mainstream or is it a matter of the constant sound of silence from the “moderate Muslim world” when radical Islam rears its head time and time again wearing thin on the American psyche? Is it something else entirely?

Bonus Question:
Is not appeasing the same as antagonizing?

Faster Than the World’s Grand Opening

11. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Site News

Michele and Turtle over at Faster Than the World have totally revamped their site.

Starting this morning (Monday), FTTW will be a magazine-type site with over 20 different contributors writing on a variety of topics each day. From sports to sex, from punk rock to video games, from fast cars to horror movies, we’ve got it all, including a weekly comic strip.

Every day – at least three times a day – you will find fresh content at FTTW. We’ve worked hard to gather some of the best writers around – people who are knowledgeable in their subject area and write about their topics with passion.

That’s 20 writers, 20 different subjects and seven days a week you get here.
Sometimes we will all pool our talents and write something together. Think of us as a collective. Faster than the World: The Wu Tang Clan of the Internet.

Sometimes they write about bands I’ve never even heard of, which makes me feel like I either missed out on things or I just never did understand metal that was harder than say…The Scorpions, but the crew over there always entertains or at least has things that make you go…”hmmmmm, yeah, never thought of that, thanks for sharing.” And I mean that in a good way.

Deviant Art

08. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: General

One of the last things that you can actually do with your computer in government service is to set your own wallpaper. Folks are always asking me where I get mine when they see what I’ve got under all my work icons and folders. “That’s very cool, where’d you get it?”

Deviant Art.

Independant artists sharing their work with the world. Over 25 Million images and growing.

Free registration and you can search by subject or style etc..

Questions of the Day (060908)

08. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: GWOT

Let’s flip the coin now.

Our enemies want us dead or converted to Islam. That is their goal. Just do a google search on “Quotes by Osama” and you’ll find enough to make you shudder.

These people believe it’s their duty to destroy us.

Are we being too nice in fighting the war on terror? Should we be more vicious than the enemy? If we’re fighting for our very survival, and I believe we are, what should we be doing better?

Caption This One (060908) Da Winnahs!

08. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Fun and Games

(U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Chris Boitz)

Andrew V.: “Undeterred by the Al Capone fiasco Geraldo Rivera and his film crew are about to open yet another hidden vault on live TV.”

The Not So Burning Question of the Day

06. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: GWOT

Am I the only one who has a problem with secret CIA Prisons overseas?

There’s something about installing democracies and being a becon for the world while our black bag guys act like…well, their black bag guys that just rubs me the wrong way.

Yeah, I know, we don’t chop off the heads of the folks we catch, we just interrogate them, but where exactly do we draw that line and who’s got the freaking pencil?

I’m sorry, we’re supposed to be better than this, otherwise what’s the point?

Random Rant (060904)

04. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: General Nonsense

If folks were really all that against socialism and all that other commie, pinko stuff, they’d be working today instead of lazing about in their sweats and Target-bought Led Zepplin t-shirts.

A bit too close to home isn’t it? Yeah, me too.

CRIKEY!!! Crocodile Hunter Killed by a Stingray

04. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Critters, Science!, That's Entertainment!

Ya knew a critter would get him someday, but I figured it would be a Croc, not a stingray.

I’m suprised at how sad I am. I loved watching him do stuff that most folks wouldn’t think of doing.

Don’t Let Pain Make Decisions For You

03. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Rant

That’s one of the signs that make up the landscape of our refrigerator. Beautiful Wife lives with chronic pain brought on by a variety of things. She spent six weeks in a class basically designed to teach her, “Yeah, you have pain, you’re always going to have pain, now what are you going to do about it?”

I was thinking about that the past week as I surfed around and saw that the media was moving us from “Remembering Katrina” to “Remembering 9/11.”

Yeah, like we’ve had a chance to forget.

It struck me, rather hard I might add, that the pain of 9/11 had indeed made decisions for me for these last five years.

I’m not saying that 9/11 shouldn’t have been a life-changing moment for me or anyone else, how could it not, but I’m beginning to wonder exactly how far it’s gotten into my life.

I’m not “celebrating” 9/11 this year. I didn’t pick a victim to blog about in rememberance. I’m not going to dredge up the “where was I and what was I doing?” story. I refuse to emote once again on that day in history. My Mom and Dad were part of the greatest generation and I don’t remember them ever beating their breasts or reliving where they were on December 7th. Ever.

It’s enough already. Five years of reopening that wound again and again and again is enough. It’s time.

No, we should never forget, but for the love of all that’s good and right and decent, it’s time we moved on.

9/11 is not a holy day. 9/11 is not a national holiday, and I hope it never is.

It’s enough. Get past it. Let it go.

And if this pisses you off, fine. Let me have it. Rage at me. Get it all out. Do whatever it takes to get it out so that 9/11 will stop making your decisions for you.

Yeah, it hurts, what are you going to do about it?

Balls, Big Balls, MSNBC has Some HUGE Balls

01. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Media Matters Not

I guess it’s spreading but I got it from SondraK’s.

Caption This One (060901) Da Winnahs

01. September 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Fun and Games

(U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. Stan Coleman)

Da Winnahs!

1.) Rodney Dill simply for knowing who Tom Paxton is:

“It went “zip” when it moved and “bop” when it stopped
And “whirr” when it stood still
I never knew just what it was and I guess I never will.”

2.) Cowboy Blob: “The Machine That Goes “PING,” ruggedized Air Force version.

Top Ten Reasons We Should Invade Iran

29. August 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: General

10. Tired of our fine young men and women dying in boring countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. That’s so beginning of the decade.

9. We KNOW they’re developing nukes, that’s more than we knew about Iraq.

8. Ahmadinejad just pisses me off with his cheap suits and half a beard. Either grow a real beard and dress like the Mullah you are, or get some Armani for Allah’s sake.

7. At least there have been student demonstrations in the past decade calling for democracy, they may actually be ready for it.

6. We can’t let Israel have all the fun.

5. They keep telling me we invaded Iraq for the oil and yet I’m paying more at the pump than I was before the invasion. Obviously we need more oil.

4. It would annoy the living shit out of France, Russia and China. I love when that happens.

3. Bush hasn’t been compared to Hitler all week.

2. I’m tired of paying two bucks a pound for pistachios at the commissary.

1. The way things are goin’, we’re not going to see another right wing warmonger of a President until at least 2017. Two years people, the clock’s ticking.

Add your own in the comments, it’s amazing how many you can think of without really trying.

Question of The Day (060829)

29. August 2006 · Comments Off · Categories: Domestic, My Head Hurts

Anyone else tired of “all Katrina, all the time?”

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