NoCalMike

Medium Rare with a slice of onion-jack cheese broiled on top. (That is what I had for dinner last night).

Pretty good. My waist size is down a few sizes and most people are saying my face is less round and pudgy..... I don't really weigh myself only because with diets weight loss flucuates from week to week and I don't want to get discouraged because one week I might only lose a pound or less..... The good news is that the Gym I was talking about in earlier posts opens in 10 days, so that is when this thing is really getting kicked into high gear, along with the weather turning into spring time around here which will equal more outside activities. I will keep ya'll posted.

Update: Well it is the next morning, and the problem has miraculously cured itself, and now the volume is once again being controlled from my center channel speaker volume dial.........*ok as we speak* it literally unfixed and the volume jumped hella loud.....and then went back to working....hmmmmm, the only thing I can think of is something around here creating some type of interference with the speakers/sound? I computers......really.

Well the one positive is that if Obama survives this and still becomes the nominee, this bullshit will have a much less "OMG factor" in the general election.

So I have a 5.1 setup, with a volume dial on the center channel speaker. I come home today and turn on the 'puter and now the sound can't be controlled by the dial anymore and only though the computer's software volume center. If I am watching something on quicktime/media player/divx, those volume controls work, but what the hell happened here? However no matte if I turn the dial on my speakers up or down the volume stays the same. Now, turning the dial all the way down to off does turn the speakers off, and then I can turn them back on (which is indicated by the green light, lighting up) but I can no longer adjust the volume level.....When I do turn the dial up and down I hear a scratchy-type sound, like if you scratched a record..... Seriously, WTF?

If you actually listen to the "God Bless America? I say God Damn America" part of the speech, the Wright guy is bringing up some valid points, and I think the point of his rant was to bring up why people might be mad at certain aspects of America, especially the things he saw growing up. It just gets so fucking old that the media, every time, can play a 10 second clip of something and all they have to do is put the emphasis on the phrase the phrase "god damn america" and suddenly people get all self-righteous and nationalistic, when in their own life they have probably said similar things in the same context.

Rainbow Six Vegas 2 = Addicting.

Yeah I also like the fact that Mario Kart will have it's own wii channel. Hopefully it will make setting up races between friends online easier.

Urban Sprawl wasn't planned/executed overnight. It was probably carefully calculated in order to make us more dependent on cars and gas/oil. It's not going to be fixed overnight or within one presidency either, however it is really the attitude about the situation that needs to change. I understand why people want cheaper gas, because it is a much needed part of most people's daily life. However people never stop to think why it is that way and what part they may have played directly or indirectly into making their life the way it is. I also don't understand the notion that people feel entitled to "cheap gas".....why? because we use it a lot? I am stretched by expensive gas prices as much as the next guy, but to make these silly demands that our government "needs to do something about it" is ridiculous. You don't like gas prices? Start voting in people that agree with you and want alternative fuel sources put into place and not people who think they "still need to be researched"

Well that and hoping for short term cheap gas(which is all it would ever be anyway) is requesting a band-aid for a gun shot wound.

http://www.gamespot.com/wii/driving/mariok...lyadded;title;1 Mario Kart Wii peels out April 27 Nintendo preempting GTAIV by shipping next installment in popular racer two days earlier. By Tom Magrino, GameSpot Posted Mar 12, 2008 12:57 pm PT After Rockstar Games announced it was unleashing the retail behemoth that is Grand Theft Auto IV on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on April 29, most publishers have abandoned the surrounding week outright. Nintendo, however, is known for doing things a little bit differently. Today, the Wii maker revealed plans to take on Rockstar's goliath head-on with its own diminutive champion: Mario. The publisher will release the far more family-friendly Mario Kart Wii on Sunday, April 27, two days before GTAIV pulls out of the garage. Unveiled during the 2007 E3 Media and Business Summit, Mario Kart Wii will build upon some of the more well-received features of 2005's Mario Kart DS. Twelve-player online racing takes top priority for most, and Mario Kart for the Wii will also let two players from the same console battle it out online together. The game will feature 32 courses total, with 16 being specially created for the Wii version and the remainder being updated courses seen in previous installments in the series. Karters will be able to take to the track as more than a dozen Mushroom Kingdom denizens, as well as digital representations of themselves--or Oprah--via the game's Mii integration. As with other installments in the series, the game will include a variety of modes not devoted to competitive racing, including 10 different battle arenas. Mario Kart Wii will also be receiving its very own channel on the Wii Menu, which will allow gamers quick access to tournaments, worldwide leaderboards, and ghost data. As previously noted, Nintendo will be offering a range of control schemes with Mario Kart Wii, and will also be packing in the Wii Remote encasement dubbed the Wii Wheel with the game. For more on the game, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.

Snuffy, what do you mean? I took the bait, clicked the link and read the thread.....OMFG my head hurts. But my friend each word contains the post of the day! I dunno reading some of those posts. I mean the most they took away from the entire speech was "Obama is playing the white guilt card" I mean......REALLY? If anything he was almost justifying the frustrations that a lot of white america has towards social programs aimed at "leveling the playing field" Sometimes I think some of those guys are just looking for things that aren't there.

People want to hear what they want to hear. And logic is sure as hell not gonna get in their way. That crap is why we're in Iraq, why the economy is in the shitter and why education is declining. The sooner people snap out of this line of thinking, the better. I know, but I have a hard time accepting it. Everybody wants politicians to stop bullshitting them and tell it like they really see it, instead of it being sanitized and just say the same old things UNTIL THEY ACTUALLY GET ONE. Look at Paul Tsongas in 1992, John McCain in 2000, or Howard Dean in 2004. They said what they thought the country needed to hear, instead of what people wanted to hear. They were rewarded for it by being shunned by their own party in favor of someone who offered a more sanitized view...only to have the general public complain on election day being forced to choose between the lesser of two evils. I am absolutely sick and tired of history repeating itself. Well this is further reason why political parties in general should be rid of. Party Elites of both sides seem to be just as much as of a "good ol' boy" network as any other organization.

Snuffy, what do you mean? I took the bait, clicked the link and read the thread.....OMFG my head hurts.

I have Super Mario Galaxy just about beat....not 100% accomplished, but beaten with Mario. I plan on trading it in towards Mario Kart wii. Right now Mario Galaxy is worth $30 and I have a $5 extra coupon that works with any wii game traded in towards Mario Kart.

Yeah they are really giving him a "free pass" with this one. I have a question though. For all the hub-bub surround this Rev. Wright guy, has anything more then a couple of 10-20 second clips been provided that is supposedly supposed to cover 20+ years of sermons?

Non-Matinee admission here is $9.75 per Adult. Matinee is $6.75 per Adult Matinee is before 6pm on Weekdays and before 2pm on Weekends. We also have a $3 theater that shows older movies that are a couple of months from going to DVD. It is a crap theater, with none of the modern technology but for $3 it is a great way to catch movies you missed or when there are too many movies out that you want to see. We used to have a dollar theater but it shut down.

Yeah it doesn't help that Hillary seems to have an "if I go down, ya'll going down with me attitude" I mean at least Obama is making it clear that we would be better off with Hillary then McCain, but Hillary on the other hand has been very wishy-washy about making statements on Obama's credentials/electability etc.....anytime the two aren't sitting together on a stage.

I think one of the key issues is going to be people actually against the Iraq war vs. People who were in favor of it, but are just mad about it at the moment because we have a bumbling fool in charge of it. These people probably feel McCain can "right the ship" in Iraq, where as they feel Obama will pull the ship out of the dock and into the ocean. I know a lot of polls and media outlets are saying Iraq isn't the biggest issue right now going into the election, but I feel by the time November rolls around it will be, especially with McCain starting up the 2004-style "Waiving the white flag, Defeatocrats, Cut & Run" rhetoric already.

In a bit of unexpected but pleasent news..... http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080317/media_nm/trailers_dc Major theater chain restores raunchy trailers By Gregg Kilday Sun Mar 16, 11:48 PM ET LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - In a move that will allow movie studios to inject racy jokes into the trailers they use to promote their more adult-oriented films, the nation's largest theater chain has decided to permit restricted, "red band" trailers in its multiplexes. The move by Regal Entertainment Group, which operates 6,388 screens in 39 states and the District of Columbia, likely will lead to similar decisions at a number of the nation's other major chains. As last week's ShoWest convention of movie theater owners in Las Vegas drew to a close, the Knoxville, Tenn.-based circuit began notifying the studios of its decision. The news was received enthusiastically by distributors who have had to promote such R-rated comedies as "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" with sanitized, green band trailers tailored for general audiences. "This is going to be hugely helpful for us when we want to give targeted moviegoers a true sense of the kind of movies we are offering," said Adam Fogelson, Universal president of marketing and distribution. "I couldn't be happier or more grateful to the people at Regal for continuing the dialogue that has led to this decision." The MPAA's Advertising Administration, which oversees the advertising materials used by its member studios, approves two types of trailers for use in the theaters. So-called green band trailers -- also known as green-tag trailers -- open with a green advisory card that reads "the following preview has been approved for all audiences." Red band trailers, which can appear only before R-rated, NC-17-rated or unrated movies, warn that "the following preview has been approved for restricted audiences only." Studios once used red band trailers routinely, but theaters dropped them like hot potatoes after a 2000 Federal Trade Commission report criticizing the entertainment industry for marketing violent entertainment to children. Exhibitors cut back on red band trailers out of fear of offending patrons and also out of a concern that in handling the dozen or so films screening in a modern multiplex, a red band trailer could be attached inadvertently to a G or PG movie. The second problem should be eliminated, though, when theaters fully convert to digital, which will allow theater operators greater control and flexibility over the materials screening in each of their auditoriums. "We had intended when we went to digital to begin to review trailers on a case-by-case basis, but we've decided to jump ahead of that," Regal senior vp marketing and advertising Dick Westerling said. He explained that the chain's executives were sympathetic to the studios' arguments last summer when Sony said it would have liked to screen a red band trailer for "Superbad" in front of Universal's "Knocked Up." In recent months, Regal quietly has experimented with screening red band trailers at its Regal Cinema Art Theaters that show indie and specialty movies. "We've been monitoring their use carefully," Westerling said. "And there haven't been any issues that have come up at the theater level. So based on the discussions we've been having, Regal has made the decision to program red band trailers on a case-by-case basis. We're confident that we can execute the new policy successfully." In recent years, studios have continued to assemble red band trailers, but banned from the major theater chains, the trailers have appeared instead on the Internet, where the MPAA approves them only for sites that carry some age restrictions or make them accessible only during a late-night time period. During a presentation at ShoWest, Universal's Fogelson showed exhibitors the red band trailer for the R-rated comedy "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," set to open April 18. With "Knocked Up's" Judd Apatow serving as one of its producers, the movie stars Jason Segel as a man trying to break up with his girlfriend, played by Kristen Bell. The movie's green band trailer establishes its premise and plot, while the red band trailer gives a much fuller taste of its raunchy humor and sexual calisthenics, and it had exhibitors laughing. "I don't think anybody is arguing that all red band trailers are appropriate in front of all R-rated movies," Fogelson said. "For example, it would not be appropriate for a red band trailer for a movie like 'American Pie' to run in front of 'Schindler's List.' We all want to be smart and careful about the use of red band trailers, working closely with our partners in exhibition. We don't want moviegoers seeing material that is inconsistent with the movies they are going to see." 1999's "American Pie" was the last Universal movie that saw a red band trailer play in theaters, and Fogelson argued that the trailer -- which featured the infamous Jason Biggs pie scene -- was critical in establishing how the movie's tone differed from a lot of the teenage sex comedies that Hollywood produced in the 1980s. Regal said it hasn't decided which red band trailers it will run first, but distributors indicated they'll be submitting trailers this week to Regal for consideration. Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

The funny thing about 90210 was about how when the series started it had some-what realistic storylines about life as a wealthy teenager, but then it seemed like they started running out of ideas so the stories started becoming these elaborate dramas and just got so beyond imagination. That and it was hard to believe a circle of friends could remain friends with each other when everyone was sleeping with everyone elses friend, then going back to them, then the other person etc etc.....

Exactly, I mean there are still people who believe Saddam was behind 9/11 and that we found the WMDs in Iraq. Of course, those people weren't voting for Obama anyway, but still.....and a lot of it is the media too because you just know they are foaming at the mouth with this kind of stuff because reporting on "the issues" doesn't bring in the same ratings as "angry black man" alert.

I was going to drive up to Seattle from here(Sacramento) when the Redskins made the playoffs, but I would have had to drive through two snow storms to get there and I have little experience in those driving conditions.

It seems to me the mainstream media and the alarmist culture in america has found the "angry black man" figure they have so desperately been looking for. Obama might not scare a certain portion of America, but this other guy apparently does and Barrack's opponents are going to try to make them stick together like glue.

Man Accused of Forcing Daughter, 7, to Kill Pet Cat Thursday, March 13, 2008 E-Mail Print Share: DiggFacebookStumbleUpon MUNCIE, Ind. — A man was jailed Thursday on charges he forced his 7-year-old daughter to kill the family cat by holding a knife in her hand and making her stab the pet. Danield J. Collins, 39, told his children during a visit to his home on Sunday that he wanted them to "learn how to kill" and gave his 11-year-old son a knife to do it, according to an affidavit filed in the case. The boy tried to save the cat by hiding it under a sofa bed and putting ketchup on a knife when Collins went to the bathroom. But when the father realized the cat was not dead, he forced his daughter to hold the knife and then held her hand tightly as he drove the knife into the animal, Muncie police Detective Jami Brown said. Police said Collins stabbed and strangled the cat himself, and told his son to throw the dead pet in the trash. Officers retrieved the carcass to be used as evidence. The children told family members on Monday, the day after the alleged killing, according to the affidavit. The children told police their father was drunk when they arrived at his home and that he's a different person when he's drunk, it said. The siblings live with their grandparents. Collins was being held in the Delaware County Jail on $40,000 bond. He's charged with one count each of animal cruelty and battery and two counts of neglect of a dependent. The battery charge alleges the girl was injured because Collins held her hand so hard that her hand ached. The jail had no record of an attorney representing Collins and there were no published phone listings for him in Muncie. Muncie police Detective Jami Brown said the case was particularly troubling because Collins involved his children in killing the cat, an 8-month-old tuxedo type-cat named Boots. "I've been doing investigations for 10 years and this is really bothering me," the detective said.