Blogger Problem

There seems to be a problem accessing photos uploaded to blogger.com. Sorry for this inconvenience. Hopefully they will have it fixed soon.

They fixed it.

Interesting HDTV Forum

Since I am looking to buy a HDTV, I do a lot of research on the Internet. It is hard to find unbiased reviews of HDTV, but I found a forum that seems to have just that. There are threads on individual HDTV models and the people who post have the questions and answers that I am looking for. They discuss how the picture looks, what problems they are having and how to solve their problems. I am thinking of getting a 42 inch LCD, and there are threads about the new Samsung, Sony, Sharp and JVC sets. So if your interested, give this site a visit.

Brooklyn Electronic Stores

Since I am looking to buy a HDTV, I found this web site interesting. When you search for a HDTV online, the lowest prices seem to be from stores located in Brooklyn. I would rather buy from a local store where I can return the product if necessary, even if the price is higher.

Blog Spam

I finally got hit with blog spam! So now I have to turn on "word verification". Sorry to all you who post legitimate comments on my blog. Please don't stop posting just because you have to type in some extra letters.

WTC Photo 1999

It is that time of year again. The anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I may have posted this photo before, but I still feel lucky that I was able to visit the World Trade Center in 1999. This is a photo of me on the roof taken on a sunny Spring afternoon. Look at how grey me hair is not! Later this day I ended up walking through Central Park during an Earth Day celebration. I was lucky to be on a business trip with weekends free. A quick ride on the Long Island Rail Road got me to New York City. I haven't been back since but someday soon I hope to visit this fine city again.

SDSU vs. UCLA

The crew eating and drinking before the big game against UCLA. We are in a tailgate party (Cafe Azteca) within the main tailgate area (SDSU Athletic Foundation), where we pay an extra $15 for all you can eat food and drinks. The food is really good, with roast beef and chicken, but the beer choice was between Miller Lite and a Pilsner from the Czech Republic (I don't remember the name). The Pilsner wasn't anything to blog about, but very drinkable.
The Aztecs have never beat UCLA, and this game was no different. There were lots of UCLA fans wearing their team colors, and by the third quarter the Aztec fans got really quiet. That was about the time we left. There are five more home games in the season, with the KGB Skyshow being the next. I will be out of town and will miss this big event.

Firkin Beer!

I know I look wasted, but I'm not. I'm drinking a special brew at Karl Struass just tapped from a Firkin keg. No one at our table liked the beer but me. Others were drinking it because it was free or giving it to me after a few sips. Yes, the Strauss Stout was better, of which I had two.

LASIK Eye Surgery Results Two Year After

The strangest thing happened to my eyesight last month - it got much better! Almost two years ago I had LASIK eye surgery. My vision was around 20/30 after six months. My one complaint was that my vision got worse during the day. When I drove home from work street signs look blurry, but then after eight hours of sleep my eyes were fine again. Over time my vision got blurry earlier in the day - until last month, when my vision suddenly improved! Street signs look sharper than ever all day long. My close-up vision is also better. I don't know what happened or why, but I'm going to see my optometrist soon. I hope this vision improvement isn't temporary or a result of some kind of brain tumor!

The Actual Pyramid

We didn't hike up to the top of the pyramid this time. Nothing much to see up there anyways. They were advertising eight new condos with beach views available soon, so now is the time to buy your weekend getaway home.

SD Crooner's 45 Birthday!

SD Crooner with a cute young chick at Rosie O'Grady's in Normal Heights. We went on one of our bike pub crawls along Adams Avenue, only we started at this bar and never left. Well, we left to go eat dinner at a friend's house (She cooked us pork chops with rice and beans, and we saw her cat's five kittens!). Then we went to another bar but left because it was dead and ended up back at Rosie O'Grady's, where "Rufus" was hosting Karaoke night. There were was a strange (interesting) mix of people (OK - young and weird) in the bar, so we left after a few drinks and the night was over.

Mex Beach on Saturday

I wish San Diego beaches looked like this on a sunny Saturday afternoon. The sand is clean, the water is cool and refreshing, and no families with screaming kids to be found.

Fountain Photo

Woody and I hanging out on the fountain. I thought it was strange that the fountain was working during the time that they were trucking in water due to the water not working. Photo and the Photoshop enhancement complements of the SD Crooner.

Homies

After returning from Mexico, where we ate Mexican food all weekend, we headed to a local Mexican restaurant for a shrimp burrito. While we were waiting for our food we found a "gumball" machine that dispensed Homies. My friends collected a few of these tiny figures that they discovered at other Mexican restaurants. These two, Fat Boy and Bullet, are from series 8. There are 24 in each series. No, I don't plan on collecting them, I just think that the idea of producing a collection of Homie figures is funny and original. They cost $.50 or $.75 each, and you never know which figure you will get. If you get a duplicate, you can always trade.

Pyramid Resort 2005

This past weekend I made my annual trip to the Pyramid Resort in La Mision, Baja California. Last time I went it was cold and foggy the whole weekend, this year it was warm, sunny and froggy. We usually go on Labor Day when it seems half the population of San Diego is there. This weekend the local bars were dead. Also, we couldn't get any one to play Elvis Whiffle Ball with us, so we just practiced hitting. To entertain ourselves, we turned the game into "Dorf" Whiffle Ball. You had to be there to understand unless you remember the "Dorf on Golf" commercials. We are thinking of going back in three weeks when many people said they would be able to make the trip, but people always say they want to go, but don't. I have many more photos from the trip to post later, so stay tuned.

No More Worms or Ducks

I finally have something to do this weekend. I'm going down to Mexico! Hopefully the area where people don't get shot or kidnapped. This is our annual trek to the Pyramid Resort. As I sit in my hot house, more strange men are outside washing the walls in preparation for painting the building. They seem to paint every five years around here. I'd rather have them re-roof the building so the winter rain doesn't leak onto my nice new ceilings. If I don't leave my condo soon, I may be trapped by the spraying water, so off I am.

Picnic at Mission Bay

A rare company picnic. Food and drink for free!

I Found the Ducks

After seven years of living in this neighborhood, I finally found the "hidden" lake. All the signs were there. People walking with fishing poles, a blob of blue on a map and ducks crossing the street. I had never tried to find the lake before today, which was the goal of my evening bike ride. It took me about 15 minutes of following dead-end streets and climbing steep hills before I saw the unmarked path to the lake, which lies about 1000 feet from my home. Riding my bike down to the lake, I saw ducks swimming happily and a man fishing for dinner. Mystery solved.

House Back in Order

The painters came in force this morning. Four men arrived at 9:15 and they were finished by 1:30. My ceiling looks great. Better than I expected. It was worth the money and hassle. It took me the next three hours to put all my stuff back in its place and I feel much less out-of-wack.There is still work to be done: new entertainment center, putting unused furniture in the garage and installing a shelf in my computer room.

Waiting for the Worms

Tomorrow a painter is coming over to paint my ceiling. My house has been in disarray ever since I had my popcorn ceiling removed over a month ago. At the time I didn't realize that the process required two steps: removal and painting. It will be so nice to have this home improvement project finished. I can hang pictures back on the wall and redisplay my action figure collection. Now all I have to do is figure out what to do during the day, as I can not stay at home while the work is being done. I guess I'll go for a drive and listen to some more Pink Floyd.

Afternoon Beer

Yes, I do sometimes eat a meal without drinking a beer. Sometimes. It is just that no photos are taken on those occasions. We were celebrating my brother's (not pictured) birthday at Oggi's and I was the designated drinker.