Currently The Incredible Hulk (Three-Disc Special Edition) By Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt, Christina Cabot see related

 I was sitting here trying to come up with something to post, but I can't really think of anything. Not that anyone cares. No one ever cares. Life's just not worth living. Everything is black and dead to me. I wonder if I can torrent some My Chemical Romance...onoz! I've caught the Emo. I hope I'm not contagious.

Work continues to be work. No matter how obvious it becomes, certain people who should have been fired long ago still are employed. I'm guessing their employment hinges on buttsex photos of some higher-ups. It really is the only possible explanation. At this point, even pity has been overwhelmed by his sheer stupidity. Outside of that, I got bitched at about a project that was not under my direction. Guess whose it was...(hint: read this paragraph) So after determining what a clusterfuck it was, I washed my hands of it. We'll have to see how well that works since the person in charge of it is far too stupid to be in charge of anything and has already fucked things up several times in a row. And yet somehow, even the head cheese at corporate wont do anything about it. Gah, some people just need to diaff.

Baby is coming along. On my birthday (11/1), we went and had a 4D ultrasound done. I'll try and upload it here (we'll see what Xanga will let me do). It was kinda neat seeing the kid as more than just a static-ghost. Here's a photo from the DVD we got:



There he is. If you can't see him really well, I've highlighted the picture below.

 

That's right. Again, outside of using the wrong finger, the kid is again all about the "up-yours" arm motion. His face is a little obscured, but as you can see, he's got a big ass grin, because I'm sure he thinks its hilarious. Wait until he does that shit in public and gets spanked. Then we'll see who's laughing.

Its getting interesting with the baby. I can see Sarah's stomach move when he moves around, and we poke him to get him moving sometimes. And I'm going to start trying to play more music for him. None of that sappy Beethoven shit (cept maybe the good ones), but modern, decent music. And no Radiohead or Bright Eyes...sorry...

Election season is finally over. Thank god, no more interruptions for Heroes. The next important date for America: 1/20/09, the day the Bush regime comes to an end. Hopefully Barack Obama will have the good sense to follow through with his promises of change and change some of the ridiculous policies W leaves behind. While I'm sure Bush was an OK guy in real life, he didn't surround himself with the best people and made some really bad decisions. But everybody does. I look at it this way: Clinton showed America anybody could become president. Bush showed America any idiot could become president. So now, maybe America will stop being the boogeyman of the rest of the world and try and get its own shit together. And the government will stop wiping its ass with the Constitution for the sake of "fighting terrorists" and there'll be no more arguments for or against things based on patriotism and the "you're either with us or you're a terrorist" mindset. And maybe the world will spin backwards and it'll rain donuts and and chocolate wont make you fat. If not, then I suppose in 4 years we can try again...not that it'll matter since 2 and a half months after the election the world will end. Oh well, I hate politics anyway.

That's really about it. Nothing else too exciting. I sit around and play video games all day. I'm currently playing Fable 2 and Gears of War 2. I wanted to play some Gears yesterday, but my XBox decided that while I was online, I wasn't really online, so the game wouldn't load and none of my friends showed as online. So I played Fable 2. The baby's room is pretty well set up. The only thing we're looking at getting right now is a rocking chair for sitting with the baby. Outside of that, all my shit is out of there (and kind of piled up in my computer room at the moment). But that's about it. Too much excitement, no?

Edit: Video uploaded. Engage!

Currently Reading The Day Watch (Watch, Book 2) By Sergei Lukyanenko see related

I'm not dead...yet...

7 months isn't all that long, right? Did you miss me? Awww, that's so sweet. Now shut up and let daddy talk...or type...or whatever...

Now its time for everybody's favorite condiment: Ketchup

So around July, I switched positions at my job. Whereas before I was simply a Level 3 Developer (doing analyst work), I am now the Level 2 Engineer...basically, I still do programming, just for the new Medium Section Mill (they make smaller steel products than the existing Heavy Section Mill...seems straighforward enough). So my new position so far has been a lot of finishing what I was doing before for Level 3 and getting to know WinCC, the Siemens programming language/environment that they use to interface with their Step7 PLCs (the computers that run the big equipment). Its pretty interesting stuff. In fact, today I managed to write an interface so that WinCC can talk to our product database, so I'm pretty proud of myself. I'm enjoying the new position so far. My base pay rate dropped a bit, but I'm getting a new set of bonuses that pretty well make up for it (on a good week, the bonus covers what gets taken out in taxes from my base paycheck). So I'm all good there. In the Level 3 world, there've been some long awaited shakeups that have taken their sweet as time coming to fruition. Our tard supervisor pretty much got told that he was in charge of legacy support (tho he's still not actually on support) and that one of the other people and Ryan would be in charge of new development. We're all pretty much expecting some big pissing contest or other that will hopefully be the other shoe and absolve us of the problem altogether.

Unless you've been living under a rock (or at least not reading Sarah's blog), you'll be excited to find out that we're having our first kid! Hooray! Yep, we finally decided that the apocalypse wasn't getting here fast enough, so we'd do our part to ensure its arrival. Speaking of arrival, our little bundle of boy is due around Jan 15, 2009. We'll keep everybody informed as to when he makes his appearance. And yes, we found out on the ultrasound its a boy (pictures below). Initially known as Peanut, since the ultrasound I've been referring to him as Tripod. We've also since come up with a name that so far is about all we got: Weston (or Westin) Zia Kean. Now, before you go gripin' about Zia being a girls name, check out this link. It can be a boys name too. In the grand scheme of things, it might end up being Ziya just so we can keep the name without the girl stigma, you bunch of whiners. Anyway, pictures!

Little hand waving at the camera. Was pretty cool to actually watch...too bad no video :(

Baby's arms, for those that have trouble with english...kinda looks like he's getting ready to do the salute from Spaceballs...not even born yet and he loves movies...

Proof its a boy. Here, censored for family friendliness and to prevent rampant jealousy of his gargantuan schlong. We have like 8 photos from the ultrasound...and like 4 of them are of his wang...panoramic...

And now, photos of the random crap that we've gotten for the baby (all shown here actual size):

This is the car seat from the set of stuff, we also picked up a hi-chair, glider, and other things I can't remember/haven't put together yet.

A really nice bassinet. Organic cotton, so all you tree huggin hippies don't have to cry...or wait, maybe you do...just don't cut yourself, no one likes a cutter...

The crib o'doom. This took a few hours to put together, mostly because the assembly instructions were a little vague. But overall, a nice set (that went out of stock right before we tried to buy it the first time).

And last but not least, among the random cute clothes we bought, this "pram" (what the mfg calls it, not what I always understood a pram to be, but what do I know about baby gear). I'm sorely tempted to cover up the teddy bear on the chest in some way, shape, or form so as to complete the Ewok costume my son will be forced to wear until it is uncomfortably tight, at which time it will be unstitched and loosened. BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Anyway, outside of that, its pretty well business as usual. I go to work, Sarah goes to work and school (for suckers). We take time out when we can and enjoy ourselves. We try to interact with the baby and the cats so nobody gets jealous. If Sarah doesn't post about it, last night she complained that I don't talk to the baby enough. So I made some growling sounds and told him when he comes out we're going to eat him. I think I've fulfilled my fatherly duties with that.

That's all for now, I'm kind of tired.

Currently Watching Beowulf (Unrated Director's Cut) By Robin Wright Penn, Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, John Bilezikjian, Brice Martin see related

"I am Ripper... Tearer... Slasher... Gouger. I am the Teeth in the Darkness, the Talons in the Night. Mine is Strength... and Lust... and Power! I AM BEOWULF!" - Beowulf

Not sure how I keep doing it, but here's 2 movies once again:

Saw IV
Starring Donnie Walhberg (Shepher in Turok)

Here's how a Saw movie works (and apparently there's a Saw V in filming now, so I guess we'll get to see it again):

Person X needs to learn a lesson. In the course of learning that lesson, many other people who've done bad things die. At the end, there's some grand death scene, Person X fails to learn whatever the lesson was, everybody ends up dead. Somehow a sequel is made anyway.

I've seen the other 3 Saw films...this one kind of sucked. I was mildly confused as this one apparently takes place at the same time as the 3rd movie, but in a different place that converges at the end. I suppose after 3 films of crazy-makeshift-gear-based-kill-machines killing people, you kinda get used to it. I suppose that should probably worry me. So if you've seen the others, go ahead, watch it, learn no lesson, and someday they'll make a sequel out of you...after you die a horrible pointless death, at least.

Beowulf
Starring Brendan Gleeson (Alistair "Mad-Eye" Moody in the Harry Potter movies...magic is kind of like a superpower...shut up...)

I'm sure most everyone is familiar with the Danish tale of one Beowulf and a nasty killer thing named Grendel. In this CGI adaptation, we get the original encounter between Beowulf and Grendel, Beowulf's encounter with Grendel's mother, and Beowulf's final encounter with a giant golden dragon. Lots of action, lots of fighting...and an unusually large amount of CGI nudity/near nudity.

The movie was pretty good. It flowed together well and while there were some liberties taken with the story (as detailed out in one of the special features) they helped keep all the characters close and made it so that we could see the characters grow old together. Some of the gaps in the original story are filled in interestingly. Grendel is a pretty freaky lookin dude who takes one hell of an ass whuppin from Beowulf. I would say give this movie a watch. It was pretty good.

Not Movies

The not movies part, whats going on in my life. About the same stuff as last time. My boss got his ass reamed (probably for being a douchebag) and has been leaving everybody in the department alone for the last 2 days. Hopefully it'll stay that way and he'll fuck off. Lots of stuff for me to work on so I'm stayin busy. Last night me, Sarah, and Ryan went out to the Frontiers in Dark Age of Camelot. Its a realm versus realm zone, so lots of room for killin. It was crazy, there was over 100 people in the group we joined and we ended up getting quite a lot of killin credits.

Beyond that, its business as usual. Hoorayz.

Currently Watching Rocket Science By Reece Thompson, Anna Kendrick, Dionne Audain, Nicholas D'Agosto, Vincent Piazza see related

"Don't be stupid. It's got to be something he can actually see, doesn't it? Otherwise it wouldn't be called 'I Spy', would it. It would be called 'I Can Randomly Think of Something.'" -Quartus

Yayz for movie reviews. And because I was lazy and didn't get around to it, you gets 2 again! You're so lucky.

Stardust
Starring Michele Pfeiffer (Catwoman from Batman Returns)

This was actually a pretty good movie. I'd been debating renting it for a while, unsure of its quality. Overall, I really liked it. If you're a big fan of fantasy elements like quests, witches, pirates, love, and augury, then this movie is for you.

In an attempt to win the heart of a local girl, a brash youngster named Tristan promises to bring her back a star that falls through the sky one night. Journeying across "The Wall", Tristan steps into a world of magic and a search for the star, named Yvaine. Throughout the course of the adventure, Tristan has run-ins with local royalty who are searching for a lost stone to claim the throne of Stormhold, a trio of witches seeking to find the fallen star in order to eat her heart and gain youth and immortality, and pirates that travel through the sky and collect lightning. As he spends more and more time on the other side of the wall, he goes through a transformation that changes the rest of his life.

There were some pretty amusing parts of the movie. The quote above was actually taken from one of the deleted scenes in the film, but I thought it was funny. There are some really interesting cameos in the film. Ian McKellen narrates the tale, Robert DeNiro plays the leader of the sky pirates (and major props to Matthew Vaughn, the director, for convincing DeNiro to do some of the things he does in this film...quite a leap from Taxi Driver), and Ricky Gervais shows up as a merchant that deals with DeNiro's pirates and has a rather amusing negotiation.

All in all, I recommend checking this one out. You'll enjoy it...unless you're a soulless jerkface...

2nd movie....

Rocket Science
Starring Nicholas D'Agosto (West from Heroes)

I'm still up in the air about this movie. I think it was OK. Its definately a very indie style movie, so it'll probably fall into the same category as some of the other movies I've liked that no one else does. I'm still not sure of the whole point of the movie.

The first lesson you'll learn from this movie is to stay as far away from New Jersey as possible. Hal is a stuttering high school student whose older brother lives life according to an "agenda". The same day Hal's parents split, Ben and Ginny are in the middle of a political debate when Ben blanks and costs them the first place trophy. Later that year, Ginny recruits Hal for the debate team, seeing in him a hidden potential for debating. Hal works hard under Ginny's tutelage but, when the first major meet comes, Ginny is nowhere to be found. Hal drives himself crazy trying to figure out what happened and how to fix it. A last ditch attempt at revenge proves fruitless, but in the long run, Hal is never the same.

I liked the movie. It had some slightly amusing points, and the twists and turns keep the movie moving along really well. Just when you think you know whats going to happen, the film does a 180. The role love plays throughout the film is very integral to the plot. Hal goes through things I'm sure we've all gone through before to some extent and in the end comes to some of the same conclusions: Is love rocket science? Give this movie a watch with an open mind.

Also, I almost forgot, if you've ever wanted to hear Violent Femme's "Blister in the Sun" as a cello/piano duet, you should see this movie.

Me Shitz

So, nothing terribly exciting here. Work is kind of being a pain in the ass, mostly because of the boss situation. Hopefully there are enough pissed off managers that maybe something will get done. But I'm not holding my breath. Lots of stuff going on, lots of stuff wanting to be done. A lot of priority issues. But I trudge on, deal with it, make the fat checks.

Like Sarah said, we got the bathroom fixed....finally. Overall, it was a major pain that didn't need to be that way. I'm not sure what the next house project is going to be, but at this point, it wouldn't surprise me if it was arson.

Sarah and I keep on keepin on. I loves my baby .

That's all for me, sleepy time!