Hobby Time: Bikes

Home cooking, puppy dog, family, and my parent's huge TV are some of my favorite things about coming home for the holidays. One of my other favorite things is riding my bike in the suburbs of Houston. I am by no means an avid bike rider. I know very little about how to properly bike and things like that, but I do love riding.

Unfortunately the hills of Austin, Tx are a huge pain in my legs. I live in S. Austin so I can ride in pretty much any direction and find nothing but huge hills. When I'm back home in Houston i can ride for hours without having to worry about riding up an incline.

SemiReview: Men of a Certain Age

Just now I turned on the TV and caught the last 5 minutes of the second episode of "Men of a Certain Age" and I think I'm in love. To be fair it was only 5 minutes, but it went straight for the heart. It was funny, sweet, sad and sincere. The three main actors (Ray Romano, Andre Braugher, and Scott Bakula) have great chemistry and act like friends actually act. 3 old guys living life, drinking beer, and cursing; based on my brief exposure to the show I want to see more.

Review: Small Worlds

In 15 short minutes David Shute's Small Worlds gave me a sense of exploration that I haven't felt in over 10 years. Small Worlds is a simple flash game where players are tasked with nothing but exploring and discovering a beautiful world. There are no bad guys, no challenges, just exploration.

All of the worlds you travel to are beautiful pieces of art that are slowly uncovered as you hop around the world, the more you discover the more you want to play. The game also features a fantastic score, and even better than that is free. Small Worlds is more of an experience than a game, an experience that you shouldn't pass up.

Top 5: Charlie Kelly

Most of the characters on my top 5 T.V. characters list have been lacking in the intelligence department, but this one takes the cake. Charlie Kelly is dumb. He's dirty. He's addicted to inhalants. He lives in poverty. He can't read or write. But he's one of the most brilliant characters on television.

Charlie is one of the main character's on FX's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." He co-owns a pub and works as the pubs custodian. Charlie mind works in a way so different from most of the world that words can barely describe it. Here's a quote from the episode "Dennis Reynolds: An Erotic Life"

Dee: What were you even doing in that crawlspace, Charlie?
Charlie: Well, for starters, I was minding my own business. I was also trying to do a little light reading, and then I was putting some cheese in the rat traps.
Dee: You were putting the cheese in the rat traps?
Charlie: Yes!
Dee: Can I smell your mouth?
Charlie: Why?
Dee: You were eating the cheese, weren't you? Out of the rat traps.
Charlie: No—well, yes—I mean, I was eating the old cheese to test it to see why the rats weren't eating it.

Waterworld: Day 5

This post is part of an ongoing project where I attempt to watch all of Waterworld in 5 minute chunks.

Now we see the village during the evening. Someone is in a cage...i think it is cost...yep it's Costner. The wrestler is scooting by on a boat. Maaaan he is UGLY. Poor Costner looks really sad.

The Camera cuts to the little girl with cornrows. She is drawing Costner's cage with charcoal. CREEPY OLD DUDE RUBBING HER BACK. I am not comfortable right now. The mom walked up and seems OK with the weird man touching her child. The mom/bartender/shop keep kinda looks like Kathrine Heigel.

Now someone is pointing a flash light at Mr. Costner's webbed feet. The creepy old man is the one with the flashlight. He is still very very creepy. And he is very excited about Costner's gills. He wants to learn about Costner. The old man has got a propeller on his hat. Costner keeps rocking the cage. He's not in the best of moods. The two are making some kind of deal.

Not gonna lie, the movie is getting pretty boring. It had kinda been picking up some steam but now it's pretty much lost me. Costner keeps shaking the cage. Now we see the sun start to rise. Some guys are riding Jet-Skis away from the beautiful sun rise. It now looks like everyone is going to some kind of court case. Yeah, it is a court case. Costner was just sentenced to be "recycled."

Me and Orson Welles Premiere

Tonight Zac Efron, Richard Linklater, and Christian McKay thrilled Austinites of all ages at the historical Paramount Theatre. The trio was walking the red carpet at the premiere of Linklater's new film "Me and Orson Welles."

Fans lined up in front of the theatre waiting to catch a glimpse of heart throb Efron as he posed for pictures and signed autographs. Linklater and McKay spent their time on the carpet answering questions and talking to friends.

"People say welcome back to Austin, and I say I never left" said Linklater. " I shot this U.K. but I'm back the day after wrap."

The film itself follows 17-year-old Richard Samuels, Efron, as meets Orson Welles, McKay, as he is cast in Welles' 1937 production of Julius Cesar. "Me and Orson Welles" also stars Claire Danes and will be released nation wide on December 11th.

Waterworld: Day 4

This post is part of an ongoing project where I attempt to watch all of Waterworld in 5 minute chunks.

Alright Costner is still at the bar and he was just served a tiny cup of water. The ugly wrestler looking dude walks up and mubles a little bit. Costner looks around and sees he is surrounded. The wrestler compliments his boots...which is a little strange if you ask me. Then a little girl with cornrows walks up. She's got a sick tatt on her back, I bet that has some kind of crazy significance to rest of the story! The creepy wrestler is now asking Cosnter about taking baths, this interaction is getting pretty uncomfortable. Costner asks about a tomato plant at the bar and the tender tries to steal all his money. Then she says it'll cost half his chips. He buys it and is now walking to his boat. With the bartender/shop keeper.

Ohhhhhh now a group of old people led by a Morgan Freeman looking man is approaching Costner. I keep accidental typing Swayze instead of Costner, which I assume is my subconscious telling me this would be WAY better with the late great Mr. Patrick Swayze as the lead. Now the group of village elders is asking for Costners seed. They want him to knock up a young girl that lives in the village in exchange for supplies. One of the elders whistled when Costner declined the offer. Somebody attacks him and OH DEAR GOD COSTNER'S GOT GILLS! AND I think he's about to drown a dude. Or stab him under water. There is a lot of stabbing going on right now. A riot has started and Costner is stuck in a net.

The sheriff is back! And he saved Costner. Finally a voice of reason. As the sheriff forces the villagers to release our hero we see a man turn a knob and lights turn on in the island village as it becomes night.

The Adult Swim Takeover

Co-Written by Carly Hallman

In eight short years, Cartoon Network's Adult Swim has evolved from a twice-weekly late-night break from children's programming and into a powerful media empire in its own right. Adult Swim, which now airs every night between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. Central Time, has spawned a host of offshoots, live events, and imitators.

Merchandise
If a talking rabbit and a pants-wearing sea sponge can have their own derivative t-shirts and toys, why can’t a street-wise, trash-talkin’ wad of meat? Like any good media empire, Adult Swim has begun the process of turning everything magical into something purchasable. Adultswim.com offers fans a large variety of “to-be-expected” merchandise and apparel, as well as a few cleverer items-- the website is currently offering fans a chance to fill their own DVD with 110 minutes of their favorite Adult Swim show episodes. The party, and the buck, doesn’t stop online, though. Josh Feldman, VP of ad sales and marketing for Adult Swim, said “[We have an] obligation to stay true to the network's brand when creating marketing partnerships.” So, what corporations has Feldman deemed worthy? Mall-staple Hot Topic hawks t-shirts, plush toys, and other assorted knick-knacks, and Adult Swim partnered with Midway Games to release 2007’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am for PlayStation 2.

Ratings
Since its first night on air, Adult Swim has rated well according to Nielson Media Group. But in 2007, when Nielson began to include college-aged viewers in their surveys, Adult Swim’s ratings skyrocketed. Currently, Adult Swim is one of the most popular late-night destinations for channel-surfing adults aged 18-34. The station continues to break ratings records for both men and women in said age group.

Live Shows/Appearances
Rock stars do tours. Best-selling authors do tours. Politicians do tours. Now, thanks to Adult Swim, weirdos, misfits, and fictional characters do tours, too. In 2008, resident Adult Swim oddballs Tim and Eric performed in festivals and clubs across the country on a sold-out 14-city American tour, and in 2009, embarked on a second tour. T&E describe their live act as a “fast-paced, live variety show complete with short films, parodies, pranks and musical numbers.” Others on Adult Swim’s payroll are hopping on the bandwagon. Aqua Teen Hunger Force creators and voice actors, Dana Snyder and Dave Willis, recently appeared at Austin’s Alamo Drafthouse for two nights of short films, stand-up comedy and audience-participation activities involving kazoos and “Squidbillies” DVD giveaways.

Movies
In 2007, Adult Swim released their first movie “Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters” which was based on the animated comedy “Aqua Teen Hunger Force.” And while the film, which told a twisted version of the Aqua Teens origins, was critically unsuccessful, it still managed to gross around $5.5 million (not bad for a $750,000 budget). Adult Swim currently has plans for a sequel, tentatively titled “Death Fighter,” that is set to release in 2011.

Imitators
Other networks, after seeing how successful Adult Swim has been with their programming, have tried to achieve similar success with shows that bear striking resemblance, in style and sense-of-humor, to those on Adult Swim. Both “Tripping the Rift” and “Drawn Together” are adult-themed animated shows that arrived on the scene just after Adult Swim started seeing big rating numbers. Neither “Tripping” nor “Drawn Together” has performed quite as well as their Adult Swim counterparts, but thanks in large part to Adult Swim paving the cartoon “road less traveled,” both have found decent-sized audiences.

Waterworld: Day 3

This post is part of an ongoing project where I attempt to watch all of Waterworld in 5 minute chunks.

The boat continues to sail and eventually makes its way to a giant floating fortress. Costner has to show his wares in order to get in. They still won't let him so he shows off his big jar of dirt. Astonishment! The gates open to reveal an awe inspiring city atop the water. Maybe it isn't awe inspiring...but whoever was in charge of composing music for this movie thought it was. Costner looks around and sees some people scavenging the dead corpse of a hammer head shark. Then a giant tree that is some how alive on a man made island? I'm glad that I know very little about science of this would be a tough one to believe.

Someone is chanting. And I think there is a funeral. Now Costner is docking is boat. He wows the local hoodlums with a beat up rear view mirror. Some Mickey Rourke lookin dude seems to be the sheriff of this here town. Tell Costner he's got one hour. It is so difficult to watch this and not think about how directly it rips off the world of Mad Max.

Now we're at the local merchant's shop and Costner is trying to trade his dirt for money. Hmmmm kinda like trying to make people pay to watch this movie. The guy tastes the dirt, you know to make sure it's dirt. 3.2 Kilos! That is a lot of dirt! 62 chits for all that dirt. Costner asks for twice that AND GETS IT! Now a evil looking guy is bribing some homeless guy for information with water. The guy looks like a 90's era pro wrestler. Costner walks up and asks some lady where the store is and she tells his he's looking at it. The camera comically pans down all the empty shelves.

Old News: Predators Cast

I don't how this slipped past my radar but according to /film Adrian Brody has been cast as the lead in the Robert Rodriguez produced Predator reboot Predators. The article also reports that Topher Grace might also be involved. Last I remember the only confirmed cast member was Danny Trejo. Still no announcment on whether Carl Weathers will be reprising his role.

Keanu Watch: Sweet November

Keanu Watch is back and better then ever...and by better I mean terrible. This morning I turned on my TV and guess what was waiting for me on HBO. Sweet November, the 2001 Keanu Reeves/Charlize Theron tear fest.

This time Keanu plays a spacey business man dedicated to his job whose life changes after a chance encounter with a quirky Theron. Theron asks Keanu to be her "November" and he goes with it. What being some one's "November" means? We don't know and neither does Keanu, but of course we'll find out. Things happen. Blah Blah Blah. They fall in love. Blah Blah Blah. Keanu realizes the Theron has been with a different man each month for a long while. Blah Blah Blah. Turns out she cancer. Blah Blah Blah. He proposes. She says no. Blah Blah Blah. He's the only person she ever wanted to say yes to when they proposed but she wants him to have a good memory of her. She leaves and goes to her family to die. He sits in a park. Predictable? Yes. Done before? Pretty much. Boring? Yes.

The acting, if you can believe it, is worse then the plot. Keanu acts with his usual flair. His delivery is terrible. His character simple, and very boring. Anytime he isn't speaking his face reverts back to it's natural semi-constipated expression. Theron played her character too closely resembled her Mr. F character from Arrested Development which made me constantly question whether or not she was just trying to quirky or if she wasn't all there.

The movie sucked. Plain and simple. Thanks for another stinker Keanu.

Babies are scary

This Halloween was the first since I came to Austin that I've not spent my night watching the crazies out of 6th, but instead spent the night in Georgetown at a frat party. This is really uncharacteristic of me as I'm not really much of a frat party kind of guy but my girlfriend's room mate invited us to her boyfriend's frat party so we decided to check it out.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a blast. The party was fun, the people where great, and there where plenty of awesome costumes. Of course with the good comes the bad and there where plenty of bad costumes to speak of, and with the good and bad also come the scary. Something very interesting happened last night, I saw a costume that I was legitimately afraid of.

There was a guy at the party dressed as a baby. The guy looked older than me and had some dirty looking facial hair. He was wearing a blue long sleeved onesie and a baby hat. Something deep down inside of me churned as I looked at him. Something about the image deeply disturbed me. The more I thought about it them more creepy it got until finally I had to look away. It was a really strange moment. Never before had I felt the way that I did but for those few minutes I was creeped out, afraid, and unbelievably uncomfortable.

So if anyone wants to really get under my skin just throw on a baby costume and show up at my door.

Top 5: Phillip J. Fry

When Futurama first premiered on Fox back in 1999 I couldn't be happier. At the time didn't fully understand what series creators Matt Groening and David X. Cohen where trying to create with the show but as far as I was concerned it was going to be The Simpsons in the future...it wasn't, and I was very disappointed.

Cut to my freshman year in college when I saw the series DVDs on sale. This time around I watched a hilarious, deep and sometimes very sad story about a guy whose is, for the most part, completely and utterly alone in a world that is not his own. The guy was Phillip J. Fry who after being cryogenically frozen for a thousand years had to go from being a loser pizza delivery boy that lives at home with his parents to a futuristic space delivery man working for his great(x30) nephew.

The show is a comedy, there is no doubt about that but it is a lot different than shows like the Simpson and Family Guy. The characters, as crazy as they where, where much more realistic. They had feelings, goals and dreams that they wanted to achieve. You could sympathize with them. And for me being someone who was living away from home for the first time in a completely new place I related a lot to Fry. Sure he's dumb, but he's also dedicated. The guy spends the better part of fours seasons and four straight to DVD movies fighting for the love of his one eyed purple haired co-worker Turanga Leela. Our situations weren't identical but watching Futurama was something that always made me feel like everything would end up ok, and it did.

This Week in Food

Some of the food that I've enjoyed over the last week...well couple of weeks. In case you are curious, starting from left to right starting on top, Torchy's Taco's September special taco the "Mr. Pink," Hyde Park Bar & Grill's famous french fries (Meh), some delicious special from Magnolia Cafe that I could resist eating before I snapped a pic, and last but not least a $3 pizza from Pizza Patron.

My Take: Hottest MCs in the Game

Earlier this month MTV released it's list of the "Hottest MCs in the Game" and as per usual I'm a little bit disappointed. The list of course isn't made with my personal tastes in mind, because let me assure it would look quite a bit different, but I can usually understand why they put the rappers where they do. It is all about mainstream rappers and what they put out and do each year. Without further ado, the list:

1. Jay-Z
2. Lil Wayne
3. Drake
4. Kanye West
5. Rick Ross
6. Gucci Mane
7. Young Jeezy
8. Fabolous
9. 50 Cent
10. Raekwon

So what don't I like? Gucci Mane and Fabolous don't deserve a spots on this list.

Gucci Mane got lucky this year, he was featured on a couple songs that recieved a lot of radio play(Mariah Carey's "Obsessed" and Trey Songz's "LOL :-)") and he put out one single that just recently started getting play ("Wasted"). But I've yet to hear him spit a single verse that impressed me. As far as I'm concered he is just a less talented Soulja Boy, and lets be honest Soulja Boy doesnt have much when it comes to musical talent.

Fabolous isn't the worst, in fact I really enjoy his latest single "Everything, Everyday, Everywhere" but there is something about him that just annoys the crap out of me. All he did this year was annoy radio listeners with "Throw it in the Bag" and release a concept album based on the 1993 crime drama Carlito's Way. I don't think a average rapper having a decent year merits the honor of being called 2009's 8th hottest MC.

Who should be on instead? Well first and foremost Emienem. Seem incredibly obvious to me. Within the last year the man has returned from hiatus, released the highly succesful Relapse, was called out on Mariah Carey's Obsessed and precided to destroy her on a single called "The Warning, KILLED on Drake's "Forever" and had a cameo in Judd Apatow's Funny People. If that's not enough to to get you on to the top ten list than I don't think anyone should on the list.

I'd also put Kid Cudi on the list. I don't really care too much for his music but he's had a good year. New album came out. His first single "Day 'N' Nite" has been constantly playing on radio stations for the better part of the year and his brilliant "Make Her Say" feat. Common and Kanye West has just started making its rounds. All that plus two magazine covers, his own custom Bape T-Shirt and solid rhyming skills.

Other than I'm pretty happy. I would probably move a couple around but for the most part the list is fairly accurate.

Any opinions?

Source: MTV

Game Review: Uncharted Drake's Fortune

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune is everything that I wanted Romancing the Stone to be and more.

I originally intended to just play the first hour of the game and write a review about that hour; I figure the first hour is the most important part of a game as its what makes you either want to keep playing or turn it off. Needless to say the first hour had me hooked and I spend a good chunk of the last three days finishing this game.

The game puts you in the shoes of Nathan Drake, a sarcastic and surprisingly intelligent adventurer, and has you traversing islands, tombs and ancient towns in search of the city of El Dorado. Think Indiana Jones and and Brendan Fraiser in The Mummy with a little bit of Nicolas Cage's character from National Treasure. Drake is full of witty one liners and he's prone to action.

The game blends exploration, action, and story almost perfectly. Everything in the game seems necessarily to the story. The gun fights, the mountain climbing, and even the occasional jet ski driving all have a reason to be in the game.

The most brilliant part of Uncharted is the game's story telling. The story itself is sub par, most of the game is extremely predictable and the bits that aren't are way far out there. The game doesn't tell the story in long cut scenes but instead just gives you little bits and pieces as you play. This keeps you submerged in the world. The pacing is spot on giving you the right amount of information about the story at the right times to keep you wanting to know more.

The game is two years old by the graphics still look incredibly realistic. The greens of the forest all look great on a nice HDTV. The character animation is stunning and the controls and sound are spot on. Things like the occasional chirping bird puts you right into the tropical environment of the game.

No game is perfect. The melee attacks in the game are uncomfortable and at a later point in the game the plot takes a very science fiction twist that comes as quite a surprise, but as an experience there is nothing available that is better than what Uncharted brings to the table.

Time management with Dexter

Anyone out there watch Dexter? I recently streamed the first episode through Netflix because I had heard a lot of good things. I watched the episode and really liked it. It was very unique. I liked the story, the action, pretty much everything about it...except for one little thing. The show is an hour long.

I don't mean to make it sound like my time is super valuable, because lets face it I waste a lot of it, but an hour is a big chunk of time. Especially in the world of streaming Netflix. I could spend that time watching 2/3 of a movie, but Dexter wants me to use that hour to watch 1/12 of it's first season story? That's a big commitment.

I realize this seems silly but it's just the way my mind manages time. I really would like to watch the next episode, and ten following that one. But I haven't. It's been about two weeks since I first sat down and watched the first episode. And the more I think about it the more I realize that time is the only thing holding me back.

Maybe tomorrow will be the day that I watch episode 2.

The Expendables Trailer

It has finally arrived! The trailer to Stallone's upcoming, and undeniably awesome, action film. I don't know if the trailer is suppose to be out...but this is it. So why not watch and get pumped!

Bored to Death only a little boring

An HBO tv series starring Ted Danson, Zach Galifianakis, and Jason Schwartzman sounds awesome doesn't it? After watching the first 3 episodes I can safely say that it's pretty alright.

The show follows Schwartzman's character as he struggles to write write the follow up to his first novel. In an attempt to find inspiration after being dumped by his girlfriend he advertises himself as an unlicensed private detective. Galifianakis plays a comic book artist who is Schwartzman's best friend and Danson plays his boss and mentor.

All the characters are interesting, you want to keep watching them just to find out more about their lives, but Schwartzman doesn't ever stand out as a lead on the show. His character isn't as likable as most television leas and he can't play the asshole lead like other HBO stars, Eastbound and Down's Danny McBride or Curb Your Enthusiasm's Larry David.

One thing the show has a lot of is style, it manages to combine a lot of comedy with a little bit of film noir and mystery. And the style and comedy is what will bring me back for the next couple weeks to keep watching.

A gift from Japan: Boss Coffee

This June my girlfriend Emmy went on a two week trip to Japan and when she returned home she gave me a tiny little can of Boss Rainbow Mountain Blend coffee. Today I finally popped it open and tried the Japanese beverage.

Apparently Boss coffee is huge in Japan. You can buy it in vending machines all over the place, and there are billboards every where promoting it. The best thing about the ads? The company's spokesman is Tommy Lee Jones. That's right the academy award winning American actor is the face of a Japanese coffee company. (Check out the commercial below)

Enough distraction though, back to today's tasting. I poured the drink into a coffee cup to make sure it hadn't gone bad in the months that it spent aging in my parent's refrigerator. The liquid looked...well like coffee. Smelled like coffee too. Tasted a lot like you're usual iced coffee. The coffee itself was a little bit stronger than most coffee drinks but packed a pretty standard punch as far as flavor was concerned. Would I drink it again? Yes, but just because I do what Tommy Lee Jones tells me too.