What’s New?

I haven’t been blogging for a while except for the UFC picks post here and there. As usual I’ve been busy and at times lazy to log on and blog. So what’s new?

I managed to do my taxes earlier this year and got my refund check within two weeks. With my refund I went on a spending spree. My first purchase were some nice leather Harley Davidson gloves and an awesome matching Harley leather jacket. I have a sport bike jacket, but I didn’t think it’ll look right wearing black and yellow learthers on my Street Bob Harley. Unfortunately, I haven’t been riding much due to the weather, but now with my new jacket and warmer temperatures I’ll be adding some serious miles. I’ve been itching to get some new pipes. Anyone want to contribute to my Harley exhuast fund? šŸ˜€

Also, last week I purchased a new laptop. A Thinkpad T61p. I sold my Dell m1710 last year and was looking to purchase a Thinkpad for a while. If anyone one knows anything about laptops Thinkpads kick ass. Their rugged build and business-class focus make them a lasting investment even in a laptop market where technology seems to change every 6 months. Unlike other named branded laptops Thinkpads don’t aim for flashy colors and styles instead it sticks with its iconic color of a matte black for all its models. In addition to my laptop I purchased a case and even an extended battery. For the past few days I’ve been using my Thinkpad religiously; at work and at home. Comparing it to my Dell laptop assigned to me from my work this Thinkpad is very solidly built and it feels like it can stop bullet, figuratively speaking of course.

For the past few months I put off on my running and workouts. In early December I hurt my leg during a wrestling practice. I ended up having a hair line fracture in my ankle and torn tendons. I’m still recovering and I’m slowly getting back into my running. I don’t want to push too hard and re-injure it, so I’ve been running slow and building my speed up each week. So far it’s going well. I got one more doctor follow up to see whether I will need surgery because there is a little pain that hasn’t gone away yet. So that’s pretty much sums up my last few weeks here. It’s nothing exciting, at least not yet.

Good Bye 2007, Hello 2008

2007 was a great year; I got a new job, moved into a new place, and my favorite sport, MMA, is getting more exciting each month. Unfortunately my picks for the last UFC event was horrible, but nonetheless it was a great event.

2008 should be a great year if not better. The number 8 in the Chinese culture is considered to be lucky, the number’s pronunciation sounds like the word “prosper” in their language. The upcoming new year will bring us the Olympics which takes place in Beijing, China. And 2008 will also bring us a new President.

This new year is also a time where people start anew. Like for their New Year’s resolution, for some it’ll be a hard and difficult goal, for others it’ll never come to materialize.

Have fun partying and celebrate the New Year in stunning fashion.

Happy New Year!

Call of Duty 4 and Gears of War for PC

cod4

If you followed my blog for the past few years you will know the Call of Duty series are some of my favorite games. I’ve written two reviews, one for Call of Duty and the other for its sequel. Call of Duty 4 leaves the World War II genre and enters into the Modern Warfare scene hence the name “Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare”. COD4 has amazing graphics and it’s single player mission is equally as impressive. The non-stop action and intense gun battles will keep you hooked. The cinematic storyline could be mistaken for a blockbuster movie. If you enjoy the previous COD games you will definitely enjoy this new sequel.

What happen to Call of Duty 3? That one was only released for the consoles. Infinity Ward, the original developers did not develop the game. Treyarch developed COD3, which was why it was never released to PC.

gow

Gears of War came out for the Xbox 360 console last year. It was an immediate big hit. It’s graphics and multiplayer action kept gamers up all night. GOW was one of the reasons to even get an Xbox 360. Now, Gears of War is out for PC. For the limited time I was able to play, the game was very enjoyable. Unfortunately, the game crashed constantly. I’ve only gone half way through the first Act and the game is completely useless. It would crash at the same point every time. According to their support forums many people are having the same problem. And the developers are aware of the issue. It’s unknown whether they are working on a patch to fix the problem or if they ever will.

Call of Duty 4 was released the same day as Gears of War and is currently patched to 1.2. Other games which have been released after Gears of War have updates or patches. Epic Games, Gear of War’s developers, is also releasing a very popular and very anticipated game this week. Unreal Tournament 3. It was a game I was surely going to buy. But with my experience with Gears of War for the PC. I will definitely hold off spending my money.

Happy gaming. Oh yea, and happy Thanksgiving!!

Earthquake: 5.6 mag.

Some of you may have already heard about the earthquake tonight. I was sitting in my room reading email and all of a sudden my room shook. My monitor and my speakers began to rock back and forth. I stood up, grabbed my phone, and yelled at my room mate to get out of his room. We ran downstairs out the door where we met the rest of our neighbors standing outside.

What a wake up call. I’m surprise it was only a 5.6 magnitude quake. It felt much stronger than that and it seemed to have lasted about 30 seconds. Luckily nothing got damaged and no one was hurt. This may be a preview of things to come. Lets cross our fingers and hope not.

You can read more about the quake from the following CNN link.
CNN Article

Relationships: How they destroy men’s lives

When it comes to relationships women have their men by the balls; a tight vice-grip that is almost impossible to escape. Men believe they have the power and they control every aspect of the relationship, but little do they know it’s all a parlor trick. Women make their men believe what they want to believe, while secretly concocting a plan. It’s a plan that will ultimately lead to the utter destruction of her man’s manhood.

You see your friend quietly cowering in a corner cuddling a pillow with the remote in his hand flipping through the television guide aimlessly. Slow R&B music is playing in the background and unanswered IM messages fill his computer screen. He has been dumped. When a guy gets dumped it’s almost always unexpected. It’s like being blindsided by the proverbial Mack truck. For the woman, the event has been planned weeks in advance. The details all taped out in her head; the exact words she would say, the clothes she would wear, and the immediate destination she would go to after the break up.

As a friend looking on, you feel sorry for him, but like with any depressed and miserable moments in life you counter it with hanging out with friends and massive amounts of alcohol. He drinks and drinks till he pukes, then he drinks some more. Even when he wakes up in the morning the pounding headache still doesn’t take his mind off the fact that he as been handed the pink slip of rejection. ā€œWhy do I feel this way?ā€ he asks himself. Besides the hangover and alcohol, he feels that way because it’s a sense of ā€œLossā€. She probably wasn’t the hottest looking girl or the best girl he’s ever been with, but it is just the fact that he loss something close, and when it comes to sex he’s going to have to put some work to get some now.

Some men can rebound and come back stronger with a whole new outlook on life. But for others they become a mere whimpering of a man. Hope is lost and life is just metaphorical train that chugs along a laden path of existence. He becomes an emotional seesaw teetering on every feeling he gets from a girl. He questions and doubts his ability to spit game and in the end he settles with any girl who shows interests in him. Friends can do so much to help, but it’s up to him to realize his situation. And hopefully salvage his remaining dignity and re-grow the hairs on his balls that has once been stripped from the grips of his former half.

Blog Update

My blog was down for about a day and a half. I had to physically move my server. Now it’s easily more accessible. The blog code itself has also be update. There was some security issues which should be resolved, so it’s mostly internal and some cosmetic. It should looks and feel as before.

Let me know if you run into any errors. My “Contact Me” form is not working at the moment so just leave a comment instead. Thanks.

(Contact Me page now works)

The Running Season

Running season is here, at least for me. Yesterday I ran the Almaden Times Classic 10K. It was my second race of the year. I usually run 6-8 races a year starting from the end of summer through the beginning of spring. I’ve missed a few races this year due to my work schedule and lack of training. Now that the weather is cooler distance running is more feasible. With the colder weather training involves longer distance of running with less intensity, instead of shorter intervals and heavier intensity.

Injuries

Most people believe running is not for them and are discourage to give it a try. They blame it on past injuries and ailments. The most common ailments I hear people use as an excuse are having ā€˜bad knees’. Unless you had a torn ligament in the past or dislocation then there is no reason people should have ā€˜bad knees’. Even when you fully recover most people can run with no problem. What people don’t know is that runners run with injuries all the time. These runners know how to care for the injuries and know which ones affect and don’t affect their running.

Strategy and Technique

Running is more complex than people think. It involves strategy and technique. Strategy varies from runner to runner because it depends on their experience and fitness level. Some runners may have a slower start and build up to a face race pace leaving for a strong kick to the finish. Some run at a constant pace by running each mile with a consistent goal time. Others start off quick and aggressive all-out Prefontaine-style and still finish strong. That’s something you rarely see and are usually reserved for world class runners. Technique also varies from runner to runner due to differences in body type and running preferences. I’m a heel-strike runner, so my heel hits the ground first with every stride. Others run on the balls of their feet and some are mid-sole runners. It all comes down to how they feel when their foot hits the ground. But the common goal to having good technique is to run the longest distance with fastest time using the least amount of effort, or using the least amount of energy.

Other Tips

Your body is like an engine and it requires the right fuel to run efficiently. Eating healthy can make a big difference in your run. Stay away from refined sugared-foods such as sodas and cookies and opt for fruits and vegetables. But for those really long runs those cookies can come in handy in providing quick energy. Make sure you understand and listen your body. For me, I can’t go running after I eat. I have to wait at least 90 minutes before I can get going. Anything less than 90 minutes I get cramps, I feel heavy and bloated. Some people can eat and run within 15 minutes. So know what your body can handle before you stuff yourself with a Powerbar right before you hit the trails. Lastly, get a good pair of running shoes. Get one that fits well, feel snug (not too snug), and compliments your running style. Never go for the cheapest of the bunch because your feet will pay for it later. Some running shoes are expensive for a reason. So find one that works for you and make sure you take care of them because running shoes need love too.

MMA List update

Due to the loss of Chuck Liddell and the impressive win from Forrest Griffin there is a drastic change to the Light Heavyweight division top 4 list. Liddell is now off my top 4 list. That’s something I probably wouldn’t believe if you told me that six months ago. Forrest is now ranked third for beating the once ranked #1 fighter, Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua. Now Rua is bumped from the top spot to fourth.

Some may wonder how Forrest could jump so high up on the ladder. The reason being is that Forest is a strong and dynamic fighter and has proved his ever evolving fight game since his TUF show. His recent loss came to a hair-thin close decision to Tito Ortiz and a 1st round KO from Keith Jardine where he was winning round until the KO. When Forrest beat Rua he beat him convincingly in rounds 2 and 3. There was no doubt that Forrest was the better fighter that night.

Fighters on my list that are barely holding on to their spot at the moment are Fedor Emaliananko and Mirko ‘Cro Cop’. The last time Fedor fought an actual heavyweight was against Mark Hunt at New Year’s Eve. Fedor has not signed with any organizations yet, but if he still wants to retain his number 1 status he’ll need to fight someone who’s in the top 8 in his division soon. In order to do that he’ll need to sign.

Mirko is coming off two losses back to back. That’s a first for his career. One more loss to anyone whether they’re to the top ranked 3 fighters or not he will be off the list. He hasn’t been impressive as of late and Mirko will need to do something right away otherwise his ‘CroCop’ legacy in MMA is something only hardcore MMA fans will be discussing on the internet in an obscure chatroom.

Autumn is here and so is UFC 76

The leaves haven’t turn to their autumn color but the weather is beginning make it feel like the Fall season is already here. The weather is much cooler, but unfortunately the rain puts damper on things. It limits my riding on a motorcycle to work and running in the rain wears out my shoes quicker. Nonetheless, change is good.

Again, postings on my blog has been sparse and its contributed to my busy schedule and a bit of laziness, or tireness depending how you look at it.

But many of you may guess that my post is usually accompanied by a telling of a UFC event and today is no exception. UFC 76: Knockout is today. The main event pits former Light Heavyweight Champ Chuck Liddell against a tough contender, Keith Jardine. Both fighters coming off a lose in their last fight will try to redemem themselves and to climb the ladder back to title contention.

The two fights I’m looking forward to is the Tavares/Griffin and the Shogun/Griffin fight (No, Griffin is not fighting twice. They are two different fighters; Tyson Griffin and Forrest Griffin, no relations). Tavares is an undefeated fighter with one of the best submission game in the light weight division. Tyson Griffin is a as-always tough little pitbull that is relentless. They both have excellent ground skills and it will make for an exciting match.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua is making his UFC debut. Currently considered by many to be the #1 ranked Light Heavyweight fighter in the world and tonight he will need to prove why he is the best. But recently several PrideFC fighters have not been doing as well as expected. With Shogun’s lack of cage fighting experience we may see Shogun struggle in his fight against Forrest Griffin.