Long time since I've posted. Yes, I'm still actively engaged in next-gen gaming hysteria, though there are other things I do in my life, though that's stuff that I won't necessarily shared to the world via this blog, as my life isn't too exciting. :)
Since we've talked, my little brother has come home for the summer, had planned on going back to Wisconsin for another year of DTS'ing, but decided to stay for personal reasons. It's nice to have someone around, but at first it was hard to relinquish my control over my 'place'. I've since gotten used to it as he's been here for around 3 months now.
Hmm, not much else to say right now. :( I think I had more to say than this, but I woke up too early and couldn't go back to sleep, so I'm tired and my memory is shot.
Oh, I had a birthday a little over 2 weeks ago and got my friends to treat me to a Japanese steakhouse meal (think Beni Hana). I had sushi (one of my favs) and, for the first time, tried sashimi, which you wouldn't think would be too different than sushi, but it is. I found it not to be to my liking either. Sashimi takes a little too bland and it was almost making me puke eating a 'sashimi flower' (that's what I'll call it) with fish eggs on top. I ate in one swoop, but it was hard getting it down. I think I'll stick to sushi from now on. ;)
Friday, September 30, 2005
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
A good article on next-gen consoles
... by an actual developer!? Here's a really objective and realistic comparison between the two (hmm, and I thought there are going to be three; maybe I was wrong ;) upcoming next-gen consoles. This was written by Bizarre Creations technical director, developers of the Dreamcast game Metropolis Street Racer and the Xbox games Project Gotham Racing 1 and 2, as well as games I've never played before. :)
quote: "So in my eyes, this new generation of consoles is extremely exciting, and on an open and even playing field - it's all going to come down to the developers, the games and how it's all marketed!
They are busy working on Project Gotham Racing 3 for the Xbox 360 and it's going to be a launch title (can't wait for this fall; now to save up for it and the HDTV I'll need to buy).
To show you the level of detail they are working at (and the game still has gads of time to be worked on), I've put linked some images from their studio updates:
quote: "So in my eyes, this new generation of consoles is extremely exciting, and on an open and even playing field - it's all going to come down to the developers, the games and how it's all marketed!
They are busy working on Project Gotham Racing 3 for the Xbox 360 and it's going to be a launch title (can't wait for this fall; now to save up for it and the HDTV I'll need to buy).
To show you the level of detail they are working at (and the game still has gads of time to be worked on), I've put linked some images from their studio updates:
the road
some buildings you will race by in NYC
Pretty incredible, right?
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
More great interviews
Here's a great interview of J. Allard (every one that I've read has been great, though).
Q: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 … there have been rumblings about which system is technically superior. How does the hardware compare?
A: I think that basically [Sony] mislead people who were very specific about certain numbers in the press conference on Monday. We're launching a product campaign, they're launching a political campaign.
You can kind of go through it, and guys have completely torn it apart. In the end, it's basically a wash. You can make the case for us; you can make the case for them. We'll publish a whole bunch of details and you guys can speculate, but it's basically a wash.
What I can say is theirs will be harder to program for. And we're going to have better software support. Both of these machines are so sophisticated that theoretical performance doesn't matter. What matters is how much of the performance you can unlock, and the key to unlock performance is hardware/software.
J. Allard is such a down-to-earth guy that it's hard to think of him as being Microsoft's corporate VP. I've played with him on Xbox Live a bunch of times (he's a busy guy, so in the ~2 and a half years he's been on my friends list, he's rarely online). We've talked about things and he's very open and intelligent (this also comes through in all of his interviews). I respect this man very much and am glad that he decided to take on gaming. He is a gamer at heart and he listens to the community. He's a realist and a visionary at the same time. He's also very respectful of his competition and his allies (something one can't say for Sony). ;) He's not your typical exec.
There are MANY other similar excellent interviews I'm thinking of putting into this post (possibly at a later date).
Q: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 … there have been rumblings about which system is technically superior. How does the hardware compare?
A: I think that basically [Sony] mislead people who were very specific about certain numbers in the press conference on Monday. We're launching a product campaign, they're launching a political campaign.
You can kind of go through it, and guys have completely torn it apart. In the end, it's basically a wash. You can make the case for us; you can make the case for them. We'll publish a whole bunch of details and you guys can speculate, but it's basically a wash.
What I can say is theirs will be harder to program for. And we're going to have better software support. Both of these machines are so sophisticated that theoretical performance doesn't matter. What matters is how much of the performance you can unlock, and the key to unlock performance is hardware/software.
J. Allard is such a down-to-earth guy that it's hard to think of him as being Microsoft's corporate VP. I've played with him on Xbox Live a bunch of times (he's a busy guy, so in the ~2 and a half years he's been on my friends list, he's rarely online). We've talked about things and he's very open and intelligent (this also comes through in all of his interviews). I respect this man very much and am glad that he decided to take on gaming. He is a gamer at heart and he listens to the community. He's a realist and a visionary at the same time. He's also very respectful of his competition and his allies (something one can't say for Sony). ;) He's not your typical exec.
There are MANY other similar excellent interviews I'm thinking of putting into this post (possibly at a later date).
Saturday, June 25, 2005
BB IMAX
Well, I'm back from seeing Batman Begins in the only close IMAX theater here in southwest Ohio. I had initially planned with friends to go the 4:25PM showing, and although we didn't make it due to unforseen (and incontrollable circumstances), but we did get a refund for the tickets and bought some for the later showing (7:25).
On the way down there, we stopped in Middletown for some food. We ate at Sonic, which was pretty darn good. Then, while waiting for the movie to start, we waited in the theater's Bar & Grill. We had some drinks. That was one of the nicest theaters I've been to. The atmospere was like a hotel or something. They had a player piano going and live musicians performing. Plus the bar was nice and was cheap, too.
Also, one of my friends (Ben) who was going to go, couldn't because his Dad had fallen and injured his back and was going to be in surgery, so please pray for the best outcome.
The movie was good, though I thought the dialog seemed a little campy in places, and the comedic relief seemed forced. Overall, excellent Batman movie (you just know they are going to go sequel crazy with this, though if they can do for Batman, what's been done for Spiderman, bring it on!).
The IMAX theatre (which seemed like a regular theatre renovated into an IMAX theatre) didn't look too much different, UNTIL they started playing the movie, which was SUPER clear. While getting my refund at the help desk, I glanced over a display where they had some samples of IMAX film. IMAX movies come in 70mm reels, which is twice the size (and therefore twice the picture detail) as standard 35mm. Therefore, since the film itself is bigger, when the projector puts it up on the screen, it doesn't have to stretch it so much. Basically, twice as much picture detail in the same, or even bigger, space. I'd compare it to the difference between Standard Definition TV and HDTV. That's my layman's understanding, anyway. ;)
On the way down there, we stopped in Middletown for some food. We ate at Sonic, which was pretty darn good. Then, while waiting for the movie to start, we waited in the theater's Bar & Grill. We had some drinks. That was one of the nicest theaters I've been to. The atmospere was like a hotel or something. They had a player piano going and live musicians performing. Plus the bar was nice and was cheap, too.
Also, one of my friends (Ben) who was going to go, couldn't because his Dad had fallen and injured his back and was going to be in surgery, so please pray for the best outcome.
The movie was good, though I thought the dialog seemed a little campy in places, and the comedic relief seemed forced. Overall, excellent Batman movie (you just know they are going to go sequel crazy with this, though if they can do for Batman, what's been done for Spiderman, bring it on!).
The IMAX theatre (which seemed like a regular theatre renovated into an IMAX theatre) didn't look too much different, UNTIL they started playing the movie, which was SUPER clear. While getting my refund at the help desk, I glanced over a display where they had some samples of IMAX film. IMAX movies come in 70mm reels, which is twice the size (and therefore twice the picture detail) as standard 35mm. Therefore, since the film itself is bigger, when the projector puts it up on the screen, it doesn't have to stretch it so much. Basically, twice as much picture detail in the same, or even bigger, space. I'd compare it to the difference between Standard Definition TV and HDTV. That's my layman's understanding, anyway. ;)
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
Next-gen anticipation!
I like this quote : "At any rate, Playstation 3 fanboys shouldn't get all flush over the idea that the Xenon will struggle on non-graphics code (branch-intensive game control, AI, and physics). However bad off Xenon will be in that department, the PS3's Cell will probably be worse. The Cell has only one PPE to the Xenon's three, which means that developers will have to cram all their game control, AI, and physics code into at most two threads that are sharing a very narrow execution core with no instruction window. (Don't bother suggesting that the PS3 can use its SPEs for branch-intensive code, because the SPEs lack branch prediction entirely.) Furthermore, the PS3's L2 is only 512K, which is half the size of the Xenon's L2. So the PS3 doesn't get much help with branches in the cache department. In short, the PS3 may fare a bit worse than the Xenon on non-graphics code, but on the upside it will probably fare a bit better on graphics code because of the seven Spes."
I'm not so sure it will be that much better off in terms of graphics code with the Xenon having multiple VMX-128 vector units, which are nearly identical to what the SPEs do (the GPU and CPU are MUCH more innovative as well with the use of MS patented applications of procedural synthesis and having intelligent RAM on the GPU). These next-gen consoles are similar and very difficult to stack up in terms of comparisons as to what is better. It's not just as as 16 vs. 32 bit, the amount of polygons, pixel-fill rate, etc... They will look very similar in terms of graphics and performance and the devs will do better with better tools (which MS has always been good at providing; ex: XNA).
The initial mis-conception that the ps3 is another league in terms of performance is proven wrong with later technical discussions about the two that show that comparisons aren't so simple. If anybody still believes that those ps3 'demos' shown at E3 were 'actual gameplay representations' is in complete denial and is mostly likely one who jives with sony's cycle of over-hype/under-deliver and use of cute marketing buzz-words that are based on bullshit (the ps2's emotion engine, etc...). I'm also getting increasingly annoyed with Ken Kutaragi's arrogance and ignorant comments berating his competitors (it's almost like a political smear campaign except MS hasn't stooped to his level).
I have confidence in the fact that the Xbox 360 will not be under-powered and be sufficient to compete with the others, quite easily. The Xbox is receiving some strong Japanese support this time around (the one thing that was obviously lacking previously). Along with the fact that the Xbox 360 is actually coming out this holiday season, I have grown very fond of MGS' first-party lineup and am eagerly waiting to play some of these games.
I'm not so sure it will be that much better off in terms of graphics code with the Xenon having multiple VMX-128 vector units, which are nearly identical to what the SPEs do (the GPU and CPU are MUCH more innovative as well with the use of MS patented applications of procedural synthesis and having intelligent RAM on the GPU). These next-gen consoles are similar and very difficult to stack up in terms of comparisons as to what is better. It's not just as as 16 vs. 32 bit, the amount of polygons, pixel-fill rate, etc... They will look very similar in terms of graphics and performance and the devs will do better with better tools (which MS has always been good at providing; ex: XNA).
The initial mis-conception that the ps3 is another league in terms of performance is proven wrong with later technical discussions about the two that show that comparisons aren't so simple. If anybody still believes that those ps3 'demos' shown at E3 were 'actual gameplay representations' is in complete denial and is mostly likely one who jives with sony's cycle of over-hype/under-deliver and use of cute marketing buzz-words that are based on bullshit (the ps2's emotion engine, etc...). I'm also getting increasingly annoyed with Ken Kutaragi's arrogance and ignorant comments berating his competitors (it's almost like a political smear campaign except MS hasn't stooped to his level).
I have confidence in the fact that the Xbox 360 will not be under-powered and be sufficient to compete with the others, quite easily. The Xbox is receiving some strong Japanese support this time around (the one thing that was obviously lacking previously). Along with the fact that the Xbox 360 is actually coming out this holiday season, I have grown very fond of MGS' first-party lineup and am eagerly waiting to play some of these games.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
NHRA Finals: SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY!
This past Sunday, I was able to go to the NHRA Finals near Columbus, Ohio by way of my friend, Ben, who's uncle has extra free tickets (thanks!). I'd never been to a top-fuel drag race before, or any races before for that matter, so it was exciting since I didn't know what to expect.
When we got there, we went back around to Nitro Alley, which was the pit area, and walked past all the crews getting the cars (and motorcycles) ready. After a quick tour of the pit area, we went back to other side of the strip where Ben's uncle usually hangs out, which is ride up against the fence some thirty feet away from the cars.
I had worried about my ears getting damaged and Ben was able to pick up a pair of earplugs for both of us at the one of the many vendors stationed around the track. Those were a life-saver, because once those top-fuel dragsters and funny cars were going, the amount of sound they made would have unbearable without protection.
These were the national finals, so there were vehicles and drivers all around the country there to compete (there was even the MAC Tools/West Coast Choppers Jesse James dragster). Each round consisted of both cars doing a burnout to warm the tires up and lay down some rubber on the track, then they lined back up at the "Christmas Tree" where they waited for the green light. Once those cars took off and passed by us, they vibration and heat you felt coming off of the engines was incredible. It really was like nothing I'd every experienced before. There were some great matchups, with differences in time coming as close as 1,2 and 3 thousanths of a second. There were some really fast speeds, with the top speed for the day being 334 mph, which was the fourth fastest time in the history of drag racing (which the same man also held 2 of the other fastest times).
After the top-fuel dragsters, there were top-fuel funny cars, then pro-stock cars, pro-stock motorcycles, super-gas cars, stock and modified cars. Only the top-fuel vehicles were really exhilerating to watch, with the pro-stock cars coming in a distant second.
There were elimination rounds for several hours in 65 minute intervals, so we didn't stay for the last round, but we left after either the last, or second to last, semi-final round of top-fuel dragsters and funny cars, and by that time, the weather had finally gotten to where it started raining right as we got to the car.
After we got back to Ben's uncle's house, we travelled home and saw Star Wars: Episode III, which was really cool (definitely the best of the 'new' trilogy).
When we got there, we went back around to Nitro Alley, which was the pit area, and walked past all the crews getting the cars (and motorcycles) ready. After a quick tour of the pit area, we went back to other side of the strip where Ben's uncle usually hangs out, which is ride up against the fence some thirty feet away from the cars.
I had worried about my ears getting damaged and Ben was able to pick up a pair of earplugs for both of us at the one of the many vendors stationed around the track. Those were a life-saver, because once those top-fuel dragsters and funny cars were going, the amount of sound they made would have unbearable without protection.
These were the national finals, so there were vehicles and drivers all around the country there to compete (there was even the MAC Tools/West Coast Choppers Jesse James dragster). Each round consisted of both cars doing a burnout to warm the tires up and lay down some rubber on the track, then they lined back up at the "Christmas Tree" where they waited for the green light. Once those cars took off and passed by us, they vibration and heat you felt coming off of the engines was incredible. It really was like nothing I'd every experienced before. There were some great matchups, with differences in time coming as close as 1,2 and 3 thousanths of a second. There were some really fast speeds, with the top speed for the day being 334 mph, which was the fourth fastest time in the history of drag racing (which the same man also held 2 of the other fastest times).
After the top-fuel dragsters, there were top-fuel funny cars, then pro-stock cars, pro-stock motorcycles, super-gas cars, stock and modified cars. Only the top-fuel vehicles were really exhilerating to watch, with the pro-stock cars coming in a distant second.
There were elimination rounds for several hours in 65 minute intervals, so we didn't stay for the last round, but we left after either the last, or second to last, semi-final round of top-fuel dragsters and funny cars, and by that time, the weather had finally gotten to where it started raining right as we got to the car.
After we got back to Ben's uncle's house, we travelled home and saw Star Wars: Episode III, which was really cool (definitely the best of the 'new' trilogy).
Thursday, May 19, 2005
Drunk Driver!
Well, it's been a while since I last updated but there's been some things that have been going on that seemed more important than blogging and other than that, nothing else much happens here. I still need to flesh out my previous post about Detroit a little, but I've been lazy and preoccupied.
I attented my grandmother's funeral (I can't even remember if it was this week or last; my sleeping schedule's so messed up. That took about a week. My brother came home again for a bit, so that was a plus. Then, we all went up to Newcomerstown, Ohio to attend the funeral. I brought my dog, so I didn't go to the viewing the night before the funeral, but all of my cousins and most of the traveling families were staying in the Hampton Inn (what a coincidence, huh?) not far from my grandmother's homestead.
Then, back home to boring home. Well, I've watched lots of TV, spent a lot of time on the PC. Oh, I applied for a job at the bookstore at Ginghamsburg, but I must not have gotten it. I haven't done any sermons since.
My friend soft-modded his Xbox and installed Xbox Media Center, which is so cool. There's so much you can do with it, besides turning your Xbox into almost a Windows Media Center PC. You can listen to your music, whether it's off your PC, or any other PC on the same network. You can view DVDs (without the DVD remote), watch videos off your PC and look at pictures. You can even read RSS feeds and receive your weather from the Weather Channel's website. Other cool things you can do are change the color of the "Ring of Light" (the colored LED surrounding the eject button on the Xbox). Now, he's copying my games and backing them up for me, and he installed some emulators, along with ROMs supplied by me. If I didn't have Xbox Live, I might do it to mine. I'm a little envious.
Well, as for things this week and tonight especially, I've been keeping up with all the news that has been coming out of E3 so far (through handy RSS feeds in Trillian; I love feeds!). Xbox 360 I'm looking forward to, PS3 (a little, but not much) and am even impressed with the design of the Nintendo Revolution (so small). Now, all Xbox 360 needs is a slot-loading HD-DVD (or Blu-ray) drive (and maybe a few more cores) and it's perfect in my book. To me, it's the overal complete package of "hardware, software and services" (the official tagline) that makes it stand above the rest. Besides, I stopped liking Mario after SNES. :p
Tonight, though, my friend Randy (hmm, he sounds familiar) got me to go to the gym and work out (which I need to do). It was a nice mix of weight and cardio training (I need more cardio). Then, we went back to his place and played some Forza Motorsport on my Xbox on his HDTV (I NEED one bad!).
Then, at 2AM, I left for home taking Dixie and the way home, I was one car behind what, at first, appeared to be someone turning off to the left, as he went into the middle turn lane of the road. Then, he continued on, so I figured that he must have that he had to turn too early, only he kept driving in the middle lane for a while and I thought to myself, "What's this guy doing?"
Well, he stayed in the middle lane, but then he started weaving back and forth and I knew he was drunk. He started vearing into the incoming traffic's lane right in front of some dips, so he could've easily gotten into an accident. Then, his vearing became more violent and he pulled back over onto the proper side of the road. The car in front of me turned left and I continued to watch this pickup as he came very close to the curb. I was back a safe distance and I saw that he almost didn't stop at the red light at National Rd. I was hoping he would get pulled over and not get into an accident, and at that moment, I saw a sheriff pull to the side street to the right before coming to National. I kept watching him as he went through the light (I'm not sure if the light was green or not) and proceeding to run up onto the curb to the right and drive off of it (it felt like something out of Wildest Police Chases!). I pulled into the side street and pulled my window down, and yelled to the sheriff while pointing my hand straight at the truck, "Hey, there's a drunk driver up there, a pickup. I just saw him run up off the curb, so you need to pull him over, man!" Well, he took a right and came up to the red light, and stopped (most likely looking down National to see if he took a right towards I-70. He continued straight (the way the truck went) and sped up looking for him. I followed trying to make sure that he found him, but the truck, most likely knowing that he was being followed (or maybe not), pulled into a parking lot to the right where there was a bar (was this guy ducking from the cop or did he really need to get more drunk?!). The cop slowed up and turned around, then went into the parking lot. That's when I had gone far enough away, so that I could not see what happened after, but I hope that guy was taken off the street and punished. That was the worst display of drunkeness I've ever seen. It was shocking and horrifying at the same time.
I attented my grandmother's funeral (I can't even remember if it was this week or last; my sleeping schedule's so messed up. That took about a week. My brother came home again for a bit, so that was a plus. Then, we all went up to Newcomerstown, Ohio to attend the funeral. I brought my dog, so I didn't go to the viewing the night before the funeral, but all of my cousins and most of the traveling families were staying in the Hampton Inn (what a coincidence, huh?) not far from my grandmother's homestead.
Then, back home to boring home. Well, I've watched lots of TV, spent a lot of time on the PC. Oh, I applied for a job at the bookstore at Ginghamsburg, but I must not have gotten it. I haven't done any sermons since.
My friend soft-modded his Xbox and installed Xbox Media Center, which is so cool. There's so much you can do with it, besides turning your Xbox into almost a Windows Media Center PC. You can listen to your music, whether it's off your PC, or any other PC on the same network. You can view DVDs (without the DVD remote), watch videos off your PC and look at pictures. You can even read RSS feeds and receive your weather from the Weather Channel's website. Other cool things you can do are change the color of the "Ring of Light" (the colored LED surrounding the eject button on the Xbox). Now, he's copying my games and backing them up for me, and he installed some emulators, along with ROMs supplied by me. If I didn't have Xbox Live, I might do it to mine. I'm a little envious.
Well, as for things this week and tonight especially, I've been keeping up with all the news that has been coming out of E3 so far (through handy RSS feeds in Trillian; I love feeds!). Xbox 360 I'm looking forward to, PS3 (a little, but not much) and am even impressed with the design of the Nintendo Revolution (so small). Now, all Xbox 360 needs is a slot-loading HD-DVD (or Blu-ray) drive (and maybe a few more cores) and it's perfect in my book. To me, it's the overal complete package of "hardware, software and services" (the official tagline) that makes it stand above the rest. Besides, I stopped liking Mario after SNES. :p
Tonight, though, my friend Randy (hmm, he sounds familiar) got me to go to the gym and work out (which I need to do). It was a nice mix of weight and cardio training (I need more cardio). Then, we went back to his place and played some Forza Motorsport on my Xbox on his HDTV (I NEED one bad!).
Then, at 2AM, I left for home taking Dixie and the way home, I was one car behind what, at first, appeared to be someone turning off to the left, as he went into the middle turn lane of the road. Then, he continued on, so I figured that he must have that he had to turn too early, only he kept driving in the middle lane for a while and I thought to myself, "What's this guy doing?"
Well, he stayed in the middle lane, but then he started weaving back and forth and I knew he was drunk. He started vearing into the incoming traffic's lane right in front of some dips, so he could've easily gotten into an accident. Then, his vearing became more violent and he pulled back over onto the proper side of the road. The car in front of me turned left and I continued to watch this pickup as he came very close to the curb. I was back a safe distance and I saw that he almost didn't stop at the red light at National Rd. I was hoping he would get pulled over and not get into an accident, and at that moment, I saw a sheriff pull to the side street to the right before coming to National. I kept watching him as he went through the light (I'm not sure if the light was green or not) and proceeding to run up onto the curb to the right and drive off of it (it felt like something out of Wildest Police Chases!). I pulled into the side street and pulled my window down, and yelled to the sheriff while pointing my hand straight at the truck, "Hey, there's a drunk driver up there, a pickup. I just saw him run up off the curb, so you need to pull him over, man!" Well, he took a right and came up to the red light, and stopped (most likely looking down National to see if he took a right towards I-70. He continued straight (the way the truck went) and sped up looking for him. I followed trying to make sure that he found him, but the truck, most likely knowing that he was being followed (or maybe not), pulled into a parking lot to the right where there was a bar (was this guy ducking from the cop or did he really need to get more drunk?!). The cop slowed up and turned around, then went into the parking lot. That's when I had gone far enough away, so that I could not see what happened after, but I hope that guy was taken off the street and punished. That was the worst display of drunkeness I've ever seen. It was shocking and horrifying at the same time.
Friday, April 29, 2005
Detroit Day 5: HFM, while back at home
Well, I got home from Radio Shack and picked up an adapter to connect a cellphone headset (or Xbox Live Communicator) to a PC soundcard's Mic and Output connections. I also stopped by GameStop to pre-order Forza Motorsport for the Xbox (can't wait for that game).
Here's my record of what I did yesterday in Detroit:
I waited for Randy to come back on his lunch break (which he told me would be around 11-ish). I had set the alarm for 10:30AM, but I couldn't get back to sleep, so I started reading the business section of USA Today, that we got each day, in the nice lounge chair in our room. I took a shower, a cold one, to help wake me up, but I still had that lagging achiness (I couldn't imagine how tired my friend must have been). This trip, and the lack of genuine sleep we hadn't gotten all week, was taking a toll on Randy and I.
I watched some TV and waited for him to show up. He didn't get to the room until almost 12PM, because he was let out late. We used the GPS phone to find out how to get to the Henry Ford Museum, but we knew it was going to take longer than we had anticipated and Randy would most likely be late getting back to his training. On the Oakwood St., about 2 blocks away from the museum, we saw 2 Ford GTs (pretty much the only Ford car I really car about). Anyone who knows me, knows that when I see a nice car like that, which I've never actually seen in person, only in videogames and pictures, I flip out. I yelled, "There's a Ford GT!" The first one was coming out of a parking lot and was red with white stripes. Then, just a little further down the road, a yellow with black stripes GT was just taking off from a red light. It was first in line and took off at an amazing pace, with an audible roar. I was shocked to see not one, but two. It made some sense to see them this close to the factory, though. Still, I was overjoyed just to have seen them. :)
When I got let out in front of the IMAX theatre that was a part of "The Henry Ford" (I still don't know why they call it that), I admired the exterior of the building (which was erected ~1929). I tried to snap off a quick shot, but my stupid camera has trouble with white balance and I had to swap out my old batteries.
After I got inside, I got my ticket. I was upset about the price, which was $14 PLUS $5 parking (even though I didn't even park; what a freakin' rip-off), but on the website was only $13. I only had a $20 bill, barely enough for admission alone.
I started down this 'road' that was painted on the floor and set off into the 100 years of Automobiles exhibit first. I passed by the car where JFK was assassinated, and several presidential automobiles. They had so many old cars all set up as a physical timeline with info and memorabilia in glass cases that you could read and look at. They had even had a Cadillac model from early in the 20th Century that was the first to feature the electric automatic self-starter, which was invented by Charles F. Kettering from Dayton, Ohio, who also started Delco. They had a photo of him testing it out and a copy of the original design sketch.
Here's my record of what I did yesterday in Detroit:
I waited for Randy to come back on his lunch break (which he told me would be around 11-ish). I had set the alarm for 10:30AM, but I couldn't get back to sleep, so I started reading the business section of USA Today, that we got each day, in the nice lounge chair in our room. I took a shower, a cold one, to help wake me up, but I still had that lagging achiness (I couldn't imagine how tired my friend must have been). This trip, and the lack of genuine sleep we hadn't gotten all week, was taking a toll on Randy and I.
I watched some TV and waited for him to show up. He didn't get to the room until almost 12PM, because he was let out late. We used the GPS phone to find out how to get to the Henry Ford Museum, but we knew it was going to take longer than we had anticipated and Randy would most likely be late getting back to his training. On the Oakwood St., about 2 blocks away from the museum, we saw 2 Ford GTs (pretty much the only Ford car I really car about). Anyone who knows me, knows that when I see a nice car like that, which I've never actually seen in person, only in videogames and pictures, I flip out. I yelled, "There's a Ford GT!" The first one was coming out of a parking lot and was red with white stripes. Then, just a little further down the road, a yellow with black stripes GT was just taking off from a red light. It was first in line and took off at an amazing pace, with an audible roar. I was shocked to see not one, but two. It made some sense to see them this close to the factory, though. Still, I was overjoyed just to have seen them. :)
When I got let out in front of the IMAX theatre that was a part of "The Henry Ford" (I still don't know why they call it that), I admired the exterior of the building (which was erected ~1929). I tried to snap off a quick shot, but my stupid camera has trouble with white balance and I had to swap out my old batteries.
After I got inside, I got my ticket. I was upset about the price, which was $14 PLUS $5 parking (even though I didn't even park; what a freakin' rip-off), but on the website was only $13. I only had a $20 bill, barely enough for admission alone.
I started down this 'road' that was painted on the floor and set off into the 100 years of Automobiles exhibit first. I passed by the car where JFK was assassinated, and several presidential automobiles. They had so many old cars all set up as a physical timeline with info and memorabilia in glass cases that you could read and look at. They had even had a Cadillac model from early in the 20th Century that was the first to feature the electric automatic self-starter, which was invented by Charles F. Kettering from Dayton, Ohio, who also started Delco. They had a photo of him testing it out and a copy of the original design sketch.
In fact they had so much to do and see there, that I was a bit overwhelmed and worried that I might run out of time and miss my 3 o’clock meet-up time when Randy was supposed to show up and pick me up.
Detroit Day 4: REN CEN, the day after
Okay, well I'm home now (got back around 6PM last night). I would've posted earlier, but I had to pack up my PC Wednesday night, so we could check out faster. I did write some notes to myself about what we did on Wed., so I will use that to refresh my memory. I'm glad to be home because of the security of my normal routine, but I'm also depressed that now I'm in a boring place. :/
Anyway, heres goes:
I told Randy about what I thought we should do instead of going to the Henry Ford Museum on Wed. and instead going into downtown Detroit, to see GM World and the Renaissance Center, then maybe taking the People Mover around (there's a station at the Ren Cen). That way we could see the downtown but still be (what I thought should be) relatively safe. Plus, if we didn't want to take the time to go around on the People Mover, but still see downtown, we could go up to the overlook at the top of the Ren Cen (only later did I learn that it doesn't have that feature anymore).
Randy asked the receptionist at our hotel about where we should go. The lady gave Randy the statement not to take the People Mover, not to go into Downtown (a sentiment all too common with Detroit locals) and instead, to go to Ann Arbor (Michigan University, I don't think so) or go into, but not outside of, Greektown (which is very close to the Ren Cen and in downtown; ironic, no?). Well, when Randy told me that another person had told him NOT to go downtown, and instead go somewhere, I just about lost it. Everybody has been telling us not to go downtown, mainly because (I think) Downtown has a bad reputation and everybody's afraid of going down there and forming their own opinion. We went through downtown on Tuesday night (one thing your "not supposed to do" is go into downtown at night) and it seemed fine. We didn't get stalked by anybody and there were no menacing characters lurking around ready to stab us the second we got out of our car.
Well, I finally got Randy to agree to go to the Ren Cen and GM World (which I knew closed at 5PM and we were rapidly losing time because of our disagreement) and not go onto the People Mover. He had to get up early and I thought that would be enough to make Wed. not seem like it was wasted and not something that would make us stay out too late. We got out on the road and hit some horrible traffic. We wasted about 30-45min. pretty much not going anywhere. When we finally got to where the traffic ended, we found out why: some dumbass left his car in one of the lanes (of which there were only two because of ongoing construction). After that, it was almost non-existant until we reached another slow-moving area, though nearly as bad as the earlier one. We found out later after getting through the traffic, that it was, yet again, caused by some dumbass breaking down in one of the two lanes (people like that should be sued if it's something that happens only because of their own ignorance, like running out of gas.
Well, we finally got into downtown (just around the time GM World was closing) and pulled up into the parking garage closest to the Ren Cen (provided to us by the GPS phone). We walked out onto the streets and gazed at the giant skyscraper (not as big as the Sears Tower, but wonderous none-the-less). We went into Marriot hotel across the street to try to take the "Skywalk" across to the GM Headquarters. We got lost for a bit, but found our way (on the way, a stop at Starbucks. ;) I talked to a security guard at a desk right after exiting and found out that GM World was indeed closed for the day and that they didn't have the overlook feature anymore. I was very disappointed, but I decided since I'm paying parking (a total I would find out later of $10; what a rip-off), we might as well do what we can here.
We went down to street-level again and went inside the front doors. We were greeted by some cars inside the building in a see-through glass exterior and continued on inside. We took an escalator down to where GM World was and found that we could still get a good look at it, even though we could go inside. There was a food court down here as well, and we decided to eat at a GyroWorld (good stuff, though a tad expensive). After eating, we walked around the perimeter of GM World and at the halfway mark, we took a side trip to the other side of the building overlooking Detroit River. There was a big atrium there with massive palm trees inside the building and some swanky shops scattered around. I went outside and took some photos of the building and looked over to Canada and could see the Ambassador Bridge (though none of the photos I attempted to take came out well). We went inside again and continued on our way around GM World. Then, on our way, I took some more photos and we left downtown, passing through Greektown, which did look pretty cool.
We headed back to our room to regroup and decide what to do next. I noticed that there was a message on our room's phone and I was sad to hear it. My mom had called me from home telling me that my Grandmother (the only grandparent I have left) had stopped eating and would most likely die soon. This came as a surprise, but I had known that this was coming, just didn't know when. She told me the were going to take a trip up there, but I didn't know if I would be back in time.
Anyway, heres goes:
I told Randy about what I thought we should do instead of going to the Henry Ford Museum on Wed. and instead going into downtown Detroit, to see GM World and the Renaissance Center, then maybe taking the People Mover around (there's a station at the Ren Cen). That way we could see the downtown but still be (what I thought should be) relatively safe. Plus, if we didn't want to take the time to go around on the People Mover, but still see downtown, we could go up to the overlook at the top of the Ren Cen (only later did I learn that it doesn't have that feature anymore).
Randy asked the receptionist at our hotel about where we should go. The lady gave Randy the statement not to take the People Mover, not to go into Downtown (a sentiment all too common with Detroit locals) and instead, to go to Ann Arbor (Michigan University, I don't think so) or go into, but not outside of, Greektown (which is very close to the Ren Cen and in downtown; ironic, no?). Well, when Randy told me that another person had told him NOT to go downtown, and instead go somewhere, I just about lost it. Everybody has been telling us not to go downtown, mainly because (I think) Downtown has a bad reputation and everybody's afraid of going down there and forming their own opinion. We went through downtown on Tuesday night (one thing your "not supposed to do" is go into downtown at night) and it seemed fine. We didn't get stalked by anybody and there were no menacing characters lurking around ready to stab us the second we got out of our car.
Well, I finally got Randy to agree to go to the Ren Cen and GM World (which I knew closed at 5PM and we were rapidly losing time because of our disagreement) and not go onto the People Mover. He had to get up early and I thought that would be enough to make Wed. not seem like it was wasted and not something that would make us stay out too late. We got out on the road and hit some horrible traffic. We wasted about 30-45min. pretty much not going anywhere. When we finally got to where the traffic ended, we found out why: some dumbass left his car in one of the lanes (of which there were only two because of ongoing construction). After that, it was almost non-existant until we reached another slow-moving area, though nearly as bad as the earlier one. We found out later after getting through the traffic, that it was, yet again, caused by some dumbass breaking down in one of the two lanes (people like that should be sued if it's something that happens only because of their own ignorance, like running out of gas.
Well, we finally got into downtown (just around the time GM World was closing) and pulled up into the parking garage closest to the Ren Cen (provided to us by the GPS phone). We walked out onto the streets and gazed at the giant skyscraper (not as big as the Sears Tower, but wonderous none-the-less). We went into Marriot hotel across the street to try to take the "Skywalk" across to the GM Headquarters. We got lost for a bit, but found our way (on the way, a stop at Starbucks. ;) I talked to a security guard at a desk right after exiting and found out that GM World was indeed closed for the day and that they didn't have the overlook feature anymore. I was very disappointed, but I decided since I'm paying parking (a total I would find out later of $10; what a rip-off), we might as well do what we can here.
We went down to street-level again and went inside the front doors. We were greeted by some cars inside the building in a see-through glass exterior and continued on inside. We took an escalator down to where GM World was and found that we could still get a good look at it, even though we could go inside. There was a food court down here as well, and we decided to eat at a GyroWorld (good stuff, though a tad expensive). After eating, we walked around the perimeter of GM World and at the halfway mark, we took a side trip to the other side of the building overlooking Detroit River. There was a big atrium there with massive palm trees inside the building and some swanky shops scattered around. I went outside and took some photos of the building and looked over to Canada and could see the Ambassador Bridge (though none of the photos I attempted to take came out well). We went inside again and continued on our way around GM World. Then, on our way, I took some more photos and we left downtown, passing through Greektown, which did look pretty cool.
We headed back to our room to regroup and decide what to do next. I noticed that there was a message on our room's phone and I was sad to hear it. My mom had called me from home telling me that my Grandmother (the only grandparent I have left) had stopped eating and would most likely die soon. This came as a surprise, but I had known that this was coming, just didn't know when. She told me the were going to take a trip up there, but I didn't know if I would be back in time.
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
Detroit Day 4: Still rainy and cold
Earlier this week, by looking at Weather.com's forecast, today was supposed to be the warmest and have the smallest chance of precipitation, but it's still rainy and cold. In fact, it's even colder than yesterday, and Monday, the day of the week that was 'supposed' to have rain/show showers, turned out to be the warmest and provide the most sunshine. :/
Anyway, my roomy had managed to swing it so that he could off earlier (3PM) so we could check out some of the places that close around 5 or 6PM. I'd like to go to the Henry Ford Museum, but since that costs $13 admission and we'll only be there for 1 1/2 hours max., I'm thinking we might just go somewhere else today, which is pretty much our last day to really do anything.
Tomorrow, though, I'll have to figure out where I'm going to wait around since we have to check out, and my friend has to work. I'd like to take that opportunity to check out some of the downtown area in the daytime (though it was nice and traffic-less last night), but without transportation for me to the city, I may just have to spend all day at a much less interesting place. :(
Now that I think about it, since my friend doesn't have as much money as he'd like and since he's told me he doesn't really want to pay that much admission for the Henry Ford Museum, I'm thinking he could drop me off there tomorrow and I'd spend all day there possibly. It's the closet to our hotel and his where's working, so it's probably the best place to be, while still giving me something interesting to do.
In that case, we might just go to the Ren Cen and GM World tonight. In any case, I'll need to pick up some batteries for my camera. ;)
Detroit Day 3: A Scenic, Energizing Night Drive
Well, after we were free, instead of working out, we instead went out and tried to get into the Buffalo Wild Wings location closest to our hotel, using the GPS phone telling us when to turn. Pretty cool, though the lag in calculating new directions is a little annoying.
After we found out the place was packed with Michigander's (no doubt from nearby Ann Arbor and University of Michigan), we decided to use the phone to tell us how to get to Starbucks (I need my Venti Mocha Frapp!). After that, we used the phone to go to a local bar and grill called Wheat & Rie (really close to our hotel). They said they were famous for their large portions and corned beef. They weren't kidding! I ordered a Reuben and 2 Guiness and the waitress brought over a HUGE sandwich (the biggest I've ever seen) and a gigantic bowl of nachos for my friend.
We were there when the Piston's were hosting (and stomping by a small margin) the Sixers. Every shot the entire crowded place reacted to. It was pretty cool, but I was kind of hoping the Sixers would win. ;)
After that, we came back to our hotel to regroup, and then we were off through Downtown for a tour of the rich coast line, Jefferson / Lakeshore Drive. We got through the city surprising easy, then got onto our road. It reminded a lot of Lakeshore Drive in Chicago overlooking Lake Michigan. You know there's a giant body of water not 20 feet from where you are driving sucking up all available light like a giant sponge. You can see the void out of the corner of your eyes and it gives somewhat of a claustrophobic feeling, sensing that the darkness will suck you up.
We took the road all the way up through to 16 Mile Rd. and Metropolitan Beach / Metro Beach Golf Club. On the way North, we caught glimpses of all the extemely extravagant mansions and enormous yachts. We didn't really get to focus on anything in particular because there was so much stimuli. On the way back though, we actually got out and stopped by Grosse Pointe Yacht Club and got out and looked at the towering seaward behemoths. I would have liked to have taken some pictures with my digital camera, but the batteries chose that time to go dead. :( We drove back past all of the private storage warehouses and repair shops and came upon a wondrous marina surrounding us. I would have liked to have gotten out and walked about, but there was a security 'jeep' tailing us, which we almost ran into because my friend wasn't paying much attention to his driving. We decided we'd seen enough and kept on back South on Jefferson.
We slowed up and paid more attention on the way back to the awe-inspiring mansions in Grosse Pointe Shores and actually drove down the side-streets lined with them. Every single house was incredible. I've never seen such extravagance and beauty. I'd like to come back during light, but it most likely wouldn't be as 'inviting'.
We kept going on Jefferson and passed through downtown and right by the Renaissance Center / GM Headquarters (amazing!) and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, then by a huge structure on the left (Old Mariner's Church?) and a gate house of some kind, both of which looked very old and intricate. Then, because of all the construction and rejuvination of Downtown Detroit, we had to use the GPS device again.
On the way back on I-94W, we just cranked up the some Tiesto and got consumed by the beats. What a fun and spontaneous night! I'm looking forward to more of this.
After we found out the place was packed with Michigander's (no doubt from nearby Ann Arbor and University of Michigan), we decided to use the phone to tell us how to get to Starbucks (I need my Venti Mocha Frapp!). After that, we used the phone to go to a local bar and grill called Wheat & Rie (really close to our hotel). They said they were famous for their large portions and corned beef. They weren't kidding! I ordered a Reuben and 2 Guiness and the waitress brought over a HUGE sandwich (the biggest I've ever seen) and a gigantic bowl of nachos for my friend.
We were there when the Piston's were hosting (and stomping by a small margin) the Sixers. Every shot the entire crowded place reacted to. It was pretty cool, but I was kind of hoping the Sixers would win. ;)
After that, we came back to our hotel to regroup, and then we were off through Downtown for a tour of the rich coast line, Jefferson / Lakeshore Drive. We got through the city surprising easy, then got onto our road. It reminded a lot of Lakeshore Drive in Chicago overlooking Lake Michigan. You know there's a giant body of water not 20 feet from where you are driving sucking up all available light like a giant sponge. You can see the void out of the corner of your eyes and it gives somewhat of a claustrophobic feeling, sensing that the darkness will suck you up.
We took the road all the way up through to 16 Mile Rd. and Metropolitan Beach / Metro Beach Golf Club. On the way North, we caught glimpses of all the extemely extravagant mansions and enormous yachts. We didn't really get to focus on anything in particular because there was so much stimuli. On the way back though, we actually got out and stopped by Grosse Pointe Yacht Club and got out and looked at the towering seaward behemoths. I would have liked to have taken some pictures with my digital camera, but the batteries chose that time to go dead. :( We drove back past all of the private storage warehouses and repair shops and came upon a wondrous marina surrounding us. I would have liked to have gotten out and walked about, but there was a security 'jeep' tailing us, which we almost ran into because my friend wasn't paying much attention to his driving. We decided we'd seen enough and kept on back South on Jefferson.
We slowed up and paid more attention on the way back to the awe-inspiring mansions in Grosse Pointe Shores and actually drove down the side-streets lined with them. Every single house was incredible. I've never seen such extravagance and beauty. I'd like to come back during light, but it most likely wouldn't be as 'inviting'.
We kept going on Jefferson and passed through downtown and right by the Renaissance Center / GM Headquarters (amazing!) and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, then by a huge structure on the left (Old Mariner's Church?) and a gate house of some kind, both of which looked very old and intricate. Then, because of all the construction and rejuvination of Downtown Detroit, we had to use the GPS device again.
On the way back on I-94W, we just cranked up the some Tiesto and got consumed by the beats. What a fun and spontaneous night! I'm looking forward to more of this.
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Detroit Day 2: Boring night
Well, we really didn't do anything like I had hoped we would. We are only going to be up here until Thursday, so we are running out of time to do activities. I hadn't done as much research about areas, but with the Nextel GPS-capable phone we were given to use while here, it makes finding our way around much easier.
Because most of the activites I am interested in doing involve places where their hours are only until 5 or 6PM, that places a HUGE limit on what we can do, because the earliest our free time starts is around 5.
Detroit is one of the most rundown cities in the country and even the locals are afraid of roaming around Downtown. They'd rather, and have told us to, go across the Canadian border to go clubbin'. The only thing is neither of us has our birth certificate and/or passport with us, so Canada looks to be out of the question. I would like to check out some of the old, still grand skyscrapers like the old 1922 GM Building and the Fisher Building. Then, there's the Renaissance Center and the new GM offices, which houses GM World. I had thought of integrating our downtown visit in one day, including riding the "People Mover".
After, when we were free, we worked out in the cardio room, then came back and showered (not together, of course!) and ate at an Lebanese restaurant nearby (my first time; reminded me a lot of Greek souvlakis, which I love!). Then, we regrouped back at our room, and decided that tonight would just have to be our 'recon' night.
We ended up taking 94 East to get to Downtown because I was interested in possibly taking photos of the Ambassador Bridge and after that, scouting out Downtown, though not actually going anywhere yet. We didn't get to get close enough to the bridge to get out and snap some photos off (the roads are a little confusing), but we did drive past Comerica Park (the new Tiger's ballpark) on the way through downtown. We passed by a venue where Bruce Springsteen was playing with his tour bus and several limos parked in front, including the longest Hummer H2 limo I've seen. On the same block, Audioslave was also playing at a seperate venue, as well. We also found out where the Bleu Room Experience is located (which was most likely closed anyway. We didn't really go anywhere in the downtown 'block', and went straight back to good ol' I-75 (familiar to us back home) and headed back to our hotel. On the way back, we had considered briefly venturing up towards Pontiac to see if we could find Space, but decided not to and instead stopped at a convenient Krispy Kreme and got sick off sugary temptations. While at our 'pad, we talked outside for a bit, and watched a movie on the telly.
Now, it's rather late and I'm here writing a HUGE post on my blog, while I remember all this. :)
Here's a somewhat organized, though preliminary list of what I'm interested in seeing while up here in the Big D:
Because most of the activites I am interested in doing involve places where their hours are only until 5 or 6PM, that places a HUGE limit on what we can do, because the earliest our free time starts is around 5.
Detroit is one of the most rundown cities in the country and even the locals are afraid of roaming around Downtown. They'd rather, and have told us to, go across the Canadian border to go clubbin'. The only thing is neither of us has our birth certificate and/or passport with us, so Canada looks to be out of the question. I would like to check out some of the old, still grand skyscrapers like the old 1922 GM Building and the Fisher Building. Then, there's the Renaissance Center and the new GM offices, which houses GM World. I had thought of integrating our downtown visit in one day, including riding the "People Mover".
After, when we were free, we worked out in the cardio room, then came back and showered (not together, of course!) and ate at an Lebanese restaurant nearby (my first time; reminded me a lot of Greek souvlakis, which I love!). Then, we regrouped back at our room, and decided that tonight would just have to be our 'recon' night.
We ended up taking 94 East to get to Downtown because I was interested in possibly taking photos of the Ambassador Bridge and after that, scouting out Downtown, though not actually going anywhere yet. We didn't get to get close enough to the bridge to get out and snap some photos off (the roads are a little confusing), but we did drive past Comerica Park (the new Tiger's ballpark) on the way through downtown. We passed by a venue where Bruce Springsteen was playing with his tour bus and several limos parked in front, including the longest Hummer H2 limo I've seen. On the same block, Audioslave was also playing at a seperate venue, as well. We also found out where the Bleu Room Experience is located (which was most likely closed anyway. We didn't really go anywhere in the downtown 'block', and went straight back to good ol' I-75 (familiar to us back home) and headed back to our hotel. On the way back, we had considered briefly venturing up towards Pontiac to see if we could find Space, but decided not to and instead stopped at a convenient Krispy Kreme and got sick off sugary temptations. While at our 'pad, we talked outside for a bit, and watched a movie on the telly.
Now, it's rather late and I'm here writing a HUGE post on my blog, while I remember all this. :)
Here's a somewhat organized, though preliminary list of what I'm interested in seeing while up here in the Big D:
- Downtown Detroit / People Mover (Mon-Thur 7AM-11PM, Price $0.50)
West Grand Boulevard between 22nd Ave. and Cass St.
Fisher Building
1922 GM Building
Renaissance Center / GM World (100 Renaissance Center, Level A)
Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-9 p.m. - Eastern Market
Mon.-Sat. 5 a.m.-5 p.m.
Corner of Russell Street and Gratiot, Detroit, MI 48207 - Henry Ford Museum / Greenfield Village
9:30AM-5PM Price $26 both , $13 HFM, $19 GV
20900 Oakwood Blvd, Dearborn, MI - Belle Isle (Park) / Belle Isle Aquarium
Daily 6 a.m.-10 p.m.
or Detroit Zoo
Daily 10AM-5PM
8450 W. 10 Mile Road, Royal Oak, MI 48068 - Poletown / Greektown / Corktown / Mexicantown / etc...
- Hart Plaza
1 Hart Plaza, Jefferson at Woodward, Detroit, MI 48226 - Grosse Pointe / Edsel Ford House
April – December: Tues–Sat, 10am–4pm; Sun noon-4pm
1100 Lake Shore Road, Grosse Pointe Shores - Tom's Oyster Bar
L Mon.-Sat. 11 a.m.-4 p.m., D Mon.-Thu. 4-11 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 4 p.m.-midnight, Sun. 5-10 p.m.
15402 Mack Ave., Grosse Pointe Park, MI 48224 - Walter P. Chrysler Museum
Tue-Sat 10AM-6PM Price $6
1 Chrysler Drive, Auburn Hills, MI 48326 - Detroit Historical Museum / (Automotive Hall of Fame?)
Open daily 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Price $6 adults
21400 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn, MI 48124 - Fisher Mansion
Price $6
383 Lenox St., Detroit (Located near E. Jefferson Ave. and Dickerson) - Blue Room Experience
1540 Woodward Ave., Detroit, MI 48226 - Space
15 S. Saginaw, Pontiac, MI 48342 - Sky Club
Wed.-Thu. 8PM-2AM; Fri.-Sat. 7PM-2AM; Sun. 9PM-2AM Price $5 cover
404 S. Lafayette Drive (above Sangria restaurant), Royal Oak, MI 48067
Thur. - Canada Trip (?) / Ambassador Bridge / Detroit-Windsor Tunnel
Monday, April 25, 2005
Detroit Day 2: Tired
I couldn't get much sleep last night and am ragged right now. I think it had something to do with working out at the hotel's gym and taking a supplement too late.
Anyway, earlier last night, Weather.com had today's weather up here as Rain/Snow showers, but right now it's 58° F and partly cloudy. That's much nicer than they had previously predicted. That just goes to show that meteorology is still not an exact science. Nicer weather should definitely make this trip much more enjoyable.
Anyway, earlier last night, Weather.com had today's weather up here as Rain/Snow showers, but right now it's 58° F and partly cloudy. That's much nicer than they had previously predicted. That just goes to show that meteorology is still not an exact science. Nicer weather should definitely make this trip much more enjoyable.
Detroit Day 1: First day in D!
Well, I'm here in Detroit right now sitting comfortably in my room. I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to connect to the internet, but this hotel has graciously supplied a wireless bridge that I got to work with WinXP lickety-split.
I've never messed with a WLAN, but it was surprisingly easy. I still wish I had a decent laptop (just powerful enough to do email, run swiftly, and be light and portable. I'd still love to have a TabletPC, if only they were less expensive. I'd rather have a powerful desktop than spend a grand on a laptop that is too static, too propietary, and obsolete in a year or two. I only spent about $500 on the raw components that make up my current desktop and I'm super pleased getting mostly new and powerful features and not spending a bundle.
I'll be taking some pictures and then transfering them to this PC, so if I take the time to get an account with 'Hello!" or something (the only, or rather "preferred", according to Google) to post pictures on your blog, I'll post some up on here.
I'll try to write at least once a day on here (more for posterity for my own sake) and when my memories are still fresh in my mind. Stay tuned...
I've never messed with a WLAN, but it was surprisingly easy. I still wish I had a decent laptop (just powerful enough to do email, run swiftly, and be light and portable. I'd still love to have a TabletPC, if only they were less expensive. I'd rather have a powerful desktop than spend a grand on a laptop that is too static, too propietary, and obsolete in a year or two. I only spent about $500 on the raw components that make up my current desktop and I'm super pleased getting mostly new and powerful features and not spending a bundle.
I'll be taking some pictures and then transfering them to this PC, so if I take the time to get an account with 'Hello!" or something (the only, or rather "preferred", according to Google) to post pictures on your blog, I'll post some up on here.
I'll try to write at least once a day on here (more for posterity for my own sake) and when my memories are still fresh in my mind. Stay tuned...
Saturday, April 23, 2005
Detroit trip!
Well, it's been a while since I posted last on here. I'm going with a friend to Detroit and will be gone all next week. The only thing is that I checked the weather and for some reason the weather had to turn sour. :(
I'm trying to figure out what we're going to be doing, but there are a couple cool clubs and places to visit up there, that I will see if possible. I'd like to check out Club Space in Detroit, maybe Bleu Room (there's a Gabriel and Dresden show there next Sat.). I'm thinking about also visiting the Henry Ford museum while there. My cousins and there family used to live up in Pontiac (or near there) and I visited them up there once when I was young. The things I remember now are playing Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt on their NES, watching Short Circuit on cable, and driving by the Silver Dome (weird the things that are burned into your memory).
I'm trying to figure out what we're going to be doing, but there are a couple cool clubs and places to visit up there, that I will see if possible. I'd like to check out Club Space in Detroit, maybe Bleu Room (there's a Gabriel and Dresden show there next Sat.). I'm thinking about also visiting the Henry Ford museum while there. My cousins and there family used to live up in Pontiac (or near there) and I visited them up there once when I was young. The things I remember now are playing Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt on their NES, watching Short Circuit on cable, and driving by the Silver Dome (weird the things that are burned into your memory).
Monday, April 11, 2005
Dan's return.
Well, my little brother is home from his school right now (to visit my older brother who recently had a stroke which almost crippled him, and to celebrate his birthday). He isn't going to be home for very long and I'd like every second to be rewarding, but real-life doesn't work that way. I'm glad just to see him and share some games with him, but he's more restless. We watched the Ultimate Fighter live show last Sat. and were impressed, though really only by the second fight (damn, you guys are tough!). Ok, I just woke up, so it's either wake up or back to bed (I'm an insomniac, so I think I know which it will be...).
Monday, April 04, 2005
back from Anderson
I got back yesterday from visiting my cousin and his parents in Anderson, IN this past weekend. It was fun and I got a chance to hang out, talk and play some games. I had meant to bring my camera, but I had forgotten. I also wish I had picked up some more sleep, even if sleeping on the floor didn't seem very appealing.
Friday, April 01, 2005
SC : CT
Wow, I got Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (Xbox) on Tue. and haven't really stopped playing it since. GREAT game! The single player missions are great and the online co-op is absolutely amazing. I should be getting it for my computer to play at max detail soon.
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Too much TV!
Good Ultimate Fighter tonight (I can't believe I somehow missed last weeks'). I've never seen any UFC and I used to think that WWE was stupid, until my little brother got me into it and I couldn't resist the cheap drama, if only as filler for actual 'fights' (that's why I quit watching: TOO much drama!)
I have a DVR supplied by my cable company (TimeWarner) and I love using it to catch all the shows I like, without much setup beyond setting if I want it to record reruns or new (though it also records new shows that are re-broadcast 3 hours later for PST).
Here are some of the shows I like that I have setup:
Then, there's the original shows on HBO (Carnivale, Deadwood, etc...) that I watch on VideoOnDemand. With all this entertainment at my fingertips, it's not wonder I don't get much work done here. :)
I have a DVR supplied by my cable company (TimeWarner) and I love using it to catch all the shows I like, without much setup beyond setting if I want it to record reruns or new (though it also records new shows that are re-broadcast 3 hours later for PST).
Here are some of the shows I like that I have setup:
- 24
- Just starting watching it this season; I've been spoiled on HBO, so I haven't bothered watching much network television
- American Chopper
- I love the conflict, humor, and (somewhat) information this show offers
- Monster Garage
- Similar reason to above
- WRC Rally Magazine on Speed Channel
- I love rally racing and HATE Nascar (find it boring)!
- Mythbusters
- This show is fun to watch when you want to see things get blown up and learn some useless things.
- It Takes a Thief
- Fun show to watch in this game of 'cat and mouse'; I always root for the thief. :) It's sad that we do have to protect ourselves to the extent that these guys give the homeowners they burgle, but it's entertaining and informative.
- NUMB3RS
- A decent drama with plausible tech-related scenarios, good acting and not cheesy.
- CSI: NY / CSI
- The first show(s) to get me to watch network again (don't like Miami, though).
- Hey! Spring of Trivia
- Funny, quirky, Japanese game show with interesting trivia.
- Aqua Teen Hungerforce
- My favorite characters are Meatwad, Carl and Master Shake
- Home Movies
- Haven't seen any new ones, but I just love Coach McGurk and the 'sinus-kid'.
- Sealab 2021
- This season is REALLY BAD, especially compared to previous seasons where Cap'n Murphy was 'on-board' (R.I.P.). Basically, the show is hit-or-miss but these new ones just really don't make any sense and are not funny at all.
- The Brak Show
- Dad is hilarious!
- Crank Yankers!
- I like Special Ed.
- Fifth Gear
- Good, variety car show from Britian.
- MXC
- Gut-bustingly hilarious! I love it for the impacts and the voice-overs.
- Rides
- Cool car show.
- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
- I've been into anime since 1989 and I usually can't stand American mass-marketed English dubs, but the CN aired version is tolerable. (on a side note: I prefer the original language, but I don't know why the don't take advantage of SAP to air the JP language tracks and use the closed-captions for the subtitles, then you'd please both fans of dubs and subs).
- Overhaulin'
- Chip Foose never ceases to amaze me with his artistic and design skills, as well as the cars he produces. ;) I wish I could be that lucky to receive and 'overhaul'.
- Futurama
- Great post-Simpsons Matt Groening. Bender's probably my favorite character.
- Dominick Dunne: Power, Privilege and Justice / The Investigators / North Mission Road / Forensic Files / I, Detective / Body of Evidence / Extreme Evidence / etc...
- Some of the many CourtTV shows I'm hooked on (first CSI, then progressed to CourtTV).
Then, there's the original shows on HBO (Carnivale, Deadwood, etc...) that I watch on VideoOnDemand. With all this entertainment at my fingertips, it's not wonder I don't get much work done here. :)
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Thomas' stroke
I just got back from visiting my brother in the hospital (he just had a stroke March 17th). He's looking a LOT better and I'm happy that he's getting his mobility back. They are having a 'meeting' on Tuesday this week to assess how long he will have to stay in the hospital and how he's progressing. Oh, and Happy Easter! :)
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