After some more drama which is part of my daily life anymore, I started thinking about some fundamental questions. The questions ranged greatly about kids, work, purpose, and the point of it all.
All these questions arose to one big one that I was surprised to answer myself.
"If you could control your own demise, and know for certain that everything were to be okay, kids would be taken care of, your spouse would stop grieving soon and move on with their life, your parent(s) wouldn't morn you very long, all bills and issues would be paid off and taken care of, would you continue living?"
It's a difficult question to be sure. One that can't obviously be answered properly because you can't know for certain that everyone would be okay. But behind the literal interpretation is a deeper one. If you could push the eject button on your life, and know for certain that everything would be okay, would you push it?
Maybe you believe in reincarnation and you will just come back as something or someone else. Maybe you are a traditional believer, this would get you into heaven much faster, and everyone is okay that you leave behind, so why not? You have to go eventually, so why not at a moment of your choosing?
My personal answer to this was met with resistance in my mind. Like two wrestlers in a cage match, the two extremes tossed and turned about, each side gaining the upper hand at various points.
The first round went like this -
You would stop working. No commute, people blaring their horns at you, riding your bumper, traffic jams, car wrecks, random freeway shutdowns. No overbearing bosses, tight deadlines, worrying about keeping your job, or just plain working at a job that in the grand scheme of things means absolutely nothing. Make no mistake, most jobs fall into this category. Just ask all those innovative people that did a bunch of stuff that you can't name in the 40's and 50's. Their life's work you can't even remember and the world has moved on since. The importance of what they thought was so important literally has no meaning less than 60 years later. Their impact on the world has been snuffed out and is lost forever, meaningless. The vast majority of people don't choose to work, they have to work. Being dead, you are done working.
I had a tough time coming up with a solid positive for working in this way. In the end none of what I do will ever be remembered longer than 25 years, most of the time much less than that.
Second round was about kids -
Kids seem like this great idea. They are a way to carry on your memory, and are your chance to shape a human being into this world the way it should be. They are joyous and fun to be around. Looking through the eyes of a child and how they see the world is so incredible.
The problem with this concept is it isn't true. I always felt my kids had a golden age where they loved me dearly, helped around the house, were grateful for the things I did for them, said please and thank you, didn't fuss much, and were generally just a joy to be around. When they arrive baby's cant do a damn thing. Changing shit, being shit and peed on, waking up every 2 hours while trying to catch enough sleep to function enough to not lose your job (and insurance) the next day, no sex with your partner for months because they just aren't ready, baby blues, and much more make that first 9 months pretty fucking awful.
After that kids start moving around requiring constant supervision. They could fall into a pool, walk out into the street, put a fork in a light socket, get into the Drano under the sink, choke to death while they feed themselves (you have to watch the entire time they eat), they literally have no freaking clue what the hell they are doing. Your job is to keep them safe and teach them not to put their hand on the stove while you are cooking dinner, less they burn themselves.
At 3 they think they pretty much got it, and will let you know every chance they get. Defiant, loud, pissy, combative, whiny, and more, they are extremely difficult to be around. Some parents don't even bother going out to eat because junior is just too stressful to take along. Imagine that you are doing all the work items above, and you can't even enjoy a meal out because of your kid's attitude.
Then the kids get a lot better. From about 4-10 things are just so amazing. Your kid learns to read, loses teeth, believes in Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny, helps you around the house, cares if you had a bad day or not, falls asleep in your arms, begs you to do things with them, and makes you feel like you are awesome. If kid's attitudes stayed the same at this age for the rest of their lives the world would be a magnificent place. Imagine a teenager that you paid for their car volunteering to vacuum the house, do the dishes, wants to go to the movies with you, and much more.
Instead, that's not what happens. It does feel like it is overnight, but probably it is not. From my perspective one day you become nothing more than a servant to a creature whose demands can never be met and satisfied to their liking. There will be no help. Further, the teenage child will make your house a disaster with the expectation that you will clean it up. It's your house after all, they just live there. You will constantly fight about a huge variety of topics which you will never win. They could be about grades, money, behavior, and hygiene. Teenagers love to smell like shit, then cover it up with gallons of perfume rather than shower. This only happens when someone is going to be around them whose opinion matters, which in case you are wondering, is not you.
When you finally do get kid free time it always is stressful. The guest bathroom generally is covered in hair, make up, dozens of hair bands, half spit out toothpaste, clothes on the floor, and much more. Generally the bathroom will be out of toilet paper. As a final touch, the trash can next to the toilet will be filled with maxi pads and tampons. All of this makes your adult friends not want to come over.
So on top of arranging to have your good for nothing kid go somewhere so you can finally be an adult for two hours (and paying your teenager money so they can get out of your hair for awhile), they leave every surface they touch a complete disaster. Smelly shoes will be everywhere. Wet towels will be on the carpet (hey you can dry that mold out anytime, servant)., every wrapper that the teenager ate out of will be in a variety of locations through out the entire house. You'll spend time frantically cleaning up your pig sty of a house, stressing yourself out and really not in the mood to entertain. Your food is late because your house needed cleaning. Your teenager knew that you weren't going to make them clean it, what were you going to do? Tell them they are grounded and keep them in the house while you try to have some adult time? That's right, teenagers one special gift is the amazing ability to jerk you over at every angle.
The late teenage years get even better, and much more expensive. Phones, cars, insurance, prom, fund raisers, extra curricular activities, boyfriends / girlfriends, college, car wrecks and tickets, and much more. By the time they are off the family payroll, you have spent 20+ years spending a crap load of money on this one human being. I read an article that said it is just over a quarter million dollars to raise one kid. That's before college, weddings, and honeymoons.
After all of this, your child just might move to the other side of the world, where you will see them at most once a year. Everything you did could more often than not result in a human being who doesn't really love you nearly as much as you love them. In fact, some might even cringe at the thought of spending more than a half a day with you. Kids most likely wont want to be around you very often when they become adults. Did you go hang with mom and dad everyday until they did? Of course not.
Let's take the word child / teenager out fort a second. Replace these words with "dead beat, abusive, moody, husband." That seem unfair? Examine what you get out of the child versus a dead beat husband who you footed his bill his entire life.
The two real differences are first off, as an adult child might take care of you when you get older or frail. This is highly unlikely though given how many people are just too busy to take care of their parents, leaving them to minimum wage workers in nursing homes where they are raped and abused.
The second difference is they might give you grandkids that you can spoil. But again, these grand kids will be seen once in a blue moon. Either that, or your teenager could decide that they are better off living with you all together and ditch the kids with you. Leaving you to repeat the process above while you are trying to figure out how to spend your last few years of healthy life that your kid just sucked out of you. Thanks kid!
The logic of why it sucks to be living was overwhelming. The rewards of seeing a kid twice a week at best, and once a year or less at worst, seemed not worthy of any effort. The "joy" of working and what it does to us, and more.
So far the winner was absolutely press that eject button now. Living sucks.
I'll write about other arguments about this concept later. For now, I have to attend to getting my kids in bed and doing some extra work tonight so I can be ready in the morning to get the kids up, make breakfast, take them to school, and then go to work ready to do a great job.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Land Lord Saga - How it Ended
I just realized I had not said how things ended with the landlord at our old house when we moved out in 2009. Not sure why I forgot to post, shameful on my part. Without further adieu, I give you the ending of the bitch landlady from hell. It all starts with a police report....
Police report -
I spoke to our insurance company and they said in order to file a claim we have to file a police report. They made it out like it would be easy, because they thought we were dealing with a normal police department. Little did they know....
The police department was very uncooperative in obtaining a police report. I had to call about 5 times on several different days before they agreed that stealing and damaging property isn't a "civil matter" as they had said so many times before.
What made them change their mind? Their main argument was that if someone can get in the house with a key, even if they aren't authorized, they are not actually stealing from inside the home. This quickly changed when I gave examples of walking into a police station and taking shotguns and computer equipment, since the precinct is unlocked during standard hours.
We got the police report finally, and of course that was the last we heard from the police. Thank you city of Bedford police department for re-affirming my opinion of your value to the tax paying community.
State Farm -
The report was sent to State Farm along with a list of items and values of property destroyed or stolen by our landlord from hell. They were shocked to hear the details and decided they were going to sue the landlord, and go ahead with processing our claim on our items. This was amazing news to us as we finally had someone who cared and wanted to do something to help us out.
There were some hurdles to getting it all paid for, because of how they process theft claim money. It's a long story, but basically you receive 50% of the value of the items up front, then as you replace them you send in receipts to get the other 50%. I assume its an anti-scam measure for fraudulent claims.
Deposit -
The landlord sent us a $54 check and nothing else from our deposit, two months after we moved out. She cited several hundred dollars of "lost showings" where she charged us over $100 each time she wasn't able to show the house. Further she charged for cleaning, and "tree trimming" at $120.
Knowing who we were dealing with, I took an abundance of pictures of the house when we left. I did some digging and can't find those pictures at the time of this writing. I'll see if I can find them at a later date.
At any rate, lets just say it was very clean. I steam cleaned, and we paid for a house cleaner to come in and really make it shine, and made sure everything was perfect.
But because she was so cash strapped and a poor financial planner, the landlord felt compelled to make up a story to retain $950 of the $1000 deposit.
I spoke to an attorney as part of a free consultation and two important items came out from the discussions. One, if the judge ruled in our favor we could hope for a judgement. This is painfully difficult to collect on in this case, as we would have to file a lien on the property. Because its a rent house, we would not get any money until she sold the house. There were some other options, but each one costs money in the form of time off of work spent in a courtroom and money for forms, filing fees and more.
The scarier part was that if you sued this lady, I would have to give my new address in the court records. Because of how close we are to my old house and the fact that they had already broke in once, I was not sure that the money I might never get was worth the worry about what the landlord would do. More specifically, her son was the one that destroyed our house before, what's to stop him from coming a few blocks and paying another house visit?
I decided it wasn't worth it. State Farm had more than paid for replacing all the items that were broken, with brand new items, and we had moved into a much better place with an amazing landlord.
We still stay in touch with our neighbor from the old house. So far there have been three tennants move into the house, with one of them going on a rent strike because the landlord would not fix certain items (this sounds familiar).
We have lived in our new home the entire time. We have had some things break and the landlord fixed them the same day, or the next day at the latest. We have a much bigger and nicer home, for less than we paid at the other home.
In short, all the pain, stress, and emotional drain that we went through ended up having a happy ending, at least for us. We replaced all our items, and everything has been wonderful.
So happy in fact that I forgot to write the ending to this story until almost four years later.
Police report -
I spoke to our insurance company and they said in order to file a claim we have to file a police report. They made it out like it would be easy, because they thought we were dealing with a normal police department. Little did they know....
The police department was very uncooperative in obtaining a police report. I had to call about 5 times on several different days before they agreed that stealing and damaging property isn't a "civil matter" as they had said so many times before.
What made them change their mind? Their main argument was that if someone can get in the house with a key, even if they aren't authorized, they are not actually stealing from inside the home. This quickly changed when I gave examples of walking into a police station and taking shotguns and computer equipment, since the precinct is unlocked during standard hours.
We got the police report finally, and of course that was the last we heard from the police. Thank you city of Bedford police department for re-affirming my opinion of your value to the tax paying community.
State Farm -
The report was sent to State Farm along with a list of items and values of property destroyed or stolen by our landlord from hell. They were shocked to hear the details and decided they were going to sue the landlord, and go ahead with processing our claim on our items. This was amazing news to us as we finally had someone who cared and wanted to do something to help us out.
There were some hurdles to getting it all paid for, because of how they process theft claim money. It's a long story, but basically you receive 50% of the value of the items up front, then as you replace them you send in receipts to get the other 50%. I assume its an anti-scam measure for fraudulent claims.
Deposit -
The landlord sent us a $54 check and nothing else from our deposit, two months after we moved out. She cited several hundred dollars of "lost showings" where she charged us over $100 each time she wasn't able to show the house. Further she charged for cleaning, and "tree trimming" at $120.
Knowing who we were dealing with, I took an abundance of pictures of the house when we left. I did some digging and can't find those pictures at the time of this writing. I'll see if I can find them at a later date.
At any rate, lets just say it was very clean. I steam cleaned, and we paid for a house cleaner to come in and really make it shine, and made sure everything was perfect.
But because she was so cash strapped and a poor financial planner, the landlord felt compelled to make up a story to retain $950 of the $1000 deposit.
I spoke to an attorney as part of a free consultation and two important items came out from the discussions. One, if the judge ruled in our favor we could hope for a judgement. This is painfully difficult to collect on in this case, as we would have to file a lien on the property. Because its a rent house, we would not get any money until she sold the house. There were some other options, but each one costs money in the form of time off of work spent in a courtroom and money for forms, filing fees and more.
The scarier part was that if you sued this lady, I would have to give my new address in the court records. Because of how close we are to my old house and the fact that they had already broke in once, I was not sure that the money I might never get was worth the worry about what the landlord would do. More specifically, her son was the one that destroyed our house before, what's to stop him from coming a few blocks and paying another house visit?
I decided it wasn't worth it. State Farm had more than paid for replacing all the items that were broken, with brand new items, and we had moved into a much better place with an amazing landlord.
We still stay in touch with our neighbor from the old house. So far there have been three tennants move into the house, with one of them going on a rent strike because the landlord would not fix certain items (this sounds familiar).
We have lived in our new home the entire time. We have had some things break and the landlord fixed them the same day, or the next day at the latest. We have a much bigger and nicer home, for less than we paid at the other home.
In short, all the pain, stress, and emotional drain that we went through ended up having a happy ending, at least for us. We replaced all our items, and everything has been wonderful.
So happy in fact that I forgot to write the ending to this story until almost four years later.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Game Retreat Recap
After much planning, coordinating, and several schedule changes we finally had our annual gaming retreat two weekends ago. I am including links to many of the games so you can check them out.
Wednesday The posse arrived and we started to get things rolling. We played Citadels (http://fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=31) . Citadels was very fun and easy to play. It's a card game with some interesting choosing mechanics similar to Puerto Rico or Twilight Imperium.
Then we played Wasabi (http://www.zmangames.com/boardgames/wasabi.htm). It was a complete beatdown, but I wrote a session report about it anyway, here -http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/510287/two-first-timers-new-strategy-attempted.
After that, we wrapped it up with some Castle Panic, which we won of course (http://www.firesidegames.com/castlepanic.html).
Thursday We started by making characters for Mutants and Masterminds. The character creation process was massive. M&M is by design very open and allows for an infinite number of super heroes, but at the expense of it being new user friendly. We spent too much time making characters, and still didn't finish by the self imposed deadline of 5:30.
Then I think we played Smallworld that night. I thought it was going to be a very boring game based on the description on the back. It ended up being our most enjoyable board game of the entire weekend. We craved to play it each day. I highly recommend it! http://www.daysofwonder.com/smallworld/en/
Friday We started the morning off by attempting to make it through level 50 on Gears of War 2. Last year we made it to level 49, but never made it to the final level. We tried for several hours last
year, but failed each and every time. To re-familiarize ourselves with the game we tried waves 1-26, then jumped to level 40. The monkey finally was off our back as we worked solidly as a team and the four of us trounced level 50. http://gearsofwar.xbox.com/AgeGate.htm We played M&M for a few hours after completing our characters. http://www.mutantsandmasterminds.com/
Saturday We played some various rock band games. Guitar Hero 5, Guitar Hero Van Halen, and finally a lot of songs on Rock Band 2.
After that it was time for Pandemic, which we ended up losing (http://www.zmangames.com/boardgames/pandemic.htm).
We played Small World one more time. After that we went to my place and had a large dinner. We played Wits and Wagers and Formula D afterwords with about 10 people.
(http://www.northstargames.com/ and http://www.asmodee-us.com/index.html). Update - formula D might have issues at the website, try this BGG entry instead - http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/37904/formula-d
Sunday I decided that since one of our participants had never had me as a DM before I wanted to run a quick game for him and the others. We played the Goodman Games Zero level module, "Heroes are made, not born." http://www.goodman-games.com/5100preview.html I modified the module to end at the boss fight at the Ogre. I never liked the last part of the module and we only had 3 players so it made sense. The players had a highly effective tactic for taking out the Ogre. It worked perfectly with some excellent die rolling and just by its sheer design. After being beaten by Pandemic days before, we vowed a rematch, which we won soundly.
All in all pretty successful weekend. I am missing quite a bit of the things we did, but memory isn't as clear as it once was. :-)
Friday, February 12, 2010
Modern Warfare 2 Letdown
It's been just over 3 months since the highly anticipated release of Modern Warfare 2 (called MW2 for short). In this sequel Infinity Ward (IW) decided to not have a public beta test as they did in the first game. The reasoning was that they wouldn't need to do a tiresome public beta if an internal "professional tester" beta was deemed sufficient.
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/101/1015777p1.html
Within a few short weeks issues started arising at an alarming rate. The host issue that plagued the first modern warfare was more apparent than ever. Unlike many other multiplayer games, Infinity Ward goes the less expensive route and does not have their own servers for players. As such, a certain Xbox live subscriber will be given host rights and therefore also given about a 2 second lead time ahead of everyone else.
This issue wasn't addressed and still plagues the game to this day. It's openly known that the host gets superior reaction times, damage output, wins in all tiebreakers, etc.
Even more troubling, players were only using certain equipment loadouts even though there are hundreds if not thousands of options. This points to an unbalanced game. First came the Dual 1887 shotguns.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2IZd26F43I
Observe how the person doesn't even have to aim the guns in order to score instant kills. Just point in the general area and boom.
It's funny to think that not only could the Terminator not reload as fast as these guys are reloading two guns at the same time, but also humorous that in over 120 years of gun making technological improvements, the 1887 shotgun is better than any gun ever created in history.
After this slipped through the professional testing at IW, the cheaters stepped in. The first widely spread cheat was the javelin glitch. Essentially a player would arm himself like a suicide bomber and run around the board. When he would die a massive explosive would happen, killing people in a wide area.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0-nYVHyQWc
After a few weeks of this glitch ruining the integrity of the game, and a complete embarrassment for the quality control process at Infinity Ward, they managed to rush a patch through Microsoft.
Let's give IW a get out of jail free card for that, sometimes a few bugs make it through no matter what the testing process.
However, more cheats followed. Specifically the one that has ruined more games for more people is the care package glitch. With no one way to find out specifically who is actually performing the cheat, it is a major game changer the likes that has never been seen in multiplayer games before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4Y6kuRHAqY
You can't tell who is performing it unless you see it for yourself, so reporting it is very difficult.
You might be able to tell by stats, but if the player is sharing all his care packages with his teammates, their stats go up and his do not. So, merely picking who is in first place doesn't really say who is cheating for certain. He could share some, and not others, and keep everyone relatively equal on the stats.
The other cheat is the unlimited emergency airdrop, which is also referenced on Youtube above. Four care packages at once, for as long as the match lasts.
The third cheat is the speed glitch when using certain care packages. This isn't the best video to show how fast you run, but it will do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQMNzTkw_vE
Notice at the 1:45 mark that not only does it make you run faster, you also are hunched over, making targeting you that much harder. Most users of this cheat will add commando pro and start the killing spree.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxtXK6sYBcA
I am glad that IW is at least willing to address these issues with a patch. But after 90+ days of allowing cheaters to destroy the credibility of their game, stating that their QA process was superior to the previous testing methods, and much more, I have to admit I am done with this game. While I am a huge fan of IW and the Modern Warfare series, something has changed at Infinity Ward for the worse.
Apparently I am told a patch was pushed out today that addresses some but not all of these issues. For me, 3 months to fix obvious blatant cheating is too long for a game that sold 7 million copies its first day.
Modern Warfare 2 was widely successful because of the game play balance, graphics, pacing, and wealth of options from MW one (COD4). I won't be as naive for MW3. Infinity Ward is obviously a company that now has turned to making more of a profit from its fans at the expense of making quality games that are fair and balanced.
Lets say that even with all the various options chosen for MW2, night vision goggles, new Xboxes, etc, that there were "just" 60 a copy in revenue from MW2.
Before costs, sales of Modern Warfare 2 at that price accoung for 720,000,000. That's right, 720 million dollars. A company with that kind of revenue stream has no excuse to allow these types of cheats in their game, let alone have a quality control department that allowed them to slip through testing in the first place.
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/101/1015777p1.html
Within a few short weeks issues started arising at an alarming rate. The host issue that plagued the first modern warfare was more apparent than ever. Unlike many other multiplayer games, Infinity Ward goes the less expensive route and does not have their own servers for players. As such, a certain Xbox live subscriber will be given host rights and therefore also given about a 2 second lead time ahead of everyone else.
This issue wasn't addressed and still plagues the game to this day. It's openly known that the host gets superior reaction times, damage output, wins in all tiebreakers, etc.
Even more troubling, players were only using certain equipment loadouts even though there are hundreds if not thousands of options. This points to an unbalanced game. First came the Dual 1887 shotguns.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2IZd26F43I
Observe how the person doesn't even have to aim the guns in order to score instant kills. Just point in the general area and boom.
It's funny to think that not only could the Terminator not reload as fast as these guys are reloading two guns at the same time, but also humorous that in over 120 years of gun making technological improvements, the 1887 shotgun is better than any gun ever created in history.
After this slipped through the professional testing at IW, the cheaters stepped in. The first widely spread cheat was the javelin glitch. Essentially a player would arm himself like a suicide bomber and run around the board. When he would die a massive explosive would happen, killing people in a wide area.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0-nYVHyQWc
After a few weeks of this glitch ruining the integrity of the game, and a complete embarrassment for the quality control process at Infinity Ward, they managed to rush a patch through Microsoft.
Let's give IW a get out of jail free card for that, sometimes a few bugs make it through no matter what the testing process.
However, more cheats followed. Specifically the one that has ruined more games for more people is the care package glitch. With no one way to find out specifically who is actually performing the cheat, it is a major game changer the likes that has never been seen in multiplayer games before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4Y6kuRHAqY
You can't tell who is performing it unless you see it for yourself, so reporting it is very difficult.
You might be able to tell by stats, but if the player is sharing all his care packages with his teammates, their stats go up and his do not. So, merely picking who is in first place doesn't really say who is cheating for certain. He could share some, and not others, and keep everyone relatively equal on the stats.
The other cheat is the unlimited emergency airdrop, which is also referenced on Youtube above. Four care packages at once, for as long as the match lasts.
The third cheat is the speed glitch when using certain care packages. This isn't the best video to show how fast you run, but it will do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQMNzTkw_vE
Notice at the 1:45 mark that not only does it make you run faster, you also are hunched over, making targeting you that much harder. Most users of this cheat will add commando pro and start the killing spree.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxtXK6sYBcA
I am glad that IW is at least willing to address these issues with a patch. But after 90+ days of allowing cheaters to destroy the credibility of their game, stating that their QA process was superior to the previous testing methods, and much more, I have to admit I am done with this game. While I am a huge fan of IW and the Modern Warfare series, something has changed at Infinity Ward for the worse.
Apparently I am told a patch was pushed out today that addresses some but not all of these issues. For me, 3 months to fix obvious blatant cheating is too long for a game that sold 7 million copies its first day.
Modern Warfare 2 was widely successful because of the game play balance, graphics, pacing, and wealth of options from MW one (COD4). I won't be as naive for MW3. Infinity Ward is obviously a company that now has turned to making more of a profit from its fans at the expense of making quality games that are fair and balanced.
Lets say that even with all the various options chosen for MW2, night vision goggles, new Xboxes, etc, that there were "just" 60 a copy in revenue from MW2.
Before costs, sales of Modern Warfare 2 at that price accoung for 720,000,000. That's right, 720 million dollars. A company with that kind of revenue stream has no excuse to allow these types of cheats in their game, let alone have a quality control department that allowed them to slip through testing in the first place.
Friday, December 11, 2009
What I Recently Wrote to Whataburger
Dear Whataburger,
Please stop assuming all customers that are paying for their meal with cash are using counterfeit bills. Recently I purchased a Sausage Bob (breakfast on a bun) and handed the cashier a $5 bill. The cashier then checked the bill for authenticity using one of those counterfeit markers.
I have an issue with assuming that all customers that pay cash are guilty until proven innocent. After all, I don't force you to allow me to watch you make my meal from scratch after hearing horror stories of what is done to fast food while the customer is not watching. I trust that your minimum wage workers are not spitting, urinating, or placing some other type of bodily fluid into my mayonnaise.
I trust you haven't placed any mad cow meat into my food that will cause my life to end in a very painful and early manner. I trust that your employees have washed their hands, thoroughly, after dropping the deuce in the restroom.
I trust all those negative things blindly without verification, even though I have heard of other fast food chains having any and all of the above listed problems. I put my life in your hands assuming you're not feeding me tainted meat or vegetables that have salmonella, the least you can do is trust that the $5 I gave you is in fact, real.
How much money, barring over inflated statistics that certain interested parties would like you to believe, is lost daily on people paying $5 for a bob? Do you have one a day at all your locations? Since soda costs .04 - .10 a cup , charging $1.99, filling the cup with ice, and giving me less than 12 ounces of soda, you could easily cover the costs of the $5 your out on the counterfeit money. 12 ounces of soda is the same amount in a can. This makes ordering a "12 pack" from Whataburger cost almost $24. Who's the criminal here?
When you find out the bill is phony, do you call the police on the unsuspecting customer? Do you give it back to him and tell him it is fake? Does this result in the customer peeling out before the fuzz can arrive? Do you keep it and say he needs to pay another way (which goes back to him trusting your saying the money if fake and not pocketing it yourself)? Do you pull a gun on him and perform a citizen's arrest, again assuming he is guilty?
I have decided to start bringing my own counterfeit pen to verifying the change you give me the next time I visit. After all, with so many potential criminals frequenting your establishment, one can never be too careful.
Sincerely,
Name Withheld
Please stop assuming all customers that are paying for their meal with cash are using counterfeit bills. Recently I purchased a Sausage Bob (breakfast on a bun) and handed the cashier a $5 bill. The cashier then checked the bill for authenticity using one of those counterfeit markers.
I have an issue with assuming that all customers that pay cash are guilty until proven innocent. After all, I don't force you to allow me to watch you make my meal from scratch after hearing horror stories of what is done to fast food while the customer is not watching. I trust that your minimum wage workers are not spitting, urinating, or placing some other type of bodily fluid into my mayonnaise.
I trust you haven't placed any mad cow meat into my food that will cause my life to end in a very painful and early manner. I trust that your employees have washed their hands, thoroughly, after dropping the deuce in the restroom.
I trust all those negative things blindly without verification, even though I have heard of other fast food chains having any and all of the above listed problems. I put my life in your hands assuming you're not feeding me tainted meat or vegetables that have salmonella, the least you can do is trust that the $5 I gave you is in fact, real.
How much money, barring over inflated statistics that certain interested parties would like you to believe, is lost daily on people paying $5 for a bob? Do you have one a day at all your locations? Since soda costs .04 - .10 a cup , charging $1.99, filling the cup with ice, and giving me less than 12 ounces of soda, you could easily cover the costs of the $5 your out on the counterfeit money. 12 ounces of soda is the same amount in a can. This makes ordering a "12 pack" from Whataburger cost almost $24. Who's the criminal here?
When you find out the bill is phony, do you call the police on the unsuspecting customer? Do you give it back to him and tell him it is fake? Does this result in the customer peeling out before the fuzz can arrive? Do you keep it and say he needs to pay another way (which goes back to him trusting your saying the money if fake and not pocketing it yourself)? Do you pull a gun on him and perform a citizen's arrest, again assuming he is guilty?
I have decided to start bringing my own counterfeit pen to verifying the change you give me the next time I visit. After all, with so many potential criminals frequenting your establishment, one can never be too careful.
Sincerely,
Name Withheld
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Bad Food Words
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought I would mention a few words that should be removed from describing food. These words always make food sound disgusting.
They are:
Creamy
Nugget
Loaf
Corned
For example:
Creamy catfish nuggets
Corned vegetable loaf
Fish fillet loaf nuggets
My personal favorite is creamy corned catfish nugget loaf. Doesn't that sound delicous?
They are:
Creamy
Nugget
Loaf
Corned
For example:
Creamy catfish nuggets
Corned vegetable loaf
Fish fillet loaf nuggets
My personal favorite is creamy corned catfish nugget loaf. Doesn't that sound delicous?
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Uncharted 2 Review
Overall 9.0
Graphics – 10.0
Gameplay – 8.5
Value - $50
Trophies - Relatively easy
Pros
Excellent voice over dialogue, good story, enjoyable variety of puzzles / combat levels, top notch graphics and sound, fun combat scenes.
Cons –
Some levels are too much of the same thing, controls aren't precise, grenade indicator lacking, direction to go in combat is sometimes hard to determine.
Full Review
Uncharted is a great game and very fun to play. The graphics are very detailed and scenic. My only "complaint" is more a nit pick in that it seems like every character's eyeballs are reflective from too much water, almost like they are about to all cry. Maybe it's from the beauty of the game that moves them to tears. The snow falling all around, the hot sun, the details of simple things like rocks falling down a cliff, those things make the look and feel of the game great.
Story wise it is very engrossing. Every time I have played this game I have had a small audience watching me wanting to know what happens next. My family loves the character interaction and dialogue. Many times they have said it is like "watching a movie."
The level design is good for the most part. It is a mix between straight combat, puzzle solving / cliff climbing (similar to the first one), and straight climbing. I definitely got tired of sole climbing levels that seemed to go on and on. This is mostly due to the controls being strange at times. Frequently I would hold down a direction to jump, only to have Drake jump right off a ledge and plummet to his death in a direction I didn't press.
Combat is a blast. You have to conserve ammo and accuracy is rewarded. You can decide between a variety of weapons and styles to use. Keep in mind that often you will be forced out of your "comfort zone" because of ammo and be forced to use a weapon you wouldn't normally like to. I am okay with this as it makes for a more challenging and rewarding experience if you have to change things up a bit in order to succeed.
I did have a few gripes that the grenade indicator and damage origin seems to be off at times. Still though, these are very minor issues. Fighting is very fun.
Uncharted 2 has a Teen rating, but is more PG than PG-13. Violence isn't very graphic and language isn't more than you would hear on the radio. There is some language, but it is not very persistent.
I have not tried the multiplayer so I can not comment on it.
I have seen where you can purchase items for your next play though, such as unlimited ammo for certain guns. This is similar to Resident Evil 5's style. I have not tried these features out, but in RE5 this made playing through again and again much more enjoyable so I would assume a similar experience with Uncharted 2.
The length of the game bucks the current trend of $60 for a 3 hour game (Halo ODST). I have played several hours and I am not sure how far along I am with the story.
All in all a very enjoyable game that is relatively family friendly and engrossing to non gamers. Pass the popcorn and let them enjoy the show.
Graphics – 10.0
Gameplay – 8.5
Value - $50
Trophies - Relatively easy
Pros
Excellent voice over dialogue, good story, enjoyable variety of puzzles / combat levels, top notch graphics and sound, fun combat scenes.
Cons –
Some levels are too much of the same thing, controls aren't precise, grenade indicator lacking, direction to go in combat is sometimes hard to determine.
Full Review
Uncharted is a great game and very fun to play. The graphics are very detailed and scenic. My only "complaint" is more a nit pick in that it seems like every character's eyeballs are reflective from too much water, almost like they are about to all cry. Maybe it's from the beauty of the game that moves them to tears. The snow falling all around, the hot sun, the details of simple things like rocks falling down a cliff, those things make the look and feel of the game great.
Story wise it is very engrossing. Every time I have played this game I have had a small audience watching me wanting to know what happens next. My family loves the character interaction and dialogue. Many times they have said it is like "watching a movie."
The level design is good for the most part. It is a mix between straight combat, puzzle solving / cliff climbing (similar to the first one), and straight climbing. I definitely got tired of sole climbing levels that seemed to go on and on. This is mostly due to the controls being strange at times. Frequently I would hold down a direction to jump, only to have Drake jump right off a ledge and plummet to his death in a direction I didn't press.
Combat is a blast. You have to conserve ammo and accuracy is rewarded. You can decide between a variety of weapons and styles to use. Keep in mind that often you will be forced out of your "comfort zone" because of ammo and be forced to use a weapon you wouldn't normally like to. I am okay with this as it makes for a more challenging and rewarding experience if you have to change things up a bit in order to succeed.
I did have a few gripes that the grenade indicator and damage origin seems to be off at times. Still though, these are very minor issues. Fighting is very fun.
Uncharted 2 has a Teen rating, but is more PG than PG-13. Violence isn't very graphic and language isn't more than you would hear on the radio. There is some language, but it is not very persistent.
I have not tried the multiplayer so I can not comment on it.
I have seen where you can purchase items for your next play though, such as unlimited ammo for certain guns. This is similar to Resident Evil 5's style. I have not tried these features out, but in RE5 this made playing through again and again much more enjoyable so I would assume a similar experience with Uncharted 2.
The length of the game bucks the current trend of $60 for a 3 hour game (Halo ODST). I have played several hours and I am not sure how far along I am with the story.
All in all a very enjoyable game that is relatively family friendly and engrossing to non gamers. Pass the popcorn and let them enjoy the show.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Borderlands review
Bordelands
Overall 9.3
Graphics – 9.0
Gameplay – 9.5
Value - $50
Achievements – Very easy (Almost all are easily attainable)
Pros
Quick and fun gameplay, different classes make game enjoyable, co-op and multiplayer are a good time
Cons –
Some achievements are bugged, bad guys respawn behind you during missions (see below)
Note: I have played this game only for a day and about 8 hours. I will modify my comments and numbers above if need be.
Full Review
I was concerned about Borderlands turning out to be some over the top game with too much descriptive violence, cussing, and immaturity. I am glad to be wrong on this. I have heard very little cussing, and the depicted violence matches your actions, that is, you shoot a guy in the head and his head explodes.
The M rating is for the above mentioned violence and the environments of the bandits you encounter, along with some of their dialogue. For example, fighting a bandit in his lair might lead to him antagonizing you with “Do you have any last words before we cook ya?” They don’t drop MF bombs or anything like that. I honestly am not sure they cuss at all, but I could have the volume turned down too low. Update - They definitely cuss. Maybe as they get stronger their cursing vocabulary increases. :-) Also, the game is more of a mix of Fallout 3 and Diablo than WOW.
The game is a first person shooter with a mix of World of Warcraft type spawn with very limited RPG elements in leveling up your characters. It is an absolute blast to play.
Missions are from simple scavenger hunt style to assassinations. They are a standard variety of them, but they vary enough to make the game fun.
There are 4 classes of characters that fit standard stereotypes. Bruisers, snipers, front line gun nuts, and “magic users.” The magic user isn’t really that, but it’s hard to explain her story.
There are a large quantity of guns, but that can be misleading.
While it is very enjoyable to have this large variety of guns, they really break down into a few categories, stats, and bonuses. You might find a shotgun labeled “Rusty Shotgun” that does 10 damage and has a bonus to the spread, and another labeled “Rusty Shotgun” that does 11 damage and has no bonus to the spread radius. The guns appear the same, but have different stats and manufacturers.
That being said, the guns are an absolute blast and do have noticeable quality improvements as you get better guns. They are also generally color coded with their special ability. A gun that catches your target on fire is red, while one that does electricity damage is a cool blue color, corrosive damage are green, etc.
Leveling up not only consists of leveling your character and choosing various traits, but also you become more proficient with the weapons each time you use them. You like combat rifles? As you use them you gain bonuses to accuracy, damage, and faster reloads.
My main complaint thus far is the spawning system needs tweaked. Many times I would be heading into an underground lair, or some larger area and behind me monsters would spawn within just a few minutes of clearing it out. This is frustrating as it does not allow you to take your time, or the ability to find ammo and equipment from a vendor that was at the start of the level. Thought you had enough ammo to make it through, but you don’t? Too bad, if you run the way you came in, all 50 enemies you killed are back on the board after 10 minutes. Fortunately with the variety of weapons and different ammo types this isn’t too much of a pain. If you run out of ammo on your fiery pistol, use your shotgun or combat rifle.
Update - The multiplayer portion is fun, but terribly difficult to implement. All participants must be at the exact same part in the story or they can not play together. This means that bad ass 30th level hunter you have can't play with another 30th level character unless he is in the same part of the overall campaign that you are. Bad deal here.
It has been awhile since a game sucked me into its clutches like Bordelands has. I strongly recommend it for a fast paced action filled game. Kind of like a hyperspeed fallout that is definitely worth the price of admission.
Overall 9.3
Graphics – 9.0
Gameplay – 9.5
Value - $50
Achievements – Very easy (Almost all are easily attainable)
Pros
Quick and fun gameplay, different classes make game enjoyable, co-op and multiplayer are a good time
Cons –
Some achievements are bugged, bad guys respawn behind you during missions (see below)
Note: I have played this game only for a day and about 8 hours. I will modify my comments and numbers above if need be.
Full Review
I was concerned about Borderlands turning out to be some over the top game with too much descriptive violence, cussing, and immaturity. I am glad to be wrong on this. I have heard very little cussing, and the depicted violence matches your actions, that is, you shoot a guy in the head and his head explodes.
The M rating is for the above mentioned violence and the environments of the bandits you encounter, along with some of their dialogue. For example, fighting a bandit in his lair might lead to him antagonizing you with “Do you have any last words before we cook ya?” They don’t drop MF bombs or anything like that. I honestly am not sure they cuss at all, but I could have the volume turned down too low. Update - They definitely cuss. Maybe as they get stronger their cursing vocabulary increases. :-) Also, the game is more of a mix of Fallout 3 and Diablo than WOW.
The game is a first person shooter with a mix of World of Warcraft type spawn with very limited RPG elements in leveling up your characters. It is an absolute blast to play.
Missions are from simple scavenger hunt style to assassinations. They are a standard variety of them, but they vary enough to make the game fun.
There are 4 classes of characters that fit standard stereotypes. Bruisers, snipers, front line gun nuts, and “magic users.” The magic user isn’t really that, but it’s hard to explain her story.
There are a large quantity of guns, but that can be misleading.
While it is very enjoyable to have this large variety of guns, they really break down into a few categories, stats, and bonuses. You might find a shotgun labeled “Rusty Shotgun” that does 10 damage and has a bonus to the spread, and another labeled “Rusty Shotgun” that does 11 damage and has no bonus to the spread radius. The guns appear the same, but have different stats and manufacturers.
That being said, the guns are an absolute blast and do have noticeable quality improvements as you get better guns. They are also generally color coded with their special ability. A gun that catches your target on fire is red, while one that does electricity damage is a cool blue color, corrosive damage are green, etc.
Leveling up not only consists of leveling your character and choosing various traits, but also you become more proficient with the weapons each time you use them. You like combat rifles? As you use them you gain bonuses to accuracy, damage, and faster reloads.
My main complaint thus far is the spawning system needs tweaked. Many times I would be heading into an underground lair, or some larger area and behind me monsters would spawn within just a few minutes of clearing it out. This is frustrating as it does not allow you to take your time, or the ability to find ammo and equipment from a vendor that was at the start of the level. Thought you had enough ammo to make it through, but you don’t? Too bad, if you run the way you came in, all 50 enemies you killed are back on the board after 10 minutes. Fortunately with the variety of weapons and different ammo types this isn’t too much of a pain. If you run out of ammo on your fiery pistol, use your shotgun or combat rifle.
Update - The multiplayer portion is fun, but terribly difficult to implement. All participants must be at the exact same part in the story or they can not play together. This means that bad ass 30th level hunter you have can't play with another 30th level character unless he is in the same part of the overall campaign that you are. Bad deal here.
It has been awhile since a game sucked me into its clutches like Bordelands has. I strongly recommend it for a fast paced action filled game. Kind of like a hyperspeed fallout that is definitely worth the price of admission.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Only In Theaters....
So I hear this time and time again in a movie trailer. "Now playing, Yet another over inflated big budget reboot of some comic book character" only in theaters!
This must be removed from all trailers.
Where else would it be? Are you saying that you are not going to have a million copies for sale at all retail outlets on both Blu-Ray and DVD in 6 -12 months?
Are you saying that people can not download it for free at all the various pirate sites out there? You have managed to cut all piracy of your movie?
Are you saying that newly released movies are available by PPV or some other method the day they come out? Not that I have seen.
Maybe they want to warn us that there is no real life acting down at our local theater, and that we can only see it via the movie. Thank goodness they warned me, I almost went searching for the Shakespearean version of Transformers 2. If not for that part at the end "only in theaters" I would have been searching for hours.
Get rid of it already, it's insulting. It's like saying "Air conditioning keeping it 72 degrees, only indoors." or "Shoes, only available at retailers or online."
Try spending that time into something more constructive or showing more of the trailer.
An extra 3 seconds of Megan Fox for example would be more productive than telling me the movie is only available at the only place that it could possibly be available.
This must be removed from all trailers.
Where else would it be? Are you saying that you are not going to have a million copies for sale at all retail outlets on both Blu-Ray and DVD in 6 -12 months?
Are you saying that people can not download it for free at all the various pirate sites out there? You have managed to cut all piracy of your movie?
Are you saying that newly released movies are available by PPV or some other method the day they come out? Not that I have seen.
Maybe they want to warn us that there is no real life acting down at our local theater, and that we can only see it via the movie. Thank goodness they warned me, I almost went searching for the Shakespearean version of Transformers 2. If not for that part at the end "only in theaters" I would have been searching for hours.
Get rid of it already, it's insulting. It's like saying "Air conditioning keeping it 72 degrees, only indoors." or "Shoes, only available at retailers or online."
Try spending that time into something more constructive or showing more of the trailer.
An extra 3 seconds of Megan Fox for example would be more productive than telling me the movie is only available at the only place that it could possibly be available.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Explanation of Value in Game Reviews
Often when I review games I place a value in the review. I wanted to explain in a bit more detail what that means.
I think that very few games are really worth the $60 it costs to purchase them. I assign a value that is my gut feeling for what the game should cost and what its price point should be.
For example, a game like Fallout 3 or Call of Duty 4 have long term playability for different reasons. Fallout 3 is an RPG, first person shooter without any multiplayer, with a huge open world to explore. COD4 has a decent single player campaign mode with excellent pacing and a very robust multiplayer experience. Both games are worth their price due to the countless hours you can spend enjoying them.
In contrast, a game like Halo ODST is nowhere near the $60 price tag. A campaign that is less than 5 hours long, with one new multiplayer mode that is very similar to Gears of War Horde Mode, 8 new maps, and nothing else for those who already own Halo 3, you gained 5 hours of new content and 8 maps. Compare Halo ODST to Shadow Complex, a $15 game on Xbox live, and you will see that their value is similar.
My hope in assigning value for a game is that if you have an opportunity to purchase a game for that value, you should take it. If you find Batman for $30, it is well worth that price. Will you still be playing it 2 years later (COD4) or enjoy 120 hours of game play over a year (Fallout 3)? No, so the game is not the same value as those. But at 30 bucks, you get a great game that you will most likely be trading in to a retailer in 30 – 60 days.
Batman Arkum Asylum Review
Overall 9.0
Graphics – 9.5
Gameplay – 9.0
Value - $30
Achievements – Relatively easy
Family Friendly – For the most part. Language is very tame. Some appearances of bad guys might scare very small kids. Violence is comic book style without anyone really dying (they fall down but there is no indication they died). They are just defeated. No blood splatters, head shots, or gruesome gore.
Pros
Fun game, good story, variety of challenges and resolutions to tasks
Cons –
No multiplayer, short (8-15 hours to complete, faster if you don’t actively look for the riddler’s clues)
Overall a very enjoyable if short game. The gameplay is varied and has a very solid comic book feel. Level variation is fun, standard fighting thug levels, with puzzle levels, mixed in with trippy Scarecrow levels make for a fun experience. Multiple villains make their appearance as well as several cameos from the Riddler’s clues.
There are also challenge levels where you can hone your combat skills in two modes, a basic combat mode, and a hunter mode. In the hunter mode you have to use stealth to combat enemies that wield guns. You can hang from gargoyles, create diversions to attack goons from behind, and much more. These same tactics can be used in the campaign as well.
I also enjoyed upgrading Batman’s gadgets in the order that suits my play style. As you complete levels you choose different upgrades and equipment. Multiple batarangs, better armor, new combos to utilize in combat, and much more are at your disposal.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Best Man
Here is my best man speech from this weekend:
10) Toilet Seat down
9) Always make time for the two of you as a couple
8) Never bring up the past.
7) Arguments happen, resolve quickly
6) Make up Sex
5) Never be too proud to say I am sorry
4) Allow her to buy all the shoes she wants... Video game
3) Tell her she is beautiful and that you love her every day.
2) Never go to bed angry.
1) Carmen is always right.
If I could have your attention.
Please take a moment to join me in congratulating Zack and Carmen on their very special day.
I have known Zack and Carmen for many years and am honored to be the best man at their wedding.
Marriage is a major life changing event. It is very rewarding and sometimes challenging. I put together a list of the top ten things you should do to keep your marriage happy.
10) No matter how you feel about this, it is always better to leave the toilet seat down than up.
9) Always make time for the two of you as a couple. Even when you have kids in the future, plan to have time with just the two of you. This marriage forms the foundation for your family and it must be the focus of your lives.
8) Never bring up the past. You have to move on from mistakes made in the past that cannot be changed. Only the present and future matter.
7) Occasionally, you are going to have disagreements. Arguments happen. Be respectful when this happens, try not to yell or call each other names. Focus on resolving the argument. Which leads me to number six on the top ten list…
6) Make up sex.
5) Never be too proud to say I am sorry. An apology goes a long way towards a resolution.
4) Allow her to buy all the shoes she wants, this way you won’t have to feel guilty about your extensive video game collection.
3) Remember to tell her she is beautiful and that you love her everyday. Even though you know it, and she knows you know it, it is important to remind her how you feel each day.
2) Never go to bed angry. When an argument happens, it is never a good thing to sleep on it.
1) Which brings me to number one. I think this is the most important thing to have a long and successful marriage. It is often overlooked by many couples out there, but it is definitely the key to staying happy. And that is, Zack, Carmen is always right.
Pause
Congratulations
Monday, September 14, 2009
Inflation and your "Raise"
One of the things you want to take note of when your job is giving you a raise is the annual rate of inflation.
Now a lot of jobs offer you the standard 3% raise annually. The average rate of inflation over the past 10 years is 2.82%. This means that the items you buy at the end of the year cost 2.82% more than they did at the start of the year. With a 3% raise your buying power only increased .18%. or to put it into words eighteen hundredths of a percent.
For those of you that did not get a raise last year, myself included, we actually took a 3.8% pay cut.
We all know that times are tough and we should be thankful to have gainful employment. However, let's not lose sight of the fact that even during far better times we still only increased our buying power by less than half of a percent.
| Year | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Annual |
| 2009 | 0 | 0.2 | -0.4 | -0.7 | -1.3 | -1.4 | -2.1 | ||||||
| 2008 | 4.3 | 4 | 4 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 5.6 | 5.4 | 4.9 | 3.7 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 3.8 |
| 2007 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 2.8 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 2 | 2.8 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 2.8 |
| 2006 | 4 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 2.1 | 1.3 | 2 | 2.5 | 3.2 |
| 2005 | 3 | 3 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 2.5 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.4 |
| 2004 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3 | 2.7 | 2.5 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 2.7 |
| 2003 | 2.6 | 3 | 3 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2 | 1.8 | 1.9 | 2.3 |
| 2002 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 2 | 2.2 | 2.4 | 1.6 |
| 2001 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 3.3 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.6 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 1.6 | 2.8 |
| 2000 | 2.7 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.4 |
| 1999 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 2 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 2.2 |
Now a lot of jobs offer you the standard 3% raise annually. The average rate of inflation over the past 10 years is 2.82%. This means that the items you buy at the end of the year cost 2.82% more than they did at the start of the year. With a 3% raise your buying power only increased .18%. or to put it into words eighteen hundredths of a percent.
For those of you that did not get a raise last year, myself included, we actually took a 3.8% pay cut.
We all know that times are tough and we should be thankful to have gainful employment. However, let's not lose sight of the fact that even during far better times we still only increased our buying power by less than half of a percent.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Madden Curse
I found it interesting that for the most part, being on the cover of John Madden football is a bad career move. Quoting Wikipedia:
Prior to 1999, every annual installment of the Madden NFL series primarily featured John Madden on its cover. In 1999, Electronic Arts selected Garrison Hearst to appear on the PAL version's cover, and has since featured one of the league’s top players on every annual installment. Since then, certain players have experienced a decline in performance, usually due to an injury. For example, quarterback Michael Vick appeared on the cover of Madden NFL 2004, and suffered a leg injury that sidelined him for most of the 2003 season. Donovan McNabb was featured on the cover of Madden 06, on November 19th, 2006 in a game against Tennessee, McNabb tore his ACL while attempting to scramble out of bounds which left him sidelined for the remainder of the season. Running back Shaun Alexander, then the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player, was featured on the cover of Madden NFL 2007, and sustained a foot injury that caused him to miss six starts As a result, Alexander’s rushing statistics were substantially less than those from the previous season, and he never returned to true form.[23] Madden 08's cover featured Vince Young, the starting quarterback of the Tennessee Titans. On September 7th 2008 Vince Young sustained a knee injury which put him out of the game. He would never regain his starting quarterback position after he was relieved by backup quarterback Kerry Collins.[24] Brett Favre was on the cover of Madden 09 and he was subsequently injured with a torn biceps ligament and his performance declined during the last six games of the 2008 NFL Season.[25] On September 10th 2009, Strong Safety Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers sprained his MCL in the season opener against the Tennessee Titans.[26] Polamalu shares the cover of Madden 10 with Larry Fitzgerald.
Prior to 1999, every annual installment of the Madden NFL series primarily featured John Madden on its cover. In 1999, Electronic Arts selected Garrison Hearst to appear on the PAL version's cover, and has since featured one of the league’s top players on every annual installment. Since then, certain players have experienced a decline in performance, usually due to an injury. For example, quarterback Michael Vick appeared on the cover of Madden NFL 2004, and suffered a leg injury that sidelined him for most of the 2003 season. Donovan McNabb was featured on the cover of Madden 06, on November 19th, 2006 in a game against Tennessee, McNabb tore his ACL while attempting to scramble out of bounds which left him sidelined for the remainder of the season. Running back Shaun Alexander, then the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player, was featured on the cover of Madden NFL 2007, and sustained a foot injury that caused him to miss six starts As a result, Alexander’s rushing statistics were substantially less than those from the previous season, and he never returned to true form.[23] Madden 08's cover featured Vince Young, the starting quarterback of the Tennessee Titans. On September 7th 2008 Vince Young sustained a knee injury which put him out of the game. He would never regain his starting quarterback position after he was relieved by backup quarterback Kerry Collins.[24] Brett Favre was on the cover of Madden 09 and he was subsequently injured with a torn biceps ligament and his performance declined during the last six games of the 2008 NFL Season.[25] On September 10th 2009, Strong Safety Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers sprained his MCL in the season opener against the Tennessee Titans.[26] Polamalu shares the cover of Madden 10 with Larry Fitzgerald.
In 2007, GameSpot and CNBC reported that a large number of LaDainian Tomlinson's fans, who believed in the Madden Curse, were strongly opposed to EA Sports' initial decision to feature him on the 2008 cover, so much that a fan created SaveLTfromMadden.com to voice their disdain.[30][31][32] Tomlinson eventually declined the offer, but stated it was solely due to contract negotiations.[32]
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