A Battle to the Death!

These two people about to kill each other (which I took of course) pretty much describes what I witnessed in my first ever game of Bunco on Friday night.  Jess and my Mom started a Bunco league a few months ago and it has been really successful so far.  However, this month, she was short two people and unable to get subs so she suckered me and Brandon into filling in.  2 guys and 10 women and it was a totally different world.  Unlike my poker games, which are relatively quiet, these women were LOUD, often resorting to yelling at each other, hurrying each other up, and calling each other some colorful names.  Sure, it is all in fun, but the decibel level often reached the level of a decent rock concert.  The night was QUITE unforgettable, for sure!

But back to those army pictures and why they were really taken!  A few months ago, hell, maybe 6 or more months ago, Brandon mentioned he found all his old army men at his parents' house and I asked him to bring them over for photo opportunities.  I still remember the night of emptying the boxes on the poker table and separating them into the colors of each army.  It may not sound fun, but we were also doing tequila shots so that can make any mundane task that much more fun!  I am sure that the sounds Jessica and Yvette were hearing from the next room sounded like we were doing something much more fun than we actually were.

Anyways, at that time, I was still doing the picture of the day, but wanted to save the army men until I had time to set a bunch of them up.  Well, the picture of the day project came and went and I totally forgot the army men were still here in a closet until today.  So with work done for the day and Jess at work a few more hours, I set up some of the men and took some shots.

Here are a couple, but you can see the complete set with the link below...







Check out the whole awesome set here!

Taking it to the EXTREME!

When I first saw the extreme sport of Street Luge a few years backs while watching the X-Games on ESPN, I thought it was so cool and so crazy at the same time.  Lay flat on a board going downhill on concrete at blinding speeds?  Where do I sign up.......to watch?  Seriously, it is crazy and so dangerous.  The wipeouts are spectacular. 



So are you an idiot if you try it?  Not if you are a superhero!!!  Today, Iron Man showed me how it is done! 









 So, I stood in the middle of a fairly busy street to take these.  I must have waited about 10 minutes for a clear break in traffic.  You do what you gotta do to get the shot, right?  In retrospect, I should have angled the camera a little so it looked like he was going downhill.   That was a fail on my part.  Eh, what are you going to do?

Fun With Science!

Friday, my family and I went to San Francisco to the California Academy of Sciences.  Despite it not being THAT far away, none of us had ever been there.  It is amazing how many cool things can be right in your own back yard that you never take advantage of.  Hell, living in Sacramento, there is so much history pertaining to the Gold Rush and I know many people don't take advantage of all the places they can go to learn.  But, this article isn't about that.


Back to talking about the place we actually went, the Academy was really awesome.  We got to learn a lot, see some cool animals, watch a planetarium show, and otherwise, just immerse ourselves in science and learning for the day.  It was somewhat similar to the Natural History Museum that we went to in DC a couple of years ago, but just not on such a huge scale.  If I had to pick a favorite part, it would probably be a tie between watching all the adorable penguins and taking pictures of the butterflies in the enclosed rain forest habitat.  Cuteness vs cool pictures is really a tough decision! 



or


Yeah, I don't know, tough decision.  Anyways, if you want to see the rest, and I know you do, go here!

Then, after a drive back home to Sacramento, rest for a few hours and some sleep, we were back on the road Saturday morning to the Bay Area for a yearly family reunion on Jessica's side of the family.  As usual, there were games organized to keep people entertained and we had a lasso golf tournament.  I even took a break from losing in the semifinals to take a few pictures!





It was a great time, and although I didn't take many pictures, you can see the rest here!

Nice Day For a Picnic

Yesterday, Jess, Leia, and I did something I think we had never done together - we all went for a picnic in the park.  Hell, I can't remember ever going to a park for the simple goal of having a picnic.  Jess and I had actually been planning on doing it for a couple of months and I even bought a picnic bag. I just figured, we have a park down the street, we enjoy eating, and have to eat lunch, why not go to the park and have an actual picnic.  It was really nice, too!  The only drawback was that the ground was a little wet and it kind of soaked through our towel, but overall, it was great, relaxing, and yummy.  Interesting side note: I take Leia to the park all the time to go for walks in the morning.  She behaves herself and ignores other people for the most part.  During our picnic, however, when ever someone entered the park, she started barking and even got in trouble once for not stopping.  Same park, same people, but I guess the actual act of sitting down means she is claiming that park and nobody else can come in?  Was she being protective because we were on the ground?  It was odd.  Oh well.

Of course, I took my camera!  Here are a couple of pictures and be sure to check out the small slideshow right after! 

I was shot this past weekend

Yup, you read that correctly, I was shot this weekend.  In fact, just like 50 Cent, I was probably shot NINE TIMES!  How did I make such a miraculous recovery to be able to blog just two days later?  Well, luckily, I was only shot with paint balls.  Yeah, Saturday, I went paint balling for the first time in my life and I loved it!  There was a group of 9 of us who went out early Saturday morning to celebrate Brandon's birthday, and if I am correct, none of us had ever done this before.  It was pretty cool though because they put us in groups of beginners-only.  I think some people who had obviously played before slipped into our games, but for the most part, it seemed pretty fair.  Despite my prowess at shooting people in video games, my actual skills did not translate into the real world of shooting human beings.  My gun never seemed to shoot straight and I was shot more often than I actually shot other people, but I was never frustrated.  I think if we do it again, I will also choose something different in the way of clothes.  I had some jeans on and I really felt they kept me from moving how I wanted to.  Granted, I am not a nimble bunny rabbit, but I might have been able to play a little better had I been able to crouch down or run a little quicker.  I may even wear shots as I never did get shot below the knee. 

Paintballs


So the question you probably want to ask is - did it hurt to get shot?  You know what, not really!  Out of all the times I got shot, I think only one of them hurt and that is because I came around a corner and got shot from like 5 feet away by a guy who I think didn't belong in our beginner group, especially as he had his own more powerful gun.  But even then, it only stung for a sec.  Unfortunately, the after effects were worse and it bruised and formed a welt that still hurts if I move my arm a certain way. 
This was taken yesterday and it actually looks worse today!


This one on the arm doesn't hurt nearly as bad.


We were able to get some pictures of us actually playing because the girls showed up halfway through to take some pictures - after I took a picture of them, of course!


I'm the good lookin' one.  :-)


Yeah, I look deadly, don't I?!


It was a super fun time and I actually can't wait to go again.  Want to see the whole set in slideshow form?  Go here!  

After a whole day of that and being in the sun, it was home for a quick shower and then back to Brandon's house for the actual birthday party where I partook in the nectar of the gods tequila shots and stayed over until almost 3 in the morning before a cab ride was in order.  By this time, Jess was in no shape to drive home either!  As you can guess, Sunday was spent vegging on the sofa!  Good times as usual! 

I'm as mad as HELL, and I'm not going to take it anymore!

You all probably know the story by now, but read this article taken from gothamist.com

"Yesterday a JetBlue flight attendant, Steven Slater, made a dramatic departure from his job after a passenger on his flight refused to follow the rules. The meltdown occurred when Slater told a passenger not to remove bags from the overhead compartment until the plane was stopped. When his request was ignored, the 39-year-old Slater took to the intercom and declared: "To the fucking asshole that told me to fuck off, it's been a good 28 years!" He then grabbed a couple of beers, activated the emergency chute, grabbed his bags, and slid to his freedom.

Well, almost. Shortly after the Port Authority police busted him at his home in Queens (where he was already resting easy in bed with his boyfriend), but even the 50 cops that showed up couldn't kill his buzz from (those beers and) quitting his post at Jet Blue—plenty of photos and video show him smiling while in custody. He allegedly told investigators that he took his personal belongings from the plane, too, "Oh, yes. I threw the bags onto the chute. Then I slid down after them."

Slater has been charged with criminal mischief and reckless endangerment. Passenger Phil Catelinet told the TODAY show that Slater "was smiling—he was happy he had done this. He was happy he was done with his job at JetBlue." Slater is HIV positive, and also a recovering alcoholic who previously battled substance abuse problems. A couple of years ago he wrote on his MySpace page, "I am enjoying being back in the skies. Beating alcoholism and substance abuse one day at a time." As if that weren't enough, Slater is also dealing with his mother dying of lung cancer; neighbors told the Daily News "the prognosis is not good."
TMZ has the scoop from the family's end, saying "Slater told his mom he tried shutting the bin, when [the passenger] 'maliciously' pulled the bin down, striking Steven in the head." Meanwhile, the NY Times talked to those peripherally in Slater's life, who overwhelmingly called him a "very conscientious, responsible individual.”"

First off, Bravo, Steven Slater, bravo!  I commend you for your Office Space type meltdown.  Why?  Because even though he took it too an extreme that, perhaps, he shouldn't have,  I am glad this guy took a stand against the idiot who WAS BREAKING A RULE.  We will get back to that asshole in a second.  But Slater is my hero.  He took a "fuck this" attitude and went out in a blaze of glory.  Something not in the article but that you may have heard by now - right when he exited the plane, and before he went down the shoot, HE TOOK TWO BEERS WITH HIM!  Dude, that is awesome!  The only thing better would have been if he turned around once last time and put both middle fingers in the air or perhaps put up peace signs, Richard Nixon style.  Or perhaps yelled, "Fuck you everybody, goodnight!"  Again, truthfully, yeah, he went overboard, but he clearly had had enough and now that it is done, I think he is a hero to the working man. 

Now we go to the part that pisses me off.  Why is the guy who started the issue, the passenger, still anonymous?  Dude was asked to follow directions and straight out refused and then swore at the attendant actually trying to enforce the rule.  What gives this man the right to do this?  Why is this man so goddamn important that the rules don't seem to apply to him?  And then when the attendant tries to get the man to stop, he opens the compartment in Slater's face, hitting him.  And HE is not arrested?  I thought airlines flights were pretty strict now after 9/11 towards all rules.  

What irks me is that this is just another example of a growing trend in society where people think they are so important and they get to do whatever they want without regards to others.  I see it all the time now in growing frequency.  Cars don't let you back out of your parking spot and instead, zoom by you because they and their time are SO important.  People weave in and out of traffic just to move up one spot...because they are so damn important.  People cut in lines at stores....well, you know the drill.  And you may argue that this has always happened.  That is true, but I feel it is getting a LOT worse.  And there are many more examples of this in society.  People think they are just way too important nowadays and screw everyone else.  And this is exactly what this prick on the plane did.  So screw you, dude.  If Slater gets in trouble, you should too.  In fact, you started it.  You should get punished even more.....jackass.

Let's calm down with some pretty flowers I took pictures of today.







Want to check out the whole set of 10?  Just click here!  

I'm Published!

Ok, so I technically made the book myself, but my pictures are now in book form.  It took me a couple of months, but I took all the pictures from my 365 days of pictures project and put them in a book courtesy of Blurb.com.  It was cool because I got to totally layout the book how I wanted: size of pictures, where I wanted them, what text, size of text, and so on and so on.  It was basically like a blank slate on every page that I got to design exactly as I wanted.  This actually made the project take a while, but it was worth it to have it exactly as I wanted.  When I got the book, it was amazing to see the pictures that I took in an actual book.  It also brought back so many memories, both good and bad.  It is almost like a visual diary of my year.  Jess, understandably, even cried a bit reading through the difficult parts of the book.  Another miscarriage, the loss of her stepmom, and the loss of our dog all in a year will always be remembered when we pick up this book.  But that's life.  You can check it out here! 

Want a video preview?  Here ya go!

BITE ME!

As previously me mentioned, Jess and I took a camping trip with some of her family this past weekend.  We went to Big Basin which is near Santa Cruz in the Redwoods.  I had never been to the Redwoods, at least as far as I can remember, and it was amazing seeing these skyscraper-like trees.  It was truly remarkable.  I actually didn't take many pictures, but found the picture below to be absolutely beautiful.



Or check it out here to see it bigger and on black! 

We mostly just hung out at the camp site.  Most of the family did a short hike on Saturday, but with Jessica's knee, we didn't risk it and stayed back and read our Kindles, played card games, etc.  The overall trip was good - good food, good laughs, and good company.  The only setback - a TON of mosquitoes.  They literally had a feast on me.  And it seemed like they were nonstop, day and night.  And my issue is, mosquitoes have always liked me.  If there is even one around, and tons of people, it will choose ME to bite.  And not only do they choose me and I get bitten a lot, but my bites swell more than the normal person.  It sucked.  I survived, but it sucked.  I even used all kinds of mosquito prevention stuff.  What are you going to do?  Hopefully, when I camp in a few weeks, I don't have this issue as I can't take another weekend like that!

The Evidence is in the Video

Pretty short, but fun post tonight as we are pretty wiped out from our camping trip from this past weekend.  I didn't take many pictures, but I'll show then in a post tomorrow.  Meanwhile, remember after our cruise in June, I talked about parasailing and how I paid the boat driver to dunk Jessica in the water?  Well, Yvette and Brandon uploaded their videos to youtube and now we have video proof of me being a stinker and what would follow.  Check out this video proof!

1st, Jessica and Jason take off and it is then that I decide to offer the guy $20 to dunk them even though Jess asked to just get her feet wet.



2nd, here is what my $20 bought me!  Dunk time!



Next, it's my turn to go.  Yeah, I know I will probably get dunked too, but I go anyway...


But finally, I didn't think I would get dunked THAT much!



I guess you don't mess with the Jess.  Thanks to B and Y for uploading those.