Kevin's Blogarrhea

Fantasy Football has become an obsession

2011-10-31T22:27:00.000-07:00

I really am not that big a fan of the NFL. I don't have a favorite team, my favorite players are generally just former Ducks, and the only NFL gear I have is an old Randy Moss jersey Ryan gave me back in College. However, every Sunday, I follow the NFL like crazy. All because of Fantasy Football.

Sitting on the couch in front of my TV with NFL Sunday Ticket's Red Zone Channel pumping all the best plays into my living room with no commercials, the DirecTV Player Tracker TV app tracking the performance of all my players, my computer open with the Live Stat Tracker tracking the performance of all my teams, and my ESPN Fantasy Football app open on my phone just so I can have all my players at my finger tips.

I get pumped when any of my fantasy players do well. Like, physically pump my fist or jump off the couch. And why? Because they scored me points. Not because I care about the game itself. I could care less about the games, or division records, or even the early playoff games that happen after my leagues end even. It's all about the fantasy leagues. And it's an obsession. I think I'm addicted.

Obviously, this has to make the NFL so happy. Fringe fans like me that become raving fans without them really having to do anything? That's any marketing department's dream. But they have done a great job creating things to love about the NFL aside from the games themselves. Or at least cultivating those things. In Those Guys Have All The Fun, the book that explores ESPN from the inside out, they discuss the NFL contract negotiations and how important the NFL is to the success of a sports network. However, it's such an expensive contract because of the built in mega-audience with a rock solid demo that the networks end up having to build their entire week around it to drive ad dollars. And the NFL just keeps getting stronger.

But for me, the beauty of the NFL is in the fantasy league. Or in my case, leagues. I am in 5 this year. But only one is a cash league. Because for me, it's not really about the money, it's about the bragging rights. And NFL fantasy is built so perfectly. Having one match up a week so it's not too overwhelming, and having one day a week where you can sit there and get instant gratification throughout the day as the points grow. Then, of course, the trash talk with friends is so key as well. It all just boils down into such a nice, neat package that has me addicted.

And by the way, I won my match up in 3 of 5 leagues this week. The 3 I won all happened to be against Allen. Talk about bragging rights.

This was as exciting as expected early on...

2011-10-24T22:08:00.000-07:00

I expected these numbers from Blaine Gabbert, but not Joe Flacco. And to think: Jacksonville won! Some Jag fans in Vegas are very happy right now. Jag offs...

What if I had just bought GE

2011-10-24T11:45:00.000-07:00

Back in 2008, when I had just gotten hired with Reynolds and Reynolds and was in training in Houston, I had some disposable income and I was thinking of playing around in the stock market. It seemed like it would have been a great time to do so since the market was in the toilet, so my feeling was I could put some money in and not really worry too much because the market had to come back, right? Especially if I just invested in strong, steady companies.

I had done some homework, and was pretty set on buying GE stock at a little under $17/share. This was a crazy low price for GE, especially given their high just months before was double that, so I figured this would rebound and I could double my money within a year. Plus, it had a $.31 dividend, so even if it was stagnant I would still make some money. I had a solid chunk all ready to go in my E*Trade account, but just couldn't pull the trigger. Too many "what if" questions, and thoughts of "am I really patient enough to let this grow?" The answer was inevitably no.

Turns out, I would have been totally wrong.

Currently, GE shares are still trading for just below $17, and in June of '09 they dropped their dividend to $.10 (though it has been building and is currently at $.15). So, if I would have bought it then, I would be sitting on it now with maybe a few bucks worth of dividends to show for it.

In this rare instance, I'm pretty happy I missed out.

Advice From Assholes

2011-10-23T14:30:00.000-07:00

In my endless quest to find an outlet for my... whatever it is, I have an idea for another blog/website/podcast I want to do. The title of it would be Advice From Assholes, and please, let me explain.

We tried to resurrect It's On Tap, but couldn't make it work. Ryan and I had a GREAT run with Critical Drinking, but with me moving away, we just couldn't keep it going. That one hurt, because that was so much fun. But now I am trying to start up something else, and it definitely could fail hard. It's name alone could kill it, but that name is Advice From Assholes.

The idea, hatched by Allen and I, is to start sort of an advice column, but instead of giving helpful advice like other advice columnists, we would just be assholes about it. For example, if someone was to say "My girlfriend just dumped me, what should I do?", we would probably respond with "strip club". Now, that may not be the right advice, but it's advice, isn't it? I mean, what else are you gonna say? I think you get the idea...

We figured this would be fun for a few reasons:

We're assholes
We think it's funny being assholes
It gives us an outlet and forum to be assholes
Living in the LA area kind of makes an asshole out of anyone

We also kind of wanted to do a podcast with some advice, as well as lists, similar to Critical Drinking. However, these lists would match the content of the site, and cover such topics as Top 5 places to be drunk in public, Top 5 profanities to yell at sporting events, and so on.

Now, by no means are we necessarily going to go out of our way to be hurtful or rude or offensive. I don't think either of us are "that guy", so the term "asshole" may be a bit strong. I think there are variable degrees of "asshole", and we both definitely fall somewhere in that spectrum. Plus, we thought the alliteration was too good. Plus I bought the domain name...

But yeah, look for that to hopefully happen sometime soon. I feel the creative podcast juices still flowing from CD, so hopefully this will be a solid replacement.

My bets for this weekend in Vegas

2011-03-16T11:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend is the first weekend of March Madness, and I'm off to Vegas. Never been there on such a big betting weekend, but I'm coming prepared. I've done a lot of research the last couple days, read a lot of other people's locks, and put together a few locks of my own.

We're getting in Thursday night, so I'll miss Thursday's games, but here are my bets for Friday, and a little reasoning behind them.

Bet: (8) Michigan over (9) Tennessee straight up
Line: Tenn favored by 2 points

I think Michigan will win this game actually. But overall this season, and especially as underdogs, Michigan has done very well against the spread. It doesn't make sense to pick them to cover at +2, so I'll take them to win.

Bet: (2) Notre Dame over (15) Akron with the points
Line: ND favored by 13.5

Notre Dame is a very strong team that puts bad teams away by much more than 14. Plus, they're only traveling 96 miles to their first round game, the shortest distance of any team, meaning it will be all ND fans. Plus, Akron struggled with bad teams throughout their conference tournament, and Temple beat them by 35 earlier this year. Notre Dame wins easily, I say by 25.

Bet: (15) Long Island to cover against (2) North Carolina
Line: UNC favored by 17.5

This is a serious no brainer. They saw Duke blow out UNC, so they'll study that film. They are also 4th in the country in PPG (82.6). 17.5 points is way too high for a team that scores that well, so while UNC will win, it won't be by 18 or more. LIU to cover.

Bet: (13) Oakland to cover against (4) Texas
Line: Texas favored by 9.5

A lot of people are actually taking Oakland to upset Texas. While I don't think that will happen, I do think it will be close. Oakland is 2nd in the country in PPG (85.6) and FG% (.494), so they will get their points. They are also a very hot ATS team, which is usually a better indicator of how well they're playing lately. Oakland to cover.

Bet: (1) Kansas over (16) Boston U with the points
Line: Kansas favored by 22.5

Kansas went out early last year in a shocker. This year will be a statement. I have them winning it all, but for this specific matchup, I think they blow them out. Boston U is pretty good ATS, but Kentucky beat them by 35 earlier this season, which I feel this game will look like. Plus, in the past 4 tourneys, the average margin of victory for 1 seeds over 16 seeds is 29.3 points. Kansas with the points.

Bet: (8) UNLV over (9) Illinois with the points
Line: UNLV favored by 2

I wouldn't be surprised if Illinois gets blown out here. UNLV is great ATS, Illinois is terrible. These programs are headed 2 separate ways. UNLV is peaking and Illinois is plummeting. UNLV with the points all day.

Thos are the locks that I'll be throwing money on without hesitation. Some others I want to take are (8) George Mason over (9) Villanova with the points, (6) Xavier over (11) Marquette with the points, (11) USC/VCU to cover against (6) Georgetown, (12) Memphis to cover against (5) Arizona, and (14) St. Peters to cover against (3) Purdue. All these will be game time decisions. With 6 locks, I'm already putting a lot of money out there, and then there's always Saturday and Sunday games.

If you have any picks of your own or suggestions, let me know. Happy March Madness!

Heart Attack Grill's 575 lb Spokesman... dies? No way... (you can't make this stuff up)

2011-03-04T15:10:00.000-08:00

There is apparently a place in Arizona called the Heart Attack Grill, which serves such foods as the Quadruple Bypass burger and Flat Liner fries. They basically celebrate being incredibly unhealthy and extreme fatasses. According to a November report from TodayShow.com, patrons put on medical gowns before eating, while the waitresses wear skimpy nurse outfits. They have a policy where people over 350 lbs can eat free, and their tag line is "Taste... worth dying for!"

(DO YOU SEE WHERE THIS IS HEADING?!)

Here is their commercial, which gives you an idea of just how shameless they are about being fatasses.

(HANG ON TO THE "IN SOME CASES, MILD DEATH MAY OCCUR..." LINE. DO YOU SEE WHERE THIS IS HEADING?!)

Well, guess what. SHOCKER. That 575 lbs dude in the commercial (yes, 575 lbs, he apparently gained 5 lbs since they filmed that) has died. They say the cause is yet unknown, but they think it was pneumonia. (I have my doubts about that...)

Even ~~more~~ less shocking is that he was only 29 years old. Wow.

You can't make this stuff up. Thanks to Jerrohn for the story. (link)

Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN

2011-02-23T15:36:00.000-08:00

ESPN is a juggernaut, no doubt about that. According to analysis from Barron's magazine in 2008, ESPN "is probably worth more than 40% of Disney's entire value." That's a lot... And it's flagship show, SportsCenter, has made celebrities out of its on-air personalities.

Coming in May, we get to pull back the veil and read about some of the things ESPN would rather you not know about. Here's the book's summary from Amazon:

ESPN began as an outrageous gamble with a lineup that included Australian Rules Football, rodeo, and a rinky-dink clip show called Sports Center. Today the empire stretches far beyond television into radio, magazines, mobile phones, the internet, video games and more, while ESPN's personalities have become global superstars to rival the sports icons they cover. Chris Berman, Robin Roberts, Keith Olbermann, Hannah Storm, Bill Simmons, Tony Kornheiser, Stuart Scott, Erin Andrews, Mike Ditka, Bob Knight, and scores of others speak openly about the games, shows, scandals, gambling addictions, bitter rivalries, and sudden suspensions that make up the network's soaring and stormy history. The result is a wild, smart, effervescent story of triumph, genius, ego, and the rise of an empire unlike any television had ever seen.

Apparently the authors, James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales, have interviewed over 400 current and former ESPN insiders, some who would rather remain anonymous, and have dug up some sweet dirt. They have also done another book like this about SNL, so I'm looking for big things out of this one. This is one of the few times I've actually looked forward to a book.

The book is due to come out on May 24th, pre-order on Amazon.com.

Advertising on Rooftops

2011-02-21T17:36:00.000-08:00

There's an idea I've had ever since I was in college and Google Earth came out, and I'm surprised it hasn't become more prevalent. That idea is advertising on rooftops. With the advent and recent explosion in usage of satellite maps (Google Maps, etc.), there's a huge new medium for advertising, and it's very cheap.

There are 2 ways you could put this idea in motion. First, if you're a big company with big buildings, throw your logo on your roof. Especially if you're in a major city or area that would have a lot of map searches. If you're in the middle of nowhere, not sure it would be as valuable, but Target obviously thinks it is worth it, as shown in the picture above. It would only cost the amount of money it would take to get someone up there to paint the logo. That's it. Then anytime someone searches that area using a satellite map, there it is.

Second way to put this idea in motion is to sell your rooftop as ad space. Similar to how businesses sell space on the walls of their buildings, why not sell the space on the top of the building? You have a huge roof, but you're some generic manufacturing plant and it would do you no good to have your logo on there. Sell it. Make some extra money, and you will never see it, people who drive by won't see it, only online satellite search traffic.

Now, a few pitfalls. I'm not sure what the sign laws say about rooftop advertising (nor am I interested in looking it up) but that could limit this option in certain cities / states. Also, you wouldn't capture the eyeballs you have in front of the store, only those looking at a computer screen, but that's why you have signs on the side of your building already, and that's why you should probably throw your website on the roof. Also, there are many buildings that aren't actually owned by the companies in them. But in that case, those companies should sell that space to those companies. But this is inexpensive enough, especially if you own the building (like most Wal-Marts and Targets, etc. do), that it just makes sense.

I wouldn't be surprised if this becomes more and more prevalent in the near future. I would be surprised, as a former marketing student, if it does not.

Why I have a movie podcast with beer

2011-02-18T17:38:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gentlemen, let me start by thanking you in advance for listening to this week's episode of Critical Drinking. We're watching D2: The Mighty Ducks and talking Top 5 Movies From My Childhood. It's our 47th episode coming up, and every single one has been more fun than the last. I love doing it, and I hope you enjoy listening to it.

Now, the reason for this post is because I have recently been embarrassed by my younger brother. He doesn't know it, but he should be proud of it. A little history:

In college my freshman year, not having declared a major yet, I took a spin around a few departments seeing what clicked for me and what didn't. Ultimately business and marketing were the obvious choice, but before that I dabbled in English. Yes, English. You wouldn't know it by the content on this blog, right? Well it wasn't English English, it was film studies English. I took 2 film classes that were technically English classes, and I think the way they got away with that was by making us write 2 big papers each term. The first class I took I loved. I was fascinated by the content, but not so keen on the papers. I managed to walk away with a B, no harm done. The second class was the same content-wise, but clearly more grueling English-wise, because I walked out of there with a C, visibly worse for wear. I learned a lot about film, and also learned English would not be my major.

A few years later, my younger brother is in school, and I hear he's taking the same classes. I knew how I did, but he seemed to think they were no big deal. And they weren't for him. Now he's in a 400-level film studies English class, and I hear last night he just got a 98/100 on his most recent paper, AND the professor nominated it for a student journal. Well shit, clearly you win.

So, little bro, you are better than me at film analysis, that much has been proven by you're 98% / A+ in a 400-level class. That is just a little bit better than my C in a 200-level class. However, could you write that paper... while drinking!? Could you orate it while drinking!? Maybe you could, who knows. I may not have the knowledge or English mastery that you seem to have, but I can do both of those things while drinking.

And that, my friends, is why I have a movie podcast with beer.

Doug Fir Lounge

2011-02-16T18:07:00.000-08:00

Last night Ryan and I went to see the Smith Westerns at the Doug Fir. For those that don't know, the Doug Fir is a bar/restaurant/concert venue/hotel. Well, the hotel is the Jupiter Hotel, but it's basically attached. It's a cool little place with a very 50s-style lounge / log cabin feel and a pretty big concert hall downstairs. It's cool, check it out if you get a chance. Same goes for the Smith Westerns.

We got there early and sat at the bar upstairs for a while and had a few drinks until it was time to go downstairs. When we went to go down there, we had to get our ID's checked. It was a 21 and over show, but they gave us a stamp anyways. It was a huge stamp of a palm (on my right wrist). I think I even commented when the guy stamped it on that it was pretty large and in charge. Then we go to head down the stairs, and another guy takes our tickets and stamps our other wrists for that. This was a motorcycle (on my left wrist). At this point, I definitely turned to Ryan and said "this is some serious ink."

Now, aside from the fact that it was a 21+ show, so the guy taking the tickets could have also checked our IDs, that's not the lack of efficiency that bothered me most. It was the fact that it was a 21+ show and we got 2 stamps. One would work just fine right? Since getting in = I'm 21+. And then on top of that was the ridiculous size of these stamps. How much ink do they go through at this place? It holds about 250 people, and they have concerts at least 20 nights a week, so that's like 10,000 possible stamps just in one month!

Seems a little excessive, but I guess that's what my $3.50 High Lifes pay for...

Soda Fountain Taps Suck

2011-02-15T12:51:00.000-08:00

You see these soda fountains everywhere. Fast food places, mini-marts, restaurants... anywhere you get soda in a cup or glass. Recently I was filling up a cup in a restaurant, just as I had a million times before, but this time I noticed the few droplets that came out after I had pulled my cup away. It was only a few drops, but it happened each time any amount of soda came out, whether it was a full cup's worth or a top off. So it got me thinking, and go with me on this one.

Let's use Subway as the example. There are some assumptions I'm going to make, but I think they're very conservative assumptions. Here they are.

Assume:

6 drops come out of the tap after it's stopped pouring, on average, per usage
Those 6 drops equal 1/2 oz
Everyone fills their cup to the top, leaves the cup to catch those drops, and then tops it off. So, 6 drops are lost per cup
100 cups are filled, on average, at each Subway restaurant
All cups purchased are the 21oz cups, which cost $1.79
All Subways have these soda fountains and costs are consistent

So then we can extrapolate that they lose 50oz per day, which is about 2.4 cups, or about $4.30 worth of soda per day, per store. That's $1,569.50 per store, per year.

According to Subway's website that has a current store counter, they currently have 34,101 stores.

That would mean that Subway loses $53,521,519.50 per year in potential revenue based solely on inefficient soda fountain taps. $53.5M a year. And that's only Subway. Imagine all the other restaurants, like McDonalds, that probably serve up way more that 100 cups a day.

Imagine how much money could be made if they just had leak-proof taps. Patent pending...

33 Bottles of Beer

2011-02-14T22:24:00.000-08:00

I was in Powell's a few weeks ago buying books, and as I was standing in line to pay a little notebook caught my eye. I assume it was mostly the "33 BOTTLES OF BEER" in giant letters, but we'll never be sure. I picked it up and found it was a pretty great little pocket tasting notebook.

It has 33 pages for 33 entries, one beer per page. It has space for all kinds of info about the beer, such as the name, brewery, how much it cost, where you tasted it, the ABV, IBU, etc, etc... It's also got space for notes, and then a cool tasting wheel. Basically it has you rank different tastes on a scale of 1-5 around a wheel. Tastes like bitterness, citrus fruit, malt, hoppy, body, linger, and other things like that which describe the whole of a beer's taste. Once you fill out the wheel, it gives you a nice, visual snapshot of the unique taste of that beer, which helps you remember it in the future.

It was created by Dave Selden of BS Brewing here in Portland, and costs only $4. You can get it at Powell's like I did, many other stores around town and in other states, or online at 33beers.com.

He's also made one for wine and one for coffee. They're very addicting to fill out, and very handy for taking to brewfests or just working at home. If you're a bit of a beer geek like me, I'm sure you'll feel the same way. Check it out.

Look who it is...

2011-02-14T12:51:00.000-08:00

Hey, hey, hey! Look who's back! Yes, you're seeing this right, after about 3 solid years of not touching this baby, I have decided it's time to resurrect the Blogarrhea. My glorious return to blogging could not come at a seemingly worse time though, because on top of Critical Drinking (which hopefully you're all listening to and loving! Check the sidebar and "like" us on facebook and subscribe on iTunes), we're starting It's on Tap up again. So I've got a lot on my virtual plate. But all this has done is reignite that little fire inside me to write. And write I will.

For those that don't know, Critical Drinking is a movie podcast that me and my buddy Ryan started up over a year ago where we drink beer, watch movies, and talk about them. It's been a lot of fun, and a good outlet for both of us to talk movies.
It's on Tap is the booze blog that Bryan, Jake, Ryan, and I started up in college, which we're revamping and getting back on its feet. We're taking a much more controlled, serious approach to it, and we should have some solid stuff, so keep an eye out for that.

So, what can you expect out of this blog? Same old crap. Just spewing my thoughts all over these pages, hoping for some to stick. The description of the blog is still going to hold up I'm assuming, for better or worse... But I'll keep everyone up to date about the other sites, which I'm hoping you guys dig, and you can follow both on facebook also.

It's good to be back. Hopefully you feel the same.

For real

2009-06-16T13:25:00.000-07:00

This is an actual email I just got that somehow managed to make it through my spam filter and into my inbox. Are they serious? How can this method of spam ever pay off? Oh, right... idiots.

Hello

We've had the opportunity to review your resume, please consider the following information.

Down Town Services S.A. is a real estate company located in Russian Federation, Moscow. DTS S.A. offers a whole range of professional services such as scheme land acquisition, real estate properties as well as legal and financial consultation. The company already has current annual turnover of 120 million; with growing plans for international awareness.

At present time we are exploring and analyzing US market in order to be able to open up a local office. We plan to carry out our activity through the regional Customer Service Managers.

We're looking for right candidates who will be able to support the sales and administrative teams in the fastest and most efficient way possible. As an employee of DTS Global Inc., you will contribute to a dynamic team focused on growth and development of our company and deliver the very best service to our customers.

Responsibilities of Customer Service Manager include:

- Manage the preparation, distribution, and reporting processes for transactions
- Ensuring promptness of transactions
- Ensuring that payments and reports are disbursed timely and accurately
- Collecting information for monthly reports

Benefits:
- Commission rate of 5% from each customer's transfer
- Base salary of $2,000-3,000 dollars once your trial period is over.
- Reimbursement of all your banking, Money Gram and cell phone expenses.

If you feel as you are an ideal candidate for this position, kindly reply to this e-mail downtownrjob@gmail.com within next 2 business days with your contact information.
Once we receive your response, we will forward you employment application form that would have to be filled out. As soon as we receive the application back one of our recruiters will contact you via phone regarding your employment opportunity.
Please, do not hesitate to contact us at any time if you have additional questions, a toll free number along with office hours and contact information will be provided if you wish to speak with our representative directly.

Thank you.

Natalie Freedman
DTS Realty

Top 50 Craft Breweries in the Nation

2009-03-30T17:12:00.001-07:00

Here's a graphic of the top 50 craft breweries in the U.S. based on sales volume. I thought it was really cool to see.

(click to enlarge)

Not the right AdSense

2009-03-24T10:26:00.000-07:00

What part about this article says "I want to buy a forklift, but I don't want to pay too much."?

Bringin' Back Memories

2009-03-01T23:55:00.000-08:00

ItsOnTap Update

2009-02-14T05:00:00.000-08:00

FYI, we're getting ItsOnTap.com up and running again on Monday. I've got a few posts lined up, and there are about 4-5 of us on to contribute. It'll be a good outlet for me, plus, and possibly more importantly, it's an excuse to drink beer.

Look for it on Monday, and let me know what you think.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-23T16:39:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas. For those in the Portland area, hope you all have safe travels and stay safe over the holiday. Go Blazers! And soon after, Go Ducks! See you all in San Diego for the Holiday Bowl!

Good Ol' KEZI

2008-12-21T21:57:00.000-08:00

Well done, KEZI. You have proven once again that you know how to dominate the news hour in a college market.

Gee, what does that look like?

Jizz In My Pants

2008-12-07T22:04:00.000-08:00

Andy Samberg's Digital Shorts with SNL have always been good, but comparatively, it's hard to top some of those first ones. However, every time I watch them I find myself laughing. They're so dumb they're funny, and a perfect example is the latest one. Take a look above.

Wishful Thinking or Foreshadowing?

2008-12-05T16:52:00.001-08:00

New Oregon Ducks Black Helmets!

2008-11-12T21:46:00.001-08:00

Check these out!

YES!

[via]

Everyday Normal Guy

2008-10-30T19:37:00.000-07:00

Hilarious video, and AMAZING political tool

2008-10-22T23:08:00.001-07:00

What a great idea:

My house feels more like a home now

2008-10-13T19:34:00.000-07:00

I got a chance to get out of Houston this weekend and head home to Portland before going on my training trip to Albuquerque. It was really good to see Hayley, my mom and dad, and (of course) Bella. I flew in late Friday night, and stayed the whole weekend. So, like I've done every other time I have been home since going to Houston, what did I do this time? Spent a bunch of money. We kind of had a list of what we wanted to get for the house by the time I moved back home, so what did we do? We got it all this weekend.

So, I have a couple pictures of the new place:

This is the new bed. We got the bed frame and headboard on Saturday, and bought the bedspread and had the mattress delivered on Sunday. Boring for most, really exciting for me.

This is the living room. We have the new couch (didn't buy it this weekend), and then a new surround sound system and coffee table.

So the house feels more like a home now that we've filled it with stuff! Plus, now that we have a big TV, giant couch, and a nice surround sound system, this place is ready for a party! Don't tell Hayley, but there's going to be a lot of video games played and sports watched here when I get home.

It kind of sucks though, because I still have to wait 2 more months before I can move back and enjoy it! Until then, I'm stuck in Houston. At least there are a lot of good concerts and a few good friends.

Great Woot Ad

2008-10-08T18:28:00.000-07:00

Check out this great ad Woot! runs with Google AdSense. It's in the sidebar.

Talk about perfect for the times. Woot! really knows how to reach out to its customer base...

[courtesy sandossu on flikr]

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit (of coming home)

2008-10-07T20:18:00.001-07:00

I haven't blogged in a while, and with a little push from Adam, I figured I'd get on here and try to spark my interest in writing again.

It's a little hard with my job now, because the office internet is ridiculously locked down, so I spend half my time looking for loopholes in order to post to twitter and read news and stuff. I still haven't found a way to update the blog, and when I come home, the last thing I want to do is sit in front of a computer. The previous 9 hours of the day have kind of ruined it for me. Kind of like college and textbooks did with reading. I'm actually reading The Watchmen right now, and while it's only a graphic novel, I consider it a big step up from not wanting to read ANYTHING during college. Plus, The Watchmen is really good. I recommend it for anyone who liked Sin City and/or is interested in seeing the movie.

Anyways, life here in Texas has been pretty good. It's been cool lately (mid-70's), I've met some cool people, and I'm getting to the point of training where I understand a lot of stuff, so it's a lot more fun than it was 2 months ago. I'm going to Albuquerque this next week for a training trip with another employee who's been at it a lot longer than me. I'm heading home to Portland the weekend before (this weekend) and am really looking forward to it. I haven't seen Hayley in a while (or Bella!), as well as Mom and Dad, so this will give me a chance to see all of them. If anyone else will be in town, I would love to see you all, so just let me know and we'll figure something out. I'm only in Texas until Christmas, and will be home twice before that, so I think these next couple months are going to fly by, which is more than welcomed.

However, until then, I'm finding a lot of ways to enjoy my time in Houston. It's a pretty ridiculous city, and you'd have to be here to know exactly what I mean, but it has its perks. There is a LOT of good music that comes touring through here. I went to a Ben Kweller concert last week, which was great. My brother actually saw him this weekend in Eugene, so that's pretty cool. I also went to see The Kooks, but they canceled because the lead singer was "ill" (hungover), so the opening band The Whigs played as the headliners for free, and were actually pretty darn good. Next, I'm going to see Kings of Leon later this month, as well as Keith Anderson, and (hopefully) TV On The Radio. I thought Portland was big on live music, and they are, but not on quite the scale that Houston is. You can go out EVERY weekend and see good live music anywhere, as well as check out tons of concerts, so I've been doing that a lot.

I've also been exercising a lot with Allen, a buddy I met down here who's going to Orange County. He's the one I've been going to concerts with, too. But we've been getting up every morning to run and then going to the gym most nights after work. It gives me something to do, and keeps my mind off of missing home, as well as get me into shape, so it all works out. We are starting to drive out to Memorial Park by 6:00am, get a solid 30-50 minutes of running in, then head back in time to get to work by 8:00am. Running in the morning really makes me feel good at work. I'd never done it before, but it's a really nice way to wake up. It's relaxing for me, but also gets my body going.

Last weekend I played 36 holes of golf. The first 18 were in a company tournament. I helped my team to a solid last place finish, but it wasn't my fault. It was a scramble, but we had to use a certain portion of everyone's shots. First off, our A (best) player didn't show up, so we were already off to a bad start. But then, the guys I was teamed with were awful. I mean, we struggled to take any of their shots. We used almost all of my drives, approaches, and inevitably (after they missed) my putts. Anyone who has golfed with me knows, from those statements, that the team was pretty bad. I mean, I was our best player? Come on guys. Plus, I was using a friend's clubs, which weren't anything like mine at home except in the fact that both sets suck. But anyways, Allen, Rob and I decided to go out for a second round right after we finished the first. Rounds at this place (Blackhorse GC) were typically $75, but we got the "replay" rate, which was $16! We couldn't pass that up. However, we did go get a bottle of Pendleton and some beer. That helped us through the second 18. But when I come home, you better believe I'm going to be wanting to go out on the course. Anyone in for a round this weekend?

I have been trying to keep up on the Ducks, but aside from a few games that they have at sports bars, I haven't been able to catch many. Last week's was just ugly, so I played Big Buck Safari instead of watching the end of it. Franklin has done a pretty good job of keeping me updated, which I really appreciate. Him and Rob Moseley have been my only links out here. Oh, and if I have to hear anymore bullshit about the Texas - Oklahoma game this weekend, I'm going to shoot myself. I hate both teams, but that's all I hear out here. Ugh. I can't wait to get back to Oregon where I can watch football without all the stupid shit. Well, not counting FSN...

I can't wait to start watching Blazers games, too. Hopefully they will play the Rockets in Houston while I'm here. That would be awesome. Tonight they're beating Sacramento in their first pre-season game. Can't wait to see Oden in action!

This is an interesting time in America. The presidential elections are a month away, the economy is the worst it's ever been since the Great Depression, and yet here I am, displaced and feeling totally removed. It's a weird feeling. I am following the debates and everything, and will vote, that's a given. But I don't have any money invested in the stock market (if I have to hear Wall St. vs. Main St. one more time...), no house, no mortgage, not much money in general, so I really haven't felt the hit. And it's kind of scary. I know all this crap is going to affect me, especially when I go to get a mortgage, or eventually start contributing to my 401k, but I just can't make it seem real right now.

Alright, well, I've rambled on long enough. I want to keep up on the blogging thing, but a little nudge now and then won't hurt. I plan to come out with a Top 5 Albums of the Year list soon, as I've been listening to a LOT of music lately. Any other ideas? Just ramble about life or what?

You can always keep up on my life somehow. I'm always trying to find ways to communicate, and have a few methods:

Hopefully I can catch up with everyone somehow soon. I miss everyone and home, and am excited to come home soon. I'll do my best to keep you and this blog updated, but if not, yell at me (or just call...)

SNL VP Debate Skit

2008-10-05T12:03:00.000-07:00

Tina Fey will be sad if McCain isn't elected, because she has so much fun playing Sarah Palin.

Little Bill O'Reilly

2008-10-02T16:41:00.001-07:00

This is perfect.

Little Bill O'Reilly Tells It Like It Is - Watch more free videos

Don't Vote

2008-10-01T21:11:00.000-07:00

A little food for thought.

The NRA Loves Obama

2008-09-29T22:29:00.000-07:00

So bad it's... well, terrible.

A Gorilla, Phil Collins, and a Drum Machine

2008-09-10T05:04:00.000-07:00

Great drum work, albeit a pointless commercial.

A Few Ike Projections For You

2008-09-08T21:51:00.000-07:00

For those of you wondering how I am down here in the midst of hurricane season, I'd like to give you a little update. First of all, I'm fine. Even if a hurricane were to hit Houston, we're far enough inland that we would likely get flooding and a little wind, but nothing much more. Gustav came and went with little more than a few clouds, and the chances of a hurricane actually staying that far south in the gulf until it hits Houston is not very likely.

However, that sounds a lot like New Orleans before Katrina, so everyone here is still preparing just in case.

I've been tracking Ike for a few days now, and have learned a lot about hurricanes in general, but also a lot about Ike himself. Namely, that hurricanes tend to slow significantly when they hit land, such is the case with Ike and Cuba today. He's a 1 right now, which dropped from a 3 earlier today. However, they tend to pick right back up when they hit the gulf, and that's when we'll really know what we're dealing with. Until then, it's all speculation really. Odds are, it will pick up to a 3 again in the gulf, but turn to the north in the process, avoiding us. At least that's my opinion after doing some homework the last few days.

One thing to keep in mind though is there is a high pressure system moving south off of the Atlantic into the gulf right now that has the power to push Ike south. That's what most projections have in store for it right now, anyways. In that case, the odds are higher it will reach Texas.

But again, we won't know until we see what it does in the gulf, and that will come sometime later this week.

Like I said, I have been tracking it, and you can too if you'd like. There are two great, easy to understand resources I use to track the storm. Check them out below.

The first is the projected path from the National Hurricane Center. The second is a mash up of multiple projections from different organizations, including the NHC, the Navy, and others.

If you click either picture, it will take you to the updated projections. These are current as of 11:30pm central time on Monday.

So, a little interpretation, if you will. Houston is located (for these maps' purposes) right on the little inlet on the coast near the Louisiana border, if you can see that. As you can see, most projections say it's going to make landfall to the SW of us right now, which is bad for two reasons: 1) the hurricane can likely turn to the northwest anywhere in the gulf and either miss us or come right at us. 2) The east side of a hurricane is the worst side. That's the side where you get tornadoes, the fiercest winds, and most of the debris, which leads to the most damage.

Now, it's projected to hit land, wherever that may be, sometime Saturday, so there's nothing to worry about yet. Well, I wouldn't say that, but rather there are too many variables still lurking out there to assume it's going to hit Houston. Gustav was projected to hit Houston days before it made landfall, and in that time, it took a sharp turn northward and missed us completely, hitting the coast of Louisiana (Boy, do they deserve a break though, right?). That could very well happen again, but we just don't know yet.

So, keep checking those projections, and maybe head here too. That's a bunch of satellite imagery that's actually pretty cool to watch and play with.

Again, just wanted to give you a little heads up on things in case anyone had any questions. I'll keep you posted through twitter with more little tidbits I get, and hopefully talk to everyone soon.

I Wish I Was Like Polski

2008-08-25T23:05:00.000-07:00

"He once had a heart attack, woke up, and sold the paramedics 12 dozen steak knives. That was Polski!"

(Bill Brasky quotes anyone?)

Britney Spears Did What?!

2008-08-21T21:21:00.000-07:00

E-mail is a wonderful thing. However, you do inevitably have to deal with spam. There isn't a filter out there that can block all spam (and not catch some e-mails you actually want in the process), but they're working to make them as tight as possible. Most filters do a good job of getting rid of a lot of spam, but there are always those spammers who find ways to get through.

Enter: my spam folder

If I have to get spam, I think this might be the best kind. These are totally entertaining. My favorite is "Britney Spears' vagina attacks warder and escapes rehab". These are classic.

Dark Knight Sequel Poster

2008-08-17T10:52:00.000-07:00

First, don't get too excited. This is a fan-made poster. However, it still gets me a little excited for the next one! There's speculation that the Riddler will be the next villain (hence the question mark), but nobody knows for sure yet.

But after the Joker, a PHENOMENAL rethinking of Nicholson's version, who do you think would be a good villain for the next movie, and who would you cast? Let me know in the comments.

Forbes' Top 15 Hardest Drinking Cities

2008-08-11T23:30:00.001-07:00

Forbes recently put out a list of the top 15 hardest drinking cities in America, and I'm proud to announce that Portland, OR made the list, coming in at #13! Even though I'm a displaced Portlander at the moment, I still feel proud of my city, and hope to come home and start pitching in! (Am I part of the problem or the solution in this case?)

So here it is, Forbes' list of America's hardest drinking cities:

1. Austin, TX
2. Milwaukee, WI
3. San Francisco, CA
4. Providence, R.I.
5. Chicago, IL
8. (tie) Seattle, WA, Cleveland, OH, St. Louis, MO
9. Boston, MA
10. Cincinnati, OH
11. Pittsburgh,PA
12. Virginia Beach, VA
13. Portland, OR
14. Jacksonville, FL
15. Detroit, MI

Here are Portland's stats, relative to the criteria:

Residents who had at least one drink in the last 30 days: 62%
Men who had more than two drinks per day, or women one drink: 6.3%
Residents who had five or more drinks on one occasion: 15.7%

Way to go, Portland.

As a side note, I would like to say that I've been to Austin, TX, this year's #1, and while it was only for a short while, I think they might have won in a landslide. Yeah, they're drinkers.

[via Consumerist]

2 New Posters

2008-07-30T22:07:00.001-07:00

These two posters are awesome! Not because they are anything special visually, but because of what they represent. Quantam of Solace (aka Bond 22) looks amazing, and just seeing Daniel Craig in a tux gets me excited (insert gay joke or "that's what she said" here)." I can't wait for this movie. I'll be there opening (mid)night! And the new Guy Ritchie movie RocknRolla looks awesome too. It's like his other movies, but on steroids. Well, his other movies are already on steroids, so this is like those, but with even more steroids. Two scoops of steroids in every bite!

Check them out below:

Also, you all should check me out on Twitter at twitter.com/kevinregan because Ryan, Jake, Bryan, Kroen, and I are all doing some impromptu list compiling. It's a lot of fun, actually. Right now, we have favorite albums and favorite movies. I stress the word FAVORITE. Not best, but rather our faves. So, go over, check it out, join Twitter, follow me, and join in the conversation!

It's Official

2008-07-23T15:43:00.000-07:00

I officially graduated from college, and here's the proof:

I know you're normally supposed to hang things like this in your office, but since my office will be my house... can this hang on the fridge?

Finally, a Blog Post

2008-07-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a little late writing this, but I feel like I've been pretty busy with the new job, and our internet connection is slow as balls, so that doesn't encourage me. But, now that I've finally gotten around to it, I'll give you a taste of what my life has been like the last 7 days.

My first day was filled with new information of all kinds, from where the bathrooms are to how to fill out an expense report to what exactly I'll be doing for 6 months. The answer to that last one is simple: I'm going to class. It's basically another term of college in that almost every week I'll have class. Along with that will be training trip weeks where I will fly to different parts of the country and travel with reps in certain cities to kind of get a feel for the job. My first trip home is the beginning of August. I'll be in Portland on the bookend weekends of my week training in Seattle. Sounds like fun.

So, I have my cubicle, my tiny bit of real estate that I will ultimately grow to hate. I have a laptop that plugs into a dual monitor setup on my desk, and that's basically my gateway to learning almost everything I will need to know. It's pretty impressive how much information they have online at this place. You should see the server room. Anyways, without going into too much detail, daily life will be a combination of computer and in-class learning, with hands-on stuff thrown in every now and then. All while wearing a suit.

My apartment is pretty nice. I'll post the pictures at the bottom of this post of my room and one of the living room. Rent is free, it's got air conditioning, and someone comes and cleans it every other week, too. So, I'd have no right to complain even if I wanted to. I could throw a baseball from my apartment and (literally) hit the building, so it's a nice 1 minute drive to work. "Why drive?" you ask? Oh, only because at 7:30 in the morning it's already 85 degrees and humid as hell. So, the drive keeps me from sweating through my suit by the time I get there. It's pretty nasty weather here. Sometimes it's nice, like when there's a little breeze or I'm in the pool, but otherwise it's just awful. It's wet when you go outside, and by the time I walk to someone else's apartment, I'm a little sweaty.

Speaking of that, most of the other trainees live in the same complex, and I've found a lot of them to be really nice, so we hang out after work. A few of them I would consider friends by now, and it's only been a week. It's kind of weird how it happened so fast and easy like that. We just got Rock Band for 360, so we've been playing that nonstop for a while. If you follow me on Twitter you already know what I mean. It's a great game, and after 6 months I'll be the one taking it home, so all my Portland friends will be able to come over and play. It's really addicting. Especially the drums. I've found I'm better at the drums than I ever was at guitar, and only after 2 days, so that's my instrument of choice.

The cafeteria at work is awesome. The food is all really good. Well, except the chicken, but everything else so far has been really, really good, and the best part is it's deducted straight out of your paycheck pre-tax, and it's really cheap. So, it's a pretty good setup.

On my second day, they had the monthly office birthday party where they announce all the birthdays this month, hand out awards, eat and get drunk. Yeah, that's right, get drunk. At the office. It was awesome. Plus, I have learned that all company functions involve alcohol, which kind of makes me wonder what kind of people I'm working with. It was funny, today I had a little orientation class, and they touched on the company gun policy... Only in Texas.

So, work is pretty fun so far, but there's a big learning curve, and I just realized I put in for the wrong vacation days, so I need to handle that tomorrow. My supervisor, if you can even give this person that title, is not very helpful, so that might be a hassle. But I'm going to the gym regularly now, playing basketball with some of the guys now and then, playing Rock Band, and trying to stay out of the heat.

That's pretty much what's been going on in my life for the last week. I haven't quite settled in yet, but I think after I get my first paycheck I can get to settling. Until then, you should all make plans to come down and visit me.

Oh, and let me know if there's anything I left out that you want to know about, because this was kind of a stream of consciousness post. Keep checking Twitter and KevsPix, and even ItsOnTap which I'm going to be trying to resurrect because I like posting on it. Now it's off to bed so I can get some sleep before it starts all over again tomorrow.

My Trip to Houston: Day 4

2008-07-09T19:28:00.000-07:00

My last travel day was very short, and also very boring. Unlike Utah, Colorado, or even New Mexico, Texas is the opposite of scenic. It's very flat, with a lot of farmland from what I could see. It's also very hot, but that much I was expecting. I wasn't expecting Texas to be that boring from the northwestern point all the way to the southeastern coast. It was kind of disappointing, but I only had to drive 3 hours, so I wasn't worried about the scenery as much as I was just getting there.

I left the hotel around 10am, which was later than I had the whole trip, but still 8am Portland time. I wasn't fully adjusted, and I could tell when 10 felt like 8. About 2 and a half hours of the trip were flat and boring, going through different levels of po'dunk towns. But when I got about a half hour away, it started becoming Houston.

Now, Houston is a huge city, so I was basically driving through it for about 15 or 20 minutes, without traffic. And I wasn't even going into Houston. I"m on the northwestern side! I think a few of the current trainees are going to show Nick (my roommate) and I around downtown this weekend, but I haven't even gotten into the heart of the city.

But I got to my place, which is in a gated apartment complex that a bunch of the trainees live in. It's nice, with a nice living room and dining room set, and fully furnished. It's 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, with a living room/dining room, and a big kitchen for an apartment. We don't have to pay rent or utilities, and someone comes to clean it every other week. It's pretty cool.

I don't really have pictures from day 4, because it was so boring, and when I got around to trying to take pictures of the apartment, it was too dark to get any decent shots with my camera. So, that will have to wait (because I didn't take any today either). But, I did snap some pictures of 3 specific cities along the way: Franklin, Jerome, and Bryan. Yes, those are all city names, and also happen to be friends of mine. So, that was kind of cool.

In other news, I started work today! I have much to say about that, so stay tuned for my next update. Until then, keep checking Twitter, because while I didn't update much today, I will be in the days to come.

My Trip to Houston: Day 3

2008-07-07T22:07:00.000-07:00

I got a lot of driving in today, more, or at least what felt like more, than the two previous days. For that reason, and simply the fact that it's day 3, I'm a bit more tired than I was the last 2 nights. However, today was relatively boring, so it works out that on the night I'm more tired I have the least to say. So, with that in mind, let's get to the boring story of my day 3.

I woke up to some female employee knocking on my door asking if I needed any services. Now, I simply said no thanks, but what I thought was much deeper in the gutter. If you're thinking works like mine, which I know some of yours does, you can imagine me giggling inside during that short pause in between when she asked and when I replied. A "that's what she said" moment, but this time, in real life, with a stranger... that actually said it. Anyway, that was a funny little way to wake up and start my day.

I had a little breakfast, packed up, fueled up, and headed out, just like every other day. I hit Albuquerque in under an hour, with MacBreak Weekly keeping me busy. I ran into a bit of rain, about 5 minutes worth, but I was going fast enough that the wind kept the bed of my truck dry. After that, it cleared up, and eventually all the clouds burned off.

It was pretty flat and straight until I hit Amarillo and had to do a bit of paying attention in order to get on the right connecting highway, but after that, it was more boring, straight highway all the way into Fort Worth and beyond.

While I was driving through Amarillo, I saw 2 Waffle House restaurants, which I fondly remember from my trip to Atlanta with my dad and brother when I was younger. After I got over the nostalgia, I got to thinking: Houston is the fattest city in the nation, or so I've heard/read. So, am I going to have to try harder to stay in shape? Is it the actual city and places in it that make you fatter? Or is it just the people there that are prone to national record-setting fatness? I guess I don't know yet, but I plan to stay in shape regardless, so it really doesn't matter. Just an interesting thought that kind of got my mind further wrapped around the idea of living there for half a year.

So, I kept driving through Fort Worth, and eventually just made it to Waco. It didn't seem too long of a day until it got dark, and then I started planning to stop. But I listened to a lot of podcasts, finished Blink, and the driving just kind of took care of itself. Mountain Dew helped, too.

I'm holed up in a Country Inn after going to a Motel 6 first. I was waiting for the desk clerk to do whatever it was she was doing, but it was taking forever, so I just left and went across the street. It's only about 3 hours to Houston tomorrow, which is WAY less than I expected. That means I've driven about 2,000 miles in 3 days. Not bad. They weren't too hard, but I'm very glad tomorrow is going to be short. The whole driving thing is getting old.

Anyways, not much happened today, but here are some pictures showing some of the trip. Enjoy.

My Trip to Houston: Day 2

2008-07-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

After another long day of traveling, I'm here once again to tell the story of the day. I don't think I need to intro it anymore than that, since most people who read this already know the details. So here we go.

I woke up this morning around 8:45a Mountain time, which should have felt like 9:45a since I'm used to Pacific time, but it actually felt like 6:45a. I think part of the reason for that was that I got to bed at 2:00a Mountain time and thought that was only 1:00a Pacific time. So that lapse in thinking kinda got me. But, to be fair, Mallrats was on HBO, so I couldn't turn it off. You all should understand. Anyways, I went down and indulged in a pretty good continental breakfast, checked out, and headed on my way.

I was about 60 miles from Salt Lake City, so one episode of MacBreak Weekly got me there in no time. I was seeing a lot of new sights and a lot of things I thought were cool, so I was doing a lot of Twittering. It seemed like overkill at points, but then I thought, "you know, I don't care if people think I'm flooding Twitter today, I'm doing this more me at this point, because I think these things are cool!" On a tangent, when I got into the hotel both last night and tonight, I had about 3 new followers each day, so apparently flooding Twitter with my travel thoughts does have its audience.

So I got through Salt Lake, and from there to the Colorado border was a very scenic and temperate drive, but pretty straight and pretty flat. When I hit Colorado, though, it got hot. I would say it was in the mid-90s, but with the "wind chill" (if you can even call it that when it's that hot), it felt about 85 in my truck. A bit cooler than outside, but for those of you who know my temperature habits, I'm uncomfortably hot in anything above 72. So, needless to say, I was sweating.

Colorado provided both the most scenic and pretty part of the drive and the worst roads of the drive. I past Arches National Park and the Colorado River, so the canyon country through there was beautiful, but the condition a lot of the highway through there is in is awful. At least by Oregon standards. Actually, a lot of the drive today was on crappily maintained highways, but Colorado was the worst stretch. Yes, I was driving on one-lane, desert highways, but still, there was a lot of traffic for them to have let it deteriorate so much. But enough of that.

In the middle of Colorado, I hit a mountainous stretch, which meant shade and cooler weather, and that was a very welcomed relief. However, it only lasted for about 30 minutes, and then it was back to desert and heat right before I hit the New Mexico border. The northern portion of New Mexico was pretty uneventful, but all my podcasts, as well as Malcolm Gladwell's Blink audiobook, keep me pretty preoccupied.

I stopped in Shiprock, which was the place I was originally going to stay the night, but because I got there in such good time, I was able to have dinner there and keep going. But, before I left town, I gassed up and had dinner. Now, there was a dilemma. After my premature tweet saying it was between Taco Bell (which I knew) and Whataburger (which I had heard of once, but never tried), I saw a Sonic. So the dilemma was between Sonic and Whataburger. At that point, the advertising kicked in, and I chose Sonic. I have knocked Sonic for advertising in Eugene forever, because there isn't a Sonic within 100 miles of Eugene.

I will never hate on them again. It paid off.

So I tried Sonic for the first time, and was happy with it, though not blown away. I didn't try any of the drinks, though, so I think that was my mistake. After I ate, I headed on my way.

About an hour down the road, I saw a storm that I was heading straight for. With a few things loaded in the bed of my truck, rain wasn't what I was looking to drive through. So, I got within about a mile of it, and at that point you could see the rain and there was lightning to boot (which I will need to get used to seeing often). The highway veered just enough for me to miss it. Whew. See the pictures below to see just how close I was to needing to use the dryer tonight. (Honestly, I would have pulled over and put the tarp over it, but I hate stopping, so it was more of a relief than you might think).

So, I was probably driving on the edge of that storm for an hour and a half, and had a total of 2 combined minutes of sprinkling on my windshield. It was awesome. I got a false sense of invincibility during that, and was cheering to myself a little in the car throughout. Hey, it's only me out there, so if I feel a need to burst out with something, I'm gonna do it. I am my own audience.

So, after I hit I-40, which goes due-East through New Mexico, it was smooth sailing until I hit Grants, which is where I'm holed up tonight. Grants is about 70 miles from Albuquerque, and I think if I sleep in a little and get on the road around 9 or 10, I'll miss all potential traffic along the way. Hopefully I won't run into any rain tomorrow, but just in case I think I'll put the tarp on in the morning so I don't have to worry about it.

One thing that sucked today is that my phone's touch screen broke. Well, actually, it's kind of hard to explain without knowing the terms, but the touch functionality is still perfect, so I can still tap and it will be responsive, but the display screen underneath it got some kind of crack in it, so half the screen is black. Like, the pixels are out. So, the touch functionality is essentially useless. I didn't drop it or hit it or poke it with a pen, it just happened somehow. It's only 6 months old, so I assume it's still under warranty, but has anyone had this problem before? If so, if it was with Verizon, how did they handle it?

Anyways, keep checking Twitter and KevsPix, I update the on the drive, then back here tomorrow night for a post-game wrap-up. Without further ado, here are my fave pics of the day, in chronological order, of course.

My Trip to Houston: Day 1

2008-07-05T21:08:00.000-07:00

So, today was my first day of traveling on my epic journey to Houston. It was a long day today, about 12 hours on the road, which is more than I originally planned, but I was feeling pretty good, so I decided to keep on trucking. I made it to Tremonton, a city in Northern Utah, and I'm holed up at the Hampton Inn. The room was a little more than I wanted to spend, but after getting up here, I'm not upset. King bed, free internet, 32" HDTV; hell, it's a really nice room even without those things. If you've been following me on Twitter you'll already know these details I'm about to go into, but here's the story of day 1.

I left today at 9am on the dot. It was the first time I think I've left on time for anything in a long time. I stopped at a gas station in Eugene after getting some breakfast, and I was wearing a shirt I got at the Olympic Trials last night, so the attendant strikes up a surprisingly knowledgeable conversation about the meet last night. He wasn't even there but he knew all about it. I guess that's why it truly is Track Town, USA when your gas station attendant is a regular track aficionado.

After I gassed up, I headed out for Bend. The drive was pretty nice. It was cloudy, which meant it was cool, but there were a few early sprinkles, and with stuff in the bed of my truck, I didn't want to see that. They went away pretty quick, and in 2 and a half short hours, I made it to Bend.

A few dozen miles outside of Bend, it was flat, boring, and real sunny, but still temperate. About half a mile ahead of me, I saw a big dust cloud go up. Immediately, I thought it was an accident, but then I just figured it was some truck going down a dirt road kicking it all up. Then I saw break lights ahead of me, so I started to slow down. As I pulled up, I see a bunch of crap all over the road, and what looks like a Uhaul truck. So, then I figure the Uhaul somehow lost a bunch of stuff out the back.

But as I slowed to a stop, I saw it was much worse than that.

As you can see, it looks like the white van either collided with or swerved to avoid that semi truck that's towing a Uhaul truck, and rolled, coming to rest in the ditch on the side of the road. All their stuff had come out of the van and littered the highway. Now, it looked really bad, but from what I could see, the passenger's head was bleeding, but she was up, walking and checking on the driver, so I think that might have just been a bad cut. The driver, however, was laying on the ground in front of the van, where I think the people who came to help had laid him. He didn't look as good. His arm was up in the air, but I really couldn't see his hand. When I got a look, I didn't see his hand, so either it was mangled pretty bad, or it wasn't there anymore. There were about 10 people already assisting with the situation, so I didn't stay, but nothing looked life threatening, so I hope everyone involved is alright. It really got my heart going, and I drove cautiously the rest of the day.

After that, it was flat and pretty into Burns, where I stopped to gas up and get lunch. I finished up, grabbed a Mountain Dew, and I was on my way. next stop: Idaho.

The speed limit in Idaho is 75 mph, so it went a little bit quicker. I stopped once at a rest stop, but that was it. I was on autopilot at this point, listening to podcasts and just driving. When I hit Twin Falls, I felt good, so I decided to head on to the next town.

Well, about 2 hours later, it was starting to get dark, and I had hit Utah, so I pulled into the next town with a hotel, which happened to be Tremonton. Overall it was a pretty easy day. I like driving, and have plenty to listen to if I ever get bored. I think this is going to go by faster than expected, but I'll be hot, be eating bad, and probably sleeping little. I just want to get there and check out my new place! See you tomorrow for day 2.

I update Twitter all day from my cell, so check that for intra-day updates, and I post to KevsPix too, so check those for more frequent updates. Below are a few of the many pictures I took along the way today. These are my personal faves. They're in order. Post some comments about anything and everything, and I'll get back to you.

Thoughts On The Blazers' Draft Day

2008-06-27T12:13:00.000-07:00

The Blazers had a pretty good day yesterday, albeit pretty busy and full of wheeling and dealing, but that's how the Blazers roll on draft day. When it was all said and done, we picked up Jerryd Bayless, some 19 year old French kid, and a bunch of future draft picks, got Ike Diogu, and saw Jarrett Jack, Josh McRoberts, and Brandon Rush go elsewhere. Chad Ford did a write up and gave each team grades, and I pretty much agree with everything he says about us. The Blazers got an A for the 3rd straight year, though it was an A-.

Here's what he said:

Portland Trail Blazers
Grade: A-
Round 1: Jerryd Bayless (11), Nicolas Batum (25)
Round 2: None

Analysis: For the third straight year, the Blazers walk away with an A in the draft. Portland GM Kevin Pritchard continues to be the most daring, creative and active GM in the league. If I were to use a draft term to describe him, I'd say he's got an amazing motor.

The Blazers had a prearranged deal with the Pacers to move up to No. 11 if D.J. Augustin or Bayless were on the board. After the draft, Pritchard told me they had Bayless ranked fourth on their board -- so that's great value at No. 11. As part of the trade, they also picked up Ike Diogu, an undervalued big man who has been injured a lot.

Pritchard also bought the No. 27 pick from the Hornets and traded up late in the first round to get another player he wanted, Nicolas Batum.

In the second round, Pritchard turned three second-round picks into four future picks. That works because, given the roster crunch of the Blazers, they just didn't have any room for more players now.

Bayless is an upgrade over the guy the Blazers lost in the trade, Jarrett Jack. Bayless is a better athlete and a much better shooter. If he develops his point guard skills, he could be a Chauncey Billups-type of point guard.

I'm not as high on Batum. The guy Pritchard traded away, Darrell Arthur, will probably be a much better NBA player. But some scouts believe Batum has great upside, and the Blazers felt he was worth the risk.

[via ESPN]

The First Major Dark Knight Review

2008-06-25T18:36:00.000-07:00

The movie is still 3 weeks away, but Rolling Stone's Peter Travers has just posted the first major review of the film, at least the first that Rotten Tomatoes and I have seen. Anyways, this post is just going to be a re-posting of his entire review. It's absurdly positive, which, from Peter Travers could mean a lot or nothing at all, but it just gets me that much more excited to see this thing!

I must warn you, if you're trying to stay away from revealing information (beyond what you would get from movie sites), this review does have some minor spoilers. I personally knew about all of the info he talks about, but that's because I read movie blogs and try and keep up on all the news. So, if you're like me, don't worry, he doesn't get too much into it. I mean, it is Peter Travers after all.

Anyways, without further ado, here's the review:

Heads up: a thunderbolt is about to rip into the blanket of bland we call summer movies. The Dark Knight, director Christopher Nolan's absolute stunner of a follow-up to 2005's Batman Begins, is a potent provocation decked out as a comic-book movie. Feverish action? Check. Dazzling spectacle? Check. Devilish fun? Check. But Nolan is just warming up. There's something raw and elemental at work in this artfully imagined universe. Striking out from his Batman origin story, Nolan cuts through to a deeper dimension. Huh? Wha? How can a conflicted guy in a bat suit and a villain with a cracked, painted-on clown smile speak to the essentials of the human condition? Just hang on for a shock to the system. The Dark Knight creates a place where good and evil — expected to do battle — decide instead to get it on and dance. "I don't want to kill you," Heath Ledger's psycho Joker tells Christian Bale's stalwart Batman. "You complete me." Don't buy the tease. He means it.

The trouble is that Batman, a.k.a. playboy Bruce Wayne, has had it up to here with being the white knight. He's pissed that the public sees him as a vigilante. He'll leave the hero stuff to district attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) and stop the DA from moving in on Rachel Dawes (feisty Maggie Gyllenhaal, in for sweetie Katie Holmes), the lady love who is Batman's only hope for a normal life.

Everything gleams like sin in Gotham City (cinematographer Wally Pfister shot on location in Chicago, bringing a gritty reality to a cartoon fantasy). And the bad guys seem jazzed by their evildoing. Take the Joker, who treats a stunningly staged bank robbery like his private video game with accomplices in Joker masks, blood spurting and only one winner. Nolan shot this sequence, and three others, for the IMAX screen and with a finesse for choreographing action that rivals Michael Mann's Heat. But it's what's going on inside the Bathead that pulls us in. Bale is electrifying as a fallibly human crusader at war with his own conscience.

I can only speak superlatives of Ledger, who is mad-crazy-blazing brilliant as the Joker. Miles from Jack Nicholson's broadly funny take on the role in Tim Burton's 1989 Batman, Ledger takes the role to the shadows, where even what's comic is hardly a relief. No plastic mask for Ledger; his face is caked with moldy makeup that highlights the red scar of a grin, the grungy hair and the yellowing teeth of a hound fresh out of hell. To the clown prince of crime, a knife is preferable to a gun, the better to "savor the moment."

The deft script, by Nolan and his brother Jonathan, taking note of Bob Kane's original Batman and Frank Miller's bleak rethink, refuses to explain the Joker with pop psychology. Forget Freudian hints about a dad who carved a smile into his son's face with a razor. As the Joker says, "What doesn't kill you makes you stranger."

The Joker represents the last completed role for Ledger, who died in January at 28 before finishing work on Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. It's typical of Ledger's total commitment to films as diverse as Brokeback Mountain and I'm Not There that he does nothing out of vanity or the need to be liked. If there's a movement to get him the first posthumous Oscar since Peter Finch won for 1976's Network, sign me up. Ledger's Joker has no gray areas — he's all rampaging id. Watch him crash a party and circle Rachel, a woman torn between Bale's Bruce (she knows he's Batman) and Eckhart's DA, another lover she has to share with his civic duty. "Hello, beautiful," says the Joker, sniffing Rachel like a feral beast. He's right when he compares himself to a dog chasing a car: The chase is all. The Joker's sadism is limitless, and the masochistic delight he takes in being punched and bloodied to a pulp would shame the Marquis de Sade. "I choose chaos," says the Joker, and those words sum up what's at stake in The Dark Knight.

The Joker wants Batman to choose chaos as well. He knows humanity is what you lose while you're busy making plans to gain power. Every actor brings his A game to show the lure of the dark side. Michael Caine purrs with sarcastic wit as Bruce's butler, Alfred, who harbors a secret that could crush his boss's spirit. Morgan Freeman radiates tough wisdom as Lucius Fox, the scientist who designs those wonderful toys — wait till you get a load of the Batpod — but who finds his own standards being compromised. Gary Oldman is so skilled that he makes virtue exciting as Jim Gordon, the ultimate good cop and as such a prime target for the Joker. As Harvey tells the Caped Crusader, "You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become a villain." Eckhart earns major props for scarily and movingly portraying the DA's transformation into the dreaded Harvey Two-Face, an event sparked by the brutal murder of a major character.

No fair giving away the mysteries of The Dark Knight. It's enough to marvel at the way Nolan — a world-class filmmaker, be it Memento, Insomnia or The Prestige — brings pop escapism whisper-close to enduring art. It's enough to watch Bale chillingly render Batman as a lost warrior, evoking Al Pacino in The Godfather II in his delusion and desolation. It's enough to see Ledger conjure up the anarchy of the Sex Pistols and A Clockwork Orange as he creates a Joker for the ages. Go ahead, bitch about the movie being too long, at two and a half hours, for short attention spans (it is), too somber for the Hulk crowd (it is), too smart for its own good (it isn't). The haunting and visionary Dark Knight soars on the wings of untamed imagination. It's full of surprises you don't see coming. And just try to get it out of your dreams.

Hopefully I can find a movie theater down in Houston with a midnight showing.

[via RS]

All Sorts of Things

2008-06-20T14:38:00.000-07:00

As you may have noticed, I haven't been quite as prolific with the posts lately. I've had so much going on in the last few weeks, I just haven't had any time. But I figured I'd get on here and give you all an update on my life, tell you what my plans are as far as the Blogarrhea and all my other online social existences, and where I go from here.

First thing's first: I graduated last Saturday. Pretty cool, had a lot of fun with family and friends, and am relieved that it's over. But, the relief didn't last long because...

Second thing: I accepted the job with Reynolds and Reynolds. I'm pretty excited about it, and have gotten more so the more and more I find out about it. That means I'm headed to Houston for six months. I start July 9, so I'll be hitting the road around the 5th. I may or may not be living with a roommate, but either way, I'll probably have a while there where I have a lot of free time because I don't know anyone and am not familiar with the area, so I plan to be back on the blog with plenty of posts, so don't worry. I'm also a pretty prolific Twitterer, so you should all join Twitter and follow me at twitter.com/kevinregan. Also, don't forget about KevsPix at kevinregan.tumblr.com. I plan on keeping all that up throughout my time in Houston.

Speaking of my blogs, I'm going to be driving myself down to Houston, and that's going to be pretty boring. It's about 36 hours of driving, so I'm going to need something other than Mountain Dew to keep me going. So I'm thinking about doing some kind of pix journal or something where I just take pictures of the drive and post them on one of my blogs. I'm not exactly sure what the best way to do this would be, so maybe you guys have some suggestions? What would you want to see, assuming you will tune into the blog as I go? Should I take pictures with my phone and upload them to my pix blog? Post them to the Blogarrhea? Take pictures with my digital camera and post each night when I get to the hotel? What format should it be? I'm in the brainstorming stage of this "project" right now, and figured I'd ask for some suggestions. After all, you guys are the people who are going to be seeing it.

Any help you could offer would be great, just tell me what you think in the comments.

Quick Look at Two-Face

2008-06-17T12:49:00.000-07:00

SPOILER ALERT! This video shows a quick look at Two-Face from The Dark Knight. If you want to go into the theater and be surprised, don't watch it. While it doesn't show much, it's still revealing.

Check it out:

I can't wait! July 18!

NBC's Tim Russert Dead at 58

2008-06-13T14:29:00.000-07:00

One of the last respectable news journalists, Tim Russert, died today at the age of 58. The cause of death is unknown as of yet, but this is a great loss to the media community, as well as the integrity of the institution.

Watch live coverage below.

Sincere? Or Veiled Mockery?

2008-06-07T12:25:00.000-07:00

Obama is naturally basking in the glow of the Democratic Nomination, as Hilary Clinton has announced that she is done, and that she officially supports Obama to boot. So his people throw up this nice little graphic and send it out to all 40 billion people Obama has on his mailing list, me being one of them.

So I look at this and think, "oh, that's a nice gesture from him." He's showing some class, which is nothing new from him. But then I was looking at it, and I was thinking, that could be a pretty snide comment if there was some other motivation for it. Something like "Thank You, Senator Clinton, for finally getting real and dropping out of this race." The fact that he called her Senator Clinton and not Hillary also could play to that intention.

I'm sure it means well, but I just thought it was kind of funny. I look forward to Obama finally getting into some actual campaigning for President, instead of just the Democratic Nomination. OBAMA!

Job Update

2008-06-05T15:28:00.001-07:00

So, I've been in contact with Reynolds and Reynolds for a while now, most recently a phone interview today, with a drug test being scheduled sometime in the next couple days. Hope all the meth-laced acid I've been dropping the past 72 hours straight is out of my system by then... Anyways, the drug test is kind of symbolic in that it sort of implies a job offer. I talked to the guy who would be my boss yesterday, and he seems pretty cool. Today's phone interview brought the grand total to 5 interviews, with a face-to-face interview in the works. Yikes. But I'm not here entirely to bitch and moan, I'm more here to update you on what I've learned.

First I'll start with the job description. R&R is the leading supplier of software and technology to car dealers. I would be the guy based in Portland that goes to these dealerships a few times a week and work with them to make processes more efficient, profitable, user-friendly, etc. I would work from home, set my own schedule, and my own hours. As long as I get my work done, I'm all good.

I get a company car, which I also can use for personal use, and all gas is paid for. I also get a Blackberry, a laptop, and a printer/scanner/copier. So they basically set me up.

As you know already, there is a 6 month training in Houston, but they put me up in an apartment with rent and utilities paid for, so all I have to do is feed myself. Each year they fly everyone to Houston for a meeting/company get together, which sounds like fun, and every 6 months we are eligible for a raise/promotion. Sounds great to me.

So, that's what I've learned thus far. I'll let you know more when I know more.

Pics of Last Night's Kanye Concert

2008-06-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

I just posted 8 pictures of the Kanye West concert in Portland last night on KevsPix. I was in the 18th row on the floor, so I felt obligated to snap a few. I had to check the battery in my camera at the customer service booth before the show because of the no camera policy, so these are from my phone. I'm not sure how they turned out, because I can only see them on my phone, but hopefully you can see something. The concert was incredible! I'll post about it later today. I have some video too, and have no idea how that will look, but I'm going to upload them to YouTube later and post them with my big post, so watch for that.

Until then, check out the pics at http://kevinregan.tumblr.com

Kanye West Concert Tonight!

2008-06-03T09:26:00.000-07:00

Myself, the venerable Mr. Franklin, and the always stylish Mr. Jerome, will be heading up to Portland tonight to see the Glow in the Dark tour at the Rose Garden. As much as I hate the Rose Garden, it's hard to pass up Kanye, Lupe Fiasco, Rhianna, and N.E.R.D., all together, on the floor, for $60.

I'll try and post some pics and/or vid when I get back.

UPDATE: I'm #1 on Google!

2008-05-28T13:10:00.003-07:00

I just searched again today, and I'm back at #1 baby! I even have the screencap to prove it:

Ducks Stewart and Dixon in Uniform

2008-05-28T12:53:00.001-07:00

Boom!

Looking sharp, gents.

[thanks to Franklin for the pics]

Badvertising: Heineken "Share the Good"

2008-05-26T18:30:00.000-07:00

I was just watching the Pistons - Celtics Game 4, and caught a Heineken commercial that I just didn't understand. It's not that I didn't get it, it was the logic behind it. It was the "Share the Good" commercial with that quirky "It's Love" song behind it where people go around giving people bottles of Heineken Premium Light.

The first guy gives his 2 beers to 2 people in a hot tub or something. The girl then gives hers away to some other girl, who gives it to a mountain man, etc. It's all about people giving their beer away. It's like nobody wants it, so they all pawn it off on someone else. What kind of message is that? Our beer sucks? Because that's what I got out of it.

See for yourself and let me know:

(It still looks to me like they don't want it and are just trying to give it to the next person)

Happy Memorial Day

2008-05-26T17:13:00.000-07:00

Just got back into town after spending the weekend at the coast. Relaxing, but now it's time to get back to work. 3 more weeks.

ItsOnTap.com is Up and Running!

2008-05-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

It's On Tap, the new blog my roommates and I started is now officially up and running. It's all about booze, with a specific emphasis on beer. So go to http://itsontap.com and check it out. Check it often, maybe bookmark it, link to it on your pages, comment a lot, give us suggestions and experiences, anything and everything. We have some solid content already up, with much more to come.

Comments about it on this post are welcomed and encouraged. I would love to hear what you think about it, how we can make it better, some of your post ideas, etc. It all helps.

My (Potential) New Job

2008-05-20T00:26:00.000-07:00

I am graduating in 3 weeks, so lately I have been on the hunt for a job. I went to the career fair last week, have been looking at online job postings, doing a lot of different things to try and find one. I have submitted my resume to who knows how many companies, and as of right now, have 2 solid leads. 1 at Verizon Wireless, which I am not too enthusiastic about, but don't want to discard just yet, and the other at Reynolds & Reynolds, a technology provider for car dealerships. I heard about them and applied for a position through Oregonlive.com's job search, and they contacted me when they looked at my resume.

I had a phone interview with R&R today, which consisted of a very short overview of my resume and some standard questions. Then I was e-mailed a bunch of (digital) paperwork to do, which took me all of 2 hours. Yeah, it was great. But I got that done, sent it all back, and should hear from them later on this week.

The position is titled "Solutions Specialist", and what that means is that I would be a sort of liaison between the company and its Northwest clients on how to best use the technology, be more efficient, increase profits, etc. It sounds like a lot of fun, something that I would be very interested in, and something I would think I would be good at. However, the slight hitch came when they told me about the training program.

It's a 6 month training course, 5 months of which are in Houston, TX. The last month would be in Omaha, NE. I would be paid a salary equal to what I will be making when the training is finished, and an apartment would be provided for me. That in itself makes the situation a whole lot more bearable. But, one thing that it still doesn't remedy: the fact that I would be away from family, friends, and everything I know, and thrust into a place I know nothing about. It's not that I couldn't handle it, it's just... what the hell would I do there?

So I was looking around today for stuff in Houston and the outlying areas, and came across a small museum nearby. Now, Hayley's dad, for those that don't know, is a history buff beyond the meaning of the term. So whenever I'm with him, he'll throw out these interesting facts about anything, quiz me about history, etc., and I'll be totally clueless. One of the things I didn't learn in school was history. But it still interests me a lot, and a buddy of mine is actually majoring in it, which makes me that much more interested. So naturally, in Houston, near the Texas - Mexico border, there's a lot of history.

The museum is called the Stark Museum of Art, and it's located in Orange, TX, not more than 2 hours from Houston. Just about as far as Eugene is from Portland actually. The museum is part of the Stark Foundation, whose mission is to improve the quality of life in Southeast Texas by encouraging, promoting and assisting education, the arts, etc. The museum explores the art of the American West. Now, I've taken a few art history classes, or what seemed to be even if they weren't titles as such, and it's cool to see art in other cultures. But this is America people! And I know nothing about it. How dare I! They have many different collections including Western Art, American Indian Art, Decorative Arts, and Rare Books and Manuscripts. Sounds like a place I could get my learning on.

So, if I do get the job, decide to accept, and assuming I don't make any friends in Houston, I'll probably make the trip to Orange, TX. Maybe you can come out and visit me? I'll buy the ticket if I really get desperate.

What Kind of Question Is That?!

2008-05-19T17:39:00.000-07:00

I've been busy today with interviews, applications, assignments, and plenty of other crap. My brain is pretty worn out already, and I still have 2 assignments and (maybe) an application to go. Thank goodness I didn't have class today. But I was going through the online application for a company today that included a personality test. "Just to kind of get to know you" they said. Whatever, here goes.

So I'm going through this thing, and it feels like one of those marketing surveys I've taken so many times in the past, the extent to which you agree or disagree with something. Ugh, I hat those. But I was nearing the end and doing my best to stay focused and honest throughout. I mean, I think I might want this job, so I took it seriously.

That was until I hit one of the last questions. Here it is:

I read it again. Nope, it still says what I think it says. What the hell kind of question was that? There was nothing else like that the other 75 questions, just the one random poor person insult.

So I laughed a little, answered "disagree" as you can see, and moved on. It just really caught me off guard and made me question the motives behind it for a second. "Oh, they must hate poor people."

Hopefully they don't read my blog... because I do want the job...

Barack Obama in Oregon today... at Lew's? WTF?!

2008-05-18T22:35:00.000-07:00

Barack Obama was campaigning in Oregon today, and was met with a huge crowd (75,000!) at Waterfront Park, as you can see in that thumbnail. It's not a surprise considering Obama has this race in the bag and Oregon is a blue state. However, he didn't just hit Portland. He and his family were in my hometown of Milwaukie. Lord knows why he decided to make a trip down McLaughlin, anyone who lives there or has been there lately can tell you it's turned into quite the shit hole. But even worse than that, he decided to stop for a snack at Lew's Dari-Freeze.

Holy shit, I live like 3 minutes from there! Barack Obama was basically at my house today! Well, not really, but you know, that's damn close. But, again, as anyone will tell you, you don't go to Lew's. Oh Barack, the stories I could tell you about people I know working at Lew's. Hopefully you only got a soda...

Check out the pictures below:

[Pictures courtesy Obama's Flickr stream]

I'm #1 on Google!

2008-05-17T02:07:00.001-07:00

Well, not really. But, I was #1 for a certain search phrase at the right time. It was kind of surprising too. Now, many websites live and die by their rank on Google for certain phrases. It drives a lot of traffic because it's the dominating search engine and performs billions of searches daily. I am not one of those sites, so I hadn't checked where I was ranked, besides searching for my name. I am signed up for Google Analytics, though, and was looking through it tonight ad nauseum, and noticed a few things:

Over the almost 2 years I've been using Google Analytics, about 43% of my traffic comes from search engines, almost all from Google
A substantial amount of this traffic visits only a few specific posts
I am on the front page of Google searches for a lot of keyword strings; some general and common, many not so much
Google Analytics is an amazing tool

Now, odds are if you search Google for exact titles of my posts, there will be many more top links, so that doesn't normally count. But this time was different, because my post title was kind of a common, almost generic keyword phrase.

I saw that my post about the Pabst casket was getting a lot of hits since I posted it, mostly from Google when the keyword phrase "pabst casket" was searched for. So, I figure I'm #9 or 10, and go check it out. When I searched for it, I was the top link! I didn't take a screenshot, unfortunately, and when I went back, I was #3.

But for one moment, I could defiantly say, I am #1 on Google!

(P.S. I am still #1 for "legs cut off roller-coaster" and I think I will stand undefeated for a while. That's a pretty specific string...)

It's Summertime, Folks!

2008-05-17T01:21:00.000-07:00

Finally, summer has reached beautiful Eugene, Oregon. It's been a long time coming, with some seriously cold and crappy weather creeping all the way into the early days of May. No matter what you believe about weather in the Northwest, this year was not normal. But it's been sunny and hot the last 2 days, so all of that is behind us. Now, thoughts of summer activities start running around in my head. The beach, the golf course, camping, road tripping, etc. Basically, vacation.

However, this will be the first summer I will (hopefully) be working. I am graduating this June, and actively pursuing multiple job opportunities, so fingers crossed that some opportunity comes through. But that's not going to stop me from going somewhere and doing something this summer, even if it's just on a weekend.

One thing I've been thinking about is a trip somewhere across the country. Normally, I would think about a road trip, but that would definitely take longer than a weekend, so for me and anyone else I go with had a job, we would have to take time off. Being a new employee somewhere, I wouldn't have any vacation time to take yet, so no luck there.

That's where flying comes in. We may not have time to road trip, but we will have a bit more money to be able to afford a cheap plane ticket. We could make it there late Friday night and come back Sunday night. Maybe to catch a Braves game! That would be an amazing weekend trip I would gladly take. But the issue that brings up is, how do I get around once I get off the plane?

Rental car. But on the cheap? Oh yeah. Try Advantage. Advantage is a rental car company with deals as low as $19.99 per day until June 30. Their website makes it really easy too; easier than if you did it through a package site like Expedia if you ask me. Simple 1-2-3 car rental process, and less than $20 per day.

So, assuming a pretty cheap plane ticket, we could get on a plane bound for Atlanta Friday night after work, touch down, rent a car, head to a hotel or maybe one of my relatives, if they're close, head to a Saturday Braves game, maybe even catch a Sunday game too, that would be a great. Then, return the car, catch a Sunday night flight, and be back to work by Monday morning.

So, friends, who wants to go to Atlanta this summer?

[This post sponsored by Advantage]

"Please take that ugly OSU shit off." Love, Franklin

2008-05-14T16:33:00.000-07:00

There's a story in some po-dunk news paper in Albany about a tour at the UO Athletic Department on Friday where the tour guide asked kids to take off or cover up their OSU crap. Well, it was our good friend Franklin [from Allow Me To Be Frank(lin)] and now he's famous! Check out the article in the Albany Democrat Herald.

I would just like to commend Franklin on his efforts. I think it's disrespectful to wear clothes with a rival's name and/or logo to that school. It would be fine if the Beavs were playing, of course, I would actually encourage that. But it wasn't. It was a tour, given by an unpaid intern, for free. Show some courtesy.

But this kid made a big deal out of nothing really. The teachers even said they didn't think anything of it. It wasn't like they were forced to take their stuff off, it was a comment playfully jabbing back at some kids who, by what they were wearing, were jabbing at him. How do I know? Franklin told me.

There is a lot of chatter on the eDuck forums about this. I like a lot of them (like "That tour guide deserves a raise."), and you should check them out if you need a laugh or a reminder of how dumb some people are, but I would just like to post one comment in particular that was relevant and that I liked a lot:

"I think it's humorous in many ways...
that you think there is something bad about it
that the tour guide takes his school and colors so seriously
that the kids "parents" take it so seriously that they made it a point to dress their kids up in osu garb prior to the field trip to U of O
That the teachers did not address something like that in a note to the parents prior to the field trip, like is normally done.
That you and I are even commenting on it."

So true buddy, so true.

Oh boy, those crazy Albanians (I assume that's what they're called), everything's a big story when you live in the sticks, I guess.

What do you think? After reading the story, is this a big deal or not?

Microsoft Surface, The Reality

2008-05-14T14:45:00.000-07:00

This video really makes me want to invest in Microsoft Surface. Would you still be interested after this commercial?

Happy Mother's Day, Love LeBron

2008-05-13T18:44:00.000-07:00

During the Celtics - Cavaliers game on Monday, Paul Pierce wrapped Lebron up with a little extra, after which Lebron gave his mom a belated Mother's Day present. Just watch.

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

As a special treat, here's Kobe being an asshole. It's really funny.

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

ItsOnTap.com: A Preview

2008-05-13T00:38:00.000-07:00

My roommates and I are starting up a new blog called It's on Tap. As the name suggests, it's a blog about beer. While I may have told you that it had launched in a previous post, if you visited, you noticed that it wasn't. Sorry about that. I guess we're still working on some things. But that means I've been writing posts that you all can't read.

So I figured I would put them to use and post one or two of them here in the meantime. So, this first one is one I just wrote about a $7,450 cocktail. Enjoy.

The $7,450 Cocktail

If you ever find yourself in Dubai and in the mood for one of the world's most expensive cocktails, look no further than the Skyview Bar on the 27th floor of the Burj Al Arab hotel. Just opening its doors this past April, the Burj Al Arab is the tallest hotel in the world, not to mention one of the most luxurious. So should you have the money to visit, there's a chance you may have an extra $7,450 in your pocket. If so, this is a must have. But for those of us who don't, well, we can dream, right?

This prodigal concoction begins with The Macallan 55 year single malt scotch, which had a run of only 420 bottles and comes in a crystal Lalique decanter, with a $12,000 price tag. That boils down to just about $473 per ounce. Yikes.

It's mixed with dried fruit bitters designed to accentuate its taste as well as handmade passionfruit sugar. The drink is served in an 18kt gold goblet over ice cubes made at the Macallan distillery from the same water source as the scotch, and stirred with a wooden stirring stick crafted from a Macallan scotch cask stave. All for just $7,450.

If it's any consolation, you get to keep the goblet. It's not...

New Poll: McFadden or Stewart?

2008-05-12T06:26:00.000-07:00

Which of the top 2 running backs taken in this year's draft will be the first to rush for 100 yards in a game, Darren McFadden or Jonathan Stewart? You decide.

Opinion Polls & Market Research

Barack Obama in Eugene, Round 2

2008-05-10T15:01:00.001-07:00

Last night, I had the privilege of seeing Barack Obama speak for the second time. The first was in Mac Court, and was a great experience. It really inspired me and reaffirmed the reasons why I'm voting for him. This time is was on the quad in front of the library. It was really cool too, because it was out on the grass, in the sun, with just a mob of people that really felt authentic. It felt like everyone was there because they wanted to see this man, not just because they saw it in the paper or something.

I gotta say, though, that this speech was not as good as the first one. He seemed a little tired, exhausted from the nonstop campaigning I'm sure. However, he didn't sound like he was just going through the motions. It seemed like he meant what he said, and truly believed in it, but just didn't say as much. I felt like he assumed everone had already seen him at Mac Court, so this was just a reminder, or a follow up almost, so he didn't need to go into everything.

Overall, I'm of course glad I was there. It was exciting to see the next president twice in as many months. Here are some pictures from the event, from Obama's Flickr account. You can't see me, I already tried, but just look at how many people were there. This guy is amazing at getting people involved.

Mike & Mike: Biggest Sellouts Ever

2008-05-06T13:56:00.000-07:00

How did these guys get so popular? Why are radio personalities suddenly peddling everything in the whole damn world? Has anyone ever sold out quite as quickly or effectively as these two? I submit that the answer to that question is no.

There is nothing more frustrating than talk radio. Listening to people with bloated self-importance try to stretch four talking points into 3 hours is beyond aggravating. I don't venture to the AM dial much, but if I do, it's either to listen to a game, or listen to ESPN Radio. Now, I love ESPN, but it is guilty of this too. When there is nothing to talk about, talk radio soldiers on, and this is when it reaches its very worst. To illustrate, here's what happened last night:

I was headed to Subway for a delicious $5 footlong (speaking of effective marketing), and I turned on ESPN Radio because, among other things, regular radio is getting really old. As I make the 3 minute drive over there around 10:30pm, I am "fortunate" enough to catch the night guy talking about a kid that wore a Brett Favre jersey everyday for 4 years. Now, that's pretty crazy, if not disgusting, but this guy made it sound like it was some kind of important story. He read from the article that the reason why the kid took it off was because it was getting too short. He was 8 when he got it, and now, 4 years later, it's too small. Not difficult to accept that reasoning. This guy didn't. He gave 2 reasons why the kid took it off: Brett Favre's retirement (which is the dumbest thing I've ever heard) and girls. Alright, whatever the reason, it still doesn't matter. It's NOT a story! See? Frustrating.

So Mike & Mike have been on ESPN Radio for a few years now, and have been successful. They're on for 4 hours, from 6-10am EST. But for the last year or so, they've been on TV also. They have a studio, and tape the show. The radio show. Now, my personal distaste for both of them aside, they're the biggest thing in sports radio right now, so naturally advertisers see potential in this. God knows how many sponsors they've been approached by, but they've accepted almost everything apparently.

Let me give you a little run down of what these guys peddle, aside from their ESPN sponsors (like the RadioShack inbox), either together or individually:

Domino's - Those annoying voices telling me I've got 30 minutes in the commercials
NutriSystem - Eat like a lineman without looking like one
Duel - The ABC show that Greenberg hosts (or hosted? Not sure)
Pizza Hut - Complete with crappy online game
Dr. Pepper - Goes great with pizza, I guess

I'm sure there are others, these are just off the top of my head right now. Let me know what I forgot.

Being a marketing major, I can't blame them or the advertisers. I can't. If they can sell it, which I often have trouble believing, then good for them. But guys, isn't it important to maintain some integrity along the way? I mean, first of all, how do you expect people to take you seriously and accept what you say as honest if it always has some company name in front of it? Also, how can you pitch two products that so obviously contradict each other?

First off, how can you advertise for Pizza Hut and Domino's at the same time? That's a problem, both for the companies, who fucked that up, and for Mike & Mike because that almost screams "we'll do anything for a buck" and because both of those pizzas SUCK!

Furthermore, I submit that it is slightly unethical for Mike Golic to sell both NutriSystem and Domino's pizza. How contradicting is that? Can you make it any more obvious that you're just doing it for the money? Domino's will make you fat. NutriSystem alleges to make you thin. If you do both, you're boned. Oh, and I'm not sure it's part of the NutriSystem plan to compete in a buffalo wing eating contest. That really makes me question their intentions in all this.

Wait, no it doesn't. Mike & Mike are sellouts, they annoy the hell out of me, and they will do anything for money. Regardless of what they bring to the sports world, I don't think I will ever like them, and this is a big reason why.

(As I side note, while I'm making accusations about ESPN, I submit to you that John Clayton is paralyzed, and in a wheelchair. I have never seen his legs move, the legs they never show anyways, and when on camera, his upper body never moves. I have no reason to believe that he is not. Anyone?)

Pabst Casket

2008-05-05T22:35:00.000-07:00

This guy really loves Pabst.

Read the article here.

By the way, I had to add the "life" tag to this post; it was just too ironic to pass up.

May I Repeat...

2008-05-05T03:54:00.000-07:00

Chipper Jones is the shit! Through 28, as of May 4.

New Dark Knight Trailer: Joker Edition

2008-05-01T15:11:00.000-07:00

Apparently there was some marketing event for The Dark Knight recently, and select fans got to go home with a 35mm reel of the trailer. Sounds great, if you have something to play it on. One fan did, and when he started it up, it had been "vandalized" by the Joker.

It's pretty damn cool, especially as a souvenir. Check out the video he posted of the trailer. The sound sucks, but that's not really what's important.

Another fine job by the Dark Knight marketing team. Thanks to Franklin for the heads up.

Monitization Experiment Update

2008-04-28T13:29:00.001-07:00

If you've been following this blog for a little while, you know that I've been experimenting with ways of monetizing on the internet. I am a marketing major, graduating this Spring, and am interested in advertising, technology, and how the two interact as the marketing landscape changes. Specifically, I am interested in how the internet is going to be monetized successfully. There is no generally accepted way of doing this yet, and many think, including me, that the current ad supported model is not going to end up the favorite, for many reasons.

Anyway, I have been experimenting with this blog over the past year, determining how different methods work, what might be most effective for different types of situations, and where there is opportunity for growth or expansion.

The latest method has been PayPerPost, which I explained in this post. What I have found is that, since that post, I have earned, and received, $38. I posted two sponsored posts, got them approved, and eventually got paid through PayPal. So, on the blogger side, for a smaller blog like mine, that doesn't get a particularly large amount of hits, but still (in my opinion of course) has decent content, this is more effective than AdSense or some other click-based ad system. It yields more money, yields it faster, and pays out per post. However, for the advertiser, I'm not sure it's as effective. Per dollar, how much are they making off my blog? There's no cost-per-click type structure, or at least not to my knowledge, so it's difficult to measure ROI.

So, I may stick with PPP, as it does offer a few bucks here and there, but I'm still in search of new methods to try out. Let me know if you have any suggestions. And one last thing, this post is NOT sponsored.

Thoughts about the Buiness of 'Gangland'

2008-04-27T17:59:00.000-07:00

I was watching the History Channel today (always a good decision on a Sunday afternoon), and their Gangland series was on. I have never actually watched an entire episode, but I've seen enough to know its pretty cool.

Anyways, this episode I was watching was talking specifically about the 18 worst LA gangs, and all the violence going on. So they show these pictures of gangs posing, kind of like a team or class picture, and they've got all their guns and stuff, and I got to thinking: Do lagitimate gun dealers make any money off of gangs?

Seriously, I only saw guns in the pictures. I didn't see any holsters or anything like that. I assume, without knowing anything about gangs, that most gang members didn't go to a store and buy a gun or something, they either bought them second hand, on the black market, or stole them. I bet a lot of money could have been made from that.

For you folks who have guns you want to holster, check out Galco holsters. They'll set you up with some holsters that every gun owner would be proud of, regardless of how you acquired it.

[This post was sponsored by lapolicegear.com]

New Dark Knight Poster

2008-04-27T13:16:00.003-07:00

Sorry I'm a little late with this, but this is a great poster, so I had to post it.

As you all know, I am very excited about this movie. I think a lot of people are going to see it because Batman Begins was really good, and people just love Batman in general. So, it took me a little by surprise when I came across EW's projections for summer box office numbers. Their list has The Dark Knight coming in 6th in total box office revenues with $255 million. That's a great number, but 6th? Honestly? I think it will come in 3rd overall. One problem I really had with their list, too, was that Will Smith's new movie Hancock, which looks like a bag of shit, is in their #4 spot. What?! I must either be really misinformed, or EW sucks.

I vote the latter.

Jonathan Stewart's Draft Day

2008-04-26T22:51:00.000-07:00

The epitome of class:

Jonathan Stewart's draft day

If you didn't catch the draft, he went 13th overall to the Carolina Panthers. Congratulations Jonathan!

Chipper Jones is the Shit

2008-04-25T14:11:00.001-07:00

Through 23 games. Enough said.

Oh, the Comedic Juxtoposition is Killing Me

2008-04-24T14:54:00.000-07:00

Every Tuesday and Thursday, during my 2 hour break between classes, I come to the computer lab to kill time. The first thing I do is read the top stories on Digg from my iGoogle homepage. Today, The third story, with 2247 Diggs (as of this posting) was titled "Penis theft on the rise." That's a funny and ridiculous headline, but could it really be true? I had to check it out.

So I click the link (to Yahoo News) and read the original headline, "Lynchings in Congo as penis theft panic hits capital." How hilarious, so I read the first paragraph:

Police in Congo have arrested 13 suspected sorcerers accused of using black magic to steal or shrink men's penises after a wave of panic and attempted lynchings triggered by the alleged witchcraft.

Oh my God it got more funny and ridiculous. So I read a little bit more, laughed at the use of the term "penis snatching," and made my way down the page.

Then I noticed something. An ad on the page. For Hillary Clinton. I shit you not, this was the ad that popped up, I have the screencap to prove it:

So I sat back and admired this hilarious juxtaposition. A story about a penis snatchers witch hunt, and Hillary's face right there, with "Should Hillary Quit" on it.

So I ask you, good people of the Blogarrhea: Should Hillary quit snatching penises?

Inside Oregon Athletics: Part 2

2008-04-22T13:55:00.000-07:00

The second episode of this video series pulling back the curtain on Oregon Athletics. Take a look:

Domino's Unleashes the 444 Deal

2008-04-21T23:39:00.000-07:00

Take that Pizza Hut! Domino's just unleashed the 444 Deal; 3 medium, 1-topping pizzas for $4 each. That's $12 for 3 pizzas. You may remember the days when it cost $15 for 3 pizzas, but those days, my friends, are over. You may also have thought that food prices were on the rise. Well, clearly that is not the case. And who says this nation is entering a recession? Pizza will save us!

But seriously, when I first heard about this, 2 things went through my head: 1) Anybody want some pizza? 2) HA! Take that Pizza Hut! You thought you could compete in the "cheap-ass pizza" market with that sorry "Pizza Mia" deal, a clear knock off of the 555 Deal of old? Well now you're boned. Ever heard of game theory? Well, you made the wrong move. Sure, you may have been losing some money when you were selling pizzas for $10 and Domino's was selling them for $5, so you moved. Now, you're STILL losing money, but now people won't even buy your pizzas for $5 because Domino's sells them for $4. So you either lower your prices too, and cut some loses, or you just eat it. You would have been better off holding your price at $10, because then you'd still be selling pizzas, making decent money on them to boot, and Domino's wouldn't have gone any lower.

Anyways, fuck Pizza Hut anyways, I know what I'll be eating this weekend.

What the hell is this? Inside Oregon Football

2008-04-21T17:29:00.000-07:00

Franklin just pointed me to this video that is part of a series that is allegedly going to "pull back the curtain" on Oregon Football and expose it for what it is. I'm eager to see just what this thing has to say, and if this is real or not. Take a look, and stay tuned for the next episode:

Shel Israel: The Puppet

2008-04-21T03:34:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: If you don't like tech, you should probably stop reading. You might get bored. Just sayin'.

Shel Israel is a figure in the tech community. Not very visible, per se, but a figure nonetheless. He's an author, a vlogger for fastcompany.tv, and maintains the blog "Global Neighbourhoods: Social Media's impact on business & culture." He is an actual person.

Shel Israel the puppet is not a real person. He is a puppet that vlogs for "Shel Israel: A parody of Social Media’s impact on business & culture."

Jason Calacanis is an internet entreprenuer, and currently the founder of Mahalo.com, a kind of Google/Wikipedia hybrid site. He's an occasional guest on TWiT, and it appears he's also got his hand in 1938 Media, which produces Shel Israel the puppet's vlog.

If you are still with me, then you are going to love this. So, Shel Israel, the real guy, has had a bunch of blogs over the years, but apparently never bought his own domain name, shelisrael.com. Or, at least it was available on March 31, because the guy who does the voice, or Calacanis or somebody, discovered this and bought it up, and is now totally exploiting it. Basically, it's Shel, the puppet, doing interviews in the vein of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, but about tech and the people in it. The guy who does Shel Israel is real funny. He references how dumb it is to not have your own domain name all the time. Classic.

So, head over to shelisrael.com, watch a few of the videos, get used to his shtick, and I will be surprised if you're not hooked. My favorite episode so far is "Shel Tours Mahalo." It had me laughing real hard at one point. Also, check out 1938media.com, which seems to be a bit more up to date.

You know what? Even those not into tech might enjoy it. So, if you're still reading, check it out anyways.

Baracky: The Movie

2008-04-20T14:32:00.000-07:00

Yo America! Yes We Can!

(Thanks for the heads up, Dad.)

Check Out My New Blog: It's On Tap

2008-04-19T14:53:00.001-07:00

Born out of a love for beer and beer related products, my roommates and I have started a website, http://itsontap.com. We should have it running at full steam early this week, so make sure to head over there and check it out. We still may change some things around, as it just went up today.

We're still working out what exactly our mission statement is and what kind of posts we're going to make. Beer and liquor reviews, bar reviews, stories, and anything else you can think of related to that magic blend of hops and barley. And don't worry, Kevin's Blogarrhea isn't going anywhere, but it may take a back seat in the next few weeks as we work out the kinks. I'll still be all over twitter too.

So make sure to bookmark itsontap.com and check it often. We love beer, and you should too!

Ugliest Outfit Party

2008-04-18T15:38:00.000-07:00

Last night we had an "ugliest outfit" party at our place. Not really sure how it came about, but it did. So, we all dug through our closets for the ugliest outfits we could find, and here's what everyone came up with:

Ryan pulled his look together with multiple collars, a Burberry scarf, sweat shorts, mismatching socks, and a jock strap. Very nice Ryan.

I went with more of a Jamie Kennedy look with the upside down visor, a Randy Moss jersey under a gray cutoff, tucked into shorts, with dress shoes ad a tie. Had to class it up a little.

Hayley and Amanda really turned up the heat with these sexy ensembles. Hayley offered... well, let's just say scarves and belts.

Amanda couldn't decide whether she was going to the mountain or going out to the club. I call it: "layers". Couldn't have been pulled off any sharper, well done.

Jake brought hockey to the party along with his finest pair of flannel pants, the classic orange shorts, and his high school football helmet. Jake, where's your other sock? Oh, right, worst dressed.

Bryan, complete with Lee Trevino era Gatorade hat and rust colored shorts he just bought (and will soon be returning, because that's NOT what they looked like online), joined the party with a nice shiny purple shirt buttoned at the top. Nice.

Jill showed up, dug through Amanda's closet for a while, and came out with this gem of an outfit. Well played, ma'am.

A while later, Bridget came over and wowed us all with the best shirt we'd ever seen. That shirt in combination with the zebra print, perfection.

So we all voted for who we thought was the worst dressed, and not surprisingly, Bridget went #1, and Amanda and Ryan tied for #2. I give it to Ryan for that incredible pose he has in that picture. Congrats to them. What do you guys think?

Open Your Ears: Ya Boy

2008-04-17T13:18:00.000-07:00

I just heard Ya Boy for the first time yesterday, but I guess he's been around a while. That's the story with a lot of rappers though. Especially for me. Wait, Snoop Dogg? Who's that? Well, it's not that bad, but I wouldn't say I have nearly the knowledge of the "indie rap" scene, as I will call it, that I do of the indie rock scene. But my friend Josh does, and that's how I heard about Ya Boy.

Anyways, Ya Boy has 3 albums, and is soon to release his first single to radio stations, called (of course) "Holla at Ya Boy". It's already on iTunes if you want to check it out. You can check out more about Ya Boy on his website too, which is pretty bad ass to be honest. He's got a great flow, and some really great beats, which is what rap is all about these days. But, they're not beats made for radio. The beats and the flow all sound authentic, which is equally as important in my opinion.

I personally love this song, "No Replacement", his remix of Beyonce's "Irreplaceable", which is really funny. I have to warn you though, it's definitely rated R. It doesn't show his talents, but I just think it's great. If you want to check out more about him, you should check out this playlist on imeem.

Hopefully this post gets Zach off my back about never posting about rap music. So take a listen below, and then anytime you want after that, as it's on the Blogarrhea playlist at the top of the page.

The Boss Endorses Obama

2008-04-16T22:33:00.000-07:00

Earlier today I heard that Bruce Springsteen officially endorsed Barack Obama, and my initial reaction was, "that's awesome." I love Bruce Springsteen, and I want Obama to be President, so naturally I was pleased. But then I started thinking: does it really matter? Does the Boss really have the power to sway voters with his endorsement? Maybe, maybe not. But I think there are a number of arguments for why this is important.

First of all, Bruce Springsteen's music embodies working class heroism. He's always celebrated the blue-collar, working class American, so I imagine his opinions may go a long way in that demographic. However, he has never been much of a political songwriter. He may have political overtones in some songs, but nothing close to Dylan, U2, or Green Day, who all wrote more specifically and had more of an agenda with their political music. The point here is that nobody looks to him for political advice.

In a more "big picture" way, though, I think this is important. One, while he's just one more of the many on the list of Obama endorsers, the difference is everybody knows his name. He's iconic, so it really doesn't matter what his politics are, because a lot of people are going to notice this endorsement, which is good for the overall campaign.

Just some random thoughts. Anyway, here's the official announcement text from Springsteen's website:

Dear Friends and Fans:

LIke most of you, I've been following the campaign and I have now seen and heard enough to know where I stand. Senator Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest.

He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next President. He speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, a country that's interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where "...nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone."

At the moment, critics have tried to diminish Senator Obama through the exaggeration of certain of his comments and relationships. While these matters are worthy of some discussion, they have been ripped out of the context and fabric of the man's life and vision, so well described in his excellent book, Dreams From My Father, often in order to distract us from discussing the real issues: war and peace, the fight for economic and racial justice, reaffirming our Constitution, and the protection and enhancement of our environment.

After the terrible damage done over the past eight years, a great American reclamation project needs to be undertaken. I believe that Senator Obama is the best candidate to lead that project and to lead us into the 21st Century with a renewed sense of moral purpose and of ourselves as Americans.

Over here on E Street, we're proud to support Obama for President.

Bruce Springsteen

Check out the site and announcement here.

Before I finish this post, I just want to say that the debate tonight on NBC was pretty awful. Although I though both Barack and Hillary looked good in it, I was very dissatisfied with ABC's job of hosting it and both moderator's jobs. Some of those questions were pretty awful, and I'm not sure if they got to a real issue within the first hour. Maybe hour and a half.

I'll Take 100 Shares of Obama

2008-04-16T03:25:00.001-07:00

I have a very strong feeling that Barack Obama will win the Democratic Nomination. So much so that I should buy stock in it, and over at Intrade.com, I can do just that.

Intrade is a prediction market that works just like the stock market, but instead of betting on the price of wheat or gold going up or down, you bet on the Democratic nominee and whether or not Eliot Spitzer will be indicted on felony charges. Here's a screencap of the homepage:

(Click to enlarge)

As you can see, Obama's down 0.3 points from yesterday, so now's the perfect time to buy! People actually do invest real money into this, and it's basically treated just like buying and selling stock.

So, along with my Obama shares, I think I'll take a few shares on the prediction that Google's Lunar X Prize will be won before December 31, 2012. That's Google's $30m international competition to successfully land a robot on the surface of the moon, travel 500 meters, and send back pictures. Why not?

Oh, and one last thing: anybody want any Rudy Giuliani shares? They're a hell of a bargain right now.

What is that in Cheney's glasses?

2008-04-14T04:45:00.000-07:00

Oh, that's right, a naked chick. Just checking...

[via his whitehouse.gov Outdoors page]

Kobe Jumps a Car. An Aston Martin no less. Real?

2008-04-11T02:18:00.000-07:00

This video is of Kobe Bryant (apparently) jumping over a car. An Aston Martin at (apparently) 50 mph. Check it out:

Now, is it real or fake? The camera is stationary, Kobe completely clears the car, and he mentions Nike's Hyper Dunks (while wearing Nike apparel). Those signs point to fake. However, Ronny Turiaf is there, who, to my knowledge, is NOT a Nike sponsored athelete, and the shoes Kobe shows off at the beginning are NOT the Zoom Kobe III's (see them here). That points to real. But, the shoes Kobe looks to be wearing in tonight's game are the same one's in the video (I think).

So, what do you think, is this video real or fake?

Obama may actually lose to Hillary

2008-04-11T01:44:00.000-07:00

I just read that, despite popular belief, especially from the media, there may still be a way for Hillary Clinton to secure the Democratic Nomination over Barack Obama. I personally was shocked when I heard this, being an Obama fan, and hearing from SO many sources that Obama had it in the bag. As much as I would like to, you can't really argue this.

Check out the article here, then let me know what you think in the comments.

My Sites: LinkedIn

2008-04-10T23:21:00.000-07:00

LinkedIn is a social networking site, very much like Facebook or Myspace, except it has a professional twist. Facebook and Myspace tend to focus on all the stuff that revolves around one's personal life, and not much on professional life. LinkedIn fills that gap. It's purpose, on the most basic level, is to facilitate the maintenance of professional relationships.

It allows users to enter professional information, including employment experience, both past and present, education details, and a lot of other information. It basically allows you to upload your resume. Then, the social networking portion kicks in. Based on where you worked, where you went to school, etc., it will link you to other professionals in that same position. But that's really only the beginning. Here's a screen cap of my public profile:

To see my entire public profile, go to linkedin.com/in/kregan.

Now, the beauty of this site is that it allows you to connect with business professionals from across the globe. The only requirement is that they have a LinkedIn account. And there are various ways you can find people to connect with. You can upload your email contacts and see if any of them have an account, you can search based on your past positions and workplaces and find colleagues, you can search for classmates that attended the same school when you were there, or you can just search them by name, email address, etc. Personally, I am only linked with 6 people (as you can see above), and while I have a few pending connection invitations, I plan to use this site liberally. By that I mean I'm not going to connect with people I don't know, like I sometimes have done on Facebook. (I don't have a Myspace, and don't even THINK about trying to talk me into it, I HATE Myspace). I plan to use this as a tool, which is how I think it was intended to be used, so having contacts I know and can communicate with will be valuable.

One of the great things about this site is that it's only open to college students and graduates. Hypothetically, you could sign up and falsely attribute yourself to a school or something, even if you didn't attend, but there is no value in that here. This is, and should be treated like, another way, in my opinion an easier way, to keep your business connections in order and potentially make new ones. I don't think this should be used as a tool to base hirings on, because it someone could just as easily lie about going to Harvard Law as they could about graduating with a major in underwater basket weaving from Kettering University. However, I think it is a very valuable personal tool for business professionals, and that is why I am using it.

I encourage all of my friends and others to sign up for this site if you haven't already. I think it can become, and is actually becoming, a very powerful tool. It may be new, but I think it would be foolish not to take advantage of the power of this tool, especially as it grows. If you are a member already, or sign up after reading this, I encourage you to seek me out and add me as a contact. If you're a reader of the Blogarrhea, you're a friend of mine, and I would love to be in contact with you.

My public address is http://www.linkedin.com/in/kregan, but you can also search for Kevin Regan and I believe I'm the first (and only) one that comes up. Hope you enjoyed the post, and I look forward to seeing you all on LinkedIn!

Album Review: Panic at the Disco - Pretty. Odd.

2008-04-05T00:25:00.001-07:00

Panic at the Disco just released a new album called Pretty. Odd. on March 25. It's different from their first album (contrary to what the first track proports) in many ways, but in my opinion, all for the better. I liked their first album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, when I first heard it. I bought it and listened to it quite a bit. But then it got really old, and I haven't picked it up since. That was about 3 years ago. The combination of its overly dramatic musical style with it's pretentious, convoluted song titles caused it to become very stale. It didn't seem like there was much about it that was honest, so I put it aside forever. So when this new one came out, I got it and listened to it with a grain of salt, hoping I liked it. Turns out, I really like it.

First of all, they dropped the ! in their name. That, as a statement, sums up this album pretty much. They seemed to become much more serious and honest about what they were doing, while still retaining their ever-present veiled humor. Now, it must be said at the outset that this album owes some royalties to The Beatles' Sgt Pepper's album. It almost seems as if they listened to a bunch of Beatles songs one day, and then immediately turned around and wrote the album. The inspiration is quite obvious, but in an odd way, authentic.

The most obvious of inspirations comes in the instrumentation, where we hear a lot of Beatles-esque instruments playing in very Sgt. Pepper's-esque ways. Now, many bands have experimented with instrumentation recently (Arcade Fire's Neon Bible comes immediately to mind), and this album does it well in my opinion, and while it sometimes sounds jumbled and almost confused, it nonetheless works.

A few examples of the influence of The Beatles can be heard first in the opening track, We're So Starving, which is an obvious rip from the title track of Sgt. Pepper's, with the same purpose to the album, and complete with live crowd noise. She Had The World has a very Piggies feel to it, though the lyrics are quite different (sure to NOT be confused by Charles Manson). I swear I can hear the refrain of The Beatles' Golden Slumbers in From A Mountain In The Middle Of The Cabins, and if they had changed the title of Northern Downpour to Hey Jude, I'm not sure I would have taken a second look.

There is one more thing this album takes from The Beatles, and that is its understanding of pop music. Not pop as in 'NSync pop, but rather the 1960's pop that Paul McCartney and John Lennon were so fond of. This album has some unusual chord progressions and unconventional melodies, but god damn it if they're not catchy. The same way John and Paul made so many odd chord progressions and measure structures sound seamless, so does this album. It bounces in between keys within the same refrains, with the bass and guitar lines weaving different paths, but finishes so clean, so pop.

It's an engaging album, and I feel it has much more staying power because the music is much more honest and classic. It's too bad that Panic at the Disco released that first album, because I have a feeling I would have a much easier time enjoying this album if it weren't for the voices in my head saying, "but it's Panic! at the Disco, they're just as bad as Fallout Boy, and you HATE Fallout Boy." However, I have to give credit where credit is due, and while this album may not know exactly where it's going, just like the group, I like the direction each has started in, and look forward to hearing where they go next.

On the Reganometer, I give Panic at the Disco's Pretty. Odd. an 8 out of 10.

Stephen Colbert Interviews R.E.M.

2008-04-03T20:22:00.000-07:00

Hilarity ensues. This is a video from last night's show. You can tell Colbert actually respects these guys, and this might be the funniest interview I've ever seen him do. I laughed out loud a few times. Take a look:

My Quest for More Money

2008-04-03T14:50:00.000-07:00

I love money. I love getting more money. Who the hell doesn't? Well, my U.S. Bank checking account doesn't really. It kind of settles for the money it's got, which isn't good enough for me anymore. Recently I began a search for a checking account and/or savings account that actually gets me more money. You know, that "interest" stuff they talk about. I want an account that doesn't just settle for the money I give it, but does a little something for me. Now, U.S. Bank doesn't really have any solid accounts for people like me: struggling college students who don't have enough in their bank accounts to keep a $500 minimum balance or pay some ridiculous monthly maintenance fee. So I went looking, and I'm pleasantly surprised at what I found.

That title may be a bit misleading, but I figured it would at least get you to read the first paragraph. That must be my quest for readership talking, but I guess it worked! Anyways, I was looking around on the internet for a while, kind of skimming the surface of this whole thing, and found Oregon Community Credit Union. A few of my friends use it, and I've heard nothing but good things about it, so I figured I'd look into it. What I found was OCCU offers a checking account (I repeat, CHECKING) that, if you meet 4 specific requirements, offers a 4.5% annual yield. I did some quick math and realized yes, 4.5% on my money is better than 0% on my money. So I checked into the requirements, which are as follows.

One must have active enrollment in eStatements.

This is the OCCU's online bank statement program. I have a feeling this requirement is a CYA type of thing so that you become more responsible for monitoring your own account. Whatever it's for, it's not a problem for me to do.

One must login to Internet Banking at least once per cycle.

I do this almost daily as it is, not a problem.

One must make one electronic deposit or withdrawal (ACH) per cycle (includes direct deposit).

This confused me until I actually talked to an employee about it. I don't have a job, so direct deposit is a no go, but I found that an ACH withdrawl is basically anything that deducts funds from your account using your routing and account numbers. I asked if PayPal satisfied that, and she said yes. I do a lot of online shopping, and use PayPal whenever I can, so this shouldn't be a problem either.

One must make at least ten cleared debit card transactions per cycle.

The least likely to ever be a problem. I spend.

All of these have to be satisfied each cycle for me to remain eligible, but I think it should be no problem. Also, if I satisfy them all each month, I get ATM fee refunds, meaning I can use any ATM I want, and at the end of the month OCCU refunds any fees I may have been charged.

That sounded awesome, and I am currently in the process of signing up for that.

However, I still wanted a savings account as sort of a "don't touch this money" account so I could start putting something together for when I graduate (a.k.a. start my life). OCCU gives me one with my checking account, but it's only a 0.5% yield, so I'd rather not have it if my checking is so good. But I still wanted a separate account for saving.

So, just as I'm looking around today, an article on Digg came up and answered my question. The article is called "Reader's Choice: The Best High-Yield Online Savings Banks." Perfect. Basically a Consumer Reports on savings accounts. It listed 10 banks, in order from best to 10th-best:

1. ING Direct
2. Emigrant Direct
3. FNBO Direct
4. Washington Mutual
5. HSBC Direct
6. AmTrust Direct
7. E*Trade Bank
8. Bank of America
9. WT Direct
10. USAA

So I browsed the list (which is from Five Cent Nickle, a personal finance blog, and the list, complete with links, can be found here). It gives a little overview with links to the sites, which are helpful. As you can see, the winner was ING Direct's "Orange Savings Account" with no fees, no minimums, and a better than average yield (3.00%). Also, it can just be linked to any checking account, so I don't need to ditch the OCCU account. Sounds great! Now, one thing that I was a bit skeptical about was the minimum amount required to open the account as this is a money market account and those usually have minimums, which I figured would be more than I had, but it's not. There isn't a minimum. To give you a little perspective, the OCCU money market account (which is insured by the National Credit Union Administration to boot) only offers a 0.99% yield on amounts from $500-2,500, $500 being the minimum you can have in there. Compare that with 3.00% and no minimum. So I think, after I get my checking account with OCCU up and running, I'm going to open one of these. It's a good deal, it's easy, and it's web-based. Perfect for me.

It looks like U.S. Bank has lost the match. Although there's a chance I may switch back to them when I get into a retirement plan (which should really be asap, but I need an income first), but for right now, I think it's Oregon Community Credit Union and ING Direct for me.

Now, I really want to hear from anyone that's done this before, knows anything about it, has any suggestions, any advice, etc. Any of that would be greatly appreciated, as I know relatively nothing on the topic. Drop me a comment. Thanks.

Kanye Travel Ventures

2008-04-02T16:24:00.000-07:00

It looks like Kanye West has just started his own travel site called Kanye Travel Ventures. The site looks and feels just like every other travel site out there, except it's got Kanye's name on it with some pictures. It's pretty clunky too, but it was just started March 28 (from its whois lookup), so I imagine there will be improvements. I wonder what moved him to get into this industry? I don't really see the link, but maybe some of you bigger Kanye fans do? (Jerome)

That reminds me, I still have to get tickets for when he comes to Portland. It's on June 3rd I believe, at the Rose Garden, and he's got Lupe Fiasco with him, among others. Definitely a concert I want to see, and tickets are pretty cheap. However, I don't have anyone to go with. Anybody out there care to join me? Let me know.

Anyways, how many of you are going to book your next vacation through Kanye Travel Ventures?

The Dark Knight April Fools Day Prank

2008-04-02T03:15:00.000-07:00

As you all know from a few posts ago, a new Dark Knight viral site (went up March 3) called Clown Travel Agency had just a suitcase and an envelope on it which had "Departure Date 4-01" written on it. It was a static page, nothing dynamic, but the "4-01" was, presumably, the hint that something would be happening on April Fools Day. Well, sure enough, it did.

Up until March 31, the envelope looked like this:

As you can see, sealed.

However, if you were to check back on April 1, you would see something a little different:

Now it's opened, and the loose pages inside are a link. When you click it, up pops this message:

This is a message, presumably from the Joker, which asks if you're ready to take part in his little game. This is also a link, and when you click on it, it takes you to this page:

At midnight on April 1, this showed up as blank locations. It was basically a treasure hunt. Throughout the day, the items were found around the country and world in the listed cities, and as of this posting, all items have been found, which is why all the stamps and full addresses are shown. The items turned out to be bowling balls in bags, with a smart phone, phone charger, and joker playing card in the bag as well. I assume the phones were to call a certain number to tell them you found it, but I'm not sure. (/film has some pictures) And who knows what the bowling balls mean? Anyways, this message quickly burns up to reveal another message:

This message refers you to a specific page of a new viral site called Acme Security Systems. When you go to this specific "Delos" site, a security clearance message comes up asking you to enter your name, phone number, and e-mail address. Please, do yourself a favor and enter this info, especially the phone number, because this is where it gets fun. After you do this, you get a phone call asking you to verify your security password, which the letter informs you is "Needle." After you say this, Commissioner Gordon comes on and tells you it was a set-up, you've been caught, and that you're either with him or against him; either going to join his team, or go to jail. (/film has the audio & more pictures) After he hangs up, the site flashes this message:

It says that your name, e-mail, and IP address has been captured. And that's the end of it.

I'm really hoping I get some viral e-mails soon, and maybe some viral text messages. I am totally into this. I think it's a lot of fun, not to mention some great, GREAT marketing. And it only heightens my anticipation for the movie. Man this is cool! What's next?

Stay tuned for more updates, I'll put 'em up as they come.

UPDATE: So, you know the one that was found in Portland? Well, P.K. and Ivan, two of the Jammin' 95.5 Playhouse morning show guys, actually found it, and have put pictures of it on their website here. Apparently they're getting a call on that phone that was in the bag on April 4 giving them further instructions. They've put the stuff up on eBay with a starting bid of $30,000. Who are these guys kidding? Here's the eBay link if you're interested. (Thanks to Romey-Rome for the heads up)

Nike SPARQ Makes Pete Carroll Look Stupid

2008-04-02T00:11:00.000-07:00

So, as a Ducks fan, I have no respect for Pete Carroll. Any respect I might have had for him vanished when Carroll mouthed "fuck you" to Mike Bellotti during the USC game this year. For those of you that don't remember, you can check out the YouTube video here. But don't worry, his shady recruiting tactics had my respect out the door a long time ago.

With this in mind, it should come as no surprise that I enjoyed how Nike's recent commercials for their SPARQ Training line made Pete Carroll look like an idiot. French toast and batteries; nice Coach. Idiot... Take a look:

I do like the commercials overall. Very Nike.