Checkmate

Fried Laptop = New Laptop

Ugh... my laptop was fried recently - the LCD screen failed after the hinges broke and that led to video card failure which led to a short circuit. Well, the good news is that it's still covered for repairs from Future Shop. Only problem is that it'll take a few weeks for them to fix it. I can't wait that long so my family has decided to let me purchase my dream machine from WidowPC! ^_^

The specifications are as follows:

Sting 917 Gaming Laptop [Customized - USD$4686 for system core, not including added software/warranty (USD$5475 for total)]:

• Processor is Intel P4 670 3.8Ghz 64 bit 2MB L2 Cache
• Memory is 2GB - 2 x 1024 MB Apacer 533MHz PC4200 DDR2
• Hard Drive Bay One is 100 GB 7200 RPM SATA 150 by Hitachi
• Screen is 17 inch 1900 x 1200 WUXGA+ LCD, with ClearView SuperBrite Technology
• Video Card is nVidia 7800 GTX go 256MB DDR3 PCIE
• Sound Card is Integrated Intel High Definition Sound Card
• Operating System is Microsoft Windows XP Professional
• TV Tuner is TV Tuner with Remote Control
• Optical Drive is 8x Double Layer DVD±R/RW Burner
• Battery is Li-ION Long Life
• Telephone Modem is Built In Fax Modem 56K v.90
• Network Card is Built In Gigabit LAN Card
• Wireless Network Card is Internal Wireless 802.11b/g 54 Mbps with Bluetooth
• Floppy Drive is External USB 3.5 inch 1.44 MB Floppy
• Upgradeable!

Yes, I am happy. Also pissed that my laptop fried in the first place though. Oh well.... ^_^

The main problem I have now is that I won't have easy access to a system for about a week or so. Hopefully not as long if WidowPC can get the new laptop to me fast. Nothing else happening besides the RENT movie this Saturday. I'll be checking that out with a bunch of friends over at the Paramount theater. Anyway, if you need me, e-mail me and I'll give you my cellular phone number (assuming I get access to my e-mail). I'll try to post updates as I can but no guarantees.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Movie

Yesterday was a fun day for me. Falcone and I met up for lunch before heading over to 2102 (friends' place). I got to meet a bunch of new people today so I'm happy just with that. Unfortunately, I didn't get all the names which is kind of embarassing - I know Sasho, Zart, Danruk, Murasakii, but the others I'm unsure of (I have an idea but not 100% sure). Anyway, we played DDR and Soul Calibur 3 for nearly the entire day... I got destroyed in Soul Calibur 3 though. *lol* We stayed fairly late though but dinner food was great (got ribs and mashed potatoes) but Falcone and I had to leave right after to catch the new Harry Potter movie at the Paramount in downtown Toronto. :)

Too bad the tickets for the showtime we wanted were sold out. In the end, we had to watch the movie at eleven. The movie itself was great! I'm picky though so I was a little disappointed that they left out key points from the book. Still, for a book that size, they didn't change the very important bits (like Lord of the Rings did - bah). I'd give the new Harry Potter movie about a 4/5 - yes, my reviews are extremely vague and stuff but I stand by my rating. Great standalone film but can't beat the book.

On a side-note, I've noticed that most of my friends don't know I have signed-up for other community-based type of weblogs. They're mostly just a link to this weblog but at least I have the ability to join add friends and join communities/groups and stuff. The two are listed below:

• My LiveJournal
• My Xanga

Well, that's all for now. I need to get cooking for dinner. ^_^

Grouper

Nothing much today. If you haven't heard of Grouper yet though, check it out! It was introduced to me by Em and it seems pretty nifty.

Edit: After a bit of testing it wasn't actually that great. It's a nice concept but it uses more system resources than any other program I have running at the same time and the interface needs a lot of work. Besides that, I hope to see good things in the future for this application.

Boredom is Boring

Um... I really have no idea what to say. I'll just randomly post several random quotes by Jack Handy. I've also updated the music. ^_^

• If you're in a war, instead of throwing a hand grenade at the enemy, throw one of those small pumpkins. Maybe it'll make everyone think how stupid war is, and while they are thinking, you can throw a real grenade at them.
• I believe in making the world safe for our children, but not our children's children, because I don't think children should be having sex.
• I can't stand cheap people. It makes me real mad when someone says something like, "Hey, when are you going to pay me that $100 you owe me?" or "Do you have that $50 you borrowed?" Man, quit being so cheap!
• When you die, if you get a choice between going to regular heaven or pie heaven, choose pie heaven. It might be a trick, but if it's not, mmmmmmm, boy.
• Children need encouragement. If a kid gets an answer right, tell him it was a lucky guess. That way he develops a good, lucky feeling.
• If you go parachuting, and your parachute doesn't open, and you friends are all watching you fall, I think a funny gag would be to pretend you were swimming.
• If a kid asks where rain comes from, I think a cute thing to tell him is "God is crying." And if he asks why God is crying, another cute thing to tell him is "Probably because of something you did.".
• You know what would make a good story? Something about a clown who make people happy, but inside he's real sad. Also, he has severe diarrhea.
• If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason.
• When you go in for a job interview, I think a good thing to ask is if they ever press charges.
• I hope if dogs ever take over the world, and they chose a king, they don't just go by size, because I bet there are some Chihuahuas with some good ideas.
• Maybe in order to understand mankind, we have to look at the word itself: "Mankind". Basically, it's made up of two separate words - "mank" and "ind". What do these words mean? It's a mystery, and that's why so is mankind.
• Too bad you can't buy a voodoo globe so that you could make the earth spin real fast and freak everybody out.
• It takes a big man to cry, but it takes a bigger man to laugh at that man.
• The face of a child can say it all, especially the mouth part of the face.

Poker Night

[Note: You'll notice that I've changed my decision and finally decided to use names (well, just the first or at least a known name). It's just too damn hard describing events using terms like "my friend" or "the friend who...". Using fake names isn't my style either. All posts in the future will use actual names - if I have'em. :) ]

I just got back late last night from staying over at a friend's place in Mississauga for poker night. Before we went, Dave and I went to some bar/restaurant near the Royal Alexandra Theater to pick up Em's jacket that he left there the week before. After that, we had a long subway trip down to Kipling where Em picked us up. We got there pretty early so we even managed to fit a few practice games of poker in before dinner. Cat's cooking so good! I owe her a cooked meal now. :)

Anyway, we finally managed to get a few people (Kevin and Daniel... with his freakishly lucky friend) over for the first actual poker game (40 chips, $10 buy-in, no limit, Texas Hold'em - only winner takes pot and second place pays nothing) at around 10:30PM. The first game ended with Daniel taking the pot and my ending up paying nothing (second place! yay!). They started a second game with three people after (40 chips, $5 buy-in, no limit, Texas Hold'em - only winner takes pot). I sat out for this one since I was just tired and didn't trust my judgement. Dave on the other hand just had no more money. *lol* Well, Em ended up sweeping the field - so congratulations! The night ended with the following tally:

1. Daniel: $45
2. Emmery: $5
3. Me: $0
4. David: -$10
5. Kevin: -$25

After all that, we still didn't feel like sleeping (even though we were tired) so we ended up playing Age of Empires III on LAN until about 7AM. Hehe... I think Dave and I got Em hooked on the game. By the time Em got up, it was already past 4PM. I don't mind since I'm used to it but it was funny watching Dave go nuts worrying. During the wait though, we managed to watch Kung Fu Hustle and Office Space. Surprisingly, we didn't touch the TV once though! We finally left around 8PM to send Cat back to her residence... then we checked out one of the labs at UTM (University of Toronto: Mississauga), shortly after, we discovered that Em forgot his wallet in his apartment. So we went back, got it, then finally drove Dave back home. Em ended up staying at my house chllin' for a few hours. Canada's Worst Driver scared both of us. *lol*

Well, that's basically how my weekend went. Turns out I missed a couple get-togethers in downtown though. Oh well, supposedly there's another get-together next weekend which I'll be around for.

On a side-note, I'll be renewing my TypePad Pro service soon and was wondering if any of my friends need a free subscription for TypePad Pro for a year. Only catch is that after the year is over, you will need to continue service with a credit card. It's about USD$145. Don't worry about not continuing and losing all your posts and stuff; I believe there is a feature to export your weblog.

On yet another side-note, if you're a friend and you have a weblog, drop me a line and I'll add you to the list to the left! I've been having a hard-time keeping in contact with a bunch of friends I've known through the years so... let me know! ^_^

That's all for now. Take care all!

Remembrance Day

These heroes are dead. They died for liberty - they died for us. They are at rest. They sleep in the land they made free, under the flag they rendered stainless, under the solemn pines, the sad hemlocks, the tearful willows, and the embracing vines. They sleep beneath the shadows of the clouds, careless alike of sunshine or of storm, each in the windowless Place of Rest. Earth may run red with other wars - they are at peace. In the midst of battle, in the roar of conflict, they found the serenity of death. I have one sentiment for soldiers living and dead: cheers for the living; tears for the dead.

- Robert G. Ingersoll

The One

Today is going to be a fun day - later today that is. :P I'm planning on picking up each of the following:

• Age of Empires III (PC)
• Soul Calibur III (PS2)
• The Matrix: Path of Neo (PS2)
• Romancing Saga (Strategy Guide)

Fairly excited about that Matrix game since it seems fun. I'm tempted to pick up some manga as well.

I should probably also mention that I've finally received my DDR stuff that I had been waiting for since the end of July. Needless to say, I've been going nuts on the pads again but I've been pacing myself so my legs aren't dead. :P I've been having a fun time on City of Villains as well. You can find me on the Infinty server - check my About page (link to the left) for information. So many games, so little time. Then... there's school. *argh*

Anyway, you may have noticed that my friend's birthday has just passed. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to give him his present yet but I sincerely hope he had a good time. One of the presents will defintely be good for a laugh. Hehehe... I'll keep you guys updated on that.

Well, I'm going to head to bed for now. I've got a pounding headache. *sigh* Until next time then. ^_^