Reflections of 2006

Many things have happened throughout the year.... I lost the woman I loved, made some new friends, been reacquainted with old ones, seen co-workers come and go....

Exactly 9 months ago today, the woman that I loved, decided it was time to part ways... we still talk just about every day of the week. The first few months wwere some of the hardest times I've had to go through, but I persevered and continued on...

Despite having my heart broken, some people from the past came along... Ken found me on Myspace and I've become friends with him again... His girlfriend Jen W., she's a blast... she's always there when I need to bitch about something...

Jen W, introduced me to Brit and Kristen, There's not much I have to say about Kristen, since I haven't talked to her much.... now if Brit is nothing else, she's honest. She's not afraid to tell you how she feels, and she doesn't mind call you a little shit if she doesn't like what you said... She's also quite a bit more, very outgoing and obviously is the center of attention... that little attention whore... Don't change Brit.

In an attempt to move along, I met somebody who understands me as much as I understand her, it was an attempt to forge a relationship, but despite that failing I've made a friend who I wouldn't give up for the world... Thanks for being there Jen S.

I made a major purchase this year... my 2006 Chevy Cobalt... it's the most expensive thing I've ever purchased, and will purchase for some time... it's running and I can't argue with having the car... it's a great car... A couple weeks after buying my car, I bought my phone... which will eventually be replaced... probably sooner rather than later..

Next came Saramani leaving the library to work elsewhere and expand her horizons. I of course was saddened by this, but I think it was time for her to vacate the library and move on. Of course I'll never forget all the interesting debates we had... fun times...

Following Sara's exodus, I met Kim, now Kim and I have a very unique relationship... We've never met in person, only chatted online... but I think it was simply fate that two people needed each other, simply to help each other through rough times... of course we still talk, but she's almost never online anymore....

Following that I made my next major purchase... Two brand new iPods.... I had purchased a first generation iPod Nano, but I bought the second generation iPod Nano (looks like a revised iPod Mini), and a second generation iPod with Video... that was a good chunk of change...

And Now, the latest in the saga... Julieta's last day at work was today. She's off to Mexico for a vacation before starting a new job... I'm not sure why I'm so sad by this, it's Julieta's personality to not stay in one spot for very long... She's not meant to stay in the library... but I don't know who I'll get to bounce ideas off of... I'll find somebody...

There have been somethings that I might have changed throughout the year, things that I might have done differently, chances I might have taken, but chose not to... but I wouldn't change any of the major events for anything.... I wouldn't have met so many great people... and I wouldn't have made so many friends...

I'm not sure what 2007 will bring, but I do have ideas as to what I would like to see... I do have a couple of plans... The first is to buy a new computer, a Macintosh, it'll depend on what's available as to what I purchase. The next is to pay off my credit card... I would like to find somebody... but I don't know if it'll happen... but we'll see...

I've posted the Stories of the Year... if you think there's one that should be added let me know. Check them out Here

Life consists of the following

10% Luck
20% Skill
15% Concentrated Power of Will
05% Pleasure
50% Pain

Remember the Name by Fort Minor

I bought a couple things for myself this week... including a new pair of Digital headphones with a microphone for Skype. They're Plantronics DSP Audio 550's. They have extra bass if I need it, which I like. You can find me on Skype at Waynesworkshop. I also ordered the Wii Component Cable which won't arrive until after the new year... I"ll add it to my review when I get a chance to take a look at it...

I think I'll do a Stories of the Week: Year long edition. and recap all of the stories throughout the year.

Keith Olberman's special comment on the Military and Commissions act:

Here's an interesting websit with a whole bunch of old photos... I like the website

I'd like to wish everybody a Merry Christmas... I hope everybody got what they wanted.

So I've had a few weeks with the Nintendo Wii.

Let's start with the back story...

I was planning on getting a Wii after Christmas, but I was still on the lookout for a Wii... on November 18th I attempted to get a Wii from Meijer, but was not able to get one... so I was going to go out on the 19th to Circuit City to see if I can get one, but I didn't get up...

So Fast forward two weeks to December 2nd... I was looking for a Wii throughout the previous week, but to still no avail.... so I thought I might get up early on the 3rd and get one from Toys R Us... well I did wake up, but decided I could wait... I would rather sleep... I had to work so I thought I'd sleep... but I was awoken at 9:30 by my brother saying that I owed him $400 dollars, since he got up early and went out and bought a Wii from Toys R Us... So now I dind't have to look...

I've had about 2 weeks to play with the thing... and I can honestly say I haven't had any issues with it yet.

Unpacking

I know this has been covered in depth by many websites, but oh well... I don't care... so there are two boxes that are in the big Wii box, one has the console, the other has the accessories. Included in the box is Wii Sports (Bowling, Tennis, Boxing, Golf, and Baseball), a Wii Remote (WiiMote), a Nunchuck, the RCA Cables for the Wii, the manual (which nobody reads anyway), the sensor bar, the power cord and the stand.

Now, with unwrapping all of the items, it shouldn't take more than 15 minutes. Which it didn't. Upon booting up the Wii, you are prompted to go through the obligitaory setup. Entering the date, time, system name... etc, etc... Once that was finished, I chose to update the firmware on the Wii in order to make sure I had the latest features. That went flawlessly, after entering in the connection settings for my wireless connection. Onto the gameplay...

Game Play..

So of course when you look at somebody playing the Wii, they look like a complete moron... but that doesn't stop anybody from playing. I have to say the Wii is like crack, it's really addictive. You always fine yourself saying "one more game" or "one more round". But oh well, it's all about the exercise anyway.

So I first started off with Excite Truck, and I had played the game at Gamestop previously and I sucked then, and sucked when I first started. It does take a while to get the hang of using the Wiimote as a steering wheel but after you get the hang of it, it's not too bad.

After Excite Truck came Wii Sports: Bowling. Of course, it's just like real bowling, except it's free and you don't have to deal with a bunch of other people (unless they're playing with you).

The graphics on the Wii aren't bad even when just using the RCA connection (I did not have a component cable to test). I think it looks pretty good even with just the RCA cables.

Using the Wiimote to control other aspects of the game is a unique experience. The wiimote is bluetooth enabled and does respond to your actions through the sensor bar, but it does have limited range in terms of readable radius from the sensor bar. On more than one occasion I've had the Wiimote stop functioning because it went out of range of the sensor bar.

That's about it for my review, if there's some other section of it that you'd like to know about, let me know, I'll post another part to my review...

Stories of the week have been posted...check them out here

I also plan on posting a Wii review sometime soon

James Kim....

On November 25th the Kim Family (James, Kati, Penelope (4), and Sabine (7 months)) were traveling along the Oregon coast headed to Gold Beach to make a stop on their way back home from visiting Family in Oregon for Thanksgiving. On Tuesday, November 28th James did not return to work at Cnet and by Wednesday authorities were notified.

During their week of hell, they exhausted all their rations. Kati kept the children alive by breastfeeding both of them in order to keep them alive. During their week of being stranded they had burned the tires on their car for warmth after the fuel had run out.

On Saturday, December 2nd after being stranded for over a week, James set out to go and find help. With him, he brough a pair of sweat pants, two lighters, and several items of clothing. Throughout his travels, he had left items of clothing along the way, presumably as markers for any rescuers. He had traveled over eight miles before finally succombing to the exhaustion and weather.

On Monday, December 4th, Kati, Penelope and Sabine were found at their car, after Kati had used an umbrella to flag down rescuers. They were taken to the local hospital and have since been released. They are with family.

Today (December 6th) James Kim's body was found in the Oregon Wilderness. Helicopters with SWAT members on board were brought in to remove the body.

This is a very sad and tragic event.

He was just doing what any rational person would do, try and protect the most important thing in the world to him: his family. And for that he is a Hero.

This from the Twit.tv forums, Thanks to Dreadnought for posting this:

if you'd like to contribute feel free to go to JamesandKati.com and make a donation.

R.I.P James