Bowlcut’s little piece of the world

I’m just over one year on this install.

Original Install Date:     3/1/2007, 8:11:51 PM

And it used to be a running joke that you had to reinstall XP every year.  Its true.  I swear either the hardware is finally failing, or this install is finaly pretty well mucked up.  It is crashing often, sometimes daily and all Im doing is like surfing.  I am super safe in my surfing with scripting off and in firefox locked down.  But man it sucks.  I just have to hold out another week or so and Ill go buy a mac.  Im just tired of this dang computer its just failing me.  Debating do i want to take it and just shoot it up….who knows

Well I can’t be up there this year very easily.  I had to go up for a funeral on Wednesday and stay in a hotel for most of the visit.  It got very costly to stay.  Not to mention being away from home 3 nights in a row.  I was ready to come back to my usual surroundings to get some rest.  Sucks but just couldn’t afford to stay another night or anything like that.

Figure it was a decent Father’s Day tho.  I spent like 3 days almost all day with Dad.  For the most part.  Some of the time he wasnt there or the such.  But hey…Ill count it :).  I even brought him back 3/4’s of the money I owe him.  Figure final pay off in a few months maybe…maybe sooner.  Know I couldn’t really stick around much for Sunday…but…Happy Fathers Day.

Well its official now.  The NX is gone, she drove away packed to the top, with the new owner just about 10 minuets ago.  Im now back down to just one car.  Feels odd.  I liked the security of having multiple cars around just in case.  I dont know why, cause Ive only used it in an emergency once.   It was nice having that safety blanket thats for sure.  But, it was just another thing sitting, taking up space, taking money, requiring time…so it went.  Think I may go see what rental car coverage will cost on my insurance and just use that.  I have full coverage on the Altima still, may keep it that way and see what that extra bit will cost.  This is a start of life zero I hope.  First decluttering.  I let every piece of SR20 related junk go with the car…I felt no reason to keep it.  I dont plan on owning another one so why keep it?

Now…what to do with more of this junk…now can i find a way to make 500 quick dollars to pay off one of my nagging loans.  And i do mean nagging

I really want to figure out how to clean up my life/apartment/workspace of clutter.  This is a lofty goal I do believe.  I am a packrat by birth, so its going to be tough.  The idea of throwing something useful away is tough.  Items will find a way to be needed the moment you get rid of them.  So how can I go get rid of things right before I need them?  First thing to go I think will be old computers.  Im going to put up a post here soon to the Nashville list to give away this stuff.  Things that dont get taken away, going to go get recycled somewhere.  After that is going to be my desk I think.  Its too big.  With my idea of getting an iMac, this huge L desk needs to go away.  Ive liked it since I got it, but I just cant justify it anymore.  I dont sit here as much as I once did, and all it does is collect junk.  Couch and loveseat, I dont need them so think they will get gone, get one or two comfy chairs and thats it.

Now will I actualy go though with any of this….who knows.  I want to tho.

Im debating should I drop the nickname “Bowlcut”?  I’ve had it since around late 1994.  It came from a guy on my freshman football team.  I kept the top of my head about 1-2 inches long, so pretty short, then shaved the sides really close.  It wasnt like a typical bowlcut where its long, think Yahoo Serious in Young Frankenstein where he was getting a true ‘bowl cut’.  It was more like a ‘high and tight’ where the top is longer than the sides, but my top was a touch longer so it was a bit floppy.  Think more like a ‘plate cut’.

But anyway the name has stuck since then, even my dad calls me Bowlcut from time to time.  It has been shortened to all sorts, bowl, cut, bc, bowlhead, bowly, you name it.  Im just starting to think maybe its time to just forgo the nickname and go back to something simple like KevinH or something.  I hate that there is a famous actor by the name Kevin Hart, so I cant get that url.  Oh well.  So i dont know…debating.  now off for dinner then a night of CoD4 I think.

Well figured why not try plugging in the iPod today….  She powered up and is working.  LCD looks like there is water behind it or something.  As most people who have washed their Nano’s have reported.  It functions just fine, but the screen is a bit wavy on the right side.  Not a huge deal as I dont look at the screen all that often.  So yay, dont HAVE to go buy a new one today.  So thank goodness for Apple’s industrial design, it can take a wash and keep on working.  Now off to the Red Cross for First Aid and CPR training.  Figured time to get re certified

Just on Thursday I came upon a deal I couldn’t pass up no matter what.  A guy on our local forum had a new 3rd gen iPod Nano 8gb for sale for his final asking price of 100 dollars.  My poor iRiver is now like 5 years old and definatly showing its age.  Not that it looks bad but its functionality is not there.  It was designed in a time when all you did was listen to music.  I don’t listen to music all that often anymore, its mostly podcasts now.  But the iRiver has served me well and I still love it.  This was just too good of a deal.  Ive told myself I wouldn’t buy an iPod till I got my own Mac.  Windows and iTunes sucks.  But again…half price for barely 3 month old iPod.

I fell in love quick with the hardware.  Its awesome and the functionality is top notch.  But iTunes sucks still yet, 140m of memory usage just sitting there is not acceptable, but it is what you have to use.  So I delve in and use it.  Man its nice listening to a podcast, pause it come inside, sync up and listen right where you left off.  Or even changing podcasts on it then when you come back it remembers where you were on that particular podcast.  I just don’t know how Ive done it.  I know I can use non iPods for podcasts, but iPods really do make them work well.

So get home, and start my laundry, can you see where this is going.  At least I caught it on the filling of the load.  I got it out of my back pocket just a slight dunking of water, I’ve seen worse.  I’ve shaken all I can, left right up down banged on it.  No visible water in it at all.  We will see if it comes to life.  4 days I’ve seen the light.  I honestly couldn’t wait till I got in the car to get to play with it a bit.  Now all that is gone.  Because it was so small and light I didn’t notice it still in my pocket.

Now do I get another one?  Pay the stupid tax and go on?  Maybe upgrade to the iPod touch for wide screen and wifi?  Still hold off till I buy myself a Mac?  This pc here is trash.  Even the smallest of video podcasts would bog it down to its knees in iTunes.  Meh…I dont know if i want to not have an iPod now…

At what point do I pull the trigger on a new computer? Cause this poor old computer is just driving me nuts. I dont use it very much anymore, but when I do its nasty slow and memory deficient. The little things that always piss me off. Pulling the trigger on a 24″ Imac or even a MacBook Pro just seems crazy for that amount of money. But I know Ill use it all the time and it will be worth it. Im just a cheapskate. Anyone want to buy it for me Ill love you forever…or till it breaks the first time

Well upgraded to new code so kinda testing things here :).  And Im also working on a new blog idea…or 3.  going to try this ‘professional blogger’ thing maybe.  We will see how it goes, and if i tell anyone about it…yet.  gota get some posts up first

Why do I have to set rules like “no more xbox till you clean the apartment”?  I am going to be 30 years old this year, you would think I could do what I want when I want it in my own dang apartment.   But noooo, I do that and this place becomes a pig sty.  Man it was nasty in here and is still halfway that way.  I really do wish I could just throw everything away and start again.  Like my old beat up couches and rug.  Just throw it away and get a new couch.  I also am a pack rat and refuse to throw anything away it seems.  I have old computers just laying around…anyone want some old computers?  Need a router or something out of a linux machine…we can do it.  Meh…ok back to doing something.

Took today off.   After a couple of frantic weeks at the office I decided I should take an extra day.  Its my weekend to be off so perfect time.  Also trying to get a few ‘good’ things done today.  Went to donate blood but I do double red donation and the guy went home sick.  So going to try again tomorrow.  Then up stairs to volunteer to help do things.  Only bad thing is it seemed like I was more of an inconvenience than a welcome addition.  She asked if I was doing it as a group or what, and she truly was surprised when I said I was just doing it out of the good of my heart.  Kind of disheartening.  Makes me almost not want to go back and go though with the class and the such.  Its a few weeks off, so who knows, but they should really try to be a little more up beat about it.  So despite my best efforts, no ‘good’ came about from me today.

Why does the government want to make you feel like a crook?  I just finished my taxes.  I did it with TurboTax online like I do every year.  Every year I also feel like I’m going to be under the microscope and the full legal department from the United States Internal Revenue Service is going to come crashing down on my big butt.  I mean make the process a little easier and less threatening please.  No fault to TurboTax at all, its the ongoing stories of people doing their taxes, misplacing a decimal point, and spending the next 20 years of their life defending themselves till they are broke, homeless, and desolate.  I pay my taxes, I always overpay it seems, and I always file on time.  Give us a break…   I am getting some back, as usual, mostly cause I still make student loan payments.  But to my surprise, the loan is down to just 13k now.  Im surprised to say the least.  That loan is even with the United States Government.

Big difference this year is I did some “official” consulting with a friends job.  So that means 1099-MISC.   I now ofically have a business according to the IRS.  800 dollars for a weekend’s work, means I now have a huge 1040 and a Schedule C.  Then TurboTax says, “if you file a Schedule C you are 3 times more likely to be audited”.  Oh thanks.  So never again…seriously.  Why do I want to even put myself at that risk again?  Thanks USA for making me NOT want to start my own business of any sorts.  I’ll never work for a company that has to pay me though their systems…nope never.  Ok…Im done ranting.  Going over to play some video games…yes I’m addicted.

Well I’ve jumped head long into the world of gaming again.  I’ve not played any video games in heavy amount since early years of college.  Back then it was Duke Nukem 3D, Hexen, Quake2, and my favorite StarCraft.  Soon there after I built my own computer power house and it was the days of Counter Strike, Diablo2, and Age of Empires.  It was back when networking was a black art that most people didn’t do.  I remember when we stepped up and got NIC’s in our pc’s.  Then we setup a small LAN there in the dorms between like 30 computers with our cables running though closets and hallways.  Oh the memories.

Well a couple weeks ago I finally bought an Xbox360.  I’m always a few years behind the curve.  I bought a PS2 like years and years after it came out, same now with this 360.  Now I find myself once again enjoying games and playing probably way too much.  Xbox Live and its online system makes it too easy and nice to play online, which is basicly the only way I’ve been playing.  Its even a way some of my friends and myself are able to do stuff on a semi regular basis.  So…I do feel a bit guilty now cause it seems its all I do now that I get home.  I have hours and hours of recorded shows on the DVR I need to watch, but just dont want to.  If its not one of the 4 or 5 shows I really enjoy they just sit there taking up space to be watched in my spare time.

Be it good or bad…Im back into gaming.

Ever get drawn into a show just cause of its energy? Ever just started watching something, and cant look away? Well, turn into WineLibraryTV.com and I will bet you will get drawn into it. I’ll admit I’m not a huge wine drinker. But just like with WillItBlend you will watch Gary V discuss wine and find yourself wanting to go buy a bottle just to find out for yourself. And what does that is his energy and enthusiasm in the subject. Like watching any good presentation given by someone who is so into the subject they know it inside and you, his knowledge and passion draws you into the show. It isnt someone up there studdering for no good reason. This is how you bring the thunder to the masses. When you are so passionate about something…you just want to spread it.

I want to say thanks to Gary V for putting on this show for so long. I know Ive told probably everyone I know about the show and even subscribed many people up to the show that didnt know how to do it, so just showing a little love for the show and trying to spread the thunder to more people. Click the link WineLibraryTV.com and see what it is all about. If you are still new to this whole podcast thing…feel free to ask about it, its easier than you think

Dont you just love it when all you can do is one thing a day.  The co-worker called in sick, other co-worker is out on site for some stupid reason…  So Im holding down the fort for the 3 of us.  Which in the end means you can only get one thing done in a day.  The rest of the day is spent doing paperwork or playing fire fighter.  Nothing moved forward but one thing.  It sucks when you walk out and you really do know there was so much left to do, but you can only put so much of your life into it.

Im trying very hard and doing pretty well at it, to not have work be my life.  Also doing my best not to be on the computer 24×7.  After working hours Im not checking my work email as often as I used to do.  Also Im no longer sitting in front of a computer all day.  Sure Ive just moved from the computer to the couch, but I dont feel as bad about basicly touching a computer for 16 hours a day.  And well I gota get my money’s worth out of the big tv.  Now to buy a Xbox 360…