To bring us up to date, here’s a quick list of things that happened since my last post:
- I finally made the switch to the iMac with Mac OS X and so far it has been awesome. Althought I’m still learning how to do stuff on the Mac.
- The new iPhone 3gs was released and I was the third person to get one. I’ve been happy and satisfied with the phone except for the dead zone spots the AT&T ‘s 3g network is experiencing.
- The girlfriend is in Asia right now. I miss her and it has been tough functioning without her.
- Dad arrived from Manila and celebrated his 77th birthday.
- I started my Roth IRA and started saving for my future.
- Travelled and had some R&R in Las Vegas.

So there, a simple run down of some important events in my life so far. I also just realized that the year is half done and soon it would be Chrismas again. Geez, where did all the time go?

I was busy as my headline mentioned.

Here are the recaps:

Yes.. I am a year older and hopefully a year smarter. I think I am a better person today compared to last year (generally speaking at least).

Nothing really big happened on my birthday. Actually, I just filed my taxes and did some errands. Another sign that you are old: Birthdays are no longer fun or anticipated.

However, I did something funny for April Fools… I tricked my GF into believing that her iMac was infected by the Conficker Virus. Hehehehe… I had fun doing that.

So there, pretty much nothing really important occurred the past month or so.

Maybe I was just lazy.

Lest I’ll SMITE you with my WRATH

YOU are on NOTICE

Why is it that people would not mind their own business?

They barely have time doing what they are supposed to do but they find time snooping on other people’s stuff.

Just ranting.

The Nation just lost a son

His music lives on

I just read on twitter that Filipino rapper Francis Magalona or Francis M. passed away on March 6, 2009. I grew listening to his music that inspired nationalism and social awareness. In my opinion, Francis M. made Pinoy Rap possible. The Philippines would surely miss him and his music.

Here are some lyrics to my favorite Francis M. song: Kaleidoscope World

So many faces, so many races
Different voices, different choices
Some are mad, while others laugh
Some live alone with no better half
Others grieve while others curse
And others mourn behind a big black hearse
Some are pure and some half-bred
Some are sober and some are wasted
Some are rich because of fate
and Some are poor with no food on their plate
Some stand out while others blend
Some are fat and stout while some are thin
Some are friends and some are foes
Some have some while some have most

Every color and every hue
Is represented by me and you
Take a slide in the slope
Take a look in the kaleidoscope
Spinnin’ round, make it twirl
In this kaleidoscope world

Some are great and some are few
Others lie while some tell the truth
Some say poems and some do sing
Others sing through their guitar strings
Some know it all while some act dumb
Let the bassline strum to the bang of the drum
Some can swim while some will sink
And some will find their minds and think
Others walk while others run
You can’t talk peace and have a gun
Some are hurt and start to cry
Don’t ask me how don’t ask me why
Some are friends and some are foes
Some have some while some have most

Every color and every hue
Is represented by me and you
Take a slide in the slope
Take a look in the kaleidoscope
Spinnin’ round, make it twirl
In this kaleidoscope world

Video borrowed from youtube.com subscriber budstip. All rights reserved.

To those who do not know, Chuck is a TV series on NBC (airs Mondays at 8pm [Before Heroes]) about a geeky normal guy named Chuck (Zachary Levi) who became the US Government’s top secret asset. As a result, Secret agents from the NSA (Adam Baldwin) and CIA (Yvonne Strahovski) are on the mission to protect Chuck while beating up bad guys who threaten US interests.

Anyway, we got there rather late and therefore got seats near the cameras towards the middle aisle. The view was not bad but we needed to stretch our necks to see the actors and taking photos required steady hands and digital zoom. Times like these, I wished I invested on a SLR camera.

Yvonne Strahovski, Joshua Gomez and Zachari Levi

Adam Baldwin, Yvonne Strahovski and Joshua Gomez

The panel began with an exclusive trailer from Chuck’s second season. There were tons of season spoilers. The only info I am willing to reveal is that Chuck finally finds his father (Quantum Leap anyone?). After the trailer, the panel had a warm reception from fans and the event got on its way. It was a Q&A style panel and fans got an insiders scoop on how the cast felt working on the set and their favorite episodes. I was a little bit disappointed that the moderator did not ask enough questions to Yvonne and that I was not able to get close enough to get an up-close picture of the cast. However, when the panel was leaving I was able to snap photos of Zachary Levi and Joshua Gomez (They are totally nice and geeky guys).

A few minutes later the Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles panel followed. The panel was not as big as the Chuck panel but stars Summer Glau (she plays Cameron the “good” Terminator) and Shirley Manson (lead singer of Garbage as Catherine Weaver the “bad” Terminator) attended. The format was the same as the Chuck panel but this time I got a closer shot of the stars (see photo below).

Shirley Manson and Summer Glau

When the panel was over, we headed to the convention floor to look around. We soon drowned in the sea of people dressed comic book characters. There were so many that I did not even bother taking pictures. A geek’s bonus was being able to see Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) and Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia).

As we left Wonder-Con, looking at the costumed fans and trying to recover from the experience made me remember of my younger days as comic book collector. Those lazy rainy afternoons spent at the Comic Book shop while waiting for my ride home. The stories read and enjoyed made the current madness the world is experiencing right now seem… distant. I guess this is why people come in droves and flock to convention like these. To live out a fantasy, meet up with their idols and for three days, forget the realities of life.

In a world where every electronic device purchase would be potentially obsolete in a few months, Nintendo just made the Nintendo DS you bought for your kids last Christmas obsolete. Boasting new features and trade-offs, the DSi would be available for US consumers on April 5. New features such as larger screens, two built-in cameras, upgraded hardware and memory, and SD memory card support. Also in the mix, the expanded wireless support and features. Users can now connect wirelessly with a free web browser, go online, and purchase item through the Nintendo online store similar to the Wii Shop feature on the Nintendo Wii.

Now the trade-offs. The new Nintendo DSi would no longer support Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance game library. Developers would take time to take advantage of the camera feature. In addition, the steeper price tag of $170 (The current models run up to $129) would make consumers hesitate a bit given the current economic environment.

So how will this affect the gaming world? In my opinion, not much… at least for a while until developers take full advantage of the new camera features. While the added camera feature would be fun, paying $170 for a cell-phone quality camera does not seem like a great use of hard-earned cash. The gaming community only had a few titles that used a built-in camera in the game play. Titles like Eye-Toy and In the Movies never really took off and made profits for developers. Let us not forget the competition. While the PSP never really put up a real fight, the iPod Touch/ iPhone can give the DSi a run for its money.

Although I expect the DSi to sell very well, I am not inclined to buy the new model for two reasons: the Trade-offs mentioned above and I already have a Nintendo DS Lite. I am sure that I am wrong about developers not utilizing the camera function. I was wrong about the touch screen feature and thought that developers would not buy it. I was a PSP proponent back then. Nintendo had managed to pull off a success with the touch screen and wii-mote feature of their products and I would not be surprised if I eat my words in a few months. However, in today’s economic uncertainty, I am sure kids would have a hard time convincing their parents to take the plunge especially if a) they already have a DS b) the price point of $170 + tax would scare off lay-off worried parents. That I bet would determine whether the DSi would make a huge impact in the gaming industry.

Pros

• Larger screen size and thinner design

• Two built-in cameras

• Expanded Wireless features

• Upgraded hardware and SD card support

• Cheaper than the PSP and iTouch/ iPhone

• More gaming titles than PSP

Cons

• $170 price tag (An Xbox 360 now sells for $199)

• $30 average for game titles while cheaper than PSP (around $40), it is more expensive than iPhone/ iTouch apps that are mostly below $10

• Would not play old Game Boy Advance games (Why not Nintendo?)

• Not an iPhone/ iTouch killer.

• Untested camera features in gaming titles

’nuff said.

How nice it is to have two free days to regroup from a gruelling week. This has been a tough week for everyone. Seeing job numbers go the way of the Dodo and unemployemnt rates rise like a subprime mortgage rate, it makes me wonder what would happen in the next few days if no action was done.

Now I have not live through the Great Depression so I have no first hand experience on how to act or think. With politicians bickering on whether to cut taxes and spending or spend more and tax more or something in between.

If you ask me, the basics still matter. If government and corporate would act like what every person should be acting, things ‘might’ get a little better.

First, cutting taxes on payroll and capital gains would not matter if taxpayers do not have jobs or businesses to generate taxable income. Cutting spending on aid programs would eliminate not only recipients but millions of government jobs who by the way, pay taxes. So the recipients would receive no aid (cash, health care and etc) can lead to decreased or no spending on their part since Cash aid and health are no longer available and the employees who work in cut programs would also cut or eliminate spending due to a loss of income. So how would cutting programs and spending aid the economy in this way? I am sorry but the Reganomics of yesteryear would not work.

Spending ourselves to the hilt would lead to more debt and more debt would eat through tax revenues in the future. Not really a wise course of action in the long term.

So what are we to do? In plain simple terms, we need to get back to basics. If an ordinary american can represt as governent and wallstreet, here’s what the American should do:

1. Spend on income generating items (such gas to take you to work, job fairs or in the case of government, infrastructure program that create jobs.
2. Have a spending cap or budget. If USA only makes $5 trillion in taxes then spend only $5 trillion or less.
3. Eliminate the spend it or lose it culture. Encourage States and local agencies to be efficient, effective and fiscally responsible by allowing these entities to “bank” surpluses (for a rainy day.. like a recession)
4. Transparency, Transparency, Transparency. We have to be honest with everyone and especially to ourselves. If we cannot afford it, we do not spend it or find a way to afford it.

That’s just my opinion. I do not have the fancy MBAs that the Wall Street rats have but at least it works in the realm of common sense.

From old to new is needed

To survive the change

Well, I have been changing my blog titles and links at least twice.  It came to my attention that I need to do these things for my own good.

Therefore, with any luck, this is my last name change.  So the Eagle Beagle it is… hehehe… kinda catchy huh?

more changes to come… if needed.