About the biggest hurdle that I saw regarding the move in was the electronics. Of course, I had a number of electronics, and we had to decide what to do with them. The PC, game consoles, and TV ended up going into my office. The PC was a given, but with the consoles I can play games without bothering Jennifer if she’s watching TV. My home theater and DVD player ended up going into the living room. Jennifer didn’t have a home theater system already, so it made sense to put mine in place. As for the DVD player… her existing one wasn’t an upconverting DVD player, so we put mine in place there and moved hers to the bedroom.

However, our biggest foe so far has been wiring. The first of the two big examples has been in terms of networking. Her office is on the opposite side of the house from my office, and the cable modem and wireless router are located there. We REALLY did not want to run ethernet through the walls, and buying wireless adapters for my Xbox 360 and PC would have been expensive. (Not to mention it wouldn’t have helped my wired-only IP phone for work…) So, after doing some research, I ended up buying a ZyXEL WAP3205 wireless bridge. It basically bridges my ethernet network in my office onto the home wireless network. So far, it’s worked flawlessly. I’ve even been able to play online via Xbox Live with no issues. We’re also considering getting a second one to bridge our Wii onto the wireless network. (No, it won’t join our wireless network. We have no idea why, so the easiest solution is an ethernet adapter and wireless bridge.)

On the other hand, we’re not sure of a decent solution for our other wiring issue. We haven’t actually hooked up the home theater system yet, simply because of the speaker problems. Now, hooking up the front speakers and the subwoofer won’t be a problem (once I retrieve the left/right speakers from my parents’ house). HOWEVER, we really don’t have a good way to hook up the back speakers without running wire through the walls (again). Neither of us like going through the attic, so that’s kind of out. Running it under carpet is out, too, because the living room (like most of the house) has hardwood floors. We’ve tried looking at wireless solutions for rear speakers but have had no luck. So, here’s my question… does anyone have any ideas they’re willing to bounce off us?

Otherwise, life has turned out to be pretty good here. I’m enjoying living with Jennifer, and things are looking pretty good for the immediate future. Here’s hoping things stay that way.

In the meantime, here’s a musical meme I yanked from my friend Jenn Dolari.

Step 1: Put your iTunes or equivalent on random.

Step 4: Bold out the songs when someone guesses correctly.

1) Hey man, please don’t make a sound. Take a look around, can’t you see what’s right in front of you? Have a little taste, no more time to waste. You don’t wanna get left behind cause it’s all coming down right now.

2) In the time when darkness ruled, no one saw the light. In the cold black emptiness, victims of the night.

3) On his way to dinner, when it took him by surprise, and with one pull of the trigger, he would vanish overnight. Dancing by the roadside, holding on for dear life; then a gun from out of nowhere made a widow of his wife.

4) The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees. The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon the cloudy seas. The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor.

5) You can have my autograph. I think I’ll sign it love to you. But should I sign it just for you?

6) Only came outside to watch the nightfall with the rain. I heard you making patterns rhyme. Like some new romantic looking for the TV sound, you’ll see I’m right some other time.

7) Show me a river that’s so deep, show me a mountain so high. I’ll show you love that’ll last forever. Flyin’ high, so high.

You get to feel so guilty, got so much for so little, then you find that feeling just won’t go away. You’re holding on to every little thing so tightly ’til there’s nothing left for you anyway.

9) Uhh! Awww, sookie sookie now! Hey! Oww, uhh! Come on, baby! Hey there, Sugar Darlin’, let me tell you something girl, I’ve been trying to say, now.

10) Love – Devotion – Feeling – Emotion. Don’t be afraid to be weak. Don’t be too proud to be strong.

11) Wake up in the morning, and I raise my weary head. I got an old coat for a pillow and the earth was last night’s bed.

12) Highway run into the midnight sun… wheels go round and around. You’re on my mind.

13) I tried to kill the pain but only brought more… so much more. I lay dying and I’m pouring crimson regret and betrayal.

14) Time it was, and what a time it was. It was a time of innocence, a time of confidences. Simon & Garfunkel – “Bookends”

15) Every night she walks right in my dreams since I met her from the start. I’m so proud I am the only one who is special in her heart.

16) Hooray for a child who makes it through. If there’s any way because the answer lies in you…

17) As I wake up in a room somewhere, dawn light not yet showing, there’s just a thin horizon between me and her; the edge of a half-dream glowing.

18) Words like violence break the silence… come crashing into my little world.

19) Tell me, Doctor, where are we going this time? Is this the 50′s or 1999?

20) I know you broke up with him, and your heart’s still on the shelf. It’s been over two years for me and I’m still not quite myself.

If you had told me a year ago that that man would be me in a year’s time, I would have thought you were insane.

Things have changed a great deal over the past month and a half. At the end of May, I packed my things and moved down to Pearland, moving in with Jennifer. It’s been something of an interesting experience, as neither of us have lived with roommates in several years. Other than the room that we designated as my office (we’re kind of calling it the Bish-Cave), the changes in decor here have been more subtle than anything else, with my equipment or decorations supplementing what’s already here. As for my office, it’s pretty much everything me; I had brought my PC and equipment, desk, books, DVDs, games, artwork, collectibles, TV, TV stand, and consoles and got them all set up here, only needing to add a set of shelves Jennifer donated, and two sets of bookshelves I bought from IKEA. The artwork has changed, too; with Dad’s help I found a couple of my old Mortal Kombat II posters, and Jennifer and I found one of my old Star Trek posters. They’re all hanging now, complete with other collectible items. The only other item of note in my office is an elliptical, which I use on nights when I can’t get to the gym.

My clothing has changed somewhat, as well. Before, I wouldn’t even think of wearing shorts. With it getting even hotter in Houston than is usual, I decided it was high time I got some shorts. While we were over at Academy doing some shopping, I picked up two pairs of cargo shorts. On a whim, I also picked up a pair of sandals as well, which shocked Jennifer no end. I’ve been wearing them regularly since, and I have to admit they’re pretty comfortable. The cargo shorts have been so useful I’ve even gotten a pair of cargo pants… though, the cargo pants are currently out of commission due to a bit of an issue involving the button. The main thing I like about the cargo shorts/pants is the fact that they have enough pockets where I can drop my iPhone in one and not have to worry about needing a belt clip.

We’ve also been doing new things as well. A perfect example is grilling. Jennifer had never owned a grill of her own. Well, a few weeks back, two friends of ours offered to sell us their practically new propane grill dirt cheap. Of course, we jumped at the chance, and with our friend Louie’s help we brought it home. The weather in Houston hasn’t been cooperative, but we have had a couple of chances to try out the grill. The first time we grilled burgers and hot dogs, basically making it up as we went along. Tuesday night we cooked steaks, and we finally got them cooked and decent through trial and error. Tonight, I decided I was going to cook burgers on my own (as I haven’t really cooked for myself in a LONG time), and using knowledge remembered from when I used to cook at my parents’ house and tips online, I cooked the very first Bishburgers. They came out very yummy, and I’m already planning on variations on what I cooked. I’m hoping to serve them when we have friends over for dinner…

So far, the past month has been pretty fun and a learning experience for both of us. I don’t know what the future holds for us, but based on what we’ve done so far, we’re looking forward to it.

On Tuesday, while I was on vacation in Colorado, a video emerged on YouTube that frankly surprised the hell out of everyone. It was a teaser video that seemed to be a teaser for a possible live-action MK movie.

When I finally got home and watched it, I was surprised. Any urge to call it faked was tempered by the fact that the video starred Michael Jai White and Jeri Ryan as Jax and Sonya, respectively. It’s since come out that the video was done by director Kevin Tancharoen as a pitch to Warner Bros. to let him do the MK reboot film. The style was very different, with it being set in a far more “gritty” urban setting, and known “alien” characters like Reptile and Baraka being reimagined as deformed or mutilated and insane humans. It was also far more brutal looking than the first MK film.

What did I think? I actually rather liked it. I personally wouldn’t mind seeing Tancharoen’s vision brought to the big screen. It’s definitely not as if there aren’t multiple MK continuities out there (“canon” games, movies/TV, MK: Shaolin Monks, MK vs DC Universe), and this is definitely one of the most unique takes on it. Based on what little I’ve seen, I think Tancharoen could pull it off.

Then, yesterday, while I was at the gym, Warner Bros. released the first teaser trailer for the upcoming game reboot, which is appropriately titled Mortal Kombat.

Unlike the Rebirth trailer, which was a radical reinvention of MK, the reboot game appears to be a “back to basics” approach, featuring characters clad in costumes close to their original appearances, 2D gameplay, reinvented classic arenas, and very brutal fatalities. From what I saw, the game looks like it’ll harken back to the old days of Mortal Kombat II, especially with the Outworld setting. A great number of fans are looking forward to it, and I have to admit I’m one of them. While I really enjoyed Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe and wish I had taken the time to get a proper fighting controller so I could really play it properly, I’m glad Netherrealm Studios (the MK development team that went to WB Games from Midway) is doing a dark true Mortal Kombat game. I’m also kind of glad they’re doing a reboot, as I’m not sure how they’d resolve the Gordian knot the plot became at the end of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon…

The only question for me, now, is what happens to the Rebirth trailer. Both Rebirth and the game are reboots, but are so completely different from one another as to make them incompatible. On one hand, Ed Boon did admit on his Twitter page that he thought it was awesome. On the other hand, he did say it probably crossed a line. I’m kind of hoping the movie gets a go-ahead, but I’m not putting any money on it.

Ah, well. Either way, Mortal Kombat is definitely getting a rebirth. Here’s hoping it turns out to be well worth the wait.

Moving right along…

Something occurred to me the other day. I was checking my LiveJournal friends page, and I was noticing how dead it was. Where I would once see numerous posts on there, requiring me to check a few times a day in order to keep up. These days, however, it seems like that only two or three people constantly post in LJ anymore, and of those three, one most posts stuff that she originally posted on Facebook and Twitter.

It’s not a complaint, mind. It’s a natural progression. These days people are moving on to the newest things, like Twitter and Facebook. Hell, while I started using LiveJournal in 2001 or so, I stopped updating it directly in 2005 when I opened my site blog. I’ve even moved past the site in a way; for short posts I use Twitter, and for lengthy posts I use the site.

It’s a tad of a shame, though, as I always liked having a central site to read my friends’ blogs. Now I use TweetDeck to watch my friends’ tweets and Facebook postings, and Firefox’s RSS feed reader to watch my friends’ blog postings. Ah, well… sometimes a bit of inconvenience is the price we pay for progression in other things.

About a block or two from my office, there’s a little island of land bordered by Old Spanish Trail, Yellowstone, and Ardmore. In this bit of land, there are two major restaurant buildings. One of them is occupied by Guy’s Meat Market, which has been there for YEARS (it looked old when I started working down here back in 2002). The other has had two occupants that I can remember. Then again, my memory only goes back as far as 2008 or thereabouts. While the two restaurants have had the same building, they are so different it’s unreal.

The first one was called Steve Vietnamese Bistro. It was apparently a favorite place of the higher-ups at where I work to go for lunch, seeing as it was so close to the office. The two times I went in, it was because I and my coworkers had been invited by our boss. To say they weren’t good experiences was something of an understatement. The food was overpriced and not very good. The waiter was especially slow. We were especially turned off when more than once, one of us found an insect in his water. One time, one of us went there by herself… and was kept waiting for over an hour for her pho. When she confronted the waiter, he kept protesting that it was coming, even though she could see into the kitchen and saw them standing around. (For reference, when we go to Pho Saigon our pho comes out in less than five minutes.) We could never understand how the place stayed in business, as there were never any customers that we saw.

Well, after Ike hit, Steve closed for good. We kept a wary eye on the place to see what would open in its place. We soon got our answer, as several months ago a new restaurant opened called Beaucoup Bar &Grill opened in its place. We didn’t go right away. as we were still suspicious given what happened at Steve. Then, Jennifer told me that her coworker Michael had been there multiple times, and he loved it. So, we decided to give it a try.

We were impressed. The wait staff was friendly and attentive, and the food was very good. As opposed to the pseudo-Vietnamese of Steve (we never saw any Asians working there), Beaucoup is Cajun cooking done pretty well. One of my coworkers who is originally from New Orleans now goes there for lunch weekly. I went with her today for lunch, and other than the crowded parking lot it was a pleasant experience. The wait staff were even kind enough to ask us if we wanted water while we waited for our lunches, which we were just picking up to take back to the office. All in all, Beaucoup is definitely a “have-again”.

About the only problem at Beaucoup is the parking, and to be honest it’s not entirely their fault. The small parking lot is shared with Guy’s, and Guy’s has signs all over their side saying that their parking is for Guy’s customers only. According to a note on the doors at Beaucoup, the owners of Beaucoup tried to work with the owner of Guy’s to get parking for Beaucoup customers, even offering to pay, but were angrily rebuffed. Fortunately, the owners of Beaucoup arranged to get parking along Ardmore and Telge for customers, but it’s offputting that Guy’s would be that way. (To be honest, I believe the Beaucoup note, simply because of how clear Guy’s makes it that they don’t allow parking for anyone else.) I’m a lot less willing to go to Guy’s as a result; my experience is that if you’re a dick to your neighbors, you’re a dick to your customers as well.

Ah, well. Still, like I said, Beaucoup is everything Steve wasn’t, with good food and good service. I’m glad the restaurant space there is now filled with a decent place, and I’ll definitely be going back… hopefully with Jennifer, as she’s been wanting to try it too.

Before I became hooked on Talisman back in eighth grade, my parents and I used to play board games every Saturday night like Clue and Scrabble. Our favorite, however, was Monopoly. I talked my parents into getting a standard set, and we played with that for a while… and then Mom revealed to me that she and Dad had a set older than I was. It was in a blue plastic carry case, and the houses and hotels were made of wood (white bottoms and green or red roofs). We played on that every so often as well.

Seeing as I was really getting into Monopoly at the time, I wanted a special edition or two of the game. For a present one year, my parents got me the fiftieth anniversary edition of Monopoly, with gold-plated player pieces, wood houses and hotels, a plastic money holder, and a rulebook that included a history of the game. In addition, I got my hands on a standard edition of British Monopoly and would play that every so often. Not only would I play with my parents, I’d sit down and play with friends as well. I remember a game against Sean where, after he made a deal with me that went badly for him pretty quickly, Mom had to counsel him that I never made a deal that didn’t directly benefit me in some way. Those were fun times.

However, once I picked up Talisman and other Games Workshop games, I turned away from Monopoly. It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy it anymore. I just never got around to playing it, and as such it fell into disuse. I literally have not played it in over twenty years.

That’s likely to change, though. Jennifer loves playing Monopoly and wants a chance to play against me. In addition, our friend Julie loves playing board games so we’re sure that she’ll want in if we decide to play. That’s not even counting the possibility of Becky and Brian (or even Sean and Jinny) wanting to play a game. We’ll definitely be playing soon.

Oh, and going back to the special edition of Monopoly I mentioned I recently bought? We got it while doing shopping at the outlet malls in San Marcos the day after Christmas. It’ll likely be the edition we’ll play with our friends… and as you can probably tell by the picture to your left, it really is no surprise which edition of the game we ended up picking up.

I think the first ones had to be the shirts she got me for my birthday. First off, she had gotten me a black polo shirt with the Decepticon logo on the left breast. In addition, she got me two black tshirts we had seen at a convention. One said, “I have NOT lost my mind. It’s backed up on the server. And the network is down again…” The other has a warning logo that shows… well, the caption (translated from German) says it all: “Please do not impale coworkers with forklift forks.” It’s a reference to a short film called Staplerfahrer Klaus. I also picked up a cheap green tshirt with a 1up Mushroom that said “GET A LIFE”. I’d gotten some amusing feedback from those shirts… mainly from people wondering what the hell the forklift shirt meant.

Since then, Jennifer has either gotten me other shirts or encouraged me to get them. One she’s gotten me, for example, has a picture of the TARDIS on it with the caption, “Trust me, I’m a Doctor.” Another is one that, well… we were looking at bowling shirts online as a bit of a lark, and she found one that said “Atari Bowling Champion”. I went ahead and bought it, and its premiere came at an arcade event she and I went to with our friend Julie. It was the hit of the night; several people took pictures of it. In fact, the image of it to the left came from someone’s Facebook album of the evening. The second time we went to the arcade event, I was stopped by a guy telling me how awesome he thought my shirt was and asking where he could get one. I ended up giving him the website I got it from and wishing him luck.

As for what prompted this post, well… it’s kind of funny. On Friday, I was talking to some of the girls in HR, and the VP of HR/quality stepped in and made a comment about how I always seem to have the coolest “poker” (club) shirts. The one I was wearing that day had the Decepticons from Transformers: Armada on the front, and the Decepticon logo stitched onto the left sleeve. Then, yesterday, Jennifer and I were at Walgreens; we asked a clerk for help, and as we talked she told us she would only help us if she could have my shirt. I was wearing a black tshirt that said, “Real vampires don’t sparkle.” I admit, I’ve worn it before to annoy a friend who likes Twilight. However, I don’t really mind if anyone gets offended by it, simply because Jennifer gave me the shirt as a gift… and she’s a huge Twilight fan.

Ah, well. I’m embracing my inner geekiness and sharing it with the world. I’m just amused that people actually like the shirts and appreciate them.

Gus and Ringo

Malinda remembered that we had just lost our cat Missy and dog Franny recently, and called me to ask if we wanted any of the kittens. Dad was adamant we weren’t getting any, but Mom wheedled him into going to Malinda’s house to take a look at them. While we were there, Mom took what she considered the cutest of the four, Ringo (so named because his tail had ringed markings like a raccoon), and placed him on Dad’s shoulder. Ringo took to Dad immediately and bonded with him, and as a result Dad agreed to take two of them in. Ringo was the obvious first choice, but we didn’t know who of the other three to take. Mom finally decided on Gus (named after Gus the Theatre Cat), simply because she felt that he was the ugliest of the kittens; with his scrawny frame and crossed eyes, Mom didn’t think he stood much of a chance to be adopted. The choices made, we eventually came back a couple of days later after preparing the house and brought them home.

Unfortunately, Tessa and the other two kittens did not have quite such a happy ending, or we assume they didn’t. They disappeared from Malinda’s yard a week and a half later, and were never seen again.

Once at our house, Gus and Ringo grew up. It was amusing, watching them explore, take chances, and generally grow into feline adulthood. Gus quickly turned from being homely into quite a handsome cat. On the other hand, what he lacked in his appearance as a kitten he more than made up for in his personality as an adult. He became loud and bossy, and if you weren’t paying enough attention to him he would make sure you knew he was there by headbutting you. He also developed quite an affinity for me, always wanting to be fussed by me, wanting to stay with me in my room, and making sure to come greet me when I got home, even if he wasn’t feeling well. Ringo, on the other hand, was meek and literally quiet. He frequently would open his mouth to meow, but no sound would come out. The first time he actually DID make a sound (a soft squeak), he looked around in shock, wondering where the noise came from. Gus would also bully Ringo (especially if Ringo dared be fussed by me), but sometimes Ringo would get his own back. However, where as Gus was loud and squaky, Ringo would just chatter whereever he went (though I didn’t see it until late in his life). I sometimes thought of them as Squawk and Squeak.

For the most part, they ruled the house for a long while, except when new arrivals would come. When we got our malamute Cody, they took one look at him and took off upstairs. They stayed upstairs for at least a month or two, until such time as they finally decided to be brave enough to come downstairs and finally interact with Cody. For his part, Cody was the sweetest, most unassuming dog, so he mainly regarded the cats with bemusement. Gus had no problem interacting with Cody. Ringo, on the other hand, always regarded Cody with fear, and so kept his distance at all times.

Gus and Star have an unseen confrontation.

In 2004, however, things made a permanent change. We got another dog named Star, and we quickly learned Star was not cat-friendly. We ended up putting up a system of children’s gates, to keep the dogs in the kitchen and the living room so the cats could remain upstairs undisturbed. We weren’t worried about the cats, as we knew they would keep their distance from Star. We just didn’t want the dogs to easily get to them. Ringo, for the most part, kept away from the dogs. Gus, however, did not have a problem with making his presence known to Star and driving her into a frenzy. For example, he’d go into the living room just far enough for her to see him, and when she started going bonkers he would just lay there and watch.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. A year or two ago, Gus started developing an issue where he started losing weight at a rapid rate. The vet diagnosed him with thyroid problems, and so we put him on medication (which we gave him with tuna) with the understanding that this would keep him going, but it wouldn’t always work. Well, back in December, he lost his appetite again, and started losing weight. He also started developing breathing problems. We knew he was in absolute misery and decided that it was time to let him go, as he was drooling, dehydrated, and having severe breathing problems. We made an appointment to take him in the next day… but at around 6:15 AM, he died on the steps. We were heartbroken, especially for Ringo, who had never been without his brother.

For his part, Ringo became more assertive and loud, even though he still didn’t reach Gus’s levels of intensity. Also, while he had less problem being fussed by me, he still refused to come into my room. Unsurprisingly (with Gus and Ringo having been littermates), Ringo developed a lack of appetite, and by this past Friday he started having the same breathing problems Gus had. Mom had to take Taz (our third dog) in for a vet appointment Saturday morning, and as the vet knew there was nothing that could be done for Ringo, they decided to bring him in in the afternoon to have him put to sleep. Otherwise, he would have cratered like Gus did and been absolutely miserable, so we wanted his passing to be easy. Mom and Dad brought him in, and he passed very quietly and smoothly.

It’s difficult getting used to the house without the cats. More than once I left my bedroom door open out of habit (so the cats could visit), and as a result the dogs would use their new-found freedom to go upstairs to rummage in my room. It’s also weird not saying hi to the cats when I go upstairs (as they would frequently be on the landing), or having them want to be fussed when I come out of the bathroom late at night. We’ve decided not to get any more cats, as with still having cat-unfriendly dogs it wouldn’t be fair on them. We loved the little rascals, though, and will miss them terribly. Here’s hoping that when it comes our turn to move on, they’re waiting for us alongside our other passed pets on the other side.

http://app1.kuhf.org/houston_public_radio-news-display.php?articles_id=1270676021

A local political action committee says it now has proof Houstonians are in favor of having red light cameras at intersections. A survey paid for by the group “Keep Houston Safe” shows a majority of Houstonians are in favor of the cameras. Bill Stamps has more.

The survey finds that sixty-five percent of highly likely voters support the use of cameras at Houston intersections. Whether or not that number would be different if it included people who weren’t likely to vote is unknown. Regardless, Mayor Parker remains a strong supporter of the cameras.

“Our Houston Police Department is very much in support of it. We see the red light cameras as a force multiplier that allows us to keep our streets safer and allows us to deploy our police officers into other areas.”

Chris Begala represents Keep Houston Safe, the group that paid for the survey. He says the survey shows there’s widespread support for the cameras.

“Sixty-five percent of whites, sixty-seven percent of Hispanics, sixty-percent of African Americans support these intersection safety cameras — conservatives, liberals, across the board. People want to drive in a safe community and these intersection safety cameras make Houston safer.”

Civil rights attorney Randall Kallinen doesn’t buy it. Since the survey was paid for by a pro-red light camera group. He believes they got exactly what they paid for.

I’ve got two different takes on this whole mess.

• Considering this is from a “pro-red light camera group”, I’m reminded of when I read on Roger Ebert’s site about when movie theater chains claimed most people didn’t mind ads before movies, yet everyone Roger and the question submitter knew absolutely hated them. (I don’t know anyone who doesn’t detest them either.) The KUHF article also points out that when the public is given an option, they vote down the cameras.
• They claim that it makes streets safer, yet the evidence shows that red light cameras actually increase the number of accidents at intersections.

In the end, I’m getting the definite feeling that this is more about astroturfing. The red light cameras do not increase safety; they increase revenue for the city. So, this PAC is trying to make it look like the rest of the public supports the cameras… when their study is questionable and is not supported by evidence. We’ll see what happens, but obviously I’m calling “unbelievable bullshit” on this one.