The type of weather that DESERVES a flood watch...

Not too bad a drive...but definately windy and rainy...just really the South Florida humidity at its worst...

Where NOT to eat in South Florida

...from a "roach coach"...

I really shouldn't say that. These trucks help feed the many many many construction workers all around South Florida.

I personally, however, will not buy anything from them short of a bag of chips or a soda...

And the song goes on and on...

Today we see a $.06 price drop. It really makes you wonder what the market forces are at any given moment...

A new quarter, and Lord Stanley's Cup!

Last night, on the way out of the game, they gave all fans a small box. In there, was a small replica of Lord Stanley's Cup. Cool!

And...I got a newer Kansas Quarter! Woohoo!

I'm a winner! I'm a winner! What did I win?

...I think a free burger...but the coupon was already for a free burger...hell, I can't tell.
NOTE: Nacho chip cheese at sporting events makes a really good cleaner when mixed with water. I cleaned the glass in front of my seat with it. It works. Really.

The UFOs at night.
They are actually meant to be a modern art representation of the palm trees in South Florida. For reference.

And the final score is...

Panthers 2 Thrashers 0

PANTHERS WIN!!!!!!!!

Thank God hockey is back!

Sights from the game...

Your 2005 Florida Panthers!

Love the video on the ice. And you can see that bright-video-ring (or ribbon) thingy at the top of the photo...

The opening faceoff

The Panthers prepare to strike first!

A 'whole rink' view from our seats

Ah...the sweet smell of NHL hockey is in the air...

It's been too long. The updates to the BankAtlantic Center are nice, with one of those thin-video-light-band type displays that wraps around the entire place, almost, and some updates on the scoreboard in the middle as well.

UFOs on sticks outside the arena. More on that later.

Yes, those are ELEVATOR SHAFTS with picture of our goaltender...Roberto Luogo!

But, I digress. It's warmup time!

Olli Jokinen, our captain

There's Luongo...he's #1! He's #1! He's #1!
...sorry....jus' sayin'...

Luongo during warmups...

Best Pizza In South Florida

Sal's Italian Ristorante, in MiramarDon't let anyone tell you different!

With Tropical Storm Tammy now formed, we're under a Flood Watch.

Personally, I'm glad about that, because the weather is looking really nasty this morning...

Woohoo!

My first Kansas state quarter! Philadelphia Mint, baby! You know what I'm sayin'!

*sigh*

If only mine looked that good...

Wow...how'd I miss THIS movie?

Boy, I love Jack Nicholson. How did I miss this masterpiece?

I will say this...for some strange reason...it reminds me of this...

Kevin Smith...in your face!

If you like Kevin Smith at all (he's the writer, director and Silent Bob from Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma and, of course, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back), you must read this. Apparently the teaser trailer and title for Clerks 2 was not well received by many, and he felt compelled to respond...and it's absolutely hilarious.

NOTE: This is definately NOT something for children or people under 18 to read. You have been warned...

Kevin's a pretty neat guy, and he's rather intelligent. Not everyone gets him, but he DOES know his stuff. Where do I sit regarding Clerks 2? Don't care. I've only see Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, and that's enough for me.

So, what OTHER show do I like?

24
(No new episodes until January 2006)

I've been addicted to 24 since it's first episode, just after 9/11. I watched it with a good friend of mine (Hi, Sparky!) while we were both on business in St. Louis, and it blew us away. Wow.

In case you care to ask, here's how I think each season ranks:
1) Season 2 - Nuclear bomb (Best Season Ever)
2) Season 1 - Presidential Candidate threatened
3) Season 4 - General Mayhem with Marwan (almost my #2 choice...it's that close!)
4) Season 3 - Bioterrorism threat. *yawn*

Can't wait for January, to get more "Jack Bauer Power Hour"!

Today's *GASp* price

Let's get the formalities over:Okay...it dropped 8 cents a gallon over the weekend. Whoop-dee-do!

To that end, I filled up the van at Hess today (1 mile east), where it was $2.91/gallon (over $45 to fill the tank...sheesh!).

So where the hell have I been?

Some of you may not have seen me on Xbox Live lately, and I apologize. I've been sick this week, and just haven't been up to playing. Also, with the new TV season starting, and some DVD box sets, I've had some catching up to do.

So...what am I watching?

Lost
(9pm on Wednesdays on ABC)

I've been an addict since it debuted last year. I bought the Season 1 box set to pour over the show in more detail than I could when it aired on TV, and I've been picking lots of things up from re-watching the DVDs. There's a reason why this show won Best Drama. It's great. Watch it. This season is going as strong as last.

Battlestar Galactica
(10pm on Fridays on Sci-Fi)

Love this...the production value and writing is incredible on this show. I missed the original mini-series, but since the box-set of Season 1 was just re-released with the mini-series, I picked it up and have been catching the parts that I missed. No new episodes until January, tho.

Survivor
(8pm on Thursdays on CBS)

Not many people know this, but I did apply to appear back in Season 3 of the show. No, I didn't get to try out. Go figure. Love the show.

P.S. The tribe I'm rooting for is pictured above. Go Stephanie!

The Amazing Race
(9pm on Tuesdays on CBS)

I just watched the season premiere. I'm not too hot on the family angle...but I am pulling for the family with the little boy and girl. That family seems to be really tight, and understands what needs to happen, and the kids are great.

Mythbusters
(9pm on Wednesdays on Discovery Channel)

No new episodes right now...but fun to watch in re-runs.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
(11pm Monday-Thursday on Comedy Central)

Do I really need to say why this show is incredible? No. Watch it. And read the book.

NOTE: The Colbert Report will be debuting in October! Awesome!

Stargate SG1
Stargate Atlantis
8pm and 9pm (respectively) on Fridays on Sci-Fi

These, like Battlestar, are in re-runs until January. I'm not as attached to them as others...but still a fun show to pass time with.

That's what I've been doing while I've been sick. Upper respiratory/asthma-type thing. Not pretty, lots of hacking up stuff.

I'll be back. I promise.

Grrrr....

Okay, this morning, the gas price was unchanged from yesterday:When I drove home yesterday, the Hess and BP stations about 1 mile east of this were at $2.87 for a gallon of regular. Why did this particular price go up so much? This is gouging, plain and simple. There's a BP across the street from this Chevron station with the same price. One of them raised their price, and the other felt compelled to do the same...because they COULD. There's no reason why these two stations should be this high, when everyone else around them is lower. Even Headline News this morning reported the nationwide average is $2.84, and South Florida usually is about 3 cents per gallon over the national average.

I'm pissed.

And today's gas price is...WTF?!?!

Okay, this is just wrong.What justifies an overnight 28 cent hike in the price? 28 FREAKING CENTS!!!! I may begin boycotting Chevron, but I need to do some research on what other gas prices in the area are.

And the gas price dips further...

Wow! I think I can afford that now!

Taking advantage

Sometimes, you just have to marvel at nature's beauty. This was served up tonight behind my house.

Gas price BURP! (Excuse me)

Yesterday and today...a comparison...

On the left, 9/26's price.
On the right, 9/27's price.
Note that the price was $2.87 in the days before 9/26...so it's interesting to think about what caused the $.02 spike for one day...

Testing 1, 2, 3

Can you see me now? Good...

Testing the macro mode on my new digital camera...the lens was only about 3 inches away from these flowers...
...and a few inches away from the writhing snake/worm (I'm inclined to think this was a worm...).

A face off...with the ducks

It was mean, it was nasty, and they sure pushed themselves around, but in the end, they backed off.

Like Momma always said...

"Beware of men wearing grass skirts."

(A belated "Happy Birthday, Dude!" goes out to ya as well!)

FLOYD FAN ALERT!

Coming out this week: Roger Waters' Ca Ira

Don't miss it!

Quiet lately...

I've been rather quiet lately. After coming off a stressful week with my father's surgery, hop into a hurricane...I just decided to pull back a bit. One of the things I've been messing around with is this thing, which is supremely cool. Being able to consolidate ourlarge DVD collection, and make them available with the push of a couple buttons, and look sooooo good in up-sampled high definition...sweeeeet. I've nicknamed it HAL (after the HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey). It does take some time to load the DVDs in it, tho, and then subsequently label them.

Hurricane Rita

*sigh* Here we go again.

Please, everyone, if you're anywhere near the projected path of this storm, just GET OUT OF THE WAY! Don't be stupid and think you can ride this thing out. Just get out of town, in a direction that takes you out of the path of the storm. Do it, for your own safety. Now. We do NOT need to have a repeat of Katrina.

And, after the storm passes, everyone around the country will be there for you, as we have been for victims of Katrina. Have faith, and be safe.

The people I work with...

Let me just say that I...well...uh...he...um...

...awww...fergit it.

(Happy Birthday, dude!)

Today's Gas Price

If you ever wanted to know what the price of gas at my nearby Chevron station was at 8:00am this morning, when photographed through a dirty van windshield while passing it at nearly 20 mph with a new 7.2 megapixel camera, which then was edited down to a mere 800 pixels in height, and was color and sharpness enhanced....
...now you know.

Rita: Not really that much of a storm

Atleast, it isn't that much of a storm for us up here in north Miami-Dade County. The shutters have barely made any noise (they normally rattle throughout a storm; we have 'accordion' style shutters which are meant to have a little 'give' to them, so they normally flex a little when wind hits them. The winds up here haven't been that strong, so they have made little noise. Based on that, I can give you my Expert Weather Opinion™ that this hasn't been a big event for us.

We're still under a hurricane warning nonetheless, and I expect that to be lifted soon. The quesiton is when do I need to return to work? I think today's a wash. We'll see.