Christmas with the fam

Suprisingly it was a mellow christmas. Lots of Hi def basketball and football, first annual ping pong tournament, and no drama.
 Russdogg ™

American Airlines arena

Post Heat game, outside the AA arena, the heat is still on at 10:30 at
night so we cruised South Beach afterwards.
 Russdogg ™

Miami trip Heats up

It was a long day of orientation today. For some reason it seemed a lot longer than it really was. Fortunately tonight was our team event where
we all got to go out as a group for a night on the town.

First we checked out Gloria Estevan's restaurant/club Bongos,which was a Cuban cuisine with a big open dance floor. Right after that we walked to the American Airlines center to watch the Miami Heat play the Denver Nuggets.
Sure the seats were way up there, but we had a blast regardless. Miami ended up losing and Shaq didn't even play but we didn't care. Finally we hit up South Beach and checked out a high-class club, but it was a little too high class for us and we ended out walking the strip, seeing the Versace mansion, then checking out the beach at midnight. It was crazy but really cool at the same time.  Russdogg ™

Awesome hotel, even better job...

I got in pretty late last night to Miami. Actually, it was only about 7:30 california time, but it was 10:30 east coast. Which was not cool because I was hungry! Nothing was open and I was sooo tempted to eat from the minibar. The 4 dollar cost for a bag of M&Ms was enough to curb the hunger pangs though. By the time I got to sleep at 2:30 AM, I only had about 4 and a half hours of sleep. Luckily my room is awesome. 14th floor suite with a king-size bed, ceiling to floor windows, kitchen, two bathrooms and a jet tub.

First day of the training session was very cool. We basically are being
indoctrinated in the company culture, which is very cool and goes with
my style perfectly.
 Russdogg ™

Flying can of sardines...

Got to the airport to find a line of 200 + people waiting in front of
me. Luckily someone pointed out another skycap way down the way also for
american airlines, so I hustled down there and had my bag checked in
right away. Now I,m packed in the middle of a miami-bound 747. I
always, and I mean always fly window seat so how I got dead center of
the plane is beyond me... it'll definitely be an interesting 5 hours.

 Russdogg ™

The Game graces the cover of the L.A Times

With just days remaining till the release of The Doctor's Advocate,
Compton rapper Jayceon "the game" taylor is everywhere, from Connecticut
radio stations to conventions to Letterman and the L.A times. Only time
will tell if he sells more than his last album.
 Russdogg ™

Kings Kabob is my guilty pleasure

Kings kabob is the best/worst thing to happen to me since living in L.A.
The food is so so good but I am definitely going to miss it when I start
work in Santa Monica!
--russdogg

Writely officially becomes Google docs

Well, my favorite online word processor, Writely, has finally made the transition to a full-on Google application. Earlier this year they were bought out by the big G, but it wasn't until late last night that it went offline and came back as Google docs. Basically, its the same as a basic version of Microsoft Word, but all your files are stored online. You can access them from anywhere, export them as a Word file, PDF, text file, or even an html web page. All for free.

The best feature? the ability to have multiple contributors to any file. I tested this out with my sister this morning while working on my resume. I just added her email address as a contributor and it was added to her documents list. Once she got on, a little indicator popped up on the bottom to tell me she was working on it at the same time. When ever she made an edit, about three seconds later it showed up on my screen. Theres a refresh button on the bottom too, just in case you need the latest version, to the second ;) As a plus, Google also put up a link to their Excel clone, Google spreadsheets. Google is taking over!

Video Downloader to Youtube: "Yoink!!"

As a Flash designer, I've always been interested in video on websites. It always seems to be a problem with not having the right video plug-in, or the wrong browser to view it, etc. By creating a video player in Flash, you can skip the plug-in and browser issues and have the video right on your page. Of course you still need content. Enter Videodownloader. Videodownloader is the easiest way to "borrow" videos from popular websites like Youtube. It's an extension for the Firefox browser, and when you have a video on your page, just click the button and it starts to download.

Gangs of London demo not vaporware?

I signed up for the free Gangs of London demo on the off-handed chance that Sony might actually follow through with a promise, but I wasn't betting my savings on it (or even the $1.50 for my daily Diet Pepsi). So I was a little suprised to see it show up in the mailbox. Upon closer inspection, I see that it came from Santa Monica, which is only like 10 minutes from here.


If you ever played The Getaway games, the gameplay will look really familiar.

Luckily the controls aren't quite so wonky. Its like a cross between the getaway and the Grand Theft Auto series. The good news is it only takes a coupe minutes to learn the controls. The bad news is the demo is only a couple minutes long. You'd think if they went through all the trouble to press these demo discs, they'd at least last long enough to help you decide if you want to buy it or not. The Loco Roco demo (which was a free download) was an entire level of gameplay. Enough to get you hooked to a game where most levels are pretty similar. This game obviously has a lot of potential, but they barely get into anything on the demo. Still reserving my judgement until it's released.

Let the dog out!

It is seriously a disgrace how Duane "Dog" Chapman has been treated by the American Government.

You can help by signing his petition , giving some money to his defense fund, or visit his site on A&E to get a little more informed. At last check, there were about 45,000 signatures on the petition. Keep em coming!

Can the boys in gold dodge a bullet this season ?

Sports Illustrated has Joey Porter on the cover this month and asks, "Do the Steelers have what it takes to make another Super Bowl run? I've been a Pittsburgh fan since I was in junior high, so don't get it twisted when I say their chances are getting slim. Most haters say last year's win was a fluke, but I disagree.
It was an excellent combination of good players, tenacity, a few trick plays and some good calls in our favor tht gave them the ring; and really, when isn't that the case? But with Jerome Bettis retired, Antwaan Randle El gone due to his free-agent status, and Big Ben not playing up to par in the pre-season after his motorcycle injury and now getting his appendix out, the outlook to another superbowl sort of grim. I'm still hoping they can do it, but unless A.) Big Ben really gets back into the game and excels and B.) Porter keeps up his game onslaught all season, then the odds are definitely against them.

Mel's creative genius continues with his next masterpiece

Mel Gibson, world reknowned actor extrordinaire and star of such classics like Bird On A Wire, Maverick, the Chili Con Carne Club, and (of course) What Women Want, has traded in his comedy/tragedy masks for a silky pair of puffy director's pants. His latest masterpiece, Apocalypto, is currently in the works - and not a moment to soon I might add. After his recent alchohol-fueled, Semetic loving-challenged tirade, the King of Malibu Rum needs a little redemption. The question remains, If Mel made the Passions and then it came out that he hated Jews, does this South American epic spell out Mel's unspoken hatred of Mayans? In my unbiased professional opinion, yes. When the end comes, can Mel outrun his fate?

Snizakes on a Plizane!!!!!!

With all the current worries about liquids on planes, only Samuel L. has caught on to the reality we should be fearing: snakes. This movie was as good - and bad - as I had hoped. It's not often you go to a movie knowing it's going to suck. Usually you have a slight hope that maybe, just maybe it'll redeem itself, only to be let down once again when the credits roll. When you know its gonna be ridiculous, you can let loose and just laugh till it hurts, as did everyone else at the theatre with us. Please go see this. I can guarantee you'll only be dissapointed if you go in thinking it will be good.

Moving on to (not bigger but) better things...

My new Macbook, baby...
Originally uploaded by russdogg.

Last Tuesday I flew back to Hawaii, where I'm working on Island Football's yearly pre-season magazine. Being back on Oahu after a good twelve months on the mainland has had me kind of re-examining my life over the last year. I can easily say my circumstances have greatly improved; monetarily I may not be too much better off (haha), but my living situation and life direction have definitely recieved an upgrade. Last year I was desperate to work on the mag, broke after my month in China and working with my brother on a start-up web company. Now I'm living in L.A., taking Flash Design classes at UCLA and doing freelance web work; I actually had to turn down a full-time job oportunity because it came the day I was flying out. Last year I had scraps to work with and took a while to get paid; this time I had my flight paid for and they bought me a laptop worth over 2 G's as compensation, 2 weeks before I even flew over. I really feel blessed to be able to keep traveling around and still get paid. That freedom is something I've been reluctant to give up, so hopefully I can keep things rolling in the right direction.

Pray for Big Ben

Say a little prayer for Ben
Originally uploaded by russdogg.

Yesterday Ben Roethlisberger was hit by a car while riding his streetbike in Pittsburgh. His head hit the other car's windshield and then was tossed a ways farther. The worse news is he wasn't wearing a helmet! Now I got a lotta love for Ben, and I've been a Steelers fan since the late 80's but damn, that was a dumb move. Especially when it is a on a street bike that can top 180 miles an hour. So please join in and pray he has a full recovery, and maybe gets a little common sense too.

Diet Pepsi, vindicated from claims of causing cancer (and being gay)

Ever since I started drinking Diet Pepsi, I never looked back. It all started a few years back when I spent a month in the Cook Islands working for a football magazine, riding modpeds and hanging out on the beach. Reality set in when I got home to Hawaii and I realized I was dirt broke. I mean bank-closing-your-account broke. Aside from having less than a dollar to my name, for some reason my biggest worry was I couldn't afford my daily Pepsi. My roomate decided to be the good samaritan, but with a twisted stipulation: He would only buy me Diet. I was appalled, however my disgust for sugar-free soda was superceded only by my addiction to caffination, and I eventually got used to it. The fact that I was removing so much sugar from my daily diet was very encouraging towards my pathetic attempts to live a healthier way of life, but there are always critics. The one complaint I always hear about Diet Pepsi (aside from it being gay) was the so-called "fact" that Aspartame, Diet Pepsi's artificial sweetener, caused cancer.

Now I decided this was a calculated risk I was willing to take, since my immediate family and relatives are highly prone to diabetes (and alchoholism, but thats another blog...), but not a single relative has cancer. Well, there's good news fellow Aspartame Addicts: Diet drinkers everywhere can now breathe a sigh of relief and now have some clinical grounds to stand on. A recent study by the National Cancer Institute has debunked the cancer causing blame on Aspartame. Read it and weep, critics. There are some claims that Artificial sweeteners can interfere with your diet, but that only applies if you are too stupid to read the calories clearly printed on the side of the package.

We want tacos! We want tacos!

Lakers played Phoenix today.Kobe was playing good in the first half, but his game play was more of a passing game, with only 15 first-half points. of course thats alot of points but this is Kobe we are talking about. After the half, he came back on fire, drilling shots from all over the court, scoring 19 points in the third. When it was all said and done, Bryant had 42 points total, making this game # 23 that he had 40+ points this season, tying Elgin Baylor for Laker with the most 40+ games in a season. Now it was a gimme that the Lakers would win, especially with T-Mac out on injury, but on an intersting side note Yao actually held his own finishing with 25 points. That's a long way from when he first came in the League and was getting pushed around all the time.
After Kobe's blazing 3rd and 4th quarters, MVP chants could be heard through out Staples Center. After Kobe sat out, the chant changed. Inaudible at first, it soon became clear. We Want Tacos! We Want Tacos! Apparently Taco Bell was giving out vouchers for tacos if the Lakers kept the opponents to under 90. Luckily for the hungry fans, Rockets only made it to 88. Rumor has it the Rockets were coerced to keep it under 90 by city officials for fear of riots.

Life after Lasiks Surgery

post-Lasiks web chat
Originally uploaded by russdogg.

If there is any advice I could offer to anyone considering corrective eye surgery, it would be to not get too in-depth in your research. I say this only because once you know exactly how it's done, you've seen tons of graphic images, and read a few "horror stories" on the web, it gets kind of scary! I wish almost that I was completely ignorant to the process, haha. It's been three weeks since I had the procedure, and my vision is pretty near perfect. Before the surgery I was incredibly near-sighted, like -7.15 or something like that. And now, it is fantastic. It was really blurry immediately afterwards, but it has been less blurry every day, and night vision is getting better as well. It can take months to completely heal and for your eyes to adjust. Life is good.

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