House votes slaps news organizations - CNN.com

This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Besides being a complete waste of time, it means absolutely nothing and will not change how the media reports things. Last time I checked we had a free press.

If they were so concerned about this getting out then they'd be after the people who let it out and not the newspapers. It's their JOB to report things to the American public. Would the House rather them find more stories about how they are corrupt and accept bribes all the time? I think not.

The Cubs finally won a game today. Derrek Lee came back into the lineup on Sunday and has done 'ok' and then finally hit a 2 run homerun today to put the Cubs ahead vs. the Brewers. They then got a few more runs and won the game. Glad to see them finally do something right.

We saw Superman Returns today after work. It was pretty good but the storyline is pretty stupid. Otherwise, it's a really good movie. The music gets to you too, since you've obviously heard the Superman music before.

For those of you who might be wondering, I am NOT coming home this upcoming weekend. Instead I'll be coming home July 7-10, which is the weekend after this one. I'm getting my braces off that Monday so it wouldn't make sense to come home two weekends in a row, especially since I'd only be back in Rochester for a few days before heading back to Green Bay.

The Cubs lost 3-0, but it was still a lot of fun. I'd never been to the Metrodome before, it's a very strange place. I didn't know this, maybe you did, but the roof is actually held up by air that is pumped into the building. The roof is some sort of tarp thing, it isn't an actual physical non-moving roof. So when you go into the building you are greeted with a large pressure difference which immediately pops your ears. Then the fun part is when you leave. You are basically pushed out of the stadium by the force of the air inside of it. It's actually really fun. Mark Prior pitched all right, he didn't really have problems until late in the game, and he only gave up three runs. There were also a lot of Cubs fans there, which was pretty cool.

I've posted some pictures that I took at the game here. Just as a sample, here is my $8 food purchase at the game. Yes, these two items were $8.

The Metrodome is right downtown and is really easy to get to from Rochester, so we might have to try and go to some other games; Twins or even Vikings vs. Packers. Also, it was a good thing that it was a dome because it was raining like crazy on the way there. It was extremely windy as well.

Due to the advice of Jackie (see previous post's comments) as well as actually looking on IMDB and seeing the movie listed under Drama/Romance, we've decided to not go to The Lake House. It would be especially strange for Justin and I to go to it together. SO, we've decided to go see X-Men 3 again. We thought about seeing The Omen but it's only playing at 9PM and neither of us really want to see it that badly.

Also, there is a bowling alley here that does not allow smoking. How cool is that? I think they should all do that so we don't have to put our coats in the garage when we go home.

Tomorrow: Cubs vs. Twins!!!

Well I've been biking like crazy these past few days so that's partly why I haven't really posted -- I've been tired. I'm not doing any today though since my legs hurt now.

I went to Rochesterfest for lunch today. It seems like it's pretty much just food and a few vendors. I think they have more events during the evening when people are off of work. It's funny to go there during the day because it's right near the Mayo Clinic so you'll see people in scrubs or people with suits since they are all walking from work to take a look around.

Saturday I'll be going to the Cubs vs. Twins game in Minneapolis. I've never been to a baseball game in a dome, so hopefully it doesn't kill the baseball spirit. I lucked out, Mark Prior is going to be pitching (or so I think) and I was hoping Derrek Lee would make his return that game, but it looks like he'll be going to the minor leagues for a little while to make sure his recovery from injury is ok before he goes into the big leagues again. I hope I can get some good pictures.

We'll probably go see The Lake House tomorrow. I don't know exactly what it's about but it has something to do with one person being at the house in the year 2004 and the other is at it in 2006 and they communicate with each other somehow. The movie poster makes it look like a chick flick, which I don't believe it is. But just wanted to get that out there. I'm also now listening to Hoobastank - Every Man for Himself in my car.

Yesterday I decided to try the Douglas Trail which goes from Rochester to Pine Island. It's a pretty nice ride, mostly flat but for some reason I thought it was easier on the way back to Rochester than it was to Pine Island. There are some rest areas along the way if you get tired, it's pretty nice. There really isn't much to see besides farms and woods though, but it's the trail that everyone talks about here. I'm not sure if I prefer the ones that go along the river or this one. It's definitely a lot darker on this trail since trees cover it a lot of the way.

Rochesterfest is going on this week. I haven't been to it yet but I think I may end up going there today, I'll probably post about it later.

It's actually been pretty cool here lately, I like it a lot better that way.

This is pretty cool. It's a test from BBC that determines whether your mind thinks more like a male or female based upon different kinds of tests which research has been conducted on. I thought it was pretty cool. In one step you have to measure your fingers and I found out the index finger on my right hand is about 1/4 inch larger than the one on my left hand. That comparison has nothing to do with the study, but I thought it was weird.

So anyway, I have a 50% male brain which is the general average for the males who have taken the test on their site so far.

So go try it, it's fun.

We saw Nacho Libre yesterday and it was a good day to go to a movie. It was really, really hot out and very humid so the air conditioned theater was a great place to go.

Ok, so you probably want to know if Nacho Libre is any good. I read some critics' reviews before I went that said the first half of the movie is much better than the second half. Personally I thought the first half was no where close to as good as the second half. The first half is mostly spent explaining things. Yes there are funny parts in the first half but they are definitely not as funny as the rest of the movie. So I guess critics like explanation, that's the only reason I can see why they'd like the first half better. Anyway, there are some absolutely hilarious parts in the movie and there are some really stupid parts in it. There is a lot of farting/bathroom humor which was entertaining the first few times but it got old since Nacho is always coming out of the bathroom in the movie. Overall right now I'd say the movie was 'OK'. It may be like Napolean Dynamite where you need to see if again in order to really appreciate it. I admit, I hated Napoleon Dynamite the first time I saw it. We're probably going to go see Nacho again next week for a new hire event for work.

The worst written review I've read so far has been Roger Ebert's. I don't think this guy gets why Napolean Dynamite was good. It was good because the jokes would sometimes stop and not actually deliver a punchline but they were funny if you stopping thinking about them. Ebert claims "Jokes do not build to climaxes...". He uses an example from the movie where Nacho climbs a mountain to eat an Eagle's egg. He says this is not funny at all and could have been made a lot more funny. Did he even watch the movie? It was funny because of how ridiculous the idea of eating an Eagle's egg to get better 'moves' is. I don't know it's not like I really enjoyed the movie but I think this guy is way off base. According to this guy, yet ANOTHER Fast and the Furious movie is rated better than Nacho Libre.

Some people also claim it's racist. I can't really see that in the movie. Just because the movie takes place in Mexico and it's a comedy doesn't mean that it's somehow racist. I don't think Nickelodeon would even risk putting their name on something that might be considered racist. People should stop trying to dig for things like this.

This morning I got in my car and was surprised to see three service lights go on. I got service anti-lock breaks, service traction control, and service variable effort steering. My breaks had been acting up a little but I thought it might just be the heat. So I called OnStar and they hooked me up to the dealer here and they said they'd take me tomorrow morning. Later in the day when I was driving to the baseball game (see next paragraph) the lights magically turned off and have been off since. So there must be some loose connection or messed up sensor somewhere that's causing it. But when the lights are on I can definitley tell that I lost variable effort steering because it's a little harder to turn the wheel (not THAT hard, just harder than it used to be).

Today we got to go to a Rochester Honkers game today. They are a baseball team of college kids who want to play during the summer. It wasn't the most exciting thing I've ever seen since most of the hits weren't very big at all, but the 9th inning was at least entertaining. The game tied up and then the Honkers loaded the bases and got the winnning run in.

Tomorrow is Nacho Libre day at the movies. Hopefully it's good.

Well I am now addicted to the new Dr. Pepper, Diet Berries & Cream Dr. Pepper. I tried some after stopping at a gas station and deciding to finally try it out. I've liked cream soda ever since my older brother had me try it and the new Dr. Pepper tastes a lot like cream soda, except with some Dr. Pepper taste. I don't really taste the berry that much or maybe I do and I just ignore it, I don't know. Either way, it's really good.

Coke released a new product called Coke Blak a while ago. It's basically coffee mixed with coke, or some sort of blend between the two. I tried it out a while ago but I think I forgot to mention it. First, it's extremely expensive and really is not worth the price. I think I paid around $6 for four of them at Wal-Mart when I tried them and each bottle is smaller than a conventional glass bottle of Coke. BUT, I actually kind of like the flavor of it. I wouldn't buy it again because of the price but after I had one or two of the bottles I got used to the taste and I actually think it's pretty good. My dad told me that you can make a neat lamp out of the bottle. It looks nifty.

Tomorrow I'm going to a Rochester Honkers game. It should be pretty fun. It looks like it may rain but hopefully it holds off.

When you see someone coming on a bike and you're feeding geese, do not throw the bread on the path where the bike is going.

Thank you,
David

I saw the latest remake of King Kong this weekend. I have to say that I was pretty disappointed. I think I may have liked it if it wasn't so long and drawn out. It seems like certain scenes could have been accomplished in 5 minutes instead of 20. I don't know if I'd watch the movie again, or if I did maybe only parts of it.

My mouse has been getting annoying lately because the cord keeps getting caught when I'm moving it quickly on my desk so I decided to buy a wireless keyboard and mouse set at Sam's Club. My dad has the same one and he said he really likes it so I thought it couldn't hurt to get it. The keyboard is one of those 'ergonomic' keyboards, so it's a little different and might take a little getting used to compared to normal ones. It's a Microsoft keyboard/mouse and they seem to like the ergonomic designs for keyboards. The mouse is also a different design than I previously had, but it is also supposed to be designed to make your hand feel better after extended use. I think almost every Microsoft mouse is the same design. It's comfortable, but again will take some getting used to. It also has Microsoft's scroll wheel that goes side to side as well as up and down. I don't think I'll ever use side to side but it's cool having it.

You may have noticed at the bottom of every page there is the text 'Battle of the browsers...'. Well this doesn't really do anything I just put it there so everyone could see the number of total visitors that have come to my site using Internet Explorer and how many use Firefox. So far Internet Explorer is winning (come on guys, you know Firefox is better). But that will be down there so you can see if whenever you want.

We've decided to skip this week's movie since there is nothing good coming out. So next on the list is Nacho Libre, which is written and directed by the guy who did Napoleon Dynamite. So hopefully it's pretty good.

Work has been all right. We've been assigned mentors to help us get used to the job and the different departments in the company. It's pretty cool so far.

Blogger seems to have some issues today. I tried to change all the pages over to php, just for future use if I ever wanted to do it, and right when I deleted the main page it went down. So if you came to the site this evening you probably saw a temporary message telling you it was down. Hopefully they fixed whatever was causing the problem.

As you can see I switched to Goo Goo Dolls - Let Love In as my current CD for the car. I've listened to it a lot already but I like the Goo Goo Dolls a lot and this is a pretty good CD so it's going back in there. Eve 6 had a pretty good run, I'm sure it will be back eventually.

Things have been really boring here lately, I haven't really had a lot to do at work or at home. I've just been kinda sitting around I guess. I worked on the site a little bit, just changing things behind the scenes, but that's about all. Hopefully things will get a little more exciting soon.

I might end up going back to Green Bay this weekend. There are a few things that I want to make sure of first before I say for sure, but at least know that I think I may be coming home. Hopefully everyone will be around so we can do stuff together. But anyway just let me know. I'd probably get home around 10pm Friday or around there.

So I was bored tonight and I decided to read more about the Nintendo Wii. After reading more about it, I just end up wanting one more. If you don't know what the Wii is, it's basically a video game console but the controller is this remote control looking thing that detects motion. The coolest example of how this works is Tennis. You can play Tennis with the Wii by actually swinging the controller to hit in the game. Nintendo's webpage shows some pictures of a bunch of different types of people playing with the console and I think that shows off a lot of what will happen. Everyone could fall in love with it since it's so different than modern game consoles.

It's finally "raining" out. I use the term raining loosely though, since I hear a few drops now and then. It seems like all the storms pass by Rochester somehow. It would be nice to have a good thunderstorm once in a while.

I've been pretty tired lately, I'm not really sure why. I keep falling asleep a lot earlier than I normally would and end up waking up really tired. Who knows why.

This Friday's movie selection is very small. The Omen and Cars both open this week. The Omen looks like it could be one of the worst movies I've ever seen and I'm not sure if we'll want to see two animated movies in a row, so we're not sure about Cars either. The week after that Nacho Libre comes out and then I believe it's Superman the week after that.

Then try blue. I changed the website so you can pick between different theme colors. Right now there is only orange and blue available though. Also, I personally think orange still looks better, but maybe some people like blue. If you want to change the theme you can find the drop down box on the sidebar on the right at the very bottom. Just select the color and it will automatically refresh the page for you with the new color. Eventually, I'll add more colors.

For those of you who are nerdy and care about how it works, I'll explain it. When you select a color it places a cookie on your machine with the value being the color you selected. Then a few javascript functions (you can see them here) check to see which color is in the cookie when you load the page and will display the correct logo and colors based upon that. I didn't really have to change too much, mostly I just had to add some things to the CSS files I am using.

Since I was using cookies for doing this, it did not like how sometimes the domain would switch from dstanich.com to voidonline.net. So voidonline.net will just redirect you to dstanich.com now.

Today was probably one of the best days I've had in a while. Definitely the best since I've moved to Rochester. At work we spent the first half of the day at a nature center doing team building activities with a few other intern groups. I was a little apprehensive about it at first, but it turned out to be a lot of fun actually. Everyone in our group works in the same area and it helped everyone get to know each other a lot better and I feel like it was a really fun time, even the bus ride there and back.

I guess I've come to realize that I really am a geek. It's very odd here since most of the people at work are just as geeky as I am. I'm not really used to having things be that way. Normally talking about video games or computers might get some raised eyebrows from people around you but here it's common conversation. It's actually pretty cool. I'm glad that I can have those conversations with people.

I've also found that everyone in Rochester is extremely friendly. When I ride my bike I'd say about 50-75% of the people will say hi to me as I ride by them. Normally people tend to look away or just keep looking straight ahead. It really makes you feel like you can stop and talk to anyone if you wanted to here.

Justin and I saw Over the Hedge today for our Friday movie. It was all right, but I think I've seen better animated movies. We have no idea what we're going to see next week, again.