More on this later.

Jess took this while I was shooting video. I'm gonna let it speak for its self.


Video will get edited once my new HDD arrives and I do a fresh install.

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Tomorrow.

Jess and I will be on a plane for 14 hours. Then we'll be in a place neither of us has ever been before. A place we've only read about, seen pictures of and heard people talk about. Until tomorrow, this place only exists for us through pictures and videos on the net. Through stories and travel-logs. It seems I've been preparing myself for tomorrow for the better half of two years. We're in the 11th hour and the clock is about to strike. The anticipation is almost unbearable.

I'm wrapping things up here at work today with a nice little bow. The plan is to leave nothing unfinished before I leave.

We've packed as much as we can for the moment. The rest will get packed tonight, leaving tomorrow morning for miscellaneous things like the toothbrushes and shampoo. Dropping off our pepper plants at Sean and Steph's for watering and loving. Making the last minute arrangements and getting things in order. Counting our Yen once more. Checking, for the 40th time, if I've packed my passport.

The HD camcorder arrived yesterday. A Sony HVR-A1U. Tapes have been bought. Tested. Tinkered with. Awesomeness has been witnessed.

This is going to work out nicely, me thinks. I just hope we aren't sitting next to some screaming child for 14 hours.

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Went over to Sean & Steph's...

Took the new flash with me. Took pictures of more cats. They're cute. So what? Seems this is all I do anymore. take pictures of cute animals. Also, a good portrait of Sean and his old-man pipe... who is not an animal, I guess.

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News Flash!

Why is "news" not the plural of "new?" Why doesn't "new" get a plural? Where's the love? Where are my pants? Check out my news stuffs! So, I got a new flash. You got a problem with it? Wanna fight about it? Lookit dees (click for largers):

Iz dat yur hairbls?

Jabba no bahdda! (also: Wa ha ha hah! SOLO!)

Dat IZ yur hairbls!

My pores can beat-up your pores.

Japan on Wednesday.

The End.

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I'm the mother flipin!

Click that image up there for the most awesome rapper song you will ever hear. tru.dat

Hip-Hopopotamus vs. The Rhymenocerous! Flight of the Conchords is the funniest show evAR. Seriously, TV hasn't made me laugh this hard in like the last two freakin' years. If you're still not convinced to check it out after reading those first two sentences, watch that video up there again.

Want more? Go here NOW!

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Selling a bit of old hope...

trading up for new.

So, the XL1s sold on Sunday. I packed it up and shipped it out yesterday. I have to say, once I handed it over to the post office, once I would never see it again, a little pang of sadness hit me. It's rare that your emotions surprise you. Usually I'm pretty good at preparing myself for what I'm supposed to feel.

I mean, rationally, it was just a camera. It served its purpose at the time I needed it. It was a good camera. I made some good films with it. My life has changed, my needs are different now. I guess, as with everything else, I'm out-growing a lot of things.

I'm reminded of that Ikea commercial with the old lamp sitting outside the house by the trash, unplugged, with the arm tilted downward in a weeping position, cold and in the rain. The new lamp highlighted in the house window, inside, dry and surrounded with warm light. Maybe I do feel sorry for that lamp. Maybe I am crazy.

Needless to say, the whole ordeal has been more emotional than I expected.

As if I bubble-wrapped and package-taped -- sealed and mailed off a little piece of myself. A piece of my past, of my old-life. Maybe a few dreams and aspirations thrown in there for extra padding.

The plan is to take the money and invest in a new camera. Something not as pro-sumer as the XL1s but definitely not your grandma's camcorder either. I'm looking at a Sony HVR-A1U. Seems like a nice middle ground with some nice options. 3lbs is a great weight as I plan on taking this thing out. The 1080i resolution is also nice. It should make Japan and PAX look amazing.

In sixteen days I step on a plane to leave the country. The excitement of which is overwhelming. I do well at hiding my anticipation. I keep busy and try not to count down the seconds but inside, I am bursting. I can hardly keep a thought in my head that isn't over-powered by "JAPAN! JAPAN! JAPAN!" A trip that has been in planning status for close to two years, gone through all kinds of changes and has been the root of a lot of my emotional roller coastering, is finally coming to fruition.

When I come back, things are going to be different.

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Gonna be into Bill for a bit.

So, yeah, here is the Xbox 360 release schedule through the end of the year. I'm pretty much going to be gang-raped in the wallet until late January/early February. I've put a yes, no, maybe, or rent/borrow next to the items listed. You're smart, should know what that means.


June:
____________________________________________
Call of Juarez - NO
Fantastic Four Rise of Silver Surfer - NO
Monster Madness: Battle for Suburbia - RENT/BORROW
Tenchu Z - NO
Ratatouille - NO
DiRT - RENT/BORROW
The Darkness - RENT/BORROW
Harry Potter Order of the Phoenix - RENT/BORROW
Hour of Victory - NO
The Bigs - NO
Transformers The Game - RENT/BORROW
Overlord - MAYBE


July:
____________________________________________
NCAA Football 2008 - NO
Vampire Rain - NO
Project Sylpheed - NO
All Pro Football 2K8 - NO
Two Words - NO
NASCAR 2008 - NO


August:
____________________________________________
Moto GP 2007 - NO
Too Human - MAYBE
Stranglehold - YES
Madden NFL 2008 - NO
BioShock - FUCK YES
Stuntman: Ignition - NO
Tiger Woods 2008 - NO
Medal of Honor Airborne - NO
Blazing Angels 2: Secret Missions - NO
Blue Dragon - RENT/BORROW


September:
____________________________________________
Mass Effect - FUCK YES
Unreal Tournament III - MAYBE
Blacksite: Area 51 - MAYBE
Jericho - NO
Project Gotham Racing 4 - RENT/BORROW
NHL 2K8 - NO
Skate - NO
NHL 2008 - NO
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men - MAYBE
Turok - NO
Eternal Sonata - FUCK YES
Timeshift - RENT/BORROW
Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights - RENT/BORROW
Hellboy - NO
CSI Hard Evidence - NO
NBA Live 2008 - NO
Half-Life 2 Orange Box - YES
Halo 3 All Edition - YES
Sega Rally Revolution - NO


October:
____________________________________________
Lost Odyssey - YES
Looney Tunes ACME Arsenal - NO
Heist - NO
Virtua Fighter 5 - NO
The Club - NO
Crash of the Titans ‘07 - NO
NBA 2K8 - NO
Bladestorm: Hundred Years War - NO
Beautiful Katamari - YES
Fatal Inertia - NO
FIFA Soccer 2008 - NO
Conan - NO
Grand Theft Auto IV - YES
Naruto - NO
Mercenaries 2: World In Flames - RENT/BORROW
Simpsons: The Game - NO
Need for Speed: Pro Street - RENT/BORROW
Guitar Hero 3 - MAYBE


November:
____________________________________________
Assassin’s Creed - YES
Rock Band - YES
Super Street Figher HD Remix - YES
Alone in the Dark - MAYBE
Turning Point - NO
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - MAYBE
Army of Two - FUCK YES
Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway - NO
The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena - MAYBE
Ace Cobmat 6: Fires of Liberation - RENT/BORROW
WWE Smackdown vs RAW 2008 - NO
Left 4 Dead - FUCK YES
Splinter Cell: Conviction - MAYBE
Golden Compass - NO
Devil May Cry 4 - MAYBE
Haze - MAYBE

I wish publishers would stager the release schedule so we don't get bombarded with A-list titles all at once. I realize this is the lord-high-shopping season but sheesh, can I breathe please? Keep in mind, these are only the games coming out for the 360...

So yeah, through September, October, and November, I'm gonna want to die.

*Deep breath*

BioShock, Mass Effect, Halo 3, Eternal Sonata, GTA IV, Beautiful Katamari, Rock Band, Assassin's Creed, Left 4 Dead, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, Half-Life 2 Orange Box, Lost Odyssey, and Army of Two are all must-haves. I mean, I've got a reputation to uphold here.

Unless I've miscounted, that's 13 games I have to buy. Let me say that again. Thirteen. I don't need this shit right now. I hope some of those titles get pushed back to '08.

I also hope no one wants Christmas presents!

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