I Feel Like Writing Something

It's been a slow weekend. I've been battling pink eye and strep throat for the past four days now and have been in a world of pain. I didn't do much except for rest this weekend which gave me ample opportunity to kick back and do something I haven't had much time for recently, play some video games.

I was just about to write up a review of Beyond Good and Evil HD, which just released this past Wednesday in the Xbox Live Marketplace (you can download it here) but ultimately am not feeling up to it at the moment. I will say that it is a gem of a game, originally released years ago for the Playstation 2 and Gamecube, it's finally been given a fresh coat of paint and a new audience. It never sold well the first time around which is a damn shame, I had always meant to pick up a copy but never could afford too but now it's only 10 bucks and will probably decide the fate of the much needed sequel.

All that aside, I don't know much else to write about, I had planned on taking a small day trip out of the city this weekend to get some new pictures and a new post up over at AZ Rogue Travels, my currently 'a work in progress' travel blog but due to being ill that fell through. Things were pretty quiet around here this past weekend and it was really nice.

I'm pushing lots of tea and medicine, hopefully I can kick these viruses before much longer and get back out there on the road. Probably gonna put up a small post at AZ Rogue tonight too.

That's all for now, peace.

News and New Gear

Quick little post here about some new things I've got started and some new gear I got to help me out with it. First off, let's get right to the news. I'm currently developing a new blog, which you can find by clicking here, titled AZ Rogue's Travels. It is exactly what it sounds like, a travel blog dedicated simply to my home state of Arizona.

See I happen to take numerous little trips around Arizona when I'm sick of the city or I just need to clear my head and I always take loads of pictures and even sometimes video, so I decided why not actually put it to good use and try and get some recognition for it. So I now have this new blog setup and ready to go as soon as I can find some time to sneak off on a trip. (Hint: it should be pretty damn soon)

Secondly, I got some new gear in the mail on Friday from the good folks over at Timbuk2 whom I have previously spoken about. They hooked me up with two hundred dollars worth of stuff and I got to say it was a rather nice haul.

These bags came in the mail

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcneildd/5483342518/in/set-72157626158956720/

Bi-Fold Wallet, a 2Way cellphone/camera carrier and an On the Go Toolshed bag

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcneildd/5483343208/in/set-72157626158956720/

San Francisco bike route waterproof map, was actually part of the packaging, very cool

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcneildd/5483343966/in/set-72157626158956720/

The main attraction, a customized Timbuk2 Swig backpack

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcneildd/5482754371/in/set-72157626158956720/

Here's what I've got inside now

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcneildd/5483349466/in/set-72157626158956720/

And then inside that other bag lay these goodies

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcneildd/5482756519/in/set-72157626158956720/

And that's pretty much it for the haul, I got a some really nice stuff which I cannot wait to put to good use. The wallet is already getting it's fair share but the backpack I can't wait to take on a trip with me. It's extremely comfortable and carries the load perfectly, it's going to be great for taking out on photo-hike/writeups.

For now, that's all I have got, so see you around folks.

New Stuff Soon

So for awhile I had vacated this blog to start working more with WordPress and I'm still sort of undecided where I want to go with things.

Keep an eye out here for future posts though, I hadn't been on in awhile and I'm digging some of the new features I was seeing and I do love Google so I may as well use their product instead of a competitor.

Anyway, that's it for now, I need to sleep.

Oh How Time Flies

Life has become a rather hectic endeavor these past few weeks. For a rather long time work had been awfully slow which gave me more free-time throughout the day to read and write. Lately however, it's been anything but slow and I find myself having almost zero free time to focus on my interests.

I refuse to completely give up on my blog through Finnegans Wake but as it stands currently but am going to be putting it on a small hiatus. With the way things have been I just don't have time to try and read through the insanity that Joyce unleashed upon us close to a century ago.

As for my other ideas and projects I have currently planned, one in particular I intend to start focusing on in a big way. I've been mostly discouraged by my lack of proper equipment to really bring anything of value to the table but I need to get over this fear. There's more to quality than flashy lights and smooth silky voice, though honestly they don't really hurt, but I will do my absolute best to make do with what I currently have available.

Now on the same subject, Kickstarter, a community based funding project has intrigued me greatly. The only problem here is that again, as with my discouragement in equipment, I find fault in my own ideas. It should go without saying yet somehow flies over most people's heads anymore but if you never ask, you never receive. So I'm struggling with working up, within myself, the notion that my ideas are just as valuable as anyone else's.

This blog post here, written by Lizzy Bennett, Online Marketing Manager of Timbuk2, is what has most recently set off this series of explosions in my mind. Little explosions that my ideas truly are worthy of something and the reason why, is, I am that StrangeBum from Twitter, I am the one that sparked the little partnership between two of my favorite companies, Timbuk2 and Sanuk Footwear.

So that's where things stand for me currently. My life is filled with ideas that I truly think have some potential to get me to where I truly want to be. All it takes now is a little creative marketing on my behalf to get my name out there and also to just push through my insecurities and get something done.

Thank you for reading and with this, I am done for the night.

Slow Updates

This is really more of an apology to myself than anyone else, as I do not believe I really have anyone who actively reads this here blog, but I haven't been keeping up to date on the blogging lately. Mostly it's just because I've been too lazy to write anything and I definitely need to break out of that habit.

Though I have been doing a few other things lately. Finnegans Wake was on a temporary hiatus as I was working my way through the game Red Dead Redemption for Xbox 360. I used to be a really heavy gamer and had shelved it as of late due to various reasons but have finally taken it up again. I won't be quite as absorbed as I used to, I can't fund that sort of habit anymore, but I do plan on trying to play more often.

With all that said, I'm thinking of maybe writing up a small review about the game, I'm pretty much finished up with the storyline now and all I have left are the small side stories and numerous challenges if I want to 100% the game which I would like to try and accomplish.

I also recently finally saw the new Tron: Legacy movie and have some thoughts on where they might be going with the series after this one. I assume they are going to be making a third movie and I have good reason for believing so and I might also do a writeup on that as well. There will be spoilers so if you are actually reading this just be warned.

And with that I bid you farewell and thanks for reading.

Finnegans Wake [pgs. 1-6]

So I've finally started getting more into the book finally, I am still rather hesitant, and most definitely will be taking my time with this read. I have not as of yet found a central sort of story, though it may be starting to take some small shape it is not quite apparent yet. One thing for certain however is just how much fun it is to read.

I walked into the book with my only expectation being 'this might be a bumpy ride' which it most certainly is. On the flipside though, I was not expecting to enjoy it so much. The way Joyce has written the book is phenomenal. There's so much poetry in each line. Lot of usage of repetition, alliteration, portmanteau and even some malapropism which I always enjoy. His so-called dream speech is beautifully put together and most definitely seems to be the focus of the work.

From what I have gathered from various interpretations is that there is a central plot and characters that develop over time but I am not so worried about that. I am beginning to think that the more I read the more adapted to the language I will become, therefore allowing the story to unravel slowly within my mind.

I haven't quite figured out exactly how to make specific posts on other pages yet, so please bear with me while I work on figuring out what exactly I want to do with it all. For the time being, natch, I will be posting here on the 'blog' page. Other things to bear with, spelling errors and such, as I am blogging from my phone. I don't often have time anymore to write from the computer and I would whilst working but my web usage is quite restricted.

Anyway, thanks for reading and hopefully you will come back for more.

A Quick Update

As it were, I have begun reading Finnegans Wake and must admit I'm quite lost with it...I'm going to be taking a lot of time making my way through this book. To think I ever thought A Clockwork Orange was difficult to read, that's laughable now.

In any case, I would also like to mention that while I would like to update here as frequently as possible it just won't be feasible to update daily. I'm thinking small blog posts every two to three days, making it about two or three posts a week. This should leave me time to read enough to talk about and also have time for my other projects.

Anyway, don't expect another post until later this week I presume. Thanks!