So I went to see Episode 7: The Force Awakens

So I went to see Star Wars The Force Awakens. I don't need to spoil the movie to write these observations, even though a few minor details might get revealed.

• I do not miss going to the theater and hearing other people cough. They should offer people cough drops in advance for free.
• I did miss the 20th Century Fox fanfare at the beginning. There are 6 previous Star Wars movies that have this and I consider it a rite of passage to see a Star Wars movie.
• I was expecting some sort of Disney preamble, but there was none at the theater I went to. Disney could have plopped something at the beginning, but it just went into the Lucasfilm logo and the Text To Infinity scroll.
• Was that a female bounty hunter in the shiny armor? I was hoping they'd take her helmet off.
• Giant hologram in that one room - Wizard of Oz effect?
• I did not see specifically R2-KT and I really was hoping to obviously see her.
• Now I think that one fan who got to see an unedited version of this movie felt he got ripped off because Episode 7 ends in a cliffhanger. I think he was cheated and now he'll never get to see Episodes 8 or 9.
• That one girl seems to be a quick study of using The Force and nearly hands that one guy his own ass to him.
• Another Death Star destroyed. Ho hum. Actually, it could be consider a Star Relocator. Hah.
• Best parts are some really cool Millennium Falcon flying and that Han Solo gets to shine, which makes up for him getting frozen part way through Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. 6 major players from the "original" trilogy are here. Yay!
• We find out someone ended up alone like one other character from the classic trio, and maybe we'll find out why.

In general, The Force Awakens is a good movie, well worth the admission price and later eventual DVD purchase. I saw it at a matinee in 2D. I'm just not the kind of fan who enjoys Star Wars intensely. In some respects, I was let down. But it's good and what fans deserve. A polar opposite to the disappointment Episode 1 was.
 

What my Mom learned

This could be the funniest thing you'll read in a while.

One thing my Mom learned early on with me as a baby was that she needed to wake up before I did, especially if I had a full diaper the next morning. Because she made the mistake one day of getting up after I did, and that didn't happen again.

Apparently, I was one baby who didn't like having a full poopy diaper. And I made use of that diaper in what could be considered an artistic way. I got told of this story enough times to remember it.

Apparently, I was of the mind as a baby to 2 years old or so that when I woke up with a full diaper, I made a mess on the wall with said contents. I don't remember how it went and Mom never tried to describe it, but having a baby poop sculpture mural on the wall next to the crib wasn't something she enjoyed very much in having to clean, in addition to the mess on my backside. But you should be able to picture it by now a baby boy, unhappy with a full diaper, probably crying in a fit, but busy at work with his art project.

And then imagine how long it took to clean up and de-stinkify it all.

Happy Thanksgiving, people!

Finally got something off my list of things to do

In spite of all the worrying I've been doing waiting and wondering if SSA is going to screw me over and say I don't have Asperger's (which I was born with), I finally made use of the Chevron money I got for the gas and oil lease to land which I didn't even know I was related to and used it to finally see Walt Disney World, something I wanted to do when I was still very much a fan of Disney animated movies, most of which at the time I had never seen in their entirety. Home video releases wouldn't happen for another 10 or so years, and theatrical re-releases were rare.

My grandmother on my dad's side was the first of us to go back in the 1970s soon after it opened and brought back for us 2 souvenir books which I have somewhere and detail much of the building and early days of the place. My mom's parents got to go some time in the 1980s one January after EPCOT opened. How nice to go and not consider taking your grandchildren!!

Before I even went, for years I knew what I would like to see but at this late stage, I had to realize what wouldn't work for me as I would be the wrong size. Adult size, if you like.

Thankfully, some of the things I wanted to see (and more, with Hollywood Studios as another option to see) I was able to. There was still lots I did not get to see for whatever reason, but I'm not disappointed it didn't fit into the scheme of the visit. Just getting to be there, the being of being there, happened, and for the help I got from friends who knew what they were doing, getting that accomplished was the most important part.

I did have mobility issues, problems exacerbated from months of depression soon after my mother passed away and just not doing anything. I tried to get in shape, and even though it showed me I wasn't where I should have been, it also was a harsh wake up call to tell me where I stand with my dream to go to Japan.  At least I didn't have a heart attack like one family member was worried about.

So what's left on my list of things to do? (I'll get to talking more about WDW later.) Well, going to Japan is one. Before that is getting in shape like I used to be and better. Getting married and having a family is on there, as I would like to think going to Japan might contribute to that.

They're all my dreams and I so far refuse to give them up.

Hollywood Studios

1st QSR @ WDW

Smurf toilets

There's something to be said about inappropriately placed toilet paper and Smurf toilets.

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1st Time At Waffle House

Ate at Waffle House. It was OK.

Magic Bands!

When you don't fix it each month for a while, there's this big hit...

I wish I had the means to buy a newer vehicle than my 1998 Exploder. Got the thing to the dealer for a look-see at that clunk that started on Friday, and it has something to do with an eyelet and a suspension spring. In that something broke off and the weight of the vehicle was keeping things in place.

Good thing - it can be fixed with parts from somewhere. The job is expected to take 4 or 5 hours.

Bad thing - they said these are usually done in pairs. And if they have to replace shocks or other parts that don't come off easily...

In short, this repair might run $1,600 to $1,700 but the main guy working on this will be looking for parts which he can get by tomorrow. Bolt sets for this repair aren't cheap. It's within the realm of possibility to do this repair as the frame is pretty much OK by their reasoning. It's a matter of what else will rust and break.

I can't trade in a broken vehicle, so I said go ahead, do the work, and hope he gets deals on the parts he needs. At least I have $55 in Owner Rewards... In the meantime, I got a Ford Escape as a loaner.

Social media doesn't work for me, otherwise I'd set up a Go Fund Me page and see if I can get donations to either offset the repair cost or whatever. I get SSDI and all I can do is toss this on a credit card which I pay more than the minimum each month and hope nothing else breaks. My computer services business hasn't yet gotten the impetus to do much on the cost of repairs like this.

In January i already had the ball joints worked on.. Sheesh. Not going to let this suck my money this close to going to WDW.

Kaito getting ready

White Castle

The White Castle on Arlington has closed.

This is the other fallen shoe

Well, the other shoe has fallen, as the saying goes. I was waiting for this, just didn't expect it so suddenly.

Not more than 2 days after seeing a medical doctor, Social Security sent me a Disability Update Report which I have to fill out and send back within 30 days and it's got my anxiety level maxed out and then some. I'm trying not to stress out over it but I am who I am, and my Asperger's doesn't help at all. I do have a counselor appointment this Tuesday and I'll need her help in filling out the answers. She's the one who told me that "One does not recover from having Autism."

And even though my business (aka "self employment") has been official since Jan 1 2015, I really don't have significant monthly income in spite of what my BVR people might have to say. That's one problem with this form. And my overall health has not gotten better since the time period specified on the form. In fact, it has gotten worse as I would not be able to perform any of the work I used to, even if I could get past an interview.

If I haven't gotten excited over an upcoming trip to WDW, this is the reason. I can't ever relax or get excited over future plans because this is what I worry about every week.

If for some reason they send me to another review for autism and / or my disability gets revoked, I have nothing.

Karl Bushby!

I saw Karl Bushby just west of Minerva, OH today!

The Sylvania branded MP3 player made by Curtis

Some years ago Big Lots was selling a number of USB Flash Drive MP3 players. I bought 2, though I meant to buy more but never quite got to doing it. I bought a nice COBY 1GB model that's been very robust and a really good performer. The other model I bought was a Sylvania branded 1GB model but made by Curtis. I still have my 256MB model also made by Curtis, and maybe I've mentioned the problems with several 512MB versions that have met their functional ends in various means.

The odd thing with the Sylvania player is that instead of the usual USB connector on one end was a small USB mini plug that you plug into it, and THEN the cable goes into a USB port. And then even after that, if you don't have the right way to use it, you end up being able to use it or not able to use it. I would imagine a lot of people who didn't have my set of computer skills returned these if they had a Windows XP system. Here's why.

Most MP3 USB devices have a FAT file system on the device and it's accessed like a regular flash drive. Drag and drop files, easy peasy. But no. The Sylvania with XP connects in some odd Media Transfer Protocol method. It's not simple Drag and Drop. You have to figure out how to "sync" it with Windows Media Player and all that jazz. Too many things to jump through. This might have put a lot of people off in that they were unable to use their devices. I wonder how many got returned to Big Lots.

However, I also happen to own a Windows 98SE system. I can plug the Sylvania player into it and access it like any other 1GB USB Flash Drive! It came with a USB driver CDrom for Win98, and that's how I ended up being able to use my Sylvania / Curtis MP3 player. And surprises of all surprises, it still works. Maybe Curtis finally got around to making it right?

I still haven't been able to figure out how to get it to connect to XP and get treated like a regular removable storage device in My Computer. It's probably something I'll try to figure out at some point.

Goddamn bloody abject COLD

Winter is not my favorite season. The fact that it gets cold, icy, snowy, and downright uncomfortable doesn't help its image. It's bad enough that the cold air comes down south out of Canada, but then when Canada has more than enough, it overflows from further north out of the Arctic, and it's not done even then! Oh hell no. Coldness then comes from Siberia. Really? Russia, we don't hate you anymore. Stop figuring out new ways to send your coldness to us, OK? Sure blows out the theories of Glowball Warming. But then they'll just tell you this is one of the numerous symptoms of it. More badass storms. Yeah, yeah, whatever. I think before we humans as a species consider sending some of our useless population to another world (as has been done before), we need to figure out how to control the weather.

At any rate, I managed to make it through last night's severe, over 10 below cold. It got as low as 65 F inside here, while upstairs in my room it was no lower than 75. If only I had more room upstairs for everything.

But anywho, let's try to get away from that for a moment. Let me stipulate a set of rules for subtitle scripts.

1. ARIAL with Bold by default. Color 001FFCFF. 2 pixel outline, 2 pixel drop shadow for main default dialogue.

2. Don't confuse WAS for WERE, or WERE when you mean HAD BEEN. WAS is past tense singular, WERE is past tense plural.

3. Learn how to use ONLY. And use JUST when ONLY really doesn't work.

4. SPELL CHECK.

5. AVOID APOSTROPHE S PLURALS - in general, learn how to use the Apostrophe correctly.

6. Don't use plural verbs with singular collective nouns.

7. Shorten "all of a sudden" to just the word "Suddenly."

8. Don't use spelled out numbers when the simpler actual numbers looks better.

9. In case of Japanese names, keep honorifics, and put names Japanese order meaning Japanese family name first, given name(s) last. That's how your ear will hear them.

10. Do Not Translate Nya as "meow" and don't make puns with it, nor use stupid squid puns.

At some point, I may include examples of usage for the ones that need it.

And oh yeah, Gan-chan was evicted a few weeks ago. Some halapeno-cheese flavored crunchy cheese curls were enough to lure him out again, presumably weakened by hunger, and got stuck to one of the glue traps in the drawer. So I sandwiched that little shit with another glue trap and flung it all outside and on the other side of the train tracks. I would imagine that since then with the cold and snow, he finally succumbed.

Negi tells me the recent crop of free-range mice taste well with a Catnip Port with its fruity undertones.

Bill Havens, former Mr. Clean, motivational speaker

Back in 1985, when I first enrolled into DeVry Institute of Technology in Columbus, OH, one of the first things they provided to new students was an inspirational talk by a guy that for all intents and purposes I could remember only as being Mr. Clean for Procter & Gamble, and that his message was entitled "The Winner's Bounce." One thing that never stuck with me was his real name. He was known as Bill Havens, and this was his job. Thanks to a scan of one document dating from 1987 from North Canton, I finally found out his name.

He was based mainly in Central Ohio, but thank goodness he was hired to do a motivational speech in North Canton. Part of his talk involved 2 tennis balls, another point I remembered. He was good. I was motivated enough to finish my first term at DeVry with a 3.96. Various conditions contributed to my eventual failure in my 2nd term, and eventual withdrawal and a 2nd attempt at enrolling at another technical college in Columbus so I wouldn't have my student loans (meant for DeVry) come due right away. This wouldn't pan out as my room mates' plans also didn't come to fruition along with me, and since we ended up not being able to afford staying in Columbus (none of us had our own transportation), we moved home. I eventually enrolled in a local college and graduated with an Associate with Distinction (amazing difference of results due to a stable environment).

Thing is I never forgot his motivational speech. In fact, my experience with the world having been so limited at the time, I thought he was the only person doing motivational speeches. At any rate, time moved on from the mid 1980s. Mr. Havens went on to keep on doing his thing. Eventually in 2007 he even launched a website and a blog about his speeches. He posted a lot during 2007 and 2008, but oddly enough he doesn't have any posts after 2008. His main business website unfortunately is also gone, but still lingers in the Internet Archive. I wanted to find at least one video of this guy.

Unfortunately, I also found out he passed away October 12, 2014. I wonder what happened between then and his last blog post. Either 2014 or Oct 12 2008, the other date in time when October 12 was a Sunday, but info from a post on Facebook indicates 10/12/2014 was when he passed. He was only 79. You can find out about his other accomplishments, like being a football coach, but he did a great job as a motivational speaker. Well, at least his daughter continues his work.

First post of the new year, eh?

First post of the new year! So what's new? My computer services business is official. I have a vendor license and the name registered with the State of Ohio. So now I can charge sales tax. I have a page for my business on Facebook.

I found out I was a living heir to some gas and oil rights to a property in West Virginia via my mom's side of the family, extending past my grandfather to some "relatives" I had no idea I was related to. It's a part of the family that my grandfather never spoke about if he did know, but the lady from Chevron I spoke to said that he probably didn't know. I know quite a bit about my grandmother's family, my father's on his mom's side, and a little on my father's family on his father's side. So it may be no wonder that we knew nothing about my grandfather's family. I'm told that he was born in Southern Ohio which is very near this tract of land I located.

All I know is that if this was in Ohio, it would have been taxed on property taxes, seized for non-payment, and then sold at auction. I guess the laws in West Virginia are different in that you can sell the surface land but retain some of the oil and mineral rights in perpetuity. For once, a relative of mine managed to hold onto something and not lose it.

I also now own 24 Monster High dolls, with the Foreign Exchange Draculara in her Japan-inpsired Shi-Boo-Ya outfit.

The extreme cold these past 2 weeks was not conducive to working on computers. Some Sailor Moon Crystal chips I bought got a 2nd box sent that I was not charged for when I got on the online retailer's website to ask them to "make me feel like I got a good deal" when I commented on how much I felt cheated when I found out how much they sold in Japan vs the markup on their site. I am truly humbled in that they'd send me another box like that. They are the 2nd retailer for Things Otaku or Japan related that has earned my business. They do listen. I will shop carefully to make sure the price they're asking for is reasonable, and sometimes it is.

The spindle motor in mom's Zenith DVC2200 DVD player went bust, so I ordered an exact model replacement online. Hopefully it will survive the trip here and work. I think the coldness that invaded the house these past 2 weeks may have contributed. It was made in May 2000, so getting 14 years out of it was pretty good, but still... The Toshiba DVD player I got says it was made in 2007.

I also have a mouse in my kitchen gadgets drawer (currently empty) that I'm going to name Gan-chan, based on the rat / mouse from the Oh My Goddess Small Things are Handy TV anime. The reason for that is I was going to see if I could discourage Gan-chan from getting into my drawer by putting a few Wasabi Peas into the drawer and see what happens. I put 3 in the drawer and in the morning I found they were gone.

Wow. So I tried again with 5 Wasabi Peas but I sprinkled some Morton Hot Salt around them this morning. A few hours later THEY were gone, too! So Gan-chan loves Wasabi Peas, eh? So I put 2 more, but still in the area of the Hot Salt to see if it was coming back. I'm sure by this time Gan-chan has some of the cayenne pepper dusting that's in Hot Salt all over his body and right now is having an unpleasant experience licking that off itself.

So if these recent 2 peas also disappear, I'm going to make him take on the Cinnamon Challenge, and dust the entire bottom of the drawer and see what happens.