With Christmas wrapped up, it's time to talk about one of the many foods enjoyed during Christmas: eggnog. This year has been a bit different, with us going out and buying a bottle of Pennsylvania Dutch, a tasty alcoholic variety. The "bite" is there, which I think can be softened with a bit of milk and enhanced with a bit of nutmeg. While I wish I could mix good eggnog and hard spirits myself, it did the job.
But beyond the sweetness, there's a level of bitterness that's happened for years off and on, going back to 2002 at least. Often, two things would usually end up happening (maybe both).
Scenario One: My mother would buy low-fat, store-brand eggnog and wonder why it didn't taste very good.
Scenario Two: My mother would buy eggnog, severely restrict portion sizes, then wonder why it went bad so quickly.
While there were practical reasons for both, I still feel regret about these. At least this year's was good (as it was my brother and I that selected the eggnog from the local Spec's, mother uninvolved).
This year has been okay in terms of gifts: I got two CDs (both ELO, though I already bought Out of the Blue on iTunes), a bag of Dunkin Donuts coffee, an insulated travel mug, a bicycle light kit, good chocolate, a new USB charger for my iPod (one that works like it should, yay), a digital wall clock, Cook's Illustrated The Science of Good Cooking, a bottle of ramune soda, some snacks, some rather interesting chocolate flavors (New Orleans Chili, beef jerky, bacon and maple syrup), Expo markers, a backpack cover, a renewal to Amazons Prime, and a "chocolate cola cake mix".
Thoughts on video games, travel, and life
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Monday, December 24, 2012
Figured out one thing
One of the things that drive me bonkers (in a generally good way, given that I'm a slightly crazy person) is where I've seen something and can't find it again. I told you about that crazy abandoned railroad in the Southern military base--still AWOL. But I have found something else--years ago, possibly about 7-9 years at this point, I remember going home from a barbecue in Gatesville (my first and last time eating goat. I would've preferred a steak), I passed by on the way home a side view of Montgomery Ward. It was gone at that point, but the sign remained intact, and it sat empty.
Since then, I've tried to figure out where it was. And I went by it again, and hardly noticed. I had even gone to the strip center's H-E-B just yesterday, but the fact that the Kohl's was Montgomery Ward makes total sense. Same side of the road, same orientation, and the reason I saw it is because the highway was different at that point (the highway was not limited access like today). It also had a Weiner's, too.
Since then, I've tried to figure out where it was. And I went by it again, and hardly noticed. I had even gone to the strip center's H-E-B just yesterday, but the fact that the Kohl's was Montgomery Ward makes total sense. Same side of the road, same orientation, and the reason I saw it is because the highway was different at that point (the highway was not limited access like today). It also had a Weiner's, too.
Monday, December 17, 2012
This Picture Is Just Awesome
From Wikipedia, this glorious shot of Breezewood, Pennsylvania:
What makes it awesome, you say? Not the fact that the road is actually an Interstate highway (yes, with stoplights--but such a thing used to be more common...after all, there used to be an actual active railroad crossing in Austin, Texas until 1970) and I can see an old Shell sign (ALL of the ones of that yellow-on-red style were replaced by 2006 with the yellow-with-red-border-on-white or they lost their license), Subway (last time I saw one of those was in 2011 and that was VERY rare), Taco Bell (also a rarity, mostly disappeared by the early 2000s), etc.
In fact, most of this picture could pass for the early 1990s if not for the modern signs of Pizza Hut, Starbucks, and Shell.
Sadly, this was taken six years ago, so most of this is probably gone by now. Personally, I like to think there should be always examples of unrenovated things around: I saw a largely-intact Kroger Greenhouse building across from a still-operating old school Taco Bell in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Despite my general consensus that buffets are generally revolting, it's too bad there are no known examples any more of say, the Wendy's Superbar, though some modern KFCs offer buffets.
What makes it awesome, you say? Not the fact that the road is actually an Interstate highway (yes, with stoplights--but such a thing used to be more common...after all, there used to be an actual active railroad crossing in Austin, Texas until 1970) and I can see an old Shell sign (ALL of the ones of that yellow-on-red style were replaced by 2006 with the yellow-with-red-border-on-white or they lost their license), Subway (last time I saw one of those was in 2011 and that was VERY rare), Taco Bell (also a rarity, mostly disappeared by the early 2000s), etc.
In fact, most of this picture could pass for the early 1990s if not for the modern signs of Pizza Hut, Starbucks, and Shell.
Sadly, this was taken six years ago, so most of this is probably gone by now. Personally, I like to think there should be always examples of unrenovated things around: I saw a largely-intact Kroger Greenhouse building across from a still-operating old school Taco Bell in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Despite my general consensus that buffets are generally revolting, it's too bad there are no known examples any more of say, the Wendy's Superbar, though some modern KFCs offer buffets.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Ape and Creatures
RPGs are not my all-time favorite games to play, but it is one of the big four (generally), which includes RPGs, simulations, adventure, and hybridized puzzle (Tetris no, Braid and Portal yes).
But I have played a handful of them. Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VI (which I've completed maybe 60-70% of, it's a long game), EarthBound, Super Mario RPG, and now currently Pokémon Yellow (nostalgia--plus I never beat the Elite Four).
There are two things to note in that list: all but one are Super Nintendo games, and all but two are made by Squaresoft. The first detail isn't that important, but the second one is. EarthBound and Pokémon were co-developed by a Japanese company. In the days of EarthBound, it was known as Ape. By Pokémon rolled around, it was now going under the Creatures moniker.
Both of these games are somewhat fun, with pockets of frustration: the games have extremely uneven difficulty. A few gyms and battles are able to breeze right through, and then you have to do a bunch of monster-battling (often whether you like it or not) to even get close to pounding the Big Boss. EarthBound (and not the NES version. that's even worse) caught a lot of flack for this. According to TVTropes, "It starts out fairly challenging, gets extremely easy after Happy Happy, gets hard when you reach the mines and stays hard all the way through Moonside, drops insanely low all the way through Scaraba, gets a bit more challenging in Deep Darkness, and finally gets pretty nasty once you reach Fire Spring through the end."
And that's true, looking back on the time when I did play EarthBound without cheating. It's also true in Pokémon. I can't tell you how many times I had a boss battle or two that was extremely easy: a good water type move can douse any of Blaine's, or Giovanni's Pokémon (and their followers), but suddenly, the Victory Road trainers have battles so hard, you think you're fighting the bosses right then.
So now, instead of going through the Elite Four easily, I'm getting pounded on the first Pokémon Lorelei pulls out. It also haunted me on the last Pokémon game I tried (Gold) as the second half of the game (Kanto) was extraordinarily easy (except for the final, final boss, which I shouldn't spoil even though it's pretty common knowledge by now).
The problem is far from unheard of but ONE SPECIFIC COMPANY who pulls the exact same stuff twice? Give me a break!
But I have played a handful of them. Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VI (which I've completed maybe 60-70% of, it's a long game), EarthBound, Super Mario RPG, and now currently Pokémon Yellow (nostalgia--plus I never beat the Elite Four).
There are two things to note in that list: all but one are Super Nintendo games, and all but two are made by Squaresoft. The first detail isn't that important, but the second one is. EarthBound and Pokémon were co-developed by a Japanese company. In the days of EarthBound, it was known as Ape. By Pokémon rolled around, it was now going under the Creatures moniker.
Both of these games are somewhat fun, with pockets of frustration: the games have extremely uneven difficulty. A few gyms and battles are able to breeze right through, and then you have to do a bunch of monster-battling (often whether you like it or not) to even get close to pounding the Big Boss. EarthBound (and not the NES version. that's even worse) caught a lot of flack for this. According to TVTropes, "It starts out fairly challenging, gets extremely easy after Happy Happy, gets hard when you reach the mines and stays hard all the way through Moonside, drops insanely low all the way through Scaraba, gets a bit more challenging in Deep Darkness, and finally gets pretty nasty once you reach Fire Spring through the end."
And that's true, looking back on the time when I did play EarthBound without cheating. It's also true in Pokémon. I can't tell you how many times I had a boss battle or two that was extremely easy: a good water type move can douse any of Blaine's, or Giovanni's Pokémon (and their followers), but suddenly, the Victory Road trainers have battles so hard, you think you're fighting the bosses right then.
So now, instead of going through the Elite Four easily, I'm getting pounded on the first Pokémon Lorelei pulls out. It also haunted me on the last Pokémon game I tried (Gold) as the second half of the game (Kanto) was extraordinarily easy (except for the final, final boss, which I shouldn't spoil even though it's pretty common knowledge by now).
The problem is far from unheard of but ONE SPECIFIC COMPANY who pulls the exact same stuff twice? Give me a break!
Monday, December 3, 2012
On Disney parks and Renaissance festivals
So recently (as in, over the last few months) I've been reading Yesterland, a website dedicated to Disney theme park attractions, and I learned that California Adventure, the "other" Disney theme park, has been all but scrapped and renovated from its original form. But you know what? I liked it before. Not that I've ever been, but there's something about the original form that was endearing (not "Hollywood Superstar", though, brr). But, besides opening at the worst time possible (months before 9/11), people were whining about the fact it wasn't "Disney" (read: Mickey Mouse and friends figuratively smacking you over the head) enough, that it didn't have enough things for kids especially to do. The theme park was also developed under the assumption that people wanted to shop and eat. With that in mind, there was some rather innovative stuff developed.
Within a decade, though, the wacky California pastiche things and most of the dining was closed for the whole "Disney romanticization"...and the whole thing became a "second Disneyland".
But there is something to keep in mind...while it was an incorrect assumption to believe that people came to Disney theme parks to shop and eat (because that's the first thing people think of when it comes to mind, duh) but it's not an absolutely wrong assumption.
First off, when EPCOT Center opened in the early 1980s, the restaurants there really were worth going to, which may have started it (and California Adventure was built on the scraps of the canned "WESTcot"). Secondly, I can tell you where it has worked out...Renaissance Festival in Texas. There's an admission fee, and a huge percentage of what's there are shops and eateries (both of which are very good). And it is successful. But the success of RenFest in this area and the non-success of original California Adventure is for two reasons, and it has neither to do with skimpy clothing.
1. Renaissance Festival serves alcohol. Besides being a money-maker itself, it's also easier to be convinced into buying something. Disney doesn't serve alcohol based on tradition.
2. Renaissance Festival has better shops. At Renaissance Festival, you can find a large selection of handcrafted jewelry, Renaissance-era (replicas, of course) garb, giant chimes, awesome and/or impractical weapons, blown glass, things made out of wood, pewter, leather. It's all unique, and you can't find elsewhere. At Disney theme parks, it's mostly licensed Disney stuff.
I suppose if California Adventure had actually done things a bit differently, a bit cheaper, served alcohol, and all--it could actually have been a success instead of a huge money-loser. And so, a combination of poor marketing and whiny people killed what could've been an interesting concept. Too bad!
(Yes, I did go the Renaissance Festival this year, what with my super-budget Link costume...a Link hat from a Halloween costume a decade ago and a green t-shirt)
Within a decade, though, the wacky California pastiche things and most of the dining was closed for the whole "Disney romanticization"...and the whole thing became a "second Disneyland".
But there is something to keep in mind...while it was an incorrect assumption to believe that people came to Disney theme parks to shop and eat (because that's the first thing people think of when it comes to mind, duh) but it's not an absolutely wrong assumption.
First off, when EPCOT Center opened in the early 1980s, the restaurants there really were worth going to, which may have started it (and California Adventure was built on the scraps of the canned "WESTcot"). Secondly, I can tell you where it has worked out...Renaissance Festival in Texas. There's an admission fee, and a huge percentage of what's there are shops and eateries (both of which are very good). And it is successful. But the success of RenFest in this area and the non-success of original California Adventure is for two reasons, and it has neither to do with skimpy clothing.
1. Renaissance Festival serves alcohol. Besides being a money-maker itself, it's also easier to be convinced into buying something. Disney doesn't serve alcohol based on tradition.
2. Renaissance Festival has better shops. At Renaissance Festival, you can find a large selection of handcrafted jewelry, Renaissance-era (replicas, of course) garb, giant chimes, awesome and/or impractical weapons, blown glass, things made out of wood, pewter, leather. It's all unique, and you can't find elsewhere. At Disney theme parks, it's mostly licensed Disney stuff.
I suppose if California Adventure had actually done things a bit differently, a bit cheaper, served alcohol, and all--it could actually have been a success instead of a huge money-loser. And so, a combination of poor marketing and whiny people killed what could've been an interesting concept. Too bad!
(Yes, I did go the Renaissance Festival this year, what with my super-budget Link costume...a Link hat from a Halloween costume a decade ago and a green t-shirt)
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