A Lot has Changed

currently playing: Neverwinter Nights 2, Battlefield 2152, Fable, World of Warcraft

Well, alot has happened since I last updated this thing...first and foremost, my daughter Maya has gotten pretty big and she now can roll over! Pretty good times...it was the craziest thing. She was laying on her stomach on the table, and started rolling over to her side. We stood there going, "c'mon...roll over here", etc, and then, poof....she just did it. Pretty exciting! I know, some of you are like, uh...who cares...but when you have a kid, you'll realize, it is a exciting and big deal. She is almost five months old now and enjoys smiling, gargling, blowing bubbles and occasionally laughing. It's a lot of fun.

In other news, Andrea, Maya and I all got our Christmas tree last two weekends ago and put that beast up. That was a crazy time, but it's up now and all decorated. It looks pretty good.

Well, school is keeping us both pretty busy, but, it's alright, because I'd rather be busy than bored!

In other news, the PS3 and the Wii launched a few weeks ago. Very exciting times to be interested in video games of any kind. The only thing is, the PS3 is frippin' expensive, and the Wii, well, lets just say I'll be waiting until I try one out first before dropping the incredibly reasonable $250 on one. Gotta watch out for the ol' Wii Elbow though....so dumb!

Anyways, I've gotta go watch some Survivor. Hopefully I can keep this thing updated on a more regular basis than oh...every 4-5 months!

-Dan out-

NINTENDO DS - LITE

The Nintendo DS LITE is truly a wonderful handheld gaming device. I played my Gameboy SP to death and really enjoyed the heck out of it, but when the DS came out, I just had this feeling that I would be snagging one sometime. I waited though, because I wanted the price to go down, and I wanted there to be enough games to warrant my getting one. I looked at the Sony PSP for quite some time as well, but decided that the $250 mark is just a little big to much for a handheld...even if it is a graphically superior machine to the DS. Then I got wind that the DS-LITE would be coming out in June...and I went...wha wha whaaaaaat? After reading up on the LITE I knew that I would be waiting until this variant came out because of all it's upgraded features. The battery life is longer, the screen now has different settings depending on where you are playing it, and the max brightness setting is significantly brighter than the original DS. The size had been slimmed down as well. Now this slimming process also took away some of the comfort you get while holding the original and larger DS, but once you figure out a comfortable way, (holding it lightly in your fingers), to hold the new DS-LITE that obstacle seems more like a user preference problem than anything else.

Game wise, I have picked up quite a few different titles. The most exciting, which I have been playing like CRAZY, is the new Age of Empires: Age of Kings game. This game is so much fun. It has all the different features that the original games had, but is now turn based....which is really for the best because of the stylus use that is required. There is a complete TECH tree, upgradable units, different ages to go through, tons of different units, even MONKS! You can make castles like the original, which gives you a special unit that is only for your race ( a better word could be used here but I can't think of one), and all in all, I am just hooked on it. It's also not an easy game. The computer AI is pretty smart and will really screw things up with their Hero units if given the chance. All in all, probably my favorite game on the DS so far.

Another game is the new Super Mario Brothers. Great game, sort of a remake in some respects, but lots of new things to make it feel really new and different. The mini-games are also pretty dang fun!

Resident Evil is also pretty fun on there. It's a remake of the PS game from a long time ago, but the DS version really holds onto all the scary moments, and the feel of the original game. And YES Mark, I did play the original game over at my friend Jarod's house....even if I didn't beat it. And YES Mark, sometime here, I will get around to beating it on GameCube....haha.

One game I don't have yet, but want to get sometime, is Mario Kart. Matt and I have been playing that over the DS WIRELESS LINK and it is pretty sweet. He just sends me a multiplayer only version of the game, via the wireless feature on the DS, and we race....very fun and very cool idea being able to share the game even if one person doesn't have the game.

One thing that is coming out very soon, is the DS WEB BROWSER. There is a SWEET video that details how the whole thing works over at YOUTUBE.
Now, the load times are not great on this thing, but hey, it's the internet on your Handheld gaming device...how sweet is that. All you need is a wireless connection. You can do e-mail, check any website, no chatting though....yet. That might be kind of hard to do though, without a real keyboard. Who knows though, there may be something adapted that will enable people to chat on AIM or what not over the DS. Not sure when the US release will be for this browser, but it is already on in Japan and I'm hoping it comes state-side sometime this Fall.

Other than all of that....life is going well. Maya and Andrea are doin good and my life is hectic, but exciting with the new addition to the family.

I also found out that my buddy Andy just picked up World of Warcraft. Let the questing begin baby!

-Dan out-

FATHERHOOD!!!!

Well, it has indeed been a while since I have posted on here and a LOT has changed since my last post. The first and most important thing that has happened is that I am now a Dad! Very weird feeling...let me tell ya. Allow me to introduce to you...


MAYA ROSE





She was born on July 16, yeah, the day after my birthday....weird. Andrea's water broke around 2am...and we got over to the hospital about 4am. As soon as we got there, her contractions started up like CRAZY! We got to the delivery room and she started laboring pretty heavily. As soon as she got far enough along, the pushing began. After 3 hrs of pushing....and alot of headway....it became apparant that the baby's head was at a slight angle, and there was no way it was going to come out the natural way. YEAH FOR C-SECTIONS!!! So, after a c-section....Maya was brought into this world screaming quite loudly I might add. Her stats are as follows:

9lb, 1oz
19" long
35cm - head diameter

She is a rather large baby.....but, she's cute and the chunk only adds to the cuteness. Andrea is doing GREAT and Maya is as well. We've had a few late nights, or early mornings, however you wanna look at it, but, all in all, we're adjusting pretty well. Very exciting stuff.....if you happen to be in our town and wanna stop by...you are more than welcome. Call first of course...we've been in the Quad Cities alot lately.

Until next time...

enjoy these HIGH RES pics of Maya from her Birthday.

PIC 1
PIC 2
PIC 3
PIC 4
PIC 5


-Dan out-

Busy Summer So Far!

This summer has been pretty dang busy so far. First off, we finaggled a house and have been moving in like crazy over the past month. We have now been officially living in our house for 2 weeks. It's weird and will undoubtedly take some getting used to. As soon as we moved in, I remember that, oh yeah, we have NO OUTLETS upstairs. Because of this, my father-in-law and I pulled two new runs of wire from the electrical box down in the basement to the upstairs. We could have tied into the OLD wiring...and when I say OLD I mean from the 60's or 70's, buuuuut, decided against it since we would be running a air conditioner, and more importantly, my computer up there. We got all of that done last weekend, and have been running some mighty power up here ever since.

Andrea had a baby shower this past weekend, which was fun, more so for her than me, but we got a ton of cool things off the registry. A swing, pack and play (play pen) this expensive lamp for the baby's room, and a whole slew of other random baby things. I now have diapers in my house.....very odd.

I also started last week working for my dad again, construction all summer. But, I decided that after the baby is born, I'm done, probably for good, but, at least for a few weeks. It's my 2 1/2 month vacation...c'mon...I deserve it, and it's completely fair...with what I get paid....I better get some time off...haha.

We've had a few, "hmm, she's having the baby" and gone to the hospital, only to be told, "silly rabbits, deliveries are for women in labor....and you are not in labor, go home and deal with the contractions." These wacky little devils are also known as Braxton Hics.....which I love calling Braxton Hic-Ups...because lets face it, they can't be THAT bad right? I mean, c'mon drama queen Andrea, having "labor pains"....riiiiiight. So, I said that once to her, jokingly of course, and got a boot to the head.

We also just decided that instead of just sorta of putting up some waterproof paneling up in the bathroom, we are going to tile. WHEEEEE, aka, gonna take a while. We are going sometime this week to pick out and buy our tile. Then comes the wonderfulness that is preparing the bathroom for tile, and then, well tiling it. WHEEEE!

On the gaming front...hmm, there really hasn't been much of a gaming front lately. I managed to get in some World of Warcraft of course, but besides that, I think Link and the Minish Cap is the only other game I've played for about 3 weeks. It's been curaaaazy and I have a feeling it will only get crazier.

Speaking of craziness, I have to go to bed, pouring concrete tomorrow....all flippin' day! How I long for Hillsbrad Foothills!

Photoshop User Magazine

Well, I am subscribing to the Photoshop User Magazine again....but the rawkin' thing now is that the School is paying for it, and not myself. This is nice because it's like $99 a year for the magazine. I paid that one year and really enjoyed the magazine, but couldn't justify renewing it due to financial interests. :)

Anyway, I get to start a photoshop course in the spring semester of next year, so I figured, well, I'll use this magazine and examples and ideas from it and incorporate them into my course...and I get to read this magazine again, which is awesome!

The reason I bring this up, is because I was looking around on their website again, and noticed that they have this new feature since I stopped subscribing to the magazine, where they record some professional photoshop gurus explaining tips and news and other wacky things. I watched the first one and was very pleased with how the tutorial they showed me worked out. Here is the before picture and the after picture. Unsharp Mask is a pretty slick feature.


BEFORE

AFTER

-Dan out-

Wii!!!

Wii!!!! Er...WHEEE, er...WHEEWHEE...er, WEEWEE....whatever, either way, The Nintendo Revolution has died, and Wii has been born. Long live the REVOLUTION because I think that name just rolled off my tongue so much better than discussing my whee...er, wee, or Wii as you will. Don't believe the news...check it out over at Nintendo.

In other news, we've semi-moved in to our house now. I have a few new pics of the inside to throw up here, and I will do that here shortly. This week has been crazy so far, track meets, mowing lawn for 2 hrs (because it was a foot high) and other random AWESOME events. This weekend, Sectionals take place over in Kewanee all day Saturday, and then Sunday....GOLF!!!! Doug and I are going golfing...first time out this year, and man, I'm ready. Hit some balls for a while, and then go fumble through 9 holes baby! Matt may be coming as well which should be fun. Regardless, good times are being had. Penny-Arcade had a really great comic about the new name...hahaha, check it out...you will have to go back a few comics, but man, it was funny. I'd link to it, but who knows who reads this so, check out Penny-Arcade. Funny stuff...

-Dan out-

Lucky Number Slevin

Lucky Number Slevin is a great movie! Kemo and myself went to see it yesterday and let me tell ya, pretty dang good movie. Just the right amount of confusion and desire to figure out what the heck is actually going on, to equal a great flick.

Spring break is over as of tonight....which sucks, because I did have a pretty good time this spring break....buuuuut, the end of Spring break also means that the year is almost over as well, which brings a smile to my face.

Meeting with our insurance agent today to get our home insurance on. Only 10 more days until we close on our house and we can NOT wait! Living in an apartment has it's benefits, but right now, living in a house just seems to have that many more.

I have been playing a lot of Oblivion lately, and let me just say, this game is very addicting. It is so open ended though, that sometimes, you sort of sit back and go, "shoot....what should I do now?" Very cool game though and definately worth picking up, only though, if you have a high end PC or a XBox 360.

Another game I played a bit these past few days is Forza Motorsport . There is just something about racing games that always seem to pull me in, at least for a bit.

Well, I've got to go run some errands and then head to a track meet...which will end at who KNOWS when....it may be a long day.

-Dan out-

Napoleon Dynamite

Uh....this movie sucks....and is a huge waste of time....to tell you the truth, it was kind of depressing.....not sure what all the fuss is over this movie.

First House!!!

We looked, offered, and bought a house this past weekend. It was a crazy weekend as you can imagine. We went out on Saturday looking at houses after getting approved for a home loan. We signed about 3,000 different documents and I think I may have signed over my first born as well...there were so many different documents, I'm not entirely sure. Regardless, we are now the proud owners of a house in the town where I work and where Andrea got a job to begin teaching this next August. There were only like 4 houses that were in our price range, and 2 of them were dumps, and the other one was WAY out in the middle of nowhere....so this one was meant for us I suppose. Our friend and realtor pitched them our price on Sunday morning and we got a call that they accepted it around noon today. It's a nice little house and we will have a good time fixing up stuff and changing stuff around so if and when we sell it, we will be able to get our $$$ back and then some.

It has:

-1,448 square feet
-new siding
-new windows
-1 and 3/4 bath
-full basement (which will be renovated and finished)
-2 bedroom (also a 2nd story large room which could be made into more bedrooms)
-new refridgerator (wheee)
-2 year old furnace and central air
-and a bunch of other things...

Needless to say, we're excited. We take possession of the house on April 28th. After this weekend of craziness, I need some sleep.

-Dan out-

JOBS RULE!

And in other news, Andrea got a job teaching grade school at the same school I'm teaching at. WHEEEE!!!! Here comes the double paychecks baby...well, not till September, but still, things are finally starting to come together. Next week, when my Jr. High track season begins, aka, busy as heck for 6 months, we are going to start looking for a house. There are a couple that we've been looking at online, but now we actually get to do the loan thing, do the looking thing, and then do the buying thing.
We're pretty excited!

Something cool is going to be coming out in World of Warcraft. The next update will include the elements...rain and snow! It is pretty darn cool looking. HERE is the snow video, and HERE is the rain video. They are also available on their website HERE which is where I got them from. Very cool...very cool indeed!

OTher than that....I just have to do some crazy grading this weekend. 3rd Quarter has come to a close, and the procrastination has come to an end.

-Dan out-

Not Very Photogenic

currently reading: The Sword of Shannara Trilogy - Terry Brooks

Well, we went to the ultra-sound on Friday. It was very cool to actually see our baby and watch it move around. The heart beating was probably the coolest part but all in all, just the fact that you could see the baby was very cool. Here are some pictures from the ultra-sound...although, they looked a TON better on the monitor at the doctor's office. But, you can see a few things.

Pic 1
Pic 2
Pic 3
Pic 4
Pic 5
Pic 6

I'm even more excited now that I have seen this little kid moving around and what not.

In other news, I designed the backdrop for my school play. I had to draw it all out first, print it out on transparency paper, project it on the backdrop which was hung on my wall, trace it out, then do the other side of it, (it's in 2 different sections), and then bring it down to the gymnasium where myself, Andrea, another teacher at my school, and three freshmen girls all painted for 6 hours. We FINALLY finished about 4pm....and got the heck out of there. It turned out pretty well, and if I remember, I will post some pics of it after I take some.

This week is standardized testing for 3rd thru Jr. Highschool....which means, I lose my room to the 2nd grade classes through Wednesday. Otherwise, the classes will be disturbed. Sooooo, I get to do art on a cart...aka, we're going to be doing a lot of drawing ladies and gentlemen!

Also this week, is my first art show over at a local high school. I am bringing some students with me and 30 pieces of art work to display. I am a little nervous about how this whole thing will work out, but I know that even if something goes wrong, no one will be angry at me or anything...since I'm new to the whole art show thing. Now NEXT year...there will be no excuse...haha.

Tomorrow I get to finish matting the rest of the student's artwork and then just kind of hang out. Hopefully we find out if Andrea got the job or not this week, and can stop stressing out about that. JUST GIVE IT TO HER ALREADY!!!

-Dan out-

SPORE

This game could quite possibly change the way all games are seen from now on.  Will Wright, best known for his Sim City and Sims series, has a new game coming out called Spore.  This game is quite amazing.  There sheer size of this game is mind boggling.  HERE is a video of his presentation of the game to some of his peers I’m suspecting, but it shows pretty much all the aspects of the game.  It basically starts out at a cellular level and you slowly evolve from a one celled organism all the way up to a highly advanced race of people that live on a planet and wage wars against other races or species of animals or creatures that live in other cities that they have evolved into.  Once you get the entire planet working together, through advancing technologies, creating a Sim City like civilization, then a Civ like civilization, you jump into a planetary exploration and terra-forming game.  You can travel to other planets in your solar system, by way of a space-ship that you have finally invented by working your technology up to that level, and you can start life on other planets.  Now…the other planets in your solar system or nearby solar systems also are working towards that goal.  You can run across alien races and all kinds of other “players” who have been doing the exact same thing you did with your solar system.  There are literally THOUSANDS of different outcomes.  Needless to say, I am VERY excited about this game….and can see playing it for years and years….hmm, kinda like some of his other games.  Funny how that works.

Three Day Weekend

Well, another week is almost over, and I’m one step closer to the end of the year.  Not that I’m wishing my life away, but there are quite a few things that will be happening over this next year that I’m kind of excited about.  First off, the baby…..come July, stuff is going to be a whole lot different around our lives.  We’ll know if Andrea has her job as well, which hopefully will turn up to be here at my school, ::crosses fingers:: .  Also, we will hopefully have a house, albeit a small one maybe, but a house none the less, which is WAY better than an apartment.  

In other news, X-Files is a great show.  I made it through seasons 1, 2, and am now working on season 3.  Good times are being had.  Tonight I think that myself and Jarod will be playing some Battlefield 2: Modern Combat on LIVE.  Let me just say, I’m glad someone else got that game so I have someone with which to play.  We’ve rocked out that game a few times, and tonite I believe will be another night.  There is just something about playing with a TON of other people that makes you feel like you’re actually there.  I know, I know, living in a dream right?  So what……, dreams rule!

My brother in law wants me to play in this poker tournament that if you win, will give you a free shot at the World Poker Championship Tourny…..buuuuut, I don’t really want to do it.  Why, oh why you might ask….well, it’s to much pressure.  When I play poker, I play for fun, to have a good time, and maybe win some money.  The second that there is someone who is to obsessed with winning, the fun is ruined….and I know that I would be to serious about the whole thing.  I’ll stick with my little games, and have fun doing it.

Three Day Weekend coming up here, which puts me in a good mood!  Hope it’s a fun weekend of justice!

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Another Week

Well, this past weekend, Andrea and I drove up to McHenry, IL to see her brother and their family.  We hung out, ran to IKEA for a while, and snagged some Olive Garden for dinner….which is ALWAYS a good time.  Andrea and I found this couch we want…and it’s not to expensive either.  But at this point, pretty much anything is better than our current couch.

Last night we drove to pick up my parents at the airport…they were coming home from Florida where my mom’s parents are spending the winter.  Sure wish I could run down to Florida for a week, but that is OK…I’ll manage.  

The weather sure does suck now…I was getting used to all this warmer weather, 40’s, 50’s…etc, but now, what is this…23!  You’d think it was February or something.

On our way up to McHenry this weekend, we stopped by DeKalb for some dinner, and I ran into Graham Cracker Comics….which by the way, is a rawkin comic book store!  There is just something about seeing mounds and mounds or organized comics to make my heart flutter like a school girl.  I have been looking for a replacement comic book store around the Q.C., but so far all I’ve found was this run down store, with comics just thrown in any hap-hazard way and three old guys watching football in the corner of the store.  It’s dark, it’s dreary and lets face it, NOT a good comic book store.  So, after that debacle, I found BCBComics.com which is a pretty sweet site.  They even pull your comics for you each month and mail them to you without any input needed by you.  I just set that up for a couple comics that I follow.  Now if I can only find Ultimate Spider-Man 80 and 81…I’ll be in business.

Besides all of that, Andrea’s birthday is this Thursday.  I think we’re gonna get some steaks and just kinda hang out.  Her parents are doing something for her on Friday night, so we’ll probably go over there and hang out.  Turkey dinner I think :)

Well, work is about to start, so I guess I’ll take off.  If you haven’t picked up Battlefield 2 Modern Combat and you own an Xbox…uh, what are you waiting for?

-Dan out-

Yeah for POKER!

The week is almost half over, and let me tell ya, I’m ready for the weekend again…haha.  Not that this week has been very difficult or anything, but, it is just turning out to be one of those weeks where little things happen all day that annoy me.  Ah well, Doug, Kim and the kids are coming over tonite, so that should be fun.

Andrea is feeling great lately, not to sick anymore and seems to have a little more energy.  She felt the baby move a few times, although it’ll be a while before I get to feel that same thing, but, that is kinda cool none the less.

Poker is tomorrow, and Doug has a special new thing that supposedly will help him win or make us lose…whichever works better.  I know what it is, but have been sworn to secrecy so I can’t reveal what it is at this time.  I have this feeling that the game of poker that we originally started is beginning to get a little out of hand.  More and more people show up each week, and it is seeming lately that the people who show up now are people that we don’t even know.  I loved having two separate games each night, cause it gave people another chance to win back their money.  These stupid one game nights piss me off, and irritate me.  Not sure what to do about it though :(

Besides all of that, it has been a pretty uneventful week so far.  Kind of boring which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  I’ve been watching X-Files lately during my lunch break, and that is kinda fun.  I love that show and I am slowly making my way through the season 2.  

Other than that, 24 RULES…..and is getting better and better…..mainly cause Jack Bauer’s body count is rising with each new episode!

-Dan out-

Another Week in the Life of Dan

This week was a semi-short one because we had Monday off.  It always seems though, that the shorter the week in reality, the longer it goes in my mind.  This week seems to be just draaaaaagging!   The other week, we got to hear our baby’s heartbeat though…which is pretty sweet.  It’s weird though…ya know, this whole having a kid thing, yet strangely exciting as well!

I’ve been playing World of Warcraft again lately.  There is just something about that game…and I will probably always hop on and play as long as that game is around.  I’ve also been playing some Battlefield 2: Modern Combat for Xbox…which I have to say…is pretty sweet, definitely worth checking out!  It’s a team based game where you work to accomplish an objective…a lot like Star Wars Battlefront.  

I finally got all my grading done for school.  Monday was a grading marathon from about 9:30am to 5pm….but, it all got done.  Whew….let the new semester’s procrastinating begin baby!

I watched the premiere of 24 on Monday and the taped part from Sunday, and boy oh boy…this show rocks.  There is just something about Keifer Sutherland and his bad ace ways!  I’m very excited about this show and can’t wait till next week.

Went to my old high school’s musical last night which was pretty good.  Got to see some friends from high school as well as a few old teachers…which is always cool.

Besides that, not a whole lot has been going on.  Still getting used to my camera and trying to learn all I can about it.  I feel this will be a life long process though…but that will be kind of fun.  I am hoping to get a section up over at www.hakesdesign.com with some of the photos that I’ve taken so far.  I’m coming along with my photo taking skills…but like I posted earlier….not sure how much of that is skill and how much of that is luck.

-Dan out-

Photography

So, I’ve been thinking a bit about what the problem with photography.  As I see it, photography is a sort of communal art form….because really anyone can succeed at it.  Yeah, there are always certain techniques and skills that can be called upon when choosing your subject matter, film, camera, lighting or a number of other variables…but really, it comes down to did the picture turn out aesthetically pleasing?  I’ve seen so many snap shots that have been more successful than any number of “setup” shots.  Because of this, it seems that everyone is a photographer.  My niece who is still in grade school has taken some brilliant shots before.  Now, granted, the majority of her shots do not turn out so good, but just the fact that she has had successful shots at her age makes me wonder how many pictures have been thrown out over the ages that might have made it into a museum or art exhibit or magazine.  I don’t think the skill in photography is the taking of pictures or even the preparation….I think the skill in photography is knowing when you have a good picture after receiving your developed film or going over your digital images as you take them from your flash card.  Therein lies the skill.

BABIES R' Us?

Well, in case anyone was wondering, or hadn't heard....we are expecting a Dan Jr. come July of 2006. We're way to excited about this, and will gladly talk your ear off about it given the chance. Hopefully this kid is nothing like me because we all know another Dan in this world is definately NOT what is needed...haha!

-dan out-

Happy New Yizzear!

Well, 2006 is now upon us....and I have little to show for it as of 11:03pm. I played a LOT of Counter-Strike Source up to the ball dropping, and quite a bit after it as well. Today, I grabbed some brunch, got a three new fish for my fish tank, and lost a really quick game of Lord of the Rings RISK to my brother-in-law. So far, this year is going GREAT....haha!

No, it was fun hanging out with Andrea last night. We don't seem to do that much anymore. Andrea made some really awesome soup, Zupa Tuscana....and we did the breadstick thing and watched a movie. She's really tired lately, so she crashed early.

This break has been pretty fun. Played a LOT of poker and only won once....thanks to Matt's three wins or something. We also played out at Billy's place some horrible loud music....mmm, good times.

Come this Friday, we get to listen to the baby's (so eloquently named 'marshmellow' by my neice) heartbeat, so that is REALLY exciting! It will make it feel pretty real or so I've heard.

I go back to work on the 3rd. So this is my last hurrah of late night-ed-ness for a while. Going to be busy busy for the next two weeks or so while I get finished with this semester and do the grades thing again...WHEEE!

I'm still reading the Sword of Shannara Trilogy by Terry Brooks. Great book, and well worth the read!

I have been playing F.E.A.R. lately and it is quite addicting. I wasn't able to run it until I through in my different video card, the ati radeon x850, since my 9800 all up and died on me. Basically it looked like THIS whenever I played a game for an extended period of time. Also sometimes, the entire screen would turn into a kaleidoscope looking pattern....which made me have to reboot. If I find the picture I took of that, I'll throw it up here to prove my point further. Needless to say, this other card seems to be doing the trick MUCH better.

Counter-Strike Source has also been a slight addiction of mine as of late...truly great game and perhaps even better than the original CS we all played in college for hours and hours at a time.

Well, I've rambled on long enough. Hope your New Years was fun everyone and I hope this year is even better than last year...I know mine will be!

-Dan out-