Enjoy!

http://www.gameroom.com/cd05/SA_Leather.zip

Good site for cheats and walkthroughs.

Hey Kids? Do you like cartoon violence? (yeah, yeah, yeah)

Wanna see me stick PS2 demo video through your eyelids? (uh-huh)

Developed by The Behemoth.

Nice job, guys.

GTA: Lego City. It was only a matter of time.

Now you know about GTA for GameBoy Advance, but did you know about Grandtheftendo for the 8-bit NES.

Here's a message thread re: the bodybags in the desert. (with pics)

Former President Bush's Jet Crashes Killing Crew

Ex-President Bush was to board jet that crashed

Ok...so this happened yesterday. That's what I get for playing too much GTA lately.

There's a group, calls themselves the Ghosthunters, over at GTAForums.com. Trying to find the truth behind rumours of ghosts, ghost cars, UFOs, mass graves, mysterious phone booths and other unexplained phenomena in San Andreas. Check the video footage.

That face in the mountain (in the second movie) reminded me a bit of the image of President Bush that was on a billboard in New York City leading up to the Republican National Convention.

Oh and be on the lookout for Leatherface, yes, that one. He may be out there too. The search has even inspired this film by Beach Head Productions.

I will say that I was in East Los Santos in the Cluckin' Bell parking lot when a pedestrian seemed to fall out of the sky (or perhaps off the telephone pole near me, and splattered on the ground) No I don't have pics, I'll have to start picking up the camera instead of just the spraycan. I'm not sure how I can carry a shotgun, a 9mm, a sub-machine gun, grenades, and a baseball bat, but can't carry both a camera  and a can of spray paint at the same time.

Well, I didn't, but now I can.

Official site. JFK Reloaded.

Is Bigfoot alive and well in the hills of San Andreas?

Well, is he? Is it true? Is this proof? Or is it a hoax?

Some say he's already dead. There are also rumors of a Monkey Man.

Other worthy GTA sites include:
GTAgaming.com
GTAForums.com
GTASanAn.com
GTA-Central.com

Rockstar releasing San Andreas machinima prequel, eight CD soundtrack

Headaches, difficulty sleeping, burning eyes. Symptoms of either the latest FDA-approved drug (some people read the diclaimer at the bottom of those commercials), or you've been playing too much Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Yes, it's something I don't want my kid playing (or seeing) until he's older. But it hasn't stopped me. Although if I could find a cheat code to shut off the shooting and the language, perhaps I could show him the fire truck and train missions.

The cut scenes, dialogue, voice acting, and storyline have clearly exceeded Rockstar's work on Vice City. And in no way is that a dis. This game is that good.

There's quite a few sites out there for hints, cheats, and talk. GTA Warehouse is a good place to start.

You've seen it before, and you'll see it again. This is the "sorry I  haven't updated in awhile" blog entry. Many blogs have these. Some are written better than others. Some are actually read by people, because "goshdarnit, I love this blog and it hasn't been updatedi n awhile and I need to know what's happening with so-and so, and I'm getting cranky, and I hope the 20 blogs I read updated today".

Then there's blogs like this one, which is clearly not read by many, possibly not read but any, but nonetheless here I am with the grand assumption that someone actually reads this blog.

And I  now tell you...sorry I haven't updated in awhile. There's lots happening: getting ready for my son's birthday party,  project management over the lack of substantial work in the past week, house stuff, and new addictions to mp3 blogs and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

I really could go on about the new GTA, but I really don't want to right now, because that is time I'd rathering spend playing it.

I also could tell you all about these great mp3 blogs that I've begun frequenting, but again right now I'd rather be reading those.

And besides this is the "sorry I blah blah blah" entry. As an unwritten rule, it shouldn't be substantial. In fact, this entry is wordier than it has any right being. And besides (that's twice in one paragraph, if you're keeping score) if you are still reading this entry this far down, I've stolen a precious minute or two of your life already.

You should have quit while you were ahead, when the word sorry popped up earlier in this post.

Perhaps a real post will appear here soon.

I really hope not to hear anything more about Republican "values" from the Bush camp. Unless they spell out corruption and dubious ethics as core values.

Here's a link just in case Majority Leader Tom DeLay is charged by a Texas grand jury. (Thanks, Mah Two Cents) The GOP does not see criminal charges as something that would question the integrity of DeLay.

"With a bigger majority, we can do even more exciting things"

When I read those words from a DeLay quote, I instantly shuddered. Exciting things? Like what? Concentration camps? Microchip implants?  Patriot Acts II, III, IV, and V? Halliburton Happy Meals at McDonald's?

Ol' Dirty Bastard was an entertainer; a character with character and a spontaneous nature. Whether he was saving a child beneath an automobile, or saving a Mariah Carey single from obscurity ODB applied his inimitable talents. I might just have to break out Return to the 36 Chambers, it's been awhile. Rest in Peace.

Physical Exhaustion. Mental Anguish. Unfair Labor Practices. Disgruntled Employees. Madden's Oakland Raiders teams had it easier than these folks.

It's in the Game!

Thanks to 3 Finger Salute for this one.

Is it any wonder the Iraqi people aren't overly enthused about American democracy? I mean, aside from constant bombing and lack of clean drinking water.

America is the parent shoving stringbeans in the mouths its children insisting, "It's good for you, just eat it!" And the Iraqis, like most children, protest, with the argument, "NO! It's yucky!"

This truthout article about election hijinx in Ohio is an example of yucky democracy in action.

We had just returned from the local toy store from our old town. Yes, there are still a few left. There were actually two in that area.

My son issued a mandate and was quite adamant that it was top priority.

"Daddy! This is an important job. You need to send this out on the computer to everybody in our town.

My son is 3 1/2, actually just about 4 years old, and in his world trucks, dirt, and trains rule. Especially Thomas the Tank Engine trains.

And we had just purchased "Henry's tunnel", which has been discontinued for years. So you can understand my son's excitement.

Now I'm not one of those that buys toys for my kids to just look at. You know, keep it in the box so it doesn't lose its value while it sits on a shelf in a kid's room collecting dust. So yes, all Hess trucks are fair game. Boxes are open and even discarded. If they brake...well, they brake. The child only cries because they broke a favorite toy, not because Mommy and Daddy can't believe they broke that toy that in 20 years would have bought 1/4 of a college textbook for said child.

So "Henry's Tunnel" was apparently from the 1996 Thomas the Tank Engine collection. Which, to my son my as well be, the Bronze Age. My "important job" as he put it was to share with everyone a picture of the Thomas the Tank Engine lineup for 1996.

So here it is.

My son also told me how he's no longer going to include Q when singing the alphabet. He wasn't clear about the reason why. Perhaps it has something to do with that whole "U always follows Q" rule, which I'm sure back in the day was as hotly contested as the designated hitter rule in baseball. And since spelling to him, is not nearly as important as digging, I'll spare him the exception of proper nouns like Qatar until he's older.

In fact, given recent events, I'd like to avoid any mention of the Middle East to my son for quite some time.

I should mention that he also likes to jump from 11 right to 14 when counting. I remind him of the existence of 12 and 13, but he tells me he knows that, but just doesn't want to say those.

You'll know if my son has become an architect someday, when you report to your office on the 17th floor, and realize you're only 15 stories up.

As the kids say, ROTFLMFAO. (they might not always include the second F.

http://www.fuckthesouth.com

...try, try again.

Actually, I'll lead with it.

Drop in for Tara Reid's  exposed breast. Stick around for political discourse.

That's Hategun. Not to be confused with Lovegun. No...wait...I actually meant the Kiss album. I swear. This blog needs to cut down on the NSFW.

Although, at least Ashcroft won't be bothering me anymore. But before we go celebrating uncovering those revealing, sinful statues in D.C., let's be sure it's not a case of the "The Devil You Know...".

I figured you know the rest of that one, I don't exctly remember. But I do know it's appropriate, and doesn't break any decency laws.

Who will it be? Alberto Gonzales? Officer Barbrady? Mr. Garrison? Chef? Jimbo? the 1989 Denver Broncos?

You know...Barbrady would probably slip into the Bush cabinet as Attorney General just as easy as Tara Reid's breast slipped out of that dress. (see above) Jimbo could take over as Secretary of Defense. And I'm sure Bush could find a position for Garrison, who would support the president's stance against gay marriage.

Yeah the election's over. But can you  ever have too much Triumph? And this Jon Stewart clip from Crossfire is pretty entertaining as well.

...everywhere else on the planet, but the United States. Small problem, though. Only the U.S. vote counts, and maybe Guam, not sure what happened there. But no one's waiting for their absentee ballots. But Kerry's not disputing their 1/16th of an electoral vote either.

Like Hunter S. Thompson said, "Four more years of George Bush will be like four more years of syphilis."

Looks like we got the disease, and none of the fun associated with it.

Love him or hate him, Eminem's got a few things to say about the election. Nice collab on the video with GNN. I don't think he's undecided.

Just found this Bush resume site, kind of nice snapshot to remind people why they aren't voting for Bush, to give those undecided a nudge to the left, and to give those Bush supporters an opportunity to reconsider.

My son's 4th birthday party is approaching. In this day and age of parental overindulgence, this is nothing short of organizing a small wedding.

The invitations: Do we make them? Do we fill out pre-printed? Do we order them custom?

The cake: Is it Thomas the Tank Engine? Is it Bob the Builder? Is it Spider-Man? Yellow cake with chocolate icing? Chocolate cake with yellow icing?

The food: (because it's mostly family and mostly adults, we can't just throw a bunch of chicken fingers in the oven and be done with it) Do we cook? Do we cater? Do we cook some and cater a few trays?

Then there's the themed plates and napkins and cups. The party favors and goodie bags. You can't give the older kids the same stuff that's in the little kids goodie bags? And the babies that come, well they get goodies too, age-appropriate never gonna remember if they got anything or not goodies.

And activities...hence the title.

Bouncy...Bouncy thing...jumper...big inflatable thing for kids to jump on while parents cross their fingers that there are no skull cracking collisions.

Actually I didn't think about that part until now. I love bouncy things the last time we were at a kid's party, it was my son's first time seeing one of these contraptions, so dear old Dad spent a good portion of the time in there, too. And, yes it is fun.

Now finding a rental place in our proximity with the day availabile, and the type of bouncy we are looking for (a train theme) at a reasonable price with a reasonable cancellation policy, has been a bit trying. My wife has been starting to stress a bit, so I jump in and turn to Google for help.

Search terms: bouncy (not sure what to call the thing, I figuree "bouncy" is a good place to start), middlesex county (that's our county), jersey (we live in New Jersey, the "new" would probably be too broad.)

The results weren't nearly as focused as I would have expected. I found one bouncy company that looks like it will be out of our price range, but plenty of bouncy companies in the U.K. Damn those bloody wankers.

After that, there were a few items on the list that I found odd and/or disturbing to appear on this page of search results:

Let's start with #4: Furries Meetup

Yes, furries. You know, the kids who worked at amusement parks wearing those animal outfits that never wanted to give them back, the acrobatic and/or annoying mascots at college sporting events. A sampling of the furries on this page included: a Purple Tiger, a Rabwolf, a Shaggy Reversed Zebra, an Arctic Fox, and a Snow Leopard.

But, who am I to judge? Furries are moving from the edge to the mainstream. There's the now infamous E.R. episode. The excellent DJ Format video for "We Know Something..." directed by Ruben Fleischer. The costumed mascot needed liberation from the college campus and onto main street. It makes me wonder how tough things were starting out for the Phillie Fanatic. He's like the Jackie Robinson of the subculture. Maybe someday we'll have a world where all prejudices will be washed away and we'll see Goths (NSFW) and Furries walking hand-in-hand. But those Renaissance fair outfit wearing people still kind of weird me out, and I've even played Dungeons & Dragons in my lifetime. I've rolled the 20-sided die.

Now #19 is a bit more obvious:

It links to a page from the Breast Expansion Archive. I saw the title and thought, maybe this is like a support group forum for women thinking of upping a cup size. Discussing pros/cons, before/after, prep/recovery and that sort of thing. But after looking at the choice of icons in the messageboard, I started thinking that's probably not the case.

Moving to the main page of the site (NSFW), it became clearer that the site was more for guys that prefer some enhanced cleavage. although it seemed that surgical enhancements weren't enough, and Photoshop enhancements are the enhancement du jour. (I could have used synonyms or metaphors just now. But I thought I would just repeat the word enhancement until you wanted to beat me over the head with it.)

In the Top 30 links there was also a Discordians meetup site (another blog, another day) and The UK Face Painting Association page.

Face Painters of the U.K. Unite!

I wonder if they have a union. I'd paint my face for better and cheaper medical coverage. I'd probably don the fur as well.

but I still don't have a bouncy thing.

THE LAST WORD: My favorite new word is "fursona". I suppose it would be defined as your furry persona. Are you a chinchilla? Maybe an okapi? Perhaps a lynx? Great bastardization of our language. I wonder how many years before it's in Webster's.

I haven't had that much sleep that's the best I can come up with.

I think Red Sox and Yankees fans are all dumbfounded over what they've just witnesses. Sunday night's game I missed, falling asleep reading my son a few stories, although I had dreams of the Red Sox tying the score. Although the real game departed from there; my dream included the Yankees decked out in white pinstripe business suits (and no, the dream did not include Michael Kay's midgame uniform description), as well as the tying run being scored by Dana Snow, the first female pinch-runner in MLB history, as far as I know.

Now the Yankees in bussiness suits is by no means much of a stretch of the imagination, based on their usual efficiency and productivity in slapping beatdowns like Donald Trump handing out pink slips. As far as Dana Snow, I don't know any Dana Snow. I marginally knew a Dana in high school who drove a Fiero, but she had different last name. Snow could be her married name. But who knows, its hard to score with a Fiero.

Anyway I was prepared to be calling for Terry Francona head on a platter with some fava beans and a nice chianti, but despite his best efforts, the Red Sox still won. He must have known something the rest of the world didn't. But I hope he counted his blessings on 10 fingers, and realized he doesn't have an 11th.

I had a running list last night of management miscues, but a Sox victory and good night's rest has shortened it down a bit. Here's a few observations:

(1.) The score was 4-2 with no outs and Johnny Damon comes up after Bellhorn led off with a double, and relieving Mussina from the game, much as he did to Mussina in Game 1, ending the perfect game that evening. Damon's about 1-for-122 so far in this ALCS, and is typically a good bunter. But since the Red Sox led the majors with the fewest sacrifice bunts (12), Damon swung away, and if memory serves me correctly, struck out swinging. Needless to say the runner did not get over, and did not score.

Later in the game, Bellhorn failed to buunt a runner from 1st to 2nd, but then ripped an 0-2 pitch for a single. This time Damon got the bunt sign, and promptly popped out to Posada.

To be fair, I can't lay the blame on Francona for lack of execution in the second example, but for not giving a bunt sign with Bellhorn on second, I don't know. I know they were down 2 runs, but I've seen enough Yankees-Red Sox games to know that almost every inning has a run scoring opportunity, so let's take one at a time. Just as the Res Sox had to look at this series day-by-day, down 3-0.

(2.) Cabrera's on first. Posada gets hit in the hand with a foul pitch and is visited by the trainer.

RUN!

Cabrera's a fast runner, will steal close to 20 bases a year in a full season, why not put him in position to score on a single.

(3.) Dave Roberts is a great asset to this club, and showed everyone why when he rattled Tom Gordon and went from 1st to 3rd on aTrot Nixon single. But I don't like putting in a pinch runner on first base for Trot Nixon, in a close late inning game. Trot's had some big hits against New York in the past, and taking two starters out of the game, when the spectre of another extra inning ballgame is looming in the shadows, could come back to bite you in the ass.

Turns out it didn't. Kapler even made a nice play on a Jeter fly hit to left.

(4.) Arroyo came in and pitched lights out to the top of the order, striking out A-Rod and Sheffield. Then didn't come out for the next inning. There may not be a tomorrow to save this guy for. There's no "in case Schilling isn't healthy enough" just yet. You got to win one, before you win two. and at this point each day is another day to wake up and just win one.

But the Boston bullpen combined for eight scoreless innings, as a whole. This teams has more rubber arms than Plastic-Man, Elongated Man, Dr. Reed Richards, and Stretch Armstrong combined. Mike Myers came in to start the next inning and struck out Matsui on 4 pitches.

(5.) Myers a lefty, pitches to one batter, Matsui (see results above), and is replaced by another lefty in Alan Embree. A situational lefty is still a lefty, but as I said before 8 scoreless innings by Red Sox relievers.

Now I'm seeing a pattern, although originally I thought I'd be lambasting Francona, someone could probably make a good argument that he did a great job last night.

Let's just say that luck was on his side. I got 2 more and I'm not sure they can be explained away.

(6.) David Ortiz attempting to steal second. 4 stolen bases in his career, and Francona sends him now. Even if it's a lie, please tell me someone missed a hit-and-run sign. Or that Ortiz went on his own.

You know what, don't tell me anything. David Ortiz doesn't deserve anything less than hero status right now. And if he thinks he's Rickey Henderson (circa 1984, not 2004) then he just might be.

Posada (ROTFLHFAO) fired a ball to Bernie Williams in center that M.J., I mean Derek Jeter intercepted and layed the tag on the mercurial Ortiz.

Replays show that Ortiz right hand looked like it beat the tag.  Perhaps the umpire used his David Ortiz Strat-O-Matic card and some dice to determine the call, or maybe even more careful review may show that Jeter's tag nipped the helmet before landind square in the back of Ortiz.

But about 2 innings prior, the second base umpire might have missed the call when the troubled Johnny Damon, attempted to steal second after an infield hit. Replay showed Damon to be in just before Jeter's tag with the wrist, then the heel of the glove.

At this point, I'm thinking, the Sox are not supposed to win this game. It would have happened already. Perhaps the ghost of Ted Williams is at war with the ghost of Joe Dimaggio, in the dark recesses of Cooperstown, (no museum's open at 11:00 PM that I know of), vying to battle the Babe to save the entire Red Sox Nation from eternal damnation and reverse the curse.

And I thought things weren't looking good for New England as I watched #7 unfold.

(7.) Varitek catching Wakefield. This was like watching a game of "hot potato" at a convalescent home. I KNEW I was watching how the Red Sox were going to lose this baseball game.

I thank God that my Red Sox fan father, born in 1925, decided to shut off the game just before Varitek hit the game-tying sacrifice fly to center. Because with his multiple bypass surgeries, I'm not sure he would have made it through this.

Varitek only caught Wakefield for about 2 innings this season. doug Mirabelli catches Wakefield's starts to give Varitek a day off. But your starting catcher doesn't typically get days off in the ALCS. But sometimes they should.

Especially when marathon games follows marathon game on consecutive nights, and catching knuckleballers just ain't your bag.

3 passed balls. The first on a strikeout of Gary Sheffield. Of course, Sheffield reached first safely, that's the way the script should read. But Wakefield shook this off, and shook off every dropped pitch by Varitek that didn't result in a passed ball.

Mirabelli desperately needed to be in this game. I know Francona wanted Varitek's bat in the lineup. I know that Varitek, who has hit miserably against Mike Mussina drew a walk batting right-handed against Mussina to score the first Boston run. And yes, I know it was Varitek who hit the sacrifice fly to tie this game.

But, if each passed ball is worth 90 feet, and you have 3 passed balls, simple algebra tells you the 4th passed ball puts a runner on home plate. And then you would most certainly like to have Varitek's bat in the lineup.

After the first passed ball, every pitch by Wakefield was excruciating. But it wasn't his fault. Maybe it was his fault that he was that good, consistently throwing strikes. You knew one of those balls, that always hit Varitek in the glove, would eventually score the winning run.

Francona had time to realize even before the 2nd and 3rd passed balls, how badly this could end. But he stuck with Varitek for better or worse. Even intentionally walking Posada after a passed ball had moved Matsui from first to second.

Francona knew that Varitek would catch just enough balls to give Ortiz another shot at becoming hero and sending the last remaining Nomar jerseys in Boston to the Salvation Army.

I'm just happy we've got at least one more game.