I just recently finished the RPG, Eternal Sonata. The game is about a composer named Fredric Chopin, who is on his deathbed. Most of the game takes place within the dream world of Chopin. In this land, there are two kingdoms at the brink of war. Also, almost everything in this world has some connection with music--from characters names to the architecture of buildings. The story is pretty simple and straightforward for an RPG, although the ending gets messy and complex. The ending is also fairly long--just under an hour in length. In fact, this game has a problem with overly long cut scenes---many of them so long that I found my controller turning off a couple of times.  The game itself is simple gorgeous--it basically looks like an animated watercolor painting. The colors are vivid, bright, and sharp. The soundtrack to this game is also top notch, which is to be expected considering how large a role music plays in the game. The game also has an interesting cast of characters--my personally favorite being Viola. I also though the combat system in the game was very well done. The fact that whether or not your character or the enemy is standing in a light or dark area effects what kind of attack you can do was pretty cool. I also liked how you could chain together special attacks.  The biggest problem I had with this game is that it had a tendency to artificially lengthen its play time through a lot of pointless backtracking. I also didn't like how the vast majority of achievements couldn't be earned until the second play through. That was incredibly lame since there was virtually no difference between the first and second time, other than an increase difficulty that made more grinding necessary. Because of this, I found the game to be pretty average RPG. It is one of those games that should only played by someone who is a big fan of the genre.

I went and checked out The Spirit today with Pirate Booty. The film is based on the noir comic series by Will Eisner. Having seen a number of previews of the film before checking it out, I was on the fence on whether or not it would be any good. After having seen the film I still can't decide whether or not I liked the film or not. I guess the best way to describe it is to call it a average film. Much like 300 and Sin City before it, The Spirit is a visually interesting and unique film. I think the film uses the contrasts of black and white very well. The way the film is shot also comes off like it is a moving comic book, which works well since the source material is a comic. While the movie captures the look and feel of the noir series, the storyline and dialogue fall flat. The biggest problem I had with the film is that it is just over the top goofy---complete with goofy dialogue such as "I am going to kill you all kinds of dead," and "I have eight of everything." Another problem, is that the film has a ton of character that seem like they were thrown in there for no real reason at all. The acting in the film is okay, although I must admit that I did enjoy Samuel L. Jackson's over the top take on Octopus. I think Jackson really steals the show and you can tell he was really having fun with it. The film also has its funny moments as well--there was a scene in it which just had me cracking up. I guess in the end, The Spirit is a mixed bag. Still, if you don't take it too serious some enjoyment can be had from the movie---especially if you like beautiful, scantily clad women, because there are a ton of them in this movie.

New Year's is one of my favorite holidays. It is a chance to start a fresh new year, full of possibilities. I decided to see the new year come in San Francisco. Pirate Booty came along and I was also able to convince Mr. P to tag along---although that took some doing.  As soon as I got off of work we drove out to Pleasanton and took the BART the rest of the way into San Francisco. The BART ride into town was pretty uninteresting until we got to Oakland. When we reached that station, a squad of BART tactical police came on. So the rest of the ride there, I was sitting next to a couple of fully armed swat police. 

 We ended up getting off at the Embarcadero station.  Once we got to the surface, Mr. P came up with the idea to check out the famous Lombard street. So we went over to a nearby map and was checking out how to get there. While we were checking out the map this old guy came up to us and helped us out. After showing us the way, he began to talk about himself and how he was in a band called Melting Point. He also kept mentioning how he was going to a concert to see Green Day, Metallica, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers that were doing a small show tonight. Now, I am not convinced that there was ever such a show, but the guy certainly was interesting. After talking with the guy for twenty minutes, we were finally on our way.

As we walking towards our destination, Pirate Booty noticed that Mr. P had been spit on. Normally that wouldn't be too humorous, but since Mr. P is a quiet a germaphob,  his reaction to  it was pretty funny. Eventually we were able to find Lombard Street---although I must say climbing all of those hills does take a bit out of you. The view from the top of Lombard Street was fantastic. You could see Coit Tower, the buildings along the Embarcadero Plaza (which were outlined in Christmas Light; making them look like cardboard cutouts), and the Bay Bridge. It was a surprisingly clear night in the bay. It was also fun to watch the cars slowly make their way down this extremely curvy road.

After Lombard Street, we headed over to Telegraph Hill and Coit Tower. The inside of the tower was closed, but we were able to check out the outside of the place. Instead of being bathed in its usual white light, the tower was decked out in an interesting red light. The view of the bay from this vantage point makes the climb all the way up there well worth it. After spending a few moments enjoying the view, we decided to head down to Fisherman's Wharf for some dinner. The trail down the hill is pretty interesting. It is a series of wooden steps and walkways that seem like they cut through the backyards of various homes. There are even branching pathways that have street signs and it appeared as if some of the places could only be reached from this path. I would hate to be a pizza delivery guy and have to climb all of the steps to deliver a pizza.

The descent down all of the steps did not take that long and we headed down the Embarcadero to Fisherman's Wharf. The Wharf was pretty crowded, but we were able to find a quick seat at Wipeout. Wipeout is a surfing themed bar and grill. The food there is pretty good--I had a huge mango shrimp burrito. The three of us each tried one of the 23 oz margaritas the place served.  The one I chose was a Maverick Mai Thai, which I didn't was that strong.  Mr. P's drink must have been stronger cause he was the only one that seemed to be effected by it---although he is not much of a drinker to begin with. After dinner, we wandered around the pier for a bit. A usual stop for me is to check out the California Sea Lions. It took me by surprise to find so few sea lions lying about; and they were all a fair distance from the pier. Usually this place has many more sea lions than that. While at the wharf we checked out a pretty cool juggling act. The guy was a very good juggler and he definitely knew how to work a crowd. I think my favorite trick of his was when he juggled while riding on top of a huge unicycle.

After the juggling show, it was getting pretty close to midnight so we headed back down the Embarcadero to the Ferry Building. By this time, the street had gotten packed with people and while walking we could see people getting drunk, smoking pot and on occasion getting arrested by the SFPD. Eventually we were able to find a good spot along the docks behind Pier 5. The fireworks show did not disappoint. It was ten minutes of excellent fireworks. My personal favorite fireworks were the ones that turned into smiley faces. We were close enough to the show that we could feel the booms of the fireworks. After the show, there is always a massive crowd heading down Market Street. It is a unique feeling being in the middle of that sea of humanity---especially one that is in a celebratory mood. Entering the BART station was a bit of a challenge as it was simply packed with people. When a train arrived, the crowd would surge forward and pack itself into the train. The crushing feeling that came with that was not fun, and we decided to hang back until it died down a bit. Even after that, the train we ended up on was still crowded, with shoulder to shoulder standing room only. We didn't end up getting back to Turlock until almost 4am. It was a very fun night.

While spending the night in San Luis Obispo, Pirate Booty and I checked out the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which starred Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. The movie is about a man named Benjamin Button who is born old and starts aging backwards. The movie follows his life as it goes backwards and everyone's life around him moves forward. It is a very interesting premise to sat the least, and the movie executes it very well. It is a fun ride to see Benjamin try to find his way in the world and cope with his situation, as well as watching those around him. The movie is light-hearted and at times very funny. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett deliver stellar performances. Everything about this move is top notch, from the picture, to the musical score, to the acting. I would recommend this movie to anyone. It is probably one of the best, if not the best movie of the year.

Over Christmas weekend, Pirate Booty & I decided to do some travelling. On Friday we headed down to the Fresno area to check out Millerton Lake. The lake was pretty large and was nestled in the foot hills. While driving to the lake, I was able to see snow on some of the Sierra Nevada mountains. It was a very pretty site. Millerton Lake really didn't have any trees or anything, but there were a fair amount of people out there fishing. One of the coolest things about this park is that you can pay electronically for a park pass. That really saves the hassle of trying to find some small bills. After that we head to the Fresno fairgrounds  to check out the Hmong New Year. This was the first time I had been to a Hmong New Year before. The fairgrounds were pretty crowded with people and lots of loud music. One of the things that stands about the Hmong New Year is all the brightly colored clothing that the Hmong traditionally wear for this holiday. Another thing that sticks out in my mind is the traditional game they play at it. A large courtyard is kept clear in which two lines of people form up to catch a green ball. I am told that the game is a way to meet new people. After wandering around a bit, we had some lunch. One of the things we had was what looked to me to be a chicken noodle soup. That soup turned out to be pretty hot---my lips felt like they were on fire after I had finished eating it. While we were there, Pirate Booty bought a Hmong-English dictionary, which she would later forget at the table we ate lunch at.

After the fair, we decided to check out where highway 41 leads. Eventually we ran into San Luis Obispo and decided to stay there for the night. The one thing that was interesting about this place was just how much road construction work was going  on. It seemed like every ramp in that city was under construction. After catching a late night movie, Pirate Booty and I woke up early and headed up highway one.  Along the way, we stopped at many state parks and beaches. It was a fun trip up the coast and we got to see many cool parks and beaches. Including a stop that had lots of elephant seals taking an early morning nap along the rocks. It was cool to see them up close---they really are quiet large and noisy. There was also a park that featured a hiking trail that had a river running over the top of it and one closed because of rock slide concerns. We also got to stop at a state beach that had a cement ship tied to the dock. The ship was in disrepair and Pirate Booty didn't think that it was possible for a ship made out of cement to float. This was also the beach that we would watch the sunset on. It was a very scenic place. All and all we hit parks and beaches from San Luis Obispo to Santa Cruz.

After the beach, we headed over to San Jose to check out Christmas in the park. There were a ton of Christmas Trees, each decorated in a unique way by a different group. Among the trees were many animatronics Christmas scenes. It was a very cool place, although it was pretty crowded. It ended up being a very fun weekend.

I also got to watch the new Indiana Jones movie while at my parents house. This installment of the series sees Indiana Jones trying to uncover a Soviet plot involving mysterious artifacts known as crystal skulls. I found myself enjoying this movie a lot---Harrison Ford hasn't lost his step as Indiana Jones.  The story is pretty entertaining, if not a bit unrealistic at points. I also wouldn't say this is the best movie in the series, I think that is still Raiders of the Lost Ark, but it does come pretty close to it. I also felt that Cate Blanchett did a wonderful job playing the villain, Col Dr. Irina Spalko. In the end this movie delivers what Indiana Jones movie should deliver: a fun, action filled adventure.

While over at my parents' house, I watched The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. This movie stars Brendan Fraser as Rick O'Connell and Jet Li as the Dragon Emperor. This movie is, of course, about a mummy being raised in China. The difference this time around, it that Rick O'Connell's son is all grown up and along for the ride as well. The movie is pretty predictable---if you seen the other two movies you can pretty much guess what is going to happen in this one. That is not to say that this movie doesn't have its funny moments, because it does. The movie is also a special effects extravaganza and does an extremely good job of it.  Overall, this movie is a pretty solid summer blockbuster.

Pirate Booty & I watched a the Game Plan today. The movie stars the Rock as the self-centered quarterback,  Joe Kingman.  Joe Kingman is living the bachelor's life until an unexpected surprise arrives at his doorstep: the daughter he never knew he had.  The movie can be pretty funny at times, but follows the Disney formula pretty closely---so don't expect any surprises. The acting in the movie is pretty good, especially Madison Pettis, who plays Joe Kingman's daughter, Peyton Kelly.  In the end the movie is entertaining but pretty forgettable.

Yesterday I ended up seeing Yes Man with a couple of friends. This movie had be laughing the entire time. I thought it was an extremely funny movie. Yes Man stars Jim Carrey as a guy named Carl Allen, a loan officer who says no to everything. That is until one day he ends up attending a conference in which he learns how to say yes--to everything. Needless to say, this premise leads to some hilarious situations. A lot of people think that Jim Carey has a tendency to overact, but I think that his slapstick works perfectly here. What surprised me the most was just how Rhys Darby was. Darby plays Carl's nerdy boss, Norman. I swear his character had me laughing so hard I was almost crying. If you are looking for a laugh, then this is a perfect movie---just go with the flow and say Yes!

Today I ended up hanging out with some friends after work. The three of us, Creampuff, Pirate Booty, & I all decided to meet up for a movie at Brenden Theaters. Of course the two of them were late, they have no sense of time. Anyways, we went and saw Yes Man, which was a pretty good movie. After the movie we decided to go over to a pub called the Firkin & the Fox. I had never been there before but had passed by it many times before.  It is a pretty nice place--it has good atmosphere. I decided to go with the Chicago Style Hot Dog because I was curious as to what a hot dog dragged through the garden looked like. It did not disappoint, that hot dog was huge.

While eating, we all got a chance to catch up on things. It was also funny watching Creampuff checking out our waitress every time she came and served the table. Of course he denied it, but he is pretty obvious about those things. It turns out he is going to be heading to college next month. It is good to finally seeing him getting a move on doing that. Hopefully he will be out of security shortly because it doesn't seem to be doing him very well. I am glad I had a chance to hangout tonight because it was a very time--especially when Creampuff couldn't remember where he parked his car.

On Saturday I had a chance to go visit my friend up in Sacramento with some of my other friends. When we arrived, he introduced us to his new girlfriend, which surprised me because it usually takes him awhile to introduce his girlfriends. After that, we headed out to downtown Sacramento to hang out for awhile and grab some food. We ended up at a place called the Pyramid. The food was pretty good there, I had the Butternut Spinach Raviolis. After that, we had about a half an hour before the Capitol Building closed, so we were able to squeeze in a trip there since it was only a block away. We also got to check out the Christmas Tree in the front. Next, we swung by the Stanford Mansion, the inside of the building was closed, but we were able to check out the grounds. After that it was off to walk around Old Town Sacramento. All and all it was a pretty fun day and I am glad I had a chance to catch up with some of my old friends.

Today I went saw Four Christmases, which was decided by my group of consumers. This movie is about a couple named Brad & Kate (played by Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon) that try to skip out on seeing their families on Christmas by making up a story about doing charity work and then skipping out to Fiji. Unfortunately, their flight not only gets cancelled, but they are interviewed on  live tv about how they felt about their flight being cancelled. Next thing they know is that they are being called by their families. In the end, they are forced to go to four Christmases.

This movie was very funny. I was laughing throughout the entire movie.  Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon were hiliarious. In fact, their family members were even more humorous---especially Robert Duvall.  In the end, this movie is a very entertaining ride that will have you laughing the entire time.

I was informed today that one of my consumers, Mr. P, had officially achieved routine status. I had been pushing the office hard for this status change, I really felt  that he was ready for it. When I told Mr. P this, you could see that he was really happy about it. He should be very proud of himself--he had been working towards that goal for a long time and it was good to see him finally accomplish it. He has accomplished a lot in a short time---going from the behavioral management program over to the community integration program to becoming community based and now  routine status, all within a year.

Watched the White Noise 2: The Light today. This movie was about a man named Abe Dale who, after seeing his family gunned down, tries to kill himself but instead has a near death experience. This event apparently allows him to see electronic voice phenomenon, ghosts, and people are about to die.  Abe then gets the idea that he can save people he sees surrounded by white light before they die. Although saving people may not be as simple as Abe thinks.

The basic idea behind this movie is pretty good, it is just that the execution is poorly done. The results is a movie in which you care very little about what happens and an ending you can see coming from a mile away. On the bright side, the acting is pretty good and the movie eventually ends. In the end, I found this movie to be just as bad as the first one, which, consequently, has really nothing to do with the first movie.

There is an interesting battle going on north of Yellowstone National Park. There is a battle going on between the grizzly bears and the mountain pine beetle. The mountain pine beetle has found a new winter home on Emigrant Peak. This because due to global warming, the area no longer experiences the 40 below cold snaps that used to act as a natural barrier to the mountain pine beetle.  The problem with the beetle is that it attacks and decimates the whitebark pine forest in the area; boring holes into the tree and eventually killing the tree (usually within just one season). This is a problem for the grizzly bears in the area because they rely on the nuts produced from these trees as an important source of fat. While the bears don't climb the trees themselves, squirrels do and the bears later break into the stash, which is buried in the ground, and gorge themselves.

There has been a correlation between healthy whitebark pine years and the number of grizzly bear deaths. There are fewer grizzly bear deaths in the healthy years. Data currently being collected projects that within the next five years, as much as 80 percent of the whitebark pine forests. That does not bode well for grizzlies. Scientest are currently searching for trees that show some resistance to the beetles. Typically, whitebark pine trees respond to the beetles by trying to flood them out with sap. A tree has been found that had effectively stopped the beetles by releasing a secondary resin that killed the beetles. Scientists hope that such an ability could be replicated in future trees. Hopefully a solution can be found sooner rather than later.

Well, it looks like the GOP of California have finally come forward with a plan of their own, rather than just sticking with their previous game plan of saying no to tax increases. The Republicans' budget proposal manages to avoid raising taxes, but does involve deep budget cuts. And where have the GOP proposed to cut?

The GOP's plan calls for a reduction of $15.6 billion in spending over the next 18 months, as well as raising an estimated $6.5 billion for the general fun. Two-thirds of the cuts would come from K-12 Education, as well as cuts from health care programs for homeless adults as well children's health care. The plan also calls for a reduction in the monthly payments for supplemental security income.

The bulk of the $6 billion in revenue would come by asking voters to alter Proposition 63 ( a measure that funded mentally health service for homeless adults) and Proposition 10 (a tobacco tax program that funds health care and education programs for young adults) so that revenue for those programs could be siphoned into the general fund.

The GOP's proposal also calls for measures that would stimulate the economy, such as tax credits to businesses and relaxing environmental and labor regulations (such as extending deadlines to retrofit diesel engines in trucks and changing overtime pay and meal break rules.

It is a sad state indeed when the best plan a party can come up with involves sacrificing poor children and the mentally ill. Well done, GOP.

Today Pirate Booty and I decided to hit some of the state parks that were located nearby. First up was George Hatfield State Recreation Area. This park was pretty easy to find, there were a lot of road signs leading to the park.  This park was surrounded by the Merced River and was a fairly large park that was empty of people when we got there. What sticks out about this park is that there were many areas that would be pretty good swimming areas. The water was clear and looked fairly shallow. The park is also supposed to be home to many birds, but we didn't see any while there.  Although I did almost get to see Pirate Booty trip over an acorn and fall into the river.

Next up was the Great Valley Grasslands State Park. The first part of this park that we encountered was a still under construction boat landing facility and that was it. Since this didn't seem like the main part of the park, we decided to continue on and eventually ran into the San Luis National Refuge Kesterson Unit. This was by the far the weirdest one we went to because everyone there were in hunting fatigues. While we were there we got many strange looks since all we were carrying is a camera. Unfortunately we couldn't go much past the entrance because it was closed during hunting. I never did understand why they allow hunting on reserves.

Anyways, after this we backtracked a little and eventually found another part of the Grasslands Park. This park is pretty barren, just grasslands as far as you can see with a few occasional trees. Of to the side was the San Joaquin River. Pirate Booty decided to stay in the car on this and I guess I can't blame her because it was pretty windy and cold out there.  The park is part of the larger Grasslands Ecological Area (GEA) of federal, state and private lands all managed for wildlife values. Soon after that we came across another portion of the San Luis National Refuge, this time the West Bear Creek Unit. Fortunately, this one was open to non hunters and we were able to see some nice wetlands. The whole place altogether is pretty huge, coming in at 90,000 acres. This area was definitely a departure from the tree filled parks I had been seeing. This unit also had a nice driving tour that you could follow.

Last up was McConnell Recreation Area, which was also surrounded by the Merced River. This still had many green trees and a lot of Oak Trees. This park, like the other park was pretty empty.  The park also had a lot of modern facilities, which surprised me given its location. Also, this park is interesting because it is almost surrounded by orchards. Luckily, it didn't start raining until we started to leave the park. It turned out to be a pretty fun day.

The Sapphire Crescent opens with a tragic mistake unfolding. A teenage Vambran Matrell accidently shoots a cousin, Rodolpho Wianar of the rule of Arrabar.  Arrabar is a city of merchants, where a merchant's house comes first. Since this is the case, Vambran's aunt, Xaphira is forced to disguise herself as an assassin and make it look as though Rodolpho Wianar had been assassinated--and then flee the city.

The book then skips ahead about a decade and finds Vambran a  member of the Sapphire Crescent coming home from a long campaign. It is not long before Vambran is ambushed by his overeager, younger sister, Emriana. Em, as she is called, is excited that her brother made it back for her sixteenth birthday. As they make their way back to their estate, they her a commotion coming from an alleyway.

When Vambran goes to invesigate (and is followed by his not so stealthy sister), they stumble across the city watch standing over two bodies. The soldiers claim that they had been marking themselves falsely as wizards, which is a capital offense in the city. Vambran quickly suspects that the group of soldiers are imposters posing as the watch. Before he can investigate, his sister also stumbles across the scene as well as a second patrol of real city watch soldiers.

When Vambran goes to give his report to the City Watch about what he saw, he discovers that the bodies had been ordered burned by the Waukeen Temple. At this point, Vambran's guilt over his past and  his sense of justice kick in. Thus, he is determined to find out what happened that night. Unfortunately, for Vambran the conspiracy surrounding the two individuals depths goes deeper than he thinks. He soon finds himself at the mercy of several powerful merchant houses, as well as facing the possibility that the temple he serves in is involved some how.

Last night I ended up going to the Not So Silent Night 2008 concert with Pirate Booty at the Oracle Arena in Oakland. Concerts really aren't my thing, but they aren't too bad every once in awhile. This concert in particular was a mixed bag for me. Bloc Party and Death Cab For Cutie really were that great for me. The instruments overpowered the lyricists and you couldn't really hear any of their songs. Jack's Mannequin was pretty good--much better than I thought they would be.  Going into the concert I had never heard of Franz Ferdinand, but I must say I enjoyed them very much. The Killers were great and they simply blew the roof of the building when they got on stage. They were full of energy and got the crowd pumped up.  Definitely a band worth seeing live. Also, the guy sitting next to me made the concert enjoyable. The guy arrives during the second act and almost immediately asks me if I minded if he smoked a blunt (which I didn't care). Shortly after that, he started howling like a wolf at what seemed like random moments. During one of the breaks, he leaned over and told me his date was horny and that they were going to go find some place to get busy. Sometime later they both come back and he tells me that it was very enjoyable. He was definitely an interesting and weird guy. At least he was friendly.

I went and saw the new Punisher movie at the theaters yesterday and I must say that was one disappointing movie. I think it is by far the worst punisher movie out of the three. The plot is almost none existent: basically it is just throwing in a bunch of mobsters for the Punisher to kill. There is an attempt to incorporate a terrorism angle to into the plot, but the story never really goes anywhere with it. In addition to the lame story, most of the characters in the film were just far too comical (and not the good kind of comical). In fact, think Batman and Robin type of characters and you will have an idea.  Frank Castle was pretty decent though, although the way Ray Stevenson portrayed him made him seem like a robot. What surprised me about the film was how gory it was--it was like the movie went out of its way to find new ways to kill people. An example: blowing someone up with a rocket launcher while they were in midair. It was violence just for the sake violence. How this movie got green lighted is beyond me. This movie is total crap.