Episode Title: B vs. The Needy

Episode Date: 02/07/13

B's Encounter With The Homeless Guy At McDonalds

Hey all, I have a funny story(in a weird sort of B'ish way). The other day after being harassed by the old lady to pick her up some McNuggets after work to bring to her job I finally gave in and went their after work. While standing in line I was approached by a young man in a hood who told me he hadn't eaten in two days and asked if I could buy him something. I being my usual cheap self asked him what exactly he was looking for to eat, he responded by asking I purchase a Big Mac meal for him. I looked up at the menu and saw that this would cost me about $8 after tax and told the guy it was too much, but I would buy him a Mcdouble for $1 and a small fries for another $1, and that he could get a cup of water for free. With out much choice he said okay and I placed the order. After receiving the order I gave him his bag and he walked away without even a thank you. I did see him approach another customer and he seemed to be giving him the same story, the guy nodded so I assume he would buy him some food as well.

Later that same week I was driving down a major avenue and noticed a guy dressed up like the Statue of Liberty dancing around with a sign to come do our taxes with whoever he was advertising for. It had to be about twenty degrees out and this poor guy is dancing around like a fool with a sign no one is really reading at forty miles per hour. The point of these two stories is that no matter how much you may think your life or occupation may suck, look at these two guys and be very grateful.

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Ender's Game

On a much brighter note I decided to resign up with Audible.com, and used my credit of the month to get the audio book Ender's Game. I'm too lazy to actually read a good book, but in audio form I can listen to and from work every day as well as with my headphones at home. So far I'm about half way through this twelve hour audio book and I am really loving it.

The story takes place in a future, and focuses on a young boy named Andrew Wiggen, aka Ender Wiggen. He is the third child in the family, which is actually illegal in this time but due to his siblings talents and genetic superiority the parents were given permission to have a third. Ender is recruited into a school for gifted kids where they prepare them to be commanders and soldiers in a war against and alien race known as the buggers. As of the point in the story that I am up to there have been no encounters with this race. This book so far seems to focus on the training of young Ender who is only six years old at the beginning of the book, and the psychological stress he is put through by the leaders of a combat school in order to make him the best weapon possible.

I have been enjoying this book so much that I decided to look into what is next in the series, and was delighted to stumble upon the fact that they are making a movie based on the book, and it is scheduled to come out later this year. I am super excited and hope it is done well. I highly recommend this book to anyone in the sci-fi genre, and even if your lazy like me, get the audio version.

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Man With The Iron Fists

I came very close to buying this movie last week, but at a $15 price tag and mixed reviews on Amazon I decided to wait. The next day I went over my friends house and he asked if I wanted to watch a movie, I said okay what is it? He said "The Man With The Iron Fists", I laughed and said I came close to buying this the night before so sure pop it in.

Two hours later I was very glad I did not waste $15 on this very cheesy Kung Fu film. Don't get me wrong the action sequences were kind of cool, but everything else was just a joke. From a generic story line to badly cut editing this movie seemed kind of amateurish at best. Even some of the CG in the movie seemed like unfinished garbage, especially during the end credits where they show a bird flying and then it looks like a computer game as it crashes to the ground. Granted my friend got a copy that may not be exactly official, but I don't think it matters much.

If your looking for a good laugh and are really a die hard Kung Fu movie buff I say rent this one or wait for it to be on TV, everyone else don't bother.

Episode Title: The Costly, The Bad, and The Boy Wonder

Episode Date: 01/31/13

End of January, Already?

Can you believe it, already into the last week of the first month of the New Year. Time goes by so quickly and for me losing track of time cost me $15. I signed up for the stamps.com service back in November not knowing that they charge you $15 a month for this service even if you don't mail anything for the month.

 After noticing that first charge on my financial statement I decided to call and cancel. Well cancelling is allot harder than signing up, and when I finally found the phone number to cancel the lady convinced me to stay another two months with their service as she would waive the fees. Low and behold two months have gone by and I wasn't paying attention, so I got charged $15 the other day. This time I called and after many attempts at trying to get me to stay the customer service rep on the phone finally agreed to cancel my account. Don't get me wrong, the ease of printing stamps from your own printer did come in handy during the holiday season, but the rest of the year this would be a wasted service for me.

Had they made this service easier to cancel, say like with the click of a mouse, I could see myself using it again next holiday season, but with the hoops you have to go through as you are questioned to death on the phone by this company I think I'll just make the trip to the post office and stock up next year.

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Breaking Bad

Here's a show I've been meaning to get into for a long time. Friends and family members have been talking about this show like it was the second coming. Well you may be asking, B does it live up to the hype? Well as of the time of this podcast I'm about 6 episodes in, and while I do find it enjoyable enough to keep watching, I don't think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread or better than current shows I'm watching, like Sons of Anarchy, Dexter, or Arrow.

I do think the premise of the show is very good. It's about a chemistry teacher who finds out he's dying of lung cancer, so in order to insure his families financial security after he's gone, he decides to team up with an ex-student turned drug dealer and sell Crystal Meth. Of course things aren't so easy, especially being that his brother in law is a DEA agent, his son is handicapped and his wife constantly suspects that he is up to no good.

Every episode is a recipe for disaster, and this is where the entertainment comes in. Just like another show I used to watch (The Shield) you know these guys are doing something wrong but you still root for them to somehow get away with it. It may not lived up to the super hype as of this time(don't know if it will), but it is still a very good show and is something I will continue to watch. It's on Netflix, which is where I'm watching it off of, so it's not costing me anything extra, and I recommend this one.

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Boy Wonder

I never heard of this film, but Netflix had it down as a recommendation for me. The description said it was about a boy who witnesses the brutal murder of his mother, and grows up to become a vigilante who dispenses his own brand of justice. The description alone was enough to get me to want to watch it, so I figured why not.

While the description was accurate, it was also misleading. I thought I was going to be watching some kind of super hero movie, and while their were scenes that featured some kick assedness, this was not the focus of the movie. The movie was more about the psyche of a young boy who had gone through some serous shit, and was coping with it in his own way. I couldn't tell you the names of anyone in this film off the top of my head, but they all played their parts well. The main character had a little bit of an odd look to him and reminded me of a kid I knew in high school we used to call forehead, due to an odd shaped hairline that made his forehead look bigger than it was.

Bottom line, if your looking for an action packed super hero movie avoid this one. If your looking for a story that really pulls on your heart and has it's moments of action, and has you really feeling for the protagonist check this one out.

Episode Title: Angry Gamers

Episode Date: 01/23/13

Hate Messages On Xbox Live

While playing Call of Duty Black Ops 2 the other day, I received a couple of angry messages, but one in particular I found to cross the line. This prompted me to talk about it on this weeks podcast and I will post a copy of this message below. Basically the guy wished me to die of cancer because I killed him a few times in the prior game. Did I camp? Maybe but who cares you can play the game anyway you like, when I get sniped from across the map from a guy hiding in a window I get pissed off but I have no hate for that individual, I'm  upset that I sucked and let myself get sniped to begin with. The whole cancer thing hit a nerve because this fool probably hasn't experienced it in his or her own personal life, but I had a good friend die of it, another lady I knew on the job died from it, and my Aunt has been battling it for the last year. To wish this on someone over a stupid video game just shows what an ignorant immature person you really are and you probably need to grow up a bit before playing these games if you can't handle it.

I'm all for a little trash talking in the after game lobby screen and what not, it's kind of funny at times but I think there are lines that should not be crossed, I don't approve of comments like that, and I also notice allot of racism in the lobbies as well. I was playing the other day on Martin Luther King day and was in a lobby where some racist was going on about things I won't even repeat here. All you can do is report these people and hope they get banned but I think we have a long way to go as a society before it will be enjoyable to play with people other than friends online.

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Fringe

On a more positive note, one of my favorite shows had it's series finale last week, and that is Fringe. I actually hadn't watched any episodes from this season until this past weekend. I bought the season off Amazon and watched the first three episodes. The show hasn't lost its touch, and is very entertaining. I noticed this year they are following a slightly different formula, as opposed to the strange death sequence in the beginning that always prompted the Fringe team to investigate. This season takes place in the future and has the team trying to save the world from an invasion of bald headed time travelers known in prior seasons as The Observers. The scavenger hunt is on as the team must find VHS tapes hidden that contain a lost plan of Walters to destroy The Observers. I'm excited to see how this show will end but have to wait until the weekend as my girlfriend is also into the show but works late nights during the week, so I must wait for her.

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Dredd

I bought Dredd on instant video, I think I already did a review for this couple months ago when I saw it in theaters, but just wanted to say it was worth seeing again. Just a quick description Dredd is the remake of the film Judge Dredd that starred Stallone and was not well received, although I liked it. This version has taken a darker approach with very little comic relief. The premise very similar to another movie I liked "The Raid" features our main characters battling their way to the top of a large complex in order to take out the crime boss and get out alive. Simple but enough of a story to get the action going and a fun ride.

Episode Title: Hope the New Year Gets Better

Episode Date: 01/10/13

Back after two week holiday break, and having the worst bout of the Flu I've ever had. Hope everyone had good Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, New Year etc... Had a chance to watch couple movies, and play lots of Black Ops 2, which you can watch my highlight reels on the YouTube page.


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It's Okay To Pee In Pool

I came across this article and found the title kind of amusing. According to scientists Michael Phelps(Olympic Swimmer) statement about it being okay to pee in the pool due to chlorine in the water seems to be scientifically accurate. Being a frequent visitor of the local public pools this will probably help me sleep a little better at night, not to mention save me trips to the restroom because I'm too lazy to walk ten feet from the pool LOL. Shouldn't these scientists be using their time for the benefit of mankind just a little bit better, you know like maybe finding the cure to cancer or something. You can read the full article here.

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Looper

Okay onto movies, I had a chance to check out a couple recently, one of the good ones worth seeing is "Looper". This is a sci-fi, action thriller starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Bruce Willis. The premise is that in the future time travel is possible, but illegal, and crimes cannot be committed without getting caught so shady organizations like the Mafia send people they want killed back in time to be disposed of by agents they have contracts with in the past. The downside to this for such agents is that when they completed all their contracts they must also eliminate their future self who is sent back, this is called ending the loop. They will however be rewarded with gold bars. Levitt plays the younger character of Willis and when Willis comes back in time he ends up getting away and sets in motion a chain of events that will alter future events to come. I love the world they created in this film, and although I was confused allot the first half of the film, they explain things as things go further. It's very hard to do material involving time travel, and if you start questioning everything it can make you crazy, you have to just sit back and enjoy the ride for what it is, but I think you'll enjoy this one.