Ed Viesturs - No Shortcuts to the Top

Impressive read. Amazing adventures. I think I have an adventurous soul but after reading this I don't have any real desire to climb any extremely high mountains. I think I would be content to say I've done Denali (although that ain't a piece of cake either from what I have heard). I guess to me the strangest part about these trips is the length of time you have to devote to just getting there and getting acclimated. I mean to disappear for 3 months to climb...that is crazy. Another thing that gets me is the sheer emotional detachment you develop when climbing. Altruism be damned. I mean coming to grips with death that seems all too likely really is just daunting. I give Ed credit for his audacity and courage. The detachment really comes through when describing the Everest fiasco back in 96. Realizing you are stuck on a mountain with no chance of rescue and just dying that way...yowser that ain't easy to deal with.

Rox Talk

A 3-3 week against the Giants and D-backs. The Roxs finished at 74-88. Ten games back from division leading Dodgers in third place. Finished 43-38 at home and 31-50 on the road, the Roxs were outscored by its opponents 747-822 (expected wins is 74 versus historical wins at 77). 

Weekly WPA leaders (overall as well):

Good start to the final roadtrip (we swept the Giants!) but then another sweep at the hands of the D-backs in Phoenix. And that my friends is the Roxs 20087 campaign. 74 wins and only 747 runs scored. Mighty impressive when you consider last year they won 90 games and scored 860 runs! I don't think Matsui counted for 113 runs and he was the only big time non-returning starter. Disappointing is all I can say. 

Last year was a fluke but I didn't think this year was worthy of a 74 win campaign. I really thought a few games over .500 was certainly feasible. You know pitching would come back to reality but the anemic offensive was really what prevented a respectable season. Of course if we hadn't gone 3 - 15 against the D-backs we probably could have had 79 wins which is a whole lot better. I mean the Dodgers only won the division with 84 wins! I don't think 2009 is going to be any easier in the division...the Giants and Padres won't be as pathetic. If we lose Holliday this winter where are we going to find that offensive spark?

This Week in Comics

Flash Gordon #1

Big Flash fan (not the DC running guy, although my greyhound is named Flash for that hero...) and saw this at the store.  Decided to give it a chance and was actually impressed by the first issue.  Pretty good for a none big comic company.  I will have to give a chance although the set up is a bit weird.

Daredevil #111

Hmmm what to think of this.  First off can't believe Matt and Dakota got it on.  Sometimes rebooting a character is not worth the effort.  I mean it certainly gets the attention of the media but does it really help the character?  Since Dakota came into play that is what brought me to the book but we shall see about this new villian (?).  I dont like gimmicks...

New Avengers #45

Okay this secret invasion thing is getting old...where is issue 7?  and when is this going to come clean?  This didn't really explain the whole House of M thing.  And frankly these ads I keep seeing about seeing skrulls and embracing changes worries me a bit.  Not for sure but I don't think I want a post secret invasion keeping skrulls around...we shall see.

 

Captain America #42

Well the long going storyline is finally over.  Looks like we will be heading in a new direction.  Bit surprised how quickly this all came apart.  I expected things to continue on but I guess Brubaker wanted to move in a new direction...wonder if this is a secret invasion thing?  Still great book.

Haiku Wednesday

Birds

Nature's Wright Brothers
They're creatures of the current
Surfers of the sky

The Force Unleashed

The game finally appeared!  Not for sure why this game was delayed for so long.  Heck the graphic novel was supposed to come out in March of this year and then it was delayed indefinitely.  Then the Lego came out and they couldn't release the apprentice's name because it wasn't authorized at that point (his name is Darkstar, by the way).  Anyway was it worth the wait?  

To be honest I am not a huge video game junky.  I was certainly interested in the story and that part of it is great.  From reading the graphic novel it was a fascinating back story.  The whole Vader thing gets more fascinating as the stories keep going.  I have to hand it to Lucas, beyond the fact that the pre-trilogy didn't work as well, he continues to have compelling stories from a well I would think is pretty dry.  Vader is really a great character.  I mean in the original trilogy he was just this masked bad guy, then you find out he is the father of Luke, then he has his moment at the end, the pre-trilogy comes and he turns out to be a whining little kid, his mother dies, and he gets sucked into the dark side.  The poignant part of the end is that obviously Vader isn't all that excited about what happened.  In the Force Unleashed you can tell he hates the Emperor and is just looking for a way to get him.  That is what I think this game is ultimately about.  Anyway game play is fun, the force stuff is good (the throwing lightsaber trick is cool), and the character is good.  Overall a good game, good story, and that is that.

Rox Talk

A 3-3 week against the Padres and D-backs. The Roxs currently stand at 71-85. Ten games back from division leading Dodger in third place. Currently 43-38 at home and 28-47 on the road, the Roxs have been outscored by its opponents 711-797 (expected wins is 70 versus historical wins at 74). On pace for 74 wins with 738 runs scored and 828 runs against.

Weekly WPA leaders (overall as well):

Well six games left.  3 in San Fran and 3 in Arizona.  The D-backs are 2 back from the Dodgers. Frankly at this point I don't care how bad we've played against the D-bags but let's find our mojo and sweep them in Phoenix so we don't have to see them in the playoffs.  Nothing like keeping them out of the World Series one year and the playoffs the next!  Can we close it out strong, maybe...please...

College Football

Utah visits 3-0 (!) Air Force on Saturday. After last year's AF 20 - 12 win (first in 5 years) the Utes might be looking for a bit of revenge after being denied two chances of scoring from the 1 yard line at home last year. They certainly are coming in hot having scored 42 and 58 against UNLV and Utah St and going into the Big House and beating Michigan. Air Force played in front of 2,500 people last weekend. The game had been moved from Houston to SMU in Dallas. So the high school match up had AF beating Houston without completing a single pass! (7 attempts). Anyway I predicted another loss (after this game a 1-3 record?) and I think this might be the weekend. I think it will be a shoot out..35 - 17. But it is at home so maybe we can squeak one by (4-0 going into the Navy game would probably make us ranked?).

Last week's exciting games included (my opinion) had Wyoming beating North Dakota St (barely), Notre Dame winning, Vanderbilt beat Rice, and oh yeah USC wallowed the Buckeyes. This week's exciting games include Florida and Tenn (beat down of the Vols...), Massachusetts and Texas Tech (Mass has a football team?), and the religious battle of TCU and SMU.

N+

N+ a game I first discovered as a Flash game.  Kind of based on an old Mac game which I played back in 2004.  Sometimes the simplest games are the best.  Nothing wrong with today's game but they are so complicated that it is really tough sometimes not to just lose track of the whole thing.  I mean I am a loser video game player but the only console game I have ever finished was Metal Gear Solid 2.  Go figure...

Haiku Wednesday

Parking

City's secret spots
Hidden gems, guarded spaces
Scorn upon new cars

Those blinking meters
Scavenging change stuck in seats
Parking cop ahead

Magazine Updates

New Yorker

July 28th issue (!) had an interesting article about the brain and creative thought or where does the instant clarity come from when trying to solve something (the got it or eureka moment). A cognitive scientist, Jung-Beeman, insists that insight requires the brain to make a a set of distant and unprecedented connections. It would seem that concentration comes with the hidden cost of diminished creativity. Allowing the brain to wander, to relax allows the cortex to seek out more remote associations. Connections are best made in the morning before the brain becomes structured for the day. The drowsy brain is unwound, disorganized and open to all sorts of unconnected ideals. 

Basically what I like to hear...more time in the shower before I start my day!