4G SDHC Memory Card on Sale

This week at Best Buy, you can get a 4G SDHC Memory Card with USB memory card reader for only $39.99. This is 50% off the normal price. I picked one up last week for my new digital camera, and it's an impressive amount of storage. And at this price - well worth it. The sale runs through June 16.

A Great Time at Adventureland

After my morning bike ride, I went to Adventureland for the first time in probably 15 years. I went with Ryan and Amy, and had more fun than I imagined I would. The funny thing about going back to a place like that - a place you primarly went to while you were young - was that everything seemed smaller. The buildings, the crowds, the rides. It was like being a giant in a tiny, little world. It rocked.

I think we had planned to spend only a part of the the day there, but we lasted 8 and a half hours! The best rides had to be the spinning, swinging, leg-dangling wonder that was the Sidewinder (thanks for the recommendation, Steve), and the pretty tall, pretty quick, Space Shot. Ryan rode most of the rides, but missed out on the Sidewinder (they had closed it temporarily for some reason, maybe vomit removal?). Oh, and there was this Splash Mountain-type ride with an inner tube and a giant slide that was pure bliss.

Oh, oh, oh, and I won a leopard - I gave it to Amy because it looked dumb, and I'm a man - at one of the games by throwing wiffle softballs on top of goblets. It was a fantistic invitation Ryan and Amy extended to me. Thanks guys!

Chichaqua Trail Ride

This morning I got up somewhat early and drove out to the Chichaqua Valley Recreation Trail to ride with Steve, Justin, Ryan, Amy, and Colby. It was a very nice ride on a smooth, paved trail. The trail used to be a railroad track, so there aren't any major hills, another plus. The trail is 20 miles long, but we were looking for a nice, easy ride today. We went out from the start near Bondurant and rode 7.5 miles before turning around, for a total of 15 miles. We averaged 13.5 mph. It was just the type of ride I needed today.

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I did notice that Scott got out on his bike and put in 50 miles today. Sounds like it was probably a good ride, but it puts him within 60 miles of me in our race for the most miles logged before RAGBRAI. Man, I'm really going to have to put in the miles this coming week.

Danny Elfman Scores Hellboy 2

This day just keeps getting better and better. First the trailer for 30 Days, and now the news that my favorite composer, Danny Elfman, will score del Toro's Hellboy 2: fantastic! I'm sad about Elfman's falling out with Sam Raimi, but if he's going to find another director to work with - aside from Tim Burton - he can't do much wrong in finding del Toro. Oh, and Hellboy rocks, too. I'll be looking forward to this score!

30 Days of Night Trailer

Wow! The trailer for 30 Days of Night is up and running. The movie looks terrifyingly spectacular. Based on the graphic novel, it's the story of a group of vampires invading the town of Barrow, Alaska as the sun sets for thirty days of night. Needless to say, things don't go well for the townspeople. This movie has jumped into the top 5 movies I have to see this fall. It opens October 19th. The website for the movie is now live, and can be found HERE. The site includes a link for the trailer. Do yourself a favor and watch it. But do so during the day, definitely not at night.

Nightfall on the River - June 7, 2007

Last night I went to the first concert of the Nightfall on the River concert series at the Simon Estes Riverfront Amphitheater in downtown Des Moines.

Back a couple of months ago when they announced the lineup for this summer’s series – which runs Thursdays, June 7 to August 2 – I didn’t see a single night that looked interesting. Then yesterday, while I was looking through the paper, I noticed the performer of last night’s show, Emerson Hart, was once the lead singer for the band, Tonic.

Tonic was never a huge band, but I liked them. A lot. They were at the height of their popularity in the late nineties, just as I was finishing high school and starting college. They had a couple of Grammy nominations and a couple of hit songs, “If You Could Only See” and “Open Up Your Eyes.” Needless to say, once I realized who Emerson Hart was, I wanted to go. I’m a sucker for nostalgia. And at $8 a ticket, it was cheap.

I actually enjoy concerts at this venue, on the Des Moines River, out in the fresh air and sunshine, quite a bit. I bring a collapsible captain’s chair and a bottle of water, and can watch a show sitting down, with the city skyline behind the stage, and no smoke. Also, I can hear after the concert…always a big plus. While the rest of this year’s series doesn’t look interesting, I may be surprised like I was yesterday, or I can always pay a bit more and enjoy the same stage and experience with the Alive concert series on Friday nights, all summer long.

The opening performer was dude named Scott Leger out of Austin, Texas. Joined by a bass and drums, Leger put on a great show. The sound reminded me a bit of Lifehouse, The Calling, and The Nadas. While the music was good, even Leger recognized and apologized for the awkward banter between songs.

Two songs of note: “Maybe Tonight, Maybe Tomorrow,” a song written for the Lance Armstrong Foundation with his band Wasteland, and available for download on iTunes with all proceeds going to the foundation (there have already been 10,000 downloads = $10,000 raised), and “I’m Not So Far Away,” (? title) the show-closing song. This last song was their best. Everything clicked and the vocals were fantastic.

After a short break, Emerson Hart took the stage. After fumbling around for a lost guitar pick, Hart got right in to it. From the very first song, this show was rocking. Hart was aided by a second guitar, a bass, drums, and keyboard. There was no awkward banter here, the interaction between songs connected with and engaged the audience. “Note to self,” Hart joked, “don’t take up the courtesy and friendship of these locals because they’ll drink you into a hole before you take the stage.” Apparently his last visit to Des Moines went very well.

Emerson Hart owned the stage for the entire hour and a quarter he was up there. After playing “If You Could Only See,” Hart mentioned that while he was traveling around the Southeast trying out new songs for his upcoming album, Cigarettes and Gasoline he would play “If You Could Only See” for the crowd. After one performance he was talking with a guy back stage who told him he sounded, just like that guy who sings that song. Hart joked that he heard that a lot. The guy wouldn’t let up. He said, "No man, your other songs are great, but it might hurt your career sounding so much like that guy." Hart could only shrug and say, “Welcome to my life.”

The best song of the night had to be “It Takes A Little Bit of Love” (? title). Hart mentioned that his inspirations for the song were The Beatles and Queen, “without the weird mustache or unitard.” It was a rocking song with audience participation that even managed to get a hot blonde up dancing in front of the stage.

The set ended with Hart’s new single, “If You’re Gonna Leave.” It was a great song, great performance, and stellar night to be out listening to live music.

I wholeheartedly recommend checking out the single “Maybe Tonight, Maybe Tomorrow” from Scott Leger, and the purchase of Emerson Hart’s CD Cigarettes and Gasoline when it arrives in July.

[Expletive Deleted]

Stupid [expletive deleted] wind! Are you kidding me, 30 mph from the NNW! That means that all the [expletive deleted] hills on my normal ride will also include brutal [expletive deleted] wind as well.

Not fun. It was not a very easy or enjoyable bike ride this morning. The temps were nice - in the 60's - but the wind just killed any of the fun to be had. And my iPod Shuffle finally died. It started flashing all these lights at me and just refused to play music. It is a couple of years old, so maybe it's outlived its time. At least I found this out before I started riding and was able to hook up my iPod Nano to the bike speakers. I just cannot ride without my music.

20.32 miles *hanging my head in shame* at 14.5 mph.

Hopefully the winds will die down before my ride tonight...or I think I might just cry.

Quickly Before Bed

I did a good thing tonight. I got out of the house, out among the populace. If you know me, you know how rare this is. But it's something I'm working on. I swear.

I'll write about what I did tonight and post it sometime tomorrow. It's too late to write now. My bed calls to me.

Ah Man...

I just looked in the mirrow (ha) and noticed that I've got raccoon eyes. I must have gotten a little too much sun the past couple of days - while wearing my sunglasses - and now I have white ovals around my eyes and a red face.

Bike Until You Bleed

I wasn't going to do it today. I started talking myself out of a bike ride from the moment I hit the snooze on my alarm at 5 AM. Once I finally did get out of bed at 7, I only felt like breakfast. And it was windy - real windy. So, I went to Village Inn - and I wasn't going to mention this because I am supposed to be watching what I eat, but oh well, it was good - and got my wonderful bacon and eggs and pancakes. It's such a gorgeous meal, really.

Once I returned home I was a little more inclined to get out and at least put in 15 miles (I had just eaten a not-so-healthy breakfast). I watched the Weather Channel and looked at the weather on the internet, and neither source was giving me the news I wanted. I just didn't want to ride into those 30-40mph winds from the SSW. Also, it looked like a rain storm was coming my way, complete with hail.

I finally just decided that if I was going to go out tonight - which I planned on doing - I needed to get some distance of a ride in. I stepped outside, and yeah, it was humid, hot, and windy, but I could get in 15 miles. I dressed in my biking shorts and Velcroed my biking shoes tight.

Once out there riding - going North with a 30mph tail wind - I decided that maybe I'd try get in 20 miles. Once I turned South after about 6 miles of nice, fast riding, and powered through the headwind, I thought maybe instead of 20 miles I'd just get in the 30 I want to average a day. It was hot, and it was sunny, and it was windy, but I managed to get in a great ride. I rode 30.46 miles at 15.0 mph. Not too shabby.

Oh, and the blood I alluded to in the title of the post...my lips got chapped, and when I wiped the gummy stuff from them there was a little blood. Biking is brutal.

Ah...Chess

"Horsey to pointy guy six. Heh, heh. Check."

I love Futurama. I can think of no better show to fall asleep to at night.

Fueled by Ramen

The record label, Fueled by Ramen, has quickly become my replacement for Wind-Up Records. Back when I was at school at the University of Iowa, Wind-Up Records seemed to be the force behind the majority of the new bands I was beginning to enjoy. I haven't heard much of anything recently that has really sparked my interest coming from Wind-Up.

On the other hand, Fueled by Ramen has introduced me to Fall Out Boy, Gym Class Heroes, Cobra Starship, Panic! At The Disco, and most recently, Paramore. The thing about these bands - and the bands on Wind-Up - is their similar sounding records. It's a type of music that you are following. I like that; it makes it easy to find records you know you will enjoy.

Today, on my way out to Best Buy, I heard the new single from Paramore, Misery Business. Immediately I knew, having never heard the song, or even of the band before that moment, that they were signed with Fueled by Ramen. It was just that type, that sound that got me excited about discovering a new band. Turns out the song on the radio is from the upcoming album, Riot!, in stores June 12, 2007. I did happen to find, and purchase, the band's first album, All We Know is Falling. It was a great cross of female vocals and that rockin' Ramen sound. It's an album worth your listen if you, too, are Fueled by Ramen.

New Comics - June 6, 2007

Cover of the Week:
Nightwing #133 by Ryan Sook

I've been a fan of Sook since his run on The Spectre years ago. He rarely disappoints with his moody, shawdow-heavy art. I particularly enjoy the reflections of Nightwing's previous costumes.

This is a weekly list of the new comics I picked up at my local comic book shop, Mayhem Comics.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Eight #4
Birds of Prey #107
Countdown #47
Nightwing #133
Justice Society of America #6
Justice League Unlimited #34
Outsiders #48
Detective Comics #833
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born #5
Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness #4

Watch for quick reviews or comments when a comic requires the extra attention.

Val Kilmer is Crazy Normal

I just finished reading a profile of Val Kilmer (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Spartan) by Chuck Klosterman in an old issue of Esquire (July 2005). I've always liked him as an actor. And I've always heard that he was a bit...weird. The picture they have of him at the begining of the article didn't do much to disuade me of my preconcieved notion. He looks like a pudgy, Amish farmer calling his bison home. Not your typical Hollywood star.

In the article he comes across as a pretty normal guy. Sure, he lives on a ranch with two bison, is a Christian Scientist, and owns an "inordinate number of reference books," but we all have our own burdens to bear. He hangs out with his children, avoids the media, and continues to impress on the big screen. Can't go wrong there. It's nice to read an article about a celebrity and not have to hear about another arrest, another drug-fueled tantrum, or Paris Hilton.

(And yes, I know I'm a little behind with my Esquire subscription, but I'm working to get caught up to the issue that just arrived Monday - July 2007)

New (and first) Digital Camera

Over the weekend I purchased my first digital camera. I wasn't sure what I really wanted - I know nothing about cameras - but I thought it would be nice to have one for my upcoming trip to Wisconsin and for RAGBRAI. I went out to Apple's website to see if anyone had posted favorable reviews for any of the cameras they list. I wanted to make sure that I got a good camera and that there were no problems interfacing with my MacBook.

I ended up with a Canon PowerShot SD750. It's a small, little camera.

From the manufacturer:
This camera has features including a 7.1 Megapixel, 1/2.5-inch CCD, DIGIC III Image Processor, 3x optical zoom lens and 3.0-inch LCD monitor with wide viewing angle. It uses Battery Pack NB-4L to shoot up to approx. 210 images (based on the CIPA standard when the LCD monitor is on), and SD memory cards, SDHC memory cards and MultiMediaCards for the recording media. Images are utilized with a direct print compatible printer, computer and TV via USB 2.0 Hi-Speed. The dimensions (excluding protrusions) of the main body are 91.6 x 56.8 x 19.6 mm (3.6 x 2.2 x 0.8 in.) and the weight is approximately 130 g (4.6 oz.).

I haven't done much more than charge the battery and read the Basic User Guide. It looks like it has some cool features that could result in some pretty trippy pictures. I'll keep you informed as I use the little bugger. I may even share a snapshot or two - I do occasionally take a good pic.