I just checked into my room at Tower23 in Pacific Beach.  I’ve stayed in some nice hotels before and I’m not too easily impressed.  I have to say this hotel is pretty good though.  It’s probably its IKEA-eske look and feel that I’m used to at home.  What’s nice is that it’s a small hotel on the beach and I think I like that better than some of the really large hotels you might stay in Vegas or something like that.

I got my car vallet parked so I’ll see how that goes and make some comments at the end of my trip.  The desk attendent had an accent that was hard for me to understand, but I think that’s probably just me.  I have a terrible time with accents.  He was helpful and patient with me which I appreciate. Read the rest of this entry »

The NBA announced to its teams this week at its annual pre-draft camp that fines will be imposed on players starting next season for clear cases of “flopping,” ESPN.com has learned.

This is just too funny.

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The Transbay Joint Powers Authority just approved a stunning green design for the new Transbay Transit Center to be constructed in downtown SF. Planned by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, the project consists of a graceful glass tower paired with an elegantly sweeping transit center topped with a five-and-a-half acre public park. This thing just looks too cool.

I got a chance to take a tour of Alcatraz with my buddy Dogg and a couple of other people.  I hadn’t gone for a long time so it was pretty cool going out there and checking it out.  You pay for a ticket and that includes admission and a ferry that leaves from Pier 33 which takes you to Alcatraz Island.  The weather was pretty overcast which was surprising since it had been really hot and sunny all week.

The ferry ride takes about 20 minutes or so and you can take some great pictures of San Francisco from the boat.  When you set foot on the island there is a small bookstore and a brief introduction about the island.  They offer guided tours at certain time intervals and also an audio tour which I think most people take.  As you can see from my photo, there are quite a few people on the island to explore.  We decided to take the audio tour which lasts about 2 to 3 hours depending on how fast your move through different sections and if you decide to pause the audio at times. Read the rest of this entry »

I like living my life well organized and to a schedule.  I feel like I’m more productive in whatever tasks I try to accomplish in a day.  As I’ve written before when I get into a routine things seem to happen much more smoothly than if I try to do something without a plan.  I always feel like I’ve wasted time if I haven’t used my time productively.  I guess I’m not a real believer in “free time” since I’m always making an attempt to always be doing something.  When it comes to planning trips, this is no different. Read the rest of this entry »

Netflix has released a set top box made by Roku.  It allows streaming of about 10,000 titles from the NetFlix service to your TV.  I already have an AppleTV, but I’m thinking about picking one up.  The box costs $100 and there is no additional monthly fee if you have an unlimited account with Netflix.

As of right now Netflix does not have any HD videos for streaming, but I think if it’s DVD quality that’s okay with me for now.  I just rent the standard DVDs from the Netflix service anyway.  I’m interested to see how the quality is and how well it streams from the service. Read the rest of this entry »

I went over to my local AT&T store today to pick up a Jawbone 2.  I figured while I was there I would ask if they had any information on the new iPhone.  I had a good feeling that no one would know about it since Apple is so secretive about their products until they are launched.  They said they knew nothing, but they were running short of supply of the current model.  For those interested, the Jawbone seems to work pretty well and you can check out my full review here.

I had to go to the DMV yesterday to pick up my new license plates and change my address since I recently moved.  In the past going to DMV had been a terrible experience kind of like going to the dentist or something like that.  The lines are always long and if you didn’t have an appointment good luck getting any help.  Yesterday was different though.  Maybe I hit the right day and the right time, but I think they’ve just gotten a lot more efficient in how the process works. Read the rest of this entry »

Gas prices are getting ridiculous and I don’t think it’s going to get any lower soon.  The thing is do people actually drive less?  People tell me they’ll drive less or find alternative forms of transportation, but when it comes down to it, I don’t think they do and besides there’s only so much you can do to conserve gas.  Sure you could car pool or ride bikes if it’s close enough, but chances are people are going to drive to work and a lot of the time it’s just one person in the car.  People aren’t going to stop going to work no matter what the price of gas. Read the rest of this entry »

Well after a few hiccups, the revision to this site is up and running.  It has been completely revamped front end to back end with some additions and subtractions throughout.  This is the first code run for the new look and feel which is now running on Wordpress.  I’m hoping I’ll have some time in the near future to do some code cleanup and fine tune some of the plug-ins I’m using. Read the rest of this entry »