Archive for June, 2004

A Wonderfully Relaxing Birthday

Published
by
Danny
on June 30, 2004
in General
. Closed

Well, my birthday is almost over. It was a wonderfully relaxing day spent entirely with Mei, shopping, and friends. I also got some really nice birthday messages from people I know, including a message of the day in the GarageGames IRC channel.

After sleeping in this morning, Mei and I went to The Cheesecake Factory in Bellevue to have lunch. We ate too much for lunch, so we didn’t actually get to any cheesecake. However, a goblet of fresh strawberries with whipped cream was a fine substitute for dessert.

Afterwards, we did our requisite shopping inside Bellevue Square. Mei scored a couple of really nice skirts from BCBG for 50% off, and I picked up a 512 MB SD card for my new camera. Pretty typical purchases for the two of us. :P

The guy who was helping me at Tall’s Cameras (where I got the SD card) was amazingly funny. He was making jokes about charging an extra 10% for using my Oregon ID to get tax-exemption and telling me not to purchase anything that they don’t have in stock. He had such a deadpan sense of humor that if you’re not paying attention, you might actually feel insulted by his “bad” customer service. It definitely made my day.

After our shopping trip, we stopped by the lawyer’s office to take care of some business then headed back home to relax for a bit before dinner which was at the Celtic Bayou in Redmond. I invited my close friends Matt, Scott, and Janet to come hang out for beer and Cajun food. As expected, we were our typical geeky and insulting selves for the entire evening. We cracked jokes about everything: playing games, eating and drinking habits, and the incredibly horrible musicians singing for the last hour of our stay. Open-mic night at an Irish pub that serves Cajun food is not a good thing. Open-mic night is generally not a good thing regardless.

It was good to see everyone tonight. It had actually been well over a month since we had all seen each other. It was my much needed dose of geekiness. It’ll probably continue soon now that I have an Xbox. They want me to join them in Xbox Live gaming sessions. Not sure if I can get that hardcore about it, but you never know. I am, after all, a geek at heart.

So, the birthday is just about done. This past year has been a good one for me. Positive changes in work. Improvements in my own abilities. A new home. And, of course, Mei, easily the best thing to happen to me in a long time. Here’s to a fun and exciting chase to 30.

Happy Birthday to Me!!!

Published
by
Danny
on June 30, 2004
in General and Toys
. Closed

Woohoo!!! It’s my birthday!!! I am now the ripe age of 29, and I feel good. I have no work, I don’t have much money, and I’m nowhere near being in good shape. But I have great people in my life, I enjoy the work that I do (when I have a job), and I have the best girlfriend in the world. All in all, life is good.

Today (technically, it was yesterday, June 29, but I haven’t slept yet, so it’s still sort of the same day…) was a pretty relaxing day. Mei and I went to Top Gun to have dim sum for lunch. Then we spent the afternoon hanging out at home. Mei was chatting and reading and browsing the web, and I played Halo for a while. Later we went shopping at Southcenter. I picked up some new clothes for myself and for Mei as well. And I got a new digital camera: a Canon Powershot SD10. It’s such a super small and slick camera. I picked up the white version of it, which has a really neat irridescent sheen to it. Under the right lighting, it shimmers. Way cool.

New Toy, Old Game

Published
by
Danny
on June 28, 2004
in Games and Toys
. Closed

I cracked open my new Xbox yesterday. There’s nothing quite like the smell of freshly opened technology. The sealed-in smell of plastic, the sticky sheets that protect the smooth surfaces, the feeling of tearing open all those little plastic baggies… It’s sick, really.

But, anyway, I finally have an Xbox. I know I’m a bit late to the party. Practically everyone I know – especially all the game dev people – have Xboxes. It’s actually kind of sad that it took me so long to get one. I work in games. I play games. I really should’ve had one years ago. Oh well. Better late than never.

What’s even more sad is that I’m also playing an “old” game. Mei bought me Halo for one of my many birthday presents. Even though Halo came out in 2001, people are still playing it. Because I didn’t have an Xbox until then weekend, I didn’t really play it myself. I was a moving target in multiplayer mode a few times, but I never really got comfortable or even any good at playing the game. Well, it’s all changing now.

I spent 3 hours last night playing through the first few missions in campaign mode. I can see why people like Halo so much. Engaging story, good gameplay, and nice graphics (for a game released in 2001). I’m still trying to get used to the controls, but I feel like I’m getting better. At least I’m not spinning around like a drunken idiot anymore. Don’t think I’m ready for multiplayer yet though. I’m definitely still noob.

Cash and a New Toy

Published
by
Danny
on June 27, 2004
in General and Toys
. Closed

Last night’s dinner was at Manzana, a really neat bistro in Portland’s snazzy Pearl District that specializes in rotisserie food. It looks really upscale when you first walk in there, but the overall atmosphere is very friendly and laid-back. Good food, too.

Debbie, Flint (her boyfriend), my dad, and my stepmom all showed up for dinner. We had our usual round of non-stop jabs at each other. Mostly laughing and loud talking throughout the evening. It was relatively short though (maybe 2-1/2 hours), because I needed to drive back up the same evening. Short and sweet.

It was very nice to hang out with everyone yesterday. Lots of updates on what’s going on in our lives, what’s going on in other people’s lives, and jokes about each other. Nothing terribly different in the grand scheme of things. It’s just been a while since I’ve seen everyone, especially since I moved up to Renton, so it was a much needed get-together for all of us.

The booty for the whole day was pretty nice. I got money from my parents and grandmother, and Debbie and Flint gave me an Xbox. Money is always a good thing. It’ll help me pay the bills (unlikely) or get some new goodies (most likely). The Xbox is very cool too. It comes with a second controller, the DVD remote, and a free game (MechAssault). Need to get a few more games to start padding out the collection though. Halo, here I come. :)

« Older Entries