Even though I've been around here forever, I've never had an opportunity to meet anyone in real world land.
I'm only 45 minutes from Chicago, but somehow I doubt Yodes and I would click. I get along just fine with pretty much everyone, but you can only talk about the weather and the Fan so much. I don't think we have many (any?) mutual interests outside of this board. You a fan of plants, Yoda?
I don't really even know if anyone else on the board is from the Chicago area.

Moving along a bit in Tomb Raider. I'm really liking it so far. The woman who does the voice for Lara is perfect. She plays scared, but determined quite well.
It's been very intense, and very story driven. Similar to Uncharted, but with more things to find, as well as customization of skills, weapons, etc. Very nice additions.

Sad Cat Diary:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKffm2uI4dk

If you're not subscribed to zefrank1 on YT, you should be. Funny stuff.

Rebecca Hall needs more screen time in everything. I'm rather fond.


Django Unchained -
Well, this was a hell of a movie. I've never been big on westerns in any regard, but this really is quite the entertainment. A LONG one, but it holds your interest the whole time.
Jamie Foxx as Django does a fine job, but the real star, just like in Inglorious Bastards, is Christoph Waltz. He's fantastic as Dr. King Schultz, the bounty hunter. Such a great actor.
The movie is great, not because of the typical Tarantino violence, but because of the, also typical, Tarantino dialogue. There's some great writing here, with some very tense exchanges between great characters. That's what makes this so fun to watch. The shoot outs are secondary.
I wasn't terribly fond of Leonardo's Calvin Candie, but the scenes with him we're great. Same with Sam Jackson's Stephen. He seemed to hold a bit too much authority, considering who he was, and the year in which this takes place.
Overall, though, this is a fun ride of a movie. Highly recommended, even for those who don't like the old spaghetti western style. 


The Last Man on Earth -
This is the first version of the I am Legend story I have seen. I know there's the Omega Man with Heston in it, and the newer version with Will Smith.
Very simple premise here. A nasty plague of sorts has wiped out with humanity, with many of them coming back from the dead.
I'm not sure why they refer to them as vampires, though, as they act just like zombies, minus the occasional mumbled word.
Despite it's age, the story and premise remain interesting, and oddly relevant. I was surprised by the ending, though, and am doubtful that the fancy Will Smith version would dare to end in the same manner. I have to see it now to find out.

Started up Tomb Raider last night. Man, that poor woman sure goes through a lot in the first 15 minutes alone.
The game looks pretty darn slick, and has a great presentation.
I haven't gotten to any actual combat situations yet, so can't comment there.
Looking through the item screens shows a LOT of things to find, which I like.
I notice Lara gets xp as well. It seems almost every game nowadays takes the good from rpgs, and leaves the rest. I'm cool with that, as I don't have time for traditional rpgs anymore.

You hear all the time that it is therapeutic to simply write things down. Even if only for yourself. Then you can stash it somewhere, rip it up, burn it up, eat it with some BBQ sauce, or whatever. Cathartic.
I make lists. Work, family, home, garden. All sorts. I find it to be satisfying to look at my list, and cross things off, or at least say that I've done something about whatever is on it. Keeps me moving along. Just having things roll around in my head hinders progress.

Awesome drawing, Mesh.

Supposed to be 79 and sunny today. Beautiful. Better enjoy it, because rain and colder temps are moving in tomorrow.

Drove 5 hours today just to inspect and tag 11 trees. At least it was a nice, country road drive with awesome weather.

D, I'll bet everyone here can relate in some fashion to your problems. I know I can. Honestly, it's not the money stuff, but the family stuff for sure. Both my parents are gone, sadly, but my brothers and I are still trying to work through everything since my Dad died a year and a half ago. Let's just say that my youngest brother is a bit of a deadbeat and has been causing the family much trouble for years. He's majorly depressed, has no job, and lives in my Dads old house that he doesn't pay for. I'm actually scared that he'll either commit suicide, or get drunk as hell and do something horrible. No lie.
I have my own plethora of health problems, including mild depression and anxiety. I have to keep busy or I find myself thinking too much, and spiraling down. I don't know why I'm saying this, as I really haven't talked to anyone, including my wife, about it. Scary stuff.
My gardening, and love of nature, keeps me sane. Not my wife. Not my son. I love both of them very much, but they mostly just add to the stress.
Why did I type all this out? To show some solidarity, I think. To say I understand. I agree withYodes that you seem to be a stand up guy, and find your helping your Dad admirable.
I guess I would suggest you find your "escape". The water basin in the middle of the desert. Is it the lifting? Is it your work? Doesn't really sound like it. Heck, maybe it's video games. There has to be something that allows you to override the nasty thoughts. Grow some veggies, man! You'd be surprised how satisfying it is.

Just. Can't. Stop. Scrolling.
Actually, some interesting facts on there.

While certainly enjoyable, I wouldn't rate it higher than a few other things in my life. Perhaps I'm just not doing it right.
: - (

I feel so darn special here. I haven't been around much due to being crazy busy. Work, home, garden, everything. Spring will do that.
My garden is just dandy, thank you. It only gets harmed if we get a hard frost right after the tender new leaves emerge, which we haven't. And even then, most plants have enough reserve "food" to push out a second batch if need be. No worries!
Nan's birthday is tomorrow. Every year I get screwed(Leave the gutter, please) due to proximity of her birthday to Mothers day. I end up buying a batch of gifts, then deciding which goes with which. Then I have to come up with some special breakfast that Benjamin and I will make for her on Mom's Day. I rocked it last year with this awesome Chocolate Cherry Coffeecake. Not sure how I'll top it. The stress! It burns!

We've s l o w l y been going through Season 2 of Game of Thrones. Just watched Blackwater last night. It was pretty darn good, but I couldn't help but think how much better it could have been in a 2 hour time slot. The ending was so darn abrupt. That's the one thing I didn't like about it. They needed another 20 minutes or so to flesh it out.

Been watching all the new eps of Doctor Who as well. Kind of fun, but nothing amazing. I wish Moffat would stop with the whole mysterious companion thing.

Yup. Downtown Chicago in the Summer is awesome for this. We do work at some of the colleges, and I know our guys like going there just for that reason.

The Last of Us comes out June 14th. I have a feeling that's not really your kind of game, though.

I don't quite get what you mean by this. Are you criticizing people for going outside? Or for buying more games during the Fall/Early Winter season?
When I was younger, the time of year didn't affect my game playing at all. Sure, we'd play outdoors plenty. But I also spent gobs of time playing games. *sinks into Summer Nostalgia*
Now I spend more time playing games during the Winter months, due to my landscaping/gardening lifestyle.
I rarely buy games upon release, anyways. I'm happy to wait for a more opportune time, and a better price.

Not much time for gaming lately. Despite this, I ordered the new Tomb Raider after seeing it for 38.50 on Amazon. I look forward to playing it.

I haven't had much time to post lately. Spring will do that to a mad gardener and landscaper.
My pathetic body is still totally sore from walking all over the University of Illinois campus on Saturday. My wife was in the Illinois Marathon, and I dragged the kid around to their gardens and arboretum. Too bad it was miles from the hotel. Oops.
The place was impressive, and so damn sprawling. Really made me happy I never went there like a lot of my colleagues. I just can't stomach large colleges/universities with thousands and thousands of students. Just feels like an ant colony. Plus, the whole obsession with their sports teams would drive me crazy.
On the upside, there sure were plenty of attractive young ladies about. Causes the eyes to wander a bit too much. Good thing Nan was off running. I wonder what my 12-year old was thinking. He hasn't shown much interest in the opposite sex yet, but I recall being 12, and I KNOW that I already had crushes by then. He's just such a quiet kid. We'll see.