Long Overdue Update

I have been busy at work, and in the evenings I'm spending time with Jenn and Corbin or playing video games, so I've been a slow to update this site. Here is a quick catch up on:


Movies we've seen

• I, Robot - we both liked it. Good sci-fi/action flick. Get a bowl of popcorn and enjoy.
  
• Spider-Man 2 - Didn't really thrill us. Just seemed to plod along and really go nowhere.
  
• Chronicles of Riddick - I liked this one pretty well. The special effects are pretty cool. Riddick gets endowed with some superhuman powers, which was kind of weak, but otherwise a good action / sci-fi film.
  
• Anchorman - We both thought this would be a lot funnier than it was, based on reviews. It had it's moments, but it was just more of Will Ferrell doing his schtick.
  
• Bad Santa (Badder Santa: Unrated actually) - Jenn and I laughed way too hard throughout this film. It was soooo funny.... but soooooo raunchy. Definitely not a family film, but very funny.
  
• Napoleon Dynamite - I already reviewed this one, see below
  
• Shaun of the Dead - This one is a riot. Given, it is british humor, so a bit dry at times, and the language is very, shall we say, coarse. But moments in this film stick in my head and make me giggle everytime I think about them. Very funny film.
  
• Once Upon a Time in Mexico - This is the follow-up to Desperado where Antonio Banderas plays a gun-toting mariachi with an attitude. It was on one of our premium channels and we watched it almost by accident. It had some clever moments, but otherwise completely forgettable.
  
• Starship Troopers 2 - I loved the first Starship Troopers movie. It was just the right amount of tongue-in-cheek, over the top action / sci-fi film that makes me laugh and watch over again and again. I thought I might like ST2 for the same reasons. I was oooooh, so wrong. This movie really stunk up the place. No wonder it went straight to DVD.
  

Beers
Now that I have a fridge in the basement, I have stocked it with a variety of beers to try.

• Sam Adams Light - This is my go-to beer now. I used to be a Coors Lite man, but I just can't take the stuff anymore. Sam Light is the way to go.
  
• Indiana Amber - A fairly nice beer with a little more umph to it. This one has a nice flavor.
  
• Pete's Wicked Ale : Wanderlust - I picked this up on the recommendation of a work buddy. It's a creme ale. I can't really tell that it has a unique flavor, but the texture of it is definitely smooth.
  
• Barley Island : Brass Knuckles Oatmeal Stout - There is a variety of oatmeal stout that I love. Unfortunately, it is really expensive, so I rarely have it. Barley Island is a local brewery here in Noblesville, and Jenn spied their version of oatmeal stout in the store on her last trip for groceries. She has wanted to have dinner there for a while, and was hoping that if I liked the beer, it might hasten the trip. Unfortunately, the Brass Knuckles is, well, like getting punched with brass knuckles. I haven't had my head snap back from a quaff of beer in a long time, but I was feeling some whiplash after my first taste of this stuff. I downed the bottle, and I'll finish the six pack (eventually), but this will not go on my "buy again" list. The after taste has the nice oatmeal stout flavor that I like, but the drink itself has something to it that just doesn't go over with me. Thanks for the thought, Jenn, but I'll be skipping this one. We can still go to Barley Island though.
  

Video Games
There are several video games that I have on my to-do list to finish. Some I've had for quite a while, and some I received recently.

• Paper Mario 2 : The Thousand Year Door - this was a fun role playing game that had the cast and crew of the super mario series. It wasn't all that difficult, at least not until the last chapter. Still, the Mario series of games always seem to have some intangible fun quality to them that make them really enjoyable.
  
• Metroid Prime 2 : Echoes - Now that I'm through with Paper Mario, this is my late night addiction. The first Metroid Prime was awesome, and this one stuck to the same formula.
  
• Final Fantasy Tactics Advance - I've been playing this one for a couple of months, and I've put plenty of hours into it, but I have yet to finish it. The game itself is pretty simple: play through a set of chess matches where each piece has special moves and defensive powers. It is kind of relaxing to play as it doesn't require any expert timing or anything, just some though into the strategy you will use to win each match.
  
• Fire Emblem - Almost identical to Final Fantasy, this one is on the list to finish as well.
  
• Neverwinter Nights - I got this for my birthday in 2003, and I still haven't finished it. The time investment necessary just to get back up to speed and play through the next quest in this role playing game is pretty intense, and I just haven't put the time into it yet. Still, this game is a lot of fun, and the graphics are pretty amazing. I'm sure I'll get around to finishing it eventually.
  

So what else is new? Well, I just finished up my Advanced Managerial Econ mid-term. Work is slowing down a bit as projects get finished up, but I'm sure that I'll be on to other things soon. Jenn's birthday is on Friday, and we are looking forward to a nice night on the town. Karla volunteered to babysit for us so we could have a little date. Corbin is toddling around, and we are having a blast helping him to learn to walk.