There's been talk of this in my state. In this month alone in my state there have been 5 fatal crashes involving elderly drivers. The latest involved a woman in her 80s who struck and killed a 4-year old girl who was crossing the street in a crosswalk. The woman had 6 previous violations, 5 of which were more accidents, since 1982. Her license has since been revoked because she was an immediate threat. She has since been charged with vehicular homicide. Now legislation is pushing for stricter rules for elderly drivers, which could potentially limit when elderly drivers can drive, or what age they must turn in their license and get off the road, or how often they are tested. While many agree that this should be done to try and prevent further accidents (because when drivers reach 80 years of age, the odds of a fatal accident quadruples), others feel this is a violation of their rights. I want to know what you think, either as a driver or as someone who knows an elderly driver. I'd like to hear all sides to this. Myself, I feel they should go ahead and push for stricter driving rules. I've had too many near misses with elderly drivers to consider letting them stay on the road. I don't think they can see things as well at that age as they did when they were younger, which can make them a hazard on the road if they aren't paying attention or seeing things. So....you?
Odd enough for me to post comp help here, but I need it. My lappy updated itself yesterday, it currently runs WinXPPro with SP3. I figured it was no biggie, it around that time of month for it to update anyway. I turn it on this afternoon and I'm poking around my files and stuff, doing some work, when I notice double-clicking doesn't do what it used to. I click on a file once, say, a picture, and the drop-down menu that shows up when I usually right click the mouse shows up on a left click. So now I have to manually open files that way rather than double clicking them. Is there a way to fix it so it goes back to opening things on a double click rather than this drop down menu thing it's doing now? If so, where in the Control Panel would that be? I tried looking under Folder Options but found nothing. It's a weird little thing that's been bugging my most of the afternoon.
I didn't believe it at first, until I saw this thing staring at me while on a day trip up to New Hampshire. Not wanting to give it a miss (because it was rather hard to ignore this thing blaring at you), I went over to try it. Here's what I noticed. The Machine The game itself looks exactly like that picture up there, but when I first saw it I saw it from the back and mistook it for another DDR game. When I got around to the front of it, I understood what it was. Those two guitars are heavy. They weigh about as much as the real thing and are modeled after the Kramer controller used in GHIII. If you look closely, you'll notice something's missing: no whammy bar. For me, that was a major disappointment, because I like using the bar on a hold note to get Star Power. Also, it took a bit more effort to tilt the guitar up to activate said Star Power. My biggest gripe though - and it might be because of the arcade I played this in - was the price. It costs $1 per play, and you only get to pick one song. Compared to the DDR machine behind me, which cost $.75 to play and could net you 3 songs, GH seemed rather pricey. For 2 people to play, it was a dollar per person. It would cost you $6 to play 3 songs. That's a lot of quarters. The Gameplay So I caved and decided to take the game for a whirl. There's 50 songs to choose from, from GH III and World Tour. The characters are all the ones from GH III, including unlockables such as Slash. I didn't choose single player mode so I didn't see what was offered there, but Multiplayer Mode offers Face Off, Pro Face Off, and Co-Op. There was a lack of Guitar Battles, which I feel could have been a selling point for this game. While playing, I missed more often than I hit, either because the game was slightly out of sync, or because the controls were so new they were still sticking as opposed to my well-worn guitar back home. Missing was even more insulting because the notes were exactly the same as their home-console counterparts. When I would get Star Power, just enough to fill the meter halfway, a message would show up on the screen telling you how to activate it. It was distracting and in the way, and didn't disappear after a set period of time. When the song was over, as I mentioned before, it takes you to the title screen and asks for more credits. I was half expecting it to give you a second song if you did over a set percentile, much like how DDR will let you continue if you score over a certain grade. But it doesn't. You get your score, see the high score board, and game's over. So while it was interesting to see them take a home console game to an arcade rather than the other way around, unless you have enough pocket change to make your pants droop, it doesn't seem worthwhile to me.
Okay. I can't remember if I ever posted this, but back in December I learned through a co-worker of mine at my job at this pool store near me that all of the cashiers were getting laid off because of the slow econmoy. I figured at the time it wasn't true (the co-worker in question had her head on the chopping block for quite some time now, so I thought it was just a means of covering her own sorry arse). I figured it didn't apply to me because I was on student leave because I was still in college and unable to drive an hour and half both ways to sell a few bar sets. I figured it didn't matter because I was told I'd have a job when I came back in the spring. Let's fast forward to March. I was filing taxes and for some reason couldn't find my W2 from the store, so I called them. After I managed to find those forms (hidden inside my tax book. Whoulda thunk?), I touched base to double check that I would still have my position in May when I was released from school. The manager told that yes, I would. Fast forward to today. I've officially been home from college for one day, and thought now would be a good time to mosey on down there and let my boss know I'm home so he can put me back on the schedule. I walk through the door and I'm immediately greeted by "Uncle Richie", a sales rep who pretty much trained me when I was a newbie and was always there for me. My boss hears him blurt my name out over the intercom and grins, caling me his best cashier. I barely caught his face falling. He started to try and talk to me only to see that one of the cashiers was getting a ten-person deep lne, so he was stuck opening another register and I had to wait. Which I did, so I took the time to peek around the store. I only recognized Uncle Richie and one of the assistant managers. Everyone else was brand spanking new. The cashier who had held up the line looked like he was still trying to figure out which buttons to press on the register. That in itself made me nervous. When my boss finally gets a chance he comes over to talk with me, and I eagerly tell him that I'm more than ready to come back to work and that I wasn't going to be disappearing from the state anytime soon. He tells me that while all this is well and good, he doesn't have a position for me. Turns out what my coworker said back in December was true: I had been laid off, even while I was on student leave. The only position he had available was "pool wizard", which means I stand in the back of the store and test people's water to see if their chemicals are off balance. The catch was I had to reapply online and I had about as much of a chance to get hired as another newbie. The fact that I have been working there for two years won't help me in the slightest. So as of 4 pm today I am officially unemployed. F***.
f. Today was Free Comic Book Day. I had no clue. Until this showed up tonight at work.
...not related to this site, thank goodness. What is happening, however, is my college's Internet network is going to go down for updates, repairs, and other apparently necessary annoyances sometime on Saturday and might not be back online until Sunday night or Monday morning. So if no one hears from me until then, that is why. If no one hears from me until much later...I can pretty much guarantee ITS connected the blue wire to the red again and botched the interwebz. I just figured I'd let everyone know. I'm trying to figure out what I am going to do now without my precious Youtoobz and Spam Zone goodness to keep me mildly entertained.
I can't believe a story hasn't been posted about this yet; it's pretty recent news. The head injury they refer to below could either have been an aneurysm (when an artery's wall weakens and balloons out, until it bursts) or what a video linked on the site below describes as "brain rotation"-damage and tearing to the brain as a result of being rotated in the skull after a tramatic impact, such as a fall. It is known thus far that she was not wearing a helmet. Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/obit_natasha_richardson
Well, GameStop says you can preorder one now. Supposedly they'll be available April 4th in the US. Two colors are available right now: Black and Blue. I dunno why, but the blue one kinda reminds me of a raspberry Dum Dum Pop. Source link: http://www.gamestop.com/gs/landing/ndsi/ Oh, they're also doing this thing where you'll get a $25 credit if you trade in your Lite towards the DSi. The system itself costs $169.99 (which is only about $40 than what the DS Lite costs right now), or an accessory bundle is also available, featuring a car charger, portfolio system case,screen protectors, game case, headphones, and 3 extra stylus pens (styli?) for $194.98. There's also a video on the site showing off the system, but it seems to focus solely on the camera function and music function. There's a quick clip or two of Mario Kart DS to show off the screens, but that's about it. Sorry if this is old news...I searched the forum and didn't see anything, so I figured I'd inform.
I just know this is going to get shot down somehow, but it's worth a shot anyway. So we've got section for the games. We have a section for the manga. But there's really no where to post anything related to Kingdom Hearts merchandise unless you post under the respective game, but then those get lost under the swarms of game-related posts. That leaves just the Spam Zone or maybe Hobbies, if there was a thread about collecting Kingdom Hearts merch. I guess what I'm asking is to have someplace to post about merch you've found, collected, know is coming out soon, etc. I know there's brief bits about the Static Arts and new Play Arts figures in the news posts Mike does, but then they seem to disappear too. If I wanted to post about finally getting my hands on Riku and he happened to be the last one at the comic shop, where would that go? If I wanted to post about the Xemnas plushie I found on eBay that looks downright horrendous compared to the other plushies that company made, where would that go? Certainly not the Spam Zone, that's for sure. I don't know, I know this might just get shot down, but maybe someone can see what I'm saying here. Or maybe I'm the only one here that actively collects anything KH, and tends to get pretty excited when she spots something new and wants to tell everyone.
This has been bugging me for a few days now. I have this friend; let's call her 'Sara'. Now, I've known 'Sara' for a few years now, since I was a freshman in college. Our friendship is rather loose, in the sense that I don't quite call her a "friend", but more of an acquaintance. Lately it's been even less so, because my schedule has changed over the years and she's become quite the clingy pest, getting huffy at me when work, school or family gets in the way of hanging out. Her big thing now is making jokes at people that she likes to call jokes, but are really derogatory comments. When called out about them, she scoffs and tells you to "grow up, it's just a joke." So last week at our Anime Club meeting, 'Sara' is joking around with another member when I catch the tail end of it and hear "All Spainiards should be shot. They should." Now, none of you may know this, but for the last 4 years I have been studying to become a teacher, specifically an elementary ESL teacher. I've also been studying Spanish for the last 9 years, and will graduate with a Master's degree next spring. To top it all off, I am a quarter Mexican myself. Needless to say, I was not amused. She nudges me and goes "Right, Liz? Spainiards should just be shot, right?" I turn and glare at her, reminding her of everything I outlined above. I shouldn't have had to; she's known me for 3 years now and should know how I feel about things like that. But she just scoffs and just says "F*cking grow up, Liz. It's just a joke." I'm still so steamed about it. I've started ignoring her completely, and other members of our circle of friends have started doing the same (this is the third time she's let some 'joke' slip like that). I've been debating cutting ties completely; I've been trying to for awhile. I think this last incident was the last straw for me. It was extremely uncalled for. If you have read through this whole thing, thanks. I just needed to vent. Any advice is appreciated (though I don't know what for).
I logged onto my bank's site to see if my paycheck cleared yet, and the splash image that followed said RETIREMENT IS COMING FOR YOU SOON. I'm only 20! *goes and cries*
5 months from now I will be legal drinking age. Booze-yah.
Where I live, there' beena huge push to fight against obesity in schools. But I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like this: What this means is that on top of schools checking your vision, your spine (scoliosis), and hearing, now they get to tell you you're fat? I can't believe it. I don't know; I feel that's taking it a little too far. What happens when it's not just diet, but family history or genes? Thoughts?
For a tad bit of background info, I'm a sales rep at a local pool store. I've been working there for more than two years, and I had started as a cashier. My boss soon realized I had what he liked in a sales rep, and promoted me. I went from making minimum wage to $20/hour plus commision. It was fantastic. I went to work yesterday and before I got through the door I was hustled back out. Before I could say anything my boss goes "I'm sorry. Things have been way too slow here. I'm afraid you don't work here anymore." I got laid off. I didn't think that would happen, even though the economy isn't so great, especially since we had just started adding hot tubs into our inventory and were selling those like hotcakes. And our busiest time comes around Memorial Day, since everyone opens their pools that day and nine times out of ten something is wrong with it. Now, it wasn't just me who was laid off; I had been warned by a coworker that this was what was going on. There were maybe 10 people on our whole staff, including three managers. Now all that's left is those three managers. I think what'll happen next is my store will close for good if they can't keep staff on hand. I know I need to try to start looking for another job, but no one is hiring now and I go back to college in less than a week. I do have a small job on campus, but I only work weekends and the pay is $70/wk. And that job is only good while school is actually in session, so that does me no good over the four months of summer break I get. I was planning on using the money from the pool store to make a downpayment or deposit on an apartment and finally get out of here and be on my own. Now it doesn't look like that will be happening unless I can get another job that has the potential to pay as well as that one did. This is just driving me nuts. As if the economy didn't suck enough, I get dealt the worst hand I could possibly get. It's just enough to make me....grrrr...
Your resident gambler* is leaving to go to Atlantic City tomorrow morning to make sure her rewards points and comps stay fresh for the summer (since they now get deleted after 6 months of non-use) I should return Thursday. Here's to hopefully coming back with more than a barrel and suspenders as clothes. *By gambling I mean play a buck on slots, get a drink, play another buck on slots, shop, look around, etc. I very rarely drop a ton of cash in a casino.
Long story short, my youngest cousin was staying here at the house when her family lost power due to the large ice storm that hit the Northeast. I wasn't home yet, and she discovered my manga shelf and asked for a couple of books to borrow. I let her take Inuyasha, because that's what she was reading when she called me. Plus, out of everything she could have picked up, it was one of the safer choices (cough yaoi cough). I sorted through my collection trying to find safe titles for a budding manga addict. Other than Inuyasha, I've added KH, Rave Master, Fruits Basket, and Bo-Bo..whatever. Now that I know that she likes manga, I need help in figuring out which titles would be more suitable for someone her age. Her parents are...well...strict. I'm surprised that they even let her read the stuff in the first place. And I don't want to get busted for giving her something like, say, Fullmetal Alchemist. they'd ream me if they saw her reading that.
Here's the scoop: I'm trying to decide which Final Fantasy game for the DS to buy for a friend as a Christmas gift. Out of 5 games we've managed to narrow it down to two: FF III and Ring of Fates. He already has Revenant Wings and FF IV. I was going to get him Crystal Chronicles but he kinda stuck his tongue out at that one. So I guess I'm asking if anyone's played either of these games or knows anything about them, and which one is better (because right now I'm judging by prices rather than playability and fun factor).
I'm gonna try and make this an annual thing (if I remember). And I figured it fit better in here than, say, General Discussion. So...what did you all get this year? Did you get what you wanted? Any surprises? Post about it here. I have just a few, which were gifts from friends and my grandmother. There'll probably be a better list come tomorrow. -a wooden dreidel -see-through dice -$20 -a holiday glass with a candy cane, gumball, and candy necklace Your turn.
We have quite the storm going right now in the Northeast. It's a little over 7" outside right now. Nce change of pace from the ice stor we had last week, when so many people were without power. And we're supposed to get more come Sunday. Gonna be a white Xmas this year, methinks. Anyone else got the white stuff yet? How much?
Help a techie girl out? So the family's desktop computer suposedly has some kind of virus thingy that showed up after the comp last updated itself. The update included an update for IE 7 (which no one uses anyway, but the Verizon browser is linked to it for our regular internet). Things just started getting buggy after that; things that ran on Java were being blocked (for example, games on Pogo.com would have white windows when the games were trying to load), the pop-up blocker wouldn't work even though it was enabled, and windows pop up while browsing that ask something along the lines of "are you SURE you want to go here?". So we've tried messing with what we had for antivirus software. Mcaffee did squat. Found nothing. Would scan for two hours, rescan, and find nothing. We then installed Verizon Online Protection Suite. Found four viruses McAffee didn't find, but only quarantined them. Couldn't clean them. And the Win32 program that allows firewalls to be installed was being blocked, so the Verizon Firewall wouldn't finish installing. We tried McAffee again, and let it scan overnight. It still found nothing. Ran the Verizon scan next, now there are EIGHT viruses. Grr. Uninstall, reinstall Verizon to try to get the firewall to work. No dice. This afternoon I managed to get the firewall installed and it worked for a while, but as soon as I took it on to Pogo.com to try it, pop-ups showed up like mad. Pogo wasn't blocked anymore; games worked fine. Last thing I want to do right now is have to wipe the drive clean. I hope I've been on the right track thus far. Any other suggestions?
