The Playstation 3

Well I guess the time had to come soon enough. I now own the Wii, XBOX 360 and Playstation 3. I first made my jump back into consoles back when the Wii was released. I waited from 9pm until 7am in front of a Target in Silverdale that cold November day. Everyone said they would stop by with food and coffee and not a person took the time to show up. Not that I am still bitter or anything about that. But the Wii sits there most days not being used. More of a toy that people always ask about and want to play when they come visit.

The Wii Games that I have currently.

• Wii Sports
• Legend of Zelda : Twlight Princess
• WarioWare
• Super Smash Brothers Brawl
• Super Mario Galaxy
• Mario Kart Wii
• Wii Fit

WiiFit isn’t mine it’s Raleighs but all the same she enjoys it. It’s rather gimicky but no real fun games to play and the lack of online play that is actually useful or fun is perhaps my number one gripe with the console. It seems to be a good lure for women. They actually enjoy the system. So I guess I keep it around for that reason. When Raleigh had a Rock Band party a few months ago they seemed to enjoy the Wii more then Rock Band.

Then I picked up the XBOX 360 Elite in May of 2007. This has been the greatest console I have ever owned to date. They rape you on accessories for the console. I had to pickup an extra controller $60 and the Wireless Adapter $90. I also picked up the ill fated HD DVD Drive addon. Now while HD DVD looks beautiful and I thought it would be the winning format I sadly failed in that arena. I have that white drive mocking me every single fucking day. “You spent $200 on me” I look to the right in the DVD case and see The Matrix Trilogy another $100 HD DVD Mockery. Planet Earth HD DVD$70 mockery. Heroes Season 1 HD DVD another $80 mockery. I picked up the Ocean’s 11,12,13 gift set on HD DVD from Amazon for $27 which I thought was a steal at the time. So I have a small but respectable HD DVD collection. I feel like I am the kid on the block that had the Dreamcast. Awesome at the time but quick to die and easily forgotten. I love my XBOX 360 even when I had to send it in for repairs when it quit reading discs all together. Had to pay $100 to renew my warranty for a year and to get it repaired which took 3 weeks.

During this three week social experiment I was going a bit nutty. My thumbs were not getting used as often as I would have liked. Raleigh was going crazy with me not having my video game fix. So after a week or two of not having the XBOX I just break down and buy the Playstation 3. I picked up the Metal Gear Solid pack.

80GB Playstation 3 + Metal Gear Solid 4 + Rumble Controller for $499.

What I was intending to do was pickup the 40GB PS3 for $399 and MGS4 for $60 and the new Rumble Controller for $55 but in the end the bundle was the better deal. The cool thing is that it also plays Blu-Ray discs. Which is generally all around awesome so I can keep up with the next generation format. Most people are thinking “Whatever” in fact I think that is all that Raleigh thinks about my toys. I think that whatever keeps me busy and not bothering her she is happy.

I guess I really have nothing to say. I own all of the current generation gaming platforms.

• Nintendo DS
• Sony PSP
• Nintendo Wii
• XBOX 360
• Playstation 3

I have a hard time finding a reason to say “I’m bored” other then I ordered Batman Begins on Blu Ray from Amazon and it’s taking longer then expected to arrive. I hope all is well with everyone else.

My next blog post will probably be about how Sprint is annoying me. It’s currently in the works. This post is kinda like Seinfeld. Nothing was said. A few gripes and we are now more enchriched upon reading this.

The Christmas List – 2007

Well it’s 2007 and people are asking “Tristan what do you want or need for the Holidays?” So I figured I would lay it out for the people that care to know. I also have an Amazon.com Wishlist if anyone cares to look for that you can just search for Tristan Pipo.

Note: I have multiple wishlists setup for different groups. So it’s not empty on the right hand side of the page you will find the multiple lists.

Okay so lets kick off the list for this site in no particular order. If you are a reader from the intertubes shoot me an e-mail and can exchange mailing information.

• Ocean’s HD-DVD Box Set (Oceans 11, 12 and 13) Buy.com $55 Link
  • My favorite set of movies makes the jump to HD DVD what is not to want. I think my Ocean’s 11 Disc has been watched more then anything time to upgrade and replace.
• Legend of Zelda Phantom Hourglass for Nintendo DS $33 Link
  • I can always use a new game to entertain me while on the ferry. Currently have conquered all my DS games at the moment.
• Kitchenaid Gourmet Essentials Hard Anodized 12 Piece Cookware Set $199 Link
  • Note: Now this was the best reviewed set on Amazon.com Feel free to change the brand up if you desire. Could not find on Buy.com.
• Fiestaware 4 Piece Table Setting $20 Link
  • I will admit it I need some more plates. Raleigh recommended Fiestaware and I made mention to my mom and she was like that is what you should get. Now a multiple of 4+ would be nice. You can also get get different colors which is the appeal of Fiestaware I suppose. Link from Amazon.com Wishlist
• The Orange Box for XBOX 360 $59.99 Link
  • I waited 8 years for Team Fortress 2. I can wait a little longer.
• LED Enabled Faucet$12.99-$19.99 Link via ThinkGeek
  • I ran this idea past Raleigh and she seemed cool with the idea. But it was one of those things “That’s nice Tristan, Here is something to distract you and hope you don’t remember this later” Well that didn’t work. So here it is now on the list.
• Guitar Hero 2 Game Only $39 Link
  • Can always use more songs for this long winter indoors. Me and Raleigh have already gotten down the mastering of Guitar Hero 3.
• Edit: Old School on HD DVD $22.95 Link
  • I was recalling a conversation I had with Raleigh over the weekend that she has not seen Old School. The copy I have on DVD is scratched to Hell. Figured it would be a time to upgrade. I loved this movie it was totally hilarious. I was told to cross this out. Not sure why.
• A Mountain of Happiness.
  • Not sure anyone I know can afford this one.

So that is a quick little rundown of a list. I am not exactly sure what I want since this year has been rather fulfilling. A great deal of things happened but without a doubt it has been Raleigh.

I have felt incredibly lucky to find a Woman that I can connect with and be myself with and just accept each other for who we are. It’s odd to finally be understood by someone and understand them back. I will be writing a year in review coming up when the year is done and ready to be reviewed and we get to add another month and year to the blog archives.

I won’t be breaking 1000 posts in 2007 but it has been a fun one. Much love to you and your family this Holiday Season. I say Happy Holidays if this bothers you. Well you can…. It’s the Holidays I will keep it clean.

Oh and as the reindeer fly.

Hi Marcia. =)

P.S. Raleigh made me do it.

Super Mario Galaxy

So Super Mario Galaxy was unleashed upon the world yesterday. There were some mixed things that I heard about the release date. Most smaller shops were  getting it today (Tuesday) where Wal-Mart had it yesterday on the 12th. Not being a fan of being jerked around I went to Wal-Mart and picked it up. Buying a video game at Wal-Mart is interesting since you have to hunt somebody down to unlock their glass case to get you the game.

But I had been waiting for this game for way to long. I picked up a Wii on Launch day last year. That was an interesting process where I camped out in front of a Target from 8:30pm until 7am. All my friends were saying they were going to bring me coffee and food so I didn’t really pack anything but my DS expecting Starbucks or something to arrive. But most people didn’t seem to grasp the concept of dates and that turned out to a very cranky Tristan. But there haven’t really been any killer Wii games. I have Wii Sports, Zelda: Twilight Princess and Warioware. Zelda is good. I should probably sit down and beat the game. So getting a Mario Game would finally be the Killer App to make the Wii playable other then Virtual Console Titles.

This game I can totally see me and Raleigh playing some afternoon since she can be involved as much or as little as she would like. She can use the second Wii-mote to collect stars force me to jump to my death. Which I see her doing a great deal of that .  She can also shoot enemies and so forth. It kinda matches the Elebits side of things in that regard.

But gameplay is spot on everything I would expect from a new mario pushing the envelope and making an all around fun game to play. I am a child of the Mario era. I didn’t have a Nintendo growing up I was an Atari kinda guy until I got a SNES when I was in the 4th  grade.

So if you have a Wii I totally recommend Mario Galaxy. You will not be disappointed. The whole perspective and gameplay is totally a new experience since Gravity is not a major part of the game. You can spin around the planets and it is just a riot. Me and Nick were playing it last night and we found it to be a little trippy while tired and spinning around the world.

I give Galaxy a 9.9/10 the .1 off is for the camera angle can get a little odd at times.

Hey Mario. Is she really worth it?

In the good old days of the 80′s the Nintendo Entertainment System came out and we all go to be whisked away to the Magic Kingdom where this plumber who got flushed down a toilet gets to rescue a princess that he has never met from an evil dinosaur named King Koopa or Bowser.

But lets take a look at this. We have seen Mario get all kinds of different skills. He isn’t a computer hacker or a nunchuck skill master but he can shoot fire out of his hand whenever he touches a flower after a mushroom. A glowing star can make him kill anything in his path. A leaf turned him into a flying raccoon.  He got a pet dinosaur to ride on. A feather gave him a cape in a later game to fly.

Mario is the skill master. But his girlfriend the one he seeks for attention always gets kidnapped and he has to pass through all these obstacles to rescue this women that could clearly give a crap less what he does.  In the earlier games it was just saying Thank You. I am sorry if I evaded death a billion times I would expect a little bit more then a Thank You. In the 3D world mario risked his ass and all he got was a freaking cake. Though as hot as it is to have to have a women cook for you with all her little toad followers. I am sorry but if I was Mario I would have been to hell and back to get a cake. I am sorry no.

I think Mario and Luigi need to just grow up and realize a bit that as hot as Princess Peach may be. That pixel body oh man drives me wild. But still if you are busting your ass and not getting the appreciation that they deserve. Hey look at Shrek and Princess Fiona. Shrek rescued the princess to get his swamp back. Ended up getting his swamp back and some hot mama to marry him. In the second film he gets to make out with some naked mermaid. Plus Ogre Fiona is damn hot. Woman that can kick ass is just a good.

Mario realize that she just isn’t that into you. Tell her to rescue herself for once. You have been chasing after the Princess for 20+ years. I wonder if Link gets any play from Zelda.

Should Mario just give up the chase?

Week In Review – January 8th – 12th Part 3

Don’t you love when you get to talk about Friday? It’s like the greatest part of the week. It’s like you have 8hrs of work and then you are free to do whatever you want. You could build a bridge out of Popsicle sticks when you get off work and then see how much weight it will hold. Well not that anyone with a life would do that. But man the bragging rights would be incredible. But I must say Friday at work is awesome. We have this thing called Beer Friday. We got voted 3rd in Best Unusual Perk And Here is a quote from the article. “** ******* lets its tech workers relax once a week with “free beer and food every Friday.”

So it is a really nice way to end your week at work. I usually get a little happy after that time on my walk to the ferry and send out a text message to everyone in my phone book. But most find that annoying and at times I get back a “Who is This?” which then prompts a phone call and people are greeted with my voicemail. “Hello you have reached the cell phone of Tristan Pipo. Sorry I was not available to take your phone call I do apologize. But if you would leave your name and number I will be sure to get back to you as soon as possible. If you would like to send me an e-mail my address is tristan@tristanpipo.com. Thank you for calling and have a great day” Which the e-mail address has actually worked out to a benefit. People will call and then not leave a voicemail but then send an e-mail. But I gave up on the text to everyone wishing a great weekend. Most never responded and those that did well never anything witty. Just a “Thanks” But anyways Friday. It was nice evening a bit chilly prompted some cool cloud effects.

Ugh the crappy quality of a camera phone I should really get a digital camera. I should really come up with a scheme to do picture uploading from my phone to blog. I might actually want to put photos up then. Though I must say always find interesting that people post their lives on flickr. I been chatting with this one girl in Czech Republic who always has some interesting photos.

So anyways enough of the bullshit lets get down to Friday. So I walk down to the ferry nothing out of the ordinary. I must say I enjoy the winter for the fact there are less homeless people around. I have found the best way to avoid them is have the iPod Earbuds jammed in your ear they usually don’t say much to you then. Though I have had one grab my coat before. Now you have to have some serious balls to grab a guy who is 6’4” and could easily squash that maybe 5’5” bum. He quickly realized his mistake and stepped back. I have had one call me an asshole for ignoring him. Then there is that black uber religous bum who gives me crap for never talking to him.  Also there is that one that says she is trying to get Gas money and sits out on the street with her dog. This stupid woman keeps this dog around just for sympathy. Give the dog up to someone who will actually take care of it.

So anyways enough about Bum’s. I get on the ferry and do my normal sit on my bench corner. Now the commuter ferries everyone has their own spot. They sit in that same spot everyday. If someone sits in your spot you need to sit in somebody else’s spot and it throws off the entire ferry universe. But I always grab my little window spot. Then an older woman sits at the other end of the bench and we usually kick our feet up and I sleep most of the time. I have sat next to this woman nearly everyday for the past 8 months I have been doing this commute. Yet I know nothing about her. Other then I sit next to her almost everyday. If she is not sitting there I never find myself wondering. “Hey where is ummm, where is ummmm yeah I have no idea” I have never thought that until now.

I must say getting on the ferry is never a big deal. Getting off the ferry well that is a different story. Everyone wants to be off first. So the best way to achieve this method is to go stand outside in the cold for about 5 mins before the boat gets to the dock. But there are a few things that will slow you down. The biggest offenders are as follows.

1. The Wheeled Luggage People
• These people take up two lengths worth of people. They walk extra slow because they are to lazy to pick up the bag. They are usually on cell phones as well. The people that do this the most are old people, fat people and yuppies. I have a laptop bag I throw over my shoulder and just walk. They get in the way of long stride and I have no idea why these people think they need to be first off the boat.
2. People with Strollers
• Strollers I have yet to see anyone on the ferry with a jogging stroller that can actually move at a decent speed on the boat. They are always someone who has this Wal-Mart Junk-Co stroller that can hardly move. They are never trying to catch a bus or a cab. They are usually waiting for their Wife or Husband to come pick them up. Well they have a huge parking lane and you don’t need to be slowing down the entire bus crowd.
3. The Slow Walkers
• I walk everywhere pretty much during the day. I drive my car about 1.5 miles a day. Usually to the park and ride everyday. I have gotten the walking thing down. But these slow walkers want to get off the boat and they just walk slow because of a slight incline or whatever. I suggest you just get over to the side get in the slow lane and get out of our way. I need to get to my bus really early otherwise I end up standing or sitting next to someone I really don’t like so much and would much rather just grab my seat early.

But eh little complaints from slow people in my way. So I get on the bus and everything is always lite on Friday. I always catch the 4:40 out on Friday instead of the normal 5:30 boat. And since I was on the 4:40 boat it meant I got to rid the older replacement boat. I grabbed a bench that had a table and lobbed in the ear buds and busted out the book I am reading. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins. I must say I spend a great part of my day isolated and solo. Interesting to ponder that now. So get on the bus and life is grand. The bus is always an interesting experience. The ferry everyone has there spot. The bus it’s just chaos grab what seat you can. So we are driving across the island.

I am never sure what do exactly do on a bus. I can’t read on the bus because well the lighting setup is either way to bright or way to dark. There is no middle ground. So I either play the Nintendo DS Lite or Listen to my iPod. That day was a DS Lite Day. So playing some Yoshi’s Island DS. I must say World 5 is being a bitch. That forced movement lava level is just insane. So I hear this ambulance racing past the bus and just thought eh whatever. So we make all the normal stops with no issue and we get about an 1/8th of a mile from the Agate Pass Bridge. The only way off Bainbridge Island.

Picture from Google Earth. Right on the other side of the bridge is the park and ride I park at every morning. But getting there would not be such an easy task. Traffic is stopped. I figured the ambulance dealing with an accident or something. 35 mins passes. The bus gets a little full with irate people wondering what is going on. So one ambitious person decides to get off the bus to go investigate. Another 35 mins passes and he comes back breathing all heavy. He says “There is someone on the bridge threatening to jump off. They are not letting anyone cross the bridge” So we have been parked for over an hour now because some dumb ass is on the bridge threatening to jump?

According to the News Report I found a few days later. The bridge is 75ft above the water and they get a few jumpers a year and the fall is hardly ever fatal. So we continue to wait. So out of the cabin fever I am starting to collect I send out a text message letting people know of the situation developing at the bridge. Which prompted a “Who is this” and “That is terrible” in response. The who is this I responded “Such a sad day indeed to be removed from somebodies address book and forgotten” the other was a more detailed explanation and catching up. The response I got from the sad day was “That is a very rude message”.

I have yet to figure out that one. I was trying to wrap my brain around it. I was deleted made a comment about that being a sad thing then I get to being called Rude. Hmmm. My ex girlfriend once called me a pompous asshole after we had broken up and I had to send her an e-mail asking if she had a file on one of the computers I left out there.

So when you are stuck in one spot with nowhere to go you try to find things to keep your mind busy. So some ideas I had were trying to divide large numbers in my head. What is 249 divided by 36,487 I was working on it and got the answer of 146 and got lazy to figure out the remainder. But that is a process I do a lot when I am performing an action to generate longer stamina if necessary. But perhaps that is to much detail. Here is the word Virgin to distract you.

But that killed a few minutes so I tried calling some people to see if they had any information of what was going. Nobody did it was all news to them when I called. So I felt a bit like an inside reporter. Have you seen Die Hard 2 when that jerk is on the plane and figures out what is going on with everyone staying up in the air. Then he calls his news station with the story of the century. The only difference was that I was on a bus and I didn’t have some hot woman to punch me in the face.

So I began to ponder what was going on behind me being so focused on what was ahead of me. There were 2 ferries worth of cars in line. Getting to be about that time for a 3rd ferry. But that was a quick thought. So I busted out my iPod to watch some Heroes. I love that show if I haven’t mentioned it already. So I watched 43 mins and the bus had moved up about 3 car lengths from people that couldn’t handle waiting and turned around.

So we are sitting waiting for this moron to either jump off the bridge, get shot down or get talked down. I called the Russian and suggest he go diving under the bridge and take out this fine product of society with his spear gun. I was really hoping that Darwin could also take this genius out of active production. I really hope a genius like this doesn’t have kids.

So I have been sitting here on the bus for 2+hrs now. Wanting to go home. Finally I see cars start to move. We finally get going. So we drive across the bridge and stop. There are cop cars everywhere and then an ambulance that has 8 police officers standing around it not moving their eyes or saying a word.

So I get in my car and drive off. I flip open my laptop when I get home searching the news sites. Nothing not a word of this issue. A few days later I find this.

Agate Bridge-Jump Suspect Snarls Highway 305 Traffic 

So that was the highlights of my week. I did go see Children of Men with Jon on Friday Night. That was an interesting film I recommend checking it out. Catch a Matinee though.

I hope everyone is doing well. More to come as life happens stay tuned and reading. =)