It's Almost Over

It's 5am and I finally feel I'm ready for this exam. All I need now is a couple hours of REM.

In approximately 11 hours... I'll finally have a life again.

Break out the Cristal, Alize, and condoms cuz I'm fixin to go buck wild.

T-Mac to Houston? Say it ain't so

Marc Stein from ESPN has revealed that the Rockets are offering Steve Francis for for T-Mac: "Of all the superstars purportedly on the trading block -- Chris Webber, Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, etc. -- the consensus remains that none of them is more likely to actually move than Orlando's Tracy McGrady. Houston is said to be making a hard push, peddling Steve Francis for starters". His complete column can be found here.

This mere rumor has the crazies at ClutchCity hysterical and it seems that everyone in H-Town has jumped on the T-Mac bandwagon already. Inane posts like: "I would give up sex for a week with my supermodel girlfriend if we could get Tmac." have filled the forum. Some fans have even gone so far as photoshopping pics of T-Mac donning a #1 Rockets jersey. Holy Smokes.

Don't get me wrong though, T-Mac is muthafuckin baller. He can score anytime, anywhere, on anyone. He's proved that consistently over the course of his young career.

However, I think everyone's jumping the gun here. I just ain't convinced.

First off, does Orlando know something about T-Mac that the rest of us don't? Maybe that he's a selfish prima donna that cares more about getting 30 pts than actually winning a game? After all, wasn't he a major factor in the Magic's horrendous 1-18 start? I am the only one that's a little suspicious here?

Also, at this point, I just don't see him fitting into the Rockets system. T-Mac isn't exactly a Van Gundy type player as he plays erratic defense and he's overly egotistical. One could argue that Francis posseses those qualities as well but at least Francis has progressed in maturity and overall leadership over the course of the year. McGrady hasn't. Francis also takes it personally when the Rockets lose. McGrady blames his teammates. McGrady could have all the talent in the world but if he lacks that will to win games and that ability to make this teammates better, it ain't gonna help us much. Don't believe me? Look at Iverson or Webber. Neither will ever win rings (with them as leaders of their perspective teams).

Although, they're relevant issues, I won't even get into his history of injury and the fact that we really don't need a shooting guard or small forward.

But if we do have to replace Francis... Why don't replace him with a proven winner... K-O-B-E.

The Unattractiveness of Insecurity

This morning (well morning for me) I figure I could use a little therapy so I pop into my local pool hall to knock some balls around. I purposely ask for a table away from where all the sharks and hustlers are situated so I could ponder life's eternal questions over some 9-ball... in peace. Somehow, some old timer takes notice and takes a stool nearby to watch me shoot. Couldn't this dood go annoy someone else? I had no desire to be critiqued. Plus, it tends to make me a little nervous. If I wasn't taught to respect my elders I would've told the old man to get lost and change his fuckin depends. Naturally, wannabe Paul Newman, tries to give me a few pointers... "this is how you should aim properly blah blah blah". I tell him thanks but my expressions say fuck off old man.

I guess he finally gets the hint and takes off.

Argh.

Afterwards, I hit the bookstore and to get some studying in. I immediately notice a chick studying with her guy friend (it looked platonic). She's a cute, thin, 22ish asian chick. Although she's dressed down in jeans and a beat up sweatshirt, not to mention, wearing no makeup, she's undeniably hot. Also, I can't help but notice her face: it bears a striking resemblance to M's (circa 1992). Daym, this is the second woman I've seen in recent weeks that looks like her. Is fate telling me to holler at M again? Or does it just mean M's features are nothing but pretty yet common? She looks back at me as I find a seat. Shit, I have two chapters I must read. I try to block this chick out but I can't. She's already intrigued me. I start having one of my knee-jerk reactions and subtly try to get her attention. So, with my eyes I magically let her know I'm attracted. I'm looking good and my confidence is showing so my efforts have some effect on her. She's glancing back at me with devious and sexy little smiles. Here we go again... I've got a live one.

Then something happens to her. Her body language starts to tell me she's just realized she's looks like she just climbed out of bed. Her confidence disappears. I can't help but notice her leg even starts to shake a little. I don't get it, would I be looking at a woman like she was a pork chop if I didn't think she was hot, regardless of what she was wearing? Besides, I like how pretty chicks look when they're a little disheveled. Obviously, she can't figure this out. What the hell?

Anyways, this works in disinteresting me. I proceed to read two chapters without distractions.

Argh.

Still Bumpin that Paul Wall

I swear, there ain't nobody that can spit game about makin' scrilla and grindin' like my boy Paul Wall. This hook from Tryin to get paid is just addictive:

All day and every night, I think about one thang
Stacking my change, and that ain't never gon change
I got plans for running game, until the money is drained
Putting rocks in my rang, and ride a drop on swangs
Steady hustling on the grind, out here doing my thang
I'm just trying to maintain, how many licks I could stang
But these boys who talking loud, they ain't got nothing to say
But I ain't worried, I'm just trying to get paid

Oh Caroline

It's been awhile since I've seen a woman on tv that was so hot I had to get on the computer and find out who she was (and hopefully locate some nekkid pics of her too). Today, I did exactly that after watching Outkast's video Roses. I'm thinkin' who the hell is this Caroline cuz she's got me fiending. That face, those DSLs, them thighs, and especially... that attitude. Mmmmm. Yum.

Her name is April.

Yeah, I've got a thing for fine stuck up hoochies like her character in the video. Maybe it's the challenge. Maybe it's because I know under it all is one hot freakazoid. Besides... after a night with me she wouldn't be bitchy any more. ;-)

SBS Play

SBS Play: NJ +5
Result: Loss
YTD: 13-6

Link of the Day

Do you sometimes have problems breathing because that tub-o-lard in the cubicle next to you keeps ripping ass every few minutes? Is his/her birthday coming up? Here's the perfect gift.

Drunk Study

So I'm laying in bed trying to doze off after re-reading some chapter on the Phillips Curve and it's relation to the phenomenon of stagflation. I have no idea why I can't sleep, considering I just read the driest, most uninteresting chapter in the book...

Suddenly, the idea of studying drunk pops into my head (maybe because I'd rather be drinking instead of studying? I don't know). Anyways, I get to thinking about the movie Better Luck Tomorrow. Didn't those honor society kids in that movie get totally shitfaced during some of their study sessions? Didn't their nerd-leader claim that if they learned the material when they were drunk they'd know it in even deeper depth when they were sober? Could the alcohol-induced brain function like arms with those wrist weights on it, that when the weights were removed the arms felt stronger? Could there possibly be any truth to this? I must find out because if there was, I'd love to use this method of study. Shit, I'd experiment and find out for myself but due to certain time constraints I really couldn't afford to be wrong right now.

I figured a simple google search would give me a quick answer. Besides, I couldn't sleep anyways.

So sneak out of bed, walk over to the Thinkpad and perform searches on "studying drunk", "drunk study", and "studying intoxicated" and all I get is porn sites about Drunk College Slut Fucked During Study Session type hits. I'm mean, I like porn and all but damn... I really needed a serious answer.

That sux. I'm going back to bed.

Milton?

There's this dude that works on my floor in a tiny cubicle. I swear he's Milton from Office Space.

I rememeber creeping down that aisle one day and I noticed a heavy-set guy shuffling around in his cubicle. It may have been my imagination but I coulda sworn he was mumbling to himself too. I also noticed the dude had an ancient workstation, a circa 1995 shitty PC-AT clone, and an old skool 14" monitor. I remember thinking... daym, that guy's got it rough. They need to buy him a new monitor. I mean shit... I've got a 20" LCD on my desk as do most others.

Being the nerd I am, I started taking a different route to the break room or restroom just to find out more about this dude's Mitonesque throwback setup. Usually I saw the same shit, Milton banging away on that XT keyboard as he squinted into the monitor inches away from his eyes.

But today.. he was away but left his monitor on unprotected. I was shocked when I saw what OS he was running: Windows 3.1. HAHAHA. What the fuck? What the hell could he possibly be doing with a workstation and OS over ten years old??

I'm determined to find out.

Just a Thought

Ever notice how many of the best bloggers are unemployed?

back to the books...

Today in the Links

Con man robs marks of 1.8 mil and attempts to pay them back... by winning the WSOP. I gotta give it up to him though because I would've done the same thing. That's how you pay marks back: with other marks' money. Read more about it here.

On the CompSec front... source code for Cisco's IOS now in the clutches of the best blackhat hackers in the world: Russian Hackers. Here.

First of all, how the hell does this cheesy-ass gimp Mario Lopez pull Ali Landry? Secondly, how the hell does he cheat on former the Miss America, during his bachelor party before wedding her, no less?? You figure that his "celebrity" status could've at least bought him some secrecy. Ali babydoll, if you're reading this... hit me up.

Addicted to chocolate? You think you know good chocolate? Sees, Ghirardelli, Godiva, Herseys (bleh) aint shit. Scharffenberger tops them all.

Quentin Tarantino wants to direct the next Bond. As long as his rendition of Bond stays true to the key elements (the suave pimp-style, the perfect 10 women, and the impossible missions), I think QT stands a chance to actually improve Bond films. In a way I think he could add more substance to the films which have relied too much on special effects lately. Link.

Oh yeah, I've never had a favorite hockey team before since we didn't have one in Houston (and I hate any team from Dallas). With that said... Go Sharks.

Can't forget the perkiness of John Kerry's daughter, Alexandra.

I wish I would've heard about gmailswap before I started giving away my spare gmail accounts to friends who still haven't used them.

Man of no Leisure

Feeling a little down...

I'll be the first to admit I haven't been living up to the title of this blog, or more precisely, my self-proclaimed title: a man of leisure. Frankly, other than the solitary night out each week, there simply is no time for leisure. I'd kill to be able to trade in these textbooks for a remote control and a couch. Or how about these mission-critical work projects for a case of Red Hook and a little sack of weed. I'm consumed by minor things like my gradual indifference towards career advancement and the burden of trying to buy a home is this exorbitantly priced city. My sleeping schedule (or should I say lack thereof) and fear of exercise is fucking with my health. I don't even know if the severe allergies and the vertigo is a cause or result of all this. Who knows. But one thing's for sure: all these factors comprise this vicious neverending cycle that is currently my life.

I just have to remind myself everything will work out and that my fretting is unnecessary. If anything, it's harmful.

Despite the mountain of issues that lay before me, in the back of my mind I know things will get better soon. These two courses are winding up. The projects at work will be accomplished well beyond the satisfaction of the bigwigs (isn't it always?). Financially, things are looking up. Loans are just a few months from being paid off. I have been accumulating more cash than before when I was going out every night. Finally, this cloud of health problems is beginning to lift. I can feel it.

There's light at the end of the tunnel... Repeat after me: You're almost finished... stay strong.

Master Procrastinator

I really need to be reading up on some aggregate demand and Keynesian theory but instead I've been reading blogs and watching the Kings wax the Wolves. I haven't even showered or eaten lunch either. Argh.

One thing though. I was trying to catch her face on ESPN when her husband (Jose Lima) sang the national anthem at a dodger game last week. For some reason, ESPN avoided showing it. Instead, they just provided us with glimpses of those big ass tiddies. DAYM. Here's Mrs "MILF" Lima in her entirety.

Off to conquer slothfulness...

SBS Play

SBS Play: DET +4.5
Result: Win
YTD: 13-5

SBS Play

SBS Play: SAC -5.5
Result: Win
YTD: 12-5

Hustler on the Rise

After gluttonously devouring the wings and beer K suggests we go shoot some pool. I'm thinking hmm strange... since she rarely enjoys playing pool with me because I get immensely serious around a pool table. I happily oblige and we end up at TGE. I swear, I've been spending a lot of time in there lately.

An hour into a few games of 8-ball and after two or three Becks, I really start to find my stroke. I'm sinking everything, even difficult shots. I'm getting good shape on the the next ball. Banks shots are on. I make shots while winking at my wife. She's getting turned on. My level of confidence is at a momentous peak. I'm in that elusive yet almighty zone. Man, it feels good. I do my imitation of Tom Cruise in The Color of Money, strutting around, swinging my cue as if it's a sword and I'm a muthafuckin' samurai. I even manage to get funny glances from players on surrounding tables. Ha.

Yeah, I guess my game has really improved.

O jeah.. as you could probably tell from the the two most recent posts. I didn't follow through on my promise to quit drinking until exams were finished. Sorry... but I have cut down considerably.

The Problem With Looking Young

...is the beer takes longer to arrive.

Last night wifey and I went to Hooters to indulge in our favorite gourmet delicacy, wings (nekkid 911 please) and pitchers of Heineken. For those who believe the buxom scantily dressed waitresses are the best thing on the menu, they arent (close though). It's the wings fool!! I still get shocked when I see these ignorant Californians order chicken salad or burgers in there. Learn your Hooters history.. the place is for wings, beer, and tigolebitties. You'll rarely see anyone in Texas or Florida ordering that in a Hooters down there, while here in SF it's what the majority orders.

Anyways.. back to my story. We take our seats and proceed to order a pitcher. The waitress checks our ID's and bounces off to fetch the beer. A couple minutes later she returns and says she needs to borrow my ID again. I'm thinking damn I could really use that beer sooner rather than later.. but hey, this has happened before. It's the curse of looking half my age. It's a compliment. About 10 minutes pass, still no Heiney. I see the manager behind the bar showing my ID to several of his assistant manager hoohies. They try to conceal their heavy physical examination of me. I stare back and give them my gimmemyfuckingbeer look, with a smile of course. They don't get the message. I'm getting very impatient and thirsty. I tell the waitress I want to have a word with her lame ass manager. I even flash her my old Texas ID. She apologizes profusely and explains it's her first day and she's stressed yada yada yada. And what does that have to do with my beer, woman?? She trots off again.. Argh. Finally, after much heated debate they decide that my ID is in fact legit and the waitress returns with the damn pitcher. Now that's the longest I've ever had to wait for some beer...

It's all good. The whole fiasco didn't put a damper on the rest of the evening. Why should it? After all, it _was_ a compliment. ;-)

It did bother me, however, that that pussy-ass manager didn't have the nuts to come over and talk to me. Fuckin' faggot.

SBS Play

SBS Play: UNDER MIA/IND 175.5
Result: Loss
YTD: 11-5

Still Hobbled

I'm still not 100% yet. I'm still stricken with minor vertigo accompanied by a hollow feeling in my right ear. My upper back aches. My allergy symptoms have been held in check since I've been popping that Claritin daily. Overall, I still feel like crap.

Yesterday, I dropped by the doctor's office once again. This trip marks the first time I get to see the doctor who's actually listed on my insurance card. Hmm... maybe this time things will be different. Maybe this time she'll actually troubleshoot further. WRONG. Same shit. She's about seven months pregnant. She's obviously very busy with elderly dying patients. She hears my spiel about my "issues" and tells me the same thing her predecessors have told me... I'm a strong XX year old male in superior health. I just happen be suffering from some minor problems associated with my allergies. Blah Blah Blah. No prescription, no tips. I was, however, grateful that she had her nurse irrigate my right ear. Not sure it helped much though but it did feel kind of kewl. She did offer to give me a CAT scan if I so desired. She felt it would be a waste of time/effort. I declined. But if this thing doesn't subside soon I may take her up on it. Please God... don't let this be anything serious.

SBS Play

SBS Play: UNDER SAC/MIN 191.5
Result: Win
YTD: 11-4

Movie Review: The Cooler

On another note, K and I watched The Cooler last night. Lemme just say, its a keeper. It's the movie about a loser who's sole job is to "cools off" hot gamblers in a Vegas casinos. In a nutshell: Unique story, stellar acting, beautiful cinematography, and most importantly insightful symbolism. 4.5 stars.

SBS Play

SBS Play: OVER LAL/SA 179
Result: Loss
YTD: 10-4

Whut You Know About Purple Drank??

Not much time to blog since I've got another doctor appointment early tomorrow morning (8:30am).

Just wanted to mention I've been bumpin that new Paul Wall album, The Chick Magnet. Yeah, I just found out about that it was released back in May yesterday. I wish some H-Town fools would let me know when shit like this drops. My first impression is he's fell off slightly. The wordplay is still sharp but he just doesn't sound as relaxed. Paul and Cham recently had some type of falling out and it's noticeable in many of the tracks. Don't get me wrong though, it's still top notch and deserves 4 mics but it would be 5 if Cham was singing on the hooks. We'll see what happens when Cham's album drops.

Oh jeah.. we also saw 21 Grams today. Iñárritu has outdone himself with this one... Two words: brilliant and tragic. Maybe more on this later. Gotta crash.

Power of the Ring

I was chatting with a single homie today about the power of the men's wedding ring.

You've heard about it. Maybe you've witnessed it. I'm talking about the theory that a married man donning a wedding ring attracts a more pussy than a man without one. Let me be the first to tell you that the theory holds true... but with one corollary: the type of woman that is drawn to the ring. From my experience, women who have come on to me after seeing the object of desire tend to be morally challenged. Either they're entralled with the taboo or they are extremely horny and realize that sleeping with a married man is more discreet and has fewer possible ramifications.

Anyways, my boy says he's gonna go to the pawn shop and cop one to improve his game... lol. Classic.

Five Years in SF

I don't have the precise date I actually moved here but I'm fairly certain it was April or May of 2000. I'm utterly shocked to realize that we've been in the Bay Area for five years now.

Let's take a quick drive down memory lane... back to mid-March 2000, Austin Texas. Mixed feelings infiltrated my mind. Anguish, uncertainty, and downright fear swept through me. Was this the right move? What if the whole dotcom thing crumbled? What will happen if it did? How would we handle financial struggles? We had no support system in California. For the first time, K and I would be without numerous family and friends. At the same time, I recollect the move evoked refreshing feelings as well. I would soon be transported to a beautiful city with clean slate. I was excited about rolling the dice and taking the first serious gamble in my life. I thought I was embarking on a mission that could make me wealthy. I had a relatively high paying job lined up at an up and coming dotcom in downtown San Francisco. I'd be granted 10,000 shares when we went public. Now let's see... the stock only needs to hit $10 and I'll be on my way, right? Ballin Outacontrol. This was going to be too easy.

I remember constantly fielding phone calls from perspective recruiters as I relaxed in my comfy Round Rock cubicle. I remember the looks of disbelief on the faces of my coworkers as I notified them of my resignation. I clearly recall the sunny afternoon in Austin when movers loaded our every possession (including our only vehicle) into that Mayflower eighteen wheeler. I remember hopping on that Southwest flight with K, switching planes in sunny San Diego, then eventually touching down at SFO. I recollect the first thing I did when we got settled in: drive to Sprint in San Mateo to pick up the latest cutting edge cell phone in existence. I remember K and I driving down the coast and exploring places like Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz for the first time. I remember thinking that commute from SJ to SF couldn't be that bad. I roamed the dotcommer infested streets having a lot of money in my pockets as I just got paid a then sizeable signing bonus. I remember the long rides on Caltrain to and from the city. The bulk of my time back then was spent slaving at work and commuting. I was out the door by 7am and back in San Jose by 10pm. During the weekends we'd treat ourselves to meals at Ranch 99. Occasionally, we'd hang out at M and L's over dinners and Red Hooks, watching the NBA playoffs. I'd sometimes kick it with my closest road dawg P, hitting the malls to shop for gear and to peep these unfamiliar young Cali tenders. I remember flying first class to NYC for trade shows where I spent more time impressing big wigs with my impeccable tastes in single malt scotch than actually providing tech support. I faintly remember being drunk as hell at the Mariott Marquis while a cute coworker tried to entice me into going up to her room. I remember it all... like it was yesterday.

Approximately five years later, the setting is San Francisco, south of market, May, two thousand and four Ay Dee. I endured a frightening layoff at my dotcom less than a year after arriving in SF. I remember feeling helpless and disgusted when HR declared that I'd be receiving a whopping 2 weeks severance. I remember steering clear of the midday drown-your-sorrows meeting at Lefty's. All those who were cut supposedly attended and got lit. Instead I recall driving home to San Brew, vowing to myself to eat ham and cheese sandwiches until I found a job. Once home, I proceeded to spam hundreds of perspective employers and recruiters with my resume. It paid off. I had calls returned that very afternoon. I had offers within a couple days. Somehow I managed to land the most attractive job to me (my current one). It was the one I was completely underqualified for. It reaffirmed the fact that getting laid off happens for the best.

K and I have lived in San Jose, San Bruno, Daly City, and now finally SF SOMA. Snowboarding and billiards have become my sports of choice. I've certainly become more refined and cultured since my days back in Texas. I now read Bukowski, watch Kurosawa, and listen to John Lee Hooker. I can pair food with wine. lol. I've designed software that lives on mission critical servers all over the country. Financially, my net worth has increased to new heights. I'm now trying get that elusive degree for the umpteenth time. I now sport a wedding band.

All in all, the past five years have been totally positive in almost every way. Yeah we don't own a home yet in this obscenely expensive city but we're working on it. Then we can move on to grown folks challenges like kids, refi's, and mowing the lawn (ok maybe not if we still live here in SF). Also, it would probably help if we had that family support system nearby.

Who knows what the future holds for me in the next five years. I suppose anything can happen. But one thing's for sure that I need to constantly remind myself of: May 2004 will feel like yesterday in May 2009.

This week in the Links

Kinja, the weblog guide
Haven't checked this out... Looks like some sort of blog feed.

SparkNotes
Similar to Cliff Notes but web based and includes forums.

rootcompromise.org
twentythreedotorg:index
File under Haxor Links.

Player Appreciate: Don't Player Hate, PlayerAppreciate
Get yo pimp name.

Vice Magazine North America
File under kewl mags.

Clay Shirky's Internet Writings
Smart Mobs - The Next Social Revolution by Howard Rheingold
Gadgetopia
Chris Pirillo :: Main Page
File under geek blogs

Millionaire Playboy - Makeout Music
Make out Music Top Ten List.

Google = Scholastic Excellence?

Students have it easy nowadays. They are able to get an answer to almost any question via the all-powerful search engine. Trust me, I know as it's assisted me tremendously since I started these two classes. Back in the day we had to walk our lazy asses to the library and struggle with a kludgy mainframe library database then waste precious time searching for books or materials in the library that frequently doesn't even exist. Even worse, sometimes we had to operate the archaic microfiche machine. Imagine how long seeking for information about "The effects of depreciation on GDP" would take on a muthafuckin microfiche machine. Days, no doubt. Google takes about .03523 seconds to do round up superior information. How the hell could a kid flunk out nowadays?

Hard at Work

Hehehe... I said "hard at work". I'll update this post later _after_ if finish this last fucking lesson...

Okay. Mission (or should I say lesson) completed. Hallelujah!!

Anyways, looks like I had to reneg on my promise to abstain from alcohol until I've taken exams. Dropping the lesson into the mail drop box on Brannan St. has gotten me a little too ecstatic. I gave in... Promises are made to be broken I suppose. So now here I sit blowing off steam with glass of Evan Williams and water as I blog and bump some 3EB. In order to justify the lapse in discipline I formulated a study plan of attack before I fixed a drink. It's definitely closer to strenuous than lenient. I will ace these exams.


Downloading Frenzy

I've been downloading and hoarding a ton of music lately. Not sure why, but I feel this overwhelming need to discover fresh artists as well as new sub-genres. Most notably, I've discovered the Brazilian R&B artist Tim Maia. I have no idea what the name of the album is nor any track titles since the dude I got them from didn't label them. Regardless, the tracks ooze of pimp juice. File under: Joints designed for bedroom sports.


SBS Loss

SBS Play: SA/LAL UND 178.5
Result: L
YTD: 9-2

Syndicate Blip System (SBS)

I have devised a simple betting system that has so far yielded suprisingly positive results. Ok, I didn't come up with it from scratch. I blatantly stole the original rudimentary system from a certain someone who's deeply indebted to me and developed it further. Admittedly, I haven't kept any records but all predictions and results have been saved conveniently in my head. My boy C has served as my witness and as a benefactor of the system's rewards. Unfortunately, I haven't made a substantial amount from the system yet since I'm still doing time in Gambler's Anonymous.

Here's the gist of the system: Vegas oddsmakers initially "make a number" for a particular sporting event. This "number" represents a point spread (the number of points Team A will win over Team B) and the total (the total number of points both teams will score). These oddsmakers are not attempting to predict the actual spread one team will win over the other but instead the spread that will bring in equal money on both sides. The same applies to totals. When an uneven number of wagers are placed on one side oddsmakers will attempt to move the line in an attempt to bring in an equal amount on the other side.

The Syndicate Blip System (SBS) takes into account that there are certain "sharps" in the bettors world that have a distinct edge. This so-called edge comes through superior research, access to information the general public lacks, or in some cases, through certain refs or players in their pocket. In many cases all these factors apply. When these syndicates of sharps bet large on a game they effectively move the line. For example, one of today's MLB games as an example. Here's what the line looked like on scoresandodds.com.

905 COLORADO Jennings-R 8 8½ 9 9½ 10 9½

2:20

906 CHICAGO CUBS Maddux-R 270 260

We're going to ignore the Money Line odds on this contest for the sake of explaining SBS (although betting on COL would've been highly lucrative since COL ended up winning). We're only concerned with this game's total. The total initially opened at 8 and thoughout the day it subsequently incremented half points eventually to 10. We assume that syndicates were steadily pouring money on the OVER in an effort to "buy" more points. Suddenly, 20 to 30 minutes before the game's first pitch it suddenly moved back down to 9½. What happened? I believe that these sharp syndicates, after successfully buying the line up bet, or more appropriately, pounded even more money on the UNDER, which swayed the total back down half a point.

Oh yeah, the Rockies won this game 4-3.

The SB System relies on these last second "blips" to select its plays So far when this pattern is recognized, acknowledged, and mentally recorded (with my colleague as a witness), it has picked a suprising 90% of winners and has compiled a record of 9-1. Bow down.

Yeah yeah yeah, I know realizes there are numerous deficiences in my system but hey I had to perform informal tests before examining this further. The biggest question mark is accuracy of scoresandodds.com. How accurate are it's movements compared to actual line movements of casino and offshore sports books. We'll try to learn more about this.. and from this point on I'll be keeping solid records (possibly in this blog). werd.

Sobriety Test

Last night I made a decision: I will abstain from alcohol until I've taken both exams at the end of this month. The purpose is twofold:I will be forced to stay home and hit the books instead of drinking to celebrate or drinking before getting down to business. Secondly, I've felt for a while now that my confidence level should never be dependent on anything. It needs to stay at a stable level irregardless of how many drinks I've had, how much I can bench, how many miles I've run, what I just accomplished, etc. And honestly, alcohol has always been a significant confidence booster for me... Let's live on the edge and try to live without it for awhile.


Mic Check

My music tastes are widely diverse. Here's what's bumpin in my hard drive right now.

Calla
Death Angel
Binary Star
John Lee Hooker
Portishead
Hendrix
De La Soul
Interpol
Herbie Hancock
Kraftwerk

Testing My Limits

They say the only way to truly know yourself is to take yourself to the edge. In other words, test your limits. Right now, at this very moment, mine are getting tested... harshly. Every aspect of my life is getting challenged. Physically, I'm fighting a strange elusive cold/flu/virus. I'm constantly exhausted and every fucking cell in my body aches. I really need to rest this off. Unfortunately there's not much time for quality rest.

Several projects at work are near completion. Deadlines rapidly approach. My group is short about 3-4 bodies. My collegues are putting alot of pressure on me to step up and get things done either because they are too busy already or they feel I'm best suited to take on certain tasks (since I did them before a couple years ago). Unfortunately, I've it's been ages since I've performed these tasks so I'll have to figure it all out again. If they had the time and patience they'd tackle these problems themselves. It shouldn't be difficult but it's burning up a lot of my time and energy.

As I write this, I've developed a couple methods to automated certain processes. It doesn't help much though because these "jobs" take forever to run. Isn't it fucked up that no matter how fast computers get we still spend excessive amounts of time waiting on them to finish tasks?

As far as school goes, I've got one last ECO lesson to complete before I can take the final at the end of the month. Knocking it out won't be a problem but since time is such a rare commodity I'm struggling a bit.

Stay strong playa.


The Magic of a Pool Table

Yesterday I was sick as a dog and my strength was about 20% throughout the day. I remember straining just to replace a water bottle for my lovely (internally) coworkers. Although I previously agreed earlier in the day to shoot some pool with a homie, by late afternoon I contemplated cancelling. My body just felt like crap. All I wanted was to go home and lay down. For some reason I decided against flaking and ended up at the GE with my cue. After breaking the first rack something magical happened. All my pain and suffering faded away. Work and school related problems vanished miraculously. All that mattered now was making shots and getting good shape on the next ball. Man, I love that game.


Random Musings

That new Prince Album, Musicology is pretty fuckin crunk.

Wifey and I are hella addicted to the BBC comedic sitcom, The Office. Yeah mate, that show smokes like crack. Gareth is my favorite haha.

The developers of IBM's AIX Operating System should be shot. What's the logic behind the naming of certain commands like smit, lssrc, startsrc, etc.


Lyrics to Live by

Reality Check by Binary Star
I'm used to being indigent, who said its all about the Benjamin's?
I wanna fortune, I wanna make music and hit the lottery
Fortunately my music is never watery
That's how its gotta be, as far as I can see
Maybe you should grab a telescope to see my view its like astronomy
It aint all about economy
so the fact that these wack emcees is making G's don't bother me
Honestly, my number one policy is quality
never sell my soul is my philosophy

Additions to Quote Collection

"A dollar won is twice as sweet as a dollar earned"
-- Paul Newman in the Color of Money

"Life aint nothin' but bitches, money, and root"
-- Ninja Networks

Vertigo Returns

I suffer from vertigo, we have our weekly staff meetings in a room called vertigo, and I just saw the movie Vertigo (a must see) last week. I hope this is the last time I write about it.

I woke up last night after a four hour nap and noticed the room was spinning.. again. Argh. Although it isn't near as severe as it was a few weeks ago, it is still _very_ annoying. I can't find any patterns or pre-vertigo symptoms other than severe soreness in my back. I worked out my lats yesterday so I just figured the soreness was a result of that. And since the aching was pretty severe I went ahead and popped a couple advils. Now lets see, both occurences of vertigo occurred after strenuous exercise. The initial case occurred after waking up from the first nap whereas this one occurred two naps later. I can't recall I took ibuprofen before the first occurence. Instead of rambling, let's list all possible causes:

a. stress - Yeah I'm pretty damn stressed right now because of this painful project at work and upcoming finals on these two classes I'm taking.
b. ibuprofen - I pop a couple advil approximately 1-2 times a week. There doesn't appear to be a direct correlation between ibuprofen and the vertigo.
c. overstrenuous excercise - There may be some relation to excercise and dizzness but I seriously doubt this connection is direct.
d. allergy related - What I believe may be regular allergies may be a slight flu or cold (I can never tell the difference). It's possible that the flonase is suppressing many of its typical symptoms such as (runny nose, coughing etc.
e. too much drinking - Yeah... you wish. I drink a lot.. when I drink.
f. ear infection - I can feel hollowness in my right ear. I can't tell if its in the outer or inner ear. I'm applying cortisol ear drops 2-3 times daily. I could possibly be exacerbating the problem... or I just haven't been taking it routinely.

I ain't no doctor (although I did aspire to become one at one time) but here's my diagnosis and treatment suggestion.

Diagnosis: The problem is a combination of possible factors d, f, a (in that order). It's allergy season and flownase just isn't enough. My sinuses are currently getting overpowered by allergens and it is causing excess fluid to enter the eustachian tube. This excess fluid is causing the balance and vertigo problems as evidenced by different levels of spinning sensations depending on how my head it tilted. In addition, this minor ear infection is worsening the problems too. Either I don't really have an ear infection any more and these drops are entering the eustachian tube from the outside or the ear infection is serious and I'm not appying the medicine frequently enough to eliminate the problem. On top of all that the stress has weakened my immune system so I'm more suseptible to all of these problem.

Treatment: Meclizine (for vertigo relief), Sudafed (to help clear the eustachian tube), Light excercise and good diet. I think the last doctor said the same exact thing. Shit.

If you're a brilliant doctor who's reading this and thinks they know what's up hit me up: suntzu at gmail dot com.

Semi-productive Allnighter

I planned on finishing up the last History lesson tonight but got distracted by some friends online. Instead of writing about Civil War strategies I got caught up writing about Fantasy Football '04 Supplementary draft strategies, Vida Guerra's ass, and some l33t new blogs (see previous post). After all that I did manage to write a clever essay about why the Confederates didn't actually lose the war, the Union just won the conflict. Go figure. I could stay up and knock out this last essay while my synapses are still firing but I'm not. It'll be ok.. it'll be submitted tomorrow night.

On the subject of firing synapses, I've noticed that it takes my brain quite some time to warm up. I've noticed it's usually 1-2 hours before I feel sharp. There has to be a way I can cut this mental stretching phase in half. Keep this in mind...

I'm gonna try to catch some Z's. I've got a ton of shit to accomplish during the daily noon conference call.

Some Fresh Linkage

How To Hack Your Head - By Steven Johnson
File under Meta Hacking?

Hobopoet
File under another way of looking at things.

Pac Manhattan
An NYU graduate project brings real life PAC MAN to Manhattan streets.
File under Too fuckin kewl.

love and casino war poker blog
File under Gambling Blogs.

P-P-P... P-P-P... P-Unit!
Don't ask how I came up with this one... I haven't the faintest idea.
A few Princeton kids came up with this satirical rap song that mocks top 40 rap. Princeton and Rap... in the same sentence. Kinda funny.

Here's some hacker/security/blackhat blogs I managed to dig up. Will parse through them later.
disLEXia
rootkit.com
Bit Splitter

Berardinelli's Top 100
Werd on the street is this dood knows movies. I like movies so I'll listen.

Guyshop
Nice trendy ass clothes that I'd probably wear once before donating to GoodWill after they sit in my closet for three years.

MichiganHipHop.com
File under Music/Underground HipHop

The Drudgery of the Same Routine

It's safe to say I'm really bored with my typical daily routine: work, study, workout, get drunk (repeat). All the while everything is staying the same: my skills, my bank account, my gut. It's frustrating at times and this is one of those days I'm bothered by it. Maybe I just have a "bad case of the Mondays" ha. Who knows, all is well... possibly I'm just being greedy. That's really all I've got today. I plan on hitting the gym, having a nice dinner and studying my arse off.

Oh yeah... We watched Seven Samurai last night... I was blown away by it. Usually a long (3hr) movie would make me drowsy and force me to shot a couple espressos.. but i didn't need it.

One Love.

Schooling the Champion

Yeah.. I watched the Matrix 3 yesterday.. and uhhh could it apply to 9-ball cuz I swear I those lines were spelled out for me in hex? Just wondering because I just waxed my boy M. I swear that fool learned some good racking technique after the session concluded. At the onset he was giving me the 8 and he was racking a lot. After about 4-5 games I noticed that I was never racking so I told him straight up. What do you know... Let's just say my 9-ball game as improved. Too easy... he's still the king though but that title is in jeopardy ;-)

The Eustachian Tube

Apparently, is a tube that connects the middle ear to the back of the nose. It's purpose is to allow air to pass from the nose to the middle ear. Now why do I know that? It appears that it's the source of many of my vertigo/ear problems. It may be clogged.. who knows... but I need to get it fixed.


Procrastination and Indecisiveness

Well here i sit... middle of the day. I've got my workout gear on while sitting at the computer listening to mp3s and smoking cigs. I can't decide what I'm going to do. Undecided whether I should work out. Is it going to strengthen my immune system or will it weaken it? Wifey's at work. An old (really old skool) gf is in town with her bf. Should I meet up with them later? I don't want to spend any money... but I do want to drink, conversate, and catch up. I look pretty beat up. I've got a red right eye. I'm out of shape. I need a haircut. What should I do?? I should really be working on a lesson instead. Damn... i swear indecisiveness is my downfall...

Ok... I'm going to workout (lightly) and get ready for a low key evening doing whatever... Let's hope I stick to the plan. :-D