The Love of My Life

The love of my life is warm and inviting, is with me as much as possible, is reliable, has quite the history with me (we've been together for over two years), is flexible, and, most importantly, is totally hot.

The love of my life is my compact heater. It sits under my desk at work. I've thought about getting another for home but I figure I'll save $20 and just bundle up with sock, sweaters, and blankets. I don't know what I'd do without my heater. I use it year-round but especially appreciate it on days like this; days where I wear boots and a hoodie to work but I'm still cold.

It is always here (at work) and it keeps me warm. What else could a girl want?

I Like to Recycle . . .

. . . and I sometimes get funny looks because of it. I'm not weird because I recycle. I'm not weird because I use re-usable shopping bags and re-usable produce bags. I'm not weird because I sometimes ride my bike to work in an effort to reduce pollution (the exercise is great too). I just happen to like the Earth. I'm not extreme. I just believe in doing the little things.

One of the biggest complaints I hear about recycling in Utah County is the cost. It costs $3 a month to have a recycle bin. The complaint is that we pay so that the garbage company or the city or whoever can pick up our recycling and make money off of it when they sell it.

To me, it seems worth it to pay the $3 (in fact, I do pay it so that my brother can have a bin that I use). Of course, I'd rather not pay and it would be nice if I got something for recycling. To some, it isn't worth the cost. This is why I was excited to read this article by Newsweek.

The article is an introduction to RecycleBank, a company that believes we should be rewarded for recycling. Here's an exerpt:

Wilmington, Del., has seen its recycling rate jump from 3 percent to 32 percent since RecycleBank arrived a year ago. In Everett, where the program launched citywide in July, the average household now recycles the equivalent of 830 pounds a year, up tenfold since the program launched. "The recycling buzz is out there," says Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria. "It's fun filling that thing up to the top."

Perhaps it's a commentary on the woes of Wall Street, but investors are seeing gold in garbage. With rising demand from markets like China and India, prices for scrap material like aluminum and paper have soared, which makes the economics of recycling more compelling than ever. That's why venture capitalists dumped a record $161 million into recycling firms last year, up from just $17 million in 2001, according to Cleantech Group, a green-investing consultant. And RecycleBank is one of the hottest plays, attracting $40 million from backers like Silicon Valley venture-capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, former American Express CEO James Robinson III and Coca-Cola.

According to the company's web-site, http://www.recyclebank.com/, RecycleBank recycling bins are out-fitted with RFID tags which are associated with each household's account. Upon pickup, the RFID is scanned and the bin is weighed. The weight is then converted to points and credited to the household's account. Points can be redeemed at participating businesses.

Cool, huh? Unfortunately, RecycleBank isn't yet available in much of the Midwest. However, if it is something you are interested in, fill out this form and RecycleBank will let you know when the program is available in your area.

Gosh, I Love the Internet

The Internet is amazing. You can find anything there. You can learn anything there. You can see anything there. You can go anywhere there. You can meet anyone there. . . I think you get the picture. Here’s another picture:

The dude with the mullet is someone I know but don’t like very much. I found this picture online, on Facebook, when a Facebook friend commented on a photo in a group and I looked at the other photos in the group. As soon as I found the picture I knew exactly what to do with it . . . I sent it to Mr. K, who also knows Mullet Guy, and Mr. K created this very inspirational image and sent it to everyone we both know. Even Mullet Guy got a good laugh out of it.

With as wonderful and powerful as the Internet is, don’t forget about Internet safety. Facebook stalking may be fun and harmless but real Cyberstalking and identity theft is not. Be careful who you give personal information to. Make sure you have secure passwords (use letters and numbers, don’t use personal information, do not store you password anywhere). Google yourself so you know exactly what other people can find out about you.

A Review Of Two New-To-Me Wii Games

It is not uncommon for a group of us to sit around The Hoff's place and participate in Wii games (especially Mario Kart). Last night I was introduced to two new Wii games and I'd like to write a review for each.

The first is the previously (for me) unheard of Wario Ware Smooth Moves. Honestly, I don't know what the creators of this game were smoking but, whatever it was, it helped create one crazy game.

There are different types of play but the general idea of the ones I participated in is to be the last man standing. Players (up to 12 in one area of play) are given quick (and sometimes strange) challenges to test their skill with the Wii Remote.

Please see the picture to the right for an example of one of the challenges, the hula challenge. In the hula challenge, you place the remote at hip level (the Big Cheese "form") and, well, you hula hoop. If you drop the hula during your 3ish second challenge, you're out. Don't worry. The hula is only one of many challenges. . . you won't get bored.

I definitely enjoyed Smooth Moves. With each challenge lasting three or fewer seconds, it is fast paced (CJ really wasn't kidding when he said it is a great game for people with ADD). Because only one Wii Remote is passed between all players and because there are different challenges, the game is really interactive. A large group can participate and Smooth Moves is a little weird and surprising, making it great for groups and parties. Overall, it is a welcome change to only four people playing Mario Kart (which, by the way, I love).

The second game is the more widely known Wii Fit. I'm not going to comment on any claims of this game actually being able to get its players to be more fit (suffice it to say I'm pretty skeptical); this review is purely about the game's entertainment value.

From a spectator's perspective, I'm not sure if I can think of anything more entertaining than watching people ski jump on the Wii Fit Balance Board. Priceless.

From the player's perspective, this game is much harder than it looks, requiring more balance than any other video game I've ever encountered. Like other games, it presents the challenge of improving, of getting better at each fitness challenge. Unlike other games, it requires the player to stand and to move, which, in general, is one of the Wii's greatest strengths and most unique feature.

Unlike Smooth Moves, Wii Fit is better for individual play. To change players requires a bit of effort and time, and playing with others can be distracting and, as eluded to in the "From a spectator's perspective", can be cause for a little embarrassment, though it is all in good, clean fun.

Overall, I recommend both Wario Ware Smooth Moves and Wii Fit for good, indoor entertainment. But remember, there really is no substitute for the great outdoors.

An Entry

Hey. Look. It's another blog. These aren't even original anymore.

I had an alternative motive for creating this blog. We'll see if I actually do anything with it.