I was 5 years old when I first became aware of video games. I didn't know anything about them, I just knew that anyone who had them was almost instantly the coolest person on the block. I remember there was one person in my neighborhood who had one back then. I'd go over there and watch him and his sister run this funny looking guy through a bunch of levels, trying to avoid turtles and funny looking mushrooms with eyes.
This was back in 1986. Unbeknownst to me, the Nintendo Entertainment System was out and those kids who were able to convince their parents to buy one were having the time of their lives with it. The game was of course Super Mario Bros, a game that virtually saved the video game industry after Atari nuked it into near-oblivion.
It became a regular occurrence to head over to this kid's house to watch them play (this might be the point that helped spark my interest in watching people play games), and if I was real lucky, I'd get a chance to play it. But more often than not, I'd just sit and watch and marvel at what I was seeing.
I don't remember if it was that year or the following one, but I eventually received one for my birthday (or Christmas; my memory is REAL foggy on what the occasion was). Back then to help promote console sales, each NES came with a game, typically Super Mario Bros either with or without Duck Hunt, and some game with the Zapper gun (mine did). I remember after it was hooked up, we all sat down and took turns dying at the hands of a Goomba, Koopa, or in my case, the darn Spiny-thing that Lakitu would throw down (world 4 was ALWAYS my downfall).
Shortly after we got the NES, my mom went and bought The Legend of Zelda, thus starting what became my biggest love affair with gaming. The Zelda series, more than any other series, has withstood the test of time for me. Each console game has been met with excitement over the prospect of what secrets I would be able to discover this time, and very rarely has the game let me down.
The next monumental moment for me was when Super Mario Bros 3 was coming out. I had enjoyed the hell out of the first two games (yes, I know Mario 2 wasn't the true second Mario game, but it was still damn fun) and I had played the first two Zelda games to death, but the news of Mario 3 was the first time a video game became huge news to me. I was aware of how popular games were and knew this was being marketed differently than previous games.
Of course, you have to mention the horrific "The Wizard" movie tie-in, but back when that game came out? I didn't know any better. I sat through and watched the movie and when footage of Mario 3 appeared, I was about as excited as the next person.
I remember my mom taking me to Toys 'R Us shortly after Mario 3 had come out and I remember having it in my hands as we walked out of the store, but the rest is a blur. The game was incredible though, and I played it almost every day for several months. I never did manage to beat it (a common theme for me aside from the first Zelda), but I came close several times.
When I was a kid, my mom used to take care of a guy named Tom. He was a quadriplegic, but he loved computer games. His daughter owned a Super Nintendo, which was the next thing that caught my eye. I had heard of it and had a friend who owned one with Super Mario World, but I didn't really become fascinated with it until I learned a new Zelda game was out on it.
A Link to the Past is still probably my favorite Zelda game. At the time, it was challenging, but incredibly easy to play. The dungeons were complex, the enemies challenging, and the bosses were simply menacing. The notion of a light world and dark world was incredibly to me, and I took every chance I had to play the game when I'd be there with my mom.
We eventually bought our own SNES, I somehow ended up with a copy of Super Mario World, and spent dozens of hours a week at my friend Kevin's house playing all kinds of SNES games he had. I particularly remember Contra III: The Alien Wars as we spent hours on that game before finally beating it. There was also some Avengers game too, but I have vague memories of that.
Then we had our own Link to the Past copy. It was the last Zelda game my mom could play well (she struggles with the newer, 3D ones), but most of the time I was playing it as I was determined to beat the game. It was a sigh of relief when I finally did, and I ultimately moved on to other games for the SNES after it, but not before discovering some more games that I'd spend time with. Of course, Super Mario Kart can't be forgotten as I spent hours mastering that game.
My favorite thing to do in that game was to play with my sister, let her take first, and just hang back with the rest of the AI karts and take pot shots at them with green and red shells. I spent so much time with that that I actually became fairly good at aiming the green shells, a tactic that came in handy in future versions where the AI was more competent.
Finally, there's Earthbound, the rare RPG that I could get into for long stretches. It had a whacky, yet emotional story, fun characters, interesting weapons, and some unforgiving stretches that really would test your patience. That game took years for me to finally beat, but the sense of accomplishment was tremendous.
I'm obviously skipping a lot of the games I played for the NES and SNES, mostly because if I reminisced about every game, I'd still be talking about the early days of the NES. There were just so many fun games, too many to really sit and get in depth over all of them. TMNT, Kirby, and Bubble Bobble just to name a few. SNES gets even more in depth as I enjoyed Mario World 2, Super Mario RPG, and so many more.
I can't forget the Sega Genesis though. I came across this system thanks to my friend James and many hours were spent on Sonic the Hedgehog, Road Rage, but most importantly, Toejam & Earl, which is another one of those games I still enjoy to this day (the joy of finding it on XBox Live can't be understated at this point).
I later introduced my mom to Toejam & Earl, and many nights were lost to us trying to make it through all the levels. We failed many times, but we also succeeded once or twice, which was fairly rewarding. I'll never forget all the times my mom opened up either the Randomizer present or the Total Bummer! present when I just walked into the same section of the map she was on.
As I got older, my devotion to games started to change. Instead of constantly trying out the latest games, I stuck with the core game series that I had come to love. Primarily, I stuck with the Zelda and Mario Kart series on the Nintendo 64 through my high school days, occasionally dabbling in some Playstation titles like Driver and Driver 2.
When the Gamecube came out, it was once again Zelda games, Mario Sunshine, and Mario Kart: Double Dash. I enjoyed the hell out of the Ratchet and Clank series on the Playstation 2, but also found time to burn rubber in the Burnout series.
I think the next series that really grabbed a hold of me though was the Halo series. It was the reason I bought an Xbox. It was the reason I bought an Xbox 360. It will be the reason I eventually get an Xbox One. Sure, I've messed around with some other games, but my Xbox experience has primarily been to play all the Halo games, plus the occasional retro game that made appearances on the system.
That said, in 2012 I turned my attention to the PC side of games. Minecraft was the biggest game around and was part of the rise of content creation on YouTube (and eventually livestreaming services). I was drawn to it because of how much freedom it gave you to determine what you were going to do. It changed how I looked at gaming overall and was the sole game I played for probably 2 years.
Of course, you can only play a game so much before burning out, and luckily I have a laptop that can handle most games, so I have branched out some. I've played my share of interesting titles over the last year or so, from DayZ (ugh) to Ori and the Blind Forest (GOTY). While my gaming levels have dropped dramatically since Kylie has come around, I still have an interest in them and enjoy watching other people play them when I get the chance.
Where does that leave me going into 2016? Well, I do hope to get a little more time play more games as there are a lot of them I'd like to play. Rocket League, Halo 5, Star Wars: Battlefront, CS:GO, Don't Starve, Super Mario Maker, and a few others. Will I have that time? It depends on a number of factors, but at least once summer is here and I've moved, I might have an evening or two available for gaming (and/or recording/streaming as well).
I don't have the same dedication to games that some people have though. I don't spend 6 hours a day every day playing them. I'm not an expert at any game. But I still enjoy them and have grown up with them.
Before I go, I do want to mention that my Game of the Year is indeed Ori and the Blind Forest (available on Steam and Xbox One). It's the first game since Minecraft (and Halo 4) that completely and absolutely sucked me in. I was determined to finish that game and I did (all recorded too; just have to finish uploading the footage).
The game is beautiful in style and sound and plays exceptionally well. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good, yet challenging platforming game.
That's all for this post though. I'm hoping to have something up for the New Year talking about this past year and what I want to accomplish next year. I want 2016 to wash away the stench of 2015, which was a pretty turbulent year.
Until then, thanks for reading.
Showing posts with label minecraft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label minecraft. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
YouTubing isn't easy
A little over 3 years ago, I decided that I wanted to record myself playing Minecraft and other games. I had seen others do it, thought it would be a fun little hobby, and felt I could do the same. I didn't know what FPS was, how to edit anything, or really anything about the process.
I had very little knowledge of what I would need to do to get started with recording game footage. From afar, I initially had the impression that you had either a card or software on your computer that recorded what you did and you just could drop it on YouTube without even breaking a sweat.
Of course, I learned quickly that isn't the case. Thankfully, PaulsoaresJr, the man who inspired me to get started with all this (and got me into Minecraft), explained the process he went through regularly to his viewers, even going so far as to record the process he goes through to record and edit hit footage.
Edit.
I had no idea how much work some of the bigger (and frankly better) YouTubers were putting into their videos. It wasn't so simple as record and upload. No, most of them recorded hours of footage, whittled it down into manageable chunks, added whatever touches they felt were needed, rendered out the footage, compressed the footage, created thumbnails, created descriptions, and THEN uploaded the footage to YouTube.
It turned out to be an intensely time-consuming process, one that I hadn't completely thought through.
Of course, there was a bigger issue in regards to getting going with the idea of recording my gameplay: I didn't have a computer to record with. I hit Ebay, scouring the site for a laptop that I thought could handle the load and eventually settled on bidding on an HP Compaq Presario with Nvidia graphics. It seemed like it would work, but I wasn't completely sure as I didn't really do the research necessary ahead of time.
I won the bid, paid for the laptop, and upon receiving it, installed Minecraft and FRAPS, a recording software, on it. I booted everything up and learned very quickly I had NO clue what I had gotten myself into.
My game didn't run well without FRAPS, but really took a beating once the recording software started. This of course was because I was using an older laptop that had didn't have a very good video card in it. It simply wasn't going to be able to run the game at high settings and record.
Luckily, I learned of a mod called Optifine that allowed me to get the most out of the game while recording with a fairly steady framerate. I wasn't getting anything remarkable, but I could get it in the 20-25 FPS (frames per second) for the most part, which was acceptable.
I didn't have a mic, and much like the laptop, didn't invest much into it as I bought a super cheap $10 headset thinking that would be adequate.
Like with the laptop, I was dreadfully wrong. The audio was horrible, often providing tremendous feedback and buzzing while I was recording, making it hard to hear.
That didn't deter me though, and I made the most of my experience while I played and recorded. I started off using Windows Movie Maker as my editor, which helped me learn the basics of editing. Of course, I wasn't very good at it and I was limited in what I could do, but I was doing my best and occasionally, people would comment with advice.
Eventually, I realized I was going to have to upgrade my equipment and software if my channel was ever going to get noticed. Sure, I could promote myself and get people to watch, but the truth was, most weren't going to put up with poor frame rates and bad audio. Top it off with lackluster editing, and you don't have much that's appealing.
The first thing I did was get a new mic. I purchased an Audio Technica ATR2500 USB mic that improved things substantially once I figured out how to set it up correctly. Of course, it didn't improve things all the way as a downside to using laptops to record is the loud fan that most have. That aside, my audio was better, which at least made the videos somewhat tolerable.
I then went ahead and purchased Sony Movie Studio 11, which allowed me greater freedom with editing, even if I had to learn a whole lot of new things that Movie Maker didn't explain. I had access to better titles, transitions, and effects, and I sought to use them even though it wasn't necessary. I learned that a fancier editor meant longer render times, and also required me to get a compressor since the files were pretty big. I also had to remember to disable the resampling that Movie Studio did automatically, causing a motion blur effect.
About a year and a half ago, the next major upgrade took place, a move that greatly enhanced what I could do with my channel.
I bought a better laptop, one that was much better at handling more games, better recording software (I now use Dxtory because it allows me to split game audio from my commentary), and more powerful editing software.
My HP Envy won't blow anyone away, but if you watch videos prior to March of 2014 (excluding the first MesaBuilt episodes), then watch videos afterwards, you can tell the difference the laptop has made. I've even been able to record certain games at 60FPS (30FPS has been the standard for years now), although that takes longer to render out.
I was gifted Adobe Premiere Pro from a close friend, which was vastly different, yet similar to editing in Movie Studio. I also have learned to get a bit better with Photoshop, thus improving my thumbnails. I've learned how to edit videos better, not overdo things, and improve the commentary (now with an Audio Technica AT2020USB+ mic).
Yet my videos could still be better.
One day, I'll have a powerful desktop PC. I'll be able to record at minimum 1080p 60FPS without a loud laptop fan causing me to have to do a ton of audio editing. I'll have the ability to record and stream any game I want, only limited by time, not resources.
But right now, I can't complain too much. I can stream if I want (daveycracker80 on Twitch) and can record most games comfortably. I've upgraded my hard drive, added external storage, added a full HD web cam, and have improved as an editor.
But I'm always learning, always trying to figure out new and better ways to do things.
3 years ago, FPS didn't mean much to me. I had no idea how to put transitions into a video, how to find a good balance between voice audio and background music, how to make a thumbnail (or how to use Photoshop for that matter), what to talk about in my videos, or how to get my videos out to the masses.
While my channel hasn't grown much, I feel I have grown a lot as a gamer, as a video editor, and have a pretty good understanding of what I would have to do differently if there's a next time.
Will there be a next time? It depends. If I end up being in position to buy/build a more powerful PC, I will relaunch my YouTube channel. I would keep the old channel up (maybe use it strictly for Vlogs?) to preserve the older videos, but I wouldn't be bringing much older content over with me (with the exception of any series that are in process at the time of switching over). The art would likely stay similar to how it is now, but maybe with a refreshed look and new ideas on what games I'd record and how I carry myself on the channel.
This is likely at least a year or so away, as I don't anticipate having the money for a new PC anytime soon (there are FAR more pressing things to worry about short-term), but it's something that I'll be keeping in the back of my mind for the future.
My stream would likely only receive a matching refresh of art (which is in flux anyway since I keep changing my mind on how I want things to look) as I'm satisfied with how I've started with streaming, even if it's super infrequent (and not likely to resume until after I move in the future).
I doubt I'll ever be much of a big name on YouTube, and that's fine with me. I don't do it for accolades or to get a ton of viewers. I do it because it's fun to think that someone, somewhere might watch me play a game, and possibly enjoy it. I don't care if I become a big name or not, because frankly the odds aren't good. Too many people are trying to do it and be the next big name, so it's hard to get your voice heard.
For now, I'm going to enjoy the process when I get a chance to do it. Recording games is fun, editing can be fun, and I enjoy when I do get feedback on my videos.
Maybe some day I'll be in position to do unboxing videos, give things away, and be sponsored by a company or two, but if not, I'll make the most of the views I do get and try to have as much fun as I can.
3 years ago I started on a journey into YouTube that I don't regret. I went from knowing virtually nothing to at least being competent with this hobby that I picked up. I've learned a lot from the process and hope to continue to grow as a content creator in the future.
Thanks for reading and if you've watched any of my content, thanks for the view!
I had very little knowledge of what I would need to do to get started with recording game footage. From afar, I initially had the impression that you had either a card or software on your computer that recorded what you did and you just could drop it on YouTube without even breaking a sweat.
Of course, I learned quickly that isn't the case. Thankfully, PaulsoaresJr, the man who inspired me to get started with all this (and got me into Minecraft), explained the process he went through regularly to his viewers, even going so far as to record the process he goes through to record and edit hit footage.
Edit.
I had no idea how much work some of the bigger (and frankly better) YouTubers were putting into their videos. It wasn't so simple as record and upload. No, most of them recorded hours of footage, whittled it down into manageable chunks, added whatever touches they felt were needed, rendered out the footage, compressed the footage, created thumbnails, created descriptions, and THEN uploaded the footage to YouTube.
It turned out to be an intensely time-consuming process, one that I hadn't completely thought through.
Of course, there was a bigger issue in regards to getting going with the idea of recording my gameplay: I didn't have a computer to record with. I hit Ebay, scouring the site for a laptop that I thought could handle the load and eventually settled on bidding on an HP Compaq Presario with Nvidia graphics. It seemed like it would work, but I wasn't completely sure as I didn't really do the research necessary ahead of time.
I won the bid, paid for the laptop, and upon receiving it, installed Minecraft and FRAPS, a recording software, on it. I booted everything up and learned very quickly I had NO clue what I had gotten myself into.
My game didn't run well without FRAPS, but really took a beating once the recording software started. This of course was because I was using an older laptop that had didn't have a very good video card in it. It simply wasn't going to be able to run the game at high settings and record.
Luckily, I learned of a mod called Optifine that allowed me to get the most out of the game while recording with a fairly steady framerate. I wasn't getting anything remarkable, but I could get it in the 20-25 FPS (frames per second) for the most part, which was acceptable.
I didn't have a mic, and much like the laptop, didn't invest much into it as I bought a super cheap $10 headset thinking that would be adequate.
Like with the laptop, I was dreadfully wrong. The audio was horrible, often providing tremendous feedback and buzzing while I was recording, making it hard to hear.
That didn't deter me though, and I made the most of my experience while I played and recorded. I started off using Windows Movie Maker as my editor, which helped me learn the basics of editing. Of course, I wasn't very good at it and I was limited in what I could do, but I was doing my best and occasionally, people would comment with advice.
Eventually, I realized I was going to have to upgrade my equipment and software if my channel was ever going to get noticed. Sure, I could promote myself and get people to watch, but the truth was, most weren't going to put up with poor frame rates and bad audio. Top it off with lackluster editing, and you don't have much that's appealing.
The first thing I did was get a new mic. I purchased an Audio Technica ATR2500 USB mic that improved things substantially once I figured out how to set it up correctly. Of course, it didn't improve things all the way as a downside to using laptops to record is the loud fan that most have. That aside, my audio was better, which at least made the videos somewhat tolerable.
I then went ahead and purchased Sony Movie Studio 11, which allowed me greater freedom with editing, even if I had to learn a whole lot of new things that Movie Maker didn't explain. I had access to better titles, transitions, and effects, and I sought to use them even though it wasn't necessary. I learned that a fancier editor meant longer render times, and also required me to get a compressor since the files were pretty big. I also had to remember to disable the resampling that Movie Studio did automatically, causing a motion blur effect.
About a year and a half ago, the next major upgrade took place, a move that greatly enhanced what I could do with my channel.
I bought a better laptop, one that was much better at handling more games, better recording software (I now use Dxtory because it allows me to split game audio from my commentary), and more powerful editing software.
My HP Envy won't blow anyone away, but if you watch videos prior to March of 2014 (excluding the first MesaBuilt episodes), then watch videos afterwards, you can tell the difference the laptop has made. I've even been able to record certain games at 60FPS (30FPS has been the standard for years now), although that takes longer to render out.
I was gifted Adobe Premiere Pro from a close friend, which was vastly different, yet similar to editing in Movie Studio. I also have learned to get a bit better with Photoshop, thus improving my thumbnails. I've learned how to edit videos better, not overdo things, and improve the commentary (now with an Audio Technica AT2020USB+ mic).
Yet my videos could still be better.
One day, I'll have a powerful desktop PC. I'll be able to record at minimum 1080p 60FPS without a loud laptop fan causing me to have to do a ton of audio editing. I'll have the ability to record and stream any game I want, only limited by time, not resources.
But right now, I can't complain too much. I can stream if I want (daveycracker80 on Twitch) and can record most games comfortably. I've upgraded my hard drive, added external storage, added a full HD web cam, and have improved as an editor.
But I'm always learning, always trying to figure out new and better ways to do things.
3 years ago, FPS didn't mean much to me. I had no idea how to put transitions into a video, how to find a good balance between voice audio and background music, how to make a thumbnail (or how to use Photoshop for that matter), what to talk about in my videos, or how to get my videos out to the masses.
While my channel hasn't grown much, I feel I have grown a lot as a gamer, as a video editor, and have a pretty good understanding of what I would have to do differently if there's a next time.
Will there be a next time? It depends. If I end up being in position to buy/build a more powerful PC, I will relaunch my YouTube channel. I would keep the old channel up (maybe use it strictly for Vlogs?) to preserve the older videos, but I wouldn't be bringing much older content over with me (with the exception of any series that are in process at the time of switching over). The art would likely stay similar to how it is now, but maybe with a refreshed look and new ideas on what games I'd record and how I carry myself on the channel.
This is likely at least a year or so away, as I don't anticipate having the money for a new PC anytime soon (there are FAR more pressing things to worry about short-term), but it's something that I'll be keeping in the back of my mind for the future.
My stream would likely only receive a matching refresh of art (which is in flux anyway since I keep changing my mind on how I want things to look) as I'm satisfied with how I've started with streaming, even if it's super infrequent (and not likely to resume until after I move in the future).
I doubt I'll ever be much of a big name on YouTube, and that's fine with me. I don't do it for accolades or to get a ton of viewers. I do it because it's fun to think that someone, somewhere might watch me play a game, and possibly enjoy it. I don't care if I become a big name or not, because frankly the odds aren't good. Too many people are trying to do it and be the next big name, so it's hard to get your voice heard.
For now, I'm going to enjoy the process when I get a chance to do it. Recording games is fun, editing can be fun, and I enjoy when I do get feedback on my videos.
Maybe some day I'll be in position to do unboxing videos, give things away, and be sponsored by a company or two, but if not, I'll make the most of the views I do get and try to have as much fun as I can.
3 years ago I started on a journey into YouTube that I don't regret. I went from knowing virtually nothing to at least being competent with this hobby that I picked up. I've learned a lot from the process and hope to continue to grow as a content creator in the future.
Thanks for reading and if you've watched any of my content, thanks for the view!
Friday, August 21, 2015
Friday, July 12, 2013
Has it really been 6 months?
Yes, yes it has.
Apologies are in order, but there just hasn't been a lot of time to sit down and write anything at all.
Let's recap things though.
My girlfriend was pregnant, but no more as my first child was born on May 19th. Kylie Brooke is growing by the day and is quite rowdy in the morning, much to our chagrin. Overall she's a lot of fun and it's been amazing watching her personality start to really show. Even if she is a fiery red-head.
Speaking of Rachel, we just passed our 2 year anniversary last month (June 11th to be exact). I couldn't ask for a better girlfriend and mother of my child. Payton drives me crazy sometimes, but when she's not being bad (and she's been something else of late), she's a lot of fun as well.
We moved last week from our old apartment into a much bigger one, which has been a blessing since the extra space seems to have calmed our rowdy dog Ogimaa down quite a bit. Both dogs seem to enjoy the extra space and it's made things somewhat easier.
BTW, moving stinks.
A lot has happened in the sports world as well. The Indians signed Michael Bourne and Nick Swisher as well as traded for Drew Stubbs to bolster the offense. They added depth with Mike Avilas and Ryan Raburn, and if the bullpen hadn't been shaky, they'd probably still be in first place.
The Miami Heat won their second straight title last month, which probably shouldn't have happened given the San Antonio Spurs had a 3-2 lead in the series at one point.
Which is what I want to get into. The Cavs have made some moves this off-season in the draft and in free agency. Obviously the Andrew Bynum signing is the big story, but the bigger story that won't go away is the possible return of LeBron James via free agency next year. Many find it hard to believe that Dan Gilbert would go for resigning LeBron after how he left the franchise dangling, but some think if he wants to come back, you go for it.
I personally would rather see the Cavs try to continue to build around Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters, but ultimately it's not up to us as fans to determine what they decide to do. They may very well be preparing themselves to take a shot at LeBron, but they may also be looking at some of the other big free agents getting set to hit the market next year as well.
The LeBron thing is frankly over done. He left three years ago. He's won two titles, lost one, and won two Finals MVP awards. On the court, he very well could go down as the best player to ever play the game. His game continues to evolve and he seems to be driven by the way he's perceived nationally.
Of course, ESPN is in love with the idea of LeBron courting the Cavs. Then again, ESPN seems to revel in our misery, often taking every chance they get to remind us of our worst sports moments. They've already put up projected lineups if LeBron signed back with the Cavs.
While many Clevelanders were wondering why the Sports Gods continued to torture us by letting our most hated villians continue to win, I shrugged it all off. Sure, I wanted the Heat to lose. I find the way they built that team to be atrocious and completely wrong. I'm almost certain there was an agreement made to put that team together to form a super team. I'm just as appalled that other teams tried to follow the same path.
In the end, LeBron is a two-time champion. We as fans don't have to like it, but it's happened. If the Heat stay as they are, they'll probably win at least two more, if not more. It is what it is. My hatred towards LeBron is almost non-existent at this point as there's no point to it anymore. I'd rather pay attention to what Chris Grant is attempting to build at the moment and think about all the potential that this group could have.
I'd rather look at the Indians, who while wildly streaky, have been a ton of fun to watch so far. Jason Kipnis has recovered from his early season troubles to put together a solid first half and Danny Salazar put on a tantalizing performance yesterday in his Major League debut.
Hell, even the Browns are intriguing with the moves they made (if you ignore all that legal trouble Jimmy Haslam is in right now). New coaches, new staff, new players, and a new system could make things interesting.
But LeBron? Talk to me after he's decided where he's playing next off-season.
Quick Hits
The signing of Bynum is a risk/reward type of scenario. If he's healthy and plays, the Cavs are likely a playoff team and a dangerous one at that. He'd also be in line for a HUGE payout, one I doubt the Cavs would pursue. If he's not, they're only out $6 million but likely miss the postseason again. I'm not a fan of Bynum, but this is such a low-risk move that I can't complain about it.
If Vinnie Pestano isn't healthy, he's not helping the team with how he's performed. He came out recently and said he's been trying too hard to miss bats, rather than trust his pitches, but the guy has clearly been off much of this season. If it's mental, it may never go away and given the situation with Chris Perez and the overall uncertainty of the bullpen, that spells big trouble.
Miguel Cabrera is one of the best hitters in the game, but he's awful whiny for my tastes. It seems he's another one of those players who believes you aren't allowed to pitch him inside and whenever something happens he disagrees with, he begins chirping away. Cabrera is a special talent, but his mouth sometimes overshadows his bat and that's a bad thing.
Rumors continue to swirl that Haslam might have to sell the Browns, but I continue to wonder how the NFL missed him being investigated by the FBI. This seems like something that should've come up at some point, but recent reports have come out that former owner Art Modell at some points barely had full ownership of the Browns and had to scramble much more often to keep the team than most of us previously knew.
With the trading deadline looming and no real big names being made available, this could be one of the less spectacular deadlines in MLB history, although that can change in a hurry. I just don't see anything real big happening at this point in time. Too many teams are in contention and the ones that aren't don't exactly have the most appealing pieces to offer. Let's see if someone gets desperate.
Several Cavs players are in Las Vegas getting work in even though they aren't playing in the summer league and that's highly encouraging. Even more encouraging is new Cavalier Jarrett Jack heading out there as well the same day he officially signed his contract. Jack has often been underappreciated where he's been at but could be a very key piece to this year's team. The influence he could have on Irving and Waiters is just as important as the way he plays.
Finally, for those of you who still don't know, I play a game called Minecraft and record it. I then put the videos up on YouTube for all to enjoy. My channel is at http://www.youtube.com/user/kreald1980 You should check it out. Rachel and I are also participating in the Warrior Dash again. We'll be raising money for St. Jude so go to http://www.stjudewarriors.org/dkreal1980 and donate.
Hopefully it doesn't take 6 months to write again....
Apologies are in order, but there just hasn't been a lot of time to sit down and write anything at all.
Let's recap things though.
My girlfriend was pregnant, but no more as my first child was born on May 19th. Kylie Brooke is growing by the day and is quite rowdy in the morning, much to our chagrin. Overall she's a lot of fun and it's been amazing watching her personality start to really show. Even if she is a fiery red-head.
Speaking of Rachel, we just passed our 2 year anniversary last month (June 11th to be exact). I couldn't ask for a better girlfriend and mother of my child. Payton drives me crazy sometimes, but when she's not being bad (and she's been something else of late), she's a lot of fun as well.
We moved last week from our old apartment into a much bigger one, which has been a blessing since the extra space seems to have calmed our rowdy dog Ogimaa down quite a bit. Both dogs seem to enjoy the extra space and it's made things somewhat easier.
BTW, moving stinks.
A lot has happened in the sports world as well. The Indians signed Michael Bourne and Nick Swisher as well as traded for Drew Stubbs to bolster the offense. They added depth with Mike Avilas and Ryan Raburn, and if the bullpen hadn't been shaky, they'd probably still be in first place.
The Miami Heat won their second straight title last month, which probably shouldn't have happened given the San Antonio Spurs had a 3-2 lead in the series at one point.
Which is what I want to get into. The Cavs have made some moves this off-season in the draft and in free agency. Obviously the Andrew Bynum signing is the big story, but the bigger story that won't go away is the possible return of LeBron James via free agency next year. Many find it hard to believe that Dan Gilbert would go for resigning LeBron after how he left the franchise dangling, but some think if he wants to come back, you go for it.
I personally would rather see the Cavs try to continue to build around Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters, but ultimately it's not up to us as fans to determine what they decide to do. They may very well be preparing themselves to take a shot at LeBron, but they may also be looking at some of the other big free agents getting set to hit the market next year as well.
The LeBron thing is frankly over done. He left three years ago. He's won two titles, lost one, and won two Finals MVP awards. On the court, he very well could go down as the best player to ever play the game. His game continues to evolve and he seems to be driven by the way he's perceived nationally.
Of course, ESPN is in love with the idea of LeBron courting the Cavs. Then again, ESPN seems to revel in our misery, often taking every chance they get to remind us of our worst sports moments. They've already put up projected lineups if LeBron signed back with the Cavs.
While many Clevelanders were wondering why the Sports Gods continued to torture us by letting our most hated villians continue to win, I shrugged it all off. Sure, I wanted the Heat to lose. I find the way they built that team to be atrocious and completely wrong. I'm almost certain there was an agreement made to put that team together to form a super team. I'm just as appalled that other teams tried to follow the same path.
In the end, LeBron is a two-time champion. We as fans don't have to like it, but it's happened. If the Heat stay as they are, they'll probably win at least two more, if not more. It is what it is. My hatred towards LeBron is almost non-existent at this point as there's no point to it anymore. I'd rather pay attention to what Chris Grant is attempting to build at the moment and think about all the potential that this group could have.
I'd rather look at the Indians, who while wildly streaky, have been a ton of fun to watch so far. Jason Kipnis has recovered from his early season troubles to put together a solid first half and Danny Salazar put on a tantalizing performance yesterday in his Major League debut.
Hell, even the Browns are intriguing with the moves they made (if you ignore all that legal trouble Jimmy Haslam is in right now). New coaches, new staff, new players, and a new system could make things interesting.
But LeBron? Talk to me after he's decided where he's playing next off-season.
Quick Hits
The signing of Bynum is a risk/reward type of scenario. If he's healthy and plays, the Cavs are likely a playoff team and a dangerous one at that. He'd also be in line for a HUGE payout, one I doubt the Cavs would pursue. If he's not, they're only out $6 million but likely miss the postseason again. I'm not a fan of Bynum, but this is such a low-risk move that I can't complain about it.
If Vinnie Pestano isn't healthy, he's not helping the team with how he's performed. He came out recently and said he's been trying too hard to miss bats, rather than trust his pitches, but the guy has clearly been off much of this season. If it's mental, it may never go away and given the situation with Chris Perez and the overall uncertainty of the bullpen, that spells big trouble.
Miguel Cabrera is one of the best hitters in the game, but he's awful whiny for my tastes. It seems he's another one of those players who believes you aren't allowed to pitch him inside and whenever something happens he disagrees with, he begins chirping away. Cabrera is a special talent, but his mouth sometimes overshadows his bat and that's a bad thing.
Rumors continue to swirl that Haslam might have to sell the Browns, but I continue to wonder how the NFL missed him being investigated by the FBI. This seems like something that should've come up at some point, but recent reports have come out that former owner Art Modell at some points barely had full ownership of the Browns and had to scramble much more often to keep the team than most of us previously knew.
With the trading deadline looming and no real big names being made available, this could be one of the less spectacular deadlines in MLB history, although that can change in a hurry. I just don't see anything real big happening at this point in time. Too many teams are in contention and the ones that aren't don't exactly have the most appealing pieces to offer. Let's see if someone gets desperate.
Several Cavs players are in Las Vegas getting work in even though they aren't playing in the summer league and that's highly encouraging. Even more encouraging is new Cavalier Jarrett Jack heading out there as well the same day he officially signed his contract. Jack has often been underappreciated where he's been at but could be a very key piece to this year's team. The influence he could have on Irving and Waiters is just as important as the way he plays.
Finally, for those of you who still don't know, I play a game called Minecraft and record it. I then put the videos up on YouTube for all to enjoy. My channel is at http://www.youtube.com/user/kreald1980 You should check it out. Rachel and I are also participating in the Warrior Dash again. We'll be raising money for St. Jude so go to http://www.stjudewarriors.org/dkreal1980 and donate.
Hopefully it doesn't take 6 months to write again....
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
It might kill me...
But I'm going to do it anyway.
Before I divulge the details of what I'm going to embark on next month, let me start by saying that I know it's been a while since I've written. Things have been busy and aren't going to slow down in the next few months. I've been working out several times a week, doing things with Rachel on the weekend, and keeping busy other times with various things.
Yesterday began an 8 week fitness class, which should help me prepare for what I'm going to do. It was quite the contrast from what I'd normally do in a workout, but it's also what I need to do. I can run with no issue and lift moderately heavy weights with no issue, but flexibility and overall fitness was something I was concerned with.
After yesterday, I'm convinced that in 8 weeks, I'll be in the best shape of my life. On the days I don't go to the class, I intend to continue with my regular workouts in my attempt to get stronger, as well as continue to run regularly.
What is getting me to do this? One, Rachel just finished the class and raved about it, even as she talked about how she was dying afterwards. Two, I tend to watch a lot of videos on youtube by a guy named Paul (www.youtube.com/paulsoaresjr) who primarily plays Minecraft and records his various adventures in the game. During one of his more recent videos, he talked about the Tough Mudder that he participated in. For those who don't know, click on the link. In essence, it's a 10-12 mile run/obstacle course that isn't for the faint of heart.
No, I'm not doing that.
But after talking to Rachel about it, she brought the Warrior Dash, a similar event, just not quite as long. The obstacles are just as daunting however and while looking at it, decided it was something I wanted to attempt before taking on the Tough Mudder, possibly next year. At the time, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to register though because slots were filling up quickly and extra money hasn't exactly been laying around.
That said, as of today, I'm registered for the event on August 26th at 12:30pm. I already know one other person who's going to be participating and there's the possibility that Rachel will sign up as well, although she isn't sure as of this writing.
That's right, I'm going to be running in the Warrior Dash. That's not all though. I don't have a lot of details yet, but I'm going to be raising money for St. Judes as well. The initial goal is to raise $250. How it all works, I'm not sure yet. I have to wait to hear from a representative about that. Once I do I'll have more information up in here as well as on my facebook page.
I figured I wasn't going to be able to donate much, so I'll do this instead and see if people want to help in that manner. $250 is a small amount, but it's a good cause and if I get lucky, I might even be able to raise a little more than that.
At this point, I'm not going to worry about where I finish. I just want to be able to say I finished the event and by the end of next summer, say I finished the Tough Mudder as well.
The next few months are going to be hectic. I can't promise a lot of writing even though I've had a ton of ideas, so there might be moments where a bunch of posts go up at once with a lot of dead time in between.
Look for some sports posts, memory posts, and a couple of really random posts as well in the next few weeks, especially as I get closer to my death, er, dash.
Sites referenced:
Paul's Youtube page
Warrior Dash
Tough Mudder
Minecraft
Before I divulge the details of what I'm going to embark on next month, let me start by saying that I know it's been a while since I've written. Things have been busy and aren't going to slow down in the next few months. I've been working out several times a week, doing things with Rachel on the weekend, and keeping busy other times with various things.
Yesterday began an 8 week fitness class, which should help me prepare for what I'm going to do. It was quite the contrast from what I'd normally do in a workout, but it's also what I need to do. I can run with no issue and lift moderately heavy weights with no issue, but flexibility and overall fitness was something I was concerned with.
After yesterday, I'm convinced that in 8 weeks, I'll be in the best shape of my life. On the days I don't go to the class, I intend to continue with my regular workouts in my attempt to get stronger, as well as continue to run regularly.
What is getting me to do this? One, Rachel just finished the class and raved about it, even as she talked about how she was dying afterwards. Two, I tend to watch a lot of videos on youtube by a guy named Paul (www.youtube.com/paulsoaresjr) who primarily plays Minecraft and records his various adventures in the game. During one of his more recent videos, he talked about the Tough Mudder that he participated in. For those who don't know, click on the link. In essence, it's a 10-12 mile run/obstacle course that isn't for the faint of heart.
No, I'm not doing that.
But after talking to Rachel about it, she brought the Warrior Dash, a similar event, just not quite as long. The obstacles are just as daunting however and while looking at it, decided it was something I wanted to attempt before taking on the Tough Mudder, possibly next year. At the time, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to register though because slots were filling up quickly and extra money hasn't exactly been laying around.
That said, as of today, I'm registered for the event on August 26th at 12:30pm. I already know one other person who's going to be participating and there's the possibility that Rachel will sign up as well, although she isn't sure as of this writing.
That's right, I'm going to be running in the Warrior Dash. That's not all though. I don't have a lot of details yet, but I'm going to be raising money for St. Judes as well. The initial goal is to raise $250. How it all works, I'm not sure yet. I have to wait to hear from a representative about that. Once I do I'll have more information up in here as well as on my facebook page.
I figured I wasn't going to be able to donate much, so I'll do this instead and see if people want to help in that manner. $250 is a small amount, but it's a good cause and if I get lucky, I might even be able to raise a little more than that.
At this point, I'm not going to worry about where I finish. I just want to be able to say I finished the event and by the end of next summer, say I finished the Tough Mudder as well.
The next few months are going to be hectic. I can't promise a lot of writing even though I've had a ton of ideas, so there might be moments where a bunch of posts go up at once with a lot of dead time in between.
Look for some sports posts, memory posts, and a couple of really random posts as well in the next few weeks, especially as I get closer to my death, er, dash.
Sites referenced:
Paul's Youtube page
Warrior Dash
Tough Mudder
Minecraft
Sunday, July 1, 2012
The 2 & 1/2 year-old just licked me
There are times when you're not sure how to title a brief blog post.
Then Payton came over and randomly licked my wrist, therefore solving the issue of what to title this post.
This is just a quick update to let everyone know about some blog ideas that I have for the near future....and I just was licked again by both Rachel and Payton, then tickled relentlessly before running Payton after Rachel and tickling her on the bed.
Now they're painting nails.
Things really happen fast around here sometimes.
Now, where was I?
Oh yeah, blog posts. I will be blogging more about the current Tribe season (at least when I get the chance to watch them), about the Cavs in free agency, and about the Browns training camp. That will cover the sports mixer portion. I'm also going to be blogging about Minecraft and how it's sucked me in, along with a YouTube channel that I have been following for a while about a guy who is very, very good at the game, plays with his wife and kids, and makes even the most mundane video interesting.
I'm limiting work posts to a blog I privately maintain unless it's something I certain won't cause issues.
In terms of memory posts, I have plenty of material to work with, it's just a matter of remembering things and getting the thoughts onto paper so when I write, I have something I can check to make sure I'm getting the story straight.
There will certainly be other posts that come along, especially since a lot has been going on this summer already (can you believe it's already July?), including baseball games, workouts in the park, trips to the pool/beach, trips to Cedar Point, and other summertime activities that we are going to undertake.
This weekend in fact has been an example of how busy things can get. Friday night we went to the Rascal Flatts show (very entertaining show but even more entertaining walk back to the Jeep), Saturday there was an adventurous inventory followed by a nice, long run at night. Today we went for a lengthy walk with Shenzie, I worked out twice, and we both got a run in before the storm hit and Payton came home.
I'm trying to get caught up on all the stuff before I post it, plus post in my pharmacy blog and my latest addition, a blog over at Game Informer that I intend to use more for video game related stuff, which means the video game section on this blog may get replaced with a different section.
I haven't decided yet.
I hope everyone's enjoying their summers and enjoys what I write when I do find time to write.
Now, back to the excitement here.
Then Payton came over and randomly licked my wrist, therefore solving the issue of what to title this post.
This is just a quick update to let everyone know about some blog ideas that I have for the near future....and I just was licked again by both Rachel and Payton, then tickled relentlessly before running Payton after Rachel and tickling her on the bed.
Now they're painting nails.
Things really happen fast around here sometimes.
Now, where was I?
Oh yeah, blog posts. I will be blogging more about the current Tribe season (at least when I get the chance to watch them), about the Cavs in free agency, and about the Browns training camp. That will cover the sports mixer portion. I'm also going to be blogging about Minecraft and how it's sucked me in, along with a YouTube channel that I have been following for a while about a guy who is very, very good at the game, plays with his wife and kids, and makes even the most mundane video interesting.
I'm limiting work posts to a blog I privately maintain unless it's something I certain won't cause issues.
In terms of memory posts, I have plenty of material to work with, it's just a matter of remembering things and getting the thoughts onto paper so when I write, I have something I can check to make sure I'm getting the story straight.
There will certainly be other posts that come along, especially since a lot has been going on this summer already (can you believe it's already July?), including baseball games, workouts in the park, trips to the pool/beach, trips to Cedar Point, and other summertime activities that we are going to undertake.
This weekend in fact has been an example of how busy things can get. Friday night we went to the Rascal Flatts show (very entertaining show but even more entertaining walk back to the Jeep), Saturday there was an adventurous inventory followed by a nice, long run at night. Today we went for a lengthy walk with Shenzie, I worked out twice, and we both got a run in before the storm hit and Payton came home.
I'm trying to get caught up on all the stuff before I post it, plus post in my pharmacy blog and my latest addition, a blog over at Game Informer that I intend to use more for video game related stuff, which means the video game section on this blog may get replaced with a different section.
I haven't decided yet.
I hope everyone's enjoying their summers and enjoys what I write when I do find time to write.
Now, back to the excitement here.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Randomocity
I have been a horrible blogger this year.
I came into the new year with the idea that I would blog more this year. Then I decided once Rachel, Payton, and I were living together, I'd start blogging more. Then I decided once everything was settled in the new apartment I'd start blogging more.
Yeah, see what happened was, I didn't.
Yes, things have been busy. We had to decide where we were going to leave. Then we decided to get a puppy and name her Shenzie. That took time as we had to get her to stop peeing and pooping in the apartment (which has become infinitely easier now that we're on ground floor).
In short, it's been kind of hectic, but not too terribly bad either.
If I wanted to cover everything that's gone on since January, it would take several posts.
I would like to cover it all and get into a regular writing routine (complete with themes for different days like I originally wanted to do), but I'm not going to promise anything. Yes, Rachel has a laptop that I can use, but I don't like sitting on it and using it a lot since it's not mine, and lord knows when I start writing, I can get carried away in a hurry sometimes.
I've had a couple ideas for blogs too recently, so I would like to put those thoughts into words. One was going to be about LeBron James (I know, but I wanted to try to put it all into perspective and not just bash the guy again), another about how animals can bring both joy and heartbreak, and a few other ideas that have popped in my head.
There are of course things to talk about with the sports teams. The Browns just drafted 11 guys and a few are going to be expected to make immediate impacts. The Cavs just finished a difficult, but easier to watch season with Kyrie Irving leading the way (and winning rookie of the year; the way he handled himself this year itself is an entry itself), and the Indians again competing for the division with a good start to the season.
I could write about Minecraft, which I just got into and am admittedly addicted to. It's like playing SimCity and Zelda at the same time. That and watching the Rooster Teeth guys make a hysterical video about it shows how incredible this game can be.
**Intermission**
The video shows what happens when four guys who have never played the game try to take on a guy who has played it and knows what he's doing. In the end, the house the four of them built gets burned down after Gavin decides he's heard enough of their trash talk, gathers some lava, and dumps it on their house while they're not looking.
**End Intermission**
The thing that's scary about Minecraft is I haven't really done much in it, yet I've played for several hours now. In fact, it took forever for me to build my shelter because I kept changing how I wanted it to look, plus it took a minute for me to figure out what to build it with.
Yes, I know. I should be able to figure it out quickly.
But I don't play games a lot anymore, so when I do play, I don't typically have a ton of time to figure things out. I play by the seat of my pants so to speak, which means I died a few times because I didn't understand how the monster system worked, or how to sleep through the night to avoid getting massacred. In fact, it took a while for me to figure out how to make a bed in the first place.
Now I'm fairly deep into the crafting system and have dug a substantial tunnel under my shelter. I intend to keep on digging down until I can't anymore, hit a dungeon, or die.
All in all, things have come together pretty well. Shenzie is now like a normal dog, not completely timid and unsure of what's going on. We did attempt to rescue a puppy that was born unexpectedly at Rachel's work, but sadly, the pups we took did not make it, nor did the other two that were born the same day.
Rachel has been much happier since switching to a new job where the stress level is nothing like the previous job. My mom is much happier since she removed the leech from her home.
As I said, I do want to write more when I get the chance. There are always things going on to talk about and I've always been less stressed (not that I am now mind you) when I'm consistently writing about the things going on through my head.
It's just a matter of writing them out.
I came into the new year with the idea that I would blog more this year. Then I decided once Rachel, Payton, and I were living together, I'd start blogging more. Then I decided once everything was settled in the new apartment I'd start blogging more.
Yeah, see what happened was, I didn't.
Yes, things have been busy. We had to decide where we were going to leave. Then we decided to get a puppy and name her Shenzie. That took time as we had to get her to stop peeing and pooping in the apartment (which has become infinitely easier now that we're on ground floor).
In short, it's been kind of hectic, but not too terribly bad either.
If I wanted to cover everything that's gone on since January, it would take several posts.
I would like to cover it all and get into a regular writing routine (complete with themes for different days like I originally wanted to do), but I'm not going to promise anything. Yes, Rachel has a laptop that I can use, but I don't like sitting on it and using it a lot since it's not mine, and lord knows when I start writing, I can get carried away in a hurry sometimes.
I've had a couple ideas for blogs too recently, so I would like to put those thoughts into words. One was going to be about LeBron James (I know, but I wanted to try to put it all into perspective and not just bash the guy again), another about how animals can bring both joy and heartbreak, and a few other ideas that have popped in my head.
There are of course things to talk about with the sports teams. The Browns just drafted 11 guys and a few are going to be expected to make immediate impacts. The Cavs just finished a difficult, but easier to watch season with Kyrie Irving leading the way (and winning rookie of the year; the way he handled himself this year itself is an entry itself), and the Indians again competing for the division with a good start to the season.
I could write about Minecraft, which I just got into and am admittedly addicted to. It's like playing SimCity and Zelda at the same time. That and watching the Rooster Teeth guys make a hysterical video about it shows how incredible this game can be.
**Intermission**
The video shows what happens when four guys who have never played the game try to take on a guy who has played it and knows what he's doing. In the end, the house the four of them built gets burned down after Gavin decides he's heard enough of their trash talk, gathers some lava, and dumps it on their house while they're not looking.
**End Intermission**
The thing that's scary about Minecraft is I haven't really done much in it, yet I've played for several hours now. In fact, it took forever for me to build my shelter because I kept changing how I wanted it to look, plus it took a minute for me to figure out what to build it with.
Yes, I know. I should be able to figure it out quickly.
But I don't play games a lot anymore, so when I do play, I don't typically have a ton of time to figure things out. I play by the seat of my pants so to speak, which means I died a few times because I didn't understand how the monster system worked, or how to sleep through the night to avoid getting massacred. In fact, it took a while for me to figure out how to make a bed in the first place.
Now I'm fairly deep into the crafting system and have dug a substantial tunnel under my shelter. I intend to keep on digging down until I can't anymore, hit a dungeon, or die.
All in all, things have come together pretty well. Shenzie is now like a normal dog, not completely timid and unsure of what's going on. We did attempt to rescue a puppy that was born unexpectedly at Rachel's work, but sadly, the pups we took did not make it, nor did the other two that were born the same day.
Rachel has been much happier since switching to a new job where the stress level is nothing like the previous job. My mom is much happier since she removed the leech from her home.
As I said, I do want to write more when I get the chance. There are always things going on to talk about and I've always been less stressed (not that I am now mind you) when I'm consistently writing about the things going on through my head.
It's just a matter of writing them out.
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