January 2, 2007

Finally! (got my Wii)

Geoff and  finally found a Wii this morning. I called a bunch of places in the morning, and Shopko had just received 15 consoles.

I have to say, I am loving it. The new way of controlling the games does not seem contrived at all - it feels natural and works pretty well. There could be improvements- I would wager that eventually remotes will contain gyroscopic sensors rather than an infrared one- but the sensitivity is pretty good.

I hope this changes games for the better. Geoff and I went to Best Buy yesterday (looking for a Wii, of course) and found stacks of PS3's, but no Wii's. The PS3 isn't a bad thing to get if you want a Blu-Ray player, but I think that the Wii shows a trend towards making games that are fun and playable and not just filled with pretty graphics. Wii sports is a perfect example- it's not pretty to look at (in fact, it's downright ugly) but it's *fun*. In the end, I can deal with less than stellar graphics, if the game is fun and (because, I admit, I'm a lazy gamer) not too hard. So many games are so frustrating they give me a headache to play. Who needs that?

I had a hard time finding games I liked on the PS2. There were lots, don't get me wrong, but I just kept thinking "there has GOT to be something better!"

Now there's the Wii.

My console # is 6707-6597-1874-1585 - if you've got one, let me know your #.

PS - I also got a kick out of surfing the web on my console. Fun!

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Posted by Karin Dalziel on January 2, 2007 11:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

January 3, 2007

Eating healthy *is* more expensive - but it's so worth it.

I read this post today with interest:

Americans Aren�t Fat Because They Lack Willpower; They�re Fat Because They�re Broke

I have no doubt that there is some truth to this: travel to an Indian reservation that is not well off financially, and you'll see it. Many overweight people, few grocery stores and tons of McDonalds. It's a vicious circle- the poor have to work more, and so have less time to prepare healthy foods. Even if they do have the time, healthy foods are more expensive. However, they're not THAT much more expensive. In the article, she says it'll cost $30 to buy the fixings for a salad, and $5 to eat at McDonalds. She must make some awesome salads- I just spent $35 on groceries that will make up the bulk of my husband and my food for the week, and that's including salad. She also says that veggies only last  for two or three days in the fridge. Mine always last longer (lettuce I have chopped and spun in the salad spinner will last a week and a half, usually.) She also ignores the relative cheapness of frozen vegetables.

I don't think you need to spend $900 a month as she says to be healthy. You also don't need to spend all your waking hours in an organic garden (although growing your own herbs goes a long way towards making better food)- you just need to be creative.

It helps to live somewhere warm, but not miserably warm, year round. You're more likely to want to go outside and exercise if it's not 0 or 100 degrees. It helps to have a partner that has the same goals as you and will push you when you're bad, and won't be mad if you push them. It helps to have a job that requires some activity.

Making your lunch does help a lot. After a while, you get so efficient, it only take 20 minutes or so, which saves you time the next day so you can do something fun on your lunch break (read, take a walk, play a video game). I hate it when I'm lazy and don't make my lunch anymore- I either throw something together in the morning, which invariably is no good, or I run out and grab something, which is usually not much better. When I take a little time the night before, I can make something I look forward to eating all day and have some time to relax during lunch. Or time to do homework.

I've been slipping lately- not making my lunch, running out and grabbing dinner. All the holiday food doesn't help (our fridge is full of crap, I need to go through and throw it all out). The post reminded me that when I put a little effort into it, I love eating, and I eat better.

I'm still working on the exercise thing. Lately I've been dancing like a maniac - no one's allowed to watch me, I look like an idiot, but it's FUN. I would love to take a class or two - now that I have paid off my undergrad student loans (just did it today- woo!) I might splurge and enroll in something. I miss the nice weather- Geoff and I were riding our bikes, walking, occasionally even roller blading until it got too fucking cold. I'm not walking to work anymore (currently it'd be difficult, the sidewalks are still ice in the morning) so I'm not getting even that exercise. I wonder if I'll ever be able to live somewhere with nice weather and live within walking distance to work? Probably not, that's the trade off. Damn.

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Posted by Karin Dalziel on January 3, 2007 8:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa

I found out that at Christmas at my Grandparents (which I was, unfortunately, not at) they announced that they are selling their farm land and will be giving their grandkids and kids a bit of money. When I say a bit, I mean "holy crap, that's a lot of money!" (That was my reaction when I heard, anyway) It would be enough to almost cover the part of my master's that my scholarship isn't covering: but since I am working full time, I already have that covered. So I was thinking, what could I do with the money? I know my grandparents wanted it used for something education related.

Then it hit me- I could study abroad! I've always wanted to, but boohooed the idea because it's just too expensive. I've since expanded my thinking a bit- it doesn't have to be abroad, but I could do my practicum anywhere. I hope to find something that will not only look great on a resume, but will teach me a lot. Wouldn't working at the Institute for the Future of the Book be great? Or the National Archives? Or the Center for History and New Media? Or some library in another country?

Of course, all of these are long shots. I'm going to start putting the word out so hopefully I can find something good. I'm excited, though- this will be fun! I'm looking at the summer of 2008, so I've got a little time.

The more time goes on, the more I marvel at the turn my life has taken. I never could have predicted this. I am thrilled. And I am so excited about my new career.

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Posted by Karin Dalziel on January 3, 2007 10:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 14, 2007

New hipster PDA templates

I have created a new template for my Hipster PDA. Download Karin's color coded Hipster PDA templates (PDF format). These are for 3x5 index cards.

I will eventually make a page devoted to the template, but there's just the files for now.

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Posted by Karin Dalziel on January 14, 2007 11:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 25, 2007

Free Kittens (please oh please)

Everyone who reads this, please ask around and see if anyone would like one or two friendly kittens.

A little background- we first saw the kittens in our yard about 4 months ago. They were with their mama then. Since then, mama has left (though we sill see her around occasionally) and the kittens are using our yard as their home.

While I don't really mind them being there (after all, they are adorable and friendly and oh so cute when they play in the snow) I am worried for their safety. This morning Monkey (yeah, we named them) tried to follow me across 27th street (one of the busiest streets in town) when I left for work. He was very nearly hit by a van. He likes to get behind our cars when we leave as well- we're really careful, but I'm so afraid one day I will run him over.

Stray Kittens on the porch

you can see more pictures of the kittens here:

http://flickr.com/photos/nirak/tags/straykittens/

Please pass this along to anyone you know that may want a cat or two. We will pay for the initial shots and fixing.

Thanks!

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Posted by Karin Dalziel on January 25, 2007 1:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 28, 2007

Me in Second Life

I finally spent some time in Second Life today, after I realized that they have a Linux version. I visited the libraries, of course. The art galleries are pretty neat, and I even found somewhere I could get free wings.

I held out for a long time, partly because I was afraid of spending too much time there. I was right, it's addicting.

I changed my avatar quite a bit, but settled on the blank black look from XX/XY (and the Rub Rabbits) for the DS. I've been playing it a lot lately.

Second Life: Black and white wings.

See more screen shots here. I think my favorite part is taking screen shots!

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Posted by Karin Dalziel on January 28, 2007 8:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)