Wifezilla passed her black belt test last Saturday, but with all the holiday company and hoopla, I'm only now posting about it.
She tested with five other candidates, most of whom started at the same time she did. The exam began with each candidate answering the same series of questions about Taekwondo, with some Korean culture and history thrown in for good measure. After that, the candidates took turns executing a series of movement patterns, sometimes together as a group, other times individually. The funniest moment of the exam was when none of the six knew the announced pattern. They frantically looked at each to see if someone was going to correctly begin it. For the final part of the examination, the candidates had to break four boards: two using two different styles of kicks and one with a clenched fist punch, and the last with their arm, elbow leading.
None of the candidates broke all four boards on the first attempt.
None, that is, except for my wife.
Yes, my cute, little petite wife, who weighs maybe 120 pounds soaking wet, the mother of my two children and mild-mannered middle school orchestra teacher by day, broke all four boards on the first attempt.
I was amazed.
And so proud.
And rightly so. A man twice Wifezilla's size had difficulty breaking some of the boards she so thoroughly destroyed. I was most amazed to see her punch through a board with her little clenched fist. As she explained to me later, she connects the board with her two lead knuckles, but the key lies in putting her shoulders and hips behind the punch. The many who failed to break through the boards with their fist did so because they did not have the weight of their shoulders and hips to power the punch. Master Cho only allows candidates two attempts at the punch because they can easily injure themselves if they don't have the skill and prowess, break bones even.
So Wifezilla is a black belt now. As her teacher said at the end of the examination, her training has only now begun, as there are multiples degrees of black belt to earn. I think I'm as scared of her as I am proud.
But mostly I'm just proud.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Emanee Snags Amani Punisher
In a recent ZA run last week, Emanee finally obtained the Amani Punisher, a huge upgrade for her in terms of raw spell damage power. The boss kill also yielded her enough heroic badges to purchase Orb of the Soul-Eater, one of the finest off-hands available for those who deal shadow damage.
All in all, Emanee saw about a +100 increase to her spell-damage after getting the Amani Punisher enchanted with Soulfrost. She hasn't raided with this new gear yet, but I'm anxious to take her out for a spin now. She's been dancing at top of the threat meters (threat, not damage meters. Emanee is rarely top five for 25 man raids) lately, so I'm curious to see how I manage aggro with all this new damage.
Should be fun.
All in all, Emanee saw about a +100 increase to her spell-damage after getting the Amani Punisher enchanted with Soulfrost. She hasn't raided with this new gear yet, but I'm anxious to take her out for a spin now. She's been dancing at top of the threat meters (threat, not damage meters. Emanee is rarely top five for 25 man raids) lately, so I'm curious to see how I manage aggro with all this new damage.
Should be fun.
Friday, December 28, 2007
300
My Toshiba HD DVD player came packaged with two movies (but no HDMI cable as noted in an earlier post . . . curious, I know), 300 and The Bourne Identity. I sat down this afternoon and rewatched 300 in glorious high definition and enjoyed the movie even more.
With all that increased resolution, I noticed that the Spartan soldiers appear to be as ripped and well-toned as myself. I thought my six-pack the envy of the Houston area, but Gerard Butler definitely gives me a run for my money.
I do concede their superiority in spear thrusting and phalanx maneuvering. I, uh, would likely hurt myself twirling one of those spears or shields around.
Sometime next week I'm going to pop in Sin City and see how the new player handles that cinematic bonanza.
With all that increased resolution, I noticed that the Spartan soldiers appear to be as ripped and well-toned as myself. I thought my six-pack the envy of the Houston area, but Gerard Butler definitely gives me a run for my money.
I do concede their superiority in spear thrusting and phalanx maneuvering. I, uh, would likely hurt myself twirling one of those spears or shields around.
Sometime next week I'm going to pop in Sin City and see how the new player handles that cinematic bonanza.
Black Bars
I was a little freaked out when I first fired up my new HD DVD player. My Comcast (it's Comcraptic!) cable shows HD movies fullscreen, at 1080i. My HD DVD player also shows movies in 1080i, not fullscreen though, but with thin black bars above and below the main picture. I checked my setup to make sure that both my TV and DVD player were configured for 16:9 ratio picture, the standard for today's widescreen sets. They were.
So why the black bars?
Well, I did a bit of research on the Internet and discovered that most theatrical movies are filmed at a 2.3-2.4:1 ratio. That doesn't match the 16:9 ratio of today's widescreen HD TVs, so the bars are needed to depict the actual movie. Without it, the left and the right sides would be cut out of view. When Comcast (it's Comcraptic!) broadcasts theatrical movies in HD fullscreen, they essentially crop the movie to fit the screen so. That's not the end of the world or anything, but good to know when you shuffle between HD cable and HD DVD.
I popped in a regular DVD in a regular DVD player as an experiment to see if I could discern a difference between it and HD DVD. The difference?
Huge.
First off, I estimate the top and bottom black bars on a regular widescreen DVD are more than twice as wide as the HD DVD bars. And the picture resolution is dramatically worse. The difference between regular DVD and HD DVD is at least as great as that between VHS and DVD. Likely greater, when you throw in 1080p and Dobly TrueHD 5.1 support.
And upscaling works spectacularly well. I popped in a regular DVD version of Live Free or Die Hard (great movie, by the way, my favorite of the series) into the HD DVD player, and as promised, it looks almost as good as actual HD formatted DVD. This is a relief, as I have no intention of replacing my current DVD collection. I've also noticed the Blu-ray DVD library seems larger than the HD DVD one, so I'll likely need to rent regular DVDs for those titles that are exclusive to Blu-ray.
So why the black bars?
Well, I did a bit of research on the Internet and discovered that most theatrical movies are filmed at a 2.3-2.4:1 ratio. That doesn't match the 16:9 ratio of today's widescreen HD TVs, so the bars are needed to depict the actual movie. Without it, the left and the right sides would be cut out of view. When Comcast (it's Comcraptic!) broadcasts theatrical movies in HD fullscreen, they essentially crop the movie to fit the screen so. That's not the end of the world or anything, but good to know when you shuffle between HD cable and HD DVD.
I popped in a regular DVD in a regular DVD player as an experiment to see if I could discern a difference between it and HD DVD. The difference?
Huge.
First off, I estimate the top and bottom black bars on a regular widescreen DVD are more than twice as wide as the HD DVD bars. And the picture resolution is dramatically worse. The difference between regular DVD and HD DVD is at least as great as that between VHS and DVD. Likely greater, when you throw in 1080p and Dobly TrueHD 5.1 support.
And upscaling works spectacularly well. I popped in a regular DVD version of Live Free or Die Hard (great movie, by the way, my favorite of the series) into the HD DVD player, and as promised, it looks almost as good as actual HD formatted DVD. This is a relief, as I have no intention of replacing my current DVD collection. I've also noticed the Blu-ray DVD library seems larger than the HD DVD one, so I'll likely need to rent regular DVDs for those titles that are exclusive to Blu-ray.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Brains! Brains!
***Spoiler Alert***
Wife and I went and saw I Am Legend yesterday. I love zombie flicks, so when I saw the ads for this movie, I was sold.
The movie is based on a book by Richard Matheson of the same name. I haven't read the source material so I can't attest to how faithfully the movie depicted the book. But I can testify that I Am Legend had a different zombie vibe than its contemporaries like 28 Days (or Weeks) Later, Dawn of the Dead, or even the comedic Shaun of the Dead. I think maybe the difference stems from increased production values. I Am Legend seemed well-funded and very polished, while other zombie movies of note have that B movie quality that make them as funny as they are scary.
Overall, I enjoyed the movie, even if I found the ending unsatisfying. I recognize the tie-in with the butterfly, but it felt forced and a bit sloppy. I also didn't quite understand why Will Smith felt the need to sacrifice himself. As the woman survivor noted, he could have easily crawled into the hatch with them. Instead, he refuses, making some speech about how that is not his path, or something to that effect. Maybe the book does a better job of explaining how he gets to that point, but in the movie, it didn't synchronize very well with a character that has spend incredible amounts of energy and thinking to survive the apocalypse.
Wife and I went and saw I Am Legend yesterday. I love zombie flicks, so when I saw the ads for this movie, I was sold.
The movie is based on a book by Richard Matheson of the same name. I haven't read the source material so I can't attest to how faithfully the movie depicted the book. But I can testify that I Am Legend had a different zombie vibe than its contemporaries like 28 Days (or Weeks) Later, Dawn of the Dead, or even the comedic Shaun of the Dead. I think maybe the difference stems from increased production values. I Am Legend seemed well-funded and very polished, while other zombie movies of note have that B movie quality that make them as funny as they are scary.
Overall, I enjoyed the movie, even if I found the ending unsatisfying. I recognize the tie-in with the butterfly, but it felt forced and a bit sloppy. I also didn't quite understand why Will Smith felt the need to sacrifice himself. As the woman survivor noted, he could have easily crawled into the hatch with them. Instead, he refuses, making some speech about how that is not his path, or something to that effect. Maybe the book does a better job of explaining how he gets to that point, but in the movie, it didn't synchronize very well with a character that has spend incredible amounts of energy and thinking to survive the apocalypse.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
The Witcher
Well, I've finished The Witcher's prologue and am just starting chapter one. I have to say, I am as impressed as I am pleasantly surprised.
First off, ignore the criticism directed at the game's engine. Yes, it's an iteration of Bioware's Aurora engine, but I can tell CDProjekt tweaked it because The Witcher looks hands down better than Netherwinter Nights 2. Along with some graphic upgrades, CDProjekt scrapped the D&D gameplay and created their own combat and leveling system. Even though NWN2 and The Witcher share a game engine, they play like entirely unrelated games.
Secondly, the game has an interesting and compelling story, even if it is set in a conventional fantasy world. The game's world is based on a best-selling book series in Poland, which gives the game its depth and feel. For the first time in a long time, I can honestly say I know what's going on with the game's story, I understand why I'm performing the quests I'm performing, and I am anxious to finish them to unravel more of the plot.
Thirdly, combat is cool. You have three styles of fighting, strong, fast, and group. You have to alternate between the three to effectively fight different opponents. For instance, I found myself pitted against a dexterous bandit. I had my style set to strong and discovered quickly that I wasn't landing blows. I switched to the fast style and cut him down in short order. In addition to styles, you have the opportunity to unlock second and finish moves depending on how quickly you can left click on your opponent. While fighting, your cursor flashes a flaming sword. If you click at that exact time, Geralt executes a second move, dealing extra damage. If you complete that maneuver, the cursor may flash again, allowing Geralt to perform a finishing move for even more damage. It's a fun system and adds a certain frantic element to the combat.
The game does suffer from a poor translation. Dialogue mostly sounds odd and stilted, and occasionally wanders into the realm of "wtf?????" But despite the mangling of the English language, the story shines through loud and clear. I think it helps that Geralt, your witcher avatar, is a pre-generated character. This allows the developers to write dialogue with just that character in mind which gives them the power to tell a more detailed and focused story. Self-generated characters are nice, but don't allow developers the same ability to include the character within the larger story, at least not in such an intimate and detailed way.
And the world has amazing depth. I stepped into the local inn, and amid the sparse patrons milling around, I could hear punches being traded. I followed the sound, turning a corner, and happened upon a ring of men surrounding two other men fist-fighting. They broke from each other and fell into the ring when I stepped forward and questioning one of the men allowed me the opportunity to fight for money. I set my wager and quickly trounced my opponent (it helped that his name was "weakling fist-fighter." Fighting for money has nothing to do with the main quest line, or even a meager side quest, but it was a cool detail that added some texture and realism to the game world. It was also comically disturbing having one of the fist-fighters comment to me that my mother performed fellatio on a dwarf.
I know the game has attracted some press regarding it mature content, but the game is an outstanding debut and I'm looking forward to seeing more games from CDProjekt in the future.
First off, ignore the criticism directed at the game's engine. Yes, it's an iteration of Bioware's Aurora engine, but I can tell CDProjekt tweaked it because The Witcher looks hands down better than Netherwinter Nights 2. Along with some graphic upgrades, CDProjekt scrapped the D&D gameplay and created their own combat and leveling system. Even though NWN2 and The Witcher share a game engine, they play like entirely unrelated games.
Secondly, the game has an interesting and compelling story, even if it is set in a conventional fantasy world. The game's world is based on a best-selling book series in Poland, which gives the game its depth and feel. For the first time in a long time, I can honestly say I know what's going on with the game's story, I understand why I'm performing the quests I'm performing, and I am anxious to finish them to unravel more of the plot.
Thirdly, combat is cool. You have three styles of fighting, strong, fast, and group. You have to alternate between the three to effectively fight different opponents. For instance, I found myself pitted against a dexterous bandit. I had my style set to strong and discovered quickly that I wasn't landing blows. I switched to the fast style and cut him down in short order. In addition to styles, you have the opportunity to unlock second and finish moves depending on how quickly you can left click on your opponent. While fighting, your cursor flashes a flaming sword. If you click at that exact time, Geralt executes a second move, dealing extra damage. If you complete that maneuver, the cursor may flash again, allowing Geralt to perform a finishing move for even more damage. It's a fun system and adds a certain frantic element to the combat.
The game does suffer from a poor translation. Dialogue mostly sounds odd and stilted, and occasionally wanders into the realm of "wtf?????" But despite the mangling of the English language, the story shines through loud and clear. I think it helps that Geralt, your witcher avatar, is a pre-generated character. This allows the developers to write dialogue with just that character in mind which gives them the power to tell a more detailed and focused story. Self-generated characters are nice, but don't allow developers the same ability to include the character within the larger story, at least not in such an intimate and detailed way.
And the world has amazing depth. I stepped into the local inn, and amid the sparse patrons milling around, I could hear punches being traded. I followed the sound, turning a corner, and happened upon a ring of men surrounding two other men fist-fighting. They broke from each other and fell into the ring when I stepped forward and questioning one of the men allowed me the opportunity to fight for money. I set my wager and quickly trounced my opponent (it helped that his name was "weakling fist-fighter." Fighting for money has nothing to do with the main quest line, or even a meager side quest, but it was a cool detail that added some texture and realism to the game world. It was also comically disturbing having one of the fist-fighters comment to me that my mother performed fellatio on a dwarf.
I know the game has attracted some press regarding it mature content, but the game is an outstanding debut and I'm looking forward to seeing more games from CDProjekt in the future.
December Guild NameZzZzZz of the Month
Pit of Infamy
--LeGeNDZ--
I don't usually kick a dead horse, but I'm making an exception this time because my fellow guildees and I have gotten so much mileage out of this guild's name, I'd be remiss if I didn't include it.
Not too long ago, --LeGeNDZ-- was a horde raiding guild on the rise, quickly conquering 25 man content at what appeared at the time to be a record pace. But within a couple months of forming, the guild suddenly imploded from within--personality conflicts I'd imagine. From day one, the guild became the object of derision, not for its talent or raiding prowess, but for the exclusive capitalization of its moniker's consonants and the replacement of its "s" with a "z." It's probably for the best that --LeGeNDZ-- burned out, but I really do miss making fun of their name.
Any chance they'll get back together?
Beacon of Reasoned Judgement
--WTB Good Guild Name, PST--
I looked far and wide for a worthy December Beacon of Reasoned Judgement guild title, but came back empty-handed. The truth is, most of the guild names out there belong in the Pit of Infamy category. Here's hoping the new year sees the advent some good guild names.
--LeGeNDZ--
I don't usually kick a dead horse, but I'm making an exception this time because my fellow guildees and I have gotten so much mileage out of this guild's name, I'd be remiss if I didn't include it.
Not too long ago, --LeGeNDZ-- was a horde raiding guild on the rise, quickly conquering 25 man content at what appeared at the time to be a record pace. But within a couple months of forming, the guild suddenly imploded from within--personality conflicts I'd imagine. From day one, the guild became the object of derision, not for its talent or raiding prowess, but for the exclusive capitalization of its moniker's consonants and the replacement of its "s" with a "z." It's probably for the best that --LeGeNDZ-- burned out, but I really do miss making fun of their name.
Any chance they'll get back together?
Beacon of Reasoned Judgement
--WTB Good Guild Name, PST--
I looked far and wide for a worthy December Beacon of Reasoned Judgement guild title, but came back empty-handed. The truth is, most of the guild names out there belong in the Pit of Infamy category. Here's hoping the new year sees the advent some good guild names.
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