Mods and Ends

Chelsea and I moved from Las Vegas to Moscow, ID recently for me to attend school. After nine months of single bedroom upartments, we’ve upgraded to a two bedroom and I currently have a whole room dedicated to my computer and school projects. I made the monitor stand for my 28″ monitor out of a Ikea lack shelf that I ikeahacked. The keyboard fits underneath so I can use the desk for other things. The stand also raises the monitor to the ideal viewing height, which is 1/3 above eye level, 2/3 below. In the future I will probably get another drafting table like the one my computer is on and get rid of the folding table. It’s not level and drives me nuts when cutting mats on it. I want to build a couch at some point and when that happens I’ll move the dresser into a closet somewhere else in the apartment. All in all, though,  I love my room and my desk area.

Before some much needed under-desk cable management.

And after!

The cables, now hidden.

Non-computing work area.

The computer, subwoofer, and our favorite Valve gnome.

The computer, and all five posters for Left 4 Dead framed!

Decorate your office for:

Left 4 Dead Posters - $15 for four

22 x 28 inch Poster Frames - $10 each at Michaels

Crescent matboard 32 x 40″ Photo Gray - $6.79 each (you’ll need four)

Total cost - $82.16 + S&H

I use a Dexter Mat Cutter to cut my mats and I love it. After just a little practice you get superb mats at a fraction of the cost.

The posters come with simulated wear and tear. After cutting the matboard to size I decided to extend that wear onto the mats with some small sculpting chisels. The result is a completely custom look that fits the prints perfectly.

The final result looks like this. Nice!

Ah, what a nice birthday. I’ve spent most of my day doing homework, but I’m okay with that because it’s been a very productive day. I feel bad for Chelsea. She worked all day and then dropped me off for my late class and then picked me up when it was over. We had a ‘get to know you’ appointment with the bishop. He asked us who we knew from our last ward. We had been in there for almost three months, but we didn’t know a single person. I think he could tell that we’ve gotten used to not feeling like we belong. We’ve moved so much since getting married that it’s hard to feel any lasting connection to anything. After our interview we went to Wingers and got dinner. And since it is my birthday, the dessert was free. Well, we had to endure ten seconds of them clapping and shouting at me, but I think that quantifies to being less than the $6 dessert. I got some really great presents too. Chelsea got me Make Magazine: the 4th Year, a Landon Pigg CD, an Ender’s Game comic, the Thabto Mugg (its handle is brass knuckles), and a Nintendo 64 to replace my broken one. My parents got me money, which is always appreciated. My older brother David preordered Left 4 Dead 2 for me. That was the most surprising gift. I’m pretty pumped for that. If I had one wish for my birthday it would have been for Chelsea and I to not be sick anymore and to have had the day off to spend with her. This weekend I am going to do something extra special for her. She deserves it.

Chelsea and I lived in Las Vegas for three months. We don’t drink, smoke, or gamble. Vegas is a pretty filthy place because people go there to drink, smoke, and gamble. There is, however, more to Vegas than gambling and not-so-veiled prostitution. That’s why I made list of the things you can do in Vegas that don’t have to stay there for you to keep your marriage or job.

Mystere $$$/++

Mystere is Cirque Du Soleil’ s first show, but it barely shows its age. Chelsea and I went to see this show and loved it. This show is appropriate for all ages and I would definitely see it again if given the opportunity. If you are in Vegas and don’t know what to do. See this. It does cost a little bit of money. Chelsea and I got our tickets at one of the “1/2 price show ticket” booths. These booths are legit, and your tickets are usually around half off. The good shows go quick, but this one was usually available.

Phantom of the Opera $$$/+

Here’s another great show on the strip. It’s not as good as it is on Broadway, but it is definitely high quality. Sadly, this is pretty expensive as well. If you have  a choice of seeing it in Vegas, or seeing it later on Broadway, I would go with Broadway. It will be a better show and probably cost less for the tickets. Las Vegas attracts people who are willing to waste their money, so they overcharge for a lot of things. This is one of them.

Blue Man Group $$$/+++

I went with my mom to Vegas a few years ago on business. While we were there we saw Blue Man Group at the Venetian. The show is incredible. My mom says it’s one of the best times she’s ever had. I’ve seen Blue Man Group in Seattle, New York, Las Vegas, and Chicago. The show will make you laugh out loud no matter who you are. It is a complete sensory overload. The tickets were $120 a piece (third row near center), but my mom says it was worth every penny. I didn’t pay that time, but I’ve paid to see them on other occasions and would probably go again at another one of their venues. If you have one expensive thing to do in Vegas, make it Blue Man Group.

Penn and Teller $$/-

I can’t recommend this show. I love magic and I love humor. Penn and Teller have both. What Penn also has is a problem separating his personal beliefs from his professional career. Penn is an atheist, which is totally fine with me. I think people should have a right to believe whatever they want. However, Penn makes a point of sharing this belief with you throughout the show. Did I mention it’s a magic show? He uses God’s name in vain just to offend those that might believe in a God, and explains that magic is completely fake and that religion is the same way for the same reasons. He shows how a few tricks work, and then says that religion employs similar methods as used in magic to deceive people. In the end it is downright offensive. I came to see magic, good magic. I paid money to see good magic. I didn’t pay money to have another person’s beliefs shoved down my throat for an hour and a half. Penn and Teller’s show is the best. I’ve seen other shows and I can tell you how most of the tricks work. I have no clue how two of Penn and Teller’s tricks work. Sadly, I cannot recommend the show. It’s not family friendly, it’s offensive, and it’s unprofessional. Go see something else.

New York New York Roller Coaster $$/–

There’s a roller coaster outside the casino. It costs $14 per person to ride it once. At the other end of the strip at Circus Circus is the world’s largest indoor themepark. It will cost ~$35 to get an all day pass for everything there and their roller coaster is better, so skip this waste of money and go there instead.

Adventuredome at Circus Circus $$/++

5 aces of indoor theme park. It’s a little low quality (typical fair rides), but there are a few bigger attractions. The overall feel is that of being at Six Flags. Chelsea and I used our library card (has to be a Las Vegas card) to get our wristbands for $25 total. I think they are ~$25 per person normally. That said, there’s plenty to do to stay entertained for several hours. Compared to other things in Vegas, this is a good value. If you have kids, then go to Disneyland. If you insist on going to Vegas for vacation, go to Circus Circus and let them play in the Adventuredome all day.

Pinball Hall of Fame $/+++

About three miles down Tropicana Ave from the strip is the Pinball Hall of Fame. If you don’t have a car it will cost you a $20 cab ride to get there. You could also take public transit, which is pretty good in Vegas. The Pinball Hall of Fame is pretty cheap. Most games are 50 cents with some older games at a quarter. The problem  most people have with arcades is that they think it costs too much, but most people don’t realize that for the same $10 you are going to spend on a movie ticket you can play an hours worth of pinball. Few people put the investment in to get good enough at it to get your money’s worth from it. It’s really a museum of sorts, but you get to play on all the museum pieces. I’m glad that for all the garbage in Vegas, there’s gems like this. If you are in Vegas, go to the Pinball Hall of Fame. It’s the local secret you won’t regret. On top of that, there’s a cheap theater right next to it. Nice!

Fountains at the Belagio Free/+++

There’s something that happens when you watch fireworks. Your brain activity changes as you forget about the people around you and get pulled into the moment. The same is true for the Bellagio fountains. Every 15-30 minutes a show of water and light plays out on the strip. The realy amazing thing about this is that it is art. It communicates at an emotional level. Other casinos have free outdoor shows that are trashy (Treasure Island) or, at best, kitsch (The Mirage). The Bellagio manages to create a public art piece, and kinetic sculpture timed to music. There are several different shows a day. Chelsea and I tried to see at least one every time we were on the strip. Skip the pirates and the volcanoes, if you want a free show that is actually worth your money, stay for the Bellagio Fountains all day long.

Gameworks $$/++

It seems we have all but seen the death of the arcade, and it is too bad. The big issue with arcades is that people feel they can’t get their money’s worth. They figure, “I can gamble for a few hours on $40. I’ll run out of money at the arcade before then.” Gameworks uses cards with a credit system. You can pay for unlimited use for a certain amount of time, or you can pay for credits. The more credits you buy at a time, the less each credit costs. Chelsea and I love arcades. I’m not sure why. I love video games and there is something about the atmosphere of a good arcade that really appeals to me. Gameworks is on the strip, so you should be able to walk there if you are vacationing. They have many movement simulator adaptaions of popular arcade standards as well as new games that will really impress you.  If you want to keep the arcade alive, make sure to spend $10 at Gameworks.

There are other things to do in Vegas if you live there. If you live in Vegas and think you have done it all, leave a comment. I’ll tell you some of the secrets I learned while living there.

Sometimes we are sad when we reach the end of something. I went on tour with Vocal Union this past spring and I really didn’t want it to end. I love to sing and I loved the people I was with. Las Vegas is a different story. Vegas is all about things Chelsea and I don’t do; drinking, smoking, gambling, having sex with any willing participant that meets some minimum standard . . . It’s just not for us. To say goodbye, let’s just have one last look at the apartment. The AC didn’t work so good. You had to keep it on 24/7 to keep the apartment at a bearable 80 degrees. The doorknob was often to hot to touch. We opened it by turning the key. We also had a cockraoches, no matter how clean we kept the apartment. All that said, we did our best to call it home.

Our bedroom.

With walk in closet

The bathroom.

The kitchen

The living room.

We got this couch in Vegas at a swap meet, or “the Mexican Mall” as all the Mexican guys at work called it. It cost $50. I wanted to haggle. Chelsea said the lady needed the money to buy new teeth.

Goodbye 1476 Living Desert Drive #89. You were perfectly adequete for the rent we paid, but we will not miss you.

I was just a one of my favorite websites when I saw that the PowerPak on sale for $125 instead of its regular $135. I got one of these little devices a year ago and I love. In essense it is just an NES cartrige, except for one little thing, instead of having a single game on it, it can have as many as you like. All you have to do is put your legally backed up NES games on a compact flash card, put that card in the PowerPak, and stick it in your NES. Retro gaming couldn’t be more perfect. Other sites have gone into more depth on the device, so I won’t here, but I will say this. I waited for two years, checking the site about once every week or so, until one became available and I snatched it up as quick as I could. Don’t wait to get one. It’s worth it.

There is one other reason why I bring this up now. I recently purchased three NES clone systems, and soon I will be building three different portable NES systems from the clones. I can’t wait to get back to my tools and modding supplies.

Forthcoming/Current projects:

• GlaDos speakers
• Portable NES laptop
• Portable NES in an NES controller - idea
• NES in an old Gameboy
• Steampunk gaming headset
• Couch of Boom! (Couch with three 8″ subs, two bass shakers, and one transducer built in)

The couch will cost about $750 to build, so I will have to save for that one. The NES mods should be less than $100 for all the combined. The GlaDos speakers just need a little TLC and time to be complete (they sound great by the way. I love listening to music with them and encourage anyone to copy or adapt my build). The steampunk headphones will cost about $250, and will feature a built in tube amp.

Las Vegas presents Chelsea and I with some opportunities we may not have again. A few weeks ago we went and saw Mystere, a Cirque Du Soleil show at the Treasure Island resort and casino. The show was really spectacular. Mind blowing in a lot of ways. I would recommend anyone of any age to see it. I would also recommend Blue Man Group if you are ever in Vegas or anywhere that Blue Man Group plays. The bad thing about living here now is that Chelsea and I are very poor at the moment. I am unemployed, and nobody wants to hire someone who is going to be gone in six weeks when I move again. The good this is, though, there are also some very free (or extremely inexpensive) things to do as well.

Last Saturday Chelsea and I got up and went to MotorCars of Las Vegas. They are the only authorized seller of the Shelby Super Cars (SSC) Ultimate Aero, the world’s fastest production automobile. The showroom location is pretty far from the strip, which means that idiot gawkers like me probably don’t show up very often to look at the cars. Chelsea and I showed up and asked if we could look around and take some pictures for my website. I was happy to hear that it was fine and Tom Brazill, general manager gave me his card and asked if we had any questions. I asked if they had an Aero, but he said they all sell before they ever make it to the showroom. As it turns out, Tom is a good friend of Jarod Shelby, owner of SSC. Tom was there when the record was broken and the SSC officially became the world’s fastest production car.

To be honest, I am not a car guy, but because the record was broken in West Richland, WA (my backyard), where SSC is located, and because I love to see people pursuing their dreams and succeeding, the excitement of that record breaking moment burned inside me. I could tell by Tom’s excitement that it was a moment he wouldn’t forget, and one he loved to relive by telling others about it. I was grateful for the opportunity.

After talking to Tom Chelsea and I walked around and she took my picture in front of a Bugatti Veyron, the world’s 2nd fastest production car. It was pretty cool. A sign said not to touch. I debated asking Tom if I couldn’t get inside a few of the cars, but didn’t want to take advantage of his generosity. We were there about fifteen minutes before heading off for the rest of the day’s activities.

Chelsea said she liked the doors on this Lamborghini. She called them, “very ’80’s.”

After looking at cars, Chelsea and I headed off to Lake Mead for a hike.  The previous day’s search at trails.com located Lake Mead: Railroad Tunnel Trail. The trail is pretty easy since it was the rail line used to bring supplies for building the Hoover Dam. There are five small tunnels, which are decent checkpoints and distance markers in the hike. They also provide much needed shade from the hundred degree sun. Out and back through the tunnels is five miles, but if you stay on the trail it will take you out to the Hoover Dam, and will be a ~7-7.5 mile hike, which is not bad. Chelsea and I decided to go all the way to the dam.

Chelsea in front of two short tunnels.

Some views from the trail. Don’t notice my fly check.

After you pass through all five tunnels, a sign informs you that you are entering government property, and asks that you stay on the trail. You will eventually see signs telling you that anywhere not on the trail is restricted. Fun. The closer you get to the dam, the more evidence you see of a nearby power station. The trail gives you a free backstage tour.

Copy the image source and open it in a new tab to see this one full size. You could hear the buzz and hum of pure energy flowing through the wires. It was pretty cool.

It wasn’t long before we were there. If you are ever at the Hoover Dam and wonder where these stairs go at the top of the parking garage, don’t follow them. It will be a few miles.

Chels and I on the dam. You can’t really see the dam, so this could have been taken anywhere.

Some more dam pictures.

Those driving over the dam don’t actually get to see what they are driving on. This new bridge should help.

Proof that at least Chelsea made it all the way to the dam.

The hike was totally worth it, and the Hoover Dam was a pretty good reward for the miles under our feet. However, I don’t see how anyone could ever feel this is a place worth driving to and spending money on. Tours are ridiculously expensive, and from what I’m told, you have to pay to drive over the dam and to park. Lame. I’m glad Chelsea and I went, and I wouldn’t have done it any other way than hiking.

So, after a long hike, what do you do? Chelsea and I decided that Lake Mead would be a good place to rest our tired feet. We both went completely under in the lake, and I swam while Chelsea read a book on the beach.

Someone needs a diet, and it’s not the girl.

The day was great, and we still had Monday for fun! By Monday I had decided to drive down to San Diego and get an Aprilia RS50 that I found on craigslist. I purchesed the bike and took it to the shop on Tuesday. It’s still there now. It needed some work. I need to go get it titled and registered in NV, which I think also means me getting a Nevada drivers license, which is nothing more than a proof of residency and an eye test. After that I will have transportation. I have a really great paint job in mind too, but that will have to wait a while. Pictures of the bike to come soon.

My last post was a quick report that Chelsea and I went to Disneyland, and gave a list of all the attractions we were able to see. Hopefully this will be a little more exciting.

Here’s a picture of Chelsea before we left.

Here’s Mad Greek Gyros in Baker, CA on the way to Disneyland. I saw it on the food network and just had to eat there. The food is really expensive for what it is. That said, the gyro was really really good. The strawberry shake tasted like garbage.

While in Disneyland I met Ryan for the first time. We have been online friends for seven years. We met at junkmachine, owned by Tim Wasson who was featured on Tech TV with his NES PC. Ryan and I became friends with our mutual interest in old school gaming. Ryan started Old School Systems when Tim sold junkmachine and we became better friends there. When Old School Systems died, I started this site and Ryan started Original D, a really great Disneyland website. It was cool to meet someone in person that you have known for a long time online. Not only that, but Ryan and his friends were really cool guys and hung out with me and my family. I’ll make sure we have a meet up every time I go to Disneyland from now on. It was great.

The rest of these are in no particular order.

Chels and I on Tom Sawyer Island.

They’ve added some Pirates of the Caribbean elements to the island that makes it a lot of fun.

A picture of us on Hollywood Twilight Tower of Terror. Row 2, left to right: My mom, dad, sister, and Ryan’s friend Matt. Row 1, left to right: Me, Chelsea, Ryan, and Ryan’s friend Tim.

All of us waiting in line for Toy Story: Midway Mania.

Chelsea with Minnie Mouse.

Here’s Chelsea on the Storybook Land ride. This ride is really cool if you love horticulture and miniatures. The plants are all real, including many bonsai trees that are over 150 years old. It really is amazing.

Chelsea on the Mad Hatter Teacups. You really can’t spin that fast, but it’s still fun.

Chelsea pretending to ride the Dumbo ride. We never really went on this one.

Here’s the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. This was my favorite ride as a kid. Now, I’m not really sure where it is on the list.

Here’s the entrance to Pirates of the Caribbean. I’m pretty sure this is my favorite ride. The updates aren’t offensive like Enchanted Tiki Room: Under New Management was. It’s mostly original. I love it.

They have a million versions of these hats now. When I was little all of them were black. You could pay to have your name sewn into the back. It was done by hand in yellow thread. Ah, memories.

A shot of the castle. This one is Sleeping Beauty’s Snow White’s I think, and Cinderella’s is in Disney World, but I’m not sure. [EDIT] I know this one is Aurora’s, or Sleeping Beauty, because of the self guided storybook tour inside of that story. Thank Ryan for pointing out my error in writing the more easily remembered name of another princess who is also cast under an evil spell only to awake from true love’s kiss. I really knew who’s castle it was and meant Aurora even when I typed Snow White. Oh well. Haha.

Chelsea in front of a fake street. The effect is pretty convincing.

Chelsea and I on the train. It was fun and a quick way around the park.

Some pictures of us on Autopia. The ride is not as good once you can legally drive. It was pretty good when I was little though.

Finally we have some pics of ASIMO in the Innoventions discovery area. I thought the demonstration was too scripted. I would have liked to see an audience member give him a command, and I would have liked to see him get pushed to see how well he recovers. As it was, it was too hard to tell which stuff was just pre-programmed movement/speech and what was actually calculated by ASIMO.

Chelsea and I left Las Vegas around 4:00 and drove to Anaheim for the weekend. We checked into the hotel around 8:30 and got to the park around 9:00. We stayed until midnight Friday, for the full sixteen hours the park was open on Saturday, and for seven and a half hours on Sunday. Here’s a list of all the things we did.

Autopia
Mad Tea Party
Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Indiana Jones Adventure (x2)
Matterhorn Bobsleds (both tracks)
Space Mountain (x3)
Splash Mountain (x2)
We met Minnie Mouse on Mainstreet USA
Innoventions
Main Street Cinema
Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough
Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Enchanted Tiki Room
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Haunted Mansion
Jungle Cruise
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
Pirates of the Caribbean (x2)
Snow White’s Scary Adventures
“it’s a small world”
Pinocchio’s Daring Journey
Storybook Land Canal Boats
Disneyland Railroad (transportation)
Fire Engine (transportation)
Billy Hill & The Hillbillies
Jedi Training Academy
“Remember… Dreams Come True” Fireworks Spectacular

California Screamin’ (x2)
Grizzly River Run
Soarin’ Over California
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (x3)
Walt Disney Imagineering Blue Sky Cellar
Muppet Vision 3D
Toy Story Mania! (x2)
Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!
Disney’s Aladdin - A Musical Spectacular
Turtle Talk with Crush

To some, that may look like we did a whole lot with our time. To others, it may look like we didn’t get a whole lot done. That said, we only had about 26 hours in the park and we did 48 things. How did we do it? Well, I have a a few tips for getting around and doing all the things you want to do while in Disneyland.

1. Do some research and make a plan.
Make a list of the rides you want to go on most, and the ones you would like to go on if you get the chance. Make sure you are flexible as well. Anyone who has been to Disneyland knows that a good ride sequence would go some thing like this: Splash Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones Adventure. The rides are in the same part of the park and are in that order when walking. If you want to go on all the mountains in Disneyland, you will waste a lot of time walking from one side of the park to the other trying to get to them. You will waste a lot time and walking if you try to go from Space Mountain to Splash Mountain to The Matterhorn to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Make sure you know that before you go.

2. Go with a small group.
I can’t tell you how much better it is when your group is small. You will do so much more. You can get in and out of the larger, slower walking groups much more easily, and you have fewer wants to meet. Larger groups means more bathroom stops, more food stand stops, and more waiting in line so you can all ride together. When you say you have a group of eight, they will stop you at the front of the line and fish the two or three person groups ahead of you and onto the ride. You may only wait two or three minutes more when that happens, but multiply that by ten rides and you have missed out on something else you could have been doing.

3. Learn how to get around.
The map you pick up at the entrance will show you that there is a center hub, and to get to one area of the park to the other, you should go through that hub near the castle. The map is a bit of a liar. If the line is short, the train is a good way to get around. It comes every five minutes and takes you to all parts of the magic kingdom. There are also many secret paths that are much more direct than back out to the center of the circle and across. Cut through shops that connect to two different lands. Find a seldom used path behind a building to beat the crowds. With a little experimentation you will soon know all the best ways around the park. You will be thankful you did and your feet will be too.

4. Speaking of feet, wear comfortable shoes.
I went to Disneyland last month too. I was wearing a pair of shoes that I had worn every day for a little more than one year. That said, those shoes were comfortable. They knew my feet and my feet knew them. I walked around all day and my feet felt great. While on the trip, though, the sole wore through. Because of the holes, I bought new shoes earlier this month and my feet suffered for it in Disneyland this time. After just three hours that first night, my feet throbbed and ached and complained at me, and it didn’t get any better as the trip went on. Even the best experience can be ruined if some discomfort or pain is preoccupying your mind. That said, make sure you wear a pair of comfortable, worn in shoes when you go to Disneyland. You will get more done because you won’t want to quit as early.

5. Be aware of the time.
This is my final tip. There are a lot of shows during the day that attract a lot of people to them. Fantasmic, fireworks, and the parades are the best ones. Because they are the best, the most people are going to go to those ones. If you have already seen them, now is a good time to go on some rides. In most cases, the lines will be a lot shorter. Enjoy two or three rides during this time. There are also times during the day when there will be fewer people. Make sure you are one of those few. Children get up later than adults do, and they call it quits earlier as well. Get to the park as soon as it opens and go on that ride that always has a long line and no fast passes. Save the kiddie rides until late at night. The kids will go home and the other adults will be doing the bigger thrill rides. Go on every ride in fantasy land in little more than one hour. The rides are silly, but a lot of them are original to the park, and if you have never been on them, they are better than waiting in lines.

I hate being that person who never updates their site, but I am. For a quick update to the present, I finished the semester at BYU-I, I went on tour with Vocal Union and Sound Alliance to California, Nevada, and Utah, and I’ve moved to Las Vegas now. I’m looking for a job now, but if I don’t find one, then maybe I will have a lot of time to be productive and make this site what it could and should be.

Flashback to last semester, I was working from 11PM to 5AM on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights. One week I wanted to participate in a campus wide pinewood derby event. The race was Thursday, and the only tools I had were my Dremel and a coping saw. That said, between Monday and Thursday night I only got 6 hours of sleep total. I was exhausted, but happy and I went to all my classes and work, so not bad at all. In the end I had the slowest car, but won best automotive design, which is all I really wanted anyway. Pics below.

Weighed down with quarters.