Yeahh so I obv never got a second entry posted in October, but I really have been quite busy lately. The one thing that can make blogging difficult is as the days pass, it becomes harder to collect all of your thoughts from the time in between your last post and present. I think of a few things each day I'd love to write about, but if I tried to squeeze in everything, I'd never finish an entry.

However, as things slow down around Thanksgiving, I should have plenty of excess time and content to write about as I'll be traveling to the east coast to visit family for the holiday.

Last weekend for Halloween me & BriN met some of the n0ch0p crew in Champaign, which was a blast. Crazy costumes, crazy parties, crazy night. Met a lot of cool people, chilled with some old friends, and had plenty to drink. It was the third time I've headed up there on Halloween, and each time it seems to get progressively more awesome.

It's been pretty wet here lately so I haven't played any golf since my dad's outing, which sucks. Hopefully I'll get in some rounds before it gets too cold.

Been keeping up on reading and am definitely on pace to read the 10 books I set out to back in August. They are as follows:

- Andrew Carnegie by David Nasaw{in progress}
- 4-Hour Work Week by Timmothy Ferris[x]
- Biology of Transcendence by David Chilton Pearce[x]
- Secret Tactics by Kazumi Tabata{in progress}
- The Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi[x]
- What Lincoln Believed by Michael Lind{in progress}
- Third Man Factor by John Geiger[x]
- Curious? by Dr. Todd Kashdan; [x]
- Body, Mind, Mastery by Dan Millman[x]
- Words I Wish I Wrote by Robert Fulghum{in progress}

Progress in the other areas of my life has been steady. I enjoy training everyday even more as each week passes. I've been much more disciplined in my diet, completely cutting off soda, candy, processed junk, etc. I'm stoked to get back on N0-Xplode, but it hasn't come in the mail yet as I write this - reupped on the fruit punch, as they didn't have either lemon-lime or pink lemonade online for purchase, both of which I was told are excellent. I took the four weeks off in between containers as recommended. I'm glad the break is over - it makes working out a lot more exciting. Plan on taking it for another three months/twelve weeks/until it's gone and continue taking four week breaks.

I've designated five separate Microsoft exams/credentials I want to pursue, and have started studying for the first two listed:

- Supporting Users and Troubleshooting a Windows XP Operating System {70-271} to attain Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) credential

- Passing Supporting Users and Troubleshooting Desktop Applications on a Windows XP Operating System {70-272} to attain Microsoft Certified(MC) Desktop Support Technician credential

- MC Technology Specialist

- MC IT Pro Enterprise Support {70-621}

- MCITP Consumer Support Technician {70-623}

I'm stoked it's finally basketball season. There's no other sport where it doesn't matter what (NBA)game is on, I'll watch it 99% of the time. It doesn't get any better than Cap City's own Andre Iguodala posterizing Terrance Williams of the New Jersey Nets. Without a doubt the play of the year so far.

I'm also eager to start getting to the gym and playing 5v5 more, definitely gonna try to get a team together in some public league hopefully.

The n0ch0p front is looking stronger every day. The World Series of Beer Pong V is just around the corner, and needless to say I'm stoked outta my mind to have two teams flying the NC flag. BriN's squad, RAK DAT, will be making it's second consecutive appearance. Gas0l & Trey-Deuce will combine to formulate the always potent AUT0Z0NE lol. I plan on going as well to hand out some free swag...n0ch0p t-shirts, stickers, etc. Should be pretty sickk.

Everyone has been tearing up both sides of the felt lately for the most part, which is fuckingg sweeeeet. It's always great to see everyone doing well and supporting each other.

Gizmodo Gadget Guide posted some updated pictures of the new bypass over Hoover Dam that I posted pictures of back in June. It's called the Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. I think this is a great way to honor the former NFL star and fallen hero. His death was tragic and he will live on in memory and his name and deeds will never be forgotten.



I have the utmost respect for all of our troops and their commitment to defend our great nation. I have several close friends and family members who have served and am proud, honored, and blessed to call them so. I'll forever be indebted for their services and bravery and wish everyone overseas and here at home a happy and safe Veteran's Day.

R.I.P Marine Cpl. Stephen Bixler



Zune Top 5:
Image via Wikipedia

1} Forever Young by Jay-Z ft. Mr. Hudson on Blueprint III
2} The World Is Our __ by This Will Destroy You on Young Mountain
3} Be Somebody by Kings of Leon on Only By The Night
4} Catastrophe And The Cure by Explosions in the Sky on All of the Sudden I Miss Everyone
5} Summer by Mogwai on Young Team <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://reblog.zemanta.com/zemified/30d30878-a1ae-429b-865f-59c5b399c0cc/" title="Reblog this post [with Zemanta]">
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The time that has elapsed between my last post and now has been pretty surreal in more ways than one. Between all the business developments I'm involved in and the events of the past few weeks, I have a new found focus and motivation to accomplish the goals I've set out for myself.

Before I go any further, I'd like to take the time to remember a childhood classmate and friend of mine who took his own life recently. I don't feel I need to speak on his name, nor find it appropriate. However, I do feel it's necessary to say that I'm going to live this life with the vigor and energy for all of those who have left us far too early. If there's one message I've taken away from my father's death and the passing of other friends and classmates, it's to stay positive.

With that being said, being able to celebrate my father's life with a lot of family and friends over last weekend I think brings all of us to do just that. I've been doing my best to live my own life in a way that he would respect and admire me for, and that's all I can do.

The golf tourny went smoothly aside from the rain pushing back the initial tee times of the second group an hour or so. After that cleared up it really turned out to be a beautiful afternoon for golf. My group of consisting of my younger brother, my sister's boyfriend and myself, however, didn't exactly dazzle the competition. Soo, for the fourth year running I put in yet another disappointing performance, which grossly changes my strategy for next year. I've decided to bring in a couple ringers, most notably KFDeux and BriN1285 of n0ch0p fame and fortune. Combine that with the leak I plugged in my drive, and you might as well chalk up that W now.

As far as the next week is concerned, the aforementioned members of NC & I will be attending game 3 of the NLDS on Saturday in Saint Louis. I'm pretty stoked never having been to a playoff game before, so it should be dope.

Aside from that, my attempt to pass my second A+ exam to collect my certification is right around the corner. I'm excited to finally complete this goal and continue achieving accomplishments in the IT realm, as it's something I truly enjoy. Much like poker and martial arts, it is something that evolves everyday and that one will never be perfect at. I've become aware that these are the challenges I tend to relish and excel at most.

I continue to progress daily with my workouts and, for the most part, my diet. For instance, last night I ate some Skittles and more than two slices of Hawaiian pizza, so needless to say maybe I could have done better to control my nutrition and calorie intake. With that being said, I have made some strides concerning this vice.

Two weeks ago I promised myself I would not eat another box of Dots (Bombest. Candy. Ever.) until New Year's Day, which will be no problem but something I look forward to very much. I've given up essentially all processed shit, stuff that's not really food at all, i.e. Doritos, fast food, etc. I never really liked any of that garbage anyway and am happy to do without it.

Usually I eat oatmeal or a slice of wheat bread with peanut butter and a banana for breakfast, with either a small cup of juice, a tall glass of water, or both. If it's before I work out I generally wait at least an hour and a half before I start.

Lunch is usually the same sandwich from Subway (9 grain honey oat, turkey, pepperjack cheese, lettuce, tomato, green peppers, baby spinach, cucumbers, & ranch) or a MET-RX Big 100 Colossal meal replacement bar, usually Super Cookie Crunch, with a Naked Juice or Odwalla protein drink. I don't get why people don't like Subway. I guess as my friend so eloquently put it a few weeks back, "It's too healthy."



I've been trying to eat as much salmon and chicken as possible for dinner, with rice and veggies on the side. The last 4 or 5 months of eating like this have helped me boost my energy and fitness levels tremendously and I wish I would have established this routine some time ago.

This past week I tweaked my schedule a little so I could workout and run earlier in the day, then get in another workout in with some weight training or use Total Gym later in the evening. Made it a goal to run 10 miles each week as a minimum. I usually warm up with some shadow sparring. I'll throw a 1-2-1 (jab, straight, jab) and reset four times, do 12 pushups, get up and throw 12 knee strikes. I work my way down from 12 (pushups/knees) to 8 to 4, then back up. That usually gets the blood flowing pretty good.

Afterward I run through the park around the corner or neighboring subdivisions at a pretty moderate pace no matter how far I plan on going, I generally don't break that stride because I don't stretch until afterward. I then repeat my initial warmup and go from there, mixing it up a little, working on my forms until I feel like I've accomplished enough. There's nothing more satisfying than watching myself get better as a fighter and a person everyday.

I would never think about competing in MMA unless I absolutely had to, which I don't see happening. My reasoning for this is based mostly on traditional martial arts philosophy, that competition weakens the fighter because it places limits on their training and instincts. However, I want to be in peak physical condition so I could fight if I actually wanted to. I'd say another 6-8 weeks of training like I have been and I'll be right there.

I'd love to hear some varying opinions regarding this particular topic, or some insight from people who are familiar with this subject or have training/fighting experience.

In the meantime I've started writing down essentially everything I do on a daily basis to make publishing entries easier and more time efficient. I've made it a priority to get in at least two entries every calendar month. Thanks for all of your feedback, keep it coming.


Image via Wikipedia

Zune Top 5:

1} Pursuit of Happiness (Nightmare) by Kid Cudi on Man On The Moon: The End
2} Diamonds & Girls by Lil Wayne & Currensy
3} Neva Antiquated (Dark Jedi Remix) by Jedi Mind Tricks on The Psycho-Social, Chemical, Biological & Electro-Magnetic Manipulation of Human Consiousness
4} Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd on The Wall
5} E.I. by Nelly on Country Grammar

This summer has really flown by. I suppose traveling from IL to Vegas to the east coast and back only made it seem shorter. I love summer as much as anyone, but I'm actually ready for fall and winter to come. More than anything, I'm stoked to get some serious shred sessions in this snowy season, hopefully I can make that happen, as central Illinois isn't exactly the most optimal place to live for anyone aspiring to snowboard several times before spring.

In the meantime, I've gotten into what is probably the best shape I've been in my whole life. I might not have quite the same wind as I had when I was playing soccer @ RMC, but damn close. Been running almost everyday, but have been taking every 4th or 5th day off and just doing strength training. It gives me great satisfaction to know I'm becoming more fit and a better martial artist each day. I really love the regime I'm using right now and have been doing pretty solid with my diet for the most part.

I'm psyched for the Mayweather/Marquez fight on Saturday (and a new ep of Entourage Sunday), it should be an epic battle. I really hope Pretty Boy Floyd wins by KO as not to tarnish his almost untouchable legacy a la Roy Jones, Jr.

It's really tough to say unbiasedly who will win in all honesty. I love Mayweather. He represents pure home-grown American awesomeness. I'd be committing treason if I said I hoped Marquez won.

They are both incredible fighters, but moving up a weight class (like Marquez is) always more beneficial that moving down one; you get to eat more and therefore have more energy all of the time leading up to the fight.

Not being able to eat as much and still training the same amount or more equally as hard is much more physically and psychologically demanding. This could be an edge in itself, I suppose we'll find out this weekend.

Aside from my physical training, I've been studying hard for the A+ IT Tech {220-602} exam, which I'll probably dominate within the two to three weeks. I'm excited to finally obtain the certification that I've been chasing the majority of this year.

Other than that, I've been doing a lot of reading and finished Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss & Biology of Trancendence by Joseph Chilton Pearce. I started Body, Mind, Mastery by Dan Millman as well as The Third Man Factor by John Geiger. I should accomplish the goal I set for myself of reading 10 books by the new year easily at this rate. I'm sure once winter turns the corner I'll be spending even more time inside reading anyway.

As far as poker goes, I've been taking it super easy and just playing a few mid stakes live tournaments in the area. There's definitely a sick underground scene here as compared to other places, which is awesome because the games are super soft and generally attract schools of fish. I must say I've enjoyed this hiatus from playing online a lot because it's I've gotten to do so many other interesting things, but after I've gotten my A+ certification I'll be ready to get back in the groove.

I +stumbled upon+ a pretty interesting article on Foxwood's financial woes the other day, and while it's not that detailed it's still a pretty interesting topic.

I found out a few weeks back Lumiere Place is opening a sister casino in St. Louis called The River City Casino this coming spring, which looks amazing. While obviously there's no pictures because it's under construction, the sketches look impressive and I think the Monte Carlo-style atmosphere is a perfect fit for StL.

Now I know in my last entry I said I was going to, "write another entry tomorrow hopefully" because there was so much going on IT-wise that I wanted to address some issues, but I realize now that because so much changes on a daily basis in that realm it's nearly impossible to do unless you employ a full staff of writers.

Let me just say first and foremost, Microsoft is fuckingggggg sweet. They sent me a brand new Zune 120GB in the mail for $2.15. Two dollars and fifteen f'ing cents. Anyway it will at least hold me over until I can get a new ZUNE HD. The feature I'm probably pumped most about is the ability to wireless sync Netflix from my Xbox360 to the Zune HD, which is essentially the coolest thing ever.

It is the most advanced portable media player in the universe known to human knowledge, and I would be doing it a total injustice if I only called it wondrous. I'm not even talking about how spectacular the software and hardware is, which both make iTunes look like the Bing.com search engine makes Google look - ugly, dumb, and old.

Microsoft also hooked me up with a month of free Zune Pass (the best deal in music, period. If you have an iPod/iTunes, I pity you endlessly.); can't hate on that. I stopped short of writing back a letter that said, "I love you, too."
Image via Wikipedia

Speaking of how much more incredibly awesome Microsoft is lately, Windows 7 (Gizmodo's full review here) makes Mac's Snow Leopard operating system, an "upgrade" (also known as a service pack) of Leopard, look like a sick kitty. The first security patch was (already) released to developers last week, and really doesn't fix anything THAT major, just a few minor problems pertaining to "stability, compatibility, and security." Turns out Apple had some trouble getting it's own applications to work...isn't that kind of odd?

How do you develop an operating sys--errr, service pack-- that causes 60 software programs you designed to crash? I'm pretty sure that warrants a massive fail label. Probably the dumbest thing I've heard since I read about this. Just another fun thing to do at the Apple store, I guess. I'd almost rather go hang out with Best Buy's Geek Squad, at least they know what they're doing(...Winnebago?...Really?).

Zune Top 5:

1} Rebel Music by Bob Marley feat. Krayzie Bone on Chant Down Babylon
2} Killer by Drake feat. Nipsey Hussle
3} New Paths to Helicon Part II by Mogwai on Gov't Commissions
4} Workin the Wheel by Pimp C & Slim Thug on Pimpalation
5} Cool Outrageous Lovers by Lil Wayne feat. Andre 3000 & Plies