Breaking Out of This Writing Lull

Hey there. One of the worst things that can happen to a blogger is taking a few days off from writing. I did just that. I try to post something every day just to keep it fresh but I have not written a post since Saturday.  Blame it on the DTK loss, blame it on laziness, blame it on Final Fantasy XIII, or blame it on whatever you want.  I made it clear to myself that I needed to get on the ball and create more quality articles as opposed to small snippets of stuff because I don't have time.  I used to be able to get work done at night with the laptop, but since that's out of commission at the time, I'm regulated to work on the desktop computer and I'm not really feeling that.  Well, it's time to snap out of it.  I have plenty of great ideas that I'm working on and I have a few awesome reviews that are coming this way.  The giveaways are also a huge success and I have a few winners posts that need to go live.  I've been invited to events and would like to get those up as well.  Things are happening, people, and I need to let you guys know what's up!!!

It's happening, friends.  I'm evolving.  It's time to shed this skin and break out into bigger better things.  Stay tuned!  Later!

Metallman's Reverie: Blog Income for June 2011

Hey there.  June is in the the books and it's time to report on how well on (or off) pace we are in reaching my $1700 goal for the year. Let's take a look at the numbers:

Mylikes - $1.44
CMFAds - $1.88
Sponsored Tweets - $30.01
DragonBlogger - $19.12
Dad Central - $100.00
Blogsvertise - $89.00
SocialSpark - $66.50
PayPerPost - $31.00
Total for June - $338.95
YTD Total - $1271.36 (+$421.36 ahead of pace)

AM2Con is This Weekend, July 1st - July 3rd

Hey there.  The Anime, Music, and Manga Convention is being hosted at the Anaheim Convention Center this weekend!  3 full days of nothing but put pre awesomeness.  If you guys are in the Los Angeles area this weekend, you should consider making the trip to Anaheim to check this out.  The convention is free to everyone but there are certain activities and shows that you will have to pay for.  Many of the exhibits, workshops, and events are free so there really isn't a reason why you wouldn't want to stop by.

JoyStick Division Sends Metallman an E3 Swag Box

Hey there.  I recently entered a contest at Joystickdivision.com and was randomly chosen as the winner!  Hell yes!  I've been reading Joystick Division for quite some time and I know that they started having weekly giveaways.  One of the more recent type of giveaway is their "Mystery Box" giveaways, which are pretty awesome.  They'll put all kinds of random stuff in a box and you leave a comment saying you want it and take a stab at what's inside.  Many of the commentors have gone off the deep end and will leave some pretty crazy and funny comments and it's always a good laugh to see what they say.  Well, I ended up winning the latest mystery box and low and behold, the great haul that I have won!

Women That Rock Weekend

Hey there.  We need a night out.  The wife and I have semi-survived the first week of summer vacation and we already need to reward ourselves with a night on the town.  Before we can start planning what we should do, the comadre sends us this:

A Review of www.branders.com

Hey there. This year has been a banner year for www.metallman.com.  Income is up, promotional opportunities are up, readership is up, and pageviews are up.  Everything is pointing in the right direction!  So I've been thinking of small ways to keep the readers engaged and coming back and I think that a few promo items would be good.  I've expressed interest before in branching out and getting some promotional items for the site. Nothing too fancy and nothing too pricy. Just a little something that I can give away to my readers, friends and family. I decided to start off small and then see where that takes me.

The Local Baseball Team DTK (Down to Strikeout)

Hey there.  So it's happening...  I'm on a local baseball team.  I'm still not 100% how it happened but I'm glad it did.  I've been feeling a little slow lately since I really haven't been exercising much, but since I've committed to the team, I've picked it up a bit.  I've been hitting the batting cages with my son and bro, working on that eye hand coordination, and even tossed a ball a bit to work on glove mechanics (or whatever the baseball lingo is).

Metallman's Reverie: Blog Income for May 2011

Hey there.  May is in the the books and it's time to report on how well on (or off) pace we are in reaching my $1700 goal for the year. Let's take a look at the numbers:

Mylikes - $8.84
Sponsored Tweets - $25.75
Sponsored Reviews - $100.00
DragonBlogger - $23.67
Dad Central - $50.00
Blogsvertise - $71.00
Total for May - $279.76
YTD Total - $932.41 (+$224.08 ahead of pace)

My New Mesh Polo Shirt from Lands' End and Giveaway

Hey!  I look good in blue!

Hey there.  You know what's great about an awesome polo shirt?  Besides the colors...  lol  It's the fact that they have this boyish charm that also conveys class.  You can go to a formal and nonformal event in a polo shirt and no one will think twice about it.  They're nice enough to wear at an evening party and they're good enough to wear during your stroll through the park.  You really can't go wrong with wearing a polo shirt!  But you can't go around wearing any old crummy polo shirt.  You definitely need to try on one the new mesh polo shirts from Lands' End.

Taking Up a New Hobby

And it's gone!

Hey there.  I am in need of a hobby.  Not just something where I can lounge around at home and do, but something that will get me outdoors and move around some.  I am still on a mission to be more fit, but I'll be honest and my workouts have been sporadic.  There is no routine, no consistency, and quite frankly, little to no motivation.  But you wanna know something that does motivate me?  COMPETITION!

Kristen: Our Assassin's Creed 2 Winner

Hey there.  I received this from my recent winner, Kristen!  She was the lucky one who won the Assassin's Creed 2 PS3 game.

Thank you for the awesome pic, Kristen!  Kristen also runs a blog with many awesome giveaways.  Make sure to check out her blog, Wishful Thinking 247.  Her blog also has a fan site, make to fan Wishful Thinking 247 at Facebook and tell her Metallman sent ya!  lol  

Thanks again, Kristen!  Hope you enjoy!  The next game giveaway will be posted on June 15th.  Become a fan of Metallman's Reverie on Facebook and have a chance to vote for which game you want!  Later!

Thinking of Promotional Items for Metallman

Hey there.  So I've been on a mission to overhaul this blog.  I spent some time thinking about my layout and I've decided that I really need an expert to come in here and change things up.  I need a new logo and I need something to pass out to friends and family.  I realized this weekend that a business card would be cool.  My comadre and a friend both had business cards that they were passing out at a party and I figured that it would have been cool if I had something to pass out as well.  Well... for one thing, I'm considering getting custom printed envelopes since I've been mailing out games to my winners.  Custom pens also have been considered.  I told myself that everyone needs things to write with so I can just throw a pen in the envelope as a thank you.  Just a few ideas that I have been toying around with.

My Experience with an Online School

Hey there. You know, many years ago, I attempted to complete my degree in business with an online school. I figured that I wouldn't have time to go to a brick and mortar building for school so online studies would be perfect. Especially since I'm a night owl and I stay up late anyways. Win-win situation for me, right?  In theory, yes.  In practicality, no...  My problem was that I didn't have the drive to finish school.  Not at that time, at least. I always told myself that I would go back to school when I am good and ready.  To not only get that degree but to set an example to the kids that higher learning can be achieved at any age.  Now, I believe that I am ready.

Metallman's Reverie is Now Facebook Friendly

Hey there.  Notice anything different?  No, I didn't get a hair cut!  I have added a nifty Facebook Like button on the bottom of the posts!  It was a pain to get it done but I thought that I needed to get with the times and have a Facebook like button to connect more with my readers.  And not only that, but I've also created a Facebook Fan page for Metallman's Reverie!  How awesome is that?!

Blogger Still Not at 100% and Posts are Missing... Is Jason Behind this Firday the 13th Mayhem?

Hey there.  As many of you may have noticed... Blogger had been down for approx. 16 hours or so and it's still not 100% back up.  After checking the status of Blogger, I find out they had to "temporarily remove" posts that we posted after 7am Wednesday morning.  I noticed that something was wrong yesterday when I could not log in to leave comments on other blogs.  That's when I decided to log on my own to see if it was just select blogs that were having issues or if all blogs were having an issues.  When I couldn't log on because the "service was not available",  I was upset.

The first thing that came to mind was the whole PSN hack thing.  I wondered if there was an "unauthorized user" roaming the Blogger servers creating havoc.  I quickly dismissed that idea, though.  I don't think there would be anything to gain, other than being malicious and posting your own stuff.  Then I got a little upset.  I usually have scheduled posts lined up for Funny Fridays, but that's not gonna happen since I can't browse the internet today for Friday funnies.  Then it hit me...  IT'S FRIDAY THE 13TH!!!!  Is Jason behind all this Blogger mayhem???  Did he finally trade in that machete for an ultra fast Alienware laptop???  hahahaha!

"I'm done slashin' and started hackin'!" - Quote from Friday the 13th: Jason Infiltrates CampCrystalLake.com

Anyways, it looks like Blogger is back up and running but posts are still missing.  I guess it's better to be able to continue with the service but I really hope those missing posts come back soon.  I also began to wonder what happened to my give a way poll (PS3 game) and how many potential comments I may have lost.  Well...  as long I didn't lose ALL of my posts, I can't be too upset and it's not like it was down for almost a month before getting any material news on the service.  C'mon Blogger, get those posts back up!  Later!

A Happy Birthday and the Lakers Downfall

LAKERS GONNA WIN!!!  Oh wait...

Hey there.  The Lakers are out of the playoffs...  I think I can now talk about it without getting too upset.  This was the team that was favored to sweep the Mavs, if not win in 5 games.  What the hell happened?!?!?!  Now there's talks about them being too old, Kobe not being Kobe, Gasol having personal issues, Odom is too inconsistent, blah blah blah...  Listen, this is the same team that has gone to the finals for 3 straight years.  This team is still made up of pretty much the same guys.  So what the hell happened???  Don't know.  But just by looking at the team during the games, they just looked uninspired.  Kind of like they were saying, no worries, we'll win the next one, and pretty much just sleepwalked through the games and that kind of attitude bit them in the ass.  The great thing about the Lakers is that we measure the season's success by championships.  If we win the title, it was a successful season.  If we don't win the title, then the season was a bust.  It's really as simple as that and all Laker fans are spoiled by that mentality.  We expect to win and when we don't, all hell breaks loose.  I'm hoping that they'll be able to get their act together and make another run next season, but man... did we just stink it up against the Mavs...

Now, on to brighter days.  My birthday was yesterday!  The big 2-9!  lmao  I don't make a big deal out of my birthday, I never have, but the wife loves to make it a little festive.  This year, she did this:

Playing Black Ops, dad.  Oh yeah, and Happy B Day!

 

The wife is great at creating an atmosphere.  I know, I know...  Lakers were eliminated on Sunday, but we all didn't think that was gonna happen.  lol  So she carried on with her Lakers theme and prepared my meal of choice, T bone steak, mashed potatos and veggies!  Oh yeah!

The woman sure knows how to make a mean batch of mash taters!

Then we all sat together, had our dinner, and goofed around a bit.  Cause that's what we do.  The wife and I sat on the couch, watching the kids play with, wait for it...  balloons...  lmao  That's right, balloons.  I understand that the young one would want to bat around a balloon for kicks but the older kids were having a blast themselves.  lol

Oooh...  Balloon...

Almost... got... it...

Then it was time for the cake.  As the wife gathered everyone around the cake and snapped a few photos, she asked to take one of me and the cake.  I think it's some kind of tradition to do that.  lol  So I sat in the chair waiting for the pic and this happened...

Why so serious

Whoa...  what is that?!  lmao!  Hand me a knife and some evil cloak because there is definitely murder in those eyes!  hahahahaaha!  The wife wasn't too happy with that one so we took another.

A lot better

After I made my wish and blew out the candles it came time for the family portrait (which my wife conveniently decided she needed to take manually so that everyone comes out 'nice'  lol) 

Happy birthday Dad!

Baby says, my cake!

Awesome.  Awesome.  Awesome!  From the decorations, to the meal, to the cake, to the laughs.  A great b day spent with my family.  So why not go out to a "fancy" restaurant for your b day?  Eh.  I'd rather spend the time at home, messing around with the wife and kids than to have to "behave" at a restaurant.  The wife will tell ya, she jokes (well I think she's joking...) that I can be just as bad as the kids.  It just comes to show you that I like to have fun.  Regardless of what the candles on the cake say.  lol  Later!

Metallman's Reverie: Blog Income for April 2011

Hey there.  April is in the the books and it's time to report on how well on (or off) pace we are in reaching my $1700 goal for the year. Let's take a look at the numbers:

Mylikes - $9.74
DragonBlogger - $9.41
CMFads - $1.88
Blogsvertise - $132.00
Total for April - $153.03
YTD Total - $652.65 (+$85.98 ahead of pace)

Not too shabby, my friends.  I'm glad that I'm still exceeding my monthly goal of $141.66, even though it's just barely.  I'm still disappointed in my lack of participation in dragonblogger.com.  It's an awesome and I've been given an awesome opportunity to be an author there but I just can't seem to capitalize on it just yet.  I have been dealing with some personal issues and it has eaten up my time to write articles.  I have been fortunate enough to be offered what I like to call "insta-post" and that's what's keeping my name on DB.com at the moment.

I am a little disappointed that I didn't cash anything out for Izea for April, but those funds will be cashed out in May which will make May a pretty good month.  I also received a huge offer from an unexpected source so I'm hoping that May will be the best month of the year so far.

The giveaways have been going great.  Because I'm made my fair share of money from this site, I've been giving a monthly prize away to my readers.  I'm hoping that you guys are enjoying that and take as a big thank you for stopping by and reading. 

So there you have it.  My online source of income revealed!  It's not much to toot about but hey, it's better than nothing.  Was thinking of using some of that money for some Lakers finals tickets.... but that rant is for another time. lol  Feel free to check out my affiliates at the links above and hope that you'll be able to make some spare change online the way I did.  Later!

Are Pro Accounts on Sponsored Tweets a Red Flag for Izea, Inc.?

Hey there.  I'm a big fan of Izea, Inc.  They have opened the doors for me to make some money while blogging and sending out tweets.  I have nothing but sincere thankfulness for them.  With that being said, the fact that they are now offering "pro accounts" on Sponsored Tweets is alarming.  If a monthly fee, you're twitter account will get this neat "pro account" symbol attached to it and will be pushed up the queue, ahead of basic accounts, when advertisers are looking for potential tweeters.  I understand that it's an optional service and it's not necessary, but the fact that they are offering it raises some red flags for me.

First off, I don't see the need for pro accounts.  At least on the outside, Izea is doing wonderfully.  Their many platforms are alive and active within the online community.  It's hard to find an online entity that is not associated with one of the many services that Izea offers.  So the fact that they are trying to squeeze out money for pro accounts tell me that 1) Izea is not doing as well as we think they are or 2) they've turned into a bunch of greedy bastards.  lol  I doubt it's the second one since they've all been more than awesome when I've spoken to them, so I'm more inclined to say it's number 1. Then again, it could be that the company is expanding and is looking for extra income to fund upcoming projects.  I don't know, but I'm not so sure if the pro account thing is the way to go.

I've always looked for Izea to come up with fun and innovative ways to make it easy for average Joes, like myself, to make some money online.  I really don't want to hear that Izea may be having some funding issues.  I'm hoping that my observation is wrong and that they're doing it only as a means to further fund their expansion not because they are strapped for cash.  Especially when you consider the amount of online companies that did not make it.  I hope you guys know what you're doing and the same fate doesn't come down on you.  Later!

Hiking in Escondido Falls

Hey there.  I've been meaning to post about our hiking trip to Escondido Falls for about 2 weeks now.  I've been caught up so many projects and family stuff that I just haven't had the time.  This is why I'm posting on a Saturday.  lol  It's been a long while since I've done some Saturday work.  Anyways let me tell you about our trip.

I've been wanting to take the family out to some sort of outdoor activity.  Living in Sourthern California definitely has it's perks when trying to decide something like that.  There's the beach, hiking trails, camping spots, mountain climbing, and many others and I wanted to do something that I, myself, haven't done.  Believe it or not, I've never been hiking so I decided that we're going to look for a trail and go for it.  That's when I hear about Escondido Falls and it's waterfall.  Whoa... a waterfall.  From what I read online, the trail itself is not that bad and is relatively easy to walk through and when you get to the end of it, there's a waterfall to bestow upon.  I thought it would be perfect to take the kids and check it out.

The trail was difficult to find.  The parking space for the trail is small space and it's right off the famous pacific coast highway.  The problem is that there is no sign that says, "trail this way" or anything of that sort so as you're driving, you're swiveling your head keeping an eye out for a sign showing you the way.  Naturally, we missed the entrance, and on our second pass, we see it.  We parked on the gravel and walked towards the trail.  It's weird at first because you are walking near a residential area so there are houses around you.  Once you go further into that residential community, the trail begins.

No guys, the houses are not part of the trail!

 The trail is simple enough and there is nothing too difficult to overcome.  There were a few small creeks that you get to jump and walk over so that was pretty cool and after about a 3 mile hike or so, you reach the waterfall.  The kids loved it.  We gazed at it for a bit and took some pictures.  It would have been great to take some lunch and have a picnic there.  The scenery would have been perfect.

Jump!

You're gonna fall!!!  Oh wait... you already did!  D'oh!

Mr. Cool Guy over here makes it look easy.

Look ma!  We made it to the waterfall!

Time for our hero pose!

The wife and I enjoying our hike.

Shortly after, the boy and I decided to climb a litter higher to check out the top of the falls.  That hike is for more adventure seekers and is a difficult climb.  After using a rope to get up a steep uphill trail and walked around a small narrow cliff edge like path, we managed to reach the second waterfall.  Not too shabby, but there's more climbing to do.  The third waterfall blew the first 2 away.  It was definitely worth the climb.  The whole area was misty because of the force that the water was hitting the small pond.  It was simply breath taking.

The Rocky theme song would have made this moment perfect!

We did it dad, we did it!

All in all, an awesome time.  If you're in the Southern California area, I highly recommend the hike.  Again, the main trail itself is not a difficult hike so it's not a strenuous walk, but to reach the other waterfalls near the end is definitely more difficult.  Only the boy and I went up since I didn't think he ladies would have been able to do it.  Well, let me rephrase, I think they would have been able to do it if they took their time, but because there's a lot of hikers going up and down and you literally have to stand in line or move out of their way, the chances of slipping and falling rise.

I also wanted to bring this picture to your attention.  Can somebody tell me what that thing in the sky is?

Is that a UFO?!?!?!

We didn't notice that thing when we first took the picture and my wife claims that it's a bird.  I don't know...  I think it's a UFO.  She just doesn't believe.  lol  In my opinion, it seems to far away to be a bird.  There would be more clarity to the "bird" if it was close by but it's pretty damn fuzzy, which tells me that it's off in the distance.  What do you think?  Later!

The Green Latern Arrives in the Metallman Home

Hey there friends.  How awesome is it that I was chosen to participate in this great promotion!  I arrived one day from work only to find these 2 great toys waiting for me:

How awesome is that?! That is the Green Lantern Colossal Cannon and Kilowog!  The boys were definitely thrilled with receiving new toys.  They started playing with them immediately and that's when I knew that this is definitely a toy that they would bond over.

The Colossal Cannon definitely got more attention that the Kilowog action figure.  Even the though the action figure came with it's own Green Lantern Power Ring, it couldn't convince the kids to drop the cannon to play with it.  lol  The only problem that I had with Kilowog is that when you attach his green, glowing attachment to his arm, and raise it, there was no way for his to stand on his own.  That was a huge downer since it made him seem weak in the heat of "battle".  lol  My young one would use him to fight with his other action figures and by him standing without his power made him an easy target for defeat, or so he said.  

My boy:  "Dad, it sucks that Kilowog can't stand with his green power thing.  If he's the Green Lantern and can make anything with that ring, maybe he should have made a cane to keep him up."

Kids...  lol  Once we figured out that he can stand with the attachment if we keep his arms down, the kids started to line him and others up for target practice.  The Colossal Cannon is a great toy.  At first glance, I thought that it would be a projectile shooting gun with the potential to hurt people.  Thankfully, the discs that the cannon shoots seem to glide though the air as opposed to being blasted out.  That is a huge plus!  The gliding motion minimizes risk of injury and the cannon has enough power to send the discs a good 15 feet or so.  The discs are made of plastic but are not heavy at all.  As my oldest son practicing his shot, my youngest son would run around picking up the discs.  I even caught my youngest daughter taking aim at Kilowog!

Kilowog the action figure is just that, an action figure and would be a great addition to a child's army of heroes.  The Green Lantern Colossal Cannon is an awesome toy that will bring much fun and excitement to kids.  I greatly recommend you guys check them out!  To find out more about these and other great Mattel toys, head on over to Mattel.com For more information.  Thank you, Dad Central Consulting, for the opportunity!

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Dad Central Consulting on behalf of Mattel and received Green Lantern toys to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.