My Laptop is Plagued by the Black Screen of Death

Oh no!!!  Black Screen of Death!!!

Hey there. Sorry for my lack of posts these past few weeks. My time has been consumed dealing with some personal matters and I've been spending most of my free time focusing on that. Nothing negative, actually, quite positive, but nevertheless, extremely time consuming. And even when I can squeeze out some free time, I can no longer post since my laptop is suffering from the, "Black Screen of Death." Ugh! My machine won't boot up. The windows logo appears, but soon after that, I see a black screen with my mouse curser. That's it. Nothing to click, nothing to escape, keyboard is not responding so I can't get to the task manager or run anything via the command prompt. Nothing but black death!

July Fitness Challenge Over

Hey there.  July is done and done.  I took on the month looking to improve my fitness stats.  Last year, I did a pretty good job at keeping myself somewhat fit.  This year... not so much.  My wife has been on a mission to get herself in the best shape possible and it's only fair that I follow suit and support her.  So July was it.  That was the month I was going to get back on track.  Now, it's over and it's time to reap the benefits of my hard work!

Sorry I Have Been MIA

Need to post!  Gotta podcast!  Need to post!  Gotta podcast!

Hey there.  Sorry I've been MIA recently.  I've been so caught up with work and working out that I haven't been able to carve the time to write something up and I feel completely horrible for not writing.  That's a good sign, right?  lol  No worries though.  I'm back.  I'm done with being missing and I need to get back into the swing of things and decided that a quick, "what's up", post will do it.  So what's going down?  Let's find out!

July Fitness Challenge and 30 Day Exercise Challenge

A little Instagram Fun

Hey there.  I have been gone for the past week or so.  I took some much needed time off from work (both my day job and my online job) and now I feel refreshed and ready to go!  But during that time off, I decided that it's time to get back into shape.  I took on The Hero Rush and The Gladiator Rock'n Run last year and I felt like I wouldn't be able to complete those challenging obstacle courses today.  That's why, I took on the July Fitness Challenge that my wife started doing.  First off, the July Fitness Challenge is more of an Instagram thing (Follow me here).  You take a picture everyday about the topic at hand.  The thing with this one, though, is that most of it is fitness related so it pushes you to work out.  I thought it was an easy enough challenge to get back on track.  But then, the wife and I also decided to do a separate fitness challenge on the side.  You do a set of exercises every day for the month.  Check out the 30 Day challenge below:

Organization has Never Been Easier with a Brother P Touch Labeler

Hey there.  Wow... what a month it's been!  I started off this month with a project in mind:  get that garage all sorted out and organized.  I made mention how the garage is in total shambles!  How can it not be?  With 4 active kids constantly going in and out and placing their stuff all over the place it's a definitely a challenge to keep it all in order.  I used the Brother P Touch Labeler as my guide to get things in order.  Everything from bins to shelves were laveled and organized.  In the end, organization is a lot better and a lot easier.  It's still not 100% where I would like it be, but I think that's because it's just going to take the family some time to getting used to putting things where they belong!  lol  So, here are some of my thoughts of the Brother P Touch Labeler!

A Trip to Aruba Would Be Perfect for Our HoneyMoon

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Aruba Tourism Authority for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

I love the scenic views that Aruba has to offer!

Hey there.  I owe my wife a honeymoon getaway.  When we got married, we both worked but we didn't make to much money.  I couldn't afford to get her the wedding ring that she deserved, I couldn't get her the lavish wedding ceremony that she deserved, and I couldn't get her the honeymoon getaway that she deserved.  Next year, it will be our 10 year anniversary and I plan on making up for some of those things.  We're better off financialy, now, than we were before and we are we plan to renew our vows and have a wedding ceremony with friends and family.  I also want to plan that honeymoon trip that we didn't get to enjoy the first time around.  We orignally had our heart set on a Hawaiian honeymoon but a trip to Aruba sounds pretty tempting right now!

I Need Tips for Camping Trips

Hey there.  Would you believe that I have never gone camping before?  Like... EVER!  I didn't go on camping trips with school mates, I didn't go to summer camp as a child, I haven't even gone as an adult!  That's about to change, though.  The wife and I have been talking about taking the family on a camping trip. There are plenty of camping grounds in Southern California and I think it's time for me and the family to get reaquianted with the great outdoors.  I love being outside and being able to sleep under the stars in tents sounds like a great time to me.  The problem?  I've never been to any overnight camps so I'm going to need a little bit of help.

A Young Man and Summertime Sports

His first of what I hope is many sporting events for the boy!

Hey there.  The weather is getting warmer and it's time to get the kids outside and have them play some sports!  I'm glad to see that the kids are FINALLY beginning to show more interest in sports.  Especially my oldest.  He's an athletic guy and I've been waiting for him to decide that he is ready to start playing.  I don't want to be one of those overbearing parents that dictate their kid's hobbies.  I let him be and when he's ready, he's ready.  He can play baseball, football, and basketball and he seems more suited for baseball or basketball.  Come to think of it... he can even do track too!  He's expressed much interest in running as well!  Almost forgot about that one!  lol  I say that the boy (14 yrs) will do in anything that he puts his mind in.  I'm sure that once he's in high school, he'll make that final decision, but until now, we'll play basketball and we'll go out and throw the baseball around.  We end up throwing the baseball more than anything else, actually, and I think he's beginning to find his sport.

The Appeal of a Classic Car and Retro Gaming

You can't beat an 8 bit classic!

Hey there. You know, I got to thinking today about what the appeal of a classic car is. Considering that today's technology has been implemented into most of today's modern cars, I don't understand why someone would want to own a car with no power steering or one that still has a cassette player.  I simply just did not understand that... that is, until today.  As I was browsing through Facebook and checking out some of the fan pages that I frequent, I noticed that I have a lot of retro gaming fan sites on my list.  Retro gaming... my passion of games from years past is huge.  I love the 8 bit classics from Nintendo.  I grew up with them.  They are embedded in my memory and those experiences have molded me into what I am today.  Is my love for retro gaming similar to that of a car enthusiast's love for classic cars?  I think it's a fair comparison.

Happy Birthday Metallman!

Hey there. Today is my birthday! After doing the math, I discovered that today I turn 31. lol Yeah, I don't really keep track of how old I am. I don't see a need for it. My wife is usually the one that tells me, and others, how old I am. Anyways, I've been away from the blogging scene for about 2 weeks now. I needed to clear my head for a bit. I have many thoughts and ideas that I want to implement in my life and career and need to sort that out before I can focus on my writing. I think I've gotten it straightend out now.

Looking for Cheap Auto Insurance

Hey there.  You've all seen the commercials for auto insurance.  Some of them are funny and others are pretty straight forward and to the point.  I have a friend that used to work in the auto insurance field and she would give it to me straight.  What was the best coverage for the lowest price.  Easy and simple.  She no longer works in that field and I found myself needing to find a new auto insurance policy when I noticed that my monthly premium was slowly increasing.  I don't know if maybe the policies of said company changed or what, but when your payments jump from $50 to $75, there was time for a change.  It would have been great if I would have been able to find cheap auto insurance quotes all in a single spot as opposed to jumping all over the place.

Beware of Afrin Addiction

Afrin is good!  But is it too good?

Hey there.  We are a family of six.  You know what that means?  It means that when one of us gets sick, that sickness is bound to be passed around from family member to family member.  It's tough when one of the kids get sick.  We try to make them as comfortable as possible and hope that the wife and I do not get sick. More often than not, we do get sick.  My wife usually gets the worst of it.  I'll get sick, but will only feel the stuffy nose and what not for a day or so.  My wife, on the other hand, will the effects for days if not weeks.  Anyways, a stuffy nose is the worst!  You simply can't breathe and it can get frustrating.  That's when the wife and I usually reach for our Afrin nose spray.  My wife more so than I.  She would spray the moment her nose felt stuffy.  I would say that she was using too much but it seemed to work for her and she always stopped using Afrin the moment the stuffy nose went away.  Big deal, right?  Well... today, I found out that you can actually get addicted to nose sprays.  In particular, Afrin!

Hiking at the Turnbull Canyon Trail

A map of the trails available at Turnbull Canyon

Hey there. It's been awhile since the wife and I have gone on a hiking trip. We've been meaning to check out some of the awesome hiking spots here in Southern California but we just haven't found the time.  To be honest, I don't think we've gone for a hike since we last went hiking at Escondido Falls!  That has got to change!  :Last weekend, we decided to get up at 6:30 in the morning and take off to a trail.  Our destination?  The Turnbull Canyon Road Hiking Trails in Whittier, CA.

Metallman Update: Events, Games, GenCon, and More

Hey there.  It's been awhile since I last had a post.  I'm sorry, guys.  I haven't really been feeling well and I couldn't muster the energy to sit and write.  No worries though! I'm back and at full strength and wanted to give you guys a heads up on what's to come.  A few game reviews are coming, in written and podcast form, a few events that I'll be covering, and I received a press pass for a gaming convention!  How awesome is that?!  Ok... so let's get into the details.  Something tells me this is going to be a lengthy post!

When it Rains, it Pours

Hey there.  I'm one upbeat guy.  For those of you that know me on a more personal level, you know that it can be pretty tough to bring me down.  Despite a lot of negativity and bad luck, I tend to pick up the pieces and pull forward with optimism.  But something happened yesterday.  A recent string of unfornate events have damaged my armor and may finally be getting to me.  I won't go into much details but I will say that my vehicle was missing after work.  Yup....  Gone.  Living in Los Angeles, something to get around on is a MUST.  I was upset, I was frustrated, I was angry, but in the end, I was down.  Not so much because of this one instance, but more because of what my daughter said to my wife after I told them the news:

Happy Valentine's Day, My Love

Hey there.  In years past, I've written a small something for my wife on my blog.  This time around, I decided to try something different.  I've been wanting to do video posts and this may be the one to jump start that idea.  Babe... this is for you.  =o*

As My Guitar Lies Bleeding in my Arms

Music... poetry without any words

Hey there. I love music. I've always been into music since as far back as I can remember. From my early days playing on a recorder to my later years jamming on a guitar. I strongly believe that music can transcend words.  A beautifully crafted piece of music can saw much, much more than any words can.  As a kid, I would spend more than enough time playing the recorder.  I still remember how to play the thing too.  lol  That seed led to me play more instruments throughout my years:  flute, trumpet, keyboard, bass, guitar...  When I was feeling a little upbeat, I would grab the flute and play.  When I was feeling tense, I would grab my guitar and play.  Guitar...  I'm particularly proud of being to play guitar.  Not because it's "cool" or anything of that sort, but because it was a new instrument for me to learn to play.  The guitar that I learned on  was a 20 fret Fender Stratocaster that was gifted to me by my uncle from Minnesota (which I, in turned, gifted to my son).  Soon after, I picked up an "easy" to learn guitar book with Metallica songs in it and got to work.

My ASUS Laptop Screen is Busted... but It's OK

NOOOOOOOOO!!! NOT LUCY!!!!!!!!!!  =o(

Hey there.  You know what happened after recording an episode of the Get a Life Podcast?  My laptop screen broke.  Literally, minutes after the show.  I set my laptop down, went to grab something to drink, came back to a broken screen.  My 2 youngest (3 and 7) were running around, near my laptop, so when I questioned them about it, naturally, they pointed the finger at each other.  lol  I held it in.  I'll admit that I was pretty upset and I probably reacted a lot better than what was expected.  The kids know that the laptop is Daddy's life.  lol  Accidents happen, though.  I'm not mad... not anymore, lol,  but man was I feeling down.  I practically live off the damn thing.  I do all of my online work on my laptop and to have a busted screen was a huge bummer.  Especially since I feel pretty good about the work that I've recently done.  It pained me to think that my computer could be out of commission until I got it fixed!!!  But never fear!  A replacement screen is on it's way!  YAY!!!  I'm thinking of creating a "how to replace your screen" type post.  Create a video and all that good stuff.  I'm thinking about it.  The screen gets here tomorrow and if I'm up for it, I'll do a quick how to replace tutorial.  It'll be the first one I do so bare with me if it sucks.  lol

Donating to Locks of Love

Hey there.  About 15 years or so, when I was in Jr. High School, I decided that I was going to let my hair grow out.  Once the hair grew out, I was one of those guys with long hair.  It was most in a pony tail or "bunny tail" as some of my band mates would call it, and I rocked that style for years at a time.  When I graduated high school in the year 2000, I decided that it was time to start the new millenium with a different hair style.  At that point, I haven't had a hair cut in years so it felt odd going into a barber/hair salon to get it cut off.  While in the chair, I remember the woman complimenting me on my hair (soft, long, beautiful, etc. etc.) and that I should seriously consider donating it.  Donating my hair... now there's an idea.  I asked about what organizations I can donate to and she promptly stated that if I wanted to, they can donate my hair for me to Locks of Love.  I wasn't all that familiar with the organization so I asked questions.  What do they do?  Who do they benefit?  Is the organization reputable?  Once she explained it to me, my mind was made up.  I was donating my hair to Locks of Love.

Nintendo: The Gift of Gaming

Real life picture of me at age 5

Hey there.  Quick!  Think back at your most fondest, earliest gaming memory!  For those in my generation (I'm 30, by the way), the answer is going to be playing Atari or Nintendo at home.  Atari may have been in homes before Nintendo and I remember playing them both, but the fondest memories come from playing Nintendo.  I remember my cousin getting his before I did and I remember sneaking over to his place to play. We lived in an apartment building and his apartment was right below mine.  We would play into the wee hours of the night.  Whether it was Super Mario Bros., Contra, Bubble Bobble (which I've introduced to the kids on the Wii) or The Legend of Kage we simply could not get enough, but my most fondest memory in my gaming history has to be when my Dad handed me my Nintendo.