Daniels’s Friday Thoughts 02.20.2004

Archive

So I Was Wrong

And f*ck them for doing it.

Two weeks ago, I went on the line saying that I didn’t believe the party line that the Music Box Killer on One Life To Live wasn’t Dr Haver. I had decided to believe the bookers when they told the fans it would be a real character from the show and not someone they brought over from Days and dropped into a major storyline. You know, kind of like if Orlando Jordan won the WWF Title tomorrow or if suddenly Murdock took over the main character role on MacGuyver.

Not only is he a serial killer, but he’s multiple serial killers, with victims dating back to the 80s. Awesome that they brought this guy in from Days with a shitload of fanfare when they were simply going to make him a serial killer for six months and then shove him in prison.

Stupid stupid stupid.

I’m still holding out hope that he isn’t the real guy, since things can change at a moment’s notice, but they spent this week hyping the fact that the MBK would be revealed, and forgive me for being a little bit disappointed.

So now, suddenly, I’ve reached a point where I’m disgusted with the show, and have decided to watch General Hospital for a while.

And manage to start watching during a cast-thinning fire designed to kill off four major characters. Major depending on who you ask. I think they only took one that anyone cares about Zander. The rest of them are reasonably useless. Edward Quartermaine is 1000 years old and it’s time for him to move on, Scott Baldwin has been on the show since before I was born, and Cameron is just pointless in general. Zander, on the other hand, is perfect for the show.

But then, what do I know, I just write for a website.

Final Fantasy XI: Update

I heard from a few of you who also had serious problems with FFXI, including one guy who never got a chance to look at the requirements before tearing it open and trying to install it. He found out a bit late that his graphics card wasn’t up to the task.

So, in the last week I’ve leveled a Red Mage to 9, and it is certainly a pain in the ass. The quests aren’t terribly hard, but finding stuff is difficult and they certainly didn’t make the game very mage-friendly at low levels. Maybe it changes a bit as you level up, but I’m finding it incredibly difficult just to get up to level 12. Of course, after level 12 or 13, you’re supposed to start to try and find parties to do stuff with. I’m still a virgin when it comes to getting in parties, but it seems like it will be pretty fun.

Now, I just need to not have a job so I can devote a bit more time to it. I’m not addicted to it yet. The required patience, however, pushes the limit of what I’m willing to go through. Especially being in the same world with people who manage to be on it all the time and simply make money by charging people teleport back and forth to different locations.

Of course, if I had the time, I would probably do it, too.

If you see me on Bismarck, give me a yell.

Earnhardt, Moneymaker, fixes in general

Eric S believed that the Super Bowl was fixed, based on the booking being exactly the same as the Patriots Super Bowl two years ago, right down to the same guy being the one who caught the Touchdown the Patriots had to fight back against.

So anyway, one of my friends started a “NASCAR Is Fake” website, and I can’t think of anything more indicative of this than Dale Earnhardt Jr’s victory last weekend at Daytona. The self same race his father died at last year. I can’t think of any other way to explain the random sudden victory Earnardt Jr “earned,” in his daddy’s honor. That, in a nutshell, is why I don’t watch NASCAR.

But, I think the ultimate fix, and no one should argue with me on this one, was the recent victory of Chris Moneymaker at the World Poker Tour in 2003. You’re going to tell me this guy, who started off playing in online poker rooms, and winning an online tournament to get into the big show, is going to be able to take out a room full of professionals and emerge $2 million richer?

I don’t buy it for a second.

I’m pretty sure this was a collusion of all the major casino companies and television stations in the US to pique people’s interest to both jack ratings and to get people into casinos. You know why?

Because that shit doesn’t happen in real life.

You go to an Indian Casino and you will get owned by ninety year old men. Do you know why? Because they know what they’re doing and they know what you’re doing even before you do. You’re not going to tell me that I, who has a pretty decent record at Hold ‘Em, can walk in to Binion’s (or whoever owns them now) and walk out of there two million dollars in the black over a room full of professionals.

So the fix is simple. After only a weekend in Las Vegas, I have no problem believing that the WPT dealer knew exactly how to get Moneymaker the good hands hands good enough that he couldn’t lose even if he tried. Again, why? Because now you walk into any casino and the Poker Rooms are full to the brim. Someone had to win that pot anyway why not let it be someone who can give poker that “anything can happen” vibe. And now, the casinos get their 1% of every pot 24 hours per day 7 days per week.

Moneymaker gets paid, the casinos get paid, everyone’s happy.

A-Rod and the Yankees

The Yankees infield makes $80,000 per inning.

I’ll leave the rest of this to Hulse.

The End of Angel

After only a five year run, it seems like Angel has come to an end. It’s a shame, really, since I just started to get into it this year however I can also see the argument that the show is nothing like it was the first two seasons. I have watched the first season and DVD and it was great, I couldn’t stop watching. The current season is just, eh. It’s good, but not awesome.

Buffy is one of those shows I can’t believe I didn’t get right into when it started. I love vampire shows and super natural shows. In fact, the show that got me into soaps, called Port Charles, I started watching because there were vampire storylines on it.

And now Angel is gone, which is sad however my mood improves now that I have heard the WB is planning on remaking Dark Shadows into a weekly series.

For those who don’t know, Dark Shadows was a soap opera that was on in the 60s for a five year run that was based on the Collins family. The Collins family had a relative come to visit them from England, Barnabas Collins, who turned out to be a 200 year old vampire. The show went through various super natural storylines limited only by both daytime budgets and 1960s special effects. The show has been on in reruns since almost the day after cable was created, and it currently resides on the Sci-Fi channel in constant loops. Of course, it takes about 2 years to get through a loop considering they only show two episodes per day.

But, Barnabas Collins was the template for the reluctant vampire, and he played it to a T in the 60s. And now the characters will be resurrected on a new show.

This is something I can’t wait for.

In Conclusion

It’s been a long night and I’m about ready to call it a night. So, In conclusion if you see me on Bismarck, feel free to say hello. If you see my girlfriend with no shirt at Mardi Gras this weekend, turn your head.

With that, seeya next week.