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December 24, 2004
ESPN Is Going Downhill
I don't watch TV much these days, and I definitely don't get to see cable shows much at all. So, while visiting my family, I flipped on ESPN to see something, anything, having to do with sports. Maybe they changed the definition of a sport while I was away, but somehow, I just don't think that the National Championship of Scrabble should be taking up valuable Christmas Eve afternoon time on ESPN. Shouldn't we get to watch a Bowl Game, or highlights, or at least commercials for this overly hyped Kobe vs. Shaq game. How is Scrabble a sport? Maybe if it was full contact or something ...
Posted by davidg at 11:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 15, 2004
Dead Computer?
Okay. Let me vent a little of my frustration in computers. They will work like a champ until it is most important that they work. Of course, that is when they decide to die. Then they stay dead while you try to fix it. Just before you either (1) figure out exactly what the problem is or (2) throw it off the nearest bridge over the connector, it starts working (like right now). So ... I know that tonight when I go home and try to do some work, it will be completely dead again. These things are stupid. Why is it that I just can't live without them?
Posted by davidg at 05:53 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 03, 2004
Orange Belt
I started taking Tae Kwon Do this semester, and, being the end of the semester, yesterday was belt promotion tests for us beginners.
Right before Fall Break (which is a really funny concept to most graduate students), I went through my first promotion test and passed from White Belt to Yellow Belt. Now, White Belt is what they give to all students who shell out $40 and buy the uniform. It is only there to hold your uniform in place (and to remind you how lousy you are at this martial arts thing). The Yellow Belt isn't much more prestigious. They give that to basically anyone who has stuck around long enough and who can remember that punching uses the hands and kicking uses the feet. The Yellow Belt basically qualifies you to defend yourself from an attacker who doesn't move at all (which really defeats the whole purpose of self defense).
Then we get to the Orange Belt. This is the first belt where they admit that they don't just hand out to anyone. You actually have to prove you know something (albeit not very much). I know and can use a whole bunch of kicks (Front, Side, Roundhouse, Turnaround, Hook, Axe, and lots of variations) and punches (not too many because this is Tae Kwon Do and we know that the legs can do a whole lot more damage than our flimsy arms). The Orange Belt basically qualifies you to defend yourself from an attacker who may or may not give you a nasty look.
The culmination of the Orange Belt test was a board breaking challenge. We stack two boards together and used a Side Kick to break them. There's no other way to say this, but breaking boards with your bare feet is
On a slightly related note, here is something Kristen showed Meadow and I. First, go read this page. Only after that, go read this page.
Posted by davidg at 06:56 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack