I'm Back!!

Its been a month since my last posting. Been busy lately. With what? Well I have acquired new gadgets and have been tinkering with it every now and then, spending most of my time exploring their potentials.
I decided to replace my AcerOne net book. Don't get me wrong here, there is nothing wrong with the AcerOne net book. In fact I was really impressed by what it can do. It was more than I expected. But I still decided to upgrade to something that I could use for the demands of both work and play. No, I did not get myself a new laptop, I still want a net book but with a better feature than my AcerOne.
So, I got a Samsung NC10 net book. Basic specifications includes a 6 cell lithium battery (as compared to a 3 cell battery of AcerOne); a 160 GB hard drive (120 GB for my Acer); a 1 GB RAM; a 10.1" screen; and a built in Bluetooth. The keyboard is much bigger and more comfortable for somebody with large fingers like me, avoiding typos. Most other specs are more or less the same with AcerOne. I got a white one just like my AcerOne. The thing that made me decide to get this net book is the upgradable RAM. When I ordered this net book, I included a 2 GB RAM. The RAM is accessible at the back of the net book and upgraded easily , which I did even before turning it on for the first time.
I am impressed with its wi-fi reception. With my AcerOne, I use the wi-fi when I am at a hotspot like at the Telecom lobby. I only get a one bar signal at home. But with the NC10, I get a good signal and have been using wi-fi when going to the net with it. Though I still installed an external USB modem which I use when I am at work.
Just like the AcerOne, the NC 10 speakers is not worth the mention, but with a Bluetooth built -in, I use my Bluetooth headphone and get a good quality sound.
Next gadget I got is my Sony Webbie Camcorder. It a new video camera from Sony. A very handy High definition(??) video camera which uses a memory stick as storage instead of a hard drive or tape. It can also take a 5MP still photos, good enough for 3R or 5R size photos.
I tried this cam for the first time and was impressed by the video quality it produced, and to think I used it indoor at night time. The video was bright even without using the built-in spot light. Se , the video was even better when I used it outdoors when we had lunch by the beach.
I got a 8gb memory stick with this camera so I got lots and lots of pictures and video storage. The drawback of this video camera is its battery. It is built in and last for less than 2 hours and has to be plug to charge. So if you ran-out of juice during a take then you have to stop and charge for about an hour. Not like a conventional camera where you can get an extra battery and charge one while using another so you can take videos for hours.
But still, this videocam is a good buy. It simplicity and handiness would be worth your money.
Lastly, and what made me really busy is the last gadget I got. It got me sleep late at night from the time I got it. Its not a new gadget available in the market, but it really made me excited when I got it. It brought out the kid in me, literally.
I got myself a Nintendo DS bundled with a Guitar Hero game. This game really got me hooked. The day I got this game, I did not stopped until I finished the easy round which was about 3 in the morning. I now realize how the kids feel when they got a new toy and wants to play with it all day through. This has become my relaxing therapy when I come home after work. Presently, I am starting with the hard level.
The music line-up is very good. I like playing Nirvana's Breed, Santana's Black Magic Woman and Skid Row's Youth Gone Wild. When you're hooked, you tend to head bang with the music, and start to feel as if you are really playing a guitar. I cant wait until I get my hands on a full size Guitar Hero Game.
I have the Guitar Hero on Tour game and planning to buy the Guitar Hero Decades version. But I will try to finish this game first. I am having a hard time with the first stage of the Hard Level so I think it will still take time before I get to purchase this Decades game.
Now you know the reason why I have not updated my blog. And since you know I am still around, I can now get back to my gadgets……see you later…

F*R*I*E*N*D*S

Remember the 90’s TV series Friends? It stars Jenifer Aniston as Rachel Green; Courtney Cox and later in the series Courtney Cox-Arquette as Monica Geller; Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay; Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani; Mathhew Perry as Chandler Bing; and David Schwimmer as Ross Geller.

I had the luck of borrowing the complete series of Friends. 10 Seasons in all, each season having 4 dvds with 6 to 7 episodes per dvd. Lots of series to watch huh.
I never saw this series then but I learned that it was a hit during that time. I remember seeing one episod

e once but it did not click my attention. I remember when I had my cable television service then in Baguio, one channel was showing the series every week.
Anyway, I was able to borrow one season from a former co-employee not because I had a choice, but I already borrowed all of the other titles she has in her collection. So I brought it home and started watching it, and tadaahhh……I am hooked..
So I asked her if she still has the other series and I cannot hide my happiness when she said she has the whole collection! The following day she called me up and told me to pick it up at her work….thank you Brenda, hehehehe.
I was able to make my own copy of the whole series, 40 dvds all in all. I actually finished watching the whole series in a few weeks. Keeping me up late at night or till early in the morning for several days; and it has become my morning wake-upper then.
Anyways, I started watching it again for the 3rd time, starting with season one again and boy it still makes me laugh out loud from time to time. Sometimes I wonder if my landlady is not having second thoughts about letting me stay in her apartment and doubting my sanity.

The first season introduces the six main characters: Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Chandler and Ross. Rachel arrives in New York after leaving her fiance at the altar, and begins living with Monica in her apartment. Ross struggles to tell Rachel that he loves her, while his estranged lesbian wife is pregnant with his baby. Joey is shown to be a struggling actor, while Phoebe works as a masseuse. Chandler breaks up with girlfriend Janice (the one with the funny line of "oh, my God!"), who frequently returns throughout the ensuing nine seasons. At the end of the season, Chandler accidentally reveals that Ross loves Rachel, who finds that she feels the same way.

The second season begins with Rachel discovering that Ross is dating Julie, someone he knew from grad school. Rachel's attempts to tell Ross she likes him mirror his own failed attempts in the first season, although the characters eventually begin a relationship that lasts into the following season. Joey gets a part in a fictionalized version of the soap opera Days of our Lives, but is killed off after claiming he writes many of his own lines. Monica begins dating Dr. Richard Burke plyed by Tom Selleck, who is recently divorced and 21 years older than her. In the season finale, they end their relationship when they realize that he does not want any more children and she does.

In season three, Rachel begins working at Bloomingdales and Ross becomes jealous of her coworker, Mark. Ross and Rachel temporarily break up; however, Rachel decides to make it permanent when Ross sleeps with someone else. After believing to have no family except for her twin sister Ursula, Phoebe becomes acquainted with her half-brother and mother. Joey develops a relationship with his acting partner Kate, and Monica begins a relationship with millionaire Pete Becker.

In the fourth season, Ross and Rachel reconcile, but soon break up again. Phoebe becomes a surrogate mother for her brother and his wife. Monica and Rachel are forced to switch apartments with Joey and Chandler after losing a bet, but manage to switch back by bribing them with Knicks season tickets and a one-minute kiss between themselves. Ross begins dating an woman, Emily, and the season finale features their wedding in London. Chandler and Monica sleep together, while Rachel decides to attend the wedding. While saying his vows, Ross accidentally replaces Emily's name with Rachel's, to the shock of the guests.

I am now in season 5. The season started in a situation the season 4 ended: Ross during his wedding ceremony said Rachel’s name instead of his bride’s. Then Phoebe gives birth to “her brother’s children” which really gets eyebrows rising every time she mentions it to a stranger. In truth, she’s a surrogate mother of her brother’s and sister-in-law’s babies (it turned out to be triplets). This season also focused on the secret relationship that developed between Chandler and Monica that

started in London during their trip to Ross’ wedding. It was later discovered, of all people, by Joey. This was when Joey discovered an eyelash curler in Chandler’s luggage but at first was thinking that it was because Chandler was in a Gay cruise in his last trip to Montana, which is actually a rendezvous between Chandler and Monica that did not turn out good. Then later when Joey was in Monica and Rachel’s apartment he heard Monica asking Rachel if she could borrow her eyelash curler because she lost hers. You should see Joey’s face upon hearing about it. Monica and Chandler go public with their relationship, to the surprise of their friends. They decide to get married on a trip to Las Vegas, but decide not to after witnessing Ross and Rachel drunkenly stumble out of the wedding chapel.

In the sixth season, Ross and Rachel's marriage is established to be a drunken mistake and they divorce. Monica and Chandler decide to move in together in her apartment, and Rachel moves in with Phoebe. Joey lands a role on a cable television series called "Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E", where he stars alongside a robot. Ross gets a job lecturing at New York University, and starts dating his college student, Elizabeth. Phoebe and Rachel's apartment catches on fire, and Rachel is forced to move in with Joey while Phoebe moves in with Chandler and Monica. Chandler decides to propose to Monica, while she considers going to back to Richard, who confesses to her that he still loves her. Monica decides to accept Chandler's proposal, and the friends celebrate.
The seventh season mainly follows various antics by Monica and Chandler, who are preparing for their wedding. Joey's television series "Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E" is canceled, but he is offered his old job back on Days of our Lives. Phoebe's apartment is fixed, but due to the way it is built, Rachel decides to stay with Joey. The season finale stars Monica and Chandler's wedding, and Rachel is revealed to be pregnant.

The eighth season's first three episodes follow a "Who's the father?" format. The father of Rachel's baby is revealed to be Ross, and they decide to have the baby. Joey develops romantic feelings for Rachel, however she does not feel the same. Rachel gives birth to baby Emma in the series finale, and Ross decides to propose. Joey finds Ross's ring on the floor, and Rachel believes he is proposing and accepts.

Season nine begins with Ross and Rachel living together with baby. Emma. Monica and Chandler decide to conceive a child of their own, but discover that both of them are physically unable to conceive. Phoebe begins dating Mike Hannigan, and chooses to be with him over her friend David. The group travels to Barbados in the finale to hear Ross give a keynote speech at a Paleontologist conference. Joey and his girlfriend Charlie break up, and she begins a relationship with Ross. Joey and Rachel's feelings for each other return, and the finale ends with them kissing.

The tenth season closes several long running storylines. Joey and Rachel try to contend with Ross' feelings about them being together, and decide to remain friends. Phoebe and Mike get married, while Charlie breaks up with Ross. Monica and Chandler decide to adopt a child, and meet Erica, who gives birth to twins in the series finale. Monica and Chandler move to the suburbs, and Joey becomes upset with the changes happening in his life. Rachel takes a job in Paris, but decides not to go and resumes her relationship with Ross.

It really is a very funny and good series. It a good series to make you smile and laugh out loud in days you’re down (it worked and still works for me). Anyway, right after finishing this I am now on the 3rd disc of the season. Try to see it for yourself and enjoy…..