For You 2 Consider

31 Flavors on your birthday... just one scoop.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 03:27:00 +0000

With great age, comes great responsibilities-- I'm not sure if I got that quote right, but I do know I'm getting old. One of the few perks of getting another year older is getting free stuff. I'm not signed up for all the free stuff and I honestly don't remember signing up for the Baskin Robbins Birthday Club. Probably something my girlfriend did for me. But tonight my daughter and I got to take advantage of one free cone.
Of the 31 Flavors, Lily chose Strawberry. Which makes me smile. When I was a youngster, my ice cream preference started and ended with strawberry. Sure vanilla and chocolate are okay, but as Lily pointed out, "Strawberry comes with actual strawberries!" I opted for cookie dough. Its actually kind of a sick obsession I have with cookie dough. But its the little things in life that make life sweeter, so thanks to my girlfriend who I'm pretty sure signed me up and thanks to Baskin Robbins for my sweet treat.

Comcast purchases NBC.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:33:00 +0000

Its a little known fact that NBC has become one of my favorite channels in recent years. NBC is responsible for some of my favorite shows; The Office, Parks and Recreation, Community, and launched another favorite show, Scrubs (which moved to ABC 2 years ago).

So I have to wonder what Comcast's purchase of NBC is going to do to my favorite programs. As pointed out elsewhere, Comcast previously owned: G4, Versus, the Golf Channel, E Entertainment, the Style Network, and FEARnet, as well as a lot of regional sports channels. With the purchase of NBC Network, that list of channels will no include: USA, SyFy, Bravo, CNBC, MSNBC, the NBC network and Universal Studios.

Now with Comcast owning the Monday Night Football rights that air on NBC and the broadcasting the rights for the UFL on Versus, could this be the death of the UFL? We know NBC has been burned in the past with the smaller football ventures. Or does UFL become either an exclusive property for either Versus or HDNet?

I guess we'll hurry up and wait.

Did you blink-- Then you probably missed it.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:02:00 +0000

According to Wikipedia:

The United Football League (UFL) is an independent professional American football league that began play in October 2009. The league's premiere season consisted of four teams and is being played in October and November 2009, culminating in the championship game on November 27 in Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, site of the league's first game on October 8. The league has confirmed a second season, and additional franchises are possible for 2010. The league's defending champions are the Las Vegas Locomotives, who defeated the Florida Tuskers, 20-17, in overtime in the November 27 title game.

I am not exactly sure why I even have an interest in this league, I don't regularly watch the NFL or even NCAA Football. Much like the World Wrestling Entertainment owned XFL, I get a kick out of these mini leagues. Maybe it is the entrepreneur inside of me that likes to see someone attempt a similar business model but approach it differently. Or maybe its just because unlike people a few years older than me, I never got to see the debut of a successful rival league. The 60's had the AFL, which has more or less become the AFC in the NFL. The was also the WFL, the USFL, and like I mentioned the XFL. All of which didn't last long. There are even reports of a Spring/Summer league called the NewUSFL. But the UFL seems different to me. The UFL has already signed 2 television deals, HDNet and Versus. And a 4 team league, although seems very small, certainly kept costs down in its initial season. They say they have plans to have a second season next year and hope to expand into more areas. Below is a recap of the championship game.

Well what it do Nephew!?!

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:21:00 +0000

My sister gave birth to this little bundle of joy, Ezekiel. 7lbs. 2oz. 20 inches tall. Zeke doesn't have a posse yet, but this little guy is pretty awesome. I'm proud of my sister for bringing this little guy into the world. My brother-in-law and sister are going to make terrific parents. They were hoping for a Friday the 13th birthday for Zeke, but unfortunately they had to settle for a Saturday the 14th. He is has only been in our lives a short-short time, but he's already wedged himself as the new baby boy of the family. And I couldn't be a happier Uncle. I can't wait until to hear him talk or take his first steps. Zeke is a part of a huge family, 8 cousins on Mom's side, 4 cousins on Dad's side.

Rain Delays be Damned: Game 6 Karma for the Angels

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 17:07:00 +0000

Tropicana help saves the Rainforest

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:52:00 +0000

Thank you for joining Tropicana in rescuing the rainforest. We're all in this together because we all care about making a better planet for our families. Tropicana is committed to protecting the Amazon Rainforest and your help is crucial. Simply by buying specially marked packages of Tropicana Pure Premium® products* and redeeming the code printed on the product, you'll be helping to protect the rainforest, save ecosystems and fight against global warming. Every little bit helps, and together we can make a collective difference.

For every code you enter, Tropicana will help protect 100 square feet of rainforest* and you will be entered into our sweepstakes and daily instant win game. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN SWEEPSTAKES OR INSTANT WIN GAME. See Official Rules for details.

You're on your way to preserving the rainforest.

Tropicana Support Team

I really wish I had heard about this sooner. I have been purchasing 4 packs of Tropicana at Costco every other week for the better part of 2 years. I don't know how long this promotion has been going on, but I would have gladly entered my codes. Regardless, I'd recommend any orange juice drinker to switch to Tropicana and input those codes. With some much mystery in the Rain Forests, the world should attempt to preserve as much of whats left.

Building some Angel Karma, lets win Game 5

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 21:21:00 +0000

The Office Season 5

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 16:44:00 +0000

Why am I so excited about the Office Season 5. Because it was awesome!!! Michael Scott Paper Company, The interactions between Jim and Charles, the big news at the the company picnic party, Michael dealing with his breakup with Holly.

So many gringe worthy moments were in this season that I can easily say that this show has only gotten better since the first day. If you don't find the Office hilarious, you just don't have a sense of humor. Season 5 is out on DVD now and Season 6 starts Sept. 17th 2009. I've got my DVR fired up and looking forward to another season of laughs.

Intelligence Adds Up.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 02:05:00 +0000

That's more than a clever title for my latest blog entry. That's also that tag line for the on-line survey panel Survey Savvy. But it is also true of using the service. I signed up for Survey Savvy in mid-2007. And although I don't take a survey every day, sometimes not even every week, I've managed to make over $115. Now some of you might be thinking... is this for real? Well yeah, it's for real. I didn't get a lump sum of cash, but every few weeks, I'll get a check from Survey Savvy for $1 or $2. Sometimes I even get some for more. Last one I deposited was $9. And all that money is going into my daughters savings account.

You can sign up by clicking here. Obviously this isn't a get rich quick scheme or away to quit your day job. But who couldn't use a little extra cash in these harsh economic times. I use Survey Savvy and I recommend you do the same.

I want a good... Show

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 21:37:00 +0000

It was the fall of Spring of 2006. I would search for interesting radio I would listen to in my office. My mornings would be Kevin and Bean on KROQ. Mid-mornings with Jim Rome. Then the Loose Cannons after Rome. I would easily get bored with the Cannons. And found myself wandering the station dials to find something entertaining. Well one day I found it on the former 97.1 FM TALK. The Frosty, Heidi, and Frank Show quickly became a mainstay on my afternoon on my radio dial. As I previously wrote about earlier this year, FM 97.1 Closed up shop and the trio hadn't been on the air.

Well that changed somewhat back in March. A weekly podcast became available on iTunes. The FHFU show. The FHFU one hour weekly show is an uncensored program of the previous show on KLSX. No apologies necessary, the FHFU show has recently debuted as a daily one hour podcast available on iTunes.

You should check it out.

New Alice In Chains...

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 17:14:00 +0000

If you know anything about me, you know I love Seattle Grunge sounding music. The trifecta of awesomeness of that era can be summed up with Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and of course Alice In Chains. In 2002 tragedy struck one my favorite bands. Layne Staley, co-singer of Alice In Chains lost his battle with drug addiction and passed away. I never got to see that incarnation of AIC. However the band reformed back in 2006 with new co-singer William DuVall, Jerry Cantrell, Mike Inez, and Sean Kinney. I have been fortunate two see them twice. Care to read my review?

Alice In Chains' have two new singles available for download. I recently pre-ordered the newest album from iTunes, Black Gives Way to Blue. I downloaded the newest single A Looking View as soon as possible. Distinctly Alice In Chains, the initial rifts reveal all to well what I'm already familiar with. Listening, I do miss Layne, but Will picks up right where he left off. The second single that is available on iTunes is Check My Brain. I heard it first on KROQ. I think their is a reason this one is getting more air time than the first. This song is very reminicant of AIC edgier sounds off the later albums. If you are a fan of the original AIC, you'll certainly enjoy this incarnation.

Here is a poor recording I took of the Alice In Chains from 2007.

Vote for Figgins

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 17:06:00 +0000

Show some Angels love. And if you were wondering I'm also voting for D-Back Mark Reyenolds

It was this time last year...

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 17:43:00 +0000

The family business has resided in Compton California for nearly its entire existence. It was just about this time that last year through suspicious business practice our business was forced out of a property that we had all assumed would be ours. We moved to Lynwood, before settling on Signal Hill. Our options were very limited, but before moving to Signal Hill we were very close to moving to Long Beach. Regardless the last year and a half has certainly had its ups. Unfortunately we have experienced a fair share of downs.

We moved dozens of those Sheepsfeet and all other equipment the multiple times we moved.

I hope my family will forge through, I know we will. I vow to make the next 12 months better than the last.

R.I.P. Mom, We all miss you so much.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 18:50:00 +0000

Maybe in another life
I could find you there
Pulled away before your time
I can't deal, it's so unfair

And it feels, and it feels like
Heaven's so far away
And it feels, yeah it feels like
The world has grown cold
Now that you've gone away

-- Offspring, "Gone Away"

Its so hard to look at the faces of my loved ones with these tears in my eyes. Its hard to see everyone feel so hurt and lost. I'm trying to be as strong as I can be. But it hurts. And I don't know when it will stop. My daughter is taking it much better than I expected. I don't know that she entirely understands. I have nothing profound to say. Nothing of any merit. I just know I haven't been this sad in my life. And I know that at some point it gets easier, but that light is still at the very far end of the tunnel and I'm taking baby steps. My sister's friend lost a parent three years ago. And her and her daughter still hurt. I am preparing myself to never stop hurting, but hoping that the pain hurts less over time. Now more than ever I'm going to need the support of my friends and family. But for once I wish I wasn't the first of my friends to go through these life experiences.

First to be married. First to be a father. First to be divorced. And now first to lose a parent. I started writing this to feel better, but thus far I don't. I'm trying to keep myself occupied. Working on my blogs and spending time with the family and if weather permits I'll continue to work on the backyard landscaping with my brother-in-law. And continuing to believe that my mother was proud of my family. And that she loved us all very much. And no matter what, knowing that when she left us, she took a piece of our hearts with her. Mom, if you are watching over us, just know that I always wanted to make you proud. And I hope that I did. Please look after your daughter and my niece. They need you. And we'll be okay, someday.

R.I.P
May 22nd 1943 - June 4th, 2009

Are you kidding me!?! Hunter is the man!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:49:00 +0000

R.I.P. Nick Adenhart

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 16:08:00 +0000

What I don't know about Nick Adenhart could fill volumes, however what I do know about Nick Adenhart makes this story seem ever so tragic. A prized prospect who only last night pitched a great six innings of baseball for my beloved Baseball team. And some idiot who decided it would be okay to drive while intoxicated ended Adenhart's lfe. "Adenhart, 22, made his season debut against Oakland on Wednesday night, shutting out the A's for six innings in a game the Angels eventually lost, 6-3. A 14th-round Draft choice in 2004, Adenhart made his Major League debut on May 1 last season and pitched in three games, going 1-0 in the three starts..." according to MLB.com

I'm sure many will write more indept about the person, the player, and the tragedy. However the tears that fill my eyes are all I can shed. Its a horrible tragedy, another friend has passed away whom I never got to meet.

God Bless You Nick Adenhart, please keep him in your prayers.

Pardon the Interuption

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:48:00 +0000

I have a small home. Between my things and my daughter's things space is disappearing at a rapid rate. I also love my Rock Band for the Wii. The good people at AK came up with the perfect solution.

AK Rock Box Gaming and Storage Ottoman with Drum Lift (Dark Brown)

The price is actually $100 cheaper on Amazon.com than I've seen anywhere else. If you are already rocking out with Rock Band for any of the platforms and you want a simple way to store it, please check out AK's Rock Box Gaming and Storage Ottoman. For You To Consider.

Good Bye FM Talk 97.1

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 15:28:00 +0000

Today marks a dark day in the history of Los Angeles radio market. At 5:00pm the only FM Talk Radio station in L.A. is flipping its format to a Top 40's Chart station. From the rumor mills, I've heard that this decision was based on NOT being able to sell advertising dollars. And now instead of a unique radio station which featured FM Talk we're going to have another KIIS FM. In my 17 Years of radio listening, I've lost many of favorite radio stations. I can remember back with KPWR 105.9, (Power 106) was a Top 40 Station. I still miss 100.3 Pirate Radio. I remember being in High School and watching the Metal Heads be devistated with 105.5 KNAC because a Spanish Speaking station.

Y107 was the last station that was taken from me. 107.1 was an alternative to KROQ, which at the time was much needed. A dear friend of mine spent about 10 Hours in Oakland to watch Pearl Jam and the Rolling Stones thanks to 107.1. That station too flipped its format to a spanish speaking station. Even as recent as of December of last year, Indie 103 ( I didn't really listen to that station), went to a spanish speaking format.

97.1 hurts, because ever since I've started my new career it has been there for me. Working in an office and growing weary of sports talk radio, FM Talk was what captured my attention. I will mostly miss Frosty, Heidi, and Frank. I will also miss Danny Bonaduce and Tom Leykis. I hope those show's host land on their feet and land somewhere, where I can continue to listen.

This is a sad day for me. And at Friday 5pm, Feb. 20th we'll all say goodbye to individuality in Los Angeles and say hello to conformity. Farewell!

Aeroméxico Flight 498

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 20:43:00 +0000

It was as normal as any other Sunday. Sunday Mornings for some kids were spent in front of a television watching cartoons and eating their favorite sugary cereal containing the highest quality toys crafted by the fine inhabitants of Hong Kong or putting on the nicest clothes they had to impress fellow parishioners at their local church. I was a little different. My family wasn't exactly the Church going kind of folk and I think my parents felt I had enough brain rotting on Saturdays. So every Sunday Morning, my father took my brother, my sister, and I to Cypress College's Weekend Swapmeet.

My father would allow me to spend my five dollar allowance on pretty much anything I wanted. Early on that five big ones would go towards replenishing my He-Man collection or towards recruiting my ever growing G.I. Joe. One Sunday in particular my sister and I found ourselves separated from my father in search of tasty snacks. We would run around in a gigantic game of hide and seek and tag. Upon seeing my father I looked up towards the North Eastern Sky. And what I saw amazed me... an explosion and a plane disintegrated before my eyes. What frightened me most is that my best friend at the time Marco was supposed to be coming back to the United States from his Week Long Vacation in Mexico.

Imagine my horror when I learned that the mangled mess in the air was the remnants of Aeroméxico Flight 498 that was destroyed when a small charter plane flew right into the other plane. I nearly wept when I heard it was Aeroméxico, because that was the name of the airline Marco was flying out on. And this was the time he was supposed to be coming home. It would be a few days later, Marco told me that he was supposed to be on that flight, but a last minute decision kept him safely in Mexico for an extra day.

The last time I thought of this was during September 11th when I was hoping that the devastating collision into the World Trade Center was some lethal mistake. I thought about it again when I was checking Google Maps and saw that there is a feature that have links from Wikipedia. Just another reason I love Google Maps.

I love my daughter...

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 04:31:00 +0000

This is old but I still think its awesome. Durning the week of the World Series I had picked up my beautiful daughter Lily from day care. As we are driving home, I turned on the Home of the Angels AM830 KLAA. The afternoon drive time program is called "The Drive with Dave Smith" I enjoy his program as he has an undeniable Angels bias and thats exactlly what I want to hear in my sports programing. Anyway, Smith starts talking about Angels 1st Basemen Mark Teixeria. Big Tex who is now a free agent is being persued by the Boston Red Sox. Smith announces he thinks Teixeria will be signing with the Red Sox. Lily starts yelling BOO!!! Because it's increasingly getting closer to Halloween I ask her "Are you being a ghost?" Lily's reply was priceless. "No Daddy, we boo the Red Sox!" After I errupted with laughter, which she joined in, I realized, I must be a candidate for Father of the Year! I shared that with some baseball bloggers I visit on occasion. They gave me this joke.

“I am a Red Sox fan,” a first-grade teacher explains to her class. “Who likes the Red Sox?”

Everyone raises their hand except one little girl.

“Janie,” the teacher says, surprised. “Why didn’t you raise your hand?”

“I’m not a Red Sox fan.”

“Well, if you are not a Red Sox fan, then what team do you like?”

“The Angels,” Janie answers.

“Why in the world are you a Angels fan?”

“Because my mom and dad are Angels fans.”

“That’s no reason to be a Angels fan,” the teacher replies, annoyed. “You don’t have to be just like your parents. What if your mom and dad were morons? What would you be then?”

“A Red Sox fan.”

The ALDS be a hash mistress.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 14:19:00 +0000

100 Wins and 62 Losses in the regular season and the best record in baseball does not seem to translate well in post season success. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have been able to clutch on to defeat out of the welcoming hand of victory against the Boston Red Sox. As the series stands the Angels are down 2 games to zero and will be having quite the akward trip to Boston.

Last night game proved to me that there is a mystic about facing the Red Sox that our franchise just cannot shake. Pitching that has been lights out, becomes vunerable. Offense that has been on fire is quickly exstinguished. It feels as if the Angels bottom of the batting order has fallen down a proverbial rabbit whole, but instead of finding a wonderland on the other side we've found an inability to count on offense from anyone not named Torri, Vladimir, or Mark. And a team who is know for its base running seems to become lost. More so, guys who play the best defense in the bigs, mutate into little league players. Bear in mind, the Red Sox are playing hurt and last night's game did not include Mike Lowel or Jed Lowrie. And last years most intimidating hitter, Manny Ramirez is playing for a different team and wiley veteran Curt Schilling remains on the DL.

The Angels join their National League Counterpart the Chicago Cubs, The Milwaukee Brewers, and the Chicago White Sox as teams who are down 2-0. Although it is unlikely, the Angels still have an opportunity to take the best of five series. I'm naturally a pessimistic and I find it especially hard to be optimistic about the Angels opportunities at the Green Monster. Much like the Angels offense I have fallen down the rabbit whole. Unfortunately there is no wonderland for me either. In fact there is just a bad taste in my mouth and a cornicopia of bitterness. I will be watching the game on Sunday with one hand over my eye, peeking through. As if the last few years of suffering through playoff loses have taught me anything; ghost, ghouls, and goblins don't make the month of October frightning, it is the way the Angels play haunts me year after year.

Tech Support Turmoil.

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:54:00 +0000

I just spent the last 5 days trying to activate a wireless broadband device. I won't specify which company, but if you look at my rendition of the "technicians" you could probably deduce who I am referring too. Now, one point I would like to make clear, that everyone whom I spoke to were friendly and I honestly believe they did everything they could to help me reach my internet bliss. Unfortunately, this particular wireless group uses almost a pyramid type structure. At the bottom floor there are many friendly "technicians" who read from a manual. Offer very little in trouble shooting. My gal to the right was literary reading from a script. She even read aloud the parts she wasn't supposed to read to me. For example... "It should take up to one hour for the provision to take affect, Explain to the customer what provisioning means." I did make multiple calls usually up to 45 minutes per phone call and usually got not where. I even had time to doodle that lovable couple to the right while waiting. Those were the 2 "technicians" who did the absolute least to get me connected to the wireless web. First my gal asked me if I had updated the latest software. I replied with "I have no internet, how am I going to be able to download anything?" Then She insisted that I uninstall and then re-install my program. That it would take an hour for the provisioning to take affect and that she'd call me back in an hour. Thanks for nothing. 2 hours pass, she hadn't called back. I went ahead and call back to tech support and explained my entire situation all over again. The operator said... "I understand your frustration, let me just put you into our Premier Technicians." Finally the top level of the pyramid, the actual technicians. The only time I really got anywhere is when the folks had me manually program the phone with secret codes... (Shift 3, Shift 3, D,A,T,A.) I spoke to 3 actual technicians through out the hole ordeal. Tuesday we programed some "provisioning." Wednesday we manually activated the phone. And Thursday we did a manual password reset. For my troubles I was credited half of my monthly bill. And now the service works great.

The Lily Show: Lily builds a Sandcastle

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 01:05:00 +0000

The Lily Show

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:14:00 +0000

The Lily Show: Lily Cheering for the late inning Rally!

noreply@blogger.com (Jay Cal) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 21:25:00 +0000