I put the ice in novice.

My first season of ice hockey is over. The final outcome was a 3-11-0 record for the team. We didn't make the playoffs and finished near the bottom of the standings. Unfortunately, offense is a big problem. We were shutout in almost half of those games. I didn't help all that much. When I did manage to score, we won or had a close game. But, I really have to finish my changes at a higher rate.

The bright side is that the team remains upbeat. I'm excited about playing again next season. The "new-ness" of ice is still there for me. It's a challenge to just get out there and skate. But another long season like this one, might kill my enthusiasm.

I am not sure where our reinforcements are coming from. Ryan isn't going to be able to play after all. I guess I don't blame him with a new mortgage and all. The ladies are probably staying in the women's league. We really need to improve the team in order to have a chance. I don't know what to expect. I'm blindly hoping for the best.

Samsung Captivate: 1 Month Later

I am pretty much fully integrated with the Samsung Captivate. I love the phone. The bottom line is that I can live with it's shortcomings. It is a good size, very thin and light. Maybe too light? I've juggled it several times. It could be shorter to fit in a pants pocket better, but losing screen size would not be worth it. It's pretty much useless in direct sunlight. I use the phone indoors most of the time and keep the screen brightness set very low to save battery. Direct sunlight washes out the screen. If you had to use the phone outside all day, I don't think the battery will last long with the screen set at full brightness. Battery life is pretty low. I've read that it is one of the best Android phones for battery life, that's seems scary to me. Part of the problem is that I don't have an extra charger yet; and sometimes I run the battery out before I get home to charge it at night. Once I get a car/work charger it shouldn't be a problem.

That leads me to another problem. Accessories. I've had difficulty getting a rubber case/cover for the phone. It's always out of stock at the AT&T stores and the mall kiosk-type stores don't have it. They have every flavor of iPhone 4 case you could dream of, but that's part of the territory with this phone. One day I will have a cover and charger for this phone, just not yet.

The main things for me are texting, social media apps, browser, navigation/maps, & call quality. I was out of town and relying on the Navigation last weekend and it came through for me. Call quality isn't as good as my Nokia, but it's good. Signal strength is strong at work and at home. The phone performance is snappy. I haven't had the lag that some blogs have reported. I am using the Opera browser and it works well.

I can't say this is the phone for everyone, but it's solid and it works well for me.

 

Cow Town Tournament - Recap

It was a bit of a black eye for USA Hockey this weekend. Long story short, the innaugual Vacaville Adult Women's Wine Tasting Classic Tournament wasn't run very well. The guidelines for planning your team's skill division were based on men's hockey and didn't suit the women very well. As a result, the Cluck in' Omegas were too skilled for the Bronze Division. Several teams got scared and complained after seeing such a display of skill put on by the Omegas, in their first game. We were greeted with USA Hockey representatives accusing us of cheating and threatening us to forfeit games for illegal players.

I will be the first to say that the Omegas should have been in the Silver Division, but it's a tough call. Having just played in San Jose a few months back, the team didn't even make the playoff (Top 4). So, stepping down a division in NorCal hockey seemed like a logical call. Through a roster snafu, several players dropped out and were replaced by more talented players. But that happened a week before the tournament.

The Omegas played-out the qualifier round, basically demolishing the teams. There was some incentive to lay down and keep the games close, in order to stay in the tournament. These girls couldn't do that. They respected the teams they played and didn't run up the score, but sandbagging wasn't ever part of the plan.

In the end, the tournament organizers got what they wanted. The Omegas had all their games forfeit. In return, they were going to send them tournament winner duffle bags in the mail. The Omegas had won the un-official Bronze Division Championship. While the remaining teams actually played a playoff to decide the championship.

Basically, the Omegas got screwed for entering the wrong division. No Sunday playoff games.

In hindsight it worked-out for all involved. One of the players got the leave early and meet her family in Hawaii. We got to sleep-in and enjoy the rental house. That place made the weekend. What a difference from going back to a hotel! Instead, it was jump in the pool or Jacuzzi and have BBQ or homemade Thai food. As a team bonding event, it couldn't have gone any better. The other couples were great and we all got along well. Yet we all had our own sleeping quarters and bathroom space. I wouldn't be surprised to see this group rent out that place as a vacation home next year, without the hockey tournament. It was just a cool place to hang-out, with cool people.

Tournament from Hell avoided!

Orange County Fair 2010

There was a bit of doubt in my mind whether or not the last trip to the OC Fair would be my last, and not from the food I ate. I believe that the fairgrounds are owned by the State and are in the process of being sold. Yet, the OC Fair is being held again this year. I love going to the Fair.

It's become a bit of a tradition to take the family there and a great excuse to take a day-off of work, to go during off-peak, weekday hours. We went on a Sunday, but the crowds weren't that bad. I blame the economy.

What a great experience the OC Fair is! There's something there for everyone. My wife loves the trinket vendors. The late night infomercial TV show presentations are performed live: Slap Chop, Shamwow, Ginzu knives, have all been there at one time or another. We always go to the reptile house and take a picture in from of the T-Rex statue out front. The kids love the rides. They are pretty young and don't meet the size requirement for "real" theme park rides yet. So, having scaled down roller coasters is amazing for them.

My real reason for going is the food. There's a place that specializes in deep fried food, called Chicken Charles. Last year I had deep fried Spam. (Also, chocolate covered bacon, but a different vendor.) Two years ago, was the deep fried Snickers bar. This year featured the Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich and deep fried Klondike Bar. The donut + chicken patty mashup was the worst thing I've eaten without a dare or bet being involved. You take a refrigerated Krispy Kreme jelly-filled donut and cut it in two; that's your "bun". Add a deep fried chicken patty, heavily processed and prefectly round. Viola! That what I ate. It was probably the mix of temperatures, textures and flavors that makes it so vile. The deep fried Klondike Bar, on the other hand, was great. About what you would expect. A warm breading, with melted chocolate and a frozen ice cream center.

I can only hope that the OC Fair is around again next year. What will those crazy carnies think up for me to try?

UFC 117 - Monday Morning Cornerman

I love the shake-up following any MMA event, but especially the UFC. The adage that "you are only as good as your last fight" is too true. No fighter is allowed to have an off night. In order to be a champion or contender you have to win and the more spectacular the victory, the better. Lose one fight, and you are a bum.

The biggest shake-up for the weekend was seeing Anderson Silva as mortal. Sonnen pretty much backed-up his words and was well on his way to grinding out a decision, when he fell into a triangle. That's exactly the result I expected, but not with 2 mins left in a 25 minute fight.

Fans are calling for a re-match. I have a problem with re-matches in general. I don't like them. So much is made of #1 contender status, careers are built around it. The loser of a title fight should be dropped down the contender mountain, and have to win a few fights to get another crack at it. Yet, if the popular guy that was "suppposed" to win doesn't get it done, he now gets a re-match? Since when? Didn't Florian have to wait 2-years to get another crack at the belt?

The UFC has set a bad precident lately. I think it started with Machida vs Hua. Hua lost via "controversial" decision, so he got a re-match. I saw that fight live and thought it was close, but I gave it to Machida. So, basically Dana White and Co are allowed to question a judges decision and make a re-match. Talk about not giving the judges any merit. What about Penn vs Edgar? Granted, BJ has been champ for awhile and should be given certain courtesys. I like BJ. But I still think he is required to have at least one fight before getting a title shot. I don't think Chael should get a re-match. He lost without question, not a bad decision. The only bad decision was to fall into a triangle the last minutes of the fight. I love Shane Carwin. It's relatively controversial that the fight wasn't stopped, after repeated warnings by the ref, but only warnings. I don't think Shane deserves an immediate re-match and it wasn't even discussed. Why? Because the popular guy won.

Fans run the sport because Dana White has an ear to the ground about what fights the "fans" want to see. Apparently, I am not a fan. 'Cause I don't like re-matches. Take the loss for what it is. Not that it was close, so give him a do-over.

Cow Town Tournament

I just found out that the hockey tournament this weekend, is the innaugual Vacaville Adult Women's Wine Tasting Classic Tournament. Seeing as how there is wine tasting involved, I figure that gives the Cluck n' Omegas an edge. Unless it is just a misleading name for the tournament. Accomodations will be not be the usual hotel stay, as a rental house was found that holds 8 people. Looks like a pretty cool place; fully furnished with a pool & jacuzzi. So, it will really be like a vacation. Now I just have to count down the work days until we leave...

Hockey Tournaments

The Cluck n' Omegas are playing again! This will be the third tournament of 2010 for my favorite ladies hockey team. I'm not sure what to expect. The ladies are a bit of an anomaly, as most of the girls do not routinely play together on the same team. Chemistry is everything in hockey. But somehow they get things together after one game and are able to win tournaments. The Omegas have played several years-in-a-row at the Vegas Invitational each January. They were going for a 3-peat this year, made the Final, but came up short.

The first time playing outside of Las Vegas, was a late Spring tournament in San Jose. Things did not go so well. The team never really came together and didn't make the playoffs; looking a bit disorganized and over matched at times. They got it together by the last game, but it was far too late. I think that the lack of Vegas nightlife was actually a negative factor. Maybe the ladies need the distraction?

We'll find out this month. The Omegas are playing in NorCal once again. It was a bit of a struggle to get a full team together. Confirmed players dropped out, replacements were non-committal, the usual last minute drama. But a workable roster was pieced together. Hopefully the ladies can get their mojo going in a place not named Las Vegas.

Either way, I'll be along for the ride. I won't have to watch the kids, as they will be with the Grandparents! It's a great vacation for me. Not sure what there is to do in Vacaville, but the team has fun together regardless of the locale. I can't wait.

Samsung Captivate: Week 1.

I'm becoming a Samsung/Android fan. The Captivate is easily the best AT&T phone I've ever had. But honestly, that's not saying much as I don't change phones very often. And I've hated the AT&T branded phones so much, that I would pay extra for an unlocked phone. The Captivate has grown on me. I'm not much of a multimedia guy, but I do use several social media apps: Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare. I also like being able to take pictures in a pinch. The Captivate is up to the task.

The phone is snappy between menus, doesn't seem to lack processor speed. (A disclaimer is that I don't require a lot of multitasking.) I like the Android keyboard, with predictive text. I've never liked predictive text before, but it works with a touchscreen. The camera has a ton of options and is very adjustable. A nice and wide lens.

The downsides: I don't like the camera layout. The zoom is on the bottom, and my left hand fingers are always over the lens. It's not a one-hand use camera, as the shutter button is on the touchscreen. So, the one-arm outstretched, self portrait is tough. I'm also losing the volume settings for the ringer and system volume. I think it's from using the task manager to kill background running programs. But I just haven't figured this out yet. Speakers sound a bit tinny, especially at the high volumes I run the speakerphone. GPS takes forever to connect.

The upsides: The apps I use have more functionality than the last phone I had. (Nokia N95) I'm using Foursquare more now, since it's simpler to check-in. The customizable widgets are great. I loaded a movie onto the phone and it looks great. (Haven't experienced the pseudo-5.1 surround with headphones yet). Battery life seems better than that first day. But I'm still getting a charger for work, home & car. A big plus is the Google Navigation. It's worth the long satellite link-up, as there is spoken word streets and accurate aerial view for turns and merges. It's worth it, since the app and service is free.

The pending: There's a OS update that should be coming in September. Supposed to add flash support to the browser. That would put me over the top as far as recommending the phone. Also, Samsung has their own "Media Center" which may be a plus. Right now the Android store is good emough for me. I'm only scratching the surface with so many apps out there waiting to be used/tested.

I don't regret buying this phone.