BBQ, Gaming, and Van Damme State Park...

Firstly, its good to see theProf. busting out with his own blog. He's quite a good writer and I enjoy his particular brand of humor and political rhetoric.

Had the BBQ Saturday. Great weather and good gaming. TheProf, Warden, Discourser, Acupunturist, NTT's Brain, GM, and even the Craftsman, wife, and baby managed to show. I ate a whole lot of food...in fact, I pretty much ate or drank continuously for 12 hours straight. Even the down times were filled with noshing on brownie bites or nuts or grapes. My final meal was microwaved SPAM and rice...how Daly City ghetto is that. I'm getting my SPAM fix out of my system before my wife returns from Oaxaca. (Tonight I'm having fish-sticks and Vienna sausages...MMMMM)

Played L5R...my character is falling into madness. His body and soul have been stained by the Shadowlands Taint. He knows he's infected but has no clue as to its severity. He's unconsciously tapping into the Dark potential not knowing the repercussions of its growing power. I fear that there is no turning back now. He's a member of a new Clan with a big-time chip on his shoulder...he's ambitious and believes that the rest of Rokugan should acknowledge and respect the Tsuruchi and the Wasp Clan as legitimate players in Rokugani society. Couple that with his low power ranking among the group and his Yojimbo status, I feel the Dark Power will slowly seduce him and corrupt his mind. Without the Craftsman's character to keep him in check, I fear the worst for my guy. From now on, if I ever tap into the Darkness, I believe I should disclose that info. only to theProf. (our GM)...I think it best that the rest of the group not know (as they're character's wouldn't) the depth of his descent into madness.

Played some Scrabble with theCraftman. I humbly submit that he the superior player...and by far. He's really REALLY good. I can't see the different plays that he sees. Its like a White Belt going up against a Black Belt. I'm 0-4 against him...but did I mention that its BEST OUT OF TEN!!! One more game my friend and if you win, I will be fully convinced your Scrabble Godhood status.

The GM made me copies of the pictures he and his better half took at our recent camping trip to Mendocino. Here is a better shot at the Easter Island MOA I created.



And my favorite food:



The Prof and his BBQ SPAM and Marshmallow sandwich...disgusting.



The Prof. leading NTT's Brain and GM onto the Fern Trail...don't worry, no faces as you can see...or not see.



See you later....

7/22 update....

My wife has been out of the country for 5 days now and I think I'm ready to have her back home...and the cats are too.

Watched the Dark Knight a couple of nights ago with theProf...wow...to utilize theDiscourser's parlance, "My Face has been ripped off". An intelligent exploration of the Hero and Villain psyche. Impressed with the movie on soo many levels. Will Heath Ledger get a nod for best actor this year because of this role?...I think YES.

Rarely in cinema do villains come across as truly evil and/or "villainous". I believe you can group most bad-guys in the following general categories:

1. Near comical caricatures where often times viewers find themselves rooting for the bad-guy to escape or succeed or prevail: most Action Film genre Arch Enemies fall into this category.

2. Bad-guys with the stereotypic tragic past/childhood...and in some small way we can understand why they've come to be who they are: Micheal Myers, Jason Vorhees, Carrie, The Ring, a majority of Japanese horror genre characters, etc.etc.

3. Then there are the serial killer genre Bad-guy who, despite being scary and frightening, are in the end much more interesting and strangely fascinating then they're Good-guy counterparts: Hannibal Lechter, Seven, Saw, Anton Shugar and the rest...and they're particularly good at entertaining us with their always creative ways of killing people.

4. And of course there are the Monsters...and being Monsters, there's NO NEED to justify their bad behavior: Vampires, Werewolves, Mummy's, Zombies, etc.etc. I mean you can't fault a Zombie for eating you simply because its in their nature to eat you.

5. Then there are the Criminals and crime-bosses. They do what they do for power, wealth, notoriety, or fame. They're quite easy to understand really.

6. Then there are the supernatural Bad-guys who, again, need no explanation re. why they are who they are. Demons are demonic, Devils perform deviltry, Ghosts are....ghostly? Honestly, this is one groups that actually scares me at times...and I'll tell you why: you can takes steps to defend yourselves against the rest of the bad guys on this list (even defeat them), however crazy these steps might be. But their is no defense against Possession or an attack from an ethereal enemy. Viewers are left to feel vulnerable and helpless. Furthermore, Satan and his minions can't be bargained with...they exist to be Evil. But their impact on the viewer is mostly related to Fear, and not much else. Also, their very nature (being not of this world) allows us to take several psychological steps away from accepting them in any way as REAL.

But then there are that handful of truly frightening Bad-guys. Yes, other Villains might have higher body counts but what makes the most disturbing villains evil is that they choose to be Evil. Furthermore, there is a senselessness in the way they kill and cause pain. They don't do it to make ANY POINT, or do it because it makes them feel warm and fuzzy inside, or do it for reward or payment or power, or do it to corrupt the pure, or do it because they're hungry, or do it for vengeance, or do it to praise Satan, or do it because its in their nature. The best Villains are those who can't be understood...where viewers are invited into the madness hoping for a payoff or punchline or harbor from the insanity, but in the end, there is none. And the Joker comes damn close to being that great Villain.

I believe the best villain in cinema history was Ammon Goeth from Schindler's List...and absolutely NOTHING comes close. I hate him more than I've hated any character or real person in my entire life. I could not identify with any aspect of his personality. There was absolutely no meaning to his cruelty other than to demonstrate how much of a bore and a chore it had become. Of course what is most frightening about him is that he was a real man. Ammon wasn't some crazy schizophrenic, or Frankenstein's Monster, or crime boss, etc whose motivation to do evil is clearly understood. Ammon didn't even CHOOSE to be evil. What I find completely and utterly terrifying about him is that he was a bi-product of that society, a necessary cog in Nazi culture...and the mind-boggling bottom line being; Ammon believed he was doing GOOD, as did many Nazi's.

There was one particular scene in that movie that chills me to the bone to this day. Ammon's cabin was perched on the edge of a hill overlooking the quarry he was assigned to manage. Within the quarry were thousands of enslaved Jews moving in single file groups from one work station to another. A new resident was about to walk across the large open space when he was stopped by a veteran prisoner of the death camp. He warned him not to walk any faster or slower than any other worker, and never look up or STOP for any reason. High in his cabin, Ammon Goeth was taking aim deciding who to shoot with his high-caliber weapon. The words of the prisoner made sense then...Goeth wasn't shooting anyone in particular, just anyone that stood out to him...and then he killed anyone that stopped to help the fallen. He killed this way before breakfast and he was having a pleasant conversation between reloading...no affect, no glee, no remorse, no anger, no joy. The act was akin to his morning shave.

Man, I'm feeling really dark this morning. Anywayz, gotta go.

Interviewed by Channel 2 news...

I was walking across the busy street I work at and spotted Bob McKenzie, of KNTV Channel 2 News, accompanied by a cameraman. In my curiosity, I walked up, said "Hello" and asked what story they were covering. The cameraman spun around while Bob moved the microphone towards me asking me in a completely intimidating and friendly tone, "The City has been voted as the number One walking city in the country. Why do you think that?"....silence. In that moment, I seemed hyper-aware of my surroundings and the camera lens appeared to expand in size...and eventually I spoke...right out my ass.

He said that the story would run on tonight's news. Apparently, he had traveled to several parts of the city interviewing dozens of people so I thought my chances of making it on-air were slim to none.

I had told my wife of the run-in and we sat watching the news at five to see if I had made the cut. After about 20 minutes of real news, lo-and-behold, there I was...a big round Asian head moving its lips, speaking like some sort of expert and sounding very gooby indeed. I have it recorded and I've watched it several times hoping my embarrassment would diminish after each viewing...it didn't. I looked goobier and goobier each time I watched. I believe you can view it on the KTVU website looking under 7/17 news stories.

This marks the 4th time I've been on TV. Here are the others:

1. 11 years ago, I was asked to stand-in for my esteemed former supervisor, a renowned expert on suicide, on a panel discussion on suicide and the elderly which aired on our local PBS station. I have a copy of that 30 minute round-table. Every time I look at it, I simply can't believe the size of my Pompadour...its leading edge must have stuck straight up a good 4 inches. I came uber prepared and sounded very much a professional with some good knowledge, but one look at that hair and I can't imagine anyone taking me seriously. I can't bear to look at that tape now and suffer chills and fits of embarrassment with just the thought of having to view it again.

2. 13 years ago, during suicide awareness week and following a rash of sensational suicides in our city, a Channel 7 news crew came by the crisis line I had worked for to interview a volunteer and supervisor...I was the supervisor. I hadn't shaved, dressed in a tee-shirt, and generally looked nowhere near the "expert" they had wanted, but they went through it anywayz believing my delivery and content were spot on. I look back on that clip, and again, I can't see past the damn HAIR...it was huge, but thank goodness NOT as huge as the former example. It was also when I weighed 190 lbs with very little body fat, benched 315 without a problem, took supplements and weight lifted 5 times a week...needless to say, I looked like a crazy Pompadour haired overly muscled big-headed unshaven Filipino freak who spoke softly and compassionately about our need to understand and be aware of elderly suicide. It was ridiculous.

3. 8 months ago, while standing in the bitter cold in front of the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York, an AP news crew interviewed me about my feelings re. David Letterman's first show back after the long writer's strike. They also wanted my take on how he had hired the writers to work despite the rest of the writers within the union continuing to strike. Thank goodness, I didn't look like a complete freak in this one. My face was a bit red from the freezing cold but that's about it.

And so, that's my 15 minutes of fame in a nutshell...most of it an embarrassing mess.

My wife will be out of town for a couple of weeks...

LET THE DEBAUCHERY BEGIN!!!

Just kidding sweetie, I'm just kidding.

Some stuff from July 4th...

Forgot to post some pics from 4th of July. My wife and I took the ferry from Alameda to the City and I took some snapshots of the new eastern span. They're nearly at the part where they traverse the deepest part of the Bay...where the new suspension span will begin.



Here's a night shot of the more attractive western span.



Please don't get me started on the subject of the Bay Bridge...okay, can't help it. Here it goes:

IT IS AN EMBARRASSING JOKE that this bridge isn't built yet. I have a cousin that worked as a Caltrans engineer for over 15 years and now works as a big-wig administrator at their Sacramento headquarters. And you know what?...it's a frickin joke to them as well. It is an abject fiasco and I refer to two singular (gramatically incorrect, but bear with me) issues.

1. The bridge was 53 years old when the Loma Prieta earthquake hit. It will take over 25 years to rebuild just the Eastern Span...how is that NOT a completely unfunny joke.

2. Original bridge estimates have been re-adjusted nearly a dozen times from the original budget of 200 million to over FIVE BILLION!! How the F@%& did it go up by a factor of 25!

I'll tell you why...here's the punchline...NO BODY KNOWS. Caltrans blames cost over-runs on material costs, increased labor costs, and massive inflation in the cost of steel. The State blames it on poor estimate analysis, poor management, and problems with the legions of separate and distinct contractors. Pundits blame environmental groups, delays related to political handwringing re. the archetectural syle of the eastern suspension span, and poor choices in contractor bids. And the people blame everyone. This has gone on through four gubernatorial administrations and the finger pointing continues with NO ONE accepting responsibility and with NO ONE to blame.

My cousin believes that, ultimately, with a bureaucracy the size of the State and Caltrans, and particularly considering the time table, the several investigators and special commissions assigned to tease out the mess will NEVER discover who is at fault. AND, here is the crazy thing, at one point during the investigation, contractors were told to STOP building and that we would pay them 1,000,000 dollars a week to DO NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That there was 100 exclamation points...times that by 10,000 and that is the amount of dollars were talking about, PER WEEK. Another way to put it into perspective; our local school district has lost nearly its entire sports program and a huge portion of its AP courses because it could not bridge a 4.5 million dollar budget shortfall this past year...wow, that's what we paid these guys to do absolutely NOTHING for FOUR mother-f-king weeks...brilliant.

This issue enrages me on soo many levels. The latest outrage was the most recent estimate last January re. upping the estimate an extra BILLION dollars from just 12 months earlier! Why is no-one at least being FIRED, or apologizing for this mess, or telling us the truth?

If I hired a contractor to fix my roof and he told me it would cost 1000 dollars and will take 3 days...but then after 2 months the roof has yet to be fixed and he's now charging me 25,000 dollars...let me tell you, I'd press charges or sue or go to court or report the idiot or just plain beat him about the head and torso with a blunt object. But with this damn bridge, we (State Taxpayers) have NO recourse. We simply bend over and take it again and again and again.

One might argue, "so what if we're spending six billion dollars to build this bridge...we're paying people to work, and that's good". Anyone who uses this logic, please step forward so that I can shoot you in the head.

How about this. Tear down what you've built...no wait, that'll cost more money. Leave up what you've already built so the Peregrine Falcons can use is as a home and we'll simply live with the old piece of garbage cantilever eastern span. If it collapses during the next earthquake?...oh well, we'll fix it like we did last time.

I know this sounds completely absurd...but for me, its come to that. One thing is undeniable at this point; we're going to pay an estimated Six Billion dollars to build this bridge, and it will be the biggest waste of taxpayer money the world has ever seen in a civic project....gee, what a proud moment it will be for our State when we cut that ribbon to open the new span. No one is at fault, no on is to blame, no one was hurt, taxpayers will simply deal with it.

I'm in the business of managing resources...c'mon, I work in managed care and authorize and deny services EVERY day. I know about the allocation of resources and about how tax money is doled out to different accounts and funds and budgets and how all of it is very complex. But what it comes down to is that this is OUR tax dollars being spent, however you spin it; whether its money from the Feds, from the span commuters, from the Counties, or from special state assessments, or bond funds, or foreign bank loans, etc.

And in the end, we've been RIPPED OFF...

You know your a Goob when......

1. You've had a character that has courted, romanced, and/or had sex with an NPC or, worse yet, a PC...and you think yourself quite a ladies man because of it.

2. You can quote every line from every movie Bruce Campbell has been in.

3. You've made very serious attempts to move objects by channeling your Jedi Force powers.

4. You've masturbated to Boris Vallejo artwork.

5. You can write a thesis, citing numerous sources, on why The JUGGERNAUT can beat up the HULK.

6. You know the issue and the villain who was hit by Fantastic Four's THING's most powerful punch he'd ever thrown in his entire life.

7. And of course, you've dressed up as a character from Star Trek, Star Wars, or LOTR.

8. You've been upset about and decided not to go to an Airsoft game because your iron-sights were improperly co-witnessed with your Aim-point.

9. Resident Evil is the greatest movie ever filmed.

10. You have an original set of AD&D dice.

11. You know your buddies character's last name but can't recall your buddies last name.

12. You know how much YOU, the REAL you, cost in points according to Hero System.

13. Conceptualize all human behavior as 8, 11, or 14-or-less skill roles.

14. Can drink 9 liters of Diet Coke in one evening.

15. Laugh hysterically at "fumble" stories.

16. Can get the punchline in the quote "I slight of hand my hand".

17. Have been so traumatized by a Call of Chuthulu game you played 15 years ago that regardless of the game your playing, your character will NEVER look upon any artwork on a wall.

18. You believe Zombies exist.

19. You've thought about naming your first born Tiberius.

20. When you help your friends move and they ask you to help them lift some heavy furniture, you mock them for failing their "push" roll.

21. You are offended that your gaming friend only brought THREE boxes of powdered donuts to a game.

Anyone else???

The Moose's Wedding and more on Goobhood.

Attended the Moose's wedding yesterday. Wedding ceremonies lacked meaning for me until I experienced my own wedding ceremony. I've always "gotten" how it was a joyous occasion, an opportunity for family and friends to connect. However, the actual "union" aspect of the ceremony was lost to me on an emotional level. But now to my surprise, every wedding I've attended have been exceptionally moving. I'm truly honored to be a witness to the union and the Moose's Wedding was no exception.

I can't tell it better than theDiscourser in his 7/11 blog so check out his entry for all the details.

I was glad that the goob crew had a chance to read and discuss my Goob blog entry. It created both conversation and debate, which is what I intended. Needless to say, theProf took issue with my ratings; both in the scores and the science behind my methodology. I have to admit,...their was no science at all, the scores were purely subjective...I gave the scoring very little thought. I have to say though, I think theProf goob factor score is much higher than I had once thought....he is one hell of a goob. My goodness, he wants to create a rubric and operationalize the "Goob Factor" scoring...and the crazy thing is I want to help him work on it!

So at this point in time, I'm going to throw out my "goob factor" ratings in the previous posts and help theProf develop a legitimate rating system; one with inter-rater reliability and validity. Needless to say, I think the scores would change dramatically. I truly believe my friends are much goobier than I had once thought.

So re. criteria to be operationalized; here are some dimensions that should be taken into account. I'll be presenting this to theProf. and we can brainstorm further. Again, its a work in progress:

Dimension One:
1. How gooby does he/she look like?
2. How gooby does he/she sound like?
These are very important criteria. We can spot dorks and geeks from a mile away. But then again, some pass very well...until they open their mouths (think theSupertechnician). Credit should be given for those who are able to "pass" and higher scores should be given to those who are incapable of appearing normal.
NOTE: The severity of the scoring should be mitigated by one's "skill" at passing...ie. thePerfectLine is attuned to his goobhood and is quite skillful at keeping it under wraps.

Dimension Two:
1. Number of hobbies
2. Goobiness of said hobbies
High scores in this dimension can really put someone over the top and into the realm of abject freakdom. Folks with alot of hobbies tend to display several important psychological features; limited ability to control their obsessiveness bordering on if not fully into addiction, disregard toward the repercussions related to the amount of energy and money paid to these hobbies, inability to focus and prioritize, and an almost manic flavor to their desire to delve as deeply into the hobby as humanly possible. Furthermore, and regarding item 2 in dimension two, some hobbies are viewed as culturally accepted and at times even appropriate. Think; the thrill seeker, poker player, sports fan, Scrabble player (yep Craftsman) etc. This is in sharp contrast with the gamer, airsoft, and LARP'ing, among others.

Dimension Three:
1. The depth to which one delves into the goob hobby.
This is a critical point that I feel is separate from Dimension Two. Dabblers score very low. I'm taking about the level to which one's make-believe world has replaced the real-world when it comes to meeting their emotional needs. There was a time in my life when I scored quite high in this dimension...probably higher then all the other goobers. Why?...I'm certainly the only guy among our group that has physically assaulted another player (theDiscourser) because he killed a beloved character (Shaka Jesus). TheProf. scores very high in this dimension when it comes to his miniature gaming hobby (as all of you know).

Dimension Four:
1. Negative impact on one's life.
This is huge. Some goobs are well-adjusted folk with happy lives, successful careers, and satisfying relationships DESPITE how poorly they pass, or how much time and energy they place on their hobby, or how emotionally important their hobby has become to them. I'm taking about the addicted, the dysfunctional, the guy who will NEVER get laid EVER. They have NO insight in how absolutely absurd they are both inside and out, and have neither the capacity to realize nor the inclination to change this...but of course, imagine this on a continuum for ratings sake. To illustrate, some of us let it all hang out at conventions, but are quick to shut it off the moment we step outside the convention doorways...that's good.

I've got to get back to work so my brainstorming ends here for now. If anyone would like to chime in, please feel free in the COMMENTS section. I'll be taking to theProf. and perhaps we can create a survey/questionnaire, but that'll be crazy difficult to develop. Self evaluation is a poor way of obtaining accurate measurements but lets see what he says. Either way, this should be a terribly embarrasing excercise for all of us.

Later...

Addendum to my last post:

I forgot to mention (my apologies):

TheAcupunturist: Finishing up grad-school, Eastern Medicine/Acupunture focus. Lives in the East Bay. Hobbies include: well, alot of things, theAcupunturist is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to hobbies. Goob factor: 6.7 and growing. He reveals his goobhood over time and I'm not sure of its upper limits at this point.

Also, at the behest of theCraftsman, I'm including "Scrabble" as a hobby of his, a game he plays nearly every day...which increases his goob factor to 4.9. He's quite skilled, I must say...I'm pretty good and I've gotten hammered the three times we've played...regardless, I CHALLENGE HIM one-on-one!!

The list of fellow Goobs and my take on Goobhood.

TheDiscourser: Has been a buddy of mine since 3rd grade Catholic School. Has his own Blog, thediscourser.blogspot.com. Married, 2 kids, works as an Administrator at a local Middle School. Hobbies include: gaming, comic books, Playstation. Goob factor 5.2 Hides his goobness very well.

TheWarden: we attended the same Catholic High school. Works as a Police Officer. Hobbies include: on-line gaming (particularly Lord of the Rings), computers, gaming, camping, shooting, backpacking, guns. Goob factor 8.8, a high score given how he has contingency plans and is fully prepared for an attack on his home by Zombies.

TheGM: been our primary GM for over 20 years now. Works as a librarian administrator at the county library. Hobbies include: gaming, backpacking, car camping, fishing, electronic gadgets. Goob factor 9.0. We all count on our Ota-King to be our master-goober.

TheProf: been a buddy of mine since college. In fact, theMightyMook, theWarden, theDiscourser, KawangaKid, and I all went to the same Catholic all-boys College Prep Highschool. TheProf is married and works as a teacher at a local college prep high-school teaching all the brainy AP science/math courses. Hobbies include: gaming, miniature table-top gaming, playstation, martial arts, camping, miniature painting, and he's a proselytizing neo-con (I Kid, I Kid!). Goob factor: 9.2. Openly embraces his goobatude.

TheMightyMook: been a buddy of mine since college. Has 2 kids and works primarily in Real Estate and recently played a small role as a hired henchman in a film. Hobbies include: dating, gaming, martial arts, acting. Goob factor: 2.0. You'd never know Mook was a goob. TheMook is one guy you don't want to get into a fight with...he enjoys fighting, doesn't mind getting hit in the face and returning the favor with his foot/leg.

NTT'sBrain: been a buddy of mine for 20 years. Married and works as a professional artist for a huge computer/console game multinational conglomerate. Amazingly skilled artist BTW. Has his own blog nttsbrain.blogspot.com. Hobbies include: drawing, charcoal, paint, photography, wood-work, Airsoft, gaming. Goob factor: 5.0 but he makes being a Goob look cool.

TheKawangaKid: attended the same high-school. Lives and works in the Philippines in the tech industry (I believe). Married with a child on the way! Has his own blog but I can't remember its address. Hobbies include: gaming, sci-fi, short story writer. Goob factor: 9.0 theKawangaKid is a goob, a shameless, out of the closet GOOB. I admire his openess re. his goobatude.

ThePerfectLine: Currently lives in Southern Ca. and works as an IT Director/VP. Hobbies include: dating ridiculously gorgeous women, cars, high performance driving, computers, Electornica...actually, thePerfectLine has had more hobbies than anyone I've known and the list would be too long to include. Goob factor: 10!! Yes, a TEN. He is THE biggest goob I know...but he hides it better than, I believe, anyone in history. He lives 2 lives man!

TheCraftsman: Married with one fresh and new little son. Works as a buyer for a huge electronics retail chain. Hobbies: gaming, carpentry, woodworking, drinking very expensive Scotch, the Beatles. Goob factor: 1.7. TheCraftsman isn't much of a goob at all. He just hangs out with a lot of really supergooby people.

Cajun: Married with 2 kids, an accountant living in a Midwestern Red State. Hobbies include: gaming, airsoft, blogging, sci-fi. Goob factor: 9.1...Big time goober, out and lovin it...he wears "costumes" for cryin out loud, and not just one, he has MANY in his arsenal.

Rave-Boy: One of our youngest members, in a committed relationship, lives with theMightyMook, works for a massive Utility Company. Hobbies include: gaming, cars, dance music, clubbing, glow sticks (very skilled, at least a 14-less), on-line gaming. Goob factor: .1 Rave-boy is the most un-gooby in our group, you'd never know he was a goober. I have no idea why he hangs out with us old guys.

Duff: Another young member. Currently attending an out of state University, single (I believe), works part-time as a fire/emergency system contractor (?). Hobbies include: reading, philosophy, anti-right wing political rhetoric, gaming, 40K miniatures, cars, fine beer. Goob factor: .1, a fringe goob, a dabbler at best, very un-gooby.

SuperTechnician: Super-yacht technology/computer expert/contractor, lives in Europe. Hobbies include: anything related to technology, sci-fi, gaming, woodwork, music. Goob factor: 9.7. This guy is a MAJOR GOOB...all it takes is one conversation with the guy and it becomes entirely and overwhelmingly obvious.

Moose: A mountain of a man. Will be getting married this weekend!! Works as an engineer. Hobbies include: home-brewed beer, guns, gaming, shooting, camping, hunting, fishing,...actually anything related to the outdoors. Goob factor: 2.1 Moose is a different kind of goob, an outdoorsman goober really...can't put it any other way.

And of course.....ME, the Supergoober. Married, works in Public Health Administration, lives in the Bay Area. Hobbies include: cars, high performance driving, chess, gaming, sci-fi, blogging, film, etc. Goob factor: 9.9 I can't quite beat thePerfectLine. I am super in my goobatude simply because I am uber obsessive, and it doesn't take much to push me over the edge into wallowing in another world or in my imagination. And though I make fun of LARP'ing, I've taken Airsoft to the extreme at one point in my life, which on many many levels is much worse than LARP'ing. That's the other point, I take things to the extreme and almost NEVER dabble.

You see, past a goob-factor of 10, one begins to loose grasp of reality,...not in a psychotic sense, but more in the amount of energy and effort one places on all aspects of living "not-related" to reality; ie. REAL relationships, REAL responsibilities, etc. VERSUS non-stop hobby related expended energy, wallowing in fantasy (your own or someone else's), amassing huge amounts of trivial knowledge, engaging in ridiculous and unimportant debate.

And along this same continuum, beyond Goobhood is what I would call "Geekhood" (not to be confused with the "Nerd" who, for the most part, are smart, high achieving, and successful, but could never in ANY way be seen as cool, hip, or popular). Geeks escape from reality because they lack the skills to engage it. Geeks also have a nearly autistic element to there, at times, mad intelligence...and use this brainpower for completely irrelevant, unimportant, and useless endevors (like memorizing statistics for batting avgs for switch hitters during night games on grass turf, or 4th Edition critical-hit charts). Geeks are a sad lot and almost never pass for appearing well-adjusted. Some geeks try hard to appear less geeky but geeks can't hide their geekatude like Goobers can. But to their credit, most are educated and have decent jobs/careers. Some find "she-geeks" and live near normal lives raising and propagating another generation of Geeks.

Beyond "Geekhood" is what I would call the "Freak"...and we've all run into a few of these losers. Go to a gaming convention and you will understand. Unlike Geeks, Freaks are people without the benefit of education or intelligence. To describe: they are often ludicrously dressed (typically with a talisman or totem or some sort of symbolic dress/accessory that aids in reminding themselves of their make-believe elevated station or affiliation with some make-believe society), typically have less than adequate (to horrid) personal hygiene, are in terrible physical shape, and for the most part are completely undesirable bordering on revolting to the opposite sex, excepting the equally marginalized "She-Freak". Most of these folks are seriously diagnosable and in need of some long-term therapy. They neither have the sense nor the ability to conceal their Freakhood and generally work in low paying jobs that require little to no social interaction...wow, I sound harsh, but it's TRUE!

And yes, there is something past "Freakhood"...it is a special category reserved for a particular kind of LARP'er. You see, Nerds, Goobs, Geeks, and Freaks are ALL, in varying degrees, aware of their marginalization. They've lived their lives on the fringe and most have experienced ridicule and at times even abuse. And for most, it is this environment of marginalization that has motivated folks to gravitate toward these sub-cultures and fringe communities.

But for some uber-LARP'ers, they've done an intrapsychic trick, so to speak, and turned the world on its head...in their minds, THEY are the Gods and the Prince's. They take "pretend" to a near psychotic level...they BECOME the characters they play; they receive joy, experience pain, and achieve status via the alter-ego of their own making. They walk around in the world talking, dressing, acting, and interacting as THIS character because their own lives are soo bereft and lacking...simply put, it is intolerable to be themselves so they've become someone else. And what is most pathetic is that their false narcissism and bloated sense of self-esteem has its foundation in the make-believe...they're psyche has eschewed reality. We've all seen this: the wholly unattractive whale of a woman who dresses and believes she's the beautiful Vampire Princess, the pasty goateed long pony-tailed man dressed in the cheap all black suit who believes he's some Adonis Lord of some secret society, etc.

So to end, please my Goober friends, let me not become more of a Goober than I already am.

The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel for the S4:

After months of whittling down symptom after symptom, I've finally narrowed it down to two final problems. Here is the long list of symptom and cures...mind you, ALL the symptoms existed concurrently. The evolution has been a process of uncovering and curing one symptom at a time:

1. Throttle Cut: Caused by a faulty/old Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor. Cured by swapping out a new one...picked one up for free from a trade of parts I had on hand.

2. Throttle Bucking: Caused by faulty/old Exhaust Gas Temp (EGT) sensor. Cured by swapping out both banks...PITA to R&R and expensive to boot...got a great deal through Audizine classifieds.

3. Poor gas mileage and part throttle hesitation: Caused by faulty/old primary Oxygen (O2) sensors. Cured by swapping out both primary banks...another PITA DIY and also quite expensive...another bargain found on Audiworld classified.

4. Boost surging: After several pressure test discovered it was caused by a rupture in the bank 2 Up-pipe to the throttle body. Cured with new up-pipe...easy DIY, picked up a nearly new one for free from an Audiworld brother.

5. Total engine power cut: Caused by lower intercooler hose slippage. Cured by double clamping both inlet and outlet with Zebra Hi-Torques...only an act of god will pop it off now.

6. Boost Spike beyond normal parameters, 27 psi!: Discovered with the use of the Uber AWE Tuning vent boost gauge. Cured by downloading GIAC Manual Boost Controller (MBC) program, re-flashing the ECU to accept MBC control, and lowering boost spike via lap-top to 24 psi spike to 21 psi taper.

7. 16805 and 16815 efficiency error codes: Caused by inefficient hi-flow catalytic converters. Cure...nope, I'm leaving this one for the new owner. More an inconvenience than anything else.

8. Oil Leak: Caused by cracked oil pan and old gasket and sealant. Cured by replacing oil pan, gasket, and sealant.

9. Premature Waste-gate actuation: Caused by faulty/old N75 wastegate valve. Cured by swapping out N75 valve...easy DIY and pretty cheap part, even new.

And the FINAL symptoms to square away to get the engine in tip-top shape:

- Boost fluttering at part-throttle and near WOT conditions. Don't know the cause, could by a torn wastegate line...very difficult fix, can't do this one myself, could be costly so I'm crossing my fingers.

- Leaking raw coolant: Don't know the cause, not too problematic given the coolant is RAW meaning it has not flowed through the engine. Could be due to splashing coolant in the resevoir spilling out into and through the resevoir hose.

When these final issues are resolved, the car will be put up for sale...after a couple of weeks of enjoying the motor at full bore...hehe.