Mutli-rave post

It's bee a while, and there are so many things I've experienced and I'm loving taking advantage of on a regular basis.

So, instead of focusing on just one rave, I'm going to talk about a few things that I'm loving at the moment.

"These are a few of my favorite things"

And now that that song is stuck in your head, let's plunge ahead. These are in no particular order other than how much atop my mind they are at the moment.

Yoga Toes - I've had these for a couple months now and though they're some of the strangest looking things, they're amazing.

At first, I could only wear them for about 10 minutes before my feet were begging me to take them off. But over time, I've come to crave them, especially after a run or a long day at work. They claim to be the cure for bunions but I just love how they make my feet feel. These came recommended to me by my cousin who wears them religiously, she even walks around the house in them, but I still find this a bit painful...they're definitely not made for walking, but lounging while reading or watching TV or even to wear to bed, they're fabulous!

Total Freedom - if you're looking for a good book that will give you a completely different outlook on life and self-improvement without being all self-helpy, this book is it. I'm not going to lie, it's not a quick read. But it's worth every minute spent with your nose stuck in it. It's one of those books that, once you get into it, you find yourself having a hard time pulling yourself away. A book like this is too good not to share with others. A must read.

Nutella - my new peanut butter substitute when I'm just not feeling the crunchy, peanutty spread. If you haven't tried it before, I highly recommend it. I'm a big fan of Nutella on my morning banana or on an apple in the afternoon. Punches up your favorite treats a bit. YUM!

Delta Airlines Wi-Fi - what would I do without in-flight wi-fi? Well, probably sleep or read or listen to music and just unwind. But, on those days where I need to get a client report out the door or I'm waiting for a response to keep a project moving, or even when I just want to write a blog post, it's critical. Sure, there's a bit of a charge, which you can buy by flight, 24-hour period or have a monthly fee for unlimited access for all you frequent fliers out there, but it's totally worth it!

MacBook Air - Apple got it right with this one, beyond right! I was issued an Air for my new position (oh yeah, did I mention I got a new job and I'm loving EVERY SECOND OF IT?) and I gotta tell you, it's amazing. As someone who has found herself traveling more than normal, I don't dread slinging my messenger bag over my shoulder for that long trek across the airport anymore, I can hardly tell I've even got a computer in there. And with the abundance of wi-fi connections, well, everywhere these days, there's no lack of internet connectivity. I'm going to love having this powerful little (and I do mean little) beast.

That's all for now.

Cheers!

-A

Technology FAIL

Saturday, the hard drive on my MacBook Pro crashed and burned. It's not looking promising that I'll get any of the data back, either.

Sunday, after visiting the Apple store to get these suspicions confirmed, I come home to find that my vacuum exploded - or at least that's how the house smelled.

While spending Sunday afternoon trying to remedy my little lost-data issue, my iPhone decided it wasn't going to work properly, resulting in a 2 hour shut down to give it a rest.

Today, as I sit at work and use my personal MacBook in an attempt to do my job, the web-based version of my work email refuses to cooperate - as does my AIM - leaving me zero access to correspondence with my team mates who are spread about the country.

It feels like the technological world is crumbling around me.

Maybe I should have used this floating holiday like everyone else and stayed in bed a little longer this morning. That, in fact, may have been more productive.

Deep breaths today - trying to keep my sanity in this during this insane technological FAIL.

EA Sports Active

As many of you may recall, I decided a while back to man up and take the 30-day challenge on EA Sports Active for Nintendo Wii.

Saturday will officially mark the 30 days since I began the challenge. And no, I will not have completed the workouts by this time. I'll be going about three days over - due to soreness and rests because of skydiving and such.

Anyhow, I think I still have some pretty good insight into the program that I'd like to share with y'all today.

As expected, there is some good, some bad and even a few surprises in the following review.

Has anyone else tried this? How does it compare with say, Wii Fit? As a non-Wii Fit user, I'm intrigued. Maybe one day I'll try it out and do a head to head comparison...

Until then, here's my review on the first 30 days using EA Sports Active for the Wii.

Raves:

• It's harder than you might think, and really gets your heart pumping.
• You can choose your level of intensity depending on how you feel that day.
• You can create an avatar that looks like you.
• It doesn't track your weight. This is good for those of us not trying to lose pounds, but more to shape up. 
• It really focuses on your legs - something I've always needed help with.

Rants:

• The resistance band doesn't do enough for my arms.
• It's very sensitive to movement - if you're shaking from the intensity of the workout it'll make you redo it.
• No matter how well you perform, your "trainer" tells you that you could be doing better. These must be canned, automatic responses.
• Even when you choose to listen to all types of music, the songs repeat frequently.
• Often the trainer tells you to set your own pace, then a minute later tells you to wait for the ding sound to switch positions. MAKE UP YOUR MIND!

Surprises:

• You sweat, a LOT. (+)
• There's a journal section that allows you to track other activities and lifestyle choices. It provides basic advice on how to make better choices. (+)
• Trophies are earned for milestones - positive reinforcement and an additional challenge to earn all the awards. (+)
• Goal setting options are very basic and don't provide much detail on progress. (-)

I'd really love to try out Wii Fit to see how it compares. In the past month I've seen a few changes in my body, but it's hard to tell if it's been from that or my other activities.

For instance, my arms have toned up, but I have a feeling steering a parachute every weekend helps with that.

Bottom line - I recommend this product. It's a great at-home option that's sure to make you sweat and get your heart rate up. And it's surprisingly challenging. 

Sure, you may look funny running in place as your avatar travels around the track, but it beats the smell of a sweaty gym any day.

Cheers!

-A

Geek or Nerd?

...but definitely not dork.

It's the ultimate debate among those of us who are engrossed in social media and love technology so much that it often consumes our conversations.

Does being computer savvy with a drive to be at the forefront of emerging technology make us geeks or nerds?

I've always considered myself a nerd when it comes to all things technological. There's no real logical explanation for why I chose this word to describe myself - maybe it's because I just feel nerdy when I go on and on about the latest iPhone software update or decide to edit my own HTML rather than use a standard compose feature.

But after reading this comparison chart that was shared with me by an equally tech-happy friend yesterday, it's clear that we fall into the geek category.

Of course, this site is bias toward the geek, making nerd appear to have high degrees of social awkwardness. 

Don't even get me started on what it makes dork sound like. Sorry SO, when I call you a dork, it's because I find your quirks endearing, not because I think you play with your own snot.

So tell me dear readers, where do you fall on the geek vs. nerd vs. dork scale?

Cheers!

-A

Apple a Day

(What I imagine the following interaction would have looked like face-to-face.)

Okay, before I get into an actual review here, I have a personal rant. That's allowed, see my tagline. 

I thought sleep would help refresh my emotional tie to this, but it didn't. I'm still pissed.

So yesterday was busy. Work was crazy, I have some administrative stuff I'm taking care of in my life at the moment, and Twitter was suffering. But in the afternoon I finally had time to settle in and share some valuable info with my followers (valuable being subjective, of course).

I won't share with you the gruesome details of the exchange, but I posted something that one of my doucheface followers didn't agree with. That's fine, it's my opinion, you are certainly entitled to yours.

HOWEVER...

I don't feel he was entitled to speak to me the way he did; a man I've never met before. He was elitist and acted as though he was a better human being than I - given that he called me a moron, childish, and pathetic, all in a single Tweets. That's saying a lot in 140 characters my friend.

This was even after I controlled my ego and sent him an apology Tweet for any confusion I may have caused with my previous update.

Not only that, after his last direct message where he was clearly fuming, he immediately unfollows and blocks me on Twitter.

Who's being childish again?

Anyhow, at least I don't have to worry about him anymore...

Okay, I feel better. Thanks for listening. On with the show.

.....................................................................

I have to admit that I'm an Apple junkie. No, not the red (or green) crunchy variety, but Apple as in Mac, iPhone and iPod.

It's gotten to a point where I just have to admit to myself that I'm a junkie. I've done things like drop $2 grand on a new MacBook within 5 hours of thinking, "hey, that might be a good idea," and replacing my iPod purely because I walked by the Apple store and saw a pretty purple

one I liked.

I even paid $200 to get out of my Alltel plan so I could dump the BlackBerry for an iPhone. And of course, I eagerly awaited the latest software update so I could be one of the first to make the switch.

Yes, I may have a sickness.

But of course, these products do not come without their issues. We're all aware that Apple has serious battery problems. Though I have to admit, my iPhone battery lasts way longer than the one in my BlackBerry Pearl did, especially when I am using it as a phone.

So in keeping with the negative trend, here are some things that irk me about the Apple products on my shelf.

iPhone:

• The latest software upgrade is screwing with my passcode. Because I use the device for my work e-mail, I have a passcode to get into my phone. Now, every 24 hours, it's asking me to change that code. No one knows why or how to fix it. Damn.
• The battery life, as I've already covered, is something to be desired. But it charges quick, so that's a bonus.
• Why isn't there a flash available for the camera? C'mon, BlackBerry even does it!
• Shazam: let me preface this by saying I LOVE this app. But why does it take so long to load prior to tagging? Hurry up, the song's almost over!

MacBook:

• Again with the battery - I've already had mine replaced once because it completely died. It's only a year old!
• Internet connection speed - sometimes it takes this beast two minutes to connect to my wireless. What gives?
• Overall speed - I used to be impressed, but lately it's been running really slow, and pictures on Facebook and Flickr sometimes never even load.

MacBook Pro:

• I love this computer, it's for work, but parallels are a bitch to use.

iPod:

• There needs to be a function that allows you to shuffle a playlist, not just all the songs you've uploaded. Sometimes I want to listen to the upbeat songs in my running playlist, but in a different order, without having to skip over the songs from my mellow playlist.

Of course, I must admit that the battery in my iPod still works swimmingly and I've had it almost a year now. GASP!

If you have any recommendations for my issues above, please let me know!

So tell me dear readers, are you a Mac, or a PC? And why?

Cheers!

-A