The Personal Blog of Nicholas Davis

A Fun Drawring

Fri, 15 May 2009 20:48:20 GMT

Tags: Coup

The End of Another Year

Fri, 26 Dec 2008 19:20:16 GMT

Hey, it's the sun, and it makes me shine.

Well folks, it's another year. 2008 came and went fast. I'm still trying to figure out where the time went. A few memorable moments are the following (in no real particular order):

Mine and Jacinda's first full year of marraige was celebrated January 6th, 2007.
I recieved my Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do. Still going steady in that.
Gained 15lbs and don't feel too bad about it.
Acquired roughly thirty new board games.
Launched my little side project, a collectable card trading website (Magic: The Gathering exclusively at the moment): http://www.ccgtradepost.com.
Celebrated my first year working at Famous Davis.

There are a few more less noteable things I have done this year that escapes me at the moment. It felt busy, for sure, just more along the lines of keeping up with existing projects. This is the first in four years where I hadn't really taken on huge obligations outside the norm (for instance, buying a house, switching jobs, getting married, etc). In those regards, it has been relaxing.

What's in store for 2009? I am hoping more board gaming. I still really enjoy that hobby. It seems a bit silly to look forward to. However, friends and family really seem to enjoy it and since I enjoy both friends and family, it only makes sense. I'm also hoping to expand the user base of my project, http://www.ccgtradepost.com. Among less nerdy things, I am looking forward to another year at Famous Davis and I hope to get tons done on our house (extreme home makeover style).

bzllbzlbzlbzlbzlblz more to come. The future is coming.

Tags: New Year, omg

Don't Worry

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:46:08 GMT

I am still alive. :-)

Goodbye

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:08:20 GMT

Items for Sale

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 15:52:40 GMT

Quick question: Does anyone still use eBay? I'll hop on from time to time, notice there are a few more "eBay Companies" than before and less individual to individual interaction. Remember back in the day when it was the coolest way to buy and sell used stuff? This was by far the most thorough market for your Coins, Collectables, Memorabilia, Tamagotchis, Tickle Me Elmos and Beanie Babies.

Well, regardless of whether the glory days are over or not, I am selling a couple items on one of the oldest consumer websites out there. Feel free to check them out... And buy them!

Kenwood TH-78a Handheld Radio

Konica Minolta Dimage A2 8MP Anti-shake 7x Optical

Tags: Ebay, For Sale, Ham Radio, Camera

Some Great Words From Dave Ramsey

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:49:10 GMT

Dave Ramsey is the man. Here is a great article from his blog. Original Post can be found on his website, healthy discussion in the comments.

"Question: Dave talks about something that he finds very disturbing. It has to do with people's attitudes toward Washington, and what they think will come out of there.

Dave Ramsey's advice: By and large, 70% to 90% of you wanted something to be done to calm the economy, but you didn't want $700 billion in new debt to bail out Wall Street. The stock market has had record declines since then. What's going on?

You need to remember that you need to take control of your life. It's disturbing that people in government totally disregard what the people tell them to do. It's disturbing that the market goes down and the media panics about this. It's disturbing that greedy banks made loans to people who couldn't afford to repay, and people signed up for the trip when they couldn't afford it. It's disturbing that Washington ignores its constituents and takes huge strides toward socialism.

All of these things are disturbing, but none will cause this great nation to cease to function. They are not the beginning of the end. But the most disturbing thing is some people's reactions. Don't react based on fear or panic. Another negative reaction is that you are looking to Washington to fix your problems. They have never fixed your problems, and you want Obama or McCain to fix things. There has never been a president who can fix your problems. They always say they can and they never can.

YOU are in charge of your destiny. YOU are in charge of your life. When you look to Washington to solve your problems, we've got the seeds to destroy this country. It's time for you to change your life. It's not Washington's job to fix what's going on with you. If you are waiting on Washington to change something, you've got a very long wait! It is YOUR job to take care of you. Don't sit around and watch TV and panic and think you can't do anything. I've made and lost money, and every bit of that had to do with me being smart and diligent or stupid.

Quit blaming Congress or looking to them to fix you. YOU have to fix you! When you wait on the government to fix your life and wait for money to be taken from others and given to you, that's a spirit of envy. The only system that works is capitalism functioning under moral restraint. Go be somebody!"

Tags: Bail Out, America, Obama, McCain, Dave Ramsey

Full Auto Shotgun??!

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:39:13 GMT

Wicky showed me this last night. Enjoy!

Tags: Guns, Firearms, Shotgun, Shooting Range

For the Motherland, America!!!

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 21:15:45 GMT

Seriously.... What's going on with this country? Before I go off in a rant, I'm a young man of 23. I don't really follow politics until the last few months before an election, like any other American. I have been trying to do my homework lately, like any other American and I still feel like my brain hasn't quite wrapped itself around exactly what is at hand. I suppose this is why we elect voices like our own into positions, to be our voices, from city politics up to national and international. I have only had the oppourtunity to vote once in my lifetime.

With that being said, I'm particularily concerned about the current "Relief" our Government has passed. From my understanding, AIG, the big-dog investor group, made a mistake and is now in deep pucky. So us, the free citizens of the United States of America, are supposed to pick up the tab? What's this all about? Why is our Government stepping in to mop up the mess of a corporation? It boggles my mind. So far, from whom I have talked to on both Democratic and Republican stances, Liberal and Conservative, have expressed deep concern with the current bill that has passed. Maybe I am working with a very small demographic, but this doesn't seem right.

The tax payers of America are concerned, yet the big guys in the house are alright and voting this in? Obama and McCain both voted in favor of this $800+ billion dollar bail out. From what I understand, there was some fluke in the market that caused AIG to become financially stagnant, very likely by their own doing. It should not be the Government's concern to bail them out.

Currently, in my eyes, this mass spread of debt over the American population, where every non working individual has to pay ~$3500 in and every working individual has to pay ~$4500 in leads me to believe that we are diving further and further into a socialist state. As a free man, this makes me extremely upset that we are to pay for a corporations wrong-doings and more worried than ever that the American's liberty is slowly being stripped away.

As I stated, I'm pretty new in this political game. I will very gladly take any input you may have. Until then, welcome to the new America, Comrade.

Tags: Politics, Life, Obama, McCain, Bailout

Vista Trick: Open Command Window from Explorer

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 13:25:53 GMT

Anyone remember the XP Power toy that would allow you to right-click a directory in Windows Explorer and open a command prompt from that location? Well here's a nifty little Vista trick I picked up today that not only provides the same solution the Power Toy did, but is also built right into the OS. Simply locate the directory you want to open in a compand prompt, hold down the Shift key and then right click. You will get one new option in the dialogue box that says "Open Command Window Here". Viola!

Tags: Windows, Technology, Vista

WMI error in SQL Configuration Manager

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 14:51:16 GMT

Today I spent a couple hours wracking my brain over an error I received in the SQL Reporting Services Configuration Manager: "A WMI error has occurred and no additional error information is available". Without much luck searching Google in finding an answer, I decided to try the basic fundamentals in solving errors for complete noobs, checking if things are installed / running, etc. Then I realised that my SQL Server 2005 Database instance was SP2 and SQL Reporting Services was installed only as SP1. The error resulted in the fact that I had incompatible versions installed.

I was able to solve this issue by downloading Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 and installing it against my instance of SQL Reporting Services.

This goes out to all my other programming comrades out there. :-) Let me know if this did the trick for you or not!

Tags: C#, .net, Reporting Services, Microsoft

It Could Be a Matter of Life.... or Death!

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:36:35 GMT

My neighbor Justin bought a game called Dragon Strike from Goodwill which was made in the early 90s. If the game itself looks to be a Dungeons and Dragons knockoff, complete with cheesy miniatures and a story that could faintly resemble the Fellowship of the Ring dwarf cave scene. Anyway, if the game wasn't silly enough, it also came with a thirty three minute video explaining the general idea of the game. This, I would like to share with you:

Tags: Board Games, Dragon Strike, Fantasy

Google Chrome

Sun, 28 Sep 2008 18:44:16 GMT

For the last three weeks, I have been using Google Chrome as my default browser at work and home. Why the sudden jump from the standard options? This question is particularly valid as Chrome is brand spanking new.

When I opened Chrome for the first time after installation, it felt something was missing. It felt a lot was missing. They hadn't included any sort of bells and whistles. I had expected at least google toolbar functionality would be apparent. Then I realised, apart from the sole purpose of browsing the Internet and basic bookmarking, this browser had nothing. Initially, I felt severely underwhelmed and commented that Chrome was possibly under bloated.

What am I going to do without my Google Toolbar for IE, Twitterfox and Facebook app for Firefox? After a little bit of a fit, I then took a step back. What has Google generally been good at? Keeping functionality on the Internet. They don't really make desktop apps (besides the likes of google desktop, which I felt was sort of a fluke). Google Docs, Gmail, Analytics, etc. are all web apps. Google Chrome is simply takes the focus off the browser and puts the focus on the web apps.

Once I realised the purpose of a web browser, then Chrome started making sense. I don't need an RSS aggregator built into my browser, I use iGoogle and Google Reader. I don't need a weather app, I get my weather on iGoogle. The sites I do check, I simply have them bookmarked and accessible right under the address bar. Any other frequently visited websites are accessible by their "Most Visited" pages when you open a new tab. It just makes sense.

Another absolutely amazing and huge benefit is the fact that each tab is it's own process. I can't tell you how much I can tell the difference between running Chrome versus IE and Firefox. I will at times have up around 10-12 websites open at once, when things get a little pokey, I don't need to restart the browser, I simply close a couple tabs. Nice!

The only beef I have with Chrome is that it seems it can get finicky when trying to watch flash based videos and it's not too hot with pdf reading yet. But hey, we are still in Beta (like any other Web 2.0 thing out there) and I believe they will have a firm grounding in the browser race.

Tags: Browsers, Technology, Chrome, Google

One Hundred Squats Later...

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:19:10 GMT

As all of you know, I've been in Tae Kwon Do on a consistent basis for the last three and a half years. A couple months before I became a black belt last spring, I started teaching a few classes for Master Jon. Although it was never specifically stated, I believe this was sort of a character check, to see if I had what it took to be a black belt. I was confident with idea that I could teach the material. The real kicker, however, was learning how to present the material to the students. Especially younger kids! At first it felt overwhelming, trying to keep kids attentive while teaching them some valuable stuff (and remembering all their names on top of it all). After a month or two of being subjected to this new experience, I started to catch on and it became a bit less daunting.

Since last spring, I hadn't had the oppourtunity to run class until earlier this month. In August, Master Jon asked that I run classes every Thursday in September. It sounded great, but Holy rusty, Batman! I was not only lacking in the material, but also teaching in general. Needless to say, the last four thursdays have been an interesting learning experience for me. Being in Tae Kwon Do as a Black Belt has almost entirely changed my view on the whole activity. I am now taking responsibility in training others and feel I have so much more to learn about it in that aspect. I am still in a position to learn from higher ranking black belts, yet I am also in a position that others can look at and strive to achieve. What I can look back at and smile about, however, is that I actually made it! Makes me feel pretty good, if not for self improvement.

Master Jon is really something else, being able to teach on a daily basis, yet giving each class a little different spin than the last one. It boggles my mind and I hope I'll be able to provide that kind of experience someday.

Psst: The blog title pertains to yesterday's class. We have this six sided dice with different exercises on each side. Crunches, "Teacher does 25 pushups", Squats, etc. Squats was rolled a bjillion times, so my upper leg area kills!

Tags: Tae Kwon Do, Black Belt

Version Twelve - Street Grunge

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 16:13:58 GMT

Time for another design here! Why? Orange ended up being a little too orange for my tastes near the end of it's reign. having been inspired by GoMedia, I recently decided to shift gears and head in a direction I haven't tried before. White, Black and a plethora of colors to compliment. Shameless rip? Perhaps.

So yeah, hopefully I will have a few more posts in the future as well as some newer, fresher functionality. Thanks for checking me out!

Tags: Design

Woot Off!

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 10:24:19 GMT

Looks like there is a Woot Off today! Get your deals!

Where have you been?

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:17:07 GMT

Hello folks. Once again, I have another scatter-brained blog because I've been out of touch for too long. Picking up a blog again is like trying to start a convesation with an old friend you haven't seen for a long period of time. You have so many stories to tell, so much to share and laugh about, yet you can't get past a discussion about how humid it was today and other general news you could talk about with any other stranger. Welcome back, Nick?

I suppose my life at the moment can be summed up into a few things: Tae Kwon Do, occasional board gaming, foosball and cutting checks based on how much a person talks on a phone. I haven't really had a huge house project, I haven't really gone anywhere neat recently and I haven't really made anything cool outside of work (which I'm ok with. It's also probably a whole blog in itself). I'm fairly content lately. I've also really enjoyed the company of close friends and my family.

Perhaps, if I can take anything to heart in the month of September, it's that life has changed quite substantially in the last four years. I've definetly received my first tastes in responsibility. I've grown up in this time, more than I could have imagined, yet there is plenty more room for further maturing. It kind of leaves me wondering what's next.

hrmph, that's about all I can write at the moment. Hopefully I'll get rolling in the blogging department. I am coming out with another design here, soon. That should result in a little more usage of my site. Keep your eyes peeled, I guess!

My Neighbors Pwn All

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:45:37 GMT

Just a friendly reminder to everyone out there, my neighbors are pretty awesome!!!

Tags: Justin Banken, Karen Banken, Acacia, Janek

Allergy Season

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 16:34:58 GMT

I'm a huge supporter of late Summer / early Fall. The weather is the perfect

temperature, the air smells nice, everyone is cheery, late garden vegetables are ripe and soups, stews and chilis taste better than ever. With all this good, however, comes one bad aspect... ALLERGIES.

I'm half a week into them and they already drive me crazy. I look like I've been crying all day. Jacinda talked me into buying Zyrtec, which seems to have helped the allergies, but now I have to put up with a stuffy nose. Is there no happy medium? At least with Benadryl, I have a likely excuse to take a nap. Can't win, I guess! Two more weeks of this and I should be over my allergies for the year.

Tags: Allergies, Zyrtec

A Sea of Glass Like Unto Crystal

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 09:02:17 GMT

It was Christmas and there was an incredible blizzard outside. It was me, Jacinda, my family and a few friends and family I could not recognize. We were eating, laughing, sharing, etc.; everything that is Christmas. We were at my parents (though the house did not resemble their real-life house) and it was located in middle of a Catholic Monastery-like area. Nuns bustled outside, completing chores in the incredible blizzard. There was also a surreal light emitting from behind the clouds.

We are all having fun when almost instantly, any sound was muffled. Talking, music, playing of children all stopped, leaving only the howling of the blizzard outside to be heard. Dad says, "Just wait" with relative clarity over the surrounding muffled commotion in the background. I looked out the window and I could see the silhouette of a majestic beast in the air, behind a cloud. In a blink of an eye, the blizzard stopped and the whole sky lit up with a blue glow in front of us, with activity that felt similar to that of reading about end times. The majestic beast then revealed itself to be a lion with eagle's wings, along with two others in front of it that looked identical to the large lion, except smaller in size. The beast was located in the upper left of the defined blue glow. In unison, these lions roared along with other sounds I could not distinguish. The house my family and I were in, as well as any manmade object in our way became immaterial, as it was of no importance anymore. My heart shook and bowed in reverence as my body walked forward.

Tags: Dreams

Time is ticking

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:28:21 GMT

What am I doing?

I find myself asking this question a lot lately. I'm not sure if it is because I have achieved all of the goals I set when I was fourteen, or if I have lost course with the direction I need to be going with my life. Maybe it's just the age I am at where the world lunges at you in a fashion different than what you you are used to. Perhaps I'm just confused.

Lets go back to my life between the ages of fourteen and nineteen. Everything was taken care of for me. I had a bed, warm meals and entertainment in exchange for dishes duty, lawn mowing and the occasional kids diaper. The job I aquired when I was fifteen was handed to me in a fashion where I almost didn't realise what a blessing it truely was. Not until a few years later when I understood the financial pain of a house mortgage as well as a heat bill, electricity and new roof.

I'm self sufficient. Completely and utterly self sufficient. It's in my upbringing. I've got a job, car, house and wife (of which were my goals set when I was fourteen). It leaves me with a question that I've been struggling with for the last year and a half. "What's next?" I ask. Children of course will be a trip, Lower car insurance will ocme at twenty five... I don't want to retire ever in my life for fear of losing my mind.

Perhaps the goals I'm trying to fabricate are ones that are too general and huge that I need to start smaller. It may be a mix between trying to find goals and procrastinating with the ones I already have. I for sure know I need more time talking about serious matters with friends, quality time with my wife, time by myself to recollect my thoughts and most importantly, time with God. The things I fill my life with currently are starting to set in as a huge distraction. I feel drained and craving more precious time.

What's next? I am going to try and proceed with my initial goals. Small ones that I can handle at the time. I will do my best to complete them diligently and passionately. I'm sick of sitting on my hands because a goal looks daunting. Nothing gets done and it results in more wasted time. We've been appointed only so much in our lives, so it's time I start using mine efficiently.

If you would like to take a look at what goals I have coming up, both big and small, please check out my 43 things:

http://www.43things.com/person/nickcdavis

Tags: Life, Time, Goals