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Sumiki

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Blog Entries posted by Sumiki

  6. Sumiki
    So! I've not been active in the blogs for a while. Things are good with life and such, but they've been busy. Fortunately I've been able to keep up with BZP still, and BrickFair VA 2016 beckons, as BrickFairs always do.
     
    In any event, here's a new epic that this time I'll definitely finish. No sarcasm. I have chapters all planned out and I just want to complete an epic instead of just leaving them half-baked and forgetting about them.

     




  10. Sumiki

    Barbies

    By Sumiki,

    Well, it's not the best prank ever, but it ranks up there. It's certainly better than last year.
     
    *will compile Barbie list later*
  11. Sumiki
    Note: Most of today's notes are from LewaLew but adapted for use here. I also added details.
     
    • Johnson's epic CG: You'd think they'd take him out sooner - winning by nine runs and all that - but consider that it was a three-hitter. With 12 Ks. And he drove in three runs. Who says pitchers can't hit?
    • Washington walks in the losing run in the tenth: Amazingly they don't have a losing record. (It's important to LL, at least, considering who the other team was. The Windy City was really fighting the hitters and fielders for both teams in that game. He can't wait until the wind shifts and Wrigley becomes a hitter's park.)
    • Ryan Howard gets a MASSIVE extension: In all honesty, he's not even the best player on the team. Sure, he crushes the ball, but his fielding is spotty at best and I'm still not convinced that he can hit a curve, even though he worked on those two faults in Spring Training.
    • Giants jump all over Halladay early: I thought Halladay might struggle a little - after all, even though he's the best pitcher in baseball, he only been in the league facing these batters for a little while.
    • Cubs Vs. Brewers: Apparently, the Brew Crew's woes against the Cubbies were because of one of two reasons: Firstly, the Cubs are simply awesome and crushed them, or two, the Pirates have returned to their old ways as they have for seventeen years.
    • All-Star Game ballots: They're up on MLB.com. A bit early, but who cares. Vote for who you want to play in Angel Stadium this year. (Angel Stadium is a beautiful park. LL went there in '06 on his trip to LEGOLAND, San Diego, and the Halos/Padres. Plus, he voted Longoria for third since I'm a Rays fan. )
    • Rainouts in the Big Apple: Two games in a row have been rained out at Citi Field in Queens. The first game resulted in a six-inning, 1-0 win for the Mets, but tonight's game against former NY team, the Dodgers, never even got started. Aren't we lucky that fabulous AL Central Division tiebreaker game between the Tigers and Twins was in the Metrodome, thus avoiding the rain in Minneapolis that day? Yeah, that's what I thought. No such luck this year, no matter how pretty new Target Field is.
    • MLB Network's Emmys: It actually happened last month, but MLB Network got 12 Emmy nominations in its first year, and they won four of them. One was for Bob Costas (presumably for his "Studio 42" programs) and another was for MLB Tonight. (Man, I love MLB Network. )
  12. Sumiki
    Lots of stuff since the last update, and a lot of old news too …
     
    Halladay Perfect: I knew it was only a matter of time with him. He's too good a pitcher.
    Plethora of Blown Calls: This needs to be addressed as soon as possible. And for Bud Selig and his little on-field matters committee, as soon as possible means next week, not two years down the road. You need to get these calls right, and if having another ump in the press box is what you need to do, so be it.
    Galarraga's Near-Perfection: C'mon, man. I know Jim Joyce, the umpire, feels bad about it, but I mean, really. In no-hitters and perfect games, even if the guy is safe by a millisecond or two, call him out. I sure would have.
    Ken Griffey Jr. Retires: This one shocked me. I thought for sure he'd stick it out until the end of the season and call it quits then, since he's only thirty home runs from tying Willie Mays on the all-time home run list with 660.
    Dontrelle Willis to D-Backs: I knew he'd get traded, but I don't get why anyone would want him. He's washed up. People are waiting for a follow-up to his 22-win season in 2005 and it never comes. Getting sent to the lowest levels of the minors a year or two ago probably didn't help his confidence that much either.
    Division Leaders: Flukes?: The Padres, Reds, and Athletics all lead their respective divisions. What's up? The Padres are playing in what certainly seems to be turning into a tough division, the Reds have St. Louis on their tail (sorry Cub and Brewer fans), and the A's are facing the likes of the Rangers and maybe one other team if you combine the Mariners and Angels. I really don't know what's happening, but I like it.
  13. Sumiki
    Hello one and all: the BaseBlog returns once more!
     
    Dallas Braden's perfecto: I'm happy for Braden and all, but as a Rays fan I am seriously worried. They've had a perfect game thrown against them two straight years, and they've lost three straight games. Still, I smiled when his grandmother told A-Rod to "stick it".
    Griffey sleeping: This is probably the strangest story of the year. If you haven't heard, Ken Griffey Jr. of the Mariners went into the clubhouse for a jacket midgame, and didn't return. Two other players found Griffey … sleeping. This on top of the M's offensive troubles may lead him to be cut or dealt, despite being a fan favorite.
    More on the Mariners: Sometimes, firing a coach or manager is the wrong thing to do. Couldn't it just be that they aren't hitting or playing well?
    Hey, the Nats are respectable: THey've always had a good offense, and now they're winning more games. And they haven't even brought Strasburg up yet! Sure, they're not beating the Phillies, but at least they don't suck.
  14. Sumiki
    Wait … someone stole home?: I personally didn't see it. Oh well.
    Sleepless in Seattle: Now Griffey apparently wasn't sleeping in the clubhouse? This is too confusing.
    Saltalamacchia's Troubles: Get this: he's having trouble throwing it back to the pitcher in Triple-A. But let's give ol' Salty some slack: he's had surgery and the weight of his name on his back is probably weighing him down.
    Binocular Controversy: Phillies bullpen coach Mick Billmeyer was seen looking through binoculars from Coors Field's bullpen. Was he stealing signs? I can't say for certain but it sure seems fishy. If he wasn't stealing signs what was he doing? Lip-reading what the guy with the beer gut in the third row was saying?
    Issues at Durham: Former Ranger Hank Blalock was signed by the Rays to a minor-league deal and has been with the Bulls for a while. But his agent, the unflappable Scott Boras, had inserted into Blalock's contract that if he didn't make the Rays by a certain date, he'd be released and would scour the majors for another job. Good for Blalock (and Boras's wallet), but with Peña and Zobrist mired in slumps, now may be the time to bring him up to the Show.
    The Pirates Didn't Suck?: Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones both had five hits, the first time two Pirates teammates achieved that since 1970. I know LL's not happy about this since it happened against his Cubs, but the question still remains: how long before they get traded?
     
    Also, am I the only one who's not interested in this "LEGO Universe" thing?
  15. Sumiki
    Once again, it is time for another entry of the BaseBlog!
     
    Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell dies:
    Hall-of-Fame pitcher Robin Roberts dies: What is this? Morbid week?
    Milton Bradley to restricted list: I really have no idea why the Mariners signed this guy. He claims to be the bad guy of baseball but he needs to look in the mirror.
    Olsen almost no-hits Braves: This just proves how the win statistic is so overrated. Olsen pitched great and didn't even get a decision. In fact, the Nats almost lost!
    What's up with the Angels?: The lowly Orioles swept the mighty Red Sox, and the Angels couldn't even get one win. They only came close maybe … once? Now the Halos have lost seven straight. They lost too many players in the off-season to keep up.
    Security tasers fan: I'm fine with the ol' tackle, thank ya very much.
  16. Sumiki
    Opening night is upon us in the Major League Baseball season! The Yankees are playing the Red Sox - the Sox mounted a comeback, the Yankees looked like they have it under control, and now the Sox are tied up again. Beckett didn't look good out there, and CC didn't look much better when he was taken out. I am surprised that the game is so high-scoring.
     
    In other baseball news:

    Coco Crisp breaks pinkie - Remember, kids: never slide headfirst into second. Or third. Or home. Or first. Cliff Lee on DL with strain - Maybe this is why the Phillies got rid of him - not only to get Halladay, but also because they saw these problems coming. Rays may have trouble in bullpen - With JP Howell out, the Rays' bullpen will be much more interesting. He was one of their best guys in the pen, and this can only spell trouble for them. also LewaLew you get the BaseBlog one day early
  17. Sumiki
    Credit to Kohila
     
    At long last, the first Bring Back Teal Club Bionicle Based Creations Contest, or BBTC BBCC #1, is underway.
     
    The challenge: Build anything you want...with teal in it.
     
    Your MOC could be previously posted on BZP, Brickshelf or other hosting site, entered into another Blog or BZP BBCC, or could be specifically created for this contest. The only rule is that it has to have teal in it, and prominently. You can't enter it with a gigantic MOC that has only one teal part on it.
     
    You can enter if you are a member of the BBTC. If you are not a member, you may specify that you wish to join in your comment.
     
    If you do not have any teal parts but wish to enter the contest, you may color parts. The catch is that you can only color parts teal that were released in that color. I don't want members who don't have any teal parts get any unfair advantages.
     
    And as a final rule, absolutely, positively, NO CHEATING. Cut parts or colored parts that aren't recolored teal and on parts that were released in that color are not allowed. If I suspect anyone of cheating, that member will be DQed.
     
    You can only make one MOC.
     
    To enter an MOC, use this form:
     
    Name:
    Entry Pic (jpeg, gif or png):
    Entry Topic URL (optional):
     
    The entry period will last until March 16.
     
    All questions shall be asked in the comments below. No PMing me about this contest with questions. They will be ignored.
     
    What are you waiting for? Get building!
     
    -=< >=-
     
    EDIT: I'm shutting this contest down. There aren't any entrants as of late, and ChocolateFrogs is not going to have access to parts until summer. (Not to be biased, but hey, he's an MOCist and a BBTC member.)
  20. Sumiki

    Belly-Dancing Ninjas

    By Sumiki,

    Another long day took us out from Amarillo, along one of Texas’s unique but no less navigationally infuriating one-way frontage roads to gas and then onto the Interstate. We made good time to Oklahoma City, where we stopped for a Subway to meet Portalfig.
     
    I briefly met Protalgif last BrickFair when he showed up for one of the public days, and I encouraged him to attend this year as well if at all possible. My dad regaled us with non sequiturs that nearly had Tagolrip choking on some lettuce, although I didn’t help matters when I did my vocal imitations and described the childhood incident where my uncle caused me to snort a piece of spaghetti up the back of my nose. Torgalpif and I discussed the finer points of getting hotel staff to think you’re an inspector as well as various Sumiki’s Dad-isms such as “at Sub-Zero, bears fall from the ceiling” and the enduring favorite topic of “belly-dancing ninjas.”
     
    Ifgtalrop met Yoder the Duck, and we taught him our “Yoder Salute” which he imitated instinctively. On the way out, a crow began to scream at us. Protalgift, aware but having not lived through the Cteve saga, was a little less terrified than were we.
     
    But once again we found ourselves in Oklahoma City on the weekend and Memphis, while still a ways away, was now within our sights. We got through the other side of the city, and thus out of the plains as the land morphed into the rolling hills of Arkansas and points east.
     
    We soon found ourselves in Arkansas, where we stopped at the welcome center and got gas. My parents broke their streak of not eating at national fast food chains on these big trips, as they, despite my objections, had me roll through a Wendy’s and order them hamburgers. I did not partake and have remained pure in my personal road trip mantra of abstaining from such locations in favor of what I like to call “actual food.” (Plus, I was still full from my six-inch sub earlier in the day.)
     
    I kept on from Oklahoma City to somewhere outside of Little Rock, where my dad took over and took us the rest of the way. But while on the road between Little Rock and Memphis, we passed many truckers. One of them stuck her hand out the window while we passed, and then another one pulled behind us and flashed his lights at us and honked his horn. Disturbed that there might be something amiss with the vehicle, we pulled off and then found absolutely nothing amiss with the car inside or out—save for that crack in the windshield, but it hasn’t changed an inch since Albuquerque. We chalked the truckers’ actions up to coincidence on the one’s part and mindless vitriol on the other’s, then kept on going.
     
    When we crossed the Mississippi River and got to our hotel, we found that there were too many vehicles with guests trying to check in, leaving us stuck on the road in the middle of Memphis. This being an absurd safety hazard, Mom and I rushed inside to figure out what was going on. The valets were conspicuous in their absence as cars piled up behind us into the intersection.
     
    My dad managed to get the car to safety and tried to figure out why the remaining valet staff appeared to be quitting en masse. The security guards and front desk were laissez-faire about the slow-motion traffic jam until I pointed out that the potential guests behind us had left for the competition—at which point everyone in sight hopped on the ball and figured their mess out.
     
    With the car unloaded and valeted away to safety, we dumped our bags in the room and went across the street to the stadium of the Memphis Redbirds, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cardinals whose pennant we were unable to obtain three years ago. The fast-paced game was already into the eighth inning, and folks were still buying tickets for the postgame fireworks show. Nonetheless, we didn’t need to get a ticket to get a pennant, as a few were left for sale from an unenthusiastic vendor just outside the ticket office.
     
    They generally allow the public in without tickets in the last innings, but for the weekend fireworks the security was doubled down, so we settled for a few pictures inside the courtyard area within the gates. We went back to the room to assess our dinner options, only for me to look at the tiles on the ceiling in the room’s foyer area and realize that they were sagging.
     
    A call to the front desk later, the repairman showed up. After poking on the slanted bunch of tiles, he assured us that while it certainly shouldn’t look like it did, it was the result of a rowdy bunch who had inhabited the room some time before us combined with a slack job by the housekeeping staff. From the looks of the room, the sheets and surfaces are clean but all other general tidiness items such as the warped ceiling tiles have been thrown under the proverbial rug.
     
    Delayed a bit, we finally looked at our food options. There was about a five-item room service menu, an adjoining T.G.I. Friday’s, or a walk out into the streets of downtown Memphis after dark directly into the Beale Street party scene, where the fireworks were going off after the game and the lights of police cars, positioned to guide the exiting Redbirds fans, blinded those unfortunate enough to so much as look out the window. T.G.I. Friday’s it was. The place had been all but empty when walking back from the Redbirds stadium but had since been packed and now featured a waitlist of at least thirty minutes. However, we were able to grab some seats earlier than that … at the bar.
     
    I have never sat at a bar before and fortunately it was not too loud of an experience. The bartender, a gregarious live-in-the-moment party animal with a slicked-back mohawk, lobe-stretching earrings, and a penchant for delivering profanity-laced bits of wisdom, put on an absolute show with the way he’d flip glasses around behind his back and refill three drinks at once. It was a twisted incarnation of a hibachi-grill show and somehow, while racing around in a state of looking perpetually fast-forwarded, he found the time to give us and the other patrons a hard time about pretty much anything. The food (we all got three burgers) paled in its inherent interest to the guy behind the bar.
     
    I ate all of mine, then what remained of my parents’ fries, and I’m still not completely full … but it’s sure better than nothing.
     
    The party scene is heating up inside and out as I write, but we have earplugs to insert and pillows to stack atop our heads. Our exhaustion and eagerness to get back will fuel our sleep tonight.
     
    Tomorrow: we get home.
  23. Sumiki

    Bforoad

    By Sumiki,

    We explored our Mount Washington hotel thoroughly. We saw the Gold Room, where the setting up of and signing of the International Monetary Fund took place, and a few old fuses - well, I thought they were old. It turns out that the fuses, part of the original wiring put in by Thomas Edison, were actually still partially in use.
     
    Honestly it sounds like a fire hazard, but I'm not an electrician.
     
    We decided to skip the treacherous Mount Washington Auto Road due to the fact that it's a private road that doesn't have guardrails, and doing so in a car that has well over 100,000 miles on it and has just come off of its fifth road-trip repair in three years is just kind of asking for trouble, especially when the road is notorious for burning out transmissions and brakes.
     
    It was just as well, since that was well out of our route.
     
    We worked our way through sleepy towns in rural New Hampshire as we wormed our way back down amidst the towering granite faces of the mountains. As we kept on the route to Portland - towards the stadium of the Portland Sea Dogs (or, as my dad called them, the "Portland Dog Drips") - the towns increased in size and had signs that designated earlier and earlier dates of incorporation.
     
    The roads leveled out as we neared the Maine border, but we could still look back and see mountains - some still with traces of snow near their peaks.
     
    Conway was one of the towns we passed through, and its quirks included a motel with different "themes" for each room like storefronts in the Old West as well as bizarrely funny shop names.
     
    Around 12:30 we entered Maine, and got some literature at the welcome center from a guy who was born in North Carolina but moved to Maine when he was young. He'd long since lost any southern accent he might have once had, replacing it with a thick northeastern accent that turned "Bar Harbor" into "Bah Hahbah" and "Bangor" into "Bangah." I didn't hear anything close to that in Boston, where I thought I would.
     
    The potholes got really bad as soon as we crossed the Maine border. Only a few were absolutely unavoidable - the fault lines - but these were eased over as best we could. We slalomed through the rest, only hitting one - which was pretty good considering that there were as many potholes in one mile as there are living humans on Earth.
     
    It didn't slow us down considerably, so we stopped by the Sea Dogs and got our customary pennant, then set off for the Portland Head Light. Before doing so, we ate pizza at a local place called Otto's, which converts old gas stations into "filling stations" - for your stomach.
     
    The crust was flaky and buttery - one of the few crusts I actually liked. Onions, sausage, and marinara sauce gave it a little bit of kick. It was a filling and delicious late lunch.
     
    We then got to the Portland Head Light, which was absolutely gorgeous.
     
    The Head Light was built at the directive of George Washington and is now part of a municipal park complex encompassing both it and an abandoned fort. Rolling green grass saw much use from local citizens, but our main objective was to see the Head Light.
     
    We saw so much more than that.
     
    The Head Light itself was interesting - especially since it's still in use! - and the high-intensity fog signal that blasted out was close to deafening if you got too close to the lighthouse. We spent most of our time down on the rocks below, climbing and clamoring over the jagged rocks that claimed so many ships, even after the Head Light was fully operational.
     
    Seaweed and assorted flotsam would get tossed up into the rocks. Most of it would just run off back to the ocean, but in a few places, it would pool up in large rocks. An algae that looked like grass flourished in these tiny ponds, anchoring themselves onto the rock bottom of their little world.
     
    We were out on the rocks for the better part of an hour, enjoying the challenge of navigation, investigating interesting details in the rocks, and getting as far out on the rocks as was safe before heading back, taking care to avoid the slippery bits.
     
    After this rather extensive exploration, we headed back to the car, over a curved drawbridge, and back onto I-295, which eventually merged quite unexpectedly with I-95.
     
    Our destination was Bangor, just a short drive away from Bfahome. (He says that it's pronounced "B-F-A-Home," but I pronounced/sneezed it a little more as it's spelled.)
     
    My dad and I met him at a bar & grill in Orono. By the end of the day, we wanted to keep him around to be our new GPS, found out that he owns every university from here to Kingston, Ontario, recited bits from old BIONICLE games and the asdfmovie series, discussed the fun and hats of BrickFair, and generally had a blast. 10/10, would Bfahome again.
     
    Tomorrow: Acadia National Park.
  24. Sumiki

    BFVA15 DAY ONE

    By Sumiki,

    XAERAZ'S FLUFFY BEARD PREMIERES
     
    ROAD TRIP TO STAPLES (MUSIC BY WEIRD AL YANKOVIC)
     
    PABLO GETS COLD BREADSTICKS
     
    HOW OLD IS AVOHKAH TAMER'S LAPTOP? WE JUST DON'T KNOW
     
    BINGO AND DOOR PRIZE DISAPPOINTMENTS: GIT GUD EDITION
     
    TEAM FARM ANIMALS: PART OF THE BEAN CORPS
  25. Sumiki

    BFVA15 DAY THREE

    By Sumiki,

    BRICKEENS SKYPE TOUR KIND OF HAPPENS
     
    IN-DEPTH STEVEN UNIVERSE DISCUSSION OVER BEEF BRISKET
     
    FUN WITH GALIDOR
     
    GORM AND FRIENDS GO FOR $30+ AT SILENT AUCTION
     
    (I TOPPED OUT MY BIDDING AT $21)
     
    (ALMOST) FREE PIZZA COURTESY AVOHKAH TAMER AND CHOCOLATEFROGS
     
    KEVIN HINKLE PANEL
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