Beginning of a New Week

I love Mondays! Must be a geek thing. When I was a kid I couldn’t wait for the start of the summer holidays but within a week I was wanting to go back to school. I think this is a feeling that only geeks really had (we used to be called nerds…sheesh). I was lucky in that I was a math/science geek and my parents encouraged that. My friends well remember the chemistry and microscopes I had as a kid. They were adult grade (back in the days when chemistry sets had real chemicals in them!) and I had a blast all summer with my various projects (Think Sheldon on The Big Bang Theory….without homeland security butting into matters).
Now I look forward to the start of the work week. Because I work for myself, I spend Mondays looking for new projects to start. I love the thrill of it. Building websites, writing articles. It’s great fun and I get paid for it as well! Yay me!
Sunday wouldn’t be Sunday if I didn’t spend at least a part of it on Facebook and Twitter. If you are looking for new friends for:
Gardens of Time
Blackwood and Bell
Astrogarden
Flowershop
Then find me on Facebook at: facebook.com/accer70
You can find me on Twitter at: ACCER

Technorati Tags: facebook,twitter,work,geeks,education

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Technomancer Wizard Hoodie

Ok, I totally need this. Really. I could finally channel all my vast occult knowledge gleaned from my years of playing Warcraft and rain fine down on people! I really could!

This is an offering from those wacky code monkeys at Think Geek and man is it ever cool!

Wild Mage. Wizard. Sorcerer. Illusionist. Enchanter. Invoker. Necromancer. There are so many words to describe people who wield magical powers. We have one word: badass. Let's look at your average adventuring party: The fighter swings her greatsword, cleaving through two orcs. Sweet. The rogue pops out of the shadows, backstabbing the hobgoblin. Nice! The ranger fires an arrow through the throat of The Bandit King, right in the middle of his monologue. Love it. The cleric is adept with both a mace and a bandage. Phew! But the wizard sets entire battlefields on fire without so much a singe on his velvet robes.


You have the Will to be a spellcaster in real life, and ThinkGeek is here like a wizened oracle to deliver you the way. Introducing the Technomancer Digital Wizard Hoodie. Donning this unique garment will transform you into a powerful mage ready to blast off spells at a moment's notice. The sleeves of the Technomancer contain dual accelerometers which sense the movements of your hands. Move them in one of the pre-programmed spell sequences and the sleeves of the hoodie light from within, the internal speaker booms, and the hood illuminates your face in an eerie glow.


Of course, a seasoned wizard has a variety of spells in their repertoire. The Technomancer Hoodie offers ten different spells including fireball, healing, and lightning bolt (lightning bolt, lightning bolt!). Each spell is accompanied by unique light and sound effects powered by the embedded speaker and over two dozen bright multicolored LEDs. Of course, you'll have to train daily to learn the right sequence of movements to cast each spell. We hear the College of Winterhold is accepting applications.


Product Specifications

• Transform yourself into a powerful mage with this hoodie
• Dual accelerometers in the sleeves sense your hand movements
• Move your hands in the right sequence to cast a specific spell
• Internal speakers will create the spellcasting sound effects
• LEDs in the hood and sleeves light up with the appropriate color
• Ten different spells including: fireball, healing, and lightning bolt
• Illustrated directions included to teach you the movements for each spell
• Patent pending technology designed by ThinkGeek
• Machine Washable: Electronic components can be removed for washing

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Game Show Clock

“Wheel….of….Fortune!!!” Remember that zany game show from the early 1980s, where Pat Sajak and the ever lovely Vanna White (also the world’s most frequent TV clapper) kept us glued to our seats as we attempted to solve puzzle after puzzle in the classic gameshow. Well, time has certainly passed in the two decades, and while such game shows are no longer drawing in the audience quite unlike reality TV, you can still bring home a slice of nostalgia with the $27.99 Game Show Clock. There are no puzzles to solve except the one that your boss throws onto your desk, and if you are a clock watcher, surely you would love for the needles to land on the time where you are supposed to get off work – as stated in the employment letter, anyways. Definitely worth a purchase if you want to take a walk down memory lane, or know a Wheel of Fortune enthusiast.

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The Frolicat Bolt - Cat Toy

Most have pulled out a laser pointer and have seen their cat be driven literally up the walls. So you probably know what kind of endless fun that can be had with one around. Well Bolt is an official toy just for cats that takes that fun and makes it possible for you to put even less effort into it. Instead of having to wave around your arm, you can set it to automatic mode and just sit back and enjoy the mayhem.

I've got to get one of these because I love to watch my cat, after a bit of catnip, go after the red light that it ca never catch!

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Spore!

It's blasphemy, brilliance or both to take the entire evolution of a species — from a single-celled animalcule in a drop of water to a space-faring, galaxy-exploring sentient being — and turn it into a video game. But that's exactly what Will Wright has done. Wright is the man who created The Sims, a game about everyday life in suburbia, but apparently he found the vast panorama of human experience too confining, because he then spent seven years creating Spore, in which players design their own life-form and then manage every aspect of its progress through the centuries, from savagery to civilization.

More Information: Spore

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Thames and Kosmos Genetics and DNA kit

A well-written manual and a few snap-together models provide a good conceptual understanding of how DNA and genetics work. Some of the hands-on activities seem like nothing but busy work; others are invaluable at getting kids interested in the process of scientific experimentation.

One experiment takes you through the process of isolating DNA from tomatoes. Adult reviewers found it more difficult than the manual let on — which probably means that a kid should have no problem. You can also breed bacteria and then do some genetic engineering on them, but be careful — under the Patriot Act this stuff can get you thrown in jail.

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Afterlife Travel Kit

Here is one for the "weird" file: The afterlife travel kit.
Life is full of questions and many of those questions center on what happens after life is over. What's on the other side? Will science or politics hasten our finding out? Do they have cheese whiz in Heaven? And once you do shuffle off your mortal coil, what's there to do anyways? Well, we've had a sneak peek (don't ask) and brought back these Afterlife Travel Kits to help lighten your soul.
First off, each kit includes an official certificate of reservation (to prove you really are on the guest list). You'll also get an official ID card. A first class ticket is included too (travel up to the Pearly Gates or freefall to the Inferno). To adjust to your new life after death, please make sure to read the mini informational guide. Oh yeah, and because we love ya, you'll also snag a VIP pass to make sure you can get into all the best parties. The Afterlife Travel Kit - don't leave life without it.

Afterlife Travel Kit

• Everything you need to enjoy your trip to Heaven or Hell.
• Each kit includes:
  • Certificate of Reservation
  • First Class Ticket
  • ID Card
  • Mini Information Guide
  • All Access VIP Pass
• Each kit is themed for the afterlife destination of your choice (or get one of each - just in case)
• Dimensions:
  • Certificate: 8.5" x 5.5"
  • Ticket: 8.5" x 3.5"
  • ID Card: 3.5" x 2"
  • VIP Pass 3.25" x 5.5"
• Manufacturer's Money Back Guarantee - if you die and can't get in, the manufacturer will refund 100% of your purchase price!

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Games!

Hey, even Techno-Geeks new to take a break now and then. I love games and puzzles of all kinds. I found Reflexive several years ago and I love them. It was an accident that I found them, I saw a blog post about a new "pong" type game. It looked cool, had great graphics and good music. I loved it so much that after the first free hour I actually bought the game. That's how all of the games on Reflexive work: You play them for an hour and if you like them you pay for the unlock code. Much better system than buying an unknown game and possibly hating it and being out the money. So if you get a chance or are just looking to have some fun, check out Reflexive!

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Sudoku Toilet Roll

For all those obsessed Sudoku players now you can even play in the bathroom on your toilet paper? That’s right it’s the world’s first Sudoku Toilet Paper Roll. It costs $13 for approx. 240 playing sheets.

OK, I know I'm obsessed with puzzles and games (which explains my love of computers) but COME ON! Even I'm not willing to go this far! This is definitely for the obsessed player.

Of course if someone bought it for me as a gift.....

Anyway, you can of course buy it online. Click here for a Sudoku Toilet Roll!

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World of Warcraft

I didn't intend to become one of "those" people. I tried hard to avoid it. Oh, I like my computer games. Those with a plot, some action and an eventual end. Except for the Sims and Sims2. But I just wasn't going to become one of those "gamer" people who was addicted to some online role playing game. Then my oldest married a Geek. I watched him play a couple of times and it didn't seem all that interesting. Especially when there didn't seem to really be a point to it.



Ok, so there was the fact that I couldn't see buying the software and running it for a month to decide if I liked it. $20 and I might hate it.

Blizzard (the company that owns Warcraft) got sneaky. They sent a round of pop-up ads (which I never click on) through the net. I saw one, killed it, updated my pop-up blocker and was done with it. But all night I kept seeing it in my head: Try it free for 14 days! Download the game for free...play it for 14 days. FREE. With nothing to lose, I went directly to the Blizzard website.

Now I anticipated I'd have to secure it against my credit card so they could automatically bill me when my trial period was up. This was where Blizzard was really smart. I didn't have to do this. I just clicked for a free trial account, downloaded the software and I was off and playing.
So I created a character, which was very easy to do and stood in the middle of a town looking around and trying to figure out what to do. I figured it out quickly enough and before the hour was done I was a level 8! Then a 10! Wow, I'm good at this.

Of course it became more and more difficult to level the higher I got. It also required help from some of the others playing the game. Some quests required several people to bring down the bad guys. So I met other people who like to play.

On the 15th day, when I went to log in, was a very nice message from Blizzard telling me that my free time was up and I would have to subscribe if I wished to continue playing. Either way, they hoped I had enjoyed my Warcraft experience. Now the easy click button to subscribe is not a surprise to anyone. What was nice was the button to remove Warcraft from my system. In other words, they understand that I may not wish to continue and that is fine, but hey thanks for looking and we won't screw up your computer or leave you with a huge set of files to deal with on your own. I liked that about them. It was thoughtful. I clicked the subscribe button.

On December 24 of that year, I was supposed to meet up with my oldest and her husband. She was going to call me so that my departure to their home was in sync with them. While waiting I was playing Warcraft. I found a group of 35+ level players who would run me through the Deadmines (Really tough for a lower level player!). No sooner had we started towards the Mine when my oldest called to tell me to leave. I said ok and hung up. How long could it possible take to run to Westfall and then through the Deadmines? Turns out, to do everything I needed to do in there was about 35 minutes. I thanked the other players for their help and logged out.

Then drove really fast and arrived only about 45 minutes late. My oldest was asking where I had been, so on and so forth. I gave her a hug, gave her hubby a hug and then moved him between the two of us so I could tell her "I was running the Deadmines". She was not amused. He was.

So after a year I'm still playing. I've got a number of characters, including Denarra pictured here.
Yes, I recommend this game HIGHLY! But don't take my word for it. Hop over to Blizzard and try it free for yourself.
Oh, if you are ever in the Realm of Stormrage, look me up!

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20 Questions Electronic Game

One of my best friends got me one of these for my birthday. I have spent hours upon hours playing with it...and so has everyone else in my house. This thing is a blast and is almost always correct. I mean I was thinking of my dog and it said Pomeranian....and she IS a Pomeranian.

This is a great game for long car trips with the kids too....everyone in the car can play, even the driver.

This is inexpensive but well worth the money just for playing and having fun. It's certainly more fun than the last 3 movies I went to see...

• Small spherical game of 20 Questions offers hours of retro fun
• Old arcade style sound effects, and a red light display for its various questions and guesses
• Answer the ball's questions by pressing buttons for yes, no, sometimes, or don't know
• Requires two AA batteries (included); note that color may vary
• Light switch for night or indoor play.

Get one of you own at Amazon

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