Sunday, February 18, 2007

Evanston Wyoming Chinese New Year 2007 Table Tennis Results

On Saturday, Feb 17th I took the family up to Evanston Wyoming for the 2007 Chinese New Year Table Tennis Tournament. I forgot how long it takes to get through the tournament. Cathi was exceptionally patient. We started out with Austin and I as a doubles team. Jacob found a partner, Braxton who was very patient and a good sport.

Austin and I played Paul and Javza. Paul is from Rock Springs, WY, and Javza a BYU student. Austin and I played quite well together and I think we shocked the two of them. We barely lost 2 - 3 with many of the games very close and the last game being a deuce game. The next game we played Aaron and Mike Pratt. We lost 0 - 3 and not so happy about those games. Aaron likes slow play with lots of spin and that messed with Austin a bit. And my friend and nemesis Mike Pratt played his typical game. So the doubles went quick for us. Jacob had a quick double loss too.

After that I played a guy in the qualifying round and lost 2-3 and then won another guy which put me in the B division. There were four divisions (C, B, A and Open)

In the B Division I played 4 people (8 people total in the bracket). The games of note were when I played Varghese Pallathu. I've seen him at the club many times and noticed his game. He is a good player, and I knew it would be tough to beat him. I lost the first two to him. I didn't enjoy the pace we were playing so I picked it up. I would set him up with a chop and come back with a forehand smash. This strategy worked fantastic with him and I was able to win the next three games for the match. Many of those points were "tickers" or net shots which are quite frustrating for the opponent. I've been in that situation and knew how frustrating it can be to be so close to victory and missing it. In that situation it is hard to not get violent.

I then played Justin and lost to him 0 - 3. That was puzzling because in the last tournament in SLC I beat him in the qualifying rounds 3-0. He has really improved. The next game I had to play Varghese again since he lost to somebody and we were both in the losers bracket. This time I played the same way I did the last few sets with him and won 3-0. That win put me at #2 in the division.

I had to play Justin again. This time if I beat him two matches in a row I could win the division. Worst case scenario is I take second. So the pressure was off a litle. I played hard and found that when Cathi watched, or Ryan Gubler watched our match I played better. I won the first match 3-0 and I heard Justin say "Times have changed!". So I had to simply beat him one more time for first place. The second match I won 3-1. Ended at @8:00 and it was a long day, but I felt very good about today's tournament and got a 1st place plaque.

I am grateful for the family being patient staying so long. I promised them we would go swimming but I forgot the pool closed at 4:30 so we missed the chance. I was especially impressed with the facility's staff. They were patient with the kids running everywhere and shared the tournament food with them. The tournament director's we well organized and kept things moving. Overall a fun experience and a great day although it was quite long.

Pictures (Sorry about the quality, the flash wasn't very energetic):

Friday, February 9, 2007

Funny Geek speak related to Poo that cracks me up.

Andrew recently posted his annoyance with geek speak about non technical things.

That got me to thinking about the part of geek speak that amuses me.


  1. Do you produce a "log"?

  2. Did you "flush" the cache?

  3. What "release" did you put out?

  4. What time did you get that core "dump"?

  5. Would you email me a data "sample"?

  6. Your program generates quite a large "heap"!

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Profanity in the workplace

This is something I've thought about last night and figured I'd explain my reasoning about this topic.

I am not claiming to have a completely clean mouth. I've worked in a heavy machinery shop for over a year and have been exposed to profanity quite a bit. I'm the first to admit that I too have a problem with profanity (mostly under my breath), but its something that I'm aware of, and try to work on. I also realize there are various levels of cussing. (GD word, F word, MF word, SH word, being among the worst) Lower levels of cussing don't offend me, but there are some who are much more sensitive then me.

When cussing is done in the workplace casually, it annoys me. First of all in the office we have a different standard than those who might work in construction, or where they have a more relaxed environment (dress, play loud heavy metal music, display topless posters, etc). I'm an adult and don't get upset when cussing is done in real anger or rage (I sometimes do that myself depending on the company present). But when those who cuss casually it annoys me and makes me wonder how intelligent they really are.

Those who do it should be more aware and considerate of those around them. It isn't professional and needs to stop. For more information on this topic and for helpful tips, visit http://www.cusscontrol.com/news.html

Although it may sound real stupid, using alternatives sure beats the real thing. Here is a song that plays on that idea which cracks me up. Done by one of my favorite bands - Evercleen.

Tuesday, February 6, 2007

What it costs to make Gords' Dice Game

Wood: $2.75 ((10" x 16" x 2") 1" x 10" x 8' pine board costs $8.25 and makes 3)
2 Hinges: $2.29 (pack of two)
4 Felt Circles: $0.75 ($2.99 for 16)
2 Eye Hooks: $.17 ($8.25 for 100)
1 S Hook: $0.07 ($6.53 for 100)
4 Screws: $0.08 (500 @ $9.47)
Dice: $5.43 ($175.09 for 1000 dice (200 of each color) (31 dice per game)
Stain: $ (Need to price)

Total for supplies: $ 13.00

Tools I need that aren't included in the price:
Circular saw, Drill, Wood Burner, Router, Paintbrush

Time to make: @ 2 hours each