Understanding the cursed item - No more AdSense

CC BY 2.0 - Victor Bezrukov - Flickr

Something that goes far back in role playing gamers minds, why were there really -1 cursed swords out there?  Did they not read the package when they picked it up at the local WeaponMart?  Reality is, they seem beneficial and functional, and promise of slaying beasts just like their non cursed counterparts, yet they get in the way at the most inopportune moments.  Not obviously, but subtly.  Back in the day -1 meant 5%.  

Well, I've sat and debated long and hard about where +5 Gear is going.  Most of the ads I've seen displayed are not of good quality or really even relevant to what this site is about, so I'm pulling em, they seem to be eating up 5% uselessly on the site.  I will possibly go with a little bit of an ad or two, but with places I shop with, would happily recommend in personal conversation, and can feel confident showing others.  I want this site to be about what you, the reader can get out of what I'm posting, not just about paying for the operational costs with nickels and dimes.

At least the ads haven't been for sex change hormones like my first attempt at a personal blog.  That said, stay tuned, this blog will be in for some changes soon.  

Gear ownership - Inventory

CC BY 3.0: Shadwwulf at en.wikipedia

There's the old adage:  Don't let what you own own you.  This idea has pushed some amazing advances into minimalist lifestyle, especially with how versatile modern technology is.  For the rest of us who have a family, perhaps have hobbies that involve a lot of physical stuff, or just plain like having stuff, we should recognize that it's very easy to live for your stuff instead of your stuff facilitating your life.

Music of the Day - 7 Seconds - Sleep

Today I present some music from long ago, by a band that does not come up much in conversation in the modern day when someone says "hardcore punk" or "straightedge".  Considered to be one of the "longest standing bands" in the hardcore music scene, 7 Seconds is well known for a message of direct and uncomplicated positivity.  

There's a whole lot of people out there having rough times this week, and I thought it would be good to post a song from an album that's gotten me through a lot of hard times as well.  I won't go on and on about it, the track can speak for itself.

Donations up: Can I Have A Beer Man?

Lets be honest here, I'm doing ok, my family is fed, we have a roof over our heads, and the utilities are paid.

The real problem here is that I'm a married man.  I know people of both sexes are probably nodding their heads knowing exactly what that means.  For those that haven't had the joys of the experience, basically I've got to prostrate myself at the feet of my wife on an hourly basis for new toys to review.  Sure, I've got a collection of stuff I've found useful in everyday life, but there's far more out there we could work with here.

I spent some long hours soul searching within myself for guidance, for I really do not like asking others for money.  And I found none.  My next instinct of course is to fall back on my past gaming experiences, and remembered something fun from the days of yore:  that begging in many societies and situations was a respected profession of sorts!  So read I did, and even a simple venture into Wikipedia brought me some interesting wisdoms.  It seems some religions believed that the quest for material wealth actually caused people to deviate from their spiritual path.  And even better, Buddhists seem to believe that having people who are in need gives people opportunities to do good things for others.  

Sadly my work here is not of a holy or divinely driven nature, however I will be spending a large portion of my time trying to bring fun, useful, and interesting information to you.  And this at times will require funding.  I will not plead or beg (damn those NPR pledge drives!) but should you feel you have been provided a benefit, and feel generous, there is now a paypal Donation button on the blog.  Think of it as buying me a beer for the trouble.

Given my newfound quasi spiritual enlightenment, I would definitely say that I will never threaten any small cute furry animals for donations.  I promise you I will NOT off this cute bunny you see to the right if you do not donate to our worthy cause.  Really, I won't.  Why don't you believe me?

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Beer man image from Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

April Fools - Google Analytics

April fools is coming!  Got big plans?  Going to rick roll half of your company at a large weekly teleconference by taking over the whole room and pull admin access from everyone?  (Sadly I left that company before receiving my award for it, hell, i dont think they even know it was me...)  Going to hire a stripper for a local religious charity event?

Well, there's a simple one you can play on some internet people that can be amusing with the right people, especially if you can recruit a LOT of people to help.

+5 Knife of Exiting - CRKT Extrik-8-R

Alright...  this one is a personal must have especially with a family, my personally preferred CRKT McGowan Extrik-8-R Seat Belt Cutter. Note the hand-tied reflective orange paracord fob that comes attached, this was not my doing.   It is very easy to keep a grip on with the scalloped edges and very roomy finger holes.  This functional and well thought out tool is the design of one James McGowan, a professional firefighter and knifemaker residing in Toronto, Canada.  

Shameless Plug - Cheap Roku 2 XS

I really hate to post a direct link to advertise something for a product without a personal twist to it.  I'm keeping this to when I find some really great deal...

Seems today (26 March 2012) only Amazon's pushing the Roku 2 XS 1080p Streaming Player for only ~$80.

Music of the Day - Rick Astley?!?!?

That's right kids, today's music of the day feature is Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up.  I'm not kidding...  April Fools day isn't for another 6 days.  But that's EXACTLY why I've listed this one.  Sadly this year's April Fools lands on a Sunday, so you won't easily be able to disrupt half your company by pulling admin rights from all the meeting presenters and throwing in a loop of this video that they cannot get rid of this year.  So instead we are left with family, friends, and religious organizations.  In my crazy little world nothing is sacred.