Posted by Robyn on Dec 20, 2008 in
General How did I not know that Aspartame (artificial sweetener) is linked to Migraines!?
I have suffered from miserable migraines my entire adult life. We’re not just talking about a headache here. We’re talking severe vomiting, extreme light and sound sensitivity, and frequent trips to the emergency room. I finally got them under control with medication, but I LIVE on Diet Coke. I have two or three a day, at least. I never was much of a coffee drinker (until my beloved hubby got me started on Starbucks), so I have always gotten my daily caffeine fix from diet sodas.
Now I come to find out Aspartame could reduce serotonin levels, making a “hair trigger” for migraines. Which means anything else I do that could potentially cause a migraine even more likely to tip the scale.
Holy freakin’ hell. I have researched migraines extensively! I even saw a neurologist! And I never heard of this until I saw a commercial for some new sweetener called Truvia and Googled it. What are some of the benefits? IT DOESN’T CAUSE MIGRAINES. Oh, and everyone in the universe seems to have known this EXCEPT ME.
Pardon me while I go pour out all my diet sodas. BRB.
Posted by Robyn on Nov 10, 2008 in
General I am starting to wonder if Heroes should have continued after the first season. I really enjoyed the first season, and the second season was okay. After seeing the DVD, I think it would have made a LOT more sense if they could have followed the original story arc. Stupid writers’ strike. But I digress.
This season just has me alternately yawning, and saying “WTF” repeatedly. I’m kind of wondering if the writers have run out of ideas, or if they have any clue where they’re taking all this in the long run. If there is a long run… I mean, the show is getting its ass kicked in the ratings by Dancing With the Stars. Seriously.
ZOMG SPOILERZ!
If you’ve never watched Heroes, then by all means, don’t read the following rant. It will give away every plot device detail ever used by the series ever.
Something “really bad” is going to happen, which may or may not be the fault of someone with or without “abilities”. These abilities are the result of evolution, unless they were artificially created. Anyway, the good guys have to stop the bad something, while the bad guys try to convince them that the bad something is actually a good something. Someone travels through time and/or has a vision of the future or past that changes everything.
The bad people turn out to be good people, and the good people just turn out to be regular people. The person you thought was in charge turns out to be manipulated by someone even more powerful than the last season. Then, there is an eclipse or something, and all the good guys and bad guys and everyone gets together to thwart whatever plan the newest most powerful person had in mind. Then, they get a few months, or sometimes just a few minutes until the next powerful dude reveals he or she has actually been pulling the strings all along.
So, yeah… the show is not only repeating itself, but keeps re-inventing itself all the time in quest of that next big “revolution” that will get people to stop watching washed up stars ballroom dancing and talking about Heroes again. I’m really trying to remain a die-hard fan, but throw me a bone here.
This show started out with a cool idea — that super heroes could just be regular people, and if they were, what would they do? I think the show would be a lot more interesting if they stopped trying to be so epic all the time, dialed back the destiny bullsh*t, and got back to telling stories about the people. People are cool. 
Posted by Robyn on Nov 2, 2008 in
General I have now worked my way through the first third or so of Rock Band guitar solo mode on Hard. Somewhere in Seattle, I remembered to have fun! The game really is quite enjoyable, once you get the hang of things. Fortunately, there’s a song every now and again that pops in just to remind you this game is supposed to be hard work. 
I just hit a solid brick wall on Gimme Shelter by the Rolling Stones. I managed to get through it in practice mode on 50% speed, and it’s actually got some fun parts in it. There’s just not many passages you can “bluff” your way through in that one. So, it’s going to take me at least an hour to practice before I can “play” it well enough to pass, and I was planning to go to bed half an hour ago.
See you tomorrow, Rock Band! 
Posted by Robyn on Nov 2, 2008 in
General After a short practice session today, I beat Mississippi Queen at 84% with four stars. 
Posted by Robyn on Nov 2, 2008 in
General Well, I used up my extra hour (Daylight Savings Time) by playing Rock Band until way too late. Justin and I got it out earlier today, and he played drums, while I played guitar. Several months ago, I had worked my way through the solo tour on both Easy and Medium, but had to re-learn everything this afternoon. It comes back pretty quick, though. Justin had a blast on the drums, and caught on fast.
So, I figured it was high time I tried Hard. It turns out, Hard isn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Granted, I thought it would be impossible. I had seen people play before, and I have always idolized their immaculate fretting. I used to play the viola (way back when), and position changing was… you know… hard. But I had sheet music, so I could mark in the changes. In Rock Band, you don’t get sheet music. You pretty much have to sight read everything. And sight reading is… hard.
But yeah, it wasn’t as hard as I thought. I bluffed my way through the first three songs on the solo tour, then I met my nemesis: Mississippi Queen. That song is f*cking impossible. I practiced it for two hours in chunks, and at various speeds, and I still can’t play the darned thing. I even skipped ahead one song, and got through that one okay. But I can’t go any further until I beat Mississippi.
Now I have hand cramps, so I am going to bed. I will tackle this beast again in the morning! Any advice from seasoned shredders out there?
Posted by Robyn on Oct 23, 2008 in
General Let’s see… what’s new with PN?
I still love my new job as a software trainer. The hours are long-ish sometimes, but my boss is cool, and tries to make up for it with time off. I had a prep day today, which was nice. I got to work mostly from home, though I did need to swing by the office briefly to pick up some materials.
I snagged a Wii Fit this past weekend, and man, is it fun! I am totally exhausted and sore all the time, and totally loving it. It’s like working out with a personal trainer and BS meter all in one. The “balance board” knows if you’re “cheating” on your form because it tracks your movements! It also gives you “credits” based on how much time you spend actually exercising (not just with the game turned on). The more you earn, the more stuff you unlock. It’s very well designed.
What else… I’m feeling rather meh about all my favorite TV shows this fall. ER is clearly going to be an entire season of “goodbye” episodes, which sucks. That show totally jumped the shark when the helicopter landed on Romano, so I’m not even sure why I still watch it. I’m kind of glad it’s ending. Heroes has me a bit thrown by the direction it’s taking, but I don’t really want to give out spoilers.
On the other hand, House is being a jerk as usual, so that’s all more of the same (which is good). I absolutely loved the first couple episodes of Terminator, but I only watch that one with Justin, and we’re several episodes behind now. I can’t watch it by myself, though, because the best part is actually watching Justin while he’s watching the show.
That’s about it for now. What are you guys up to?
Posted by Robyn on Oct 7, 2008 in
General I started my new job today, and I can’t even begin to describe how awesome it is! I have always thought I was a bit of an… oddity. But everyone I work with is exactly like me. Exactly. They are all female computer-geek teachers. They talk like me, they think like me, they like to rant and rave about all the same things I do. They are all over-educated techy bookworms, and I love them all.
When I lost my contract with Insight (my prior employer) due to low student enrollment, I was pretty devastated. That was an awesome job that gave me the freedom that comes with working from home. It was hard to let that go. Now that I have this new opportunity, I believe that things sometimes happen for a reason. This job is a perfect fit for my abilities and personality.
Posted by Robyn on Oct 5, 2008 in
General I was just formally offered a new job as a software trainer with a small firm here in Portland. I will be designing curriculum and teaching courses on a variety of Microsoft and Adobe software. The job pays well, has full benefits, and perfectly utilizes both my teaching and technical skills!
Considering the current economic crisis, and what happened with Justin’s job prospects on Friday, I have learned not to take anything for granted. I am incredibly thankful to have an opportunity like this.
Posted by Robyn on Sep 21, 2008 in
General I finally got Twitter. I’m PrincessNybor.
Anyone else on Twitter?
Posted by Robyn on Sep 9, 2008 in
General Earlier today, I was listening to the afternoon radio show on my favorite station, and they were telling this story that was so funny, it actually brought me to tears. I was sitting in my car, parked, and unable to get out and go into the store. I was laughing that hard.
It was just a dumb story, but it made me realize how much I needed to laugh.
When was the last time you had a good laugh?