Reviews and More

When studying a foreign language, you need to have the right dictionary in order to make significant progress in terms of building your vocabulary and increasing your translation skills. I started studying Japanese about five years ago, and one of the first tools I set about to purchase was a good dictionary.

At the time, most of my friends and classmates were using electronic dictionaries because they are compact and quick. But those dictionaries are practically useless for beginners who can’t read kanji. After doing a ton of research, I finally decided to buy Kodansha’s Furigana Japanese Dictionary, and I haven’t looked back since!

The Kodansha dictionary was a great choice for several reasons. First of all, it stays away from romaji, yet is still suitable for beginners because of the “furigana”, or kana characters, written above every kanji in the book. This not only helps with pronunciation, but also helps build vocabulary because you can learn new kanji characters even if you haven’t formally studied them yet.

A second reason that this dictionary is head and shoulders above the rest is that it gives numerous sample sentences for nearly every entry. This obviously makes it much easier for you to get a good sense of how to use new words and phrases properly in different contexts.

And finally, I like the size of the Kodansha dictionary. It’s not too big or bulky, and is fairly comprehensive for its size. Yes, there have been plenty of words — both English and Japanese — that I wasn’t able to find in this dictionary, but for the most part, it has suited my needs rather well.

When I purchased this dictionary five years ago, it set me back $60. At the time, I thought that was rather expensive, but I bit the bullet because I was sure I would get a lot of use out of it. I was right, so I can’t complain. Now, however, I see that Amazon.com is selling the same book for just $33.60 plus shipping. That’s a great deal, so I suggest you jump on it now!

I’ve lost so much data over the years due to viruses, trojans, and malware inadvertently picked up from the Internet that I wouldn’t dream of surfing without a good antivirus program in place. I’ve been using Norton for awhile now, and am quite happy with its performance. It doesn’t get in my way when I’m online and it does an excellent job of alerting me to potential hazards.

Recently, I’ve been getting a popup window telling me that my current Norton subscription is due to run out soon. In fact, I think it’s only a matter of days now before I have to renew. Instead of going to the store for my purchase, I am looking for a website that offers a Norton Antivirus download. That way, I can get the latest version in a matter of minutes without even having to leave my home.

I checked out http://www.antivirusdownload.com/, and I think it looks pretty good. I particularly like the fact that the site has Norton Help & Support Forums that I can browse through to troubleshoot any download, installation, or usage problems that may arise. I’ve found that it’s often a lot easier and faster to get help from these kinds of forums than from the tech support phone lines that the software manufacturers provide.

Anyway, I have to take care of updating my Norton Antivirus software pretty soon. I hope you’re running current antivirus software too, but if not, check out antivirusdownload.com for an update.

I got to this week’s episode of 24 a bit late, so I apologize for the delay in the recap/review. Let’s get right down to business.

Jack/Graem: We left off last week with Jack beginning to torture his brother Graem. Graem was bound to a chair with a plastic bag over his head. Jack was demanding to know where their father was, but Graem insisted he didn’t have any idea. Of course, no mere mortal can hold out against Jack Bauer’s mad torture skillz, so Graem spills what he knows soon enough. He gives Jack the address of Darren McCarthy’s office (that’s the guy who is trying to get replacement trigger devices for Fayed) and they soon head off.

After calling for CTU backup, Jack and Graem go inside the building. Who should they find in there but Philip Bauer (played by a very tall James Cromwell), their father! This leads to all kinds of lame remarks about the dysfunctional family they have, blah, blah, blah. Philip supposedly has a rogue security team trying to track down McCarthy, but Jack’s mad that neither his dad nor brother called in the authorities as soon as they knew the nukes were missing.

After bickering for a bit, Graem seamlessly shifts into the evil Bluetooth Group mastermind that we know him as and orders his henchmen (they’re working for him, not his father) to take Jack and Philip away. Everyone heads outside and they discover that the CTU agents who were supposed to be backing up Jack are now dead. Philip is aghast at what Graem has done, but Jack doesn’t seem very surprised.

Karen/Tom Lennox/President Palmer: Karen and Tom have significant philosophical differences about how to handle the country’s security situation. Karen is against the detention centers and other extreme measures that Tom is pushing through, while Tom thinks that Karen is far too soft to be advising the President about national security.

Tom wants Karen out of the picture so he can move forward with his agenda, so he has one of his assistants (I forgot the character’s name, but he’s played by Chad Lowe) come up with blackmail material. Tom confronts Karen with the “dirt” (it had something to do with Bill previously having several suspected terrorists in custody — including Fayed — months before and then just letting them go) and demands her resignation. She complies almost immediately.

When handing in her resignation to the President, Karen asks to be transferred back to CTU Los Angeles to continue helping in some capacity there. Palmer agrees.

CTU: The CTU gang, including Bill, Chloe, Morris, Milo, and Nadia didn’t get much done this episode. It seems like the only thing that happened is Nadia’s clearance got dropped down a few levels because she’s a Muslim. Milo doesn’t agree with that decision, so he signs into Nadia’s computer with his name and clearance code. It seems like something bad’s going to happen there.

Walid/Sandra Palmer: Walid manages to gain the trust of some of the other detainees. He steals a cell phone that one of the men had and enables to FBI agents (with Chloe’s help) run a trace on the numbers dialed. It turns out the men aren’t involved with Fayed and likely know nothing. However, when the group of detainees discovers that Walid took the phone, they beat him to a bloody pulp for being a traitor.

My reaction: I hate to say this, but I wasn’t very interested in this ep at all. I can appreciate that the writers want to develop the characters and the Bauer family dynamic a bit more, but that’s not what 24 is all about. The show works because of the almost nonstop action and the urgency that goes along with racing against a deadline. When the writers shift away from that, it gets boring.

Moreover, I still have no idea what the whole Walid/Sandra Palmer storyline is supposed to be about. Is that going somewhere anytime soon? Because at this point I barely even watch when they’re on the screen. As much as I love Regina King (I used to watch 227, I kid you not), I don’t see why there suddenly needs to be a Palmer sister this year.

I’m not interested in the CTU scenes either. They’ve only produced one solid lead on their own thus far (the Philip Bauer connection), yet they’re always busy at their computers. What the heck are they doing? And why aren’t they showing more of Chloe? She’s getting second billing behind Kiefer this year, so it seems like she should be getting a lot more screentime. As for Milo: I can’t see him as anything other than the toe-sucking (eww!) boyfriend from Six Feet Under, so it’s hard to take him seriously in his boss-man role.

I’ve heard that Ricky Schroeder is going to be joining the cast sometime this season. I can’t wait; it’s time for an injection of new blood.

Come on, 24! It’s time to let Jack loose and pick up the action in these episodes!!!

In recent years, I’ve heard some fantastic stories about couples that have met through online dating sites. A lot of these connections develop into serious relationships and some have even resulted in marriage! If you’re still looking for THE ONE, maybe you should take your search online. There are many websites that offer free online dating these days, including eromance.com.

eromance.com is a completely free site that allows members to create profiles, upload photos, search through other profiles, and contact other users. Unlike lesser sites, eromance.com strives to cover the broader topic of romance in general instead of just dating. So you’ll also find discussion forums, advice articles, fun quizzes, romantic poetry, and even free e-cards. I’ve never heard of another online dating site that offers this much content — all for free. This looks like a great site: easy to navigate with a quick sign-up process (no credit card necessary), so check it out!

I just got done watching Prison Break 2×15, called “The Message”. This episode basically has the same structure that each of the Season Two episodes have followed since the cons went their separate ways. Michael and Linc get most of the screen time, and then we also get a peek at what one or two of the other cons are currently doing. Last week it was T-Bag and C-Note. This week we turn to Sucre and Haywire. Anyway, here’s what happened.

Michael/Linc/Kellerman: They managed to escape from the motel by grabbing a FOX News cameraman as a hostage before driving off into the Montana night. They then come up with a plan to help them on their quest to clear their names. Michael and Linc get on camera and basically tell the entire story of the fake murder of Terrence Steadman and the ensuing cover-up by The Company. Of course, it all sounds so ludicrous that no one will believe them (plus, Kim has his people create a story about a “storage container full of Arabs” that will take over the front page).

In this video message, Michael and Linc try to throw a lot of red herrings out there since Kellerman has told them exactly how the tape will be analyzed. So they look fidgety and appear to be lying, and Michael even taps out some nonsense Morse code message with his hand. He also manages to work in a sincere-sounding apology to Dr. Tancredi, and Agent Mahone, who’s watching it all, figures out in about TWO SECONDS FLAT what Michael’s real message is. Oy.

Oh, yeah — at the end, Kellerman gets a call from the President herself. She encourages him to bring Michael and Linc in, and promises that she’s going to work to make things right between her and Kellerman from now on.

Sucre: He spent the episode traveling through the Mexican countryside in an attempt to make it to Ixtapa to meet Maricruz. He meets a kind old man along the way, but repays the man’s kindness by stealing his car. The police pick Sucre up and bring him back to the old man, who for some reason vouches for Sucre and says he loaned him the car. The old man then gives Sucre money to help him get to Ixtapa.

Haywire: He’s still in Wisconsin and still scrounging through dumpsters for food. He also still has that dog with him, and has apparently named the dog Larry. He is trying to build a raft so he can go to Holland (?), so that’s how he spends most of his days.

A couple of teenagers approach him and ask him to buy them beer. He complies, and while talking to the girl later on, notices that she has bruises on her wrist. She says it’s from her alcoholic father. This strikes a chord in Haywire since he grew up in the same situation, so he follows the girl home. When her father starts to go after her, Haywire pops up and starts beating the guy down. We don’t see how that situation ends, but it can’t be good.

My reaction: The Michael/Sara interaction was the best part of this episode. I think those two are great together and really want things to work out for them. It was nice that they got to reconnect for a moment, even if it was just over the phone.

I thought the rest of the episode was pretty boring. Why do we have to follow Sucre on his journey to see Maricruz? Just get him there already! Who cares what happens to him along the way. He’s not one of the main characters in my book, so we don’t need so many details about him. Same with Haywire. I can understand that the writers felt we were due for an update on him, but in all honesty, I haven’t missed him in the, what, three months, since he was last on air.

And for God’s sake, can Michael come up with a SINGLE plan or message that Mahone can’t interpret immediately???? At the beginning of the season, it was fun and interesting to see that Michael finally had a foil, someone who could match him intellectually. But the way Mahone is able to solve all these puzzles and riddles so quickly is taking on eye-rolling proportions.

As for Michael: yeah, he’s a genius and all, but does that automatically mean he knows what’s in the AA “Big Book”?? How the hell would he have that information about Safe Haven, the Doctor’s Commitment, and all that? I appreciate cleverness as much as the next person, and fully believed in Michael’s foresight when he had TIME TO PLAN everything before going to jail, but now he’s just winging it and is still able to come up with stuff like this?? I love ya, Scofield, but this is getting to be too much!

Whenever I’m considering purchasing a product or service from the Internet, I can usually tell whether I’m dealing with a reputable company or not just from the website. For example, I was looking for car insurance policies online and I went to a site called ASDA Financial Services.

I was impressed by this particular site for several reasons. First, it is easy to navigate. I was able to find exactly what I was looking for quickly and easily. Second, it was easy to get a quote. ASDA lists the minimum criteria that they look for before they issue their insurance policies, so I could see right away whether I even had a chance of being approved. And third, their contact information is prominently displayed. I would never want to buy anything from a company that tries to keep this info hidden from its customers.

Overall, ASDA looks like an excellent place to get insurance from. They are affiliated with Wal-Mart, which is a name I know and trust, so I wouldn’t have any qualms about purchasing ASDA insurance if I lived in the UK.

I just finished listening to the Librivox recording of The Awakening by Kate Chopin. The Awakening is one of those novels that most everyone has to read in high school, and I was no exception. I believe I studied it in my sophomore year American Lit class, but I didn’t remember any of the details (except the ending).

The novel’s protagonist is a young woman named Edna Pontellier who, over the course of a year, comes to despise social conventions and the limitations placed on her personal freedom. She can’t bear to think of herself solely as a “wife” and a “mother”; rather, she wants to do as she pleases even if her actions set the rumor mill in motion.

Edna’s “awakening” occurs after spending the summer in the company of a young man named Robert Lebrun. Robert’s mother rents out cottages on Grand Isle to vacationing upper class families, and he has been a fixture on the scene ever since he was a child. Robert has a reputation for attaching himself to a married woman each summer and following her around like a puppy dog. He doesn’t really develop strong feelings for these women — until Edna comes along. The two soon fall in love, but obviously can’t act on their passion since Edna is still married to Leónce.

Robert decides it would be better to go to Mexico than have to face Edna every day, so he leaves without giving her much notice. His departure affects Edna more than she thought it would, and she slowly stops caring about what’s going on around her. She doesn’t receive visitors, doesn’t want to go out, doesn’t take care of her children, and even decides to move out of her husband’s home. Eventually, she will have an affair with another young man, Alcée Arobin, before Robert returns to the scene.

After some initial awkwardness Robert and Edna finally declare their love for each other, and Robert says he wishes he could marry Edna. However, he knows that can never happen, so when Edna gets called away to the bedside of a friend in labor, he leaves a note for Edna and disappears.

When Edna finds the note, she is shocked and saddened. Rather than force herself to continue on in her roles of wife and mother, she decides to end everything. She goes to the ocean, and keeps swimming until she can’t move anymore.

I have to say that I really enjoyed this Librivox recording of The Awakening. The 39 chapters of Chopin’s book were divided into eight sections, and eight different women read one section each. Most of the readers were absolutely fantastic, which made listening to this book a delightful experience.

I know I’ve been a bit hard on Librivox recordings in the past, but I fully recommend The Awakening. This is one that I’m going to keep for my personal collection!

As soon as I heard about the basic premise of Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation, I knew I had to see the film. It stars Bill Murray as an aging movie star named Bob Harris who is in Tokyo to shoot a commercial for Suntory Whiskey. While at the hotel bar, he meets a fellow American named Charlotte (played by Scarlett Johansson). Charlotte is a newlywed who already realizes that she simply doesn’t fit into her husband’s life. Charlotte and Bob keep running into each other, and they eventually develop a friendship.

That’s the gist of the film, as there’s no real storyline to speak of. Instead we get seemingly random scenes of Bob and Charlotte as they wander around Tokyo and experience some of the Japanese culture. Of course there are karaoke bars, sushi restaurants, and game centers, and they get exposed to a fair amount of drugs and alcohol along the way.

The reason I loved this movie is that I completely understood it. I know the Japan that Coppola described, and could relate to nearly everything. There’s something about being in a foreign country with a culture as unique as Japan’s that drives you into situations that you’d ordinarily never experience. As an American, you’re naturally drawn to other Americans — perhaps even those whom you wouldn’t even look twice at back home. But in a foreign country, you automatically connect on a basic level. I got the connection between Bob and Charlotte. It rang true to me, so the whole movie just worked.

I give Lost in Translation 9 stars out of 10. It’s not for everybody, but those who have lived abroad will certainly appreciate it.

In the corporate world, signing a contract usually marks the beginning of a long, complex relationship between two or more entities. Most organizations enter into these contracts in good faith and have every intention of abiding by the terms set forth in the document. However, sometimes problems do arise, so in order to fully protect their interests, these organizations must constantly monitor the performance of all pertinent parties to ensure compliance throughout the entire lifecycle of the contract.

Unfortunately, few firms have the financial or human resources necessary to carry out proper contract management, which is where companies like Selectica come into play. Selectica is an innovator in providing contract management solutions to industry giants such as Time Warner, Ace Hardware, Cummins, and more.

What can Selectica offer your business? You’ll be able to aggregate all your contracts in one place, thereby allowing you to share information and coordinate tasks quickly and efficiently. Selectica’s Contract Performance Management (CPM) solutions also allow you to: analyze the current state of your contracts by providing real-time snapshots of what’s happening; administer various aspects of your contracts, including payments, deliveries, and other transactions; and automate the entire process to guarantee adherence to all terms from beginning to end.

If this sounds like a service that can benefit your organization in some way, then I encourage you to visit Selectica.com for more information or to schedule a demo.

I can’t believe that it has been 15 years since A Few Good Men was first released in theaters! It doesn’t seem that long ago at all. I think I’ve mentioned before that I don’t have a very large DVD collection of my own because there aren’t many movies that I would want to watch again and again. A Few Good Men happens to be one that I never get tired of — and I’ve seen it at least 10 times now.

The script is by Aaron Sorkin, who is one of my favorite screenwriters. I enjoyed one of his other films, The American President, and his TV series The West Wing. Sorkin’s work is usually filled with a compelling plot and great dialog, which are qualities that I really value. So it really should come as no surprise that I like A Few Good Men so much.

The movie opens with a hazing incident in the Marine barracks at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Unfortunately, the victim of the action, a Pfc. William T. Santiago, died as a direct result of what happened to him. Two Marines, Lance Cpl. Harold W. Dawson and Pfc. Louden Downey, were arrested for the so-called “Code Red” and are charged with murder. The military court appoints Lt. Daniel Kaffee (played by Tom Cruise) to be their advocate.

Kaffee is soon joined on the case by Lt. Cdr JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore), who thinks that someone is trying to get the whole incident swept under the rug. Why else would a murder case be given to an inexperienced lawyer with a history for getting his clients to go for plea bargains? Lt. Sam Weinberg (Kevin Pollak) also joins the defense team to provide support in gathering evidence and developing the trial strategy.

As the film progresses, we follow Kaffee’s team as they investigate what might have really happened on the night in question. They interview the commanding officers at Gitmo — Col. Nathan R. Jessup (Jack Nicholson), Lt. Col. Matthew Markinson (J.T. Walsh), and Lt. Jonathan Kendrick (Kiefer Sutherland) — and discover that the Code Red might actually have been an order from the very top.

From there, we get some very intense courtroom scenes, including Nicholson’s now famous “You can’t handle the truth” speech.

I’ve read some critcisms of A Few Good Men, and most of these point out that Sorkin dulls the effect of the ending by having the Cruise character tell everyone exactly what’s going to happen in court. While I can see why people would feel this way, I don’t agree. The first time I saw that scene, I was on the edge of my seat even though I did know what was coming. As a matter of fact, I’ve found that the ending is still very dramatic after repeat viewings, so I think this particular critcism is unwarranted.

No, A Few Good Men is not a perfect movie, and there are some rather boring scenes along the way that feel a bit out of place in the film. But on the whole, it’s a very engrossing and entertaining story. I give it 8.5 stars out of 10.

I started drinking green tea a few months ago after reading about all the health benefits that the body derives from that beverage. Ever since then, I’ve been on the lookout for a good place to buy my tea from, especially when I’m not in Japan.

Well tonight I came across a site called TeaCuppa.com that offers an excellent price on Sencha green tea, which is from Shizuoka prefecture. I have had this kind of green tea before and find it to be more palatable than other varieties, so I will definitely keep this site in mind the next time I’m ready to buy fine gourmet tea online.

In addition to green tea, TeaCuppa.com offeres numerous varieties of black tea, fruit tea, hebal tea, oolong tea, and much more. I’ve never seen a selection this large on any other website, so check it out!

Plus, right now TeaCuppa.com has a brand new Link Rewards program available to anyone with a blog or website. All you have to do is link to the TeaCuppa online store and they’ll send you a gift that’s commensurate with your Google PR. How cool is that?!

Every woman knows that using a facial moisturizer is a critical component of any skin care regimen. I have friends that spend hundreds of dollars per year on high-end skin products that claim to work wonders, but in my experience there’s not much difference between those expensive creams and the ones you can buy at Walgreen’s.

For example, I’ve tried more facial moisturizers over the years than I care to count. Some of them worked pretty well, but most just left my skin more irritated than it would have been had I simply not used any products at all. Out of the various brands I’ve tried, none has worked as consistently as Neutrogena. Specifically, I use their Oil-Free Moisture for Combination Skin.

The product works exactly as described. In other words, if my skin is very dry, the moisturizer does what you’d expect it to. But what separates this product from others I’ve tried is the way that it controls oil and shine on those days when my skin is oily. I love not having to use different products depending on the state of my skin on a given day. Neutrogena for Combination Skin is the only one I need!

I also have to say that Neutrogena’s prices can’t be beat. I can get a 4oz. pump bottle of this moisturizer for $10-$12, and it lasts me well over six months — even with daily use. Some of my friends spend two or three times that for products that last half as long and don’t work as well.

Skin care doesn’t have to be expensive. Check out Neutrogena for a whole line of affordable products that actually work!

If you’re suffering from a cash crunch, then you’ve probably already checked out some of the options that are available to you. Personal loans and secured loans are some of the most common financial fixes out there, but unless you’ve actually been through the loan process before, you might not know what it entails.

That’s why I recommend learning as much as you can about loans before you sign any paperwork. The site I’ve just linked to has many informative articles about how loans can help you get back on your feet and how you can get a loan even if you have bad credit. This is important info to have before you apply for a loan, so check out those articles right now!

Romance is one fiction genre that I generally try to stay away from. I’m just not really interested in reading about sappy love affairs. Sure, there have been fantastic romance novels — true classics — produced along the way (Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice immediately come to mind), but by and large the genre conjures up images of those cheesy Harlequin numbers.

Against my better judgment, I gave in and read The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks a little while ago. Several of my friends gushed about it, so I decided it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try. I actually read it with an open mind and I wanted to like it so I could have a book discussion with my friends (a rare occurrence since we have such different tastes), but I just couldn’t. This had to be one of the worst books I’ve ever read.

The Notebook tells the story of Noah and Allie, who first meet as high school kids in the 1930s or 1940s. It’s pretty much love at first sight for Noah, but Allie takes a bit longer to warm up to him. Of course, there are complications for the couple right from the start. For one thing — and stop me if you’ve heard this before — Noah is from a poor, working-class family while Allie comes from money. For another thing — again, stop me if you’ve heard this before — Allie’s family isn’t sticking around forever; they’ll be moving back home at the end of the summer.

So Noah and Allie decide to make the most of their time together. They spend nearly every waking moment with each other, and by the time summer ends, they’re completely in love. Did I mention that Noah was 17 at the time and Allie was 15?

Anyway, after Allie moves back home with her family, Noah writes letters to her. He never gets a response because — hey, please stop me if you’ve heard this before! — Allie’s mother hides the letters before Allie can see them. Despite the fact that Noah never hears back, he keeps on writing. He sends 365 letters in all: one per day for an entire year. Although Noah moves forward with his life, he never forgets about Allie. They go 15 years without seeing or hearing from each other, then one day she suddenly shows up on his doorstep.

From that point on, The Notebook tells about how Allie must choose between marrying her fiance or getting back together with Noah. I’m sure you can guess which one she chooses! After that the author brings the action back to the present and deals with another storyline that I won’t reveal here.

I had so many problems with The Notebook that I hardly know where to begin. For instance, I felt Sparks did a terrible job creating these two characters. They seemed two-dimensional and were unsympathetic, so I never really warmed up to them. In addition, I had a hard time imagining that the bulk of the action in the book took place during the 1940s. Sparks didn’t do anything to establish that time period. The characters acted and talked like modern creations, which was very confusing to me.

And finally, I just never “got” why or how these two people fell in love. In a story like this, it’s critical that the author show the reader how the characters were in love. Instead, Sparks was content merely to repeat the phrase over and over again. For those of you that have read the book: can you think of one defining action (besides the keeping of the notebook, which happens when Noah and Allie are 80) that showed you how much Noah loved Allie or vice versa? I can’t remember any such moments in The Notebook.

Because of these problems, I give this book 2.5 stars out of 10. I am having a hard time understanding how The Notebook could have spent more than a year on the NY Times Bestsellers list….

I was reading about the Burj Dubai earlier today, which, as you probably know, is going to be the world’s tallest building when it’s finished. Anyway, while I was browsing the web, I came across a lot of pictures of the city of Dubai and I have to say that I never realized how beautiful the place looks! The manmade islands are amazing, and it looks like a fantastic place to visit or even live. I was able to view some Dubai properties as well and could definitely picture my family enjoying time in the UAE!

I have enjoyed writing with fine pens ever since I was in high school. That’s when I received my first Mont Blanc Meisterstück fountain pen as a gift, and I’ve been hooked on expensive writing instruments ever since. I have two Meisterstück fountain pens in my collection now, as well as a Meisterstück mechanical pencil and a Cartier ball point. A few weeks ago, I purchased a Mont Blanc Noblese Oblige Rollerball. Here are my impressions of it thus far.

The things that really attracted me to this pen, strangely enough, were the cap and the clip. I actually am not a big fan of the barrel shape, but the platinum-plated open clip and the large white star on the cap are very distinctive looking.

I also like the weight of the pen. It’s hefty enough so I know I’m not writing with some cheap Bic number, yet it’s much lighter than the Meisterstück series so I don’t get cramps or anything even after extended periods of writing.

Unfortunately, there are a couple of things that I don’t like about the Noblesse Oblige Rollerball. For example, I think the ink cartrigdes are only available in Fine and Medium, but the Medium is too fine for my tastes. I wish the ink came out just a bit thicker with this cartridge. Another thing I don’t like is the way the Noblesse Oblige looks when I’m writing with it. When the cap is on the other end, the pen looks overly long and a bit inelegant. That’s probably a minor point that most people wouldn’t notice, but it jumps right out at me.

Overall, I think the Noblesse Oblige Rollerball is a good pen for the money. I believe Mont Blanc has discontinued this particular series, so you ought to be able to pick up a Noblesse Oblige for a very good price these days. I found mine on eBay, brand new in the box with the papers and everything, for less than $150.

Last night’s CSI episode was called “Redrum,” and it was pretty easy to figure out why the writers chose this title: Keppler and Catherine take a backwards approach to solving their latest case. Let me explain.

The crime involved a high-profile local assemblyman named Daniel Zamesca (played by A Martinez) who was murdered on a secluded desert road. Drugs were found in the Zamesca’s car, as well as a photograph of him (or his brother? I don’t remember) doing drugs. Since Zamesca had been pushing for tougher drug laws, this had the makings of a huge scandal.

After analyzing the evidence, the CSI team believes that a drug kingpin named Thomas Simon pulled the trigger, but Simon is in hiding. This poses a problem because the sheriff’s office wants a quick resolution to the case since it’s in the public eye. That’s when Keppler comes up with his less-than-ethical plan: he and Catherine, along with the help of Brass and a police snitch, will stage another crime scene, “arrest” the snitch, and make it look like the guy will take the fall for Zamesca too.

The rest of the episode shows Keppler and Catherine working together very secretively to stage the new crime scene, breaking the rules, and generally deceiving the rest of the team. Nick in particular gets suspicious and calls a meeting with Warrick, Greg, and Sara to discuss what’s going on. The four of them then work together to show that the evidence against the snitch was falsified, and eventually they do get to the bottom of what’s going on.

Keppler’s plan works, and Simon comes out of hiding a short time later at which point Brass arrests him. But the DA wasn’t informed of the plan from the beginning and says she can’t tell “fact from fiction” in the case, so she refuses to charge Simon. Luckily, the team is able to tie Simon to another murder, so they got their guy in the end.

I have to say that I really like the way Keppler is shaking things up on the show. I can’t imagine mister by-the-book Grissom doing anything like this, and it’s definitely refreshing to see some new things happening here. William Petersen is still in the credits, so I don’t know what’s up with him. Maybe this Liev Schreiber deal is just a test run to see how CSI would fare in the ratings without Petersen in the lineup. I’m all for it!

By the way, Nick looked really pissed off at the end, so I wonder what kind of fallout there will be from Keppler’s stunt. Looks like the team is getting torn apart here. Interesting….

Whenever I consider making a major financial purchase, there’s a very length research process that I go through. After all, I don’t want to waste my money or get stuck with a product that simply isn’t right for me. So I always read a lot of reviews, do extensive comparison shopping, and find out as much about specific manufacturers and brands before parting with my cash.

My extensive experience in this area has given me a good feel for which companies and websites have the customer in mind, and which ones merely have sales figures in mind. The ones that care about the customer actually anticipate customer needs and address those right on the site, while the companies that fall into the latter category make it nearly impossible for potential customers to find the information they need.

That’s why I immediately took notice of the American Motorhomes - Questions & Answers section of the Travelworldrv.co.uk website. They have a very unique Video FAQ section that gives thorough answers to the questions that their target audience are most likely to have. For example, I was particularly interested in hearing Ross explain how long it generally takes to get used to driving an RV and how one would reverse in that type of vehicle because those are concerns that I would certainly have if I were in the market for a huge motor home.

I think the Video FAQ section is a fantastic idea for two reasons: first, it’s easier (for me, anyway) to understand a verbal explanation than a written one; and second, it immediately establishes a sense of trustworthiness that I don’t get from other sites. The people at Travelworld RV aren’t trying to hide and remain anonymous. They’re right out in the open telling us about their company and products.

Overall, Travelworld.co.uk is a very informative website that tells consumers pretty much all they need to know about the RV experience. I would feel very comfortable dealing with this company!

I totally forgot to get my submission in to that 24-related blog carnival called “Carnival of Bauer” that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. I am posting here as a reminder to myself, and I already set up alarms/notices to be sent via email and on my PDA. I am definitely participating in the next one!!!

Here’s the link to the carnival info, if you’re interested:

Edit: Looks like the link/carnival is dead, so it’s been removed.

In recent years, my husband and I have taken our vacations only in Asia or North America. I haven’t been to Europe since we went to Italy in 2000, so I am really feeling the urge to go back again sometime soon.

Just out of curiosity I put together a hypothetical itinerary to Portugal and Spain. I was actually able to find some very cheap flights on Monarch, so who knows? We might be able to take an extra vacation this year after all!