Categories
Books

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

UnbrokenAs per NGM’s recommendation, I just finished reading Unbroken. He spoke very highly of it and I must say that I concurred that it was a very good read.

It really is amazing to read just how much some people have gone through in their lives. Louie was an Olympian, served in WWII, spent well over a month in a raft in the shark infested Pacific, and was a POW in some horrible Japanese prison camps. This was all one guy, not a collection of tales by numerous individuals.

I’ve always gotten easily agitated listening to the typical person complaining about how difficult their situation is or how easily they give up when faced even the slightest obstacle in life. I always joke how easy their life is and that they don’t have a right to complain.

Reading Louie and the other men’s tales of serving in WWII really puts in perspective what a difficult situation is. These guys faced life and death choices constantly and didn’t have a feeling of self entitlement. They actually had to earn what they got.

This was an excellent, well written book. Highly recommended.

 

Categories
Sports

Kickball: Week 1

kickballLast night was our first kickball game as Express Pizza. I gotta admit I was both pretty anxious and even a little nervous going into the game. I put a lot of thought into the lineup and where everyone would be playing the field, and really wanted to make sure that everybody was happy with their respective spots as well placed where their talents could be most effective.

Jake’s Water Ice was our opponent on this night. I talked to a few of the guys before the game, seemed nice a nice bunch. As the home team, we started in the field. I was very proud to see that our practice in the field really payed off. We started the 1st inning with some very solid defense.

On offense I did the majority of the pitching, which was fun. Nothing came up the middle that I had to avoid from our players, which made things easy. However I did manage to get struck in the head with a fine toss from the other team. I was even crouching low as to stay out of play!

We kept score and stats, so I’ll try to share them as they come available.

I did manage to go 2 for 4 with 2 doubles! Though I did get a decent sprained ankle on my first double. I almost overran the bag and to keep my toe on the bag had to take and awkward stop. It began swelling up pretty good after the game, but I expect to be fine by our next game.

Jake’s played small ball in the later innings and eventually took a 1 run lead which they were able to hold onto in the end. Some of their kicks we felt were bunts, which are illegal. But the ref’s opinion is the one that counts and they were ruled fair. We eventually adjusted to their tactics, but just a little too late.

It was some of the most fun I’ve had in a while. So glad that I signed up and got some other good frieds to sign up too. Can’t wait for our next game!

Categories
Books

Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi Backlash

Star Wars Fate of the Jedi BacklashFinished up another book in the Fate of the Jedi series. The story is coming along very nicely now and things are really starting to shape up. Some backstabbing and treachery always makes for a better read.

It’s nice to have Luke, Han and Leia together just like in the old movies, even if it was only for a few chapters. They’re pretty much what I think of when I think of Star Wars (sorry Chewbacca, RIP).

I really liked the force wielding tribes, it was cool to see other people using the force differently than how Jedi’s would. Reminds you how big the galaxy is.

Something big but separate events should be going down with the Sith and the Moths in the next books. Look forward to checking them out.

Categories
Books

Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi Abyss

Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi AbyssThe third book in the Fate of the Jedi series was a solid read. There seemed to be more of an emphasis on Luke and Ben’s journey, which was cool. Their subplot has been the most interesting to me. The whole beyond shadows experience was pretty deep. They really went pretty far out with the whole thing.

There was also a good amount of Han Solo stuff too. He’s gotta be in his 60’s in this story, but it’s nice to see he’s still getting around and causing trouble for others.

The Sith storyline took a pretty major turn towards the end of the book. I wasn’t expecting them to attack Luke in this book, so that was a pleasant surprise. Those last few unexpected chapters were hard to put down.

My summer reading spree continues. Need to decide on my next book to read.

Categories
Books

To End All Wars

To End All WarsContinuing my summer reading quest, I picked up To End All Wars from the new arrivals stack at the library and figured I’d give that a shot. It’s a book about World War I, primarily coming from a British perspective. The author does an amazing job of really giving a clear picture of how life was back then.

The early chapters describe events leading up to the war, including the British dominance of the world and the Boer Wars that they had fought in South Africa. A lot of attention is just given to the various battles in the war, but also to those who opposed war on both sides as well.

At times it grew frustrating to read just how stupid people can be. The amount of unnecessary deaths and the means with which they occurred was truly staggering. The efficiency and technological jumps made in the art of killing during this time amazed me.

What a dark time in history. If you’re into history I highly recommend and even if your’re not it’s still a very interesting read.

Categories
Video Games

Portal 2

Portal 2Definitely one of the better games I’ve ever played. I hadn’t played the first that came with the Orange Box, but after much hype had to give it a shot and very glad that I did.

The concept is so simple but so difficult at times. To get from point A to point B using just the portal gun that you have. Completing a stage did have that rewarding feeling, especially some of the more difficult ones.

The voice acting was great. There were many moments that were just genuinely funny. The dry cold humor from the various robots was great. The ending of the game was amazing too. The orchestra and the original song sung by the monotone robot was perfect.

Now I have to give co-op play a shot, I’ve heard that’s ever better than the single player campaign. If you like puzzles, then this is perhaps a perfect game.