Haven't blogged in a while. I've spent much of my free time checking out reception sites on-line, as well as playing a PC game called Rome: Total War, which one of my co-workers introduced me to. It's a combination turn-based city management (a la Civ) + Real-time strategy for the battles. The game is ok; I'm only trying to get into it because I figure it will help me to build a relationship with my (non-Christian) co-worker. Gotta start somewhere, right?

There are some interesting things about the game though. I like the battles, because it's less arcade-like. Armies move very slowly (as in real-life) and success depends more on formations, lines, and battle tactics, rather than brute force or micro-management skills. I like that: more thinking, less reflexes. Makes me want to read Sun Tzu's Art of War.

Also, I hadn't had internet access at home for a couple of days. We couldn't find anything wrong, and after calling tech support, they decided to send a technician out to our house. That night, my dad turned the TV in the kitchen to face the table and the picture went from static-y to clear. After dinner, I noticed that our internet was back on-line. Apparently, there's a cable box/splicer behind the kitchen TV, and it can cause all the cable, including the internet, to go bad. Wow, if we hadn't caught that, the technician could have been in the house a really long time, just racking up the $$hours$$. Of course, we cancelled the technician.

E is coming this weekend! We'll be looking at reception sites. I did the initial scouting with my mom on the Orange County sites last week, and have narrowed down the list. Esther will be seeing them for the first time, and then we're off to go scout out prospective sites in the Los Angeles area. Hopefully we can pick a place this weekend and finally be able to set a date.