Living La Vida Loca

I am somewhat surprised that I was so honest and forthcoming about my personal life on this blog a year ago,  and I suspect this explains why my G+ following grows so little. However, it IS growing, and it shows that some people are able to overlook disability. What was not surprising was how quick people I disagreed with on G+ were ready to drop hints that due to disability my point of view was suspect, regardless of the virtues of the individual posts.

I have been experiencing this sort of harassment and abuse since I was first deemed disabled and labeled as such. The fact is, I was poisoned by LSD, so while I have many of the symptoms of my diagnosis, I am fortunate enough to be disabled to a lesser degree than others in my label. This does not stop underhanded debaters from using the D card every time they are in danger of losing an argument,  and unfortunately most people side with the accuser.  I must admit that if this continues on much longer I will remove this blog, since it is getting in the way of my Internet socializing. It is of course the nature of human beings to hate things unusual, since we are conditioned, and programmed genetically,  to sense danger in the unknown. Just like the thunderstorm outside my window right now, thunder makes me uneasy, knowing there is the small chance of a lightning strike. However, while I will not unplug my router, many people disconnect their lives from me when I rumble... Not knowing that I have channeled my current into productive work, while those much more fortunate than I go on to cause horrors.

Life is what you make it,  and a person has to choose whether their live causes good or evil. I would rather be friends with a leper who is a saint, than a banker who is a fraud. I choose good, and God. If you don't like that, fine, but don't drag my disability into what is otherwise a winning argument for me. Intelligent and powerful people see through these sorts of games, and you cheapen your impact in life when you are discovered as an abuser of the weak to profit yourself.

Let the argument stand on its own merit.

Why I dink around all day on the Internet instead of joining the rat race

I had totally forgotten about this blog space, so apologies to anyone who looked forward to more content that never came!

Much has happened in the time I posted last. I upgraded my phone to an HTC Evo V 4G from Virgin Mobile, upgraded my tablet to a Nexus 7 16Gb, and am busy skipping meals to keep up my electronics fix. Since I have multiple disabilities I rely mostly on penny pinching and Christmas to feed my habit. I recently acquired a roommate so I am more able to sustain my gadget fixation, though it is starting to wane as I grow older. I have simply been unable to justify my expensive habit to myself because I am of course receiving disability funds to live on,  however I do truly endure hardship to save the extra money to buy the gadgets I have. At the end of the day though this is not what these funds were meant for, and quite honestly I need to save up to replace a device rather than splurge on something that is hit or miss.

I suppose my blog post can be about my income, SSI and SSDI. When I first became disabled I could work 3/4 time before I hit my earnings limit as specified by the SSI program. I worked tirelessly and did a good job, but in retrospect I should not have worked so soon after becoming disabled. I was in no condition whatsoever to receive the treatment I did as a disabled person in the workforce. The place as a whole treated me well but 2 individuals made me want to crawl into a corner and die. September 11th 2001 saw me turn from a nice Christian to a militant Christian, and losing my job from then on didn't require clairvoyance. It was also close to the time when I had earned enough Social Security credits to gain the distinction of being unemployable. You see, if you work hard enough, they reward you, by being able to earn much less before benefits are cut off.
Finally, a flare up in my condition gave them enough room to give me the heave ho.

So there I was, no job, no ability to get a job with the safety net I needed, and a disability that is the modern equivalent of leprosy.  On reflection, while many hurdles can be overcome, this inability to earn over $500 dollars a month without losing assistance has been the largest impediment to gaining employment. Gross, not net. If I could get a job washing dishes, I would lose it the moment the boss asked me to put more hours in than my earnings threshold allows. Bosses and managers have no patience for a worker that won't ante up for the team. Of  course, I could explain why I can't work those hours, which got me fired from my last good job.

Now, I find myself looking for a job again. I'm in my 30s which means I have the experience to know to shut up, but who will hire a guy at 15 hours a week for a low wage job when every applicant is expected to want as many hours as possible at minimum wage? Just to buy the bare necessities for a wife and kids no less. It doesn't take a manager long to figure out you are on the dole, and they usually fire you shortly thereafter.

Which brings me to the moral conundrum many disabled people deal with. You want to work, even if you shouldn't. Society, self, and others make this so. When you get a disability check everyone thinks you are a leech, and so you feel like one. But then the government puts up impossible blockades to keep a job. And then there is medication: just 1 of mine costs close to 2000 dollars a month. And every social worker I have had has told me in no uncertain terms that while the government says you can reapply for benefits, it is a total crapshoot as to whether or not you can actually start receiving disability benefits again, and if so, months of waiting before it arrives. That means living on the streets once the job goes south. You lose everything.

I feel trapped by my inadequacies as well as by a bureaucracy that makes it impossible for me to get a leg up. However, I am no longer content at sitting at home waiting for the sky to fall. I am going to find a job anyway, I just hope my family will take me in once everything falls apart.

 No stress,  eh? I always thought a disability check was easy street. Not so much now.

Guild recruiting is hard on the nerves

I have a guild on the Vashj server on World of Warcraft and it has been a pain to get members. The guild is brand new so it is only level 1 and has under 10 members and I am in danger of losing those. The guild premise is to have a group grounded in respect for each other and that I think is the major sticking point since many people act out their frustrations via online anonymity. They want to vent their frustrations by using the anonymity of the net as a way to avoid the penalty for behaving in such a manner that would otherwise get them into trouble. Pray for my guild that it gains memberships and progresses into a decent high level guild with plenty of opportunity for all. If you aren't the praying type then wish me luck, I also believe in luck and wishes. This is the guild recruitment macro I use and I hope to have 30 members by Sunday. . . " is a leveling guild who's watchword is Respect. We are small but growing fast. 4 bank tabs, starting funds, voice chat, and people who will treat you well. Msg for invite." Second macro is: " is a lvl 1 guild with 4 bank tabs, repairs, starter funds, and a fellowship based on Respect. Respond for an invite. Join us for a mature game experience." So you can see where I run into trouble. . . Everyone will think that there is no fun in being a member rather than a fun atmosphere that is civil as well. The upside is that is the few members I have are decent people who make the game enjoyable. Any thoughts as to how to proceed? Should I just invite anyone and weed them out or should I continue along the very slow but sure method. I'm leaning towards the latter but I am tempted to switch gears and sort the wheat from the chaff.

Galaxy Tab 7 inch Tablet GT-P1010

Well I thought I would write about one of my favorite hobbies right now, and that is to use my tablet for much of the things I use my computer for. Before I go into this device I want to qualify a couple things. One, I have never owned an iPad or iPhone so I don't know enough about those devices to compare them to my Galaxy Tab 7 inch. Also, my experience with tablets is limited to the GT-P1010, which is a rock solid device so I'm not sure if I am spoiled or not, chances are I am.

I am considering purchasing an iPad now that the displays are so much better but I am worried that all my hard earned money I've spent on apps in the Google Market (now Google Play) will go to waste, and I have found a number of good ones. The problem is I have learned how to use the tablet well and I'm not sure what the learning gap is between the iPad and the android devices. I have also always been happy with the more open model of applications and since everything on Apple's market has to be vetted by them I find that perhaps I may be missing out on some decent if controversial aspects of online life should I choose to go with iPad.

The Galaxy Tab 7 inch is a 16GB model with a microSDHC slot capable of taking up to 32 gigabytes of external storage. The model number is the GT-P1010, and I am thoroughly enjoying it as my daily driver. I wish I could recommend this device to people but the technology has moved on and the 1Ghz processor is adequate but no longer in the mid range of processing power needed to fuel certain programs such as games or running a lot of the newer apps together in one setting. It does have 512Mb of RAM but much of this gets used by services for apps that are installed, making me need to clear memory and uninstall certain apps I would rather have installed but are memory hogs or processor intensive.

A few things about the GT-P1010 I have not seen mentioned in other places. 

1) This is thee only model to not receive an upgrade to 2.3 . While many sites mention that an upgrade is not available for this unit, it has somehow been singled out as a device not worthy of 2.3 . I highly recommend buying a Galaxy Tab Note 10.1 if you are in the market for a tablet instead.

2) You need to root the device and modify the settings on the tablet to get streaming videos to work. For some reason Samsung disabled the Stagefright video player that came with the Galaxy Tab GT-P1010's Android 2.2 Froyo operating system in favor of the vanilla player from previous versions. If anyone reads this and is having trouble with their unit post a comment here and I will try to walk you through the process.

3) The stock keyboard leaves a lot to be desired. I am sure most people download third party keyboards for these devices, but I have yet to find one that does not block most of the screen when entering text. This is the main reason I suggest anyone interested in a tablet go for a 10 inch version. It just isn't fun to type a long article or email on a 7 inch device.

These are minor complaints on an overall excellent device. I use it to supplement my computer for short posts, Facebook and Google+ browsing, twitter and short emails. But the best use of the device I feel is for "enjoyment" browsing and catching up on emails and social networking while laying down in bed or at a coffee shop. Unlike a laptop it is truly portable, I have no trouble finding space and the time to simple pick up the device in 1 minute whereas my laptop is laborious and I have to keep it oriented in a certain position to use. You don't know how good tablets are until you find out you can lay down in bed and compute.

This was an early generation device and i look forward to buying a Galaxy Note 10.1 to truly join the modern aspect of tablet computing. Be warned if you decide to get a tablet, you will want to avoid your desktop computer, and you will find yourself in withdrawals when it comes time to plug the device in to charge...

World of Warcraft Auctions 5/18/2012

Using Auctioneer is a must for new players as well as old timers on this game. It enables you to see a history of prices via a percentage to determine whether or not an item is offered at rates that are higher or lower than average. While this does not help due to price fixing on materials for crafting it can be invaluable if you are offering these goods in bulk or stumble upon a number of these items in bulk to resell at a higher price.

A few words about items in the game that seem too low priced to be true. For instance on every server you will find Mystery Meat selling usually below 10 silver for 1 item or under 1 gold for a stack of 20. No matter how much price fixing you engage in you will lose your shirt and have to sell at a loss plus your deposits into the guild bank. This has to do with player ignorance of the cooking skill. You would think Mystery Meat would be a good cooking mat if you played vanilla wow but these days that recipie stands dormant since the area that used to offer the recipie is completely changed since the Cataclysm expansion.

I am currently compiling a list to print out of materials for crafting so I can engage in some profiteering to make some money for my newly established guild. Time to get back to the game, I will be burning the midnight oil here while the England finishes breakfast and East Asia prepares for supper. I cannot wait for the days when video games become a truly global enterprise.

Time to get serious about my Android experience.

I have been a technophile (someone who loves technology) since a young age. I grew up with a Sinclair ZX Spectrum 48k and Commodore 64 all the way up to today where I use a desktop with 6 cores running at 3.7 Ghz when in turbo mode. Games in particular have been a passion of mine, even with h a trough lately in my  game playing abilities I still subscribe to Rift, and was a World of Warcraft player from 2005 up until last month.

But something has taken my fancy lately, namely Android devices. I own an Android 2.2 Galaxy Tab 7 inch and a 2.2 Virgin Mobile Motorola Triumph, with a 2.3 Gingerbread Wildfire S (also by Virgin Mobile) as my favorite, if memory deficient, device. The ability to take my computing with me has made me ditch my landline for good and embrace mobile operators as my daily drivers while on the go.

Some of these blog posts will be merely ruminations on my daily struggles with this nascent  technology while others will delve into more fundamental areas of where I feel the technology can be improved and why I think  that there is a lot of benefits and also improvements to be had in the mobile arena.

My next blog post will be a spec sheet of the devices I own. If nothing else, this will inspire me to buy a Transformer Prime and jump all the way from Gingerbread to Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich. The next purchase on my list will be an Amazon Kindle Fire though as the Galaxy Tab is becoming somewhat dated. I will be wiping my devices in preparation for this blog so as to refresh my experience and give my devices a fair shot at fame and fortune.

God's blessings on this Easter Weekend to you and yours,

Sincerely, Steven H.