Yesterday afternoon at approx. 12:00 p.m. my granddaddy was laid to rest in the cemetary of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Barnesville MD. This is the first grandparent I have lost in my 24 years of life. I feel very fortunate to of known him as long as I did. Below is his Obituary as printed in the Frederick News-Post on Saturdaym January 14th 2006. Mr. Donald E. Jeffers, 81, of Boyds, died at home on Friday, January 13th, 2006. He was the husband of Doris H. Jeffers. Born on July 15, 1924 in T.B.Maryland, he was the son of the late Mark and Julia Jeffers. Donald enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1944, serving in France and Germany during WWII. He told stories of driving down mountains in France in a supply truck without brakes and taking orders from General Patton in Germany. After completing his tour of duty, Donald entered the Federal Civil Service, working at Bethesda Naval Hospital as an electrician. He retired 30 years later as the Director of Public Works at the National Navy Medical Center. In that capacity, he was on-call whenever a U.S. President was hospitalized at NNMC. In 1949, he married Doris Elizabeth Hawse and set about to build the family home in Boyds. Donald performed the majority of the work himself, from bricklaying to wiring and plastering. He spent his remaining years there, raising three children. As a boy, Donald grew up on a farm. He continued that tradition starting with a small vegetable garden at home and eventually maintaining his parents-in-law's farm. Don and Doris spent many happy years square dancing and were founding members of the 2X4 Square Dance Club. He was an assistant coach for the Monocacy Wildcats, an Upper Montgomery County Sports Association baseball team. Don enjoyed camping, hunting and fishing with his family. After retirement he discovered his skill at the game of golf and playwed weekly with his friends. He was an active member of the 43rd MR&R Squadron and the Issac Walton League, a board member of the Boyds Credit Union and an Officer of the American Legion, Daniel Jeffers Post 247. He was devoted to his daughter, Karen, who preceded him in death in 1978. He will be especially remembered by his friends and neighbors, the Nejati family, Hassan, Karen, Yousuf, Zainab, Mariam and Ali, who thought of Mr. Jeffers as a grandfather. In addition to his wife, he is survived by a daughters, Brenda Thew and husband Lee of Jefferson; a son, Tom Jeffers of Middletown; four grandsons, Alex and Zachary Thew and Jeremy and Christopher Jeffers; brothers, Paul Jeffers of Frederick, Mark Jeffers of Monrovia; two sisters, Helen Lewis of Leland, NC and Jean Voytko of Moneta, VA and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Karen and two brothers, Benton and Richard Jeffers. The obit goes on to tell the dates and times of the viewing and funeral. My granddaddy died of pneumonia and also had Parkinson's Disease. The obit states that in lieu of flowers, donations could be made in Donald's name to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, Grand Central Station, PO Box 4777, New York, NY, 10163-3772. I loved my grandaddy very much and have many fond memories of fishing with him at a friend's lake, catching sunfish and bluegill, as well as golfing with him on a course and out back on his "driving hill" where we would practice our drives. We would often play pool on the table he has down in his basement. He helped me find a grip on the pool cue that worked for me, and even set up shots for practice. I owe my skills in pool to my grandaddy. He even helped my get a good grade on a history paper I had in high school. I had to interview someone from the Depression/WWII era. My teacher stopped dead in his tracks when I mentioned that my granddaddy had taken orders from General Patton. At the viewing, they had placed a golf ball in his hand and a golf tee in his suit's chest pocket. It was a very nice touch considering his immense love for golf. If he wasn't playing it, he was watching it. His casket even had a figure swinging a golf club etched into it. As much as I miss him, I now know he is at peace with his brothers and my Aunt Karen. I will never forget the things he taught me, and the wisdom imparted by him. Rest In Peace Grandaddy

I just want to say right off the bat, I love my wife. Caroline has been nothing but the best thing that has ever happened to me. That being said, she is still the subject of this entry. Why? She's slowly becoming a gamer and I'm helping her. She's already beaten both Champions of Norrath games for the PS2, her scores are the highest in the crash mode of Burnout 3, she just finished Final Fantasy 9 and is now working on the PS1 version of Final Fantasy 1. Just last night she beat Lich and Kary. IN THE SAME NIGHT! Is it me or is everyone I meet better at FF1 than me? To top it all off, a friend of mine whom I played the online MUD Achaea with suggested I get her involed in Achaea. I scoffed at the idea, only for her to suggest it one night while I was playing. Now she has a Siren character within the Sentinel class. I'm sure we've all expiernced something like this: Your significant non-gamer other meekly requesting a turn and to humor them you hand them a controller, fully not expecting anything but for Mario to run smack into the first Goomba he sees. Sometimes that happens. Othertimes you're blown away as they bash thier way to World 9 without so much as losing a single life. If it weren't for the fact that FPS games make her dizzy, I wouldn't be surprised if she is able to kick my ass in Halo. (Not that it's very hard. I do kinda suck) I've already decided to bequeth the old PS2 to her once I obtain a PS3. It only seems right seeing as how thats where her skills have grown from. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if your non-gamer boy/girlfriend starts becoming insanely good at games, have fun with it! I know it's hard to not feel jelous, but take joy in thier joy. Now if you'll excuse me I have to go now. I think I just heard her say something about wanting to play FF7. That will NOT be tolerated.

Well thank the powers that be that's over! I've just spent the past day and a half in a freezer of a house because the power went out due to a 4 inch wet-n-heavy snowfall before halloween! Welcome to the mountains I guess. Even with 3 different modes of heat in this house, they all require power. So I spent most of my day huddled under 4 blankets with only a GBA SP to keep me company. I'm just glad the battery didn't die or I really would've gone stir crazy. Aside from massive heat problems, my car was almost subjected to a colonoscopy with a tree limb. This giant limb cracks and falls inches from my car. Worst part is we are supposed to have more snowfall within the weeks end. I'm not sure I like it here anymore....

So here I am in beautiful Oakland Maryland with a new house and no job. That's right. Because we moved 150 miles from our previous location we couldn't keep our current jobs and are struggling to find work. OK, I say struggling, but both Caroline and I do have potential jobs after the standard background check. (i really hate those things. waste of time for us honest americans. save them for the terrorist bastards) Granted, i'll be a photo guy at Wal-mart, but money is money. As soon as I find a computer job...pffft! i'm outta there. On the plus side I have lots of time to waste in front of games and computer until said job starts. Makes me wish I mad EQ2. Bet that's a BIG time waster, eh Steve? As long as I'm on the game subject, buy Burnout 3 or Burnout Revenge, rent Indigo Prophecy and stay the hell away from anything with Sonic the Hedgehog on the title. Just cuz Sega was bought out by Nintendo doesn't make them a better game company. I still like to gloat over everyone who said the Dreamcast was the best system ever. Hell, I still like to gloat over people who went thru 3 Sega CD systems while I still have a working SNES. Anyway, I'm back on the net now and since I've got a lot of time on my hands I just might make more interesting articles for you to read. I'd go on a rant about the Hot Coffee scandal, but what can I say that has not already been said? Feel free to contact me and ask just how you can help me get out of this dire financial situation with donations to the Circle of Madness organazation for keep me in my new house. Call today!

Since my last update, I have obtained several pieces of video game software that deserves mention. I've been meaning to do this and every time I try, I get another doo-whacky to play with. (wow that sounds naughty..) Anywho, consider the following: PS2-God of War: I can't believe I didn't pick this one up earlier. However in doing so, I saved some cash. Nevertheless go out to your store right now and buy this! God of War is PS2's Halo. It's so good they could make sequel after sequel and it'll never get dull. The premise is you are Kratos; A man faithfully serving the Gods of Olympus for 10-odd years. He has some sort of brutal past that he tries to forget, and sadly cannot due to the pact he made with Ares. (yes it's greek mythology so prepare for a history lesson) The action is fast, brutal and vicious. You can literally feel Kratos's war lust building inside of you as you play. Combos are simple yet it's really not a button-masher. Doing so only leaves you vunerable. I would praise this game till the end of time if not for one tiny flaw. Upon completion of the game you unlock all-sorts of extras and goodies. One of which is called "Challenge of the Gods". You must complete 10 different scenarios to unlock some funny costumes for Kratos. Challenge 8 of 10 is my beef with this game. Honestly? It's impossible. Short of a cheat code, I know no way past this challenge. Any help is appreciated. Other than that? A fine game to any PS2 collection. GC-Viewtiful Joe: Another sleeper I almost missed. I was skeptical on this one only because I never saw the "brand new-take" on graphics in action. Still-shots don't do this game justice. It's really a lot of fun to play with humorus dialouge and..well...Viewtiful graphics. Pick this one up and you'll soon find yourself saying "Henshin-a-go-go baby!" Would of liked an option for subtitles though, but thats just cuz my hearing is going cuz I'm so old. :P GC-Call of Duty Finest Hour: 2 words. Skip it. PS2-Destroy all Humans!: I liked it. If you've ever wanted to be the alien taking over the world instead of saving the world from the invading menace then here ya go. The alien's mind powers make flinging people, cars and tanks a breeze (and fun!) His weapons are devastating and literally have names like "Zap-O-Matic". You even get to fly a UFO! They give you some extras like making of's and concept art, but what sold me were the real, drive-in style, 1950-60 B movies about space invaders. Classic stuff there! And for all you Invader Zim fans, you should recognize the voice of the alien leader.... GC-Tales of Symphonia: You won't believe how hard a time I had getting my hands on this. That alone should tell you it's at least worth looking into. An expertly well-done anime-ish RPG by Namco, ales of Symphonia is a great game for seasoned as well as newbie RPG'ers. No turn based battles, all real-time and voice work that is out of this world. 2 discs too! We're talkin' 80+ hours of game play here, easy! Not too far into it myself, but only because I haven't been able to sit still long enough to get absorbed into an RPG lately. XBox-The Punisher: I was hesitant on buying this since I heard it was mediocre. I was glad I did. It's really true to the comic books form and I'm assuming it did better in sales than the movie. It's a good rent if you have the time over a long weekend. If you're a big Punisher fan, then buy it for $20 and you'll enjoy it too. Finally, if you're a Neurotically Yours fan (you know..Foamy?) I'm happy to announce I've seen DVD sets of the cartoons in Hot Topic. Picked one up myself today and I love it. I'm now a card-carrying member of the Foamy Card Cult and I'll be heading the the bagel shop to get a bagel with the creamy cheese-cheese-creamy-cheese later. Spread the word of Foamy! Thats all for now, but I hope to hear from you all on what you think!

In one word: Fantastic! It's an absolutly fabulous movie and everyone should go see it. You just have to keep in mind that it's not the Gene Wilder version. It's based on the original book by Roald Dahl and is slightly darker/creepier in some parts. Basically you get the sense that Wonka isn't right upstairs and these problems manifest themselves into the creation of the factory. All the characters you remember are there, and the other kids are even more bratty than before. You really learn to hate them all except Charlie, who has a heart of pure gold. The grandparents are more active in this version, which leads to more laughter. Even though we all know Charlie finds a Golden Ticket, I found myself getting just as excited as Charlie when he sees that hint of gold foil. If anything, the characters, setting and factory have just been modernized. Mike T.V. is a bratty yet tech-savvy 14-15 year-old playing video games instead of shooting a fake six-shooter at old westerns. (I tried to identify the game he was playing, I think it may of been Unreal 3. If anyone can verify, please let me know) Agustus is still as fat as ever. (little heavy on the make-up though) Veruca is still spoiled little rich girl who makes daddy give her whatever she wants. (which in turn makes Mom chug another martini) Violet is still chewing her cud..er....gum, but they added a bit more depth by making her and her mother perfectionists when it comes to competition. And then there's Wonka. Super-Kudos to Johnny Depp to what I thought was an excellent portrayal of a locked up candy maker. They reveal some of his past, and you really get a sense of who Wonka is. The design of the factory is outstanding, with revamped rooms of the ones we all remember. "Everything in this room is edible, even me but thats called cannabalism and thats not accepted in many cultures." -Depp Keep and open mind and I guarantee you'll have a blast at this movie. Yes, the Oompa-Loompas still sing and dance, but it's not as painful anymore. :)

It's True! I hath awakend from the deep dark reccess of online hibernation. Sleep, tis a cruel mistress. Anyway, I was just catching up on some old friend's blogs and lo and behold mine still works. I figured Blogdrive would of given up on me by now. So Kudos to them for keep me plugged into my cryo chamber. Lots of stuff has happened since last time, as you can imagine. I won't bore you with the details so here's a sum-up: 1. Birthday soon. July 18th. Send cookies! 2. Moving soon. May be disconnected for a while. Moving to western Maryland. (as soon as I find a job up there. Help a guy out huh?) 3. Still Married! By some grace of divine origin, Caroline has yet to run me thru with a skewer! Still gonna hold off on the 3-some suggestion though.... So there you have it. I'm alive, well and still gaming my ball off (confused? ask and thou shalt recieve) In fact, I'd like to share with you all a little rant I found amusing. Yes it's game related and I hope you kids share this with parents who bitch about video game related accidents. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Looks like Eidos is desperate to get some attention for a game without employing Lara Croft. They must've heard that “GTA Made You Do It”, because their 25 to Life is the latest GTA-to-be that's got lazy, indulgent parents and clueless politicians worried. Just wait until they see Saint's Row. But that's a discussion that'll have to wait for the next generation of killographic murderboxes. What more do you want, parents? There's a rating system on the games now.Your only -- and may I say flimsy -- excuse was that you had no way of knowing what type of content might be found in a given video game. Because lord knows you couldn't ask your kid. I mean, talk to your own child? About his or her interests? Being a part of your son or daughter's life? Crazy! Good thing you cried to the government instead. Now we've got that rating system you can completely ignore as if it was your kid. I mean, seriously. They'll buy their twelve year old kids video games that simulate "realistic" violence and it is someone else's fault. How, exactly? Would these parents let their kids wander into a porno theater with $50 and be surprised when they witness something as innocuous as Chitty, Chitty Gang Bang? Of course not. You wouldn't let your kid within a mile of that place. But when a video game box has "Rated M for Mature" plastered all over it, tells you what happens in the game on the back along with a couple screen shots, has a cover splattered in blood and a title like "Kill, Kill, Kill the Cops All Day Long", these mouth-breather parents throw their hands up in the air and lament to the government how can it possibly be legal to allow an industry to subsist entirely on chicanery and lies for no other purpose than to expose precious little Chandler Hunter Morgan to the 21st century's Clockwork Orange? It's not like you're picking up a box that says Happy Sunshine Love only to find out that it contains a game that encourages you to skullfuck squirrels and say things like “All The Cool Kids Hurt Animals!” When precious Hunter Morgan Chandler gets his driver's license and careens off a cliff, are you going to sue the video games for having cars and cliffs that obviously trained your son to drive off a cliff because, "Everyone else was doing it, you get 10,000 points for a good explosion," or are you going to sue automakers for building cars that move forward? Hell, why not both! Awesome! I think what bugs me the most about this tripe is that it's an argument built out of fantasy. And it's just the latest one. Is there a genetic timebomb inside of every generation? Does it go off at the exact moment the generation realizes that its fate is not its own; that it's the next generation that'll keep the world running in the very near future? Does the sheer horror of that truth force them to imagine phantom threats to distract themselves from the inevitability of change? Don't worry about the world you're giving to your kids, or that you've done nothing to prepare them intellectually or emotionally for the responsibility of running it. Worry instead about the comic books, the rock n roll and/ or rap music, the violent movies, and now video games! Ignorant parent says: "It's not my fault my kid doesn't know the difference between right and wrong, or fantasy and reality, it must be those darn video games I kept buying him in lieu of parenting." Somebody get my gun.