PSP-4000 Rumors

On May 13, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn Games, PSPLeave a comment

I’ve been reading rumors of a new version of the PSP coming summer 2009. It allegedly has a sliding screen and when you slide the screen it reveals the buttons for playing the games. It has no UMD drive so all of your UMD games are now useless. It basically will be download your games to memory sticks only.

I really don’t see how that’s going to make it better. I mean, I’ve spent a lot of money on games, why should I lose all of them and possibly even be forced to buy them all over again to put on the memory stick to play on this thing?

And why sliding screen? The only good I can see for that is watching movies or tv shows which I never even do. I don’t have any movie UMD’s and I don’t buy movies/tv shows from the PlayStation store. I just don’t see how a sliding screen is going to be any better than it is now.

No thanks. I’m going to just stick with my PSP-2000. I didn’t upgrade from the 2000 to the 3000 when that came out because the only changes that it had were the matte screen to make it easier to see in the sunlight and there are less finger prints and the mic hole which I don’t need since I already paid the $30 for the Skype headset.

If the 4000 version has no UMD slot then it’s useless to me. No point in upgrading for me.

The thing I would like to see in future handheld gaming devices is perhaps a pair of sunglasses like my bicycle sunglasses that wrap around so you don’t see any sunlight at all but it has earplugs attached to the arms and it has a screen on the lenses then it has a wireless game pad that has all the PlayStation controls so I can play games and nobody will know what I’m playing or I can watch movies and nobody can see what it is.

Gruber Assist Electric Bike

On May 8, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn TechLeave a comment

Ok, this is new. This easily adds the ability to turn your bicycle into an electric bicycle and nobody will ever know. Here is the link to the dvice article:

Gruber Assist electric bike: Only your cycle mechanic will know for sure

The kit will cost you an arm and a leg or if you have money it will cost a mere $2,473. But if you are trying to cheat in a race then it will pay off. Nobody will ever even know. That is until they hear your bicycle because it does have some noise. Watch the video in the Dvice website.

You have the option of turning it on and off so you aren’t always using it. So perhaps when there are no other riders around you can turn it on, speed up to get ahead then when someone shows up turn it off so they won’t suspect anything hehe. Personally this would help me get to the bike trail faster then I can go much further and get more exercise done. Then when I go home I can just coast along. The battery lasts like an hour to an hour and half so that wouldn’t be too difficult.

But… no money hehe.

RapidShare AG Scam

On April 25, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn ScamsLeave a comment

Today I was sitting at the computer looking at YouTube videos and my email program told me I had email. So I went to look and here is this one email from a business called RapidShare AG showing me my account information. Then a 2nd email which came at the exact same time from PayPal showing that I had been charged €29.99 EUR.

At first I thought it was just another email phishing scam asking me to click a link and give up my password so I just opened a new browser and manually typed http://www.paypal.com. I entered my password and sure enough there was that euro dollar charge and they did the exchange rate thing so the total that will come out of my checking account in 3 business days is $37.34.

So without hesitation I searched for the PayPal phone number and called them and told them “I DID NOT AUTHORIZE THIS!!!!” I told the guy on the phone that I don’t even know what RapidShare is and he said it’s a file sharing website. How did he know that? Perhaps PayPal knows about this yet they are still allowing people to be charged for this? I don’t know. He walked me through the process of disputing the claim but said it could take 10 days.

10 Days? It only takes 3 days for them to take the money directly out of my checking account. I only have $18 available until my next check. So I called Bank of America and told them what happened and I told them that I talked to PayPal about it and I wanted to make sure that they don’t get their money from me through my checking account which should be in 3 days. Well, that costs $20 and like I said, I have $18 available so now I gotta put $2 in the bank to cover my ass because if they take $20 and I have $18 they’re going to charge me $20 insufficient fund fee lol. That’s $40.

Why should I end up having to pay $40 when I’m the one being scammed?

OK so I went to the Google search engine and found out that this is indeed a scam. Someone didn’t just sign me up for this website or service, this company somehow got my PayPal password and they charged me for an account that I never asked for.

I was going to call them because PayPal has all the details but they are in Switzerland. I can’t call Switzerland! First of all they would probably put me on hold for 20 minutes and my phone bill would skyrocket. I could use my PSP with Skype but then I’d have to pay Skype more money to make an international call. The details also provide the company email address so I emailed them telling them that I disputed the claim with PayPal so they might as well just reverse their charge because they are not getting any money from me.

So now with all that out in the open, I have to go to the ATM machine to deposit $2.

UPDATE: This transaction did go through to the bank on that Monday which means the stop payment thing through Bank of America didn’t take. In fact when I called them they said that it wouldn’t have worked anyway because that is supposed to be for a monthly stop payment, not for a 1 time stop payment. I don’t know why they were going to use that then if that wasn’t for what I needed. Gawd!

Our dog Flower had a medical emergency so Darrin had to call his brother to ask him to NOT cash my rent check which means that since it did go through to my banking account I didn’t go in the negative so I don’t have to worry about insufficient funds fee… for now.

The refund did go through with PayPal and the money is back in my PayPal account. However, they didn’t put it back in my checking account. I wish they just put it back where they got it from. But, I think I’m going to just leave it in there just in case something happens like this again. Also it’s good to save money right?

So everything worked out in the end.

WD-40 On My Bike

On April 17, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

First off, I just want to say a big fat DUH! to myself.

I’ve been having trouble with my bicycle shifting gears. On November 20th I had an accident going up a bridge while standing on the peddles to try to gain speed and the gears shifted and it made me fall. I had to replace the handlebar and handlebar stem, buy a new computer and a new wheel. I could have bought a new bike with all the money I spent replacing those parts.

It didn’t occur to me that the reason the bike kept shifting gears while I was riding because it needed some WD-40. I’ve had bicycles my entire life and not once have I ever had to spray WD-40 on the chain or the gears. So, now I know and I will keep the WD-40 with all my bicycle tools from now on lol.

DUH!

Oprah’s New Format

On April 10, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn TVLeave a comment

Every couple of years Oprah gets a new format for her show. It’s like her show is evolving with time.

I can recall in the 80’s that her show was just like any other talk show. It was like Jerry Springer (early 90’s Jerry Springer) or Phil Donahue or even Sally Jessie Raphael.

Over the years she has started talking to more stars than regular people. Well, that I know of. I mean, I really don’t watch her show. You know, cause I’m a dude. But sometimes as I’m channel surfing and I’m passing that channel I stop for a few minutes and look to see whats going on.

Well, now the format she has is a table with 3 other people. They have their little coffee cups and they are chatting about whatever.

It’s like she is copying this new show called The Doctors where all these doctors are sitting at a table talking about medical stuff (not that I’ve seen it but I’ve seen commercials). Or they are copying The View. Who knows.

I guess it doesn’t really matter what Oprah does because no matter what she makes way more money than God himself (you know, Ryan Seacrest).

Gothic Chess Set

On March 18, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn craftsLeave a comment

I mentioned the other day that there is this website which sells molds for building model castles. Well, I’ve been obsessed with looking at all the cool projects that they have to make and I came across one that is a Gothic Chess Set.

This is the project that would probably cost a couple of hundred dollars but in my opinion is well worth the cost. Now I personally don’t play chess but I think it would still be an awesome thing to have. Especially if you are Gomez Addams lol.

Here is the page for the Gothic Chess Set:

http://www.castlemolds.com/chess/chess.html

They warn you that it is a monster of a project. Yeah it is. I’m sure it would take forever to make and it is going to cost a lot of money and a LOT of time too. But like I said, well worth the cost, effort and time. The chess pieces are sold from another website and each individual piece are about $7 and the pawns have 4 pieces and they are about $14 and of course you need 4 sets of pawns.

I would like to start buying the parts gradually over time and then just set them all aside until I have everything then I can start working on it maybe in 2012 lol.

Disposable Hearing Aids

On March 16, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn Products I LikeLeave a comment

I saw a commercial for this new product called Songbird Disposable Hearing Aides. It lasts for 400 hours of active use and lasts up to 6 months. I guess when you can’t hear anymore because the batteries have died then you just buy a new pair.

Ok, first of all, why not just change the batteries? Why do you have to buy a new pair? These hearing aides cost $80 for a pair. That’s $160 per year.

I’m trying to think of the pros and the cons of this. On one hand I guess it is good to get a new pair every so often, maybe once every couple or few years but not every 6 months. Why can’t they last a whole year?

If you had to buy a regular pair of hearing aides from your doctor that can cost $5000 which is a good reason to buy the Songbird because paying $160 a year is saving you a lot of money. Especially if you… god forbid… pass away in a few years. But I mean, if you are born hard of hearing or you develop hearing problems from your iPod in your teens, 20’s or 30’s then you are going to need it for the rest of your life. Yeah, $5000 is a lot to spend every few years or whenever you have to buy new ones so $160 a year every year is probably a better use of your money.

My aunt bought hearing aides a few years ago and she had nothing but problems with them and they were the $5000 ones. She said that sometimes when she was at work and they would talk on the loud speaker it was too loud and she couldn’t hear the customers that great. And she took them back to the doctor to be adjusted a couple or few times and he was a total douche and would get impatient with her. Uh, she just dropped 5 G’s on something that she doesn’t even wear out of frustration. Give the lady a break and adjust them you douche bag.

Oh sorry, did I say all that? LOL I guess it had to be said.

I think I will suggest the Songbird to my aunt, perhaps she will get better use out of this at the lower cost of $80 every 6 months. Maybe she won’t need to wear them all the time so she can stretch it out a lot longer since she is retired now and doesn’t need to listen to people bitching about their problems.

Great job Songbird disposable Hearing Aides. You got my vote.

Michael Jackson’s Final Curtain Call

On March 7, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn CelebritiesLeave a comment

Michael Jackson is doing his final curtain call by doing 10 concerts in London. He says “this is it” no more after that. Is this supposed to be a come back? Because I’m not seeing come back when he says it’s his final curtain call. Why is he doing this? Money! He’s broke because of all his financial problems due to his court issues a couple of years ago.

He has to do 10 concerts so he can have the money to buy a new Neverland in London because his Neverland has been sold and all of his possessions are being auctioned.

I really do feel sorry for him. He was a gorgeous black man once upon a time and now he’s a gross skeletal white woman. I really don’t understand what is going through his mind. His nose is so small and it looks like he doesn’t have a nose. I don’t want to trash Mike because I like him but come on dude, stop doing weird shit. You are a very talented person but your BDD is way out of control.

I have BDD also but I don’t have the money to fix my issues. The only issue I have is my weight so all I’d need is a treadmill and possibly a personal trainer and I’m done. Maybe go to the hair club for men and get some contact lenses but that’s it lol.

I wish Michael Jackson the best of luck with his final 10 curtain calls and I hope he makes enough money so he can be comfortable even though our shitty economy is spreading like wild-fire to the rest of the world. Good luck taking all the English people’s money away from them, making them homeless so you can get rich again.

The Wait for Kindle 2

On February 19, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn KindleLeave a comment

While all of the people who have already ordered the Kindle 2 have to wait for their Kindle to be delivered to them, I will have to wait just a bit longer than that. I simply don’t have the money and in today’s economy I just can’t justify spending the money on something I really don’t need.

I just don’t read that much. I thought maybe if I had one then perhaps I would read more. Unfortunately though that probably won’t be the case. I would probably get my Kindle then read a book, maybe 2 books then I’d probably never pick it up again. At least for a while that is.

Sure I might buy a subscription to a newspaper and just give it to Darrin to read that every morning and he could take it to Church with him every Sunday (yes, there is a bible available for the Kindle) but for me, I just can’t justify it.

I want it but I don’t need it. I have lots of books that I still haven’t even read. I’ve tried to but I just can’t get into them. And I’ve already paid for them. What am I gonna do, type them out so I can read them on my Kindle? I don’t think so.

So what my plan to do is just set aside maybe $20 or $30 every month in my PayPal account and then in a year when I have the money saved up to buy a Kindle if I still want it then I’ll buy it. But only if I can. I mean, if I’ve had to spend some of that money on groceries or for emergency bills then of course I will have to use that saved money. But if that isn’t the case and I still have it then I might buy it.

But given the fact that it would take a whole year (saving $30 a month would be exactly 12 months) to save up the money, by then they may have the Kindle 3. And who knows what the Kindle 3 will feature. Maybe a bigger display, bigger hard drive than the now 2GB for the kindle 2. Color display. Touch screen to flip pages and to highlight text. Maybe it might be a little less money by then?

I’m hoping that in a year if I have the money all saved up that when I am finally able to buy one the price might have gone down, our local newspaper will be Kindleized, the kindle will be in color and have touchscreen and have a 20-200GB hard drive. Because I just don’t want to spend money on something that can only hold 1,500 books, magazines, newspapers and blogs and still be in black and white.

I’m going to hold out for the best and why shouldn’t I? I’m also going to hype it up to everyone I know so they will be so excited about it that they will buy a Kindle 2 for themselves then they will hype it up and so on and so forth then 50% of America will have a Kindle all thanks to me hyping it up. By that time, the Kindle 3 should cost $100.

Kindle Blog

On February 13, 2009 By Michel McDonaldIn eBook, KindleLeave a comment

I was looking at Kindle the other day and as I was there I saw that you can read people’s blogs on the kindle. I thought that you could just go to either their website or there was a think where you tell them who you subscribe to but apparently it’s not like that.

If you want to read a blog their blog site has to be registered through Kindle and you have to pay for it. Well, I don’t want to charge people to read my ramblings. Although the money would be nice but why charge people when they can read it for free here through my website either on the PC or through a mobile phone like the iPhone or iPod or even PSP.

If they make it so that I don’t have to charge people at all then I will add it to Kindle but I honestly don’t know anyone who even has a Kindle. I would like to publish my blog though because I currently have 0 readers. So frankly, nobody is going to read this. Hell, I don’t even read my own blog. I just blog it. I do read it after I’ve posted it to see if there are any corrections needed or I go back. Anyway lol I was rambling. I would like to get it on Kindle but not as a pay blog.

Xanapus` Lair

Tag: money

PSP-4000 Rumors

Gruber Assist Electric Bike

RapidShare AG Scam

WD-40 On My Bike

DUH!

Oprah’s New Format

Gothic Chess Set

Disposable Hearing Aids

Michael Jackson’s Final Curtain Call

The Wait for Kindle 2

Kindle Blog

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

DUH!

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: