Takhisis 2.6 (Part 2)

The New

Now that I covered my old system, this post will handle the "new" one. I found a cheap off-lease IBM ThinkCentre at PC Exchange. I didn't mind that it was used because it was rated an "A," which means it only has minor scratches. I also use a couple of IBMs at work and know that these systems are very durable.

The ThinkCentre came with a 2.6 Ghz CPU, 1 GB RAM, 40 GB SATA hard drive and DVD burner all in a small form factor case. Almost everything was integrated into the motherboard already... ethernet, VGA and 8 USB 2.0 ports. There are 2 PCI slots free, so the small form factor limits the number of cards I can transfer over. IBM did a great job with the design too. Everything is easy to swap in and out and the architecture is pretty well organized. The case opens with the push of a button (2 actually).

DVDeals 6/29 - 7/5

It's a slow week, especially for the July 4th holiday, but not a total loss as there are some good buys.

Circuit City Deals
- First Blood (Ultimate Ed.) for $6.99
- Stargate (Ultimate Ed.) for $6.99
- Total Recall (Special Ed.) for $6.99
- Princess Bride for $4.99
- Rush Hour for $4.99
- Under Siege for $4.99
- Love & Basketball for $4.99

Best Buy Deals
- South Park (Seasons 1-5) for $14.99 each
- South Park (Seasons 6-10) for $24.99 each
- Family Guy (Seasons 1-5) for $16.99 each

Takhisis 2.6 (Part 1)

The Old

The Dell tower I've been using since 1997 has really been acting up and I think it's finally at the end of its life. However, my computers never really die... at least not 100%. All of the usable parts usually get moved over to replacement system. Before I move on to the next evolution of this system, I just want to go over what I've done to this 11 year old tower.

Original Dell Parts: All that's left of the 1997 system are the motherboard, a 128 MB RDRAM module and the primary IDE hard drive. The hard drive already had issues early on with a defect somewhere towards the end of it's 60 GB. I partitioned it into 3 drives so that C:\ would be error free.

256 MB RDRAM: I added this shortly because I needed more memory for Photoshop work. I didn't max this system out to 512 MB because RDRAM was never cheap. In hindsight, I should've never ordered and RDRAM system. This module won't make the move into the next evolution.

Firewire Card: This was my cache of spare parts... probably picked up from a computer that was going to be trashed, so it didn't cost anything.

USB 2.0 Card: I got this part recently through a rebate offer... didn't end up costing anything!

Front USB/Firewire Kit: This part allowed me to route 2 USB 2.0 & 2 Firewire ports to the front of the case for easier access.

Pentium III 1 Ghz CPU: The stock CPU was a 933 Mhz model. The slight upgrade also came from my spare parts.

DVD-ROM: This system at one point had both a DVD-ROM and a burner, but I moved the burner to a more powerful system in my parents' house. In stock form, the system was a typical 1997 tower. It had a CD-ROM & CDRW.

200 GB HDD: 2 years ago I found a 200 GB drive on sale for $40 (great price back then) and added that as a secondary IDE drive, chained to the Dell C:\ drive. I used this for storing DVD video, which pretty much made this a media center system.

Cooling fans: Originally, this system only had one fan in the back that had a plastic contraption routing old air to the CPU. This fan eventually got clogged and stopped working. I removed the whole setup and added 2 fans instead... one CPU fan and a replacement for the rear.

Ethernet Card: This was added by Time Warner when I subscribed to their Internet service. It won't make the cut because pretty much any system newer than this one already has a built-in ethernet.

Old School Rules

Ryan and I were talking about cars like we always do. Since it's his line of work, he changes cars nearly every year. We both agreed that we would always prefer to go with used cars rather than new ones. New cars are nice, but changing a simple engine part would void the warranty. There's also a tendency to "baby" a brand new car. There's just more freedom with an old one. You can change parts, cut up pieces and drive more relaxed without the guilt of ruining something new.

I sort of feel the same way about computers... well, desktops anyway. They're very similar to cars. We customize them and try to make them perform faster. I have a lot more fun when I start building from on older system. The parts are cheap and I don't mind hacking up the chassis to fit custom parts in.

DVDeals 6/22 - 6/28

DVD Tuesday
I haven't seen 10,000 BC yet, but might consider getting it on Tuesday. Even if the story is bad, it's still an epic period piece. Special effects of cavemen fighting sabertooth tigers probably can't go wrong. As usual Circuit City wins the price war @ $13.99. Best Buy was the only one that advertised the 2-disc special edition for $22.99.

Best Buy Deals
- Bourne Ultimatum for $14.99
- AVP-R for $14.99
- Juno for $14.99
- Bucket List for $14.99

Circuit City Deals
- Bourne Identity for $6.99
- Bourne Supremacy for $6.99
- Jurassic Park for $6.99
- Jurassic Park III for $6.99
- Saving Private Ryan for $6.99
- Troy for $6.99
- Shrek for $6.99
- Shrek 2 for $6.99
- Aeon Flux for $6.99
- Breakfast at Tiffany's for $6.99

Capt. Breen

Original Dates: ~1981-1984?

When I wrote many of the QM2 posts and photo captions, I used some naval terms like "starboard" and "bow." I actually learned these back in elementary school gym class. There were some games Mr. Breen had us play regularly to keep us active. I don't remember the name of this one, but the 4 walls of the gymnasium were named after the 4 sides of a ship. He would call one of them out and we would all have to run to the correct side. I also don't remember how people got eliminated. It was either the last person to reach or there may have been some other team tagging people out.

bow: the forward section

stern: rear section

port: left side (when facing the bow)

starboard: right side (when facing the bow)

It's interesting how something from my childhood like that just stuck. Back then I had no idea it would be educational. Mr. Breen probably didn't think so either!

"It seemed extraneous at the time."
Mike Myers (as Wayne Campbell)
Wayne's World, 1992

DVDeals 6/15 - 6/21

Best Buy Deals
- Austin Powers for $4.99
- Bad Boys for $9.99
- Bad Boys II for $9.99
- Underworld for $9.99
- Underworld Evolution for $9.99
- MIB II for $9.99
- Ghost Rider for $9.99

Circuit City Deals
- A Knight's Tale for $4.99
- Patriot for $4.99
- Once Upon a Time in Mexico for $4.99
- Spiderman for $4.99
- Spiderman 2 for $4.99
- XXX for $4.99
- Final Fantasy for $4.99
- Blade for $4.99
- The Firm for $4.99
- Minority Report for $4.99

About Sports

A bunch of friends and family have been following this blog and a few people asked why I don't have any posts about baseball or basketball. That's a fair question because much of my life revolves around the New York Yankees and Chicago Bulls schedules. I watch nearly every game and I love both teams. One reason is because there are already many sports blogs out there. If I write about the game, chances are, someone else already wrote the same thing. The other reason is because I don't want this to be a sports blog. If I started writing about the games, the number of posts would easily overshadow the rest of the content. I would definitely be overcommitted if I wrote about each game. I really only have time to post 2-3 items per week. The concentration of this blog is travel, Queens restaurants, DVDs and stories from the past.

Somewhat related: I also keep reviews of Manhattan restaurants to a minimum because they're already covered in guidebooks and on major sites. I want to promote Queens because it's a center of culture and has some great restaurants that many people don't know about.

Home Select Buffet

Location: 43-02 Ditmars Blvd., Astoria, NY 11105
Cuisine: Chinese, Buffet
Hours: MON-THU (11am-10pm); FRI-SUN (11am-11pm)
Phone: (718) 626-0880
Prices: Weekday Lunch ($8), Weekend Lunch ($10), Weekday Dinner ($14), Weekend Dinner ($16)
Credit Cards: All major

Food:
American: 6
Chinese: 6
Japanese: 3
Italian: 4
Desserts: 5
Drinks: 6

Service: 8
Value: 7
Environment: 6

Frequency: Uncommon

This place used to be called King China Buffet. I haven't been here in years, but came today for Uncle Rupert's surprise 60th Birthday party. This is one of his favorite places. Every time I ate here in the past, it was with his family.


I kind of remember the food being better in the past. They didn't have real sushi... just the California rolls. There were only 2 dim sum items and not a lot of variety with the hot foods. Please check out the photo album for more comments.

The service here was pretty good... friendly waiters/waitresses. They were always around and very patient with parties of 70+! The environment is a bit dirtier than most buffets. Sections of the floor were constantly wet. The restroom was gross. The one good thing about Home Select was the size and layout. It was comfortable eating and walking around the place. They probably have the best party room of any buffet I've been to.

DVDeals 6/8 - 6/14

DVD Tuesday
There's nothing that exciting this week, but if you're into Jumper, Buy.com has the lowest price @ $14.71 if you can qualify for free shipping. Otherwise, Circuit City is the winner @ $13.99. Circuit City also wins the special edition price @ $21.99. Aside from that, a lot of good DVDs are on sale.

Circuit City Deals
- X-men for $7.99
- Independence Day for $7.99
- Die Hard 1-3 for $7.99 each
- Speed for $7.99
- AVP for $7.99
- Terminator for $7.99
- Predator for $7.99
- The Rookie for $4.99

Best Buy Deals
- Ong Bak for $4.99
- Alien for $4.99
- Fantastic 4 for $4.99
- Predator for $4.99
- i, Robot for $4.99
- I Am Legend for $12.99
- TMNT for $6.99
- Casino Royale for $6.99
- Ghost Rider for $6.99
- Troy for $6.99
- Rocky Balboa for $6.99

NYC-HFX-BOS TOC

This post is a table of contents of all entries related to my recent family reunion starting from the arrival of the first visitor and ending with the departure of the last. I wrote many of these within the past week, but posted them based on the original dates of occurrence:

- QM2 Cast
- Mother's Day
- QM2 Prologue
- Joe's Shanghai
- 9th Avenue Food Festival
- Circle Line
- Flushing Mall
- Sentosa
- Chen & Chan
- All Aboard
- Cardiobox & Abs
- Secrets of the Sea
- A Day @ Sea
- Halifax
- McKelvie's
- Dress Code
- Enemy Territory
- Paddy O's
- Bermuda Triangle
- Britannia Club
- King's Court
- Queen Mary 2
- Imperial Palace
- Sentosa 2
- New Broadway Seafood Restaurant

Magi of Estonia

Original Dates: Fall 1985 - Summer 1986

At work today, I made a minor fix to one of our Tallinn, Estonia Destination pages. Many people haven't heard of this place before, but I clearly remember learning a bit about it while I was in the 5th grade, sitting by the window in Mr. Magi's class. The 6'4" version of Roger Moore who always wore a vest and bow tie was from Estonia. He mentioned it one day during a lesson about ancestry. I'm pretty sure he only mentioned it once, but it was easy to remember because no one had ever heard of it.

The destination of Estonia came up again during 8th grade social studies with Mr. Davy. He gave us bonus questions based on current events each morning. One day, the answer was Estonia and I was the only student to get it right. Because I wasn't really a good student at the time, I'm sure many classmates thought I cheated on that one and wrote it down after Mr. Davy revealed the answer.

New Broadway Seafood Restaurant

Location: 83-17 Broadway, Elmhurst, NY 11373
Cuisine: Chinese, Seafood
Phone: (718) 699-0688
Prices: About $10 per person
Credit Cards: Cash only

Food: 5
Service: 7
Value: 7
Environment: 6

Frequency: Unique

This was the last full day for I4 & Auntie Remy as they will fly out tomorrow morning. Auntie Remy's good friend, Auntie Mary treated all of us to lunch at a new restaurant by her place in Elmhurst. Please check out the Picasa Web album for my food reviews.


After lunch, I4 & I went shopping and met Emily at the Union Sq. area. We spent most of the time @ H&M because they had the best prices on discount clothing. After that, we got nice cold drinks at Jamba Juice, another stop I4 was looking to check out. We knocked off the last one for dinner... Lucia's Pizza in Flushing. Lucia's to I4 was like Jollibee to me when I was in the Philippines. I was trying to find time to get just one meal there!

Sentosa 2

We made a 2nd trip to Sentosa because I4 & Auntie Remy missed the last one. I4 was here before for his extended stay in NY in 2004, so he wanted to eat here one more time before he leaves. The dishes we ordered this time around were the usuals... ones we order all the time because we enjoy them. Previously, we went for the more exotic stuff because it was Edwin's first time. Please see details in the Picasa Web album.


For my full review of Sentosa, click here.

DVDeals 6/1 - 6/7

Best Buy Deals
- Total Recall / Terminator for $4.99
- Once Upon a Time in Mexico for $4.99
- Spiderman 2 for $4.99
- American Pie for $6.99
- Robocop for $8.99
- Family Guy: Blue Harvest for $8.99
- i, Robot (Collector's Ed) for $8.99

Circuit City Deals
- White Men Can't Jump for $6.99
- Robin Hood: Men in Tights for $6.99
- Chronicles of Riddick for $7.99
- Fast & Furious: Tokyo Drift for $7.99