thisoldblog.net

Took the kids to the Great Wolf Lodge in Concord recently. As expected, the kids had a blast. for the wife and I, it was more or less… meh. But if the kids had fun then that’s all that really matters…

here are just some random thoughts I had about our visit:

- why does the water at the wave pool tastes so salty? yeah, I know I’m NOT supposed to drink it but when the water splashes onto your lips, you’re bound to taste some of it. and it tastes salty.

- a germophobe would probably consider the enclosed water park as a giant petri dish.

- the layout of the GWL at concord is a bit more linear than the one at Williamsburg. with the straightforward gridlike layout, it doesn’t feel as exciting. does that make any sense?

- where was the lazy river or the wave rider? Williamsburg had both of those. (I think the kids prefer the Williamsburg GWL overall)

- we were there in the middle of the week and the place was STILL crowded. when is this place ever not crowded? argh.

- GWL concord is located near Concord Mills (a huge shopping mall) so there’s plenty of place to eat with the kids. it’s a good thing b/c the food at the lodge ain’t all that great.

- the shared stairwell to the waterslides weren’t clearly marked off so it was pretty confusing what you’re standing in line for.

- wish GWL was a cheaper place to visit. a family of 5 can put a good dent in the ol’ wallet.

- overall the place was clean and I liked the swimsuit dryers in the changing rooms, for sure.

- the 4th floor rooms had vaulted ceilings which was nice. but the beds were very uncomfortable.

Like most cat owners, I’m on a mission to find some decent cat litter. Back when we initially adopted our little kitty, we started out with “Scoop Away” simply because it’s a popular brand and is widely available at most grocery stores. Well, we learned very quickly that it wasn’t a good choice for our household. Before I continue let me make it clear that I’m far from being an expert on this matter but I thought I’d share what I’ve learned so far…

Scoop Away Scented Cat Litter – This is a pretty well known brand of cat litter and heavily marketed on television and in magazines. We bought it thinking that it must be popular for a good reason. Well, the brand ended up not being a good fit in our household. First of all, Scoop Away is very dusty. Even though the package states that it’s 99.9% dust free, it ain’t so. Also the scented version smells like cheap perfume and the smell eventually overwhelms the senses. Yes, it does a good job in masking odor but that simply because you can’t smell much else BUT the cheap perfume smell. Since this is a clay-based litter, it clumps very well but I learned that clay isn’t good for a cat’s digestive system. Yes, I know a cat is not going to outright eat the stuff but the bits of litter gets on their fur & feet and you guessed it, the cat will inevitably digest it while cleaning themselves off. Oh and another downside was that the litter tracked quite a bit so we ended up with dust and bits of litter in our carpets and on our furniture. ugh. next up…

World’s Best Cat Litter (original formula) – Since learning of the health issues associated with clay-based products, we went with a corn-based litter called, what else, “The World’s Best Cat Litter”. Well unfortunately, it turns out, it’s NOT the world’s best cat litter after all. I mean, I like the fact that it’s natural and safe for cats and it clumps OK. But there are some negatives – there’s still a fine, yellow dust with this corn based litter. so you may end up with yellow paw prints after your cat’s visit to the litter box. And it does a poor job with deodorizing cat waste. the smell just lingers around a long while after the cat has done its business. We regularly scoop out (panning for gold) the box twice a day and it still smelled bad. blech.

World’s Best Cat Litter (multi-cat formula) – because of the odor issue, we tried out the multi-cat version of “World’s Best Cat Litter”. Again, it’s a natural, corn-based litter and it supposed to have an extra additive for fighting odors. And it did a better job with odors compared to the original formula but still a bit lacking.

So, just like the almighty Bono of U2, I still haven’t found what I’m looking for. At this point, I know that I’m sticking with an all-natural type litter. Or at least that’s my intention. I like the multi-cat version of the World’s Best Cat Litter but it needs to do a better job in absorbing odors.

So the hunt continues…
Read more…

We took the kids to Carowinds over the weekend. We opted to do the park during the fall since it’s less crowded and the weather is nice and cool. And it turned out great – no long lines and no sweating profusely under a blazing hot sun. Here’s my quick sum-up of what we experienced during our visit to the amusement park.

The Good
- Carowinds had an october special that discounted the adult ticket prices by almost 50%. awesome!

- Afterburn is a great coaster. Nighthawk made me disoriented. and the “Drop Tower” almost made the wife pee her pants.

- the younger set LOVED Danny Phantom’s Flyers. I think they rode that particular ride the most out of all the rides. but it’s a bit scary to think about the amount of wear and tear the riders must have on these cables that hold the individual carts. if a cable goes snap, that rider is a goner! yikes!

- found an ultra clean men’s bathroom in the park. it’s located at the far end of the park near the Jukebox Diner. some of the other bathrooms were a bit dingy and old. but for some reason, the bathroom near the Diner was clean and almost looked brand-new.

- the kids give thumbs up to the following: Flying Dutchman’s Revenge, Fairly Odd Coaster, Rugrants Runaway Reptar, Hurler, Carolina Cobra, Vortex, Afterburn and Danny Phantom’s Flyers

The Bad
- they have a go-cart track and a bungee/flying contraption thing-y but they both cost extra. harumph. they should be included with admission if you ask me!

-the following were pretty darn lame: Scooby-Doo’s Haunted Mansion, the Dora the Explorer train ride, the LazyTown Sporticopters.

- the “age factor” reared its ugly head again. man, I can’t keep up with my oldest son any more. He was having a blast riding all the thrill rides and after the fourth or fifth coaster, I was pretty much done for the day. ouch.

- most of the newer steel coasters were too short for my tastes. since it wasn’t crowded, we had the opportunity to re-ride ‘em multiple times if we wanted to. but man, if I had to stand in long lines for some of those coasters, I’d feel gypped afterwards.

- ugh, the food/refreshment prices are high. yeah, it’s pretty standard for amusement parks but still, feeding the family put the hurt on my wallet. ouch.

- the park closes at 5:30pm in the fall.

The Ugly
- what in the world possessed me to eat their BBQ pork sandwich for lunch? ugh. bad choice. it felt like I had a bowling ball in my stomach for the rest of the afternoon. avoid the BBQ at all costs!

- I’m guessing Carowinds is still in a “transitional phase”. From what I understand, Paramount is no longer running the park. The park is now with the Cedar Fair Entertainment Company. All the Paramount movie references are gone and the rides now have generic names like “Hurler”, “Afterburn” and “Vortex”. Surprisingly, the Nicktoons portion (the lil’ kids section) of the park is still around. but for how long? who knows. This might be the last year we’ll get to see the Nickelodeon characters in the park. sadly, most of the attractions in Carowinds are in need of a facelift. lots of rides showing their age. lots of faded colors and we saw a couple rides malfunction during our visit. yikes. hopefully things will improve with the new owners.
Read more…

My wife calls my cell phone the “butt-ugliest phone she has ever seen”. thanks, dear. Yes, I own a Motorola i880 and I know it’s not the latest and greatest in phones but I like it. I have to admit that I get a bit embarrassed whipping it out when others are sporting the newer touch-screen styled smart phones but for what I use it for, the i880 does the job.

First of all, I use the i880 on the Boost mobile network. At the time I got the i880 there wasn’t an alternative clamshell phone offered by Boost that had the same features at this price range. Boost offers the newer (and more stylish) Motorola i9 but at $300, it’s just way too expensive. The other option was the i776 but it’s a bit barebones for my tastes and didn’t offer microSD storage. Anyway, the i880 is a Sprint Nextel phone that can also work as a Boost phone simply by inserting a Boost SIM. This is basically true for any Nextel phone using the iDEN 800 band. Just be sure that the phone isn’t currently registered under a Sprint/Nextel plan.

Anyway, two main reasons I’m on Boost right now is that I don’t make a whole lot of calls on my phone that would require me a regular monthly plan and the iDEN coverage is great inside the office building where I work as well as at my house. iDEN is an older technology but it definitely does a good job in getting signal through thick office walls where other cell providers can’t reach.

Things I like about the phone: it’s built like a rock, it’s got a large color screen, it features a good camera/video recorder, you can play mp3s on it and it’s got a push button on the side that quickly flips open the phone for you.

The few drawbacks that I’ve encountered include: no built in calculator or alarm clock (but I believe I can download/purchase a java app for those features, I think), it’s a bit particular in converting photos as full screen wallpaper (needs to be a specific dimension) and it’s also a bit difficult to convert mp3s into ringtones for the phone (but there is a way to do it and I’ll probably post a how-to in the near future).

All in all, it’s a good phone that gets great signal and is built like a tank. Yes, it’s a f-ugly phone but hey, it gets the job done and that’s all that matters. … at least until I can find a better looking phone that works on Boost Mobile, that is.

Read more…

It has been interesting to watch Adam Sandler become this “bankable” movie star over the years but the question in MY mind is – “for how much longer?” I mean, most of his movies feel like retreads of either his previous work or blatant derivative hackjobs of other more successful rom-coms. His latest (out on DVD) is titled Bedtime Stories. Sandler plays “Skeeter Bronson” a handyman at a hotel that was once his father’s. It’s interesting what his father says near the beginning – “Your fun is only limited by your imagination.” Ironically, “Bedtime Stories” is lacking in the IMAGINATION department and so in turn is our enjoyment in watching it. The storyline is the typical Sandler, as The Loser, redeems himself and gets the girl bit that we’ve all seen before. And the talents of actors like Jonathan Pryce, Guy Pearce and Russell Brand are all wasted here with paper-thin characters. what a dissappointment. It’s good to see Keri Russell and Lucy Lawless in the flick but again, they didn’t get to do much here. I DO have to say that Courtney Cox (who plays Skeeter’s sister) is NOT aging well. Me thinks someone went a little overboard with botox injections to her face because half of her face did NOT move over the entire course of the movie. yikes! don’t get too close, cameraman! please! I’m not sure why Disney got involved with this forgettable film because it’s really not even worth a rental.

—