Doro Pesch

If you have never heard of Doro then you are obviously not a real metalhead. At least not an 80's metalhead. Though, even if you weren't born in the 70's, & you're into metal, you should know the name Doro Pesch. Long story short, she is the Queen of Metal. Oh, some of you may try to argue that point, but you can't win. If it wasn't for Doro Pesch, there might not be a female lead for Arch Enemy. If it wasn't for Doro Pesch there probably wouldn't be any female presence in metal. She has shown what it takes to be a successful rocker in good times & bad, never ceasing to put out excellent head banging tunes. She is generous to her fans, almost always signing autographs & chatting. She believes in the metal community and gives it 110%, if not more. If you are wondering why you haven't heard of her, it is probably because she is from Germany. That's right, the mecca of all things Metal. Wacken Open Air Festival anyone? My point here is this: If you haven't heard her, you should. If you like metal, that is. Now she's not a screamer like Angela Gassow from Arch Enemy, but she can carry a mean tune. Sometimes she's soft & sometimes she's hard. Sometimes she's dark, but there is usually some positive spin on things. If you like Fantasy Metal, Manowar, Judas Priest, Nightwish, Iced Earth, Hammerfall, or bands like Ozzy, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Cinderella, Dio, Def Leppard, Poison or even Iron Maiden, Megadeth, or Helloween I urge you to go pay for Doro's music. You won't be sorry. She tours the US about every two or three years. Her newest Album came out Jan 30, this year and is called "Fear No Evil". I highly recommend "Love Me In Black" as well. "Classic Diamonds" is a sort of best of the best recorded with a classical orchestra. If you want to start at the beginning her albums when she was in the band "Warlock" are awesome. Her solo debut was titled "Force Majeure" and still rocks today. If you love Metal don't let the Queen of Metal be what's missing from your headbanging collection. Get her on itunes or go here: Amazon , CD Universe , or Half.com .

Home Ownership part 3???

So the air conditioner was acting weird on Friday, so I called Waggoner's to come do the twice a year check of my system. For $130.00, a certified HVAC fellow will come out, look at my system & tell me the good & bad news. This $130.00 is good for 2 visits. One in the spring & one in the fall. He is coming out today after 1pm. Let's hope it is mostly good news. I have been watching Dr. Zarkloff for quite a while now, and am fairly certain I will know if I am being told a bunch of crap. We shall see. I read a good review for Waggoner's online so I'm hoping I went with the best choice.

In other news, the Xena mobile, also known as Argo & the soon to be J-wing Star Wars fan car, is back up & running after finally finding the parts I needed at a Salvage Yard, Carey's Triple C, on Eastern in OKC. $15.00 worth of pulley wheels & bolts & she's ready to go. I drove her to work today! Now to get the design going for the paint job on her. I also finally got those brakes in the Rebel. It was so easy it was ridiculous. If you have a Honda Rebel & need front brake pads replaced, I can so do that for you, or show you how. Easier than pie.

Still ongoing is the roof and the ceiling fan. The ceiling fan all comes down to bracing & the extreme heat in the attic. I am dripping in under 5 minutes up there. The bracing is going to be tough because of the support boards located just above where the fan is. It might be easier just to move where the fan is located now & patch up the hole in the ceiling. The roof is me just not knowing who else to call. I know, I just need to call. I don't know why I worry so much.

T & I decided to extend the patio as well. Lol! Like we didn't have enough going on. I think it is going to look awesome once it's done. I'll try & get pics up soon. Well, wish me luck today with the air conditioner.

Steve Wiebe & Donkey Kong

Go to: G4 Wiebe Record Attempt right now to see Steve try to break the Donkey Kong World Record. Go check out "King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters" if you want to watch an interesting flick about the world record attempts. The guy that currently holds it is a egomaniac. Obviously the documentary style flick is slightly slanted, but seriously, the guy Steve is trying to beat is, well, full of himself. It's a really great flick. Right now though, go watch Steve & cheer him on!

Can't catch up

So this weekend I was supposed to do some serious catch-up. I still need bolts & a pulley for the Buick's water pump, the ceiling fan installed & supported with a brace & possibly grounded, new wipers & oil for the Lincoln, the roof guys to come out & give me an estimate, the yard mowed, the vacuum cleaner ran, the dishes done, laundry...Ahhh!!!! I had one of the worst allergy attacks ever Saturday. As soon as I woke up I started sneezing my head off & it didn't quite all day. I felt terrible & ended up taking an Allegra, which I hate to take any type of drugs but this was one of those times, and passed out by 9pm. I got absolutely nothing done. I was so frustrated. Even a little bit angry. It feels like something keeps working against me & I am getting really tired of it. Sunday I kept trying to wake up but was groggy and drugged feeling from the Allegra, one of the reasons I hate taking stuff, and didn't get up until almost 1pm. I did manage to do all the dishes, sneeze, vacuum, sneeze, help with laundry, sneeze, get oil & wipers for the Lincoln, sneeze, clean the garage, sneeze, reorganize the shed/barn, sneeze, get all the fall/winter clothes put away, sneeze, yard mowed & weed eaten, sneeze, help T with the patio addition, sneeze, & shower. I still feel yucky & continue to sneeze. I usually do this in April. In June it is absolutely driving me insane. I have stuff to do! Still, I got some stuff accomplished. T & I went & saw Angels & Demons on Friday night. It was pretty good. Not as much fun as Da Vinci Code, but still entertaining. Up is next.

Ladyhawke

I urge you to go over to: Ladyhawke's Home Page and check her out. She is a really great musician & incorporates art into her CD covers & other things. She sometimes has limited edition works for sale online. Her music is great. It has a retro 80's feel, yet evolved. If you haven't heard her yet, go check her out!

Motorcycle maintenence

So there is a great local motorcycle dealer right off of Shields & 240 called Heartland Cycles. They helped me get a new battery for my Rebel about two years ago & were really friendly & great at customer service. Now I need front breaks. I e-mailed them today about my brakes & already received a reply. How fast is that!? Nowadays it seems no one ever gets back to you. They have a service dept. open on Saturdays and said to bring it by & it should only take a couple of hours & about $65.00. I hope they live up to my expectations of good service. I'll let you know! Oh, by the way, the sell used Motorcycles at a pretty reasonable price if you're looking.

Homeownership & roofing continued...

So, I called my agent, who then instructed me to call a roofer. Having watched enough stories of bad homeowner encounters with contractors, I first went to the Better Business Bureau & checked out who was listed with them. My first choice was Millennium Roofing & Construction. They had a nice website and allowed me to contact them online. I will contact two more sometime tomorrow. I want at least three estimates & three opinions on what needs to be done. It hailed golf ball sized pieces of ice on the roof today. I once again crawled up into the attic to try the string thing I saw on a DIY show. If you're not sure where the water is coming from but you have a general idea you are supposed to be able to put a sting in what you think is the waters path & it will run down the string into whatever you have the other end laying in. I know where the water is stopping, but unfortunately it is in an unconquerable space that I cannot reach. Let's hope I guessed right in the attic so the water won't have to run down the string in the living room into the bucket I have set up there anymore. I will be so glad when all of this is over.

Learning how

So, I learned today that Homeowner's Insurance helps with replacement costs of your roof in case you need to have it replaced. I plan on calling my agent & talking to her today about that. My insurance company is Mercury. I switched to this company from Allstate because Allstate had tripled my homeowner's insurance cost since the initial purchase. It was almost two grand. Mercury on the other hand was $800. It wasn't the cheapest I could get, but somewhere in the middle. I decided to share all this with you guys in case you ever have to go through this process. Hopefully it will be a nice easy process and the leak in my roof will be fixed as well as a new roof installed properly. I am going to start by simply calling my agent, not the insurance company directly, and talk with her about what I need to do to start the process. She is someone I like & trust & feel is very much on my side. I will update you more once I have spoken to her. Wish me luck!

Art 2009

This is my first completed painting for 2009. "Cloud Legs" I think I'll call it. It's an oil on canvas 24" x 30".

Resident Evil 5 figures

Neca has acquired the license for Resident Evil 5 & is releasing three figures from the game. Chris Redfield, Sheva Alomar, & Executioner. Chris has 25 points of articulation, Sheva 20 points & Executioner has 13 points not to mention his huge AXE. The figures look great and the packaging is also very nice. No price info is availabe at this time, but be on the look out for these!

Repair parts for G.I. Joes?

So you went to Small Joes but didn't find what you needed? Lucky for you there is another really great place to go. G.I. Joe Heaven. They have even more repair parts than Small Joes & they happen to be a little cheaper. They always have loose parts floating through their site as well in case your figure or vehicle is missing just one thing. You might get lucky, they might have it. They have screws, o-ring/bands, and hose tube for your Joes. They also have a ton of comics starring the Joes & Cobra. Check them out if Small Joes didn't have what you needed.

Small Joes Website

Hey, if you're looking for some great deals on hard to find military action figures/vehicles/items or figure accessories, stands, etc., then Small Joes probably has them. I have personally dealt with these guys & their product is good, fast, & well packed. I was restoring my brother's 3 3/4 G.I. Joe's screws & bands & these guys had everything I needed. They also usually have a great clearance "aisle" with items like shirts, Batman, Aliens, Anime, Microman & more. Go check them out!

Cool Cospaly action @ MegaCon

2009 Megacon Convention, the southeast's largest comic book, science fiction/fantasy, anime, gaming, toys and multi-media convention. I thought the legos were a unique approach.

Another Star Wars Mod

This time it is an R2-D2 Ghetto Blaster. Pretty sweet. Check out the original post about it here: R2D2 Ghetto Blaster

Sweet Star Wars Swag

Every once in a blue moon a friend asks me if I want some old Star Wars stuff they have. Being an avid collector, yes is almost always my answer. Most of them are extremely generous & just give me the stuff. In fact, I don't think any of my friends have ever wanted money from me for the goodies they have handed over. Most of the time they say things like: "I know it will be safe with you", or "Well, at least I know you will take care of it", even "Well, at least it won't just go up on Ebay to someone I don't even know". This means a great deal to me. These friends are entrusting me with important items from their childhood. Things they love, but just don't have a place for in their adult homes & lives. Sometimes, however, I get Star Wars swag from friends that have talked their spouses out of it. I count myself lucky. I will never have that problem. I live with a fangirl. I feel for them, but I want them to know, I will take care of it. It will be displayed for others to see & I appreciate their sacrifice. Just today one such sacrifice arrived at my home. Let me tell you, this was one of those times when you open a box & gasp in disbelief. What you find inside exceeds all expectations & you are magically transported back to a random Christmas sometime between 1978/79 to 1983/84. I have dreams about things like this! I never actually owned an original Ewok Village & now my friends...I do. Complete in mint shape minus one tiny part. Not only that but some amazing other things, like original figs, instruction books, card backs, weapons, and a complete vintage near mint working AT-ST. I want to say "Thank you" to the brave soul who allowed his wife to ship those things my way. I also want to say "Thank You" to Christy for talking him into letting you do it! I'm clearing a space for it ASAP.

AT-AT Boombox

This AT-AT Boombox seems to be a custom-made Mod job. I found it here: BoingBoing
and here: Gizmo

It's pretty cool. From the comments on both pages I'm pretty sure they would sell really well. Perhaps a home theatre system with a death star subwoofer and AT-AT for the front end sound and hangable Tie Fighters for the left & right back speakers could also appear. That would be super sweet!

Storm Shadow Sideshow Exclusive

Go sign up & do what you've gotta do to be the first in line for this! Limited to only 1,000 pieces worldwide and only available direct from SideshowCollectibles.com this G.I. Joe/Cobra 12 inch figure is going to be hot, not to mention the coolest thing on the toy shelf or mantle! Make sure you are qualified for Priority Pre-Order before Thursday, February 26th at 11:59 PM (PT) by signing up at Sideshow and filling out the online "paper"work. The Priority Pre-Order event for the new G.I. Joe Storm Shadow 12-inch Figure begins Friday, February 27th, at 10:00 AM (Pacific Time). Storm Shadow will cost you $119.00.

Obi-Wan

Wow. I really want to start collecting these Sideshow Collectibles statues. This one is from a New Hope & has great detail and a really great likeness of Obi-Wan. It is 12" H (304.8mm) x 9" W (228.6mm) x 8" D (203.2mm)* and weighs in at 6.00 lbs (2.72 kg).
It'll cost you US $159.99 + S&H.

Wave 8 Star Wars Mighty Muggs

Get ready for the next wave of Mighty Muggs! Qui-Gon, Wicket, Wampa, & Emperor's Royal Guard are up for grabs sometime between now & April!

Darth Vader Toaster

Check it out at StarWarsShop.com