Skee-Ball Lite

Being a big fan of Skee-ball. I decided to download the game for my iPhone. I paid $0.99 for Freeverse's Skee-Ball. 
 
It is a basic game. You swipe your finger to have the ball go in the direction you want it to go. 
 
This game makes me sad. The game is lacking so much that it is sad. When I bought this game it was the only game for skee-ball. 
The game gives tutorials as you play. It doesn 't disappear until the 5th ball out of 9. And that is forceach game. Oh there are settings that "supposedly turns the off." Those setting increases the amount of tutorials instead. 
 
I am really disappointed in this game. I regret spending the money for it. I'd probably think different if I didn't pay for it. I'd quicker understand bad programming from a free app. Not so much from a paid app. To end this review, this game is not worth your time. 
Can be found in the iTunes App store for $0.99.

[iOS]

Battleheart

I am a fan of the game Castle Crashers on the Xbox console. I was wishing for a game on the iPhone that was somewhat the same. Here comes Battleheart by Mika Mobile. 




It is pretty much almost the same. I don't know what type of game you would call Castle Crashers, but Battleheart is CC mixed with RPG. Since on iPhone it's a single player game.

At the start of the game you get the story of the game, you get to choose what slot you wish to save your game. 



You automatically are given a healer when you start. Then you also choose what type of character you want to be when you start with a directive stating you must protect your healer. After that you are taken to the main menu. 



I'll start from bottom up.

Keep: 



This area you get to see you characters that you hire. You can hire as many as you like. You are only allowed to play with 4 characters at a time. So you have to make sure that you create a good party.

Tavern:



The tavern is where you can hire new characters. You can select characters based on job and level. The higher its level, the more you have to pay for the character. 

Academy:



The academy is where each of your characters learn its special moves. You can only select moves based on each character and level. You start off with one special move. You gain the next one every 5 levels, I believe. You have to choose one over the other at the academy. However, you can change your preferences at any time as long as you take the character back to the academy.

Merchant:



At the merchant, you can do 3 things: buy gear/items, upgrade gear/items and sell gear/items. The screen is pretty self explanatory. However, you must make sure the character you are adjusting is highlighted. Also, if you gear in your slots it will tell you whether that gear will increase or decrease any of the 4 characters' attributes that are present. 

Armory: 



Armory is just the area that you change your gear for your characters. You can only change gear on your active 4 characters. If you want to change all of your characters gear, you will have to select them by going back to the Keep. 

The Final Stage!!! BATTLE!: 



This is where you go kill stuff and get bounty. You also get to level your characters. As you beat a battleground, another one opens. So far there are only 12 battlegrounds in the game. Hopefully, they will add newer levels in a future update. 

Game play is a bit awkward. It is easy enough to do. To fight you just select and drag character to the mob. The same goes for healing. You drag the healer towards the character you want to heal. What is really awkward is that if your characters are too close together; it is hard to move or select the character you want. 






Overall, the game runs nicely. It hasn't crashed on me. I enjoy the game. It's a game I can put down for a while and pick right back up. I have way too much to do on my iPhone. I am hoping that this game updates with new levels and new characters. It is well designed. I look forward to keeping an eye on Mika Mobile. The game is well worth the price asked. 

Battleheart Can be found in iTunes App Store for $2.99.

[iOS]

Week 7 & 8

I have barely done P90 these past 2 weeks. It's boring!!!! I do like the Sculpt class. I hate the cardio class. I f'in hate Jumping Jacks!!!!!!!

At the beginning of week 8 I twisted my knee a little in sculpt class doing lunges. My leg slipped on the carpet. I didn't know how much pain a little twist can cause. I didn't scream out because I was trying to be a big girl, lol. I really didn't want JH to worry too much. It hurts walking up stairs or bending my knee to get into the tub, etc.

So I planned to get back into the program this week, but my knee isn't quite ready for all the Jumping Jacks and Run Lunges. I can't wait until spring where I can do lots of walking. :)

My Bi-weekly Progress (Weeks 5 & 6)

I totally hate working on this routine now. It's boring and mundane. 6 weeks with the same routine is just so boring. I just barely get thru the routines.

JH and myself start having great conversations thru the workouts to keep ourselves stimulated. I have lost 2 additional pounds the last 2 weeks. So I have lost a total of 8 lbs in total. We have stopped doing measurements. Even though the measuring tape says that I am losing inches, I do not see it. My brother says I look smaller. Eh, I don't see it. JH is losing weight too and I see the differences on him. Apparently it great to be a man and sucks to be a woman.

At the end of week 6 I stopped the routine on the Wed. I decided to wait until Sun of Week 7 to start again because we have new routines, or so I thought. I really was hoping for a change in routine.

Here are the changes for Week 7 that I already started:

Sculpt 3-4: added a new push up to routine, added some new weightlifting routines, and increased the lunge/squat reps.

Sweat 3-4: all it did was add more reps to the existing routine. For example, we used to do 2 routines of jumping jacks, now we do 3 routines. And now we do 200 sit-ups instead of 100.

Such a big difference. I am so thrilled. (Can you sense the sarcasm?) I am going to stick to the program as much as I can. Just know this: I F'IN HATE JUMPING JACKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Weeks 3 & 4 Combined = Results

I mentioned in my last update that the workouts are getting a bit monotonous. I am keeping up with the workouts though. JH is doing his best to keep me motivated. It does help a lot that he does it with me. If not, I'd probably skip out on doing the exercises.

Week 3 was pretty mundane.  I didn't do so hot. I maintained my diet. I didn't stray. I am using a calorie tracker app on my iPhone called MyNetDiary. It helps you scan in the food you eat, track your measurements, water and weight. It's a neat app, I've been using it since I have started this program. Here's my results for Week 3:

Lost 1" in chest  (lost 3.5" in total)
Gained 0.5" in waist ( lost 1" in total)
No change in hip (lost 2" in total)
Gained 4" in thigh (lost 0" in total)
Gained 1 lb (lost 3 lbs in total)

Week 4 was awful. This week I experienced my monthly visitor and was really not motivated at all. I kept up with the exercises. I didn't keep up with the diet. It's hard to keep up on a diet when your visitor is dictating what you need to keep it at bay, lol. I ate a lot of not healthy food. I only ate the healthy food JH cooked for dinner. Breakfast & lunch were not so grand. I did snack a lot too. So I expected the worst at this morning's weigh in. Take a look at what happened. I am totally shocked. I didn't expect it at all. It's a blessing that I never thought I was going get. So I'm still on the road to a better me.

Week 4
Gained 1" in chest (lost 2.5" in total)
Lost 1" in waist (lost 2" in total)
Lost 1" in hip (lost 3" in total)
Lost 2" in thighs (lost 2" in total)
Lost 3 lbs (lost 6 lbs in total)

Hale N Hearty Soup = HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE

Today we had to wait nearly 2.5 hrs for our soup.  So our Sales Operations Mgr at my company decided to write in to them to tell them how unhappy we were with their service today. He gets an email back from the CEO!!! I am not sure if he was being sincere or an ass. But he's sure is cocky as a motherfucker. There's no apology for the disorganization of  his staff. I'm sure if he ordered something & it took nearly 2.5 hrs he'd be bitching & calling everyone & their supervisor as to where his stuff is. This apology was not heartfelt. Just his way of being dick.

Here's the email:

From: Simon Jacobs [mailto:SJacobs@haleandhearty.com] On Behalf Of Simon Jacobs Web


Sent: Monday, January 24, 2011 2:21 PM

To: xxxxxx xxxxxxx
Cc: Glenn Karow; 40east23rd; Mike Savini

Subject: RE: Order # 51491 23rd St

thx for your email.

I apologize for the poor service today.

Plz understand that on a day like today, we are everyone's first choice for soup, and also, tons of people don't want to leave their offices, which causes a huge spike in orders.

The delivery dept gets overwhelmed and is struggling to keep up throughout lunch.

I will gladly arrange a free replacement meal whenever you’d like it. Plz call the store and ask for one of the managers when you want it, and they'll arrange it.

On days with inclement weather such as this, I advise customers, if they really cant get to the store, to either order VERY early or to order from someone else.

Again, my apologies.

Simon Jacobs

CEO

Hale and Hearty Soups

75 Ninth Avenue

New York, New York 10011

Tel: 212-255-2400 Ext: 2017

Email:sjacobs@haleandhearty.com

Web: http://www.haleandhearty.com/


From: xxxxx xxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, January 24, 2011 2:14 PM

To: Simon Jacobs Web

Subject: Order # 51491 23rd St

I placed an order today at 12:20 PM and it’s now 2:11 PM and still no food. Your restaurant is 2 blocks from my office. On top of this, is your poor customer service. I was given a delivery window of 1:20 to 1:50. After it taking nearly 20 minutes to get a hold of someone at your restaurant I’m told my food is still at the restaurant with no idea as to how long it will take to get to me. Yum, soggy salad and cold soup for lunch, my favorite!

There was not even an attempt to call me to tell me that my lunch will be 30 to 60 minutes late.

I am telling you now that I am NEVER ordering from your restaurant again. You have so much competition in New York City that I can just go elsewhere next time to a restaurant that values their customers.

xxxxx xxxxxx
Sales Operations Manager

Week 2 Results

This is finishing week 2 of the 90 day, P90 workout regime. It is getting a bit mundane and repetitive. Usually I'd quit by now with any other regime. I hate repetitive stuff. It is boring and I start to lose my interest.

I am starting to lose my interest but JH is doing his best to keep me motivated. He really does. He also suggests to take it light on days that I am tired. This past week I had 2 of those days. One cardio day and one weight lifting day. The weight day I went from using 5lb weights to my 2lb ones.

I had great results this week, tho:
- Lost 1" from my chest (2 in total)
- Lost 1" from my waist (1.5 in total)
- Lost 1" from my hip (2 in total)
- Gained 1" in my thighs (4 in total)
- LOST 4 lbs!!!!! Yeah Baby!!!!

Let's see how much I change at end of the 90 days. 72 more days to go!!

Strawberry Letter 23 - Subject: am i not enough

Goodmorning Steve & Shirley! Im a 23yr old single mom. I have an amazing 8yr old son. I work full time. I have my own place. I drive my own car, pay my own bills, yet I feel incomplete. Ive been dating this guy for 1 1/2years off and on. Off and on because he claims hes afraid of me because he thinks I have a lot of game and I wouldnt have his back. Now hes 40yrs old so I KNOW he has game. Steve, Im 5foot3inc. 146lbs, chocolate beautiful skin (long story short Im Gorgeous) and I keeps it real while still being a lady of course, WHY WOULDNT HE WANT ME? I love this man more than I can put into words and I express my feelings all the time. Steve and Shirley Im a good woman. I dont know the first thing about sports but I would watch the games with him and ask questions 2better understand it, and I would even root for his team. I would go 2his place and cook and clean give him back rubs after a long days work. What could I be doing wrong.

My Response:

Breaking this down:
"I have my own place. I drive my own car, pay my own bills, yet I feel incomplete"
Get some self esteem miss. Only you can make yourself complete. No one else can. You must love yourself before anyone else can.

"he claims hes afraid of me because he thinks I have a lot of game and I wouldnt have his back"
Bullshit. Just a game he's playing. Wake up? You are 23 & he's 40 yrs old, he knows how to run game on you very well. You are inexperienced. He's been thru many women like you for over 20 years already. He knows how to get what he wants easily.

" (long story short Im Gorgeous) and I keeps it real while still being a lady of course, WHY WOULDNT HE WANT ME? "
Seriously? There are a lot of beautiful women out there. You are no different. Have you looked around you? Don't be too conceited now. Gorgeous women are dime a dozen. He probably has multiple other "you on the side".  What have you done that makes you stand out & makes him believe he can't live without you?  Have you set ground rules? Have you forgiven & tolerated all of his indiscretions? Did you ever set ground rules on how you wanted to be treated? If you answered no to all 3 then why would he want you? You just made yourself "easy". He knows he can get away with murder & you'd still cater to him. He knows you have no respect or love for yourself, so why should he?

"What could I be doing wrong. "

Come on... Have some respect for yourself. Drop him because he's not good for you. He's just using you. It seems like you know this too, but just don't want to admit it. He's getting into your panties without having to work for it. Stop letting this man use you.

Getting Myself Into Tip Top Shape

With a new year, my resolution is to get my health straight. This means losing weight & getting fit. I have found someone in my life that makes me really happy. Makes me want to live my life as long as possible. I believe I was in a downward spiral before JH. It's not like I was trying to kill myself, but in a sense I wasn't looking out for me and my health.

My work is stressful, so by time I came home, I didn't want to eat right. I wanted what was quick and easy. Also I didn't exercise. I found it dull and boring. Workout regimes only lasted 2 weeks before I lost complete interest in it. All of this contributed to me gaining weight and developing health issues like high cholesterol and lacking Vitamin D.

Since JH came into my life, I feel I need to get in shape for him & myself.  For him, so he will stay attracted to me. He says I'm fine, but me being a woman, don't believe that. For me, so I can live and enjoy an active life with JH. I want to hike with him, and do a lot of physical stuff with him. So I want to be in enough shape that I can keep up with him. Also, when it's time, I would like to be healthy enough to carry and deliver a healthy baby for him.

So, this is what I decided to do... I decided to take up the Power 90 Boot Camp. We also have the Power 90x too.  I was going to do the P90X, but it's way too advance for what shape I'm in. So I chose to do P90 first. If this one works out well, then I'll move to P90X at a later point.

The P90 routine is a pretty basic routine. It's an alternate between cardio & abs and weight lifting. This routine goes on for 90 days. It does increase the strength half way thru the regime. I am also watching what I am eating. I'm drinking a lot more water. I am also only allowing my self 1 processed sugar item a day. That way I don't feel deprived and won't want to cheat on the diet.  Every Sun, Tues & Thurs I have Sculpt (weight lifing & muscle building/toning). Every Mon, Wed & Fri is Sweat & Ab Ripper 100 (Cardio and abs, lol). Sat is rest day. Very predictable. Best thing about the routine, JH is doing it with me. He's doing both the P90 & the P90x.

We have finished one week of the regime. We measured ourselves at the start. We will also measure ourselves weekly. I am not taking before & after shots. I am not very fond of picture taking.  So here's my results.

          - Lost 1.5 in from my chest
          - Lost 0.5 in from my waist
          - Lost 1 in from my hip
          - Lost 5 in from my thighs (left & right combined)
          - My weight stayed the same, I built more muscle to replace the little fat I lost.
        
Pretty good my first week. JH blazed this week with losing 4 lbs, but he's doing 2 regimes and also changing his diet.

I will keep you posted.

Life w/ JH - The Holidays

This holiday season was my first with JH. We were supposed to go to Florida to my mother's house. This would have been great but things didn't turn out like planned.

I already had my ticket purchased since July. One way at least. JH had to work so he couldn't go to FL. So I ended up going alone to my mom's for Christmas. Wasn't very happy about that. He and my brother took me to the airport.

During our time apart, NY had Blizzard-Gate 2010. We called each other everyday. I was due to come back early on the 29th. It was the worst day coming home. I was due back to NY by 3 pm but I didn't get back until 8 pm. A 5 hour difference. I was excited to see JH.

I'm home to celebrate New Year's with JH. We didn't have any plans in particular. I usually stay home and watch Twilight Zone. I offered to take JH to Times Square but he didn't want to go. So we were going to chill at home.

Chill at home meant that JH falls asleep at 10 pm. So much for starting a tradition. My brother had to go to sleep early for work too. So with no one keeping me company I fell asleep!!! I didn't ring in the New Year at all. I should've taken JH out of the house!!!