Fact checkers un unite!

Good thing I left Brockton. Apparently the local news paper can't spell. Or better yet, don't explain what a new sport is.

Has anyone heard of a "blowling league"? I had to ask my mother, and she had no idea. I told her to "go to the Enterprise site and click on the 6 tab". She did and didn't know either. Upon clicking on the image, it went to a photo gallery. Headline still reads "blowling" however the next paragraph says "bowling".

Question still remains as who the hell checks this stuff before posting (number one), and did I really try to apply there a few times to be a news reporter (number 2)? Maybe the Enterprise and it's parent company GateHouse Media won't hire me because I can have good sentence structure (college education / degree). Either that, or we're gonna start putting some other cards in the ring, giving the population of the city...

Not so recommended!

Everyone has their allegiance to specific brands. Each brand meets a certain need. When some people think of vacuums, they immediately say "Dirt Devil", "Electrolux", "Hoover", and "Dyson". Given the generation, you get a different "omg! I love my [enter name]!!! It's a MUST for my daily lifestyle". Unfortunately for me, I'm finding the cheapy name brand suctioners, are you get what you pay for.

My room is the only room in the house that has carpet. It's not a huge room that needs an industrial dirt sucker. I need something simple that can hide in a closet and I can pull out, plug in, and go, for when I need it.

I first bought the BISSELL Featherweight Stick Vacuum. I had used it up north before we moved. The more I think about it, the more I want to say I bought it in college to suck away nasties in my single dorm room. At any rate, it worked for all of a minute. The better part of the machine is the crevice adapter, so you can get corners better. Otherwise, I have found this Bissell really doesn't serve the purpose. It pushes and pulls dirt  / every day life, rather than suck it in its (bagless) internal tubing. It's light as all hell, can be dismantled into a hand vacuum, but when you've got a room to clean, you're not going to want to be on your hands and knees. Based on the crevice adapter and entire lightness being the only pieces that's great, I rate the entire sucker a 2.5 out of 5 stars. And that's being nice.

When I moved down to Florida, I knew I had to get motivated and get a "better" vacuum. I started working at a big box retail, so one of the first purchases I made was the Dirt Devil Swift Stick. Great! New vacuum and a reliable name! Nope. Worked for half my room and stopped grabbing shmutz. Unlike the Bissell, The only thing this does extra, is have the crevice adapter. No hand use. But it too is light and tiny. Again, like the one before, it moves everything around. Sure, you can see some things cycloning in the (bagless) inside (which is a cool feature), but there shouldn't be more dirt and grime on the floor than in the vacuum. 2.5 out of 5 stars, for the cyclone feature.

In all, both are good vacuums, only if you need to do a small patch of room. A shakeable rug or quick cleanup. I have to do a dust before I vacuum, use both dirt picker uppers, and then get on my hands and knees to pick up all the nasties that didn't end up in my trash can. Considering I picked up more dirt, hair, rocks and such in my hands, I find it's easier to just do that, than to waste energy plugging machines in. Either that, or I need to buy something more expensive that can actually work.

Cheers;









** disclaimer: I'm not giving these brands a bad reputation or a bad game. I feel these two vacuums could be better used if they weren't in a medium sized room. Great on door mats and all right on hard wood floors. Not so good on carpets.

That... was interesting

Just finished City of the Snakes, and I must say, it came together nicely, however, it was surprising. One of the most surprising parts: when Shan brought together his two pivotal characters (Raimi from book one, and Jeery from the second), each man had his own narrative towards the end. To distinguish between the two, Shan used different fonts. I can't tell which type it was, but it was noticeable. At first, the change in letters was confusing, but once I read on, I figured out who was saying what. My only real concern was the fact it revolved a little heavy on the Jeery character, rather wrap the first two books together, nicely. True, this one did elaborate a lot more in to Jeery's history and why the people he's known to trust, seem to have screwed him over, but like the second book, they kept Raimi a lot out of the picture. It seemed rushed in places, to make the two stories mesh in the third, but beggars can't be choosers. Each character's history did end up being explained... rather hastily in some points, but done in taste in others.

In all, this series was great. It kept you interested in reading about "history" and what corrupted power can do to you. I compare it to what we fictitiously know about some big mob figure head, straight out of New York, ruling the state and taking no prisoners. There are talks in the series where this Raimi needs to talk over the rest of the world, so attribute the New Yorker to take over Jersey, all of New England and then the rest of the United States. Stupid comparison, I know. But like I've said before, Darren Shan has written a trilogy that keeps you second guessing and wanting to delve deeper into some gangster's underbelly world, praying you come out alive.

If you make it out of New York, aim for Vegas. Make it out of Vegas and you rule the world.


I'm excited to read more of Mr. Shan's work!


Cheers;





Further reading:

Darren Shan on Amazon

...And book two shall set the trilogy...

As mentioned in my last post, Ah yoo a nahc?, I've started the adult series Darren Shan wrote.

With the first book originally titled "Ayuamarca", (and later titled Procession of the Dead) The City devours you. Capac Raimi and his quest for answers, be damned! Hell's Horizon (book two) is on the prowl!

Ah yoo a nahc?

No... erm... I nicked that line from The Heat. But it's really Ayuamarca.

Having just read book one of "The City" trilogy by Darren Shan, Procession of the Dead: 1 (The City trilogy) I felt like I needed an update into my blog. The story brings you quickly in to a fictitious underbelly of gangster ruling. Just like any other mob books. But this has "history"....not of New York or Jersey. Shan built this adult novel around Inca ideas and thoughts. Having stated in the beginning, he uses months and names as the titles for his chapters. Some of his characters also deal with their pre Columbia American roots (aka parts of modern day South America).

The focus is a new underling, Capac Raimi. The story starts by Raimi stepping off a train to meet his uncle Theo, and as his time progresses in The City, the story finishes in a whirlwind of sex, questions (both answered and unanswered), drugs, booze, killings, and a quick rise to the top of an elevator shaft. Not ruining it for those who like to delve deep into suspense, murder and mob rules, Shan did the adult fans justice by writing this novel.

I was already a fan of him, as it was, because he happened to write a book series for young adults. The series was of vampires who don't sparkle. Instead, they joined a tent show (among other things). I've yet to read the other YA books he writes, but I do have to give Mr. Shan credit. His stories are addicting and very well thought out. Number one best sellers for quite the few of them. I look forward to snagging other editions.

Therefore, I'm about to start volume two, Hell's Horizon (The City), so I'll let you know in a few days how great this is (then it's off to the last of the series, City of the Snakes).



Cheers;



See more:
Darren Shan's Amazon page with Bio