Well, I’m off to California for a enterprise architecture conference, but before I head out I had a few things to rant about.

First, Halloween is nearing. I had a ton of fun when I was kid, but things have gotten much “darker” over the years. It is a lot more about tricking rather than treating and generally a lot less family friendly. Our church is having a “Harvest Party”, which is a place for families to come, play games, get candy, have fun, watch a juggler, and still dress up. On top of that, the Gospel is communicated in a non-threatening environment and in a way that is entertaining not preachy. Anyway, if your feel the way that I do, look into something like this around your stompin’ grounds.

To that end, my wife and I carved a fearsome pumpkin this year. It was a huge mess, but it looks pretty neat. Check it out: photoalbum.theh…

Second, many moons ago I played a game called “Half-Life”, which was amazing, then came a game called “Counterstrike”. That game soon became inundated with cheaters and idiots and that’s when I called it quits. Fast-forward to this week. I used a key I got with a video card to get the new version of CounterStrike, called CounterStrike: Source. It’s a polished version of the last game, built on the upcoming Half-Life 2 engine. It is very immersive and very fun and flashbacks galore of the good old days of my online gaming adventures. Check it out, it’s a pretty cool deal: www.steampowere…

Finally, have a great week. :-)

-Chris