Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows TV Spot #1

Here's the first TV spot that aired tonight during Vampire Diaries.

I am so excited for these final two movies. As everyone knows I'm a huge Potter fanatic and love both the books and every movie. The more I see of this film the more I can't wait to be there on opening day to watch it.

A Healthier Me - Day 25

Woke up sore this morning.. it's my 25th day of this you'd figure I'd stop hurting after few weeks. Oh well I feel much better today then yesterday workout wise.. no struggle on doing the 30 cardio.. I think on day 30 I might increase it to 45 minutes of cardio.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 for shoulders (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on free weights (90 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on squats (70 lbs)

Internet Woes

One thing that has always bothered me about living in the boonies is having limited access to the internet. We currently use the only internet company out here CanyonWave because the relay dish and power source is on our property and because it uses our electricity (which we pay) they give us internet for free. Problem is the internet is a few steps above dial up. We can surf pretty good but trying to watch video like you tube you need to start the video then pause it and wait 10 minutes for it to fully load before you watch. And if the video is streaming, it has to buffer very few minutes which make it very difficult to watch anything.

We recently got a Wii and netflix as I was hoping to be about to stream movie and tv shows from netflix thur our Wii.. well that's not gonna happen as we can start to watch a movie but then 5 minutes into it you get the "retrieving" message and everything pauses for 15 minutes and then you get 5 minutes of video until you get the retrieving message again. So we can't take advantage of that option on our Wii or Blu-Ray player.

Both Harry and I work alot online and need fast internet. We tried to find a DSL provider since we do have a phone line but so far I haven't found a provider who reaches us, which I don't understand as I thought they ran the internet through the phone lines. Our other option was a Satellite which we tried for about four months but with the download/upload restrictions and fluctuating speeds it wasn't worth the $120 a month we were paying. In the end we cancelled the service and was out about $2000 dollars in fees, equipment and charges. It was a costly mistake but we were desperate to have better internet.

So we are stuck with our CaynonWave for now.. I'm always on the search for good reliable internet service. If anyone knows of anything that is fast and reliable please let me know.

A Healthier Me - Day 24

I really struggled today and I'm not sure why. But I did drag myself out there and did a fairly good workout. I did only a 15 minute cardio instead of my regular 30 but I happy I did the 15 as I wanted to stop as soon as I started.

Today's Workout:

15 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten working on my back (60lbs)

Hopefully tomorrow I'll feel much better.

KOTG CompanionCast S4E8

Show Notes:

It’s time for our next CompanionCast for Season 4 of The Guild. First of all be sure you watched Episode 8 of season 4 “Busted”. If you haven’t seen it yet watch it HERE

In this CompanionCast I interview Felicia Day, Sean Becker, Kim Evey and Sandeep Parikh

I hope you enjoy a look behind the scenes of Season 4 Episode 8 “Busted”

Kenny

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com
• The Guild http://watchtheguild.com

A Healthier Me - Day 23

First started off with a 30 minute walk around the park with Daisy. Then did my daily workout.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 for shoulders (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on free weights (90 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on squats (70 lbs)

It was such a nice day and much cooler then the past few weeks.. I actually got to workout earlier then I usual do which is kind of nice.

A Healthier Me - Day 22

It's Monday so I weighted myself in the morning, trying to weight myself at the same time every Monday. I actually gained a half pound :( Trying not to get discouraged that I'm not losing the weight as fast as I was hoping. My upper body and lower body are looking pretty good, starting to get toned but it's the middle that isn't getting any smaller. Still I'm not going to give up.. I'll stick with it.. I'll continue to try and eat better and hopefully will see some results in the near future.

WEIGHT: 213.5

WORKOUT:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten working on my back (60lbs)

Top 10 Sci Fi TV Series: Gone Before Their Time

I thought it would be fun to make a list of my favorite Sci Fi TV series that were cancelled before their time. There are so many to choose from but I really tried and picked ones that I felt I missed most. Let's start with #10:

10. Invasion
September 2005 – May 2006

Another supernatural show from the mind of Shaun, which focused on creatures that took over humans after a hurricane. Stellar acting by William Fichtner, Eddie Cibrian, Kari Matchett and Tyler Labine brought this sometimes chilling series to life, with some great things-that-go-bump-in-the-night moments and very human reactions to no longer knowing your family members.

This series rolled out extremely slow and unfortunately folks weren’t willing to stick it out.. ABC cancelled it on a cliffhanger after 1 season.

9. Surface
September 2005 – February 2006

What do naval officers in the South Antarctic Sea, a family in Wilmington, N.C., the oceanographic institute in Monterey, and fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico all have in common? They're all about to be the first to meet a new form of sea life -- it's beautiful, but what they don't know yet is that they are on the verge of a world disaster. "Surface" is a series full of continuously evolving twists that deliver across several long-term arcs.

I loved this series, it was a fun roller coaster ride as you weren’t sure if the creatures were aliens or from deep below the Earth’s ocean. Of course there was an AWESOME cliffhanger as the Oceans began to rise leaving our heroes on top of a church surrounded by water and creatures. But will never know what happens, as NBC cancelled it.

8.Threshold
September 2005 – November 2005

This series may not have reached its potential, but we were transfixed by the swirling alien DNA signal, fractal pattern conversation and Carla Gugino's Molly Caffrey. She was a scientist who dealt with worst-case scenario planning, and implementing that procedure when it actually came true, while trying not to give into the power of the infected aliens. Plus, she had the coolest task force working with her, including Brent Spiner, Rob Benedict, Peter Dinklage and Charles S. Dutton. Pulled after a handful of episodes, with only 13 produced, it was gone before we really got a chance to figure out what the hell was going on.

This was a fun and interesting series, it just got going right when it was cancelled.

7. Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles
January 2008 -- April 2009

This sci-fi series was actually a fun addition to the Terminator landscape. However, just when it was starting to get really, really interesting (we got a T-1001 and leapt to the future) the show was cancelled. It's a true shame, because that final episode was truly one of the best of the entire, albeit brief, run of the series. We adored the sweet Summer Glau playing badass robot Cameron, and actually found ourselves surprisingly enjoying Brian Austin Green as Derek Reese.

Was very excited when it was picked up for a second season but it still wasn’t meant to be.. only got two seasons.

6. Twin Peaks
April 1990 – June 1991

Don't really ask us what the hell was going on in David Lynch and Mark Frost's minds when they came up with this bizarre series about the small and disturbing town of Twin Peaks. While the series bordered on chaotic after its season one "who killed Laura Palmer?" mystery was solved, it was oddly fascinating and never dull. Trippy, yes. But never boring. We wanted more than two seasons, just to find out what odd and surreal thing Lynch would have thought of next.

Loved this series, loved every minute of both seasons.

5. Enterprise
September 2001 to 2005

In the early twenty-second century, the starship Enterprise is launched. Her mission is to explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations and to boldly go where no humans have gone before. Along with an alien chief medical officer and first officer, this crew with only NASA-level training and what the Vulcans know of local space, begin to explore and begin the legacy set for other Enterprise crews and captains like Robert April, Christopher Pike, James Kirk, John Harriman, Rachel Garrett, Jean-Luc Picard, William Riker, Edward Jellico and others.

I’m a huge Star Trek fan, I have loved every season of Trek made. I enjoyed Enterprise when it first aired and watched every episode. It wasn’t my favorite but it was a fun addition to the Star Trek world. Though it did get four seasons previous Star Trek shows got seven so this was a disappointment in not going all the way. Watching Enterprise in repeats and I’ve been enjoying it more and more which makes me even miss it more that it didn’t go the full seven seasons.

4. Farscape
March 1999 – March 2003

This critically acclaimed Sci-Fi Channel series is often lauded as one of the best of its genre, but it was axed after its fourth season on a cliffhanger which had fans in an uproar. Luckily, a TV movie provided a small bit of a light at the end of a dark tunnel. Astronaut John Crichton (Ben Browder) gets sucked into a wormhole, ends up making enemies out of the Peacekeepers and finds himself part of the multi-species crew of the Moya fighting off the forces of evil.

Didn’t see this series until after many years of its original run. Fell in love with it from the first episode. This series made some big changes during its run.. actually several times big things happened and the focus of the story would change. Again this series did run 4 season and was cancelled on a cliffhanger. But with fan support they did make a 4 hour TV Movie to wrap up the series which was great but I could always do with more Farscape.

3. 4400
July 2004 – September 2007

A large group of people disappears from the planet (for various length of times) and when they are returned to their homes they don't remember being gone (even though in some cases their loved ones have been dead for years), but they have abilities like telepathy and telekinesis due to neurotransmitters in their head. The government realizes this large group could be dangerous and tries to inhibit its abilities, but some of the 4400 wanted more people to have abilities, and so it went for four seasons on USA until it got axed. With layered plots and with a massive cast of characters, this intriguing sci-fi show had a loyal fan base that tried hard to keep it going, sadly to no avail.

Again I didn’t start watching this series until season 2 and went back and watched Season 1 on DVD then started with 2 and loved every minute of it. Every season this series would change focus for that season. It made it very cool and interesting to watch, as you weren’t sure where it was going the next season. It did last 4 seasons but they story could have gone on for a lot longer. The main story was just picking up steam.. they were explaining more and more but we never got the entire answer, which is a bummer.

2. Alien Nation
September 1989 to May 1990, 1994 – 1997

A few years from now, Earth will have the first contact with an alien civilization. These aliens, known as Newcomers, slowly begin to be integrated into human society after years of quarantine but are victims of a new type of discrimination. When the first Newcomer police officer, Sam Francisco is assigned his new partner, he is given Matthew Sykes , a mildly racist veteran, the animosity between them soon gives way to respect as they investigate the Newcomer underworld.

I was a huge Kenneth Johnson fan since V so I was looking forward to this series. I had seen the original movie and enjoyed it. This series was more about human nature then aliens. It was about our society as a whole without being preachy. It ran one season and was a sure in for a second season so they left us with a cliffhanger. But Fox did the unmentionable and cancelled it leaving us with no resolution. Fans untied and after a four-year fight Fox and Kenneth Johnson made five additional TV movies. There are rumors of doing more TV movies or relaunching this series. Guess we can only wait and see, could always watch more Alien Nation.

1. (Tie) Firefly
September 2002 – December 2002

This Joss Whedon (Buffy/Angel) creation traded the world of vamps for a wild cowboy adventure... in outer space. The rough and tumble crew of the Serenity try to escape the oppression of the dominant Alliance and live outside the box doing a bit of smuggling along the way. Headed up by Nathan Fillion as the gun-slinging Captain Mal, the show also featured Gina Torres, Summer Glau, Alan Tudyk and Adam Baldwin.

I was devastated when this series was cancelled. I watched every episode as they aired. There is something special about this series, everyone who watches it just falls in love with it. The characters are endearing and fun. The writing is superb and the acting is the best. Browncoats are a remarkable group of fans and we fought to get more Firefly and five years later Universal bought the rights to make a Firefly movie and so they created Serenity. It was great to go back into this wonderful world that Joss created. Of course there are still many more stories to tell in this verse and maybe one day will be able to visiting them.

1. (Tie) "V" (original)
May 1983 - February 1985

50 giant montherships arrive on Earth hovering over all our major cities. Aliens (human looking) have arrived in peace or have they?? They say they are hear to share there knowlegde and ask for so little in return. What we find out is they are replilians creatures here to enslave/eat the human race and steal all of it's water.

This is my most favorite tv series that was cancelled way before it's time when I was younger. it orginally has a 4 hour mini series, then 6 hour mini series and finally a 19 episode first season. But the story could have gone on for many seasons. Luckily ABC relaunched a new version of V with similar stories and characters but extremely different and I'm enjoying it but it's still not the same as the original.

Editing Podcasts

Spent the day editing more Knights of the Guild podcasts.. Got my next CompanionCast S4E8 all roughed out. All I need to do is do one final pass and make sure I don't have any spoilers for the upcoming episodes.

I also did a rough cut of my next RegularCast Episode 20 part 1. It cut together pretty good, just need to do one more final pass to make sure it sounds good.

I hope to have both of them done by Monday. CompanionCast S4E8 will be out Tuesday at 11pm and RegularCast Ep 20 pt1 will be out on the 15th.

Getting a Hair Cut

I've been debating on getting my hair cut. I love long curly, kind of wild hair. But now that my hair is getting thinner and thinner on top I find it looks worse when it gets to long. So I struggle each time that when my hair gets a certain length weather or not to cut it.

Today I couldn't take it anymore.. I took the razor to it and buzzed it all off.. with the help of Harry. One issue I have about buzzing it all off is it makes my face look fatter.. at least I think so.. maybe that's why I like to keep it long and crazy looking.. kind of balances out my big cheeks.

Oh well that's one good thing about hair.. it grows back. Well if you're lucky!!!

Working on Podcasts

Today I spent the entire day working on my Knights of the Guild podcast. Did a rough edit of CompanionCast S4E8, sorted clips for episodes 9, 10, 11 and 12. Edited the main section of my next RegularCast Episode 20 part 1.

Also emailed back some donors, updated my records and started to prep prizes for our contest winners.. got to take a bunch of stuff to the post office this week.

A Healthier Me - Day 19

Took the day off yesterday as I wasn't feeling so hot.. but felt much better today and continued with my workout regime.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 for shoulders (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 for the back (70 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on squats (70 lbs)

I Need A Job!!!

Starting to get worried!!!! Going into my fifth month of unemployment. My first month (May) was cool as The Guild was shooting it's fourth season and I was able to be on set everyday for my Knights of the Guild podcast, then the second month (June) was cool as Harry and I went on our Pacific Northwest road trip. The third month (July) I went to San Diego Comic Con, but with the fourth month (August) Harry's family was to visit from Austria but those plans changed so I started to look for work with no luck. Now I'm going into my fifth month (September) and still no prospect on finding a new job.

I have been debating on going back to being a Post Production Supervisor. I have enjoyed my time away from all that stress and BS. But until I can figure out what I can do and make enough to pay my mortgage and cost of living, I may have to take a post super job just to make some money. Funds are getting low, thank goodness for a good tax refund (benefit of buying a house last year).. but those funds are running out.

So if anyone hears of a position for a Post Production Supervisor for TV, please let me know.

A Healthier Me - Day 18

I didn't workout today.. I had plans to workout tonight around 9ish like I did last night as that seems to be when it cools down outside. But while eating dinner a wave of nausea hit me hard, I felt sick to my stomach and totally lost my appetite. Not sure what it was and I'm feeling a bit better now but still not 100%. I was going to try and force myself to workout anyways as I did yesterday but I don't want to push it. I'll just work out Saturday to make up today. As long as I do 5 days a week I am happy and still on schedule.

It's a struggle not to go out there and workout while sick.. I feel guilty for not going out there. I know it's stupid because it's only one day and I've been really good the past three weeks. Oh well it's bound to happen again.. I just have to deal.

Sir Ian McKellen

I came across this picture of a very young and handsome Sir Ian McKellen and wanted to share it will you all.

If you don't know who he is..some of his more recent and geeky roles have been Gandalf from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and Magneto from the Xmen movies.

In 1988, McKellen came out and announced he was gay (publicly) as it's was known in the entertainment industry. He became a founding member of Stonewall, one of the United Kingdom's most influential LGBT rights groups, of which he remains a prominent spokesman.

He's a fantastic actor and human being, fighting for the equality and rights of all people.

A Healthier Me - Day 17

Wow.. today was one of the toughest days I have had so far in motivating myself to workout. It might be because I'm exhausted after staying up to 2am working on a podcast, then had a horrible night sleep and got up at 7:30am to prep for recording another podcast at 11am.

It was hot and I wanted to wait a little bit for it to cool down but by the time 7pm came around I was hungry and ready for bed. So I ate dinner and then debated with myself on not working out tonight and working out one day during the weekend.. as long as I do 5 days a week I'm good. But after eating I felt a bit more awake and dragged my body out to the gym at 9pm and did my normal workout.

WORKOUT:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten working on my back (60lbs)

Neverending Podcasting

Today I recorded my next RegularCast podcast for Knights of the Guild episode 20 parts 1 & 2. Jenni was unavailable so our friend Mark Donica was gracious enough to step in and co-host this episode with me. There weren't many listener feedback to read and we didn't have any Guild News so both parts to the podcast just flew by, normally Jenni and I take about 2 1/2 hours but this time around it was little over an hour and a half.

We had a great time, it was lots of fun mixing things up. With the CompanionCasts I have gotten use to going solo (which I said I would never do) so it was nice to have a co-host again.

Episode 20 part 1 will be out on Sept. 15th, while part 2 will be out Sept. 29th

KOTG CompanionCast S4E7

Download from itunes http://bit.ly/KotGCast or

Direct Listen http://knightsoftheguild.com

Show Notes:

It’s time for our next CompanionCast for Season 4 of The Guild. First of all be sure you watched Episode 7 of season 4 “Awkward Birthday”. If you haven’t seen it yet watch it HERE

In this CompanionCast I interview Felicia Day, Sean Becker, Kim Evey, Viji Nathan, Wil Wheaton, Vince Caso, Tara Caso, Jeff Lewis, Sandeep Parikh and many extras. I play a few minutes of an actual rehearsal from some of the cast members.

I hope you enjoy a look behind the scenes of Season 4 Episode 7 “Awkward Birthday”

Kenny

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com/

Igniting the Midnight Petroleum

If you understand the title and know what it's from then you are truly a GEEK... and I love it!!!!!

It's almost 1am and I'm still working on the next CompanionCast for episode 7 that was suppose to be released at midnight. There really isn't a excuse as to why it's not done.. I had all the material and knew when it was due but kept putting it off because there was just so much material. I worked on it last night, this morning and the past four hours and it's almost done. I'm leveling it at the moment. Next I have to convert it then spot check it one last time, add a picture and finally upload it. It's the longest podcast I have done in a long time.. it's over an hour and 40 minutes but man it has some great interviews with lots of very cool BTS information.

I'm sooooo tired, can't wait till it's done so I have go to bed.. should be another hour or so.

A Healthier Me - Day 16

Today I worked out later then expected but it was a busy day and I couldn't find the time to get out there.. but I did get out around 8pm and everything was pretty good.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 for shoulders (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the free weights (90 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on squats (70 lbs)

Starting to see some differences in my arms.. kind of nice. :)

Lunch, Interviews, Plushies.. Oh My!!

Today I headed over to my friends, Greg Aronowitz place. We were going to have some lunch. I also had a present that was sent to me to give to him.. his lil' guildie version of himself that a fan (Jes Reaves) made.

Had a nice lunch at La Salsa and then headed back to his place where I did some pick up interviews with him for some upcoming CompanionCast and RegularCasts. Since I was there I also interviewed several of guys that work for him, Bryan, Nick and Mez. All have worked on certain parts of The Guild so I wanted to get some inside info for the CompanionCasts.

I was there about four hours.. a bit longer then expected but it's all fun hanging out at The Barnyard with Greg.

A Healthier Me - Day 15

Hey Guys.. it's another week. I didn't workout over the weekend again, but that was because we had guests staying with us. But I had no trouble getting back into the routine today.

I first walked around the park with Daisy for almost an hour this morning. Then tonight did my regular workout for my upper body.

Since it's Monday I weighted myself and again the weight isn't dropped off quickly, but I did lose a pound.

WEIGHT: 213

WORKOUT:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten working on my back (60lbs)

Workouts are becoming routine, healthy eating not so much.

So begins my third week of A Healthier Me.

A Geeky B&B

We spent the last two days hosting two friends of ours, John and Moises, who came up to visit for the weekend. They wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. They arrived around noon yesterday and left mid afternoon today. We had a great time, we played Wii, chatted, hiked around the property, watched some TNG (Star Trek The Next Generation), picked up some fresh strawberries and corn at our local produce stand and just enjoyed one's company.

Harry and I once talked about opening a B&B since it's so beautiful and peaceful out where we live I'm sure there are folks out there who want to get away for the weekend. And if you like wine we have a winery just down the hill from us (which John, Moises and Harry enjoyed yesterday).

But for now we are opening up our home for friends. If anyone wants to come visit for a night or two to "get away" we would love the company.. just let me know.

Knights of the Guild Ep 19 pt2

itunes http://bit.ly/KotGCast or download/listen directly http://knightsoftheguild.com

Show Notes:

Here it is Episode 19 part 2 of Knights of the Guild. We hope you enjoy it.

Today’s show features:

• * First up we have a Classic Vorkism
• * We are recording this weeks podcast live in studio
• * We discuss Behind the Scenes of Season 3 Episode 7 - Coping and Stuff
• * We have another great fan interview with Thomas Needham

• * We have another installment of Guild Something with Sean Becker
• * Listener Feedback
• * We thank our donors.
• * Then Business Time (We continue to use contest submissions, Thanks Megan, Mike, Jennifer, James, David, Donica, Jerod, and Nas)
• * Then our Good byes

Thank you again for all your support, we do this podcast because we are fans and more importantly for the fans.

Kenny & Jenni

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com/

A Healthier Me - Day 12

Took a break from cleaning the house to get my work out in.. I'm finding it easier and easier to do this.. it's been two weeks and it's becoming part of my routine... YAY!!!

Workout for Today:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten for both arms, working on my triceps (60 lbs)

Still struggling with the food aspect of this whole healthier lifestyle, but I'm getting better.

Cleaning House & Podcasting

Today I spent the entire day.. on and off, cleaning the house and preparing for guests this weekend. Our friends John and Moises are going to be spending the weekend with us to get away from the city life. I think it's cool how people want to come stay at our house to "get away" and this is where we live everyday.. kind of nice.

Should be a fun weekend.. only have to vacuum tomorrow before they arrive and everything will be done.

I took a break from cleaning to finish up Knights of the Guild podcast episode 19 pt2. I finished most of it yesterday but was waiting for a segment from Sean Becker (director of The Guild) which he emailed me this morning. So I was able to finish it up.. in the middle of converting and uploading then I need to build the webpage and it will be ready for release on Sunday.

A Healthier Me - Day 11

I was extremely sore this morning when I woke up but loosens up during the day. By the time it was cool enough to work out I was feeling good. Again it was too hot to job so I worked on the elliptical.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 for shoulders (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the back leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on squats (70 lbs)

Another great workout.. still need to work on doing this everyday at the same time.. it needs to be a routine. I think once I start a job I will have no choice but to do it before I head into work so I think I'll be able to create a daily workout schedule. Until then it's tough to make myself get up super early 6am before the heat starts. So I'll just workout when I can as long as I keep doing it everyday.

Not Enough Time in the Day

Sometimes I wish there was more time in a day. There are so many things I need to do but I have only so much time and energy in a day. Today I was hoping to get several podcasts edited, clean the house (having guests this weekend), organize my DVD's, work out and prep for my next podcast.

What did I actually do?? I got 1 podcast semi edited KOTG 19 pt2 which is suppose to be posted in two days. I did the dishes.. and I worked out. Oh and I'm still looking for work which only takes a few minutes to search on websites for post jobs... but still it's one more thing I have to worry about.

Feels like I should be able to get more in my day but it never works out that way. My "to do list" is getting longer and longer. I'm not really complaining as I know my life could be so much worse.. just wish I could get more done because I will have a job soon and the more things I can get done now the better things will be.. oh well I'll keep chugging along.

A Healthier Me - Day 10

Just finished my work out.. had to do it late again as it was over 100 degrees out here and then a thunder and lightening storm moved in. So no jogging for me. But finally at 9pm it was cool enough, 85 degrees, for me to work out.

Workout for Today:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten for both arms, working on my triceps (60 lbs)

Had a slow start but once I got going the time flew by.

Before I sign off.. I want to thank all those wonderful people who have been supporting me with their kind comments on my blog, facebook and twitter, your encouragement and support continues to motivate me and I wish I could give you all a big hug of thanks.

KOTG CompanionCast S4E6

Show Notes:

It’s time for our next CompanionCast for Season 4 of The Guild. First of all be sure you watched Episode 6 of season 4 “Weird Respawn”. If you haven’t seen it yet watch it HERE

In this CompanionCast I interview Felicia Day, Sean Becker, Kim Evey, Robin Thorsen, Brett Sheridan, Amy Okuda, Viji Nathan and Sandeep Parikh. I also have something very special, I play a few minutes of an actual rehearsal from some of the cast members.

I hope you enjoy a look behind the scenes of Season 4 Episode 6 “Weird Respawn”

Kenny

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com/

A Healthier Me - Day 9

Today I wanted to try something different, but the weather wasn't cooperating. It was 109 f here today and I really wanted to jog/walk to my mailbox (1 mile away). But even at 6pm it was still 101 f. and it didn't look like I would be able too.. but around 7pm it cooled down to 98 and there was a slight breeze so I put on my workout clothes and headed out. I did job here and there the first mile but my legs and ankles were killing me (could be the horrible shoes I was wearing). So I got the mail and then walked the second mile home. Took about 45 minutes to job/walk the two miles.. but I feel good. I think I'm going to go out tomorrow and get me some proper running/walking shoes. I think I'm going to try and do that for my cardio instead of the elliptical.

Workout for Today:

2 mile jog/walk

I opted not to do any gym work since I did my upper yesterday today was suppose to be my lower, but that walk really worked my legs. So in a way I did that work out also.

KOTG CompanionCasts

Whoo hooo.. today I went through all my audio bites from Season 4 and organized all the clips for episodes 6, 7, 8 & 9. From the clips that I have episodes 6 & 7 will be pretty long as I have lots of cool interviews, but 8 & 9 are lacking some cast interviews.. may have to see if I get some pick ups.. if not they are still going to be great as I sat down with Felicia, Kim and Sean and have some good behind the scenes info for each episode.

Now all I have to do is record my intros and outros and then assemble them. Should really get six done since it's suppose to be released tomorrow night.... Good Times

A Healthier Me - Day 8

Took the weekend off from working out and that was such a bad idea. I had the hardest time motivating myself to get back out there.. and another bad thing is I pushed it off until around 8pm. But I did it.. I got out there and struggled with the 30 minutes elliptical machine and almost convinced myself that 15 minutes would be good enough.. but I did the full 30. The cardio seems to be the hardest for me.. the actual weights I don't mind and actually enjoy.. but the elliptical, though good for the joints is boring, I'd rather run/walk outside. Our mailbox is a mile from our house on a very hilly dirt road.. I was thinking instead of doing the elliptical for 30 minutes I'll run/walk to the mail box and back again. That's 2 miles and should give me a really good cardio workout. Anyways.. for today's workout

Since it's Monday I weighted myself and was kind of disappointed.

WEIGHT: 214 (stayed the same)

WORKOUT:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)

So what did I learn today.. not to push off working out until late at night. And I need to workout over the weekends even if it's just cardio or lifting weights. And I need to double my effects on my eating.. I think that is why I didn't lose any weight.. I'm eating better but still not as good as I should, that will be the toughest part of this whole plan adventure.:(

Interviewing Felicia Day

Tonight I had a skype appointment with Felicia Day to discuss The Guild season 4 episodes 6 thru 9 for the next few companioncasts. She's been up in Canada shooting Eureka and was down this weekend for a few days and was graces enough to take some time out of her busy schedule to chat with me. We talked for about an hour and had a great conversation about some really cool behind the scenes tidbits and her thoughts about the upcoming episodes. We also talked a little bit about Eureka, as I'm a huge fan and very excited that she has a very extended guest role later this season. It was perfect way to end my Sunday.. Thanks Felicia.

Time with the Family

Today I went down and visited my Dad, Brother, Sister-in-Law and Nephew. Took my dad out for a Birthday lunch at Outback Steakhouse. Then went back to the house and enjoyed some time with my 13 month old nephew Kenobi. Also visited with Bro and sis-in-law. Watched some TV and just hung out for a few hours. It's great catching up with them and of course spending time with my only nephew. I see him about every two weeks or so and it's like he is growing leaps and bounds.. and what I love is he knows me. He's not saying uncle Kenny yet.. but he comes to me and plays with me, which they tell me he doesn't do to many people. I love being an uncle.. can't wait until he is old enough and runs out the door to greet me when I arrive.

After that I went to my favorite Chinese food place in Corona (where my family lives), Hong Kong Restaurant and picked up some dinner for Harry and I on my way home.

One Year in Our House

Wow.. it's been a year already in this house. Harry and I couldn't figure out which actual day to celebrate our 1 year anniversary as we signed paperwork on August 19th but after the hell we went through we still didn't feel like we got the house.. then we got confirmation that everything went through and the house was ours on August 21st but again wasn't going to celebrate until the keys were in our hands and the next day August 22nd we got the keys and Harry and I stepped foot into our brand new house.. so that is the day we are celebrating for our 1 year anniversary. August 22nd

We've done so much to our house in that year (you can check out pictures HERE .. but it's time to start working on the outside, we have 2 1/2 acres to spruce up.. our first goal is to put a fence around our entire property and then start working on our back deck and surrounding areas.. got lots of cool plans but little funds so it's going to be a slow process.. maybe by our next anniversary will the outside done.. but was all home owners know it's never ending.. there will always be something to do on our property.

So It Begins

Did I work on the six podcasts that I need to get done.. no! Did I go grocery shopping which I had planned to do.. no! Did I do any of the numerous things in the yard that need to be done.. no! Did I work out as planned.. no!

What did I do today.. I played Wii Resort games... for the majority of the day. I mean I took a break for lunch and watched TV while we ate but then it was back to Wii.. We finally took a break to eat some dinner and watch the latest episode of Eureka and then it was time for the news and I think that will be it on Wii tonight.. at least for me.. Harry might play a few more rounds of bowling before he heads to bed.

This is why I don't play games, but I think we played all day today because it's new.. I'll just have to teach myself that I can play when I'm done with all my daily duties.

As for not working out.. I worked out the past five days and to be honest playing Wii gives you a really good cardio workout.. so in a sense I did do my cardio.

A Healthier Me - Day 5

Didn't think I was going to work out today because I had gotten 3 hours of sleep last night and I'm just so tired, but I knew that was just an excuse.. I didn't want to have to blog that I didn't work out.. so this daily blogging thing actually does motivate me.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
1 set of ten working on my back muscles (60 lbs)

I haven't decided it I was going workout on the weekends or not.. still don't know.. guess I'll find out tomorrow.

Got My Wii

Today we got our Wii in the mail, I had ordered it last week. I've been wanting to get some sort of "gaming" system for a while now and last month Harry and I were at my brothers playing "bowling' on their Wii and I said we should get one of these and Harry agreed.

People have said.. oh you should have gotten an XBox or you should have gotten a PS3 but neither Harry nor I are gamers. We wanted something that we could pull out at parties and play or if we were bored can play just the two of us. The Wii is prefect for that. I don't expect to buy many games. It comes with Wii sports and Wii resorts which has alot of the fun party games on it already. The only games I can see me getting are Star Wars or Harry Potter related.

This is my first gaming system as an adult. Gaming was one thing I was never into. I mean I had my commodore 64 and Atari 2600 when I was a kid.. but that's where I stopped. My brother had the Nintendo and Sega and such but I never really was into it.

I'm looking forward to having some good times with the Wii.

Insomnia

Another horrible night of sleep. Not sure what's going on, I normally sleep pretty good. But the last few months I have had many uneasy nights and last night was pretty bad. Got to bed around 1am, woke up at 3am, fell back to sleep around 4:30am and back up at 5:15am. Finally fell back to sleep and work up at 7:30am and said screw it.. I'm getting up. So I think I got about 3 hours of sleep total and I feel horrible. I need to figure out why I'm not sleeping... I hate this feeling.

A Healthier Me - Day 4

Day 4 and going strong.. did feel sore at all today when I woke up. Did my work out later then I usually do it but I still did it.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 on free weights (90 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the back leg press (45 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on squats (70 lbs)

Resisting to get on that scale.. want to wait until Monday. Still struggling with my food (eating better) but I'm working on it.

A Healthier Me - Day 3

Woke up this morning feeling pretty good.. but my right shoulder and arm were hurting a bit. It got better through out the day but is still a little tender but that didn't prevent me from working out.. here is what I did today.

Today's Workout:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (45 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)

Today my elliptical starting making some funky noises.. it still works, but I'll have to check it out.

Thanks everyone for your continued support.

KOTG CompanionCast S4E5

Show Notes:

It’s time for our next CompanionCast for Season 4 of The Guild. First of all be sure you watched Episode 4 of season 5 “Loot Envy”. If you haven’t seen it yet watch it HERE

In this CompanionCast I interview Felicia Day, Sean Becker, Kim Evey, Robin Thorsen, Brett Sheridan, Greg Aronowitz, and Jeff Lewis. I also have something special, I play a few minutes of an actual rehearsal of Robin and Brett.

I hope you enjoy a look behind the scenes of Season 4 Episode 5 “Loot Envy”

Kenny

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com/

A Healthier Me - Day 2

I felt pretty good when I woke up this morning.. thought I'd feel a lot worse.

Today's workout was:

30 minutes walk around a new park that I took Daisy to this morning.

30 minutes on the elliptical
3 sets of 10 on the front leg press (35 lbs)
3 sets of 10 on the back leg press (35 lbs)
3 sets of 10 for squats (70 lbs)
10 on left leg and 10 on right leg, not sure what they are called but it worked the back of my legs. (30 lbs)

So far so good.. had to push myself to get out there today but once I was there and got the music going I felt great.

Interviews with Sean

Today at 1 I had an appointment with Sean Becker, the director of The Guild to sit down with him and do some more interviews for the CompanionCast episodes 6 - 9. He was editing Ep 12 over at Kim Evey's (Guild producer) house. For the next two hours we watched then talked about episodes 6 - 9. Got some really good behind the scenes info. I'll be using both the stuff I got live while shooting S4 and the stuff I just recorded in the podcasts.

So I've chatted with Kim and Sean about eps 6-9 now I just need to chat with Felicia about those episodes.. I hope to do that this weekend over skype as she is up in Canada shooting episodes of Eureka.

Another CompanionCast

Got up early so I could finish the next Knights of the Guild CompanionCast. The Guild episode came out today and the podcast is suppose to come out tomorrow. Now there is nothing set in stone that says I need to get these out by the next day, other then my promise to fans, and that fact that I can't stand falling behind on any job, paid or not.

I worked on the majority of this last night and only had to do my final pass this morning and then all the conversions,uploads and build the webpage... but it's all done and ready to go.

A Healthier Me - Day 1

Today is the first day of my new workout regimen . I'll be blogging my progress daily in an effort to motivate myself to continue with this. Every Monday I'll post my weight and hopefully we will all share in my success. My current goal is to get my weight below 200 by the end of the year. After that it will be a few pounds every month (gotta set realistic goals). Baby steps are the way to go for me. One thing that is an issue is not only am I'm trying to lose weight but I'm also building muscle and muscle weights more then fat so my weight lose at some point will plateau and I may even start gaining again... just gotta keep in mind that I'm losing the bad weight but gaining the good weight.

So here was my first work out.

WEIGHT: 214

WORKOUT:

30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical
3 sets of ten on the chest fly for my chest (60 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the curl arm for my biceps (35 lbs)
3 sets of ten on the free weight (90 lbs)
3 sets of ten for both arms, working on my triceps (30 lbs)

I'm very happy with what I accomplished today. I haven't worked out in over 3 years. Cardio was tough, just five minutes in and I was ready to quit.. but I persisted and struggled the first 15 minutes but after that the last 15 went quickly.

I feel really good right now.. my arms a bit tight but my legs feel fine. I'm sure tomorrow morning I'll be sore but I'm going to do it all over again.. at least the cardio and then work on my legs and stomach, I plan to alternate back and forth between upper and lower body.

That's it for Day 1.. I'll keep you all posted on my progress.

Success!!!

With Harry's help towards the end, our Home Gym in now open for business.. can't wait to get started tomorrow. I'm a little scared on how excited I am on working out again.. Anyone want to join me :)

Creating a Podcast

I posted this in my Knights of the Guild blog a few months ago but I have been getting questions about the podcast and how it's produced, Many think we just record it and voila it's up on itunes. That's not the case.... here is my process.

I do this for every RegularCast, MiniCast, MircoCast & CompanionCast.

Pre-Production: It's not only recording and distributing the podcast. It's managing and promoting a product. I manage Knights of the Guild's twitter account @knightsofguild, Facebook fan page, WatchtheGuild Group, KOTG forums threads at Treksf, Geekerdome and Anomaly. I maintain the KOTG blog and podbean website. I commission people to create music and logos for KOTG. I manage the donations, mail off autographed pictures, t-shirt and other KOTG Swag, as well as purchase all KOTG swag. I purchase the urls, the websites, podcasting equipments and other operating materials. I do most of this stuff on a daily bases.

Now to the podcasting part:

First thing I do is set up a date to record with Jenni, once we determine that I start creating show outlines for both parts.

This includes having to decide on where our location is going to be. Recording in the studio is the easiest as it doesn't require any sound effects. When I pick a location it requires me to find sound effect for that location, and sometimes it's tough to come up with what kind of SFX you would hear.

I also have to figure out who we are going to interview for our Cast or Crew interview, we alternate back and forth with each episode. I also have to find a fan to interview as well. Once I find these people I have to contact them and set up a time that we are all available and able to record on Skype.

I then determine which segments go where, as our podcast has grown over the years and we have split it into two parts. It's important to me to have both parts balance and entertaining.

I send emails out to cast and crew and notify them of the upcoming podcast and if they wish to get any news out to the fans.

I manage all the contests, create spread sheets so I can pick random winners. Maintaining all the contest is a job unto it's self.

I manage all the listener comments, Sean Questions and Cast questions if we have any. I create word documents with all the questions to make it easier when we record.

I normally get all this done a few days before we record. On record day I started about two hours before Jenni arrives and go over everything again. Make sure the equipment is working correctly. Make sure our interviews are set (if we are doing them that day. Sometimes we do Cast, Crew and Fan interviews beforehand or after we record, just depends on everyones schedule).

Production: When Jenni arrives we go over notes for a few minutes, get comfortable and then we began. It normally takes between 2 to 3 hours to record an episode, both parts 1 & 2.

Post-Production: Once we are done recording the editing process starts. I normally go though the recordings with Audacity (it's what we use to record them) and I'll edit out long pauses, or stuff that isn't to air. I'll also edit out mistakes (especially when I'm reading listener feedback). Editing just 1 part can take up to three or four hour. And then I have to do the same to part 2. Once those are edited I then start Avid to assemble the pieces together to create the podcast.

In avid I have all the bumpers, promos and other podcast elements. I import the edited podcasts along with listener feedback audio and any other audio that is going to be used in the podcast. I start with a vorkism, cut in an opening then cut the edited podcast in. I then go in and cut in all the bumpers between segments. I also cut in promo during the commercial breaks and other elements. Once everything is roughly assembled I do another pass and make sure everything sound smooth. I'll add dissolves or fade in and such to make it sound good. Once that pass is done I do a SFX pass, if we are at a location I go through and add SFX here and there. Once that is done I do one more final pass to make sure I got everything. This editing process take about six to seven hours.

Once I'm happy with it, I export an AVI and import it into Levelator which levels out the audio. I then import the leveled AVI file into Audacity and do a quick check to make sure the levels sound good. Once I'm done with that I export it as an MP3 file. I then import it into Itunes and add the artwork. Now the file is done and ready to be uploaded to podbean. So I start to upload the file to podbean and as I'm doing that I create a blog post with all the show notes and pictures for that episode. This whole process take about three hours.

When a show goes live I have to post the show notes on the KOTG Blog, my personal blog, Twitter, Treks in Scifi Forums, Anomaly Forums, Geekerdome website and forums, Watch the Guild.com Group and the Facebook group.

By the time I get done with both parts I'm already planning the next episode.

MiniCast are normally me solo and are very short they only take a few hours. Depending on the Microcasts those can take 2 to 8 hours to edit and complete. The new CompanionCasts are easier in the sense because it's just me and everything has been recorded already. The hard part is going through all the recordings and finding the right bites for the specific episodes and making sure there are no spoilers for future episodes so these taking longer because I can't make a mistake on them. They can take a few days to edit and complete and I do one of these a week from July to September with each new episode of The Guild.

As you can see it's a big job creating, maintaining and promoting this podcast. I have said in the past that this has become a time consuming hobby. Folks ask me why I do it if I am not getting paid, I tell them I enjoy it, it's fun being part of the Guild family/community and I like spreading the Guildie love around.

Hopefully this gives you a little taste of the behind the scenes making of Knights of the Guild Podcast

Knights of the Guild Ep 19 pt1

Show Notes:

itunes http://bit.ly/KotGCast or download/direct listen http://knightsoftheguild.com

Here it is Episode 19 part 1 of Knights of the Guild… Enjoy!!!

Today’s show features:

• * First up a classic Vorkism
• * We are recording this weeks podcast live in our studios
• * We discuss the latest Guild News
• * We have another Cast Interview and finally sit down with the very funny and sweet Robin Thorsen

• * We find out what the cast and crew are up too
• * We have some Listener Feedback
• * We also announce winners of our end of month contest for July and our winner for our Blog Contest as well as talk about continuing contests
• * Then Business Time (I continue to use our contest entries as they are so good)
• * Then our Good byes

Thank you again for all your support, we do this podcast because we are fans and more importantly for the fans.

Kenny & Jenni

Other Important Links

• Knights of the Guild Feeds/Downloads http://knightsoftheguild.com
• Knights of the Guild Daily Blog http://knightsoftheguildpodcast.blogspot.com/