Rob's Page
(the utmost leader in original webpage names since Arbor Day) 

If you feel like the page is looking slightly different lately, that's probably because it is. I USED to be using Hotdog's PageWiz to make this page, but for some unknown reason, it started acting weird for me today. Frankly, I've had enough of its frustration for now, so I've moved on to Netscape's Composer to do the page. Yes, it has its own shortcomings, but at least it seems to be letting me do some of the stupid things that PageWiz seems to not want me to recently.

Anyway...

Took a little trip to Fredericton (and Moncton) recently, and spent far too much money while I was there (not to mention gas money!). Oh well. I suppose it was mostly either stuff that I needed or would end up getting at some point anyway.

That is, save for some of the comic books I bought. For anyone who's not aware, an event called "Free Comic Book Day" started a few years back, and this July 3rd marked the occasion for the first time. Dave and I had a BLAST at Mad City Comics in Moncton, and between us, we bought a boatload of comics for a mere 25 cents a pop (I took home more than him, mind you). We also picked up a bunch of free comic books that were being given away, and a free piece of cake. And for making an order, Dave drew for a free disposable camera (though he may just make a tazer with it, courtesy of The Dark Tipper, Kevin Rose). I'd go on more, but suffice to say that Mad City Comics did a WONDERFUL job, in my opinion, by FAR surpassing the paltry effort put forth by Mocton's Gamezilla. Oh well.

While I was in Moncton, I also caught Spider-Man 2. Awsome. Most everything about this movie was great, if y' ask me. In fact, I'm very hard pressed to even COME UP with something about it that wasn't great. If you haven't seen this movie yet, by all means, go out and see it now! NOW, I say! 'Cause it's so darn good that you'll want to see it a second time before it goes to video release.

While in Fredericton, I also picked myself up a (cheap) drawing tablet: a "JamStudio" tablet from KBGear. The thing pretty much sucks -- had I known how bad, I'd have never picked it up in the first place. It's no wonder that the company went out of business... Anyway, I am getting SOME use out of it, despite all the frustration, but if you're ever looking to get a drawing tablet, save yourself a headache and get yourself a Wacom tablet. From what little I've used of Dave's, they're well worth all that extra money, even if you're just messing around with it. Seriously.

Still, for what it's worth, once you fight with it and eventually sort of get it to work, here's what one could do with it (my first real attempt at drawing something with the thing): see?

Speaking of art stuff, I've not spent a lot of time this summer (so far) directly working on any game-related stuff, but I have been busy doing things like drawing up some animations, and generally getting used to making characters look like they're walking and stuff. I'm sure that all the practice will pay off in the long run.

Picked up a bunch of old games and DVDs and CDs on my trip, too, including the "Collector's Edition" DVD of Aliens. HOWEVER, it's SUPPOSED TO HAVE a trailer for the new Aliens vs. Predator movie on it, but, for the life of me, I can't figure out where it's supposed to be. Stupid FOX...

All the purchases aside, though, I had a wonderful time staying at Vicki's place just outside of Fredericton. Always a treat to see her for a while. While visiting, we went down to a party near Saint John, and lo and behold, who do I run into but this girl named Karla, who we figured out was relative of mine. Go figure. What a small world indeed.

Oh, and I did happen to go see Van Helsing eventually, with my friend Rachel. UGH. What an awful movie. Though not nearly as bad aas I thought it was going to be, it was still pretty terrible. I'd tell you why by picking the movie's bad points apart, but that would mean that I'd have to relive my seeing the movie in my head, and that's something I just don't want to do. If feel the need to rent it when it comes out, don't. Just do yourself a favor and watch Cecil B. Demented, or Dawn of the Dead (new or old), or SpiderMan 2 instead.

Incedentally, I've been more or less ignoring all of the trades and stuff in the NHL this summer (though I do know that Hasek is signed with the Senators and that Joe Thornton will be playing in the Swiss Elite League next year). As such, I'm not sure if I'll have a good prediction for the cup winners this year before the preseason starts... I guess that I just invested too much time into the playoff race this year since Calgary went so far.

Well, until next time (and as reward for reading through that lengthy entry), here's a monkey to keep you occupied.

Hm. It's been a bit since last update.

What can I say? I was watching the playoffs. Of course, unfortunately, the Flames didn't win the cup (though the made it to the final). = (

Oh well. At least Dave Andrechuck (sp?) has a cup now.

Ah. The school year's quickly coming to a close, meaning that I suppose that I should really look into getting some sort of employment for the summer months. Not sure what I'll end up doing, if anything, but I'll be sure to keep you posted if anything comes up.

Otherwise, I do have other stuff to be working on anyway, like scoping out universities (and maybe visiting Fort Kent while I'm at it), working on some game-making, doing some clothes shopping, exercising and cleaning my room. = P Hopefully I'll even get out of Campbellton for a while. Then again, I suppose I'll probably just end up wasting the summer browsing the Internet. Bah.

Oh, and my birthday went by recently, too. So if you're looking for a present to get for me, perish the thought and just send me large sacks with a clear "$" on them and plenty of money on their insides. What more could an aging, 26 year-old guy like me ask for?

PS- I've fallen in love all over again with "Oh, Henry" ice cream bars. I swear, these things are made by angels. SO delicious. If you've not eaten one yet, usually I'd say something like "you don't know what you're missing". For these, I'll say "nah, man... don't ever eat those" for the simple fact that it means that there's more out there for me. The food of the gods, I tells ya'.

PPS- Haven't got around to finsihing up the coloring on Justin's picture (see below). Again, I blame the NHL playoffs. If it makes anyone feel better, I've also been putting off calling some of my friends.

Well, it didn't work this time. = ( 

Oh well. It was a valliant effort, but a failed one nevertheless. Last night, as you likely already know if you follow hockey, both the Avalanche and Leafs got eliminated. Amazingly, though, the Flames took out the Red Wings a couple of nights ago. What a weird year. Still, at least there's still a Canadian team that's still in the hunt for the Cup... So, GO FLAMES! 

WOOT! It's working, people, it's WORKING!!! =) Though I missed the game while I was in Fredericton, apparently Joe Sakic scored the overtime winner in Saturday afternoon's game, bringing the  Avalanche THAT much closer to taking the series in seven. They can do it! I SWEAR they can do it! Just keep praying! Just two more in a row to go... KEEP PRAYING TO THE HOCKEY GODS!!! 

As you may also know, I went to Fredericton this past weekend. I bought a bunch of stuff while I was there and blew a lot of money. Had a good time there (and in Moncton) nevertheless, though, and got to see both parts of Kill Bill almost directly back-to-back. Sure there was a fair bit of violence in there, but as my brother Dave had said at one point, it was so over-the-top that it was more cartoon violence than anything. If you've seen the thing, I think you'd see what I'm talking about. Still, a very good pair of movies, if you ask me... even if Dawn of the Dead beats 'em anyway. = P

Dawn of the Dead WAS pretty awesome, though, and sets the bar for SO many movies to come (I could go on for hours about that one, let me tell ya'!... as I'm sure anyone who's willing to listen to me already knows),  much like the original did when it first came out.

On the flipside of the coin, I have to say that I'm thinking that Van Helsing looks like it's going to be nothing but a load of garbage (and that's putting it mildly). I suppose it COULD be good, but then again, I suppose I COULD be heading to the Moon sometime soon. Odds of either aren't very good, IMO.

(Of course, having said that and used a silly AOL acronym, there's a better chance that this'll be on Tech TV's "Unscrewed" sometime soon, in their "Dear Blog" segment...)

PS- Incidently, I think that Sakic's OT winner now ties him with Maurice "Rocket" Richard for the most all-time overtime playoff goals scored. Pretty freakin' cool.

Finally! The Avalanche won last night, bringing the series to 3-1, in favour of the Sharks. I guess that all of our prayers were answered or something. Just three more in a row to go... Still, KEEP PRAYING TO THE HOCKEY GODS!!! 

And the Leafs won last night, too, but Philadelphia still leads that series 2-1. Montreal lost tonight  to the Lightning, though, sending the Canadiens out of the playoffs and to the golf greens. Another Canadian team out of the playoffs, but I dare say that the better (and more exciting) team won in the end.

Detroit and Calgary will be playing in a bit. I'm still figuring that Detroit takes the Cup, but Calgary's giving them a good run by playing with a lot of grit and passion. They're looking like a whole team of Sutters out there, under the guidance of their coach, Gary Sutter. If they can pull off the upset and make it to the next round, that man ought to be handed the coach of the year award right there (Tampa Bay's coach has a pretty good chance at receiving that award too, mind you).

Also, I'll soon be adding a section to exhibit student art that's kindly donated to me when I work. When I get really ambitious every now and then (and have enough time on my hands, of course). One piece that I receieved recently was from a 6th grader by the name of Justin . He does some pretty alright stuff that's in a comic-bookish animé/ manga style that works pretty well. Anyway, I've been working on colouring it on and off for the last few days, but haven't had enough time to finish it yet. Maybe sometime next week... Anyway, here's an early, crappy version of my colouring the character in the drawing. The shading in this one was done in about 45 seconds or so, so I'll actually be spending more time on that in a final version. Either way, feel free to take a peek at what it looks like so far. Oh, and if anyone has any advice insofar as getting rid of the looseleaf blue line, please let me know!

I'll also be heading out for the weekend for a brief trip to Moncton and Fredericton (so don't expect me to get back to you for a little bit). Should be fun.

Oh, for the love of Pete ! The Avalanche lost again! Please, O Gods of Hockey, let them pull off a miracle Leafs or Islanders 0 and 3 comeback to allow them to win the the next four games and take the series... Please? (oh, and while you're at it, let the Leafs do the same, okay?... 'cause they're pretty cool, too)

C'mon people, pray with me. PRAY DARN YOU!!

Ugh... at the very least, don't let them get swept. PLEASE don't let that happen. I'm begging you!

Anyway, SOMEHOW in a conversation with Vicki that I had recently, the old Ewoks cartoon came up. Even MORE amazing (by FAR, even) was the fact that she remembered how the Ewoks theme song started.

"We are the E, E, E, E, E, E, Ewoks..."

See? Amazing.

Though I've found a very bad audio file of the song, if anyone out there can possibly find some website on the 'Net that actually HAS the complete lyrics for that song listed, I'd be more than greatful. In fact, if you CAN find the lyrics, I'll post them on this website somewhere and dedicate that page to you for your... *ahem* contribution to society.

If you find such a website, please send it to me.

In case you people have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm not so sure you're missing out on much. And besides, you ought to be pretty used to having no idea what I'm talking about by now, right? Exactly.

Gah! What in the world is going on with the Avalanche? Losing to the Sharks? No! I won't stand for it!

In other news, I'll be adding some sort of new section soon, so you can look at some of the pictures I've been drawing up lately . It had been a while since I'd done any real amount of drawing, and I'm having an awful lot of fun doing it when I get the time. So if you're interested, be sure to check back often!

Well, it's that time of year again.

NHL Playoffs time.

Say what you will about NHL hockey, but I still enjoy watching it.

Except for last night, that is. And it's not because a team I didn't want to see eliminated was, or because a team I didn't like advanced. It's because I sat through a good portion of what was THE worst piece of playoff hockey that I'd ever seen. Last night, the Montreal Canadiens and the Boston Bruins, in my opinion, put on the most lackluster performance I've ever seen in a close game.

Though not everyone shared my opinion about this (based on a quick survey of some of the teachers in the staff lounge today), I truly can't see how anyone would have seen that game as anywhere close to approaching exciting.

From the bad to the good, though, we look at the Canucks vs. Flames matchup. Incredible game. Just unbelievable. High paced, incredible plays, amazing goals and outstanding saves. High drama (the Canucks scored with, like, 5.3 seconds left in the 3rd period to tie the game up). And even though I wasn't crazy about the Flames eventually winning the game in overtime, I was sad, more than anything, to see such a great series to come to an end.

In other news, Easter was good. I also work a fair bit in the next little while (for the rest of this week, and all but Monday of next), which is alwys nice to know in advance.

Also worth noting, though, is that, thanks to Dean (my older brother for anyone who's not in the know), I recently got the latest (and as far as I know, only) KAIJU BIG BATTEL release on DVD. For anyone who's not familiar with the world of Kaiju, please, do yourself a favor and learn more by clicking here . If you're wondering whether or not you SHOULD click on the link, if you DON'T, you should know that what you're missing out on is a stange mix of pro wrestling, Power Ranger-like giant foam costumes, and sheer insanity. C'mon. You know you want to. Click here now !

...Now wasn't that cool? Wasn't it? Don't deny it: you're baffled, and you're also very excited.

I'll go on record to say that the DVD was pretty darn cool, but unfortunately short. Still, it's something that has to be seen to be believed. As they said on Futurama: "you've seen it; you cannot UNsee it". In this case, truer words have never been spoken.

I also picked up the Weezer DVD a little while ack. If you're a fan, you can still pick it up at WalMart for, like, 13 bucks or something.

PS- Not that I'm pulling for them, but I'm predicting that the Red Wings will take the Cup this year.

Found out about a player that playes for the NY Rangers recently, whose last name is Tyutin (and it's pronounced "Too-Tin").

So Dad and I had been saying for a while now, that a team should pick up a set of players to make for some truly interesting announcing.

The players are now as follows:
-Jordan Tootoo (pronounced "Too-Too")
-Jonothan Cheechoo (pronounced "Chee-Choo")
-Jarko Ruutu (pronounced "Roo-Too")
-Fedor Tyutin (pronounced "Too-Tin")

Now, just take a second an imagine if these guys were on the same line and a game was being announced (try saying it out in your head or out loud for extra effect):

Announcer: "Tootoo to Cheechoo! Cheechoo to Tootoo! To Cheechoo! To Ruutu! Ruutu to Tootoo! To Ruutu, to Tootoo, to Tyutin! To Ruutu! Ruutu to Tootoo, to Cheechoo! To Ruutu, to Tyutin! Cheechoo shoots!..."

Pure hilarity would ensue. And as if THAT'S not bad enough, if you threw in Steve Ruchin (pronounced "Roo-Chin"), you'd have one heckuva' tongue-twister on your hands that, dare I say, not even Bob Cole himself could properly handle. The players would be hearing him laughing and swearing from ice level.

Unfortunatley, it'll never happen. But we can always hope...

Have a better NHL tongue-twister lineup, or a substitute for any of the players listed? Please, let me know.

Guh. First update of the new year. If only I actually maintained this site with some regualrity, then some people might visit. Bah!

Oh, who am I kidding, anyway? No one comes here! =P

For anyone new here: yes, the site is pitiful, and looks to be made by someone's pet monkey (or possibly sloth). Deal with it.

Not much to report. I've been teaching a fair bit -- actually got in a whole in February with a grade 5/ 6 French Imersion class. They're pretty good kids, so it was pretty good for the mostpart.

As far as the page itself, I'm lazy, so I haven't done a whole load of updating to it since August (shameful, I know).

Well, that's not altogether true... I just haven't been telling many people about the super secret secret hidden part of the site that I've been working on. I like to tink of it as my abandonned warehouse, or since I'm technically one of the good guys, my Bat Cave  of sorts. I don't have any official links to it right yet, but if you're keen, I'm sure you can find the link SOMEWHERE on this page (or, you could click here, and you'll get there, too).

There, you'll find some information pertaining to one of the video games I'm working on making -- a fanmade game based on the Super Nintendo game "EarthBound" (known as "Mother 2" in Japan). There's not much there yet, but it something to mull over if you're bored, anyway. I'll be sure to post some more information about other projects as I flesh them out a bit better. At the moment, I'm doing a lot on the graphical side of things, more or less getting to know the program I'm using a bit better and trying to make up for all the time I haven't been drawing in the past 10 years or so. Practice makes percect or some junk.

And to any of my students who might be reading this page, if you're looking for some help in any of your classes (the end of the year is quickly approaching, after all), feel free to ask your parents to call the school or the school board office to set up a tutorial session. The rates are pretty fair, and I'm betting that with a little help, that I could boost your marks up considerably. Something to consider, especially if you're worried about getting a grade that's lower than what you and/ or your parents are shooting for. If you have any questions about all of this, just drop me an e-mail.

Oh. And sorry for the excruciating loadtime on the photos section for theose of us with dialup. But I deal with it, which means you can too. Snoogins.

On a sidenote, I FINALLY found a way to get my intro page up and running properly. I'd move this mainpage to that part of the site, but as you may know by now, I'm lazy. Lazy.

PS- Eddie Guerrerro is the champ on Smackdown right now, and Chris Benoit is the champ on Raw. So as of Wrestlemania XX, the world is a much cooler place. If I could only get my hands on one of the old "Cheat to Win/ Eddie Gurrerro is My Favorite Wrestler" T-Shirts like Chavo had to wear back in the WCW, I'd be rockin', too.

Nothing much to report today.

My life is exciting.

Oh, I changed the colour of the "followed links", so that their colour doesn't change to that ugly reddish colour that they used to change to. In fact, they shouldn't change at all anymore, at least not on the main page. It'll gradually be fixed on the other pages too. Scouts's Honour.

The RIAA beating down YOUR door yet? They could be soon. Click here to find out if you've been added to the RIAA's Hit List!

I was talking with Dave about it the other day, and I figure that I... well... if I was EVER to download music illegally with Kazaa, that I would have to change my screen name to something horribly and undeniably obscene, so that they'd maybe be hesitant to publish it anywhere. And if they WOULD try to sue me, I'd make a big stink over it, and make damn sure that I, and the media use my profane name as many times as possible during all the hooplah. Oh, the hilarity.

Don't ask me what that name would be, as it takes time to come up with a name so censor-worthy as the one I'm envisionning. And besides, you'd be too horrified by it even to see it on a computer screen, so there.

For the record, I'm not on the list, so I musn't be doing anything wrong. =P

[EDIT:Of course, I'm not reccomending that anyone actually DO this or download illegal files, for that matter. Just so y' know. It's what I like to call a joke. Dig it.]

Thanks for stopping by.
(Maybe next time there'll be more to see...)