You Lying Computer!

I was at Giant Eagle and I wanted to try out the shopper assistant (or whatever) where you bring around a little scanner to scan and bag your groceries as you go. I thought it might be faster, since then by the time you get to the checkout you would just have to scan one code and then pay. Well, I was completely wrong.

Not only do you have to bag and scan yourself, but once you get to the special aisle you have to wait for an employee to assist you. And by assist I mean scan half of your groceries again, input a bunch of settings, and then have you pay. You don’t end up saving any time, and you have to stand around feeling stupid while the computer tells you help is on the way. One shopper got really really agitated by this, as she was unable to finish her transaction by herself and had to wait for help.

Computer: Please wait for assistance, help is on the way.
Shopper: RAWR!
Computer: Please wait for assistance, help is on the way.
Shopper: No! No it isn’t! Help is NOT on the way!!!
Employee: I am standing right next to you and I can hear you. As soon as I assist this other customer, I will help you.

It was really funny, but the whole process was poorly executed. The only advantage is getting real-time updates to how much your food bill is going to be, but the process ends up taking longer and the produce label thing is really annoying to use.

Tangos In Vegas, Stay In Vegas

I’ve been trying some tango hunting with Velius the last few days in R6 Vegas, and it has been thrilling so far. Here is what we have discovered:

• The shield is overpowered. With just the riot shield and a Desert Eagle, Velius could take out a whole area without taking damage. While it is funny watching him crouch along with a big shield and a sidearm, this greatly diminishes the challenge.
• Sometimes grenades bounce back, and this is bad even when FF is off.
• Shutting doors makes you feel safer.
• If you are a bad guy, it is stupid to yell before you appear, and it is also stupid to yell when you have to reload.
• The shotgun takes forever to reload.
• The powerful Red Bull or whatever revolver is terrible, because it holds so few rounds and it is very slow.

The one thing that would be really awesome would be if we could get a 4 person squad and form a triangular Phalanx with riot shields. It would have to be triangular so that we could have a sunroof.

Someone Has To

Bunky always hates when I bring my bigger camera out with me. She tells me I look like a big dork with a camera around my neck snapping pictures. Quite frankly, she’s right. I usually feel silly snapping pictures when I am just Downtown or in the Strip District, but at the same time I know that it pays off in the end. There are so many times I look back and wish I had taken pictures of a certain place (even if it was just a boring street scene or building) to help me remember it. It might feel silly at the time, but it’s usually worth it in the end.

Go Big Red

One of the nice things about Cornell making the big dance is that you get to read about them (even if it isn’t in the best of lights).

As for the fourth astounding thing, we happened to be sitting near the Cornell section for the Cornell-Stanford blowout and saw fans wearing Cornell jerseys and red paint. You have to love March Madness if only for the thought of someone buying a Cornell jersey five years ago and saying, “Some day, we’ll make the NCAAs and I’ll get to wear this thing during a 40-point blowout.”

But all of those astounding things paled in comparison to the Cornell cheerleaders, a group that apparently was assembled hastily within 48 hours of the tournament. During the first half, they tried to do one of those pseudo-pyramids in which two groups of three girls lifted two other girls in the air, only one of the girls lost her balance and nearly tumbled face-first to her death before the other girls somehow caught her. Unfortunately, they had to finish their routines for the rest of the game, leading to a terrifying moment where they attempted the pseudo-pyramid again in the second half, only the girl who almost fell the first time had the same petrified look on her face as the babysitter in the last 30 minutes of the “When a Stranger Calls” remake. I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared for someone in my entire life. Somehow they pulled off the pseudo-pyramid, although it was marred a little when the poor girl lost control of her bowels on the three girls holding her up. Just kidding. Again, you have to love March Madness.

Haha, never give up!