Reason #736 (Or So) Why I Am Still A Jerichoholic

As many of you may or may not know, I'm a bit of a professional wrestling fan. I got hooked as a kid, and have never really gotten away from it, even when I find myself groaning at how ridiculous it can get from time to time. One guy that I've been a fan of for a very long time is Chris Jericho. He's done a few things "outside the ring" that I've enjoyed as well, such as forming a metal band with a group of rocker friends, hosting a game show last summer, and writing a couple of books.

So, as one might expect after that last paragraph, I'm currently reading his new book: Undisputed: How to Become the World Champion in 1,372 Easy Steps (the follow-up to the immensely enjoyable 2006's A Lion's Tale: Around the World in Spandex. In it, there's a great passage about his experiences at the 2002 NHL Awards Show. He talks about a mildly illicit affair in a closet with the Stanley Cup, then gives the following summary of his first impression of the show hall:

The attendees of the awards show were milling around, exchanging stories and kibitzing with each other. Here was Jarome Iginla talking to Patrick Roy. There was Scotty Bowman sharing a laugh with Cam Neely. On the dance floor, Moe Mantha was breakdancing with Harold Snepsts. And over in the corner, Gary Bettman was playing with a brightly colored ball of yarn.

Even in a prelude to a story about getting to meet Wayne Gretzky, there's room for a little jab at Ol' Gary. Nice job, Mr. Jericho.

Oh, and so far the book is a damn entertaining read as well, whether or not you enjoy wrestling. It's full of entertaining, occasionally off-the-wall tales about life at home and on the road from a guy who's been both a pro wrestling superstar and a not-quite superstar rock & roll frontman who's rubbed elbows with some iconic people in both circles and beyond.

Oh Hard Drive, Why Have You Forsaken Me?

Any coincidence it looks a bit like HAL 9000?

Just over a week ago, I decided that my beloved LaCie 400GB Big Disk Extreme external hard drive was ready to be retired. I had come into possession of a gleaming new 1TB LaCie d2 Quadra, and had everything in place to copy the goodies held on "Ol' Trusty" to their new home. I shut down Thursday night, and went to bed with dreams of roomy new storage filling my head.

Apparently, somewhere in the night, the drive must have figured out that it was getting ready to be put out to pasture, and beat me to the punch by quitting before I could fire it.

When I came home from work on Friday evening, and booted up my computer, "Ol' Trusty" turned into "Ol' Busty" and decided it no longer wanted to spin up and talk to my computer anymore. There were no tell-tale grinding sounds, and all the symptoms were similar to a simple power supply failure that I had remedied in the past. Calmly (well, relatively calmly) I ordered a new power supply and hoped against hope that it would be the solution again this time.

Unfortunately, hope failed.

So I took the sucker in to the fine people at MacMedics to see if they could either bring it back to life, or mind meld it onto a younger, healthier drive for me. Unfortunately, I just got the call that it's beyond their capabilities, and I now have to call in the heavy artillery if I want to get back on track. I shudder to think about the monetary output I'm going to have to incur for this, but what can I do? Sure, I could reconstruct my music library, but I don't think I'll be able to pull a "Be Kind, Rewind" style recreation of all the photos that are on that puppy. Guess it's time to get comfy over that barrel.

I wish I had anyone else to blame but me.

As I had already known, and have now had painfully reinforced, I was a damned fool for not having a backup of such a significant amount of valuable data in place to deal with this issue. I'm often somewhat stubborn, but when I've been taught a harsh lesson, I generally tend to be a quick learner, and do what I can to make sure I don't make the same HUGE mistake twice.

Hello Drobo.

Photo credits: Lazurite / Flickr, Emil Erlandsson / Flickr

Today's Time Machine Destination

Every once in a while I'm reminded of a reason that I'd really like to have unlimited funds and a time machine. Being able to go back and experience the Black Crowes live in their entirety from 1992 to 1997 is definitely one of them.

I So Didn't Want It to Come to This

Or: Why Did There Have to Be Another Game Seven?

When the Caps went up three games to one last week, I was positively giddy. I honestly couldn't fathom THIS team letting the necks of their playoff opponents go without being stepped on. Plus, I was practically in the clear to head to a show up north that I had purchased tickets to just about two months ago.

Most of us know how the rest of the story between then and now has gone.

So now, I have a ticket to an evening of quality rock in NYC with my lady and some very good friends. I also have a ticket to a game seven of the playoffs. It's no understatement to say that this was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make in my entire life. Well, at least as far as decisions between attending hockey games and rock shows in the month of April are concerned.

I'm sorry to say this fellow Caps fans, but I'm boarding a train to Penn Station Wednesday afternoon.

This isn't some form of protest or statement, or a show of indignation towards the Caps. This as an act of somewhat joking self-preservation, in a manner of speaking.

When the Caps win, I will certainly feel a severe pang of regret for missing the win and not being able to celebrate with the faithful at the F Street Arena. I will, however, be there for game one against Philly, ready to bring the noise in a big way.

Should the unspeakable happen, I think it's better for everyone if I am somewhere far, far away. Should I forgo the chance to meet someone I admire a great deal and be there for a seventh game shortfall, it will not be a pretty picture. Let's just say, I tend to get a teensy bit wrapped up in these things.

So please, give the team all you've got and then some! Here's hoping I'll be able to get some guff about this in person in a few days.

Like the title says, I so didn't want it to come to this.