So I Married a Nerd

Angry Husband always like to remind me that I could have it much worse. He could be spending all his money on beer and strippers. Ya, not in my house. But alas, he's a nerd. Angry Husband would rather play games on the computer, watch movie previews on AppleTV, or hang out with his best friend, Eric. Eric has been around in our life since very early in our marriage. Angry Toddler calls him "Uncle Eric".

Angry Husband and Eric are mentoring Angry Toddler in all things nerd..oh yes!! Angry Toddler knows all of the Star Wars characters. He watches "How It's Made, Myth Busters, and Future Weapons". Angry Toddler would much rather hang out with them than watch cartoons.

Last week, Angry Husband put a movie called "Fan Boys" on our AppleTV. I was bored and decided to watch it. I was busting up, because really I could see Angry Husband and Eric being actors in this movie. They would fit right in.

This is what the movie is about:

It's the Halloween party they've all been waiting for, to have fun with friends and hang out with fellow Star Wars fans and partners in crime. However, events take a turn when one of their bunch who long ago outgrew his old gang and took on adult responsibilities is suddenly in their midst again. Reconnecting is not easy. But soon, Eric, Windows, Hutch and Zoe realize that Linus will not live long enough to experience what's been on their minds for ages: The long-awaited theatrical release of Star Wars - Episode I, which is still several months away. Linus once again suggests to his friends what he's been scheming since fifth grade: Breaking into Skywalker Ranch, this time to steal a print of the movie. Crazy, right? But it might be the only way for Linus to see the movie before he dies. So as insane as it sounds, they take Hutch's van and embark on a mission to drive across half the country to the Ranch.

I've gone through a lot with Angry Husband and Eric. They always have some kind of hobby that they are into; remote controlled cars, remote controlled helicopters, paintball, computer games, and Warhammer 40K. Angry Husband and Eric had ventured into the land of Warhammer 40K twice. I shall call it "hobby of summer 2009", until something else comes along. This is all they talk about.

What is Warhammer 40K?

Warhammer 40,000 (informally known as Warhammer 40K or just 40K) is a tabletop miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop, set in a science fantasy universe. Warhammer 40,000 was created by Rick Priestley in 1987 as the futuristic companion to Warhammer Fantasy Battle, sharing many game mechanics. Expansions for Warhammer 40,000 are released from time to time, often to facilitate a certain sort of game, such as Cities of Death, Planet Strike and Apocalypse, which give rules for urban, planatary siege and large-scale combat, respectively. The game is currently in its fifth edition.

Angry Husband and Eric were setting up their "game table" last week in our house. I had to "roll my eyes". I of course, grabbed my camera. Eric made some comment about asking his permission to take/post pictures. I told him that he needs to read the disclaimer. Anytime, you enter the Angry House, you are subject to being photographed and/or your conversations might end up on the blog. So of course, I started taking pictures, to show what true "nerds" they are.




But do they know they are "nerds"? YES. Eric actually texted me this: I prefer nerd, it implies intelligence. A nerd is technically the guy who does well in school and builds girl robots. A geek dresses up like a storm trooper. Eric went back to school recently and is studying engineering, go figure.

There's one thing for sure, they have never been WOW player aka World of Warcraft. It's not their thing. But, Angry Husband did send me this video the other day. I giggled because we had some issues a few years ago when he played Everquest. He told me that he was never as bad as this kid. That's up for discussion.



oh, and I told Eric about this post. He told me that I have to include this video also.

Hot Diggity Dog

Today I was invited to participate in a teleconference and twitter with Phil Lempert, which was sponsored by Hebrew National. Phil Lempert is known as the "Supermarket Guru".

Did you know that National Hot Dog Day is July 23rd? Well you do now!

This was my first teleconference as a blogger, so I had no clue on what I was doing. I had a notebook on the table, my Macbook, my cordless telephone, and Angry Husband nearby. Angry Husband is a big fan of Hebrew National Hot Dogs. They are the only kind that he will buy. He usually rolls his eyes when I'm talking about blogging, etc..but this time he actually somewhat participated.

I had TweetChat open to follow the discussions hashtag #HNLempert along with my cordless telephone to my ear. Phil Lempert was talking about summer, BBQ's, and cooking hot dogs. I wrote notes and tweeted along with the other participants.

It is interesting to hear about how other people cook their hot dogs. It vastly differs in different states. We are a mustard and ketchup household. We BBQ the hot dogs, toast the buns on the grill, and use these somewhat simple condiments. In other regions people use cheese, baked beans, onions, relish..as condiments and toppings. I would tell Angry Husband this along the way, and he would make a face.

Along with recipes and discussions about condiments for hot dogs, we received some great tips about budget friendly BBQ's!

*Plan a money-saving trip to the grocery store.

1. Make a list of everything you need before you leave for the grocery store.
2. When making your list, check your pantry, cupboards, fridge and freezer for what you already have.
3. Do you research. -Check out the store circulars and compare to see which products are on sale at which store.
4. Buying your meats at one store and your produce at another could save you big bucks.-Check your Sunday newspaper, magazines and online for coupons.
5. Surveys say that using coupons could save you 15-20% on your bill.
6. The average value of coupons today is $1.29.-Join your stores' frequent shopper card clubs for additional savings that can be combined with coupons.
7. Never go shopping when you are hungry.

*Best techniques for shopping once in the grocery store.

1. Don't follow the path that the grocery store lay out for you.-Stores try to steer customers to the produce department or bakery section first with their selective smells. They are designed with alluring deals on products you never thought about buying.
2. Start shopping in the middle aisles were all of the unemotional foods are (boxes, cans and jars of food). You can more easily avoid the store's marketing tactics there.-Once you've hit all of the aisles, the temptation of the produce and bakery won't be as strong.
3. Don't always trust that the promotions at the ends of the aisles are the best deal.-Take chips for example, a staple for your BBQ. I have seen huge displays of the large size at $3.99 a bag. But just around the corner on the regular shelf was a comparable brand, same ingredients, same nutritional and same size bag that were just $2.19.
4. Dairy case vs. cheese table.-Every BBQ must include cheeseburgers but cheese can be quite expensive. Keep in mind that cheese is sold in two different locations in the supermarket, in the dairy case and on the cheese table. An organic mild cheddar goes for $6.99 for 8 oz. on the cheese table, while the same-sized package of the store's private label brand, which is also growth-hormone free is just $3.29 a package.

Check out a great website, Simple and Delicious. It has great ideas for simple, quick, and budget friendly meals.

I'm trying to learn new ways to save money and to be a little more frugal. I'm going to start a series now with the all the tips I've been learning along with some things that the Angry Household is doing. It's going to be titled, "Angry Julie on a Budget". Stay tuned!

Photo from Hebrew National's site!

Maloof Money Cup 2009-Day 3 (Sunday)

Yesterday was the last day of the Maloof Money Cup. I was able to catch it late in the day, about an hour before the awards ceremony. The crowd was in full effect..it was a huge turnout. There were so many people, you had to push your way through. The sun was blazing also. I was seriously sweating and it was 5pm. Not pretty at all.

I was trying to get some great pictures, but alas there were so many fricken people...it was hard. I hard to push my way in through all of those "professional media types"..go figure.

I saw several of the pros posing for autographs and signing autographs. That was very nice. The little kids were stoked. I even saw a Sheriff's Deputy getting a shirt signed for her kid.

This was a great event and I can't wait for it to come back next year.

Oh, and I can say now that I've been there and got the t-shirt. I left with a black Maloof Money Cup shirt in my hand.

Here are the final results (from etnies' blog):

Men’s Pro Street

1. Chris Cole - $100,000
2. Tommy Sandoval
3. Nyjah Huston
4. Torey Pudwill
5. Ryan Sheckler
6. Sean Malto
7. Greg Lutzka
8. David Gonzalez
9. Paul Rodriguez
10. Mark Appleyard

Women’s Street

1. Leticia Bufoni
2. Lacey Baker
3. Elissa Steamer
4. Amy Caron
5. Marisa Del Santo

Men’s Pro Vert

1. Alex Perelson - $75,000 with a 900
2. Pierre-Luc Gagnon
3. Bob Burnquist
4. Andy MacDonald
5. Bucky Lasek
6. Adam Taylor
7. Rob Lorifice

Best Trick

Adam Dyet - $10,000

Zumiez Destroyer Award

* Torey Pudwill - $10,000
* Alexis Sablone - $2000 after a trip to the hospital

Maloof Money Cup 2009-Day 2 (Saturday)

Yesterday was Day 2 of the 2009 Maloof Money Cup. I wasn't able to spend as much time there as I did on Friday, but I ventured around a few different areas.

Not only can you see top notch skateboarding at the Maloof Money Cup but they had a great vendor's village too. I was able to walk through there and see some fabulous brands like, etnies, World Industries, Tech Deck, Oakley, Panda Express, and many more. They all had some great booths set-up. I saw that all the kids were hanging out at the Tech Deck booth, because they had some great mini-skateparks set-up. Plus, World Industries had some giveaways they were doing.

You can view yesterday's results here.

Oh, and while I was there...I just happened to see Snoop Dogg walk in. He was doing a little special concert for them. He sang some of his old school songs, which totally reminded me of my "younger days".

So on with the pictures....

Maloof Money Cup 2009-Day 1 (Friday)

The Maloof Money Cup is the premier showcase for professional skateboarding. The event was founded by Joe and Gavin Maloof, owners of the Sacramento Kings franchise. The three-day festival, and WCS sanctioned U.S. Skateboarding Championship, takes place July 10-12, 2009 during the opening weekend of the OC Fair. The Maloof Money Cup boasts the largest purse in the history of professional skateboarding with over $450,000 in prize money, while setting the benchmark at each prize level.

I went and checked out the MMC last night around six-ish. Every since attending The Clash at Clairemont in March, I have a instant love for skateboarding and skateboard contests. I headed over there with my camera, with the hopes that I could capture some great pictures before the sun went down. I've found that my best photos are taken during daylight. I have a slave flash but it's not fast enough for what I want to do at these shows.

I mostly concentrated on taking some good photos to share with my readers, and skateboard enthusiasts who want to check out MMC, but are not geographically close. I'm going to try and head out there again tonight also.

So here you all go, my photos of the Maloof Money Cup:

Blog was Down, but now Back Up!

My blog was down for a little over twenty-six hours. I have pretty much been freaking out for at least twenty of those twenty-six hours.

I could log into my Blogger Dashboard and type posts, edit posts, and see my reader. But I could not change my layout or see my actual blog. Every time someone would view the blog, they would get an error code from Blogger. I thought it was my domain host, it was not.

The only way to get it fixed was to post on the Blogger Help Boards. I think I posted at least ten times. There were several other people having the same issue. There is no other way to get things fixed with Blogger. No person to e-mail. No phone number to call.

Having this happen has put some thoughts in my head. I've been thinking about changing to Wordpress for awhile now. This incident might facilitate me to make the change. I had this discussion with another person using Blogger last week. If we make the change to WP, would our followers come on over. It is very easy to follow "Blogger Blogs" right now. All you have to do is click "Follow Blog" at the top of the page.

I just don't know if I want to make the switch, quite yet.

But seriously happy right now, cause the blog is back up!! I can be a functioning human again. Not someone is staring at the computer, and keeps hitting "refresh".

The Honest Scrap Award

Honest scrap award? Huh? When Kirsten Wright gave me the award, I got to thinking, oh gee. What do they not know about me? I'm an open book. “This award is bestowed upon a fellow blogger whose blog content or design is, in the giver’s opinion, brilliant.”

Thanks Kirsten!

Now, onto the rules of how it works:

1. “Nominate” seven more bloggers to spread the happiness.

• The Happily Ever Afters of the Lancasters
• A Dramatic Mommy
• Simple Queen Mumma
• Lee-Ann's Crazy Life!
• Restore
• Nautical by Nature
• Chic Runner

2. Tell ten honest things about yourself.

1. I have Adult ADD. I was diagnosed a few months ago.
2. I'm totally OCD about making sure everything is locked at our house (i.e. doors and windows before we got to bed and/or leave the house.
3. I hate when Angry Toddler's hair starts getting long. I get his hair cut every month.
4. I know the clerks names at several convenience stores in the city I work in.
5. I will only drink Aquafina bottled water.
6. I wear flip flops daily now. The only time I wear socks is at work.
7. I wear hair short, otherwise it would be in a ponytail every day.
8. I probably wear make-up like one time a month.
9. I have more running clothes than normal clothes.
10. I don't have a favorite restaurant that I like to go too. I'm good with whatever.

Discovery Science Center

Last Friday, my BFF and I, took the kiddos to the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana. It was my first visit to the Discovery Science Center. Angry Husband took Angry Toddler a few years ago, but thought that Angry Toddler was a little young at that time. Stacey also took Stella a few times, years ago too. I think that the kids were the perfect age this time, at four.

We started off our visit at the DSC by entering an approaching the Dynamic Earth Exhibits.

In the Dynamic Earth Gallery, YOU command the forces of nature as you explore ways the Earth changes. Make clouds, climb a mountain wall,walk through a tornado, and more! Most of the time, the changes happen so gradually that they are almost impossible to detect, even over the course of a lifetime. The mountains in our area grow a little every year as the plates in the Earth’s crust force them upwards. At the same time, these mountains are worn down by the effects of rain, wind and other forces. Scientists must use sensitive instruments to record changes like these.

Angry Toddler and Stella stayed in this area for at least 20 minutes. They were fascinated with it all. We then moved on to the Robots and Us Exhibit.

Angry Toddler loved the Robots Exhibit. He's way into electronics, just like Angry Husband. He was fascinated with how everything worked. He made sure to make his way through every station at the Exhibit.



We then headed upstairs to explore The Science of Hockey. Angry Toddler and Stella got to drive the Zamboni, shoot for the goalie virtually, and measure themselves up against some real life hockey uniforms. Angry Toddler really doesn't know much about hockey, so this was all new to him.

Protecting our Earth and its many Ecosystems was another limited edition exhibit.

Join Smokey Bear, Woodsy Owl, the Ranger and their forest friends at Discovery Science Center this summer to learn about protecting our precious Earth and its many ecosystems. Woodland, urban and river settings encourage families to spend time together outdoors and inspire children to discover and care for the natural resources that sustain our world – our home sweet home. Hands-on activities in each of these three areas demonstrate the importance of protecting ecosystems and highlight ways to reduce, reuse and recycle resources.

This was another special limited edition exhibit. Angry Toddler loved this one. It was more play, than science for them. It's a great one for the 4 and under crowd. There were a lot of hands on things for them to play with and explore.



There were soo many more exhibits that I could blog about, but it would take me all day. The kids loved the KidStation which was for the 5 and under crowd, and their huge outdoor exhibit, Dino Quest.

We will definitely visit Discovery Science Center again. Especially since Angry Toddler is way into science.

I found out that they have a membership program, which is pretty much like a season pass.

Plus, they have summer day camps for kids ages 5-13. This is very helpful to know since Angry Toddler will be 5 next year, and I'm already looking for fun things to do next summer.

You can also follow the Discover Science Center on Twitter.

BlogHop Tuesday: Favorite Picture

Welcome to Angry Julie Monday and thanks for visiting! I'm a married, working mom (law enforcement), with one son. We live in Orange County, California. I've been blogging for two years now and I love every minute of it.

We've probably taken thousands of photographs since our son was born. I have many favorites.

I thought that I would post a "recent favorite photograph". I took this last Friday, July 3rd. Angry Toddler (my son) had just gotten a fresh haircut the day before. I love when he gets a fresh haircut. He made the barber leave it longer on top, so that he could have a "mohawk".

He also was wearing a button-up shirt. He has probably worn a button-up shirt less than ten times since he was around two. I put the shirt on him and he did not fuss at all.

He got a little silly, since I was interrupting him while he was playing the Wii!!

Please feel free to stay awhile and check out my blog. I'm really not that Angry, only sometimes..

What a Long Weekend

I was off work this past week for five days. It was a nice break from my hectic schedule. Angry Toddler has been in swim lessons for the past two weeks, so we've spent most of our free afternoons driving him there. On Friday, Angry Toddler and I went to the Discovery Science Center with my BFF, Stacey and her daughter, Stella. I will blog about that tomorrow.

On the 4th, I started my morning off with doing the Surf City 5K in Huntington Beach. I've done that run the past three years at least. It's a fun run, not a race. I have declared it "not a race" because they don't use timing chips and my time is never accurate. This year, it was off by at least six minutes (epic fail). The good thing about the race is the costumes that people dress up in. It gets very patriotic. I wore some blue shorts, and a red tank top. It was soo hot during the run. But I finished. I came home and took a nap after. Angry Husband wasn't too happy with my nap, but I was.

In the early afternoon, we went to my BFF's parent's house. They have a pool, plus Angry Toddler's BFF, Stella would be there. The days of getting totally wasted on the 4th are gone. Now I all I want to do is look for events that will entertain Angry Toddler.

I got my entertainment very early that afternoon. My BFF's 50 year old aunt decided to a wear a thong bikini at the small family BBQ and pool party? Ummm, small children were present. We did not want to see that. She paraded around like nothing was going on. I made Stacey take a picture with her iPhone. I had to capture the moment. I TwitPic'ed it yesterday..you can find it somewhere on my Twitter account. I don't want to post it directly to the blog, so that everyone can find it. She left the party later that evening, but before that, she put some mesh pants over the thong. How nice of her.

Anyway, we had a good afternoon. Angry Toddler was able to show off what he learned at swim lessons. He's an expert at going under water. The kid who doesn't want his hair washed, will happily dive under, go figure.

Stacey's parents have a turtle pond, which Angry Toddler loves. Me not soo much..turtles kind of creep me out...plus they have a small swing set.



After leaving Stacey's parent's house, we headed to another party. My parent's friends were having a party at their house. We had to do a drive by and hang for at least an hour..Angry Husband and I were sooo tired.. We eventually left and made it home for our HOA's fireworks show.

I didn't take any fireworks pictures, because last year Angry Husband told me that my pictures sucked. I didn't even bother bringing a camera this year.