For as short as it was, the trip to Niagara Falls (on the Canadian side) from August 10-11 was pretty nice =) We needed our IDs and birth certificates to get in, and mention anything that we were taking with us (that we didn't have before) when we left.

After checking in to our hotel, dropping off what we didn't need for the moment, and taking what we did, we went to the Falls, and were taking pictures throughout the trip. We got on the "Maid of the Mist", swaying around a bit as we're not used to being on boats - there were times that the disposable raincoats they give you come in very handy. After getting off the boat, one of the first things I did was see a snail on a wall, and took a picture of it =P Later, we went on a tour behind the Falls, which was also interesting; late at night, the Falls were illuminated, and it looked real neat - if you ever see it, take a few pictures.

On Sunday, I went into a casino and played a few games there - it's the first time I could actually gamble in a casino! I would've tried playing the card games, roulette, craps, or any of the other non-slot-machine games there, but the lowest bet that can be made on any of them is $5...and the slot machines to the entrance took nickels and quarters, so you can guess what I spent the money on - unfortunately, I rarely won, and quickly used up most the money I had alloted for this. I still had some when my parents got back, though, so it it lasted longer we expected - though if I was at an arcade instead of a casino, I could've made that money last a lot longer ;)

After that, we went to a wax museum (Louis Tussaud's Waxworks) and got a few interesting pictures of the figures there, including certain ones for certain relatives. Afterwards, we took a ride on a cable car, and before we left, we all went on a helicopter ride - it's amazing how small everything looks from one when you're that high up in the air =D

After that, we came home, got ready for bed, and I got ready for the last two days of my job in the Commissioners' office before heading down to the Treasurer's office starting mid-week.

Also, in other news, I've been doing more work on my character Wolfey, namely fleshing out his background (which in turn will do the same for one other character who doesn't have much of a background himself...), as that's one of the last few things to get ready before I make his character-hood official. His "History" section will be greatly reduced, as a multiple-chapter story that I've been working on will take its place. The story's already complete in its raw state, but will need to be revised to follow the setup I use for my other stories before I'll upload it. Unlike the previous ones I've written, some of the restrictions I usually follow when writing them have been loosened, so it's a bit more...mature than what I usually write. If you've seen what I write, though, you have nothing to worry about - I just wanted to let you know of this ahead of time ;P

As always, click on the link below to see what else I did recently:

(more...)

I've been really busy lately...I spent practically every moment after work during the last full week of July to help my Mom get her 30^th Class Reunion book ready in time for her reunion. This week was spent helping make signs (at the last minute, no less) for the Folk Festival around here.

Speaking of things having a number (or numbers) followed by two letters in superscript...My parents are going to Niagara Falls this upcoming weekend for their 25^th wedding anniversary! Their actual anniversary is this Tuesday. Not only that, but they're letting me come, too! =D

Also, last Wednesday, I got some RAM (a 512 MB module, to be exact) I had ordered earlier in the week after coming home from work. Combined with the 512 MB module it already had, I've noticed quite an improvement in performance from certain programs (namely those that ran slowly or wouldn't run at all beforehand), as well as the fact that the system didn't slow down a bit at times like it did before (which, if I understand correctly, is due to using the full capacity of the physical RAM and needing to switch to the page file on the hard drive when more memory is needed). I had originally placed the order on Crucial's site before and wondered why it never came - turns out it was voided due to something with the credit card (this has happened with other products from other companies as well), and I ended up having to order it from a reseller they mentioned instead - but either way, I got what I wanted, and it works just fine =)

For more information on what I did the past two weeks, read on:

(more...)