My House Is Not A Home

I think that my home is a good representation of myself, although I'm not sure if that's a good thing.

I've noticed over the years that when I move into an apartment, I tend to leave my walls bare, buy cheap furniture, and do very little nesting. Some of my friends thought that was odd, and I never understood why until a few years ago. Most people want to settle and make a place their own. My MO is to move around after a few years, so my dwellings reflect that tendency. Why spend time and money on a place if I'm just going up and leave in a few years?

Many probably think my transient lifestyle doesn't make sense, but it's always worked for me. Until now. While I enjoy moving from place to place, I've also had the need to eventually settle down, and I'm starting to think that time is near.

The crazy thing is, I don't think my end destination is where I'm currently located, so my apartment will remain unvarnished for now.

My New Toy: Roku XDS vs. Apple TV

'Tis the season for frivolous spending, and right now I'm trying to decide on which unneeded hi-def media player to buy. So far the two contenders are the Roku XDS player or the new second-gen Apple TV. On paper, it looks like the Roku player should win hands down, but as always it's hard to say no to Steve Jobs.

Over the last couple of months I've tried to ween myself from Apple and it's flashy yet expensive products. I went with the Android based HTC Aria over the iPhone 4, and I keep choosing PCs over the sleek and stylish Macs. Unfortunately, I'm always drawn to the darkside that is Apple (while I like my Aria, I should have bought the iPhone 4), which is why I'm kicking around the idea of buying the Apple TV.

Today, the Roku XDS seems like a better buy. It can stream Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon VOD, and other specialty channels. For me, the biggest draws are Hulu Plus and Amazon VOD because I'm looking for a way to watch and archive TV shows/movies I watch in a legal way (i.e. no torrents). I don't know if I'd actually use Hulu Plus because in the long run paying $9/month to watch a current season of shows would probably cost more than buying the episodes via Amazon. It also has a USB port so I can play video files I have on my hard drive but only if they're MP4.

On the other hand, Apple TV could do what I'm looking for from Roku assuming I don't need Hulu Plus. From what I've read, you can still stream content you've purchased via iTunes on the Apple TV if you have network sharing activated. So, you can still buy shows and movies on iTunes (like you can do on Amazon), and stream them over the air instead of having a cloud of media like Roku.

Really, which one to go with depends on whether or not I'm planning on buying other Apple products. If I end up with an iPhone 4, iPod Touch, or iPad then it would be better to have an Apple TV because of the ability to integrate with said products. I've thought about buying an iPod Touch since it's a better media player than my Aria, but I don't need a ton of features for on-the-go playing, and my phone is adequate. The only upside of having an iOS 4 device if the ability to have a mobile version of Hulu Plus and the iTunes store.

The thing is, I don't NEED either device. I have a Blu-Ray player that already has Netflix Instant and allows me to play video files (more than just MP4), and if I'm not going to sign up for Hulu Plus then there really isn't a point in buying either. Too bad I have this need to buy unnecessary electronics.

My Million Dollar Question

What would I do with a million dollars?

If I had a million dollars, the first thing I'd do is take care of my debt so I won't have to worry about it anymore. I really should have listened to the people who said having a credit card in college was a bad idea.

Once I've paid back what I owe, I'd buy a modest, but nice, house probably somewhere near the ocean. I don't know which ocean it would be next to, but I know that it has to be near the water. If I had to make a decision though, I'd probably end up going with Hawaii since I have family there. Works for me.

So debt's taken care of, have a place to live, next I'd probably do some investing/saving so I can live off interest rather than be stuck working at a job that bores me. I don't know if I'd have enough money to actually live off interest, but I don't need a lot to be happy, so I figure I could make it work.

More than likely I'd spread the wealth by helping out family members with things they need and donate some to worthwhile charities. It really is good to give back you know.

Finally, I'd probably travel for a bit. Ideally, I'd hit up my dream vacation spots that I've written about here before. Again, I wouldn't need to travel in luxury, but getting out and seeing the world is a must.

If I had any left over change, I'd think about starting up a business of some sort. Something that would challenge me creatively and tap into what I love.

That's all do-able with a cool mil, right?

My Two-Cents on Halloween

This may sound odd, but I've never been a fan of Halloween. I think my aversion to the "holiday" has to do with the fact that I never had a traditional Halloween while growing up.

I lived in the country outside of a West Texas city, and while we had neighbors (we didn't live in the middle of nowhere) we never really partook in activities that kids who lived in actual neighborhoods did like Trick or Treating.

If I strain myself, I can remember going Trick or Treating only once during my childhood. My lack of participation in the ritual had nothing to do with my parents level of love for me; it just wasn't as easy to go house to house out in the country. The funny thing is I don't feel like I missed out by not having traditional Halloween memories.

My dad was an elementary school principal, so instead of bugging my neighbors for free sweets, my Halloweens usually involved me going to school carnivals every year. These festivals were the highlight of my Octobers, and I never needed Trick or Treating to be happy.

As an adult, my need to celebrate Halloween diminished even more. Maybe I'm a stick in the mud or something, but adults have turned Halloween into just another reason to get drunk, dress like prostitutes, and act a fool. The only difference between Halloween and any other night out is you get to see half-naked women at the start of the night instead of at the end.

My dislike for Halloween really kicked in once I started working for residence life departments at universities. For some reason, I was always on-call during Halloween weekend, which meant I had to deal with drunk college students more than usual, and this time they were dressed up like naughty cops or nurses while throwing up. Not fun.

I don't begrudge those who live it up during Halloween. They have every right to have a good time, even if it's not my idea of one. That being said, part of me does wish I was more into Halloween than I am. Ah well.

My Radio Silence

It looks like I haven't had anything interesting to write about over the last month. I wish I could say that I had too many things going on write entries, but unfortunately that's not the case. My life so far has pretty much revolved around work and family. All great things, don't get me wrong, but not the most interesting blog subjects...at least not lately. Hopefully things will get interesting soon.