Netflix on Roku update

I use the Roku player to watch Netflix on my TV, and they are releasing an update that you can read about at HackingNetflix. I was reading the comments and I came across a way to get the update early from a post on Roku's forum.

Basically, go to the Roku settings menu and try to update around 3pm 5/28/2010.

update 3:11 PM - I was able to update an my software version is 2.6 (2.5 previously)

Churchill and World War II

I just finished a fascinating book about England's role in World War I and World War II. Churchill, Hitler, and "The Unnecessary War" by Patrick Buchanan takes a fresh look at England and its leader Winston Churchill.

He makes a strong case that Britain got itself involved in European conflicts thus turning them into World Wars. The analysis of the War Guarantee given to Poland before Hitler invaded made it clear helped me see the conflict in a whole new light.

Google Voice

I got a Google voice number, and set it up with my phone. I am very intrigued by the possibilities here. Voice mail transcription alone might be worth it.

Not only does it email you the text, but also a link to play back the audio. I'm not sure how useful having a new number will be, so we shall see as they say.

Champions League Final

Today, Bayern Munich will play Inter Milan for the UEFA Champions League trophy. I think Inter will pull out it, but this should be a good game.

More interestingly is all of the TV coverage. FOX has had the TV rights this year, so FSC and FSN had had all the games this year as opposed to ESPN2's coverage. The big thing here is that the final is on FOX. FOX has never had a soccer game before, and this is after it was announce that FX would have the final last fall.

FSC has had plenty of pregame analysis this week, and they were also able to show replays of the games over the course of the season. Lets just get FSC in HD in more areas, and the champions league will become much more popular in the States.

Inter 3 - 2 Bayern. I could be wrong.

SA@TAC - No Mercy for Incumbents

I love the line about Specter. He "simply quit Burger King to work for McDonald's where he could offer up the same low qualtiy product, just under a different brand."

World Cup fantasy game

I setup a World Cup Fantasy games on yahoo.com today. You pick the result for each of the games, and it should be interesting. Stephano is going down.

Test for twitter

I wanted to try twitter, so this is a test.
mattlaurenzano is my twitter account.

Proverbs 13:20

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

The books of Proverbs is amazing. Every time I read it, it feels like I learn something new.

Proverbs 31:10-11

An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.

God has blessed me by providing a woman who loves God and serves her family. Isabella is so lucky to have her.

5/7/2010 Debt Snowball

Our debt snowball is down to just unde $11,000. If things work out, we will be clear by the end of the summer.

My goal is total weirdness. Normal sucks.

Tacoma City Marathon finish

They had some photos from the my half marathon and this was from me crossing the finish line.

More here. Of course, they charge an arm and a leg for them.

Tacoma City Marathon

I ran the Tacoma City Marathon today - I did the Half Marathon. It was a cool overcast day, which made for great running conditions. This was also the farthest to date I have run in my Vibram KSOs. I had a good race, finishing in 1:41:08 which was a little behind me goal of 1:35. The last 2.5 miles or so were mostly up hill, so that probably didn't help.

I had a bunch of funny looks an a couple people asked me about my Vibrams. My feet felt pretty rough afterwards, and I had Andrea take a picture of them when I got home. The picutre didn't come out too well but my feet looked roughed up:

Update 5/3: The dark spots on my feet are lint and other leftovers from my Vibrams.





While I was running, I was thinking about the great quote from Chariots of Fire:
When I run, I feel his pleasure.


I also listened to a lecture by Tom Woods during the race, and it made me laugh that I listen to my favorite Economist to keep me going. I have written about woods before, and I am looking forward to his new book. I also listened to most of Brian Regan Live, which is a great comedy album.

I am planning on doing another official marathon in June, so we'll see if I can improve my time for that race.

As of 4:40 PM on 5/2/2010 these numbers are unofficial. I will update these if there are any changes.
My time was 1:41:08 and I finished:
Overall for the Half Marathon: 89th/1016 which is in the top 9%
For Men: 72/400
For my age division: 12/57



The results can be viewed here

I was bib 1529.