Like food?  Like Star Wars?  Does the idea of a Wookie Cookie sound too good to pass up?  Well then I have found the product for you over at Powell’s Books, salivate away…

Galactic Recipes at their Finest

Check it out!

Geocaching…if you’ve never heard of it, don’t worry, you are undoubtedly in the majority. It is a great treasure hunt activity using portable handheld gps units to find the “treasure” or cache. There are close to 900,000 hidden worldwide, so it is an activity that could potentially take up a good amount of time. I am relatively new to the geocaching scene, so cannot effectively communicate the big picture, but here is a short summary of how things seem to work.

First, and most importantly, you must have a portable gps device, my blackberry does the trick. I downloaded the Blackstar application from the Blackberry app store (for free), and it worked right away and without any problems. Secondly, you must have an account at Geocaching.com (also free). Once you have an account, you can search by zip code and it will list for you the caches in the area. At this point, all you need to do is put the gps coordinates into your gps device and enjoy the hunt! Typically, the gps will get you within ten feet or so of the cache, and the rest is up to your “caching instincts.” The individual caches vary in size and difficulty. This information is available to you on the website when you view the cache and the coordinates. Once you find the cache, just log your find back on the website, and it keeps track of all of your finds for you.

Another fun thing about geocaching is that you can hide your own caches and log them on the website for everyone else to find. If you have a great hiding spot that is close to home, or that you travel past frequently, hide a cache there for everyone to enjoy! Make sure it is somewhere you can visit frequently in case there is a need for maintenance.

One of the best things about geocaching for me is that you go places that you never would have before. I haven’t found many yet, only 14, but I have seen things I never would have seen if it weren’t for geocaching. For example, a great organ donor monument and small park in Columbus. There are also trackable items that you can place in the caches (assuming they are large enough to hold them). By entering the code that is on the trackable item, you can see where it has been, and where it wants to go…hopefully you have the ability to help it along its journey.

My experiences geocaching have been few, but always fun. I am officially “hooked.” Join and add me as a friend, I’d be glad to compare notes.

Good news all of you Whedonites, Dollhouse has been renewed for a second season!  I, for one, could not be more excited.  The show was really hitting a great stride towards the second half of the first season, and everyone I talked to was enjoying it.  Joss reacts to the news of his show being renewed over at The Live Feed.

In other news, Chuck has also been renewed for another season.  I do not watch this show, but I know that my counterpart does so I shall post the news here as well.  I watched the first season on DVD, and enjoyed some episodes very much, but they were too few and far between for me to really get into the show.

Just a quick happy Mother’s Day to all of the mothers reading (which I could only assume is a very small number). Enjoy your day!

Columbus needed one point in three games to get into the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, and last night they got it – with an exclamation point.  It is very fitting that the Columbus Blue Jackets captain, and the face of the team, scored the goal to put the Jackets into the playoffs for the first time ever.  Rick Nash tied the game last night against Chicago late in the third  period with a backhand shot that snuck past Chicago’s netminder, and just like Rimmer said, I’m not sure he could raise his hands any higher in celebration.  The guys have worked hard this year to get to this point, and now it all pays off…now lets see some great playoff beards!

Congrats to Penn State for being “the best of the rest,” with a hard fought win in the NIT tournament championship game.

This past Friday’s new episode of Joss Whedon’s “Dollhouse” turned a mediocre and entertaining show into a good, possibly great, show. Part way through the episode I began to expect some important characters to begin dying, but what actually happened was far better than I could have imagined. I like the direction the show is taking, and cannot wait for Alpha to be revealed (Alan Tudyk – crossing my fingers that the rumors are true).

Mr. Whedon continues to amaze me with his character development. Just as you begin to enjoy a character for who they are, they become awesome (typically by the way in which they die, but not always). If you still haven’t fallen in love with every character in “Firefly,” you should watch the series. I cannot imagine how a person would not enjoy that show. It has a good story, great cast, and every character is one to enjoy. Joss Whedon continues to impress with the characters in “Dollhouse,” even if the show is not as good as “Firefly” was.

If you haven’t caught any of the show, I believe you can catch up with most of it on Hulu – www.hulu.com (I would put a link in there, but that seems to be an issue with my blackberry, so you get the web address instead). For those of you out there who are not Whedonites, new episodes are on Fox every Friday at 9:00, enjoy the show!

[Update: Now that I'm at my PC, here's a link for you.  Hulu]

It’s that time of year again. The NCAA basketball tournament is here yet again, and so far it has been a fun ride. Office and facebook pool titles are being hotly contested this year since there haven’t been too many cinderella stories. In fact, I would argue that the sweet 16 doesn’t have a single cinderella. The top three seeds are still going in each region I believe, but that hasn’t robbed us from any excitement. As per usual, there have been a plethora of close games, including some overtime (and double overtime) games.

I am currently in several pools, and am near the bottom in every single one of them. Try as I may, I never seem to do very good with these things. I am typically somewhere in the upper middle of the pool standings, but this year I am doomed to finish at or near last place in every single pool that I am in…very sad considering I follow college basketball fairly well throughout the entire season. Oh well, there’s always next year!

It was unfortunate to see Ohio State bow out in the first round, but a big congrats to the Bucks and Thad Matta for another successful season. It amazes me to watch Thad Matta turn a mediocre team into a 20+ win team – a testament to his great coaching ability. Granted, this year there was a decent amount of talent on the team, and they possibly could have done better, but a great job nonetheless. Hopefully we have some key players return and our great incoming freshman class lives up to its hype. Here’s to another NCAA tourny appearance next year!

On another sports specific note, the Jackets are continuing their excellent play. They are keeping a step ahead of the 7th and 8th seeded western conference foes, and with 10 games left, hopefully will win at least half of them and get into the playoffs for the first time in franchise history! I think Columbus is ready to support a playoff hockey squad, I keep seeing more and more Blue Jackets gear all around Columbus, and hope to see much more! I don’t know how difficult it will be to get tickets, but I would love to be able to make it to a playoff game.

Hart may have a point, I should possibly be making posts about our beloved Columbus Blue Jackets.  So here goes…

I think it is official, Columbus has the oft wished for Jackets fever.  It is a rare (one time occurrence thus far) disease whose symptoms include excitement, loyalty, paying money to watch hockey and possibly throwing a little Canada into one’s daily life (drinking a Labatt Blue, the occasional use of the term ‘eh,’ etc…).  The fans are finally getting some enjoyment out of some meaningful March hockey.  The Columbus Blue Jackets desperately need to make the playoffs this year.  Their fans have been very very patient, and have continued to attend games, even though their team has been fairly awful, and is the only team to have never made the NHL playoffs.  This year promises to be a year in which our playoff dreams become a reality.  I could think of nothing better for the city of Columbus than playoff hockey against our rivals from that state up North – the Detroit Red Wings.  Take advantage of Columbus’ already extreme hatred of all things Meeeeechigan, and use it to turn all of the casual hockey fans into die hard CBJ fans.  Now we just need everything to fall into place to make sure we get seeded correctly for such a matchup.

If you haven’t seen a game yet this year, you most definitely should.  The guys are playing with an intensity that has never been seen before from the Blue Jackets.  They have an increasing desire to make the post season, and it shows each and every game.  If you didn’t catch either of the past two games – an 8-2 victory over the Red Wings, and a 2-0 win over the Bruins – you missed out on some of the best and most entertaining hockey Columbus has ever seen.  Every game is broadcast on Fox Sports Ohio (FSNO), which is also available in high definition.  Games typically begin at 7:00 PM or later, especially on weekdays.  There are just about 15 games left in the regular season, and every point the squad can get is needed to stay in playoff contention.  Check them out, and catch the fever!