The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

The Top Ten Standout Features/Differences in the new T1 Trump Mobile Phone 10. Call-waiting isn't an option. If you receive a second call, and take it, the first caller receives the message, "You're fired." 9. The highest the battery can be charged is 45%. 8. The slogan will be, "Make America Great Again, Made in China." 7. The phones are designed to fit Trump's hands, so they're for ages 3-6. 6. It always blames others for glitches. 5. In order to use speaker, one must sign an NDA. 4. It prefers younger models. 3. If a woman aborts from a group-chat she was forced into, she will be imprisoned. 2. The ringtone is set to Trump repeatedly saying, "I love the poorly educated." 1. (drumroll) The voicemail will automatically say, "You've reached the stable genius. I'm probably home, but don't know how to work this stupid thing. Technology is so dumb sometimes. I know more about technology than the Amish do, believe me. I once da...

I can't tell you how many times a day I spot a person all over the road, and when I pull up beside them at a traffic stop, I see they're on their cell phones. No matter the hour, it appears as though half of this nation's drivers are drunk, and the chances are high they haven't consumed a drop of alcohol. Studies have actually showcased that drivers' delayed reaction times are similar when on their cell phones as they are when intoxicated. This may be why an increasing number of states are passing laws banning the use of cell phones while driving. As drunk driving is illegal, it wouldn't make much for a similar distraction to be legal. Millions of people around the world would give just about anything to have a vehicle or even just have the opportunity to drive. Such a privilege shouldn't be taken for granted. Not only are we putting our own lives in danger when we focus on our cell phones while driving, we're putting other people's lives in danger...

Kay Jewelers commercials have a tendency to make my eyes roll more than Linda Blair's doctors said they should, but their latest one really gets under my skin. In this commercial, a couple is sitting across from one another at a restaurant. As the man tries to get the woman's attention, he realizes the only way to do this is by texting her, since she's ignoring him while texting on her phone. He finally gives up any and all other options, and texts her with the message, "Look up." At this, he finally has her attention, she looks up, and he provides her with a gift from Kay Jewelers. The commercial then closes with the tagline, "Every kiss begins with Kay," as the couple takes a picture of themselves kissing with one of their phones. If that's not "romantic," I don't know what is... Based on this very commercial, if the trend continues, the next one will go something like this: Bruce Altiny: ::texts his girlfriend:: "Read ...

As regular, long-time readers of this blog will know, I've had some issues with regard to playing Zynga word games on my Android phone through Facebook over the past month or two - most notably, Words With Friends (Scrabble) and Scramble With Friends (Boggle). Well, it appears as if the games are working again, for now anyway. Words With Friends was going pretty slowly, though, so slowly, I decided to delete it and just play it from my computer until the problems are fully fixed. Scramble With Friends, meanwhile, appears to be going slightly more slowly than when I was playing through my Google account, but to this point anyway, it's playable.  Anyway, I just thought I'd update Zynga word-game players out there whom were having similar problems as I was. It appears as if the games are not in ideal playing shape yet, but things are heading in the right direction again. Hopefully that trend will continue and the games will run smoothly again before too terribly long.

Is it just me or are smartphones too touchy? What I mean by that is, how often do you not remember pressing any button on the phone, yet find a way to have clicked on an application, gone online, or made a phone call without your knowledge? With my old phone (when I say old, I mean almost ancient), I could have left it in my pocket, dropped it several times, pressed a number of buttons, yet nothing would have happened. With my new smartphone, I'll check it every few days and see that I accidentally called someone I hadn't spoken to for many years while my phone rested in my pocket. Well, I thought it was resting. Apparently, it had other ideas. One of these days, my uber-touchy smartphone will likely get me into trouble. While watching a movie with my girlfriend at her place, I'll receive a strange call from an ex I hadn't spoken to for a couple years. She'll then leave a message which says, "So, I saw that you called yesterday and..." Yeah, that's g...

I'm starting to become more and more disappointed with the Zynga game Scramble with Friends (Boggle). When I first started playing about a year ago, there were only three potential power-ups on which a player could use his or her 15 tokens. Also, a person could play a maximum of two power-ups per round. Then a 4th power-up was added and for three extra tokens, a player could have a third power-up for a round. Then a premium was added, where a player could pay money (actual money) to earn a mega-freeze power-up, which gave him or her an additional minute of playing time in a round. A practice mode was now just added. For the cost of 3 tokens, a player can play a practice round. With all of these additions and the cost of each, it's starting to look more and more like Zynga is trying to almost force players to spend actual money in order to regularly compete with the best. Now, I'll admit that I'm a great player. I've never lost. However, I'm also not going to f...

I am unashamed to admit that I'm a nerd. My idea of a good time is playing a word game like Boggle or Scrabble. Thankfully, I (and many others) can play such games via Facebook and/or my (our) cell phone(s). While it seems that cheating has become more commonplace in these games (Words With Friends in particular) than San Diego has had nice weather, I've yet to give in to that craze. One element present with the game Scramble With Friends (Boggle) not present in Words With Friends (Scrabble) are legal boosts called "power-ups," which cost a number of tokens from the 15 available. I've now tried all five power-ups, including the latest one which costs money. So, in case anyone's curious about playing the game or giving these power-ups a gander, here's a rundown of them all: Freeze - I think this is probably my favorite of all the power-ups. With the freeze, time stands still for a matter of seconds, which allows you more time to find words and improve...

Upon going to a bar last night, I overheard some people talking about the "Obamaphone" - a program they claimed had started under President Obama - which provides free cell phones to low-income Americans via taxpayer money. I had merely heard about this through the grapevine and while my BS radar was going off upon haring about it, I still hadn't researched the matter greatly. I decided to stay quiet last night until I researched the matter further and decided to finally do that this afternoon. So, what's the real story? As my gut instinct told me, it's nonsense. Courtesy of the fact-checking site, Factcheck.org , the following was reported: "Q: Has the Obama administration started a program to use 'taxpayer money' to give free cell phones to welfare recipients? A: No. Low-income households have been eligible for discounted telephone service for more than a decade. But the program is funded by telecom companies, not by taxes, and the president...

I held off for so long with regard to getting a smartphone. I just wasn't very interested. I'm at the computer all day. Why would I want a miniature computer with me for when I go out? I want to get as far away from that thing as possible. I had always used my cell phone for two reasons - 1) To make calls and 2) To receive calls. That was it. I really had no interest in anything else. Three months ago, I finally gave in to the crazy and got a smartphone. I still don't use it nearly as much or for as many reasons as most people I know do. I may Google something once in a while, play Words or Scramble With Friends and make/receive phone calls, but that's about it. Three months later, I have to say - I'm not all too impressed with this smartphone (smartphone, in general) and am not thinking it's the brightest crayon in the box. In just the past week, it's froze on me and I've had to remove the battery and put it back in place in order to restart and get i...