In 1513, the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce De Leon set sail to present-day Florida in search of the fabled Fountain of Youth. It was believed the legendary, curative spring water from the fountain reputably restored the youth of anyone who drank of its source. It promised rejuvenation, eternal youth, wealth, and prosperity. Regretfully, Ponce De Leon never encountered the Fountain of Youth. Instead, in his attempt he did discover Florida, now the site of Disneyworld- the Magic Kingdom at it’s best.


Even to this day, the age old quest to regain youth and vigor remains an unquenced thrist. Today, people continue to seek a quick fix, placebo resolution. They buy products ranging from caffeine-loaded energy drinks, to power boosting, supplemental tablets, hoping with unrealistic expectations and to only end is despair, disillusionment, stress, and addiction - a vicious, downward, spiraling whirlpool cycle. Nonetheless, the million dollar, uncorked, bottled-up question prevails. Does the ultimate answer lie in a sparkling, luring never-found fountain?


There is a recent and convincing research indicating there is an answer. Several studies have shown that active, inquisitive minds can reduce e some of the negative side effects of aging, even delay the onset of dementia! In addition, a mind proficient in more than one language is further empowerment to staying young. In a new yet archaic alternative, there exist an interactive, delightfully stimulating process which not only re-energizes the elderly, but just as importantly bridges the generation gap between young and old. This dynamic, engaging exchange is facilitated via “dichos”, which can now be easily and readily accessed in a family-fun, interaction board game named “Dicho Al Hecho” ©.


The “dichos” are proverbs and sayings in Spanish. Their communicative intent is to instruct, nurture, and teach, valuable lessons. These lessons are based and founded on wisdom and life experiences stemming from past generations. Because “dichos” have been in existence for centuries, they serve as landmarks for clarity, guidance, and learning.


The “Dicho Al Hecho”© board game allows for time and attention directed t words the “dichos”. The participants in the game are able to reflect, gain insight, and build on indispensable knowledge base as they actively maneuver their way through the game board. There is enjoyment and long-lasting rewards within the 20-30 minute period of time outlining the “Dicho Al Hecho”© game. It truly amounts to a win-win experience for everyone, making it a desirable pastime entertainment and educational tool to be played again and again.


In all, this fusion and bonding between the new, old, and past generations is pivotal. The “dichos”serve as a fertile common ground and restorative panacea, rich with tradition and valuable life lessons. They are the ideal ingredient cultivating longevity and fueling the necessary vitality to move forward, prosper, and advance to a higher continuum- a true Fountain of Youth. After all, isn’t youth and happiness a state of mind?






Hasta la Proxima! (Til Next Time)

I don’t quite know what to say.  My mother always told me that if I didn’t have anything nice to say then I shouldn’t say anything at all.  But in the interest of good journalism, I can’t very well publish a blank page now can I?  Push will go down as one of the worst movies to grace the silver screen in 2009.  It was two hours of major disappointment with a plot so thin that it makes Kate Moss look like a contestant on “The Biggest Loser”.  The plot is simple. The world is full of people with super natural abilities. The super secret organization called Division wants to control these people and use them to create an army of super soldiers. Division has been testing a new drug that will enhance these natural abilities and make them stronger. However, the drug carries one minor side effect: the subjects die.  That is until one test subject manages to survive and escape with a sample of the magic drug.  The concept seems more suitable for a TV show like Heroes rather than a big screen adventure.  There were too many pieces to the puzzle, creating a literal sub-culture of super humans and no time to focus on them.  A Watcher sees the future.  A mover uses telekinesis.  A Pusher has the ability to push thoughts into one’s mind.  A Shadow has the ability to hide people from Watchers and Sniffers.  A Stitch has the ability to heal.  A Screamer uses supersonic sound as a lethal weapon and last, a Sniffer has the ability to track anyone with their scent.  Whew…  Too bad that only a few of these classes are really focused on in the movie.  One rule of filmmaking is don’t introduce characters unless you intend to focus on them.  Otherwise, the story seems watered down and unfinished which is exactly what Push comes off as.  Luckily there are a few fight sequences between the main character, Nick, and another “mover” that will make you think twice before sneaking into “Paul Blart Mall Cop”.  They do some interesting things with telekinesis, guns, and a crumbling ceiling.  After that fight, I recommend taking a nice long piss break.  Maybe play a round of Tekken in the lobby.  Eat a hotdog, drink a soda, then come back and watch the final fight at the end.  Like every other action film, its epic.  Apart from that, just remember that you skipped school, paid matinee price, and it should ease the pain a little.

Not too long ago, a little game entitled Grand Theft Auto IV just barely made headlines enough for it to creep its way up the ladder to being one of the most successful video games to ever grace this generations presence! Too bad half of you out there never even played the story-line because blowing up 16 cars on a bridge at once with a rocket launcher and then watching all the mutilated bodies fly through the air and splat on an office building half a mile away was just too much fun. Disgusting. You know who you are. Well, it appears that the folks at Rockstar are making it worth your while to replay your GTA. GTA IV: The Lost & Damned introduces a brand new story in the world of Liberty City. Liberty City as you well know is a pretty damn big place. You don’t have to be a genius to know that Niko isn’t the only person in town with a story to tell. Many of you will remember biker, Johnny Klebitz, from the main storyline of GTA IV. He fought alongside Niko for a while before betraying him. Yeah, that Johnny. Now his story will be told through an epic-sized download exclusive to the Xbox 360. PS3 owners are just going to have to wait. After downloading TL&D, players have the option of freely switching between both games. Save, load, good to go. Although set in the same universe at the same time, each game is its own unique, distinct experience. Game Informer was lucky enough to land a sneak peek (as usual) at this sure to be masterpiece. Right off the bat, one of the noticeable things about the new DLC was the improvements made to the Rage engine. While GTA IV looks great, Rockstar has applied various tweaks and upgrades to the engine alongside a new cinematic filter and revisited HUD visuals to really set the proper mood for the game. Johnny is in a biker gang after all. Things are a bit grittier, a bit tougher. The text in the menus is distressed, and even little touches like enemy health bars in the target reticule have been adjusted, taking on a look not unlike a camera shutter (or rifle barrel). Our demo started off in front of the Lost clubhouse (the exterior of which can already be seen in GTA IV), where Johnny and the gang hang out and raise hell. This is just one of many safe places for Johnny to hang out and play new minigames like arm wrestling and hi/lo cards. We found out that Johnny is just the acting president of the Lost and the real man in charge Billy has just been released from prison. But while he was locked away, Johnny had been forming alliances with the other gangs in the city trying to cut down on the bloodshed. Apparently, Billy has other ideas.  And apparently so does Rockstar, and it appears this might be their best one yet.

Sometimes, you just have to say “What the #*&%?”  There is no doubt the motorcycle craze has completley swept through the U.S.  Just walk down the street wherever you are and count how many ninja like Suzuki warriors you see screaming down the highway.  Now tell me how many of those bikes have one wheel.  ”What the #*&%?”.  My thoughts exactly.  The “Uno” does actually have two wheels set side-by-side, but aligned so close together that they may as well just be one big tire.  Developed by 18 year old Canadian inventor Ben Gulak, his pet project was the talk of the town at the 2008 Motorcycle Expo in Montreal.  Not only admired for its innovative design it is in fact so simple there are no controls except for an on/off switch.  To move forward you simply push your body weight forward to tilt the machine. To back up, just lean back on the seat to tilt it and back it drives. The farther you lean in, the faster it accelerates in that direction.  Glenn Roberts of Motorcycle Mojo Magazine explains the physics of the controls:  The gyro tells the ECU how much to accelerate and that in turn delivers the proper amount of current to the electric motors, one for each wheel.  So basically, its a big ass Segeway.

2008 brought home future classics like: Fallout 3, Gears of War 2, and Grand Theft Auto IV (still can’t get that 6th star), making it obvious the video game train isn’t looking to hit the breaks anytime soon.  2009 looks even more promising than the last year, building up anticipation for blockbuster titles like Resident Evil 5 and Halo 3:ODST.  Not to mention that talk is beginning to swirl around Microsoft’s next console installation, having the XBOX 360 blowing out candles on its fourth birthday this year.  The biggest speculated addition to the working titled “720″ is a large upgrade in RAM across both the CPU and graphics memory.  While most high end PC’s sport 2GB’s it is perfectly feasible for the “720″ to carry a 4GB capacity. I haven’t been this excited about the video game world since the days of the original Playstation, and for good reason.  With the market exhibiting cut-throat competition between Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo all vying for your lawn mowing allowance, price cuts across the board are on schedule by this summer.  Just in time to spend vacation the way it was always meant to be spent.  Who says I need to get some sun?  It just burns me anyways.

3, 2, 1, Happy New Year! Wait, that was last month? It can’t possibly be. It’s almost February and all I’ve done to keep on track with my new years resolution of getting into shape is…well…nothing. I haven’t done a damn thing all year except pray that trading in one six pack would provide me with another. I think God hates me. I suppose if he’s not going to magically provide me with my lost speed, agility, and sex appeal, I will just have to regain it myself. Nay, the Perfect Pull Up will do it for me.

Since joining team Stardum I’ve been hooked on the Perfect Push Up for quite some time now. Simple, ergonomic, and affordable, The people at Perfect seem to know what they’re doing when they make their products. Hell, it was designed by a former Navy SEAL platoon commander. You going to say he doesn’t know what he’s talking about? That’s what I thought. So many people are impressed by this system, countless retailers such as Sports Authority, Modell’s, and Fodog Sports are flocking to warehouses to stock up on this years hottest product. They describe The Perfect Pull-Up as using the latest advances in biomechanics and engineering to replace an entire home gym for the upper body and abs. Unique features include twisting handles on adjustable swing arms that attach to the pull-up bar to maximize muscle motion. Ball bearings allow the handles to rotate a full 360 degrees, allowing your arms to move naturally, reducing joint strain. The best part is, it fits right in your doorway. It’s designed to power even the toughest training, with strong steel construction that supports 300 lbs. per handle. That’s 600 lbs. total for those of you in “special” math class.

The Perfect Pull-up combines two exercises, the chin-up and the pull-up, to achieve a total core workout. The swing arms make it easy for beginners to execute pull-ups while standing on the floor but don’t cheat yourself out of a workout. That’s why you purchased this system to begin with. Once you’re confident in your abilities, try testing your skills on the Navy SEAL inspired workout chart and brag to your buddies how you could have been a SEAL too. Damn college just got in the way.

Admit it.  At some point in time we all have created our own “Zombie Armageddon” survival plan.  Some would play it safe and hunker down with enough food and water until they could be safely rescued.  Smart move.  But who’s gonna rescue you if everyone else has the same plan?  How long would you wait?  A week?  A month?  The better question is, how long would you survive?  An hour?  Maybe two?  That’s when you realize you’ve been Left 4 Dead.

The only thing better than an automatic shotgun is four automatic shotguns.  Take control of one of four survivors, Bill, Francis, Louis, or Zoey and find your way out of the city alive.   Not that hard right?  Just make sure you steer clear of the hordes of zombies, lightning quick Hunters, razor tongued Smokers, a nut-sack ripping Witch, and Uncle Boomer who can’t stop puking all over your new work boots.  Don’t piss off the Tank either.  He’s grumpy in the morning without his coffee.

Sound impossible?  That’s why teamwork is the most essential weapon in this game. Just like in real life, no one possesses any special abilities so everyone must stay close and work together to make it out alive.  Apparently, most of the on-line players I encounter don’t understand this concept, (FARTfignewton69), so please be a trend setter and help your downed comrade every once in a while.  Controllers are expensive and I can’t afford to keep replacing mine.

All-in-all, Left 4 Dead is an intense first person shooting experience.  Not much to say about the story line but in a game like this, it’s expected.  Multi-player mode is more fun than a hooker on a Tijuana Tuesday night, especially when you’re playing as the Infected.  The video game world is finally realizing that some of us are done being heroes and want nothing more than to see the heroes fall, screaming and pleading for their lives while zombies rip apart their limbs one by one and chomp down like it’s ribfest at a summer BBQ.  Or is that just me?

4/5 STARdums

I have had a lot of energy drinks in my time but nothing like the Energize Bullet. I was driving home from work with a few co-workers at around 2:30am and we decided to stop off at a 7-11 to get a drink. I went to get my usual Dragonfruit Vitamin water when I saw the Energize bullet. I instantly knew I had to try it out and do a review for Stardum. So lets get the bad out of the way so we can focus on the good. This drink tastes horrible. It tastes really sugary and so far only comes in one flavor so maybe in the future this bad taste will be fixed. That is actually the only bad thing about this drink. It promises no jitters and it delivers, it also promises no crash and also delivers on that. The little vile it comes in also says that the container is “virtually indestructible”, the only way I was able to break it was by running it over with my car. The bottle says 8 hours of energy and its not too far off. Now granted this is going to affect everyone differently. I drink a lot of energy drinks so I drank the whole vile at once, but the suggestion on the label informs you to drink half. It does have a bright yellow caution label around the top as well warning you to be over the age of 18. Again like most new energy drinks it warns you to not drink it if you have heart problems, if you are pregnant, if you don’t react well to caffeine etc… The drink is very fast acting and begins to take and effect in just a few minutes. So for on the go energy it is the best drink I have had so far, it delivers on everything is promises, and is quick and painless. I have only found one 7-11 anywhere around my area that carries it so your best bet to find it is maybe a GNC or just buying a case online.


4 Out Of 5