I spent the last two weeks in the US of A, and I am finally home. The U.A.E. that is.

Reader be warned, this is going to be a mega "I haven't updated in a long time" update.

The biggest news of my trip, my grandmother passed away. Shortly after I landed in Pittsburgh, to be precise.

I don't really know how to discuss the impact her death has had on me, and frankly, I still don't even know what it means to me.

I've always felt close to my grandparents, and my grandfathers death was pretty devastating to me. Grams death doesn't seem to hurt quite as much, perhaps because I sort of knew my visit home would be the last time I got to see her.

I am disappointed I didn't get to see her for more than a year, and I do wish she'd been able to hold on just a little longer.

When grampa died, there was this sense of finality. Sitting in their house, I knew I would never hear him again, I felt real physical pain. With gram, well, it's different.
At her house (now owned by my cousin), I kept expecting to see her round the corner. Even two weeks later, as I was getting ready to head off to the airport, I looked in the atrium expecting to see her sitting there. I realized a moment later, dully, that she was dead. She wouldn't be sitting there.

"Oh." And then I moved forward. I didn't feel sad per se, or even confused. Perhaps a little embarrassed that I'd forgotten.

While home I had two big purchases on tap. The first, a Macbook Air (aka Airbook). Let me start by saying I am very happy with it.

Eight days after it's purchase, I managed to drop it on the brick floor of my grandparents atrium, bending in a corner and marring it's beauty.

Two days later, in the Charlotte airport, I managed to fling it from my accidentally open bag. Watching it sail through space at shoulder height, I realized that perhaps I was just not meant to own such a sexy piece of hardware.

I assessed the damage, physically seeing red with embarrassment and anger. I sprung a hinge, bent all four corners, and when I powered it on, half the display was dark. I squeezed it together as best I could, and headed off to NYC.

Exhausted and disgusted, I didn't even bother to take a second look at it until I was safely tucked on the plane to Abu Dhabi. I worked carefully with my (smuggled on) leatherman, basically taking the whole thing apart. Thank god biz class has so much room. After bending the bits back I could, I fired it up. Not only did the whole screen work again, but it closed (and slept) correctly.

It's ugly, but it's still thin, and it's still mine.

My other big purchase (physically) was rock band. Have you ever tried to fit a drum kit (toy or otherwise) in your luggage? Brother, it ain't easy. But I did it.
So now I finally have Rock Band.

And the critics are right, the RB Guitar pretty much sucks. It's a mixed bag I suppose, I can actually hit the orange fret button without moving my hand, but I find myself hitting a lot of other buttons accidentally while playing.

And the games timing is completely whacked. In the span of the last two weeks I've played on an OG cathode TV, rear projection DLP, projection LCD, LCD and my projector. Either the game is just broken at it's core, or the "lag adjustment" presets are completely whacked.

And I don't seem to be alone. Everyone I've spoken to echoes the same thing. The game is off, even if only by the slightest bit. Sure, you learn to live with it, but it's aggravating, especially when you switch back to Guitar Hero.

I would argue in the favor of the developers that this is the freshman effort, but let's face it. Half the devs for Activision were on board with the Guitar Hero projects previously. The lack of polish is pretty inexcusable.

And WTF is with the ridiculously short USB cable on the bundled hub? Adding an extra two feet or so really can't add much to the cost or packaging.

The big verdict? The game is fun, and I will continue to play it through. But it could have been better. The game itself lacks polish, the drums need an adjustable angle, the guitar has had a wealth of issues, the guitar should be compatible with Guitar Hero, the hub should have a longer cable, the mic should (at the very least) have a button for confirming menu selections, the list goes on.

I guess the good news is that the aftermarket OEMs are bound to release better quality gear, and RB2 will no doubt improve on the overall game experience. Here's hoping at least.

I also got to drive Astro MINI while I was home. God I love that car. "The Company" has agreed to ship it over here, which is great news. Unfortunately, I am still waiting for the bank to send me the title. As soon as I get it, on a boat Astro goes.

I think I may end up selling Astro while he is here though, perhaps towards the end of my tour here. My plan is "borrow" a new model from the local dealership, beat on it for a few days, place an order with a state-side dealership, and arrive back in the states right about the time it does.

Of course, that's all a long way off.