1. Pack9

Welp. N.C. State Baseball couldn’t get it done in the NCAA Tourney. The Pack survived a crazy, weather dictated weekend while hosting the Raleigh Regional but ultimately fell to Coastal Carolina in the regional final. Despite that, I’m proud of the team for what was accomplished this season. The Pack9 team is filled with great guys, all of whom worked hard this season. Although it didn’t turn out the way I wanted, I’m still proud of ’em. Go Pack! 

2. Bulls Host DURM Night

You know I’m for supporting all things local – and this is wickedly awesome! Durham-based brand Runaway worked with the Durham Bulls to present “DURM Night” at the ballpark on Thursday night. The night celebrated everything about the city of Durham, with Bulls players donning special uniforms that were auctioned off for charity and much more. Runaway is a lifestyle brand founded in 2011 by visual artist, Gabe Eng-Goetz. The brand sells a collection of items that highlight not only the city of Durham but North Carolina as a whole. Runaway recently opened a flagship store, where else, but in the heart of Downtown Durham and I stopped by there today to make my first of what I’m sure will be many purchases. I encourage you to check out Runaway and also check out the awesome story of how the DURM Night collaboration came to fruition.

3. Happy Trails, Tom Suiter

Tom Suiter, a longtime sports anchor for local station WRAL, announced his retirement on Monday. Suiter has spent his career not only reporting on everything sports but also hosting the station’s Football Friday show for 35 years as well as honoring a local high school student each week with the “Extra Effort Award.” As a sports junkie and journalist myself, I’ve always looked up to Suiter and enjoyed his reporting. He will be missed but I wish him all the best in a well-deserved retirement!

4. HRC the Nominee?

On Monday, before any of the Democratic primaries this week, multiple media outlets – spearheaded by the AP – reported that Hillary Clinton had garnered enough delegates to become the “presumptive nominee” for the party. It’s time to bring out the Lee Corso…NOT SO FAST! In my opinion, mainstream media has carefully executed a dastardly plan that has catapulted Clinton to the top while leaving fellow Democratic candidate, Bernie Sanders, behind. Let’s take a look back to when Martin O’Malley (remember that guy?) was in the Democratic race. At debates, very few questions were directed his way. Now, in all fairness, Sanders has gotten some attention at the debates but was it truly to highlight his platform or was it to make him look inferior to Clinton? In my view, I say the latter.

The Democratic race is not over, although mainstream media wants us to believe it. Sanders said he will take his campaign all the way to the convention in July and I’m right there with him. As far as the election goes, Clinton will have to do some major work to convince me to vote for her. I’m a lifelong Democrat but as of now, I’ll be writing-in Sanders if I have to or voting for Jill Stein, a Green Party candidate who shares many of his views. People say voting in that manner and not voting for the Democratic candidate instead is actually giving a vote to the opposition. Wrongo! A write-in or third party vote is a vote for that candidate. Period. I shouldn’t have to conform to the wishes of the Establishment and vote for a candidate for whom I do not agree with all for the sake of “uniting” to defeat the opponent.

5. Computer Woes Update

I love giving (positive) updates! A couple weeks ago, I wrote about some trouble I’ve had with my laptop. Well, after days of researching, I purchased a new laptop! I got the ASUS Vivobook E403SA. It’s not top of the line but it’s a solid performer for its price range ($399). The Vivobook has received great reviews from several computer publications and is a LaptopMag.com Editor’s Choice. Better still, I purchased the “Signature Edition” from the Microsoft Store which means the laptop doesn’t have all of that bloatware crap that you’ll typically find if you get one straight from the manufacturer.

This is my first full day with my Vivobook – I’m typing this post on it, actually – and it’s been really nice so far. It’s not blistering fast but definitely fast enough for my needs and I love the design both aesthetically and functionally. It’s lightweight, very portable and features a fanless design (extra points for that), yet the laptop barely gets warm while in use. Plus, I’ve been on it for several hours today and the battery life is holding up nicely – in fact it’s still sitting comfortably at 10 hours remaining. Awesome! My only knock on it so far is the rubber grips on the bottom of the device could be better. The device slides pretty easily on surfaces. Not a deal breaker by any means. I’ll keep you guys posted!

Thanks for Reading