Shawn Smith’s web ninja life

You didn’t think you’d ever see the day when I joined the ranks of smart phone users, did you? Well, maybe you did, but I’ve really been holding out for quite a long time.

I wanted a phone that did streaming video straight to the web, but I didn’t see it from the Blackberry storm and not the new Nokia N97 either. So, I bit the bullet.

After getting the error message on my old clamshell saying it wouldn’t charge, I decided to just go buy the iPhone. So here it is:

It seems pretty nice so far. But I’m stil looking for someway to get video on the web quicker.

Looking for a super friendly Chinese/Vietnamese restaurant with good food? Try out Paradise Restaurant on Eisenhower Parkway in Ann Arbor.

I had heard from friends this place was good, and it might just be the best Chinese food in the entire city, Kyle and Amanda say. I haven’t eaten enough Chinese in the past 5 years to really make the call.

I will say the wonton soup was fantastic, and the kung pao chicken didn’t skimp on the peanuts (thankfully). The portions weren’t as huge as Gourmet Garden on Stadium, and my combo meal came with fried rice instead of regular white rice.

One thing I did notice, the patrons were mostly white. Usually, I would expect more Asian diners in an Asian restaurant. Here’s the video from inside:

Give it a try if you haven’t been there before. The staff is very friendly and it’s not too expensive.

It’s been about three years since I’ve worn glasses, but I’ve needed them for a long time. After doing some Google searching and reading reviews about Ann Arbor optometrists, I decided to visit Ann Arbor Optometry, headed by doctors Christina L. Curcione and Jennifer M. Sortor.

Nikki and I booked Dr. Curcione because of her web reviews, and we were really happy we did. Curcione allowed us to be seen together and was very friendly. She had a great story about how the practice came together that is truly inspiring for anyone looking to start out in business.

Without further adieu, here’s my new specs:

I have to admit, my eyes hurt for the first day of wearing my new glasses. The change to being able to actually see was straining. I adjusted in about a day and my vision makes me feel like I’m seeing things in HD

I’m not going for contacts since I’m scared to touch my eyeballs, plus, I look pretty good don’t I?

Congratulations to Carl Rose, who drove all the way from St. Louis to prevail as this Thanksgiving’s winner in the turkey-eating contest. Carl pulled out all the stops by acquiring a drum stick, which he ate with his bare hands!

The contest really turned into a showmanship battle between Rose and Jordan Alvarez, who sadly couldn’t keep up with Rose.

Here’s the video of Carl getting crowned the champion:

There’s a bunch more photos of our football game, the turkey frying as well as how to carve a turkey. (more Thanksgiving photos and videos)

We played Guitar Hero most of the evening and rocked out like crazy. Dr. K. also explained the secret to the perfect cookie salad.

See more photos from Jordan’s flickr

My second visit to Dimo’s gave me a chance to try something truly special, the #13 (I think ). Their hot pastrami sandwich is a dish that’s been missing in my heart for years – after all, I was vegetarian for 5 years up until recently.

While sometimes bordering on the pricey side, Dimo’s piles its food baskets with tons of edibles.

Order a sandwich and you’ll be lucky to eat half of it. The hot pastrami I ate cost about $8, but I was able to save half of it for a second meal. Sandwiches usually come with a bag of chips. I don’t usually eat those so we skipped them on this day and stuck with our french fries.

Choose from a variety of bottled beverages or get one included with their daily lunch special.

Once you order, you get to pick a seat and wait for your order to be called by the friendly staff. But don’t pick up the wrong sandwich or you might get yelled at, and that’s part of the fun.

Here’s a look from my recent trip:

While walking to my co-worker’s car yesterday, we were nearly blinded by the huge fluffy snow that was falling. While this wasn’t the first snow, it was one of the more picturesque snowfalls I’ve been able to capture. Check it:

Mahalo friends. My coworkers grabbed me today for a great lunch at Ann Arbor’s The Blue Tractor, a new place owned by the owners of Grizzly Peak and Cafe Habana.

Take a quick tour of the inside: (more pics and vids at Blue Tractor’s dishes

Now that you’ve seen how nice it looks inside, check out the menu:

Ann Arbor’s Blue Tractor Restaurant Shows Off Interesting Menu from shawn smith on Vimeo.

Is your mouth watering yet?

The Blue Tractor, overall, is really a nice looking place. And what’s super cool is the restaurant connects to Cafe Habana through the basement. Check out this quick tour of the basement region:

Hope that was great for you as it was for me… I’m heading back for dinner tonight!

We were working pretty hard on Election Day when we heard screaming emanating from the streets. Chants of “USA! USA!” bounced around the office, sneaking in through our open windows.

So I ran to the street to get some video so you could see it

Isn’t that so awesome?! Check it out:

Another video:

See more of my Election Day videos.

I voted, everyone! Kyle (brother), Andrew (roommate) and I got in line at Ann Arbor Pioneer High School at about 6:30 a.m. The polls didn’t open until 7 a.m., but the line snaked through Pioneeer’s halls with about 200 people by the time we arrived.

Many people were sitting in chairs, and the guy at the front of the line got there at 5:30 a.m. because he had to work at 7:30 a.m.

The lines inside the school’s gym were a mess and I thought ‘if this is what it’s like in Ann Arbor, today’s voting is going to be a catastrophe.’ But luckily I was suprised by relatively smooth voting on Election Day.

Here’s a video report of me after voting. More videos of Election Day and me!

Hope you all had a great Election Day. Go Future!

When I saw Mashable was sharing invites to the new TheKarokeChannel.com website, I knew I had to get on it immediately or face the wrath of Nikki.

It’s a pretty cool site. If you’re really into singing in front of your computer and spend too much time searching for lyrics and instrumentals, then this is the place for you.

Check it out