Things video games have taught me

• If a door's locked, return to it later. In general, things that seem impossible to accomplish can be overcome if you consider the problem, and apply hard work, when you leave it alone for a while.
• The instruction manual is your friend. Most of the time, reading the directions now may help you with a key ingredient to success. Maybe not now, maybe not on your first or second life, but some time, some day, the manual will come in handy.
• The larger the food, the more energy restored. The opposite seems to be true on Thanksgiving though.
• I can double-jump in mid-air. Usually, this helps me cross large chasms, especially when running around in spooky castles or spaceships.
• Weapons can be found anywhere, but the ones found in treasure chests are harder to find in stores. Stinkin' second amendment.
• Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, A, B, Select, Start. This will always help in a jam, and has helped me (in no particular order) get out of a Spanish test in 10th grade, evade a police cruiser, remember the combination to the lock on our apartment storage locker, sharpen a pencil, and create my recipe for chili.
• Zombies make up the rules as they go along. It's always best to identify which type of zombie you're encountering before you dispatch of it. Some zombies are allergic to sunlight. Some are cyborgs. Some die when you remove their heads. Some don't.
• In a street fight, chains deal exactly as much damage as knives. So really, it just comes down to personal preference. If you can throw the chain, then bully for you.
• Conscription. Constitution. Ocarina. And many other words I otherwise would not know the meaning of if it weren't for the character stat menu screen.
• There are two types of old men. On the one hand, there is the doddering old tinkerer who is meant to add comic relief to my otherwise serious quest for a princess, artifact, or power source. The other will tell me a story about a legend from long ago that no one but me will take seriously. Then to everyone else's surprise, his story checks out. In either case they have white flowing hair.

Sunday morning at the Mahoney household

Why is it that whenever my hair's a mess I look like I'm up to something?

I don't know much about it, but I love it.

The Wizard of Oz is sacred ground. Especially when it comes to the silver screen.

So what has me so jazzed about this new project to create a new Wizard of Oz movie? Well, for one, it's closer to the author's original vision of what that story was.

It also made me think of my own story.

Years ago, I began a children's book. It's a project close to my heart. It also was waylaid to life getting in the way. Yet I say to people that I'm working on a children's book.

I am, dammit. It's about time I start acting like it.

So with this image in mind, and this passion to bringing a beloved tale to life, I hope to make my own tale breathe.

Starting Saturday.

Third decade starting ... now.

Here's an example of what Age 30 looks like.

So I'm 30.

Marcy asked me the other day if 30 was how I'd expect it to be. The problem is I never really made many plans past age 30. I said I'd be working toward my Pulitzer by age 30, have a book written by age 30, and get on the cover of a cereal box by age 30.

I've only hit one of those goals.

So now, I guess it's time to take a breath, and look around, and see what I've been doing all this time.

From the looks of it, some pretty good stuff.

I may get hit with space trash.

Um ... NASA is tracking a piece of space trash the size of a fridge that is going to enter earth's atmosphere tomorrow. They're tracking the trajectory so that they can warn people where and when it's going to land.

NASA better have my cell number.

And this story says an astronaut "jettisoned" it in 2007.

All I'm saying is, if it lands near me I'm jettisoning a foot in someone's butt.

The world's best sauce recipe. And it's yours for free.

In less than a week, I'll be 30.

Times like these make a guy reflect on his life. Makes him want to give back. This morning I bought four canned goods and gave them to the Boy Scouts outside the grocery store. I had to - they had me at knifepoint and said if I didn't bring back peas for the Food Pantry, they'd find where I live. The short one was real mean.

Anyhoo, in the spirit of birthday giving, I've decided to give back to the community. By that, I mean the community of faithful Blurb readers who've stuck with me all these years.

At about this time in 2006, I told you of a traditional Irish meal I was serving to some guests. Well, the time has come to share that recipe with you, free of charge, as I listen to some traditional Irish music on my couch. That would be Death Magnetic, the new Metallica album.

Mama Mahoney's traditional Irish Spaghetti Sauce with Meatballs

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

MEATBALLS:
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. italian sausage (more if you want to add in a few sausages on their own)
1 tsp garlic powder
Dash of black pepper

SAUCE:
2 12 oz. cans of canned puree
2 12 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes
olive oil
4-6 cloves garlic
1 large onion
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp basil
2 tbsp oregano
4 tbsp parsely
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 bay leaf

HOW YOU'LL COOK IT

Combine the ground beef and 1 lb. of sausage (discard the skins). Add in garlic powder and sprinkle in pepper. As you combine the meat, gradually add the bread crumbs. Take some of the mixture and roll into meatballs about 1 and a half inches thick. Should make about 15-20.
In a large skillet on medium heat, brown the meatballs on three sides, leaving one side slightly undercooked. If using sausage, brown them on all side in the same manner.
Leave meatballs on a plate covered in paper towel to dry. Set aside.

In a large pot, heat olive oil on medium heat. Add onions, saute until brown (season with some salt and pepper). Add garlic, continue cooking for another minute.
Gradually stir in puree, then crushed tomatoes, then puree, then crushed tomatoes. Add salt, sugar, and spices.
When sauce comes to a boil, add meatballs (and sausage if you've got it). Reduce heat to low.
Cook for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, stirring occasionally. If using particularly fatty beef, you may need to skim fat as it rises to the top.

Serve with pasta and garlic bread. Add a salad beforehand, and for dessert, a parfait. Everyone loves a parfait.

My modeling days

I've started male modeling.

What can I say? When you have a mug as good-looking as mine, everybody wants you.

I've already had calls from Donatella, Calvin, and Isaac.

I'll be moving to Paris shortly, but I won't forget you little people.

I've begun my portfolio here.