I'm rescheduling Top 5 Tuesdays to every other week. To get you through the transition, here's Mike's list of top 5 Mac apps.

I'm running a bit late this week, so this will probably be quite short.

Curt Schilling
Mr. Schilling is probably best known for his recent World Series win with the Boston Red Sox, but he also garnered some attention by testifying before Congress about steroid use in Major League Baseball. He was born in Anchorage.

Scott Gomez
Also from Anchorage, Mr. Gomez is well known for winning a Stanley Cup in his rookie season with the New Jersey Devils a few years back.

Carlos Boozer
Speaking of sports, Mr. Boozer now plays for the Utah Jazz (used to play for the Cavs). I remember watching him dunk over players from my school when he played for Juneau-Douglas High. He led JDHS to the state championship game a couple times, I think.

Jewel
Jewel spent a reasonable amount of time in Homer. She's more infamous than famous in Alaska, though. After she got on MTV she started saying she was from California (where she moved when she left the Last Frontier) and canceled two concerts in the 49th state. I'm willing to bet she has yet to perform in Alaska since her break. Then again, it doesn't seem like she's doing much performing anywhere these days.

Sen. Ted Stevens
As chair of the appropriations committee, Sen. Stevens is one of the most powerful men in the Senate. He secures a lot of funding for projects in Alaska. I like the fact that he has an Incredible Hulk tie that he wears when he's expecting a tough day on the Senate floor.

I know there are others, but those are the five most famous that I can think of right now.

It took me several tries but I've finally done it. I am now licensed to drive in the Peach State.

The first time I went to the DMV was a Monday in November. It turns out that the office I went to is closed Mondays. I found this out after the hour-long trip by foot, train and bus.

The office was open the second time, but I didn't have the requisite paperwork (birth certificate, social security card, proof of address). It turns out I didn't have a copy of my birth certificate, so I had to order one.

The third time I went, I put my birth certificate and social security card in my bag and went on my way. I was about to get on the bus (after walking and riding the train for 30 minutes) and realized I didn't have anything with me showing my current address. At least I didn't get on the bus and waste another 30 minutes each way.

Today, I finally remembered all my paperwork and even stopped by the ATM to make sure I had cash for the fee -- turns out this DMV is a cash-only establishment. I even brought a book and my iPod because I knew there would be a bit of a wait. I arrived just after noon and took my number, F636, and sat down.

Long story short: After finishing the last half of my book, lots of iPod solitaire, a round of minigolf on my phone and more staring at a blank wall than anyone should do in a lifetime, they called my number. I filled out some paperwork then moved down the counter to sign my name, provide my index fingerprints and have my picture taken. A few minutes after that I had my Georgia license. Not including transportation, the process only took 4 hours.

I know the DMV is known for being slow, but I never knew how bad it really was. The only other DMV offices I've been to are in Sitka and Fairbanks and I guess there just aren't enough people in those places to generate the kind of backlog that takes 4 hours to get through.

I couldn't help but wonder why states haven't figured out how to speed up the processes of issuing licenses and registrations. Perhaps the first step is to fully staff the counter. Only half of the available stations were staffed 90% of the time. For an hour or so, all but one of the nine stations were staffed. I would think having the extra stations open would pay for themselves. If each station can serve 3 people an hour (very conservative estimate) and a license costs $15, that should provide way more than enough to cover the costs of the labor.

While I waited, I remembered a line from Dane Cook about how DMVs should hire someone to punch you in the face when you walk in the door, then waiting wouldn't seem so bad.

I think the most significant development of a person's musical taste begins in high school. It's a time when most people are starting their first jobs and beginning to purchase their own music. College is a time for enlightenment and refinement, but only after the base is established in high school. With that in mind, here are the top five albums of my high school years.

Weezer
This is still one of my all-time favorite CDs. In fact, I think this is the first CD I ever bought. Surf Wax America was the first song I heard and I was hooked. Maybe its because I listened to it so much, but I don't think Weezer will ever be able to top this CD.

Green Day, Dookie
I'm pretty sure this was my first introduction to hidden tracks ("I was all by myself"). But Basket Case was the defining track; I can still hear the guitar riff even though I haven't actually heard the song in several years.

TMBG, Lincoln
I remember I had this one on tape. I can still sing along with every song on this album. I used to be able to recite the lyrics without musical accompaniment, but now I need a guiding track (isn't that what the kids are calling it these days?). I first got hooked on TMBG in junior high when I heard Pencil Rain -- "They're searching the yonder blue / They look out for No. 2" -- but it was Lincoln that provided my fix throughout high school. My yearbook quote is actually a line from this cd: "Every jumbled pile of person has a thinking part that wonders what the part that isn't thinking isn't thinking of." That's some legacy.

Live, Throwing Copper
I don't have a lot to say about this CD, I just remember playing it. A lot. I haven't heard any of these songs in a long time, but I know it was always within reach.

Star Wars: A New Hope
No, not the John Williams score, the actual movie. I dubbed the movie from laserdisc to two cassettes (2 hour movie = 2 60-minute tapes). I don't know what happened to the first tape, but the second one was better anyway. For some reason it was usually one of the only tapes in the car, so it got played a lot. Needless to say, there was a point where I could recite the movie with little to no prompting. It was also fun to drive during the TIE fighter/X-wing dogfights in the assault on the Death Star scenes -- "We're going in full throttle, that oughtta keep those fighters off our backs" -- while crusing down Sawmill Creek and Halibut Point roads at 40 mph.

I've just finalized transportation arrangements for the North Spring 2005 Tri-State Tour.

April 14: Transit ATL-PDX-SEA
April 17: Transit SEA-PDX
April 22: Transit PDX-ANC
April 24: Transit ANC-FAI
April 29: Transit FAI-PDX
April 30: Transit PDX-ATL

This schedule is subject to change without notice. All sales final. Not valid with any other offer.

In chronological order (I have some pictures of the second and third ones on the list but they're prints and/or slides which are still in boxes)...

Green Day, Anchorage
This was the first "real" concert I ever attended. I was seated in the second tier near the back, so I couldn't see very well. It wasn't until after the show that I learned that no matter what your ticket says, you should try to get into the festival seating (standing?) area.

Depeche Mode, The Gorge
Traveling with friends to The Gorge was a great trip. It was the end of July and the weather was beautiful. I wasn't as big a fan of the band as my friend, but it was still a good show. Since we got there a day early, we camped out and I spent the next day in the sun. I didn't really notice until it was too late, but I got the worst sunburn of my life that day.

Matt Hopper and friends, Healy
Healy is about 120 miles from Fairbanks. I skipped out on the first half of my shift at work to ride down with Mike and see Matt Hopper and Jared Woods. It was a pretty uneventful ride down, but when we got there, we could hear air leaking from Mike's tire. We knew it would still be there after the show so we went in and listened. Afterward, Mike tried to use a can of Fix-a-flat to get the tire stable. Several people walked by and made insightful comments like, "Looks like you've got a flat." A fellow Fairbanksan let us borrow their jack and we changed the tire and made it home A-OK. (This story is funnier in my head than on the screen.)

Sigur Ros, Vegas

I wasn't very familiar with Sigur Ros, but I trusted Chip's recommendation. I was not disappointed. The music was so moving and beautiful. The opening act, The Album Leaf, were also very good.

Blue Man Group, Vegas
Less than a week afte seeing Sigur Ros, we saw Blue Man Group. The show was much better than their Pentium adverts would lead you to believe. The aural and visual experience was mind-blowing. Since I was sitting in the third row, I was given a poncho to protect against any stray materials, but it was rather pointless, which was the only disappointment (and a very minor one).

I just finished my first boss battle, so I thought I would share some of my impressions about MGS3: Snake Eater.

Backstory

To get the most out of this game, you should be familiar with the stories and characters of the Metal Gear franchise. I recognize a lot of names and faces, but I don't fully realize their significance. I don't feel like I'm at a disadvantage, or that the game is different, but I know I'm missing some clues and possibly plot points that connect the games together.

This game takes place in the 1960s, and is full of humor related to that fact. The characters talk about the just-released James Bond movie and how it was so good that Hollywood will probably make 20 more.

Camoflauge

The biggest difference to me between MGS2 and Snake Eater is that there is no radar. Instead you get a camoflauge rating, and a handful of uniforms and face paint patterns. Throughout the game, you'll find new ones, like this Zombie pattern.

Not having a radar forces you to move through the areas much more slowly; You constantly have to switch to first-person view to look around for soldiers that might be just beyond your field of third-person vision.

Survival

MGS3 also introduced the stamina guage. If it drops too low, your hands will shake when aiming and you won't be able to swim or hang from ledges very long. Eating replenishes stamina and you can eat pretty much anything: snakes, crabs, mice, rabbits. Some taste better than others and increase your stamina accordingly.

You also have to heal your wounds. After a firefight you may have to treat your gunshot. After swimming, you have to burn leeches off.

Overall

So far, this is one of the funnest games I've played. It's a slow-moving action game, which is challenging, but not throw-your-controller-against-the-wall impossible. The most frustrating thing is that many actions require half-presses of buttons, and holding them in the half-pressed position. When you're holding down L1, R1 and R2, it's hard to hold square half way down to aim, then press it all the way down to fire, but only release it half way to keep your sights targeted.

Considering I just fought the first boss battle and I've been playing the game more than 5 hours, I think I have plenty of "tactical espionage action" ahead.

(Please comment at GameThumb.)

This is a stereotypical "I'm redesigning the site, please bear with me" blog post.

Update March 5:3 a.m.: The front page is starting to come together.Noon: The front page is really starting to come together.4:20 p.m.: All pages stable. Only housekeeping tasks remain.