Post number 500 tonight! Thanks for reading.

- I picked up the entire three season run of the original Star Trek series on DVD from Barnes & Noble.com for a mere $80. They were selling the set for $123 and with my membership and an online coupon I had I got the price down to what I paid. The episodes look great and they are uncut, unlike what you usually get when they air on TV currently. Each episode ran about 50 minutes, as compared to around 42 minutes today. The difference is made up in additional commercials.

Many of the visual effects sequences are pretty grainy, even at DVD resolution, a limitation of the technology available in the 1960's. I can see why Paramount wanted to remaster the effects for an HD release, but I can't see any point in buying another set of these episodes. Star Trek has always been about character and story and new CGI effects, while nice, don't make enough of a difference for me.

- Red Sox tickets appear to be as popular as ever. The Sox sold out of 4-game Sox Paks and the individual game tickets they put on sale over the weekend. I spent 2 and 1/2 hours with both my Macs in the "Virtual Waiting Room" on Saturday before giving up. In any case, the Sox Pak I wanted was sold out by then.

The third place finish last season and the collective lack of excitement of Red Sox Nation with the signings of J.D. Drew and Julio Jugo has done nothing to slow down the demand for tickets. To be honest, the constant battle to get Sox tickets is getting pretty tiresome to me. Paying around $200 to take my family to a ball game and having to wedge myself into those chiropractors nightmares they call seats just isn't doing it for me any more. There are too many minor league teams around where I can see baseball for less money and hassle. I'm sure I'll get my hands on tickets to a few games next season, but I'm not going to go crazy trying.