HDMI

The other day, my room-mate and I tried to watch 1408 on DVD - but the DVD picture wasn't working.  The sound was okay though.   So, after a bit of testing, I determined it was the HDMI cable that was the problem.   Which ticked me off cause those things are expensive.   In the short term, I swapped the cable with that for the cable box - and we were in business.  

(I went and got a new HDMI cable the next day)

So, with picture restored and surround sound cranked, we fired up the DVD and I settled in to enjoy a pretty good interpretation of a really good Stephen King story.

And less than 10 minutes in, my room-mate fell asleep.    

Now, 1408 is the story of a man vs. a haunted hotel room.   And the room pretty much destroys itself trying to drive him crazy.   Fires, floods, monsters, screaming - pretty much the whole package.    

I tried to wake him a couple of times and finally just gave up and woke him when it was done.  

Not too surprising, really - he fell asleep in the theatre during James Bond.  

later...

grandma, book, neighbor

I talked to my sister late last evening - she gave me an update on my grandmother.   Grandma isn't really doing better and although the doctors had said at one point that it might take 15 -20 weeks before she shows marked improvement, some decisions are already being made.   There's been discussion about her moving in with my aunt and uncle and then renting out her house and selling her car.

I'm getting all this 2nd or 3rd hand and I guess there's some tension building between my dad and his siblings.   I guess we knew and could see a slow decline, but this is... well... sudden.  

My sister and I are talking about taking a couple of days and going to visit - though the question suddenly becomes - "where will we stay?" - since we always stay with Grandma when we visit there.

Strange times.

I had a bit of a headache yesterday and had to lay down a bit  - fortunately, it didn't turn into a migraine.   I did some reading - a new book called "sharp teeth".   It's written in the style of poetry, which had me a little worried when I first opened it up, but it's an easy read and well put together.   And you really have to work at it to go wrong with werewolves.

The new neighbors were out in the back yard, and they failed the only test I have for neighbors. That being - are they quiet?   I'm pretty much fine with everything else - up to and including ritual sacrifice.   As long as it's done quietly.     And they weren't.  

I had a busy morning - but the afternoon is slowing down a bit.  Made some good progress on a big survey project and I've got to close down a ballot later today.  Just kind of in a quiet mode.

I guess that's it for now.  I think I'm going to try and write another twitter haiku. 

later...

eye, sunshine, books, pandemic

Friday afternoon, while still at work, my right eye started to swell shut.   I used to get this when I was a kid and even had allergy tests done that were inconclusive.  The remedy back then was Benedryl and sleep - and I didn't have much choice on the sleep part after taking the Benedryl.

So, when this happened, I at least knew what to do.  I stopped on my way home and got some Benedryl and took one as soon as I got in the door.

And though I didn't fall asleep, I was pretty much drugged up the rest of the evening.  I took another before I went to bed.  

On Saturday, I still wasn't back to normal - so, I took another dose.   Spent much of the day outside and when I was feeling a little better, I ran some errands.   Which was not the best thing to do.  I'm always a careful driving, but I could feel my reaction time was not up to par and took things extra slow.  I felt a little better after a snack and about a gallon iced tea from Wendy's.

Today, my eye is better  - almost back to normal.  I still don't know was causes this, but at least it didn't interfere with any plans.

It's been really nice outside the past couple of days and I got a little sun for my pale geek flesh.  I'm a ways from tan, but I think shorter doses will be better.

I've been doing a lot of reading this weekend, finished one book, read another cover to cover, and started a third.   Lazy weekends are made for sitting outside and reading.

I got a call from Mom this afternoon with some precautionary warnings about the potential pandemic.   I'm not sure if I'm going to be stocking up on food and water yet, but the Ohio case that's been found is in Lorraine county - which is not that far away.  

Not looking forward to work this week - got a couple more big projects and a huge survey to put together.

I think I'll play a little bit of a video game and call it an early night.  

later...

soccer, sisters, sick, sleep

I went to a soccer game on with my former room-mate's mother.   We were there to watch her grandson and although I enjoy her company, the tension between her and her son is starting to get to me.   If pressed, I think I could come up with what she had told me was the cause of their 'cold war' - but it seems so trivial.   So, I stood on the side lines near her - and because of that her son never acknowledged me.   I'm not really sure if he would have if she hadn't been there actually, but I like to think he would.    It's just... tiresome.  And I seem to be caught in the middle of it.   Not really sure what I can do about it.   And there are a lot of soccer games coming up.

While I was at the field, my cell phone rang.   The number on the caller ID was my sister's and when I hit the button to take the call, I heard a horrible noise.   It almost sounded like distorted words in with the buzzing sound so I listened for a minute before I figured out that it was the sound of a chainsaw.

This didn't really surprise me.  My sister and brother-in-law have a wood burning stove and they are always on the hunt for firewood.   Also, my brother-in-law really enjoys his chainsaw.  When the noise didn't stop, I figured I'd been called by accident and hung up.

After the match, I called my sister back and asked her how the wood cutting had gone.  She said it was fine, but couldn't figure out how I knew.  I told her that she called me and we got a good laugh out of it - though she's pretty sure her phone locks when it's closed  - partly ruling out "butt-dialing".   So, strange, but funny.

I did a little running around that afternoon with a few errands and got a little sun.  It was good while it lasted.  Sunday was gray and raining.

And Sunday morning started far too early.  I was still in bed a little before 9:30 and while slightly on my way to being awake, I was still enjoying being partly asleep.  And then the phone rings.   After a couple of rings, I realize my room-mate isn't going to get it.  I glance at the caller ID, grumble, and answer the phone with my most sleepy sounding hello I can muster.  The conversation goes like this:

Me: "Hello?"

My room-mate's sister: "Hey, are you awake?"

M: "Just barely and not happy about it.  Is this an emergency?"

M R-M S: "No. Bye."

Me: "I'll have him call you later."

(click)

Turns out my room-mate had been awake since 6:30 that morning, but was in the bathroom when she called.   When he called her back later, she made a comment of how it took him 5 hours to call back after I got over being pissed off.   (Yeah, it doesn't make any sense to me either)

Personally, if I had called someone and awakened them at a time when it would be usual for someone to be asleep - well, I'd be tripping over myself to apologize.    No such response.

For the record, I'm up at 6:30 every morning of the work week and on the weekend - if given half a chance - I'm going to sleep in.  Especially single digits AM.

In other news...I've been fighting a cold for the past few days and it got bad enough that I took some alkaseltzer plus cold.   I know people who tell me that it isn't that bad.   And those people are lying.     I did feel a little better though as the evening went on  - but ended up  having a bit of trouble getting to sleep. 

Which is not a good thing.   I've been having trouble getting enough rest for the past week or so.  I'm getting the same number of hours - but they aren't doing the job as well as they usually do.

Not sure what's going on with that, but I'm not liking the dark circles under my eyes or the extra-tiredness I've got going.

So, it's going to be a busy week.  I'm going to be in several day long sessions for evaluation of our website as the tech guy for the evaluation software.   And I'm really hoping it doesn't break.  So, lots to do today to try and get ahead.

later...

news, sleep, story

I got an update on my grandmother today - she's not recovering from her stroke as quickly as we'd thought she was.  Still some vision problems and some cognitive issues.    It's got me a little down.

I've also not been getting enough sleep recently.  There's been some work and family stress going on and though I'm getting the same sleep hours I usually do - they aren't working as well.    I've also had a bunch more dreams upon waking and though I can identify some of the elements from my waking world, the combination is disturbing and disconcerting.

In better news... I spent much of the afternoon outside when I got home from work.  Had a snack, did some reading - just relaxed a bit on my quiet back porch.   Wasn't quite warm enough to how shirtless and get some sun - but it was fine for t-shirt, blue jeans, and flip-flops.  

I've also starting kicking around a story in my head - a sort of modern day retelling of the myth of Pandora.   She's got a thing for containers and I can certainly relate.  I want to work on it in my head for a little while before committing it to pen - maybe I'll work on it on this beach this summer.

Time for another meeting... gotta run.   

later...

donations

Just a few minutes ago I got the last check from my list of confirmed donors.   Which is pretty cool and means I'll be sending off a packet tonight with the checks.    There are a couple other possibles, but I don't want to delay any checkbook balanceing for the rest of the people that donated.

Someone asked me today if I'll be doing this again next year and I think the answer is yes.   Not sure if I'll be trying to break any personal records, but it's for a really good cause and maybe I'll get even more donations if I get an earlier start.  I think my grand total is just over $513.

I've been fighting a headache most of the day today and trying not to let it escalate.   It will be good to get out of here and get home. 

later...

taxes, work, mood

I'm fully in favor of paying taxes.   I think it's a good idea and helps support a wide variety of programs I'm in favor of - as well as quite a few I don't care for but wasn't asked about.

What I despise,  though, are the accursed forms that are required.   I used Turbo Tax online for the state and federal and that wasn't too wretched - but the city of green has the worst form I have even encountered.   I'm a reasonable smart guy and I struggled with this one.

More than just the complexity - it was the attitude that got to me.   The form implied that the person filling it out was:

1) stupid

2) going to do something wrong

3) was going to be late

There were a lot of running totals to be kept and lots of "add line 1c and add that to the total of line f and 3b"   And at the bottom was the line for the assumed late fee and penalty percentage.   They made note of how you could request an extension, but you should pay the tax on time anyway since you'd get a penalty.   No word on how you'd figure that up if you weren't actually filing the form.

It wrapped up with a section where I could estimate my taxes in advance and pay that now.   But, due to their own form set up and verified on the online tool, I didn't need to.  

I don't know how long it took me to complete, but I ended up being cranky most of the evening.  

Also, some "stuff" happened yesterday where I was sort of called onto the carpet - in the nicest possible way - of some things that I had done "wrong".    I wasn't given clear guidance in advance of how to  handle the situation and it all seemed pretty subjective to me.  When pressed, I was finally given the information on how to do it right - but it left me feeling a little out of the loop and cranky.

Seems like the theme from yesterday.   Cranky.     I even tried wearing my silly hats, but I couldn't get in the mood.   Is my whimsy suddenly broken?  Is a tax form and a slight at work all it takes?   (sigh)

In other news... I kicked some ass with the Legend of Zelda, watched a couple good episodes of Venture Brothers, and did some reading.   It wasn't a really bad day - all things considered - but I was in a bad mood none-the-less.   

I guess I can blame part of it on the weather - yesterday it was mostly cold and rain.   Today it's started with sunshine - and rain.    

Well, enough with the complaining  - there are people far worse off than I am.   Time to get back to work and get some shit done.

later...

visit, game, grandma,

I visited my parents, my sister, and brother-in-law this weekend for easter.   We went to the 1/2 priced bookstore and then over to Micheal's Crafts - I bought some foam hats.  (which I'm planning on wearing here at work since I freqently tell people "I wear a lot of hats")

We also played UNO, Dominoes, and a new game called Zombie Flux.   It was one of those games that winning wasn't as important as the constantly changing play of the game.   One hand took almost 2 hours before there was a winner - and the zombies almost won a couple of times.

We had ham for an early dinner, then I got on the road and headed back home.

No real change in Grandma's progress.  She's at a nursing home for the next 20 days or so while she tries to recover and my dad and his siblings try and determine the next steps for her.

I've just about got all the donations collected for my swim for diabetes - just three people to go.   A few have given me more than they initally planned and my total now is over $500.

Well, I'd better finish my oatmeal and get back to work.   Later...

writing

My co-worker's brother - who also works on campus - was the designated driver to Chipotle yesterday.   On the way back, I saw some graffiti on the wall of a building near some train tracks.  We went past it too quickly for me to see what all was written there, but I saw enough to want to investigate.

So, after work, I drove over to a parking lot near that wall and located the text.  Here's what it said:

War is Peace

Freedom is Slavery

Ignorance is Strength

Orwell you were so right

Well, duh.   I was hoping for something more insightful than that.  If you're going to go to the trouble of defacing a building with an intellectual quote (instead of, say, "kilroy was here")  - then you should either leave it as it stands or add to it in the spirit of the original writer.     What is this?  Youtube?

Disappointing.

early, worry

I got up early this morning - around 5:00 am.    I had a time-sensitive task to complete today and it needed to happen before 7 am - and it's one of those that had a 50% chance of going completely wrong.  So, I gave myself plenty of time and things went smoothly.  

Strangely enough, when I came downstairs this morning - my room-mate was already down there. He's usually not up and running until after I've already left for work.  Apparently, he fell asleep in the chair watching TV and was there all night.    I'm of the opinion that when I'm tired, I go to bed.   He frequently does the whole "I'm tired and I should go to bed, but I'm going to stay up for no apparent reason and watch some mindless crap on TV".

In other  news... my dad called me at work yesterday.  My grandmother was recently admitted to the hospital with what was thought to be a diabetes issue but turned out to be a stroke.    My uncle found her - very disoriented - at her house and he and my dad decided over the phone that she should be admitted. 

She's doing better and her motor skills and speech are on track - but she's having some vision problems still and the last update still had her in ICU.  She's getting good care, so, not much we can do at this point other than wait for news.  Dad promised to keep me  updated.

Well, it's just about time for my day to officially begin - better get to it.

later...

big swim, cards, twitter, vampire

The big swim was on Saturday.  I had intended to do 144 lengths, which equals 72 laps or 2 miles.   I was feeling pretty good as I neared the end and decided to do 3 more laps to set a new record for myself - though I only reported 144 since some people had donated based on the number of lengths.   

I had to share a lane for part of the time, which was not a big deal except for when I did the backstroke - I'm all over the place on that one.  It was difficult to avoid being kicked in the head  - or kicking the other person in the head.   Plus, no overhead flag lines were set up so it was difficult to determine when I was supposed to stop at the end of the lane.  I didn't hit my head this time, fortunately.

So, I got in my laps and got a ribbon for being in the 100 club.     

On Sunday, I sat outside and wrote up the thank you cards.  It was a nice day for the most part, but a little windy.  I'm not used to writing that much and my hand got tired, but I'm glad I did it.  I may use email as a reminder for those that pledged but haven't turned the money in, but a thank you card seems the right way to go at the start.

I've also started Twittering.   But, I've decided that all my Tweets will be in the form of Haiku.   Just for the challenge and for something different.

Finally, watched an odd vampire movie called Let the Right One In.    Set in Sweden, it was dubbed in English and told the story of a social misfit who befriends a 12 year old "looking" vampire "girl".   Strange movie - very nuanced.

That's it for now... later...

long

Longest.

Afternoon.

EVER.

I've still got 49 minutes to go before I can get out of here and if I wasn't the master of space and time I'd swear that time had slowed to a stop and was starting to drift backwards.  

48 minutes now.

okay, 47.   At least time is still moving forward.   

Sort of.   

I've gathered up my swim donation forms and I'll work on some thank-you cards after my swim tomorrow.   Maybe a little over the top, but I really do appreciate that people have donated.   Looks like I should break the $400 mark if I get all the money turned in.  

The longer I have this post the more likely I am to keep looking at my watch - and that aitn't helping.

later...

rest, better, temp

I'm taking the day off from swimming.  I think I could still do a mile today and then 2 miles tomorrow, but I think I've earned a break.   A few people have decided to do donations per length - so, I'm more motivated to go the distance and don't want to risk being too tired to finish.

My room-mate called last night from his sister's to report in about the funeral.   Apparently it was a mostly good service (with the exception of most of what the minister said and the overly loud and somewhat self important singers) - and even the guy's defense attorney got up and spoke for a bit.  I asked my room-mate if he thought he got some closure and he said he did.   

I talked a bit to my co-worker - he and his sort-of-maybe-ex-ish girlfriend had a good talk last night and went out to eat.  So, there's hope there.   He didn't really go into detail and I didn't pry - but thinks may be on the right track for them.

In other news... the warm weather has had an impact on the building temperature where I work.  Since it's controlled by time of year and not actual outside temp - it's still set on heat and was in the mid eighties in here yesterday.     I dressed in layers today in case we get up there again - but the rain this morning should help.

So, looks like we're got another mission critical last nano-second project brewing here - looks like I'd better get back to my email.

later...

worst

I usually focus on this blog on what's happening with me, since I've got first hand knowledge and writing about other people is by definition second-hand knowledge.    Given the date today it's going to seem pretty far fetched - but this is all true.

My room-mate is a funeral director and has been for over ten years.    As a consequence, he always wins the "who had the worst day" contests.   For me, a bad day might be that I couldn't get to my email for a couple hours or a server goes down when I need it.  For him, he might have to sew someone's  head back on.  So, he always wins.     

I've learned to brace myself when he uses the phrase, "Not to be gross, but..."  and I try to get him stopped then if I'm eating or there are other, less brave, people in the room.

I was at home yesterday when he called and said he was going to be very late.  They had just gotten a new call and the individual was over 400 pounds.   The essential process of embalming is the same no matter how much the person weighs, but it gets more difficult the more they weigh.   My room-mate went into a level of detail that I'm not going to share, but you can be assured that you would not be able to handle it.     It ended up taking him over 5 hours and his hands were so fatigued that they were shaking when he got home.

While he was gone, I took a couple calls for him and then had to share the bad news when he got home.    One of his friends from back home hung themselves yesterday.   Which is terrible all by itself, but the story leading up to it is even more tragic.

Apparently, this guy killed his uncle, hid the body in a trash can in a field, then fled the state with $50,000 dollars and guns - and was hiding out in a hotel under his dead uncle's name.  

He's been in jail for the past two years and in and out of the court room.  He had pled not guilty to all counts (including abuse of a corpse), but the evidence was substantial and prior to his sentencing yesterday he did the deed.

One of the calls I took last night was from this guy's mom - the victim's sister.   She asked me to pass along the message to my room-mate when he got home.   I can't imagine what she's going through.

So, on the heels of a really graphically difficult day at work, my room-mate gets the news.   He called the guy's mom back and got the details of the service on Thursday, which he's going to try and go to. 

This morning, when I got into work, I related this story to one of my good friends here.  We talked for a bit about how crappy that all was, then he told me that he and his  girlfriend are on the rocks.   She's wanting the "marriage-baby" plan and he's not ready for it.   He may be moving out and breaking up with her.    

So.  My room-mate is dealing with this huge tragedy and my friend is in the middle of relationship crisis.    And me?  I'm playing video games, watching DVD's, and getting ready for my big swim.    I can only imagine what these guys are going through and I have no idea how to help.   I can't even properly relate to them because things are going okay for me.  Just ordinary.

I guess I'll just try to be there for them if they need to talk - or to vent.   Kinda puts things in perspective, I guess.

That pretty much wraps it up for me now.  I guess I could relate some minor news that's going on with me, but it seems pretty inconsequential compared to what my friends are going though.  So, I'm just going to close and get back to work.