busy weekend - car, tools, books, tattoo, folding

I had a pretty busy weekend - started off with a little more work on the car and when I finally found the oxygen sensor I realized something terrible. I didn't have enough tools! So, I made a trip to home depot to remedy that - but the depot ultimatly let me down. The tools that I thought would work, didn't. So, I put everything back and called it a night. The next morning I tried again, but still no luck in getting the oxygen sensor loose. Instead, I headed up north to the 1/2 priced bookstore. The drive was uneventful, though I think the directions and signage could have been a bit more clear. I dropped off my big pile of books and did some browsing. I found three books then got called up to get a receipt for my trade. It was a little disappointing, but I did a little more looking around, realizing that I'd have to pay out anyway to get the few items I had. Then I found the comic books section.

Instead of a neatly organizied rack with the comics bagged and boarded - the comics were stacked on a shelf in piles above eye level. No place to look through them, no order, torn covers, etc. It was terrible. A cursory glance turned a couple potentials, but the sheer chaos turned me away. I made my purchase with a heavy heart and headed home.

I stopped off at the depot again, holding out hope that my eye would stumble on the perfect tool. No luck. A mild brainstorm and I headed for the mall and the not-so-soft side of sears.

Ah, yes, this was the tool place. I located a craftsman wrench that should do the job. There is, of course, a problem. To use this wrench, it's going to have to go over top of the current O2 sensor. And to do that, I'll need to cut some wires. Not a big deal in this case - if I've got the right tool and can remove the sensor. If I have to put it back, then I'll need to reconnect the wires. Which I can do, but I'd really rather not. So, that is on hold for a bit until I work up the courage.

And speaking of courage - I decided to get a tattoo on Saturday as well. I headed over to Pain Hate Pain on Market street and met with a nice guy with lots of facial piercings. He called the tattooer in and after a brief dicusssion about the tattoo I wanted, Shad got his equipment set up and got to work. It hurt about as much as the other ones I've had done, but cursiously, didn't bleed at all. I mean no bleeding whatsoever. Not during nor afterward. It was kinda weird.

He did a good job and the price was reasonable - then I went to the drug store to buy some lotion ("It puts the lotion in the basket or it gets the hose again") to help with the aftercare. You can see a picture here:

http://gozips.uakron.edu/~aws/tattoo.html

Finally, got some more paper for another project I want to work on. I may not have picures for a while - the indivdual units aren't complicated, but the assembly may be rough. I also got some transparent report covers for a series of water-proof origami.

Oh, and I made some more progress in Star Ocean. I wailed on what I thought was the final boss and when all was said and done, he was gone in a burst of light while I did a small victory dance. Except he wasn't the final boss - and there are clones of him everywhere. I've got some better weapons now, but it's like a mini-boss battle every 20 feet. And I'm not sure how to advance the story anymore. So, I stopped playing for a bit and went back to God of War.

Back to work...

car care

Yesterday, I filled up my gas tank and then headed over to Auto Zone to get the pesky check engine light investigated. I also bought a replacement light bulb for the stop light in the back of my car.

During the diagnostic we learned that:

1) I had a blown fuse for the diagnositc system as well as the lighter - which I've never used. We got the fuse replaced so that a connection could be made and it came back with 2 codes that meant the same thing -

2) Faulty oxygen sensor

So, I bought an oxygen sensor and took it home. The replacement light bulb was tricky and I'm still not sure if I got it in correctly - can't very well step on the brake and stand behind my car at the same time. (well, I could. But it would violate the laws of physics and motion - and I'd damage the fabric of the universe. Which seems excessive.)

Then I took off my dress shirt, got out my tools, grabbed a flashlight, and popped the hood.

I spent a little time poking around in there - then I called my dad for suggestions. He'd never replaced one before but suggested somewhere near the air filter. Seemed like a good idea, so I focused my search there.

For a while, I was feeling pretty cool - most of my "work on a car" in the past has been, "take it someplace to be looked at".

Just by observation, I learned quite a bit about what's going on in there and I cleaned out some dry leaves I found. Ultimately, though, I didn't find the oxygen sensor. It started to get dark and I started to get frustrated - so, I closed things up and called it a night.

The internet seems to have a solution - I think I've located a step-by-step. So, I'll snag a print-out and give it another whirl tonight.

Otherwise, a pretty quiet evening of video games and reading. Our intrepid heroes made it off the moon-base and over to the time gate - where they find that their entire universe is a computer simulation. It's pretty cool when they figure out how to get to the "real" world and kick some ass over there.

I guess that's it for now - we've got a division wide breakfast meeting coming up. Later...

cleaning, video games, kung fu, fruit on the bottom

More whirl-wind cleaning last night - the de-crapification continues. I also worked on a mask I'd been contemplating for several months - it was either start/finish it, or throw out the parts. So, 20 minutes and one glue-gun induced blister later, it was finished. I'll try to get pictures one of these days.

Played a little more Star Ocean last night - now we're at a friggin moon-base and we still have to use swords. Granted the Ice Blade is kinda cool, but it takes forever to charge up and costs too much MP. The only ray gun in the group belongs to the chick with blue hair.

Also watched Kung Fu Hustle last night. Pretty cool movie - the story was a little slow to start off, but once it got going, it was really cool. The effects were excellent and the fighting was way over the top. Shaolin Soccer is next on my list, I think.

I believe I may have mentioned my disdain for yogurt with "Fruit on the bottom" before. I feel that, as a consumer, I should have my yogurt pre-mixed. Normally, I do the extra work that the factory should do by shaking the unopened vat of yogurt vigorously. I recently did this and when I opened the container - it spit yogurt at me. I laid down a thousand curses on the cruelty of fate, then cleaned up my shirt and ate my yogurt. It was pretty good too - blueberry.

That's it for now...back to work...

movies, books, music

"This is some shit, up with which we will not put" - so says Brenda in Scary Movie 4. And though I up with the movie, I didn't really enjoy it. There were some funny bits, but I think they were trying too hard.

I've also recently watched the unrated version of The Hills Have Eyes - and despite the jump out and scare you moments (which I enjoy) the violence was really gratuitius. There wasn't much point/plot to the whole thing.

Silent Hill was watched during the same evening - much better movie and more visually interesting. I thought the ending was a little weak, but still a good flick. I haven't played the game, so I don't know how it compares.

Last evening I did a little cleaning - mostly just tossing out junk and re-organizing. I also set aside 53 books that I'm going to sell to 1/2 Priced books. Selling a book, for me, is a big deal. I'm much more interested in buying new books, but these were ones that I had read and didn't like, or couldn't get into. So, looks like a trip up north is in my future.

I've been listening to Tori Amos in heavier rotation - she's got a song called Goodbye Pisces that's a simple, quiet little song of the destruction of the spirit. Sad, but beautiful.

I've also been thinking about a new web comic. Differnt characters, more photos, same basic humor.

Guess that's it for now...back to work...

student loans, headache, folding, video game

I was paying bills recently and realized I only had three payments left for my student loans. It's going to feel weird - and good - to not be writing that check every month. Next up, working down that credit card.

Although it was nice long weekend - I spent most of the time with a low grade headache. Must be the weather changing.

I also worked on some origami people - you know, for my army of minions. Soon, very soon, we will be ready to conqure. If you've like to begin groveling now, I'll see to it that your death is quick and painless.

I got stuck in a video game last night - the Lava Caves. Low on magic, low on health, lost and alone - it was tramatic, especially since the only door out was freaking locked. I mean, really, if you're going to put a door inside a cave filled with Lava, do you really need to lock it? Apparently, yes, you do. So, I looked online today and discovered that the key is behind the statue of the giant bunny. Of course it is. Bastards.

Anyway, its Tuesday and it's time to get back to work...

Dad's birthday, more folding, the end of the comic

I visited my family over the weekend for my Dad's birthday. He wanted things pretty low key, so we watched movies, ate some birthday pie, and spent some quality time in the hot tub. I also brought all the origami for my sister's wedding to my parent's place for storage. I think they were impressed - and while it was good that I could do this, I'm also a little glad that my living room isn't covered with purple and purple paper anymore. :)

I also finished up my web comic today. Had some fun with that and it was a good run. You can take a look at it here:

http://gozips.uakron.edu/~aws/

Well, that's it for now. Back to work...

giving blood and open mic night

Right after work yesterday I went to give blood, since if I didn't there's a chance they would have come to my apartment and demanded 2 pints. The lady at the front desk wasn't, as Scotty would say, "firing on all thrusters" but was nice enough. There was no line so I read the paperwork and headed to the history station. That's mostly on computer now, which is much faster. Back to the dazed lady to get a bag, then over to the donation site. The guy doing the collection did the best job I've had done so far with the needle and I told him so - it almost didn't hurt at all. The actual donation went quick and I was having cookies and juice in no time.

Which was good since I was going to meet some friends that evening for dinner and a trip to a bar for open mic night. Dinner was pretty good - once we finally got the table for 11 issue sorted out. The bar was right next door and several people I knew got up an performed. Mostly music for the evening - but one guy we didn't know got up and receited 3 really long and complicated poems. Almost a dramatic reading of sorts - he really got into it and was impressive.

Not one to grab the mic, I instead sat back and impressed the local crowd with some origami. I made a couple of module based rings that everyone wanted to hold - and most ended up breaking. Easily reassembled though. One girl came up to our table and wanted to borrow one of the rings to hang on the mic for good luck - so, it was almost like I participated or something. :) I also made a small army of origami people and a small table for them to stand next to. It was suggested that I make little chairs, plates, and utensils - but I really needed to get home and to bed since it was a school night.

So, a busy, but good evening. Tonight I'm headed to the comic book store with the hopes that the new Flash comic is in. Be prepared for anguish tomorrow if it's not in yet or sold out.

Back to work...

cursed rest stop dream and red cross demands

I had a dream last night that I was at a rest stop in out west with my family. We had just pulled in when a park ranger explained about the curse on the place that would be starting again in a few minutes. Intrigured, we hung around until, in the middle of a hot summer day, it suddenly snowed several inches in a matter of seconds. The rest stop was across a bridge on an isolated mountain area and the bridge was retracted until the curse went away. Apparently, a long time ago a man stopped at this rest stop with his family, went crazy, and killed his wife and two daughters before coming out of it. It had been in the winter time and now everyday between 2 and 2:15 pm - it snows to recreate that day. We then saw an old guy come down on a snowboard and managed to jump the gap before he even realised it was there. Very odd.

In other news, I got a call at work from the red cross about a blood donation. He asked me about giving blood on tuesday and wanted to confirm if I would be there. I said I was planning on it - then he asked if could further confirm that I would be there barring a dictionary defined "emergency".

I think this is about tailoring the staffing to see that they've got just enough people to cover the donors coming in - but it doesn't solve the problem of people seeing the sign out front and just stopping in - thus overwhelming the staff at randomly peak times.

I said I would be - but was a little puzzled that he didn't set me up for an appointment. I'll be there because it's the right thing to do - but it was a little odd.

Today has been going pretty crappy, but I'm not going to dwell on it. I just need to get through it and get out of here for a much deserved weekend.

back to work...

comic update, comics update, and the wrong way

I finally got around to updating my web comic a bit - had some fun with some minor graphics. You can check it out here...

http://gozips.uakron.edu/~aws/comic.html

I nearly laughed out loud at my own cleverness. Hope someone else enjoys it too. Oh, and I put in some navigation so you can jump to whatever page you want.

In other comics news...I went to my local comic book store yesterday to pick up the Flash #3 that the DC Comic's website promised me would be shipped and arriving in stores yesterday. Oh, sorry... it's been delayed till next week.

CURSES!

In unrelated news... I was driving to work this morning across a one way bridge when the car in front of me pulls into the other lane and I see headlights in front of me.

Now, let's stop and ponder this for a moment. You're on a one-way street. The only thing you should see in front of you is tail-lights. So, if you see headlights, something it very wrong.

Turns out a van had pulled down the wrong way on the bridge and had just decided to stop until enough traffic had pulled around him to make room so he could turn around.

There were no accidents and no big issues, but it was damn odd.

That's it for now - I've got a surprise meeting to attend so I'd best get moving.

catching up, picnic, debit vs credit

It's been a while since I blogged, got a little catching up to do. First, the division-wide picnic last week went well - though it was a lot of work to set-up. The rented grill was the worst - lots of waiting around for it to be delivered and then picked up. But, everyone seemed to have a good time and the food was pretty good. We even tried making smores with various degrees of success.

Work has been extra busy, lots of stuff coming at me every day. We're supposed to be getting some help - but it's not going to get here before the start of school. So, we stay busy.

Couple days ago I went to the grocery store to get some. It was late afternoon and only two regular lanes were open - one of which closed as I approached it. So, instead of the long line, I went to the self checkout. If I've only got a few items, it's not too bad, but I would really rather not deal with the potential hassle of a defective bar code. Anyway, I'm doing the self check out and use my debit card. A quick pin number and a receipt and I'm on my way. I no sooner get out the door when the clerk runs out after me. "Hey," he says, "you gotta sign this," as he waves a charge slip. I start to follow him back in and tell him - "I used my debit card," We get to his counter and he says, "But you were right over there," "No," I tell him with a tired shake of my head, "I was over there,"
I pointed to the correct location and he said, "oh,"

I turned around and left while he tried to chase someone else down. I mean, really, he's got 4 stations to watch and I could accuratly describe the 2 other groups that were there - and it's not even my job. Thus, I was annoyed.

The comic strip has slowed to a stop, but I'm going to try and make some updates at lunch time today.

Finally, a made a big folding push last night and made 75 origami boxes in one sitting. I should have the rest of this project down in a couple of days. At least the folding part, I'll still have to put things together - but that's a whole 'nuther project.

That's it for now - gotta get back to work...

bear dream, car issues, Pi

I had a dream the other night that I was in a park and got attacked by a grizzley bear. There were a few other people around, but the bear headed straight for me. I braced myself and when it charged me, I knocked it over and proceed to beat the crap out of it. Finally, I had the bear pinned down with my knee on it's neck - and no one would come over and help me restrain it. I was very pissed off when I woke up. I'm guessing this a work stress dream.

Over the past two weeks with my car I've:

1. Had the muffler replaced.
2. Replaced 2 burned out tail lights.
3. And replaced the left front tire.

Still got one more light to replace and the check engine light to investigate.

I don't think I like cars anymore.

Finally, I took a little time to work out the final digit of Pi. It's a three, in case you were wondering.

back to work...

identity crisis dream

I dreamed last night that my former co-worker and his wife move into my apartment. We all seemed to be getting along okay and had pretty much the same reaction when my next door neighbors came in the back door to use our shower, namely, "what the hell are you doing?"

My co-worker had a birthday at that time and got a new drivers liscence. Somehow, though, it messed up my entry in the system. So, the next time I use my debit card to make a purchase they ask for my driver's liscence. I don't have it with me, so they conveniently print it out for me - but it's got the co-worker and wife in the picture - not me. Which is dang odd and to the clerk, more than a little suspecious. I pay cash.

I decide to skip work the next day since I'm sure the computer system won't let me in - but a frantic call from another co-worker (who's also left the university) brings me in to open the door for him and help get the phones set up for the helpdesk - where I used to work but don't currently. I was untangeling phone cords when I woke up.

Not sure what that means - other than a random collection of synapes firing.

Maybe it's about trying to bring back the past and keeping a sense of who I am. I've been kinda down that we've lost three co-workers in the past year (out of a team of five, yes, we're down to two) - and my workload and stress have greatly increased.

Well, I've now got a 2 hour training session to attend - not really looking forward to that, but I've got to learn the stuff. Pressure...

Back to work...

games and taxes and a horrible dream

Picked up a couple of used games recently...

Star Ocean - I pretty cool Role-playing game with some nice elements and story-line. On the downside, assigning stats is a bit of a pain and a little confusing.

And then there's the puzzle with the turtle. You've got to steer a giant turtle through an abandoned mine shaft. I've tried it dozens of times and I either end up back at the start - or I die. Somehow, not so much fun...

The other game is TombRaider:Legend. I'd been burned on the last few in this series, but I'm happy to say that Laura Croft is back and better than ever. Easy to use controls, target lock, and amazing graphics. I'm ready to take on a super-complicated puzzle and I can't wait.

In less fun news... I got a letter from the city about unpaid taxes for 2004. Which is insane since I've already taken care of this twice. So, I'm headed over there after work - wish me luck.

Over the weekend I had one of the worst zombie dreams of my life. Armies of alien zombies that moved fast and were able to learn. I lead a small band of survivors and held off them off for what felt like weeks from the night of the invasion. It was terrible. And I kept slipping back into the same dream when I managed to wake up. Feel like I should just start carrying around a sword all the time now - seems like the armies of the undead should be showing up any day now.

Hmmm...that might make the taxes thing go a little easier as well.

Anyway, back to work...

two things that made me swear

So, I had a support bracket on my muffler break. It was hanging down and though the muffler was still in place, it was only a matter of time. So I head to my local Midas shop to get the bracket replaced. Only the bracket, mind you. This will be an important factoid later.

I sit in the waiting room after handing over my keys and after taking their own sweet time, they raise the car and take a look. I've read both the newsweeks and the TV is set to sesame street. This does not bode well

The tech comes to the door and invites me into the work area - which seems odd with safetly concerns and all, but what the hell. He explains the bracket is broken - which I knew - and also pointed out that I've got the makings of a hole in the muffler. It's not there yet - but only a matter of time.

We go back to the waiting room and he sits down to tell me what all he's got - along with an estimate. I'm due for an oil change and the right rear and center lights are out. Replacing the muffler is the big one - over $250. I point to the number and tell him that I wasn't prepared to spend that much money today - can they just fix the bracket now and I can come back later for the muffler?

No, they can't. See, the manufacturer puts on a "special magic super nifty" NON-STANDARD muffler. So, no one else carries those and no one carries the brackets. Except the dealerships.

But I didn't request a special muffler - I just wanted the most ordinary one they can put on a car. Sorry, package deal.

So, to replace the bracket and keep the muffler from falling off, they need to replace the bracket, the muffler and an extra pipe that connects it to the rest of the exaust system.

The tech at least "pretended" to sympathize at my indignation - but there was nothing to be done but sign the form and hand him my debit card. I was also a little cranky at the labor costs per hour. I wish I could change people that much. Maybe there should be some kind of sliding scale. If you change $70 an hour to fix to my car - I'll charge you $70 to fix your computer. Instead of just getting cookies or something.

So, I go for a walk while they do the work and have a disappointing experience at Kaybee toys.

Finally on my way and I get home - and the phone rings. It's the red cross, telling me about a blood drive. I listen as the women, in the occasionally halted tones of someone nervous, tells me about the location and times - as well as a drawing for a new car. I make the standard vaguely interested noises and at the end - she tells me to press one to repeat the message.

It was a f*@%}^& recording! I was so pissed. 9 times out of 10 I can tell, but this time I couldn't and actually tried to have a conversation with a recording.

I got a surge of white-hot fury that even this last bastion of human contact had been stolen from me - angry enough that blanked on all the information as I hung up the phone. So, I checked the website today and it doesn't list any blood drives in my area for tomorrow - which is when I thought it was supposed to be. I think I remember the location, so I'll drive past to see if they have a sign out.

All I'm saying is that there had better be a Flash comic #2 waiting for me at the comic book store today or there's going to be hell to pay. They were sold out last week and I was promised that this weeks shipment would have one.

back to work...

bravo & origami, shoes, and work stress

I went out to eat with a friend to Bravo - which was a little difficult to plan since their reservation system is complicated and usually full. But, we got in and while I was waiting for various things to happen, I got out some paper and did a little folding. The server was deeply impressed - and thrilled that I gave the model to her. I also impressed the manager that came around - and he did origami too! So, we talked shop for a bit and shared a moment about the first squash fold we had accomplished - it was magical. :) Anyway, I impressed the crowd with a micro-crane and we went on our way. Incidentally, the food was pretty good, but I think I could have gotten the same meal at Bennegan's for less money - except for the chrispy potatoes - I'd have to go to Bob Evan's for those.

I also did a little shoe shopping over the weekend - my tennis shows go ruined by the kitty litter. Two hand scrubbings with a wire brush and a huge amount of Febreeze couldn't save them. I found some cheap tennis shoes and then some short boots for work. Kinda cool, fairly comfortable, and 80% off - can't beat that. Yeah, not really the most exciting weekend I've had.

It's been confirmed - another of my co-workers is leaving. This makes three within the last year. We spent some time last week trying to do a little knowledge transfer, but since he's our graphics guy, I'm not sure how much I'll really be able to do. I'm also going to try and organize some kind of going-away party for him - and I'm running out of time.

I guess that's it for now...back to work...

web comic started - green human figure

I'm putting my web comic online - you can get a sample here:

http://gozips.uakron.edu/~aws/comic.html

Got a few bugs to work out and a long way to go in the story - but it's a start.

Also, figured out how to make a human figure with Origami. I found a diagram in a book and it's wildly complicated. But it works and it even stands up!

http://gozips.uakron.edu/~aws/moreOrigami.html

(scroll down)

That's it for now...back to work...

the flash, stage is set

I checked on-line yesterday to confirm that the latest issue of The Flash should be out and ready for me to purchase at my local comic book store. But, to my horror, my local comic book store....

was

sold

out.

I told the manager who then said, "crap, I'll try to get more in next week" - and then wrote something down. It might have been, "screw this guy, I'm ordering more superman," but I think it was just a note to remind himself to order more.

In other news, the stage is done for my web comic and I'll work on getting some photos done today at lunch time.

Not much to report, so I'll get back to work...

DVD's menus and toilet paper dispensers - website update

I was watching X-men 1 last night on DVD and I was having trouble getting the slightly lower quality branching scenes to stop playing. The menu was needlessly cryptic - but the worst bit was that it was animated. So, everytime I tried to make a change, I had to sit through some stupid and tedious animation. It's not too bad once, but even twice is annoying. Never did get it working quite right.

My internal gastrointestional clock has somehow gotten off-track and I've had to avail myself of the restroom faclities at work instead of waiting till I get home where I can read a comic or a magazine in peace. The toilet paper dispensers are now added to my "banes of existance".

1. Giant, difficult to turn rolls.
2. 1 ply paper. No, more like 1/2 ply. Or maybe .4 ply
3. Difficult to tear against the plastic teeth.
4. No shelf for a book, magazine, or newspaper.

And finally - 2 rolls? Which do we use first? That's too much pressure when I've got other things to focus on.

In other news, I converted my site to a template format. Should be vastly easier to update from here on out. Still got a few things to fix and I'm not sure I like the "sand", but I'll work on it.

http://gozips.uakron.edu/~aws/

Finally, got some bad news at work - but I can't really talk about it yet. It's messed with my mood quite a bit this afternoon.

Well, back to work...

kitty litter, new friends, apple "chips", and Saving Jane

I went to a community festival over the weekend - one of those smallish town kinda things. The day I went was after several days of the festival being rained out, so the ground was saturated. The parks department used an absorbant material to help with the water and mud - kitty litter. Unfortunatly, there's only so much that kitty litter can do - and after a while, even that got saturated and started to smell. I thought it smelled like rotten grain, and it was decided that was better that what other people thought it smelled like.

The area in front of the stage was filling up fast, so I staked out some turf in the beer area at a picnic table. I had my bottle of soda and a book with me and was settled in for the concert about 40 mintues before it started. Unfortuntaly, I made a new friend. A guy staggered over and asked what time it was. I told him, and he then sat down. Which is fine, I was more than happy to share the picnic table. He then, however, proceeded to tell me is life story. I tried to toss a couple comments out there and then go back to my book, but he kept going on. So, I put my book away and tried to listen. Why? Because people that are really drunk tend to be more than a little crazy. And Anthony's rule #1 - Don't F#@% with crazy people. I didn't want to talk to him, but I also didn't want to end up on his bad side.

Eventually, I chugged the rest of my soda, told him the time, and left with an excuse to get something to drink. When I eventually came back around to that area, I saw that he'd trapped a couple more people and manged to avoid him.

During the rounds through the carnival area while looking for some bottled water, I saw a sign for Carmel Apple Chips - which sounded pretty good to me. Now, I was thinking that this would be dried apple with some kind of carmel coating or a dipping cup of caramel. Not the case. In this instance, Apple Chips refered to Apple Slices in a small bowl filled with caramel, whipped cream, and a cherry. Totally not what I expected. It was difficult to eat since you couldn't really scoop up enough caramel to make it worthwhile. So, I just ate the apples and found some bottled water.

Finally, back at the beer tent area - I staked out a claim on some standing room and waited. I did a little folding - 'cause that's what I do - and gave away my creations to a toddler, much to the surprise and amusement of her parents.

The concert started and Saving Jane rocked. The sound could have been a little better, but it was still good. The crowd, however, didn't really get it. I was pretty much the only person jumping around and shouting, like you're supposed to do at a rock concert. Even the people who seemed interested, taking photos and the like, weren't even tapping their feet. I think the crowd was mostly people who were at the festival and noticed - "hey, look, I think there's going to be music, let's get the stroller and some chairs and go on over".

Chairs? At a rock concert? You see what I'm working with here, don't you? Anyway, the band was cool and one of my friends got to hang with them after the show, so that was cool too.

So, my shoes are still a mess, my calves hurt from jumping around, and I'm tired from not nearly enough sleep over the weekend, but I still had fun.

And now, back to work...

things that are odd

A few odd things I've noticed recently:

1. My right turn signal is now 3 times as fast as my left turn signal. No idea why.

2. My forehead is clammy. All the time - but only my forehead.

3. Chewie at the beach

He needs nair and sunblock - in that order.

later...

Update:

4. Northeast Ohio weather. It looked like it was going to rain all freaking day - and then suddenly we've got sunshine and light puffy clouds.

5. The song: "Ridin" by Chamillionaire. He uses the phrase: "Tryin to catch me ridin dirty" 50 times in his song. Does it refer to the gun in his car, the fact that it's a stolen car, or that it needs to be washed? I just don't know.

maddness

Last evening I was struck with an insanity so deep and profound as to leave an endless stain upon my very soul. I felt it coming, felt it slide about me - seeking an entrance into my vulnerable psyche. The haze of doom and bleek despair obscured my gaze and I was tricked into traveling a road I knew would only destroy me. And so, and so I did the only thing I could - I embraced the maddness and followed the siren song of horror and terror to my destination and my terrible fate.

I went to McDonald's for dinner.

Oh, I knew that the meaty fate could not continue to be cheated forever as it had been so recently. Reasonably good service, enjoyable food presented in a tidy fashion - such things are possible only with the proper alignment of the stars and planets. Some small sliver of hope - perhaps fostered by a successful visit to the post office to mail a package earlier in the day - lead me to believe that today would continue the - dare I say it? Yes, I shall - trend of quality food at the golden arches.

Sadly, it was not meant to be.

Though the restuarnt was not busy in any way, it took several minutes before the counter staff would acknowledge that I even exisited. While I waited, they engaged in a serious discussion of the new shorts that the guy had purchased and how the color scheme matched Michael Jordon's school colors. The shorts were refered to as "crispy" - and though I am fairly well versed in popular slang for a 30+ year old white guy, I was at something of a loss. The conversation moved on to how tall a person should be before they make that critial move from low top to high top shoes.

This discussion concluded, the girl called the guy by name and directed him to the counter to wait on me - clearly demarking the pecking order of the resturant.

While they had debated the fate of the universe - I had been intently studying the menu. Though I thought I had decryped the needlessly complicated menu system - I could not seem to locate the Spicy Chicken sandwich. Undaunted, I attempted to order that anyway. The guy at the register regarded me with a look I'm sure he reserved for the stupid people of the universe - then told me that they don't have that anymore.

"oh," I thought "you'll bring back the freaking McRib every two years but you can't keep something that actually tastes good on the menu?"

Aloud, I hemmed and hawwed for a moment - then decided on my standard. Two hamburgers, lettuce only and a large fry. I would have gotten a small fry, but I'm familier with their hamburger patties and knew better than to assumed that even two of them would be enough to sate me.

Getting hamburger plain + lettuce involves a lot of button pressing, but eventually he finished and took my money, then handed me change and a receipt.

Now, I may have mentioned that business was slow that night, so I was able to watch as the sandwiches were made and know they were mine since they were the only ones being fixed. From my location at the counter I could see the .... I was going to call him a cook, but he did no actual cooking. Let's just call him the Sandwich Prep Dude or SPD for short. The SPD carefully and intently focused on the task at hand with the concentration of a blind whale perfoming brain surgery on a hamster while using chopsticks. And, get this sports fans, it was under the watchful eye and assistance of his supervisor. I suspect it may have been the first sandwich he had ever made in his entire life. Perhaps, due to the strangeness of time itself in my presence, it made have been the first sandwich ever made in the history of the universe.

Once his task was completed, he launched each sandwich into a chute with enough force that, if there had not been a solid metal barrier there, they would have flown across the resturant, through a window, and from there possibly into earth orbit.

My two friends at the counter then engaged in a brief scuffle to determine who would have the honor of presenting the sandwiches to me along with the fries. The guy with the new shorts won, and he carefully folded down the top of the bag while at the same time totally ignoring once again that I existed. He placed the bag in my general vicinity without a word and wandered away - perhaps feeling the shame of handing me a bag containing what we could only hope contained food, but knowing all the while it was terrible lie.

As I exited the ... I was almost going to call it a resturant, ha! As I exited the chamber of horrors, the frier alarm went off to cap off my visit. I checked the bag to verify that my order contained 2 sandwiches and some fries and made my way home to eat.

The fries were okay - a little too salty, but still a food item and not a salt lick for woodland creatures. The first burger was bland and tasteless even by my standards and the second...

The second burger, the second burger. Halfway through this pseudo-meat unit I bit into an onion. Apparently, the SPD did need every bit of concentration and supervision that could be thrust upon him - he hadn't cleared his work surface and had mixed an onion into the lettuce.

The shock, surprise, and foul taste made me retch - I could not finish even that bite. The untainted fries went into my gullet - the rest of the burger went into the trash.

Though my hunger was mostly sated, I felt hollow inside. As with Casey and the Bat, there was no joy in mudville that day. All I wanted was a spicy chicken sandwich to burn my lips and fill my belly. Instead, I had my heart and hopes shattered upon the cold tiles of the floor of the golden arches.

I should have just fixed some ramen.

back to work...

tux fitting and a small attempt at humor

I got measured yesterday for my tux for my sister's wedding. I wasn't in the system properly since they forgot the "r" in my last name, but they eventually tracked the info down and got started. Things went pretty smoothly until they were ringing up the order and I asked if any of the cuff-links shot darts. The salesgirl was a little puzzled. I explained, "like in James Bond" - she dribbled out a nervous laugh and said, "oh no, we'd get in trouble".

Ummm...that was humor. I'm almost sure of it.

So, I concluded the transaction and got the heck out of there.

In other news...I think I left a window open at home when I left for work. And the thunder in my headsets from the Weather Channel icon on my desktop means that I'm most likely to have a damp apartment when I get home.

Back to work...

big cube, back to work, invisible fence, tux

With a little help from my boss and the use of his station wagon, I got the cube into work. We went at lunch time and when I brought the cube out of my apartment, his reaction was "whoa!" It just barely fit in the back of the wagon, in fact, we has to "force" it a litle to make it fit. The unloading went easier, though it was a little tricky to get it in the building. I put it on top of my cubicle and got back to work - that is, until the crowds started to gather. I mean, you can't really help but notice it and people wanted to talk about it. I printed out some details on the menger sponge and explained about the number of pieces of paper, showed the smaller versions and how they would fit in, and generally enjoyed myself. It was pretty cool to have worked on a project like this for as long as I did and really get to share it with people. A few people suggested I enter it in a design contest - though the one they are talking about is looking for outdoor items - and the paper really wouldn't hold up.

Last week was also me getting back to work. Mostly putting out fires and such - though I did find that my boss was overwhelmed by having to cover what I usually handle - I think it made him appreciate me even more. I don't think there's a big fat raise in my future because of that, but it was still nice to learn.

Yesterday, I took one of my long walks. I decided to go a differnt route and walked along a sidewalk next to a big yard. Then the barking started and two small dogs charged out at me. They were some kind of beagle/ dachuand mix - though I'm sure they thought they were part werewolf as well from the barking they did. While neither were a threat to anything except my shins (and that only with a running jump) they were moving pretty fast, clearly upset, and not tied down at all. The more agressive of the two slammed to a stop a couple feet from the sidewalk, then ran parallel to the sidewalk for a few feet and turned and barked some more. I realised that they were both wearing collarswith oversized objects on them and deduced it was an imvisible fence stopping them. And it worked too - they treated that "line" as a real fence - it was visible in their behavior and their movements as they paced me. Kinda lke a force field they kept bouncing off of. I got clear of them without incident, but had to go past them again on the way back. Personally, I think a sign notifying pedestrians about the fence would have been appropiate, but maybe the owners thought it would be funny to watch.

This afternoon, I'm headed to David's Bridal to get measured for my tux for my sister's wedding. I supposed I could tell them I'm getting measured for a bridemaid's dress, just to see their reaction, but I suspect they've heard that one before.

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

vacation

I spent a week in Myrtle Beach with some friends for a vacation. The drive down wasn't too bad since we broke it up with an overnight hotel stay. We finally got down to the condo and ate lunch, unpacked, got groceries and went down to the beach. Not wanting a repeat of last year, I slathered on the sunblock and was careful about too much sun.

And that was the lion-share of the week. Most of the time was spent sitting or walking on the beach or swimming in the ocean or pool. We ate out a few time - I usually had the salmon - and I had some awesome tasting salad. Though on the third trip some lady got dressing on my shirt.

While on the beach I did a lot of reading and I also wrote a comic strip. Since I don't draw very well, I'm going to use some photos of a couple of action figures. Should be pretty funny, I'll update the blog and post links as I work on it.

I got a pretty good tan and only some mild sun-burn on my feet and my back. Otherwise, I'm a-okay and ready to get back to life in Ohio. I'll post more as other stories come back to me.

That's it for now. later...

weekend and giving blood - pre-vacation

Last weekend I visited my family for Father's day. On Friday we went through my sister's counseling textbooks and tried to figure out what was wrong with us mentally. It was funnier and more fun than it sounds. Seems like we're all a little OCD, incidentally - with a dash of autism thrown in for good measure.

On Saturday we ran some errands and participated in a cornhole tournement. Mom and Dad did pretty good, but my sister and I didn't advance. I could include a link to some sites on the rules and stragety, but I think you can find that yourselves.

I also worked on some origami for my sister's wedding reception - I made a hot air balloon from paper that I think is going to be the centerpiece. Should be cool.

I also gave blood - though it was a near thing. I got a card in the mail that indicated the date and location of the next drive - which I glanced at and then disregarded.

After work, I headed over to the Northampton church and was a little surprised that the parking lot was empty. Hmmm.... I looked at the card again and realized that instead of the Northampton Methodist church - where I had gone before - it was really the Northampton Baptist church that I needed to go to. Back in the car and on down the road. I wasn't entirely sure where I was going, but I made it there and gave my pint of blood. Got slightly woozy afterward, but I think that was my fault for not having eaten enough beforehand. Incidentally, the Methodist Church had much nicer facilites than the Baptists - draw whatever conslusions you'd like about that one. :)

I spent the rest of the week getting ready for my vacation. More to follow...

Big Cube photos

Finally got some photos of the big cube - you can check them out by clicking on the small version:




Also, I may have been off on the count - I think the actual number of sheets of paper used is 1056.

Enjoy! I had fun doing this and it's given me ideas for other projects.

back to work...

minor good deed, siRen, tidy

Last evening, while I was taking out my trash, I noticed that my neighbor's car was lit up from the inside. Their dome light was on - and the doors were locked and they weren't home.

So, I wrote a note on fluorescent green paper and taped it to the back window to their car - letting them know the situation and offering to help jump their car if they got back much later and the battery was all the way dead.

I heard them come home in their other car and I guess everything was okay since they didn't stop over. It was a little odd that they didn't say anything to me about it - if they hadn't noticed the light was on when they got back - they would have had a crappy morning and a dead car.

I did a little cleaning last night - some de-junkification. Added another 500 cranes to my aquarium just by cleaning out my pockets of various jackets and containers. 3500 in there now. I may not be an origami master - but I'm freaking prolific.

Took a break from the cleaning to play a new game - siRen. Ummm...can you say zombies? Except these zombies have good motor control - I nearly crapped my pants when one of these shambling monsters chased my character and then pulled out a gun and shot him. Looks like the game is a lot of sneaking around in the dark - unarmed.

Which isn't really my thing and I think makes it scarier. If I was confronted with zombies, I'd fight back. I'd get myself a sword or a big stick and go after them. The only good zombie is a dead zombie. Or..ummm... an incapacitated zombie.

I didn't play long before it got late and I needed to go to bed. I'll see how it goes - but at the first nightmare this game causes me, it's going to be sold and replaced with something rated "E" for everyone.

That's it for now...back to work...

completed, and McDonald's

Last evening, at a little before 10 pm, I finished the big project. 27.5 inches cubed, 928 pieces of paper, 1 bottle of elmer's glue. It's a triumph of form and math, a solid construct to represent an idea.

And it's too big to fit in my car.

So, it's still at home and still unphotographed. I'm hoping to arrange transportation sometime this week, but until then it will just have to wait.

It's also the second most dangerous project I've done. I cut myself twice on the storm window frame that I was using since my coffee table was too small. The most dangerous was the soda can metal crane - I bled a lot on that one.


In other news... I went to McDonald's last night for the spicy chicken sandwich. As I'm standing at the counter, trying to place my order, the fryer timer goes off. It's a horrible piercing sound designed to get someone's attention and cause pain. At the same time, the three little t-ball players standing to the side ratchet it up a notch or 10 and are now shrieking at the top of their lungs. The combination of the two frequencies...well...

I think it may have melted part of my brain.

I'm hoping it isn't a part I'll need later, but you never know.

But, my order was delivered promptly and, surprisingly, correctly. So, the ends justified the torment of the ordering process. Also, the counter girl must have realized the expression on my face represented pain at the sounds - she looked sympatheic. Or that may have just been my eyeballs swelling up do to the interested pressure in my head.

That's it for now... got a busy day ahead. I promise, pictures will be coming soon.

192 folded, tai chi, living room, wedding/muppets, father's day

In a marathon folding session, I got all 192 remaining units folded. I also got "chunks" put together in groups of 24 and 8 - and got most of those added to the main model. I've still got the "top" to assemble and put in place - and that's 64 units. With any luck, I'll have this done by Tuesday. Not sure how soon I'm going to bring it into work to display though, I'll need to get some good pictures for my website.

Over the weekend I picked up a Tai Chi beginners kit - DVD, Chi ball, and booklet. Haven't tried it yet as I'll need to clear some space in my living room. Thinking about doing another reorganization/clean-up of the apartment. I periodically de-junkify my place, but I think it needs another hit.

I haven't talked too much about my sister's wedding since:

1. It's still a ways off.
2. My roll is an usher is pretty small.
3. I can't think of weddings without also thinking of the Muppets Take Manhattan - where Kermit marries Miss Piggy.

Not sure if my sister would appreciate the connection - or the "Rainbow Connection" as the case may be.

Finally, I think I found a gift for my Dad for Father's day. He's just this side of impossible to buy for anymore, but I think I got something clever this time.

Wait, crap. Everytime I try to do something clever, it goes horribly wrong. There has been one exception and we can only hope it wasn't isolated.

That's it for now - back to work...

origami, minor dream, work

I've in the home stretch on the big origami project, but I've hit a slight snag. As I expected, I miscounted - by 192. So, I've got some more paper to prep and fold. Not too bad, but a little disappointing, I'm not sure I'll be able to finish it up this weekend.

I had a dream last night that my parents had moved. To a much bigger house. Not sure why.

Work yesterday was...odd. I spent 2 hours and talked to 8-9 people to get one link on one web page set up. Still didn't get it launched - we're waiting on another piece. Eh, job security.

Guess that's it for now...later...

wedding, buffett, origmai, dream

This will be a long post, got lots to cover.

First up, some cool news... my little sister is getting married! Her boyfriend proposed to her in a hot air balloon and since then it's been non-stop wedding maddness. It won't be until november, but she's got a lot of stuff to do. Fortunatly, our mom and her fiance are "planners" and should be able to help with much of the arrangements. I've been asked to be an usher and do some kind of origami for the reception tables. So, a big blog shout-out to my sister and her future husband.

Next up, a couple of days vacation. I took a couple of days off to go to Pittsburgh with some friends and see Jimmy Buffett in concert. Strangely enough, the concert itself wasn't as good as the last one I went to, but the events surrouding it were interesting.

1. Parking. We had to park literally as far away from the entrance as you could get. The only thing further away was the sewage treatment plant and a field. Being not a big fan of other humans, I was just as happy to avoid the crowds.

2. This also meant that there were no porta-toilets out there either. So we, and pretty much everyone else, had to use the field. Everyone was fairly cool about it. The women usually went in groups, or had a guy go with them to stand guard. The guys, myself included, tried to maintain some decorum based on how much alchol in their system. Since I don't drink, I was a perfect gentleman as much as can be possible when peeing in a field.

2b. There was also a couple that stood in the field for about 15-20 minutes, smoking weed. I was a little puzzled by this, then realized they'd "snuck off to the bathroom" to get high. We laughed at them.

2c. A helicopter kept circling the area. So, I might have made the local news while taking care of business in the field. Eh, it's buffett...

3. The trek to the entrance wasn't bad, but we were stopped at the front gate and checked for digital cameras. I had to unroll the blanket I was carrying and lift my shirt. Of course, I could have had a camera in any of the dozen pockets in my pants. Or I could have, potentially, had a camera phone like everyone else. I'd really like to see them stop people from bringing in their cell phones - the rioting would be hilarious to watch from a safe distance.

4. We found a good spot, but didn't realize it was the nexus of all beachballs. At a buffett concert, it's customary to throw around beachballs. And we got more than our fairshare. I'm fairly alert and didn't get hit unless I was ready for it, but others in my group tired of it quickly.

5. So the concert starts and then the thing that everyone said wasn't going to happen, happened. It began to rain. Now, I'm a big one for being prepared and despite words to the otherwise, I had a rain poncho. So, when it started to rain, what did I do?

I left my poncho in my pocket and took off my shirt. Hey, it's buffett - why would I care about a little rain? I tucked my shirt into the back of my pants and enjoyed it. Seems silly, but I had a plan. A wet poncho would be difficult to deal with the rest of the night and my skin would dry much faster than my shirt. So, if I got cold later, I could put on a dry shirt and be fine.

After a bit, the rain stopped and I kept my shirt off and enjoyed the weather and the show.

6. Later in the evening, but before it got really dark, I decided to head to the restroom. I'm not a fan of public restrooms in general and due to some amazing bladder control and careful fluid intake, I've never had to pee in a trough.

For those that have not seen the inside of a men's restroom in a large public venue - it's not pretty. There was a long line to get into the restroom, then a line to get to the long trough's on either side of the room. I found a spot that was only 2 deep and waited patiently. One guy couldn't wait and was peeing in a sink. The guy in front of me was having trouble walking and nearly fell over after he lost his balance as he zipped up. I caught him and helped push him in the general direction of the door.

I took care of my business and made my way to the exit. Later I heard a fight had broken out just after I left. Crazy.

7. I got back to the group without much trouble and was in plenty of time for the "Fins" song, which is amazing to see, and the "Volcano" which is fun to sing along with.

We left before the end of the show and made it out of the parking lot without much trouble - though our driver insisted on checking his cell-phone messages while trying to dodge pedestrians. Could have been ugly, but we were okay.

The next day was the drive back and a quiet evening at home.

New topic: Origami. Second tier of the project is done, I made good progress on tier three, but I think I'm going to need to do some more folding.

Finally, I had a dream last night that a system of travel had been created that involved reducing a person to dust, then putting them in a canister that bank tellers use - then sending then at high speeds through tubes or slower by UPS. At the other end they were re-hydrated and went about their lives without trouble. I used the system to move back into a college dorm-room since I was apparently going back to school.

We'll that's it for now, lots to catch up on. Back to work...

paying rent, origami, long week

So, on Friday, I did what should have been an easy task- paying my rent. I went during the day instead of after work, since I didn't want to fight the traffic. I got called into my boss's off just before I headed out to lunch and that delayed me a bit. The weather was a bit rainy, but I made it to the landlord's office without too much trouble.

But then the trouble began. Half the parking lot was blocked off - a photographer was taking photos of young women. The building where the landlord's office is located also has a modeling agency. Yes, in Akron. Who knew? Anyway, I think they were connected and I was annoyed. But then, you already knew that.

So, I get past Miss Teen Trollup USA and...

Okay, so maybe I'm being to harsh on these girls. Just because they were wearing Daisy Dukes made out of sweatshirt material and midriff baring matching tank tops is no reason to think they are anything less than Mensa inductees.

I find a parking space and head for the entrance. Which is also blocked off by yet another photographer and half a dozen similarly clad young women. They weren't taking a photo that particular instant, so I got past them, down the hall, and into the landlords office.

And there's no one at the front desk. So, I wait a few moments. And then a few more moments. And then, just for fun, a few more moments.

On the desk is a bell - which I hate ringing. I don't like the noise, for one, and I also don't like what it implies. If there's a bell, there should be someone there who's job it is to see that I don't have to ring the bell.

Yes, I'm aware that's circular logic. Let's just roll with it.

So, I ring the bell and no one shows up. I wait a bit longer, then a guy walks past the desk and past me on the way to send a fax. It takes him a while and on the way back he finally notices me. I explain that I'm paying my rent and that I don't like just leaving a check lying around. He takes the check and I head out. Only to be stopped at the main door by another Trollup Girl (tm) who's standing guard while a picture is being taken. Since I've have to knock her aside to get past her and I'm ever so slightly not quite annoyed enough to do that, I wait. And growl. Quietly.

Picture taken, I can finally make my exit and head back though the lunch hour traffic to work.

In the movie Scanners, the people with special powers can make people's heads explode just by concenrating about it. They usually get a headache - and hey, I'm totally used to those. If someone knows where the super powers prize wheel is at today, please let me know. I've got a list of people that I'd like to try them out on.

In better news... more progress on the Origami. I'm well on my way to finishing the second tier and despite a couple of tense moments involving glue, paper, and some curse words that may or may not have been responsible for the explosive mushroom growth in the yard - I'm doing okay with it.

Even with the day off, it was still a long week. I'm glad I'm in the middle of the weekend - and that I've still got another day off. Later...

another walk, origmai progress, AARP

After my last post - I took another walk. This one was about 4 miles total, so I think I got in around 9+ miles that day - not bad. And I slept really well that night.

I spent a good chunk of my memorial day hanging out, watching "dead like me", and working on my origami project. Made some serious progress, one layer is nearly complete. Just gotta put the outside panels in place and I'll be ready to move vertical. It's also way more structurally sound - which is a good thing.

And finally, I got a notice from the AARP. Asking me to join. I want to call them up and scream into the phone, "I'm only 33! Leave me the hell alone!"

But that would be rude.

So, intead, I'm just going to get back to work...

gardens, butterflies, trains, and a walk

Yesterday, I went with some friends to Stan Hywet hall and gardens. It's a big old house that it was far to nice of day to go inside - so, we walked around the gardens and ponds, and checked out the conservatory. Where I half expected to see Mrs. Peacock standing over a dead body with a Candlestick in her hands.

The Conservatory had a pretty cool train set up - two tracks that looped around a large area with lots of waterfalls and quaint little log houses. Pictures were taken.

It also boasted a butterfly area - protected by a "butterfly" lock in the form of 2 sets of doors. There were strict rules about entering and exiting the area to protect the butterflies - but once inside, it was amazing. The area was thick with them, including some huge - and friendly - examples of the species. Pretty cool. It was neat to get up really close to them and watch them feed on nectar and pollen - or when they were just hanging out.

One species - according to the guide - doesn't eat. They only live a few days as a moth - the rest of their life is as a caterpillar. Sure enough, the one we saw fell off a branch and died right in front of us.

There was nothing to be done except make a quiet joke about "mouth to moth resuscitation" and then move one. One of my friends had one land on his back as we neared the exit and we had to have a little help knocking it loose - after pictures were taken, of course.

The rest of the time there was spent in the gardens trying to avoid the countless wedding parties that were having pictures taken there. It wasn't easy, but we managed to avoid being including in any "special memories"

Late that afternoon, I developed a massive headache that followed me home. I took some aleve and managed to quell it enough to get to sleep that night. It was still there when I got up to pee twice last night and the last vestiges were still there in the morning.

But, it faded enough for me to venture out and take what ended up being a 3 hour walk in the hot sun. I tried to keep myself hydrated and mostly succeeded. I'm still a bit tired, but a cool shower helped and I think it was good trip. I also tried out Fazolli's - a sort of fast-ish food italian restaurant. I had pizza - which was good but seriously greasy.

And I guess that's it for now. Later...

things that are odd...

1. Recently, I was driving along and the car in front of me suddenly slammed on their brakes as a hand extended out the driver's side window. After a slight hesitation, the hand extended a finger and pointed to the right, over the top of the car. They then proceeded to make a right turn.

There is a slight possiblity that their turn signals didn't work - however, the brake lights were fine and the car seemed to be in good condition. It's a little more likely that the person was simply a dork.

2. Yesterday, also while in a car, I saw a man mowing a lawn in a t-shirt and pajama bottoms. How do I know that they weren't just light-weight sweats? Because I have a pair just like them. Very strange.


In other news... don't be fooled by subways new "garlic bread". Being a fan of bread in general and especially of garlic bread - I thought I'd give it a go with maybe a meatball sub. Ah, but no. "It's not garlic bread, " my sandwich artist tells me, but meerly a spread that can be added to the exisiting breads. Taken aback, I quickly changed my order to the very bland standard. If it had just been garlic butter, I might have gone for it, but the consistancy was all wrong and I avoided it. As the sandwich moved through the process, I had a difficult time convincing the artists to not put extra stuff on. I finally had to tell them "extra plain" - which got a slight laugh and let me move on with my life.


It's been fairly quiet here at work today. One of my colleages' last day here is next wednesday, so we've been trying to get stuff organized.

I'm looking forward to a quiet weekend - maybe even doing a little hiking if the crowds aren't bad. Almost makes me hope for rain since I'll walk in the rain and not many other people will.

Well, I guess that's it for now. Back to work...

wookieWear - summer edition

A quick post today - been pretty busy. But, enough time for a visit from everyone's favorite wookie - in his new shirt/beer bottle cozy.



Chewie! Not so close! Back up a bit...



Okay, that's a little better...



Great! Now, put your arms down.

Hmmm...well, you can put your arms down when you get to school.

Back to work...

ex-roomate, car wash

I had a call last week from my ex-roommate's mother - she told me he was getting married on Friday. For his tearful apoligy and an attempt at a renewed friendship - I would have thought that an event as important as this would have warrented at least a solicitation of gifts.

My thoughts on this:

1. I also found out that it's with the woman who moved in with us and ultimately led to him moving out. And I guess, in a way, it's a good thing. At least something good came out of that. I think I would have been more annoyed if he's broken up with her and then moved on and was suddenly getting married.

2. I'm kinda wishing that his mom stopped keeping me in the loop. If things are done - and I think/hope they are - then I don't need to be in this loop anymore.

In other news, I got a message from my sister on my answering machine on Saturday. She was calling to tell me how annoying the "free car wash" was just down the street from her apartment. Strangely enough, I missed her call beacause I was going for a walk - to a walmart in my area where the girls soccer team was having a free car wash. There were two girls holding signs and shrieking at passing cars. They were also shrieking in my general direction - though if they thought a pedestrian would be interested in a car wash, they were indeed as stupid as they looked - and sounded.

I'm going to have to blame car dealers for this situation. Car commercials are still frequently populated with screaming salesmen - as though the only way we'll listen is if we are yelled at.

In those cases, I stop listening and ignore them. As I ignored the shrieking car wash girls - and as I hope my sister was able to eventually do with her own neighborhood free car wash.

I guess that's about it for now. Back to work...

lunch, $5, highlander trench coat

I went out to lunch with some co-workers/colleagues. We had a pretty good time and one of them bought lunch for the rest of us - which was very cool. Coming back into work I saw a $5 bill on the grass - so, I went to lunch and made $5. Didn't even have to dance on a table for it or anything.

The past couple of rainy days I've been wearing my gray trenchcoat to work - and since my attention to proper attire has waned recently, I've also been wearing my jeans and sneakers. Which, I've realized, is the same outfit that Duncan McCloud wore in Highlander. Unfortunatly, I don't have a job that lets me carry around a sword, but if that changes - I'm ready.

I guess that's about it for now - I had some weird dreams last night, but I can't remember them. Time to get back to work...

visit, zoo, zips, totebag

Last Friday morning I woke up early to the sounds of my next door neighbors getting, umm...busy. Apparently I heard only the tail end of the festivities since within about 5 minutes of the last hurrah, I then heard their car start up and one of them drive away. So much for the afterglow.

I got up and got ready for work - and packed for my weekend trip to visit my folks. 8 hours later (after work) I'm on the road. The trip was mostly uneventful - though I did encounter a problem in columbus with a lane that I needed closed due to a semi stopped on the road. There were a bunch of people milling around the truck - as though they expected it to transform into a giant robot and run away. Or maybe they were just practicing putting up orange cones.

Finally got to my folks and had pizza while we watched the latest Harry Potter movie. Pretty good, but a little uneven.

Last Thursday I'd gone to a silent auction and won a gift basket - which mom really liked along with the hot tub pillow I'd gotten for her before. So, I scored a bunch of points this Mother's Day weekend.

On Saturday morning, Dad and I went and got some mulch and toured his garden. Both my parents have put a lot of work into the landscaping and it shows.

Saw my sister for a bit before she had to get ready for a wedding - then mom, dad and I headed north to the zoo. The gibbons were amazing, and the river otters are always fun. We didn't get to see too much before the sky opened up and rain started coming down. We made a quick exit and while waiting for the car, someone went past and said "Go Zips" to me since I was wearing my akron jacket. It was a little weird to see a zips fan outside their native enviroment.

From there - half priced bookstore. I was a little disappointed in their sci-fi selection, but the comics were excellent. I ended up spending slightly over $30 - which entitled me to a free tote bag. It was a neon yellow/green. I think it may have also glowed in the dark, but I haven't checked it out yet.

My sister and her boyfriend came over on Sunday for lunch - we did a little origmai and comeserated with mom's dog - who it turns out doesn't like the boyfriend and tends to bite - so the dog had to wear a muzzle. I thought she looked like a ninja, but it was clear she didn't like it - though eventually she got used to it.

The drive back home was uneventful - other than some rain. And the week I expect will be mostly ordinary. But, I'd better get back to work...

slightly better today, getting my ear re-done, work

My mood has improved a bit today - at least partially since I can't seem to maintain a bad mood for too long. Tires me out.

After work yesterday, I went for a walk and headed up to the nearby tattoo and body piercing studio - with the full intention of getting my ear re-pierced. I've been to the company before - though not at their current location. The first place was a little seedy, the second was pretty classy - well, as classy as tattoo and body piercing studios go. The new location - extra seedy.

Strike 1. Door propped open = no air conditioning. The equipment generates heat and a busy place with lots of people generates heat as well. Not going to be comfortable if a person is there very long.

Strike 2. Cash only. The signs were everywhere. Having a credit card machine takes time and money to establish. Cash only is a little more "fly by the seat of your pants". And since some tattoos can be a lot of money, that's a lot of cash to carry around.

Strike 3. The owner came out, and he was looking like hell warmed over. He did one of my first tattoos and later one of his employees examined the work and didn't have anything good to say. I dunno if he was on something, but I got a bad vibe. Especially if he was going to be the one to re-do my ear.

I asked him the price for getting my ear redone - he said it was $40.00 and that it included a silver hoop.

Strikes 4 & 5. $40.00 seemed pretty high, especially since it was redoing an existing piercing - it's not like he would have had to aim or anything. And a hoop? A hoop means the hole is going to heal around the shape - and I don't want a curved hole in my ear.

So, I said something about needing to go to the ATM and made my escape.

Back to my car and then to get my hair cut - and then to the mall. I've done enough research to now be a little disdainful of getting my ear pierced in the mall, but I got it done the first time there and figured it might not be bad. Well, I looked and looked and couldn't find what I was really looking for in either kiosk - nor could I find it in spencer gifts or even the painfully girly claires. By this point I'd decided I was just going to do it myself and needed a simple post. I settled on a pair at claires and made my exit.

Later in the evening after a little pizza, a couple episodes of Lost season 1, and a little work on my origami - I decided to get to work on my ear. I started to push the post through and it started to hurt. So I went downstairs to discover I was out of ice. Back to the bathroom, I took it slow and gently worked the post into place. It bled a bit, but not too bad, and I got it cleaned up and took a shower.

It seems fine today - but it also seems like a lot of work to get a piece of metal in my ear.


In other news, nothing new on the work front. One of my colleagues may or may not be resigning - which is stressing all of us out since we're already short handed. Getting a little tired of muddling through.

Well, I guess I should get back to the grind...

pandora

I was using Wikipedia, one of my favorite sites, to look up info on the video game God of War. One of the items in the game is Pandora's Box - and Wikipedia had an article for the myth as well.

According to the site, there's some confusion as to the real story. Might have been a box, might have been a jar - might have been that the box and the woman were one.

In one version, Pandora opens the box and all the evils escape - but closes it so that only Hope is still trapped. In another, she traps Hope and lets it out later - with the idea that Hope is in the world, but it has some catching up to do.

The real question, I think, is what was Hope doing in a box of the evils of the world? I don't think they really answer that in the site article, but I believe that in some circumstances - Hope itself is evil.

No matter how terrible a person may feel, there's always Hope - and always a chance to have that Hope dashed. There's always a chance for things to get just that much worse.

So, I think by this point it should be clear that I'm not having a good week. Hell, I'm not sure that it's even been a good year - or any other band of tire.

Family: There's an underlying tension anymore and every time we talk about it - things get just a little bit worse. So, we don't talk about anything of consequence and the banality continues.

Relationship: I tried to show some honesty and caring recently - it went badly.

Work: After our 4.25 hour long meeting yesterday, we've finally got a plan of attack for our future - and given the current staffing and other resources, it's utterly impossible for us to succeed. Which, in a way, makes it a little easier- all we have to do now is fail with a little bit of style.

But hey, there's always hope, right? All I have to do, apparently, is keep my head down and shut my damn mouth and everything will work out.

---

(later)

Well, the relationship thing is little better after some email exchanges. Still not entirely comfortable at how things have gone, but it'll work out. Work is much the same - still in the dark, still up in the air, still doomed.

I've got an hour to go before I head out today - thinking about trying to get my ear done, get a haircut, and some new pants.

I guess that's it for today...

card, ear, contacts, game

This weekend, I decided to pick up a couple of Mother's Day cards - one for my mom and one for my grandmother. I was in the grocery store card aisle and picked up a card with snoopy on it. I'm not big on mushy cards and I usually go for humor unless it's a card for someone having died. So, Snoopy is usually a non-mushy choice and I figured I was half-way done. To my horror, I opened the card and a literal shower of glitter poured out. The lights above the rack made it almost glow - as though Tinkerbell had been by earlier and had taken a crap in the card.

I hastely put the card back though the damage had been done. A woman standing nearby asked, "Bad card?" as though I'd taken the time to see the written content and been troubled for some reason. I simply replied "too much glitter" and spent the next few minutes trying to brush myself off. And as my sister will attest - it's a futile exercise. She has a glitter-phobia.

After much careful searching, I finally found two cards with a minimum amount of glitter (i.e. none) - though since the cursed stuff had already eaten its way into my skin, my perceptions may have altered.

Overall, tramatic.

In other news, I think I'm going to get my ear re-pierced today. I haven't worn one in a while and the whole has closed over. Hoping they can "re-activate" the existing hole with a minimum of pain.

My contacts are bothering me again. My eyes seem really dry and I'm begining to wonder if the "cold" is really an allergy springing up. Get it? It's spring time and the allergy is "springing up"? Yeah, I didn't think it was that funny either.

Playing Prince of Persia The Two Thones last week. Had to race a chariot though an obstacle course and once I'd finally survived that one, faced off with two huge monsters. Got my ass royally kicked. Tried a couple more times, got frustrated and stopped. Fired it up later and had to restart from the chariot race. Ass kicked, again.

Went online and looked up the cheat section on how to beat the two monsters. Tried to follow the advice - ass kicked again, though I did get a few hits in. And this is on the heels of a huge and complicated puzzle - and while on the "easy" setting. I dunno know about this game - I think it's stopped being fun - which means I'll stop playing it and most likely sell it. It's too bad, the time travel elements are pretty sweet.

Well, I guess that's about it for now - got a busy day ahead of me and a potentially 4 hour long meeting this afternoon. "Alex, I'll take 'Things that suck' for a thousand"

later...

sick, sore, hating traffic, meeting

Still sick. Not much more to say about that.

Strangely sore. Got a weird ache on my left side, just above and below my collarbone. No idea why it's sore, but I've tried stretching and rubbing it to no avail. I noticed it yesterday and thought I'd slept funny, but it hurt when I went to sleep last night and it's still hurting this morning. Shouldn't another nights sleep cancel it out somehow if that was the case? I'm going to try heat tonight if it's still bothering me.

So, I'm driving into work, heading down a four lane one-way street. Well, three and a turn lane. I'm not turning and I'm in the correct lane to proceed forward, fully aware that we've only got two lanes across the interection to work with since one is closed for the musuem construction. I'm stopped at a light behind several cars and though it seems like it's taking forever, there's at least a good song on the radio and I'm doing okay. Light turns green and we start across the intersection, only to get stopped halfway. Turns out that the construction is now taking up two of the three lanes - including mine.

I freaking hate that. Just freaking hate it. Streets are for cars to drive upon. Don't block my lane to unload mulch or deliver a precious moments figurine - get out of the way and park. Seems like freaking common courtesy to me.

Anyway, I'm stuck out in traffic until the only open lane clears enough to let me through. And then, joy of joys - I arrive at work. We've got two meetings today - 3.5 hours total. Dramatic sigh.

So, I guess I should get back to work and try to get something productive accomplished. I have high hopes that the sun will come out tomorrow (tomorrow) and that I'll have a better day.

later....

still sick, hostel, meeting

I'm still sick - and the tylonal is just not quiet doing the job. I'm considering shoving a couple of pills up my nose all the way into my sinuses. None of this "bloodstream" crap - I want them to go to work right freaking where the problem is. Do my toes hurt? No, so there's no need for the drugs to even head that direction. It's plan. Not a great plan, but a plan none the less.

I watched part of Hostel last night - but not all of it. There was T, then there was A, then there were drugs, then gorey and pointless violence. Lather, rinse, repeat. Stopped watching after the first 45 minutes - it was terrible. Hellraiser had just as much gore, and it had a plot as well. This, this was just crap.

In other news... our Monday meeting, postponed until today - has been postponed again till tomorrow. I think we may have to rename this thing.

And that's it for now, back to work...

mucus, on the highway, getting gas, stupid little girl

This weekend I was sick. Headache, sore throat, sinus pressure - and mucus. More mucus than I realized a human being could produce. It was terrible. I filled a small trash can with klennex in no time at all. So, I've been jamming on Tylonal cold medicine most of the time and I think I'm getting better. Maybe.

I was driving on the highway on Friday and the far left lane - where I'm at - suddenly comes to a halt. I swear for a bit - but hold my ground in the hope that it will eventually clear instead of creating a problem in the next lane over by everyone moving to it.

Eventually, after much stop and go - I see a truck with one of those ------> signs on the back. Indicating that we should all get over. With some difficulty, I do. We finally go past the obstrutction and find that it's...

1. The truck with the arrow, parked in the lane with the driver in the cab.
2. Two police officers standing next to their cruisers. Unhurt. Just chatting.
3. One motorcycle, upright and undamaged. The rider was just getting on the bike, he was unhurt. His helmet was on resting on the ground, undamaged.
4. One woman, also unhurt. Walking over to her undamaged car.

Now, I clearly don't have the whole story. But at this point - everyone that was still there at the scene should have gotten away from there and freed up traffice - instead of standing there chatting. You want to chat? Go to Starbucks.

After this incident, I'm near my destination, but running on fumes. I pull into a gas station and see two pumps open on the right side of my car. I started to pull forward to go to the far one - as a courtesy - but notive a kid standing on the far pump's island. He's trying to direct a woman in a huge car to that pump - she's making a wide loop to bring the left side of her car into postion. Now, I've never needed anyone to direct me to a pump to fill my car - but even with help she wasn't doing a good job. I backed up to get away from her to the point where I wasn't sure I could reach my gas tank at the second pump. She ended up vaguely near the pump, but mostly out in the isle. The kid proceeded to pump the gas. I pumped my gas and got out of there well before they were done.

Later that weekend I find myself traveling down a residental alleyway, one lane, and encounter a little girl on a bike. I've had dealings with this little girl before and based on her previous behavior I know her to be...

1. Arrogant
2. Foolishly unobservant
3. Annoying
4. Stupid

She's on her little pink bike, riding right down the middle of the alley, coming right towards me. I slow down to a crawl and wait for her to get out of the way. I reach the cross intersection before she does, and I don't deviate from my course. Still, she keeps coming. I slow even further, prepared to stop and let her hit my car. Might be funny.

At the last possible moment, she darts into a single car parking space at the back of the building. I figure she's going to wait until I get past - which would be the sensible thing to do. Instead, she turns around and darts right back into my way - now headed away from me but still in the way.

What had been a game of chickcn or some kind of mind game has turned into rampant stupidity. As she pedels along she keeps looking back to see:

1. if I'm there. Duh, it's an alley, where am I going to go?
2. how close I am. If she was worried about me hitting her, why did she get in front of me again?

She reaches an intersection of a main street and, without looking, darts into traffic. She looks back one last time as I turn onto the street and I raise my fingers to my forehead in the international "loser" symbol.

We both survived the encounter - but I doubt either of us will be the same.

Back to work...

the cornfield, meeting results, PoP:T2T

Ever see that episode of the Twilight Zone with the creepy little boy named Anthony? He's apparently got god-like powers, a bad attitude, and the abilty to "wish things to the cornfield".

Last night at the Olive Garden, I seriously wished I could be that Anthony. A family at the next table over had a child who - for no apparent reason - would perodically shriek at the top of his lungs. They were soon replaced by a group of painfully loud people. It should be noted that the group contained a guy wearing a shirt that said, "Diamonds are forever, but she'll never forget the crabs". Yep, it was that kind of crowd.

Alas, despite my best efforts, they remained loud and at the table. So, dinner was finished quickly and an exit was located. I'm all for enjoying a dinner with friends, but these people were just being rude.

The webteam meeting yesterday was fairly uneventful - not sure what all the hype was.

Playing a new game at home - Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones. Pretty cool, but a little frustrating. Yesterday I had to climb a series of platforms, attack and blind a giant, then stab him in the shins till he fell over and I could finish him off.

I suspect today will be a long day - time to get back to it...

sick, meeting, cranky

Last evening, the cold that's been mildly pestering me for a while now decied to ramp up and really make me sick. Mostly a cough, but some congestion as well. So, I took some Robo-tussin last night to help me sleep and I'm DayQuill today. Well, DayQuill and Fruit Breezers those thing are excellent.

We've got our Monday afternoon meeting today. It had been resceduled to Wednesday due to a conflict in scheduling and then rescheduled again for today since a member of the team was out sick. I'd like to be out sick as well, but I think this will be a "fate of the webteam" meeting - so, I think I should be here. Too bad it's in the afternoon, I'm here for the long haul if I want to go to it.

In other news - I'm cranky. This morning I was pissed at the people that backed their cars into the parking spaces even though - a) no one was doing it as I pulled in and b) no one took more than their single space. I was just cranky based on what people usually do - instead of the reality of the day. I think I'm going to blame it on being sick.

Well, I should try to keep busy...back to work...

visted, lost wallet

On Friday, one of our former co-workers came back for a visit. A couple of us had lunch with him and then hung out - talking for another hour. I was able to get caught up before hand, so the extra time didn't cause any problems. He's doing well and likes his job, but doesn't like the town where he lives. It was good to see him and I think he'll try to stop by again sometime soon - his family is all in the area so it may be doable.

Last evening I had dinner with some friends. It was pouring when I got out of my car and I had to struggle with my coat. Without realizing it, I lost something. Later that evening, as I was getting ready to leave, I realised I didn't have my wallet. I had hoped it was in my car, but a through search of the car and the house yielded nothing. Worried and feeling down, I gave up the search and headed home - where I discovered two things. One, my landlord is raising my rent yet again and two, I had a message on my machine. It was the bank where I had parked my car last night. The message left a name, phone, number, hours they would be open today - and like Pandora's Box - Hope.

I called them this morning and confirmed that they did have my wallet. Back in the car, I headed to the bank, my head filled with facts to confirm my identity. Instead, I walked in an identified myself by name and the girl produced my wallet and identified me by my picture.

I thanked them for finding it and keeping it safe - then gave them some origmai that I had made and brought along. They were surprised, but gracious.

The wallet was fine - and even the money was still in there ($7.00)

I guess if you have to lose a wallet - a bank parking lot is not a bad place to do it.

That's it for now - and though it's a Saturday, I think I may do a little work. Later...

LMBR, Ducks, disconnect

The other day I saw a license plate that said: LMBR GAL I followed this GAL for a few miles (we were going the same direction, no, I wasn't stalking her) and tried to figure out what the plate meant.

Was she a fitness instructor as the LiMBeR GAL? Maybe a chiropractor as LuMBaR GAL? Or was she really into woodworking as the LuMBeR GAL? I may never know.


This morning, I saw two ducks outside the computer center - a male and a female. I quacked a greeting to them as I headed for the door and they politely quacked back. I could make a joke about Hackers and Quackers, but I'm not the kind of person that makes that kind of joke. Well, I am, but it's actually more amusing to move around that joke rather than dive right in.

And speaking of being on the periphery - I've felt more than a little disconnected the past few days. Had a conversation over the weekend that troubled me and I'm having difficulty adapting to what it means. I'll figure out what it all means soon enough and figure out how to deal with it, but until then if you see me in a daze, I'm really just thinking hard about something. Or I've decided that recreational drugs are the answer and I'm "rocky mountain high".

In either case, just let me go about my way and I'll be back to as close to normal as I ever get soon enough.

And speaking of getting back to...time to get back to work...

long drive, easter visit, hot tub tea

Headed down visit with the family for Easter weekend. On the drive down there, I realized one of my co-workers was in the car just to the left of me as we got on the highway. We ended up traveling together most of the way, so that was kinda cool.

I did some sleeping in over the weekend and mostly just hung out. I helped a little with the Easter dinner while the rest of the crew was at church. Pretty quiet time.

The weirdest bit was when my Dad came out on the patio with a plastic jug filled with water and tea bags. I figured he was going to make some more Sun Tea - but instead he opened up the cover to the hot tub and tossed it in. Apparently he's been doing that since they first got the hot tub and says it doesn't take nearly as much time as the Sun Tea version does. And no leaks yet.

And I guess that's about it - oh, I did get the duck for my collection.

So, back to work...

Sunday lunch, glue, duck

On Sunday, while I visiting my family - I fixed lunch while they were at church. While in and of itself it isn't a big deal - but considering how infrequently I cook, this was something of a big deal. I made taco salad and everyone seemed to enjoy it. And I even helped with dishes.

I worked on my project last night and made some significant progress. Still a long way to go, but it's getting easier to hold the shape in my head and I'm having to dwell less on the construction of each area.

The hot tub that my parents came with a small rubber duck - which my folks gave to me the first time I visited after they got the hot tub. I promptly forgot it. They gave it to me again over the weekend and I forgot it again. This time...the duck is mine.

That's it for now, back to work...

walk, sights, taxes, trip

Yesterday, I went for a walk. I needed to use my computer at work to finish up some stuff with my taxes and decided that since it looked like a nice day, I'd walk there. Now, I've walked home before when my battery died, but I got a ride later to get the car back. This would be the first "there and back again" trip for me.
I started out at 9:10 am with a hooded jacket, a pocketful of paper and I backpack with my documents. The wind was a little chilly, but not too chilly. On the trip I noticed:
a): A kitten in the window of a printing business, rolling around in the sunshine. It noticed me, but I didn't stay to make friends. It looked happy and healthy, so it must have lived there the whole time. Most people see more of their pets on the weekends - in this case, the opposite was true.
b): I saw some grafitti that had clearly been done by stencil. The lettering was in the "standard" grafitti style, but there was a dark rectangle around it of no paint, and then overspray beyond that edge. Seemed kind of pathetic - though I guess it made it easier to "tag" a larger area.
I got to work at 10:40, got a soda and some chips and played Diablo for a bit to relax. Then I dove into the taxes and did a ferocious battle with the needlessly complicated city taxes. It was worse than both the state and federal combined. In any case, they go in the mail tomorrow.
A little more Diablo and a couple of emails later and I decided to stop at the ATM on my way back so I could get some food.
The trip back seemed to go a little faster, though I didn't really time it. The distance, according to Yahoo Maps was 4.7 miles one way. So, not a bad bit of exercise - though I did stop at Wendy's and got some chicken nuggets.
I got home, finished my lunch and relaxed for a bit with some video games. My aunt called, and a with a small degree of convincing, I took a shower and hopped into the car for the 2 hour 40 minute drive to my parents house - where she and my uncle were staying the night after dropping off my grandmother for a 2 week visit. I don't get to see my extended family much - so this was a nice, if somewhat short, visit.
My aunt, my uncle, and his son headed back to Illinois this morning and the rest of my family is as church. I'll most likely head down here again next weekend for easter.
That's about it for now...going to wrap this up and hang out with the dogs for a bit...

time change, nerd, plant, glue, eye exam

First up, the time change. As the master of Space and Time, I should be fine with it - or at least in control. But sadly, that is not the case. I finally got all the time-pieces in my apartment up to speed, with two exceptions:

1. My watch. Somehow, while clearly not paying attention, I advanced my watch by 1 hour and 1 day, instead of just 1 hour. Yes, I was on crack or something. What makes it worse? I can't rewind the date indicator. I tried to wind it all the way around, but only got a few days in the future before I got ticked and pulled the pin. As a consequence, I can't use my watch until 8:00 AM, Thursday morning. The rest of the world is just going to have to fend for itself until then.

2. I have a clock that shines on the ceiling in the dark - and is also supposed to automatically set itself based on some radio signal. Well, it didn't do anything as far as resetting goes, so I unplugged it with the idea that a reset would get me the correct time. No such luck - it's just glowing on the ceiling with FF:FF - which I think means something not very nice.

So, I'm going to have to dig out the manual and set the time myself. Dang it.

In other news... as promised, here are the Nerd Photos:

http://www3.uakron.edu/dds/geek/geek.html
http://www3.uakron.edu/dds/cyberSecurity_shoot/cyberSecurity_shoot.html

Scary, huh?

Don't know if I've mentioned this or not, but I repotted my Lucky bamboo into a larger container. It's still alive and growing nicely.

More progress on the big origami - I've glue together over 100 units. It's slow going as I have to plan ahead and not glue myself into a corner where I can't fit my hands.

And finally, the eye exam. Some brief notes...

1. Didn't allow quite enough time to get to the new doctor's office.
2. Directions were not very precise.
3. Went to VisionCare - should have been at Valley Vision.
4. Hillarity ensues
5. Get to correct eye doctor and fill out forms
6. Take some cryptic eye exams, get slightly pissed off.
7. Find out my insurance sucks
8. Find out my eyes are okay.
9. No further action needed - still have same glasses and contacts.
10. If I want new contacts, I'll need to go to my previous eye doctor and get the specifications - which makes no sense to me. Why not measure my eyes and go from there?

The doctor was fine and then news was good, I suppose. But I didn't walk out of there feeling like I'd had an entirely good experience. Oh well, that's what happens when your insurance changes make you change things.

And that's about it for now - back to work...