First, I have to set the scene a bit:
1. I'm at the computer at home. In front of me on the desk are a cup of tea on the left and an open can of mixed nuts on the right.
2. It's my habit to either:
a. Pick up the cup of tea with my right hand (thus reaching across the desk) and take a drink - or
b. Pick up the can of nuts with my right hand and shake a few into my left hand - then toss the mixed nuts into my mouth.
Now that's set up, we'll begin...
I'm playing a computer game and have been doing so for a while. Every so often, I'll take a drink or get a snack. And then, for some strange reason and clearly without paying close attention, I picked up the cup of warm tea and poured most of it into my left hand.
Pause for a moment for the swearing.
Once that was done, I began the clean up. The desk and keyboard tray were easy to clean up - but the throughly drenched keyboard was a loss. I shut everything down quickly and then unplugged the keyboard and tried to rinse it out. I then let it dry in the sun - but I don't fully trust it. So, I went to best buy and bought a keyboard and mouse set. They're pretty cool and have more buttons, but it was still a waste.
I can laugh about it now, but it was pretty bad when it happened.
New rule... Either drink or snack at the computer - but never both.
later...
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
30, bomb, cola, costume, game, nails
I swam 30 laps today, despite being a bit tired and getting a late start. Felt pretty good and could have gone further, but ran out of time.
Had another bomb threat today on campus - someone wrote a warning on the wall of a bathroom stall. How lame can you get? I hope the bomb sniffing dogs are getting some good treats out of all of this - they'd be the only ones who might benefit from it.
It's been a few weeks since I had my last coca-cola - I think I've finally gotten the addiction beat. Drinking a lot of water to make up for it, but that's better anyway.
My Halloween costume is coming along nicely - had a make or break moment last evening and things went better than expected. No hints, so don't even bother asking.
Played a little Final Fantasy again last night - and got my ass handed to me. I literally ran away screaming like a little girl. It was sad and pathetic.
Finally, I've been working on not biting my nails anymore. I'm making some progress, but it's taking a lot of concentration.
6 random topics and I'm outta here. Later...
Had another bomb threat today on campus - someone wrote a warning on the wall of a bathroom stall. How lame can you get? I hope the bomb sniffing dogs are getting some good treats out of all of this - they'd be the only ones who might benefit from it.
It's been a few weeks since I had my last coca-cola - I think I've finally gotten the addiction beat. Drinking a lot of water to make up for it, but that's better anyway.
My Halloween costume is coming along nicely - had a make or break moment last evening and things went better than expected. No hints, so don't even bother asking.
Played a little Final Fantasy again last night - and got my ass handed to me. I literally ran away screaming like a little girl. It was sad and pathetic.
Finally, I've been working on not biting my nails anymore. I'm making some progress, but it's taking a lot of concentration.
6 random topics and I'm outta here. Later...
Monday, September 24, 2007
football game, sunburn, time
Went to a football game with my room-mate over the weekend - WVU in morgantown. The drive down was boring on Friday, as was much of the evening. I did a bit of folding and read a book.
On gameday, we head out early and then had some issues with the optimum route. My room-mate and his sister had different ideas on how to proceed and I sat in the back and wondered if we would ever get there.
Finally arrived and found a parking space - and waited for his other sister and her family to show up. They finally did, and we set out to find them in the lot where they said they had parked. He and his sister started out, I told them that I would catch up after visiting the port-o-let. They were long gone when I emerged, but I figured they wouldn't be hard to find. I went to the correct lot and with a little logic, found his other sister and her family. A number of cell phone conversations and my room-mate and his now deeply cranky sister finally arrived. Apparently, they thought I had gone back to our car for some reason. Anyway, we split up once in the stadium and found our seats.
My room-mate's niece had what they called "a meltdown" and the rest of his family left the game just before half-time. My room-mate started to overheat and needed to borrow my hat - though it was only a stop gap measure as he had to leave before the 4th quarter.
Ironically, I wasn't really in favor of going to the game at all, but ended up being the only one who could have stuck it out - though I left with my room-mate since he was driving.
Once back at their homestead, his niece threw up due to her migraine and my room-mate pretty much passed out from the heat exhaustion. I ended up with a sunburn.
Oh, and WVU won the game. (we heard it on the radio as we left)
I had a headache most of the day and went to bed early. The next day I was ready to leave at 8:30 but we didn't get on the road until around 12:30. I went into a low-power mode to help get though the intense boredom - it helped a little. And despite a relatively innocuous visit - there was a comment made right at the end that burned me up. I kept quiet about it, but I have to wonder what holding all this stuff back is going to do to me. Nothing good, I'm sure.
In other news... our university President did it again and gave a commencement speech that I enjoyed reading as I posted it on the web for him. This one was about Time and he quotes Penelope Corfield as she describes time as:
“one long never-ending Now.”
I like that - fits in well with my own personal philosophy.
On the flip side is a quote by Ariel from the video game Legacy of Kain - one of my personal favorites. I played through that section several times so I could write it down word for word:
'All I can do is watch and remember.
Ceaselessly conscious as this wretched world's history unfolds.
Ghastly past, insufferable future - Are they one in the same?
Am I always here?"
At the point in the game where she says this, she's a prophetic ghost. So, it pretty much sucks to be her.
I can identify with that to an extent - in a way, she reminds me of cassandra from ancient greek myths. Blessed with visions of the future, cursed so that no one will ever believe her.
Man, I feel like that all the time. Things would work out so much better if everyone around me would just listen to me and then do exactly what I tell them to do. I'm seriously going to have to break out the mind control drugs one of these days.
Well, that's it for now. Gotta get back to the grind.
later...
On gameday, we head out early and then had some issues with the optimum route. My room-mate and his sister had different ideas on how to proceed and I sat in the back and wondered if we would ever get there.
Finally arrived and found a parking space - and waited for his other sister and her family to show up. They finally did, and we set out to find them in the lot where they said they had parked. He and his sister started out, I told them that I would catch up after visiting the port-o-let. They were long gone when I emerged, but I figured they wouldn't be hard to find. I went to the correct lot and with a little logic, found his other sister and her family. A number of cell phone conversations and my room-mate and his now deeply cranky sister finally arrived. Apparently, they thought I had gone back to our car for some reason. Anyway, we split up once in the stadium and found our seats.
My room-mate's niece had what they called "a meltdown" and the rest of his family left the game just before half-time. My room-mate started to overheat and needed to borrow my hat - though it was only a stop gap measure as he had to leave before the 4th quarter.
Ironically, I wasn't really in favor of going to the game at all, but ended up being the only one who could have stuck it out - though I left with my room-mate since he was driving.
Once back at their homestead, his niece threw up due to her migraine and my room-mate pretty much passed out from the heat exhaustion. I ended up with a sunburn.
Oh, and WVU won the game. (we heard it on the radio as we left)
I had a headache most of the day and went to bed early. The next day I was ready to leave at 8:30 but we didn't get on the road until around 12:30. I went into a low-power mode to help get though the intense boredom - it helped a little. And despite a relatively innocuous visit - there was a comment made right at the end that burned me up. I kept quiet about it, but I have to wonder what holding all this stuff back is going to do to me. Nothing good, I'm sure.
In other news... our university President did it again and gave a commencement speech that I enjoyed reading as I posted it on the web for him. This one was about Time and he quotes Penelope Corfield as she describes time as:
“one long never-ending Now.”
I like that - fits in well with my own personal philosophy.
On the flip side is a quote by Ariel from the video game Legacy of Kain - one of my personal favorites. I played through that section several times so I could write it down word for word:
'All I can do is watch and remember.
Ceaselessly conscious as this wretched world's history unfolds.
Ghastly past, insufferable future - Are they one in the same?
Am I always here?"
At the point in the game where she says this, she's a prophetic ghost. So, it pretty much sucks to be her.
I can identify with that to an extent - in a way, she reminds me of cassandra from ancient greek myths. Blessed with visions of the future, cursed so that no one will ever believe her.
Man, I feel like that all the time. Things would work out so much better if everyone around me would just listen to me and then do exactly what I tell them to do. I'm seriously going to have to break out the mind control drugs one of these days.
Well, that's it for now. Gotta get back to the grind.
later...
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
credit card, hospital bill, red cross, cola
I got a bill a couple days ago for my credit card - the one that I'd thought I'd paid off and canceled. Apparently, I'm being charged interest on the amount before my check got to them. $2.83 cents. Wankers.
I also got a bill from the hospital for my stay back in February. For $50. Not bad. I suspect they'll be more, but it looks like my insurance paid about $4000+, so I'm not complaining.
Got a call from the red cross, encouraging me to give blood. Which I'm not allowed to do anyway since I just gave within the past couple of weeks. Not sure what's up with their records.
The strep throat has had one good side effect - I think I've broken my coca-cola addiction. It hurt far too much to swallow the carbonated soda, so I found myself not drinking it at all. It was rough going for a bit there, but I think I've gotten stopped at this point and I'm drinking a lot of water and a little bit of tea. We'll see how it goes.
that's it for now... later...
I also got a bill from the hospital for my stay back in February. For $50. Not bad. I suspect they'll be more, but it looks like my insurance paid about $4000+, so I'm not complaining.
Got a call from the red cross, encouraging me to give blood. Which I'm not allowed to do anyway since I just gave within the past couple of weeks. Not sure what's up with their records.
The strep throat has had one good side effect - I think I've broken my coca-cola addiction. It hurt far too much to swallow the carbonated soda, so I found myself not drinking it at all. It was rough going for a bit there, but I think I've gotten stopped at this point and I'm drinking a lot of water and a little bit of tea. We'll see how it goes.
that's it for now... later...
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
grape
While still fighting my sore throat, I bought some grape flavored cloroceptic (sp?). It was the children's strength, but still did the job and tasted better than the cherry flavored adult stuff I'd been chugging.
This is important to note since I have also gotten into the habit of using a spray cleaner that I got from my eye doctor for cleaning my glasses.
While in Illinois I grabbed the spray bottle and the lens cloth and hit my glasses, once per lens on each side. And even though the bottles are nothing alike other than that they spray liquid, I managed to grab the wrong one and doused my glasses with grape cough medicine. I even started to use the lens cloth to wipe off the grape liquid before the color and smell stopped me.
I got the lenses washed off with water and tried again. I also shared this incident with my family, who got a good laugh over this.
And I am very glad they didn't get mixed up the other direction - otherwise, I might have poisoned myself.
That's it for now... later...
This is important to note since I have also gotten into the habit of using a spray cleaner that I got from my eye doctor for cleaning my glasses.
While in Illinois I grabbed the spray bottle and the lens cloth and hit my glasses, once per lens on each side. And even though the bottles are nothing alike other than that they spray liquid, I managed to grab the wrong one and doused my glasses with grape cough medicine. I even started to use the lens cloth to wipe off the grape liquid before the color and smell stopped me.
I got the lenses washed off with water and tried again. I also shared this incident with my family, who got a good laugh over this.
And I am very glad they didn't get mixed up the other direction - otherwise, I might have poisoned myself.
That's it for now... later...
Monday, September 17, 2007
donation, christening, block party, wedding, strep, old friend, chipolte
Well, time to catch up a bit.
1. Went and gave blood recently. Went pretty smooth, except the woman that took the donation kept talking about how she wouldn't take blood from another employee as they would be too critical of her work. Well, turns out there would be good reason to be critical - she didn't do a very good job. Not the end of the world, but not really precise.
2. Went to a christening for the couple that stayed with us while waiting for their surrogate twins to be born. It was a nice service and the church would make a great place to hide from vampires as it was covered in crucifixes and had holy water on tap. Handy. The service made mention of an exorcism, but it was not as interesting as it would have seemed. I got to hold one of the twins afterwards and told her she was my buddy until she pooped. Instead, she spit up on me.
3. That same weekend, went to a pretty cool block party. Stayed late, talked to a lot of people, ate some good food and did a little dancing. Also participated in the potato race - which involved holding a potato between one's legs and attempting to run. I wasn't very good at that.
4. Went to a wedding late weekend for my cousin. She looked radiate, her groom was in a kilt and there were bagpipes playing. The service was outside and only lasted about 10 minutes - justice of the peace running the show. The food consisted of snacks and I hung out with some my extended family. Had a nice time - though the drive to Illinois and back was really long.
5. In and around all of this, I'd been fighting a sore throat. A bad one. I finally went to the doctor and got a prescription - which seems to have finally done the trick. I thought I was going to OD on menthol for a while there.
6. The middle son of my former room-mate contacted me recently - he's college age and starting at UA. Which is pretty cool - I'm hoping we can get together for lunch one of these days.
7. I finally went to a chipolte recently - and that was some of the best food I've ever eaten. I ate a burrito that was the size and shape of a brick like it was nothing. Man, that was good stuff.
Guess that's about it for now... back to the video games.
1. Went and gave blood recently. Went pretty smooth, except the woman that took the donation kept talking about how she wouldn't take blood from another employee as they would be too critical of her work. Well, turns out there would be good reason to be critical - she didn't do a very good job. Not the end of the world, but not really precise.
2. Went to a christening for the couple that stayed with us while waiting for their surrogate twins to be born. It was a nice service and the church would make a great place to hide from vampires as it was covered in crucifixes and had holy water on tap. Handy. The service made mention of an exorcism, but it was not as interesting as it would have seemed. I got to hold one of the twins afterwards and told her she was my buddy until she pooped. Instead, she spit up on me.
3. That same weekend, went to a pretty cool block party. Stayed late, talked to a lot of people, ate some good food and did a little dancing. Also participated in the potato race - which involved holding a potato between one's legs and attempting to run. I wasn't very good at that.
4. Went to a wedding late weekend for my cousin. She looked radiate, her groom was in a kilt and there were bagpipes playing. The service was outside and only lasted about 10 minutes - justice of the peace running the show. The food consisted of snacks and I hung out with some my extended family. Had a nice time - though the drive to Illinois and back was really long.
5. In and around all of this, I'd been fighting a sore throat. A bad one. I finally went to the doctor and got a prescription - which seems to have finally done the trick. I thought I was going to OD on menthol for a while there.
6. The middle son of my former room-mate contacted me recently - he's college age and starting at UA. Which is pretty cool - I'm hoping we can get together for lunch one of these days.
7. I finally went to a chipolte recently - and that was some of the best food I've ever eaten. I ate a burrito that was the size and shape of a brick like it was nothing. Man, that was good stuff.
Guess that's about it for now... back to the video games.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
aeros, bats, bugs, baby, blood, busy
Went to an Aeros game last night with my friends - had a good time. We got half off for the tickets and I used my campus parking pass, so we save a little money and then blew it all on food and snacks.
The Aeros made three errors and ended up losing the game, but we still had a good time. I continue to be puzzled at the coaches that argue with the umpires. Like, has that ever worked? And the endless conferences on the mound that serve only to delay the game. We left with 1/2 an inning to go and it was still pretty late for me.
We also saw some wildlife. After the sun went down, the bats came out. They were flying high above the ballpark hunting insects and apparently interested in the pop-ups that occasionally went into their area. Pretty cool.
We were also joined by a preying mantis that landed on top of the first base dugout. The mantis apparently watched the game with us for a bit, then stared at the baby sitting in front of us. I think it was trying to decided if it could take the baby, but ultimately decided to risk the bats and fly off.
In other news, the red cross is after me again to give blood. I've gotten several letters and phone calls - I think the next step is a house visit and a non voluntary "donation". Better call to make an appointment.
Classes started this week and we've been pretty busy - better get back to it. Later....
The Aeros made three errors and ended up losing the game, but we still had a good time. I continue to be puzzled at the coaches that argue with the umpires. Like, has that ever worked? And the endless conferences on the mound that serve only to delay the game. We left with 1/2 an inning to go and it was still pretty late for me.
We also saw some wildlife. After the sun went down, the bats came out. They were flying high above the ballpark hunting insects and apparently interested in the pop-ups that occasionally went into their area. Pretty cool.
We were also joined by a preying mantis that landed on top of the first base dugout. The mantis apparently watched the game with us for a bit, then stared at the baby sitting in front of us. I think it was trying to decided if it could take the baby, but ultimately decided to risk the bats and fly off.
In other news, the red cross is after me again to give blood. I've gotten several letters and phone calls - I think the next step is a house visit and a non voluntary "donation". Better call to make an appointment.
Classes started this week and we've been pretty busy - better get back to it. Later....
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
glasses, swim, game
Got my new glasses yesterday, they are really nice. And I got magnetic clip on sunglasses, which are extra super cool. I'll get a pick one of these days once my zit goes away and I can get my hair under control. Getting both of those things to happen at same time might be a challenge, but I'll do my best.
Went for my swim today - half the pool was closed off for a water polo practice. I was in the "dangerous" part of the pool where only 2 days ago the lifeguards were concerned that the ceiling would collapse. Apparently, that's no longer a concern and I was free to pick my lane.
More Final Fantasy last evening. I reached a new area and the local chief vouched for me and said I must be very brave to get there. Umm... not really. I mostly ran around like a crazy person trying to find a save point, but hey, if the chief wants to vouch for my bravery, who am I to argue?
Got a meeting in a few... later...
Went for my swim today - half the pool was closed off for a water polo practice. I was in the "dangerous" part of the pool where only 2 days ago the lifeguards were concerned that the ceiling would collapse. Apparently, that's no longer a concern and I was free to pick my lane.
More Final Fantasy last evening. I reached a new area and the local chief vouched for me and said I must be very brave to get there. Umm... not really. I mostly ran around like a crazy person trying to find a save point, but hey, if the chief wants to vouch for my bravery, who am I to argue?
Got a meeting in a few... later...
Monday, August 20, 2007
game, swim, headache
So, playing final fantasy xii this weekend - here's how it went down.
1. Found myself at a village by the river, can't cross because the barge is on the other side.
2. Need to cross to complete a quest and take out an evil chicken-thing.
3. Look for alternate route, find one (I think) but blocked by a sandstorm.
A little later on in the game, I go to the entrance to the dessert and meet a dude who is studying sandstorms (!) He suggests that I talk to man sitting at the fountain. Man at fountain says he used to stop sandstorms all the time with a device, but his buddy has half of it. Buddy is in the sewers.
I head to the sewers and find his buddy, who says he hid his half of the device out in the dessert under a giant cactus. He is a little vague as to where. I head out to the dessert and look under dozens of cacti until I find it. Back to the sewers - the buddy is gone. Back to the fountain - that guy is gone too. Find them both at the entrance to the dessert where the fountain dude does "something" to whatever it was I found under the cactus and tells me it will now work - whatever that means. The dude studying sandstorms says he can't go because his funding was cut. He suggests that I go there on my own - if that's what I really want to do.
After all that? Hell yeah I want to go. Dumbass....
So, I make my way back through the dessert to the sandstorm area. The device is working, apparently, since the sands open up and....
There's a big freaking DINOSAUR! waiting for me. He's apparently deeply pissed off and hungry. My characters swing into action and in a few moments, the three main characters are dead. I call up the reserves and they don't last any longer. In less than 2 minutes, everyone is dead and the dinosaur is almost entirely unhurt. Game Over.
I then turned off the playstation and went to read a book.
In other news... went swimming today. I headed for the nearest open lane from the locker room and got in. I was about to put my goggles on when one of the life guards started talking to me. I couldn't hear and got out to talk to them. Apparently, the two entirely unmarked lanes were closed since they were afraid that the ceiling would collapse.
Ummm... what?
So, I switched lanes to the deep end and started my swim. I was going along pretty well until guys got into lanes on either side of me and proceeded to lap the hell out of me. I felt... slow. Still, I comforted myself with the notion that I had already done 16 laps by the time they started, but it was still unpleasant. I nearly gave up at 18 since I was so tired, but struggled on to 27 somehow - putting me at 3/4 of a mile for the day. The ceiling never did collapse while I was there, may be interesting to see when I go back on Wednesday.
Finally, I've had a headache most of the day. And staring at a computer screen for 8 hours really hasn't helped. I'm going home in a few and I think I may actually try to nap - which I'm not very good at.
that's it for now... later....
1. Found myself at a village by the river, can't cross because the barge is on the other side.
2. Need to cross to complete a quest and take out an evil chicken-thing.
3. Look for alternate route, find one (I think) but blocked by a sandstorm.
A little later on in the game, I go to the entrance to the dessert and meet a dude who is studying sandstorms (!) He suggests that I talk to man sitting at the fountain. Man at fountain says he used to stop sandstorms all the time with a device, but his buddy has half of it. Buddy is in the sewers.
I head to the sewers and find his buddy, who says he hid his half of the device out in the dessert under a giant cactus. He is a little vague as to where. I head out to the dessert and look under dozens of cacti until I find it. Back to the sewers - the buddy is gone. Back to the fountain - that guy is gone too. Find them both at the entrance to the dessert where the fountain dude does "something" to whatever it was I found under the cactus and tells me it will now work - whatever that means. The dude studying sandstorms says he can't go because his funding was cut. He suggests that I go there on my own - if that's what I really want to do.
After all that? Hell yeah I want to go. Dumbass....
So, I make my way back through the dessert to the sandstorm area. The device is working, apparently, since the sands open up and....
There's a big freaking DINOSAUR! waiting for me. He's apparently deeply pissed off and hungry. My characters swing into action and in a few moments, the three main characters are dead. I call up the reserves and they don't last any longer. In less than 2 minutes, everyone is dead and the dinosaur is almost entirely unhurt. Game Over.
I then turned off the playstation and went to read a book.
In other news... went swimming today. I headed for the nearest open lane from the locker room and got in. I was about to put my goggles on when one of the life guards started talking to me. I couldn't hear and got out to talk to them. Apparently, the two entirely unmarked lanes were closed since they were afraid that the ceiling would collapse.
Ummm... what?
So, I switched lanes to the deep end and started my swim. I was going along pretty well until guys got into lanes on either side of me and proceeded to lap the hell out of me. I felt... slow. Still, I comforted myself with the notion that I had already done 16 laps by the time they started, but it was still unpleasant. I nearly gave up at 18 since I was so tired, but struggled on to 27 somehow - putting me at 3/4 of a mile for the day. The ceiling never did collapse while I was there, may be interesting to see when I go back on Wednesday.
Finally, I've had a headache most of the day. And staring at a computer screen for 8 hours really hasn't helped. I'm going home in a few and I think I may actually try to nap - which I'm not very good at.
that's it for now... later....
Friday, August 17, 2007
haircut, eye exam, credit card
I got my haircut on Wednesday. The stylist did a good job, but she was "too meticulous" - in a way that made me nervous. So much attention to detail and I felt like she was going to miss something anyway. The conversation was a bit strained - but the end result was a good hair cut.
Yesterday, I went to get my eyes checked and to order a new pair of glasses. The doctors assistant was excellent and very professional. The doctor was even better and was very through and professional - and made me feel at ease. The lady that helped me pick out my glasses was a hoot and a half. She really enjoyed her job and helped me pick some excellent frames - and worked the insurance to save me several hundred dollars. The girl that did the checkout, however, was flighty. She had to run my card twice since she didn't include the glasses with my eye exam. And then she joked about using my card for online shopping. Eh, not really funny.
My new glasses should be here in about a week or so. I'm quite excited. After that, dentist and then investments. Not a good idea to have too many irons in the fire if I can avoid it.
I paid off a credit card last night and canceled the card. They sent me to a different department to do the process the cancellation and try and persuade me to keep the card. Suddenly, I was a valued customer. They could refund my interest for the past three months! They could lower my rate to 15%! And the more they offered me, the more resolute and pissed off I became. Where were they in the 8 years I've had the card? They resold my account several times, jacked up my interest rate to loan-shark territory, and sent me crap nearly constantly that I never needed. My room-mate told me that I could call my credit card company to get my rate lowered at any time. Great. Except that's not the point. If I'm really a valued customer, waiting until I was pissed off enough to cancel the card is too late.
I may get a card later on - maintain a zero balance and use it just for emergencies. But it sure felt good to make that call and get out from under that chunk of debt.
that's it for now... later
Yesterday, I went to get my eyes checked and to order a new pair of glasses. The doctors assistant was excellent and very professional. The doctor was even better and was very through and professional - and made me feel at ease. The lady that helped me pick out my glasses was a hoot and a half. She really enjoyed her job and helped me pick some excellent frames - and worked the insurance to save me several hundred dollars. The girl that did the checkout, however, was flighty. She had to run my card twice since she didn't include the glasses with my eye exam. And then she joked about using my card for online shopping. Eh, not really funny.
My new glasses should be here in about a week or so. I'm quite excited. After that, dentist and then investments. Not a good idea to have too many irons in the fire if I can avoid it.
I paid off a credit card last night and canceled the card. They sent me to a different department to do the process the cancellation and try and persuade me to keep the card. Suddenly, I was a valued customer. They could refund my interest for the past three months! They could lower my rate to 15%! And the more they offered me, the more resolute and pissed off I became. Where were they in the 8 years I've had the card? They resold my account several times, jacked up my interest rate to loan-shark territory, and sent me crap nearly constantly that I never needed. My room-mate told me that I could call my credit card company to get my rate lowered at any time. Great. Except that's not the point. If I'm really a valued customer, waiting until I was pissed off enough to cancel the card is too late.
I may get a card later on - maintain a zero balance and use it just for emergencies. But it sure felt good to make that call and get out from under that chunk of debt.
that's it for now... later
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
the incident
My usual swim trunks are in the wash, so I had to use an older pair that I have. They have the following properties:
1. Smooth material
2. A Velcro fly
3. A drawstring that closed, but does not tighten at the waist band.
4. Strings that do not hold a knot well.
5. Finally, it also does not fit me as well as it used to since I've been exercising.
Walking around does not present any problems when wearing the suit - and even the minor issues with relieving oneself are trivial and easily dismissed.
In the pool, however, the problems become substantial.
Things started out okay, though there was an increased bit of drag in the water and some looseness to the trunks even with everything securely fastened. As I progressed, however, the looseness increased and I began to get concerned.
Then suddenly, in the middle of the pool, disaster. The string, which had been loosening on it's own without my knowledge, gave way entirely. Without that support the Velcro didn't stand a chance against the forward motion through the water.
I was, in a word, exposed.
There were several factors that prevented a total FCC meltdown wardrobe malfunction.
1. I was in the middle of the pool
2. The lifeguards were not, thankfully, paying that close attention
3. The only other person in the pool was swimming in the opposite direction.
4. I have quick reflexes.
I quickly realized the problem, tucked everything back in where it needed to be, and refastened the Velcro. I modified my stroke to get me back to the side of the pool and reconfigured once there. I was worried that a double knot would lead to problems later, so I went with a single know again - though this time I monitored it more carefully.
I finished out my swim, certain that I was partially "mooning" the rest of the pool, but since no one said anything, I think it was okay.
The ironic bit? If given the opportunity, I would have gladly doffed my suit and gone without out. However, I'm fairly certain it's against the rules...
Hmmm... maybe I should check that out.... hang on...
Well, technically there are no rules about that posted on the pools website.
However, I think I know what they would be and I'm certain to get into trouble - and perhaps even make the school paper, though not in a good way.
And as for the suit? Never again. I'd burn it if I was sure the fabric wouldn't create a toxic cloud. So, it's headed for the trash.
later...
1. Smooth material
2. A Velcro fly
3. A drawstring that closed, but does not tighten at the waist band.
4. Strings that do not hold a knot well.
5. Finally, it also does not fit me as well as it used to since I've been exercising.
Walking around does not present any problems when wearing the suit - and even the minor issues with relieving oneself are trivial and easily dismissed.
In the pool, however, the problems become substantial.
Things started out okay, though there was an increased bit of drag in the water and some looseness to the trunks even with everything securely fastened. As I progressed, however, the looseness increased and I began to get concerned.
Then suddenly, in the middle of the pool, disaster. The string, which had been loosening on it's own without my knowledge, gave way entirely. Without that support the Velcro didn't stand a chance against the forward motion through the water.
I was, in a word, exposed.
There were several factors that prevented a total FCC meltdown wardrobe malfunction.
1. I was in the middle of the pool
2. The lifeguards were not, thankfully, paying that close attention
3. The only other person in the pool was swimming in the opposite direction.
4. I have quick reflexes.
I quickly realized the problem, tucked everything back in where it needed to be, and refastened the Velcro. I modified my stroke to get me back to the side of the pool and reconfigured once there. I was worried that a double knot would lead to problems later, so I went with a single know again - though this time I monitored it more carefully.
I finished out my swim, certain that I was partially "mooning" the rest of the pool, but since no one said anything, I think it was okay.
The ironic bit? If given the opportunity, I would have gladly doffed my suit and gone without out. However, I'm fairly certain it's against the rules...
Hmmm... maybe I should check that out.... hang on...
Well, technically there are no rules about that posted on the pools website.
However, I think I know what they would be and I'm certain to get into trouble - and perhaps even make the school paper, though not in a good way.
And as for the suit? Never again. I'd burn it if I was sure the fabric wouldn't create a toxic cloud. So, it's headed for the trash.
later...
sign, watch
On the drive to work in the morning there is a large sign that I pass that displays various messages - usually related to the businesses below it. Sometimes, though, it has other kinds of messages and today it said:
"Litter is a pain in the grass"
Cute. But who, exactly, are they talking to? People that don't litter and wouldn't even consider it - like myself. I've cleaned up a lot of litter in my day and I couldn't imagine adding to it.
Or is it targeted to those that throw stuff outside their cars as they drive along? Would a "too cute" message really get the point across? Would they even notice and/or care? Doubtful.
What would be more effective is a radar system and laser cannon, controlled by a low-level AI. If you toss something out the window, your car is targeted and a laser shines into your window and burns out your cell phone. Two birds... one stone.
In other news... in the past week I've discovered - on two separate days - that I've put my watch on upside down. Now, to my defense, the clasp is easy to do in either direction and the watch face looks pretty much the same either way, except for the brand name in "gray on silver" at the top. Still, kinda odd for the master of space and time.
That's it for now...
"Litter is a pain in the grass"
Cute. But who, exactly, are they talking to? People that don't litter and wouldn't even consider it - like myself. I've cleaned up a lot of litter in my day and I couldn't imagine adding to it.
Or is it targeted to those that throw stuff outside their cars as they drive along? Would a "too cute" message really get the point across? Would they even notice and/or care? Doubtful.
What would be more effective is a radar system and laser cannon, controlled by a low-level AI. If you toss something out the window, your car is targeted and a laser shines into your window and burns out your cell phone. Two birds... one stone.
In other news... in the past week I've discovered - on two separate days - that I've put my watch on upside down. Now, to my defense, the clasp is easy to do in either direction and the watch face looks pretty much the same either way, except for the brand name in "gray on silver" at the top. Still, kinda odd for the master of space and time.
That's it for now...
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Premonition, video game, eye doctor, parents
I watched "Premonition" last night - pretty good flick. I was pretty much 2 steps ahead of the plot the whole time and figured out the "big twist" way early, but it was still well acted. At one point I said to my room-mate, "Now, that's why you don't f--k with time travel," He got a good laugh out of that one.
I've been playing Final Fantasy 12 on PS2 - good game with amazing graphics. However, it keeps sneeking up on me. I've walked into an area pretty sure of myself and then some horrible monster walks up and kills everyone in my group. Even when I was prepared, a giant snake thing took out my three toughest characters and then when the reserves came up, they got killed too. I was pretty close to taking that monster out, though, so I think I need to level up a bit and try again. Not real comfortable with all the systems yet, but I'm working on it.
I made an appointment to see an eye doctor on Thursday after work - though I may need to leave a little early to get there on time. However, the sequence of events is worth noting.
When I lived in Cuyahoga Falls, I had a great eye doctor. She and her staff were excellent and got me back into contacts and even hooked me up with the costume lenses for halloween. It was during this time that I started to develop massive headaches and my family doctor sent me to Novus clinic to get checked out - making sure there was nothing wrong with my eyes since that's where the pain was. I got a stern note from my insurance saying they weren't covered and I'd better have a damn good reason for going there.
Then my insurance changed and my really good doctor wasn't covered anymore. So, I found a new one in my area that was recommended - though I wasn't as pleased with the staff or the facilities. The doctor knew his stuff, but wasn't generally as helpful as my last one.
Then that doctor moved his practice and he was no longer covered by my insurance. So, back to the insurance site to find a new provider. I found that Novus had a location about 5 miles from my house and was now covered by my insurance. Hence, the Thursday appointment.
My parent's anniversary was on Sunday and I tried to call my Dad's cell - got his voicemail. I tried calling Mom yesterday, voicemail again. It's possible I got my timing very wrong and "this" is the week they are on a vacation. Still, a cell phone is supposed to negate the communications issues with travel. I think they were easier to get a hold of when all they had was a landline. I'm thinking of a Happy Anniversary email, but it seems impersonal. Eh, guess I'll think about that one today.
Time to get back to work...
I've been playing Final Fantasy 12 on PS2 - good game with amazing graphics. However, it keeps sneeking up on me. I've walked into an area pretty sure of myself and then some horrible monster walks up and kills everyone in my group. Even when I was prepared, a giant snake thing took out my three toughest characters and then when the reserves came up, they got killed too. I was pretty close to taking that monster out, though, so I think I need to level up a bit and try again. Not real comfortable with all the systems yet, but I'm working on it.
I made an appointment to see an eye doctor on Thursday after work - though I may need to leave a little early to get there on time. However, the sequence of events is worth noting.
When I lived in Cuyahoga Falls, I had a great eye doctor. She and her staff were excellent and got me back into contacts and even hooked me up with the costume lenses for halloween. It was during this time that I started to develop massive headaches and my family doctor sent me to Novus clinic to get checked out - making sure there was nothing wrong with my eyes since that's where the pain was. I got a stern note from my insurance saying they weren't covered and I'd better have a damn good reason for going there.
Then my insurance changed and my really good doctor wasn't covered anymore. So, I found a new one in my area that was recommended - though I wasn't as pleased with the staff or the facilities. The doctor knew his stuff, but wasn't generally as helpful as my last one.
Then that doctor moved his practice and he was no longer covered by my insurance. So, back to the insurance site to find a new provider. I found that Novus had a location about 5 miles from my house and was now covered by my insurance. Hence, the Thursday appointment.
My parent's anniversary was on Sunday and I tried to call my Dad's cell - got his voicemail. I tried calling Mom yesterday, voicemail again. It's possible I got my timing very wrong and "this" is the week they are on a vacation. Still, a cell phone is supposed to negate the communications issues with travel. I think they were easier to get a hold of when all they had was a landline. I'm thinking of a Happy Anniversary email, but it seems impersonal. Eh, guess I'll think about that one today.
Time to get back to work...
Sunday, August 12, 2007
blimp, 23, appliciances, patty, target, 3/4
The blimp was flying over the apartment not too long ago. Which is not really much of a big deal when one has lived in Akron over a decade. They are still cool, don't get me wrong, but nothing that would warrant staring at them for hours on end anymore.
Still, it made enough of an impression that I dreamed about a blimp that night. In the dream, it was double-bag blimp (side by side) and had these gigantic get engines at the back. Looked a bit like the blockade runner from Star Wars - except it flew just above the tops of the tress. And the pilots decided to do a loop-de-loop over my grandparents house - where we were watching them.
Back to reality - such as it is - I bought some appliances yesterday. Well, I bought the microwave and my room-mate bought the cordless phones. I had some coupons from the Best Buy reward zone and saved us both some money. Worked out pretty well - and the new microwave is very shiny.
Watched the movie "The number 23" last night. Jim Carrey, to my surprise, did a good job. He was dramatic, scary, and intense - as well as a slightly bored, but caring family man. The numerology reminded me a little of the math that has been done with the Koran and with the hidden information in the mathematical formula to calculate Pi in the movie contact. The ending was a little weak, maybe, but the movie over all was good.
When I walked out to get the mail yesterday, I noticed some newspaper near the end of the driveway. It wasn't moving around in the breeze, and when I investigated I realized it was wrapping up something. More careful examination indicated that it was neatly wrapped around a cow patty. So, I gloved up and bagged the mess for trash night. It was:
1. almost certainly random
2. poorly done - since it was well wrapped, there was no mess, unless they expected it to be run over
3. possibly meant for the neighbors, but still more likely stupid kids being random.
4. annoying.
We'll see if there's a repeat.
Finally, went to target recently to do a little wedding shopping for my cousin. I went to the kiosk to print out the list, but the machine wasn't working. As I waited, I heard the customer service person try to help a lady with her refund. Apparently, the lady had paid for something with a check and then returned it before the check cleared. She got a gift card, then used that to make a purchase which she also returned. She wanted cash for that return and swore she would never shop there again if she didn't get it. I finally found a machine that worked and printed out the list and made my selection. While I was standing in the line, the lady from watches and jewelry came over and asked if I wanted to check out at her station. So, no waiting, friendly service, speedy checkout. I thanked her for keeping an eye on the lines and exited.
Finally, I think I've stabilized on 3/4 of a mile on my swim. Seems like a good number and one that I can accomplish without too much trouble in the time I have for my lunch. Based on my total laps swum since I started in December, my dad reports that I'm only a few miles away from an English Channel swim - but he jokes that it won't count since I didn't register with them first.
That's about it for now... time to play some video games... later...
Still, it made enough of an impression that I dreamed about a blimp that night. In the dream, it was double-bag blimp (side by side) and had these gigantic get engines at the back. Looked a bit like the blockade runner from Star Wars - except it flew just above the tops of the tress. And the pilots decided to do a loop-de-loop over my grandparents house - where we were watching them.
Back to reality - such as it is - I bought some appliances yesterday. Well, I bought the microwave and my room-mate bought the cordless phones. I had some coupons from the Best Buy reward zone and saved us both some money. Worked out pretty well - and the new microwave is very shiny.
Watched the movie "The number 23" last night. Jim Carrey, to my surprise, did a good job. He was dramatic, scary, and intense - as well as a slightly bored, but caring family man. The numerology reminded me a little of the math that has been done with the Koran and with the hidden information in the mathematical formula to calculate Pi in the movie contact. The ending was a little weak, maybe, but the movie over all was good.
When I walked out to get the mail yesterday, I noticed some newspaper near the end of the driveway. It wasn't moving around in the breeze, and when I investigated I realized it was wrapping up something. More careful examination indicated that it was neatly wrapped around a cow patty. So, I gloved up and bagged the mess for trash night. It was:
1. almost certainly random
2. poorly done - since it was well wrapped, there was no mess, unless they expected it to be run over
3. possibly meant for the neighbors, but still more likely stupid kids being random.
4. annoying.
We'll see if there's a repeat.
Finally, went to target recently to do a little wedding shopping for my cousin. I went to the kiosk to print out the list, but the machine wasn't working. As I waited, I heard the customer service person try to help a lady with her refund. Apparently, the lady had paid for something with a check and then returned it before the check cleared. She got a gift card, then used that to make a purchase which she also returned. She wanted cash for that return and swore she would never shop there again if she didn't get it. I finally found a machine that worked and printed out the list and made my selection. While I was standing in the line, the lady from watches and jewelry came over and asked if I wanted to check out at her station. So, no waiting, friendly service, speedy checkout. I thanked her for keeping an eye on the lines and exited.
Finally, I think I've stabilized on 3/4 of a mile on my swim. Seems like a good number and one that I can accomplish without too much trouble in the time I have for my lunch. Based on my total laps swum since I started in December, my dad reports that I'm only a few miles away from an English Channel swim - but he jokes that it won't count since I didn't register with them first.
That's about it for now... time to play some video games... later...
Friday, August 03, 2007
cell phone
If you know me at all - even to just have passed me on the street - you'll know that I despise cell phones. Last evening, there was an "incident" that I'll report.
I had tried to call my mom the night before, but she didn't answer - so, I left a voice mail. Didn't hear back from her yesterday, so I tried to call my dad. The first time I tried, nothing happened. Thinking I had mis dialed, I tried again. It rang, went to voice mail and I started to leave my message. In the middle of my speaking, I was interupted by some automated message saying:
"Your message was not saved because the connection was lost or you were not speaking."
Well, excuse me, but I was speaking. So, now I'm cranky. It was followed with:
"To disconnect, press one. To leave your message, press two"
So, I hit 2 and started talking. In the middle of my second attempt, the voice interupted me again and said:
"Are you still there? To disconnect, press one. To leave your message press two."
And I'm like, "shut up so I can talk!"
So, I hit 2 again and got the same message. And then I pressed one and hung up.
I called my sister to see if there was something up with the folks - she said they were at a Vacation bible school this week.
I talked to dad later that evening and we had a good laugh at the automated response system.
that's it for now... later...
I had tried to call my mom the night before, but she didn't answer - so, I left a voice mail. Didn't hear back from her yesterday, so I tried to call my dad. The first time I tried, nothing happened. Thinking I had mis dialed, I tried again. It rang, went to voice mail and I started to leave my message. In the middle of my speaking, I was interupted by some automated message saying:
"Your message was not saved because the connection was lost or you were not speaking."
Well, excuse me, but I was speaking. So, now I'm cranky. It was followed with:
"To disconnect, press one. To leave your message, press two"
So, I hit 2 and started talking. In the middle of my second attempt, the voice interupted me again and said:
"Are you still there? To disconnect, press one. To leave your message press two."
And I'm like, "shut up so I can talk!"
So, I hit 2 again and got the same message. And then I pressed one and hung up.
I called my sister to see if there was something up with the folks - she said they were at a Vacation bible school this week.
I talked to dad later that evening and we had a good laugh at the automated response system.
that's it for now... later...
Thursday, August 02, 2007
work = stress
I swam yesterday - got in 27 laps again. I didn't have as much energy as a usually do and I was running late when I finished up.
Work has been stressful. Can't seem to make much headway - I keep getting derailed. And pretty much everything is making me irritated. I wish I could go home and take a "cranky" day. Don't think it would work.
And I found out recently that our student assistant it leaving. She's got to get a different job to fit her internship requirement and is running out of time. So, her last day is next week. I guess the timing is as good as it could be - we had just finished up a major project and had to yet to start her on a new one. Still, I'm bummed 'cause she was great to work with and helped us out tremendously. My boss is trying to get the rules bent on the qualifying job for her internship - but it's not looking good.
The internet has been flaky pretty much all this week - something with our internet provider. It's made the webteam a little cranky as well. Or maybe that's just me.
Not much of a post, granted, but I'll try to do better next time. Oh, and I'm working on an update to my cell phone rant.
later...
Work has been stressful. Can't seem to make much headway - I keep getting derailed. And pretty much everything is making me irritated. I wish I could go home and take a "cranky" day. Don't think it would work.
And I found out recently that our student assistant it leaving. She's got to get a different job to fit her internship requirement and is running out of time. So, her last day is next week. I guess the timing is as good as it could be - we had just finished up a major project and had to yet to start her on a new one. Still, I'm bummed 'cause she was great to work with and helped us out tremendously. My boss is trying to get the rules bent on the qualifying job for her internship - but it's not looking good.
The internet has been flaky pretty much all this week - something with our internet provider. It's made the webteam a little cranky as well. Or maybe that's just me.
Not much of a post, granted, but I'll try to do better next time. Oh, and I'm working on an update to my cell phone rant.
later...
Monday, July 30, 2007
quick dream archive
In cleaning out my basement (still/again) I found a small archive of dreams that I had written down in a small spiral notebook. The notebook is musty and in poor shape - I've decided to jot down the impressions and toss the notebook.
07/22/94 - Tori Amos stops into the SuperAmerica where I work and buys $14.68 worth of gas. She pays in change, ones, and the gold backs of earrings. I get her autograph.
07/27/94 - My grandmother cuts my hair and uses static electricity to make it stick out and easier to cut.
07/30/94 - I'm at a hot dog stand at the Westland mall in Columbus, OH. I buy a shirt for a friend who's 10 foot tall, but the shirt is too small.
07/31/94 - Driving back to Ohio, the cell phone rings and Dad answers - but doesn't know the code for the area so the signal is mostly scrambled. I try to answer, but I can't hear and I'm mostly mute. Dad says it must be Blackford (?) Mom says, "Oh, he found the rat," The song "Mr. Jones" by the Counting Crows is playing.
08/14/94 - I'm at Ball state helping my sister move into her room. I meet up with fraternity brothers and party at the student center. I goto Miami, FL and Maria from Biomed does not remember me. I end up living in a haunted house at the end of a street where all the houses are miniatures.
08/15/94 - I'm at a SuperAmerica in a Kroger in the mall. My sister visits during my break. She applies for a part time job at Froxx communications which is somehow connected to Zima. I'm suddenly back in high school and I'm being initiated into the Order of the Peach - which is a far less blood-thirsty ritual than the Order of the Kiwi Strawberry.
08/16/94 - I check my work schedule and go in for 2 hours - then, for some reason I go home and call them to ask if I'd been there and should I have been? The manager says I wasn't and that I shouldn't have been - and that I must have been dreaming! I'm next playing poker at my grandparents house and I lose. My aunt stops over and asks if we want to play a drinking game.
Spring 1995 Day ? - At my grandparents house, all the kids climb a raspberry tree and knock the branches off. We gather the branches and sing - like a children's musical.
Spring 1995 Early April - I'm an agent guarding an African diplomat at the mall. 200 assassins come after him and using knives and a sword I kill them all with the help of another agent.
Yeah, I need help.
07/22/94 - Tori Amos stops into the SuperAmerica where I work and buys $14.68 worth of gas. She pays in change, ones, and the gold backs of earrings. I get her autograph.
07/27/94 - My grandmother cuts my hair and uses static electricity to make it stick out and easier to cut.
07/30/94 - I'm at a hot dog stand at the Westland mall in Columbus, OH. I buy a shirt for a friend who's 10 foot tall, but the shirt is too small.
07/31/94 - Driving back to Ohio, the cell phone rings and Dad answers - but doesn't know the code for the area so the signal is mostly scrambled. I try to answer, but I can't hear and I'm mostly mute. Dad says it must be Blackford (?) Mom says, "Oh, he found the rat," The song "Mr. Jones" by the Counting Crows is playing.
08/14/94 - I'm at Ball state helping my sister move into her room. I meet up with fraternity brothers and party at the student center. I goto Miami, FL and Maria from Biomed does not remember me. I end up living in a haunted house at the end of a street where all the houses are miniatures.
08/15/94 - I'm at a SuperAmerica in a Kroger in the mall. My sister visits during my break. She applies for a part time job at Froxx communications which is somehow connected to Zima. I'm suddenly back in high school and I'm being initiated into the Order of the Peach - which is a far less blood-thirsty ritual than the Order of the Kiwi Strawberry.
08/16/94 - I check my work schedule and go in for 2 hours - then, for some reason I go home and call them to ask if I'd been there and should I have been? The manager says I wasn't and that I shouldn't have been - and that I must have been dreaming! I'm next playing poker at my grandparents house and I lose. My aunt stops over and asks if we want to play a drinking game.
Spring 1995 Day ? - At my grandparents house, all the kids climb a raspberry tree and knock the branches off. We gather the branches and sing - like a children's musical.
Spring 1995 Early April - I'm an agent guarding an African diplomat at the mall. 200 assassins come after him and using knives and a sword I kill them all with the help of another agent.
Yeah, I need help.
30 laps
One of my co-workers challenged me to do 30 laps in the pool. So, I paced myself when I needed to and pulled out all the stops when appropriate - and did 30 laps today. Still felt pretty good when I was done and could have gone farther, but ran out of time. Now I just need to get though the rest of the day do I can go home and nap.
later...
later...
pure evil, feline-based humor
I encountered pure evil over the weekend. Pure, concentrated evil.
In the form of a toilet seat cover.
See, these things had to have been invented by a woman. No two ways about it. First, it's just something extra that's supposed to "look" pretty, but has no purpose. No guy would do that.
Second, it creates a problem that wouldn't affect women, but would affect men.
So, here's what should happen - and then I'll explain what happened in the presence of this evil.
A man enters the bathroom, raises the lid and the seat, and stands with feet at shoulder width apart. He extracts, by whatever means he feels comfortable with, that which needs to be extracted. With careful aim, he relieves his bladder and gives a slight shake. The extraction process is reversed and he flushes the toilet while he lowers the seat and occasionally the lid, then washes his hands and leaves the bathroom.
In this case, however, the fuzzy toilet seat cover prevented the seat from remaining in an upright position. Without support, the lid would most likely come crashing down during the operation and cause a terrible mess. Also, not lifting the seat would result in a terrible retribution from the next woman to use the bathroom.
In the past, I've dealt with this problem by using a bungee cord to force the seat into compliance, but none was available. So, with a little planning, I attempted the following operation:
I entered the bathroom and approached the toilet. When it became clear that the seat was going to be a problem, I extracted what needed to be extracted, then stood at an angle to the toilet. I also stood much closer than usual, then raised the seat. Holding the seat in place with my knee, I proceeded to relive myself nearly straight down - which, in the absence of a toilet is a good way to urinate on ones shoes and is thus avoided.
I worked quickly for fear that my leg would cramp up or that I would loose my balance. Task completed, I gave a little shack and lowered the seat, then reversed the extraction. Lid lowered, toilet flushed and hands washed - exit.
Each time I had to use the bathroom at this location, I had to repeat the same operation. I did a lot of swearing and I was cranky. And it was all so that the toilet seat would match the rug.
Evil, I'm telling you. Pure evil.
In other news... my room-mate and I don't have any pets. Still, somehow, we've managed to acquire some music-related, feline-based humor. It started several months ago when he decided that the Enya song "Storms in Africa" had cats meowing in the background instead of the children singing that everyone else hears. Since them, we'll both find ourselves quietly meowing along with a song, where it sounds appropriate. Yeah, it's silly - but you'd be amazed at how funny it is. Last evening, while we were eating a meal, listening to music and I was telling a story - the song, "I can't go for that" came on the cable music.
During the second chorus, my room-mate interrupted me and said in time with the song - "I can't find my cat". Totally matter-of-fact and perfectly timed.
You really had to be there and since I was, its a good thing I didn't have food in my mouth since I most likely would have sprayed it out along with some braying laughter.
So, that's pretty much it for now. Later...
In the form of a toilet seat cover.
See, these things had to have been invented by a woman. No two ways about it. First, it's just something extra that's supposed to "look" pretty, but has no purpose. No guy would do that.
Second, it creates a problem that wouldn't affect women, but would affect men.
So, here's what should happen - and then I'll explain what happened in the presence of this evil.
A man enters the bathroom, raises the lid and the seat, and stands with feet at shoulder width apart. He extracts, by whatever means he feels comfortable with, that which needs to be extracted. With careful aim, he relieves his bladder and gives a slight shake. The extraction process is reversed and he flushes the toilet while he lowers the seat and occasionally the lid, then washes his hands and leaves the bathroom.
In this case, however, the fuzzy toilet seat cover prevented the seat from remaining in an upright position. Without support, the lid would most likely come crashing down during the operation and cause a terrible mess. Also, not lifting the seat would result in a terrible retribution from the next woman to use the bathroom.
In the past, I've dealt with this problem by using a bungee cord to force the seat into compliance, but none was available. So, with a little planning, I attempted the following operation:
I entered the bathroom and approached the toilet. When it became clear that the seat was going to be a problem, I extracted what needed to be extracted, then stood at an angle to the toilet. I also stood much closer than usual, then raised the seat. Holding the seat in place with my knee, I proceeded to relive myself nearly straight down - which, in the absence of a toilet is a good way to urinate on ones shoes and is thus avoided.
I worked quickly for fear that my leg would cramp up or that I would loose my balance. Task completed, I gave a little shack and lowered the seat, then reversed the extraction. Lid lowered, toilet flushed and hands washed - exit.
Each time I had to use the bathroom at this location, I had to repeat the same operation. I did a lot of swearing and I was cranky. And it was all so that the toilet seat would match the rug.
Evil, I'm telling you. Pure evil.
In other news... my room-mate and I don't have any pets. Still, somehow, we've managed to acquire some music-related, feline-based humor. It started several months ago when he decided that the Enya song "Storms in Africa" had cats meowing in the background instead of the children singing that everyone else hears. Since them, we'll both find ourselves quietly meowing along with a song, where it sounds appropriate. Yeah, it's silly - but you'd be amazed at how funny it is. Last evening, while we were eating a meal, listening to music and I was telling a story - the song, "I can't go for that" came on the cable music.
During the second chorus, my room-mate interrupted me and said in time with the song - "I can't find my cat". Totally matter-of-fact and perfectly timed.
You really had to be there and since I was, its a good thing I didn't have food in my mouth since I most likely would have sprayed it out along with some braying laughter.
So, that's pretty much it for now. Later...
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