Category: Uncategorized Page 92 of 157

nerd

On October 2, 2009

I’ve crossed a line recently, falling from the safe haven of geek-dom to full blown nerd. Not physically, I don’t have tape on my glasses or a pocket protector. But my mental state is on shaky ground. Evidence…

1. Getting ready to leave the Chipotle parking lot yesterday, I started my car only to have it fail. The steering wheel locked up, some – but not all – of the warning lights came on, and the car wouldn’t go. I was still in the space so I quickly turned off the car, then started it again. It behaved normally from then on. I referred to this later as “rebooting” my car.

2. We were discussing “under construction” webpage and how much we don’t like them. We compared them to newspapers with blank pages, or movies with missing sections. One of my co-workers said it was like going to see Up! in 3-d only to find that the movie was actually Hannah Montana. I said it was like the movie was “redirected”

3. Finally, my car has recently crossed the 100,000 mile mark and I’ve been noticing and noting every time the number are binary – and how I’ll be sad when 111,112 comes around and it will never be binary again.

I’m considering professional help.

later…

lunch, swim, fraud, shirt, game

By admin

On September 29, 2009

In Uncategorized

We had a celebration luncheon yesterday for a project that I was only marginally involved in and which really isn’t done – but the food was good and the dessert was excellent. So, my swim was a bit disrupted and I couldn’t go until after work. I got in 30 laps and felt pretty strong, so that was okay.

I’ve been running a couple of online elections here on campus and we had a small incident of attempted voter fraud. I found it and reported it – ironically, I don’t think it was enough to have made a difference in the elections. I dunno what the consequences will be for the parties involved, but it should be interesting.

Catalog season appears to be in full swing and I’ve gotten a few in the mail recently. One had a t-shirt that said:

“Non sequiturs are like Bicycles. They don’t bathe.”

FYI – (“Non sequitur” is Latin for “it does not follow.”) And no, I didn’t know that, but I was pretty close to the correct meaning when I’ve had the rare occasion to use the phrase in the past.

I fired up the playstation again last night and played some Little Big Planet. There are certain parts of the game that can only be solved by two players and though I’ve got a second controller and a room-mate that promised to play, I was on my own last night. So, with a little care, I was able to play as two characters and get a few more items. I felt pretty clever to have been able to pull that off – and a little sad that I was on my own. I suppose I could connect online and find someone that way on the playstation network -but most people I’ve encountered in online games were idiots.

I was supposed to go to a football game this evening, but my FRM’s mom called and canceled. She’s got bronchitis and decided against going. Which means she doesn’t need a driver – letting me off the hook as well.

So, I’ve got a few errands to run after work – then it’s a hopefully relaxing evening at home with a strong cup of tea and a good book. I might even try meditating a bit.

later…

growl

By admin

On September 28, 2009

In Uncategorized

My morning has turned cranky. I’m not going to go into details cause it’s all work related, but when my work phone rang and I noted the caller-ID, I let out a quiet and deep growl as I reached for it.

Before my hand could touch the phone, it stopped ringing. No voicemail, no nothing – it just stopped.

Out of fear.

And that, friends, is how it’s done. I’m already in a better mood.

later…

computer, party, movies, costume

By admin

On September 27, 2009

In Uncategorized

I helped my room-mate buy a new computer this weekend. I had suggested a desktop – since he needs it for work and almost never travels – but he had his eye on a laptop. A very shiny one. I finally gave up and shifted my function from “real practical advice” to “explanation of terminology”

The set up went fairly well – though I was surprised to find there wasn’t any office products on there. Just a 60-day trial and then purchase. So, I set him up with Open Office. He had one eye on the football game while I was explaining it to him, so we’ll see how that goes.

I went to a party over the weekend – my boss’s wife and sister both turned 50 so there was a combined party for them. The food was good, the music was good but way too loud, and the only people I knew there were those that I worked with. I stayed for a bit, did quite a bit of folding, then headed out.

Watched a couple of movies over the weekend – Midnight Movie and The Unborn. Maybe I’ve seen too many movies, but these were both pretty predictable. There were a couple of “jump out at you” moments, but pretty tame.

I picked up a few more elements for my costume this weekend – still got quite a bit of work to do.

Guess that’s it for now – later…

nerd, movie, melt, game

By admin

On September 25, 2009

In Uncategorized

I had a bunch of files to move from my work computer to my home computer yesterday and it was really too much for email. And too much for the flash drive I usually use. Then I remembered that I had another flash drive – an officially licensed Star Trek flash drive wristband that I’d gotten for 5 dollars and 2 box tops from some cereal. And it had nearly a gig of free space. Sweet! So, I loaded it up, put it on, and wore it home. Well, I wore it to target first while I ran some errands. I got my data transfered and was able to work from home. Ummm… yea? Anyway, the fact that I was finally able to make use of my star trek flash drive wristband was a moment of pure nerd-vana for me. It was great.

I started watching Wolverine last night on DVD. I think it started a little slow – sort of – but despite some issues I had with the characters, it was pretty good. I didn’t get to watch all of it – my room-mate was having it out on the phone with his sister while sitting out in the garage in his car. I tried to help him get settled down after that – it was very nearly a melt down – and by then it was too late to keep watching the show. I’ll pick it up again today after work.

I’m also going to get back into the gaming mode. I’ve been avoiding the playstation 3 and the Wii for the past month to prove a point and that time has now passed. I’ve been a bit more productive, I guess, but not that much.

Work has been more crazy than usual these past few days. I’m not going to go into it, but I’ll be glad when the week is done. My swim is going to be disrupted today – I’ll have to go later this afternoon.

Guess that’s it for now… later…

mood, clay, push, dream, chipotle

By admin

On September 24, 2009

In Uncategorized

I’m in a much better mood today- and I’m sure everyone around me is happy about that as well. I did some work on a couple of projects last evening – including trying to make a TRON version of Gumby out of polymer clay. It didn’t work out very well, but it was fun to try and I learned from my mistakes.

I’m also working on a project involving ash and rust – both of which are taking longer to acquire than I expected. The ash is currently coming from incense sticks – and is really too potent to be used indoors. The rust is from a piece of metal that I found, but it’s not breaking down as quickly as I wanted it to. I may burn some paper – maybe even some damaged origami – for more ash. And apparently my room-mate’s “new” antique car has some underside rust issues that may contribute. Eventually, when I acquire enough, I’m going to mix the items with a diluted glue/water combo and use them to paint on a small canvas.

Watched the movie Push last night. It was okay as far as the acting went, but really good in the “telekinetic ass-kicking” fights.

I had a disturbing nightmare this morning about a sub-basement where “something horrible” dwelled. Even after I woke up, I kept trying to get back into the dream to confront what was down there – which is odd since I know better. If there’s potentially something evil in the basement – don’t freaking go down there!

Just got back from Chipotle – the burrito was awesome. As to be expected.

back to work…

beams

By admin

On September 23, 2009

In Uncategorized

People that drive at night are jerks. I know that’s a sweeping statement – so maybe it’s just people that drive near me at night that are jerks.

1. Xenon headlights. Thank you. I’m legally blind now. Why do you need headlights like that? Did you lose a contact lens while on the highway last time and now you’re looking for it at 75 miles an hour – hoping that the magical headlights will make it twinkle on the pavement so you can slam on the brakes and pick it up? Jerks.

2. Trucks. Great, you’ve got a big-ass truck that could drive over a school bus. How awesome for you. Are you aware that the ground clearance also elevates your headlights? And that when you drive behind my normal, human sized, car – you flood the interior with enough light to make the dessert at noon look like the bottom of the freaking ocean? Thanks. I’m blind again. It would be even more awesome if you could please tailgate me for the next 50 miles. Jerks.

3. High breams. Take this quick quiz: “Am I using my high beams when:”

a). There’s a car directly in front of me?

b). There’s a car coming towards me?

c). There’s a car anywhere near me?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, congratulations! You’re a jerk. And I’m blind. Again.

I had this a lot on the drive back on Sunday. And as the winter months approach, my morning commute is darker and darker.

In other news… my default mood the past couple days has switched to “irritable”. It’s usually “slightly annoyed”, so, a bit of a downgrade on that. Not sure what’s going on and I’m hoping I get over it.

Back to work… later…

sign, shirts

By admin

On September 22, 2009

In Uncategorized

Funny thing I forgot to mention about the trip. When we were going to lunch in Peoria we kept seeing signs for a Crash Inspection Area. We wondered if crashes were brought to the area, if there was an unusually high number of crashes, or if it was about alien crashes. It seemed close to the river, so it might have been something with the coast guard. But I also saw a sign that seemed to indicate car crashes. We were in a hurry and didn’t check it in more detail.

Other news… two funny t-shirts from a catalog:

What would Yoda do? Your Ass, KICK IT he would!

I like poetry, long walks on the beach, and poking dead things with a stick.

later…

trip – Sunday and summary

By admin

On September 21, 2009

In Uncategorized

Sunday morning we met up with my parents again for a quick visit with grandma. As before, she had some difficulty with conversations and kept falling asleep. We were outside a bit, but she got cold and we brought her back in to the dining room. We were just in time for the ‘special guests’ – a couple of miniature horses that visit every Sunday morning. Grandma didn’t remember seeing them before, but apparently she had told the guy that her grand-daughter would love them. My sister wasn’t the person she had been talking about, but went along with it. Right up until the horse sneezed on her. And there were chunks. She got it cleaned up and we headed into a lounge area to sit for a little while. Grandma drank some green tea that my aunt had brought – which was a good sign since for a while she wasn’t able to swallow. She kept dozing off though and it was time for us to leave. She told my sister that she “couldn’t wait to meet that new little baby of hers” – which was really good to hear. My sister isn’t due until January and isn’t showing that much – so, grandma had to have remembered on her own.

We headed out and when to my cousin’s again – this time everyone was home and burgers were being grilled. It was a crazy loud house-full of people, but it was a lot of fun too. We couldn’t stay long since we had a long drive ahead of us – but we did get some snacks for the road.

6 and a 1/2 hours later – we were back at my sister’s. I drove most of the way back and then she took over for the last leg. It was nearly 9 before I headed north and after midnight before I finally got home.

So.

1. I spent a lot of time lost – which I don’t enjoy.

2. The trip didn’t seem as long with my sister there – she’s fun to talk to. Though apparently we have very different political views that we managed to avoid discussing.

3. The wedding was very nice and I’m glad I went.

4. Grandma is getting good care – but even the best of care doesn’t seem to have brought her all the way back. It’ll just take time – though it remains to see how much better she can get.

5. Dad drives slow.

I was back to work today at 7 am sharp and even got in my usually (though a little shorter) swim between my meetings. I’m very tired now and I think I may hit the sack pretty soon after dinner.

trip – Saturday afternoon and evening

By admin

On September 21, 2009

In Uncategorized

Saturday afternoon was the wedding so after a quick trip to my aunt and uncle’s to get ready, we headed to the church. We got there early and did our best to stay out of the way of the photography. My cousin looked beautiful and happy – though maybe a little dazed. I saw a bunch of relatives that I don’t normally get to see. Oh, and with my green shirt and my sister’s blue dress and scarf – I decided that we looked like algae.

The wedding was nice – and the pastor clearly knew them and spoke to them. Everything went smoothly – although a copy of the marriage license got lost for a bit. It was an autumn themed wedding, so, we threw leaves on the couple as they left the church.

We went back to my aunt and uncle’s to relax for a bit before heading out again to the reception. We had the printed directions, but were following out parents with their GPS. They went the wrong way and we stuck to the directions. 🙂

We sat with my dad’s cousin and his family – and got to see his daughter’s baby twins and her husband. The twins were a riot – and were really packing away the snacks and then a lot of the dinner when it was served. I had the chicken.

There was a lot of dancing going on, but we mostly hung out and got caught up. My parents left early and my sister and I stayed a bit longer before heading out as well. We took my 14 year old cousin back – he’d already gotten in trouble for having champagne and decided to cut his losses.

It was late when we got back and we all crashed again. The long drive Friday and the long day on Saturday really caught up with me.