Thunder of Wade

Category: Uncategorized Page 92 of 158

Dancing like a white guy

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On November 10, 2009

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So, catching up….

On Saturday, I went to the eye doctor’s for a check up and to order new glasses. The doctor said that my optic nerve area was enlarged – a precursor to glaucoma – though my eye pressure was normal. They’ll need to schedule a follow up visit with me in a month or so for more tests. So, a little scary there and something of a downer. I picked out some new glasses, but I wasn’t all that excited about that.
Saturday evening, some friends issued an invite to go see “the Box” – based very loosely on a short story I had read a while back. It was pretty good and presented some interesting ethical issues. Got invited out to a bar in Akron and played some wii – being the only sober person gave me an advantage. The music was good and I joined the crowd on the dance floor. I danced like a white guy, but at least I was trying. And had a lot of fun – didn’t get home until almost 2:00
On Sunday, I made up for watching a pretty good movie by watching a terrible one. The Cell 2 – wretched. I endured the whole thing, just to see if they would blow out their effects budget at the end. They did – and it still sucked.
When the movie was done, I sat outside and got a little sun while I read a book – turned out to be a pretty nice day.
Yesterday, I went and gave blood. Pretty standard stuff, except the technician couldn’t find his watch and had to use mine to time the antiseptic. He was pretty funny – and impressed with how quickly the donation progressed. I felt fine – though the needle site hurt a little. I was also in and out of the canteen in record time.
Later that evening, while trying to watch a DVD, we had a problem with the speaker system. The set up has never worked all that well and my room-mate created a serious issue when he dared to suggest that we “hire the geek squad to come out and fix it”. I countered with a phrase that I’m pretty sure was like “There’s no freaking way the geek squad is coming in my house!”
We then turned off the system and turned it back on – and it was fine. Go figure.
Got a meeting coming up – time to get back to it.

the year of the cat

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On November 3, 2009

In Uncategorized


Hello.

Kitty.
ZOMBIE!
Was it awesome? You better believe it. I had a really great time on campus and everyone really enjoyed my visits. The best part was the elevators. The doors open, someone is waiting – looking down as they text. They look up, see me, and have a freak-out moment. Awesome!
My feet hurt part of the day and my calves are still sore as I write this – but the long walk across campus was worth it. I made people’s day and made some new friends. For those that I didn’t get to see – here are some details:
[Intro] – [Photos] – [the making of]
Thanks to Casey for some great shots and to everyone who had as much fun as I did. That’s really why I keep doing this – taking a day off and just visiting people on campus is a great way to celebrate one of my favorite holidays. Happy (belated) Halloween everyone!

last post, new blog

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On October 23, 2009

In Uncategorized

I haven’t blogged in a bit – but this time I actually have a reason other than “nothing going on” or “lazy”.

I got “called onto the carpet” about some of my recent posts. It was suggested that I wasn’t presenting people in a good light.
My first thought was… well… duh. If you do something stupid or annoying (frequently the same thing) either to me or in my presence, you’re going in the blog. In a way, I was also using the blog as a bit of therapy – working through some issues and getting things off my chest. And thereby calming down a bit.
And though I stand by everything I’ve said in this blog over the years – maybe ranting and writing therapy isn’t really doing me any good. There’s been a lot of humor here as well, but the perhaps a fresh start is the way to go. A new blog, maybe more focused on the projects I do and the positive things in going on, is the better way to go. I may even try to use this for my website and will eventually move the content over from there.
I recently saw a post on another blog that talked about some WWII posters that said, “Keep Calm and Carry On” and compared it to some newer sayings of “Breathe Deep and Let Go of Things” and “Get Excited and Make Things”.
I like all of those sayings – I’ve even printed them out and stuck them up in my cubicle – and I think that’s the collective philosophy of where I want to go.
So.
Approximately Equal To is closing up shop. Join me over on my new blog: Thunder of Wade
later…

calmed, costume, car, clear

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On October 12, 2009

In Uncategorized

Well, my inability to sustain a particular mood for any significant length of time seems to be serving me well – I’m already in a slightly better mood.

I’ve helped a few people, got out on campus for a short walk, and hey! I’m getting a free lunch today. So, not all bad.
I’ve still got some underlying cranky to deal with – but I’m used to that.
So.
The costume construction went very well over the weekend. I applied a new skill set and some new tools – and even the prototyping went well the first time around. I’ll work on it more tonight – and I’m even documenting it as I go along. Not obsessively, but since this is new stuff for me I’ll want to show off a bit.
I also got to go for another ride in my room-mate’s 1970 Caddy. It’s… interesting. For one thing, it’s freaking huge. There’s no comparing it to modern cars – the scale it entirely different. The seat belts are a little strange – they have two separate buckles that make you feel like you’re getting ready to blasted into orbit. The ride… my room-mate says it’s like riding on a cloud, but I would describe it more like a mostly calm lake. There is a slight bouncing motion that is akin to gentle waves. Not unpleasant, but different.
Finally, I’ve got a piece of transparent plastic with me today – prefolded into a traditional crane and then unfolded. I’m going to take this with me when I swim today and refold it underwater. Not for any particular reason other than that I’m pretty sure I can. The prefolding is necessary because of the material. I could easy fold a crane from paper while holding my breath – but the plastic is too difficult to crease and will need a head-start.
Okay… back to work…

awake

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On October 12, 2009

In Uncategorized

I had a pretty good weekend – read some books, worked on my costume, played some games, watched a movie. Last night I decided to end on a good note and put myself to bed early (8:45) so I’d be rested and ready for the week.

HA!
At midnight, my room-mate woke me up – needing to talk. A few months ago, a friend of his was on trial for the murder of his own uncle and ending up hanging himself in his jail cell before the trial ended. We’ve talked about this before and I’ve suggested a variety of ways of dealing with how this is affecting him. Apparently, it’s still bothering him and he decided that it couldn’t wait until this afternoon to discuss – he needed to discuss it right then.
Now, if you were to approach someone that knows me and ask – “is it a good idea to try and engage Anthony in a deep conversation at midnight – on a freaking school night after he’s already been asleep for 3 hours?!” Their answer should be “no”
And my room-mate knows this – but we still had a discussion for an hour.
Finally, exhausted from covering the same ground and from generally still being tired, I tell him that I’ve got nothing left. No insights or deeper truths.
And then he’s cranky and dismissive at me! Because I wasn’t willing to help. (grrrrrr)
Strangely enough, I’m wide awake. So, I go downstairs, check my email and do a little work – then use the bath room and do a little reading. I also find out what I’m pretty sure prompted the discussion and you can bet I’ll be bringing that shit up with him. It’s now almost 2 am when I head back upstairs. I can hear him snoring and I resist the urge to wake him up and make him do algebra problems.
It takes me a while to fall asleep and when I do, I have a horrific nightmare. Think “The Shining” + “The Grudge” + “The Ring” + “Poltergeist”…. staring Dakota Fanning.
So, this morning – surprisingly enough – I’m seriously cranky. Woe be it to anyone that pesters me today. The vampire stake is at hand and I’ve got a list of cleverly written insults that I’m itching to try out. I promise to try and not be mean to people today – but I make no guarantees.
For the record – the only time it’s appropriate to ever wake me up in the middle of the night is if something or someone is currently on fire. And only if I’m in a position to do something about it.
Otherwise, please, just let me sleep.
Wish the people that I work with today good luck – they’ll need it to deal with me.
later…

law

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On October 9, 2009

In Uncategorized

On my way past the student union today I saw 4 police cars parked near the building and several officers standing around. In a few moments, 2 more officers came out escorting a guy carrying a skateboard. The officers opened the back door of one of the cars and the guy got in. No cuffs, no fuss, no resistance, no commentary. Seemed a little over-kill given that it was just one very calm guy. Not sure if it was even an arrest. Weird.

We had a slightly closer encounter with the UAPD yesterday. One of the officers escorted one of my colleagues in to clean out his desk before escorting him back out. A little while later our boss called us into his office for an update. Pretty much all we know is that he won’t be back and that we are not allowed to let him in the building. Everything else is pure speculation. Dunno if we’ll ever get the real story on this one.
Hmmm… think I should change this to a “not-quite-a-crime” blotter?
Three more hours to go today – really really looking forward to getting out of here today. Not that I have a big weekend planned, but still…
later…

chase, lunch

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On October 8, 2009

In Uncategorized

On the ride back from the awesome lunch burritos – we saw a high speed car chase on Market street. A police car was following a clearly out-matched van – and was in turn followed by a number of other verticals. No idea what was going on with that, but we kept an ear out in case they looped around. Also, not sure if I’ve mentioned this, but I no longer have to place my order at Chipotle. As I walk up to the counter, the highly efficient and friendly staff begins to prepare my order. Without any prompting from me, they complete the burrito and I only need to give a heartfelt thank-you before paying for my food. Yeah, if someone wanted to poison me it would be pretty easy to figure out what I’m eating in advance, but there are benefits to being predictable.

Also in the news… lunch is on again, this time for Monday. We’ll see how this goes – I’m hoping it doesn’t get canceled again. Though I personally think that would be pretty funny and wildly ironic.
Got a meeting in a few… later…

lunch, lane

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On October 7, 2009

In Uncategorized

Yesterday afternoon, I got an invite for lunch today as a thank-you for helping on a project. It was going to be at the student center where I usually have lunch anyway – but at least someone else was buying. That was the plan, anyway.

Instead, I got a note in my outlook this morning that the invite to lunch was canceled. No info, no phone call. Just canceled.
Now, I would still help out as much as I can with the project without a lunch invite. And if we did have lunch, I wouldn’t have been able to do more for their group. In the grand scheme of things it doesn’t matter much either way. But to invite someone to lunch as a thank-you and then cancel with no explanation – well, does that negate the thank-you as well? I’m not really upset about it since it meant I could do my regular swim (27 laps, thank-you-very-much) – but it was a little odd.
Speaking of odd, I ran into someone in the pool today. I was doing the backstroke and getting close to the end of the lane when I literally ran into a guy in my lane. I’ve seen him before and I know he’s visually impaired – but it was still a surprise. Apparently for both of us – though I’m not a quiet swimmer generally speaking.
The lifeguards helped sort things out – which meant sort of kicking me out of my lane to a non-demarcated area of the pool. Which is okay, but it makes it more difficult to do the backstroke since I’m usually all over the lane. Eh, pretty much how the day has been going.
later…

phrase, lazy

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On October 5, 2009

In Uncategorized

On my hurried walk up to the pool for my mid-day swim (only 18 laps, I was in a hurry – as I may have mentioned) I heard the following fragment of a conversation. Spoken as clear as the day is long – and keep in mind it’s Monday, the longest day of the week – I quote the phrase exactly and in its entirety:

“He pooped on Amanda”
I have no idea what that exactly that refers to. If it was a baby or a puppy, well, it’s almost cute. Anything else, and well, gross. In any case, poor Amanda.
On the way back from my swim, I saw the most lazy thing I’ve ever seen. Even more lazy than in that Jumper movie where the guy teleports to the other side of the couch because the remote is out of reach.
I saw a person in a power wheelchair crusing down the walkway at a pretty good clip – with a person seated on the back of the chair between the handles. Now, I have no way of knowing if this second person was able to walk on their own, but I strongly suspect that they were perfectly capable of walking or even pushing the chair if it came down to it. Lazy.
Almost meeting time… back to work…

darko, game

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On October 5, 2009

In Uncategorized

I watched Donnie Darko and S. Darko (the sequel) over the weekend – back to back. The first was excellent, the second was pretty good – time travel, alternate universes, the end of the world, teen-age psychopathic activity – but watching them both in one day may have been a mistake. I had some seriously f*cked-up dreams this morning. Like it was personally my fault that reality was falling apart. I was never so happy to have to get up and go to work.

I played a bit more of “Folklore” for the PS3. Had to fight a big sea monster – it involved electrocuting him, cutting off his tail when he was thus stunned, and finally shooting rockets at his head and then ripping his “id” out. Oh, and cowering in a corner in between attacks. With a force-field.
Better get back to work – going to be a busy day.
later…

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