Thunder of Wade

The part for the elliptical came in yesterday – my room-mate is going to call them today to schedule an appointment to have a technician come out and get it fixed since he’s off today. Fingers crossed that this really fixes it.

I was in the bathroom last night brushing my teeth when I heard a weird noise. With the fan on and the sound of my own brushing I couldn’t tell it was the phone until it was too late to get to it. The caller ID indicated it was the landlord – calling at ten after ten on a Monday night and then not leaving a message. My room-mate had put a note in the most recent rent check about getting the blinds fixed, but that was weeks ago and not worth a late night call. It was pretty weird. We didn’t call back since no message was left – but we may call this evening. At 11:00 pm.

The pool was quiet yesterday, only myself and one other person were in the lap lanes – but there were a few people in scuba gear. They were getting ready to cross the lanes to get to the deep end when I approached and I stopped and treaded water until they got past. This is not the first time the lappers and the scuba have crossed paths, but they usually have better timing about getting past us. It was such this time that I could yield the right of way and have a slightly surreal moment of courtesy.

Since it’s spring break this week, there are activities on campus that normally wouldn’t be done when the students are here. Such as testing the fire alarms in the classroom buildings. Unfortunately, I had a meeting in one of those buildings yesterday. The alarms were going off as I entered the building, which should have stopped me there – but the people I could see inside were far too casual for it to be actually on fire. I went on in, up to the second floor, and stopped in the most poorly designed restroom I’ve encountered.

The alarms, which had been silenced, started up just as the urinal flushed itself – which was a little disconcerting. I washed my hands and when to the office for the meeting – and had to shout at the poor office manager to get her to direct me. I found the office and we were able to shut the door to dampen the noise a bit, but it was still bad.

That’s it for now… later…

It was foggy the other day – a consequence of moisture in the air and massive temp shifts. A little scary – but only because I’ve read too many books – and slightly interesting on the drive into work.

The elliptical is broken – again. This is the second time that it’s locked up on me – nearly fell off the dang thing this time. So, I called them during their office hours and they said they had re-engineered the part and would be sending it out to me – and would have a technician come out and install it. At first I was going to insist on a new machine, but I’d had a long day and decided to go along with the story to spare myself the stress. Next time, refund. Which is kinda sad, that I’m assuming that it’s going to break again. At least I got them to extend the warranty by another three months.

I got a chamois the other day when I was out and about – figured the lighter weight leather might work better for the mask. I tried the process again and it went much better. I’ll let it finish drying and see if it holds the shape.

I also worked on a shelf today – trying to make the CD shelf a little more useful. My room-mate and I tried using a dremel and a circular saw – and got close to the width needed. I worked the shelf over with a metal file to try and shave off the last little bit to make it fit. Took me a while and the final result just barely fits, but I’m bored with the project and it will just have to do.

I went to get my brakes fixed yesterday – went around 10:30 to the repair shop. They drove it around and gave me a time estimate – 3 hours. So, at about 11:00, I started me walk. Headed to Lowe’s, then to the plaza where the new Target has gone in. (Looks like we’re getting a Chipotle!) then into Target and wandered around there a bit. About 12:30 I headed over to burger king for lunch – and they messed up one of my sandwiches. From there, past the auto dealerships and down to the bank to confirm that I wasn’t going to be wiped out by the repair cost. Stopped at a gas station for a vitamin water and drank it on a bench next to a stream at the ice cream place. Despite the constant traffic noise, it was very peaceful there.

At about ten minutes to 2:00, I headed back to the repair shop in time to see my car being pulled out for another test. Encouraged, I sat outside on a picnic bench next to subway and waited. In a few minutes they came back and I went inside to pay for the repairs and get my keys. And then I saw my car being hoisted back up again. So, I sat and folded some paper until they lowered it and gave me the final bill. It was painful, but about what I expected and my brakes are in excellent condition again. Kind of a waste of a day, but at least it’s done.

So, that’s pretty much it for me. I’ve had to do a little bit of work this weekend, but at least it’s been in short spurts. Back to work tomorrow – it’s spring break for us, so it should be quite. And parking will be a breeze.

later…

Big snow recently. Really big snow. So much that the university closed early again on Friday. I stayed late beyond the closing time to get more work done – and as a result the drive wasn’t too bad. It snowed a lot on Friday and then all day Saturday – and I stayed indoors as much as possible and was toasty warm.

My room-mate and I did get out on Saturday evening – we went for a walk around the neighborhood. We offered to help push a car that was stuck, but the driver declined our help. We also saw a snowmobiler hit a snowbank and fall over. He was going way too fast and far too recklessly. He wasn’t hurt, so we didn’t offer to help.

We also saw a snow covered car with the door open and a woman half-way in and half-way out of the car. I called out to her to see if she needed help and scared the crap out of her. Apparently, she was just getting something out of her car and hadn’t heard us approach. We apologized and went on our way. Didn’t know we needed to wear bells…

Did some work on the paper preparation – and it didn’t go well. I don’t know if the paper wasn’t strong enough or what, but it tore in several places when it dried. I guess I need to upgrade before I try again. Maybe resume paper…

I wrapped up the Final Fantasy game this weekend – the last battles were pretty easy since I had all my characters at a crazy high level. Great animation, but a little anti-climactic.

Watched most of Tin Man on Sci-Fi channel on Sunday – pretty good mini-series. I think I’ll pick up the DVD. I also want to get the Hitman DVD that’s coming out soon.

That’s it for now…

I went to a car show with a couple of friends last evening. It was the last day for the show and we didn’t get there until around 6 – and the show closed at 8:00. And it was disappointing. All the cars pretty much looked like cars. The trucks looked like trucks, the SUVs looked like SUVs. Only a couple of concept cars and though they looked kinda cool, they were still essentially cars. Nothing really innovative. I saw a touch screen display that mentioned some futuristic cars – so I played with that until I got to some sketches for a “no holds barred imagination” design. It looked pretty cool – and the wheels were just spokes! Looked like some kind of hover car or variable traction smart wheels or something. The final design? An ordinary car with ordinary wheels.

We were still there when they started shutting down the lights – I thought security was going to have to drag the car nuts I was with out of the cars, but we got out unscathed.

In other news… The roads this morning were terrible. Not icy, but covered in potholes. There are a couple of spots that are really bad on my way to work. I thought I was going to get lost in there a few times. And forget listening to a CD in my car – there’s no skip protection in the world that could help with my commute.

On Friday, one of the student assistants that I work with mentioned that she was trying to find a particular flower that her family exchanges this time of the year. She seemed a little disappointed and maybe a little homesick – so, I found a design on the ‘net and got some supplies – and folded about 50 small flowers. A little hot-melt glue on a branch from a craft store – and a small vase with some rocks – and it was ready to go. Should be a nice surprise when she gets in. I’ll try to get photos tomorrow.

I guess that’s about it for now… back to work…

I used the elliptical trainer again on Tuesday – and it’s starting to make the same noises it did just before it locked up again. If/when it does, I’m going to insist on a new machine. It’s only a few months old and it doesn’t get used that hard.

Work has been busy, though we did have a snow day earlier this week that I pretty much wasted with video games. I was wildly unproductive.

Got a new game last night – Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron. It’s a little silly, but still pretty cool. All the missions are flying and involve some kind of combat. The voices sound like the Peanuts cartoon and are already getting a little old, but the controls are solid and the explosions are plentiful.

I had a zombie nightmare this morning – bad enough to wake me up before the alarm went off and kept me up. I was stumbling around in a dark kitchen, trying to feel for a knife I could use to destroy all the undead in the basement. Yes, I’m aware that’s the dumbest thing I could do – I should have just gotten out of the house and found a weapon somewhere else. Instead, I finally found a knife, then rejected it as being too small and dull – as if I really had the luxury of being picky. I picked up another knife and turned – only to be attacked by the first zombie that had made it up the stairs. I fought it off and laboriously sawed it’s head off. Then I headed for the basement to destroy the rest of the them and woke up as I was headed down the stairs.

I’m rarely that stupid in my dreams – not sure if this means anything or not, but it can’t be good.

Watched Lost last night – and had a low grade argument with my room-mate. He keeps throwing out these terms to explain what’s going on in the show and I’m fairly convinced he’s using them wrong. Last night’s episode cleared up a lot of the mysteries for me – it was almost disappointing in a way – but I think I need to do a powerpoint for my room-mate.

Finally, I tried to do my taxes on our snow day, but I got stuck since I moved last year and the city taxes – the most unreasonably complicated part of the process – were even more complicated than usual. I may have to bite the bullet and take them somewhere to be done this year.

That’s it for now. Time to get back to work…

Had some funky dreams recently…

1. I was on vacation with my parents and had stayed up much later than they did. I noticed a bump on my fingertip that, when I squeezed it, released a spray of clear fluid and a huge chunk of what I first thought was nerve tissue but later decided was kelp. Another bump shot out a lump of tissue that must have taken up a sizable amount of matter within my finger, but like the kelp, didn’t impact the size, shape, or mass at all. My dad walked past to go out and walk the dog – he asked if anything was wrong. It didn’t hunt other than the initial pinch and it was too weird otherwise, so I just told him “no” and he went on his way.

2. I also dreamed that I was at a family reunion held in the stockrooms of a mall. We got locked in by some kidnappers and a few of us began to plot an escape plan that involved me faking a heart-attack. The idea was that I would be released to go to the hospital and I’d catch the kidnappers by surprise and attack – while also providing a distraction for the rest of my family to attack as well. While getting ready, my great-grandmother and were talking she wished she could be the one to fake the attack and go out and fight back. I joked that I wished I had my swords with me and that we could both go after them. She was really excited about that notion and gave me a big hug.

In other news… I started watching the series “Bones” on DVD at the recommendation of my sister and brother-in-law. Really good show – well written and a lot of fun. I especially like the main character of Bones with her almost super-human power of observation over a very narrow spectrum of the universe. Her phrase “I don’t know what that means”, delivered so matter-of-factly on the most mundane of topics, is a simple and powerful step inside her character. She is so amazing good at her job, but at a cost that for now, she’s seems willing to pay. Only saw two episodes last night, but I’m planning on watching more soon.

And with my hand healed up, I fired up the dremel again yesterday. Made some more progress on the swords, but got tired of the noise. I’ve got another project in mind as well for today – if I’ve got the materials.

Oh, and I shoveled some snow off the drive way. the landlord is supposed to do that – along with cutting the grass in the summertime. Neither of those happen as frequently as we would like.

Finally, I noticed some odd animal tracks yesterday. Not an odd animal, I think it was a cat, but odd in placement. The tracks started with four together right outside the middle of the garage door. There was another set near the edge that lead in the garage. So, based on the placement and the timing, I think we had a cat in the garage overnight. While I don’t really mind giving a bit of shelter to an animal, even inadvertently, I don’t think I’d like them to make the transition from garage to apartment. So, I’ll need to be a bit more vigilant, at least for the rest of the winter.

that’s it for now…

After a weekend filled with video games, I decided to go for a walk on Sunday evening. I headed one way down my street and made a big loop around a bunch of side streets. Then headed back up the other way towards a main road and our local Target store – which also has a starbucks. I managed to keep my shoes clean right up until I took a slight shortcut to get into the parking lot. Fortunately, there was snow piled up along the side of the lot and I got most of the mud off my shoes on that before heading into the store. I got my Carmel Apple Cider and headed back home.

My hand is doing much better today – which is good since I plan on swimming and the band-aid wouldn’t be sufficient. Still feel kinda stupid about it, but at least I learned a lesson.

Watched the movie Invasion last night – disappointing. The science was cool, the effects were good and the acting wasn’t bad – but the story was weak and the ending was lame. Invasion of the Body Snatchers was far better – though it was nice to see Veronica Cartwright have a role in the new version.

Had trouble falling asleep last night and was a little late this morning. Work is fairly quiet today – looking forward to my swim and a reasonable day.

later…

On Friday, the pool was closed again for a meet – and I headed to the rec center. I was in the narrow lane for a while, but then switched over and really poured it on. I ended up doing 45 laps – 1.25 miles – which is not too bad. The student assistants that work for me were impressed, but they might have just been saying that.

As I sit here on a Saturday afternoon, I’m bleeding a bit. See, I decided to work on my swords today – the wooden one and the Plexiglas one – and I had a little accident earlier. Things were going along just fine, though the dremel bit was getting clogged up by hot plexiglas and was melting it a bit as it cut. Then it slipped out of my hand, twisted around, and skited across my palm before I managed to drop the damn thing. I shut it off and looked at my hand…

I had dremeled myself.

It was bleeding a bit, but I managed to get my tools straighted up and get my self to the bathroom before I bled on anything.
A lot of water, a little neosporin, and a big ass band-aid and I’m all doctored up. I think this is a sign that I should halt my projects for the day and get back to computer games.

We had a division wide meeting earlier this week – and it wasn’t too bad. Lunch was provided and we got nice dress shirts for being the best IT team in the region – which is pretty cool. The reports that the directors presented were kinda on the dull side, but at least there were cookies.

On Friday, before I headed out, I stopped off at a retirement party for one of my colleagues. Got to see a lot of people I hadn’t seen in a while and got invited out to dinner with some co-workers.

A quick haircut and a stop at Target and I was headed out to dinner. We mostly chatted about work, but it was still interesting and fun. The food was pretty good and the server was funny. All in all, a good time.

Guess that’s it for now, I don’t want to pull the band-aid loose.

Later…

I went to visit my sister, brother-in-law, and my parents over the weekend for my sister’s early birthday. My sister fixed a really good lunch, then we did a little shopping, then headed to dinner. The food was good there, but the server seemed a little distracted. We had to keep reminding him of things.

My sofa got delivered on Friday – its a little firmer than the one in the store – less butt-traffic I suspect. It looks great in the living room.

I also bought a small table/TV stand for the computer room. I assembled it last night and today I put the scanner and power strips on it. It tidies things up a bit, but it makes the upper part of the corner look bare. I’ve got some ideas, but some of those will need to wait until spring.

I got a demo of a game called “the Witcher” on a cd – but when it completed the install it automatically uninstalled itself. Umm… thoughtful?

It’s been snowing all day and the campus closed early at 12:30. I went in at 6:30 this morning and was caught up at 12:15 when my boss gave the all clear for us to go when we were ready. So, I headed out and went home and did a little work online. I later saw a somewhat snide comment from one of the other bosses directed to the whole staff about “work ethic” and those that left early. Considering work has been making me cranky for a couple weeks solid now, this did nothing to improve my mood. I’m still a little torqued about it, but I’ll get over it. And I’m still working on a couple of projects from here – though I’m really not enjoying it.

In other news… I bought myself an hourglass (or rather, a 1/2 hourglass) and it came in over the weekend. The sand is red and my room-mate keeps making flying monkey comments – but I think it’s cool.

Well, I think I’m going to do a little more work and then wrap this up and play some video games – or maybe hit the elliptical first for a bit. Maybe being a bit more tired will improve my mood.

later…

So, to set the stage. There were no signs on the doors and no clear indication on the website that the pool was, indeed, closed. I got there and checked in, then asked if the pool was still open for lap swimming since there were a lot of high school kids around. The answer was no, but that I could go over to the rec center and swim even though I don’t have a membership there.

Back out into the cold and over to the rec center. It takes me a minute or so to figure out where to check in, then I ask for clarification and directions to get to the locker room and pool. The directions aren’t clear, but I get there anyway. Changed into my suit and then tried to find the exit to the pool. I wandered around for several minutes, looking like an idiot, until I finally found an unmarked hallway leading to an unmarked door that looked like a utility closet – and that turned out to be the exit to the pool. The rec center has only two lanes for lap swimming – and one was already taken. I asked the lifeguard the distance of the lanes and she replied with a sigh of disgust – “25”. Which wasn’t very helpful in that it could have been 25 meters or 25 yards – and that makes a difference when one is planning on swimming a mile.

I decided to do 36 laps – which is either just enough or slightly more than I needed to do to get my distance. I got in the pool and discovered another issue – the lanes were narrow. Very narrow. I’d guess about 3/4 as wide or less than I’m used to. The first few laps I was pretty much hitting the wall with either hands or feet (or both) on each stroke until I finally got my stroke modified. Still felt like I was swimming in a spaghetti box.

I also pushed off from the wall at one end and realized just how shallow it was. I scraped my nose and my chest on the bottom of the pool. I compensated for that as well, but it was still irksome.

When I was finally done, I got out, got a shower, got dressed, and got the hell out of there.

So, I got in my swim. Mostly uninjured. And at an indeterminate distance. I’ll be glad when the ONAT is open again.