Thunder of Wade

Last night I tried to save my (un)lucky bamboo plant. My sister had gotten it for me for Christmas last year(?) – maybe two years ago. In any case, the three stalks has done pretty well for a while, then one sickened and died. So, I had pulled that one out during a transplant procedure that brought the two healthy stalks to a new container. But, then one of the healthy ones eventually died and I decided to make one last attempt before giving up and resorting to plastic plants.

I began the surgery late last evening and removed the dead stalk from the tangles of roots and rocks. I rinsed out the container, rinsed the rocks, then carefully put the remaining stalk back in. I wondered about the tap water, so I got out a bottle of water. But it was from the fridge and I worried that it might be too cold. So, I poured the water into a sauce pan and gently heated it to room temp, then poured it in. Some careful rock re-arrangement and I put it back in front of the window. We’ll see how it goes.

Also last evening, I wrote a check for the final payment on my student loans. It was the last item in my payment book, but a quick check on-line showed there was an extra charge of $2.07 – which I added on before filling out the check. It’s a relief to be done with those, though it won’t really kick in until I get the “nothing is screwed up, you’re done” letter.

I’ve been cold for the past few days. Which shouldn’t be that odd since – hey, it’s winter – but even while drinking hot tea or eating hot soup, I’m still slightly chilly. Normally that sort of temperature variance doesn’t bother me, but it has been for a bit now. Strange…

I updated my site with a couple of new photos of a modified origami project.

Light

A little glass-paint and it’s like a whole new model.

Work: well, the next set of applications came in for our full time position. None of the candidates really jumped out at us, but we’ll see how it goes in the interviews. The student assistant I’ve been trying to hire hasn’t gotten back to me – so, we’re still pretty much where we’ve been for a while.

And on that note – time for me to get back to work…

My sister’s wedding was last weekend and it was good – but a lot of work. I went down and stayed with my folks from Tuesday evening on to help out and stayed for the duration.

Tuesday was pretty quiet, but on Wednesday we really got to work. A good chunk of the afternoon was spent putting the hot air balloons that I had made together. Then Mom and I helped set up the tables and got a ton of stuff done. We were in the zone. But, we also discovered that we didn’t have enough boxes for candy – and we were out of tuel (sp?). So, on Thursday we made more boxes and got more tuel – then headed to the chuch to finish up.

We got home in time for Mom to go to her body wrap – and Dad and I were going to pick up our tuxes. Unfortuntatly, there were at differnt locations and we didn’t have time to get to the store where mine was located. For a store called “after hours” – they aren’t open very late.

Or very early, as we discovered the next morning when we got there at 9 and found they were still closed until 10 am. So, we went to Barnes and Noble.

The rest of the day was pretty quiet until the rehersal dinner. Things went pretty smoothly there and we all got our assignments.

On Saturday, the day of the wedding, we had some relatives come into town early and had a light breakfast for them. Then it was off to the church.

We got there early and got into our respective penguin suits. I also realized that I’d never worn cufflinks before – and thought they were pretty cool, though they didn’t shoot darts like James Bond’s would have.

My sister looked really amazing in her dress – but she was also looking really nervous as she walked down the aisle. She settled down a bit during the actual wedding and looked a bit more happy/relaxed.

I thought the minister laid it on a little think and I don’t know that I would have gone along with the vows, but it was a really beautiful ceremony and I got a little weepy – which was to be expected. Mom held up pretty well – we expected she would be a gusher.

Then it was time for the endless photos until my teeth started to hurt and then dinner. Which was pretty good and filling. Then the slideshow – which pretty much ripped me up. All these photos of my sister and I as we were growing up – then it transitioned to photos of her and her new husband. My “partner in crime” had grown somewhere along the way and things weren’t going to be the same again. I was having a rough go of that – but got a little better as time went on and I was able to issue my threat to her new husband. I won’t go into details, but it involves a ninja sword.

There wasn’t much dancing and the reception wrapped up pretty quickly. Mom and I helped with some of the clean-up, then took a bunch of stuff back to the couple’s place.

Then back to the folk’s place for more visiting and then some time in the hot tub.

Mom and Dad picked up the new couple at their hotel and got them to the airport for the honeymoon. I stayed with my folks for the rest of the day before heading back north.

It was a good time, beutiful, happy, and sad all at once.

Then, on Monday, back to work. I got a call from the student assitant I wanted to hire – only to discover that he isn’t actually a student this semester – but he will be in the spring. Ummm…that’s a problem. So, I’m not entirely sure what I’m going to do – except stay really busy.

So, on that note – time to get back to work…

Yesterday, after work, I went to give blood. Started off pretty standard, read the paperwork and sit quietly. When I was called up to give the history, I realized quickly that the technical was a trainer. His trainer had to keep logging in and reminding him of things. Still, not bad. When it came to the fingerstick to check the iron, things went a little south. The actual stick was fine, but when he squeezed my finger a small spray of blood shot out and hit his gloves. It didn’t hurt, but we were both a little taken aback. I was headed towards some kind of apology, but realized that it really wasn’t my fault.

He finished up that test and then wrapped up the rest of them – sending me on my way to the collection area.

The needle didn’t hurt much going in, but partway through it started to slow down and the tech (not a trainee) had to adjust the needle. That hurt a little, but it did speed up the process. The rest went fine.

Later that evening, the site bled a bit when I took off the gauze, but a band-aid took care of that.

I was up early this morning to do my civic duty and cast my ballot in the election. I was third in line, expected to be in and out of there pretty quickly. What I didn’t factor in was that the process was new and the site was short on staff. Things went okay with the scantron sheet – but when I tried to load it into the scanner – it was rejected. I had already let go of the sheet when the lady at the table insisted that I tear off the “stub”. Which I would have been happy to do had there been even one sign indicating that I was supposed to do that. The first page of the ballot got spit back out, giving me a chance to tear off the stub. That page got accepted when I tried again and so did the next one – but the instructions were a little vague on if buttons were then meant to be pressed.

So, I think my vote got counted this morning – but I don’t say that with the utmost confidence. It’s almost too bad that no one challenged my right to vote – I was sort of looking forward to a fist-fight after the whole “tear off the stub” fiasco.

Lots to do today – include hiring a student assistant – so, time to get back to work…

I went to visit my family this past weekend for my Mom’s birthday. Friday was pretty quiet, we ate pizza and watched a movie, but on Saturday we were up at the crack of 7:30 to help my sister and fiance with her move. Mattress, box springs, microwave, tv, etc. Pretty much all made out of solid lead – and with a steep set of stairs. Then unloading, but no stairs at that location.

The evening was spent at a benefit concert, then a birthday celebration for mom. She like the sweater. On Sunday, after they got back from church, we finished the move and clean up. Dad and I had some issues with the couch, we ended up taking it back up the stairs, rotating it, and then bringing it back down – at which point it went out the door as though it had been coated with butter.

Since my sister didn’t want the couch and loveseat anymore, Dad asked a passing kid if he knew anyone that would like them. The kid said he would ask and in a few minutes his dad had come by with a truck and picked them up. Which saved us the trouble of moving them any further and also put them to good use.

A quick dinner and then on the road home. I’ll be heading back later in the week to help with the final prep for the wedding and the wedding itself.

Work has been pretty quiet here today, but I’d best get back to it.

later…

On the drive into work I go past two differnet churches, who seem to be in competition with putting clever messages on their signs. Today, one of the churches reads:

“Gambling is stealing by mutal consent”

Which I agree with and it’s fairly clever.

The other reads:

“Winter is coming and so is the Lord, are you prepared?”

Now, that just strikes me as weird. Why would you match those two things up? For me, getting ready for winter means getting my heavy coat into a higher rotation in my closet and putting plastic on my ex-roommate’s mother’s windows. Sort of preventative measures.

I had an image of the Lord going door to door at some point and saying,

“Great. Another one with plastic on their windows. Well, I’m not getting in there, that’s for sure. Too bad. Hope the plastic helps keep them warm – they’re going to need to get used to a hot climate when they burn in hell,”

And then he goes to Starbucks for a moca – since winter, and the Lord, are coming.

Weird.

In other news, some of my friends had a block party over the summer and I was invited to attend and participate. One of the games was a doughtnut eating contest.

Photos here

Third row – that’s me in the red shirt.

Notes: my method of attack was a somewhat zen-like – “Let the doughtnut come to me,” – which worked really well. I also tried to use my sense of smell, but the rag around my eyes had been used for cleaning and smelled like windex. In the forth photo, my friend Mike is messing with me by bumping the side of my head with another doughtnut.

There’s some debate on the winner of this contest. I was pretty sure I was leading the way during round one – but the local firehouse was invited and those guys are used to navigating in the dark. I think they ended up winning that contest, but the photos alone are prize enough.

Since Halloween is officially over, I’ve been debating on what, if anything, I need to save from my costume. I think this year it’s just going to be trashed. I may try to get some photos of the inner workings of the head and maybe the joints, since I was pleased with how those turned out.

I’m already starting to plan for next year and unforturnatly, the front runner idea is bigger and more complicated than this one. Doom, doom doomie, doom DOOM!

That’s about it for now – back to work…

Finally got my photos ready for the web. Thanks to Jamie, Sue, and Susan for the great photos – and Matt for helping get me assembled, with Kris helping with emergency repairs. And thanks again to Jeff for helping put the dang thing together in the first place.

Costume details and more photos here.

later…

Well, the weather broke for a bit and I decided to go ahead and do my walk-around on Friday. Thanks to Matt for some technical assistance on getting the costume in place – he did a great job on the tape and the head of the costume held together great. I went as a pedestrian – like from the crosswalk signs. I’ll try to get some picutures in place on Monday.

I didn’t get to see as many people as I normally would have – the rain started up and I had a “wardrobe malfunction”. Kris helped out with some short term repairs, but ultimatly the legs of the costume were detroyed by the weather.

Still, saw a few people and had some fun. I had a few people worried when they saw me – but most people “got” the costume and enjoyed it.

I took off the costume in the early afternoon and worked the rest of the day – then home for a short break before heading out again to a costume party. The party was packed and I couldn’t really move around much, so not as much fun as it could have been. And I didn’t win any prizes, but I had helped a friend design a “shower” costume like from the karate kid and that won first prize – so, that was cool.

The costume is still in my living room should I choose to reprise the walk around for Tuesday, but I think it’s going to be trashed before too long – wearing it around really wore me out.

Did a bit more folding and assembly this weekend – the final pieces for my sister’s wedding reception are nearly done and ready for transport. I’ll still need to do some final work once I’m there, but it’s as done as it can be for now.

The rest of the weekend has been pretty quiet. Watched the new and disappointing version of the Omen and pretty much just hung out.

Guess that’s it for now – I’ll have more pictures on Monday.

later…

My costume is as ready to go as it can be and I’ve got it here today – but it’s raining outside and I’m not sure it will hold up. I’d planned to do my walk-around today, but I’m not sure it’s going to happen. I’ve got a costume party to go to this evening so I’ll at least be able to give it a run then – but it’s sort of looking like Tuesday will be the walk around day.

A couple of days ago I was having a conversation with a co-worker at my desk. When we were done talking he went back to his desk and a few minutes later I went to the restroom.

So, I’m standing there peeing and hear the door open. Instead of the person using the other stall, I hear my co-worker start talking to me – as though we’re back at my desk instead of in the bathroom. During the time between when we first talked and when I went to the restroom he had apparently gotten an update on the topic and had to share it with me – so, he followed me into the restroom.

Normally, I’m not one for chit-chat in the restroom. I’m there for a purpose and pretty well focused on that. As a side effect, it’s usually the one place you can go and not be bothered – at least for a few minutes.

unfortunately, this is not the first time I’ve had to split my attention and carry on a work-related conversation in the restroom – my boss has done it to me before too.

So, I finished what I was doing, zipped up, washed my hands and dried them – all while trying to talk shop and help determine policy about a new process. We finished the discussion in the hallway and I went back to my desk.

Where I do draw the line is a restroom trip that requires a seated experience and occasionally some reading material. I refuse to talk to anyone when taking care of this particular business – and have used some pretty harsh language when someone tries to engage me in conversation.

Some things simply must be done alone.

So, I’m going to go try and find a window in this cave of a building and see if the weather has cleared.

later…

This weekend I took a bit of a road trip and went to an art gallery show. On Friday, I had dinner with some friends at BW3’s – and attracted a small crowd of kids that were there with their parents to watch the game. Spent a couple of hours folding and teaching them until they had to leave – which was just as well since I had nearly run out of new things to show them.

On Saturday we went to the art gallery show in Columbus. The show was for Linda Oldham – mother of the famous designer Todd – and she had all sorts of stuff. Most of it I liked and at least 1 of the pieces I wanted to try to make myself. There were some odd pieces as well, but it was still pretty cool. I got to talk with her after the show and gave her a small origami piece I’d made while walking around. She liked it and we talked paper for a bit -which was cool too.

On Sunday I visited my folks for dinner. Had a nice time before heading back up home. I took Monday off of work to get some more done on my cosutume. Tonight I’ll get it ready for painting – that is, after I get done putting plastic on my ex-roommate’s mother’s windows.

I got the title for my car from the bank – so, that’s cool. And when I called for the payoff amount on a student loan I knew I was getting close to finishing – I found that it was done as well. Quite a relief.

Getting back to work hasn’t been a relief – it’s been busy, mostly with meetings. I also found that the person we wanted to hire has accepted another job and we’re back to square one. No students have applied yet either – so we continue to be short handed.

And speaking of which – time for me to get back to work…

I got a check from the bank that has my car loan for a “loan overpayment” – which surprised me since I thought I still had several payments to go. I’m going to give them a call and verify – and see about getting the title for the car. It was a nice surprise and a nicely sized check – Happy Meals for everyone!

Reminds me of an old Pinky and The Brain cartoon:

Brain: “Pinky, are you pondering what I’m pondering?”
Pinky: “I think so, Brain, but if they called them ‘Sad Meals’, the kids wouldn’t buy them,”

In other news, I’ve been playing a new video game called, Beyond Good and Evil. One of the elements of the game involves taking pictures of all the animals on the planet. Which is pretty cool and you get paid pretty well for them – but you’re also supposed to take photos of animals that are attacking you. So, as one approaches you, you have to hurry up and take a quick photo and then pound the crap out of it.

I’ve been working on my costume and after a major setback I think I’m back on track. My kitchen/work area will never be the same, but that’s the way it goes.

Work has been extra busy, but I’m not nearly as cranky as usual. I’ve made some progress on a few projects despite the major impediments that keep getting dumped in my lap. We’re supposed to be hiring a new full time person soon and there’s talk about a student assistant – but neither have materialized.

I think I may have mentioned a while ago about my favorite Twilight Zone episode – “It’s a Good Life” – about a delightful little boy named Anthony who lives in Ohio. And when I say “delightful”, I really mean “god-like psychopathic monster who causes his family and the town to live in constant fear with his ability to make any horrible wish come true” His thing is “wishing people away to the cornfield” when they piss him off. So, in honor of little Anthony – I have decided to deem events that piss me off as – “Cornfield Worthy Events” or just “Cornfield Events”. Those that missed reading this particular blog entry will be lost – and only you, Faithful Reader, will be in the loop.

My first Cornfield Event will happened yesterday while trying to get some lunch. There were people standing in the middle of main hallway, talking and not moving. There were three people sitting on the steps of the building, blocking the doors. There was a girl talking on her cell phone while standing in line to get food. If I had the powers of my counter-part, they all would have ended up in the “cornfield”.

One final thing that I saw, someone else not paying attention. He’s not cornfield worthy since he pretty much punished himself. There’s a section of the Student Union with a wide open area connecting several hallways. Right in the exact center of this wide round area, someone had put up a side on a tripod. It’s right in the way and pretty stupid, but not at all difficult to see.

However, I saw a guy – preoccupied with the music in his headphones – walk right into it. He tried to catch it, but the whole thing fell and he nearly went down on top of it. A couple people laughed, I told him “Don’t worry, no one saw that,” as I walked past, but I don’t think he heard me over his music. It was pretty funny.

That’s it for now – time to get back to work…