Thunder of Wade

Almost forgot. I had a dream last night that I was at my grandmother’s house in Illinois and we were in the backyard – being freaked out by the literal army of zombies slowing heading our direction. I got the family that was with me inside and started to batten down the hatches.

There was a knock at the front door and it was a friend of my grandmother’s – fortunately not zombified. I let her in and as I closed the door she said that her family was still in the van. I opened the door and sure enough – there was a mini-van full of people, just sitting there. I motioned for them to come inside and watched as they laboursly got out of the van. They were all wearing huge winter coats and carrying pastries, juice, and coffees.

Most of them got up on the porch and then just stood there – watching the zombies walk slowly up the street. I totally lost it at this point and started grabbing them by their coats and literally throwing them into the house. The lady on the stairs, who seemed more slack-jawed than the rest, was watching the zombies get closer and closer to her. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to reach her in time and decided that if she didn’t move on her own and a zombie grabbed her – I was going to leave her and get my ass in the house.

The rest of the losers finally inside, I grabbed at her and managed to pull her inside with a few seconds left to close and bar the door – then realized I’d left all the potential weapons in the now inaccessible garage. I yelled at them for a few minutes in the living room and told them that if any of them did anything stupid, I’d cut them up and throw them back out there. They just looked at me and sipped their beverages.

Then I woke up – with a headache – and pissed off. Word to the wise, if the zombie horde ever rises up – you had damn well better listen to me when I tell you to move. ‘Cause I’ll leave you to them if you’re worried about spilling your cappichino.

later…

Yesterday, while standing in line – which I just really enjoy, of course – the guy at the front of the line was having trouble placing his order. He was from somewhere else and his english wasn’t strong. The clerk ended up having to void out his order and start over.

It got me thinking about languages – and why there are so many of them. I wonder how much time has been lost and how many problems have been created by not being able to understand each other. And even stranger is how languages tend to diverge with regional dialects. Might be interesting enough for a master’s thesis.

I was also thinking about swearing – and what a strange concept it is. Some people would use the most foul language as part of their everyday conversation – and another might be on the phone to the FCC at the mildest utterance. Kids use the word poop, dookie is a viable slang term, crap is gaining acceptance – but “sh*t” is still a bad word. All of them mean to defecate. Is it the audience? If so, it’s not universal. Is it the tone? I could shout “Defecate!” the next time my computer freaks out and my colleagues would laugh. If I shouted, “Sh*t!” – I would be scolded. I think this is a topic that deserves more thought – but I’ve got other things to cover.

I think I’ve miscounted my paper – I’ve only got a small stack left and it “feels” like I should have more. I think I’ll need to count again tonight – don’t want to run out mid-assembly.

I ordered a game from Amazon.com – God of War. I’ve borrowed and played it before and it was a blast – but I haven’t been able to find it for under 45 bucks. Amazon had it for $19.99 – and it should be waiting for me when I get home. Yea!

Though I’m not sure I should play it right away. The cluster headache came back last night around 9:30. I was in bed not long after that – and got awakened by a phone call at about quarter after 10 from a friend. I wanted to talk – but explained that I was hurting and really couldn’t. So, we kept the converation short and I eventually went back to sleep.

The headache is still with me this morning – lurking behind my right eye. I’m taking it slow and easy today and I’m hoping that it fades out.

And that’s about it…time to get back to work…

I’m up to 700 units folded for my big project – and I think I can finally say I’m in the home stretch at this point. Of course, I still have to put it together.

My angel project was also worked on last night – and things did not go so well. I made a breakthru on one of the steps – though it seemed counter-intuitive when I tried it. And then slammed to a halt with the next step. Sometimes I can look ahead at the next step and determine how they got there. In this case, it looks they used a differnt piece of paper.

The other model that I worked had instructions written in Spanish – and I had better luck with that one. Go figure.

The headache is mostly gone – though I still get traces of it lurking around.

Can’t imagine why – work has been stressful. Got some issues with some co-workers who shall remain un-named that are bringing me down. I guess it’s time to sharpen the wooden stake and go hunt me some soul-sucking vampires.

In slightly more hopeful news…I just recently read that babies are natually helpful. Gives me a little hope for the species. Too bad we seem to outgrow it.

Well, that’s it for now…back to work…

It’s been a few days since I’ve blogged – got a bit to catch up on.

1. Last weeks headache. I’m prone to headaches (it’s all that thinkin I do, dontcha know?) – so having one is almost no big deal. This one, however, lasted about 36 hours. It was only really bad for a few of those hours, but it was enough to keep me home from work for a day. And that was a very boring day – since DVD’s and Video games were both out. And I tried to keep reading to a minimum too. So, lot of paper-folding.

2. Which brings me to topic two – the big origami project. I’m up to 680 modules folded. Which means I’ve got about 88 to go before it’s time to start putting it all together. I’m not sure what happened to my notes – might have to recreate them before I start.

3. The Flash is still not back on the stands. I haven’t bought any comics at all since they stopped making the flash. Rumor has it that they’ll start the new Flash series in the summer by killing off the current Flash and replacing him. Wankers. DC Comics is going to get a harsh email from me, I think.

4. Coca-cola is coming out with Coke Blak. In addition to not being able to spell – it’s also going to be a mix of Coke and Coffee. I can imagine going to a returant and having to ask for my coke plain. Wankers.

5. Came into work yesterday to check on a project and work on a few things. Wasn’t as productive as I could have been, but I think it was still worthwhile.

And that’s about it for now…back to work…

I was getting ready to leave my cube to get some lunch and, standing there with coat in hand, I nearly fell asleep. I could almost hear the turbines powering down and if I had been seated, I would have gone ahead and drifted off. But some small error-checking routine stopped me and prevented me from dropping to the floor in a heap. My knees, unlike a horse’s, could not be locked. So, I just plodded my way to get food.

I went to bed at a reasonable hour last night and I was up at a reasonable hour this morning. Not sure why I’m so sleeply today.

I’ve been getting a little down on myself at work these past few weeks. I’m really dreading going to work anymore. Doesn’t help that my cold is finally starting to get the upper hand, either.

No real news on my origami projects. I folded about 50 more units for the big project, but no updates on the angels. I really want to do the Daedalus one, but it seems way complicated.

That’s about it for now. I guess it’s time for me to get back to it…

Last evening began with a trip to the grocery store to purchase, among other things, some hamburger patties.

Return home, open package, and reel from the stench. Oh, yeah, it was bad. And the date on the package confirmed that it was best by Feb 17. And it was not at it’s best.

So, reciept in hand – back to the store and the customer service desk to return the meat. She took the re-wrapped package and issued a refund. More meat was purchased and dinner was cooked.

Later on, I worked on my Origami Angel samples – with little success. I think I must be slipping or I’m just getting old and not learning as fast as I used to. I’ll try again tonight.

And that’s about it. Work is kinda sucking today, but I’ll get through it…

Well, I’m up to 500 origmai units built. I’ve got the rest for my big project cut, but still quite a ways to go before I’m ready to start putting it together.

I’ve also got a commission on my plate – building origami angels for a christmas event. I’m still trying to find a good model – and still wondering if I want to try this. So far, the numbers they’ll need are somewhere between 250-450. And I won’t have much notice on how many they’ll need. It’s not like – “we’ll need X by DateX”. More like, “on DateX we’ll tell you how many we’ll need by DateX2”

There’s payment and supply issues as well – not to mention feeling a little odd about using some design and making a profit on it. But, well, I think if I can pull it off – it’ll be visually amazing. Hundreds of paper angels? It would be something to see.

Too bad they don’t want cranes – I could do thousands before christmas. Literally.

In other news… I gave blood last week. The red cross had sent me two cards about differnt blood drives – then another card about one of those being canceled. Then they called me to see if I would do a double-red and if so – would I care to make an appointment. Since I usually feel better after a double-red vs. a regular donation – I said I would. Got there a with a few minutes to spare and waded through the tedious history section. The actual donation went pretty smoothly and I alternatly read my book, talked to the attendant, and watched the screen of the collection machine. Had one brief scary moment – a message came up on the screen about “Clearing air from system”.

The double red means they take out a pint of blood, centerfuge the red cells out, then return the plasma and some saline. Then they repeat. The attendant explained that the system has multiple sensors to prevent any air from entering the tubing headed for my arm. So, it was doing its job and clearing things out.

So, I’m glad that it worked – but a little disconcerted that it was even a potential issue. Maybe they should have some new code for the attendants that won’t weird me out.

In other news – I had a headache much of the weekend. I think it’s the same one – hanging out in my head and just generally lurking around. Maybe I’m thinking too hard? Ignorance is bliss and what not.

I could talk about work – but that would just make the headache worse. So, I’m just going to get back to it and hope the day finishes up quickly.

Later…

I’ve made good progress on my Menger sponge project – finished up unit #300 last night. Still a long way to go before I can even start assembling the final form, but it’s a good start.

Also played a bunch of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit last night. Earned a couple new cars in the game – pretty sweet.

Then I went to bed and the nightmares started. I took notes this morning of what I could remember…

1. Visiting my grandmother at her house. I go into the den/guest bedroom and find it’s flooded with about 4 inches of water that, for some reason, doens’t spill out into the rest of the house. Then I notice a small black worm that suddenly stretches toward me, flares it’s front section, then flaps it like a manta ray and glides through the water toward me as it returns to normal. It’s a leech, it’s on the hunt, and it’s looking for me. Prudently, somewhat girl-y, I jump up on a weight bench and call for help. When help arrives, they see the leech glide under the bed to hide. Rather than waste time trying to capture it, Grandma decides that she doesn’t really need that room and – after getting me out – has the room sealed up forever.

2. Dad has decided he doesn’t have enough space to work on projects and rents several hundred thousand square feet of space in a warehouse. I go to visit him and he’s busy building shelves. He’s already built hundreds of floor to ceiling shelves and the place is a maze of empty wooden shelves. I get lost trying to find the exit and the bathroom.

3. I’m in a cemetary and notice a well cooked beef steak sitting on a plate on top of a gravestone. I get a little closer and realize, somehow, that it’s not beef – it’s human.

4. I’m in a strange bathroom, maybe a hotel – and I’m trying to figure out how to use the facilites with the toilet nearly full of water and the lid partially closed – without making a mess.

Brief intermission as I get up and use my normal bathroom for real.

5. I’m at work and we’re trying to track down a virus that has a graphic interface – we can actually see it eat files like a little blob on the screen. We discover it on one machine – then realize it’s already spread to every machine in the School of Law.

6. I’m playing Need for Speed – but this time I’m actually in the game, behind the wheel of one of the cars. I’m racing the Desert Canyon track against one other car – trying to beat them to qualify for the next track. The other car is all over the road and I can’t get past them. I finally make my move and pull up alongside them – and it’s Paris Hilton talking on her pink cell phone with her dog yapping at my from the passenger side of the car.

Back to reality – this morning I glanced in the mirror and realized that if I let my beard get to long, there’s a huge patch of white/gray hair on one side of my chin. It looks a little odd, but I was running late and didn’t have time to trim it.

So, I grabbed a coke and an apple and headed out the door. Spent far too long scraping off my car, said hello to my neightbor and came to work.

And now it’s time to get back to it…

There was a message on my answering machine yesterday when I got home. It was from – I think – my former room-mate’s oldest son. It was a kind of bland “haven’t talked to you in a while” kind of message – and that was about it. No “purpose” – other than the obvious trying to re-establish communications. There was no phone number left and since I canceled my caller ID – no way to tell the number. And he called at 8:00 in the morning – on a Thursday – when I would be certain to be at work.

So, to sum up:

Random phone call, no apparent purpose, no return number, called when I couldn’t possibly be home.

While I’d like to think this was a friend trying to get back in touch and doing a poor job of it – I’m a little uneasy. Was he calling and didn’t think about me being at work until he was already leaving the message – or was he calling to make sure I wasn’t home?

I’m going to stop my speculation at this point since I have no proof of anything either way.

I guess that’s about it for now… looks like another busy day on the horizon. Back to work…

So, I go out to dinner last night with a friend and though we have requested a non-smoking table – we have to wait just outside the bar area of the resturant. The 5 mintues turned to 10 and the smoke started to bother my eyes and my lungs. Finally, we got seated just outside what I’m guessing could be a small banquet room – as far away as possible from the smoky bar. Which was great. The server came around quickly, drinks were ordered and delivered, and the food came out quickly. I had fish and it was well prepared and tasted good. Turning out to be a nice dinner.

Then a couple gets seated in the banquet area and while I’m pretty sure that whole section was also non-smoking – the guy had a cigerette out before he even got his coat off. Coffee was served to them and she started smoking as well.

Ten feet away – no obstructions. Before too long, my eyes were bothered and so were my lungs. I started to smell it on my clothes and skin.

Never having seen anyone violate the no-smoking rule in a given area, I wasn’t sure of the protocal. Nobody else seemed bothered and their server didn’t say anything to them. Should I approach them? Should I talk to the server or manager? By the time the manager stopped by to ask us how things were – and it was prefunctory question at best – and the server buzzing to and from our table like a hummingbird, well, it was really too late. I was nearly done eating and dessert wasn’t going to be an option.

I guess I’m tired of walking through a haze of smoke to get into a building, of waiting near a smoking section, and of the annoyance in general.

Next time I go to a resturant I’m going to pay more attention to where I’m seated and I’m going to start asking questions and pushing buttons as need be.

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