Thunder of Wade

The smell this morning as I walked out my front door was that of Liver and Onions – one of my least favorite foods on the planet. I’d rather be covered in angry spiders than eat that crap – and the smell isn’t anything to smile about either. Maybe I need to move…

Over the weekend I went to a small zoo in Wheeling, WV. It was raining and there were other events happening in the area, so we pretty much had the zoo to ourselves. A few animals of note:

Ostrich: There were 4 in the enclosure and they were as facinated with us as much as their fairly small brains could be. My friend opened up his umbrella and the male suddenly started following us as we walked along the fence. A mating display, perhaps?

Deer: They had a petting zoo type area with deer that we went into. One of the deer walked right up to me and stopped with what I’m guessing was an expectant look on its face. I didn’t have any of the pellet food and didn’t plan on letting a deer eat out of my hand – though that’s what it was expected. So, we just looked at each other for a moment – each of us having reached the limit of what we were prepared to do. It was an interesting empass.

Frogs: They had a display of poison arrow frogs. Those things are wicked cool – so bright and shiny that they looked like plastic until they moved.

River Otters: My favorite animal on the planet – they had two in a large watery area with underwater viewing. We got to see them right up close as they swam, ate, and played in and out of the water. Just amazing. And the otters seemed interested in us too – they came right up to the glass and peered at us and tapped the glass before swimming off again. I could have stayed there all day.

Also that weekend I got to see a Sarah McLachlan concert on TV. Just awsome – I think she’s one of the most amazing and powerful singers out there today. And you could tell she was really enjoying putting on the show. She… resonates… with some pretty deep and powerful emotions.

In other news…my ex-roommates mom called last night and asked if I would stop over and set up her answering machine/caller ID. They seem to go in waves with their requests – though this one does seem to be taking longing than usual to get through. So, I’m headed there this evening.

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

Well, it’s been a few days since I mentioned my car – the check engine light went out the day before my appointment. I drove in a variety of conditions and the car had no problems. So, I called and canceled the appointment – saying it was like a kid that didn’t want to go to school, but felt better when a trip to the doctor is suggested. The mechanic had good laugh with me.

Yesterday, on the way to work – the engine light came back on. I not sure if it means there’s a problem or just a loose wire somewhere. I’m keeping an eye on things and I’ll get it checked if anything else weird happens.

Work has been busy and stressful – a couple of projects have sprung up out of nowhere and gotten rapidly way more complicated than usual.

As a result, going for lunch has been an exercise in frustration this week. It’s like people are trying to get in my way on purpose – though the worst has to be the chicks that sit right in the middle of the stairs at the main entrance to the building – chatting on their cell phones while eveyone else has to try and get around them. Maybe a good swift kick to their heads…no, must not let the idea even form in my head.

To try and counter-balance things, I did a good deed again and took my ex-roommate’s grandmother to bingo again yesterday and then picked her up in the evening.

Oh, and I got some more halloween supplies last night. One more major component to acquire and I’ll be ready for the assembly.

That’s it for now – time to get back to work and and put out some fires…

Over the weekend I went to a costume shop that is going out of business. Found some good deals for my costume this year and got some ideas for next year as well. Spent too much money, but hey, it’s my favorite holiday of the year and I’ve got my fan base to think about.

Yesterday during a drive home, the check engine light came on again. I’ve got an appointment to drop the car off tonight and have it worked on – again. For apparently the same problem that they “fixed” before. So, I’m doing it all – again. I’m more than a we bit cranky about the whole thing, as you can imagine. I might have to pack my Mr. PotatoHead “angry eyes”.

In other news… I’m involved in a project to put together some videos and a website for Cyber Security Awareness day here on campus. In the videos, I’m playing the part of “The Nerd”. So, today I nerded myself up and got my picture taken for a fake ID. I think I managed to pull off the look – I was nerdy that I wanted to give myself a weggie and shove myself in a locker. Yeah, I was styling. Just a few minutes ago I de-nerded myself – though I’m leaving the stuff here at work for when we actually film my part.

It was scary how easy it was to slip into the role – and how nerdy I still feel afterwards.

I think I need a shower. With lots of pumic soap.

That’s it for now, back to work…

And yes, I’ll post a picture at some point.

It’s been a rough day – things keep breaking and landing on my desk. And at lunch today – everyone was in my way. Everyone.

1. The girl that had to get 8 little cups of catsup for her small order of fries.
2. The nimrod who couldn’t find the napkins and made a huge deal of it.
3. The twit on her cell phone – standing on the stairs.
4. The…well, just the random collection of clueless idiots who couldn’t see beyond their own small and dim view of the world.

While standing in line I actually had some serious thoughts over whether it would be better to make their heads explode or to just set them on fire. It’s messy either way, but I figured that the burning alive would be more painful and I really didn’t think that anyone of them deserved an easy way out.

Clearly, I have issues.

And now it’s time to get back to work… Oh, the joy is neverending…

I had a message on my answering machine from my ex-roommates grandmother yesterday when I got home from work. Rather than call her back the nan0-second I walked in the door, I spent some quality time in the bathroom with my new comics. By the time I was done – and yes, I did wash my hands – her currently out of town daughter had called as well. Same topic – could you take grandma to bingo tonight?

Well, as it turns out, I could. So, I called her back and made arrangments. I picked her up from her house and dropped her off at the bingo location with a hearty “good luck”. The plan was that she would get a ride home from one of her friends – but she asked if I would be home that evening in case that fell through.

Now where, in all of this, is my ex-roommate? Apparently working, as was “that woman” as the grandmother refered to his girlfriend.

As predicted – she called again later that evening and would be needing a ride. So, I put my shoes back on and hopped in the car. Halfway to the bingo palace – terror struck.

Something huge flew past the front and side of my car before slamming into the open window frame on the driver’s side of the car. It was a preying mantis and it was huge. Huge, I tell you!

The impact broke at least a couple of legs and the force of wind kept him from getting back underway. So, he was essentially stuck on the ledge of my window.

Now, I like bugs – because in most cases I can do my thing and they do their thing and we’re all cool and stuff. Here, I was trying to do my thing and this particular bug was clearly up in my business.

I finally escorted him out of the car with a bit of scrap paper when I reached a red stoplight – no, I didn’t touch it directly. We’d both been through enough. And it was huge.

I rolled up my window a bit once he was gone and then completed my appointment with the lucky bingo lady – who had picked up 50 bucks and a stuffed dog.

Good deed complete.

Well, that’s it for now – time to get back to work…

Did I mention it was a huge bug? Huge!

I haven’t blogged in a few days – been real busy with work, including working a couple of late nights. Big projects mostly, but also just a lot of random stuff.

I another cluster headache over the weekend – this one hit me while I was a passenger in a car on a trip. The “normal” sequence for this is: distorted vision, headache, throwing up, sleeping, recovery. Being in a car threw that out of wack and it was touch and go for a while. Feeling much better now.

Watched some of the Firefly DVD – great show! Real story driven sci-fi, which is usually rare in the face of fancy special effects.

I also watched the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy on DVD. Pretty good, but I wonder how much a non-fan of the book would have gotten out of it. It was more than I expected, but not as much as I would have hoped for.

The DVD included a trailer for the Chronicles of Narnia – which looked really good in a Harry Potter sort of way. There’s a shot of when they first open the wardrobe – amazing…

Talked to my sister last night – she’s recovering from a huge quiz and was doing battle with a giant bug while we talked on the phone. I think she eventually won – but it was still twitching when we finished our conversation.

Well, I guess I should get back to work – or maybe go grab an early lunch. In any case, that’s it for now…

(apologies to the Rolling Stones)

We need a red phone for the video that I’m going to be in about Computer Security – so, that was job last night. Went fairly well, though my attempts to preserve it as a working phone failed when I forgot to cover the handset jack before spray painting it. Oh, well. It was most likely a lost cause anyway.

Otherwise, it was an evening of video games and paying bills.

Well, that’s about it for now – back to work…

Well, I was able to pick up my car yesterday – though it was a near thing. I called early on in the day and was told it was the thermostat that was sticking and some contaminents in the anti-freeze. They suggested a new thermostat and a “flush and fill”. So, I okayed that and they got to work. Before I headed to my meeting in the afternoon I called again to check the status and they said they were having trouble with air in the radiator – but they would call back soon and leave a message if I was gone.

They called back and left a message – the air was a real problem and they would need to keep it an extra day. The second message was them saying it was resolved and done and ready to go.

So, I got a ride over to the dealership, handed over my arm and my leg, then they drove my car around and handed me the keys.

I’m poorer than I was, but at least that light is off of my dashboard.

I called my folks last night and found out that my dad had won his age group in a 5k run – which was very cool. Mom was out, but called me back when she returned. She’s back in Ohio and doing fine – though still a little tired. She’s planning on heading back in a few weeks as they ERV drivers – and she’s an expert on those. The shelter she worked at was considered a model for how it’s supposed to be done and one of the directors said they couldn’t have run it without her – so, high praise indeed.

Otherwise, not much to report except that I’m busy again today at work. The only reason I had time to write this much is that my 9:00 appointment is late. Well, I guess I should start on some projects until he gets here.

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

Directions gathered, route planned and I’m off to see the dealer – dealership, that is. Or more accurately, drop my ailing car off at the service department. To my surprise, they are still open and not that busy. I give the guy my keys and he pulls my car in and we proceed to “Fill Out The Paperwork” – a ritual that I really dread. He tries to make some small talk and I politely respond – but really I had planned on dropping the keys in a slot with a note and going to dinner, so he’s on borrowed time as it is. Nice enough guy – right up until the point where he says its going to be $100 just to run a diagnostic on my car.

Wanker.

Well, good luck, buddy. ‘Cause Monroe couldn’t even get the socket to work to make a connection. You’re going to have to earn that $100.

And if they can’t figure out what it is…well, I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. Then I’ll set fire to the bridge and storm the castle. And then I’ll go get my swords.

Oh, and they are also going to cover a couple of recall issues that I’ve been neglecting. Well, one I’ve been neglecting since it didn’t refer to “a screaming fireball of painful death and massive destruction” – which is my criteria for having someone waste my time while pretending to do me a favor. The other notice I hadn’t heard about yet.

They aren’t going to charge me for those, fortunatly.

It was a busy day yesterday and today looks to be about the same. I hope I don’t get stuck here late again as I’ve got stuff to do this evening.

That’s it for me – back to work…

I was in the student union today to drop off a disk and get some lunch when I heard the sound of drums. Loud drums. Hurt your ears kinda loud drums. There was a parade going through the student union as a group of guys in full tribal robes pounded on their drums as they marched through the building. It was almost painfully loud.

Now, while I applude the way they embraced their culture and the skill at which they played – I have to wonder if they realized that these drums are traditionally play Outside?

I have no idea why they did it or what they were all about, but it was loud. Very very loud.

Back to work…