Thunder of Wade

The best meal I had on the trip was a Low County (shrimp) Boil. Sort of a staple for the area it has shrimp, potatoes, corn on the cob, and sausage.

It’s a mess to eat – like, moist towelette mess – but really good. I ate till I was stuffed and enjoyed every bite.

Oh, and the restaurant was called Captain Woody’s – naturally.

We also has some pretty good pizza and some fairly good mexican – sort of a tour of meals – but nothing topped the boil.

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I managed to keep up with the sunscreen and didn’t burn except for a bit on the last day. It was a beach day – a little cloud cover – and I didn’t apply after I got out of the water from my swim. Got a little burn on my face and chest, but some aloe has helped and I’m not pink anymore. I’ve had much worse – one year sent me to the stat care for treatment. I probably get too much sun in the summer to be healthy, but the winters in Ohio are brutal and the memory of those nice days is all we’ve got to get through it.

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The drive back home to Ohio was… grueling. 12 hours – it included some stops for gas and food, but it was still long. We took turns driving and listened to a lot of music. The country was pretty enough, but I was already missing one of my co-workers that had his last day while I was gone on vacation. And a former co-worker had messaged me about some disturbing emails that had been released via a public records request about the recent cuts. So, I had that in my head as well.

But, made it home safe and ThunderCat was delighted to see me. We played a bit while I unpacked, then he sat with me while I got my video game fix.

On Monday, back to work and the unenviable task of trying to get caught up on the accursed email.

So, good vacation and good to be back. Going to work on the Halloween costume today – though this may be the last one for a while. Things have… changed at UA and it’s just not as fun of a place anymore.

The weather for most of the trip was amazing. Sunshine, cool breeze – perfect for being on the beach.

I took to the water as soon as possible and put some distance between myself and the shore to avoid running into anyone as I did “laps” up and down the coast. It was really just one lap – swim in one direction for a while and then turn around and swim back.

I was out away from everyone and could still touch the bottom – so, I took off my suit and wrapped it around my wrist and swam off.

If you’ve never done that in the ocean, I highly recommend it. I was fast and strong and water slid past me like I was some kind of ocean deity.

When I got tired, I put my suit back on and swam back to the shore.

I did that a few more times while we were at the beach – might have been one of my favorite parts of the trip. I felt… free. Just me and the saltwater.
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I did a lot of reading in the week we were there – 7 novels in all. I’ve always been fast, but the peaceful surroundings and big chunks of quiet time really encouraged me to absorb the stories at a blazing speed. The trilogy that the cool clerk at the bookstore liked was excellent (The Southern Reach), one of the ones I brought with me was amazing (The Long Earth), and I read the first two in Octavia Butler’s series (Lilith’s Brood)which I’d read before and enjoyed – but The Returned was a massive disappointment. Was it a zombie novel? Were some of the returned actually “good”? Was it connected to the submerged village? Why were there power outages? Did the returned have mental powers? What’s up with sewage? If the recently dead animals came back, did that mean that anyone who died would now come back? Why this one town?

All of that – and so much more – was left totally unresolved by the ending. The book just… stopped.

And I was pissed. It was a big book and I could have been reading something else. Huge waste of time. I was cranky about that for hours.

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On the rare overcast day, we took a trip to nearby Beaufort. Lunch was good, the gelato was better, and the buildings were… old. I didn’t get much out of that other than some exercise, but Jim did his best to fill the memory on his camera phone with photos. I checked out the flowers and the Spanish moss – and the cemetery was pretty cool. It was a quiet day and I enjoyed the peace.

A few months ago, Jim took a vacation to Asheville, NC. He wanted to see the artisans of the quirky town and for the Fall vacation to Hilton Head, he wanted us to stop there.

We left very early on a Friday morning and drove from Ohio to Asheville and got there in the afternoon. We toured the galleries and shops – taking a walking tour of the unrefined parts of the city. One of the stops Jim wanted to make was an artist who worked in clay and made stylized figures that she then glazed with patterns and textures. She called them “souls”.  It was his favorite artist in the area and the last stop on our walking tour. It got to be late in the day and we were hustling to make sure we go there before it closed.

In time, we made it to the studio and I got to see the figures and meet the artist. Jim picked up one of the souls a few times – but it was pricey and he kept setting it back down. When we were ready to go, I picked up that same figure and took it to the counter and bought it – then handed it to Jim as an early Christmas present.

He was taken aback, but really happy. And happy surprises are pretty much my favorite thing. So, Jim got his soul.

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We stayed the night in Asheville, then toured the downtown area the next day. Quirky, still, and fun with interesting shops and plenty of people watching. The best was a great bookstore where I bought a trilogy based solely on the author. When I took them to the counter, the clerk asked if I’d read others by the author and we quickly agreed on a favorite.

It was a really pleasant conversation and a far cry from Books a Million. This was someone who was not only interested in books, but interested in the customers. Are the books better for it? No, the books stand on their own and were quite good. But the experience was better, by far.  I sort of made a friend – if only for a short while – based on a love of reading.

I also got a sticker that said, “Hell hath no fury like me when I’m slightly inconvenienced and hungry”

Which is very true.

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From Asheville, we drove on to Hilton Head and arrived in the evening. By the time we had groceries for the week and were unpacked, it was late and dark. Jim wanted to take a walk on the beach and while I was tired, I agreed. I took a glowstick with me and marked the entrance to the path back to the condos, but it wasn’t enough.

We got lost on the beach in the dark.

And someone took/stole the glowstick.

We wandered up and down the dark sand looking for a familiar path, but we hadn’t seen it in the light and couldn’t find the right one. Finally, we gave up and picked a path to take us out past the condos to the street and from there, we took the long walk back to the numbered building. We had over-shot the correct path by quite a ways and it was 11:30 before we made it back to the condo. Not the best first trip to the beach, but we got some exercise – and the stars were pretty amazing.

I left work a couple minutes early today, then walked across campus and downtown to the Akron Art Space building. I was a couple minutes early when I arrived and I wandered around – postcard in hand – looking for the photographer’s studio.

We met up in the stairwell, realized we were looking for each other, and headed over to his studio.

First up was the model release form on an ipad while he got the camera set up. Then I “de-shirted” and sat on the stool facing away from the camera while he adjusted the focus.

He told me that he was pleasantly surprised at the number of people that he’d photographed that had tattoos – said it added something interesting to the photos.

He had me remove the postcard and the rest of the gear from my back pockets – and suggested I tuck the waistband of my briefs back down.  Not an underwear model – this time around.

He also asked me what kind of art I did and when I told him Origami he said, “Oh, the origami guy. Did you leave a paper crane when you were last in the building for the art walk?”

I told him, yes, that’s the kind of thing I do.

Then, it was time to get started.

The nice thing about having pictures of your back taken is you don’t have to worry about your facial expression.

I smiled anyway.

He took a few shots of me seated and we had only one small awkward moment when he said my left arm looked unnatural in that position  – and I had to explain that it wouldn’t straighten out any further because of the break. It wasn’t a big deal though and we moved to another pose.

Then it was time to stand up and he moved the stool out of the way. I stood where the stool was and he said I had hit the mark almost perfectly and he hardly had to adjust the focus.

Super model – naturally.

A few standing shots and we were done. I put my shirt on and before I left I quickly made him a paper crane while he told me a story about finding a small Buddhist shrine on a road trip and seeing all the paper cranes there.

We shook hands and I headed out. When the project is done, I’ll get a print of my photo.

So, I’m officially an art model. And, I have to admit, I did walk around this evening with just a little bit of a strut to my stride.

YOU.

BETTER.

WORK IT.

Went to the Highland Square Fest this weekend and while it rained most of the time, it was still good to get out and about for a while. I kept my wallet, keys, and phone in a plastic bag in my pocket and I figured the rest of me would dry out eventually.

Got some popcorn, wandered around and saw the art vendors and street performers, and hung out with friends – listening to the music and eating so-so pizza.

The acapella group from UA was there for a while and they did a good job – though like the steel drum band a lot of that goes a long way for me. They were very… earnest, though.
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When I got home I cleaned up a bit in case it worked out for people to come over. I cleaned the bathroom and did the dishes – then got out the vacuum to finish off the living room.

I did the floor, then turned the dial to use the attachments and get the curtains where Thunder likes to brush against. It wasn’t doing a very good job and I checked the dial to see that it was in the right spot.

It wasn’t. I had been on attachement mode while cleaning the floor and floor mode when I worked on the curtains. Had to the entire living room again because, apparently, I can’t read.
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Years ago, I made an origami crane out of a coke can – just to see if I could do it. The end result was only “close” to a crane – but I was still pretty proud of it. Got cut up a bit though – and neglected to get a picture of it.

As part of my unofficial “fold-anything” project, I decided to try this again with a 7 Up can and document it.

I’ve added this to my tumblr account here:

Not the best crane I’ve ever done – but recognizable.

I ran out of time today to get everything done that I intended to at work. There just weren’t enough hours – and that was with working through my lunch.

When my regular quitting time came and started to slide past, I stopped and took stock. I could keep working off the clock until I met some artificial deadlines, or I could go home.

So, I took a deep breath and went home. The work will be there for me tomorrow and I’ll be alert, fresh, and more efficient.

It wasn’t easy – I like getting things done and don’t like things unfinished – but it was necessary.
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One of my stops this evening was at the bookstore. I found a book that I wanted, then steeled myself and went up to the counter.

Do I have a membership card? No.
Had I heard about them? Yes.
Did I want to sign up for one? No.
Was I sure? The deals were really excellent and verbose. No thank you.
Would I like to have “Free” magazines shipped to my house? No thank you.

Gauntlet surpassed, I decided I needed a cookie. Not wanted, NEEDED.  And it had damn well better have chocolate chips.

I made my way to the coffee shop, ordered a cookie, and went to pay for it.

Did I have a membership card? No.
Would I like to sign up for one? FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, NO!

A plague on your house and your membership card!

A thousand curses!

NEVER!

Or, rather, no thank you.

It’s not their fault. I get that. But I just want a damn book and a damn cookie without being interrogated.

And, yes, I protest too much.

But, as much as I like bookstores, I can do without this one. And when I turn my back on a retail establishment, it stays turned.

I’m looking at you Chik-Fil-a and Hobby Lobby. Goodbye, Books a Million.
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On the trip back, I noticed again the signs on the highway that proclaimed:

“Drive Sober or Get pulled over”

and then a note about traffic fatalities for the year and a percentage increase from last year.

So, am I meant to obey because I might get arrested or that I might die? Granted, neither are a good option – but I wonder who this is intended for?

Those that don’t drink are not the audience. It wouldn’t occur to them to suddenly start and then immediately take to Ohio’s roads.

Those that do would either ignore the signs or would responsibly get someone to drive them anyway.

Would anyone see a sign like that and actually be influenced by a catchy phrase or an abstract number? Seems odd – but, then, I’m frequently surprised at the things that influence humans.
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Finally, I heard back from the photographer who is taking pictures of peoples’ backs for an art project. And I’m signed up! Next Tuesday after work I’m headed to the studio for some photos. Should be fun to actually be a part of some art.

And the 15 minutes of fame starts…

Last week was super busy at work. I kept up for the most part, but we were all scrambling. I’m hoping things slow down a bit so we can do more planning and less reacting, though it may be too soon in the semester for that.
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On Friday, went to the Art Walk downtown. Saw some pretty cool pieces – including a sculpture of a dragon captured by mice.

It was breathing smoke.

Saw some glass art that was pretty cool and lots of paintings. I also picked up a card from an artist that is working on a photo project taking pictures of people’s backs. You have be a supporter of art or an artist to be included and I think I’m sort of both – so, I sent him an email. I don’t know if this is still going on – the card didn’t have a date – but if it works out I might be in some art.

Which would be kinda cool.
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Saturday was a trip to Hale Farm and Village. They had an art show going on there as well as the historical village and while the exhibits were interesting, I couldn’t help but be a little on edge.

I’m talking about time travel, naturally.

The mix of current society and the historical reenactors feels too much like some kind of time tourism. Like someone is going to whip out a cell phone and change the course of history. Are we in the past – or is the past visiting the present?

I wasn’t quite sure, so I kept my phone in my pocket and tried not to talk about modern conveniences.

You can never be too careful.
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Today was a pool party for my friends’ 5 year old. I had asked about suitable presents and was told – “she likes things that are bizarre”.

Which, naturally, I can handle.

The gift bag looked like an orange furred monster – with eyes, of course. There was a comb that looked like a T-rex skull, a squishy purple lizard – along with a book about owls, some bubble solution, and a glow in the dark magic wand. Oh, and Frozen swim goggles.

There were squeals of delight – so I know we did well.

I rough-housed in the pool, much to the delight of the kids there, and managed to not drown or have anyone kick anyone else in the head.

It was a success.

I got a little sun-burn on my shoulders, but some aloe should clear that up. My arm is a little sore too – I’m guessing the “it’s not a race nor is it a swim meet” on Friday along with the kid tossing today in the pool wore me out. Looks like I need a break.
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Oh, and I learned a little something about myself on Friday.

Some stairwells terrify me.

One of the art walk stops was an old building with a lot of stairs. Now, I’m not a fan of heights, but I can usually keep my composure. The stairs, while sturdy enough, flipped some kind of switch in my head where I didn’t trust gravity anymore. There was too dang much open space.

I like my stairs enclosed with lots of concrete and low ceilings. And at the top of the stairs was a metal ladder going up to the open roof access.

I don’t know why, but… shudder.

I had a death grip on the railing and stayed as focused as possible. If gravity had stopped working – and don’t laugh, because you know it’s just a matter of time – there was no way I was going out that roof. The rest of the world might have been ejected into space, but I was not going anywhere.

Sorry, but if that happens it’s every man for himself.
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Time now for a cool shower and an early night. Promises to be another busy day tomorrow.  And hopefully no stairs.

I took the day off of work on Thursday to take Thunder(cat) to the vet – along with other errands.  It didn’t go great.

Thunder was fine with wearing a collar and was okay getting into the cat carrier.  He was okay with being taken out to the car – but he freaking hated the car ride.  He yowled like it was the end of the world the entire time.  I reached back to try and comfort him  while I was driving, but he wasn’t having any of it.

I got him to the vet and took him inside and set the carrier on a chair.  I was signing in when he slammed against the wall of the carrier and managed to knock the carrier onto the floor.

I am the worst pet parent ever.

We got him into the exam room and I got him out of the carrier and held him while the tech checked his weight and asked a few questions.

The vet came in a little later and gave him a shot and then a perfunctory exam as if to verify that yes, he’s still a cat – then checked his teeth.

Thunder has inflamed gums.  In spite of the previous tests the vet has done, he doesn’t know what is causing it.  Thunder is a good eater and has no trouble with dry food or treats.  Plenty of energy, no trouble with the litter box, and seemingly fine.

But, he’s got those inflamed gums and bad breath.

So, the treatment – according to the vet – is to pull all his teeth.

I asked if there were other options – brushing his teeth, etc. – but the vet made a remark about not relying on Dr. Google.  Thinking, I guess, that this is a popular suggestion on the internet for feline gingivitis – and that I shouldn’t rely on that.

Now, I don’t want to brush my cat’s teeth and I can guaran-damn-tee that Thunder doesn’t want that either – but I’ll do it if it will make a difference.

I didn’t make the appointment yet for the extraction – instead I’m going to get a second opinion.  I’m not generally one to question a doctor – they have more training than I do – but this just didn’t sit well with me.

I got a grateful cat back into his carrier and listened to him yowl all the way home.  When I set the carrier down in the house and opened the door, he peeked out and then stepped out with what I’m sure was relief.

It wasn’t just the bad news, it was just kind of a lack of empathy.  Thunder(cat) is a my little furry buddy (LFB) and I don’t want him hurting.  Just… I don’t know.

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I drove down to visit my folks yesterday morning.  It was early when I got on the road – just a little after 5 – and it was just me and the truckers on the highway.

I had some music on – mostly Sia – and while the drive itself was uneventful, it did give me far too much time to think.

I tend to be “in my head” quite a bit and that’s not a bad thing – it’s pretty cool in there with interesting things to think about.  FTL travel, zombies, lasers, superheroes, origami, etc.    But in a car, by myself, on the empty road in the dark, well… it started to bring me down.  I starting thinking about work and then the sort of general stress of life we all have – yard, house, car, family, etc.  Then I thought about Jeff and ran through the thousands of what-if’s I’ve already been through before.    Couldn’t seem to kick myself out of the brooding.

As the sun began to come up, I switched the music to something a little cheerier (I really need to download some J-pop) and the mood started to lighten as the sky did.

I was pretty much over it by the time I got to my destination, but for a little while I was stuck in a funk.  Just kind of a sad little car trip – reminded me of Douglas Adams describing the unfortunate immortality of Wowbagger the Infinately Prolonged as “the Long, Dark, Tea-time of the Soul”.

Not sure the fix here, perhaps I just need to sleep in and get a later start to the day and the car ride.

Or bring my cat.  I’m sure the constant yowling for 2+ hours will keep me distracted.  But, then, I don’t want him to be depressed.

The visit has been a good one otherwise – my nieces are fun and we’ve had some good food and played games.

I’ll be heading back to Akron later today  – in the daylight – and resolve to keep the music (and hopefully my mood) lighter.

I think I just figured out the root of all problems in western civilization.  Yea, me!

Earlier today I witnessed a minor battle on Facebook over politics.

Naturally.

Both sides were utterly certain they were right and the other side was wrong.  

And they quickly reached an impasse because neither of them could back down.    Not just that they “wouldn’t” back down, I don’t think that either side could.  

It got me thinking about how often our certainty causes problems.

“This brand of shoes/soda/phone is better than that brand”

“This music/ideology/social status/height/language/eye color is the best”

“Beards are great/gross”

“Light/Dark skin is better than Dark/Light skin”

“This is the best country/That is the worst country”

“This religion is the right one and every other religion is wrong”

“This political party is the right one and every other one is wrong”

“This person is better than that person”

“I’m right and you’re wrong”

(I could literally go on all day)

And then we stop talking and learning and start fighting. Because it isn’t enough that we have an opinion about something, we’re compelled to have everyone around us share the same opinion.   

Even being aware of this, it’s tough not to do.   Take onions, for example.  I think my loathing of this dubious “food item” is well documented.  And I’d like nothing more than to have them outright banned across the multiverse.  

Don’t force your onions on me, jerk!   I have a right to not have onions around me!   I don’t want to have to explain onions to my cat – he won’t understand!

Except that’s silly, right?  So, like it or not, onions are a fact of life.  I have to concede that some otherwise very intelligent people really like onions.  For the sake of civilization – and being invited to parties – I have to acknowledge the I might be in the wrong.  I don’t have to like onions, but I have to live with them.

And – like coffee – I keep trying them.  (I like the smell and the idea of coffee, I just don’t like the taste much.)  Usually inadvertently, but it still counts.  And maybe someday I’ll change my mind.

I’m not certain about that, but it’s a start.

The only thing we should really be certain about is that the speed of light  is 299,792,458 m/s.  It’s a universal constant, okay?  Just let it go.  And yes, I’m talking about “in a vacuum”.  

Everything else would benefit from some uncertainty, I think.

So, why are we so certain about things?  

I suspect it’s because we’re so bombarded with information all the time. If we really did keep an open mind about everything, we’d never be able to pick out breakfast cereal.  We have to categorize things into the “yes” piles and the “no” piles.  We just don’t have enough brain power to give everything the attention and consideration it deserves.  And so we end up with coco-puffs every morning because it turns the milk chocolaty – without putting for the effort to consider that maybe that’s not a great reason to pick a cereal.  

This also brings to mind an award we had on campus not long ago for the best staff member.   Only one person got nominated – the process of nominations was horribly complicated – and so instead of giving them the award they clearly deserved, the whole thing was canceled.    It wasn’t enough for someone to win – someone else had to lose.

Which is pretty twisted, actually.  

How do we fix this?  How do we convince people to not be such jerks?  How do we get people to have open minds – where everyone can have an opinion and not force it on others?  Where everyone can win?

I don’t have an answer but I think it’s good food for thought.  I’m going to keep an open mind about it.

Went to the last of the summer outdoor ballets last Friday in Akron. The first piece was amazing – lots of really fluid movement across the stage and almost inhuman grace. The rest, to my mind, was less so.

Hey, I tried.

That first piece also had some amazing music and I wasn’t the only one to get out my phone and Shazam the hell out of it.

It was “Tremors”, by an artist called SOHN. I’m been listening to it a lot since then – just amazing and such a haunting sound. And with headphones? Just… wow. Got the CD on order and looking forward to enjoying more of this talent.

You can check out the Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tu2mVP6xee0

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Switching gears a bit… Spiders. I’m generally okay with spiders and won’t go out of my way to kill them. Live and let live and… well… avoid. However, one of these little creatures decided to build a web between the corner of my house and the support post for my porch roof.

Directly in the path to leave my house and go to my garage.

Naturally, I blundered into this, destroyed the web, and sent the spider scrambling. I did the usual trashing about to get the web off me, then went on my way. The next time I came that way, the spider had rebuilt the web – in the exact same spot – and I blundered into it again. Destruction, scramble, thrashing – again.

The next time I came through there, I saw the spider – in the newly built web in the same spot – and managed to stop before I hit it. I paused a moment, then went out into the yard and around the gate to miss the web and still be on my way.

I felt bad for the spider. All that work for some clumsy giant biped to come along and crash into it. Spiders don’t really live that long and it seemed really determined to build in that spot.

So, with a little caution, I managed to avoid the really beautiful web and let the spider do its thing.

Right up until this morning when I forgot about the web and in the dim light managed to blunder into it again. This time, the spider was knocked to the ground and was seemingly gone.

The web was rebuilt when I got home this evening and I managed to avoid it. The spider was, I guess, okay – though one of us, clearly, is an idiot. I hope it’s the spider.

[If you’re on the web today, little spider, I’m sorry.]

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I dropped my car off last night at the dealership to get it looked it regarding the missing odometer.

They were still open so I parked the car and went in to let them know I was dropping it off in person instead of using a dropbox. The technician asked me to wait while he went and pulled the car in. I gave him the keys and he pulled it into the garage – and sat in the running car for a few minutes while I waited. He then turned the car off and got out.

“Well, that was strange,” he said and I readily agreed.

“I was trying to get the mileage and it wasn’t there,” he continued and we talked for a few moments about what else was missing from the display.

I signed some paperwork, verified my phone number, and was on my way.

“Strange” in car repairs would most likely equate to “Uncommon” – which I’m guessing is a synonym of “Expensive”.

But, still, kinda cool to have a “new” problem. As a computer guy, I deal with all kinds of computer problems everyday – and they are usually pretty routine.

[And, truth be told, it’s a wonder that computers work at all.]

But sometimes I’ll get something weird that really peaks my interest. Those get a little more of my time and detective skills to work out. I like a little bit of a challenge and something a little out of the ordinary.

They called me this afternoon and told me that it was the computer having trouble communicating with one of the parts. They cleared the error codes and… everything came back to normal.

Essentially, they rebooted my car.

And fortunately, they didn’t charge me for it – though they said if it goes again the replacement part is $400. And, of course, my warranty expired 2 weeks ago. Which would explain why the guy that sold me the car and the service manager were so eager to have me trade in the car and get a new one – even though I’ve had the car just slightly (2 weeks) over three years.

Hmmm…smells like Planned Obsolescence to me. But I might just be cynical.

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I got a scratch on the bridge of my nose – guess I must have nicked it with a fingernail. It scabbed over quickly and was no big deal. However, the combination of glasses, swim goggles, and pool water irritated the cut and loosened the scab. When I got out of the pool and started to dry off, I knocked the scab loose and started bleeding.

A lot. Like, Carrie levels of blood.

The blood welled up from a tiny abrasion on my skin and ran down my nose. I grabbed a paper towel and put direct pressure on it and gave it a few minutes while I continued to drip dry.

When I felt enough time had passed, I pulled the paper towel away.

And the blood welled up, unabated, and started to run down my nose again.

More paper towels and then – “How do I deal with this – without getting blood all over everything?”

So, with care, I managed to hold the paper towel to my nose with one hand and get out of my speedo with the other.  Yeah, not my most graceful.

It took me twice as long, but I managed to get dressed one handed and then checked under the paper towel.

Nope, still gushing.

Fresh paper towel, then out to the front desk. The lifeguard at the desk was wearing a fanny pack and seemed really excited to be able to use the first aid supplies there – if only to offer me a band-aid.

Back to the restroom and got my cut covered up. With my glasses back on, the small band-aid wasn’t noticeable. Last night, the bleeding had finally stopped when I took the band-aid off. But, I didn’t want to risk opening it back up in my sleep accidentally – and turning my bed into a horror movie – so I put a fresh band-aid on. I took it off before my big meeting today and it was fine.

I’m not really weirded out by blood, but was a little un-nerved that the “direct pressure” didn’t do the job.   Might have been the leftover aspirin in my system from a recent headache.
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Finally, and I know this is a long post, I started on the construction of my Halloween costume tonight. It’s going to be technically complicated this year and I need to develop yet another skill set to pull it off. Should be… interesting –  if it works.

And that’s enough for today.