Thunder of Wade

Don’t let any of us tell you differently – sometimes geek need tech support too. When I got my new computer, I had a trial version of some anti-virus software included. It promptly expired. However, I was already being billed for another anti-virus application from that same company from a previous install – but couldn’t remember the old ID/password. So, I needed to get the two accounts updated and merged. I fired off an email to company, responded to their reply, and then at their suggestion picked up the phone and called.

With dread. I mean, I do tech support all the time and there’s an art to it. I’ve also known plenty of people that do support and are terrible at it. Terrible.

I got through the prompts and got connected to a human. His name was Sam and he had a very strong accent. Guessing he wasn’t based in Ohio.

And he was awesome. Efficient, friendly, helpful and patient. Once I explained to him what I was trying to do, he had the account switched over in moments. Then he offered to switch me over to another tech to help get the old version removed and the new one installed. I could have done that install myself, but I figured “toll free call” and went along with it.

The next guy was Anu – same heavy accent. And also awesome. He even taught me a new trick with using Windows 8 that I now use all the time. He was patient while the new version downloaded and installed.

In short order, I was back up and running with a new installation of the anti-virus. The only complaint I had was the ticket number system. Despite detailed notes I added to the ticket(s) they used, neither guy read them at all and I might as well have been starting from scratch.

Still, an overall great tech support experience.
In other news…

I’ve always been a picky and stubborn eater. I like the things I like – usually the blander the better – and that’s pretty much it.

But as I’ve gotten older I’ve been trying new things. Started with wasabi – which is some dang good stuff. I’ve even been known to put that on cookies.  Don’t you judge me, you don’t know me!

And I’ve found I like some varieties of hot sauce. And Mexican rice. And the combination of those two is excellent. It burns, but it burns so good.  I tend to get carried away with the combination.

I also like buffalo sauce – though I suspect there are no actual buffalo involved.

But I still don’t like mustard – though I recently tried it on some pretzels.

And I don’t like peppers – though I tried one recently at my Dad’s suggestion. I got it down, but I was belching green pepper for hours afterwards. Horrible.

And onions. The most despised flavor of all. Not only are they bad, the flavor lingers on for hours and hours. Not fair to other flavors.

I avoid them whenever possible, but people still like to sneak them in. Like in green beans. What kind of a jerk-bag spoils perfectly good green beans with onions? I guess I answered my own question there – a jerk-bag.

What’s next? Maybe I need to give hummus another go…

I had to retire a fallen hero recently. My Speedo finally gave out.

I was not diligent enough in rinsing it out in non-chlorinated water after my swims and the pool water did a number on it over time. The last few times I swam with it on, the elastic in the back had failed enough that I had a droopy butt. I didn’t get a “wardrobe malfunction” out of it, but it was only a matter of time.

We put in a lot of miles in the pool together and I totally rocked that Speedo, but it was time. So, I took a photo and said my goodbye.

I switched back to a square-cut drag suit yesterday, but it wasn’t the same. I won’t go into the number of goggles I went through, but they don’t have the emotional impact anyway.

Goodbye, noble Speedo.  You will be missed.

I’ve worn glasses most of my life and other than brief times I’ve had contacts I’ve never been able to really appreciate throwing on a pair of sunglasses. When I got my most recent pair of prescription glasses they came with magnetic clip-ons. Which worked great until the magnets yanked them out of my pocket and onto the metal frame of my car door and I promptly closed the door on them.

Because that’s how I roll.

At the sunglasses hut, however, I found some spring-loaded replacement clip-on sunglasses that fit well enough. I wore those for quite awhile until I lost them – so, back to the hut for more.

I found the ones I needed – and perhaps the dorkist looking case – and went up to the counter. The transaction proceeded normally and I handed the clerk my card. She flipped over the card, glanced at the signature, and asked me for my middle initial.

And my brain shut down.

My initials are also my log-in at work. I’ve been here long enough I got a simple ID with no numbers – I was the first. And I type that set of initials over and over again throughout the day as I log into different applications. To the point where I don’t think about the individual letters – it’s just one entity.

If given some thought, I can separate out these out again, but I didn’t think. I just blurted out the first letter – “A” – which is clearly not my middle initial.

So, then she had to ask me for my ID – smugly. I handed it to her and with some petulance in my voice I told her that no one ever asks me that – and told her it was “W” once my brain started working again. She said she was just checking on me.

Really.

Because the first thing I would do if I stole a credit card would be to buy 12 dollar clip on sunglasses and a 2 dollar case. I’d skip the Oakleys for sure.

Thanks for locking up my brain and embarrassing me.

We finished the transaction and she mumbled something about a lifetime warranty.

I was so cross I didn’t even wear them out of the store into the bright sunshine. The dark cloud over my head was enough to block the light.

Last evening, went to dinner at Fazoli’s – a fast-ish food Italian restaurant. The food is pretty good, the price isn’t bad, and the service is good. I can expect pretty much the same thing each time I go there – but I was not expected the pirates at the counter. Not behind the counter; these were customers. Turns out there was a whole table of pirates, along with a table of surgeons and several girls wearing diapers on the outside of their shorts. All teenagers.

And oh, wow, were they loud? They were loud. Like a sonic wave from that section where they were all seated. It made normal conversation in the rest of the restaurant almost impossible. They eventually headed out in groups – except for the pirates. They left the same time we did and loaded up into a jeep. Never did figure out why they were in costume.

Speaking of costume, I made a little progress on my Halloween costume. My initial ideas weren’t going to work and I had to re-think the plans. The revised design – which I mentally worked on while swimming – should be more mobile and comfortable, though my vision may be limited.

Next, an update on Thunder(cat)’s behavior. I had postulated that he was smart enough to recognize polite requests and I believe I was in error.

Yesterday, I had the closet door open and he darted in. I went about my business and ignored him, then moved away from the open door. In a few minutes – without prompting – he wandered out and went down the hall. So, it’s not so much that he listened to me, rather, he was only going in the closet to get “up in my grill”. Once I stopped being near that area he got bored and left.

Still, a learning experience. Now if I could just figure out how to keep him off the internet.

Finally, last update on the flip turns in the pool. I did a flip turn at each lane end for each lap yesterday and while I’m not a master at them, I didn’t drown myself. I was also quite a bit faster as a result. So, no more updates on flip turns – I’ve got them essentially figured out and I’ll slowly get better over time. Today will be 157 miles.

You know how everyone has that one weird neighbor? It’s like there’s a quota or something – like having that one annoying co-worker.

On Monday after work, I did my swim and decided to mow the lawn and do a little trimming when I got home. The previous owners of my house were really into vines and the fences are covered with them – including grapes. And this year, I had a pretty good crop of them.

So, when I was done with the yard work I picked some grapes, removed the stems, and washed them. I ended up with enough to share and filled a small container for the neighbors that I share a driveway with.

I also took some to my neighbors on the other side of the house. These folks I don’t know so well – our schedules don’t mesh – but I’ve talked to them once and always wave when I see them. I went around to the front of their house (my side yard is next to their back yard), rang the doorbell, and waited. Their dog was tied to the porch support post and was on the porch – and was freaking out. The guy came to the door and I re-introduced myself and told him that there were grapes growing on both sides of the fence and I thought I’d share. He gave me an odd look, said thanks, and then proceeded to yell at the dog. I said goodbye and headed out.

I thought it was a nice gesture, but as I walked away I realized how completely random that was. I’ve only talked to him once and only once to his fiance – she had told me they thought I was a killer because I’m so quiet and they never saw me.

So, I guess I’m the weird neighbor – at least as far as they are concerned.

After my “inhale the pool through my nose” debacle, I was a little hesitant to try the flip-turns again. But, it was on my list of things to do this year and since I had finally started, I needed to work on them.

Yesterday, I did 24 flips turns. 4 were dang near perfect, most were functional, 3 brought me to a near stop, and 2 of them sent water up my nose. They weren’t as bad as my previous jaunt in the pool, but annoying. I’ve got a long way to go before I can complete the sequence without thinking about it, but I think I was a little faster with my laps since I wasn’t stopping at each turn. Which is pretty much the point.

In other news… Thunder(cat) loves to play in my clothes closet. Every time I open the door, in he goes. He likes to chew on shoelaces and hide in the back behind the clothes. I don’t want him in there for fear he’ll shred something or get trapped without me knowing it when I close the door. I usually have to pick him up and drag/carry/toss him out when I’m done in there. None of which either of us enjoy.

Yesterday, I was changing clothes after work and had the door open. He darted in there and hid in the back. I wanted to tell him, “You’re never getting to Narnia, dumbass”, but instead I politely said, “Thunder, would you please come out here? It’s for your own good and I would really appreciate it,”

A moment later, he walked out of his own accord and trotted downstairs.

This has actually worked before when I asked him “Is that appropriate behavior?” when he was up on the mantle batting at the TV, but I figured it was a fluke. But it may be that he’s waaaaaay smarter and more refined than I would have given him credit. Maybe I just need to be more polite? This is a cat we’re talking about, so it’s pretty unlikely. Still…

Finally, had some huge and totally accidental success in Minecraft. I was deep in the Nether, making my way carefully across the lava pools and fields of slow sand, heading towards the fortress. In the distance, I heard a Ghast – a giant ghostly squid-like flying fireball shooter – purring and shrieking. I crested a ridge of netherack and suddenly the Ghast was on me. At point blank range, I switched to a pickax and swung just as he shot a fireball at me. The ax hit the fireball and sent it right back to the Ghast – destroying it with one hit. It shrieked one last time and vanished – leaving behind a Tear (a very rare item).

I hightailed it back to the Overworld and put the Tear into a chest for safe-keeping. Then I put my character to bed and called it a day.

I did a little prototyping last night on a couple of origami projects. A friend asked if I could make a Filipino Christmas star and I think I got close with a particular module. It’s not quite there, but I think I could further modify it – photos once it’s done. I also worked on a simple sailboat out of poster board for another friend. The lamp project is on hold until I get these done.

After watching a little Eureka and playing with the cat, I headed to bed.

I was up at 3 to use the bathroom, then woke up again later. It seemed really quiet in my room and I realized the fan – which I usually have running – was off. I thought Thunder(cat) might have unplugged it, but when I glanced over at the clock to see what time it was, the clock was dark.

The power was out.

I got up and went over to the dresser to check my watch. 5:30 am. I lay back down in bed for a moment and considered my options. If I tried to go back to sleep, I would most likely be late for work since there would be no alarm. If I lay in bed much longer awake, the headache that was starting would go full blown.

So, I got up and made my way back across the dark room to a storage container where I knew I had – along with other random junk – at least one unused glow stick. I found it, took it out of the package, and snapped it alight – much to the surprise of my cat.

Then, by the green light of a glow stick, I got dressed and ready for work. Thunder(cat), despite his clearly superior night vision, was no help at all. I found my phone, got my swim gear from my extra spooky basement, and went out to the garage. I pulled the release on the door and opened it manually – then closed it again after my car was out.

The rest of my street was dark – though the traffic light nearby was not. Nor was the rest of the neighborhood, except for a traffic light further down the road. Strange little pockets of power loss.

I got some breakfast and a sandwich for lunch at Sheetz and fueled up my car. I was early to work and got right into it.

I’m hoping the power is back on by the time I get home. I think this was my last glow-stick and I don’t know how long it will last.

For all the swimming I’ve done, I never learned how to do a flip turn. This is a move where the swimmer does a forward roll as they approach the wall and then kick off from the wall and begin the next lap inverted. It makes it easier to keep going and keep up the momentum.

I usually just grab the wall as I get to it, twist around with my head above water, and push off to start my next lap. Far easier for me since I tend to get disoriented when I’m inverted.

Over the weekend I was in a small pool and decided it would be a good time to try and learn. I tried a few times stopped near the wall and holding my nose. Seemed to work okay and the mantra of “push off when you see the sky” was working for me. Next, I tried with a slow approach to the wall to figure out the breathing and where I should begin my flip. Then, I worked my way up to not holding my nose during the maneuver and handling the recovery. I tried to do two of these in succession and then three – and that’s when my timing went to shit.

I inhaled underwater. And not just a little, I went for it big time. I came up sputtering, coughing, and choking. Felt like I had tried to shove an entire pool’s worth of water in my sinuses. I was dizzy and my head was pounding.

I got out of the pool and sat in a deck chair for a while until I was better. And that was pretty much it for me and the pool that day.

Today, I’ll be swimming after work again and I think I may try the flip turn. Wish me luck.

Last week, I saw an article online about… ummmm… cat crafts. These would be items you can make for your cat – not how to teach your cat to do crafts.  Which would be more entertaining, I think, but far less productive.

http://www.simonscat.com/Blog/2013-08-22/Craft-Your-Cat-a-Gift/

I took a look at this and thought, “Hey, I could do that. I bet Thunder(cat) would really like…”

And then I stopped myself with a swift, self-inflicted, blow to the head.

No. I am not going to make crafts for my cat. Not gonna do it.

Of all the toys I’ve gotten for him, Thunder(cat)’s favorite is a wadded up ball of paper. That’s it. Just a bit of scrap paper will keep him busy for minutes.  He doesn’t even like cardboard boxes that much.

Although, that scratching board would be fun to make… NOooooooo!

In other news… Pizza Hut. Their pizza is amazing, the service at our local Hut is awesome, and we have eaten there enough to be considered regulars. The server takes our drink order at the door – she usually guesses pretty close – and we seat ourselves. As a formality, she’ll stop over and take our order but doesn’t give us a menu anymore. The whole process has gotten more efficient the more times we’ve gone there. I’m pretty sure we’ll reach a point where we can just walk in, make eye contact, seat ourselves – and they’ll bring over drinks and pizza when it’s ready.

I know the server’s name that usually waits on us – Amber – but she doesn’t know us. I think I’m going to start introducing myself when a server does.

“Hi, I’m Amber, and I’ll be your server today,”
“Hi, I’m Anthony, and I’ll be your customer today,”

Or is that too weird? It’s tough for me to tell anymore – I come from a long line of fairly weird people and the line between “normal” and “weird” is a vast, gray fog.

So, back to work today and the parking lot is already full. There’s a line out the door of students to get their computers fixed. And I’ve got the mother of all parking surveys to build.  Welcome to Fall semester 2013.

I finished mile number 152 in the pool on Friday. Feels like I’m in the downhill stretch – though 48 miles is still along way to go.

Got invited to a minecraft themed party today – so, yesterday I bought some paper and made little minecraft blocks for the birthday boy out of paper. I think he liked the legos he got from everyone else better – and I can’t really fault him for that. It was a fun project and I’ll have some pictures on tumblr shortly.

The birthday boy’s dad had a project for us as well – they had cut down a tree in their backyard and a giant chunk of wood was left behind. A group of us tried to move it by hand without any luck, then we used physics and geometry – plus a tire jack and a big ass truck+rope – to first haul it over to a burn pile and then onto the pile itself. Well, mostly.

Then came the oil, gasoline, fire and then – disturbingly – more gasoline before it was roaring. I suspect it will burn for days.

Tomorrow is the first day of classes for UA. I’m bringing my lunch since I don’t want to brave the student union or drive anywhere. It’s going to be pretty crazy. I’m glad the crush of students is back – the summer is too quiet.

Time for a little folding, some tv, then an early night.

I had a headache Monday – pretty much all day. I realized that I had let caffeine creep back into my routine enough that a lack of it in the morning was enough to trigger a headache. I fought it most of they day and finally gave up and went home early. It wasn’t a migraine so I didn’t have any light sensitivity – so when I got home I laid out in the sun in my backyard. Even in the middle of the city, the backyard was kinda quiet during that time of the day and I was out there for a couple hours. My headache faded out as the evening went on and I was fine by the time I went to bed.

Leaving work early meant I missed my swim after work, so yesterday I went for a long swim. I was feeling well enough at 1/2 mile to start thinking about going further than a mile. At a mile, I figured I could easily do a mile and a half and at 1.5 miles I figured I might as well do 2 miles.

That last half mile was rough, though. My shoulder started to hurt, my knee was already bothering me and the breast-stroke kick sent my ankle into the pain-zone. I stuck it out and finished the 2 miles – and wasn’t that tired. So, stamina and perseverance up, but my hardiness was down.

If I do a mile today – which I’m planning on doing – I’ll be up to 150 miles for the year.