Random Access

Yet another mid-morning post.
I have seen three signs of the Apocalypse this morning:

• It’s snowing here in the valley. You can see a pic here.
• I turned on Live with Regis and Kelly (yes I know that could be construed as a sign in and of itself) and:
  • They had a pair of Furby®-like hamsters, one with nunchaku and one with a mace, that played “Kung-Fu Fighting” and spun their respective weapons. *shiver*
  • They read an article about someone in England who left $15 million… to a flock of sheep.

The shared link of the day is :www.brainyquote.com.

Today is the day that retailers refer to as “Black Friday,” the busiest shopping day of the year. Today is also one of the days that I am grateful that I am no longer working in retail; but I wish those who do work retail good luck. Some of the worst features of shoppers will be seen today. Peggy told me that there was a fight last year in the store where she worked; I don’t recall seeing any fights when I worked retail. Oh, well.

I’d best get ready for work. “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” I may not be a courier, but the principle still applies.

Peace.

Yet ANOTHER Thursday post.
I expect the pale rider to soon appear on the far horizon…

A very good day, even though I was up at 7:30…

• I got to be lazy for a few hours before heading to the inlaws’; waking up as early as I did affords those kinds of opportunities.
• I talked to most branches the family this morning: Mom, Dad, and even an aunt that I haven’t talked to in FAR too long.
• I got to watch most of the Green Bay/Detroit game. Detroit made a comeback effort in the second half, but the way that they played in the first half made it fairly easy to understand why they are now 0-10 this season.
• Went to the inlaws’ and watched a little football (Denver/Dallas) and ate. A lot.
  And it was GOOOD! :::handgesture:::

• We watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Jim Carrey version. I hadn’t seen it before. I thought that it was pretty good. Funny sidenote: Peggy, the coolest ex-gf in the world, can recite the original Grinch verbatim. She used to do it at her daughter’s school during the holidays.
• Watched Friends and Will and Grace.
• Came home.

THIS is something I came across in the community. I remember something like this being mentioned a few years back, when they created a digitized Batman for one scene in Batman Forever. Someone speculated that making movies using digital actors – even simulacra of deceased actors – was on the horizon. As the lyrics of the Gorillaz song says, “Tomorrow Comes Today.” We’ve had Miller beer commercials featuring John Wayne, years after his death; there was the composite of The Rock (and a scorpion) in The Mummy Returns. Why not bring back one of the most popular martial arts/action movie stars in a new film? *shrug*

Today’s Quotes of the Day both come from “The Grinch”:

• The Grinch: “Denial is to be expected in the face of pure evil.”
• Cindy Lou Who: “Umm, maybe you need a time-out.”

And that, boys and girls, brings this entry to a close. I hope that everyone had a good and safe Thanksgiving. Tune in tomorrow for more LiveJournal action. Same LiveJournal channel. Same LiveJournal time (give or take an hour or two).

Peace.

ANOTHER mid-day post.
Surely, the Seventh Seal must be have been broken…

Excerpts from an early Thanksgiving morning conversation with the coolest mother in the world:

• Bell808 (3:28:30 AM): Oh~ Have fun! (P.S. WISH YOU WERE “HOME”!!!)
• ShadoRunr (3:29:04 AM): Thanks, but you saying that “Wish you were home” doesn’t make it any better.
• JBell808 (3:30:58 AM): Well, would you rather I’d say: GLAD YOU’RE NOT HERE? 😀
• ShadoRunr (3:31:14 AM): Has anyone ever accused you of being a smartass?
• ShadoRunr (3:31:39 AM): …and you wonder where *I* get it.
• ShadoRunr (3:31:42 AM): *cracks up*
• Bell808 (3:32:02 AM): Surely by this time you KNOW me…. And Yep! I relish being a “smart ass”—–nothing’s changed! TOUCHE`!

I [heart] my mother.

A few of the things I’m thankful for:

• My family.
• Jess and my new adopted family.
• My friends/extended family.
• The continued resolve of the American Spirit in the aftermath of the NY/PA/DC tragedies.
• …and far more things than I could remember to list here.

… and Cinnabons® and frozen mochas (for Dave).

It seems that last night’s nap had lingering effects. I did manage to get to sleep… but I woke up a little after 7:00 and wasn’t able to get back to sleep. Oh, well. The agenda for the day includes heading to Jess’ parents’ for food and football. Add to that the fact that Jess made me a couple of sweet potato pies… :::bliss:::

And another thing… I turned on the TV this morning. It seems that Disney made a ‘toon series based on the Tarzan movie. I’m not so sure about this one. Then The Andy Griffith Show came on. I lived in North Carolina, off and on, for about twenty years. I still don’t get the fascination with it. Must be the way I’m wired…

Happy Thanksgiving. Best wishes to you all and your families.

Peace.

[03:41] -Goosie- I know. I rule. without me, none of this ever would’ve existed. 8oI
[03:42] -Gibraltar- The prophet goosie. O:I

Happy Thanksgiving!
More on that after the sun’s up.

Today was a good day, or at least it was after 2:00.

• Went to the gym. Have I mentioned just how much I enjoy leg workouts? I haven’t? Gee, I wonder why…
• Came home and performed the hygiene rituals.
• Stopped for frozen mocha goodness.
• Stopped for a Cinnabon®. *taps vein*
• Got to work and realized, after Jess had driven off, that I had left both sets of headphones in the car. Yay. Nothing to listen to until she got back there 5:30.
  • This turned out to be a not-as-bad-as-I-thought thing: I was able to work through a few ideas for a story that I’ve been mulling over/working on for a while.
• Left work, came home, watched some TV and proceeded to drift off… Drew Carey was on when I nodded off, Jerry Springer *shiver* was on when I woke up. That means that I had something on the order of a two-hour nap. Great. Hopefully, I won’t be staring at the ceiling all night.

  Peace.

Third consecutive day of mid-day posts.
I am beginning to wonder if I should be worried about this trend.
And so am I.

Saw this on a car in the gym parking lot: “Jesus loves you, but I’m His favorite.” It struck me as rather funny. Of course, maybe that’s just the way I’m wired. Who knows?

Today is Wednesday, 21 Nov 01. The day before Thanksgiving. This is your first, last and only warning.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled LiveJournal reading.

Peace.

I woke up at least three times, for no apparent reason, last night this morning. One of those times was a little after 6:00 am, just as it was getting light, but before the sun came over the Wasatch Mountains. I contemplated getting out of bed to get a picture of the pre-sunrise glow… but I didn’t because I was too lazy. I think that I’ll put the camera next to the bed in case I awaken early tomorrow.

Work wasn’t bad. I finished Neuromancer today; I think that I’ll listen to Robert A. Heinlein’s Friday tomorrow. Jess, Julia and I left early and went to Chinese Gourmet for dinner.

After dinner, we came home for a bit and then went to the gym; Angie was already there and Land met us shortly thereafter. We had good workouts. I even put Angie through a part of mine. I hope that she’s still talking to me tomorrow. After that, we were homeward bound.

I think that I am going to try and recoup some of the sleep that I lost last night. I must be tired if I am willing to forego watching Deep Space Nine. Oh, well…

Peace.

ANOTHER early-in-the-day post.
Two days in a row.
This must be a sign of the Apocalypse.

Anywho… I just saw this in ‘s post and thought I’d pass it along. Enjoy!

Peace.

Yep, two… TWO… TWO posts in one day! When was the last time that happened?!

Average day: Gym (yes, we went this morning). Work. Home.

“Structured seating” debuted today at work. It was… interesting. I’ll reiterate what I said in an earlier post: The theory has promise, but we are waiting to see just how well it works. On the whole, it seemed to go pretty smoothly. Of course, my perception could have been jaded because I was listening to Neuromancer, one of my favorite books. *shrug* Who knows?

Peace.

I had to share this one before I forgot it…

We were listening to the radio, on the way to the gym, and they were doing a piece on enhanced security at airports. They said that the President was giving a speech at Reagan National Airport and was also talking about a new aviation bill.

Cut to an interview that they conducted with an airline passenger in San Antonio, TX: The gentleman said that he had never really liked flying, but that he was feeling more at ease since the new security measures had gone into effect. He said how he had noticed the increased security in St. Louis, MO and another airport, but hadn’t noticed a change in the San Antonio airport. Next, he said something that made me literally stare at the radio with my mouth agape: “But they [terrorists] wouldn’t come to Texas, would they…?”

The naivete of some people boggles the mind. Unlike soldiers of the wars long past, the armies of our enemies don’t always coordinate their troop actions with our Day-Runners® and Palm Pilots®; part of the nature of terrorist actions is to strike when and where your enemy least expects it. Thus does it fall on us to be alert for threats from all fronts. If the San Antonio airport security is lax, someone in the Texas govenment should be made aware of the situation and steps should be taken to rectify the situation.

Just my 2¢ worth.

Peace.

0 for 3. That is not a good thing.

None, did I mention NONE of my teams won today. Baltimore lost to Cleveland. Does that mean that they lost to ‘themselves’ in a “Through the Looking Glass” kind of way? After all, the Ravens are the former Browns. Something to think about.

I went to the inlaws’ and tried to get their PC to bow to my will. I had nominal success. It didn’t so much yield as it bowed. But that was good enough. I still have some work to do on it, but I have made in-roads. I shall be victorious!!!

Peace.

I get a day where I can sleep in, and I’m up at 10 am. No alarm. No rampaging cats. Just “awake!” After five hours of sleep. The saying “No rest for the wicked” is true.

Positive things about the day:

• I was able to spend the day with Jess, who was off today because she is working tomorrow.
• I talked to my mom – the coolest mother in the world.
• I saw most of the Purdue – Michigan State game. Purdue won.
• I was able to be ludicrously lazy, as we had “no particular place to go.” (Thanks, and apologies, to Chuck Berry for that. Couldn’t help it.)
• I got more frosted almonds! Have I mentioned just how addictive they are?
• We got a few ideas about what to get people for Christmas; I think that we have a few spot-on choices.
• And… ::: drumroll ::: Justice League premiered tonight! Hi, my name is Rob and… I… *sigh*… I like to watch cartoons. Group response: Hi, Rob… I only watched a little of it, but I liked what I saw. A lot. Tons! It’s a worthy successor to the Batman/Superman series from Warner Bros. animation studios.
• I also found a couple of interesting things while clicking my way through cyberspace:
  • Lego Studios Check out their take on Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
  • Jump the Shark, a site dedicated to “chronicling the moments when TV shows go downhill.” This is actually an old favorite of mine that I rediscovered today.
  • The Who Would You Kill Game website. “We know you’ve always secretly (or not so secretly) wanted Ally McBeal to die in some kind of painfully cute yet neurotic way (involving humorous hallucinations, we hope). Or maybe you’re a Whack-a-Mulder type. No matter which TV character you’d like to see contract the Ebola virus or become involved in a fatally nostalgic photo montage from previous episodes (David Spade’s Finch… please?), vote for it here, and submit your fave way to see them offed. “

I think that I shall soon visit the land on the other side of my pillow… for tomorrow there is football!

Peace.

Friday (abridged version)

Beans & Brews… for frozen mocha goodness.
Work.
Had dinner with Shelly and Bill – whom we haven’t seen in a LONG time.
Went to Dee & Kim’s for a little RPG’ing.
Home.

It’s now the weekend. Hopefully, this also means that I’ll catch up on some of the sleep that I didn’t get last night. In fact, this is a perfect opportunity for me to head off to the quiet darkness of sleep.

Peace.

Eight hours, work hours that is, till weekend bliss.

Today was good, in an uneventful kind of way.

• Stopped at the mall for a Cinnabon® (for me) and Hickory Farms Melt-Away Mints® (for Jess). I even managed to make it to work without spilling anything in my lap.
• When we got to work, I sat down in the break room to eat some of the ‘bon. A couple of co-workers joined me and the conversation took… a turn. Do you have ANY idea how many topics can be made from permutations/perversions of the following words: “buns,” “frosted,” ” hot,” and “sticky?” Lots. That had to be one of – if not the– most innuendo-laden breakfasts that has ever been eaten in that break room.
• We were (finally) introduced to an operations plan that has been rumored and whispered of for the past few months: “Structured Seating.” It’s not quite assigned seating, but it’s pretty damned close. The basic concept is fairly simple:
  • We have 700+ employees.
  • We process mail for fourteen (14) major cites’ plants. Add to that the eleven (11) smaller cities that route mail through the major plants.
  • It is an arduous process to try and find a person in one of fourteen systems. Sometimes you find them on the first try, but most times it takes (a lot of) trial and error – like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack.
  • Our workroom floor is set up in groups of six workstations.
  • Our workgroups are being broken down in groups of six DCOs.
  • The theory: It will be easier to both move small groups from site to site AND track who-went-where based on what workgroup/subgroup they are in.

  The theory seems sound, but it will take practical application – and a LOT of tweaking – to see just how well it works. We’ll see…

• Went to the gym.
• Came home.

It seems that my VCR is now possessed. This is not a good thing. In fact, I think that it’s diametrically opposed to being a good thing. If anyone has a number for John Constantine, Jason Blood, or Dr. Strange, and could pass it along, I’d be VERRA grateful!

Peace.

Wednesday.

Aside from being ludicrously tired as the workday ended, it was a relatively painless day. Check that. My calves hurt. Other than THAT, it was good.

Quote of the day: I came across this when I was looking up a few quotes on Bartleby.com, a good literary reference site. I liked it and thought that I’d pass it on.

“Truth always rests with the minority, and the minority is always stronger than the majority, because the minority is generally formed by those who really have an opinion, while the strength of a majority is illusory, formed by the gangs who have no opinion—and who, therefore, in the next instant (when it is evident that the minority is the stronger) assume its opinion … while Truth again reverts to a new minority.” – Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855)

And that will be all for tonight.

Peace.