Random Access

Tuesday
I spent most of the day with . Apparently, helping her load her things into a U-Haul trailer is an annual event. Even if it doesn’t happen on the same day every year.

We started the day with a visits to Mary and . , Mary and I went out for lunch. Then GH and I stopped at Dollar Tree. I saw a chocolate and white chocolate crosses in the Easter candy section. As well as a rabbit hutch and a half full of chocolate bunnies. Of all shapes and sizes.

And then we saw this woman…

…walking around in her way-too-tight sweatpants. (And, no, that is not a thong line. We weren’t 100% sure, but was rather certain that the woman had opted out of wearing unders. Or an Anti-Panti.) Either way, she didn’t look like a very happy woman. And, she was walking around the store in just her socks.While the store was relatively clean, I wouldn’t have done that. *shrug* Maybe it’s just the way I’m wired. But, when we saw her license plate not her license plate frame , it explained everything: It said that she was “a princess,” in a variant spelling. and I chuckled as we watched her strike a match and light a cigarette (obviously to calm her nerves after a harrying shopping experience) and drive off.

I also found a couple of products that caught my eye:

and

There was just something about a bathroom cleaner called “Bang” that amused me. And the red bits in the bag are “Pina con Chile.” Chili-flavored pineapple chunks. I don’t know what frightens me most about that: The fact that someone actually pitched this as “a good idea,” that someone agreed to it or that someone, somewhere, might actually like this. *shiver*

After that, we visited The Cartoon Factory. Forty-five minutes later, we headed to one of the local U-Haul centers to pick up a trailer. We took it back to ‘s house and I started playing real-life Tetris. I had the trailer packed and pretty much ready-to-go in about an hour; there are a few things that she will need to throw in before she leaves, but otherwise, it’s done.

Then it was a quiet evening at home with , and . We had pizza and hung out. And that’s not a bad way to end the day.

News
Morning Edition: Addressing the Rising Costs of Long-Term Health Care
Morning Edition: A $10,000 Martini at the Algonquin Hotel
Morning Edition: California Teachers Take Action on Homework
Talk of the Nation: Shifting Consumer Bankruptcy Rules
Talk of the Nation: Interview – Former POW Army Specialist Shoshona Johnson
Day to Day: Tips for Wise Spending
All Things Considered: Doctors Race to Complete First Face Transplant

Stray Toasters

• I finally installed the Remote Access Interface on Defiant.
  I mean “the wireless network card.”
  It works well. I am happy.

• I neglected to include and in yesterday’s birthday well-wishes. It would seem as though my Information Resources Officer has been remiss. I believe that calls for swift and severe punitive measures.
• “Sharpest knife.”
• sent me this. I watched. I laughed. Loudly. More than once. (Broadband recommended; work safe)
• What do you get when you mix Fatboy Slim, Steve Miller, The Joker and animals?
  (Yes, I know that it sounds like an odd mix. Bear with me; no pun intended.)
  You get this.

• Big Mac, Filet o’ Fish…
  Quarter Pounder, French Fries…
  Thick shakes, icy Cokes…
  Sundaes and apple pies!
  (It’s amazing what things from our childhood get stuck in our heads…)

• …and on that note: While I was loading the trailer this afternoon, I had a song get stuck in my head: Truly Scrumptious, from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang I have no idea “how” or “why,” but it did. And, just as oddly: It stopped as soon as I was done loading. Bizarre.
• As evidenced by the top portion of this post, I have discovered the joys (and nominal addiction) of having a camera phone. It’s evil. Pure, unadulterated evil. I love it.
• Catwoman.  Black Cat.  Catfight!  It was bound to happen.
• …and here’s a little something for , as well: Batman vs. Joker
• or : Have either of you heard anything about an anime called Porco Rosso?
• While I originally had no desire to see Elf, I willingly concede that it was a fun movie. However, I think that they are going to the well once too often now: New Line is in talks with Will Ferrell to reprise his role as Buddy in Elf 2.
• Bollywood for the Skeptical I’m pretty sure that will find something of interest here.
• : What was the name of that artist whose work you have as a screen saver?
• Cameltoe (Work safe. No, really, it is.)

Namaste.

Monday
“Grey” and “drab” have become the watchwords of describing days here in the valley.
In an effort to break out of the routine, just a little, Jess and I went for a drive on the west side of the Salt Lake Valley. We were looking for a new development that I had heard was going to be built in the shadow of the Kennecott Copper Mine. We didn’t find it. What we did find was the community (town?) of Bingham Canyon. 84006. It was like stepping back into early 20th Century America. It was a community that was built for the workers of the Kennecott mines. On the far side of town is a historical marker, but it is set behind a chain link fence, making it difficult to read. A few feet from the marker is this sign for this bar. That made me chuckle. I had to have a picture of it.

Tonight’s episode of 24 was good. I was surprised to see the twist that they threw at CTU Director Erin Driscoll. Didn’t see that one coming. I had almost forgotten how much of a hardball player Jack could be to get information that he needed.

I’m fighting with Enterprise again. I’m trying to install its OS and it’s balking at the idea. Earlier, I was pretty close to finding a bulk magnetizer and seeing how well it liked a strong, opposing B-field. Fortunately, it never got to that point.

As it’s now the wee hours of Tuesday morning (01 March 05), I’d like to wish a “Happy March Birthday” to:

News
Morning Edition: High Court Considers Disability Access on Cruise Ships
Morning Edition: Indian Teenager Caught in Space Caper
Talk of the Nation: Other Cultures, In Other Words
Day to Day: Slate’s Culturebox: Rappers and Bloggers
Fresh Air: Downfall from Ganz and Hischbiegel

Stray Toasters

• I have added to my cache of Creme Eggs and cotton candy. And M&M’s.
• I finally got around to watching the now two-week-old JLU episode, “Doomsday Sanction.” Wow. And I do mean “Wow.” The episode started off slowly… for about thirty seconds… and from that point forward, it was a rollercoaster ride. Dwayne McDuffie and Robert Goodman pulled out all the stops on this one. Seriously. They reintroduced characters and concepts that haven’t been heard from since the days of Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series. And they are adding more of a darker edge to the series. The last couple of minutes were very intense. , I believe that you would be very happy with the way that Batman was depicted in this episode.
• I have been meaning to take a picture of this for the past few months… but I never had my camera ready at the right time. Last week, I did.It gives an entirely new meaning to the phrase “tree house.”
• Thanks to , I have a new webcomic on my reading list: Two Lumps
• : National Geographic goes Bollywood
• I took this picture this afternoon.It is a California Sea Gull.
  It is Utah’s state bird.
  Utah is a land-locked state.
  Do the math.

• Thanks to for Science Fiction and Fantasy Art by Frank Wu
• Nothing says loving like a clean pair o’ drawers. Mm-hm, that’s right!
• Alien sculpture up for auction
• In this post‘s Stray Toasters section (‘Toaster #3), I tried to clarify a widespread misconception about Warner Brothers’ upcoming Loonatics animated series.

  I came across another article about Loonatics in the “Lying in the Gutters” column on Comic Book Resources. However, their item about the series (Item #5: “Bugs Bunny? Or Jessica Rabbit”) made me laugh. Hysterically.

• …and in a semi-related note: : There’s a Catwoman picture on that same page (Item: “Adam’s Zest”), too.
• “Don’t you smell it?”
  “My nose fell off. Smell what?”
  

• By way of ThinkGeek: The Cubes®
• While I seriously doubt that the original version “Jack and Jill” looked like this, I would be willing to wager that had the rhyme been written today that something like this might have happened…
  

And that’s a wrap.
Now, where did I put that bulk magnetizer…?

Namaste.