Random Access

Sunday : 20 November 05
It’s been a quiet day. That’s not necessarily a “bad” thing. I woke up fairly early – a little after 9:00 – and did a lot of nothing until the Ravens game came on.

Had a late lunch/early dinner at Jitterbug Coffee Hop. I haven’t been there in far too long.

Cecilie and Ben invited and me over to play HALO. *genuflect* I spent the first forty-five or so minutes playing with their kids. After they went to bed, we spent a few hours shooting, grenading, pistol-whipping, and energy sword-slicing each other into bloody Spartan bits. It was a lot of fun. And rather cathartic, too.

Ravens Update

Pittsburgh at Baltimore
13 – 16
The Ravens played at home against AFC North rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers. The game was mostly a defensive battle, not that this is a big surprise. Ravens’ QB Kyle Boller was a little unsteady in the First Quarter, but seemed to get his bearings in the Second Quarter. Running back Jamal Lewis is still having problems getting his A-game going. Fortunately, Chester Taylor has been there to pick up the slack. Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are still out of the defensive lineup, but the remaining players have been doing an admirable job of toeing the line in their absence. The game, tied at 13 -13, came down to the last two minutes of regulation play. The Ravens had a chance to put the game away, but were unable to capitalize on the opportunity. Overtime. The Steelers won the coin toss and thus had possession of the ball on the ensuing kickoff. The Ravens’ defense held them. On the other side of the ball, the Steelers’ defense was able to keep Baltimore from doing much, either. This went on for a couple of possessions, before Baltimore was able to make a decent drive into Steelers territory and Matt Stover made a 44 yard field goal to save the game – yet again – giving the Steelers their first on-the-road loss in 12 games.

Stray Toasters

• I think that I have a rather good command of the English (as spoken/written in America) language. I wouldn’t say that I’ve “mastered” the language, but I think that I do more than just “passably well” in conveying my thoughts into words.

  That said, I have found it more than “a little” irritating that, over the past few weeks, when things have come to mind to say or write, a random – though appropriate – lyric or poetic verse from another person seems to find its way to mind.

• : These are the chairs they have in the coffee shop at the library.
• Liquid Sculpture (possibly a repost)
• And you’re rushing headlong down the highway
  And you’re rushing headlong out of control
  And you think you’re so strong
  But there ain’t no stopping
  There’s nothin nothin’ nothin’ you can do about it

• Top Twenty Geek Novels
  I’ve read/listened to nine-and-a-half of them; Cryptonomicon was nigh upon unreadable to me. I don’t think that I made it to page 100. Instead, I loaned the book to , in the hopes that he would derive more enjoyment from it than I did.

• 
• I came across this contest, Photogami, by way of Outlaw2LK’s entry in Comics2Film’s Digital Concept Gallery.
• I introduced to Robert B. Parker’s Spenser novels – the impetus behind ABC and A&E’s Spenser for Hire series and movies – last week. I started him with The Godwulf Manuscript; he seemed to enjoy it. Now, I’ll have to get him to read the other thirty-something-odd books in the series.
• By way of Cinescape: Bowie is after Prestige

Quote of the Day
These came from a 2004 John Waters interview in Spin Magazine:

You’re still an avid moviegoer yourself – have you seen The Passion of the Christ yet?
I haven’t. I really want to go when it’s playing at midnight, where Christians know all the dialogue and come dressed as Jesus, like it’s The Rocky Horror Picture Show. And I’m going to be… Lazarus. No, wait, he’s not in the Stations of the Cross. Mary Magdalene!

Is the social conflict of A Dirty Shame based in any way on your experiences growing up in Baltimore?
Do you mean, did I ever have a head injury and start trying to fuck everybody in the neighborhood? I didn’t, but I guess there’s always something to look forward to. When I was young, I wanted to go downtown and meet beatniks and hippies and drug crazies and drag queens, which we didn’t have in suburbia. Maybe I hoped that would happen to my neighborhood. It would be like Noah’s Ark – one of every perversion living on my street.

Namaste.

Saturday : 19 September 05
Today started off rather lazily. Or, more to the point: I slept in until about 10:30. I had considered meeting at the opening of the new Apple Store at The Gateway, but sleep won out. I didn’t too a lot during the late morning, either. As I recall, it mostly involved a lot of sitting around; although I did do some light cleaning.

I headed downtown and stopped in to see , , and BabyArmadillo42. Nyx was heading to the local Wal-Mart Supercenter (“Vortex of Evil”) to pick up a few things, so I tagged along. While there, I saw:

…which almost immediately reminded me of South Park’s Chocolate Salty Balls, which made me laugh.

We left the ‘Mart and headed to the downtown library. I don’t think that I have been there since the Salt Lake Arts Festival. I’ll have to see to it that I get down there more often. We got caffeinated goodness and then wandered around a little. We picked up from work and then headed back to Nyx’ place, to drop her off.

Home for a bit and then off to dinner. First dinner. Or VERY late lunch. Or something. Noodles & Co. They make a decent Pad Thai. Just as I was about to sit down, I got a call from Bill. He was checking to see if we were going to go with him, and Jen to Red Lobster for Endless Shrimp.

*braincramp*
I had completely forgotten that he had called me about this earlier in the day. Oh, and look…. here comes the Pad Thai. *sigh* So, we decided to go to Red Lobster, even if it was just to be social.

Post-Noodles and pre-Red Lobster, there was a sidetrip to Fashion Place Mall. I wanted to see if Eddie Bauer had a pair of black relaxed fit jeans in my size. That was a big “No go, Flight.” All that they had – at least, all that seemed to be out – were shades of blue… of which I have plenty. Oh, well. On the “plus” side, that saved me a few dollars. I also made a side-sidetrip into the GameStop. I’m not really sure “why,” though. It’s not like I’m really looking for any new games. Although there is the new Xbox 360… I walked out of the store a few minutes later. Empty-handed. I wound up in the Hallmark store a few minutes later. They had this year’s Christmas ornament selection on display. (Yeah, there’s a diatribe to follow…) One of this year’s Star Trek offerings is none other than Mr. Khan Noonian Singh himself. Yeah, that Khan. Old school, not the plastic-chested Khan of Wrath of Khan fame. I might have to add this to the Sisko and Picard collection.

Red Lobster was… Red Lobster. But, it was good to see Jen, and Bill. I was disappointed that they didn’t have “Pinwheel Shrimp” as one of the selections. Instead, I had a lot of Shrimp Scampi and fried shrimp.

And then, there was breakfast. And people-watching. Wow.

Random Access
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… everywhere you go.

I’m not fond of this trend of starting the “Christmas season” right after Hallowe’en. One could say that I’m downright Grinch-like in my dislike for it. I seem to recall something in between Hallowe’en and Christmas… I think that it was called “Thanksgiving.” And, if I remember correctly, the “Christmas season” didn’t begin until after Thanksgiving.
After the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
After the football games.
After the turkey.
…and after the turkey-induced comas.

Unfortunately, Christmas has become the latest victim commercialization. I halfway expect to see a commercial for Kid’s-Uber-Super-Cool-Toy-of-the-Week with an “endorsement” from Buddy Christ® at the end: “That’s right, kids! I died for your sins…. AND so that you could get this cool toy for Christmas!”

*shakes head*

I was actually shocked to see Christmas items on store shelves a few days before Hallowe’en, in some places. And the day after Hallowe’en…? TONS of stores had them out. And it wasn’t just stores. Some of our neighbors broke out the Christmas lights and decorations just after they had packed away their Hallowe’en things. One house, a few doors down, already has tinsel icicles hanging from the rooftop. And Santa (complete with sleigh and reindeer) on the roof. Not to mention the Nativity on the lawn. (Gotta be sure to cover all of the SeculaReligious® bases!) Another neighboring house has an inflatable Santa and an inflatable snowman on the front lawn. And there are others with just lights. So far.

Maybe it’s just me, but wasn’t there a reason that we celebrate – or maybe I should have said “…used to celebrate” – Thanksgiving? More than the hand-print turkey pictures that the grade school kids make, that is. Wasn’t there something behind the whole idea of getting together with friends and family?

Hell. Handbasket. Gasoline drawers. That’s all I’m sayin’.

Stray Toasters

• I neglected both Cities again today.
• , I’m sure that you will appreciate this TechTV blooper.
• If we burn our wings
  Flying too close to the sun
  If the moment of glory
  Is over before it’s begun
  If the dream is won –
  Though everything is lost
  We will pay the price,
  But we will not count the cost

• I consider myself a sports fan, but this is taking things waaaay too far.
• “You ate the DIRT, too?!
  

• The new season of 24 kicks off on 15 January 06.
• This week’s guest for Wait Wait… Don’t tell me!‘s “Not My Job” segment was Dan Savage of Savage Love fame.

Quote of the Day
From one of tonight’s IRC conversations:

[23:32] * tinkerbel and ben slap you with a giant purple dildo.
[23:32] : That’s gonna leave a mark.
[23:32] [tinkerbel]: loooooooolllllllllllll
[23:32] : That’s gonna leave a hard-to-explain mark.
[23:32] * tinkerbel falls over
[23:32] [tinkerbel]: AHAHAHHAAHHAAHHAH
[23:32] [tinkerbel]: ew

And with that…

Namaste.

Friday : 18 November 05
I am still awake by sheer force of will. I got something approximating two hours’ sleep last night/this morning. I went to work, had a good – and productive – day. After work, , , and BabyArmadillo42 came over to visit.

We adjourned to Borders for Clitorati. We were later joined by Vicki and . I don’t think that we managed to run anyone out of the cafè this week. Oh well, there’s always… hm… I don’t know about next week as that is Black Friday. From there, we headed to Applebee’s for a bite to eat. A Fear Factor rerun was on the television. One of the challenges was bobbing for apples. Simple enough. The thing of it was: There were snakes in the water. A lot of them. I would have failed this challenge before it even began. “What? You want me to bob for apples in water that has snakes in it? No. In fact, HELL NO. I’ll take the “zero” on this one.

Stray Toasters

• I listened to more of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince today. I’m almost done. I have two or three chapters left. I was somewhat surprised at a couple of things that happened. One “surprise,” however, was expected, as I had unwittingly discovered it a few weeks ago.
• Komeasel
• I watched the trailer for Superman Returns again this afternoon. I look forward to hearing/seeing more about the movie… but not too much – I want to have something to look forward to in the theatre.
• Pop life
  Everybody needs a thrill
  Pop life
  We all got a space 2 fill
  Pop life
  Everybody can’t be on top
  But life it ain’t real funky
  Unless it’s got that pop
  Dig it

• This is for .
• Utah’s thermostat has been turned down. Again.

And here’s where I wrap things up for the night.

Namaste.

Thursday : 17 November 05
Work. Blah blah blah.

Home. Blah blah blah.

Then it was off to The Gateway. and I met up with for a bite to eat at Applebee’s. We went hoping to see Vivi… only to find out that she no longer works there. *shakes fist* No matter, dinner and the company was good. Leaving the restaurant, we headed to the upper level and the theatres to see:

….with , Mr. and Mrs. , Mr. and Mrs. , and Jim… and a bevy of others. Quite a few people – though not any in our group – dressed up in the different houses’ colors. We stood in line for… a couple of hours. I was amused/entertained by the group of kids (pre- to early teens) in front of us who were playing various games that involved hitting themselves and/or each other. *shrug* I guess that you have to do something when you’re bored and standing in line and have nothing else to do.

The movie wasn’t a direct presentation of the book, but more of an adaptation. And it was fun. Nice cinematography. Good effects. And the acting was good, as well. It definitely captured the spirit of the book and of J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world.

One of the highlights for me came before the movie started: I saw a trailer for this movie. It made me about fourteen different kinds of happy. I will have to track the trailer down online so that I can watch it (translation: “dissect it”) at my leisure.

It’s late and I’m planning on getting up in a few hours for work, so I should wrap it up now.

Namaste.

Wednesday : 16 November 05
I was in a surly mood this morning. In and of itself, that’s not necessarily a “good” thing… but it does tend to keep most of my team at bay and thus allow me to work more or less uninterrupted. Today was no exception. Thus, I was able to work – and listen to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – with very few distractions. That was a good thing. My mood improved as the day wore on.

I came home… and crashed for about an hour. I haven’t slept well for the past couple of nights; apparently, it caught up with me this afternoon. The nap was good, but I hope that it doesn’t play hob with tonight’s sleep.

messaged me, asking if there were any dinner plans afoot. There were none. So, he asked if he, and I could get together for dinner. And we did – we went to David’s Kitchen. As always, the food was excellent. After dinner, we came back to the house and I let Nox test drive City of Villains. He made a Mastermind archetype character who could summon zombies. He played through a couple of levels and seemed to like it, even though it’s not exactly his cup of tea.

Stray Toasters

• I want a copy of Metropolis (which I already have), but with the 1984 soundtrack.
• Swearsaurus – the world’s largest resource of multilingual swearing.
• William Shatner wants to sell kidney stone
• (Some of) The Most Shocking Moments in Video Games
• I want to see Walk the Line
• I wasn’t aware that there was a new Final Fantasy-based movie (Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children) coming out. I’m fairly sure that my inner geek will want to see it.
• And all this time, I thought that it was “region-free.”
• Stanley Digital Watch…. with Integrated Screwdriver – Yes, you read that correctly.
• Giant steps are what you take
  Walking on the moon

• Inside Microsoft’s Xbox 360
• 
• : The finished cover artwork of Storm #1
• : I believe that this is self-explanatory.
• ARRRRR! (I mean: “ELLLLL!”)
• Barenaked Ladies release album on USB stick

Namaste.

Tuesday : 15 November 05
The sun decided to put in an appearance today. Too bad it didn’t bring warmer temperatures with it; that would have been nice. Even so, it wasn’t a bad day.

We had a network issue that came up about an hour before I left work today: A system decided that it wanted to broadcast flood the network. Yay! I went around the office asking everyone for their IP addresses, so I could deal with the trouble-causing system. No one had the address that I was looking for. *sigh* But, I found two other systems that were causing similar problems. (That was a good thing.) I finally decided to try something a little different – I went to see if I could do a visual inspection of traffic on the switch. Lo and behold… I saw one port that looked very busy.

So, I unplugged it.

And the flood stopped. (If only it was so easy in HALO…) Having saved the world – or at least the bandwidth – I packed it in and called it a day. Just as I was heading out the door, one of the guys on my team asked if I was still looking for IP addresses. *blink blink* I had already checked his system and cleared him, so I was curious as to why he was asking. He said that he had a second system on the network. Ô.õ I asked what the address was. He told me. It was the system that I was looking for. He was the… third person, out of about thirty-five, that I asked. THIRD!! *sigh* I told him that he was no longer on the network and that we would deal with the rest of the issue tomorrow.

Tonight was Shadowrun night. came over to observe the game; she may join the group. and Dean couldn’t make it tonight (and I was having a severe bout of non-creativity), so I pulled out an old prefab adventure for the rest of the team to go through. They did well. So far. We stopped at the point where they are getting to the main part of their mission. We’ll see how well they do next session.

Stray Toasters

• I talked with my Dad for a few minutes tonight. All’s well on the eastern front.
• From The Wall Street Journal: Keeping a Genre Alive
• Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
• Goodbye, Gotham Central

Quote of the Day

Chris: “He must be fighting the forces of boredom!”

I’m tapped. This would be a good place to call it a night.

Namaste.

Monday : 14 November 05
Today wasn’t “manic,” but it was rainy (and then some other form of precipitation)… but that didn’t get me down. I was fairly busy today, which is a good thing. I was able to stay at my desk for most of the day, so I was able to listen to a good portion of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Post-work, I went to pick-up some four-color print goodies. Most of it was “okay,” but I was quite satisfied with DC’s Infinite Crisis #2. I’m still not sure just how they plan to bring back the classic DC Multiverse, but if they can maintain this level of care, then I don’t think that I’ll have anything worry about.

And then there was Monday Night Football. The T.O.-less Eagles hosted the Cowboys. The Eagles were in control for most of the game… but a late interception turned the tide.

Stray Toasters

• This morning, at 9:47 AM, my Heroclix arrived. I’m really impressed with the way that they look – their pictures on the web didn’t do them justice.
• Thanks to , who knows of my dislike for “She Who Exists for Me to Ridicule,” for showing me this.
• The new Diet Cherry-Vanilla Dr. Pepper commercial, the one with the “Mahna Mahna” song in it, cracks me up.
• …so does the Snickers toupee commercial.
• 
• : Everyone else gets a costume update, but they still stick this guy in a bad 70’s outfit… and elf boots! ELF BOOTS!!! Brother just can’t catch a break. Ain’t nothin’ but a sin and a shame, I tell ya.
• Thanks to my friend, Don, for pointing out this comic.
• Hey, Nox: Dungeons & Dragons Online
• I like this Hawkgirl bust. There’s something about the raised mask and the smiling face juxtaposed with the mace behind her back that just makes me chuckle. (And for those of you keeping score, this is Kendra Saunders, not Shayera Thal/Hol. You can find out about the various bearers of the name “Hawkgirl” or “Hawkwoman” here.)
• “Ecstacy Not Good for the Brain” Um… DUH?!
• I just read a review where someone referred to Emma Frost, the X-Men’s White Queen, as “Naughty Spice.” I laughed.
• For tonight’s “Common Sense WTF” item: The company known as Computer Associates is changing its name to “CA.” Just “CA,” that’s it. I’m sorry, but this strikes me as every bit as asinine as Kentucky Fried Chicken changing its name to “KFC.” Come on now… it’s not like we don’t know that the chicken’s fried. You’ve been doing it for years! It’s what you’re famous for. No one’s getting fooled by just making your name “new” and hip. And the same goes for you, too, “CA.” And that’s assuming that anyone even remembers who you are or what you do? At least people would abbreviate Kentucky Fried Chicken’s name way back when, so the name change wasn’t that much of a departure. How many people (let’s just say your non-clients) are going to have the faintest idea what “CA” does?
  

  “So… who do you work for?”
  “C.A.”
  “C.A.? Captain America?! You work for Captain America?! That is so cool!”
  “Um… no.”
  “Oh.”
  “Continental Airlines? I flew them before. They were nice. Decent leg room.”
  “No. Not them, either.”
  “Oh. So…. um… who then?”
  “C.A. Computer Associates.”
  “Oh. Computer Associates. Right. So, what do they do?”

• I just saw my favorite part of Titanic: One of the passengers, jumping overboard just before the ship breaks in half, bouncing off of one of the propellers. Makes me laugh every time.
• Man… everyone’s lining up to punch this guy in the face.

Namaste.

Sunday : 13 November 05
I woke up feeling a bit… blah… today. Nothing that I could put my finger on, but just a kind of “grey” mood. *shrug* It happens, I guess. Watching the Ravens game didn’t too much to ameliorate my spirits, either. (More on that below.)

So, I went for a drive. I circled most of the valley. It was relaxing. When I hit the northeastern part of the valley, I dropped in to see .

I came home and watched the Steelers beat on the Browns (sorry, … but at least your team isn’t still in the bottom of the division). And then I decided to knock out the last 14K for Security Level 27. Which I achieved…. and then some.

Ravens Update

Baltimore at Jacksonville
3 – 30
The Ravens were on the road today against the Jaguars. Kyle Boller, for the first time in seven weeks, was on the field to lead the offense. Unfortunately, he didn’t really seem up to the challenge. He started off all right – completing his first eight passes – but seemed to get a little shaky as the game progressed. He was sacked four times and picked off three. The Ravens’ defense, still missing Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, put up a good fight, but they were on the field far too long (which happens when your offense is ineffective) and simply got worn down by Byron Leftwich and the Jags’ offense. The Jags played an excellent game on both sides of the ball. The offense played as a cohesive unit. They made the big plays when they needed to do so. They got the short yardage when necessary. The defense put – and kept – pressure on Boller. They tied up the Ravens’ receivers. They blocked lanes against the run. I have to give it to them: The Jags had the total package today.

Stray Toasters

• I caught The Boondocks tonight. It made me chuckle. I’ll have to catch a couple more episodes to form a solid opinion. (Holy mother of God…. Adam West is on it, too! *cracks up*)
• The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
• SciFi is shutting down SciFiction; check it out before it’s gone.
• “It’s… supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!”
• PRI’s To the Best of Our Knowledge had an interview with The Wailin’ Jennys this afternoon. I first heard of them last year when I was making trips to Moab with ‘s father. You can listen to the interview here.
• Something else about The Boondocks: Andrea Romano is the Voice Director. She is fairly well-known for having done the same thing for Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, Justice League/Justice League Unlimited and Teen Titans, among others.
• The Ultimate List of xymorons
• Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis
• “Oh dear. That’ll mean a full strip and body cavity search.” –
• According to UPS Package Tracking: Jean, Johnny and Hunter should be arriving sometime tomorrow/today.

Namaste.

Saturday : 12 November 05
I slept in this morning for no other reason than the fact that I could. Okay, there was the fact that I only slept for about an hour to an hour-and-a-half the night before… but that’s not the point. The point is: I slept in this morning. *nod* I made my way downstairs to the den and stretched out on the couch and proceeded to watch both the television and my inner eyelids for the next hour or so. The rest of the early day was similarly lazy. I watched, for the first time in many, many rains: Race For Your Life, Charlie Brown. I kept having flashes of “They’re going to see/find/do _____ next and then _____ will happen…” while watching it. It was completely unexpected to find this on the television, but fun to watch.

, , Chris and I had dinner at Macaroni Grill tonight. Chicken Marsala with a glass of Woodbridge Chardonnay. Good food and good company.

I helped install her motherboard in a new case. It took a bit longer than it should have (thanks to issues with the case), but the transplant was successful.

Breakfast at Cheers. The people-watching was only “decent.” We saw someone that I used to work with at the USPS there – he was with The Singles. (, you’ll have to ask or about it.)

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt
I decided to go on Patrol around Talos Island this afternoon. I took on some Freakshow and Warriors members, they weren’t too much trouble. As I was getting ready to find some other citizens in need of a swift electrical kick in the pants, I was asked to join a team for a rescue mission. I accepted. And I was on my way to Striga Island.

I arrived in Striga and headed to the mission site. We had to rescue scientists from Vampyri. There were five of us on the team and there were a LOT of vampires. And me without my cross, holy water and garlic. We battled through the complex, leaving the… um… dead undead in our wake. We rescued the scientists without too much problem. And I worked my way out of experience debt.

Now, only 14000 points stand between me and Security Level 27.

Stray Toasters

• First, Wonder Woman kicked his ass.
  Then, the Scarecrow broke him off a little somethin’.
  Now, it seems as though Green Arrow is about to bring the pain to a certain billionaire-turned-vigilante.

• La Belle Dame Sans Regrets. I like this song.
• Ever wonder why it costs so much to use pay phones these days? Here’s why.
• Vince Guaraldi.
• “I hold the very threads of fate in my paws.”
  

• “Oh, Magoo! You’ve done it again!”
• Is it just me or does Luke look like he’s been to Mos Eisley Cantina one time too many?
• If Dr. Seuss wrote for Star Trek: The Next Generation
• By way of Slashdot: Army Develops New Chewing Gum

Quote of the Day
I received a text message from Adam yesterday that made me laugh out loud… which caused me to receive a few quizzical looks from my coworkers. But it was worth it.

I just took an online survey, and it said the action hero I’m most like is James Bond. Who knew a survey could see the real me?

And with that…

Namaste.

Friday : 11 November 05
Happy Veteran’s Day.

It was a rather decent Friday. Work was. I had to deal with a couple of issues with the “new” team. Again. I caught one before any of them knew what was going on. When two of them came to say something, I told them “I already know,” and kept walking, never breaking stride. We had a system “hiccup” later, but there was nothing that could be done about it in our office. Those same two people came up to me and asked me if I knew what was wrong and how long it would be before things were fixed. I told them that I wasn’t sure and that the home office was handling the problem.

The evening was good, too: Friday night coffee with the Clitorati. *nod* Nothin’ wrong with that. We skipped going to Cheers: North, though. Oh well, there’s always next time.

The Nefarious Schemes of Dhoruba
After running around Mercy Island and killing snakemen for a bit, I made it to Threat Level 6.

And… I picked up the second-most useless superpower in the world: Hover. Again.

Stray Toasters

• I took the Which Action Hero Would You Be? Quiz that’s going around.
  

  You scored as James Bond, Agent 007. James Bond is MI6’s best agent, a suave, sophisticated super spy with charm, cunning, and a license’s to kill. He doesn’t care about rules or regulations and somewhat amoral. He does care about saving humanity though, as well as the beautiful women who fill his world. Bond has expensive tastes, a wide knowledge of many subjects, and his usually armed with a clever gadget and an appropriate one-liner. Neo, the "One" 71% James Bond, Agent 007 71% Lara Croft 63% Maximus 58% Captain Jack Sparrow 58% Batman, the Dark Knight 54% William Wallace 54% The Terminator 42% The Amazing Spider-Man 38% Indiana Jones 38% El Zorro 33% Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

I’m starting to wind down fairly quickly. That’s a sign that it’s time to go to bed.

Namaste.

Thursday : 10 November 05
Four down and one in the chamber.

Today was a decent day at work. I didn’t have too many distractions and I was able to get a few things accomplished. The mid-day workout was good, too. Working out is much more enjoyable when one’s stomach isn’t attempting to foment a body-wide rebellion.

This evening, I came home… and fell asleep. I zoned right the Hell out. Gone. *poof* Hasta la night-night. I woke up somewhere between ninety minutes and two hours later. When I fully returned to The Waking World, I talked with and watched CSI. It’s another two-part episode. Very interesting. And it looks as though part two may not have a “happy” ending – I will admit that I like it when shows have the testicular fortitude to end without a happy ending sometimes. I hope that CSI doesn’t cop out (no pun intended) and find pull some deus ex machina miracle out at the last moment.

Stray Toasters

• Thanks to for sending me a link to Heavy Games. There are things on there that make me smile.
• By way of NPR: Porgy and Bess Live Online November 12
  About ten or so years ago, I saw a choral presentation of Porgy and Bess, performed by Opera Carolina, with Bobby McFerrin conducting. It was a cool production. One of the vocalists was a friend of the family, so we got to go backstage following the show and meet Mr. McFerrin.

• , I think that you’d like this.
• Tyra is no longer a Victoria’s Secret Angel; she hung up her wings.
  I… I think need a moment.

• 
• Saturday Night Live in the ’80s: Lost and Found airs Sunday night at 9:00 EDT
• Me and my big mouth. No sooner do I mention that I want a Dark Phoenix ‘Clix than Wizard decides to come out with this. And it’s sold out. Bastiches!
• So, does this mean “May the Farce be with you?”
• “We were too drunk to even remember what happened.” –
• : Thunder (Her Secret Files bio)
• I think that the Build-A-Bear Frosty the Snowman is kind of neat. How long before we see Heat Miser and Snow Miser?!

And now, I’m off for coffee and chat with Mr. .

<edit>

• Thanks to for his kind hospitality.
• Hush Little Baby, by Yo-Yo Ma and Bobby McFerrin (from the “Hush” CD) makes me smile.

</edit>

Namaste.

Wednesday : 09 November 05
Today was a good, but busy, day. I spent time helping the “new” guys (coworkers from the other team who just moved into the new office) with a couple of issues. At one point, about mid-afternoon, I wished that I had a pedometer so that I could see just how much walking I had done. Calorie burning? No problem! Despite distractions and interruptions, it was a rather productive day.

Tonight was Call of Cthulhu game night at ‘ place… which I had completely forgotten about until asked me if I had a game tonight. (Gaming schedules have been a little “off” for the past few weeks, so I am cutting myself some slack for having spaced it off.) It was a good session. We fought things. We lost sanity. We saved people. Oh, yeah… and my character took a rifle shot to the shoulder. Again. And came close to seeing the tunnel of light. Again. At this rate, I might actually consider renaming my character “Bullet Magnet.” Fortunately, ‘s character knew first aid and was able to patch me up well enough to survive a trip to the hospital.

Stray Toasters

• I had a minor epiphany while thumbing through the November 2005 issue of National Geographic Magazine: I’m a bit homesick. I was looking at an article about the Acadia National Forest and saw a picture of the fall foliage and it reminded me of the wooded areas back home. Which reminded me of… home. Both of them. I might have to make an eastward pilgrimage sometime in the next few months.
• On a related note: I talked with my mother and uncle this afternoon; they were on their respective ways home from Ohio. We had a death in the family last week and they called on their way to airport to tell me that the service was nice and that everything went… as well as can be expected.
• , proving once again that he is the coolest brother-in-law in the world, sent me this article about IKEA.
• Gravity-Powered Asteroid Tractor Proposed to Thwart Impact
• 
• A Slashdotter’s review of City of Villains.
• How could you not laugh at a comic with a last panel like this one:
  

• The 2005 Machinima Film Festival will be held this Saturday, 12 November 05, at the Museum of the Moving Image.
• Shhh! I’m the King of Forks!
  

• “Fox has committed to a pilot for aTerminator-themed TV show… I really don’t have anything (good) to say about this.
• For those of your participating in NaNoWriMo, how are your stories coming along?
• I should write something. Anything. Soon.
• I’ve been tracking the progress of my Phoenix ‘Clix over the past couple of days. Oh, the wonders of the Interweb… It left New York on Monday and left Illinois this evening. I should have it Monday, according to the scheduled delivery date.
• If you’re a Gen-X’er, the chances are better than average that you’ve seen A Charlie Brown Christmas. And who could forget his pathetic Christmas tree? Apparently, Urban Outfitters didn’t… because they are selling replicas of the tree.
• “Whoah, hold up – pet rent? What the Hell is ‘pet rent?'” –
• Tonight’s random Wikipedia page: Fawlty Towers

This looks like a good stopping point.

Namaste.

<groove break>

Outkast – Hey Ya
Spice Girls – Spice Up Your Life
Blues Traveler – Run Around

</groove break>

What’s on your mp3/video rotation?

Tuesday : 08 November 05
I didn’t oversleep this morning. That was a “good” thing. Unfortunately, it was one of the few good things about the morning.

When I got to work, I was mentally preparing for a few co-workers to migrate from the SLC office to our bright, shiny office in Utah County. I was informed that there would be three of them. No problem. They arrived, told me where they planned to work and I then set about getting their systems patched into the network. Again, no problem. Until I finished connecting the last set of cables and was putting the covers back on the patch panels. THAT is when one of the three came in to tell me that he and one of the others were going to move to other desks.

*twitch*
Okay. Open the panels again and add in the new wires. I wasn’t so much irritated as annoyed at having to do this. They had ample time to have requested the change before I started wiring things. Oh, well.

Just as I finished up with this job, one of the much-higher-ups tracked me down and asked if I’d get his office set up. Paradigm shift. I had no problem with this… mainly because he’s higher on the food chain than everyone else in our office. You want access? You got it! He said that he didn’t need it immediately, as he had to go to the SLC office today, so I asked him if tomorrow morning would be all right. (Yes, folks, engineering concepts straight out of Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott’s notebook: Never give the captain an exact time for completion of a job. Give yourself some breathing room and get it done well before the deadline.) I found his office’s port numbers, hooked up my laptop and headed to the server room to make the necessary connections.

And nothing happened.

I went back into the office. Laptop on. Cables connected. No “link” or “activity” lights. It’s not as though the guys who ran all of the office’s cables came down last week to test and label everything. “Correctly.” *sigh* Great. So, I made sure that the laptop’s connection was good and headed back to the server room. I had to test all of the ports in a given range to find the correct one. Eventually, I did.

Lights blinked on. Connections were made. Things were good again.

Until the coworker whom I am now referring to as Voldemort – because saying “He Who Shall Not Be Named” takes way too much time – came to ask me a question. One of the same questions that he’s been asking for the past couple of weeks. I think that I was a little terse with my response. Actually, I’m pretty sure that I was. I informed him (again) that the problem was being worked on and would basically be done when it was done. And then I went back to what I had been working on. Some people’s children…

The rest of the workday wasn’t too bad. Today’s workout was a bit on the lax side, at least for me. My stomach had been bothersome for most of the morning, so I didn’t want to do something that would cause me to leave unwelcome things on the gym floor.

After work, I met and Matt (we need to get him a number or something) for coffee. , who works nearby, popped in for a bit – she was making sure that I didn’t need a ride home. A while later, was released from the life-draining REC and joined us. We sat around and chatted for a bit before going our separate ways.

By the time I got to the house, my back was bothering me. Enough that I decided to take a long, hot soak. Hotter than James Brown’s Celebrity Hot Tub, but nowhere near as entertaining. My back and stomach both seemed to relax. This made me rather happy. I got out of the tub and made my way to the den to watch a couple of hours of Law & Order: The Next Generation… um… I mean Law & Order: SVU. Both episodes were good. While watching TV, I had the stray thought to check my temperature. The way that my back had been feeling was very similar to the way that it feels when I’m getting/have a fever.

I was right. It wasn’t a bad one.. but it was enough to be noticeable.

I checked a little while later and it had gone down a bit. Apparently, the hot soak was a good thing – I think that I sweated a good bit of the fever out. I’m still not quite up to 100% (I’d say that I’m in the lower to mid 90s, though), so I think that tonight will be another early one.

Stray Toasters

• I neglected both Cities tonight – no high-flying adventures or nefarious deeds. Hopefully, I’ll get to rectify that tomorrow.
• From Wired: The World’s Worst Software Bugs
• “This is nifty! It’s all warm!”
  

• Sky High DVD Exposes Stunts
  This was a fun movie… even if it was from “The Cradle to the Grave Empire.” I think that I might like to add this to my collection.

• 
• Child’s Play 2005 is underway
• From boingboing.net: The New York Times on the science of sleep
• : I think that this might be up your alley.

And with that…

Namaste.

Monday : 07 November 05
Aside from oversleeping this morning, it’s been a good day. The evening was good, too.

I watched most of tonight’s Monday Night Football game with . The Colts trampled over the Patriots (40 – 21)… and are undefeated this season. And in other NFL news: It seems as though the Philadelphia Eagles’ Terrell Owens is about to find himself a rebel without a cause… or a team. It will be interesting to see how things unfold.

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt
I ventured into Paragon City for a while after the game. I tweaked Bolt’s character description a bit to tie-in him in with Dhoruba. I like the twist in the origin; it gives a good motivation for both characters to behave the way that they do.

I joined a small team for a couple of missions and then tackled a solo mission. I think that I died a total of three times tonight. *sigh* I managed to get out of most of the experience debt – I have 9,500+ points left to work off. And I’m only 25,000 from Security Level 27.

Stray Toasters

• I should be in bed. But I’m not. Yet.
• The Physics of Cow-Tipping
• From Real Tech News: Everything You Wanted to Know About Hybrids
• …and: Second Coming of the NES
• Never seen a blue sky
  Yeah I can feel it reaching out
  And moving closer…

• For and : Grab a Bold Dose of Bollywood Film Music with New Anthology CD
• I’m still not in bed.
• This is being touted as The Ultimate Star Trek Collection. I’ll admit, it’s pretty damned nice-looking… on the surface. But $2,500 (USD)?! Just like Hall & Oates said: “I can’t go for that.” Besides, they don’t even have the animated series in there!
• Car Toys: Looking Every Place But the Road
• I ordered the Phoenix HeroClix figure last week. *shrug* Late birthday present to myself. This afternoon, I received email notification that it has shipped¹; I should have it by next Monday. This makes for a happy Rob. Now, if I can just find the Dark Phoenix HeroClix figure for an equally good price…

And now, bed.

Namaste.

¹ – I find it oddly amusing that it’s shipping from roughly… ten to fifteen miles from where my uncle lives.