Random Access

Friday – 09 March 2007
Today has been good. I didn’t have to fight too many road monkeys. I was able to work on something that I haven’t had a chance to do anything with since God was a boy. Went to off-site training. Went back to work. Worked. Came home.

Today’s off-site training was held at the Cinemark at The Meadows in American Fork (or, if you want to sound more like a native Utahn: “Amurrican Fark”). It was titled 300. For those of you who don’t know, the movie is based on the Frank Miller graphic novel 300; it is about King Leonidas of Sparta and the 300 soldiers who battled the combined might of Xerxes‘ Persian army at Thermopylae.

It was good. And gritty. And bloody. And passionate.  And, like Sin City, also by Frank Miller, it is not going to be for everyone.  It did a good job of conveying the importance of freedom. And honor. And duty. And the costs of being free. Yes, there was creative license taken, but from what I’ve read of the actual Battle of Thermopylae, I still think that, all in all, it was a well-crafted and well-told story. I haven’t read the graphic novel yet, but I’m going to; I want to see how faithfully this was adapted.

Stray Toasters

• Note to self: Call Mom tomorrow.
• New bicycle routes trace Underground Railroad.
• Thanks to for pointing this out: Disney creates first black animated princess
• Brad Delp, lead singer of Boson, has died.
• Fly.
• From eWeek: The Worst Cube-Dwelling Offenses
• Maggie Gyllenhaal will be replacing Katie Holmes (or is it “Katie Cruise?”) as Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight, the sequel to Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins.

It’s coffee time, so I’m up out.

Namaste.

It’s been a good morning, so far.  Add to that the fact that a few of us have been playing video tag and you’ve got yourself a good Friday, not to be confused with Good Fridayâ„¢.

Today’s goodies have included:

• Come Closer Together – I’ve long thought that NIN’s Closer and The Beatles’ Come Together could be successfully remixed; someone proved me right.
• Superman and Batman vs. The 40-Year Old Virgin
• The Office – Mahna Mahna
• …which led me to looking for – and finding – Sandra Bullock Mahna Mahna
• Star Wars LEGO® Symphony

And, with that, back to the grind.

Thursday – 08 March 2007
Another NBN Thursday in the bag.  The day started off slowly, but gathered steam quickly.  I was even able to work on a report that I’ve had to back-burner for a few weeks.  It wasn’t a bad near-end to the week.

Post-work, I was invited out for dinner at Asian Star.  It was the first time that I’d been there since they moved to the new location.  The food, as usual, was good; but the wait for a table didn’t seem commensurate with the number of available empty tables in the dining area.  *shrug*  I do like the new building, though.  And they have “complimentary valet parking.”  This is an interesting twist.  Of course, their parking lot is big enough for two cars (if you’re a gully dwarf).
Stray Toasters

• Tomorrow, Jason and I are scheduled to do some off-site training: 300.
• Brass Goggles – the lighter side of Steampunk
• As any good ‘runner, knows: Bulletproof clothing is a good thing.
• 
• Thanks to for the link to Knights of the Star Trek Table.
• First Adalius Thomas signs with the Patriots, now Jamal Lewis has gone to Cleveland 2.0.  *sigh*  At least we were able to trade for former Bills RB Willis McGahee from the Bills.
• Marvel Comics, Feel My Wrath!
• Coworker Matt sent me a link to Movies… in 5 seconds.  One word: Batman.
• Dave’s Long Box
• “Take him to the cell!”
  “Yes, boss!  Er, what cell?”
  
• Brad Metzler talks to Wizard about Justice League of America: A League of His Own
• Chandelier made from gummy bears

Namaste.

I’m sitting here working on a couple of systems when, out of nowhere, Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? pops into my head.  It’s a catchy tune, and I like it, so I let it roll.

A few moments, a ‘Toaster popped up: Given the way that ‘ job has moved him – and, by association, Sib1 – around for the past few years, I can actually tie the name “Carmen Sandiego” to her.  And, to be honest, the thought of calling her “Carmen” amuses me for some reason.
On a whim, I decided to check out the lyrics for the song.  According to my best estimate, she’s been to at least eight of the thirty locations mentioned in the song.

Where in the world is Sib1 Sandiego…?

Wednesday – 07 March 2007
Today was a pretty decent day.  Long, but productive.  It was a bit funny: Things were mostly quiet this morning, and then around…. 9:30, three things came up.  Okay, no biggie.  Dealing with them covered most of the rest of the day.  I polished off two of the items and should be able to wrap up the third fairly quickly tomorning.

Stray Toasters

• 23 May 2007.   *genuflect*
• Last night, post-game, we were talking about movies; one of them was Highlander.  Good movie… on its own.  I’m of the opinion that, as the movie’s tagline said: “There can be only one,” and thus, there were no sequels.  Selah.  Somewhere in that thread, we got onto the subject of the soundtrack and mentioned that he liked the love song.  I didn’t ask him which song he meant, I was pretty sure that he meant Who Wants to Live Forever.  However, there was a nagging feeling in the back of my head that said that there was another song…  I thought about it a little more and came up with what “the other song” was: One Year of Love.  Both are good songs – both by Queen (which isn’t a bad thing, either) and they were both in the movie – but there’s something about Forever that beats out One Year.
• A New Crew in Town – a tribute to the new Cattlecar Attacktica Battlestar Galactica
• Nizlee!
• 13 Sidekicks Who Are Cooler Yhan Their Heroes
• Nf6
• From the City Paper Online – Sketchy Thoughts
• …and, speaking (indirectly) of Baltimore: I’m craving Butterscotch Krimpets.
• …and, speaking (not so indirectly) of Baltimore: Dad just called, just to say “Hi.”  I should have asked him to send some Butterscotch Krimpets.
• Captain Confederacy.
  No, I’m not making it up.
  Yes, I liked it… even though I didn’t discover the series until its second run.
• A couple of days ago, I posted a link to Mr. T vs Everything.  Along those lines comes Star Wars vs. Peanuts.
• Take a favorite childrens’ toy, room temperature.
  Stir in one Elder God.
  Mix.
  Serve.
• Thom Yorke(from Radiohead) + Street Spirit (acoustic) + Karma Police = a time-lapsed Photoshop painting
• : This isn’t our typical Nutri-Grain commercial.  But, the ending is worth it.
• I don’t really know how to lead into this, so we’ll just get it out there: Peephenge

Namaste.

Tuesday – 06 March 2007
Today was a fairly quiet day at the zoo. A couple of monkeys reared their heads; I dealt with their (non-)issues. Training videos. Mmm….zzzzz… The lunchtime workout was good; we changed up our routine and did things in reverse order – the things we normally start with were the last things we did. It made things a bit more challenging. Also, I didn’t make my goal of being able to bench press three sets of 200 pounds. We changed our bench press exercises in late January/early February and it set me back a bit. I’m not entirely happy about not hitting that goal, but I’ll get there soon enough.

After work, I had to stop and do a quick bit of shopping. On the way home, I stopped in to see , fresh off her trip from the northern hinterlands. She seems no worse the wear for the ordeal, although I think that she’s about ready to turn Nebraska into a smoking crater. Then, it was home for tonight’s Shadowrun game. We spent about half the session gabbing about lots of non-SR-related things. For the part of the time that we spent gaming, the team spent their time making new friends and getting familiar with the city. Next session: Early morning wake-up call. And a lead.

Stray Toasters

• I finally got around to reading newuniversal #1 – 3, Marvel’s retelling/reimagining of the 1980s New Universe setting. It’s an interesting spin.
• Which character from the original DragonLance trilogy underwent the most growth?
• “You don’t look like lost souls.”
  “We’re victims!”
  “Yeah! Victims!”
  
• I like LEGO bricks.
  I like MMOs (at least, the City games…)
  I didn’t see this coming, though.

Quote of the Day
, talking about “that movie (which shall remain nameless)” and the altnerate ending, which he saw on the Director’s Cut DVD:

It was like eating a bowl of shit… and finding the sugar coating at the bottom of the bowl.

Namaste.

Monday – 05 March 2007
And so, another week begins.  All things considered, what with it being a Monday and all, it was a good day.  Jason (coworker) and I went out for lunch; I had hoped to see Vivi, whom I haven’t seen since she worked at The Gateway… but she wasn’t in.  Another time, then.

Tonight was D&D night.  I picked up and we sallied forth to beat on things.  Unfortunately, the game was a bit disjointed/disrupted.  On the plus side, the group managed to figure out our next course of action… and we even managed to learn a few things.  Important things.  Things that might keep us from getting dead…. for the most part.

Stray Toasters

• I talked to my uncle today.  Aside from a very brief convo yesterday, I haven’t talked with him in a while.  We hashed out rough plans for a couple of excursions this year.  And they’re going to be damned good fun, too.
• toyinstructions and BoardGameGeek
• Dammit.  The bulb in my lamp just decided that it was done providing light.  *adds ‘light bulbs’ to shopping list*
• Buddy Baker 2.0?  Or are we up to 3.0?  I forget.   So, what is he now… The Six-Million Dollar Animal Man?  *sigh*  And Sun-Eaters?  Matt, I was apparently mistaken earlier:  According to this article, they are alive.
• , creator of Irregular Webcomic, posed an interesting question in his journal this evening.
• Because I think that Derek will get a kick out of this: Mr. T vs Everything
• “Bang.” – Spike Spiegel
• : I think that this report is something in which you might be interested.
• I really am digging Multiplicity; I may wind up ditching my KVM.
• Tank! makes Nyx smile.  This is a good thing.
• popurls.com
• : I think you’ll be able to appreciate this.

Namaste.

Sunday – 04 March 2007
It’s been a good, if relatively quiet, weekend.

Along with , I went to meet during his stopover at SLIA. It was good to see him, if only briefly. They’re tearing up the Delta terminal… hopefully in an effort to make it more passenger-friendly. It looks like crap, though. Oh, well.

Post-airport, it was off to find a bite to eat, pick up my laundry and get the car washed. The first two went off alright. When I went to get the car washed, I discovered that I didn’t have my credit card… which I last used at the laundry. *sigh* A frantic call confirmed that I had left it there, so I headed back to retrieve it. And then home. I exorcised my bedroom; it needed it. It looks like… a bedroom, believe it or not. The ironic thing is that in the course of cleaning it, I wound up finding enough things to fill my laundry basket. Again. After just coming from the laundry. Yay.

Evening fell and it was time to find something fun – cleaning is not something I generally put in the “fun” category, it’s more of a “necessary evil” – to do. A movie sounded like just the thing. I went to see Black Snake Moan with .  I’m not sure exactly what I expected – it was definitely off the beaten path – but it was a good movie. Strong performances by both Samuel L. Jackson and Christina Ricci… and a surprise (at least, to me) supporting role played by S. Epatha Merkerson, best known as Lt. Van Buren on Law & Order.

Back home for a couple of West Wing eps… and then it was off to breakfast. I am going to attribute it to getting up early, but I got tired rather early. I stuck it out until others showed up, but I had to bow out somewhere around 1:30.

This morning, I was up at 8:00. *grblsnrkx* I was able to nod back off… until 9, at which point I decided to get up. After the hygeine rituals, I plopped down on the couch and watched some NCAA basketball and NHL hockey. Then, the games wound up watching me, as I drifted in and out of sleep.

I took Nefer-Tem and Corvus Nox to Paragon City. They cleaned up some of the dregs of society, ensuring the safety and security of the general public. At one point, a contact told Corvus Nox to go to the University, in Steel Canyon, to learn how to use/create inventions (a part of the upcoming expansion). Cool. Something to do! So, I went to Steel… ran to the University… only to find that it’s closed. *facepalm* I am under the impression that it won’t “open” until the expansion goes live. We shall see.

Stray Toasters

• A coworker introduced me to Multiplicity a couple of weeks ago. I like it.
• By way of BoingBoing: No Child Left Inside: Reclaim Outdoor Play
• – Concert Violinist Plays Indie-Rock Gigs
• “Which is more likely: A really evil tower in the center of a damned city of lost souls, or one with really poor lighting choices?”
  
• From the “Making Money Hand-over-Fist” file: Microsoft Charging Businesses $4K for DST Fix
• This is a rather cool re-imagining of the Star Wars universe: Steampunk Star Wars, it reminds me of the Space: 1889 game setting…. and the video for The Smashing Pumpkins’ Tonight, Tonight
• Ah, geek humor…
  

Namaste.

…why in the Nine Hells am I awake?!?

Oh, right… has a stopover here this morning.

*stretch*
*yawn*
Must… finish… getting… ready.

Friday – 02 March 2007
Post-work, yesterday, I hung out with at the local Borders.  joined us a little while later.  Apparently, Borders has changed their in-cafè music routine and now Thursday nights are live music nights.  Yay.  The performers played bluegrass, which I don’t mind… in moderation.  But, to have it right there?  Not exactly what I wanted to listen to.  Neither did the ladies, so we headed upstairs.  From there, we headed to get a bite to eat.  And then, it was time to go home.
It started snowing last night and only recently stopped.  I didn’t feel like fighting the road monkeys, so I stopped in the SLC office before making the sojourn to Happy Valley.  The roads weren’t too bad; the monkeys, however… *sigh*  and the Utah Council for Better Driving need to come up with a series of PSAs to help the monkeys perform the necessary rectal craniotomies.
Stray Toasters

• pointed me in the direction of Atland.  (As if I needed another webcomic to follow…)  But, it is amusing.
• I was looking at Dwayne McDuffie’s website last night and came across a link to a post that he made on Slushfactory.com: Six Degrees of St. Elsewhere.  And I thought that I was a media trivia junkie…  , this item is right up your alley.
• Check out this interactive classified ad from the Roanoke (VA) Times; they’re looking for a new Senior Editor.  I have to give them style and creativity points for this.
• iPods to be Used as Flight Data Recorders
• 300 opens next week.
• For a as-yet undetermined reason, I Bet You They Won’t Play This Song on the Radio just popped into my head.
• You know the GEICO “Caveman” commercials?  It seems as though ABC is looking to spin a pilot project out of that concept.

Back to the training vids.

Namaste.

Thursday – 01 March 2007
Three down, two to go.

The post-work evening was rather quiet: I had dinner with , stopped by to say “Hullo” to Kate and Perry and then came home. I watched three episodes of The West Wing. Season One. When it was good, back in the Aaron Sorkin days.

Random Access
I had a moment of… I guess it would be safe to call it “enlightenment,” yesterday: There’s earnestness in being taken seriously. I’m not sure that we often consider that, generally speaking.

I consider myself to be fairly intelligent… if not always wise. But, I do the best I can. Sometimes, I take a while to deliberate on something before making a conclusion – I have to connect the necessary dots, in the right order, in my own head. And in my own way. I recently asked a question and didn’t, at the time, consider how it might sound. Desperate? Glib? Frustrated? An attempt to be witty?

None of the above.

It was one of those “I couldn’t seriously ask it before… because I wasn’t able to ask it until then” moments. I didn’t have the mental framework in place to ask it beforehand. When I did, I asked. Plain and simple.

And it’s a little irritating because I think that it may have been taken as me being less-than-serious.

Stray Toasters
I should really finish getting ready for work. Maybe, if you’re good, I’ll throw a few ‘Toasters up later this morning.

Quote of the Day
This comes from the tourbook from the Rush’ 1991-1992 Roll the Bones tour:

We will pay the price, but we will not count the cost.
A line from John Barth’s The Tidewater Tales (he said I could use it) which echoed around inside me for a long time after I read that book. To me, it just means go for it. “There are no failures of talent, only failures of character.” I think that’s often true too. Sure there a lot of talented people who don’t achieve artistic or worldly success, but I think there’s usually a reason – a failure inside them. The important thing is: if you fail once, or if your luck is bad this time, the dream is still there. A dream is only over if you give it up – or if it comes true. That is called irony. We have to remember the oracle’s words, from Nike, the Greek goddess of victory and lumpy athletic shoes: Just do it. No excuses.

Namaste.