Random Access

Tuesday – 07 December 2010
Today is the 69th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day.

We have a visitor in our office today. I’m hoping that the fact that…

Oh, my lucky stars! A Negro!¹

…was the first thing that popped into my head after seeing him is an indicator that it’s going to be a good day.

Yesterday, I was visited by the UPS and USPS Fairies. The UPS Fairy brought the first wave of parts for my new computer arrived; now I need to figure out what I want to get next.  The USPS Fairy brought the other new arrival: my Department 56 Lionel Electric Train Shop.

and Ryan came over to watch last night’s highly-hyped Jets-Patriots game (1, 2) Too bad the game didn’t live up to the hype. The Pats steamrolled the Jets. Badly. They broke ’em down like fractions.

Stray Toasters

• Tyranist and I had a discussion yesterday about which is more terrifying: slow, shambling zombies or fast-moving zombies/”rage-infected” humans and why.
• State Department Daily Is Window on Jittery Planet
• TSA workers, experts worry about radiation exposure
• 
• Cthulhu Playing Cards
• A couple of items from NPR Music:
  • Israel Kamakawiwo’ole: The Voice of Hawaii
  • 5 Best Cover Songs of 2010
• In the Wild, a Big Threat to Rangers: Humans
• 
• pointed me in the direction of this: Awesome fan-poster for Green Lantern movie
• WikiLeaks Founder Warns About More Dispatches
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Denver bomb squad defeats 8″ toy robot after hours-long standoff
• For Steve Harvey, all this attention is rewarding, scary

Julie just referred to someone as “…[her] new monkey.”  I think that my day is now complete.

Namaste.

1 – That quote comes from Brendan Fraser’s character, Adam, in Blast From the Past.

Friday – 19 November 2010
It’s almost the weekend.
Just a few more hours and it shall be upon us.
Amen.

Last night, SaraRules! and I had a date night – we had dinner at Cafe Zupas and went to see Unstoppable. It’s been “a while” since I’ve seen a good disaster movie involving a train (I don’t agree with all of the movies on this list, but it’s a good starting point). It was a fun and entertaining movie – you have Malcolm X and Captain Kirk saving the day, after all! How can that be a “bad” thing?! Sure, you have to suspend a bit of disbelief in some places, but it’s worth it. I give it a big, old thumbs-up with an okay.

::: Interlude :::
Today’s iTunes shuffle has been good with music to get the day moving:

…and bonus song (because it reminds me of Good Lovin’)…

Stray Toasters

• Leading off with a couple items from the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file:
  • Kentucky Fried Chicken corporate training rap from 1987 on how to make “Chicken Littles”
  • NY-based Iraqi artist to implant camera in the back of his head for Qatar museum
• A history of zombies in America
• 
• Jay-Z ‘Decoded’
• Not that I wasn’t already hooked, but Fringe looks like it’s heating up before the winter hiatus.
• Nike Leaks Unofficial NFL Jersey Sketches?
  Yeah… I’m not sure that I’m very fond of those proposed jerseys. At all.
• 
• The Machinima Expo 2010
• Knowing my fondness for Audrey Heller‘s artwork, sent me a link to the Little People Art Project
• Cheat with Science: Win a Coin Toss

Namaste.

Tuesday – 16 November 2010
The second half of November is upon us.

Last night, and Nathan came over to watch the Eagles-Redskins game. More on that later.

After the game, I went to work on my model railroad. I was trying to incorporate the 90º crossover and two more switches… but couldn’t get a the pieces to line up. Rather than fight it (too much), I decided to call it a night and ponder the issue today. If nothing else, I’ll probably just do another reversing loop and find a way to throw a spur or two off the main line.

Chew on This: Food For Thought/Quote of the Day
Today’s “Magnetic Poetry Self Affirmation Quote of the Day” comes in response to the feeling of being overwhelmed that a coworker is experiencing:

FYI: I refuse to let the small stuff and stupid people be a problem anymore.

I think that can be applied in many situations…

Instant Replay: Football

Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Redskins
59 – 28
Wow. Seriously… that’s just about the most accurate way to describe last night’s match-up between the Eagles and the ‘Skins. Last night’s broadcast of Monday Night Football should have been renamed “The Michael Vick Show.” He did it all: Threw four (4) touchdowns; Ran for two (2) touchdowns; Rushed for eighty (80) yards; Threw for 333 yards; No interceptions No fumbles He also became the first QB in NFL history with: …at least 300 yards passing, …50 yards rushing, …four passing touchdowns and …two rushing touchdowns in a game. One game. The man was money. All night long. Speaking of money, the Redskins’ new $78 million man, QB Donovan McNabb would have had a much better outing… if his receivers had bothered to show up. McNabb’s passes were pretty much on the money all night, but the receiving corps didn’t seem to put up a lot of effort to catch and/or hold onto the ball.

Stray Toasters

• 45 Years Later, An Apology and Six Months
• By way of Maddox: Not everything is epic, shitheads
• If you saw “Oz with Orchestra” this past weekend, why not leave a review on the Utah Symphony blog page?
• 
• Art of Storytelling Alive and Well in Audio Books
• Colorless, Tasteless but not Dangerous
• TSA tee: “We get to touch your junk”
• She Has No Head! — My 20 Favorite Comics Females
  • This list features not only Wonder Woman, but also Planetary‘s Jakita Wagner, another woman who kicked Batman’s ass (in her own words).  Sorry, Nizlee.
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: She’s a hooker for Jesus. Honest.
• When Opera Stars Show Their Frisky Side
• DC Universe Online: Pre-ordered.
• 10 Buildings Shaped Like What They Sell

And with that…

Namaste.

Thursday – 11 November 2010
Today is Veteran’s Day:

It is also my NBN Technical Friday.

Last night, was D&D Encounters night with Melody, Jack and company. My character nearly had his butt handed to him at the beginning of the encounter. Not good. Fortunately, my companions kept me from dying and we went on to beat the holy living shit out of our enemies. Amen.

After that, I headed over to Chris and Mary’s to help Chris install a new hard drive in his PS3. Might I just add the following note to Sony: If you’re going to make it so ludicrously easy to change the hard drive in the game unit, you might think about making a few things in your backup and restore instructions a tad more clear and/or intuitive. Thank you. After about an hour – including some time to surf a few web forums – we figured out what the problem was.

Instant Replay: Football

Baltimore Ravens at Atlanta Falcons
8:20 PM (EDT)
The Ravens and the Falcons meet up in the season’s first Thursday night football game. Both teams are coming off very short weeks – they both played on Sunday – so it will be interesting to see how well they play with so little time between games. Atlanta has eight (8) players on their injury list, to Baltimore’s one: S Tom Zbikowski.

Stray Toasters

• It’s another suit day. I changed it up a bit though: Olive suit, with a khaki knit mock turtleneck. Boo-yah!
  • Speaking of suits: Jos. A. Bank is having a sale on suits – today only.  Guess who’s going suit shopping after work…
• For SaraRules! and : 2010 Zombie Safehouse Competition
• Karmaloop
• Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)

• There is no Dana. Only Zuul…
• ‘Frank’: The Man, The Voice, The Mafia Ties

• Mustang’s 2 keys change pony car’s performance settings
• WGBH American Experience: 2011 Student Freedom Ride
• Sparkles: The Soldering My Little Pony Unicorn
• Every once in a while, something pops up in my iTunes mix that makes me laugh.  This morning, it was the theme from Freakzoid!:

• Targeted, smarter attacks dominate 2010 threat landscape
• The Abandoned City Hall Subway Stop Now Visible to Tourists
• Drug Suits Raise Questions for Doctors, and Juries

It’s the suburb of the week…
Arlington

Namaste.

Tuesday – 09 November 2010
Another day that started with flurries.
Welcome to mid-Autumn in Utah.
They’ve stopped… for now.

It’s also “Take a Model Train to Work” Day.  So, I brought in my LEGO train:

Today, we have a “meet and greet” with our company’s new president. I’ve seen him walking around the office a few times; I’m curious to hear what he has to say about his vision for leading the company.

Last night, , Nathan and Wes came over for Monday Night Football. Wes…. is a Steelers fan. I didn’t discover this until recently. I think I still like him, despite such a major personality flaw.

After the game, I did a little more work on my Signal Tower – it’s probably 90-95% complete, aside from some trim and accessories.

Instant Replay: Football

Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals
27 – 21
The Steelers traveled to Cincy to take on the Bengals in a division rivalry game.The boys from Pittsburgh looked like they came to play ball. The Bengals looked like they suited up a junior high JV team… and a poor one, at that. The first half of the game was “All Steelers, all the time.” Period. Somewhere in the third quarter, the Bengals put some actual NFL players in the jerseys and played some good football – coming within a six points of the Steelers – but the Steelers were able to hold on and keep the Bengals out of the end zone during their end-of-game drive. Sorry and … I was actually hoping that the Bengals would pull off the upset.

Stray Toasters

• It’s a suit day: Grey suit, white shirt, red/black/grey/gold deco tie.  Aw, yeah…
  



• Company Accused of Firing Over Facebook Post
• From the “Whoops!  I was…. NEVER… HERE…” file: Two Guys Use Excavator in the Wrong Place and Destroy an Entire Port
• For SaraRules!: 6 year old skateboarder Asher Bradshaw at Venice Beach Skatepark
• What Alcohol Actually Does to Your Brain and Body
• Paul pointed this out to me earlier: The tunnel people of Las Vegas: How 1,000 live in flooded labyrinth under Sin City’s shimmering strip
  • After a little surfing, I found this: Dark Days, a documentary about a subterranean community in New York City
• Scratching Under the Vinyl Era:Warner Music Digs Into Its Archives
• Parents worry about toddlers’ tiny fingers itching for iPhones
• Destroy All Movies!! The Complete Guide to Punks on Film
• I can’t stop thinking big
  I can’t stop thinking big
  In a world where I feel so small
  I can’t stop thinking big
• From the “Get Your Dance On, Girl!” file: First Lady’s Dance Moves Woo Indian Crowds
• Mystery missile launches off California coast

Namaste.

Sunday – 07 November 2010
Ah, weekend.
And, it’s been a quite good one, at that.
Hopefully, everyone remembered to set your clocks back an hour for Daylight Saving Time.

Yesterday was SaraRules!’ birthday:

Last night, she threw a “Spaghetti Fiesta” party.  There was spaghetti (obviously), wine, cookies, cake, ice cream… the works.  And it was a lot of fun.

Earlier in the day, I hung out with Chris a bit and judged a ‘Clix tourney. Then, I came home and worked on my train layout a little bit.  Last week, I picked up Lionel’s Engine House – same style, but an older version and a little differently colored and it was a kit, rather than a pre-assembled unit. Yesterday, while waiting for people to arrive, I finished putting it together.  It looks good.

Today is my friend, Jeremiah’s, birthday:

This morning, SaraRules! and I were going to head up to Ruth’s Diner for breakfast. I figured that since Comcast and the local CBS affiliate couldn’t be bothered to let us know which NFL game was going to be aired at 11:00, a nice breakfast out with the missus seemed like a good thing. However, being the amazingly cool wife that she is, SaraRules! suggested that we wait until 11:00 and see who was playing. Good thing, too: It was the Dolphins-Ravens game. Win-Win.

Instant Replay: Football

Miami Dolphins at Baltimore Ravens
10 – 26
Coming off of a bye week, The Ravens hosted the Miami Dolphins… and the game was aired locally, so I got to see my two favorite AFC teams play! Miami came into this game having won all of their road games this season, while Baltimore has won all of this season’s home games. So it was going to be a good match-up. The Ravens received the opening kick-off and QB Joe Flacco drove the team down the field to score a touchdown. Not to be outdone, the ‘Fins scored on their first drive, as well. There was a lot of back-and-forth in the rest of the first quarter, but no one was able to score. Baltimore put up a couple of FGs in the second quarter, to the Dolphins’ one. Baltimore scored another TD on a WR Derrick Mason reception in the third and posted a couple more field goals in the fourth to cement the win. Notable plays in the game: FS Ed Reed‘s third interception… in two games. P Sam Koch‘s 13-yard PASS (that’s right, I said “pass”) to Cary Williams on 4th down in the third quarter. DB Josh Wilson‘s end-of-game pick of a Chad Henne pass. I am taking the win as a belated birthday gift from the Ravens, as the score was 10-26… which happens to be my birthday. But, there’s no time to sit back and enjoy this win, as the Ravens have to travel to Atlanta to take on the Falcons on Thursday.

.

New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers
34 – 3
The Saints, coming off last week’s win over the Steelers, went to Bank of America Stadium and handed the Panthers a big-time defeat.

.

New England Patriots at Cleveland Browns
14 – 34
The Pats traveled to Cleveland and got handled by the Browns. Big time.

Stray Toasters

• Listening to Rap for the First Time, with a Book Critic, courtesy of
• Best television adaptations of science fiction and fantasy novels
• BSO’s Mahler and Freud: A Q&A with Didi Balle
• will be able to appreciate this:
  



• I discovered RailModeller, a model railroad layout program… for the Mac a few days ago.  I’m liking it.
• Snow White just rocked my face off
  • Pogomix
• 5 Ways to Really Stay Warm This Fall and, Eventually, Winter
• I like this Call of Duty: Black Ops commercial
• Government D.A.R.E. Program Causes Kid to Narc on Parents & Send Them to Jail
• 33 Conspiracy Theories That Turned Out to Be True, What Every Person Should Know
• The Queen Joins Facebook

Namaste.

Friday – 05 November 2010
Today is the beginning of Diwali.

It is also Guy Fawkes Day.

It’s also my 9/80 “on” Friday.

Last night, SaraRules! and I attended the Ballet West performance of:

The performances were good. I was unfamiliar with The Four Temperaments (as a dance piece); it was interesting and a little odd. I was familiar with the music from Carmina Burana, but the performance was less of an interpretation of the the story and more of an expressionist piece of modern dance.

Stray Toasters

• Graphitti Designs is (FINALLY!) coming out with a new Legion t-shirt in January!  Covet!
• Secret Ohio Warplane Graveyard Unearthed
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: 10 Toys That Will Permanently Screw Up Your Kids
• How Fanboys, Fandroids and Crackberry Junkies See Each Other
• E.U. Says It Will Overhaul Privacy Regulations
• Comics Career Guide: What to Expect from a Career in the Arts
• 
• Cooking for Geeks
• Microsoft has a hit with Kinect Xbox 360 game controller
  • Of course… Kinect has problems following dark-skinned users
• Learning in Dorm, Because Class Is on the Web
• Qantas CEO: ‘Faulty design’ may be behind jet engine blowout

Our outgoing President/CEO bought a foosball table for the office as a parting gift. I just played foosball for the first time in… in… well, let’s just say “a very long time.” I must admit: It was fun.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 02 November 2010
Today is Dia de los Muertos, “The Day of the Dead.”

I’m fairly certain that this makes George A. Romero quite happy.

It is also Election Day here in the U.S. and its territories.

I’m taking a late lunch to cast my ballot.

Last night, came over to watch Monday Night Football. After the game, SaraRules! and I watched the end of Buckaroo Banzai.  Again, I marvel at the fact that I hadn’t seen this movie before.

Instant Replay: Football

Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts
17 – 30
The Texans went to Indy to take on the Indianapolis Professional Football Club. I don’t know what happened in the first half, but the Texans looked… listless, allowing Indy to take the reins and rack up points in the first half. However, the Texans looked like an honest-to-goodness team in the second half, making a show of it late in the third and early in the fourth quarters… …but it was too little, too late.

Stray Toasters

• Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants for winning The World Series.



• SaraRules! mentioned this item from the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file to me a few days ago: Randy & Evi Quaid: “We’re running for our lives”
• Paul mentioned the Tehachapi Loop to me last week, but he couldn’t remember the name of it until this morning. We looked it up on Google Earth and Wikipedia; it looks pretty interesting.
  • The San Diego Railroad Museum has an HO Scale model of the loop.
• Huge Virus Breakthrough Could Mean a Cure for the Common Cold
• 
• Eisenberg: Harbaugh, Not Garrett, Was Right Choice
• pointed out an interesting website: What the Fuck Has Obama Done So Far?
• Alien Hand Syndrome
• Libraries Say “No DRM,” Springer Agrees

And that should do for now…

Namaste.

Monday – 01 November 2010
Today is All Saints Day.

Yesterday was a relaxed and lazy day. I slept in a bit and then headed to the living room to watch a few things that have been on the DVR for far too long. Later, and I headed down to Lehi to check out a hobby shop… that was open on Sunday!  (You’d possibly have to live here to understand how bizarre it is to find a small town hobby store open on a Sunday afternoon.) When we got there, it was closed — the sign on the door said “Summer Hours: Closed Sundays.” This brought two things to mind:

1. Wasn’t “summer” over an month and a half ago?
2. Couldn’t they have listed something about being closed on their website?

On the way back, we experienced “Adventures in Road Rage” with some yutz in an SUV. Fun times.

After I got back home, I put in a little time playing LEGO Universe. From there, SaraRules and I headed to Home Depot, stopped off to help a friend with a computer problem and then went to the in-laws’ for dinner and football.

Post-game, we headed home and watched The Walking Dead. I liked it. There were a couple of parts that were reminiscent of 28 Days Later, where Cillian Murphy first awakens to discover the world (or at least England) has gone to Hell around him. I’m curious to see how the show progresses… and I should read the graphic novels, as we have them, to see how close the adaptation is.

Instant Replay: Football
The Ravens had their bye week. I hope they got in a good bit of rest because next week is a VERY short week for them: Sunday, they play the Dolphins at home and Thursday they travel to the Georgia Dome to take on the Falcons.

Miami Dolphins at Cincinnati Bengals
22 – 14
The Dolphins headed up to Cincy to face the Bengals… …and swam away with a win. Sorry, janietrain and carefreespirit.

.

Seattle Seahawks at Oakland Raiders
3 – 33
The Raiders are on a roll, with their second big win in two weeks. Congratulations, SaraRules! and 1silver_seraph.

.

Carolina Panthers at St. Louis Rams
10 – 20
The Panthers lost this one on the road… to the Rams. *sigh*

.

Pittsburgh Steelers at New Orleans Saints
10 – 20
The Steelers rolled into the Big Easy to face the Saints. I wasn’t sure how this one would turn out, but Drew Brees and company stood up to the challenge and came away with the win. This is a double-plus for me as the Steelers’ loss puts the Ravens back atop the AFC North.

Stray Toasters

• We only had six (6) Trick-or-Treaters this year. And they all came in one group.
  On the other hand, we were able to watch horror movies without interruptions.
• A New Search Engine, Where Less Is More
• For SaraRules!: ‘Frank — The Voice’
• Mechanical Mustache Project
• Click the image…



• From the “Is There Life on Mars?” file: Would you go to Mars and never come back?
• Nonprofits Rush to Solicit Donations via Text, but the System Is Flawed
• Finding Common Ground
• Too soon or too funny?
• Street Art Way Below the Street

Things and stuff to do…

Namaste.

Friday – 29 October 2010
It’s my 9/80 “off” Friday and the start of my weekend. Amen.

Last night, SaraRules and I went to Market Street Grill for the retirement party of my company’s President/COO.  It was done as a cocktail hour… without cocktails, but was still a nice affair.

After that, we came home and got ready for the evening’s entertainment: We had SaraRules!’s parents, brother and his fiancee over for Hallowe’en cookie decorating and then watched the classic Disney The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, featuring the voice of Bing Crosby.  It was a fun way to spend the evening.

Stray Toasters

• What Can You Do in Twenty-Five Words?
• The year is 2010. Detroit is a crime-ridden carcass of the gleaming metropolis it once was. The city only has one hope. And he’s 2 years old.
• Is the proper use of an apostrophe really that hard to figure out?
• Welcome to Dracula’s Castle
• Lisa Black: Gear-Turning Steampunk Taxidermy
• 
• National parks have room for all races
• Comic Book Resources has a preview of the upcoming Superboy #1, from Jeff Lemire and Pier Gallo. This version of Superboy is not a young Clark Kent, but a clone spliced from the DNA of Superman… and Lex Luthor, known as Conner Kent. The character first appeared in the “Reign of the Supermen” storyline, following the “The Death of Superman” in 1992.  I think that I have a fair portion of his first series (1993-2000), but mostly followed it because it was a Superman-related title; the character was still a bit… rough. Over the past year, Paul Levitz has breathed new life – and definitely added some depth – to the character. (That… and he’s renewed/strengthened Conner’s ties with the Legion.) This new title has the potential to be good. And just plain fun.
  • I just talked with Jeremiah – one of the guys from Dr. Volt’s Comic Connection – and found out that he did an interview with Jeff Lemire for Big Shiny Robot.
• The Biggest Movie Monster Ever
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Police arrest man after beer found in child safety seat

That’s good for now. I need to get ready to get out of here — and I are grabbing lunch and then heading up to Ogden to visit The Wonderful World of Trains.

Namaste.

Saturday – 23 October 2010
In the words of Bjork: “It’s oh so quiet.”
The only sounds, aside from my typing, are from birds chirping outside the window.

Last night, I had a great time: SaraRules! organized a birthday dinner for me at MacCool’s; my birthday isn’t until Tuesday, but she correctly figured that it might be “a little difficult” to get people together on a school night. There was good food (Prime Rib!), good beer (Black and Pumpkin, made with Guinness) and the delightful company of family and friends. We followed dinner with cake and ice cream back at home. It was a great evening and truly an excellent way to wind up the week.

Today, I’m judging another ‘Clix tournament this afternoon at Dr. Volt’s. As there’s no tourney next week, this is our Hallowe’en-themed event, which I’ve been referring to as “Monster Mash.” For this match, all teams have to have at least one figure with the “Monster” keyword.  I’m looking forward to some interesting combinations.

Stray Toasters

• New misspelling: “Stray Toaters.”  I was surprised to learn that “toat” is actually a word.
• I talked the paternal parental unit this morning. He sent me a book, Trains of the World, for my birthday.  In it, he noted a train that used to run through his hometown when he was younger.
• Wonder Woman Day Unleashes Awesome Art for a Good Cause This Sunday
  • And, if you’re in the Flemington, NJ area, check out Comic Fusion’s Wonder Woman Day event, which kicks off today.
• Why Is Clint Eastwood Still the Man?
• Sweet gourd-mangling Cthulhu… I have found Ravens pumpkin carving stencils! I may actually have to carve a pumpkin this year…
• 
• Words & Unwords
• 10 geek sins that will get your geek card revoked
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Celebrity Invention: Penn Jillette’s Bathtub for the Ladies
• Repaneled

I should probably get ready to hit the road.

Namaste.

Friday – 22 October 2010
Bonus points to those of you who get the subject line without having to look it up.

It’s my 9/80 “on” Friday.
It started off somewhat quietly… but it picked up a little, around 9:45. No big deal. Nothing insurmountable.

Last night, after a couple of rounds of “Let’s Clean the House,” I managed to sneak off to Nova Praetoria for a while. I hadn’t played City for a week or two, so it was a nice change of pace. I ran a few missions. I leveled up once. I remembered how slow running through a city can be… although it’s still faster than Hover.

I also got in a bit more reading in Starship Troopers.

Stray Toasters

• Tweaking Tradition, Even in Its Temple
• Moon Crater Contains Usable Water, NASA Says
  • Shawn Colvin & Ernie: I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon
    
• Recently Rediscovered Letter Shows Wonder Woman’s Earliest Costume
• Middle Classes in Africa
• Haunted Mansion ghost hearse made from LEGO
• A Son Grows Thankful for His Father’s Tough Love
• Gays, Mormons and Boy Scouts’ discrimination
• 
• Credit Cards Soon to Get a Makeover
• T-shirt turns into a zombie
  • Sears reaches out to the neglected Zombie-American demographic
• No Net for the Man in Charge

Namaste.

Tuesday – 05 October 2010
Work week: Day 2
Rain clouds have moved out of the valley and the sun is trying to peek through…

I just caught an email that informs me of a training session that I had forgotten about. That’s on top of another meeting, later in the day, which I did know about/remember.  Two hours that I kind of need to work on other things… gone. C’est la vie.

Last night, and Josh came over to watch the football game beat down that the Patriots handed the Dolphins. More on that in a minute. In typical Monday Night Football fashion, there was pizza and beer. SaraRules even baked cookies. It was a good evening.

Instant Replay: Football

New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins
41 – 14
The Patriots traveled to Sun Life Stadium to take on the Dolphins in the month’s first Monday night game.Early on, the Pats didn’t look too impressive, only scoring a pair of field goals in the second quarter. That was NOT the case, however, in the second half. They put up three touchdowns in the third quarter and two more in the fourth. It was almost as if they scored at will. The Pats’ special teams corps really put in a performance, including a 103-yard kickoff return for a TD to start off the third quarter. The Dolphins, on the other hand… well… I don’t know what happened after a decent start to the game, but they just fell apart. The vaunted “Wildcat” formation did nothing for the offense. Receivers dropped balls that were thrown right to them. Chris Henne threw three (3) interceptions. They put up TDs in the first and third quarters, but that was it. In a bitof a historic note, the Patriots scored in all but two possible ways last night: Field Goal Rushing TD Passing TD Kickoff return for TD Blocked punt return for TD and Interception return for TD. The only other ways to have scored were: Safety and punt return for TD. If I remember the stat/graphic correctly, the Patriots are the only team in NFL history to pull off this feat. It was a helluva good game… unless you happen to be a Dolphins fan.

Stray Toasters

• Today’s Musical Interlude: Sting – After the Rain Has Fallen
• From Heaps of Junk, a Melodious Clang – New York Philharmonic as Junkyard Players
• The ‘Disintegration’ of America’s Black Neighborhoods
• Style… it’s like a second cousin 2 class
• Bank of Japan Cuts Rates to as Low as Zero Percent
• 
• Along highways, signs of serial killings
• Aiming to Learn as We Do, a Machine Teaches Itself
• I, along with the rest of my team, just got an award from a coworker for the way we handled a number of IT emergencies last month.  Nice way to kick off the morning.
• She Has No Head!  — Ladies Comics Project, Part 1
• Japan Recycles Minerals from Used Electronics

Namaste.

Monday – 27 September 2010
Another morning where the alarm goes off far too early…

Sunday was a good day. The day started with breakfast with SaraRules, Mary and Matt. Breakfast fare included items from Rich’s Bagels and Pin-Up Girl Espresso. After breakfast, we headed back to the house and chatted for a bit before Mary and Matt had to leave.

Then… came cleaning time. Yay. I intermittently distracted myself by checking the stats on the Bengals-Ravens game. The cleaning went well, as did the game. A little later, SaraRules and I went for a drive up Emigration Canyon — we wanted to see the fall colors. Unfortunately (for us), the leaves were still mostly green. There were hints and traces of other colors, but we’re at least a week out from full fall colors.

After dinner, we flipped back and forth between Sunday Night Football and The Amazing Race. Okay, okay, I flipped between them. It was the episode of TAR where a woman caught a watermelon… with her face:

Yes, part of the reason was schadenfreude, but I also wanted to see what happened afterward. And, as it turned out, Claire – the victim of the watermelon assault – not only continued, but she completed that portion of the challenge on the second try after being hit. She also earned the respect of a number of the competitors for the way she got hit… and went on to complete the challenge. Additionally, Brook and Claire finished the challenge in fourth place. (I have to say that Brook came off as a little high-strung — bordering on “bitchy” –to me. I realize that it’s a game/contest, but your best friend just took a melon — fired from a ballista — IN THE FACE! What about cutting her a little slack?! ) I just finished watching the “Brook and Claire” video (above); Claire referred to Brook as “…a control freak.” Bingo. Nailed it. Explains much.

I wound down the night with a Spenser book, Now and Then. I’m going to miss the comfort of these books when Mr. Parker’s last novel hits stores.

Instant Replay: Football

Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens
17 – 24
The Ravens’ home opener against Browns 2.0… …unfortunately, this game wasn’t televised here. Sorry, , wherever you may be.

.

Oakland Raiders at Arizona Cardinals
23 – 24
The Raiders dropped this one to the Cards… by one point.Congrats, Marr. Sorry, SaraRules and 1silver_seraph.

.

New York Jets at Miami Dolphins
31 – 23
Jets’ LB Jason Taylor returned to Miami to help lift his new team over his old one This was a better match-up than I expected… even though I would have preferred that the ‘Fins take away the “W.”

.

Cincinnati Bengals at Carolina Panthers
20 – 7
The Owens-Ochocinco Brigade rolled into B of A Stadium… …and rolled out with a win. BAH! Congrats and .

Stray Toasters

• At Lincoln Center, Using Both Sound and Silence
• U.S. Wants to Make It Easier to Wiretap the Internet
• How Shazam Works to Identify (Nearly) Every Song You Throw at It
• 50 years after win, Kennedy legagy endures
• Rules for small-screen superheroes
• 
• Anger as a Private Company Takes Over Libraries
• Wage Law Squeezes South Africa’s Poor
• For the ladies: Dress Code: The Proper Care and Feeding of Garments, Part 1
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” files:
  • Segway Company Owner Dies After Driving Segway Off Cliff
  • The Bra That Doubles as a Gas Mask Is Now For Sale
• Patients to be frozen into state of suspended animation for surgery
• Warhammer 40K + LEGO = Space Marines!

Monday – 06 September 2010
Today is Labor Day.
I hope that everyone has a safe – and very enjoyable – end-of-summer whatever it is you choose to do.

In honor of the day, I woke up early… well, “early-ish”… and, with the help of , worked on my sprinkler system. I had a few heads that needed to be replaced, one that needed help and just some general maintenance all around. This involved two (that’s right: TWO) trips to the local Home Depot. But, two-and-a-half hours and some elbow sweat grease later, it was done and things were working the way they were supposed to.

Yesterday was another lazy long-weekend day. We slept in. I played a little CoH: Going Rogue — I created a new character; SaraRules did some quilting. Later in the day, we headed over to SaraRules’ parents for dinner and a movie.  Last night’s fare was Clash of the Titans, the new one. Again, it was a decent action flick. And the in-laws liked it. Win-Win.

Stray Toasters

• The 4th Annual Utah Symphony|Utah Opera Web Sale is under way!  Get big discounts on this season’s upcoming events.
• Hey! That’s My Cape — Too Many Batmen Could Spoil the Cowl
• Speaking of comics, I’m enjoying getting back into Fables.
• How to open a new book
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: 8-Foot Shark Caught in Potomac River
• TRAIN!

Shortly, SaraRules and I will be heading out for lunch with some of the usual suspects and then seeing The Expendables again.

I should probably finish getting ready.

Namaste.