Random Access

Friday – 07 December 2012
Today is the  71st anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day.

“…a day that will live in infamy.”

Today is also the day that Diana turns 15-months-old:

Diana

Stray Toasters

• Soup. That’s what’s for lunch, late though it is. I’m having the Campbell’s Grilled Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. It has a little more “bite” than the Progresso Chicken Gumbo. Not to say that one is necessarily better than the other; both have their good qualities.
• Best Art Ever (This Week)
• I kind of covet this Dark Phoenix.
• WWII War Paint: How Bomber-Jacket Art Emboldened Our Boys
• Last Resort. I just learned today that it will be ending after its 13th episode. That’s a pity, it’s been a great show. But, according to one of the show’s creators, they will be able to wrap up the story before it ends.

Namaste.

Sunday – 02 December 2012
The holiday season is here.

Oh, wait… retailers would say that I’m at least a week out. Feh. I’m sorry, the Christmas season doesn’t start the day after Hallowe’en. Just saying. Besides, I still need to hear Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth before it’s really the season in my book.

Friday night, the sun set on Paragon City for the last time when NCSoft shut down the City of Heroes servers. I decided to log in and be online when the game shut down. I was also able to meet up with a few members of my supergroup.  Um, my former supegroup.

It was nice to get to hang out with them as the game ended. Over the past year or two, I found that the amount of time that I played CoH/CoV diminished, but it was still a fun diversion and I really enjoyed my time in Paragon City. I look forward to seeing what (former) lead designer Matt Miller and company do next.

Today, Sara!, Team DiVa and I went to the local Williams-Sonoma to the Artisans’ Market this afternoon. There were some interesting local vendors and their creations there today. For example, we sampled a really good Nicaraguan coffee as well as a very tasty eggplant spread.

After a much shorter-than-it-should be nap by the little ladies, we watched a good portion of the Steelers-Ravens game.

Diana in a …purple pteranodon onesie?
Sure! It’s close enough to a bird AND it’s a dinosaur! Win-Win!
And every game is better with a 360 controller or two!

Vanessa with my… um, “her”… mini-football.

The family, watching the game…

I missed most of the second half because… well.. kids. They need watching and they are more important than a football game.

Instant Replay: Football
Last night was the only game that I was really concerned with this week:

Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens
23 – 20
Two weeks after the Ravens went to Pittsburgh, the Steelers came to Charm City.The Ravens were in black jerseys and white pants, not their all-black look, as I was expecting. The Steelers left Baltimore with a win. But, despite the loss, the Ravens are still atop the AFC North and two games ahead of the Steelers. Congratulations, Bonne, Bret and Uncle Ronnie.

.

Cleveland Browns at Oakland Raiders
20 – 17
The Browns traveled to Oakland and beat the Raiders in their own house.Sorry, Sara! and Rob.

.

Cincinnati Bengals at San Diego Chargers
20 – 13
The Bengals went to Arrowhead and beat the Chiefs.Congrats, Janie and Becky.

.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Denver Broncos
23 – 31
The Bucs went to Mile High to face Peyton Manning and company… and left with a loss.Congrats, Dana and Sean.

Stray Toasters

• It’s December, which means that RubySnap is featuring Noelle as its cookie of the month. If you haven’t tried it, you owe it to yourself to do so.
• High Fashion Disney Princesses
• Speaking of princesses: Warner Bros. Starts Looking for ‘Amazon’ TV Series Lead
• Two months to the next episode of The Walking Dead. At least that gives me some time to catch up on Doctor Who on Netflix.
• Four words: Comic. Book. Wrapping. Paper.
  I think I might try this for Christmas.

Namaste.

Friday – 26 October 2012
Not only is it Friday…

…nor is it just…

…but, as of 7:00 AM Eastern, I turn(ed) 42.

I’m not panicking and I know where my towel is. And I’d like to think that I’m a (at least somewhat) hoopy frood. Now, if I could just figure out what the Ultimate Question to which 42 is the answer is, I’d be set.

It’s been a good year. To paraphrase last year’s comment: I have a great family and friends, as well as met some new great people.

Sidenote: In case I haven’t said it recently – or enough – I’m grateful for the people in my life. Yes, this means you.

I’ve been fortunate enough to do some fun things. So, I’m ready for forty-two to bring it on.

Stray Toasters

• One of the things that I want to do this year is write a book. I’ve had the idea and a rough story for a children’s book for more than “a few” years.
• For those who don’t know, I started a new blog a couple of months ago: Pinstripes and Polos. Please check it out, if you have a few minutes. Comments and questions are welcome.
• HALO 4, meet The Covet List. It comes out on Sara!’s birthday. But, as she doesn’t play, I don’t think she’d  appreciate it as a present. Pity.
• Coulson lives!
• This is the cover of Green Lantern #80, which has a cover date of my birth month:
  
• There’s a train show in town this weekend. I shall attend!
• Download a FREE unpublished Halloween scary short story written & read by [Neil Gaiman], and raise money for education and literacy!
• Oh, by the way: Thanks, Apple, for introducing a new iPad six months after I bought mine…. although, the new iMacs do look damn sexy. We’ll call it a draw.
• We have the technology to look for life on Mars
• Last Resort. Watch it. Love it.

So long and thanks for all the fish!

Thursday – 18 October 2012
Here’s some Team DiVa cuteness to start your day:

Vanessa, sporting my House of Blues cap

Diana, in my Ravens cap

Last night was Movie Date Night with Sara!. We started out watching a Danish film called The Substitute, that I’d ordered from Netflix. It was… slow. And, while it wasn’t a necessarily “bad” movie, neither of us thought that it was a “good” movie, either. At least, not in the 20 or so minutes of the movie that we made it through. And I can’t figure out “why” I chose that movie… unless it was recommended, based on something else I’d seen.

So, I called an audible.

We watched 28 Weeks Later. (And, yes, we made it all the way through that.)

• Bonus: It fulfilled Sara!’s wish to watch horror/horroresque films in October.
• Bonus: I had completely forgotten that Idris Elba and Jeremy Renner were in the film.
• Geek Bonus: Rose Byrne, who played ‘Scarlett’ in the film, was also Moira McTaggart in X-Men: First Class… meaning that three of the leads have been in Marvel films:

1. Idris Elba was Heimdall in Thor
2. Jeremy Renner was Hawkeye in Thor and Marvel’s The Avengers

I also had a crossover revelation during the film: If someone had borrowed the “Stay in the house, Carl” line from The Walking Dead TV series and told it to Andy in 28WL, there would have been two big points:

1. It would have been a VERY short movie, because…
2. No one would have died because of Don (Robert Carlyle’s character)…
   …because the kids would have never gone to the house to get that picture…
   …which means that they would have never found their mom…
   …who wouldn’t have kissed Don, turning him into a rage-infected monster…
   …who, in turn, infected most of the civilians (and soldiers) in the newly-reopened London.

Q.E.D.

All-in-all, it was a good flick for a date night.

And it was a good day.

Stray Toasters

• As of Tuesday afternoon, the train room has primer on the walls. Now, I just need to figure what color I want to paint them.
• I even managed to get some sushi – for the first time in months – yesterday.
• Revolution – Map of North America, 15 Years After the Blackout
• I need to remember to turn off the sprinklers this weekend.

Namaste.

Monday – 14 October 2012
It was a good weekend…

…but let’s go back a few days. I mentioned on Thursday:

I was also informed that there’s also some good news from one of the East Coast contingents of the family. Good news is always welcome.

Well, the good news was: I’m an uncle again. My sister, Kristen, had a little girl on Thursday:

Kennadi Noelle

She was 5 lbs., 18.5 inches. Wee thing. Kennadi and Kristen are doing well and both should be going home from the hospital tomorrow (Monday).

Saturday, Sara and I took Team DiVa to the Junior League of Salt Lake City’s Touch-a-Truck event. The girls got to see – and touch and climb into – a number of trucks and buses:

Vanessa (l) and Diana, on a school bus

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Later, Sara! and I attended the opening performance of Utah Opera‘s 2012-2013 season, Il Trovatore:

And, aside from being a great date night, it was also a great opportunity to wear my tuxedo:

The performance was quite good. If you live in the greater Salt Lake City metropolitan area, I’d recommend seeing this opera.

Sunday was a mostly quiet day around the house, but we did manage a trip downtown to the Urban Flea Market. Later, Sara!’s parents came over for dinner. Sara! made a french onion soup, which was delicious. We weren’t sure how Team DiVa would respond to it. We shouldn’t have worried: They loved it.

Instant Replay: Football
Today, the Ravens hosted the Dallas Cowboys.

Dallas Cowboys at Baltimore Ravens
29 – 31
Tony Romo led the 2-2 Cowboys into M&T Bank Stadium… and the Ravens sent ‘em back to the Lone Star State with a loss. Joe Flacco and the offense started out strongly, but ended their first drive with a field goal. Dallas marched down the field and scored a touchdown. The defense got broken down like fractions by Dallas’ run offense. Fortunately, Defensive Coordinator Dean Pees figured out where the gaps in the defense were and closed them for the most part. Possibly the game’s biggest highlight: In the Third Quarter, WR Jacoby Jones, fielded a kick-off – eight yards deep in the end zone – and ran it 108 yards for a touchdown, tying a NFL record and breaking WR David Reed’s former Raven record of 103 yards. The game came down to a Dallas 51-yard field goal attempt… which went wide to the left. It wasn’t a pretty win, but the Ravens still came away with the “W” and stay atop the AFC North with a 5-1 record.

Stray Toasters

• Congratulations to Felix Baumgartner and the Red Bull Stratos Team.
• If you’ve never watched The BBC’s Luther, you should.
• Google’s ‘Little Nemo’ Doodle
  (Hint: Click on the drop-down bookmarks on the right.)
• What happened to DC Nation on Cartoon Network?!
• Incredible LEGO Batcave Built Out of 20,000 Pieces
• Ottoman Was Geeky

Thursday – 04 October 2012
First off, let me wish my Godsister, Tammy, a very happy birthday.

Next, I have to say that Sara! and I had a great third anniversary yesterday. And, we’d like to say “Thank you,” to our well-wishers.

My in-laws came over to watch the girls so that Sara and I could enjoy a day off together. We spent the late morning and early afternoon on the Heber Valley Historic Railroad.

Knowing my love of trains, Sara! thought that I would enjoy a scenic train ride.

She was right.

We rode on the Provo Canyon Limited. The trip is a little over sixteen (16) miles, each way, but takes roughly three hours to complete. The train was even “robbed” at one of the stops. Michael, our tour guide, and Greg, our conductor, also provided historic information about the train and some of the places that we passed through.

And, on the whole: It was a lot of fun. Pictures of the trip can be seen here.

After the train trip, we drove up to The Sundance Resort for lunch at The Foundry Grill. Although I’ve been in Utah for… fourteen years, as of yesterday… it was my first time at Sundance. It was quite nice, especially with the fall foliage. For lunch, I had a steak sandwich with garlic fries; Sara had a Reuben with sweet potato fries. We both thought that our respective meals were good.

After we returned home, we picked up the girls and headed out to The Cheesecake Factory for anniversary dessert. We returned home with four kinds of cheesecake:

• Chocolate Mousse,
• Dulce de Leche,
• Pumpkin, and
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cake Cheesecake.

After dinner and the girls were put to bed, we fired up Stardust (a movie we both enjoy), opened a bottle of champagne and set to work on the cheesecake. We made it through the movie, but only  half of each piece of cheesecake. So rich. But, oh so good, too.

All-in-all, it was a great way to end the day.

Namaste.

Monday – 01 October 2012
October is upon us and, as it is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the blog has “Gone Pink for October.”

In an odd twist, it’s Monday night and there’s football… but, I really don’t care about tonight’s game. Of course, maybe that’s because the Ravens played last Thursday but – and won – and neither the Panthers nor the Dolphins could find their way to a “W.”

In other entertainment news: I finally got to watch “The Angels Take Manhattan.”

Well played, Steven Moffat. I think that I might be a Doctor Who fan. Again. For the first time in over 20 years. (Although, I’ve been told that I should check out the Eccleston and Tennant Doctors, as well.) And, I am thinking of picking up “The Angels Kiss” e-book tie-in, too. Just because.

Stray Toasters

• Baltimore is in the playoffs. As my friend, Liz, posted:
  Congrats to the O’s on making it to the 2012 MLB Playoffs!
• Fait accompli. I could be wrong, but I think that I am finished with the taping/mudding of the train room. As of this evening, I actually think that the room is ready for primer and paint… after a little sweeping and mopping, that is.
• The GQ Guide to Suits
• What in the Hell is happening in this Bears-Cowboy game!? Three Four Five INTs?!
• Birchbox Men.  ‘Nuff said.
• The VW Passat commercial with Rush’s Fly By Night in it makes me chuckle. Every. Time.

That’s good for now.

Namaste.

Sunday – 30 September 2012
It’s been “a while” since I posted. Huh. And with that out of the way, on with the show.

The girls of TeamDiVa are doing well.

Vanessa (l) and Diana

They are walking – with gusto – everywhere. At least, everywhere that we let them go. And, their stair-climbing prowess has increased, as well. We also introduced them to Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back last night. It was a brief introduction, about 5 minutes. Granted, it was the first five minutes of the movie – meaning, it was also possibly the slowest five minutes – but they did okay.  I’m not entirely sure that it was enough to engage them fully at this age. We might try again in six or so months.

I’ve also learned that both the #TeamDiva tag and @TeamDiva on Twitter refer to people that aren’t TeamDiVa… especially as Twitter doesn’t differentiate between capital and lower-case letters. With that in mind, Twitter posts referring to the twins will be designated #TeamDiVa2011.

A couple of weeks ago, I Sara!, the girls and I visited the Urban Flea Market:

It was much smaller than most flea markets I’ve been to, fitting into less than half of a business parking lot. At the first stall – The. Very. First. One. – that we passed, I found a few things that I could not leave the market without:  A Bachmann Norfolk & Western Class J 4-8-2 engine and tender, a Tyco B&O 4-6-2 Pacific engine and tender, a pair of B&O diesel engines I can’t completely identify (possibly SD-60s, but I’m not sure) and five B&O passenger cars. The only “problem” was that they are all HO Scale, which is “Half-O,” which makes them half the size that I usually collect.

Of course, that didn’t stop me from bringing them home.

Seriously. Would I have these pictures if I didn’t?

BAM.

I’m still giving serious thought to making a two-sided door layout, with these trains on one side and Marklin European trains on the other.

And that reminds me: The train room is days away from completion. The last coat of topping compound was applied on Friday. It’s getting sanded tomorrow. After that, it’s down to sweeping and paint.  (And deciding what I want to do for flooring.) But everything else is ready. I’ll post pictures soon. It looks amazing. And I’m pretty excited about being able to set up and run my trains again.

And with that, I’m out.

Namaste.

Thursday – 23 August 2012
Man, I turn my back on this thing for a minute… and nearly two weeks go by!

To make up for it, here’s a little Team DiVa goodness for you:

Vanessa (l) and Diana

Yep, they’re in overalls that their grandparents bought them – and have been waiting for them to grow into – a few months ago. What you can’t exactly tell is that they are also wearing matching/coordinating t-shirts that their Aunt Galadriel bought them: Diana’s says “Copy,” where Vanessa’s says “Paste.”

These shirts, in fact.

The girls are doing well. Diana’s has trying out the whole “walking” thing; Vanessa has taken steps, as well… just not as frequently (or as daringly) as her big sister. They are also learning some sign language. So far, the big hits have been:

• “Change,” as in “change your diaper” (although, we don’t get this one until after we ask if they need a change…)
• “Water”
• “Ball” has picked up some traction lately
• and a sign that Vanessa has come up with for “excuse me,” which she seems to have picked up from something I do when I say it.

And, at this point, we are slightly over two weeks away from them turning one-year-old. Wow.

Sidenote 1: Last night, I started teaching the girls to shake their fists and scowl – although, so far, I’ve only getting smiles and smirks – when I say “DOOOM!”  It’s pretty amusing.

Sidenote 2: I totally missed an opportunity to video Diana rocking out to Rage Against the Machine’s Renegades of Funk. BAH!!!

Stray Toasters

• The Ravens came up with a big win in Preseason Week three tonight. 48-17 over the Jags.
• The train room is coming along nicely. Walls are up and mudded. Ceiling went up – and was mudded – this past weekend. Just need to go back and sand and add a coat of topping compound on the ceiling… and then we’re ready for painting!
• Vote for Robot Hall of Fame 2012 inductees
• Wow.
• I’ve been enjoying the new Sunday Ticket commercials with Deion Sanders and the Manning brothers.
• The Single Most Important Object in the Global Economy
• Starship Troopers: Invasion.  Uh, riiiiiight.
• It seems that there’s some… static… between Paul Ryan and Twisted Sister over the use of We’re Not Going to Take It on the campaign trail. Okay, help me with a concept: How hard is it to call a band – or their designated agent – and ask permission to use it before making it part of your media presentation!? It’s not rocket surgery, is it?
• ‘Wiki Weapon Project’ Aims To Create A Gun Anyone Can 3D-Print At Home’

Okay, off to do some gaming, I think…

Namaste.

Thursday – 26 July 2012
It’s another NBN Thursday in the valley.

Were she alive, my maternal great-grandmother would have been 112 today.

Last night, Sara! and I watched In Time for Movie Date Night:

To be honest, it wasn’t bad. It reminded me quite a bit of Logan’s Run, but had enough of a twist to make – and keep – it interesting. I was also quite surprised to see [REDACTED], [REDACTED], and [REDACTED] in the movie, too.

Chew on This: Food for Thought – Adventures in Parenting
As a parent, I’m always happy when Diana and Vanessa hit developmental milestones. One such achievement happened a few months back when the girls figured out how to roll from their backs to their stomachs. Sara! and I were delighted at this… um… “turn of events.” However, as the girls started making other advancements, we seemed to forget about the rolling over. Until recently. The girls have taken it upon themselves to remind us just how big a deal that barrel rolls are…

…when we are changing their diapers.

Vanessa is especially adept at this. Just as you get the loaded diaper open and bear witness the havok within, she decides that it’s time to roll  to her left. This usually results in a lot of under-the-breath expletives. And the thought processes – and physical gymnastics – of “How do I keep this from getting on everything?!”

So far, nothing has gotten to the point where we’ve had to call in Damage Control or Utah Disaster Kleen-up, but there have been a couple of instances where it’s taken both of us to get from dirty diaper to a clean one.

But, they’re still cute kids and I wouldn’t trade the experience/adventure for anything.

Reading time is still reading time… even if your book is upside-down.

Stray Toasters

• In exactly two weeks, the Ravens’ preseason begins. Selah.
• If you’re in the Salt Lake Metro area this weekend and looking for something to do, you should check out the Salt City Steamfest:
  
• The Local Shop Where You Can Slice Through Six Inches of Anything
• Over the past few nights, Sara! and I have watched a few episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. It’s been entertaining, I must say.  Dated, sure… but kind of fun.
  • One of last night’s episodes was the series finale. It featured potential buyers coming to look at the Banks house. One couple was the Jeffersons –  yes, these Jeffersons– with the late Sherman Helmsley, who just passed away the other day. And, as much as I loved him as George Jefferson, I will forever remember him for this:

• Initial Designs for Captain America’s New Marvel NOW! Costume
• History of Optical Toys
• 
• Zynga Tanks as Market Worries ‘This Was a Fad’
• A wrinkle in space-time
• DC police chief announces shockingly reasonable cell camera policy
  • DC cops snatch camera, keep memory card one day after promising to stop
• 
• Easter Eggs Are Back in OS X
• Paper Passion…. um, yeah.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 11 July 2012
It’s 7/11…

…which means that it’s Slurpee Day at your local 7-Eleven.
…which means free mini-Slurpees at your local 7-Eleven.
…which means… Oh, Hell.  If I have to spell it out for you, then what’s the point!?

It’s also new comics – and new ‘Clix – day.

And, as if all of that wasn’t enough, it’s Movie Date Night, too.

Triple score!

Stray Toasters

• 10 Things Most Americans Don’t Know About America, by way of Melissa
• Sunday, 15 July 2012, is National Ice Cream Day. Celebrate accordingly.
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Piranha Used as Scissors
• Could We Build Star Trek‘s Starship Enterprise?
• This is easily my favorite song from Clockwork Angels:
  
• African Robotics Network (AFRON) 10 Dollar Robot Design Challenge
• This poster goes on The Covet List.
• GQ Rules: It’s Your Pocket, Rock It
• Lullaby, the latest Spenser book is out. I should read it.
• A Guide to Electronic Music

Namaste.

Tuesday – 19 June 2012
This morning, Sector 2814 (at least the portion of it that contains our living room) is being protected by two members of the Justice League:

Vanessa, as a rookie Green Lantern

Diana, as Batgirl-in-Training (complete with her own… um… Bat-saucer)

Shortly after these pictures were taken, the mini-Leaguers decided to do some combat training (also known as: “Using Daddy as a climbing toy”). Since they are both cruising – and not always wanting to go in the same direction – this taxed my abilities to keep both of them in arm’s reach. Fortunately, Bonne was here to help keep up with them.

Stray Toasters

• As China’s First Woman Sits in Space, Sally Ride Celebrates the 29th Anniversary of Her Mission
  • Space Vechicles, to scale
• New Hits Needed; Apply to NPR
• Q&A: Rush’s Alex Lifeson on ‘Clockwork’ Tour Setlist, Hall of Fame Prospects
• 
• This Robotic Finger Is More Sensitive Than Yours
• This makes me smile. It was silly and contrived, but I loved it.
• Sci-Fi Film Favorites Get Pulp Cover Make-Overs
• 
• Electronics Retailers Scramble to Adapt to Changing Market
• Microsoft Breaks Tradition with Microsoft Surface Tablets

Namaste.

Sunday – 17 June 2012
It’s my first Father’s Day. And, so far, it’s been quite good.

I’d like to wish a “Happy Father’s Day” to the fathers out there, as well.

The day started with Team DiVa waking up at 7:00. It was slightly earlier than I had wanted to get up, but that’s the way it goes with twin-fants. That was followed by breakfast and play time, which translates (roughly) as: “Climb all over Mommy and Daddy Time.” But, they are cute. And learning to walk:

…so that helps make it a lot more bearable. (And, despite the workout, it’s fun.)

I’m not sure what the middle of the day holds, but I’m hoping for a trip to the Garden of Sweden.  This evening, we’re having Sara!’s parents over for dinner. And tonight, there may be some gaming: I’ve had an itch to play/finish LEGO: Batman.

Stray Toasters

• Living in the Past Is a Full-Time Gig
• Rodney King dead at 47
• The more I listen to Clockwork Angels, the more I like it.
• Cruise ship tour: A last look at the original ‘Love Boat’
• Learning from LEGO: Building Your Social Strategy
• Scientists discover evidence of Neanderthals being responsible for early cave paintings
• 
• ‘Caribbean: Crossroads of the World’ Spans 3 Museums
• Go Daddy, Danica Patrick going conservative
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: ‘Scary’ toilet paper coming soon to a stall near you
• Get Ready, Because Voyager I Is *This Close* to Leaving Our Solar System

Thursday – 14 June 2012
Not only is it another NBN Thursday in the valley, but today is also Flag Day.

In Team DiVa news: The girls apparently want to skip crawling and go straight to walking:

Vanessa (l) and Diana

They are “cruising,” where they’ll hold onto something and attempt to use it to toddle around. But, anything that makes a sound sometimes distracts them, which leads to a problem with that pesky “balance” thing that they haven’t managed to overcome yet… and most often winds up with a gravity-induced sitting down.

Diana will… pseudo-crawl… but that’s usually only under duress and/or to get closer to someone who will hopefully pick her up. Go figure.

Last night, Sara! (a.k.a. “She Who Still Rules”) and I watched John Carter (not to be confused with Coach Carter) for Movie Date Night.

I haven’t read Burroughs’ A Princess of Mars yet, so I don’t know how faithful or far afield the movie’s plot was from the source material. But, it was an enjoyable film. Yes, we did wind up MST3K-ing parts, but… *shrug*… what’re ya gonna do?

Stray Toasters

• Google Wants Love and 100 Other Things
• Rome’s famous Trevi fountain is crumbling
• How an 11-Year-Old Invented the Popsicle and Changed Summer Forever
• I believe that I have mentioned Little League on here before. For those who missed it, consider this your shot across the bow:
  
  And, I also recommend these strips (1,2,3,4,5), which lead up to the outfits seen above and are the basis for this post’s subject line.
• Girl Gets New Veins Made From Her Own Stem Cells
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file”: Cop dies during 3-way sex; widow wins $3M lawsuit
• Superman Mosaic… made out of LEGO bricks!
• And, speaking of LEGO and Superman: New ‘LEGO Batman 2’ Trailer Unveils Talking Characters, Snarky Superman
• 
• NASA’s Robo-Garden Is a Terra-Forming Trifecta
• ‘House Hunters’ houses aren’t always for sale?

Wednesday – 13 June 2012
Middle of the week means new comics and Pasta and Movie Date Night. I’m good with both of those.

Last night, I went to the gym with special guest star, Dave. He wanted to check out one of my upper body workouts, so we went through my chest and biceps workout. The full one:

• Elliptical: 10 minutes/1.05 miles
• Bench Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 135 lbs
• Incline Chest Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 120 lbs
• Shoulder Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 60 lbs
• Fly (machine): 3 sets/8 reps, 100 lbs
• Fly (dumbbell): 3 sets/8 reps, 20 lbs
• Curls (barbell): 3 sets/8 reps, 40 lbs
• Curls (dumbbell): 3 sets/8 reps, 25 lbs
• Wrist Curls (barbell): 40 lbs (approx)
• Reverse: 3 sets/15 reps
• Forward: 3 sets/15 reps
• Plank: 3 sets, 30 seconds

It was a good – and tiring – workout. But, it was also nice to have company while working out.

Stray Toasters

• Among the songs that Team Diva likes are:
• Mr. Bass Man, as performed by The Muppets
• The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana), theme from The Banana Splits Adventure Hour¹, which I used to watch (in reruns) as a kid.
  
• Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It (They can almost sing along with the “na-na-na-na-na-na-na” part of the chorus.)
• Sugar Sugar, by The Archies
• Burn Notice returns tomorrow.
• Trailer for crowd funded zombie web series: The Silent City
• While I’ve always had a soft spot for LEGO ads, I particularly like this ad campaign:

  
    

• New enery source for future medical implants: sugar
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Romanian gang attempt to rob moving truck
• By way of Dave: Luther Campbell fights to coach Miami Northwestern football
• What the Lines of a Red Solo Cup Actually Mean

Namaste.

¹ – The live-action parts of the first season of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour were directed by Richard Donner.  (Yes, that Richard Donner.)