Union Pacific's Great Excursion Adventure

“Ain’t no living in a perfect world…”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, everyday glory, family and friends, games, geekery, house and home, music, news and info, office antics, science and technology, toys, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?!, workout No Comments »

Thursday – 10 June 2010
Happy birthday to my kid sister, Kristen!

I say “kid sister,” as opposed to “little sister,” because she’s about 4″ taller than me. Because of our age difference, there was a LOT of friction between us when she was a toddler. (Most of which was due to me not wanting to have to deal with a younger sister… but some of which was due to her being a holy terror.) She has, however, grown up to become a lovely young woman and one I’m very happy and proud to have as my sister.

As for NBN Thursday, this one has been shot. Apparently, it was shot somewhere around 0600 this morning… but I didn’t realize it until almost 0830. We had a fairly major hardware issue at work. Thus, did the scramble begin for rectifying the situation. (Not to be confused with Situation.) At this point the recovery process is under way and things should hopefully be back to “normal” in fairly short order.

After work last night, I mowed the lawn as part of “Bachelor Night #2.” As I was finishing up the front lawn, my father-in-law stopped by. He was coming to offer some advice/insight for handling a couple of projects in the basement. After he left, I went back to mowing, racing an impending thunderstorm. I managed to finish both the front and back yards without getting electrocuted. After that, I realized that I was hungry… but wasn’t sure what I wanted to eat. I wound up making spaghetti. Hey… comfort food, go figure. After a rather late dinner, I set about painting a wall in the family room. I went with one of the short walls — it had the least amount of obstruction and pre-painting prep work to do. I checked it this morning; it looks pretty good.

Workout
Yesterday’s step count: 6303

…and I’m fairly sure that there’s some calories burned in mowing the lawn, too.

Stray Toasters

  • The day has gone from overcast (with scattered drizzle) to partly cloudy/sunny. Hopefully, it’s not too naive to hope that the weather is a good augury for the rest of not-NBN Thursday.
  • Blackhawks foil Flyers in OT to win first Stanley Cup since 1961
  • Maybe it’s just me, but this sounds like an excellent marriage compromise:

  • I had a random idea yesterday: Why not see what comics were out in my birth month. More specifically: See what titles that I currently read had issues out at that time, buy a copy and frame it. I checked The Comic Book Database and noticed that they had a “Search by Cover Date” option. I put in my birthdate and let the CBDB go to work. It found a number of issues, but I found one that caught my attention: An issue of Green Lantern. Next stop, eBay. I found a number of sellers who had the issue… many of whom had it for a rather reasonable price. So, I bought one. Now, I just need to figure out where it’s going to go.
  • Stop-motion paper Super Mario Brothers
  • AT&T Discloses iPad Security Breach
  • I need to remember to make a flier for next weekend’s ‘Clix tourney…
  • The Vader Project
  • MAME (not Mame)… on my Evo?  Really?  Hm…
  • That reminded me of Was (not Was):
  • By way of and the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: US sex-for-tickets woman sentenced to year’s probation
    My question: Had she done this in Nevada, would it have been legal? (Short answer: “No.”)
  • NuPenny Toy Store in Portland, Maine

Namaste.

“You’ve been hit by… you been hit by a smooth criminal!”

comics and animation, dining and cuisine, everyday glory, food for thought, geekery, movies and TV, music, news and info, office antics, science and technology, style, workout, zombies 1 Comment »

Friday – 04 June 2010
It’s my 9/80 “on” day.
And I technically1 have The Leash this week.
Today is also National Doughnut Day; I brought in doughnuts for the team – or those of us who are here – today.

Last night, SaraRules and I headed up to Dr. Volt’s, so I could get this week’s four-color paper crack. It was a light week and, with Green Lantern-like willpower, I avoided “supplementing” my haul with miscellaneous/extraneous goodies. After that, we headed over to the local Cafe Zupas for dinner… where I was treated to a rather pleasant surprise: Vivi (who used to be our favorite waitress-turned-manager at Applebee’s) is that location’s manager. It had been at least…. two years, probably closer to three… since I’d seen her.

After dinner, we headed home and hung out. SaraRules quilted; I started putting things away in my office. She was more successful at being productive than I was, but I made some progress. I took a break from working on the office at 2300 to watch the summer season premiere of Burn Notice. It was a good episode and has set up a potentially interesting arc for this season.

Workout
Yesterday’s step count: 3857 steps

Stray Toasters

Namaste.

1 – “Technically,” because we’re trying something different: We’re forwarding the system notifications to our individual cell phones, rather than carrying the on-call phone and our personal phones.

“Look! Up in the sky…!”

comics and animation, everyday glory, geekery, movies and TV, music, news and info, science and technology, sports, toys, travel, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?!, workout No Comments »

Thursday – 03 June 2010
Good NBN Comics Thursday to all.

Despite every intention to do so, I didn’t get a nap yesterday afternoon. That worked out alright, as I managed to make it to bed at a decent (for me) hour… and slept pretty much until the alarm went off at 0630. Of course, this means that I didn’t make it to the gym this morning. S’okay, I needed the rest.

Workout
Yesterday’s step count: 6104 steps

Stray Toasters

Namaste.

“I’m walking into spiderwebs…”

arts and leisure, books, comics and animation, dining and cuisine, everyday glory, family and friends, games, geekery, house and home, IKEA, movies and TV, music, news and info, science and technology, toys No Comments »

01 June 2010
Welcome, June.
May is now in the rearview mirror.
Let’s hope that it takes the wintry weather with it…

Yesterday, while relaxing was also productive: The lawn was mowed. The garden was worked on. The trim in the sitting room was cleaned up (No more red paint!). And, my office was painted. Not only that, our excursion to The Garden of Sweden netted me a new desk/drawing table.

We also had dinner with the in-laws yesterday. Grilled steaks with sweet potatoes and yams, salad and fresh corn-on-the-cob. Dessert was brownies with ice cream.

All-in-all, it was a good day.

Workout
Yesterday’s step count: 2948 steps
Of course, I neglected to wear the pedometer while I was mowing the lawn yesterday.  *sigh*

Stray Toasters

Attack the day
Like birds of prey…

Namaste.

“Everybody wants to pass as cats…”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, cyberpunk/steampunk, everyday glory, history, movies and TV, news and info, science and technology, travel, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?!, workout No Comments »

Friday – 28 May 2010
It’s my 9/80 day off. Amen.

Not only that, but the day has been nominally productive so far. I woke up a little before SaraRules headed to work. I thought about having a spot of breakfast, but didn’t… for whatever reason. After she left, I did my best impression of a cat and sprawled on the sitting room floor, in a pool of sunlight. It felt good. Next thing I know, I’d lost an hour. (Oh, well… that’s what days off are for.) I got up, did a load of laundry and then did something that I haven’t done in “far too long.”

I went to the gym.

That’s right, I went to the gym. I’ve discovered over the years that I prefer working out with someone, but I’m not completely averse to going alone. I’ve also discovered that not going to the gym for a month or so means that you have to work back up to where you used to be. But… I went to the gym. I worked out. And it was good. Selah. Not only that, but I ran into former coworker, Josh, there; so I have a witness that I was actually there and doing stuff.

Back home for a shower and shave and a bite to eat. In a little bit, SaraRules’ mother is coming over and we’re heading down to the new Hobby Lobby.  (Yeah, I know: It’s a hard-knock life to have to go to Hobby Lobby on your day off…)

Not sure what the rest of the afternoon holds, but there’s Clitorati tonight.

Workout
Yesterday’s step count: 2019 steps.

Today’s workout consisted of:

  • Elliptical: 10 minutes, avg. speed ~5.5 MPH
  • Sit-ups (incline): 3 sets/20 reps
  • Bench Press: 3 sets/10 reps
    • 2 sets @ 185 lbs
    • 1 set @ 135 lbs
  • Compound Row: 3 sets/10 reps, 125 lbs
  • Curls (dumbbell): 3 sets/10 reps, 20 lbs
  • Tricep Press (overhead, dumbbell): 3 sets/10 reps, 40 lbs

The workout was good… and tiring. I think that I might have to back off on some of the weights a bit, until I get back into the swing of things. But, that’s okay. I have nothing but time, air and opportunity.

Stray Toasters

Bonne’s here… and we’re off!

Namaste.

“Ground Control to Major Tom… commencing countdown, engines on…”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, dining and cuisine, everyday glory, movies and TV, science and technology, travel No Comments »

Friday – 21 May 2010
It’s not my 9/80 Friday off…

…but as of the end of work yesterday, I’m on a mini-vacation for the next four days. And later this morning, SaraRules and I will be winging my way east.

Last night was fairly low-key. Dinner.  TV (Fringe – I called the twist at the end before the reveal). And packing. And a little more TV.

Workout
I apparently put in a few more steps than I thought yesterday: 5139 steps.

Stray Toasters

Namaste.

“The good guys dress in black, remember that…”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, dining and cuisine, everyday glory, food for thought, geekery, history, music, news and info, science and technology, toys, travel, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?!, workout No Comments »

Thursday – 20 May 2010
This week’s NBN Thursday has kicked off with a mixture of clouds and sun… although the sun seems to be winning out.

Last night, SaraRules and I opted to take the easy way out for dinner and let someone else do the cooking. We settled on Pawit’s Royale Thai. Good call on our parts. The food was very good and quite satisfying. The later evening was spent relaxing — quilting for SaraRules, reading this week’s rather good four-color haul for me.

Workout
Yesterday’s step total: 3189 steps.

Stray Toasters

Just have to get through the workday grind and by this time tomorrow, we’ll be on our way to the Right Coast. Selah.

Namaste.

“Alone, and bored, on a 30th Century night…”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, dining and cuisine, everyday glory, family and friends, games, geekery, movies and TV, music, news and info, science and technology, sports, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?!, zombies No Comments »

Wednesday – 19 May 2010
It’s Comics and Sushi Wednesday.
This means that…

…hits shelves today. Finally.

Last night, Chris came over and we played more HALO 3: ODST. And it was good… unless you were a Covenant warrior. In that case, life was neither good nor long. We also talked ‘Clix and a few other games, too.

Workout
Yesterday was a slow day for walking: 3201 steps.

Stray Toasters

And that’s a wrap.

Namaste.

“Hush, hush, keep it down now… Voices carry.”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, everyday glory, family and friends, food for thought, games, geekery, house and home, LEGO and Rokenbok, music, news and info, science and technology, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?!, workout No Comments »

Tuesday – 18 May 2010
Not many of the leaves are brown, but the sky is grey.

Today is my cousin, Ryan’s, birthday:

I remember when you weren't so disturbingly old

Last night, SaraRules fixed Sloppy Joes for dinner. Very tasty!  After dinner, we went for a walk around the neighborhood; we covered roughly 1.67 miles in about 40 minutes. While out, we checked out some of our neighbors’ lawns and landscapes for ideas that we might like to employ in our own yard.

Upon returning home, SaraRules put in some time quilting, while I set about wiring a wall plate in the family room for coax and Ethernet. I noticed something just before I started running the wires: The Ethernet cable I was using was the 568a configuration… a variation which I had never made. Once I figured out which of the strands were different, wiring the plate was pretty easy. I apparently did it right, as the 360 found Xbox Live without too much ado. We wrapped up the evening with an episode of Human Target and some ice cream.

Chew on This: Food for Thought
There are many wonderful things to be done, and only you can do them.

Workout
Last night’s walk helped keep up the step total: 6,318 steps.

I’m going to try to get back into the gym next week, after we get back from the Right Coast.  We’ll see how that goes.

Stray Toasters

Namaste.

“The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, dining and cuisine, everyday glory, family and friends, games, house and home, movies and TV, news and info, science and technology, style, workout, zombies No Comments »

Thursday – 13 May 2010
An NBN Thursday that starts with… sun?!
I should check to make sure that this isn’t Oz.

Last night, SaraRules and I went out for dinner to Outback Steakhouse. (Mmm. prime rib and cheese fries…) After dinner, we headed downtown to meet up with Josh, Michael and Miranda, who are up from Cedar for an arts conference. We went to Settebello for gelato and coffee. Next, SaraRules and I stopped by the in-laws’ for a few minutes.

This morning, I stopped to pick up loonybin88 – in town to help with a work project – from dropping his car off at the garage. On the way to the office, I drove him by the house, as he hadn’t seen it yet. I went to throw some trash away and noticed about 3 yards of coax cable in the garbage can.

Õ,ô ?!?

I didn’t think too much about it at the time, other than John might have – for whatever reason – tossed some of the extra cable he ran for the neighbor’s job in our can. Okay, no big deal. I gave loonybin88 the nickel tour of the house and backyard. And that’s when I saw it:

A new coil of coax at the end of the line that goes from the service node into the house.

Unless The Cable Fairy paid us an unexpected visit yesterday, I can only assume that John ran the new line Tuesday evening so that we just need to have a new splice done tomorrow. (At least “tomorrow, in theory…”)

Workout
While not a “workout,” per se, I joined the zaibatsu’s “Shape Up” fitness challenge a couple of weeks ago. It officially started this past Monday… right in the middle of me being sick. Yay. Yesterday, I remembered to wear the pedometer that accompanied the program’s information packet.

Over the course of the day, I walked 5,132 steps.

Like I said, “not a ‘workout,’ per se,” but it’s a start.

Stray Toasters

On to the grind.

Namaste.

Ezekiel 25:17

arts and leisure, comics and animation, everyday glory, food for thought, geekery, history, LEGO and Rokenbok, monkeys!, music, news and info, science and technology No Comments »

Tuesday – 11 May 2010
It’s another rainy day in the Valley. And, it’s cold. Okay, maybe not “cold,” but it’s definitely cooler than I would have hoped for in mid-May.

Post-work yesterday, I headed home to see if there had been any sign of activity on Comcast’s part. Nope. I called the local office – again – to attempt to get more clarification. Stephanie, the CSR with whom I spoke, is the first person – in two weeks – to actually inform me of the following:

  1. The date they give for line burials is a tentative date. The actual service date could be anywhere from a few days before the date to a week or so after the date.
  2. The people who come out to do the digging are not Comcast employees; they are contractors.

I was “a little” stunned by this information… and wished that I had known it a week-and-a-half ago. It would have saved me a lot of time and aggravation.

I also found something that pretty much sums up how I feel about Comcast and their “service” at this point:

Jules: Oh, man, I will never forgive your ass for this shit. This is some fucked-up repugnant shit.
Vincent: Jules, did you ever hear the philosophy that once a man admits that he’s wrong that he is immediately forgiven for all wrongdoings? Have you ever heard that?
Jules: Get the fuck out my face with that shit! The motherfucker that said that shit never had to pick up itty-bitty pieces of skull on account of your dumb ass.
Vincent: I got a threshold, Jules. I got a threshold for the abuse that I will take. Now, right now, I’m a fuckin’ race car, right, and you got me the red. And I’m just sayin’, I’m just sayin’ that it’s fuckin’ dangerous to have a race car in the fuckin’ red. That’s all. I could blow.
Jules: Oh! Oh! You ready to blow?
Vincent: Yeah, I’m ready to blow.
Jules: Well, I’m a mushroom-cloud-layin’ motherfucker, motherfucker! Every time my fingers touch brain, I’m Superfly T.N.T., I’m the Guns of the Navarone! IN FACT, WHAT THE FUCK AM I DOIN’ IN THE BACK? YOU’RE THE MOTHERFUCKER WHO SHOULD BE ON BRAIN DETAIL!

Yep. That’s it, in a nutshell.

After the Comcast conversation, I headed down to visit Kate, Perry and the kids. They were doing well. Then, Perry, his oldest son and I snuck off to the new Hobby Lobby. Their model railroading section wasn’t as robust as the South Jordan store – which isn’t too beefy itself – but I think they just need a little time to get all their ducks in a row.

The rest of the evening was rather laid-back and uneventful.

Stray Toasters

The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers…

Namaste.

“That which does not kill me…”

arts and leisure, comics and animation, everyday glory, food for thought, games, geekery, music, news and info, office antics, politics and law, science and technology, style, zombies No Comments »

Thursday – 06 May 2010
This NBN Thursday finds me feeling much better than I was feeling yesterday. By the time I left work, my sore throat had invited its friends “aching,” “lethargy” and “weakness” to come over for a visit. When I got home – after a rather abbreviated trip to Dr. Volt’s – I was only too happy to soak in a tub of hot water and read a few items from the day’s four-color haul. After dinner, I spent the better part of the evening in bed. I slept for a couple of hours. I read more comics. I medicated. I hydrated.

This morning, I feel about 90-95% of baseline normal. This is a good thing.

Stray Toasters

Namaste.

May Day! May Day! (But not in the ’emergency’ kind of way.)

arts and leisure, comics and animation, everyday glory, family and friends, music No Comments »

Saturday – 01 May 2010
It’s the First of May., which also means that it’s May Day.

It’s also my friend, Bret’s, birthday:

I remember when you weren't so disturbingly old

It is also Free Comic Book Day.

And, tonight, I’m going to see The Temptations and Utah Symphony with SaraRules and the in-laws.

Add all of those things up, shake well, serve chilled.

Namaste.

“And so we commence…”

comics and animation, everyday glory, games, geekery, house and home 1 Comment »

Friday – 30 April 2010
Mother Nature apparently couldn’t resist one more joke: There have been flurries in the area today. Go figure.

As of 1100 this morning, SaraRules and I no longer have any ties with our now-former apartment complex. I went over to finish vacuuming and remove a few extra boxes from the move around 1000. After a final sweep of the apartment, I headed to the leasing office and handed over the keys. All things being equal, I don’t really have many bad things to say about the complex.  I’d even recommend it to someone looking for an apartment. But, as far as we’re concerned, it’s in the rear-view mirror.

Stray Toasters

  • As yet, I haven’t received a third call from Comcast collections. Maybe – just maybe – I won’t hear from them until the 11th, after all.
  • Free Comic Book Day is tomorrow.  For more information and find a local comic shop in your area is, go to http://www.freecomicbookday.com
  • WizKids has announced their upcoming Web of Spider-Man HeroClix set.
  • Insert something witty here.
  • Insert something witty here, too.

Off to see if I can’t find some trouble to get into before heading to Clitorati.

Namaste.

Notes from an NBN Thursday morning

arts and leisure, books, comics and animation, everyday glory, geekery, LEGO and Rokenbok, monkeys!, movies and TV, news and info, politics and law, science and technology, travel No Comments »

Thursday – 29 April 2010
It’s another NBN Thursday morning.

Happy Birthday to Beckley, Joe and Lars:

You don't look a day over whatever age you were a few years ago

It was snowing when I woke up this morning.
Yes, I know it’s almost May.
Apparently, Mother Nature cares naught for such petty human concerns.

Stray Toasters

It’s almost meeting time. Again.

Namaste.