Random Access

Monday : 20 February 2006
As today was President’s Day, I had the day off of work. Thus, I slept in. I had intended to get up early-ish… but not going to bed until 4:30 put the kibosh on that, at least for a couple of hours.

This evening, I had dinner with and her boys, in celebration of her oldest’s birthday. It was fun; I had a good time.

After that, it was on to ‘ for our D&D game. We got to our next point of conflict, but the action won’t kick in until our next session. We also picked up a new player: .

The Dark Trespasses of Dhoruba
This afternoon, I spent a few hours in The Rogue Isles with ‘ character, Giroux (1, 2). We left our calling cards (destruction, mayhem, terror and a growing pile of dead bodies) throughout Port Oakes and Cap au Diable. Sometimes, it feels good to take over the world rather than saving it. Today was one of those days.

I decided to make a few… changes to Dhoruba’s look – he looked too old for him to be Indigo Bolt’s younger brother. So, a trip to the tailor shop was in order. When I exited, I was much happier with the new, younger look (1, 2, 3, 4).

After that, we continued on our quest to dominate every Luddite, Gold Bricker, Wyvern and member of Arachnos that we could find. I now also have a personal dislike for the Mu Strikers. Along the way, I saw a sign for a local merchant. How could a person not want to shop there?!

Stray Toasters

• I caught a bit of The Olympic Winter Games this evening. I watched… but I didn’t feel compelled to watch. I’ve read about peoples’ apathy to this year’s games, but never really thought much of it until tonight.
• I like boomerangs, kites… and Aerobies.
• 12″ Mace Windu Action Figure
• how long till my soul gets it right
  can any human being
  ever reach that kind of light
  i call on the resting soul of galileo
  king of night vision
  king of insight

• From Space.com: NASA to Sideline Atlantis Orbiter by 2008
• “What’s in the can?”
  “Jazz.”

• 007 Craig Loses Teeth in Stunt
• : If I remember correctly, you might be interested in the watchmaker’s blog.
• Top 10 Strangest MP3 Players
• : Dynamite re-ups Army of Darkness
• Every Saga Has a Beginning… – a look at the comic book history of the Star Wars universe.

Namaste.

Sunday : 19 February 2006
It’s been a pretty laid back weekend. And that’s not a bad thing.

I saw a couple of movies with over the past two days: King Kong and The Terminal, neither of which I had seen before. I enjoyed them both; however, I agree with a coworker on the fact that King Kong was longer than it needed to be, filled with what we agree were some unnecessary scenes that did nothing to advance the plot. The Terminal was a good character-driven movie. I went back and listened to some archived stories from NPR programs about the movie’s release. During an early scene in the movie, where Tom Hanks’ character, Viktor Navorski, was standing in the middle of the terminal and trying to get someone – anyone – to help him understand/translate a newscast about his homeland, I was reminded of a line from Paul Simon’s You Can Call Me Al:

He doesn’t speak the language
He holds no currency
He is a foreign man
He is surrounded by the sound
The sound

While getting my week’s four-color reading material, I picked up a few pieces of plastic crack from the newly released “Collateral Damage” series. Chief among the new acquisitions are:

• Black Lightning
• Emerald Empress (an LSH villain)
• Shadow Lass (a Legionnaire)
• …and a unique figure: Kalibak (son of Darkseid).

I was rather happy with the haul.

I am also the proud owner of Fantastic Four, Mirrormask and Have You Heard: Jim Croce Live DVDs and The Original Cast Soundtrack of The Wiz.

And, as if all of that wasn’t enough: I was the recipient of the Marvel Comics 40 Years of X-Men DVD-ROM. Over 400 issues of the X-Men, from September 1963 through August 2005, including annuals. All in PDF format. *bliss*

Yep, it was a weekend chock full of comic-related goodness.

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt and “Sparky,” the Ball Lightning Wonder
Tonight, I went on patrol in Paragon City. I was invited to join a team taking on what I was originally told was a “Level 30-something” mission. I joined the team. And I then found out that it was really a “Level 40-something” mission. Fortunately, someone was able to sidekick me. We fought members of the Carnival of Shadows. Despite dying a couple of times, I was able to put a significant dent into my XP debt and the remaining points to get me to Level 30.

Stray Toasters

• I have Cadbury Creme Eggs.
• I’m ready for Spring (or Summer).
• Ms. sent me this video of DJ Keltech as Darth Vader doing… Oh, just watch this. (.wmv format)
• Former FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover… was an I Love Lucy fan? Yep.
• “No, Greg, believe it or not, the world doesn’t operate like World of Warcraft.” –
• Bad Samaritan family won’t return found expensive camera *boggle*

Quote of the Day / Unintentional Pron Overheard in a Restaurant
I went to breakfast with and her boys on Saturday. One of them brought his Toy Story Woody doll/figure/??? with him into the restaurant. While we were sitting there, talking, I noticed nearby movement out of the corner of my right eye. I turned to find the doll right next to my face, which prompted me to blurt out:

Oh, look! A faceful of Woody!

…before I had time to think about what was coming out of my mouth. It was rather amusing.

Namaste.

Saturday : 18 February 2006
It was a good day… even though it snowed for most of the day.

I slept in.
I had a relaxing day.
And now… I’m calling it a night.

Namaste.

Friday : 17 February 2006
Today was a pretty good day. Besides the fact that it was a Friday, it kicked off a three-day weekend. And that’s never a bad thing.

Post-work, there was Clitorati. I think that we had roughly 25 people there, all told; we had a good mix of people. That led to lots of different – and good – conversations.

The Nefarious Transgressions of Dhoruba
After Clitorati, I took a trip to the Rogue Isles and proceeded to break things. And people. It felt good. I hooked up with a couple of higher-level characters for a bit – that helped get me over the Threat Level 7 hump.

I’m tapped, so I’m calling it a night.

Namaste.

<groove>
     Santana (ft. Rob Thomas) – Smooth
</groove>

Thursday : 16 February 2006
It continued to snow last night. I finished shoveling the driveway and sidewalk (and one neighbor’s driveway and sidewalk) around 6:30 PM yesterday. By the time I left to go to play Call of Cthulhu, there was a fresh 2″ of snow on the ground. And driveway. And sidewalk. *sigh* When I woke up this morning, there was about 3 – 4″, total. This meant a very slow drive to work. I headed to the SLC office to get a few things. The drive normally takes about fifteen minutes, depending on traffic. Today, it took thirty-five. Given that, I wasn’t looking forward to the drive to Utah County. Fortunately, by the time I got underway, things had cleared up considerably. It still took a little longer than usual, but it wasn’t nearly as painful an experience as I had feared that it might be. And the trip home was relatively uneventful.

Random Access
Watch his every move
SUPERCONDUCTOR
Orchestrate illusions
SUPERCONDUCTOR
Watch his every move
SUPERCONDUCTOR
Hoping you’ll believe
Designing to deceive
That’s entertainment
     “Superconductor” by Rush (from the CD “Presto”)

One of the topics on Wednesday’s Talk of the Nation was: What Makes an Oscar-Winning Performance?… which led to the following conversation on IRC:

[13:38] They were talking about “What Makes an Academy Award-winning Performance” on Talk of the Nation.
[13:38] Specifically, actors in roles for which they were never nominated…. even though the acting was worthy of at least a nomination.
[13:39] Someone brought up Andy Serkis, who was the actor behind Gollum (Lord of the Rings) and King Kong (duh).
[13:39] Should he be able to be nominated for an award in the “Best Actor” or “Best Supporting Actor” categories?
[13:39] Shawn: make a new category like the MTV awards
[13:50] Interesting point… and one that someone here made, as well.
[13:51] Shawn: use that category for cgi people and voice actors in animated movies or something
[13:51] : I’m pretty sure that such a category may be created as more directors use digital enhancements for their actors.
[13:51] Shawn: but the gollum thing takes more because its not just voice
[13:52] : And, with King Kong, he *was* the “lead actor.”
[13:52] : …covered in mo-cap gear.

What’s your take on this?

Stray Toasters

• I’m not sure exactly what the problem is, but Trillian has been dropping messages. Chat windows will pop up, but they are occasionally empty. That’s not good.
• Something that is good: My new back massager. With heat. I may never leave my computer chair again.
• Morning Edition: Last U.S. MASH Unit Handed Over to Pakistan
• RIAA, MPAA, Others: Backups are not “Fair Use”
• From the L.A. Times: Bedrock of a Faith Is Jolted – DNA tests contradict Mormon scripture
  (I haven’t heard anything about this locally, but it will be interesting to see peoples’ reactions when word gets out…)

• Prostitutes Call for a Ban on GTA
  (“Curiouser and curiouser,” said little Alice…)

• This is the face of a man who just found out that his soon-to-be-former-favorite store is out of Afro Sheen. I really wouldn’t want to be the guy behind the counter.
• Today’s “Unintentional Porn Overheard at Work” : You take out the plug and I’ll squeeze.
• Will Apple Adopt Windows? – Interesting theory…
• Lionel Luthor knows?!
• : A Mutant, A Dragon, and Lotsa Ninjas
• The Most Popular Myths in Science
• Morning Edition: Batman Goes After Bin Laden
• Slightly A’Musing
• An Emissary Arrives – This May, Image’s Shadowline imprint releases a book that poses thequestion of how the real world we live in would react to an actualsuper-being.  And what if he were black?
• This part of WizKidz’ description of the Krypto HeroClix figure cracked me up:
  

  It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s a dog!

  If a dog is man’s best friend, then Superman will need a super dog – and that dog is Krypto. This is the post-Crisis Krypto, whose as loyal a dog as you could ever want – but unfortunately, only as smart as your standard beagle or golden retriever. Therefore, he’s not exactly a rocketscientist, but what he lacks in wits he makes up for in the fact that he’s a dog with teeth and claws and Super Strength.

• Babylon 5‘s Ambassador G’Kar Dies
• Galactica Finale Goes Long

Namaste.

Wednesday : 15 February 2006
The word of the day, boys and girls, is “snow.” We got – and are still getting – lots of it. It’s been snowing throughout the day and it looks as if we continue to get snow through at least tomorrow. Yay.

Tonight was Call of Cthulhu night. No one in our group died. Some of us lost a little sanity, though. Go figure. We still don’t have the total picture of what’s going on, but we do seem to be making some progress. (We’ll see how right I am at the next game session.)

Stray Toasters
::: Closed due to snow :::

Namaste.

<chair dance>
     Will Smith – Switch
     Outkast vs. Modjo – The Way You Move (remix)
</chair dance>

<groove>
     The Time – Jerk Out
     Rush – Leave That Thing Alone
     Living Colour – Glamour Boys
     Goldfrapp – Strict Machine
</groove>

How was your morning musical breakfast?

Tuesday : 14 February 2006
I didn’t sleep well last night, so getting up this morning was a bit onerous. But I did it. With the help of brew-before-you-go-to-work coffee. Once I got to work, I was alright. The day moved along nicely. Today’s workout was cut a little short, but it was a good one.

After work, however, the lack of sleep caught up to me… with a vengeance (but without Bruce Willis or Samuel L. Jackson). I sat down to watch a little television and was sound asleep within a few minutes. I woke up about two hours later. Having bid adieu to Morpheus and The Dreaming, I had dinner with ; we went to Z’Tejas. It was good; it had been a while since I had eaten there. I confused the waitress a bit when I ordered tea (“Earl Grey. Hot.”) with cream – she paused and blinked like she might have needed a reboot. She recovered, though.

Stray Toasters

• I chatted with for a bit this afternoon. He and the sister-unit seem to be well.
• Horizon to Horizon
  memory written on the wind
  Fading away, like an hourglass, grain by grain
  Swept away like voices in a hurricane
  In a vapor trail…

• There’s a new release of the Semagic LJ client.
• While looking at some messages on FreeCycle, I noticed that one poster, named Meagan, had an offer (for coupons from the Sunday paper *boggle*) and a request (for either a surround sound system or components of one). *blink blink* Maybe I missed something, but there seemed to be a big disparity between the two. I showed the posts to Eric, his response: “Meagan is a doofus, according to the official definition.” We looked up the definition, just to be sure. He was right.
• See you cowgirl,
  Someday, somewhere!

• Appreciation vs. Experience (according to )
• : Click here and here .
• Mirrormask is now out on DVD.
• Despite ‘s insistence, I’m not paying for anyone’s therapy as a result of viewing this.

Quote of the Day
is going on vacation. I informed him that there is a LEGO store near where he will be. I also asked if he’d mind picking up a couple of items for me. It went a little something like this:

[14:09] : So. lego store?
[14:09] : Hrm.
[14:09] : Pirate keychain.
[14:09] : *nod*
[14:09] : Oh, and a Darth Vader keychain.
[14:09] : oh yeah. lego keychains. YES.
[14:09] : Please.
[14:11] : pirate and vader keychains. got it.
[14:11] : pirate vader keychain!
[14:11] : Thanks!
[14:11] : Ooooh!
[14:12] : I couldn’t really think of anything else… unless you can figure out a way to get that 6′ tall Vader figure out of the store without attracting too much attention.
[14:12] : Or the giraffe.
[14:12] : “Luke! I am being ye father! ARRRRR! Search yer feelings lad, ye be knowing it to be true!” hmm. wait. that kind of went scottish didn’t it?
[14:13] : heh
[14:13] : But, it got the point across.
[14:13] : aye.
[14:14] : great. now i be stuck in some bastard scottish pirate accent.
[14:15] : heh
[14:16] : and i could probably get the 6′ vader out of the store.. it’s getting it on to the plane that would be entertaining.
[14:16] : Bastard scottish pirate accent…. behind a respirator.
[14:16] : “This is not the LEGO statue you are looking for. We are free to go about our business. Move along.”
[14:18] : I find ye lack of alcoholic beverages disturbin’
[14:19] : I’m in Utah County… and you expected alcohol? You’re kidding, right!?
[14:19] : Wait.
[14:19] : Let me put this into perspective.
[14:19] : But utah county is a dry planet!
[14:19] : I’m in Utah County… and I’m Black…. and you expected alcohol? You’re kidding, right!?
[14:20] : You just want me dead.
[14:20] : This proves it.
[14:20] : i pretty much always expect alcohol these days.
[14:21] : pour yourself another drink! complete your training! become one with the piratey dark side!
[14:22] : Nooooo! You’re not my bartender/captain/father! I’ll never join you!

I’m tapped.

Namaste.

<groove>
     Gorillaz – 19-2000 (soulchild remix) w/ the “Jamming with Edward” Cowboy Bebop video
     Rush – Show Don’t Tell
     MC Hammer – U Can’t Touch This
     No Doubt- Just a Girl
     Fatboy Slim – Weapon of Choice
</groove>

Monday : 13 February 2006
Today is/was my next-oldest sib’s 28th birthday.
I am reminded of the first time that I saw her in the hospital: She stuck her tongue out at me.
Sure, some would say “Oh, that’s just a newborn reflex or something.”
I’m pretty sure that it was planned.
Either way, she’s turned out to be a very nice young woman and someone whom I am happy to call my sister. (Most of the time.)¹

I stopped in the local office to pick up a few things before work. Of the three people whom I needed to see, only one was there. *sigh* So, I’ll have to stop in again on Thursday to get what I couldn’t get this morning. Oh na. The rest of the workday was pretty good… even if there wasn’t any kite-flying involved. (Must remember to take other kite to work…) There weren’t any fires to put out or any monkeys to punch. And, I got to talk comics for a few minutes with a coworker.

Post-work, I had dinner with and at Cafe Med. Then, there was a trip to Tech Mecca. I mean “Best Buy.” Then it was back home. Jiggety jig. A little later, I wound up going back out for a drive. Agitation. Irritation. Blah. By the time I got back, I felt a good bit better.

Stray Toasters

• I was listening to a Whitney Houston song on the radio this morning. (Yes, I freely admit this. In fact, I’ll even admit that her Whitney CD was the second CD I owned, bought for me by my late uncle.) It’s a shame that she – and her career – has fallen off the map… which I mostly attribute to getting drawn into the chaos whirlpool that surrounds Bobby Brown.
• : Since I’m not sure which one(s) I have posted, you get the covers to LSH #16, #17 and #18.
• In honor of St. Valentine’s Day I give you:
  • Boys Night Out Permission Slip
  • Girls Night Out Permission Slip
• comes out in two (2) days! (Figure Set)
• My Prerogative (Yeah, I know, I was giving Bobby crap earlier. *shrug* I like the song.)
• Can the VP Cheney shooting incident be used as the impetus for the development of cyberpunk-style smartgun links?
• Considering that I haven’t had any coffee since… roughly 3:00 or 4:00 PM, I am oddly wide awake.
• “Great Caesar’s Ghost!”
  

• From the “Ick!” file: Ice Machines Contain More Bacteria Than Toilet Bowl Water
• Why does this sound like part-Micronauts and part-Pluto Nash?

It’s well past bedtime.

Namaste.

¹ – Just kidding. She is a good person. And I love her. (Most of the time.)

Sunday : 12 February 2006
Sleeping in == good.
I slept until nearly noon this morning. Then I came down to the HCC and took a little time for…

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt and “Sparky,” the Ball Lightning Wonder –
I teamed up with Locutus Silens and we took on some Sky Raiders and members of the Freakshow in Terra Volta. We didn’t have to break as many heads (and glider wings and sky skiffs and cybernetic limbs) as I thought that we would. I think that we got our point across, however.

From there, we headed to Talos Island and headed to Pocket D, the “neutral zone” dance club for heroes and villains. We took on a mission to retrieve some data from The Council. Something that I neglected to remember: Some of the Council’s members are Werewolves (pic). And fighting them in close quarters is not necessarily something that you’d put under the heading of “fun.” Nevertheless, we completed the mission. The next Pocket D mission is one in which I’ll have to team up with a villain to retrieve an item from Arachnos. That should be interesting.

This afternoon, I helped create a spreadsheet so that she can track some data for work. It wasn’t a big to-do, but I can see that I need to work on my Excel skills. We also watched parts of The Little Rascals and The Replacements. (Whenever they showed Keanu Reeves, in The Replacements, I wanted to go “Whoa… I know football.”) The Little Rascals was cute. I remembered something while watching The Replacements: I was at a Ravens game in M&T Bank Stadium (then known as “PSINet Stadium”) when they shot some of the game scenes – they shot them during the NFL game’s halftime.

<< Rewind <<

I saw Curious George yesterday. It was a very cute movie. I don’t remember enough about the books to say this with authority, but I think that they took pieces from a few of the books – along with some new story material – to make up the movie. It did a good job of blending traditional 2-D animation with CGI. Will Farrell was Ted, “The Man in the Yellow Hat.” I’m not his biggest fan, but I liked him in the role; it seems as though the writers wrote the piece “for” him, as there were things that reminded me of some of his other characters’ quirks and idiosyncracies. And it had Dick Van Dyke, one of my favorite actors, too. I also really liked the Jack Johnson soundtrack. I give the movie a thumbs-up with an okay; it was fun. I’d even go see it again.

> Play >

Stray Toasters

• I am eating potato chips. Ruffles, to be precise. They are a far cry from what I thought I would have for a snack tonight. But, they are tasty.
• posted a link to World Press Photo’s Winners Gallery 2006 These photos are worthy of their awards. (Those of you on dial-up may not want to click here… but, if you do, the pictures are worth the wait.)
• “I am Jack’s raging bile duct.”
     – Narrator/Tyler Durden (Fight Club)

• Looking at this picture, and thinking about DC Comics’ “Big Three” (Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman), a strange thought came to mind: Superman is said to fight for “Truth, Justice and the American Way.” However, if you look at “The Big Three,” it could be said that each of them embodies an aspect of that:
  • Truth: Wonder Woman (She was once the Goddess of Truth; her lasso compels the truth from people)
  • Justice: Batman (Do I really need to go into this one?)
  • The American Way: Superman (Ditto.)
• Because did The Ten Commandments in ebonics, I had to do:
  

  //
  // The Ten Commandments
  //

  User = “Thou”;
  Deity = “God”;
  parent1 = “mother”;
  parent2 = “father”;
  parents = parent1 + parent2;
  User2 = “neighbor”;

  I == User’s Deity;

  1. User !other gods >= me;
  2. User !make graven image;
  3. User !take the name of the lord in vain;
  4. Observe the Sabbath Day == holy;
  5. if parent1 && parent2
         honor parents;

  6. User !murder;
  7. User !commit adultery;
  8. User !steal;
  9. User !bear false witness against User2;
  10. User !covet User2’s possessions;

• The NFC beat the AFC in the Pro Bowl? Must be another sign of the apocalypse…
• If you’re roughly my age, you’ll undoubtedly remember Transformers, the toy line and the cartoon. And, like many, you probably thought that it would be cool if there was actually a robot that could turn into a vehicle (and back again). Well, your wait is over. Kind of. Check out this video.
• – VP Cheney Accidentally Shoots Fellow Hunter
  (And then, there’s the boingboing.net take on things…)

• Maybe about the business U was worried
  Wasn’t ever filed in your name.
  Maybe the cartridge U was playin’
  Don’t fit in your video game.
  (This Prince moment was brought to you by the letters “G,” “O” and the number “23”)

• Logitech Wireless Music System for iPod
• “Ugh.”
  

• Pain heals. Chicks dig scars. Glory… lasts forever.
     – Shane Falco, Washington Sentinels’ Quarterback (The Replacements)

• – Web suicide pacts surge in Japan
• There’s a joke in this picture about Aquaman getting some tail, but I’m not going to make it.
  Oh, wait… I just did, didn’t I?
  Damn.

• Better living through video games?
• The NFC won. *sigh*

Namaste.

Saturday : 11 February 2006
I’m tired.
I’ll fill in the gaps tomorrow.

Namaste.

Friday : 10 February 2006
TGIF.

Work was good. And rather productive, too. Around 3:30, Eric and I decided to take advantage of a good wind and took our kites out for some air. (Yes, we keep kites in our desks.) I was using the kite that gave me. It kept turning to its right, first in tight turns… then just diving for the ground. *sigh* But, I did get a decent amount of air time with it.

I came home and spent a little time in the Rogue Isles, advancing Dhoruba’s nefarious career. Hmm. I should probably make a CoV icon…

Then, it was off to Clitorati. Small group, but good. I went all Confucius on this week’s crossword puzzle. From there, it was on to Cheers: North and then home… where I spent a little time patrolling Paragon City.

Stray Toasters

• I keep a box of Kleenex on my desk. I used one this afternoon and noticed that the next tissue in the box was a different color. My best guess was that they do that so that you’ll know that you’re rapidly approaching the end of the box of tissues.
• Posh kids’ clubhouse themed to look like a Li’l Raskals treehouse. *
• Hostlers Model Railroad Club is presenting The Hostlers Model Railroad Festival 2006 at the Union Station, in Ogden, on 03 – 04 March 2006.
• From Buzzscope: Comics You Should Own #11: The Crow
• Top 10 Career Advantages of ADD
• Another item from the “Humans Are Stupid” file: Burglar checks email
• For , , and : The video of the polar bear and the girl in the seal hat.
• It seems as though the Salt Lake Valley experienced a seismic event on Wednesday night.
• Hey!! That’s a neat design on your armor! What–
  

Quote of the Day:
From a mid-afternoon chat with

[14:08] : your social calendar is so packed, I can;t keep up with you
[14:08] : need a personal assistant?
[14:08] : *holds up Palm Pilot*
[14:09] : well, when that thing poops out, you just let me know
[14:09] : Now, a cabana boy…. or, even better: a cabana girl …. would be ideal.
[14:09] : k – I draw the line at thongs, though
[14:09] : no pun intended
[14:09] : I was thinking board or bermuda shorts
[14:10] : 2 – how do you feel about the XM2go gadget thinger
[14:10] : Dunno much about history….
[14:11] : Dunno much trigonometry….
[14:11] : Don’t know what a slide rule is for…
[14:11] : Or XM2GO for sure….
[14:11] : But I do know…
[14:11] : Wait.
[14:11] : We aren’t singing Sam Cooke songs, are we?
[14:11] : that was good, if not a weeeeeeee bit mildly retarded

And with that… Good night.

Namaste.