Random Access

I was in a bit of an off mood last night, so I turned in a little early. It took me a while to nod off, but when I did, it was a decent night’s sleep. I had an odd dream, but I don’t remember details. *shrug*

I woke up at 7:52. Exactly.

I remember this because I looked at the clock when I woke up.

Why did I wake up? The neighbors were moving furniture. Figuratively speaking. “Moving furniture” has become our colloquialism for them having sex because their headboard is against our common wall. And they are apparently… active. VERY active. The board thumps against the wall. A lot. And I can only speculate what their downstairs neighbors (and OUR downstairs neighbors, for that matter) can hear.

This isn’t the first time that we’ve heard them:

• 3 AM *thump thump thump*
• 5-something PM (I came home early) *thump thump thump*
• Other early weekend mornings *thump thump thump*

It’s nice to know that they like each other. But I don’t really need the level of information/detail that they have provided. Especially when I am trying to sleep. Knocking/pounding on the walls doesn’t seem to dissuade them, either. I am sorely tempted to go over and ring their doorbell the next time I am roused from a deep and happy sleep. Or leave them a note suggesting pillows between the bed and the wall. Or something. (And I am open to suggestions.)

In case it wasn’t readily apparent, I was more than a little irritated. Not just because I had been awakened, but also because they woke up Jess… who had to work a different shift (tonight) due to the Columbus Day holiday. I managed to get back to sleep a little later. And no one (nor feline) was harmed.

I woke up in time to watch XME and part of Justice League (which was on that the same time). They introduced another former New Mutant from the comics – Danielle Moonstar, also known as Mirage. And they explained her power in an interesting way. Very well done.

After that, came over to help me suss out the ongoing clusterfuck that has been my SuSE Linux installation. After fighting with it for a bit, he convinced me to switch to a Gentoo distro. I can always build another computer to play with SuSE after I get more than just my feet wet with Linux… While the kernel has been compiling, I have introduced him to the joy that is HALO. I think he’s hooked. Yet another convert…

Tonight is bowling and breakfast. I can take out my pent-up frustration from this morning on inanimate objects other than Covenant forces. Although, that is also a good venting mechanism.

Speaking of which: Back to Covenant extermination.

Namaste.

Sammy said so.
And that’s good enough for me.

I’ve mentioned that and I have rather random conversations. Part of those conversations include sharing what we are listening to. To my knowledge, today was the first day that the following has happened:

[12:54] is listening to Seether – Veruca Salt
[12:54] : NO.
[12:54] * ShadorunrWORK is listening to Veruca Salt – Seether
[12:54] : BWAHAHAHAHAH
[12:54] : OMG
[12:54] : That’s hysterical
[12:54] : serendipity at it’s best
[12:54] : Indeed.
[12:55] : I must say what good taste you have. 😉
[12:55] : And you as well, milady. 🙂

Thursday
Work.
Home.
Relax.

NPR/PRI Stories
All Things Considered: Navajos in Tibet
All Things Considered: Racy ‘Avenue Q’ Draws a Crowd
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbspAvenue Q
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbspMore behind-the-scenes info
Talk of the Nation: Justice in the Media Glare
Talk of the Nation: Philadelphia Mayor’s Office Bugged
Talk of the Nation: TSA’s Collection of Confiscated Items

Many a traveler has made it to the front of the security line at the airport only to have some small, pointy object taken away by Transportation Safety Agency personnel. What becomes of all those nail clippers, tweezers and pocket knives? The TSA’s Chris Rahatigan joins guest host Korva Coleman to talk about their collection of confiscated goods.

NOTE: Friday on Fresh Air: Crime novelist Denis Lehane (Mystic River)

Stray Toasters

• I decided to check my blood pressure using one of the machines at ShopKo while picking up a few things there tonight. The results:
  

  Systolic: 138
  Diastolic: 86
  Pulse: 78

  All in the “normal” ranges.

• shared this eBay gem with me this afternoon.
• The face of the new $20 bill.
  

• Engrish!
• Wonderful musical goodness on Usenet…

Rant of the Day
I was shown a person’s post where that person was, and I quote, “throwing a temper tantrum” because he couldn’t go see the opening night Lord of the Rings trilogy viewing due to:

1. The ticket ordering website wasn’t working
2. “Only” a half-hour intermission between films, which means that he can’t go get something to eat
3. No midnight showing on opening night and he would have to be there from 1PM until 2AM which, along with the above reason, is bad because he is diabetic and “and popcorn and candy isn’t going to cut it…”

I count the third item as the only semi-valid argument. I will explain why it’s only “semi-valid” in a moment. My counterpoints are as follows:

1. The box office is open. Get your ticket the old-fashioned way: Go there and get it. (I think a lack of vehicle was mentioned… but, from what I understand, the city has a very good mass transit system.)
2. Half-hour intermission. The priority here should be using the restroom. With theatres full of LotR fans, it may take that long. As far as getting something to eat…
3. No midnight showing? Screws up the “opening night tradition?” Suck it up and go at the time that they are showing it. As far as food goes: Take a backpack and put a lunch bag/cooler in it. Don’t want something to get too warm? Most lunch bags come with reusable ice gel packs. Take all the food/snacks/necessities you need in the backpack. Plan out what to take and what you would need to make sure that your blood sugar levels stay within acceptable limits. AND, taking your own food and snacks would probably wind up costing far less than buying snacks at the concession stands.

I grant that I might have overlooked something, but these arguments/answers were blatantly obvious. (Actually, the first thought that came to mind was: You’re an adult. Act like it and think!!!) Thank you. Move along.

And now, The Dreaming awaits…

Namaste.

Wednesday
Three down, two in the chamber.

Post-work was coffee night. Tonight, we returned to the Jitterbug… it’s been a while since we’d been there. When and I walked in, Bruce (the owner) looked up and said: “Uh-oh… here comes trouble.” And laughed. Have I mentioned that I like this place? I do. Robert, , Beth, Steve and Larry showed up over the next few minutes. We sat, ate, drank, talked… and did crossword puzzles.

While I was getting something at the counter, Fly By Night came on the radio. I started to sing/hum/whistle along with it. shared something with the group at this point – something that I wasn’t even aware of:

There are mornings when a Rush song will be on the radio when the alarm goes off. These are mornings that I will lay there and listen to the song before getting up and staring my pre-work preparations. I often drum on the mattress to the beat of the song. This I knew…

There are some mornings when I start to nod off and lightly doze while listening to the song. And on these mornings, I apparently play air guitar in my semi-conscious state. This I did not know.

We got a laugh out of this.

NPR/PRI Stories
Bill O’Reilly, of the Fox News Channel show The O’Reilly Factor, was the guest on today’s Fresh Air. Terry Gross was talking with him about his new book, Who’s Looking Out for You? The interview was going well… until roughly forty-five minutes into the show. O’Reilly then accused Ms. Gross of “…a hatchet job…” and trying to defame him because she wanted to read comments of a review from People Magazine and because she was biased (“too lenient”) in an interview that she gave to Al Franken. He then walked out of the studio.

“Curiouser and curiouser,” said little Alice…

Stray Toasters

• Hallowe’en dilemma: Jonni is performing at the SLC Hard Rock Cafe for their annual Freaker’s Ball. is having a party that night, too. I want to go to m3l’s party; but I haven’t seen Jonni play in a long time. I need to do figure out how to attend both shindigs. Or clone myself. Or find a DeLorean with a Flux Capacitor…
• MORE construction on Redwood Road. *twitch*
• Blue Skies Over Dundalk Salt Lake City
• I discovered some interesting mixed songs last night on Usenet. Among them:
  • Girls Aloud and Madonna
  • Pink and Elvis Presley
  • Shaggy and Odyssey (a 70s band)
  • Black Eyed Peas and Natalie Imbruglia

  Quite interesting, indeed.

• I actually picked up – and played – my bass for a little bit tonight.

Poll of the Day

Namaste.

NOTE TO SELF: When fixing a bowl of cereal, look for the cereal box on top of the fridge and not in the freezer. Your search results will be greatly improved.

Stray Toasters

• Governor Schwarzenegger. Hmm. This should be an interesting next three years in the Golden State. While I have not been a fan of all the hoopla and hullabaloo of the “Total Recall” election, I hope that he proves to be a capable governor and wish him well in this endeavor.

  And… for those who were curious: According to the U.S. Constitution, he can not run for President (nor for Vice President).

  Officer Qualifications and Terms of Office

  Only natural born citizens shall be eligible for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States who are at least 35 years of age and have resided within the United States for at least 14 years. No person constitutionally ineligible to hold the office of President shall be eligible to hold the office of Vice President. United States Constitution, Article 2, Section 1 and Amendment 12

  The 4 year terms of office for President and Vice President of the United States begin at noon on January 20 following the date of election.

• The latest picture of Thomas Jane as Frank Castle (The Punisher) looks pretty good. Hopefully, this movie will purge all memories of the Dolph Lundgren film.
• By way of : ReOdorant
• A big bag of cotton candy would be nice right now.

Back to the grind…

…is not “Folgers in your cup,” no matter what the commercials say.

Yesterday, I sent an email to my uncle and my friend, Bret – both of whom are Pittsburgh Steelers fans. The email:

I didn’t watch any games today since it was Baltimore’s bye week.

So, imagine my surprise when I turn on SportsCenter last night and
see that a certain Steeltown team dropped a game… to the Browns!

THE BROWNS!?!

At this rate, my boys can just sit back and relax this season… and let your team give us the division title.

I got a simple response from my uncle yesterday afternoon:

thanks for the update….

the Steel Curtain is a little rusty…
but we will MAKE THE PLAYOFFS……I’m NOT WORRIED YET!!!!!!!!
well maybe a little….
next Sunday is our debut for the second half of the season….

Simple. Direct. Typical response from my uncle.

I got Bret’s response this morning:

forget you punk

Today is my father’s birthday.

If anyone would like to send him a vicarious birthday greeting, leave a comment here and I’ll forward it along to him.

I was talking with about Eddie Izzard being tapped to play the next Doctor Who (article here). This made me think about the series The Tomorrow People. Thanks to IMDb for having a little information on the show as well as a few quotes. This one stuck out:

John: I wonder if all those people who are desperate to see a close encounter of some kind have ever really thought about what it might mean.

Hsui Tai: What do you mean John?

John: Just think what happened to the African Negro and the American Indian when they came into contact with the Europeans who had more advanced technology. The Blacks were sold into slavery and the Indians almost wiped out.

Something to think about… after all, remember what happened in V?

After drawing, came home and then headed to Barnes & Noble for pre-movie hanging out. Browsed through a couple of magazines while chatting with and

We met up with at the theatre and saw School of Rock. The movie reminded me of Sister Act 2, in a couple of ways. It was fun.

After that, we had a post-movie snack at Cheers Village Inn. And, it was here that came up with…

Quote of the Day
: “Sayonara’s” Japanese?! I thought it was French!

Namaste.

Waking up with a headache – after a night where I did not have anything to drink – is not fun. Fortunately, it wasn’t a bad one. Since it’s the Raven’s bye week, I think I’ll head off to Borders and do some drawrin’. We likeses to drawr…

Quick Hits:

• For : Hitchhiker’s Guide Movie Greenlighted
• Dave Barry vs. the American Teleservices Association (you know… “telemarketers”)
• A Slashdotter’s review Bruce Campbell’s new movie: Bubba Ho-Tep

And with that… *BAMF*

…and it’s pretty damned good for people-watching, too!

This afternoon’s LAN party HALO GOOOD!!! ::: gesture :::

I came home, watched Cartoon Network (more on this in a minute), cooked dinner (steak, corn, rice in cream of mushroom soup) and went bowling (more on this, too).

• There was a new ep of Teen Titans tonight. In it, one could tell that Robin is definitely Batman’s protege. He was brooding, curt and very obsessed with catching the series’ incarnation of Deathstroke the Terminator (known only as ‘Slade,’ after the character’s name in the comic). It was a well-done episode. And, it threw in a rather curious curve at the end.
• Season Premiere of Justice League aired tonight, as well. It featured the introduction of a classic JLA villain and the appearance of a supporting character from Superman: The Animated Series. Another well-done show.
• I caught most of the episode of Rurouni Kenshin between Titans and League. The theme song, “Freckles” is… catchy. Like “song that gets stuck in your head” catchy. Even if you don’t know all of the words. Which I don’t. Yet, it remains…
• Bowling. There was a new DJ. He introduced something to the bowling experience that should have never seen the light of day (so to speak): Karaoke. *twitch* I like to bowl. I have found watching karaoke to be amusing. But the two are not necessarily “two great tastes that taste great together.” Hopefully, this will be a short-lived trend.

Quote of the Day
: I just want Cocks across my tits.

(Context: We have been discussing sports team names over the past couple of weeks and I had made note of the University of South Carolina Gamecocks… and the fact that they are often referred to simply as “The Cocks.” Tonight, at breakfast, there was a young man at the table next to ours wearing a U.S.C. hat; on the front of the hat, it said: ‘Cocks.’ wondered if jerseys were available that just said ‘Cocks,’ rather than ‘Gamecocks’ for the reason quoted above.)

Namaste.

“Rocket launcher, meet faceplate.”

And all was well.

The day has taken a major swing in a good direction:

• There is freely-flowing, brewed caffeinated beverage.
• My dad called a little while ago… to ask if I wanted a subscription to Sports Illustrated.
• megatokyo
• Confirmation of the HALO LAN tomorrow with and company.

The day is shaping up nicely.

The good thing is that it is Friday. Finally.

I was up later than I had intended, trying to get a (better) handle on CSS. It doesn’t look to bed nearly as difficult as I had previously thought.

I didn’t sleep well. Fitfully and with a few rather disconcerting dreams. It didn’t make for a pleasant awakening this morning.

Add to this the standard assortment of nuts rush hour Utah drivers… *sigh*

Given this start, the day can only get better.