Random Access

Saturday – 22 December 2007
Last night’s Clitorati gathering was but good. And there was news: Land is moving. To Ohio. A couple of opportunities came up and he decided to dive in and take a chance. Best of luck to him. And, in a pleasant surprise: got my attention and pointed to another patron in the store. I turned, looked… took a moment to process…. and realized that we knew the person: Ghela, who used to work in the bookstore. She came over and chatted with us for a while; there’s a chance that she may join us occasionally.

Today started – as good Saturdays should – with breakfast, coffee and cartoons. Today’s episode of Legion of Super Heroes was the second part of “The Man from the Edge of Tomorrow,” which I hadn’t seen before. “New” episodes kick grass. The Batman was also a rerun, “The Joining, Part One,” which I had not seen all the way through. Win-Win.

After toonage was done, SaraRules and I did a little more shopping. Which included a trip to the Garden of Sweden. Selah. We also stopped to visit Kate, Perry and the kids. And I got to be the kids’ jungle gym for a bit. It was fun.

On to SaraRules’ parents’ place for dinner and to meet her sister, Melissa, who’s in town for Christmas. Dinner was lasagna (vegetarian) and salad. Post-dinner, we had homemade cookies and watched Corner Gas (1, 2) with a couple of friends of the family.

Stray Toasters

• I got a call from both of the ‘rents today:
  • Mom called to say that my gift was on its way
  • Dad called to say that they had received their gifts.
• Darkwood Armory
• 
• Universities with the Best Free Online Courses
• pointed out the Faber-Castell Grip 2001 pencils. Nice.
• How To: Prevent Lost Luggage
• …speaking of which: Sky Shirts

Quote of the Day
From onlyaly, at last night’s Clitorati:

“From wet beaver to hot nuts…”

Namaste.

Friday – 21 December 2007
Another work week draws nigh to a close.

Last night’s storm dumped between four and eight inches of snow in most of the valley. For comparison, take a look at pictures taken yesterday, just before the storm hit, and today. It also made for some long and treacherous commutes last night and this morning: The Utah Highway Patrol had logged over 200 accidents by 10:00 AM. The Council for Better Driving would like to take this opportunity to remind motorists of Rule #1.

I was supposed to go and play dolls HeroClix with Chris last night. After the 4-mile/35-minute commute, I took that option right off the table. Instead, I stayed at home and watched CSI:, Without a Trace and episodes of Coupling with SaraRules. We even had hot chocolate and biscotti (one of her parents’ neighbors made it… and it was GOOD!).

I talked with and Don a little while ago. They are doing well, as are their boys. also related an amusing story:

A short while ago, was reading my blog. Their older son, who is six-years-old, was reading, alongside her. She got to this post… and the “I’m so happy…” picture.

Their son saw the picture and started trying to spell out the word he didn’t know.

And couldn’t understand why Mom – who quickly clicked away from the page – wouldn’t help him sound it out.

The answer came back as: “That’s a word for big people, dear.”

That’s right: I’m corrupting my Godchildren from across the country… using the wondrous power of the Interweb! As I told Don: “That’s what Godparents are for!” (SaraRules, however, disagrees with me on this point.)

Stray Toasters
Maybe later.

Namaste.

Thursday – 20 December 2007
Last night, SaraRules and I traipsed about town polishing off some more of my (last-minute) Christmas shopping. We were mostly-successful. There are a couple of places I need to check for four things, but I think I’ll be fine. After shopping, we headed to Olive Garden for dinner, which was good. They have removed one of my favorite dishes (Chicken Vino Bianco), so I had to try something a little different. I went with the Tuscan Garlic Chicken… which, aside from the pasta, was very similar to the Chicken Vino Bianco. Win-win. Back home for a few more episodes of Coupling (British version). One word: “Inferno.”

This morning started off overcast, but the sun has put in an appearance… along with some traces of blue sky. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that. Add to that the fact that I have been able to work out of the SLC office and today is shaping up to be a good NBN Thursday. *nod*

Human of the Day
Co-Humans: and for pointing out the OS X update that fixed the problem of the locking-up keyboard for the BlacBook.

Stray Toasters

• I picked up the Christmas cards today. They turned out well. Local cards are going to be distributed by hand; cards bound for the coast should go out tonight or tomorning and (God willing and the creek don’t rise) should get to their destinations by Monday.
• In a related note: I have to hand it to FedEx/Kinkos for doing a nice job with the cards. I’m still not overly enthused by the fact that their site requires the use of Internet Exploder, though.
• I managed to leave home without my phone this morning.
  I went home at lunch to drop some things off and – in theory – to get my phone.
  I managed to leave home without my phone this afternoon, too.
  (Oddly, I’m not really missing it…)
• New Justice League: The New Frontier trailer
• I ran into ‘s mother while running errands at lunch. That was a pleasant surprise.
• Stan Lee interview
• 
• During yesterday’s lunchtime run to Dr. Volt’s, I fed my plastic crack addiction. I picked up a couple of boxes of the Origin boosters. In one of the boxes I got Supergirl (veteran), bringing my plastic Legion one figure closer to completion…
• …and, speaking of ‘Clix, check out the new “Buy It by the Brick” promotional figure.
• The Giggle Loop
• The Salt Lake Valley is about to get hit with a pretty big storm. Here are a few office window pics, including a west-facing one to show the grey doom – full of Mother Nature’s frozen mocking laughter – heading our way. (The red glow in the pictures is not nuclear doom. Nor is it a nucular toonami. It is the reflection of the flash on the glass.)
• Science Tattoos (a Flickr set)

Quote of the Day
This morning, I got a message from Coworker Brett (on the right in this picture), who is in the Washington, D.C. area:

Brett: I thought about you the other day… as I was walking around a mall in Prince George. I thought, “This must be what Rob feels like in Utah Valley Mall.”
Me: And that’s why I don’t go to malls in Utah Valley.

It was a good – and amusing – way to kick off the work day.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 19 December 2007
Mid-week and all is well. The clouds over the valley are breaking up… a little. It’s Sushi Wednesday. And it’s new comic book day.

Last night, I had dinner with SaraRules and her family. Before I jetted off to and ‘s for game night, SaraRules handed me a gift. *blink blink* I looked at her and said,”But… it’s not Christmas, yet.” She smiled and told me that it wasn’t a Christmas gift… so open it! And I did. It was a copy of the DVD for Stardust, the first movie we saw together. It doubly surprised me, as I wasn’t aware that the DVD had been released.

On to game night! The game was a little slow – mostly because we, as a group, weren’t exactly sure how to proceed with a couple of things. But, half of us did manage to get our collective recta beat down and handed to us at one point. Not pretty. And, I was reminded that my character was not built to be a fighter. Not by any stretch of the imagination. My spec is more “the face,” the fast-talking social chameleon. So, getting into combat isn’t exactly in my best interests. But, we survived. And lived to adventure another day.

This morning, letting go of the bed was hard to do. So I put it off as long as possible. So far, it’s been a good day. Can’t complain about that.

Stray Toasters

• I got a message from the action man: “I’m happy, hope you’re happy, too…” my father a little while ago: The present for my stepmom arrived this morning. Now to get Dad and Rana’s presents in the system…
• Coworker Jan told me today’s Sven and Ole joke; he’s my go-to guy for my daily dose of Sven and Ole (and/or Ole and Lena) jokes. I mentioned that I had talked with Adam a few days ago and that he was loving (/sarcasm) his current post… a post that Jan was up for when he was deciding whether or not to join/stay in the Air Force.
• NASA has a Stargate
• I love it when you’re on a tech support call and you’re (in theory) being transferred to another department… and they drop the call. >.<
• When did Trekkies jump the shark?
• Why not Minot?
  Reason: It’s Freezin’.
• Ten Habits of Highly Successful Brains
• 

  (You can watch the new trailer here.)

• Recap of 2007’s “12 Gizmos of Christmas”
• From the “Big Brother is watching you” file: Chicago police ask you to report people using maps or taking notes in public
• There’s a rumour that Marlon Wayans is either up for or interested in the role of Heavy Duty in the upcoming G.I. Joe movie. That scares me. My pick would be Michael Clarke Duncan. Hands down. No, wait… I was thinking of Roadblock. Yeah… MCD for Roadblock, not Heavy Duty. Okay, I’m better now.
• The ten most entertaining tech videos of 2007
• “Server… Server… No… Server…”

Namaste.

Tuesday – 18 December 2007
Last night, SaraRules and I had dinner with her family, including an aunt and uncle who stopped by on their way to visit family in Idaho. It was a nice way to spend the evening.

So far, it’s been a good day. In the words of the boys from Liverpool: “Nothing to get hung about.” The lunchtime workout included:

• Bench Pres: 3 sets/8reps, 225 lbs.
• Nautilus Cable Fly: 3 sets/10 reps, 110 lbs (hold for 10 seconds on 10th rep, each set)
• Tricep Extension (Rope): 3 sets/15 reps, 80 lbs
• Tricep Press: 3 sets/10 reps, 6 plates (60 lbs?)
• Overhead Tricep Extension (Dumbbell): 3 sets/12 reps, 35 lbs

I tried – operative word: “tried” – 300 lbs on the bench press again today. The problem was that I tried it after I had already done my three normal sets. Needless to say, the bar didn’t move. Oh, well… there’s always Thursday.
And tonight is game night; we moved it up a week as Christmas is next week.

Stray Toasters

• I have been reading – and enjoying – Hundred Dollar Baby, one of the newer Spenser novels.
• Brisa 2000 Fan Looks Crazy, Does the Job in Steampunk Style
• I managed to catch the Matriarch online… AND chat with her.
• bn.com and amazon.com == online shopping goodness
• PS3 Game Developer Claims to Have Crossed Uncanny Valley
• 
• Woman gropes mall Santa
• : Click here.
• For the Futurama and beer-loving fan in your life: Beer-Brewing Bender
• The Galactically Hot Women of Star Trek: TOS
• 
• I’ve found yet another something to add to the Covet List.

Namaste.

Monday – 17 December 2007
A new week begins.

Last night, SaraRules and I had dinner with her family. And watched football. And trimmed their tree. And watched part of Reign of Fire. Okay, to be fair, I should probably say “MST2K-ed part of Reign of Fire.”

Amusing sidenote: We had barely taken off our coats and sat down (my seat wasn’t even warm yet!) when Mother-of-SaraRules asked me: “So what happened to your team!?” Ah, the joys of having your #1 team lose to your #2 team… and having a girlfriend whose family enjoys watching football.

Later, we headed back to the apartment and watched Mallrats, which I had never seen. I liked it. And, being a comic book geek, it spoke my language. Thanks to Tyranist for letting me borrow it.

This morning, I headed to the SLC office and had the quandary of “Do I really want to go to AF today?” Then I remembered that I had a test to set up in the AF office. The “choice” at that point became academic.

Stray Toasters

• I finished arranging the artwork for my Christmas card last night. I would have sent it for online printing then… but the FedEx-Kinkos site only works with Internet Exploder. Bastiches!
• I talked with Rana earlier; she and the tadpole are doing well.
• Congratulations to and Don on the arrival of their new baby!
• God bless the Interweb! Christmas shopping + shipping == hotness!
• Last week, RadioWest rebroadcast an interview with John Ronson, author of Them: Adventures with Extremists.
• I have been trying to find a particular style of hat for the past few months. The search would have been much easier had I known the name of the style of hat. This weekend, I found both the name and a place from which I can order it. Selah.
• 
• I borrowed Cat on a Hot Tin Roof from Coworker Eric. I’ve seen parts of it before; I’m looking forward to seeing it in its entirety.
• I know that it’s geeky as all Hell, but part of me wouldn’t mind having one of these.
• From the “What’s Playing in Rob’s Head” Network:
  • Rock Lobster, from the B52’s
  • 1-2-3-4, from Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine
• Deryni

And that’s that.

Namaste.

From a conversation with about today’s Ravens – Dolphins game:

: O.o
: Howdy.
: your poor team…
: What are you talking about?!
My poor team FINALLY won a game.
My GOOD team sucks ass, however.
: bwahahah

Saturday – 15 December 2007
Last night, rather than the usual Clitorati gathering, a few of us headed to and onlyaly’s for “Nightmare before Christmas” movie night. But we didn’t watch The Nightmare Before Christmas – they were just co-opting the name to have a pre-Christmas horror movie night. Instead, we watched Alien and 28 Days Later. (And, watching onlyaly jump at the scary bits was almost as entertaining as watching the movies.)

Another lazy (so far) day in the valley. It’s not going to stay lazy though, I have errands to run and shopping to do, both online and in brick-and-mortar stores. Oh, well… no rest for the wicked. The morning has been nice, though. Despite an early morning tug from the Leash (yep, it’s once again my week to be on-call), the morning has been rather quiet. There were cartoons and coffee and SaraRules made sauteed pasta for breakfast. Today’s episode of LSH was a rerun, but The Batman was new.

Time to get a wiggle on… lots to do and whatnot.

Veni, Scribi, Vroom!
“I came, I wrote, I’m a vapor trail!”

Namaste.

Friday – 14 December 2007
Yep. It’s a Friday. And I am having… difficulty… staying/getting/maintaining focus(ed) on work.

SaraRules got in last night. On her way to SLC, she met me at the AF office and hung out with Tyranist, Derek, Dwim, Eric and me for a few. Then we braved the elements – and the road monkeys – and headed home. As it was cold and we we didn’t feel like foraging, it was a pizza night. God bless online ordering. We watched TV, ate pizza and chilled.

This morning, I ignored the alarm and slept in a bit. Jason called to find out which office I would be working in today (SLC) and ask if I wanted a bagel for breakfast. I told him I’d meet him at the local Einstein Brothers. They make a mean ham-and-cheese bagel omelette. I also stopped next door at the Beans & Brews for a cup of espresso-laden frozen mocha goodness. Then, on to the cotton fields…

Chew on This: Food for Thought
I was chatting with earlier and he asked me a question for which I didn’t have an immediate answer. I told him that I’d have to chat with the S.O. and get back to him:

me: Hmm. I may. I’ll talk it over with the S.O.
everydave: nog
me: X.O. Not sure if she quite qualifies as C.O.
<ponder>
everydave: ? commanding officer?
me: Yeah.
XO == executive officer (First Officer)
And I can’t recall what the abbreviation for Second Officer is.
…but I’m looking it up.
everydave: gotcha
SO is then significant officer?
me: Yes.
everydave: you’ve got some weird military fetish going on…and I’m not sure I’m comfortable with that, being a pacifist and all
me: Well, “Other,” but both apply/fit.

So, that raises the following questions:

• In relating to one’s significant other in military terms, would they be C.O or X.O.?
• And should a person take into account that “X” or “ex-” is not necessarily an attribute that should be applied to one’s current sig-other? And/or because of that, should the S.O. just be brevetted to “C.O.” in order to avoid any possible issues/complications.

Just wondering…
Stray Toasters

• I think that Derek’s training is coming along nicely – He not only made a pilgrimage to the Garden of Sweden… he made a video of it:
  
• Handbrake
• Have you voted for – or added a suggestion for – your favorite Chocolate Jesus Crunchies slogan?
• From Gizmodo: Rockstar Wii Mod Starts Manhunt for Classy Consoles
• just got new silver hotness… and had it delivered to the office. Many of us have drooled over it.
• Speaking of which: Check out the new Apple Mac ad: Santa Claus
• Inside the Baxter Building
• From BoingBoing: US official threatens employees with magic
• Village Hat Shop, home of the Hat Blog

Namaste.

Thursday – 13 December 2007
This morning started a bit oddly. My alarm went off at 6:20 and I promptly turned it off. I wasn’t in a rush to get up and on the way, so I laid in bed for a while. I drifted in and out of sleep for the next little bit. While zonin in and out, I had a dream wherein I walked out of the bedroom and turned the corner to find that I had left the front door unlocked and open overnight. And I couldn’t tell if someone had snuck in.

I woke up a little disconcerted. I also managed to drift off again…

…and had another – different – door open overnight dream.

…and, again, woke up a bit out of sorts.

Maybe I should rename the day from “No Bad News Thursday” to “No Bad Dream Thursday.”

I did some minor straightening up this morning, to make up for the complete lack of cleaning last night. There are still some things that need a little more attention, but at least I can see a little progress.

Today’s workout, after being out of the gym for a week, was… work. Like Big Daddy Kane, I got the job done, but it took considerable effort in a couple of spots:

• Bench Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 225 lbs.
• Cable Row: 3 sets/15 reps, 100 lbs.
• Incline Press: 3 sets/10 reps, 135 lbs.
• Bent-over Row: 3 sets/12 reps, 35 lbs.
• Decline Press: 3 sets/10 reps, 135 lbs.
• Push-ups: 2 sets, 15 reps/10 reps

Some of them were not pretty – and my arms were burning when I was done – but it was a good workout.
Stray Toasters

• shockpuppet and I are having (too much) fun with Chocolate Jesus Crunchies. Click the link and check out the mock-up she did for the cereal box.
• Road monkeys! BAH!
• By way of : Discovering the Gifted Ex-Child
• 
• Finder + Cover Flow = hotness
• <rant>
  

  I work with a number of HIGHLY intelligent people. Sometimes, however, I wonder how smart they are. Case in point: Either earlier this week or late last week, a couple of them informed me that we were out of engineeing/lab notebooks. I told them that I’d submit an order for them. As of this morning, they haven’t been delivered.

  Ordinarily, I would think that this is a non-problem: There are plenty of other sources of paper (other notebooks/pads, printer paper, etc.) in the office that can be used as tide-me-overs.

  But, what do I find in my email inbox as soon as I get in?

  “Both [monkey-yet-to-be-renumbered] and I are looking for engineering lab notebooks. Any word on these?”

  And I got the following email from monkey-yet-to-be-renumbered:

  “Can we place an order for them?”
  (followed by ordering information)

  I realize that people have affinities for certain items. But…

  • …if said item isn’t available/on-hand
  • …AND if someone has already said that the order would be placed for the item
  • …AND that someone hasn’t said anything about the item having been delivered

  …doesn’t it stand to reason that you should find a workaround until it gets there? Seems perfectly logical to me.

  But, maybe that’s just me. Maybe it’s Maybelline.

  </rant>

• Knight Rider storms back, new K.I.T.T. showcased
• UPS turns to software to cut down on left-hand turns
• It’s snowing again.

Namaste.

Wednesday: Coda
shockpuppet and I came up with a new cereal idea over lunch this afternoon, Chocolate Jesus Crunchies: Chocolate crosses, chocolate-coated fiber crowns o’ thorns and marshmallow apostles. Part of a nutritious – and righteous – breakfast! And, Ms. shockpuppet even came up with few slogans:

• “enough sugar to raise YOU from the dead!”
• “only your dentist will grant you salvation!”
• “forget the loaves and fishes, we’ve got chocolate and marshmallows!”
• “turns the milk wine red!”
• “each box is only 6 pieces of silver!”
• “have whatever you want for your last supper, but have Chocolate Jesus Crunchies for your final breakfast!”
• “you’ll rend your own cloak, they taste so good!”
• “if you don’t buy Chocolate Jesus Crunchies, you’ll be forsaken by God!”

We’re deciding which one we like best (and coming up with others). We’re also taking votes/suggestions.

The post-work day has gone somewhat as planned and somewhat not as planned. But, it’s been good. I haven’t gotten nearly as much cleaning done as I had hoped, nor have I played City… but I’ve had a quiet and relaxing evening:

• I read this week’s four-color goodness, which I picked up at lunch this afternoon.
• I watched a couple of episodes of Law & Order: SVU
• I watched DS9. (How long has it been since I’ve seen an episode of the Sisko Show?!)
• I watched Seven Days.

Lazy? You bet. Fun? Quite so.

Quotes of the Day
Quote Number One comes from last night’s gaming session:

: God of Sodomy!? I want to dip my balls in it!

Quote Number Two comes from some of the post-lunch brainstorming that shockpuppet and I did:

shockpuppet: so i’m thinking it should be based off this
http://static.flickr.com/68/191828260_6a7f80e8f7_o.jpg
pretty much, imagine that the rabbit is jesus
http://www.cerealbits.com/jim/count_mystery_front.jpg
this guy looks like a one-night-stand
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1022/1465967803_dedfc55f05.jpg
me: Porn Star Count Chocula
shockpuppet: totally. he’s sick
me: Kind of like when Aunt Jemima got a makeover a few years back. Not quite from Mammy to MILF, but closer.
shockpuppet: haha awesome

Amen.

Wednesday – 12 December 2007
Another cold day in the valley.

Last night’s Scion game was fun. And, just for the record: It’s much easier to play a game – or at least to know what your character is capable of doing – when you have your character sheet with you. Last night, I even had a backup: I had the .pdf version and the paper character sheet.

After the game, I went home and fought with technology: ‘Nine has an ATI 9600 All-in-Wonder video card in it. With such a card, I should be able to run a coax line from the cable jack into the card and… watch TV. The operative word in the previous sentence is: “should.” Instead, ‘Nine keeps giving me the finger driver errors. Between uninstalling drivers, downloading drivers, rebooting and testing, I think that I spent a couple of hours trying to find a workable configuration. The operative word in that sentence is: “trying.” But, I have nothing but time and opportunity… and the nigh-limitless knowledge of the Interweb… available to me. I shall prevail.

This morning, I partook of an ancient ritual known as “sleeping in.” It was good. After observing the hygiene rituals and deciding on today’s attire, I was on my way. The way that led to the door of the Giver of Frozen Mocha Goodness. And then, on to work! The day has been good: I put in a suggestion for some test hardware and am putting together a small, two-system network for a Windows Server 2003 test environment.

Tonight, I need to do some cleaning and then I think that I will save the world… or at least Paragon City.

Stray Toasters

• Today == Wednesday
  • A == New Comic Book Day
  • B == Sushi Wednesday
    • I had Ika, California and Seattle rolls today.
  • A + B = C
  • C == Happy Rob
• Chocolate Jesus Crunchies – the official cereal of Pope Groovalicious
• James Bond Films for the George W. Bush Era
• In going between OS X (Defiant) and WinXP (DS9), I keep having to remember on which side of application windows to look for the maxmize, minimize and close buttons.
• Terry Pratchett has rare, early-onset Alzheimer’s
• Catch a falling star and
  Put it in your pocket
  Save it for a rainy day
• US soul pioneer Ike Turner dies
• 
• The 5 Users You’d Meet in Hell
• Stupid Technology Tricks of 2007

And that’s a wrap.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 11 December 2007
After staying up FAR later than I should have (assembling new IKEA goodness), it was a slow-to-start morning. Since I had to be nominally bright-eyed and/or bushy-tailed for an 8:00 training class, I set three different alarms: the clock, my cell phone and the iPod.

• The clock was immediately shut-off, as soon as the alarm sounded.
• The phone was ignored. Well, not really “ignored,” so much as “I wonder how long it will keep beeping before the alarm turns off?” (After about a thirty to forty seconds, it seems.)
• The iPod was listened to… until the phone alarm went off again.

I got up and started the day. The hygiene rituals were observed. Clothes were found and put on. I got on my way. Of course, along the way I stopped for a bagel omelette and some frozen mocha goodness. And then, training class. Monotonous speaker. Zzz. Good thing I had triple shot-laden caffeination to get me through.

I took a couple of pictures from the window next to my cube, just to show what part of the SLC valley looks like in all of its almost-Winter wonderland goodness. Have I mentioned just how easy iPhoto makes putting together a web gallery? Cake. Free cake, even. Mm-hmm, that’s right. It’s just that easy.

Stray Toasters

• I’m going home for lunch today. Cheap, easy… and that way, I get to be there when the cable guy shows up. Triple win.
• Borg quotes
• I missed this episode; I haven’t really kept up with the new season of Family Guy, to be honest. But, a tip of the hat and a wave of the cane to for pointing out this picture:

  

• What your CEO drives says about the dude

Time to run. More later.

Namaste.

Sunday – 09 December 2007
This morning started, as Sundays often do, with coffee and comics. As an added bonus, SaraRules and I woke up with post-flip cup headaches. Fortunately, we had remembered to drink water before bed (although, apparently not quite as much as we should have), so they weren’t as hellacious as they could have been. Speaking of which, pictures of some of the antics can be seen here.

The rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out and watching football. In the early evening, SaraRules and I – along with Steve and Josh – headed to a holiday party at the home of the Dean of the College of Performing and Visual Arts. I didn’t know a lot (read: “most”) of the people there, but there were a few familiar faces. We had talked about going to a performance of The Messiah, but when we got in from the party, we found that going back out just wasn’t really in the cards. Instead, we are watching the Ravens take a world-class beatdown from the Colts.

Tomorrow, back to the work-a-day grind.

Namaste.

Saturday – 08 December 2007
Ahhh… another lazy Saturday morning.

The drive down was wet and rainy… until I got down near Beaver. It was snowing heading into and out of Beaver, but not in Beaver. Go figure. And, the other drivers actually drove with a modicum of care and common sense. The Council for Better Driving would definitely have approved of their behavior.

Last night, we went to see Steph perform in Student Dance Concert: Breaking Bounds. There were thirteen pieces; Steph danced in six of them. Most of the pieces were good, although there were a few… um… “not so great” ones. After the Concert, SaraRules and I came back and watched Smokin’ Aces. I didn’t really know what to expect, but I enjoyed it.

This morning started with breakfast, coffee and (of course) cartoons. Today’s episode of Legion of Super-Heroes was a rebroadcast of “The Karate Kid.” The Batman, however, was new: “Ring Toss,” featuring Green Lantern (Hal Jordan). The episode also had Sinestro, and they did a good take on him. The addition of The Penguin was, in my opinion, something of a throw-away, but what are you gonna do? Kim and Steph came in and watched ‘toons with us and then we switched over to What Not to Wear: Mail Call. THAT was amusing.

Nothing really on-tap for the afternoon, but we are heading to see A Christmas Carol: On the Air this evening. After that, I believe that we are having a flip cup competition. Should make for a fun and… interesting… night.

Stray Toasters

• I think that I have a potentially viable workaround for Christmas travel. Now to see if the other people involved will comply…
• Well, it’s been rumoured for a while, but it seems as though it’s moved out of the “rumour” category and moved into the “it’s really going to happen” category: End of the Line for CompUSA.
• 
• Steampunk gift guide and Steampunk Anthology
• sent me links to Dog Armor and Squirrel Armor… and the first think that came to mind was: “Man, I bet SCA geeks would love something like this! Now their pets can share in the fun with them!”
• From Something Awful’s Photoshop Phriday: Pop-Up Books
• Dark Horse Comics will present Serenity: Better Days, a 3-issue comic series, in 2008. The story will be written by Joss Whedon.

Quote of the Day
From Stacy London to a participant on this morning’s What Not to Wear:

You look like you’re trying to compete with 18-year-olds… but 18-year-olds always win, because they’re 18!

This met with a lot of laughter from everyone in the room.

Namaste.