Random Access

Saturday – 11 June 2011
Yesterday was my youngest sister’s birthday:

Yesterday was also my 9/80 day off. And it was a good day. I started with a short trip to the gym. (This is almost getting to be a habit…)

• Elliptical: 15 minutes, ~5.75 MPH pace
• Bench press: 3 sets/8 reps — 2 sets @ 135, 1 set @ 155
• Curls (dumbbells, seated): 3 sets/10 reps, 25 lbs
• Shoulder Press (dumbbells, seated): 3 sets/10 reps, 35 lbs
• Compound Row: 3 sets/10 reps, 125 lbs.

Back home to get cleaned up and then I was off to Porcupine Pub and Grille for lunch with my friend, Emily. We’d not seen each other in a couple of years, so there was a fair bit of catching up to do. Next I popped in to say “Hi” to and .

Then… it was off to meet SaraRules! for another appointment with her doctor. Only, the doctor was “out,” as she got called to the hospital to deliver a baby. So, we met with a nurse instead. She checked on the babies and gave us a thumbs-up on their progress.

I made it back home (by way of The Train Shoppe) and played a bit of Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters before we went out to meet the usual suspects for Clitorati.

This morning, following a series of disturbing dreams and fitful sleep, I found myself awake at 0630. Rather than toss and turn in bed, I made my way to the couch and watched TV. I actually got to see The Rifleman (1, 2) for the first time in ages. Then, the TV started watching me, as I nodded in and out of sleep for the next hour-and-a-half.

Stray Toasters

• Gail, Jill and Babs: A Conversation about Oracle and Batgirl
• iCloud’s legal complaint
• Leonard B. Stern, Creator of Mad Libs, Dies at 88
• An A-Z of incredible uses for everyday things
• 
• Legends of the Joystick
• “Vampire” Stars Found in Heart of Our Galaxy
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Contortionist Hides in Suitcase to Steal from Bus Passengers
• Buried in Anonymity, and Ignominy, Too
• Borders tries to avoid closing 51 more stores
• 
• Citi Data Theft Points Up a Nagging Problem

Namaste.

Thursday – 09 June 2011
Another NBN Technical Friday is upon us. Amen. It looks like it’s going to be a clear, sunny day. That doesn’t exactly hurt my feelings.

Last night, SaraRules! and I had dinner with Ron and a couple of his coworkers, Linda and Kathy. We ate at The Pie Pizzeria. I’ve long been of the opinion that pizza from The Pie is “good,” but I’m not as head-over-heels about it as some of my friends. I think that I know at least part of “why” I’ve had a problem in the past: I have most often had their “Mountain of Meat” pizza, which tends to be a bit… messy… and greasy. And, while filling, it sits heavily in your stomach. Last night’s pizza (or, rather, my half of it) had pepperoni, sausage and green peppers. It went down easily and was filling, without being “too heavy.” I’m fairly confident in saying that it was probably my most pleasurable experience eating a pizza there. After dinner, Ron came over and hung out with us for a while. SaraRules!, he and I sat around trading stories until late in the evening. It was a good end to a good day.

Stray Toasters

• Today is the 96th Anniversary of Les Paul‘s birthday.
  Today’s Google doodle (on the “Classic” home page) is an interactive homage to that.

  …and…

• Straight from the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” and the “Good Cause for a Bad Situation” files: Commission a Sketch to Help Pay Legal Fees of Girl Who Refused to Cheer Her Attacker
• Peanutweeter
• After soldiers’ video goes viral, more bags will fly free
  • Delta apologizes after charging soldiers $2,800 for bags
• Drug makes hearts repair themselves
• By way of :

• Homeless Veterans Sue Over Neglected Campus
• New elements added to chemistry’s periodic table
• Soaring inflation? Not with 9% unemployment
• This made me laugh:

  

• The Walking Dead Action Figures
  • Actors Playing With Themselves: Actors With Action Figures
• Sun uncorks a massive solar blast
• Lockdown High: How schools put the emphasis on crime, security and violence instead of freedom and education
• Citigroup FAQ: What we know about the attack

Namaste.

Wednesday – 08 June 2011
Today is my brother-in-law, ‘s birthday.

..and I neglected to mention that yesterday was my friend, Josh’s, birthday, also. D’oh!

Last night, we celebrated ‘s birthday with the in-laws. Dinner. Presents. Cake. It was a good evening. On the way home, SaraRules! and I stopped at the local Best Buy; I needed wanted to pick up Green Lantern: Emerald Knights.  SaraRules! picked up a Guitar Hero game and, somehow, I wound up also getting the brand-spankin’ new Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters for my 360.

Once we got settled in at home, we fired up Emerald Knights. It was well-done. Hell, if the live-action movie is half… okay, three-quarters… as good as this was, I’ll be pleased. Emerald Knights is an anthology piece, with six stories that are woven together throughout the film… which appears to fall somewhere in the middle of the events of Green Lantern: First Flight. The writers did a good job of creating a “new” overarching story, while adeptly intertwining some newly-animated classic GL lore into the tale. There were some familiar names/voices attached to this project, including:

• Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Castle) as Hal Jordan
• Jason Isaacs (“Harry Potter” films) as Sinestro
• Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men) as Arisia
• Henry Rollins (yes, “that” Henry Rollins) as Kilowog

For me, it was a good way to wind down the day.

Stray Toasters

• I felt more baby-wiggling last night. They were – or at least one of them was – pretty active.
• “Six.”
• From the “This Is an Awesome Reaction” file: Movie theater shames F-word texter
  • Added bonus: Here’s the PSA they did…

• Secret Origins: John Stewart
• Inbox Influence: Your new favorite email tool since the spam filter
• 
• Steven Spielberg and Quint have an epic chat all about JAWS as it approaches its 36th Anniversary!
• RSA Faces Angry Users After Breach
• By way of :

  

• Cycle and Style: A Sweet Ride
• Would you buy a digital comics subscription?
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file:
  • Smurfs accused of antisemitism and racism
  • Two Women Ticketed for Eating Doughnuts in Brooklyn Playground
  • You Can Now Get Your Ph.D in Manga
• 
• DC Comics has dropped new information about The Next Generation of Justice in the post-updated DCU.
• 2 gamblers take Tropicana casino for more than $11M
  • Four ‘worst mistakes you can make in Las Vegas’

Quote of the Day
As I noted yesterday, Folsom Prison Blues is one of my niece’s favorite songs, which is made more amusing by the fact that she’s only three… unless you’re my sister, who finds it appalling.

That being said, my brother-in-law sent me the following last night:

coda to yesterday’s lecture:
your niece tonight was singing her song
then she asks me to sing
so i start singing
I HEAR THE TRAIN A COMIN’
gracie: “no no no no no daddy, that’s wrong!”
me…wha?  no it’s not
“yes daddy it is wrong”
ok sweetheart, how does it start?
“like this, daddy. ‘hello, i’m johnny cash.'”
i stand corrected, child.  proceed.

Ladies and gentlemen… my family.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 07 June 2011
It’s my mother’s birthday!

It’s also Prince’s birthday. Under normal circumstances, I’d post a link to a video by Prince here, but he’s pretty tight about rights management – as is his prerogative – so, you’ll just have to hum something to yourself.

On a less-light note, I’m in the south office today. I can’t really complain, though; it’s a nice change of pace.

Last night, I attended the Justice League Junior League Annual Dinner with SaraRules! As an added bonus, I got to be the proxy date for three other ladies. (Yeah, I know… rough life.) We sat at a table with two other members and one provisional. And a lovely time was had by all.

I was struck, once again, by the fact that of ALL the ladies there, I only saw three (3) other men… and one (pre-)teenager. It seemed odd to me that wives/families are almost expected to attend festivities related to their husbands’ jobs or activities, but when it’s time to support the wives’ activitites…? You can watch the vapor trails form as the men fly out of sight.

Personally, I’m happy to support and attend SaraRules!’ events:

• Opera? Check.
• Symphony? Check.
• Junior League dinners and events?  Check.

Why? Because they’re important to her (and in the case of the symphony and opera, job-related). And, as she’s important to me, so are the things she’s interested in. Besides, I get to go to great symphonic concerts and opera and I get to meet interesting people… and, in the case of last night, I get to dress up and escort a number of lovely ladies to an event. How can that be a bad thing?!

Stray Toasters

• One of my three-year-old niece’s favorite songs – if not her favorite – is Folsom Prison Blues, which she is fond of singing. Loudly and enthusiastically… much to the consternation of my sister.
• Parents, not government, should decide on circumcision
• By way of :

  

• Brilliant Idea for a Wall: LEGO It, courtesy of
  This not only goes down as a great idea, but now I have to find a way to convince SaraRules! that we should keep this in mind for the nursery or, at least, the kids’ playroom in a few years.
• Gmail users targeted by Adobe Flash exploit
  • Google breaks up Gmail spying campaign
• 
• Heroes*
• Batman Relaunch: New #1s for ‘Batgirl,’ ‘Batman,’ ‘Detective,’ ‘Catwoman,’ ‘Birds of Prey’
  • Oracle Is Stronger than Batgirl Will Ever Be
  • Batgirl Triumphant: The Price of DC Comics’ Disabled Heroine
• I need to pick up Green Lantern: Emerald Knights today…

  

• The Truth About Paul Revere’s Ride
• I may actually have a newfound respect for one of my coworkers.
• In State Parks, the Sharpest Ax Is the Budget’s
• BCS strips Southern California of 2004 national championship

And now… lunch!

Namaste.

Monday – 06 June 2011
I won’t lie: I didn’t want to get out of bed this morning. It wasn’t that I was dreading the work day. Nor was it that I had a particularly busy/hectic day yesterday. I just didn’t feel any sense of urgency about getting up and on the way this morning. But, I did… and here we are.

Yesterday was a relaxed day. Ron came over in the morning, and took SaraRules! and me to breakfast. We opted for a place with a local flavor, so we chose Ruth’s Diner. Ron liked it. (Which was a plus.) We drove up Emigration Canyon into and down Parley’s Canyon, heading back into the valley. We also drove along Wasatch Blvd, to afford Ron a good look at the valley.

Later in the afternoon, the three of us and a few of the usual suspects went to see X-Men: First Class.

Right off the bat, I’ll say that I enjoyed it. No, it wasn’t the “First Class” that I think of when I think of the X-Men (Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman and Marvel Girl)…

…but it was a good roster for the movie continuity. While not set in the Marvel 616 Universe continuity, they were able to do different things to introduce new characters. For example, their take on Sebastian Shaw, Black King of the Hellfire Club, had a nice twist… and one that also connected him to another character in the film. There were also a few nice “easter eggs,” including [REDACTED].

All told, it was a good “preboot” for the movie version of the X-Universe. The actors were good — I especially enjoyed Michael Fassbender’s take on a young Magneto. It moved well (despite compressing a couple of subplots in the interest of time). And, it was just plain fun.

For dinner, SaraRules! grilled steaks and vegetables. And they were good. Very good. “Bring it in for lunch today” good. We wound up the evening watching 2001: A Space Odyssey. I’m not really sure what to say about this other than, I’m putting it in the same category as Regina: I’m willing to read the book to see if the end is any more coherent.

Stray Toasters

• Q&A: The New X-Men Costumes Are Body Suits You’ll Want
• HALO 4 announcement may have been leaked…
• Chow Truck!
• Ohio woman, 100, still uses bank account dating to 1913
• A few friends have posted this image on their Facebook pages; I like it:

  

• Texas Still Has Its Rustlers, and Men in White Hats Chasing Them
• How doctors first noticed the existence of AIDS
• Student cites freedom of speech after suspension for online videos
• Bend Me, Shape Me: The Heavy Metal Version

On to lunch!

Namaste.

Sunday – 05 June 2011
I was caught in the middle of a struggle for the past two-and-a-half hours. It’s definitely not a fight that I would have chosen to be part of, but sometimes, we don’t get to choose.

The fight was between sleep and being awake.

It may sound rather silly, but it’s true. I was awake – for no discernable reason – a few minutes after 0600. I tried going back to sleep, but only managed to stare at the walls. And the ceiling. And the window. I did manage to nod off again, though. For about twenty minutes. Then it became “Lather. Rinse. Repeat.” …for the next two hours. I’d finally manage to fall asleep, only to wake up – again, for no reason – and the cycle would repeat. Annoying. Hopefully, it’s not a harbinger of how the rest of the day will go.

There are a couple of bright spots in the day, though:

1. It’s National Cancer Survivors Day

   

2. SaraRules! and I get to hang out with our friend, Ron, today.

Yesterday was a good day. It started off with a trip to one of the local churches for a Boy Scout pancake breakfast and car show. The food was good and there were a lot of nice cars to look at. When we got back, I had some time to kill, so I decided to mow the lawn. When I finished that, it was time to get clean and ready to meet Chris and Alex. We stopped off for (second) breakfast before heading to Dr. Volt’s. There was another good turnout – we had fifteen players. After the game, I came home to get SaraRules! and we headed to Pawit’s Royale Thai Cuisine for dinner. (SaraRules! dropped into Dr. Volt’s to say “Hi” earlier… and informed me that I was taking her out for Thai.) I had a dish whose name I can’t recall, but it reminded me of Pho. And it was VERY good. After dinner, we wound down the night with some TV and a game of Trivial Pursuit. It was a long game; SaraRules! edged me out for the win.

Stray Toasters

• Sixkill is sitting on the kitchen counter. I’m excited – and a little sad – to read it. It’s the last of the Spenser books that Robert B. Parker wrote before passing away last year. The series will continue, with a writer who’s collaborated with Parker on a number of works. I just hope that he doesn’t run the franchise into the ground.
• For the Jobless, Little U.S. Help on Foreclosure
• I finished watching Astonishing X-Men: Gifted, the Marvel motion comic last night, via Netflix.

  

  It was presented in six episodes, each covering the six issues of the “Gifted” storyline, by Joss Whedon. It was… interesting… in a good way. It was well-done and enjoyable. My only complaint was that a couple of the voices didn’t seem “right” for a couple of characters.

• The History of a Cheap Dress
• Focusing on the Social, Minus the Media
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: LeVin gets house arrest after undisclosed setttlement
• Gaming Made Me: Colossal Cave Adventure
• Wow.

…right on to the friction of the day.

Namaste.

Friday – 03 June 2011
The weekend is mere hours away…

And it’s a sunny day out there. Hopefully, it lasts until I can get outside to enjoy it.

Last night, I achieved a new milestone in the “Hey, we’ve got babies on the way!” event: I felt one of the kids (I’m fairly certain that it was “Baby B”) kick for the first time.  It was neat. A little later in the evening, I felt a little more activity… but not sure which one it was.

After going out and running a few errands – including a walk through/around the local mall for some exercise –  SaraRules! and I stopped at Farr’s Fresh for some ice cream before heading home for the evening. We flipped channels for a bit and wound up finding Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1, 2) on TCM. That’s right a classic Japanese monster movie, featuring Godzilla, Mothra and Rodan. BAM! That’s what we wound up watching for our evening’s entertainment.

This morning, I woke up with Barenaked Ladies’ If I Had $1000000 in my head. I’m good with that.

Stray Toasters

• Judge cancels NFL mediation, says sides engaged in ‘settlement’ talks
• A Double Helix of Art and Science
• Neil Peart to perform drum solo on Late Show with David Letterman
• MI6 attacks Al-Qaeda in ‘Operation Cupcake’
• From today’s Courting Disaster:

  

• Multicultural Celebrations
• Is America’s love affair with kids waning?
• James Arness dies at 88
• From the “SkyNet is now online…” file: Police Robot Burns Down Mobile Home with Gas Grenades
• E-mail Fraud Hides Behind Friendy Face
• There’s a new addition to The Covet List.
• Post-Relaunch “Green Lantern” Titles Details Released
  • The New DCU may be many things, but don’t call it a ‘reboot’
  • Sorry I’m Late
• Guess who’s back…
  More Tomb Raider Videos

• ‘Dr. Death’ Jack Kevorkian dies at age 83
  • Verge Q+A: Dr. Jack Kevorkian
• Moody’s Warns of Downgrade for U.S. Credit
• “Pilot Cam”

Namaste.

Thursday – 02 June 2011
Another “Day of Thor” (look it up) is upon us. I’m hoping that it follows the appropriate “No Bad News” protocol. That would be a “good” thing.

This morning, I woke up with the opening theme from Love, Sidney in my head. I have no idea “why,” as the show hasn’t been on the air in over 20 (nearly 30) years. Granted, I’m a fan of some of Tony Randall’s work, but why not the theme from The Odd Couple?! As Dr. Rosenblatt would say, “It’s so bizarre…!”

Last night, I had forgotten that SaraRules! was going to a presentation of Die Walkure, presented by Fathom Events at the local cinemaplex. As had to postpone our D&D game, this meant that I was left to my own devices to find something to do. I wound up doing the dishes and some laundry. (*shrug* It needed to be done…) I also went to the gym. There was a brief internal struggle about did I really want to go, but it was overruled by the “You need to go” camp. It’s still slow-going, but at least I’m doing something:

• Elliptical: 15 minutes, approx 5.5 MPH pace
• Bench Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 135 lbs
• Curls (dumbbell, seated): 3 sets/10 reps, 25 lbs
• Shoulder Press (dumbbell, seated): 3 sets/10 reps, 35 lbs
• Compound Row: 3 sets/10 reps, 125 lbs
• Reverse Fly: 3 sets/10 reps, 50 lbs

I was quite happy to be done with the workout… while kind of looking forward to getting into the gym again. Go figure.

When I got back home, I treated myself to a little DVR fare while waiting for SaraRules! to get in. I’m almost up to the season finale of Human Target. (And I’m still wishing that USA or some other channel would pick it up next season.)

Stray Toasters

• It’s finally starting to look and feel like we’re actually moving into Summer around here.

• Thanks to for sending the link to A Gallery of Superhero Pictograms
• For SaraRules! and Melissa S.: Gonna Fly Soon: A ‘Rocky’ Musical Is Moving Ahead
• Is sharing a log-in a criminal act?
• 
• NBA center Shaquille O’Neal announces his retirement
• My friend, Joe Tomasone, has started a new technology blog: All That Tech. Go check it out.
• New Green Lantern Featurette Explains Oath, Ring, Lantern
• Comic Book Math: DC to Renumber Series, Starting Again with No. 1
  • DC Unveils Creators and Covers for First Relaunch Wave
  • Let me just say: I like the new-to-be costume for Wonder Woman.  Of course, I like the Jim Lee redesign that’s been running in current issues of the title, too… sans jacket.
• Shuttles, Turning Sedentary, Leave Pieces Behind for Science and Safety
• The Line, It Is Drawn
• Meetings! YAY!

And now… lunch!

Namaste.

Wednesday – 01 June 2011
It’s a new month.
It’s new comics day.
It’s D&D (4.0) game night.
And… it may even be Sushi Wednesday, depending on how my morning shapes up.

For reasons that I have yet to discern, I woke up with Dolly Parton’s 9 to 5 running through my head.

Last night, , Chris, Dee and I met at MacCool’s for a guys’ night out. Any evening that ends with Guinness can’t be bad. I opted for the Meat Loaf entree – which is prepared with a barbecue sauce, as opposed to a tomato-based sauce; it was very good. In fact, the beer, the food and the company were all good. If I have my druthers, this will become a regular (or at least semi-regular) occurrence.

Stray Toasters

• Endeavour lands safely in Florida
• Pentagon to Consider Cyberattacks Acts of War
• High-tech medical exam cheating alleged
• 
• Today in Geek History: Robert Heinlein coins the word “grok” when Stranger in a Strange Land is published in 1961, courtesy of Thinkgeek
• City of Heroes has just introduced a Steampunk Pack. This amuses me greatly.
• Improv Everywhere: The Mute Button
• DC Comics dropped a not-so-minor bombshell yesterday: A complete reboot of the entire DCU, coming in September.

  

  • A Note from the DC Comics Co-Publishers: We Hate Secrets
  • Our (First) 13 Questions About the DC Universe Reboot
  • DC Comics unleashes a new universe of superhero titles
  • DC Comics ready for a risky yet relevant publishing change
  • DC’s Number One(s), a commentary from Evil, Inc‘s Brad Guigar
  • DC Comics’ Number One Stunna: The Ballsiest Move of the Decade
• Cousins that are siblings, Identical twin sisters and mothers, Alternative (and parallel) universes
• Reconstruction Lifts Economy After Disasters
• 
• Home prices hit 2002 levels
  • Continuing housing crisis: Ghost suburbs and empty real estate
• In Unusual Move, Apple Previews New Software Plans
• Cellphone Radiation May Cause Cancer, Advisory Panel Says

Namaste.

Tuesday – 31 May 2011
I don’t know if this is Mother Nature’s parting gift or the setup for an incredibly cruel joke, but it’s a lovely morning. It’s sunny and clear, temps are in the 50s, on their way to the mid-70s. Everything about it says “Today’s going to be a great day.” Yet, my inner cynic is still waiting for the other metaphorical meteorological shoe to drop.

Yesterday was a fairly quiet, low-key day. SaraRules! and I did get a little productivity in, though. We added some new items to the baby registry. We looked at tile for the new bathroom. And, we discovered a new place to eat. Well, it’s not really “new,” as much as it’s “new to us:” Mama’s Plantation Restaurant, in the Midvale Family Center (near the Wal-Mart). had mentioned it a while back, but SaraRules! and I never got to visit it at its old location in Taylorsville. We were pleasantly surprised to discover that it wound up in our extended neighborhood. The food and the service were good. The pricing may be a little on the steep side, but it was a nice change of pace and someplace we will revisit.

…and tonight: Guys Night Out.

Stray Toasters

• Today is apparently World No Tobacco Day (1, 2)
  • World No Tobacco Day: Does it really help people quit smoking?
• Arts-Funding Site Gets ‘Kickstart’ from Business Bids
• Sheryl Sandberg: Why We Have Too Few Female Leaders
• 
• Suspended in Space, 103 Stories Above Chicago
• By way of SaraRules! and the “I have had it with these motherfucking snakes on this motherfucking plane train!” file: Vietnam on alert for smugglers after deadly snakes found on train
• Retailers Offer Apps With a Catalog Feel
• 
• Who’s to blame when gas costs $1 than last year?
• Housing Index Is Expected to Show New Low in Prices

On with the show…

Namaste.

Saturday – 28 May 2011
The sun is up and playing Hide and Seek among the clouds. This is good.

Last night, SaraRules! and I, along with our friends Marie and Josh, had an evening out. We had dinner at Settebello (all of us had variations of the same pizza), dessert at Capo and then attended Utah Symphony’s final concert of the 2010-11 season:

The program consisted of:

• Charles Ives – Three Places in New England
• Richard Strauss – Four Last Songs
• Igor Stravinsky – Le Sacre du printemps

I’d not heard the Ives nor the Strauss pieces before. The Ives was a chaotic and frenetic piece; it was the aural equivalent of a hurricane. Yet, in the midst of the storm, Maestro Fischer did a fantastic job of  coordinating the musicians. If Three Places in New England was the leading edge of the hurricane, Four Last Songs was the calm eye of the storm. The movements were melodic and serene. Soloist Janice Chandler Eteme‘s performance was beautiful and very well-received — very nearly the entire hall gave her a standing ovation, with three curtain calls. The program closed with La Sacre du printemps (“The Rite of Spring”), another hectic and wildly energetic piece. As the symphony played, I realized that this piece is, in my opinion, one of the musical compositions that should be experienced as a live performance.

During and after the performance, I pondered Director Fischer’s choices for the selections used in this concert. I found there to be something of a counterpoint to the selections — the upbeat and chaotic sounds of Three Places and Rite, contrasted against the mellow tones of Four Last Songs. I also came to the conclusion that ending the season with pieces as energetic as Three Places and The Rite of Spring was akin to ending the season with a very emphatic exclamation point. It closed the season on a very strong  note, so to speak — showing that even at the end of a season, Utah Symphony was able to end things with a bang.

All told, the concert was a fine finish to Maestro Fischer’s first season as Music Director and was an excellent end to Utah Symphony’s season.

Stray Toasters

• Gil Scott-Heron, Poet and Musician, Has Died
  • Poet, musician Gil Scott-Heron dies
  • In Memoriam: Gil Scott-Heron, “The People’s Poet”
• Ow. Yesterday’s workout is now having its revenge upon me.
• RSA SecurID breach linked to hacker attack on Lockheed Martin; other US military contractors may be affected
• Too Young for Kindergarten? Tide Turns Against 4-Year-Olds
  With a late October birthday, I was four when I started Kindergarten… and I think I turned out alright. Being the youngest in my class never really bothered me.
• Saudi woman wants to give women the right to drive in her country
• 

• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” AND the “Only in Utah…” files comes: Headline of the Week: “Horse herpes outbreak forces rodeo queens to ride stick ponies”
• Anchor from Blackbeard’s ship raised after 293 years off North Carolina coast
  The first thing that came to mind when I read this was, “I wonder if raising the anchor has anything to do with the new Pirates movie coming out…?”
• Blue Angels commander steps down after subpar performance
• 

• A 911 Call That Can Save a Sirloin, and The Griller’s Ego
  • Goodbye Food Pyramid, Hello Dinner Plate
• The Slow, Strange Death of the Demo

Namaste.

Friday – 27 May 2011
It’s my 9/80 day off… and it’s the start of a four-day weekend. I’m good with that. I’m looking forward to a bit of downtime this weekend.

Last night, SaraRules! and I hit the local Noodles & Company for dinner, ran a few errands and then came home for a quiet evening in. I fired up the 360 and tried my hand at the CoD: Black Ops mission that’s been kicking my ass for the past little while. I finally had to look up some hints online. Same result, but I think I finally figured out what I need to do differently. (Aside from the general “not get killed” concept.)

This morning, I slept in… until 8:15. Hey, it’s later than my normal mornings, so it counts as “sleeping in.” After seeing SaraRules! off to work – and puttering around the house for a bit – I dragged my sorry carcass out of the house and into the gym for the first time in [REDACTED]! I have witnesses to prove it — I ran into ‘s dad and former coworker/current co-gamer Josh. Today’s workout consisted of:

• Elliptical: 20 mintues/Level 3/Random, pacing between 5.0 and 5.5 MPH
• Bench Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 135 lbs.  (Gotta start somewhere…)
• Curls (dumbbell, seated): 3 sets/10 reps, 20 lbs
• Lateral Raises (with Flys): 2 sets/10 reps, 10 lbs
• Shoulder Press (dumbbell): 3 sets/8 reps, 30 lbs
• Flys: 3 sets/8 reps, 100 lbs

Not too bad for the first workout in a while. It’s my One Little Victory of the morning.

Stray Toasters

• SaraRules! found – and sent – a link to an alternate version of Starfish and Coffee. I like it.
• Union Pacific’s Great Excursion Adventure is under way!
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Tiki Barber under fire for outrageous Anne Frank comparison
• 
• 2011 Twilight Concert Series Announced
• I caught this item, Christopher Meloni responds to my SVU comic, by way of Comics Alliance yesterday. What cracked me up was the following:
  

  I got the email at work, and as soon as I read it, I said “HOLY SHIT” pretty loudly (and I then had to explain the whole thing to my boss, because you don’t get to say something like that and then say, “Oh, nothing”). First, I was excited because Christopher Meloni is totally rad (if you somehow have not seen Wet Hot American Summer, what is wrong with you?). Second, I was even more excited that Ice T had seen my comic and apparently liked it; I had assumed that if he ever saw my comic, he’d tell me to eat a hot bowl of dicks. (Thanks, Ice T, for not telling me to do that! Because I would have done it, out of respect. Respect and fear.)

  What made it curious was that the “…eat a hot bowl of dicks” part had a link attached to it. That bore investigation. The link led to was: Ice-T to Aimee Mann: ‘Eat a Hot Bowl of Dicks’, which was apparently the Twitter equivalent of a drive-by. And the account was hilarious. It almost made me want to sign up for a Twitter account. Almost.

• 
• Shore Things: 12 Essentials for Every Man’s Beach Bag
• Passenger coached to fly plane after pilot incapacitated
• When Children’s Scribbles Hide a Prison Drug
• 
• Study Questions Treatment Used in Heart Disease
• Mahna Mahna…
  (do-DO-do-do-do)

Time to find some lunch and get on with the day.

Thursday – 26 May 2011
It’s my “Technical Friday.” And, since we’re going into Memorial Day weekend, that means that this is a four-day weekend. Win.

Last night, SaraRules! and I went to Rodizio Grill for dinner. At least one of us (*raises hand*) decided to indulge in one of the Seven Deadly Sins. When we left, I was quite full. When we got home, I read the day’s four-color haul before calling it a night. (And I was still very full from dinner.)

Stray Toasters

• Roger Goodell: Time coming soon to cancel first NFL game due to lockout
• Studying the Frequency of Redaction Failures in PACER
• I should play DCUO or City tonight…
• 
• NASA to Launch New Science Mission to Asteroid in 2016
• Less Active at Work, Americans Have Packed on Pounds
• Egyptian pyramids found by infrared satellite images
• Sony expects to spend at least $171 million over breach
  • If I ran the zoo…
• Operation Seduction
• 
• Boeing considers replacing the best-selling 737
• Lawsuit claims Cisco bears blame for Falun Gong abuse
• John Edwards to Face Criminal Charges

Namaste.

Wednesday – 25 May 2011
It’s not just midweek. Nor is it just new comics day or D&D 4.0 game night…

Today is also Towel Day. (1, 2)

For those who don’t grok why a towel should have it’s own day, perhaps this will help explain it:

A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have. Partly it has great practical value. You can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapors; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a miniraft down the slow heavy River Moth; wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (such a mind-bogglingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can’t see it, it can’t see you); you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.

More importantly, a towel has immense psychological value. For some reason, if a strag (strag: non-hitch hiker) discovers that a hitch hiker has his towel with him, he will automatically assume that he is also in possession of a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass, map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear, space suit etc., etc. Furthermore, the strag will then happily lend the hitch hiker any of these or a dozen other items that the hitch hiker might accidentally have “lost”. What the strag will think is that any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is, is clearly a man to be reckoned with.

Hence a phrase that has passed into hitchhiking slang, as in “Hey, you sass that hoopy Ford Prefect? There’s a frood who really knows where his towel is.” (Sass: know, be aware of, meet, have sex with; hoopy: really together guy; frood: really amazingly together guy.)¹

That pretty much sums it up.

Last night, SaraRules! and I ran a few errands – including setting up a baby registry at the local Babies ‘R’ Us – and then capped the evening with cups of ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery. We also (finally) got around to watching last season’s finale of NCIS… which, not so oddly, explained a few things about this past season. Go figure.

Stray Toasters

• Given that the sun was out for about seven hours before I got home, I mowed the lawn yesterday. I may have cut it a little shorter than I had originally planned… but it’s cut. And it looks much better. Now, I just need to find some time to do the edging.
• What Will Come After
• The Facts (and Fiction) of Tornadoes
• A New Approach to Railroad Switching
• USA comes up a bit short in global Better Life Index
• 
• Oh, the Stuff Those Lions Guard
• Secret Origins: Firestorm
• Google Expected to Introduce a Wireless Payment System
• This is what happens when we don’t vaccinate
• 
• The Stanford Prison Experiment
• Chrysler Pays Back Rescue Loan

Quote of the Day
“Rebar is not forgiving…”

So long and thanks for all the fish.

¹ — Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

Tuesday – 24 May 2011
I think that 10,000 Maniacs said it best:

The color of the sky as far as I can see is coal grey.
Lift my head from the pillow and then fall again.
With a shiver in my bones just thinking about the weather…

“What a cold and rainy day. Where on earth is the sun hid away?”

Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.

Last night was a lazy night around the household. We noshed on pizza and finished the season of NCIS: Los Angeles. After that, SaraRules! watched Creepshow 2, while I surfed the Interwebs. There was a vignette in the movie, called “The Raft,” that reminded me of the ST: TNG episode “Skin of Evil.” In both, a “killer oil slick” devours/engulfs people. In doing a little – very little – research, I found that both the movie and that episode were released in 1987.

Stray Toasters

• I should listen to Hold Your Fire in its entirety today.

  

• 3 Classic Novels. 22 Minutes. Why Not?
• I like the premise behind Once Upon a Super Hero.
• Treats Without Calories? Imagine That
• Borders loses $132.3 million in second full month of bankruptcy
• 
• Lady Gaga Sales Stall Amazon Servers
• Top Ten Myths About the Brain
• From the “Whoops… my bad” file: Obama’s limo gets stuck on bump in Dublin
  If you can find it, the video is pretty amusing.
• Life’s Little Mysteries
• Gail Simone on comics, characters and Asheville
• 
• Steady Decline in Major Crime Baffles Experts
• The Human Skin Condition
• How spam works, from end to end

Namaste.