Random Access

Wednesday – 20 January 2010
Not only is it the middle of a very abbreviated work week, it’s also Comics and Sushi Wednesday. This morning’s weather includes flurries, at least in this part of the valley. The snow isn’t so thick that it’s making visual conditions bad, if it was a few degrees warmer, it would be more like a light drizzle.

Last night, SaraRules and I had a date night – we saw Avatar. It was her first time seeing it. She enjoyed it… despite most of the 3D effects “not working” for her (Why I Can’t Watch 3D TV). For me, it was nice to be able to watch more of the effects work rather than trying to keep up with what was happening with the story. All-in-all, it was a good time. Even though he was talking about a different day of the week, Ben E. King and The Drifters had it right:

Saturday night at the movies
Who cares what picture you see
When you’re hugging with your baby in last row in the balcony

Indeed.

Workout
Wes and I headed to the gym yesterday:

• Elliptical: 10 minutes
• Sit-ups: 3 sets/20 reps
• Bench Press: 3 sets/8 reps, 205 lbs
• Curls: 3 sets/10 reps, 30 lbs
• Lateral Raises (w/ forward fly): 3 sets – 1 set @ 12 lbs, 2 sets @ 10 lbs

Pre-workout weight (morning): 185.5 lbs

Stray Toasters

• Search for the ultimate espresso
• It seems as though WizKids is updating their site a little more regularly. It will be interesting to see how – or “whether” – they will add items from older games/content. But, considering that they had no web presence for close to a year, I’m happy that there’s anything out there at all.
• 100 Diabetes Friendly Recipes (requires email registration)
• lj user=”nyx_hemsut”, as well as a couple of my coworkers, will be seeing Carmen tonight. I’m interested to hear their thoughts about the performance.
• Five things to expect at Apple’s next event
• From this morning’s “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file:
  • Seeking elusive champagne room, goat rams his way into strip club
  • New Orleans cops use ancient “unnatural copulation” law to turn prostitutes into sex-offenders
• 
• Virginia shootings leave eight dead
• Comics Grinder: Wonder Woman



• Springtime house hunters out early thanks to tax credit
• Fender hopes to turn virtual guitarists into real rockers
• Also from Nyx: Fall Out Boy’s cover of Beat It…

  …which may be the best Michael Jackson cover I’ve heard.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 19 January 2010
There’s snow in parts of the valley this morning. The northbound leg of I-215 (the freeway outside my office window) is backed up for a couple of miles, according to CommuterLink.  It was just raining when I left home, but I thought I saw a few flakes about the time I got to the office. We’ll see how the weather holds up for the rest of the afternoon. And, the Council for Better Driving: Utah reminds motorists to be careful when commuting today.

Once again this year, I neglected to set up a service project before yesterday. So, in an effort to at least a little something, I took a few unneeded and extraneous things to The Salvation Army. Hopefully, someone will be able to get some use out of the things I dropped off.

After that, I picked up from work and dropped her off at home. Next stop: The Train Shoppe. I’ve lived in Salt Lake City for over 11 years now… and this was my first time going there. And, it was well pretty cool. They carry N, HO, O and G scales. I’m interested in getting into O Scale (mainly because it’s roughly the same scale as HeroClix, meaning that if I get really intrepid/industrious, I can integrate my WWG buildings into a RR layout… and use some train accessories in ‘Clix games. Win-Win!). Unfortunately, I live in the wrong part of the country for easy/quick access to the ‘roads I’m interesting in: B&O/C&O/CSX, Norfolk & Western, Norfolk Southern and Pennsylvania, but, according to Jeff and Todd, they could order items for me, if I wanted them. Yep… there might have to be some “mad money reallocation” in my entertainment budget later this year.

Back at the homestead, I cooked dinner: Chicken breasts (stuffed with broccoli and cheese), rice (cooked in cream of mushroom soup), salad, dinner rolls and… homemade maple butter.

After dinner (and a little TV time), SaraRules and I headed to the gym. We did cardio(!) – 30 minutes on the elliptical. Once again, I made it through… despite going at a faster overall pace than I had planned on. I went a little over 2.5 miles and burned 300-ish calories.

Stray Toasters

• SaraRules and I are seeing Avatar tonight. Hello, IMAX 3D date night!
• In a related note: The brick-built world of Pandora
• One meeting canceled; one meeting to go.
• Nano technology tackles heart disease
• Leann Sandal-Pantaleo (Carmen) and Ari Pelto (conductor for Carmen) will be discussing Utah Opera’s production of Carmen on this morning’s RadioWest at 1100 MST. You can hear it on 90.1 FM or you can stream it at www.kuer.org
• Lionel.com (Evil, evil site…)
• In a related note: Conjunction Junction
• Nyx pointed out the following site for dinner ideas: NoTakeOut
• Space, the final frontier…
  • Recession Special: NASA cuts space shuttle price
  • Has USA hit its final frontier in human space exploration
• HOWTO read science fiction
• James Brown’s I Feel Good (I Got You) just came up on iTunes. I can no longer listen to this song without breaking out into a big smile.
• This sounds pretty cool: Dino Snores
• Juice!  Fruit Juice!
  Or Kool-Aid, if you choose
  Please, give me
  Capri Sun I can squeeze!
  Black Cherry crack!
  ‘Cause Lemon-Lime’s just wack!
  Juice!  Fruit Juice!
  Ev’rybody drink, ev’rybody drink…
  Ev’rybody drink, ev’rybody drink…
  Ev’rybody drink fruit juice!
  (…with apologies to fans of Kenny Loggins, Kevin Bacon and/or John Lithgow)
• Story of Newton’s encounter with apple goes online
• Public Enemy: By the Time I Get to Arizona
• Russia to boost ties with Ukraine
• But not a real green dress
  That’s cruel!

Namaste.

Monday – 18 January 2010
Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (1, 2).

(Click banner for more information)

Yesterday was a pretty quiet and low-key day. After a little time spent in Paragon City, while SaraRules did… hm… whatever she did while I was saving the world, we headed over to the in-laws’ for dinner and a movie. The dinner fare was a rather tasty homemade chicken pot pie; the movie was Terminator: Salvation.

I watched last night’s pilot of Human Target this morning. As I mentioned before, I was a little concerned about how they would deal with Christopher Chance as a bodyguard, since they had done away with his “master of disguise” persona. They took a rather simple way around it: He just tailors his persona to blend into to the job/lifestyle of his client. It wasn’t groundbreaking, but I enjoyed it. A reviewer noted the following:

The New York Times stated, “because he’s a human target, he has no problem blowing out of exploding buildings … with nary a scratch. Think Jack Bauer with excellent grooming.

Yep, that was pretty spot-on… except he didn’t have the patented Jack Bauer growl. Oh, well, it was still fun. And, there was even a cameo by [SPOILER REDACTED] in the last couple of minutes of the show! That was an amusing twist. I might just have a new Wednesday night viewing habit.

Stray Toasters

• Lost King Speech to be Heard after 50 Years
• SaraRules sent links to a few interesting articles:
  • Theatre: Staging stories of black experience
  • Obamas give $10,000 to Detroit youth theatre
  • When Fear Turns Graphic
  • James Cameron rejects claims Avatar epic borrows from Russians’ sci-fi novels
• I’m watching Conan O’Brien on a rebroadcasted episode of Inside the Actor’s Studio. I have no idea if Bravo is airing this because of the latest kerfuffle or if it really was luck of the draw. Either way, in listening to this interview, I’m finding a newfound measure of respect for him. (But, I’m still a Letterman and Ferguson guy.)
• Disney’s Looking at Paintings: An Introduction to Fine Art for Young People
• 
• Urban prankster Mark Jenkins art show in Hollywood
• Is it just me or does the “Hungry” monster from Weight Watchers commercials…

  

  …look a lot like Gossamer, from old Warner Brothers cartoons:

  

• Tetris blanket
• With the amount of racket they’re making, it sounds like they are remodeling the apartment behind ours.
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot..?!” file: At Large: Teen Bandit. Even Larger: His Legend

Time to start thinking about what to do with my day…

Namaste.

Sunday – 17 January 2010
It’s another grey and hazy day in Salt Lake City. I woke up this morning and helped move a sofa. Then, I made a now-rare stop at the local Beans & Brews for some morning go-juice. Now, I’m firmly planted on our couch, watching the Vikings duke it out with the Cowboys.

Yesterday was a good – and long AND busy – day. It started off over coffee with Chris and Perry. Next up, a ‘Clix tournament at Dr. Volt’s. And, once again, we had more players than the last time – eleven people played in the tourney and we had one person who showed up, just to try and get back into the game. Of the eleven people who played in the tournament, two of them were under 10-years-old; they were the kids of one of the other players in the game and they played as a team. I played them in the first round – granting them an automatic win, as a bye round; but they played pretty well, for being new to the game in their other two rounds. At the end of the day, Jay (one of the store’s employees) one the tournament, edging out Chris by one point; and the kids walked away with the Fellowship prize.

After shuttling Chris home, I headed home and changed for a night out with SaraRules. The evening started with dinner at Donovan’s Steak & Chop House. Neither of us had been there before. We both had the 6 oz. filet with shripm scampi, with sides of fresh vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes; SaraRules had a Sauvignon Blanc and I had a Spanish red wine.  The food was top-notch, the attentiveness of (most of) the wait-staff was good. All-in-all, it was a very nice dining experience.

Next, we strolled over to the Capitol Theatre to see Utah Opera’s production of Carmen. Despite hearing selections from the opera over the years, I had never before seen it performed.  UO did an excellent job. The set design and costumes were fantastic. And the casting..?  In a word: “Amazing.”  Leann Sandel-Pantaleo, as Carmen, not only brought the role to life through her voice, but also through body language and overall stage presence.  Chad Shelton, as Don Jose, made the character’s fall from proud young soldier to lovestruck and tortured ex-lover believable… and empathetic. If you are in the greater Salt Lake City metropolitan area and have a chance to see this performance, don’t miss it.

Instant Replay: Football

Baltimore Ravens at Indianapolis Colts
3 – 20
The Ravens (Baltimore 2.0) traveled to Indianapolis to take on the Colts Indianapolis Professional Football Club (Baltimore 1.0) at Lucas Field.I didn’t get to see the game, but kept track of the score during the opera’s intermission. And, unfortunately, the Colts came away with the win. I’ve received a number of “Sorry your team lost” messages, which have been appreciated, but… even though they’re out of the running for The Big Dance, I’m very proud of what the Ravens were able to accomplish this season. They started decently, faltered in the middle of the season, but were able to finish not only with a winning season, but a playoff appearance. And, of course, there’s always next season.

Stray Toasters

• If you haven’t done so yet, I urge everyone who is able to text “HAITI” to 90999.  This will donate $10 dollars to the American Red Cross’ relief support in Haiti, following last week’s earthquake.  The $10 charge will appear on your cell phone bill.
• Congratulations to Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer
• Everything I need to know I learned from D&D
• By way of SaraRules: Songs in the key of life: What makes music so emotional?
• passed along a link to: The Outrage of LIeMAX
• I think that this answers a question that I asked way back in 2005: The World’s Most Elusive Human



• posted a link to this item: Auto-appendectomy in the Antarctic: case report
  Can someone explain to me why this guy didn’t get a listing on Badass of the Week!?
• Portland treehouse: swanky Hobbit pad
• Scrambled eggs + paprika = YUM.
• ‘Mythbusters’ Grant Imahara Explains Something Gross
  And, if that wasn’t enough, here’s the video of the myth that Grant referenced, halfway through the article.
• 
• Wizkids/NECA has a couple of new items on their site.
• The newest TV incarnation of The Human Target premieres tonight. The first version starred Rick Springfield in the role of Christopher Chance and only lasted a half-season, if I remember correctly. Something that has changed in this version is that Chance is no longer being portrayed as a master of disguise. I’m… cautiously curious… to see how they pull this off.

Namaste.

Friday – 15 January 2010
It’s the end of the work week. And it’s the quiet Friday in the office. Amen.

Today is also the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday, which will be celebrated in the States on Monday. And, as usual, I am taking the day off of work; I need to see if there’s a service project for which I can volunteer.

Last night, came over for dinner. SaraRules fixed her famous beef stew for dinner. It was, as usual, very tasty. brought eclairs and cookies from Schmidt’s for dessert.

Stray Toasters

• ‘Doomsday Clock’ moves a minute back
• SaraRules sent me this picture yesterday.



• …which, in turn, leads to this picture – Disney Princesses, dressed as their villains:

• Adam forwarded this link: Boy Gets Revenge on Sister via Facebook
  Khan was right: “Revenge is a dish best served cold… and it is very cold in (cyber)space!”
• sent a link to: Japan’s ‘Coming of Age Day’ at Disneyland
• iSamJackson app for iPhone, courtesy of
• You got to know when to hold ’em
  Know when to fold ’em
  Know when to walk away
  And know when to run…

  
  video link, courtesy of

• Safari seems to handle/deal with Facebook significantly better than Firefox.
• Prepare for Teen Titans: Games
  For my money, no one draws the the Titans like George Perez.
• 
• Cl!ck – a stop-motion LEGO movie (short, but good)
• Complexity ruins diets
• Jackie Earle Haley Still Playing Sinestro
• Tiny still-lives in toilet paper tubes

I’m firing up the XBox in an hour…

Namaste.

Thursday – 14 January 2010
It’s a grey and hazy day here. I’ve referred to winter in Utah – especially when the inversion sets in – as being akin to living in a dirty fishbowl. Today is a pretty good example of that. Gotta love air that’s thick enough to chew…

Last night was a very low-key night. After dinner, when SaraRules headed off to Zumba, I decided that it was a perfect night for a hot soak and made it so. To add to the enjoyment of the downtime, I read a bit of Teenagers from the Future, which I haven’t picked up in far too long.

Stray Toasters

• Go Back to the Future with Paul Levitz and the Legion
• Justice Dept. Fights Bias in Lending
• For SaraRules (and the rest of the zombie-loving masses)…

  

• Where’s the Opera Chief? Look Onstage, or in the Pit
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file:
  • Meet Mikey, 8; U.S. Has Him on Watch List
  • Oxford cops reprimanded for tobogganing on riot shields
    
• Amtrak to add Wi-Fi to some trains free, for now
• By way of Comic Book Resources, comes a new column: “Committed”
  • Introduction
  • Byrne’s Superman
• In Rebuke of China, Focus Falls on Cybersecurity
• SaraRules has given me permission to cook steaks in our fireplace… assuming that our future home has a fireplace.
• 

• Mom-made vintage game sweaters from the 80s
  
  • …and in a semi-related note (and the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file):
    • Home-made Super Mario sweater vest
    • Space Invaders tights

I think (actually, it’s more like “I’m hoping”) that I only have one meeting today. That would be nice.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 13 January 2010
Midweek and all’s pretty much well. On top of that, it’s Comics and Sushi Wednesday, so there should be added goodness to the day. My Prerogative came on the radio during the morning commute. It made me smile… and sing along. It was a good way to kick off the morning and prep for a day in the trenches.

Last night, Chris came over to finish our HeroClix “Arkham Asylum Breakout” game. He won… which was totally expected – I had three figures to his eight – but, the fact that it took him a tad over 30 minutes to do so made me feel good. We need to schedule the other side of the fight, with me running Batman and company and him running Gotham City’s least desirable citizens.

Stray Toasters

• Today is Delta Sigma Theta’s (1, 2) Founders’ Day
• Haiti’s quake devestation emerges
• The Great Joe Rollino, Bender of Steel, is Dead at 104
  Mr. Rollino will be awarded today’s Human of the Day award, posthumously.
• 2010: Living in the Future
• …which, naturally, leads us to The Future Soon
• Nintendo helps savvy singer Beyonce step up her style game
• Sarah Palin Makes Fox News Debut, Slams Obama, Critics
  (But, is anyone really surprised by this…?  No?  I didn’t think so.)
• I’ve never really been a big fan of Conan O’Brien, but I have to give him kudos for his resignation letter, as posted by The Grey Lady.
• Snubs – part of the diplomatic game
• Nintendo Wii to Get Netflix Streaming

That’s good for now.

Tuesday – 12 January 2010
It’s yet another inversion-laden day in the valley.

We’re having corporate visitors today… which also means that the back end of my day is going to be chock full of nuts meetings – one’s a “town hall” and the other is a much smaller (15 or so people) one. I don’t really expect either to be “painful.” Here’s hoping that they live up to my expection.

Stray Toasters

• In 2003, DC Comics published the Red Son (1, 2) graphic novel under their Elseworlds imprint.

  

  The story  posited what might have happened if the rocket that brought Superman to Earth as a baby had crashed in the Soviet Union. At the end of the story, an interesting twist in the “rocket to Earth” story was introduced.  It turns out that idea was borne of a similar concept… originally written by Jerry Siegel.  Details – and spoilers – can be found here.

• A couple from the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file:
  • Depressed after ‘Avatar?’
  • Star Wars Burlesque: Tattooine-Styled Shenanigans at the Bordello
  • Palin’s Fox News deal a political sign?
• WorldWorksGames has released both their TerrainlinX Planner and their latest set, Lost Halls of the Dwarven Kings
• Even Amazon can’t keep it’s EULA story straight
• Delta Raises Fees for Checked Bags
• Perp caught through World of Warcraft

I just found out that I have yet another meeting to attend today… starting in five minutes. Blah.

Namaste.

Monday – 11 January 2010
On the whole, it’s been a good weekend. Yesterday, was fairly lazy and full of football… and a couple of movies.

Julie (our IT admin) came over to watch her Pats take on the Ravens, details below. After the game, I played a little City of Heroes. I was invited to join a team “…for missions in Croatoa,” which was fine. Somewhere along the way, we switched from that mission set to running a Task Force (extended series of linked missions), which I neither expected nor had time for. So, I had to leave, mid-TF. Oh, well… I managed to eke a couple of levels out of the experience.

We headed over to the in-laws’ for dinner and a movie, Star Trek. The dinner, the movie and the company were all quite good. I also inherited Logan’s old Xbox… which is good, as I’ve been hankerin’ to play some of my old Xbox games, but couldn’t, because my old Xbox decides to shut down/stop reading discs after a few minutes. *shakes fist*

After we got back home, SaraRules and I watched a movie that Logan recommened: The Signal. It was a story, told in three parts – as interpreted by three directors. While there was a single plot thread that wove through the film, the three directors’ visions didn’t exactly gel into a cohesive movie.

Instant Replay: Football
The playoffs started this weekend:

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots
33 – 14
The Ravens traveled to Foxboro to take on the Patriots in the chilly New England air. Going into the game, the Ravens had not beaten the Patriots in their last five games and the Pats had not lost at home all season. But, once RB Ray Rice broke off an 83-yard TD run – on the Ravens’ first play from scrimmage – it looked as though the Ravens might be on to something… When Terrell Suggs strip-sacked Tom Brady – on the Pats’ first series – setting up another Ravens TD, the tide and momentum seemed to favor the Ravens even more. LB Ray Lewis and FS Ed Reed even got in on the action, with a sack and an interception, respectively. QB Joe Flacco only went 4/10, with 34 yds passing, but he managed a great ground game that kept Baltimore in control of the ball and the clock. Saturday, the Ravens continue their playoff run against the Indianapolis Colts.

Joe, you and the boys just beat the Pats for the first time in five meetings!  How does that make you feel?

Coach Belichick, Tom looks a little down-in-the-mouth.  Even though your lucky pom-pom hat didn’t help you win the game, does it offer any sage advice as to what you can say or do to help cheer Tom up?

.

New York Jets at Cincinnati Bengals
24 –14
The Bengals took on the Jets. Again. And came away with a loss. Again. For the second time in two weeks… although this time it was in Cincinnati.Sorry, janietrain and carefreespirit.

.

Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals
45 – 51
The Packers traveled to the desert.  Again. This time, however, the Cards handed them an overtime loss. Congrats, Marr.

.

Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
14 – 34
The Cowboys handed the Eagles a loss in the House That Jerry Built.

Stray Toasters

• I won’t get to see Saturday’s game, as we have tickets to Utah Opera’s performance of Carmen. (Thank Heaven for DVRs…)  While I’m hoping for a Ravens win, I’m not betting the farm on it.
• The Price of Apple MacBook Pros Around the World
• Tombs of pyramid builders offer look into daily lives
• Race Riots Grip Italian Town, and Mafia Is Suspected
• DC has announced their Blackest Night follow-up, Brightest Day:

  

  I’m not sure how I feel about a/another year-long, bi-weekly book.

• A Nation of Hunkered-Down Homebodies
• Booth Babe Confessions
• Secret London: guide to the weird and wonderful secrets of London-town
• Um… when exactly did Ray Lewis become a member of Delta Sigma Theta?



• Steampunk mask: “Raptor Pilot”
• Malicious App in Android Market

Namaste.

Saturday – 09 January 2010
It’s another cool/cold day here on Hoth… I mean, “in Utah.” Not so cold that the tauntauns aren’t safe, but it’s still cold enough that “inside” is much more comfortable (to me) than “outside.”

SaraRules and I attended our friend Lawrence’s funeral this afternoon, making today the unofficial fifth day of Suit Week (black suit, white shirt, black tie), as. It was a very nice service and an excellent send-off for a fine young man. He will be missed.

After the funeral, SaraRules, and I went to Coachman’s Dinner and Pancake House for lunch. Neither SaraRules nor I had been there before. All three of us ordered from the breakfast menu. I’d want to eat there again – and have something from the lunch or dinner menu – before passing final judgment on the place, but today’s fare wasn’t bad.

Next, we did some errand-running and then, jiggety-jig, returned home. This evening, there’s a little more errand-running to do and we’re also heading downtown to try and get tickets for movies at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

Stray Toasters

• Art Clokey, creator of Gumby, dies at 89
• Why are pistachios so darned tasty?
• LEGO Universe Impressions: The Next Step in LEGO Building
• 
• “Hammer of Therapy”
  I wonder if Thor ever refers to Mjolnir that way, when he’s battling evil-doers?
• Is It This Easy to Pull Straight Nude Pics from Airport Scanners? [NSFW]

And away we go…

Namaste.

Friday – 08 January 2010
9/80 Friday… and I don’t have anything on the agenda. That’s not necessarily a bad thing; I will probably wind up doing some cleaning, especially since I’ve been avoiding it for the past few days.

Last night, SaraRules and I watched another movie that’s been in our Netflix Instant Queue for a while: Vanishing Point (1, 2). It was a car chase movie from 1971… and it was… something. Neither of us was quite sure “what,” though. Although, I think that we both agreed that “good” wasn’t it. It was severely disjointed, as if a two or three movies were mashed together, without rhyme or reason. There were not only plot holes, but a distinct lack of continuity in a couple of places – things just seemed to happen and the audience was left to make the connections on their own… if they could. And, despite the addition of a Jerry Reed song on the soundtrack, it’s no Smokey and the Bandit (but, then again, what is?).

Stray Toasters

• This teaser image was on the Wizkids/NECA site this morning:

  

  What does it mean? Quite simply: Wizkids’ May HeroClix release will be a “Blackest Night” Starter set. And, of course, this goes squarely on The Covet List.

• Lewis Suspicious of Brady’s Injury
• The Empire Strikes Back 30th Anniversary Playing Cards
• There needs to be a Dunkin Donuts in Salt Lake City.
• From The Wall Street Journal: Best and Worst Jobs 2010

• 
• Remnants of the Biosphere
• Big Lebowski rewritten as a work of Shakespeare
• …and in another movie-related item:

  A-Team Trailer – TheFilmStage.com from Clive Owen on Vimeo.

• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Potato Salad.
  (Safe for work, but just… plain… weird.)
• Toy Train Runs to Calibrate Sensors in a Princeton Reactor

I should probably give some thought to lunch, too.

Namaste.

Thursday – 07 January 2010
Another NBN Thursday/Technical Friday in the valley. I heard on the radio that today’s high is supposed to get all the way up to 31F. That’s a veritable heatwave! (Have I mentioned that I’m really looking forward to Spring/Summer and warm weather lately…?)

Last night, I saw Dances with Wolves in Space… I mean Ferngully in Space… Pocahantas in Space… I mean Avatar. In IMAX 3D. Wow. Talk about a visually stunning movie. And that’s despite the fact that I was in the front half of the theatre and on the far left side of the screen. It, quite simply, looked amazing. Sure, the story was one that’s been seen/heard before, but – as I have been reminding people: James Cameron isn’t necessarily known for bringing groundbreaking stories to the big screen…

• Terminator – Robots run amok and decide that “Kill All Humans” sounds like a pretty good idea.
• Aliens – Humans boldly go colonizing planets… only to find that they might not be quite as high on the food chain as they thought.
• The Abyss – Nuclear sub goes missing, civilian divers are brought in to help recover the sub… and run into aliens. Hijinks ensue.
• Terminator 2 – Robots, realizing the “Good Theory, Poor Practical Application” of their “Kill All Humans” idea, try again.
• Titanic – Boy meets girl. Boy and girl get on boat. Boat meets iceberg. Boat sinks.  (We all – ALL -  knew the boat was going to sink, but still went to the theatres in droves to watch, down to the last “glub-glub.”)

…but he is known for being able to make them look beautiful. This movie was no exception. And, at nearly three hours in length, it didn’t “feel” like a long movie. I would be willing to see it again – in the theatre – and I will be adding it to the DVD collection, when it’s released.

Stray Toasters

• YouTube Suspends Kid’s Account, Gets Porn Fest in Protest
• By way of shockpuppet: The ‘Israelification’ of Airports: High Security, Little Bother
• 13 Things a Man Should Keep in His Car
  (Although this is from The Art of Manliness, women could/would benefit from this sage advice, as well.)
• 
• The Cool Hunter
• Robotic Snake Takes a Swim
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Teen found after fleeing to hook up with 42-year-old woman he met in Warcraft

Almost time for the first of (at least) three meetings today. Lucky me!

Namaste.

Wednesday – 06 January 2010
It’s the middle of the week.
It’s also Comics and Sushi Wednesday.

As I was driving home from work last night, SaraRules called me to ask if I would be working late or if I would be home soon. I was in the parking lot, preparing to pull into my parking spot. She was calling because we had received a package – our Christmas present from my uncle: A gift box from Omaha Steaks. In it was an assortment of meats – beef, poultry and seafood. SCORE! (Seriously… half of our freezer contains meat.) Of course, this means that we have some rather tasty options for dinner over the next two or three weeks.

After dinner – which did not include anything from our newly arrived box o’ goodies – and NCIS, we headed to the gym. It was a good workout. We followed it up with a trip to the store and then back home for a quiet evening.

Stray Toasters

• Yep… it’s turned into Suit Week 2010. Today’s fare: Olive suit, white shirt, olive/rust abstract tie.
• MarknTyme sent me a link to the following picture:

  

  What I didn’t realize, until I read the accompanying article, was that I was familiar with the artist, Cliff Chang, as I had seen his Batgirl/Purple Rain mashup image a few months ago.

• sent me a link to: Men Who Like Comics, a group on Art of Manliness
• Randy Johnson retires after 22 years, 303 career victories
• The Best Times to Buy Anything, All Year Round
• Pirates storm Tampa for Gasparilla festival
• 
• sent me a link to: WineBottler Turns Windows Programs into Standalone OS X Applications
• Nic Cage as Everyone
• Hobby Lobby now has an online store. This could be dangerous…
• Hubble snaps galaxies at birth

Yeah… a Teen Titans-related post requires a Cyborg icon. Selah.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 05 January 2010
My fingers want to type “2001,” for some reason. I occasionally have to stop and make a conscious effort to transpose the “0” and the “1.”

Last night, after dinner, I fell asleep on the couch – I kept nodding off during MythBusters, so I figured that a nap was in order. An hour-and-a-half later, I was back in the game. We headed to the gym for a cardio workout and then back home for some lazy time. I’m Ivory Soap sure that I can thank the nap for a good portion of last night’s broken sleep, though.

This morning, I decided to wear a suit again. Yesterday, I wore my black suit with a dark purple shirt and a black and purple paisley tie; today, I’ve gone with the grey glen plaid suit, white shirt and blue geometric tie. I haven’t decided whether or not I’m just going to make this “Suit Week 2010” or not… but I’m not against it.

Stray Toasters

• I could really go for a cinnamon roll… particularly, a Cinnabon.
• Giving up smoking ‘raises diabetes risk’
• posted a link to this item from dooce.com last night. My friend, Chris (the one with whom I play ‘Clix), used to work for the establishment about which she is railing. Some of the things he told me about the place definitely fall under the heading “That’s no way to run a railroad…”
• Congratulations to the winners of Fark’s 2009 Headline of the Year contest
• Apple Hits 3 Billion Apps Served Milestone
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Guide to shooting smack published by City of New York
• Thor… made out of LEGO

And, it’s almost meeting time. Yay.

Namaste.

Monday – 04 January 2010
It’s the first work day of the new year. It’s also my first day back in over two weeks. I’m still not sure that I remember all of my logins. We’ll see… maybe… if my system ever recovers from the updates that are being pushed down to it.

Yesterday was a good day, all the way around.  There was sleeping in. There was football. There was dinner with the in-laws and MORE football. After we got home, I even felt up to the challenge of sorting some of my extra ‘Clix into their respective new homes, while SaraRules watched Club Paradise.

Instant Replay: Football
Yesterday was a good day for football, as the playoff picture fell into place:

Baltimore Ravens at Oakland Raiders
21 – 13
This game wasn’t aired here, but SaraRules and I tracked it on NFL.com’s Game Center, as the game involved both our teams.The Ravens seemed to play decently and didn’t get themselves saddled with excessive penalties. And, on the other side of the ball, the Raiders had a decent game and just roll over and give away a win. With this win, the Ravens secured a playoff berth (and knocked the Steelers out of playoff contention, in the process). Sorry, SaraRules and 1silver_seraph.

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Jacksonville Jaguars at Cleveland Browns
17 – 23
The Browns handled their business and eliminated the Jags from playoff contention.Congratulations, zeeke.

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Pittsburgh Steelers at Miami Dolphins
30 – 24
The Steelers headed south to Land Shark Stadium and handed the Fins a loss that also took the them out of playoff contention, even though the Dolphins would have needed losses from other teams to make the playoffs. With this win, and a Ravens’ loss, the Steelers would have made the playoffs.

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Cincinnati Bengals at New York Giants
0 – 37
The Bengals took on the Jets… and came away with a loss, in a game that the Jets had to win in order to make the playoffs. Mark Sanchez and company did the home crowd proud, handing the Bengals a big loss on the road. And who do they play next week? The Bengals… but this time, they’ll be playing in Cincinnati. Sorry, janietrain and carefreespirit.

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Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals
33 – 7
The Packers traveled to the desert and handed the Cards a loss… and a pretty big one, at that.Sorry, Marr.

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New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers
10 – 23
The Panthers handed the Saints a loss……in a game with no playoff implications for either team.

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New York Giants at Minnesota Vikings
7 – 44
The Giants headed into Minnesota, just to have Brett Favre and the Vikings serve ’em up a heaping helping of beat-down and eliminating them from the playoff picture.Congratulations, .

Tonight, the Vikings take on the Bears in what should be a good game.

Stray Toasters

• By way of : 10 Purchase not to put on credit cards
• 10 Sci-Fi Weapons that Actually Exist
• 

  (click to find out your score)

  

• Where was this when I needed it: LEGOland California: An Adult Visitor’s Guide
• TSA Special Agent who threatened blogger spaces out, drops notebook in public place
• 
• Avatar smashes $1bn speed record
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: BeautifulPeople.com axes holiday weight gain members

I finally remembered my password. I had changed it on one system, but not the other… and I was trying to enter the wrong password on the first machine. *sigh* But, I finally sussed it out.

…right on to the friction of the day.

Namaste.