Random Access

Thursday – 08 January 2009
I don’t think that I have ever been so glad to see the end of a workday as I was yesterday. Getting home, I flopped down on the couch for a couple hours of downtime – and dinner – before taking on more of the living room/dining room cleanup.

Four-Color Coverage
I read yesterday’s comic haul, which was laughably light: Four books. I picked up the Hellblazer: Dangerous Habits TPB, too. This week’s books included:

• Black Lightning: Year One #1 – The character Black Lightning debuted in April of 1977, DC Comics is now going back to look at his origin/history. This issue shows Jefferson Pierce returning to his hometown, a neighborhood of Metropolis… only to find that it has become less the place of his childhood – and the “City of Tomorrow” – and fallen prey to crime, gangs and an apathetic populace. What can one man do to take back his community? Here’s where we find out.
• Incognito #1 – Meet Zach Andersen, a criminal in witness protection who just met his new handler. To say that there is “friction” between them is a gross understatement.  We see what happens when Zach tries to “escape” the drudgery of his day-to-day life… and the possibilities it opens up for him.
• Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #5 – This issue wrapped up the mini-series, with the final showdown between Superman and Supergirl vs. Maelstrom and the Female Furies. It also showed some growth in Supergirl’s development from frustrated (though super-powered) teen to someone who wants to do more to protect her new home… even if she can’t save everyone.
• X-Men Noir #2 – I’m enjoying this take on the X-mythos, seeing the Brotherhood as a “secret society” within the NYPD and the X-Men as hoods and thugs. There were nods to a lot of names in the X-universe, even if the characters themselves didn’t appear.

Stray Toasters

• The American Gallery of Juror Art
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: US porn industry seeks multi-billion dollar bailout
• Obama, Bush and ex-presidents have ‘historic moment’
  
• Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators… or, as lj user=”m2ke” put it: Russian. Nuclear. Lighthouses.
• 
• Jan 8, 1790: Father Knows Best — Embrace Science
• America limps along after Bush, by the numbers
• FTC wants to hear from you about DRM
• HOWTO: Make an electrified steampunk Monopoly

NBN Thursday. Selah.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 07 January 2009
Ugh. That’s my description for the day so far. “Ugh.” You’d think that with blue skies and temperatures pushing 50°F, I’d be in a far more positive mood. Maybe tomorrow.

The morning started off well enough. Then, I got a phone call from my boss – two rungs up the ladder – asking how soon I could be in the office. That’s never a good sign. I told him roughly 20 minutes… and set about making it so. I got in to find that the network was down; that’s not a good thing for a tech firm. I made a couple of calls and went about working on the parts of the problem within my skill set. Turns out the problem was out of my depth, so all that I could really do was damage control until the guys who handle that portion of the infrastructure got in. (And, when they got in, they isolated the problem – which was worse than originally surmised – and wrangled it into submission.) Then, came a few other fires to put out.

On the plus side: I went out for lunch to get sushi and pick up this week’s comics. It was a nice oasis of “calm” in an otherwise intermittently turbulent day.

Tonight, there may be a bit of drinking.

Stray Toasters

• Tetris ‘helps to reduce trauma’
• Galactus’ Helmet Just Gets Happier and Happier
• Blue Notes Records Celebrates 70 Years of Jazz
  
• The Ten Worst Comic Book Movies of All Time
  (I’ve seen four of these.. and actually enjoyed two of them.)
• Top Ten Comic Book Character Deaths of 2008
• Secret Service to unveil new presidential limo
• “Citizen videos” spread online showing BART police officer shooting unarmed man to death
• Rise and Fall of Bush’s popularity

Namaste.

Tuesday – 06 January 2009
Another cold and snowy day in the Land Behind the Zion Curtain. “Snowy” may be a little bit of an exaggeration; there are flurries, though.

Getting back into the swing of things around the office.  And it seems that we’ve acquired a new team member, too.

Stray Toasters

• I’ve started watching – and enjoying – Planet Earth on the Discovery Channel. It looks amazing in HD.
• Understanding Islam Through Virtual Worlds launch in NYC, Jan 29
• MacWorld 2009 Keynote
  • ArsTechnica
  • Engadget
  • Gizmodo
• Atheist bus ads roll in London
• In “What’s Happening with LiveJournal?” news: The Russian Bear Slashes a Social Network
• Shanghai recreated in dice and poker chips
• Golf can be bad for hearing
• By way of – GOP senator wants to tighten alcohol rules

Namaste.

Sunday – 04 January 2008
It’s been a good – and busy – weekend… with a good bit of traveling thrown in, for good measure.

Yesterday, SaraRules went to her quilt club; I slept in a little. Then I remembered that I wanted to take the car in for an oil change and to finally replace the center cap on the front driver’s side wheel. So, off I went. They changed the oil. They replaced a burned-out tail light. They replaced the center cap… the $103 center cap. *blink blink* Wow. Knew it wasn’t going to be cheap, just didn’t expect it to be quite that much.

Back home to pack – we were heading to Cedar City for the wedding reception for Skott (brother of Tom Chandler) and Shannon (fiance of brother of Tom Chandler). It was a small affair, but nice. It was good to see Tom and Jo – the only people I knew there, although I met other members of the family. We also picked up a few more things from SaraRules’ storage unit, before the reception. In the dark. In the COLD. Oh so bitter cold. Something in the neighborhood of 6°F. Yeah…. That cold. We drove back last night.

This morning, we got up and headed to IKEA to pick up a MALM 6-drawer chest (medium brown). We got there about 9:50, thinking that the restaurant opened at 9:30 and the store at 10:00. WRONG. On Sundays, they open at 10:30 and 11:00, respectively. Verdammt!  I wanted to be home for kickoff. *sigh* So, we sat in the car for :40, while waiting for the store to open. We went in, had breakfast and shopped. On the way through the store, I decided to look for a yellow/amber MÄKTA sphere… and found one! That’s right, I’m going to have a Sinestro Corps shelf – as well as the GLC shelf – in one of the display cases. I needed another light, so I got a set of NON lights. They come in a two-pack, but that turns out to be good, as both lights are wired to a single switch – saving the need for another cord/plug. We picked up the chest of drawers and a few other items and headed home for…

Football! The Ravens-Dolphins Wild Card game. We got home about halfway through the second quarter. (Fortunately, Kris was watching the game and was texting me info about it.) The game was amazing:

Baltimore Ravens at Miami Dolphins
27 – 9
The Ravens went on the road to take on the Miami Dolphins in Dolphin Stadium. The last time they played each other this season, the Ravens came away with a 20-3 win. The first quarter was apparently a defensive struggle – both teams only scored one field goal. The second quarter saw a little more action. With 6:56 left in the quarter, FS Ed Reed picked off a Chad Pennington pass and ran it back for a 64-yard TD. Matt Stover kicked another FG, with 21 seconds left in the quarter, to give the Ravens a 13-3 lead going into the half. After a couple of fruitless drives by both teams early in the third quarter, Ravens’ DE Marques Douglas forced a fumble, which was recovered by Terrell Suggs. This wound up leading to RB Le’Ron McLain rushing TD. On Miami’s next drive, Ed Reed picked off another pass. Baltimore wasn’t able to capitalize on this, however. In the fourth, Pennington connected with Ronnie Brown for a spectacular one-handed TD catch. This seemed to put a little more wind in the Dolphins’ sails. Both teams had a couple of three-and-out drives, but Baltimore was able to seal the win when QB Joe Flacco ran in a 5-yd touchdown. With this win, the Ravens move into the fourth AFC playoff spot. Saturday, they take on the Tennessee Titans in Adelphia Stadium.

After the game, we went to the Utah Museam of Fine Arts to see Wrapped in Pride: Kente Cloth. It was a fascinating exhibit.

We went to visit SaraRule’s parents. We watched the end of the Philadelphia-Minnesota game. And then watched Day of the Dead, which I haven’t seen in many moons. SIDENOTE: The music at the beginning of the movie sounded familiar, but I couldn’t really place it… until Miguel started yelling “Hello…?!  Is anybody there?!” Then it clicked for me. Immediately. It is used at the start of Gorillaz’ M1A1, from their debut CD. It had never occured to me to see where it had come from and I hadn’t previously put two and two together.

Four-Color Coverage
Friday, I was chatting with Markyn Time, who recommended that I stop what I was doing, pick up my copy of Justice Society of America #22 and read it. Immediately. Because, in his opinion, it was one of the best JSA arcs he’s read.

I didn’t. Instead, I went to coffee.
I did read it after I got back, though. And he was right.

This issue tied up both the Gog storyline and the Earth-22 Superman storyline. And it did both wonderfully. And… AND… it also had not only a great tie-in to Kingdom Come, but also to what I think was the v2 (“Rebooted“) Legion. All of this… and an amazing last page, too.

I was glad that I saved this book for my last read from this week’s haul.
It was just that good.

Stray Toasters

• Obama Moves to Counter China with Pentagon-NASA Link
• Facebook’s War on Nipples
• The Exact Cause of the Zune Meltdown
• From Wizard: Best of ’08 – Best Hero: Captain America
• Opening titles of B-Movies
• Apple IIe Emulator Released for the Wii

Tomorrow, the grind begins again… but, I still have a few hours of vacation to enjoy.

Namaste.

Friday – 02 January 2008
Today has been a good – and even “productive” – day. I slept poorly last night – first, I couldn’t fall asleep, then… I couldnt stay asleep. On top of that, I started having a rather odd dream, somewhere around 5:00 or so this morning. I woke from that rather disconcerted. After wrestling with sleep for a few more hours, I got up a little after nine.

I spent about an hour or so on the couch, watching TV. Then, I decided to take care of the morning hygiene rituals. Next up: video games. I played a little HALO 3 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance; I made a bit of progress in both.

We met SaraRules’ parents for lunch. We went to Jasmine China Bistro and Sushi Bar. It’s apparently been there for years (many years), but I never knew of it. The food was good, as was the service. I will have to keep it in mind in the future.

Back home. After a little down time, we set about assembling a couple of Billy bookcases. The office is coming along nicely. It’s still a little cluttered – mostly with ‘Clix paraphenalia and things that have moved out of other rooms – but progress is being made.

Stray Toasters

• I recorded a couple of episodes of Batman: The Brave and the Bold the other day. It’s definitely a much lighter take on The Dark Knight than has been seen in the past two decades, but I found it to be a lot of fun.
• The Lion, the Witch and the Wipeout: Disney leaves Narnia franchise
• 

  (click image and scroll down – after page loads -  for more info about the pink bottle)

• First Look at 12 Big Movies Coming in 2009
• Mattel’s DC Action Figures
• …and, coming in 2009: Amanda Waller, as part of the JLU line.
• 
• At 70, Superman has changed through the years
• Blackest Night and the War of Light

Tonight, assuming that the weather doesn’t take a complete nosedive in the next hour: Clitorati.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 31 December 2008
Welcome to the last day of 2008.

The first part of the day, until 12:30 or so, was quiet and lazy. SaraRules came over after she got off work. We went to lunch at Olive Garden and then ran a couple of errands. She dropped me off and headed home so that she could get ready for this evening’s holiday gatherings. I, on the other hand, am going to play video games.

Stray Toasters

• HD channels == good.
• Keith has set up a couple of rather fun and interesting-sounding Clix events coming up over the next few weeks:
  • Dead Clix Walking!
  • Xtreme Wrestling Federation

  If anyone would be interested in checking out how ‘Clix gaming works – and/or would be interested in playing – these would be good opportunities to come check it out.

• Mind hack: Turn down the TV volume
• Wired‘s Game|Life – Predicting 2009’s Gaming Trends:

• Naples sex strike over fireworks
• Word Twist
• The Bard’s Tale

And, as put in this morning’s Sinfest strip:

I hope that everyone has a safe and fun New Year’s Eve.
All the best to you in 2009.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 30 December 2008
We’re back. Actually, we’ve been back since 4:00 PM yesterday. The flights were uneventful, as was the layover in Atlanta. It was a little warmer here than I expected. Granted, it’s still colder than in NC, but what can you do about that?

On the flight from ATL to SLC, we watched The Air I Breathe, loaned to me by a coworker. Neither SaraRules nor I had heard of the film, but we decided to give it a go. It was good. It basically deals with stories/lives of four characters and how they intertwine. It was interesting to see Brendan Frasier in another serious turn… and, again, another one in which he does a good job. If you get a chance to check it out, I recommend seeing this movie.

After coming home and unpacking, I headed over to SaraRules’ parents’ for a bit. We recounted a couple of stories of the trip to her mother. I also picked up the new TV and brought it home.

Setting up the TV also meant rearranging things in the entertainent center. I’m mostly done with that, but still have to figure out where to put a couple of things.

Four-Color Coverage
Over the last few trips to Dr. Volt’s, I picked up Fables Volume 2: Animal Farm, Fables Volume 3: Storybook Love and Hellblazer: Original Sins, along with The Sandman: The Doll’s House. Of those titles, I’ve read both Fables books and have started in on Hellblazer, which I haven’t really read in… probably six or seven years, at least.

Animal Farm dealt with the non-human-looking members of the Fables community and their… well…. Orwellian uprising against their human-looking brethren. When Snow White and Rose Red journey to “The Farm,” to discover why communications with between The Farm and Fabletown have broken down, they stumble into a vast right-wing conspiracy, led by none other than [spoiler deleted].

Storybook Love focuses on Snow White and Bigby Wolf, their search for a couple of rogue members of The Farm community and… could that be… a budding romance?

I’ve been enjoying the stories of Fables and recommend the series quite highly.

Hellblazer. How does one really talk about John Constantine? And, I don’t mean the version of the character as portrayed by Keanu Reeves in the (decent) movie that fortunately didn’t carry the Hellblazer name.) Possibly, the best way to do it is to take a few lines from “Hunger,” the first story:

He has been variously described as:

“The Aleister Crowley of his era, but more insidious.” (Guardians of Youth, media-watch group)
“A man of great courage, principle and humanity.” (The Archbishop of York)
“A cheap, flashy little crook.” (his father)
“Dangerous to know” and “A thorough bastard.” (Ted ‘Gold’ Digger, unconvicted acolyte of the Manson Family)
“A good mate of mine.” (John ‘Pearly’ Grey, Eastend autocrat of crime’ reputedly the only man feared by the notoroius Kray Twins)

Got him yet? No? A few more clues then.

Lead singer with the short-lived but brilliantly vitriolic MUCOUS MEMBRANE back in ’78.
Notorious occultist who spent two years in the bin after failing to pull off, in real life, as successfully as William Friedkin did on film.

No? You disappoint me. I thought you were street people.

For as long as this hack has been on the scene, people who know people have been talking about John Constantine.

He’s all of those things. Or none. Or some odd amalgamation of some of them. Hellblazer: Original Sins leads us – first, by the hand… before pushing us face-first – into the world of John Constantine. Sometimes, it’s the world we know. Other times, it’s the world we glimpse out of the corner of our eyes, in the dark. But, you can be assured, that when John Constantine is involved, it is sure to be interesting. And dangerous. But it definitely makes for a good read.

Stray Toasters

• I like this icon of :



• Flap Over ‘Magic Negro’ Song Roils RNC
• 12 Good Gadgets for Hard Times
• 
• 1970 video about collecting comic books
• Chemistry student wrongly busted for meth and bombs
• The new season of Burn Notice starts in three weeks.

Time to find some (more) trouble to get into.

Namaste.

Monday – 29 December 2008
It’s amazing how early 7:00 AM can seem.
(Hint: VERY early, indeed)

We’re up, packed and having a bite to eat before heading to RDU to catch our flights westward.

Namaste.

Sunday: Coda
Wow.

It’s hard to believe that the trip is almost over. On the other hand, we’ve packed quite a bit into the past 4½ days. The time with family and friends has been wonderful, to say the least. I was commenting to SaraRules earlier that I can remember (as recently as… five or so years ago) when family gatherings would make my teeth itch. My mother and I have very similar personalities and we don’t always see eye-to-eye when one of us gets an idea in our head and the other is not in a mood to reconsider our position. (Hmm… wonder where I get that from?) There haven’t really been any loggerheads of that sort his weekend. It’s not necessarily that either of us was on “best behavior;” I think that it’s closer to the truth to say that we’ve both grown and come to accept (some) of our differences… as well as our similarities.

This evening, my uncle took the family out for dinner to celebrate SaraRules and my engagement. We had dinner at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar. Holy. Cow. Well, maybe not “holy,” but it was VERY “tasty.” The food, the wine, the dessert and the service were exemplary. Our waiters, Jacques and Robert, were very attentive and helpful. And, in a often-too-rare find, they were both willing to offer their opinions, with respect to their thoughts about items on the menu, as opposed to just giving the company line. I had:

• Sweet Chile Calamari
• Fleming’s Salad
• Steak Diane
• Garlic roasted mashed potatoes and their signature Fleming’s potatoes
• Chocolate Lava Cake
• and a few glasses of Robert Sinskey Merlot Los Carneros, 2004

As I said above: It was exemplary.

After dinner, SaraRules and I stopped in to see the parents of a friend (whom I haven’t seen/talked with in some time). They had just gotten in from spending the holiday with their family. Literally. As in they had only been home a few minutes before we got there. We stayed and talked with them for a half-hour or so. They are doing well and it was very good to see them.

From there, we headed north to visit , MarknTyme and their sons. Everyone was doing well, although their youngest (a year old), woke up from a nap shortly after we arrived… and was not in the best of moods for a little bit. He soon warmed up and was bounding about the house. (Maybe it had something to do with the cookies…) The older son was also doing well, playing with many of his Christmas gifts. We told stories about things we did years ago and I was also able to catch up on the goings-on of a few mutual friends.

We headed home; our things weren’t going to pack themselves. Unfortunately. I recalled a way home through Eden – the road that we were on used to have a connection to a road that led through Eden to home. Yeah… they’ve apparently changed a few things in the past (more years than I care to admit) since I’ve taken it. We wound up at the Virginia state line. A quick turnaround and an exit onto a different road put us back on the path home. No yellow bricks, however.

We got home and discovered that, with a modicum of judicious packing, we were able to get everything into our suitcases. God help the skycaps/baggage handlers.

All-in-all, this has been both a pleasant and fun trip home. Definitely just what the doctor ordered for a great change of pace from the day-to-day grind of the past few months.

Namaste.

Friday – 26 December 2008
Happy Boxing Day, Happy (first day of) Kwanzaa, and a belated Happy Hanukkah, but more importantly – Happy International Day:

Yesterday was fun. Post-gift-opening, we hung out for a while before SaraRules and I went to pick up a friend of the family to join us for Christmas dinner. We came back for more pre-dinner hanging out. We had about 20 people, give or take, who came by for dinner… including a cousin (from Mom’s side of the family) that I haven’t seen in probably 20 years. Otherwise, it was a typical Christmas around here – a few of Mom’s students sang, lots of story-telling, and all-around good cheer.

Today, I think that SaraRules and I are heading into Greensboro to meet up with a few friends and to get my suit returned and/or altered. My uncle will fly in from New York this evening and we’re all heading to my cousin’s for dinner. At least, those are the (current) plans, as I understand them.

Stray Toasters

• Guess who’s getting food from Bojangle’s in a bit. Mm-hmm, that’s right… we are.
• Someone had The Price Is Right on earlier. They’ve upped the value of some of the prizes… not too surprisingly, I guess.
• Broadway’s Marketing Turns Interactive
• SaraRules’ father made a video of the construction of the gingerbread train.
• Eartha Kitt dies, age 81
• Top Breakthroughs of 2008
• In a bit of “It was bound to happen” news: Notebook Sales Outpace Desktop Sales

Attack the day…

Namaste.

Wednesday – 24 December 2008
Christmas Eve.

For those of you who didn’t receive one in the mail, here is this year’s Christmas card:

(click image to see the inside of the card)

Last night, after she got off work, SaraRules came over and we set up the Christmas tree. (Thanks, again, to OnlyAly and !) We even took a few pictures of it.

Later in the evening, SaraRules’ sister, Meliko, flew into town. We went over to the parents’ to hang out with her for a bit, as she will be gone by the time we get back. While SaraRules and her folks went to the airport, , Logan and I hung out at the house and watched Time Warp. It was nice to hang out with the family, if only for a couple hours, before I had to come home and pack.

In a few hours, SaraRules and I will begin our trek eastward for the long holiday weekend. We should arrive on the Right Coast about 8:30 PM, just in time to get home to hang out with the family-unit for some “holiday cheer” before the arrival of St. Nick.

Stray Toasters

• Since it’s almost Christmas, that means it’s time for my favorite Christmas song: Bing Crosby and David Bowie – Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy
  David Bowie |MTV Music
• Both Bret and made the same “short end of the stick” comment. Hm…
• Will Obama Bolster Captain America?
• Zimbabwe: Tutu ‘Ashamed’ of South Africa over Mugabe
• Attack of the Fan Videos – WormyT’s homemade trailer for a Thundercats movie.
  (There’s a lot of work that went into this; it looks pretty good.)
• …and since we already have a flashback to one cartoon, why not throw in another, for good measure?
• 5×10-foot Hoth base diorama includes teeny tiny minifig footprints
• THREE CAMERAS!
• Remember when getting one of these was the sign of “a good Christmas?”  (With a nod to Lexus…)
• Joysticks as coat hooks
• ‘Wall of Water’ Traps Motorists on Maryland Road

That’s about it for now; time to take care of a few last-minute items.

Although I’ll probably touch base again before tomorrow, I’d like to wish everyone a “Merry Christmas,” I hope that it is both safe and fun for you and your families.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 23 December 2008
Vacation: Day 2.

I slept in again this morning… until a little after 9:00. told me that I’m “…not fully recognizing the depth of sleeping that [I] can attain…. true sleeping-in enlightenment can only be reached beyond the noon hour” I reminded him that sleeping in until 9:00 IS sleeping in for me and that I only really sleep past noon when I cross timezones.

Last night, SaraRules and I ran a couple of errands, including visiting Kate, Perry and the kids and dropping off their Christmas presents. We came back to the apartment with every intention of trimming the tree and whatnot. Never happened. We sat down on the couch and wound up vegging the rest of the evening away. So, we’ll be doing that this evening.

Four-Color Coverage
I finally read the final chapter of Fables (Volume 1): Legends in Exile last night; I was waiting to finish it so that I could review the whole book.

The story is set “in a fictional land called New York City.” It seems as though a member of the Fabletown community has been murdered. That, in and of itself, is not so unusual; the strangeness lies in the Dramatis Personae:

• Snow White, Deputy Mayor and Director of Operations of Fabletown
• Bigby Wolf, former house-blow-in’er and current Sheriff of Fabletown
• Rose Red, the victim of the aforementioned murder… and sister of Snow White
• Prince Charming, insouciant gadabout and womanizer (and ex-husband of Ms. White and Cinderella) and
• King Cole, Mayor of Fabletown

Bill Willingham, using these – and other characters – takes an interesting look at the lives of characters whom we all know from fables and folklore… out of their known realms and in “the real world,” while putting together the pieces of Rose Red’s murder. It’s an excellent re-imagining, if you will, of folklore characters, much in the same vein as Neil Gaiman did with many of his characters in The Sandman. I picked up the Fables Volume 2: Animal Farm TPB last week. I will most likely delve into it over the Christmas holiday.

If you’re looking for a solid read, with a few familiar faces, I recommend Fables.
And, thanks to Dwim for suggesting that I read it.

Stray Toasters

• By way of , who got it from shockpuppet: 11 Words That Sound Offensive, but Aren’t
• Glennz Tees



• I’m contemplating modding a Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) ‘Clix into a Shado figure.
• Micronauts
• Amid Recess/Depression/Whatever, a Boom for Crafting?
• Cake Wrecks

Time to go take on the day.

Namaste.

Monday – 22 December 2008
Day One of Vacation.  In two days, SaraRules and I will be on a plane headed east.

Last night, we finished wrapping a few gifts. At some point today, I’ll have to brave the snow and head to the post office to get two of them in the mailstream.

Stray Toasters

• By way of comes This Old Studio Apartment, not to be confused with The Old Apartment.
• I just burned 2 GB of pictures (all from this year) from Defiant onto a DVD. Finally.
• Ex-astronaut again asks court to toss evidence
• Word Twist is an addictive game.
• Will people really boycott Apple over DRM?
• Scientists Build Neonatal Incubator from Car Parts
• This sounds like something out of the Saw movies: Stanley Milgram’s shocking experiment, redux
• Top 100 Comic Book Battles Master List
  



• Cartoon Network Creates First AAA, Browser-Based MMOG for Kids
• It’s snowing, once again.

Quote of the Day
From a conversation with a little while ago…

Me: What’s shakin’ over Companion-way?
: sausage mcmuffin with egg and cheese!
: heeeeeeeoooooooo yeah
Me: Nice.
Me: I’m contemplating a bowl o’ Honeycomb, personally.
: the top of my mouth cries for you.
Me: But, I likeses the Honeycomb.
: it’s a cruel, cruel cereal.
: so delicious, but it hates you.
Me: No, Cap’n Crunch is a cruel cereal.
: that’s the cruelest. honeycomb wishes it were capt. crunch.
: it’s a copycat killer.

Namaste.

For those who missed this morning’s (brief) post: I proposed to SaraRules…

…and she said “yes.”
(Thank God.)

Since then, there have been many phone calls – and text/Facebook messages – to and from various family members and friends. No date or plans just yet, but we’ll keep people posted as we go.

Yesterday afternoon, SaraRules, Logan and I made a gingerbread train. As promised, here are the pictures.  After the train – and running a few errands – SaraRules, Logan and I went to Fiddler’s Elbow to watch the Ravens take on the Cowboys. (More on that below.) After the game, we went to OnlyAly and ‘s for their second annual “Nightmare Before Christmas” horror movie gathering. We watched The Exorcist: The Version You Haven’t Seen. I haven’t watched this movie (at least the version I have seen) in close to ten years. It was still good.

This morning, we had a lazy morning about the apartment – watching football – before coming over to hang out with her family… to watch more football and have dinner.

Football Update

Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys
33 – 24
The Ravens traveled to Dallas to take on the Cowboys. Joe Flacco had his work cut out for him as no rookie starting QB – other than Ben Roethlisberger – had beaten the Cowboys in Texas Stadium.This was another defensive game, the halftime score was only 9 – 7, in Baltimore’s favor. FS Ed Reed had two interceptions, but the workhorse of the team was WR Derrick Mason who,  despite a shoulder and leg injury, finished with six catches for 66 yards and a touchdown. The Ravens move to 10-5 and are still in the hunt for a Wild Card spot. Next game: Jacksonville Jaguars at M&T Bank Stadium.

Stray Toasters

• Star Trek‘s Majel Roddenberry passes away
• , if you haven’t seen the new Smallville trailer with the Legion in it, click here.
• Hal Jordan: Greatest Green Lantern of All? Nope.
• By way of NPR:
  • Best Superhero Graphic Novels 0f 2008
  • Chemist Divulges How to Bake the Perfect Cookie
    I heard this interview last week; you have to listen to the… sound effects… Shirley Corriher makes when describing things. It made the whole interview for me.
  • Singing: The Key to a Long Life
• Women in Big Two super-comics: It wasn’t all bad news this year

Yeah… that’s good for now.

Namaste.

Sunday – 21 December 2008
She said “Yes.”

(To be honest, she actually said,”Of course,” but you get the idea.)