Random Access

Wednesday: Coda
This afternoon’s lunchtime trip to Dr. Volt’s was a bust – there was a delay in the shipment, so they were late getting the books sorted. But, I had sushi with SaraRules, shockpuppet, , Joe and Mike (another name with which I will have to resort a numeric nomenclature, it seems).

Back to the office for a bit and then home. I logged into City of Heroes for a bit. No one in my supergroup was on, so I decided to roam around Founders Falls and beat on a few things. I apparently forgot one very important thing: They beat back. I’ve been so used to playing on a team that I neglected to remember just how squishy Kheldians are. I wound up in the hospital at least three times before I logged out of the game. Even so, I had fun playing. (I want to upgrade the RAM on Defiant and see if I can get City to run in Parallels.)

As I was leaving my complex, I couldn’t exit because two (not just “one,” but “TWO”) vehicles were trying to make left turns… from dead-center of the exit. The exit which is easily wide enough to accommodate two cars, one making a right and one making a left turn. *grblsnrkx* It was enough to make me want to start a list of rules for the Council for Better Driving. Not even five minutes later, another idiotstick pulled a hare-brained maneuver in front of me. That cemented what I think shall become Rule #1:

Council for Better Driving Rule #1: Don’t be a fucker.

Back to Dr. Volt’s to feed my four-color habit. It was a light week, but I had forgotten that I had asked Dave to put something on hold for me: Justice Action Figure Set. I also picked up two boxes of the new Mutations and Monsters set of HeroClix. Of note:

• Colossus
• Cyclops (First Class)
• Iceman (First Class and Modern)
• Iron Man (Zombie)
• Jean Grey (Age of Apocalypse)

From there, it was on to SaraRules’ parents’ house. On the bill tonight: Making my contribution to Thanksgiving dinner – sweet potato pie. Tonight marked the first time that I have tried making a pie. I used a recipe from a family friend – a recipe that made enough for three pies. They seemed to turn out well. Tomorrow will be the test, though. While the pies were baking, SaraRules and I watched Super Troopers, which I had not seen before. Funny movie.

Home again, home again, jiggety-jig. And now, sleep.

Namaste.

Monday – 19 November 2007
Another work week begins… but it’s a short week. I like to shake it, shake it short weeks. They’re nice. And this one has the added bonus of: SaraRules will be in town tomorrow.

Yesterday was full of football and general laziness. SaraRules and I watched the Browns-Ravens game… until it went to overtime – I was Ivory Soap-sure that I knew what the outcome would be. (I was right, by the way. Congratulations, .) After the game, we headed to St. George. I stopped in Old Navy, intent on picking up a few turtlenecks or mock turtlenecks, as the weather is starting to turn a bit chilly. No go, Flight. The only sizes they had were for toddlers. I’m short, but not quite that short. Guess that I’ll have to check Eddie Bauer. Next stop: ColdStone. We tried the Mud Pie Mojo, a coffee ice cream-based flavor. It was very good. Next: Best Buy. I’ve been mulling over an Xbox 360 for a while, and decided that if they had the right package, I’d probably go ahead and pick one up. When I looked around, all I saw was the “Arcade” package. Definitely not what I wanted. SaraRules tapped me on the shoulder and pointed me in the direction of a stack of Xboxes about 20 feet away. VARIETY!!! Yes!!! For those who don’t know, Micro$oft has multiple “versions” of the Xbox:

• Arcade: This is the base model. No frills, no bells, no whistles.
• Core System: Includes a 20 GB hard drive and two games.
• Halo 3 Special Edition: Basically a Core System that, for an extra $50, has been painted green and orange, just like everyone’s favorite Spartan. (No, not these Spartans… this Spartan.) And, did I mention that this does NOT include a copy of Halo 3? It doesn’t.
• Elite: If Microsoft was going to have “sexy black hotness,” this would be it. Where the other Xboxes are white with grey accents – or Halo 3 green – and plastic, the Elite is shiny black metal. Or, at least the original limited edition ones were. It comes with a 120 GB hard drive and two games. And all for only $100 more than the Core System.

I went with the Core System. And I’m good with that.

The end of the evening held a trip to the grocery store, me cooking dinner (with an assist from Steve, who did the garlic bread), wine, football and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Fun movie. Quirky, even. I went into it expecting something else, so I was a little thrown-off… but I enjoyed it. I found out afterward that SaraRules is a big Robert Downey, Jr. fan, so I showed her the trailer for Iron Man. Her reaction: “We are so there.”

This morning’s drive wasn’t bad. I played intermittent leap-frog with an SUV from Beaver up to Spanish Fork. It reminded me of Smokey and the Bandit in a way: One vehicle would lead (and make sure that the path was clear, the other would drive “a little” faster than the posted limit. To my knowledge, though, neither of us had a trunk full of Coors. (At least, I didn’t.) There wasn’t any construction on the northbound side of I-15; there was a little… something… going on that forced the southbound side to one lane, just north of Cove Fort, though. And, of course, there was general monkey-rifficness almost as soon as I crossed into Utah County. Go figure.

I thought about something this morning – that I first thought about Friday night, on the way to Cedar City: I have an eclectic mix of music on my iPod. No news there. From The Powerpuff Girls theme to Nine Inch Nails’ The Perfect Drug. I also have a tendency to sing along with whatever song strikes my fancy while driving. My car is equipped with the OnStar service; I don’t subscribe to it, but it’s there. I remember hearing about cases where the FBI used OnStar to eavesdrop on suspects. It made me wonder if a bored OnStar advisor ever listened while I was singing away… and what they thought of the rather odd assortment of songs to which I listened and/or sang.

Work hasn’t been bad. I’ve had a couple of issues to forward to other people and a few small equipment needs to fill, but otherwise the natives have been quiet. Which means that I was actually able to get some reading done.

Stray Toasters

• I think that Chris is coming over to play a little Marvel Ultimate Alliance later.
• What about the teachers? (An op-ed commentary from Marketplace.)
• Marketing. *snicker*

  

• Do Not Open: An Encyclopedia of the World’s Best-Kept Secrets
• , you might want to check this out.
• The Dangers of World of Warcraft
• By way of : Steampunk iPod Skin
• Update: Chris did come over. And we did play MUA… after I figured out how to connect the #*@&^@! second wireless controller to the #*@&^@! Xbox.
• Food Banks: Less supply, more demand

I should start thinking about prepping my things for tomorning.

Namaste.

Saturday – 17 November 2007
As Bobby Darin sang, “What a difference a day makes…”

Last night’s drive to Cedar City was relatively uneventful, although long. I left SLC a little later than I had planned, thanks to some office monkeydom. Nature of the beast, I guess. Leaving late meant that I got caught in the Great I-15/I-215 Southbound Exodus crunch. It’s great when it takes you 20 minutes to go four miles. Once I got past 106th South, traffic wasn’t bad… until I got to Orem. At UVSC, I-15 turned into a parking lot again. A monkey-filled parking lot. And, that had barely cleared up when there was another clot around Center Street in Provo. Not so amazingly, when I got out of Utah County, traffic was (for the most part) fine. Although, there seemed to be more southbound traffic than I am used to seeing. *shrug*

When I got here, aside from seeing SaraRules, I was also reunited with my work ID badge, which had decided to stay here on holiday. SaraRules, Roommate Kim and I ate take-out from Wendy’s and watched Batman Begins, which made for a good way to end the day/week.

So far, today has been quiet and lazy. In true Saturday fashion, the morning started with breakfast and coffee and cartoons – a new episode of Legion; a rerun of The Batman. Now, SaraRules is knocking out some homework and I’m playing around on the Interweb. And deciding if I want to play around with Parallels. Tonight, I’m either going to a basketball game – which will get me back on track for my “Year of Sports” goal – or going to a Gershwin… opera-type-thingamabob.

Stray Toasters

• I have a taste for something sweet, but I haven’t pegged “what” yet.
• posted a link to this: Elise Hendrick’s piece Fuck Euphemisms. Go read it.
• LEGO Master Working on 100,000-piec, 21 foot long Battleship Yamato model
• I was showing a coworker the video for Weapon of Choice (which he had never seen) yesterday. That led me to look up Christopher Walken’s IMDb page. I noted that he had also appeared in Madonna’s Bad Girl video, which I had never seen.
• iStat menus
• 
• Automata for Sale – papercraft, DIY and wooden
• Typing of the Dead shall be played today (or tonight)!
• Best book covers of 2007
• Does anyone remember the game Marble Madness? Of course you do. You know that you spent quarter after quarter trying to get the damned marble to the bottom of the track/maze without getting eaten or crushed by the Steelie or just running it off the edge. But, I digress… check this out.

Time to find some trouble to get into…

Namaste.

Friday – 16 November 2007
I don’t think that I’ve been this happy to see a Friday (or work week) come to a close in a long time.  It’s been one’a those days.  (And the “joy” of the day started last night, long before the sun came up… but that’s another story.)  Suffice if to say that the weekend is now here and that’s a good thing.  Amen.

I’m sure that I had other things to say here, but none of them are coming to mind at the moment.  So, rather than try to come up with something… I’ll just save whatever it may have been for later.

And that’s good enough for me.
(Great… now I want a cookie.)

Monday – 12 November 2007
Another week begins.

The commute wasn’t bad. Not even when I got to Utah County. I was shocked. Wait… I take that back. Just remembered one monkey who apparently didn’t grok the concept of “fast lane” as we were heading into Scipio. Downhill. While we both drove alongside a semi. *sigh* Some peoples’ children…

Yesterday was a lax and lazy day. Highlights included watching football (more on this below) and watching The Boondock Saints, which I had somehow never gotten around to watching before. I liked it. Quite a bit, in fact. This week was my week to cook dinner. I took a page from my mother’s book and made a pineapple bowl mixed fruit appetizer, followed with baked chicken breasts, rice (cooked in cream of mushroom soup) and asparagus. All-around, quick and easy.

Football Update
The Ravens lost to the Bengals yesterday. Again. Congrats, .

I can deal with losses; they’re part of competition. What I don’t get – and here comes the Monday morning quarterbacking – is: Why in the Nine Hells Brian Billick doesn’t do something… ANYTHING… when he sees that the on-field squad isn’t working effectively and/or efficiently!? Steve McNair was the Ravens’ starting QB for the past two games. This followed a multi-game absence due to a groin and back injury, I think. Last week, he didn’t do anything. Yesterday, he didn’t do anything either. In fact, it was so bad that the Ravens were about five minutes away from getting blanked, before Billick rubbed a couple of brian cells together and came up with something that approximated “a clue.”

That clue: Put Kyle Boller in the game.

As ever, it was a case of “too little, too late. BUT… Kyle was effective. Far more so than Steve:

• McNair: 17/26 for 128 yards
• Boller: 6/8 for 89 yards

One-third the number of attempts, with a 10% better completion rate. And with his first five (5) completions, Boller had already gained more than half of the total yards that McNair had… in three-and-a-half quarters. Yes, they both had one interception – and McNair did rush for six yards – but come on. He had over three-fourths of the game to do something.

Yes, I’ve been vocal about Kyle as a QB in the past, but I’ve also noted that he has made definite strides in becoming a good, solid and effective quarterback over the past four years. Look at game footage over the past two years and you can see the difference. He’s gone from taking two (or three) quarters to settle into the game to getting right down to brass tacks.

And, didn’t we draft a new Heismann Trophy-winning QB this year, too? We did? I thought so.

But, anyway, congrats to and Cincinnati’s co-MVPs: Brian Billick and Steve McNair.

/rant

Stray Toasters

• I have fresh pineapple for a post-lunch snack.
• There are still four Butterscotch Krimpets lurking in my snack drawer.
• By way of Eric: Things People Say vs. What They Mean to Say
• I have just been informed that an item I need for this year’s Christmas card has been acquired.
• 
• Vinegar as Wonder Substance
• Asparagus.
• 39 never-reprinted Kirby monster comics

/lunch

Namaste.

Saturday – 10 November 2007
After work yesterday, I hit the road for Cedar City. It was overcast for part of the drive, so I didn’t get to look at the starscape. By the time I got to Cedar, SaraRules had already left for the musical; I hung out with her roommates until she got in.

Today, started with sleeping in. Much-needed sleeping in. Then came breakfast and cartoons. After breakfast – and the hygiene rituals – SaraRules I went to meet Claire, an artist from whom Sara had commissioned a picture for my birthday: It’s a train. And, it’s very cool. Claire brought two prints for me to choose from; I took the first one – I liked the color separations on it a little better. I’m going to have to reorganize some of the pictures in the dining room so that I can add it to the collection.

The rest of the day has been fairly lazy and relaxed. Tonight, I saw the musical (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying) with Vince.  I saw Rachel and Steve at intermission.  After the play, SaraRules, Rachel, Steve and I went to Applebee’s for dinner and drinks – not a bad way to wind up the day.

Human of the Day
Today’s Human is Claire. She was fun to talk with and I’m quite taken with the piece that she did.

Four-Color Coverage
It’s been about three weeks since I’ve done one of these. In that time, I have decided to revamp the comic reviews a bit: Rather than review everything that I’ve read from a given haul, I’m going to stick to covering the stand-outs – the issues that I consider particularly noteworthy. That being said, let’s dive in:

• Action Comics #858 – This is the book that made me late for gaming a couple of weeks ago. Why? It’s a Legion tie-in story. Not just “any” version of the Legion, either. The Legion that I grew up reading. Apparently, there’s trouble in the 31st Century that requires the help of the Man of Steel. But, things in the 31st Century aren’t quite the same as the last time Superman was there…
• Astonishing X-Men #23 – Short and sweet summary here: Wow. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but after the bombshell from Issue #22, I wasn’t expecting much.  I was wrong.  I seriously underestimated Joss Whedon. Excellent issue and I can’t wait for Issue #24, the final chapter in the Whedon-Cassady run of the book.
• Elephanmen #006 – I somehow missed picking up this issue when it was first released. In it, we get a little more background on the relationship between Elephantman Obidiah Horn and his fiancee, Sahara.
• Fantastic Four #551 – The Black Panther, Namor and… Doctor Doom… come back in time to prevent Reed Richards – and the rest of the Fantastic Four – from making one of his greatest mistakes. But, will Reed listen to what they have to say?
• Justice Society of America #10 – The “strange visitor” who appeared at the end of Issue #9 was none other than the Superman of Earth-22… the Kingdom Come Earth. He’s here to make sure that what happened on his Earth doesn’t happen on New Earth.
• The New Avengers: Illuminati (5 of 5) – I wasn’t entirely sure what to make of this series when it started…. and I wasn’t sure that I would collect the entire run. Yeah, I know… only five issues. But, given some of the bumps along the way, I wasn’t sure that I’d make it. But, I did. And it wasn’t as much of a train wreck as I had thought. In fact, the ending made up for a lot. And, it (the ending) tied in well to a continuing storyline in The New Avengers. On the minus side, it’s leading into what I assume will be a Marvel-wide crossover called “Secret Invasion,” for which I may wait for a trade paperback.
• Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #35 – Atom Girl, Shadow Lass and Timber Wolf – with long-range assistance from Brainiac 5 – take on former Legionnaire E.R.G.-1 (Wildfire) as he attempts to assassinate the President of the planet Lallor.
• Superman #670 – The final chapter of “The Third Kryptonian” storyline. Superman, Power Girl, Supergirl, Chris Kent, Krypto and… “the third Kryptonian” against Amalak, a being intent on making sure that there are no Kryptonians.
• Uncanny X-Men #492 – Chapter two of the “Messiah Complex” crossover currently running through the X-titles. Since I’m not collecting the other books, I came into the game late, so to speak. But, what this issue did have was a fairly solid story, and it was interesting to see Scott and Professor X finally get to the heart of the matter of the wedge between them… if only briefly.

Stray Toasters
Nope.  Not tonight.  Maybe tomorrow.

Namaste.

Friday – 09 November 2007
Going to bed at 3:30 isn’t terribly unusual for me.
Getting up at 6:40… and staying awake, that’s a little more rare.

But, that’s how the day started. When I got up and started moving, I had the “Get your sexy on….” line from Sexy Back running through my head on what seemed like an endless loop. It was almost as annoying as when I had the Pina Colada Song stuck in my head. Almost. Fortunately, it didn’t last very long. Up, ready, out.

Work has been good. Answered a few questions. Put out a few small fires. All-in-all, not a bad way to wind up the week.

Today’s workout was decent, as well. I tried doing a rep or two at 300 pounds today, despite the fact that I had done sets of dips just before attempting my bench press. My triceps were shot; I couldn’t get my upper arms much past parallel to the ground. Oh, well… another day. The rest of the workout was good, though:

• Leg Raises: 3 sets / 20 reps
• Dip: 3 sets / 20 reps
• Bench Press: 3 sets – 1 set: 225 lbs / 5 reps and 155 lbs / 8 reps; 2 sets / 12 reps, 155 lbs.
• Dumbbell Pull-overs: 3 sets / 15 reps, 45 lbs.
• Row: 3 sets / 12 reps, 120 lbs.

Tyranist brought in Infernal Contraption. While looking at it, I was reminded of the online CCG, Chron-X… which I hadn’t thought of in many, many moons. I apparently still have the old version of the game on ‘Nine.

Stray Toasters

• I have a slice of Turtle Cheesecake.
• In an after-story item from yesterday’s Human of the Day section: I now have the name of the “unknown Apple Store worker!” It is Lisa. I am drafting a thank you/commendation letter to the store for the associates’ help in what turned out to be a precarious matter; it would not do to simply refer to her as “unknown Apple Store worker” in the letter.
• One of the Coworker Marks told me about Steamtown.
• Mark also asked if I knew the origin of “The Real McCoy.” I didn’t. He, making a tie-in to Steamtown, pointed me in the direction of Elijah McCoy.
• Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials
• For the first time in a while, I had the opportunity to chat with lj user=”janietrain”. Along the way, we had the following exchange:
  

  [11:25] : So, I demand info.
  [11:25] : heh
  [11:25] : Who is SaraRules?
  [11:25] : Is this a new chick of interest?
  [11:25] : “Lord Praetor, on my ship, you don’t demand. You ask.”
  [11:26] : hahaha
  [11:26] : Ahh, dorky and evasive.

  I could remember where I got the “Lord Praetor” line – an issue of Uncanny X-Men – but I couldn’t recall the specific issue, nor the exact quote. A short search later, I found it: Uncanny X-Men #167:

  Cyclops and Corsair, having recently reunited for the first time in nearly 20 years, are having a talk… which is soon interrupted.
  Raza: Corsair! *arrives on the observation deck on a hoversled with Hepzibah and a member of the Imperial Guard*
  Corsair: So much for tender moments. What’s up, Raza?
  Raza: We have a guest, Christopher.
  Cyclops: That’s Gladiator, head of Lilandra’s Imperial Guard! What’s he doing here?
  Corsair: *to Cyclops* Good question, considering he swore never to walk these decks until he’d seen the Starjammers dead or enslaved. He isn’t a man to lightly break an oath.
  *calling down to Gladiator* You’re a long way from home. Is this a social call, or business?
  Gladiator: Pirate, I demand to see the Majestrix — Empress Lilandra — at once!
  Corsair: On my ship, Lord Praetor, you do not “demand” of me… you ask.
  Raza: Thou hast been ill-mannered, cousin.
  Gladiator: Have a care, renegade.
  Hepzibah: We like you, too, Imperial. Care to argue point?
  Gladiator: Another time, Lady Hepzibah, with pleasure. Corsair, I crave an audience with my empress.

• Is Apple Cashing in on iPod’s Missing Feature?
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Toilet sign in Korea warns to be on the lookout for sickos

Gone, baby… gone.

Namaste.

Thursday – 08 November 2007
Another NBN Thursday draws to a close. Work was good. Today was “Sushi Wednesday.” (Yes, I know it was Thursday. Deal with it.) I picked up this week’s four-color goodness. And, I have brand-spankin-new sexy black hotness.

Human of the Day
There are actually three HotDs today: Joanne, from the laundry where I get my clothes done and Jerry and an unnamed manager at the Apple Store.

I decided to kill two avians with a single piece of silicate tonight and get my laundry done while I was exchanging my MacBook. (Sidenote: One of the Coworker Daves, misheard Code Monkey and me talking about the laptop and thought that we had referred to it as my BlacBook. That amused me.) So, off I went in search of adventure to swap my BlacBook MacBook and to get some clean drawers…

• Joanne: I got to the laundry a little later than planned, but was still hopeful that I could get same-day service. Couldn’t hurt to ask, after all. So, I walked in… got up to the counter… and posed the question. Joanne looked at the clock, thought about it and said yes. When I went back later to pick up the clothes, she said that she basically did it because I’ve been a fairly regular customer and that she knew that if I said I needed them tonight, that I’d be back for them. (Truth be told, Joanne has consistently been the easiest-to-deal with person at that laundry in all of the time that I have been going there; I think I actually sigh in relief whenever I see that she’s working.)
• Jerry and the unnamed Apple Store manager: While waiting on the laundry, I took the old and busted MacBook to the Apple Store to trade it in for new hotness. An associate named Jerry came up to help me. Bang. Zoom. I summarized last night’s call to the store and told him with whom I had spoken. He said that he could take care of it; he took the receipt and the MacBook and headed to the Genius Bar. A couple of minutes later, he came back – he needed my password to get into the system. And then, he was off again. He returned with the old MacBook and a fresh-in-the-box new one.There was a slight problem in matching the receipt to the MacBook – there had been some arcane workings in getting proper credit applied when the purchase was made. Enter: Unnamed manager. She came over, sussed out the deal and got the proper ducks in a row. A few minutes later, Jerry returned and told me how much it would cost to complete the exchange.

  Cost? Huh…wha?!?

  When I called last night, that was one of the things that I specifically asked. The associate said that his manager had authorized a waiving of any restocking fee. Jerry disappeared again. While he and Managerette were trying to hammer out the particulars, I wandered about the store. I also made a discovery: Battlefield 2142 has been ported to the Mac. I wandered back to the front of the store, just as they were trying to figure out where another discount had been taken in purchasing the old MacBook. I tried, unsuccessfully to call (who picked up the MacBook for me) to help sort things out. But, Managerette came up with a solution and… no more than three minutes after that, I was walking out the door with the new system.

Stray Toasters

• I picked up a copy of Peaceful Warrior this evening. It was a good adaptation of the book.
• Ou.
• Apparently, the Chasing Amy “What’s a Nubian?” clip has been removed from YouTube. But, I found a link to a similar clip of it (minus about 30 seconds) on MySpace.
• Tesla Coils Playing the Mario Bros. Theme Are Unsurprisingly Awesome
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Teen Gets Strippergram at School
• Gawker Artists
• Zombeatles’ Hard Day’s Night of the Living Dead
• By way of Maddox: Fashion tips for women from a guy who knows dick about fashion and 9 things I learned about the world from anonymous stock photo models

Namaste.

Wednesday: Coda
I am tired. Not completely worn out and run down exactly, but I can tell that I should sleep well tonight.

On the way home, I stopped in to see Kate, Perry and the new baby. Cute. And tiny (but not toony). Both he and Kate are doing well, with no complications. Kate and Perry are now referring to me as the kids’ “bluncle.” That amuses me. I can live with that.

Human of the Day
Yep, this is another new item. Sometimes, you come across a person who is the polar opposite of a “monkey.” Since I so frequently mention (rant/rage/bitch about) monkeys, why shouldn’t I give equal time to people who actually are good and decent? Don’t they deserve a shout out, too? Of course they do. And thus, we have the “Human of the Day.”

Today’s (and the first) Human of the Day: .

I got the new sexy black hotness that is Defiant on 26 October. Leopard, the latest version of OS X, also came out that day. It wasn’t pre-loaded, but came packaged with the laptop. Win-win.

On 31 October, MacRumors.com began posting items about upgrades to the MacBook.

YeahbuhWHAT?!

• Faster processor
• New mainboard chipset
• Faster front-side bus
• Upgraded video card
• Added memory capacity

Yeah. All of that… at the same price point. *grblsnrkx*

For the past few days, has been asking me whether I had considered contacting Apple and asking a few pointed questions. Today was no exception. And, while I had planned on calling sometime this evening, I figured, “What the Hell…” and decided to call while still chatting with .

I called and after a little dealing with an IVR, got through to an associate in the store. I explained that I had just bought my MacBook and that I had even waited until Leopard was released so that I could have the new OS for the new machine… and that the new, updated hardware was released six days later. “So… what are my options to return or exchange my notebook for the newer hardware.” The associate said that he wasn’t sure, but that he would talk with a manager and find out.

He was gone for a few minutes. I listened to hold music – it was reggae. He came back to the phone and explained that there was a fourteen day grace/return period and that situations like mine were covered under that. All that I had to do was bring the notebook, box and all of the included accoutrements to the store… and I could exchange it for one of the new MacBooks.

Just. Like. That.

So, by this time tomorrow, I will have even newer, sexier black hotness.

So, once again, a shout out and a big thanks to for his persistence.

Stray Toasters

• Kate can sing the theme from The Snorks; I’m not sure whether to be impressed… or scared.
• Tossed-Out Electronics Are Reincarnated as Stop-Mo Animal Bots
• 
• The Ultimate Guide to Freezing Food

.eof

Monday – 05 November 2007
And…. back in Happy Valley, again. Wahoo, or some madness like that.

Belated Happy Hatching Day to :

SaraRules and I played backgammon again last night. I won four games to three. I like winning. We also watched the Dallas-Philly game. What I want to know is: Who were the yahoos in the Eagles’ jerseys?! What happened to the real team? I saw Andy Reid on the sidelines. I saw Donovan McNabb on the field. I even caught a glimpse of Brian Westbrook. Hell, David Akers even put in an appearance or two. But the others?! No idea. Dallas just walked all over ’em.

The morning commute wasn’t bad… until I got just into Utah County. Then the monkey-rifficness started. And I can’t blame a Utah driver this time – it was a Canuck. He, his pick-em-up truck and a long trailer tried to squeeze an Acura off the road… right in front of me. *grblsnrkx* There were also the usual assortment of people who decided that the “left general purpose lane” was the ideal place to go the speed limit. Or less.

Stray Toasters

• I had a cheese steak sandwich for lunch; it was the last son of Krypton sandwich left over from the batch that SaraRules made for dinner last night.
• I shall probably have a Butterscotch Krimpet or two for dessert.
• Tabula Rasa Reinvents the MMO to Court Casual Gamers
• 
• Grace.
• 22… 23… 24… 25… Oh, Hell. I give up.
• Bumper Stickers Only an Infantile Boob Could Love
• From the “Unintentional Candy Porn” file: Chocolate Santa holding a tree or a sex toy?
• The Best: Obsolete Technologies, from the Sundial to the Laser Disc
• Wait. You mean that everyone doesn’t do this…?

  

Quote of the Day
Today’s gem was SMS’ed in by Land; he overheard it from an out-of-state man working for the pro-voucher campaign here in Utah:

I met a black man today. I win the scavenger hunt!

And with that… lunch is done.

And tonight, the Ravens take on the Steelers. Fiddler’s Elbow. Guinness. That’s all I’m sayin’.

Namaste.

After lunch, I went on field trip to try and find a less-dry (and slightly more up-to-date) book to cover one of the things I studying. I went to the Barnes & Noble in Sugar House. It was nearby. It was a good-sized location. What could be better? How about the fact that I probably have a larger selection of technical books in my personal library than this store did? Okay, that’s a gross overstatement, but I was horribly disappointed at the store’s selection. I considered trying another location, but changed my mind and just decided to head back to the office.

As I’m in line, waiting to get out of the parking lot, a white Ford Expedition rolls past me, trying to cut me off. So, I moved up – cutting it off – and looked at the driver with a “What in the Nine Hells do you think you’re doing?!” look on my face. The driver rolled down the passenger window.

Have you ever had one of those moments where, after the fact, you wished that you had just let the stupid things that people do just… go… and move on with your life? This was one of mine.

The driver and passenger looked like they had been working on getting three or more sheets into the wind. She gave me a story about how she was “…so out of gas, so I was just going to cut you off so I can get to a gas station.” I waved her on ahead. I didn’t want any of the backwash of stupidity to splash over on me. *gah* With monkeys like these, who needs pets? And, might I add: The nearest gas station was about 300 yards up the hill. Yeah, waiting that extra seven seconds was going to make her run out of gas. *sigh*

Stray Toasters

• I had sushi for lunch.
• Boldly go where no corpse has gone before: Star Trek Coffin Warps Your Corpse to the Final Nerd Frontier
• Gawker Shirt-of-the-Day
• Top 10 Sexiest Hallowe’en Costumes of 2007
• just tried to decapitate me.
• 
• Western Digital rolls out 320GB 2½” Scorpio hard drive

Namaste.

Monday – 29 October 2007
A new week begins.

Getting up and on the way wasn’t so bad this morning. I chatted with for a few minutes before hitting the street. It seems as though there was a 5.0 earthquake in Kathmandu this morning. Oddness. And here are some interesting stats about Nepal.

Stray Toasters –

• Defiant is now running Leopard (Mac OS X – 10.5). New hotness for the new hotness.
• By way of SaraRules: ‘Fall Trio’ at Bountiful gallery; Mössel’s magic realism at SUU
• 
• The 13 Scariest Things in IT in 2007
• My Green Lantern ‘Clix should arrive soon. Very soon.
• Preparing for Diwali
• 
• Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi…
• I feel yet another pilgrimage to the Garden of Sweden coming on.
• 
• Man place on sex offender register for sex with bike
• Driver denies threatening officer

Quote of the Day
Land called Saturday to share this gem, from a consultant (obviously not from Utah) with whom he was working. She had apparently asked about getting some coffee and, when met with odd/curious looks, spouted off this beauty:

Oh, that’s right… you don’t drink coffee. Something to do with the purity of your temple or some shit like that.

Yay for ignorant and insensitive monkeys!

Namaste.

Monday – 22 October 2007
Another week begins. So far, it’s been good (despite a road monkey on the AF commute)… and it’s a short work week, so I’m not about to complain.

Saturday night, I finished watching Renaissance. It was good. I liked the feel and style of the movie. And I was pleased with the way it wound up; I was a little surprised by part of the ending, but in thinking about it – it made sense. I give the movie a thumbs-up with an okay.

Then, it was off to breakfast with the usual suspects… plus one: put in an appearance.

Sunday, SaraRules and I went to Temple Square to see Music and the Spoken Word – she plays cello, as does my coworker who performs with the Orchestra at Temple Square, so I figured it would be a “best of both worlds” kind of thing. So… off to the Conference Center we went. There were tons of people – far more than usual – also heading to the Conference Center. Odd, but I figured “Whatever…” When we got inside, they were handing out tickets for “Multi-Stake Conference.”

*blink blink*
Okay… definitely not what we’d gone for.

We decided to beat feet and make our way out. The problem: All of the primary entrances were being used for just that: Entrances. (After all, who would possibly want to leave when you could get a little bit o’ Jesus in your day?) So, we found an elevator bay that led to the parking garage and went out that way. Then we made our way against the tide of humanity back to the car. Along the way, we found a crosswalk that had a stone benches in the middle of the street. In case you got tired halfway across? *shrug* Who knows?

All gussied up and with no particular place to go, we realized that we were hungry. I checked the time and figured that Ruth’s Diner was going to be filling up with patrons. So, rather than sit and wait, I pointed the car to I-80 East. Park City. Cisero’s. Brunch. The food was good, as usual. And the drive, there and back, was nice.

Back to Salt Lake and on to the Capitol Theatre to see The Flying Dutchman. I enjoyed production. I was even able to restrain myself from making untoward comments to the lady who sat behind me and kept kicking the back of my seat throughout the performance. I was rather proud of myself.

From there, we headed to Sara’s parents for dinner and football. We watched the Broncos whale the tar out of the Steelers. I’m not really a Denver fan, but any team that plays the Steelers is my “favorite team” in that match-up.

Football Update

• The Ravens dropped a game to the Bills. Bah. *shakes fist*
• The Raiders lost to Kansas City.
• The Bengals beat the Jets.
• The Browns had a bye week.
• The Vikings got branded by the Cowboys.
• The Eagles lost to da Bears.

The Best: Come Together – Round 2
I put The Beatles up against Aerosmith in this match-up.

I picked up a copy of Across the Universe: Music from the Motion Picture a few days ago. I’m sorry, but Joe Cocker, singing an arrangement by Elliot Goldenthal, kicks the bejeezus out of both versions. Don’t believe it? Listen to it (unfortunately, it’s audio only – which is a shame, because the video portion of this kicks much grass) and tell me what you think.

Stray Toasters

• I had a cinnamon roll from the Garden of Sweden for breakfast, along with a large dose of frozen mocha goodness.
• Secret Agent, Salmon and 22 Seconds
• Plantation Dig Reveals Maryland Town’s Painful Past
• I am Ivory Soap sure that I will own new black hotness within the next few days.
• More US Warcraft Players than Farmers
• Salt Lake Gas Prices
• SaraRules, please show this to DJ Viking:

  

  Of course, I could have asked or (or a few others) to show it to him, too… Hm. Maybe I should make it a race: See who can get it to him first. Or, possibly even how many people can forward it to him. That would be amusing.

• By way of boingboing.net: Steampunk Shrew
• Luciana Souza: Revising Pop by Way of Bossa Nova
• 
• Anagram (for Mongo) from Mr. Shortz

And that’s that.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 17 October 2007
Midweek. Grey. Rainy.

Last night was D&D game night. We… kind of, sort of accomplished some things. In the grand scheme of things. We managed to uncover at least one new mystery. (We would have gotten away with it, if it hadn’t been for you meddling kids and your dog!) And, in the words of Jerry Reed, “We got a long way to go, and a short time to get there.” So, we’ll see how things progress.

I wasn’t in the mood to make a trip to Paragon City or the Rogue Isles, so I opted for a hot – and relaxing – bath, with a glass of Pinot Noir and Black Seas of Infinity. It was a good way to end the day.

Stray Toasters

• This morning, for the first time since God was a boy, I had breakfast from McDinkle’s: an Egg McMuffin. It wasn’t hellish.
• Marvel unveiled the new look of the new Captain America. Wizard also had a couple of items about it: 1, 2.
• 
• pointed me in the direction of this: Georgia Russel’s Book Sculptures.
• I have found a new – and horrible – new toy/distraction: IKEA Room Planner.
• Time Bandits map replication
• Sex, Nazi, Burrito and Viagra: Who Googles What?
• I found a community called Mock the Stupid, by way of . Holy monkeys on parade, Batman!
• 10 Wacky Wii Accessories
• “i think i just threw up my appendix”

Wheeeee!

Namaste.

Sunday – 14 October 2007
A lazy Sunday in Cedar City. The day started off slowly – i.e.: sleeping in. After consciousness and coffee (which some might say is a bit redundant) were attained, Sara and I had brunch with and , who were on their way to Las Vegas. It was a fun outing. When they got back on the road, Sara and I stopped in a store where one of her roommates works.

The weekend, thus far, has also been good.

I was a little later getting on the road than I had planned. Work, picking up the car and… traffic. I had hoped to avoid the usual mire of late-afternoon traffic on I-15, which I should have, by all rights. But, there was an accident between the 72nd South and 90th South interchanges that had traffic down to a crawl. Zaz! There was also the usual assortment of road monkeys to be found along the way to Utah County, although traffic was significantly better once I got to the south end of Utah County. As I was coming up to Nephi, a little blue car with Texas plates walked me down and tore past me. With the utmost quickness. I passed that car about three miles south of Nephi. The driver had made a new friend: A Utah Highway Patrol trooper.

Friday evening, I rolled into Cedar… had a VERY quick dinner… and then Sara and I saw a production of The Tempest. I had neither seen a performance of nor read the play before this. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Back to Sara’s to hang out with the roommates for a bit before crashing.

Saturday started with breakfast and cartoons… the way any good Saturday should start. The early afternoon saw us back at the theatre to see Art, a three-man play. An interesting note about this play: All three of the actors were in the previous night’s performance of The Tempest. It was quite interesting to see them in such different roles. Back to the apartment to hang out with the girls and figure out what to do with the evening. Our decision: Bowling! Sara, Darillyn, Steph and I headed to the local bowling alley and had at it. It was fun. Very fun. And, considering that I haven’t bowled in months, I did pretty well: 118, 160, 150. After bowling, I played Apples to Apples for the first time. Interesting and entertaining. I might have to pick up a copy for home.

Football Update
Quick hits:

• The Ravens whooped up on the Rams. As it should be.
• The Raiders are (at this point) nine minutes away from dropping one to the Chargers.
• The Panthers are down by one to the Cards, with twelve minutes left to play.
• The Eagles beat up on the Jets. ‘Grats, .
• The Browns 2.0 roughed up my not-so-beloved-as-they-used-to-be Dolphins. Nice one, , but you can stop beating up on my teams now. Really.
• The Vikings took one away from da Bears. Congrats, .
• The Bengals lost to the Chiefs, in Arrowhead. Sorry, .

Stray Toasters

• I have a couple of bags of cotton candy that shall go towards tonight’s watching-a-movie snackage.
• Sparky. Sunshine. Glitter. Moonbeam.
• 
• There were at least two ‘Toasters that I was going to include here… but I can’t for the life of me remember what they were.

Sara’s done with her homework; time to go play in (what’s left of) the sunshine.

Up out.

Namaste.