Random Access

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.

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.

Friday: Coda
Today turned out to be a rather busy day.

Around 2:00 PM, SaraRules and I headed to Greensboro to return/exchange a suit and a pair of shoes that I got for Christmas. On the way into town, I stopped at William’s place to say “Hi” and (quickly) catch up on the past year or so. I missed seeing Charlie (his wife), Britney and Josh… but I did get to see Connor. We also made tentative plans to get together Saturday for lunch or dinner.

After that, we headed to Friendly Center for Boxing Day-return-a-bration. I called Theo on the way there and asked if he’d be able to meet us. He was and he did. He showed up while we were waiting for a sales associate to put in an appearance. They didn’t have the same style of suit that I was returning – a really nice Ralph Lauren charcoal grey – but, they did have a very nice Jones New York two-button black suit that fit really well (right off the rack!) and it was an even exchange, so I went with that. Next stop: Shoes. They did have the same style and color shoe in the right size, so I exchanged them. We made plans to try and hook up again with Theo, too.

We were about to head back home for a bit, but my mother diverted us to the airport to pick up my uncle. That was easy enough, as we were ten minutes from the airport. What I didn’t count on were some of the changes they made in the way you get into the airport from Bryan Blvd. Nothing too serious, though. There was one… minor… detail that Mom neglected to impart: What airline he was traveling on. *facepalm* She did, however, mention what time the flight arrived; using the power of deduction – and the big LED “Arrivals” sign – we figured it out. We headed to the terminal and found him as he was exiting the gate area.

From the airport, we headed to Winston-Salem, first to Kris’ and then on to my cousins’ house for dinner. We made a quick stop at Hanes Mall before hitting Kris’ place; I hadn’t been there in probably 15 years – it’s huge. Dinner with the family was good. And, it was a lot of fun, too.

SaraRules and I headed back, on our own as we were hoping to hook up with Lish, who was in town to visit some friends from undergrad and to hear Holy Ghost Tent Revival at Greene Street Club. We wound up going to the club and listening to the band’s set. After that, we hit up an old favorite of mine: Steak n Shake. SaraRules and Lish had “Old Home Week,” talking about what they’d been up to since the finished their MFA program in August. They also caught up on the latest news about/from others in the program. I tried to see if Robin could make it, but she wasn’t able to. Hopefully, I’ll get to see her tomorrow, too.

And, then… back home.

I really should try to get some sleep.

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.

Thursday – 18 December 2008
It’s snowing. So far, I haven’t seen any driving issues that compare with the ones from Tuesday; let’s hope that it stays that way.

Last night, I went home and started reading some of yesterday’s four-color haul; more on that below. SaraRules came over a little later. She quilted; I read. It was a nice, quiet evening. Logan came over around 9:00 to hang out. We watched a show called Time Warp – which featured Cirque de Soliel – and MythBusters, which aired their Top 10 Viewer Favorite Myths.

Four-Color Coverage
I somehow neglected to grab a copy of Tiny Titans when I picked up yesterday’s haul. *shakes fist* Otherwise, the comics were something of a mixed bag. Among the standouts were:

• DC Universe Holiday Special 2008 – I don’t often pick up holiday special issues, but I was curious about this one. I’m glad that I picked it up. It contained eight or nine (maybe even 10, but I forget the actual number) stories, ranging from 4 to 8 pages. Among them were “the super secret origin of Santa Claus,” an Aquaman (yes, THAT Aquaman) story that reflected the nativity, an excellent Gotham City story, featuring Commissioner Gordon, a Nightwing and Robin story that touched on their family tie, and one of the better stories I’ve read featuring Dr. Light II.



• Justice League of America: The Nail – This is an Elseworlds title from 1998, yet I had never read it until last night. Its premise was simple: What would the DCU have been like without Superman.

  

  It was a good read – I found myself juxtaposing it with Marvel’s Civil War and Secret Invasion, as The Nail dealt with issues of fear and isolationism in a not too dissimilar manner than the Marvel series. There is a sequel, JLA: Another Nail, that I will have to look for.

Stray Toasters

• Maddox is expanding his empire: The Best SHOW in the Universe.
• ‘Nanny’ state: Fran Drescher seeks Clinton’s Senate seat
• 
  
• Timecrimes director Masters Creepy Sci-Fi on a Shoestring
• I was wrong – shortly after I typed the “no driving issues” comment above, the “fun” started. (Pictures) It took the black car almost a half-hour to get from the first picture to the fourteenth one.
• Want a retired space shuttle? They’re up for grabs
• Gingerbread Revolution, by way of

Meeting time!

Namaste.

Wednesday – 17 December 2008
The roads are/were much less treacherous this morning than yesterday. This is a good thing. After yesterday morning’s traffic snafu, you would think that UDoT would have made sure that the roads were well-salted. It just makes sense. Apparently, no one got the memo at UDoT, though. We saw a few slides and even a 360 around 3:30 PM, long after the morning lack-of-rush hour.

As a corollary, by way of : “Cars Sliding Down Icy Hill”

Last night, Chris came over to play ‘Clix. We decided to play a 600 point game, but I neglected to put a team together until a few minutes before game time. I wound up using:

• Bronze Tiger
• Captain America (Ultimates)
• Deathstroke
• Lex Luthor
• Marvel Girl
• Moon Knight and
• Nightshade

…against his X-Men themed team of:

• Bishop
• Magneto (Ultimates)
• Professor X
• Psylocke, with three Feats (which I don’t recall) and
• Wolverine, with Vault

Through attrition, I wound up winning. He said that I “…built a team to be mean,” (since I had two characters with Outwit) which wasn’t what I was trying to do at all – I just built a 600-point team. So, he said that he’s going to build Batman into whatever team he plays from now on… which I usually expect him to do. *shrug* I’ll just have to deal with (or get beat down by) The Bat when he shows up.

Stray Toasters

• By way of SaraRules: Laurence Fishburne’s Starring Role on CSI: Could Be a Boon for Black Actors
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Cake request for Adolf Hitler, 3, denied
• Steve Jobs Skips MacWorld; Apple Denies Health Rumors
• 
  
• By way of NPR Music:
  • NPR Listeners Pick the Year’s Best Music
  • The 10th Annual CD, er, MP3 Gift Guide
  • The Best African Music of 2008
  • Living Your Life with 2008’s Best in Jazz
  • Invoking Improv: Best Classical CDs of 2008
• Also by way of SaraRules: RuPaul: The Obamas Are a Drag
• FBI: Drunk flier forces diversion of JetBlue flight
• , I don’t know if you read Newsarama, but they have a Legion Blogpost

Namaste.

Sunday – 14 December 2008
Quiet, lazy morning following a quiet, lazy evening. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

After running a few Christmas shopping errands in the snow yesterday, SaraRules and I came back to my place, put our feet up and vegged in front of the TV. We watched an episode of NCIS from a couple of weeks back; it was good… and it ended a little differently than I was expecting. That was followed by the middle third of The Year Without a Santa Claus – I switched over just as they were starting the Snow Miser song. WIN! After that, we flipped back and forth between Superman: The Animated Series (The Last Son of Krypton, Pt 3, A Little Piece of Home and Feeding Time) and Justice League Unlimited (The Balance). I am very lucky that SaraRules doesn’t mind me being a big kid sometimes often.

We also decided to skip heading back out for breakfast last night. (Something about being in… and warm… and comfortable vs. heading back out in the cold – kind of a no-brainer there.)

This morning, we’ve watched the CBS and Fox pre-game shows. And the early games have just started. But, what I’m waiting for is the middle game: Pittsburgh at Baltimore.

Stray Toasters

• Yesterday afternoon, a couple pieces of plastic crack arrived on my doorstep in my mailbox:
  • Clown Prince of Crime (1, 2, 3, 4)

    
    (Just for size reference, that’s a 4″ base that he’s standing on)

  • Wonder Woman (Justice Legion A)

    

• The Year 2008 in Lists: The 12 Biggest Douchebags of the Year
• From Comic Book Resources’ “Comics Should Be Good” column: Bloody Saturday – a look at why Punisher movies haven’t been so good.
• No Limit Texas Dreidel
• By way of Evil, Inc.‘s Brad Guigar: Sweetcheeks
• 30 Ways to Die of Electrocution
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” and Politics files: McCain-Palin campaign dumps Blackberries loaded with personal numbers, internal email

On with the show…

Namaste.

Friday – 12 December 2008
I was up at Far-Too-Early O’Clock again today because I had to be in at 7:00. Yay. But, I’m done at noon, so I shouldn’t kvetch too much. And the office moves/changes are coming along at a decent pace.

Last night, SaraRules came over and made a very tasty sauteed shrimp, mushroom and potato dish – served with rice pilaf and salad – that was very tasty. While we ate, we watched last week’s episode of CSI:, which had a solid bit of storytelling to it – not over the top, nothing “jump the shark” worthy, just a good story. And, as an added bonus (at least to me): Robert Guillaume was in the episode. We followed that with this week’s episode, which was also good… and was the first episode that included/featured Laurence Fishburne. After that, we caught the tail end of The Year Without a Santa Claus – Snow Miser and Heat Miser!!!

Next, we watched an episode of Justice League Unlimited, “Doomsday Sanction,” and The Herculoids.

Chew on This – Food for Thought
For those of you who didn’t catch it in yesterday’s post: I’m still taking suggestions for this year’s charitable donation. So far, I’ve had the following suggestions:

• : Primary Children’s Medical Center
• : Kiva
• : Utah Food Bank

If you have a good suggestion, please post it in a comment (or email or IM).  Thanks!

Stray Toasters

• By way of SaraRules: ‘Chicago’ model train has $2 million price tag… and is now on The Covet List.
• From : Santa to the Rescue (I like the reworking of the Alex Ross painting) and How to Know When It Is Time to Leave the Bar
• MarknTyme pointed this out to me last night: 40 Inspirational Speeches in 2 Minutes
  See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.
• Bettie Page dies at 85
• I’ve discovered another webcomic: Sunday at Ten.
  This comic, from early in its run, amused me.
• MPAA to Obama: Censor the Internet…
• Also from :



• Mixtapes move from Beat Street to Main Street
• From Boing Boing: Steampunk Second Life machinima

Namaste.

Thursday – 11 December 2008
Welcome to another NBN Thursday.

Last night was a low-key stay-at-home night. And that was fine with me. I fixed a little dinner, watched some TV, enjoyed a visit from SaraRules, and read yesterday’s four-color haul. Not a bad way to spend a Wednesday evening, if I do say so myself.

Chew on This: Food for Thought – Charitable Donations
Since I no longer work for the USPS, I don’t have Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) charitable contributions coming out of my check. That’s a shame, because I enjoyed being able to donate to charities that resonated with me.

Last year, I made something of a Christmas resolution: Select a charity and make a donation to it. After a bit of investigation, via Charity Navigator, I decided to donate to the Children’s Defense Fund. With Christmas rolling around again, I’m starting to think about this year’s giving. I may still give to CDF, but I’m weighing other options, as well.

To that end, I thought I’d solicit opinions of others to see what organizations they donate to or think of as worthwhile entities for donations. So, if you have an organization to whom you make charitable donations, I’d be interested in what it is and, if you’d care to do so, why you find it worthwhile.  Thanks!

Four-Color Coverage
There were a couple of noteworthy items in yesterday’s books:

• Justice League of America #27 – This issue featured the (long overdue) “integration” of the heroes of the Milestone Universe into the Mainstream DCU. It also featured the return of Doctor Light – the heroine, not the villain that the Teen Titans used to smack around back in the day. This issue had the return of Icon and the Shadow Cabinet… and setup the traditional “We’re here to save the day/world/universe/creation, and we’ll do it even if we have to go through you first” battle between the Shadow Cabinet and the JLA.
• Legion of Super-Heroes: The More Things Change

  

  When I saw this TPB in the store, it wasn’t a question of “Am I going to buy this,” it was more a question of “Am I going to be able to wait until I read everything else before reading it?” I was… and the journey to the 31st Century DCU was well worth the wait. The book reprints a number of Legion stories from the late 80s; some of the stories I had read, some I had not – this was during the time when there were two Legion books: The Legion of Super-Heroes (available at specialty shops only) and Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes (which was available at newstands, 7-11s and just about anywhere comics were sold). LSH was printed on high-quality Baxter paper; TotLSH was printed on newsprint and ran a one-year-long story… before reprinting the stories from LSH. (Oh, DC, you greedy double-dipping bastards…) If you’re a long-time Legion fan, this would make an excellent addition to your collection.

• Secret Invasion: Dark Reign #1 – The invasion is over and the aftermath is being dealt with. [SPOILER DELETED] has been charged with picking up the pieces of S.H.I.E.L.D. and putting things back in order. Their first order of business: Putting together an eerily Illuminati-like group to delegate authority… and responsibility. It’s an interesting premise, but I found myself distracted – not in a good way – by the artwork at some points, especially in panels involving Namor.

Stray Toasters

• I have wanted a Gamora HeroClix figure ever since Chris first used it to kick my butt. (And every time that it’s been used against me since then, too…) I’ve been watching eBay to see if one pops up at a reasonable price, but haven’t bid on one. Yesterday, while at Dr. Volt’s, I picked up a couple of boosters of Secret Invasion ‘Clix. There was a Gamora in one of them.
• Missing inflatable breast mystery — solved!
• From ThinkGeek: DNA Portrait
• Actor cuts throat on Vienna stage
• From the home to the arcade: Guitar Hero enters the arcade
• Everybody Wang Chung tonight…
• At home with avant-garde Syrian artist

I’m skipping the gym today. I tweaked something in my shoulder on Tuesday, it seems. So, I’ll just go on Saturday, before the ‘Clix tourney.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 10 December 2008
Last night, SaraRules and I met her parents for dinner at Hoppers. Repeat after me: “Madame X Stout.” I had the Steak Sandwich – every time I’ve had it, it’s had a section that’s been very tough/gristle-laden… last night was no exception, but the sandwich was still very good. They’ve added salmon to their winter menu; SaraRules’ folks both had salmon dishes and said that it was quite good.

SaraRules and I headed back to my place and started to watch There Will Be Blood. Just for the record:

Movie that starts slowly + Tired-from-waking-up-early Rob = Rob who nods off

We had to put the movie on hold until a later date… and I was in bed – and knocked out – a little after 11:00. I slept fine… but woke up at 4:30. Realizing that it was Ridiculous O’Clock, I went back to sleep until 6:00, when my upstairs neighbors’ dog decided to go on a barking jag. I could deal with it, but it sounded like someone else had a BIG issue with it – there was much (LOUD) knocking on the door upstairs after about 20 minutes of barking. It was oddly amusing.

So far, the work day has been good. Hopefully, that trend will continue.

Stray Toasters

• I called my friend, William, whom I haven’t spoken with in [far too long], this morning. We did a bit of catching up and agreed to try and get together when I go home for Christmas.
• I just upgraded to WordPress 2.7 (Release Candidate 2). I like it. A lot.
• By way of SaraRules and the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Man Lives with Female Robot
• IKEA hacker
• The Council for Better Driving: Utah would like to remind Salt Lake and Utah County drivers about the rules for using the express/HOV lanes.
• Hacking Knowledge: 77 Ways to Learn Faster, Deeper and Better
• I love this image from BoingBoing:

  
  (click image for accompanying article)

• Obama Wants Broadband, Computers Part of Stimulus
• This Is the Way the World Ends
• Also from SaraRules: Detroit Homeless Men Adopt Local Families for Christmas
• Student Faces Suspension for Spamming Profs

Sushi and Comics Wednesday was a success.

As I’ve mentioned before, we’re having some work done to/around the office. This includes some electrical work (which is why I was in early yesterday) and some wall/office moves. We were expecting the latter to start either tomorrow, Friday or next week. They showed up today. So, we’ve spent the past hour or so moving things to get them access/room to move. YAY!

Back to the grind.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 09 December 2008
Happy Birthday to MarknTyme:

It’s a little after 7:00 (or it was when I started this), and I’m already at work. We have some work being done around the office and we needed to be sure that someone would be here to let the electricians in. I volunteered. On the plus side, I’ll be done at 3:00 or 4:00, depending on whether Wes and/or Marci and I hit the gym.

Football Update

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers
23 – 38
This game was the battle of two 9-3 NFC South teams, as the Bucs rolled into Charlotte to take on the Panthers before a capacity crowd and the Monday Night Armchair Quarterback Football crowd. The game showcased a lot of defensive talent on both teams, but the game pretty much belonged to the Panthers from the get-go. They didn’t put many balls in the air – Jake DelHomme threw two INTs, although he did throw for 178 yards and one TD – but the running game was stellar: RBs De’Angelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart, who both ran in two TDs, ran for a combined 301 yards. The Buccaneers looked…unbalanced. They would have a couple of good series, but couldn’t seal the deal when it came down to it. There were also times when veteran QB Jeff Garcia just looked lost in the pocket. Literally. More than once, as the pocket started to collapse, he just looked scared and unsure of what to do. With this win, the Panthers go to 10-3, atop the NFC South. As the commentators said last night, Carolina has its season and playoff picture in its own hands – their next three games are against the Broncos, Giants and the Saints. But, if they continue to play the way they did last night, they could be a serious contender for the playoffs… and maybe, just maybe, even the Super Bowl.

Stray Toasters

• I’m a fairly unabashed fan of both The Late Show with David Letterman and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Last night, The Late Late Show returned from hiatus; it turns out that Craig Ferguson’s mother passed away last week. Rather than his usual joke-laden opening, he began the show with a very personal monologue, in which he talked about his mother – not so much about her death, but about her life. I’ve heard that his monologue following his father’s death was similarly personal.
• By way of (whom I had originally thought was) SaraRules (but wasn’t): Our Daily Bleg: Holy Comic Quotations, Batman!
• The mouse hits 40-year milestone and 40 Years of Mighty Mice
• 
• Inside a US sex addiction clinic
• By way of : “Is this for real?”
  (, you need to share this with Mrs. .)
• Sony to cut plants and 8,000 jobs

Back to it.

Namaste.

Monday – 08 December 2008
Belated Happy Birthday to and :

Football Update
Last night, the Ravens hosted the Redskins for “The Battle of the Beltway,” as it was called. It was the first time the Redskins have played in Baltimore in close to 30 years (if I heard the stat correctly).

Washington Redskins at Baltimore Ravens
10 – 24
Last night, the Ravens hosted the Redskins for “The Battle of the Beltway,” as it was called. It was the first time the Redskins have played in Baltimore in close to 30 years (if I heard the stat correctly).Joe Flacco had a very slow start… that lasted the entire first half – he was 2/7 for passing in the half. That’s okay, because Ed Reed was on the other side of the ball. He had an amazing shoestring interception catch, less than a minute into the game that the offense was able to turn into a touchdown. Baltimore blanked Washington 14 – 0, going into halftime, thanks to an Ed Reed fumble recovery less than three minutes after his interception. The second half was a mostly defensive battle, with neither side gaining a decisive advantage. A couple of trick plays helpd the Redskins drive deep into Ravens’ territory, but the best that they could come up with was a field goal, early in the fourth quarter. They added another touchdown, after Willis McGahee fumbled the ball a couple minutes later. Joe Flacco and Derrick Mason put the final nail in the coffin, with a Ravens’ touchdown at 3:44. Washington put up a fight and was starting to march down the field… when Ed Reed intercepted another Jason Campbell pass, just after the fourth quarter two-minute warning. With this win, the Ravens go to 9-4, one game behind the Steelers… who they face, in Baltimore, next week. And, they are very much in the race for a wild card spot in the AFC.

After the game – and after hanging out with SaraRules – I finally got around to checking out last week’s comic haul. There were a number of mediocre reads, but among the standouts were:

• Justice Society of America #21 – This issue marked the next-to-last chapter of the Gog storyline. What happens when a seemingly omnipotent being – who claims to be here to help – decides that he will only continue to help if people start to worship him… and they refuse? Well, we get a pretty good look at the answer in this issue.
• X-Men: Noir #1 – This was a/ yet another take on the X-Men. No powers, but in a noir setting. And there is an interesting bit of role-reversal, too. I have heard that they are looking at adding a couple of other titles to this line – and I’m not sure that I’ll read any of the others – but this one was a refreshing change of pace.

It’s snowing; it has been for the past few hours.

(click images for larger sizes)

Today has been fairly busy, as we’re doing some remodeling around the office and we had a new person start in IT.

Stray Toasters

• I am wearing my new kofia that SaraRules got for me.



• For lunch, we went to Orchid, a Thai restaurant in the Union Park shopping center. The food was good and the lunch prices were rather reasonable.
• HOWTO pay for America’s health insurance
• SaraRules pointed out Jonathan Jones on the parallels between ancient and modern superheroes.
  I countered with An American Pantheon.
• Music: Murphy’s law coming to an end
• By way of : Fifty Years of Popular Songs, Condensed into Single Sentences
• Pinup Bettie Page Hospitalized after Heart Attack
• Home Inspection Nightmares XV

All this… and I get to be in the office at 7:00 AM tomorning.  Woot!

Namaste.

Friday – 05 December 2008
Happy Hatching Day to Derek:

Another work week draws to a close; hopefully, the day won’t be too bad.

Last night, I headed over to play ‘Clix with Perry. I asked him how many points he wanted to go with – he opted for 300. We picked our teams and had at it. I went with Ms. Marvel (Skrull) and Susan Richards (Skrull), while he brought Invisible Woman, Human Torch and The Thing. Then it was on…

• Both of my figures had Outwit.
• Since my figures were Skrulls, I got to roll to see if he could hit me before each attack.
• Ms. Marvel has the Indomitable trait – meaning she can act on two successive rounds without taking pushing damage.
• Ms. Marvel’s first movement power, Exfiltrate, allows her to use Stealth, thus she couldn’t be attacked using ranged combat, as long as she was in hindering terrain… which I pretty much made sure that she stayed in.

It was a (fairly) short game.
And a little one-sided.
I told him that the next time we played, I would try to play a more balanced team against him.

SaraRules showed up while Perry and I were playing. After the game, she and I headed to the Festival of Trees, at South Towne Expo Center. TONS of trees. And wreaths. And gingerbread houses. And people. Some of the trees were amazingly well-decorated… but there were also (more than) a few duds. And all proceeds go to benefit Primary Children’s Medical Center. So, it’s a win-win situation. If you’re in the SLC Metro area and looking for something to do – and something that benefits a good cause – go check it out.

Stray Toasters

• I have a new holiday-themed icon.
• How to Survive the 17 worst Mac Disasters
• From NPR: Little Support for Trafficked Women in Russia
  
• 
• First International Body Music Festival
• “It’s true!”
• Bill Cosby + Cowboy Bebop = Cosby Bebop (Thanks to for the link.)
• Sucked into the Tunnels Beneath Las Vegas

Attack the day…

Namaste.