Random Access

Monday – 08 June 2009
Happy Birthday to …

…and to my ex-“sister-in-law,” Julie.

After the parade, I spent more time cleaning up the office. (You might not really be able to tell that by looking in there this morning, to be honest…) Some things were moved. Others were shredded. It’s slow-going, but progress is being made.

For dinner, SaraRules and I met Mary, , and at Macaroni Grill for Chris’ birthday dinner. I had the Calamari Fritti and Chicken Marsala, both of which were quite good. After dinner, we headed over to Chris and Mary’s for birthday cake. And, before we left, we set a date for the next Bad Movie Night.

Home again, home again. Logan came over and hung out for a while. While he watched Burn Notice, I continued sorting my ‘Clix into bite-sized morsels theme-relevant teams/boxes. After Burn Notice, the three of us played Trivial Pursuit. We all jockeyed around the board, trading off who had the most wedges, finally Logan and I filled our holders and headed for the middle… where we kept overshooting the center and had to trying to come up with the right dice rolls to get us back in AND get a question that we could answer. He almost took the game, but missed his last question; I made it to the middle and (finally) got one to which I knew the answer. It was fun, but we noticed that some of the questions – especially some of the Geography ones – were outdated.

At 0445 this morning, SaraRules and I were awakened by a loud noise and what sounded like a voice. We didn’t hear anything after it, but couldn’t just dismiss what we heard. After looking around and finding nothing out of order, we figured that it must have been the smoke alarm. Back to bed. Same thing happened at 0604. Thanks to the shock of the abrupt awakening at 0445, I reverted to an old sleeping pattern: Lightly sleeping and awakening at the slightest noise. And, this time, I heard what was going on: A warning chirp (“One ping only.”) and a synthesized voice saying,”Warning: Low battery.” But, why couldn’t it have waited until after my alarm had gone off?! *sigh*

Stray Toasters

• Coffee good.
• By way of comes Ecocomics: Who is the richest comic book character?
• HOW TO: Maintain a Difference Engine
• I caught part of this story during my commute this morning: Sex Without Intimacy: No Dating, No Relationships
• Readers Like the New Batman & Robin
• Which of the following would be the nominally “better” situation, in terms of survivability: Alien invasion or zombie apocalypse? Why?
• Unix Turns 40
• I can’t remember where I put the one drill bit I want/need for a project. *grblsnrkx*

He gets right on to
The friction of the day

Namaste.

Saturday – 06 June 2009
Last night, I slept poorly. Phenomenally so. (do0-DOO-do0-d00-d00!) After nodding off on the couch, I decided to call it a night. But, once I got into bed, I couldn’t fall asleep. I tossed and turned for… an interminable amount of time — I tend not to watch the clock when I have a problem falling asleep, as it just tends to irritate and annoy me further. When I finally did fall asleep, I kept having dreams with a common theme: Zombies. The dreams weren’t really “connected” aside from the fact that I think they all had zombies in them. After waking from the last one, I decided to get up and start the day.

This afternoon, SaraRules and I are heading to a park for a walk… and maybe a little frisbee-tossing. Other than that, the day’s fairly wide open.

Stray Toasters

• Apparently, Firestorm is set to appear on Batman: The Brave and the Bold. I wonder which Firestorm (1, 2) it will be…
• 
• Apple to Face Challenge at WWDC
• Ever thought about owning your own railroad car? This site has some valuable information about it.
• US intelligence nominee withdraws
• Tom and Lorenzo, the guys behind Project Rungay, have an interview with comics writer/artist Phil Jiminez: Getting Our Nerd On
• Japan: Man Beaten into False Confession of Child Murder Set Free After 17 Years in Prison

Time to find some trouble to get into.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 03 June 2009
Today is Sushi and Comics Wednesday, as there were no holidays to disrupt the comics shipping schedule. It’s apparently also National Tailors Day.

I’m still feeling pretty well this morning. I’m not sure what yesterday’s mystery malady was, but I’m glad that it’s gone. (Or some reasonable facsimile thereof.)

Stray Toasters

• I had a few odd dreams last night. It happens. But, in one of them, my subconscious apparently came up with a very cool two-part, a capella version of If You Believe, from The Wiz.
• T-shirts that amuse me:
  • Care and Feeding of Your Zombie
  • There is no Pac-Man. There is only Zuul.
• Crucial Air France crash data may be lost at sea
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” and “Everybody needs a bosom for a pillow” files: iBoobs
  (Seriously, who comes up with things like this?!)
• 
• How To… Tip Around the World, courtesy of
• Also from Nyx: What happened to me and the new girl (or “The Girl Who Cried Webmaster”)
• Why Apple can afford to phone it in on the next iPhone

Right on to the friction of the day…

Namaste.

I need to take a break.
That said, I shall take one… now.

So far, the day’s been rather good – that’s a pleasant change from yesterday’s tension. As an added bonus, I’ve been able to get some reading done. That, in turn, has given me a few ideas to adopt that should help improve some of our processes.

Today was also Sushi and Comics Wednesday. Today’s fare was good – I chose a Seattle Roll and a Spicy Tuna Roll. No comics today, as the holiday pushed shipping dates back one day. So, I’ll probably wind up hitting Dr. Volt’s on Friday.

Stray Toasters

• iTunes has been providing me with a good workday music selection.
• Same Stuff, Different Day – an interesting look at how/why comics get rebooted/retconned
  After reading this article, I had an apostrophe epiphany: The whole “Who’s a better GL: Hal or Kyle (or John Stewart or Guy Gardner)” argument – and associated viewpoints – is the same as the “Who’s a better James Bond” question.
• What do you get when you cross zombies and LEGO? Zombie Apocafest 2009
• What do you get when you cross Dance Dance Revolution with Bach’s Toccatta and Fugue in D?

• I say, nothin’ comes from dreamers but dreams
  I say, sittin’ idle in our boat
  While everyone else is down the stream
  Nothin’ comes from talkers but sound
  We can talk all we want to
  But the world still goes around and round
• Comic Book Resources had a trailer for Surrogates, an upcoming Bruce Willis movie. It looks interesting…
• Buffy minus Joss?

That’s good for now.

Back to the grindstone.

Saturday – 23 May 2009
Last night, Jess’ family joined us at Clitorati. In fact, it was one of the largest turn-outs we’ve had in a very long time. It was quite a bit of fun; hopefully, Jenny and Julie will be at least semi-regulars. After coffee, many of us headed to get a bite to eat.

I had something of an epiphany yesterday, also. SaraRules’ family includes some “extended family” from when her father was previously married. This family includes the aunt and uncle we visited when we went to California in March. My epiphany: I realized that my extended family, in a similar manner, includes Jess’ family. That made me smile.

This morning has been lazy. Just the way (uh-huh, uh-huh) I like it (uh-huh, uh-huh). SaraRules fixed blueberry muffins. We watched last night’s episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold… featuring Robin and the tail end of an episode of NCIS that we recorded. There’s a rumor that we might head to the gym in a bit. And we’re heading to see Terminator: Salvation in a couple of hours. Robots. Blowin’ stuff up. Win-Win.

Four-Color Coverage
This week’s haul was particularly good. So good, in fact that every book I picked up this week has earned at least a nod in this week’s Four-Color Coverage. With that in mind, let’s get it started:

• Booster Gold: 52 Pick-Up (TPB) – I’ve been a Booster Gold fan since the 80s, when the character was introduced. He was pretty much a mirror of the greed-hungry times: A flawed man with no future who came back to the past for the two-fold purpose of becoming famous and becoming rich. In the 90s, the character became more of a joke — still good-intentioned, but a little more… well… buffoonish, too. With DC’s 52 Countdown to Infinite Crisis, Booster looked like he was taking things more seriously again. After all, when you’re a hero from the future, you kind of have a lead on when some of the more serious disasters and tragedies will occur. Of course, this is still Booster Gold, so why not pick up a few accolades along the way.

  This trade paperback covers the first six issues of the new on-going Booster Gold series. It opens nobly enough: Booster trying to make amends… and earn his way back into the Justice League, many of whom still only see him as a glory-seeker. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be — Rip Hunter and the multiverse have plans for him. BIG plans. It turns out that Booster – because the world at large views him as a relatively incompetent clown – is perfectly suited to become a time-traveling guardian of the multiverse, correcting flaws in history, much akin to Dr. Sam Beckett in Quantum Leap. And you know what?  It’s a fun ride.
  

• The Brave and the Bold #23 – This issue features a… non-team-up of Booster Gold and Magog, heroes with very different methods and ideologies. And they are both attempting to difuse a hostage situation.
  
• Captain America #50 – Bucky is in a fight. Nothing new there. The difference is: It’s his birthday… and he’s feeling a bit nostalgic and introspective: About his time in WWII-era army. His time as The Winter Soldier. His time as the new Captain America. Now, only if these guys would stop shooting at him…
  
• Dark Reign: Fantastic Four #3 (of 5) – Reed Richards continues to search the Marvel Multiverse for answers as to why the Civil War failed to bring peace to Earth 616 as Norman Osborne and H.A.M.M.E.R. lay seige to the Baxter Building.
  
• Fantastic Four # 566 – A dead Watcher washes up on the shore of Thailand. Ben Grimm gets an unexpected comeuppance on TV. Dr. Doom is feted by the masses of Latveria as his master puts in an appearance. Many things are going on and it looks as though the FF is going to be heading down a bumpy road before things start getting better.
  
• Supergirl #26 – Cat Grant smells a story. The identity of Superwoman is finally revealed… and it only opens up more questions.
  
• Superman/Batman #60 – Superman and Batman are shunted into a world where things are a little “off” from norm. No one and no place is quite the same: Gothamopolis. The Justice Titans. Commissioner Perry White. Who’s behind it all? Stay tuned.
  
• Tiny Titans #16 – The Tiny Titans, under orders from Coach Lobo, race around the world. The winner is… [SPOILER DELETED].
  
• Uncanny X-Men #510 – Madelyn Pryor, The Red Queen… and Cyclops’ supposedly dead ex-wife, and her Sisterhood continue their attack on Greymalkin. Emma Frost gets a visit from [SPOILER DELETED]. The younger X-Men prove their mettle. And what was in the little silver box?
  

Stray Toasters

• By way of SaraRules: Hollywood eyes $70 zombie movie wowing Cannes
• Crawling Zombie Torso Gelatin Mold
• By way of : The Space Game, a tower defense-style game.

And… no gym.

But, we’re heading to see Terminator in a few.

Namaste.

Friday – 15 May 2009
Another 9/80 Friday off begins. I seem to have slept well last night – that’s always a “good” thing.

After work, SaraRules and I went to Chris and Mary’s to celebrate Mary’s birthday. and , and and their kids were their, as well as Chris’ brother, Ryan, whom we hadn’t met before. It was a nice get-together… and, before all was said and done, we hammered out some rough details for another bad horror movie night. And… AND… Chris and I are playing dolls ‘Clix on Tuesday. Win-Win!

Stray Toasters

• My copy of Battlefield 2142 (for Mac) showed up yesterday. I’m REALLY rusty at that game.
• ‘Exiled for life’ in Somali camp
• Lauren Montgomery talks Green Lantern: First Flight and Victor Garber talks Green Lantern: First Flight
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Scouts training to fight immigrants and terrorists
• Texts From Last Night, by way of
• Personal Freedom, by State
• 
• …along the same lines, SaraRules has taken to watching Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?
• Adding Incompetence to Insult
• Was 1971 the best year to be born a geek? (I think they’re off by a year, personally)
• Texas Is Under Seige From Zombies!
• The Metropolitan Museum brings out American art again
• The All-Time Top 10 List of Best – and Worst – Mothers in Comics
• Ten Beautiful Computers

So far on the afternoon’s agenda: A trip to the gym and we’re going to see Disney’s Earth.

Namaste.

Friday – 08 May 2009
Today is my stepmother and younger brother’s birthday(s):

…and…

I slept poorly last night. I attribute it to the fact that I had to be up early this morning – earlier than usual – to get into the office early. The first few hours of sleep were alright, but from about 0430 on, it was rather touch-and-go. And that was annoying. But, here I am… with a large, triple-shot-laden frozen mocha to help me not rip peoples’ throats out make it through the day.

Nathan was also in early. We spent a good bit of time talking about the Star Trek movie, our likes and dislikes. As a bigger fan of Star Wars, there were a few things that he didn’t grok in fullness, but he thought it was a very good movie – enough so that he’s planning on seeing it again.  *nod* I approve of that.

Stray Toasters

• By way of comes: Ada Lovelace – The Origin
• National Guard to cut forces after recruiting creates surplus
• Minority youngsters dying weekly on Chicago streets
• Pope begins Mid-East pilgrimage
• Real supervillains don’t use CraigsList
• 
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Chinese provincial government orders local officials to smoke more
• Zombie Snack Bib
• Disney stokes publicity engine with ‘Christmas Carol’ train
• Lady Liberty’s crown to reopen
• Rubik’s Cube Salt and Pepper Mills

Unintentional Porn Overheard at Work
They are still wiring in a few new electrical connections to finalize our server room upgrade. I just heard the following, between Mike (lead electrician) and Aaron (his assistant), while running new wire:

Aaron: Give me more, Mike…
Mike: Six inches more?
Aaron: Yeah, that’s good… whoa!  Whoa!  Stop!  That’s enough!

And, yes, it made my inner teenager grin like a fiend.

Have a great day!

Namaste.

I just had a proof-positive sign of how brain-dead I am after working this weekend:

Paul (my 2nd tier boss) just asked me to spell SaraRules’ name.

Paul: First name?
Me: “S A R A…”
Paul: *writes*
Paul: Last name?
Me: *blank look*
Me: I’m getting there…

Fortunately, was able to answer for me.

I would have loved to have seen the look on my face, because the whole “Please stand by…” look must have been priceless.

I need a nap. Badly.

Monday – 27 April 2009
It’s almost 7:30 (at least it was when I started writing this)… and I’ve already been at work for over thirty minutes. And I spent most of my weekend here, as well. But, for the most part, the server room upgrade is done. Thank God… because we’re all beat. Dog tired. Worn out. We are the walking dead today. We’re expecting a few minor issues, but hopefully, no one will expect lightning response times. (Now, if I can just remember where the cots are stored…)

Stray Toasters

• This morning, I am thankful for a large frozen mocha with a triple-shot of espresso.
  (Whether they know it or not, so are my coworkers…)
• I have caught up with yet another schoolmate – and one of my favorite people from school – on Facebook.
• JoS A. Bank is having another sale.
• Apple and Verizon consider iPhone deal
• The NFL Draft is over.  USAToday has graded the teams’ draft picks as:
  • Baltimore Ravens: B-
  • Carolina Panthers: C
  • Cincinnati Bengals: B
  • Cleveland Browns: B
  • Miami Dolphins: C
  • Minnesota Vikings: C+
  • Oakland Raiders: F
  • Tampa Bay Bucanneers: D+
• G.E.’s Breakthrough Can Put 100 DVDs on a Disc
• 
• So you think you’re having a bad day?  Check out FMyLife.com… then reconsider.
• Chrysler and Union Agree to Deal Before Federal Deadline
• Enter Theatergoers, Gently Welcomed

Namaste.

Saturday – 11 April 2009
It’s a lazy Saturday in the valley.

So far, we’ve had breakfast, watched a little TV and addressed some of our “Save the Date” announcements. We’re off to do some errand-running and we’re going to see Fast & Furious in a couple hours.

Stray Toasters

• pointed out this item: Zombies Are the New Vampires
• 
• Remember Olestra, the wonderful fat substitute used in potato chip manufacturing from the mid-90s?  The one that didn’t add fat, calories, or cholesterol to products? The one that also led to “anal leakage?” Guess what… It’s back. And this time, it’s being used as an “environmentally friendly” industrial lubricant.  (Yeah, this is definitely one for the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file.)
• Indie Chinese art/music/culture site
• Tesla Roadster runs for 241 miles in e-rally

Off to see the wizard…

Namaste.

Friday – 10 April 2009
Another 9/80 “on” Friday. There are rumors that it’s supposed to be in the 60s today.  We’ll see how that pans out.

Last night was a lazy Date Night: We had pizza and watched this week’s NCIS (Thanks, On Demand!), CSI: and then Aladdin, which is still one of my favorite modern (pre-Pixar) Disney movies.

Stray Toasters

• Island DIY: Kauai residents don’t wait for state to repair road
• The Girl in the Window
• By way of Not Always Right:
  • Best Idea I’ve Heard All Day
  • Speechless
• What’s Your Zombie Contingency Plan
• …and, speaking of zombies: CompUSA Comes Back From the Dead
• Banks asked to keep quiet on stress tests
• IGN has a trailer for the upcoming Green Lantern: First Flight
• ABC to conclude Eli Stone and Pushing Daisies this summer
• A simple case of over-egging
• “Science to do” t-shirt
• Sims creator Will Wright leaving Electronic Arts
• I’ve finished Queen & Country Volume 02; moving on to Volume 03.

Time to see what kind of trouble I can get into today…

Namaste.

Thursday – 09 April 2009
It’s overcast, rainy and… cool (not really “cold”) and I find myself thinking: “We left California… and the sun… and the warmth… for this?!” Oh, well.

The drive back was just as long as the drive down, although it was shorter in terms of time, because we didn’t make quite as many stops; we did stop at the In-N-Out in St. George, though. I phased in and out of sleep, many times. (I realized later that was due to a sleeping poorly Tuesday night.) On the whole, the trip was uneventful.

As we were getting stuff out of SaraRules’ parents’ car, it started to sleet. That urged us to hasten our efforts to get things into the house, oddly enough. We said our goodbyes and headed off to pick up the apartment key from . (Thanks again for keeping an eye on things!) Next, a quick stop at Rumbi to get some dinner and then home. We were both beat; we watched last week’s CSI: while we ate. We watched a bit of The Late Show and called it a night.

Stray Toasters

• Thanks to for pointing out Dr. Funkenberry.
• The Complete Manual of Things That Might Kill You
• In world news: Georgians rally against president
• Gentleman in New Orleans Loses Chunk of Arm in Possible Zombie Attack
• Sandy Collora, possibly best known for his Batman: Dead End fanfilm, has a trailer out for his upcoming fanfilm, Hunter Prey

• Dungeons & Dragons Co-Creator Arneson Dead at 61
• Self-Resucing Princess t-shirt
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” file: Women Meat Pioneers
• By way of comes “Your Business Card Is CRAP!”

Quote of the Day
Julie, our Property Manager, was asking me how our trip went.  I was recounting it and told her that SaraRules had found her dress… but that I couldn’t tell her anything about it, because I haven’t seen it and won’t see it for six months. That led to the following exchange:

Julie: That’s right, you’ll be getting married on the next Conference weekend.
Me: Oh… yeah… Well, there goes about half of our guest list.
Julie: That’s what TiVo is for!

We both got a good laugh out of it.

And, with that, back to the grind…

Namaste.

Wednesday – 01 April 2009
Welcome to the first day of April and April Fool’s Day. As I was getting ready this morning, I tried to think of a AFD prank/joke to play, but drew a blank. Shortly after that, I discovered that Mother Nature had decided to join in the AFD fun: It’s snowing.

Stray Toasters

• New variation on a theme: I almost typed “Stray Taosters” for the heading.
• French museum posts Concorde hoax
• While watching The Late Show last night, they ran a promotion for Coming Home: Military Families Cope With Change. At first I thought that I might have misheard something or that it might have been a joke, so I did a little digging. It wasn’t a joke:
  

  Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street, is producing, in association with David Letterman’s production company Worldwide Pants Incorporated and Lookalike Productions, a new PBS primetime special, Coming Home: Military Families Cope With Change, featuring Queen Latifah, John Mayer and Elmo. This half-hour HD special tells stories of service members who return home with injuries, visible and invisible, and explores the heroic struggles their families face in discovering a new way of finding a “new normal.” It salutes the extraordinary courage and strength of these military families and offers the general public a powerful glimpse into what they often must endure. The special will air on PBS on April 1, 2009 at 8PM (check local listings) in conjunction with April as the “Month of the Military Child.”

• Cognitive Autoheuristic Distributed Interactive Entity, courtesy of
• 
• Tobacco tax hike for US smokers
• New book on the market: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

  

• From NPR Music:
  • Brahms’ Best: The Violin Concerto
  • The Year’s Best Jazz (So Far)
  • Rockabilly’s Wanda Jackson Hits Hall of Fame
• Medicine crisis hits Russia’s poor
• HALO + LEGO = This.

Namaste.

Friday – 27 March 2009
Another 9/80 “on” Friday kicked off…

…with me coming into the office to find out that the alarm had been tripped. *grblsnrkx* Turns out that the electricians were the first ones in the office and they don’t have our alarm code. I fired off a quick email to TPTB and let them know what happened.

Next, I discovered that one of the logon scripts on my main PC decided to go on holiday. I had to bug Jim, one of our Windows admins, to help me walk through some steps to try and recover. It looks like Windows has horked itself. Fortunately, I have another Win box that I can just port things over to. It’s just a matter of taking the time to do so. Good thing it’s the slow Friday around here.

Stray Toasters

• I gave Paul (my boss, two steps up the ladder) a copy of Coupling (BBC version, Season 1). He returned it this morning… and asked where Seasons 2 and 3 were.
• iPhone 3G Finally Available in US Contract-Free
• International Torch Relays Banned
• 
• 26 Great TV Shows That Got a Quick Hook and The Ten Best Television Finales
• Cartoons to become far scarcer on Cartoon Network
• Apple has the trailer for Where the Wild Things Are. Check it out.
• 10 ways to get a really good sleep
• By way of :

  

• New Gorillaz doc will premiere online
• Marvel launches writer’s program
• Wil Wheaton teaches his son to slay dragons
• From the “Don’t call it a comeback, I been here for years…” file: Old-school Keyboard Makes a Comeback of Sorts

Namaste.

Wednesday – 18 March 2009
Yesterday, SaraRules and I had dinner with her folks – corned beef and cabbage for Saint Patrick’s Day. During dinner, we watched Animal Crackers. The only word I can really think of to use to describe it is “zany.” Yes, it was quite dated, but it was still entertaining.

When we got home, I messed around with the cable receiver which had been acting flaky, according to SaraRules. Nothing I tried seemed to help, so I called the cable company. After a few minutes on the phone, the CSR offered a final suggestion: Return the box for an exchange. *sigh* I had a couple of shows on the DVR that I still wanted to see.  Oh, well.

This morning, we were up at 0530… which roughly translates to “stupid o’clock.” SaraRules, her parents and Logan are heading down to Arizona to visit her grandmother for a few days. (And all I got was this lousy t-shirt. Or will get. Or got a few years ago. Time travel makes things a little confusing…) On the “plus” side, I was in the office before 0700 this morning. That’s a good thing, especially since I’ll probably spend “a few minutes” at lunch trying to exchange my cable box.

Stray Toasters

• I talked with for a few minutes last night.
• Young Mad Scientist Alphabet Blocks



• Had yesterday been a Thursday, it would have failed. Miserably.
• , and a few others have mentioned Erfworld enough times that I decided to check it out. It’s pretty amusing… in a punny and geeky kind of way.
• Passion for opera compared to love at first sight: study
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” and “monkeys!” files: Kid walks to soccer, neighbors call the cops
• 
• Forbidden Knowledge: 101 Things NOT Everyone Should Know How to Do
• Josef Fritzl admits all charges
• IRS to allow Ponzi victims to claim theft losses
• NFL Shop.com is extending their 30% off sale through today.
  

  

• Artists buying cheap houses in Detroit

He gets right on to
The friction of the day…

Namaste.