Random Access

st00pid Comcast servers going down just before I was ready to post! *shakes fist*

Wednesday : 04 January 06
Today’s been a pretty good day.

Work wasn’t bad. The work day moved along at a nice pace. I skipped yesterday’s lunchtime workout; I made up for it today. I’m waiting to see how my shoulders feel tomorrow morning… I’m not anticipating a lot of happiness there. But, it was good to be in the gym after a week-and-a-half hiatus. I’m debating whether or not I’ll go tomorrow. I know that I should, if for no other reason than to get back on-schedule. We shall see.

Post-work was ‘ Call of Cthulhu game. In a surprising twist of fate, my character didn’t do his best impression of a bullet-catcher. Nor was he a chew-toy for a netherworld creature. Nor did he suffer from deceleration trauma. In fact, he suffered no injuries at all. Unless you count the hangover. But, that’s a slightly different story.

Stray Toasters

• I replaced the wired NIC in my laptop. The old one decided, sometime in the past few weeks, that it didn’t want to work anymore. Granted, I don’t need it when I’m at home – I have a wireless card for that – but I do go places where a wireless LAN isn’t available. So… new NIC. I almost had an issue with installing its drivers – it seems as though my laptop’s floppy drive has gone the way of the dodo. Fortunately, I was able to use ‘ system to copy the files to my flash drive. From there, installation was a piece of cake.
• Four things.
• Hey, : Check out the Wizard Exclusive Ultimate Clayface DC HeroClix
• Bunnies + Chess =
• : Meet the next two Legion-related HeroClix: Shadow Lass and Emerald Empress
• How to avoid the exhausting planning and preparation that goes into making a second date.
  

  Dear 37 Year-Old Guy Sitting Next to Me at the Coffee Shop Right Now Who is Clearly on a Blind Date:

  Forgive me for eavesdropping, but this is rather important. I am not the smoothest Steve McQueen on the planet, but my very basic inter-personal skills tell me that you are making a series of extremely obvious first date errors.

• Fork-Art
• By way of : Why Geeks and Nerds Are Worth It…
• M*A*S*H Quotes
• , and : Click here
• Southern Poverty Law Center   

Namaste.

<groove>
     The Ohio Players- Love Rollercoaster
</groove>

The original.
Mm-hmm… that’s right!

Tuesday : 03 January 06
Not much to report today:

• Work.
• Home.
• Nap.
• Law & Order: SVU
• Batman: The Animated Series

Tomorrow night is Cthulhu night. Nothing like battling the minions of Elder Gods to put a happy spin on the night.

Stray Toasters

• I like this whole “four-day work week” thing.
• Manic. And it’s not even Monday. Go figure.
• The twelve miners, who had been trapped following an explosion in a West Virginia mine, were rescued. This is good. I think that I pay attention to “trapped miner” stories because my grandfathers were miners. In West Virginia, no less.
  <edit>
       The above was believed true when I went to bed.
       It turns out that one miner was found alive; the other twelve were dead.
       Their families had been celebrating for three hours before they learned the truth.
  </edit>

• I started watching the Invader Zim ‘toons that Nyx gave me… months ago. Very good way to bring a smile to your face on a grey Monday Tuesday morning.
  

  Dib: This is me without fear… and a 62-pound hall pass.

• sent me a link to this video. It starts off slowly, but it’s rather funny.
• When the outside temperature rises, and the meaning is oh so clear
  One-thousand and one yellow daffodils begin to dance in front of you…. Oh, dear.
  Are they trying to tell you something?
  Are you missing that one final screw?
  You’re simply not in the pink, my dear.
  To be honest, you haven’t got a clue…

• From today’s “Unintentional Porn Overheard at Work” file: “He had big enough stones.”
• I like the Wizard of Oz theme of Blues Traveler’s Run Around video and it’s just a fun to watch.
  By the same token: Blind Melon’s No Rain: I know that the song drives a lot of people insane (especially when it gets stuck in their heads…), but I like it. And the video.

• Jon Favreau Updates on John Carter of Mars
• My Enemy, My Resolution
  

  For the New Year, I want villains.

  Realvillains. Old-school villains. Not anti-heroes, not misunderstoodcrusaders, not unfortunate lunatics. Power-mongers, that’s what I want.Warlords and evil tyrants. The type you could pummel and feel goodabout it.

• Unintentionally Goatse-esque finger ring
• : Storm in Winter
• R & B (as in “Rhythm & Blues”)
• Get set for a new Jackie Chan movie.
• From Real Tech News: Count your, er, Blessings: 5,198 OS Security Flaws You Weren’t Affected by Last Year

Namaste.

Monday : 02 January 2006
I slept in today. Apparently, I needed it. Shortly after I made my way to the HCC, called to extend an invitation to join him at Cafè Med for lunch; and I did.

That was followed with a trip to the local Best Buy – I needed to pick up some thermal compound so that I can put together my new system. I don’t know what made me think that going there today should go under the heading of “Good Idea.” Apparently, have of the residents of the mid-valley area thought that it was a good idea, too, because here were LOTS of people there. I found the thermal compound and nearly doubled over with laughter at how much they wanted for it. Instead, I picked up a pack of DVD-Rs for Perry (I had gotten him +R for Christmas… which his burner doesn’t use) and a copy of What Dreams May Come, one of my favorite movies. Back home, where I a couple of loads of laundry and started cleaning the HCC. It’s amazing how much more clutter one can generate when trying to clean a room. And I generated a lot.

Tonight was the first night of ‘ D&D campaign. I headed over a little early to create my character. The dice hated me. No love at all. I’d get one good roll for my statistics… and then a bunch of crap. *sigh* I finally came up with a set of stats that I could be happy with and moved on. The rest of the group showed up and we got our game on. I have also come to the realization that I no longer need to spend as much time as I do coming up with names for my characters. I can just name them all “Pincushion” and be done with it. It would be both a unique and appropriate name, apparently. While he didn’t die, my brand-spankin’-new character went back home with a few new scars that he will be able to tell his future children and grandchildren about.

Stray Toasters

• I rediscovered a song in my mp3 playlist today. That made me smile because I was Ivory Soap sure that I didn’t have the song.
• Check.
• posted a link to The Ultimate Showdown earlier. I clicked. I laughed.
• : Best Buy has all of the season boxed sets of Gilmore Girls on sale for $24.99 through the end of this week.
• While I enjoyed Rush Hour and The Family Man, I find myself worrying about X-Men 3. What’s the common thread? They were/are all directed by Brett Ratner.
• Having added Sam Cooke and Ray Charles CDs to my collection, I want to add some Luther Vandross to the mix.
• : I can’t attest to all of their pics, but you might want to check out Buzzscope Comics: Best of 2005.
• What is the plural of “cul-de-sac?”
• : Supergirl and more than 20 members of the LSH will be featured in an upcoming episode of Justice League Unlimited.
• Hunter.
• By way of Wired: Best and Worst [Tech] Punditry of 2005
• I have been fairly non-plussed about the upcoming Ultimate Avengers movie. I looked at the website this evening. I might have to check this out. It may be more interesting than I had originally thought.
• I need to replace my copy of TSR’s The G4 File: Guns, Gadgets and Getaway Gear. I haven’t seen my copy in a very long time.
• I also need to recover my copy of Caligula.
• : I don’t know if you have a Batcave of your own, but if so you might want shelves like these…
• One Jump Ahead from Disney’s Aladdin is a fun song.
• I know that Mary Chapin Carpenter is a country artist, but I like Saturday Night at the Twist and Shout, which she did with Beausoliel. I still feel about as guilty for liking it as I do for liking It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere.
• : Biker Scout and Speederbike Statue
• “…how did you manage to get your butt jammed backwards into a flowerpot?”
  

Okay… that’s a wrap. I had planned on being in bed and knocked out about forty minutes ago.

Namaste.

Sunday : 01 January 2006
First: Thanks to for hosting the “Out with the old, in with the new” festivities.

Today started with the Ravens-Browns game. , , Perry and Max came over to watch the game and hang out for a while. punked out on us, but Nox and I did penalty shots despite his absence. (I skipped two shots because I was cooking out and figured that sobriety was a good thing when dealing with fire.) After fighting with the destructions instructions, I got the grill put together last night. It wanted to be a little temperamental when I fired it up this afternoon, but a couple of adjustments and it was working just fine.

I worked on ‘s new computer for a bit. Mmm. Driver installations… After that she, Nox and I went out for a bite to eat. After dinner, we headed off in different directions: She and Nox to his place to hang out; me to ‘s to watch the Rams-Cowboys game.

Ravens Update

Baltimore at Cleveland
16 – 20
The Ravens traveled to Cleveland for another meeting of Browns 1.0 vs. Browns 2.0 The game started off well… and then descended into madness. The Ravens looked uncharacteristically strong in the first half. I have no idea where those guys went in the second half, though. I can’t even blame the referees for making bad calls. It’s like the Ravens just… checked out of the game at halftime. They allowed 14 unanswered points in the third quarter and couldn’t seem to find the end zone to save their lives. The season is now over and Baltimore ends it with a losing season. I still think that this is a good thing – they need some perspective on what it means to play the game as a team and not as a offense and a defense who happen to wear the same uniforms. One “positive” thing to come out of this is: While Baltimore and Cleveland’s records for the season are identical, the Ravens have a nominally better standing due to conference wins. Here’s hoping for a better 2006 season.

Stray Toasters

• My uncle called me this evening. He was rubbing in the fact that his beloved Steelers won… and that the Ravens lost. It made me laugh. What made me laugh even more is that he didn’t even talk directly to me – he passed the messages along through .
• How Different RPGs Define the GM’s Role
• and : Pop Candy – Q&A with Joss Whedon
• “You! You there! You’re a girl, right?”
  

• Part Captain America…
  Part Firestorm…
  Part… Vegas showgirl.
  Maybe it’s just me, but this costume could use a little work.

• Devo records kids’ album for Disney
• : Methinks that you might be interested in this.
• 
• : A Very Minor Moment
• By way of SciFi.com: Studios Unveil 2006 [Movie] Slates
• Futurismic fiction: A transgenic, corporate dystopia
• From PC World: The 50 Greatest Gadgets of the Past 50 Years

Namaste.

Saturday : 31 December 2005
New Year’s Eve.
The last day of 2005.

Coda: 2005
May you have a happy, safe and prosperous 2006. All the best to you and yours.

Namaste.

Friday : 30 December 05
The work day isn’t so bad when you know that you have a short day ahead of you. I even saw the monkey whose neck I wanted to wring yesterday. I was even civil when I said “Good morning” to him. Other than that, the day proceeded at a fairly good clip and in good spirits.

At some point, while I had my nose to the grindstone, it started to snow. Driving home wasn’t bad, though. I made a few stops, including a stop at Valley Fair Mall to get a box of Bacon Cheese Popcorn. It might sound nasty as sin, but it’s good. Oh so good…

Tonight’s Clitorati was good. and were there when and I arrived; Ms. Lightning was a good way towards completing the City Weekly‘s crossword when I sat down. (For the uninitiated, she and I have a friendly competition as to who can complete the crossword first.) I picked up a copy, broke out my favorite Sharpie and I went to work like Kool Moe Dee. Twenty or so minutes later, I was done. Before her. I believe that her statement was: “Dammit! And I even had an hour’s headstart!” showed up, as did Mr. and Mrs. and . A little while later, Land showed up and regaled us with a new “Black Sunday” story; we also had him fill the group in on the first story, too.

Post-Clitorati, I ventured to ‘s to take another stab at watching Crash. Wow. It was a very intense movie. It followed seven stories of racial tension and then rather adroitly intertwined them. I remember thinking, at a couple of points: “Parallel lives meet at infinity.” It also showed that we aren’t nearly as disconnected as we might think: The vanishing point at infinity isn’t really so far away as it seems. I also thought that it would make a very bookend with movies like Do the Right Thing. I give it high marks for approaching delicate subject matter without trying to candy-coat it or pretty-it-up. I would definitely recommend it. (I do not give high marks to Comcast for interrupting the movie every 30 minutes or so for Amber Alert updates… especially when scrolling/flashing a message onscreen would have sufficed.)

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt
I decided to cruise around Paragon City for a while before bed – partly because it had been a while since my last patrol, partly because I wasn’t tired. I took on some members of the Tsoo and a few thugs. It was enough to wet my whistle, but not really enough to put a sizable dent into the 10,000 XP that I need for my next level. A few missions would have handled that, but I wasn’t in the mood. Maybe I’ll do missions later in the day.

Stray Toasters

• I must assemble the grill tomorrow.
• We discovered something about ‘s motherboard: It doesn’t have USB 2.0 ports. Which means that she cannot recharge her iPod. Which is not good. Fortunately, my ‘board does have USB 2.0 ports and we are able to recharge it here.
• ..and in light of the above ‘Toaster, this looks rather interesting.
• How to break Silly Putty
• Hunt’s Ketchup
• I’m semi-tempted to see if I can create a character in CoH/CoV that looks nominally like me.
• He’s a rebel and a runner
  He’s a signal turning green

• As if I didn’t already score enough “Blasphemy Points” this year, I caught myself rewriting The Lord’s Prayer in C++ this afternoon.
  

  The Lord == my shepherd
  I shall !want.

• From The New York Times: Through His Webcam, a Boy Joins a Sordid Online World
• I like this comic mainly for its commentary –
• Trivial Pursuit: Top Trivial Moments of 2005

I still don’t feel tired, but I should probably try that whole “sleep” thing anyway.

Namaste.

I was listening to NPR’s Morning Edition on the way to work, when I realized that I needed something to get the blood pumping. A quick change from the radio to the CD player got it going:

• Gwen Stefani – Hollaback Girl
• Will Smith – Switch
• Gwen Stefani (ft. Eve) – Rich Girl
• Outkast – The Way You Move

Yep… that’s a good way to jumpstart your Friday morning.

Thursday : 29 December 05
The worst thing about the end of a vacation is the first morning of having to get up for work. This morning was no exception. My alarm went off at 6:25. My first thoughts were: “What’s that?! Oh… it’s the alarm. How do I turn it off…?” I managed to turn it off and drag myself from bed. I completed the morning hygeine rituals and, a short while later, was on the way to work.

On the whole, the first day back wasn’t bad. I did, however, have to deal with one person who tried my patience. Twice. As I said when writing about the situation with our phone system: I’m not a big fan of having to repeat myself. Today’s person just couldn’t seem to get the hint that when I told him something, I wasn’t going to change my mind just because he thought I should.

As recounted to :

(12:21:30) : How goes?
(12:22:12) : goes alright. you?
(12:22:38) : Pretty well… assuming that one of the monkeys doesn’t make me punch him in the face.
(12:22:45) : Repeatedly.
(12:22:48) : ohhh?
(12:22:54) : Yeah.
(12:22:59) : sup?
(12:23:02) : Had a UPS problem…
(12:23:11) : I gave him a new one and told him to bring me the old one…
(12:23:24) : He wanted to know what I was going to do with/about the old one….
(12:23:33) : I told him that it would be taken care of.
(12:23:35) : He wanted to know what I was going to do with/about the old one….
(12:23:36) : I told him that it would be taken care of.
(12:23:40) : …and walked off.
(12:23:53) : He exchanges them and brings me the old one…
(12:23:55) : THEN…
(12:24:17) : “Well, if you’re out of the office and I need something, I’ll just go and get it and leave you a note.”
(12:24:19) : >.< (12:24:35) : Me: “No, go through [his team lead].”
(12:24:58) : Him: “[He] said not to do anything until you got back.”
(12:25:07) : well..there you go, dumbass
(12:25:24) : Me: “Go through [the team lead]. We have already established what is to be done if I’m out of the office.”
(12:25:30) : Him: Pouty-walking off.
(12:27:01) : that’s so…
(12:27:04) : beat him for me

A wonderful solution was offered by :

(12:01:56) ***Shadorunr thinks “Too many monkeys…..”
(12:02:04) : Monkeys make everything better!
(12:02:16) : In some cases.
(12:13:27) : ..although there IS one monkey here who has gotten on my nerves twice today already.
(12:13:40) : shoot him into space.
(12:13:47) : Don’t tempt me…

And this just after I get back from vacation. Fortunately, the rest of the workday was nowhere near as trying.

After work, I hung out with . The intention was to watch Crash; instead, we wound up watching episodes of The Gilmore Girls. I will have to catch Crash another time.

Stray Toasters

• I chatted with my uncle for a bit this morning. He’s thinking about coming out for a visit in two to three weeks.
• J.S. Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D is another of my favorite classical pieces.
• More “Unintentional Porn Overheard at Work” – “You think that Greg would mind if I play with his rack? He has everything off.”
• Celebratory gun firing – good idea or not?
• “So Alice and Gina just let you use their basement as your lair?”
  “I prefer ‘Mad Scientist Laboratory,’ but yeah.”
  

• Yep… I like this Semagic client.
• Wind Surfer Toilet Bowl Cleaner
• Can’t keep my eyes from the circling skies
  Tongue-tied and twisted Just an earth-bound misfit, I

• : I think that you will appreciate ‘Turn-Based’.
• ‘Intel Inside’ sent to the place where brands go to die
• : You might want to check your local comic shop for these on 18 Jan 06. Of particular interest: The fifth figure in the set.
• 10 Failed Technology Trends of 2005
• “Uh…Dad? I think Santa mixed something up.”
  

Namaste.

<groove break>
     Q’s Jook Joint (Various Artists) – Stuff Like That
     Billy Ocean – Get Out of My Dreams (Get Into My Car)
     Janet Jackson – Nasty Boys
</groove break>

How’s your Thursday music line-up looking?

Wednesday : 28 December 05
I’m back in the Land Behind the Zion Curtain.

It was a good day. I got up and finished putting the last of my things away for the trip. I had breakfast with Mom and Kris. Shortly afterward, Kris took me to RDU on her way home. Lines at the airport weren’t bad. The only “problems” were:

1. They switched my departure gate.
2. The plane that on which we were going to travel needed “maintenance.” And apparently, the job would take “a couple of hours.” So, we were switched to another plane; our departure was only :30 later than scheduled.

Made it to DC with no further problems. Dad was waiting for me when I left the concourse. I didn’t get to have a long visit with him, but it was better than no visit at all. I headed to the gate to catch my rather full flight to SLC.

I read more of Da Vinci; I’m roughly 60 pages from the end. I slept for a couple of hours. And then… I was here.

All-in-all, I had an excellent time at home. I’m glad that I went. I apparently needed it.

Namaste.

Tuesday : 27 December 05
Today has been a very good day.

It started out with a visit from Tom, a friend of the family. I haven’t seen him in… three years, I think. He brought up a couple of old in-jokes about me and my C-64 and QuantumLink; we laughed about it. He had a bit of good news, as well: He was asked – and accepted the offer – to be the pastor of a church in New York City. This takes him from a congregation of about 350 to over 3000! This also will put him near my uncle – I remember many times when he and my uncle (and others) would debate… whatever social or political issue came to mind. I can see these discussions becoming more regular, now that they will be in relatively close proximity to each other.

Off to PTIA. We got there early, allowing my uncle to check-in his bags and get his seat assignment. We had time to kill, so we ate lunch at the Marriott. They had a pool table, so I got to play Kris in a game of pool. Back over to the airport… pictures were taken… goodbyes were said… and my uncle headed down the concourse.

Back home for a bit. I got to see a few members of the extended family before heading back to Greensboro for dinner with Don, Christine and Thomas. Christine and Don are among my oldest friends here; I’ve known them for… over fifteen years; Thomas is only four – naturally, I haven’t known him quite as long. We ate at Smokey Bones. Very tasty ribs. I still want to hit Oh! Brian’s next time I’m here, but this was a very good substitute.

I came home… and packed. Whoop-de-damn-doo. Vacations are, all too often, over before we are ready for them to be. I’m not complaining, though: I’ve had a wonderful time, brief though it was.

this moment may be brief
but it can be so bright
reflected in another source of light
when the moment dies
the spark still flies
reflected in another pair of eyes
   “Chain Lightning,” Rush (from the CD Presto)

I know that it was good for me – I’ve been needing this for a while. It was good for my mother, who’s been after me (for longer than I care to admit) to come visit. It was good for my family, especially since my mother’s side of the family is very small and it seems that we get together too infrequently. It has also brought me to the point of a “resolution,” of sorts: I am going make it a point to come home – either here or Maryland – at least once per year. If nothing else, I deserve that.

Stray Toasters

• I should have been in bed long ago.
• My Home, by Rockapella
• How do I know that at least one of my gamers likes me? This message was waiting for me this evening:
  

  Hey God? The unseemly citizens of SeaTac miss ya. Take care and we’ll see ya later. -Omega Moebius

  Put a smile on my face, it did. I’m looking forward to resuming the campaign after the first of the year.

• Apparently, The Orange Bunny has driven in Utah… 
• A car thing.
• I’m beginning to appreciate Frank Cho’s artwork more and more.
• Three is a magic number,
  Yes it is, it’s a magic number.
  Somewhere in the ancient, mystic trinity
  You get three as a magic number.

  The past and the present and the future.
  Faith and Hope and Charity,
  The heart and the brain and the body
  Give you three as a magic number.

• Gatorade.
• Notes from the Technology Underground
• iPod. I have held out this long, but I think that I want one.
• : Thai Table

I turn my back to the wind
To catch my breath,
Before I start off again.

Namaste.

Monday : 26 December 05
I was awakened by a text message and a phone call this morning. Both of them were good. No one really had any plans for the day, so there was a lot of “sit around and drink coffee while staring at each other” time. I spent some of my time creating a new profile on the rents’ computer. Yes, I know that I’m only here a couple of times a year, at most. What’s your point? So far, I’ve put Firefox and Trillian on here… I’m trying to think of other things that I “have” to put on here. I still need to do some low-level tech support and tweak a few things on here – the system isn’t running quite as well as I think that it should or could.

I have spent the past two and a half days with my family… and haven’t felt like rending things in two (or more) pieces. Not once. I’m either growing up or getting older. Neither of those prospects is really “great,” but what can you do about it? *shrug* It’s actually been very nice spending time with them.

This afternoon, we went to visit Catherine and Joe (friends of the family who were here for dinner last night). Catherine cracks me right the Hell up. She was telling us stories about dealing with members of her family… and how she was ready to snap ’em off a little somethin’ if they needed to be brought back into line. Straight up comedy.

After that, we went to Durham to visit Kris (middle sibko member). She has a very nice apartment in what looks like a relatively new community. And… once again… I got to play “Family Tech Support Guy.” Nothing too major. And she’s worth the time. We went to dinner at O’Charley’s. And they were apparently in the midst of a crisis: Their bartender had walked out a short while before we arrived. O.o The main reason that this was a problem: We were sitting in the bar area. There was a delay in getting our food, but it wasn’t interminable. After dinner, it was a quick trip across the parking lot to Staples – I left my phone charger in SLC. Go me! Three minutes later, I was out the door and the phone was a’charging. We headed back to Kris’ for a little while before heading home.

And now, we’re here.

Tomorrow: Hooking up with the old crew for a little while. I’m looking forward to that.

Stray Toasters

• I just downloaded Semagic 1.5.6.3U… I like. A lot.
  (, it does a lot of the formatting things you asked me about, too.)

• May I just reiterate that I am still flabbergasted that my folks have broadband? It’s almost as if they are actively trying to be part of the 21st Century.
• Network for Good
• Sleeping pills and stupid grins. (There’s a really bad Country song in there, somewhere…)
• I’m enjoying The Da Vinci Code. I read it on the way to Kris’ until the sunlight grew too dim for reading.
• Bendy Woman – Wow.
• Morning star you’re beautiful, yellow dime on high
  Spins around my little room, miracle goodnight
  Even flower all alone, pazanane capeche
  Haven’t got a death wish, just want a little more

• This I Believe – The Power of Presence
• Ticker tape, marching bands and cheerleaders. LOTS of cheerleaders.
• Something about the Sanford and Son theme cracks me up.
• GetNetWise – Tools for Families
  This isn’t the only tool available, but for parents with kids who surf the Interweb, it’s a good start.

• 
• Grammar Boy vs. Glamour Boys
• “And lead us not into temptation
  But deliver us from eBay.”
  (I would rewrite more, but I’m already on the lookout for random lightning bolts…)
  As it was, I was perusing eBidet for pieces of plastic crack that I just didn’t think that I could live without. So far, I’ve managed to keep from buying anything. So far…

• ProLiteracy Worldwide
• “The power of the female gender is frightening and awe-inspiring all at the same time.”
  

• Dinosaur! RRRRR!
• 1 – 2 – 3
  4 – 5
  6 – 7 – 8
  9 – 10
  11 – 12!

Namaste.

Sunday : 25 December 05
Merry Christmas. I hope that it was a safe and enjoyable one for everyone.

I slept in. Late. Very late. Almost 13:00 late. And it was good. I needed the rest. I got up and puttered around the house for a while. There wasn’t too much to do until company showed up for dinner. We had… seven people over for dinner and a few of Mom’s students (current and former) came by to say “Hi.” It was a good way to spend the holiday.

Football Update

Minnesota at Baltimore
23 – 30
The Minnesota Vikings rode into Baltimore for a Christmas night game. The Ravens, once again, played as a formidable unit, offensively and defensively. RB Jamal Lewis only had a couple of noteworthy plays, but QB Kyle Boller had another excellent game – He threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns. It’s still up in the air as to whether the new level of confidence that he is displaying will linger, but over the past three games, he does seem to have hit his stride. Added bonuses from tonight’s game: Baltimore is no longer in the basement of the division. With tonight’s loss, the Vikings were eliminated from playoff contention. Next week: The Cleveland Browns… in The Dog Pound.

Stray Toasters

• I wouldn’t mind playing a little City of Heroes/Villains right now. Too bad they’re 2000 miles thataway.
• There is something of a “downside” to coming home: My body takes a couple of days to get used to the two-hour difference in time… which is why I’m inclined to stay up late (relatively speaking) and sleep in. *sigh*
• I think that I’ll have a piece of sweet potato pie.
• DD: Ah, Kangas, the other, other white meat.
  (Excerpted, out of context, from this interview on Newsarama.)

• , you might be interested in the following excerpt from the same interview:
  

  Q: Will the Legion be affected by 52 or Infinite Crisis in ways other than introducing Supergirl?

  DD: With Mark Waid involved in both series there is a very good chance that the world of the Legion will be affected by 52 in more than one way.

• Being the occasionally-smart person that I am, I made sure to get Catherine’s recipe for sweet potato pie before she left. Now, I can make pies at my leisure!
• : I saw this and thought you might appreciate it.
• I have snippets of My Favorite Things running through my head.
• The last page of Infinite Crisis #3: Wow. Didn’t see that coming.
• “How does that work anyway? I mean, you’re a bear and she’s a cat…”
  

• “Emperor Popetine.”
  That just cracks me up.
  I can hear this exchange, during the ordination new cardinals:

  “Cardinal Vader….”
  “Yes, Your Eminence…?”
  “Riiiise.”

Quotes of the Day
These were snippets overheard during dinner:

My uncle sliced the ham and turkey before dinner…
Kris: You cut the ham into these huge slices… and you’re a heart surgeon. *shakes head*
Uncle Ronnie: I’m just looking out for business, baby! *big smile*

Joe: Don’t you want a piece of [sweet potato] pie?
Mom: Nah… not right now. I’m watching my weight.
Eva: I’m watching your weight, too… cause I’m not doing a damn thing about mine!

Mom: What are you drinking?
Catherine: Manishewitz.
Mom: I didn’t buy any Manishewitz…
Catherine: E & B…
Mom: You mean E & J?
Catherine: E and some-damn-body!

And with that, I’m going in search of that piece of pie. I might even read a little more Da Vinci.

Namaste.

Saturday : 24 December 05
It’s been a pretty long day. I went to bed VERY early this morning and got up a couple of hours later to get to the airport.

Surprisingly, the ordeal that I anticipated for Christmas Eve flying never came to pass. I got my ticket and boarding pass quickly. I moved through the security line without much ado. I left security and headed for the gate… only to realize, a little over halfway there, that I had left my cell phone at the security screening counter. *braincramp* I power-walked back to security to get the phone and back down the terminal to my gate.

I don’t remember much about the flight out of SLC. I slept through… 80% of it, I think. And I missed watching Wallace & Gromit in The Case of the Were-Rabbit. Dammit. But, I needed the rest. I disembarked in Atlanta and made the trek (if you’ve ever flown into Atlanta, you understand) to my departure gate… where I sat for an hour-and-a-half. That was fine: There was football on the television and I had a copy of The Da Vinci Code in my hands. The flight to Greensboro was relatively uneventful. It was a fairly short flight; I read Da Vinci for most of it.

Mom met me at the airport and drove me home. On the way, we stopped at Bojangle’s, so I could get something to eat. Mmmm. Bojangle’s. They could use one or sixty of them in Utah. Kris (3rd member of the sibko) was waiting at home; my stepfather arrived a short time later. My uncle – due to a holiday travel snafu – wouldn’t get in until 10:00 PM. So, I spent time with the family-unit. It was good. I ventured into the office to discover that sometime in the past year or so, my folks got broadband. Hallelujah! High-speed Interweb access has made it to the sticks! Better late than never.

Back to the airport to get my uncle. Back home. Mom has to play for an early-morning Christmas service, so we opened our presents before my uncle and I headed to Midnight Mass. I got some good stuff – it’s good that I brought a second bag! A short while later, my uncle and I were off to Mass. I’m not Catholic, but going to Mass with my uncle is a tradition that I enjoy – it was nice to be here to go with him. It was a nice service (as usual) with a good homily. Back home for more chat with Mom and my uncle.

I should really consider hitting the rack sometime soon.

Stray Toasters

• I am eating a piece of sweet potato pie.
• Kris makes me laugh.
  Not (quite) in the same way that Adam does.
  Definitely not in the same way that Rana does.
  But, she does.

• Sprinting.
• Before I neglect to mention this yet again: I heard a Trans-Siberian Railroad version of Carol of the Bells a couple of days ago. After the introduction, it went into a few measures of a drum-heavy portion of the music. One that almost fit perfectly into the music from HALO. It made me smile. And, I didn’t even ing into “Ding! Fries are done!”
• I love my mother: She put mini-wreaths on all of the interior doors. (She makes me laugh, too.)
• Did I mention that I went to Bojangle’s? I did? Okay. Just checking.

I’m sure that there will be something of amusement to report. But, until then…

Merry Christmas.

Namaste.