the scare

This past weekend, I helped my room-mate put his old car away for the winter. It was a miserable job and took us much longer than we expected in the cold. We also had some trouble with the exhaust building up in the storage unit and the mothballs weren't pleasant either.

With the car finally stowed, we headed back to the apartment and about 1/2 hour later, he started to have pains in his stomach. He's had these for a while, but being stubborn, he hadn't done anything about them and a heating pad usually brought relief. No such luck this time - he was in a lot of pain that didn't go away. It lasted all night and into the next morning. When I left for work he said he would call his doctor to see if they could get him in and if so, his aunt would take him.

I got a call at work later that he'd been admitted to the emergency room and they were going to do surgery on him. Turns out the pain in his stomach area was a hernia that was allowing his intestines to poke through - could have lead to an obstruction if they didn't get it resolved right away. I had two of the most useless errands to run after work, but I made it to the hospital before he went in for surgery.

The operation was a success and I was able to take him home the next day. He's resting uncomfortably and sleeping a lot. It's been pretty scary, but could have been much worse. I'm hoping he learns a lesson about being too stubborn, but only time will tell.

100 miles

I swam at lunch and again after work and hit 100 miles in the pool for the year. I could have done more, but I'm still pleased with the results. The pool is still open next week for a couple days so I could get in a couple more miles before the break, but even if I don't - 100 miles is still pretty good.

I'm a little sore this evening and plenty tired, but I'm not doing too bad for a 38 year old. :)

Lunch - Mauchan Yakisoba instructions

For lunch today I had the chicken flavored Mauchan Yakisoba - an "asian" noodle and dehydrated vegetable dish. Here are the instructions - with the same formatting as on the package.

AFTER COOKING, LEAVE IN MICROWAVE FOR 1 MINUTE.

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Open lid half way only and remove the two packets. REMOVE THE TWO PACKETS BEFORE MICROWAVING.

2. Open Packet #1 (Vegetables) and sprinkle packet contents IN THE SPACE BETWEEN NOODLES AND CONTAINER.

3. Add 1 cup (240ml) water to the Fill Line, as indicated on container, by arrows. FAILURE TO ADD WATER TO THE 'FILL LINE' MAY CAUSE PRODUCT TO IGNITE AND BURN.

BE SURE TO FIND THE CORRECT FILL LINE!

4. Close lid and cook in microwave on high (1,000 watts) for 4 minutes *. AFTER COOKING, LEAVE PRODUCT IN MICROWAVE FOR 1 MINUTE, TO COOL.

5. Grab the corners an carefully remove from microwave. PLEASE HANDLE WITH CARE, PRODUCT IS VERY HOT.

6. Remove lid, pour in Packet #2. Mix in the powdered flavoring... Enjoy!

* Cooking time may vary based on altitude and power of the microwave. Adjust time as needed.

AFTER COOKING: CONTAINER IS EXTREMELY HOT. HANDLE WITH CARE TO AVOID SPILLING OR BURNING YOURSELF.

quiet day

It's been a pretty quiet day here at work. I'm getting some stuff done and answering a lot of user questions, but compared to the chaos of yesterday I might as well be napping.

At home, I've been working on a couple of projects as gifts for Christmas. I won't go into details until after the holidays, but I will say there's been a lot of sawdust generated.

In other news... I'm closing in on 100 miles in the pool for the year. 66 laps to go. I may be able to wrap that up tomorrow and then take a break for the rest of the year when the pool is closed. I could have done better for the year, I suppose, but it's still pretty cool.

I think it's time for a short break to get some fresh air and re-focus.

the icy touch of winter

As I was leaving the building today, a single drop of icy water dripped off the frame above the door and bypassed all my winter defenses - hat, scarf, and jacket. It hit me on the back of the neck, in the one unprotected inch of my vulnerable flesh. I arched my back instinctively and inadvertently created a channel right down my spine for the water to follow. Intensely cold would be an understatement.

Well played, winter. Well played.

driving in the snow

It took me an hour to get to work yesterday morning. It was our first big snow around here and there was a two car accident on the highway that brought traffic to very nearly a halt for most of the time I was on the road. Not fun.

The drive home was much better, right up until I didn't make the turn into my driveway. I hit a patch of slippery ice/snow and went right into the ditch.

Luckily, the ditch is narrow and I managed to straddle the sides and slalom my way forward down a slight hill until I could pull back up onto the road. I don't think I damaged my car - or anything else. Other than my wits.

I felt a little stupid about the whole thing.

7.6 miles

This past week was a little rough for me. Lot of stress and to top it off - I missed my swim at lunch time on Friday. So, after work, I headed to the pool to get my laps in. I got changed, went out to the pool deck, and was immediately told that the pool was closed for a swim meet. I was told I could use the rec center - but that's not correct, the pool there is closed too.

So, I went back to the locker room, got changed, and left - thinking that some signs might have been appropriate. I was still fuming when I got home and things didn't get any better. I decided that I needed to take myself for a walk and cool down.

Literally.

Arby's sounded good for dinner, so I bundled up and checked a map. 3.8 miles one way. 26 degrees outside. 1 hour 18 minutes walking time one way. Bring it.

I had some socks issues - the right kept sliding down and my Achilles tendon rubbed a bit, but I toughed it out and made the trek. It was dark and cold, but I did feel better to have gotten out there and cleared my head a bit. I had my dinner at Arby's, then headed home.

I was tired last evening and I slept pretty well - no after effects other than being a little sore this morning.

I think I prefer swimming, but exercise is exercise.

the letter L

I found this photo for a project I did a while back. I got a request for a bunch of letter L's for a dinner that unfortunately got canceled. I got a bunch done and then stopped before I got too much further. Here's the prototype and some of the modules.

thanksgiving

I headed to my folks house on the Wednesday before thanksgiving and got caught in an epic traffic jam in Columbus. I listened to a lot of AM radio because most of the people on AM radio are more miserable and crazier than I am. Which helps. A bit. I also listened to French language which was kinda fun.

On Thanksgiving, the family went to help at a church that was serving a meal and delivering dinners to shut-ins. The folks there were a little disorganized, but it was for a good cause and I'm glad we helped out. I'm also glad I didn't immediately get struck by lightning when I walked into the Catholic church since I'm something of a heathen. Well, marginally Buddhist, but I'm guessing that isn't much better.

We spent a lot of time hanging out and watching football. I spent much of the football time reading and playing a video game. We ate too much, played games, and tried to keep my baby niece from eating dirt - which was a challenge since she's crawling so fast now. Oh, and Mom fixed waffles for breakfast and I put ice cream on them.

I did a little work on Sunday when I got back to Akron so today wasn't too bad when I got into the office. Got a couple of errands to run when I get done with work, hoping the day stays quiet.

A trip to the BMV

I seriously don't know what the fuss is all about - I've never had a bad experience at the BMV. Of course, I always have all my documents ready in advance and I pick a time of day designed to avoid long lines, but still, you'd think the odds would go against me at some point.

I had to get my registration and driver's license renewed recently. Well, not "had to" since I've got until my birthday in January. But I got the notices in the mail and figured I might as well get it out of the way.

I stood in line for maybe a minute before being called up to the counter. Rachelle asked me a few questions, took my paperwork, and directed me over to the eye exam station. I passed that test, then back over to sign a form. She took my check, handed me the sticker for my license plate, then directed me over to the photo station. In a couple minutes, the driver's license had printed out and I was on my way. I think I was in the building for maybe 15 minutes total.

The photo, however, is terrible and shall never see the light of day. Not Rachelle's fault - I don't think I've ever seen a really good photo on one of these things.

So, I'm preemptively legal and on the road.

collection, spongebob, tie, dentist, hand, game

After reading Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, I was inspired to craft a few chips of ICE-9 as a sort of prop. I intended to go forward with a collection of doomsday items - including red matter from Star Trek - but then decided to expand the collection to include impossible things.

Impossible Things

I have this on display in my office, with each item neatly labeled with a name and a warning. It's pretty geeky, but so is noting when my car's odometer turns into a binary number.

Also in my office - at least sometimes - is a plastic figure of Spongebob Squarepants. The other half of the time, he's in my colleague's office. We take turns hiding the SbSp and the game goes back in forth. Except for this most recent time. I had found SbSp in my cubicle and hid him in my colleague's office. He found him, and had him out on his desk. I was going past his office, realized he wasn't in and saw SbSp - and hide him again in a new location. I think I've taken the game to a new level. :)

I had intended on getting my license and registration updated on Thursday after work - and wore a nice shirt and tie to the office that day. Now, I always try to look reasonable at work, but I rarely wear a tie. And it was remarkable enough that several of my co-workers asked what was going on. As I was headed out for the day, I noted on the forms I had with me that the BMV doesn't take credit cards in person. Since I didn't have my checkbook, I decided to defer it for another day. A day that, I'm sure, will be filled with people asking me again what the occasion is.

I had a dentist appointment on Friday and got to their office a little early. I signed in and they took me right back. The hygienist remembered me - and my origami - from last time I was in there and was again amazed at how much I was able to fold without looking. I couldn't really look at what I was doing since she had both hands and what I'm guessing was a belt sander in my mouth. At one point she poked my lip with a sharp object - enough to make me wince. She apologized and I gave her what I'd folded - so, we're still friends.

And now for the not-so-fun item. I hurt my hand on Friday evening. I was in the middle of a reasonable discussion turned into argument and lost my cool. Which was disappointing because I'd been doing really really well at keeping my cool up to that point. I slammed my fist down on the counter to:

1. Make a loud noise.

2. Get the other person's attention

3. Prove a point - or something, I'm still not entirely clear on what I thought I was accomplishing.

I did make a loud noise and got their attention, but I also hurt my hand. It started to ache, swell up a bit, and I found out a few minutes later that it was bleeding a bit. I left the discussion/argument with a very nicely worded parting shot, and headed out to get something to eat. I fully intended to make it a short trip, but I wasn't paying attention and got on the highway as though I was headed into work. Which is apparently my default destination and pretty sad all by itself - but instead of checking in at the computer center, I went to McDonald's for some chicken nuggets. I amazed the cashier with my PayWave card when I paid for my meal - she must have been new - and ate my meal with my left hand. The food was hot and tasted good and one of the employees did a passable job of singing along with the music over the speakers while she refilled the napkin dispensers. I started to get my wits back about me and was able to take stock.

I know I've got a temper that I try and keep under control, mainly because I know the futility of lashing out at - or arguing with - the irrational. I guess what set me over the edge was that I was so close to actually winning the argument. Which is sort of a crazy notion all by itself - no one actually wins an argument. If things get to the point where there's an argument, then everyone has already lost. But I almost won this one - and if getting the last word counts for anything, I at least scored more points.

I went to Border's after dinner and carefully worked at putting my keys and wallet in my left pockets. I'm still favoring my hand a bit, but the swelling has gone down and I'll be back to 100% soon enough. On the plus side, I'm surprised at the amount of force I was able to generate. I didn't damage the counter, but nearly breaking one's own hand is almost cool. Well, not really.

One of the books I got was a sort of self-help book. Which I don't normally take much stock in, but it was relevant to what was going on in my head and it's helped a little.

In addition to the reading, I've been playing a lot of video games this weekend. I've been working my way through a game called Sacred 2, looking to complete the Dryad's quest and get a super-ultra-awesome-mondo-powerful bow. Today, I completed the quest and got the bow. And it's surprisingly not as powerful as I expected. It's better than the one I had, but not by much. So, I think that game is going back on the shelf for a while.

I've got a short work week ahead of me - thankfully - and then a few days off. The holidays are approaching and I need to start figuring out what to get for people. And that also means that birthday #38 is on the horizon. Yikes!

apple pi(e)

I loaned out an old costume to one of my colleagues this year so her husband could scare the neighborhood kids and as a thank you, she baked me an apple pie. I shared this with the rest of the crew in the office and we tore through it in no time at all. I took the last piece home and shared it with my room-mate - then I washed the pie dish so I could return it. I wanted to do something a little special since the pie was really good and the costume loan was no biggie. So, I made her an apple pi(e) of my own.

She wasn't in her office when I returned the dish, so I left a little note with the apple pi(e) standing up in the dish. This was done with the sonobe module and about 46 pieces of paper. And some glue - I wanted it to last.

She left me a voicemail and said she thought it was hilarious - couldn't stop laughing. Her colleagues are amazed by the pi(e) and want to know how I made it. I think they'd be surprised how little there is to it. The office she works in does some university outreach - maybe I'll be called on to make a logo. :)

Binary number

Yesterday, on the drive home, my car's odometer reached 111,111. When I started to get close, I got my phone ready to take a picture.

It was stupid, I know. Raining, wet pavement, heavy highway traffic - and my phone kept trying to go into power save mode. At 111,110 I got ready and just after it ticked over I got the shot, saved it, and set my phone down.

I got away with it - no incidents on the road. Silly, I guess, but I'm a big fan of binary numbers and the almost zen-like quality those 1's and 0's have.

chocolate, smell, lemonade

I headed across campus to a meeting in one of the classroom buildings and as I entered I saw a table for the Liberation in Progress group. They were doing a bake sale/chocolate fundraiser and as I passed, one of the women there asked if I wanted a "chocolate vagina".

I politely replied, "No thank you,"

Now, I'm a fan of feminism and I think it's great that these women are working towards this cause, but... really? A chocolate vagina? Even if I wasn't running late to a meeting, was that the phrase that would make me rush right over? It was damn odd.

After work, I headed to the pool to get in my laps. The locker room, when I entered, was pretty much like a locker room -though a bit messier with the presence of the high school swim team practicing. When I got out of the pool and went back in to get changed - there was an unholy funk in the air. The worst concentrated body oder that a human being could produce. I nearly threw up - it was that bad. Now, I understand as males, we sweat more than women. And the sweat is funky. And it makes the clothes funky. And if I was in the air instead of the water, I wouldn't be 100% fresh either after my workout. But then I take a shower and take my clothes home and wash them. It's not rocket science, guys.

Finally, I went to TGI Friday's this evening and tried to order the made-fresh lemonade to drink. The server said that most people didn't like it. I pretty much had to insist that I get a chance to try it. And, though it was strong, I liked it. When I finished my first glass, she asked if I wanted water - apparently amazed that I finished the glass and assuming that I couldn't handle a second glass. I asked instead for a refill and finished that as well - mostly to prove a point.

I think this marks the only time when a server has actually tried to talk me out of an order.

And now it's late and I though I'm off work tomorrow, I need to take a shower and get to sleep. I hope that I don't dream about anything in this entry.

job

My room-mate got fired from his job yesterday. His boss had "cause", but not really. A mistake was made and instead of working around it and dealing with it, his boss decided to escalate the situation and made things worse to the point of the firing. Everyone, however, gets screwed since his boss has now gotten demoted to cover what my room-mate was doing and pretty much everyone else wants to quit now. Not to mention the customers that will suffer because don't have someone who cares.

So, he's pretty down at the moment, but it may be an opportunity for him to do something new and expand his horizons. I'm trying to be supportive as he figures out his next step.

baby in a box

Last weekend, I went to visit my parents to celebrate my Mom's birthday. My sister and her family came over as well and we got to spend some quality time with my niece. She's crawling like crazy now and can easily stand on her own with some support. She's also got a sort of walking toy that she likes to push. It won't be long before she's walking on her own.

I got my Mom a bracelet and made her some earrings. We all went together and got her a waffle maker - which she used for Sunday morning breakfast.

I also go my niece a toy ball that plays music and rolls around on its own. She seemed to enjoy it a lot. We also got a big cardboard box out for her to explore. She was hesitant on that a bit, but got to enjoy it as well. Eventually, we put her in the box so she could stand up and hold onto the side and she really liked that.

We didn't really do much, but it was nice hanging out with the crew.

with great power

I found out today that one of my colleagues had her baby this past Saturday. Her actual due date and doctor's appointment was this week so she was a little early. I had seen her on Friday while I was dressed up as the quite scary Count Orlok - and startled her. Hours later, her baby is born early. Coincidence? Or did I scare her into labor? :)

First the car accident and now this - just how influential was my costume? I need to be more careful and clearly less awesome.

Pumpkin 2010

I can't really call it a jack-o-lantern - but it's still a pumpkin. Not my idea - I saw it on the net - but it's still pretty clever and it turned out well. I think Dad will appreciate the humor as well.

Halloween walk around 2010 - Count Orlok

This year I went for scary - all the way scary. The party last week didn't really capture what I was going for - and my fangs fell out - but for the big day, Count Orlok was ready to scare the crap out of people.

I got up early - and got my room-mate up early as well to help me out. Shaved head, whiteout contacts, fangs, white make over the whole thing. Black pants, black shoes, black umbrella - claws on my fingers.

I made my rounds in the computer center to start, then out on campus for the day. I covered a lot of ground and visited a lot of people. My friends took some amazing photos:

Count Orlok

I snuck up on a few people and got some good scares - and I may or may not have caused a traffic accident. I was walking down a street and several cars past me - and then one rear-ended another at a traffic light. No one was hurt - but I had a moment where I thought I might have distracted a driver. I considered approaching and trying to help, but thought that a vampire might not be welcome. I came back through later when the police were there and no one gave me a second glance. So, it wasn't me.

I was wiped out by the end of the day - when I got home, I took a long shower and almost napped. (I'm not very good at napping).

I bounced back pretty quickly and I'm already planning for next year. :) But no hints.

Trunk or treat

Last Thursday, I got invited to go to and help out at a local Trunk or Treat - a community/university based trick or treat at a school's parking lot. I found out about the event from a former supervisor who called me and told me the coordinator asked her if she knew who "that guy was that dressed up in the great costumes every year". Her response was "know him? I hired him!"

So, I went with a couple of her colleagues and dressed up as Zombie Hello Kitty from last year - I didn't want to scare the kids. We handed out a ton of candy and I did end up scared a few kids - but hey, so did Zippy. On one side were some folks from the rec center dressed as cheesy aerobics instructors - I joined them for a few jumping jacks. On the other side, the UAPD were giving out candy and stickers. I went over and helped them with some gang signs - with my giant 4 fingered cartoon gloves.

When the event was over, I headed back to my car and then went to get my hair cut. The hairstylist was amused by my huge shoes - but then made short work of my hair to get me ready for my annual walk around on campus.

party and hiccups

I went to a Halloween party over the weekend with some friends. I won a prize for my costume and had a nice time - though I ended up staying far later than I had anticipated. Didn't get to bed until almost 3:30 in the morning. I slept in the next day, but it was still rough to get back on track.

On Sunday, my room-mate got the hiccups and it lasted pretty much all day. One of his methods to try and get rid of them was to gulp air and then belch. Now, I'm a guy and - like babies - I appreciate the value of a good belch. But, I have to say, I actually started to get grossed out by the belching. It was impressive.

He tried peanut butter, drinking water, gasping, and several other methods before temporarily getting rid of them by holding his breath. They came back later and lasted into the night. I tried to get him to relax and eventually ignore them, but it didn't help. They finally went away yesterday - though he did throw up blood at one point.

I guess he's okay now, but it was pretty rough. And it didn't help that there was a story on the news about a girl that hiccups for 5 days, went crazy, and killed someone. Luckily, if it came down to that, I'm better armed.

Work has been very stressful these past couple days and again the biggest problem is people getting in the way of their own success. I had to take myself for a walk this afternoon to calm down a bit before I dove back into my email. Fortunately, the day is almost done and I'll be headed out of here soon. There are pumpkins to be carved at home and video games to be played.

Huffing paint and passing counterfeit bills

I was in Home Depot over the weekend- part of wild errands-running event - and I needed to buy a utility knife, some electrical tape, and a can of spray paint. I went to the self checkout since I only had three items and there was no line there. Utility knife, no problem. Electrical tape, also no problem. Spray paint - problem.

The self-checkout stopped and flashed a message that a cashier would need to over-ride. I turned and the cashier for the area said/asked - with a chuckle - "You're over 18, right?"

I'm guessing he was commenting on my gray hair and bald spot.

I told him I was and apparently I had enough venom in my voice that he quickly followed up with "As of last week, right?"

Another chuckle. I shared this one with him while I completed my transaction and planned his death. I also got $20 cash back which will be significant later on.

As I understand it, the check he did was to prevent some kid from buying spray paint and then huffing it. Questions:

1. Are 18 year olds suddenly smart enough to not huff paint?

2. Are they responsible enough to keep the paint away from kids who might huff it?
3. I may have watched too much CSINCISSUV, but isn't the electrical tape and utility knife more suspicious?

I headed on my way and at my next stop, I paid cash - using the $20 I had just gotten from Home Depot. The clerk behind the counter used a highlighter to test the bill and make sure it wasn't counterfeit. More questions.

1. Are the staff at Walmart trained by the Secret Service or the Treasury Department to detect fake bills with the magic highlighter?

2. What, exactly, would have happened if the bill had been fake?

3. Granted, this is the kind of place where someone would try to pass fake bills made on a black and white copy machine - but seriously, a $20? I could see if someone threw out a $100 to buy a pack of gum, but what's next? A set of scales to measure coins to make sure they aren't fake?

Makes me glad I wasn't trying to buy cold medicine or board a plane as the pilot.

Whatever happened to the "innocent until proven guilty"? Two cases - in less than an hour - where it was assumed that an everyday process was a criminal act.

(insert head shaking here)

Same reason the terror alert is always orange - fear and control.

Okay, down off my soap box before I get myself worked up into a lather. I gotta get back to work anyway.

A comment I found on Commenting

I was watching a video on Youtube and found comment as a parody of the Old Spice commercials:

"Hello People. Look at your comment. Now look back at mine. Now back to yours. Now back to mine. Sadly yours isn't mine but if you stopped posting without thinking and thought beforehand yours could look like mine. Look down. Back up. What is this? It's a comment with the look your reply could look like. Look at your Keyboard, back at the comment. I have it.The thoughts you wish you had. Look again. This comment is now epic. Anything is possible when you think before you post. I'm on the computer."

fast swim

I got a new watch recently. It's pretty fancy for me - $34! Timex Ironman (no, not that Ironman, though that would be pretty cool). It's got a split time setting and figured I'd try it out while swimming. I forgot my trunks last Friday, so I went to the pool on Saturday. I didn't really get the split time to work properly - I may need to read the instructions - but it forced me to think and pay attention to my time. If I got this right, I did a mile (36 laps) in 38 minutes and 42 seconds. Which is not too bad for me.

On Monday, I timed myself for the 1/4 mile and really hauled ass - 8 minutes, 30 seconds.

My second 1/4 mile was... not that fast. :)

Still, I'm pleased with the results - not bad for a 37-year-old.

Michigan trip: Monday & Tuesday

I got up early Monday morning and set off on foot to check out some shops we'd seen the night before. I got some books, a rubber duck, and meditation CD - sort of an eclectic mix of shops in that area.

When I got back, we headed out towards the Sleeping Bear Dunes on the shore of Lake Michigan. The first part was a scenic drive that was mostly boring except for one lookout area. We went out on the observation deck and enjoyed the view of the lake. When we looked down, we saw people all the way down at the edge of the lake. They looked like river otters or cats at first - but then they started the long climb back up and we realized they were people. Stupid people who shouldn't have gone down there, but people none-the-less. The incline was maybe 45 degrees and they could do about 20 steps before they had to stop and rest for a few minutes. We left before they had made much progress.

We stopped a bar/grill and got some amazing pizza for lunch - then headed out for the Dunes. This area was a series of dunes you could climb - 3 miles of up and down in the sand until you reached the lake. And then back. We skipped the shoes again and made most of the trek there. It was slow going through the sand and hard work and we gave up before we reached the lake. The trip back was just as much work and we were pretty beat when we finally made it back to the car.

For dinner we went to Bubbas Restaurant and I got a very disappointing burrito. I should have know better than to try and challenge the might of Chipotle - they didn't listen to my order and got the burrito completely wrong. I worked around it - not willing to spend the time for them to do it again. The tater tots were good though.

Another early morning on Tuesday as we checked out of the hotel and headed south. We saw some pretty cool wind turbines and made a brief stop in Cadillac, MI so that my car crazy friend could get his picture taken in front of city hall. Then back to Ohio.

It was a good trip, if short, and I was surprised at how pretty Michigan is. Might be worth a trip back up there.

Michigan trip: Sunday

Sunday we got up early on the island and had breakfast again in the hotel. Then we carried the luggage back to the ferry, loaded up, and headed back to Mackinac City. Once in the car we drove to nearby Petrosky to looked for the fabled Petorsky stones on the beach - but really had no idea what we were looking for. We found a lot of smooth round and flat stones that were kinda cool and some stuff that might have been petrified wood - but mostly we just walked on the beach barefoot, though it was really too cold to spend much time there. We tried another beach, but there wasn't much there as well - so we ended up going on to our next destination: the Bayshore hotel at Traverse City. We hit the pool for a bit, then went to a "hip and trendy" restaurant that served food on "small plates". I got some sushi that was pretty good.

Michigan trip: Saturday

An early breakfast at the hotel and we were off. On foot. We decided not to rent bicycles or a carriage and instead began a self-guided walking tour of the island. The first stop was the Grand Hotel - which, living up to it's name, charged $15 just to enter the building and walk on the porch. We declined. Instead, we continued on past the hotel and found a couple of neat walking trails through the woods. The next stop was the historical reenactment at the fort. I was a little less than impressed, but the muskets and the cannons were cool.

20 minutes for lunch at a pizza place and we were off again - this time to check out the shops and the downtown area. I was looking for some souvenirs, but everything was either vastly over-priced or "cheap". I walked away empty handed, but my friend got a book on ghosts of the island. After a short break at the hotel, we set out again - this time, following the book to locate the haunted areas. We didn't see any ghosts (it was afternoon, after all), but we did see a lot of the island and got lost a few times.

After a few more hours of walking, we headed back to the hotel to soak in the hot sauna and swim in the pool. Feeling a little more human, we headed out again to get some dinner. Over all, I think we were walking about 8.5 hours that day through some pretty rough terrain at times. Maybe 20+ miles? It was a hard to tell - what with the "getting lost". Still, we saw a lot more of the island than most visitors do and had fun doing so.

Michigan trip: Friday

My friend and I took a few days off from work and took a trip up to Michigan. We got a pretty good start on Friday and - despite some arguments with the GPS - we drove on up to Cheboygan to get a picture and then on up to Mackinaw City.

Editor's note: Some parts of that area were called Mackinaw and others were Mackinac. I pretty much gave up trying to keep track. Both come from Michilimacinac anyway and I'm not going to very particular about which spelling I use.

We caught one of the last ferry's to the island for the evening. It was cold and raining a bit and we only went on deck for a little bit before retreating to the warmer cabin - not really a great start to the trip. The ferry docked and the bags we had checked in Mackinaw City were delivered right to the hotel room - by a cart pulled by a bicycle. The island doesn't have any cars or trucks on it - it's all bicycles, horse drawn carriages, and walking. So, after we got settled into the hotel room, we walked back towards "downtown" and found a place to eat called the Pink Pony - which, in Myrtle Beach, is the name of a gentleman's club. As in, strippers. On the island, though, it turned out to be a pretty passable restaurant. We walked back to the hotel in the dark and called it a day. Here are a few pictures from the hotel - the Island House.

Every time we went down any of the hallways in this place, either one or both of us would quote those creepy little girls from the Shining. "Come play with us,"

We referred to the hotel room itself as "quaint" - for values of "quaint" that include "small, weird, uncomfortable, and likely to result in a bruised head".

It does exist!

In conversation, I tend to exaggerate wildly when I don't know the specifics of something - as an amusing clue to the listener that I don't really have any idea what I'm talking about.

So, a large amount of something becomes "extra gigantic" or "several bazillion". In geographic terms, a vague but distant location becomes "south central Mongolia", "downtown Siberia", or "Cheboygan" - which I was convinced was a made up place.

Recently, one of my friends and I took a trip to Michigan and we made a stop along the way in Cheboygan, MI. It was raining and we stopped just long enough to get a picture of me next to the "city limit" sign before driving on. Proof positive that the town really does exist.

I'll have more details on the trip later, but I thought I'd share this little bit.

games, knotting, doctor, sleep

I played and beat a couple of games recently. Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands (good gameplay, but the story was weak) and The Darkness (great game, amazing story, really cool). I've moved on to Uncharted: Drake's fortune - which is also, ironically, one of my new favorite songs by Sara Bareilles.

I made a necklace for my room-mate's niece (more hemp knotting) - just sort of a fun little project and I'm hoping that it passes the muster of a teen-aged girl. If there's a harsher critic, I don't know of one.

I went to the doctor last week as a follow up from my septum un-deviation surgery. I think both the doctor and I were both a little disappointed that I didn't have a more massive improvement. I may be breathing a little better, but it's really tough to tell. I'm still snoring, though maybe not quite as bad. He did tell me that the inside of my nose looks "awesome" - so, I've got that going for me. He gave me a sample of Omnaris (Omnaris! To the nose!) to see if that helps and gave me additional options for more surgery. This would include deliberately scaring my soft pallet to reduce vibration or implanting something in there - or removing part of my uvula or the back of my tongue. None of it covered by insurance. Ummmm... no thanks. So, I'll see him again - maybe - in a few months for another checkup.

In other news... the magic code seems to have reduced the problems with my phone. I still don't have a great signal at home, but it's enough that it doesn't kill my battery.

I try not to write much about work since complaining specifically about your job is a dang good way to get your ass fired. But, I had a rough Monday that was mainly about processes that got in the way of getting things done. I ended up in a sort of 'cold war' with colleagues to help our clients. Very frustrating. I got a little more information today and I'm going to have to jump back into the very-polite-but-also-kinda-tense fray to see if I can make some progress.

I also haven't been sleeping well. Just sort of restless. Which is odd cause if there's one thing I'm good at, it's sleeping. I fall asleep easily, wake up only if I have to pee, and then wake fairly easily in the morning. Not sure what's going on - maybe it's the new pillow?

Better get back to it - got a long day ahead of me.

training, travel, comic,baby, sword

One of my co-workers and I went to an Adobe CS5 training session last week. It was an all day thing and I had other things going on at work that day, but we sorted things out and spent the day at a hotel conference room in Fairlawn. I left in what I thought was plenty of time that morning, but traffic turned into a big, steaming pile of crap. I did what I always do in traffic jams, turned on AM radio. Partly for the traffic reports, but mostly for the misery. People on AM radio are, generally speaking, having terrible lives. Helps put things in perspective.

Anyway, the training was okay, but parts were a little beneath me. I think I could have taught a couple of sessions and my co-worker could have taught them all - and they didn't use CS5 for the whole thing anyway. I learned a little, maybe - and it was still nice to get out of the office.

That Friday, I headed south a bit to visit my co-worker and his wife and new baby. I brought a baby toy and made some earrings for his wife - which she really liked. I got to hold the new baby for a while and then stayed for dinner. We had a nice time and they have a really nice place.

On Saturday, I headed back to Fairlawn to get a new battery for my room-mate's camera, some new books at the over-priced Barnes and Noble, and some craft supplies for about 5 different projects. One note about Barnes and Noble - there was some guy on the second floor that believed he was doing a stand-up comedy routine. When I first heard him, he was so bad I thought he was doing a mic check. He wasn't. He was as for real as he could get. I actually cut my trip - to a bookstore of all places - short, just to get away from him. Yes, that bad.

I worked on a couple of projects over the weekend and helped my room-mate get to the car show that he helps host each year. I also learned how to braid hemp fiber - one of my co-workers needed a new carrying strap for his drum - so, that was kinda cool.

On Monday, that same co-worker came into the office to see how we'd decorated his cubicle with pink streamers and balloons to celebrate his return to work after his baby daughter was born. He was really surprised and liked the decorations - he's kept them up all week.

Today, on top of not getting enough sleep and getting my beverage stuck in the vending machines - I forgot my trunks and couldn't go swimming. This is the first time I've missed a swim since I started and made my rule: M-W-F, if the university is open and I'm there, I swim.

Finally, I had a weird feeling today. I do not, as a rule, carry a sword when I'm on campus. It's not really allowed. But all day, whenever I was walking around, I kept reaching for a sword that I knew couldn't be there. Apparently, if I did carry a sword, I would wear it inverted on my back - so I kept reaching behind my back for the handle to grab, draw, and decapitate someone. Yeah, it's been that kind of week. How can you be in the habit of doing something that you've never done before? The feeling faded once I got in my car and headed home - which is a good sign. I got my oil changed and did a couple of little projects - I'm making replicas of world-ending technology. So far I have ICE-9, Red Matter, and a bottle of concentrated Time.

Ummm... yeah.

100

I did 100 push ups yesterday as part of the "hundred push ups program". This was the final test for the program and I sort of surprised myself - it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I mean, it was work and I was tired when I was done, but I didn't collapse into a pile of lumpy Jello afterward. I just kept a steady pace and kept counting.

I didn't do "nose to the floor" - didn't do that at all during the program. So, there's room for improvement and I'll keep going with it.

So, yea me - in a sort of anti-climactic way.

the hatred returns

I used to despise cell phones. The dropped calls, the bad reception, the "minutes", the way people used them in stupid ways. And I was pretty much set on hating them - going so far as to write up a detailed rant about it and refusing to get one of my own.

But, being a geek, the lure of technology eventually wore me down and not quite two years ago I finally got a cell phone. I wasn't the last person on the planet to get one, but I did my best.

The phone was a little bulky, but it had a sliding keyboard that was nice since I didn't know if I was the kind of person that would text. The monthly plan changes annoyed me, but I figured that was just the way things were.

And slowly, I got lulled. It was kinda nice to chat with my sister on the way home from work. Text messages were kinda fun. I liked having a camera with me all the time. The service seemed pretty good in my area and I didn't have many dropped calls. It was... okay. And all that hatred started to fade into a quiet acceptance. I was careful to always keep it with me and dutifully kept it charged. The phone became part of my daily routine.

But about a month or so ago, something changed. I found that I had no signal strength at my apartment. In fact, after some tests, it appeared to die just as I pulled into my driveway. I'd have maybe one bar - if that - and the phone's battery would swiftly drain as it tried to find a signal. Instead of days between charging, I'd get maybe an hour at home before it was desperately beeping as it died.

So, yesterday after my haircut, I stopped by my local Verizon store to figure out what was going on. The guy there was helping someone and I waited patiently. At one point, he asked if I had a question while he was still working with customer and I told him to go ahead - I was in no hurry. And I didn't want some flippant answer to get rid of me to get back to the paying customer. A second staff member showed up after a while and she came over to help me.

Side note: She was dressed in the standard "uniform" - but was wearing a headband that might have been more appropriate at a jazzercise class. I'm not judging, but I'm just saying...

Anyway, I explained what was happening and asked what kinds of things might be causing interference in the signal. You know, science.

Her reply:

"I notice you're using one of the old (it's less than 2 years) Alltel phones. The towers in the area were upgraded and that might be causing the signal issues. You should be eligible for an upgrade on your phone."

Translation: "We changed something that had a negative impact on our customers without telling them and the only fix is to drain more money out of them by selling them a new overpriced phone they don't want or need and calling it an upgrade because we hate you all and don't understand the basics of customer service or human decency"

And in that moment, my hatred of cell phones returned. It swelled up around me like a fleece blanket, warm from the dryer. Then it burrowed into my skin, down to my very soul, where it began to fester and rot.

Ahhhhhh, yeah. That's the stuff. Feels sooooooo good to be back on familiar ground.

I told her that I wasn't prepared to get a new phone right then, but that I'd stop back.

Translation: "You've wasted enough of my time and I'm too angry to think carefully about the phone I'd get and vulnerable to your evil psychological sales tactics. I'm going to do some research so I can come back here and get a phone that is actually appropriate for my needs and doesn't get chosen for me to feed your commission."

As I was walking out the door she called out to me and said that if I hit *228 option 2 it might help, but she couldn't guarantee it. I thanked her and went on my way.

Yeah, right. Like I'm going to push some random buttons on my phone before I have everything backed up. Do I look like George Jetson? I like pushing buttons, but let's be serious here.

So, with the hatred spreading its poison into my system, I got in my car, filled the air with some deeply satisfying swear words (including a couple new ones I made up on the spot), and went home.

I'll do my homework, back up my data, and in a few days I'll head back and get a new phone. I guess the anger at being screwed with is tempered by the satisfaction of knowing I'm being screwed with. And I'm hooked on the convenience of a phone now - any kind of defiance is just going to hurt me and won't impact their bottom line much. I suppose I could switch carriers if I could find one that wasn't pure evil, but I doubt such a thing exists.

So, I'm back to hating cell phones. It feels like things are right with the world again, I've got a baseline to my emotional levels.

And though it sickens me to the core and makes me physically uncomfortable, I'm wondering it I can get a new phone in metallic green. (shudder)

2 miles, signed, chicken, say my name

I swam 3/4 of a mile yesterday and this morning I headed back to the pool. I planned on doing at least 3 miles, but the lanes were set up the "long way" - and I got worn out and only did 2 miles. It was also a little weird - there was no one else in the pool. Just me and the lifeguard.

She was bored - obviously. It's not like I was going to drown, so she just paced slowly up and down the length of the pool with me. It was kind of nice, actually. When I finished up my swim, I walked over to her and thanked her for watching out for me. I told it must have been pretty boring, but it was appreciated. She smiled and said it was no problem. Might have been the first time anyone thanked her for being a lifeguard.

Not that I really needed a lifeguard - but they wouldn't have opened the pool if they didn't have the staff. So, I guess I did need her there.

I'm a little disappointed that I didn't do more -but I still have pushups to do this afternoon and my shoulders were starting to hurt.

I went over to Borders after the swim and found a couple of books that looked good. I stood in line for a while - longer than I should have had to. The problem was a woman who hadn't signed her credit card. The clerk rightly asked for ID, which the woman didn't have. So, we all had to wait for her to go out to her car and get her purse and get her ID.

You know what, people? It says right on the back of the damn card that you need to sign it. Period. If you don't sign it, they don't have to accept it. Also period. For those that think - "well, what if my card gets stolen?" - well, then the thief can then sign your name however they want and then go on their way. It's actually worse because they won't have to worry about matching a signature. Also? The post office won't accept your card unless you sign it. Do you really want to go up against the post office? Do you know where they got the phrase 'postal'? Sign your damn card and get out of my way.

Afterwards, I headed over to Chik-filet. (sp?) They have good chicken sandwiches there and I have two stories to relate.

1. I went there a few weeks ago and the line was so long I didn't want to fight for a special order to not have pickles. So, I just rolled with the standard bun-pickle-chicken-bun order and discovered - to my surprise - that I like dill pickles. Weird.

2. This time, they asked me for my name as I placed my order. When they brought the food over to me, they called me by name and thanked me for coming in today.

Now, my bank does this same thing too and it vaguely annoys me. (actually Borders did this as well today.) These people don't really know me. We aren't friends. The bank (and borders) is just reading my name off the screen after I swipe my card and Chik-filet only knew my name because I told it to them 45 seconds before that and they typed it onto a screen.

I guess they are trying to form some kind of relationship with me - trying to reinforce customer loyalty or something. But the name doesn't do it. Having the books I want - and short lines - will bring me back to borders. Having good chicken sandwiches will bring me back to Chik-filet. Having a nearby location and reasonable fees will bring me back to my bank. Having strangers say my name won't do it. Heck, I think I had a better rapport with the lifeguard and without my glasses I couldn't even really see her - and I sure don't know her name.

Hmmm... lot of time of soapboxes today. Better get back to the real world.

working out

The past few weeks I've been on a fitness kick. Monday, Wednesday, Friday - still swimming at lunch time at the pool. Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday - pushups (part of hundredpushups) . And at least 2 miles a day on elliptical 6 days a week.

Feels like I'm training for something, but I don't know what that is. Maybe I'm just trying to look more reasonable in my Speedos.

It's been crazy busy here at work with the start of classes. I'm keeping up with most of it, but it's been a struggle.

I've started to acquire my Halloween costume supplies - should be a good one this year if I can pull it off.

I got to see my folks and my sister and her family this past weekend for my Dad's birthday. We didn't do much, but had fun with my baby niece. She's pretty adorable and very good natured. And she gets along pretty well with her uncle Anthony.

Finally, I'm trying to learn how to make an origami kangaroo. It's surprisingly slow going - I barely made it through the "basic shape" before I ran into trouble.

yesterday was weird

1. The sign in front of the parking lot said it closed at 12 pm that day for resurfacing? Who closes a parking lot at noon? I pulled in at first thinking I had until midnight and that they had just gotten the sign wrong, but decided I didn't want to take a chance and pulled out and picked another lot.

2. There are two keypads and card swipes on the doors to different areas of the building. The buttons don't move when you push them - instead, they just beep to let you know that they've been "pushed". My colleague and I were trying to each use one of these keypads - and the beeps made it impossible to tell if we'd actually hit a button or not. I just stopped and let him go first and once he had his door open, I used my keypad and went on into the office.

3. Had a 'difference of opinion' with a co-worker over the intuitiveness of a webpage. I wanted the information on the form visible, he wanted to put it as a mouse-over on the checkboxes. We were both convinced that our way was intuitive. I'm pretty sure he was wrong. No, I'm certain he was wrong, but we ended the discussion politely and we're going to leave it up to the department to decide.

4. On the drive home, a car made a turn into the opposing lane facing me and the rear passenger door flew open and a suitcase fell out. The car slammed on the brakes as did I - though I was pretty much out of the way... right up until the driver threw open his door and walked into my lane to go around the car and reload. I managed to go on around him as he went on his way. It should be noted that his passenger in the front - the person ideally that should have made the move to fix things - just sat there.

5. I saved the best for last. I was swimming yesterday, just about to finish up lap #24 when the fire alarm started going off in the building. I climbed out of the pool, looked at the lifeguard and shrugged. She shrugged back, and I went on into the locker room. The fire alarm was painfully loud in there, but I figured it was a drill and grabbed my towel to dry off. Then someone came in and told us we had to evacuate the building. So, still in my speedo and with the towel partly wrapped around my waist (it was too small to cover me completely), I headed out of the locker room, down the hall, and out the front door. I was joined by others in t-shirts and shorts - who told me it could have been worse that a) at least I had my trunks and b) at least it wasn't winter. A few minutes later The director for the facility said we could go to the rec center and finish our workouts - so a few of us trekked across the lawn to the rec center. I hit the pool and did 6 more laps before I got the all clear. I headed back to ONAT, got into my regular clothes, and went back to work.

Like I said - a weird day.

projects, locks, game, exercise, and rearrange

I picked up some supplies over the weekend for a couple of projects. I got a big roll of paper to make a gigantic origami star. Not sure where I'll put it, but it should be pretty cool. I also found a pump to make a small fountain for the patio. Not sure what the actual fountain will end up looking like, but finding the pump itself was a challenge.

I also helped my room-mate with the storage garage for his classic caddy. He called me while I was in Lowe's to come help with the door to the garage as it seemed to be stuck. When I got there, we first thought it was the vinyl flange at the top that was getting in the way, but then I took another look at the door locks after struggling with the door for a minute. There are two, one on each side. When the metal plates are lined up, the door is secured and you can put a padlock through the holes to lock it. One side had the plates apart (open) and the other had the plates together (closed). I slid the plates apart and lifted the door and it practically flew open. My room-mate, who wasn't watching when I adjusted the plates, was frankly astonished when the door flew open. He insists that he checked both plates - which struck me as a statement worthy of an eyebrow raise. But after further thought I concede that if the plates were not all the way open, they could have slid back into the closed position when lifting pressure was applied to the door. In any case, we had the door open and I went on my way.

I've been playing a game called Trine - a side scrolling platforming game with three characters that you can swap between at any time. I beat the game yesterday and I plan on going back and trying to get a "perfect" score on the levels with all the items and experience found.

I've also been trying to get more exercise. Not really with a specific goal in mind, just want to see what I can do. I've been keeping up with my M-W-F swimming and I've added in a daily 2 mile stint on the elliptical trainer. Next up is the 100 pushups, a program to get a person able to do 100 pushups at one time. On my initial test, I could do 20 - which is not awesome, but not that bad either. I'll track my progress and see how it goes. I guess that's part of why it appeals to me - I like the numbers. I'll try to do this T-Th-Sat.

Finally, I spent some time on Saturday re-arranging one of the upstairs rooms to include a reading nook - and finally putting my bench that I made to some good use.

So, lots done and lots to do.

rocking the speedo

Two words: Beef. Cake.

One link: Here.

vacation: writing and exercise

I did two things more than anything else on my vacation: playing my PSP and writing. I did a lot of writing, filling two notebooks with a story. It's crap and I know it, but at least it went quickly and passed the time. I've got another idea for a story that might actually be worth something, but it wasn't really flowing for me.

I got plenty of exercise on my vacation, swimming and a little kayaking. And I did some people watching and decided that between the morbidly obese and the ultra-fit people, I was somewhere on the fitter side - but still have some work to do.

So, I've ramped up my exercise and I'm trying to use the elliptical trainer once a day now. I'm also going to dust off the bowflex this evening and give that a go. No specific goals, but good intentions.

I got some "emerging from the ocean" pictures that I'll try to get posted later today.

vacation: the bad

And now for the bad. And I have a surprising amount of bad from this vacation.

1. My grandmother passed away. I mean, how much worse could can you get?

2. The drive was 10 hours each way. Which is pretty horrific all by itself. Add in my room-mate - who has been going to the same place on vacation for about a thousand years - still not being sure of the route to take. This is with years of experience, a map, and a freaking GPS. Which he argued with for the first 2 hours of the trip back before giving up and letting her guide us. He's going to be pissed that I wrote this in the blog, but dangit, pick a route and stick to it. He knows how completely insane that indecision makes me because I've told him how insane that indecision makes me.

3. My room-mate and siblings argued with every single conversation they had. Every single one. I counted and it was all of them. Ugh.

4. I got bitch slapped and owned by the waves. I got in my time/distance, but it was rough. I looked good in my "Daniel Craig as James Bond" Speedos, but I was the ocean's bitch.

5. My room-mate drove the Sea-Doo like an old man. Every time we got up to speed, he'd drop the throttle and we'd slam to a stop. I mean, seriously.

6. I had computer problems to fix. My uncle's were easy to address on windows 7, but I had some vista issues on another machine that I could not surmount. Very frustrating.

7. Parking the Sea-Doo involved me getting into the canal and lifting on the machine while my room-mate pulled it onto the mini-dock. I did not smell very fresh afterwards and was quite sore.

8. We ate out at the same places we ate out at last year. And the wait on one of those trips? 2 hours. The food? Not worth a 2 hour wait.

8. We had plans to go places and do things, but ended up spending much of the time sitting in the sun. I was bored. A lot. And this was a bigger deal than it seems. I was just kinda of hoping for an adventure or two and it was just more of the same.

On the bright side, I wasn't at work. But, sheesh. I know I'm really poor at relaxing, but the lack of fun on this trip was staggering. There's got to be something more.

And just writing this has put me in bad mood. I think I need to go back and read about the fun parts of my trip again.

vacation: the good

As I've done before, I kept notes on my vacation so I could update my blog when I get back to a computer. It usually ends up being the written equivalent of vacation slide show, and nobody wants that. So, instead, a few bullet points on the good of my vacation and then another post later on the bad. Also, I heard a new song: Sara Bareilles - King Of Anything Enjoy.

1. I went streaking on the beach at 3:30 AM. I mean, really, when else am I going to do it? And if you haven't, I recommend it.

2. I swam in the ocean. A lot. At least a lot based on the amount of time I was actually at the beach. I did about 5 1/2 miles total. Would have done more, but the ocean was really rough.

3. The flight attendants and the passengers on the planes thought my origami was great.

4. My cousins were fun to visit with, even though the trip (grandma's funeral) was rough.

5. I got to ride a SeaDoo and got tossed off. It was fun.

6. I got to try out a kayak. Pretty fun, but it wore me out.

7. The crab cake sandwiches were good.

8. The beach house we stayed at the second week had an outdoor shower. Nothing better than an outdoor shower to clear off the suntan lotion, sweat, sand, and just plain tired.

9. I was off-line nearly the whole time.

10. No sunburn, only a nice light tan. Thank you, SPF 30.

grandma

I left for a vacation to myrtle beach at 8:00 on a Friday morning a couple weeks ago and my room-mate and I drove about 10 hours down there. We had checked into a hotel for the night and met up with his brother for dinner. That night, I got the call from my dad that my grandmother - his mom - had passed away. She'd been ill for a while and non-responsive - and not eating or drinking anything for several days - so it wasn't a surprise, but sudden all the same.

Dad said he was meeting with the funeral director the next day and would have more information on the arrangements then.

The next day I helped my room-mate and his family check into the condo for the week and I then waited for the call with the news about the plans. Mom called me on my cell and gave me the details and I called a bereavement travel service that my room-mate's company offers and made some travel plans to fly there for the service - since the visitation would be Tuesday and service on Wednesday - all in Illinois. I made a flight for Monday morning with a return trip to MB on Thursday.

I was at the MB airport bright and early, got checked in, and flew to Atlanta. There was a 2 hour layover, then on to Bloomington, IL. My folks picked me up and dropped me off to stay with my cousin. On Tuesday we met up at the church for the visitation. Grandma looked good - like I remembered her - but that didn't make seeing her there any easier. My parents, my dad's sister and one of his brothers and their spouses were up at the front to greet people and talk to them. The rest of the family - grand and great-grand children - sat in the pews and mostly kept ourselves. We were there for about 4 hours and there was a big turnout - grandma had lived in the town her whole life and had a lot of friends.

The next morning - Wednesday - we headed back to the church for the service. The minister didn't know grandma, but my uncle had met with him and shared some good stories. Instead of using those, the minister instead talked mostly about himself, which puzzled and annoyed most of us. We then went to the graveside and told my brother-in-law that they should have at least broken the speed limit for grandma in the procession - she was known for having an unapologetic lead foot. The service at the graveside was quick and on the way back to the church for lunch... I broke down. I'd had some bad moments, but riding with mom and dad as we left the cemetery I started weeping. I guess it makes sense it would hit me then, but even having made what I thought was peace with her loss, the finality overwhelmed me and it was a bit before I could get control of myself again. After the lunch at the church, my sister and brother-in-law headed back to Ohio and I got dropped off at my cousin's house. I had dinner that night with my uncle's family and helped with some computer issues.

And then we talked about my uncle that didn't show up at his mother's visitation, funeral, graveside, or luncheon. There's some bad blood there between his siblings, but I think we all thought that he would at least show up. My aunt sent him a text message when grandma passed - which sounds a little cold, but he doesn't answer his phone and leaves his voicemail full.

So, he missed the whole thing - a chance to say goodbye and maybe mend some fences. Now, I can't imagine my dad and his other two siblings forgiving this. Really sad.

My parents dropped me back off at the airport on Thursday morning and I did my trip in reverse, getting back to MB at 3:30. I wowed the passangers and the flight crew with my folding on the trips and now it was time to get back to my beach vacation.

A leak, a party, things created, and some guilt

I went to give blood today in the early afternoon since I was off work. It was busy, apparently a lot of people had the same idea. The actual donation was fine, but while I was eating my cookies and having some orange drink in the canteen area, the guy next to me suddenly got up - clutching at his arm. He said something about having a problem and headed by into the donation area - leaving a trail of blood. I told a couple of staff people about it and they gloved up and got the area cleaned up. I headed on my way, thinking that it was the first time I'd seen someone have trouble like that. He was a little older, must not have "sealed" up quickly enough.

I went to a party on Saturday evening. A couple of friends were hosting and I had a nice time - which surprised me a bit since I'm not really an outgoing party person. But, I had some paper with me and a little origami magic will do wonders. I made a little person and a horse for a little girl that was there - she was amazed and managed to keep the figure intact longer than most 2 year-olds would have been able to do. I stayed pretty late, but started to get eaten alive by the bugs. No calimine or hydrocortizon to be found at home, but a little rubbing alcohol got rid of the itch.

I've been busy crafting things this weekend. Found a design for a brocade - a sort of spherical flower that takes 6 pieces of paper to build and can make some nice earrings. Provided the paper is small enough. 1 inch squares seemed to do the trick and while it wasn't hard work, it was very detail oriented. I made two sets - and some soap - as gifts to someone who "has everything".

A couple weeks ago I did something that has been nagging at me. It was after work and I had just left the building heading for the pool since I didn't get to swim at lunchtime. I had my phone out, getting ready to make a call and tell a friend that plans had changed. Just before I started to dial, I saw a guy exit the building in front of me, head toward the street, then do a sudden 180 and head back. He saw I had my phone out asked if he could borrow it. I told him "sorry" and that I "had to make this call". I kept walking and dialed - and made my call. It was only a few minutes later that I realized what was going on. The guy came out of the building expecting a ride to be waiting for him and wanted to use my phone to call and make sure he wasn't stranded. Or so it seemed, based on the moments I'd seen his behavior.

Was my call critical? No, it could have waited. Was I worried he might steal my phone and run off? Not likely, when motivated I can move pretty fast and I know the campus very well. Would he have wasted my minutes? No, I've got a pile and have never come close to using them all in a month. Do I have a good reason for not helping?

Not really. Pretty much just selfish. Which I really try not to do. I guess I was just tired of things standing in the way of what I was doing. I had spent all day just trying to move forward and I saw this as not a chance to help someone, but an impediment to the rest of my day.

He wasn't there by the time I went back that way - I guess his ride showed up.

So, it's been bothering me a bit. I feel like I made a bad decision. Not evil, but just not what I should have done.

Since then, I've been trying to be a little nicer to people where I can. Doesn't really make up for it, but I guess it's all I can do.

In other news... looking forward to a short work week. And I think it's time for me to get off this computer and go enjoy the sunshine a bit.

everyone is okay

I talked to my sister last night - the camper they were towing jack-knifed as a result of their SUV having a tire blow out. My brother-in-law was able to get the SUV to the median, but the hitch snapped and the camper tipped over. My sister said they were going to try and salvage what they could from inside the camper, but that the camper itself was most likely a loss.

So, bummer on the camper, but good to hear they are all okay. Except for my brother-in-law who hurt his foot trying to change the tire on the SUV.

The rest of the evening for me was video games and a little bocce outside. I lost, but it was a close match.

My room-mate is still having drama with a couple of his siblings, but I think that's settling down a bit.

Work has been a little odder than usual, I'd better get back to it.

Party in da house

Last week, my room-mate and I did a bunch of cleaning to get ready for his birthday party. We bought a lot of food and borrowed a table and chairs and on Saturday morning, I went and picked up the cake and 3 bags of ice. He also found out that his antique car was repaired and wanted to go pick it up to show to the party guests. I was less enthused about it since it would take up premium parking space and might distract the birthday boy from his guests, but he was determined and went along with it.

Another trip for more ice and hamburger buns and some time spent setting up the umbrellas and tables - and we were ready.

As the guests started to arrive, we set up a volleyball net and played a bit. Then a couple of games of bocce got the crowd going. It was a hot day, but we kept everyone hydrated and people took frequent breaks in the house.

When it was time to start grilling, my room-mate fired up the grill and immediately started to get distracted. Fearing disaster, I took over and did the cooking. I things turned out pretty well and I think everyone got enough to eat. My room-mate got a little choked up when we sang happy birthday and I know that it meant a lot that his friends and family were there.

I thought it was pretty cool how easily everyone connected - it turned out that one of my room-mates co-workers had also been a photographer at my co-worker/friend's wedding.

But the event was not without some drama. My room-mate wanted to take some of his friends for a ride in the caddy - at the exact same time that one of his sister decided that she and her family were ready to leave. No one was willing to give ground, so there was some hurt feelings.

Also, his brother didn't show. There was some kind of issue with time off or having to work - the story kept changing. I know my room-mate was pretty hurt by that and hasn't returned his calls.

I did a lot of the cleanup that evening and we finished things up the next day. It was a good party and the success means I think we'll be doing more of this in the future.

In other news... I saw on Facebook this morning that my sister and brother-in-law had some issues with their camper on the trip home. They weren't hurt, but the camper is apparently in bad shape. I'm hoping to touch base with her today and find out what happened.

Finally, I came into work today to find one of my co-worker's "uninterrupted power supplies" was going bad and setting off an alarm. Since he's not going to be back in the office for 3 weeks, I did the most logical thing when faced with locked down computers and passwords and a really annoying alarm - I turned the whole thing off. Which he should have done anyway when leaving the office for three weeks.

About an hour later, he shows up - which was a surprise since we thought he was already gone. Apparently, he's set up his computer to act as an intermediary for his email. And without that, he can't get his email. Why someone would add another, vulnerable layer of complexity to a system that works better without it for the sake of a perceived convenience is beyond me. He bypassed the UPS and got his machines going again before he left.

Insert head-shaking here as I get back to work....

the plan

I've got a personality quirk - well, one of many anyway - that makes me really enjoy plans. I'm generally fine with going with the flow when that's appropriate, but if I've got a plan I'd really prefer to see that through. And I tend to get cranky when that plan is disrupted - based on a belief that the universe likes plans too and that disrupting plans usually lead to some degree of chaos.

Case in point:

I planned (see, here we go) to make a trip over to Target last evening for some items and then a bit to eat at burger king on my way back - and I asked my room-mate if he needed anything. He had a few things for me to pick up and also asked me to go to Lowe's to re-fill a grill tank. Not terribly out of the way, but still - it was not in the original plan.

So, I head over to Lowe's first, go inside to the customer service desk and pay for the exchange. I go back outside - with a disturbing lack of "someone will be out soon" - and wait. And I timed it, anticipating a problem. At 6 minutes I go back inside and then wait at the desk again for the clerk to be available. She makes a call and tells me someone was closing out a register and would be out there soon.

I resume my vigil. At 14:30, the clerk comes out and says she borrowed the keys to the propane tank cages. I stop my timer at this point, anticipating success. Unfortunately, the only cage with full tanks can't be opened with those keys. She goes back in to get the manager and I restart my timer. The clerk and manager return with keys that work and at 17:19, I get my filled tank and head on my way.

I note the times here not because I'm going to call their corporate office and complain - it really wasn't that big of a deal - but because I knew that this additional stop would be problematic.

Is there a deeper meaning to all this? Do I have a subconscious tap into the underlying order to the universe that allows me to construct smoothly executing plans so long as no one else interferes?

Unlikely, but it should be noted that I had no problems at either Target or Burger King.

paint and the neighbors

My room-mate is unhappy with the painting he did in the hallway of the apartment. It's got some reflective qualities to it and didn't spread evenly. He thinks that in some light it looks like aluminum foil. So, he's making plans to repaint - which is too bad since the paint he got initially is fairly expensive.

Our neighbors came back from their trip yesterday and they stopped over to pick up their mail. She had just been visiting her mother - who is very ill - and had an argument with her siblings that had her pretty upset. While she was in our hallway looking at the paint on the walls her phone rang and she got the news that her mother had just then passed away. She was understandably in shock and my room-mate walked her back over to her apartment with their mail.

I didn't see him again for over 2 hours - he had put on his funeral director / grief counselor hat and was doing what he could to help them out. She and her husband have some rough times ahead with her siblings and with trying to sort out the arrangements, but she has already credited my room-mate with helping them through things.

In other news... I hit the pool again yesterday afternoon and did 18 laps, 1/2 mile. No records set, but I'm getting back to it.

father's day weekend

I had a meeting that ran late last Friday and I decided to postpone the drive to my parent's house until Saturday morning. Instead of driving, I helped my room-mate with some yard work. I think I would have preferred fighting rush hour traffic. :)

On Saturday morning, I got up early and was on the road by 5:20 AM. I got to my parent's house at almost the same time my sister and her family was arriving - so, we all had breakfast together.

My 5 month old niece spent the entire day being awesome and adorable. She's learned how to roll over - but only in one direction. And she really has no interest in rolling the other way. My sister fed her some avocado and some cereal and most of the day was spent hanging out. We played a game and I made quacking noises like a duck to my niece that she really enjoyed.

My mom and my sister and I went together on some Father's day gifts for dad - he wants to learn how to paint landscapes and we got him all the gear he'll need to get started.

My sister and brother-in-law took the little baby home that evening and couldn't come back on Sunday - the little one has started teething and was not amused. Instead, my Dad's friend came over for lunch. He has a neruo-muscular disorder and is confined to a wheelchair. He's very difficult to understand, but not mentally impaired. He and his caretaker had taco salad with us and strawberries for dessert. His caretaker was pretty cool and lunch was fine - but it was a little weird and awkward.

After they left, I hung out with my folks for a while before getting on the road. When I got back, I found that my room-mate had done some painting. The color is okay, but I'm a little concerned about the spills on the wood trim and the floor. I think we got things pretty well cleaned up when I got home, but the lighting wasn't good and I'm hoping the landlord doesn't complain.

People are strange

1. On the drive into work I saw a guy on a motorcycle. On the back, riding as a passenger, was a plastic skeleton (about 1/2 life sized) with long dark hair and the right arm extended. It was flipping everyone off as he rode down the highway. Oh, and the skeleton was surrounded by small american flags. So, you know, he had that going for him too. It was great.

2. I had a training session today for a student group on campus. The person I was meeting was about 10 minutes late and didn't have access to their office. So, rather than walk back to my office for the training or checking out a laptop in the student union - we instead snagged a kiosk and did the training in the hallway. It was a little loud and the computer was slow, but it all worked out.

3. I was hoping to get out of here a little early today - but then I remembered I have a meeting from 3:30 to 4:30 today. (FYI, I generally leave for the day at 4:00) Who schedules a meeting for 3:30 on Friday? I mean, I understand last minute and all that, but have they seen how nice it is outside?

4. I updated my twitter post today to comment on the weather and mention how it was a perfect day for streaking. Not that I did - though I did consider it - but I know it would have been nice based on prior experience.

washing machine

The sound of the air handling system here at work has changed from what it usually sounds like - which is generally the sound of overworked fans. Now, it sounds like my washing machine at home, during the final spin. I keep expecting at any moment it will stop and a loud beeping sound will be heard - signaling that my clothes are done.

The level of constant anticipation is starting to get to me. Though if it finally beeps I don't know where my clean and damp clothes are going to end up. Or where I'm going to dry them.

No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die.

Two stories.

1. I'm driving home from work yesterday, taking the same route I usually take at about the same time and traveling the same consistent speed - slightly above the speed limit. The lane to the right of me is about to turn into an exit only lane and the two lanes to the left of me are open.

Suddenly, a car pulls up on my left side. It's a black SUV of some kind and the driver is matching my speed. They then pull a little forward and then a little back, then forward, then back again. Mind you, this all happens in a few seconds. Finally, they slammed on their brakes and darted in behind me. I glanced in my rear-view mirror to see a woman silently shouting with rage and flipping me off so intensely that her hand was shaking. She then changed lanes again to the right to exit the highway. Not sure how to respond, I gave her a friendly wave and went on my way.

Clearly, there is more to the story, but I can only guess at what that might be. She pulled up next to me, then realized this was her exit. She was reluctant to go faster than the speed were traveling and disinclined to slow down. Apparently, once she pulled up next to my car, she expected me to teleport out of her way - or slam on my brakes to let her over. I did neither, and she was enraged.

2. We share a water system with our neighbors and recently the water softener in their basement hasn't been clearing out the smell or the iron in the water. The neighbors out of town this week so we're watching their apartment and gathering their mail, etc. The landlords dropped off some "rust out" salt on the neighbors front step and we didn't want to leave it there. So, my room-mate called the neighbors on their cell to get permissions to take the salt into their house - since they had left a set of keys with us.

The softener tank was already full, so we added some Rust Out powder to it, then headed upstairs to the garage. Hit the garage door button and... nothing. The neighbors had unplugged the opener as a security measure - and the only way to get to the cord and outlet was to climb on top of their SUV. Which was my job, since I'm taller and more limber than my room-mate.

I manage to get on top of the SUV without doing any damage to it or myself and get the opener plugged back in. It wasn't easy and when I started to get back down to help move the 80 lb bags in, my room-mate stopped me and said he would get the bags. He went over and pushed the button while I'm still on the roof of the SUV and all of the sudden he tells me to "look out!"

The garage door is coming up - and headed right for me. Like some kind of James Bond death trap. I shout to my room-mate to hit the button to stop it - but he was too far away already. I had two thoughts in my head in those moments. One, how to keep myself and the SUV from being damaged and two, how to I keep the door from being damaged by me. I tried to recline on the roof hoping the door would pass over me, but it stopped well short of hitting me at all. Still, I'm stuck and now have to wait for my room-mate to move the bags in the garage and then hit the button again. That is, after he stops laughing uncontrollably at me.

He gets control of himself, brings the bags into the garage, and closes the door. I pull the plug on the opener and then carefully climb down - still making sure to not damage the SUV. We lock up behind ourselves and go back to our apartment. My room-mate still thinks this is hilarious. I'm not quite ready to laugh about it yet, but I'm guessing that with change eventually.

a mistake

After the division wide meeting this morning, I hit the pool for swim.

It was a mistake. I'm still having issues with it taking more effort/force to breathe out than it does to breathe in - so breathing out through my nose underwater was not very effective and quickly became somewhat painful. So, I switched to mouth breathing exclusively and while that worked, it felt unnatural. I only did 9 laps today, 1/4 mile, and I may wait until Friday to try again.

Disappointing, but hey, at least I didn't drown.

Unrelated items

I got my car back on Friday afternoon. It's running quietly now and things seem to be back to normal. I'm still vaguely annoyed by it, but things could have been much worse.

I got a little sun this weekend and played some bocce ball. We tried to follow the "rules" at the start, but it sort of degenerated as time went on. I started to get over-heated and we cut the second game short. It didn't help that we were playing in grass that was too tall - the inaccuracy of the throws made the game much longer.

Watched the movie Legion over the weekend. It was okay, but somewhat predictable. The big battle at the end was not as over-the-top as I would have liked, but like I said, it was okay.

Did a little reading, played a lot of assassin's creed - good game. Watched some True Blood on DVD - excellent show. It follows the books to an extent, but then goes off in other directions that are just as good if not better.

We've got a division wide meeting coming up this morning. The free breakfast is nice, but the time it covers make it a little tough to stay on target for the day - I've got lots to get done this morning.

There's a noise

There's a noise under the hood of my car. Or at least there was one yesterday at lunch time and again in the evening. A horrible grinding screeching noise. On the way to drop off my car at the dealership last evening, the noise seemed to stop. But since I'd already made an appointment of sorts (they are booked today, but they'll take a look at my car as soon as possible) - I went ahead and left the car and the key.

It didn't help matters that I was already cranky from the day at work. And I'm nearly always cranky when something goes wrong with my car. I'm a computer guy, not a car guy. I'm perfectly at ease in taking a computer apart - but only when backed up by information on the screen, or lack there off. With a car, though, it's all meaningless warning lights and undefinable noises. Then getting a straight answer out of mechanics I've gone to is nearly impossible. And if you ask questions, well, then you're an idiot that doesn't know anything about cars. Which, duh, is why I bring the car in to start.

So, my co-worker was able to drive me in and my room-mate should be able to pick me up after work. I'm hoping it's something simple and definitive - and not too expensive. Too much to ask for, I know.

My room-mate thinks I should buy his car when his lease is up - but, seriously, the headrests in that automobile are horrible. Seems like a silly reason to dismiss car, but I've ridden in there for long distances and after about 25 minutes I'm ready to cut my own head off to get some relief.

Makes me want to track down the engineer that designed those headrests and force him to sit in the car leaning back until he realizes what he's done and apologizes. There's where the recalls should be focused.

So, I'm not going to buy that car, but I may end up getting a Honda as my next car anyway. With a test drive focused on the head-rests.

See? I told you I wasn't a car guy.

Breathe in, breathe out; also, adventures in personal hygiene and grooming

I had about 27 hours of clear breathing before a cold hit me - and now I'm fighting to keep a clear nose and I'm apparently snoring again. I'm hoping it passes soon, right now it's taking more force to breathe out than it does to breathe in - which feels pretty weird.

I've been busy here this morning, but feeling curiously out of sorts. Just kind of moderately irritated by little things. It doesn't help that I'm waiting on a phone call to launch a site and I really need to hit the restroom. They are already a bit late and I'm hoping they call soon.

(later)

Well, we launched the site and things went poorly - though while I was waiting to hear back from people about what was going on, I had plenty of time to go to the restroom.

I had to raise my voice in my boss's office - though not at my boss. I was trying to report in on the site launch and suddenly the room filled up with talking people. I finally raised my hands and my voice and proclaimed that I still had the floor. My boss backed me up and we finished up our discussion. I was still Mr. Cranky-pants most of the day though.

In other news...

I shaved my face the night before my nose surgery and then didn't shave again for over a week. When it was finally time - or some would say past time - to shave, my electric razor wasn't up to the task. Which was a bummer - since it takes three weeks or more to get used to using it. I'd suspected that I wasn't going to be able to adapt - it irritated the skin on my neck something fierce. And then switching back to a razor to get the job done means I've lost ground with the shaver. Might be time to clean it up real good and put it away for a while and just go back to using a razor.

Back during the winter months I decided to try a new deodorant. I was starting to get a little concerned about the amount of chemicals I was putting on or in my body and thought taking aluminum out of the equation would be a good place to start. I switched to a mineral salt stick - you wet it with water, then apply. Simple. And effective during the winter months when I don't sweat as much. Now that summer time had rolled around, it's less effective. Primarily on the right side for some reason. So, this morning I switched back - at least for the next few months.

Finally, in totally unrelated news, I just watched a trailer for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. Looks like a fun movie, but before I could watch the trailer, I had to sit through a commercial for Outback steakhouse. Isn't a trailer a commercial for a movie? So, did I have to watch a commercial in order to watch another commercial? Is that what happened?