April 2004 Archives

So.

Here I am.

I'm a little bitter about it.

Me being here means that she is entertaining ideas of abandoning me leaving our lovely town for a great new job opportunity.

So in the spirit of wishing her mucho luck on her interviews (shutup I know she already had them) I want to initiate the ABC rhymes.

No, it really is. So let me be the first to virtually hug her and say, "Yer gettin' oooooo-old! Yer gettin' oooooo-old!"

Irk, of course, is livin' it up in San Francisco and can't answer her blog, so at the tone, leave your good wishes and messages of eternal devotion to the Irked One.

Beeeeeeeep.

Hello, Kelley here again. Last time I posted, I promised that I'd post something substantive next time you heard from me. Since Erica is out of town, I will take upon myself the solemn duty of providing your weekly Survivor snarkage. Open the extended entry to read it, but be warned that spoilers are everywhere.

Brandy said the interviewers usually do a roundtable within a couple days and then things go pretty quickly from there.

The HR guy said they're interviewing someone else on Monday and that if I don't hear back from him by next Thursday to give him a call.

So it sounds like getting an answer before I leave California will be a bit of a stretch, but I should know sometime next week.

*tick*tock*tick*tock*

I met the fabulous Mr. Philo Hagen yesterday. We had coffee drinks at Cafe Flore. That was the cutest little place and Philo is way cool. We sat out on the patio which was very pleasantly shielded from the wind so it was just nice and cool. I got my chai fix and we chatted about shit going on, living in San Francisco, workplace jackholes, and the wonderful world of blogging.

I told him I thought he was one of those people who, wherever you go with him, he runs into someone he knows. I was fully expecting him to be holding court there, But only one person stopped to say hi. He said that San Francisco is actually pretty small so it's not too hard to run into people you know all the time. I'm still not sure I believe him, but I'd rather be finding out for myself.

The University of North Carolina (the first state university in the nation) is a great place to waste spend five years of your life, but it has some dumb-ass traditions that other system schools don't share (including that retarded ram with the painted blue horns on the football field that likes to shit bricks as it gets run across).

For example, in order to graduate from Carolina, you have to pass a swimming test. I'm so not joking. Here we are with Duke down the street eliminating its 8 a.m. classes and Carolina still makes students take a swim test. How's that for "sink or swim", eh?

Hello, Swirlspice readers. It's Erica's friend Kelley, from suburban blight. I'm pretty effing jealous of Erica at the moment; I used to live in San Francisco, and although I have no intention of living there again, it is a great city. Plus, I need a vacation. Erica somewhere cool + me stuck at home = green-eyed monster. Erica, I've got every movable appendage of my body crossed in hope that your trip there will be a success, and that you get a killer job and find a wonderful apartment. Stat. So I can come visit!

First off, thanks for all the well wishes. I truly do appreciate y'all's thinking of me.

I went to dinner at Chow last night with Brandy and Tony. (Brandy, whom I know from college, works at the company I'm interviewing with. Tony, her boyfriend, is the same guy that went apartment searching with me.)

Turns out Tony was being much more diplomatic before in his assessment of neighborhoods. He really really loves where he lives and was strongly recommending that I move somewhere near them (which is... Dolores Heights, I think...).

So that general area (Dolores Park, Noe Valley, Castro, maybe Glen Park, maybe the Mission) is where I'm leaning towards. For the commute, for the atmosphere, for easy access to public transit and to the only people I know in town.

Brandy said that she knew everyone I'm supposed to interview with and that they'd all be pretty okay. A couple guys were managers of other groups, on par with the manager of my potential group. Another couple guys would be co-workers in my group. She said my FDA experience was a huge plus, and that on-the-floor troubleshooting and follow through are also good.

She also warned it would be a long, grueling day. I figured it would be. What day of interviews isn't? Having confirmation didn't make me feel better, though. She was talking about how she's had to interview people, usually playing the nice guy and just asking casual questions, and found out some really strange things about people who otherwise seemed okay.

I wasn't at all worried about making a good personal impression, but it's sometimes a struggle for me to remain engaged, particularly when I'm tired. I'm glad that I had the managerial types in the morning and the peer types in the afternoon. I thought the latter would be easier to relate to and I figured I'd totally be dragging ass by then.

And I was. My brain is mush right now. I didn't feel like any interview went particularly badly. I didn't feel like anyone was particularly tough. I did feel like I told some of the same stories over and over again. I do feel like I made a good impression as far as my people skills and the softer stuff, but my lack of direct experience in the area might be a problem (I've sort of danced all around it, but never done anything exactly like this before). I was actually expecting more technical questions than there were.

Now I've got to call the HR guy for a wrap up. That'll have to wait until tomorrow when I'm fresh.

And the waiting begins.... *tick*tock*tick*tock*

Fuckin' A, man. Today's the day.

Wish me luck.

If you were one of the more recent people to ask me Three Questions and haven't seen your answers yet, they're all there.

Today I went on a tour of the city with a very nice relocation not-agent named Allison. My friend Tony tagged along for additional insight/input since he's mister social/trivia and has lived all around town. That turned out to be great. Listening to him and Allison talk to each other about what they do and don't like around town was good information to have. Plus he could give me a non-interested-party assessment of what's reasonable for rent.

Since I don't even know yet if I'm moving, this was more of an orientation trip. Allison explained how some of the neighborhoods got their names and how they relate to all the hills and valleys, so now I have a much better feel for where things around town. (e.g. If you're in Pacific Heights, you're on a hill. If you're in the Noe Valley, you're in a valley. See?)

Hmmm, the rest of this is more so I can remember so you can skip it if you like.

Uneventful flight. I dozed through all four hours of it. I should have brought my neck pillow.

It's hot here. Like 85° hot. I was expecting warm, but not quite this warm. Maybe down in San Jose (farther inland), but not in San Francisco. Shorts and sandals, woot! It's lovely.

I'm hanging out at my hotel tryinna keep awake at the moment. If I nap now I just won't get up, and I have dinner plans with friends. I could use a shower, but I just took one this morning. I know, I'll count to make sure I have enough underwear, and if I do I'll go ahead and shower.

Would it be ghetto if I brought a Nalgene full of sangria with me because I had a lot left and didn't want to leave it for a week with my roommate? Hypothetically speaking, of course.

I'm here!

Psssst! *looks around*

Is she gone yet?

*puts up feet*

In honor of Our Mistress of the Swirl's travels, I've decided to tell one of my very own travel horror stories. Gather 'round.

I have a lot of crap to do before I hop on my 2:30 p.m. flight to San Francisco, so this is my official hasta luego.

I'll still be popping in with updates, but there is other entertainment lined up for your reading pleasure. (Actually it's more for my reading pleasure, but you get the idea.)

Y'all have a good week.

Rosemary's got her own place now. She's long been posting at Dean's World, but the Queen of all Evil needs some room to reign.

She's one of my favorite Republicans. That's saying a lot for me. Give her a visit. qoae.net.

Between that and her birthday, I'd say she's having a hell of a weekend.

Since I'm so late watching the tape, there's an abbreviated version for this week. Which may actually be a relief for you. [CBS recap] [TWoP recap/let]

*flick* (via MJ)

Tonight's my last 12-hour overnight shift at this job. I really don't want to go in, but I don't have a good excuse.

Make your own McDonald's logo. (via Adrants)

One day when I was at The Coffee Shop, I heard on the satellite radio a woman doing a cover of Third Eye Blind's I Want You and made a note to find out who it was. Today I was going through my recently acquired .mp3s of Alana Davis' newest CD Fortune Cookie, and it's her! What a co-inky-dink.

"Now you know... and knowing is half the battle." Modernized. Heh. (via Jim)

A lot of my co-workers are natives of other countries. Most of them are from Mexico or from various African countries.

Many of the Mexicans came here because they already had family here. They usually want to stay here, but send money to their remaining family in Mexico.

The Africans are all guys here with their brothers who are working their butts off to horde money (sometimes tax-free) with every intention of going back home to Africa where their parents, wives, and children are, and living in grand style off the money they made here.

I was listening to a couple guys from Ghana talk about the insanely low cost of living and the businesses they're trying to start up and all I could think was, "It's not fair."

I mean, good for them for doing what they needed to do to get in this position. They made their way here, got good jobs, and they work hard.

But I'm a native of this country. There is nowhere for me to go to earn big bucks (sometimes tax-free) and then come back here and spend it. I have a harder time going even temporarily to many other countries than others have coming here. Trying to get a work visa is a whole 'nother story. What am I supposed to do? How could I accomplish a dream like that?

As soon as the credits rolled for The Passion of the Christ, my first thought was, "Hmm. Okay." I couldn't really come up with a whole lot more than that.

My Girl-Talking Friend had a free movie pass and wants to go see The Passion* tonight. I have no desire to see this movie whatsoever, but since it's free, I'll sit through it.

He suggested we go to dinner first so we can catch up since I haven't seen him in a month or so, so we're going to BW3. I'm gonna count how long it takes him to bring up his match.com exploits. I was thinking about how I could actively manage the conversation to keep him away from it, but I'm too tired for all that. We have a limited time for dinner before the movie anyway, so I'm not too worried.

I called him earlier to confirm the time and place, and he was in Target. All I wanted to say was, "8:00 sounds good, I'll see you there." And he starts asking me how I am and about my trip and stuff. Aren't you shopping? And why are we talking about this right now when we're gonna sit down together in three hours? He couldn't even half hear me because he was way back in the store and his signal kept fading in and out. *sigh*

At least the wings and beer will be good.

What's your Travel Quotient?

Your TQ is 253— Intrepid Explorer

You're a true Intrepid Explorer. Your TQ demonstrates that you have traveled far and wide, experiencing much of what this world has to offer. But that only whets your appetite to visit more places! You take pride in the number of stamps on your passport, and your list of must-see destinations grows with every out-of-town trip. You're famous for venturing off main roads and heeding the advice of locals so you don't miss the best sites and bites.

It's Expedia, so it's nothing super-deep, but some of the trivia is kind of fun.

(via Enigma)

I've been thinking about this for a long time and have yet to come up with satisfactory answers. Seen at Lachlan's, originating at Electric Venom.

So, let’s say that by the time you die you’ll write three books: (1) an autobiography, (2) a novel, and (3) a self-help book. What would their titles be?

(1) Oh No She Di-int!
(2) The Good Hair Theory
(3) Just Take the Damn Vacation, Already: How to See the World When Everyone Else is Too Busy to Go With You

That was hard!

First Minneapolis, and then St. Paul.

Via email:

From: Paul Skrbec
Subject: [stonewalldfl] State constitutional amendment opposed

The St. Paul City Council took a stand Wednesday against a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would ban gay marriage.

With a 6-1 vote, the council stated its opposition to the idea of asking Minnesota voters to approve an amendment that would define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Council Member Dave Thune introduced the resolution, which declared that the state constitution should "secure and protect the civil liberties and rights of all of our people."

Council President Dan Bostrom cast the dissenting vote.

"I guess I'm one of those old-fashioned guys who believes a marriage is between a man and a woman," Bostrom said.

The state House has approved a measure that would allow voters to consider the amendment during a referendum this fall, but a key Senate panel has rejected the amendment.

The Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution opposing the amendment last week.

— Robert Ingrassia

That's way better than this Conscientious Objector Policy Act nonsense in Michigan. I'm so disappointed in my home state.

A bill to provide standards for personnel policies to protect the right of conscience of health care providers who conscientiously object to providing or participating in certain health care services under certain circumstances; to provide for protection from certain liability; and to provide for penalties and remedies.

Doesn't your role as a health care provider supercede your moral objection to "distasteful practices"?

At first blush, the bill doesn't seem to conflict with the Hippocratic Oath:

I will not give a fatal draught (drugs) to anyone if I am asked, nor will I suggest any such thing. Neither will I give a woman means to procure an abortion.

It's that overarching "Above all, do no harm" theme that we seem to be having trouble with, since people have some strange ideas about who they think it is they're saving.

UPDATE: I'm reminded that Governor Granholm has yet to sign the bills. And it's highly unlikely that she will.

My to-do list for today, in no particular order:

deposit paycheck
call Northwest Airlines
read employment and relocation materials
drugstore toiletry shopping
put vehicle registration renewal in mail
collapse from exhaustion
watch last night's Survivor tape
call friend to remind him (again) that i'd rather go out tomorrow night instead of tonight (didn't have to call, he finally read his email)
call relocation consultant with my hotel info
do "my birthday is a week from today" jig
treat self to sangria for surviving last shift with Instigator and Lazy Overachiever
work on bloggy tech support project
have fries or maybe Quiznos (it was fries)
gas up the Jeep
laundry

UPDATE: As of 6:00 a.m. Sunday.

Tonight is my last night working with this particular crew of people. I'm swapping a day with someone who works on the opposite night shift, so I'll come in Sunday night for my last 12-hour shift, but it'll be with different people. After I come back from California, we'll be on 8 hours. I'll be on afternoons, while most of the people I work with now will be on nights.

I can't fucking wait to get away from them. Actually, that's not true. All of them are pretty okay. It's just Instigator and Lazy Overachiever I need to get away from. Bitches and hos.

Last night. I can do it....

So, there's this meme. Lachlan asked nicely, so I'll play along.

It's sort of like that five questions thing from before, but instead you ask me the questions instead of me asking you.

1. Leave me a comment asking me three questions. Something silly, something serious, whatever floats your boat.
2. I will answer your questions to the best of my ability, at my earliest convenience.
3. Go back to your own bloggy house and implore five people to ask you three questions apiece. (I'm skipping the 5 asker limit.) (Watch nobody ask me.)
4. Kindly trackback and watch the questioning propagate.

Sound good?

This is way better than that stupid what's on page 23 of that book sitting next to you meme.

Answers for drc, Dave, Kelley, Lachlan, Lauren, Robert, Tiffany, Carla, Kimberley, Tea, Sherri, Shasta MacNasty, srah, Netwoman, Brent, Lauren, Enigma, and Casey in the extended entry.

My roommate is on a conference call with some folks in Europe. He's got on a t-shirt and a towel.

That's how much the federal government is projected to spend per household in 2004. Want to know where all those tax dollars go?

MT Blacklist v1.63 is now available for those using Movable Type 2.6 and above.

Additionally:

• The MT Blacklist Updater is a handy little tool to have.
• If you used Phil Ringnalda's "rebuilding archives when pinged" hack, you need to re-modify your MTBIPing.pm file before you upload it.

(via Wizbang)

I had included this article on why Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris did what they did below, but as I'm re-reading it, I decided a couple things needed to be highlighted.

School shooters tend to act impulsively and attack the targets of their rage: students and faculty. But Harris and Klebold planned for a year and dreamed much bigger. The school served as means to a grander end, to terrorize the entire nation by attacking a symbol of American life. Their slaughter was aimed at students and teachers, but it was not motivated by resentment of them in particular. Students and teachers were just convenient quarry, what Timothy McVeigh described as "collateral damage."

The killers, in fact, laughed at petty school shooters. They bragged about dwarfing the carnage of the Oklahoma City bombing and originally scheduled their bloody performance for its anniversary. Klebold boasted on video about inflicting "the most deaths in U.S. history." Columbine was intended not primarily as a shooting at all, but as a bombing on a massive scale. If they hadn't been so bad at wiring the timers, the propane bombs they set in the cafeteria would have wiped out 600 people. After those bombs went off, they planned to gun down fleeing survivors. An explosive third act would follow, when their cars, packed with still more bombs, would rip through still more crowds, presumably of survivors, rescue workers, and reporters. The climax would be captured on live television. It wasn't just "fame" they were after—Agent Fuselier bristles at that trivializing term—they were gunning for devastating infamy on the historical scale of an Attila the Hun. Their vision was to create a nightmare so devastating and apocalyptic that the entire world would shudder at their power....

[Eric Harris] is disgusted with the morons around him. These are not the rantings of an angry young man, picked on by jocks until he's not going to take it anymore. These are the rantings of someone with a messianic-grade superiority complex, out to punish the entire human race for its appalling inferiority. It may look like hate, but "It's more about demeaning other people," says Hare....

Basically, it could have been so much worse. There's further explanation of what it means to be a psychopath (which Eric Harris was). It's fascinating in a sick sort of way.

The diagnosis transformed their understanding of the partnership. Despite earlier reports about Harris and Klebold being equal partners, the psychiatrists now believe firmly that Harris was the mastermind and driving force. The partnership did enable Harris to stray from typical psychopathic behavior in one way. He restrained himself. Usually psychopathic killers crave the stimulation of violence. That is why they are often serial killers—murdering regularly to feed their addiction. But Harris managed to stay (mostly) out of trouble for the year that he and Klebold planned the attack. Ochberg theorizes that the two killers complemented each other. Cool, calculating Harris calmed down Klebold when he got hot-tempered. At the same time, Klebold's fits of rage served as the stimulation Harris needed.

The psychiatrists can't help speculating what might have happened if Columbine had never happened. Klebold, they agree, would never have pulled off Columbine without Harris. He might have gotten caught for some petty crime, gotten help in the process, and conceivably could have gone on to live a normal life.

Their view of Harris is more reassuring, in a certain way. Harris was not a wayward boy who could have been rescued. Harris, they believe, was irretrievable. He was a brilliant killer without a conscience, searching for the most diabolical scheme imaginable. If he had lived to adulthood and developed his murderous skills for many more years, there is no telling what he could have done. His death at Columbine may have stopped him from doing something even worse.

Kinda makes you think twice about your fellow students and/or co-workers, doesn't it? I think I feel worse about it now than I did when it happened.

Both LCD screens on my cell phone are dying a slow painful death. So it looks like I'm in the market for a new one. I've had this one for a year and a half which feels like a pretty long time for one cell phone these days. I'm trying to hang in until payday Friday, but I can't see anything at all on the inside and the outside screen is really faint, which makes it almost useless. (It has occurred to me that normal phones don't have screens and they work just fine. Too bad I don't know anybody's phone number.)

I'm chiefly looking for a flip phone. No camera. Text messaging enabled. Ringtone capabilities would be nice, but aren't a requirement.

Anybody with Sprint PCS have a phone that they really really like that isn't gonna cost me an arm and a leg?

• You know it's spring in Minnesota when you take one comforter off the bed and you're now sleeping under just the down comforter.
• Code Novice. You can never have enough resources for blog tricks, I say.
• Minnesota Public Radio's streaming audio sucks the big schlong. For as prominent as they supposedly are amongst public radio networks, this is totally inexcusable. I heard a brief chat with the ombudsman about this very topic not too long ago, and he basically said that the demand wasn't great enough. Fuck that noise. Michigan Radio does it just fine.
• Khaaan! (for the Trekkie in you) (via TCB)
• Keller's Kards: Cute on the outside, not so much on the inside. Hilarious! (Check out the "The Therapist.")
• Delicious liberal sensibility.
• No more gay marriages in Multnomah County, OR. They're waiting on the Oregon Supreme Court to take it up.

One of the things I like about the change of seasons (and living in a place that has four distinct seasons) is the wardrobe transition.

I like my winter clothes, but I wouldn't want to wear them all year. I like my summer clothes, but I'd get tired of those real quick if they had to last for 12 months. Spring and fall are two short months glorious times of mixing and matching the warm- and cold-weather gear.

I like my boots, and I like my Birks. It'd be a shame if I didn't get to wear both.

Dave had the shittiest of shitty technology burps. Long story short, the blog as we knew it is gone. Poof. Vanished.

I would totally cry if this happened to me. I made sure to back some stuff up today. My track record with this backing up stuff ain't great, but I think I'd really be more upset if I lost the blog than if I lost the hard drive again.

Anyway, Dave is back up and starting fresh. Gets to postin', boy! *whip crack*

I'll be in California in one week. One week! Shit. The relocation firm sent me a phat* packet of information. Maps, guides, booklets and a Lonely Planet San Francisco, all in a sleek, heavy, black accordion folder. I'm reading up on the various San Francisco neighborhoods and California tenant law.

Not to blow it out of proportion or anything, but next week could be a truly life-changing week. And even if it's not, it'll be a helluva lot of fun.

This week's Bonfire of the Vanities is up at d-42. Enjoy! Tolerate!

Putting the laptop down and getting a full night's day's sleep makes a big difference in getting through a 12-hour shift. I spent the weekend trying to be well rested instead of keeping tabs on the blogosphere. I only took time out to watch the WNBA draft, make sure the Red Wings got past the first round (*whew*), and hear that they found Dru Sjodin's body.

We had weather last night. It was hot — 88° yesterday — and now that the almost-tornadoes have passed through it's 45° and drizzly.

Instigator took 2 out of 3 nights off this weekend. Which was fine with me. Conveniently she worked Saturday night so she could get her overtime (you can only earn overtime pay if you're actually present during your overtime hours). Last night second-in-command Hey Mon remarked on her absence. I just said I knew she put in for PTO the day before. He said he figured the night ought to be whine-free, then. Heh. Dude knows what's up. He's on top of things. I knew he recognized that Instigator's presence causes some issues, but I was reassured to hear him actually say that. Last night was so much more peaceful without her there.

This is boring, I know. Here, have some snarkage on one of the Frommers.com message boards. Some folks made a greedy request when they volunteered to be bumped from a flight and then bitched when they didn't get everything they requested.

Also, Kelley has put together the mother of all Cul-de-Sacs. Good Monday morning blog reading. Grab a cop of coffee (or chai, as the case may be) and settle in.

We finally got word at work that we are changing schedules. We are transitioning from 12-hour shifts (3 days one week, 4 days the next) to 8-hour shifts (5 days/week, every week).

Which is good. It's great. Finally.

Except that the transition is scheduled for the first weekend of May. When I'll be out of town. Where I was planning on having that Monday and Tuesday off. And now I don't. I don't have enough vacation time to cover those days because I'm using it all in taking the previous week off. And the schedule is now such that I can't switch days with anyone, because everyone works every day.

Scratchafrick.

I'm hoping that, on account of the fact that they only gave us two weeks notice and not 30 days like they said they would, they'll let me slide and pay me for at least one of those days.

Yay. Boo. Hopefully in a couple weeks this will all be moot.

Nestled amongst the Apple Hot News headlines, I saw an article about the iPod in the Santa Cruz Sentinel penned by none other than Lex van den Berghe.

Kazoofus is back. The Church of Ass has reopened it's its doors, yay!

I missed the beginning of it, and only saw/heard chunks of it, but I kinda missed the point of President Bush and Prime Minister Blair's press conference. I know what they said, but what prompted it? Israel and Palestine? Mid-East peace in general? There was a lot of Iraq talk. That American businessman that just got kidnapped? "Osama's" offer to the nations of the European Union? Tony's here so we're gonna get on tv and look good?

I enjoyed the Q&A, though. Here's my summary.

Reporter: Question.
President: Complete lack of answer. Liberty, freedom, historical, protect minority rights (ha!), blah blah blah.
Prime Minister: Coherent answer.

Repeat.

• State of Wisconsin vs. Audrey Ruth Seiler (that's a PDF, yo) (via Carla)
• I'm retarded. Apparently I didn't know yesterday was Thursday.
• Watch before you wipe. (aka, "WTF is up with Wisconsin lately?")
• Planning on driving the Pacific Coast Highway up (or down) the Oregon coast? One of the Star Tribune travel writers is planning such a trip and is looking for suggestions. I've made that drive and it's one of the most beautiful stretches in the country that I've seen.
• Laugh if you want. I think it would be awesome if Jesse Ventura ran for president.

My cousin's father's funeral is next Tuesday. I went today to buy sympathy cards to send to my cousin and to my aunt.

The vast majority of the cards had some sort of religious bent to them. I wasn't buying anything about praying or "Him" or anything like that because it would be totally insincere coming from me. Some of them made reference to family (no good, because I'm family) or to fond memories of the deceased (I barely even know him).

Out of the remaining 5%... I can't even believe this... They all had trees on them. Just as I realized this, On Eagles Wings began to pipe through the overhead speakers.

I don't know whether to laugh or what.

Filler. [CBS recap] [TWoP recap/let]

This was gonna be a plain ol' list, but I thought I'd roll it into the Letter of the Day.

Pleading

Lauren is imploring y'all to get RSS feeds. Do as she says. Even y'all with Blogger have no excuse because you all have an Atom feed (*ahem*KathyHowe*ahem*). I might follow in her and Mac's footsteps and take the blogroll down (off the main page, anyway). But it'll be much easier for me if y'all all have RSS feeds (or Atom, or whatever).

Pudge

The idea of McDonald's launching an anti-obesity campaign is just silly. They didn't make anyone fat, and they're not responsible for making anyone un-fat.

Plucky

The story of Ruby Bustamante, the 6-year-old girl who survived for 10 days after a high-speed car wreck killed her mother and left her stranded, is amazing and heart-wrenching.

Puh-lease

Researchers say they've found an image on the back of the Shroud of Turin that matches the one on the front. I'll believe it... oh... never.

Probably Not

Ever wondered why your earwax comes in different colors?

Puff

Hair: Both Glenn and Tiffany are talking about it.

Planning

S-Train on public transportation in Bangkok. If they can do it, certainly any metropolitan area in this country can do it.

Poor

This week's Bonfire of the Vanities.

For my sister who is turning 23 today.

Happy Birthday, Em! *mwah*

Love,
Irk

A couple more links to add to my "t-shirts I want to buy someday" bookmark folder. (via Jen Garrett)

To "Big Ben" who left a comment with a fraudulent email address, that was not at all nice of you to post a spoiler for tonight's Survivor, even if you did get the information out of TV Guide. I hope you're wrong.

My roommate is "working from home" today, so this means I have all day to put up with his singing/guitar-playing, obscenely loud chewing (it's just eggs, for cryin' out loud), his loogie-hocking, and the general disruption of my peace and quiet. And now I can't steal borrow his bike (I could, but I don't feel like asking).

That sangria is mighty tasty.

Scratchafrickin' volleyball got canceled AGAIN because the other team forfeited. I can only play every other week and the last two weeks I've been available, it's been canceled.

I was gonna go see Triplets of Belleville today, but it seems a shame to go inside a dark theater and spend the afternoon. I might end up being at home all day, but at least I can see the sunlight and feel the breeze. I'll catch the matinee tomorrow afternoon before I go to work.

To put it in headline form.

I forget why, but I *ahem* obtained a few Billy Ocean tracks a couple weeks ago. Now, when I'm at work, and I have nothing to do but stare blankly as the tablets flow by, When the Going Gets Tough repeats on my mental jukebox.

Oo-ooh (ooh)
Can I touch ya?
And do the things that lovers do-oo

Oo-ooh (ooh)
Wanna hold you
I gotta get it through to you-oo

Make it stop.

It's supposed to get up to about 70 today. This makes me want to do spring-like things like make sangria and ride my (roommate's) bike the couple miles to the post office instead of driving. Except that I have to drive to the liquor store, and I'm not riding to the post office and back home, and then getting in the car and going. So the bike ride may have to wait until tomorrow.

I also really need to go to bed soon since I have a volleyball game to get to tonight, so it looks like I'll be missing the bulk of this very nice day. If it's this nice out tomorrow, I'm going down to Lake Calhoun and (borrowing my roommate's bike and) biking around that area. Lots of trails around there. Maybe get on the Midtown Greenway.

It sure will be nice to wake up to sangria, though. Mmmm... sangria... :9

Let's hope it stays away from me.

Y'all remember my cousin who just went to jail? His father was just on the news. Apparently he got decapitated in a tree-trimming accident.

I'm told my poor cousin's really really upset. I'm kinda glad he's already in jail so he can't go out and do something stupid in his grief-stricken state. My grandma doesn't want him to go to the funeral. It'll be closed casket so he can't see his father anyway, and he'll have to be escorted in shackles if he goes.

Again, I'm glad I'm not at home.