random picture of the moment: Mass Ave. (Lexington) - playing with built in camera effects
Thursday, August 11, 2005
after seeing this article on Dumbass Dub signing the highway bill, i couldn't help but wonder the following:
if both houses of congress can compile a bill (using the excuse of 'lesser of two evils' decision process), why can't they put together a bill of equal proportion that supports education? i seem to recall that there was some sort of education bill signed by Dumbass Dub, but that it was no where near the magnitude of this one.
and then i wonder, how the fuck are we going to pay for this one?
yet another example of WOMBAT in action...
maybe just WOMAT...
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Monday, August 08, 2005
random picture of the moment: day 11 - growth seems to have slowed. i think something may have provided some contamination. i hope i don't have to redo the experiment.
weekend bits
playing catch up on some stuff from over the weekend, and even a few from the last few weeks.
the biggest news is after living here for nearly a year (will be at the end of the month), i have FINALLY had the opportunity to meet the crazy neighbor lady. fortunately, the time at which i did it, the landlords were outside working on our entrance door so they provided a good medium to do introductions. so while standing in the driveway holding 2 bags from Trader Joe's, i actually met and spoke briefly with the crazy neighbor lady. she seems like a pleasant person, and even she acknowledged the living next door to each other for nearly a year. LO asked CNL if she had heard rumors about Atlantic being bought by Trader Joe's. CNL didn't know, but she also hadn't heard of Trader Joe's, but she'll look into it. i wouldn't mind if Trader Joe's came in, but that would affect some people as TJ's doesn't really carry stuff like baby needs, so i'm not sure how it would work.
now, as i mentioned a moment ago, according to the terms of my lease, i am paid up in full, which is very cool. i have lived here nearly a year and it's been a very good experience, and i really appreciate that my landlords are a) very cool, b) attentive to fixing things so i don't feel as tho if something needs to be fixed, to try and do it myself and c) actually closer to my age than my previous landlady (who should be around 95 or so) so when i chat with them, they actually understand what i'm talking about to some degree. i had a good run in my last apartment, and i liked the location (tho i still have yet to determine the evolutionary need for skeeters), but this one is much nicer. for starters, it's on the 2nd floor and i don't have to worry about leaving windows open (there were a rash of break-ins in the area last summer that were connected to ones the previous summer (2003) and were related to ones in that whole area starting around 2002. long story short, people were walking into unlocked homes (you're around back watering the plants, front door open) and stealing stuff (money, jewlery, etc). they also would climb in thru open windows (pop the screen, etc) if no one was home. granted the time at which this seemed to be happening was during my "i spend a lot of time home trying to find pennies" period in my life, but there was always the paranoia that surrounded that.
here, i just worry about how i'm going to keep the apartment cool on hot sticky days. if i leave the windows open, it stays a little cooler, but more sticky. if i close the windows, then it stays a little drier, but the place warms up into a bit of an oven. and unfortunately, the contractor that KO thought was a good guy (prolly is) seems to be dragging his feet on when he is going to replace the windows. and i'm waiting until that is done before deciding if i want to pick up a 2nd a/c for the living room. what to do. what to do...
so anyways, i really like where i'm living. i like the neighborhood, the proximity to things, it's an easy shot into work. lots of pluses. and i've been here nearly a year. i'll have to dig out my lease to find out, but i want to say it was the 17th i signed my lease...in any event...
and as i mentioned above, KO spent the weekend replacing the door to our entrance. the door and jam (jamb?) was off saturday and he finished installing it yesterday evening (~630 or so) so i have a new key. the door is much lighter than the previous one (fiberglass vs solid wood) and LOT easier to open. this has spring loaded hinges rather than the industrial door closer that was WAAAAAAAAAAY to much of a pain to open. it's white instead of the dark green, and it smells. at least for the moment. it has that new door smell which hopefully will go away as i can smell it bleeding into my apartment and i don't like it. some trim needs to be replaced on the inside and out, but for the moment, we have a working, lighter door.
this is from a few weeks ago - i was watching something on CBS (prolly CSI) and they were doing a teaser for a story on childhood obeseity and the way the voice over guy did it (that typical intense we're all going to die if we don't watch this voice) sounded like the following:
Childhood obeseity linked to moms who work for CBS4 news
i wasn't paying a whole lot of attention, but that's what i heard. or at the very minimum, that certainly sounded like what i heard.
i'm coming to terms with my work related exile. i'm still displeased with it how it happened, but i don't have a lot of say in things right now, so i'll just bite the bullet and do what i have to do, which reminds me...
ok, that should copy the files i need tomorrow. better to do it now while things are quiet and bandwidth is low. both offices should be closed, so long as someone in MR doesn't let someone in they shouldn't. that happened in the office i'm headed to a short while back. the vandal's vandalized things and then fled. i forget if that happened before or after we had security cameras installed.
oh well. stoopit humidity.
this sucks and blows...
on tuesdays until further notice (ie: we find my replacement) i've been thrown into exile.
i am not pleased by this decision.
Saturday, August 06, 2005
hee hee hee hee....
i've been blogging for a few years now, but it isn't often that someone i don't know posts a comment. however, the periodic person who does, usually will post a comment that is relevant to my post, so when i get a comment about how i have a "riveting web log", i'm left to wonder. i'm not sure what i am going to do about the comment. i have the option of deleting it, or i can just ignore it.
it's actaully quite amusing and after a quick google it certainly appears as tho i'm not the first person to receive such a .... complement. the thing that gets me is the "undoubtedly must have atypical & quiescent potential for your intended readership" bit. to be completely selfish, i write this blog/drivel/mass of
i would be more than willing to bet, that the majority of the people who actually read this, i could a) count on my hands and b) have their phone number programmed into my cell. in addition to that, if i actually bothered to program speed dial, would be in the single digit to low teen range.
now, i do write stuff for people who are my friends, as it makes for an interesting way to communicate something that i might not normally say, or to use you as a sounding board. and for those of you who know who you are (trust me, you do know who you are) eye thank ewe.
so, back to the issue at hand. a random post. i suppose it's good because it gives me something a little different to blog about. one can only blog so much on the shit at work, the shitheads at work, the communte to work, the weather (and i missed just about ALL of the thunderstorms that blew thru here today - i think M is onto something. i need a DVD i can play that is nothing but hours of thunderstorms. surround 5.1 audio is a must. i know there are documentaries on thunderstorms, but that's not what i want. i just want the storms. full audio. no words. no narrator telling me that this is natures way of sticking its finger up our bums. just thunder. lighting. rain. in full glorious surround where i could put it on and let it take me away.)
and yet again, i digress in addressing the issue at hand (y'all know about that derailing train in my head, right?). silly blog comments. so this is actually a nice little diversion i suppose. there is a part of it where the initial reaction was "what the fuck?" yet at the same time i felt my ego get stroked, but who these days actually types using the ampersand (&)? i certainly don't as it's somewhat of an awkward key to reach when typing. it's like the 'b' key. on a standard keyboard (none of this 'ergonomic' crap), {hoity toity keyboarding mode} you are supposed to hit the 'b' key with your left index finger. {/hoity toity keyboarding mode}
whatever. i hit it with my right index finger because i find it more comfortable to type that way. it works for me. it doesn't work for other people and i'm sure that there are people who use their left thumb to press the space bar. i use my right, but that's just my preference. i wonder if it's a left/right hand thing. i wonder if a lefty uses their left thumbs, or are they forced to use their right. of course, there's prolly come scientist out there who is receiving money from some unheard of grant to study the effects of typing between lefty's and righty's.
so, what am i to do about this post. i guess i'll just leave it up for the time being. which in reality means i'll never bother to delete it, which is prolly what the person who posted it is looking for because curiosity points us to look at their infested blog(s). i wonder if i can edit the thing.
now, of course the kicker is i received a second comment pointing me to some free software website. now THAT is a waste of time. you want free software? check out Tiny Apps. i've found some nifty stuff there, some i still use. the blog gets a little political at times, but then, isn't that the point of a blog? No Nags is another good site, altho the library has been around long enuff that you'll find stuff that is several years old still listed. Shell Extension City is another good site which has a frequently updated list of software.
so, you know what? you can read the first comments attempted ego stroking at the google link. having someone like LP stroke my ego the other day means a great deal more than some spamblogger. they include the following:
Please remember to never restrict anyone's opportunities for ascertaining uninterrupted existence for their quintessence.
well, i'm going to restrict your opportunities to comment in my blog. normally, i don't have a problem with it, but this time, i'm taking the editorial right as author of my blog to say, go ahead and say what you like, but understand it is my right to say i disagree with you and to that end, ask that you leave me alone.
and for anyone who is curious as to how long it took me to write all of this, i'm about 3 minutes from the end of hearing the entirety of The Dark Side of the Moon.
Friday, August 05, 2005
a lesson for today, the 5th of August
today's lesson boys and girls relates to the economics of concrete. i was talking with KO (landlord) about some of the work he is doing on the house. one of the projects is to replace the steps into my apartment, so the following are pictures i took this morning and this evening.
he was telling me that in order to fill 4 of these columns (the 2 here and 2 for the front of the house) would take some 80 bags (i believe that's the number) of concrete. those are those 50lb bags of concrete. (go figure...) anyways, the cost of that would be ~$180. so a quick call to a local concrete company, for the grand total of $227, he could get the footings poured. by one of those concrete delivery trucks. premixed. ready to pour.
so, to save ~$50, he could lug 80 bags of concrete, dump them into his pickup (which prolly couldn't handle it), and then mix the concrete himself, either by hand, or (for prolly close to $50/day) a concrete mixer, OR he could get it premixed, ready to pour for a small fee.
HMMMMM....quess what he thought would be prudent. 
whoops...
AMM just dropped off a laptop that was being returned from a now former clinician and i'm sitting here listening to Tool (well i'll be - the vinyl version of Lateralus is now a reality), not really giving it much thought until just as she is walking away Maynard asks the following question of the crowd:
Is uh...sodomy still illegal in Arizona? Thank god. Gives us a goal to work for.
d'oh.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
huh...
(a jennkitty gank)
i guess i've been to a few more states than i realized. altho my adding Kansas is somewhat weak IMO. i've only been to the airport on a layover to Las Vegas. and i've only been to Chicago. which means i should prolly discount Illinois. and if i go by that definition, i should prolly discount South Carolina. but then i do know that i have a hook to hang my red sox hat on in Charleyton so i can keep that on the list. and i guess i've been there a few times unlike the single time to chicago and vegas. or boise.
create your own visited states map
or check out these Google Hacks.
the random things that go thru my mind
this has been going thru my head for a while now on and off, so i'll post it here in a vain attempt to excise it from my brain for the moment.
i found this on this site, but i learned it with slightly different lyrics, so those changes will be posted here.
-The Hearse Song-
-A Traditional Children's Rhyme
Did you ever think as the hearse goes by,
that you may be the next to die.
They'll wrap you up in a great big sheet,
and toss you down about 6 feet deep.
It all goes well for about a week,
and then your coffin begins to creak.
The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
the worms play pinochle in your snout.
They eat your clothes, they eat your hat,
they crawl in skinny, they crawl out fat.
They eat your eyes, they eat your nose,
they eat the jelly between your toes!
Your stomach turns a slimy green,
and pus pours out like whipping cream.
You spread it on a slice of bread,
and that's what you eat when you are dead!
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
well, today was d-day
the phone system in the office has cut over. i left after things seemed to have started out ok, and by the time i left, things had been cut over. so, tomrorow we'll see what happens. out of the fire and into the frying pan.
i had a really good weekend last weekend. most are relatively uneventful, but this weekend started seeing The Machine and ended seeing the Jennkitty. it was a mildly discombobulated visit as there really wasn't much of a plan of what to do, but it all worked out in the end and a good time was had by all.
well, most of the time. before heading to the cabin, we had lunch at Friendly's. as ryoganox stated, "Friendly's wasn't friendly"
now, i have a certain level of expectation when i eat at a friendy's, but this time was harsh. it wasn't an overly pleasant experience. there were 6 adults and 2 little kids, so it was a large party, but the sevice was sooooooooooooooo.....ssssssssssslllllllllloooooooooowwwwwwww....... it was painful. and we didn't have an overly complex order. it took 30 mins to get our appetizer (Loaded Waffle Fries: Crispy waffle fries topped with warm Cheddar cheese sauce, crisp bacon and scallions served with sour cream and ranch dressing for dipping. and then ANOTHER 30 mins for us to get our meals. during one of the few (and seemingly far between) drink refill trips, our waiter asked if he could get us anything. i replied with "our food". that didn't seem to help, but i felt better. there were some concerns when it was discovered that the Chicken Strips Basket had a fishy flavor to them. for me, i don't think it would have bothered me too much, but when looking to feed a 1 & 2 year old pieces of the chicken, it was a concern. there was enuff concern that our waiter had the manager come out, and she explained that was how they cooked things. not an overly satisfactory explanation, but it looked to be the best available. so, an hour and a half after we ordered, we finally left. not a happy experience. trip to the cabin was good, and had a good time up there.
dinner was very late (we got to Macaroni Grill around 930pm, ended up closing the place) but a lot of fun. we were all laughing pretty hard, jokes, blue comments and who knows what else were flying around. good time had by all. and a much more enjoyable dining experience than we had in the afternoon so i didn't leave until 11pm. good drive back, but tiring.
discovered while there, that had i known, i could have tried Tim Hortons. M swears by their iced cappuccino. so, the next time we're up there, i'll have to investigate.
yesterday and today were an early days into work. which sucked. at least i can sleep in an extra hour now. i finally get to work my normal hours. of course, there's a ton of stuff to do, but i'll live. and my head is starting to ache. good night.
random picture of the moment: D'OH!
coming home, getting ready to get off of 93 and i can see cars backed up on the overpass so i had to wonder. this is what was there.
as a purely random co-inky-dink, the house in the background is the house i was talking about in this post, complete with remax sign. i think it's remax...
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