I've been whining to whoever will listen about the suckfest known as living out of a hotel. Luxury hotels with full amenities? Pshaw.
I'm not really all that selfish or spoiled. But it took me days to realize I'm homesick. I miss Conan and I miss my stuff. Not to mention the people I left behind. My life currently lacks the comfort of familiarity.
As I said, it's all about me lately.
Did you even notice I was gone? Of course you did. Some of you even wrote to tell me about it. Thank you. But I knew, oh yes, I knew I wasn't blogging. My MovableType publishing tools have been down for well over a week!
Getting the right help from my Web host, Yahoo!, was difficult to say the least. But, I won't complain too much (for now) as in the end they fixed the issue for me. Something about a mySQL database? Whatever.
While everything was down I decided to move from MT to WordPress. I may still do that, but at least it won't be while I'm under the gun, so I can study a bit more about porting my old content.
Lots to catch up on! In the meantime, I am a happy clam.
I went down to a local AT&T store this morning a little after 10. I counted about 30 people on line and they were also coming in behind me. Shortly after I walked up, the man in front of me yelled out loudly and suddenly (tourrets came to mind), “Do they have more phones?!?” to no one in particular.
Two women at the head of the line turned and explained they did, but only the 8 gig models, and probably only enough for the first few people in the line. One of them said the AT&T employees were coming out every 30 mins or so to provide updates. The women said they’d been there since 7am. I figured I’d wait for the next update.
Five or six people dropped out of the line, including the random shouter who left with a grunt.
A few minutes later an employee came out to tell us they were down to just a couple of phones, but they may have just received a shipment (deliveries can be so confusing). He promised to come back and update us soon. In the meantime, he said, another local AT&T store had just run out, but the nearest Apple store had “tons,” but there were also several hundred people already on line.
At this point 7 or 8 more people dropped off the line....
George Carlin's "Fucking Meow" was my favorite joke for a stretch in the 80s. My (multiple) retellings were always slightly inappropriate, of course, since I was just a kid. But as a girl with a cat, I thought it was hilarious and very true.
The punch line is about 3 minutes into this video.
Buying this today was so wrong, but owning it feels so right.
Welcome to my geeked-up life.
I didn't like eating when I was a kid. My folks had to coax me with favorite foods, and a regular winner was honey. A small spoonful, poured over toast or a pancake. Or honey and peanut butter.
I still dig its golden goodness and got hooked on Starbucks' honey lattes when I was in Florida last month. Coffee + honey = who knew? Yum. Total comfort food for a former honey kid.
Now if only I could re-embrace my dislike of food in general... heh.
I'm recouping from one of those up-all-night bugs, with a sore throat and the sniffles thrown into the mix. This morning I felt like someone had been beating me up all night. The rainy weather between Sunday and today was a perfect compliment. I haven't seen such a steady, strong rain for years. The mostly-dry creek off the backyard is now a roaring river, but it's no threat to the house.
Tomorrow I start the work week a day behind. Excellent.
Mac vs. PC remains an open challenge for me. I've been working part-time on a MacBook Pro for several weeks but have yet to fall in love. Oh, I'm definitely crushing on Silver, but I spend so much time deprogramming from my PC, it's hard to sit back and enjoy the Mac.
Love the UI, operational speed, and ease of some functions, like how CDs work with iTunes. The keyboard, menus and overall desktop navigation are still alien to me. Of course I've spent as much time with the Mac over several weeks that I generally spend in 1-2 days with my PC.
My two blog posts on Sunday were done on the Mac. No difference in the MT interface but saving and cropping the miShare image on my desktop was a snap. Next weekend I'll try working with photos off my camera... graphics are supposed to be the genius of a Mac, right?
Still loving the Mac ads... but I swear they're not the reason I took the plunge. Mostly.
I came across this cute little gadget for sharing between ipods called miShare. The software is still in beta but as a multi-pod owner, I appreciate the idea. And only $99. So, um, let me know if you buy one.
I drove alongside a Smart car yesterday on my way to work. The car was as big as a good Schwinn. Of course I was looking down from my tall (but compact!) SUV. But, still.
The driver looked vunerable and relatively uncomfortable given the size of his own chasis. But he kept up with my over-the-limit 50 MPH. Eek.
I'm sure the cars are technically safe for highways, but not next to monster trucks, er, standard-sized vehicles.
So, until the average U.S. car gets smaller, let's keep Smart cars on local city and town streets, not the highways. Thank you.
From ABC news a couple of weeks ago... one Dr. John's Herbal Lollipop, two times per day for 10 days, disables tooth decay bacteria for 3-6 months. Brilliant.
Much better than the deadly but not addictive cigarettes of the future.
Driving home tonight after dark I hit a 35 MPH zone with a car cruising along beside me on the right. A 6-7 year old little girl was in the back seat, her body straight forward but with her head turned to stare out the window.
Things looked okay regarding her environment, with parents in the front chatting and another kid next to her, but the pale girl with dark hair had a completely blank expression and a wicked stare.
I hope her parents have checked her hairline for numbers.
The most rambunctious, hungry, and angry squirrel known to mankind moved into my attic a couple of weeks ago. Not surprisingly, inviting an exterminator into the mix amplified my squirrel’s anger issues.
Truth be known, this is a friendly trapper who works to avoid killing any wildlife. But apparently the company is so friendly my squirrel thumbed her nose at them.
I say “she” because Randy the Exterminator said so. On his return visit this morning, he said “she is so hungry now she won’t be able to resist the treat I offer her today.” Sounds sort of ominous, but it’s just peanut butter. And a spring-loaded box, so Randy the Exterminator could move her out of my house.
Photo (c) Jules & photoshoppix.com
Mission accomplished. The squirrel, which was supposed to be gone on Friday – before they patched the hole she’d made to come in – is now gone.
Conan and I will not miss her creepy footsteps on the ceiling. The way he chased her around, running from room to room and staring up at the ceiling was adorable. The hole she was making in the office ceiling? Stressful. And our other visitor, a human, hasn’t slept well for days worrying about squirrel bites and a house full of rabid people and pets.
Sounds like interesting fodder for Pet Cemetery 3 – The Family Plot.
I am completely sleepless in India right now. Okay, I had an hour last night - but way not enough.
And I just thought of my poor blog. Talk about kicking the habit! And I don't want to... so some U2 to make my little guy feel better...
Is it getting better?
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now?
You got someone to blame
Yep, that someone is me! Blame all the travel. And stuff.
I successfully avoided the germs creeping around the office the past two weeks. Then I took a flight out to LA, and despite my pre-flight vitamin dosing, the bastard germs got me. Dammit.
Returning to work after a long weekend has its challenges. This morning in the shower the Boomtown Rats snuck into my head and they stuck with me all day.
The song's about more than your average bad day, but still... you can appreciate the sentiment.
Tell me why?
I don't like Mondays.
Tell me why?
I don't like Mondays.
Tell me why?
I don't like Mondays.
I want to shoot
The whole day down.
I want to shoo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-t... the whole. day. down.
Sir Bob rules. Unlike Mondays.
My blog and I weren't on speaking terms last week.
Now I'm back to whine: I've caught the office bug and it's really annoying. I'm hoping the messy snuffling passes quickly. But, this particular plague has hit some of my colleagues hard.
Sniff. I'm doomed.
Finally bought a new living room set - a mix of stripes and flowers in earth tones. So pretty! The set includes a sofa, two chairs and two ottomans, and the price was right thanks to Columbus Day.
It's about time I unloaded the "marriage furniture." Now I have to wait six weeks for delivery... boo.
This morning's rainy weather was nice, but traffic is a mess in Virginia when the roads are wet. Always annoying.
I was at a stoplight near the office while a moment of silence played out on the radio. My eyes welled a bit and I was feeling silly, but then I saw a woman in a nearby car dabbing away tears. I assumed it was for the same reason.
This afternoon I was talking with someone about 9/11 movies, and I realized I own both United 93 and World Trade Center, and haven’t watched either film. I don’t think I’ve consciously avoided them. They’re not the only DVDs on my shelf I haven’t watched, but I'm going to give them a go.
So... not moving move forward with a new home buy right now. The flaky real estate market and uphill battle of selling the current house - or opting to rent it out - open up too much uncertainty and risk. We'll start over again in the spring if/when things are looking better.
I'm completely bummed about losing the house. I really fell in love with the place and opting not to push forward wasn't an easy decision - but it feels right in many important ways.
Summertime is fading away, and fast. Taking my vacation later than normal had the opposite than intended effect - I really thought it would stretch the summer, but noooo. Extended business travel added to the rush, too.
It's almost time to stop wearing sandals every day which bums me out because they're so comfy. I do look forward to sweater weather, but not the truly cold stuff. Here's to an Indian summer.
Looks like I'm getting back into the blogging groove. So nice to have an established blog to visit from time to time when I'm too busy to blog regularly. Ahhh.
Starved. Stomped. Radiated. Poisoned.
NASA's descriptive comparison of cockroaches to PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - genesis on Earth?), lured me in. But I was surprised when I clicked to read about PAHs and NASA sent me to Wikipedia. Seriously?
Latest updaters on the wiki's entry include a legit chem-geek and anonymous IPs from Colorado and Amsterdam.
Apparently there is not enough stress in my life because I've begun shopping for a new house. My hunt buddies and I visited 20 or so properties in person this weekend, in addition to tons of online research.
I think I found the house I want last weekend... and still feel that way after all this browsing. I'm wrestling with the notion of going further out into the country for social, convenience, and commute concerns, but leaning towards taking the plunge. Then there's the whole fiasco of selling my current home. Any buyers?
My hometown movie theater has a really creative and funny staff.
The alternatives to that statement are clear here:
I dug how this buzzed around my personal email network Wednesday after its appearance in the local paper.
Today is the first anniversary of this blog. Nice to see I stuck it out vs. previous short-lived personal blogging trials.
Lots happened this year - maybe I'll use the time as fodder for a follow-up post... when it's not 1am on a work night! Blogging is a pain in the ass.
Happy birthday!
Nursing a cold and daytime dozing lead to weird dreams today. In one I met the Queen of England and Judge Judy accused me of breaking a fancy cookie dish. (I believe I was guilty.) In another, I saw a dog running down the Washington Mall chased by the paparazzi. There was also something in there about my car's brakes not working. My own little trip down the rabbit hole via Theraflu.
I left work Friday feeling fine but when I woke up Saturday morning I was as sick as a dog. Head, throat, chest. Fan-friggen-tastic.
I did a lot of not-so-much this weekend but still feel pretty crappy. But, I probably sound worse than I feel with my barky coughs.
Rrruff!
Last week I dreamt that my friend and former colleague Bob was alive and well, hiding out in rural Virginia. No explanation given or needed.
I woke up with a start and the shift from happiness to sadness was physically jarring as my mind shifted to reality. Bob and the dream are still hanging with me a week later.
It's almost a year since he was killed in an accident. When I told Nancie about the dream we reminisced for over an hour. I hesitated telling her because I didn't want to make her sad too, but it was good to share. Bob affected us in personal, individual, ways. He was a good egg.
A week without blogging and I wasn't even on vacation.
No worries, I thoroughly chastised myself.
My thoughts are with the victims and their families and friends. We've been watching the coverage from Florida and two days worth of words can't capture the senselessness of it all. So tragic, sad and maddening.
When we were little kids my best girlfriend and I would do the Hokey Pokey with our Holly Hobbie dolls all-the-time.
Walking through the parking garage at work I saw a bumper sticker I adore:
What if the Hokey Pokey IS what it's all about?
Indeed.
Well, duh.
April 1 was fun and miserable as a kid. No surprise that I was a jokester but the stress-inducing challenge was to stay ahead of reciprocation or worse, the unexpected pranks. I came away pretty unscathed although I did buy into some pretty lame stuff over the years.
Today I told someone her nose was purple and she believed me. Brilliant.
Unable to find a decent Hollywood project since 1983, R2D2 quietly entered a life of civil service with the US Post Office.
Years later, bored with his excellent life, George Lucas joined R2 and took over a neglected rural route in the Hollywood Hills. They paid George in stamps.
"We’re excited to be able to go to the city of Atlanta and participate in this year’s Final Four. It’s been a great accomplishment for our team, and for the other three programs as well..." - UF Head Coach Billy Donovan
It was over 70 degrees on Wednesday. This was my driveway on Friday evening.
I suppose this means Phil was technically right about "early spring" but the silly groundhog forgot to mention winter would come right back.
Someone stole an hour from my weekend.
The government proclaims it daylight savings time -- over two weeks ahead of schedule -- and like sheep we follow.
Maybe I'll be DST-agnostic and let people think I'm late for everything.
(I do love the possibility of leaving work before sunset again.)
Work is a feverish, mucus-filled germ farm this week, so I've been doubling up on vitamins and downing Airborne. So far so good.
Searching for the link above I came across some interesting info: Silver is a powerfully effective all natural antibiotic, disinfectant, and germ fighter: it kills bacteria, fungus, and viral infections. Who knew?
Chionophobia or Ergophobia? Maybe they're just out of town. Mhm.
I'm a Perky, he's a Perky, she's a Perky, we're a Perky, wouldn't you like to be a Perky too?
Doesn't quite have the same ring.
My Floridian friends and family are still unnerved by last week's killer storm but Marion County escaped relatively unscathed. Still, things are messy very close to home. Too close.
Oh, and if you're not in a giving mood, get over it.
When most of you think of Florida I know horses don't come to mind. Nevertheless, I hail from the horse capital of the world.
Barbaro wasn't from Florida but many of us, laymen and horse people alike, have been tracking his recovery. Sometimes we debated if they were doing the right thing... so many other animals could use the money invested.
But how could they not try? He was, after all, a champion.
Tonight's TMZ: Celebrity packages, nip slips and the requisite bad fashion gallery. Daniel Craig's package is lengths ahead of the competition in the featured poll.
I had to take the poll to know the results. Just in case you were wondering.
Speaking of degrees ... with the weather we've experienced this winter, how can you not question the state of our environment and the real probability of damaging and lasting climate changes?
Try this on for size:
Take one spring day, like April 14, and use it to reshape the future. Step it Up 2007.
Winter took a month to start chilling out with us but finally brought some snow today. The flakes started falling around 1:30, just as I was pulling into my driveway. Good not to be out when the streets got messy.
I planned to go for a walk and take some snaps of the fresh snow... then opted instead to stay warm and took a picture from the 2nd floor deck.
