Last night, I didn't get sleepy. I just kept working and playing until sunrise. I went for a walk with Mischa somewhere between 3 and 4 am. At nearly seven am, I curled up alongside akeela and went to sleep. I woke up at 10 am feeling refreshed and active.

All day long I've had a funny feeling in my head. It wasn't happiness—recently happiness has been a brittle thing, always tainted by the knowledge of its imminent ending. It's more like a businesslike, wakeful feeling, a sense of things to think about and stuff to get on with. Finally, while emptying the compost bin, I realised what the word for it is.

I've woken up feeling healthy.

Interesting that the sensation should be so unfamiliar. Must have been a while.

In other news, I'm preparing an application for an UNIX techie position with Linden Lab. Run for your second lives!

The rest of this article is here.

While I'm happy to see Sanford Wallace get his arse handed to him in court (again), I can't say this comes as a big surprise to me. He's been spamming since the late 90s, and has shown time and time again that he just can't be bothered to play by the same rules as the rest of us, and instead asserts his "right" to fill our mailboxes with crap so that he can make a quick buck.

If there was ever a case for "banning" someone from using the Internet at all, I think Wallace would be a good test case. I'm sure that this raises lots of ethical issues, however.

Anyway, I think this just goes to show that a leopard can't change his spots. (But he'll steal them off a cheetah's back!)

Tags: spam

A couple of days ago one of my co-workers sent me a link for the World Clock. While it is fascinating to watch the little meters count over for births, deaths and disease, I can't help thinking that the site would look much better if all of the statistics were presented on steam-punkesque dials.

Also does it make me a bad person that I get the song "Another One Bites The Dust" stuck in my head every time I stare at the death counter for too long?

Tags: fnord
Current Location: Work
Current Mood: calm
Current Music: The Raconteurs - Salute Your Solution

http://www.ctatattler.com/2008/05/express-buses-a.html

I derive some sort of evil joy when I'm riding an express bus, and some folks on board are unclear on the concept that they don't stop at every block. And it's wicked fun to see their reactions when the bus doesn't stop where they want it to stop. Such as:

• Angrily yanking on the cord for the driver to stop.

• Yelling at the driver.

Once, my wife helpfully pointed out that they were riding an express bus that stops every half mile. The guy gave her a bewildered and furious look, and heatedly snapped: "He will stop at THIS corner for ME!"

She calmly replied: "It's an express bus, he won't stop till we get to Pulaski."

The rider shrugged and retorted: "Who the fuck asked you?"

Just goes to prove that no good turn goes unpunished.

http://tanga.com/products/2103-Long_car_ride_Game_Bundle_You_re_Pulling_My_Leg_Tin_Version_You_re_Pulling_My_Leg_Junior_Version_in_Tin_Very_Hungry_Caterpillar_Game_21st_Century_20_Questions_Travel_Edition

$22.99 BUY IT NOW!

You’re Pulling My Leg! Tin Version

Now the award-winning “You’re Pulling My Leg!” has been adapted for kids and families. You’ll laugh out loud as you and your friends try to fool each other with wacky answers to outrageous questions. When a card is drawn and a question is asked, the secret roll of the die tells you if your answer should be true or made up.When you hear a story, bet tokens on whether you think your friend is telling the truth or pulling your leg. Watch out! You’ll win tokens if you’re right but lose them if you’re wrong. Think you can fool your friends? Don’t let them fool you! Score enough tokens and you win!

You’re Pulling My Leg! Junior Version in Tin
You’ll laugh out loud as you and your friends try to fool each other with outrageous stories about your lives. When a card is drawn and a question is asked, the secret roll of the die tells you if your answer should be true or made up.

When you hear a story, bet tokens on whether you think your friend is telling the truth or pulling your leg. You’ll win tokens if you’re right but lose them if you’re wrong. Think you know your friends? How well do they know you? Bluff other players but don’t let them fool you. Score enough tokens and you win!

Very Hungry Caterpillar Game
Emerge from a rainy day cocoon, gather up some friends, and enjoy this wonderful game based on Eric Carle’s delightful children’s book. In The Very Hungry Caterpillar Game, children go on a journey of learning and transformation as their caterpillar develops from egg to beautiful butterfly.

21st Century 20 Questions – Travel Edition
Featuring all-new people, places, and things, this classic has been updated for the 21st century. My name was derived from the words pocket monster. Your kids might be the only ones who will know that you’re talking about Pokemon. But ask the same kid if they know who played a Godfather and a father of Superman in the movies, and you may pull into the lead. (Its Marlon Brando, of course!) This game has plenty of creative clues for the whole family to enjoy!

As advertised in the May 2008 issue of The Carousel News & Trader.

Wow, nearly a month without posting. Much too long. I shall endeavor to do better. In the meantime, here's some catchup and summary stuff:

Ruth got an iPod. I do not own an iPod. If you'd asked any one of our friends, they'd have told you there was zero chance that she'd get one before I did. Now she walks all over the house with little white buds in her ears, primarily listing to my playlist of peppy music.

I'm car shopping. Honda Civic LX, 5 speed manual, any color except white, silver or black. My purchase plan is simple: I know where one is, and I'm walking in with a checkbook. I'll tell the salesman "This is what I want." Then I'll write a check and say "This is what I'll pay for it, out the door." If he says yes, I sign the check and get a car. If he says no, I tear it in half, give him the half with my phone number on it, and go to the next dealer. There are five dealers within an hour's drive. Four have a car that meets my specs, and I've not checked the fifth yet.

Once I have a new car with an iPod interface, I'll get an iPod.

The last of the issues from my father-in-law's estate have settled out, with the house selling in under a month from putting it on the market through closing the sale. We're going to have a picnic memorial for him in July. It'll be at the park across the street from where he and Ruth Sr. lived for so many years, next to the benches and trees planted in their name.

I continue to listen my way through the 2005 South by Southwest Music Festival samples. I've listend to 250 or so songs enough to rate them 1-5. The bad news: 170 or so are 1 or 2, which means they'll be deleted once I'm thru the list. Only 16 are 4 or 5 stars. The good news: Of those 16, I have purchased or will purchase at least 20 CDs. My high runners so far: The Be Good Tanyas, Jolie Holland, Ambulance Ltd, Bloom, Susan Cowsill (of *those* Cowsills), Global Soul, Abra Moore, Alecia Nugent, Parade, Pam Tillis and a few others. Better, there are only two artists/bands in the high runners list that I'd even heard of. Still better, some of the 3's (which means I want to listen to them more) are coming out of genres that I either don't care for or intermix in odd ways - latino hiphop cowboy, power-pop satire, etc. Yeah, there are a lot of duds in here, but the nuggets are more than plentiful enough to keep me digging. And of course, after this comes the 2006, 2007 and 2008 collections. With any luck I'll finish before 2009.

Odd find of the lot: Tammy Faye Starlite and the Angel Band. Country-western-rock satire of right-wing fundamentalist televangism, and absolutely filthy. One reviewer describes her as "sort of a Pia Zadorable look-alike who pulls off an alter ego possessed by Tammy Wynette, Jesus Christ and Wild Turkey." Another says "When it comes to complete and utterly wonderful depravity, few have ever dropped their drawers, exposed every orifice and let out a lustful holler with as much panache as Miss Tammy Faye Starlite, whose self-released EP, On My Knees, sets a new standard for countrified carnality." Yep.

After swearing off buying new books last September, I have read down my 'to be read' pile . . . well, not considerably, but 20 or 30 books are gone from it. This week I made my first significant book buy since January, picking up "Matter" by Ian M. Banks and "The Terror" by Dan Simmons. I also replaced my falling-apart copy of Christopher Moore's "Lamb" with a new hardback release that looks like a bible. Gotta love it...

Travel, travel, travel. Between the convention circuit, business travel and family visits I'll spend every other weekend out of town from now through the end of July. One of the highlights will be the Cartel (hard to explain) meeting at Stanford, preceeded by a weekend visiting friends in the Bay area. And of course, there's always Anthrocon. For the first time since starting at the University I'm actually going to use an entire years vacation allocation in one year. For you on the SF convention front, look for me at Confluence and Marcon.

Work continues good, in spite of being peripherally involved in the project from hell. I spend a lot of time reading code and shaking my head, but it's all tolerable: I can either say 'no' to the code and turn it back for rewrite/redesign, or rewrite it myself without having to answer to the original author - and he isn't allowed to reject my changes. I expect to cause more stress than I receive. :-)

Caitlyn continues her quest to be the worlds cutest baby, except that soon she'll have to move up a weight class and compete in the toddler division:



You can't really tell by the photo, but she has huge china blue eyes.

frynge
hyperx
fenrirwoof

May hope and happiness always be plentiful!

http://www.tanga.com/products/2135-Two_Handed_Gun_Controller_for_Nintendo_Wii

$7.50 BUY IT NOW!

Blast Away On Your Wii!

This two-handed controller for the Nintendo Wii will allow you to blast away your enemies with ease. The Wii remote and Nunchuck fit comfortably into the gun so well, you’ll feel like you’re in the game.

Enjoy.

I know I'm a bit late in posting this, but our little getaway to St. Louis went quite well and we all had a fine time. By no means did we get to go to all the places we wanted to visit, nor see all the people we wanted to see, but part of that had to do with the intensely windy storm that blew through late Saturday afternoon and night. Thankfully it didn't put too much of a damper on our plans.

Friday night we checked into the Brewers House, a little gay bed and breakfast right near an old abandoned brewery. (I meant later to snoop around that brewery and take some photos, but the storm got in the way of that plan.) Our room was nicely furnished, and breakfast was little more than a brief nosh, but pleasant enough. I personally got hooked on the thick-cut bacon the proprietor had procured from the local farmers market; I think I ended up having about four pieces each morning. They were so addictive that I cautioned John against even trying to bring any home when we visited the same market on Saturday. We had a few drinks and a few ogles at the cute boys over at the Bastille before calling it a night.

In addition to the market on Saturday, we had to scope out Globe Drug and Vincent's Market before meeting our dear friend F. over at the Missouri Botanical Garden, where we spent several hours and had a rare treat: a tour of the secret tea house island in the Japanese garden. They had a special exhibition of many large sculptures by the late whimsical French sculptor Niki. We were famished by the time we finished, so it was off to Joanie's Pizza for some appetizers. Our friend S. was happily able to meet us at Tucker's that evening for dinner.

Sunday morning we headed to Grand Ave. for a shopping spree at Cheap Trx before getting back on the road home. We all spent way too much dough. John got a Nasty Pig uniform shirt, quite a sight newer than my vintage one. Danny got himself a black duck-cloth kilt and I talked him into getting a camo BDU one for me. I should have stopped with the kilt but also got some new ear jewelry and a stainless-steel iron cross pendant.

We were going to stop by Lambert's Cafe ("The Home of Throwed Rolls") in Sikeston, Missouri, but there was just no freakin' way. As those of you familiar with Lambert's will recall, they moved into a much larger building a few years ago that has two large dining rooms; every time we've eaten there, only one of those two rooms has been open. Well, the Mother's Day crowd must have included every mother from a hundred mile radius, because there were lots of folks waiting and hostess was at her podium outside announcing that the current wait time was an hour and forty-five minutes. Mercy! To add insult to injury, the Big Dogs outlet store nearby had evidently gone out of business since our previous visit last October.

This week I've finally gotten around to ordering a replacement rake for my violet wand and some other goodies. They should be here by the end of the week, in plenty of time for the usual weekend play buddy session. Woot!

Current Mood: pleased