* Reached my primary goal of getting everything to the storage unit that's going to the storage unit. Have a nice staging area of things going to my mom's house. However, did not reach primary goal of having everything that's garbage bagged and ready for the garbage man tomorrow. On the other hand, I'll be shocked if the garbage man takes all of the bags and boxes and other items I'll be leaving for him. My first trip with the U-Haul tomorrow may be to the landfill.
* Probably two-three hours left of work before everything is ready to go, though if I fall into "box it up and sort it out later" mode that could shorten considerably.
* Last post from North Liberty - the computer will be taken down and moved tomorrow. Not sure what kind of access I will have at night from here on. So good night for now, and talk to you all later.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Move Update
* It is easier to unload than to load.
* The correct answer to the question "Will this fit in the car?" is always "How badly do you want it to fit?"
* Garage is clean, except for approximately a pick-up truck load at the front of stuff that needs to go to the landfill, which was not open on Sunday. I found that out the hard way, by jamming the car full and driving there. I should have looked online. The pool shed and the pool chemical room are empty of our stuff, though there are some things in there that were there when we moved in. My, our?, bedroom is empty of everything but the bed, the nightstand and alarm clock and lamp, and my clothes. The only other things upstairs are in the display cabinet in the hall. I'm saving those for among the last things I do - the cabinet is full of very nice, very fragile, very meaning laden things. Ditto the pictures on the wall. My last load, which I finished about a half hour ago (and just got out of the shower), was from the kitchen. Everything is out of the kitchen except for the things I will take to my mom's house. That leaves the computer room, which, considering the cds and dvds and some of the books and some of the albums and the three bookcases and one cd case were moved out Friday, basically just means the computer desk and the computer. On the other hand, I've taken to using the room as something of a staging area, but the things I am staging are already boxed and waiting to go to Williamsburg. On the third hand, there is a big closet off the computer room, and that thing is PACKED. It's at least an hour's worth of work.
* My goal for tomorrow is to have everything that is going to the storage shed in the storage shed by the end of the evening. I plan on getting a U-Haul on Tuesday and moving the rest of the stuff going to my mom's in one load. This supercedes the previous plan of relying on friend's trucks - there are at least three pick-up truck loads, so better to take one U-Haul than three pick-ups.
* I still need to place the cats for four nights, from Tuesday to Saturday. Any takers?
* The correct answer to the question "Will this fit in the car?" is always "How badly do you want it to fit?"
* Garage is clean, except for approximately a pick-up truck load at the front of stuff that needs to go to the landfill, which was not open on Sunday. I found that out the hard way, by jamming the car full and driving there. I should have looked online. The pool shed and the pool chemical room are empty of our stuff, though there are some things in there that were there when we moved in. My, our?, bedroom is empty of everything but the bed, the nightstand and alarm clock and lamp, and my clothes. The only other things upstairs are in the display cabinet in the hall. I'm saving those for among the last things I do - the cabinet is full of very nice, very fragile, very meaning laden things. Ditto the pictures on the wall. My last load, which I finished about a half hour ago (and just got out of the shower), was from the kitchen. Everything is out of the kitchen except for the things I will take to my mom's house. That leaves the computer room, which, considering the cds and dvds and some of the books and some of the albums and the three bookcases and one cd case were moved out Friday, basically just means the computer desk and the computer. On the other hand, I've taken to using the room as something of a staging area, but the things I am staging are already boxed and waiting to go to Williamsburg. On the third hand, there is a big closet off the computer room, and that thing is PACKED. It's at least an hour's worth of work.
* My goal for tomorrow is to have everything that is going to the storage shed in the storage shed by the end of the evening. I plan on getting a U-Haul on Tuesday and moving the rest of the stuff going to my mom's in one load. This supercedes the previous plan of relying on friend's trucks - there are at least three pick-up truck loads, so better to take one U-Haul than three pick-ups.
* I still need to place the cats for four nights, from Tuesday to Saturday. Any takers?
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Random Moving Thoughts
* Got a storage unit about five minutes from the current house. Proximity is good.
* On Friday, I moved 6 long boxes of comics, 14 short boxes of comics, 5 milk crates of comics, 14 milk crates of books, 6 milk crates of albums, 3 milk crates of video tapes, 6 milk crates of dvds, and 7 milk crates of cds. By myself.
* Milk crates are the perfect moving carrier for things like dvds, cds, books, and comics. But man, that many are heavy.
* Friends are good to have. Friends with trucks are better. Thanks Matt! Everyone, give Matt a big round of applause.
* On Saturday, Matt and I moved eight loads with the truck, taking everything out of the house that needed to be moved by truck except for the stuff going to my mom's house. Oh, and a baker's rack. Cause I didn't have it cleared.
* I moved eight loads on my own in addition to the eight loads Matt and I moved. Indeed, except for a half hour when Matt and I had lunch at Subway, I spent twelve hours Saturday engaged in moving activities. I am way ahead of where I wanted to be at this point, though there is still plenty to do. The basement is empty. The boy's room is empty. The living room is practically empty. We even got the home entertainment center, which I thought for sure was going to have to wait so I could break it down.
* Nice to have an extra hour of sleep tonight. I can really use it. I am sore, sore, sore. My arms, particularly. I'm not sure which is worse. The eight loads we moved by truck were heavy, but the most items we had on any load was six, for a total of around 30 items. As a result, we got those eight loads moved in 2.5 hours. If you do the math on the milk crates alone up top, you get 61 milk crates (thanks decades of restaurant work!). As a result, my arms feel rubbery.
* Left to move? My bedroom, kitchen, computer room, toys, and one really jam-packed closet. Left to clean out? The rest of the garage and the pool shed. Tomorrow will be another busy day.
* On Friday, I moved 6 long boxes of comics, 14 short boxes of comics, 5 milk crates of comics, 14 milk crates of books, 6 milk crates of albums, 3 milk crates of video tapes, 6 milk crates of dvds, and 7 milk crates of cds. By myself.
* Milk crates are the perfect moving carrier for things like dvds, cds, books, and comics. But man, that many are heavy.
* Friends are good to have. Friends with trucks are better. Thanks Matt! Everyone, give Matt a big round of applause.
* On Saturday, Matt and I moved eight loads with the truck, taking everything out of the house that needed to be moved by truck except for the stuff going to my mom's house. Oh, and a baker's rack. Cause I didn't have it cleared.
* I moved eight loads on my own in addition to the eight loads Matt and I moved. Indeed, except for a half hour when Matt and I had lunch at Subway, I spent twelve hours Saturday engaged in moving activities. I am way ahead of where I wanted to be at this point, though there is still plenty to do. The basement is empty. The boy's room is empty. The living room is practically empty. We even got the home entertainment center, which I thought for sure was going to have to wait so I could break it down.
* Nice to have an extra hour of sleep tonight. I can really use it. I am sore, sore, sore. My arms, particularly. I'm not sure which is worse. The eight loads we moved by truck were heavy, but the most items we had on any load was six, for a total of around 30 items. As a result, we got those eight loads moved in 2.5 hours. If you do the math on the milk crates alone up top, you get 61 milk crates (thanks decades of restaurant work!). As a result, my arms feel rubbery.
* Left to move? My bedroom, kitchen, computer room, toys, and one really jam-packed closet. Left to clean out? The rest of the garage and the pool shed. Tomorrow will be another busy day.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Thursday Song
Top of the World
Dixie Chicks
I wished I was smarter,
I wished I was stronger
I wished I love Jesus,
The way my wife does
I wish it had been easier,
Instead of any longer
I wished I could have stood
Where you would have been proud
That won't happen now
That won't happen now
There's a whole lot of singing that's never gonna be heard
Disappearing everyday without so much as a word somehow
Think I broke the wings of that little song bird
She's never gonna fly to the top of the world right now
Top of the world
I don't have to answer
Any of these questions
Don't have no God to
Teach me no lessons
I’d come home in the evening,
Sit in my chair
One night they called me for supper,
But I never got up
I stayed right there,
In my chair
There's a whole lot of singing that's never gonna be heard
Disappearing everyday without so much as a word somehow
Think I broke the wings of that little song bird
She's never gonna fly to the top of the world right now
Top of the world
I wished I'd of known you,
Wished I'd of shown you
All of the things I
Was on the inside
I'd pretend to be sleeping,
When you come in in the morning
To whisper good-bye,
Go to work in the rain
I don't know why,
Don't know why
Cause everyone's singing, we just wanna be heard
Disappearing every day without so much as a word somehow
Wanna grab a hold of that little song bird
Take her for a ride to the top of the world right now
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world
Dixie Chicks
I wished I was smarter,
I wished I was stronger
I wished I love Jesus,
The way my wife does
I wish it had been easier,
Instead of any longer
I wished I could have stood
Where you would have been proud
That won't happen now
That won't happen now
There's a whole lot of singing that's never gonna be heard
Disappearing everyday without so much as a word somehow
Think I broke the wings of that little song bird
She's never gonna fly to the top of the world right now
Top of the world
I don't have to answer
Any of these questions
Don't have no God to
Teach me no lessons
I’d come home in the evening,
Sit in my chair
One night they called me for supper,
But I never got up
I stayed right there,
In my chair
There's a whole lot of singing that's never gonna be heard
Disappearing everyday without so much as a word somehow
Think I broke the wings of that little song bird
She's never gonna fly to the top of the world right now
Top of the world
I wished I'd of known you,
Wished I'd of shown you
All of the things I
Was on the inside
I'd pretend to be sleeping,
When you come in in the morning
To whisper good-bye,
Go to work in the rain
I don't know why,
Don't know why
Cause everyone's singing, we just wanna be heard
Disappearing every day without so much as a word somehow
Wanna grab a hold of that little song bird
Take her for a ride to the top of the world right now
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world,
To the top of the world
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
You Know How I Know You’re Stoned?
You deposited your bag of pot at the bank along with the night’s receipts from the pizza place where you work. Course, that also could be how I know you’re stupid.
Police arrested a Pizza Pit employee after he allegedly deposited some marijuana at the bank last month.
Adrian Michael Hilton, 25, of Coralville, is charged with possession of marijuana, a serious misdemeanor punishable by no more than six months in prison and a $1,000 fine.
According to a criminal complaint filed by the Coralville Police department:
Employees at American Bank and Trust told police they found a bag of marijuana in the Pizza Pit deposit bag dropped off in the night deposit box Sept. 17. Pizza Pit employees identified Hilton as having made the deposit.
Police arrested a Pizza Pit employee after he allegedly deposited some marijuana at the bank last month.
Adrian Michael Hilton, 25, of Coralville, is charged with possession of marijuana, a serious misdemeanor punishable by no more than six months in prison and a $1,000 fine.
According to a criminal complaint filed by the Coralville Police department:
Employees at American Bank and Trust told police they found a bag of marijuana in the Pizza Pit deposit bag dropped off in the night deposit box Sept. 17. Pizza Pit employees identified Hilton as having made the deposit.
Monday, October 23, 2006
So Where Were We?
I'm moving. It's a matter of financial necessity. I'm going to my mother's basement.
Yep, 47 years old and living in my mother's basement. But at least it means I'm going to be going to get Ethan soon, and I can't begin to tell you how much that means to me. I missed his birthday, damnit. Not that I forgot it, or didn't talk to him and send a card (saving the gift for when he gets back), just that I wasn't there with him on that day. He was a c-section birth, and I was the third person to hold him in his life, and I wasn't with him on his birthday. I cried a lot that day.
And now I'm moving, having to be out by the end of the month. It's tough to pack up what's left of a life together; tougher still when you're packing up what remains of your family. Every object, it seems, has a memory attached to it, and the better the memory, the harder it is to pack away, put it in some box and seal it, never knowing when you might release that memory again. It's like slogging through a deep, snowy field, knowing you have to reach your destination but getting more exhausted with each step. And so you put it off, and put it off, and put it off, hoping that in condensing the time to accomplish the task you can also condense the pain and heartache of the task. But it doesn't help. It just adds a nice layer of panic to the sadness.
So, that's been my life lately. Haven't had much to say - well, that's not true. I have a lot I could say. Haven't had much I want to say. I'm kind of private like that. But I know that this pain has been building, and this day has been coming, and it has colored my life and my existence for so long, manifested itself in so many ways, and I hope that sometime in the future, maybe even the near future, I can start being a little more of who I think of as myself. I mean, the last time I played poker with friends, I freaked out over a hand and was a complete and total asshole, and I still haven't apologized, still haven't said I was sorry because everytime I start to compose an email to say so I start crying and drop it. I start crying a lot these days. I cry in the car sitting out front of stores. Cry in the car sitting in the parking lot at work. I cry before I leave for work and on the way to work and the way home from work and at home after work. I run into casual friends who ask how things are and I have to fight back the tears. I can't even manage an "Okay" for most of them. I'll often say "bad" and just leave it like that, hanging in the air, and then I'll go and cry. There's a phrase in Paul Simon's Slip Sliding Away that captures it perfectly:
She said a good day, ain't got no rain
She said a bad day's when I lie in bed and think of things, that might have been
I just want days with no rain, with no tears. Haven't had any in a long time, not sure how long it will be before I have one again.
And that's who I am right now, and that's not who I want to be, cause that's not who I believe I truly am. So I'm moving, and boxing up a life and storing it away, and maybe after that's accomplished, maybe after my son's back, I can at least start to rebuild, start to reform, start to live again, live and not cry. That's my dream, and I hope it will be my future.
Yep, 47 years old and living in my mother's basement. But at least it means I'm going to be going to get Ethan soon, and I can't begin to tell you how much that means to me. I missed his birthday, damnit. Not that I forgot it, or didn't talk to him and send a card (saving the gift for when he gets back), just that I wasn't there with him on that day. He was a c-section birth, and I was the third person to hold him in his life, and I wasn't with him on his birthday. I cried a lot that day.
And now I'm moving, having to be out by the end of the month. It's tough to pack up what's left of a life together; tougher still when you're packing up what remains of your family. Every object, it seems, has a memory attached to it, and the better the memory, the harder it is to pack away, put it in some box and seal it, never knowing when you might release that memory again. It's like slogging through a deep, snowy field, knowing you have to reach your destination but getting more exhausted with each step. And so you put it off, and put it off, and put it off, hoping that in condensing the time to accomplish the task you can also condense the pain and heartache of the task. But it doesn't help. It just adds a nice layer of panic to the sadness.
So, that's been my life lately. Haven't had much to say - well, that's not true. I have a lot I could say. Haven't had much I want to say. I'm kind of private like that. But I know that this pain has been building, and this day has been coming, and it has colored my life and my existence for so long, manifested itself in so many ways, and I hope that sometime in the future, maybe even the near future, I can start being a little more of who I think of as myself. I mean, the last time I played poker with friends, I freaked out over a hand and was a complete and total asshole, and I still haven't apologized, still haven't said I was sorry because everytime I start to compose an email to say so I start crying and drop it. I start crying a lot these days. I cry in the car sitting out front of stores. Cry in the car sitting in the parking lot at work. I cry before I leave for work and on the way to work and the way home from work and at home after work. I run into casual friends who ask how things are and I have to fight back the tears. I can't even manage an "Okay" for most of them. I'll often say "bad" and just leave it like that, hanging in the air, and then I'll go and cry. There's a phrase in Paul Simon's Slip Sliding Away that captures it perfectly:
She said a good day, ain't got no rain
She said a bad day's when I lie in bed and think of things, that might have been
I just want days with no rain, with no tears. Haven't had any in a long time, not sure how long it will be before I have one again.
And that's who I am right now, and that's not who I want to be, cause that's not who I believe I truly am. So I'm moving, and boxing up a life and storing it away, and maybe after that's accomplished, maybe after my son's back, I can at least start to rebuild, start to reform, start to live again, live and not cry. That's my dream, and I hope it will be my future.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Monday, October 02, 2006
"Who did it? Frank?"
I am not normally a big Norm Macdonald fan, but this is one of the funniest things I’ve seen in quite some time. I love Stewart's reactions to this.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Rain Forest Picks Pella
Film at eleven, story at PC Online.
Yet another example of the total incompetence of the project management team. You could locate the facility at A: near two major highways right next to a brand new entertainment center where said entertainment center has already offered to make the most significant private sector financial contribution your project has ever received or B: in a far more out of the way and difficult to reach location. So which do you choose? Well, if you’re smart, you go with A. You have to go with A. What did they do? They went with B. I’m beginning to think they have a death wish.
Yet another example of the total incompetence of the project management team. You could locate the facility at A: near two major highways right next to a brand new entertainment center where said entertainment center has already offered to make the most significant private sector financial contribution your project has ever received or B: in a far more out of the way and difficult to reach location. So which do you choose? Well, if you’re smart, you go with A. You have to go with A. What did they do? They went with B. I’m beginning to think they have a death wish.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
You Know What Sucks?
Playing poker for six hours, til 3:00 in the morning on a work night, as part of 2,000 person tourney where the top 18 advance on to the next tourney, and finishing 20th. Yes, I finished better than 1,980 people. Yes, I finished in the 100th percentile. But I still missed the payoff, and missed it by two people. The only thing that would have sucked more would be being the poor bastard who finished 19th.
I didn’t make many mistakes, though. Looking back at the hand that brought me out of contention, I would still play it the same way. I was sitting at about 80,000 chips, 15th with 26 left. I get dealt A-K spades in third position. The person in first position went all in with 40,000. Factoring in blinds and antes (the blinds at this point were 3,000-6,000, the antes 750), the pot was over 55,000. I had a great starting hand, so I didn’t just call, I went all in myself, hoping to isolate him. Everyone else dropped but the big blind, who called my all-in. This left a main pot of over 135,000 and a side pot of 80,000. I still wasn’t worried, thinking I would only be dominated by A-A and a slight dog to any pair. The short stack shows A-J hearts, I show my A-K spades, and the other caller shows A-K offsuit. So far, so good. All my fellow A-K have to do is fade the J and we split 215,000. From that point it would be tough not to make the top 18. And, in a perfect world, three spades would hit the board, I’d take the entire 235,000, and I wouldn’t have to play another hand.
The J hit on the turn.
I was down to 40,000, and when you lose 15,750 every rotation (with blinds increasing every ten minute), that’s not a good place to be. I still outlasted six other people, but I missed out on top 18 by the barest of margins. I couldn’t catch a hand the rest of the way, and finally called a raise with 10-5 suited. I was big blind, I only had 2,000 in chips after paying the blind and my ante, the small blind alone on the next hand would be more than my chip stack if I mucked, and even if I waited and everyone called (at this point we were a table of six) and I had a decent hand I could win more money from this pot than waiting. So I called, saw my 10-5 up against A-4, and lost to Ace high.
On the other hand, you know what doesn’t suck?
Saturday, or more accurately early Sunday, I played in an 1,800 person tourney. In this tourney, the top 36 moved on to the next round. In that one, I ended up 21st. I got some great cards and played them well. But the thing I am proudest of in that one is how I played at the bubble. At the 37 mark there were three of us who didn’t have enough chips to make another rotation of blinds and antes. I was watching the tables where the other two people were. They were automatically mucking every hand, hoping someone went out first. I, on the other hand, got dealt A-10 spades right after the button. Now, I could have folded. The other two people would be put all in by the blinds before I was. But I went all in anyway. Two people called, the flop was all spades, and I tripled up. On the very next hand I got dealt K-K. I went all in again, got called by the big stack who had A-J, and doubled up again. A few hands later I doubled again, and coasted not only to the top 36 but to 21st. The next tourney is Saturday – the top nine move on, with the eventual goal a tourney where the winner gets an Aussie Millions prize package.
I didn’t make many mistakes, though. Looking back at the hand that brought me out of contention, I would still play it the same way. I was sitting at about 80,000 chips, 15th with 26 left. I get dealt A-K spades in third position. The person in first position went all in with 40,000. Factoring in blinds and antes (the blinds at this point were 3,000-6,000, the antes 750), the pot was over 55,000. I had a great starting hand, so I didn’t just call, I went all in myself, hoping to isolate him. Everyone else dropped but the big blind, who called my all-in. This left a main pot of over 135,000 and a side pot of 80,000. I still wasn’t worried, thinking I would only be dominated by A-A and a slight dog to any pair. The short stack shows A-J hearts, I show my A-K spades, and the other caller shows A-K offsuit. So far, so good. All my fellow A-K have to do is fade the J and we split 215,000. From that point it would be tough not to make the top 18. And, in a perfect world, three spades would hit the board, I’d take the entire 235,000, and I wouldn’t have to play another hand.
The J hit on the turn.
I was down to 40,000, and when you lose 15,750 every rotation (with blinds increasing every ten minute), that’s not a good place to be. I still outlasted six other people, but I missed out on top 18 by the barest of margins. I couldn’t catch a hand the rest of the way, and finally called a raise with 10-5 suited. I was big blind, I only had 2,000 in chips after paying the blind and my ante, the small blind alone on the next hand would be more than my chip stack if I mucked, and even if I waited and everyone called (at this point we were a table of six) and I had a decent hand I could win more money from this pot than waiting. So I called, saw my 10-5 up against A-4, and lost to Ace high.
On the other hand, you know what doesn’t suck?
Saturday, or more accurately early Sunday, I played in an 1,800 person tourney. In this tourney, the top 36 moved on to the next round. In that one, I ended up 21st. I got some great cards and played them well. But the thing I am proudest of in that one is how I played at the bubble. At the 37 mark there were three of us who didn’t have enough chips to make another rotation of blinds and antes. I was watching the tables where the other two people were. They were automatically mucking every hand, hoping someone went out first. I, on the other hand, got dealt A-10 spades right after the button. Now, I could have folded. The other two people would be put all in by the blinds before I was. But I went all in anyway. Two people called, the flop was all spades, and I tripled up. On the very next hand I got dealt K-K. I went all in again, got called by the big stack who had A-J, and doubled up again. A few hands later I doubled again, and coasted not only to the top 36 but to 21st. The next tourney is Saturday – the top nine move on, with the eventual goal a tourney where the winner gets an Aussie Millions prize package.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Today's Song
The Wreckers, Leave The Pieces
You're not sure that you love me
But you're not sure enough to let me go
Baby it ain't fair you know
To just keep me hangin' 'round
You say you don't wanna hurt me
Don't want to see my tears
So why are you still standing here
Just watching me drown
And it's alright, yeah i'll be fine
Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine
Just take your love and hit the road
There's nothing you can do or say
You're gonna break my heart anyway
So just leave the pieces when you go
You can drag out the heartache
Baby you can make it quick
Really get it over with
And just let me move on
Don't concern yourself
With this mess you've left for me
I can clean it up, you see
Just as long as you're gone
And it's alright, yeah i'll be fine
Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine
Just take your love and hit the road
There's nothing you can do or say
You're gonna break my heart anyway
So just leave the pieces when you go
You not making up your mind
Is killing me and wasting time
I need so much more than that
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
And it's alright, yeah i'll be fine
Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine
Just take your love and hit the road
There's nothing you can do or say
You're gonna break my heart anyway
So just leave the pieces when you go
You're not sure that you love me
But you're not sure enough to let me go
Baby it ain't fair you know
To just keep me hangin' 'round
You say you don't wanna hurt me
Don't want to see my tears
So why are you still standing here
Just watching me drown
And it's alright, yeah i'll be fine
Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine
Just take your love and hit the road
There's nothing you can do or say
You're gonna break my heart anyway
So just leave the pieces when you go
You can drag out the heartache
Baby you can make it quick
Really get it over with
And just let me move on
Don't concern yourself
With this mess you've left for me
I can clean it up, you see
Just as long as you're gone
And it's alright, yeah i'll be fine
Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine
Just take your love and hit the road
There's nothing you can do or say
You're gonna break my heart anyway
So just leave the pieces when you go
You not making up your mind
Is killing me and wasting time
I need so much more than that
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
And it's alright, yeah i'll be fine
Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine
Just take your love and hit the road
There's nothing you can do or say
You're gonna break my heart anyway
So just leave the pieces when you go
Thursday, September 07, 2006
How It Should Have Ended
Courtesy of Blog@Newsarama, How It Should Have Ended. I particularly like the Star Wars and Lord of the Rings entries.
You Know How You Know I Have Kids?
Because the only band-aid I could find to put on my skull when I cut it open last night on a metal shelf support has a Power Ranger on it.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Fun Little Time Waster
Okay, I know I’m the resident comic geek, but Crap and TanMan might enjoy this site too.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Thought For The Day
You know, you come back from a meeting to your cube, and even though it’s a nice cube, a window cube, it’s a cube, and you’ve been sitting at it, or at something similar, for almost fifteen years, and in all probability you’re going to be sitting at it, or something similar, for another twenty years or more, and suddenly the idea of getting killed by a stingray while at work doesn’t seem so horrible.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Genius Of The Day
I'll just reprint the whole thing found here.
A man was arrested Friday night after he allegedly threatened a waitress at a Coralville restaurant.
Christopher Paul Huffey, 18, of Moscow, was arrested for second-degree harassment at 7:15 p.m. Friday outside of the Steak n’ Shake, 2806 Commerce Drive in Coralville.
According to police, Huffey passed a note to the waitress stating he would “beat her” if she did not bring him her tip money within two minutes. He later admitted to writing the note, police said.
Wow. There's dumb, and there's dumb. And then there's this guy.
It reminds me of one time when I was working at Country Kitchen in Coralville as a manager. It was a Saturday, actually, early Sunday, about an hour after the bar rush had ended. We used to get all the cops on the midnight shift - city, highway patrol, sheriff's department. They would come in after their post-bar duties had ended. It was one such night, with about eight different officers in the main dining room, when some guy on a bike - a bike, mind you - decided to leave without paying. I was getting coffee for the officers and the waitress said "Dweeze, some guy just left without paying." Before I could say anything, three or four cops were on their feet saying "Who?" She pointed to him out the window as he was climbing on his bicycle. They started moving towards the door at about the exact same moment he glanced back inside. The look on his face was priceless. He dropped the bike and took off running, but he didn't have a chance. It was great.
A man was arrested Friday night after he allegedly threatened a waitress at a Coralville restaurant.
Christopher Paul Huffey, 18, of Moscow, was arrested for second-degree harassment at 7:15 p.m. Friday outside of the Steak n’ Shake, 2806 Commerce Drive in Coralville.
According to police, Huffey passed a note to the waitress stating he would “beat her” if she did not bring him her tip money within two minutes. He later admitted to writing the note, police said.
Wow. There's dumb, and there's dumb. And then there's this guy.
It reminds me of one time when I was working at Country Kitchen in Coralville as a manager. It was a Saturday, actually, early Sunday, about an hour after the bar rush had ended. We used to get all the cops on the midnight shift - city, highway patrol, sheriff's department. They would come in after their post-bar duties had ended. It was one such night, with about eight different officers in the main dining room, when some guy on a bike - a bike, mind you - decided to leave without paying. I was getting coffee for the officers and the waitress said "Dweeze, some guy just left without paying." Before I could say anything, three or four cops were on their feet saying "Who?" She pointed to him out the window as he was climbing on his bicycle. They started moving towards the door at about the exact same moment he glanced back inside. The look on his face was priceless. He dropped the bike and took off running, but he didn't have a chance. It was great.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Update
Just a quick update.
I mentioned someplace else that my surgery is scheduled for next Monday, the 28th. Mercy Hospital in Iowa City, in case anyone local wants to stop in. Lesa and Ethan are not back, but the pain is just getting to be too much to put off any longer.
Drew was here a week, and is now in Pennsylvania with Lesa and Ethan. Having him here, and then losing him again, is really fucking me up right now, especially combined with Ethan not being here. Thus, the lack of posts and the brevity of this one. Pity too, cause I do have some cool poker things I could talk about. Maybe later.
I mentioned someplace else that my surgery is scheduled for next Monday, the 28th. Mercy Hospital in Iowa City, in case anyone local wants to stop in. Lesa and Ethan are not back, but the pain is just getting to be too much to put off any longer.
Drew was here a week, and is now in Pennsylvania with Lesa and Ethan. Having him here, and then losing him again, is really fucking me up right now, especially combined with Ethan not being here. Thus, the lack of posts and the brevity of this one. Pity too, cause I do have some cool poker things I could talk about. Maybe later.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Friday, August 11, 2006
Must Read Of The Day
I don't write about politics all that often. For one thing, if I did, who would chronicle my poker exploits or the other mundane details of my existence? For another, there are often others who express what I am feeling much better than I could. One such person is John Rogers of Kung Fu Monkey (link in sidebar). Rogers is a professional writer for tv, movies, and comic books. He also writes succinctly and directly from a political viewpoint I almost always agree with. Case in point - his post today, Wait Aren't You Scared?, about the terror ring British officials broke up. Go, read the whole damn thing. I was tempted to quote it all, but will just excerpt a bit.
“Wait, Aren't You Scared?"
Errr, no. And if you are, you frankly should be a little goddam embarrassed.No false bravado and it's not that I don't take terrorism seriously. I do, which I why I voted for the guy who believed in securing our ports and fighting terrorism with criminal investigation methods -- which is, if we may remind everybody, how this particular plot was busted.
I am just not going to wet my pants every time some guys get arrested in a terror plot. I will do my best to stay informed. I will support the necessary law enforcement agencies. I will take whatever reasonable precautions seem, um, reasonable. But I will not be terrorized. I assume that the terror-ists would like me to be terror-ized, as that is what is says on their nametag, rather than, say, wanting me to surrender to ennui or negative body image, and they're just coming the long way around.
…
I am absolutely buffaloed by the people who insist I man up and take it in the teeth for the great Clash of Civilizations -- "Come ON, people, this is the EPIC LAST WAR!! You just don't have the stones to face that fact head-on!" -- who at the whiff of an actual terror plot will, with no apparent sense of irony, transform and run around shrieking, eyes rolling and Hello Kitty panties flashing like Japanese schoolgirls who have just realized that the call is coming from inside the house!
…
Maybe it's just, I cast my eyes back on the last century:
FDR: Oh, I'm sorry, was wiping out our entire Pacific fleet supposed to intimidate us? We have nothing to fear but fear itself, and right now we're coming to kick your ass with brand new destroyers riveted by waitresses. How's that going to feel?
CHURCHILL: Yeah, you keep bombing us. We'll be in the pub, flipping you off. I'm slapping Rolls-Royce engines into untested flying coffins to knock you out of the skies, and then I'm sending angry Welshmen to burn your country from the Rhine to the Polish border.
US. NOW: BE AFRAID!! Oh God, the Brown Bad people could strike any moment! They could strike ... NOW!! AHHHH. Okay, how about .. NOW!! AAGAGAHAHAHHAG! Quick, do whatever we tell you, and believe whatever we tell you, or YOU WILL BE KILLED BY BROWN PEOPLE!! PUT DOWN THAT SIPPY CUP!!
and I'm just a little tired of being on the wrong side of that historical arc.
“Wait, Aren't You Scared?"
Errr, no. And if you are, you frankly should be a little goddam embarrassed.No false bravado and it's not that I don't take terrorism seriously. I do, which I why I voted for the guy who believed in securing our ports and fighting terrorism with criminal investigation methods -- which is, if we may remind everybody, how this particular plot was busted.
I am just not going to wet my pants every time some guys get arrested in a terror plot. I will do my best to stay informed. I will support the necessary law enforcement agencies. I will take whatever reasonable precautions seem, um, reasonable. But I will not be terrorized. I assume that the terror-ists would like me to be terror-ized, as that is what is says on their nametag, rather than, say, wanting me to surrender to ennui or negative body image, and they're just coming the long way around.
…
I am absolutely buffaloed by the people who insist I man up and take it in the teeth for the great Clash of Civilizations -- "Come ON, people, this is the EPIC LAST WAR!! You just don't have the stones to face that fact head-on!" -- who at the whiff of an actual terror plot will, with no apparent sense of irony, transform and run around shrieking, eyes rolling and Hello Kitty panties flashing like Japanese schoolgirls who have just realized that the call is coming from inside the house!
…
Maybe it's just, I cast my eyes back on the last century:
FDR: Oh, I'm sorry, was wiping out our entire Pacific fleet supposed to intimidate us? We have nothing to fear but fear itself, and right now we're coming to kick your ass with brand new destroyers riveted by waitresses. How's that going to feel?
CHURCHILL: Yeah, you keep bombing us. We'll be in the pub, flipping you off. I'm slapping Rolls-Royce engines into untested flying coffins to knock you out of the skies, and then I'm sending angry Welshmen to burn your country from the Rhine to the Polish border.
US. NOW: BE AFRAID!! Oh God, the Brown Bad people could strike any moment! They could strike ... NOW!! AHHHH. Okay, how about .. NOW!! AAGAGAHAHAHHAG! Quick, do whatever we tell you, and believe whatever we tell you, or YOU WILL BE KILLED BY BROWN PEOPLE!! PUT DOWN THAT SIPPY CUP!!
and I'm just a little tired of being on the wrong side of that historical arc.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
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