Under the knife and out the other side.
So, I have undergone the surgery, and now I'm recovering slowly, bed-ridden and drug-filled. That may sound fun, but it's really more necessary than anything else. This morning I found out what can happen if I let the drugs in my system lapse, even due to something as necessary as sleep. Owwwww, dammit. I will be doing my best to make sure THAT doesn't happen again. I've been blessed with having a great nurse through this - LampLover is taking fantastic care of me (though she won't put on a little skimpy nurse's outfit while she is doing it...was worth a shot). She is staying with me and brought lots of movies to help entertain me while I'm stuck horizontal. The Cheat was really nice and bought me a movie to help entertain me while I'm out of commission as well - Wedding Crashers is part of my movie collection now.
I was going to attempt a return to work on Thursday, but that idea has been nixed. The return may happen Friday, but I'm going to wait and see how I feel tomorrow afternoon. I can't imagine sitting at work for 8 hours right now, even on pain meds...I just don't think it will happen. Friday is looking a tad doubtful too, but it's at least worth pondering. Any hours I can save would be nice, since I'd like to have SOME sort of personal time left in my cache by this summer.
2.22.2006
2.16.2006
Monkey Love and Painful Procedures
Let me start by saying this - Valentine's Day is not one of my favorite days. A lot of people seem to think that "romantics" (or whatever comparable labels we're given) would be a natural match with a day devoted to love. Not true, in my book. I'm more of a belief that every day should be devoted to love. Why just one day? And why the expectations of flowers, dinner, candy and other gifts? I'd much rather give small tokens of my love and express myself throughout the year than have one day devoted to it. Actually, and it's a cliched joke, Hallmark, FTD and the other big profiteers of the day are the one who perpetuate it, I think.
Anyway, I still feel an obligation to make sure my beloved LampLover knows I love her, and to take the time to express it in a way that *I* like. Dinner out a nice restaurant would have been nice...and a bit better of a present would have been good too. However, I don't really have the money right now - one reason why will follow this recap - and so I'm left to devise more creative activities. Luckily, LL is good with the imagination as well, and she suggested a little frozen chinese food buffet (from the cold depths of my freezer - prepackaged and pretty much ready to go) and I threw in the idea of a movie, and we were off. It was a quiet little romantic meal...we exchanged gifts just before - LL gave me a great framed picture of the two of us from New Years Eve and I gave her a little basket of bath items to pamper her with - and then enjoyed the food and the company (though not the movie really....FYI, The Corpse Bride is a bit sub-par). Other activities of the evening will remain on a need to know basis. It was a very enjoyable day, despite it's over commercialism on the whole.
Now, some of you don't know, so I will share. My out of shape gut managed to let down it's defenses a bit last fall when I was moving into my current digs, and lo and behold - out protruded a small hernia. I've put it off for some time, because it's really just a bit of a nuisance, and not particularly painful. But, during my last visit to my doctor, I decided to have him check it out. Yep, he said. Hernia it is, and you need to get it worked on - call this fella, he's good...handed me a reference. Being the speedy guy I am, I followed up on said reference about 3-4 weeks later. The Referred Doctor took a look at it. Yep, he said. Hernia it is, and you need to get it worked on. Not today or tomorrow or anything...but pretty soon. No more than a month or so from now. Ugh. So, I scheduled the surgery, and that was about two weeks ago. My surgery is upcoming this next Tuesday. So, wish me luck...good thoughts, etc., etc. It's not a particularly difficult surgery, I've been told, and it's an outpatient procedure, and I'll be back in the very bed I get out of the morning of my surgery later that afternoon, but I'm still a bit nervous. Guess I'm chicken. Oh well. Good mojo is requested, none the nevermind.
Oh - and the Olympics are on. Good hockey. Actually, VERY good hockey. Catch some if you can - the best in the game are on display.
Monkey - out.
Anyway, I still feel an obligation to make sure my beloved LampLover knows I love her, and to take the time to express it in a way that *I* like. Dinner out a nice restaurant would have been nice...and a bit better of a present would have been good too. However, I don't really have the money right now - one reason why will follow this recap - and so I'm left to devise more creative activities. Luckily, LL is good with the imagination as well, and she suggested a little frozen chinese food buffet (from the cold depths of my freezer - prepackaged and pretty much ready to go) and I threw in the idea of a movie, and we were off. It was a quiet little romantic meal...we exchanged gifts just before - LL gave me a great framed picture of the two of us from New Years Eve and I gave her a little basket of bath items to pamper her with - and then enjoyed the food and the company (though not the movie really....FYI, The Corpse Bride is a bit sub-par). Other activities of the evening will remain on a need to know basis. It was a very enjoyable day, despite it's over commercialism on the whole.
Now, some of you don't know, so I will share. My out of shape gut managed to let down it's defenses a bit last fall when I was moving into my current digs, and lo and behold - out protruded a small hernia. I've put it off for some time, because it's really just a bit of a nuisance, and not particularly painful. But, during my last visit to my doctor, I decided to have him check it out. Yep, he said. Hernia it is, and you need to get it worked on - call this fella, he's good...handed me a reference. Being the speedy guy I am, I followed up on said reference about 3-4 weeks later. The Referred Doctor took a look at it. Yep, he said. Hernia it is, and you need to get it worked on. Not today or tomorrow or anything...but pretty soon. No more than a month or so from now. Ugh. So, I scheduled the surgery, and that was about two weeks ago. My surgery is upcoming this next Tuesday. So, wish me luck...good thoughts, etc., etc. It's not a particularly difficult surgery, I've been told, and it's an outpatient procedure, and I'll be back in the very bed I get out of the morning of my surgery later that afternoon, but I'm still a bit nervous. Guess I'm chicken. Oh well. Good mojo is requested, none the nevermind.
Oh - and the Olympics are on. Good hockey. Actually, VERY good hockey. Catch some if you can - the best in the game are on display.
Monkey - out.
2.03.2006
Unmarked Cars are Watching My Neighbors Dog...
Finally, a respite in the work. It's been crazy at work, and because of that I haven't wanted to be in front of a computer unless I'm at work. Therefore - very little blogging. Which was probably for the best anyway, as most stories about work are pretty boring.
Outside of the work world, things have been going great (he says, knocking on wood). LampLover and I are coming up on our 11th monthiversary towards the end of the month, meaning just a little over a month before the big landmark. We're very excited about it and speaking for myself, I'm really looking forward to the next one, and one after that, etc., etc. I've never been so excited about my future with a person before.
*mush mush mush*
I know. But now you're past it, so don't you feel better?
This weekend should be a good time. A couple of days away from work is always nice, but when you can have a gathering with friends, eat good foods and drink some Shiner...well that just makes the weekend all that more enjoyable. Of course, it's the big Super Bowl weekend upon us, so LL and I will be taking a friend up on an invite for a small gathering to include a cookout and access to a kegerator full of Brown Liquid Goodness (a.k.a. Shiner). My dearest girl is not a fan of football, but hopefully with all the commercials and camaraderie and Shiner, it will help her get through the ordeal. To be honest, even as a football fan, this is the biggest let-down of a SuperBowl in about a decade. I mean really...Pittsburgh and Seattle?? Who cares??? Well, aside from the citizens of Pittsburgh and Seattle...and do they even? *shrug* Hopefully I'll be wrong and it'll be a good game.
**Here's where the credits would be if you were watching a movie.**
Outside of the work world, things have been going great (he says, knocking on wood). LampLover and I are coming up on our 11th monthiversary towards the end of the month, meaning just a little over a month before the big landmark. We're very excited about it and speaking for myself, I'm really looking forward to the next one, and one after that, etc., etc. I've never been so excited about my future with a person before.
*mush mush mush*
I know. But now you're past it, so don't you feel better?
This weekend should be a good time. A couple of days away from work is always nice, but when you can have a gathering with friends, eat good foods and drink some Shiner...well that just makes the weekend all that more enjoyable. Of course, it's the big Super Bowl weekend upon us, so LL and I will be taking a friend up on an invite for a small gathering to include a cookout and access to a kegerator full of Brown Liquid Goodness (a.k.a. Shiner). My dearest girl is not a fan of football, but hopefully with all the commercials and camaraderie and Shiner, it will help her get through the ordeal. To be honest, even as a football fan, this is the biggest let-down of a SuperBowl in about a decade. I mean really...Pittsburgh and Seattle?? Who cares??? Well, aside from the citizens of Pittsburgh and Seattle...and do they even? *shrug* Hopefully I'll be wrong and it'll be a good game.
**Here's where the credits would be if you were watching a movie.**
1.24.2006
Blowing off the cobwebs...
Ok, in my defense....ehhh, forget it. I have no defense. I suck. But, there are other blogs out there that have gone longer, so oh well. Let's just move past this sad little point.
So, let's bust out the ever-effective point-by-point method to catch you all up on what's new:
So, let's bust out the ever-effective point-by-point method to catch you all up on what's new:
- Lamplover got into the school she applied for. BIG YAYS!!!
- Christmas passed happily with good friends and family, and we all ate too much and drank too much.
- I have a new roommate - haven't gotten a good pseudo for him yet. What say you, oh Unfortunate One? Did you have any not-too-embarrasing monikers for him we could use on here?
- Serenity is out on DVD - go buy 5 for your friends. While you're at it - get Firefly on DVD too. They rock.
- I finally finished Insomnia. Great book, of course.
- I started reading The Chronicles of Narnia after seeing the movie adaptation of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe because the film reminded me of how fun it was to read the story when I was a kid. I'm a bit bored with it now that I'm on the second book, but I'm determined to trudge through all 7 in the series. Perhaps it'll pick up again.
- Found out my mom has yet another difficult health problem to struggle with...I don't know who she pissed off in another life, but she must have been one evil little creature, cause she's getting an undeserved heaping of shite in this life.
- It's a new year - 2006 - onward and upwards...
12.06.2005
Illness and the Impending Mall Trip
I've been sick for over a week now, thanks to a particularly tenacious little flu bug that is making the rounds here in Texas. At first I thought it might be allergy related, since the weather was still warm and I didn't seem to have any flu-like symptoms aside from the runny nose and sore throat. But, much like the warm weather, that theory is just a memory. I've had body aches, fevers and chills along with the continuation of the aforementioned sore throat and it's new buddy, a deep chest cough. Ugh. The worst part of it is, I've been so busy with a very important video conference at work, that I can't take time off to rest and heal properly. I have upped the amount of fluids I've been taking in and have tried to make sure I'm getting more rest than normal, and I think that has helped. But damn - I can't wait to have this flu pass. Maybe I should look at the bright side: that I've dealt with this strain of the flu, and hopefully won't have another for the rest of the winter. Well, I can hope not at least.
Christmas is coming quickly this year - I haven't had the time (or money for that matter) to do all the shopping I'd like to do. I've picked up a couple of presents already, but still much shopping has to be done, and apparently most of it will be done with a couple of days to go before Christmas. For, as much as I'd like to get the shopping done early, the bills won't wait due to the holidays. Grrr. Ah well - it will keep the tradition of this year's 17th annual December 23rd Mall Blowing very much alive. Perhaps this year it will catch on even further! It's easy to do folks. You need to get as many people together as you can, go to a mall on one of the busiest days of the year and do your last minute shopping. One key thing you must buy, however, is something for yourself. Because, the 23rd tradition is a rather selfish one. In addition to the shopping, you must go out for lunch with your group of friends, and also take in a movie. It can be done as a rental, but going to the theatre really makes the tradition much more fun. Leave comments if you plan to do it - I'd love to hear if there are others celebrating my group's little self-determined holiday.
Christmas is coming quickly this year - I haven't had the time (or money for that matter) to do all the shopping I'd like to do. I've picked up a couple of presents already, but still much shopping has to be done, and apparently most of it will be done with a couple of days to go before Christmas. For, as much as I'd like to get the shopping done early, the bills won't wait due to the holidays. Grrr. Ah well - it will keep the tradition of this year's 17th annual December 23rd Mall Blowing very much alive. Perhaps this year it will catch on even further! It's easy to do folks. You need to get as many people together as you can, go to a mall on one of the busiest days of the year and do your last minute shopping. One key thing you must buy, however, is something for yourself. Because, the 23rd tradition is a rather selfish one. In addition to the shopping, you must go out for lunch with your group of friends, and also take in a movie. It can be done as a rental, but going to the theatre really makes the tradition much more fun. Leave comments if you plan to do it - I'd love to hear if there are others celebrating my group's little self-determined holiday.
11.10.2005
Lighters in the Air, Please
| You Are an Emo Rocker! |
 Expressive and deep, lyrics are really your thing. That doesn't mean you don't rock out... You just rock out with meaning. For you, rock is more about connecting than grandstanding. |
11.09.2005
WiredMonkey Writes
I hadn't realized so much time had passed between my last post and today. As the old idiom goes, "Time's sure fun when you're having flies." Well, it's something like that.
Part of what has aided my failure to notice the rapid passing of time has been a renewed interest in reading and writing. whup! Hold your tongues, smart alecs! There'll be time for illiteracy jokes at a later point. The big monkey is talking.
Yes, it hasn't really been ground shaking or life altering in it's implications as of yet, but I've realized I'm wasting away my life in a job that I will resent (despite the fact that it probably IS a decent job) because I'm not doing what I would love to be doing. I'm not crafting with words. I'm not out there building stories, instead letting them rattle through my mind on their way to oblivion, all because I'm afraid of taking a chance - or what is much more likely...too lazy to take a chance. It's a lot of work figuring out the many kinks and convolutions in the world of publishing. But, if I don't do it soon, I'll never realize my dreams. And that is something I think I will really end up regretting. Extensively. So fuck it, man...let's do this thing up right.
I started with a book I've been meaning to read for about 4 years now - Stephen King's On Writing. LampLover saw me with the book a day after I started and commented it was a good, insightful read. I said, "shhhh...I'm reading." She hit me. It all works out for the best, I guess. Anyway, she was spot-on in her assessment of the book. Stevie has a way of cutting through all of the excess and getting right at what is important, whether it be in a story or just an interview. He provided some good pointers and allowed the reader to see how he works and the processes he follows. I think it will be a pretty helpful weapon in my arsenal when I sit down to do this. The key thing I took away from the book was something I've always believed, to an extent. In order to be a good writer, you have to be a good reader. I really need to step up the volume of books I'm reading. The last month or so has been good - I've packed the latest Harry Potter book and the Stephen King book under my belt. I've finally picked up Neuromancer by William Gibson once more. I haven't picked it up in about 4 years, and this time I'm giving it a good go. My goal is to try and get up to 52 books a year again - a very attainable goal if I read every day, which I'm doing.
So, after a few months of heavy reading, I am going to start tackling the task of sitting down and working on my fiction again. Short stories, scenarios...anything to get the juices flowing. Maybe just more blog entries as long as it's descriptive and in a prose style. My goal will be 1000+ words a day to start and ramping up from there until I'm writing at about 2000 words a day. That, along with my job and tiny social life, should keep me quite busy.
Wish me luck folks - hope you'll enjoy the increased (and hopefully improved) writing that is to come.
Oh, yeah...and we're in the house now. W00t!!
Part of what has aided my failure to notice the rapid passing of time has been a renewed interest in reading and writing. whup! Hold your tongues, smart alecs! There'll be time for illiteracy jokes at a later point. The big monkey is talking.
Yes, it hasn't really been ground shaking or life altering in it's implications as of yet, but I've realized I'm wasting away my life in a job that I will resent (despite the fact that it probably IS a decent job) because I'm not doing what I would love to be doing. I'm not crafting with words. I'm not out there building stories, instead letting them rattle through my mind on their way to oblivion, all because I'm afraid of taking a chance - or what is much more likely...too lazy to take a chance. It's a lot of work figuring out the many kinks and convolutions in the world of publishing. But, if I don't do it soon, I'll never realize my dreams. And that is something I think I will really end up regretting. Extensively. So fuck it, man...let's do this thing up right.
I started with a book I've been meaning to read for about 4 years now - Stephen King's On Writing. LampLover saw me with the book a day after I started and commented it was a good, insightful read. I said, "shhhh...I'm reading." She hit me. It all works out for the best, I guess. Anyway, she was spot-on in her assessment of the book. Stevie has a way of cutting through all of the excess and getting right at what is important, whether it be in a story or just an interview. He provided some good pointers and allowed the reader to see how he works and the processes he follows. I think it will be a pretty helpful weapon in my arsenal when I sit down to do this. The key thing I took away from the book was something I've always believed, to an extent. In order to be a good writer, you have to be a good reader. I really need to step up the volume of books I'm reading. The last month or so has been good - I've packed the latest Harry Potter book and the Stephen King book under my belt. I've finally picked up Neuromancer by William Gibson once more. I haven't picked it up in about 4 years, and this time I'm giving it a good go. My goal is to try and get up to 52 books a year again - a very attainable goal if I read every day, which I'm doing.
So, after a few months of heavy reading, I am going to start tackling the task of sitting down and working on my fiction again. Short stories, scenarios...anything to get the juices flowing. Maybe just more blog entries as long as it's descriptive and in a prose style. My goal will be 1000+ words a day to start and ramping up from there until I'm writing at about 2000 words a day. That, along with my job and tiny social life, should keep me quite busy.
Wish me luck folks - hope you'll enjoy the increased (and hopefully improved) writing that is to come.
Oh, yeah...and we're in the house now. W00t!!
10.07.2005
This Weather is Downright Un-Texan...Thankfully!
It's wonderfully cold here today. Not the type of cold that the Northeastern U.S. typically sees in October, but nonetheless, a nice cold temperature that is very unseasonable for this time of year. The WiredMonkey is thoroughly enjoying it. Earlier in the week, I was having the argument I sometimes have with myself as my hair gets longer: do I want to shave it or do I want to go pay $15 to a stylist to make it look good, and not all one length like some sort of organic Q-Tip? I opted to stay home with my clippers and save the money. So, when cold weather hits, the top of my head is usually the first to complain. Last night, I was walking Hunter on his appointed rounds, and actually felt the need to dig out a winter hat. A "tuque" or "toboggan", if you will, though I'm not fond of either of those words, particularly. Okay, tuque is just fun...but not toboggan. This morning, when deciding what to wear to work, I actually decided upon a sweater. It's nice when you get to wear the clothes with sleeves in Texas - it's not something you can count on, necessarily.
Tonight, if the temperature holds, I plan on finding a nice warm spot on my couch, mixing myself a drink to warm my insides, and curling up with a nice book. Reminds me of Autumn Days past...
Speaking of which, I was showing some co-workers slides of pictures of Maine Autumns. *sigh* This is the time of the year when I miss my home state the most. The weather is chilly and the mornings have a bite to them, if not actually producing frost. You can see your breath in front of you and the tingle in your cheeks from walking around in the cool air. The whole reminiscing made me a tad homesick. So to any of my Monks (or Pseudo-Monks) out there reading this - enjoy the weather and hometown for me, cause I'm missing it quite a lot right now.
Tonight, if the temperature holds, I plan on finding a nice warm spot on my couch, mixing myself a drink to warm my insides, and curling up with a nice book. Reminds me of Autumn Days past...
Speaking of which, I was showing some co-workers slides of pictures of Maine Autumns. *sigh* This is the time of the year when I miss my home state the most. The weather is chilly and the mornings have a bite to them, if not actually producing frost. You can see your breath in front of you and the tingle in your cheeks from walking around in the cool air. The whole reminiscing made me a tad homesick. So to any of my Monks (or Pseudo-Monks) out there reading this - enjoy the weather and hometown for me, cause I'm missing it quite a lot right now.
10.05.2005
10.04.2005
For My Inner D&D nerd....
| Mystic Theurge 40% Combativeness, 46% Sneakiness, 70% Intellect, 52% Spirituality |
| Brilliant and spiritual! You are a Mystic Theurge! Score! You have a prestige class. A prestige class can only be taken after you�ve fulfilled certain requirements. This may mean that you�re an exceptionally talented person, but it probably doesn't. The Mystic Theurge is a combination of a cleric and a mage. They can cast both arcane and divine spells, and are good at both, making them pretty terrifying on the battlefield. They have more raw spellpower than just about any other class. You're both intelligent and faithful, but not violent or deceitful. I guess that makes you a pretty good person. |
 |
My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:
|
| Link: The RPG Class Test written by MFlowers on Ok Cupid |
10.01.2005
Long time no blog...
LampLover and I enjoyed our first NHL hockey game in over a year on Wednesday. My dentist, a season ticket holder who just happens to be the coolest dentist around, called me up at work and offered me his tickets for the evening, as he wasn't going. It was a great night for it - the hottest day of the year, culminating in an evening temperature in the 100's, made the prospect of a game on ice sound very tantalizing indeed. And, hey, it's the Stars! What's not to love, pre-season or not? I'm pretty happy with what the rule changes in the NHL have produced: the games are much faster and exciting. The Stars played a rather sloppy game against the St. Louis Blues, but managed to pull out the winner in overtime, 5-4.
Work has been keeping me busy with lots of jobs that aren't necessarily under my list of job duties. This makes for a stressed-out and annoyed monkey. LL hasn't enjoyed my mood because of it either, I'm sure. I'll be thankful when the large project I'm working on currently is finished this upcoming week, and I can let loose with a large sigh of relief. Things have been going well though, and today I was even rewarded with a small praise pellet from my boss. He came by and told me I had made myself quite the asset to the company and we would have to rearrange my schedule soon to be more in line with the corporate timeline (9-5, I guess). Regardless of the daunting prospect of earlier mornings, it made me smile.
Oh. And my asshole dog bit me again last week. I say that half in jest...anyone who knows me knows I love my dog...it's just that this biting issue is getting really old. It's about the 4th or 5th time he's bit me now. It's a good thing I love him, or he would have made the final trip to the vet years ago. LL suggested we get a training collar that he wears all the time now. It has made him a much better behaved job and he is starting to understand what is expected of him.
Work has been keeping me busy with lots of jobs that aren't necessarily under my list of job duties. This makes for a stressed-out and annoyed monkey. LL hasn't enjoyed my mood because of it either, I'm sure. I'll be thankful when the large project I'm working on currently is finished this upcoming week, and I can let loose with a large sigh of relief. Things have been going well though, and today I was even rewarded with a small praise pellet from my boss. He came by and told me I had made myself quite the asset to the company and we would have to rearrange my schedule soon to be more in line with the corporate timeline (9-5, I guess). Regardless of the daunting prospect of earlier mornings, it made me smile.
Oh. And my asshole dog bit me again last week. I say that half in jest...anyone who knows me knows I love my dog...it's just that this biting issue is getting really old. It's about the 4th or 5th time he's bit me now. It's a good thing I love him, or he would have made the final trip to the vet years ago. LL suggested we get a training collar that he wears all the time now. It has made him a much better behaved job and he is starting to understand what is expected of him.
9.12.2005
Welcome Back, Hockey
Today is a very good day, despite the fact that it is a Monday. Normally, I would hesitate to label a Monday as a "very good day", but it is hard not to do that when hockey has returned.
Yes, today my very own Dallas Stars, and many other NHL teams, have officially returned to the ice as they open training camps around the nation. The Stars will hit the ice at their official practice home, and location of one of the newest and shiniest of the Starscenters. I am going to do my best to get up to a practice by the end of the week. All of the practices are between 10am and 2pm, so I don't know how much luck I'll have at catching them until this next weekend, but I'll do my best. I'll be sure to take my camera if I go so everyone may get a glimpse of hockey through my site.
LampLover and I went to one of the Starscenters this last weekend to hit the ice. It had been over a year since I had been on the ice, I sadly realized once I was on. But, it was very much like riding a bike: after a few laps around, I was able to do crossovers and switch back and forth between skating forward and backward and of course doing slide stops. It felt wonderful to be skating again, and I truly loved it. I'm hoping to start doing the puck & stick times they have at the centers on the weekend, and try to get myself back into shape slowly. Eventually, I'll try and get back into league play by being a substitute for a team and perhaps find a good group of guys who are looking for an out-of-shape defenseman slash forward and whip myself back into good fitness while having a great time.
Yes, today my very own Dallas Stars, and many other NHL teams, have officially returned to the ice as they open training camps around the nation. The Stars will hit the ice at their official practice home, and location of one of the newest and shiniest of the Starscenters. I am going to do my best to get up to a practice by the end of the week. All of the practices are between 10am and 2pm, so I don't know how much luck I'll have at catching them until this next weekend, but I'll do my best. I'll be sure to take my camera if I go so everyone may get a glimpse of hockey through my site.
LampLover and I went to one of the Starscenters this last weekend to hit the ice. It had been over a year since I had been on the ice, I sadly realized once I was on. But, it was very much like riding a bike: after a few laps around, I was able to do crossovers and switch back and forth between skating forward and backward and of course doing slide stops. It felt wonderful to be skating again, and I truly loved it. I'm hoping to start doing the puck & stick times they have at the centers on the weekend, and try to get myself back into shape slowly. Eventually, I'll try and get back into league play by being a substitute for a team and perhaps find a good group of guys who are looking for an out-of-shape defenseman slash forward and whip myself back into good fitness while having a great time.
8.30.2005
High Pump Prices Give Me Gas
Gas has gone up once again. This time, presumably, under the pretense that the devastating Hurricane Katrina that has pummeled the southeastern United States has crippled our domestic oil production and therefore is deserving of a .25/gallon raise in price. The oil companies are telling the gas stations and convenience stores that in order to get their new loads of gas, they must raise their prices. So, they are forced to do so in order to even have gas. I'm sorry, but there is no way that the price of gas has been effected so quickly that it has necessitated a quarter per gallon raise in one day. Everyone seems to have their theory as to why this is happening now. Today, on a local radio talk show, I heard one person espouse their theory that gas prices are rising because of the automotive makers latest "employee discount" sales strategy. There are somehow "more cars" now on the road so we need more gas and that supports an upturn in gas prices. At least that theory was good for a laugh. It's about the only laugh I've had regarding the entire issue.
President Bush has stated his interest in exploring the idea of tapping the U.S. oil reserves to take some of the pressure off the American pocketbooks. This is precisely why we have built these reserves in the first place, to my understanding. When an event occurs to disrupt oil production, we have resources to lean upon until the situation can be repaired. To quote the above article, "the reserve was established to cushion oil markets during energy disruptions." Sounds exactly like this is the case. So, why is this even a topic to ponder? We have to think and decide if this is a "natural disaster"? I believe the folks of Louisiana and Mississipi will tell you it certainly is, and would be supported by the rest of the nation. The article also aims to correct the misguided notion that gas prices even should be effected by Hurricane Katrina. Again quoting the article: "The expected move would be designed to give refineries in the area a temporary supply of crude oil to take the place of interrupted shipments from tankers or offshore oil platforms affected by the storm. It would not be intended to keep a lid on soaring gasoline prices." I guarantee if this happened last year at this time, being an election year, we'd be paying just over $2.00 a gallon now, and not closer to $3.00 as a nation, because this is about as "hot-button" of a topic as the war here in America right now.
Anyway, I really dislike being political...but this whole subject has me really agitated right now. I miss living in the northeast where I could make a tank of gas last a week very easily. Living in a big city that is so spread out like the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex, I use 4-5 gallons a week easily, and I don't even travel that much right now. *sigh* I guess I can cling to the hope that my favorite fillup station, QuikTrip, will keep the prices low. They're always the lowest price, plus, they have the yummy drinks. Love me some QT drinks! Mmmmmmmm....Orange Cream-Vanilla slushes.
President Bush has stated his interest in exploring the idea of tapping the U.S. oil reserves to take some of the pressure off the American pocketbooks. This is precisely why we have built these reserves in the first place, to my understanding. When an event occurs to disrupt oil production, we have resources to lean upon until the situation can be repaired. To quote the above article, "the reserve was established to cushion oil markets during energy disruptions." Sounds exactly like this is the case. So, why is this even a topic to ponder? We have to think and decide if this is a "natural disaster"? I believe the folks of Louisiana and Mississipi will tell you it certainly is, and would be supported by the rest of the nation. The article also aims to correct the misguided notion that gas prices even should be effected by Hurricane Katrina. Again quoting the article: "The expected move would be designed to give refineries in the area a temporary supply of crude oil to take the place of interrupted shipments from tankers or offshore oil platforms affected by the storm. It would not be intended to keep a lid on soaring gasoline prices." I guarantee if this happened last year at this time, being an election year, we'd be paying just over $2.00 a gallon now, and not closer to $3.00 as a nation, because this is about as "hot-button" of a topic as the war here in America right now.
Anyway, I really dislike being political...but this whole subject has me really agitated right now. I miss living in the northeast where I could make a tank of gas last a week very easily. Living in a big city that is so spread out like the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex, I use 4-5 gallons a week easily, and I don't even travel that much right now. *sigh* I guess I can cling to the hope that my favorite fillup station, QuikTrip, will keep the prices low. They're always the lowest price, plus, they have the yummy drinks. Love me some QT drinks! Mmmmmmmm....Orange Cream-Vanilla slushes.
8.22.2005
Movies and Snoozing...
This last weekend passed very quickly for a time space that was filled with such a dearth of activity. Nonetheless, it was still enjoyable. I tend to prefer the weekends that leave me and LampLover home relaxing on the couch/bed/floor/dog.
Friday was recovery from a long day at work - I stayed up watching movies with LL. Once again, Vince Vaughn didn't disappoint. We watched a silly little flick called Blackball in which he plays a sports agent. The premise of the movie is rather absurd, but not implausible in this day and age. A young Brit is destined to turn the sport of lawn bowling into England's second biggest sport because of his brash, rebellious attitude and amazing skill. Wacky hijinx ensue.
Saturday we slept in and then puttered around the house. LL went to work out, as she does most everyday. I'm so proud of her for being able to stick to her workout plan on a regular basis. I am horrible about being faithful to a workout schedule, especially lately. That might explain the belly. Anyhoo - Saturday night we watched Kung Fu Hustle, which was really very entertaining. It flirted with being a bad movie several times, but the artistic direction in it was so brilliant that it managed to keep us both engrossed and left us quite happy we had watched the film by the end.
Sunday, I was very lazy. I slept until early afternoon. I haven't slept that long in a LONG time. I could cling to the flimsy excuse that I was up until 4:30am, and really I didn't get much more than 8 hours of sleep, which is an acceptable amount of time to sleep, but that's really pretty sad. By the time we were both awake and I had dressed and walked Hunter, it was 2:15pm. We had 15 minutes to make it to Cafe Roti - the Indian-style buffet that LL and I had planned to visit - not enough time. So, we drove around trying to find food that wasn't horrible for us (fast food) or too expensive (most everything else). I was not a good boyfriend...let her down by having us miss the Indian Buffet in the first place...which made ME sad too, cause I really like the buffet. But, we had to let it go - it's time was past. So, we scrounged around the house for food and then met up with Da Cheat to look at some houses. Da Cheat is buying a house and BurntoutZen and I will be his roomies in the new casa, if all goes according to plan (crosses fingers and knocks on wood). LL, Da Cheat and I met up with BZ, and we visited 3 houses. We believe we have narrowed it down to 2 houses, at this point, and one of those may potentially be unavailable. So, we very well could have picked our house this weekend. We should know for sure at some point this week.
Friday was recovery from a long day at work - I stayed up watching movies with LL. Once again, Vince Vaughn didn't disappoint. We watched a silly little flick called Blackball in which he plays a sports agent. The premise of the movie is rather absurd, but not implausible in this day and age. A young Brit is destined to turn the sport of lawn bowling into England's second biggest sport because of his brash, rebellious attitude and amazing skill. Wacky hijinx ensue.
Saturday we slept in and then puttered around the house. LL went to work out, as she does most everyday. I'm so proud of her for being able to stick to her workout plan on a regular basis. I am horrible about being faithful to a workout schedule, especially lately. That might explain the belly. Anyhoo - Saturday night we watched Kung Fu Hustle, which was really very entertaining. It flirted with being a bad movie several times, but the artistic direction in it was so brilliant that it managed to keep us both engrossed and left us quite happy we had watched the film by the end.
Sunday, I was very lazy. I slept until early afternoon. I haven't slept that long in a LONG time. I could cling to the flimsy excuse that I was up until 4:30am, and really I didn't get much more than 8 hours of sleep, which is an acceptable amount of time to sleep, but that's really pretty sad. By the time we were both awake and I had dressed and walked Hunter, it was 2:15pm. We had 15 minutes to make it to Cafe Roti - the Indian-style buffet that LL and I had planned to visit - not enough time. So, we drove around trying to find food that wasn't horrible for us (fast food) or too expensive (most everything else). I was not a good boyfriend...let her down by having us miss the Indian Buffet in the first place...which made ME sad too, cause I really like the buffet. But, we had to let it go - it's time was past. So, we scrounged around the house for food and then met up with Da Cheat to look at some houses. Da Cheat is buying a house and BurntoutZen and I will be his roomies in the new casa, if all goes according to plan (crosses fingers and knocks on wood). LL, Da Cheat and I met up with BZ, and we visited 3 houses. We believe we have narrowed it down to 2 houses, at this point, and one of those may potentially be unavailable. So, we very well could have picked our house this weekend. We should know for sure at some point this week.
8.10.2005
That New Blog Layout Smell...
...wait for it....
Ahhhhhh....oh yes, the pleasant aroma of a new blog. Or something. Well, I guess just picking out a new layout would be more like Fabreze-ing a used car, but you get the picture.
I felt a good change was needed, and hopefully this will be embraced as such. New fonts, new design - definitely more modern in feel, and that keeps in line with the spirit of my posts. Feel free to leave comments on what you think of the changes (good/bad/indifferent) if you have seen the old one.
8.09.2005
This just in...
Not quite a real post here - just photo updating y'all.
I finally updated the Flickr page with toobing photos - they're viewable if you click on the link I just gave you, or you can click on the Flickr flash box on the left-hand side of the blog.
Thank you. That is all.
I finally updated the Flickr page with toobing photos - they're viewable if you click on the link I just gave you, or you can click on the Flickr flash box on the left-hand side of the blog.
Thank you. That is all.
8.01.2005
I'm Alternative to Alternative
Well, not really. There's nothing particularly ground-breaking or revolutionary about my newest fascination. But, it's still kind of an "indy" thing and makes me feel counter-culture. So, I giggle about it on occasion.
What I'm talking about is the new Podcasting phenomenon. LampLover got me my first mp3 player for my birthday, and it's great to listen to all my mp3s on, as I have thousands...but one of the other new, fun things to do is check out podcasts. The genre is sort of a mix of ham radio, college radio and MTV's old show 120 minutes. But, what it lacks in polish and flair, it often makes up in humor and just good, old-fashioned great music. One of my favorite 'casts so far is a show called Accident Hash. The dude that runs the show, C.C. Chapman, does the show from Boston, MA and seems to have pretty good taste in music from what I have seen so far. I've heard everything from local New England bands (which I miss - lots of great places to see small shows up in the northeast) to bands from Oklahoma, Washington state and California. By listening to his show, and others like his, I've stumbled upon some bands I never would have heard before. Some merit no more listens than the one I give on his show, but others are very good and worth hearing more. You can download the songs from the Podsafe Music Network he is a part of, or you can go and do what I would recommend - support the band and buy an album.
In the last week and a half, I've found several new very good bands, and have found a new "indy music" side of myself I had kind of given up on, due to lack of resources and time. Podcasting has made it very easy to get back into the small music scene. And, it sticks it to big corporate radio at the same time. Bite it Clear Channel! hehehe...
What I'm talking about is the new Podcasting phenomenon. LampLover got me my first mp3 player for my birthday, and it's great to listen to all my mp3s on, as I have thousands...but one of the other new, fun things to do is check out podcasts. The genre is sort of a mix of ham radio, college radio and MTV's old show 120 minutes. But, what it lacks in polish and flair, it often makes up in humor and just good, old-fashioned great music. One of my favorite 'casts so far is a show called Accident Hash. The dude that runs the show, C.C. Chapman, does the show from Boston, MA and seems to have pretty good taste in music from what I have seen so far. I've heard everything from local New England bands (which I miss - lots of great places to see small shows up in the northeast) to bands from Oklahoma, Washington state and California. By listening to his show, and others like his, I've stumbled upon some bands I never would have heard before. Some merit no more listens than the one I give on his show, but others are very good and worth hearing more. You can download the songs from the Podsafe Music Network he is a part of, or you can go and do what I would recommend - support the band and buy an album.
In the last week and a half, I've found several new very good bands, and have found a new "indy music" side of myself I had kind of given up on, due to lack of resources and time. Podcasting has made it very easy to get back into the small music scene. And, it sticks it to big corporate radio at the same time. Bite it Clear Channel! hehehe...
7.29.2005
Happy Birthday to Me...
So, last weekend was my birthday - the medium-sized 3-1. Ugh. It's taken me a while to post everything, mostly because I've been playing a game of catch-up since returning home. It's amazing how far behind you can feel after only being gone for four days. But, things are finally returning to normal just in time for another weekend. MUCH less action this weekend, which is fine by me. I need some unwinding time. I do have to say, though, all in all, last weekend was one of the best of my life, hands down. My friends rock.
BurnoutZen started planning the trip a couple of weeks ago and we had only some loose structure to the idea - go to Austin, hit 6th street and have some fun, and take a trip to Shiner, all over the course of a weekend. Simple but brilliant. Brilliant! Slowly over the course of the following week and a half, the plan started to form a bit more structure. A timeline was formed: We'd drive to Austin, stay with LampLover's friend from college at her house north of town, meet up with another group of friends who were coming down to do some toobing on the Guadalupe, hit 6th street with them that night, meet up with my sister the following day to do something and then, before heading home on Monday, go to Shiner and tour the brewery. Rock!
It was one of those rare plans that managed to stay mostly intact and be very successful all at the same time. We ended up toobing on a branch of the river called the Comal (a branch of the Guadalupe), but the area was fantastic! (the "toobing" link will take you to the website of some person who I don't know, but their pictures look similar to the ones I took - I should have mine by next week sometime, if all goes well - check back).
The portion of the trip where we did something with my sis was fun too - We got to tour a cavern to the Northeast of San Antonio - Natural Bridge Caverns. I had never been exploring through caverns before - it was really fun and pretty educational too. Afterwards, we went to the Riverwalk in SA and went to Hooters (yay!) and had drinks at a piano bar called Durty Nelly's (DN doesn't get a link, cause I'm mad at them - they put a hold on a large chunk of money from my debit card and it caused overdraft fees 4 days later. So, while they're fun and it was a great time - you'll have to google them yourself if you wanna see them).
A good amount of pictures from the outing have already been posted for your enjoyment. I went out and got myself a Flickr account, which seems to be pretty cool. If I start doing more pictures, I may have to upgrade myself to a pro account, but even that is reasonably priced. I've heard good things about the site from friends, so it should be a good investment. Anyway, in the meantime, I have a free account and you can see the photos. Just take a look on the left hand side of this main page, and you'll see a little flash display of the photos. Click one and it will take you to the my area on the site.
I can't thank BZ and LL enough (since they were the chief orchestrators and perpetrators of the weekend) for making it such an amazing weekend. They were generous to the point of martyrdom, willing to do anything I wanted to do (and cheery about it) and supplied their own great personalities all weekend, which turned the fun on the weekend up several notches. Thanks again!!!!
That said, another weekend is looming, and, as I remarked earlier - this one will be much less hectic. Last weekend, over the course of 3.5-4 days, we drove 1,000 miles and visited dozens of people. This weekend's goal - 10 miles and maybe 2 people. Enough...time to veg!
BurnoutZen started planning the trip a couple of weeks ago and we had only some loose structure to the idea - go to Austin, hit 6th street and have some fun, and take a trip to Shiner, all over the course of a weekend. Simple but brilliant. Brilliant! Slowly over the course of the following week and a half, the plan started to form a bit more structure. A timeline was formed: We'd drive to Austin, stay with LampLover's friend from college at her house north of town, meet up with another group of friends who were coming down to do some toobing on the Guadalupe, hit 6th street with them that night, meet up with my sister the following day to do something and then, before heading home on Monday, go to Shiner and tour the brewery. Rock!
It was one of those rare plans that managed to stay mostly intact and be very successful all at the same time. We ended up toobing on a branch of the river called the Comal (a branch of the Guadalupe), but the area was fantastic! (the "toobing" link will take you to the website of some person who I don't know, but their pictures look similar to the ones I took - I should have mine by next week sometime, if all goes well - check back).
The portion of the trip where we did something with my sis was fun too - We got to tour a cavern to the Northeast of San Antonio - Natural Bridge Caverns. I had never been exploring through caverns before - it was really fun and pretty educational too. Afterwards, we went to the Riverwalk in SA and went to Hooters (yay!) and had drinks at a piano bar called Durty Nelly's (DN doesn't get a link, cause I'm mad at them - they put a hold on a large chunk of money from my debit card and it caused overdraft fees 4 days later. So, while they're fun and it was a great time - you'll have to google them yourself if you wanna see them).
A good amount of pictures from the outing have already been posted for your enjoyment. I went out and got myself a Flickr account, which seems to be pretty cool. If I start doing more pictures, I may have to upgrade myself to a pro account, but even that is reasonably priced. I've heard good things about the site from friends, so it should be a good investment. Anyway, in the meantime, I have a free account and you can see the photos. Just take a look on the left hand side of this main page, and you'll see a little flash display of the photos. Click one and it will take you to the my area on the site.
I can't thank BZ and LL enough (since they were the chief orchestrators and perpetrators of the weekend) for making it such an amazing weekend. They were generous to the point of martyrdom, willing to do anything I wanted to do (and cheery about it) and supplied their own great personalities all weekend, which turned the fun on the weekend up several notches. Thanks again!!!!
That said, another weekend is looming, and, as I remarked earlier - this one will be much less hectic. Last weekend, over the course of 3.5-4 days, we drove 1,000 miles and visited dozens of people. This weekend's goal - 10 miles and maybe 2 people. Enough...time to veg!
7.20.2005
A Poultry Affair....
I, chicken, take you,game hen...
The scene above was from this past Saturday's party held for LampLover. LL celebrated taking another round trip on this fun rock we call Earth, and so I pulled together a little soiree for our guest of honor. We had a lot of good drink (enough so that many of us had a very rough Sunday). Our meals even got in the action a bit - the Drunken Chicken above (compliments of BurntoutZen) are sitting on some mighty uncomfortable chairs, if you look closely. But, what was a tight fit for them ended up as a fine marinating/roasting method for us. The birds came out quite tasty (thanks Zen) and along with the little snacks we had, left everyone very happy, I think.
LL opened presents and then had an unfortunate meeting with her nemesis, Vodka. She had sworn it off for quite some time, but decided that for her birthday she was going to attempt making her beverage of choice the official drink of James Bond - vodka martini (shaken, not stirred). After a few hours and 3-4 martinis, LL was all smiles and quite droopy eyed. She made it an early evening and cashed in her chips near 11pm.
The rest of the party continued bravely on (bless our souls), and in the early hours of the morning, I closed the door to Chez WM on the last party goer leaving (and locked in the couple crashing on my couches) and crashed.
The morning did not dawn gently. It rolled in around noon and invited a loud percussion section...and punched me in the gut several times. I'll spare the gory details, but needless to say I was not a happy camper. Almost 31, and acting like I was almost 21. Ugh. No wonder I don't do the all night drinking thing very often....
But, big picture - FANTASTICALLY fun party with lots of great friends...and Lisa had a good time (despite being sad that she crashed early and had to miss out on visiting with friends and mingling. She was feeling a bit guilty the next morning about it, but we assured her that friends understand and the Birthday Girl makes the rules.
Besides, there will be a chance to make up for mingling with friends and enjoying food and drink when WM takes it to Austin for his 31st this coming weekend. More on that to come...
7.07.2005
Alright, listen up you primitive screw-heads!
Tonight. One night only. Appearing and signing copies of his new book at the Northwest Highway Barnes & Noble.....
THE Bruce Campbell.
*trumpets blare and awed faces sit slack jawed at the magnificence of the moment*
Oh yes. I'm gonna go get me Ash's autograph! w00t! After a particularly long and crappy day at work, this might just be the thing I need to balance it all out.
That is all. Oh, and remember - Shop smart. Shop S-Mart.
THE Bruce Campbell.
*trumpets blare and awed faces sit slack jawed at the magnificence of the moment*
Oh yes. I'm gonna go get me Ash's autograph! w00t! After a particularly long and crappy day at work, this might just be the thing I need to balance it all out.
That is all. Oh, and remember - Shop smart. Shop S-Mart.
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