SSDD

I saw that Congress extended the PATRIOT Act.

No substantive changes. No added protections or checks against abuse.

Nada.

I have to admit I'm a bit surprised. I really thought the Dems might step up and show some kind of moral compass. I really hoped the "Yes, we can" administration might not buy into the paranoid, fascist bullshit that is at the root of legislation like this.

I guess I wasn't as cynical as I thought I was.

Thanks so much, Democratic Party, for showing how much better you are than the Repugnican Party. At least they step up and stand by their ideals, as abhorrent as many of their stances are.

Glad I voted for you jackasses. Makes me feel real good about the future.

Assholes.

WANT!!!

Aaaah!!!

The Master's ring!

Chameleon Arch Pocket Watch

What's 210 pounds come to in U.S. currency? A kidney, a lung, and both the first and second born child?

Hm. Google says 1 British pound = 1.5224 U.S. dollars (today).

So just shy of $320.

Ouch.

Creepy

Okay, crap like these so-called "oath keepers" terrify me.

I get the general idea. I really do. I'm an ACLU member and I see stuff in the news about illegal surveillance and indefinite detention that scare the hell out of me.

However, when soldiers, cops, etc. start stashing weapons and talking like revolutionaries, that's when bad things happen.

And these guys read like characters from David Brin's "The Postman". And not in a good way.

February takes a bow

Wow. This month just blazed by. I guess it helps that I spent a week of it in a hammock on a tropical island.

I'm still a bit off thanks to the time change. Made the week blur by quickly.

March should be a kick in the trousers. I've already got long meetings, car service, and jury duty on the horizon for that month.

Oh well. At least St. Patrick's Day is in the mix. I've got some new bottle openers I need to experiment with. Hee-hee-hee.

Every day I fall a little more in love with the Kinekt ring I got. My preciousssss... it spinses! And the Hobbitsess can't haves it!

Okay... maybe it's not a good influence on me.

Though, to be fair, I've always rooted for Sauron. He's all about equal-opportunity employment. His environmental policies were a bit iffy, but the dude was a burning eyeball. That probably tweaked his judgement a bit.

Oh this post got off-topic quickly.

In other news, Cybermen. We're done here.

AAAH!!!

THIS is how to accept an award!!

Luggage

Some time ago, I got the Patagonia MLC (Maximum Legal Carry-On) bag in anticipation of resuming travels from here to there.

It took up dust for about six months and then was put into use with my recent trip to a lovely tropical environment.

This may well have been one of the best purchases I've ever made.

The MLC is a sturdy, water-resistant construction with ample room for several changes of clothes as well as various other sundries. It's got a shoulder strap and can convert into a backpack, as needed. I was able to squeeze the following into mine:
- two changes of clothes
- a toiletries kit
- a 17" laptop
- various cables for said laptop and other electronic devices
- two paperback books
- a sweatshirt
- a first aid kit (I'm obsessive...)

And I think I had a few other things stuffed in there. I can't exactly recall what they were (they must've been TSA safe so I doubt they were exciting).

The bag fit comfortably in overhead bins in airplanes and could squeeze under the seat in front of me in the one instance where I didn't have overhead bin space closeby.

The zippers were well-constructed and all the straps seemed very sturdy. The bag has a separate compartment for laptops and it fit mine with room to spare.

I'd recommend it, for what that's worth.

Disclaimer: I don't work for Patagonia or any kind of travel or luggage company. Nobody's paying me to review this product. I'm just offering an opinion, for what that's worth. I lifted the .jpeg of the bag from the Patagonia site.

Schoolin' n stuff

Last night was my first class in about two weeks. I'm not as sore as I expected, but then it was an earlier, shorter class.

I got schooled too. We covered stuff that I'm especially bad at and am just not picking up for some reason. Oh well. I remain undaunted. I'll figure it all out eventually.

---

I'm caught up on "Lost" now. This show just gets weirder and weirder. Thank god.

I'm about two eps back on "Burn Notice". Time to fire up Hulu, I guess.

---

I must really be relaxed from my vacation. I've been in a strangely-good mood all week long. Maybe someone's spiked my food?

Dust of Dreams

I finally finished "Dust of Dreams" (or was it "Dreams of Dust"? Oh lord, I can't remember...) the lastest of Steven Erikson's "Malazan Book of the Fallen" series.

*Yawn*

I had to force myself to finish it.

In summary: hundreds of pages of people talking about nothing. Ten pages of savage battle. Sort of a cliffhanger ending... in the sense that the narrative just stops.

The overall novel is disappointing. Erikson has - alas - fallen in to Robert Jordan's trap of getting to into writing about hundreds of minor characters only without ever really having that many core characters to focus on.

I honestly couldn't tell you what the plot of the book is 'cause it doesn't seem to have one. I thought I knew what the plot of the series might have been at one point, but I couldn't tell you now.

Erikson is brilliant at writing personal dialog. His characters are often witty, funny, and entertaining.

They do all sound the same, though. Most of them are interchangeable and he loves jumping around in scenes a lot.

Oh well. At least Butcher's next book is due soon.

Midpoint

Halfway through the week (roughly) and nearly done with the month.

Time befuddles me this week. I think it's 'cause I'm unused to wearing a wristwatch (and socks, but that's not really germane).

At least I'm getting a lot done so far. I'm hoping to actually attend class after work tonight. That would be a rarity for February.

I need coffee.

Settling Chaos

It's hard to adjust after returning from a trip, especially if the return trip was trying.

I probably should have taken yesterday off from work, but I'm glad I didn't. I had a chance to clean up some small brush-fires in the office and deal with an ordered item that needs to be returned.

The day went fairly-smoothly, save that the dry office air made my cough worse and jetlag kicked my arse in the afternoon.

I wound up going for a short jog yesterday, then returned home and did some cooking before passing out with a shot of Nyquil.

I didn't need the Nyquil to sleep. I needed it for the cough and scratchy throat.

The cough is much better and the scratchy throat no longer troubles me.

My internal clock feels more aligned so I may have just dealt with jetlag as well.

I'm hoping to do class this week. I've been away too long.

It's good to be home.

Salt Mines and Bleary Eyes

Back in the office. I've hacked through the in-box.

I've made it through lunch with no problem.

Now the jetlag is hitting me. Hard.

I'd hoped to have the energy to make it to class after work. I still hope to. I may just go for a run instead, as it's dangerous to mix martial arts and sleepiness together. That's how people get hurt.

The dry office air is giving me an aggrivating cough.

At least I'm on top of the deadlines.

Presents

It's lovely to know the county is thinking of me. Really.

It wasn't really necessary for them to send a jury duty summons to greet me upon my return.

That's just how they roll, though.

F***ers.

Lessons on Travel

Having just returned from a tropical vacation a few hours ago, I find myself jetlagged, bleary-eyed, and reflecting on the past week.

- Kinekt rings and sand are not an ideal combination

- When I enjoy something (like a locally-brewed Amber), I'm apparently not subtle in expressing myself.

- The TSA's front-line staff are really, really nice

- American Airlines has some really nice staff as well

- Miami Airport places their passport control and customs areas a good mile or six from the gates. It's a tad sadistic.

- Few things are freakier than learning I've missed a connecting flight

- Few things are more relieving than having the airline step up and take care of matters

- It's necessary... indeed, mandatory, to make offerings to the air gods before flying. Otherwise... well, my return trip sucked ass. That's all that needs to be said on that topic.

It's good to be home, despite the grey rain.

Charles Stoss

Erik recommended Charles Stoss, so I picked up a couple of books to read while on vacation.

I blazed through "The Atrocity Archive" and am about halfway through "Singularity Sky". Now I wish I'd brought more of his books. Damn.

Yup

Okay, that's about it. I've got a little over a half-hour left and my day is done. And then it's time to get the heck outta dodge.

Should be a hoot.

Gearing up

I'd like to say that I don't know what possessed me to get a Kinekt ring.

I'd be lying if I actually said that. I'm not all that opposed to lying, mind you. I just like to save my lies up for good occasions.

So, I'm not gonna lie.

I got one. It arrived yesterday. If I wasn't an ADD poster child for inability to focus before, I'm certainly... OOOH! SHINY!!!

Sorry.

What was I saying? Oh yeah. Little gear ring. It's got gears. It spins around and has a sort of industrial/steampunk look to it. And it's shiny.

SHINY!!!

Sorry.

Yeah... um... back to this. So it spins. It looks cool, too.

I'm calling mine my PRECIOUSSSSSSSS!!!!

It helps me justify my dislike of the hateful dayball overhead. And the nasty Hobbitsess better not come near my cave or I will throttles them! HISSS!!!

Gah!

Really... I'm sorry.

Suffice it to say that I like this ring a lot. I've cancelled my planned trip to the volcanos on the big island of Hawai'i.

My nine Nazg...um... servants are twitchy around smaller folk, so there's going to be an adjustment period, I think.

And it's mine. My... precioussss.....


SHINY!

Ruminations

Kind of a pompous title.
--
I'm still mentally processing that news article about someone waterboarding a 4-year-old. The kid was found with bruises too. I hope the parent who hurt her is put away forever in a small box.
--
I'm flying soon. Off to a place where the sun shines a lot.

I hate packing for a trip. I hate trying to figure out what I'll need and what I can take in a carry-on vs checked luggage.

I hate flying, actually. The actual act of going into the air is fine. It's all the b.s. involved in airports that I dislike. The TSA idiocy that passes for security makes me irritable and doesn't make me feel particularly safe. I'm also always afraid the airlines will lose my checked bag. Ugh.

Still, it's likely going to be worth it.
--
I watched the latest "Lost" episode. Kate-centric.

I'm not a fan of Kate (or Jack, or Locke). I'd be happy if those three characters had been killed off early in the show. That said, it wasn't a bad episode overall.

What boggles my mind with six seasons of this show is the portrayal of the "Others" (the so-called natives of the mysterious island). These jackasses have no people skills at all. Ignoring the fact that they capture the heroes constantly and abuse them, the Others seem genuinely surprised when the heroes don't trust them and try to get away from them.

It's like the writers are spiking the Kool-Aid a bit too much.

A reality check (such as there can be one) wouldn't hurt. I mean, the Others go and torture one character 'cause he's inconveniently come back from the dead. They then turn around and ask another character to trust them.

Really? Seriously? I can understand that they may think the heroes are idiots (that's mostly true) but there are some limits to stupidity.
--
I'm tired and I forgot to feed the shoggoth.

Oh well. That's really not too much of a concern, I guess.

Technology Slave

It's amazing how attached some people get to some of the every-day items that have become part of our lives.

I'm particularly-bad, given the ungodly amount of junk I carry every day. In this case, I'm not talking about the more esoteric crap I usually cart around. I'm talking about an item most people usually carry.

Yep. A cell phone.

This morning, I couldn't find mine. No idea where it was.

I was already disoriented 'cause my alarm clock (the same clock that updates itself from some atomic clock in Colorado) failed me, causing me to get up a half-hour early.

Sleep-deprived and a little punchy, I ripped my apartment apart for a good forty-five minutes trying to find my cell.

I barely use the thing, but I know how the Fates work. As soon as I can't find it, that's when I'll need it.

The Fates are quirky that way.

I finally found it. No idea how it got to that obscure corner of the chaos that is my apartment, but I guess I'll chalk that up to the same influences that scrambled my alarm clock.

Sparkly unicorns, probably.

Goddamn unicorns.

Midpoint

I have an end-of-the-week deadline to finish up my work for... um... work. This is, of course, provided my reviewed work gets back to me in time.

I was greeted this morning with some of it. Ugh. Edits always make me feel like I've been kicked in the crotch. Oh, they're good edits, but it never feels good.

I just hope I can make the deadline. Friday's gonna be nuts for me.

I'm also trying to finish "Dust of Dreams" so I can loan it to a friend. It's picked up a bit and then wanded off on another "I don't care" tangent.

Just to be clear, I think parts of the story are cool, but most of it is bloated excessively with a lot of unnecessary blathering. Erikson's editor dropped the ball on this book, I think.

A bad habit I've picked up: I keep forgetting to end my sentences with a period. Irritating.

I was perusing Salon this morning. Joe Conason has a really disturbing article about Cheney's support group for "enhanced interrogation". Specifically Marvin Sembler who used to run a group that tortured American teens.

This ties into an Army sergeant who allegedly waterboarded his 4-year-old daughter.

I just don't understand the mindset. At what point did our country start thinking it's okay to torture kids? Was it always like this? Did I just grow up in a rare, sane bubble where that sort of behavior was considered barbaric and wrong? When did sick fuckers like Cheney and Sembler get any kind of credibility in the world instead of being locked up? Was it really always like this?

This crap makes me sick and angry.

Avatar Translated

I do believe Alina Pete has it right.

The woman is a genius.

(Weregeek)

Tuesday's Message

Dear Planet Earth,

It is not too late. You can still KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!

That is all.

- The Ministry of Undead Memes

Current Events

My wrist is much better, despite the best efforts of my class. I have most of the mobility back. Still hurts at times, but not nearly as bad as before.

That said, I'm still recovering from last Wednesday's epic abuse in class. I bruised my hip, apparently. While doing rolls last night, I found that said sore muscle still hurts. A lot. I was thinking that I probably won't test this time around. Given that I'll need to take another week or so to recover (thus missing more instruction), my plan not to test is now a reality.

---

I'm going to skip town soonish on a trip. It's been a while since I've done any kind of traveling that requires me to pack a bag.

I find my OCD is ill-suited to packing for trips where I probably won't need very much. I have a tendency to over-pack.

Given how travel works these days (airlines gouge for heavy bags), it's a battle for my nature.

---

I'm about... oh... 2/3rds through Steven Erikson's Dust of Dreams. I find this book to be a profound "meh". I'm not finding the Malazan Book of the Fallen series to be very satisfying. It had an interesting start and then went off in a psychotic frenzy of too many different directions. The cast of characters would have made Robert Jordan flip out (and Jordan was terrible at expanding his dramatis personae list).

So far I'm hard-pressed to describe exactly what's going on in Erikson's latest. Oh there's pages and pages of descriptions and dialog, but nothing really seems to be happening. Lots of dire portents and trash-talking. There's the odd battle or two with seemingly-random betrayals and convoluted scheming but the actual story is moderately-incoherent by this point.

I'll make myself finish it, mostly out of loyalty to Erikson, but his latest two novels are a far cry of the relatively-simple Gardens of the Moon. I personally think he would do better to go with shorter stories. This narrative has really gotten away from him.

---

New "Lost" tonight! YAY!

---

I woke to pouring rain and strong winds this morning. Actually, it's more accurate for me to say said rain and wind woke me this morning... much earlier than I would have preferred.

A rainstorm is my kryptonite. That kind of weather makes me want to just curl up in my warm, warm bed and sleep.

So, of course these sorts of storms always hit on mornings when I have to get up and get moving.

*sigh*

BadWrongBad

Deliverence done by Bollywood.

The wrongness of this concept is brought to you by my friend Aaron.

Hell is clearly too good for him.

No, there's no film made. If there's a god, I hope there never will be one. Just the idea alone is so wrong as to make the mind gibber.

Monday's Message

Dear Planet Earth,

KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!!!

That is all.

- The Ministry of Undead Memes

Satisfaction

Today I pulled off a surprise for someone.

I'm happy with how it turned out.

Life is good.

In other news, one of my friends dressed up his baby in a "Star Trek" jumper.

A red one.

I'm finding myself torn between two reactions:

1) That's a level of geek that's just too awesome.

2) RED??? What the HELL? Is he trying to jinx the kid?

I can actually have both reactions, I guess.

Bar of Wonders

Yay! Presents!

Yay! Minimal wrist pain!

Boo! Shoulder and hip pain!

Yay! Friday!

Fringy

Ah "Fringe". What will I do for entertaining television between now and April 1?

How can you leave me hanging for so long?

Oh wait, I have "Lost" to keep me company. Thank goodness.

So it was nice to see "Fringe" return to its mythos core. The intro was pure awesome. There was a little too much of the "soul-searching" moments and useless puttering about in Massive Dynamic's uber-labs, alas.

It would be nice if the writers had some idea what to do with Peter. The character has potential but is largely wasted.

Oh well. I guess I'll just be grateful I haven't been melded with an alternate-universe me due to some... hey... why is the floor shaking? Wha...ARRRGGGHH!!!

Mmm... pills...

Ibuprofen is a wonderful thing.

proactivity time

Every once in a while, I stop whining about something that's bugging me and actually step up to deal with the issue.

Oh sure, it deprives me of whining-fodder, but there's a lot to be said about being proactive.

Not all of what can be said is positive.

So after addressing a particular purchase problem (a delay in the order that was causing logistical problems with me), I went about an alternate way of getting said item.

Problem solved... only not. My alternate way got me hit with sales tax, which was unexpected and rather painful.

I could cancel the order and go back to my original source, but at this point I'm tired of dealing with the problem. I'll eat the cost and hopefully know better in the future.

Bonus: I now have something new to whine about! Woo-hoo!

bad karma

Every now and again, I just have one of those practices in my class that's non-stop bad.

I usually limp out of said classes sporting a minor injury or two. Any martial art is a contact sport, so I suck it up and move on.

Last night was especially bad. Dunno why.

I took an elbow to the nose and feel fortunate my nose wasn't broken. Didn't really bleed much 'till later.

I have a bruise on my hip from a bad fall or two.

Oh, and I can't fully lift my arm. My good arm. The arm that doesn't have my wrist in a brace. That was thanks to a wonderful arm-bar that hurt tons.

Damn class hasn't even been going a full week and I'm already semi-crippled.

Lost and Found

"Lost" started again last night. Final season.

Aaaah... I've missed the tropical weirdness.

My recording crapped out for some reason, but I came in early to see it on Hulu. Good, weird fun.

I've decided there's no way in hell they can adequately explain what's going on in this show nor end it in a satisfactory fashion.

That's fine. As long as they don't attribute everything to angels or some Moore-like similar crap, I'll be inclined to forgive.

But if these guys f*ck the monkey, I shall deliver pain unto them. Oh yes.

Another iShove

Having an iTunes gift card, I made a purchase today.

The download went seamlessly.

And then everything went wrong. Again.

iTunes froze my PC. Again. I rebooted and tried to connect my iPod to transfer my new purchase.

Froze. Again.

On the third reboot, everything worked, more-or-less.

A friend recommended Songbird as an alternative tool. I've downloaded the executable and will probably give it a try later this week.

Pure awesome

(io9)

Zen State

My increasing frustration with my precious and lovely little iPod is souring me on Apple as a whole. I'm now starting to seriously look back at Creative Labs offerings. I have one of their little MuVo MP3 players. It's crap next to the iPod, but it worked and it took AAA batteries, so it was easy to deal with battery failure.

The Creative Zen looks like an iPod ripoff, but with a broader range of software so I don't have to deal with the proprietary bloatware that is iTunes.

Maybe.

I'm in no rush with this. My budget this year is kind of tight, so I'm disinclined to switch players just yet.

Never hurts to have options, though.

Dear Apple

Dear Apple,

Thank you so much for yet another update to iTunes.

I didn't have enough frustration today. A software update to the fetid bloatware you call a management interface was exactly what I needed to round off my evening.

Not only did your update reset all my settings, but it locked my iPod (already a temperamental little thing) and forced me to do two unnecessary reboots.

Oh and I had to wipe all the music on my iPod and re-copy it all over again.

Thanks. I really didn't have better things to do with my time.

I shall endeavor to avoid updates in the future. They never seem to do anything positive, unless causing my computer to lock up is a desired effect. I assure you that I do not consider this a desired effect. Just for the record.

I look forward to traveling with my iPod, by the way. It's flagging battery life and tendency to freeze is a source of non-stop entertainment and joy. I can see where your sterling reputation as manufacturers of fine products is so well-deserved.

I wouldn't consider buying a different product with a less-bloated and annoying interface! Whatever would I do with the freed system resources on my PC?

Many friends strongly encourage me to get an iPhone. I can only imagine how much fun it would be for me to tie all my telephonic needs into one of your products. I'm sure I'd be thrilled with it!

Until then, I shall weep bitter tears at the lack in my life.

In closing, please kindly suffer the indignities of involuntary bowel movements for the balance of your lifetime. May your genitals be scalded by acid and white-hot fire. May migraines haunt your every waking moment and nightmares thrive in your sleep.

Sincerely,

A customer who is less-than-thrilled with your iTunes interface

Houdou

A satisfying weekend. Helped a friend celebrate his 40th in a manner that involved excessive whiskey. I tried to get him to mix it up (out of pure sadism) but he stuck to his guns.

In the end, I think my plan would have induced vomiting and been a mercy. Instead, he spent his Sunday in pain. I'm undecided as to whether or not I'll chalk this up to a success or not.

As I drank little, my Sunday was a peaceful thing. Family time and a ridiculously-large meal.

My sore, sore muscles from Friday are mostly-recovered for this full week of martial arts abuse.

Two more friends' birthdays this week. One today (a lunch feast is planned) and one Wednesday (I must remember to send the Amazon card). Good, clean fun.

I'm at war with my natural impatience regarding an order I've made. I think I'll give the site a couple more days. If they still don't have my order in-stock, I'll cancel and order from someone who does have it in-stock.