A bright note as the year winds down

I searched in vain for much of yesterday as I was fighting a bug. I sought to satisfy my craving for Calicraft Oaktown Brown.

Everywhere I went, it was sold out.

While shopping for groceries today, I did a detour past a sketchy liquor store I rarely go in.

And lo: they had it. They had a healthy number of bottles.

I just had a bottle with dinner (ill-advised as I'm still struggling not to succumb to a cold, but whatever).

Now I have to decide if I'm going to tough out the next four hours and toast 2017 with some High West Campfire or call it early with Nyquil.

Decisions, decisions....

Fuck the hell off 2016

2016 was a shit year.

Let's just get that out there.

Personally, the year started with a bang and just kept going.

At this time last year, the first cracks were forming in my workplace. By the end of the first quarter, my office was in chaos. Bad decisions seemed to rule the day and people I worked with were moving on.

And as I attempted to do the same, I learned a bitter truth: that I am not really prepared to shine in a crowded labor market.

That was a goddamn hard lesson. When I used to take karate, we used to have a saying: "I will train with the spirit of humility." Martial arts did a lot to drum humility into parts of my life. As I look back on 2016, I see that the chaos of earlier in the year was simply more of the same. They were lessons in humility. Lessons, I'm sad to say, I haven't yet learned enough from. I know where my weaknesses lie, but have yet to take proper steps to address them.

I guess I have a goal in 2017.

2016 simultaneously hit me with a family crisis. There was a fair chance I was going to lose a parent. The thought of that terrified me.

Still does, honestly.

I realized I'm one day going to lose the people I care most about. And I'm really not ready.

Everything turned out okay. There will be a next time, though. And one of these days I'm going to have to deal with it.

In 2016, a number of my dearest friends lost someone close. I watched how they handled their loss and found myself humbled by how strong they all are. I sure as hell don't think I'll be able to handle it like they have.

2016 was a hellish year politically. Watching Trump get elected was like living through a reading of "It Can't Happen Here" by Sinclair Lewis. I'm glad I don't have kids.

It was a year where I look back and realize a lot of things I thought mattered to me that really don't. It's sort of left me feeling a bit lost, like I'm just going through the motions of my life. I'm not sure what I want. I'm not sure what I want to do next. I'm kind of hearing a Vorlon asking me: "Who are you? What do you want?" and I don't have any answers. (Raise your hand if you got that reference. If you do, put a white star on your geek card.)



2016 wasn't all bad. My office did course-corrections that I have benefitted from.

I've made new friendships. I've read new books. I've enjoyed some travel, both to distant places I know and not-so-distant places that are new to me.

I've attended, and semi-officiated, a quasi-wedding.

It's an indicator of how odd my life is that I can make that last statement.



Earlier today I bought some groceries. I had a chat with the clerk about New Year's resolutions.

"I don't make New Year's resolutions anymore," I said.

I don't. They're a waste of time. Intentions are nice. Actions are better. I'm rubbish at follow-through. My goal for 2017 is to get better at follow-through and get shit actually done.



I'm not sure I'm ready for 2017. I'm not sure anyone is. Still, it's coming and there's not fuck-all anyone can do about it but suck it up and be ready to take it as it comes. Some of it will be good. Some of it will be bad. The only thing I will truly control is how I deal with what comes.

Closing in

Had drinks and Zachary's Pizza with a buddy last night.

I think I'm paying the price today. Not a hangover. No, that would be too appropriate. No, it's sinuses and a scratchy throat. Yeah, I think I'm fighting a cold.

A fluke of luck has the party I was to go to get cancelled due to illness. I'm going to take advantage of this down time to crash early tonight with a Nyquil cocktail.

Four days and counting

Ah 2016. You just can't stop being a rancid pustule of terrible, can you?

Carrie Fisher? Seriously? We've lost Princess Leia all-too-soon.

And we've got four days left. Lovely.

Part of me can't wait for this year to end. The rest of me is terrified what 2017 will bring.

Punchy on Boxing Day

Aaaah... vacation.

What have I done today?

Hm. I've:

• Re-watched The Return of the Jedi. Again. It really doesn't stand up to repeat-views.
• Made pasta sauce.
• Eaten Thai food.
• Spent far too much time on the Internet.
• Spent far too much time on laundry.
• Made pasta noodles.
• Enjoyed a glass of High West Campfire that was probably a little more full than it ought to be.

Looking back, not a terribly productive day. I meant to go jogging, but it's goddamn cold outside and I'm feeling simultaneously wimpy and whiny. Also I think I'm fighting a cold. I'm sure the whiskey will help with that.

In fairness, I thought the Thai food was going to help with that too. Get some spicy Pad Kee Mau and watch the germs flee in terror from hot peppers.

I'm sure there's valid science there. Then again, I have had a lot of whiskey.

If I have my druthers, I may actually do some housecleaning tomorrow.

WTF are "druthers" anyway? Google says "a person's preference in a matter.". WTF?

English is a goddamn weird language.

Noodly Xmas

Been a nice Xmas. Fun time with the family. Lots of food. Lots of drink. Lots of loot. Spent a chunk of the 23rd watching Star Wars IV: A New Hope. Spent part of Xmas Eve watching Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back. Just spent part of today watching Star Wars VI: The Return of the Jedi. God, I hate Ewoks.

Still, I have to credit Rogue One with putting me in the mood to watch all the classics again, albeit remastered.

When not doing that, it's been a relaxing afternoon of sampling whiskey, setting up my new computer monitor, resetting my fussy router, and having more whiskey.

Finished "Good Intentions" by Elliot Kay. I can see a lot of "Poor Man's War" in his more steamy series about everyday Alex who winds up bound to a succubus and an angel. Entertaining reading. Now I'm going to focus on finishing up "Wrath" by John Gwynne before jaunting off to the next book in the pile.

And I think I'm seriously going to look into getting a new bookshelf.

Review: "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story"

Full disclosure: I went into Rogue One expecting to hate it.

I hate prequels, as a rule. They're lazy storytelling. I saw the trailers and teasers and thought "this is just Disney trying to squeeze money from me."

I'm not wrong, but damn was it worth it.

Saw Rogue One: A Star Wars Story last night. I walked out of that theater thinking "fucking hell that was enjoyable."

Set just before the events of Star Wars IV: A New Hope (the original, to us old folks), it tells the story of how the rebels got the plans to the Death Star.

This wasn't a story I needed told, truth be told. I never cared how the rebels got the plans. Having seen it, I still don't care all that much.

No, what I took away from Rogue One was an appreciation for the average member of the Rebellion and the effort to widen the Star Wars universe.

The problem George Lucas ran into with his horribly-written prequels was the shrinking of his rich and interesting Star Wars universe. There was no need for Tatooine to figure into Episode 1: the most pointless movie ever, as an example. The prequels suffered horribly from too much self-referential garbage in addition to the bad direction and horrible writing.

Rogue One isn't any kind of repository of Oscar-winning acting, but it does a solid job of expanding the Star Wars universe through the eyes of people who aren't Jedi or similar wonks.

It did a solid job of telling a story of everyday people who tried to fight the power and, ultimately, succeeded despite a horrible price.

There weren't Jedi in it. There was one Sith who was in the film for maybe ten minutes max.

Ten minutes of "holy shit what the fuck!" awesome.

The people I saw the film with had their own favorites among the cast of Rogue One. I'm going to go with "all of them" as my answer. I was down with the heroine, the morally-ambiguous Rebel intelligence agent, the reprogrammed snarky Imperial droid, the defecting Imperial pilot, the blind temple guardian (Donnie Yen!), and the surly dude with the rapid-fire blaster. I never really learned any of their names. I don't really care what their names were. They were entertaining. Their story was no more or less coherent than the main Star Wars movies. There were heroics, space battles, good guys, bad guys, and lots of shit getting blown the hell up.

And there was digital necromancy that creeped me out while making me cheer.

I enjoyed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story despite my best efforts. At the end, the only thing I can really fault it for is the music. Michael Giacchino (or however his name is spelled) is really not the guy to be scoring these flicks. I wish they'd gotten John Williams on-board. But such is life.

That was a fun flick. Hopefully the other spinoffs will be as solid.

So it's December 20

I don't think I really got what the date was until I had a store clerk tell me.

Fucking hell. It's five days 'till Xmas. It's a bit over two weeks until the year turns and the turd-blossom that is 2016 leaves us for the potential shitstorm that is 2017.

Huh.

So I'm digesting part of a deep-dish pizza and more than a few pints of my favorite beer on draught.

It's a Tuesday. I'm between drunk and buzzed and feeling a bit introspective. I'm impressed I can spell "introspective" right now. And "draught". I know too many Brits.

2016. You've been a remarkably shitty year. Yet I don't give you full credit. Thought I was going to lose a parent earlier this year. Didn't. Grateful for that. Thought some job-related things were going full-on-shitstorm. Turned out I benefited far better than I expected.

Got a few lessons out of 2016 that I'm grateful for, once I get past my bitching.

Still a shitty year, mind you. Not walking away from most of the crap. But it could be worse.

I'm looking forward to down-time for the rest of 2016. I'm looking forward to tucking away from the rest of the crazy. I'm hoping this isn't a cold I'm fighting. I'm wondering if I should open that bottle of High West Campfire I got the other day. I'm debating burning sick leave for the rest of the week.

2017 is going to have to be different in a number of ways. I need to get my shit together. I need to discard hangups that I've had for too long. I need to grow up a bit more.

May as well do it sometime.

I need to buy a new goddamn bookshelf. Christ. I have books stacked on books in my apartment. It's ridiculous.

I guess there's worse problems to have.

Probably ought to cut back on the deep-dish pizza, though. That's not doing me any favors.

So tasty, though...

Review: Lever Gear Toolcard 1.0

This one wasn't a Kickstarter for me. At least not when I got in on it. It was an Indiegogo project when I got involved. The Lever Gear Toolcard 1.0 was a bumpy ride as crowdfunding projects go for me. I wasn't sure it was ever really going to deliver as I opted for a black Toolcard and there were supply issues.

About the same time my Dango wallet arrived, my Toolcard money clip came.

The Toolcard 1.0 does pretty much what my Dango wallet does, only with a less-menacing look to it. I don't think I'd have problems getting the Toolcard on an airplane or into court. It's got the screwdrivers, wrenches, rulers, pry-tips, and the all-important bottle opener. It's also got a clip for the money-clip function that I sought it for.

I'm quite happy with this acquisition and am interested to see what Lever Gear does in the future.

Review: Dango Wallet

Third of my glut of Kickstarters I backed, I got the Dango Products T1 "Tactical Wallet".

I swear to God, I can't resist these "tactical" thingies. I think it's because they simultaneously appeal to the kid in me who wanted to be James Bond and because they almost-always have a bottle opener and/or screwdriver.

After I got back from my trip last month, the T1 was waiting for me in my held mail.

The Dango wallets come in two flavors: the "Dapper" wallet and the "Tactical" one. The difference really is that the Tactical one has bezels and includes a multi-tool.

The wallet is an aluminum frame with a leather pocket on one side. The entire affair is held together by a silicone band. The frame has an integrated bottle opener on one end and can be used as a glass-breaker. The multi-tool can extend and sort of lock to let someone partially-extend the tool while using the wallet as a handle or to remove the tool altogether for its other functions.

The multi-tool has all sorts of things one might find on a wallet-tool: saw, blade, wrenches, pry-tip, screwdriver, and yet another bottle opener.

Huh. I just realized there's a second bottle opener. And my average goes up again.

The wallet itself is a work of art. It's freakin' gorgeous. It's designed to hold about eight or nine cards with the multi-tool. I've managed to push my T1 a little beyond what it's intended to hold and cram nearly all my cards in, with liberal use of the silicone band. I may get a Dapper wallet as a second or as a backup as I think I've overdone it on how many cards I've got in.

I carry too much crap.

Still, this is a damn fine wallet. Worth the money and I found Dango Products to be an excellent Kickstarter to back. Charlie Carroll, the creator, had excellent communication and seemed to have his act together. I'd back another by him.

Review: The B.A.T.

It's a running gag among my friends to ask me how many bottle openers I have on my person at any given time. The average is five or six.

I backed a Kickstarter: The B.A.T. and now the average went up a bit.

I forgot how the B.A.T. came to my attention, but once I saw it, I decided I had to back it.

I'm a sucker for little multi-tools and the B.A.T. looks like something Bruce Wayne might have in his coin purse.

The Kickstarter delivered about a week ago and I've had a little time with the B.A.T. as I struggle with how to carry it and not lose it.

As billed, the B.A.T. (Bring Anywhere Tool) is a tiny thing. About the size of a quarter. It looks like a Batman tool and covers a variety of functions. It's got a Phillips screwdriver, a flat-head screwdriver, a saw edge, a fire rod scraper, a wire stripper, a scribe tip (whatever that is), a cutter, and - of course - a bottle opener.

The creator, Covert Products Group, wins kudos from me for writing the most entertaining updates I've ever seen on Kickstarter. While infrequent, each update was written like a spy-novel short story. Damn entertaining.

In-all, I'm glad I backed this one. It's a nice little tool and looks cool.

Review: The ZeroHour Apex Tactical Pen

You know how I said I'd never back another Kickstarter again?

It should come as no surprise to anyone who has read this mess of a blog that I lied.

ZeroHour is one of those Kickstarters who I really like. They communicate well and consistently. And they deliver in a timely manner. If there's hiccups or delays, they explain what's going on.

In short, they do what other Kickstarters should be doing. And they do it well.

I backed their first two flashlight offerings and have never regretted it. I keep one in my bag at all times and have the other handy. I've even backed their third flashlight offering because I have a terrible problem.

Okay, I'm getting off-track. So the pen. They sent out an announcement that they were doing a pen. A "tactical pen", to be clear. Honestly, I like a nice pen and find "tactical pens" to be an iffy thing to have on one's person. Still, I backed it. Got a titanium one because I do love me titanium. And it delivered on-time.

The ZeroHour Apex Tactical Pen is a clean-looking, small-but-sturdy writing instrument that looks like it comes out of a science fiction film. It has a screw-on cap that can be attached to a key-ring and, to earn the "tactical" moniker, has a tungsten carbide glass-breaker on the opposite end of the pen. The glass-breaker has a small screw-cap of its own so the sharp glass-breaker isn't poking holes in your garments (or skin).

The pen writes well and handles nicely. It takes Fisher Space Pen refills, which is always nice.

The other use for a "tactical pen" is that of an impromptu kubaton, at least in most cases. I can't say the Apex would fill that role very well. It's a tad small in my hand, but I suppose it could work. Certainly the pen doesn't look threatening, which is kind of important as it's a freakin' pen.

My only complaint about the pen is that the rubber rings they provide to help secure the screw tops are disinclined to stay put. I've already lost one. Still, that's a small thing in the grand picture.

I love the Apex pen and credit (or blame) ZeroHour for restoring my faith in Kickstarters enough that I backed a few more.

Just when I thought I was out...

Rambling

I swear to God that 2016 cannot end soon enough.

Now the FBI and CIA are saying the Russians messed with our election to get Trump into office.

I question what the hell Putin is thinking putting an unstable nutjob in a position of getting nuclear codes. They can't be that good of friends.

I distract myself with "Babylon's Ashes", book six of The Expanse series by James. S.A. Corey. I've got a little over a hundred pages left. Not quite four-fifths done. This book is kicking my ass.

After, I think I'll get back to "Good Intentions" by Elliot Kay. Nothing says fun like a story of an everyday guy who winds up with a succubus and an angel as his two girlfriends and lovers.

After that, I've got "Wrath" by John Gwynne, ending his four-part series of pseudo-Celtic insanity. Then either I go to "Natural Consequences" (sequel to "Good Intentions") or flip to "The Plague of Swords" by Miles Cameron (fourth book of the Red Knight series).

I like having so many options after a dry stretch of no reading material.

Rogue One came out today. I'm slated to see it next week sometime. I'm hoping it's good. The intros I've seen don't really give me a strong "Star Wars" feel, so I'm reserving judgment. That said, I was very pleasantly surprised by The Force Awakens, so Rogue One could be good. Hard to say. Unfortunately, it's also a prequel and I generally hate prequels.

Oh well. Nobody's putting a blaster to my head and making me go see it.

I actually just re-watched The Force Awakens. Damn, that flick is entertaining. Gotta say I love it more I watch it, and that's a rare thing. It's not a perfect movie, certainly, but it's entertaining.

Done with my Xmas shopping. Even managed some semi-decent stocking-stuffers. At least that's done.

And now another cold snap settles on the Bay Area. Supposed to dance along freezing temps later. Gotta say I'm liking the winter weather we're getting. Some nice rain storms followed by some proper cold weather. I'd think the world was getting back to sane except for the fact that the world is anything but.

Not quite a month left

Just a few weeks left in the shitstorm that has been 2016. I'm looking forward to this fucking disaster of a year being over but not particularly-enthused as to what 2017 has in store.

One bright note: the next Expanse book comes out today. That, and several other books, should be en route soon for my reading pleasure during my commute. Apparently BART is going to do major maintenance in mid-2016, which will be a tad disruptive to my early work schedule. Whee.

I think I'm going to take some vacation this month and hide away from the madness of the world. In the last week I've had someone try to break into my apartment building and had my credit card compromised. Fun times. Yeah, I'm kinda done with this year.