I finally got around to uploading photos from our two weeks of imprisonment working from home. You can see the white wonder that Seattle became here.
Also, many cute photos of Sumi & Pixel were taken, which were added to this set. Newest ones on the top.
Sorry, but this is about as substantive of a post as you’re likely to get from me for now. Lach’s brain = mush.
…is the 6th anniversary of the day Bayou and I met.
That is all.
Adam had a great idea for summarizing 2008. I’ve stolen his format here. Before we ring in 2009, here are my thoughts on 2008:
THE GOOD OF 2008 (Professional/Personal)
-I still have a job despite the economy
-My relationship with my beloved just gets better and better
-We adopted Pixel
-I’ve made some awesome new friends
THE BAD OF 2008 (Professional/Personal)
-I’m still in the same job, with the same manager, and the same problems
-Lost my friend Amber in April
THE GOOD OF 2008 - (Media)
-‘Common Reaction‘, Uh Huh Her
-‘Modern Guilt‘, Beck
-‘Accelerate‘, REM
-‘Viva Pinata‘ for Xbox- not released in 2008, but new to me this year
‘Rock Band 2‘ for Xbox
‘Fringe’ on Tv
-The new Wordpress 2.7
THE BAD OF 2008 (Media)
-Britney’s comeback
-The cancellation of Pushing Daisies
-Reality TV (still, always, forever)
THE GOOD OF 2008 - (Tech)
-The Flip Mino Video Camera
-iPhone 3G
-The new Canon G10 camera
Bayou and I were out and about yesterday when we saw the worst signage. It was for the Double Tree Hotel, offering its premises for holiday parties.
“Have your holiday office party in our restr. Call XXX-XXX-XXXX now.”
As we looked at it, Bayou uttered what we were both thinking:
“The way that’s written screams ‘restroom’ to me, not restaurant.” I laughed and agreed.
“What a place to have your holiday party, in the shitter. ‘Here, have your holiday party just like Larry Craig would have! Recreate the ambiance of the Minneapolis-St Paul airport bathroom here in Seattle!”
We were both cracking up by this point. I wasn’t even going to blog this until I saw this Fark tagline:
“Another sign of a bad economy: fewer tourists vacationing at the Sen. Craig bathroom in the Minneapolis airport”. Read the real article here.
I wish I had a dollar for every instance in the last two weeks where someone said “You’re so lucky you get to work from home!” I’d go to Hawaii on that money, easily.
This is day 1359943828423649836 (I have lost track- I think 9 out of 10 working days) of being at home. This time, not only did the elements conspire against us, but our trashy alleged ex-neighbor did, as well. More »
The State AG just stunned the supporters of Prop 8:
Supporters of Proposition 8, the California initiative that eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry last month, reacted with surprise and dismay this weekend to the announcement by the state’s attorney general that he had reversed his position and would ask California’s high court to invalidate the measure.
Jerry Brown, the state’s attorney general–and a leading candidate to replace Arnold Schwarzenegger as governor in two years–filed papers on Friday asking the state Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8, which amends the state’s Constitution to define marriage as only between a man and a woman.
The decision is a major reversal for Brown, whose office argued against same-sex marriage in the spring, only to see the Supreme Court find a law banning gay marriage unconstitutional. After last month’s election, in which 52 percent of voters effectively reinstated that law by supporting Proposition 8, Brown again said he would support the will of the people.
In a brief filed on Friday, Brown abruptly changed sides, saying he had looked closely at state precedent and had concluded that he couldn’t defend the new law. “Proposition 8 must be invalidated because the amendment process cannot be used to extinguish fundamental constitutional rights without compelling justification,” Brown’s brief says. The state Supreme Court, in its decision earlier this year, found that gay couples enjoy the same fundamental right to marry that straight people do.
Brown’s brief acknowledged that the state is facing a constitutional crisis. Every branch of government–including the governor, a majority of state legislators, and the state’s highest court–approves the rights of same-sex couples to marry, while a slim majority of voters have eliminated those rights. “We have a conflict between the amendment power (through voter initiatives) and the duty of the Supreme Court to protect minorities and safeguard liberty,” Brown said.
I said when this happened that there was no way California could move on with three classes of people- straights who can marry, gays who did, and gays who can’t. I’m hoping this momentum will get the court case going to overturn this idiotic proposition.
And happy belated Solstice, to boot.
No high winds, just a LOT of snow. Pictures -and quite possibly Sumi video- are forthcoming.
Worky-work, busy bee, that’s me… back to the grind.
Well, the weather front our meteorologists have been screaming about came early- around 2ish.
Bayou and I headed out for the necessary supplies just before then- batteries and liquor. We bought:
We already had our candle box, flashlights, and camping stove/propane at Command Central.1 Cell phones are charged, wood’s been brought to the back door for a fire if needed. Blankets, thick wool socks, and sweatshirts/fleece have been washed. Oh, and there was that $150 trip to the grocery on Wednesday. Food should not be an issue2
It amazes me how Seattle shuts down for snow, but after the photos I saw yesterday, I think it’s a hell of a lot safer. Seriously, people, STAY OFF THE ROADS. And don’t get on a bus going down a hill towards an overpass. Just don’t.3
Wish us luck. And we hope all of our friends, E&P, R&J, Amy, Cammie, and other West Seattleites are prepared and ready to weather the storm.
Notice I didn’t say “interrupted”. Well, there was a lot of that. Just not of Pixel.
Bayou and I are iced in today, with about 2-3in of ice on our driveway, street, and surrounding neighborhood. Unless we get a Pineapple express through here, I don’t see us leaving anytime soon.
Thanks to the wonders of the Internet age, I can work from home.1 However, this amazing ability to bust the bad guys anywhere I have my POS monstrosity Dell and and wifi is severely impacted by Pixelmania.
Pixelmania: Pik-sel may-nee-a; noun;
Condition in which said cat, Pixel, is possessed of super-feline speed and insanity. Pixelmania induced actions include, but are not limited to: 5 foot vertical jumps, knocking tv remotes, cd’s and other electronic accessories onto the floor; hurdling bags of food going to the food bank, ricocheting off Lachlan’s chest like a ninja cat from hell, and resisting any and all outside attempts to be restrained.
Do not treat with cat nip, laser pointers, or sweet talk. Responds well to bacon, sausage, and ice cream.
So today our little tuxedoed wonder bounced off every wall, shelf, table, stole food, harassed the dog, and pretty much made me want to scream. Still, she was effin’ cute the whole time. I think she finally passed out somewhere. Until the next bout of Pixelmania ensues, at least.
She’s so tech-savy.
Looks like living in Seattle has turned me into a neo-Luddite hippie.
| I took the 43 Things Personality Quiz and found out I’m a
Self-Improving Self-Knowing Tree Hugger
  |
I knew at the end of my workday yesterday (7:30 PST1 ) that I would be paying for it the next day. When I got off the con-call with India2 I was out of sorts and hungry. I drove to Burien to get my tie for the party Friday and to get some food. I felt better, my head cleared a little.
But when I woke up it felt like someone had hit me with a ball-bat. Head, neck, shoulders - everything hurt. Being a desk jockey really needs to pay more. A lot more.
Work was busy and frantic and go-go-go. We were supposed to have lunch provided, but when noon rolled around I was nauseated and the idea of picked-over Quiznos turned my stomach. So I went to the market and got a can of stew. I know, I know, fat in a can… shaddup. It was the best I could do and it was familiar.
I heated it up in the microwave based on the can instructions- 3min. After 2:10 elapsed, I decided to check it. Well, when I pulled the bowl (which has a handle) out of the microwave hot grease sprayed everywhere- my face, below my left eye, in my hair, and a big spot on my right palm. I was next to the sink so I quickly rinsed my face and hand. My hand started to turn red and sting immediately.
Thankfully we have aloe-based burn cream, gauze, and tape. I taped my hand up and went back to work, my brand new shirt stew-sprayed. My head hurt like hell and I just wanted to crawl in a hole.
My boss, not normally the empathetic type, came up and asked me if I wanted to head home. She seemed concerned, and I know she understands the pain- she was burned badly almost two years ago in an accident. She wanted to know if I needed medical help. I told her there were no blisters but that I had applied cold immediately and bandaged in loosely. She told me to take the rest of the day and relax.
And so here I am, heating pad, laptop, and pet-love to ease my evening into a better place than my day began.
Stolen with permission from Maria.
Like Maria, I am feeling tired and uninspired, so I figured opening this here post up to questions might help me get the kinks out of my mental state.
Ask me any question you wish, and I’ll answer anything, but will stop at # 15.
My sojourn to find clothes for tomorrow’s party has finally ended. In all, it took three trips to about two dozen (!!!) stores, but I finally have my outfit. Sheesh.
Anyway, the ensemble will be as follows:
-dark gray slacks
-black boots
-white dress shirt
-black blazer with blue-ish pinstripes
-a narrow black tie
I am quite pleased and think the whole deal will look pretty snazzy. The funny part of all this is the ‘advice’ my boss has been giving me on what to wear. I had told her about the slacks, and she suggested some store that I wouldn’t be caught dead in, based on her description. I can’t remember the name of it- but she was describing shirts, tunics, and blazers with sequins and other bling-y items. Aww, hell no.
Yesterday when I mentioned I had found a blazer and a ‘blouse’ (it’s really a men’s dress shirt- HA!) she said “Be sure to accessorize with lots of bling!”
Somehow, I suppressed the raucous laughter. Not sure how.
There will be no bling. I repeat, there will be no bling.
I am not very squeamish but this headline kind of made me shiver- Veterinarians reattach injured cat’s face.
Veterinarians in Boston on Tuesday performed an unusual surgery to reattach the face of a cat they think was injured by a car’s fan belt, probably because she tried to stay warm under the hood.
Edgar, a 4-year-old long-haired feline, disappeared from her home in Winthrop for three days last week. When she came home, her owner found her in her litter box, with part of her face dangling from her head.
“When her owner saw her face, she passed out,” said Elizabeth Kendrick, a surgical technician at Angell Animal Medical Center.
No slams from me on the poor owner, I think most people would have.
And yes, this cat is female and named Edgar. Which reminds me of a funny story. More »
Angry Ford dealer O.C. Welch of South Carolina had this to say recently:
All you people that buy all your Toyotas and send that money to Japan, you know, when you don’t have a job to make your Toyota car payment, don’t come crying to me,” Welch says in the ad. “All those cars are rice ready. They’re not road ready.”
Nice. Class-ay in the extreme, in fact.
So I have this to say in reply:
When the American car makers can make quality product, instead of the plasticky repair-prone crap they put out now, perhaps my fellow Americans and I won’t look to German or Japanese imports.
Another irony of this stupid rant is that many Japanese cars are manufactured here- Toyota, Hyundai, and Honda all have US-based plants. Way to devalue the jobs of your fellow Americans, idiot.
He claims he’s mostly angry at politicians, but when I hear ‘rice ready, not road ready’ the first thing that comes to mind isn’t anti-politician vitriol.
Pixel, like most cats, thinks anything that can be crawled into or under is sublime kitty heaven. She loves to play inside plastic bags, paper grocery sacks, under the bed1, anywhere her lithe little frame will fit.
I am feeling a tad rough today. My neck and back are in revolt, a hold-over from my accident. I took some Vicodin2 and was preparing my heating pad (a cloth bag of feed corn- very Mississippi). I was walking out of the kitchen when I saw this: More »
Sunday Bayou and I had to go shopping for holiday party clothes.1 On the way out of our little hamlet, I saw two kids, one black and one hispanic, hanging out near the entrance to the greenbelt behind our house. There was also a black Jeep parked near them.
The kids were standing close to a sign that had been tagged awhile back, and something just didn’t look right. We passed them and I slowed down to make eye contact. The older kid got the message that I didn’t think he was up to anything good, as he quickly looked away when he realized he was being observed.
We ended up having to turn around and come back. On the second pass, as I looked in my rearview mirror I saw the kids had a towel -it was raining- and a spray can. Goddamn it. More »
Hat-tip to MJ.
Ok, so anyone who doesn’t want a major plot point of the L Word spoiled, don’t read any further. Just don’t. More »
