|
01/05/01
Missed the chance to do an entry for 01/01/01, but isn't it cool?
Hantavirus hurts. I'm quite sure I was near death several times this last week, what with the coughing and hacking, drowning in phlegm, and achy tiredness. But I'm on the road to recovery now, and all you people who get stuff in my will can just chill out.
We got our PS2! At first, I experienced my usual first-person-shooter-game vertigo (also known as "simulator sickness") when playing anything on it, but I moved my chair back so that my peripheral vision includes more of the living room, and that seems to have done the trick. And oh boy! I love DVDs! The official Sony line that you can't play DVDs by hooking up your PS2 through your VCR is a big, fat lie, by the way. Our ancient RCA TV set and VCR are working just fine, thanks.
Also joined Netflix to keep 'em coming.
12/28/00
I got swept up in a wave of nostalgia today. Pored over the former student listings at my alma mater, tried to look up old friends. Life moves by so fast. I was looking at pictures of me in college and I can barely remember what it was like to be that person. I'm so happy and (mostly) calm now, and it seems like I was scared a lot then.
"A mosshead warbonnet sort of looks like a decorator warbonnet with a brush cut." And that's pretty much all you need to know.
12/27/00
I had an adventure last night. My cat, Speedy, got into the basement crawl space and was pooping back there for a couple of weeks. It smelled bad, and we spend a lot of time in the basement, so I had to go back and clean it out. Jen said I was "spelunking for poop--spepooping!"
I crawled around back there for more than an hour, commando style, on my belly, yelling obscenities at Speedy the whole time. The crawlspace varies between a foot and three feet high, so I had my sweatshirt hood up to keep spiders out of my hair. I usually wear a dust mask back there in a pathetic attempt to keep hantavirus out of my lungs, but this time I didn't bother--what's a little hantavirus between friends? So I inhaled a lot of dust, and my snot is still black today.
I cleaned out three plastic bags full of crap from Speedy and countless other cats who have lived in the house, and I found lots of rat poop, too. We had an incident with a dead rat shortly after we moved in, but I think they're all gone now.
These are the joys of home ownership. Scooting around on one's belly, grabbing fossilized lumps of cat shit, inhaling particulated bits of dead rat.
12/26/00
Happy Boxing Day!
We had a lovely Christmas, with brilliant gifts, delicious foods, delightful company, and fun activities. I got up super early. I'm an early riser normally, and I was tense because I wanted to get Jen's bike in the house and get a bow tied on it. So I made her get up at 8:30, and she's not an early riser. But she got a nap later, and she managed to fix an amazing meal and join in the board game fun besides.
I'm campaigning for Dr. Theopolis in TotL's Best Supporting Computer poll. He was the cylinder that the irritating robot Twiki wore around his neck in the 1980s Buck Rogers TV series. I always wondered why they just didn't give Dr. Theo some legs and tear that damned "Bidi bidi bidi" twerp down for starship parts.
12/21/00
I made Allen's link cut! That makes me feel very happy, like I'm in with Jen's pals. All the web dev people are like the cool kids a grade below me in high school... I used to think, "How can I make them think I'm as slick as they are without sacrificing the automatic points I get for being older and wiser?"
Come to think of it, I had the same problem getting Jen interested in me. Of course, my approach worked out just fine. Heh.
ATTENTION HIPSTERS: You must read this all the way through.
12/20/00
Whoo-ee! Got my hair cut really short today by my brother the barber. He was talking excitedly with me about his spiritual awakening and desire to become a monk as he cut, and he runs an old-fashioned barber shop where the customer faces away from the mirror, so... well, it's short.
"My books are available from me until the Rapture takes place. Afterward look for them in chains like B. Dalton's." --quote from Marilyn Agee's apocalyptic Christian web page. Looks like after three failures to predict the Rapture, she's moved the date out to May 18, 2001.
The Doomsday List is a great source of stuff like this. And a nice way to feel superior on a day when your self-esteem is low.
12/19/00
I found a treasure trove of novelty candies. They have Gold Mine Gum! It comes in a little cloth sack and looks like gold nuggets. Mmmm...
I am the biggest fan of weird and unpleasant sweets in the world. Also strange beverages. I regularly consume that white Sobe stuff all my pals call "sperm drink." Hey, as long as it's coconut-flavored, I'm in.
Exhausted from lack of sleep. I've been having vivid and mostly frightening dreams. Two nights ago, I was trying to save a woman who was trapped in a bathtub because the water had been frozen solid by a malevolent ghost. Creepy! When I submitted it to the Dream Doctor, I got a disappointing mishmash of symbol interpretation. The house was a metaphor for me, and the water represents my emotions. See why I'm a skeptic?
12/18/00
While searching for tips on how to paint my miniatures, I found Nerdworld. Go figure.
The weekend was lovely. We did some shopping, wrote Christmas cards, got our new dining table all set up. Of course, now Jen is sick. This time of year, it's so damn hard to stay well. And so damn hard to come in to work, when all that's waiting is angry customer emails.
Thanks almost entirely to Jen, our house really feels homey. Some of my more notable contributions to the decor are my cabinet of curiosities and lots of antique scientific prints.
I feel like my blood pressure is high. I have a fairly constant tight feeling in my forebrain, and my pulse is pretty racy and hard. And I'm not drinking coffee! I think I'll get it checked as part of my customary January suite of doctor visits. I'll bet doctors and dentists get a huge rush of appointments in January. And gyms.
12/15/00
Just found the strangest Christmas site while searching for retro christmas gift labels. No, wait. This one is stranger--a racist joke in the middle of a heartfelt plea not to teach kids religion at Christmastime!?
Out sick yesterday and couldn't update due to DSL weirdness last night.
The good news? I finally beat Diablo, through a haze of decongestants and snot. My paladin is now Sir Fearghal.
Word Snob Rant of the DayŽ: One waits with bated breath, not baited breath. As much as I like fish, I don't like to think of anyone having fishy breath.
12/13/00
It snowed today! Big fat flakes cruising past my 17th floor office window--most going up, some sideways, and a few stubborn fellows down. Downtown is sparkly with lights and colorfully-dressed people. I like it.
Why scaly and slimy? Because I love fishes. ("Fishes" being the correct plural for a mixed-species group, and "fish" for a single-species group.)
Why the truth? Why not. Today's truth: I feel my age. I'm 4 years older than the Internet. My back hurts after a restless night, my skin looks wrinkly and loose, and I'm cranky with people in their 20s. I don't want to hear the word "phat" today.
12/12/00
Dang, it's cold out. Jen heard that we're in an energy crisis and should use minimal power at home. As a former bureaucratic biologist, I'm always skeptical about these efforts to get citizens to conserve. I always imagine little old ladies wheeling heavy recyclables out to the porch and sitting shivering in the dark so that the Georgia Pacific pulp mill can continue polluting unperturbed by power shortages. Grump.
Ordered sneakers from customatix.com today. I got the "You Old Drunk" model skate shoe, and I added a surfer on the bottom and "Mosshead" on the back. They cost $85, whereas my worn-out Vans were only $65. But at customatix, you can design out the corporate logos entirely, so I figure I'm paying the $20 advertising subsidy myself.
Here's a conversation from the post office today:
Me: "I'd like some stamps, please"
P.O. Lady: "Sure... regular or holiday?"
Me: "Deep sea."
P.O. Lady: (pause) "Um, OK"
12/11/00
Reasons for new weblog:
1. Jen said she thinks I should have one.
2. I'm never one to let a trend go by without joining in when it's almost over.
Played D&D all day yesterday and saw the movie last night. Thought about the fact that I'm still playing this game at 34. That's more than two decades of roleplaying. My god, what have I done? Of course, it's all OK since I get paid for it.
I finally got around to asking about class schedules for aikido. I need balance, flexibility, and peace. I like yoga, but it makes me feel like I'm made of brittle old sticks. When I was an awkward teen, I found strength (and a truce with my rebellious body) through judo. Perhaps I can touch my toes again before I'm 40.
|
