there we go

20,000 steps it is.

19,006

That's how many steps I've taken today according to my SportBrain pedometer. So close to 20,000... I'm tired, but maybe a quick walk around the block will get me over the edge...

Oooo, color!

This is amazing- these two areas that you see are the first two walls of the house that are *not* painted white. The rest of the room is getting color, too- the remaining walls will be painted a tint of the yellow you see in the bay window, and the trim will be a very pale version of it. I'd love to get some blue curtains in the windows, but the maternal unit (Mom for short) says it would "look too Mexican". Got news for ya, blue curtains may look Mexican (I prefer to think of it as a Southwestern palette) to you, but the Styrofoam that's been in the windows as long as I can remember is pure Apache Junction.

Remodeling Mindfuck

I may have told some of you that I was planning on doing some changes to my bedroom- first, new flooring (the stack of what looks like wood in the photo- it's laminate flooring from IKEA), and repainting the room. Actually, I'll paint first, THEN put the floor down (harder to get paint all over the new floor if it's still in the plastic, ya know), but that's just semantics. Anyway, to get to the point of this entry:

What you see here is a closet space that was retrofitted into the room. How do I know it was a retrofit into the existing space? The carpet and floor moulding both go straight under the wall protrusions. I couldn't believe it. The question for me now is, "How the fuck am I going to get the carpet up if I can't pull up on it? At this point, I'm all for knocking those walls back out of the floor plan, and putting in a couple Pax wardrobes from IKEA. It would definitely look nicer, the closet as it stands right now appears to be a shitty rush job.

I feel like Too Much Coffee Man!

Awesome new Cirque du Soleil dance remix compilation plus SoBe Energy equals WEEEEEEEEE!

It's not fun having this much energy when you have a desk job.

Human Embryo Cloning/Human Embryo Cloning

You may have recently heard the news that a British team of scientists have successfully cloned a human embryo. Naturally, a major advance in science such as this is immediately shunned by right-wing wackos everywhere. To these wackos, I have but one question.

When was the last time you had eggs for breakfast?

Speaking of eggs, now would be a good time to mention the recipe I hinted at in an earlier post, eggs fried in bread crumbs. It's quite simple. Start out with three tablespoons of well-packed, slightly stale bread crumbs. Dump the crumbs into a bowl. Measure out 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and pour just enough of it on the crumbs to get them really soaked; set the rest of the olive oil aside, you'll be using it in a moment. Put the crumbs into a pan over medium heat, and cook until they start to sizzle a bit (it will sound like quiet radio static). Shake the pan a bit, stir once or twice if you like. When the crumbs start to get some color, add the rest of the olive oil, and some herbs; whatever you happen to have handy will work great whether fresh or dried, I've been using bouquet garni (a mix of various delicious herbs, you can get some at Penzeys Spices) and enjoying it quite a bit. Crack two eggs directly onto the crumbs, and cook until they're as done as you like, flipping halfway through cooking. If you like your eggs over easy, be sure to save some of the crumbs and sprinkle them on top of the eggs just before flipping. Once the eggs are done, slide them onto a plate, and add 1 teaspoon balsamic, red wine, or sherry vinegar to the skillet. Once it is sizzling furiously (it won't take long), drizzle over the eggs, and serve. It's really good with some great bacon or sausage (and Penzeys offers sausage seasoning too), and maybe a slice of the same bread you used for the crumbs. Oh- almost forgot to mention, using great ingredients is essential to this dish. Even Wonder bread will do in a pinch, but if you use a nice artisanal loaf, some ultra-fresh free range eggs (and what better way to get those than by raising your own chickens?), and home-grown herbs, this dish will be positively transcendent.

Quote of the Day

"We could all just do it at our desks."

--A Coworker

Upcoming Concert

"Pop-Tarts presents American Idols Live"


And vice versa.

Mmmm, great breakfast... Eggs fried in bread crumbs. I'll tell you more about it later

A Tale of Two Banks

Recently, I got a new bank account with Washington Mutual. I have had one with Wells Fargo for ages now, but have come to realize that unless you have 50 million dollars in a corporate account with them, you don't mean jack shit to them and they treat you like it. Washington Mutual, on the other hand, has been treating me almost like I'm somebody famous from the moment I stepped into one of their branches. When you see one of the desk bankers at Wells Fargo, you sign in on a clipboard at the receptionist's desk (where there is never a receptionist, and if there is one, she's too busy to look at you), then wait forever to see an arrogant bozo who seems to have wished for a big prick and became one instead. At Washington Mutual, I was looking at the various pamphlets they had, when someone approached me and asked if I needed help with anything. I told them I was interested in getting a new account; the lady who greeted me invited me to have a seat and asked if I wanted a glass of water. In the more than ten years that I've had a Wells Fargo account, this has NEVER happened. WaMu has gone on to amaze me with nothing less than wonderful service.

Over the last two days, I have received a piece of correspondence from each bank. From Wells Fargo was an email saying that they would help reach my financial goals through sending advertisements to my email. Bullshit. If you haven't been able to help me at all yet, how are emails going to help at all? Then there was the piece from Washington Mutual... a hand-written thank you card, welcoming me to Washington Mutual, and saying that if I needed help with anything, to just call. Ladies and gentlemen, I was truly amazed by this. They totally didn't have to do that, but they did. I have a good feeling that I'll be quite pleased with Washington Mutual.

Bill Gates is optimistic, that's for sure...

“As good as Apple may be, I don’t believe the success of the iPod is sustainable in the long run”
--Bill Gates, at the unveiling of the new version of the XBox console today (or at least very recently)


"640k of memory ought to be enought for anybody."
--Bill Gates, 1981

Pyramids

While looking at a picture of the great pyramids in Egypt, I thought of the numerous people out there who have all sorts of odd postulates as to how the timeless monuments were built, including space aliens and time travel, to name but a couple. I have but one thing to say to them:

Just because you're too dumb to figure out how the people did it years ago doesn't mean they were, too.

Great Quote

"Those were the days... of not getting much accomplished."

- a co-worker, talking about times when she was stoned

A decade or two ago, this would qualify as Sufficiently Advanced Technology

http://www.wpgourmetlattes.com/index.cfm?p=13&q=1

Yup, that's right, a latte that heats itself up. The drink itself ain't bad either.

Morning Juxtaposition

I saw a couple of Harley-Davidson motorcycles parked outside QuikTrip this morning. Once inside, it was pretty easy to spot who owned them; a couple of burly, handsome guys practically pulled out of Type-Casting for the role of "Yuppie Biker Dude Wanna-Be". Any macho biker-dude aura they had at first sight faded pretty fast when I saw them in the store taking Yoplait yogurt and a bottle of Frappuccino to the register. Is there such thing as manly yogurt? I'm not sure I'd want to find out, it would probably end up with flavors like steak or buffalo wings. Then again, maybe I'm on to the next big marketing craze...

Yay, mobile blog works now!

Dammit, take three... Last message got eaten by the system.

(added later at the computer)
woohoo! It works! can't wait to go out and take lots of pictures, see if that works well too.

250

Fuck. Fuck. Fuckity-fuck fuck FUCK fuck.

I weigh more than I ever have in my life. My clothes fit a bit tighter, I don't feel as energetic as I used to, and the thought of it is leaving me in a serious blue funk. The solution itself is simple: Eat less, move more. It's the actual doing it that will be the hard part. I know I can do it; all I need to do now is believe myself more than I do now. I need to leave behind my destructive behavior, including staying with my folks- being that far out in the boondocks, living with overbearing people, is destroying me physically and mentally. If you know me, please help me on this in any way that you can. I'll appreciate it more than you know. Thank you.

The Time Travelers' Convention

As many of you have likely heard by now, there is a time travelers' convention being held somewhere around MIT this weekend. Some may think this is fairly short notice, but hey, since you're inviting time travelers, why not announce it *after* the convention?

And In Other News...

I'll be doing a Looney Labs Mini-Experiment next Saturday, May 14th, at Gamers' Inn in Mesa (northeast corner of Southern and Gilbert, on the second floor near the Jo-Ann fabric store on the north end of the strip mall), from 1 PM until 6 PM. Stop by, play three Looney Labs games, and get a cool prize! How much fun is that?

Thought For The Day

You don't realize how dirty your glasses are until you clean them.

Attention Phoenix Drivers

The little yellow blinking light on the side of an automobile does not mean the driver of said vehicle is requesting you pull up next to them, nor pass them on that side immediately. Thank you.