Okay, so...been one year and now two days since I last posted: and absolutely nothing has changed! Well, no of course that isn't true. I was going to post on the one year anniversary of my last post and then be all responsible and keep it up and all that. But I went down this rabbit hole on trying to redesign the look and started playing with new templates and then new graphics and then when one didn't work I went to another one and then that one was sort of what I wanted but it was IN SPANISH (the XML) so I thought, well let me just replace all that Spanish with the English and then that didn't work out as well as I would have liked, so of course I decided that I didn't like that perro template anyway so I started looking for another one and then it was 3:30am. The best laid plans. Anywho, so I did a new graphic header that I like, found a temp template that I don't hate and so this is a little start towards the redesign. and it is only 3:18 am on a new day. *sigh*
Well anyway...
Well no Todd, I have no idea where your keys are...why do you ask? Oh? You think you left them hanging in your office door when you left work this evening? Really?
Hmmm...let me check...yeessss I think they are there...oh, no. I was mistaken. Nope. Don't see them. Well I sure will keep an eye out for them! Yes! No problem. Yep, see you tomorrow. Darn those keys sure are pesky things to keep your hands on, aren't they? Sure would be nice if your keys could be kept in a nice hard-to-forget container. Like this, perhaps:
But that would really only work if you could keep them in a nice, safe, place....perhaps something like this:
Yes sirree, that sure would be handy! Maybe somebody will figure out a way to do this one day. One can only hope.
So...this Veterinarian in Taiwan...yeah, his day didn't go so well. See the rest of the gruesome gruesomeness here: Crocodile Skin Bracelet gone wrong
This happened on 4/11 -- my birthday. I turned 41 (damn I'm old!) and I had a really really bad day during a really really bad week. But you know what? It certainly could have been worse.
So an arctic air mass has settled in over the Central Valley of California. It is freakin' cold. Our pool in the backyard has frozen over, and not just a skim of ice, there is at least 3 inches of ice on it--completely crazy. I don't like to go outside when it is below 50 degrees and our highs are in the 40's and our lows are going to be in the teens! WTF? So needless to say me and the comfy couch and the down comforter are great chums right now. At campus the wind sweeping off the lake made for a ridiculous trip to the parking lot. Fortunately Edson was kind enough to shuttle me to my car at the Lake Lot -- although we did have to run the gauntlet to the S&E lot so it was a bit like being in the Yukon.
Geriatric Melrose Place continues it's ridiculousness in the 'hood over here. Now the widow Bobbie's home is being put on the auction block and she is leaving for Colorado. So strange goings on there, apparently some insurance money she was expecting got diverted to one of the deliverance stepchildren and there was some unpaid property taxes and other goings on...sooooo...somehow this ends up with the lovely Teenie becoming the proud owner of whatever random cast offs the widow does not wish to box up and take to Colorado. Thus far we are the proud recipients of a nose hair trimmer (I kid you not); a copy of "Jay Leno's Police Blotter - Real-life Crime Headlines" required reading in the 4th circle of hell; one of these with the hilarious promo action shot:
And the wonderful addition of a white wicker bookshelf/cabinet combo with matching white wicker plantation chair. Yay! White Wicker the ultimate in old lady decorating! I am not pleased.
We have also to look forward to a navy blue queen size sleeper couch (OMG) and oh who knows what else when all of this is said and done with. I have already endured the parade of dead guy suits (thank goodness he was a hefty short guy so nothing even remotely fit). SO more to come on that stuff, gosh, just what we needed more random crap to shove into the shed. Joy.
Silly rabbits...
Brought to you by fun with photoshop.
Went shopping today with Jeshamon -- and we hit a bunch of stores, Jeshamon secretly hoping we would find a Wii. We did fins a whole stack of Wii boxes at EB games (after a bracing disappointment with the GameCrazy store in Atwater, which on the basis of its' voluminous ads in our mail had Jeshamon believing would surely have some of everything--when we got there it was about the size of our bathroom and as Jeshamon put it "the only heat was from the bodies and the breath of the people in there--yuck!"). Jeshamon was denied in his EB games Wii excitement when before we could even get close to the boxes a voice from the behind the counter called out "we're out! those are just there to tease you, sorry about that man!" heh. Anyway saw several UC Merced folks out and about - Benito at Barnes & Nobles, Annette Garcia and a couple of the facilities guys at Target, Mike from ARC at Linens & Things, it was like being at Raley's!
Horrible news from Bobby Bliatout when I got home I noticed a page from him that his house had been broken into and his UC Laptop was stolen. He also lost a bunch of christmas stuff, his home computer with all of his family pictures and pictures of Bryce when he was in the incubator and all of that, his brandnew paintball stuff, all of his wife's jewelry, monitors, video cameras, ps2 games, and other stuff. Apparently he was out at Wayne's watching a fight and his wife went over to her mother's to cook. She drove home to pick something up she forgot and tried to open the front door only to find it blocked by the couch--and she heard people inside. They were able to make off with a bunch of stuff in only that short span of time but they didn't get everything they were going to take that was piled up by the window. Horrible! I still get sad about pictures and videos we lost when our apartment was burgled in Fresno what, 13 years ago? People suck. So, I won't mock Bobby about the ghosts sitting on him for a little longer. I am compassionate like that.
Okay well here are some shots of Jeshamon from our shopping excursion -- he is trying out the massage chair (he liked it more than I did).
This kid has the greatest hair! It isn't even right. He of course doesn't even begin to appreciate how great his hair is, those with curls want straight hair those with straight want curls, those without want some, those with want to go withou...oh no that isn't right. NVM.
I have absolutely no idea what was up with Bliatout's hair in this shot it didn't look quite that Doc Brown in back to the future in person but, well, who knows. The sushi was okay, not great, not bad...I wouldn't rush out to eat there again but I wouldn't turn it down if asked to go either. The sashimi was okay as well, although I liked the pepper seared tuna. The rolls were really large, and we had a lot left over. Apparently there are two of these places now so it must be doing well and this place was pretty busy while we were there.
OH YEAH -- if you know Bobby Bliatout ask him about the ghosts sitting on him. I plan to mock him about this often so you will want to be in on the information if possible.
Although not completely out of my bad mood, I stopped by Target on my way home and picked up Descent. Then I went home made a big pot of curve curry and read a little. Then I convinced Jeshamon and Acacia to watch the scary movie with me. What fun, they were both appropriately traumatized and the movie was as good as I remembered it to be and got me all tensed up and frightened like the first time. That is a quality piece of work--plus, watching it with the kids was loads of fun. Fortunately the outtakes were funny and showed one of the scary cave denizens doing a Mick Jagger impersonation so that helped take the edge off. The children are watching watership down right now to let them get some distance on the descent.
I am still a bit melancholy about friends and such...man I wish this year was over already.
Yet another gathering of 'friends' appears to be headed downhill. We shall see. There will definitely not be any updating on the engagement thing, and although I posted yesterday I didn't care anymore cause it had been so long, well that was because I assumed that too long would be taken care of today but, no, no one to be seen. Also per my prediction, someone isn't showing at the gathering of folks, so now I really don't care. Whatever I am over it.
Interesting event with some other friends added to the general awfulness, although I was just a bystander in this one, let's just say a small disagreement went awry and the conversation ended like this:
Not Sane Person: ...yammer yammer "I am not arguing with you! I am just saying [insert arguing here*]"
*note that Not Sane Person had absolutely no self-awareness of the ridiculousness of the above utterances. Not Sane person is generally very earnest and intense about things.
Sane person 1: "good night"
Not sane person: "yeah goodnight stupid b*tch" [this was not in a kidding around ' love ya' tone, this NSP was serious]
Me: "woah!"
Others: <.....>
Sane person 1: "I better get an apology"
Not Sane person: "don't bother, f*ck off"
Sane Person 1: ...
Sane person 2: "okay take care of yourself"
Not Sane Person: "yeah have a nice life"
Me: "um can we all take a breath and calm down?"
Not Sane Person: "I don't expect that level of fairness from anyone...doesn't matter I was tired of all of you anyway"
[exit]
Everyone witnessing this bizarreness: "?"
So yeah...interesting bit of drama that. People are crazy. But also, relationships are fleeting and there you go...reconnecting with old friends is fantastic, getting to see current friends is great, realizing that all of this is just, well, fleeting isn't really the word --tenuous? Intangible? Meaningless? Well something like that. I am not in a good mood and have that whole "people are selfish bastards and will just walk out in the end so don't invest yourself and get hurt" feeling right about now. I will get over it. Bleah. This week sucks.
Sooooo...leave the bad evening at work to head out to the car. Immediately hit by the arctic icy gale force winds sweeping across the prairie. What is this Kansas all of a sudden? What is with the Midwestern windstorm? So, no problem I will just warm the car up so it will be toasty by the time I get to it. Click Click -- nothing...okay remote start acting up, try again, click click, nothing. uhoh. Closer I get. Try to remote unlock. Nothing. CRAP. Left the stupid fog lights on again. They didn't wire them right so they aren't connected to the beeping you left your lights on, oh well I will turn them off for you alarm so drained my battery. Okay fine. I call up Mazda Road-side service and arrange to have someone come to give me a jump. 60 minutes. SO back up to my office. I lock the door and get out, close the door, oh no. Yep. Left the keys in the car and now I am locked out as well. Great. Call Mazda back ....so I need to up date my ticket, yeah now I locked myself out as well. They are very very nice. Sometime later the tow-truck shows up. The guy, Mel is his name, very helpful although very very scary with the unlocking of the door and the inserting of the gas bladder in the window crack and the bending it out and the handmade bent rod to unlock the door. But there you go. Unlocked, jumped, and after driving around for 45 minutes to make sure the damn thing starts tomorrow I am home. Sheesh. I hate the Mazda dealership! HATE THEM! Hate them with the fire of a thousand burning nuns...grrrrr. Now I have to get them to fix the foglights so they don't drain my battery because I can't tell when they are on cause there is no indicator -- I am fairly certain that isn't correct. oh well. Another crappy day done with.
Sitting at work not enjoying myself. Must resist urge to make passive aggressive posts on the blog. I am still not updated on the engagement, and I have now decided it has been so long that it doesn't matter anymore. Screw it.
I did get invited somewhere where folks would be chilling playing xbox and barbecuing or some such thing. Not only does that not sound fun in the remotest it really doesn't sound fun with the company involved, ooops, didn't resist the urge. OH well. I am too old to go spend time with people I don't want to spend time with at places I don't want to be doing things I don't want to do. Especially when I am not being paid for it. So there. So anyway I am in a mood and it isnt' a good one.
Missed my second opportunity to see old friends tonight -- Marie and Tria and Jana and Marie's fiancee Jim and I am sure others were gathering at Livingstone's again (ugh) but I was planning on going anyway but the kidlings and the wife are all down with something gaggy and sticky and coughish and fluish, and I am dealing with less severe symptoms of the same thing so I did a grocery run and stayed in. I was very sorry to have missed it.
Chance number 3 happens this Friday when Phraug Ranaman and others will gather for sushi and drinks in Fresburg. No idea yet where exactly or who all will be there -- supposed to be Bobby and perhaps Edson (although I suspect he will opt out) -- I will go when given the details.
Interesting potential on the theatrical front -- I am still pondering things so I will leave it at that for now...but here is a hint "would you the supervisor, behold her topp'd?"
This is a picture I shot of Edson a few years ago...well more like, what, four/five years ago? He was at the Fresno Center and hanging at the front desk. Not to be all sentimental and such but it has now been 8 years that I have had the great pleasure of knowing Edson and although I say it a bunch he is just one of my favorite people. Edson took a major life step this past weekend and actually asked the lovely and lucky Danielle to be his wife. The smart girl proved her smartness by saying yes! Congratulations to them both! Future's so bright they should both be wearing shades and all of that rigmarole. I need to get a picture of Danielle to post here so you can see how lucky Edson is...it is apparent how lucky Danielle is so...anyway. Looking forward to the wedding whenever that might be, well actually I am looking forward to just being updated about the actual proposal process, the details, etcetera. Edson has not yet fully cured himself of that major flaw that diminishes his awesomeness. So although I post about it you have as much information about the whole thing as I do, which as you well know burns me up. No one should have just as much info as I do...I should always have just that little more info because I am obsessive like that. Or so they say. But I know better, or more, or well whatever. It is what it is.
So, I was finally updated by Edson about the whole asking the parents for their daughters' hand in marriage thing. Such a great story, although unbeknownst to me--since Edson does not keep me as updated as he should, a serious lapse that I have previously discussed--that all the time last night when I was stalking about wondering what in the heck was going on, well he had asked them at lunchtime and the whole thing was darn well over by the time I asked for my first update. Apparently our boy Edson was quite the charmer, had the mom in tears just walking into the restaurant (they so totally knew what was up and like the wise people they must be they said yes, there was a nice little story about how they had preplanned to mess with Edson and one of them agree and the other say no, but they got so caught up in the moment, and I am sure Edson was just so darned pathetically earnest and an emotional wreck that they forgot about messing with him and just went with it --opportunities missed there future Edson In-laws! You only had one chance to mess with him as he asked for her hand and you let it pass you by. Next time call me, we will work something out). At any rate, they are playing along with the "we won't let Danielle in on the fact that Edson is going to ask her to marry him this weekend" but from the way Edson is telling it they are just a little over-the-top with the whole wink-wink smile way too broadly isn't he just the cutest damn thing you ever saw action and we will all be lucky if Danielle doesn't catch on.
At any rate, Edson is just a mess and Danielle and he are both just about the luckiest suckers in the world cause they are both just too great. So much fun. Misery loves company, and so on behalf of the married folks in the world -- welcome soon-to-be-aboard ex-playah! We are happy to have you!
All of this contrasts nicely with the completely stupid and ridiculous behavior that is going on at the home of the fairy shrimp UCM. I don't want to get into it all right now, but suffice it to say that no one is bothering to let facts, reality, or god forbid even the slightest bit of common sense get in the way of decision making par excellence. Always remember, when seeking information and making decisions under no circumstances should you ask the people who are responsible for the areas affected by your decisions, under no circumstances should you let any information that contradicts your preconceived and wrong notions get into your decision making process, and if all else fails avoid and lie. Ah yes, academic leadership at its very best! As always it is almost entertaining watching people pull crap that would absolutely cause nuclear explosions and complete hair-on-fire histrionics if ever pulled on them. It is almost entertaining because one, it is just too completely pathetic; and two, the crap is being pulled on us. But other than those two items...good times, good times.
Finally, why is it that people who you completely despise and who trash you to others want to act all nice to your face? What is that about? I am fine with the cordial collegial working relationships and refraining from the all-out fistfights at work and such, but don't go out of your way to be a complete ass to me, talk much smack in email, talk much more smack to others, (note to people in general, just cause someone listens to you talk trash does not mean that those someones are not going to completely turn around and go tell the person about whom you are talking said smack everything you said) and then go and try to give someone a gift of say candy or something. Because that? Not appreciated. And really, don't be surprised when the candy you left on my desk while I was gone gets back to you via interoffice mail with a small note saying "thanks for the thought, but not necessary." I don't feel like pretending you aren't a complete jerk. Shall we be adults at work? Yes. Shall I accept gifts from you? no. Bite me with your feeble attempts at assuaging your own asshattedness. And there it is...
This is Edson at Cool Hand Luke's doing his best Jawa impersonation. He is a bit tall for it but he has the ankles, and of course he has that dress he calls a 'robe' but we all know what it really is. He also has that big ole stick, it doesn't do him any good on the golf course so he might as well get some use out of it.
Sooo it is freakishly cold in Cali right around now. Well relatively freakish, for California anyway. And you all know how I don't like to be outside when it is below 50 so my natural urge is to just crawl under the down comforter and toast a bit, which is actually what I am doing right now, but not what I was doing earlier which is actually the point of all of this. Anyway, so I go to the store and again icy cold with the frost on the ground and on the car (Aozame!) and such. As I leave the store with my purchases a homeless guy asks me for some cash, and since I only carry plastic with me I can actually say I don't have any cash on me and not be lying. So then the guy totally throws me for a loop and says "well some food would be okay" and I just stand there all "wait a minute, aren't these guys all just after booze?' [sidebar: case in point : while I am at Food4less--which I hate by the way--some homeless guy comes up to me in the breakfast food aisle, and asks me for 2.75--very specific that amount--with an actual 40 ounce tucked under his arm! No ambiguity bout what he was going for there! :end sidebar] so of course it is freezing and I am actually now thinking things through with this homeless guy but, as I look in my basket I realize I have purchased Milk, and 7 or 8 different varieties of frozen food. Not exactly what you want to be handing the homeless guy on the freakishly frostladen night "here have a frozen eggroll' so I mumble something completely stupid about only having frozen food, well stupid and true that, and off to the car I go. Then after putting the frozen groceries and icy cold milk in the car, I get all guilt pangy (or perhaps it was the windchill) but I go back in the store and get the guy a big ole deli sandwich bring it to him and then feeling all warm and well not really warm cause it is so damn cold, but feeling less guilty I get into the ole Aozame and head for home. Did I mention it was dam cold?
While driving home I was thinking about a statistic I heard on NPR yesterday afternoon about how 1 in 6 people in the world live in a slum. How completely unsettling is that? What is wrong with the world where that is true?
On a different note, Edson is asking his girlfriend's parents for their daughter's hand in marriage...well asked actually cause he did it earlier tonight...but I have no idea how it went because the bastard has not updated me since he was sitting down to dinner with them. Despite my multiple texts chastising him for not pdating me I am updateless. No, I did not expect him to send me updates during the dinner but and I waited until after 11 to begin the haranguing sms' but he has not responded and I am not happy with him. I love him dearly and he is one of my very favorite people but he needs to feel a smiting for not keeping me current. And how completely adorable is it that he is asking for permission to ask their daughter? Edson is just the nicest young man, I hope the girlfriend's parents realize how lucky they are that he is so awesome. Even though he is veryvery not awesome with the no updates thing. So he has the one flaw. And we must agree it is a not insignificant flaw and that Edson shall need to fix this flaw with a quickness. But still, Edson as your son-in-law? Priceless.
Okay so, just for the really real realness of being real...Jennifer Holliday is unbelievably amazingly scarily awesome. This is just...just...words fail me.
Okay I don't know what to say about this..do I like it or think it is just freakin' wierd...or strangely awesome. I don't know what to say. But, um, he does go at the end, just sayin.
Patch by computer light. This is also a test of blogging from my mobile. Hopefully the picture makes this test not quite as boring.
Testing a post from my mobile...test of text only...aren't you bored by this test post? Yeah me too.
right at the bridge -- literally right at the bridge...you could actually see it touching the bridge...amazing 
So it being 2:30 am it seems like the right time to get a little post in. Oatmeal cookies fresh out of the oven are sitting on the stovetop. The children are tucked snug in their beds - all Atwater because they are going to go see Aquamarine tomorrow. Acacia is just beside herself with excitement...I don't know. Mermaids, teenage girls, an outing. She is all gaspy and thrilled and it is hilarious. Hope the movie isn't as awful as it looks like it will be. She will, or rather she is, today, 16. 16. My daughter is 16. Good lord.
I am a month and some days away from 40. 40. I am almost 40. Good lord.
What in the world is going on? How did this happen. I don't feel like the almost 40 year old father of a 16 year old. Although I suppose I do, since that is how I feel and that is what I am and there you are. Well enough about that for now. I am sure I shall return to this trope again in the weeks to come. 16. 40. *sigh*
Stayed home from work today as I woke up feeling very badly. Headachey and ultra-tired and no, not 40, just sick. shaddup. Feeling better now, but not looking forward to the marathon of meetings tomorrow. T2s (transition to site), Site and infrastructure, whatever other meeting I have had added or haven't remembered. I know there are several. Thank goodness someone came to their senses and moved the Science olympiad from our campus -- pure folly to think we would be ale to count on any of the construction being done in time for anything to happen. I don't know why anyone even pretends to believe the dates that get thrown out, they haven't a single one and they haven't even been close. Oh well, I am sure we will hear more interesting tales of interesting scheduling tomorrow. What a farce. Spent the day in bed and got absolutely nothing done. Except for the South park characters you see below. Those are fun.
Ordered the little beasts pizza tonight. Caved in to the pressure and ordered them that repulsive looking cheesy-bites pizza from Pizza Hut. Happy to report that it is exactly as vile as it looks and as I thought it would be. The children hated it. Jeshamon apologized for not believing me that it would be awful. He promises to believe me next time. You and I know he will not keep that promise. The headstrong little chip off the block will have to have it proven to him via his own experience. He will not be swayed by my fatherly ways. When will they ever learn? I should be heeded. Work, Home, Life, Art-- Heed me. Fail to heed me at your peril. That is all I am saying. And yes, Edson/Thinh/Bobby/Jeshamon I am talking to you. I feel like Cassandra.
No new news on the Gabe Edwards front. He is still on investigative leave (whatever the heck that is supposed to mean). The guy copied his parking pass--how much investigation does that take? I wish people would stop trying to COA and just admit they overreacted and let it go. Good grief. Rich is still fighting to bring him back, I believe, and EVIL HR (I know, redundant that) is fighting to get him gone. Muttbert, the evil HR Director cannot retire fast enough for me. Maybe we will get someone in who will do something other than bitch, moan, complain, whine, delay, and otherwise denigrate the employees. Although we will be getting an HR director so perhaps that is asking to much. Anyway, here's hoping for a positive outcome on this one.
Didn't get a chance to watch anything - -and I don't even know who got bounced on Idol yet. So don't tell me. I will find out. I have a bad feeling though -- so that probably means Sway is out. Which makes me sad. Maybe there will be a wildcard chance for him. Or maybe voters came to their senses and David and Taylor are out. Or not. Probably Kinnik (who I forgot before and who I actually love, so yeah, she is probably gone). Alright anyway. Enough of all that.
Curving outwards.
Apparently a frog found its eternal resting place in the fresh concrete -- later as the body disintegrated we were left with the awesome Frog Hole in the sidewalk. Love it.
What is this curious indentation in the concrete walkway at UC Merced?
