Insignifica

Snapped in Sin: Soaked in Film

Tori's got a new photoblog - Snapped in Sin: Soaked in Film. She takes a LOT of amazing photographs, and it's very nice to have her favorites all in one spot. Take a look!

Two Truths and a Lie, Scream, Bonus pictures, crying baby

Happy Thursday!

I've said it before, but leaving for work is like leaving for a vacation compared to all the work we have to do at home. Even when the baby's smiling and happy, she's a lot of work. I honestly don't know how the girlfriend does it every day. She's a stronger person than I am. Speaking of the baby...

Picture of the day!

Uploaded a few more today, starting here in the Katherine Set. Lots of great pictures. Enjoy these bonus pictures of the day!

I particularly enjoy the "baby strong(wo)man" picture at the end.

Ripped from the headlines: Norwegian police recover 'The Scream'. That's awesome.

I wish I had some more entertaining homework for you, readers, so instead I'll play a silly game: Tell me two truths and a lie about yourself, and I'll guess which is which. Do it!

Healthy Baby, Regional Center, Labor Day

For some reason, I never think about Labor day as a holiday. I never remember it's coming up (even though it breaks a long stretch of no holidays), and I'm always surprised and delighted when I remember I get a Monday off. This weekend's gonna be busy, but should be a great time.

Picture of the day!

Katherine enjoying a snack at Pizza My Heart in Santa Cruz.

When Katie got sick on day two of her life, we were told about the Orange County Regional Center, which helps children with developmental problems (and their parents) with day-to-day and long term care, as well as information on other resources available to them. We've had a couple visits from them since she came home, and because her "problems" were limited and temporary, the social workers are always amazed at how big she is, how well she does for her age, and how good she looks.

I think it's strange until I remembered when Katie was in the hospital, and compared to the premature babies she was rooming with, she looked like the healthiest baby there is. Luckily for us, it really looks like she is totally healthy and right on track for a normal baby. Maybe even a little ahead of the game.

How goes it for you today, readers?

Vegetarian rant, another beautiful day

Another beautiful Tuesday out there - cooler, but still sunny and beautiful. Hard to go wrong!

Picture of the day!

Many members of the group at the 2005 Cinco de Mayo party. Good times!

I went to Maggiano's this weekend, and as usual, the food was delicious. However, I asked about the meatiness of ingredients (as I tend to do), and a couple items that I've had before and been told are vegetarian do, in fact, have meat in them (in this case, chicken stock).

I don't really care if a restaurant feels it has to put meat stocks and flavorings in its dishes - it's their choice. But what really grinds my gears is that I get different answers every time I go - showing that some of the staff knows what's in their food, and some absolutely does not. As I've said before, I'm only a vegetarian for ethical reasons, so it's not the biggest deal to me (though it makes me think twice about going back). But we were told for years that Red Robin's Artichoke Spinach Dip was vegetarian, when it actually contained bacon. This becomes a problem now for millions of religious people who absolutely must abstain from pork. I wrote them a letter out of disgust, and several months later the menus had changed. I might have to do the same with Maggiano's.

Until a few days ago, I totally forgot that this weekend is Labor Day weekend. That's exciting! Any big plans, readers?

God's choice in politcians, 3000, August flies by

Happy Monday, folks! Beautiful weather, I got some sleep this weekend, and otherwise things are well. We're also nearing the end of August, already. Amazing.

Picture of the day!

Eric and Luke at Gary's birthday, last year. For some reason, putting a young kid in jeans makes him look older. I have no idea why.

We're quickly approaching 3,000 comments. Didn't I promise someone something good for number 2,000? I'm really good at promising prizes and not delivering. If I've done this to you, let me know.

Heh, Katherine Harris is dumb:

MIAMI, Florida (AP) -- U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris told a religious journal that separation of church and state is "a lie" and God and the nation's founding fathers did not intend the country be "a nation of secular laws."

The Republican candidate for U.S. Senate also said that if Christians are not elected, politicians will "legislate sin," including abortion and gay marriage.

Harris made the comments -- which she clarified Saturday -- in the Florida Baptist Witness, the weekly journal of the Florida Baptist State Convention, which interviewed political candidates and asked them about religion and their positions on issues.

Separation of church and state is "a lie we have been told," Harris said in the interview, published Thursday, saying separating religion and politics is "wrong because God is the one who chooses our rulers."

If God chooses our elected politicians, then how could the "wrong" ones, like non-Christians, get put into office in the first place? None of what she said seems to make any sense. Have politicians (especially Republicans, it seems, but I'm biased) not learned that the media is everywhere they are, and bloggers will make sure what they say is heard?

Chris's Birthday!

Baby's website, Weekend plans

Happy Friday! I've got a weekend of Strato, relaxation and Maggiano's planned. Hard to go wrong there.

Picture of the day!

The girlfriend really is a tree hugger!

The baby now has her own website at www.katherinemorenodoss.com. Right now there's not much there, but in time it'll become a blog/baby book for her. I'll let you know when I start updating it regularly.

I'm short on news to report today. So tell me yours!

Tomorrow's Friday, Yesterday's post, eating Today, Birthdays.

Happy Thursday readers, and Happy Birthday, Dan!

We're down to eight - seeya later, Pluto!

Picture of the day!

Lisa and Tolga at my birthday this year. I think they're enjoying themselves.

Every once in a while, food becomes boring and routine to me - not for any particular reason I can figure out, I just get less "into" my food. Luckily for me, however, I seem to be on my way out of one of those times. I think with all the baby business I haven't thought as much about food, and that's made me care less. But man, the pizza I made last night was so good and so interesting, and even the banana I had with breakfast seemed better to me.

My last post got some interesting responses. Take a look, and leave a note.

Thursday means tomorrow's Friday - any big plans, readers?

Thought for the day - blaming god

Thought for the day:

Everyday conversation is filled with phrases like "God was watching out for me" or "I was saved from getting hurt in that accident because I prayed". But if someone were to say "God made sure that guy ran the red light and hit me" or "That freak accident could only have been God's doing - I blame Him", how do you think people around them would respond?

Why?

QotD, OC Atheists, Chainsaws and two month olds

Good day, and happy Wednesday. Another warm one here in Southern California, but it's been beautiful in the early morning. I know this for two reasons: First, I have a 2 month old. Second, the tree trimmers decide chainsaws are appropriate at 7am. Oh well, I'd had plenty of sleep.

Picture of the day!

Lisa and a couple of her guys. What a friendly looking group!

I've totally revamped the Orange County Atheists website this week. It's not finished, but it's close. Take a look, and leave your suggestions.

Question of the day, readers: What are you doing to be healthy?

Strong, OC Atheists, August

August sure is flying by, isn't it? It's almost September already. I can honestly say this summer has passed more quickly than any other in my life.

Speaking of August, It's August 22 - Happy Birthday Ali!

Picture of the day!

A tree and fountain at the Huntington Library, January 2005. Before now, no one except me had viewed this picture on my Flickr account, so I thought I'd share.

The Orange County Atheists website has been redesigned (it should look familiar to Insignifica readers), and is a work in progress. The old site had BB software, but was clunky and really picky about coding. The new one using MT and style sheets I'm already familiar with, so should be able to more easily become what I envision it to be.

I came up with a strong, strong contender for my Halloween costume. Very different from my past projects, very comfy, and identifiable without being specific. Just got to work out a little bit...

Assignment results, summer fruits, Halloween, OC Post

Happy Monday!

I got a free shirt today, and a free muffin! What a great way to start the week! My employer has a new product debuting today - OC Post. Take a look.

Picture of the day!

Jane and Marek, Halloween 2005.

On the subject of Halloween, Joe suggested holding it a week early (October 21), meaning more people would be able to come, and my scheduling conflict regarding the clubhouse would be solved (unless someone has it that weekend for something else). Thoughts? I'm not sure people would be too into dressing up a full 10 days before Halloween, but it's a good idea. What do you think?

I realized today that I haven't had more than a few bites of watermelon this summer. What the hell is wrong with me? On that same topic, I also haven't had one of those wonderful peaches that just drips summer. Offerings at the local farmer's market have been slim. Any suggestions?

Everyone's been having positive results from my "eye contact" assignment from last week. Try it yourself today!

Pancakes, OC Atheists, Eye Contact, Good day!

Friday AND payday AND my little Katie's 2 month birthday. Fantastic!

Picture of the day!

This one's about a month old, but too cute to pass up. As always, the "Katherine" set at Flickr is here.

How did everyone's "eye contact and smile" experiments go yesterday? I had nothing but positive results (people looking and smiling back), but at the same time, there wasn't anything interesting or unusual about it (no new friends or angry responses). How'd you do?

Good meeting of the Orange County Atheists last night, with some new people, many returning people, and lots of discussion. I'll be totally redesigning the site (and getting rid of the MyPHPNuke interface) in the next few weeks. Look forward to that!

I'm looking for some tasty pancakes - the short stack at the Ihop yesterday just didn't cut it. Any good suggestions in the Southern California area?

Friends and readers, I hope you have a fantastic weekend. I plan to. Keep on rockin'!

Assignment, video, atheists, Thursday

Welcome, Thursday! Tomorrow's Friday, and the start of another weekend. Rock on!

Picture of the day!

Brandon and Chris, at St. Patty's Pie Day 2006. What a great picture! I'm surprised I hadn't used it before.

Remember, the next meeting of the Orange County Atheists is tonight Thursday, August 17 at 7:30pm at the International House of Pancakes at 18542 MacArthur Blvd in Irvine, near John Wayne Airport. If you're planning on attending please RSVP at our website forums.

Because my daughter is so damn cute, I've started taking video of her doing things like smiling and talking (in her two-month old style). I'll likely put the video up here soon, but won't force any of you to watch it.

I promise.

Readers, your assignment for the day: Make eye contact and smile at most everyone you see today. Report back anything interesting. I'll do the same.

Break!

New and Good, Halloween, Late Night TV, Birthdays

Happy birthday Eric! Welcome to 28. Where the hell are you?

You know, in general, I don't like it when late night TV inspires me, but I figure since I'm not getting enough sleep, I should at least be eating better. This is just a note to say that I'm saying that. Word.

Picture of the day!

Some large pig thing at the SD Wild Animal Park, in March of this year. I like fat animals.

I found out this week that I won't be able to use the clubhouse at my complex for this year's Halloween party - I'll have to either do it at home, find another location, or do something totally different. I'm amped about Halloween, so I'm having a hard time deciding on the best course of action. Thoughts?

So, my readers, what's new and good?

Pictures, August

I was reminded today that we're already halfway through August. I usually don't care for the month - it's too hot, too humid, and there aren't enough holidays. But we've been doing just fine in terms of weather, and I've been so busy that the lack of holidays hasn't bothered me. It's just kinda shocking to me that summer has passed by so quickly.

Picture of the day!

Marek with an elephant on his head.

On the subject of pictures, I usually upload an 800x600 picture for web friendliness, and that's what you see when you click on any of the pictures on my site. But since that's not much of a resolution for printing, I've begun uploading some of my pictures at 2288x1712, and tagging them with "printing". I have all of my recent photos in this larger size, so if you'd like to print paper copies but need a version with a better resolution, let me know and I'll upload one.

And even more pictures - Check out Chris' site - he's regularly updating. He really should set up a blog.

Soda!

A question for you, readers!

I drink a lot of diet soda. A lot. I prefer it to water for its delicious taste, its bubbly goodness, and its caffeine content. However, I've come to realize that between the cans of soda I bring from home and the fountain soda I drink at work, I'm spending in the neighborhood of $3/day!

I could save a lot by bringing cans from home and cooling them here, but that presents logistical problems. Do any of you have advice for my soda situation?

Prop bets, Atheists, Suckout, Weekend

Whew, Monday. Had a great weekend, highlighted by a very cranky baby (after her immunizations) and good times at Gary's house. Baby was considerably less cranky on Sunday. She's a trooper.

Oh, and having your ace high flush get beaten by the straight flush? That sucks.

Picture of the day!

Construction at building 714 at Kresge College, UCSC. Students are getting their room assignments this week, and it made me think of this picture I took in August 2004.

Remember, the next meeting of the Orange County Atheists will be held on Thursday, August 17 at 7:30pm at the International House of Pancakes at 18542 MacArthur Blvd in Irvine, near John Wayne Airport. If you're planning on attending please RSVP at our website forums.

I made one prop bet this weekend (whether Chris would come to Gary's - he didn't), and I won. Make me an offer! I'm up to the challenge.

Now, tell me about your weekend. Do it!

Prop Bets, Birthday, Friday!

Happy Friday! Now that I'm back at work, Fridays mean something again, and they're even sweeter with the knowledge that I can get some napping in. Sleep has never been so exciting!

Picture of the day!

Chris makes a face, either from his cigar or drink, while Marek enjoys his pain.

Since I don't always post on Saturday, happy birthday Roxanne!

There's a new World Series of poker champion. I've been following the final table since it started over at Pauly's Tao of Poker - he's the reason I've been in the mood to take all sorts of friendly wagers lately. I will not, however, eat crayons. But I'll consider all other friendly wagers. Name it!

Thoughts on terror restrictions, big congrats!

Congrats to Gary and Emily on their pregnancy! It's an exciting time!

Picture of the day!

Pirate Russ and Pimp Vader Ken.

Now, onto today's "foiled" terrorist plot. I'm glad no one was hurt, but man, where is all this fear mongering going to stop? Various stories discuss the fact that most liquids and electronic devices should be banned - including "mobile phones, computers, wrist watches or anything else with a battery".

This is the most absurd thing I've read in a long time.

Anyone with the sophistication to build a bomb can surely hide it in any "exception" - baby formula, medicine bottles, necessary electronics - without easily being caught. In the meantime, the 99.9999% of travelers are grossly inconvenienced having to repurchase their beverages and toiletries, go without non-written entertainment, and wait in huge lines while they're searched.

The greater absurdity, however, is twofold: first, why are we concentrating only on carry-on luggage and airliners, and second, why are the terrorists? American terrorists in Oklahoma City killed scores with a truck bomb. Japanese terrorists could have killed hundreds with a sarin attack. Anyone with an internet connection, a home depot and a radio shack could potentially kill many more in a number of ways - and yet, we're most concerned with someone blowing up airplanes, most likely over water, where the damage would be limited to the plane and its passengers.

What are all these restrictions really there for? It can't be out of a concern for human life - hundreds are killed on our roads every day in auto accidents - can you imagine the lives saved if we'd spent 1/10th what we have spent on the "war on terror" - not to mention the war in Iraq - if we'd invested it in safety programs, mass transportation, automated driving systems, etc. Or imagine if we fed the hundreds of people - mostly children - who die each month from malnutrition. Or worked to vaccinate the 30,000 annually who die from the flu. Instead, we take away diet soda and ipods from air travellers.

Your thoughts?

Web Video, OC Atheists, Beautiful Day

Yay for sunshine, again! It's a beautiful day out there.

Picture of the day!

Baby does her Elvis thing in her "Shhh - I'm Downloading" onesie. There are some more new pics starting here in the Katherine Set.

The next meeting of the Orange County Atheists will be held on Thursday, August 17 at 7:30pm at the International House of Pancakes at 18542 MacArthur Blvd in Irvine, near John Wayne Airport. A map to the location is available here. If you're planning on attending please RSVP at our website forums. More information and discussion is available there as well. I might actually be able to make this one!

Back in the day (the "day" in question being the late 90s), we were told video on the web would very soon be a reality, and companies like Real were making it happen. Unfortunately, web based video always sucked - the audio was poor, the frame rate was slow, and movies were generally unwatchable. Finally, in the last year or so, that's changed, and sites like You Tube have made decent-to-good web video a reality. I didn't have much to say beyond this, other than I think it's time I break out the video camera and editing software. Besides the baby, any thoughts/suggestions?

Dino Comics, meebo, birthdays!

Happy birthday to Mike! Here's to a quarter century. Happy birthday also to Jack, who turns 1 today!

Picture of the day!

The girlfriend, August 2004.

I've "installed" the meebo chat widget in the left hand menu bar. If it tells you I'm online, you can chat with me from the webpage. Lots of fun!

I've really gotten into "Dinosaur Comics" lately - Generally it's the same six panels featuring a T-rex and his two dino friends, but the conversations are absurd and frightenly similar to many I've had.

I think a "nerd" reason I like it is because it accomplishes a lot solely through grammar and correct capitalization. It's one of those things you don't notice until you read something without it, but it allows you to understand tone, irony and mood simply by reading. There's also a sense of timing in short sentances and thoughts broken up over multiple panels - I do the same when chatting. I think it works well.

Or, maybe I'm reading too much into it. It's just one of those "giggle to yourself, but hard to explain to others without them reading it" kinda comics.

So then...what's new, pussycat?

Halloween Committee Needed!

Talking with a friend today, I realize that we're less than three months from Halloween. After last year's party, which was fantastic in terms of attendance but kinda lousy in terms of the amount of work we did, I considered scrapping the party entirely, or reducing it to a manageable size. But several people commented that it's something they look forward to every year, and frankly, so do I.

To help spread the work (and because it's more fun to work in groups), I'm putting together a Halloween committee. This committee with help with planning, construction, set up, and breakdown. They might also help with costs, but I'm happy, as always, to take most of that burden myself. It'll be a commitment, with real meetings and work, but it should make the whole thing more fun for everyone. I hope to have people from more than two other states come this year.

So, if you're interested in helping out, let me know. The party will most likely be Saturday, October 28, and will require 3-5 weekend meetings beforehand, as well as 10-20 hours of your own time. Who's in?

Reunion, poker, napping

Happy Monday! I have several chances to take a long nap this weekend, and I turned them down. We'll see if that comes back to haunt me...

Picture of the day!

Gary, Emily, and probably the best existing picture of our old hamster cage.

Dr. Pauly's WSOP coverage has been awesome, as usual, and today's post is exactly what I think about Vegas every time I venture near downtown...especially the bus station. Check it out here.

Los Amigos Class of 1996 - There's a reunion, of sorts, announced and now being RSVPed to. The evite can be seen here, and you can email Mitch Udell to get access to the evite. You can also send me a note with your email address, and I'll do the same.

What's in store this week, gentle readers?

naptime, poker, poker, poker

Wow, some Fridays are busier than others. Still not as busy as if I were at home with the baby, but still. Lots to do at work today.

Picture of the day!

I prepare to get up after what I can only assume was a bad beat at the poker table, considering my lack of chips. Nhan looks on.

I can't wait to play poker in a couple weeks at Gary's - it's been too long (about two months). I'd love to get some more table time in at Pechanga, but there's a little someone who'd much rather I stay home and watch her. She's so much cuter than the dealers, so I do. But one of these days I'll drop her off at Grandma's and go.

On that note, still, anyone want to spot me a few thousand so I can plan in next year's WSOP? The main event is too huge, but I like the smaller events. I'll even put your name on the back of my shirt.

This weekend's busy, but I'm hoping for a few good hours of napping. Funny how I never used to schedule sleep during the day before a few weeks ago...

New pics!

New pictures of Katherine starting here!

Pictures, Meebo, Weather

Bad news: The sun hasn't come out yet today.
Good news: It's nice and cool!

After a couple weeks of really unpleasant weather, it's finally becoming that nice Summer I always remember. Of course, now it's August, so the humidity will soon return. But for now, I'll take the marine layer.

Picture of the day!

Men drinking beer from baby bottles, taken at the second Baby Shower.

In the post below (and soon to be on the left hand menu bar) is a "widget" from Meebo, the fine folks who bring me my web-based IM system. It allows you to chat with me if I'm logged into Meebo (which I am much of the time). It's a fun little toy, and knowing Meebo, it should get better and better.

I keep meaning to put some new baby pictures up, but the camera's at the bottom of the diaper bag. Someone remind me when I get home.

Meebome.com

Testing the MeeboMe widget:

It's in Alpha, but let me know if it works for you. I've had trouble getting it to work in Firefox, and you'll likely need the latest version of Flash. So far, though, it's a great little widget.

Tao of Poker, new baby tag, is today important?

For some reason, August 2 is important to me, but not so important that I remember why, it seems. Is it your birthday? Some anniversary for me? I have no idea. It just seems like it's special.

Picture of the day!

My brother, the Jedi. From Halloween 2002.

I've made a new Flickr tag, "holdingkatherine", with pictures of friends and family holding the baby. Click to take a look. It only has one picture of people holding her, so if there are multiple, and you don't like the one featuring you, let me know and I'll change it.

It suddenly smells like fresh oranges in here. Is that strange?

I've really been enjoying Dr. Pauly's Tao of Poker again this year, with regular updates and pics from the WSOP. Almost 9,000 entries this year in the main event (and of those, fewer than 300 women). Amazing!

What's new with you, readers?

Peeves, time flies

Wow, is it August already? What happened to July? Soon it'll be September, then Halloween, then I'll be 45 and my daughter will be graduating from high school. Slow down!

Picture of the day:

Yours truly with Brandon at the last New Year's party. Despite our looks and smiles, neither of us is drunk. Good times!

A couple little pet peeves about the mail:

Peeve the first: When you move, and you fill out a "Change of Address" form for the post office, the info you enter on that post card doesn't get entered into a computer database - the card gets put into a physical file. Your mailperson is supposed to know the forwarding rules for all the people on his or her route, and take action accordingly. At the last few places I've lived, though, the whole system breaks down when your regular mail person isn't working that day. When we have a sub, we almost always get mail for the previous occupants. We're kind enough to forward it on, but what if the people who live at my prior addresses aren't doing that? Shouldn't the system work better?

Peeve the second: While on leave, California's Employment Development Department was issuing me a check as part of my Family Leave program. As often happens, they had my address wrong: Instead of "1234 Mystreet Apt. F4", they had "1234 Mystreet Apt. F9". Now, there are four units in the "F" building - F1, F2, F3, and F4. There is no F9. When my mailperson saw this piece of mail with my full name on it, did they look at the "F9" and realize "Well, there is no F9, so perhaps this goes to the person on my route with that name at F4"? No. They sent it back to the EDD, who by this point had my correct address. This did add about 5 days to the time it took for me to get my check, though. Who's falling asleep at the post office?

There are more generic peeves I've built up over the last few weeks, but I won't bore you all with them today.

I'll bore you all later.

Keep on Rockin'!