Insignifica

Three-Day Weekend, Looking For Milk, Changes, Slow, Weekend Birthday

Hello my friends! Welcome to the end of your work week. Happy Birthday Sunday to Cynthia!

Picture of the day!

The Girlfriend, Labor Day 2005.

Today might be a sloooooooooow day at work. My boss is out of town, lots of people have already taken off for the weekend, and my quiz is complete. Breaking news could make it busy, but today's 8 hours might drag.

Today's also the last day of the print edition of SqueezeOC (the publication I blog at), though the website will remain. It's also my buddy here John's last day, and one of our editor's last days. Ch-Ch-Ch Changes.

I'm looking for cruelty free dairies. More at the LAV Blog.

Looking forward to the three-day weekend, though I'm not sure how much we'll get done around the house. Still, we'll get to see friends and celebrate birthdays and summer. I hope you enjoy yours, as well!

Webby Project, Waking Up With The Sun, Allergies, Powers of 10, Thursday

Happy Thursday! It's hot and humid.

Picture of the day!

Jennifer and Jane, Halloween 2003.

I watched "Powers of 10" yesterday. Interesting game show - I like that you don't ever make a decision about whether to go on, or stop - you either win, or you're knocked down a level, and win that amount. I also like how Drew Carey rants about nonsense - yesterday it was about LAX and lax security. Fun.

My allergies have been killing me in the morning, and the super bright sunshine doesn't help. Anyone else being attacked?

Speaking of the super bright sun, I forget sometimes that when my room is brightened naturally, I wake up more easily. Good stuff.

I'm a busy guy, and I'm behind on some home projects, but I'm itchy to start a new webby style project (possibly the 80 Days Project that Chris and I imagined years ago). It's actually already started, and Jesus is at Burning Man. I'll let you figure that one out on your own.

That's that for today. Enjoy!

Hot, Time, Drugs, Calories, Hump

Happy Hump Day!

Picture of the day!

Ah, the classic Clown Picture - taken Saturday, October 31, 1998. I've never been able to replicate the frightening makeup of that day. That's Sarah next to me, and I re-found this pic when a friend of hers found it online somewhere, and posted it to her myspace page. Small world. Click for detailed goodness.

Walked a mile today, but bought $20 and 7,000 calories worth of foodstuffs. More likely than not, I won't be eating any of it.

I didn't get nearly enough sleep last night. I'm fine now, but I'm seriously considering cutting back on caffeine, in general, so on days like today it actually has an effect on me in the afternoon. I like my drugs to do something.

AT&T is stopping time. Well, stopping her phone number. I can count on two hands and a foot how many times I've used it, but it's still weird that it's disappearing. That said, I think I've only used it once to actually tell me the time, and the other 11 as a novelty. Cheers, time.

It's hot here in Socal. How are you keeping cool?

Vegan Shoes, Vegemite, Eclipse, Tuesday

Hello and Happy Tuesday!

Picture of the day!

My hotel view in Laughlin. Yes, the Colorado Belle is shaped like a boat. No, it's not a riverboat casino. Yes, that's weird. Nice enough place, though.

Speaking of pictures, I took none of last night's eclipse. There are some good local shots here, though. I was up and saw it, at least for 10 minutes. I always consider amazingly large-scale things that are visible to the naked eye (like eclipses) to be awe-inspiring.

I have Vegemite. I'd like to do a videotaped group taste test. Let me know if you're interested.

Another request - have any of you ever purchased "vegan" shoes (non-leather, cruelty free) online (or locally, if there's such a place)? The rub here is that they can't be made in China either. Oh, and they can't look like two burlap sacks on my feet. So far No Sweat Apparel looks like my best choice (sweatshop free and non-leather), but I'm curious to hear other options.

Not much else going on yet today, friends. What's new?

Home Office, Halloween, Vegan China, Happy Birthday Chris

Happy Monday, and happy birthday Chris!

Picture of the day!

Chris at our cocktail party, dressed for the occasion. Chris exists in more of my flickr pictures than anyone else that's not myself, my girlfriend, or my daughter.

So both the vegan and China experiments began this weekend. Who knew Costco's generic AA batteries were made in the good ol' USA?

Halloween is approaching dangerously fast - it's less than 2 months until the party. My main idea is good, but will require a lot of "finding" of stuff to make it really good. Some other ideas are more abstract, but will be more original. There's also the idea of waiting until closer to the day, and trying to find something topical. Any thoughts?

Moving out of the home office is slow going - I've had my own office (in addition to a bedroom) since 2000, and now, I won't. Books are going into storage, I'm weeding a lot of stuff, and more furniture is getting moved around. This is actually all good, it's just a lot of work.

What's new with you, readers?

Weekend, Game, Sleepy, Vegan, China, Birthday

Happy Friday, friends, and Happy Birthday Dan!

Picture of the day!

Katie trying on Daddy's shoe. Awww.

I'm much more strongly considering my recent musings on veganism and buying from China. The China side of things - not buying anything made there - has begun. That likely means no new electronics for me for a while (which is fine - there's currently nothing I need), and when I do buy again, I'll likely buy second-hand. I want to go a year and see if I can do it with no purchases, however. I'll also be adding several other countries to my list, I'm sure - ideally I'd like to buy only from countries with strong labor rights and human rights practices (Canada, Europe, and even the US). I'll keep you informed.

As to veganism, it's not going to be a strict veganism, but more of an ethical vegetarianism - I'll still eat eggs and dairy, as long as I can confirm that they come from non-abusive situations. This pretty much rules out going to most restaurants (except for vegan friendly places, salads with my own dressing, and the occasional pasta sauce somewhere), but I think it's worth it. I'll also be able to continue to cook on my own. This could all have the added benefit of making us eat in more often, and eat more healthy foods - but it's all new. We'll see how it goes.

I think it's gonna be a sleepy day. Baby decided on a 6:30am wake-up time. Thanks baby!

New fun game of the moment - Bloons Tower Defense. Like Lemmings, but different.

That's all for today. What's up this weekend?

Rock On, Free Monitor, Hello, No Plans, Pie Pix, Exercise

Hello Friends!

Picture of the day!

A pretty good driving shot of myself, on the way back from Laughlin. That set of pictures is now available (most are road shots, plus a few from the hotel room). Enjoy!

I'm not yet back in my exercise groove - today that was because we didn't get up until 8:10.

There are some more pictures of the prize winning pie in my new Food and Cooking Flickr set. I love cooking and love photography, but they're hard to do at the same time.

I believe this weekend is our first without hard plans since mid July - I hope to actually get some work done on my office (transforming it to the baby's room), and maybe just go out and do nothing, and have no time frame in doing it.

Only my girlfriend say "hello" yesterday, after my request. Don't the rest of you like me?

I have a 21inch CRT (read: large) monitor that I'm no longer using, and is just taking up space in my house. Would you like it? I'll give it to you. Come and get it.

Thats' all for today. Rock on, readers!

Vegan and China, Desks, Grilled Cheese, Laughlin, Busy Day

Busy day! No time for updates until lunch, and I still haven't uploaded the Laughlin pics. Happy Wednesday, regardless!

Picture of the day!

Our elegant table at the cocktail party.

Another thing I forgot about the Laughlin trip - there were two great jazz bands there in the evenings - one a dixieland style group, the other a more standard jazz quartet (bass guitar, lead guitar, drum kit, and sax). They played great standards and requests, were just the right volume for the casino, and when something catchy came on, people were tappin' their feet and signing along. It really, really added to the atmosphere.

Grilled cheese is greasy and delicious.

I'm seriously considering two social experiments for myself - going Vegan for a while, and trying not to buy anything from China for a while. Thoughts? Interest in joining me? Read more at the LAV Blog.

Do you have a smallish but nice desk? Would you like a large corner model? I'd like to trade. Inquire within.

That's all for today. Leave a comment and say hello!

Laughlin Recap

Happy Tuesday, back to the blog posts!

Picture of the day!

Car wash chairs. Notice they all say "NO MORE THAN 200 lbs" on them - a warning to the chubby. Laughlin pictures coming soon.

So, yeah, I didn't update last night. I was tired, the baby wasn't, and there was stuff to do around the house. But you can enjoy today's post knowing I had time to sleep on it.

Laughlin? Awesome. I didn't win (though I didn't lose big), but good times were had. Highlights:

- The weather was hot. Death Valley hot. I believe it was around 110 the first day, and humid (a bit of a storm raced through, thought I missed it save hearing the thunder). The next days, however, were dryer, though still amazingly hot. I didn't leave the property during my stay, and only left the building to cross into another building.

- The Colorado Belle employs at least 4 showgirls who ride Segways around to do casino promotions. No pictures, unfortunately, but it was interesting.

- The tournament was fun, but I just didn't have the luck needed to win. I played in three 20-hand rounds (an "early bird" round, the main tournament round, and a re-buy round after losing the first one), and in the 45 or so hands I actually played, I got one straight, no flushes, just a couple pairs, and a few ante/bet wins without the PairPlus. Luckily, I did much better at the live money tables, and got two 3-of-a-kinds before even checking into my room, plus a couple others (and some straight flushes) over the weekend. They brought me back up to near even after extended losses at other tables.

- A lot of Let It Ride tables now also feature the "PairPlus" game (standard with 3 Card Poker). Same rules and odds, and a great way to lose $5 more per hand over there.

- I met a lot of cool people, including some my age (or what I thought was my age - everyone was looking young this, but were really older than I thought). Got to know some well enough to hand out my card and say "look me up". Also, the two girls I got to know best both have appeared on The Price Is Right. No foolin'.

- Because of all the big wins, I probably tipped as much to the dealers (not to mention the valet, bellhop, and cocktail waitresses) to account for most of my losses. Price of doing business, though.

- Over the weekend, I probably had 30 different alcoholic drinks. But due to low quantities of alcohol in them, and the right timing, I experienced neither drunkenness (just a buzz) or hangover. Rock on.

There's more, I'm sure, but my notes aren't with me, so I'll have to include them later. Like I said, a very good time was had. Next time, we'll make it a group trip.

Coming Home

I'm just about to head back to beautiful Southern California. Good times were had! Updates coming later today.

Updates, Imprecatory Prayer, Lead Free, Clean Car, Laughlin, My Friday

It's my Friday! For the rest of you, Happy Thursday, and happy birthday Eric!

Picture of the day!

The "Zoom Shop" at the LV Hilton - it's a huge vending machine that sells Ipods, PSPs, DVDs, other video game systems and their games, etc. I assume it's for the parents who forgot something to give their kids to do. I didn't look at the prices.

Tomorrow at this time I'll be on the road to Laughlin, likely between Victorville and Barstow. I'm aiming to get in between 1 and 2pm, but we'll see what works. My schedule is open, and I'm planning on making this trip leisurely as can be.

No jogging today. Car cleaning today. I'm not taking the geekmobile, but I like to leave it clean for the Girlfriend when I steal her car.

My daughter's toys appear to be largely Mattel-free. No lead for her!

I've got a small writeup at the LAV Blog today about OC Pastor Wiley Drake's call for an "Imprecatory Prayer" against two members of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Enjoy.

I might or might not be updating this weekend - I should have internet access, but I may be so wrapped up in the glitz and glamor of Laughlin that I don't have time for you, my fateful readers. Or, I might. Have a great weekend!

Pie Recipe, Jeopardy! Archive, Three Card Poker, Hump Day

Happy Hump Day!

Picture of the day!

Aftermath of the Vegas Soda Accident of July 2005.

So, Laughlin. I'm going because I won an entry into a tournament - specifically one for three card poker. This is a fun little table game where you get a 3-card poker hand, and you can play in either of two games - the first pits your hand against odds of getting at least a pair, and pays accordingly. The other pits your same hand against the dealer, and involves a decision after you see your cards if you'd like to play (forcing you to double your bet), or fold. The two-game aspect confuses a lot of people, and scares others (like me, for many years) away, but it's really pretty simple.

Tournaments for table games are different than slot tournaments (push the button a lot, hope to win) or poker (multiple tables, but one big game). In a Blackjack or TCP tournament, you typically compete for a set number of hands per round, while betting with tournament chips, and placing your bets in order, as that's pretty much the only strategy available. I'm not sure about this one, but from what I've read, after 15 or 20 hands, the 1 or 2 low stacks at the table are eliminated, and this repeats until there's a winner. I'm very curious to see how this plays out, and even if I lose, I get 3 free nights in the hotel, and I'm looking forward to sleeping, eating, drinking, and doing a little bit of gambling elsewhere. Should be a good time!

Rediscovered - The Jeopardy! Archive. Awesome.

Pie! My pie won 2nd place (out of 10 entries), earning me two movie tickets. I thought mine tasted great and looked great, though the others generally looked very professional also (though I didn't try them). There's a crappy phonecam image here. And here's the recipe, for those interested.

Michael's Vanilla Cream Pie

Pies

2 9-inch pie shells or graham cracker crusts
1 large box instant vanilla pudding mix
2 1/2 cups whole milk
12oz no-bake cheesecake filling
10-12 vanilla cookies

Whipped topping:

1 pint heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla

Bake and cool pie shells, if needed.

Prepare pudding/pie filling as directed on box, mixing pudding powder with 2 1/2 cups whole milk. Whisk two minutes. Stir in prepared no-bake cheesecake filling, whisk until mostly smooth (about 1 minute). In a plastic zip-top bag, crush vanilla cookies by hand into small pieces, and add 1/2 the cookie crumbles into pie filling and mix in. Add 1/2 of pie filling to each shell and refrigerate for 10-30 minutes.

To make topping, add sugar and vanilla to heavy cream in a large mixing bowl, and using an electric mixer, whip for 3-4 minutes, until mixture holds soft peaks when beaters are removed. Smooth over the cooled pies using a large spoon or spatula, or pipe on using a piping bag. Sprinkle remaining cookie pieces over pies.

That's all for today. What's up?

Vegan shoes, China, No Exercise, Pie, Tuesday

Rock on, Tuesday! How'd it get to be the middle of August already?

Picture of the day!

A hill and clouds and sunlight in a mountain pass, coming home from the trip with clear skies below.

I made a delicious pie late last night, and after having a baker's block at the store, I decided on a Vanilla Cream Cheese pie, with homemade whipped topping. I have pictures, and I'll post them and the recipe tomorrow. I think it turned out really well.

Pie prep this morning also took away from exercise time. Heh, that sounds worse than it is.

Man, Mattel is recalling millions more toys, all made in China. What's that you hear? It's the sound of millions of people saying "I TOLD YOU SO!" China can make awesome stuff, I'm sure. But when you're basing your business on who can give you the lowest price, don't be surprised when you get crap back. Now, how to convince just about every other manufacturer in the country...

On that topic, do any of you have experience with buying vegan (non-leather) shoes? I'd like something high quality, not made in China, and made without any animal pieces. Thoughts?

That's it for today. What's up?

Pie, Liberal OC, Exercise, Smart Baby, Cocktails, Nevada, Monday

Happy Monday!

Picture of the day!

The open road, on the way to Vegas in February 2006.

All of this week's pictures will feature travel to beautiful state of Nevada, in honor of my trip to Laughlin on Friday. I'll try to take even more pics (though the best shots, of Casino action, unfortunately never get taken). Enjoy!

Good times at this weekend's cocktail party. Pictures are available here. The cleaning also inspired a radical furniture rearrangement, as regular visitors to my home will notice. We're keeping it for now.

We got the baby a little ride-on car/bike thing this weekend. It's entertaining to watch her on it. It's amazing how well she picks up little things, or knows what things are for (she knows to put other people's shoes on her feet, and that phones go to your ear, and towels and clothes are used to wipe things down). Smart kid, that one.

1.4 miles walked/jogged today. Good stuff.

W00t - The Liberal OC is linking to my Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog. Watch out, conservatives! We write stuff!

That's it for today. I want to make a delicious pie tonight. Any ideas?

Jogging, Spam, Party, Birthday, Friday

Oh boy! Friday!

Picture of the day!

Excited baby at the fair.

Happy Birthday Sunday to Roxanne! Yay!

Tomorrow's our cocktail party. Our house and yard are clean. I will drink interesting beverages, as will my guests. Brandon has claimed the couch, but there's room on the floor. Chasers for everyone - I've heard good things.

If you have email, you've probably been getting the "You've received a greeting from a Schoolmate" (or "friend", or "family member", or my personal favorite, "worshiper") emails. Today, however, their form has changed to something closer to "A school mate has sent you a greeting at american-greetings.com!". Before the name of the site would be in the "from" field. Those crafty spammers!

I haven't been jogging regularly anymore - we had a week of illness (mine and the baby's), and this week cleaning the house (which can be a working in itself). I'm hoping to get some good sessions (1.5 - 2 miles) in next week before my Laughlin vacation. There, you don't need to work out, you lose pounds a day just sweating (which I'll easily replace with beer). Good times!

That's all for this Friday, friends. Have a fantastic weekend!

Exercise, Laughlin, OC Atheists, Thursday

Happy Thursday!

Picture of the day!

Katie finds her explorer hat.

We had 18 people at last night's OC Atheists meeting. That's awesome - we were rockin' the IHOP. I predict a larger turnout next month, too.

Looks like I'm on my own for Laughlin, unless someone steps up at the last minute and decides to join me. That's cool - solo road trips are fun too. But seriously, guys, we should do a road trip sometime soon. Seriously.

More "backyard" exercise today - cleaned off the bar, hosed it down, moved some more stuff around, swept. It's just about party-ready. The house is looking good, too - I love my baby, but I often miss my minimalist, playpen-toys-babygate free livingroom.

Not much else to say this morning. What's new with you?

OC Atheists, Garfield on Fark, Workout, Breakfast Club, Vegetarian Restaurants, Bonds, Birthdays

Happy Wednesday! Happy Birthday to Jack and Mike today!

Picture of the day!

The midpoint of cleaning out my snack cabinet at home. Click the picture above to get the larger image and see what I eat!

So, Bonds hit number 756 and broke a 33-year-old record in baseball. I think it's awesome - I love seeing old records fall, and I don't have the same kind of hate that so many people have about Bonds. It's been said before, but all the steroids in the world don't give you better timing or technique. In the end, Baseball is a game, many of our "Greats" haven't been great people, and the record is still impressive. Well done, Mr. Bonds.

As part of my work on the Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog, I visit vegetarian restaurants to make reviews/give my impressions. While I can't buy your meals, I'd love to have more of you coming with me, so I can report on more dishes than what I get. We usually go Thursday and Friday nights, but that's not set in stone. Let me know if you can join us.

Also on the "going out to eat" note, I'd love to start a Saturday (or Sunday) morning breakfast club. Please let me know if you're interested in such a thing.

No running today (I did a 1.4 mile walk yesterday), but I did work on the backyard for 25 minutes. That was actually pretty rewarding and hard work. I might do that more often.

This thread at Fark made me laugh out loud yesterday, and is making me giggle just thinking about it (mostly the Garfield parodies). It links to this other Fark thread, which is absurdly funny (like, don't read it at work unless you can fully laugh out loud). There are also links to the Garfield Randomizer and Nietzsche Family Circus, both of which are fantastic time wasters. Enjoy!

The next meeting of the Orange County Atheists will be held Tonight, August 8 at 7:30PM at the International House of Pancakes at 18542 MacArthur Blvd in Irvine. If you consider yourself an atheist, an agnostic, a freethinker, a humanist, or are just curious, check out this month's event. If you're planning on attending please RSVP at our website forums. Hope to see you there!

Desk, Game Shows, Laughlin, Google Street View, Tuesday

Happy Tuesday, my friends! I hope your day is awesome.

Picture of the day!

Llama, girlfriend, and baby.

Google's Street View is finally available in parts of Orange County! So far, the coverage includes parts of Anaheim and Orange around Disneyland and the Block, most of the 405, 5 and 22, the Irvine/Tustin Marketplace, Beach Blvd from the 405 to the coast, some of PCH, parts of Newport, and parts of Laguna Beach. Enjoy, and let me know if you find anything interesting!

Laughlin is only 10 days away! There's still time to join us. Inquire within.

Doesn't look good on the game show front. But there are always more, and always the random phone call. Watch this space for more.

I'm looking for a small but nice desk. I'll even trade my larger corner desk. We're trying to get the baby's room up and running sooner than later.

How's Tuesday shaping up for you?

OCA Meeting, BBQ Pizza, OC Fair, Monday

Hello Friends, and happy Monday!

Picture of the day!

OC Fair, Friday night.

I'm always back-and-forth on the fair. Some years it's all dirty and expensive, and other years, like this one, I have an amazing time. I think the difference must be my frame of mind. We got there mid-day on Friday (before the evening crowds), and did the whole thing very leisurely - saw the animals, went through the shopping buildings, saw the county exhibits, art and photographs, ate a few fried things, and just enjoyed the evening. It helped that the fair wasn't too crowded or too hot, and that the baby just sat and laughed the whole time. We enjoyed some fried potato chip/wedges, a hand-dipped ice cream bar, a slice of pizza and corn dog (respectively), and a sticky bun. We also had our refillable cup from the Al concert, and that made drinks only $2.50 instead of $5.00. Nothing else we wanted to do cost more than admission either, so the evening wasn't expensive. It's nice to have a good time somewhere that you've had a bad time before. Some more pictures are available here.

In other news - I successfully BBQ grilled another pizza. Pictures of that available here. There's an extensive write-up (with some of the aforementioned pictures, and instructions) at the LAV Blog. Enjoy!

The next meeting of the Orange County Atheists will be held this Wednesday, August 8 at 7:30PM at the International House of Pancakes at 18542 MacArthur Blvd in Irvine. If you consider yourself an atheist, an agnostic, a freethinker, a humanist, or are just curious, check out this month's event. If you're planning on attending please RSVP at our website forums. Hope to see you there!

What's new with you, readers?

Weekends, OC Atheists Meeting, No Walking, Fair, Friday

Thank someone it's Friday!

Picture of the day!

Doubleshot - pictures taken July 5, 2006 and July 22, 2007. Baby has grown.

Going to the fair today, both to see the fair, and for some game show auditions. We'll see how that works out.

Didn't run or walk this morning - short on time. But I'll walk a lot at the fair, and really, honesty, won't eat much if any fried stuff. I'm old and can't handle it like I could when I was 22.

The next meeting of the Orange County Atheists will be held Wednesday, August 8 at 7:30PM at the International House of Pancakes at 18542 MacArthur Blvd in Irvine. If you consider yourself an atheist, an agnostic, a freethinker, a humanist, or are just curious, check out this month's event. If you're planning on attending please RSVP at our website forums. Hope to see you there!

Busy busy weekends coming - we have a housewarming tomorrow, going out with Linda Sunday, then our cocktail party next Saturday, and my nephew's birthday the Sunday, then my trip to Laughlin the weekend after that. Oi. Good times, but busy times!

I hope your weekends are fun, entertaining, and enlightening. Have a great one!

NRA Car, American Atheists Release, Walked, Thursday

Happy Thursday, my friends!

Picture of the day!

Kresge Upper Street, taken on our August, 2004 trip up there.

Walked 1.4 miles today - I'd been out of the swing of things for a while, but the sheer number of joggers I saw this morning made me want to get out and least walk my route.

Got a release today from American Atheists about military persecution of atheists. Read the release and comment at the Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog.

On a not entirely unrelated topic, saw an old car today with stick-on lettering that read "DEFEAT THE LIBERALS AND ISLAM - JOIN THE NRA". I tried for a picture, but without any luck. I'll see if I can find the car tomorrow.

What's new with you, friends?

Dusty Desk, Bowling in Laughlin, LAV, Daa Daa Daa, August

Happy August! Not usually my favorite month, but I've got a lot going this year.

Picture of the day!

Katie loves her cardboard tube.

Baby seems to be getting better from her illness, thankfully. Though last night at 3 she decided to basically say "daa daa daa" for half an hour. I was entertained, even though I was tired.

Some dude in Lincoln, NE posted a comment to the Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog this morning. Awesome.

I will be bowling when I travel to Laughlin in 2 weeks. On an mostly unrelated note, I believe "Bowling in Laughlin" is a euphemism for death.

My desk is dusty - I started cleaning it off last night, as well as started organizing/emptying my small collections of stuff (change buckets that have been collecting desk minutia for years, boxes that have served as repositories for change and paper and pens and keys, etc). Turns out, though, that I've got at least $40-$50 in change, and an amazing collection of tokens from up and down the state. Who knew?

What's August look like for you, friends?