Insignifica

Dinner Buddies, LAV, Trip Twitter, Robot, Day Off, Friday

Oh hai! I'm not going to work today. Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

Building 2 at Kresge College, UC Santa Cruz. I used to live there.

I'm at home, listening to my robot clean the floors, considering the game plan for the day. I should probably try to work some poker in.

Speaking of the robot, the batter charge time is dying, and I'm sad. Hopefully it's fixable - I assumed the battery was new in my unit even though the rest was refurbished. We'll see if there's a workaround.

I'll be twittering on my trip this weekend (twitter excels at little updates on the road). I won't do it while actually driving, though. That's just not safe.

New Native Foods open. Read all about it at the LAV Blog.

Still looking for dinner buddies tomorrow night, and a breakfast buddy on Sunday. If you're in the greater bay area, let's eat!

Days Off, Three Day Week, Scott's Birthday, Thursday

Happy Thursday!

Picture of the day!

Ken and me this weekend. I believe he's trying to kill me.

It's Scott's birthday! Happy birthday, my friend.

Today's Thursday, but it's also my Friday, since it's my last work day of the week. In a way it's also my Wednesday, as it's my third workday of the week. Ah, the three-day work week, when we move from working for a living to being at work fewer than half the days in a week. A beautiful thing.

More about me, and my day off, cause it's my blog and I can talk about just about anything I want:

Man, I love days off. I highly recommend taking a day off to either do nothing important, or to do little things that'll make you happy. I'm getting a haircut, getting the car washed, going out to eat, maybe taking a nap. Basically doing the little things. Rock on!

Twitter, Meal Buddies Up North, Pick Up, Weather, Birthdays and Anniversaries, Wednesday

Good day! It's already Wednesday!

Picture of the day!

Marek, myself and Lindsey at this weekend's game night party.

Today's my 14th anniversary being vegetarian. It's also Heather's birthday!

It's another beautiful day, and this weekend looks good for travel. I usually love late May/June weather.

I'm hopeful that the person who said they were gonna come pick up my old dresser will actually do so today. Anyone else out there have a horrible success rate with Craigslist/Freecycle people?

I may still be looking for late lunch/early dinner buddies on Saturday in/around Fremont, and breakfast buddies on Sunday morning. Show me a good time.

That's just about all. If you're on Twitter, follow me. Bye!

What's Happening, Weather, Dentist, Game Night, Tori's Birthday, Tuesday.

Oh, hello. Happy Tuesday, and good day!

Picture of the day!

Tori and me at her birthday last year. I'm very surprised.

Happy birthday to Tori today! She's all kinds of awesome. Expect to see another picture like the one above after next weekend (possibly with a bull), when I again travel up north for a day. Note to myself: driving across the state hung over is no fun. Avoid same mistake.

We had an awesome game night Saturday, with different groups of friends all coming together, new and old, and lots of games and fun. Thanks to everyone who could make it - we'll have to do another soon.

You wanna know what's difficult? Finding a dentist on Memorial Day weekend. Luckily I found one who called me back and consulted over the phone on Sunday, and got me in for an appointment this morning. Of course, no pain today, but I have a root canal scheduled for next week. Good times...eventually.

The weather finally looks like it's clearing up from 5 days of weirdness. Hopefully Saturday will be nice up and down the state for travel purposes.

OK, that's all I've got. What's happening?

Celebrate, Memorial Day, Gas Prices, Crazy Weather, Friday

Friday! Yay!

Picture of the day!

Rocks at the Grand Canyon. This picture was taken one year ago today.

Crazy weather here. Go away, please - we want sunshine for the long weekend. Thanks!

There's a report out today that OC has the lowest average gas prices out of 25 major California metro areas - at $3.97. I "only" paid $3.83 yesterday, but I'm beginning to see more and more stations where $4.03 or more is the lowest price - I even saw diesel for $5.19 yesterday. I used to say that most people were just bitching about prices, but we're quickly getting into the "twice as much as just a couple years ago" territory.

Maybe because I know very few vets, but I can't think of Memorial Day weekend as anything but picnics and BBQs. If I had lost someone, I'd think of them all the time, not just one weekend a year. Am I weird in this?

Lots to do today, so that's all. Celebrate!

What's up, Fremont, Cutting Back, Gel Shots, Raining, Thursday

Happy Thursday!

Picture of the day!

Chris, taking a picture.

As I write this, it's raining. Really wasn't supposed to do that today.

For years, I've been searching for a way to make vegetarian jello shots - there are a few companies that make pre-made cups of gel snacks without geletin, but none sold the powder to make my own - until now. I found an unflavored variety at Whole Foods and made a sheet of boozy jigglers - they set up in almost no time, taste close (they're a bit more like those kinda-gummy-but-not-really easter candies), and definately have vodka in them. I'm excited!

Trying to cut back on soda, if for no reason other than "boy, I'm using a lot of cans!". I know they're recyclable, but that takes energy too. I'd love a fountain at home/work...

Remember, I'm going to Fremont next Saturday, and I'm off next Friday. Good times weekend! I'm also very likely traveling up to the bay area in early August - more on that as I know more.

What's happening with you today, friends and readers?

Cookie, Spring Cleaning, In God We Trust, Twitter, Wednesday, Good

Good day!

Picture of the day!

An action shot with a BUNCH of the old crowd - from left, Ken, Bunny, The Girlfriend, me, Garrett, and Kenny in the back. From New Years 2006/2007.

It's Wednesday - the week is progressive quickly. I approve.

Someone remind me to add "Twitter" to my social networking links down there. Thanks.

Tustin approves "In God We Trust", but I don't care, and maybe even kinda like it? Read all about it at The LAV Blog.

It's spring cleaning time, so if you see me posting info about getting rid of stuff, even stuff you gave me, don't feel alarmed, threatened, or angry. Gotta keep life simple, baby.

That's all for today. Have a cookie.

Death Row Meal, Craigslist/Freecycle, Stuck, Cloudy, Fences, Good Day

Good day, friends and readers!

Picture of the day!

Trees and Sky in Sequoia.

Fence update: Most of the problems are fixed, but only because talked to the workers, and realized they missed them. The Girlfriend had called the property management company to report the problems, and they said they'd talk to fence people (with some bullshit 7-10 day window), but that apparently never happened. So good that things are fixed, bad that the chain of command didn't work - what would have happened if The Girlfriend hadn't been at home yesterday?

The heat is gone, for now. It's still cloudy and nice out. Yay for May Grey and June Gloom.

I have a song you've never heard of by someone you don't know stuck in my head.

Man, Craigslist and Freecycle are coming through when it comes to getting rid of stuff in the house we don't want anymore. Is it weird that while I'm typically a pretty sentimental guy, I have no attachment whatsoever to the bedside table I've been using since I was 10?

Question of the day: listing to Anthony Bordain's show last night, he described some food as his "death row meal" - the last thing he'd want to eat if he were about to die. What's yours?

What's Happenin', Cheap Houses, Birthdays, Little Colds, Monday

Happy Monday!

Picture of the day!

Cupcake.

The weekend was hot, but nice, especially since we didn't have to do too much out of the house. Our household is dealing with little colds right now - hopefully they don't get worse. I'm thinking the AC could be contributing to my sore throat as much as anything else.

I missed birthdays this week - Ken and Jeremy, happy birthday! If I miss yours, PLEASE tell me, so I can remember in the future.

So the Girlfriend messaged while I was out yesterday to tell me that a new house for sale in our complex is going for $220K, about 70% of what we paid when we bought. There are also many other foreclosures in our little complex. We're not planning on selling anytime soon, so I'm not worried (and the house is a fixer - most places in our complex are going for $260K-$280K). Still, makes me wish I had a few million laying around to invest in properties, especially in my complex. With as little interest as there is in the HOA, we could easily take over the place if we had a couple more votes.

That's all I got today. What's happenin'?

Crazy Spam, Press Releases, Scrabulous, Sore Throat, Trainings, Friday Birthday

Happy Friday! Happy Birthday tomorrow to Jennifer!

Picture of the day!

My cute child person.

Another day of trainings, another late post. I've got one more this afternoon, then I'm done. Whew.

I have a sore throat. I'm thinking it's just from talking too much to crowds, combined with dry air. Here's to hoping...

Scrabulous messed up yesterday, so I'm now actively involved in 15 separate games. Yikes.

As readers know, I write for the Register, and in recent months have been writing the Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog. Starting a couple weeks ago, health, fitness, and health food press releases have found their way to my email accounts. It's nice to be remembered, but seriously - is there any targeting involved? Or do companies shoot these out to anyone remotely associated with the topic and in the media? I can only look forward to the frequency of these messages increasing.

Speaking of email, On Tuesday, I remarked to my friends that my spam folder count on Gmail was at exactly 35,000 - they keep spam for 30 days, so that was a little over a thousand a day, pretty average for me. Since tuesday morning, however, my counter has gone up to 41,080 - an increase of more than six thousand spam, in just four days. Worse, the average number of 1,000 have left the folder in that time, meaning I've actually gotten close to 9,000 in four days. What the hell? Anything like that happening for you? Say hello and let me know - happy weekending!

Busy Day, Jacarandas, Twitter, Say Hello, Gay Marriage, Thursday

Hello and happy Thursday!

Picture of the day!

Horse with a hat.

Just getting around to posting, as I've been in and out all day. I'm super excited about today's California Supreme Court ruling - read my take at the Liberal Atheist Vegetarian Blog. I've already been asked to day if this means I'm getting married, since the ban was one reason I was holding off. Likely no - it was just one reason =)

Only two readers said they're reading yesterday, yet I show that dozens of individuals came to the page. Say hello, friends. Say hello.

Twitter's been having all sorts of network issues lately. Goes with a popular new service, I suppose. But watch out, guys - it doesn't take many long outages before people jump ship.

Go find some jacaranda trees. Looks at them. SO PURPLE!

Busy day still coming. Have a great one!

Rollcall, Gamenight, Tracts, Strangers, Sleepy, Fences, Wednesday

Happy Wednesday!

Picture of the day!

Another pic taken during my fence remodel. Note shadows. I mainly took it because I have almost no picture of my car.

Speaking of fences, we've heard that there are cosmetic changes coming that will fix most of the problems (except our loose/not nailed in slats).

I'm sleepy. I have a two-year-old that wakes up a bit too early and has taken to extreme tantrumming . It's exciting, in a horrible way.

Sometimes I like to read through a stranger's blog, just gather up points about their life. I guess that's one of the driving factors of this whole writing for the world endeavor. Sometimes the people I find are interested and I'll read and return for a while, but rarely do I contact them. Is that weird? Are there people doing that to me?

More Christian tracts on the work bulletin board. The pile at my desk grows.

I had a gamenight, but other people's obligations eated it. It's been rescheduled.

Rollcall: Who's reading?

Not Much, Vacation, Roaches and Beetles, Too Many Beers, Brandon's Birthday

Happy Birthday to Brandon today!

Picture of the day!

Brandon and Jesus at my birthday.

Had too many beers and not enough food last night, but I'm feeling better now.

We used to have roaches in our complex - almost never in the house unless we brought in a box from the garage, but all over the clubhouse and pool. Lately, though I haven't seen any, but I have seen a bunch of large black beetles. War, perhaps?

I think my vacation schedule is full for my trip to the bay area later this month, but spots might open up if you'd like to get together. I might even be in Santa Cruz for a time.

Sleepy. Wondering about lunch already. Not much to write about today. That's all.

Hanging, Throwbacks, Baking Rampage, Countertops, 80s Prom Picture, Monday

Happy Monday!

Picture of the day!

Tori found this picture in the depths of her archives. I'm scared. It's from the Kresge "80s prom" (I think it was at Kresge - someone will correct me otherwise). Notice I'm wearing earrings in both ears, my hair is long and half-blond, half black, and I weigh a good 20 or 30lbs more than I do now. I thought The Girlfriend looked fine, but she's right about that dress being ugly. We might still have it somewhere, though. I know exactly where that suit is.

Countertop replacement is finally rolling along. We had a guy come in and measure today, and we'll get an estimate in a few days. Assuming it's not absurdly high, we'll tell them to go ahead, and we'll have a new kitchen within 3 weeks, in time for Katie's birthday party in mid June. Here's to hopin'.

I went on a cooking rampage this weekend, and made a small cake (with buttercream frosting), cupcakes (with cream cheese frosting), pizza (with no frosting, just delicious cheese and homemade sauce), and a homemade strawberry pie with glaze (that awesomely sweet clear glaze like you find in restaurant pies? Super easy). The cupcakes are going to work. The cake's for whoever comes over to share it. The pizzas are mostly gone. The pie will likely be finished tonight. Good eats at my place.

Throwbacks Sports Bar & Grill opens tonight. Come watch your Angels attempt to not lose again, drink some beer (22 on tap - delicious), and play some pool. I'm very excited.

Off to start the day. How's it hanging?

Let's Do Lunch, Beer, LAV, Soda Survey, Throwbacks, Friday

Friday's here already. Amazing!

Picture of the day!

My yard, sans fence.

Got to check out Jason's new bar yesterday, Throwbacks, in Anaheim. Great place, lots of TVs, nice and open, and lots of friendly folks. Looking forward to having a place to go where I know some people and watch a game.

Questions of the day: how many sodas do you drink in a day?

Read my Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog. Leave comments. Connect in other ways.Enjoy your day.

Looks like we're going to Beer Appreciation at BJ's in Brea on June 3. Join us, won't you?

So, I'm 30. I decided months ago that I'd do a bunch of awesome stuff during my birthday year, but it's been a little slow going. Lots of this stuff depends on you, though. First on my list: Having lunch with everyone. Yes, everyone, even you. If we saw each other this week, or haven't seen each other in 10 years, I want to do lunch. If you're around Santa Ana, weekdays work. If not, I'm free just about every Saturday. Seriously, let's do lunch.

Keepin' On, Travel Plans, Spears, Robots, Twitter, Sun, Hello

Hello!

Picture of the day!

Jacaranda and a beautiful blue sky. They're blooming all over, as they always do this time of year. How do I know it's this time of year? This photo was taken 4 years ago today.

Sun's already coming out. Whether today will clear up or not is another matter, but awesome.

Do you use Twitter? If so, follow me.

So we brought Roomba upstairs yesterday to take care of our newly clean bedroom. Now I remember why we got wood floors downstairs - carpet hides everything. I don't think I'll get an upstairs-only robot yet, but we'll see...

I was just remarking that Britney Spears is only 26 - she has the life experience and haggard look of someone much older. It's sad - 26 should be a fun and very attractive age.

It's pretty much set - I'm traveling to Fremont May 31, returning June 1. If you're in the general area, we might be able to get together early in the day. Hit me up.

That's all. Keep on keepin' on.

Say Hello, Question, Fence, Gmail Spam, Busy With Michris, Good Day

Good day!

Picture of the day!

Baby in her pajamas and her mommy's shoes.

Things are busy. While I don't advertise it, I have a web hosting/design company. Mostly I host for friends, and when they think of it, they pay me (I never ask - I do it for free). In the last month, I've acquired 4 new clients, just by luck. I'm finding my web design skills aren't top notch. That said, my "finding free templates, graphics and stock photos" ability is great. You wouldn't want to hire me for your high-level design or web application, but for the basic needs of most people on the web, I do just fine.

I love my gmail spam filter, but in the last couple weeks it's letting more and more through. It's also not very good about distinguishing between website notifications that I have a new spam comment, and spam themselves. Any gmail users out there know of a way to force something into the inbox?

Fence update - it's "done", but there are a lot of problems. Some of the slats are off, with exposed nails. The new fence is higher off the ground, and the installers didn't put in a way to get in the back (no handle, no chain-pull through for the latch), so you have to reach way up (I'm almost too short to do it). It looks nice from the outside, but those changes best be made.

Question: I've found religious tracts at a bulletin board at work, near the time clock. I've been removing them and trashing them - should I go to HR? Is this legal, or do the rules depend on the company?

That's that. Say hello!

Peace Out, Benevolent Blogger, Cleaning, In The Paper, OC Atheists, Tuesday

Happy Tuesday!

Picture of the day!

Nearby cave. Actually, some missing dirt under the stonework in my backyard, caused by fence excavation.

The next meeting of the Orange County Atheists will be held Tonight, May 6 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!

I'm in the paper today. Well, I'm in the paper most days, but today I actually have a piece on page 2 of the Life section (excerpts from the Liberal Atheist Vegetarian blog).

Been cleaning. A lot. I mused a while back that if I spent 20 minutes a day doing something productive around the house (in addition to daily duties), I'd have gotten rid of (or at least hidden) all clutter in a matter of weeks. So yesterday we rocked the upstairs (enough for Roomba to take a crack at it) and the bathrooms. I can has clean house? It's more likely than you think.

Considering being a Benevolent Blogger. It's a worthy program. Thoughts?

That's enough for me. Seeya tonight at OC Atheists. Peace out, yo.

Happening, Fences, Game Night, LAV, June Gloom. Cinco de Mayo Birthday

Happy Cinco de Mayo! And happy birthday Angela!

Picture of the day!

Laughin' Marek.

It's May, and the June Gloom, as usual, is early and wonderful. Thanks, local topography!

LAV today - In case you missed it.

Game night is coming. Oh yes. I won't accept my recent party failures. There will be game night.

So, fences. They look pretty good until you really start to focus on any one aspect. Some of the slats are upside down (hard to do when one end is shaped, and the other is flat), the boards aren't nailed in correctly everywhere, and the bottom is horribly uneven along the side. We've called to complain, I'm just hoping something gets done. Unfortunately my Association board gets what they pay for. More updates later.

What's happening?

What's Happening, Red Lights, Open Yard, Rebate, No Pants Day, Friday

Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

Katie and her grandma at Faire. Katie, by this point, had decided that her outfit wasn't doing it for her, and borrowed a shirt from Nathan.

Today is No Pants Day! Celebrate!

The government has entrusted me a tax rebate, hoping I'll help bolster the economy. Since I've pretty much already spent it on home improvement purchases, looks like I'm doing it right.

My backyard is still open to the world. The voyeur in me, however, gets to enjoy looking into the neighbor's yards too. They certainly won't finish today (they haven't put the cement down for the inside part of the fence), but we might have an outer fence - time will tell. Might have to have our Fishbowl Party after all...

Last July I asked a question about what, legally, constitutes running a red light. Tori learned in traffic school that any time you're in the intersection and the light isn't green, you're in violation. I've always assumed you have to clear the intersection before the light turns red. Section 21453 of the vehicle code deals with it, but doesn't give any specifics - my literal reading would have me believe that as long as I don't enter the intersection when the light's red, I'm fine. I've heard conflicting explanations from cops, traffic schools, and the internets. Your thoughts?

Got a busy day ahead, but an exciting one. What's happening with you?

What's New, Fences, Breakfast, Twitter, Prayer, May Day

Happy May Day!

Picture of the day!

Ren Faire pics. We really didn't take many - they whole set is up here, though.

Today's also the National Day of Prayer. Remember that Zeus doesn't want you to have any gods before him, or he'll smite you down. I'm more partial to Eros and Bacchus, myself. But hey, Satan's pretty awesome too - I'm sure when the President asks Americans to pray, he wants you to pray to whoever you think is important. Just remember to pray!

I've been using twitter for a few days now. I didn't like it at first, but I think that's because I didn't fully understand it. Now that I've added some people to follow and figured out the syntax, it does have some promise. I'm surprised something that doesn't allow for embedded pictures or other media took off like it did, but there you go - now people use it, so the service can add features as time goes on. You can see my profile and follow me here. If you use it, let me know.

I'm not sure I remembered to eat enough breakfast this morning. I might have to go the French Fry route around noon.

Workers have started removing the fences in our complex to replace them, and today was our day to have work started, so my back yard is completely exposed to the world. It's very weird, but it'll be nice to have a new fence and get at some areas that are hard to reach.

That's plenty for today. What's new?