Insignifica

Vegas Recap

Good day!

Picture of the day!

Jesus in the snow.

I'm back from Vegas, and as usual, I had a good time even though I'm poorer for it. Some trip highlights:

It was cold. Very cold - got down into the 20s on Saturday night, and didn't get above 50 Sunday. It was perfectly pleasant for short periods, or inside the climate controlled casino.

Ronald's Donuts in Las Vegas, featuring a wide selection of vegan choices, is as good as everyone said it was. These weren't just "good, for a vegan donut", they were as good or better than any other donut I've ever had. Either these donuteers are lying, or they're experts at vegan pastries - I've never had any like this.

On my way back from Ronald's, I decided at the last minute to check out the PokerPro tables in use at Excalibur. Fully automated (no dealers), and an experience that's like live playing with online software. They looked interesting enough, but I wasn't interested in a live game, until I heard them announce a tournament. Out of 41 players, I placed 6th (with 5 places paid - d'oh), but had a great time.

Oh, and Excalibur - they've fixed that place up, and it's pretty awesome. It was the first casino I ever went to (when I was 14), so it'll always have a soft spot in my heart. But it was starting to look a little run down - now, though, all the tables are new, they've done a lot of inside construction - it looks great. I was also up there, and couldn't lose at craps. Next time I'm in Vegas, that's likely where I'll stay.

The easiest place to eat vegetarian in Primm? Tony Roma's (the rib place). Seriously, guys, how about a marinara sauce and a veggie burger?

The drive back from Vegas to Primm was crazy - the first 20 miles took me 20 minutes. The next 20 miles took me an hour and a half. Traffic was apparently just as bad all the way to Barstow, so a bunch of people were taking refuge in Primm as well. I was glad I actually had a room there.

I'm sure there's more I'll remember, but I had a great time. Next time out there, though, we should get some people together and go as a group. Who's in?

Rock On, Hills, Nevada Trip, Pictures, Xmas Wrapup, Friday

Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

Katie at Disneyland earlier this month.

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas - we all did. We've been purposefully cutting way back on gifts, so I had a pretty small haul, but still a good one (finally, an ice cream maker!). Katie did well too, with various Lego accessories, books, musical toys and dolls. Lots of family and great food rounded out the day.

Pictures from the above-mentioned festivities will be available soon, I'm sure.

Today, work. Tomorrow, Vegas. I start my vacation tonight and leave tomorrow for the Silver State, returning Monday evening. I'm staying in Primm (stateline), but going into Vegas at least once for gambling and donuts. I'm then off until the following Monday (January 5), mostly because Katie's daycare is closed next week. Still, it's a very nice time off.

It's cool out today, but the promised rain for Xmas basically fizzled out. It did, however, clear all of last week's snow off the local foothills. With the week of sunshine and warmer temps, we're gonna have some nice green views out this way.

That's all I've got. watch for periodic updates next week, but otherwise, rock on!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to one and all!

What's Happening, Cookies, Christmas, Sleep, Early Breakfast, Good Day

Good day!

Picture of the day!

Cranberries. Another picture never clicked on before today.

My daughter, the one who never wants to even eat breakfast, woke me just before 6 this morning asking to go downstairs and eat. This is a good 2 hours before her usual wakeup time (evidenced by the fact that she fell back to sleep watching TV after eating). Her schedule's only gonna get more funky over the next two weeks, since she's not in daycare. It should be interesting.

On that same subject, I'm running on 5 hours of sleep for the second day in a row. Right now I'm hopped up on goofballs, er, caffeine, but someone remind me around 1pm today not to have too many carbs for lunch, or it's sleepy time for me...

Christmas is two days away! I might want to consider some shopping.

My cookie shipments made it from Santa Ana to a couple Bay Area points in 2 days, standard shipping. Just about all my cards made it to points around the state the next day. Good work, postal service!

What's happening today, my friends?

What's New, Smaller Foot, Raining, Atheist Announcement, Weekending, Monday

Happy Monday!

Picture of the day!

Another neat picture no one's ever clicked on. Icicles in Sequoia.

I had a nice but busy weekend, with a trip to the San Diego Wild Animal Park, the Pala Casino, and an atheist party on Saturday, then a trip to LA for D&D on Sunday, followed by quiet evening at home. The Girlfriend and Katie stayed in SD to do Sea World Sunday and the Zoo today. They're braver than I.

Speaking of atheists, I'm proud to announce that I've been selected as the California state director for American Atheists - this means working with local groups, talking to the press, and maintaining California activities for the organization. I'm looking forward to getting started.

It's raining, again. It's apparently going to rain on Christmas Day, too. That's annoying.

I've been noticing lately that my right foot is smaller than my left - all my shoes fit more loosely. That's very strange.

What's new with you, friends?

Atheist News, Xmas Cards, Fudge, Party Weekend, Friday

Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

Another pic of Katie from her xmas set.

It's Christmas Party Weekend: Part Deux, with a work party this afternoon, a atheist party tomorrow, and D&D Sunday. Good times!

Made fudge for the first time last night (with the marshmallow cream I made the day before), and it's pretty awesome. I'm proud of my sugar boiling skillz. I also made cookies, in case you need a break from the fudge. Fudge makes cookies look like health food. It's pretty awesome.

Xmas cards are done (I've been productive), so expect one soon, if you're the type of person I mail things to.

I also have big atheist news, but I'll have to wait to share that. Think of it as your Friday cliffhanger, so I can get you to tune in Monday. Have a great weekend!

That's That, Cookies and Cards, Marshmallow Cream, Los Amigos, Snow, Thursday

It's Thursday!

Picture of the day!

Marek. Halloween, I hope.

It's actually winter here in southern California! Yesterday it rained ALL day, and today even the local foothills are covered in white. It got down to the mid 30s (at least) last night, but today is clear and warmer.

Hey, a story about my high school that doesn't involve someone getting stabbed. Good work, teachers and staff!

I finally succeeded in making marshmallow cream (fluff) yesterday. And other than killing my mixer (it couldn't handle the stresses, cap'n), it was very easy (even for someone who's never made a meringue, worked with cream of tartar, or had 100% good luck with sugar syrups). The masses seem to think I should make fudge with it. We'll see.

On that topic, I got some cookies to make tonight, if I want to get them out to folks before xmas. I'll get on that, as well as the cards.

That's that - what's happening, folks?

Draft, Thai, Christmas, Four States, Raining, Hump

Happy Hump Day!

Picture of the day!

Me, looking like a dork, in a fog something-or-other at the Huntington.

It's raining, again. It's cold for socal, too - low 50s, wet, and windy. This weekend should be nicer, though, which is good, 'cause we got a lot of driving to do.

Speaking of driving, I'm considering (offhand) driving through Nevada to St. George, UT during my trip next week, just to say I hit 4 states in 2+ hours. Of course, that adds a 5 hour round-trip drive in the middle of two days with 3+ hour drives, so maybe not. But it'd be a fun thing to do sometime.

Gah, Christmas is a week from tomorrow. I should probably do a little shopping.

Ooh, doesn't some Thai food sound delicious?

Realized this has been sitting as a draft, so I'll post now. Happy day, all!

What's Happening, Spiders, Shipping, Cheap Fillup, Busy, Tuesday Birthdays

Happy Tuesday! Happy Birthday to Jenn, Vince and Noel. What a birthday-filled day!

Picture of the day!

Neat rock shapes at the Grand Canyon.

Busy week for me here - lots of large items that need completing for work. Christmas shopping is pretty easy for me this year, so that's not even an issue, which is nice, though.

Filled my tank for $21.81 today. Awesome.

Hey, DHL: When your website tells me that something is "With delivery courier" out of Irvine at 8:23 am on Monday, and it's nowhere to be seen more than 24 hours, I start wondering exactly what happened. And don't look so smug over there, UPS: my package got into Ontario 4 days ago, then was rescanned there 2 days ago, and doesn't end up leaving there for 3 days, I get pissy.

When I got my xmas tree last week, I decided to take it home in my car instead of on my car - it's ultimately easier, and I prefer it. I noticed a few spiders (little cute ones) fall off the tree as we put it in, and another one on my windshield the next day. Today, some webs. Yes, my car now has spiders.

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

Nice Day, Three Birthdays, Live D&D, Soda, Wet, Monday

Oh, hello. Good day, and happy Monday.

Picture of the day!

Happy little baby, two years ago today.

It's wet outside - they promised storm is finally here. I learned today that my knock-off, union-made, Converse-style shoes aren't rain-worth. Also, I very much enjoy using two-word adjectives.

I thought I was out of soda here at work, but found a 12-pack in my trunk. Rock on.

We're going to play our online D&D game live for a session this weekend - I'm very excited about that. I don't think I've ever had a campaign where we play this much. It's pretty awesome being able to develop a character like this.

I have 153 friends on Facebook, and 3 have birthdays tomorrow. I think that's more than the expected amount.

This rain's pretty nice, except for the whole road accidents and hill sliding part. Otherwise, though, it's a nice day. what's up?

Weekending, Wordscraper, Cookies, Sleep, Friday

Friday! Rejoice!

Picture of the day!

Decanso Gardens. This picture has the distinction of being one that's never been clicked on before (rare in my photostream). The Girlfriend uploaded it two years ago - I hadn't ever seen it.

I need more than 6 hours of sleep a night now that I'm an old man of 30. Between parties, vacations and holidays, it's gonna be an interesting couple of weeks ahead, sleeping enough or otherwise.

Cookies: Didn't bake any last night, but prepped two kinds - I flavored the base dough to make clove crescents (and shaped them), and flavored the rest of the base dough to make what used to be "Turkish Twirls", but since I'm just pressing them this year, not twirling them, I haven't come up with a new name. They've got fresh ground cardamom in them, though, so that's pretty awesome. I also made the chocolate cake cookie dough (which needs to be used cold anyway), so that prep is mostly done. Tonight: baking, cheesecake bites, and maybe, if I'm feeling sassy, marshmallow cream.

On that note, if you want me to send you some cookies, let me know. They're likely going out early next week.

Looks like Wordscraper will never be Scrabble-like again. The new game is fun, but it's just different (8 tiles instead of 7, higher points, different board config, 4x word spaces, etc. Sigh.

That's all I'm typing today. Happy weekending!

Lots To Do, Panasonic Made In Japan, Nice Day, OCA Meeting, On Top Of Things, Thursday

Happy Thursday!

Picture of the day!

Tree in Sequoia.

Feeling very much on top of things today. Decided to do a bunch of little cleaning/straightening jobs that needed doing at home (instead of cooking), so I got the top of the microwave cleared, the bathroom cleaned, the counters cleared and cleaned, the broken chair fixed, the wreath hung up, a bunch of stuff put away, and started on the xmas decorations. W00t.

OC Atheists meet tonight in Irvine! We'd love to have you there. More info here.

It's another very nice day out, but I need to enjoy it while I can - it's supposed to be cold and rainy for most of the next week, at least. Hi there, Winter!

I was looking at my Panasonic DV Cam this week, and noticed that it's one of my few pieces of electronics not made in China (it's made in Japan). That's nice - not sure if Panasonic still generally is, but that does mean I may, someday, be able to buy more new electronics.

Lots to do today - time to get on it. Have a great one!

Beautiful Day, Baking, Cap'n Crunch, Wordscraper, Wednesday

Happy Wednesday!

Picture of the day!

They're in my party, using my internetz.

The Scrabulous/Wordscraper saga continues. They changed the board a bit last week, and starting yesterday, you couldn't create a board that resembles the real "Scrabble" board. Bastards...that's why I play.

Cap'n Crunch is a tasty cereal. Just sayin'.

Did some more baking last night - made the dough that becomes my spicy cookies (it works better cold), and tried out a batch of Krusteaz sugar cookies mix. They're not bad - simple to make, standard to roll out, but they're a little chewy cooked, and I'm not sure why (I didn't overmix them, so I don't chalk it up to a gluten issue). They taste fine, just not sure of the best use for them yet. Tonight, a couple more doughs.

It's a beautiful clear day here - the winds have cleared the air very nicely. What's happening with you?

What's Up, Go Eggless, Vegas Donut Run, Cross Story, Windy, Tuesday

Tuesday!

Picture of the day!

Katie in her fort.

It's windy again, but not likely to be firey. Which is good, because I'm sniffly, and my sinuses are acting funky.

There's a story today about a large cross in Anaheim Hills that survived the recent fires. Quoted in the story is Bob Cluff, whose family erected the cross as a tribute to his daughter who died at 21, who said "I think God looks after his own. I think he's glad that it's up there." Yes, because God loves ancient torture devices, but said a hearty "FUCK YOU" to the people whose homes burned down. I get it now.

I'm heading to Nevada on Saturday the 27th, and if anyone wants to make a road trip out of it and get donuts with me, let's do it - Vegas and back is a long but doable drive in one day, and hotels are pretty cheap in Primm and at Gold Strike if you want to crash for the night. Who's in?

In other vegan news, I'm featured this week at the Go Eggless Blog, with a review of Zephyr Vegetarian Cafe in Long Beach. Thanks to Sarah for the chance to do some more writing!

That's it. What's up?

What's Happening, Holidays, Great Food Weekend, Seasonal, Disneyland, Monday

Good day! Happy Monday!

Picture of the day!

The kid and me on the Sailing Ship Columbia. More pictures from the set here.

Went to Disneyland yesterday, and had a very good time. The Columbia was open and running - I don't think I've been on it in 10+ years, and that was likely the only other time. We also did a lot of katie-friendly things like the monorail, carousel, Astro Blasters, etc. Everyone had a very good time. Kudos to Disneyland for having ample vegetarian and kid options. You'd think that'd be a no-brainer, but my time at other theme parks has taught me otherwise. There was also a HUGE choir concert as we were leaving (huge, like 300-400 singers and apparently John Stamos MCing). We didn't stay for the whole thing, but it was impressive.

It's actually beginning to feel seasonal around here - gone are the heat waves, and every night, even after a warm day, is chilly (by socal standards). It's actually very nice.

I had a great food weekend - made homemade fried zucchini and mushrooms, salad, and pizza from scratch on Saturday (after getting the upstairs cleaned and watching the kid all day - I felt very accomplished). Yesterday we went out to Claim Jumper for my niece and nephew's birthday, and at Disneyland I got a Dole Whip and some very spicy chili pepper peanut brittle (made there). Awesome.

Gotta get a tree this week. Could also deal with making some more cookies and candies. Yay holidays!

What's happening, friends? Life's going along pretty good here.

Lots To Do, Itchy Roof, Weekends, Time Consuming, Baking Season, Friday

Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

Cookies for Katie's daycare Christmas party.

Baking season has begun. Those are two recipes above, the green and red cookies just have different colored sprinkles. They're a pretty standard sugar cookie with orange zest and ground clove. The chocolate are an adapted cake mix, super dense until they cook, where they become super light and fluffy. There's actually 8oz of cream cheese in the batter, but it seems to disappear. They're then rolled in powdered sugar before baking, and dusted with it again after. More to come!

Busy day today, especially for a Friday. I'm not a big fan of some of the more time-consuming parts of my new job.

Tomorrow, I believe, is the last weekend day until mid-January where I don't have hard plans. I did find out last night, though, that one of my free days later this month is being taken up with a live D&D game (instead of the usual web-based game we play). That'll be awesome.

Something just made the roof of my mouth itchy.

Lots to do - gotta get to it. Have a great weekend!

Busy Holidays, Pizza, Finger Gore, Snuck, Thursday

Thursday? Already?

Picture of the day!

Another shot of my library - this one from the front door. My desk is in the back right corner, to the right of the California map on the wall. Click for bigger goodness. Also - the Picnik editing tools on Flickr? Awesome.

This week snuck up on me - gotta make cookies tonight for tomorrow, and I have all my standard Thursday deadlines today. Usually the week after a long weekend drags, but not this time. I blame the holidays.

If you're curious what happened to my finger last week when I went mono y mono against the vegetable peeler, wonder no more. Warning: violent imagery!

On "Prototype This" last night, they were constructing a pizza delivery robot, and man, that pizza place they went to in SF was a serving up some fine food porn. That stuff was beautiful.

Busy day, busy weekends coming up. I love the holidays!

Good One, Christmas Party, Cookies, Gmail Calendar, Haircut, Wednesday

Happy Wednesday!

Picture of the day!

Katie posing in a holiday dress, Monday.

Got a haircut this morning, which I'm having to do more often to maintain my look. While my long hair got out of control sometimes, it was nice not needing a haircut for 2+ years.

Gmail finally added a calendar application to their labs, meaning I can see my upcoming events (from my Google Calendar) in Gmail. I'm very curious what took them so long - this has always seemed like a no-brainer to me.

Cookie production starts this week, mostly as testing. I need to find the recipe for the dusted chocolate cake cookie I made last year, that I described as a "Paula Deen recipe for a easy chocolate cookie that's nice and Christmassy". Otherwise, I'll have most of my standards and a few new ones. Let me know if you want in on the xmas cookie list.

Speaking of Christmas -- prospects for a holiday party seem slim, due mainly to scheduling. The 13th is my only free day (and The Girlfriend isn't available), so if I want to have one, I gotta throw one. Still considering it.

That's all for today - hope it's a good one!

Stay Awesome, Christmas Parties, Sleepy, Birthdays

Happy Tuesday! Happy birthday to my niece and nephew today!

Picture of the day!

Baby in a 36-can Pepsi box.

Tired. I keep staying up too late. Katie's on a funky sleep schedule lately with the holiday, so I'm not getting any time to myself may evenings until almost 11pm, meaning no bedtime until closer to 1. Hopefully with Thanksgiving over, she'll get more on schedule.

Trying to decide on Christmas parties and get-togethers. One group usually does a big event, but I haven't heard details yet. Many of my friends, however, aren't in that group, so it might be nice to have another event. That said, Every Saturday after this one is already full (as are two of the Sundays), making it a little rough to plan. We'll see what happens.

I'm outta things to write about today. Stay awesome, everyone!

Back to the Grind, Thanksgiving, Hancock, Quick, December

Happy Monday, and happy December!

Picture of the day!

My kitchen, right after we got the countertops installed and finished. It rarely gets this clean, mostly because we have a lot of appliances.

What a quick year! It's already December (and Christmas time! Yay!), and we'll have to start saying "2009" soon. First, though, we'll do cookies and parties.

Watched "Hancock" yesterday - I really liked it. There were a lot of complaints about a "twist", but if you couldn't see it coming, you weren't paying attention. I wish there was a little more explanation in that, but I'm a sucker for origin stories, especially regarding super heroes. Fun flick, though.

Thanksgiving was fun - saw most of the family, and didn't remove the entire tip of my finger with a vegetable peeler - just some of it. It's healing now. No food comas or overdoses, either. Rock on.

Back to the grind today, and a lot to do - have a great Monday!