Insignifica

Cheers, NYE, Phone Plans, Vegas, Noticed, End of the Year

Happy end of the year!

Picture of the day!

Katie and The Girlfriend up in Big Bear.

I looked up today and noticed that A) it's the last day of 2009, and B) I haven't posted in a week. Sorry about that. I thought it was implied that with Christmas and Vegas comes great vacations.

Vegas was good times, though losing as usual. I did win on my last day, though, and that put me in a better mood. The Signature was great as usual, Excalibur is once again a perfectly nice place to spend a night or two, and Aria/Citycenter look just like everything else new in Vegas. Someone in Vegas needs to find a way to surprise me.

I'm discovering that while Pay As You Go plans are cheaper, they're not much cheaper, and for various reasons, I'll actually SAVE money to go back on a two-year plan. Now I'm shopping around for a new cell phone. Suggestions?

New Years Eve is looking to be a low-key affair, featuring my immediate family and some delicious food. Somehow, that's ok. But I might have to throw an awesome party next year - just sayin'.

2009 was not a fantastic year, though it certainly not a bad year by any means - I guess that makes it pretty good, all things considered. Here's to 2010 being better on all accounts - even the good ones. Cheers!

Billions and Billions!

Billions and Billions!

Picture of the day!

Me!

Feelin' pretty damn good today - not only does my cold seem to have gotten better, but I turn 1,000,000,000 second old today! Being a math nerd and living in a base-10 world, this is super awesome to me. Some interestingness:

This is likely the only power-of-10 seconds birthday I'll ever know - My first six (1, 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000 and 100,000 seconds) all took place within about a day of my birth. 1 million seconds happened about 12 days later, and 10 million seconds a little over 3 months after that. My most recent power-of-10 seconds birthday, 100 million seconds, happened about 28 years ago, just after my third birthday. Now the numbers start to jump - my next one, 10 billion seconds, doesn't happen for 285 years - barring some pretty awesome advances in medical technology, I'm unlikely to see that one.

If you're interested in seeing some of the same info for your own birthday, this site can help.

While I'm likely done with powers-of-10 seconds birthdays after today, good health permitting I'll turn 2 billion seconds old on Saturday, August 31, 2041 at 5:43:20 PM (I'll be 63), and I'll turn 3 billion seconds old on Tuesday, May 9, 2073 at 7:30:00 PM - about a month after my 95th birthday.

The last time I did something like this was September 1, 2005, when I turned 10,000 days old. Barring the same advances in medical technology, that was the first and last power-of-10s days birthday I'll know as well - 100,000 days old is just under 274 years.

In terms of major units of time, this is my last Powers-of-10 anything until I turn 100 years old in 2078. I better celebrate now!

That's It, Christmas Cards, Dental Work, Cookies, Workin' For The Weekend, Chilly, Tuesday

Happy Tuesday!

Picture of the day!

Jesus at the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Here he is with a moon rock that looks like beef jerky.

Went for a walk this morning (my standard 1.4 mile route), and lemme tell ya - it's chilly out there. But it's clear and cloudless too, just as the first full day of winter should be.

It's quiet at work, really making me feel like I'm workin' for the weekend here - especially since this weekend is 6 days long and includes Christmas and a trip to Vegas.

I have a lot of cookies, if anyone wants some. Really. I shouldn't eat them all.

Dental work went well enough yesterday - I forget sometimes how annoying the crown buildup/prep process is. Hopefully, though, the next step is just placement, and then we're done with that tooth (and almost done with the whole mouth).

If you'd like a Christmas card from me, let me know! I've got a bunch just sitting here, stamps ready.

That's it for today. Have a great Tuesday!

Billion Seconds, Used Laptop, Holiday Baking Season

Happy Monday! Happy Solstice!

Picture of the day!

Self-portrit while cleaning the backyard. Notice the manliness.

Finally, the days will start getting longer as today is the Winter Solstice. We've still got a few months of generally short days, but at least we've got progress. Welcome Winter!

Great get-together yesterday for the purposes of holiday merriment and cookie exchanging. I don't think we've gotten together as a group in many, many months. I will say that having 6 different kids in the house at the same time is an adventure. Also good times celebrating with my friend Cynthia and her friends on Saturday, and trying out the Jones Soda "Tofurkey and Gravy" flavor. Gotta love a soda with salt as the second ingredient after water.

Yesterday's party also marks the end of this year's holiday baking season - whew. While I love it, it was starting to become somewhat of a chore. I've got a Christmas brunch to put on, and that's that.

I'm getting my mom a used laptop computer for Christmas - any recommendations for where to get one?

That's mostly it for today, but your advice needed: I hit a major milestone on Wednesday afternoon - I turn one billion seconds old. How should I celebrate?

Pre-Christmas Weekend, Excalibur, Fuck Chase, Baking, Strange Week, Friday

Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

A display of Mardi Gras masks at Pier 1. Click through to embiggen - the details are pretty awesome. I'm not sure how authentic they are, but they have handmade painted paper masks from Milan - they're a bit pricey, but beautiful.

Strange week - lots of late days and weird sleep and a minor illness. There's also about a billion and six things to do this weekend. Such is the holidays.

Did a bunch more baking last night - the brownie experiment was a total failure (the shallow pan was not conducive to brownie making - nothing stuck, though), but the pumpkin tassies with walnut topping are fantastic. I also had leftover parts that turned into a pumpkin pie, which I froze to cook tonight or tomorrow. I might be able to get my packages together tonight and out tomorrow - we'll see.

A few months ago, I was complaining about Chase banks not giving me the option to transfer balances to their accounts, effectively losing them my business (they'd be able to earn all sorts of interest from me). I slowly, over the past few weeks, started getting balance transfer options, but they weren't particularly good - no locked in rates, and only moderately good rates for the intro periods. Still, I wanted to consolidate, so I started researching. I have a $6,600 balance from another card I'd like to transfer over, just so everything's in one easy place. Not only are their rates bad, but Chase has no upper limit on the balance transfer fee, meaning the 3% to transfer would cost me an additional $200 - just so Chase can have the privilege of having my debt, and collecting my interest. You know what, Chase? Fuck you and the horse you rode in on.

Hmm. Excalibur just sent me an offer for 2 nights free, which I could likely use for my trip. I'm thinking of only staying one night at Signature (thereby getting all the nice perks), and doing the second night free. It'll save me quite a bit of money, which is always good.

I hope your pre-Christmas weekend are fantastic. Seeya Monday!

Have A Great Day, Vegas, Cookies, Atheists, Breakfasts, CNN, Thursday

Thursday! Happy birthday to Garrett today!

Picture of the day!

Fried mushrooms, one of my favorite foods that I almost never eat (or make). They're kind of a lot of work. I'm also working on my food photography skills, which are sorely lacking. You can compare them to this shot, which did use the flash. I prefer the one above.

So apparently the piece I filmed a few weeks for CNN is in rotation, though the only place I've seen it is at KCAL9's website. My 10 minute interview got boiled down to about 30 seconds, but such is life.

That breakfast burrito I just ate was only "mostly satisfying". I need to get some more good breakfast foods at home, really. Also, getting the kid off her "go to bed at 11:30pm" schedule would be nice too.

Good time with atheists last night - lots of good conversation. Come join us next month for our meeting!

Cookies didn't get made last night, but tonight they damn well better, that's all I'm sayin.

Still very excited about Vegas. Still hoping to meet up with more friends there.

That's it. Have a great day!

Lots To Do, Weird Illness, Cookies, Outlook, Birthdays

Happy Wednesday! Happy birthday to Jen and Noel today!

Picture of the day!

Jen, BBQing at our place.

My company has switched to Microsoft Outlook, starting today. While that might not seem like a big deal to most people, the fact that I don't need to use Lotus Notes anymore is reason to celebrate.

I'm gonna make some vegan brownies tonight, then hopefully get my xmas cookies out to the world. If you'd like some (and you need yours mailed), let me know - there's plenty to share!

Wacky weird illness is gone again, after deciding to make me tired and nauseous again last night. My experiences are exactly paralleling the girlfriend's, however, so I should be in the clear now.

Lots of little things to do this week, most of it holiday related. Time for a checklist. It's also time to get to work. Rock and roll!

Hope You're Feelin' Fine, Poor Keyboard, Cookies, Busy Day, Weird Flu, Hello

Oh, hello.

Picture of the day!

Katie rearranging furniture at Gary and Emily's house.

Sorry for the late update - I came down with an odd little flu yesterday, and by last night was sure I wouldn't be able to go into work. By this morning I was feeling good enough to work at home, and now (6pm), I'm feeling entirely normal. This one even had all the body aches and pains that go with the flu, and it's all gone now. The Girlfriend had the same thing last week, so I know it's the illness, not just me. Weird.

So, yeah, I worked at home today, and news decided to break all over Orange County, so I was super extra busy. I think I'm done. I hope I'm done!

Cookies are mostly made (for mailing), but I'm looking for a few things to round out my gift boxes. We'll see.

This poor keyboard - the K, L, C, B, N, and M keys are totally rubbed off, and S, O and D are about to go. The left shift is perfect, but the right shift is gone. The spacebar has a smooth patch where my thumbs hit it.

That's all for today, friends. Happy Tuesday, and hope you're feelin' fine!

2,500!

Happy Monday, and happy post 2,500!

Picture of the day!

Katie and the tree yesterday. As of this writing, this is the most current picture in my collection.

This is Insignifica post 2,500. I had more planned for this milestone post, but it's been a busy weekend with our household recovering from all sorts of malidies, so this one might not be epic. Either way, it's exciting to have posted this much.

My Stats

Insignifica has had 2,500 posts and 3,833 comments.

I started blogging 8 years, 11 months, 5 days ago (or 3,261 days).

My first 500 posts took 461 days. My next 500 took 632 days, and the next took 771 days (just over 2 years). Then I picked up the pace a bit, and took only 651 days to go from 1,500 to 2,000. Getting from 2,000 to 2,500 took longer, 750 days. In the past I posted many short updates every day, and now I post a very consistant five posts a week. The weird thing about this is that I must have posted more small updates between 1,500 and 2,000, since I was posting my regular daily posts then, too.

At my current pace, I'm projecting to hit 3,000 posts the first week of 2012. We'll have a party.

My past milestones

Post 2,000 hit on November 26, 2007, and I went all out with the recaps. Take a look for more info, and for a good general history of Insignifica.org.

Post 1,500 hit on Valentine's Day, February 14, 2006. Three days later, I started using "small" images for the Picture Of The Day (the size I use for most posts now), as opposed to the "thumbnail" size (which I'm using today, and used when this format started).

Post 1,000 hit on January 6, 2004. I posted a list of my favorite links and stories from my first 3 years.

Post 500 went unnoticed by me, as I wished my readers a happy Tax day.

Where to go from here

I still like the look and format of my blog, though it's more of a daily update than anything else. Twitter and Facebook take up more of my time in a given day, and combined probably equal the amount of content created. While both are going strong, this may not be the case in 2 years when I reach 3,000.

Comments and suggestions are welcome - thanks, as always, for reading!

Tree, 66,666, Vegas, ACLU, Busy, Thursday

It's Thursday!

Picture of the day!

A nice shot of the Grand Canyon and the sky above. Don't fence me in.

Busy couple of mornings here - I think everyone's trying to get stuff done before the holidays hit. So far it's not hard work, just a lot of little stuff.

Whenever I heard someone complain loudly about the ACLU, I become very suspect. I'm trying to find anything they've done that I object to.

Very excited to have some more friends coming to Vegas with me. I have high hopes for this trip.

I passed 66,666 miles in my car this week. That's like 100x more satanic power than before.

That's it for today. we're getting a tree tonight. I'm sure my three-year-old won't give it any trouble at all. Happy Thursday!

Lost It, Nice and Cold, Christmas Exchanges, Cookies, Dentistry, Wednesday

Happy Wednesday!

Picture of the day!

Katie and baby Benjamin.

Feelin' fine, and apologies for not posting yesterday. My 11am root canal appointment got pushed back to 1, as an emergency patient was having a lot of work done. I finally got into the chair at 1pm, and after a lot of work, got out at 4:30 (though I was only being worked on for 90 or so minutes). Turns out my teeth, while quick to suffer the perils the work I force them to do, are long and strong where it counts - in the roots. One root decided to hide, in fact, so the dentist had to dig around for it. If you'd like gory details (which I find fascinating), just let me know.

I'm not making cookies yet (though I will soon), but I'm making the doughs that work well out of the fridge. It seems like so much less work when you split the dough-making days from the baking days.

On the topic of Christmas, let me know if you'd like cookies, a card, a small present (homemade - likely cookies) or some other holiday exchange! I have to get all that stuff together, and quickly.

Nice and cold out this week - I often forget that mid-late December is southern California's coldest weather. I've been wearing shorts when possible.

There's more, but I've lost it. When I find it, I'll let you know. Have a great day!

2,500 Approaching, Christmas Stuff, Vegas, Stupid Tooth, Raining, Monday

Monday!

Picture of the day!

Bug in a meat-eating plant. Snapped by the Girlfriend. This is part of a bunch of photos I found this weekend that were never uploaded.

It's raining.

Stupid tooth is still hurting, but the wonder drug that is Vicodin solved many of my problems this weekend. Tomorrow we finish the root canal, and hopefully that'll be the end to this variety of the pain.

I'm finding myself REALLY looking forward to this Vegas trip, but more in a "ah, resort lifestyle" than "OMG Gambling!" kinda way. I'm spoiled by nice hotels, and I like it.

Years ago I bought a Christmas garland with lights (kinda looks like tree branches in a bit string), but could never come up with anything good to do with it. This year on Halloween we cleared off the shelf that runs along the eastern wall of the house, and since we haven't put anything back up there, I decided to use the garland, and it looks damned professional and all Xmasy. Good work, me!

I'll hit entry number 2,500 this week. Any suggestions/requests? Happy Monday!

Enjoy Life!, First Card, Holiday Party, Vegas Hotel, Stupid Tooth, Friday

Happy Friday!

Picture of the day!

Yours truly, playing with the new camera.

Stupid tooth hurts today - I may have been liberal with the biting and the chewing. Looking forward the sometime in early 2010 when this current work is done.

Vegas! I haven't done any hotel reservations yet - while I love the Signature, it's a little pricey (even though you get a lot for your money). I might go more "budget" this trip. Depends also where co-conspirators are staying. Off-strip sounds nice, though. Maybe the Rio, or one of the hotels south on the 15?

So, holiday party. It doesn't look like the old guard is doing anything, but I'll likely invite folks to a Sunday get-together at my place. No presents (well, maybe a small silly exchange), but lots of cookies.

Got my first holiday card of the year - from PETA. I kinda expected a few more by now.

I hope all is well for you and yours this first week of December. Enjoy life!

Have a Great Day, Stoked, Dentist Movies, Hosting Xmas, Daisy Duck, Thursday

It's Thursday! Good work!

Picture of the day!

Cranberry sauce, bubbling up good.

I'm developing a greater and greater dislike for Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's Daisy Duck. She's like that popular girl in school that's really only humoring you when you have a conversation. What's weird is that she's voiced by Tree MacNeill, who I love in many of her other roles. Damn you, Daisy.

I get to host The Girlfriend's family at my house Christmas morning this year - this is very exciting, if for no reason other than not having to haul a bunch of presents to another county.

I forgot to relay the coolest part about the dentist - they have a little computer and headphones, so I got to listen to The Princess Bride while being worked on. Good film for such things. I might bring in Back to the Future for next week.

I'm laughing out lout at this video - it's from the onion, but has NSFW language. Use your headphones.

That's all. Have a great day!

Catching Up, Benjamin, Today, Dental Double Vision, Wednesday!

I hope it's Wednesday!

Picture of the day!

Katie enjoys bread.

So - back to the grind. I missed out on a lot of the world yesterday - I had my root canal, which went pretty much as planned, except as I got up to leave, I noticed I had pretty severe double vision. It was like when your eyes are adjusting to changing position, but they never did. I thought It'd take a few minutes to wear off, but it ended up taking 5 hours -- no driving, and not much in the way of walking. Heina was kind enough to rescue me from my Wi-fi enabled prison in Irvine, and The Girlfriend drove me back later to get my car. Wow.

Today, more doctors appointments (these ones for Katie), then a quick trip to LA and back. Good times, but it's nice to be back, sitting at my desk.

Oh! Congrats to Gary and Emily on the birth of their son Benjamin, born Monday morning. Lookin' forward to meeting the little guy, and playing D&D again...

I'm sure there's more to catch up on, but I'm back to work. Have a fantastic Wednesday!