Post Title Goes Here
Well, first off, for anyone who's interested, here is a link to the NPR story about my workplace on All Things Considered. I was surprised to find a) that I'm actually IN it, and b) that I didn't sound like a complete idiot. I apparently talk awfully fast, though. Hmm. It doesn't sound fast when I say stuff in my brain... Anyway, it's an entertaining piece over and above my 30 seconds of fame, props to Neda Ulaby for doing a great story highlighting the fun stuff we work so hard on.
My usual sense of impending doom at New Year's hasn't hit yet, I have hopes that this year will be the one where the dawn on Jan 1 does not bring a wave of soul-searching moodiness in its wake. I've certainly managed to do a lot of housecleaning (both literal and metaphorical) in my week off; perhaps stumbling downstairs to a tidy kitchen is all I ever really needed to take the edge off the New Year's funk. I'll experiment with that. In the meantime, my next door neighbors have, for some reason, acquired a dog which appears to be part beagle, part bassethound, and all misery. He has been emitting rays of concentrated sadness with every BARROOOOOO he utters, and there have been a lot of them in the last 24 hours. I walked over to visit him on my way to the butcher yesterday afternoon, and he wagged and flopped over and generally behaved like a very sweet and normal dog; then as soon as I moved on, BARROOOOOOOOO.... Maybe he's just visiting. Please lord, let him be just visiting...
Sunday, December 21, 2008
A Full Year's Worth of Posts!
When I logged on blogger, it informed me that Cautionary Tale has 364 posts in its archive; so with this post, I now have produced a full year's worth of blogging goodness! Of course, it's taken me since 2002 to accomplish this, because I am a lazy bastard who only posts once a week at best... Honestly, I don't know how daily bloggers do it.
Anyway, I'm currently suffused with accomplishment because I managed to extract my window-mounted air conditioning unit from my window singlehandedly today, with only minor injury and property damage. Ordinarily this is a two-person job, involving one person standing outside on a ladder holding onto the thing, while the other person raises the window sash; then both heave it up over the sill and into the house. It's highly unpleasant, as the unit is generally filthy and has random sharp bits that cut into your hands when you're not expecting it. My friends have come to dread this process, to the point that if I invite Fathead over for dinner at any point during November, she says, "You want me to help you move your air conditioner, don't you? God DAMN it." So this year I kind of forgot about it... until today, when it got down to 7°F outside and frigid air was seeping in around the edges of the unit. I decided it was time to stop being such a wuss, and see if I could bring it in by myself--I had the impression that the bulk of the weight was resting on the windowsill, so it MIGHT not fall out the window the moment I raised the sash. (And if it did fall out the window, this would be an excellent excuse for buying a new window unit come next summer--this one really is a piece of crap, it came with the house, it weighs 4000 lbs, and its little fins are all mashed up. It's brought to you by Amana, which always makes me think of my childhood spent watching The Price Is Right--I don't even know what an "Amana Radar Range" actually is, but I think it came in Avocado, Mustard, and Burnt Orange.)
So as it turns out, I was wrong about the weight. I unscrewed the screws, raised the sash--and despite my claim of a cavalier attitude toward dropping my AC unit 8' to its death, I lunged forward yelling "NOOOOOO" and grabbed onto its edges just as it was heading out and downwards. And there I sat, contemplating my next move, as a cold wind rushed past me into the house and attracted the attention of the cats, who came over to investigate. This motivated me to solve the problem sooner rather than later, and after several false starts I managed to lift one corner of the thing up and onto the interior sill. Brief struggles with the couch (which was emphatically In My Way, but had nowhere to go) and then I got the thing inside, turned around, and set down in the corner of the living room. The sill is scraped up, and I punched a small but painful hole in my left middle finger on god-knows-what-sharp-bit, but I didn't throw my back out and I did get the storm window closed. This will all be worth it when I get my next gas bill.... I hope.
When I logged on blogger, it informed me that Cautionary Tale has 364 posts in its archive; so with this post, I now have produced a full year's worth of blogging goodness! Of course, it's taken me since 2002 to accomplish this, because I am a lazy bastard who only posts once a week at best... Honestly, I don't know how daily bloggers do it.
Anyway, I'm currently suffused with accomplishment because I managed to extract my window-mounted air conditioning unit from my window singlehandedly today, with only minor injury and property damage. Ordinarily this is a two-person job, involving one person standing outside on a ladder holding onto the thing, while the other person raises the window sash; then both heave it up over the sill and into the house. It's highly unpleasant, as the unit is generally filthy and has random sharp bits that cut into your hands when you're not expecting it. My friends have come to dread this process, to the point that if I invite Fathead over for dinner at any point during November, she says, "You want me to help you move your air conditioner, don't you? God DAMN it." So this year I kind of forgot about it... until today, when it got down to 7°F outside and frigid air was seeping in around the edges of the unit. I decided it was time to stop being such a wuss, and see if I could bring it in by myself--I had the impression that the bulk of the weight was resting on the windowsill, so it MIGHT not fall out the window the moment I raised the sash. (And if it did fall out the window, this would be an excellent excuse for buying a new window unit come next summer--this one really is a piece of crap, it came with the house, it weighs 4000 lbs, and its little fins are all mashed up. It's brought to you by Amana, which always makes me think of my childhood spent watching The Price Is Right--I don't even know what an "Amana Radar Range" actually is, but I think it came in Avocado, Mustard, and Burnt Orange.)
So as it turns out, I was wrong about the weight. I unscrewed the screws, raised the sash--and despite my claim of a cavalier attitude toward dropping my AC unit 8' to its death, I lunged forward yelling "NOOOOOO" and grabbed onto its edges just as it was heading out and downwards. And there I sat, contemplating my next move, as a cold wind rushed past me into the house and attracted the attention of the cats, who came over to investigate. This motivated me to solve the problem sooner rather than later, and after several false starts I managed to lift one corner of the thing up and onto the interior sill. Brief struggles with the couch (which was emphatically In My Way, but had nowhere to go) and then I got the thing inside, turned around, and set down in the corner of the living room. The sill is scraped up, and I punched a small but painful hole in my left middle finger on god-knows-what-sharp-bit, but I didn't throw my back out and I did get the storm window closed. This will all be worth it when I get my next gas bill.... I hope.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Tragedy in LEGO Town
My LEGO advent calendar is in full swing, and this year has been a little more surreal than last year's offerings. Today I got a LEGO Crime Scene Investigator--he's got a police uniform, a baseball cap, a camera and a slightly frowny face. What else could he be? So naturally I had to set up a crime for him to investigate... the pizza chef from December 9 has apparently met a gruesome end. Who did it? Was it the diver with the spear gun? The girl with the ice cream truck? The fireman? The turkey-leg seller? Only careful CSI work will solve this unspeakable crime.
My LEGO advent calendar is in full swing, and this year has been a little more surreal than last year's offerings. Today I got a LEGO Crime Scene Investigator--he's got a police uniform, a baseball cap, a camera and a slightly frowny face. What else could he be? So naturally I had to set up a crime for him to investigate... the pizza chef from December 9 has apparently met a gruesome end. Who did it? Was it the diver with the spear gun? The girl with the ice cream truck? The fireman? The turkey-leg seller? Only careful CSI work will solve this unspeakable crime.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Unexpected
I was minding my own business on holiday slide duty--which duty consists of yelling "YAYYYYYY!!!!" each time a pair of children arrives at the bottom of the ginormous slide, then quickly but politely booting them out of the way so they don't get kicked by the next pair down--when I got the word that I was needed back up in the exhibits department. A reporter from NPR was doing a segment on technology in museums and wanted to get audio of kids testing an activity prototype. As I was the only one with a hi-tech activity nearing completion, I got tapped. Thrilling for me, of course, since I'm a fan and supporter of all things NPR. (Though I fell off listening as much during the late Bush administration; if I left my alarm clock on Morning Edition during the last couple years I was often then too depressed to get out of bed. But I'm back on track now, and I love going through the online archives for cool stuff that I've missed on TAL and All Things. Anyway.) Turned out I need not have left off "YAAAAYYYYY" duty, as it didn't need to be recorded then and there--and as it happened, the lead time getting the program installed on a laptop and hooked to the giant touchscreen monitor we use for testing was pretty substantial. It was ready about 5 minutes before we needed it. Yeesh.
So said NPR reporter got some entertaining audio of me propelling kids through playing a crude prototype of the catapult game. I could not have asked for better test groups; I got some ragingly excited 9 year olds, both girls and boys. They loved it, and one even figured out what the activity was FOR (that's the brass ring we strive for, of course.) Not bad considering that it's pretty emphatically Not Done Yet. She also captured a good deal of me babbling about technology in museums and why it's cool in a children's museum context particularly. I have no idea what I said, but I sure hope it sounded smart...
I was minding my own business on holiday slide duty--which duty consists of yelling "YAYYYYYY!!!!" each time a pair of children arrives at the bottom of the ginormous slide, then quickly but politely booting them out of the way so they don't get kicked by the next pair down--when I got the word that I was needed back up in the exhibits department. A reporter from NPR was doing a segment on technology in museums and wanted to get audio of kids testing an activity prototype. As I was the only one with a hi-tech activity nearing completion, I got tapped. Thrilling for me, of course, since I'm a fan and supporter of all things NPR. (Though I fell off listening as much during the late Bush administration; if I left my alarm clock on Morning Edition during the last couple years I was often then too depressed to get out of bed. But I'm back on track now, and I love going through the online archives for cool stuff that I've missed on TAL and All Things. Anyway.) Turned out I need not have left off "YAAAAYYYYY" duty, as it didn't need to be recorded then and there--and as it happened, the lead time getting the program installed on a laptop and hooked to the giant touchscreen monitor we use for testing was pretty substantial. It was ready about 5 minutes before we needed it. Yeesh.
So said NPR reporter got some entertaining audio of me propelling kids through playing a crude prototype of the catapult game. I could not have asked for better test groups; I got some ragingly excited 9 year olds, both girls and boys. They loved it, and one even figured out what the activity was FOR (that's the brass ring we strive for, of course.) Not bad considering that it's pretty emphatically Not Done Yet. She also captured a good deal of me babbling about technology in museums and why it's cool in a children's museum context particularly. I have no idea what I said, but I sure hope it sounded smart...
Sunday, November 30, 2008
First Snow
As it should be, the first snow of the year is after Thanksgiving, I woke up this morning to a dusting of fluff outside. It had shifted to rain by the time I took the coffee grounds out to the compost heap, but now it seems to be snow again--giant wet flakes, and lots of them. Right on.
I seem to have forgotten about Thanksgiving haiku again this year. Or rather, I thought of it, but was too caught up in fending off an oncoming cold and making pies to do anything about it. (Making pies and having a cold is a bad combo, true. But apparently the cold was only a proto-cold, and I've squashed it with daily overdoses of Emergen-C (black cherry flavor for Heart Health.) As there's a ton of B vitamins in the stuff, it's also doing a fair amount to hold back the tide of annual holiday depression, which I appreciate.) Anyway, if anyone has a haiku to share, feel free!
Gaming seems to be taking up a good deal more of my brain space than usual lately--which is honestly fine by me, I miss it when it DOESN'T take up brain space, especially now that I'm not In The Industry anymore. The thing about having your hobby also be your career for many years is that you start to take it a bit for granted, it eats up all aspects of your life without your really noticing--or minding, even if you did notice. But now I Make Time for it, and think about it in a more structured way I suppose... and I wonder if I'm coming up with a better product now, as it were. I suppose you'd have to ask my players. At any rate, I've got a lovely Sunday afternoon stretching before me with icky weather (it's back to rain now as I write this) and nothing to do but housework and answering the Call of Cthulhu... I'll take it.
As it should be, the first snow of the year is after Thanksgiving, I woke up this morning to a dusting of fluff outside. It had shifted to rain by the time I took the coffee grounds out to the compost heap, but now it seems to be snow again--giant wet flakes, and lots of them. Right on.
I seem to have forgotten about Thanksgiving haiku again this year. Or rather, I thought of it, but was too caught up in fending off an oncoming cold and making pies to do anything about it. (Making pies and having a cold is a bad combo, true. But apparently the cold was only a proto-cold, and I've squashed it with daily overdoses of Emergen-C (black cherry flavor for Heart Health.) As there's a ton of B vitamins in the stuff, it's also doing a fair amount to hold back the tide of annual holiday depression, which I appreciate.) Anyway, if anyone has a haiku to share, feel free!
Gaming seems to be taking up a good deal more of my brain space than usual lately--which is honestly fine by me, I miss it when it DOESN'T take up brain space, especially now that I'm not In The Industry anymore. The thing about having your hobby also be your career for many years is that you start to take it a bit for granted, it eats up all aspects of your life without your really noticing--or minding, even if you did notice. But now I Make Time for it, and think about it in a more structured way I suppose... and I wonder if I'm coming up with a better product now, as it were. I suppose you'd have to ask my players. At any rate, I've got a lovely Sunday afternoon stretching before me with icky weather (it's back to rain now as I write this) and nothing to do but housework and answering the Call of Cthulhu... I'll take it.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Time Traveling Frogs
Apparently, if you start a post on Sunday, but then finish and post it on Tuesday with the word "Tuesday" in the headline, Blogger will timewarp it back to having a Sunday date stamp, regardless. They're frogs from the fuuuuuuture!!!!
At any rate, today Sunday is Sunday, and this being the only day likely to be both dry and above 40 degrees out before winter really sets in, I spent it frantically doing all the yardwork tasks I'd failed to do earlier. Mowed my leaves. (Thank you, mulching mower! I say it every year...) Cleaned my gutters. Cleared the leaves off the driveway. Drained and put away the hoses. Cleaned out my community garden plot. Put away the chiminea--I'm not sure I've ever remembered to do that before the first snow. I was a machine of efficency.
I also managed to strain a quad muscle climbing back down off the roof of the garage, hurt my back in some unspecified way, and smashed my face straight into the edge of an open door while walking through my darkened house last night. Even machines have their poorly oiled days...
Apparently, if you start a post on Sunday, but then finish and post it on Tuesday with the word "Tuesday" in the headline, Blogger will timewarp it back to having a Sunday date stamp, regardless. They're frogs from the fuuuuuuture!!!!
At any rate, today Sunday is Sunday, and this being the only day likely to be both dry and above 40 degrees out before winter really sets in, I spent it frantically doing all the yardwork tasks I'd failed to do earlier. Mowed my leaves. (Thank you, mulching mower! I say it every year...) Cleaned my gutters. Cleared the leaves off the driveway. Drained and put away the hoses. Cleaned out my community garden plot. Put away the chiminea--I'm not sure I've ever remembered to do that before the first snow. I was a machine of efficency.
I also managed to strain a quad muscle climbing back down off the roof of the garage, hurt my back in some unspecified way, and smashed my face straight into the edge of an open door while walking through my darkened house last night. Even machines have their poorly oiled days...
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Tuesday FrogBlogging
Meet the newest members of my ever-growing menagerie. After two years of research and thinking it over, I've finally set up a dart frog terrarium with not one, but two Dendrobates Leucomelas in residence. Before you ask, NO. They are not poisonous when in captivity. In the wild they eat ants, which have formic acid in their venom; the formic acid is metabolized by the frogs into the neurotoxin secretion that dart frogs are famous for. No ants = no poison. I hope.
Meet the newest members of my ever-growing menagerie. After two years of research and thinking it over, I've finally set up a dart frog terrarium with not one, but two Dendrobates Leucomelas in residence. Before you ask, NO. They are not poisonous when in captivity. In the wild they eat ants, which have formic acid in their venom; the formic acid is metabolized by the frogs into the neurotoxin secretion that dart frogs are famous for. No ants = no poison. I hope.
Hell Yes, I Cried.
Ok, just to get it on the record even though I have utterly failed to blog since the election--yes. Yes, I cried during the victory speech. I was OK til he got to talking about Lincoln and then I lost it--my companion on the couch had already had the waterworks on for a while at that point, so I was in good company. And thanks Elee and Erik for hosting me on such a glorious night, by the way! 8 years of feeling unrepresented by my government are finally over; Obama's not perfect, but his themes of change and hope really do resonate with me. I've needed some of both for quite a while now.
And Indiana sure does look beautiful in blue. :)
Ok, just to get it on the record even though I have utterly failed to blog since the election--yes. Yes, I cried during the victory speech. I was OK til he got to talking about Lincoln and then I lost it--my companion on the couch had already had the waterworks on for a while at that point, so I was in good company. And thanks Elee and Erik for hosting me on such a glorious night, by the way! 8 years of feeling unrepresented by my government are finally over; Obama's not perfect, but his themes of change and hope really do resonate with me. I've needed some of both for quite a while now.
And Indiana sure does look beautiful in blue. :)
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Wooooo! Way to Fire Up the Base!!!
Breaking news--we've just received word that John McCain, who hasn't seen fit to visit our fair state since July, who didn't even bother spending a single advertising dollar here (ads were eventually put up by the Indiana GOP) and who apparently assumed that our voter base is made up of mindless automatons, will be holding a campaign rally here in Indianapolis on Monday! Monday, the day before the election! And he'll be staging it at....wait, this can't be right.... at the AIRPORT?
Yes, it's true. As if McCain's general lack of respect for his Hoosier supporters could not have been more thorough, he is now sending them the message that just as he couldn't be bothered earlier in the campaign to spend some money or time in our state, he now can't be bothered to actually leave the airport terminal to stage his rally. "Hi Indiana, vote for me, if you haven't already voted for that terrorist--oh, whoa, is that the time? Sorry, I've got to head out, we left the engine running on the Straight Talk Jet!" Unreal. What's more, our airport is undergoing major renovations at the moment. While they're nearly done and I'm sure McCain won't be speaking amid piles of acoustical tile and bags of cement, it's significant that the approach to our airport from the highway has changed dramatically in the last 2 months, along with the parking situation. There may be serious wayfinding issues even for diehard McCain fans who genuinely want to hear the man speak--and a low turnout would be an unfortunate headline for our paper on Tuesday morning, wouldn't it? Local polls show Obama by .7%--McCain can't afford a screwup here. And yet, he's trying so hard to have one.
Breaking news--we've just received word that John McCain, who hasn't seen fit to visit our fair state since July, who didn't even bother spending a single advertising dollar here (ads were eventually put up by the Indiana GOP) and who apparently assumed that our voter base is made up of mindless automatons, will be holding a campaign rally here in Indianapolis on Monday! Monday, the day before the election! And he'll be staging it at....wait, this can't be right.... at the AIRPORT?
Yes, it's true. As if McCain's general lack of respect for his Hoosier supporters could not have been more thorough, he is now sending them the message that just as he couldn't be bothered earlier in the campaign to spend some money or time in our state, he now can't be bothered to actually leave the airport terminal to stage his rally. "Hi Indiana, vote for me, if you haven't already voted for that terrorist--oh, whoa, is that the time? Sorry, I've got to head out, we left the engine running on the Straight Talk Jet!" Unreal. What's more, our airport is undergoing major renovations at the moment. While they're nearly done and I'm sure McCain won't be speaking amid piles of acoustical tile and bags of cement, it's significant that the approach to our airport from the highway has changed dramatically in the last 2 months, along with the parking situation. There may be serious wayfinding issues even for diehard McCain fans who genuinely want to hear the man speak--and a low turnout would be an unfortunate headline for our paper on Tuesday morning, wouldn't it? Local polls show Obama by .7%--McCain can't afford a screwup here. And yet, he's trying so hard to have one.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Mutter Mutter Mütter...
The sad thing about the Mütter Museum is that they do not allow photography. So while I desperately wanted to bring you photos of heads in jars, lifelike wax models of various skin diseases, and the six-foot colon, I am unable to supply them except via this link. Instead I can only tell you that their motto ("Disturbingly Informative") is about as good as a motto gets. I'd been before, of course, but Coworker had not; so I got quite a kick out of her reactions to various and sundry awfulnesses as we worked our way around the displays. In the museum world there is always an open, neverending debate on the ethical issues surrounding the display of human remains in Natural History museums. But medical museums can neatly sidestep this issue--they're doing it for SCIENCE, and science trumps ethics. Of course, many of the specimens at the Mutter were donated by their...er...owners, but many more were donated by 19th century doctors who just...kept....items... after autopsies and the like. They're now enshrined in the College of Physicians (home of the Mutter, and the country's oldest medical professional organization) for the education and edification of both medical professionals and the public at large. I'm all for this, as I find it all pretty damn fascinating.
This fascination with the unseemly spilled over into a book purchase at the conference--not of something directly related to work, but a book called The Ghost Map, which is about how a map of the last great outbreak of cholera in London (in 1854) paved the way both for epidemiologists to understand how diseases are spread in an urban environment, and for the development of infrastrutures that make modern cities possible. Before the advent of water treatment and planned sewers, it was simply not possible for a city as large as London to continue growing beyond a certain point. Cool stuff, if you're a big picture sort of person--and still a hell of a story even if you're not.
And in other news, one of my cats smacked me in the face today and cut my lip open. I'm not sure if there's some kind of hotline I can call for this. Domestic abuse is a terrible thing; but abuse BY domestic animals is a tragedy not often discussed in public. Mostly because it makes their owners look like asses.
The sad thing about the Mütter Museum is that they do not allow photography. So while I desperately wanted to bring you photos of heads in jars, lifelike wax models of various skin diseases, and the six-foot colon, I am unable to supply them except via this link. Instead I can only tell you that their motto ("Disturbingly Informative") is about as good as a motto gets. I'd been before, of course, but Coworker had not; so I got quite a kick out of her reactions to various and sundry awfulnesses as we worked our way around the displays. In the museum world there is always an open, neverending debate on the ethical issues surrounding the display of human remains in Natural History museums. But medical museums can neatly sidestep this issue--they're doing it for SCIENCE, and science trumps ethics. Of course, many of the specimens at the Mutter were donated by their...er...owners, but many more were donated by 19th century doctors who just...kept....items... after autopsies and the like. They're now enshrined in the College of Physicians (home of the Mutter, and the country's oldest medical professional organization) for the education and edification of both medical professionals and the public at large. I'm all for this, as I find it all pretty damn fascinating.
This fascination with the unseemly spilled over into a book purchase at the conference--not of something directly related to work, but a book called The Ghost Map, which is about how a map of the last great outbreak of cholera in London (in 1854) paved the way both for epidemiologists to understand how diseases are spread in an urban environment, and for the development of infrastrutures that make modern cities possible. Before the advent of water treatment and planned sewers, it was simply not possible for a city as large as London to continue growing beyond a certain point. Cool stuff, if you're a big picture sort of person--and still a hell of a story even if you're not.
And in other news, one of my cats smacked me in the face today and cut my lip open. I'm not sure if there's some kind of hotline I can call for this. Domestic abuse is a terrible thing; but abuse BY domestic animals is a tragedy not often discussed in public. Mostly because it makes their owners look like asses.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
We Interrupt This Broadcast...
I was going to do another Philly blog entry today complete with drama, excitement, and a review of the Mutter Museum (one of my all-time favorite museums ever) but instead I am forced to pre-empt myself to say--Sarah Palin on SNL? SERIOUSLY? Holy crap, could she have been LESS funny??? I admit to having very, verrry little sympathy for this woman on nearly all fronts. And I have been loving Tina Fey (not literally, though I certainly would jump at the opportunity.) But could they have MAYBE written something a little bit better than what we got? The intro bit was not horrible but not hilarious; her turn on SNL News was just sad. Her sitting there, looking uncomfortable and completely out of her element, not even trying to participate in the joke at her expense--why did she even want to come on the show, if she wasn't inclined to show us a willingness to poke a little fun at herself? John McCain has hosted a couple times, and I hear he's been hilarious--say what you like about the man, he's got a sharp sense of humor. But this was just further proof that Palin is truly unfunny both politically AND personally. I didn't think it was possible for me to be more disappointed in McCain's choice of running mate, but apparently I was wrong. Siiiiiigh.
I was going to do another Philly blog entry today complete with drama, excitement, and a review of the Mutter Museum (one of my all-time favorite museums ever) but instead I am forced to pre-empt myself to say--Sarah Palin on SNL? SERIOUSLY? Holy crap, could she have been LESS funny??? I admit to having very, verrry little sympathy for this woman on nearly all fronts. And I have been loving Tina Fey (not literally, though I certainly would jump at the opportunity.) But could they have MAYBE written something a little bit better than what we got? The intro bit was not horrible but not hilarious; her turn on SNL News was just sad. Her sitting there, looking uncomfortable and completely out of her element, not even trying to participate in the joke at her expense--why did she even want to come on the show, if she wasn't inclined to show us a willingness to poke a little fun at herself? John McCain has hosted a couple times, and I hear he's been hilarious--say what you like about the man, he's got a sharp sense of humor. But this was just further proof that Palin is truly unfunny both politically AND personally. I didn't think it was possible for me to be more disappointed in McCain's choice of running mate, but apparently I was wrong. Siiiiiigh.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Looking for Socks in Philadelphia
I realize that it's traditional to pack a full wardrobe, including socks, when one goes traveling for work. But I, like the McCain/Palin team, have always been a "maverick." Also like McCain/Palin, I am "more of the same damn thing" in that I never remember to think about whether I have clean socks or not until it's far too late to do another load of laundry before heading to the airport. And so it was that I found myself wandering the streets of Philadelphia looking for socks yesterday morning.
Being from a fairly spread-out midwestern city, it always seems incongruous to me to find Big Box stores nested in on downtown streets among the skyscrapers and pizza joints. Those kinds of businesses are by definition freestanding stores amid acres of the fast food jungle on the perimeter of town. So it was just a tad startling to walk 2 blocks from our hotel and go--as my roommate succinctly put it--"Shut UP! Is that a K-MART??" 15 minutes later my mission was fulfilled. (2 black, 1 beige, and one lovely pair of argyles.) Now I am more like Obama, having committed to a change of socks I can believe in.
I realize that it's traditional to pack a full wardrobe, including socks, when one goes traveling for work. But I, like the McCain/Palin team, have always been a "maverick." Also like McCain/Palin, I am "more of the same damn thing" in that I never remember to think about whether I have clean socks or not until it's far too late to do another load of laundry before heading to the airport. And so it was that I found myself wandering the streets of Philadelphia looking for socks yesterday morning.
Being from a fairly spread-out midwestern city, it always seems incongruous to me to find Big Box stores nested in on downtown streets among the skyscrapers and pizza joints. Those kinds of businesses are by definition freestanding stores amid acres of the fast food jungle on the perimeter of town. So it was just a tad startling to walk 2 blocks from our hotel and go--as my roommate succinctly put it--"Shut UP! Is that a K-MART??" 15 minutes later my mission was fulfilled. (2 black, 1 beige, and one lovely pair of argyles.) Now I am more like Obama, having committed to a change of socks I can believe in.
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Obamarama
Yesterday, Barack Obama came to town for a rally at the State Fairgrounds. This event was historic for a number of reasons. First, of course, is because he's the first black man to run for president, and the fact that he's here at all is amazing considering that as recently as 45 years ago people got murdered for trying to get black folks registered to vote. Secondly, it's amazing that a Democratic candidate for president is treating Indiana like it matters. Indiana has always had a strong democratic base--we've had democratic governors, senators, reps and city mayors on a regular basis in my lifetime. Yet in presidential elections we're always treated as a throwaway state--no one spends money here. The republicans assume we're in the bag, and the democrats have bigger fish to fry than our piddly 11 electoral votes. But not this year... This year, Obama's campaign put us on the hit list, along with the Carolinas and Missouri, as a state he could flip; and damned if he might not just do it. Polls here show him ahead by a couple % points, and allowing for margin of error it looks like he's at least in a dead heat with McCain--who by the way has not spent a DIME on advertising in this state until just this last week.
So this was the first chance in my life I've had to go to hear a presidential candidate speak in person--and it's someone who I support and feel good about voting for. Therefore, when the suggestion was made that a few of us hook off work and go, well... didn't have to ask me twice! The rally was at 12:15, doors at 10, so five of us piled into a car at 10 and headed over there, not completely sure we'd get seats.
The line. The line was unbefuckinglievable. A huge column of people, all moving briskly along thanks to some smooth organization on the part of volunteers, which snaked at least a half mile through the fairgrounds when we got there at 10:20 or so. We trotted along, trying to find the back of the line, behind an elderly woman who kept shouting out "OBAMA FOR MAMA! YEAH! I'M MAMA FOR OBAMA!" Finally, at a large gap in the line somewhere near the Home and Family Arts building, we jumped in, turned around and started walking back toward the front. (We lost the Obama Mama at this point.) We had white tickets for seats in the grandstand, which was fine--grandstand holds about 15,000 people so we figured we were probably OK. Then, when we were still a good ways from the gates, a volunteer walking down the line asked me, "Are you in a group?" I said, yeah, we're all together. She said, "Well, how many are you? Five? OK--" and she handed me 5 bright yellow tickets. "Do you guys want to be on the stage behind Obama? Just take these tickets, go right up to that tent there and they'll let you in."
!!!
Twenty mintues later, we were seated in the bleachers on the stage behind the podium, looking at a sea of Obama supporters. The official tally was apparently 21,000 people--I didnt' think the grandstand held that many, and one of the wings wasn't totally full. But still--15,000 or 21,000, either way that's the biggest event I've ever been at, possibly barring an Eric Clapton concert in the early 1990's. It was incredible, even before the speeches started. Since we were toward the back of the bleachers, we got a good view of the snipers setting up position, the arrival of the motorcade, and Obama's eventual entrance--got a nice little film of him walking right past not 10 feet from me before coming on stage, shaking some hands and starting his speech. Which was a great speech--it was both sobering and inspiring. At last, an intellectual running for president! Who'd have thought it. God, I hope he wins. I want him to win Indiana; but even if he doesn't, lord, let him win the shootin' match.
Yesterday, Barack Obama came to town for a rally at the State Fairgrounds. This event was historic for a number of reasons. First, of course, is because he's the first black man to run for president, and the fact that he's here at all is amazing considering that as recently as 45 years ago people got murdered for trying to get black folks registered to vote. Secondly, it's amazing that a Democratic candidate for president is treating Indiana like it matters. Indiana has always had a strong democratic base--we've had democratic governors, senators, reps and city mayors on a regular basis in my lifetime. Yet in presidential elections we're always treated as a throwaway state--no one spends money here. The republicans assume we're in the bag, and the democrats have bigger fish to fry than our piddly 11 electoral votes. But not this year... This year, Obama's campaign put us on the hit list, along with the Carolinas and Missouri, as a state he could flip; and damned if he might not just do it. Polls here show him ahead by a couple % points, and allowing for margin of error it looks like he's at least in a dead heat with McCain--who by the way has not spent a DIME on advertising in this state until just this last week.
So this was the first chance in my life I've had to go to hear a presidential candidate speak in person--and it's someone who I support and feel good about voting for. Therefore, when the suggestion was made that a few of us hook off work and go, well... didn't have to ask me twice! The rally was at 12:15, doors at 10, so five of us piled into a car at 10 and headed over there, not completely sure we'd get seats.
The line. The line was unbefuckinglievable. A huge column of people, all moving briskly along thanks to some smooth organization on the part of volunteers, which snaked at least a half mile through the fairgrounds when we got there at 10:20 or so. We trotted along, trying to find the back of the line, behind an elderly woman who kept shouting out "OBAMA FOR MAMA! YEAH! I'M MAMA FOR OBAMA!" Finally, at a large gap in the line somewhere near the Home and Family Arts building, we jumped in, turned around and started walking back toward the front. (We lost the Obama Mama at this point.) We had white tickets for seats in the grandstand, which was fine--grandstand holds about 15,000 people so we figured we were probably OK. Then, when we were still a good ways from the gates, a volunteer walking down the line asked me, "Are you in a group?" I said, yeah, we're all together. She said, "Well, how many are you? Five? OK--" and she handed me 5 bright yellow tickets. "Do you guys want to be on the stage behind Obama? Just take these tickets, go right up to that tent there and they'll let you in."
!!!
Twenty mintues later, we were seated in the bleachers on the stage behind the podium, looking at a sea of Obama supporters. The official tally was apparently 21,000 people--I didnt' think the grandstand held that many, and one of the wings wasn't totally full. But still--15,000 or 21,000, either way that's the biggest event I've ever been at, possibly barring an Eric Clapton concert in the early 1990's. It was incredible, even before the speeches started. Since we were toward the back of the bleachers, we got a good view of the snipers setting up position, the arrival of the motorcade, and Obama's eventual entrance--got a nice little film of him walking right past not 10 feet from me before coming on stage, shaking some hands and starting his speech. Which was a great speech--it was both sobering and inspiring. At last, an intellectual running for president! Who'd have thought it. God, I hope he wins. I want him to win Indiana; but even if he doesn't, lord, let him win the shootin' match.
Friday, October 03, 2008
Crap.
About a month ago I added new fish to my tank. I'd had 2 old tetras (one shabby, one brilliant-looking) and so added about 8 other tetras to keep them company.
Two weeks ago, I lost the shabby looking tetra--not surprising, he'd been shabby for a while.
One week ago, I noticed 2 more fish were dead. I looked closely and realized that they and all my remaining fish looked like this, in varying degrees. Apparently one of the new fish brought a gift with it--ichthyophthirius, a fairly virulent parasite. Within days, all but two of my fish were dead. I bought a treatment that supposedly will take care of it, but the treatment also kills snails; since I have 2 snails who I like, and about 40 that I hate, I figured this might be a mixed blessing, and evac-ed the chocolate snails to a hospital tank before putting in the treatment. Too late for one of the remaining fish... but the other one seems relatively healthy now, 48 hours after the treatment. So I now have ONE fish. And a tank that may or may not still be infested with free-swimming parasites. And 40 snails who appear to be completely resistant to Mardel Coppersafe. God DAMN it.
About a month ago I added new fish to my tank. I'd had 2 old tetras (one shabby, one brilliant-looking) and so added about 8 other tetras to keep them company.
Two weeks ago, I lost the shabby looking tetra--not surprising, he'd been shabby for a while.
One week ago, I noticed 2 more fish were dead. I looked closely and realized that they and all my remaining fish looked like this, in varying degrees. Apparently one of the new fish brought a gift with it--ichthyophthirius, a fairly virulent parasite. Within days, all but two of my fish were dead. I bought a treatment that supposedly will take care of it, but the treatment also kills snails; since I have 2 snails who I like, and about 40 that I hate, I figured this might be a mixed blessing, and evac-ed the chocolate snails to a hospital tank before putting in the treatment. Too late for one of the remaining fish... but the other one seems relatively healthy now, 48 hours after the treatment. So I now have ONE fish. And a tank that may or may not still be infested with free-swimming parasites. And 40 snails who appear to be completely resistant to Mardel Coppersafe. God DAMN it.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
GAAAA THERE IS A HUGE SPIDER IN MY MAILBOX
At the moment, he and I have reached a kind of detente; our agreement involves my gently poking him with a stick, and him angrily waving his pedipalps while ceding the high ground to me long enough for me to grab the mail. However, I'm a little worried. He's awfully big... there's nothing to say he won't start opening my mail and signing for packages while he's in there.
At the moment, he and I have reached a kind of detente; our agreement involves my gently poking him with a stick, and him angrily waving his pedipalps while ceding the high ground to me long enough for me to grab the mail. However, I'm a little worried. He's awfully big... there's nothing to say he won't start opening my mail and signing for packages while he's in there.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
The Good, the Bad, and the Un-be-freakin-lievable
Robin McKinley's got a new novel out; I've read it, it's lovely, and if you like fantasy/fairy tales/YA fiction and AREN'T reading Robin's books, then what the hell's wrong with ya? Give 'em a try! I've been a fan of her stuff since college--LaraB, didn't we have a copy of The Blue Sword kicking around Ottoman Central at one time? I know it wasn't the pizza book, at least--and she is notable, among other things, for having heroic female characters that Don't Suck. She's got a couple adult novels as well--my favorite is her retelling of the Robin Hood story, and she's also got a good vampire novel. Anyway, Robin's a friend and a talented author to boot, and so I figured a little shameless plugging was not out of place here.
Since into each life some rain must fall, I should also tell you that I finally got around to watching the MST3K version of one of the most godawful B-movies it has ever been my wretched experience to watch: Teenagers from Outer Space (1959.) Sweet mother of god, what a horrible film. Even Joel and the gang could not make watching this movie a pleasurable experience for me--unlike The Creeping Terror, which is still in the top eschelon of worst films ever formally released. I could laugh at Creeping Terror. But this.... oh god. What do you get when you combine actors so wooden you could carve your name in them, an alien teen named "Derek" whose space uniform is obviously a jumpsuit with electrical tape piping, a "disintegrator ray" which is obviously a toy gun purchased for 25 cents from the Woolworth's up the street from the studio, and a monster which only appears in the final 5 minutes of the film and is, I shit you not, created by waving a live lobster in front of a spotlight and filming its shadow menacing the townspeople? You get CRAP, that's what you get. Further proof that the creationists were right and God really IS dead in our secular society.
But for sheer "AUGH MY BRAIN" value this week, I present you with the short to end all shorts: Mr. B Natural. Here's part 1, and here's Part 2. It's like watching the Death of Music Itself. If listening to "Mister" B-Natural chirp on and on doesn't make you want to bludgeon yourself repeatedly with a sousaphone, then you're just not a music lover.
Robin McKinley's got a new novel out; I've read it, it's lovely, and if you like fantasy/fairy tales/YA fiction and AREN'T reading Robin's books, then what the hell's wrong with ya? Give 'em a try! I've been a fan of her stuff since college--LaraB, didn't we have a copy of The Blue Sword kicking around Ottoman Central at one time? I know it wasn't the pizza book, at least--and she is notable, among other things, for having heroic female characters that Don't Suck. She's got a couple adult novels as well--my favorite is her retelling of the Robin Hood story, and she's also got a good vampire novel. Anyway, Robin's a friend and a talented author to boot, and so I figured a little shameless plugging was not out of place here.
Since into each life some rain must fall, I should also tell you that I finally got around to watching the MST3K version of one of the most godawful B-movies it has ever been my wretched experience to watch: Teenagers from Outer Space (1959.) Sweet mother of god, what a horrible film. Even Joel and the gang could not make watching this movie a pleasurable experience for me--unlike The Creeping Terror, which is still in the top eschelon of worst films ever formally released. I could laugh at Creeping Terror. But this.... oh god. What do you get when you combine actors so wooden you could carve your name in them, an alien teen named "Derek" whose space uniform is obviously a jumpsuit with electrical tape piping, a "disintegrator ray" which is obviously a toy gun purchased for 25 cents from the Woolworth's up the street from the studio, and a monster which only appears in the final 5 minutes of the film and is, I shit you not, created by waving a live lobster in front of a spotlight and filming its shadow menacing the townspeople? You get CRAP, that's what you get. Further proof that the creationists were right and God really IS dead in our secular society.
But for sheer "AUGH MY BRAIN" value this week, I present you with the short to end all shorts: Mr. B Natural. Here's part 1, and here's Part 2. It's like watching the Death of Music Itself. If listening to "Mister" B-Natural chirp on and on doesn't make you want to bludgeon yourself repeatedly with a sousaphone, then you're just not a music lover.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
And the Lord said, Let There Be Photos.
And there were photos. And some of them were even good.
Click here to see the Creation Museum Photoset!
And there were photos. And some of them were even good.
Click here to see the Creation Museum Photoset!
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Remember Remember the 8th of September
Last Monday marked the realization of a long-held dream for me. I went to the Newport Aquarium, which was every bit as fabulous as I’d been led to believe. I petted the sharks; I watched the raysharks sail overhead in their immersive reef tank environment (and holy shit is that cool); I saw otters, frogs, alligators, turtles, jellyfish, and other things that make me marvel at the amazing beauty and diversity of our natural world. And then… Then we went to the Creation Museum.
I consider myself a religious person. I consider myself a pretty open-minded person generally. But I just cannot wrap my head around biblical literalism. So walking into the Creation Museum, I was prepared for a WTF experience of (dare I say) Biblical Proportions. And I was not disappointed!
The Creation Museum, if you've not encountered it before, is a museum-cum-entertainment facility run by and directed at the followers of a ministry called Answers in Genesis, whose basic premise is that the book of Genesis (not to mention the rest of the bible) must be taken literally, word for word--and therefore, the earth must only be about 6000 years old. With that premise, they then go on to explain fossils, dinosaur/dragon conflation, diversity of species, and oh yes, the Fall of Man and the evils of the ACLU. To be fair, let me start by saying that the museum itself is a beautiful facility, some gorgeous design concepts, and that everyone who works there was the soul of niceness--no proselytizing or pushyness, they really did just kind of leave you to it. As a museum professional, I have to say I was a little disappointed at the complete lack of interactivity--there were two interactives, both in the Noah's ark room, and both frankly kind of lame. It was more like a walkthrough theme park ride than a museum in the sense that I usually use the word. But all that aside... HOLY CRAP THAT'S SOME F'D UP SHIT. From the dueling paleontologists (kindly white guy with a godly perspective vs. foolish Asian pagan scientist)
to the hellishly creepy child manniquins leading you toward the light,
to the brachiosaurs entering the Ark, 
to the label explaining why incest used to be OK, 
this museum is a testament to the cracked out fringe of Christian society. I'm not saying I didn't have fun there, mind you.
Any museum that lets me ride a ceratopsian is OK in my book. There will be a full photoset on Flickr shortly, with more amazing Creation Museum goodness.
Last Monday marked the realization of a long-held dream for me. I went to the Newport Aquarium, which was every bit as fabulous as I’d been led to believe. I petted the sharks; I watched the raysharks sail overhead in their immersive reef tank environment (and holy shit is that cool); I saw otters, frogs, alligators, turtles, jellyfish, and other things that make me marvel at the amazing beauty and diversity of our natural world. And then… Then we went to the Creation Museum.
I consider myself a religious person. I consider myself a pretty open-minded person generally. But I just cannot wrap my head around biblical literalism. So walking into the Creation Museum, I was prepared for a WTF experience of (dare I say) Biblical Proportions. And I was not disappointed!
The Creation Museum, if you've not encountered it before, is a museum-cum-entertainment facility run by and directed at the followers of a ministry called Answers in Genesis, whose basic premise is that the book of Genesis (not to mention the rest of the bible) must be taken literally, word for word--and therefore, the earth must only be about 6000 years old. With that premise, they then go on to explain fossils, dinosaur/dragon conflation, diversity of species, and oh yes, the Fall of Man and the evils of the ACLU. To be fair, let me start by saying that the museum itself is a beautiful facility, some gorgeous design concepts, and that everyone who works there was the soul of niceness--no proselytizing or pushyness, they really did just kind of leave you to it. As a museum professional, I have to say I was a little disappointed at the complete lack of interactivity--there were two interactives, both in the Noah's ark room, and both frankly kind of lame. It was more like a walkthrough theme park ride than a museum in the sense that I usually use the word. But all that aside... HOLY CRAP THAT'S SOME F'D UP SHIT. From the dueling paleontologists (kindly white guy with a godly perspective vs. foolish Asian pagan scientist)
to the hellishly creepy child manniquins leading you toward the light,
to the brachiosaurs entering the Ark, 
to the label explaining why incest used to be OK, 
this museum is a testament to the cracked out fringe of Christian society. I'm not saying I didn't have fun there, mind you.
Any museum that lets me ride a ceratopsian is OK in my book. There will be a full photoset on Flickr shortly, with more amazing Creation Museum goodness.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Summer Colds are TEH ALSOME.
Whose dumbass idea was it to have cold viruses available year round, anyway? I've got a streaming head cold, have gone through a box and a half of kleenex since I got up this morning, and it's effing September for god's sake! I'm supposed to feel like this in FEBRUARY! Not when it's fall, and especially not when I've got 2 days training at work; as this is cross-departmental training, I have potentially infected people from HR, Security and Safety, Programs and Interpretation, School Services, and Purchasing, all at one fell sneeze. It's wretched.
Even more wretched is the unfulfilled promise of rain here. It seems odd to be wishing so hard for rain while Gustav is all in the news--but we've hardly had a drop since the end of July and it's getting a little grim here. So this evening we had wind, we had thunder, presumably somewhere in the general vicinity got a shower. But here, nada. Sigh. I love the sound of rain on the roof, particularly when I'm sick... it'd be a nice thing to go to bed early with rain outside. I'll cross my fingers, and go check the radar.
Whose dumbass idea was it to have cold viruses available year round, anyway? I've got a streaming head cold, have gone through a box and a half of kleenex since I got up this morning, and it's effing September for god's sake! I'm supposed to feel like this in FEBRUARY! Not when it's fall, and especially not when I've got 2 days training at work; as this is cross-departmental training, I have potentially infected people from HR, Security and Safety, Programs and Interpretation, School Services, and Purchasing, all at one fell sneeze. It's wretched.
Even more wretched is the unfulfilled promise of rain here. It seems odd to be wishing so hard for rain while Gustav is all in the news--but we've hardly had a drop since the end of July and it's getting a little grim here. So this evening we had wind, we had thunder, presumably somewhere in the general vicinity got a shower. But here, nada. Sigh. I love the sound of rain on the roof, particularly when I'm sick... it'd be a nice thing to go to bed early with rain outside. I'll cross my fingers, and go check the radar.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Stay On Target
Duties as usher:
1. Pick up tuxedo.
2. Show up on time.
3. Apply tuxedo to self right side up, in correct order. No accidents involving suspenders and cufflinks.
4. Guide people to correct seating.
5. Guide the mother of the groom to her seat.
4 1/2. Remember what the groom's mother looks like.
6. Cue the DJ for processional.
7. Roll out floor runner thingy in front of flower girl, without getting tangled up with other usher who might actually also be a Level 12 Klutz (specialist class.)
8. Sit down and get out of the way.
Don'tscrewup don'tscrewup don'tscrewup don'tscrewup.....
Duties as usher:
1. Pick up tuxedo.
2. Show up on time.
3. Apply tuxedo to self right side up, in correct order. No accidents involving suspenders and cufflinks.
4. Guide people to correct seating.
5. Guide the mother of the groom to her seat.
4 1/2. Remember what the groom's mother looks like.
6. Cue the DJ for processional.
7. Roll out floor runner thingy in front of flower girl, without getting tangled up with other usher who might actually also be a Level 12 Klutz (specialist class.)
8. Sit down and get out of the way.
Don'tscrewup don'tscrewup don'tscrewup don'tscrewup.....
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