| Gaming at thecathouse! |
[Dec. 28th, 2009|10:16 am] |
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2pm Wednesday (30th). Come on by if anyone is still around. :-) |
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| (no subject) |
[Dec. 27th, 2009|01:06 pm] |
Going up north for a few days. Hoping it will be good for me. J is feeding not only my fish but my friends' cats, since their sitter pooped out at the last minute and I won't be in town.
Cool non-fiction books I got for Xmas (all chosen by me by way of gift card or Amazon Wish List): Meditations on Violence: A comparison of martial arts training and real world violence by Rory Miller. The Anatomy Coloring Book (sooo cool). Skinny Bitches by Rory Freedman (actually a foul-mouthed argument for veganism, it thus far appears). A BOSU exercise book, and something called the 60-second Self-Starter that is supposed to help me stop procrastinating.
I also got a big new George Foreman Grill with a bunch of removable, dishwashable plates which I'm excited about and a fondue set I'm somewhat dubious about. Not because it's not a sweet fondue set, but just because I don't know if I will do fondue. I do want to start cooking more; it's one of my "resolutions".
Mom got me some custom made t-shirts with my business name on them which I like quite a bit. I got several sets of workout clothes I like too, and a set of EZ Combs, these cool hair doohickies that make it easy to put hair up and look pretty. I used my gift cards to get myself a new purse, a couple silver rings, some socks and underwear.
Bro made me a new hook thingy - it has an owl on it and two hooks. Pretty neat. |
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| Year in vido, addendum |
[Dec. 26th, 2009|11:02 am] |
I was going through my Netflix record to help me remember what I watched all year, but we also pick up some videos from the library. So, here are three more shows I enjoyed in 2009:
Alias Season 1: On the scale of 1-5 stars, it's more of a 3-star show, but still enjoyable. I tend to like shows with strong female protagonists.
That 70s Show Season 4: This is a pretty good season, though I think 2 & 3 were probably the best.
Spaced Season 1: I'm a Simon Pegg fan, so it was a pretty sure bet, but I really like the entire ensemble of actors- they have really good chemistry together, and the writing is really fun. |
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| On a walk, down in Indiana |
[Dec. 25th, 2009|12:06 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | breathing, exercise, fitness, momoko, rain, walk, weightloss, xmas | ] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | path by the river, Franklin, IN | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  good | ] |
| [ | music |
| | birds, churchbells, wind & light rain | ] |
( You are about to view content that may not be appropriate for minors. ) |
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| Moohaha (qualified) |
[Dec. 25th, 2009|04:41 pm] |
I didn't think they'd arrive until after Christmas, but NewEgg got me my new motherboard and CPU today. I had to make a quick trip to a local computer shop to pick up some compatible RAM (apparently DDR2 is no longer the new hotness), but I'm now back on my desktop in shiny non-RC Windows 7.
On the minus side, the computer seems to randomly shut down with my Gigantor Graphics Card o'Doom in it. I've shifted down to an old one to see if the problem is some kind of motherboard instability, the graphics card, or possibly lack of power; the motherboard has some kind of funky 8-pin ATX auxiliary power connector and my PSU only has a 4-pin output. I wish they'd quit frigging changing PSU stuff around.
Edit: Reseated the CPU fan. Let's hope that'll fix it. *knocks on wood* |
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| Naaap |
[Dec. 24th, 2009|12:09 pm] |
Last workday before the holidays, and it's only a half-day. The boss is the only other coffee drinker in the office and he's on vacation, so I didn't make any today - didn't seem much point.
So...sleepy. Must...survive...another...hour... |
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| 2009: The year in video, part IV |
[Dec. 24th, 2009|10:43 am] |
What I watched & loved or hated in 2009, part 4:
October
TV Shows
LOVED MST3K: Laserblast. One of the better MST3K movies we've seen recently. I'm somewhat arbitrarily including it as a TV show, since the snarking is the best part.
HATED: None.
Enjoyable: McGyver Season 1, The I.T. Crowd Season 3, The Dick VanDyke Show Season 1.
Movies
LOVED Idlewild. It was a really interesting contrast with "Bamboozled." Bamboozled focused a lot on caricatured white representations of black people, while Idlewild gave realistic views of working black folks in the 1930s era - and the music and dancing were fantastic.
HATED Tideland. I thought it was well done and had artistic appeal, but the characters and plot were so repellent, I can't really say I liked it. Terry Gilliam is sort of that way, though, isn't he? Very artsy and brilliant, but sometimes kind of hard to take. Also thought Cloverfield was kind of a stinker- I hated the characters and was rooting for the monster. Also, Transformers 2, but I knew I was going to hate it since I didn't like the first one.
Enjoyable: Beerfest, A Tale of Two Cities (1935), Romancing the Stone, Possession, Brideshead Revisited, Besieged.
November
TV Shows
LOVED Saturday Night Live Season 1. Great musical guests and hosts. They haven't quite found their weekly formula yet, but that's what makes it so fun!
HATED: None.
Enjoyable: Tenacious D: Complete Masterworks, South Park Season 10, The Addams Family Season 1, Numb3rs Season 4.
Movies
LOVED Star Trek. One of only two movies I saw on the big screen this year, but also enjoyed it on DVD. Great energy and more sex appeal than the original show. Also loved the documentary "Bukowski: Born into This." I can't describe it- just watch it.
HATED Tempest. It's a retelling of Shakespeare's "The Tempest" but I hated almost all the characters. Raul Julia as a rascally Caliban with a love for goats saved this from being a total waste of time.
Enjoyable: The Hobbit, Pirates of Silicon Valley, Insomnia (original Norwegian version), Milk, Orgazmo, Eddie Izzard: Glorious.
There's still a week of December left to go, so I'll make that it's own post later... |
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| 2009: The year in video, part III |
[Dec. 24th, 2009|10:24 am] |
What I watched & loved or hated in 2009, part 3:
July
TV Shows
LOVED The Flight of the Conchords Season 1. My mother, of all people, recommended this to us. A crazy comedy-musical duo from New Zealand try to make it in America while dodging their one rabid fangirl. Also loving Psych Season 3.
HATED: None.
Enjoyable: Ben Franklin (PBS documentary from 2002), Doctor Who Season 4, The Mighty Boosh Season 1, BSG Season 4.5, Sledge Hammer! Season 1, The I.T. Crowd Season 2, Tripping the Rift Season 3.
Movies
LOVED The Great Escape, the Steve McQueen wartime flick from 1963. Really a lot of fun, and very suspenseful, while also touching. 1963 must have been a great year for movies, because "Charade" (Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant) was also made in '63 and I loved this film.
HATED Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. The premise sounded interesting, but I just didn't care for this and turned it off after about half an hour. We'd also heard good things about "Death Note," but I found it just "meh."
Enjoyable: Watchmen, The Color of Magic, Coraline, My Name is Bruce.
August
TV Shows
LOVED In Living Color Season 2. Great season, great energy.
HATED: None.
Enjoyable: Smallville Season 8.
Movies
LOVED Slumdog Millionaire. Again, maybe an obvious choice since everyone else love it, too, but I really enjoyed this film.
HATED The Hound of the Baskervilles may be the only Sherlock Holmes film I've ever given less than a 3-star rating. Matt Frewer was badly-miscast as Holmes and chews the scenery. The movie is actually tolerable in the scenes where he's absent.
Enjoyable: Pygmalion, Finding Neverland, The Mists of Avalon, The Specials, 24 Hour Party People, Modify (documentary on body mod).
September
TV Shows
LOVED Dead Like Me Season 1. OK, this is an exaggeration. I found this show to be OK, but I love Mandy Patinkin.
HATED: None.
Enjoyable: Nothing new this month other than "Dead" mentioned above.
Movies
LOVED Bamboozled. I'm a Spike Lee fan, and this was a good one.
HATED Van Helsing. Easy to pick on, I know. It was so bad that J. apparently shut it out of his mind. About 2 weeks later, he mentioned that we hadn't watched this movie, and I made him re-watch part of it to remind him that we had, indeed, watched this stinker.
Enjoyable: Dhoom 2, Wet Hot American Summer, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Departed, Lathe of Heaven (2002, though I think the earlier one was better), The Iron Giant, Dead Again. |
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| Grr |
[Dec. 23rd, 2009|04:59 pm] |
My credit union is equally incompetent in letting me get presents from UK sites for my parents with their credit card as opposed to their debit card.
So much hate. |
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| 2009: The year in video, part II |
[Dec. 23rd, 2009|12:06 pm] |
What I watched & loved or hated in 2009, part 2:
April
TV Shows
LOVED: a tie between The Richard Pryor Show and Series 1 of The I.T. Crowd. The Richard Pryor Show didn't even last half a season, but it is Richard Pryor at his finest. The show is mostly skits, and all seem based on the premise "What if Richard Pryor was a _____." As in, "What if Richard Pryor was the bartender in Star Wars?" or "What if Richard Pryor was a racist white judge from the south?" The whole first season of The I.T. Crowd was hilarious, but the season-ender was pee-your-pants funny.
HATED Harsh Realm. Well, 'hate' is a little strong, but it was disappointing. I wanted to like this because I'm an X-files fan, but it's not that great.
Enjoyable: Crusade, Dark Angel Season 1, The Monkees Season 2.
Movies
LOVED Netherbeast Incorporated. Dave Foley is my secret boyfriend, so I love anything he's in, but this was a sleeper hit.
HATED Hero. Again, it was less that I hated it than I found it disappointing. I remember thinking it was OK when I first watched it, but upon re-watching, I found the script painfully clumsy, especially the ham-fisted attempts at characterization early in the movie.
Enjoyable: Quantum of Solace, Waiting..., To Be or Not to Be, The Meaning of Life.
May
TV Shows
LOVED Sherlock Holmes: Murder Rooms. These are feature-length but made-for-TV movies and I love them all. They are based on the premise that the author of the Sherlock Holmes stories did some detecting with an old physician friend. These stories are sexier and darker than the Sherlock Holmes short stories and really well done.
HATED Afro Samurai. Again, really not so much about "hate" as not really getting into it, despite the fact that it has samurai and the voice of Samuel L. Jackson.
Enjoyable: Still watching and enjoying David Tennant as Dr. Who.
Movies
LOVED Something Wicked this Way Comes. I could not believe this was Disney. I loved this film thoroughly: the sets and cinematography were spot-on for the period and the performances were excellent. Creepy and fun. I was also pleasantly surprised by a little film about the scientists in Australia who oversaw the first moon landing, called "The Dish." Lovely little film.
HATED Grey Gardens. I'm referring to the documentary. I watched about half, but it was so painful, like being an unwilling witness to a family squabble at your best friend's house. The Musketeer (2001) was also disappointing- visually appealing but the acting and script were "meh."
Enjoyable: Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder, Changeling, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the Constant Gardener, Bottle Shock, Earth Girls are Easy.
June
TV Shows
LOVED Dr. Who: The Infinite Quest. Would I like some animated Dr. Who? Yes please! We also really enjoyed the short-lived series Undeclared.
HATED: None.
Enjoyable: Bottom, Torchwood Season 2, Eureka Season 3.
Movies
LOVED Cabaret. As a former fag hag, this is probably predictable, but I loved this movie through and through. And Peter York is at his yummiest, I must say.
HATED The Worst Witch. It starred Fairuza Balk and had a small role by Tim Curry, so I wanted to love it, but it was terrible. Let me count how many ways this movie sucked. It had Charlotte Rae (a.k.a. Mrs. Garrett from The Facts of Life) playing a good witch and her evil sister, and THEY BOTH SING. This might be the most horrifying part of this made-for-TV movie. And I'm surprised Tim Curry didn't blush or throw up while singing, for no apparent reason other than that it rhymed with the previous line, "Where's my tambourine?"
Enjoyable: DiscWorld: The Wyrd Sisters, The Merry Wives of Windsor (1982), DiscWorld: Soul Music, Unbreakable, The Ice Storm. |
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| 2009: The year in video |
[Dec. 23rd, 2009|11:34 am] |
It's been a long time since I did a "What I've been watching" post, and I thought it'd be fun to look back at what I loved and hated on video in 2009. This is going to get long, so I'll break it up into a few different posts.
January
TV shows:
LOVED "Frisky Dingo" Season 1. This show is so wrong and so fun.
HATED Mutant X Season 1. Worst sci-fi show I've seen in a long time. We compare everything else to this now, as in, "Well, it wasn't as bad as Mutant X."
Enjoyable: BSG Season 4, Numb3rs Season 2, Monk Season 3, Doctor Who Season 2, Little Britain Series 1, Jeremiah Season 2.
Movies:
LOVED "Futurama: Bender's Dream." Actually, we've been loving all the stand-alone feature Futurama movies.
HATED: Nothing, really, though several movies were kind of "meh."
Enjoyable: King Solomon's Mines (1950), Repo! The Genetic Opera, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Legends of the Fall (a guilty pleasure rather than an outstanding movie).
February
TV Shows
LOVED Kids in the Hall Season 4. The kids were really on this season.
HATED Earth 2. Man this was a piece of crap! Runner-up is Galactica 1980. Also a piece of crap.
Enjoyable: South Park Season 9, Smallville Season 7, The Monkees Season 1, Frisky Dingo Season 2, Doctor Who Season 3, Heroes Season 3.
Movies
LOVED Juno. It got a lot of press and awards, so this is a pretty obvious choice, but I really did like it. Runner-up, the film "Birdy" which I reviewed here.
HATED Event Horizon. J. made me watch this again, even though it sucked the first time I saw it.
Enjoyable: The Count of Monte Cristo (2002), The Brother from Another Planet, Velvet Goldmine, Fierce Creatures, Dangerous Liaisons (1988), Domino.
March
TV Shows
LOVED Numb3s Season 3. I love both the science and the relationships. Runner-up: X-Men Evolution Season 3. This is the best of the cartoon X-men interpretations, in my opinion.
HATED none, but Ren & Stimpy: The Lost Episodes was disappointing. It's mostly an excuse to inject more boobs and booze into the Ren & Stimpy universe.
Enjoyable: The Kids in the Hall Season 5.
Movies
LOVED The Bucket List. Another obvious choice, but I never claimed I wasn't sentimental!
HATED the Woody Allen movie Celebrity. I hated every character introduced in the first 10 minutes, so I never finished it.
Enjoyable: Return to Oz, Scotland PA, Sherlock: Case of Evil, True Believer, A Passage to India. |
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| (no subject) |
[Dec. 23rd, 2009|07:10 am] |
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Okay. I will be strong and ask my delinquent client for the money today... it's not rude to ask for what she's supposed to have paid...... (and I need to pay bills!) |
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| On the road again |
[Dec. 23rd, 2009|07:07 am] |
Lessons I have learned this morning (or: Dog still likes the <ul> tag):
- Do not stop for coffee at your store, which opens at 6:00, when you have to catch a bus at 6:30. The red line train will take too long to arrive and you will end up running.
- I thought my asthma was totally gone; however, it turns out that it is still willing to come visit if I run up and down stairs with two large bags in the cold on three hours of sleep.
- Early morning is apparently a decent time for inspiration. Now making progress on Mara and the Bottleman, which is turning out to be the most interesting AoC vignette -- no, actually this will probably be a short story -- to date. Best of all, there are no reading prereqs.
- If the wifi on your bus is out, go ask the driver if the router can't be reset. Sometimes it can, and you won't have to suffer without internets. I'm glad I'm not shy.
- Don't fake the funk on a nasty dunk.
- Ewige blumenkraft.
Trundlin' down to NYC. Should be in the DC area by about 17:00 after a stop-over and lunch at the Tick-Tock.
Merry Christmas! |
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| Survivor |
[Dec. 22nd, 2009|05:26 pm] |
This year:
- I went through the difficult ravages of a breakup. It did not ruin me for relationships.
- I broke from a job too early and faced several financial hardships. I did not end up on the streets.
- I have faced the downtown public with an understaffed store during the heaviest business time of the year. I did not become embittered.
- I faced my longest hospital visit ever due to a botched surgery that required several painful operations to correct. It did not kill me.
If I were an Etherist, I would utter a prayer:
I praise you for adversity.
May you watch over me as I watch over mine
and may you challenge me and keep me
until the day I return to you.
Amen.
I'm not an Etherist, so instead I will say:
I have suffered your slings and arrows! Every time I survive your trials, I come out stronger!
Bring it on! |
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| That oughtta do it |
[Dec. 21st, 2009|04:35 pm] |
Remember I mentioned I had a certain Xmas song stuck in my head? I received several good suggestions for songs to replace it with, but it wasn't until I got "Lightbringer" by Power Sympony stuck in my head that it finally banished the Christmas cheese.
Isn't it tempting?
The matter and the flesh.
Isn't it charming?
Can't you see who I am?
I am your angel,
I am your angel
Of the dark...
I am matter and flesh...
Since I can't find the official "Lucifer/Lightbringer" video, I give you Power Symphony's "Way of the Sword" instead. It's like your favorite Renaissance Faire geeks got together to create a heavy metal band... |
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| Dude, I'm getting a Dell (not really) |
[Dec. 20th, 2009|12:21 pm] |
For some reason, Windows now refuses to boot on my PC. It's not a software/virus problem; the Windows 7 install disc also hangs (black screen with a working pointer, but nothing ever happens after that). It's not peripherals; I've tried unplugging disc drives, removing PCI cards and swapping out the graphics card. Reverting the BIOS settings made no difference. Linux still boots fine and dmesg shows nothing scary. I am perplexed, but forced to conclude something on the motherboard is flaky in some way Windows doesn't like. (Especially since I'd noticed it'd had problems resuming from sleep mode in the last few weeks - USB stuff needing to be replugged to work).
Oh well. I've had this motherboard a while now. It's probably about time to upgrade to the latest hotness. I'm still v. annoyed. |
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