Happy Hallowe'en!
That's right, I used the apostrophe. Deal!
And, jeez, E-- sure got caught up on her blog, huh? Wow.
Yes, I'm putting off journaling. It's been a rough week. I'm still sick. Managed to have a decent evening last night, despite, by staying home and playing computer games all night. T-- made up some steaks before she took AB trick-or-treating at OC. D-- came over and we played WoW until 10:30. Any other details I could give, you don't want.
I did spend a lot of yesterday getting ready for National Novel Writing Month. I start writing tomorrow, and it's everything I can do to make myself wait until then. Don't expect journal entries next month (aside from the occasional gloat or lamentation over my word count). Like last year, I'm not even going to try to keep up daily posts.
I'm doing a Law and Order-style murder mystery set in a utopian future where ubiquitous databases are replacing human religion. Should be good.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Journal Entry: October 30, 2008
So, yeah, yesterday I ended up sick. Unpleasantly so.
Still, we had tickets to go see the Oklahoma City Thunder opener. B-- and D-- showed up at my place a little after 5:00, and then T-- (who had gone to Edmond to drop off AB at my sister's for babysitting) picked up N-- and the five of us drove downtown together. (K-- would join us later, but he had to work late.)
We had dinner at Sonic in Bricktown, then walked across to the Ford Center. The crowd was huge, the lines were long, and when we finally got inside the arena area, it was packed. The basketball court looked tiny in the center of the crowd.
It was a real party atmosphere. In case you don't know, the big deal is that the Thunder represent the first Big League sports franchise to come permanently to Oklahoma. We, as a city, have invested heavily in the team, and it's seen by many as an opportunity to dramatically improve Oklahoma City's standing on the national stage. Of course, if the team fails, it'll be a major PR setback. But we're not focusing on that.
Anyway, I've never been much of a basketball fan (it ranks somewhere between golf and baseball on my watchability scale), but I'm a big fan of my hometown and, hey, we got a good group of people to go see it. Worst-case, I was still spending an evening with most of my closest friends.
And that pretty much sums up the evening. Watching it in person was a lot more fun than watching the same game on TV, because of the atmosphere. Everyone was psyched. We lost. That was a disappointment. And I really recommend that you take every precaution to make sure you never get sick in a Ford Center men's room. But otherwise, the evening was pretty awesome.
We got home around 10:00, and T-- went back to Edmond to pick up AB. I took care of a couple things around the house, then I crashed.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Still, we had tickets to go see the Oklahoma City Thunder opener. B-- and D-- showed up at my place a little after 5:00, and then T-- (who had gone to Edmond to drop off AB at my sister's for babysitting) picked up N-- and the five of us drove downtown together. (K-- would join us later, but he had to work late.)
We had dinner at Sonic in Bricktown, then walked across to the Ford Center. The crowd was huge, the lines were long, and when we finally got inside the arena area, it was packed. The basketball court looked tiny in the center of the crowd.
It was a real party atmosphere. In case you don't know, the big deal is that the Thunder represent the first Big League sports franchise to come permanently to Oklahoma. We, as a city, have invested heavily in the team, and it's seen by many as an opportunity to dramatically improve Oklahoma City's standing on the national stage. Of course, if the team fails, it'll be a major PR setback. But we're not focusing on that.
Anyway, I've never been much of a basketball fan (it ranks somewhere between golf and baseball on my watchability scale), but I'm a big fan of my hometown and, hey, we got a good group of people to go see it. Worst-case, I was still spending an evening with most of my closest friends.
And that pretty much sums up the evening. Watching it in person was a lot more fun than watching the same game on TV, because of the atmosphere. Everyone was psyched. We lost. That was a disappointment. And I really recommend that you take every precaution to make sure you never get sick in a Ford Center men's room. But otherwise, the evening was pretty awesome.
We got home around 10:00, and T-- went back to Edmond to pick up AB. I took care of a couple things around the house, then I crashed.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Journal Entry: October 29, 2008
I guess I failed to post yesterday. No big deal.
Monday night, I came home from work and played some WoW. Then T-- made chicken and pasta for dinner, and we watched Heroes and Chuck (both of which were pretty good).
Before T-- fell asleep Monday night, she was complaining that her stomach hurt. By yesterday morning, she was good and sick. I called work and told them I'd be late coming in, and I took care of AB for the morning. We watched Sesame Street and read books and played with her Legos. I also got some chores taken care of.
Then T-- got up around 11:00 and I headed to work. It was a relatively quiet afternoon, although I finished up a project that had been nagging at me for a while, so that was a plus.
I got home and spent some time vegging on the couch and watching TV while T-- played with AB, then I finally went back to my office and played WoW for most of the evening. I finished getting caught up on Big Bang Theory, and have decided it would be a pretty awesome geek sitcom if they would just lay off the laugh track. Half of the jokes (as you would expect from any real nerd medium) are derisive snickers at best, and the canned explosive laughter messes that up altogether.
Before I fell asleep last night, I was complaining that my stomach hurt. By this morning, I still wasn't anything more definite than woozy. I've felt unpleasant all day, but nothing violent so far. Wish me luck.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Monday night, I came home from work and played some WoW. Then T-- made chicken and pasta for dinner, and we watched Heroes and Chuck (both of which were pretty good).
Before T-- fell asleep Monday night, she was complaining that her stomach hurt. By yesterday morning, she was good and sick. I called work and told them I'd be late coming in, and I took care of AB for the morning. We watched Sesame Street and read books and played with her Legos. I also got some chores taken care of.
Then T-- got up around 11:00 and I headed to work. It was a relatively quiet afternoon, although I finished up a project that had been nagging at me for a while, so that was a plus.
I got home and spent some time vegging on the couch and watching TV while T-- played with AB, then I finally went back to my office and played WoW for most of the evening. I finished getting caught up on Big Bang Theory, and have decided it would be a pretty awesome geek sitcom if they would just lay off the laugh track. Half of the jokes (as you would expect from any real nerd medium) are derisive snickers at best, and the canned explosive laughter messes that up altogether.
Before I fell asleep last night, I was complaining that my stomach hurt. By this morning, I still wasn't anything more definite than woozy. I've felt unpleasant all day, but nothing violent so far. Wish me luck.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Journal Entry: October 27, 2008
Thursday night, T-- invited D-- and K-- over for chilidogs for dinner, then we spent the evening playing Rock Band. Toby came over, and we introduced him to the game, then he showed me the game database module he'd developed (at my request) so that the games we work on in the future will have easy save and load support, and relatively easy multiplayer capability. Awesome!
He didn't leave until after eleven. It was a fun evening.
Friday I got off work an hour early, and got home to find Julie and Carlos there! We spent a couple hours talking about their honeymoon trip, then went out to Poblano's for dinner, then came back and watched SNL for a bit. Then, by request, we loaded up Rock Band which they had never played before. Carlos is a real musician, and both of them have been fascinated by everything they've heard about the game, but this was their first chance to check it out.
They loved it. They were excited about the song selection (usually about songs I'd never heard of before I played the game), and they did amazing. Mostly Julie sang, and Carlos was rocking on drums and guitar in no time. I think he did one song on Easy on the guitar, then switched straight to Hard and finished above 90% pretty much every track. He had a little more difficulty with the drums, but mainly because he was wanting to improv.
It was fun to watch them play. They left around 10:30 and I thought about playing some WoW, but decided I didn't want to be up that late, so I just went to bed.
Saturday morning T-- and I took AB to the Village Fun Fair at the park just across Hefner. My little sister brought her girls, too. There were giant inflateable rides -- mainly bouncey castles and slides -- and a petting zoo that was apparently pretty awesome. I slipped away while AB was still in the bouncey castle so I could pick up D-- and be at K-- and N--'s in time to watch the OU game.
We didn't even finish the game before I had to head home to watch AB so T-- could go to her crpo at the church. K-- and D-- came over to hang out for the evening. Mostly K-- played Rock Band and D-- played WoW while I tried to keep AB from bothering them. We read her books, played with the Legos, and discovered that she knows how to sneak into my office and close the door behind her, so no one knows where she is.
Once we tracked her down, I left the guys in charge of her and ran up to Falcone's for a pizza. We had two huge slices each, and AB finished off most of one. She loved it. After dinner, N-- came back from the crop to pick up K--, and while she was there AB was showing off for her, running short sprints and spinning as fast as she could.
K-- and N-- left right around AB's bedtime, so I changed her into her pajamas, put her in bed, and headed back out to the living room to watch a movie D-- had brought over. About ten miutes later, AB started screaming. Usually that means she's thrown her pacifier away and wants it back, so I didn't think much of it when I went to her room to check on her.
I found her standing up at the foot of her bed. I said, "And what's wrong with you?" I was already scanning the floor for her pacifier.
She pointed emphatically and said, "That!" And there was her pacifier, right in the middle of her bed, buried under a humongous pile of puke.
Yuck.
So I got her clothes off and bathed her while D-- heroically cleaned up her room. It took a little over an hour, but by the time I had her out of bed, AB was obviously feeling better. I put her in the tub and she immediately started playing with her toys, happy as could be. D-- and I took a little longer to get over the trauma of it.
Anyway, we got her to bed a little bit before 10:00, then D-- and I finished the movie before T-- got home. Played some WoW, went to bed.
Sunday morning was church, then we invited D-- and K-- and N-- to pick up lunches (D-- chose Wendy's and the rest of us McDonalds) and come watch the Cowboys game at our place. It was nothing like a trouncing, but the Cowboys eked out a win and there may be some hope for their season, still. Right now they're battling for a wild card, though, which no one would have guessed at the start of the season.
After the Cowboys game we watched some SNL, then T-- took AB to a Trunk or Treat at a church up in Edmond, and D-- and I played WoW. It was a fairly quiet Sunday, to end a pretty busy weekend.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
He didn't leave until after eleven. It was a fun evening.
Friday I got off work an hour early, and got home to find Julie and Carlos there! We spent a couple hours talking about their honeymoon trip, then went out to Poblano's for dinner, then came back and watched SNL for a bit. Then, by request, we loaded up Rock Band which they had never played before. Carlos is a real musician, and both of them have been fascinated by everything they've heard about the game, but this was their first chance to check it out.
They loved it. They were excited about the song selection (usually about songs I'd never heard of before I played the game), and they did amazing. Mostly Julie sang, and Carlos was rocking on drums and guitar in no time. I think he did one song on Easy on the guitar, then switched straight to Hard and finished above 90% pretty much every track. He had a little more difficulty with the drums, but mainly because he was wanting to improv.
It was fun to watch them play. They left around 10:30 and I thought about playing some WoW, but decided I didn't want to be up that late, so I just went to bed.
Saturday morning T-- and I took AB to the Village Fun Fair at the park just across Hefner. My little sister brought her girls, too. There were giant inflateable rides -- mainly bouncey castles and slides -- and a petting zoo that was apparently pretty awesome. I slipped away while AB was still in the bouncey castle so I could pick up D-- and be at K-- and N--'s in time to watch the OU game.
We didn't even finish the game before I had to head home to watch AB so T-- could go to her crpo at the church. K-- and D-- came over to hang out for the evening. Mostly K-- played Rock Band and D-- played WoW while I tried to keep AB from bothering them. We read her books, played with the Legos, and discovered that she knows how to sneak into my office and close the door behind her, so no one knows where she is.
Once we tracked her down, I left the guys in charge of her and ran up to Falcone's for a pizza. We had two huge slices each, and AB finished off most of one. She loved it. After dinner, N-- came back from the crop to pick up K--, and while she was there AB was showing off for her, running short sprints and spinning as fast as she could.
K-- and N-- left right around AB's bedtime, so I changed her into her pajamas, put her in bed, and headed back out to the living room to watch a movie D-- had brought over. About ten miutes later, AB started screaming. Usually that means she's thrown her pacifier away and wants it back, so I didn't think much of it when I went to her room to check on her.
I found her standing up at the foot of her bed. I said, "And what's wrong with you?" I was already scanning the floor for her pacifier.
She pointed emphatically and said, "That!" And there was her pacifier, right in the middle of her bed, buried under a humongous pile of puke.
Yuck.
So I got her clothes off and bathed her while D-- heroically cleaned up her room. It took a little over an hour, but by the time I had her out of bed, AB was obviously feeling better. I put her in the tub and she immediately started playing with her toys, happy as could be. D-- and I took a little longer to get over the trauma of it.
Anyway, we got her to bed a little bit before 10:00, then D-- and I finished the movie before T-- got home. Played some WoW, went to bed.
Sunday morning was church, then we invited D-- and K-- and N-- to pick up lunches (D-- chose Wendy's and the rest of us McDonalds) and come watch the Cowboys game at our place. It was nothing like a trouncing, but the Cowboys eked out a win and there may be some hope for their season, still. Right now they're battling for a wild card, though, which no one would have guessed at the start of the season.
After the Cowboys game we watched some SNL, then T-- took AB to a Trunk or Treat at a church up in Edmond, and D-- and I played WoW. It was a fairly quiet Sunday, to end a pretty busy weekend.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Journal Entry: October 23, 2008
Tuesday night I didn't do anything interesting. I signed some paperwork to get landlord's insurance on our house in Tulsa, I had dinner with T-- and AB, and I played some WoW. N-- headed to Tulsa for a medical conference, but that only impacted me obliquely (and not until last night).
Last night we met K-- and D-- for dinner at Jersey Mike's. Afterward, T-- took AB to church and the guys came over to play some Rock Band. We played until 9:45, when I finally had to call it quits. Then I logged into WoW to run a couple quests, and headed to bed shortly after 10.
I had some absolutely bizarre dreams last night, too, but nothing really worth retelling.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Last night we met K-- and D-- for dinner at Jersey Mike's. Afterward, T-- took AB to church and the guys came over to play some Rock Band. We played until 9:45, when I finally had to call it quits. Then I logged into WoW to run a couple quests, and headed to bed shortly after 10.
I had some absolutely bizarre dreams last night, too, but nothing really worth retelling.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Journal Entry: October 21, 2008
T-- made steaks for dinner last night. D-- came over in time to have one, then we played WoW for about an hour and a half. Afterward, he went home and T-- and I watched Heroes. My whole night.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Journal Entry: October 20, 2008
Well, the first Pogue Family Writer's Conference is come and gone.
My dad, my sisters and I were the participants (thus the name). A little over a month ago, we each submitted an original novel for everyone else to read. My task was made a little bit easier because, as I've chronicled here, I spent most of the last six months reading and reviewing their submissions. The versions they submitted in September were generally rewrites of the ones I marked up back in May, or whatever, but close enough that I'd already done all the heavy lifting.
I hadn't actually gotten much in return, though, so I picked my least-revised and least-reviewed novel, King Jason's War (which only T-- had read, to date), and sent that one off to finally get some feedback on it.
Friday morning I had to come in for work, but I had the afternoon of my RDO off. Before I left town, I met with T-- and her parents for lunch at Steve's Rib up by K-- and N--'s house. It was fantastic.
Then I picked my little sister up right around 1:00, and we headed to Branson. She actually drove for the first leg of the trip, and I took over when we stopped in Tulsa. I'd planned to get a lot of reading done on the way, but I managed to get most of it taken care of on Wednesday and Thursday, so we spent more of the trip talking than reading.
I'd also expected it to be a 6-hour drive, and it came in right at 5, so that was a pleasant surprise. We got to the cabin in Forsythe, just outside Branson, around 6:20 Friday evening. My older sister was already there waiting for us, and she informed us Mom and Dad were about an hour out.
That gave us time to bring in all our stuff, pick our rooms in the cabin, and not call our families to let them know we'd made it safe. That last because it turned out there was no cell phone reception for any of us, anywhere near the cabin. Joy. Also, contrary to our expectations, there was no internet connection. For three days. It was like a preview of hell (in that regard, anyway).
I mean, I'm just assuming there's no internet connection in hell. I can't actually quote scripture or verse in support of that, but it seems logical....
As soon as Mom and Dad were moved into the cabin, Mom started putting together a chips-and-dip spread for her hungry family, while the rest of us all started talking about the materials we'd brought for the weekend. Heather kept saying, "No, wait, we're not talking about that until tomorrow!" (she had a whole agenda scheduled for Saturday), but she needn't have bothered.
Saturday morning I woke up last, around 9:30, and Mom greeted me with a hot ham and swiss breakfast croissant, which was damn awesome. Then I sat down at the big conference table and joined in the conversation critiqueing Dad's book. We told him to turn it into two books (that was mostly my suggestion, but the girls got on board with it pretty much right away). Then we told him how, and I think by the end of the conversation he was actually okay with the idea. It took about an hour to get to that point, though, which had Heather pretty concerned, because her agenda only called for 90 minutes total to get through all of our books.
We segued to my little sister's book then, and spent an hour and a half on that. We only quit because we had made arrangements to meet Mom in town for lunch, so we had to break up the discussion. We took a moment partway through that critique, though, and all agreed that really this was the main thing we'd hoped to get out of the weekend, so we took all the other discussion topics for the weekend, labeled them "As Time Becomes Available" and made critiques the sole agenda for the rest of the day.
We had a fifteen minutes drive to lunch, and I spent it making everyone name favorite aspects of the others' books, because most of the two-and-a-half hours of critiques had been, "It's a good book, but here's the parts I didn't like, and how you can improve them." Generally the good stuff just works, and keeps you reading, so you don't make note of it. I asked everyone to name a favorite scene in Dad's book or a favorite character in Heather's, stuff like that. I think that helped get everyone into a little bit better frame of mind for the rest of the day.
Anyway, lunch was at a steak place, and we sort of took a break from the writing talk. The girls talked about Mom's morning shopping trip (and, I'm sure, other things, but I didn't really hear much of it), and Dad and I talked about the economic crisis in a historical context, and how best to profit off of it. Oh, and OU football.
Then we drove back to the house, and Heather and I discussed my book, but the other two hadn't really had a chance to read it all the way through. Dad spent the time writing and my little sister spent the time reading. Still, the feedback I got from Heather was amazing, and really encouraging.
We probably spent an hour on that, even though it was just the one reviewer, and then we turned to Heather's book and all of us had read that one, so it was another shouting match (in a good way, I mean). My little sister followed that up with a brief exercise she'd concocted, in which we explored the history and background of characters within our stories -- first a major one and then a minor one. While the former was probably the more useful, we all had a lot more fun with the latter.
Dinner finally interrupted us. Mom made some garlic chicken, with potatoes on the side and bruscetta as an appetizer -- it was all good. While we ate, we went through another of the postponed activities, with everyone discussing two of his or her favorite story ideas. We weighed in with our opinions of them, and I think with the feedback everyone was pretty much able to pick one of those stories to focus on for NaNoWriMo this year.
Then Heather had an activity for us that turned out more like a game. We each wrote down a one-line story idea for each of the other three. The example she gave (and her story idea for Dad) was "A girl who sees doors where there are no doors." The one she gave me was, "Trees take over the world and solve global warming in their own way." Then we were each supposed to flesh out the three ideas we were given, building a one-paragraph synopsis of a book. Afterward we read them all out loud, with all the entertainment value of a game of Balderdash.
That was our last event for the weekend. Afterward we settled into separate conversations, many of them follow-ups on earlier critiques. Dad and I spent a while working out the plot arc of his upcoming novel, which had him stumped somewhere around the middle. It was that sort of thing.
Then around 11:00 everyone finally got to bed. I meant to get up early on Sunday, but didn't quite manage what I'd hoped for. Still, after all the goodbyes and the final conversations, and packing the car and all, we got out around 10:00. Once again we stopped in Tulsa, but that was only a brief stop, and I dropped my little sister off at her place right at 3:00. We spent the whole drive talking, mostly about Social Constructionism (so, yeah, I had a good time).
Then I got home and watched the Cowboys game on my TiVo, and spent the rest of the evening in a deep melancholy. Ugh.
D-- came over, and we had leftover pizza for dinner, and he and I spent most of the evening playing WoW. T-- eventually joined us in the office, and we watched some more Get Smart, and far too soon it was an hour past my bedtime. I sent D-- home, and went to bed around 11:00.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
My dad, my sisters and I were the participants (thus the name). A little over a month ago, we each submitted an original novel for everyone else to read. My task was made a little bit easier because, as I've chronicled here, I spent most of the last six months reading and reviewing their submissions. The versions they submitted in September were generally rewrites of the ones I marked up back in May, or whatever, but close enough that I'd already done all the heavy lifting.
I hadn't actually gotten much in return, though, so I picked my least-revised and least-reviewed novel, King Jason's War (which only T-- had read, to date), and sent that one off to finally get some feedback on it.
Friday morning I had to come in for work, but I had the afternoon of my RDO off. Before I left town, I met with T-- and her parents for lunch at Steve's Rib up by K-- and N--'s house. It was fantastic.
Then I picked my little sister up right around 1:00, and we headed to Branson. She actually drove for the first leg of the trip, and I took over when we stopped in Tulsa. I'd planned to get a lot of reading done on the way, but I managed to get most of it taken care of on Wednesday and Thursday, so we spent more of the trip talking than reading.
I'd also expected it to be a 6-hour drive, and it came in right at 5, so that was a pleasant surprise. We got to the cabin in Forsythe, just outside Branson, around 6:20 Friday evening. My older sister was already there waiting for us, and she informed us Mom and Dad were about an hour out.
That gave us time to bring in all our stuff, pick our rooms in the cabin, and not call our families to let them know we'd made it safe. That last because it turned out there was no cell phone reception for any of us, anywhere near the cabin. Joy. Also, contrary to our expectations, there was no internet connection. For three days. It was like a preview of hell (in that regard, anyway).
I mean, I'm just assuming there's no internet connection in hell. I can't actually quote scripture or verse in support of that, but it seems logical....
As soon as Mom and Dad were moved into the cabin, Mom started putting together a chips-and-dip spread for her hungry family, while the rest of us all started talking about the materials we'd brought for the weekend. Heather kept saying, "No, wait, we're not talking about that until tomorrow!" (she had a whole agenda scheduled for Saturday), but she needn't have bothered.
Saturday morning I woke up last, around 9:30, and Mom greeted me with a hot ham and swiss breakfast croissant, which was damn awesome. Then I sat down at the big conference table and joined in the conversation critiqueing Dad's book. We told him to turn it into two books (that was mostly my suggestion, but the girls got on board with it pretty much right away). Then we told him how, and I think by the end of the conversation he was actually okay with the idea. It took about an hour to get to that point, though, which had Heather pretty concerned, because her agenda only called for 90 minutes total to get through all of our books.
We segued to my little sister's book then, and spent an hour and a half on that. We only quit because we had made arrangements to meet Mom in town for lunch, so we had to break up the discussion. We took a moment partway through that critique, though, and all agreed that really this was the main thing we'd hoped to get out of the weekend, so we took all the other discussion topics for the weekend, labeled them "As Time Becomes Available" and made critiques the sole agenda for the rest of the day.
We had a fifteen minutes drive to lunch, and I spent it making everyone name favorite aspects of the others' books, because most of the two-and-a-half hours of critiques had been, "It's a good book, but here's the parts I didn't like, and how you can improve them." Generally the good stuff just works, and keeps you reading, so you don't make note of it. I asked everyone to name a favorite scene in Dad's book or a favorite character in Heather's, stuff like that. I think that helped get everyone into a little bit better frame of mind for the rest of the day.
Anyway, lunch was at a steak place, and we sort of took a break from the writing talk. The girls talked about Mom's morning shopping trip (and, I'm sure, other things, but I didn't really hear much of it), and Dad and I talked about the economic crisis in a historical context, and how best to profit off of it. Oh, and OU football.
Then we drove back to the house, and Heather and I discussed my book, but the other two hadn't really had a chance to read it all the way through. Dad spent the time writing and my little sister spent the time reading. Still, the feedback I got from Heather was amazing, and really encouraging.
We probably spent an hour on that, even though it was just the one reviewer, and then we turned to Heather's book and all of us had read that one, so it was another shouting match (in a good way, I mean). My little sister followed that up with a brief exercise she'd concocted, in which we explored the history and background of characters within our stories -- first a major one and then a minor one. While the former was probably the more useful, we all had a lot more fun with the latter.
Dinner finally interrupted us. Mom made some garlic chicken, with potatoes on the side and bruscetta as an appetizer -- it was all good. While we ate, we went through another of the postponed activities, with everyone discussing two of his or her favorite story ideas. We weighed in with our opinions of them, and I think with the feedback everyone was pretty much able to pick one of those stories to focus on for NaNoWriMo this year.
Then Heather had an activity for us that turned out more like a game. We each wrote down a one-line story idea for each of the other three. The example she gave (and her story idea for Dad) was "A girl who sees doors where there are no doors." The one she gave me was, "Trees take over the world and solve global warming in their own way." Then we were each supposed to flesh out the three ideas we were given, building a one-paragraph synopsis of a book. Afterward we read them all out loud, with all the entertainment value of a game of Balderdash.
That was our last event for the weekend. Afterward we settled into separate conversations, many of them follow-ups on earlier critiques. Dad and I spent a while working out the plot arc of his upcoming novel, which had him stumped somewhere around the middle. It was that sort of thing.
Then around 11:00 everyone finally got to bed. I meant to get up early on Sunday, but didn't quite manage what I'd hoped for. Still, after all the goodbyes and the final conversations, and packing the car and all, we got out around 10:00. Once again we stopped in Tulsa, but that was only a brief stop, and I dropped my little sister off at her place right at 3:00. We spent the whole drive talking, mostly about Social Constructionism (so, yeah, I had a good time).
Then I got home and watched the Cowboys game on my TiVo, and spent the rest of the evening in a deep melancholy. Ugh.
D-- came over, and we had leftover pizza for dinner, and he and I spent most of the evening playing WoW. T-- eventually joined us in the office, and we watched some more Get Smart, and far too soon it was an hour past my bedtime. I sent D-- home, and went to bed around 11:00.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Journal Entry: October 17, 2008
Last night we met K-- and N-- for dinner at Freddy's, then they came over and watched three episodes of How I Met Your Mother with us. It was a lot of fun, especially after skipping our regular Wednesday night dinner, this week.
They left around 9:00, and T-- and I went back to the office. I made a new character in WoW, and ran around doing not much of anything, and we watched Get Smart while T-- worked on scrapbooking.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
They left around 9:00, and T-- and I went back to the office. I made a new character in WoW, and ran around doing not much of anything, and we watched Get Smart while T-- worked on scrapbooking.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Journal Entry: October 16, 2008
I can only remember one book ever making me cry (err...with narrative emotion, that is, not terrible prose). The Stand has come really close twice now, though, and I haven't even gotten into the actual story yet.
Last night after work T-- made up some steak and pasta for dinner that was phenomenal. Then she took AB to church and I laid down for a nap that never happened, then finally gave up and went to the office to work on my reading list. I also started installing WoW, because frankly I need something to play and Spore didn't really stick (although, pending five or six expansions it might be pretty cool).
Anyway, Wrath of the Lich King, the second WoW expansion, rolls out November 13, so I'll probably go ahead and play a character up to 80, maybe try out the Death Knight. I don't think I'll ever get back into it seriously, but I'll probably play for a few months to check out all the new stuff. It's really not hard to get your money's worth out of an MMO.
I've also been in talks with Toby about doing some more game programming, and I'm secretly obsessing about a new story idea I've come up with, but I'm nowhere close to putting pen to paper on that one. I finished Dad's novel last night, for the thing this weekend, and I'll be able to finish Heather's today, because it's a much shorter one.
After church last night, T-- joined me in the office and we watched Get Smart while I typed up my reading notes and finished installing the game. Then somehow it was already 11:30 -- that one took me by surprise -- so I headed to bed, dreading the morning's alarm. And rightly so, but at least it was Thursday, so I got to do BWW for lunch today. I almost cried in the middle of a crowded restaurant.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Last night after work T-- made up some steak and pasta for dinner that was phenomenal. Then she took AB to church and I laid down for a nap that never happened, then finally gave up and went to the office to work on my reading list. I also started installing WoW, because frankly I need something to play and Spore didn't really stick (although, pending five or six expansions it might be pretty cool).
Anyway, Wrath of the Lich King, the second WoW expansion, rolls out November 13, so I'll probably go ahead and play a character up to 80, maybe try out the Death Knight. I don't think I'll ever get back into it seriously, but I'll probably play for a few months to check out all the new stuff. It's really not hard to get your money's worth out of an MMO.
I've also been in talks with Toby about doing some more game programming, and I'm secretly obsessing about a new story idea I've come up with, but I'm nowhere close to putting pen to paper on that one. I finished Dad's novel last night, for the thing this weekend, and I'll be able to finish Heather's today, because it's a much shorter one.
After church last night, T-- joined me in the office and we watched Get Smart while I typed up my reading notes and finished installing the game. Then somehow it was already 11:30 -- that one took me by surprise -- so I headed to bed, dreading the morning's alarm. And rightly so, but at least it was Thursday, so I got to do BWW for lunch today. I almost cried in the middle of a crowded restaurant.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Journal Entry: October 15, 2008
So, we have the Pogue Family Writer's Conference this weekend, and as part of the project, everyone submitted a manuscript that everyone else is supposed to read (before the conference) and critique on Saturday morning.
I think we all feel pretty far behind on the reading part. I read all three books earlier this year, as part of a markup, but I haven't read the rewrites, so I feel like I should go back through them. I also just realized last weekend that the book I submitted is one I haven't looked at in over a year, so it's one I really need to reread in order to get much value out of the feedback I'll be getting. So my week is pretty much booked solid, as far as personal time goes.
In spite of that, when I got home from work yesterday I took a nap. I haven't been feeling well lately. I don't know if it's something physical or psychological, but either way it's got me down. I woke up about 6:30, had dinner with T--, and then watched AB while T-- went to the grocery store. Afterward, we put AB to bed and then I locked myself in my office to spend the rest of the night reading Dad's book.
I didn't finish it, which puts me in a pretty tight spot for the rest of the night. Tonight T-- will be taking AB to church, and tomorrow night they're going to a church picnic, and I plan to skip both so that'll give me a little extra reading time. I'm not totally confident it'll be enough, though.
Anyway, that was my evening, and probably will be going forward.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
I think we all feel pretty far behind on the reading part. I read all three books earlier this year, as part of a markup, but I haven't read the rewrites, so I feel like I should go back through them. I also just realized last weekend that the book I submitted is one I haven't looked at in over a year, so it's one I really need to reread in order to get much value out of the feedback I'll be getting. So my week is pretty much booked solid, as far as personal time goes.
In spite of that, when I got home from work yesterday I took a nap. I haven't been feeling well lately. I don't know if it's something physical or psychological, but either way it's got me down. I woke up about 6:30, had dinner with T--, and then watched AB while T-- went to the grocery store. Afterward, we put AB to bed and then I locked myself in my office to spend the rest of the night reading Dad's book.
I didn't finish it, which puts me in a pretty tight spot for the rest of the night. Tonight T-- will be taking AB to church, and tomorrow night they're going to a church picnic, and I plan to skip both so that'll give me a little extra reading time. I'm not totally confident it'll be enough, though.
Anyway, that was my evening, and probably will be going forward.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Journal Entry: October 14, 2008
Friday was my Regular Day Off, and yesterday was Columbus Day (which, for some reason, Federal employees get as a holiday). I was home both days, and I was busy, so here's a long catch-up post for you.
Thursday night I went down to Norman to hang out with Toby and do some programming. He'd actually called me while I was driving up to Julie's wedding the weekend before to ask if I was free, and Thursday night was the earliest we could actually manage.
He's been working on a game all by his lonesome, and he took the opportunity to show me what he'd managed. I was impressed. I may join in, after the family writer's conference this weekend, if I can find a spare minute here or there. On the other hand, I might just renew my own solo programming project, because it's been nagging at me lately.
We wrapped up the programming talk around 9:30, and I realized with some surprise that even with the forty-five minute drive home, I was going to be getting in at a reasonable hour. So I suggested we watch an episode of a show he'd recently mentioned (Venture Brothers) and which I had checked out a year earlier but mostly skipped over. It was hilarious, so we watched three. Then we sat in the living room talking for another hour, and it was 11:40 when I finally left the house.
I was exhausted on the drive home, and dreading my early morning on Friday, and honestly not paying a ton of attention. I missed the exit that would have taken me west to Hefner Parkway, but I was able to just stick with Broadway Extension north to Hefner, and take that west to our house.
About a mile away from home, I drifted into the right lane anticipating my turn, then noticed as I did so that a cop had someone pulled over in that lane up ahead, so I drifted back into the left lane -- no hurry. A moment later, blue and red lights flashed in my rearview.
I pulled over, desperately hoping this guy wanted to go assist the stop up ahead, but no such luck. This eighteen-year-old walks up to my window and asks if I know why he pulled me over, and I perfectly honestly answered him, "No." He said I'd changed lanes without signaling (and at that late hour, I know that that had probably said to them, "drunk driver," especially since I immediately changed lanes back -- must have looked exactly like swerving).
So, okay, I caught a bad break. I wasn't driving drunk -- hadn't had a drink in a week -- so no big deal. Nobody's going to write me an actual ticket for failing to signal. Then I realize this fresh-faced kid has a superior riding along for training, and I realize it's probably going to happen after all. Second time in as many years I get pulled over by a cop in training. Last time I got stuck with a "10 miles or less over the speed limit" for driving 29 in a 25, and I have strictly observed the posted speed limit (no matter how stupid) ever since.
Anyway, by some strange turn of events I had an expired insurance card (another offense that caught me by surprise), and he generously wrote me a ticket on that instead of the lane change (which would have been a $172 fine). All I had to do for the insurance ticket was show proof of insurance at the court house and it would be dismissed.
So, after a thirty-minute stop, he finally let me go, and I drove extra-careful the half mile left to my house. I dropped my keys and citation on the kitchen table, stumbled to my room, and fell into bed with a mumbled account of the event to T-- (who was too asleep to care). It was after 1:30 by then.
Then, just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I hear a thunderous pounding on the front door, enough to send me sitting bolt upright. I said to T--, "Can you think of a single good reason for me to answer that?" I was thinking someone with a broken down car was looking for assistance, and I didn't want to open my house to a stranger at this time of night. I glanced out the window and saw a glowing tail light.
Then the doorbell rang, and I realized if I didn't answer the door, the bell would probably keep ringing until AB woke up screaming. Anyone who is willing to ring a doorbell at 1:30 in the morning is willing to do it repeatedly. About the same time, T-- was looking out the window and she said, "You know, I think that may be a cop car."
So I went to the front door, yanked it open, and found that same fresh-faced cop with an idiot grin on his face. He said, all embarrassed, "Y'know, I lied to you when I said your copy of the ticket was in the envelope. I forgot to give it to you." And he held it out to me, still grinning like this was the funniest thing in the world. At the end of the walk, by the corner of our garage, I saw his superior peeking around the corner, watching everything.
I took the slip, and closed the door. I turned the lock with a loud, "Thunk!" as my only sort of protest, and went back to bed. Ugh.
Then on Friday, even though it was my RDO, I went in for a few hours in the morning because of an irregularity with my timesheet (something to do with my travel hours the week before). Whatever. I got done around 11:00, but before that Toby called to tell me he had my laptop -- I had taken it in when I got to his house on Thursday, but never cracked the case, and forgot all about it.
So we met for lunch in Moore, at the Freddy's by the new Warren theater. We had a good lunch, then I headed home the same way I'd gone the night before, stopping this time at the Byron's to pick up some liquor for the evening's festivities.
Then I got home and spent a while negotiating with the State Farm website (and finally exchanging emails with my agent) to get a copy of my proof of insurance, so I could take care of the ticket. Even though it was a "Fix It" ticket, I had to take care of it within 48 hours or I'd have been stuck with $88 in court costs.
So I finally got the forms, printed them out, then drove downtown and found the courthouse, and by the time that was done it was 5-ish, so my day off was over and done. T-- was busy for the evening, taking AB to a pumpkin patch for pictures, so I had K-- and Jeff over for some Rock Band. We played with the music up loud until T-- got home around 9:00, then we turned it down to something reasonable and played on until after midnight.
Saturday morning we headed over to K-- and N--'s place at 11:00 for the OU/Texas game, grabbing some Taco Bell on the way. The game was fantastic. We lost, but the game was an incredible one. If I'd been able to believe the polls would treat OU fairly (which they did, by some miracle), I would have had a great time just watching a fierce contest. As it was, though, I was in a pretty bad mood to see the loss.
Then we spent the afternoon helping K-- and N-- rearrange the furniture in a couple rooms so they could set up a nursery. We accomplished a lot in a short time, and then N-- served us all some delicious chili by way of thanks.
T-- and I left right after supper, because AB was ready for bed. I was also expected Toby to come up and try out Rock Band, as we had arranged over lunch on Friday, but he had to cancel. That worked out okay, though, because on the drive home from K-- and N--'s, B-- called to ask if I wanted to come over and watch the guys from MST3K riff on 300. I called D-- to join me, and we went over to do that.
And, as I so often do at B--'s place, I drank heavily. The movie was hilarious, and we stayed up way, way too late afterward talking and enjoying each other's company. Then D-- drove me home, and I fell into bed around 3 in the morning. I didn't make it to church on Sunday.
I slept until noon, then took care of some chores during the early afternoon, and dedicated my later afternoon to watching a heartbreaking Cowboys game with a much more terrible aftermath than the OU loss. Romo is out for four weeks with a broken finger, and we've lost our (phenomenal) punter for the rest of the season. Also, our team looked terrible, so even without the injuries, it was a bad day.
We watched some Get Smart to lighten the mood, and played some Rock Band, and it was an okay evening.
Then, as I said, Monday was a holiday, so I had it off. I spent most of the day working on clerical chores in my office. T-- and I watched some Get Smart, and I watched some Venture Brothers, and I played Rock Band with T-- and tried to teach AB how to drum, and it was a day that kind of just faded past, but pleasantly.
Then in the evening D-- brought us some Mazzios for dinner, and we watched Chuck and How I Met Your Mother and Heroes, and then I got to bed early, because I was exhausted.
That's my long weekend. Apart from the football, it was a good one.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Thursday night I went down to Norman to hang out with Toby and do some programming. He'd actually called me while I was driving up to Julie's wedding the weekend before to ask if I was free, and Thursday night was the earliest we could actually manage.
He's been working on a game all by his lonesome, and he took the opportunity to show me what he'd managed. I was impressed. I may join in, after the family writer's conference this weekend, if I can find a spare minute here or there. On the other hand, I might just renew my own solo programming project, because it's been nagging at me lately.
We wrapped up the programming talk around 9:30, and I realized with some surprise that even with the forty-five minute drive home, I was going to be getting in at a reasonable hour. So I suggested we watch an episode of a show he'd recently mentioned (Venture Brothers) and which I had checked out a year earlier but mostly skipped over. It was hilarious, so we watched three. Then we sat in the living room talking for another hour, and it was 11:40 when I finally left the house.
I was exhausted on the drive home, and dreading my early morning on Friday, and honestly not paying a ton of attention. I missed the exit that would have taken me west to Hefner Parkway, but I was able to just stick with Broadway Extension north to Hefner, and take that west to our house.
About a mile away from home, I drifted into the right lane anticipating my turn, then noticed as I did so that a cop had someone pulled over in that lane up ahead, so I drifted back into the left lane -- no hurry. A moment later, blue and red lights flashed in my rearview.
I pulled over, desperately hoping this guy wanted to go assist the stop up ahead, but no such luck. This eighteen-year-old walks up to my window and asks if I know why he pulled me over, and I perfectly honestly answered him, "No." He said I'd changed lanes without signaling (and at that late hour, I know that that had probably said to them, "drunk driver," especially since I immediately changed lanes back -- must have looked exactly like swerving).
So, okay, I caught a bad break. I wasn't driving drunk -- hadn't had a drink in a week -- so no big deal. Nobody's going to write me an actual ticket for failing to signal. Then I realize this fresh-faced kid has a superior riding along for training, and I realize it's probably going to happen after all. Second time in as many years I get pulled over by a cop in training. Last time I got stuck with a "10 miles or less over the speed limit" for driving 29 in a 25, and I have strictly observed the posted speed limit (no matter how stupid) ever since.
Anyway, by some strange turn of events I had an expired insurance card (another offense that caught me by surprise), and he generously wrote me a ticket on that instead of the lane change (which would have been a $172 fine). All I had to do for the insurance ticket was show proof of insurance at the court house and it would be dismissed.
So, after a thirty-minute stop, he finally let me go, and I drove extra-careful the half mile left to my house. I dropped my keys and citation on the kitchen table, stumbled to my room, and fell into bed with a mumbled account of the event to T-- (who was too asleep to care). It was after 1:30 by then.
Then, just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I hear a thunderous pounding on the front door, enough to send me sitting bolt upright. I said to T--, "Can you think of a single good reason for me to answer that?" I was thinking someone with a broken down car was looking for assistance, and I didn't want to open my house to a stranger at this time of night. I glanced out the window and saw a glowing tail light.
Then the doorbell rang, and I realized if I didn't answer the door, the bell would probably keep ringing until AB woke up screaming. Anyone who is willing to ring a doorbell at 1:30 in the morning is willing to do it repeatedly. About the same time, T-- was looking out the window and she said, "You know, I think that may be a cop car."
So I went to the front door, yanked it open, and found that same fresh-faced cop with an idiot grin on his face. He said, all embarrassed, "Y'know, I lied to you when I said your copy of the ticket was in the envelope. I forgot to give it to you." And he held it out to me, still grinning like this was the funniest thing in the world. At the end of the walk, by the corner of our garage, I saw his superior peeking around the corner, watching everything.
I took the slip, and closed the door. I turned the lock with a loud, "Thunk!" as my only sort of protest, and went back to bed. Ugh.
Then on Friday, even though it was my RDO, I went in for a few hours in the morning because of an irregularity with my timesheet (something to do with my travel hours the week before). Whatever. I got done around 11:00, but before that Toby called to tell me he had my laptop -- I had taken it in when I got to his house on Thursday, but never cracked the case, and forgot all about it.
So we met for lunch in Moore, at the Freddy's by the new Warren theater. We had a good lunch, then I headed home the same way I'd gone the night before, stopping this time at the Byron's to pick up some liquor for the evening's festivities.
Then I got home and spent a while negotiating with the State Farm website (and finally exchanging emails with my agent) to get a copy of my proof of insurance, so I could take care of the ticket. Even though it was a "Fix It" ticket, I had to take care of it within 48 hours or I'd have been stuck with $88 in court costs.
So I finally got the forms, printed them out, then drove downtown and found the courthouse, and by the time that was done it was 5-ish, so my day off was over and done. T-- was busy for the evening, taking AB to a pumpkin patch for pictures, so I had K-- and Jeff over for some Rock Band. We played with the music up loud until T-- got home around 9:00, then we turned it down to something reasonable and played on until after midnight.
Saturday morning we headed over to K-- and N--'s place at 11:00 for the OU/Texas game, grabbing some Taco Bell on the way. The game was fantastic. We lost, but the game was an incredible one. If I'd been able to believe the polls would treat OU fairly (which they did, by some miracle), I would have had a great time just watching a fierce contest. As it was, though, I was in a pretty bad mood to see the loss.
Then we spent the afternoon helping K-- and N-- rearrange the furniture in a couple rooms so they could set up a nursery. We accomplished a lot in a short time, and then N-- served us all some delicious chili by way of thanks.
T-- and I left right after supper, because AB was ready for bed. I was also expected Toby to come up and try out Rock Band, as we had arranged over lunch on Friday, but he had to cancel. That worked out okay, though, because on the drive home from K-- and N--'s, B-- called to ask if I wanted to come over and watch the guys from MST3K riff on 300. I called D-- to join me, and we went over to do that.
And, as I so often do at B--'s place, I drank heavily. The movie was hilarious, and we stayed up way, way too late afterward talking and enjoying each other's company. Then D-- drove me home, and I fell into bed around 3 in the morning. I didn't make it to church on Sunday.
I slept until noon, then took care of some chores during the early afternoon, and dedicated my later afternoon to watching a heartbreaking Cowboys game with a much more terrible aftermath than the OU loss. Romo is out for four weeks with a broken finger, and we've lost our (phenomenal) punter for the rest of the season. Also, our team looked terrible, so even without the injuries, it was a bad day.
We watched some Get Smart to lighten the mood, and played some Rock Band, and it was an okay evening.
Then, as I said, Monday was a holiday, so I had it off. I spent most of the day working on clerical chores in my office. T-- and I watched some Get Smart, and I watched some Venture Brothers, and I played Rock Band with T-- and tried to teach AB how to drum, and it was a day that kind of just faded past, but pleasantly.
Then in the evening D-- brought us some Mazzios for dinner, and we watched Chuck and How I Met Your Mother and Heroes, and then I got to bed early, because I was exhausted.
That's my long weekend. Apart from the football, it was a good one.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Journal Entry: October 9, 2008
Yesterday was Wednesday, so we met up with K-- and N-- and D-- for dinner, this time at Souper Salad!. I brought a burger from Freddy's.
It was a fun dinner, though, and afterward D-- and I went back to the house to play Rock Band while the rest went to church. They all came over afterward, too, and I showed off my changes to the office, then K-- joined us in some rocking. D-- went home around 9:30 and the other two went home around 10:00, I think, and then T-- wanted to watch something on TV so I put away the instruments.
Then I set to work ripping some old songs Brad and I had made off of an ancient cassette tape. The quality is terrible, but it's enough for D-- and me to remember how they went, because we sat through hours of playing and perfecting them.
I ripped the whole tape into a single WAV file, and now I've got the task of breaking it up into songs and doing what I can (with some relatively low-end software, and no technical expertise at all) to clean them up. The originals were never that strong, in terms of mixing, and the decade since has not been kind to my magnetic media.
Still, I spent some of this morning listening to the tracks I got, and the nostalgia aspect is near overwhelming. Those were some good times.
I also got to have lunch with K-- and N-- today. They met me at Buffalo Wild Wings for my regular Thursday lunch. It was awesome.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
It was a fun dinner, though, and afterward D-- and I went back to the house to play Rock Band while the rest went to church. They all came over afterward, too, and I showed off my changes to the office, then K-- joined us in some rocking. D-- went home around 9:30 and the other two went home around 10:00, I think, and then T-- wanted to watch something on TV so I put away the instruments.
Then I set to work ripping some old songs Brad and I had made off of an ancient cassette tape. The quality is terrible, but it's enough for D-- and me to remember how they went, because we sat through hours of playing and perfecting them.
I ripped the whole tape into a single WAV file, and now I've got the task of breaking it up into songs and doing what I can (with some relatively low-end software, and no technical expertise at all) to clean them up. The originals were never that strong, in terms of mixing, and the decade since has not been kind to my magnetic media.
Still, I spent some of this morning listening to the tracks I got, and the nostalgia aspect is near overwhelming. Those were some good times.
I also got to have lunch with K-- and N-- today. They met me at Buffalo Wild Wings for my regular Thursday lunch. It was awesome.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Journal Entry: October 8, 2008
Yesterday after work, T-- and I ran up to Wal-Mart to grab some stuff for the office. We got a small bookcase to go under the window, a new curtain (because I'd been using a bedsheet thrown over a curtain rod), and a power strip for her desk. Then I built the bookcase while T-- made dinner. After that, we just played with AB until her bedtime.
Then T-- and I went back to finish setting up the office. I got my old XBox hooked up so we could watch Get Smart while we worked. I scanned old documents and T-- set up her desk with all her crafting supplies. It was a pretty productive evening -- quiet, but pleasant.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Then T-- and I went back to finish setting up the office. I got my old XBox hooked up so we could watch Get Smart while we worked. I scanned old documents and T-- set up her desk with all her crafting supplies. It was a pretty productive evening -- quiet, but pleasant.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Journal Entry: October 7, 2008
Yesterday was wildly productive. I woke up early and painted (as I think I already mentioned), then went out to lunch with T-- and AB, and then when AB went down for a nap, instead of breaking out the game I went back to the office with T-- and started clearing books off shelves.
We're rearranging. Yesterday we moved two bookshelves into the bedroom, and threw away another one that had long been falling apart. Because of that, we also had to consolidate two bookshelves down into one, so the five remaining are all a lot more densely packed than they were before. The new setup leaves all the fiction in my office, basically, and everything else in our bedroom.
It also opened up room for T-- to move her crafting table back there, and for me to set up the Rock Band drums and hook them up to my computer with a drum kit program, so I can practice the drumming exercises in my book with realistic sound effects. Pretty cool.
Anyway, rearranging furniture took up most of the day. In the evening T-- picked up a pizza from Mazzio's and D-- came over to watch Heroes and How I Met Your Mother with us. Afterward he took the game home with him, because he's got plans with other friends tomorrow night. That's okay, I'll need another evening to finish setting up my office.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
We're rearranging. Yesterday we moved two bookshelves into the bedroom, and threw away another one that had long been falling apart. Because of that, we also had to consolidate two bookshelves down into one, so the five remaining are all a lot more densely packed than they were before. The new setup leaves all the fiction in my office, basically, and everything else in our bedroom.
It also opened up room for T-- to move her crafting table back there, and for me to set up the Rock Band drums and hook them up to my computer with a drum kit program, so I can practice the drumming exercises in my book with realistic sound effects. Pretty cool.
Anyway, rearranging furniture took up most of the day. In the evening T-- picked up a pizza from Mazzio's and D-- came over to watch Heroes and How I Met Your Mother with us. Afterward he took the game home with him, because he's got plans with other friends tomorrow night. That's okay, I'll need another evening to finish setting up my office.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Journal Entry: October 6, 2008
So, I normally don't post on my days off, but none of you knew today was going to be a day off for me, so I decided out of merciful kindheartedness to update after all.
Friday was my last day of classes in Chicago. There was one afternoon flight out of O'Hare to get me back to OKC on before Saturday, but it was so early in the day that class would have had to end ridiculously early for me to make the flight. I mean, hours and hours early. Classes usually end early on the last day, particularly when the last day is a Friday, but still -- it was extremely unlikely, so I booked my return flight for Saturday. Then I spent all day Friday hoping the class would end early enough for me to make it out, absurd or not.
Class ended exactly half an hour too late for me to make it out. Ugh.
While I was waiting to find that out, though, I checked out Digg at some point and found an article about the top 13 barbecue joints in the country. I clicked through them all, and one happened to be in Chicago. Not only that, but it happened to be within about ten miles of my hotel, so reasonable, even. I decided to check it out.
So about six o'clock I headed east. Went about a mile down, got on the interstate, and stopped. During rush hour, on a Friday, I was headed into Chicago proper. I hadn't really thought about it like that. So it took me a solid hour to go ten miles or so. Maybe fifteen. I also knew from the article about the place that it was takeout only, so I was pretty sure my food was going to be totally cold and inedible if I had to make an hour drive back to my hotel room to eat it.
Luckily that wasn't the case. I was able to find a parking spot not far from the restaurant, walked down to buy the food, walked back to my car and then made it back to my hotel room in less than fifteen minutes. Part of the difference was that rush hour had ended, but most of it was that I was heading out of town instead of into it.
Anyway, I spent most of the rest of the night eating the basket of ribs. It was phenomenal, and way too much food. Just damn delicious, though.
I chatted with D-- and Jeff, and watched most of Michael Clayton (which is basically this: imagine someone decided to do a remake of Pelican Brief except they wanted three incredibly awkward five-minute scenes, scattered throughout, where George Clooney drives around in a car making serious faces and not saying anything (or having anything said to him) -- that's Michael Clayton), and also got packed for my trip home.
Saturday morning I woke up at 6:00 so I could be at the car rental place two hours before my flight. That's what they requested, which seemed a little overboard to me, but I was at the mercy of their shuttle and I had no idea how often it ran, so I was there two hours early.
Turns out the shuttle runs every ten minutes, so I was at the airport an hour and forty-eight minutes early, which is a little more than the thirty minutes they recommend. So I got to spend some time reading. Between that time and the flight home I finally finished my French book (which I'll write more about in a separate post). The flight home was uneventful. Once again I got a row all to myself, so it was pretty comfortable, and I still adore direct flights.
D-- was waiting for me curbside, so I threw my bags in his trunk, and we headed straight to Wichita. We stopped at Pops for lunch, because D-- had never been and it was early enough in the day that we thought we could get seated quickly, so he thought it might be a good time to check it out. His analysis was the same as mine: not worth the hassle. I had a decent chili burger, he got an orange soda with a picture of an Indian chief on it, and then we headed north again.
I got to T--'s parents' place around 1:30, and selfishly roused AB from her nap because I'd missed her for a week, and then played with her and talked with the in-laws for a couple hours before we had to head to Topeka.
Julie's wedding was amazing. The setting was beautiful and elegantly decorated, the poetry reading in the middle of the ceremony was resplendent and transcendent at the same time, and two folks got hitched. Then the reception took place at an old train station that had been converted into a fancy hall for exactly that sort of purpose. They had a literary theme for everything (we were seated at the Neil Gaiman table, and went home with a couple books from the Topeka library as keepsakes). Instead of a groom's cake they had huge jars full of candy -- colorful and whimsical as decorations, but with little plastic baggies a la the candy story in the mall, for guests to take home. Awesome. Hot tamales and jelly bellies are so much better than cake (although apparently there was also a cake). Also: open bar. First wedding I've been to with one of those, and they were using Grey Goose for the vodka coctails. Hell yes.
So T-- drove us home.
We didn't get back to Wichita until after 1:00, and I absolutely crashed. Sunday morning I slept through church, then we had lunch at her parents house, and shortly after that we got our stuff packed up and headed home in time to catch the Cowboys game. We were about an hour late for kickoff, but thanks to the magic of TiVo, that wasn't a problem.
Except our TiVo apparently had reruns of Law and Order and King of the Hill set to higher priority than Cowboys games, so I did miss the first hour. Lame. Still, D-- got into town around 4:00 and he came over and we watched the last three quarters. It was an intense game, mostly in a bad way. Still, glad I got to see most of it. I've seen way too little football this year.
T-- grilled up some bacon-wrapped fillets for dinner, and after the game we played Rock Band until the wee hours (by which I mean 11-ish). I was exhausted, though, so I finally sent D-- home and went to bed.
Today I got to take off work on comp time for the hours I spent traveling to and fro. I slept in, then got up and finished the paint job on the garage. It looks good, but mostly it's just nice to have it done.
I don't have much planned for the rest of the day. Going to relax and enjoy being back with my family. Tomorrow, it's back to the old grind, but I'm really glad I got to take today off. I'm glad to be home, too. It's amazing how long one week can be.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Friday was my last day of classes in Chicago. There was one afternoon flight out of O'Hare to get me back to OKC on before Saturday, but it was so early in the day that class would have had to end ridiculously early for me to make the flight. I mean, hours and hours early. Classes usually end early on the last day, particularly when the last day is a Friday, but still -- it was extremely unlikely, so I booked my return flight for Saturday. Then I spent all day Friday hoping the class would end early enough for me to make it out, absurd or not.
Class ended exactly half an hour too late for me to make it out. Ugh.
While I was waiting to find that out, though, I checked out Digg at some point and found an article about the top 13 barbecue joints in the country. I clicked through them all, and one happened to be in Chicago. Not only that, but it happened to be within about ten miles of my hotel, so reasonable, even. I decided to check it out.
So about six o'clock I headed east. Went about a mile down, got on the interstate, and stopped. During rush hour, on a Friday, I was headed into Chicago proper. I hadn't really thought about it like that. So it took me a solid hour to go ten miles or so. Maybe fifteen. I also knew from the article about the place that it was takeout only, so I was pretty sure my food was going to be totally cold and inedible if I had to make an hour drive back to my hotel room to eat it.
Luckily that wasn't the case. I was able to find a parking spot not far from the restaurant, walked down to buy the food, walked back to my car and then made it back to my hotel room in less than fifteen minutes. Part of the difference was that rush hour had ended, but most of it was that I was heading out of town instead of into it.
Anyway, I spent most of the rest of the night eating the basket of ribs. It was phenomenal, and way too much food. Just damn delicious, though.
I chatted with D-- and Jeff, and watched most of Michael Clayton (which is basically this: imagine someone decided to do a remake of Pelican Brief except they wanted three incredibly awkward five-minute scenes, scattered throughout, where George Clooney drives around in a car making serious faces and not saying anything (or having anything said to him) -- that's Michael Clayton), and also got packed for my trip home.
Saturday morning I woke up at 6:00 so I could be at the car rental place two hours before my flight. That's what they requested, which seemed a little overboard to me, but I was at the mercy of their shuttle and I had no idea how often it ran, so I was there two hours early.
Turns out the shuttle runs every ten minutes, so I was at the airport an hour and forty-eight minutes early, which is a little more than the thirty minutes they recommend. So I got to spend some time reading. Between that time and the flight home I finally finished my French book (which I'll write more about in a separate post). The flight home was uneventful. Once again I got a row all to myself, so it was pretty comfortable, and I still adore direct flights.
D-- was waiting for me curbside, so I threw my bags in his trunk, and we headed straight to Wichita. We stopped at Pops for lunch, because D-- had never been and it was early enough in the day that we thought we could get seated quickly, so he thought it might be a good time to check it out. His analysis was the same as mine: not worth the hassle. I had a decent chili burger, he got an orange soda with a picture of an Indian chief on it, and then we headed north again.
I got to T--'s parents' place around 1:30, and selfishly roused AB from her nap because I'd missed her for a week, and then played with her and talked with the in-laws for a couple hours before we had to head to Topeka.
Julie's wedding was amazing. The setting was beautiful and elegantly decorated, the poetry reading in the middle of the ceremony was resplendent and transcendent at the same time, and two folks got hitched. Then the reception took place at an old train station that had been converted into a fancy hall for exactly that sort of purpose. They had a literary theme for everything (we were seated at the Neil Gaiman table, and went home with a couple books from the Topeka library as keepsakes). Instead of a groom's cake they had huge jars full of candy -- colorful and whimsical as decorations, but with little plastic baggies a la the candy story in the mall, for guests to take home. Awesome. Hot tamales and jelly bellies are so much better than cake (although apparently there was also a cake). Also: open bar. First wedding I've been to with one of those, and they were using Grey Goose for the vodka coctails. Hell yes.
So T-- drove us home.
We didn't get back to Wichita until after 1:00, and I absolutely crashed. Sunday morning I slept through church, then we had lunch at her parents house, and shortly after that we got our stuff packed up and headed home in time to catch the Cowboys game. We were about an hour late for kickoff, but thanks to the magic of TiVo, that wasn't a problem.
Except our TiVo apparently had reruns of Law and Order and King of the Hill set to higher priority than Cowboys games, so I did miss the first hour. Lame. Still, D-- got into town around 4:00 and he came over and we watched the last three quarters. It was an intense game, mostly in a bad way. Still, glad I got to see most of it. I've seen way too little football this year.
T-- grilled up some bacon-wrapped fillets for dinner, and after the game we played Rock Band until the wee hours (by which I mean 11-ish). I was exhausted, though, so I finally sent D-- home and went to bed.
Today I got to take off work on comp time for the hours I spent traveling to and fro. I slept in, then got up and finished the paint job on the garage. It looks good, but mostly it's just nice to have it done.
I don't have much planned for the rest of the day. Going to relax and enjoy being back with my family. Tomorrow, it's back to the old grind, but I'm really glad I got to take today off. I'm glad to be home, too. It's amazing how long one week can be.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Journal Entry: October 3, 2008
I tried to post this last night, because it was such a thing, but Blogger suddenly won't work on my laptop for some reason, so I'm just adding it to my journal entry, during class.
Anyway, Sunday when I first got in, as I mentioned, I drove up to a Target really close to my hotel, and found that it was closed. I didn't mention (because it didn't seem relevant, since I'm not a basketball fan) that right next to the Target was big-ass wedding cake-looking building that I first mistook for a huge mall, then for a double-huge movie theater (because it only had one entrance and no storefronts), and then finally discovered was the Chicago Allstate Arena.
It's about a five minute walk from my hotel, on my way to class, so I've passed it nearly every time I've left my hotel. Anyway, last night I ran out to grab some chicken for dinner, having decided not to do anything with my evening, and I got around the corner and ran into a huge traffic backup. I thought it must be an accident or something--
Okay, I'll cut to the chase because you guys are all too smart to sit through my narrative without guessing. It was the Weezer concert. The Weezer concert was a five minute walk from my hotel. DAMMIT! And I would have gone, then and there, to see if there were still tickets left (my guess is yes), but I'd just spent all my allowance money on a jacket that I'm only using for one more day.
So, yeah, took me forever to pick up my chicken.
I also skipped the gym last night, because my calves were really sore. I could have gone down just to do my shoulders, but I'll just do shoulders and biceps tonight before I run.
Anyway, journalwise, after class (which let out early, because we were way ahead of schedule), I ran up to the nearest Wal-Mart to grab a cheap jacket because it's been freezing up here (and, after all, I do need a new jacket). The nearest Wal-Mart is about a forty-minute drive from my hotel, but only about ten from my class, so I went straight there from class. I'd intended to do some comparative shopping, driving all the way back to the Target by my hotel and really hoping they had a better deal than I'd found at Wal-Mart, but I discovered a mall right by the Wal-Mart that consisted of Kohl's, Sears, and a Target (and one furniture store). That's pretty much my ideal setup for comparative shopping, so I looked around and picked up a $50 fleece jacket that ended up being $35. Coolio. I also got T-- a memento, because I hadn't yet.
I found a $12 hoodie that looked good enough, as soon as I walked into Target, but it was only midafternoon and my whole plan had been to kill some time, so I went ahead and did the shopping thing. Apart from blowing my Weezer money on a jacket I won't wear again between tomorrow and December, I'm happy with what I ended up getting.
Anyway. After that my little sister called and we talked for my whole drive back to the hotel (which probably wasn't wise, considering the near-miss with the train, but I made it back alive). Then I read for about an hour, ran out for the chicken, and came back to the hotel to watch School of Rock and play a video game. That was my whole night. Probably one of the best yet, mainly because School of Rock repeating is a lot better than Sex and the City coming on after Family Guy when you don't have the time to go searching for the remote.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Anyway, Sunday when I first got in, as I mentioned, I drove up to a Target really close to my hotel, and found that it was closed. I didn't mention (because it didn't seem relevant, since I'm not a basketball fan) that right next to the Target was big-ass wedding cake-looking building that I first mistook for a huge mall, then for a double-huge movie theater (because it only had one entrance and no storefronts), and then finally discovered was the Chicago Allstate Arena.
It's about a five minute walk from my hotel, on my way to class, so I've passed it nearly every time I've left my hotel. Anyway, last night I ran out to grab some chicken for dinner, having decided not to do anything with my evening, and I got around the corner and ran into a huge traffic backup. I thought it must be an accident or something--
Okay, I'll cut to the chase because you guys are all too smart to sit through my narrative without guessing. It was the Weezer concert. The Weezer concert was a five minute walk from my hotel. DAMMIT! And I would have gone, then and there, to see if there were still tickets left (my guess is yes), but I'd just spent all my allowance money on a jacket that I'm only using for one more day.
So, yeah, took me forever to pick up my chicken.
I also skipped the gym last night, because my calves were really sore. I could have gone down just to do my shoulders, but I'll just do shoulders and biceps tonight before I run.
Anyway, journalwise, after class (which let out early, because we were way ahead of schedule), I ran up to the nearest Wal-Mart to grab a cheap jacket because it's been freezing up here (and, after all, I do need a new jacket). The nearest Wal-Mart is about a forty-minute drive from my hotel, but only about ten from my class, so I went straight there from class. I'd intended to do some comparative shopping, driving all the way back to the Target by my hotel and really hoping they had a better deal than I'd found at Wal-Mart, but I discovered a mall right by the Wal-Mart that consisted of Kohl's, Sears, and a Target (and one furniture store). That's pretty much my ideal setup for comparative shopping, so I looked around and picked up a $50 fleece jacket that ended up being $35. Coolio. I also got T-- a memento, because I hadn't yet.
I found a $12 hoodie that looked good enough, as soon as I walked into Target, but it was only midafternoon and my whole plan had been to kill some time, so I went ahead and did the shopping thing. Apart from blowing my Weezer money on a jacket I won't wear again between tomorrow and December, I'm happy with what I ended up getting.
Anyway. After that my little sister called and we talked for my whole drive back to the hotel (which probably wasn't wise, considering the near-miss with the train, but I made it back alive). Then I read for about an hour, ran out for the chicken, and came back to the hotel to watch School of Rock and play a video game. That was my whole night. Probably one of the best yet, mainly because School of Rock repeating is a lot better than Sex and the City coming on after Family Guy when you don't have the time to go searching for the remote.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Journal Entry: October 2, 2008
Yesterday was the last day of our Intro class, so we got out a little early. I went back to the hotel, spent 40 minutes in the gym (where I worked biceps and added a minute to my running time), and then stayed in my hotel room for the whole night. I had leftover pizza for dinner (still not stunning, but already paid for), watched some King of the Hill and A Knight's Tale (twice in a row, because that's how TNT rolls), and tried to play some single player Civ.
It was supposed to be multiplayer, but D-- recently rebuilt his computer and forgot to reinstall, so it was just me. Not so much fun (and, by extension, it only killed an hour), so I switched back to Spore and, as I said, sat through two airings of the same movie.
I brought a lot of work to do while I'm here -- some business, some personal -- and I'm doing the business part as soon as I get done with class every day, incorporating what I learned into the project I'm doing on deadline. As soon as I finish that, though, I veg for the rest of the night. I have no motivation at all to do anything useful with my evenings (apart from the gym, and that's a horrific battle in my mind every time I make myself go). It's a shame, because I have more time available to be productive than I could normally find in a month, but I'm just not doing anything.
And that's that. I did talk with T-- and D-- last night, and on Tuesday I talked with B-- for ten minutes or so, too. Anyway, it's weird living alone out of a hotel room for a week at a time. I've tried my hardest to arrange a Friday flight out (and tried to get to Wichita, to save me a drive), but it's just not an option. Bah.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
It was supposed to be multiplayer, but D-- recently rebuilt his computer and forgot to reinstall, so it was just me. Not so much fun (and, by extension, it only killed an hour), so I switched back to Spore and, as I said, sat through two airings of the same movie.
I brought a lot of work to do while I'm here -- some business, some personal -- and I'm doing the business part as soon as I get done with class every day, incorporating what I learned into the project I'm doing on deadline. As soon as I finish that, though, I veg for the rest of the night. I have no motivation at all to do anything useful with my evenings (apart from the gym, and that's a horrific battle in my mind every time I make myself go). It's a shame, because I have more time available to be productive than I could normally find in a month, but I'm just not doing anything.
And that's that. I did talk with T-- and D-- last night, and on Tuesday I talked with B-- for ten minutes or so, too. Anyway, it's weird living alone out of a hotel room for a week at a time. I've tried my hardest to arrange a Friday flight out (and tried to get to Wichita, to save me a drive), but it's just not an option. Bah.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Events
So, every time I get in the car, I hear a DJ pointing out that there are still tickets available for the Weezer concert tomorrow night.....
Now that could be a way to kill a couple hours.
Now that could be a way to kill a couple hours.
Journal Entry: October 1, 2008
So, immediately after I posted yesterday, I made myself into a liar. I went out to the car for lunch, amazingly found myself with a solid GPS signal, so I checked on nearby restaurants and found a Buffalo Wild Wings about four miles away. The GPS said it would take about 8 minutes to get there. Between traffic issues and Lowrance just lying to me (and, yes, me missing one turn and having to double back), it took twenty minutes to get there.
That's okay. We have an hour for lunch, and I was pretty confident I could get back in about 15 minutes. That only left 25 minutes for lunch, but I go to BWW in OKC all the time, and I can usually place an order within 5 minutes, and get my food at the table 2 or 3 minutes later (yes, really -- it's just lunch).
Not so much in Chicago. I got in and was seated, and fifteen minutes later somebody came to take my order. I should have left, but I knew it wouldn't take any time at all for them to shake 8 boneless wings in Hot Barbecue sauce and bring the basket to my table. Again, not so much in Chicago. I waited 15 minutes before someone brought my wings. It took me 10 minutes or so to eat, and then 20 minutes to get back to class, so I was all kinds of late.
So, yeah, I should have stuck with Subway. I'll probably grab some more boneless wings for dinner Thursday night, and just take them back to the hotel, but I'm definitely not going back for lunch. I appreciate my OKC branch a lot more now, too.
After class, I went back to the gym again and added a minute of running to my workout. Then I cleaned up, and went down to the front desk to ask where I could find a good Chicago style pizza to try. They have a deal with a local pizzeria that delivers to the hotel, so I took advantage of that. It was pretty okay, but probably not worth the cost. I should have just gotten some Pizza Hut.
Oh! I'd been saying all last week that I would head into Chicago proper on Tuesday night, do the tourist thing, and if I had a good enough time, I could go back later in the week. I spent all day yesterday thinking about it, though, and just decided I wouldn't have any fun at all going into town all by myself. T-- and I are planning on coming here for a vacation next spring, and I know I would have a better time just waiting for that, so there you go.
So, instead of going into town, I spent another evening watching Psych and playing Spore. I did a better job getting to bed at a decent hour (11:00 instead of midnight), but I never fell asleep so I finally turned on the TV and found a new Chris Rock special on HBO, which was good enough that I stayed up until 1:30 watching it.
So, yeah, I'm dragging today. It's the last day of the Intro class, though, so we'll probably get out a little early, and maybe after all this I'll be tired enough to fall asleep tonight. We'll see.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
That's okay. We have an hour for lunch, and I was pretty confident I could get back in about 15 minutes. That only left 25 minutes for lunch, but I go to BWW in OKC all the time, and I can usually place an order within 5 minutes, and get my food at the table 2 or 3 minutes later (yes, really -- it's just lunch).
Not so much in Chicago. I got in and was seated, and fifteen minutes later somebody came to take my order. I should have left, but I knew it wouldn't take any time at all for them to shake 8 boneless wings in Hot Barbecue sauce and bring the basket to my table. Again, not so much in Chicago. I waited 15 minutes before someone brought my wings. It took me 10 minutes or so to eat, and then 20 minutes to get back to class, so I was all kinds of late.
So, yeah, I should have stuck with Subway. I'll probably grab some more boneless wings for dinner Thursday night, and just take them back to the hotel, but I'm definitely not going back for lunch. I appreciate my OKC branch a lot more now, too.
After class, I went back to the gym again and added a minute of running to my workout. Then I cleaned up, and went down to the front desk to ask where I could find a good Chicago style pizza to try. They have a deal with a local pizzeria that delivers to the hotel, so I took advantage of that. It was pretty okay, but probably not worth the cost. I should have just gotten some Pizza Hut.
Oh! I'd been saying all last week that I would head into Chicago proper on Tuesday night, do the tourist thing, and if I had a good enough time, I could go back later in the week. I spent all day yesterday thinking about it, though, and just decided I wouldn't have any fun at all going into town all by myself. T-- and I are planning on coming here for a vacation next spring, and I know I would have a better time just waiting for that, so there you go.
So, instead of going into town, I spent another evening watching Psych and playing Spore. I did a better job getting to bed at a decent hour (11:00 instead of midnight), but I never fell asleep so I finally turned on the TV and found a new Chris Rock special on HBO, which was good enough that I stayed up until 1:30 watching it.
So, yeah, I'm dragging today. It's the last day of the Intro class, though, so we'll probably get out a little early, and maybe after all this I'll be tired enough to fall asleep tonight. We'll see.
Other than that, it's just things and stuff.
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