I haven't stopped writing while I'm out here, I've just been trying to capture so much of the detail that I can't get everything edited in time to get it out on the same day. New stuff will be up here soon, I promise.

No Comments | #6811

Placeholder for an end of year 2008 retrospective, which is in process (honest).

No Comments | #6810

Woke up at 8:30 ICT this morning and joined my family. Between the sleep that I got in my "short nap" from 20:00 to a little before midnight and the sleep I got between 5:30 and then I was fairly alert. I immediately reinforced it with two treats of sticky rice around a banana piece mixed with beans and cooked in a banana leaf, and half of a Thai Red Bull.

Cindy pulled out her new poi and we proceeded to eat and practice poi lessons for a while while our parents took pictures of us in front. I took a nice shower and shaved and did what I could to diagnose Cindy's iPod shuffle issues and unload my camera cards (always a geek!)

While we got ready I started to consider some of the things that are different about life here. There's a small sprayer like the kind you would find on a kitchen sink installed next to the toilet which serves as a sort of utilitarian bidet attachment. All of the outlets here in the resort are dual use Asian and US plugs, and the only difference is that its 50 htz and 220 volts, so any dual use power adapter will work. Driving on the left side of the street and the metric system already feel perfectly natural after only a few hours (but I'm a big fan of metric for everything but temperature anyway).

My biggest realization is how easy it is to be a U.S. citizen (or at the very least an English speaker) in Thailand and in comparison how difficult it would be to be a Thai in the United States. Almost everything here including the road signs is written in both Thai script with English translations. The only thing I've encountered so far without English on it is the bottle of Thai Red Bull. When I called into my cell phone provider here, the only other language besides Thai was "press 1 for English." You're unlikely to find such courtesy back home.

Some things are very similar too, like the fact that the radio towers follow the same red and white coding for emergency services and neutral or gray colors for commercial only. I wonder if its an international thing? I'm slightly disappointed that it's such a hassle to get a reciprocal ham radio license to operate from inside Thailand, but I don't know how likely it would be to find an amateur radio repeater in Pak Chong anyway.

On the way in to the park we stopped by the spirit temple for the spirit of Khao Yai, which is the spirit of the both the mountain and the park. It's said that he likes noise so as folks drive past the temple on the road they honk their horn three times in appreciation of him. The temple is surrounded by hundreds of elephants, zebras, horses, deer, and what my sister calls "those Chinese lion-dragon things." Monkeys are not included in the display around the spirit house because the locals consider monkeys a nuisance. And really, wouldn't you rather have an elephant and a lion-dragon defending you than a tiny little Macaque?

I was reluctant to go in because I don't really know the customs, but people appeared to be purchasing incense and flowers to burn and hang inside, and spending a few moments on their knees with their shoes off. Every few minutes a woman from the little stand outside that was selling the incense and flowers (my sister said it was for donations, but it wasn't obvious) would go inside the spirit house, collect all the flower wreaths and bring them back out to her stand. We took a couple of pictures and on our way back down the steps one of the locals said something about the "bpaa farang" which my sister says means "crazy foriegner" but could also have been "baa farang" which means "forest foriegner." I'm betting they weren't complimenting our ability to be both foriegn and in the forest.

About 12:00 ICT my stomach got a little upset but it turned out to be just from hunger and carsickness. It got worse from all the typing I was doing in the car on the way up the mountain (for you, my faithful readers), but my mother blamed the half a Thai Red Bull I had that morning. We wandered around to find food but the restaurant by the campsite was not serving any fresh food, so we stopped at a convenience store and picked up a bunch of snacks, like bugles made out of rice grain, a marble cake with chocolate in the middle, and a small packet of sugar wafers. A few minutes of no motion and a bag of rice bugles and I was feeling ready for the hike again. On the way through the campsite my sister pointed out a tall tree that stuck up above the surrounding foliage. "I hate those trees," she said. "One monkey will climb up where I can't see him and a few minutes later five monkeys will climb down and they're all different monkeys."

The trip to this waterfall was a little less of an exertion than the one yesterday with 170 stairs. We started at the top and made our way down level by level to the bottom. This is the waterfall where they filmed "The Beach." I've not seen the movie but the rest of it was actually filmed in Phuket where we'll be going so I'll probably want to see it when I get back. There weren't a ton of people on the top, maybe a dozen or so, but there were a few dozen folks sunning and chatting and taking pictures on the rocks at the base where the view was much nicer. At the top we took some pictures of the cracks and crevices where the flowing water made its way down the rock face and were amused by the hundreds of fish congregating in pools.

Cindy spotted a cave that was a fair walk away over a bunch of large rocks and we made our way over together. The outcropping and cave itself was pretty spectacular, and if the water had been just an inch higher we would have never been able to hop the last six rocks to bring us into the enterance. We hung out there and got more pictures of the falls and cliffs and each other from interesting angles before walking back to meet mom and dad and head back up the stairs to the trail.

We went to a place to eat and there were a few butterflies flying around. My family has taken some amusement at my chasing after butterflies for pictures, and my mom held our her finger and waited until one landed on it and sat for a minute while I got some neat pictures. We didn't eat there because the food seemed a little sketchy and there was no visible preparation area, which meant it had probably been sitting out in the containers all morning.

We made our way back to the first set of food stands we had been at for lunch yesterday. I ordered some curry chicken with these weird peas and rice. My sister bought two coconuts for us to drink the juice. I had some but was still a little queasy from my earlier back of eating. I ran out of water again and had to borrow some from my father to stay hydrated. Lesson learned for today: Always carry two Nalgene bottles, or at least 2 liters of water around. We stopped at the gift shop on our way out and splurged on Khao Yai souveniers.

By 15:30 ICT we were in the parking lot headed to the trail to the lookout. The whole way along was filled with beautiful wide open spaces and tall grasses. Mom kept making elephant noises hoping to see one before we left the park. We didn't see any, although there were a bunch of spaces where the grass had been tamped down by elephants recently. We really didn't see any wildlife except a few black and white hornbills in the far distance. Cindy gave us some sound advice for if we did encounter an elephant: "Run. If you run away they're not going to consider you a threat." We asked her what would happen if they were just intent on ruining our day. "Well, then you're screwed." We didn't see any elephants.

Our timing was perfect to make our way to the "bat cave" by dusk. We had trouble finding how to get to the trail to the enterance but parked from the road about 150 meters below a hole in the cliffs above. At a few minutes before 18:00 ICT we watched as thousands and thousands of bats exit in what looked like a undulating tube out of the cave and into the evening sky. Even from all that distance away the sound and sight they made was pretty impressive.

We stopped by the roadside stand for some chicken (and the convenience store for more beer). We got back a few minutes after 18:00, and after all the running and climbing and hiking I crashed in bed before dinner was even started. Sometime around 19:00 Cindy left food on my bed, which I moved to my nightstand until I was fully awake around midnight. I checked my e-mail, logged in to work to make sure that I could, and chatted with all the folks who were up and around on IM and facebook until about 4:30 when I crashed again until sunrise.

1 Comments | #6809

I'm writing this right now from in Pak Chong, Thailand with my family at the resort where my sister Cindy stays while she works on her PhD. It's about a 90 minute drive from Bangkok, which we did late last night (more on that later). It's 23:20 ICT and there's a cowboy festival going on about half a block away from the resort. There's loud Thai country music and occasional fireworks. And by that I mean American-style country music, slightly modified, and sung in Thai. Since I'm about as jet-lagged as I've ever been today, I don't mind finally being able to take the time to update everyone on my trip.

This morning around 11:30 ICT the rest of my family was up and deciding to talk a walk around the resort and the local area just as I stumbled out of bed. I decide to stick around the house and get ready, using the time that they're out to organize my things, take a nice shower, enjoy a cup of tea and make sure I have all my camera gear ready for the day. On a hunch I decide to try my cell phone again, this time with a manual network selection and the SIM card from Cindy. The local carrier DTAC shows right up on the display and finally my eight year old international cell phone becomes useful again. My family arrives back a few minutes later, I fill my Nalgene bottle up from the ten gallon treated water bottles around the house (no need to tempt fate by drinking out of a tap), and we set off on our first official family adventure.

Around 13:00 ICT we were in the national park where Cindy works. It was over 1200 bhat just to get inside the park, but well worth it. Cindy has a pass that lets her get in as a researcher every day that she had to work. On the way in we pass another spirit house, this one meant to honor the spirits displaced by the creation of the entire park. It's quite large and according to my sister, filled with enough burning incense to keep her away. There are carved animals of all sorts on the stairway leading up to the building. I'd like to stop but Cindy has just made contact with her assistant Tanja, who tells us that the group of monkeys she is following is very close to the road and the trail. If we hurry we will be able to see them without going into the more difficult parts of the forest.

Driving up the side of the mountain we saw our first Macaques. I also learned during this drive that there's no mating season for Macaques short of when there's a food or resource shortage. Females can and do conceive at any time. I mention that it doesn't seem to humid outside and my sister reminds me that we are actually in Thailand's dry season. It's almost at the end, so it's raining once every two weeks or so. On the way up the mountain we see easily 50 Macaques of various shapes and sizes. By the time we return from our hike on the trails we will have seen hundreds of them. The group that Cindy follows for her doctorate research contains over 100 members, and is one of many dozens of groups that roam the park.

We arrive at the visitors center around 13:30 ICT, and we are at about 750 meters above where we started. I'm starving since the last meal I had was on the Cathay Pacific flight about 2220 ICT. We walk over to five covered pavilions where the most delicious looking food is being served. Cindy gets some sort of spicy noodle soup and my mother and I get a delicious bowl of rice, finger, wood-ear mushrooms, cabbage, and chicken. And wow is it spicy! All I could do was scribble in my notebook "Holy crap that was spicy." One spoon of Cindy's as a sample proved it to be about 3 times as spicy as mine, and mine was at the level of the Drunken Noodle dish I get at Thai Heaven in Catonsville -- which is about the spiciest thing on her menu! I realize I have a little readjustment to do in terms of my diet this weekend. I brought a small stack of TUMS, but optimistically only about a dozen. No way that's going to last.

After lunch we climb the road a little to an area of guest cabins inside of the park. As we walk up the road we encounter a huge tame deer laying off to the side (which Cindy proceeds to pet for photographs), are startled by the sounds of a giant black squirrel jumping through the branches above. A minute later spot the first three Macaques we've seen outside of the car, making short work of a brimming-over trash can. We wander the trails for the next hour, stopping to photograph every adorable monkey (and some not so adorable but still pretty awesome). My sister is able to identify all of them we encounter by name, which is an amazing feat because (and not to be specieist here) the best I could tell them apart was "tiny baby monkey," "larger baby monkey," and "damn, that's a big monkey." Some of the younger ones aren't old enough to name, and she recognizes them too.

Back to the visitor center, we peruse the gift shop and look over the exhibits which include deer skeletons and a stuffed (formerly alive) tiger that had made a lunch of a small child and done some unhealthy damage to a park ranger and had to be killed. As we prepared to leave, my sister pointed out a Banded Krait (snake) in a jar and referred to it as a "two step snake." She was obviously looking forward to this punchline as I became educated that after a bite from a Banded Krait that's how many steps you get before you die. My sister is cruel to me. Needless to say, I was inspired to photograph it for future identification.

In the parking lot we meet up with Tanja in person again (me for the second time, my parents for the first) and head out to the Haew narok waterfall. My sister is delighted to be driving in a car with shocks. I don't understand exactly the source of her mirth because I have not experienced the joy of sitting in the bed of "Big M," the large, old, manual project pickup truck she drives every other time. This comes later.

By 15:35 we're at the trail-head on the way down to the falls. My sister thinks the falls are about 100 meters tall, and I believe it. Unfortunately we start at about 30 meters above the level of the stream that feeds the falls, and descend the 100 meter distance by way of hundreds of steps and sloping trail. The way down is no big deal, and my practice for the Baltimore Police physical agility test and my weird habit of climbing all 9 floors of steps back to my cubicle from the deli in the basement of the building three times a day have prepared me for this. My parents are not so lucky. Mom is a little anxious about the steepness of the steps heading down, and my father is already winded from the kilometer on the trail by the time we get down to the falls. We spend about ten minutes admiring the falls and photographing each other in various happy poses and permutations, and start to head back up.

I thank all my burner friends for teaching me the value of water as I've gone through almost the entire liter of water I had filled only three and a half hours earlier. Some was used to quell the spice of the chicken and rice, but most has been used to replace the sweat soaking into my cap and money belt (eew). With a little patience and rest at each flat area between staircases, all five of us make it safely back to the fairly level area and to the trail-head by 16:45. I take a picture of dad's smiling but exhausted face to the backdrop of the top of the waterfalls and keep a relaxed pace with him as we walk, noticing a fair amount of elephant footprints along the way. The elephants become active (and more aggressive) between 17:00 and 06:00 in the morning that the entrance to the waterfall is closed during that time to allow them to tromp about unimpeded. We were all okay with that.

On the way back down the mountain it occurs to me that the monkeys in the roadway don't bother moving from the cars passing by until the last possible moment. It would freak me out but my sister just drives slowly right towards them. It occurs to me that I haven't seen a single Macaque as roadkill, and realize its just another pedestrian vs. driver game like driving around NYC. The Macaques are smart enough to time their movements with a sort of lazy nonchalance. We hit a viewpoint along the way with such amazing and layer natural beauty that none of our cameras could do the slightest bit of justice to it. Eight layers of mountain ranges that a lens simply can't portray the way it was in real life. In a way, its nice to know there are a few things that still can't be adequately reproduced. We savored the sight for a good ten minutes as the sun was setting over the mountains behind us. The lighting of the entire scene changed every 15 seconds as the last rays of light faded behind the rocks and the sea of colors all converged on a muted dark green.

I decide to check on my passport which had been sitting in my money belt under my pants for 4 hours of almost non-stop hiking in the 78 degree weather. It was literally soaked. "Oh, I always keep mine in a plastic bag so it doesn't get all nasty," my sister says cheerfully from the driver's seat. I'm happy she points this out now that "nasty" is about the most generous description I can give to this soaked and wilted document, only the most important one I'm carrying. One of many travel lessons I'm sure to continue to learn over the course of this trip.

We're all beat, and thinking only about food and alcoholic refreshment. Well that's inexact. I'm hungry and my father has been talking about his desire for a cold beer with an almost palpable longing. My sister asks me if I'd finally like to change out one of the 1000 baht bills I got from the ATM earlier that day, and I agree to go with her to the store to pick up a few beers and a large phone card so I can get GPRS service through my own phone instead of mooching off of her minutes to post photos. I buy 300 baht, more than enough to cover a 20 hour Internet package. Later that evening Cindy tells me she needs to learn the Thai word for "family." I ask her why and she says, "I'm pretty convinced that the shop lady thought you were my boyfriend." Funny stuff.

After a little milling around, we decide to go to the "Night Market" which is a nighttime flea market selling all manner of things. I'm hungry but I'm told there are snack-type things you can get there, so I'm convinced. We hop into "Big M," my dad and sister in the front seat as they've been on almost every drive, and my mother, me and Tanja in the pickup bed. Mom and I are laughing as we take pictures of each other and shout "yee haw" on the way past the cowboy festival on the main road. It's dark already at 18:20 ICT, and even though a bump or accident could leave me a skid mark on the road, I don't care. This is the most fun I've had in a while just getting there. The market is pretty amazing too. There's people selling clothes of all sorts, rabbits, gerbils, beta fish in narrow mouthed bottles (I'm still confused how some of those fish got into those bottles), BB guns, knives, brass knuckles, holsters, cell phones, car repair equipment, fried vegetables, fried fruits, fried insects, raw meat, and hundreds of table feet of audio gear and electronics. I enjoy some fried banana, but skip by the insects on my sister's advice.

Back at the house around 19:00 ITC my father and I share a 650 ml bottle of Archa Beer and go through our hundreds of pictures from the day. He's only had a week or two to play around with his new camera and he's absolutely delighted by it. Cindy and mom head across the street to get some carry out tofu paneng, coconut soup and a chicken pad Thai. As the food arrives, my body decides it has had enough of the day for a little while and I chase down as many bites of this super spicy (and quite delicious) paneng before popping a handful of TUMS and heading off for a "quick nap." Four hours later here I am blogging away, thinking about all my friends who have probably finished their lunch, and wondering what tomorrow will bring.

3 Comments | #6808

Travel from Baltimore to Pak Chong, Thailand in 30 hours.

No Comments | #6807

I try not to cause trouble, even though I inadvertently do.

I'm starting to realize for many inactions there is an proportionate and opposite reaction. When did my life turn the corner that status quo could be more perilous than sweeping change and Machiavellian self-interest? Why can't every problem be solved by whispering into the right ears anymore?

Sure I'm happy with my new insight into the emotions of others, but it's a little overwhelming. Can I have a little less uncertainty and a little more courage? Where is that old curmudgeonly charm I used to wield like a sharp cauter, slicing problems into bloodless bits? Where's that cold untouchable heart with its selfish bent but generous disposition? It never left hard feelings for long.

I want to be content and fix things around me, but when I shift my feet to a new position my clumsy balance just leaves more broken behind me. Can I fade into the background again just for a little while? I don't need to be the center of attention. I can do just fine from back here in the corner. It's not that complicated. Right?

No Comments | #6806

Woke up late with my DSL down. Rushed out to the car and checked my e-mail to see if there was any scheduled service. My inbox was filled with a series of subject lines of variations of "Yoour account was blocked." None of these had anything to do with my DSL situation, but any of them could have, so I had to navigate my way through a dozen spam messages on the road just to find out they were all just that. Got to work and the connection seemed to have come back to life without any help.

Serious allergies today, had to take a Claritin just to try to get to sleep, and so far its not working as well as I hoped it would.

No Comments | #6805

This evening I have in my grubby little hands a copy of Twilight and the Practical Antenna Handbook (4th Edition) from the county library.

My office is a spectacular mess, there's no actual floor space in my bedroom not covered in laundry, the kitchen sink is entirely full and I could very much use a nap.

I think I will do the nap thing first, then chores until ten and see what the rest of the night brings. That's how I roll.

1 Comments | #6804

Parkville gun show, followed by an hour of shooting, some chores, lunch/dinner at Nam King with Elissa, bills, inbox reduction, and more chores. Now sleep.

No Comments | #6803

Red and Black ball at 2640 which was made of awesome, quick stop at The Depot and Metro Gallery before making it home around 3am.

No Comments | #6802

Unsilent Night revelry, followed by crepes, the smell of popcorn, a Malepesto at Red Emma's, and karaoke at Cafe Hon with Tanza and the crew.

No Comments | #6801

Movie night at Dave and Rachel's with Elissa. Great movie, great TV, mediocre Rock Band performance on my part.

No Comments | #6800

As I pulled out of the office park onto Red Run Blvd. this evening there was a pedestrian walking along the right curb before the exit ramp to I-795. I gave her about three feet of space by shifting to the left in my lane. The driver behind me decided that I was switching lanes in spite of my lack of a turn signal. Unaware of the pedestrian, the driver began to accelerate to cut in behind me and get to the exit ramp a few seconds faster. When I shifted back into the lines, they honked their horn, flashed their lights, and crawled up my bumper to show me who was boss.

When we got on the ramp the driver roared around me on the left while honking their horn and flying me the bird. Suddenly, I snapped. I was absolutely astonished at their militant ignorance to the pedestrian walking and their assumption that I had made a stupid move and got in their way. I dropped my tiny little four-banger into third gear and floored my way up the ramp behind the asshole's beefy hatchback, engine screaming in protest. The ramp narrowed to a single lane and the driver was now stuck slowing behind another car. I left at least a beer can's space between my bumper and theirs (for safety) with a devilish smile on my face.

As the left lane onto the expressway opened up, I weaved my way around their bumper by the space of a few inches, boxed their car in the entrance ramp with our respective side view mirrors nearly touching. I looked in the driver's side window with a big smile, crazy eyes, and gave them hearty wave hello. Having caught a sufficient glance at their terrified expression, I dumped into second gear and dropped 15 mph off my speed in a few seconds leaving the hatchback to shoot out of view and disappear into the night.

1 Comments | #6799

How writers, artists, and other interesting people organize their days.

Follow link to Daily Routines
No Comments | #6798

I am relaxed. I am content.

I just finished up a half an hour in quiet contemplation in an upstairs room empty except for a cushion and a single candle. An ambulance siren may have cut through the air once or twice, but otherwise the occasional sounds of the suburb were kind enough to not intrude on my thoughts.

In the midst of this attempt to focus and center myself, it occurred to me that if I could go back in time and change anything about the path of my childhood, I would teach myself how to dedicate my focus to a single task. Even today after all the work I've done to structure my life and medicate my anxiety, I feel like I constantly short-change myself and others with my ability to live up to their expectations of productivity for the work that I do and the level of employment I find myself in.

Every three months at my new job, employees are invited to a "coaching session" with their direct supervisor. Curious about this process, I downloaded the sheet that I'll be asked to fill out prior to that session. One section includes my "disappointments," the things I set out to do and couldn't. Already this evening I knew one of the bullet points, that in spite of a fresh start at a new job I fell back on my old habits of retreating into silence and avoiding my supervisor when I am behind on my work or frustrated with my inability to concentrate and produce. I scribbled Retreat and Avoid next to the bullet point on my sheet.

I thought about this some more while waiting for the elevator at the end of the day. How could I rephrase this in a more positive way? What specific part of my day would indicate that I had conquered this specific shortcoming? The answer came quickly and I jotted it into my notebook while a fellow rider looked on with bemusement. To not be embarrassed to say good night to my boss at the end of the work day.

The first week at my new job was good: I had the energy to sustain the things that I needed and interesting new projects that were a joy to explore. At the end of the evening I was tired but proud of what I had created and the interactions that I had with everyone in the office. I was confident that my level of output was commensurate with what was expected, and went home happy and content. Then the second week hit, and things started to slip. I fell behind and was presented with an old project of mine that has long passed the point of interest or novelty.

At the end of the day I am exhausted, yet I feel like I haven't done enough. I am embarrassed and self-conscious when my supervisors and co-workers pass by and I realize I have been caught up in my own thoughts for minutes, or seeking out distraction in a form that has no bearing on the task at hand. I am my biggest critic, and the perfectionist on what I do. It's a huge kick in the pants to put forth my 100% and hit what feels like the 70% mark against everyone else.

My only saving grace, if I can even call it that, is that I don't have a laptop or remote access to the office until my first three months have passed. Even if I wanted to allow work to intrude into my personal life after I've put in my eight weekday hours (and change) in a desk chair, I can't. Any improvement or catch-up that I do has to be by way of personal betterment outside of the office that prepares me for the eight hours of quiet productivity I need.

Only, where do I begin? Books like Getting Things Done and Time Management for System Administrators and even Scattered Minds only go so far towards helping me maintain that focus and productivity I know I need to maintain. A thousand "tips" aren't going to help me find my way, and brute force intellect isn't going to either -- not that it ever did in any sustainable and helpful way. Somewhere at their intersection is the place I need to be to get my work done on time, but I'm confused as to where to find that.

I wish the answer weren't still such a mystery, but at least the question has become more clearly defined.

As always, advice is welcome and appreciated.

1 Comments | #6797

It's really not fair that I have had "one of those days" for four workdays in a row. An old project is haunting me in the new job, and making me revert to old (bad) habits. I'm trying to do my best at the new place but this project is just so demoralizing.

Replied to a Facebook status written in verse with a poem of my own this morning, and now I have the limerick cadence stuck in my head. No words, just the 9-9-5-5-9 beat. Over and over.

Regular meditation or new non-technical relaxing hobby is about to become a critical necessity in my life. I'm building up so much pressure during the day I'm going to burst if I don't find an outlet for it.

I wanted to wear all neon to work today. I'm having a surreality decompression from this weekend. I wish I owned more fluorescent clothing. Maybe I'll remedy that tonight.

As of this morning I was under 140 lbs and slouching while I walk again. I need to jump-start my weight building and exercise routine stat! Stress is no good for my fragile metabolism. If I drop below 135 I'm going to figure out how to prepare five meals a day in advance every day.

No Comments | #6796

Spent most of the day in bed recuperating from Santarchy in DC, and being loved on by a kitten. She must believe that any day I spend entirely napping in bed with her with the space heater on is like winning the kitten lottery.

No Comments | #6795

Santarchy!

No Comments | #6794

Introduced Ben to the art of pistol shooting this evening. Yet another friend that I bring to the range who can nearly out-shoot me on their first day. Had every meal around people today. It's nice to be out and social.

No Comments | #6793

The kitten chewed through the cable of my Apple MagSafe power supply, so now I have a new, smaller MagSafe power supply, and $83.74 less in my bank account.

No Comments | #6792

Not a bad day overall.

No Comments | #6791

I had high hopes for today, I really did. Unfortunately somehow I just couldn't get my brain jump-started this morning and wound up struggling to just keep up a decent pace to not embarrass myself at the new job.

I bought a 2009 daily planner at the store today, which reminds me in a big way that 2009 is just around the corner. Where the heck did this year go? Just this July I got the kitten, and now she'll be almost six months old.

Got another big day tomorrow so I'm off to sleep early (for me). Hopefully things will work out for the best.

No Comments | #6790

In cheerier news, I made chocolate chip cookies. They are delicious, and I made a bunch of friends in the office just keeping them on a plate on my desk. I didn't know how to advertise them more without causing a stampede and not having enough for Phil, Rebecca, and Tanza tonight so I just left them there quietly with a note that said "HAVE A COOKIE."

The sunset over Owings Mills is beautiful today. Something about those weird weather systems that just adds the most incredible pastels. Too bad I can't get up to the roof today and the reflective windows on the building destroy any white balance I might hope to capture. I'll have plenty of time for beautiful pictures once I get to Thailand -- assuming the airports ever open back up again.

1 Comments | #6789

Who's getting hired, written by Doug Coleman. Neat idea, once I got used to it. I'm featured in this entry.

Follow link to ReadWriteWeb JobWire
1 Comments | #6788

Home safe.

No Comments | #6787

Hung up the Christmas lights with dad, and watched more West Wing.

No Comments | #6786

Pistol practice with dad and a mini-reunion for the class of 1997 at Sherban's. Good turnout. Played Wii Sports.

No Comments | #6785

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Church, lots of food and even more sleep.

No Comments | #6784

A brownie and a banana might not be the breakfast of champions, but it isn't awful either.

This is the third day in a row I've had leftover chili for lunch. Every time it has a little more punch from the green peppers and chili powder, but continues to be delicious.

There's hot chocolate mix packets in the break room, and my headphone extension cable is letting me use my little ear bud headphones with the computer and not run the batteries down in my MP3 player. I'm easily pleased.

Played around with XMLDocument, but I need to do a little research about XDocument to see if its preferable.

2 Comments | #6783

There are three sinks in the restroom here. Two of them have low flow attachments that reduce the water to a light drizzle. One does not. I don't know if nobody uses the low flow sinks, but the drains on those sinks are consistently dry while the regular flow sink is always damp. "Green" office protocol only goes so far as the first irritation, apparently.

The operations manager showed up at my desk afternoon, and pointed out that I had both a Starbucks "frappuccino" and a Mountain Dew both open on my desk next to my Nalgene bottle. He asked, "So you have trouble staying awake?" "Not anymore!" I replied cheerily. "And Tums, too," he observed. "Yep, that's to feed the coffee."

I can see the WBAL and WBFF towers on Television Hill from from my new cube. They're probably about nine or ten miles away, but from the ninth floor they stick out over the horizon about a half a degree or so. The view and the sunsets are very nice from this angle. Next week I will try to key up K3CUJ 70cm from my HT and see how I do.

When the heat is too high in the office, my big headphones feel like they are suffocating me, but my little ear-buds don't reach to the port on my computer. Tonight I will pack an audio extension cable and solve my comfort problems in the near term.

The kitten was especially cuddly last night. Sometimes I really enjoy winter.

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