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[Jun. 27th, 2009|10:47 pm] |
Just had the house broken into. The guy got spooked when he opened my bedroom door to find Zee and I talking. I chased him out, and he got away clean.
Nobody hurt. Nothing stolen, even though there was a 10-spot on the kitchen table. Counting my blessings.
I need renter's insurance. And, quite possibly, a new address.
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| (no subject) |
[Jun. 7th, 2009|03:19 pm] |
I've been playing a LOT of TES:Oblivion. It's consumed a fair portion of this weekend, and most of the last one. Good times, generally.
I bought a DS from a roommate(who is moving out) Thursday night. Maybe not the best deal, but it came with two Final Fantasy games, so I know I'm getting something I'll like. I haven't played with it much, though, because I can't play it at work, and I have Oblivion at home.
Other than that, life is alright. I work a lot, because we've been short.
I only have one other roommate right now. It's strange, but it's a luxury that I know I'll be paying for, so I'm glad that somebody else will be moving in in July.
Oh, and I've been enjoying the cold weather, especially if it means we'll have less full-blown summer.
Good luck out there. |
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| (no subject) |
[May. 9th, 2009|07:21 am] |
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I may be really, really late for it, but it's about time I jumped on the West Wing bandwagon. Seen two episodes and already hooked. |
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| Good day |
[Apr. 18th, 2009|07:46 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  content | ] |
Days where the government tells you it owes you more money than you thought are always good days. |
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| big grin |
[Mar. 12th, 2009|11:21 pm] |
I have a ps3. Again. And I'm too tired to play it. And I(foolishly) agreed to work overtime tomorrow.
Oh well, I've waited long enough already(the seller said he shipped, then didn't), another day or so isn't much more. |
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| (no subject) |
[Feb. 10th, 2009|04:55 pm] |
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I have developed a persistent sore throat today, which means I'm probably getting sick with a head cold of some variety. Oh well, it's a good excuse not to do anything besides go to work, where I can be a wonderful plague dog. |
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| Car wrapup |
[Feb. 4th, 2009|03:09 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | pleased | ] |
Ended up calling a towing company, and got a great truck driver. He was able to tell me that the problem wasn't the battery, it was actually the safety switch. It must have gotten stuck, possible due to the cold. A little fiddling with the shift and he got it to start right up. Its a problem I may have chronically, or may never have again for the life of the car. In any event, he showed me to how to handle it if it does happen again, and gave my battery a shot of WD40 for good measure. So, all in all, the easiest possible resolution to the problem. |
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| Better and better |
[Feb. 3rd, 2009|05:06 pm] |
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Apparently I have a nasty group of gremlins attacking my stuff. I went out to start my car last night and get nothing. Not sputter-and-die, but just turn the key and the only thing that happens is the "check engine" light comes on. Looks like I need a new battery. The one I have has had some pretty gnarly corrosion on it for a while, but seemed to work fine in spite of it. Now, though, I have to figure out where to take it, how to get it there, etc. Really, this is the kind of service I should have gotten familiar with when I moved to town(get relationships started so that I know that I'm getting good service), but didn't because I felt awkward doing so and had no immediate cause for it. So now I'm in a pickle. |
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| DnD 4e |
[Feb. 2nd, 2009|11:33 am] |
At the urging of a certain cleric of my acquaintance, I took it upon myself to acquire the latest incarnation of a venerable game of some popularity and controversy: Dungeons and Dragons. These are my thoughts about the game at this point, after a (partial) first read through and a clumsy attempt to gen a character.
( Read more... ) |
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 29th, 2009|03:18 pm] |
So I my plop myself down on the couch today, hoping to enjoy another rousing round of FFXII, and discover to my consternation that my Playstation 2 won't start. I haven't touched it in days, and it was fine the last time I did. The light is on, I have no idea what's wrong with it. Any ideas?
The official troubleshooting has suggested the problem is static(there has been a lot in that area, come to think), and that the solution is to completely unplug it for a while. Giving that a try. |
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 13th, 2009|06:28 am] |
So much to talk about...that's what I get for vacationing and otherwise neglecting this journal. However, I'm kind of crunched for time right now, so instead of a real post you get a reading recommendation.
I became enamored some months ago with the columns of Frank Rich, over at the Times. Certainly of the columnists I have read, I think he does a good job of pointing out just how hypocritical the outgoing administration has been, without being obsessive or belaboring the point too much. So, my recommendation is to go and take a look at what he has to say. |
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 7th, 2009|11:21 pm] |
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I'd say the first quarter-century has turned out alright. Here's hoping the next is even better. |
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| Books of 2008 |
[Jan. 1st, 2009|09:07 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | books | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  awake | ] |
I entertained the idea early in the year of setting a mandatory daily reading amount, something that I put into practice in August. My policy is that I am supposed to read 5 pages a day, and I can let myself get behind but not ahead. Hence, if I read 50 pages one day I still owe 5 the next. Seeing as I'm currently about 100 pages behind, that wot be a problem again for a while. Here's what I've been reading this year:
( Read more... ) |
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| Pendragon |
[Nov. 30th, 2008|04:12 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | games | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  bored | ] |
I am somewhat overdue to rant about Pendragon for a while.
( Read more... )
I am still fascinated by the game despite all of that, and would love to play it, given the right group of players with the proper mindset and determination to see the thing through. |
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| Mice |
[Nov. 25th, 2008|07:02 pm] |
Have invaded the house, through some unknown entry(it's an old house, there are probably several ways in).
The thing is, they are some of the strangest mice I've ever heard of. They don't seem to care about food, because we aren't seeing them in the kitchen (and my roommates do store easily accessible food at ground level). They do seem to have an affinity for the traps, because they keep getting caught. But they have been caught in some weird ways.
Probably the weirdest is the one that I just cleaned out(I am the least grossed out by this job, so it falls to me). It was in the covered trap, which up to this point had not caught a thing. But I picked it up and was face to face with the (dead)mouse. This is rather bizarre because the bait is inside, so he was backwards of what you would expect. As I went to work getting him out of there, it struck me that he had backed himself up to the reservoir where the bait goes: like he considered it a public toilet.
It's just bizarre to me. |
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| Guards: a field guide |
[Nov. 10th, 2008|11:03 pm] |
Something that I've been thinking about for a while.
Security guards come in three basic flavors: laughable, secretarial, and terrifying. Laughable are the stereotypical mall guards, overweight, balding, wearing an ill-fitting uniform, and enforcing arbitrary authority with limited success. Secretarial are a step up, where they are secure in their role and their interactions with the public, and look the part. I named it secretarial in part because of the setup at my building: guards cover for the receptionist on her breaks. Its also a general reference to the substantial amount of paperwork and procedure involved in the industry, which I find best expressed at this level. Terrifying is your Blackwater et al. These are not really like most domestic security companies, in that they have substantially different training requirements, and with a very different appeal to both employees and customers. Nevertheless, the two branches are technically part of the same industry.
These are not meant to be exclusive categories. I certainly have my laughable moments (possibly including right now), as do all of my fellows. Also, there are good number of the flex officers that I work with who do, on occaision, work armed accounts. While I would still basically qualify them as secretarial, there is an edge of the terrifying there. Especially when one of them says "I am going to be tired, surly, and ARMED" while bitching about the crappy schedule they have in the upcoming week. |
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| Holidays |
[Nov. 5th, 2008|08:29 am] |
Yesterday was like Christmas, with delicious anticipation, running madly about the house and cheering, and surprisingly early deliveries containing toys(ok, so I bought them for myself, shut up).
And then there's that new President. He was pretty cool too. |
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| Old news, but worth noting for posterity |
[Nov. 3rd, 2008|12:25 pm] |
Sometimes, American politics dishes up the truly, hilariously bizarre.
This happened a few days ago, and most of you have probably already seen it, but Sarah Palin was pranked, and good.
I don't think I've mentioned this yet, but I think of the additional silver linings of this election (in addition to what looks like a solid Obama victory) is the premature demise of Sarah Palin's career in national politics. She'll still be governor of Alaska, and it looks like she might be in that office for quite a while. But beyond that, this campaign has provided almost nothing but political ammunition to use against her. |
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| Yar! |
[Nov. 1st, 2008|02:11 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | games | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  excited | ] |
Apparently it is a good idea to randomly browse the "Mac games" section of Amazon while bored at work. In this case, I discovered that one of my favorite games of all time, the remake of Sid Meier's Pirates!, was released for Mac last month. I had a hell of a time tracking down the system requirements, but fortunately the laptop will be able to run it! A wonderful post-election present.
The game ranks as one of my all-time favorites for two reasons. First, the world isn't completely static. While the scenario you start with does set which cities do and do not exist, those cities may well change over the course of the game without your interference, making each game even set within the same era different.
On the other hand, if you want to get involved in war & politics, you have the ability to alter the map on a grand scale. The ability to overrun cities and change their allegiance, not to mention preferentially attack the shipping of a particular country will greatly influence the course of events. This kind of personal influence on history is rare, and rather appropriate for a game set in an area of early colonization, where individuals and sometimes serendipitous actions did often have an outsized influence on the success or even survival of settlements. |
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