Monthly Archives: July 2004

Either that, or they think that runners are gigantic people. I registered for a 10K (without running a step in months) since they promised that I’d get to hear some 80′s one-hit-wonder bands. But it’s a Nike thing, and they’re making us wear their shirts. You can guess that living in Nike’s backyard makes a lot of people a bit jaded about the place. Right now I don’t think I care either way about them but I do hate that they’re more a fashion house that changes shoe styles and clothing every few months. The worst part is that I didn’t check the shirt when I picked it up and … Continue reading →

A long one, too. On the way home, I passed by the park and I heard banjo and fiddle music. The kind that makes my ass itch. I work hard and usually get nothing from it other than upset at the clowns I work with. And what does the world give me in return? Okie music. I even got an email today telling me that the party I missed, because of work, was a great one. The world is rubbing it in. So, what’s worse, living a miserable life, or living a miserable life and feeling sorry for yourself? I figure I’ll just live the miserable life. It’s probably the … Continue reading →

The largest database company in the world, 0r4cl3, whose name cannnot be mentioned out loud, must just be messing with people. Since I’m the backup sysadmin at work, and the real (hah) sysadmin is on vacation, I have to do things like installing 0r4cl3. On an approved system, (RedHat L33tnix) you have to: Install the pre-installation patch. Run the installer and install the program (and get some errors). Install the patch program. Run the installer and install the patch installer. Run the installer and install the patches. While running the installer to install the patches, move some files around so the installer doesn’t die from errors. Keep in mind that … Continue reading →

Part of my problem is that I need to fix some of my antennas. The other problem is that a solar flare is wreaking havoc with all sorts of radio communications right now. So, I got the radio finished this weekend and now I have nobody to talk to. Oh, well….

Yesterday I finally finished my radio. The last part was the worst, but now I have a complete ham radio that works well and cost me too much compared to the one I already have. But it was a kit, which makes it all the more expensive. So, most of a month spent hiding in the basement, and it’s finished. Another indication that I need to get out more: I was at the park for a free Celtic concert and I was sure I saw a woman holding a small corpse of a baby. It was lifeless and motionless, and everyone was going about doing their own thing. It took … Continue reading →

I was invited to a barbecue weeks ago, and was looking forward to it the whole time. Unfortunately, I had to work. On a Saturday evening. I have more to say, but I won’t. It just kind of annoys me. I’m supposed to have a regular job, and I had to work from 4PM to 8PM on a Saturday with one day’s notice. Ah, well, I’m sure I’ll get fired and the clown whose fault it was will be fine. That’s the way of the world. At least it’s cooling off outside.

Today it was 103°F. That’s way too hot and a record for the day. I sure wish we could use our new refrigerator to cool off the house somehow, but that’s not what it’s for. On the way home I walked by lots of empty outdoor seating at lots of popular and trendy restaurants. Not a soul outside anywhere except for at the fake Chinese restaurant, P.F. Chang’s. I always thought people eating faux Chinois were not the sharpest pencils in the box and today they proved me right. At 6:30PM it was still over 100°F outside and there they were, following the trendy herd. I called my friend Il … Continue reading →

Work is getting odder, but the refrigerator is in, my mom’s eye seems OK, and soon it won’t be 100°F. It was only in the mid-90′s today, but the next two days are going to be over 100°F. We don’t need that up here in Oregon. Maybe nobody needs it. Had a nice chat with a man from Belgium yesterday on my “old” radio and that just makes me want to finish my new radio all the more. I should have the parts tomorrow. They keep shorting me on parts in my kit. Can’t be perfect, I suppose.

My ma had cataract surgery yesterday. The paperwork told her to show up at 7:30AM and that the surgery would take 3 hours. At 11:30AM I called the hospital and they told me she was just going in, and it would be another couple of hours. They told us that they’d called us about it last week and we should have called them back. The doctors offices have a new trick: they call you after 5PM (sometimes as late as 6:30PM) and tell you to call back during office hours. So, if you’re a few feet away from the phone and let the answering machine (or your confused father) pick … Continue reading →

The joys of getting old. I had two beers and a scotch yesterday, and not all in one sitting. I think they were spread out over about four hours. I had a beer celebrating the retrieval of data out of a dead computer, then a late lunch down in the grand metropolis of Scappoose, Oregon, and finally had a scotch while we tried to download data from a bullet chronograph into a laptop. That led to a nice migraine headache. Another hobby down the tubes. My liver will probably be happy for it. I wonder if they’re giving me Anabuse instead of Gleevec. There really isn’t much else going on … Continue reading →

As an Oregonian, I see about two weeks of 90+ degree weather a year. And both of those weeks I’m miserable. Tomorrow is supposed to be 93°F. Yeesh. I sure hope they’re right about the 79°F day on Sunday. The only other interesting thing is that I have to do this weekend is buy a new refrigerator. Ours is only 17 years old and it’s already ready for the scrap heap. It’s not nearly as cold as it should be, and we even cleaned the coils (the easy fix). According to a repair company, 10 years is about all you can expect. Sears, here I come!

So I guess I could describe this week as hot and muggy with little sleep happening. Last night, I some miscreants pulled into the driveway at 2:30AM and started honking. I’m assuming it was the kids I chased off a few weeks back. That’s life for you. I’ve been trying all week to make a contact on my new radio. Someone finally heard me tonight, but his signal faded in the middle of the contact and I lost him. Well, that was the best I’ve done so far. It’s been so hot that the gym is crowded later in the evening. That makes sense, since everyone is waiting for it … Continue reading →