Monthly Archives: December 2008

So usually I’m getting ready for bed by 9:30PM but this year I have plans. I’m supposed to be out at a party. My buddy is in town from Hawaii and he was supposed to here an hour ago. Somehow he IM’ed his ex from 3 or 4 years ago and now he’s supposed to be on his way to get her and then come here. The adventure continues. Another night of high drama, maybe.

One of the big advantages of the holidays is that people are back to visit their families, so I can see my old classmate and co-worker Deren who flew in from Maui. We ended up talking until pretty late and I found out that a lot of the bars in my neighborhood close ridiculously early. 9PM for the Laurelwood and 12AM for most McMenamins, as always. Another place I wonder about is the restaurant Roux. It had empty tables when I went by on Sunday but we were told that it would be a 45 minute wait. Another friend told me that he went in and got the same treatment … Continue reading →

I was planning on doing as little as possible this week at work, and doing most of it from home. I’d say there are only about a quarter of the people there the week between Xmas and New Year’s Day and so there’s little to be done. Unfortunately, I remembered that would mean that some of the expensive test equipment would be free as well, and asked my friend in the lab to tell me that the test equipment would be tied up all week. He told me the truth instead, so I had to go in to prep some things to use it. So much for not going in. … Continue reading →

When a guy like me starts talking about resolution, it’s usually about how many dots per inch he has on his monitor. But it’s nearing New Years and I should try to come up with some resolutions maybe. I usually fail at anything I resolve, so I’ll have to think on this for a bit to see if I can come up with something. If the past few days are any guide, I should probably resolve to stop drinking cheap whiskey, or expensive whiskey if it comes from Japan. The stuff my dad had squirreled away isn’t as bad as I remember. Maybe my taste buds are going dead or … Continue reading →

I wonder why I had so much trouble sleeping last night, but at least it gave me some interesting dreams. I find most dreams to be like going to the movies for free. Unfortunately, those movies might be interesting but I rarely remember them. I guess it’s not all that bad. Today was another UFC fight and a gathering at THMFIC’s house to watch them. The true measure of our cabin fever is that twice as many people attended as usual. It’s always fun watching the fights with that group, and ddly enough, the fights were pretty good as well. I wish I could say I did more, but it’s … Continue reading →

The rain has finally begun to melt the snow, but now it’s just a slushy, slippery mess. I spent 45 minutes digging myself out of 2 spots today, and both were in the middle of the street. There’s a certain urgency when you’re trying get your car out of the middle of the street, especially when you’re stuck in the middle of the only tracks through the snow that anyone can travel in. Fortunately, no cars came by either time, though the UPS guy had to get out of his truck and run up two block to deliver a package. I felt pretty bad about that. I only left the … Continue reading →

I think my back is so tired it sometimes hurts. It wasn’t because of the workout, as hideousstrenuous as it was, but more likely because of the shoveling of the wet, soggy snow. As an Oregonian I know that the rain will melt the snow, but as a chemist and engineer I also know that the maximal heat transfer will occur when the rain is passing over the snow and not just pooled around it. It’s not so much that we’re running out of food and that I have to drive anywhere, but mainly that I’m going stir crazy and I thought it made more sense to be outside moving … Continue reading →

The snow isn’t melting very fast. Everything that I’ve shoveled clear is dried out and the snow is slowly trying to melt off of the house, but in general it’s not going anywhere. The roads are still piled high with snow and the buses aren’t even running on full schedules. So I’m still stuck inside and still watching DVDs. I tend to buy things and let them sit for a while. I bought Blue Velvet and didn’t get around to watching it for three or four years. When I did, I was laughing so hard I had to stop and call my buddy Il to see if it was really … Continue reading →

It snowed yet again last night and this morning it was too deep on most streets for any car with a normal to low clearance. Even the buses were getting stuck. My friend waited for hours for a bus to arrive so he could get to work but he eventually gave up and decided to work from home. I found out about this because he called to complain about the buses. I didn’t try to get anywhere and my biggest exertion was to shovel the walk again and dust off the heat pump. The heat pump is only used when the outside temperature is above 40°F (or was it 50°F) … Continue reading →

I’m really ready for cold and clear, or maybe even not so cold and even a little rainy, but this icy and slippery crap is getting old. The sledding is still an annoyance late into the night and I’m really wondering why people have to yell, “Woo-hoo,” while they’re sledding, especially down such a short hill at 2AM. In any case, it snowed several more inches and must have been windy because it piled up in drifts. Sometime in the middle of the night, it also started raining. The temperature was still in the 20′s so that just put a nice crust on the snow. I did get out the … Continue reading →

It’s been a little icy and snowy, but now we have several inches of popcorn snow. Lots of people were out sledding, but I was inside watching the first season of The Big Bang Theory. Geeks represent! I did see a guy drive onto our lawn trying to turn his SUV around. I didn’t go out and say anything to him, because it would have included words inappropriate for his small child to hear. Whatever. Tomorrow, it’s supposed to sleet and then Monday, in true Portland fashion, it’s supposed to be above freezing during the day, creating slush, and then below freezing at night, creating a giant ice rink. Actually, … Continue reading →

Yeah, a Japanese horror film that is an allegory for alienation and loneliness in society was NOT what I needed tonight. Do I need to go sorting through my DVD collection or do I watch Undercover Brother? I wish I still had Next Stop Wonderland. The woodworking equipment is all out of my house now, but that still means the painters are coming as well as the electrician, plumber, and the tile guy to finish my counter. The carpet guy is coming tomorrow as well. I haven’t taken any pictures because it’s kind of half-done. Ah, well, I still need to find some sort of antidote to this movie which, … Continue reading →