I was pretty sure there was something wrong with my computer since it kept giving me the Mac Grey Screen of Death at least once a day, but I thought reloading all the software was a good idea before I went looking for hardware problems. Since it was a good idea once, I did it a second time. I was even going to do it a third time until I finally decided that it was time to try checking hte hardware. I was going to try running the Apple Hardware Test when I got home from work but I didn’t need to. When I got home my Mac was beeping in triplets, which means the memory is dead. Or at least it’s really ailing. I got it to reboot but it gave me the GSOD quite soon afterwards. Maybe there’s a limit to how much pr0n you can download on a computer.

I also found out that they’re filming Grimm on my street next week. We can’t park on the street that night and the house next door is going to be used for filming from 8PM until 1AM. This is why I don’t like having the film/TV industry in my city. Let them film in frigging Vancouver, B.C. like everyone else. I don’t like having traffic diverted for some show I’m likely not going to watch. I don’t want all sorts of noise while I’m trying to sleep. Ah, well, what’s the use? Maybe I can fire up the wood chipper or something.

So while life is not really going my way, it is my sister’s birthday today. Happy Birthday Mariko!

The last two days I’ve been late to work and, surprisingly, I would have rather been at work than where I was. Yesterday I was getting my oil changed and the free shuttle was delayed because of an accident on the freeway. I was stuck in car dealership waiting room with a TV playing morning programs. Today I was at the dentist. And just to be clear, work hasn’t been going all that swimmingly either.

I spend most of my free time in front of my Mac and that’s been giving me fits as well. It’s still locking up about once a day and that’s not the most pleasant thing to deal with. Oh, and I’m not sleeping all that well either.

It’s like I need a vacation or something. I’d settle for a few days sleeping in, though. No need to get too greedy.

I think I did OK on my to-do list yesterday, even though it seemed a bit short. Spent a Groupon for running shoes, went to an MIT alumni picnic, and cut down some odd bush and a moss-covered apple tree. I’m never quite sure what my dad planted in the backyard or what his plan was to fill the yard with tree that grew into monstrosities in the thirty or forty years they’ve been in the ground but I’m pretty sure he’d be mad if he knew I was feeding them all to a wood chipper. He never did like disturbing the neighbors with the racket, either. But, on the other hand, I’m not too enamored of living in a dark mossy forest full of spiderwebs and English ivy. Plus it’s fun to run gas-powered tools like chainsaws and wood chippers. Some environmentalist I turned out to be, but this is a backyard, not a forest and my dad’s trees aren’t exactly native species. I wish I could have kept some of them but if they’re too close to the house or crowding each other for space, they have to go.

Oh, and my stupid computer keeps crashing. Dammit.

Well, it took me over a day, but I sort of backed up my Mac and moved some partitions around. Didn’t really delete or reload anything and I’m just pretending that doing nothing is going to help the situation. I guess I did repair the permissions or something. In any case, I’m back to having a computer and that just reminds me of all the things I need to catch up on. Like reading my twitter feed (not really useful) or paying my bills (better do that tonight). That’s just life.

My Mac is acting up, giving me the grey screen of death several times a day. It may be bad hardware or it may be my OS installation. I’m going to delete everything and start over tonight and that means HOURS of backing up my old computer.

So, not much else for me tonight except waiting for files to copy. Exciting times!

Imran, a friend from the gym is leaving to go to Northwestern University Law School in Chicago, so I decided to take him out to dinner. Our schedules finally aligned this Monday, a beautiful evening when we thought all the restaurants were open. But this is Portland, and when it’s nice everyone is out. Even at 8:30PM, there was a two-hour wait at Little Bird. Laurelhurst Market had a similar wait when we called them on the phone, but we went anyway. It was only about a 30 minute wait in the outside bar, and we even ate outside. It was nice all evening. Since I was paying, Imran got the most expensive steak on the menu. Heck, I encouraged it and even had one myself. I asked if I could get it blue rare, or as a Canadian friend once told me, “Spank it on it’s ass and put it on the plate,” and they accommodated me this time. We also had dessert and I had the always excellent cheesecake.

I didn’t get home until 11PM and I finally got to sleep around midnight. When I got up this morning I felt pretty bad from overeating. It didn’t make work any better, of course, nor my driving at lunch time.

And I have to admit I was pretty darn tired at the gym today. Yesterday we did “Helen” which is two laps around the building (almost 400m), 21x 24kg kettlebell swings, 12x ugly, ugly pull-ups. Three times. I’m sore all over. Today we did the row 200m, bear crawl to the door, run halfway around the building. Five times. With a partner, so 10 times for the two of you. I staggering around a bit after today’s workout and I should be happy that I didn’t see any of my last few meals. Of course, if I had any sense I’d be asleep by now, but you know how that is.

Oh, and my stupid computer keeps grey screening, so that’s another joy in my life right now. Phooey on that.