I’m a strange animal
March 05, 2009 // Link
Mmm, breakfast. I like to make pancake batter a bit thin so I feel half like I’m a chef, half like I’m directing a Gowan video.
All this Pluto stuff is goofy
March 05, 2009 // Link
The Illinois senate has unilaterally decalred that Pluto is a planet. Hard to belive I didn’t make that up, eh?
It seems that the home of the Blues Brothers thinks that because Pluto was first spotted by an Illinois native the state should get to decide these things. I wonder if they’ll seek to edit the dictionary next, and update the definition for “planet.”
And “asshats” for that matter.
West coast style
March 08, 2009 // Link
In Vancouver for one day. Suggested activities for a Sunday day trip?
Need a back backup
March 10, 2009 // Link
On the weekend I leapt on to a bed without noticing the protruding metal bar. Days later the bruise on my back is still horror movie quality. Forget black and blue, I’m purple and green and yellow.
But I’m a good mood anyway, so there.
I otter do this more often
March 11, 2009 // Link
Driving south on the 427 late Saturday afternoon I didn’t expected to find myself in British Columbia that evening, but there I was touching down at Vancouver International Airport at 1:00 AM.
Then 1:00 AM suddenly became 2:00 AM as the clocks sprang forward to start Daylight Savings Time. Or to end it. I’m never quite sure which. Why don’t we just tilt the Earth a little if we want more sunshine?
Anyway, the spontaneous trip was a chance to visit the swell Vancouver aquarium. (Get it? “Swell.” It’s an ocean joke. Keep up folks, I got a million of them.) It was amazing fun hanging out with fish and frogs and whales and turtles and birds. And a lot of small free-range humans, too.
The lady at the Air Canada ticket counter seemed oddly wistful at the idea of suddenly picking up and flying somewhere, especially since I’d have thought airline employees would get to jet about much more than us earthbound folk. On the plane, the lady in the aisle seat said she thought a spontaneous trip was adventurous and romantic, then made odd whistling noises when she slept.
The aquarium was a full metric oodle of fun. I learned that beluga whales like to get their tongues rubbed, sloths will ignore anything for a nap, and there seem to be a billion different types of frog, half of which are giving some kind of plague to the other half.
There are more photos and videos of the aquarium in my Flickr feed.
The highlight of the show was what the aquarium billed as the “Otter Experience.” That included a private tour with a trainer-in-training, a slide show complete with otter props, and then helping to prepare an otter meal of 1.8 KG of clams. My hands got slimy but my grin got bigger. Then came the best part: participating in the otter show by feeding the otter himself. An absolutely adorable (and mischievous) animal.
Hopped a cab to go to the airport for the late night flight back home. The cabbie said he had lived in Vancouver for 15 years, and has been dropping people off and picking them up at the aquarium since it opened. He asked if it was fun, because he had never been inside. There was probably some sort of metaphor there, but by that point I was too exhausted to write it down.
I don’t know what you did on Sunday, but I fed an Otter.
No 501s for Steve
March 11, 2009 // Link
Apple really does have button-phobia, doesn’t it?
I mean, I dig the design for the new iPod suffle, but I’m surprised it doesn’t use a zipper for volume control.
Abe’s Watch
March 11, 2009 // Link
“That’s Lincoln’s watch,” he said after putting it down, “and my ancestor wrote graffiti on it!”
—Doug Stiles, great-great-grandson of Honest Abe’s watch repairer.
Name game
March 13, 2009 // Link
Once you start calling Britney Spears “Broccoli Spears” you just can’t stop. Try it and see!
Smiley
March 14, 2009 // Link
At a diner with a pal I haven’t seen in months, best weather of year so far, and Styx is on the radio. Grinning ear to ear.
Bummer
March 15, 2009 // Link
Rushed to arrive in time for non-existant noon dance class, then I had an hour to kill waiting for the actual classes to begin.
Now I’m home from a long day of dancing, both group and private. Not smiling about any of it.
I’m miss my partner, and miss the joy of her dancing.
AIG Bonuses
March 15, 2009 // Link
From MarketWatch:
American International Group is set to pay $450 million of bonuses to employees of the unit that was largely responsible for the New York insurer’s near collapse last fall.
You can say what you want about the French, but I bet they’d have dusted off Madame Guillotine long before it got to this.
Talking in the kitchen with my yoga teaching pal
March 16, 2009 // Link
Jocelyne: I went to an insomnia seminar on Saturday.
Me: How was it?
Jocelyne: Good, but I fell asleep.
Me: Show off.
Kiss me I’m wearing a button
March 17, 2009 // Link
Happy St. Pretend-You’re-Irish Day.
Twitter twatter
March 18, 2009 // Link
Most days it seems like everyone on Twitter except me is a “Social Media Professional.”
I’m keeping my amateur status so I can Twitter the Olympics.
Muffins and more
March 20, 2009 // Link
Arrived at work to find a package of english muffins lying on the floor in my office. How random is that?!
In other news, I wish I could just have a song in my head like normal people. All I get is 1 or 2 lines, repeating endlessly. sigh I really should change the channel on my brain.
And now I need to down karaoke versions of Austin Powers soundtracks for a mock Goldmember funeral.
Having an odd but strangely compelling day.
Resistance is futile
March 20, 2009 // Link
My willpower is demonstrated by the 30 M&Ms on my desk. Yes, I’m resisting all 20 of those M&Ms.
Heck, I don’t even find those 10 M&Ms tempting...
Punch the clock
March 22, 2009 // Link
Me: *yawn* That was a great sleep.
Clock: It’s 9:45 AM.
Me: Oh no, I’m late! You didn’t buzz!
Clock: Sorry.
Me: Ah, a talking clock!!
Nice guy, meet last place
March 22, 2009 // Link
I just put a friend’s needs before my own. Wish I could say I’m honestly unselfish and vicariously happy, but the truth is it kinda sucked.
As Promised (because I want my mystery object-crafty-thingy)...Respond if you dare!
March 22, 2009 // Link
The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations so please read carefully:
I make no guarantees that you will like what I make.
What I create will be just for you.
It’ll be done this year (2009).
You have no clue what it’s going to be. It will be something made in the real world and not something over the internet. It may be a mixed CD. It may be a poem. It may be a necklace or almond butter cookies or a bouquet of herbs from my garden.Who knows? Not you, that’s for sure! (Not me either.)
I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.
Here’s the important part: In return, all you need to do is post this text into a note of your own and make 5 things for 5 others.
(This idea came via Lisa, awesome pal and dancer extraordinaire, who offered up her own 5 mystery object-crafty-thingies under these same terms. I snagged a spot for one of those, so this is my paying-it-forward-ness.)
Update: And that’s 5. I look forward to coming up with something neat for each of y’all.
Food, food, food
March 25, 2009 // Link
Eating pizza with broccoli on it. Looks odd, tastes yum. Delicisous tiny trees.
Speaking of food: According to Amazon, Chicken Soup for the Vegetarian Soul isn’t selling very well. [Buh-dum-pah! Thanks folks, I’ll be here all week.]
Update: Ate too late. Ate too much. Will probably explode. Remember me fondly.
I can’t understand social marketeers because I don’t speak social marketeese
March 26, 2009 // Link
Dear everyone else on Twitter,
No, I’m not buying in to the critical path of monetizing our customer engagement with a first mover advantage, but thank you for asking.
Sincerely, Go away you annoying bastards.
Someone has to try it
March 28, 2009 // Link
My Earth Hour plan: ring my house with massively powerful Bat-signal style skytracker lights, then climb up on roof with a megaphone.
“Hello Toronto! Now that I have your attention...”
Lilu Dallas Multipass
March 29, 2009 // Link
Learned two passport photo rules today:
No smiling.
They really frown if you make growly tiger claw face.
Spoilspots.
Mac and me
March 30, 2009 // Link
I got a huge amount of nothing done this weekend. Huge. We’re talking EPIC nothing, folks.
Also, I think my Mac Pro’s video card is dying: random horizontal lines appear in windows, disappear on resize. Anyone else seen this? My guess is the card is overheating.
It’s the ATI Radeon X1900 in a first gen Mac Pro (now out of warranty, alas). I think I’ll swap in an 8800 GT. Good plan? Bad plan? You don’t give a crap plan?
What was he a doctor of?
March 31, 2009 // Link
Oh, Internet. It seems that all the Whoms in Whomville are grammar nazis.
Related: “not with a fox” is a sentence fragment.