Saturday, July 31, 2004

Tired...

So...very...tired.

Helped friend move...180 zillion degrees out...can't feel feet.

Must sleep now.

zzzzzzz...

Friday, July 30, 2004

After Lunch Walkies

I was going to rant a bit about the ex & the crap that she decided to pull this morning, but, I'm now in a fairly decent mood & don't feel like spewing any venom right now.

Maybe in a few minutes, just not right now.

Anyway, as I announced over at Amy's site last weekend, I'm taking yet another stab at exercising. I had mentioned that I was going to start running again. So far, that hasn't happened. I'm already tired enough in the morning. I don't want to add more to that. And it's been about a hundred & eleventy bajillion degrees outside even in the evening. And, more to the point, when it comes to exercising - I'm a lazy, lazy man.

One thing I have implemented, though, is using the last half hour of my lunch to go for a walk. Nothing major. Just a walk down the street & back, about 3/4 of a mile or so (baby steps, people...baby steps). It's a nice walk. Although I work in an industrial area, a good half of the area that I walk in is an undeveloped field. Most of the walkway is either in the street or the dirt. But, it's pretty quiet &, when they aren't shrouded behind a cloak of smog, the entire mountain range that borders the north end of the valley can be seen. Planes can also be seen, landing at the old Norton AFB, where I was stationed during my enlistment.

The walks not only stretch my legs, though. They also open up my mind, my memories. The walks take me back in time, to when I was growing up. At that time, I either walked everywhere (Rialto, my hometown, is not that big) or rode my bike. I didn't have a license until I was almost eighteen & I didn't get a car until I was almost nineteen.

You notice a lot more when you walk or ride a bike - sights, sounds & scents that you don't experience as they are filtered out through the a/c of a car. As I walk along the fields, the smell of the mustard plants & sage bushes & even the dirt makes me feel like I'm fifteen again, without a care in the world. The feel of the silty sand beneath my shoes & the crunchy sound that the pebbles make underfoot remind me of good times long since past.

There's a flood control canal along the walk, not unlike the ones that I used to play in & ride my bike through. It's always got water running through it & everyday I stop by it on both legs of my little mosey. I notice more & more animals every time I stop. On the east side, it's very serene & quiet. The water flows gently under the street. On this side, pollywogs & dragonflies of every color can be found. Today as I approached, a duck was swimming along & took off right when I got to the bridge. The pollywogs were nowhere to be found, but there were still the aforementioned dragonflies (one in particular, a gigantic orange one, looked to be the size of a helicopter) & some form of underwater bug that I'd never seen before. I thought maybe the tadpoles had lost their tails overnight & sprouted their legs, but I noticed that the critters had six legs, thus nixing the idea that they were frogs.

Unless they were mutant frogs. I dunno.

Anyway, these things were grey & about two & a half inches long. Maybe a bit bigger, maybe a bit smaller. All I know is that from about twelve feet above the water, these things were huge.

On the other side of the canal, the water flows over some rocks, a folding chair & a shopping cart & is a bit choppy. There one can find more of the monster dragonflies &, on occasion, more tadpoles. Birds of varying sorts flit about the reeds & marsh grass that grows there. Lizards &, I found out today, squirrels, frequent the creek, too. Or, rather, a squirrel, as I only saw one. It was big, though. Perhaps it ate the rest of the squirrels.

The rushing of the water over the rocks & the shopping cart have a claming effect that is only somewhat disrupted by the cars that occasionally go past, reminding me that I'm not on the banks of some lazily flowing stream, but rather that I'm standing in the street, looking over a drainage ditch with a purple .99 Cent Store cart in it & that I only have a short amount of time before I have to go back into the dungeon that I call my office. I take a swig of my water &, with great reluctance, pull myself from the past & head back to the office. When I get back to my desk, I look down at my shoes, all covered in fine, brown dirt.

It's a reminder that, for a little bit at least, I felt like I was back in time, back home again.

Tuesday, July 27, 2004

Bad Combination

I'm at work. I'm bored. And -

I have a laser on my desk.

Well, not a deathray type laser. Not yet, at least.

Here's my list of things I can do to amuse myself with my desk laser:

1. Make the aforementioned deathray & become Overlord of the Warehouse!
2. Point it at myself in an attempt to gain superpowers (because, as any comicbook reader knows, 75% of all superheroes & villains received their powers due to workplace accidents).
3. Open my own laser eye surgery clinic.
4. Actually use it for work related purposes (Hahahahahahaaaaa! Just kidding!).
5. Test the laser's range & effect on the human eye by pointing it at people out on the floor.
6. Point it at peoples foreheads & quote lines from the Terminator movies.
7. Whenever someone enters the office, whip around, point the laser at them & say "Set phasers for stun!"
8. Recreate a RUSH concert using various figurines from my coworkers desks.
9. Pretend I'm the Death Star, pointing the laser at the map on my wall while making my little Star Wars toy ships fly around, trying to destroy me.
10. Wave it around the room, making lightsaber noises.

Sunday, July 25, 2004

File under "Wha...?"

Read this comment exchange between ETS & I from the previous post. If you've left comments on this site or any other site that uses Haloscan's fine commenting service, you know that there are little adds for things & blogs related to the topics of the comments.

Imagine my surprise to find out a link to this.

Um...yeah.
Geeks of the world, rejoice!

Lucas reveals the name of Episode III.

The Star Wars geek in me is so doing the Happy Dance!
Uh...bummer, I guess?

Imagine my suprise & indifference when I saw this headline:

Paris & Nick Split -- A Nation Mourns

My surprise was that I didn't even know that they were an item. My indifference stems from the fact that, even if I had known, I really wouldn't have cared.
Guest Posting

Whilst Amy's away playing in Sin City, she's once again graciously opened the doors of Bad Groove to us.

And, yes, I realize that I haven't posted here in awhile. So why am I posting at someone else' site, you ask?

Because I'm just a giving kinda guy.

Go over &, of course, cookies all around!

Monday, July 19, 2004

Confession time

I can't deny it anymore - I've become hooked on Big & Rich's "Save A Horse (Ride A Cowboy)."

I tried to fight it. Honest, I did. But it was just...too...catchy.

I feel so...dirty. I need a shower.
Funniest thing I heard this morning...

Governor Ah-nuld calling the state's Democratic lawmakers "girlie men."

It's only a matter of time before he's putting them in headlocks & dishing out noogies.

Then politics will finally be interesting!

Sunday, July 18, 2004

Dreams
 
I've been having a lot of dreams about being in the house I grew up in or involving family members that have passed on.  Especially my dad.
 
*sigh*  I really do miss you, Dad.

Saturday, July 17, 2004

More pix


Another one of T's pix from her first trip out here. She had never seen a Joshua Tree (as they only grow in the deserts of California, Nevada & Arizona) & wanted to show the folks back in lush, green Arkansas just how desolate her new home in SoCal would be.
 
Personally, I kind of likes the poor thing. Posted by Hello

Seems the new BloggerBot feature works
 
  

 
This is a pic that T took on her first trip out here last November of the desert nearby. Posted by Hello


Thursday, July 15, 2004

Spidey 2:Electric Boogaloo
Alright, I've sat myself down, switched off Civilization III for a bit (freakin' addictive game) &, while it's fresh in my noggin', will give you my own itty bitty review of the newest Spider-Man movie.

Let me preface this by saying that I collected comic books while growing up & that Spider-Man was probably my favorite hero (or at least tied with Batman).  Because of this & the frightening amount of comic lore from up to the early 90's that I still have knockin' around in my brain, I am frequently disappointed with superhero movies.  I have been called a purist & I wear that badge with honor.  I mean, it shouldn't be too hard to make a faithful superhero movie.  The source material is right there, people!  There's no need to use artistic license.  It's like taking the story of Moses from the Bible & making him younger & an eloquent, non-stuttering speaker & - oh, wait...that'd be "Prince of Egypt."
 
Anyway, now that that's out of the way, on to our featured presentation:

Spider-Man 2:Attack of the Tentacles

If I were to sum the movie up in one line, it'd be something along the lines of "OH MY FREAKIN' STARS & GARTERS - THIS MOVIE ROCKS BEYOND ALL COMPREHENSION!"
 
Now, if I were to bind the comic fanboy inside of me & lock him away in a vault somewhere, the line that I'd use to describe this movie would be "OH MY FREAKIN' STARS & GARTERS - THIS MOVIE ROCKS BEYOND ALL COMPREHENSION!"
 
It just rocks.  That.  Much.
 
And, since I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it, I won't say anything more about it.  Because if I do, I will tell all sorts of things about it & probably tell you all about the ending & then you'd be reeeeeally unhappy with me for that.  Really.  I know you would.
 
So, my final words on the movie - go out.  See it now.  Go.  Get.
 
Now, about that pants pocket quandry...

Saturday, July 10, 2004

Spiders & multiple pockets...

I haven't died or gotten lost or forgotten how to type. It's been a freakin' busy week at work & since that's when I do most of my writing, er...working, I haven't been able to crank out my usual amount of wit, fun & written frivolity.

On my plate for writing right now - a review of Spidey 2:Electric Boogaloo & an answer to ETS' eternal question: Why do boys pants have so many frickin' pockets?

Inquiring minds want to know...

Monday, July 05, 2004

July Fifth...

...All fingers, limbs & both eyes present & accounted for.

Hope yours was a great Fourth!