As some folks may know, I went to the hospital on the evening of the 15th, after being really worn out waking from the car to the door. To make a complicated story simple, the kept me overnight,zapped my heart, and sent me home. After being brought home, I discovered that the front passenger window of my car had been broken into, laptop, ipod, and chest of gold dollars removed. Late last night (2 in the morning) they broke in again through the plastic i taped on to keep rain out. Car is now at the shop. Luckily, The laptop is passworded, and I don't let my web browser save any of my passwords for me.

Back from Norwescon. Had a great time in the open filks, note taking made much easier with the aid of a laptop. Joshua (the laptop) was especially helpful in retrieving lyrics from both hard drive and internet. This also meant I got to distribute lyrics I already had, which I have been meaning to do for a while now. All this, of course, reminds me of all the lyrics I have to transcribe. Not just from audio format, but also from pdf format. I am trying to put everything into Word as my standard format. Hmm... some down, only a lot to go.

Well, new to me anyway. Picked it up at the Tacoma dome sale last weekend. Need to get a battery, otherwise a great bargain. Totally excited with what a portable computer can offer in new possibilities. Will love it in filk circles. Now I get to learn all about wireless networking. Which, of course, is to say learning more about networking in general.

I couldn't help but name it Joshua. This leaves only one question.

Shall we play a game? _

Dear Economy:

I know you’re not doing well right now, but this behavior of yours has got to stop. Look, you’ve been through depression before. That wasn’t any fun, was it? I know you’ve been abused and blamed for everything thant’s gone wrong lately, but you do still have something to look forward to. The federal govornment of the United States wants to give you about nine hundred billion dollars! $900,000,000,000.00! Just look at all those zeros! And if bribes won’t get you moving, then maybe threats will. You’re not being very much fun, and I’m thinking of leaving you. To show my sincerity, I have enclosed a copy of the letter I just sent to my ex.

Yours truly,
Tenderstone



Dear Bartering System:

How have you been? I know it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other. I’ve been wondering if leaving you was the right decision. I’ve also been wondering if there might still be a chance for us to be together. Let me know what you think.

Yours truly,
Tenderstone

Great con! Now I've got me a list of songs to go hunt down the lyrics for. I might even post the list once it's digital.

I'm not as good at it as I thought. I just took down our Christmas tree. And it's not even February.

Dear Mr. President,

I cast my vote for you at 2 caucus levels.
I debated your merits with family and friends.
I voted for you in the general election.

I'm doing my part, so I ask you for one favor.

Please, fix my country.

Your fellow citizen,

Tenderstone

Saw this in IMAX. For this film, IMAX was not necessary. In fact, you won't be missing much if you see it at home, on the small screen.

If you're going for the special effects, you've probably seen these before. You'll recognize some from The Mummy especially.

If you're going for the cast, you won't be disappointed. Keanu Reeves is a reasonably convincing Klatu, while Kathy Bates is at her best, stealing the show. Jennifer Connelly does well, delivering a more developed Helen than seen in the original 1951 film. Oh, and it's fun to see John Cleese, if only briefly.

If, on the other hand, you're going for the plot, the original tells the story much better. There are some changes that I strongly disliked. The actions taken on the part of Klatu are mostly the same, though the underlying reason is somewhat different, though not altogether unwelcome. The ending chosen was needed, but shouldn't have been left for the end. For fullest appreciation of this film's plot, don't see the original... at all. For the fullest, most thought provoking experience, see both movies.

For those who knew, Toilet (my rubber chicken friend) had been suffering from some form of avian leprosy. Today, without any warning or prior improvement, he has made a full recovery. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the PTB.

Now, I know I'm a little early, but Lent for me comes early anyway. I practice Pagan Lent. This is similar to the Christian Lent, but with Pagan dates and meaning. Like traditional Lent, it lasts about 40 days, but instead of being from Ash Wednesday until Easter, it is from Imbolc (about February 1st or 2nd) to the Spring Equinox (about March 20th or 21st). Haven't decided what to give up yet. I'm thinking of giving up cursing. I don't know if I can handle that. Oh well, I still have half a month to think about it.

Been cleaning. I've still got loads to do. However, for waking up as late as I did, and for taking too many breaks, I still managed to get a good amount of cleaning done. I didn't finish much, but the counters are mostly cleared, dishes mostly washed, I did some laundry, and I even stopped to make french onion soup, from scratch. I forgot the cheese, but on a cold day like today it was still nice. That was before I noticed the snow. I really need to go to work tomorrow, as we're still playing catch up from when we were closed before. The younger child came home from holiday break at her bio-dad's place. Had to remind her she still doesn't get to make the rules. Guess she forgot. I think I may have done the same thing when I was about her age. Otherwise, nice slow day.

I had been out shopping last night (was it only that long ago?) when the cell phone rings, and won't put the call through properly. I'm in no huge hurry, but since it's my wife that called (caller ID) and the phone won't let me call her back,(cell tower was down) I decide to go straight home. I get there to find out that she had decided to go to the ER. Finally. She had been having unusual pains (most pain for her is usual) in her back, left side, and upper abdomen. This went on for about a week before she finally decided to go into the ER last night.

Let me warn anyone reading this, that if you've had symptoms for a week, and decide you're willing to go to the ER late on a Friday night, just wait till Saturday morning. Even if you decide to go on a Friday night, you'll probably wait till Saturday morning before you're seen. This was a bit of an extreme case for us.

So we go to the closest one, Valley Medical Center. For anyone who doesn't know, Valley is currently under construction, adding to it's size by more than double, and this includes the area around the emergency room. This means, that instead of having parking right next to the emergency entrance, or even a drive by drop off area. So I let her out to go into the ER as close as I can manage, which means I need to turn the car around to get it out of the emergency area, and drive off to the regular parking area and make the unnecessarily (in my opinion) walk back.

When I get there, she's checking in, and then we get to go sit in a full waiting room, and get to, well, um, wait. We're there at 11:00 P.M., when the security guard shift change occurs, and it's about this time when we get to go into the triage room. After taking vitals, and the boring re-answering of "what brought you in... do you have any allergies.." we go back to the waiting room, and have a hard time finding 2 seats together. I kneel on the floor next to her in a chair for a while before we take 2 seats that open up in another area of the waiting room. So we wait some more. Eventually we get bored out of our minds and start listening to the conversations of the people around us. In one group there is a woman who looks eerily like one of my ex girlfriends. It's not her, but we get to overhear soap opera style dialogue while listening to make sure whether it's her or not. After the waiting room television has shown full episodes of Seinfeld, Frasier, That 70's Show, and Bernie Mac, we get to ask ourselves why South Park is on in a waiting room with so many kids. The couple to our right starts to laugh as we make fun of the long wait. We had noticed plenty of people coming out from the back, but no one getting called. At about a quarter to 3 (this is am folks) the triage nurse comes out to take a roll call to see how many people are still there, and haven't just given up waiting and gone home. This was almost us, as we had decided that we would leave if they didn't call us by 3:00. After roll call, we agree to keep waiting, as we were the first ones she called for on the list. During the next half hour we make more fun of the wait with the couple next to us, wondering "Did she just come out to see which ones of us she would have to retake vitals for?". Since it's been so long since anyone was called back, when our name is finally called, and we stand up to go back to a room, we are applauded. Or maybe the applause is just because SOMEBODY has been called back.

Once we're in a room, we get to hear that the wait was caused by several really sick kids. With some that I had seen in the waiting room, and watching a baby incubator roll by, I decided this was a good enough reason. We wind up doing some more waiting, but it doesn't seem quite as long, since we are able to grab a nurse's attention when we need to. Eventually, after an IV, urine and blood tests, we get a diagnosis. Kidney or urinary tract infection. Well, at least it wasn't a long wait for no answer. By the time we leave, the sky's becoming light again, it's been more than an 8 hour stay, and it's after 7 in the morning, and that busy waiting room is empty. (please see second paragraph)

After getting prescriptions filled, getting home, and getting some sleep, I'll have to readjust myself tomorrow so I can wake up on Monday in time to go to work.

This review contains NO plot spoilers


I Saw this with my wife (which is a good idea by the way) as the result of a spontaneous "Wanna go see a movie?". So this is what we wound up seeing.

I must admit, I do sometimes like a good drama. If you've seen Forrest Gump, or Mr. Holland's Opus, you've already got a feel for what this film has to offer. The acting is fully believable all around, with the only distraction from it being that Brad Pitt is so recognizable it pulls away from the character a bit.

The romance is mostly what you would expect, though it's a bit creepy at some points. Some of the details of the plot near the end of the movie are a less than believable, and somewhat contrived. It's a bit long at two hours and forty-eight minutes, but it seems a little is left a little out somehow. The part of the story told in the "present" is lacking somewhat in a plot of it's own. If I were to guess at what hit the cutting room floor, this would be it.

If you're the type who wants to know whether to see this in the theater, as a rental, or free on t.v., I'll have to tell you, that for the most part, it won't matter. There are a couple scenes that are nice on the big screen, but it won't spoil the film to see it on a small one.

Simply put, if you like a drama that covers an entire lifespan, this is one of the good ones. If you don't, then maybe you should consider watching a different film.

The year's longest night
Many snowflakes have fallen
We call back the sun

I'll start by admitting that I never read the book. My 10 year old daughter was reading it to me, but we never finished. (well, she finished reading it to herself, but never finished reading it to me.) Therefore, I can't say much about the differences between the book and the movie. One difference that I found nice, was that the movie went in chronological order. Yea for chronological order!

I didn't know who was doing the voices until I sat down in the theater. Mathew Broderick... in a dungeon... and he's... playing... a mouse?!? Can anyone say "déjà vu"? Dustin Hoffman was well fit for the role, and hearing him didn't break my suspension of disbelief. Hearing Emma Watson, on the other hand, was a bit distracting, as she, like Broderick, is known for her relationship with a castle. William H. Macy was fabulous, as he didn't entirely sound like himself.

This being a children's story, the plot isn't exactly surprising, but character interaction helps to ease the boredom it might otherwise have.

On that note, if your child has read (or been read) and enjoyed the book, they may like the movie as well. If they have not, you'll may have a hard time getting the younger ones to pick up the book if they see the movie first, as it contains some less familiar words.

For the adult... aside from the voice talent, it's nothing that special.

Looks like I got my birthday wish a bit early. Of course, I'll now have to wait until January 20th to start using it.

Don't know if I'll actually do this, but I'll keep it in mind.



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I dropped off my youngest child at her bio-dad's on Friday night. What this means of course, is not having to plan a weekend around her interests. So when I wake on Saturday, I get up early (sort of) and leave for Redmond. At Marrymoor Park, I go bird watching from about a quarter to ten until about noon. A lot of walking takes place during this time, and in fact, I walked my 10,000 steps before noon. (per Mr. Pedometer) At noon, the Amtgard group was supposed to start up, and, in this case I should have listened to aladriana when she said nobody meets at the appointed time. It was after one before anyone started with weapons. I left after four, tired and excited about the next time I would get to come, since this had only been my first outing. I choose to blame lerryn if this turns into another hobby in my collection of hobbies.

I was exhausted when I got home, and when I woke up this morning, I wasn't sure that today's plan was such a good idea. I am not exactly in the best of shape, and I had planned that today I would hike to the peak of Little Si next to Mt. Si in North Bend. With drakebrimstone and thealmightyboog teasing me every time we saw a sign telling us Mt Si this way, Little Si that way, telling me "we're almost to the trail head" we eventually decided that the trail head must be at the summit. well, eventually we made it to the summit, and were rewarded with a great view, and a second geocache. (the first was rather close to the base) I do have to commend the rock climbers who were there on our way up, and our way back down. Those guys do like going the hard way.
Now that I'm home, and have logged more steps in a day than I have before, It's time to let some beer have a nice relaxing effect on my muscles, and hope I can get up for work tomorrow.

Ok, so I'm a bit dramatic. But I have now walked to Boise Idaho from Renton Washington. For those keeping score at home, this means I have completed leg 3 of my 50 state journey. I just hope they don't add any more states before I finish. Here's a MAP of my planned route, including what I've done so far.

Oh, and here's the building I'm virtually visiting.

For the having of a nail, the tire was punctured.
For the having of a puncture, there was need for repair.
For the having of repair, I left work early.
For having left early, the repair shop had fewer customers.
For having fewer customers, the work was done quickly.
For having been done quickly, I had extra time.
For having extra time, I visited my mother.
For having the visit, I could help her with errands.
For having the help, we accomplished much.
For having accomplishments, we both had a better day.
And all, for the having of a nail.

(I don't know how the nail got from the horse to my tire, but somewhere there is a lost kingdom for me to thank.)