Life Or Something Like It

 - A girl with "big hair and bangs", wearing a purple scarf as a headband, with matching purple sweater and leggings.  And fur ankle booties.

 - A girl wearing "neon" blue jeans with a "neon" pink top, with matching mascara and eye shadow.  And fur ankle booties.

So far it hasn't spread to the guys.... yet.

I thought we took the 80's out back to be shot in 1995?

Well, let's see... last game post was about Okami, which I finished.  I've found all but two of the stray beads... well, I know how to get the last beads, but still decided to quit.  I've done everything else in the game so fighting the last boss with the biggest sword is nothing but icing.

Gave up on Warrior Within for the third time, about 90 mins + boss fight from the end.  I've reached the game frustration limit so it will never be touched again.

Finished Devil May Cry twice so far, working on Hard mode for finish number three.  Another all time favorite for graphics, music, atmosphere, gameplay and characters.  There is no story, but that's ok.  I'm working on completing stuff, maybe attempt DMD mode some day.

Started Final Fantasy X, code named "watching TV."  I forgot how much I like turn-based combat, and the art is just gorgeous.

Also started PoP: Two Thrones.  At two hours in, not sure I'm going to like this much more than Warrior Within but for different reasons.  I'll review this after I work on it a little more.

*cue ominous music* 

Then yesterday, what I would give to have a dagger of time and the power to rewind.  First, overnight we both heard a large thump, enough to warrant me getting out of bed.  But Dan stopped me, "It's fine.  They're just playing."  In the morning after opening the drapes, I noticed a large pool of water near the sliding doors.  Immediately thinking snow got through the seal, I put down towels, feel for drafts at the door, throw the drapes over a chair and...

The cat's water bowl is overflowing.  The 0.5 gal reservoir empty, it was full when we went to bed.  The carpet is soaked and has leaked onto the laminate.  Furious and confused, I start water damage control while my coffee gets cold.  (Dan had opted to stay home, so he was busying clearing the driveway and brining in wood for the fire.)  After reheating my coffee, I did a post-mortem on the water system and noticed large scratches on the reservoir jug.  When held up to light, two of these scratches punctured the jug.  Being a gravity system, water flow is regulated by air pressure, even a little hole will break the system.  Fine.  We have a duplicate jug downstairs, problem solved. 

*cue more ominous music*

That evening, whilst carefully setting the laptop on the table to charge, the top of my water bottle broke off in my hand, causing the bottle to fall out of my hand, onto the keyboard.

I quickly hit the power button and began mopping up water and praying.  After drying the top, flipping the laptop upside down, no water dripped out.  Satisfied, I turned it on, and yep, everything seemed fine.  I continued browsing until bedtime.  Crisis averted!

*cue even more ominous music*

This morning, after a quiet night, I awoke to another flood from the cats water bowl.  The reservoir jug has exactly one scratch one it, a scratch that starts with a puncture hole.  If there were ever a case for declawing, this would be it.  After cleaning up, again, I try to relax with fresh coffee and a little time on the LRR forums.

Hm... why is coffee straight from the pot cool?  I don't use that much cream.  Oh well, we have a french press and a microwave, deal with dying coffee pot later.

Ah, the forums are back up.  Hm, that's interesting, I need to quote that and... wha?  Is num lock on?  What's with the apostrophe key?  And the colon key?  Ugh, the other alphas are ok, must have triggered that weird atl+ combo again that locks random parts of the keyboard.

Reboot.  Um, yes, that was my password, and no caps lock isn't on.

Wait.  *...*...nothing...*...........

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**

Currently I'm waiting for the fire to get warm enough, because the hair dryer didn't help at all.

** the admin account password uses a different key that's broken as well

Update: Well, the USB ports still work, so with the addition of a keyboard the laptop is now a desktop.  And volume control only through system prefs.  But it boots and has network connectivity.  Yay?

It's a sad truth, but I really don't laugh often.  Not out loud, and if I do, it's never at anything on the internet.  Well, a few months ago that changed.  Thus I am proud to present:

The only intentional comedy I have literally LOL'd at in, well, a very long time.

If you haven't heard about these guys through my FB or twitter rantings, go take a look.  I'll wait.  Oh, you wanted something even more geeky?  Try these series for The Escapist: ENN and Unskippable.

See?  Monty Python for my generation!  (getoffmylawn)

Why am I posting this?  LRR has gotten me through the last part of this semester.  With all the depressing crap going on, I needed to laugh at something, and myself wasn't an option.  Yes, a bunch of random people in Victoria, BC just happen to share my sense of humor (scary).  Most of Thanksgiving break was spent in a marathon viewing the archives, and occasionally dropping by the forums, which happen to be the coolest place I've ever found on the 'net.  And so, I have become a fangirl of all things LRR.

Hopefully things will be taking an upward spin around here soon.  I've made some difficult decisions and will post about them when I know more.

Now, don't you need to go laugh a little? :)

If you came through the front door in high school, that quote was the first thing you saw every morning.  I really believe it's a good idea, in the broad sense. But sometimes, you have to give up on one thing, to pursue another.  At least that's what I think life is telling me.  

No, juries didn't go well.  And now I have to make a decision.

I have been branded "that girl who just doesn't sing like we think she should."  Even if I moved mountains with my bare hands in front of witnesses, it wouldn't make a difference.  I love to sing and study the human voice.  I think I'm better at it than anything else musically.  Yes, I'm a good at theory, especially form and analysis, but that alone won't get me a theory&composition degree.

1. Do I want to keep doing this? Music yes.  Voice yes, but I don't think I will ever succeed at it.  No one sees past my age, and that is nothing but a hindrance.

2. What else would be an ok substitute? Teaching theory, but that requires changing schools.

3. Where can I go?  Don't know - WashU is too expensive, other options have well over an hour commute.

I can't go back and I can't go forward.  Are up and down options?

For at least 2 weeks, major news sites have been publishing "the last 10 years" retrospectives, some even dared to push out "2009 in review."  Because nothing EVER happens between Dec. 1st and January 1st.  Especially not between Dec. 25th and Dec. 31st...ahem, 2003, 2006, anyone? (if you're still in the dark, Wikipedia has a short list)

As if finals, fending off the zombie hordes at the mall, celebrating a major holiday with my family and dealing with nasty weather isn't enough, I need to reflect on a year that isn't over yet?

To add insult to injury... have you ever noticed how the news is usually pretty slow during the first few days of January? (not always, but usually slower than say, the last week of December)  Probably because most of the world is still hungover from celebrating the end of a Gregorian calendar cycle. Wouldn't that be a great time for news outlets to run something about what just happened in the past year/decade/century/millennium?  Nah, news about which movie stars partied where and how hungover they are is much more interesting...

Gah.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. (tm)

In an effort to save on shipping, wrapping, and effort I had a great idea:  Send the URL of our Amazon.com wish lists to everyone and have the items shipped directly to us.  Dan and I religiously track packages [junecloud.com], so we'd know which boxes are presents.  Then just smack a bow on top, and put with the other presents until Christmas morning!  And then we wouldn't look like slackers for doing the same thing.....

So right after Thanksgiving, Dan's mom e-mailed to say that packages were coming.  She loved the idea of not having to collect, wrap and re-ship everything.  She also said there would be gift notes inside to tell us who gets what and from whom.  Perfect!

Then a package arrives that isn't from Amazon.com, and we have no idea what's inside.  It's addressed to Dan... so we figure it must be a present.  But from whom?  A few days later, Dan is talking to one of his sisters and she mentions that some of our gifts have shipped.  Ah, mystery solved.

Except that more UPs (Unexplainable Packages) keep arriving. 

"Um, your mom said we had 3 coming?"

"Right, those 3 on the corner. And we know these 2 are from Kelly." 

"Supposedly.  But I think that ones a duplicate.  It's from the same company." 

"Ok... so who are these 5 from?" 

"I dunno, Jennifer?" 

"Um, but what if we're wrong?  How are we going to know who sent what?"

And then the realization hit.

We will be opening gifts without knowing who sent them, therefore having to make fools of ourselves during the Christmas Day Family Teleconference by asking who sent what.

This episode of "It seemed like a good idea at the time"(tm) brought to you by the annoying traditions of the season.  It may be a lot of work, but just wrap the presents and mail them yourself.  At least shipping was free one-way.

Do I really need a paragraph on Black Friday?  Suffice to say, we have a tradition of staying at home for the 3 days following Thanksgiving.  Just in case some zombie shoppers get lost on the way to the mall.

But why do normal people suddenly become ravenous over store sales?  Oh right, because if little Timmy doesn't get all 3 gaming consoles, a new computer AND and Tickle-Me Elmo this year, he'll cry.  That may be a bit of exaggeration... well, no, not really.  Yes, Jesus is the Reason etc, and we give gifts to each other because God gave us the greatest gift ever... wait, isn't salvation tied to the resurrection?  Don't we already have a holiday for that?

If you've ever said something along the lines of:  "We still need a fourth gift for Grandma, and a more stuffers (trans. items for a stocking) for Bobby so he'll have more stuff to open than Cousin Bill"....stop, sit, think.

1. You've probably already complained at least once that your kids never play with their new toys more than a few days after Christmas.

2. You've definitely complained that your kids have too much stuff. And no, grandparents aren't the only reason.

3. You are probably dreading whatever useless and/or ugly knick-knack Aunt Marge is going give you this year.

Why not just cut the madness?  Yes, Jesus got a bunch of cool baby stuff...ok, only the gold was cool, the frankincense and myrrh were symbolic...but that's still only 3 presents.  And he's JESUS, savior of the world, son of God, etc.  And YOU need a pile of presents because...? That's what I thought.

We're instituting the 1 present rule for family, and I can say Dan is only getting a few things he really needs anyway.  If we had kids, they'd be getting the figurative socks and underwear, with A chocolate santa.  Seriously, the gift I want most is to wake up in my own home on Christmas morning and spend a quiet day with those I love most.  If I get some new bath salts too... woo!  And I can say from experience - parents, if Christmas presents are your way of "making it up" to your kids... the kids will still need therapy, and so do you.

Christmas lights - especially large outdoor displays.

  

I've heard the "the lights represent the Light of Christ" reason for lighting of the tree (symbol of life in many religions), but really, all Jesus got was one star.  I'm pretty sure that star didn't create half light pollution of a "drive through winter wonderland", or create a fraction of the pollution as generating the electricity to power those light displays.  No, electricity isn't 100% clean, even from wind and sun.  Do you know what goes into those photovoltaic cells?  And how do you think kinetic energy gets converted into electric energy...magic?

We're not hippies at Thill House, but we are environmentally conscious. Try to only use electric light when necessary (e.g. - before sunrise and after sunset), have CFL bulbs, LED TV, gas heat (much more efficient), R19 insulation in the walls and  R38 in the ceiling, Low-E coated windows. And only use outdoor lighting when expecting company.

Does this mean we don't use lights at Christmas?  No, and I don't think it's hypocritical to be "green" and have a lighted Christmas tree.  However, if you notice an severe uptick in your electric bill during November/December that is directly related your Christmas light display, that's crossing the line.

Here's our list:

Outside: One lighted wreath and a garland around the front door (1.5 strings).

Inside: Big tree (4 strings), little tree (1 string), 1 garland on mantle

All on timers.  The most this ever cost us was around $5 (for the whole month), it's usually around $2.

So as you're griping about "having" to climb on the roof to wrap the chimney in lights and put up the eighth reindeer, remember that Jesus isn't giving out points based on how many lights you put up at Christmas. Maybe that extra $200 on your electric bill would be better spent at your favorite charity?