Archives
Sep 1999
Oct 1999
Nov 1999
Dec 1999
Jan 2000
Feb 2000
Mar 2000
Apr 2000
May 2000
Jun 2000
Jul 2000
Aug 2000
Sep 2000
Oct 2000
Nov 2000
Dec 2000
Jan 2001
Feb 2001
Mar 2001
Apr 2001
May 2001
Jun 2001
Jul 2001
Aug 2001
Sep 2001
Oct 2001
Nov 2001
Dec 2001
Jan 2002
Feb 2002
Mar 2002
Apr 2002
May 2002
Jun 2002
Jul 2002
Aug 2002
Sep 2002
Oct 2002
Nov 2002
Dec 2002
Jan 2003
Feb 2003
Mar 2003
Apr 2003
May 2003
Jun 2003
Jul 2003
Aug 2003
Sep 2003
Oct 2003
Nov 2003
Dec 2003
Jan 2004
Feb 2004
Mar 2004
Apr 2004
May 2004
Jun 2004
Jul 2004
Aug 2004
Sep 2004
Oct 2004
Nov 2004
Dec 2004
Jan 2005
Feb 2005
Mar 2005
Apr 2005
May 2005
Jun 2005
Jul 2005
Aug 2005
Sep 2005
Oct 2005
Nov 2005
Dec 2005
Jan 2006
Feb 2006
Mar 2006
Apr 2006
May 2006
Jun 2006
Jul 2006
Aug 2006
Sep 2006
Oct 2006
Nov 2006
Dec 2006
Jan 2007
Feb 2007
Mar 2007
Apr 2007
May 2007
Jun 2007
Jul 2007
Aug 2007
Sep 2007
Oct 2007
Nov 2007
Dec 2007
Jan 2008
Feb 2008
Mar 2008
Apr 2008
May 2008
Jun 2008
Jul 2008
Aug 2008
Sep 2008
Oct 2008
Nov 2008
Dec 2008
Jan 2009
Feb 2009
Mar 2009
Apr 2009
May 2009
Jun 2009
Jul 2009
Aug 2009
Sep 2009
Oct 2009
Nov 2009
Dec 2009
Jan 2010
Aug 2010
Sep 2010
Oct 2010
Nov 2010
Dec 2010
Feb 2011
Mar 2011
Apr 2011
May 2011
Sep 2011
Oct 2011
Nov 2011
Feb 2012
Mar 2012
May 2012
Apr 2023
May 2023
Jun 2023
Jul 2023
Sep 2023
Oct 2023

Jun
29
2003
4 comments
Happy birthday, me! This mornings newspaper brought everyone's attention to the fact that I've petted, held, and -- dare I say it -- even loved a skunk at one time. It wasn't my skunk; it belonged to a friend of my mother's. It was, of course, destinked, but it had not been completely domesticated and from what I hear it eventually went crazy living in a human world. The skunk's short life as a housepet is documented in this old, old photo that I have framed in my livingroom.

As for my Birthday: I slept in, I showered, and I attended my 8-hour long party. I ate, I played pool, I chit-chatted with relatives, I played with Destiny, I ate again, and then we had cake and ice cream. Then we came home. A very pleasant golden birthday, if I do say so myself.



Jun
27
2003
5 comments
The birthday festivities begin -- In today's paper, I find myself.



Jun
25
2003
2 comments
Great quote from Tom Waits, in today's Onion AV Club:


'You know what I really love? The CD players in a car. How when you put the CD right up by the slot, it actually takes it out of your hand, like it's hungry. It pulls it in, and you feel like it wants more silver discs. "More silver discs. Please." I enjoy that.'



Jun
21
2003
0 comments
Garage sale mini-anecdotes:

  • Two hipster-looking guys sit at the table, chit-chatting about arts programs. The tables are full of movie projectors, books like "Make Money in the Music Industry Now!" and "Anatomy for the Artist", and various GenX collectibles. I select three 16mm film reels and a 8mm camera.

    "Did you go to film school?" he asks. His head is shaved like mine, his goatee just as similar.

    "Nope, I just do it for fun."

  • An amazingly old woman discusses the day with a girl who could easily be her great-granddaughter. I paruse the shelves, and stop at the books, right next to her.

    "You bought some books from me last year." she says matter-of-factly.

    "Probably," I reply.

    "Seems to me they were....philosophical books."

    "Yeah, that sounds like me."

  • More books: a box of textbooks caught my eye. I pause at a heavily highlighted and underlined copy of "Our Sexuality." I first pass on it, then return and decide I better buy it or I'll regret it.

    The woman at the table laughs loudly when she sees the title, then quiets herself immediately. She has to go check the price; the book isn't hers. She seems uncomfortable to even look at the book.



Jun
18
2003
0 comments
Huzzah! Destiny isn't dead; it was formerly Dead, then it was Destiny, then I thought it was dead, but then it turns out it's still Destiny!

Wondering what I'm babbling about?

A while back, I paid a handsome sum to get part of MIT's Random Hall named after my daughter, rather than it's former name "Dead Floor."

After about a year, I noticed that the MIT Bathroom Server no longer listed Destiny Floor in Random Hall....it's name replaced by Fort Awesome. Sadness abounded.

But -- redemption! Now, thanks to a helpful comment from a helpful reader, I discovered that Fort Awesome is the name given to "a strategic alliance with Foo." Random Hall's rush pages gives more info on this cooperative effort.

So, Destiny isn't gone and forgotten -- it is stronger, more powerful than ever imagined. World domination is not far away.



Jun
12
2003
3 comments
We're celebrating Destiny's 7th birthday today, two days early so to fit better with my ex's visitation.

When I saw Destiny wearing her usual old clothes this morning, I decided to let her open a present early: a new shirt. Note that the opening of this gift does not perceptibly reduce the present-pile whatsoever.

A few minutes after changing her top, Destiny came over to my perch at the computer.

"You got this at Target."

"I did?"

She pulls the hem of the shirt to her nose, then offers it to me. I lower my nose, and smell something a little flowery, a little synthetic. It could be perfume, or maybe chemical residue from manufacturing.

"See -- it smells like Target."



Jun
5
2003
3 comments
Where has Derek been? Joel has asked it. Ms. GlamKitty called me last night to ask it. Up until a few minutes ago, my employer and Destiny's daycare were wondering where I am.

Derek has been busy.

How busy, you ask? Well, not so busy I collapse in an exhausted heap every evening. I've just had a very full plate for almost three weeks now. There's been homework, there's been freelance work, there's been birthday shopping for Destiny (it's the 14th), on top of my normal work duties and fatherly activities. Every moment has been occupied by something, moving from one thing to another without much of a break to breathe.

This is entirely by choice, though, and entirely my own doing. The 'busy curve' goes up, the curve goes down, and I just happen at the top of a peak right now.

Things that have happened:

  • As you can see from the picture, Destiny has lost her other bottom tooth. Interestingly, it happened exactly two weeks, almost to the minute, after she lost her first one. It came out under exactly the same circumstances (loosened by brushing, a little tug and it's out). And, she had chosen the exact same outfit to wear that day.
  • I completed a final project for my webdesign class in my CIS program. Derek took a webdesign class? Craziness, you say! A freelance webdesigner in a beginning HTML course? My fellow students did excellent work, and I'm pleased with my completed project.
  • I've started on a site for DJ Heartless, one of the identities posessed by Backwash's Heartless Wonder. The site that's there as of today is just a prototype, but I'm workin' on it.
  • A close friendship with the aforementioned GlamKitty has blossomed, expressing itself in MSN chats and late-night phonecalls. 'Nuff said about that for the moment.

Today, however, my busy day has been brought to a screeching stop. Destiny woke up this morning with a sore tummy. Going to the bathroom didn't help, breakfast didn't help, so a couple calls later I'm still sitting in my room and Destiny is resting in her bed. I can't pass this up without taking advantage of it, so I plan on keeping an eye on Destiny, napping, doing a lot of nothing, and then even more nothing.





blog advertising is good for you
Looking For "Wookies"?