Nerd without thumbs

Some seasonal music

2009-04-01T18:55:00.000-07:00

I don't care if it's snowing...

Movie Review: Watchmen

2009-03-12T17:10:00.000-07:00

Used some of the comp time I racked up this weekend to see Watchmen with Mr. E. There were five other people in the theater, which has upsides and downsides: Yes, we didn't have to listen to other people talking, but I felt like I couldn't talk myself, since, well, they'd know who was talking. :D

This was the third time Mr. E saw the movie, which is an endorsement in itself. (He didn't even make it through Starship Troopers once -- he had to walk away and get a popcorn refill before he started yelling at the screen.)

I was looking forward to this, and I guess my anticipation was rewarded. I'm not completely enamored of Zach Snyder's directorial style -- that slow then fast thing gets old fast, at least for me. And while I like a fight scene as much as the next nerd-girl, I don't remember them being quite that gory in the original. Dr. Manhattan's little Manhattan wasn't as distracting as I feared it would be, and the attempted rape was judiciously handled.

I did appreciate the attention to detail, and the period touches. The movie starts with a pretty good impression of The McLaughlin Group, which I appreciated since I watched it back in the mid-80's. (Nerd, remember?) One of the reasons I wished I could have chatted with Mr. E during the movie was because I was playing "spot the frame from the graphic novel", and I got a lot of hits.

Overall, I enjoyed the movie, and will probably watch it at least one more time on the biggest TV I can get my hands on, remote in hand, looking for all the details scattered throughout. NOT RECOMMENDED if you're squeamish about graphic violence and sex.

Being a grown-up sucks

2009-03-08T11:23:00.000-07:00

So, everybody else is off to see Watchmen, and here I am at home, waiting for tech support to call back because the equipment at work is having a breakdown over daylight savings time... waaah.

ETA: India-based tech support puts a lot of stress on my resolve to not be a racist a$$hole like my father. The support is awful because they're undertrained and undersupported by the corporation that decided to outsource to them, NOT BECAUSE THEY HAVE A FOREIGN ACCENT. (repeat as needed, perhaps like Bart at the chalkboard...)

Totally shallow

2009-03-07T12:44:00.000-08:00

Got some unbudgeted money and purchased an Acer Aspire One . I named it Nybbler (yes, a portmanteau of this and this) , but it can also go by "My Precioussss." It's only three pounds! It fits in my purse! It makes the nerd boys squeal when they see it, like cute chicks looking at a tiny sandwich from Burger King! (ETA: 6 hour battery life! squee!)

So, I stimulated the economy. That makes me a good American, right? (OK, so it's more like whistling in the dark... )

(Oh, and the Xbox 360 was procured for Xmas, and Mass Effect is indeed as cool as I'd hoped it would be. Being a BioWare fangirl probably helps with that.)

Oh, this blog thing?

2009-03-07T12:41:00.001-08:00

My apologies for the lapse in posting. Felt that I was out of interesting things to say. :D

Enough thunks on the melon were received at RadCon, tho, to incentivize to take another whack at it.

Birthday time!

2008-11-28T11:38:00.000-08:00

more animals

But I actually got:
A lunch box
And a booster pack

Fired by another doctor

2008-10-17T10:35:00.000-07:00

But in a good way, this time. :D Had my last appointment with the hematologist today; my blood counts are in the normal range (except for my platelets, which are a little elevated -- a possible indicator of continuing iron problems), so she told me to go forth and sin no more. She was happy to see a patient leave her practice under their own power.

My kind of election coverage

2008-10-16T11:36:00.000-07:00

Why, from the Weekly World News, of course...

At a shocking press conference this morning, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama announced that he has a half-man half-bat half-brother.

Little things, part whatever

2008-10-07T18:39:00.000-07:00

As I was walking through the park to get to the bus plaza, the bells in the clocktower started playing... "Michelle", by the Beatles. It was smile-ful. (Yes, it's a word 'cause I say it is.)

Small victories

2008-09-04T17:36:00.000-07:00

... I figured out how to use chopsticks to put my hair up (thanks, Youtube!)

... we've identified good gluten-free brands, making shopping quicker.

... White Box Pies makes tasty tasty gluten-free desserts. And they're a locally owned small business. Double victory!

... I managed to NOT watch either the Democratic or Republican National conventions. :D

Hey, I'll take what I can get. :D

It's been a month?!?

2008-08-24T15:12:00.000-07:00

more animals

Yeah, that's just an excuse.

More to follow. :D

Happiness is...

2008-07-26T15:12:00.000-07:00

... a gluten-free chocolate eclair from White Box Pies. Hand delivered by family members, no less. :D

Some poetry

2008-07-25T14:30:00.001-07:00

William Butler Yeats (1865-1939)

THE SECOND COMING

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: a waste of desert sand;
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Wind shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

posted 'cause I was thinking about it*, that's all

(*because I just called my period "the blood-dimmed tide".)

I'm so shallow

2008-07-20T11:32:00.000-07:00

I'm watching Earth: The Biography on the National Geographic Channel, mainly because the host (Iain Stewart) has a dead sexy Scottish accent, and I'm all full of *squee* because he's talking about the Lake Missoula floods which formed the Channeled Scablands. Sexy guy talking over shots of home sweet home... yep, shallow. :D

"Lost tapes of the Doctor Who composer"

2008-07-18T13:22:00.000-07:00

Whoa.

A hidden hoard of recordings made by the electronic music pioneer behind the Doctor Who theme has been revealed - including a dance track 20 years ahead of its time.
Delia Derbyshire was working in the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop in 1963 when she was given the score for a theme tune to a new science fiction series.
She turned those dots on a page into the swirling, shimmering Doctor Who title music - although it is the score's author, Ron Grainer, who is credited as the composer.

from BBC News Includes samples of her work.

Edited to add: Whoa squared; there was a link to this article about the founder of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in the sidebar:

Almost un-noticed by the wider world, one of the pioneers of electronic music has died. Without Daphne Oram, we may never have known what the Tardis sounded like.

Electronic music - as much a part of today's life as whistling a tune to yourself - grew up amid milk bottles, gravel, keys, and yards of magnetic tape and wires.
These were the sort of "tools" typically scattered around the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop in the 1950s and 60s, when they were used to generate wonderful and ethereal sounds for the airwaves.
The mother of this great legacy was Daphne Oram. Aged 18, and armed with a passionate interest in sound, music and electronics, she started work at the BBC in 1943 as a sound engineer.

linkness

Celiac followup

2008-07-16T19:05:00.000-07:00

The appointment with the gastroenterologist went well (except for driving to the wrong office -- see, I knew being early would pay off some day, as I still made it to my appointment on time). I got to see my biopsy and blood test results, which both can be summarized as, "Broken!" The doc was surprised that my bone scan came out normal; when I passed that on to my mom, she said thick bones came from my dad's side of the family. He referred me on to a dietician so we can make sure I'm getting proper nutrition, and then we'll have a follow up biopsy and blood test in six months to ensure I'm recovering.

I like good news. :D

Living the single life (or, I hate wasps)

2008-07-16T18:59:00.000-07:00

Mr. E and Kid A are off on the West Side this week, so it's just me and the cranky old cat. Sunday before they left we went out to make sure the Emergency Back-up Car would work for me this week. Gee, when you don't drive a car for a few months, the wasps do like to move in. Mr. E found the nest (under the frame) and he and Kid A dispatched about 8-10 wasps in the next half hour.

So, Tuesday I went out to drive to work (had an appointment with the gastro doc), and, being a bit paranoid, I kicked the driver's side door -- and out come two wasps, logy in the morning chill. I opened the door and out popped two more. While I was doing the "eek, wasps!" dance, I noticed they had started a new nest on the door sill. So I kicked that off the car and squished it.

Victory! or so I thought. The little goobers relocated to the mailbox. Oy.

Almost normal....

2008-07-12T11:59:00.000-07:00

... my hemoglobin count, that is. It's almost to the bottom of the normal range! And my bone density scan came back normal as well. It's nice to receive some good news. :D Also, the doc was very happy -- she's an oncologist, and she appreciates having a patient who is getting better with minimal intervention.

Flawless Victory!

2008-07-09T21:13:00.000-07:00

Well, that's a bit of an exaggeration... it only took four hours and two chat sessions with Qwest tech support, but we've now got DSL and wi-fi set up. (Yes, the wi-fi is secured.) I'm posting from my PC in the basement, which desperately needs a new keyboard... ah, that's why I only used it for gaming.

Holiday weekend omnibus post

2008-07-07T09:26:00.000-07:00

Mr E and I went to see Wanted on Friday (Kid A was off at Silverwood with friends). Big, loud, hyperkinetic, and bloody, AKA my kind of movie.

Then we checked out the gluten free selections at Huckleberry's. Bottom line: they have a slightly better variety than Yokes, and for some products the prices are lower.

Maximum force family togetherness on Sunday; went shopping with mom and sisters, while Mr E and Kid A hung out with Cousin D (who needs to eat something! he grew six inches and looks like stretch armstrong). Amazingly enough, I'm a size 8. Whodathunkit? Then dinner at Mom's -- big T-bone steaks and all the fixin's (except for the French bread).

Fie

2008-07-02T09:22:00.000-07:00

There's a touring show of Avenue Q! Yay!

They have west coast dates in Seattle and Portland! Yay!

... which were last month. Boo.

Dude! dude-dude-dude-dude!!

2008-06-30T11:30:00.000-07:00

Diablo III.

whoa.

A lovely weekend

2008-06-30T08:01:00.000-07:00

The family spent the weekend in the Tri-Cities hanging out with the Elizabethans. It was very good to see a lot of folks I haven't seen in a couple of years (darn job) and I was actually warm* the entire time!

*for certain values of "warm" including "bleepin' overheated". but my hands didn't hurt, so all was good. :D

Hey, Food Network!

2008-06-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

So, I was chatting with the technician who was administering my bone density scan and she mentioned that she has friends with celiac, as well as friends with dairy, fish and nut allergies, making dinner get-togethers challenging.

And I thought, "That needs to be a show on Food Network!" You start with two chefs who have access to the contents of an average suburban grocery store, then you give them a challenge, like a dinner party for 10 with certain food allergies, and go! Shorter challenges could be things like coming up with a sack lunch for a kid on a gluten free casein free diet.

Mr E named the show for me when I told him about it: "I Can't Eat That!"

C'mon, Food Network, it'd be huge.

Smile... grumble... smile

2008-06-24T12:37:00.000-07:00

On today's lunchtime walk, Mr P and I headed down to a local chocolate boutique so I could look for gluten free chocolate. It exists, but you definitely pay the "we're making sure something isn't in it" surcharge... I suppose I could countenance a $3.00 chocolate bar once a month, though...

Spotted on today's walk

2008-06-23T12:32:00.001-07:00

A marmot chasing a crow. :D

Internet handles I wish I'd thought of

2008-06-23T10:34:00.000-07:00

'Modus pwnens' -- suggested by a commenter at Sadly, No!

'umop apisdn w,I' -- a moderator at Talk Rational.

more to follow, I'm sure

That's just weird

2008-06-23T07:50:00.000-07:00

I Google'd "gluten free fandom" to see if anybody's thought of that, and this here blog was hit number 11... could be my tags, I guess. :D

I'm not trying to be strange...

2008-06-20T08:38:00.000-07:00

... but I keep managing.

In dialog format:

"Hey, you hurt your hands? Whatcha got, carpal tunnel?"

"No, it's deQuervain's tendonitis."

*blank look*

"Well, it's kinda like carpal tunnel, but it affects the tendons that control my thumbs."

"Oh, okay."

Two years later (or thereabouts):
"Oh, you can't eat wheat. You got a wheat allergy?"

"Well, no. I've got celiac sprue."

*blank look*

"Okay, it's autoimmune problem that is kicked off by the gluten in wheat, which causes my immune system to attack my small intestine, causing all sorts of problems absorbing nutrients."

:D

Gluten free shopping spree!

2008-06-20T07:30:00.001-07:00

The whole family went to the local Yokes last night, to stock up on gluten free foodstuffs. They've recently created an organic section, in which most of the gluten free foods can be found. Highlights:

Yay! Gluten free beer! Boo! It's by Anheuser-Busch (spit)!
As I feared, explicitly gluten free foods cost more than their regular counterparts.
But there are a lot of regular foods that are naturally gluten free (Rice Chex, corn tortillas) as long as you take a careful look at the ingredients lists.
We found gluten free flour and the xanthan gum required to make it work. Mr E is making pizza crust tonight (from gf mix) and may tackle gf banana bread this weekend. We cued up a bread machine for purchase next pay day. :D
I never realized there was that much wheat in food.
Still need to work on getting more fresh fruits and vegetables into our diet.

All in all, it was more expensive than a regular stocking run, but we've got enough to keep me fed for a couple weeks, so it's a win overall.

Gluten free, day one

2008-06-20T07:23:00.000-07:00

diary format...

Breakfast is business as usual, as Rice Chex are already gluten free. :D Fortunately for my co-workers, black coffee is also on the good list.

The One-A-Day I was taking had some suspect ingredients, but I had a bottle of less-adulterated multi-vitamins already available. However, the glucosamine-chondroitin is also suspect (and I just bought it, sigh). I'll have to find a new brand for that.

9:30 am: Blue Diamond Natural Almond Nut-Thins (Smokehouse flavor) are full of win. Crunchy and salty and tasty.

11:00 am: Lunch! Two corn tortillas + cheddar = tasty. But gone too fast; should have packed up some salad to go with it. Ah, well, I still have plenty of Almond Nut-Thins... oh, and I was thinking of taking aspartame out of my diet too, but couldn't resist the lure of the Diet Pepsi Max.

11:31 am: ITCHY! Prolly psychosomatic, but still... ITCHY! ALL! OVER!

1:00 pm: went for a nice walk with P, down to the river and back, with only a little bushwhacking along the way (is it really a shortcut when it's darn near vertical?)

2:30 pm: had some of the leftover cheddar for snackies. The Almond Nut-Thins are too good... the box is supposed to have 4 servings, and I think I've already had three of them. Oops. :D

6:30 pm: Mr E defeated the pizza crust in single combat; a bit heavy, but tasty. The Red Bridge beer is, meh, beer. I think I may switch to wine....

Yep, it's celiac

2008-06-18T09:12:00.000-07:00

... on the plus side (she says, grasping at straws) my follow-up appointment isn't until July 15th, so I don't go on the "say goodbye to lots of things you love" diet until then. :D

And, this should sort the anemia, and perhaps some of the bone and muscle problems. So, this is a beginning as well as an ending. (How's that for positivity? To be honest, I spent the weekend mourning for the anticipated loss, which appears to have gotten it out of the way.)

edit to add: Now I will be the world's worst houseguest! "Nope, can't eat that... nor that... sorry, can't have that... heck, just pass me a carrot." Actually, this will probably be more work for Mr E than myself, as one solution to this has him baking a lot more.

Better news

2008-06-12T09:43:00.000-07:00

Just checked with my manager, and we do not currently have any projects planned for the weekend of Faire! And my sister doesn't arrive from Texas until after Faire! So I might actually get to go this year! Yay!

Epic DO NOT WANT

2008-06-12T07:14:00.000-07:00

On the plus side: I lost three pounds during the prep for the colonoscopy and the drugs are quite good for the procedure itself. Also, colon is whistle clean.

Minus side: duodenal changes indicative of celic? Oh, *bleep* no, I loves my gluten containing foods (she says, eating cheerios for breakfast). No beer? Ever again? Nooooo!

Now, the 10 day wait for the test results... oy.

Should change the title to "Nerd out of warranty", eh?

This is what anemia feels like...

2008-06-09T09:34:00.000-07:00

Role Reversal

2008-06-04T11:53:00.000-07:00

I really love ThinkGeek . I get regular promotional e-mails from them, because I love knowing what the latest nerd toys are.

So, I just got their Father's Day promo e-mail, and it's chock full of stuff that makes me go "oooh, pretty". However, Mr. E's reaction would be more like "meh". Funny old world, eh?

I like specialists

2008-05-30T13:39:00.000-07:00

So, just got back from my visit with the hematologist. Okay, she's an oncologist who sees hematology patients... First off, I love it when the doc comes in and says, "My gosh, you are pasty!" We got a good laugh out of that. Also, she cut straight to the point: oral iron hasn't worked, so I'm going to get an iron infusion next week. We'll see if that gets rid of the bleepin' headache.

Got another CBC (complete blood count) which was even worse than the one from last week. Yay! And the phlebotomist got nothin' from my left arm, which led to "Andromeda Strain" jokes.

What I'm not looking forward to: the alien probe of both ends of my digestive tract. That's the down side of seeing an oncologist; she wants to make sure it isn't cancer. I can be cool with that.

Bad life choices...

2008-05-20T09:55:00.000-07:00

... include putting "Teardrop" by Massive Attack on repeat on a gray and rainy day. :D

(Wednesday) Okay, add "Losing It" by Rush, after one has realized that one's piano playing and disc golfing hobbies are pretty much hosed... gads, this fourth decade of life isn't for wimps.

Creepin' crepitus

2008-05-16T11:27:00.000-07:00

Yay! Now my elbow's giving me the occasional creak!

That's why I trust Roger Ebert's reviews...

2008-05-15T12:17:00.000-07:00

... he's one of us.

Fanzines beget blogs

Fanzines were mimeographed magazines that were circulated by mail among science fiction fans in the days before the internet. They still are, for all I know, although now they're generated by computer printers. I first learned about them in a 1950s issue of Amazing Stories and eagerly sent away 10 or 20 cents to Buck and Juanita Coulson in Indiana, whose Yandro was one of the best and longest-running of them all. Overnight, I was a fan, although not yet a BNF (big name fan). It was a thrill for me to have a LOC (letter of comment) published on such issues as the demise of BEMs (bug-eyed monsters), and soon I was publishing my own fanzine, named Stymie.

The Ides of May

2008-05-15T12:14:00.000-07:00

It's our twentieth wedding anniversary! w00t!

We're going to go out to dinner with the fruit of our labor, aka Kid A. (Who, when I said "fruit of our labor" to her, replied, "I think you did most of the work".) It'll be a combined anniversary / happy 4.0 GPA party. :D

Edit to add:
We went out to The Melting Pot. Ordinarily I like to avoid chain restaurants, but the idea of a fondue dinner was irresistable. Ended up running $50/person, so it's not something we'll be doing very often, but it was a fun night and quite filling. :D I discovered that Hemingway drank mojitos for a reason... whew.

I gave Mr. E a Munchkin expansion pack (#4, Need for Steed) and he gave me a 2GB Swissbit, in the airplane-friendly no blades configuation. I'll be putting the 512MB Swissbit stick into it and passing it on to Kid A. I'm also converting the Car Wars design spreadsheet (that I did for our 10th anniversary) into a web app. Hmm, guess #20 is the nerd anniversary... of course, for us that also applies to #1-#19. :D

Movie Review: Iron Man

2008-05-12T10:59:00.000-07:00

Wow.

Just, wow.

Snappy writing, good score (from a composer I wasn't previously familiar with) , good special effects, only a little of that darn shaky-cam*... it was full of win for Mother's Day.

*look, if I wanted to watch a documentary filmed with a hand-held camera, I would.

Some goals

2008-05-09T09:23:00.001-07:00

Blatantly ripped off from David B posting at TalkRational:

The secular people I know pretty much universally share some, many or all of the the following characteristics, which I cite in no particular order.

A respect for truth - sadly a respect not shared by many of the religious.

A life affirming stance, and a general acceptance of the idea that the very transitory nature of life makes it the more precious.

A fascination with understanding, as best they can, life, the universe and everything, and accepting the implications for their personal survival after death of their growing understanding.

Courage in the face of their forthcoming personal oblivion.

A will to good, without hope of reward, or fear of punishment, in any putative hereafter.

A sense of deep awe and wonder when contemplating the wonders of life, the universe and everything.

A sense of ethics.

A sense of wonder and awe faced with the greatest creations of mankind, in the fields of science, music, literature et al.

It's good to have something to live up to... ;)

Movie Reviews: Revolver and Forbidden Kingdom

2008-05-05T15:30:00.001-07:00

Revolver
A thin veneer of heist/con movie wrapped around a thick incomprehensible core of Freudian psychobabble. (A man's only enemy is his ego? What?) Personally, I blame Madonna. Please, please, please, Guy Ritchie, go back to your roots.

Forbidden Kingdom
Yay! Jackie Chan and Jet Li, together at last! Boo! The standup has this teenage kid I don't recognize in the middle of the hero lineup! Eeep! The same teenage kid isn't mentioned in the TV ads at all!

However, it turned out to be a fairly solid wuxia film, using the "modern kid is sucked into fantasy Chinese world by magic maguffin" conceit, beautifully filmed on location in China. And the teenage kid wasn't that bad.

Another month goes by

2008-04-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

And nothing much changes. Yep, that's my life. :D Arthritis and me are getting along pretty well, and the anemia is backed into a corner, I think. (Follow up blood tests are next month.)

The rolling RSI has made its way to my shoulder, though. Any hints, Oldest 14 yr old?

Alternative commuting

2008-03-27T10:09:00.001-07:00

I realized this morning (as my carpool pulled into the snowy parking lot filled with chaotically parked vehicles) that I stopped driving myself to work over a year and a half ago. And I can't really think of any disadvantages:

* I can tell my management that I can't stay late, my ride is already scheduled
* If I need to come in early, I can carpool with a team-mate who lives in the area -- then I get to go home when he does, instead of doing the "in early, out late" thing
* I can't up and drive to the grocery store when I've got a craving :D
* I get to walk through the park if I take the bus, though I've been doing that a lot less since I started carpooling with the high school students

I'll have to ask Mr. E how much gas money we've saved.

expletive deleted

2008-03-17T13:59:00.000-07:00

feels like I'm anemic again. le sigh.

squee USB edition

2008-03-14T11:20:00.000-07:00

I don't know how many of you have seen Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex; Mr. E and I are watching it (courtesy of Netflix) and what do I run across today but this:

Tachikoma spider bot

Movie Review: In Bruges

2008-03-10T07:40:00.000-07:00

Not exactly the fish-out-of-water/buddy-hitmen movie the ads led me to expect. Recommended nonetheless, with the caveat that the prosthetics effects house did a very good job (spelled "ewwww" by Mr E. I wasn't looking). Thinking back, there was some tasty foreshadowing.

Gave myself +2 nerd points for figuring out that Carter Burwell did the soundtrack by a third of the way in.

Since AMC is showing this one as part of their indie-film series, the previews were not what I expected. Ordinarily in front of an action film you get guy movie preview, chick movie preview, date movie preview, horror movie preview. This time we got quirky indie preview, quirky indie preview, quirky indie preview, and Will Smith as homeless and feckless superhero preview. Almost threw me off my stride, it did.

You weren't using that bandwidth for anything, were you?

2008-03-06T12:00:00.000-08:00

And now, a video from Kid A:

In Memoriam

2008-03-05T08:03:00.000-08:00

I started playing D&D in 1978. Yikes.

Enter the ICHC online Poker Cats Contest!

Even more want

2008-03-03T13:44:00.000-08:00

Another neural interface device:

The commands are easily assigned with the NIA’s user-friendly software and are calibrated based on the individual’s physiology and personal preferences. Each of the Actuator’s signals can be assigned to a specific keystroke on the keyboard or a mouse button; consequentially, gamers can run, jump, and fire faster all without “lifting a finger.” Because the NIA converts EEG (electroencephalograph) signals into specified keystrokes, the device can be used with any software. Upon proper configuration, the NIA will allow users to control PC games without the use of a keyboard and minimal use of a mouse.

Help me think of more

2008-02-29T05:16:00.001-08:00

I was helping Mr E in the kitchen last night and put something in the refrigerator, which he almost immediately had to move because I'd put it in the wrong spot. I apologized for throwing off his fridge shui. We then decided that you need fridge fu (or fridge shu) when the leftovers go wrong. There's got to be more along those lines... :D

You know you're a nerd when...

2008-02-27T14:26:00.000-08:00

... management announces that they're relaxing the dress code to allow jeans every day, and your first thought is, "Darn it, the work clothes I bought in November aren't worn out yet! I don't want to buy *more*." Meanwhile, everybody else is clapping and cheering...

And that's why I used hypothesis

2008-02-27T14:03:00.000-08:00

OK, we're back to plain ol' osteoarthritis, with a side-order of tennis elbow.

The occupational medicine doc asked a third-party physical therapist to review my condition, and he concluded that I am pretty much over the deQuervain's, but my thumb joints are definitely arthritic. The tennis elbow is just an unwelcome bonus (and he bruised me up pretty bad doing the initial treatment).

It sucks to hear that I've probably got a permanent condition -- newest doc wants to look at the bone scan and blood work before saying anything for certain. I'll probably check back into counseling once I've got word, just to help adjust the ol' brain. :D

Oh, and I'll have to repeat until I believe, "Opening an L&I claim does not make me a failure." Darn early programming about only losers getting help from the state...

The Latest Hypothesis...

2008-02-25T10:10:00.000-08:00

(a side note: I love it when I show up for a doctor's appointment and he says, "What are you doing here?")

Saw the physiatrist for the last time today for the result of last week's bone scan. Survey says: rheumatoid arthritis. Since my previous clinic didn't forward any of my info, he ordered new blood work for sed rate and rhematoid factor. At least it was just across the hall...

I do hate that I'm becoming a connoisseur of phlebotomy technique. This last one felt like she went in overhand. :D

So, it's off to the occupational medicine doc tomorrow, and maybe I'll make some progress.

More want

2008-02-21T13:23:00.000-08:00

Brain control headset for gamers

A neuro-headset which interprets the interaction of neurons in the brain will go on sale later this year.
"It picks up electrical activity from the brain and sends wireless signals to a computer," said Tan Le, president of US/Australian firm Emotiv.
"It allows the user to manipulate a game or virtual environment naturally and intuitively," she added.

Sign me up. :D

squee

2008-02-20T14:13:00.000-08:00

A MMO based on Champions. I'm torn between delight and fear. Okay, and I don't have broadband...

Anemia update

2008-02-13T09:26:00.000-08:00

Hemoccult tests were normal; "start taking One A Day + Iron and retest in three months".

I know I should be happy it's a simple fix, but it took six weeks to get here, which seems a little long...

Well, that didn't take long...

2008-02-12T12:01:00.000-08:00

The physiatrist already fired me. :D That's okay, it's because he's a spine guy and we quickly determined that it isn't a spine thing. I've a referral for an occupational therapist and we'll see what she's got to say...

Movie Review: Shoot 'Em Up

2008-02-04T15:30:00.000-08:00

This one counts as a guilty pleasure. Big, loud, bloody, and stupid. Mr. E spotted the secret toy surprise early on, which made it even more enjoyable. (I shan't spoil it unless asked to. :D )

Yep, it was a Monday

2008-01-29T14:30:00.001-08:00

Day started with an hour-long mandatory rah-rah-lets-sell-stuff meeting, and ended with the State of the Union address... dear $DEITY, let the hurting stop. ;)

Snow day!

2008-01-28T15:51:00.000-08:00

I have the only teenager in the western world who is upset when they cancel school because of snow... (she was hoping to work on some things for Destination Imagination).

Movie Review: "War"

2008-01-28T13:30:00.000-08:00

An enjoyable shoot-em-up/punch-em-up starring Jet Li and Jason Statham, with a surprisingly satisfying ending and a Hong Kong cinema feel. Well worth renting.

More upside

2008-01-23T11:00:00.001-08:00

I've got the slows at work from hypo-oxygenation, so my hands are feeling better...

on the bright side...

2008-01-18T13:53:00.000-08:00

... i can now explain to any interested writers of vampire stories what chronic partial exsanguination feels like. :D

Move Review: National Treasure 2

2008-01-15T13:38:00.000-08:00

We paid $5, which was about what it was worth.

Can't explain why my disbelief fell so hard as to dent the concrete flooring without spoilers. Just consider that a working knowledge of history is a major detriment to the aforementioned disbelief. :D

Okay, this isn't funny...

2008-01-15T13:34:00.000-08:00

... blood test showed no arthritis or autoimmune problems! yay!

that means my hand pain is still unexplained! boo!

oh, and i'm anemic! boo!

which means i get to see my regular doctor again! yay?

who ordered more blood tests to nail down the anemia! yay!

and then said, "I dunno" to the whole hand pain issue! boo!

but then he referred me to a physiatrist for "upper extremity pain of unknown etiology"! yay!

who can't see me until next month! boo!

... i'm running out of patience with this, can you tell? ;D

Health crap addendum

2008-01-05T13:23:00.000-08:00

... just how long am I supposed to be sore after the mammogram? ;)

What a way to end the year

2008-01-02T12:57:00.000-08:00

Last two weeks of 2007 sure were interesting. Kid A found out that hot tea + leg = second degree burns (which have healed quite nicely). Then my sister-in-law very kindly brought us a lovely upper respiratory infection for Christmas, which got everybody in the house except for the under-20 set. Mr E found the cough syrup recommended by four out of five evil step-mothers (best described as mentholated snot), while I spent a few days on the wild side, taking NyQuil during the day. (I live dangerously.)

And now the hand surgeon has essentially thrown his hands up and told me to go back to my regular doctor after we get the results of the blood tests for arthritis or other auto-immune goodies. I feel like I'm in my very own episode of House, for hank's sake...

On the plus side, kidney and liver function is good, as well as cholesterol and all those other things.

Too picky for our own good

2007-12-20T11:38:00.000-08:00

... or, the Adventures of Geriatric Jesus and Rock and Roll Judas

Mr E got us tickets for Tuesday night's touring company performance of Jesus Christ Superstar because Corey Glover (former lead singer of Living Colour) was cast as Judas. Ted Neeley, who had played Jesus in the 1973 film version of JC Superstar, was reprising his role, which had me a little concerned...

Concern got deeper during the Overture, when the seemingly requisite encounter between apostles and Roman soldiers took place in bullet time. Oh, and the costume designer had gone for a late-medieval / early MC Hammer look, so the soldiers had halberds and some of the apostles had baggy pants. But then Mr. Glover pretty much nailed "Heaven on Their Minds", though his vocal style was, perhaps predictably, much more rock 'n' roll than Broadway, and I got a little happier.

Then Jesus made his entrance. And my disbelief landed with an almighty whump.... he just sounded too old. Oh, and he sang the consonants, not the vowels. And he would extend phrases until he was at least a measure behind the "orchestra". Later on, the actors portraying both Herod and Pilate did the same thing, so I can only think that somebody in charge thought it was a good idea.

... graah, there's such a thing as knowing too much, especially at $56 bucks a ticket plus handling fees.

On the other paw, Mr. Glover, the young woman playing Mary Magdalene, and the chorus all nailed it. Still left the performance bitching, though.

lolcat perfection

2007-12-03T09:49:00.001-08:00

moar funny pictures

Progress report

2007-12-03T06:03:00.000-08:00

Didn't count calories for two weeks, and it looks like I'm going to have to get up early to exercise (yuck), but I'm still stable at 143 lbs going into the high fat season. w00t!

Wish List

2007-11-30T13:18:00.000-08:00

[little kid voice]
Dear Santa,
I wanna XBox 360... an' Mass Effect... an' thumbs so I can play it.
[little kid voice]

Has it really been two weeks?

2007-11-30T11:58:00.000-08:00

(I can't even justify it by saying "Time flies when you're having fun." )

Surgeon put me on half time 'til halfway thru December, which has made life much more interesting. Also tried a new NSAID, which got fired after 4 days for inducing migraines, making it the evil opposite of a pain reliever.

Weight loss has slowed down; jumped off the diet for Thanksgiving, partially because there was a lot of real good food around, and partially because I kept getting faint, and I wanted to be sure I wasn't overdieting. :D I've come up about two pounds from my low weight, hit on the Friday after TG, and I'm not worrying about it. Having a hard time working exercise into my schedule, though...

Actually watched and enjoyed an Xmas special. Hope that's not an indicator of mental instability. :D

Why must food equal comfort?

2007-11-16T10:50:00.001-08:00

On the plus side, I've so far managed to resist buying the stress-relief bag of nacho cheese Doritos... but, boy, do I have the munchies today. (I'm at 144 lbs. I'm going to stay good. Stay good, Ab, stay good...)

Dr. appt today at 3pm, we'll discuss WHY DO MY HANDS STILL HURT?!?!?!? Except possibly in a bigger font. :D

The Long Haul...

2007-11-13T07:15:00.000-08:00

In at 5am to put mods into production (and a good thing I was that early, as there was a bug I hadn't found in primary testing). Since Mr. E is out of town helping his sister, Kid A had to come in to work with me. Drag her to school at 7:45am, off to physical therapy at 10am, back to work when they're done pulling my thumb off, then pick the kid up at school at 4:30pm.

Then we sleep. Okay, we may have dinner first.

Dang, we were so grown up in the face of getting up early, we skipped Heroes last night. We'll watch it on G4 this weekend.

Gotta brag to someone, and you're elected

2007-11-09T07:46:00.000-08:00

My weight is under 150 (if only barely) for the first time in... oh, decades, probably. The BMI calculator says I'm in the normal range, as does my waist to height ratio. (Haven't had the guts to look at my waist to hip ratio... should do that.) Dang, I hate having to buy new clothes before the old ones wear out. No, really. :D

So, I'm shooting for 140, during the holiday eating season. Never said I was that bright... on the other hand, I started the First Successful Diet and Exercise Routine of the 21st Century right before Thanksgiving, so I've done this before.

What I did on my summer vacation

2007-11-09T07:39:00.000-08:00

Ingested hydrocodone.

Watched Space: 1999, courtesy of Netflix. Wow, another precious teen-age memory, now overwritten with the unavoidable fact that Season 2 was total crap.

Mugged a few monsters, while calling it "work hardening". Do you know that adding four levels of Rogue to any other character class makes Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark a whole lot easier? (With a 14 INT, I can usually get 5 Rogue skills, taken at levels 1, 7, 12, and 17, up to a base of 20 points each. You get just enough Disable Traps, Open Locks, Search, Tumble and Use Magic Device to make it all the way through the expansion.)

Read a lot of books.

We now return to our normal program schedule...

2007-11-07T14:49:00.000-08:00

Took it radically easy for the last two months (with the exception of the occasional monster muggery). Right paw is still hurty; physical therapist keeps reminding me that it was jacked up for over a year and will take a while to heal. Positivity is running on batteries, but I'm trying to carry on... ;) Today's my first day back at work. Whee.

Update

2007-08-31T08:04:00.001-07:00

Surgery on my right thumb is scheduled for next Thursday (haven't received the packet yet so don't know the exact time). We are now at maximum alligator status at work, and I don't even get to take effective pain relievers for the next week. (No NSAIDs allowed. Cries.)

Interesting times...

Off to see the hand surgeon...

2007-08-29T07:35:00.001-07:00

updates to follow.

First day of high school!

2007-08-27T10:55:00.000-07:00

... I keep singing "Sunrise, Sunset". :D

You know you're raising a nerd when...

2007-08-20T08:18:00.000-07:00

... you get your daughter Halo 2 and the cutest pair of cat earrings for her 14th birthday. :D

Move Review: Stardust

2007-08-20T08:12:00.000-07:00

Great fun; I'm a sucker for a movie with opening and closing narration. I haven't read the original, but the story certainly felt like it had been written by Neil Gaiman, as it uses many of his repeating tropes (a young person from the ordinary world crosses over into a magical world, discovering the truth about themselves in the process of their adventure there, etc.) Yes, a lot of the acting was over the top, but it was fun to watch Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert De Niro masticating great hunks of beautiful scenery. Recommended as long as you're in the mood for a fairy tale of Victorian England.

Progress!

2007-08-13T08:10:00.001-07:00

I'm below 160 lbs (if only barely) and my pants are getting looser... Yes, yay!

Let the Countdown Begin!

2007-08-13T08:08:00.000-07:00

2-1/2 weeks until my appointment with the hand surgeon. Um, yay?

Monday Urban Wildlife Sighting

2007-08-13T08:07:00.000-07:00

... a family of quail crossing the Spokane Arena parking lot. They always make me smile.

Lazy Linking

2007-08-08T10:24:00.000-07:00

Bad thumb day, go read Digby instead.

Weekend Media Consumption -- The Bourne Ultimatum

2007-08-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

I really wanted to like this movie. I liked the two previous Bourne movies, I like spy thrillers in general, and it featured a character archetype I'm a sucker for (the amnesiac reluctant warrior). But... For reasons known only to him, Paul Greengrass shot the entire thing in unsteady-cam. It's a little jiggly in the ads, but on the big screen... I'm trying and failing to come up with a description for the camera work that doesn't insult folks with neurological problems. Even during quiet scenes, the image jumped and jerked around the screen. I went in to the theater with a little headache, and left with a big one. It might be tolerable on the small screen.

Why Do SciFi and The Discovery Channel Hate Me?

2007-07-26T09:57:00.000-07:00

There is a very short list of shows I'll actually go out of my way to watch:

Dirty Jobs
Doctor Who
Eureka
Mythbusters
Survivorman (new episodes coming!)

Of course, Dirty Jobs and Eureka are on at the same time. So are Doctor Who and the new episodes of Survivorman. Is this fate's way of telling me to watch less TV? Or does the universe want me to get a DVR? ;)

Q Are We Not Men?

2007-07-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

A We Are Devo!

Whilst following up on a Dell ad I saw the other night which had an awfully Devo-sounding song (it's by Devo, that's why it sounded like Devo) I saw that they're touring again! And will be playing in Puyallup this September. Sounds like it's time for

NERD ROAD TRIP!!!

Happy old nerd. :D

Say It Isn't So!

2007-07-25T13:47:00.000-07:00

The Weekly World News is shutting down! No more Bat Boy... no more predictions of the end of the world... no more strange stories from South America... and to whom will Thrash sell his stories now? (obligatory Chill reference...)

Sadness...

Weekend Media Consumption

2007-07-25T09:57:00.001-07:00

I managed to hold off on purchasing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows until 9 am Saturday. :D We hit the local independent bookstore on the way out of town; I read aloud to Mr. E for most of the trip. We made it to Chapter 20 by the time we got back in town. Now E is in Potterus Interruptus, as he's going to wait to hear the rest of it until Kid A can read it to him on their camping trip, and that isn't until August. (On the other hand, I powered through it on Sunday so I could pass it along to my Mom. Still contemplating it; guess it made an impression.)

Where were we going? Portland, for a concert by Rush. They've still got it. Hope I'm that energetic at 50+... ;)

bleep

2007-07-19T08:44:00.000-07:00

Just poured hot coffee (the extra-acidic stuff from the very bottom of the pot) over the tip of my left thumb. Why did I sell off that DEX for more INT-based skills? (And why weren't my INT-based skills sufficient to prevent me from pouring coffee at a funny angle in the first place?)
:D

Spotted on a church sign

2007-07-19T08:13:00.001-07:00

"God doesn't believe in atheists, therefore atheists don't exist."

Ha, ha. (pokes self) Hmm, I still appear to be here... does that disprove their premise? Any logic-choppers out there?

Yay! Rain!

2007-07-19T08:11:00.000-07:00

Thunderstorms rolled through last night, and it's raining this morning. Ahhhh. :D I needed the break, the grass certainly needed the break, and the air isn't quite so brown. Yay!

Monday positivity

2007-07-16T09:21:00.000-07:00

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix didn't suck.

Mr. E. very kindly washed the wrist braces I use at night -- the smell was getting appalling.

Kid A. got her summer reading book (an abridged Bulfinch's Mythology) and is quite enjoying it.

(old fart) We've tickets to the Rush concert in Portland next weekend (/old fart).

More suburban wildlife

2007-07-16T07:55:00.000-07:00

Sunday evening the family went for a walk at dusk; as we passed a neighbor's house, we spotted two raccoons. That could explain why the cat sometimes runs into the house all fluffed and big eyed. We told the raccoons about our other neighbor's sweet and juicy (not to mention early-rising) chickens, but I don't know if they listened.

This morning Spider-squirrel ran straight up the wall of the mini-mall and into a wall vent. Clever place to hide food. Maybe it is a mutant. (Yeah, I know, if it's a spider-squirrel it is the result of a scientific experiment gone awry, not mutation.)

Spidersquirrel...

2007-07-12T09:34:00.000-07:00

On my morning walk to the bus stop I pass behind an office building (a six-storefront micro-mini-mall); the walls are rough concrete with the aggregate exposed. This morning I saw one of the local squirrels doing a Spiderman imitation. It was so quiet out I could hear the scritch of its claws on the rocks as it traversed the building. Cool. :D

that's it for today -- my fingers are starting to get sore in addition to my thumbs. dang entropy.