Just submitted my last final online... all papers done... everything else in... just waiting on grades.
Not happy with how I did overall, since the tail end of the term had way too much real life intruding on school, but at least I finished & (should have) passed everything.
And taking the summer term off, for a decompression stop, so I can actually put some more thought into being a dad, seeing my family, and doing some home improvements and hobbies.
Just wanted to share.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Duranmas squared!
OK, as a horrible survivor of the 80's, who still loves a chunk of the music no matter how crappy it was, I have to say I can support this new holiday fully :D
Dr. Rotwangs Duranmas Duranmas is May 10th!
And bonus points to the first person who can tell me the artist for the cover of Rio, without resorting to Google-fu.
Dr. Rotwangs Duranmas Duranmas is May 10th!
And bonus points to the first person who can tell me the artist for the cover of Rio, without resorting to Google-fu.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Same planet, different worlds
I was reminded again the other day at work of how different I am from most Americans (snarky comments can wait people) in how I've traveled and lived elsewhere.
We were telling various "there I was stories," and I prefaced mine with "Well, this was when I was living in Spain." Which drew the response from a coworker of "How many places have you been?"
So, we briefly discussed the major spots I've lived (Eleven states, two countries) and some of the list of my travels. Which resulted in various expressions of shock, jealousy or questioning at the very concept.
Between my background growing up and then being in the military, and people like my wife who grew up overseas, I've become complacent at the thought of foreign travel and living, and I forget most Americans aren't like that. The unfortunate truth is that the majority of this nation never travels outside of their country, and of those that do the majority of those are just hitting "little America" tourist traps in the resort of the moment. I'd hate to think the actual percentage of this nation who have actually spent an extended time overseas, experienced another culture in more than a two hour tour, and learned a bit more about this world than their own viewpoint.
The bad part is I have just as much problem relating to them as they do to me - I can no more imagine still living in the same hometown as my parents and grandparents, and never having been further than one state away from my birthplace than they can picture flying across the world, renting a house and living their for five years, shopping in the local stores and living in the place where my accent is the strange one.
Just my random globetrotting thought of the day.
We were telling various "there I was stories," and I prefaced mine with "Well, this was when I was living in Spain." Which drew the response from a coworker of "How many places have you been?"
So, we briefly discussed the major spots I've lived (Eleven states, two countries) and some of the list of my travels. Which resulted in various expressions of shock, jealousy or questioning at the very concept.
Between my background growing up and then being in the military, and people like my wife who grew up overseas, I've become complacent at the thought of foreign travel and living, and I forget most Americans aren't like that. The unfortunate truth is that the majority of this nation never travels outside of their country, and of those that do the majority of those are just hitting "little America" tourist traps in the resort of the moment. I'd hate to think the actual percentage of this nation who have actually spent an extended time overseas, experienced another culture in more than a two hour tour, and learned a bit more about this world than their own viewpoint.
The bad part is I have just as much problem relating to them as they do to me - I can no more imagine still living in the same hometown as my parents and grandparents, and never having been further than one state away from my birthplace than they can picture flying across the world, renting a house and living their for five years, shopping in the local stores and living in the place where my accent is the strange one.
Just my random globetrotting thought of the day.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Political Funny of the Day
Wish I'd written this, but I had to share it at least!:
On one side, you have a bitch who is a lawyer, married to a lawyer, and a lawyer who is married to a bitch who is a lawyer.
On the other side, you have a true war hero married to a woman with a huge chest who owns a beer distributorship.
Is there a contest here?
H/T to Last of the Few
View from Denmark....
We in Denmark cannot figure out why you in the USA are even bothering to hold an election.On one side, you have a bitch who is a lawyer, married to a lawyer, and a lawyer who is married to a bitch who is a lawyer.
On the other side, you have a true war hero married to a woman with a huge chest who owns a beer distributorship.
Is there a contest here?
H/T to Last of the Few
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
placeholder
The wife published a romantic reminiscence here today...
Apparently my comment did not adequately share my story and cover the sweet parts as well :D
So this is a reminder for myself when I get a chance this weekend to share my side.
Apparently my comment did not adequately share my story and cover the sweet parts as well :D
So this is a reminder for myself when I get a chance this weekend to share my side.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Daytime blues
Have to be up during "normal" human hours for another week of instructing at the range... so it's that balance of something I like doing (shooting and teaching) vs. something I despise (being awake before noon) - after five years of midnight shift it's always hard to make the switch... It's hard for me to get to sleep before one am, no matter how tired I am or how early I have to be up...
Plus I'm juggling my schoolwork (which is approaching the level of "caught up" if not quite at "I'm happy with".
Then finals next week along with a training class...
Can anyone see why I'll be happy for May to show up?
Fortunately, I have a good wife who supports me through all of this, and two children who are happy to see daddy even when he's tired and they're fussy...
It does make a difference.
Plus I'm juggling my schoolwork (which is approaching the level of "caught up" if not quite at "I'm happy with".
Then finals next week along with a training class...
Can anyone see why I'll be happy for May to show up?
Fortunately, I have a good wife who supports me through all of this, and two children who are happy to see daddy even when he's tired and they're fussy...
It does make a difference.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Advice
Just a quick note from one of my four court appearances this week... for the defendants...
If you show up to court two hours late AND you're so drunk you can't walk up the stairs...
Don't plan on the judge letting you stay out on bond. Just a tip.
If you show up to court two hours late AND you're so drunk you can't walk up the stairs...
Don't plan on the judge letting you stay out on bond. Just a tip.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Insanity
So this afternoon I took a melatonin & finally got some decent sleep.. which means my REM finally kicked in and went to town...
I'll preface this short bit by saying - it's VERY rare for me to remember my dreams... I know I have them like everyone else, but usually they stay safely in my subconscious, per an agreement between the forces beyond and the UN Commission on Unnatural Things :D
So the dream started in Hong Kong - which I haven't been to since 93... a strange Bond-esque version of the city, in which I ended up on a train to some neighboring city in search of the nameless doo-dad of power...
funny - don't remember being able to take a train that far there, but hey dreams are fun ;)
Then there was a brief interlude with vampire demons, and a running battle in a dark gothic nightscape.
Which morphed into a flight on Serenity... a different crew, but same ship as I tried to get them to fix the wounded as we flew away from whatever it was...
Put that in your pipe and smoke it Sigmund!
I'll preface this short bit by saying - it's VERY rare for me to remember my dreams... I know I have them like everyone else, but usually they stay safely in my subconscious, per an agreement between the forces beyond and the UN Commission on Unnatural Things :D
So the dream started in Hong Kong - which I haven't been to since 93... a strange Bond-esque version of the city, in which I ended up on a train to some neighboring city in search of the nameless doo-dad of power...
funny - don't remember being able to take a train that far there, but hey dreams are fun ;)
Then there was a brief interlude with vampire demons, and a running battle in a dark gothic nightscape.
Which morphed into a flight on Serenity... a different crew, but same ship as I tried to get them to fix the wounded as we flew away from whatever it was...
Put that in your pipe and smoke it Sigmund!
just a few
Non-restful weekend, but got a bit done so I can't gripe - just dealing with insomnia.
We got a new swing up for the kids, to go next to the little one - plus added a climbing section which Jacob has already said is great. Picked up some other house stuff but haven't had a chance to mess with any of it yet, hopefully next weekend.
Sorry Babu, did the first brisket of the season on Friday night - it turned out well again. A few new tricks that Cooks Illustrated helped with, though I still need to fine tune some things to get it right.
Other than that, trying to catch up on school and still remember my family and sanity...
We got a new swing up for the kids, to go next to the little one - plus added a climbing section which Jacob has already said is great. Picked up some other house stuff but haven't had a chance to mess with any of it yet, hopefully next weekend.
Sorry Babu, did the first brisket of the season on Friday night - it turned out well again. A few new tricks that Cooks Illustrated helped with, though I still need to fine tune some things to get it right.
Other than that, trying to catch up on school and still remember my family and sanity...
Knowing when to say when
The stop starts to feel a little off from the first moment, he's taking too long to pull over and something just feels wrong. Unfortunately, the radio is busy and I can't get on there to at least get someone started my direction. When he finally pulls over and I start up towards the car he waits until I get right up to his bumper before he takes off. Now I'm running back to my car trying to let anyone listening know what's going on, even though it seems everyone is still telling their life's story on the air.
By the time radio finally notes the pursuit we're thirty seconds into things running through the neighborhood - that doesn't sound like long, but it can be a lifetime when you need it. He's blowing every stop sign and red light without a care, doing 60+ on a busy night; I'm doing my best to try to catch up in between looking out for citizens, but each street he's getting a little further ahead. I know people are trying to come to me, and I'm just doing what I can to keep everyone updated on where we're going and what he's doing.
I finally see some blue lights ahead and know I'm not alone. Unfortunately, he sees them too, and whips off in a new direction. Now we're running through another jurisdiction and he's still getting further ahead. Miraculously he hasn't hit anyone yet or caused a wreck, but it's close. By now he's got about three blocks lead on us and he whips down a side street and is out of sight. I get on the air, call everyone off, turn off the lights and slow the car down.
One of the things that's hard for cops to do is give something up - those of us who care about the job at least are dedicated and want to give it our all, chasing the guy til the wheels fall off, running through neighborhoods when out of breath, or fighting when you're already had a long night. But you also have to learn when it's not worth it - the times the risk to you and to the public is greater than the arrest you'd get out of this. It's a fine line that separates giving up too soon from taking things too far, and it always changes with the situation.
We find the truck a few blocks away, beat up and with the guy gone. Radio finally lets me know it's stolen, and a few pieces of evidence will hopefully give me an idea down the road to maybe charge him. If not, he'll mess up again. Fortunately, no one got hurt and I did everything right.
Still glad with the decision I made.
By the time radio finally notes the pursuit we're thirty seconds into things running through the neighborhood - that doesn't sound like long, but it can be a lifetime when you need it. He's blowing every stop sign and red light without a care, doing 60+ on a busy night; I'm doing my best to try to catch up in between looking out for citizens, but each street he's getting a little further ahead. I know people are trying to come to me, and I'm just doing what I can to keep everyone updated on where we're going and what he's doing.
I finally see some blue lights ahead and know I'm not alone. Unfortunately, he sees them too, and whips off in a new direction. Now we're running through another jurisdiction and he's still getting further ahead. Miraculously he hasn't hit anyone yet or caused a wreck, but it's close. By now he's got about three blocks lead on us and he whips down a side street and is out of sight. I get on the air, call everyone off, turn off the lights and slow the car down.
One of the things that's hard for cops to do is give something up - those of us who care about the job at least are dedicated and want to give it our all, chasing the guy til the wheels fall off, running through neighborhoods when out of breath, or fighting when you're already had a long night. But you also have to learn when it's not worth it - the times the risk to you and to the public is greater than the arrest you'd get out of this. It's a fine line that separates giving up too soon from taking things too far, and it always changes with the situation.
We find the truck a few blocks away, beat up and with the guy gone. Radio finally lets me know it's stolen, and a few pieces of evidence will hopefully give me an idea down the road to maybe charge him. If not, he'll mess up again. Fortunately, no one got hurt and I did everything right.
Still glad with the decision I made.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Not the response I expected...
More posts to follow this weekend, but wanted to type this before I forgot...
H/T to Wyatt for this story:
ONDON, England (CNN) -- A London department store has started selling coffee for $100 a shot.
If the price sounds unappealing, shoppers also have to overcome the unusual method of cultivation, which sees the coffee beans harvested from the feces of an Indonesian jungle cat.
Even so, the Peter Jones store says the luxury blend -- called Caffé Raro -- is one of the world's rarest and most premium coffees. Made by the Italian company De Longhi, Caffé Raro combines Jamaican Blue Mountain and Kupi Luwak, two extremely rare coffees.
The beans of Kupi Luwak are harvested after being ingested by civet cats, and only about 260 kilos (about 573 pounds) of the coffee is produced each year.
"The cats select the best beans to chew. It's rather like a natural filtering process," said Carie Barkhuzen, a spokeswoman for the upmarket store in London's upmarket Sloane Square. (H/T - CNN)
Which I then turned around and shared with Sexy Wife. Who's immediate response is "So what, the cats are on caffeine now?"
Not "That's gross," or any similar derivative that I would expect - she's apparently ok with cat feces Starbucks, she just wonders if Fluffy is bouncing off the walls more than with catnip...
Well, to quote my two year old: "We don't eat cat poop!"
H/T to Wyatt for this story:
ONDON, England (CNN) -- A London department store has started selling coffee for $100 a shot.
If the price sounds unappealing, shoppers also have to overcome the unusual method of cultivation, which sees the coffee beans harvested from the feces of an Indonesian jungle cat.
Even so, the Peter Jones store says the luxury blend -- called Caffé Raro -- is one of the world's rarest and most premium coffees. Made by the Italian company De Longhi, Caffé Raro combines Jamaican Blue Mountain and Kupi Luwak, two extremely rare coffees.
The beans of Kupi Luwak are harvested after being ingested by civet cats, and only about 260 kilos (about 573 pounds) of the coffee is produced each year.
"The cats select the best beans to chew. It's rather like a natural filtering process," said Carie Barkhuzen, a spokeswoman for the upmarket store in London's upmarket Sloane Square. (H/T - CNN)
Which I then turned around and shared with Sexy Wife. Who's immediate response is "So what, the cats are on caffeine now?"
Not "That's gross," or any similar derivative that I would expect - she's apparently ok with cat feces Starbucks, she just wonders if Fluffy is bouncing off the walls more than with catnip...
Well, to quote my two year old: "We don't eat cat poop!"
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Still here
OK, see I had all sorts of lovely snark ready this morning, in response to someone's observation that I hadn't posted recently...
Then, Lovely Wife had to go & post this out of the blue...
You can't respond to that with a sarcastic post, I don't care who you are!
And yes, I'm even more blessed than she is - for she appears to ignore my many flaws, and has blessed me with a life and sanity that I never expected... nope, I wouldn't trade what I have in either!
So - I love you sweety!
More sarcasm to follow soon, I promise!
and I think I'm overdue for a new beer review...
Then, Lovely Wife had to go & post this out of the blue...
You can't respond to that with a sarcastic post, I don't care who you are!
And yes, I'm even more blessed than she is - for she appears to ignore my many flaws, and has blessed me with a life and sanity that I never expected... nope, I wouldn't trade what I have in either!
So - I love you sweety!
More sarcasm to follow soon, I promise!
and I think I'm overdue for a new beer review...
Friday, April 4, 2008
Fallen
Last night I rolled up on a couple just before "the act" as it were...
The guy involved is one that the department knows, unfortunately...
He's a former cop here who picked up a drug habit... he's still got pending charges with us from that.
So of course, he knows the games we play to get at things and all that... what he can & can't do & say and still be safe...
Unfortunately his "girlfriend" of the night isn't as well versed, and her weed got us into the truck as a whole - which got me enough that he'll have another possession charge coming his way.
Nothing personal, part of the job - anyone who knows me knows how much leeway I give drugs (which is about the same as DUIs, meaning zero)... but a part of my mind still wondered what it was that let him turn out different than so many others. Particularly anytime you get into dealing with narcotics, cash and all that I know the temptation is there. What is it that keeps a majority of cops honest when faced with such things, and others fall to the dark side? And I'm under no illusions - there but for the grace... fortunately I think my life is strong enough to avoid that, but I'm sure he thought the same thing before he slipped... I just thank everything that I've never made the same mistakes and I'm able to remember what anchors me to this world.
On the other side of things, I felt that bit of pity for the young lady as well. Barely an adult, already hooked on drugs and turning tricks. She had a couple of those small photo albums with her - and it was a normal "all-American" girl, someone whose parents loved their little princess and who I know a succession of boys chased growing up. Now you look at her and see the lost potential, and I just hope she finds her way out before it's too late.
The guy involved is one that the department knows, unfortunately...
He's a former cop here who picked up a drug habit... he's still got pending charges with us from that.
So of course, he knows the games we play to get at things and all that... what he can & can't do & say and still be safe...
Unfortunately his "girlfriend" of the night isn't as well versed, and her weed got us into the truck as a whole - which got me enough that he'll have another possession charge coming his way.
Nothing personal, part of the job - anyone who knows me knows how much leeway I give drugs (which is about the same as DUIs, meaning zero)... but a part of my mind still wondered what it was that let him turn out different than so many others. Particularly anytime you get into dealing with narcotics, cash and all that I know the temptation is there. What is it that keeps a majority of cops honest when faced with such things, and others fall to the dark side? And I'm under no illusions - there but for the grace... fortunately I think my life is strong enough to avoid that, but I'm sure he thought the same thing before he slipped... I just thank everything that I've never made the same mistakes and I'm able to remember what anchors me to this world.
On the other side of things, I felt that bit of pity for the young lady as well. Barely an adult, already hooked on drugs and turning tricks. She had a couple of those small photo albums with her - and it was a normal "all-American" girl, someone whose parents loved their little princess and who I know a succession of boys chased growing up. Now you look at her and see the lost potential, and I just hope she finds her way out before it's too late.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Alternatives...
Well, my wife and I are pretty much fully into alternative lifestyles now...
And not in the way you all thought - pervs!
I've always had my PC's. She got hooked on Macs years ago. So for a long time the two machines have coexisted in the house, without TOO much fussing & with plenty of comments back & forth.
Well, last year we acquired a used laptop for the great bargain of *free*, which I figured could be a living room/coffee shop machine or for the all-too-infrequent travel. Unfortunately, it didn't come with a clean copy of an operating system & trying to cross-load any of my Windows disks got the "counterfeit software" warnings to explode and annoy. Plus, given that it was an older machine without all the current memory loads etc - I just really didn't feel like paying Gates & Co. another several hundred dollars for something not worth that much.
So, I've been debating, and last night was my first time...
I downloaded and installed a copy of Linux for the system (Ubuntu for anyone who knows more about it than I, which should be about everyone!) Having done a bit of the Google type research, as well as some of the bloggers I've read, it hit the key points of:
Free.
Used fewer system resources, perfect for the old machine.
Doesn't cost anything.
More stable of a platform.
and did I mention free?
So, in what is surely a violation to the computer purists everywhere - our small office now has not 1, not 2 but three different operating systems cohabitating harmoniously.
And not in the way you all thought - pervs!
I've always had my PC's. She got hooked on Macs years ago. So for a long time the two machines have coexisted in the house, without TOO much fussing & with plenty of comments back & forth.
Well, last year we acquired a used laptop for the great bargain of *free*, which I figured could be a living room/coffee shop machine or for the all-too-infrequent travel. Unfortunately, it didn't come with a clean copy of an operating system & trying to cross-load any of my Windows disks got the "counterfeit software" warnings to explode and annoy. Plus, given that it was an older machine without all the current memory loads etc - I just really didn't feel like paying Gates & Co. another several hundred dollars for something not worth that much.
So, I've been debating, and last night was my first time...
I downloaded and installed a copy of Linux for the system (Ubuntu for anyone who knows more about it than I, which should be about everyone!) Having done a bit of the Google type research, as well as some of the bloggers I've read, it hit the key points of:
Free.
Used fewer system resources, perfect for the old machine.
Doesn't cost anything.
More stable of a platform.
and did I mention free?
So, in what is surely a violation to the computer purists everywhere - our small office now has not 1, not 2 but three different operating systems cohabitating harmoniously.
The sandman hates me...
I've always been plagued with insomnia, just part of my makeup. Plus I'm a night owl by nature.
Unfortunately, five years of working straight midnights has pretty much made it impossible for me to sleep well at night...
Got up early yesterday... was nice and tired... but couldn't get to sleep til about 130. Then woke up at 330 because of the kids & was never really able to get back to sleep. And I have a full day's training today which is going to require me to be mentally present...
*Sigh* I see an intensive caffeine regimen in my near future.
I can't gripe too much... Lovely Wife has to deal with this every day without a break - I don't know how she does it.
Unfortunately, five years of working straight midnights has pretty much made it impossible for me to sleep well at night...
Got up early yesterday... was nice and tired... but couldn't get to sleep til about 130. Then woke up at 330 because of the kids & was never really able to get back to sleep. And I have a full day's training today which is going to require me to be mentally present...
*Sigh* I see an intensive caffeine regimen in my near future.
I can't gripe too much... Lovely Wife has to deal with this every day without a break - I don't know how she does it.
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