Tonight’s TV-Land line up consisted of: 7:30 – Leave it to Beaver … 8:00 – The Day After … 12:00 – Three’s Company. Now I may not be a TV programing executive but exactly who though up the idea of sandwiching a happy little tale of Atomic holocaust between a feel good 50′s family show and a 70′s sit-com? Yah thats my idea of a fun evening!
Work has been good, hopefully we will get out early tomorrow or if not “we” then me, using some of my own time. Its a long weekend and I need all the rest I can get. So far no plans for anything special. And before anyone asks hell no I am not going into the city to see fireworks. Anything like that (Macy’s Parade, New Years In Time Square, 4th of July Fireworks) is really just a tourist thing.
Too much a pain in the ass for any of us who actually live here to bother with!
woo hoo… »« Avenue Q weekend wrap up
So Val came down this weekend so we could go see Avenue Q! The tickets were Christmas/Birthday presents for me (and for herself). Thing is we almost didn’t make it (I have bad luck with Broadway shows.) We were going to take a taxi and last time I needed one they told me to call 15 minutes before we needed the car. So the show is at 8 and I call at 6:30 only to find out that it would be about an hour before a car would be available. Eek! There really aren’t too many car services around where I am and I didn’t know the numbers for any others so we ran out and started for the subway. The M train wasn’t running this weekend so we had to take the bus to the L. Luck for us when we got to the L station there was a cab that was empty and we were able to hop in and make it to the theater with all of five minutes to spare! So yah that part wasn’t really fun. The show it self was great though. Really funny and when they promise “frontal puppet nudity†they deliver! It was also definitely a decidedly liberal crowd when the line in the last song “George Bush…is only for now†got big applause from just about everyone there. The trip home was actually decidedly uneventful. We walked a few blocks and we able to find a taxi willing to go into Queens, the first one didn’t want to…wtf?, and thanks to Google directions and map I had no problem telling the driver where exactly to take us. So while the start was a bit stressful it ended up being a fun night. (And yes Meg I know I owe you a trip to see the show still).
Sunday we headed back into the city and went to see Batman Begins which was really, really, good! I would definitely recommend it. After that I took Val back to the train station and she headed home. On my way I stopped back at Union Square to get a little notebook from the book store and a few copies of Neil Gaiman’s new comic adaptation of Neverwhere. Then I went home and was a total slug for the rest of the evening. I’m not used to doing some much on the weekends!
But alas now I am back to work but at least I have next week’s long weekend to look forward to, so that’s something to help make it though the week!
An odd tv paring… »« Science
Val is coming down this weekend and were are going to see Avenue Q on Saturday night on Broadway….and there was much W00T!-ing. Will make for a fun weekend after a boring week. Not bad mind you just boring, nothing too interesting at work case wise, though I am getting to help set up and qualify a new instrument so thats kind of neat. But other wise kind of slow. You know this town…not much ever happens here 
Science »« Ginger Ale Update
Just a quick Ginger Ale update. Following the instructions from the website I checked the bottle today and found the sides were hard and under a good deal of pressure. So I placed it into the fridge to chill, but couldn’t wait till tomorrow to try it, so I carefully opened it. After much foaming and careful venting I got the top off and poured a glass (through a strainer to get out ginger chunks) and took a sip. It’s surprisingly good. Not great mind you, but for something I made in my kitchen yesterday with a empty soda bottle, sugar, lemon, ginger, water, and yeast, its not half bad! Maybe with a little tinkering I could make something real decent (Captain Science’s Ginger Ale ) hehe I smell a new business, I could sell it on the subway!
Ave Q. »« New Phone
So I went into the city today and go me a new phone. It’s not as shiny and nifty as the old one (no camera and stuff) but its nice enough. Seeing as I was going all the way into Manhattan I figured I would make a day of it and hit the Strand for some books. Ended up getting three new ones by Alfred Bester (who is a really great but not well know Sci-Fi author), and I also got “Wolves in the Walls” by Neil Gaiman (yah its a kids book but its Neil Gaiman damn it) plus it was cheaper then the normal book store so W00T for that! Also stooped off for lunch at the new Whole Foods Market at Union Square, which is really big. So yah it was a good day even if I had to spend a bunch of money for a new phone.
I also tried a little experiment when I got home. I found this page on line the other day, all about how to make your own ginger ale at home with a few house hold things and an empty soda bottle. Sounded easy and cool so I gave it a try. I figure one or more of the following things can happen:
It works and tastes good.
It works and doesn’t taste so good.
I end up with temped, flat, lemon and ginger flavored sugar water.
The bottle explodes all over my kitchen, likely in the middle of the night, scaring the crap out of me.
Either way I figure it will be a good time.
Ginger Ale Update »« Phone Vs. Q55 bus…
Phone vs. a MTA Q55 Bus:
As you can see the bus wins, but its also not AS bad as one would expect given the size of the bus vs the size of the phone. Still it’s bad enough….sigh!
New Phone »« No phone
So I was walking to the bus this morning and got to the corner and saw one pull up, so I went to run across the street to catch it before the light changed. Well in crossing the street 2 things happened….my cell phone some how fell out of the clip on my belt and the light changed (I think you can see where this is heading), long story short my cell phone got run over by a bus and is quite dead. So now on Sunday I am going to have to go into the city buy a new one, which is damn expensive when you are in the middle of your contract thing. Sigh. So yah…not so good a day so far.
Phone Vs. Q55 bus… »« BBspot – Top 11 Yo Momma Insults for Sci-Fi
Um no, it’s hot in here. Damn summer! They claim its going to cool off tomorrow but we’ll see about that. Nothing too exciting going on last few days. This past weekend I went home to go to a retirement party and I got to visit Valerie down in West Haven which was fun. Got back Sunday night (on PACKED trains, apparently I timed my trip back at about the same time the Puerto Rican day parade ended) But I finally made it home (with a yummy sack of Trader Joes snacks and food). Then sadly it was back to work time. Weekends are never long enough. Sigh. Work has been fine, I got to laugh at some of my co-workers who got buried today with some big cases! And thats always fun, at least till ‘Lab Karma’ strikes and I end up regretting it…but till then its great fun!
So now for random/weird stuff: A link thats floating around on the internets for a kids page thats part of the “Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program” for Umatilla and Marrow Counties’ (in Oregon). Apparently there are some plants and military chem. weapons disposal plants in the area and they have a happy little turtle telling the kids what to do during a chemical emergency. Which according to the animated turtle you can click on involved closing your door and window because we all know that will keep out nerve gas. It also includes pages for the kids to print out and color in! What fun! Reminds me of another happy turtle named Bert back in the 50′s that taught kids how to ‘duck and cover’ to avoid an atom bomb. I guess since that worked so well (how many kids were killed by atom bombs in the last 50 years eh? well in the US at least) they figure the turtle can help for chemical weapons too. It’s worth checking out, if for no other reason then playing the hide form the chemicals game with the turtle. Good times…good times… Its also worth noting for the web geeks out there that the whole site has a real “web in 1996 feel to it”. The kids page proudly proclaims “This page created with Netscape Navigator Gold”…and has a “Netscape Now 3.0″ button on it. Um…from what I could find on the web I was totally right in that Netscape 3.0 WAS originally released in August 1996. (they are up to 8.0 now if it matters).
wow I can turn a link to a chemical weapons educating turtle into a rant about how funny stuff from 1996 looks…..I guess thats what heat does to my brain!
PS. For Smita…see I updated so now you have something to read tomorrow!
BBspot – Top 11 Yo Momma Insults for Sci-Fi »« They wont show this on CSI…
So remember the episode of CSI where the lab guys spend the whole day sitting around sorting through paperwork for some special project? Or how about the time where it was a slow day and they only had about 2 hours worth of work to do for a 7 hour day? Hum….you know come to think I don’t remember those episodes either. I guess thats because things like that only happen IN REAL LIFE. Hehe. Yah this has been a slow week, which is good in some ways and not so good in others. I really ought not to complain though, really, REALLY busy could be A LOT worse I guess.
Is it hot in here or is it just me? »« Free Kevin…the movie.
Tonight I finally got to watch the 2600 documentary that was done on the Kevin Mitnick Saga, “Freedom Downtime“. I ordered the movie on DVD last week when I finally signed up for a year’s subscription to the magazine (I got tired of hunting for it at the book store). The documentary was really good and totally worth ordering. I haven’t had a chance to watch the bonus disk which has a lot of stuff on it but just the movie it self was great (I plan to make all my friends/family watch it at some point )
Well he’s free now but the movie made me think back to when I stuck a Free Kevin sticker on my parents car.
Otherwise today was a lazy day (I got to get out more). Tomorrow it’s supposed to rain or something so that may limit my options for doing stuff other then the necessary laundry and food shopping. But I figure I deserve a do nothing weekend, I am going home next weekend and then working the next two Saturdays, though one of those Saturday nights will be occupied seeing Ave. Q with Valerie so that will be fun.
They wont show this on CSI… »« Chuck Palahniuk X 2
This past Tuesday I again got to journey into the city to see Chuck Palahniuk. Last year it was at the Cooper Union, this time it was a reading/signing at the Barnes and Noble in Union Square. The event was supposed to start at 7, but knowing how crowded the last one was I left work two hours early and got there around 4:50pm and there were already a good number of people there. I was early enough to get one of the 300 seats which meant that you got to sit and were guaranteed at least an autograph. After that it was standing room only, and a HUGE line to try and get your book signed, though knowing how cool Chuck is about his fans he probably stayed there till midnight.
The reading was good, he read the story Hot Potting from his new book (which I got to hear last year too) and told his usual great if not odd stories. There was also a Q&A session which was good, he gave out steak shaped latch hook rugs to people who asked questions (part of a meat themes that went along with the story and the steak shaped/meat scented air fresheners he gave out to us). No major revelations other than he wants to try and play with some Utopian themes in his next book but in a comedic/twisted way, he described it like a humorous take on 1984 but not Brazil. So thats something to look forward to.
I did get my book signed, though because they were trying to move people along no photo op. this time. Oh well, still all in all a fun evening.
Free Kevin…the movie. »« Thanks Chelsea!
