- Wednesday, March 31, 2004
Mini Dump
I feel like I need to clear my head. Not that it is cluttered with anything, at least not anything important; it's just that today, I have not been able to focus on any one thing for a period of time. It isn't quite as bad as that woman on the commercial, the one that is now convincing a large number of adults in our country that they too can have ADD. (bwhahaahah - um whatever). It is more along the lines of feeling bored with most of the thoughts that are in my head.
Here is a run down of some of the random but nagging thoughts currently playing:
I should go running. I should work out more often than I do. I should read more. I should write more. I should really seed the yard this year. I think the month for that is April, but I'm not sure. I should go look that up. The phone hasn't rang ONCE today, that is weird. I didn't take anything out of the freezer for dinner. I guess I'll make chicken. I am pretty tired of chicken. Last night I had strange dreams but I cannot remember what happened.
I feel better now.
Labels: personal
pero @ 3:06 PM | œ | 8 comments
Who the - What the - ?
missamused: hey
perotheus: hello
missamused: hwhatcha doin?
perotheus: um... nothing
missamused: well thats boring
perotheus: I know
missamused: thats o.k.
missamused: :-D
perotheus: haha
missamused: ummm
missamused: i thing real quick
missamused: how old r u?
perotheus: 34.
missamused: wow ur kinda elderly
missamused: im so rude
missamused: srry
... (?)
pero @ 3:58 PM | œ | 6 comments
Guilty of Re-Gifting in the 1st Degree.
First, I will educate you on the concept of re-gifting, and the various degrees in which it exists.
Re-gifting is the practice of taking an item that was given to you (as a gift), and giving it to another person (as a gift). This would make it a RE-GIFT. Re-gifting comes in many forms:
3rd Degree - You receive a gift that you either don't like, doesn't fit you or maybe it is just the wrong color. You appreciate the thought, but it just wasn't the right gift for you.
Example: Someone gave Tim a bottle of Red Wine for his birthday. Tim doesn't drink wine -- as a matter of fact, he hates the stuff. Tim took the wine to a dinner party and gave it to the host & hostess. He did this because his mother taught him that a guest should never arrive empty-handed.
2nd Degree - You receive a gift from a close friend or family member. You already have this exact item. You stick it in the closet for a few months and later wrap it to give to that birthday person that you forgot about -- until now.
Example: I received one of those fancy cork screw sets for my birthday last year. I love it, and use it all the time. For Christmas, I received another one, exactly like it from somebody else. I put the box in the closet, and I gave it to someone as a retirement gift last month. I did this because I like this item, and nobody knows it was a re-gift -- until now.
1st Degree - This is by far the worst of the degrees of re-gifting. It is the one where do something horrid, such as returning the gift that someone gives you and using the money (or store credit) to buy something for the person who gave you the gift in the first place.
I am GUILTY of doing just that.
My Story: My cousin gave me a gift-card to JC Penney for Christmas. I forgot I had it until last week when I realized that her birthday was coming and we were all going to go out to dinner. When I asked her what she wanted for her birthday she told me she really preferred gift certificates or cards to places like JC Penney. I made an honest effort to purchase something for myself, but I didn't find any shirts or shorts or anything else that I liked. Maybe it was my mood - maybe I just don't like shopping.
My original plan was to get something for myself and then buy her a gift card. Since I found nothing I liked, I walked up to the counter and waited for the clerk to acknowledge me. When she asked how she could help me I was embarrassed to say what I wanted.
"Are you ready for this? This is going to make me sound like a bad person, but... I want to take the fifty dollars that is on this gift card," I said as I placed the card that looked like Christmas on the counter, "and put it on a different gift card. Can you do that?"
She looked at the card and she told me they still sell cards like that, and why not just use it because it isn't Christmas-y It is just a picture of a gift."
I explained that I am re-gifting it, back to the same person that gave it to me for Christmas, so I would really just like to put the money on a card that at least LOOKED different. She assisted me with my transaction without seeming to pass judgment. I told her she was my hero of the day.
I gave the card to my cousin today... the re-gifted one. And, unless she is aware of this site, she doesn't even know it.
pero @ 10:22 PM | œ | 10 comments
¡pero es el queso!
Deb sent me to take this quiz. I think that was cruel, since I can no longer eat cheese freely. (sob, gasp, sigh). I am bleu cheese? Does that mean I am old and MOLDY?
pero @ 8:39 PM | œ | 7 comments
257 > 217
I finally got my Lipid Profile results back. They drew the blood -- what was it, about a month ago? Either way it was an interesting conversation.
"Your cholesterol is really high," said my doctor. We need to make some drastic dietary changes and get you on different medication."
"STILL? REALLY? You're kidding me. What is the number?" I asked in disbelief.
"257," he replied.
"NO CHANGE AT ALL? Are you SERIOUS?" I was pretty upset by this news, and I don't think I even tried to hide my disappointment. "Do you have any idea how much Colestipol SUCKS? Try a mouthful of SAND sometime - better yet - try it twice a day for 3 months."
He looks at the chart. He looks up at me and says "ooh you know this is the wrong date! I'll be right back. These were your original results."
I looked at his pretty assistant and she smiled at me. I said, "Salad with no dressing. Baked potatoes with no butter and pasta without sauce, and he shocks me by telling me there was no change. That is just cruel."
The doctor returns and says "I'm VERY impressed! it dropped by a LOT. 217. Usually the best we expect is a 10-15 point drop but yours is lower by a LOT! This is GREAT! Keep up whatever you are doing!"
I am happy to announce that:
I Lowered My Cholesterol!
Granted, I still need to get that number even lower - but that test was actually ONLY six weeks after starting the Colestipol and diet changes. I'll have it tested again in about two months to see if it's even lower.
pero @ 12:47 PM | œ | 11 comments
Act I : Scene 1
Setting: Pero's living room. He is sitting on the couch drinking water. His shirt and jeans have minor soiled areas, indicating he was doing yard work earlier. The television is on at a low volume, on Bravo cable network channel.
-=phone rings=-
Pero waits for the Caller ID to display the caller's name. His expression is one of annoyance. The caller is Dennis. Pero has reinstalled their family's computer twice since December. (The first time they had -been surprised- by the notorious Bla$terW0rm virus. The recent fix was less than a week ago because the System configuration file gets corrupted repeatedly).
He had returned the computer to them two days ago, and he has received at least five phone calls from Dennis, asking fundamental questions such as, "It wants tells me I need Quicktime 3 for this game. Should I install Quicktime 3?" (No, Dennis. Your computer has a newer version. The game should still work so if it lets you skip the QT install.) Many more calls like this one at all hours of the day and night have been pouring in. He sighs, and pushes the button.
Pero :. Hello?
(you can hear kids screaming and fighting in the background)
Dennis .: Guess what? It did it again.
Pero :. Which part? It does a lot of things.
Dennis .: My wife is pissed. She thinks I did it. It always breaks right after I install something. It doesn't do it to her.
(kids screaming, young child crying)
Dennis .: WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?
(whimpering)
Dennis .: YOU HAVE a VOICE. USE IT.
(unintelligible mumbling)
Dennis .: Sorry. I am so sick of this thing. It keeps doing this. She is pissed at me like I did it.
Pero :. You have to be more specific than that?
Dennis .: It has that message again.
Pero, rubbing the top of his head. Facial expression is one of exasperation.
Pero :. Missing or corrupted system file, right?
(kids crying, Dennis says nothing... for almost thirty seconds.)
Dennis .: Yah that one. Why is it doing this? It wasn't even the same game.
Pero :. I don't know really. I only ran it for one day before giving it back. If you get your Win XP CD, we can fix it. I think there is something with your hardware conflicting with XP. It happens sometimes, so I don't know what is causing this.
Dennis .: (sighs) O k a y.
Pero :. Put the CD in the drive, and push your power button.
Dennis .: Don't I have to shut down?
Pero :. Not this time. It didn't boot into Windows from what you told me right?
Dennis .: (getting punchy) NO I done told you it won't start to Windows.
Pero :. You have to calm down or I can't help you. Put the CD in and turn it off When you turn it on, watch the screen because it will prompt you "hit any key to boot to the CD" You only have about FIVE seconds so you have to be quick. Once it gets booted to the CD the screen will be black and have a letter C: prompt. Let me know when you are there.
Dennis .: No, this screen is blue. It says Copying setup files. Should I turn it off? It only gave me five seconds to hit the key. I think I missed it I can't read that fast.
Pero begins running his hand through his hair while Dennis is ranting.
Pero :. No. If you just turn it off when it is writing to the drive, you could ruin your hard drive. Let it copy the files. Then I think it is F3 to exit. The screen will tell you what key to exit.
After four more attempts just to boot to the CD to get to the recovery console. Pero begins walking him through the steps to repair the corrupted file, reading each command one word at a time, sometimes using phonetic words for letters, such as: type Mike Delta - space temp (so it says MD TEMP) and hit enter.
Dennis interrupts him several times to complain about the computer some more. Many of the steps have to be repeated five to six times each.
Pero then informs Dennis that Once this is done the sound and video drivers will have to be fixed. Because by replacing the system configuration file we erased Windows information about where the drivers are. It's not a big deal, we can fix it.
Dennis .: OH my god everything is huge. It's all fked up. What is wrong with this computer? I hate it. This is such a pain in my ass. It's wasting my time.
Pero (thinking) Yah well I know I've wasted a lot of my time on it. Reinstalled twice it for free, It doesn't screw up when it's here, so I don't know.
Pero :. Doo-ooOOOd. You are going to have to calm down. I can't walk you through this if you are too annoyed already to even listen to me.
Finally they managed to get it booted normally, and after a few attempts managed to get the drivers loaded.
Pero :. You need to be thinking about what you are going to want to put on it for an OS, because I can guarantee you this is going to keep happening. You may be better off with 98 Second Edition. I'd recommend Linux but it will be a lot of new stuff, and your games may not work with it, so either 98 or 2000. Win 2000 may not run your games either - the thing is we won't really know unless we tried them.
Dennis .: Ok. well thanks. We'll buy you dinner sometime or something.
Pero, having heard this before .: Yep. sounds good. Good luck. Hopefully it will work for a while. If this happens after a shut down, I'd just leave it running all the time.
Dennis .: I thought that was bad for it.
Pero :. No. Eventually you'll have to re-boot it now and then, but I leave mine running constantly. It won't hurt it. You may check the settings for the monitor just to make sure it at least turns off. Talk to you later.
Dennis hangs up without saying Bye.
(to nobody in particular)
Pero :. How rude. Nice talking to you. You're welcome, I like to help. Have a good afternoon. Tell the kids I said hi. G'bye.
pero @ 11:02 PM | œ | 9 comments
Yah, Right. That Makes Perfect Sense...
A friend of mine screens her phone calls via answering machine. That is fine, I guess, a lot of people do that. (I just pay the two or three bucks per month for caller ID.) The problem is, her answering machine is set to pick up after five or six rings.
pero @ 11:52 AM | œ | 5 comments
Inbox
Here are some words I received in my e-mail today. Italicized text has been edited from the original wording.
so....my dear and most wonderful digital friend pero, here is the text of a postcard i picked up along with some good soothing (buddha is on the cover of one) massage music whilst on the book hunt:
(post it if you deem it worthy...otherwise just enjoy)
taoism: shit happens
buddhism: if shit happens, it isn't really shit
hinduism: this shit has happened before
islam: if shit happens, it is the will of allah
catholicism: shit happens because you deserve it
protestantism: let shit happen to somebody else
judaism: why does shit always happen to me?
(nice work, i say.)
take good care 'til we meet again.
kate
pero @ 7:46 PM | œ | 7 comments
Spring in Oregon - What is that Bright Thing, Anyway?
I like the early mornings as my shift ends, and I see the hints of sunlight peeking through the low clouds, telling me that I am about to go home. (fulfillment)
On my days off, I like waking up to the way the house looks with the color of the light given off by sunrise. (silence)
However - in order to feel alive I have to get at least one cup of dark roast coffee in my system. (dependence)
pero @ 10:10 AM | œ | 7 comments
Oh, Hey, That Was Real Smart
As I was laying on my kitchen floor, flat on my back and looking up at the ceiling, I noticed the cobweb beside one of the recessed lighting fixtures.
"Interesting. I wonder how long that has been there?" I said out loud to nobody in particular.
I suppose now I have to explain how it came to be that I was laying on the kitchen floor. I had been sitting in my living room, chatting with a few AIM friends and drinking coffee (at ten thirty at night, which is just one of those things I do from time to time since I am on a reverse schedule than normal people). I eventually became aware of the need to take a break, excused myself, turned on the away message --and although I had no need to do so, I RAN towards the kitchen. I believe that my intention was to slow down as I came to the 90 degree TURN to get to the half-bath which is off the laundry / garage area.
Once I hit the kitchen threshold, I realized that it is a very bad idea to run on a tile floor in sock-ed feet. I slid for a second stretched into what seemed a lot longer, then pivoted as I tried to save myself by reaching for the counter and found myself laying on the floor staring at the cobweb on the ceiling.
pero @ 12:46 AM | œ | 7 comments
What's in Your Pantry?
I realize that this makes me look bad. Yah, once you zoom out you will see some boxes of Hamburger Helper and some Velveeta Shells-n-Cheese. While they do reside in my pantry, and while I do prepare them from time to time it is not very often. (Maybe once a month for the HBH). Shells-n-Cheese, now that is a little different. I keep it on hand because it takes ten minutes to prepare. I prefer homemade macaroni and cheese, but there are many days when my schedule doesn't allow much time for cooking.
*As much as I love to cook.
The healthy food can be found in my refrigerator / freezer. Chicken breasts, lean beef, salmon, fresh broccoli, romainne lettuce, fresh fruits. You get the idea. All of the healthy food is perishable, so you won't find it in the pantry.
pero @ 3:49 PM | œ | 6 comments
Love Thy Neighbor
Every morning while I am trying to fall asleep, the neighbor to the left's two small yappy dogs begin to yip yap and fight. They are soon joined by the larger dogs that live somewhere behind me; their exact location - I cannot pinpoint. These people allow this to go on for at least an hour every morning.
I do not know if they just cannot hear their dogs, or if they hear it but tune it out. I assume that they lack the intelligence to realize that there are people that work nights, and sleep during the day. I do not understand why anyone would allow their dog(s), regardless of size - to remain in the back yard barking and yapping for hours.
My dog rarely - if ever barks. He barks if someone rings the doorbell. He barks (with great determination) if they walk in my house without me opening the door. For a while he would utter one sharp bark at the doorbell in the Domino's Cinnistick or Wendy's chicken strip commercial. Eventually he figured out that this was actually an on TV doorbell. (Genius indeed.)
This morning, once the barking stopped, my neighbor decided to MOW his lawn (at nine o'clock AM). This began with four or five failed starts of the mower, each with the engine dying out within thirty seconds. It's mornings like this that I am tempted to roll out of bed, and visit the neighbors to hand-deliver a clue to them.
pero @ 8:43 PM | œ | 8 comments
The To-Do List (vs.) ?The Plan?
I make lists for every thing. Right now I have a grocery list, a web site planning list, a yard-work list and I'm pretty sure at least two more lists I am forgetting. I have three days off, which should be plenty of time to do some - if not all - of the things on the lists. I just don't have the desire to get started.
Right now, I am looking at the lists, wishing that scratching through tasks would actually resolve or complete them.
Right now, there is not much food in the house. I have some of the stuff needed to make food, but none of the main dish items (milk, eggs, meat, etc.) My pantry and refrigerator inventory: 5 cans of soup (3 tomato, 1 beef vegetable, and 1 chicken and rice); 1 Box of StoveTop stuffing, 1 box of long grain wild rice, 1 package of spaghetti pasta, Half of 1 box of ziti pata, 1 pouch of Italian Dressing seasoning mix, 1 box of cocoa mix (unopened) plus 2 loose packages of cocoa mix, Half of one box of instant oatmeal, 3 cans of green beans, 2 cans of corn, 4 cans of pinto beans, 1 sleeve of Ritz® crackers. Half of one loaf of bread, Half of a box of each cereal; Crispix, Cheerios, Capt'n Crunch, and Life. 1 box of brownie mix, Half a box of Bisquick, and Half - bags of flour, sugar, brown sugar and other seasonings. My refrigerator contains: 12 pk. Pepsi, 9 cans of beer, 3 flour tortillas, 2 sticks of butter, half of a 'tub' of Margerine, 1 pouch of albacore tuna, some pickles, (some condiments) and a carton of OJ with enough for one more glass. (See... I need to go grocery shopping.) BUT I am too tired to fight the "payday" crowd at the store. I have an excuse which should allow me to procrastinate a little while longer.
This is where ?The Plan? becomes relevant. I want to do something fun. I want to be irresponsible and for once not be designated driver. I want to eat cheese and fried foods. ?The Plan? is to go out to eat with friends tonight. Which means I must get some of that -|S.L.E.E.P|- during the next few hours.
Otherwise I risk falling face first into a plate of appetizers or drowning in my martini; which is usually something that your friends would take as a sign that they have bored you to death. I am not sure that my friends are up to handling that type of rejection.
pero @ 4:14 PM | œ | 5 comments
Damage Control
I've seen a few CNN spoof sites -- usually I recognize them on the spot. I admit that yesterday I didn't LOOK closely enough at the story referred to in yesterday's post.
(I would like to point out that since people are missing the "CNNN" logo ad towards the top of the page, most ads probably go unnoticed. (So why do we have to deal with their flashing, twitching and bad color schemes? I see them, but I rarely ever read them or remember what the ad was for. I have never clicked an ad to see what it did next.)
Anyway, this story was just strange enough to sound real. I've seen stranger stories that were less believable that were real. After some reflection, I did begin to wonder if an iPod is actually heavy enough to kill a person. If I was going to choose an MP3 player for cracking people in the skull and ending their lives, I'd pick one of the bulky-heavy ones, (maybe with non-rounded corners).
The iPod is 6.2 oz, while the one Dell Digital Jukebox is 7.6 oz (also under half a pound). Tim found an older one that advertises that it weighs ".62 lbs". (If I did my math right), that comes out to 9.2 oz or something. Weighing in at 268 grams (9.5 oz.) is the Creative Nomad Jukebox Zen... and it still "fits in your shirt pocket".
OK, so I don't REALLY think yesterday's (fictional) post NEEDS "damage control", I just thought I'd take the time to go through the steps.
pero @ 10:42 AM | œ | 3 comments
Suspect is Armed and Dangerous!
My source notified me that a woman killed her boyfriend with one of these things. Talk about volatile.
_________________
CORRECTIONS (6:15 PM)
Shortly after publication, my "source" (as you can see in the comments) mentioned that HIS source had spoofed the whole thing. So much for being lazy and relying on other people for content. (I mean this in a "I am actually humored, whether-or-not it was true" way.)
pero @ 3:20 PM | œ | 7 comments
Tim the Hacker Strikes Home
I have a protected directory on my web server. It is used primarily for storage, but sometimes I will create a user sign in and password for friends who I wish to access the directory to get a file. The directory's protection includes - IP blocking on hack attempts or shared passwords. Sounds like a good plan, doesn't it? In theory it is a great feature.
Tim, who already HAS a user sign in and password decided to try to HACK into it using some "tool" he acquired -- um... somewhere. However, Tim attempted the hack from MY HOUSE and now I do not have access to my own protected directory. We will be without access for twenty four hours. I received an alert via e-mail notifying me of his pathetic hack endeavor.
pero @ 8:31 PM | œ | 11 comments
Tofu or Not Tofu?
Do you know what tofu is? Everyone has heard of it, every grocery store sells it, whether you know it or not, you have probably eaten it.
[ok, you have my attention, I'll read on]
Despite my comments on the last post, I don't dislike tofu THAT much. I just don't typically eat it. I have eaten it stir-fried, and in hot and sour soup. I have never purchased tofu for experimenting or recipes or anything like that.
The few soy products I have tried, I have not been very impressed with. Soy milk - did not work for me. It was thick, gray in color and tasted nothing like milk. Not that anyone has claimed that it does.
I have been told that if I "get the vanilla version of soy milk, it isn't as bad." My honest opinion? If you get the vanilla version and still describe it as "not as bad", I probably still don't want to drink it. Thank you for the information though, I will keep it in mind.
pero @ 4:20 PM | œ | 5 comments
Hold the Onion...
I'm going to quit my job, buy one of those street-food-vendor-hotdog carts, and be my own boss. I will stock my cart with the best quality supplies and ingredients I an find (for the cheap price I will be able to afford), and park on the corner that has the most sun for that day. (This might be a challenge with Spring showers).
I will sell chili dogs at competitive prices, and provide service with a smile. My slogan will be "you look like you need a chili dog!". No doubt I will get a slap in the face when I say this to women and I don't have my cart with me. Maybe I will give my slogan a little more thought afterall. Once I build up a customer base, I will hand out small punch cards - each chili dog purchase will get one punch in your card, and after the 9th punch your 10th chili dog is FREE!
pero @ 4:45 PM | œ | 13 comments
Jump, Jive and Wail...
(Caption this)
pero @ 1:33 PM | œ | 6 comments
Life in My Refrigerator
My refrigerator is freezing its contents. Not everything, mind you; just items which it chooses with no pattern what-so-ever. It doesn't seem to be relevant on what type of food or beverage it is. It also doesn't seem to matter where in the appliance the object is located. Randomly, it seems to release it's icy wrath, causing the food items dying a cold harsh death. Lost so far: half a dozen eggs, and head of romainne lettuce. Salvageable at best: Italian dressing, half a gallon of milk, and half a gallon of orange juice.
The thermostat is not the issue, because the cold spot in the refrigerator seems to travel. Sometimes it is in the top shelf, at the back on the left. Sometimes it is in the middle shelf on the right side. I really can't figure it out. I don't want to have to buy a new refrigerator.
pero @ 4:42 PM | œ | 2 comments
