Huh...

Thurs

We watched a particularly brutal Survivor. James has gone nuts and Russell and Boston Rob are up to their old tricks... And as for Vana'diel, sadly, I don't remember doing anything significant.

-=-=-=-

Fri

Wound up staying in. Ape bought a new desk so she could move me out of the dining room and to a more suitable location. She made a good pick - it matches our other furniture very nicely. While assembling it, I finally broached the subject of what I really wanted for all the recent gift-days: My cosplay gear. This shouldn't be a surprise to any of my longtime readers but it occurred to me that going for it might involve collateral damage from friends and family.

So we talked rather frankly about that, about my new self-expression and about our differing attitudes on things that could affect the direction of "The Talk". I honestly expected a more severe grilling but she was quite relaxed about it all. I've decided that was because (hopefully) she's accepted things.

From there, we watched some TV, bouncing between "Baby Boom" and random stuff. She fell out earlyish because she's coming down with a cold. I took advantage of the situation to turn off the TV and pop open my laptop and finally finish Cardcaptors. It was a pretty good movie and I enjoyed the different characters. As expected, I also liked the focus on Love as a powerful ally.

At close to midnight, I migrated to the living room where my new setup is located. I fired up AIM and LK and I had a nice chat. I also thanked Deej, Momma and Kush for their contributions to Aerin's Musical Memories project. See separate post for more details if you want to be included!

LK was working out some details of a con he's trying to get to. A bunkmate bailed on him and he had nonrefundable plane tickets. While we chatted, he was working on another room and found one, so he's off! He also made an incredible offer to me with regard to my con plans in September. I'm not going to say anything yet, but if things line up right, I'll be filling in all the sweet details!

-=-=-=-

Sat

Today's been slow so far. We got up, headed to see our nephew's final flag football game, then did a little shopping at Lane Bryant (Ape had a coupon), then we tried to pick up the boys and head home. I tossed a football with my uncle (down from TN) and the neighbor (whose son plays on the same team as my nephew). And I lost another nail... But I didn't embarrass myself with the pigskin at least! The boys weren't ready so we left them and headed home to clean up. Ape's friend was lending us their young son for a bit so they could eat and see a movie.

Random note: After venting more frustration that I'm breaking out a bit despite fanatical use of body wash, Ape clued me in. Body wash + face = that does not go there. I need to find some good face wash it seems.

Our friends eventually met us at our house, with plans to do dinner and a movie. We figured we had the wee one for about 5 hours. After quite a bit of playing (we have an extensive Little People collection from when ours were little people) we planned to go to church. However, we suffered a 30-minute-plus delay because Ape lost track of her camera charger. I found it behind a cabinet, where there was no plug. Nobody knows how it got there.

So, we were quite late. But the lil' guy was very well-behaved, being distracted by my rings and my keys. He got a number of complimentary looks, especially as people filed out of the sanctuary. I forgot how much fun it is to tote a cute kid around :3

From there, was a brief park trip for pics, then dinner at a nearby Bob Evans. Have I said how nuts I am for breakfast food at any hour? After we ate, it was off to the mall. I took all three boys while Ape, her mom and her visiting uncle went their way.

Then, just as we're heading home, my dad calls: he's locked himself out of his car. He and my mom were at their dance class which wasn't too far away, but we /also/ got a call from our young charge's parents, who were headed to pick him up.

I rushed to my dad, grabbed him, then all of us made it home in time. He and I left to get his spare keys while Ape and all the boys hung out. We didn't return until nearly an hour later, but our friends stuck around. This would be good for three reasons: It's nice to see them, of course; the wife got a new Droid and let me play with it; and, I showed her the basics of what I'm planning for my cosplay outfit.

Much later, I had a couple of nice chats. LK, who is always fun to chat with, and Momma. She and I don't usually have in-depth chats, but tonight just worked out. She was playing BioShock 2 and I wasn't doing much else. [highlights here, re: Love]

PLed Soho, who was on quite late with Incrediblepanda. Their BST-duo party began in Saruta and made its way to Tahrongi, where I met up with them. And 15 minutes later, Soho DCed. I stayed with Pands for maybe 10 minutes then left.

-=-=-=-

Sun

Spent nearly three hours fighting my father in law's transmission. The filter is not exposed once the pan is removed. And nobody here seems to have a tech manual. Had to abandon the job partway in. Then I cleaned up and met the crew for dinner and a quick shopping trip, then the Amazing Race. I logged in then and puttered around. I flagged up for nearly an hour (really juicy DH) then PLed Raki's group during B&S (also pretty good).

Still have not heard from Kush or Kep. Did chat with LK in-game for a bit, and Soho came back. Said he fell asleep fighting a lost connection.

In /other/ news, now that I've crossed the final hurdle with Ape on the cosplaying, it's now on me. Do I have what it takes and am I prepared for the potential consequences of going forward?

Hopefully, my intended seamstress' daughter going to be able to start the introductions with her mom soon. I need to either find my PC version of XI or -urk- buy it yet again. I need to start pulling the gear shots together. And if I take LK up on his kind offer, I'll need a second set of shots for the dolfie. I wonder what her name is...

I haven't seriously thought about what I want her to wear yet. I guess it'd help if I knew how big she was so I could get an idea of what level of detail is feasible. I was intrigued that LK offered to pay for the mats if I returned her to him fully dressed out. Maybe I'll hit him up once I get the bill!

I really did enjoy my lengthy chat with Momma. It started with the cosplay/Talk rundown and went in a few directions from there. But by the end, I felt really nice and I think she did too. It was easily our longest chat to date.

Back to LK - I had a little time to peruse his site, the Happy House of Hentai. I pulled down a podcast while looking at some of the pics. I wonder how Hello Kitty is connected to LK. I wasn't able to listen to the podcast remotely and for some reason, the file share was giving me grief. The next time I remote in I need to fix that and give it a listen. It'll mark the first time hearing one of my friends' voices.

Screwed Again

Monday



I got remote desktop and filesharing set up. Chatted whilst watching the Bachelor - The Women Tell All and Castle. I actually got Ape to watch the whole thing. Last minute trip online to confirm something I saw on Wiki - the Wedding Dress is back! >< >< ><

I *swear* it was the Opaline Dress in that coffer! Ugh - now I have to try to get my money back and farm up the rest!

-=-=-=-

Tuesday



Woke up in Heaven's Tower. Spent over an hour re-sorting gear and upgrading where possible. I am now carrying full melee job set and may try to party on the lowbies. Also farming again in Holla for money for the Wedding Dress set and ring.

Trying to avoid needing Kep's gift if possible. Not that I'm not honored... As it stands, with my pending sales and what I have farmed so far I think I'm within 200k of the whole deal. I think the ring can be done separately and the dress comes first.

-=-=-=-

Wed



More farming, then a return to Jeuno and Windy to put more stuff up for sale and to try for Mithra cakes. The Doll Festival is almost over and I nearly missed out. Got Bonbori instead...

Brief chat with Soho - he's not feeling well again, and then Raki showed up. As I was returning to Holla to farm he asked if I was interested in skilling. Having not seen him in ages, I accepted and we made separate ways to Zitah. We were going to try duoing upstairs.

During the party, we chatted a fair bit and after lamenting my sorry shell situation, I got invites to his main and Dyna shells: DreamChasers and FatalStrike.

As for skills, I capped Divine, got enfeeb within 1, and enhancing is now 4 off. Club went to 249, 6 off. I didn't get one shield point... The fighting was a little tense as we were SAM70/DNC30 and WHM75/SCH37. I did manage to pull off a sweet Fusion SC off his Tachi: Gekko - 360ish for the Hexa followed by 230 on the chain!

We ended the night at about 10:15, and when I checked, I saw I was 65 points shy of my third merit, lol. Protectra V, here I come!

It was nice to see Raki again, especially after what I thought was his departure. He's clearly been busy, but apparently needs CoP started. Hmmm...

Earlier, Med came on and asked me if I'd been working on SMN, and that he felt bad for the party setup that he led into Holla. I sympathize but if two of your roster don't know how to play their jobs and/or didn't bother to gear up, it's kind of a foregone conclusion, innit?

Then GK came on Rogues and asked Med, Zel and me what happened to the shell during his 2-month sabbatical. Med didn't really get specific but I did: "The core left, GK. It's that simple." I went on to mention how those who remained were trying to rebuild and get missions and events rolling again.

It was surprisingly easy for me to switch to DC... /sigh

I still need to check in with Stoik on his shell invite.

Fun and Frustration

Fri - Date night!



We went to Santiori's again with C & R, and this time we were joined by SIL and hubby. As usual, the food was excellent. From there we split up, as nobody else wanted to go to the movies. We were trying to pick between Valentine's Day, From Paris With Love, and When in Rome. We used the, "Which is showing in the biggest theater?" technique and wound up at Valentine's Day.

Despite reviews to the contrary, we loved it. It was very funny. Very very funny. And many of the stories were very sweet. McSteamy-as-quarterback coming out was an interesting twist. McDreamy as a philanderer was so-so until he got owned by the mistress.

At home, we chilled out for awhile and watched a variety of shows. Then it was Vana time. As I was still in West Saruta, and there were no cilices on the AH, I resumed the search. I was puzzled at where level 35 dhalmels would be in a stater zone, when I looked at wiki again. And, once more, Aerin fails reading skills. West Saruta *S*. Once I hopped through the Maw, it wasn't very long before I found the dhalmel camp.

I began the long process of dhalmel decimation while chatting away. It took a couple dozen beasts before I had just two tufts of hair. I had planned to get 4 to increase the chances of a successful synth. But I was bored.

I Mawed back to the present and ran to the guild. Almost 3k later I had a wool thread. I picked up advanced synth support and gave this recipe a shot. Or, I would have, but instead I got a message that my skill was too low. AAARGH! So, I waste two hours and 3k and I can't even try? A warp to Jeuno later and I put the mats up for sale.

-=-=-=-

Sat - Marathon!



The shell had planned tonight for the Holla assault, and I'd planned to farm recollects as I'd promised. But Med and Layton had other plans. Med threw out the idea of running Holla early so that at 8-ish we could move on to the next set of missions. We began to assemble but it didn't work out. There was talk of starting a COR unlock run. But I took my leave and ran to the library to drop off the DVDs and to Target for kitty litter (not mine).

When I got back, Med and Layton were about halfway into the run and I joined them. It was a lot of tedious running around, and one particularly tough fight against a Soulflayer which used up all my tricks save Benediction. Med almost ended the run at the second cutscene and I reminded him there was one more around the corner.

After that, we started the Caedarva map quest. This would have been a slam-dunk except for two things. Layton continued going AFK, and Med added Shadowhawko to the run and there was a delay while he came in from Wajaom and Med went AFK himself. /sigh

But we did get it done, and this particular cutscene series was very well done. I wonder if there's a YouTube of it. With all these delays, it was time to start the run and there was no time for me to farm recollects.

Between the COR run and the map quest, I got my meds from storage, and was able to get a crafter to make my cilice. I had been shouting for craft help in both Jeuno and Whitegate for a couple days and today someone answered! Hollaback replied, asking if I had the mats. I did, and he happened to be close by me, at the sanction NPC. I traded the stuff plus 5k and he succeeded on the synth. When he traded me the cilice I added a 2k tip. So I basically spent 10k and 2 hours to get a 3k piece of cloth... But now I could up my gobbiebag to 70 and free up the space I'd been using for the other three quest items.

And now, for the Holla run, which began at about 10, after assembling everyone and reviewing the battle plan. Recall that I went in 0 for 6. If I said I came out 0 for 8, would you pity me?

The climb was relatively uneventful, but slow. Once in the spire, we took a little time while Med explained a few things to Layton (on SMN) and Shadow (on WAR). Like macros. And job abilities. Oh. Boy. The plan was for Med and Layton to team up near the end of the fight to unleash Shivas, Astral Flow, and repeated Diamond Dust attacks. It didn't happen.

We nearly wiped right off the bat when Shadow went down. I think Shadows shadows fell quicker than planned and he took damage rapidly. We opted to stop fighting, wipe, and regroup. The second fight went to about 40%, and the summoners did start their assault. But it wasn't nearly enough. We wiped painfully once more. And this time, we were supposed to HP to save the XP loss but I wasn't paying attention and reraised unnecessarily. Oh well.

In other news, while waiting around the Ru'lude AH, I grabbed a Gala Corsage and the Opaline Boots. Man, those things are *white*! They make my Blessed Pants look really dingy. At some point, Stoik came on and said he'd read of my shell troubles on my blog. He's going to set me up in his.

Later that night, while chatting with Kep, he offered to give me his Emperor's Hairpin to go towards my Opaline gear. I was honored and a little speechless. He's quitting on the 28th so he's willing to part with stuff. I feel a little bad taking such a fine gift, especially after I put my foot in my mouth...

Meanwhile, for most of the afternoon and evening, Ape and the boys were off with SIL's family. They were all in Gainesville visiting the University of Florida. Younger is a huge Gators fan and they were spending the day there. They got some great pics in the stadium and around campus.

-=-=-=-

Sunday



Today was a pretty full "get stuff done" day. We did house chores, and then headed out for a little shopping. I grabbed a preorder for FFXIII, hoping it ships with beta keys for 14.

Also while out, we stopped at Ape's salon so Elder and I could get much needed hair surgery. The stylist and I talked a bit about '80s hair and then Ape and I settled on "neaten it up, shorten and thin the front, but leave the back long, as it's gonna get longer. She said I had "very pretty" hair, and once she was done, I had a hard time puting down the mirror. She moussed it - I've not had product in my hair like ever - and it looked fabulous. I hated to sleep on it...

From there, we had a great dinner at Chili's with my mom and dad. After, it was the Amazing Race. My cowboys did very well. I was running around during the show installing the new doorknobs Ape bought.

President's Day Week

Mon - Helped Eilanna (long time no see!) with Dark Spark (had a guest WAR) and then Med and I did most of the Attowha Chasm map quest. Soho joined after the dark mandy fight (so no map for him). Had a few deaths in the Chasm at the hands of an NM scorpion called Sargas. Eventually zoned and got our key items.

-=-=-=-

Tues - Don't think I did anything besides work on Clothcraft, Gobbiebag 8 and some teles. As part of my plan to end my time in Vana'diel, I'm expanding my gobbiebag to hold the Opaline dress set and the matching corsage. Three of the 4 items were available and cost "just" 40k. The last item, Cilice, is cheap but only supplied by one crafter called Tarbon.

I looked into the next most likely items for leveling Cloth and settled on Velvet cloth squares. While being 11 levels over mine, and not the cheapest mats-wise, they're easy and the ingredients are readily available. And the resulting cloth stacks sell quickly.

I didn't keep good notes on breaks and such, but I got two levels and made nearly 2 stacks tonight, and figured I'm running at maybe 60% efficiency (meaning crafting only recoups 60% of my costs). I can deal with that.

-=-=-=-

Wed - late night session of page compositing. Got most of the pics arranged and the words lined up. Now it's up to Ape to finalize a few details.

Took Cloth from 42 to 44. Seems like this route isn't going to cost me overmuch. Did a little tele work. Sbrightblade chatted me up regarding Rogues and the definition of a Mithra.

MsPeek is setting up a Holla run Saturday. I wasn't able to farm as requested because I was crafting and working on the yearbook ad, but I committed to bring 4 sets of recollects. So I guess I'll be farming in there sooner than planned :3

Chatted with Soho, briefly. Seems something's on his mind...

-=-=-=-

Thurs - quick check for cilice (fail), followed by a meager attempt to farm dhalmel hair in West Saruta. Never did find the dhalmels...

Welcome back, Rahne!

Finished the yearbook page from us as well as the half-page for the extended fam. *whew*

Finally got back on AIM after a nearly week-long absence.

Winter Wonderland! Or, Snow Tired!

Today is the start of our latest family oddysey (Thank you Abe and Lorne Lanning - now I can't spell it right anymore!). The four of us, plus Ape's sis' crew but minus mom-in-law were booked and packed for this trip. How we got out of town with just the two families I don't know ^^

We left home just before 3, and about 4 hours later the car was being pelted by sleety precipitation. We stopped to get gas and I ate some as it fell. Not long after, it got more snowy and was building up beautifully along the interstate. Lots of white hillsides and treetops.

Ever drive on ice? I have, a couple times. This is what the black box would have logged:

* ABS activation event
* Traction control / wheelspin event
* Course deflection / steering angle change event

Thankfully we were heading in a straight line... For the most part I avoided the far left lane because there's a no-semi rule and they were doing a good job de-icing and de-slushing the other lanes. But sometimes I needed to pass much slower traffic... Oops!

In any case, we stopped to eat just outside Macon and by the time we got back on the road things had calmed down. Also, as we got closer to Atlanta traffic built up some which helped clear the roads further. Between Valdosta and Macon the road was eerily empty. Kinda made us wonder if we'd somehow missed a road-closing barricade!

We got in close to 10 and settled in. Ape and her sis ran up the street to get some basics and they encountered quite a bit of ice and slidy road conditions. Thankfully they made it back safely. It was only later that I learned my SIL, who seems to disapprove of my precision driving practicing, was practicing ice driving in the Wal-Mart parking lot!

The hotel has been nice and the complimentary breakfast the following morning was yummy! Then it was off to Stone Mountain for the snow tubing we'd invested 6 hours to reach. The line was long-ish but ultimately we got 5 runs in during our timeslot. More than enough, actually. The climb and the hucking of the tubes up the ramps wore us all down.

From there was a far-too-long hunt for a new place to eat. We actually got immediate seating at one place but the fare wasn't really to our liking and the prices didn't improve our outlook. From there it was an additional two hours until we wound up at Longhorn. So much for finding a neat local place... But, the food was great, as always. And our waiter was top-shelf.

Sunday was the drive home. We tried unsuccessfully to get one more night but the place was sold out and the rate they quoted for a cancellation was nearly double what we paid... So we left. On the way home, we ate at "The Smoking Pig", South Georgia's award-winning BBQ joint. At least, that's what the placemats proclaimed.

It really was quite good - and I'm not a huge BBQ fan. We got home to a cold house and unpacked. I love being away, and I'm not terribly fond of my house, but if I have to leave my vacation spot, I want to be back home. I hate the in-between.

/Sigh

Monday to Wednesday all I did was farm in Promy-Holla. If the 6 converted animas sell I'll clear 30k. Seems like they won't...

I think unless I find a shell that sticks together, does events on a compatible schedule, and is filled with friendly people, my plan is to save up for the Opaline Dress set (couldn't ever afford Ceremonial) and enjoy looking prettyful for a time. Then I'll quit.

I'm fed up. I'm tired. And I have more fun chatting with my friends rather than grinding fruitlessly.

If *anyone* does happen to know a shell as I have described, I'd love to join. I really do love Vana'diel, and I love helping. I have things I still want to accomplish. But these days I just don't see it happening...

/sigh...

In other gaming news, on Tuesday, I found all the pieces needed for Typing of the Dead! And miraculously, my save data from years ago is intact!

Super Sunday

Friday night, I fell asleep after the post-movie cuddling.

Saturday:

I didn't have a lot of time for anything besides helping Clone the Elder. His National History Day project is due this week. I rigged up the two part presentation board and helped with the culling of excess wording from the slides.

We watched the cousins for a couple hours and there was more Metallica and Smash Hits action.

I got in some FFXI with a Bastok 8-1 assist and a mutual Mog House tour with Soho. Someone needs to hook me up with whatever it is he's doing. His mog was very nicely appointed, and a number of the furnishings were event rewards. Of particular fascination to me was his glowy crystal that cycled through the elemental colors.

Also had a couple of interesting chats, as usual.

In /random news, I pulled out my Dreamcast and keyboard gear. Now all I need is my Typing of the Dead disc. I've decided between work and home I'm long overdue for a typing skillup.

Also, last night I heard some of our wildlife messing with our garbage cans. Expecting the deer again I looked out and saw two raccoons! I grabbed a flashlight and laser pointer hoping to drive them off. Instead, they actually approached the back door where I was watching from. Clearly these fellows haven't watched enough sniper movies to have developed a fear of glowing red dots on the forehead...

Sunday:

Thought I was going to relax but then I remembered what today is! Super Bowl Sunday XLIV 44 Game Day! Otherwise known as a year's worth of good commercials in like 5 hours.

I did get to play Metallica for about 90 minutes, working on Career to unlock stuff. I also created my rocker, modeled after Joscelin but named Sqwisgaar. May need to rethink that one. As we were wrapping up (Ape had returned with her mom and was finishing prep) I got to listen to MIL's opinion of heavy metal. The Younger tried to put on a show but picked Beginner and quit. I tried "Dyer's Eve" on Hard and soon regretted it.

Not sure why since the lyrics have never applied to me personally, but I've always felt "connected" to Dyer's lyrics...

At my parents', we feasted and sat down to watch the game. The first half was interesting enough, wth each team dominating one quarter.

Overheard at various points before and during the halftime show (The Who played, for those keeping score):

"Who's playing at halftime?" "The Who." "Right, who's playing?"

"I think they're playing medley-style in the hopes /somebody/ recognizes one song..."

"Across the country, parties filled with thirty-somethings are scratching their heads at hearing the name of the musical guest."

"Does anyone watching even /know/ what a pinball machine is?"

(From the kitchen) "Oooh, CSI is starting?"

Some commercial reactions:

Doritos dog collar - classic physical comedy, but with animals! -grins-

Doritos Date Pickup - One of the best. The little boy's deadpan delivery is perfect!

Tim Tebow's pro-life spot: A) I happen to be pro-life. Surprised? I am a healer after all. I'm not a zealot about it and realize everything can be situational. B) Why on earth was there such an outcry again? Mom Tebow didn't say anything remotely controversial.

Manly Dodge Charger - Umm, why is shopping with your wife for clothes or housewares so unmanly, requiring a testosterone infusion? Is the woman who completes you not worth a litle time? A *lot* of time? Plus the car's a four-door. How is that manly, again?

Simpsons Coke - Hated it. Seemed very out of character. Plus most of the "Happiness" ads haven't registered with me.

Intel - I miss the "rock star" spots...

Africa Coke - Nice. I get to contradict myself a little. It was goofy but the scenery was lovely and the overall premise worked.

e-Trade - Dun like the new baby, but "milkaholic" sold me. Also, enthusiastic wolf howl made me think of Kio. I promise I'll gt it right event

Second Denny's Freebie - "In space no one can hear you cluck." Two thumbs up!

Doritos Locker Steal - hilarious chip samurai... (:

Audi Green Police - Awesome-sauce, plus I like Audi!

Second half? On-side kick, recovered, leading to a TD? {Yes, please!}

-shakes soggy head- In attempting to open a bottle of wine for Ape, without a corkscrew, I managed to shove the cork in. And got a faceful of white zinfandel for my trouble...

Manning intercepted, returned for another TD? /hurray

---------------

In unrelated-ish news, Ape was grading during the game. She showed some examples of "regular" work and the work of one of her challenged students. She has a couple, and has tried to convince the parents and her admins that these kids are beyond normal teaching. Looking at their work is quite heartbreaking, as it's clear they are trying but just aren't progressing... As a parent of an ADHD kid, I get it. But if the parents of these kids won't agree to get medical or professional help...

Catching Up

Oh... I somehow made it from Monday to today and didn't keep notes...

I'm pretty sure Wednesday I duoed in the Dunes with Ninjamaster, taking DRG one full level to 17. Then I helped him a little with the SMN weather collection by teleporting him from place to place. Oh, someone remind me next time - when I have a pet job, call up a pet! I must have wandered the Dunes for 15-20 minutes before realizing Nanaja was missing. /facepalm

Thursday was a waste of time on SAM - I wound up with less XP and a wasted 2k on a pumpkin when I got killed (for the second time) only 5 kills in...

Friday:

Today I finished book two of the Sevenwaters trilogy. If you recall from an earlier post, I wasn't sure about this one. To be honest, I really didn't feel like getting halfway in, investing in the characters, and then have some mindless tragedy befall them, as in the first.

To be honest, I found myself enthralled and read it as fast as I could make time. And a few days ago it occurred to me I was enjoying this one (as I did the last, minus the rape) because the female leads were so strong but also conflicted. I don't mean strong like physically, but both Sorcha and Liadan had a strength of will that greatly appealed to me. Also, both were very committed to healing, and made me feel the call of White Mage and real-life Healer all the more.

Clone the Elder may have found New Moon, and I need to refill my library queue again. And speaking of clones, Ape's sis gave us one of Karen Traviss' Star Wars books. Now to find it again...

Later on in the night I grabbed GH: Metallica, and GH Smash Hits for 20 bucks apiece. I played a 6-song set of Metallica and was transported back two decades... I surprised myself by recognizing all 7 album motifs during the opener, and by singing along to Dyer's Eve.

After that we watched our rented movie, Carriers. At only a dollar (thank you RedBox!), I *still* felt cheated. It flat-out sucked. Even with Captain Kirk in it...

Work's been a bit much but thankfully all my code is going smoothly.

Also, get well soon, Soho!

Hot Showers!

Sunday:

After picking up the water heater stuff and some lunch, I spent the afternoon at home, doing chores. I cut up the fallen trees from last week's storm. I fixed the water heater (prays and crosses fingers that it doesn't do anything burny - one house fire is enough). I installed our new DVD player. I did my final code checkout.

About the time Ape made it back from seeing "The Tooth Fairy" (what the heck led The Rock to make all these kids' movies? I have no prob with it, just interested...) it was time for dinner. Buuut, Soho had found me. We were chatting a bit while I was messing with auction stuff. He's working on dissections this week (sheep and later, cat). I winced a bit about the cats, but in general, I think med-sci is cool. Also good to have (:

He invited me outside for a bit and we sat together continuing our chat. Then he got a Dunes party and politely requested a tele-Holla. I joked that he was going to have fun now as opposed to sitting on the floor talking to me. He said he really enjoyed our talks - aww, sweet! After the tele, I'd expected that to be the end of it, and was considering farming recollections. Instead, I thought about maybe PLing them.

But that would not come to pass. He invited me into the party to rep someone. After some thinking, I was requested on THF, to pull. I grabbed my junk and OPed. The party included Autumn, and it was good to see her again! We were syncing to 10, and I did OK with pulling. I messed up by pulling a Star Bat (rescued by Devane, bro of one of the members) and later, whilst being PLed by Masterhealer, I pulled back-to-back gob adds on top of my lizard targets. I never saw either one despite area sweeps ><

About halfway into the party, Autumn DCed. And Tumo logged in, seeking. We waited a fair bit, then I asked if Tumo could rep her. Soho passed me lead and I went to escort Tumo, as she's only 11, BLM. I mentioned dropping sync and someone complained. I replied that book buffs were due to wear soon anyway. Well, just as I get back through the tunnel with Tumo, someone announces that Autumn was back. Oh no...

It took some discussing (and Tumo's self-DB) but ultimately, Autumn decided to stay out. Her PC had been hit with spyware and she was trying to root it out with Hijack This! (geek points!) and wasn't sure how long it was going to take. I apologized profusely, and she was trying to apologize to me ^^ I don't know which of us felt worse about it.

So, with Tumo back, we continued on. We did two pages plus all the random killing. I went from 17 to 19. Soho and I were going to wrap up at about 9:30, and Incredichimp needed to go too as I recall. We had started with rep hunting, but just sort of disintegrated. I said my goodnights to both Soho and Tumo and left for the night.

Oh, Rogues news - Med informed me they had a Holla win Saturday... And it looks like they may be setting up a new pearl, based on the shell message. I haven't seen any significant activity on the Rogues forum either.

Desperate Housewives was OK, but there weere some good lines. Also, the Orson/Bree suicide watch slash rekindling of passions was sweet. B & S was ok. Nothing terribly special there.

Monday:

I stuck my foot in my mouth at work. I recommended Edge of Darkness to my mentor. Who is Jewish. Oh boy...

Read the Valentione's Day 2010 story thing. It's been up for awhile but I just didn't bother. I wish I had - it was very sweet and I liked the way it concluded. And, I'm interested in the event because it seems it may be a new one for a change.

After that, I was going to read Halifirien's blog and got a 404. I tried a Bing search (work machine, not my choice) and found his Twitter account. But not the blog... Huh.

As I was logging out, I saw a link to a Blog printing service. They offer soft and hardcover versions and allow customizations as well. I think I might preview that - I do want a copy of this for posterity.

And finally, will the blog spammers please DIAF? I'm finding stupid financial scam links on my comments now. And not even new comments! Old stuff from last October! Spammers? If you're going to spam a barely-read blog, spam something that human eyes might actually see!