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This is an archive collection of entries from  my main personal blog, My Mundane Mid-Life.

This collection of entries is from October 2003.

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Friday, October 31, 2003

Sail Away?

Note to self: When you walk into work and Enya is on the boombox, it's not going to be a good day.

It's still warm outside, but windy. It was also starting to drizzle by the time I hit the parking lot. Traffic was light both ways today.

This is the first time in 3 years that I'm not unemployed and at home to answer the door for Halloween. I guess we do have a tradition after all - we actually count every kid that shows up at the door. Our normal average is right around 100. Last year it was 79. This year was 69. And it was a Friday. I don't get it.

posted at 05:59 PM | Link | Mundane | 1 comment § |
Friday 5 - Halloween

The Friday Five
Time for another Friday Five...
1. What was your first Halloween costume? Haven't the slightest idea. I remember seeing a picture of me in a cowboy outfit, but I really can't remember.
2. What was your best costume and why? I went as a washing machine one year. It's really the only costume that sticks out in my mind.
3. Did you ever play a trick on someone who didn't give you a treat? Nope, never.
4. Do you have any Halloween traditions? (ie: Family pumpkin carving, special dinner before trick or treating, etc.) No traditions - it's not a holiday that's high on my list.
5. Share your favorite scary story...real or legend! Oh, crap. I don't have one. Really - I don't. Sorry. Boring answers this week. Sorry, people - move along...

posted at 06:28 AM | Link | Friday Five § |

Thursday, October 30, 2003

Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 7

Survivor: Pearl Islands THEME
What the...? - PART 1

BEST. SURVIVOR. EPISODE. EVER.

read more of this entry »


posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Get off the road!

Contrary to the company's phone number, you are NOT SAFE behind this truck!
This morning, I did something I've never done before. I was on the Tri-State Tollway, when this truck cuts in front of me. We were only going 35, but it still pissed me off that he just had to get into my lane. I can see him in his side view mirror - he's fiddling with a cell phone. Now, I will give it to him, he always stayed at whatever speed the back was moving - 35mph, 45, mph... 80 mph. The problem was this guys was drifting all over the place. He was slowwwly drifting right then slowwwly drifting left, moving from one set of lane markers to the other. I can see him again - he's off the phone and now he's eating something. Still drifting back and forth. I watch this guy go over the yellow line onto the shoulder. And then, he decides to change lanes and the lane change is a sudden jerk on the wheel.

Well, I had enough. The truck had the phone number of his company - so I called and reported the guy. I was polite and brief and I just wanted the company to know that they've got a driver out here that was dangerous. Now, coincidentally, as soon as I hung up the phone, he stopped swerving and got off at the next exit. Hmmmm....

What a gorgeous day today - sunny and in the 70's! Wonderful!

Test drove a Thermos bottle for coffee today. OK, the wife's company turns out a great product that I highly recommend. 16 ounces of coffee stayed hot for over 8 hours!!!! Gotta like that...

No music in the room today. That's OK, was busy and had to concentrate a bit. This was a day when I got nothing accomplished at work. it's not that I didn't do anything - quite the opposite. I worked my butt off, but we wound up not delivering anything we had scheduled. Very unfulfilling.

The drive home tonight was another Twilight Zone event. It may have been a warm, wonderful day but everyone wa driving 5-10 mph under the limit, and it didn't matter what road I was on.

Found out tonight that Carol's going to Las Vegas on business in January! Can you say "Jealous?" There's no way we're going to be able to afford to have me go with. I miss that damn town so much...

posted at 06:57 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Wednesday, October 29, 2003

*gasp*! A woman!

Today - something different for my stop at the oasis to get something to snack on for the morning. I get a nice tall cup of coffee - a French Vanilla one, too. Flavorful. Wonderful. Now I need a Thermos bottle to keep it warm. Hopefully, Carol can scare one up for me.

There was a great ripple in the force today - I work with a whole room full of tech guys whose job is build brand new Dell desktops for specific customers with specific software for their needs. Today Shock! Sitting next to me is a young blond from the east coast. She'll be here leading pre-deployment tasks for a while. There's nothing that puts more interest in a bunch of geek guys than a young geek girl. This is just so entertaining... There's a lot of interesting "playing" going on...

Found out that one of the gentlemen here has auditioned for the NY Philharmonic and plays trombone (did that for 20 years before becoming a network engineer), mostly for stage shows. His wife is currently playing french horn for the Lion King here in Chicago. Wonder if that's why we have such an interesting selection of music on the boombox? Today it's Sinatra, James Taylor, Billy Joel and Aerosmith.

posted at 06:22 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Tuesday, October 28, 2003

Soggy

Normal evening traffic on the Tri-State Tollway
Rainy and windy and cold this morning. Got out the car in the parking lot at work and the cell phone pops-off the holder on my waist (which it does with ease), bounces under the car and opens up... just so the car can drip dirty road water onto it. Oh, this is going to be a good day... Carol told me something interesting last night - she said that I'm sleeping better and snoring less. Must be because I'm actually working so I have less on my mind. That, and the fact I'm usually exhausted. I'm feeling slightly better, too except for a really bad headache that stayed with me all day.

On the boombox at work today: Sinatra, James Taylor, John Mayer, Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp.

posted at 06:59 PM | Link | Mundane | 1 comment § |

Monday, October 27, 2003

Damn host...

We have no money to speak of, so switching hosting companies is the furthest from my mind... I haven't been able to get to my website for a couple of days now. I never get informed on any outages and that just pisses me off. If you don't see me post for a while around here, it's usually because I can't get to the site. When I get a few extra bucks, I'm outa here...

I've been feeling bad the last couple of days. Weird-ass pains around my body, even the chest (NO - NOT THOSE KINDS OF PAINS). A lot of joint pain, my right foot feels like most of the bones are just slightly out of place. Some of the pain I think is just absolutely horrific posture that I just have to keep correcting whenever I can. That, and being overweight.

I'm exhausted and will be in bed by 9:30 tonight. When I get this tired, I get this weird feeling like something in my brain is yelling "STOP! SLEEP NOW! EYES! CLOSE! GET YOUR ASS DOWN BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T, I"M TAKING YOU DOWN!" and the associated sinking feeling and the need to collapse. Cool, eh? I think I'm just not used to actually working and driving about 2-3 hours a day.

Work was quiet - one of those "cat's away" days, but I kept busy. A bit quiet in the staging room. Listened to a little Harry James and Miles Davis.

posted at 07:38 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Sunday, October 26, 2003

Fall forward

Gain an hour back? Forget it. I don't feel the change at all. Why? Stayed up too late and got up too early. Crap. I feel like I waisted it.

posted at 09:31 AM | Link | Mundane § |

Saturday, October 25, 2003

My clock has stopped

Well, the Florida Marlins won the World Series over the Yankees. Good for them! I have one complaint, though. At least, I think it's a complaint. We listened to the postgame on ESPN radio on the way home from the hockey game. All I could hear in the background is the sound of New York New York by Frank Sinatra, being played over and over and over... Now, somehow it feels wrong to me to hear this. I associate this song with the Yankees. It's like they're drilling this into anybody within earshot to say, "Hey, screw you, this is New York", trying to either 1) soothe the absolutely shocked fans who just couldn't believe that their damn team lost or 2) put down Florida saying, in a way, to hell with you - it should be the Yankees who won. The flip side to this is a specific line of the song - "If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere" which, actually, is a tip of the hat to the Marlins. I'm just so conflicted right now...

But, now it's over. My clock has stopped - that invisible clock that quietly ticks inside of me to the beat of the baseball season has gone silent, and won't be heard again for months. This is an extremely melancholy time for me. Baseball is life for me. It's weird. I can't explain it and I don't think I ever could. My body follows no other clock. No other sport has this effect on me. Not even the passing of the seasons have this kind of effect.

My clock waits silently for the first pitchers and catchers to return to their spring training facilities months from now.

posted at 11:31 PM | Link | Baseball § |
Wolves 3 - Roadrunners 1

Chicago Wolves Toronto Roadrunners

read more of this entry »


posted at 11:12 PM | Link | Wolves § |

Friday, October 24, 2003

Into the sun

Driving into the rising sun over the Northwest Tollway Damn it! I sheered-off the latch for the gas door!
What a lousy night... I had a sandwich from Panera last night and, um, it didn't sit right with me. Was in the bathroom every two hours overnight. I was a wreck. Tried to get on the Tollway as quick as possible but just couldn't get my ass going. I needed to get on the Tollway because as soon as the sun comes up, the traffic gets a little funky as we all squint and try to see the guy in front of us as we head directly for the rising sun (shouldn't be a problem after we change the clocks over the weekend). Stopped at the Oasis to get a Gatorade, hoping that would help the body (it did). Unfortunately, when I finished pumping gas at the Mobil, I slammed my gas cap door shut - a sheered-off a piece of the plastic door release. Now the door won't close. Crap. I am soooo pissed over a stupid little piece of plastic... All I can think of is someone walking between cars in a parking lot getting their coat caught on the open door and ripping the friggin' door off the car, and that's going to look just great... It's going to cost a fortune to replace this little piece of plastic. I looked all over for the piece, hoping I could Super Glue it or something, but I couldn't find it on the ground. Morning was a little rough, but I started feeling better by lunch - when some of the guys went out and brought back Chinese. Real food.

I got my first paycheck yesterday for last week - a whole 4 hours. I opened it up and I was shocked at how small the check was. That's when I realized what had happened. I worked for this consulting company two years ago. Back then, I was making 3 times what I'm making at this job. Because of the difference in tax rates between Carol's salary and mine, I took out additional withholding to help out at the end of the year. Well, when I started with the company again, they didn't look at the W-4's that I had filled out and just re-activated the employee ID, having additional money taken out of my check. Now, my first check wound-up being only $13.61. Ouch.

posted at 06:47 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday 5

The Friday Five
Time for another Friday Five...
...Not this week. Looks like they're taking off a week, maybe two, maybe longer (sounds like they're getting slammed by trolls, just like many blogs and meme site seem to be lately. Just too many asses out there that just won't STFU).

posted at 06:53 AM | Link | Friday Five § |

Thursday, October 23, 2003

Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 6

Survivor: Pearl Islands THEME
Me and My Snake

read more of this entry »


posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Too many

Do you REALLY need all these towers? How many companies are there?
I pass these cell towers everyday on the Tri-State Tollway. I'm always wondering - are they really needed. How many cell phone companies out there? There're no dupe's in this group are there? What makes this spot so special?

An eclectic morning on the boombox - Gloria Estefan's Mi Tierra on the followed by a little Steely Dan and some <shudder> Yani </shudder>. Dropped 3 pounds this week because I'm not eating at work... I need to fix this...

posted at 05:40 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Wednesday, October 22, 2003

Fixing a Hole

Yesterday was 9:30-6, today was 8:30-5. I think we're settling on this set of hours.

This morning was Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the boombox. Love the selections of CD's I saw near the machine.

Went from 85° to 54° today. More seasonal, I guess. Don't like it, but it's what's here.

Been eating doughnuts in the car during my long (40.5 miles one way) rush hour trip. Yesterday I stopped at the Oasis and got a couple of Krispy Kremes for the drive (not HOT fresh from a real store, but it'll do in a pinch) and I got one of those gold Sacagawea coins for change. I didn't even know they were still in circulation! Tons of machines at work I could use that coin in... except they don't except the coin (not surprised).

Have to start thinking about eating something in the morning. Then I have to think about actually eating lunch - something I haven't done yet this week.

posted at 06:44 PM | Link | Work § |

Tuesday, October 21, 2003

Swingin'

So, there's about 15-20 people in the room that I work in, all of them concentrating on burning the requested images onto the machines that I've had delivered to the staging area. These are people from many different age groups - 20's to 50's (at least). And yet, we found quite a few people across the group that like Frank Sinatra. A CD goes into the boombox and we're swingin' with The Chairman for most of the morning. Then, over lunch, someone went out and bought Live & Swingin' - The Ultimate Rat Pack Collection. Now, we're swingin' with not only Frank, but Dino and Sammy as well! What a great little pickup to the day!

posted at 06:56 PM | Link | Work § |

Monday, October 20, 2003

Badged

Well, I got my Department of Defense Contractor photo ID today. I still have to get a vehicle pass for the base.

I still don't know exactly what I'm doing but the picture is getting clearer... sort of.

Originally, I thought I was working 4:30 to Midnight. Friday I worked 12-8:30, but only put in half a day (nothing to do for the rest of the day). Today was 10-6:30, tomorrow will be 9:30-6. Wonder when it will settle on a time?

Anyway, I'm feeling OK about the job. Let's see how far it goes and how well I can perform...

85° today - the average is supposed to be 60°. It's supposed be be colder that that tomorrow. Really windy today, too.

posted at 09:47 PM | Link | Work | 1 comment § |

Saturday, October 18, 2003

NMCI-ISF

NMCI-ISF
I don't have much to say today. I'm still trying to figure out what I can say.

Well, I started a new job yesterday. It's a 30% decrease in salary from my last fulltime job, or about 43% of what I used to earn in my life before my last permanent job before that. I had to take it - we're having financial issues so you take what you can.

On top of that, it's a contract job - as a subcontractor, to a subcontractor, to a subcontractor to the contractor of a project. A government project, Actually, a military project.

There's cool aspects to this, though. I'll be part of the world's largest desktop deployment in computing history - over 420,000 machines (though I'll only be involved with a local deploy of about 3,400). I get to write my own job description and build my own job and I don't have to code, or assemble or build or troubleshoot. It's mostly logistics among some major groups and the customer.

So, I'm not sure what I can say. Just that I'm employed, I have to drive about 40 miles one way, my hours have changed 3 times since I signed the contract.

I'm just not sure what I can talk about. One thing's for sure - don't expect any pictures!

posted at 11:25 AM | Link | Work § |

Friday, October 17, 2003

Note from Carol

Note from Carol
I love getting notes from the wife... makes me feel good...

posted at 10:31 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday 5 - 5 Things

The Friday Five
Time for another Friday Five...
1. Name five things in your refrigerator. Hershey bars, Jones Apple Soda, Swiss cheese, Caffeine Free Coca Cola, Indy's endive lettuce
2. Name five things in your freezer. Microwavable burritos, Eggos, ice cube trays, frozen & vaccu-sealed meat from the butcher in Michigan, chocolate chip cookie dough
3. Name five things under your kitchen sink. Windex, Resolv, ScotchGuard, a recycling bin, draw-string garbage bags
4. Name five things around your computer. Other computers, lots of software boxes, can of compressed air, 2 staplers, clock
5. Name five things in your medicine cabinet. Crest toothpaste, Crest SpinBrush Pro, Gillette deodorant, Pepcid AC, Armani Mania.

posted at 08:19 AM | Link | Friday Five § |

Thursday, October 16, 2003

Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 5

Survivor: Pearl Islands THEME
Everyone's Hero

read more of this entry »


posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |

Wednesday, October 15, 2003

Cubs Lose! Cubs Lose!

Yes, you won the division this year, but it's been 58 years since winning the NL pennant and 95 years since winning the World Series The Florida Marlins beat the Chicago Cubs 9-6 "L" is for "Loss" as the blue flag flies from the center field scoreboard
Congratulations on winning your division. Sorry you didn't go any further.

To their fans: It's the Cubs. There's always next year.

Heh.

Heh heh heh.

Oops. Sorry.

posted at 10:34 PM | Link | Cubs § |
Where's Jed?

The West Wing
Looks like NBC folded at the last minute and pulled West Wing in favor of a Law & Order: Criminal Intent rerun. Sounds like they're rolling over knowing they can't beat Fox's baseball coverage tonight. All the NBC website says (other than having the corrected schedule for tonight) is "Tonight's West Wing episode will air 10/29"

posted at 08:04 PM | Link | TV § |
Construction at Blackhawk

Pre-construction work around Blackhawk Removing light poles around the old football field behind Blackhawk
It was just approved Monday night, but they already started working on that Chicago Wolves facility in my neighborhood as part of the Blackhawk Community Center.

posted at 01:06 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Bare ash

Thinning leaves and fall skies in the neighborhood
Well, the leaves dropped off our ash tree. The neighborhood is pretty bare. Looks like the peak color season is over.

posted at 11:45 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Priceless

Priceless
Sorry. This showed-up in my morning emails. I know I'll regret putting it up, but after last night, what's a disgruntled White Sox fan to do...

Now, everyone out there, leave poor Steve Bartman alone. He "did not even see Moises Alou".

posted at 08:22 AM | Link | Mundane § |

Tuesday, October 14, 2003

Yang Liwei

First there was Yuri Alexeyevich Gagarin on April 12, 1961.

Then there was John Herschel Glenn, Jr on February 20, 1962.

Today, Yang Liwei is expected to make 14 orbits of the Earth during a flight lasting just short of 24 hours before coming back to land in Inner Mongolia.

China now officially joins Russia and the United States as having sent men into space. He's been up there about half an hour so far. No word on how he's doing.

I'm not really sure how I feel about this. I think it's great that other nations are looking to manned spaceflight. It's just... it's just... it's China and why do I feel that they will never share their experience with the rest of "us". And why do I have this nagging feeling that there is some other reason behind this? Is it just because... it's China? Is that fair?

posted at 08:32 PM | Link | Current Events § |
Getting bare

Thinning leaves and fall skies in the neighborhood
It's rained most of the day. We've had some pretty good wind the last few days, too. All the great fall colors are dropping from the trees, blanketing the lawns, sidewalks, and streets in the neighborhood. This morning was dark - one of those days when it was great to stay in bed. The rain was light, so I couldn't hear it on the roof (or even against the aluminum siding), but it was the darkness that was just so inviting.

The unemployment depression is alive and well...

posted at 04:32 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Chicago Wolves in Hoffman Estates?

Work starts tomorrow on a new practice facility for the Chicago Wolves. Where? About 6-7 blocks from my house! Hoffman Estates approved it last night night - dual NHL-sized ice-skating rinks in a 90,000-square-foot addition to the 35,000-square-foot Blackhawk Community Center. Going to be very cool next September/October when we can walk to a pre-season game!

read more of this entry »


posted at 11:08 AM | Link | Wolves § |
The Cell gets a trim

Chicago Tribune photo - October 14, 2003
Carol left part of the Metro section of the Chicago Tribune on my Aeron chair by the computer this morning. There it was - a picture of seats being ripped out of the upper deck at "The Cell" a.k.a. U.S. Cellular Field, "The Joan", and my TPFKAC™. It said that they were pulling the seats "in preparation for decreasing the upper deck's size for the '04 White Sox season." Well, it's a start - I'd rather see them just take the whole frickin' upper deck off (which, structurally, looks like they could do it) and just rebuild the thing with a better pitch and maybe a new "roof". The only issue may be trying to cover the concession areas below the seating.

Hell, I was just happy to see something that said "White Sox" in the paper after all this damn Cub Fever crap gong on in town...

Bitter? Hell, yes...

posted at 10:20 AM | Link | White Sox § |

Monday, October 13, 2003

Another postcard with chimpanzees...

So, Carol told me about this Barenaked Ladies song that she heard and can't get out of her head about monkeys. Not much to go on, so I wandered the web and went to their website (hey, did you know they have a their own blog?). So, I found the song and now I can't get the frickin' thing out of my head! It's called "Another Postcard". Apparently it's also known as "Chimps". It's on their new CD that gets released next week "Everything to Everyone". (Here are Official Links to Quicktime and Windows Media Hi and Lo for "Another Postcard".)

read more of this entry »


posted at 08:25 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Sunday, October 12, 2003

Killer Marathon

Holy crap... A 29-year-old female runner, Rachael Townsend, 29, of The Plains, Ohio, collapsed and died about 100 feet after she crossed the finish line of the 26th annual LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon today.

It's not the first time this had happened - in 2001 Luke Roach, 22, of Seattle, died after collapsing near the finish line - his temperature soared to 107 degrees while he was running and he died of heat stroke. In 2000, Danny Towns, 45, of Edmond, Okla., collapsed and later died of coronary arteriosclerosis, a hardening of the heart arteries. In 1998, Kelly Barrett, 43, of Littleton, Colo., died three days after a cardiac arrest in the marathon medical tent. Her death was attributed to low sodium levels, apparently from drinking too much water while running.

read more of this entry »


posted at 05:41 PM | Link | Sports § |

Saturday, October 11, 2003

Wolves 2 - Griffins 3 - Overtime

Chicago Wolves Grand Rapids Griffins

read more of this entry »


posted at 11:12 PM | Link | Wolves § |
Ladybugs and freshly cut wood

Ladybugs and japanese beetles on freshly-cut ash
OK, so we mix this week's invasion of ladybugs and this morning's trimming of the ash tree, and we have a feast for the neighborhood ladybugs (actually a few ladybugs and a lot of Japanese beetles - they're the browner ones compared to the red ones and they seem a lot more, um, "active").

posted at 01:34 PM | Link | Mundane § |
She's a lumberjack and she's OK...

Carol sawing-off a branch Hopefully the village will haul-away this stuff... some day... The ash at the end of the trim
It's officially fall, time to do something about our tree. We have an ash that's on the side of the house that we just love. We've never had it trimmed. there's some pretty low branches that we need to get rid of just for safety sake, as well as we really need the tree to start filling out and up. Carol went out this morning and bought a saw and started hacking. Actually, hacking is the wrong word - she did a good job. It was hard to pick and choose the final cuts. It looks a little severe, but it's what was needed. Hopefully it'll survive the winter just fine and we'll have a gorgeous tree again next season.

posted at 11:09 AM | Link | Mundane § |

Friday, October 10, 2003

Oh, this can't be good...

Big Brother 4 THEME
I don't know, I just don't see this going anywhere... and if it does, I have no clue how this could impact Big Brother (or even the CBS Morning Show)...

CBS head Les Moonves is dating Julie Chen.

posted at 04:22 PM | Link | TV § |
Colors in the Neighborhood

Colors changing in the neighborhood Colors changing in the neighborhood Colors changing in the neighborhood Colors changing in the neighborhood
Yes, fall is here. The whole neighborhood is changing colors.

posted at 11:48 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday 5 - Sports

The Friday Five
Time for another Friday Five...
1. Do you watch sports? If so, which ones? Baseball, hockey, a little football
2. What/who are your favorite sports teams and/or favorite athletes? Chicago White Sox, Chicago Wolves
3. Are there any sports you hate? Well, there's "wrestling" (or is that entertainment?). I'm not crazy about college sports, mostly college basketball
4. Have you ever been to a sports event? Have you ever read my blog???
5. Do/did you play any sports (in school or other)? How long did you play? Nope, never played anything organized (other than bowling leagues).

posted at 08:00 AM | Link | Friday Five § |

Thursday, October 09, 2003

Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 4

Survivor: Pearl Islands THEME
Pick a Castaway... Any Castaway

read more of this entry »


posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Colors

Even our crappy little maple has started to turn The burning bush in front of the house has completely changed Berries on the hawthorne tree
It's finally here. Up in Wisconsin last weekend we didn't really see it, but here it is down here. Fall. Colors. The trees and bushes are changing color. Darkness seems to come earlier and earlier each passing day. I am conflicted each year at this time. The change is beautiful, but it just signals the end of summer, the end of fun and I just find it all depressing... or more depressing than it normally is...

posted at 03:11 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Wednesday, October 08, 2003

That's not a ladybug!

I was catching-up on my TiVo viewing this afternoon when I saw another bug fly up out of the fireplace - only it wasn't another ladybug, it was a wasp! Cripes, I had to destroy that damn thing before Carol got home, otherwise she would probably just sleep in the car and never go into the house!

posted at 01:16 PM | Link | Mundane § |

Tuesday, October 07, 2003

Invasion!

It's getting crowded in my family room - there's 4 ladybugs in there already and many more on the patio door screen waiting to get in. It looks like it's time for the annual invasion again. We've been really getting bombarded with these things at this time of year. It's seems to be when the temperatures really change at sunset in the fall. they seem to find any means possible to get in, even coming through the siding itself. Weird stuff.

posted at 09:09 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Comment spam???

Oh, crap... it's bad enough that I have to deal with spam everyday, but now I'm getting spammed in my blog comments???? Great. Guess I'm going to have to install a few things to stop these damn spam trolls...

posted at 09:13 AM | Link | Blogging § |

Monday, October 06, 2003

Dan Snyder

Atlanta Thrashers Chicago Wolves
Dan Snyder playing air hockey Garnet Exelby and Dan Snyder
Damn.

At about 10:30pm last Monday, Atlanta Thrashers Left Wing Dany Heatley (NHL 2002 Rookie of the Year and MVP of the 2003 All-Star game) was driving his 2002 black Ferrari convertible at over 80mph in a 35mph zone on Lenox Road near Alton Place NE in the Buckhead area of Atlanta and lost control on a curve, swerved into the opposite lane, crossed the dividing line and left the pavement before crashing broadside into a brick pillar and iron fence. The impact of the crash broke the automobile in two.

His passenger was Atlanta Thrasher Center and former Chicago Wolves player Dan Snyder (who was on the Wolves 2003 Calder Cup team). Snyder was ejected from the car and thrown 30 feet onto the road. He had suffered a significant depressed fracture toward the back of his head on the right side, and a classic "acceleration/deceleration injury". He was in a coma.

Snyder died yesterday.

Now, Dany Heatley (who had suffered a broken left jaw, a minor concussion, a contusion to his lung, a bruised kidney, complete tears of his anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments and a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee and limited nerve injury to some of the muscles in his left shoulder), will be charged with vehicular homicide (it used to be just "serious injury by vehicle"), as well as reckless driving, driving too fast for conditions, driving on the wrong side of the road and striking a fixed object.

The fans in Chicago will always remember Snyder for his heart and tenacity. What a way to go.

posted at 08:59 AM | Link | Wolves § |

Sunday, October 05, 2003

Weekend with The Away Team

It was that time of year again - time to get away and spend a weekend with the guys, just like last year. Time for the 230 mile trek up to Dutch Hollow Lake in LaValle, Wisconsin.

read more of this entry »


posted at 10:07 PM | Link | Friends § |

Friday, October 03, 2003

Friday 5 - Cars

The Friday Five
Time for another Friday Five...
1. What vehicle do you drive? 1997 Infiniti I30
2. How long have you had it? Since April, 1997
3. What is the coolest feature on your vehicle? It's the smallest thing, but man I love it - the self-dimming rear view mirror. Greatest thing for night driving.
4. What is the most annoying thing about your vehicle? My automated climate control of the interior gets a little "buggy" and doesn't do a good job of controlling the temperature on long trips
5. If money were no object, what vehicle would you be driving right now? Well, I want a Mini Cooper, but I'd really like another Nissan Z. Whatever it will be, it must have a good GPS system in it.

posted at 09:04 AM | Link | Friday Five § |

Thursday, October 02, 2003

Sexie

The Shubert Theater in Chicago Eddie Izzard in Sexie
We all went downtown and met at
The Berghoff for a great German dinner. How could I have lived in Chicago all my life and never have gone there? It was just a short one block walk after dinner to the Shubert Theater. We had seats in the Loge, which I never realized before that they are "crooked". We "listed to port", or leaned to the left. It's like The Loge is "crowned" and if you're not sitting in the center, you are leaning to the outside. So very weird. So, why are we here?

read more of this entry »


posted at 11:45 PM | Link | Entertainment § |
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 3

Survivor: Pearl Islands THEME
United We Stand, Divided We... ?

read more of this entry »


posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor | 1 comment § |

Wednesday, October 01, 2003

*nose wiggle*
posted at 07:47 AM | Link | Memes § |

 

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This Blog was last updated Friday December 18, 2009 13:03:12 CDT (-06:00 GMT)
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