Splitting Hairs

  • "Dance like nobody's watching; love like you've never been hurt. Sing like nobody's listening; live like it's heaven on earth." Mark Twain.

June 2008

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Stats

  • Job: Senior Professional Video Applications Engineer, Apple.
  • BSE: Computer Engineering, U of M
  • HS: Wylie E. Groves
  • Hometown: Bloomfield Hills, MI
  • Current Locale: Los Gatos, CA
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« December 2007 | Main | February 2008 »

Walk 'till we crawl

Background Noise: I-94, Control
Last Visited: Frames, Again
Random Thought: thinking about escaping to Treebones produces a NSFW response
Mood: exhausted

So, ProApps took a little breather to the Monterey Bay Aquarium yesterday, and Dave, JR and I decided to extend the breather a bit by driving early, staying late, and adding a detour to Carmel, 17-Mile Drive, The Inn at Spanish Bay, and Pacific Grove.

It was, in a word, awesome.

I have a ton of pictures, but i'm tired and wanting to leave work, and as i added a few to my Frames book before i ordered it(!!) this morning, i'm just going to leave you with that as a teaser for now. I'm sure i'll torture you with more stories soon, especially the one about David Geffen's car.

But one day i will stay at the Inn at Spanish Bay. Perhaps Treebones first, though; it's more in my budget zone.

Expression:

Providence, Rhode Island, You Say...

Background Noise: Driving Music, Driving Rain
Last Visited: Tanglewood for lunch... mmm, extravagance....
Random Thought: When going from San Jose to Providence, RI, what is the optimal direct flight assuming one has a car to and from both airports?
Mood: so elated at the thought of visiting the east coast neighborhood for a few days i almost cried with relief; that might be an indication of something....


What's your favorite charity?
The US Federal and State Governments

When I was little, I used to believe that...
ponies flew, rainbows made excellent roads, strawberries talked, and if i closed my eyes tight enough i would become invisible

What's the worst that could happen?
total annihilation?





I feel naked without my...
clothing; man, i really wanted to come up with a better answer for that one....

What's the first frivolous thing you'll buy when you're rich and famous?
a pied-à-terre in NYC

What makes you smile?
Thinking about those who make me smile

What do you wear to bed?
Depends on several factors: temperature, mood, company, impending sense of a fire drill... standard stuff.

What's your favorite kids' cereal?
Life, Kix, and Raisin Bran. And Mini Wheats.

My backpack/purse/wallet contains the following surprising things:
an ID that looks nothing like me

Quick! Write the first sentence of a novel.
No.

I was surprised I liked it when I read...
Harry Potter circa 1999

What is your favorite word?
love

Ever broken a bone?
Technically? Yes.

What's your ideal climate?
continental temperate

Someone once dared me to...
eat ice cream; i happily accepted

What color underwear are you currently wearing?
black; though i'm not answering whether or not the 10 Things I Hate About You position on this fact is relevant

What's the best compliment you've ever received?
i know you can do this

I'd describe my sense of humor as...
snarky

On a scale from 1 to crazy, I'm:
bouncing around r(1+cos⌀) = l

Expression:

I'm doing what?!

Background Noise: Last Five Years
Last Visited: victoria's secret tankini selection
Random Thought: since when do profits rise 58% yet it's a disappointment? how is a record profit of $1.58 Billion not quite good enough? i don't understand wall street sometimes.
Mood: one thing at a time

It's amazing how quickly one can get talked into running a 5K. Then how quickly one goes from signing up for a 5K to signing up for a 5 Mile run one month later. Like, blink and you're doing it, kind of fast. Like, too late to back out now, better figure out how you're going to do this, kind of fast.

So i guess this means i'm running a 5K Superbowl Shuffle on Superbowl Sunday, and a 5 Mile race on March 1st.

:)

Wish me luck!

Expression:

Westley, what about the R.O.U.S.'s?

Background Noise: NewFoundGlory
Last Visited: digg
Random Thought: very cool science
Mood: ready for poker

The world is an incredibly fascinating place as you approach Absolute Zero.

... and i do believe a one ton rodent qualifies as an R.O.U.S

In closing, a question: would you want to live 800 years?

... in Ecuador? Ok, Ecuador isn't a requirement of the extra long life - this isn't Indiana Jones and the Holy Grail, there is no great seal - but they are testing extending the life span ofhumans in Ecuador based off of these experiments done on yeast.

Expression:

No nonsense, Lizzie, I desire that you stay where you are

Background Noise: Pride and Prejudice, and the echoing hallways
Last Visited: starbucks!
Random Thought: i love poker night
Mood: taking a bit of a break to regroup and refocus... 15 mins should do it. i hope.

So my apartment complex might have termites.

Well, they've found termites in one building, and have tented it or something, so they figured they should look at all the other (separate) buildings as they are also old, not really well taken care of, and, well, made of wood. Makes sense for them to check things out.

So tomorrow at some point some random people will be tromping through my apartment poking at my walls, and generally (i'm sure) noticing what a mess my place is; seriously, it's not clean. And while if this was the only thing they asked of me (entrance) i'm sure i wouldn't (totally) mind; i'd still feel guilty for the mess, but well, they aren't really guests, so ok. But... of course that isn't the only thing they've asked.

"Remove all objects from outfacing walls and move any and all furniture at least 2 feet away from the walls for clearance."

... oh boy.

While I'm sure this shouldn't, under normal circumstances, be a problem, by some feat of the design gods pretty much all the heavy furniture or objects I own are against outfacing walls: my bed, my piano oh, and the refrigerator, too. Most of my heavy pseudo-art as well.

... and, of course, i've kinda been overly swamped and preoccupied the last week-ish (sorry), so i haven't started to move any of it; no worries, i'm sure 20 minutes after poker or before i leave tomorrow should be plenty of time....

I seriously don't know what i'd do if they find termites in my building. Well, i'd be pissed. But i really don't have the time or inclination to move right now. Here's to positive thinking, and not freaking out until there's something to actually freak out about.

Expression:

Forget the Clowns

Background Noise: Miss America : Reality Check
Last Visited: iphoto, again
Random Thought: defnitions, while occasionally annoying, aid clarity
Mood: exhausted

My friends would shocked if they knew...
how much balsamic vinegar goes on my salads; it's a bit rediculous

If at first you don't succeed...
try again, then reevaluate the parameters

Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin?
wishing for Gryffindor, most likely Ravenclaw

I don't get mad. I get...
really mad

Ignorance is...
unfortunate and should be avoided whenever possible

What's your dream job?
it was my current one; guess i need to get a new dream

How many times is it acceptable to wear a pair of pants before washing them?
that question is still under investigation

Type control-v and paste the last text you copied.
complexity is nature's way of telling you you're asking the wrong question

What's the sexiest thing a member of the opposite sex can wear?
a suggestive smile; the rest is negotiable

Twizzlers or Red Vines?
Twizzlers

When was the last time you gave your parents a call?
Sunday.

Why do people watch reality shows?
The same reason they can't stop watching train wrecks.

What's one magical thing that happened today?
the sun came out

Do you recycle?
Catch phrases? Sure, all the time.

How many traffic tickets have you received?
4; 3 for speeding, 1 deriving from my general hatred of the dmv and mail. Blessedly, none are on my insurance company's radar anymore.

The best things in life are...
achievable

When I want to be alone, I...
go to my apartment

I think I saw Carmen Sandiego in...
Half Moon Bay, waxing a board, prepping for Mavericks

What do you wish you had never done?
je ne regrette rien

There's more to life than...
work

I'd do just about anything for...
those i love.

The answer to the ultimate question is...
Yes.

What's the grossest thing you've ever eaten?
Uni.


Expression:

Gambling on the Tensile Strength of A Plastic Bag

Background Noise: L-O-V-E, Joss Stone
Last Visited: blessed Starbucks
Random Thought: here's to the men who call a spade a spade, without qualification
Mood: bound by fairness and understanding; damnit.

Imagine a giant plastic bag that has a spout with a cap on it.
Now, imagine filling this plastic bag 1/3 full of boiling hot water.

Now place the bag on your bed; you'll lie down on it and feel the relaxing powers of the hot water.
Or... wait. Your mattress was kind of expensive... perhaps we shouldn't test the tensile strength of the plastic on the bed.

Now place the bag on your chair; you'll sit down on it and feel the relaxing powers of the hot water.
Or... well, the chair was certainly cheaper than the mattress, but you're not thrilled at the concept of buying a new one, so...

Now lie down on the floor (covered by a threadbare and ancient carpet) and place the bag on hot water on top of you; you'll feel the relaxing powers of the... crap, the bag fell off; place the bag of hot water on your back and, nope, fell off again, no Puff, don't play with this bag, er, wait, was that a sloshing sound? Is this supposed to sound like that? Really? It isn't leaking is it? er...

Now sit up on the floor and cradle the scalding hot bag of water to your chest to feel the relaxing powers of... funny how the bag looks like it should be carrying a goldfish or something; well, wouldn't that be a cooked goldfish? ew. Seriously, how hot is this bag? Where in the instruction manual did it say wear long sleeves to handle it? This is crazy.

... Next time i want to feel the relaxing powers of hot water i'll just take a bath.

Expression:

Frames, Take 2

Background Noise: Random tv crap, again (still)
Last Visited: flickr; figured i'd change it up a bit
Random Thought: $64 in change -> $64 starbucks card; at least i know my coffee is covered for the next 2ish weeks
Mood: ready to relax

You know what goes really well with an Election? Season 7 of the West Wing.

But i digress; i promise, this is probably, most likely, lord i hope, the last version of this little picture book of mine. Well, at least, the last version of this book until 6-9 months from now when i attempt to put one together for the Spring; i wonder where i'll have been by then.

Regardless... here we go:

Today at lunch i espied someone i once knew; at least, i'm pretty sure he was who i thought he was. I've been running into people more frequently lately who i used to be close with, and now, when faced with them, i don't know what to say. Small talk only saves me sometimes. And i find myself distracted, remembering why it's so hard to speak now; remembering them then, them now; me then, and me now.

Time plays interesting tricks; perhaps that's why i like the idea of having a picture book for each half year to remind me who, where, and when i was - and who the people are who were there with me. Then again, i could just be looking for any creative outlet i can find. Or i'm bored.

Expression:

I Sing the Body Electric

Background Noise: Well, the satalite is out, so... craptastic network friday night television. ew.
Last Visited: trying to check out the Disney Marathon
Random Thought: while i'm not one for resolutions, i'd like to be able to run the bay to breakers this year, at the very least; also, i'd like to try to catch Maverick's this year, since, well, it's kinda in town (assuming it happens at all)
Mood: pulling out of cranky

I'm debating changing my introduction metadata section above a little bit; while "background noise," "last visited," "random thought," and "mood" are interesting, as more than one person has mentioned, they're cryptic, and well, my answers tend to be even more so - granted, that's my fault: i tend to answer those sections for myself more than anyone else, and there are times when i'm quite sure only i would understand what i meant by them. But i digress.

I'm intrigued by facebook's status section; all debates about third person statements and verb and tense requirements aside, i've gotten used to filling in the statement "Anne...," and i have to admit, there are times - more frequent than i would guesstimate - where i have a quite good answer to that implicit question, but really don't feel like all of the facebook world needs to know that answer. So i don't write it down, and not only do my friends loose out on these little insights into my world [insert time for laughing about how rediculous that statement is] but I loose out on having a more accurate picture of my life for my archives here; hence my debate about changing my metadata template.

... though apparently my background threads haven't come up with any decision yet on the whole "to change or not to change" question, so for now, i'll leave things as they are.


Oh, and, off topic: don't you think the lead singer / guitarist in GH3 looks like younger-rocker-with-an-awesome-mullet-Kelly? I know my comparison picture kinda sucks (i should have gone more in depth with my google search, but, well, i didn't), but seriously... it's close to Kelly being able to ask for money from Activision. Seriously.

Expression:

Frames: Fall into Winter, 2007

Background Noise: Iron Chef America
Last Visited: iPhoto and Grab
Random Thought: i should have bought my camera months ago
Mood:must stay up... must stay up...

Happy New Year! (um, officially). So I have a few problems at the moment: a) i'm exhausted but, b) i have to stay up enough to fully get on pacific coast time (for real), and c) i have all of these pictures from my (fabulous!) new camera that i have to get into a book of some variety. Now, besides the fact that i don't have the whale watching pictures on this particular laptop (therefore i can't exactly press the "order" button just yet), i think i have a decent start so far:

*
*
*
*
*

... hopefully i'll remember before ordering this to actually add some actual comments, or at least remember to remove the text for the default ones.

Um... yeah.

I wish i had had my camera earlier in the year - i would have loved to actually be able to put together a more complete retrospective including the weddings from this summer, the boat, the little white house, and my various wanderings in california, chicago, and new york. Also, i wish i had more pictures of the people i see and interact with every day - perhaps i'll attempt to throw some of my iphone shots in a page, see how those go.

Oh, and, judges? Truffles are never a mistake. Just for the record.

*denotes a page in flux.

Expression: