The word of the week is pragmatic.
July 18 - Job Schisms
It's a hard thing, being comfortable and safe sometimes. In that your job has become routine( as perhaps your life has as well? ): put in the time every day, have a little left over after the bills are paid, and do the same next week. And the next. For me, my job is a massive stressor... but it's been the thing that pays the bills. Now I've found that my( small )team at work is the best bunch of people I've even worked with, at any job I've had - and it's killing me to think that sooner( rather than later )that I will be leaving this 'co-worker perfection' because the rest of the job is a killer. It's a terrible feeling, having fun and being happy working with people who are friends, but knowing you have to leave regardless before the rest of the job breaks you. Disheartening.
July 19 - B5 in Half of 5 Mins
Here's an odd "Six Degrees Of Kevin Bacon"-ish thing for you to ponder. As you know, I like Babylon 5( mentioned it a few times, haven't I ? )and so of course I know who a lot of the actors who were in the show are. On FBook, more than a few of these actors have joined the B5 group I'm a part of, and one of them is Shari Shattuck... who is now a writer and no longer acts. How's that for different? I want to write stories as good as those on B5, and she goes from acting on a TOP show like B5 to 'just' writing and joins the same group as I am - symmetry, there. Kind of like summing up all 5 years of B5 in 2.5 minutes, set to the tunes of Barenaked Ladies - again, very apt for Shari's role in B5! Sing along, now:
July 20 - We Can Remember It For You Wholesale
I love how on occasion the thoughts that rattle around in my head appear online as if by magic - seems some of the questions and trends I come up with are also things that other people think about. Take for example, offloading memory: not needing to remember facts, just where those facts ARE, Much like Howard Hughes, who was not an expert in any one field but knew who was and where to get that information when needed as fast as possible. So, back to the modern day: we're developing into a society that knows where the facts are and how to find them... but we don't memorize the facts themselves. That's dangerous... unlike just using the Wayback Machine to surf the World Wide Web as it was - just type in a site and the date you want to see and presto! Like a time machine in your PC. Ah, nostalgia...
July 21 - Nerdy Gift To Myself
( Tech G33k Warning ) A belated birthday present to myself arrived today: a new video card for my new-ish PC. The one I'd purchased with the PC at the beginning of the year got the basics done, but it was cheap and I knew I'd be replacing it ASAP. But not for a lot of cash; some of the higher-end cards go for a lot more than I paid for ALL the new PC parts put together - ouch! Not on my budget, are those. I'd been watching a few cards and doing my research as usual... and lucked in this week, as one particular card by Sapphire went back in stock for a day at Newegg.ca - so I took the plunge. Good thing I did, as it went out of stock / discontinued the next day; PERFECT timing on my part! It's in the Top 5 Best Value of all the cards on the market, and it's really stunning the difference it makes in games and system speed now that it's in( it's a BIG card too, check out the HUGE size difference below! ). I'm really pleased with the cost and the timing of the purchase... I hope it will last me more than a few years! And it looks damn cool to boot!
July 22 - Booty Call !
In keeping with my summer pirate theme, here's something that's always fascinated me since I first read about it in second grade at my school library: The Treasure of Oak Island, right here in Canada! It's an island on the shores of Nova Scotia that purportedly holds buried pirate treasure, that people have been trying to get at for decades unsuccessfully even with the most modern equipment. It's amazing that pirates centuries ago built something so well that it's kept their treasure safe for all these years even into the modern day. Makes me want to grab a pick and shovel and a ticket to the east coast to go digging for a summer...
July 23 - Captain America 3D!
After a surprisingly lovely day at work with no stressors( sun shining and my staff being both competent and fun to be around )it was time to head home... sort of. I ended up grabbing some A&W( their coupons expire July 31st! )and taking in a meal with my pal Kevin. We went tonight to the new Westshore Cineplex Theatres( check out the build progress pics! )that just opened a week ago, which have reclining seats( !! )and full cutting edge 3D screens and sounds. Playing tonight was Captain America: The First Avenger in 3D, which was tastefully done - no hands poking you in the eye or weird effects just for effect's sake. Heck, the whole audience jumped when Cap's shield ricocheted off a tank and came right back at the viewers - perfectly done! A great film, one of the better ones this year. I hope the new Spiderman is as well done...
July 24 - Ahhhhh... Summer timing!
Sometimes it just works: the weather and days off co-operate to bring days like today into glorious fruition, to the point where I feel like I'm wasting time by not relaxing enough - if that makes sense. Temperatures in the mid-20's, a clear cloudless blue sky, no wind save a gentle breeze that caresses the skin with warm fingers that promise memories of laying on a grassy hill to watch birds flit past and the world wander by with a wave. I spent a goodly part of my afternoon outside just enjoying things( with earplugs on occasion )as it was the first real day of summer we've had in this part of BC so far this year. Better than the massive heatwave that's scorching the rest of the continent, I have to say! An evening of NWN was very good as well, with some great character development by a small group of friends and fellow gamers - it's always a thrill to adventure alongside fun people with talent, anytime.
Something's been twinging in my digestives the last few days, so I'm hoping that this week will see it go away. I really don't want something new going wrong down there, as I've had enough trouble over the years from that region....always something. When do our cyborg bodies arrive again?
July 18 - Job Schisms
It's a hard thing, being comfortable and safe sometimes. In that your job has become routine( as perhaps your life has as well? ): put in the time every day, have a little left over after the bills are paid, and do the same next week. And the next. For me, my job is a massive stressor... but it's been the thing that pays the bills. Now I've found that my( small )team at work is the best bunch of people I've even worked with, at any job I've had - and it's killing me to think that sooner( rather than later )that I will be leaving this 'co-worker perfection' because the rest of the job is a killer. It's a terrible feeling, having fun and being happy working with people who are friends, but knowing you have to leave regardless before the rest of the job breaks you. Disheartening.
July 19 - B5 in Half of 5 Mins
Here's an odd "Six Degrees Of Kevin Bacon"-ish thing for you to ponder. As you know, I like Babylon 5( mentioned it a few times, haven't I ? )and so of course I know who a lot of the actors who were in the show are. On FBook, more than a few of these actors have joined the B5 group I'm a part of, and one of them is Shari Shattuck... who is now a writer and no longer acts. How's that for different? I want to write stories as good as those on B5, and she goes from acting on a TOP show like B5 to 'just' writing and joins the same group as I am - symmetry, there. Kind of like summing up all 5 years of B5 in 2.5 minutes, set to the tunes of Barenaked Ladies - again, very apt for Shari's role in B5! Sing along, now:
July 20 - We Can Remember It For You Wholesale
I love how on occasion the thoughts that rattle around in my head appear online as if by magic - seems some of the questions and trends I come up with are also things that other people think about. Take for example, offloading memory: not needing to remember facts, just where those facts ARE, Much like Howard Hughes, who was not an expert in any one field but knew who was and where to get that information when needed as fast as possible. So, back to the modern day: we're developing into a society that knows where the facts are and how to find them... but we don't memorize the facts themselves. That's dangerous... unlike just using the Wayback Machine to surf the World Wide Web as it was - just type in a site and the date you want to see and presto! Like a time machine in your PC. Ah, nostalgia...
July 21 - Nerdy Gift To Myself
( Tech G33k Warning ) A belated birthday present to myself arrived today: a new video card for my new-ish PC. The one I'd purchased with the PC at the beginning of the year got the basics done, but it was cheap and I knew I'd be replacing it ASAP. But not for a lot of cash; some of the higher-end cards go for a lot more than I paid for ALL the new PC parts put together - ouch! Not on my budget, are those. I'd been watching a few cards and doing my research as usual... and lucked in this week, as one particular card by Sapphire went back in stock for a day at Newegg.ca - so I took the plunge. Good thing I did, as it went out of stock / discontinued the next day; PERFECT timing on my part! It's in the Top 5 Best Value of all the cards on the market, and it's really stunning the difference it makes in games and system speed now that it's in( it's a BIG card too, check out the HUGE size difference below! ). I'm really pleased with the cost and the timing of the purchase... I hope it will last me more than a few years! And it looks damn cool to boot!
July 22 - Booty Call !
In keeping with my summer pirate theme, here's something that's always fascinated me since I first read about it in second grade at my school library: The Treasure of Oak Island, right here in Canada! It's an island on the shores of Nova Scotia that purportedly holds buried pirate treasure, that people have been trying to get at for decades unsuccessfully even with the most modern equipment. It's amazing that pirates centuries ago built something so well that it's kept their treasure safe for all these years even into the modern day. Makes me want to grab a pick and shovel and a ticket to the east coast to go digging for a summer...
July 23 - Captain America 3D!
After a surprisingly lovely day at work with no stressors( sun shining and my staff being both competent and fun to be around )it was time to head home... sort of. I ended up grabbing some A&W( their coupons expire July 31st! )and taking in a meal with my pal Kevin. We went tonight to the new Westshore Cineplex Theatres( check out the build progress pics! )that just opened a week ago, which have reclining seats( !! )and full cutting edge 3D screens and sounds. Playing tonight was Captain America: The First Avenger in 3D, which was tastefully done - no hands poking you in the eye or weird effects just for effect's sake. Heck, the whole audience jumped when Cap's shield ricocheted off a tank and came right back at the viewers - perfectly done! A great film, one of the better ones this year. I hope the new Spiderman is as well done...
July 24 - Ahhhhh... Summer timing!
Sometimes it just works: the weather and days off co-operate to bring days like today into glorious fruition, to the point where I feel like I'm wasting time by not relaxing enough - if that makes sense. Temperatures in the mid-20's, a clear cloudless blue sky, no wind save a gentle breeze that caresses the skin with warm fingers that promise memories of laying on a grassy hill to watch birds flit past and the world wander by with a wave. I spent a goodly part of my afternoon outside just enjoying things( with earplugs on occasion )as it was the first real day of summer we've had in this part of BC so far this year. Better than the massive heatwave that's scorching the rest of the continent, I have to say! An evening of NWN was very good as well, with some great character development by a small group of friends and fellow gamers - it's always a thrill to adventure alongside fun people with talent, anytime.
Something's been twinging in my digestives the last few days, so I'm hoping that this week will see it go away. I really don't want something new going wrong down there, as I've had enough trouble over the years from that region....always something. When do our cyborg bodies arrive again?
