Just Was & Updates

I know what your thinking, what? bullet points again!   There's just been a few things on my mind and updates I wanted to give and then there's the highs and lows of the weekend.  The weekend was, um, just was.

• My wife's Valentine's Day gift arrived a day late, on Wednesday.  I got her a gift basket of Godiva chocolates.  She seems to be very happy with it. 
• My back has gotten worse before hopefully getting all better.  I left work early Friday, self medicated with a few drinks and muscle relaxers, and tried to get some rest.  That evening our friends Jerome and Lisa came over to grill some food and hang out.  We had a lot of fun, but, of course, I had quite the head start.
• Saturday was our quiet day, we ran a couple small errands and got a bite to eat but otherwise stayed in.
• On Sunday our friend Bridget celebrated her birthday (Yay, Bridget!) with a brunch at a local restaurant for many of her friends.  It was a popular place, the food was okay, service was good but seemed slow.  It was a big party and many people were a bit late to begin with, but we were there almost 2 hours and my ass and lower back were screaming at me.  I found making conversation difficult.  I do tend to clam up in a loud environment (I can't hear) or if I'm uncomfortable, that and my insecurities.  Along with pain management I could use a brush up on social skills.  I've got to buck up and suck it up better than I have been.
• I didn't get the job/promotion I wanted, I lost out to someone with more seniority.  All may not be lost, though, a similar position is opening soon.
• I'm still smoking the clove cigars.  I haven't really cut down at all, but I have made a conscious effort to not inhale, and just from that I can tell the difference in my lungs.
• And lastly, I miss listening to The Don Geronimo Show podcast but it has freed up so much time.  I can now easily listen to all my other podcasts and plenty of music all day at work.  Plus, if my position changes, then I may not have as much time with headphones on at work.
• And that reminds me, the headphone jack on my ipod is going again.  I have a new one on order that should be here soon.  This is the third time I've replaced the jack, I think.  We've certainly gotten our money's worth out of it (it was a gift many years ago), but even replacing parts now and again, this old 5th Gen Video ipod just keeps on truckin'.  Now if I jinxed myself by saying that I'll $#!%......

I guess I lied, when I said 'lastly' it wasn't.  Thanks for listening to my brain spill all over the page.  Have a good week!

The Gentlemen's Rant

...for Valentine's Day.  This is another youtube channel I recently came across that amuses me and may end up on my list.  Kind of NSFW.



My wife is not getting a present today. I ordered it late so it will be here later this week, but it's a good enough present that I don't think she'll mind.

What's New?

Well, what's new with me these days.  Time to start typing and see what comes out...

• My back is feeling better finally.  I threw it out 3 weeks ago yesterday after clearing snow.  Yes, after clearing snow as I was kicking off my boots I felt that old familiar twang and knew I would be hurting for a while.  I was right.
• Our white trash neighbor across the street tried to park me in this morning.  It is alternate side parking here for winter which limits the space somewhat but there is still plenty of room on the street for everyone.  I was the first car there last night, this morning the doughboy's car was about a foot off my back bumper.  The skank bartends and gets home in the wee hours so she surely saw that and intentionally backed her car up within about 2 feet of my front bumper.  (FYI, they have the only house on the block without a driveway or garage, though there is room to put one in.) Just a bit more and I would have called the cops to wake them up and move a vehicle.  As it was, it was a pain to get out.  They have been a pain to us ever since we moved in and she slashed my tire because she liked to park in front of our house and all of a sudden I started parking there. I took pictures in case I need them later.
• Die Antwoord's new release, "Ten$ion" is out now (see last post).  I enjoyed listening to it twice today at work.  Still very good, very edgy, but maybe not as good as their first, "$o$."  It will surely grow on me, though.  They were on David Letterman the other night!
• Our winter continues to be a very very mild one.  There hasn't been much snow, even now the ground is mostly clear, and temps have been mild, above freezing most days and even considerably above freezing some days.  I can't complain...  yet.  There's still time.
• I've applied for a different position at my work, an upgrade, promotion if you will.  I really really hope I get it, I desperately need a change of scenery from the department I'm in now.  A year and a half ago I did get a promotion but then had to turn it down because I broke my leg and they couldn't hold up the class.  That interview I didn't think went very well yet I was offered the position.  This interview I think went very well and, well, keep your fingers crossed for me!
• I bought myself a new lunchbox that arrived today.  It cost about 35 dollars, but is much bigger than my old one (that we got for free but I used for at least 6 years), which was always packed to the top.  Mostly it needs to hold ice packs and water bottles and now I'll have more room for actual food. But the increased size has me steeling myself for the 'man-purse' comments I may get.  Oh well, the smaller size was too small so I'll just deal with it.

That's all I can think of right now.  Mostly we're just dealing with the daily drudgery that we all have, especially this time of year, I hope yours is more exciting than ours.  Ta Ta for now!

I Fink U Freeky

I always have an eye out for what Die Antwoord will do next.  Ninja and Yolandi Visser seem to do things that are somehow new, outside the norm, even fascinatingly strange, and that amuses and entertains me.


Of course, one big reason I enjoy Die Antwoord is....  after the break!

Managing My Time / OCD Tendencies

I've been trying to change my days around a bit lately.  The biggest change is letting go of The Don Geronimo Show podcast.  It is his whole morning radio show from KHTK in Sacramento without commercials, which is usually just over three and a half hours long.  I listen while I work and usually finish it by lunch time, or sometimes later.  I've managed to keep that up for over a year and a half, plus the other, shorter, less frequent podcasts that I listen to (listed in the right column).  Then at home I like to watch The Mike O'Meara Show podcast, video recorded on Ustream.  Between TMOS and my usual surfing sites, they replace evening television for me, which results in me being holed up in the computer room all night, sometimes even while eating dinner.

It has been a week since I've been a loyal TDGS listener, and not a bad week.  I've been able to keep up on my other podcasts easily and listen to a lot of new music that I hadn't been able to get around to before.  The next step is to start listening to the daily TMOS shows at work in the mornings instead of watching it on Ustream every day after work.  TMOS is a scant 70 minute podcast compared to TDGS's 3.5 hours plus.  I will still watch the TMOS bonus shows on the weekends, that is content that I have bought and paid for the year.

While I will still be on the computer daily, I want to free up more of my time spent every day, keep my wife company more often, and spend more time just doing things, little things around the house that need to be done.  I can catch up on TDGS when I ever have free time, or when something sounds like it's getting interesting.  I'm not deleting it from my itunes, mind you, so I will still see the daily descriptions.  Hell, I've listened to him for probably 12 or 13 years now, it's hard to let go completely.

I'll have to check back with this later.  Somehow, posting my intentions publicly may help me be able to follow through.  I hope for less stress and time commitments in my everyday life.  I guess we'll see how I manage my OCD tendencies...

This was easier a few years back when they were still together on The Don & Mike Show.

Latest Listening Pleasure... PAIN

PAIN is a band from Sweden, essentially Peter Tagtgren, that blends metal with techno with electronic whatever to create a big metal sound. I first learned of PAIN a year or two ago and liked the music so much that I explored them further. The early stuff I found to be a big bowl of okay, while their last two releases have greatly appealed to me. I love how the internet has introduced me to so many bands around the world that I never would have heard of otherwise. Anyway, I have been listening to them quite a bit more lately and, since I haven't posted in a week, I thought I would share what I've been jamming to lately. First, kind of keeping in the theme of crazy drummers, is PAIN's first single, 'Dirty Woman,' off their latest release 'You Only Live Twice.' While it is a great song, it also shows the drummer get frustrated, then destroy and eventually set fire to his drum set. After that is my current favorite song, 'The Great Pretender,' kind of a continuation (well, there's a hint at the end) of the 'Dirty Woman' video. This is what I like, do you? Give it a try...




PAIN on Wiki
PAIN Official Website

Crazy Drummers

I remember quite some time ago a funny little video of a very, um, enthusiastic drummer was making the rounds.  Then, just a bit ago, as I was watching some video of last night's Vince Neil concert, I found that I couldn't keep my eyes off the drummer.  They seem to be cut from the same cloth.  The band starts about 2 minutes into the video.  While he is entertaining throughout, he seems to really hit his stride at about the 10:30 mark. 

Pic Dump 37

For the thirty-seventh time, here are all the pics that I have come across in the course of my internet travels that caught my fancy enought to save since the last dump to share with you now.  Same rules apply:  Some may be NSFW, click pic for original size if different and much, much more after the break.  Enjoy!

Here's mine: "In the wake of Woodstock, the entire music business was gripped with what could best be described as Festival Fever."  Ace Frehley - No Regrets, 2011.  'Festival Fever!'  Oh Boy!

As always, many thanks to the fine site on 'My Favorite Sites' list on the right!

Other Things On My Mind...

...on this 'sick day' that I will pay for later in more ways than one....

My beloved Green Bay Packers lost, that's right, lost their divisional playoff game versus the New York Giants.  I was, and still am, mightily disappointed.  I'm having a hard time yet, but if you can bear it, here are some theories on the Packers' breakdown..

I happened upon an amazing, NSFW youtube page that gives you some convenient phrases in sign language.  It's called Dirty Signs with Kristen.

Sometimes I enjoy A beer for the shower...  Sometimes a cruise through the ghetto (beware, really)...

And sometimes it's just fun to blow shit up!  (Highly Recommended!)

No SOPA No PIPA

If you don't know what it is you may want to look it up.

I'm home being ill today so I've had time to read some news.  I'm disturbed by what I hear.

Huffington Post is a good place to start, too.