August 2005 Archives

I have tentative playlists for my Dual Disc Debacle cds. I'm doing an Abecedarium, with some license because I figure Magpies aren't too persnickety about their alphabets and because 26 songs isn't enough to fill up two cds. Test discs are burned for the MO to try out in the car tomorrow. I expect a ... moderate ... reaction because I know that he really hates some of my music, but it's quite a mixed bag (I defy you to put together a single-genre abecedarium (by artist, not by song) from your existing collection) so I think there's something for everyone, even a headbanger like him ;-) and while there are a couple of rough transitions, as a whole I think it works.

The next task is the artwork. Yippee!!

Bill's Comments: Hard-Boiling Eggs

Why am I writing about this? After all, it's simple, put the eggs in water, boil them a while, cool them, and peel them. Then why are the yolks green sometimes and why don't they always peel? Huh? ... If you are happy with your boiled eggs, skip to another post, this may be boring (It will certainly be more than you ever wanted to know about it.). If not, then read on.

(Yes, I know something is messed up. TextDrive moved servers this weekend and it looks like an MT plug-in got lost. I'll get around to it. For now just try to enjoy the green boxes ;-)

What a fantabulous birthday weekend!!

I opened a few presents the night before, so we had an unexpected bonus in the form of a Harry Potter movie (thanks Mom & Dad!) on Thursday night.

The MO expanded on recent range-related gifts with Hogue grips for Ivan, the pictured M-1 Carbine book, and magazines and magazine pouches (the latter in prep for the October event).

The official birthday day started properly with bubbles and breakfast


and then we embarked on our road trip. I knew we were going to Austin for the weekend, but I didn't know why we had to be there by 2:00 p.m. The MO is good at keeping secrets....

When we got close to Austin, he handed me a MapQuest printout so I could navigate. We ended up driving through a medical center, but all the signs seemed to be for psychiatric hospitals, so I asked him if he was having me committed. After all, I figured if I really was crazy, I wouldn't necessarily know it ;-) Happily, that wasn't the plan.

We ended up at a bungalow in a Heights-like neighborhood, which turned out to be Jay Long's studio. The poor man, he opened the door and I just gaped at him. I blurted out, "No way!" before he could even say anything. (Hey, I've never claimed to have debutante-level social graces.) He invited us in anyhow and then I found out that the MO had purchased my birthday present way back in March at the spring art festival. Cornelius is beyond fabulous:

(This is a horrible photo, go look at Jay's website.)

After that, we headed to The Driskill (warning: music on that site) and checked in, had a drink at the bar, and got ready for dinner. We had eaten at the Driskill Grill before so we knew that dinner was going to be amazing, but the MO had arranged for an extra-special dessert. He had checked the menu a couple of months ago when he made the reservations and saw a dessert that he thought I would really like. He found out that the menu would be different by the time we were there, but the pastry chef agreed to make it for him (for me!) anyhow. I didn't know what it was going to be (more of those secrets) and I certainly wasn't expecting pineapple-upside-down cake! I admit to a total girly episode of fluttering and sniffling, I was so thoroughly surprised and pleased. (My mom used to make a pineapple-upside-down cake for my birthday every year, and I loved it. I haven't had it in many years.)

Saturday I had a massage (oooooh how I miss that habit) and then we walked around for a while.

We checked out the 22 to Watch exhibit at the Austin Musuem of Art which included some very impressive pieces. It bugs me that, even for the pieces that I like, the blurbs that accompany them are usually at least incomprehensible and more likely utterly irritating. Art rocks, but art-speak sucks.

After we had had enough of the heat, we found a bar and settled in. Here we are, both the same age for a few months, only a bit bedraggled:

We whiled away the afternoon at that lovely air-conditioned bar, people-watching and talking. We did have some fun television distractions, including a pet telethon featuring several super-cute little kitties. Little kitties are soooooo cute....

It has been a terrific weekend. Cornelius has been installed in a place of honor, I had my leftover cake (they made two desserts in case the MO wanted it too, so I got to bring one home) and Melvin has almost figured out that she knows us after all so things are getting back to normal. Sigh....

Thank you, husband. You're so good to me.

Flickr: The_German_Dude
(Specifically some cool architectural shots and what looks like some kind of museum exhibit.)

The Guys are starting a new email RPG and this time I get to play :-) They're taking a break from D&D and doing a Star Wars campaign. I think it's new for everybody so I don't feel quite so intimidated. (I'm sure that will come soon enough.) My character is a sizable Mon Calamari heiress with some time on her hands. Should be interesting! Hmm, maybe it's time to finally see the newer SW movies....

Tonight there is (nearly) a full moon. It looked huge as we drove home from an evening with friends so I thought I'd try to get a picture of it. My little Elph is not exactly hot-shot camera equipment, but tonight I discovered that "bad" pix can be a lot of fun....

(The moon is the thick white line to the right of the highway sign.)

I am always astonished to realize that I actually like John Travolta....

The History Channel is currently airing a show (okay, old news, but hey) about navy ghost fleets (yes, plural, and I didn't even know there was one) and, among other things, about how the Navy is recycling steel from the WTC buildings into a new Navy ship, appropriately named the New York. The WTC steel has been cast into the very prow of the ship, which seems to me the best possible use of that particular metal. Having finally watched Team America, the MO and I simultaneously raised our glasses to the fine men at Amite shipyards and shouted, "America, FUCK YEAH!"

(If you haven't seen it yet, run, do not walk, to your nearest video source. Drink any liquids quickly and in small quantities, otherwise you will have a messy living room due to explosive laughing.)

If your man cooks, you are a lucky woman. If he cooks so well that your co-workers look forward to leftovers, you understand how lucky I am. The MO cooks almost every night, and tonight he put together a tremendously savoury plate of basalmic onion, steamed broccoli and sauteed chicken breast (all enhanced with the gorgeous juices from the onion dish) that hit the spot with extreme precision. If your man makes dinner for you on a regular basis, he really loves you, mark my words.

2Slick: I've Got Mail!

thanks for protecting the saudi royal family and lining dick cheney's pockets once again.

Thank you for giving me so much credit! I feel like I helped to protect a lot of people from a lot of bad things, and of course that makes me feel good. If you were especially concerned for the Saudi royals, then I'm glad to have helped put your mind at ease about that. I, for one, was more concerned about protecting my buddies on the battlefield as well as my friends and family back home, but we all have our priorites.

makes a dull, dull blog. Last week's business trip was Rather Stressful. And that's enough about that.

Happily, the MO and I spent a long Sunday morning at the range, he to break in his latest acquisition and I to, well, just to shoot. A lot. Chester and I had a wonderful time, and then I visited with Flora and Ivan as well.

I shot the .38 wadcutter ammo for the first time (can't shoot it at the indoor place) and doggone, that stuff makes a big ol' hole in the paper.... It's fun having two magazines for Flora, and I'm getting fairly accurate with her. (I guess--I can usually get all 20 shots in a 3" circle at whatever distance the closest pistol targets are at ASC, 5 yards maybe?) Ivan is more of a hit-or-miss proposition. Sometimes I can get all 6 in the circle, sometimes only half of them. My first shots tend to be high, and later low. Left and right doesn't seem to be so much of a problem, which is an improvement. Plus I can shoot all double-action now, so I'm getting stronger, too :-)

As we were packing up to go, the daily thunderstorm hit, and it was invigorating to be (sort of) out in the middle of it. The pistol and rifle ranges at ASC are outdoors--basically long tin-roofed pole barns. The wind was so strong that the rain blew clear through the structure. We stood at the front edge of the benches and still got quite damp. But it was a nice cool-down (it is August, ya know, and that means hot hot hot, almost as hot as Mike Prior (I miss the Mad Pony, but then I found Kalisah, how's that for a non sequitur?)) and exciting in that isn't-Mother-Nature-awesome-I'm-so-glad-I'm-under-a-roof" kind of way.

The Shape of Days: Jeffy descends into retail Hell and returns bearing wisdom

...all of that is based on the assumption that you're in a rational, natural and internally consistent environment. If you were in the woods, you'd be fine. But you're not in the woods. You're in a CompUSA.

So I've joined a new swap--this time it's musical! You build a playlist and burn an audio cd (in this case, two cds) to swap, five-for-five. I haven't decided on a theme yet. I'm thinking either opposites (for the two discs--boys/girls, love/hate, rain/sunshine, etc.) or maybe an abecediary. Two cds should hold twenty-six songs, if some of them are short. This swap even comes with its own button (see the monkeys on the sidebar :-) so that's kinda cool.

Our weekend rounds took us to Spec's (of course)

and also to Gander Mountain.

Two different kinds of wildlife, I suppose....

Sexiest rock-n-roll men, in chronological order of when I decided they were so:

• Billy Squier (hey, I was 15, I didn't know, okay?)
• Robert Plant (a-number-one sexiest old dude on the planet)
• Scott Weiland (yeah, too skinny, drug addict, whatever, but he's got that rock star thing going on for sure)
• Bon Scott (have I mentioned how he reminds me of the MO's high school pics? esp. when he does that flirty little upwards glance thing? I have? oh, well, okay then)

Update: Too weird not to link--more Scott Weiland pix--scroll down past the scary strawberry