Filed under: General Thoughts
Well, shit. Another week, another dry spell on the blog.
Actually, two weeks. My, how time flies…
So, I was in Omaha for a week doing some integration work for the team, taking the opportunity afforded by proximity to get some grotty little details hammered out and hopefully to sell my southern compatriots on the value of the tools we make up here. I think I was successful, but I haven’t heard a lot out of them this week (mainly because I’ve skipped the morning meetings, being disinclined to lean too heavily on the good graces of my carpooling coworker).
This past week…
Well, I’ve got a new respect for (and fear of) character set encodings. And, if you wonder what that means, there’s A) wikipedia and B) wikipedia.
Suffice to say it’s hellish, but I believe that the end is nigh. I think I’ve got the very worst of it nailed, and I hope to be on to something less nightmarish next week.
Filed under: Events, Friends, General Thoughts and Meta
and I wanted to work Catch-22 into that title, but couldn’t.
So, in response to some vigourous prodding last night, I felt it was time to dust this off and get back to keeping people apprised of my life.
Here’s the skinny, since… holy shit! November 6! It’s been almost four weeks!
Since then, I have:
- Travelled to the Dominican Republic (where we were all amiss in not posting to Morruz)
- Dislocated my shoulder… again. That sucked. Worse? I was just playing volleyball in a pool, not even doing anything interesting. Funny thing is, though, when I went to a medical supply store to get some foam to pad the horrid sling I took home with me, the lady running the store told me that my injury seems to be quite common in volleyballers, at least anecdotally.
- Got my performance review at work, for which the term “glowing” might be an understatement.
And you wonder why I don’t post? 
My life is dull, dull, dull.
It hasn’t even been that interesting of a time, politically. I’ve kept my eyes on the news, but there’s been little out of the ordinary to spark thought or discussion, either north or south of the border.
Um… I’ve read some good books, lately. Is that interesting?
Expect more later. I’m just barely awake, and Char just fed me coffee.
Filed under: Friends
Well, I can’t say that this past weekend was a terrific one.
Oh, the details were mostly good. I had a good trip with Char, during which she either slept or was happy to chat with me continuously about a whole host of interesting things (PolySci == good conversation). However, the details — from some social awkwardness at the wedding itself (on my part, sadly) to some bad news from home (ask Char; it’s her story to tell) meant that the trip turned out to be less happy than I’d hoped.
I wish it had been more cheery, but I suppose I still enjoyed the trip; the company was excellent, and even if the details were bad it doesn’t mean that there was no value in it.
Filed under: General Thoughts
Well, I’ve returned from my Japanese Odyssey, and now I get to spend this whole week swamped with school work, work work, and un-jetlagging.
It’ll be grand.
Filed under: General Thoughts
Check out Morruz for the next few weeks; I’ll be posting there in preference to here, whilst traveling.
Filed under: General Thoughts
The view from the plane on the way into San Jose airport is one that made me wish I had a camera. There’s something … amazing about the vast swathes of light sprayed across the black, slashed here and there with the deeper darkness of the bays and inlets that litter this part of the coast.
I couldn’t help but think; I’d give anything to see the earth from space. That’s my fondest dream, my deepest single desire. That being said, I don’t know that it’s comparable to the beauty of a strip of light that stretches a significant fraction of the length of a continent, a monument to both excess and achievement that changes the dark face of the world in a way that I would be able to see, even from the vantage I crave.
The earth from space would be beauty, but it would be a mindless, undirected beauty. The cityscape, the glowing spray of seeds spread across the coast beneath my plane, is a beauty that springs from the minds and hands of men, and more than any natural thing it puts poetry in my heart.
(Note: No actual poetry was produced in the writing of this post. Count yourselves fortunate.)
Filed under: General Thoughts
My father and sister are traveling to Chile and Peru for a good, long time. Because I think this is kind of cool, I’ve set up a blog for them over at Morruz.
Filed under: General Thoughts
Well, it so happens that if I sit out on our balcony in the resort, I actually piggyback the wireless connection (poorly-secured) of someone in the neighborhood. They’re not very security-conscious (their router has the default password, a bad idea in general) but I’m grateful for it.
It’s hot here, but friendly. The crowd is almost 100% older than Char and I — mostly yuppies and retirees — but I’m an old man at heart, so I fit right in
I’m going to take it lazy. Reading is going to be the thing I do most of, I think. That, and sunburn.
Also, although this is a bit less Mexico and a bit more personal, I chipped a tooth on my tongue ring this morning at breakfast. I stopped, thought about it for a second, and then decided that this is basically the last straw. Moments later, for the first time in years, I now have no body jewelery. Over the course of the day, I’ve realized just how much I actually fidget with it, as I have tried and failed to flick it about 6 times just today.
I don’t know how I feel about it being gone, but with the rate at which the tongue heals, even now, 12 hours later, it is too late to go back.
Filed under: General Thoughts
Planes are so damned cramped
One thing i liked about the train, when i wasn’t trying to sleep on it, was the sheer amount of space it has - people on a train are not crammed in. It’s - even in the economy class - a fairly luxurious mode of transportation. It reminds me a bit of BC Ferries, just in the ability to walk around, the freedom to see different parts of the vessel, to pay exorbitant prices for food.
Full o’ old people, though
Anyway, i post this from my fave seat in the world, the one in front of my very own computer. It’s nice to be home at last… or it would be, if i weren’t a week behind on my classes and generally kinda lost in three of my five courses.
Oh well, so be it. Back to the front!
Filed under: General Thoughts
Wedding is now done…
Wow. Okay, it wasn’t exactly rocket science, but there was a fair amount of work and responsibility involved in getting that wedding to go off smoothly for Beau and Sarah. At some point, when i have them in a digital form, i’ll have to post some pics… (Since you asked so nicely, John…)
Other than that, well, the week has gone nicely. I’ve had a nice time traveling with Char, stresses and strains notwithstanding. We’ve now reached the last of our modes of transporation for the trip, having added limousine to the list, and i am now awaiting boarding for Westjet flight 37 to Edmonton. You wanna know what’s neato? Wireless internet. I’m typing this on my laptop, in the boarding gate, on the vancouver aiport’s free wireless internet connection. This makes me deeply happy
So, about the wedding:
The whole setting was just amazing; Sarah’s parents’ house is set overlooking the ocean with tons of trees, big windows, and nice beaches… Just gorgeous. For those who’ve never seen it (all of you?) i was actually in a tuxedo, looking dashing all the way…
oh… gotta run…. boarding the plane. more later…
Posted on April 24th, 2008 by Chris
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