Aaron M. Bond [dot] COM - Weblog
Weblog - Navigation
- A Tribute to One of My Truest Friends
- The State Fair, Holidays, Valentines, and Other...
- My Life as a Minnesotan
Random Blog Quotation
~random lady
"I'm sorry. Well, how long have you been a truck driver?"
~Dorene
"Oh, I'm not a truck driver. I'm a CPA."
~random lady
"Oh..."
~Dorene
Social Networking
I know I never link here to my LiveJournal, but this is important to me.
A Tribute to One of My Truest Friends
This Week's Quotables:
Current Mood: crushed
Current Music: none
Comments:
oh shiznatz!!!
-Posted by uberdark on Monday, May 21, 2007 at 4:33 pm:
i just realized i made a funny about a dog and then read your blog on your best friend. soo very very sorry aaron. it was not meant as a way of demeaning your dog. seriously i read it after i made the joking quote. i miss smokey my favorite dog too. sorry again.
Reply
So, how does one cover all I've not covered since the last time I had a real blog? Well, I suspect that this random verbiage will come in waves. Prepare yourself for wave one: from the move to now-ish.
The State Fair - Same Tradition with Different People in a Different State
Okay, perhaps it's a stretch to call this an extension of a tradition this early, but I'm trying to plant some roots here. Elana and I went to the fair with longtime-residents and new found friends Mike and Ellyn. The state fair here in Minnesota is considered a much bigger deal than it is in Indiana. This great Minnesota get together had much to offer, including (but not limited to): overgrown gopher police, alligator nuggets, cheese in all of its natural fried forms, and some bizarre imagery.
Several of the differences between this and the Hoosiers' fair are already highlighted by James Lileks. Considering that I took very few clear pictures of the fair, I'll link Lilek's best here (directly to his site, so that you can hear his take). First, in Indiana some impressively hairy people attend the fair; however, they do not have rent-a-cop rodents. "Excuse me, sir, but you're going to have to move out of foot traffic. I will not take acorns as bribes, sir." Second, the Indiana state fair has convenient and frequent garbage receptacles. They do not, however, have these garbage receptacles. Can't sleep, clowns will eat my trash... High-octane nightmare fuel.
|
Lastly, we do not have one of these. Best I can figure from my restructuring of history (ie. speculation and lies), this wood-cut statue hearkens back to when the communist big birds dropped their iron-curtain on the lands of the capitalist gophers. However, their economic paradise was as imaginary as their best pal Comrade Snuffleupagus. After the fall of the USSR (Union of Sesame Street Republics), the gophers were freed of the chains of socialism and could once again roam the streets. That, or this is the product of drug-induced creativity. Either way, very interesting! |
| The art hall also held some surreal images only feasible at a state fair. This hairy buffalo sat above the crowd atop the cabinets full of entries. He guards the art as only a large rope-buffalo can. If you tilt the cabinet too much, he'll fall on you, and he's sure to be quite heavy. |
|
| While the sights proved to be very fulfilling, the tastes were even more so. Elana and I tried many standard fair fare as well as a few items I'd not had available to me in Indiana. |
|
First, we bought some fried cheddar on a stick. Believe it or not, this is all there is to it. They dip cheddar in corn dog batter and serve it to the unsuspecting coronary victim. Good times. Second, Elana and I tried the always available deep-fried Twinkie. This item proves that you can, indeed, get too much of a good thing. The batter, sweetened by powdered sugar, combined with the inner cream filling of the pastry served to alert me to every cavity I have, could have, or ever did have. Next, we moved on to the exotic jerky booth. I bought some ostrich and alligator jerky and spent the next two hours trying to chew through the vacuum packaging. Next year, I will bring my pocket scissors. To continue with out alligator trend, we tried a stand selling deep-fried alligator nuggets. It tastes like what chicken would taste like if it cross-bread with calamari. I loved it, but it's not for everyone. Lastly, we ate some deep-fried cheese curds. This was my favorite moment of the fair. After traveling through Wisconsin a few times, I've discovered that there are few things I wouldn't do for cheese curds. Add deep-frying to that equation, and I'm a happy man.
While I was impressed with the food and sights of the fair, the midway left a lot to be desired. We didn't even stay to ride the rides, though one was intriguing. As you can see from Lileks's pictures, the ride appears to emulate what it would be like to swing from an Amazon's bust as they danced in a circle. Its weirdness held my attention for a few minutes, but we quickly moved on.
So, with fried cheese, soul-eating clowns, hairy rope buffalo, buxom midway rides and formerly-communist gophers, the Minnesota state fair is not better or worse than Indiana's. It's just very different.
One Year and Counting
Elana and I celebrated our one-year anniversary last September (yes, yes, I know, I'm way behind on keeping you all up to date). We decided to spend it in beautiful Taylor's Falls, Minnesota. It was quite memorable; we had a lot of romance, a little adventure, and a bladder infection.
First, we stayed at the lovely Old Jail Bed and Breakfast, which is actually built out of a jail house. The building was built in 1884 next to a tavern and contained four cells. The current proprietor bought it in 1981 and turned it into a bed and breakfast. It had an interesting layout inside, including old-world decorations (old fashioned shackles, etc). Despite the jail overtones, they had dressed the place up nicely with a fully stocked kitchen and a decent sitting area complete with a small stereo and some old 78 rpm records.
Second, and unexpectedly, we went on a dinner cruise on the St. Croix river. While wandering around Taylor's Falls, Elana and I stumbled on a dock with a riverboat just about to depart. I was skeptical, considering that they take reservations for this kind of thing, but Elana decided it couldn't hurt to ask if they'd take a couple of walk-ons. Much to my surprise, they would, so we boarded. They took us down the river showing us the sights, including the cross rock formation for which it was named. In addition, they fed us prime rib. Not too shabby. There was also live music playing above deck, so after sunset, Elana and I went above to listen and look at the river at night. The only hitch was that the weather turned against us. Cold wind blew us hard enough that the captain had to try three times just to park.
When we arrived back at our bed and breakfast, Elana informed me that she had picked up an obligatory bladder infection (necessary for all anniversaries). So, I pulled out the trusty laptop and we curled up in the glow of a few episodes of Angel.
| Finally, the next morning, we went on our last adventure: a canoing trip down the St. Croix river. It is important to note here that we were the only two people at the canoe rental area, and the person renting the canoes had hoped that everyone would decide against taking their outdoor adventure on account of the cold and high winds. We were un-fazed, however, and procured our vessel. |
The going was rough down the river, and after shifting me to the back (apparently it was a bad idea to have most of the weight in the front), we were making decent progress. We got to the first stop in Osceola and scoffed. We were going for the whole stretch!
| After nearly getting stuck under a bridge as the winds continually pushed us back, we entered a shallow area. We weren't making good progress as we couldn't put our oars as deep as we normally did. In order to get some leverage, we leaned further to push off the bottom. This would have been a fine idea had we not both picked the same side of the canoe. I still remember the cold of the water as I watched the boat sink two feet down and get stuck in the sand. |
|
After wasting a good fifteen minutes trying to right our stuck canoe, Elana tried her cell phone (which had been underwater just previously). By some karmic miracle, it worked, and we waited another forty minutes for our hero, the game warden.
A small boat who's motor was very clearly on its last sea legs pulled up, and the game warden stepped out and helped me tip our canoe and tie it to his boat. He was the epitome of Minnesota Nice. He noted a lack of an uff da accent, and asked us where we were from. On our boat ride, we shivered and told him the complicated story of how a Northeasterner and Hoosier came to capsize in the St. Croix.
When we got back to the nearest dock, he called canoe rental and they sent the bus to pick up their lost customers. He then turned the heat in his truck on full blast, had us climb in, and informed us that he'd give us something to eat, but all he had were MRE's. See below for more information. As the bus pulled up, he gave us an MRE to satiate our curiosity and wished us well in our future travels.
So, for our anniversary, Elana and I got dinner on a river, got jailed, got capsized, and got military food. Despite the misadventure, it was quite romantic and nothing if not memorable.
An MRE - Dissecting a Military Meal
I realize that I glossed over the concept of an MRE above. I felt that this subject deserves closer examination. An MRE is a "Meal Ready to Eat-" standard rations for our soldiers in combat. Our new game warden friend informed us that he enjoys them a great deal, but not everyone is so keen.
He told us an interesting story, and while I question the truth in it, it makes for a great punchline. During the famine in Ethiopia, the United States airdropped MREs on the country as a form of humanitarian aide. Despite classes led by American soldiers on how to prepare the meals, many of the Ethiopians refused to eat them. Therefore, many of the soldiers began referring to the MREs as "Meals Rejected by Ethiopians."
While we haven't been bold enough to prepare and try the meal yet, I did dissect its contents to quench my own curiosity. In addition, I've taken pictures to share with you all. Here are my findings. (Feel free to click the pictures for a closer look.)
| The outer package provides a solid layer of protection, as I could barely get the damn thing open. It's water proof, crush proof, and apparently civilian resistant. Sadly, since I've torn open the bag, I'll never be able to take my ration noodle kit on a commercial flight. |
|
|
Upon first examination of the contents, two things immediately jump out at me. One, anything military must be lacking in any color but brown. Two, the only exception to the color rule is M & M's. Not plain, but peanut. We don't want no sissy M & M's here. |
| This I found very intriguing. Did you know that the key ingredient in pears is pears (which has a key ingredient of pears)? Thinking about this too long made my head hurt. I'm glad they stopped the infinitely recursive madness three steps down. I only have 20 GB on my site to describe this stuff. |
|
|
"Dear Mom and Dad, Forgive the chicken noodle stains, but here in the field we have to improvise. War time is tough, but the boys and I have kept spirits up by having long discussions about the ingredients in pears. Please send some palatable food..." |
| For this last one, you'll have to click to get the full effect. The instructions are almost insultingly simple: "Food gives you energy. The more energy you burn, the more food you need." I half expected the meal to come with a diagram showing me the difference between an enemy who is near and an enemy who is far. Nevertheless, this was the most shocking part of all: this pouch contains 1,200 to 1,300 calories. Pure carbs keeps our military going. |
|
Home for (one of) the Holidays
Thanksgiving this year came unfortunately close to Elana's surgery. So, instead of going home, Crystal and her new beau Stephen came here. Crystal has gone decidedly cybernetic, as she updated her progress via an away message. When she hit traffic, we knew and prepared accordingly (as in, didn't compensate for starting late on the meal). It's like tracking a package containing your best friend. Very nice.
The meal was a pre-packaged deal from the local grocery store which required significantly less preparation than the standard bird. Good thing, too. Elana was not in a mood to work in a kitchen all day and my culinary prowess is surpassed only by my ability to do effective brain surgery with a wrench. All turned out quite well.
The next day we went to the Mall of America, which turned out to be a disappointment for Stephen because, despite being massive, it's laid out in such a way that you can't get lost. We also introduced them to Katamari Damacy and Apples to Apples.
| For those who don't know, Apples to Apples is a game of wit. Everyone has 5 cards in their hands with random nouns on them. Each person takes a turn being the judge who pulls a green apple card containing an adjective, and everyone lays down the noun they think best matches it. The game quickly turned politically incorrect. I'll say no more and let the picture say a thousand words of wrongness. |
|
For Christmachanukwanzayule, we went home and spent some time with friends and family. Our first excursion was to Summer's house, where I got her addicted to Wonderfalls (and if you haven't seen it, go rent it, it's brilliant).
Then, we had a holiday party at Dorene's. We did a white-elephant book exchange, where we swapped books we previously owned and wanted others to read. I brought Woebegon Boy, by Garrison Keilor. Truth be told, my claim that it was an introduction to Minnesota culture was untrue. I simply didn't have time to buy any new books before we got there. Thankfully, it landed in the hands of Callie, who never complains about anything. Then we played Trivial Pursuit, which continued the tradition of torturing ourselves with the game during the holidays. Many of this entry's quotations came from the game.
We had the typical Christmas at my grandma's with all the trappings, including an overabundance of food. Then we moved on to Elana's mom's condo for a holiday feast. Great fun was had by all, and I even got some candy from her uncle Bob that had originally been given to him (the tag still said to: Bob- he's very much against candy). The family time was a nice return to the familiar for both of us, having been so recently uprooted to a new city and new digs.
For New Years, we ended up at Aly and John's, the same party where we were introduced. I also learned, to my dismay, that I've developed a tolerance for alcohol. After many many drinks, I barely got buzzed. Still, I got to ring in the New Year with the prettiest girl at the party surrounded by friends. Can't beat that.
So, we had turkey ala' Aaron and the grocery store while playing politically incorrect games, addicted a friend to a TV show (a prerequisite for me), pursued trivia with hilarious results, relaxed with some family time, and failed to get drunk for the New Year. Happy holidays indeed.
A Way to a Man's Heart is Through His White Castle
Elana has been ordered by those concerned with her health to eat meat. Apparently, after surgery, it's important to be able to regenerate blood, and meat is the way to do that. Despite that, I was surprised at her suggestion for Valentines Day dinner: White Castle.
When she asked, I had to make certain she wasn't kidding and that I wasn't dreaming. After about five times asking, "Are you serious?" I was ready to make reservations.
I should explain that, for Valentine's Day, White Castle sets the mood by candlelight and takes your orders at the table. The unusual atmosphere of the event was both romantic and fun, and we actually got to eat what we both love: slyders.
|
After we finished with our meals, we took our combined boxes and built a White Castle of our own. We have been informed that this picture will appear at a corporate meeting. Hey, we're famous! |
The rest of our evening was spent in, watching TV and cuddling. All in all, it was the perfect Valentine's Day: low key, but romantic and memorable.
General Mills: Thoughts on the Job
The nickname of "Generous Mills" is well earned. My benefits here are amazing, and the culture is set up around having the best talent and helping them steer their careers the direction they want to go.
| Right now, I work in supply chain and develop applications used by the plants using Oracle's PL/SQL and some Microsoft .NET. I've also been able to leverage my HTML experience to bring some of my own flavor to the table. While it took a while to get settled in and used to the position, now it feels like home. |
|
All in all, I feel very blessed. I'm in a place where I can put what I learned to work while also enjoying what I do. Despite the growing pains of relocating, I'm very pleased with where I am and what I'm doing.
Plus, when I tell people I work for General Mills, they actually have some conception of what we do. None of my prior IT jobs had that bonus.
Technology Notes
I'm considering doing a separate tech blog to handle all of this stuff. I'm very excited about a few of my own pet projects. Those who are interested can read along and let me know what they think.
First, I installed a Subversion server on Cloud (my Linux server), and it is far superior to any version control software I've ever used. I've weaned myself off of CVS pretty quickly and am very glad I did. If you write code, you ought to try Subversion, it has kept me from making some major bonehead mistakes when updating and archiving my programs.
Second, and speaking of code, I've begun work on my own framework for PHP developers who want to create Web 2.0 applications. Essentially, it allows the developer to use RPC to make calls to the server and update the page without reloading the whole thing. The best part is that the developer doesn't have to touch the underlying Javascript if they don't want to. I call it the Data Abstraction and Delivery System for PHP, or DADS PHP. Check out the link to see a proof of concept. I'll make the source available when I'm confident that it isn't complete crap.
Lastly, and most obviously to the users, I've updated the blog. Now people can comment directly on the blogs I write. In addition, it has some minor bot protection with a "visual recognition code." I'm very proud of it. Feel free to comment here instead of my link in LJ.
Well, now that I've written a short novel to catch everyone up to speed, I have another blog coming (hopefully soon, but you never know with me) that should cover some more of the missing time between the move and the last blog from Indiana. Check here for updates soon!
This Week's Quotables:
- "God said, 'Hey, you play with fire, you get burned.' I'm gonna stay away from fire."
~Cris
"So, now you're playing with wet matches?"
~me, explanation unavailable - "He's always talking about taking a road trip, and I'd rather eat glass"
~Mom, talking about a road trip with Dad - "Battered potatoes? Is that, like, a shelter?"
~Ellyn, about a food stand at the fair
"I had a thousand eyes, and I never saw it coming!"
~me - "That's why I love being a contractor. I don't have to talk to anybody."
~John W. - "Over the weekend, I was tossing my cookies, and then money... I mean Monday..."
~Andy, about being sick
"That was a weird Freudian slip"
~me
"If I puked money, I'd be bulemic, and you can quote me on that."
~Andy - "This damage control application was just supposed to be a quick homebrew."
~me
"Whoa, it's making beer now?"
~Jeff
"Nah, then we'd have errors all the time."
~me
"Yeah, but we wouldn't care!"
~Jeff - "Hey, it's Ronald McDonald at 8:45 in the morning! Do I take your fruit salad or punch you in the face?"
~John W. - "We have a Korean office that's running off of ColdFusion."
~Mike
"Oh, yeah. I used to do ColdFusion in my old job."
~me
"Well, you're going to Korea."
~Mike - "Isn't that cool, Daddy? Microsoft Word's autonumbering knows to put 2 after 1!"
~Jeff's daughter, as imitated by Jeff
"Well, actually hon, sometimes that's a pain in the a$$."
~Jeff - "Hey Jill, it says here that my IDP will help me gain power and influence."
~Mike P.
"Bwa ha ha ha ha!"
~Jill - "Our anniversary was lovely, aside from the bladder infection and the capsizing."
~Elana - "I love how no one notices that he's crapping his pants periodically."
~Elana, about Hiro from Heroes - "Everybody's always worried about explicit sex. Me? I'm worried about implicit sex. Sex I don't even know I'm having."
~me - "I just stared at it slack jawed. This is back when I had the option to be slack jawed."
~Elana, on Katamari and surgery - "The only thing better than a bad pun is a lingering bad pun."
~Cris - "I never valued my anal-virginity anyway."
~Elana, about prison - "I can't, Dad! I'm hackin' the 'puter!"
~Jeff's daughter - "See, he said cream cheese erection!"
~Elana, about Richard Cheese singing "Rock the Casbah"
"Actually, hon, I think that's the wind changed direction."
~me - "You cut my pee off at the knees and made it a D."
~Elana, no explanation available - "There are about 200 realistic invitations, but about 50 invitations are unrealistic."
~Sherri, while planning a wedding
"What about the surrealistic invitations, the invitations written on fish?"
~me - "I don't know if leg tumors quiver, I mean... I'll go out on a limb, no pun intended."
~Andy - "Caille just learned that you can't put the $h!t back in the horse."
~Andy - "Who makes Atari?"
~Erin
"Uh, Atari."
~me - "What causes bakers' itch?"
~me, asking a Trivial Pursuit question
"Syphalis!"
~Callie - "I'm old and I'm still awake..."
~Chris P.
"But that's from the pain."
~Andy - "What event sparked the installation of the Hot Line?"
~me, reading a Trivial Pursuit question
"The murder of Kitty Genovese!"
~Elana
"WHAT!?"
~everyone - "So, we were perusing the blow-up dolls and..."
~Erin, on sex shops - "She missed that."
~Dad
"I heard my name and knew you said some asshole thing!"
~Mom - "You're not all bad! You're not half good, but you're not all bad!"
~Randy, about Lola - "These are my Myspace pictures, where I look hotter than I actually am because they are taken from weird angles."
~Summer, on the mechanics of Myspace photos - "If that's true, then I'm gonna need a gun... and one bullet... to shoot myself."
~Dominic - "CALL FROM EH-RHIN..."
~Holly's cell phone, in a distorted voice
"That phone's the devil! Throw it away!"
~Ehren - "I feel really bad for him, and I don't even know him."
~Mike P. - "I'd pay to see [him] sing."
~me
"I'd pay to... not."
~Jill - "Uh... lets not try to make a good idea better."
~Mike P. - "My job is just that, a job. I use the money from my job to participate in activities that fulfill me. I do realize that if I had a job that fulfilled me, I would be able to do things like eat or sleep inside. It's a tradeoff that I've made"
~Andy, philosophising about career paths - "You need to cross your eyes... I mean, cross your t's and dot your i's..."
~Vaishali - "You know what I haven't had in the longest time?"
~Elana
"Brocco-flower."
~me
"Um, well, I've never had brocco-flower."
~Elana
"Right. From here back to never is infinite, and there can be no time longer than infinity."
~me
"Okay, you know what I haven't had in the hyperbolic longest time?"
~Elana
Current Mood: creative
Current Music: Duran Duran - Want You More
Comments:
| Some of you might be upset that the last blog was simply a technical description of the new blogging software used to make this site. I would like to extend my apologies to anyone who so religiously checks my site yet knows me so little that they would put it past me to write a technical blog entry. |
|
Now that we have the formalities out of the way, I'm in a new state! I'm in a new job! I'm in a new apartment! I own a new Palm! One of these things you shouldn't care about (though I am certainly open to the possibility that you don't care about any of it). Let's mindlessly write about all these things, shall we? I'll go first.
My Excellent Graduation of Excellence
After six years, they were bound to give in and give me some sort of degree. In order to signify this occasion, my parents came to Bloomington for the second time in my entire college career. I think I spoiled them by going home so often. Elana and Summer came as well on account of getting a ride from my parents and living with me, irrespectively.
|
|
I've seen many 80's movies about college, and thusly thought that the graduation ceremony was supposed to be an inspiring end to many hijinks including (but not exclusive to) nerds challenging the Greek system, pranks played on the dean, and various sexual escapades with humorous implications. Speech didn't necessarily include all of the above, but we were nerds that partied on par with the Greek system, played pranks on the coaches and each other, and, well, had various sexual escapades with humorous implications. The ceremony, however, was not nearly as exciting as expected. |
The guest speaker, Michael Uslan, had many inspiring tales of forming his own comic-book based curriculum at the university. After his entertaining anecdotes and urgings to be as original as possible, the president of Indiana University, Adam Herbert, took the floor. Surely, thought the thousands of people watching, he is a decent public speaker. How wrong we were. The man had the flat tone of the voice mail lady who informs you that you've dialed an automatic voice messaging system. To make matters worse, he used the word excellent a total 325,402 times during his speech. He encouraged us excellent students from this excellent university to uphold the excellence of our excellent elders. If we were to excel at our excellent careers, we had to foster habits of excellence, he exclaimed in an exclamatory manner. Many of us wanted him expunged.
My folks left for home shortly after the ceremony, and before the true party had begun. I hung a poster on the wall, informing people that I would not be writing funny crap down in my book tonight and that they should write quotations as they come up on the big thing on the wall. I just prayed none of my friends got too drunk while writing on the wall and missed the page. In addition, since I thought no one would come through with buns, I spent a small fortune on bread products for the various grill items. My friends are more reliable than I imagined, and our kitchen filled with a mountain of pre-wrapped baked goods. I spent the beginning of the evening as the grill master. I had just recently purchased a small grill at Target, bought match light charcoal and lighter fluid, and was about to cause a small explosion when Tom Mason came by and taught me how to grill.
As the evening carried on, and I became a little more relaxed, I revisited my old puppet show act (Harry Gibbons and I sing "Istanbul, not Constantinople"), whose last performance was circa 1997. In addition to my live entertainment, the belly dance stylings of Elana and Cris made the floor, and much to all of our amazement, Craig Hollars did a little clog dancing (I'm not making this up, he was a national contender). The evening ended with Tequila sunrises and a long game of Cranium in which we discover I suck at playing with clay (thanks to Gwendolen for the Patron).
The party had many great drop-ins and some good times. It was a bittersweet end to my IU life, as I loved seeing everybody but hated leaving it all behind. I will visit, guys, and you should visit me too. Contrary to popular belief, it is not always cold in Minnesota.
Movers, Move-ees, and Drugged Up Cats
|
I've never had movers before. I'm also very particular about how people handle my things. This was not a good combination. The night before the move, I emptied my closet, disconnected everything in the living room, and got into the attic with Jay to find everything that could be mine that I might want to keep. In the attic, we found the following: 3 computers, 2 monitors, 2 microwaves, various long spoiled food products (from Earth Religions outings), and about a boat load of clothes. We set all but the food in the center of the living room. When the movers came the next day, I tried to help. I tried to carry. Basically, I tried to touch my things. "Don't touch anything sir. Empty your closet if you need something to do." |
|
Never have I had such a maddening experience then being unable to help move my own possessions. I was vindicated when several things turned up broken on the other end. Thanks to the claims process at my mover's main office, I will be receiving a check and will soon have new junk to store in an attic. I should have been tipped off when one of the movers asked, as he was packing my computer (lifeblood of my profession and keeper of my hobbies), if he could have a shot of my Patron Tequila.
The day we made the 10 hour drive to our new home, I gave Diogenes a pill given to me by the vet to calm her down. When we finally had the car packed and were ready to take the cat, she was laying lifeless on the ground with dilated pupils and staring at the wall as if it were melting. Drugged up kitty did prove to be a mostly quiet kitty ("Meow, man. Like... totally... meow."). The drive here gave us little trouble, and thusly, shouldn't give any of our friends trouble when they drive up to visit us (wink, wink).
New State, New Apartment, New Job, and the Lost Big Lots of Brooklyn Park
Our new apartment is fantastic, and I'm now going to show before and after photos so that everyone can see what we've done with the place.
|
|
|
This is the front of the building, where the concierge lives. I'm told that a concierge is very convenient. As of yet, we've not used their services. |
|
|
|
|
On the left is the separation of our awesome industrial concrete wall with the rest of the living room wall. On the right is what we did with the space. The cutie in the center of the picture is the same throughout, of course. |
|
|
|
|
The corner became the office space, with the warehouse-esque overhead lamp. The computers (Squall and Cloud) are wired into a personal network, and the non-fiction bookshelf is organized according to the Dewey decimal system. Ashurbanipal would be proud (look it up). |
|
|
|
|
The kitchen is about the same, as you'd imagine, except that now it has food. |
|
|
|
|
Here's a comparison of the bare and completed living room. Hooray, it looks like we live here! |
|
|
|
|
The bedroom looks considerably more cozy, too. |
|
I've also started my job with General Mills. The first week I came home with enough food to feed a small army. I also am learning how to develop Windows applications, which has been one of my goals every since I became a programmer. I work at the James Ford Bell Technical Center and am involved in the information systems that go into the manufacturing process. The hours are good, the benefits are amazing, the pay is competitive, and we have some discounted groceries. I heart my new vocation.
| We've had little time to discover our new city or our new state, but we have come across a few interesting venues. On the right, you can see a picture of the Mill City Museum, which is built out of the ruins of the old Gold Medal Flour mill. The ceiling is completely gone, as is part of the wall, but they use this now as an outdoor venue for concerts and private parties. Very chic. |
|
We also went out to find a Big Lots early in our move, hoping to find some discount furniture. Unfortunately, Big Lots is located in an unusual little town called Brooklyn Park. The inhabitants of Brooklyn Park, at least the time we went there, seemed to know very little about their own city. Elana and I have a theory that Brooklyn Park has no native inhabitants, but instead contains people who went looking for Big Lots, got lost, and built houses. After literally a day of searching, we found the Brigadoon Big Lots only to discover that they had nothing interesting to offer. We could always try back some other time, but we risk becoming the next lost children of Brooklyn Park, a fate we'd both prefer to avoid.
So, I graduated with an excellent degree, got a send-off with puppets, belly dancing, clog dancing, and board games, moved without ever touching my own stuff, drove a drugged up cat across the Midwest, ate lots of free cereal, and found a town full of people who don't know where they are. What happened between the last time you heard from me and graduation? That's a story for another time, chillins.
This Week's Quotables:
- "You didn't so much 'turn a phrase' as upend it and shake it until it until it stopped moving."
~me - "Since when were monsters cute and fuzzy?"
~Julia
"Uh... since we were all children."
~Jason, in reference to Sesame Street - "My byte runneth over!"
~me - "We love spelling ... it makes us feel normal. Weeeee looooooove spelliiiiiiing!"
~Elana, in an away message - "Have you ever seen a grown man cry?"
~me, to Tom
"You mean from physical pain? Yeah..."
~Gwendolen - "You could keep warm maybe twenty to thirty bums in here. We have card access, think of the good we could do."
~Louie - "Daniel Radcliffe? He could have any girl he wants from 10-21. 'Hey honey, I was Harry Potter.'"
~Evan D. - "This is the gene pool that I'm wading in here."
~me
"I hope for your sake that you drown in it."
~Erin H. - "Oh, that's interesting... I mean... in a totally geeky way."
~me, in reference to the Thundercats entry in Wikipedia - "They can smell using their tongue and Jacobsen's organ."
~me
"Oh, Jacobsen, you snake-faced bastard!"
~Jay - "I seem to only steer towards the unPC comments with geopolitical implications when severly sleep deprived."
~Dorene - "Business students stick to Kelley, like pirates stick to the code."
~Tom - "It's a great deal, which maks my Jewish heart go pitter-patter."
~Elana - "'Zaftig' is yiddish for 'Reubenesque,' though the term implies much larger breasts than Reubens preferred."
~Elana
"Duly noted."
~me
"What's a Friday evening stuck at home without a little language lesson to spice things up?"
~Elana - "What does that mean?"
~Josh M., about the soloist singing in Latin
"I think the translation is, 'I have a papercut.' See how she's holding her finger? (After a particularly shrill note.) Ooh! It's infected."
~me - "I may be brittle but I'm spry."
~me, about elderly Karate - "Are you researching the Missouri Lutheran churches? As a pagan, you have to keep your eye on the enemy."
~Thea - "My name is Aaron, and I'm a Gentoo user."
~me, with respect to the Unix Users Support Group - "Just remember the rules: closed mouth kisses and sexually-charged rumbas only!"
~Elana, with respect to me meeting my favorite writer - "You do lots of comments? Oh, you're going to be a good coder when you grow up."
~Micah - "Oh, man, the flour and douche pictures..."
~Tim G.
"You can't just throw that around without explaining it."
~Jason - "It's cussing apple pie... it's that damn good."
~Summer - "Look at you being all... tall."
~me - "Yes, catch worked! Now to patch pitch to pitch the patch to catch."
~me, about my pitch-and-patch protocol programs - "Aaron! I'm way outta my league!"
~Andy, while shaking it with Caille and Dorene - "Wow, Minnesota or Chicago? Have you considered Siberia? I hear it's the new India"
~Dorene - "Did Nixon use a computer when changing the face of corruption? No! Did Bush use a computer to count votes in Florida? No! Did Gore use a computer to invent the internet? Hell no! WWW v1.0 was made out of spit, duck tape, and bailing wire, and we were damn happy to have it!"
~me - "Just in case I find myself spontaneously transported through time and space to ancient Rome and am immediately confronted by a senator with his bits and pieces flapping in the hedonism-scented breeze, how does one say 'always wear underwear' [in Latin]?"
~Elana - "[I'm having] ... empathetic joy spasm in [my] chair."
~Patty
"I heart citation editss [sic]."
~me - "It's so deliciously ... reminiscent of pizza ..."
~Elana, on pizza Hot Pockets - "What's your manly mouse-extermination technique?"
~Elana
"First, since my shirt would be terribly constraining, I would clasp the middle with my buldging biceps and rip it assunder, freeing my full hairy chest. Then slam my fist into the chest, echoing across the land in a most threatening way. Then I'd set traps. And buy a new shirt."
~me - "Should I tie you down and draw parentheses all over your body?"
~Elana
"I've got bad grammar, baaaaaad grammar!"
~Summer - "Hearing everyone here talking makes me happy that we're all attractive. Ugly people have it hard."
~Geo - "Meyers Mortuary? Is that the pen you got at your aunt's wedding?"
~Elana, about my Myers Mortuary pen
"Wait, wedding? You mean funeral?"
~me
"Well... wedding to God."
~Elana - "I smell an orange or something... is that you, Aaron?"
~Gwendolen
"It is me. I'm an orange. I've never told anyone because I thought it would raise concerns about my qualifications."
~me - "That's the best cat euthanazation [sic] story I've ever heard!"
~Elana - "I'm no Minnesota Fats, or Fats Domino, or Fat Cat, or Dat Phun, or whatever the famous pool player's name is."
~me - "Hey sweetheart, it's me. I'm waiting in line for my Friday afternoon chacarero and am eye level with a foot tall blowup of some Calvin Klein model's privates while he's ... you know ... all glistening and wearing underwear, and I thought of you. I just wanted to call and say I love you."
~Elana - "Heather telling a story is like driving a long way late at night to a place you're sure that's closed and then driving all the way home."
~Andy - "She quit medical school so that she could learn how to be a wife."
~Andy
"(from another table) That's funny!"
~random waiter - "I never would have noticed that had Christy not done what she does- draw attention to your flaws."
~me - "She rocks!"
~whole table, about our pregnant waitress
"Guys, that's because she's nesting."
~Andy - "Their proclivities in that department are not compatible."
~Dorene
"She wants it more than he does?"
~Caille
"No, they just want it... differently."
~Dorene - "Well, you know, if you're gonna be hot, you gotta be hot all over."
~Babs - "I want my daddy!"
~Summer's Niece
"I have no sympathy anymore. He's a bastard."
~Summer's Grandma, (under her breath) - "He's gonna ride the backwards Racer first!"
~Steve, on Gabe going backward in his walker - "I can see how this could be really good!"
~Elana, about my dad's botched cheesecake - "She had a high meep factor."
~John
"What...?"
~Elana
"(with a frightened look on his face) ...meep."
~John - "(singing) I'm in the mood for love, not just because we're naked."
~me - "I am sorry you are having a rough time right now. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help (eg. listen, hug, sock puppets, etc.)."
~Gwendolen - "J. J. Abrams is jerking us around less with Lost than he is with Alias. Hey, this person's bad, no... they're good. This person's dead, no... they're not. Hey, Sark... pretttttty."
~Jay - "He's sounds so dirty when he says that. 'Give me more.' Uhuh, okay... I don't even know what you look like."
~Summer - "I'd be fat if Tracie was my mom."
~Buki - "That [kicking the groin] might be a way to say hi in other cultures"
~Elana
"Hi! [fakes kick to the groin] Long time no see! Maybe it's because I keep doing that..."
~Julia - "So I was talking about you to a friend of mine. Apparently, he wants to have sex with you because you get to drive the Ferrari. I'm pretty much thinking he just wants to "smell the leather on you." Basically, he'll be having sex with the car vicariously through you."
~Andy, about Dorene's free Ferrari drive
"That was SO cool up until the point it became about a car."
~Dorene - "She can say rum and gin but I can't say crap!?"
~Jason, in reference to chat's profanity filter - "He's so smart and strong!"
~Ethan, in reference to Michael Scofield from Prison Break - "Yep, saved the lip nerve, no need for a graft. So, she gets to have her cake and eat it too by feeling her foot and her face."
~me, in reference to Elana's post-operative condition - "[The sword] went through him, but not his shirt. Strong shirt..."
~Elana, in reference to a scene of impalement in Alias - "So, Aaron, is this your last day?"
~Matt C.
"Nope, just my last day at my desk."
~me
"My desk..."
~Dan P.
"Sorry... last day at his desk."
~me - "Hello? Hello, Swindon? I don't want to be here in the crib in the dark anymore. I want to be out there swallowing souls."
~Randy, about Bliss crying from the closet - "I can't say anything because my Dad's here!"
~Katie
"I'll give you my number and you can cuss me out later."
~Cris - "He's not allowed to have strawberries until he's old enough to say, 'Holy $h!t, I'm dying!'"
~Randy, about baby Gabriel - "Your funny boat missed the dock!"
~Randy - "This is the fourth of July with Q-95.... BUY STUFF!"
~Chris, about the use of the Q-95 call sign - "Can you hold this prayer shawl, and don't get blood on it. It's a prayer shawl, not a prayer shroud."
~me, about Elana's prayer shawl - "You can be my friend... and you can have opinions... but you can't come between me and my meat slicer."
~Summer, in reference to my meat slicer - "If I ever write a blog again, it's gonna be awesome..."
~me - "You know you're gonna miss me..."
~me
"Well... you're not gone yet..."
~Jay - "I like my brain. It helps me do stuff."
~Chris - "Oh my god, it's a big ball full of credit cards and cats! Run!"
~Jeremy, on Katamari Damacy - "Here, and buy yourself something nice."
~me
"Wow, I could almost afford some cheese sauce!"
~Chris - "You know, glory to God and all that... it's a monk's life."
~Jeremy, on the life of a monk - "I thought that the pink joke was the most horrible joke on earth... then I met you."
~Summer, about Jeremy - "Someone comes up in Cahil's papers several times- The Count..."
~Victor Garber, in Alias
"One, two, three mentions in Cahil's papers. Ah ha ha."
~Elana - "You did it! And after only 4... er... 6 years! (after a stern glance) Uhh... I like cheesecake!""
~Elana, about graduation
"Is that foot flavored?"
~Summer - "You gave Meco to crackhead!?"
~Cris, explanation unavailable - "I'm movin up in the world, I've got my own pot now."
~Dave B. - "I don't really like hard-boiled eggs for some reason... They kind of taste like... fetus."
~Joe M. - "My husband's gonna love me tonight, cause' I'm gonna make him!"
~Summer - "That way, you can go bowling if you lose both arms!"
~Jay
"Talk dirty to me, I need a strike!"
~me - "Hug it with the bun!"
~Jay, on hot dog management - "I just realized that you complimented my braids. It took a moment to sink through the weave."
~Cris
Current Mood: happy
Current Music: Afroceltic Sound System - Persistence of Memory
Comments:
All rights reserved.
