I'm Under the Flight Path

When the wind blows from the west to the east, it seems my apartment is right under the flight path for planes taking off from Logan. Its actually really cool to stand out on my deck and watch the planes bank to their left and fly over my apartment. If you watch closely, you can see how the wind pushes the plane out to sea, as it tries to bank left and head south.

At heart, I'm a trains guy, but its pretty cool watching planes too.

Say Hello to my Little Friend

MEOW! What you lookin' at?

Yeah, that's my roommate. We've been roommates for almost 8 years now. He doesn't pay rent nor does he clean up after himself. He's lazy and sleeps all day long.

On the other hand, he's really easy to take care of. I just leave out a bowl of food and refill it every couple of days. I have a bowl of water right next to that, but apparently that's not good enough for him. According to this guy's taste buds, the best water in my apartment is sitting in the toilet bowl. If that's closed, then the leftover water in the shower is a great substitute.

100 Posts About Nothing

Yay! This is my 100th post. Its taken me more than a year, but I've finally made 100 posts on this crazy blog thing. And of course, its about absolutely NOTHING!

In honor of 100 posts about absolutely nothing, I give you one of my favorite clips from UHF. The prize awarded to the contestant on Wheel of Fish is the same as the content of this post. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!

Trains in the Distance

I love standing out on my deck and hearing the horn of a freight train way off in the distance. Its a drizzly and foggy night - and I can hear the distant chime of a train, but cannot see it.

This reminds me of my childhood home back in the Midwest. Late at night, you could stand outside and the only sounds I could hear were the chirping of the crickets, and the horn of some train way off in the distance.

Its an eerie, but comforting sound. Where is the train at? Where is it going?

What's in my Fridge Tonight

So, what's in a bachelor's fridge on a rainy Monday night?

• 12 pack of Harpoon
• Old package of WisPride spreadable cheddar cheese
• Old jar of salsa
• 2 cans of Sprite Zero
  
• 1/3 jug of orange juice
• 1/4 jug of old milk
• 1/2 bottle of Coke from the Superbowl
• 1/2 bottle of Diet Pepsi from the Superbowl
• 1 bottle of Gatorade
• 3 year old box of baking soda
• Some homemade jam a coworker gave me 4 years ago

Quite the exciting fridge, eh? What's in your fridge?

Sometimes...

... ya just really need a beer when you get home from work. Today is one of those days. Meetings from 10:00 until 5:00 really drain me -- mentally.

Yay Beer.

Planning to Plan

I need one of these awards. I swear, for the past few days, I've been doing nothing but attending planning meetings.

Its not that we're planning - but we're Planning to Plan! For you astute Office Space fans out there, you'll recognize that phrase from the whiteboard that was behind Peter in the conference room while meeting with "the Bobs". It was the title of a massive flow chart diagram you could see in the background.

Ya see, I'm an engineer, so I much prefer "doing" than planning, debating, analyzing, and any other hoo-haa type stuff. Just throw out an idea, spec it out, and I'll build it! Its sooo easy!

While I'm at it, I could also use a Red Swingline Stapler. According to their website, it puts the "fun" back in "functional". SWEET!

Allergies!

Holy allergies Batman!

I just recovered from the flu last weekend, and now I have to deal with hayfever. Walking to work today there was an incredibly stiff wind blowing right into my face on the way to the subway. All day long I've had a drizzly nose and my eyes have been super itchy.

Thankfully Claritin has appeared in my cabinet and relief is on the way. Whatever pollen is in the air today was awful. Add that to the high velocity winds blowing around today and you've got a recipe for a sneezy, snotty, and crying bachelor in porter square.

Thanks Grandpa

My grandpa would always suggest a glass of brandy to cure a cold. Well, actually he would suggest some glögg, a Swedish Christmas punch -- which is absolutely delicious and POTENT!

Tonight, I picked up a small bottle of Bushmills Irish Whiskey. I've had a tall glass or so - and I feel 100% better. Its 10:00 and I'm ready to sleep. My sinuses are clear, I feel relaxed, and just perfectly tipsy drunk enough to crash my head on the pillow and sleep for a good 9 or 10 hours tonight. That should cure me.

Thanks Grandpa!

Blah

Sick.

Flu / Cold / Chills / Fever

Whatever was going around my office the past month or so finally caught up to me on Saturday. I pretty much bed (read: sofa) ridden until yesterday (Wednesday).

This morning I woke up feeling a little bit better. I was going stir crazy hanging around my apartment for 5 days straight. I just had to get out, so I came into the office today.

I'm still a bit chilly, and my sinuses are really bothering me. Other than that, I'm ok. I probably should have stayed at home, but I couldn't go another day without human interaction. (heh - not that there's much human interaction in software engineering). The only one who was happy that I was at home was my cat. Rather than sleep all day on the sofa by himself, he could sleep all day on the sofa with me.

So what do I have to show for 5 days of the flu?

• ZERO blog posts
• Achy muscles
• Memorization of every single Law & Order episode ever made (is there anything else watching on afternoon television?)

Now, I'm debating whether to (a) spend one more night on the sofa with the Sudafed, Kleenex, and Orange Juice or (b) get some Bushmill's, pour a stiff glass, fall asleep early, and let the whisky kill the germs.

I'm leaning toward option (b) - isn't that what Grandpa used to order up as the cure for anything?

My New Word For Today

Shamtastic

Definition: Super mega-awesome cool. Fantastic. Won't leave a drop of awesomeness on the ground.

Usage:
- That band's new CD is so shamtastic it soaked up all the awesomeness that the previous album leaked all over the floor.

- David Ortiz cleaned up the bases with his shamtastic grand slam! Bonus Usage: Sham-a-lama ding-dong!

- Batting Manny Ramirez in the clean up spot is shamtastic!

- That guy is a shamtastic fighter. He cleans the floor with his opponents.

Note:
Yeah, I know these are really awful. If I come up with any better ones I'll update this post. I'm sure I've got some new ones up my sleeve.

Shamwow!

Shamwow? If you ask me, its more like ShamWhy! [Ha ha ha! Thanks for the applause folks, I'll be here all night.]

Holy crap. This has got to be one of the worst commercials I've ever seen. Unfortunately, that also means its going to be one of the most memorable commercials I've ever seen. Why does the guy need to wear a headset to show off the amazing qualities of the Shamwow?

I really don't want a Shamwow. I really don't need a super shammy. I had never even heard of a "shammy" until I saw this commercial. It looks just like a towel to me. Yet, I now have this strange desire to get one. Look at how absorbent it is! Wow! ShamWOW!

Gonna See a Band Tonight

I'm heading over to Great Scott this evening over in Allston to see my buddy's band, The Darker Hues. I've been out here in Boston well over 10 years, and I've actually never been to this joint. I think its simply my avoidance of anything Allston / Brighton.

For only $8.00, it should be a great show. Its always fun to see your friends perform on stage. I'd describe their music as 90s alterna-rock. Their sound reminds me of the Afghan Whigs. Remember them? Here's a little refresher video.

I've been trying to get them to cover a Helmet song - since that is the greatest band ever in the history of the entire universe. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to convince them that their band's ultimate success depends not on their talent or original music, but on their ability to play some Helmet. :-)

Bill Buckner

It was great to see Bill Buckner throw out the first pitch for today's game. Its great to see that Red Sox fans can put the whole 1986 debacle behind them. (well, most fans)

So, with the 1986 World Series fading from memory, I'm hoping you all can enjoy this reenactment of the infamous game. Its not just any reenactment. This has been completely reenacted using RBI Baseball on the old 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System with the radio audio in the background.

(Note: This is by far one of the coolest things I've ever seen)



I love RBI Baseball

UPDATE: Here's the link to the story of this recreation.

Smiling Moon

The moon is smiling tonight. There's one big happy moon out there, smiling through the trees. Is it smiling at me? I hope so.

Hiya moon. How's it going tonight?

Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown

Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown. How cool of a name is that?!? Not only does he have his own Wikipedia page, he's even got his own web site too!

This guy's name has been in my head all day long. He was a pitcher for the Chicago Cubs back on their 1908 team. That happens to be the last Cubs team to win the World Series.

You don't hear too many kids these days named "Mordecai". I guess the name has gone out of style since the 19th century. :-)

MLB Gamecast

I'm a big fan of the MLB gamecast thing-a-ma-jig. I can keep up with all the afternoon games the Cubs play (and the Red Sox too!) while I'm sitting at work.

They've added a nifty feature to it this season - video replay of scoring plays. If you scroll back through the innings, there's a blue 'play' icon next to scoring plays. Clicking this link will show the video replay of the score. I think its pretty cool. Once the game is over, you can even go back through the archives of the game through the gamecast tool and catch all the replays.

Nice job MLB.

What's the time?

SLIME TIME! (If you're a child of the 1980s, you've got to remember that one.)

What made me think of this? Over the weekend, the battery on my watch ran out, so its time to get a new one. However, I still instinctively put my watch on in the morning, even though its not working at all. I feel lost and incomplete without my watch on my wrist. I still look at it about 10 times a day, even though the hands are stuck at midnight (or noon, whichever makes you happier).

It feels really strange to not know what time it is. It feels even stranger, though, to not wear a watch.

Holy Hangover Batman!

I can't drink like a 21 year old anymore. I seem to forget that every once in a while. I was on a mini pub crawl with my friends yesterday. We started the day around 3:00pm and ended, well, I don't even remember what time.

I do know, however, that today was a complete loss. Hungover with a nasty headache, I pretty much didn't move off the sofa until 6:00pm today. Thank goodness the Discovery Channel had a bunch of cool shows about ancient Egypt on all afternoon.

Back in my college days, I could stay out until 2:00am, close out the bar, hang out with friends until 3:00am, then get up and go to class the next day. Nowadays, it takes me a day or two to feel normal again after a crazy pub crawl. Ugh.

Warning: Bored Software Engineer

I'm pinging your mom!

me@laptop ~
$ ping yourmom.com

Pinging yourmom.com [208.113.233.166] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 208.113.233.166: bytes=32 time=80ms TTL=48
Reply from 208.113.233.166: bytes=32 time=80ms TTL=48
Reply from 208.113.233.166: bytes=32 time=80ms TTL=48
Reply from 208.113.233.166: bytes=32 time=79ms TTL=48

Ping statistics for 208.113.233.166:
  Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
  Minimum = 79ms, Maximum = 80ms, Average = 79ms

It sounds dirty, doesn't it? Can't you tell I'm bored at work this afternoon?

Profound Thought

When you're playing poker, its really tough to win a hand if you don't have great cards.

(In your FACE Jack Handey! I've got my own deep thoughts!)

California Pizza Kitchen...

... is NOT pizza. Its merely some buttery bread shaped into a circle with crazy toppings.

Aurelio's is pizza. It says so right on their corporate logo! This is the pizza that I grew up on in the midwest. Their thin crust pizza is absolutely delicious. If you look at their menu, you'll notice that the first topping is sausage! That's the way pizza should be!

Their tomato sauce is very sweet, and their pizzas are loaded with cheese. Unlike New York style pizzas, there is not a big bubble of crust around the edge. Plus, when you slice up the pizza, you cut it in a criss-cross pattern - forming square pieces with 4 triangle pieces on the ends. Any midwesterner can tell you that the triangles are the best part of the pizza.

Yum. Now I'm hungry.

Running with the Red Sox

I love the fact that there is a gym right here in my office building. Thanks to the fact that its just downstairs, I head down there pretty much every afternoon for a workout. Its a great way to break up the day and I always feel 1000 times better once I'm done.

To make things even better, the treadmills have TVs attached to them. So, this afternoon, when I head down for a run, I can watch the Sox game in Oakland! Its totally friggin awesome to head down in the middle of the afternoon to watch baseball, and get a workout at the same time.

Plus, time sure flies when you're running with the Red Sox.

I'll take my desk job

I've been sitting at my desk for the past few weeks watching the construction folks erect the steel for a new building over here in Kendall next to the Genzyme building. About 3 weeks ago, there was a big hole in the ground. Now, there's already 2 stories of steel popping up from the foundation. It amazes me how quickly these guys can throw up a building.

There's another bit, though, that I find amazing, and also somewhat frightening. There's a huge 10 story crane lifting up a bunch of steel beams and effortlessly swinging them through the air. I watch these beams dangle and blow in the wind right outside my window. Due to the frame of the building, the crane operator can't see the beams flying around when he pivots the arm. I keep thinking that the beams are going to somehow come flying through my window here and take out this entire side of the building! I don't know how the guy can operate the crane so smoothly and perfectly without even seeing where he's dropping his steel I-beams.

It also amazes me that one rickety looking cable can hold this entire load swinging through the wind without breaking!

Once he's finally got the beams lowered in position, a bunch of ironworkers grab them, pull them down, and unhook them from the crane's line. These thousand pound beams are swinging through the air and these guys just grab them, and pull them down like they're twigs. I am so incredibly impressed. Then, these same workers will walk out on the beams, 2 stories in the air, and sit down to weld and bolt them together. Amazing.

I really can't believe the job these construction guys do. Erecting a steel frame is incredibly dangerous, but these guys fearlessly and effortlessly do it every day. Amazing.

So, ya know what, I'll just stick to my desk job.

Thunder and Lightning!

Woo Hoo! Thunder and Lightning in Somerville!

I really miss the massive thunderstorms that would roll through the countryside back in the Midwest. So, every time I see some lightning and hear thunder out here in Bostonia, I'm on my feet enjoying the scene (however brief it may be).

So, tonight we've just had a brief t-storm pass through. However, I know the front that's following it will bring us COLD again. Good bye warm, humid weather - welcome back chilly Boston spring.

Random Thoughts

My head is always filled with such random thoughts. I'm always thinking about something. I think that's why I have such a difficult time putting together a coherent blog post.

Sometimes I love my random thought process -- other times, its frustrating.

Counting Sheep

I have a difficult time trying to fall asleep at night. I've tried all sorts of different things to fall asleep faster - and of course, nothing works. I won't take sleep meds, or any sort of sleeping pill - either herbal or non-herbal. My mind is simply way to active when I try to go to sleep -- there are so many things running through my head. It usually takes me an hour or so to fall asleep.

One little thing I've been trying for years, is counting sheep! Even that doesn't work. Whenever I count sheep trying to fall asleep, it goes pretty much just like this:



Thanks Sesame Street! Thanks to you, I can certainly count, but I can't count SHEEP!

Bats!

No, not baseball bats. I'm talking about some alive and kicking mice with wings!

There's a few bats outside my apartment flying around. They're driving my cat nuts. He's sitting on the window sill, going crazy, watching this rodents fly around. I suppose the warm weather has finally drawn them out of hiding for the evening.