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Below are the most recent 25 friends' journal entries.
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| Friday, May 16th, 2008 |
ashi
|
2:36p |
twitter anyone? http://twitter.com/toddashiTwitter seems kind of cool, designed only for very short entries. Too bad Tmobile to go won't let me update it via SMS (or text Google for that matter... need to switch when I'm employed again). |
kayshapero
|
2:12p |
Superhero Quiz! Ah, but we ALWAYS look good... :) |
ciarhwyfar
|
2:02p |
Travel/Visit schedule I know that I really owe an actual update entry. Strangely, I don't really have much in the way of free time between now and June 2nd. In the meantime, I thought people (particularly those in CA) might be interested in the schedule for the end of the month. 5/21 Leave NY for CA. Pick up rental car and Sqeaker for dinner with the parental units. (Family duty overrode here and I decided I should really do this. We can’t visit the house though since they have dogs and The Boy is highly allergic.) Drive back to the Bay, take Sqeaker home for her Thursday finals, and crash for some much needed (I’m sure) sleep. 5/22 I am not certain what, if any, plans there are for during the day. Some time in the late afternoon (I expect) we will be checking in to the convention hotel and give a hand where needed. I believe that dinner plans are open here if anyone is in the area and not attending the convention. People attending have more opportunities to see us. 5/23 Friday of BayCon. All of the usual beginning of con nonsense. Willing to sneak out for dinner but must be back in the hotel no later than 8 pm to make sure everything is good for concerts. 5/24-5/25 Usual BayCon stuff. Since I am only actually working one department this year, my official duties are mostly limited to evening hours. I will be going to a farmer’s market either Saturday (Sunnyvale) or Sunday (Mountain View) morning-ish. One thing New York does not really do is actual fresh fruit and I know what it is supposed to be like. Other than that, give me a call to spend some time with me/us. 5/26 Last day of con. Check out of hotel. The Boy and I will most likely be relocating to his friends’ place (wave at ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) traumentwerfer and laughingstone) for Monday evening and Tuesday. I should be available through around 3-4 pm. I believe they are very likely to attend Death Guild Monday. Don’t know if I will be up to it or not. 5/27 Reserved for the above named friends. 5/28 Return rental car. Leave CA for NY. Late-ish breakfast may be available or may be reserved for Sqeaker. Some events and/or scheduling is subject to change. This is my best guess at the moment. My phone number is still the same as before I moved so feel free to try me at that. If you need it, let me know. Oh, and please remember that BayCon is located at the Hyatt Regency in Santa Clara, across the street (Tasman) from Great America. Current Mood:  busyCurrent Music: Heather on the Hill - Gene Kelly |
vixyish
|
10:13a |
Greetings from Canadia! I'm taking a day off and visiting gfish for the weekend , 'cause Sunday is our wedding anniversary. Happy anniversary, love! What's the gift for five years, anyway? (That's five years of marriage, but 11 1/2 years of overall togetherness. We celebrate both. English really needs a better term than "dating anniversary.") I drove up last night, so incredibly zippy fast that I got here like an hour before either of us expected it. No traffic and Nexus pass, ftw! Anyway, he had to be on campus at 10, but I am ON VACATION, so I slept in and am lounging about eating Canadian raisin bran (it has deux pelletées of raisins, which translate.ru reads as "two shovelfuls", and is high in fib re.) Soon I'll go out and enjoy this lovely day borrowed from summer. Fishy asked solicitously if I wouldn't rather hang out in the private comfort of his apartment, rather than in public in a Starbucks or something, but there's just not enough daylight in here. Vixies are solar-powered. I've been woefully neglecting livejournal lately. I'll probably use some free time this weekend to catch up a little, but I don't have hopes of catching up on everything. Life's just been like that lately. Sometimes it's not even that I am literally too busy, it's just that I haven't got the bandwidth. The spoons. Y'know what I mean. Anyway, this weekend is my little vacation from life. Next week is my BIG vacation from life, as I'm heading down to the bay area a few days before Baycon to visit with some of my favorite people. And to be stuck in a box and forced to sing. Life's rough, isn't it? ;) Current Mood:  relaxed |
ohiblather
|
12:57p |
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cadhla
|
9:29a |
Song: Language of the Crows. Hanging tree do you know my name? Oh, oh, oh, no. Hanging tree do you know my name? Oh, oh, no. Hanging tree do you know my name Have you touched my heart do you feel my shame, Is my black coyote soul to blame Or can I blame it on the ravens? Follow close in the dead black night. Oh, oh, oh, no. Follow close in the dead black night. Oh, oh, no. Follow close in the dead black night For the moon's asleep and there's not much light, And the barn owls fly in phantom flight Seeking fools and fellows craven. Shake the stones and roll the bones Leave the girls back home to miss you. If your jade's tongue knows the language of the crows, I must positively kiss you. ( Mockingbird do you know the way? Oh, oh, oh, no... ) Current Mood:  accomplishedCurrent Music: Seanan McGuire, 'Language of the Crows.' |
telynor
|
4:14p |
Celtic Dreams: Progress, Day 6 I've reached one of today's goals: I've got the neckband knitted. The second goal, to cast on the side stitches and join to knit in the round, is next and will be completed fairly quickly. ( Two photographs and notes below the cut tag. ) |
cadhla
|
8:14a |
In which Old Navy brings joy. So every season, Old Navy rotates the colors of their perfect fit tank tops, both to fit the demands of fashion, and to make sure that people will keep coming back and buying more. I like Old Navy tank tops -- they're comfortable, they fit well, and despite being reasonably cheap, they stand up to a vast amount of abuse -- so I don't mind; it means that there's a big sale at the end of every season, clearing out the old colors, and since 'fashion' has never mattered as much to me as 'brightly colored, preferably visible from space', I've never much minded if they weren't the new hotness. They were comfortable and vivid, and that's what I tend to want. Wednesday, illness forced me into Old Navy with the sudden, pressing need to have a new tank top right now. This was the first time I'd actually been in an Old Navy since they finished bringing out the new color line. I reached the tank top table. Choirs of bat-winged angels sang. Orange tank tops. In two shades. Also green tank tops, also in two shades. The gods of fashion love me. I am wearing a tank top the color of a cartoon pumpkin, along with my orange and green 'witch of ripe apple' pendant, and I am just as clam-happy a little Halloween girl as you could ever hope to see. Life is good. Current Mood:  chipperCurrent Music: Rob Zombie, 'Living Dead Girl.' |
semy_of_pearls
|
7:51a |
Two years.... And it still hurts.  Current Mood:  melancholyCurrent Music: Annwn - BlackBird of Avondale |
johno
|
12:09a |
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| Thursday, May 15th, 2008 |
gridlore
|
9:08p |
Quick update We're having a heatwave, so the main computer can barely run 15 minutes before announcing that it is overheating, so this is coming from Mr.Bigglesworth. I tried on my teeth today! The bridges are complete except for the front four. They fit pretty well, except for needing the upper plate trimmed back a bit (it still triggers my gag reflex) and the bite isn't even on the right side. Another fitting next week, then on June 5th I get my teeth! Current Mood:  excited |
| Friday, May 16th, 2008 |
thatcrazycajun
|
12:39a |
Primary fight harms Dems? One guy says maybe not so much As we watch the ongoing clusterfuck that is the Democratic Party's Presidential nomination process, many of us out here in rank-and-file-Democrat land have feared that Little Miss Entitlement's Senator Hillary Clinton's refusal to concede her ever-more-obvious defeat is practically handing the White House back to the Repugnants this fall. Comes now one Rob Richie, exec-director of the (allegedly) nonpartisan voters' watchdog group FairVote, to say he doesn't see the drawn-out debacle being so deadly to the Dems' chances of winning back the Presidency. My local paper published his opinion column on the subject today, but they won't put it on their website (possibly due to not having online rights for it), so you have to read it here instead. Is he right or just whistling past that old proverbial graveyard? I'd like to think he's got something, of course...but I am well aware that my party has only won five of the past dozen Presidential contests. And knowing that slimy bastard Karl Rove is still around and advising John McCain's campaign, on top of the discord on our side, doesn't do wonders for my ability to sleep at night in the meantime. Current Mood:  worriedCurrent Music: "It Ain't Necessarily So," George & Ira Gershwin |
| Thursday, May 15th, 2008 |
ashi
|
9:31p |
helper wanted for fanime swap meet on thursday
Anyone pre-registered for Fanime and want to help me out at the swap meet a week from today? I'm willing to give you some of the manga I'm bringing to sell and/or feed you dinner after. :)
Since I'm working Baycon starting Friday, I'm going to the Thursday night swap meet at Fanime, and Thursday is only open to pre-registered people.
I'll be selling a bunch of manga in English, some manga in Japanese, and some anime magazines in both languages. I'll have about 3 boxes of stuff, and carts will not be allowed, as this is a union facility.
Thanks! |
| Friday, May 16th, 2008 |
thatcrazycajun
|
12:07a |
Another battle won in what will still be a long, long war Just had to add my voice to the chorus of cheers from my f-list that San Francisco's progressive Mayor Gavin Newsome (D) has been vindicated by his state's Supreme Court, which today went and overturned the state's constitutional ban on same-gender marriage. BBC News' webpage is just one of many reporting on the story. Naturally, the Religious Reich is not going to let this stand; expect an appeal to the US Supremes shortly. Or at the minimum, another try at drafting a new amendment to CA's constitution that can get enacted and survive court challenge. And similar battles in most of the other states are still being fought. But slowly, surely, inevitably, equality for LGBTQ persons and their relationships will be a reality in this country. "Now, this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." — Sir Winston Churchill, former UK Prime Minister, in a 1942 speech Current Mood:  hopefulCurrent Music: "Cold Wind Blowing," by me |
| Thursday, May 15th, 2008 |
cflute
|
8:49p |
state of the household The Little Guy is home now and seems not too much the worse for the wear. Pneumonia has been ruled out; official diagnosis is childhood asthma. We figure he must've gotten it from my side of the family, like he got his emerging left-handedness from N's stepmother's. :) jenkitty and pocketnaomi and I are exhausted, but we're all home, the kids are fed and in bed and N and I are fed and in bed and will be off to sleep shortly. This has become The Week That Was Eaten By Medical Issues (mine, the little guy's, and N's dentistry appt), but it's almost over now, and (knock wood) nobody has to go anywhere or do anything until tomorrow. I'm definitely slowing down, tailing off the hypomania, but I still have my brain back, and after this morning's chiropractor visit, the wonk to my back that was imposed by the six hours spent behind the wheel of the Saturn in one 26 hour period, has been sorted out. So while I'm exhausted from the several days' in a row of lack of sleep, and I'm still recovering from the sinus infection, and I'm still looking for a job, my life satisfaction index remains at a steady 85%, and I'm working on obtaining that other 15%. Current Mood:  drainedCurrent Music: sunset sounds |
aerowolf
|
8:13p |
So I'm weighing in on the California "In re Marriage Cases" decision...
The first 5 pages are basically, "You know, the gays already have all the rights and benefits of marriage, it's just not called that. Is it legal to call it something else for them?"
Then it devolves into some of the most obtuse things I've ever read in a court decision.
Then it says "no, it can't be called something else because the dignity levels of the terms would be different."
Then it goes into a bunch more which I haven't read yet, supporting the position. |
thatcrazycajun
|
10:05p |
An open letter to TV network executives: Dear Fuckwits... Yes, I mean you, CW president Dawn Ostroff. You, too, Bob Iger at ABC/Disney, Les Moonves of CBS/Viacom, Kevin Reilly at Fox, and especially you, Jeff Zucker at NBC/Universal. There's been something I've wanted to get off my chest for a long, long while now, and I just can't hold back any longer. Current Mood:  aggravatedCurrent Music: "Save Me," Remy Zero (the Smallville theme) |
technoshaman
|
5:46p |
A bitter warning... "Mike, I'll have a Boomerang." The big time traveler favored the Bear with a double shot of his best Tango Foxtrot.... and then with a glass containing a martini to which he added splashes of cherry juice and bitters. "Bitter is the news I have, Mike, and it's about something coming back. T'ain't my story to tell yet... but..." "To whooping this ( expletive deleted )" ***CRASH*** "Ladies, take special care of yourselves, especially the various parts of you that make you ladies. Catch something early, and you'll not only live, you might just help others live. And guys, you too can buy various bits with those pink ribbons on'em. Show the world that you're a sensitive 21st century guy, and stand in solidarity with the other half of your species. I've seen enough suffering already, and the sooner we all, whatever sort of plumbing you might have or want to have, get behind the Race for the Cure and *shove*, the better our world will be. And to those of you dealing with such things already? Well, that's why I'm writing this. *sigh* Thanks." Current Mood:  determinedCurrent Music: Mal's Song - Vixy and Tony |
gridlore
|
4:16p |
It's 5:15! Current Mood: hot |
catsittingstill
|
6:18p |
By now you've probably heard The California Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in California. NPR had a report on it. At the end of the report they did the standard quotes from both sides thing. The quote from the gay rights activist was (roughly "I just text-messaged my partner and asked her to marry me! She said yes!" The quote from the anti-gay activist was (roughly) "we were very surprised; the legally right decision would have been to uphold the lower court ruling." My reactions were "Oh, how sweet." And "Dude, you got nothin'. Admit you got nothing and move on; you're just embarrassing yourself" Because after "She said yes!" let's face it, there's nothing of similar poignancy that the other side can offer. |
jilara
|
3:23p |
Never thought I would see the day...
Amazing times we live in. A court of mostly-Republican nominees has just upheld the right of gays to marry. I knew that someday we would arrive there, but I didn't expect to see it so soon! Gives me hope of liberty and justice for all, though my cynical side keeps whispering "And what does the government hope to gain by this?"
It's like the Democratic presidential nominee was determined a while back to be either a black or a woman. I didn't expect to see that one so soon, either. Maybe in my lifetime, but...
It helps balance out a little of my cynicism over things like kids getting expelled from school for carrying aspirin. |
hellloooonurse
|
3:18p |
So... is it hot enough for you? Current Mood:  blah |
texxgadget
|
1:19p |
Escape from the Doo Dahs
Im driving again, have been for a few weeks.
It feels good to not have to look over my shoulder.
The last week I was on the train, I learned there was an Intuit company shuttle to
downtown Mtn View CalTrain. It was nice because during comute, trains only stop at
San Antonio every hr. The shuttle didnt save me time but it made things easier.
One time I missed my Bart by 2 mins, I thought Id have to wait another hr for the train
I needed. Since I was going to Mtn View, I could take any CalTrain from Milbrae
I ended up on the same shuttle Id have gotten had I been on time as the next
CalTrain was so soon behind. The time on the shuttle ate any time difference but it was
sure easier. This also put me on the "bullet" trains.
In the morning, the Mtn View train station is a mad house.
Shuttle buses from 3 different Apple campus, NASA, LORAL, Yahoo, Intuit, Cisco, Lockheed Martin,
to name a few. Interestingly enough, I never saw one for Google.
Ive seen old movies where they parked in the infield of horse tracks.
I remember when many installed golf courses in the infield.
As the train goes by Bay Meadows, I see they have rented it out to youth soccer teams
for practice.
A few weeks ago, I was out on a disaster drill in Oakland. Seems like everyone was there.
FEMA, FBI, Homeland Security, Oakland Fire, Union Pacific RR, BART, US Army, SRI, US Coast Guard
American President Cargo Lines, and a handful of other agencies. It was several days of
Weapons of mass destruction drills.
The earthquake rememberance in SF was subdued. I missed last year as I was enroute to SF Med
Cntre. They had one of the last survivors out, hes in his early 100s, but he stayed bundled in
blankets in the back of a 1930s open top SFPD car. So few survivors are left and fewer yet able
to go out, things were quieter. The guy still works 2 days a week as a stocker in a grocery
store and hes in his early 100s. Usually the survivors are driven to breakfast and the rest of
us troop out to paint the hydrant at 22nd & Church. This time they brought him up there.
This is one of the few hydrants still working after the quake and it saved the Mission dist.
Im not sure how long they have been painting it gold.
It started long ago when the "phantom" used to paint it gold on the morning of the quake
anniversary. About 20 years ago, someone from the press staked out the hydrant and outed the
"phantom". He was one of the E Clampus Vitus guys. Since then, the public is invited to help.
Where else but SF can you spray pain city property in front of the Police & Fire Chief and get
away with it ?
Last weekend, I worked on the Marin Human Race in the morning and dragged a buddy along to the
Computer History Museum opening of the exhibition of the Babbage Machine.
Ill post more about Babbage later as there are several mis truths floating about.
After CHM, Craig & I went up to hang out at Amateur Radio Technology Day at Stanford Linear Accelerator. This is a monthly gathering. We have a lot of fun.
Mothers Day the Salem Lutheran Home had a "do". My sister met Dad & Me there. Its been almost
a year since the last time all 4 of us were together. I doubt Mom had a clue who we were let
alone what day it was.
This weekend Im doing comms for Bay to breakers. Most likely Ill be hooked to a mobile med team.
This week has been even more woes with the chiller for the server room.
We are limping along with fans and a portable. Ive hotwired the building air for this zone
to run nonstop full out. The chart shows that we bottomed out last night at 66F which is great
but with 90 outside, its creeping up.
Being the only guy in eng or ops in long sleeves yesterday, I wore my black utilikilt today.
Of course with all the chiller stuff Im doing, Im freezing.
Yesterday was entertaining. I cleaned up the last of my Santa Clara tickets. 3 different
people ahead of me were taken into custody during court, and another one was giving the judge
lip and probably ended up going to jail himself. Its a bad idea to apply to do your jail time
on weekends, fail to show and then come to court asking for more time.
Oh yeah, Elwood now wears old style stripes in the "Rancho" unit.
Wow this is getting long. |
mdlbear
|
1:50p |
CA Supreme Court upholds universal right to marriage Notice how I phrased that subject line. I'm going to quote this post by maiac (found via a comment on this post by trektone), which explains it much better than I can:
Specifically, the Court ruled that it's unconstitutional to make a
distinction between opposite-sex couples and same-sex couples such that
only opposite-sex couples are permitted the full recognition of their
committed relationship that the term marriage bestows.
Here's a longer quote (emphasis mine) from full
decision [PDF]:
...under this state's Constitution, the constitutionally based
right to marry properly must be understood to encompass the core set of
basic substantive legal rights and attributes traditionally associated
with marriage that are so integral to an individual's liberty and personal
autonomy that they may not be eliminated or abrogated by the Legislature
or by the electorate through the statutory initiative process.
These core substantive rights include, most fundamentally, the opportunity
of an individual to establish -- with the person with whom the individual
has chosen to share his or her life -- and officially recognized and
protected family possessing mutual rights and responsibilities and
entitled to the same respect and dignity accorded a union traditionally
designated as marriage. As past cases establish, the substantive right of
two adults who share a loving relationship to join together an officially
recognized family of their own -- and, if the couple chooses, to raise
children within that family -- constitutes a vitally important attribute
of the fundamental interest in liberty and personal autonomy that the
California Constitution secures to all persons for the benefit of both the
individual and society.
Furthermore, in contrast to earlier times, our state now recognizes that
an individual's capacity to establish a loving and long-term committed
relationship with another person and responsibly to care for and raise
children does not depend upon the individual's sexual orientation, and,
more generally, that an individual's sexual orientation -- like a person's
race or gender -- does not constitute a legitimate basis upon which to
deny or withhold legal rights.
[...]
One of the core elements of the right to establish an officially
recognized family that is embodied in the California constitutional right
to marry is a couple's right to have their family relationship accorded
dignity and respect equal to that accorded other officially recognized
families, and assigning a different designation for the family
relationship of same-sex couples while reserving the historic designation
of "marriage" exclusively for opposite-sex couples poses at least a
serious risk of denying the family relationship of same-sex couples such
equal dignity and respect.
[...]
...retaining the designation of marriage exclusively for opposite-sex
couples and providing only a separate and distinct designation for
same-sex couples may well have the effect of perpetuating a more general
premise -- now emphatically rejected by this state -- that gay individuals
and same-sex couples are in some respects "second-class citizens" who may,
under the law, be treated differently from, and less favorably than,
heterosexual individuals or opposite-sex couples.... Accordingly, we
conclude that to the extent the current California statutory provisions
limit marriage to opposite-sex couples, these statutes are
unconstitutional.
It's worth noting that only one of the court's seven members is a
Democratic appointee. That, plus the wording of the decision, makes it
likely that it will stand up even after the inevitable initiative
ammendment attempting to narrow the definition of "marriage" passes.
What it comes down to is that "marriage" as defined by the state of
California is a civil contract between consenting adults (only two, at the
moment, but one can hope for that, too, to change eventually) that
formally recognizes a family relationship between them. Period.
It has nothing to do with religion. If a religion expects its followers
to believe in a narrower definition of the word, they can, just as they
can believe in a narrower definition of the word "priest", or that the
entire universe was created in its present form in seven days, or that the
sun revolves around an unmoving Earth. As Galileo once said,
"nevertheless, it moves."
Just don't try to tell my daughters who they can marry, or who has the
power to marry them. In California the answer to "who can they marry" is
now "anyone", just like the answer to "who has the power" has been for
several decades.
Current Mood: ecstatic |
hellloooonurse
|
1:14p |
Hotter than an Easy-Bake™ Oven I know summer isn't officially here yet, but the current temp in Campbell is 92°, with a predicted high of 102°. *blah* Today I is staying inside, where it's currently 74°. Same thing goes for tomorrow through Monday. "Blah" says I. Current Mood:  comfy |
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