There is a local improv company that is offering an improv 101 workshop (8 2hour classes) for 150 bucks. I am seriously thinking of taking this. Mostly cause I don't think I am all that funny; But also because after living like a hermit for over a year I figure a little kickstart in the ol' social awareness might be useful.

The classes are on my day off, and the real kicker is they are held at the theater literally across the street from me.

So the question: Is it money wasted? A better way to spend 4 nights of drinking? Just shut up and go back into my cave and embrace my inner-hermit?

Ps. any locals that might be interested and free on Wednesday 6-8pm I might be talked in to paying a part of your fee if you show me your boobs ... this includes you metaphive

Got a question for zodmicrobe Lawrence of Arabia 70mm restore is coming to town in a couple months and I am very excited to go see it. The question is They are also showing Vertigo that was shot in Vistavision and restored to 70mm. Have you seen this print? does it add anything to the film? I have seen the movie several times, but only once in 35mm and never in 70mm.

Instead of thanking you all individually for your condolences over the loss of my dog, I hope it is ok if I just give blanket Thank you


I miss the hell of my giant retarded knuckle head. I mean no more giant mud prints all through the house every times it rains ... no new drool slingers marking up my celling ...

Some have asked if I am considering getting another dog, and I don't know. After Guido passed three and half years ago, I knew that I would be getting another dog when the time was "right"

Now I am not so sure. I still have Penelope and she is a mess; I can't afford to get her healthy and it weighs heavy on me. Shar-pei are notoriously a slickly breed, if it isn't one thing it is another type deal. She is in good spirits and all but all it takes it one flea bite and huge patches of fur fall out, I still need to get her entropy surgery done, and I should consider getting her on some maintenance medication for her swollen hock syndrome (shar-pei feaver) that she seems to suffer. I sound like a horrid dog owner now ... which is pretty much how I feel. especially after losing my old tard dog yesterday.

I hate talking about the weather, and I dislike people that do. I mean I live in Texas, weather is one of two conditions hot, or raining. and very rarely both. However I can now say I have seen a hail near the size of a base ball now, all my windows are intact, however the main house is missing most of theirs. The trees were shredded tons of leave and limbs cover the yard, it was truly a wrath of nature type deal going on last night.

It had been a rough couple of weeks, but it's over now. Georgie passed away early this morning.

Those that knew him loved him, and I was no different. It is all still sinking in.

I know I am big ... around; but I had no idea I was really that tall. I mean in Texas 6'1" isn't really tall I am never the tallest person in the room.


So I have been doing a lot of research on bikes this week, and according to what I have read ( Haven't had time to go to shop and "test fit" or anything) at 6'1" I should be looking for a 58-60Cm frame. Yet I see very few for sell in that size on ye ol' craigslist. I see a lot in the 48-55cm range. where are all these small ass people coming from?

I think I am going to hit the local REI store this week to actually talk to someone (twitering with Mine sis has been helpful but I need some hands on time) Figger I wont feel as guilty "wasting" a salesman's time at a national chain like I would at one of the local bike shops.

That being said if I had the money I am really liking the electra townie with that whole internal gear housing business.

Mine sis; gnat23 got me using twitter now. I have to admit it is fun, and also makes me feel I am getting full use of my unlimited sms plan on my phone.

I encourage others to give it a whirl notably clarebert because short random one liners from you would no doubt make my (and others) day a little brighter.

If nothing else you could use it to remind me of how much fun I am not having on Saturday night while I am here at work.

Still got a job ... anyone loose the pool yet?

And i am started it with mexican food at 6am

I have decided that I am getting a bike with my second paycheck. ( 2 and a half weeks from today)

Looking on craigslist it seems that about 200 is the going price for a bike worth buying. (I want to avoid getting a new bike till I learn some more about all this stuff and can make a better purchase down the road.)

So to my biking friends out there, and I am looking at you, mine BigSis gnat23; What do I need to know, what should I look for and is a soft budge of 200 reasonable? Makes or models I should look for or avoid? etc; I think I would want something more of a mountain bike than a road bike... or do I ?

Things to keep in mind. I have a daily commute of only 3 miles each way, most of the trip has bike lanes, I am 6'1" at ~255-260, currently in probably the worst shape of my life. But I do have those "great" fat man calves and thighs ... so I don't think I'll die biking ... I hope

Austin in general is pretty bike friendly (at least compared to Dallas)

Other gear, I like the helmet that radixx suggested I assume I'll need the required lights for night use, any other safety gear I should look in to?

I got to do real work last night. It felt good to do something, and empowering to directly improve a few things,

To keep it short, the "back up procedure" was a mess and very user interactive. in less than 4 hours of work I took a process that normally took 3 hours of grind and a good bit of user input and automated it down to 6 clicks tonights goal is to get it to 3, and then to learn enough about the systems to actually schedule them so it is zero input system.

I was also asked to look at an issue on a system and make recommendations, but the error was rather simple and not sure how nobody caught it ... well yeah I do know but I am trying to be humble here. so in less than an hour I fixed a long outstanding problem as well.

I worked with a new guy last night, and he seemed most impressed with my "mad skillz" I just wish I had a better workstation to work from. The owner is way tight with cash, with his if it ain't broke.. attitudes. and I want to explain that there is a gray area tween broke, and running optimally/better (none of the servers are running any type of raid and most only have a single 80 or so gig drive some with less that 5 gigs free .. windows servers guys ... disaster waiting to happen) But I know it will fall on deaf ears, and I also worry that by fixing some things, when new problems crop up, they'll be my fault because I can already hear him saying the words " it use to work just fine"

I am still adjusting to working nights, I need to get something to block sunlight coming through the windows, starting around 4-5pm the sun is low enough that it streams straight in and really hinders the sleeping process. Thinking just using foamcore as not only will that black out the room, but should also provide some heat insulation

I am thinking of getting a bicycle in the next month or so. I work right at 3 miles from home this seem to be a good choice. However I am a fat man, does anyone really want to see a fat man on a bike .. at 6 am ?

The job is far easier than expected.

I got some good news regarding the low ball offer I accepted. the Sr. admin called me last night and said among other things "... and we need to talk, I thought about it and you should get the amount that was agreed upon I just don't know how I am going to do it yet..." (obviously the issue is the owner and his warehouse filling ego)

I am pretty much a wreck way to tired to sleep but happy that if nothing else I earned enough tonight to pay my phone bill ;)

I wonder if clarebert is as excited by The Shield teaser ads as I am?

I wish I could say that there was some long thought out and deeply meaningful reasoning behind me shaving my head; in all honesty at that moment there really wasn't. The thought process what something like this.

1. I should shave.


2. I should trim up the sideburns getting rather out of hand.


3. It has been years since I shaved off the vandyke maybe that should go too


4. Maybe I should shave my head too


5. Well I just took a big chunk out above my right ear, I could stop and nobody would really know


6. Fuck it grabbed all of my hair in my right hand and trimmed it all with my bear trimmer.

( Who shaved his head and got a job the same week? )

I wish I had more things positive to report; ( I don't. )

So I was a bit hesitant to say anything to anyone as my employment was conditioned on passing a few cisco specializations certs but now that I have most of them under the belt and the last will no doubt happen soon as it can be scheduled I guess I can go ahead and say that ... yup I got a job. I am working for a small start-up that is doing small office networking/voip installs. It's not glamorous, and may not be stable as I would like (it is a start-up), but we have several clients lined up. I should be turning screws as early as next week. The pay is alright and I hope that it will turn into something big, at worse I got some free certs out of the deal. But yeah, spent all of last week cramming all kinds of product line specific specs into my brain. I think my brain is sore from hearing the word Cisco.

This weekend was amazing one for the books I tell ya.

hal23x and poppagoth flew down; meatpie Drove in; bartley swapped shifts; and finally dirtyunclerod took time out from his busy schedule to join me in celebrating my "becoming a man"


I can't go into details of what all happened as that may break some federal laws. But I will say it was one wonderful weekend one that I will remember for the rest of my life. It was pretty simple as far as events and activities , eat drink, repeat. It was really about the company I was surrounded by.


I was lucky to share amazing times with some amazing men.










no monkeys were harmed in the making of this weekend.

The party is over and I am a little sad that it had to end, but man was it a great weekend of male bonding.

First I have to say that hal23x really was my personal superstar this weekend. t=There he was in a hotel room, with only bad hotel lights, and a few tools he managed to bring with him and not get confiscated by airport security, doing circuit board level soldering on my phone. Not only did he save me several hundred dollars on a new phone, but the kindness and grace shown while preforming what had to have been a horrendously tedious and difficult task really just made me happy that I can surround myself with friends like that.

(ps my phone is working better than ever now, and should no longer have any sms issues)

I am currently preparing for an interview today. I'll post something more detailed about my weekend this evening.