Diet o' Doom: Day One
It was a great weekend. I spent it with my wife. We had a good time grocery shopping for our upcoming diet. I also found some DVD-R media for my new drive I got for my computer. They are pretty expensive. I remember the days of Yuri Gagarin and Sputnik when CD-R media was a buck or more a piece! The weather became damp and grey today.
I am really excited about the upcoming release of a movie. It was produced by the same fella that did Stalingrad. It is called
Der Untergang (The Downfall) and it will be showing March 11th, 2005 only and will be available only in 2 theatres in the Seattle area in the whole of Washington State. Its a Friday and I think it will definately be worth it.
Today was day one of this Diet o' Doom. Its focus is low salt, sugar, and fat along with excersize. Really, its the way I ate before I moved out. It will be a challenge. Splenda® is a wonderful thing. To give you an idea, here is the menu for today:
Breakfast:
- 3 egg whites with 1 cup vegies (tomato, mushroom, onion, & greenpeper) in an omelette.
- 1 cup tea with lemon juice and articifial sweetner
Snack:
- 4 oz tuna mixed with 1 cup vegies (greenpeper and tomato)
Lunch:
- 4 oz grilled chicken on 2 cups of rice
Snack:
Dinner:
- 4 oz turkey or chicken breast with 2 cups of potatos, seasoning.
- 1 cup vegies
- 1 cup tea with lemon juice and artificial sweetner
During the entire day I will be drining 2.5 L of water and then performing a 30 minute excersize. The most difficult thing is the absense of salt and red meat for me. We must keep positive!
Fast
I am experimenting in a spending fast. Its been fairly difficult. Its not that I spend a lot and I feel that money is to be spent on things we need but this fast has been interesting.
I also am trying to go on a media fast. That was hampered by the Day of Defeat: Source release but I want to continue it. I want to block out all media with the exception of books and music. I wonder how that will bode.
Less Formality Please
In my endeavors to find more plug-ins and stuff to use for my slowly evolving home studio, I have found
Sweetwater to be a great resource. I also get some good reviews from
TraXmusic on a lot of this software. I am trying to decide between a hard drive (Seagate 300 GB), a microphone (Røde NT1-A), or headphones (Pioneer HDJ-1000) for the next upgrade to my studio. Humble beginnings I suppose. If I chose the mic I'd have to invest in a power mix board too. The choices, the choices!
My wife is having a hard time at work staying dedicated. The stress and long hours are taking a toll. I pray for her and will do whatever I can at home to alleviate her pains. I am beginning to feel she should find another place to work. Its a difficult choice.
The Day of Defeat: Source beta has commenced! I had an oppurtunity to play for a couple hours on Tuesday. It was everything I would hope it to be. There are some amazing new features and capabilities that the engine adds tot he game. I am particularly fond of the engine's sound. Many things have yet to be done but has been done is impressive.
Monday is the Worst Day
I had a good weekend as I predicted. My friends and I watched "Shaun of the Dead" which was well done. I have thought more about my movie rating system and I think that maybe instead of Bad, Okay and Recommended I should do Bad, Video While Doing Chores, Video, Matinee and Full Price. It breaks up the scale a little more.
We all went to the liquor store Saturday and the man behind the counter asked for our ID. We had no problem complying but he looked at my one friend and started berating him about his weight. This was amazing and at first I thought the guy was joking. In total shock we left the store without our liquor. We drove to another store a little ways away but its unknown to us why he denied us sale. I mean, we are all in our mid twenties and look like a bunch of yuppies, not some pot smokin' thugs living on welfare.
Anyway, we enjoyed our night. It was good to see them again. Sunday we watched "Cube Cubed" which was okay. It explained a few things about the cube and where its from but it still leaves a lot of questions unanswered.
Anyway, its a difficult day because its a Monday and I just don't feel like being here. I planned on staying late to get some work done but now I feel that I should just go home at 5.
Upcoming Weekend
I am really excited about this weekend. My friends from Bellingham and Tacoma are coming to visit. I think we'll have a good time. Everquest 2 had a huge patch released yesterday that again makes solo play more enjoyable and allows for a more interesting gaming experience. I am very pleased with the game.
Otherwise I am still waiting for Day of Defeat: Source to come out. I was invited to the beta but have yet to hear from them about when its gonna be.
Homeland Security, Patriot Act, etc.
"Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger."
-
Herman Goering at the Nuremberg trials
"If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy."
-
James Madison while a United States Congressman
Perhaps being reactionary has its drawbacks. But really after thinking about it I think erring on the side of caution is better than not. Seeing the world develop around us, seeing the changes occuring in our civil liberties and witnessing the gross negligence to the limits of Constitutional powers makes me afraid. I suppose that there is a small group that holds the candle while the rest of society goes on whoring, hording and fulfilling whatever other daily wants. And although there isn't substantial proof and perhaps these views can be regarded as phobic in nature I must stress that "The man who trades freedom for security does not deserve nor will he ever receive either." -
Benjamin Franklin
When's the last time you wrote your "representatives" to ensure your voice is heard? When's the last time you peacefully protested? When is the last time you refused to shop, buy or see something? Voting is not enough!
Valentine's Day
I am ordering a new hard drive soon but in the mean time I borrowed a friends 80 GB. I plan on a Seagate 300 GB and will probably be ordering it within a couple weeks. I needed to format and start from scratch. A lot of problems were becoming apparent since the last install a year or so ago. I discovered a really nice Virtual Desktop Manager from Microsoft which is part of their
Powertoys tools for Windows XP (Its listed on the right as "deskman.exe"). I have become accustomed to it at work using Linux everyday. Now to stop trying to cut and paste at home using the middle mouse buttom!
My
friend from Bellingham graciously posted a deal for free boxes from the USPS so I did it. I got a good laugh out of reading about it. Now I need to figure out what to do with 25 postal boxes.
My wife and I had a great weekend. Thursday I went over to a friends home who was a chef at a great restaurant in Seattle. He showed me how to cook and pick out wine. I prepared the food and took all the other things I had purchased in anticipation for my dinner date with her the next day.
Friday I went to work and left early. As soon as I got home I started. When she arrived (I sent her away) she was greeted at the door by me with a 8 roses to signify the years we've been together. The table was set and Scubert's "Standchen" was playing as I walked her to the bathroom. There I had a warm bath drawn with milk salts and rose pedals, candles lighting the entire bathroom, a scented candle and a glass of champagne for her to sip on while she bathed. When she got out, I had warmed the towel in the dryer and handed it to her. There was a rose scented hand creme to compliment her hands after she dried. She changed and we had dinner. At this point I played some Chopin Nocturnes. She looked wonderful and I sat her down to the candle lit table. A fresh romaine salad with tomatoes and feta cheese sprinkled with a wonderful vinaigrette was first. I opened and served a wonder cabernet sauvignon. After we finished I served a polenta with gobereroa cheese smothered in an Italian bolonaise sauce. I accented with fresh basil leaves. Finally for desert there were these neat little mousse cake looking things I found at a local bakery. We enjoyed those.
We enjoyed the rest of the night. That was my planned date for my wife. She had bought me a great pocket watch which I now carry. Its mechanical and she had my initials and the date engraved into it. It made me cry.
I am glad we have these dates every so often. I try to litter the year with smaller events. A dinner, a small gift, a few flowers here and there but once in a while you have to give a woman something memorable. Maybe my woman is unique but it really breaks our monotonous lives and makes it truely extraordinary even for just one night.
I am trying to stop drinking soda. I have suceeded since Thursday. It scared me how addicted I was to the "black necter" called Pepsi.
Clean Up
I am hiring a maid to clean my house. She is actually a friend of ours and cleans other homes and businesses so it will be wonderful to have someone we trust doing it. Its a little weird having someone do it but when both my wife and I work, it leaves little time to clean up. I am excited to have it done. The money we spend having someone do it is a small price to pay when we have so little free time to enjoy.
I suppose I am not completely without free time but I hate cleaning too. Tomorrow is the first day. We will see how it goes.
A Revelation; Perhaps Simple
This weekend was good. I mean, I think the chatters phrase "meh" works well. I finally got to do my Palladin quest in EQ2, paid bills, etc. I saw a movie this weekend. Through my lifetime I have seen 3 types of movies. They are "bad" movies (EX: Papirazzi & Club Dread), "okay" movies (EX: Blade & Finding Nemo) and finally "recommended viewing" (EX: Saving Private Ryan & Phantom of the Opera). I really can't stand when someone says a movie is good because it sets a precedent. A movie that is recommended is one that is worth 2 hours of your life to view and experience. Perhaps you will hate it, but its worth seeing. That is up for discussion because what is worth seeing is relative. So am I tricking myself here? At least the term along with a brief (and brief I mean in the strictest of sense (EX: The Pianist; movie about a Jewish pianist in his struggle to survive in German occupied Waraw.)) is is neutral in emotion but offers the filter that this movie is not crap. *sigh* My head hurts because I realize the hint of relative perspective killing my argument.
I viewed a movie this weekend called "Zelary". It is recommended viewing. In Czech with English subtitles, it is the story of a woman and her escape from the Gestapo into the arms of an unexpected love.
It strikes me how I live and have lived life almost exclusively addressing my feelings and those whom I love dearest. I think, I love, I breath, I feel. How much do I understand that everyone around me
does the same?
And that revelation blows my mind. At the same time that it makes me feel incredibly small, it lifts a huge burden off me. When I imagine my friends working, talking and driving home alone: they are thinking about random things like I do. I think I come closest to emotionally understanding this concept with my wife. So if everyone feels the same ways (roughly and with exceptions), then I realize the huge potential humanity has for progress whether it be philosophically, scientifically, or artistically.
This idea that my parents love, feel, think, and breath also illuminates my relationship with them. I can't say that I suddenly have a perfect understanding, but it puts their actions, the motives and other things that happen in perspective to my own wishes and thoughts. One day I will be them and my children will be me and they will think the same way. Or will they? My guess is yes because this would explain the huge gap between teens and parents when it comes to communication and understanding.
I have begun to play my piano. Its a humble start. I have played before off and on, but not seriously and outside of jamming with the rock band. I haven't sat down and practiced for a while either. Teaching this fella piano has reinvigored this desire to play. I have brought revived some old and new music. The piano needs to be tuned, and the keys need to be refinished, but the sound of the old piano is mature and the action is fair. In no particular order:
- Sinding - Rustle of Spring
- Sibelious - Romance
- Chopin - 3 Polonaises, a Nocturne and a Sonata
- Rachmoninoff - Etude
- Beethoven - Sonata
- Schumann - Impromptu
- Czerny - 8 Measure Studies
- Scales!
It is an intimidating list but I like having a variety of things to work on. I usually practive two or three and then play through a couple others. I decided against the Greig and Chopin concertos, the Liszt Etude, the Chopin Ballades and Waltzes, and other things I have played until I work my dexterity and strength up with this music. My hands tired when playing the Schumann this weekend and it scared me. It is long over due to get these rusty hands and this lost talent back into shape. With my music writing combined I feel it'd be a waste, especially since it fills a huge part of my soul to play music. I really hope to make practive time regularly.
Updates
Everquest 2 has had some great updates. The recent patch really rewards soloers and people who play less often so I feel that the game has again sparked my interest. Work has been a grind but the solid over time I have been amassing will be worth it. I am currently working on some proects for another department. I also am spending some time training with a fella handling the sales and other automated features of our cart.
I have a few new projects I am working on music wise. There is a funk rock tune I am starting out. It has this wild Rhodes electric piano that starts the groove. Its very distorted but sounds good. I build up with some bass and clean rythem guitar. I also got a demo from a local rocker. I am not sure where we are headed but I feel I could really add some cool new sounds and produce some good mixes of the tracks. We will see.
I did my taxes and I am a little frustrated. I think our company doesn't withhold enough but others that claim the same amount of allowances and got more in returns. Without going into details, I am confident that I should be getting some sort of refund. I will do them again today and perhaps get a more accurate result.
ROFL at the expense of VW
Perhaps this is common knowledge and everyone already knows about this but here is a funny ad that has created a lot of mixed reactions.
"The spot begins with a motorist leaving his house and hopping into his Volkswagen Polo — a motorist with a distinctly Middle Eastern appearance who sports a black-and-white checkered kaffiyeh like the one commonly associated in the public mind with the late Palestinian chairman Yasser Arafat (and thus, by extension, with terrorists and suicide bombers)."
"After a short jaunt, the driver pulls up in front of a busy restaurant with curbside seating (as women holding babies, talking on cellphones, and just strolling down the street flash by in the background), pulls out a detonator, and depresses the button. Rather than causing widespread death and destruction, however, the muffled blast is completely contained by the car, leading to the end slogan: 'Polo. Small but tough.'"
The full story can be found
here.
I laughed my ass off for a solid half hour.
