Protest

I'm sure that I'm the absolute last person to have seen this, but I thought it was damn funny.

Lazy as Lazy Can Be...

Then and Now

I don't think it's news that my job has become less and less appealing to me as the months and years have passed. Not only do I work for a "big, evil" oil company (which will be addressed again in the future), my supervisory position took me out of being a true geek--I was a geeky boss.

That was fine for a while, but after putting-up with enough crap from employees and not getting to do any programming, I folded. I finally told my boss that I either needed to get back into a technical position or he needs to cough-up some serious money to try to offset my misery.

True to form, he did exactly what I'd hoped for. (and more, even) He got someone else and gave them my supervisor position. Even better, I don't even report to them. I still report to the big boss. And, best yet, I basically got the freedom to do what I want. Not completely, of course, but the last month has been filled with me getting to do what little projects I've been wanting to do but haven't had time. I come and go as I want and will even start working from home part-time. (that wasn't part of the deal I made, but I'll start in the next week or two anyway)

So, things are looking up. The long-term plan I've talked about before on the blog is still in-place, but at least I'll be much happier in the meantime.

One of the best parts is that I don't have to go to nearly as many meetings. For example, take a look at my weekly schedules: (blurred for privacy reasons)


Before:



After:

Work Interference

The wise, wise folks at our internal IT department has decided to thrust upon us a new IM client. It's kinda cool the way it integrates with everything, but they've taken it upon themselves to block external IM.

So, I'm running Trillian beside it. You will probably have to change my contact to 'Boone.Watkins[at]Gmail.com'.

Look to hear from you soon.

Fuck You

Fuck you, Bill O'Reilly.  Fuck you and the small-minded, bigoted idiots you have on your show.

Let me see if I can clear a few things up for you:

1) I'm not gay by choice.  I didn't wake up one day and say "puberty isn't tough enough--what else can make it a little harder?"  I was born this way.

2) I'm not recruiting.  It doesn't work like that.  (reference point #1) 

3) The only "radical gay agenda" I'm a part of is the one where I get to live a fucking normal life.

4) I'm not a danger to children.  I can't tell you how much this stereotype hurts.  Nothing gets my blood boiling more than hearing "they're coming for your children!"

House

I always thought House was a great show.  But lately, the writing seems to have gotten a little, well, "colorful".

It's Time

Well, it finally happened. The weather changed. This weekend, it was relatively nice--low to mid 80's and plenty of good sun. But today brought a storm and a good cold front. Now it's 57 with lots of gusting wind. Perfect weather to kick-off a week of horror movies in anticipation of Halloween.

I've always liked horror flicks, but my years spent with Ronnie turned that into a true appreciation. So, this week I plan to slack-off every night and enjoy a horror movie.

Tonight, I start with a classic: Poltergeist. The early 80's brought us Freddy and Jason--the epitome of big-budget slashers. But the combination of Steven Spielberg and Tobe Hooper makes this comparatively calm movie really stand out. (not to mention that it's just a great horror movie)

So, the lights are off, hot chocolate in hand and it's time to fire-up the DVD player.

Orange Box

Halo 3, you just can't get a break.

I saw this morning that Valve finally released the Orange Box.  Ever since I played Half Life 2, I've been hooked to the franchise.  HL2 was arguably the best game I've ever played--the story was fantastic, the game play was solid and who can forget the Gravity Gun--probably the best weapon ever designed.

I probably wouldn't have dropped Grant on the Orange Box, but they included Portal.  A game where I can "shoot" portals wherever I want?  Sign me up.

The two games together (HL2: Episode Two and Portal) cost the same, so I just got the entire Orange Box.

And, of course, I just fired-up Steam and bought it online.  The games are downloading and installing right now.  I'll probably be playing in 30 minutes.

Anyway, the real reason for the post is this: who wants a copy of Half Life 2 and HL2: Episode One?  Since I already bought them and they come with the Orange Box, Valve lets me "gift" my duplicate copy.  (how sweet is that?)

So, come on folks--who wants it?  If you haven't already played it, it's a phenomenal game.  Guys: back me up here.

Halo 3

So, obviously, I'm not the biggest H3 fan in the bloop.  That doesn't mean I don't like the game--I thought the first Halo was one of the better games I've ever played.  I just wasn't in line to buy H3 at midnight.

So, the plan was to wait for me to return from my little European tour and then pick up a copy.  See if I could get my form back.

But then I saw something:

Sorry, Halo.  You loose to Pearl Jam, Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer and, of course, The Rolling Stones.

Favorite News Story of the Week

A top Vatican official is only "pretending to be gay". That guy he was filmed hitting on? Oh, that was just "research".

The laughs just keep coming folks.

Aberdeen: Day 2

In the middle of the journey of our life

I came to myself within a dark wood

where the straight way was lost.

- Dante

Sorry I've been out-of-touch, folks.  Internet connections at the hotel in Norway were extremely expensive and my days were very full...

I landed in Aberdeen yesterday afternoon.  Most of yesterday was spent re-exploring the city centre and having a few pints at the Tilted Wig.

Today saw a little more exploring, so my feet are sore.  Right now, it's late afternoon and I'll probably grab one of my co-workers and hit another pub for dinner in a couple of hours.

I've got to admit that I don't have much to say.  It's now been over 2 weeks "on the road"--living out of a bag in a hotel room.  I'm ready to head home.  I'm constantly restless and nothing seems to abate it.

I hope things are going well state-side.  Why is nobody blogging anymore?

Norway: 3 Hour Tour

(I have the high-resolution versions of these pictures in Flickr if you're interested. Maybe I'll get a few more cleaned-up and post them at some point. I think I took about 150 pictures in the 3.5 hours of the ride.)
After a delayed start Saturday morning, I got to take my fjord tour. For those of you like me, who don't know much about fjords, here's a quick lesson: fjords are simply deep valleys dug by glaciers between mountainous sides. The fjord I toured was the Lysefjord. During the last Ice Age, approximately 10,000 years ago, Norway was covered in ice up to 2,000 meters thick. At that time, deep valleys were dug deep inland into Norway. One of the first things you might notice is how relatively green Norway is. Because of the Gulf Stream, Stavanger, and some of the western-most fjords, get very little snow during the winter. And while the summer's don't get too hot, they get lots of rain to keep everything growing. It was interesting to see giant rock formations everywhere completely covered by lush trees.
The particular tour I took put on quite a decent show. At one point, they stopped in a very isolated part of the fjords where someone drops off goats for grazing. They backed-up the boat and let the kids throw the goats some bread. And then, just a little farther down, they stopped by a fresh spring waterfall. They put a bucket on a pole, got some water and let everyone have a cup. Evian has nothing on the real stuff. (not even my square water is as good)
Anyway, it was an enjoyable trip and I'm glad I went.

greenGuru: World Traveler

Well, it looks like my trip is getting extended. I just got asked to make a week-long stop in Scotland on my way out of Norway.

Will someone stop by and water my lawn for me? Otherwise, it's going to be a ragged, dried-up desert by the time I get back...

Thanks.

Norway

Sorry for the lack of blogging, folks. It's been a rough week so far. By the time I get off work, my brain is completely fried and I can barely work up the mental energy to fire-up the PC--let alone the idea of putting-together a coherent post.

So, enjoy the few pictures I've put on Flickr.