Cadence
Posted on 2005-09-29 at 08:04
She's doing great. Still a bit ill, but adjusting well to her new life.
What's Happenin' Now
Posted on 2005-09-29 at 08:03
Matt is looking into pushing some work my way. I'm looking more deeply into the Quick Loan store idea. I've pushed some local contacts I have for work. Things are going fine so far.
I wanna do a podcast
Posted on 2005-09-29 at 08:02
Between Will and I, we have the equipment to do it. I wanna.
Now Playing...
Posted on 2005-09-29 at 08:01
TWiT Podcast. Download. Listen. Enjoy.
Options
Posted on 2005-09-27 at 08:02
In the interest of keeping this forum as an open (festering?) conduit to my psyche, here are the options I see laid before me currently and my thoughts on each:
- Freelance writing gig: I could start doing some freelance writing to see how that pans out. I've every intent to do it either way, but it might behoove me to consider making it my focus. The pay won't be as good, but I'll love it.
- Quick Cash Loans: I can take some of my savings and start a quick loan store. I know others who have an interest in joining me.
- Small computer consulting gigs: I could reinvent my company as a small shop for small companies. This will afford me more variety, but less stability.
- Writer/Editor gig: I can try to find employment as a writer somewhere to get my feet wet in the writing biz before going freelance. Not sure I need to, but it's a thought. The pay would suck, though.
- Big computer consulting gigs: I can keep going as I have been. Hitting large companies for work.
- Programmer employment gig: I could get a job working for someone else, but that is the least attractive option for me right now.
Soon
Posted on 2005-09-27 at 08:01
Serenity opens in theaters on Friday, September 30. It's the only movie I intend to watch in the theaters this year. The rest can wait for my home theater. Serenity, however, is different.
Babies don't need sleep?
Posted on 2005-09-25 at 08:02
I mean seriously, wtf?!? Up all night for two nights now. I now it's just because her internal clock is set to China time and all, but DAMN I need a nap!
For no reason...
Posted on 2005-09-25 at 08:01
...Other than that I laughed when I saw it:
The end of an era!
Posted on 2005-09-23 at 08:03
Earlier I mentioned that Dave and Tim are gone from Cardinal by the end of the month. As I suspected, so am I. Just got the message---which was left for me right after I left for China---that I was not to return (ie, two week notice right after I left for three weeks). This is typical of how they do business. Oh well, on to better things. :)
The baby
Posted on 2005-09-23 at 08:02
The baby is happy and healthy, if a bit confused about the change of scenery and schedule.
I'm back
Posted on 2005-09-23 at 08:01
I'm back in town and I should be doing more blogging now. Being in China just just too much energy to add blogging to my to-do list as well.
Baby Ragnarok
Posted on 2005-09-18 at 08:01
Rock-a-bye baby
In the tree tops
When the wind blows
The cradle will rock
When the bough breaks
The cradle will fall
And down will come baby
Cradle and all
Who in their right minds thought this would make a good children's bedtime song?!? It's description of some sort of baby armegeddon practically designed to induce nightmares. Here you go baby. Sweet dreams, and remember that if all goes well you won't fall from 30 feet up in a storm to crack your skull. WTF?
Words won't do
Posted on 2005-09-13 at 08:01
Some pictures are up
Posted on 2005-09-11 at 08:02
We have posted some pictures of the trip on Denise's site. Scroll down to the pictures section. We will be adding things there as we get them online. Check regularly. :)
We are in Guangzhou
Posted on 2005-09-11 at 08:01
For the curious, we've made it into Guangzhou and are getting settled into our rooms. This is the final stop in China before leaving. We will be meeting our daughter for the first time tomorrow. I honestly have no idea how much time I'll have for blogging after that. Maybe plenty (we are here for 11 days to finalize paperwork and such). Maybe none (we are taking care of a new child!).
A heartwarming story
Posted on 2005-09-10 at 08:01
Here's a truly heartwarming story about the bond formed between a little girl and some construction workers that makes you believe that we can make a difference when we give a child the gift of our time.
The young family's 5-year-old daughter naturally took an interest in all the activity going on next-door and spent much of each day observing the workers. Eventually the construction crew, all of them gems-in-the-rough more or less adopted her as a kind of project mascot. They chatted with her, let her sit with them while they had coffee and lunch breaks, and gave her little jobs to do here and there to make her feel important.
At the end of the first week they even presented her with a pay envelope containing a couple of dollars. The little girl took this home to her mother who said all the appropriate words of admiration and suggested that they take the two-dollar "pay" she had received to the bank the next day to start a savings account.
When they got to the bank, the teller was equally impressed and asked the little girl how she had come by her very own paycheck at such a young age. The little girl proudly replied, "I worked last week with the crew building the house next door to us."
"My goodness gracious" said the teller, "and will you be working on the house again this week, too?"
The little girl replied, "I will if those assholes at Home Depot ever deliver the fucking sheet rock..."
China
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:07
I only spent 3 days in Beijing, but I'm struck with how at home I was. I really expected to feel more displaced than I was. I expected to be more alien. Even walking the poorer parts of Beijing without a guide, I felt comfortable, even natural. This feeling was accentuated by how "touristy" I feel in Hong Kong.
It's just an observation. It's something I'll spend a little time contemplating. I'm sure I'll be blogging about this in the future.
Culture
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:06
Hong Kong is far more like New York or London than it is like Beijing. The mainland was SO different. In many ways, this is hardly asian, unlike mainland China. It's still interesating, just different.
For minding your manners abroad
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:05
In Mainland China you will say "SHE she" and in Hong Kong you will say "mmm GOY". Now you know.
Why isn't every day like this one?
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:04
I'm posting this from the lobby of my 5-star hotel in downtown Hong Kong on my wireless laptop while being serenaded by a piano player and being offered drinks by beautiful Hong Kong women.
Ming Tombs again
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:03
So, in my last entry I said there wasn't much to say about the Ming Tombs. Denise then proceeded to write about them, thereby proving me wrong (or lazy).
The Streets of Hong Kong?
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:02
You betcha! We've been wandering the streets of Hong Kong. Very cool. I was hoping someone would try to pickpocket me so I could get into a Kung Fu fight in a Hong Kong alley..cuz, I mean, how friggin' cool would that be?!? I was all pulling my wad of cash out and looking all clueless and lost, but there were no pickpockets brave enough to try to take the cash. Oh well. It cannot be said that I didn't try.
Hong Kong Fooey
Posted on 2005-09-09 at 08:01
Yesterday Denise and I arrived in Hong Kong. We have been resting and preparing for the coming activity. Earlier today, we walked around the streets of Hong Kong looking for a laundrymat. Fun!
Ming Tombs
Posted on 2005-09-07 at 08:04
The Ming Tombs were pretty cool, but more visual interesting that anything else. Once we have time to rest and recoup, Denise and I will be posting all the pictures from the trip so that everyone can see all the coolness that is our China trip.
Haggling
Posted on 2005-09-07 at 08:03
I got to haggle with a Chinese vendor for the first time. I bought 2 shirts and a small religious statue for 380 yuan. The original asking price for all of it was 800 yuan. My guide told me I could have gotten the price to 280 if I'd held out. He told me I was a bad haggler. :) It was fun.
The Great Wall
Posted on 2005-09-07 at 08:02
I've walked on the Great Wall of China. Really, really amazing. Climbing up the Great Wall ranks as one of the more tiring things I've ever done. Sure there's stairs in places, and the rest is just a slope, but damn was it difficult to get anywhere on the Great Wall. The stairs are steep---like 70 degrees or so steep! After climbing for about 45 minutes, we reached the top of one particularly high tower and lo and behold...a souvenir shop....and a friggin' camel. Yes, a camel. You could climb on and get your picture taken on him for about 10 yuan (but could probably haggle down to about 6 or 7 yuan if you tried).
Blog dates
Posted on 2005-09-07 at 08:01
It's 5:42 AM on Thursday the 8th in Beijing. Yes, my blog says the 7th. I decided to keep my blog dates in the U.S. timezone. Back home, it's 5:42 PM on Wednesday the 7th.
I'm quite pleased to know...
Posted on 2005-09-06 at 08:05
...That even the restrooms in Beijing are rated. I can now say that I've been to a 4-star toilet.
My Kung Fu is strong
Posted on 2005-09-06 at 08:04
Here I am poised to run down into the courtyard of the Forbidden City and open a can of whoop ass of solid kung fu action on all the poor unsuspecting people below.
Here I am standing alone after the kung fu fight, relaxing in a shady doorway in the Forbidden City, having bested all my worthy opponents.
Nary a scratch. Surely, my sifu would be proud. :)
I am a tiny demon
Posted on 2005-09-06 at 08:03
It has been confirmed that I am a tiny demon. Apparently, the Chinese used to put up these little walls at every doorway:
The purpose of these little walls being that since the Chinese believed that bad spirits were very short, these walls would be a barrier to entry for most demons, preventing them from coming through the door since they could not step or even jump that high. Since I tripped on more than one of these things, my assumption is that I have some tiny demon blood in me and these ancient ghostbusters were just doing their job.
Proof for the naysayers
Posted on 2005-09-06 at 08:02
Below you will find your proof that Denise and I are indeed standing in Beijing...or one of nine thousand very nice Chinese Restaurants in the U.S.
Denise stands in front of the female lion that gaurds the entrance to the Summer Palace, while I stand in front of the male lion. How do you tell the difference? Easy, the male lion holds the ball of the universe under his paw, signifying his power, while the female lion holds a baby lion under her paw signifying that she betta' get back to bidness and do mah damn dishes and quit loligagging with the children.
Thoughts on Beijing
Posted on 2005-09-06 at 08:01
I've been here about one full day now and I suppose I'm starting to form some thoughts about Beijing. In no particular order, these thoughts follow.
They drive like mad. It's a bit frightening. They treat traffic signals and lines like polite suggestions. Cars, bicycles, and people all smash together into one hectic, swirling mess of movement and clamor.
Air Pollution is pretty bad, though I understand that it is getting better. One day out in it, and I was having respiratory problems. No big deal, but noteworthy. Like I said, they seem to be doing a lot now to counteract this.
They have a fascinating and long history. The people of China have a vast historical canvas upon which to draw their modern culture. Their mythology is rich and their history old enough to have seen nearly every permutation of dynastic story.
Crash now
Posted on 2005-09-05 at 08:03
Must sleep now.
Where'd the missing day go?
Posted on 2005-09-05 at 08:02
If you were an astute reader you will have noted that this entry is dated the 5th, while yesterday's entry is dated the 3rd. What gives? I'll tell you. In terms of time zones I'm 12 hours ahead of my own server right now. I effectively lost one day, though I'll get it back on the way home.
We are in Beijing
Posted on 2005-09-05 at 08:01
Denise and I have arrived in Beijing after an exhausting flight. I'm far too tired to blog much right now.
I got to use my Mandarin in real life for the first time. It was a success. Of course, the trial run was just "Excuse me. Do you speak English?" Once she said yes, I was all over that. But the point is I asked it in Mandarin. ;-)
Green Lantern is cool
Posted on 2005-09-03 at 08:03
I've been finishing up the organization of my comics (want to get done before I leave) and I came across some old Green Lanterns that I hadn't read in a while. That was a good series.
Unlike Superman, who is often kind of a jerk.
And Wonder Woman, who's just a little too kinky for me. (Why is she winking at me?!?)
Leaving for China in about 20 hours
Posted on 2005-09-03 at 08:02
I expect to have internet access for at least the last two weeks of the trip, but the first week is sketchy. I don't know that I'll have access. Once I do, I'll be posting blog entries and checking email as time permits. Denise will be doing the same over at http://denise.digitalelite.com. Her site is more about the specifics of the adoption and trip than this one, so there may be details that get posted there that you won't see here. Likewise, you may also see some content that is the same across both sites.
Steve Balmer, CEO of Microsoft
Posted on 2005-09-03 at 08:01
There is something fundamentally wrong with Steve Ballmer. I mean, this man is controlling the software direction of over 90% of the personal computers on the planet and he is a lunatic. Why would you use this man's software?
The end of an era?
Posted on 2005-09-02 at 08:01
Dave and Tim have been given notice that they are gone at the end of the month. Two things of note about that. One: Can they do without Dave and Tim? I mean, this means there is no viable backup plan to the new system if (when!) it should fail. Two: Can I be far behind? I don't foresee a scenario where they think I'm more important to them than Dave and Tim.
Change. It's a bitch.
Change
Posted on 2005-09-01 at 08:02
It's a funny thing, change. No matter that you know it's coming. No matter that you prepare. No matter that you brace for the impact. The big ones always leave you reeling, always leave you stunned, looking for a handle to grab to lift yourself back up. That's the nature of change. That's why it scares me. That's why it keeps me awake. I don't like losing my footing.
Joss Whedon talking about Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Posted on 2005-09-01 at 08:01
"I designed the show to create that strong reaction. I designed Buffy to be an icon, to be an emotional experience, to be loved in a way that other shows can't be loved. Because it's about adolescence, which is the most important thing people go through in their development, becoming an adult. And it mythologizes it in such a way, such a romantic way—it basically says, "Everybody who made it through adolescence is a hero." And I think that's very personal, that people get something from that that's very real. And I don't think I could be more pompous. But I mean every word of it. I wanted her to be a cultural phenomenon. I wanted there to be dolls, Barbie with kung-fu grip. I wanted people to embrace it in a way that exists beyond, "Oh, that was a wonderful show about lawyers, let's have dinner." I wanted people to internalize it, and make up fantasies where they were in the story, to take it home with them, for it to exist beyond the TV show. And we've done exactly that." (The Tenacity of the Cockroach 375)