Grumpy Geek

Feed me, fuck me, or just take me home.  It's been a long week.

Sorry I haven't been around much. I've tried to at least lurk through my neighbor's posts occasionally, but it's been a busy summer.  Back in May I espoused two goals for myself for this year:  ride 1,000 on my bicycle and do a century ride.  Today I accomplished both of them.  Our local bike club held it's annual century ride, which I completed in about 7 hours.  This put me at 1,032 miles for the year, so I have to give myself big props.  I've been training very hard for this all summer and am so happy to have accomplished my goals.  Especially being A.D.D., it's hard for me to establish long-term goals and stick to them.

I know I keep saying this, but I'll try to post some more substantive things here eventually.  I've been doing a lot of Facebook, which is a great way to get stupid everyday things off my chest, but I'm not really posting anything substantive there.

I found a great business -- Sarah's Smash Shack.  Pissed off at the ex?  Upset about losing a job?  Really hate Pat Robertson?  Here's a place you can vent your frustrations in a sound-proof room room.  Smash plates, glasses, wine bottles, anything you want, with music from your iPod playing in the background.  Therapists should co-op together and open one in every major city.

Dear cat:

I'm very flattered that you love me so much you have to be near me all the time.  I appreciate the unconditional nature of your love and affection for me, but I really need to emphasize that I cannot sleep with you on my chest.  Yes, you're adorably cute when you stretch out your paws along my neck and put your head down, but your weight on my rib cage at night prevents me from getting a good nights' sleep.  Moving down to my stomach and sticking your ass in my face is not any better.  Doing the paw-paw thing on my stomach wakes me up, and gives me gas.  The best solution for both of us is for you to cuddle up against my side, where I promise to wrap my arm around you to keep you warm and occasionally pet you when I roll over in the middle of the night.

Love,

Your Human

Fuck work.  I went for a bicycle ride.  It's 70 and sunny outside.  On days like this, it's a crime against nature to go into the office.  Had a delicious, cleansing, and emotionally satisfying ride.  NOW I'm ready for the world to dump on me.

Guys (and you know who you are), when you're done using a public restroom, please please PLEASE for the love of Mike remember to flush.  It's really disgusting when I walk into the bathroom at Chipotle and there's not a clean bowl.  Did your mother raise you in the woods?  Have you no manners?  Flush, wash your hands, then be on your way.  It's not that hard.

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Yesterday was my dad's yartzeit (14 years now) and I feel like shit that I forgot.  I basically remembered, but kept forgetting to get the memorial candle.  Wife said she had one somewhere I could light this evening, but when I got home (after 10 pm) there was no candle in the kitchen.

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The weather's finally changing here, and summer is upon us.  No more days of 40 degrees, then 70 then next day, followed by 40 and rain for a few days, with another teaser to 70.  Now it's 60 to 70 all the way around.  I celebrated by dragging out the bicycle for a frantic ride Friday night, then again Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon.  I'm going to try for 1,000 miles this year.  Conservatively, that means I have 25 weeks of riding left this season, or 40 miles per week.  I think that's doable, and it would be a boost over last year's mileage.  I'd also like to do a Century.  My local riding club has one in the Fall, and I'm hoping to be in sufficient shape to attempt it.  Maybe going public with my goals will help spur me on.

It may not be obvious on this photo, but if you look closely on the wall you'll see some hubcaps, about five floors off the ground.  No fucking idea how they got there, but they amused the hell out of me.  This was right across from my hotel.

Hub caps on a wall

Wandering around Chelsea on Saturday, some of the graffiti on the walls was pretty cool.  Some pretty young things also thought so and were stopping every 50 feet to take pictures of each other in front of various walls.  I got them mugging for each other.  They appeared to have recently escaped from a bachlorette party and were still drunk.  It was funny on so many levels.

Girls in a doorway

I could have sworn there was a photo of the day thing recently about street scene's, but I can't find the original link.  I'm in NYC for a few days to celebrate my birthday, and took these.  I don't have Photoshop on my laptop, so they're untouched.

United Nations, unpopular view.

United Nations

Sitting in Starbucks one morning, I saw this woman pulling her dogs down the street in a carrier and thought it just screamed NYC.

Street scene NYC

Saturday afternoon I walked around Chelsea looking at some of the galleries.  Lots of very cool and very expensive art.  Saw beautiful and incredibly precise woodworking by George Nakashima and some Edward Weston photos.  However, sometimes the graffiti was almost as interesting.

Chelsea graffiti

Older Ducati parked outside a gallery that was having a reception for the artist.

Ducati in Chelsea

Art and, uhh... art.  One of the galleries in Chelsea.  The "steps" are speakers playing the sound of someone walking up and down stairs.

art and art

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I fucking hate packing for several reason.  First, there's the whole ADD thing.  Putting away two weeks of laundry that has been sitting in piles that the cats love to sit on.  Filling up my iPod.  Making sure my scrips are all filled.  Finding the portable umbrella.  Then there's the going through the clothes thing and realizing that I have nothing to wear.  I hate all my clothes.  Ok, that's not entirely true.  I have a few pairs of jeans I like, and just bought some cool shirts.  But that's it.  I hate the 20 pairs of khaki's on the bottom shelf of my closet.  They're so 90s.  Besides, they show dirt too easily, and I can't keep them clean for shit.  It's spring, can't wear any of the five different colors of cordourys.  Too warm for wool.  The black ones are just boring.  The green check are just *ugh*.  That leaves....nothing.  So once again I am forced to go clothes shopping in the big city.

Wife is not a big computer person.  On a good day, she can open two tabs in a browser window.  So imagine my surprise when I walked in the door this evening to hear her on the phone with a co-worker giving her directions to set up a remote desktop connection.  "You click on the Start button, then go to All Programs, Accessories, Communications, then click on Remote Desktop.  Enter this IP address..."  Yo BABY.  My wife rocks.