This journal is mostly public, because most of the time I don't give a damn who sees it. Very occasionally, I might post to "friends only" to avoid drama, or to a select group of close friends, but for the most part my life is an open book. Friend me if you want, I'll probably friend you back. I may or may not read you in return, but it's nothing personal.

Long fuckin' day. Very hot, spent the day sweating like a whore in church. Hate feeling like I don't know what I'm doing and others are judging/laughing about it. Very glad to be home.

Perils of working, huh?

Yes, yes, I know the Pix are late today. Don't blame me, blame Blizzard for allowing me to get hold of Diablo 3, and blame work for giving me a day off. Don't judge me.


( Find A Way And Come On In! )

Saw a guy in a pick-up with a trailer stop in the middle of traffic, hold up a line of cars, just to get out and help a large turtle get off of the road. That was fabulous, good on him.

Got Diablo 3 downloaded and installed. Lord help me.

2 days off in a row, dunno what to do with myself. However, Saturday starts 5 days on, including at least one day of 8-7 (open to close), so it's gonna be a fun week. By the end of it, though,I should be firmly in place and rolling. This is a cool thing.

Jessica has felt better today than she has in almost 2 months. Needless to say, I'm incredibly happy about it.

Dig it, all positive stuff. Creepy!

Thanks to SlickDeals.net, I found that Amazon had the download of Bioshock 1&2 for $7.50 (that's for the pair, nice). I loved BS1 and never played BS2, so figured this was a good time to snag them. As it was my day off, i got the downloads going and installed.

Here, the story falls apart.

Install BS1. Go to fire it up, it takes a very long time to boot and then the menu screen has no mouse response. Needless to say, this annoys me. Screw around with everything I can think of, find, and look up, nothing. Decide I'll get 2 downloaded and installed and deal with it all at once. 2 downloads...and then the installer fails. OK, now I'm really mad. Go to reboot...and find that the downloader for 1 is still in the background, somewhere. Hmm...get that cleared, BS1 works fine. OK, victory one.

So, to work on 2. Nothing makes this run...until I ignore what it's trying to fire up and fire up a different file in the folder...installs fine. Eh? Well, no complaints. OK, now the REALLY fun part, the DRM bullshit. This is 2KGames, so that means SecureROM...*sigh* OK, OK, gimme...yes, here's my serial number, connect to your goddamn server and allow me to play the thing I've legally bought. All things check out, game should be activated...failed? Why? No god-damned reason. try again...and again. nothing. Manually? OK, i have all the numbers. Go to the proper site, put it all in, get the unlock code, apply to install...nothing AGAIN. Ready to go set 2KGames on fire, i try the auto-activate...and it works.

My head hurts, I'm hot and uncomfortable, and somewhat unhappy in general and what not....and then this. I'm glad it all works now, and I look forward to playing (hopefully), but man, this is just bullshit. These companies need to figure out that one reason people pirate software is due to these heavy-handed security measures. When you treat your customers like you're doing them a favor and like they are a bunch of scum, it only promotes the piracy. Look at DVD piracy: would you rather pop in the movie and have it start at the click of your button, or the "legal copy" way of having to sit through the FBI and InterPol warnings, the overdone animated menu, the ad for BluRay, a commercial, some trailers, and then all the logos for the production house, the distribution house, Dolby, etc.? Same with games. We'd rather be able to PLAY THE FUCKING THING than have to jump through a bunch of hoops...and the only ones that do have to go through this shit are the ones who bought it legally.

Make it worthwhile (and not overpriced!), and people will buy it. Pirates will always exist...and your security measures only make them more likely to stay in business.

(In unrelated news, while I cannot talk about the Secret World beta, I can say that I have now managed to get my guy through the first 'dungeon' instance. Tough but doable with a good team, and gorgeous.)

So, day off. You can tell it was, because I slept in, until 5:30....OK, I just don't sleep much. Anyway, it gives me a moment to update on things.

So, work. Surprisingly, I think I'll like this. Not that I thought I'd hate it, but I didn't exactly go into it cheering "whoopie!" Keep in mind that I know almost nothing about cars, and you can appreciate the trepidation. However, I'm learning a lot and not shying away from things. I've never had a problem getting my hands dirty (figuratively or literally), and that's good, because I'm definitely jumping right in on things. Normally, I'd take the first 3-4 days doing "computer based training" before getting out on the floor and training hands-on. My manager said he knocked out the computer stuff in 4 days, but he took overtime to do it and didn't expect people to go that fast, though he wanted me to bust it out so I could get where he needed me. This stuff is broken up into chunks that they want you to have done on a schedule (first one on safety inside first 30 days, next 4 on the various positions inside of 120 days, etc.). After 2 days, I'd done everything for 120 days, another day and I was finished with the 150 day mark. That made me some points, to say the least. Also, even though I'm still very much on the fringe of the day-to-day workings, I'm handling customers on my own initiative. This has made me even more points, both in drive and style. You know how they tell you in prison to beat down someone fast, to establish yourself? That's me, without the violence and victim. Set myself up, fast...and it's working. Along the way, I'm learning and doing plenty. Hell, yesterday, I helped a couple other guys change a serpentine belt, and that's a pain in the ass. (Separate note: made a HUGE load of brownie points yesterday by running a last-minute errand that not only saved my managers butt but kept him out of trouble with HIS boss. Go me.)

So, outside of work, let's see. Well, I canceled my paid 'City of Heroes' account, for two reasons. One, of course, is work. I just don't have time. Even if I don't go in until 10, I don't want to get involved in the morning, and by the time I come home, shower, eat, and try to have some time with Jessica, there's not much left. Two, and maybe more importantly, is that I have not had nearly as much fun this time around. With the addition of the "incarnate powers", the game has become very focused on the end-game, which is one thing that killed Warcraft for me. It feels all about hurrying to get to the end and then grinding for the drops, something that I always appreciated that City did NOT do...well, now it does. On top of all that, I stayed with City for as long as I did because of my group of running buddies, Team Awesome. Coming back, I find that they've all moved on to other things and, without that social aspect, I find myself bored. True, I made a new friend not long ago and enjoyed running with her and her friends, but that is not often due to timing and just not the same. True also that kwsapphire hooked me up with a group she runs with, and while there are some great people in there, again, it's just not the same. So, I'm MMO-less for a while. Not making promises, just time to move on from City.

Still have the "Secret World" beta going on, and that's pretty cool. Cool enough to pay for when it's released? Not sure yet. Haven't fired it up in days, obviously. Lots there to like, some not to like, betas change, so hard to really say. Overall, though, I am enjoying it. Should download my copy Diablo 3 today, so I'll have that to play. Found a great deal on Bioshock 1&2 which I plan to get, as I loved B1 and want to play again, and never got to play B2. That's another thing: so many games I've missed over the last 10 years, due to being MMO-focused. With as little time as I have right now, better to have games I can pause. ;)

Things in the house are plenty good. Still crazy about my lady, no question there. She's been sick lately, and something weird going on with her gut which is making her pretty miserable, but we're working on it. Also weird getting used to not seeing her for so long, but that's work for you. Have to make sure and plan for things I want to do around the house, too...Damn, work sucks. ;)

Hmm...nothing else I can think of to report on. Trimmed my hair for the first time in ages. Did a little buzzing behind the ears and across the back, since my hair is pulled back for work and the wispy little stragglers were annoying me. Haven't done this to my head since...1993, I think? Kinda got off my eating/exercise thing, but working is already showing a change again, so that helps.

I'm sore, but it's all good.

Even working, I'm not bailing on bringing you the Finest In Friday Fotography (I know, i know, work with me, here)...The Friday Pix!


( Wake Up And Come On In! )

Since J's mom had the night off last night, she took us out to dinner last night to celebrate the new job. We debated where to go and settled on Smoke, a BBQ place that is supposed to be really good. J and I went in there once, but just got a cheesesteak sandwich, so I was looking forward to seeing how they compare.

Now, lemme just say this: I know good BBQ. I lived in Memphis for 9 years, home of the big BBQ festival each year and home to Corky's. I've eaten some of the best Texas pit BBQ ever, and know some amazing grill masters. I make my own sauce and get raves about my own BBQ. I say this to illustrate that I'm more than a little picky about BBQ, and will be the first to point out where a place didn't get it quite right.

With that said, I opted to give them quite an acid test and ordered "The Smokemaster", a sandwich of beef brisket and pulled pork with their own sauce. I figured this could make or break them in my head. It arrived, looking huge and glorious. I noticed that it was topped with coleslaw...hmm, don't recall that on the menu (but, looking back, it was there). See, I'm weird on coleslaw, too: I'm not a big fan, it's usually too odd tasting, or just too stringy. Still, the food smelled AMAZING, so I took a nibble of the meat that was over-hanging everything.

Everything goes kinda fuzzy, because I wolfed that thing down so fast. Holy cats,m that was the best BBQ I've had since I left Memphis...and maybe the best I've had EVER.

The meat was so tender it damn near melted in my mouth. Perfectly cooked. The sauce was not overpowering, like most BBQ places do, it was tasty and complimented things well, but it did not stand out or overpower. The slaw was finely diced, and carefully neutral in taste, so as to add to things instead of being bold. I kept trying to put the thing down, savor the bite I had, and make this last, but I was simply unable to stop eating. Hell, i was one step away from asking the chef to come out so I could hug him.

I cannot say enough good things about this place, and they will definitely get more of my business.

So, all went just fine, other than the fact that I had to drive an hour+ to get there in pouring rain. No biggie, just sayin'. Anyway, I start tomorrow.

It's good to be a working man again.

Off to orientation...Send me good vibes today!

Bass player and songwriter Donald "Duck" Dunn, a member of the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame band Booker T. and the MGs and the Blues Brothers band, has died in Tokyo. He was 70. Dunn was in Tokyo for a series of shows. News of his death was posted on the Facebook site of his friend and fellow musician Steve Cropper, who was on the same tour. Cropper said Dunn died in his sleep.

I have been a huge fan of Dun's work for a long, long time. He was one of the reasons that a part of me has always wanted to play bass. I loved the Mg's; he was great with the Blues Brothers; any time he was playing, I listened. He was a character and a half, and by all accounts, a great guy. Such a loss.

Rest easy, Duck.

Once again, the post a few of you have been waiting all week for...The Friday Pix!


( Check The Signs And Come On In! )

OK, made my trip to the Social Security office for a replacement card. Over and done, on it's way. Yay.

Orientation for new job in a week. Grabbed new shoes and pants yesterday. Woo.

Got in on the beta for The Secret World. Not allowed to say much, but kinda nifty.

Should be getting a free copy of "Diablo 3" this week. Nice.

Huzzah for Netflix: finally watching Lost. Just hitting the season 3 ending. A lot of this ends up coming across like a game I'd run. ;)

Speaking of games...man, gotta get going on that thing. Ideas swarming, just never taking the time to type it out.

Pretty good day yesterday, even with a couple small hiccups. hoping for a repeat in the upswing today. Right now, though, my Illuminati-affiliated character is in the middle of cleaning out some infestation in Kingsmouth, so it's back into the Secret World I go.

Went this morning to meet with the assistant manager, more as a courtesy than anything else. Short version is that it all went swimmingly, and I started the paperwork for the new job. Orientation is on the 15th, so as of a week and a half from now, I'm a working man again.

Woot, indeed.

Now, some of you may have noticed that I have been very tight-lipped about where these jobs have been. You have to understand, Newport News is a small town and most of the work is either at one of the colleges or at the shipyards. I do not have the qualifications to work at either, and what's left over tends to get snapped up by the multitude of college students. This slowed down my job search considerably.

Job 1 was at Wal-Mart, and that should explain everything you need to hear about why I didn't say it. Not exactly the most prestigious place to work. I didn't want the job, the pay was crap, and it was only part-time. Sure, it was better than not working, and I'd have done it if I had to, but i really didn't want to.

Job 2, or The New Job That I Start Shortly, is as a Customer Service Advisor at Jiffy-Lube. Again, maybe not the most glamorous place to work, but a load better than Wally World. It's in a field that I have a ton of experience doing (customer service), and it's a place I can learn some things I've always wanted to know more about (automotive). The location I ended up at is in need of someone with good skills like mine, and as such, I was exactly what they needed. Added bonus, they are right down the street. Again, not the greatest pay, but a helluva lot more opportunity to move up the ladder than at Wm's garden center. Plus, who knows, maybe I can use this as a chance to transfer back to the West Coast some day.

Anyway, go me.

I don't know if it's the weather or the crash form yesterday's adrenaline or just frustration or what, but I didn't sleep well last night and didn't wake up in a great mood, so let's get the Friday Pix underway, shall we?


( Lots Of Tranquil Shots This Week. Don't Be Sad, Come On In! )

Annoyed with things last night, I forgot to post something that is GOOD news: I go in for my second interview this morning with Job 2. I'd say to send good vibes, but since 99% of you won't see this until after I'm done, i'll just assume you would have. ;)

See Lunopolis. Period.

"Two documentary filmmakers accidentally uncover the greatest moon secret the world has never known, and the powerful organization determined to keep it that way."

Not much of a description, really. Makes it seem trite and forgettable. It's not. Yes, it's low-budget, filmed in a "documentary" style, and starts off a little cheesy, but this was all by design. What follows is one of the best written sci-fi* stories I've experienced in a while, with some tight acting, a great ending, and some surprising moments that came across as very believable.

Netflix has it on Instant Watch, so there's no excuse for those of you with an account. For those without, track it down. Do it now.


*Don't let the "sci-fi" designation throw you, this is not Star Trek. Fairly down-to-earth, real people dealing, there's-more-to-the-world-than-you-know stuff.

I don't know how many of you actually use ScrapBook, here on LJ, for image hosting. I used to, but I quit after one too many times of images disappearing, uploads hanging, and links failing. I'll not hazard any guesses as to why any of this happened. Doesn't matter, I found better solutions.

LiveJournal Scrapbook is changing. It appears, among a few changes, that the storage limit is dropping (rumor is 10GB of Paid Member space is now 2GB). LJ did a bang-up job of offering notes and explanations, in Russian on the Russian news page, but it took other users to do English translations. Thanks, guys.

+ Your images will redirect, but the URL will be different.
+ Unable to tell what will happen to any photos you have that put you over the 2GB limit.
+ Back up your Scrapbook just in case.
+ If you want your photos transferred over now instead of waiting, let them know here.

Anyway, worth a quick read, if you use the service.

When will they ever learn what customer service means?

OK, no word from Job 2, so I threw caution to the wind and called them myself. This turned out to be a good thing.

My contact says that they do orientations every two weeks, so he was halfway to his decisions. This made me twitch a little. however, he went on to say that as far as it went with me, he was already planning to have me do a second interview with the location where he needed to fill, and was going to be calling me in a couple hours anyway. I laughed and said that I hoped I wasn't putting him on the spot, just that I was a bit antsy about it and wanted to follow up. No, he said, that was a good thing, he likes persistence.

Boo-fuckin'-yah, baby.

Anyway, next couple days (I'm assuming Monday-ish), I should talk to the next guy. He had also mentioned that said contact needed more of the customer service drive and angle at his location, so this sounds very positive.

Hopin', hopin', hopin'. Keep those good vibes comin', friends.

I need distraction, do you? Hope so, 'cause here's this week's Friday Pix!


( For Better Times, Come On In! )

Job 2 said they'd let people know yea or nay by the 26th (tomorrow). Job 1 has already called me, asking if I'm coming to them or not. It's down to the wire, man. I hate the wait.

Even if they both fall through, I've got another idea or two, so we'll see.

First coat of paint on the front porch. Perfect day: calm, clear, not too hot. Knocked it out in no time flat. Weather looks like it won't let me do a second coat until the weekend, though. C'est la guerre.

My folks would never believe it, but i love this kind of thing.

Discovered that I've been wrong about something for quite a while. I was always under the impression that WinXP would only recognize 2GB of RAM. This is not correct, it'll handle up to 4GB.

WELL.

Seeing as how some of the newest content in CoH makes me choke and run out of memory from time to time, and seeing as how numerauko's old machine is just sitting here unused with 4 1GB sticks in it, guess who has 2 thumbs and whose machine just got an extra 2GB of memory?

This Guy.

In other news, I still need to hook up said old machine as a file server/2nd account mule, one of these days.

A few thoughts...

Cropsey: "Directors Joshua Zeman and Barbara Brancaccio explore an urban legend that always disturbed them while growing up in Staten Island, N.Y. -- a rash of child abductions that struck the area in the 1970s and 80s -- in their gripping documentary. The legend became real when a handyman and drifter named Andre Rand abducted numerous young kids, setting off myriad motive theories, frightening residents in the community and tripping up the legal system."

I thought this would be a cool documentary about an urban legend, and it ended up being one about this alleged killer, Rand. Frankly, it started almost interesting and got more and more boring as it went. It wasn't terrible, just disappointing.


Ju-on: White Ghost / Black Ghost: "Writer-director Takashi Shimizu toasts the 10th anniversary of his influential horror film Ju-on with two spooky shorts. In "White Ghost," a psychic teen terrorizes his family. In "Black Ghost," a patient learns the truth about a cyst in her body."

White Ghost was better than Black Ghost, once you figured out the time sequence of scenes. The story was just better, even though the effects were a little weak. If you liked Ju-On, it's worth seeing.


Tucker & Dale vs. Evil: "Expecting to enjoy a relaxing vacation at their rundown mountain cabin, backwoods boys Tucker and Dale see their peaceful trip turn into a nightmare when college kids camping nearby accuse the duo of being psychotic killers."

Holy shit, if you haven't seen this, you are seriously missing out. One of the funniest things I've seen in a long time. Well-written, well-shot, and all around great. Alan Tudyk stars, and yet isn't the focal point. Just downright hilarious, I cannot recommend it enough. SEE IT.

Sounds like it's been a bit of a tumultuous week for plenty of people. I don't know about you, but I need the Friday Pix.


( Get Comfy And Come On In! )

...and the deaths keep on comin'.

Jonathan Frid, actor who portrayed Barnabas Collins in the ground-breaking original TV show Dark Shadows, has died. Aged 87, he made appearances at fan conventions but after Dark Shadows went off the air in 1971, Jonathan Frid said goodbye to the cameras. He did star in Oliver Stone’s directorial debut SEIZURE in 1974 as a writer haunted by his demons (manifested by Martine Beswick and Herve Villachaize!) but reportedly Frid’s experience with SEIZURE was so unpleasant, he spent the rest of his career on the stage in Canada, his home. he actually died on Friday, April 13th, which is sort of perfect. I know, he has a cameo in the upcoming Burton movie version, but I personally think seeing that hideous travesty of a film be realized is what killed him.

------

Greg Ham, a musician with the iconic Australian band Men at Work, was found dead in his Melbourne home on Thursday, Australian reports said. He was 58, and at this time, there is no info on the cause of death. Too bad, i always liked them.

Yes, Dick Clark is finally dead. Massive heart attack at 82 (which seems way too young, but...).

What can be said about him that hasn't already? You were a major, major icon, sir. You've earned your rest...and your fame.

OK, so, point one: got what I needed, docs-wise. This is good. This allows me to handle a couple other looming issues.

Point two: I would have gone in for orientation tomorrow, but this afternoon I received a phone call about a resume I had thought long since ignored. While the job doesn't pay any more (in fact, it's a little less per hour), it'd be full-time work, and not at a place that makes me loathe to speak its name (you may have noticed that part...). This means more money in the end, and bennies (I assume). This means it's a better option, over all.

So, I go Thursday to see if I can land the job. Meanwhile, I talked to the first job, and they agreed to hold my position open for one week, so if the interview goes badly, I still have the job on which to fall back. Not too shabby, eh?

Man, this has all been weird, and has made me think about some aspects of my life that I have pointedly ignored for a long time. It hasn't all been good, but the end result should be worth it.

Edited to add detail

Man, hot and dry days are not the best for yardwork...but it's gotta be done. Also, painting job coming up shortly, and that promises to be a riot, and probably turn out to be bigger than I want it to be. Work should start within the next week or two, not saying much more until it's finalized.

Meanwhile, I'm down fourteen pounds, as of today. Not too shabby...

LJ had a code update, recently. Most of it was bugfixes, which is good, but one change I'm not crazy about is in the LJ-Cut. Now, instead of it showing up in parentheses like it always has, it shows up with a little "scissors" icon and the text. I personally think it looks odd, but I mostly bring it up here so that you don't wonder what happened to the rest of the post if you look down and don't see the normal "cut". The functionality works just as usual, only the look has changed. *shrug* Not sure what prompted this change, but whatever. Onward!


( Grab A Snack And Come On In! )

CBS newsman Mike Wallace, the dogged, merciless reporter and interviewer who took on politicians, celebrities and other public figures in a 60-year career highlighted by the on-air confrontations that helped make "60 Minutes" the most successful primetime television news program ever, has died. He was 93. Wallace died Saturday night at a care facility in New Canaan, Connecticut, where he had lived in recent years, after many years of heart issues.

Picasa updated their software, and now, instead of having a button for "Share to Picasa Web Album", it's "Share to Google+ Album". This should be pretty minor, since they are effectively the same thing, but when I upload and use the controls to go to the online album so I can grab the picture URLs, it takes me to the hip-layout G+ album instead of the functional-layout Picasa album, where there are controls for picture handling as opposed to just nifty expanding-photo uselessness. This means an extra step where I have to go to Picasa's URL, find the new album, and THEN get to the spot I wanted. There does not seem to be anyway to specify to Picasa that I want to go to the actual Picasa album page and not the G+ one.

I consider this not only an unnecessary change, but a bad design one, especially since it was done without warning. This is NOT what I usually get from Google, and Picasa is still my best choice for storage and ease of use/sharing. Just...annoying.

Been a weird week out my way, but it's finally Friday, and you know what that means...well, OK, other than all of that, it also means it's time for the Friday Pix!


( Jump In The Water And Come On In! )

Lemme tell you about my day, yesterday.

( Frustration of various types: computers, people, and food )

So, once again, we venture into territory both new and familiar...the Friday Pix!


( Drop What You're Doing And Come On In! )

Sorry for the delay. Kinda got caught up in things today, and by the time I figured out what day it was, I was leaving for errands. Of course, most of you are in earlier time zones than I, so you might not have noticed if I'd just kept my yap shut. Anyway, here's the Friday Pix!


( Relax And Come On In! )

Got occupied this morning, and now walking out the door. However, I promise, when I get back, Friday Pix.

Michael Bay, not content to have screwed up Transformers, now turns his sights on the abuse of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". At the annual Nickelodeon upfront presentation last week, über-producer Michael Bay revealed details for an upcoming live-action TMNT movie, including a new origin story for the half-shell heroes that is sure to raise the ire of die-hard fans. "When you see this movie, kids are going to believe one day these turtles actually do exist when we are done with this movie," said Bay as he took the stage to discuss his new vision for the reptilian reboot. "These turtles are from an alien race, and they are going to be tough, edgy, funny and completely lovable."

*blink* *blink*

In response to fans' outcry, Bay responded in maybe the worst way possible, apart from telling them to go fuck themselves: “Fans need to take a breath, and chill.”

As always, fuck you, Michael.

Where'd my spring go? Virginia seems to have forgotten that there is a season between winter and summer.


( Get Moving and Come On In! )

So, for those of you that don't have news on your friends page (and really, you should), here the short and skinny:

- You can now make a "sticky post" so that it always shows up on top of your journal. No more having to vastly forward-date!
- You can now schedule posts to go at a predetermined time
- You can use the <lj-spoiler> / </lj-spoiler> tags to hide "spoiler" text, when making posts about movies, games, and whatnot.
- Image placeholders can now be used in comments, just like they were in posts.
- LJ's homepage will feature the "top 10" communities.
- Several bugs were fixed.
- Games (what few there were) are going away.
- "Writer's Block" is going away.

Sticky Post is nice. I can change that top post on my journal so it doesn't say 2025 anymore. Top 10 Communities...eh, I'd rather see some lesser ones spotlighted so they can find their way to people that don't know about them, instead of just generating more traffic for "Oh No They Didn't" (besides which, who actually goes to the homepage?). Never used the games, but I'm all for anything that stops us trying to be Facebook.

Full posts can be found here.