"Roads endure longer than pyramids."
-Karol Bunsch, novelist 1898-1987

On another note, I have to say yet again for the umpteenth time:  Muse rocks. Of course, you probably already know that...and if you didn't well, silly you.

"Imagine a world in which generations of human beings come to believe that certain films were made by God or that specific software was coded by him.
Imagine a future in which millions of our descendants murder each other over rival interpretations of Star Wars or Windows 98. Could anything -- anything -- be more ridiculous? And yet, this would be no more ridiculous than the world we are living in. "

-Sam Harris, author (1967- )

Date:	2008-05-19 16:16
Subject:
Security:	Public
Mood:	aggravated

I came into work this morning after a rather interesting/not so happy/awesome Radiohead weekend (roller coaster anyone?) fully expecting to have a nice,easy day ironing out my plans for the tests I am running this week, tweaking prototypes, working on other projects that are screaming for my attention, all that. Then I met with the product owner, who decided to change the focus of the test, even after I clarified with that person *before* I spent all last week prepping for the test what the dang thing should be about.

It's not like it's a horrible thing to change test plans - it's crappy to have to cram all this crap into one day and then not feel prepped for the tests. They are exhausting enough on their own, but it happens. It's the fact that this happens so damn often with this person that I could bet on it and make millions - 1 bet on indecision for weeks, another on decision made but it changing by 180 degrees the next time you meet, another for jumping on the bandwagon for whatever flavor of the month buzz-word or test is being talking about in the higher up meetings despite the fact that I and a coworker have explained why it won't work for us and our study or our project.

I hate it because it makes me all negative. And I like my job, a lot. I am assured it's not the job, it's this particular person. So why, fate, do you insist on dumping me on her projects?

Please, please let me give her a peer review. Seriously.

Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet. -Roger Miller, musician (1936-1992)

I am on a mission to rate all of the ginormous list of songs in our music library. Today is Smiths day. Oh the memories. Hanging out in the car with the boy, a Honda if I remember, listening to the Smiths and being all teenager-angsty. *sigh* Oh the days of whine and roses...

Frankly, Mr. Shankly got a 5 star, oh man, and now this one too...

We saw Ironman this weekend, of course. It rocked. Of course I am not a big superhero comic reader so I only know about the comic through Pandabob. I am, however, a huge fan of Robert Downey, Jr. Especially now. Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang restored my faith in him, and this one, well, let's just say I'm back in my Brat Pack lovin' days. Oh yeah.

My ears hurt. I'll just say that the Raconteurs rocked my socks off and apparently my hearing as well.

Jack White is much better looking in person.

Date:	2008-01-08 14:53
Subject:	Resolutions...bah
Security:	Public
Mood:	busy

My husband turned me on to this very cool blog, 43folders.com. This guy is all about simple living, and I really love his approach to resolutions. He suggests instead having "Fresh Starts and Modest Changes."

See what he means here:

http://www.43folders.com/2008/01/01/recap-fresh-starts-modest-changes

I'm going to start doing some of his suggestions this week. My life has gotten way too cluttered.

Time to review this goals I set for myself this year.

• Log 1000 miles running - Nope. I injured my knee pretty badly and spent most of the year on and off running. Maybe this year will be the year.
  
• Ride in one group bike ride in the Spring - Nope either. Let's just say the physical fitness goals this year blew.
  
• Run the White Rock Marathon, sub 5 hour - See above.
  
• Learn to cross-country ski - Again, no.
  
• Yoga/Pilates 3 times a week - Geez, I am starting to feel like a real failure here.
  
• Put racing scrap book together for P-bob and I - Another no.
  
• Learn to knit - Do I get points for trying? I never could get that stupid purl stich to work out right. I plan on remedying it this year though.
  
• Spend 6 hours a week being arty - sketching, painting, etc. - Off and on, and not 6 hours, but I did try.
  
• Spend time each week on crafty things like knitting, embroidery, crochet - I finished a few projects but not every week.
  
• Read more books I wouldn't normally read
• 5 Biographies - 2 out of 5, pretty good.
  
• 10 classics - 4 out of 10 isn't bad.
  
• 10 art history, art theory, etc. - No.
  
• 10 various nonfiction - 9, if you count the biographies here.
  
• Dragonlance Chronicles, Vols. 1-3 (This one if for the hubby, just so he will leave me alone about reading these books.) - Check. They were awful.
  
• Learn to use the manual settings on our brand spanking new Nikon SLR digital camera - Check , and check.
  
• Read the digital photography book

• I read a whole lot of books that entertained and taught me.
• I got a new job doing something I love and that challenges me almost every day.
• I celebrated 10 years of marriage with a wonderful man and that marriage continues to grow, and challenge, and make me happy every day.
• We bought a house that we love in a beautiful neighborhood, and while it was stressful trying to get through it, everything worked out.
• We decided to try and start a family, which would seem like no big deal to some, but if you are a FIRL, you know why that is a major deal.
• I learned to let go, of people, of things, of stress. I'm still working on it, and it's a almost daily thing, but I'm getting there.
• I met new people, made new friends, rediscovered old friends, and in the process discovered new friends can be family too.
• I loved without boundaries. Now, to learn to love myself without boundaries and dream the same way.

I updated my media blog with the books & comics I read this year. I read 72 books and 26 trades or groups of comics. Not bad reading for a year.

• Comics: http://hisshisspurrr.blogspot.com/2008/01/comics-read-in-2007.html
• Books: http://hisshisspurrr.blogspot.com/2008/01/books-read-in-2007.html

Date:	2007-12-19 10:40
Subject:	5 things I am grateful for today
Security:	Public
Mood:	awake

I stole this from sauvagerie. I have been reading her posts and thinking, what a great way to start the day, so I'm shamelessly stealing from her. It's been a rough morning, so I figured today is probably a good day to start this. Get me in a more positive mood.

• A cancellation at my hairdressers that is letting me sweep in at the last minute for a desperately needed haircut.
• Moleskine cahir journals. I just love the feel of them.
• Sleeping in and skipping the gym. Going to the gym is good for me, but this morning I needed the sleep.
• Kiehl's ultimate strength hand salve. This stuff makes my hands super soft for ages.
  
• A husband who appreciates the meals I cook. Ever since we moved into our new place I have been a cooking fanatic. Last night I made a muffaletta style braciola, mashed potatoes and veggies. It was soooooo good. I am grateful that he likes to eat the food I cook and that I like to cook it.

Note to self: Do not watch the last episode of Doctor Who Season 2 at work. You coworkers might wonder why you are crying. Srsly.

Last week I went out to Mountain View, CA for work. Normally I love to travel, but this time I wasn't really sure I wanted to go, just because I love my new house and I like to be in it. Silly, yes.

So I fly out to San Jose for a conference, one that is actually pretty fun because my entire team, Plano & San Diego,  is there and we get to hang out and have lots of crazy adventures together. Well, last week I made the mistake of missing breakfast on the way out. Usually I grab a Starbucks coffee and scone at the airport, but this time I was running too late. I bought a breakfast sandwich on the plane, thinking that would be okay. Bad idea.

At about 4:00 that afternoon, all hell broke loose and I spent the next 2.5 days on the floor of my hotel bathroom, ridding my body of all possible food or water. Yep, folks. I got food poisoning. I missed all of my conference sessions and dinners. I thought I was going to die. I thought I was going to have to go to the hospital. I got to fly back to DFW still ill.

You know how folks say I want to lose weight but I don't want to diet or exercise. Well, get food poisoning. It'll work. And stay away from the airplane food.

Date:	2007-12-03 10:21
Subject:
Security:	Public
Mood:	tired

A real book is not one that we read, but one that reads us. -W.H. Auden, poet (1907-1973)

Date:	2007-11-16 10:28
Subject:
Security:	Public
Mood:	cold

From chiller , she of the excellent remodeling and the uber-adorable cats! Book meme.

Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback?
It really depends on what I can find at the half-price book store. I really prefer trade paperbacks because they are a good size and aren't as heavy to carry around as hardbacks. I never go anywhere without something to read, so the heavier the book, the heavier my bag.

Amazon or brick and mortar?
I go to both. We have the super shipping option paid for on Amazon, so it's nice to get something I know will be hard to find the very next day. But then again, I also belong to a book club called QPB (Quality Paperback Books) that release trades of books still in hardcover, plus you earn points and all that. I get great ideas for my library from there. If I go to an actual bookshop, I browse and end up with a cart full of books before I can blink. It really works either way. All that matters is I can feed my brain regularly.

Barnes & Noble or Borders?
Half-Price Books.

Bookmark or dog-ear?
Bookmark.

Alphabetise by author or alphabetise by title or random?
I sort my books by subject, then by author.

Keep, throw away, or sell?
Both. I buy used crap books and sell them back. I sell other books I liked back. But if I read a book and it just amazed me, I keep it. Evidentally 903 books have amazed me or have th potential to, so maybe I should redefine "amaze."

Keep dust jacket or toss it?
Usually they stay on, so I keep them. But I don't usually have this problem, as I don't buy a lot of hardback books.

Short story or novel?
Both, depending on my mood. I love Stephen King's short stories, fairy tales, restructured fairy tales, mysteries. I will read short stories before bed because it gives me a short and sweet story and then I can fall asleep. If I try to read a book before bed, I find myself up at 3 AM trying to finish it and work is hell the next day. It's just safer to stick to short stories or trade graphic novels before bed.

Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket?
To be fair, I haven't read Snicket, but Harry and his friends captured my Mom's imagination and got her to read again, so he holds a special place in my heart.

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
See answer above - I have a hard time stopping until the book ends.

"It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time"?
"Hapscomb's Texaco sat on Number 93 just north of Arnette, a pissant four street burg about 110 miles from Houston."

Buy or borrow?
Buy.

New or used?
Yes.

Buying choice:
What? Everything?

Tidy ending or cliffhanger?
Either. I like both depending on what the book is. I like "happily ever after" and I like "what the hell."

Morning reading, afternoon reading, or night-time reading?
Yes, I would read all day if I could.

Stand-alone or series?
I'm more addicted to authors than series. If I find an author I like I find everything I can and read them all. (I just found P.D. James this year, and I bought every book she has written except for The Maul and The Pear Tree, which was just reprinted. I'll have it soon.) Then I wait impatiently until they write something else, or in the case of Jane Austen, I reread.

Favourite series?
I have to pick one? Agatha Christie. or P.D. James' Adam Dalgliesh stories.

Favourite children's book?
The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley

Favourite book of which nobody else has heard?
Out : A Novel by Natsuo Kirino.  I'd put The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse by Robert Rankin, but I don't think he's as obscure as all that.

Favourite books read last year?

A Dirty Job Christopher Moore, The Woman in White Wilkie Collins,  America’s Women: 400 Years of Dolls, Drudges, Helpmates, and Heroines Gail Collins, No Country for Old Men Cormac McCarthy, Maisie Dobbs Jacqueline Winspear, The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse Robert Rankin, The Italian Secretary Caleb Carr

Codex Lev Grossman - It was awful. Just awful. I wanted to wash my brain after I finished it.

Date:	2007-11-01 14:45
Subject:
Security:	Public
Mood:	content

Well, it is done. We have moved to our new house in lovely Oak Cliff. Our buyer fell through, in a sort of way. Now he is our renter, with an option to buy. Cross your fingers that he can finally get a mortgage cause I need money for Christmas presents. All of my money went to our downpayment.

We moved ourselves, which was no small feat. I believe the husband said, "We don't have that much stuff. We live in one big room." That was before I reminded him I have almost 1000 books in my library. It took 2 days to move, and I started unpacking yesterday. It really is too much fun thinking of the improvements we can make to this place. The ladies who owned it before already have done quite a bit, but we want to make a few improvements to the den area and the wallpaper in the bathrooms has to go. 

Other than that, we are settling in nicely. The kitties love all the windows, and we had a ton of trick-or-treaters last night.

Life is good, as long as our renter pays his rent on time.

Sin lies only in hurting others unnecessarily. All other "sins" are invented nonsense. -Robert A. Heinlein, science-fiction author (1907-1988)

No drug, not even alcohol, causes the fundamental ills of society. If we're looking for the source of our troubles, we shouldn't test people for drugs, we should test them for stupidity, ignorance, greed and love of power.

-P.J. O'Rourke, writer (1947- )

Date:	2007-08-29 17:51
Subject:
Security:	Public
Mood:	tired

I have been out here in sunny San Diego (let's all say it, "You stay classy, San Diego!") running tets for work. It is so awesome here. Our company just moved into a new campus and the place is just amazing.

My tests have run pretty smoothly so far, except for the one woman who freaked out over the non-disclosure agreement and walked out. Overall, I think I am starting to really get this job. Who knew I could actually learn to talk to people and not want to pass out or throw up? It's a miracle.

Last night we went to an awesome sushi place and I had a pretty decent Oregon Pinot Noir. Plus lots of sushi. Then we headed back to my Pal, Mr. Art Dept's place and played Wii Bowling;. I love the Wii. I must get one. His wife makes a mean Mai Tai.

Tonight we are going to some place with cabanas and tapas. It should be fun.

Tomorrow I have three tests scheduled. Then Friday I head home to pack and drive to New Mexico. Whew. Then vacation. Boy do I need it!

Date:	2007-08-17 10:24
Subject:	Random ninja thoughts
Security:	Public
Mood:	amused

"How do ninjas raise their children?

They raise them from the dead."

"You are going to need more than a couple of bags of guns and a butched out Carrie Anne Moss to get by a ninja's lobby."

- Ninja