OK, maybe I shouldn't have wished for more work-drama... they blocked LiveJournal at work now.  The blanket-filter now considers it a "personals/dating site".

Bastids.

(I'm at home now, taking a half-day vaca.)

Why does coming out to coworkers always end up so awkward? 

These days, after working here for almost 15 years, I just figure everyone "knows" about me.  But one of the testers on my team asked if I had any plans for the weekend when I was getting some coffee, and I casually said "well, it is Pride Weekend...".  And he looked at me like there was a punchline of some sort coming.  No clue.  So of course I get that rush of weird--- is it embarrassment?--- feeling like I have to explain.  Thankfully, his face showed the lightbulb turning on, so I just made a weak joke about probably having to call in sick on Monday and escaped to my office.

Le sigh...

Maybe the rumor mill only works when the subject cares if people talk behind his/her back.  Me?  I just wish everyone would do the whisper-whisper already so I can just talk about my life without suddenly blindsiding someone.  More and more I am reminded of what unzeugmatic told me so long ago (paraphrasing): "You don't just 'come out' and you're done-- it's a lifelong process."

Hello, dear readers... is there anyone out there that has had experience either doing stamped concrete resurfacing, or having it done to their property?  Our contractors are still 'working' on our cement, going on three weeks after the one-week job was supposed to be completed.  Don't even get me started.  We still haven't paid them a cent.

We are noticing that there are lots of areas that have "mud cracks"-- it's like a smaller, more fine version of what you see when mud dries in the sun.  The cracks appeared after the coloring layers dried.  They have not yet polyurethane-sealed the concrete, so is it not an issue?  They are unsightly, but I want to make sure they are not going to limit the durability of the resurfacing.  There are also a couple fine cracks that extend from one edge of the concrete all the way to the other... like 25 feet or so.  Just doesn't seem to be part of a good resurfacing job, but what do I know?

Thanks in advance for any info or help.  I have taken photos of the problem areas, perhaps I will post a couple tonite.

...and Cyndi Lauper became some sort of amazing disco diva.  I'm listening to "Take Ya To The Brink" and it's pretty awesome.  I predict hearing a healthy dose at all those great summer parties coming up.

Kylie and Madge have nothin' on Cyndi!

Wow!  Thanks to Sirius's Left of Center channel slyly playing both of them back-to-back, I now realize why MIA's "Paper Planes" sounds so familiar to me.  The main background guitar/synth riff is jacked directly from the Clash's "Straight to Hell".  The Clash track starts right off with it, and reintroduces it halfway through.  MIA's version, of course, just plays it constantly throughout the song.

I'm surprised I haven't heard the obvious mashup yet.  Maybe because it's too bloody easy.

Psst-- want a free "Bush's Third Term: McCain" from moveon.org?  Get it here:

https://political.moveon.org/stickers/

One is free, but for more than that you have to make a donation.

While I generally enjoy seeing severe weather, it's from a purely scientific standpoint.  When it takes lives and rips families apart, it's a true tragedy.

A 3/4- to a mile-wide tornado hit Weld County just before noon today.  It was really nowhere near Denver, even if the major news outlets seem to be using "Denver" in their lead-offs and article titles.  News reports say "1 dead", but that will surely increase.  "Typical" tornadoes in Colorado are of the smaller landspout variety-- this one was a monster.  The storm tracks are also a bit wonky-- they're coming up from the southeast, which is almost opposite of their usual trackings.

We have tornado watches around here into the night tonight.

WARNING: Spoilers follow!

( Read more... )

Here we go again with some quintessential Denver spring weather:

Today (Mon): Sunny in the morning...then partly sunny with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 70s. West winds 10 to 20 mph.
Tue: Rain and snow likely. Snow accumulation up to 2 inches. Highs 44 to 50. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.
Tue PM: Mostly cloudy with a 10 percent chance of rain and snow in the evening...then partly cloudy after midnight. Lows in the mid 30s.
Wed: Mostly sunny in the morning then becoming mostly cloudy. Highs around 60.
Wed PM: Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain and snow. Lows in the lower 40s.
Thu: Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of rain showers. Highs in the mid 50s. Lows in the upper 30s.

And of course, this being Denver, they might be completely wrong.  I am just glad that the nighttime temps aren't dipping below freezing.  Our 'golden chain' tree in the backyard can't take any frost, and it's already budding out.  If it gets any frost, it will essentially drop all those buds and go into a mini hibernation, not budding out again for another few weeks.  I have to think it stunts the growth of the tree (and amount of blooms) for the season, but that's just a guess.

Speaking of the backyard... we are having the cement resurfaced this week, with a combination of faux-flagstone, and faux-brick.  But before that's done, we had to finish our little 'deck extension' (doubling the size of the deck under the hottub), and new shelter (we added a tin roof to the shadecover that was previously open).  Art (Butch's son) and his/our friend Mike put up the tin yesterday, and it went pretty fast.  It really changes the space-- it is a lot darker there.  Well, yeah, duh... but still I can imagine what something looks like and once I actually see it, it sometimes looks different than what I imagined.  But it looks great, so that's all that matters.  And it will provide more shelter from the inevitable afternoon shower that rolls through whenever we have a party. :)

We will also have to remove our automatic pool cover so that the cement guys can do the resurfacing right to the edge of the pool.  We called a pool place and they said it would cost us like $800 for them to come out and remove it and put it back.  Screw that, we're going to (try to) do it ourselves.  Kinda scary, but I will take lots of pictures of how it's put together first so we have some reference.  That will happen Wednesday, weather permitting.  I will likely have to take a vacation day.

I will be very glad when it's done, and we're back to 'normal' home chores like mowing, and gardening.  I am done with construction for hopefully a long while.  (haha, famous last words, etc)

So over lunch today, I went ahead and got tickets for the final stop of the True Colors tour.  Yes, after 13 years of living in Denver, I am actually going to see Red Rocks for a show.  I am taking my sister Kari (sistersummer)-- she and my Mom are visiting around the 4th of July, so the timing is perfect.  Our reserved seats are row 27, seats 111-112.  I have no idea how good they are, since, you know, I've never been there for a show.

I'm pretty sure Grant (lostlakebear) is going... and it seems like I recall reading that Brady (bradferd23) is going too.  Anyone else?

Squeeee!

I don't know why anyone listens to Rush Limbaugh.  Seriously.

The Denver Post thought it was newsworthy to report on his latest absurdity.  Apparently, he said that he "dreams of riots in Denver at the DNC".  Now, why would any American wish something like that?  Honestly.

(A small part of me recognizes and respects his firm grasp of how "celebrity" works in this country.  Any publicity is good publicity, and so on.  But does he have to be so ugly about it?)

I have finally uploaded some pictures from our recent cruise and vacation. I will post a recap soon, no time right now!



Click on the photo above to go to the flickr set.

[non-sports fans can move along...]

OK, I'm a hockey fan again.  I haven't watched one full Avs game all year, so I suppose that would make me a "fairweather fan".  Or at least a playoff-time fan.  It's a little tough watching Colorado vs. Minnesota in the first round, since it means that one of my two favorite teams will have to be knocked out.  But since I'm a Coloradan now, I have to cheer for the local team (I'm not one of those guys that shows up for an Avs game decked out in the visitor's uniform.  But, you might see me at a Pioneer game with a U of M shirt on, when they play the Gophers... but that's different...  Right?)...

Anyway, Theodore owned last night's game.  It's a shame he let in that last goal at less than 2 minutes left, but oh well.  And how funny was it to watch the MN coach keep trying to add more time on the clock every time play stopped?  Talk about grasping at straws.  Joel Q was just laughing and rolling his eyes.

Here's hoping they can pull off another win Saturday night in Denver to close off the series.  The stat they showed on TV repeatedly was that the winner of game five in a tied series goes on to win 80% of the time.  So, we have stats on our side.

(An aside: I should be able to upload my pics from our vacation/cruise this weekend, and I'll post a heads-up when I do.)

Oh my... I think we're about to buy a 1990 red Miata from Norm.  Midlife crisis?  He wants $2k, which seems reasonable.  It has had only two owners, both friends... and has about 125k miles on it.  I might be driving it back to Denver today.  :)

We have been having a fabulous time with Ron and Norm, despite some setbacks due to our (my) own stupidity.  Their house is wonderful, the weather has been sunny and warm.  I have been lounging by the pool as much as I can get away with. :)

But oh, the setbacks.  First, my passport.  Knowing full well I needed my passport to even board the ship, I managed to leave it on the bedroom dresser.  Thanks to Art (Butch's son) and Robert G., I will now be able to cruise.  We called Art Tuesday nite to see if he saw the passport anywhere in our bedroom, and sure enough it was sitting there.  Robert was kind enough to zoom over there that night and get it (he and his partner Bob weren't leaving to San Diego until today), and bring it with them when they fly to SD.

Then, last night after returning from our mini-bar crawl, Norm and I got in the hottub for a while.  I took of my glasses and put them next to the ground-level tub.  It was time to get out and what do I do?  I step directly on my glasses, horribly mangling the frame and actually breaking one of the high-impact-super-duper-ultra-plastic lenses.  Nooooooo!!!!1!1!!  They were beyond any home-repair.

After a restless night of me worrying about having to wear contacts the whole trip (which, thankfully, I *did* bring), Norm drove me to the nearest Lenscrafters.  We find out that they don't have any openings for exam today (my optometrist in Denver is at MyOptics downtown, which was closed on Saturday).  Lenscrafters said they wouldn't do anything without a prescription.  However, there was *another* optometrist across the mall that could give me an exam.  So, I get the whole exam done, and seeing as the place I got the exam took my insurance, it was just a co-pay.  However, lenscrafters isn't in my network, so the debacle ended up costing a couple hundred to get lenses made.  But, they were able to unmangle my frames (with some pre-unmangling by Norm), so in the end, I suppose it's all good.  I have my glasses back!  I will look into my insurance reimbursing me for the lenses, but I doubt they will do that.

PS- there is a possibility that we'll make beer bust at the Barracks when we return.  Possible Luther/Joe meeting? 

Here's hoping my silliness does not continue.  Maybe I can work on falling overboard?  That would be a worthy encore.  (groan)

Tomorrow morning, we set out for SD to meet w/ Bob & Robert for the passport-handoff, turn in our car, and get to the port somehow.  I'm not worries about it.  I think.  Here's hoping for the best.  I am still excited for the cruise, of course... but geez!

PS- Norm just informed me that we're going to eat dinner at 7pm tonite, then we're going to do our symbolic part for Earth Hour-- he's going to pop the circuit breaker for their home, and we're going to gather around their fire pit for cocktails.  :)

Whoah!  Our cruise is a little over a week away.  How the...  I'm not sure how that happened. 

We'll be in Palm Springs from 3/26 thru 3/29 [inclusive], staying with Ron and Norm.  That's next Wednesday thru Saturday.  We board our ship for Cabo out of San Diego on Sunday the 30th, and return (to San Diego) on Sunday, 4/6.  Then, we'll stay in San Diego for a day and drive back to Ontario CA for our return flight on 4/8.

I meant to make these dates public sooner, but the time got away from me.  There is talk of a possible get-together at Norm and Rons at some point, but it's not definite.  Joe-- I hope you'll be in PS around those dates... we have to at least do cocktails and/or food if no party materializes.  We're also hoping to meet up with other ex-Denverites Luther and Van at some point too.  There is a Friday and Saturday night in there, which is good...

Although, I think Norm has us taking in the crazy showtunes thingie at one of the bars, I think Friday night?  Not sure about that though.

I can't wait!

Someone asked:
How did you end you up in Denver? Do you think that's your home for good?

I grew up in Rochester, MN.  It's in the south-eastern area of MN, and home to the Mayo Clinic.  The city is basically run by Mayo and IBM, historically the largest two businesses in town.  It's quite white-collar, and repeatedly voted "best place to raise a family" by such-and-such.

So, after I graduated college from NDSU (Fargo, ND), I decided I really really needed to "get out of dodge".  I sent out resumes like crazy, and found out that a new graduate with a so-so GPA wasn't in such high demand as I'd hoped.  I interviewed at Cray in Wisconsin, and despite getting a second interview, they took someone else with more experience.  So I started looking locally.  A friend from NDSU landed a job at IBM working on their internal code maintenance application (IDSS); I interviewed and was hired by Broadway and Seymour, a consultant firm.  Whee, I was working in my hometown.  DO NOT WANT.  I stayed at IBM for about 8 years or so, about 2 years too long, in retrospect.  I love my friends and family in MN, don't get me wrong... but after the umpteenth time old friends visiting Roch over the holidays asks incredulously "You *still* live here?", it gets old.

I had taken a month-long summer trip with 2 friends the summer after our high school graduation, driving from MN to California.  We drove through Denver, and I remembered that it seemed like a nice place.  (I was securely in the closet in high school, btw.)

After 8 years at IBM, I decided to take another road trip.  I decided that I liked the west coast more than the east, so I set off on another California trip, this time looking for job prospects, and in general, someplace to live next.  A major factor was coming out... I just didn't think that it would be very easy to come out while living in my home town.  Some distance is needed...

Long story short, I never made it to California the second time.  I came back with the idea that Denver would probably be my next location.  I quit my job, packed up my belongings in a u-haul trailer, and drove my ass out here.  No job lined up, no friends here.  (Looking back, that was a lot braver than usual.)  I found a cheap hotel (the BelCaro Motel on Colorado Blvd-- I remember how exciting it was to be near such a busy road, near such a big city)), I hunted for software dev jobs, and found a few fairly quickly.  Having just came from IBM-land, I really wanted to be part of a small company, and I got that when I was hired to a (then small) Windows dev shop, building a new generation of oil&gas exploration software under Windows 3.1 & NT.  In fact, apparently we were one of the first purely-scientific apps written on Windows.  13 years later, I'm still with them, although they are now owned by that big-bad oil company (and I code in Java, on a dual-21", quad-processor, 8-Gig RAM Linux box-- a far cry from those original Windows boxes!).

And yes, I really do see Denver as 'my place' for quite a while.  I like it here.

March is question month.  Ask away here.

For all your Om Nom Nom Nom needs:

http://omnomnomnom.com/index.php

Happy F!ckin' Friday!  :D

Someone asked: "what do you do jobwise? I don't think I ever figured it out."

I'm a software developer (Java, C++), currently working for a big-bad oil company.  (It starts with an "H".)  We develop a product line that helps the oil companies locate oil/gas underground.  It analyzes the seismic data and map data to provide map-views and cross-section-views of the different layers of earth, and allows them to 'interpret' faults, horizons, and other formations.

I've been with them since moving here 13 years ago.  Started downtown, then they moved us out to the boonies-- Highlands Ranch (Highwinds Raunch).  A CEO at the time lived there, I think.  I'd love to work downtown again...

I went through a job search cycle last summer, and interviewed with a few places, and came to the conclusion that my current job is just too sweet to leave.  Ample vacation, decent salary, casual dress, and *real offices with doors* FTW.  The commute sorta sucks, but on a good day I can make it in in 35 minutes.  Good days happen about 75% of the time.  (Today was an hour, due to all the icy roads)  And because of how the public trans is layed out, I can't realistically do that.  Once they run a light rail out to Denver West, I might be able to make it work.  But the light rail stops a couple miles from our office currently.

Oh, and I am pretty much strictly a developer.  I tried the dev-lead/manager route for a little while and hated it.

Someone asked..."Your profile mentions monogamy (mine too btw). How do you navigate the often promiscuous GLBT world as a monogamous couple?"

 We have evolved over the years.  Our first years together, we were pretty paranoid about it.  We'd keep a close eye on each other in the bar, and in potentially "frisky" situations.  But after that period, we both earned each other's trust in that yes, monogamy is really what we both truly want.  I think it was a little harder for Butch since he'd been burned a few times by partners that pretended to want monogamy, but were cheating like rabbits on the side.

A major step for us was joining the Front Range Bears.  The FRB, when we were first together, had the reputation of being essentially a sex club, so naturally we steered clear.  But, over the years we met several members of the bear club, and became friends with them... pretty soon there was a majority of our friends that were at least members (but not necessaritly active).  So, we made the leap and became members, and got involved in the bear community more.  It's been interesting... as a result of joining, I think our trust has definitely increased.  We're both naturally shy and not very "touchy-feely", but as anyone who's been around bears knows, the bears are *very* touchy-feely (generally speaking).  It took a while for us to become comfortable with that.  And still, there are nights at the bar when I still don't feel comfortable with it, and that's fine.  But it has been good for us (well me at least, I can't speak for Butch on this) to get used to being more relaxed around casual public friendly-affection.

In becoming involved in FRB, and closer to many of the members, we have smashed few of our hangups... if someone told me that my partner and I would be riding practically naked in a bathtub full of bears in the Pride Parade, I'd have said they were nuts.  But, we did it, and I have absolutely no regrets-- it was a blast.

These days, we still keep an eye on each other in the bar to some extent, but not to the degree we used to.  We even throw (hopefully) fabulous pool parties where some guests feel comfortable and free enough to "lose" their swimming suits, and we're fine with that.  (Just don't expect for us to lose ours!)  But, it's at those times where you'll likely find me right at Butch's side. :)