Thursday, December 29, 2005

Offering a silver of hope

If any of your silverware was damaged over the holidays, I just want you to know that there's hope:


3 Talked Back:

At December 29, 2005 at 10:24:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

well, you got me, I thought it was going to be a place that restored silverware

 

At December 29, 2005 at 11:28:00 PM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

Gotcha!

Nice catch, stan.

 

At December 30, 2005 at 10:19:00 PM CST, Blogger Subcomandante Bob said...

PHEW!

Good to know.

 

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Wednesday, December 28, 2005

Is this a good sign?

There's a job that opened up here where I work, and I applied for it. (I'm a temp right now; this is an opening for a permanent job.) My interview just finished a few minutes ago, and I think I did pretty well.

The last question asked of me was, "Why should I hire you?"

My answer: "Because I'm awesome."

8 Talked Back:

At December 28, 2005 at 7:03:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

when will you find out??

 

At December 28, 2005 at 9:10:00 PM CST, Blogger meagan said...

The simplest answers are the best!!

Did you say "because I'm awesome" with a playful smile or a nasty smirk? I suppose that would make a big difference... :-)

 

At December 28, 2005 at 10:54:00 PM CST, Blogger Katie said...

Oh my!!! Amazing news! I'm praying for you. Good answer by the way . I use that one all the time. ;-)

Let me know how it goes...

 

At December 29, 2005 at 10:04:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

It was definitely said with a playful smile. The interview was full of humor; I already know, and have worked with, the people who talked to me, so I knew that I was able to relax and be funny.

I think that there are still more interviews, I think five total. I don't know when I'll hear, but as I am already working in the same office, I'll know soon enough.

 

At January 5, 2006 at 7:21:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

with your personality you should definitely get it. i don't even know what the job is but with all the stretching you do in the morning, it's bound to pay off at some point.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

 

At January 6, 2006 at 11:23:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

Update:

I didn't get the permanent job, but I will be filling the open contract position vacated by the person who did get the permanent job.

The two positions are actually the same, but one is permanent. The reason the other person had the edge was that she's already been doing that job, so she's got the experience.

So it's still great news: although I won't be on the payroll (yet), nor will I be receiving any benefits (yet), I will be in line for the next available open position; and I'll be able to approach it with acquired experience, which will make the transition and training much easier than if I got the job today.

So hooray!

(The announcement hasn't formally been made, but I think I'm safe by posting it here.)

 

At January 6, 2006 at 11:24:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

And by the way, that "Because I'm awesome" line worked like gangbusters....

 

At January 6, 2006 at 10:02:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

congrats. i think you're awesome! happy weekend!

 

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Friday, December 23, 2005

So you're saying He came to Earth from a spacecraft?

Here's something to laugh at while I am away from the blog this weekend. (Well, you could laugh at me, but it'd be behind my back, and isn't that rude?)

From the front page, here's an example:


Clearly, Jesus must be of alien origin. Clearly.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

2 Talked Back:

At December 23, 2005 at 5:24:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I like the yards where they mix a nativity scene, Santa, angels and reindeer all in one place -- there is one in town that has all of those plus a giant toy train --

-- have a terrific Christmas!!!!!!!

Jim and Rooty the Dog

 

At December 27, 2005 at 6:53:00 PM CST, Blogger Di said...

ha ha, that is really funny. Do you think someone actually paid money for that?

 

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Power brown-outs, part 2

This is an update on this post, where I ranted a little bit about my attention-grabbing neighbors and their extremely well-lit house. When I wrote that, there was another household on that lot who hadn't yet turned on their lights for the season. Here's a couple of updated photos:


The houses, in the daytime...



...and lit up at night.


I wonder if, when people ask them what they want for Christmas, they reply, "Does the power company sell gift certificates?"

2 Talked Back:

At December 24, 2005 at 1:25:00 AM CST, Blogger Katie said...

I should post a picture of some of the houses in my parents neighborhood... Out of control! But that's one huge yard to light up.

 

At December 27, 2005 at 6:53:00 PM CST, Blogger Di said...

Can you say "Christmas Vacation" with Chevy Chase?

 

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What's next - Pepsi Chips?

Well, I'm feeling a lot better than yesterday. The nausea that hit me was eventually remedied by Pepto Bismol. However, I still don't think my stomach would be strong enough to handle this food product:


That's right, it's beef jerky in easy-to-crunch chip form. Because who likes all of that pesky chewing?

2 Talked Back:

At December 23, 2005 at 4:10:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I watched a documentary on beef jerky the other night (true!) -- they only make it with beef that is absolutely lean, then deep-fry it in fat

 

At January 5, 2006 at 11:04:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

chewing can be pesky, i'm not gonna lie. did you buy these and check 'em out? i'm a snack-a-holic person, i am all about trying new snacks. hmm.

 

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Thursday, December 22, 2005

Just want to get something off out of my chest

Yes, that's right, I have a cold and then some. The thing is, this isn't following the Standard Procedure For Colds In Stan's Body, which is: Sore throat, then clogged sinuses, followed by sneezing, and finally dry coughing.

This is a different one: A few days ago I woke up with a slightly sore throat, but that could have been the result of snoring. I've been having the sniffles for a week or two, but not to the level of sinus clogging. I did sneeze a few times on Monday or Tuesday. The big thing has been the congestion and the coughing up of...fun stuff, in the last three days or so. I've also been having some atypical back pains.

I'm sorry if this post is boring.

I left work early yesterday (which I dislike doing) because I was miserable. I feel just as crappy today, but I still think I need to give myself a chance to get better, because I really dislike calling in sick. Why? Because no matter how crappy I might be feeling, I still think that the boss won't believe that I'm really sick. I'd rather show up in person so they can see my misery.

2 Talked Back:

At December 22, 2005 at 1:29:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I'll call, I'm really good at it. He'll send flowers!

 

At December 22, 2005 at 10:49:00 PM CST, Blogger Katie said...

Stan I am so sorry you are sick!

I always feel the same way when I call in. Like they won't believe me despite the fact I've worked there for five years now!

 

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Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Put some pants on, Doug: Part 2

In reference to this post, where I wondered what the deal was with Pioneer Courthouse Square's Christmas tree, the one with all the missing branches, I now have a follow-up with more photographic evidence:


Here we see the same Douglas Fir tree as before, only its lower branches have been magically restored! Or were they?

Nope. They were bolted back on.

1 Talked Back:

At December 20, 2005 at 11:14:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

a coniferial equivalent of the Hair Club for Men

 

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A little Christmas cheer for the kiddies


Nothing says secular Christmas tradition like having the children coming down and sitting on Santa's lap. Yep, it's Ol' Saint Nick, an unfamiliar, large, old man decked out in bright red and sporting a long white beard...who yells, "HO HO HO!" all the time. No way kids are scared of that, right?

Wrong.

2 Talked Back:

At December 20, 2005 at 11:05:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

is that you

 

At December 21, 2005 at 10:01:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

Nope, some little girl somewhere. I should ask my mom if she has any scary-santa photos of me...that would be hilarious!

 

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Monday, December 19, 2005

Speaking of bathrooms...

It seems to me that if you are the manufacturer of luxury bathroom fixtures, it might be ill-advised to display them in two inches of standing water.


"Try the all-new Turdolux line of luxury commodes. They only leak sometimes!"

An experience beyond words, indeed.

2 Talked Back:

At December 19, 2005 at 3:23:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

OFF TOPIC -- Stan -- if you do a Google image montgage using your first and last names it is major strange, because it picks up the movie grab images

 

At December 19, 2005 at 7:30:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I don't trust any commode that requires a 220 outlet!!!!!!

 

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Friday, December 16, 2005

Here's another thing you can ask my mom about

When I was a kid, it seemed like whenever we went to any public place, I just had to see what the restroom looked like. It's strange, and I feel really nervous and vulnerable admitting this, but it's true. I never really wondered if there was any kind of deep psychological reasoning behind this. But I doubt it, because the fascination stopped before my teenage years, and these days, I have no desire to spend time in a public restroom except when nature calls.

The reason I brought up this subject is that I just found* what could have been my excuse, if the Internet in its present form had existed 25 years ago. There's now a site that is devoted solely to rating restrooms all over the country. Now those people are wacky!

*The way I found it was, I did a Google search for Rimsky-Korsakoffe House, and this was the first site that came up. Rimsky's is famous for having a wacky bathroom.

2 Talked Back:

At December 16, 2005 at 6:39:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

wacky indeed.
hey check out my blog, i posted something and i need some advice. :)

 

At December 18, 2005 at 5:06:00 PM CST, Blogger Andrew Price said...

Hmm. Rating public restrooms? The Frist, a museum in Tennessee, has the best public restroom I've seen yet. Just so you know.

I could get far too good at this...

 

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Thursday, December 15, 2005

But do you have any products that absorb spilled bacon grease?

Here's an interesting idea:

Say you want to start a company that makes industrial absorbants for oil spill cleanup. You've worked out the formulas, created the business plan, secured the capital, built a factory, hired your employees, and worked out the sales and distribution channels. What's left? Creating a corporate image. You hire a design firm, run focus groups and ultimately decide what your brand will be.

Naturally, you'll choose a porcine theme, with a large cartoon pig as a mascot and a facility located on Pork Avenue. Because that idea isn't completely wacko. Well, think again, Porky, that idea's taken.

(From the website: "We're fun, crazy, and literally insane about our marketing, but when it comes to the quality and performance of our products, we're totally serious.")

12 Talked Back:

At December 15, 2005 at 4:45:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

it's a great company, with terrific products and fast service -- I order from them every year, for the garage floor, to absorb the snow melt off of the car -- I've used both the gray universal mat pads and the mat rolls, they suck up water like crazy -- this year I ordered the absorbent socks. they are long and yellow and Rooty thinks they are stuffed toy snakes

 

At December 15, 2005 at 5:08:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

I took a closer look at their website. It looks like they have some pretty cool, useful stuff there. I'm glad I checked out a second time, because I noticed that we had their e-mail address misspelled in our vendor records - see, I've been working!

The 20th Hamiversary Pig Hat is now at the top of my list of things I don't want for Christmas. But a company T-shirt would be awesome.

 

At December 15, 2005 at 6:29:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

but...it's a really odd name

 

At December 16, 2005 at 12:57:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

love the new photo of you shaving. was that taken with the crappy camera phone?

 

At December 16, 2005 at 1:07:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

Actually, I have tiny cameras implanted into my eyes, just like in the movie The Final Cut. This was just me looking in the mirror. :)

 

At December 16, 2005 at 4:15:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

shaving? I thought someone hit you with a pie! too bad

 

At December 16, 2005 at 4:30:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

Well, they did, but it was blackberry pie.

 

At December 16, 2005 at 8:08:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I had forgotten about your beard, thanks for reminding me

 

At December 16, 2005 at 9:38:00 PM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

Ah ha! So that's why he doesn't have his beard anymore!

Give him his beard back, Jim!

 

At December 16, 2005 at 10:58:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

SJK -- stan bought some absorbent pads from NEWPIG and they sucked the whiskers right off his face

 

At December 18, 2005 at 10:53:00 AM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

Oh, my.

NEWPIG's startin' to scare me, man.

 

At December 21, 2005 at 3:39:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

here is what the newpig water-sucking tubes look like -- absorb-tubes

 

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Goodbye (sort of), Joel and Steve

I just heard from Eddie Bowley, my English cartoonist friend who has graciously hosted Joel and Steve for free for the last three years. He informed me that by the end of the week, all of his stuff will be migrating to a new server, but he isn't able to back my files up in the process. And seeing as how I've maybe added 10 (?) comics to the site in the last year - zero since June - he wondered if I didn't mind if he dropped J&S from the Bollox Comics site.

I certainly don't mind.

I have had the idea of moving everything over to a Blogger site, so people could still read the 250+ episodes of the story, but I really don't have the time to upload them all. The site is http://joelandsteve.blogspot.com. So I'll put it out there: Does anyone want to help me complete this task? I will send you a Blogger invite, and you can just follow the pattern of the first couple of comics to fill in the rest. It would be as simple as saving the image files locally, then uploading them to Blogger. And I'd e-mail or file-share the rest if the task is unfinished before the site goes down.

As for the Movie Grabs, or Steve's B'Stuff, or any of the other random crap I have up there, I don't know what I'll do. Maybe move them over to blogs of their own?

7 Talked Back:

At December 15, 2005 at 11:19:00 AM CST, Blogger nitsuj said...

Yay pick me, pick me! The (lack of) activity on my blog is no indication of how I'd do with the Joel and Steve blog. Haha, sounds like I'm applying for a job. Well, I volunteer anyway :D

 

At December 15, 2005 at 11:32:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

Okay then, I'll send you the Blogger invite when I get home from work tonight, unless you are willing to post your e-mail address here (I'll delete it after I send the invite).

Meantime, go ahead and start saving the comic files to a folder in your hard drive. I might start up a Movie Grabs site on my own, so you wouldn't have to worry about that. (Looks like the Drunk Duck mirror site is down; I wonder when that happened!)

 

At December 15, 2005 at 11:50:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

(Invite sent. E-mail address removed.)

 

At December 15, 2005 at 6:59:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I already downloaded all of the files, immediately got a development deal with New Line Cinema, Nick Lachey is going to play you, they are talking to Matthew McConaughey to play whichever one is not you

 

At December 15, 2005 at 11:02:00 PM CST, Blogger nitsuj said...

Phew, finally done! 13.4 mb of pure Joel and Steve goodness! (Alternative strip-, Green Sheet Chronicles-, and Beans-inclusive)

One question though.. once I put them on the site, do they depend on the local files on my computer? I mean, if my computer crashed or something (Heaven forbid), would that be the end of Joel and Steve (double Heaven forbid)?

 

At December 16, 2005 at 11:04:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

All of the images will be uploaded to Blogger with each post.

I have posted a how-to for you, which looks way more complicated than it is (sorry), but you'll get the hang of it.

If your computer does crash, remember that I have multiple copies of the image files. Joel and Steve are safe. :)

 

At December 16, 2005 at 9:36:00 PM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

I've had much practice uploading image files to a certain blog I author.

If nitsuj starts getting a little behind or needs a hand, I can help out.

 

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Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Last Saturday's walk around Oregon City

On Saturday, my roommate Adam and I decided to go have a late breakfast - and by late, I'm talking 12:30. Biscuits Cafe in Oregon City is good place for that sort of thing, so we went. And I ate until I was stuffed. (So much for 185.) After eating, I showed Adam where in town I lived for 3-4 years, and then we drove over to the bluff.

The bluff is a little area on the south side of Oregon City that has a pretty good view of downtown O.C. and points north. In the distance one can see the cluster of the tallest buildings in downtown Portland. When I was in high school, I remember the bluff as a place for couples to go make out, but only theoretically because they had to share bluff space with stereoheads trying to outblast each other with their giant car audio systems. It was also a cool place to go if you wanted to just look out over the city (which is basically what I would do there, because of a lack of girlfriend and/or car stereo system).


There's an old road that leads from the bluff down to the Oregon City Armory at the bottom of the hill. Rockslides and lack of maintenance forced the road closed, though, and now its just a nice place to walk. I just discovered that the area is called Waterboard Park. Adam and I took a stroll down the road, which is sheltered by tall trees and bordered by piles of green-covered rocks.


It was a good walk. Beyond the Armory, we walked around the neighborhood streets a little bit, then circled back toward another couple of steep uphill paths leading back to the bluff. Those hills sent me a message: Time to get out walking more!

2 Talked Back:

At December 14, 2005 at 9:54:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

we hung out on The Island, which was not actually an island, although you had to cross a bridge to get to it. the bridge washed away in the Great Flood of 93, making it difficult to actually get to the island; then the railroad took out the crossing for the road to the island, making it impossible even to get to where the bridge had been before it washed away, you know, in the Great Flood of 93.

ps. I stole one of your photos.

 

At December 14, 2005 at 11:33:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

Nicely done.

 

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Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Another incredible commercial

God always surprises me. He likes to show me examples of His creativity in places that nobody but He intended for His glory. I don't imagine that when a film crew recently filmed a commercial in San Francisco to sell Sony TVs, that their motivation was to display God's awesome brilliance in inventing the colors of the visible spectrum, not to mention the chaos of downhill physics; but let me tell you, that's exactly how I saw it.

I won't set up the premise at all; I'll let you see it for yourself. (QuickTime required.)

Colour like.no.other

The movie file itself (right-click to save, 54.4 MB)

2 Talked Back:

At December 14, 2005 at 2:23:00 AM CST, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow!! Did they really do that, or is that CGI?

 

At December 14, 2005 at 10:25:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

Watch the behind the scenes stuff - it's all real!

 

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I'll definitely need a visual aid for this one

Here's a partial list of juggling routines performed by David Cain - Juggler for Jesus:
  • Beanbags and bouncy balls are juggled to illustrate how the Resurrection makes Jesus very different from every other religious leader throughout history. (Acts 2:31; 1 Cor. 15:14)
  • A routine using five clubs is presented to discuss the fact that Jesus demonstrated His love for us by dying on the cross in our place. (Rom. 5:8)
  • A Chinese Rhythm stick is used to tell the story of Paul the apostle. (Acts 9:1-31)
  • A giant Chinese yo-yo is used to discuss the miracles and ministry of Jesus. (Acts 2:22-24)
  • The story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead is shared using juggling clubs. (John 11)
  • A bowling ball, ping pong ball, and tennis ball are juggled to share a message about the importance of knowing Jesus as your Lord and Savior. (Eph.2:8-9)

And my personal favorite...

Okay, so I'm making a little fun here. But honestly, if this guy came to do his presentation, I'd probably want to go see him perform. A long time ago, I used to want to be a juggler...just ask my mom about how I'd always be throwing and twirling things. (Including lawn darts.)

1 Talked Back:

At December 15, 2005 at 7:46:00 AM CST, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh, I remember!!! Mom ;)

 

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Please come visit my Avalon Hideaway With Bungalow Face

The idea behind the spam trapper was that those comment spam bots only seemed to dump their poop on the most recent blog post; thus, if the trapper is the most "recent", or has the latest date, it should act as the spam trap. Unfortunately, it seems that they've gotten wise, and are now sprinkling their garbage all over my older posts. One post from March attracted more than 30 spam comments. So now I have to go through and clean them out of there.

Two spams of note (links removed), which I put here because they were funny or extra sneaky:
At 4:34 AM, Water & Fire said...

I have been visiting sites all day and I really like what you have done with your blog. I found your site just after I visited Avalon Hideaway With Bungalow Face Pocatello. Kind a lame if you ask me. Who cares.. I'm here now! Have a good one!
Yes, I can't wait to experience the latest trend in skin care: Bungalow Face.
At 7:12 PM, Anonymous said...

nice blog enjoyed it :)

Keep up the excellent work! and i bookmarked u!

so cant wait for ur next post! :)

Thanks!!
Now, the name wasn't linked to a profile page, and none of the words or phrases had links either. So you might ask yourself, how do you know it's spam? Because they hid the links in the exclamation points.

I don't want to have to turn word verification on, but if I see more spam after cleaning this batch out, I'll have to. Sorry, kids.

2 Talked Back:

At December 13, 2005 at 1:05:00 PM CST, Blogger meagan said...

Sometimes I'm tempted to click on links like that "Avalon Hideaway with Bungalow Face" just to figure out what exact craziness they're talking about. But I don't want to encourage them, so I don't.

 

At December 13, 2005 at 2:59:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

so, the point of blocking spam if you are going to include it in your post would be????????? :)

comment moderation seemed to work better for me, I still got spam posted when word verification turned on -- but then I have no life and never sleep so even with comment moderation the blog was still real time...

 

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Monday, December 12, 2005

After considering a cartoon of Jesus on a unicycle, the publishers settled on a more understated cover

I was checking around on the Net to see if there's anywhere that sells inexpensive copies of the New American Standard Bible, and I ran across Amazon's Bible section. I did a search for "NASB", and though one of the results was much more expensive than my budget, I clicked on it anyway. I was quite amused to see the thumbnail image of this particular edition's cover:

4 Talked Back:

At December 12, 2005 at 8:19:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

it's a special "2001: A Space Odyssey" edition.

have you seen Robert Alter's The Five Books of Moses: A Translation With Commentary -- it is a spectacular work

 

At December 13, 2005 at 12:58:00 PM CST, Blogger meagan said...

Ha hahahaha. I actually clicked on your photo there to see it bigger, to see if I could see like a leather grain or anything to give it interest. Nope.

love meagan.

p.s. Christian Discount Books is where I always order books cheap for New Song. christianbook.com, if you haven't already discovered it..

 

At December 13, 2005 at 2:07:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

Meagan, I clicked it also!!!!!

 

At December 13, 2005 at 3:03:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

Maybe when you clicked on it, you were expecting a surprise picture of Jesus on a unicycle. How's about the next best thing.

 

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Never was the name "Frogger" more appropriate

Man goes wrong way on highway for 11 miles

Mon Dec 12,12:26 PM ET

STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) - A Frenchman drove up a motorway in the wrong direction for 11 miles, crashing into five other vehicles and killing one person and injuring three others including two children, police said.

The 66-year-old man continued driving after his first two collisions Sunday in the hope of finding an exit off the A35 in eastern France, a police spokesman in the city of Strasbourg said.

No one was injured in the first collision with two vehicles, but one person was seriously hurt in a second accident with two other vehicles.

The retired motorist, driving with his wife, only came to a halt when he collided head-on with another car, killing an adult and seriously injuring two children aboard. Police said the victims were among a family of immigrants from the former Soviet Union.

Police said alcohol tests on the driver proved negative and he could not explain why he had turned the wrong way onto the motorway. He was in shock but he and his wife were otherwise unhurt.

And I would know, as I've memorized the entire Internet

Jim posted this gem of a story last Wednesday, and it just gets more and more hilarious every time I read it. The story, about a hygenic shoplifter, is so absurd, that the more I try to picture the scene, the harder I laugh about it. Not only that, but the fact that Jim has done some personal research related to this crime just makes it all the funnier.

I can say that this is one of the funniest things ever found on the Web. Thanks, Jim!

1 Talked Back:

At December 12, 2005 at 5:54:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

ok, I'll lend you the banana suit

 

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Yes, it's a free plug for iTunes

I just have to say that I have been loving iTunes. I downloaded it a couple of weeks ago, and have been using it to rip down my entire CD collection. While I'm doing that (from two DVD-ROMs, no less), I am downloading and listening to sermon podcasts. And here's the thing I most appreciate: 99% of the time, when I load a CD, iTunes actually has the correct album information - the track names are spelled correctly, compilations are properly identified, etc. You have no idea how annoying it is to have to manually change every bit of information because some second-rate online CD cataloguing site got it wrong.

I also like that you can share your music across your local network, to as many as five (I think it's five) other computers. If I can just get my roommate to download iTunes, I can share every song in my collection with him.

I haven't even scratched the surface with the video features yet. I can't wait to start downloading episodes of old TV shows ("Knight Rider," "MacGyver," "Quantum Leap,", "The Simpsons," "Futurama," etc.), if and when they become available.

Now all I need is an iPod, and I'll be ready to go. I'd really like the top-of-the-line, 60GB Video iPod, but I can't justify spending $399 on it right now. Anyone want to buy me one for Christmas? In black?

1 Talked Back:

At December 12, 2005 at 12:57:00 PM CST, Blogger meagan said...

I DO know how annoying that is, because that CD catloguing doesn't work for me, apparently. I use itunes regularly to download & burn New Song's Sunday teachings and it is hilarious to see what sorts of titles & artists it comes up with based on what it "hears" in the sermon.

I do love itunes also. I love that it's a mac program that is not discriminating against pc's.

love meagan

 

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Sunday, December 11, 2005

"A Win-Win Situation"

Rev. Bob Cryder with wife Jenny.
Last week, a beloved pastor by the name of Bob Cryder passed away. Though I didn't know him, I had the opportunity to hear him preach several times, each time moved beyond words at the man's ability to reflect the love of God and speak His words into my soul.

Rev. Cryder was a very charismatic man who could make you feel like you were good friends and buddies for years. Very well-spoken, and very easy-going. You can read the obituary article for a good history of his life.

Interviewed by the Sacramento Bee (by e-mail) a couple of weeks ago, Rev. Cryder had this to say about the mantle cell lymphoma which ultimately claimed his life:

"...I know that God has allowed cancer into my life, so many great strides are being made with cancer today, and I'm in a win-win situation, no matter what. If I get to stay here with family, friends and Arcade Church, I win, and if I go home to heaven with God, I win also."

The Sacramento Bee Obituary

3 Talked Back:

At December 11, 2005 at 10:29:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

Stan -- you might want to identify the lady in the picture, is that his wife? -- you might also want to add a link for giving memorials (the newspaper requires registration) -- Jim

 

At December 12, 2005 at 12:27:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

The lady in the picture is indeed his wife Jenny, sorry about that.

I didn't realize that there was a registration required for the Bee; it didn't require it for me when I Googled his name, but when I followed my own link it did.

I set up a private blog to hold the text of the two stories about Bob Cryder.

 

At December 12, 2005 at 10:32:00 AM CST, Blogger That One Chick You Know said...

Sorry about your loss. He sounded like a good man.

 

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Friday, December 09, 2005

A little housekeeping

Just drawing your attention to the slight template changes of the blog. Now you can see who commented on any post without having to expand it with show/hide. I found out how to do it here, but I had to tweak the code a bit to work with this template.

I also added a link to The Wizard of Id, which I should have done a long time ago. This comic makes me laugh a high percentage of the time, which is especially amazing given how long it's been around. Unfortunately, the Comics.com site will probably give you a pop-up ad when you click there; I wish there was a way I could prevent it.

3 Talked Back:

At December 9, 2005 at 3:03:00 PM CST, Anonymous Anonymous said...

this works great. Jim

 

At December 9, 2005 at 4:40:00 PM CST, Blogger That One Chick You Know said...

Thanks for the comment link - I love it!

 

At December 9, 2005 at 9:52:00 PM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

Whatever you've done, dude, Now my Firefox can see your rotating header image, so all is AOK.

I'm using the new version of Firefox too, so maybe that has something to do with it. But the old way was kind of counter-intuitive, and you recognized it and improved it perforce; good on you.

 

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Thursday, December 08, 2005

Priorities

As best as I can tell, I haven't been using this blog for the glory and honor of God. Somewhere along the way, maybe from the beginning, my priorities were not set correctly; I've chosen entertainment and humor over more worthwhile messages.

I don't know what this means yet. I'm not going away, I'm not removing anything; I don't see any changes in my style just yet. I may have to start a separate blog (and yes, Jim, further crash the Internet). I just don't know.

What I need to do for now is to make sure that whatever I write here is in line with the principles of my faith: respecting others, not tearing anyone down (except myself), never putting up questionable or offensive material. This includes my attempts to make you smile or laugh (both of which are definitely good to do).

If this post makes no sense or seems to contradict itself, it's because I'm pretty much writing this on the fly. Do you know how hard it is to get a fly to stand still?

Stay tuned.

4 Talked Back:

At December 8, 2005 at 2:11:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

the fly is probably after the vanilla

 

At December 8, 2005 at 4:31:00 PM CST, Blogger Shirley said...

I think you've done a great job of letting people know what you believe, without alienating anyone. Sometimes it's the smallest gestures that mean the most.

 

At December 9, 2005 at 12:40:00 AM CST, Blogger Katie said...

Do what your conscience leads you to do. I love reading your thoughts. I haven't once thought they were out of line with your personal beliefs. Not too mention you make me laugh.

You know I am always so proud of you when you seek to move in the direction of glorifying God! I'm excited to see its what's on your mind.

 

At December 9, 2005 at 9:54:00 PM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

Well, if they fly's too much of a hassle, do one of those writing-on-a-grain-of-rice things.

Those're more fashionable anyway.

 

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Everything I touched turned to gold vanilla

I was walking around the mall last night with a friend, and we went into one of those Bath Oil and Lotion shops so she could buy something. This place was like a foreign world to me, all of the creams, balms, peels, lotions, treatments, etc. I had no idea that half of this stuff existed.

So there was this tester bottle of a hand lotion that smelled like vanilla and something else I forgot (more vanilla?), and I tried it out, naturally putting on way too much and having to wipe the excess onto my pant legs. This was an affirmation of my masculinity: I don't think girls are generally allowed to wipe lotion onto their pant legs, at least not in public. Well this stuff smelled pretty good, a little bit foofoo, but it didn't matter since I was just going home after the mall. Well, apparently this lotion is industrial strength, because even after:
  • a night of sleep
  • a shower this morning (handling more than one type of cleaning substance)
  • an application of a different type of lotion (which is actually Vaseline in cream form; yes, I have very dry hands)
I can still smell the vanilla lotion, and it's pretty strong. Maybe I need a micro dermabrasion, or whatever it's called.

4 Talked Back:

At December 8, 2005 at 2:10:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I think I read where that's permanent, you're going to smell like a vanilla-fudge cake forever.

 

At December 9, 2005 at 3:51:00 PM CST, Blogger That One Chick You Know said...

You know what microdermabrasian is?

Impressive.

 

At December 9, 2005 at 4:25:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

I really don't know what it is, but I've heard the word tossed around when I'm hanging out with the ladies.

 

At December 9, 2005 at 9:58:00 PM CST, Blogger Samuel John Klein said...

Man, my wife lurves those shops.

I got her a couple of bottles of those froufrou hand lotions for her birthday a couple months back and, like, I'm still her hero for it.

They do smell nice tho'. 'Cos, mmmm, vanilla.

 

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Wednesday, December 07, 2005

High-pitched death knells, conclusion

As a follow-up to this post...

Yesterday afternoon I was sitting here at my desk, when I heard, from 75 feet away in the breakroom, the three microwave "finish" beeps. Then I heard them again. And again. In all, seven groups of three beeps.

Clearly, whoever was afraid of them has faced their fear. Good for you, beepophobe!

1 Talked Back:

At December 8, 2005 at 8:34:00 AM CST, Anonymous Anonymous said...

beep. beep. beep

 

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Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Taped to the walls of school cafeterias everywhere

Today's "Wizard of Id":


Click image to enlarge

I don't know why the funniest comics are about bad food. Maybe bad food humor is universal.

1 Talked Back:

At December 6, 2005 at 2:20:00 PM CST, Blogger meagan said...

and it doesn't really insult anyone personally.

 

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I was going to make up a title about "Slaves obey[ing] your masters," but thought better of it

I bought my home computer about a year ago, and I made the poor decision of purchasing a remanufactured model rather than paying the extra $60 for a new one. Furthermore, when I started to realize that it was having problems, my procrastination problem kept me from returning it to Fry's within the warranty period. So I was left high and dry.

One of the biggest problems that I had was that the DVD burner never worked. It could read discs, but the computer wouldn't recognize it as a burner. Thus, when I wanted to burn mix CDs for my friends and family last Christmas, I had to plug in the old, slow computer from 1999 and burn CDs with that.

A couple of months ago, it hit me that the solution might be the simplest of all. There's a switch on the back of the burner that determines whether it's the Master unit or the Slave. (Why, I am not sure...I'm not that technical.) When installing the CD burner on the old compy, I remembered that the CD-ROM needed to be set to Master, and the burner to Slave. So I thought that perhaps the burner on the new computer was mistakenly set to Master. I opened the box and took a look - and I was right. So I switched it to Slave, hoping that it would solve the problem.

It didn't.

Now the computer didn't even recognize the drive at all, even for reading discs. And the DVD-ROM drive beneath it was starting to lag and act funny, to the point where I thought it was broken, too. I was just ready to take the darned thing down to Fry's to have them fix it (and I still might, for the other problems it has), when I realized that both drives were set to Slave.

I opened up the box again last night, set the DVD-ROM drive to Master, made sure the burner was set to Slave, and closed it back up again. I turned the computer on, and opened up iTunes (my new favorite player). Tested the DVD-ROM...worked perfectly. The computer recognized the burner and gave it back its drive letter. I dropped a blank disc into it and burned a few audio tracks. Success!

So now I can get back to the business of mixing some new CDs. I'm pretty darned excited about that! And yes, if you give me your mailing address, I'll try to send you a copy. (As long as you don't mind 18 variations of "Rock Me Amadeus".)

4 Talked Back:

At December 6, 2005 at 12:29:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

There were several months of outright denial. The kind of denial that says, "Everything is working fine. No need to open up the computer."

 

At December 6, 2005 at 1:54:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

huh?

OFF TOPIC" why doesn't Google autofill follow ECML, do you know????

 

At December 6, 2005 at 2:28:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

I have no idea what Google autofill or ECML are, so my answer is that maybe it doesn't like the color of your tie.

 

At December 6, 2005 at 6:15:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

well, I said it was "off topic"

 

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Monday, December 05, 2005

Ten things that take me back: December

An orange and a nickel from Grandma*
Sweet Mart
The smell of Eraser Mate ink
Buck Rogers and Congo Bongo games for the C64
That big multi-colored pillow in the family room
Cub Scout meetings at St. Aiden's
The plane crash within a mile of my house
National Geographics in the living room bookcase
Dad's blue, cardboard coin-collector books
Collecting newspapers every Saturday


*Every year, Grandma Kost would give everyone in the family an orange with a nickel taped to it. I never understood the tradition (or remembered the meaning behind it, if it was indeed explained); but, even though I was a typical toy-craving materialistic kid, I always loved and appreciated the simple gift Grandma gave us.

4 Talked Back:

At December 6, 2005 at 12:32:00 AM CST, Blogger Jim said...

you forgot the part about Aunt Bea and Opie :)

 

At December 6, 2005 at 1:10:00 AM CST, Anonymous Anonymous said...

whoa....my first time leaving my 2.1 cents! But I can't find the "cents" sign and i know you'll be annoyed if i write it like this: $002.1 all this trouble and all i really wanted to say was that i always get an orange in the bottom of my stocking on christmas morning and it may very well be the best part of the day.

 

At December 6, 2005 at 10:04:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

The girl: You can go ahead and leave as many comments as you need to make yourself at home here. :)

 

At December 6, 2005 at 6:34:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

Yesterday I was talking to my boss about the orange/nickel tradition, and she hadn't heard of it, either.

A few minutes later we were talking about King Kong, and she didn't believe me when I said there was a King Kong movie made in the 1980s. So she bet me an orange with a nickel that I was wrong. I wasn't wrong. Sure enough, this morning I was given an orange with a nickel taped to it, and it reminded me of Grandma.

 

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title="(your awesome words)"

I decided it'd be fun to add quotes from each of the blogs I have in the Blogs I Read list. I've only done a few so far; I'll get them all fitted with quotes soon, and I'll periodically update them when I find a new line I like. (The blogs without quotes just uncreatively show the name of that blog.)

Hover over the name of the blogs to see what I quoted!

Also: Speaking of quotes, I updated the quote at the bottom of the page.

5 Talked Back:

At December 5, 2005 at 1:51:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

please send royalty payment for use of quote -- for an extra ten buck, I will set it to music

 

At December 5, 2005 at 2:00:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

I don't have your address, Jim - should I forward it to McDonalds instead?

 

At December 5, 2005 at 4:19:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

yes, send it ATTN: Rooty

Make check payable to the "Rooty Charitable Investment Trust, Ltd., of Barbados"

 

At December 5, 2005 at 5:16:00 PM CST, Blogger meagan said...

This is fabulous and fun! I love it!

 

At December 5, 2005 at 7:19:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

hee hee. hard core hurting.

thought i lost you there stan, the operation trying to find you earlier today kept timing out and then the page could not be found and i thought, "noooooooooooooooooooo!"

 

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Friday, December 02, 2005

Best personal capsule review of a movie, ever

High Fidelity

It's like I paid John Cusack some money so he could be unhappy about things for me. It's an optimal arrangement, really. He does all my unhappy-ing for me while I get my important work done. Win freakin' win, baby.

Found on The Everyday Life of Phineas Q. Mongoose, on his December 29, 2004 post

Oops

For the office supply junkie and World of Warcraft player in your life, here's the perfect gift that apparently appeals to both interests.



Click to enlarge

2 Talked Back:

At December 2, 2005 at 7:14:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

stan -- the image is too small, even enlarged, to read what is on the box

 

At December 3, 2005 at 4:33:00 AM CST, Blogger stan said...

For details, yes, but I'm 99.9% sure that it's the Warcraft logo. I can read the word Warcraft pretty well.

It's definitely not a paper clip holder.

 

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Thursday, December 01, 2005

Power brown-outs: the gift that keeps on giving

Every Christmas season, the neighbors across the street become Clark Griswold when it comes to putting up Christmas lights. I think that the large house, which is up the hill a ways, is probably visible from a distance, which draws people in to look at it; our street is not a main thoroughfare by any stretch of the imagination, so all of the people who clog the street must be visitors from other neighborhoods.


This is what it looks like from the end of the long driveway. Because of the large buffer, visitors who want to take a closer look have to idle on the street, which sometimes causes traffic problems and certainly more noise than usual - right in front of my house - none of which burdens my neighbors at all. They get the sweet end of the deal, people from afar feeding their narcissism; while we, in the humble house across the street, get all of the nuisance, thank you very much.

6 Talked Back:

At December 1, 2005 at 3:34:00 PM CST, Blogger Jen said...

Your blog is hilarious. Thanks for providing entertainment during the 8 hours of hellish boredom otherwise known as my job.

 

At December 1, 2005 at 3:40:00 PM CST, Blogger Jim said...

I would be out in that street every night with a santa hat, a kettle, and a bell -- you could pick yourself up a nice chunk of change, ho, ho, ho

 

At December 1, 2005 at 6:45:00 PM CST, Blogger stan said...

Norma - Thanks a bunch, I'm glad I can provide the distraction. Be sure to check out the other blogs I'm involved in (Zrharc, 185, OCCPPA) if you haven't already.

Jim - I'm a wimp, it's too cold out there for me. Wimpy, wimpy me.

 

At December 1, 2005 at 9:25:00 PM CST, Blogger kristen said...

it must be too cold cause you can't even go walk up that big hill alone when it's cold out!

 

At December 2, 2005 at 8:28:00 AM CST, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Something like that happened around her a while ago. I kind of live out in the desert a bit so there is a lot of wildlife here. And a hawk made a nest on top of a cactus that was next to the street that I live on. Traffic was tough getting out because people would park along the street.

 

At December 2, 2005 at 10:47:00 AM CST, Blogger Scott said...

Stan, got any snow down there yet?

 

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