No this entry isn't about that cult slasher movie. Last night I drove back from Virginia and had to do an emergency pit stop on the side of the road. Guys, you know what I mean by this. It's one of those times you are very thankful for being a guy. Anyway, it reminded me of another emergency pit stop I had to make while on the road in California. It was your proverbial dark deserted road in the middle of nowhere, and there were NO rest stops in sight. So I pulled over to, ahem, handle business. There was a dog way down the road at a house barking at me, a good 200 yards away. I yelled at him to shaddup. Right as I was finishing up I heard this sound, and this sound was approaching me at a pretty good clip. Just as I got in the car and closed the door, that same dog was about 5 feet away from me barking again. The sound I heard was its paws scraping against the pavement as it was running towards me. Man it would have SUCKED if I had taken any longer.
A friend of mine recently started up her own blog site over the past week or so, and she displayed a totally typical blog author trait that cracks me up. The, "It's on my site" syndrome. Symptons of this syndrome are shortness and snippiness when asked about recent events that have been documented on one's blog. The author who when asked about an event or series of events, whose answer is available on their web site will throw attitude around because the person asking hasn't read whatever updates on their site.
This really does crack me up because I've been guilty of the same thing. This is especially true when either a) I've been dilligent in updating my site and/or b) there was one or more recent entries that could answer questions. Admittedly, since not everything I do/see doesn't get onto my sight, I will direct people to read the cliff notes version on my site, and then fill in the juicy bits. It's still annoying either way and sad. Somewhere out there I hope someone is studying the sociology of virtual interactions. What happens to people when one of their primary modes of communication is chatting? Does virtual syncronous and asycronous communication effect people's attitudes offline? And if so, how?
I do communicate a great deal online, with chat and this web site. Chatting is usually cheaper and way more convenient than face time. You can share photos, links, and documents easily in chat. In addition a person can carry on multiple, and oft times, independent conversations. Given a conducive mood, friends, topics and high screen resolution I can carry on up to 7 chats at once and not skip a beat.
There is something vitally important to face time though, that chat can not and will never replace: nuance. When we talk to each other, there is a plethora of verbal and nonverbal cues that go on that are totally lost in chat. More on this later.
For those of us who keep web sites and chat, give people a break when they don't read our sites religously! It's not like our sites are CNN or FoxNews, that people read daily and critically.
In case anyone is wondering, to email me, click on that link of the mail icon on the upper left hand corner of this site.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! I've totally forgotten where that line comes from. Thus far today we've been to church and now fixing dinner for later. I thought X-mas on the East Coast was supposed to be white, things covered in snow, snow ball fights and what not after opening presents? Let me not speak too loudly on that one.
Someone asked me recently what I wanted Santa to bring for me, and the honest truth is there really isn't anything. This X-mas has been borderline overwhelming with all that's going on. Living in DE, being closer to my friends, getting an apartment, starting a new job and a new life. Any one of those in singular form would be a great present, much less taken altogether. Sure, there's stuff I would LIKE to have, but I'm blessed beyond anything I had hoped for a year ago.
To all of my family and friends - Merry Christmas!
Still here, alive, and kicking. I think I'm coming down with something, but I'm doing everything in my power to stave this off or kill it outright. This weekend was cool though. Last night Hugo, Nils and I went to Hooters for wings and then went to play pool. At Hooters we happend to go during a fight and the prices of food changed for it. Free refills ended after the fights started. WTF. We weren't even there for the fight. So get this, because of the fight beer ended being cheaper than soda. I have no words for that. Our sodas were $2.79 and Bud and Bud Light was $2.00 each and pitchers for $7.00. So now we know to ask about drink specials BEFORE we order. Oh yea, and last night, one of finally beat Hugo at pool. As it is Hugo is damned near a pool shark and the rest of us usually suck. It was good to beat him at least once because damn he gets cocky and loud when he wins. LOL. I'm definitely getting better and so is Nils. Nils and Niika just closed on their first house and they're getting a pool table. All the more reason to get better.
Today, while over at Chantel's I watched Saved with Brigid. That is such a great movie! The really, really sad thing though a lot of the stuff that happened in that movie actually happens. Parents WILL send their away if they hear they are pregnant or gay. People DO revel in their own piety and see nothing wrong with it, using their love of God to justify their bullshit. To think people could be 're-educated'. Or my favorite: they have all the kindness and love for OTHER people, but when the stuff they condescendingly tolerate in others, they will turn on their own family like a weak member of a predatory pack.
So last night I got the right frames for my desk at Ikea. You would think that 2 calls ahead to the store to make sure everything would go off smoothly would cinch it. Yea right. I called ahead because in between my car getting worked on, returning the rental and getting my car back I lost my receipt. Grrr. Not sure if I wrote about this, but my FIRST weekend in DE someone back into my car. The SAME fender that was damaged in the accident. Why won't people leave my car alone?
But I digress...called the store to tell them I had gotten the wrong frame and needed the right one. The first lady did her magic on her end and told me the part number I was given was indeed wrong (duh) and should get this other. 'Duh' because Hugo, Lavida and I twisted the frames I was given every which way to make the thing work and aling the holes and it was NOT happening. We were like, ya know, we can MAKE some holes. LOL Anyway, while on the phone with that first rep I asked if they had the right frames in stock and she said yea, they had like 40. Cool beans. And I asked flat out, is there a way you can look up my receipt because I've lost mine? And she says yes, we can do that right in the store. Coo'.
About a week and change went by and I wasn't able to make it to Ikea, so I called the number again to make sure they had the proper frames in stock and make sure that they could look up my receipt. All of this prep work was done because Ikea is about an hour from work going the OPPOSITE direction. To get there and find out I couldn't do what needed to be done and THEN have to drive back home an hour or more was not acceptable. I got positive responses again to both my questions, so I was groovy.
Got to the store and the lady at Returns and Exchanges says we can't look up your receipt, who told you that? Well of course the 2 different reps in customer service said so. I called the number on your web site for Ikea. She goes that's a national number and we can't do that in the store. Sigh. She agrees to still return the items and give me a store credit. Bless her heart.
Store credit in hand, rather in pocket, I go find the home office department. And here is my other gripe with Ikea: that damned path! What if you just want to go STRAIGHT to where you want to go?! Yea and those little dumb ass short cuts only work so much. First you have to FIND the short cut and THEN you have reorient yourself to your destination. Like little friggin' worm holes in the Ikea continuum that drop you other places. Grrr. I hope and pray there is never an emergency at Ikea and people had to leave the building quickly. It'd be a damned shame for people looking around exits, following the paths and looking to see which walls were solid or short cuts. Bastards.
Finally got the desk assembled with Vida and Hugo's help. Thank goodness for Vida! She saw the way how the desk was on the floor upside down, and then flipped it in her head to where it was supposed to go and saw that it was backwards. Bless her heart and brain!