Leaning Back and Blogging

Looks like Ms Frizzle's stepped back from the edge of the cliff. That's good. She's a good resource. Kind of a sergeant whereas we usually get to hear from politicized generals or (worse) civilian employee types. She's boots on the ground.

Now for a Nerd Moment. I just got a new wireless keyboard and mouse. Heavenly. The old ones were probably going to last me for years, but I'm in front of this damn thing so much I constantly wear down the plastic at the front of the keyboard so it's all nice and shiny. I'm sure my keyboarding teacher (Mrs Hlavaty) would have helpful hints about proper placement of the wrists. I'm sure the kids who follow those instructions aren't typing for most of the day, and aren't doing it at 90/120wpm (city/highway).

It'll take some getting used to. Microsoft has decreed that the Insert key serves no use and must be written out of The Book. Down the Memory Hole. I had some habits formed around that damned key. I'm not sure I see the point. I was also a little sick of that huge lump of Natural keyboard. It's great for typing, but I don't do much typing here at home other than e-mail. Maybe I'll use it at work. Dunno.

Thus ends the Nerd Moment.

Pooh Yet Lives

Everybody's favorite KBR contractor is alive. Rejoice. Things were a little worrisome after that incident in Fallujah. For no good reason, but there are probably a few areas of the US where everybody knows somebody who's in Iraq, whether military, civil servant, or contractor. Stuff like the Fallujah attacks, defilements, mutilations, etc. are scary, but I think they only make you think "bring them all home, oh Lordy it's so dangerous over there!" if you're one of the ones who think we had no reason (*cough* duty) to be over there in the first place.

Good idea

"A San Antonio-based startup development company is betting upper-middle-income families will be eager to buy houses in what has been long considered lower-middle-income territory."

A sound idea, and from what I can tell, these guys are doing it right in terms of construction and location. There's still the problems with the school district, area amenities (shopping), and I'm sure the professional activists will take their pound of flesh before it's complete, but there are folk out there that would like a good house and wouldn't mind living on the South Side.

No, I'm not one of those folk.

Drunken Lack of Debauchery

There was a party in my home "area" this weekend. Just south of San Antonio is where I'm from. I don't fit in there anymore, if ever. A goodly portion of my Vast Army of Cousins was there, including my cousin JG, the principal(ess). She turned 30 yesterday! I'm only 28, JG!

She invited me to go clubbing with her and "some people from work", aka "teachers". I hope I missed that party. Me. Clubbing. Ne'er. Then she warned me that some of the people she works with are homosexual. No way! Yes way, gay as the day is long. I don't care. Then she told me that one of her friends was the cutest little gym teacher and I would just adore her. Yes, probably. But the gym teacher's got a thing for JG. Yeah. Oh! And black guys! But I'm as white as the day is long.

I don't know why JG tells me such things. Her husband had a really odd demeanor when discussing the gym teacher. Yeah, BP, I would too. I'm wishy-washy on the whole teacher thing (young, naive, comparatively poor, good targets) but I draw the line at anything resembling a coach. A pox on them all.

Uncle Pinky, if you're reading this, I'm not talking about you.

Kingdumb Hospital

I'm not a Stephen King fan. I say that without irony. I like his stuff, as long as I agree with myself before reading that indeed much of the story will be pointless and weird and I'll get annoyed, but just deal with it because when he gets going, he gets going. I think he's got a fixation on songs getting stuck in your head.

Salem's Lot was good. The Dark Tower series is interesting enough, but I lean that way anyhow.
Then there's Kingdom Hospital. The problem with Kingdom Hospital is mostly that it moves at the pace and uses much of the style of a Stephen King book. Which can make it tiresome. Kind of hard to enjoy when you feel like you're spending chunks of an episode, or maybe an entire episode, just sort of jabbering about and "establishing characters." "Establishing characters" in Stephen King's world means getting a shot of all their stray thoughts and idiosyncracies every time you encounter them. They aren't developed so much as thrown over you.

Yeah, so, I'm debating whether or not I want to keep watching Kingdom Hospital. It bores me. Even the little "mysteries" that are always so fetching in a book are tiresome. Sorta like Chris Claremont's never-ending run on X-Men, when a subplot may develop for 3 years before it comes to a head... unless the subplot gets dropped. There probably wouldn't even be a need for an X-Men newsgroup if Claremont had just kept a firm rein on his subplots.

Anyhow, suffering. It's a good thing I don't have anything better to do.