Not our dogs, but worth a look

This little one merits a link.

Sorry we've been skimping on the dog-centered posts. I promise pictures of Oscar and Felix getting used to their new house later this Spring.

m

A New House

M and I bought a house today. We are looking forward to finally having a place big enough to have people other than my sister over. Because we actually bought an affordable house at a reasonable price, there are some things that have to be fixed.

 

Some professionally: new roof (which the seller agreed to pay), replacement of aluminum wiring with copper, and termite poisoning.

Some amateurly: new toilets, replacing the sliding glass door with a real backdoor, fixing a hole in the drywall in the laundry room, replacing the hideous ceiling fan and overhead light in the living room, replacing the cabinets.

And finally the stuff that we are recruiting volunteers for: painting!

 

In the future we hope to build a rainwater harvesting system as well as replacing the backyard grass with native plants and grasses.

 

Not all of these things will be done in time for the party in June, but we are hoping that you all can make it.

 

See previous post for picture.

Oscar Party

So apparently not everyone goes to an Oscar Party to get drunk and make fun of people giving themselves awards. Did you know that the Academy Awards Show has won several Emmys. WTF? There were however two who were just too good to even watch the show. They were so rude, they just distracted everyone from the High Life and montages.

They did win an award though, for best picture:


Can't you just feel their anticipation?

In the House

As I mentioned in a previous post (albeit in a subtle way), M and I are in the process of buying a house.

Here it is:



It's a good example of never say never. Before we moved out west and before we had dogs, I never wanted to own a house. Houses tie you down, they need constant maintenance, they can suck your entire weekend, it takes more than 10 minutes to clean them, you have to pay for it twice over, you have to pay the racket that is home owners insurance....BUT

You get your own yard, you can make the interior in your own image, you can have parties and not have to answer to anyone but your neighbors and possibly the police, you have a real kitchen, you can have house guests.....add whatever you'd like to.

The picture may or may not do the actual house justice depending on your feelings towards the author...i.e. that DM is an ass and that house is a piece; or I like DM and the house looks nice.

Party in June!!

Still busy

So here is what has been going on.
I was about to settle into a routine when my schedule changed. Now I'm on the evenings and occasional weekends rotation. Sounds bad, but its good. It means that on Tuesdays I get to sleep in till about 10 and on the weekend that I work it means that the following weekend will be a 3 day weekend. Still taking the bus and have gotten used to getting up earlier and getting home later in our small attempt to save some money and simultaneously wean the US off foreign oil.

I wrote about myself first because M had it way better this week. She was a volunteer at the Clinton-Obama debate at UT yesterday. Her job was to hang in the "spin room" and watch the debate. After it was over, she held up signs with the names of several policy wonks so that the press could find them and ask them questions like: "Healthcare, good or bad? War, good or bad?"
She didn't get mentioned by name, but do you think you can find her?: http://www.statesman.com/ap/mediahub/media/slideshow/index.jsp?tId=81404

Tonight we're taking a page out of The Gay Place: going to a bar, then going to a university function where there will be more alcohol and possibly some fun, then maybe to the Obama rally at the Capital (Capitol?)

And if all this is exciting enough for you, there is this.

UPDATE: Didn't make it to the rally, but we did have fun!

Perils of the Profession

I really the like the profession that I work in; cool people; cool material; public service; but one of the rarely talked about difficulties is what archivists are exposed to...

 

Later in life back problems; risk of mold inhalation. Those things aren't really that bad. What sticks in my mind long after I leave work are the disturbing images that come in some collections. Like today having to look through (and possibly have to scan later) photos taken from a particularly famous mass murder scene.

 

There have been other times that have been as bad or worse. It reminds me that real life is unavoidable no matter how what certain parenting segments of the population want to believe.

Busy Busy Busy

I remember in early December chastising myself about how we never post anymore. There are 2 reasons: the draconian internet use policies of the City and I prefer to spend what time I have with Oscar, Felix, and/or M (not in that order).
I figured out how to get around the internet use policy by using the e-mail-post function. The other reason isn't going to change anytime soon. Not that it matters as this blog has been relegated back to a diary as we have most certainly lost whatever readership we once had.
No dog pictures, no readers.
We have done a lot over the past 2 months.

M got all As and I started a new job, one that actually requires me to work.
We traveled a total of 26 hours in the car going to Oklahoma and McAllen over the holidays.
We got involved in a community action group and I am an officer in a regional archives association.
We are currently looking for an affordable house to buy with a yard for the dogs and future creatures.

On Jobs

Working is a large part of life. I find it bordering on criminal that I have to spend half of my life with people that do not go through the same rigorous vetting process that my friends and M went through. Sometimes you get extremely lucky and your co-workers become actual friends. For me that has rarely been the case. In all of my years of working, I have made one friend and he lives in Albany.

I grew up believing that because you spend so much of your life working, you'd better make sure that you like your job. I had the luxury of growing up middle class, so money was never a consideration when it came to employment (beyond being able to live, that is). Take money out of the equation and that opens the door to many professions like Archives.

Previously, I worked at an archives that I really enjoyed. I was there for 3 years before moving on and would have stayed longer had geographic circumstances been different. It was the perfect quirky, unique position. It was interesting and I had a lot of freedom to go in many different directions.

Then I had to move on and I moved on to a place that looked great on paper with a company that actually is pretty great. What should have tipped me off was the salary. It was way too high for an archives position. When the new car smell wore off I was left with a boring job, isolated into a cubicle. It was the exact job that I had worked so hard to avoid.

Why is he using the past tense?

Because I have moved on once again; this time to a job that I am confident will be "all that and a bag of chips." No longer a corporate archivist, now (and perhaps forever) a photo archivist (or photograph curator as my actual title reads). I'll be working with (and for) the public and again it looks like I may have freedom to decide on projects.

Finally I'll be working with other archivists instead of just e-mail responses from lists; disembodied advice and misunderstood questions.

2008 is indeed looking like it is going to be a great year.

On Recent Anniversaries

Today is clear, cold and sunny. Sunny may be an understatement as it is the winter sun; and while being less effective than the summer sun, it's far more bright. It is that brightness, a rarity between cold fronts, that lends itself to nostalgia.

I remember a day like this some years back. I was at the Texas Renaissance Festival with some people whom I had only known for a month (and one who I had known since I was 11). I had never heard nor seen such a spectacle as the Festival. It was odd to say the least but I really enjoyed it. We all walked around a lot seeing the sights, window shopping, and seeing one of the shows and maybe the parade...maybe. I confess I really don't remember much about the Festival. What I do remember is the way the day felt and getting up the courage to hold a girl's hand.

That was November 15th, 1997.

Sometimes it seems like we are boring or "uncool" because we are in this unchanging, decade old relationship. For better or worse however, we are usually perceived as those happy weirdos that have been together forever.

I'm sure come next decade we'll still be those happy weirdos.

The AfterGlow - Sadly, No

So UT lost this weekend and only half of the outcomes I wanted to see came to pass. Because Missouri will likely lose to Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship, there probably won't be a Big 12 team in the Big Game.

So that is two in a row for A&M, but how many times has A&M beaten UT since there first game in 1894? I don't know, but you can find out at the Official UT football fan site. The site gives the dates and scores going back to the first game in 1893 where UT played Dallas U (which is not the University of Dallas). The following year UT won all but one game beating the Austin YMCA twice. UT would go on to win many more games, but here are some of the teams they lost to along the way:

Haskell 0-4 in 1904
University of Chicago 0-68 in 1904
Transylvania 0-6 in 1905
Vanderbilt 0-45 in 1906
Southwestern 9-11 in 1908
Notre Dame 7-30 in 1913
Baylor 3-7 in 1916
Rice 0-13 in 1917
Harvard 7-35 in 1931
Centenary 6-13 in 1932

There have also been stranger opponents defeated such as the Houston Town Team (1897), the Kansas City Medics (1900), and the School for the Deaf (1903).

And if you thought UT (or any team for that matter) got beat bad, check out this score: 222-0 .

Giving thanks...

Though many may be under the impression that this coming week is about turkey vs. ham, cranberry sauce vs. real cranberries or giving thanks that your family doesn't suck vs. giving thanks that this holiday is only one day; it's not.

This coming week is about Texas vs. Texas A&M, Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State, and the Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Jets. This week is also about a bunch of other football games. So that we can all remember which games are important enough to watch I offer up this handy schedule

Thanksgiving Day:

Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Jets
CBS
3:15pm
I pick Dallas to win, duh. The Jets have won 2 games and the only reason they aren't last in their division is because Miami hasn't won a game yet.

#11USC vs. #6Arizona State
ESPN
7pm
Americans don't much like monopolies and like most (except those living in southern california), I'm tired of seeing USC. I would like them to go away for a while and join the likes of Notre Dame(2-9), Miami(5-6), and Florida State(7-4).

Friday:

Texas vs. Texas A&M
ABC
2:30pm
The obnoxious Aggies really aren't any good this year, but UT has been inconsistent to say the least.

#19Boise St. vs. #15Hawaii
ESPN2
8pm
This should be a good game simply because Boise St. is in it. If anyone saw them play OU last season or saw them in the 4-OT, 69-67 win over Nevada this season, you know what I'm talking about. Hawaii is one of only two teams left that are undefeated this season and if they run the table, there will be much BCS hand-wringing (like every year).

Arkansas vs. #1LSU
CBS
3:30pm
I don't think this game will be any good, but it's been a strange year. LSU has already lost once and it would be interesting if they lost again.

Saturday:

#20Connecticut vs. #3West Virginia
?
11am
I'm just pissed because W. Virginia is ranked higher than Kansas despite losing to South Florida earlier in the year before all the South Florida hype. West Virginia is in it every year before choking in the final weeks of the season. So nuts to them.

Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State
FSN
2:30pm
This is the Oklahoma version of the one-sided UT, A&M rivalry. One team desperately trying to garner attention over the other like those a-holes in the background of an on-location newscast. The difference being that A&M doesn't have a delusional Dickensian millionaire benefactor. A&M likely has millionaires donating also but probably to their academics rather than something as unimportant (in the grand scheme) as football.

#4Missouri vs. #2Kansas
ABC
7pm
This is the WTF game of the year. Who'd a thought these two would be this good and Nebraska would be so bad. I'm hoping Kansas wins just to fuck with the BCS standings. If they run the table and beat Missouri this week and (probably) Oklahoma the following week, will they get to play in the big game? Who knows. Its just as likely we'll see Ohio State and LSU which would be repeat of last year's blowout.

The Neglected

So here is how it goes: you are tired from the day and just don't feel like unpacking that last box or you just don't have anything new to say to that pen pal from Kuala Lumpur. You'll do it tomorrow you say. But you don't do it tomorrow. You don't unpack the day after or the day after that. Soon its been a month and your pen pal has heard nothing.

Was there a military coup in the US, they wonder?
Maybe my friend from America was taken by a UFO like my Canadian girlfriend was. Maybe both.

Sadly, no. You aren't under house arrest by Kang or Kodos, it's simply that so much time has passed that the box has become a symbol of shame and the letter admonishes you as if it were alive like a character in the Brave Little Toaster.

Like the time you missed seeing Mr. T at the mall, you know you'll regret it if you continue to ignore your conscience. But you do it anyway and more time passes and then it comes to a breaking point.

You ask yourself, do you really want to be one of those people who just moves a box of crap from one residence to another; do you really want to let your pen pal, who could be washed away in a tidal wave at any time, believe that you have forgotten to write back. I thought you wanted to contradict what the international community thought of Americans.

So you suck it up and you unpack that box of sex toys, you write back to your Malaysian friend a lengthy treatise on the many types of sex toys and you finally get back to posting about your dogs on your neglected blog.

Yesterday was Oscar and Felixs' birthday. They are now two years old. Here is what they looked like back then. They haven't had much of an Autumn to speak of. I'm at work, M is at school. After five, I'm cleaning film for TAMI, or helping organize the Archivists of Central Texas regional association and M is still at school.

When I am home and its not dark, we play fetch in the backyard. That is there new favorite activity. I throw the ball and Felix will bring it back, then he'll go long and Oscar will stand in front of me and stare at the ball. The result is that Felix is always downfield when I throw the ball and thus he always gets it. It didn't work that way in Albany because there was always enough room for the much faster Oscar to make up time. So here I have to be strategic and fool Felix into going one way while I throw the ball the other so Oscar can occasionally get the ball. And what does he do when he gets it. He goes over to Felix and literally shoves the ball in Felix's face like the gracious winner he is.

In other birthday news, M and I are blowing off a party, seeing some old friends, and Gaelic Storm (h/t to Uncle Joe) to spend the weekend in north Texas to attend my niece's birthday party. She's turning 1. She's lucky she's cute.

Now that we've confronted our shame, we promise to have more content in the future...publish or perish.

Don't Get Outrage Fatigue

Found this youtube video through various means today. I think there are three lessons one should take away from it.

1. You can never be outraged enough, there will always be something that will make you see red. If this doesn't, your soul has died and you are now cynical enough to be a hipster/music or movie critic.

2. Witness the power of archives interfacing with new user-driven content technologies or by its fancy term "Web 2.0."

3. Why would such a logical forthright assessment could so easily be overlooked ten years later by the very same person? It wasn't, he is simply George Costanza's take on the old lady from Titanic....he's just a liar.

To wit: Here is our current VPOTUS speaking in 1992 to some group called the Economic Club of Detroit (no doubt some sort of outfit that makes cheap head-hitting implements) on why the US didn't invade Baghdad after Arid Dust-Devil.




UPDATE: Upon a second look, you'll notice that in the context of today you can see that he believed it could be done but at the time had to obey the recommendations of the president (and those with cooler heads and bigger brains who were advising the president).

Give 'em hell, Barry!

This is why I haven't completely given up on the news.

Also, our blog has been soundly beaten by a little white furball named Milo. His videos are priceless.

Goodbye, Meg

We've just lost a treasure. She will be greatly missed.

Nightmares

This photo is a confirmed fake, but still worth a look. Sweet dreams!

Bushisms of yester-year

I ran across a Dan Quayle quote on my google page today and I noticed the striking similarity between him and the current oval office seat warmer.

If any one of you asked in 1988 what the world would be like if BushI died and Dan Quayle became president, I think we've had that answer for 6 years now.

A sampling:

"Republicans understand the importance of bondage between a mother and child."

Indeed.

Interesting stuff from Gmail, and some comments on SPAM

For a while now, I've been a bit irked at the seemingly constant stream of SPAM related publicity, most likely perpetrated by those whose entire existence must be ironic. Yes, SPAM (the luncheon meat, not the seductively literate class of e-mail) was once funny because of how disgusting it was, but after a festival*, millions of hits on google, and its endless tour on the sitcom circuit, its getting as tired as that "Whazzzup!" commercial from a couple of years ago.

Besides there is plenty of other bizarre food from a bygone era to idolize, just look here, or why not vienna sausages, or Deviled Ham**? The 1950s were full of disgusting crap. Why don't sardines get a festival? They could combine it into a Cat Fancy dual festival.

Speaking of disgusting crap, how about this, which was a web clip on my Gmail: Spam Fajitas!
WTF? I'll spare you all my diatribe (which I learned from dad) about how fajita is actually a cut of meat. I hate it when food is intellectually dishonest.

But it gets better. The "recipe" calls for salsa, but not just any salsa, its has to be from CHI CHI's, a "mexican" restaurant that I've only seen in Pennsylvania. Why don't I just put some mayo on some avocados and call it guacamole?

So I'll leave you all with this thought. If illegal immigration from the south is such a hugh problem, then how come Chi Chi's still exists? I don't think national security is worth bad mexican food, do you?

UPDATE: The Spam Fajitas must be a marketing scheme. Both Chi Chi's Salsa AND SPAM are owned by Hormel Foods!

UPDATE 2: As Uncle Joe mentions, Chi Chi's restaurant went out of business and good riddance! However, the above conspiracy still holds. Also I found out that if you are in the spam folder of you gmail, all of the web clips have to do with spam.

*Why Austin, why not Dollywood if they are really looking for irony?
**Which is actually pretty damn good sometimes.

The Flying Trapeze? Close.....

We did fly though the air with the greatest of ease, but thankfully there were no trapezes!

D and I had quite an adventure recently for our 6th wedding anniversary. We drove out into the sticks to take a Canopy Tour through a grove of cypress trees. You may recognize this from an old dog blog post.

We took a series of zip lines and looked a little goofy wearing all of our gear, but we had a blast and highly recommend this to anyone willing to travel down 450 feet of cable way up in the air. (they do train you first)













Here's a shot of M coming down the line (take my word for it)
















And here's D about to land on the platform.








Don't we look cool with all our gear on?






















Yes we were this high in the trees, sometimes higher! And they encourage you to scream, look up, let go and even give you style points for a pose on the last zip.



Again, you should all do this!

CHUD, not CHUD

Obviously, the Iraqis have never seen kidney pie or they'd know that man-eating badgers are not the scariest thing about the British.