dumnbunny

When I was growing up, I loved watching those Hinterlands Who's Who shorts the NFB produced. I don't remember this one, though ...

So I was watching some TV show with my daughter this morning, something with a talking coconut, reflecting on the silly, awful shows kids watch these days. They're not nearly as good as the shows my generation watched when we were kids.

Then I hit Youtube and found a few clips of some of the shows I used to watch, such as this gem ...
Hey, I was nine when I watched this!

...

Don't you judge me.

When two people engage in an Internet pissing contest, the outcome is rarely one winner and one loser, but rather two losers who stink of piss.

Also, the reason I don't post in, or even read, many threads in many forums.

... I'll never understand.

So the heating element in my coffee maker broke. It stopped heating up the water, the water wouldn't flow, and it wouldn't warm the carafe. It going to be a few days before I get out to the mall to buy a new one, so I tried to just go without coffee.

Edited to add:

For comparison, here's my wife's (earthrowan) results from taking that test:





And yet, somehow we make it work ;) .

I turned 40 yesterday, and I'm feeling pretty good about it.

My career, which had pretty much stalled in a global IT megacorp, has taken a quantum leap forward. I have a much better work environment, better pay, better opportunities. My family is living in a much better home in a smaller, nice city. And I've dropped about 20, 30 pounds, too.

I can't recall when I last felt this content with my life and my future.

Posted in hopes there's someone who reads this who is familiar with Lethbridge, or knows someone who is:

I just accepted a role as a web developer, so my family and I are moving to Lethbridge. Unfortunately, I haven't been to Lethbridge in something like three decades, so I have no idea what the different areas are like. If someone could give me some advice on nice neighbourhoods, or any other advice on renting and living in Lethbridge, that would be greatly appreciated.

To get a little more specific, we've been doing a fair bit of searching on-line, and we're wondering what the area around 20th St N and 8a Ave N is like.

The best quote from this clip: "Why are you such a journalist?" I assume he said it with a bit of tounge-in-cheek, but it was still priceless.

Found this interesting site when I was randomly browsing around the web, Philosophical Films at the University of Tennessee at Martin website. It provides brief reviews of a number of thought-provoking films, as well as discussion questions.

Well, break time is over. Now it's time for me to start searching for a new software development role. So far, so good. I already have people contacting me, making inquiries as to my availability, and referring me to IT managers they know.

I've also decided to finally get my SCJP (for the non-geeks, that's a Java programming certification). I subscribed to one of the most recommended practice tests, and I'm getting results around 90%, so I'm feeling pretty good about how the actual test is going to go. After that, I'll pick up SCWCD and SCBCD (for the non-geeks, those are certifications related to programming web sites in Java).

Blizzard has been simultaneously releasing their games for both Windows and Mac for a number of years now. It's good to see a couple large players in the industry, EA and id, joining Blizzard on the Mac bandwagon. It's a good sign of the platform's rising popularity.

http://biz.gamedaily.com/industry/feature/?id=16458

I was working from home the other day when my manager called me into the office. He needed to meet with me face-to-face, and couldn't even give me a hint over the phone. So, ok, I head down there and he tells me to brace myself, that he has some really devastating news. As of today that moment I was laid off.

Heh, the funny part was my manager was more upset than I was. When he started with the company, I helped him out, giving him advice and earning his respect. He figured the company was losing a valuable asset, but ... well, there's sound business reasons behind this, bean-counting reasons, that I really can't go into.

I told him he could calm down, that I was sad, but not resentful, and not the least bit worried. In fact, I'm excited about this. I feel a sense of freedom, of great opportunity. I have enough cash on hand that I have no immediate worries about supporting my family and I. In fact, my immediate plan is to take a couple weeks to do not much of anything, just depressurize, regenerate, and refocus.

And, uh, for those who read all these posts this evening, I apologize for the LJ posting dump. I'm trying to get caught up on a few things that I've put off due to working too much -- no longer an issue :D .

My wife and I picked up new computers. Before moving into software development, I spent about 9 years supporting a grand total of something like twenty thousand Windows PCs. I've also owned several of them myself. After all that, I decided to pick up Macs this time around. Specifically, the 17" 2.0 GHz dual-core iMacs.

I had been avoiding them in the past for a couple reasons. First, there was the much higher hardware costs. Second, I wouldn't have been able to run all the software I wanted to run, mainly games. These days, the hardware price is comparable with a PC, and with Boot Camp, I can run any game my hardware will handle.

But there's another factor. My oldest friend purchased a Mac around the same time I purchased my first PC. About a decade later, I was ready to mothball my fourth PC, and he was still doing desktop publishing on his Mac.

So, I made the switch, and I couldn't be happier. I've never been quite this satisfied with a computer purchase. There was a bit of a learning curve, but not much of one. My family and I climbed most of that curve the evening we bought the iMacs.

Well, my Friday evening group has folded. I'm a little saddened by this, but ah well. I may be leaving town at some point in the not too distant future anyways, so this may be for the best.

So here's the seed of an idea I had for the next SotC adventure. I'll get to it in the near future when I get a group going again where ever I land. I'll flesh it out more at that time.

I'm picturing a large dragon strafing New York, a large mechanical dragon. Of course, there's a mad-man at the controls in the dragons head. I'm also thinking maybe groups of henchmen flying much smaller mechanical dragons. Air piracy! And for a home base, a moutain aerie, high above the clouds. Of course, this just screams out for someone with a flying/piloting schtick.

Johnny Dorado, International Gambler

Oh, yeah!

When discussing SotC with the players, one thing I've pointed out is that there are no throw-away skills. A character could have any one of the skills as Superb, be built around that, and rock. The authors provided a set of stunts for each skill and, as I mentioned in a previous entry, copious advice on a skill-by-skill basis on how to use those skills to make the character interesting.

So, here's my project for the next month. I'll be taking the list of 28 skills and creating a character built around each one. It'll be a good exercise for me to get to know the system in depth. I'll be posting the characters on my LJ, and updating this list with links to the entries.

Academics
Alertness
Art
Athletics
Burglary
Contacting
Deceit
Drive
Empathy
Endurance
Engineering
Fists
Gambling: Johnny Dorado, International Gambler
Guns
Intimidation
Investigation
Leadership
Might
Mysteries: Eduardo Martinez, El Padre
Pilot
Rapport
Resolve
Resources
Science
Sleight
Stealth
Survival
Weapons

Update: Dec 20, linked to character I did up for Mysteries, Eduardo Martinez, El Padre.

Update: Feb 15, had the worst cold I've had in many years, which took the wind out of my sails even after I got over it. Anyways, I'm diving back into my gaming habit hobby, and this project. I'll be adding a link to the Gambling character momentarily.

It's occurred to me that there can be an issue with certain combinations of schticks in a group. A player can invest heavily into her character's schtick, through picking the appropriate skill as Superb, picking up two or three (or more!) stunts to support it, and having a handful of aspects supporting it as well. What happens when the schticks are fairly diverse?

Your 1920's Name is:

Madison Dee