Thursday, May 08, 2008

Sleepy/retail therapy

Just veggin' out here--still behind on homework, too damned tired to work on it right now. Wednesdays are tough after I close Tuesdays then wake up early anyway. When Harry Met Sally is on TV, so I've got it on for company. I got Juno and Walk Hard the other day since they had them used at the Shopette. Should've gotten Lars and the Real Girl, too, I guess.

Bought some things today: a game for the kid's birthday (months away, but a good sale, and we only had a couple in stock), a mother's day gift, and some books and activities for the kid's flights. More importantly, I bought the D&D 4th Ed. Core Rulebook Gift Set. It's not out yet for a month, but mine is paid for and will be shipped to me directly. I can't wait!

I hope Spirit gets online soon.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Interesting stuff

Heard from him... he should hopefully have internet soon... that way I can update him on how much money I can funnel his way ;) And I have an address, so if I ever get myself motivated again, I can send him care packages and stuff.

It's international no-diet day! So, go eat something, for crying out loud!

Finally, the medical tricorder. (via) It's a phone! It's an all-purpose medical scanner! Why didn't they combine the communicators with the tricorders on Trek, anyway?

Depression

I am not sad, but I feel like I'm just going through the motions, and I just do not want to do anything. I made myself start my homework after procrastinating on Reddit all day (well--that's all day except the time I spent doing dishes, preparing meals, taking the kid to the shrink, walking to the gym, doing water aerobics, and walking home--I said I was unmotivated, not that I couldn't make myself do any of the things I need to).

Anyway, the thing is, I can keep my appointments, but I really don't want to go to work this week and I really don't want to do my schoolwork (though one class, sociology, is fascinating and the other, finance, is a piece of cake--haven't yet run into anything I haven't covered in an accounting class, and this is a 3-credit class where those were 4, so both these classes are lighter) until the last minute, which actually puts me a full week behind, to whit: I have Sundays and Mondays off, and the school week runs Sunday through Sunday. So, when I should be starting on the new week Sundays, I actually spent this Sunday doing last week's work, leaving me behind. If I stay that way, I have vacation in 2 weeks, so I will catch up, but I feel so listless.

I am trying not to dwell on having no word yet. The longer I get no word, the more likely it seems that he will have no internet access and communication will be limited to a phone call a week or so.

Ah, well; only 18 more weeks, and he'll be home.

Sunday, May 04, 2008

In Which Cricket Reviews Iron Man, In Part From a Financial Point of View

WARNING

THERE WILL BE SPOILERS

IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IRON MAN AND YOU PLAN TO SEE IT, STOP READING NOW

SERIOUSLY, STOP READING

I MEAN IT

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OK, YOU'VE BEEN WARNED...



OK, I gotta say this: I saw this with WAY more sympathy for the board/shareholders than I think I was meant to have when he dropped that bomb. At the end, making weapons for the good guys without them being funneled to the terrorists might have worked out. Obie there was the problem, not the weapons themselves. They were inanimate objects that could be used for good or ill. Using them for profit may be right or wrong in your philosophy, but if you're going to severely change the direction of your company at a public announcement with no public plans for anything that will make up profits, you've got to expect people to not just be ticked off but to panic outright. In the Marvel world, Tony Stark "getting responsible" could have kicked off some serious financial consequences marketwide (remember, this is the Golden Boy of the military and of big business). Jim Cramer might be a caricature of himself (I mean in real life, but sure, in the movie, too), but he wasn't totally off base. I mean seriously, though, if you fall through into some weird hole in spacetime and end up in Tony Stark's shoes, try it this way: "I'm shutting down our weapons manufacture until I find a way to keep weapons out of the hands of terrorists, but in the meantime, I have invented the perfect power source, and one hand-sized battery can now power your entire house for years at a time..." Now where do Stark Corporation's profits--and stock prices!--go?

Other than that, I can agree that this was the best of the Marvel movies so far. Robert Downey, Jr. made the role and he made the movie. Back in the day, I loved him on Ally McBeal, and believing that a person's personal life should be his own, I think drug charges are bogus in terms of prison time or job loss. I'm glad that he's now a Hollywood Golden Boy.

And Nick Fury, nice. For a second, I had almost double hearing--the "world you know nothing about" bit made me hear Laurence Fishburne talking about the Matrix. I muttered "sounds like Laurence Fishburne" and AL overheard me and thought it was him--she was very confused when I was explaining to the kid that Mace Windu was Nick Fury. How the Star Wars fan of a kid didn't recognize Samuel L. was a bit beyond me, but apparently it had something to do with his skin being darker in the Nick Fury scene? I tried to explain about movie makeup, but I don't know how much sunk in. I don't get it, though; were they setting up an Iron Man II, or a New Avengers movie with Iron Man? Might be overkill--either it ends up being "Iron Man and the New Avengers" because of the sheer presence of RD as Tony Stark, or there's one hell of an ensemble cast.

Sorry

I am, of course, much calmer now, and the only thing that still makes me a little angry is the line that you had no choice but to volunteer because someone else had too many small kids to afford for the wife to work if he was TDY. Guess what? It's part of his job just like it is yours. There are 100 other reasons you volunteered, you want to be a model NCO and make one more rank before it's time to move on, and you're a good guy. But still, that one stuck in my head and made me angry.

I don't know if you still have this bookmarked, but I will chirp to you the things I find this way while you are gone, because I don't want to fill your inbox or IM and don't even know if you will be able to get on them. I will check the AFIM for messages this week.

MH is still over here from last night... we went and played Iron Man, played Scene It and JL got completely pissed drunk (as in room spinning vomiting, but not quite as in alcoholic blackout). He's fine today, the SOB. You guys and your no hangovers. Hell, I can't get a hangover any more; I can't drink enough. 1 and my stomach lets me know I can't keep it up--I had a shot of recycled vodka (do yourself a favor and don't ask), then my stomach told me that wasn't happening--didn't get sick, just a slight raw feeling that reminded me that my body would NOT put up with this treatment--then nursed on the banana nut bread ale, which I tried to share but which no one else liked, so, more for me. It was like Guinness with a little banana nut flavor, only with banana belches instead of beer belches. Soothing to the stomach, at any rate. Anyway, after he "I won't pass out, I'll just... go to sleep"'d, the rest of us played other games in private. Will just say you'll have been sorry to miss it--you may have had more entertainment value than from the usual Saturday night game. No one else wanted to do that, and I was cool.

The ex still hasn't paid the child support a week into this month, so I had to dip into my savings acct for groceries, but I am keeping a note. When I get that back I will replenish savings and buy more groceries and finally order the new game books (they WILL be here when that game comes out!!!). Meanwhile I think I will get everyone on WLD if JL doesn't want to run the main group.

I got my week 1 homework caught up and my week 2 posts started. Am still a little behind but I am very tired and I don't feel up to much. I will get another load of laundry done (had to do extra, dog yakked on the bed since I stayed in bed until 11, damn it all--how many dogs vomit if they can't get outside to go to the bathroom fast enough? Good lord!) and the dishes, and I got all the trash out and groceries bought today. And I'm just tired.