First run post half marathon

Having new toys is fun! Getting an iPhone 3G S means having access to all the many, many apps in the App Store, not to mention all the cool features baked right in.

Like, for instance, GPS. Which means I can keep track of my running and measure distance and pace and record them for all posterity (or until the internet goes away, anyway). Mike Russell suggested using a program called RunKeeper, and I took him up on it.

Behold! My first run since the Helvetia Half Marathon!



I did that today, in 65-70º weather, after taking two weeks off. I am slow, but that's what I get for taking time off. I will get back into shape. I will! Stop looking at me like that. • 1:14 PM 0 comments

How not to talk to me when I'm there to help

"Are you the computer dude?" the lady asked, challenge in her voice.

I stopped talking to the customer I had been helping and turned around to face the woman who had spoken. I thought about how Ken and I had been literally stopped at the door as we were leaving for the day two days ago and not allowed to leave until we'd agreed to show up and unplug this work unit's computers while their cubicles were being rebuilt.

I thought about all the other projects that were not getting accomplished because two trained computer techs were being used as movers; the deployments that weren't getting done, the people who were still struggling with failing hardware that would not have a working PC until these PCs were back up and running.

I thought about having to solve problems on this move the night before long after my work shift had ended, problems like how to plug n a computer in a cubicle that had been rebuilt without power outlets anywhere within 25 feet. A computer setup that included the PC, two monitors, and a printer.

I thought about the frustration of all the work that has been piling up, more work than my 3 person team could possibly do, and how it all seemed to be "top priority" to my boss and the customers.

And I snapped a little.

"I am a computer dude, and my name is Brian."

"Well, are we going to get our computers today?" she asked.

Again, I reminded myself that I was just one person, that I had just spent a frustrating morning coming in early, ransacking the storage areas of two different buildings looking for the cords and cables I needed to make sure everyone here was up and running before the office opened at 8 AM, and how I was currently in the middle of squeezing one lady's PC, two monitors, inkjet printer, label printer, and flatbed scanner into a cube that was about 20% smaller than the old, crowded cubicle she had two days ago. I smiled back at the lady challenging me, perhaps a bit too feral-y. "Yes, ma'am. That is what I am here to do."

She went away.

Later, when I was in the process of setting up her computer, she walked up to me and said, "Thank you for this. I am sorry. I am sorry I was a bitch."

"Thank you. And I am sorry for snapping at you. I know how hard it is to move. It's been a long week for me." And I proceeded to ask her for her preferences in how she wanted her computer set up.

Work is hell lately. Lots of folk are feeling the strain. • 6:51 AM 0 comments

End of an era, probably

My main webserver, Eggers, has been operating from my sister's office for about two years now. It's been fairly uneventful; a bit of downtime but otherwise not bad for a simple business DSL line and a cheap Mac mini. I've been impressed and I've learned a lot about running and operating a webserver remotely. Mac OS X is very capable in that area, even for a desktop operating system, although I'm sure I'm not getting all I could out of it if I had the time and inclination. It gets the job done.

It's been a good setup, but I think that my days as a web server admin are coming to a close. For business reasons, my sister is moving out of her current office, and I'm pulling Eggers out of there for now. I'm going to actually sell the hardware and move the site over to a web host (feel free to offer suggestions but I'm strongly considering TotalChoice on the recommendation of my fiancée Lindsey) for now.

I feel a bit sad about losing Eggers as my server. But one of the reasons I'm doing this is because I want to pay off my debt and get my money situation in order; once that's done, one of my dreams is to have my own office somewhere, and put in a real web server, like a fancy Xserve or somethin', and take the time to learn it well. It'd also be nice to have a quiet office in which to write and dream. Y'know... someday.

I still have plans to re-design my site and add some bells and whistles, and to add some stuff on the backend to make it more commenter-friendly and to report better stats and such. I've also started and not completed a task to update all my archives and old links; I want to work on that, too.

But even as I work on old projects, new projects come in. It's hard to get a handle on things. And, of course, life rolls on, even away from the internets. I guess that's just the way the modern world works. I'm OK with it; I'm just making note of it here before moving on to something else.

For now, of course, my site lives on and I will continue writing and posting my thoughts here. Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere... For now. • 10:10 AM 0 comments

So busy lately

I am so busy lately. Family stuff, work stuff, it's all busy.

This is my apology for not blogging more.


see more Lolcats and funny pictures

I'll be back to blogging normally... eventually. • 9:27 AM 2 comments

Good morning

One of the nice things about using text messaging as a primary means of communication with my friends is the fact that I can send them a "good morning" when I'm up and around without waking them up, while being consumed with jealousy of their ability to sleep in. • 6:05 AM 0 comments

A day for dads

I am not a dad. At this rate, being in my mid-40s, I'm not sure I ever will be. Maybe, maybe not.

But I know some dads, including my own, who is both my biological and legal dad.

I just saw my dad yesterday morning, who brought me something of sentimental value - which I am giving to Lindsey as a promise and a gift for our three-month anniversary.

Which may or may not lead to fatherhood. But it has certainly made me (and her, I think) very happy with our couplehood.

But, y'know, happy Father's Day to all the actual dads out there. • 9:23 AM 2 comments

Holding hands

I stepped in to the hospital room to visit my friend Kevin, who had had some major surgery earlier in the week. When I walked in, Kevin's wife was there, along with two other men, a woman and a small child, standing around the bed and talking. I didn't recognize any of the strangers, but from the conversation, Kevin knew them well enough. Neighbors? I stood back, waved at Kevin, and listened in.

Kevin laid in bed in his pajamas and hospital gown. He was energetic and interested, in a much better mood than the last time I had seen him two days before, drugged to reduce the pain and silent.

M., Kevin's wife, introduced me to the group. Soon enough the conversation wound down to a close and the group made ready to leave. Then one of the men looked at M., expectantly, and M. said, "They wanted to pray for you before they leave."

Kevin nodded and held out his hands on either side of the bed, and M. and the other adults joined, by their hands, into a circle.

I stayed back from the rest of the group, suddenly amused. One of the men looked at me, encouragingly, his hand open for me to join in. I kept my hands at my side.

It was an awkward moment.

Until Kevin said, "Brian doesn't pray," in a friendly, not challenging, voice.

The rest of them nodded and then proceeded to ignore me and one of the men then spoke to his God, asking for His help in healing Kevin from the disease and injury that Kevin had... somehow... contracted and which required surgical intervention.

They were oblivious to the irony. • 6:56 AM 5 comments

I get songs stuck in my head all the time

This morning I have the chorus to this song going 'round in my head.

Since embedding on that video is disabled, I think I'll share this dude's cover instead.



I could be singing it to her... or I could be singing it to myself. Not sure it matters. • 6:57 AM 0 comments

Tales from my first half-marathon

"I would love some coffee!" Dad said before driving me out to the starting line for my very first half-marathon

"Brian? Brian Moon? Is that you?" Mike Russell said to me somewhere between Mile 6 and Mile 7.

"Yay! Go, Brian!" my sister, brother-in-law, niece and girlfriend Lindsey all shouted as I tried to run the last point-one miles inside Hillsboro Stadium.

And 2 hours, 34 minutes and 15 seconds read the clock as I crossed the finish line.

That about covers the important parts. Other, less important parts:

• Once again, the Run With Paula team organized and executed a great race. Lots of happy volunteers, the race started on time, the course was well-marked, and there were lots of water and outhouses out there.
  
• Not that I needed the water. I wore a Camelbak so I could hydrate any time I wanted to. And I did. And it worked well, I think, even carrying "all that extra weight", as a friend said to me afterward.
  
• The weather, which I had been worried about, was perfect: overcast and in the low 60s. It could have been warmer, and it could have been wetter - there was a brief downpour right before the race started. The rain stopped before the starting gun, though, almost as if the weather got it out of its system. But I wouldn't anthropomorphize a natural phenomenon like that.
  
• Lindsey got some pictures of me which are here. I really only expect close friends and family to click that link.
  
• If you finished between 2:20 and 2:40, or know someone who did, check out this set. You may recognize someone in there.
  
• I celebrated my win with food: the customary Helvetia burger at the finish line, breakfast with dad, my niece and Lindsey at J & M Cafe at SE 6th and Ash (and does not appear to have a website), and later, two Whiffies' pies. NOM NOM NOM as the LOLcats say.
  

Yes, I will likely run a marathon this year, too. I mean, at this point, why not?

Labels: exercise

• 6:12 AM 4 comments

Tomorrow

My technical clothes are laid out.

Cliff Bloks and PowerBar Gels are stashed in my Camelbak - and the bladder is full of water and in the freezer.

Inspiring music is loaded on my iPhone.

Toenails trimmed. Face shaved.

Coffee set to be made automagically in the morning.

BodyGlide is waiting for me.

It's still early-ish enough for me to get a good night's sleep before getting up around 5:30 AM and waiting for dad to pick me up, and take me to the Hillsboro Stadium so I can run my very first half-marathon.

...I need to stop procrastinating and go to bed, already. Not much more I can do at this point.

Good night. • 9:33 PM 0 comments

Don't mind me I'm just being snarky

Here's how out of it I am; I had no idea these top three stories on Google News were such a big deal:

1. Elections in Iran: what the hell? They have elections in Iran? Did President #43 know about this? Or is this something new since Obama took over? Good job, President O! I knew there was something I liked about him.
   
2. Analog TV going the way of the dinosaurs: This seems to be a big deal, which may explain why Comcast has felt the need to mail me a flyer every day for the last several months announcing it.
   
3. The Holocaust Museum is opening its doors again after the crazy man shot it up: Wonder why all these crazies are running around shooting off their guns? Couldn't have anything to do with the unfounded rumors that President Obama wants to take away all the guns, does it? Ugh.
   

What's the top story to you? • 6:20 AM 0 comments

Han Solo, P.I.

Man, I used to love this show!



Every Tuesday night at 8 PM, I'd tune in to see what whacky adventures Solo got into. Remember that episode where the Millenium Falcon broke down on some podunk asteroid, and Solo and Chewie had to go into town to get stuff to fix it, and they ran across Lando Calrissian, who used to own the Falcon only now he's, like, mayor of this town, and Lando's all, like, I'm gonna get you, sucka! and Solo was all, like, No way! and then Lando was all, like, I'm gonna turn you in to Vader! and Solo and Chewie were all, like, Uh-uh! No way!

Man, that was a great episode. And there was a murder or somethin' they had to solve. I think it was Threepio who got shot. Or somethin'.

Yeah. Man, what a great old TV show. • 4:31 PM 0 comments

Wish my brain would brain

Lately I haven't been able to remember any new stories, conversations, or tidbits, about which I could blog.

I mean, there's things going on in my life and my friends' lives, but nothing that would be appropriate for posting to the world wide internets.

Things are still going well with Lindsey; this coming Saturday will mark our 12th week together and we're only just begun.

Lindsey will be meeting my dad and my sister this Saturday, too, since they're all going to be at the finish line for my first-ever half-marathon.

And that Saturday night, provided I'm not blotto from 13 point something miles of running, I am going to be participating in my third World Naked Bike Ride, something that has become a bit of a tradition for me, since I did it in 2007 and 2008. Lindsey will not be joining me (she's a bit shy about appearing in public naked) and I don't think she entirely "gets" why I want to do it - it's not sexual, at all; it's just a crazy bit of anti-authoritarianism and euphoria for me - but she understands that I want to do it and is being very supportive.

Joe Donlon, a reporter for KGW here in Portland, appears to be doing the Naked Bike Ride, too, in fact. He may just be doing it for the free pie from Whiffie's Pie Cart, though. At least, he hinted as much when I challenged him to a race there.

Some of my friends are still having troubles and I'm trying to help them keep their spirits up and suchlike and whatnot. Still tweeting over on Twitter, about 5-6 tweets a day, I think. Maybe I just have short, 140-character stories lately?

And right now I'm very tired and have to go to work. Bleah. • 6:34 AM 0 comments

What's on my mind today

As I prepare to catch a bus that will begin a one-hour ride to today's work location (ugh), one thing is on my mind today.

And that is that my good friend Kevin will be undergoing an 8-hour surgery to have one part of his body removed and grafted onto another part of his body in order to remove the threat of cancer. That surgery starts at 7:30 AM. Then he gets to spend the next several days in Intensive Care along with some cute nurses and a MacBook Pro full of all eight seasons of Scrubs (a gift from his work IT group), and ocassional visits from his wife and kids, and other family and close friends.

So if I seem distracted today, that's what's on my mind. Just letting y'all know. • 4:57 AM 0 comments

"The Hangover"

I got the groom to the wedding, after making sure he had the time of his life. The bride, of course, was pissed. And the groom and my friendship soon disintegrated.

That was both the first, and last, time I was in charge of a bachelor party. That was 15 years ago.

The evening included lesbians, binge drinking, strippers, gambling (and winning!), the phrase "A round of drinks on the house!", taxicabs, the groom passing out and requiring first aid, many venue changes, and very little sleep.

It did not include traveling to another city, animals barnyard or exotic, surprise elopements, or criminal elements (that I'm aware of).

If the one I was in charge of is any indication, a bachelor party is a source of much material for stories written and filmed. Even a tame one, like the one I was in charge of, would, if filmed, make for much entertainment. And with just a bit of exaggeration, a truly epic movie could be made.

Like, say, "The Hangover". The main characters in The Hangover start the movie in deep trouble. They're out in the desert, scarred, scared, and in possession of a nearly-destroyed vintage Mercedes-Benz. Phil (Bradley Cooper, playing the charming live-for-the-moment member of the party) is calling the bride to tell her that, well, they lost Doug (Justin Bartha). The bride is livid; don't they know that she is getting married in five hours?!

"Yeah," Phil says, laconically if sympathetically. "That's not gonna happen."

And the movie then flashes back to show the lead-up to this grave situation.

The best part is, the movie doesn't actually show the events in question. No, after some set-up, it jumps forward and leaves the men nothing but a handful of clues with which they are supposed to retrace their steps and find their friend; Phil is wearing a bracelet from a hospital; Stu (played by a hilarious Ed Helms), the normally co-dependent doctor dentist, has an ATM receipt from the Bellagio for Eight Thousand Dollars; there's a live tiger in the suite's bathroom, and a chicken wandering around the (literally) smoking remains of the hotel room; a mattress that they, somehow, recognize as belonging to the groom is impaled on a statue outside the hotel, as if flung from a great height; and Alan (Zach Galifianakis), the befuddled, mysterious, vaguely threatening brother of the bride, has discovered a baby in a closet (which produces almost no surprise, considering it's not the first time he's found a baby).

And the three men have literally no memory of the night.

Do the men learn a valuable lesson about male friendship and reach a place of peace with their choices in life? Who the hell cares? As the work their way backward in Las Vegas, the stakes continue to be raised and many, many laughs are had.

My one complaint about the movie is that the three female roles are not even sketches of real women; the anxious bride, the shrewish controlling girlfriend of Stu, and the stripper/escort Jade (the still-innocent Heather Graham), are barely there. I suppose that's inevitable in a movie like this, which is more about the Hollywood myth of bromance than actual real-life relationships. For that matter, the male characters aren't much more than a handful of quirks themselves. Charming quirks, though.

Wait... wonder whatever happened to the friend whose bachelor party I was responsible for? Did his shrewish wife force him to disavow me as a friend after we showed up, barely on time for the wedding, the groom so hungover he had to wear sunglasses inside? Whatever happened to his brother, the socially-awkward repressed kid? And why can't I remember the names of the two lesbians who accompanied us that night, and what their relationship was to the rest of us? What happened to all the money I won at video poker?

Hmmm... either I'm a living stereotype, or Hollywood might just have something to tell us about ourselves, after all.

Labels: movies

• 6:52 AM 2 comments

The Oldest MacBook Pro in Portland gets an upgrade

Sorry for being a bit absent 'round here. Haven't been feeling much like writing, if you can believe it.

About the most interesting thing that's happened to me this week is getting a new hard drive installed in Sterling, the MacBook Pro that, three years later, I still call my new sexy thing. Truth is, it's not quite so new anymore, but it has character. A few scars - the dent from where the idiot on the "fixie" ran into me from behind, a spot just under the keyboard where the paint is coming off, other random stains and scratches - but it still works like a champ.

In the three years I've had it, other than the above incidents, Apple has replaced the following under warranty:

1. Logic board
   
2. Battery (twice)
   
3. Hard drive (which was damaged in my nasty car accident so shouldn't have been under warranty, shhhh!)
   

...which seems like a good record for a laptop that gets used daily, and lugged around everywhere. It's been to New York and Cancćn, on road trips out into the Nevada desert, to the beach and Seattle.

And last night, my friend Hollie popped off the top case and showed me what was inside, and installed a Seagate Momentus 7200.4 500GB hard drive, smooth as silk.

I finally got to see the inside of my new sexy thing.

Damn... I should have taken pictures!

With any luck, this laptop should serve me well for the next year or so. Sure, I'd like to upgrade to a new unibody MacBook Pro. But I don't have to.

And, besides, I think I have the oldest MacBook Pro in Portland. What's not cool about that? • 6:23 AM 4 comments

Want to buy some CDs?

Want some new/old music?

Through the magic that is Delicious Library 2, I've scanned a bunch of my CDs, and exported them as a web page. I love magic.

Rather than post a giant list here, I've put the page on the interwebs.

Most of what I have isn't very rare, though I do have some local/independent artists, and some Radiohead imports.

If there's a bullet in the first column, I'm asking $7 each.

If there's no bullet in the first column, I'm asking $4 each.

If you want to buy a bunch, say, 10 or more... I'll consider your offer.

If you think my price is too high, make an offer and give me the info I need. I have to admit that I haven't researched every single one of these gems to be sure they're worth selling. I'm half-assing it. Sue me. Or rant and complain and call me names. That might be entertaining for everyone!

Whatever doesn't sell in the next couple of days is going to end up on Amazon Marketplace, per anomar's suggestion. Thanks, anomar!

I have another hundred or so CDs that weren't recognized by Delicious Library for various reasons (shitty compilation, bar code is damaged, or promotional copy). Still have to manually enter all those. • 5:37 PM 0 comments

"The Brothers Bloom"

Going to a movie is like dreaming in public. Images and sounds projected into a dark, curtained space; people whispering back and forth but mostly silent (if you're lucky); faces turned all in the same direction, illuminated by the flickering light.

There are many ways to enjoy a movie. You can examine the philosophical points raised in it; you can let the pure visceral id experience of the action and images wash over you without delving too deeply; you can dissect it with the expert eye of a graphic artist or cinéast; Or you can view it as a writer, enjoying the plot and characters and how they interact. Or, of course, a little bit of some or all of those.

It may not surprise you that I primarily view movies as a writer. I love to pay attention not simply to what the plot points are, but in how they are told. How are the characters' personalities and motivations explained to the audience? Does it depend on the dialogue and actions, or upon the actors' craft? Do the choices that the characters make sense?

In other words, I love stories. I love telling them. I love paying attention to them.

The Brothers Bloom is a movie that is about a pair of con men brothers and the sequestered heiress that is their current target. It is also a love story, between one of the brothers and the heiress, just like many con movies before it; the question asked is the familiar, "Is he actually falling in love with her, or is it part of the con?" And it's also, of course, a love story between the two brothers, who start out with the familiar tension found in paired confidence men; one of them loves the whole enterprise, and the other wants to get out.

The movie is also a philosophical treatise on free will vs. determinism, finding an answer to the question "Is it possible to live an unscripted life?"

But the writer/director, Rian Johnson, is far more inventive and lively than my simple description makes it sound. Bloom (Adrien Brody) is the younger brother, and I may have missed why the pair is collectively known by his name, and he is a lost soul, the deep thinker, the one who sees their life as nothing but lies. Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) is the older brother and he embraces his role in the pair as that of a writer, imbuing their con games with themes, dramatic arcs, and subtext. Their target for the movie is Penelope (Rachel Weisz), who is beautiful but more than a little socially awkward since she's lived her entire life on a ridiculous estate somewhere in a magical New Jersey. In pursuit of the con, the three of them, along with Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi), their silent aid and explosives expert, travel to Montenegro, and Prague, and St. Petersberg; they travel by ship, and by train, and once by modern jetliner; part of the charm of the movie is its mix-and-match approach to technology and fashion.

I want to recap this movie, but honestly, it would be a dry and lifeless retelling. What I recall most are the small moments between the characters.

For example: Bloom saying goodbye to Penelope for the first time after she eagerly subverted the brothers' script for introducing them to her. He stands outside the estate, mouthing the words of his script, and Penelope realizes that he's leaving, after having given her a real (to her) honest conversation for the first time in forever. He reaches out to shake her hand while he speaks, and the camera cuts to a closeup that shows his thumb lightly rubbing her wrist and barely touching and reaching under the cuff of her sweater. Cut to her face, and a blush, as obviously an effect as the oft-parodied glint on a movie hero's smile, paints her cheeks, and yet Weisz sells the look with her eyes.

Perhaps it's because I am currently in the throes of love myself, but I felt that caress along with Bloom and Penelope. My life has seemed unscripted so often in the past, and it has left me wanting a better story, an honest story. I think I have found it, and it's more than a bit shocking to see the emotional core on the screen of a downtown multiplex, told with idealism and humor but (there's that word again) honesty, too.

This movie is fucking amazing.

Labels: movies

• 6:59 AM 0 comments