I think I'm ACTUALLY GOING.

WHO'S GONNA BE THERE?

Edit: What do I cosplay as...?

So Microsoft sent out my copy of Vista 64 a mere five days after I ordered it. Via USPS. Slowly enough that it can take up to 10 business days from the point of shipping. And there is no tracking number.

Nowhere do they mention that the 10 business day wait is from an ephemeral ship date until you actually call their help line.

So it's been twelve days since I ordered the damned thing, and I still might not have it for another week.

34lbs of computer parts from Newegg, ordered: Last Thursday latenight.
Shipping cost: Free.
Arrival: Tuesday midday.

3oz DVD of Windows Vista 64-bit, minus product key, ordered: Last Wednesday morning.
Shipping cost: $2.50, ~28% of the item's cost.
Arrival: PENDING.

So my shiny new computer sits in the corner still, utterly useless. I'd be less pissed off if the copy of Vista I originally bought mentioned anywhere that you would have to pay to order another DVD upgrade to 64-bit BEFORE you'd ripped open all four layers of packaging. Only the install DVD itself mentions that it only has 32-bit software on it.

For those of you who haven't already seen it, go watch Dr. Horrible right now.

I'm waiting.

Still haven't gone?

It's a 45-minute semi-musical 'indie' film, written by the Whedon brothers and directed by Joss; shot in a mere six days on a shoestring budget and released over teh intarwebs in three acts, it's bloody brilliant. Comic book heroes and villains, classic love story, mind-numbingly awesome songs, and cheesy-awesome acting as only Nathan Fillion and Neil Patrick Harris could provide. Watch it all at once, or in 15-minute segments: it's still up for free on their site or over at Hulu.com. I recommend following the links to Hulu and seeing it in hi-def (bottom-right-corner button.)

Excuse me, I'm off to make a coat and goggle costume....

In the light of earth-shaking life events recently...

If I were to come drive out to Cali next May/June with a friend, where would you lot suggest we stay? We really don't know jack about California, where's expensive, etc.49

for a job fair.

Only it's not a job fair. It's a boyfriend fair.

You get together a whole bunch of single guys and organize them into booths by general type; you can still have the big cardboard displays, the informational handouts, the smiling people giving explanations and demonstrations and showcasing all the fun things that happen if you decided to work (date) at one of the positions (guys) here. Appropriate business (dating) dress required; they guys will be dressed to impress, and so should you. And, of course, you could leave your name and contact information if you wanted futher...information or communication.

What, other people haven't been on this diet already? It certainly works better than all the other ones. <_<

Ouch. I'm sure I really needed that shot of humility.

Really.

Convince them to ride a mechanical bull at a bar with you.

It's perfect- close contact, random and crazy fun, people cheering at you, lots of silly giggling. One of you has to cling to the other, and you both get to make silly and obnoxious faces at everyone nearby.
And then you get flung into a heap in the padded bits around the bull, and it's really too easy from then on.

But then you hurt in muscles you never really knw you had, if you're a guy. Still, worth it.

For what will almost certainly be a fantastic meltdown.

Stay tuned, folks.

And by Mary, I mean cooking.

There's just something about successfully cooking up something tasty from scratch, followed by om-nom-nomming it in about 1/4 the time it took to make the meal, that does wonders to improve your mood. I just modified a quick and easy blackened chicken recipe for burrito-esque use, whirled together some rice and corn and chiles and diced tomatoes, and had a very happy dinner that completely erased a very substandard day.

Also, I sent myself into minor conniptions through capsaicin overdose.

"Today's going to be very, very long. I kinda want to crawl in bed and miss it."
~R.K. Milholland, today's S*P

Work 8-12, two exams 12:30-4:30, the class I have an exam in on Thursday 5-6:15, psych assignment all night, up again at 7 tomorrow for work.

35 hours of work in the next five days, alongside twelve hours of classes.

It's gonna be a looooong week.

Feed my webcomic addiction!

8-bit Theater, Absurd Notions, Angst Technology, Applegeeks, The Battle for Gobwin Knob, Blank It!, Bruno the Bandit, Candi, CRFH!!!, Ctrl+Alt+Del, Dark Legacy Comics, Devil's Panties, Dominic Deegan, Fans!, General Protection Fault, Girl Genius, Girly, Irregular Webcomic, It's Walky!, Just a Bit Off, Least I Could Do, Looking For Group, Megatokyo, Menage a 3, No Pink Ponies, Order of the Stick, Ozy and Millie, Pennie and Aggie, Penny Arcade, Punch an' Pie, PVP Online, Questionable Content, Real Life, Rob and Elliot, Sabrina Online, Sam and Fuzzy, Scary-Go-Round, Shortpacked!, Sinfest, Sluggy Freelance, Something Positive, Striptease, Super Effective, The Wild Adventures of Trunks and Soto, Three Panel Soul, Two Lumps, Ubersoft, User Friendly, VGCats, and XKCD make up the long list of what I read.

Anyone have any other good ones?

I just opened a stay-tab can of microwaveable soup using only my right hand. It's such a strange feeling.

It's representative of the tremendous changes I've undergone in the last three months. I've lost something like eight pounds, and gained at least some visible form of physique. This stems partly from eating less, and eating (gasp) a respectable amount of fruits and vegetables with my meals, as well as watching my fat and sugar intakes. It's also from the exercise that I'm actually getting now, outside. This also means that I'm tanner and a lighter blond than I have been in almost a decade.

I've started to do things like budget my time, money, and other resources such that I've not run out of any of them despite the extremely trying circumstances: my job has repeatedly been late or simply forgotten to pay me, my roommates don't always have the money for rent and utilities, my car's had repeated (and expensive) issues, and a few dozen surprise calls on my free time during the beginning of my most work-intensive semester yet.

I've begun to feel genuinely creative again for the first time since my pre-adolescent emo phase, and have actually gotten some ideas and works down on paper, regardless of how reasonable or skilled they really are. I've not been able to see anything through past the idea or first scribblings phase in years (the Kit Lores threads come to mind as the last notable works.)

Most shockingly, I can open pop-top cans again. I can pull the little attachments out of my leatherman easily. I can pick up coins that've fallen to the floor, I can scratch off instant lotto tickets unaided, and I can peel stamps off of wax paper. All taken for granted by so many people, and all because I have fingernails again. For maybe fifteen years I've compulsively bitten them down to nothing, shorter and shorter until they really looked bad; ragged, uneven, and hugely short. I had to hide them whenever I thought people might notice. A thousand easy everyday tasks became trials. I even chipped my tooth once, trying to open something that a fingernail could've done in a second.
I just up and quit a month ago. I'd tried before, perhaps a half-dozen times, but could never make it past the first instance of anxiety, nervousness, boredom, or the like. It's been so easy this time, the others all seem like distant memories.

The compulsions are all still there: to be lazy, to eat and drink anything that presents itself all day long, to procrastinate, to self-doubt, and to bite off all my nails again. But they're all resistable now, and I don't know what's changed.

And before any of you comment on the continuing trends of self-questioning that my LJ has displayed, I know. Neener neener.

Pandora has helped me figure out that Puddle of Mudd's Blurry and the All-American Rejects' Swing Swing are two of my favoritest songs evar.

Slow news day.

If, by some miracle of chance and happenstance, some of us were to resurrect the Kit Lores thread, or one of the other RP threads, or even generate a new similar thread on the old (read: ancient) #ar forums...

Who would be willing to throw in some time on a regular basis?

I know you're all consummate authors. C'mon, who's up for it?

There is no greater skill to bring to college life than the ability to cook. After two weeks of pizza, nachos, hot dogs and fries everywhere, being able to come home and whip up some quick garlic-and-herb pork roast, with creamy broccoli rice, a side of perfect peas and some simple bruschetta is...

it's heavenly. I haven't grinned like this in weeks.

I'm gonna start chatting you all up regarding those recipes you keep talking about, now.

I just think that if you have a crownin' moment of awesome, you shouldn't just let it go.

You should harness it.

~Robin, Shortpacked

The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they’ve printed.
1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicize those you started but did not finish.
3) Underline the books you LOVE.
4) Reprint this list in your own blog so we can try and track down these people who’ve read 6 and force books upon them.

( Cut for loooong list. )