Feeling: Cold Sore

I kind of lost the entry for this date due to a copy paste action that went horribly wrong. All I remember about it is that I updated the Videogame Music Preservation Foundation with the NES game Soccer's soundtrack. and that I complained a lot about how much GM's new dealer web site sucks which, by the way, does indeed suck.

Feeling: Cold Sore

Why can't all weekends be three days long? Even with the overwhelming heat I still had a blast. Check out my little entry on Mayfaire.

At work I'm quickly trying to redesign a log-in program in order to get our software to work with General Motors' new crappy log in system. They decided that server-side log-ins aren't secure enough, so they switched them over to page-side log-ins. Someone really should have told them that page-side log-ins are even easier to crack. I'd claim that this is one of the reasons why I drive a Dodge, but to be honest GM actually has better Internet quality than the other manufacturers. Sad.

Feeling: Cold Sore

Finally! That horrible beast is out of my hands. My carpet in my bedroom needs a serious vacuuming now, but it's finally gone. I expect to get a bunch of calls about it still, but at least I don't need to worry about it any more.

Last night there was a glorious electrical storm in Grand Blanc. I had the benefit of driving out into it to get that POS computer to my sister. I adore being in storms, and this one really gave me an adrenaline rush. Usually, when you see a storm, you'll see lightning and hear thunder off in the distance, but in this case I was right in the middle of the storm and the thunder and lightning was all around me. The thunder was rattling my windows and the lightning was so bright it left after effects in my vision. The day turned into night and the rain was so heavy that visibility was down to about 100 yards. There was even some flooding in the roads! When the hail came there were plenty of leaves and braches torn from the trees and blown into in the streets. My favorite part was when I actually saw a lightning bolt touch down only a couple hundred feet away. The light was so intense that for a moment I could see nothing but white, which kind of scared me since I was driving. It lit up the entire sky from horizon to horizon. Truly magnificent.

This weekend is the second and last weekend of Mayfaire. It's open throughout the three day weekend, and I'll be there for all three days.

I'm in the market for a Queen or King sized bed. I don't want anything special, not pocketed coils, pillow tops, or radio controlled crap. All I'm looking for is a standard firm metal-springed bed to sleep on. If anyone knows of a good company to buy from, or a bad company to avoid, advice would be appreciated.

Feeling: Cold Sore

I finished getting my parent's old computer loaded with Office 2003 and service pack 2. I even had to add and Ethernet card because the board didn't have built in networking. It's like dealing with a computer from the Dark Ages, I swear. So now I just need to screw down everything, fix the face plate, and toss the thing to my sister which will take up the majority of my evening for the fourth day in a row. If I weren't doing this thing pro bono there would be a bill for about three times the cost of the entire computer. If I drank, I would seriously need a beer right now.

If you're a Samwise Gamgee fan, you'll love this little animation. If you're not a Samwise Gamgee fan then you suck and nobody loves you.

Feeling: Cold Sore

Well, since I haven't been to a doctors office in like ten years, because doctors are evil, I had to switch practitioners to a local area doctor, but my stupid insurance company is forcing me to wait until the first of June to see him. All this work to have him sign a piece of paper. Lame.

Well, the Windows XP floppy disks actually worked and I was able to fully load XP once the CD-ROM drivers were loaded. This just proves that there is something wrong with the board in that respect. I also need to swap in a DVD player just to load Office because the only version I have is on DVD. Then I need to load service pack 2 and then shut it all off. This sucks. Not that I'm a complainer or anything. Here is an unedited shot of my bedroom floor so you can see how much fun I'm having.

Feeling: Annoyed

First facial sunburn of the year; first cold sore of the year. It's like painful humiliating clockwork. You can't tell from your web browser, but I'm just tickled pink with rage. Screw this, I going to get a a prescription for some anti-viral meds.

After wrestling with my parent's old computer I have scraped up knuckles and a room that is now strewn about with computer parts. Apparently the motherboard can't boot from a CD-ROM. I switched the CMOS settings so it should be booting, but it's just won't work. I've swapped out the IDE cables and CD-ROMs twice with ones that worked just fine on another computer, so I'm sure it's not them. I'm going to try creating the Windows XP floppy boot disk trick that requires booting from SIX floppies. If that doesn't work I'm just going to see how far I can throw it off my balcony. I've spent far too much time on this thing as it is.

Feeling: Cool

My date on Friday was just amazing. The woman was intelligent, pretty, and slightly morbid. Those are three qualities that I look for! I'd explain in more detail, but I'm not the kind of guy that will kiss and tell... Oops.

I also went to the opening weekend of Mayfaire which was really great. I was in the boffer list for quite awhile cheerfully murdering small children. I forgot my purse (yes, they were called purses back then) so I couldn't carry around my camera or wallet, so I don't really have any keepsakes, but there's always next weekend. My face and forearms acquired a minor sunburn, even with sunscreen (forgot to reapply every six hours!), but at least I'll get some color instead of my usual pasty whiteness.

Feeling: Flirty

Today is National Bike to Work day. I live only about an 8 minute drive to my work, which I could easily bike, but there is no way I would. First off, it's often cold and raining in Michigan in May, much like today. Bike to Work day should be in June for us Northern folk. Secondly, instead if sidewalks from my apartment to my office, we have five-lane mega highways with lots of bad drivers. Death from truck-inflicted wounds is exactly how I want to start my Friday.

My car is still not fixed, but on the plus side I get to try and reload a computer that has coffee stains on the inside. How does that happen?

I have a date tonight! Well, sort-of. It's more of a "meeting someone for the first time" than a full fledged date. But that someone is a woman, so it's not like one of those fake dates where I'm going to get a physical at the doctor's office and just telling people it's a date. I hope she doesn't tell me to turn my head an cough.

This weekend is also the opening weekend of Mayfaire, the first Renaissance festival of the year in Michigan.

Feeling: Blah

Okay, I took my parents new computer to them and got their DSL and email all setup from before. I even ripped their old hard drive out and stuffed it in their new one so they could get all the info off of it. Now all I have to do is go back again today, put the hard drive back in the old PC, format, and completely reload the old one for my sister. Simple!

I had my mother cut my hair last night (saved $20 bucks). It's now just shy of two feet, but it feels much shorter. Hopefully, I can get that piece of my car that fell off put back on.

Are any of my readers eating bread? If so, you may might want to read this important information about the dangers of bread.

Feeling: Okay

Someone hit my website with a rather frightening search query yesterday. It was "i need glitter happy face 4 my website". You know, if you can't even be bothered to write out words completely in a Google search you really need to go to school.

I loaded my parents new computer last night, but I didn't move any of their data or reload their old one yet, so I'll be doing that tonight. Ugh, I hate computers that aren't mine.

I've added a fun project called the Online Brainwasher. It's not recommended for people who get dizzy easily.

Apparently, riding a bike hurts your butt if you haven't done it in months.

Feeling: Okay

I had a dream this morning about one of my friends who was having a rather difficult life and in the dream I was trying to help them out. I don't remember much about it, but it made me wake up feeling all depressed, which I'm not a big fan of doing.

I now have my parent's new computer and I'll be spending the majority of the evening loading it and reloading my parent's old one. I should be charging for this stuff.

There's a new Say No! image as well.

Feeling: Sleepy

After purchasing a junk bike last week I decided to go for broke and actually visit a bike store. I suddenly realized how much better it is to buy from a bike store. The salesmen were competent, they actually sized me for a bike, and they were quick at answering all of my questions. My bike ended up costing just a little over $300, but after riding it and comparing it to the previous one, it's totally worth it.

My sister needs a computer for her new classes so I have the pleasure of formatting my parents computer and completely reloading it for her, and then they're buying a new PC for themselves which I have to load as well. Gosh it's going to be swell!

I've added a new section to my music biography that lists the songs that have been known to make me cry.

I was informed of a cool puzzle game site called thestone.com. If you're into puzzles you may like it.

Feeling: Inept

Did you know that cars need gasoline to run? I, apparently, do not. While running on E (for two days straight), I kept on driving saying to myself, "I'll get gas tomorrow." Well, on Friday I was off to get gas since I my car was having trouble starting. I decided to pass the corner Marathon--because they were over priced--and go to my favorite gas station a mile further down the road.

That's when my car decided to choke and die... right in front of a cop. Luckily, it was a lazy Grand Blanc cop, so even though he saw my car struggle and come to a stop on the side of the road with my hazard lights on, he just drove on by trying to find those terrible criminals that infest Grand Blanc. You know the ones I mean, the pot smokers and the people that throw eggs at houses in the night. Scary.

So after a fun walk in the rain, I picked up a tank and some gas from the over priced Marathon station and got my car running so that I could go to my favorite station, which ended up charging the same amount as the Marathon. I blame Canada.

Feeling: Smart

The dance performance (Night and Day) last night was really impressive. It was a much larger production than I was expecting, featuring a large assortment of dancers and styles from toddlers, to teens, to adults. The costumes were especially impressive, each new dance featured a whole new set of costumes. I totally need to get a dancer girlfriend, talk about having control of your body, yowza!

There is a new Ask a Guru Q&A. You're impressed, honest you are.

Feeling: Happy

I bought a cool new belt which makes me look like totally hardcore, OMG!

You would think that my home computer with a combined hard drive space of 480 GB would be enough. Not even close. After burning about 30 CDs and DVDs I'm still running low on space. I'd tell myself to stop downloading, but we all know that will never happen. I just need to start actually watching the stuff I download so I can get it off my hard drive.

I'm attempting to go to a dance recital tonight to cheer on a friend of mine. I haven't been to a dance performance in years, so it should be interesting.

Feeling: Chubby

I need more exercise. I'm working longer hours, which means that I'm getting home later, and by the time I do, I don't really feel like working out that much, whether it be jogging, blading, or even playing DDR. I was hoping that by adding a bike into the mix that I would add a bit more interest in it, but that didn't work out. The trouble with wanting better toys is having to dish out the cash.

I added two arcade pictures of the great wording on some of the machines. See 2 ball jackpot and Chest Hole Fill.

I added the new movie products on the Narnia page and the Dune page. I also added the latest book info to the American Gods page. Sigh... I miss my book and what went with it.

My lyrics page is now up to 1,250 songs.

Feeling: Happy

I know I sound like a major geek, but the history of mathematics is really exciting. I've been reading A History of Pi and all this time I've thought that the Greeks were the power houses when it came to math, but the Mayans and Chinese were calculating complex geometry over a thousand years before Greece finally caught up.

I added some mini reviews for the albums Sheer Heart Attack, by Queen and Stunt, by Barenaked Ladies.

The latest patch from Microsoft contains a software validator. If you're using a pirated or cracked version of Windows XP you may start receiving nag messages from Microsoft trying to get you to spend $150 to get a genuine software key. Yeah, right. If you don't have a valid XP key, you can find free ones on the Internet or programs that will generate them for you. Programs also exist to easily change your XP key. Just remember that the only crime in the software industry is allowing Microsoft to get your money.

Feeling: Sleepy

Today is the 5th birthday of thealmightyguru.com. It's hard to believe that this site has been online for five solid years today. It's actually not as impressive as I would like. Hopefully, it will have plenty of years ahead of it and a lot more useless stuffages will be added. Can you believe that "stuffages" isn't in spellcheck?

Friday evening my friend Heidi came over and brought with her a baby bird. Not a pet bird, but a wild mourning dove fledgling (a little younger than these). Heidi's boss had picked it up outside of her house and handed it over to Heidi to take care of because Heidi has experience raising birds. While researching how to care for baby birds, every page I came across said, "Don't rescue fledglings." Fledglings are birds that have gained some feathers and are trying to learn how to fly and hunt. They leave the nest to learn and the parents stay around it feeding, protecting, and teaching it. So if you ever see a fledgling bird out of it's nest, DON'T try to rescue it. The mistake had already been made, so we were determined to help the bird and after trying several different things, we finally got the bird to eat. We stayed up late into the night and woke up early to keep it fed (fledglings are fed by their parents about every hour or so, nestlings every 20 minutes!). It was still alive when Hiedi returned it, but who knows from there. If you've found a baby bird and didn't know to leave it alone, check this site for info.

On Saturday I went to Sagano's, a Japanese Steakhouse in Flint, with the arcade group. It's always nice going to an expensive restaurant with a large group of high school/college students. Sure it makes me feel a little old, but younger people really know how to have a good time. See illustration.

On Sunday I bought a mountain bike, which I will be returning today. Either bikes have gotten a lot junkier since I was a kid, or I was too young to notice. Even after getting one of the best bikes at the store, I brought home junk. I guess this means if I really want a decent bike I'll be buying from an over-priced bike shop. Also, for the first time since I shaved my beard I was confused for a woman again. I so much missed being able to make a person feel really awkward.

Awhile ago I mentioned that The Beatles' company, Apple Corp was suing Apple for using a similar logo for a music product. After all the trials, the judge finally ruled in Apple's favor. Although I'm pleased that Apple was allowed to continue producing their product (which is completely different than The Beatles) I was disappointed to hear why Apple won. Apple Corp claimed that Apple's iTunes was a product in the music industry, but Apple claimed that it was in the data-transmission industry and that transferring binary data to and from a computer did not qualify as "music". The problem with that ruling is that it's just another step in trying to claim that the Internet or a computer is a magical device that requires special and unique rules. Yes, iTunes is sending binary data, but that binary data IS music! Who cares what the format is, the media is still the same. It's stuff like this that gives lawyers room to claim that because computers are not telephones or televisions then it's okay to wiretap and censor them. Media is media, regardless of the carrier.

Feeling: Cool

I was 1 miss away from having five AAs in a row last night on DDR! I'd blame the fact that may shoelace came untied on the last song, but I just suck on reverse.

I watched the movie DOOM last night. What pure undiluted crap. I expected it to be bad, but I was impressed as to how bad it really was. It had nothing to do with the game at all. Aliens instead of demons? What a waste of a franchise. The Big Force Gun? Please.

But even that lame movie won't ruin my Firday! W00t!

Feeling: Happy

Last night I witnessed a psychological phenomena that I'm becoming more familiar with. I put on some torn jeans, a fishnet shirt, a burgundy velvet jacket, put my hair down, and applied black mascara. I then went to Hot Topic at the mall. The workers were cheery, they said hello, showed me where the sale items were, and at the end said good-bye. Normally, I enter the store dressed how I usually do, which is just plain clothes and I'm met with looks of "what are you doing here?" I'm always the same person going in, but I'm treated differently based solely on how I'm dressed. This isn't just Hot Topic. When I'm dressed in work boots, jeans, and a flannel shirt and enter Home Depot, everyone assumes I know how to build a house or something, but if I went there dressed like I was yesterday they would think (rightfully so) that I have no clue about trade skills. Most people feel comfortable around those who dress and act the same as what their used to. It's a standard cultural prejudice. I don't take offence, in fact I usually dress that way to purposely get the response.

It annoys me when people pretend to take a concern in my life. I have several friends/family members who whenever I see them they claim to want to know what's happening in my life. Perhaps they're just doing it to be polite. I'm constantly updating my web site with what I'm doing, and how my life is going. It's not totally uncensored, but I'm open enough on it that you know how my life is going. Anyone who wants to know about my life can come up here and check, but all these people who claim to care don't bother. If you really want to know my life, see my site. It's not that complicated.

If you're a FireFox user then you're familiar with blocking advertising images. However, Flash ads are still very annoying because you can't block them. There is an extension called FlashBlock that will block all Flash for you and then let you whitelist the ones you want.

Feeling: Chubby

I'm still very much in love with my cable modem. I'd have a wedding, but Michigan has laws that prevent that sort of thing. Nazis!

I've added the write up on the road trip that I went on last weekend, complete with pictures, mascots, and a handy travel map.

My guru's have also successfully answered a new question.

Somehow my web site has been added to the German Google index for sites that are related to glittermaker.com. The German Google? WTF? I hate glitter graphics almost as much as I hate Germans! Wait a minute, I have German heritage. Correction, I hate glitter graphics almost as much as I hate biting down really hard on aluminum foil. Yeah, that's the ticket. Those stupid glitters are like trying to read a book under a strobe light. SO ANNOYING! Anyway, because I'm a good sport, I decided to make my own little glitter text for all you German readers.

Feeling: Okay

I now officially have a working cable modem at my house. I was giddy all night. I'll be needing more hard drive space again soon.

I did a couple minor updates to the Dollhouse, my 7th Guest/11th Hour page. I added the Macintosh game versions, a link to DOS Box, removed the dead links, added some new ones, and fixed a few minor problems.

The RENT page also has some minor changes including the addition of the Vocal Selections books. Also, if you haven't yet taken the character quiz, you should because it's very important to your health.

Feeling: Exhausted

Friday evening I stopped at B.Dalton for one last run through their inventory before they closed. I picked up four more books, Red Dragon, The Book of Totally Useless Information, Mind Over Matter, and a gift for a friend. The cute chick was there too. Bonus.

I worked Saturday morning, then drove out to Grand Rapids and picked up my cable modem. I now need to get a fifty foot cable for my new cable modem because the designers of my apartment were too cheap to put a cable drop in the master bedroom. After getting my modem I met up with Nikia and Katie. Over the weekend the three of us drove up to Mackinaw and then over to the Sleeping Bear Dunes. It was a blast and I should have the full trip documented by tomorrow.

So far, everyone that I've met who has seen me beardless has told me to grow it back. This can only mean one thing. I'm hideously ugly. Thanks for lowering my self-esteem you horrible people.

Annoying car rattling found! Well, one of them anyway. My car was making the seriously annoying rattling noise and after a week and several well placed kicks and punches to the dashboard, I've found the the noise was coming from a button I had on my sun visor. I felt just a little foolish.

Today I got my permanent crown put on, so I'm done with the dentist until September. Stupid teeth not being made out of titanium.