Ghost in the Machine....

So, it was late Saturday (late for me) and I was leaning back in my Captain Kirk chair (So named due to the fact that you feel like you're in Kirk's command chair when you sit in it) when my DTV box suddenly cuts out. As soon as I'm halfway out of the command chair, it blinks back on, and reboots itself, its little green light glowing innocently at me like a cyclopian child caught with its hand in the cookie jar. We proceeded to glare at each other suspiciously for several minutes, then I retreated to the minimal comfort of my chair. Thus far it appears to be behaving, but this is not the first time the traitorous box has pulled this, always when I least expect it, and generally when I'm trying to record something. I am sure that one day there will be a reckoning and it won't be pretty, due to the fact that I'm bigger, and stronger, and know the mysteries of wiring. Oh, just you wait little box of innocent charm. Just you wait.

No doubt some of you are chalking this up to anthropomorphism, the applying of human emotions to an animal. But this is not so, because this is a little box of hexed wires and boards, and not an animal. I'm not sure what the proper term would be for this particular circumstance, so we'll just go with "The Cursed Black Box" which works for now. One of these is bad enough, but it has a twin downstairs that remains unnamed. The box in the living room is almost worse, because when you turn it on, it reboots every single time and loses channels, which requires unhooking its nourishing (ugh i hate that word) wires and electricity every time. It retaliates by losing yet more channels. Dad says its because its little computer is the equivalent of a 286, and its being jammed with more information than it can handle. This is possibly true, however the CBB doesn't have the problem... it just shuts itself off at random intervals. Generally going months before giving in to its sense of humor. Come to think of it, this hasn't happened for over a year. I shall let sleeping jinxed DTV boxes lie.

In other arenas, the classes going okay, but I am still frustrated with my Circulation class. I managed to get the Role Playing assignment done, but the newest assignment that was posted was 8 pages long and sort of confusing. Eh, I'll figure it out, or hey I can ask. The class I made this Blog for is a lot of fun. I'm still playing with the Blog, trying things out to see if they work and taking out that which ... doesn't. I added a few more books to my favorite books list, and I was attempting go find a header I like. Also working on a music list to add. And yes, there will be some pictures at some point. Not of me. Sorry, I'm not all that excited about putting a picture of me on the net. ;) Apologies.

Duck Dodgers is on, so that means its getting close to 11pm. Thus I must away to my humble lump of bedding. Not to mention the joy of watching my the inside of my eyelids for the next several hours. Nothing like studying tiny blood vessels. The can't possibly be good for the psyche. Yes, I am aware that eyes roll up when closed, so technically you're looking at your frontal lobe. So picky. Good night. ;)

I Rename Myself Listerine.....

Since I was half asleep last night when I posted, there were a couple of things I left out. Given several instances that proved my ability to sleep and appear functional at work, I had to begin paying attention to small details. I was doing pretty well until I tried to reply to an email from my boss, and attempted to sign it "Thanks, Listerine." This goes to show that anyone can forget how to spell their own name, some more spectacularly than others. Since it was already at the bottom of my email and my boss can always use a good laugh, and at the risk of it being forwarded to the almighty library Director accidentally or intentionally, I sent it anyway. So far, its been a running gag. ;) My guess is this will rate right up there with a discussion I had with a co-worker about an angst ridden Skink (Type of lizard.) which we captured after the foolish creature ran unheeding into my library. For a good hour and a half it sat at the bottom of a delivery tub glaring at me and swishing his tail. You could almost see the cogs of irritation whirling in its head as it attempted to cause fear and discontent with its gaze alone. Hope it wasn't too disappointed in my lack of trembling.

Some time ago, I said I'd load a picture of my chickens. This is them at about a day old, some were probably two days, but I have now real way of knowing. They're all big now, and living in the chicken coop with the older hens. Hmm, the picture appears to be somewhat blurry, but it doesn't seem to bad when its this small. I don't have a Photo Shop program to play with the size on these, so its nice that the blogger site automatically resizes it. At least I hope it resized. The little grey chicks and the ones that are bright yellow are called Brahmas. The black and yellow chicks are called Australorps and will be solid black with a green sheen in the sunlight when they are adults. There is one orange colored one here and that is a Buff Orpington chick. They stay a golden orange color all their lives. And then you may be able to see the dark colored chicks to the upper right of the feeder with what look like racing stripes. Those are Golden Lace Wyandottes. I'll have to upload some pictures of them as adults at some point.. Maybe this weekend when I've got some time to fiddle with the camera and its overload of pictures I haven't gotten a chance to download.

As for my class, I am having a good time with the assignments (this blog was one of them) and am as I figured going a little overboard. ;) I try and get everything done too fast, and end up running myself into the ground, which is why I declared a day of rest the other day. While I was in Australia last fall it was easier for me to get myself to take a little time off and just enjoy what was around me. So now that I'm back (its been a year now, and its hard to believe) I sometimes find myself wishing I was back there taking my archeology classes, and just exploring Sydney.
One of my favorite places to go and just relax and eat lunch was in the Chinese Garden of Friendship. The photo on the left is of the Jade Waterfall. There are places to sit up beside it and listen to the water, or you can go down to the area where I took this photo, and watch from there. It was overcast the day I took this, but it was warm, and I still like pulling up this picture and staring at it for a while. I figure sometime in the far future when I can actually save up enough money, I'll see if I can go back. With my luck by that time it'll be too dangerous to leave the country. ;) Okay, so that was a negative thought on my part. If I do go again, I probably won't be able to stay a long as I did that first time. Three months is a long time especially for your first time out of the country! But I do admit to missing it, just for its ease of transportation, the friendly people (okay friendly as long as they weren't business men.) and wonderful variety of food. You name it, you can find it. Except for Mexican food. In that area there was a distinct lack. Here's hoping I get to go back someday! The real reason? ... I miss my favorite restaurant. Wagamamas. ;)

Alrighty, I think I've babbled enough for one evening. I am going to head to sleeping spot and crash since I am supposed to be up bright and bushy tailed at 5:30a.m. Night to all! :)

I Declare a Day Off.....

Yes, I decided to go and do something fun before I came home from work and did homework. After work today I treated myself to a day at the movies, which in all honesty was probably a bad idea since I'm supposed to be saving up funds for a short trip at the beginning of October. For shame on me... but I had fun, and a much needed chance to relax. There was a choice of movies. Halloween or 3:10 to Yuma, and I am now sort of wishing I had gone ahead and seen Halloween, because 3:10 was a little more dramatic than I needed. Some of you are no doubt wondering how I could possibly relax during a horror film like Halloween, but I swear to you that for me, its relaxing. Yet more of my tweaked psyche has been revealed and its all my doing. ;) My idea of a relaxing film is an action film, a horror film, or an old black and white movie which I'm not picky about unless its a heavy duty drama. Those make my eyes cross. But something like The Thin Man or Arsenic and Old Lace is just right.

So its late yet again, and I have to get up at the crack of morning. I'm not sure how well I will sleep though because of the thunderstorms going over and rattling the house like a tin can. No, the house isn't made of tin, but made of wood. That doesn't stop if from shaking like mad when the thunder rolls close by. ;) I should crawl into bed though because its freezing in here due to the fact that we haven't fired up the wood stove for the fall/winter yet. Its still too dry. No other way of heating the house, so I get to suffer for a couple more weeks. I just wear lots of clothes. ;) Night to all. I'm heading for my bed!

What the heck day is it....

Stop looking at me like that. So I forgot what day it was. After my chat-a-thon on Saturday and Sunday I took Monday off, doing nothing, but watching Superman The Animated Series, resting and basically touching bases with my primitive self, Lady Couch Potato! Yes, I was once a couch spud, but now I have moved on to Computer Jockey. Believe me when I say its hard on my sense of time. I got up this morning thinking it was Monday, yet my little inner self slapped the confused self into some sense and I got to work on time. Even managed to get to my haircut appointment somewhat on time.

In between the haircut appointment and going to work I went and wandered around at the little garden area in Target. Its nice in there and unlike the oppressive nature inside the ladies who take care of the plants are delights to be around and talk with. ;) Yet I didn't escape unscathed. When I left I ended up having gone inside and emerged a couple of dollars lighter, and the proud owner of a the animated version of Superman Doomsday. I read this comic a long time ago, and since Paul Dini and Bruce Timm has their mitts all over the conversion from comic to cartoon I'm fairly positive it was worth picking up. Perhaps I shall be proved wrong when I actually get a chance to watch it. Given their outstanding work and development of Batman the Animated Series, Superman the Animated Series and the downright fantastic Justice League Unlimited series that ran on Cartoon Network.. well, it'd be hard to go wrong. ..... You're all wondering if I've lost my mind. I know. Its okay. I don't mind at all. :)

Now that I've revealed my deep dark secret of still loving cartoons, comics, anime and manga... Hmm, revealed more there than I thought... perhaps I should give an update on my classes. I can hear the snoring, so I'll make this quick. Everything is going okay, except for some frustration with my Circulation class. Just a couple of quirks with it that I am dealing with. The internship at Auburn is going well as far as I know. I.E. No one has yelled at me for doing something massively wrong, so I'm assuming I'm doing okay. We shall see I guess. :) All that anxiety I had earlier on in the semester seems to be leveling out and I'm not feeling so overwhelmed now. Probably had a lot to do with changing my schedule, not getting enough sleep and fighting with the Financial Aid Dept at the school. Paperwork would get filled out and turned in... and then they'd send me one more worksheet that needed to be done and filled in. I'd turn it in, and ask if there were any more I'd missed and they'd say,"Nope! You're all set!" And then the next day another envelope with the same worksheets I'd just filled out would show up. ARGH!!!! Glad to say that's all be fixed now. YAY!!!

And with that, I bid you all a good night as it is well past my bedtime and I need to be unconscious for a few hours before I have to get up. Night! :)

Sitting in a Small Virtural Room...

Today was my day off. Therefore, I spent practically the entire day sitting online in a chatroom in hopes of running a fellow student to ground so I could complete an assignment. This was more difficult than it sounds due to the fact that just about everyone is on a different schedule, has their own responsibilities, hence us all taking an online class! :) We've all been playing passing ships in the night for about 3 days now and this afternoon I finally won the title of Ultimate Virtual Classroom Stalker! Homework assignment completed with minimal pain and agony. Thank you oh cosmic practical joker! ;) I was getting tired of sitting here for ... wow.. I got on there around Noon and I got off there at 8pm. While sitting there I noticed that you do get signed out if you don't do anything for long enough, so its entirely possible I missed someone. Had to keep it active by typing things in.

Now to the relaxing part. Before I got online, I took care of my dog, my cat and then went out to the chicken coop and let everybody out for the day. Its nice to sit down and just watch them for a while. I raised 16 chicks over the summer, and they're big now. Still cute, but much more dinosaur-ish wearing feathered coats. They still follow me around if I go outside, so for brief (growing briefer) moments I'm standing in a small sea of chickens. All different colors. I'll have to post a picture of them at some point. Some have names, and some don't. They're all goofy. Silly birds. ;)

PS. I moved the Favorite Books to the side so its easier to get to. :)