Saturday, November 22, 2003
Stupid hip flexor
It's ok on the bike, but I twanged it again at the gym while on, of all things, the bench press. I had forgotten it was even hurt.
Tuesday, November 18, 2003
Sexy Helmet Hair
After my bike ride, I had an appointment for a haircut. When I walked in, Michelle had this smile and a look in her eye, and finally she said, "I really like your hair right now. I don't want to cut it-- it's really sexy!" Woo hoo, helmet hair!
Nifty clock
Hip flexor better
Babied it yesterday and tested it on a ride today, and it's much better. Nothing to worry about for now. Have to figure out how to improve warmup when only playing hockey once a week.
Monday, November 17, 2003
Lynx downer
Last night, we blew a 3-0 lead and a 5-3 lead late and tied 5-5. And I pulled a hip flexor holding up a guy on the boards in the third period. I told Brian, "I'm done. I might be able to go, but in a 5-3 game I'm not gonna push it." That was with about 6 minutes left. Then they made it 5-4 and we were running around, over-chasing, collapsing, and doing other dumb stuff. With 2 mins left, I told Bri I could go, but the RW that was on stayed out the whole time, and we gave up the tying goal with 4 seconds left. And there was no OT because Logitech is a stupid league.
After the game, Brian took responsibility for costing us the win. It's true, Brian did attempt a cross-ice pass when he should have iced it, and they scored subsequently. It happens, and at least he knows what he did. What ticked me off is that disregarding that play, we did not play a smart game in the 3rd period. The main thing was that the forwards were not playing a smart game defensively. And with the 2-goal lead, we should not have been cherry-picking, but forwards were still trying boost their stats instead of trying to win the game. There were times when players would have a chance to dump the puck, but they'd take too long and give it up in the n.z. Wingers failed to support the breakout. I even saw one player cherry-picking on a penalty kill. Dumb.
So, Brian made bad play, but I don't think he'll do that again. The rest of the team, I don't know if they're going to learn anything from this game or not.
I had fun skating with Chris and Brian on line 1. It sucked to get hurt, but it sucked more that I didn't get to be out there in the last minute. The winger that Brian was trying to pass across the ice to was the one who should have changed for me. He should not have been there for Brian to even attempt a pass to. And I admire Bri for trying to take the heat for losing the point, but there was too much other dumb crap that went on for him to be the one to blame.
After the game, Brian took responsibility for costing us the win. It's true, Brian did attempt a cross-ice pass when he should have iced it, and they scored subsequently. It happens, and at least he knows what he did. What ticked me off is that disregarding that play, we did not play a smart game in the 3rd period. The main thing was that the forwards were not playing a smart game defensively. And with the 2-goal lead, we should not have been cherry-picking, but forwards were still trying boost their stats instead of trying to win the game. There were times when players would have a chance to dump the puck, but they'd take too long and give it up in the n.z. Wingers failed to support the breakout. I even saw one player cherry-picking on a penalty kill. Dumb.
So, Brian made bad play, but I don't think he'll do that again. The rest of the team, I don't know if they're going to learn anything from this game or not.
I had fun skating with Chris and Brian on line 1. It sucked to get hurt, but it sucked more that I didn't get to be out there in the last minute. The winger that Brian was trying to pass across the ice to was the one who should have changed for me. He should not have been there for Brian to even attempt a pass to. And I admire Bri for trying to take the heat for losing the point, but there was too much other dumb crap that went on for him to be the one to blame.
Kitten update
Thursday we brought home M.E. from the vet and put her in a cage in the garage (pictured earlier). Friday. we spent a little time visiting Mini-Eyebrow, but per the cat taming instructions, we didn't do any cat handling. Saturday, after a nice bike ride in relatively good weather in Monterey, we took her out of the cage and started getting her used to being handled by humans (us).
On Sunday, we moved her cage into the house and started getting her used to being inside. We let her explore, that mostly involved her crawling behind something, going frozen and meowing until Naomi rescued her. Now she's getting a little more antsy, and soon we'll have to introduce her to the other cats. Going well!
On Sunday, we moved her cage into the house and started getting her used to being inside. We let her explore, that mostly involved her crawling behind something, going frozen and meowing until Naomi rescued her. Now she's getting a little more antsy, and soon we'll have to introduce her to the other cats. Going well!
Friday, November 14, 2003
A victory for the good guys, sort of
Sentinel Article | Mercury News article
The good news is that The Blue Lagoon won it's case against the Santa Cruz Police Department, who harassed the owners & patrons of the Blue for years. The bad news is that it came to a lawsuit at all.
But this is what happens when you get lawyers involved. I don't think it's as simple as the cynical analysis that it's in lawyers' best interest to have protracted disputes. I think that it's probably more along the lines of they feel that if they don't fight as hard as possible, all the way to the end, then they're not serving their client.
It didn't have to go that far. From the SJMN article:
But of course, the city's lawyers have to deny everything from the start. They can't apologize, because that would be admitting some wrongdoing. And admitting some wrongdoing probably means they can be sued. And that right there is something major that is wrong with our legal system. It's infuriating that they can't simply say, "We're sorry, we messed up" and be done with it without risking being sued. It reminds me of on-ice altercations in hockey. No one is ever wrong in their own eyes on the ice. The difference is that after the game, the players still shake hands most of the time, and often the players will apologize to each other and admit they were wrong.
Another example: a few years ago, someone I know very well was rear-ended by a city bus when she stopped at a stop sign. (Coincidentally, this happened just as the girls' cross country team was running across the street.) She sustained injuries to her neck and back and damage to her car, and embarked on a drawn-out and frustrating legal battle, which she finally had to give up after a year of depositions, brow-beating, and word twisting. The city probably paid their lawyers 10 times as much as they would have had to pay her.
Not only is this a waste of the city's (and taxpayers') money, it is not justice. Justice would be when you take responsibility for your actions. Lawsuit not necessary.
I'm not saying you should sue everybody over everything. On the contrary, I think that people need to take responsibility for their *own* decisions and their *own* actions. If someone watches Jackass and then goes out and tries the stuff and dies, whose fault is that really? You shouldn't have to put a disclaimer on it. And there should be no question of suing the makers of the movie if they don't.
Look, there are so many disclaimers and warning labels on everything, it's well beyond the point of crying wolf. We get warned about so many things that we can't possibly take them all seriously. It would be nice if somehow we could get just the relevant warnings, like "Warning: if you don't use this right it will explode!" vs. "Warning: always wear safety goggles and a mask when working with electrical tools." One is important. The other should be covered by common sense. If you fuck up, don't try to blame someone else for it.
A big part of me wants to live in a country where common sense is assumed, where you have to suck it up and get on with your life, where the customer is not always right. Where, if you accidentally eat a worm in your soup, they tell you they're sorry, it happens. Or maybe they even just tell you that if you can't deal with it, don't eat there.
There is a threshold of crap that people should just be prepared to endure. A certain amount of misfortune and back luck should be considered 'overhead'. The usual and customary cost of living your life. Since the world is an imperfect place, let's stop trying to hold someone responsible for it every time we come across evidence of that. And when people make mistakes, let's let people admit it when they're wrong without risking a lawsuit.
The good news is that The Blue Lagoon won it's case against the Santa Cruz Police Department, who harassed the owners & patrons of the Blue for years. The bad news is that it came to a lawsuit at all.
But this is what happens when you get lawyers involved. I don't think it's as simple as the cynical analysis that it's in lawyers' best interest to have protracted disputes. I think that it's probably more along the lines of they feel that if they don't fight as hard as possible, all the way to the end, then they're not serving their client.
It didn't have to go that far. From the SJMN article:
``We would have settled for an apology,'' said lawyer Kate Wolf, who handled the case for Minshew in 2000 and 2001. ``In the beginning, we weren't looking for any money.''
But of course, the city's lawyers have to deny everything from the start. They can't apologize, because that would be admitting some wrongdoing. And admitting some wrongdoing probably means they can be sued. And that right there is something major that is wrong with our legal system. It's infuriating that they can't simply say, "We're sorry, we messed up" and be done with it without risking being sued. It reminds me of on-ice altercations in hockey. No one is ever wrong in their own eyes on the ice. The difference is that after the game, the players still shake hands most of the time, and often the players will apologize to each other and admit they were wrong.
Another example: a few years ago, someone I know very well was rear-ended by a city bus when she stopped at a stop sign. (Coincidentally, this happened just as the girls' cross country team was running across the street.) She sustained injuries to her neck and back and damage to her car, and embarked on a drawn-out and frustrating legal battle, which she finally had to give up after a year of depositions, brow-beating, and word twisting. The city probably paid their lawyers 10 times as much as they would have had to pay her.
Not only is this a waste of the city's (and taxpayers') money, it is not justice. Justice would be when you take responsibility for your actions. Lawsuit not necessary.
I'm not saying you should sue everybody over everything. On the contrary, I think that people need to take responsibility for their *own* decisions and their *own* actions. If someone watches Jackass and then goes out and tries the stuff and dies, whose fault is that really? You shouldn't have to put a disclaimer on it. And there should be no question of suing the makers of the movie if they don't.
Look, there are so many disclaimers and warning labels on everything, it's well beyond the point of crying wolf. We get warned about so many things that we can't possibly take them all seriously. It would be nice if somehow we could get just the relevant warnings, like "Warning: if you don't use this right it will explode!" vs. "Warning: always wear safety goggles and a mask when working with electrical tools." One is important. The other should be covered by common sense. If you fuck up, don't try to blame someone else for it.
A big part of me wants to live in a country where common sense is assumed, where you have to suck it up and get on with your life, where the customer is not always right. Where, if you accidentally eat a worm in your soup, they tell you they're sorry, it happens. Or maybe they even just tell you that if you can't deal with it, don't eat there.
There is a threshold of crap that people should just be prepared to endure. A certain amount of misfortune and back luck should be considered 'overhead'. The usual and customary cost of living your life. Since the world is an imperfect place, let's stop trying to hold someone responsible for it every time we come across evidence of that. And when people make mistakes, let's let people admit it when they're wrong without risking a lawsuit.
This is NOT a cat blog!
And yet, what am I writing about again? Anyway, here's Amber enjoying the woozle hut:
And here's Mini-Eyebrow none too happy about being caged. You'll be happy later, M.E.!
And here's Mini-Eyebrow none too happy about being caged. You'll be happy later, M.E.!
Thursday, November 13, 2003
Mini-Eyebrow caught!
Back to the feline world... Mini Eyebrow is caught and at the vet. Assimilation to follow.
Eyebrow and Mini Eyebrow
Eyebrow and Mini Eyebrow
Comments...
At Tina's urging, I finally have enabled comments on this blog and my cycling blog. For anyone keeping track, you can add 'blog comments' to 'flossing' as far as things Tina has guilted me into...
Tuesday, November 11, 2003
Paris Hilton
I admit it, I watched the Paris Hilton sex video. And you know what? That doesn't look like the Paris Hilton to me. For one thing, the lighting is bad and fixtures are tacky. For another thing, all the background TV is in English. I'm suspicious that this might be a Motel 6 or a Days Inn. Maybe even a Super 8.
Line 2 wakes up!
Last night, Lynx played a team struggling even worse than we are, and we didn't pull any punches. Line 2 got hot, and we won 6-0! A good effort all around, but line 2 was on fire. And the way the luck of the rotation had it, Carl and I ended up on the ice most of the time when line 2 was on, so he was +6 and I was +5. I had an assist, but I doubt they caught it since I passed it to Kannon and about 30 seconds later he scored. (In case you're checking this, Brian, I got the pass from Williams.)
I was pretty happy with my game. I was seeing the flow pretty well, but I was fighting the puck too. That's from not enough ice lately. Fortunately, no major gaffes that led to odd-man rushes. Also, I don't think they had any really skilled guys on their team, so there weren't a lot of challenging one-on-one's to face.
Big game on Sunday. We played The Force pretty closely last time until we melted down, and I want payback!
I was pretty happy with my game. I was seeing the flow pretty well, but I was fighting the puck too. That's from not enough ice lately. Fortunately, no major gaffes that led to odd-man rushes. Also, I don't think they had any really skilled guys on their team, so there weren't a lot of challenging one-on-one's to face.
Big game on Sunday. We played The Force pretty closely last time until we melted down, and I want payback!
Monday, November 10, 2003
Mini-eyebrow
Today, I screwed up.
There are up to seven cats that visit us in the backyard. Eyebrow, Amber, and Half-Tail are all sisters, I think. They've each been captured and fixed. There's also Big Daddy and Black Mama, who I think are the parents of all. Haven't caught them yet. And there's Lynxie, who is very sick and appears to have kitty AIDS, whom but we haven't been able to catch yet. I don't think he will survive the winter. All of these cats are very skittish and probably never going to be acclimated to people.
Finally, there is a kitten, (I think Eyebrow's), Mini-Eyebrow. Don't know who the father is, but could be Big Daddy. We are very keen to catch Mini-Eyebrow and perhaps adopt him/her. We need to get to him/her before he/she gets too old. So far we have had no luck, though. Maybe he/she/it/they doesn't like tuna?
Today, there were a few of these cats milling about, Mini-Eyebrow among them. I put out our live-trap, baited with tuna, but didn't catch any before I headed off to SLAC. But I forgot to de-set the trap before I left, and by the time I'd realized it, Naomi had already left. So, that was the screw-up.
I called Colleen to ask the favor of going over to our house and desetting the trap-- I didn't want to catch a kitty and have it in there all day. I told her to set free whatever cat might be in there. She called me after she went over there, and it turns out that Mini-Eyebrow had been caught! Argh! I should have told her "unless it's the little kitten, it which case take him home and love him" ! Argh! Compounded screw-up-ness!
So, on the minus side, he/she/it/they/somecat might be skittish about the trap. On the plus side, maybe now hesheittheysomecatMini-Eyebrow has a taste for tuna and will be back... ?
There are up to seven cats that visit us in the backyard. Eyebrow, Amber, and Half-Tail are all sisters, I think. They've each been captured and fixed. There's also Big Daddy and Black Mama, who I think are the parents of all. Haven't caught them yet. And there's Lynxie, who is very sick and appears to have kitty AIDS, whom but we haven't been able to catch yet. I don't think he will survive the winter. All of these cats are very skittish and probably never going to be acclimated to people.
Finally, there is a kitten, (I think Eyebrow's), Mini-Eyebrow. Don't know who the father is, but could be Big Daddy. We are very keen to catch Mini-Eyebrow and perhaps adopt him/her. We need to get to him/her before he/she gets too old. So far we have had no luck, though. Maybe he/she/it/they doesn't like tuna?
Today, there were a few of these cats milling about, Mini-Eyebrow among them. I put out our live-trap, baited with tuna, but didn't catch any before I headed off to SLAC. But I forgot to de-set the trap before I left, and by the time I'd realized it, Naomi had already left. So, that was the screw-up.
I called Colleen to ask the favor of going over to our house and desetting the trap-- I didn't want to catch a kitty and have it in there all day. I told her to set free whatever cat might be in there. She called me after she went over there, and it turns out that Mini-Eyebrow had been caught! Argh! I should have told her "unless it's the little kitten, it which case take him home and love him" ! Argh! Compounded screw-up-ness!
So, on the minus side, he/she/it/they/somecat might be skittish about the trap. On the plus side, maybe now hesheittheysomecatMini-Eyebrow has a taste for tuna and will be back... ?
'24' is my favorite show...
... for yelling obscenities at the characters on the screen for being stupid.
Example 1: I'm dating my partner's daughter against his wishes. Do I remind him of that fact, by bringing it up at the first opportunity, or keep quiet and hope he doesn't kill me? I forgot to mention, my partner is a recovering heroin addict having a bad day. Duh!
Example 2: I'm the president's chief of staff. I have a report he told me not to get, enabling him to see the other side's plan in the debate. There's something important in it, something I think he needs to see. Do I tell him about it, or make him read it himself? Of course, give him the whole thing, which I already know he doesn't want! Why tell him what he needs to know when I can waste his time *and* get him to read the report he didn't want in the first place?
Example 3: While we're on the president... where are his advisors? Since when do the president and his chief of staff (brother) make all the decisions on their own? Do I maybe watch too much West Wing?
Example 4: Don't even get me started on Jack's moronic daughter. She's the reason we turned off the second season about 5 episodes in. All she ever does is behave stupidly and get Jack into trouble. A better character would have some redeeming qualities. She has none.
But the biggest example of idiocy is not in a character, but with the writers. There's this virus, see? And it kills people within 24 hours. And the first 14 are non-contagious. And during the last 4 the victim is incapacitated. Yeah, this killer virus has 6 hours where someone can infect another person. And yet they determine that it's going to wipeout 10% of LA within some stupidly short amount of time. It's really basic, but the virus is way too hot. Anything that kills that fast would not spread very far at all. I'm sorry, they really screwed that one up, and they keep repeating it, and it bugs me every time they do.
This show is at risk of being abandoned by me again. It better get a lot smarter. Otherwise, I'd rather watch reruns of La Femme Nikita.
BTW, for a nice snarky recap, I recommend Television Without Pity » 24 » Recaps & Extras » Season 3 Episode 1
Example 1: I'm dating my partner's daughter against his wishes. Do I remind him of that fact, by bringing it up at the first opportunity, or keep quiet and hope he doesn't kill me? I forgot to mention, my partner is a recovering heroin addict having a bad day. Duh!
Example 2: I'm the president's chief of staff. I have a report he told me not to get, enabling him to see the other side's plan in the debate. There's something important in it, something I think he needs to see. Do I tell him about it, or make him read it himself? Of course, give him the whole thing, which I already know he doesn't want! Why tell him what he needs to know when I can waste his time *and* get him to read the report he didn't want in the first place?
Example 3: While we're on the president... where are his advisors? Since when do the president and his chief of staff (brother) make all the decisions on their own? Do I maybe watch too much West Wing?
Example 4: Don't even get me started on Jack's moronic daughter. She's the reason we turned off the second season about 5 episodes in. All she ever does is behave stupidly and get Jack into trouble. A better character would have some redeeming qualities. She has none.
But the biggest example of idiocy is not in a character, but with the writers. There's this virus, see? And it kills people within 24 hours. And the first 14 are non-contagious. And during the last 4 the victim is incapacitated. Yeah, this killer virus has 6 hours where someone can infect another person. And yet they determine that it's going to wipeout 10% of LA within some stupidly short amount of time. It's really basic, but the virus is way too hot. Anything that kills that fast would not spread very far at all. I'm sorry, they really screwed that one up, and they keep repeating it, and it bugs me every time they do.
This show is at risk of being abandoned by me again. It better get a lot smarter. Otherwise, I'd rather watch reruns of La Femme Nikita.
BTW, for a nice snarky recap, I recommend Television Without Pity » 24 » Recaps & Extras » Season 3 Episode 1
Friday, November 07, 2003
Hockey Fans with too much time
I think I like "Hockeyboy" the best.
Hockey Photoshop Contest
Is that Brett Hull on the dollar bill?
Hockey Photoshop Contest
Is that Brett Hull on the dollar bill?
Thursday, November 06, 2003
Matrix Revolutions
Went and saw it yesterday with Naomi (Thanks, Google!). Better than the second one. Not a breakthrough or completely original movie, but pretty darned entertaining. Moved much better than the second one, I thought. I don't want to spoil it, so I'll just say that even though some fairly predictable (perhaps even cliché) situations arose, and sometimes they resolved in a cliché manner, a few times they did something that I didn't expect, something fresh, and I'd think that's hard to do in an action flick.
It definitely had some Star Wars moments and and overall quality of Star Wars -ness. In that some parts were grand, epic, while other parts were hackneyed, banal.
It also had some X-files moments. And I don't mean that the way you think I mean that. I mean it like this: In the X-files, a lot of times you came away from it with a sense of mystery and unresolved questions. Tension. Yearning for more information. Later, I realized that they do this by leaving out important bits of information and simply ignoring those questions. Instead of mystery, it's more like incompleteness.
I'm not sure yet if the questions you have when you leave the theatre are a result of cleverness or vagueness-- time (and reflection... and maybe seeing it again) will tell-- but if you thought the second Matrix movie left something to be desired, maybe this one will fill that void.
And one last thing... see the second one, or at least skim it, before seeing this one. All that exposition crap you endured in Reloaded isn't repeated in Revolutions (thankfully), but some of it might have been useful to remember.
It definitely had some Star Wars moments and and overall quality of Star Wars -ness. In that some parts were grand, epic, while other parts were hackneyed, banal.
It also had some X-files moments. And I don't mean that the way you think I mean that. I mean it like this: In the X-files, a lot of times you came away from it with a sense of mystery and unresolved questions. Tension. Yearning for more information. Later, I realized that they do this by leaving out important bits of information and simply ignoring those questions. Instead of mystery, it's more like incompleteness.
I'm not sure yet if the questions you have when you leave the theatre are a result of cleverness or vagueness-- time (and reflection... and maybe seeing it again) will tell-- but if you thought the second Matrix movie left something to be desired, maybe this one will fill that void.
And one last thing... see the second one, or at least skim it, before seeing this one. All that exposition crap you endured in Reloaded isn't repeated in Revolutions (thankfully), but some of it might have been useful to remember.
