what to say

Sometimes I just sit here and have nothing to say. Not sure if it is because last night was on the boring side for me, but I don't think that is it. Could be that nothing funny happened around me, a little closer. Or it could be that I am just not that creative, may be a little too close to the truth to want to admit.....

Well even with all the crappy work place issues that have been going around, thus far Jamie Lou and I have weathered the storm. She was even lucky enough to get a little extra from her company in the form of a bonus. Now seeing where I work I had never heard of this word. So I had to look it up:

1. something given, paid, or received above what is due or expected - ex. a Christmas bonus for all employees

Interesting concept, I have never received one, but that is getting off point.....

So her little extra hit the account yesterday, and lucky enough for her that not only does she like nice things, but she works hard and deserves them. The last few years the reward of choice has been a Coach purse. And why not? They are a statement and look nice. Unfortunately I have had to insert myself into the purse buying process. For what ever reason this fashionable, smart chick is broken when it comes to purse selecting. Case in point, last night the first one she picks is a hand bag that is the color of old woman's underwear. Truly horrible. "But I like it," she says. The next one is this gray number. Because hey, what says spring has sprung like a ugly gray purse? I got her narrowed down to two more festive choices, and then she made the final decision. See how I do that, get it down to only good choices, then it is win-win. She gets something nice, and I am nor embarrassed to be seen with it. Some people say "Don;t you have enough purses?!?!" I say, that is why you work hard and get ahead, so if you want fun stuff, you can have it.

Song of the day: The Raconteurs "Steady, As She Goes" I think I have a man-crush on Jack White

Global Warming

Help is what is needed, and in the worst of ways. Friday My trash cans were able to sit on the ground and not on 3 feet of snow in my front yard. If this Global Warming continues I will soon be able to take the cans to the street by quietly rolling them through the thick green grass instead of noisily down the broken beat up driveway. This is madness and if we don't find a way to make it colder and keep snow around I may even have to rake or mow. This is crazy talk!

On a completely different line of thought I do love pandora on my palm pre, hook it up to the USB and rock out at work, and maybe block out other noise like that effing printer that never stops running all day.

Song of the day: The White Stripes "My Doorbell" When you gunna ring it, when you gunna ring it?

Oscar - Best Movie

Well I am no one to re-hash old blog posts, heck lately I am not one to post at all but the Oscar for best picture got me thinking. Got me to think that I really feel the best flick did win. So here is my "Things I learned from "The Hurt Locker"" The link actually has a few more things that Mike Learned too. Looking back I must have really enjoyed this movie if the last thing I 'learned' was: I also learned that when the movie is good and tells an interesting story it is hard for me to come up with 100 things funny with it.



The movie "The Hurt Locker" was one that I was geeked to see as I had heard good things about it from the interwebs and the newspaper and the trailer I saw for it on HDnet. Some of the first words up on the screen are "War is a drug." And after seeing what war does to the star of the movie you get a sense of what that means. To get his "fix" he does what ever he can and the more normal he tries to be, the more he wants to be back disarming munitions. The movie had many suspenseful moments and with few explosion. If I remember the count right a movie about disarming bombs had four explosions. Hear that Micheal Bay, you hack of a movie man, you don't need to blow shit up a thousand times to make it exciting, loser.
That said here are a few things I learned from the movie "The Hurt Locker"

I learned that if you have a bomb with a big enough bang to blow up Jesus, you might as well take off you bomb suit so you can die comfortably.

I learned that babies love everything. The mobile, the jack in the, box the stuffed animals.

I also learned that when they get older they will discover the jack in the box is just a box with a stuffed animal.

Additionally they will only come to love two things, but our star of the movie only loved one thing.

I learned that Bravo company only had 38 days left.

I learned that Delta company has 365 days left.

I learned that war is a drug.

I learned that our star is a "wild man".

I learned that he has disarmed 873 bombs.

I learned that the best way to disarm a bomb is in "the way that doesn't get you killed"

I learned that responding to the Question "what is the best way to disarm a bomb?" with the answer "the way that doesn't get you killed" is something a wild man would say.

I learned that "*trigger click* Thompson is still Alive *trigger click* Thompson is still Alive*trigger click* Thompson is still Alive*trigger click* Thompson is still Alive"

I learned that choosing cereal and all groceries can be too daunting a task for someone that wants to be back doing the on thing that they love.

I learned that street vendors speak like they learned English from a NWA rap album in Iraq.

I learned that if Beckham sells him one more DVD that is of shaky unfocused quality, he is going to cut his head off.

I learned he is kidding.

I also learned that when the movie is good and tells an interesting story it is hard for me to come up with 100 things funny with it.

re-birth, and re-launch, and a re-start

Not sure if it should be called a re-birth, and re-launch, and a re-start. But that is what I am doing starting today, re-starting both An Iowan's Random Rambles and Run Fat Cam Run.
With as much effort as I put in getting my interwebs back up at home I think getting back into blogging is the least I could do.

It started on Wednesday, the interwebs stopped. The modem showed no activity, the activity light would flick on every once in a while. After way too many beers Friday night I decided I would fix the modem. Let me just tell you, know that punching the modem only really serves to completely break it and not as intended to "fix it". Actually I would recommend not punching any electronics if they aren't functioning as expected (see, this re-launch is going to be educational as well as entertaining at least to me).

So off to Best Buy Sunday night I went and got a new Zoom cable modem. Hook it up, and it was a no go. Then I remember to activate your modem with mediacom there is a website to go to.
Hmmm, well I have no internets... just so happens my friend Keith calls and he does some digging. He finally finds a usable IP. Once I get into that, it wants my account number and confirmation number.

Hmmm, well we switched to paper-less on-line only paperwork. Jamie Lou was nice enough to dig up a bill from 2006. That has the account number but no confirmation number.
I call Keith back, He does more research for me he suggests try the last 9 numbers of the account number for the confirmation, Hey that works.

Now to authorize the modem swap I need a technician's number...
OMG when will this ever end?

Just then the Mediacom customer service line answers (did I mention I have been on hold with mediacom for the last 45 minutes? no? well I was). I hang up with Keith and explain to my new customer service friend that I am activating a new modem and need a technician's number. Before I can react she says I need tech support and I am on hold again. If only I could have gotten to this website I would have used it : USE IN CASE OF EMERGENCY.

Luckily this time it was only a 5 or 10 minute wait. I explain to him that I need a technician's number and he proceeds to say any number 1 - 999999 would have worked. Again: USE IN CASE OF EMERGENCY. I put in 999999, and magically nothing happens. Another 30 minutes with a VERY helpful tech (and that isn't sarcasm, really it isn't, he was very helpful) I got all the DNS server issues and MAC address issues sorted out and Casa D'Christensen was back on the tubes to the internets. Strangely enough this new modem is much faster compared to the old one. So the moral to the story? Sometimes drinking a gallon of beer and smashing what you think is the problem does end up being a first step to finding the solution.

Strangest thing I heard this weekend? "Well this last couple I dated, The husband wanted me to pee on him so I told him, 'Get in the tub.'"

Second strangest? "I saw you sitting there and wanted to talk to you. You see I am friends with 12 Alpha Males, but I am the top Alpha Male. So I know how to be in charge."

Song of the day: System of a Down "Sugar" In the end it all goes away......

T.A.N.B.T.N.O.D.

T.A.N.B.T.N.O.D.

The time has come and T.A.N.B.T.N.O.D. is here again. Tonight promises to me Legen...wait for it....dary!

After a little hiatus, I am back :)

look for a write up this weekend of T.A.N.B.T.N.O.D.

The weekend that was Part 3 of 3

This last weekend was one of the best weekends ever. Friday night was the Dave Matthews Band. Saturday was tailgating and the I-State vs. Army football game. Sunday I was at the Vikings vs. 49ers game in Minneapolis (maybe the best finish I have seen in person).


Last up is the Sunday Vikings vs. 49ers experience.

I got home around 11:30 from the Army game. A little too excited to sleep so being the uber geek that I am rolled my toon CTMcGee around Northrend for a few hours, that was dumb as I was having Zac come over to my house at 5AM to leave for Minny.

Zac was there right on time. Zac was going up because the 49ers are his favorite team and his b-day was in August so I convinced Jamie Lou that I should get him tickets for his birthday. It is a little tricked I learned from Jamie Lou to get a little juice for yourself. More commonly seen by buying yourself things you need right before Christmas and your birthday so that when gifts come that you already have you can take those back and get new things. Double dipping I'll call it.

Up North we headed, uneventful trip, intern Steve slept in the back seat most of the way up. Steve too loved the 49ers, and had a ticket so he tagged along with the brothers Christensen. on a side note I really need to start taking pictures of these trips... I have really none from it.

When we got to the cities we parked about 6 blocks from the dome off of 5th. the street spots were all taken but we found a lot for 6 dollars. While the walk is a bit far it is more than paid back by being 34 bucks cheaper than the lots closer to the dome and being able to leave town in a jiffy after the game as the ramp to the interstate is 3 blocks away from where we park.

We then wandered up past the dome and a few blocks beyond to Grumpy's. Zac and I had some egg bake and beers while Steve opted for buffalo wings and beer. It was a bit strange to be on a patio with smokers now that it is verboten in Iowa, but the sun and good times made that not such a big deal.

After Grumpy's it was off to the dome, we got there 45 minutes before kickoff. Always fun to boo the visitors as they come out of the tunnel to warm up and to hear that viking horn blow and cheer the boys in purple. Particularly fun for me was the fact the Jim Marshall blew thew horn to call out the team, he is a big BIG man. you can kind of see him int he photo below:




The first half was going famously, getting ready to go up 16 - 7 and receive the ball in the second half only to have the field goal blocked and returned for a TD by San Fran. Memo to Steve Hutchinson: you are great but you have to get up out of your stance when the ball gets hiked...dick. So instead of 16- 7 and getting the ball we were now down 13 - 14. I will say though that so far this year we have had to special teams TDs against us and we won both those games, so maybe it is a good luck kind of thing....maybe.

An amazing kickoff return by future RoY Percy Harvin got the crowd back into it. He is so amazingly fast in person. And to be able to run 101 yards and not have a finger touch you is even more amazing.

Vernon Davis' touchdown with around 9 minutes put San Fran up 4 but I still had a good feeling. When the Vikes went for it on fourth down and failed to convert at midfield, I didn't have such a good feeling. When the people started streaming out even though we still had 3 timeouts I felt a little worse. The the niners we ultra conservative with 3 runs in a row I felt a little better. When they kicked it in the end zone and we only need an 80 yard TD with 1:29 I even felt a little better. When Greg Lewis caught a 50 yard laser from Favre for the game winner with 2 seconds left, I really couldn't believe what I saw. I had never been to a game that finished like that. I have seen goal line stands, I have seen field goals made and missed to win games. But I have NEVER seen in person an ending like that.

The poor 49er fans went from happy to sad with the flick of a wrist. Even with thousands of people having left early that is the loudest I have ever heard that stadium get. It may have even been a touch louder when the play was confirmed.

Some even more exciting things coming up form me in the coming week or two. You can read about those fun things here when they are posted.

The weekend that was Part 2 of 3

This last weekend was one of the best weekends ever. Friday night was the Dave Matthews Band. Saturday was tailgating and the I-State vs. Army football game. Sunday I was at the Vikings vs. 49ers game in Minneapolis (maybe the best finish I have seen in person).


Second up is the Saturday I-State vs. Army experience.



Unfortunately our friends Ty and Jess couldn't make the Army game. While we did miss them their tickets didn't go to waste as cousin Lauree and Dan were going to go in their stead. Well Dan called in sick with a sandy vagina but second cousin Keegan filled in quite perfectly.



The day started with us meeting at 12:30 at T and D's and packing to go up to Ames. The trailer hitch shelf that we got some years back is turning out to be quite a useful purchase. It allowed 5 people, the next bigger than the last, and 6 chairs and 3 coolers and 3 plastic totes and 1 grill and one small tent with USA cover to fit in to the Envoy. All those years of Dr. Mario and Tetris in college really is paying off better than my degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science on a daily basis I am finding.



We got to Ames at around 1:45 and started to unpack. We are becoming quite efficient if I do say so myself. it was around 1:46 I remember seeing the grill's gas regulator and tank sitting in T and D's garage back in Granger. That was a low point of the day for me I think. But Jamie Lou was still in Des Moines coming up later so she was able to make it out there and pick it up for us. Double lucky for us are the nice people we have been tailgating with this season as we were able to use some one else's Roadtrip gas tank until Jamie Lou could make it up to Ames.



Eventually Jamie Lou did make it along with Brazilian coworkers Flavio and Renato. It was Flavio and Renato's first experience with American football and Iowa Sate tailgating. I am positive they left the country really enjoying both.



It was burger, beers and brats for lunch. Tried some new pineapple stuffed brats and people seemed to enjoy them. I only picked up four so didn't personally get one, but judging by the fact they all got snarfed down they couldn't have been too bad. I also for the first time picked up some thin sliced pork loins. I covered them in A-1 on both sides grilled them up and tossed them on some buns. They worked out quite nicely. Tastey, quick, easy can't do much better than that.



As has become our tradition we leave our tailgate up during the game. This is done for two reasons 1) so that we can come out and have some beers at half time (so glad they still allow pass outs) and B) instead of fighting traffic, it is just as easy to fire up the grill and eat dinner and let the traffic clear out rather than fight it and get mad.



As the game was against Army once every hour on the hour two howitzers were shot off. Man o man were they loud on that side of the stadium. We caught a couple Go Army national guard mini footballs, so that is always fun. We tried to find family of some of my friends, but with that many people around it is almost impossible. We did get to meet up with one of Lauree's friends so that was nice. At half time of the gave 13 current I-State student swore into the Army and would be recognized as officers upon their graduation. I hate to say it but when the ceremony started and the man in charge said "Repeat after me. I, State your name" the lady in front of me and I both said aloud at the same time "I state your name" she got a head slap from her husband, I got the "dumb-ass" look from Jamie Lou. I blame Mel Brooks.



The game itself was a nice game by our Clones. A nice solid win with decent passing and better running being displayed. 3 -1 at this point is right where I thought they would be. I am hoping for a win this next Saturday vs K-State. that would put them at 4 -1 and need only two more W's to be bowl eligible. With this new staff and the young players that extra practice time they would get would be invaluable.

Next up Sunday......