Trying To Do The Right Thing

I haven't heard back from GMail4Troops about the GMail invitations I offered up. I hope it is because they are overwhelmed with responses and not because I put "DADT" in the "comments' area. But they are my invitations, I think I can at least try to support my "family" with them.

In the meantime, another site has sprung up - Mail For Soldiers - to help in hooking up servicepeople with email, snailmail and general support.

Of course I don't support the war, but I do support the men and women who have become pawns in W's game. I have a feeling that living within spitting distance of Ft. Benning is going to make me a lot more aware of those men and women and what they are going through. I will find whatever ways I can to help them out.

68 Guns

My fancy new loft apartment here in GA has an alarm system. When I signed the lease, I was given the opportunity to choose my own four-digit code, so I chose a number that I use for many such four digit things -- perhaps not the most secure choice, but if I come stumbling in from the Cannon after a couple too many IPAs, I don't want to be trying to remember some "unfamiliar" code. A couple days after I moved in, I found the workslip from the maintenance guy indicating that he'd been in to program my code into the alarm.

Of course when I tried to arm it, it just laughed at me. About a week later, I finally had a chance to stop in the office and report the problem. Again the slip indicating that it had been programmed, and again the total lack of working.

I paged the maintenance guy today, and he came by, looked right at the piece of paper where the code is written down -- let's call it ABCC -- and punched in ABBC. Problem identified!

For whatever reason, he was unable to reprogram it, and has to have the monitoring company dial-in to fix it. So I guess I'll go unalarmed for a few more days.

current music

New Order - Regret (Pet Shop Boys Remix)

Comments

Not sure what's up with comments, they seem to be showing up now, but I couldn't even get to enetation.co.uk earlier today. I suppose could figure out how to turn on Blogger's system. Maybe tomorrow. In the meantime, there's always email. And I have a passel of gmail invites again, so I'll serve up one to whoever makes the best request. But just one, because I just learned about GMail4Troops (via Good Morning Silicon Valley), so I'll probably check that out, and give some up to the kids that are stuck in places they don't wanna be.

Was it wrong for me to put "DADT" in the invitation?

The Greatest Band Ever

In other news, can you believe that it's been 25 years since the release of London Calling? A special edition is due for release in September, with demo tracks and a DVD.

Tomorrow's World

I briefly mentioned the SpaceShipOne the other day, but, inspired by Dan Gillmor's eJournal, I thought maybe I'd write some more.

Dig, if you will, a picture. Of a young boy in elementary school in the mid-1960's. The Space Race was in full swing. Each Gemini project and then Apollo launch was occasion to bring a TV into the classroom. The astronauts were household names. I don't know that I fully understood the tragedy of Apollo I fire, but I knew that is was something bad. At the grocery store, you could get Tang and Space Food Sticks. Mattel fueled my out-of-school imagination with Major Matt Mason. Silly TV shows had actors portraying astronauts. I know for sure that I built plastic models of the Saturn V and the LEM. Did I build a Gemini rocket too? More than likely.

Of course there was also a war going on, but it was not something I understood very well. I couldn't grasp the concept of "Gorilla Warfare," (hey, I was like, 9 years old, ok?) and I misinterpreted the bumper stickers that said "Back Our Boys in Viet Nam" as somehow meaning "bring them back home."

No, outer space was where it was at, and where I wanted to be. Things changed, of course. We got to the moon and then, what? It seems like we just stopped. The shuttle came into service, but there was less celebration of each flight. Nobody knew who the astronauts were anymore, except perhaps for Christa McAuliffe. After the Challenger explosion, the idea of a private citizen going to space was just not talked about.

This year though, has seen so many successes. The Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. Still going, long after their projected life spans. The fantastic pictures and data coming in from the Cassini-Huygens project. And of course, the success of SpaceShipOne, in making a giant leap for privately funded space exploration. I don't suppose I'll get to take a ride to the moon, or even into orbit, but I once again believe in the possibilities.

Of course, there's a war going on. It's not something I understand very well. I don't quite grasp the concept of a chimp in the White House, and I would love for all our boys (and girls) to be home.

current music

Joe Jackson - Blaze Of Glory

I Wish This Was Funny . . .

Al Qaeda Link To Iraq May Be Confusion Over Names.

"This guy was definitely involved. Or if he wasn't then maybe the guy whose name is similar was. They all look alike to me."

We're being governed by morons.

Catching Up

Not only have I been neglecting my own blog, but I forgot to read other people's blogs as well. I have just caught up with The Logan Circle Guy and see that he has a new title, 77002, but the same address. Spiffy new blog template though. It's interesting for me to read about his moving adventure in comparison with mine. Too bad I didn't actually write about mine on here.

Bob Mould's Boblog has a new look as well. I guess I missed the blog redecorating memo when I wasn't paying attention.

Not six, seven!

I just counted 'em up, I have seven personal email addresses right now. Two at my old ISP will be going away soon, there's three free email services (Yahoo, Netscape and the ever-popular gmail over to the right), one (so far) at my new ISP, and the one that I have set up on my larrymac.org domain.

I've been quite aware of all these addresses because I've been working on making sure that various subscriptions and such that go to my old ISP get changed to go somewhere else. In general, I've been using one of the free ones so that if/when I move again, I don't have to go through this.

Speaking of gmail, I've got a couple more invitations to pass out. I suppose I could try to sell them on eBay like all the kewl kids do, but I don't have time to mess with that right now. If anybody wants one, you should write to me and tell me why. I've only got two though (not seven), and once they're gone, they're gone.

Seven chipmunks twirlin' on a branch
Eatin' lots of sunflowers on my uncle's ranch

You know, that old children's tale from . . . the sea.

Oh shit, I just remembered I have an AOL address now from the week of dial-up hell. But that's going away, so it doesn't count. Not to mention that it would make the whole "seven" theme fall apart.

Home Again Home Again, Jiggety Jig

It's been a busy month so far, with the moving and the driving and the glavin. Friday afternoon I left Columbus for Glen Allen -- arriving after nearly eleven hours, including an unscheduled half hour of complete stop on the highway between Greenville and Spartanburg SC. According to the rumors being passed along, somebody was threatening to jump off one of the overpasses up ahead. So we were stopped dead. Engines off, people walking around. And then one of the truckers reported "they got him down," the traffic ahead started to move and off we went.

I spent most of the day Saturday getting packed and yesterday morning I drugged the cat and headed back here to Georgia. No jumpers on the southbound leg, so it only took anout nine and a half hours. Toast was not to thrilled with the new place to begin with -- he spent the first hour or so tucked into a tiny space between the refrigerator and the wall. Which worked out well, because it gave me time to unload the truck and not have to worry about him darting out the front door. Now I finally feel like I'm going to start living here, instead of just visiting. The lack of major furniture items notwithstanding.


----

I guess the Reaganfest is over. I didn't care for the guy, I refuse to call Washington National Airport anything but that, I don't want to see his face on dimes or ten dollar bills or Mt. freakin' Rushmore. I'll grudgingly admit that he was probably one of the last presidents we've had with any dignity. He still fucked up big time by being a giant homophobe who couldn't even say "AIDS," let alone provide research funding.

-----

You can tune in public radio stations all the way down I-85, but on Sundays there's no telling what you'll find. I got to hear This American Life twice, portions of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, and of course Weekend All Things Considered. I had a bunch of CDs with me, but with a dopey cat snuggling next to me the whole way, trying to get to the binder and find something was not quite convenient.

-----

Twenty-eight years ago today, I graduated from Newington High School. Woo hoo, Class of '76.

Residency

Established

The apartment is officially mine now. I signed zee papers and got the keys and the remote control for the gated parking area. I took a few minutes to go and take some measurements. The main living area is 19 feet wide by 27 feet long. It is huge. The are two six foot wide windows and a three foot window, but I'm not sure how high they are -- too high to measure without a ladder. The bedroom is a respectable 11 1/2 by 12 feet, with windows into a courtyard. The only thing that's not perfect is the floors, which are concrete. I'll get by, I'm sure there's probably some advantages that I haven't thought of. Toast will probably like them.

Anyway, I've arranged for the electricity to be turned on tomorrow, and signed up for a cable/phone/internet package to be installed Monday morning. It's all starting to seem real now.

I guess I should call the moving companies and get quotes.

current music

Chris Difford - I Didn't Get Where I Am

Imagine that I actually posted this yesterday, OK?

Wednesday, 2 June 2004

Things are fairly slow at the new job so far. This is exacerbated by the fact that I've not been given a network login yet. Thus, I am using up some time writing blog posts longhand, for later transcription. (note to self: bring notebook PC to work tomorrow)

I started to write a big diatribe about my wonderful first twelve hours with AO-fucking-L, but I got to three pages and even I didn't care anymore. Suffice to say that their software sucks and their tech support blows.

Much more interesting and exciting for me is that I found a place to live -- 11th Street Lofts, Unit 9 in the Tarver building if you really care. It's two blocks from work. So it's not DC, there's no Metro and no Dupont Circle for the tossing of floppy hats. On the other hand, a couple blocks to the west, there is a Riverwalk, and a block or two south is The RiverCenter. The YMCA is one block east, and down the road a bit further is the Civic Center, where I'll be able to watch the Columbus Cottonmouths play ice hockey.

current music

Weekend Players - Pursuit Of Happiness (take THAT, Rio! I will always like this)