Stories

Ah, the bittersweet feeling of friends gathering before the inevitable U-Haul ride.
Random bits of stories from last night.

• A group of intoxicated Siberian oil workers successfully drove and parked a friends Camaro after winning some arm-wrestling matches
  
• A woman caught her hair on fire while signing the guest book that was placed near a lit candelabra at a friend's wedding
  
• "You and I both know what we want." - Said the scary lady to our friend after commenting on his fabulous sideburns

I try to acknowledge and embrace the bitter-sweet feelings. Have fun, push the inevitable moves out of the mind, drink vodka and eat devilled eggs.

Question. Why are hard-boiled eggs with mayo, mustard, and other bits (depending on the maker) called devilled eggs?

A World Upside Down

Yesterday I saw a girl walking a ferret on a leash. She was accompanied by two guys who were beating eachother up with balloons. The sun was shining and they were proud of themselves.

For some odd reason that scene reminds me of a quote from Doc Hollywood with Michael J. Fox....

Woody Harrelson as Hank: "There is a man in the toillet sellin' aftershave. Now, what's that all about?"

I felt like asking, "Now, what is that all about?"

"Can I ask you a Question?"

The "Can ask you a question?" question is rarely followed by something people wish to respond to. A friend of mine recently faced this initial inquiry and resultant problem. To compound matters, she then had to deal with a sometimes related but always annoying problem, the unwanted come on.
Yes, my friend found herself surrounded by swingers, asked if she was bi-sexual, and then propositioned for a role in the hay, French style. When she responded in the negative to both questions she was then asked if she'd like to take the 19 year-old nephew of this couple for a test run. It remains unclear as to whether she or the nephew was then considered the consolation prize.
I report this incident for several reasons:
1. It's funny once you move beyond the inherent awkwardness. I really couldn't say if there is a stereotypical identity for people who like to bring 3 or more people into the bedroom. But if going off a vague notion of a swinger stereotype, my friend would certainly not fit into that category.
2. It demonstrates the difficulties people with adventurous or polyamorous tendencies face.
3. I have nothing else, but I feel as if a list should have at least 3 points, aesthetically speaking.

Topical Discussion: One general theme of my previous blog, Ju-Ju Cling On, pondered a similar problem, the unwanted come-on (I guess this could count as point 3). In that particular case, and a weird one it was, the come-on was completely related to friendship. The crazy lady identified my friend as someone she would like to call friend and hit on her in a basically non-sexual manner. I can't say the same for my other friend. Where does one draw the line separating flattery and annoyance? An attractive member of the opposite sex? Flattery, perhaps. An ugly member of the opposite sex? Annoying, for the most part. A friend who tries to move the friendship in a different direction? Generally annoying. It all depends on ones perspective and inclination. Add any other combination to the mix, step away from heteronormative gender roles and socially acceptable forms of behavior and things get interesting.

Discuss.

Random Quotes

Today....
"I see that you have dark hair. Has anyone mistaken you for a terrorist."
Not today....
"The best part of wakin' up isn't Folgers in a cup, it's you."

Migraines. No good. They take all the spunk out of me. I like spunk. If anyone has any extra zip lying about they should send it my way.

The Daily Grind, part Deux

2.1 - Camera Room Quote of the Day: "Don't mess with me. I'm wearing my Jesus belt."

Rick's Question of the Day

At what point do you stop listening/watching/viewing an artist's work?

In other words, what sort of low down, seedy, amoral, or unacceptable behavior must occur before you stop listening to your favorite band?

There are points where this sort of thing is easier. I, for example, do not purchase things made by Coors because I don't agree with their politics. This is made much easier by the fact that Coors beer is essentially crap. But something or someone I really enjoyed? Tough question.

Discuss.

The Black Cadillack Sessions

To answer the "question to end the day" from my previous post... Yes, especially when there are further complications.

The original 1938 piping really didn't wish to continue any longer. The poor thing really looked to go out with a bang, murder-suicide style. The pipe was seemingly disconnected for quite a long time with water, etc. leaking for who knows how long. Therefore all the area around the pipe is soaked with water and basically unstable. Time to shore up the dirt below and replace the entire driveway as the pipe runs directly underneath it. To continue the fun, the city really doesn't like it when multiple building's share a sewage line. Against code. Personally, I'd rather not share sewage either. Such is life. Once again I recieved assurances that the work on the sewage line would be finished this evening and we could run water. Right after those assurances I went off to the hotel where they have crazy things like running water and flushing toilets.

Perhaps I'll add another quote from Grosse Pointe Blank. It remains to be seen whether or not it will ultiately be the quote of the day.

Once again from Debi, played by Minnie Driver: "Where are all the good men dead, in the heart or in the head?"

.. .. ... perhaps the quote will also serve as my question of the day.

The Daily Grind, 17:00

There are now 5 stars on the board thanks to the superstar Jewel.

Question to end the day:
Are phone lines really so difficult to get around that sewage lines remain unfixed?

Finis.

The Daily Grind, 16:00

Roy G. Biv
ROY G BIV
ROYGBIV
Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet

In my first web log for Another Kind of Nerd I referenced ROY G BIV, the great visible colors of the light spectrum. Those colors are determined, if my secondary science classes stuck, by wavelength and thus frequency over a given point in a certain amount of time.

As one of my co-workers could not recall Roy G Biv, I had her Google said "individual." She found a song, The Ballad of Roy G. Biv. I thought it worth posting. Rock on Greg.

Word.

The Daily Grind, 15:00

Reports from the digital fortress....

Advising curious undergrads on the application process for graduate school. How much do I really report?


Ruth Woodman asked, "Why Turkey?"
I have no answer.

Quote of the Day: Grosse Pointe Blank
Debi, played by Minnie Driver: "Everybody's coming back to take stock of their lives. You know what I say? Leave your livestock alone."

The Daily Grind, 14:00

One more star up on the board makes 3.

Speaking of headbutts.....

Note to Self: Remember not to insult Frenchmen with Armenian heritage while playing in the World Cup Final.

Perhaps the Italian fellow was a bit put off by Zidane's looks.

The Daily Grind, 11:00

All quiet on the microfilm front.
Must resist urge for a cake doughnut... a blueberry cake doughnut, specifically.

The Daily Grind, 09:00

1. Listening to mixed CD. Not bad, it has Nina Simone.
2. Coffee is cold. Bad.
3. Some conversation about David Bowie's fountain of youth. Does he, in fact, sleep in formaldehyde or should we attribute his lack of aging to the many drugs he once regularly used?

The Daily Grind, 08:00

1. Heavy equipment remains perched outside my apartment window. The phone lines that block access to the "shifted" sewage line taunt me.
2. Work begins early as water down drain is once again a no-no.
3. Sara and Fern pursue the perfect mixed CD.... everyone has their own standards....

ju-ju cling-on

Ah, the Country Fair.

Are there really words to describe the panoplies of people and things? How does one encapsulate a parade of some cross-dressing individuals conga-ing all around, dust from the dry dirt hovering in the air like some cough inducing fairy dust. Or there was the accepted nudity, the high water mark being an overweight older man resplenant in bumble-bee inspired body paint. The dust, body odor, and patchouli swirling in the air created a heady hippy mixture. I, however, was mostly driven to dry-heaving through coughs by the end. And the older generation of hippies claim it is too Corporate now. The Dead, praise Jerry Garcia, would never show up for an impromptu midnight concert with the current state of things. Perhaps the best way to get at the Country Fair is to give a brief snippet of conversation...

Setting: Visiting Friend X who was working a booth, accompanied in the visit by Friend Y. Introduction of Unique Woman Z as follows.
Friend X: Hey, thanks for stopping by! This is my dear friend Unique Woman Z.
Me: Hi, nice to meet you. This is my Friend Y.
----- Unique Woman Z stops just before she gets her first word out and stares, eyes locked on target.-----
Unique Woman Z (UWZ) to Friend Y: Did anyone ever tell you that you have great ju-ju?
----- Friend Y stares at UWZ, unsure of an appropriate response.-----
UWZ: I have an eye for ju-ju. I remember seeing you here last year. I don't know what it is... you've got great ju-ju.
Friend Y: Thanks.... err, that's nice to hear, I think...

What was particularly great about this conversation as it continued down the thoroughfare in much the same way (UWZ: I really think we should be friends. You've got great ju-ju.), was that I was there but cleary not of enough import to even warrent a ju-ju comment. I was clearly the ju-ju cling-on, if you will, attached to my friends glowing aura in a disgusting and perhaps slightly smelly manner. This whole scene was vastly entertaining as my Friend Y has been the recipient of multiple remarks on her similarity to a unicorn. The individuals who bestow the unicorn comment upon her clearly mean it as a compliment, though if one starts to ponder the comparison to a horse the compliment could lose some meaning. In all seriousness, they could very well be saying, "Hey baby, you got some great haunches." I believe UWZ would not hesitate to compare me to Lord Voldemort of Harry Potter, who survives for a time from a potion of unicorn blood and snake venom. But perhaps the comparison is too corporate. So it goes.

Bollocks

Bollocks.

Ballack. Michael Ballack. It all started with such promise. An early penalty? No, and then seemingly no more Ballack for the rest of the match. Scheisse!


The 2006 World Cup, a list of no particular order or meaning:

• Germany. Good hosts, good food, almost (surprisingly) a good enough team.
• The United States. Some promise, some (or mostly) disappointment, some more of the same?... to be expected.
• Referees. The good, the bad, and the (more often than not) downright ugly calls.
• Upsets and Upstarts. France v Brazil, Ghana against everyone, err, that's all I got.
• Ronaldo. He's fat! No, he's strong! No matter, he still managed to score while jogging along.

I felt compelled to name my newly minted web log something of substance, perhaps a little panache. Alas, no such luck. But this will do as I have long believed there are subtle differences in the realm of nerd. When you get right down to it, we're talking about about a spectrum on the order of ROY G BIV. That is just one of the many examples of nerdiness and fun to come on Another Kind of Nerd.