My job is not lost

Contrary to popular belief here a couple days ago, most of our jobs were secure. Most importantly, my job is secure, and I am on one of the teams least likely to lose anyone for any reason for at the bare minimum a year. My stress levels have decreased significantly.

One big downside is that the boss that I was so fond of got axed. He was funny, fun, sarcastic, and very good at what he did. I'm not happy that he's gone, not even slightly. Thankfully, the man replacing him is a very nice and, in my experience, very good manager. He'll have one hell of a pair of shoes to fill, but I think he's up to the task. He's already taken my side over a certain very annoying business person, and snickered when I mentioned how I was being nice, so he's starting on the right path.

Though my job is reasonably secure, I don't know how much more I can stand of this company. Theoretically a lot of training and new technologies are going to be appearing soon, so I'm going to get as much experience as I can stand to get before seeking new employment. Who knows, maybe this job will actually become one I want to keep and that specter of unemployment will disappear? More likely, I'll be looking for a new job in six months to a year, but this time I'll be looking on my terms while I still have a job. Looking for a job without desperation but out of interest is going to be a new and interesting experience for me. Thankfully I don't have to worry about that for a while. Yay!

A test of self control.

I now own Halo 3, yet I am still at work. The most highly hyped game of modern history, one I desperately want to play, and I am still at work. I'm even going to Tai Chi tonight and sticking around for the stretching class before going home and popping in the game. I was going to bring the game and leave it on my desk so I could look at it and occasionally fondle the box, maybe glance through the manual a little, but I decided against that. It's torture enough to sit here waiting. I almost wonder if when I reveal I have Halo 3 but I'm going to take class tonight anyway all the sudden I'll find myself at home with all the guys at the Fu school raptly watching as I blow away elites. That would be rather surreal.

Anyway, I am going to get back to work and see how fast I can make the next few hours go by...

Halo on Discovery?

Check this shit out!

I should never let my sister touch my computer

I had my sister, her husband, and my father for a good old-fasioned dinner the other night. I did so because my sister gave me the following choice: none. Anyway, I got some steaks, potatoes, broccoli, and made my favorite dinner: steak with potatoes and broccoli with ice cream for desert. Mmm... As excellent guests, both my sister and her husband and my father brought me beer. The crowing choice here was my father's Heineken Draft Keg (boy do I wish I got paid to plug their shit) that was only 50% foam. Moving on, we killed the keg, mostly after my father left, and my sister decided to "improve" on my computer's background. So she drew me a very strange looking girl thing in garrish colors as my background. Displeased with that, she then drew Picasso's words nightmare with boobies. When that failed to do the trick, she finally opted to draw a happy sun, on a blue sky, with dicks falling from the air, "homo" sky art, and a gay rainbow, and I think you know what I mean when you say gay rainbow.

The moral of today's story: never let my sister get drunk and start drawing on my computer.

Sim Lung Style

I know that I am lax in posting this so late, but I must share an amazing style I've found on the Internet, YouTube specificially, that being the dynamic and powerful Sim Lung Style as taught by the Sum Lung Kung Fu Master.

Goodah!

Entertainment is found in unexpected places

Went out to the dreaded Philly (technically only alongside it rather than actually in it) to see a Flogging Molly / Dropkick Murphy's show. Great show, lots of fun; I really should go to more concerts like that, even if I am now an old man all growns up with work and shit like that to think about. I had a lot of fun, but that is not my purpose in writing here. No, I must share the experience of the "wait, what?" moment we shared with one of the security guys.

So we found the venue and the handy parking place right next to it and after a tiny bit of confusion we parked and generally loitered by our car. A nice security guy came up and told us that we needed to be out of the parking lot by 7. It was 6:55. We looked at him like he had three heads and when he noticed he assumed a rather confused look. We informed him we'd just shown up to go see the concert next door and that leaving by 7 sorta defeated the purpose of parking here, which confused him further until he said, "Oh shit, wait, lemme rephrase that." See we were supposed to walk out of the parking lot and into the venue by 7, not drive off the lot. Minor confusion there, but we all shared a good laugh after figuring out just how badly we were misunderstanding each other.

It was worth it just to see the realization spread across everyone's faces as we all grinned at how dumb we felt.

So I met this girl...

So I'm out Friday night with some friends at our usual haunt and we are joined by some of their friend plus one person I'd never met before. She was very pretty and that only changed when she smiled at me, at which point I upgraded her to beautiful. Initially she sat as far from me as was possible, so I didn't learn anything of her, even her name.

Later in the evening, as my friend and one of the newcomers began to talk and spent the entire time trying to one up one another, the very pretty young lady saw an opportunity to flee their discussion and came over to sit next to me. We talked about any number of things, but really bonded about the most important of skills: baked goods. She bragged about her brownies, cookies, and cheesecake, and I bragged about my brownies and pies in response. T'was like a match made in the pastry section of ACME or something.

The more we talked the more I liked her. She was smart, much smarter than I, funny, very entertaining. I got the distinct impression that she was enjoying my company nearly as much as I was enjoying hers. Eventually the party wandered over to her roof, and we stayed late into the night. Though I did not talk to her exclusively, we hit if off quite well.

When my departure time came we talked a bit alone, she made sure I had her phone number, we made a date to cook something, and before I left, we kissed. It was a lovely end to an ego boosting night.

Having seen Swingers, I know the rules, and did not call her the next day. I called her on Sunday to see if she'd like to get some lunch, but got VM, so I just left her a quick VM and thought nothing more of it, spending my time instead playing Crackdown and preparing myself for the night's D&D destruction.

During the game, I got a call and, lo and behold, it was her. I scampered outside, excited, to talk to her for a while. My character was stuck in a force cage, so it wasn't like I was going to be doing anything for a long time. I said hi, hoping to hear about when we might be doing our cooking date. Instead I found out that, in fact, that other guy she'd been avoiding all night was actually her boyfriend and she'd neglected to mention that. Oops.

All things considered, nothing really bad happened; it was just a kiss, and I've only met her once. But she is smart, funny, beautiful, and confident. I could be depressed, or irritated, or some other negative emotion about this. But really? I feel great. A beautiful girl thought I was that interesting in one shot? This means to me: the therapy is working, the drugs are working, and I'm not broken anymore.

I finally really feel like I'm not broken anymore.

That fucking rules.

Something I missed...

John Cleese did the eulogy for his friend Graham Chapman. I doubt you'll be surprised, but he ended up being very funny.

Watch it here.