Photos from the camera phone.

How to Make Me Angry

Put me behind the keyboard of a PC running XP. Goddamnit, nothing makes you appreciate a Mac until you get on a PC. Then it's like, "Oh, that's why."

Just tried to get a bunch of photos from my phone that I downloaded to the PC onto the Mac. Tried Networking, tried a direct Firewire line, even tried FTPing the photos to a tripod site, and the PC was threatening to take my first born for it.

Ultimately I just uploaded all the pics onto Twango.

Even Twango has drag and drop, you bastards.

Grr.

INT. HOUSE - DAY

Wife is playing "Bookworm" at the computer, a letter/word game. Husband is milling around, pretending to work.

WIFE
"WANK" is not a word.

ME
"WANK" is slang. It's British for masturbation.

WIFE
You're British for masturbation.

ME
What does that even mean? I though we were having a conversation in English, but I guess not.

Blogging at Work

I guess it's a habit now.

Just a few updates, and a few bits of happiness to share.

Was talking to Dansen yesterday on MSN and iChat (because I couldn't decide what the hell to use that is the best with PCs.), and I guess he went through a 4.9 earthquake while I was typing with him, which was really weird. It would've been cooler if we were video chatting, but it was still slightly bizarre.

The retail gods are in my favor today, giving me discounts any which way I can get them. First, I've always wanted mapping software for my Palm, and I even looked at Staples for it yesterday. But anyway from 40 to 50 bucks seemed a bit steep, and a lot of them are pretty limited without GPS support, so I have so far decided against them. But Palm had a rebate, bringing down the software to a comfortable 20 bucks, so I got it online today. It's helpful when Google maps screws me in the butt and gives me grossly inaccurate info while I'm on my way to a wedding. Nothing like being lost on the way to videotape a wedding, I say.

The other godly intervention is slightly more frivilous - Along with the iPod that my mom found were some sweet in-ear earbuds that had sound isolation and awesome bass - only thing is that the earbuds don't always stay on, and one of them had fallen off and got lost. Well, they do sell the replacements at SonyStyle, but after taxes and shipping, the stupid rubber "ear cushions" run almost 15 bucks. Well, lucky me, they had free shipping that ended today, so I got them for about half the price. Woohoo!

Well, I should go to work now. Can't blog forever, you know.

Life, Scripted.

INT. INTEPRETATIVE CENTER - DAY

ZOE is sitting at the kiddy table, reading a children's book.

MUSIC is coming from the TV, from a program about Mt. Rainier.

ZOE looks up, POINTS at parents.

ZOE

Dance!

PARENTS look at her.

ZOE

Dance!

PARENTS are visibly amused.

ZOE

Do It!

Parents LAUGH.

CUT TO:

INT. HOUSE - DAY

FATHER is working in the next room, he overhears the conversation in the living room.

ALEX (V.O.)

OH NO!

ZOE (V.O.)

Wha happened, Alex?

ALEX (V.O.)

I don't know!

FADE OUT.

The Transition from Vacation

It ain't easy.

This is the second day back from vacation, and I'm doing videography work here and there, and doing housekeeping things alternately. Being gone for a week and the bills and things-to-do sure do pile up on you.

I'm a little more caught up today, though for the next few 4-6 weeks, I will be concerned that my iBook doesn't catch on fire, even though I've been warned that I should just run my iBook with power from the wall - but who in the world with a laptop does that? At least I'm not as concerned about keeping my battery fully charged anymore, since I'm going to return the battery anyway.

This campout is possibly the last one, since my mother-in-law will be selling the RV lot, and with the lot will go the country club membership. It has been a different sort of campout than the others, likely because everyone knows that it's going to be the last. My father-in-law's absence was greatly felt, and I think all the children just felt like they needed closure in order to move on, and they just needed one last chance to say goodbye to a family tradition that's been going on for years.

We visited the spot where his ashes were spread, we made a stepping stone marker that proclaimed our love for him and placed it at "Secret Falls", a place where he found by himself, and we just reveled in an environment that held memories for so many people, even myself. Some new memories were made as well, but mostly it was just coming to terms to losing our summer vacation spot.

Caleb, my nephew, really took a liking to me. He's usually just full of mischief in an annoying way, but since his sisters weren't around to egg him on and tease him, and he was suddenly the oldest kid under puberty, he took on the role of big brother to Alex and Zoe, and really took care of them. I was pretty impressed with his behavior with them, since all I usually experience from him in the past were just agonizing annoyance. But I just listened to him and encouraged him this time round, and he just really took to me. Pure guy is surrounded by so much drama, I must seem like the dull and stable presence that he needs to feel normal. But he's really a good kid, but he sure does need a good amount of guidance if he's going to veer off the destructive paths that his family members have chosen. I'm not just passing judgments, but when your mother's had three children with two men she's never married, and one of your sister's a lesbian whose lover decided that the first constructive thing to do when she got out of jail was to torch a car, and your other sister used to date a heroin fiend (who brought his drug crap with him to the campout last year - with my kids there), and is now dating a less destructive but still controlling man, that boy does need some positive guidance.

So, just getting back into the groove of things. Lots to do, and tomorrow I'll be back on my work schedule. Sigh. Just getting burnt out looking at what I have to do.