I learned the scariest thing today.

No, really.

Did you know… that “presbyterians” is an anagram of “britney spears”?

I know it was Strom Thurmond who died yesterday, but last night I had a dream that Johnny Cash did, as well. Sad, sad…

Okay, so that guy who wouldn’t let me over… I guess that’s @#$@#$in’ common practise here in Texas. If I had a shot of vodka for everytime it has happened to me — including when I’m coming off a short inbound/outbound ramp — I would be too drunk and hungover to ever make today’s interview.

Oh yeah, today’s interview. I finally find directions to the corp HQ, since they (in their words, even) “dropped the ball” and never gave me directions, OR my time to get there. I arrive at 9:00, bewildered, and I finally get in touch w/ someone, who tells me that
1. It’s not at the HQ location, it’s at a place 5 minutes from the hotel
2. The interview is at 2.30 PM (CT) today.

Aieeeee…
So I spend time driving around Dallas… finding my way back onto I-365, dealing with exits being closed where I’d prefer them to be open… etc… but it hasn’t been terrible.

I do like the massive “horseshoe” type lanes specifically for U-turns that they have here, that go under the major highway(s). Miss your exit? Nooo problem, just take the U-turn and you’re set.

I’ve taken at least 4 of those since I’ve been here ;).

Later.

Me big Texan.
Me big, dumb Texan.
Me big, dumb Texan with lots of friends on plane.
Me wave around, show off Penthouse to friends on plane.
Me and friends drink lots of booze before and after plane.
Me and friends monopolise restrooms.

heh. Nah, the flight wasn’t that bad. The weather here today has been amazingly nice. It was like 90 in DC today, but about 75 here. Go figure.

I got to the airport and realised I was wearing the dumbest thing in the world: A Redskins shirt. It got me two comments, alone, at the supermarket a bit ago.

The second dumb thing I did was use my DC driving manners and flip some dude the bird who wouldn’t let me over when I needed to get over 3 lanes on the highway, within about 1/2 mile. He immediately slowed way down, even more. Eventually, I made my way over.

Sure was nice of him to reciprocate the favour.

Wondering what tomorrow will bring…

What can I say? I gave it a shot, I stated my opinions and concerns. I will have to be satisfied with that. One of the smartest people I know is getting dragged into this, and I just have to sit here and watch.

I just hate seeing people I know get hurt, and it’s even worse when it involves money.

I could have started an international incident a few minutes ago.

A while back, when I got my third mobile phone, through a third provider, I of course got a third phone number. After getting stuck with an ugly ass 571 number before, I decided I didn’t want to risk it again. So when I asked the rep if I could assure that I’d get a 703, and he told me that no, that wasn’t possible, I decided to get a DC 202 number. Besides, having a metropolitan number is cooler anyway, right?

So I’m sitting here at work, mindin’ my bidness, when my phone rings. I fish it outta my pocket and answer.

“Hello?”
“Yes, hello Mr. Ambassador…”

OOPS!
So I’m guessing there’s some ambassador, either to or from the US, who has a mobile number close to mine.

I can just see it… imagine I went with the ruse…
“Hello?”
“Yes, hello Mr. Ambassador…”
“Hello… yes, please note that the military advancement has continued without delay, and we expect to commence activity in the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours. Please rest assured that you will be informed of all events. *click*”

But I’m not that stupid.

Update: A Google search from the phone number reveals that it was someone calling from the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs. Ironically, it seems like the sort of organisation you’d like to have calling you, chulitatota.

A while back, an apparently Irish Pub opened up in Ashburn, called Kirkpatrick’s.

At work, in the kitchen today, on the pegboard, there’s one of those little flyers for the place. You know, like the ones that clutter your car if you park within three blocks of any club in DC.

“Kirkpatrick’s presents DJ KAOS, playing hip-hop, r&b, reggae and house music, all night long!”

Irish pub, eh? Why do I get the feeling there won’t be much Celtic soccer on TV there? I mean, granted, most Irish pubs around here are about as Irish as McDonald’s. But “DJ KAOS”?

This is Even more cynically amusing after looking at their webpage.

“Kirkpatrick’s Irish Pub, Sports Bar & Family Grille…”

Sports Bar
Family Grille
and now, Dance Club.

“Hey sweetie, let’s take li’l Billy over to the Grille this evening. We can toss back a few Guinnesses and meet the neighbours, maybe catch some of the game. We’ll also let Billy “order off the adult menu” this time… he’ll keep busy with a hamburger that big, leaving us plenty of time to get our grind on with the Hendersons. I hear that DJ KAOS is spinning all night long!”

I tried to work “House of Pain” in this entry, but I just couldn’t do it, not this early.

Ben Harper rocks your mom. That is all.

…for now, at least. I’m too beat to elaborate about the day’s events.

Sometimes I wish I could turn back the clock and hear all the old crowd playin’ music at the coffeehouse again :-/

Now, I’m all for the fusion cooking schools of thought, but somehow, an “Asian BBQ stromboli” just doesn’t sound like it would cut it.

And yes, this was an option at the cafeteria, today. Ugh.

The Hatfields and McCoys sign truce. In an apparently unrelated incident, the pox upon both their houses has subsided.

I cannot get my MSDN login to work.
If I can’t get my MSDN login to work, I can’t get my reg code for Office 2k/XP
If I can’t get my reg code for Office 2k/XP, I can’t load our new test case template
If I can’t load our new test case template, I can’t start doing my test cases.
…

These, amongst other choice things going on this morning… and it’s only 11:15!

By the way, I found a cool, java-based program called jave can be used to turn image files into good, ole-fashioned ascii.

For example:

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Jonathan Band is a blooming idiot.

According to Band, who represents neither SCO nor IBM in this case, a crucial vulnerability with the open-source model is too much trust. “Open source relies on the fact that everyone is going to behave appropriately. You assume no one would inject anything they shouldn’t inject into the code. That’s not a legal problem, but it trusts people perhaps more than you should,” he argues.

What a dumbass! How can you have “too much” trust, when everything is right there in the open?? How can you have any trust in software that is closed? Who is there to audit closed code, and who is there to keep the developers accountable, other than the developers themselves? I’d wager that there’s been a larger history of IP theft/plagarism within closed code for just that reason — who will know what makes up the guts of the software, if you’re not allowed to see them?

Open code is just that — anyone can see it, anyone can see what has been added. Closed code is like driving a car with the hood welded shut.

Kickball has been cancelled, for the third straight week, due to this infernal rain.

The funniest baseball team name, ever. (Article)

The funniest craigslist posting, ever.

They need to.

Maybe I can get that job. Or one on CNN Radio ;).

Today was the last day of the 2003 Herndon Festival, in Herndon, Virginia. I didn’t know much about what was going on this year, having been entirely too busy for the past several weeks, and having neither the time nor ambition to find out. Regardless, leaving a party yesterday, my friend asked me if I was interested in going today, noting that perpetual local favourite Emmet Swimming was going to be playing, followed by none other than Suzanne Vega.

I agreed to go, though, in all honesty, it was to see the former band. I’d never known or cared much about Vega. As it turned out, however, we got waylaid, and didn’t make it to the festival until later, after the Emmet Swimming show. In retrospect, I am glad I stayed to see Vega — I really got to appreciate her music, after today’s experience.

I, like many others, didn’t know a lot of Suzanne Vega songs before today’s show. Like anyone else, I was familiar with “Luka”, “Blood Makes Noise”, and of course “Tom’s Diner”; perhaps to a lesser degree, a smattering of those in the crowd might have known “99.9Fº”. Requests for these songs were, of course, yelled out incessantly by the audience and this was, apparently, much to the amusement of Vega herself. However, it turned out that I didn’t pay so much attention to these songs, as I did the rest of her set.

Playing about 14 songs, including a two or three song encore, I really grew to have an appreciation for her. After hearing, for the first time, “The Queen and the Soldier”, I was transfixed to my spot on the lawn, for the rest of her set, enjoying her truly vivid lyrics. Songs like “Gypsy” and “In Liverpool” (both of which share roots in a particular event in her life, apparently) were wonderful, and I was quite surprised I’d never given Vega serious consideration as an artist before.

The aformentioned “popular” songs were of course played, near the end of the set, as it really probably would have been a disappointment not to hear them. A dark cloud passed overhead, and heavy winds picked up during “Blood Makes Noise”, and considering the song’s subject matter, it seemed very appropriate. It was also curious to note the large number of audience members who were rocking strollers, and holding children, a crowd that has probably been listening to Vega for years, but now finds itself in a different demographic, fifteen to twenty years later. All environmental and social observations aside, however, the show put on by Vega for this small crowd of 500 or so was both intimate for all involved and something of a mind-changing event for me, in terms of musical appreciation.

I am neither a member of the self-defined “strong women” demographic who tend to follow her, nor am I one of the vocal minority, consisting of both men and women, who look at Vega in a particularly sensual and/or sexual facet. I am, however, a new fan of hers, and was pleasantly surprised by today’s show.