Singin' in the Rain

It was rainy yesterday, so I didn't get the chance to get up on the roof and paint on the waterproof coating. I have to admit, part of me is actually a little relieved. It's undoubtedly going to be a really big job, and I'm just not looking forward to doing it.

So, instead, I had fun playing around with the new computer. Believe it or not, my old one didn't even have a CD burner, so I'd never before experienced the joy of creating my own CDs. Since it was high time I rectified that, I spent a big chunk of yesterday going through my music collection and putting together a compilation of science fiction-themed songs. (It will probably surprise no one who knows me to learn that I could have quite easily put together a second CD on that theme, as well, possibly without even having to dip into the soundtracks.) I have to say, I was really quite pleased with the results. Making CDs is fun!

And, amazingly enough, far from being yet another time-waster, embarking on this particular project actually resulted in me getting a hell of a lot of stuff done around the house. Because, before I commited all this stuff irrevocably to disc, I had to preview all 80 minutes of it to make sure it flowed nicely. And then afterwards I had to play the whole thing again to make sure it came out OK. And I needed something to do while I was listening to the music... So now my computer room is no longer full of boxes and miscellaneous loose junk; instead there's just one big pile of boxes and miscellaneous loose junk in the middle of the room, which is a big improvement, believe me. Also, you can now see some portion of the surface area of my kitchen table under the piles of paper. And there's a new water-flow valve in my toilet, a feat of plumbing which I'm actually a tiny bit proud of.

The other unforseen benefit is that I discovered the secret file on Weird Al Yankovic's Running with Scissors. It's a little "documentary" video that features Al giving interviews and visiting his parents. I had no idea it was even on there. Sneaky guy, that Al!

It also got me thinking about music and science fiction, and inspired me to create the following list:

YOU KNOW YOU'RE A GEEK WHEN... (MUSICAL VERSION)

Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll Pt. 2" immediately makes you think of Doctor Who, not sporting events.

You hear The Kinks doing "Lola" on the radio and start singing along: "I met him in a swamp down on Degobah..."

You have been known to critique the scientific accuracy in songs. (I mean, I still can't quite figure out just what the planetary disaster in Peter Schilling's otherwise excellent "The Noah Plan" is meant to be, becaase the description of it just doesn't make any sense.)

You have checked the accuracy of the astronomical figures given in Monty Python's "Galaxy Song" (as seen in The Meaning of Life).

You know all the words to "Star Trekkin'" and are perfectly happy to listen to it three times in a row.

You think an album full of metal songs based on the plots of science fiction movies is a really cool idea.

You create a CD compilation of science-fiction based songs...

...And then you make up a "you know you're a geek when..." list based on the experience.