Ghost Of A Tradition?

Happy Halloween! I have had exactly zero trick-or-treaters. Which is not at all unusual. Is the custom really that dead, or do I just always miss them somehow?

At least I do finally have an American Gothic disc that works. That's... kind of spooky.

American Frustration

So, I know American Gothic is meant to be a pretty spooky show, but is there a reason why cosmic forces, or possibly a conspiracy of Netflix employees, might want to prevent me from watching it? The first copy of the first disc they sent me was cracked and wouldn't play at all. The second one started out fine, but froze up completely and consistently 20 minutes into the pilot. (And my attempts at cleaning it, if anything, only seemed to make it worse.) At this rate, they're going to run out of copies to send me, and I'm never gonna find out what's up with that creepy sheriff.

Speaking Of Cats...

A short while ago, I was sitting on the couch with my laptop on my lap, chatting with a friend. Vir, apparently unhappy that I was paying more attention to the computer than to him, managed to climb onto my lap between me and the keyboard... not the first time he's done that. Him actually disconnecting my computer from the internet was new and different, though. Especially as it took me a little while to figure out just what the heck it was he had done and why my chat window wasn't responding anymore.

I swear, these beasts become smarter and more tech-savvy every day. I'm starting to feel a little frightened.

Random Links: Nothin' But Cats Edition

Medium Large: This cartoon made me laugh a lot more than it probably should have.

How to Pet a Kitty: Detailed, accurate instructions for kitty-petting.

20 sci-fi LOLCats that may actually make you LOL: LOLing not guaranteed, but I found some of these quite amusing.

Welcome To Boresville, The Capital of Boresylvania.

Um, yes. I'm still not dead, and I do still remember that I have a blog. Honest. It's just that I have absolutely nothing of interest to share lately. Seriously. Nada.

For instance, here is a list of pretty much everything I've done today:

• surfed the internet and answered e-mail
• walked on treadmill while watching an episode of Venture Bros
• showered and dressed
• ate meatball sandwich at Subway
• read 40 pages of Your Brain on Food
• went to ATM
• went to post office to return a book I received my mistake
• went to vet's office to pick up more of Vir's super-special diet cat food
• updated blog

And in a few minutes, I get to go and get ready for work. When I come home, I might watch some TV! Exciting!

21st Century Afflictions

There really ought to be a word for that annoying feeling you get when you sit down at your computer and suddenly realize that you've completely forgotten what it was you wanted to google.

It's Even Geekier Than Pi Day!

Happy Ultimate Binary Day!

Way Off The Wagon

So, I, um... I bought nine books at the library sale. I even bought a Friends of the Library membership so I could go last night, instead of this morning. Mostly because I have to work tonight and wanted to sleep until the afternoon, but also because, well, there'd be more books.

And I'm still drooling over a couple of things in the Daedalus catalog, too. And having a hard, hard time talking myself into not ordering all those "hey, there's a new book in the series!" books I want so much.

I really need to be locked up somewhere with a room full of books and no access to the internet for a few months, just to start getting caught up.

Wait, We're How Far Into October Already?

Time for this again, I guess...

Current clothes: Black sweatpants. Maroon shirt that says, "I know just enough to be dangerous." (Too, too true!) White socks.

Current mood: Sort of tired, because I've been doing a bunch of cleaning and stuff, but generally very good. I finally have a few days off that don't involve having to adjust my sleep schedule in some strange and unnatural way, and it's just such a relief.

Current music: I was just listening to some random-shuffle stuff on the iPod. It was playing some Stevie Nicks when I turned it off.

Current annoyance: My work hours really have gotten horrible now that we're understaffed. I've worked 64- and 56-hour weeks recently. And I don't get overtime for it, either, since those workweeks span two pay periods. And coming up, I'll be working my third weekend in a row. Sigh.

Current thing: I, um, appear to have fallen off the book-buying wagon. I let myself relax my quota system for one month, and now I'm having immense trouble mustering up the self-control to force it back into place. I've already hit the maximum for this month, and the library sale hasn't even happened yet, and, damn it, I'm going to go! And it seems like every single series I am following has a long-awaited new volume out this month. And my mother just instructed me to take an empty suitcase when I go out to visit my sister next month, because we're making a pilgrimage to Powell's. Meep.

Current desktop picture: Still Doctor Who meets The Simpsons.

Current book: Doubt: A History by Jennifer Michael Hecht. Which is wonderful.

Current song in head: "Meet James Ensor" by They Might Be Giants. But only because it was playing right before Stevie Nicks.

Current DVD in player: Disc 12 of The Avengers Complete Emma Peel Megaset, which I keep dipping into between runs of other things. ($30 that set cost me, and it's providing years of entertainment!) Also disc 2 of season 13 of South Park, which I've been watching on the treadmill.

Current refreshment: Some sparkling lemonade drink, which would be really good if it didn't have that just-licked-a-test-tube artificial sweetener aftertaste.

Current worry: That I will never be able to regain any sense of self-control when it comes to gratifying my desire for more books. Also for more ice cream.

Current thought: I am dusty and kind of sweaty. Time to change into jammies and relax with a book. Since, you know, I have so many of them.