Random Wednesday

As much as I enjoy it, playing Guitar Hero is making my eye twitch. Of course it could be the fact that I'm not getting enough sleep.

It's unfortunate because the game actually makes me get a little exercise. Well at least, I'm not sitting when I play it.

*****

Today when I came home from work, there was still a significant amount of daylight. In fact, the sun was actually shining. The early darkness is on its way out! Until the stupid time changes, that is...

****

I over heard this at work:

"...I put my hand in my pants pocket and got all excited. "

"Inappropriate!"

"Dammit, I just was happy to find some money I'd forgotten about."

Left out.

It's not so much that I'm just lonely, I feel like a freak. Are those awful statistics about terrorists and marriage still true for women over the age of 35? I feel like that last single woman on earth. And I don't mean unmarried single, I mean without a boyfriend or regular dates or even a random yearly date...It would just be nice to know I'm not the only one who is utterly single.

On another note, did I mention my upstairs neighbors are so nuts that whatever they were doing yesterday afternoon was making my ceiling vibrate? It was so bad that the fan looked like it was about to fly out of its bolts.

Not Again!

From the National Weather Service:

WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT
FROM 4 AM TO 4 PM PST FRIDAY

SOUTHEAST WINDS OF 15 TO 25 MPH WITH
GUSTS TO 35 MPH ARE EXPECTED THIS EVENING.
THE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE TOMORROW
MORNING TO 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH.

TREES AND STRUCTURES WEAKENED
FROM PREVIOUS WINDS EARLIER THIS MONTH
...MAY ALSO EXPERIENCE MORE DAMAGE
DUE TO THESE GUSTY WINDS.

Just great! If I have to go for another two weeks without TV, I'm going to go nuts. Should I just call DirecTV now and pre-schedule an appointment? The dude who came out to fix my busted dish said the last storm generated about 5,000 service calls in the Sacramento area.

Also, can we get a name on this storm if the damn winds get to the Tropical Storm level? Totally not fair. If no one from the National Weather Service or the National Hurricane Center steps up, I'm it Non-Tropical Storm Bob.

Guess what the top story won't be on the news?

While trying to decide if I should go to bed or continue to surf the web, I saw this article:

Study: False statements preceded war

A study by two nonprofit journalism organizations found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The study concluded that the statements "were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses."

While not surprising that the lies actually happened, I'm surprised the article actually got published. From what I've seen lately, the news is more interested in the mundane tasks of marginal celebrities than actual hard news that might actually influence world events and everyday lives. As sad as it is that Heath Ledger overdosed, his passing doesn't warrant the phalanx of paparazzi outside his apartment complex as seen on Headline News this afternoon.

I've got an idea. Why not sick the paprazzi on the politicians? I'm sure they are up to more interesting activities than shopping for automobiles in their wedding dresses. Include the various cabinet members and I'm sure there'd be some truly eyebrow raising shots in US Weekly and People.

I will not stimulate the economy.

If the dumbasses in Washington pass that bill to send me and everyone else an $800 rebate, I will stick my money in the bank and let it accumulate interest.

Doesn't the government have trillions of dollars of debt? Isn't there a Social Security crisis on the horizon? How in the hell can they give out money they clearly don't have?

And if they have the ability to just throw money around like that, why not throw some money into the damn freeways and roads? Give some people a job and better our infrastructure instead of just trying a quick fix that won't work.

Please, change the channel!

There are a few TV shows I just can't bear to watch. Star Trek (any version) is one of them. Another one, no one outside of California will know about, is called California Gold with host Huell Howser.

It's a travel-type show on PBS. The idea of a show about California, it's random history and various tourist destinations sounds good to me, but for some reason, Huell's voice makes me want to run screaming from the room when I hear that loud drawl pouring out of the TV's speakers. My parents just love it. They Tivo it with regularity. I wish I could watch it. On the rare occasions when, I am forced to watch the program by my father and am able to take a second to focus on the show, it seems like Huell is a great guy.

Even now, just thinking about his speaking voice makes me feel like I'm on the verge of a seizure. Maybe there is some deep childhood trauma associated with the show and/or Huell Howser's voice that I am repressing.

Dammit, I'm sick of being scared.

Today there was an article in the Bee about the possibility of a building moratorium coming in December due to the newest federal flood hazard map. Apparently, the levees in Natomas are even worse than previously thought. They don't even meet the 30 year flood protection standard. Maybe in a couple years they might be up to that lowly standard. That is if the funding actually gets approved (doubtful since no one wants to pay taxes for anything) and bureaucracy move at lightening speed (that only happens in movies and various other forms of fiction).

So, why are the levees in Natomas so bad and no where else? Aren't there levees all along the American and Sacramento Rivers? How is it that East Sacramento, Woodland, and other various parts of the area in the floodplain don't have any worries? I can't be the only one asking these questions.

Maybe I don't need DirecTV

The antenna I bought for the HD over the air signal works pretty well. I thought it would be a nightmare to pick up a signal, but either you get a great picture or you don't get one at all. Once in a while the signal will get a little bitty on a couple of channels, but it's nice not to have to deal with snow.

One thing not one of the manuals explained was that you have to make your HDTV do an auto channel search for a digital signal after you hook up the antenna, otherwise you will only get analog signals.

The question is...

How is it possible that someone this cool actually lives in the area? The poster must be mistaken. Metal Skool would only come to Sacramento if the world was about to end. Well, the craigslist post says Woodland, but that's close enough for me.

Seriously, is some employer actually awesome enough to hire Metal Skool for a party for their employees? Where is it and how can I get invited?

Atomic Punks will be in Folsom on Saturday, which is a good alternative. Too bad I'll be out of town.

Damage Report

When I went out to fix my satellite dish yesterday morning, a distinctive aroma hit my nose and I flew into a panic. Granted, I was outside, but I really didn't need to be on the evening news should some errant spark find its way onto my patio.

Living in earthquake country, one should always know how to shut off a gas line. Being 50 miles from the nearest known fault line, I lulled myself into a false sense of security and didn't know how to flip the switch when I was out on the patio.

While on the phone with the emergency maintenance guy (who could do nothing but complain about how he wasn't supposed to have the pager), I finally remembered my quake safety training and saw the offending pipe. Dante (as I will call him) the non-emergency maintenance guy, kept calling the gas line a freaking wire or a tube. Seriously, he tried to suggest that I relight the thing myself.

Since the regular guy doesn't work after 5 on Friday, I had to live without hot water and heat all weekend.I would have called PG&E, but they were a bit busy trying to right all the downed power lines and clear the debris of fallen tree limbs.

The property management FINALLY came and fixed the gas leak caused by my water heater this morning. I left them two messages on Sunday, both of which they never returned. They weren't busy trying to clean up storm debris. They are just incompetent.

Did I also mention that my satellite dish is damaged and doesn't get a signal? I bought an antenna to try and get an over the air HD signal. We'll see how it turns out.

Glad the storm is over

I can't imagine living in an area where storms like the one that passed through on Friday are a regular thing. What a freaking nightmare! I'd much rather deal with an earthquake. They don't last as long.

Last night, I stayed at my parents house because I was too scared to go home. Nothing sucks worse than having to weather a storm alone. Granted, by nightfall the worst had passed, but the fear was still festering inside me.

I came home tonight to a toppled satellite dish. Luckily, it missed hitting the glass sliding patio door by inches. Unluckily, it's going to take DirecTV 2 weeks to get out to fix it. It's on a tripod, so I could go out there and try to angle it myself, but I'll do that in the morning.

My sister's power is still out at her house. Her phone is down too. SMUD says it will probably be Tuesday by the time they get power restored. Apparently, her neighborhood is low on the priority list.

It's hard to believe that Tuesday was New Year's Day. It seems like weeks ago.

Wow

It's too bad the storm wasn't named even though it had all the characteristics of a tropical storm.

I have never seen so much debris on roadways. The wind has finally gone, but so much cleanup has to be done.

Sacramento has a hell of a lot of trees and I think all the leaves are now clogging up the hitters and branches litter the streets.

My family is lucky to have no damage done to property or person. My sister is one of the million people without power.

It's a bit late!

I just read an article in the Sacrament Bee where a dude from the National Weather Service said, "if you don't have to go to work, you shouldn't."

It would have been nice if one of the local TV newscasters had mentioned this when I was watching their shows this morning! Thanks, Good Day Sacramento, KCRA & Fox 40 for reporting about Britney Spears instead!

Stormy weather

Holy crap. I got about 3 hours of sleep last night. The wind was like a Mack truck chugging past my bedroom window.

There isn't much rain, yet. It's the wind that scares me anyway. The power has been fluctuating all morning.

Debris is littered on all the roads. There is a power line down on Arden. One of many such hazards I'm sure.

I have no idea how I did it, but I made it into the office. It's better than sitting home alone wondering if some random tree is about to fly through my sliding door.

Storm update

The wind has picked up. Channel 13 says it's up to 14 mph with gusts of 25 mph. Trees are swirling around pretty good. I don't think the rain has hit yet.

The apartment flags outside my bedroom window are flapping loudly. Should be an interesting night.

Batten Down the Hatches

Supposedly, a pretty decent sized storm is headed for California. Aside from about 20 minutes of intense rain and wind about three hours ago, Sacramento hasn't seen much action. It's been dark and dreary all day. The news has been scaring the crap out of me. They are predicting winds in the 25 to 40 mile per hour range tonight and tomorrow. I'm hoping that it doesn't pan out.

One good thing, they are predicting like 7 to 10 feet of snow up at the peaks in the mountains. That should take care of any drought worries. Unfortunately, they are also predict 100 mile per hour winds at those same elevations. I was supposed to be up at Lake Tahoe this weekend, but our trip got pushed back until next week. It will be interesting to see if the 2 to 5 feet of snow gets dumped at the Lake level.

Crap, I think I just saw Jim Cantore talking about the storm on the Weather Channel. That can't be good.

Seriously, what the hell?

Today, I was working on a lease that was for a term of a little over 5 years. That would mean the thing expires in 2013. 2013?!? I swear I am stuck in 1996 for some reason. Does this happen to everyone as they get older? Did our parents freak out when it was 1984? Did they look around and say, "Well, George Orwell certainly scared the crap out of us. Thank God the future is better than he predicted."

I saw an expiration date on a package of hot chocolate that was 03.27.19. I had to do a double take. Then I thought, "Will I still be alive then?" I certainly hope so since that's only 11 years from now! Aside from the scary though that hot chocolate can have a decade long shelf life, I just wish I could get the feeling of the years beyond 2001 into my head as being normal and instead of science fiction.

Happy New Year!

My addiction to Guitar Hero has now spread to other members of my family. We spent New Year's Eve rocking out at my sister's house. My brother-in-law took to it like a fish in water, but I think he may have played it somewhere before. My sister was too tired to truly enjoy it, but she gave it a try and had fun.

My mom is really starting to get the hang of it. She even spent a couple hours playing it today with me. I think I get my love of music from her. My dad won't go near the thing. He claims that he is unable to do two things at once. I think he just doesn't like the music selections available.