photos

Holy Snow

Before I compose my rant on how wrong I was about the weather last night, take a look at how my neighborhood fared.

I took these photos around 6pm, after Aaron had left for work.

  
A view from our front door

  
Aaron shoveled the driveway while I was at work

  
The front yard, as seen from the street

  
*this* was the biggest nightmare: braving our unplowed street

So, let’s just say I’m glad I don’t have to go anywhere tomorrow, and neither does Aaron. We can stay home, open presents, drink some decaf, and enjoy the astronomical electric bill—er, I mean, the warmth. :-/

the ongoing saga of my job 4 Comments

White Christmas

Nearly everyone at work was throwing a hairy conniption about the impending snowstorm tonight. “What if it’s a Level 3 snow emergency in Wood County, but not here in Lucas County?” “If I get a ticket for driving in a snow emergency, will Sky pay for it?” “What if I can’t make it in, but I don’t have any more personal days left?” And on and on. Our department, and eventually the entire company, had to send out an e-mail about weather-related procedures and what to do in the event of an actual emergency.

The part of me that remembers growing up in or around the snowbelt just shrugs and is vaguely pleased about having a white Christmas. Leave a little early for work in the morning, since our neighborhood is at the bottom of the plow-me list. Take some pictures of snowy Christmas lights tomorrow night. No reason to be all freaked out.

So, we’ll see how many people show up late to work tomorrow, how many people call in, and how many complaints I hear about the snowy commute from Bowling Green to Maumee. My vote is that the Toledo/Maumee area will get maybe four inches, and that the salt crews will be on the ball to clear the roads early. We’ll see.

college, video 4 Comments

Merry Christmas 2001

As I was digging through old VHS tapes, I found a tape of this-n-that from my Media 100® workshops and video classes. I watched through it, just for shits and giggles… and then I found a video I’d forgotten I’d made.

Back in 2001, I was about to graduate college, living in an apartment on my own, and I was really broke. That Christmas was a creative one, mainly making gifts for my family and friends instead of buying them. And, for Amy, I made a video of our four-year Reign of Terror at BGSU. I didn’t have time to copy it for her; I barely managed to squeak enough lab time to create the video and drop it to tape in the first place. But, when she came to visit and exchange presents, I showed it to her.

Then, tonight, I found it again.

So, now that we have a capture card, I am encoding it and posting it here for your viewing pleasure. Amy, of course, will enjoy it the most… but I think most of you will certainly appreciate it.

small version (10.2MB) | large version (33.5MB)

ruminations 2 Comments

Christmas Spirit

Is anyone else feeling a distinct lack of the Christmas Spirit this year?

I mean, sure, I’m all geeked about one present in particular that I already know I’m getting. And, yeah, I decked out my website in Christmas finery. Aaron and I have wrapped just about all of our presents and have them piled about the tree, and I’ve taken the annual Family Photo By The Christmas Tree—this year, with the cat in the mix. Our stockings are hung on the entertainment center with care, and I’m even planning to make sausage cake (a Cook family holiday staple) to bring in to work on Wednesday.

Even so… ehh.

I just can’t get excited about it. What’s wrong with me?

site-related

I’m Popular…?

Well, I just banned a dozen IP addresses in the same subnet (is that what it’s called? the first two numbers are the same) from commenting on my blog. I’m going to see if that puts a stop to the spamming that just started this weekend.

If it doesn’t, everybody be prepared to plug in your e-mail address next time you comment on a post. Don’t worry, MT encodes your e-mail so it can’t be harvested by spiders or bots or what-have-you. Goodness knows I can’t afford to have you guys stop commenting at all… my poor self-esteem couldn’t handle the strain. I’ll put a note in the comments area if I institute required fields.

So, yay for the fact that my blog has finally been targeted by a spam-bot. That means *someone* knows I’m out there, besides you diligent few. Boo for spam-bots.