I'm all antsy at work right now. I really want to go outside, move around and get some fresh air, but I really don't
want to trudge through snow to do it. We got maybe 10-15cm of snow last night (
the UW Weather Station isn't helping... it looks like their snow depth sensor is dead).
Not an optimistic start to December. I bet those wretchedly smug skiing bastards are happy. (It's annoying that these
people are usually the same bastards who get all excited about 30+ degree days in the summer (the last one being less
than three months ago—not much of an autumn to speak of, really)).
I went home for the weekend, which wasn't bad. My uncle got (re-)married. The ceremony was cute, if slightly unorthodox.
It was the "clergyperson's"* first wedding, and, if nothing else, she did a good job at putting an hysterical bride at
ease. I was a bit put off by her perceived need to explain the big words (like "coveneant" and "countenance"). But
whatever. Ceremony and ritual are out of fashion. I'm a bit of an old fuddy-duddy in some ways.
* - her word, not mine.
I was going to go through the Belief-O-Matic (cited from Eric's
blog). I gave up before I got through the first page, my problem being that I'm not really wedded to any particular set
of beliefs. They lump "not sure" with absolute statements like "there is NO GOD!" I'm going to end up an atheist, and
that's wrong. I could make stuff up, but then what's the point? I'd probably end up as Hindu or something.
Then again, it might just peg me as a Unitarian, which probably
isn't that far off...
I still want to go outside. Maybe I'll pace around my cubicle for a bit.
I think I finally figured out why it always seems to be the assholes who run everything. It's because the people who
care—who honestly want to do good—are far more likely to give up in disgust, or become overwhelmed with the stress of
doing what's right in the face of an indifferent or ignorant majority and a select few who live only to cause misery in
others. The assholes persevere, simply because they don't care.
As you might be able to guess, I didn't have a very fun weekend. I didn't even suffer the brunt of it. Just sitting at
the sidelines, thinking of the things I should do or would like to do and realizing that nothing I could do would really
help, and, if anything, I'd only succeed in making the situation worse. In the end, it wouldn't really matter, and I'd
end up miserable either way.
So I went home.
Saturday was the 39th anniversary of Doctor Who. I marked the day by
watching Ribos Operation. That made me
feel a little better. It's a great little episode, with lots of witty banter, fun characters and a good story. It amazes
me, watching some of this stuff, how it can be so good, but also so impossible to do today. It's all played for
drama—archetypal characters and archetypal plots which would be lambasted as being horribly cliche nowadays. Not "
realistic" enough. I've never understood people's obsession with realism in their fantasies. What's the point of a
realistic fantasy? Why not just stick to reality, then?
Well, I recovered the database, but otherwise, I think the linux machine is a write-off. I'm going to reformat it and
start over. I'm still thinking not linux. The 2.4 kernel wasn't liking my 1337 motherboard. I have to figure out what
I'm going to do with that thing. If nothing else, I need temporary storage for my OpenBSD switch. I still have to get
around to that. They've released a new version while I've been dickering.
I don't really have a whole lot to say, otherwise... The office Christmas party is the same day as the next CTRL-A
show, which means I'm probably going to show up for the end of the show in a suit. That should be fun. I'm very excited
about this, but I don't expect many others to care much...
I'm a little annoyed about this, but I expect the bubble to burst
soon... I missed out on seeing Bowling for Columbine. But then I figured it was
probably for the best, 'cuz Michael Moore manages to piss me off sometimes... Even though I might agree 100% with his
position, he tends to say things or put forward ideas not because they are particularly true, but because they provoke a
reaction. That irks me. Whatever works, I guess...
I'll pick up a new PS2 tomorrow, I think. I've been saying that all week.