Sexism in my cereal bowl?

It's no secret to those that know me that I am passionate about my breakfast cereals. For dinner tonight, I had a heaping bowl of Cap'n Crunch (Note: I have not eaten my favorite, Crunch Berries, since they introduced the multicolored balls. All red or none at all for me!). I've often expounded at length on both my love for cereals, and my sadness at the passing of my favorite brands.

That said, it never occurred to me that there is not one female breakfast cereal mascot. It's all franks and beans.

Sure, there has been the occasional female product placement (Rainbow Brite, Strawberry Shortcake). But every cartoon spokesman is just that, a man. Or male. Even Pebbles, named after a female character, is represented by Fred and Barney.

What's up with that?

more animals

Growing up Star Wars

I stumbled across this slide show via The Force.net.

Wow. That was my childhood.

Did ya ever?

Just have one of those days turning into a week of not really giving a good god damn about anything? It's looking like one of those weeks for me.

Sometimes life is just uninspiring drudgery.

I'm sure I'll feel a little better come Friday when BSG returns. For now, the whole world just gets a big old "meh."

Fuck NTB

I brought KG's car into National Tire and battery today to replace her two front tires. $107 all told, and they managed to get me out of there fairly quickly. About what I was expecting, so no complaints there.

What raises my ire, though, is the petty theft. Of approximately $1.00 in change from the center console. I noted when I dropped the car off that KG had some silver in the little coin holder. It was gone when I left.

A few years ago, I brought my car in for a new battery and tires. I had about $10 in quarters in the bin. I knew this because I had counted it that morning, considering using it to buy a pack of smokes. When I went out to my car after having it serviced, the change was gone.

I went back in and confronted the sales guy. Of course, the mechanic denied it. I told him I wasn't concerned about the loss of $10, it was the principle. I'd just spent a couple of hundred in their store, and the mechanic must have realized the coinage would be missed.

Needless to say, the money was not returned. They did give me a voucher for a free oil change, though.

So, here we are a few years later. The amount taken was probably less than a buck, but the principle remains the same. Seriously, what the fuck, guys?

I will never be going to NTB again, and I'll do my best to discourage others from going. I hope that spare change got you something good out of the sundry machine, you fucking grease monkey.

Belnaphi

On the first day of '09, I gave my love a face full of champagne.

On the second day of '09, I left my love in the lurch with 2 kids and a flat tire on a work day.

On the cusp of the third day of '09, I had one of those moments of clarity.

I'll do my best to not allow it to be obscured.

When you lose sight of your path, your environment tends to step in and remind you. I'll be mindful.

Year's end meme

A look back at 2008 via the first words I posted each month:

January: The first day of the new year... woke up hung over and irritable.

February: I found myself in work this morning before the sun had even come up. That's just wrong.

March: HESS truck! It lights up, and that's about it.

April: Well, our new found Irish friend completed the restoration of our stone wall today.

May: RIP Albert Hofmann.

June: In the normal course of a day, I send roughly 20 some emails to various people asking them to complete, correct or re-do work. That's my job.

July: In order to help fill the state coffers, Massachusetts just put into effect an additional $1 per pack cigarette tax.

August: Sorry, guys. I have no information about Wall E stuffed animals. If there are any, I'd like one.

September: Got my copy of The Bunny Boy today.

October: Needless to say, I can not wait!

November: Well, the trick or treating was light, but over all it was a fun day.

December: You may now refer to me as Rev. TK8103.

Thanks to Mycalls for the idea. Here's hoping 2009 is a decent year, filled with happiness, prosperity, and more inane drivel from yours truly.

And my apologies to KG for dumping champagne all over her.

FOX sucks ass

Nuff said.

In other suckage, today was a shit-tastic day. Came back to work after a nice 5 day weekend to find a mountain of work waiting for me. Closing is a week away, and I haven't even looked at the error report. Got handed a retro fee change. Got an email from the boss saying my eval will be tomorrow, and we need to discuss my apparent abuse of sick time and something about "inappropriate communications."

As I settled into to start doing some work, the power went out in my cube. Just my cube. Seems some jumper wire burned out. Then Horizons shit the bed.

Missed lunch with the gang as they tried to resolve the Horizon issue. Got a phone call that the roofers tripped a circuit breaker in the house, had to call my parents and ask them to go reset it. Finally, i was reminded that I'm covering referrals for the MCH team on Wed and Fri.

Fuck me. On the bright side, tomorrow is a new day. Woohoo.

Merry Christmas to all

Happy Brumalia!

Happy Festivus!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

The Ironing is delicious

From Cake Wrecks:

Another perspective

Here are a couple of before and after shots of the back yard, just to give you an idea of how much snow we got:






I shoveled a total of 4 times, and right now the driveway, walkway and cars are covered in ice. The plow has left yet another bank of snow behind the cars. I've had enough.

Let it snow

Here's our driveway at 2:15PM yesterday:
4:15PM:
6:15PM
8:15PM
9:00AM this morning

On the way to Oklahoma...

Or, as I like to say: Batshit crazy.

The Piano has been drinking

The piano has been drinking
my necktie is asleep
and the combo went back to New York
the jukebox has to take a leak
and the carpet needs a haircut
and the spotlight looks like a prison break
cause the telephone's out of cigarettes
and the balcony's on the make
and the piano has been drinking
the piano has been drinking...

and the menus are all freezing
and the lightman's blind in one eye
and he can't see out of the other
and the piano-tuner's got a hearing aid
and he showed up with his mother
and the piano has been drinking
the piano has been drinking

cause the bouncer is a Sumo wrestler
cream puff casper milk toast
and the owner is a mental midget
with the I.Q. of a fencepost
cause the piano has been drinking
the piano has been drinking...

and you can't find your waitress
with a Geiger counter
And she hates you and your friends
and you just can't get served
without her
and the box-office is drooling
and the bar stools are on fire
and the newspapers were fooling
and the ash-trays have retired
the piano has been drinking
the piano has been drinking
The piano has been drinking
not me, not me, not me, not me, not me

Tom Waits

Workplace fail

Pic courtesy of the mighty Molius

We gots snow

Transcendence through Failure

You may now refer to me as Rev. TK8103.
Today I became an ordained minister. According to the Universal Life Church Monastery:

Let it be known on this date that in accordance with the laws of the Universal Life Church Monastery, as ordaining officer, I, Brother Martin, do ordain you into our ministry. From this day forward, you are entitled to all of the rights of an ordained minister. You have the authority to perform marriages, baptisms, and all other ceremonies of the church. You are an independent minister of this church. This is a position that carries with it a burden of responsibility; please respect others and comply with the laws of the land.

I'm not sure yet how far I'll be taking this, but I am giving some thought to actually ministering. I've got a few ideas for a religion that actually makes sense and has some potential to enlighten. I need to flesh it out.

I'll be sure to keep you posted.

I will, however, leave you with this thought: Perhaps a perfect savior is not the best savior. It's through our transgressions that we really learn, and a divinity that suffers because of and has the potential to transcend his or her failures is a much more access able divinity.

Some grow wise, some other wise.

Brockton Holiday Parade

Here's a few shots from this weekend's troop. It was my first parade, so that was fun. Even better, I got to troop with Darth Chip, who I'm partly responsible for. I put the bug in his ear, at any rate.