JaceSan

Mr. Pasty-face, and the trouble with gravity.

2009-11-04T22:55:37Z

Mr. Pasty-face came to my place to help celebrate Halloween.

Not knowing the common fate of jack o' lanterns that tread those waters.

With the creek actually flowing this year, Mr. Pasty-face seemed to escape the same fate as past brethren.

Poor Mr. Pasty-face had been lead into a false sense of security with his new found friends. They didn't want him around at all.

San Francisco Opera :: The Abduction From The Seraglio

2009-10-23T23:28:14Z

San Francisco Opera :: The Abduction From The Seraglio

I thoroughly enjoyed this show! There was a music professor to explain the background before the curtain went up. I wasn't allowed to take pictures of the auditorium itself, but imagine I probably could if I take a tour of the place sometime in the future.

The story was easy to follow. The dialogue was in English, but the singing was in German. There were supertitles in English on a special screen above the stage. The music was great, but the real reason people attend an opera is to listen to some of the most phenomenal vocalists on the planet. Everything else just seems to be icing on the cake.

The only thing I didn't care for was the moral of the story. Unconditionally forgiving our enemies for their transgressions? Fuck that! Revenge is a dish best served cold. Some people don't agree with me. They're better people than I.

Wild Kingdom IV

2009-10-20T08:14:11Z

I couldn't sleep last night either, and went outside to smoke a cigarette. I looked into the apartment complex and saw a deer standing on the bridge that goes over the creek that runs through here. It had a set of antlers. At least two points as far as I could tell. It started to walk away from me into the other part of the complex, but didn't run off like it was spooked.

So I decided to practice my stalking skills to see how far I could follow him until he did get spooked. I think the trick is to be quiet, and keep still if they look your way. They can't see that well, but will get spooked if they notice movement. I think a lot of creatures are that way.

I followed him back up the other side of the complex by the unit where I used to live. I didn't get very close, but it was still cool to watch him wander around the parked cars. It reminded me of the smaller one that got stuck in the fence last year.

Grrr...

2009-10-18T18:43:48Z

I don't think I should have to remove the radiator grill to replace a simple headlamp bulb. Fuck Toyota and their retarded engineers.

I like watching people panic

2009-10-14T11:16:42Z

So my neighbor started to get a bit panicky when his garage started flooding yesterday. When I went to get my floor squeegee for him to borrow I noticed a corner of my garage flooding as well. He pushed the water around with the squeegee for a minute or two before he came back outside. I thought he'd push the water out of the front of his garage, but it was in the back corner. I asked him if he wanted to use my shop-vac to suck up the water. I think he was exasperated that I didn't give him the shop-vac in the first place, but I thought it was funny.

I thought it was funny even though I needed to use it right after he did to get the water out of the corner of my garage. I thought it was funny because I remember when I was sorting shit in the garage last Spring and decided to put stuff that shouldn't get wet on the upper shelves, and shit that was in plastic storage bins on the floor of the garage. No I wasn't expecting the garage to flood, but it seemed like a good idea at the time...just in case.

"Yeah, that's right. I'm a gay robot."

2009-10-12T04:52:27Z

Pinball Wizard

2009-10-08T20:55:17Z

I used to spend hours playing pinball as a kid. This was before video games hit the market.

I must check this place out in the near future.

Fan Boy

2009-10-06T21:06:19Z

While I'm not a fan of either team, I am a fan of the sport.

What are the odds that two teams from the same division will finish with the same record after playing 162 games?

Note to self...

2009-10-03T21:55:50Z

While the GPS is spiffy, bring a friggin` map next time you`re tooling around the Sierra foothills.

EDIT: Now was that hard, knucklehead?

I'm On a Boat

2009-09-28T18:47:42Z

I took a road trip down to San Bernardino with my friend to visit his kids, and other friends from the area. It was nice seeing my god-daughter again, and I also got another chance to change Sir Poops-a-lot. Her aunt's kids are getting bigger, and Alaura was cracking me up with her purple-haired mermaid, Nori.

Randal came up from San Diego with a friend from the base. We extended the road trip to follow them back, and tour their ship. The biggest boat I'd been on up until that point was one of the ferries that takes people out to Alcatraz island.

The marine transport ship was considerably more impressive. Fuck that...it was downright, bad-ass. Ferries can't launch Tomahawk missiles.

We also hung out with some of his shipmates to watch the Chargers beat up on the Dolphins. These kids were cracking me up when they started to seriously discuss what they'd do during a zombie invasion. Two of them are from FL, but "Fish" is from Cleveland.

Taye: I'd go to Key West and blow up the bridges so they couldn't get to me.
Fish: You're fucking stupid. They don't breathe air, so they could just walk to your shitty island hideout.
Taye: Nah, the sharks would get them.
Doyle: What if the zombies bit the sharks?
Randal: Then you'd have zombie sharks swarming your island to come eat you.
Fish: Yeah, zombie sharks...with lasers.

EDIT:

Fire in the Hills

2009-09-22T22:07:32Z

My friend and I were watching Cops, and we heard more sirens than should've been coming from the TV. They were heading into the hills behind my complex. They seem to have caught it in time. Yay!

My friend got a decent shot of one of the two planes dropping retardant.

EDIT:

Besides the two airplanes dropping retardant, there were also two helicopters dropping water. They probably got the water from this pond. I come here to get the fuck away from people whenever the cynicism and misanthropy get to be too much.

These are pics of where a friend of mine tumbled off the trail, and down towards the dry creek bed. The last one is probably the best for getting an idea of how steep the incline is, but the incident took place a few years ago. Erosion has made it less steep. She got hung up on the bushes about 20 feet down, and if she'd weighed any more I probably couldn't have gotten her back up onto the trail. o.O

Japantown

2009-09-18T20:23:35Z

My friend Christina invited me, and some of our other school friends down to San Jose's Japantown for sushi last night. A restaurant that her and I found a couple years ago after drinking in the downtown area. We just sort of stumbled across it, literally. We didn't feel like eating at the other places by the school, and I figured Japantown would have a decent sushi place. We hopped on the lightrail to get there last time, and she was concerned because we didn't pay our fare. I figured it was only one stop, so the chances of getting asked for our tickets was slim.

I was the first one there, followed shortly by Mitch. Mitch and I were sitting at the bar wondering what kind of alcohol this bottle had in it. It's made from sweet potatoes. The rest of the gang weren't too late, and the food was great. I even tried the head of a giant shrimp. That was pretty fucking nasty. The stuff in the samarai armored bottle tasted like vodka. White alcohol is evil. I'll stick to rum.

Happy Birthday, thenakedski

2009-09-17T22:59:20Z

Hope things are going well for you across the Pacific.

Take care

"In a world..."

2009-09-14T04:13:18Z

"...full of caterpillars."

It takes balls to be a butterfly.

Fire in the Sky

2009-09-12T08:40:14Z

I'm back in the north Bay Area to house-sit for my relatives again. Low humidity, combined with another dry season make it perfect for the lightning storm that's coming through to start fires throughout this area. I was just outside watching the lightning because I can't sleep...again.

I was watching a show on the History Channel (International) earlier about using plasma as a force shield once we can control the energy more effectively. It never dawned on me that lightning is a form of plasma. The molecules get super-heated, and go from a gas form to an ionized plasma by the bursts of electricity.

"Call me on the yacht"

2009-09-02T22:31:09Z

I recently received the most awesomest quilt that was ever quilted from my friend cmerun12.

I fucking love this piece of art, and KNOW it's gonna bring good fortune.

I also watched B.I.G.'s biography over the weekend, so instead of me dancing around in it to Cyndi Lauper (you're welcome Ski), I'll leave you with this...

Sigh

2009-08-28T16:46:04Z

I posted an entry about getting out of jury duty a week or so ago. I deleted it because it was depressing to think about.

I guess the trial is underway.

Glad I got out of this one.

EDIT: http://www.insidebayarea.com/argus/localnews/ci_13337097

EDIT II: http://www.insidebayarea.com/argus/localnews/ci_13361544

EDIT III: http://www.insidebayarea.com/argus/localnews/ci_13498248

Flashback

2009-08-26T21:47:32Z

Post Apocalyptic Sweepstakes

2009-08-26T02:43:01Z

I don't know if I want to lead humanity after the coming apocalypse, but I would love to visit Cancun.

"Life in plastic, it's fantastic!"

2009-08-23T01:58:37Z

Poor, neglected kitteh

2009-08-22T21:42:41Z

My aunt and uncle are off on a cruise to Alaska. They asked me to come house-sit for them in American Canyon while they're gone so they wouldn't have to board their cat. I can feed the little furball, but it's probably going to start wondering why I don't pet it.

Eine kleine Nachtmusik

2009-08-13T18:17:33Z

So I found a classical music radio station to listen to while driving. I've found that it's a LOT better to listen to when dealing with drivers that aggravate me. Slayer just makes me want to put them into a wall. o.O

Anyway, one of my favorite pieces came on yesterday while I was driving. :)

EDIT: Another fave from this AM.

Goats

2009-08-11T23:55:24Z

I took pictures of the goats they let loose to clear the hillside because that's how much time I have on my hands.

In The City

2009-08-11T17:41:52Z

I got to meet another LJ friend yesterday. sociologian was in San Francisco for a sociology convention. I made Mike hike with me through Chinatown up to North Beach. Discovered that one of my favorite bars on Broadway has been closed. The rest of the strip looked like it was struggling too.

We didn't wander too far into North Beach, but did stop at The Stinking Rose. I've heard wonderful things about the restaurant, and have probably wandered by more than a hundred times. This was the first time I've ever been inside though. I'd highly recommend it. Especially considering all the vampires that live in San Francisco.

I also managed to score a cheap pack of black market Chinese Marlboro lights from one of the chess hustlers down on Market St.

Your move...

2009-08-07T20:25:21Z