Most of the luxuries, and many of the so-called comforts of life, are not only not indispensable, but positive hindrances to the elevation of mankind.

Henry David Thoreau, Walden

I’ve never been a lawn guy. I’ve lived in the suburbs for six years, and had my own lawn to care for some years before that. But I don’t take any pride in my lawn like guys are supposed to. A well-manicured lawn means absolutely nothing to me. I secretly dream of plowing the whole thing up, salting the earth, and covering it in sand—complete with an umbrella and a beach volleyball net.

Continue reading “Mowing; or Life in the Suburbs”…

It’s interesting to me that my experience has been quite different from Matt’s. Despite growing up in a town of about sixty (no, I’m not exaggerating, here’s the census data) located in a very rural area, I regularly meet people who know exactly where it is. The conversation usually goes like this:

Them: So, where are you from?

Me: You’ve never heard of it. It’s a little town called Macomb and it’s…

Them: Oh, yeah, I know where that is. My _____ lives/works out there.

My most recent encounter was with a business associate who turned out to be the ex-husband of my high school english teacher. That brought back a flood of memories about high school, friends, and knowing things you’re not supposed to. But I’ll save that for another story.

The following was written in June of 2003 about a trip we took in October of 2002. Timing is everything.

Continue reading “Wedding 2: Viva Las Vegas”…

When I was in school, teachers would sometimes let us bring a cheat sheet to a test with, “whatever we could fit on a single sheet of paper.” I, of course, would always demonstrate how the textbook could easily be balanced on a single sheet of paper.

Teachers often found me exhausting.

Once I had a computer, I would print notes in the smallest font possible. This prompted them to add “hand-written” to the cheat sheet disclaimers.

It is with much nostalgia that I point to the Cheat Sheet Roundup - Over 30 Cheatsheets for developers. Some of these would have been quite handy for tests.

Funny story: About a week and a half ago, I poked myself in the eye with a stick. Why, you ask? Well, this guy comes up to me and says, “Would you rather poke yourself in the eye with a stick, or…”

And I just said yes. Now, I wish I had heard the other option. Live and learn.

Ok, fine, here’s what really happened.

Continue reading “Would you rather…”…