I was planning on going backpacking next weekend. So far two potential camping mates have bailed out on me. Does anybody want to go backpacking? You'll need a backpack and a sleeping bag, but that's about it. Everything else I have. I may take the girl if no one else wants to go. I made a trip to REI today to get the last bit of kit that I would need. I'm itching to go before it gets insanely hot here. The tentative plan is a moderate 5 mile hike in and out. Ten miles total over two days. You barely have to be in shape for that. C'mon, join me in ditching the world. If your up for a longer treck, I'm more than happy to do a 25 mile loop or out-and-back on the Ozark Trail.
My brother in law got me The Orange Box. Portal is of course genius and I'm working on the Bonus maps now and then. However, TF2 is sucking away my free time. Damn him. I suck, but I have loads of fun. I manage to stay alive for about two minutes on average. I tend to average probably just over 1 kill per life, so I guess I'm causing more harm then I'm taking. Right now I'm trying to get better at rocket jumping. I tried being a spy for all of about 30 seconds.
We are switching to AT&T U-verse. From the reviews that I am reading online, I think I'll be happy with the switch. Especially getting better bandwidth. I also signed up for the HD package. Although from what I read, it's a highly compressed lower bandwidth version of HD that isn't as good as other providers. It's $10/month, but if it sucks I can drop it.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Oh Canada!
(OMG, a new post!)
I'm in Canada. Specifically Waterloo, Ontario. I went bouldering tonight at a local gym. I like it that my climbing shoes take up basically no room in my suitcase and most cities have a climbing gym somewhere nearby. Climbers are a friendly bunch, and it's easy to start tackling a problem with one or two others. Even for an introvert like me.
(heh, they just said "aboot" on the radio)
At home I've been busy. Gardening, closets, a mysterious water leak, slab for the grill, trips to Illinois. I like to keep busy, so no complaints by me. What I've been struggling to find in this is solitude. Here and there some alone time, but not solitude. I noticed this on the flight up. The plane was mostly empty. I guess nobody flies to Toronto from St. Louis. So, I was in a row to myself. Headphones in (same Sony ones as before). Reading my new book. And I was relaxed. Really, really relaxed. There was nothing I needed to get done, no external pressure. I could just be solitary on the plane. It was very enjoyable.
The book I picked up is the Presentation Zen book. I'm only a bit into it. I'm reading it slowly and my mind wanders to my own presentations while I read it. I'm probably getting less out of it then someone who doesn't already know Garr Reynolds approach. But still, it's nice to have it all written down in book format. I can recommend (and lend) it to you if you want to really change your presentations to not suck. It's work. It's not a formula or a procedure but a new way to think about the form and function of presentations. It has basically nothing to do with PowerPoint, and everything to do with story and design. Conferences would be much better if everyone really worked on their presentations. I had to sit through a few today. Slideuments so typical and boring that I don't even bother listening since I know I'll get a CD with all the words later and I can pretend to care then.
A few more days with our neighbors-to-the-north. Endless hockey on Sports Center. Lousy food, but very cold beer. Great sunshine. Then back to St. Louis. I'll try to keep writing.
I'm in Canada. Specifically Waterloo, Ontario. I went bouldering tonight at a local gym. I like it that my climbing shoes take up basically no room in my suitcase and most cities have a climbing gym somewhere nearby. Climbers are a friendly bunch, and it's easy to start tackling a problem with one or two others. Even for an introvert like me.
(heh, they just said "aboot" on the radio)
At home I've been busy. Gardening, closets, a mysterious water leak, slab for the grill, trips to Illinois. I like to keep busy, so no complaints by me. What I've been struggling to find in this is solitude. Here and there some alone time, but not solitude. I noticed this on the flight up. The plane was mostly empty. I guess nobody flies to Toronto from St. Louis. So, I was in a row to myself. Headphones in (same Sony ones as before). Reading my new book. And I was relaxed. Really, really relaxed. There was nothing I needed to get done, no external pressure. I could just be solitary on the plane. It was very enjoyable.
The book I picked up is the Presentation Zen book. I'm only a bit into it. I'm reading it slowly and my mind wanders to my own presentations while I read it. I'm probably getting less out of it then someone who doesn't already know Garr Reynolds approach. But still, it's nice to have it all written down in book format. I can recommend (and lend) it to you if you want to really change your presentations to not suck. It's work. It's not a formula or a procedure but a new way to think about the form and function of presentations. It has basically nothing to do with PowerPoint, and everything to do with story and design. Conferences would be much better if everyone really worked on their presentations. I had to sit through a few today. Slideuments so typical and boring that I don't even bother listening since I know I'll get a CD with all the words later and I can pretend to care then.
A few more days with our neighbors-to-the-north. Endless hockey on Sports Center. Lousy food, but very cold beer. Great sunshine. Then back to St. Louis. I'll try to keep writing.
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