2007-01-25 
 

tuna test

A recent post on TNTP helped me rediscover Tuna Girl's site. I used to surf there when I needed a break from work because she usually would type something diverting, but then I started bloglining and I missed adding her in. Well, that's been remedied.

Anyway, I took the "What's My Fine" quiz she'd posted. My fine was a bit steep, but going back over it I discovered that about $130 of that is pretty much due to the gay thing. (That is, the sexually active gay thing.)

Even so, I guess I'm not Ivory Soap.

Labels: memes

* posted by me at 9:14 PM

(1) comments



2007-01-20 
 

mikey bar

So, I bought this Milky Bar chocolate several months ago. Just one of many little projects I had that kept getting pushed aside. Finally scanned it in today and made the necessary changes.

Labels: 1000 words, dose of mikey

* posted by me at 2:55 AM

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2007-01-12 
 

clear across the country

Took off from SFO earlier today, and the views were fog free for the first time in a while. I always love watching the city slowly sink away beneath me. It always looks so clean and unperturbed from that height. I sent down a silent "I love you." to G, who had returned home to one of those little buildings below after dropping me off at the airport. Then SF slided out of view and I amused myself by following along the waterways and trying to guess which towns lay below.

As the plane came in for a landing in Newark five hours later, the combination of cold, clear air and jet fuel exhaust made the lights below twinkle like stars. My legs were cramped from the non Jet Blue treatment, but I felt as if I was being welcomed in style.

Labels: dose of mikey, g, looking eastward

* posted by me at 12:22 AM

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2007-01-08 
 

sparks

An experiment.

Original Text captured on PDA during walk to Muni on March 13th of last year. (Inspiration often hits by the statue of Georgia O'Keefe in Walton Square.)

the battery hed been carrying in his sweaty palm had some spark of life left after all and th resulting shock when the sweat hit critical mass, while minor, turne d out to be just enough to jolt him out of his reverie. that's when he noticed her. Standing on the corner of 3rd and mission, like a sail that had come unattached from the main mast, swaying gently in the breeze.

Text reworked today, January 8th 2007. I tried to remain true to my original intent from that March day.

The battery Jon had removed from the camera had some spark of life left after all. He'd been grasping it tightly in his right hand while maneuvering the camera back into its case, but with no trash can nearby, he kept hold of it and had soon forgotten it altogether.

The tightness of his grip combined with the heat of the day resulted in a shock when the sweat in his palm hit critical mass. While minor, it turned out to be just enough to jolt him out of the reverie he'd enjoyed since leaving the museum. That's when he noticed her. Standing on the corner of 3rd and Mission, like a sail that had come unattached from the main mast, swaying gently in the breeze.

Stay tuned. I may try to revisit this again in the future...if I remember. BTW, my intent was to capture the idea about the battery and the image of the woman in the breeze.

Labels: dose of mikey, writing

* posted by me at 10:06 PM

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2007-01-05 
 

business monkey

If an infinite number of monkeys sit in an infinite number of cubes, one of them will eventually produce a TPS report with the correct new cover sheet.

Today, that monkey was almost me. Unfortunately, the new cover sheet was mysteriously replaced with an even newer cover sheet upon my submission of the formerly new sheet. What a load of horse sheet. (Apologies, but torture of this sort makes me rather punny.)

ETA: This is all in code by the way. If I told you what I was really working on, I'd have to kill you.

Labels: sharketing

* posted by me at 6:29 PM

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2007-01-01 
 

lessons

One of my big lessons to learn in this lifetime is patience.

I know a lot of you are sitting back in shock saying, “Patience, but Michael, you have the patience of a saint!”

Alas, it is true. I am, deep down, a rather impatient person. I may be able to hide it from some, but the truth is....I want an Oompa Loompa Daddy and I want it RIGHT NOW!

It’s also important to note, for those few of you who know me professionally, that there is a difference between patience and suffering fools gladly. The latter, while necessary to my life in Corporate America, is something I do because of the monetary reward it affords me. As much kudos as I have received for this on the job, it is not truly patience. It is 20% acting and 80% my ability to work with words. A good friend's father once told me that I have a talent for telling people they smell like shit in a way that has them thanking me for the compliment. (He had the same ability.) But I digress.

This next bit's going to seem like more digression, but bear with me.

I grew up with a sneaking suspicion that I wasn’t as interesting as everyone else. Actually, this wasn't so much a suspicion as it was an outright fear.

I conquered this fear by alternating between three basic behaviors:

1. Despair that I was boring. This led to a lot of reading which would further convinced me that my life was dull.

2. Acceptance of my boringness. This lead to a lot of reading which enabled me to find excitement in others lives.

3. Excitement in the secret belief that I was, in fact, one of the most interesting people EVER born to this planet and just had to wait a while to find out why. This led to a lot of reading about...well everything to find that something that would give me an AHA moment and end the mystery of my purpose.

I slowly learned to avoid the first two and by my late teens, I was convinced that I was meant for great things.

In my 20s I was having too much fun to notice, but as I hit 30 I started to wonder when these great things would finally arrive. I do recognize that in a movie cliche sort of way, I have gotten everything I ever wanted: A happy home life and a supportive family. That said, I do still have the occasional dream of getting interviewed by Oprah and ending up on some years most influental list.

So, I'll continue to believe that life is teaching me patience as a tiny part of me waits to see what it might be that'll amaze the general public.

Hmmm, this brings me to a corollary lesson I should probably learn about getting off of my ass and making things happen.

Labels: dose of mikey

* posted by me at 4:07 PM

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