2009-10-31

Halloween – Standard Time – Drunk Ewoks

I have no idea where I got this image, but it has been my Halloween computer wall paper for the last couple of years.  While not specifically tied to the holiday, I just love the creepiness of it.  When I found it, I found a Christmas themed one, too.Halloween - 2


Clock For most of my readers, don't forget to set your clocks back one hour before going to bed tonight.  (Well, at least do your bedroom clock.  The one on the microwave can wait until morning.)

Welcome back to Standard Time, and leaving work at 5:00 in the pitch dark.  Remember Friday.  It won't be that light again after work for like 4 months!  Yeah!  :-(


I got this video at GIZMODO, but if you want to see drunk Ewoks on live TV, it starts to get good just after the 2:00 mark.  It's got all the kick fighting, moon walking, leg humping goodness that you would expect.

2009-10-29

Scope's Monkey Paw Trial Game - TIWT

The Monkey's Paw "It had a spell put on it by an old fakir," said the sergeant-major, "a very holy man. He wanted to show that fate ruled people's lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow."

As told in W.W. Jacobs's 1902 horror story, The Monkey's Paw, be careful what you wish for.  There can be unintended consequences.

Since it's about that Halloween time of the year, I thought I would put a spin on Sass's "Things I Want Thursday" but starting a "Monkey Paw" game.  (I played a very similar game last year on a blog that is no longer around, and LOVED IT!)

Sass-Button-NEW-TIWT-5 Here's the deal:  In the comments section below, one person makes a wish.  The next commenter fulfills that wish with a tragic and/or grizzly outcome (when I grant wishes they will usually result in death a horrible death for the wisher).  And then they make their wish.


Scope said…
I wish I had a million dollars.

PhD. Phreise said…
100,000,000 pennies fall from the sky crushing you to death.
I wish I had a pony.


monkeys-paw It's okay if the thread splits and winds as people grant wishes, that's part of the fun.  I would also encourage you to [X] the little box in the comments section to "Email follow-up comments" to you.

I also hope that people keep granting and making wishes far into the future on "Scope's Monkey Paw Trial Game".

Now, get wishing…

2009-10-27

The Rest Of The Story

Zoinks!

Besides getting engaged, there was a lot of other cool things going on this weekend that I want to fill all ya'll in on.  But due to other things going on, I won't be able to stretch it out like I would normally.

ThursdayCora got into town at 5 o'clock and I picked her up at the airport and we ate at a place call "The Chicago Brauhaus" for a little bit of Octoberfest.  If you've never been, this place is authentic German.  The band up on stage isn't faking those accents, and neither is the waitress that reminds you of your grandma.  Yummy meal (meat loaf for her and beef short ribs for me) and then back home.

Friday – We got moving about 11:30 and after a few stops, headed down state for my college homecoming.  It rained off and on the whole trip, but Seattle girl Cora was always looking out of the windows, marveling at how far she could see in all directions.  There were no hills or mountains on the horizon, just flat mid-western farm land.

MAC-SASS-01 On the way down, we were going to be passing within about 5 miles of Sass's house, so we stopped in.  I had only met her once before, about 8 months ago.  But since I would suspect that hardly a day goes by that I don't have at least 3 or 4 communication touch points with the gal, she's no stranger.  I brought her Victoria's Secret gift card from the TIWT contest I had a while back, and it came in this cool origami box that folds up like a rose or something.

We hung out with Sass, her husband "J", their kids, and a random neighbor kid for a while, before J's mom got their kids, random boy was put out into the cold, and we took off for some good Mexican food, great conversation, and a visit with the Shandy Chemist.MAC-CORA-SASS-SCOPE 4 hours was not enough time for this double date, but we had to get moving, get checked into our hotel, and meet up with the other degenerates Mac Alumni at Bahan's.

It was a Mac Blast.

My good friend and lurker of this blog, Beth was there.  She left her husband John at home (some spouse don't get the "Mac Family" thing), but shared (only) a beer with our other friend John.

MAC-BETH-JOHN Cora met up with Gwen and our friend Laura.  At this point, both of them knew that I was going to pop the question on Saturday, but God love 'em, neither of the drunken fools spilled the beans.MAC-LAURA-CORA-GWEN We eventually left the party to rest up for the big day the next day.

Saturday – We got up, went to the parade, and met up with a ton of people, including my very good friend, Annette, and her husband. After the parade, we wandered around campus a bit, I showed Cora the spot where I was dubbed, "Scope" and we found Gwen and picked up our crew for the "campus" tour.

After the proposal, Cora and I snuck off (we did that a lot) to make out phone calls.  After that, we hit the tailgating section of the football game, where I returned a Bible that a friend of mine had borrowed from Gwen's cousin 21 – 22 years ago, back when we were in school.

MAC-BIBLE She was pretty excited to get it back, but also a lot little drunk.  After the game, we went back to the hotel to "take a nap" and actually ended up sleeping for about an hour and a half.  We met up with sometime commenter "Ellie Mae", her husband, and another friend, her husband and two kids at Leo's for pizza.  This was the place we always ordered from in college.  At the time, it offered a 2 topping large with a free 1 topping small for $8 delivered.  Cora and I had the "taco pizza".  A thin crispy crust sausage pizza.  After baking, it is covered in lettuce, tomato, cheese, and crumpled up Doritos.  I grew up with pizza like this, but it was Cora's first time. She seemed to like it.MAC-ERIC-CORA

We split the rest of the evening between Doc's and Don's, mostly hanging with the fabulous Gwen and her purse full of glow in the dark super balls.  (Her story, not mine.)

But, as a newly engaged couple, we called it an early night, (11:30pm) and went back to the motel to crash.

MAC-CAR Sunday – For Cora, this was a very long travel day.  We drove from my college to my parent's house, with a stop (slow down) along the way as we passed the farm where I grew up.  On the plus side, there were people living there.  On the down side, they had put in an above ground pool, but one of the sides was collapsed in, the garage looked like it was covered in mold, and there were a ton of redneck, bondo and mix-n-match quarter panel cars in the drive.  Sad, but that broke the spell for me.

At my parent's house, we had lunch, and Cora got to meet my sister, brother-in-law, 23 year old niece and her boyfriend, 21 year old nephew and his girlfriend, and get better acquainted with my parents.  We only stayed about 2 hours before I needed to hustle her about 150 miles to the airport.  As I was leaving, I told my nephew and my niece's boyfriend that if they needed a jeweler, I could hook them up.  The blood rushed from their faces.

The normal sad drive to the airport was actually filled with fewer sad moments, as we started seriously talking about the logistics of who would move, where the wedding would be, where we may have additional receptions to make things easier on folks who can / won't travel, etc.  (More details to follow as we firm things up.)  But, eventually, we got to the airport.  We had time for some goodbye kissing in the car, and just before security before I had to watch my fiancĂ©e disappear into the crowd.

And thus ended one of the most memorable, important, eventful weekends of my life.  While saying goodbye was sad, the fact that this wasn't going to be our lives forever softened the blow a little for me.

That, and the countdown to my flight out for Thanksgiving.


I seriously want to thank each and every one of you for sharing your heartfelt best wishes with us.  This has been an amazing adventure ride that we have been on, and it's not over.  Thank you for helping to make it even more special. - Eric

NBCAM-RIBBON And don't forget to get me your B(.)(.)B shots.  We are still at $15.  (2 named, 2 anonymous, and 1 bra only)

I know a couple of you sounded interested, so let's get that $50 for Susan G. Komen for The Cure.

And if you're reading this, that includes you, Momma Sass :-)

More tomorrow.

2009-10-26

He Said / She Said

Eric said:  Will you marry me?

Cora said: Yes.

So, in the least shocking announcement you are likely to read in the history of EVER, this Saturday, I got down on bended knee and begged asked Cora for  her hand in marriage.

And she said, "Yes".

We are down at my college for Homecoming, and I proposed in the chapel with Gwen of ' target=_blank>Everything I Like Causes Cancer as our witness / videographer.

As you can hear, there were a few other (Gwen + 5) people watching as I pulled the old, "fake still photo but the camera is really on video" move to TOTALLY catch Cora off guard.

Gwen, was MONEY in getting the video, and I did a decent enough job of keeping myself together while everybody else fiddle-farted around on the "campus tour" I was giving Cora, when all I wanted to do was GET ENGAGED TO THE GREAT LOVE OF MY LIFE and they are looking for bricks in a patio.  Not shat Granted, it was my brick, but still.

So, to any of you that I mislead or lied to about the timing of this whole thing.  I'm sorry, but I'm sure you understand.  My gal wanted to be surprised, so I tried to keep this off of blog world.

FYI – While the mall stores may tell you 6 – 8 weeks for delivery, I went to New York Jewelers on "Jeweler's Row" in Chicago.  I went in at lunch on Monday, and picked it up on Tuesday after work.

2009-10-20

Tech-Tuesday - Feeling My Internal Sassy Britches

Now, that sounds a bit naughty.  But in truth, I just needed to get a little better organized.  And if you know Sassy Britches, you know she loves nothing more than getting things organized.

So, Sunday, I decided to tackle the storage closet off my deck.  When I decided to get my Halloween decorations out, and they were in the bottom tub, I knew I needed to do something.

Where: The Container Store.  (I love me some Container Store)  FYI – they have a 20% off coupon on-line good thru November 1.

What:  I went with the InterMetro shelving in black.  It's the basic starter set, 18" x 48" x 74-1/2" with 4 shelves, plus an added shelf to make 5.  It was their shelving sale, 25% off, so I bit.

Before: While the Rubbermaid totes stack nicely, they are hard if you need the bottom one, not everything is in a tote, etc.

Storage-01

During: Solo it took me about 20 minutes to assemble the unit.  There poles have grooves in them, and they give you plastic sleeves the have a ridge in them.  You set those to the height you want, and the shelves have a hole in them and fit over the posts and squeeze tight.  After adjusting the feet, it feels very stable.

Storage-02

After: Restocked!  Going vertical sure uses the space a whole lot more efficiently than it was being used before.  And things are so must

Storage-03

Since 3 of those tubs are actually empty, and another slot is just a pile of lids, I may even have enough room to get the boxes of CDs out of the guest room closet.

Holy crap.  I'm NESTING!!!!

2009-10-19

And The Winner Is…

First of all, I would like to thank all of you who played in the TIWT-Her contest.  13 entries.  You people rock.  And I hope that even though next week there won't be prizes involved, that you enjoyed it enough to TIWT again.  And that some others of you enjoyed it, and decide to play along.

Sass-Button-NEW-TIWT-5

Anyway, I have stalled long enough… The winner is:  Sass!

IMG_3204 Since more than 5 people participated, she has won a $25 gift certificate to Victoria's Secret to help her buy those new bras or "frilly unmentionables" that she wanted.  And, feeling like an alive version of Ed McMahon, watch for the prize patrol to deliver this to your house next Friday.  :-)

I will stop being a brat now.  The other winner is:  A Mom on Spin!

A Mom On Spin

Liz, your list of wants has proven most challenging, I must say. Not having control over life and death or being a time lord rules out some of my options, here.  So, like all other men, I'm going to pretend to misunderstand what you said.  :-)  Instead of hearing about the Connecticut vagabonds needing gas money to continue their voyage, I'm gong to pretend I heard that you were wishing for a little gas money, instead.  So, I have a $25 Shell card for you.  Use it as you see fit.  Just let me know where to send it to.

Shell-CardOnce again, thanks all for playing, and I can't wait to read what people are wanting this Thursday.

2009-10-16

The Bathtub Test

During a visit to the mental asylum, I asked the director, "How do you determine whether or not a patient should be institutionalized?"

"Well," said the director, "we fill up a bathtub, then we offer a teaspoon, a teacup and a bucket to the patient and ask him or her to empty the bathtub."

"Oh, I understand," I said "A normal person would use the bucket because it's bigger than the spoon or the teacup."

"No." said the director, "A normal person would pull the plug. Do you want a bed near the window?"


ThingsIWant Since it's Friday, the TIWT-Her contest is closed.  I have the following entrants:

Blog Link

Sassy Britches

HERE

Possum

HERE

J.J. in L.A.

HERE

Cora

HERE

SkylersDad

HERE

TMC

HERE

Call Me Cate

HERE

Leah Rubin

HERE

JenJen

HERE

Callista

HERE

A Mom on Spin

HERE

mike

HERE

If you played, but I don't have you on the list, please let me know.

2009-10-15

Things I Want Thursday

Today is Thursday, and my good friend Sass is hosting her weekly "Things I want Thursday." (TIWT) It's where you list the things that you want, and you hope that maybe someone will send them to you.  Or at least, you get a chance to whine and rant about your needs for a change.

And this week, if you play along, you may actually get a bit towards your list.  I'll be kicking in a prize to one blogger who decides to TIWT-Her.  For full details, see my TIWT-Her post from Monday for the complete details.

ThingsIWant

  1. I want to strive to be for Cora the man she deserves.  I'll never get there, but I hope I never stop trying.
  2. I want a bigger TV.  When I went shopping, I was looking at a 42" LCD but said to myself, "you'll never regret going up a size."  So I bought the 46".  Now I'm thinking the 52" incher would look real nice on my wall.
  3. I want to get a cleaning person for my condo.  It's not a "money" thing.  It's not a "stranger in your place" thing.  It's a "too shy to pick up the phone and call a stranger" thing.
  4. I want a new drug.  One that does what it should.  One that won't make me feel too bad.  One that won't make me feel too good.
  5. I want me right knee to not throb when I even THINK about starting running again.
  6. I want 5 of you to post TIWT so that the game goes on, and Sass and one of you win a prize.

So there you have it.  I told you want I want, what I really really want…

2009-10-13

300 Q&A (Not 300 T&A)

300

  • A perfect game in bowling.
  • A decent batting average.
  • A good number of Spartans to have at your back.
  • A car from Chrysler.

The number of blog posts I've written.

To celebrate this milestone, I asked you all for some questions that you might like answered.  And here, in the order that I received them, are your questions.

And away we go…


pcsmall From whatigotsofar

01 - If I (late 20s early 30s single guy) was going to visit Chicago with a group of friends for a weekend of fun, what should I go see and do?

Hotel – I'd house you in either Hotel Sax (at the House of Blues) or at the Trump (if you've got the CA$H). They are both in 'River North' located just north of downtown and very centrally located. After you arrive Friday night, hit the hotel bar, or the Big Bar over at the Hyatt.

Saturday Day – Assuming that it's this time of year, Saturday early, I would either send you up to a Northwestern Football game or to a sports bar to watch your favorite team. (Assuming you watch American college football.)

Afternoon – On your way back from the game / bar, swing by Millennium Park and Check out "The Bean". Hit the hotel, get cleaned up and get ready to go out.

Dinner – If it was good enough for Frank Sinatra, it should be good enough for you. Cab it up to Old Town and go to Twin Anchors for the ribs. The join is small, has a pretty good bar, and isn't overly touristy. Just remember, "Positively No Dancing."

Evening – Totally skipping the Division / Rush thing. Instead, it's time for some drinkin' on Lincoln. A short cab ride will get you to Fullerton / Halstead / Lincoln. Head up Lincoln. About every other business is a bar. Filled with locals about your age. While trying to pick up a "Lincoln Park Trixie" do not call her a "Lincoln Park Trixie". Those of you who didn't hook up, head out for the official drunk food of Chicago, the burrito. I would recommend either Taco & Burrito Palace II or La Bamba (where the burritos are as big as your head.)

Sunday – This is a little rough. If you can swing it, breakfast at Nookies Too. You'll want to be there by 10:00, or the wait is going to be pretty long. Or, head to the ESPN Zone for the Bears game (usually a noon start). Or fly out.


skyler_dad_run

From Sky-Dad

02 - Have you ever been arrested, and if so, for what? Have I ever been convicted of a felony? Convicted? No. Never convicted. Actually, no arrest record.  (channeling Stripes there, sorry)

03 - Do you have any tattoos? Nope.

04 - What is the nicest and the saddest thing that you can remember somebody saying to you?

Nicest – "I love you, too." Cora

Saddest – "I love you." Cora (mouthed from a distance while one of us is heading thru airport security.)

05 - Have you always lived in Chicago? No. I grew up "downstate" about 175 miles away. I probably was in "Chicagoland" a dozen times in my life before I moved here. I then spent the first 10 years or so here in the Northwest Suburbs (Mt. Prospect & Schaumburg) before moving into Chicago proper. I have been in the city now a dozen years.


MorganFrom Morgan (Sorry, even though you retracted the questions, I'm answering anyway.)

06 - Your display picture shows you with a goatee, but now you do not have one in your most recent picture. What prompted the shave? Does Cora not like facial hair?

Technically, it's a VanDyke, Circle Beard, or Moutee but everyone calls them "goatees". The pictures you were seeing were from about 2 years ago. I grew the facial hair for the first time in late 2002. I was starting my sabbatical, and a cute girl told me that it would look good on me. It comes and goes. And I screwed up a bit last time I shaved it. (As seen in THIS post.) I had been planning to go as an airline pilot for Halloween, so was going to shave it down to just the mustache. So when I got back from vacation, I grew it back, to shave it down to the mustache two months later. I had just the mustache for about 18 hours before I was clean shaven again. I think I put it back on over Thanksgiving.

Cora doesn't seem to mind it, but I will shave it for her sometime, to see how she likes it. I'm not overly attached to it, it just makes the morning shave a lot easier, since it hides all the tricky shaving parts.

07 - How do you feel about frilly toothpicks, and the like?

They are fine for holding together my sandwich and warning me not to eat them in the process. Otherwise, I'm not that fancy.


manga_glasses From Cora

08 - If you could have a superpower what would it be and why?

I would be a healer. Even if it didn't work on me. That would be a cool power. You know, do some real good for people.

09 - What cartoon character turns you on the most?Female Bugs

Sometimes when Bugs Bunny dresses up like a lady bunny… But seriously, I think Daphne on Scooby Doo was pretty hot.

10 - Which movie title best sums up your life so far? Sleepless In Seattle

11 - What's the best advice you've ever taken?

While I often say, "Never pass up the opportunity to go to the bathroom" that I got from my old roommate Tony's late father, I think Gwen's advice to start a blog has to be the best.

12 - What's the worst advice you've ever taken?

"Don't do anything in a race that you don't do in training." So, in my second marathon, I didn't try their weird sport drink since it wasn't Gatorade, and totally hit the wall at the 18th mile.

13 - What is your favorite thing about yourself (besides your spectacular legs!)?

My favorite thing about me is you (Cora).

14 - What is your least favorite thing about yourself?

I need to turn the sarcasm and cynicism down a little

15 - What is your biggest fear?

Heights

16 - What are you most proud of in life?

Running 2 marathons

17 - Do you have any life goals or wishes that are not yet fulfilled?

All my hopes, dreams and wishes are very much in process of being fulfilled. Thank YOU very much.

18 - What are your three most favorite colors?

Blue – Everybody likes blue. But I am more a medium blue vs. a baby blue or a navy blue.

Green – A nice rich emerald green. 

Periwinkle – Because it sounds like Bullwinkle's gay cousin's name.

19 - What was your favorite toy/toys as a kid? Easy, the large tub of Lego. Second was a pen and paper.

20 - If you could meet one living celebrity, who would it be and why?

Jimmy Buffett.

21 - If deaf person gives you an obscene hand gesture, should their mom wash their hands with soap?

No, but duct tape mittens on them for 5 minutes. My college is/was big of training Deaf Ed. teachers, so I'm sure I've been signed all the names in the book at some time or other.


CIMG0963 From ~E

22 - How did you come up with your nickname "Scope?"

I didn't. I was given the name my Freshman year in college by some ladies that would become friends. They caught me "scoping out" the student body, so to speak. For the full story, go HERE.

23 - How tall are you really? And have you always been tall all your life or did you shoot up at some point in your teen years like an overwatered plant?

I'm 6'5". I was always the tallest kid in class.

24 - What is your favorite sport to play and sport to watch?

I love to watch football. To play? I would say basketball, but it's been too many years.

25 - Would you move to Seattle if you had to? Or would you rather stay in Chicago? (I swear I am asking this for myself, not because some red-headed hottie asked me to)

Yes. Yes. We have seriously started to talk about talking about this. It's not a slam dunk either way. This is going to have to be thought thru very seriously, because there are repercussions either way.


88ccd056333c082e269862c1ea649cc6 From Jan @ Struck By Serendipity

26 - Of your 300 posts, which is your favorite?

It would have to be the one about the exploding whale, that I have posted twice. First HERE and then HERE. That video is like a turducken with AWESOME stuffed inside AMAZING and all that shoved into WANTON DESTRUCTION. With like, bacon on it.

27 - At what point did you know Cora was The One? 

Is it too corny to say, "When I saw her across the airport lobby the first time?" Or it was 30 seconds after that when we had out first kiss. Or maybe on our second date, when we were atop the Space Needle, with the lights of Seattle twinkling below us, when I looked across the table, and told her, "I love you" for the first time.

28 - Where are you going to live when you get married? See above.

29 - What is the worst job you've ever held?

Growing up on a farm, I thing the worst job ever was cleaning out the bottom of the corn drier. Imagine a 'V' shaped tunnel with an auger (spiral screw) in the bottom of it, that is about 5 feet wide, 3 feet deep, filled with chunks of hard, rotting corn. It's hot, it's claustrophobic, the corn stinks. Oh, and sometimes to help clear the gunk out, they turn on the deadly, limb mangling auger.

30 - What is the number one benefit to being so tall?

Being able to use all the shelves in my cupboards. And even to use the space above.

31 - What's the biggest difference between the blog-Eric we know and the real-life-Eric?

I'm probably a lot shier than you would think. And Eric is a lot more serious and less of a flirt than Scope.

32 - Tell us about your adventures in mastering the secret talent of elevator farting.  (just joking)

It's not as wicked as farting while on an up escalator. As the person a few steps behind me shouted, "Oh, LORD!" as the were pulled through the lingering mist, I felt a little guilty. And then ran like the devil when I got to the top.

33 - As a guest of honor, you are chosen to represent the Chicago blogosphere in the Olympics.  What sport do you participate in?

Tag. Because I really try to be good at tagging people in the blogosphere.


sassy_neon_sign From   Sassy Britches

34 - Where/when/how did you learn to be such a good listener?  Stereotypically fellas tune out pretty soon into the convo and don't remember much about what you said, and/or they don't show the empathic nonverbals whatsoever.  Are you just overall a "good" person, or did you set out to purposely learn these skills (and if so, did you have motivation?)

Crap.  I hit publish and while this was spell checking, I realized that I forgot to answer this question!

Modestly, I will say that I've always been this way.  As the middle child, I've tended to be a little quiet.  I hate being in crowds, and normally don't like being the center of attention.  I'm much better 1-on-1.  And I've never really understood wanting to enjoy a "woman's company" naked if you didn't enjoy her company fully clothed.  (Oh, I understand kissing, and B(.)(.)Bs, and sex and all, but why do you want to get into someone you're not in to?)

I have always had far more "female friends" than "girlfriends" or "guy friends".  Just always found them more interesting.  I've always thought the "right way" to do it, would be to start with a friend, and then grow that relationship into something more.

It took a while, but you know what, I couldn't be happier with how it all has worked out.


silhouette_woman From Del Rio

35 - How do bloggers really feel about lurkers? I rarely comment on blogs because my comments aren't nearly as witty as the majority of your groups'?

I can only answer for myself.  I check my analytics stats once or twice a week, and average 40 or 50 hits on days that I post.  Sometimes more.  Sometimes a little less.  So I appreciate ever single set of eyes that hit my little corner of the internet

But, since I get about 10 comments a post, I appreciate those even more.  Do I have favorite commenters?  Absolutely.  I plan on marrying one, she better qualify as my "favorite."  I hope no one feels nervous about leaving me a comment.  I was a commenter for 2 months before I started this blog.

And there are times & blogs where I'm more of a lurker.

So I guess, while I encourage anyone to comment if they feel like it, there's no stigma in silence, wither.


yakpic_blue From Dr Zibbs

36 - You're gonna make yourself a cake aren't you?

Did someone mention cake?  I don't mind if I do.

300-Cake 


Nikki From Nikki

37 - I wanna know how to shoot a squirrel with a pellet gun filled with chocolate chip sprinkles. If you don't have the answer to that, then please tell me what the best things to do in Chicago are as I will be visiting your great city in two weeks time!

Why does the squirrel have a pellet gun filled with chocolate chip sprinkles?  That's NUTS!  Surely the squirrel would know that the chocolate chip sprinkles have limited mass and are not aerodynamic, so they tend to tumble as they fly.

As for the best things to do in the city, meet Cora and I Thusday night / Friday morning, that's what.

If that doesn't work, for you, I will recommend:

  • Millennium Park in the morning
  • (Window) shop your way up Michigan Ave.
  • A light lunch at the bar on the 96th floor of the John Hancock building.  Same view as the observation deck 2 floors down, but spend the $10 on food and drink.  And realize that you are roughly 1/3 as high above sea level as Denver is.
  • Afternoon -  Hit the hip, funky shops in the Armitage / Halsted area.
  • Dinner – Cafe Bar Ba Rebea for tapas and sangria.  Get the pitcher.  Don't be a sissy.
  • Evening – Let your "Rocker Chick" side run free.  Catch an up and coming band in Chicago's hot music scene.  Metromix.com is a good place to pick your band.  The MetroPark WestThe Elbo RoomSchubas.  The new Lincoln Hall (formerly the 3 Penny Theatre).  The Vic. Yeah, we have a couple to choose from.  Get advance tix, and rock on.

Sass From Sass

38 - I have been trying and trying and trying to think of a question for you.

What was your goal when you started blogging? Has that changed over the course of your 300 posts? (Duh, Cora), and What do you think will happen in the next 300? ;-)

My goal when I started blogging?  I wanted to tell some stories and make people laugh.  I figured that I would be doing a lot more creative writing (like the flying monkey stuff), or more general commentary.  I didn't really expect to write a whole lot about my personal life.  Why?  Because I didn't  have one.

I'd hope to make a couple of friends along the way.

My next 300?  Well, I hope to tell a story about some squirrels, that I thought I would have told in the first week or two. And I'm sure one or two posts will cover the continuing relationship with Cora as it moves to new levels.


Well folks, that's #300.  I want to thank all of you who have been here since post 1.  And those of you who only came by today.  If you weren't out there, I wouldn't be here.  And I strongly urge you to go back and read yesterday's post, join Sass on her "Things I Want Thursday", and enter for a chance to win a special grand prize, chosen just for you.

Thanks,

Eric "Scope" Collins

2009-10-12

TIWT-Her

Don't Twitter.  TIWT-Her.

Sass

TIWT is obviously "Things I Want Thursday" host by Sass over at THELIFEOFSASS.COM.  Last week she debuted a new icon to go with it.  A true work of art, if I must say so myself.  (In case you didn't catch it, I made it.)  And a few weeks back, Sass noted that no one had yet ponied up with the goods.  And last week, another blogger, Sassy Britches, noted she was probably the only one who was playing along.

Well, I plan on taking out two birds with one well aimed stone this Thursday.

Here's the deal:

  1. Next Thursday, 10/15, create a post with the TIWT button. Sass-Button-NEW-TIWT-5
  2. Comment on Sass's post and leave a link to your post.
  3. Over the weekend of the 17-18, I will select one (1) person who decided to TIWT-Her, and both they and Sass will win a special grand prize, chosen just for them.
  4. The winner will be announced on Monday, October 19.

Here's are the catches:

  1. There have to be at least 5 entrants.  If there are 4 or less (not counting Sass), no one wins.  And that will make Sass cry.
  2. You have to be willing to provide a mailing address of some kind.  The winner will be receiving a physical prize (most likely a US $ denominated gift card of some kind), so I have got to know where to send it.
  3. The cards won't be worth THAT much, so don't go all Texas Cheerleader Mother and snuff the competition.
  4. The winner will be chosen by a random draw.  While no one will be here to supervise me, trust me.  All entrants will get a number, and I will use RANDOM.ORG to pick the winner.  (ie – If Cora wins, no bitching.)

So there it is.  Sass's future happiness depends upon you.  You don't want to let her down, do you?

So get TIWTing.

2009-10-09

298 And Counting…

298

The countdown to my 300th post continues, but there's still time for those of you wishing to enter your questions to me.

That's right, I'm doing a little Q&A.  Ask me anything you like, about me, my blog, tech, life in general, etc. and I will try my best to get them answered.  The dead line is this weekend.  So you procrastinators, and you know who you are, there's still time to get off the stick.

Send your emails to my GMAIL.COM account, which is SCOPE65.

Monday, I will be announcing the first ever contest here at SCOPE-TECH.  And there will be real, honest to goodness prizes, so make sure you come back here for that, and then the big 3-0-0!

Have a great weekend, one and all.

2009-10-08

I've Got Your Number, BEATRICE!

This post was inspired the the wonderful and talented Sass.  Check her out today.  Yeah, she's posted her THURSDAY POST, Blogger just won't tell you.

The Back Story:

I moved into "the city" in the summer of 1999 so I had to get a new phone number.  Nothing new there.  Well, I kept getting calls ALL THE TIME for 'Beatrice'.  When her DOCTORS office left a message on my answering machine (and I hope she eventually got the news about that rash), I'd had enough and decided to act.  So I updated my outgoing message on my answering machine to try to make things CRYSTAL CLEAR.

The Outgoing Message:

That pretty much nipped the messages for Beatrice in the bud.  Or so I thought…

The Incoming Message:

2009-10-06

Why I Love A Camera-phone

I love my Blackberry.  I love having a phone in my Blackberry to grab those quick random shots.  I just wish it was a BETTER camera.

Oh well, here's some stuff that I have snapped recently, out in the wild:

ODDS-7-N-7

So, it's a 7 & 7, right?  No, my friends, that's a rum and diet Coke.  The bring you a glass of rum, with a splash of mix, and then if you ask, will bring you a can of pop with it.  It so good that Ceres closes at 8:00.

ODDS-BIKE-01

I've seen tandem bikes before, but never like this.  While you can ride it solo, you must feel like you are jousting!

ODDS-CAR-01

"No, boss, when I said my engine was flooded…"

ODDS-CAR-02

Is there a Dr. in the house?

ODDS-CUBS-01 Just like their season… lost in a blur.

ODDS-JUST-DECKS

While you can't read it, it says "Because when you do one thing, you do it right."  But, but they do 4 things.

 ODDS-KETCHUP

This is a T-Shirt that I am thinking about giving my brother for Christmas.  The boy should have a cybernetic ketchup enrobing device attached to the side of his head, so that every morsel he eats is encapsulated in a thick skim of the sauce.

ODDS-SILVER-SURFER

I saw this dude on my way to work one day.  The silver thing is actually a jacket.  The pants are pin strip "skinny jeans" and YES that is a multicolored pony tail.

2009-10-04

Sleep Well Tonight…

clowns_last_supperI got this picture from HERE.  Now, sleep well with this vision dancing in your brain.

2009-10-02

No Olympics For You

Olympic_Rings It has just been announced.  Chicago will not be hosting the 2016 games.  But did you know that Chicago actually won the rights to host the Olympic Games in the past.  But, St. Louis pitched a hissy fit, whined like babies, and stole the 1904 games from us.  (WIKI)  I guess that was their payback for us opening the canal in 1900 that reversed the flow of the Chicago River and sent all our crap to them.  (WIKI)

Oh well.  I'm sure the sons, daughters, cousins, etc. of Chicago's ruling families will find new and creative ways to line their pockets between now and them by bilking the tax payers.