Milky Way

The night was so clear that I could see the milky way. I know that it is nothing more than a nebulous cloudy shape that is slightly lighter than the surrounding black, but it is something that due to poor eyesight and a urban location is a rare treat.

A reminder that billions of stars were created and aligned just perfectly to create a small deviation of color in the night sky, just in case some hominid life developed in the western spiral arm.

Weather

Same dif.

I love this weather. The sad melancholy existence of Fall. No matter how hard you try to put it out of your mind, the bitter chill of cool day in August serves as an ever present reminder that the march of time, and the seasons, is inevitable.

But, for me it is a reminder that the world of red and yellow leaves, warm jackets, and pumpkin pie lie in wait.

Invictus

Published in 1875 by William Ernest Henley

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbow'd.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

Encyclopedia Brown and the case of the missing keys

There is, perhaps, nothing more frustrating than losing your personal objects in a small confined space. Whether it is your keys, phone, or wallet your entire life comes to a screeching halt as you attempt to remedy the situation. Compounding the frustration of losing some of the most important information of your life (let’s face it, a person without a driver’s license or cell phone isn’t human), one has only a small list of possibilities to scour before you are faced with a question older then humanity itself:

WHERE THE FUCK DID THAT GO?

This is simply frustrating because all people are endowed with the idea of the “conservation of matter”, and once the search has called off we are left with a logical paradox. All the knowledge and facts of the physical universe tell us it should be here, and yet it is not.

I have the perfect example of this, my father. Many years ago, my father lost his wallet. After several days of frantically searching the house, retracing his steps, and interrogating everyone one of his family members, he became convinced that his wallet was errantly placed in a waste bin and thrown out with the trash. We can probably all see where this is going, can’t we? Eventually he enlisted all of us to go down to the dump and dig. Lucky for us, the people who managed the N city dump had kept meticulous records on where each garbage truck dumped its load and we managed to find our own personal garbage.

The wallet was not found despite finding everything else possible in the dump*. We headed back home, defeated.

The wallet was found a day or so later, by the trash can.

I have no doubt that my dad looked everywhere in the house, and scanned by the trash can several hundred times before he decided to haul his beloved family out to the dump. Nor do I doubt that my Dad is far smarter than I. I can only believe that he had fallen under the same stressful spell that is innate in all of humanity when small important things go missing.

* I had no idea people would ever throw out a dead dog in a plastic bag

EEE PC and Rain

Not to be all melancholy, but I really do like listening to the rain. I guess it is fulfills the need for “background noise” to which we have all become accustomed. I think, though, the appealing nature of rain is that it fulfills this need without resorting more modern methods. It also incorporates a feeling that I have a difficult time describing: a combination of wonder, sense of amazement, and dash of instinct.

I have just recently received my EEE PC. It is small, obviously portable, and seems to hold its own when sacking up to my other laptop. It has essentially the same specs. The only problem I have encountered is that the frame rate for the 1.3MP camera is slow, even using basic windows drivers. I still have to believe that it is a hardware issue, web cameras seem to be an all or nothing device.

6AM

I always like waking up early. Well, I always like waking up early when I am not tired. I collapsed (while reading in bed) at a shockingly early 9pm last night only to find myself wide awake at 6am this morning. It was just early enough that the sun had only began to rise and the sky was filled with pink and orange clouds that were backed by a powder blue sky.

I remember once, walking back from a night shift during the summer, it was bright enough to look like it was a normal time outside. Walking from the Communication Building across campus to my girlfriend’s house everything was dead. It was like this whole scene had been torn from some badly written apocalyptic novel, where everything looks serene and peaceful until you realize that this is a place that should be inhabited by people.

The clouds have now changed from pink to white. This now indicates that a new day as fully dawned and I should at least contemplate doing something besides staring out the window and writing about clouds. I think this is one of the rare times that I am going to make coffee at home. Maybe a crossword puzzle and some toast as well. There is no substitute for a leisurely morning.

Back Pain

I feel old.

For the last 24 hours i have had nothing but back spasms in between my shoulder blades, that coupled with very high amounts of nebulous pain. Very vague, but intense.*

How the fuck did this happen? When did I get so old? Actually I know exactly how it happened. I was "training" for the Marine Physical Fitness test by doing sit-ups and in a desperate attempt in inflate my sagging numbers and I probably jostled a few muscles. I should remind my upper back that no matter how much it wants to go forward or sit up, it is not really in charge of the operation.



*You know, like Surge or its bastard cousin Vault.