Corinna stopped by after work today, we hung out and made dinner. I tried to do some kind of peanut chicken from scratch but it came out like ass (even though Corinna still maintains it was good). I didn’t use a recipe and just tried to wing the sauce, and it just didn’t come out right… Back to the drawing board.

I drove C-note home and when I got back here I awaited the appearance of Matt and Adam (who spent the day climbing). Matt brought his Dance Dance Revolution gear. God I hate that game…. I played it awhile ago and while I “got” the game, and did okay at it, I just didn’t really have any fun… I guess I am just some kind of old curmudgeon who would prefer a good ‘ol game of Ms. Pac-Man over some Japanese Aerobics Festival.

They played it all night, I watched at times, chilled with them, and just tooled around. Looks like Matt is going to be around this weekend, which is cool as hell, cuz the bastard is moving to Baltimore at the end of the month…. :(

Time to read a bit more and fall asleep. ttfn.

Yesterday sounded like it was fun for all of those who lost power… My parents didn’t lose power, but apparently parts of NJ and PA did, so I am not quite sure how they missed out… Did JCP&L actually do something RIGHT? No power loss here at all, but as a token gesture I turned off unnecessary lights and turned the A/C down so it was just keeping the humidity and the killer heat out. That’s my contribution to the grid. As it seemed like the blackout was moving like a wave, I had prepared by making a whole bunch of extra ice in case we needed it, but it’s just chilling now.

I’ve been applying for jobs like crazy, and today I got my first response in ages… From the response I am not entirely sure I am qualified for the job, but I will answer their questions and see what’s what. I also have applied for a few bogus jobs just to pay the bills in the interim. Yesterday I applied at the Kendall Cinema to work as a grunt there… The pay is decent, but I’m not sure if it will be enough for me to pay rent, let alone survive on…

The other day I noticed that CCTV has a posting in their window for an “Intro to OS X” instructor… It pays \$15 an hour, obviously only for a few hours a week, but it might be fun.. I need to figure out another job before I apply for that one, though… I need something that I can pay the rent, I don’t want to stiff them without an instructor if I need to move out of here in a hurry.

1. How much time do you spend online each day? A whole lot, as I am looking for work. When I have work, I still generally spend quite a bit of time online reading documentation, etc. I guess what the definition of “online” is has become murky in the past 4 years or so… Are you “online” when simply using a computer? Are you “online” when looking at a webpage? I mean, the internet has become, to a degree, part of using a computer on a regular basis.
2. What is your browser homepage set to? My LJ friends page.
3. Do you use any instant messaging programs? If so, which one(s)? Occasionally I use AIM (er, iChat or Trillian, actually), but generally no. I have a fearsome 6-digit ICQ UIN that I never use, but still have memorized from like 1995 or 1996.
4. Where was your first webpage located? Probably atlas.ccm.edu, but it may have also been gti.net.
5. How long have you had your current website? If you count the one at pobox.com, I’ve probably had the same website since 1995. Otherwise i would say my CSH one has been around since 1997, and my sean-graham.com and codeninja.net ones have been around for a few years.

It’s probably just a summer blackout, not terrorism.

Last night was Poker Night, which seems to have been rejuvenated now that some new “Poker Buddies” have come along. Adam, Matt, Rory, and myself were joined by Adam’s friends Eric and David, David’s friend Chad, Rory’s Friend Leo, and I think that’s it. We started playing .25/.50 Hold’Em around 8pm and finished playing around 12:30am. Eric and Leo had already checked out, and the remainder of us decided to cash out and buy in for a new \$3 No Limit game. I had broken even on the Limit game, and after an hour of play, Adam, David, and Chad had busted out of the new game and had started their own side game. Matt was next, and then Rory and I went at it head up for more than an hour. The blinds doubled twice while we played, and we were sitting on about the same amount of money. Rory proposed to call it a draw and split the pot, and I agreed. So the two of us walked away with \$9 (which was \$6 after you subtract my \$3 buy-in).

So I made \$6 for the night, which isn’t too lucrative, but I really used the night to test some strategies playing against different people. I don’t think any of my strategies were that profitable, but I want to talk to Rory later to get his take.

Saw a screening of Kill Bill at the Kendall tonight with Corinna. Not supposed to talk about it, which is why this is marked Friends Only. I’ll write a review about it for The Brain, but I’ll keep it to me until the movie is released in October.

I expected the movie to suck ass, and was completely blown away by what I was shown tonight. The film, “Kill Bill: Part I”, seemed complete, and had a full score (by RZA) as well as soundtrack. Editing seemed complete, and while there were no ending credits, there were front title cards.

I saw the teaser trailer for this film and was really disappointed. The trailer made the film look hokey, and gave no inkling of the plot. I am pleased to say that Mr. Tarantino has done a fine job with this film, and while I took issue with certain parts of the plot, overall I think it is a great film. And beautiful too; Almost every shot was framed beautifully, and the camerawork was excellent. The plot is so much better than I expected, I could gush. I really don’t want to get into it, as I feel you’re better off knowing nothing, but just take my recommendation blindly: It’s a damn good film.

Quentin Tarantino introduced the film, and was his dorky self. He stuck around in the theater lobby afterwards, and I shook his hand and thanked him for the movie. He was really gracious and thanked me for coming out. There were tons of other people waiting, so I didn’t have a conversation with him… He seemed as nice as everyone made him out to be… That’s all I have to say for now.

As always, I really enjoyed last night’s viewing of Cape Fear with the SNFC. Garrett came along for the ride; he recently moved to the Boston area (although he lives about 30 minutes away). I have never seen the remake, but many of the club members stated that they felt it was better. I had avoided it because generally remakes are ass-tacular. I was doubly-apprehensive because I felt that a remake by Scorsese would fare no better and taint my opinion of one of the greatest directors..

Corinna’s birthday was today, and she had asked me to make her dinner tonight cuz she just wanted to stay in. I made her Corn and Potato Chowder, Curry Chicken Pot Pie (from Good Eats), and homemade vanilla ice cream… I apparently rule.

Tomorrow is “Cape Fear” with the Film Club.

I never realized that Christopher Guest played both Nigel Tufnel (who had an amplifier that went to 11) and Count Rugen (who had 11 fingers [in The Princess Bride]). That’s funny.

1. What’s the last place you traveled to, outside your own home state/country? Chebeague Island, Maine
2. What’s the most bizarre/unusual thing that’s ever happened to you while traveling? My family (including Chuck) was down at Virginia Beach a few years ago and we went to this Buffet for dinner. It had to be one of the most surreal disgusting experiences of my life.
3. If you could take off to anywhere, money and time being no object, where would you go? I’d really like to go to Australia, New Zealand, and Tokyo. The UK would be cool too. But if money and time were NO object? I’d say the International Space Station.
4. Do you prefer traveling by plane, train or car? Car for short trips (< 7 hrs), Plane for everything else.
5. What’s the next place on your list to visit? It’s all irrelevant until I get a job.