blog/adam

Retro Career

Adam

Jo and I attended the previous mentioned concert last night at Ogden Theatre in Denver, CO. It's a pretty great venue, especially the upstairs for us old folks. I was very relieved to see there were a ton of 30 somethings in the crowd. Back in KC, I'd been feeling like the old guy for the last 10 years. This is definitely a good town to see shows... but man, it hurts on week nights. Fischerspooner is coming in a week or so... we'll see.

Ruca caught a bird on our walk today. She actually was fairly gentle with it once it was in her mouth, and after prancing around for a few minutes with her trophy, dropped it at my feet, still very much alive. I guess retrievers were bred to be gentle with the birds so they didn't ruin dinner. I think it's really neat to see a dog fulfilling its intended purpose, 'cause they so clearly enjoy it. That's the happiest I've ever seen this pup... and she nearly broke my arm jerking on the leash so hard when we let the bird limp away.

Things are swell in Denver. We've got a trip to Seattle coming up which I'm very excited about, both to reunite with so many friends, and to finally experience this great city for ourselves.

Out at the Pictures

Adam

Show me on the doll where Ticketmaster touched you. :(

Tickets (The Faint, Ladytron)
Full Price Ticket US $25.50 x 1
Total Convenience Charge(s) US $8.50 x 1
Order Processing Charge(s) US $5.35
TicketFast Delivery US $2.50
TOTAL CHARGES US $41.85

And we're gonna see Metric in Seattle a month later!

Video Editing

Adam

Editing video, and the whole film thing in general is popular in my family. I'm more of a photography guy, but I can definitely see the fun and allure of doing things with video (and music!) Here's my first weak attempt, hampered greatly by my unfamiliarity with the software and all its functions. I think we're going to purchase a better camera soon, so that should give me plenty of chances to improve.

I'm not sure what's up with Vimeo's inability to properly sync the music and video. It makes my edits look even worse. :(

Big Dog

Adam

We threw a party for Ruca's birthday, and it turned out to be a great time. People showed up around noon with their dogs for some drinking and grilling, and stayed until nearly midnight. We've thrown a lot of house parties over the years, and they nearly always started around 8-9PM. Those are fun, for sure, but starting early might actually be a better plan, especially if it's nice outside. This is one of the best parties we've ever had. I'm REALLY looking forward to summer, but these 70 degree winter days aren't so bad either.

Gallery: Ruca's 1st Birthday Party

Day Trip

Adam

JoLynn and I braved the wind on an otherwise pretty winter day, and checked out Castlewood Canyon.

Gallery: Castlewood Canyon (1-19-09)

Yesteryear

Adam

I came across a site recently called "Disappearing Places." The point of the site seems to be to document information about places from our past that no longer exist. I've long wanted to find a site like this with a social networking aspect, that would allow people from those places to reconnect. Mostly, I'd love to get get friends from the old arcade days in OKC back together in one place.

Anyway, the first thing I searched for was "arcade," which brought up an entry for the Del Mar Skate Park. What's odd about that is the site would be second on my list of disappearing places, but only because in its wake, an old R/C track called E&L was created, and I spent many of my pre-teen weekends there, racing toy cars. The entry on the skate park mentions the bulldozers leveling the place... and I remember it, 'cause I was there. Once it was cleaned up, we used that area of an off-road race track. And now I feel kinda guilty about it...

Sensitivity

Adam

The pup (all 55lbs. of her) is turning out to be a very sweet, but rather sensitive little dog.

We noticed after pulling the halloween stuff out that she's scared of the masks with the creepy faces. She immediately hid under the couch and growled upon seeing them. Since then, we've tried to keep them away from her since it seemed to be so upsetting.

Last night, after finishing up with our scary garage display, we threw all the stuff on to the bed in our spare bedroom (where Ruca's kennel is) since we're bringing it over to a friend's house tonight for a party. We didn't think much of it, because the only time Ruca goes into the kennel now is when we leave the house. Well... and to drag out one of her blankets to rest on when she gets tired.

So, I'm looking all around for the dog, and finally decide to check her kennel. Sure enough, she's in there, and totally petrified with fear. It seems, she went in there to drag out a blanket, and when she went to head back out, caught a glimpse of one of the scary masks that was near the edge of the bed. She wouldn't come out until I moved it out of sight, and then she required a few minutes of love before she quit making her "mean" face.

We adore the new dog, but it's apparent we're going to have to be careful with her feelings.

Things here in Denver are going quite well. We're at the tail end of the most beautiful summer I've ever experienced, and that includes my first 18 years in California. We didn't get out to explore as much as we'd hoped, mostly due to rearing a young pup, but still had quite a few adventures. We're hoping to continue to improve upon that, and get more familiar with everything around us. Jo picked up a few books on hikes that are good for dogs, so we may give that a shot with Roo once she's a little bigger. Our older dog Ty would undoubtedly love to go as well, but he's a bit hobbled these days by arthritis, so we'll have to make it up to him with frequent walks, and trips to the dog park.

TORNADO!

Adam

The tornado that came through Parker, Colorado yesterday came dangerously close to our house. Here's the view we had from the back yard.

Gallery: Parker, CO Tornado (8-24-08)

Looking Back

Adam

"In this age of obsessive video sharing and social networking, nearly every action is designed and packaged for public consumption. Especially with young people," says co-director Joe Stevens. The immediate charm of Nick and his crew is that they're the exact opposite of all that. There is nothing calculated or self-conscious about who they are. They're just a group of friends doing some thing to challenge themselves and have some laughs."

And that pretty much sums up exactly what's been bothering me about the world, and how it's changed thanks to the Internet. I'm not sure what I miss more, the days before they got here, or the days before I did.

Down Time

Adam

Jo and I enjoyed our first peaceful, travel-free, guest-free weekend in over a month. We're preparing for another round of visitors, so we figured it was a good opportunity to catch up. We also visited two of the area's dog parks, and gave our furry friends some quality play time.

On Saturday, we went to Cherry Creek, and gave Ruca her first off-leash experience. I was rather tense about the whole thing, since she has a tendency to run away, but it turned out to be just fine. The pup spent most of her time following our older dog around, and checking in with us at regular intervals. The only challenge is that she likes to jump on strangers to greet them. This isn't entirely unexpected at a dog park, but Ruca also likes to "smile," which looks a whole lot like a snarl, teeth and all. It makes people uncomfortable, and little kids scream. The trip was punctuated by a snake encounter. Jo spotted what we believe was a gopher snake stretched across the trail ahead of us. We're wary of snakes, 'cause Ty tries to kill them, which usually ends poorly for the snake, and the dog too, if they're poisonous. I'm a big fan of reptiles, so it upsets me when the dog tries to murder them. Luckily, we distracted the animals, and the snake slithered away without incident.

Sunday, we decided to hit Chatfield, since it's got more water, and we wanted to give the pup her first swimming experience. After a few minutes of apprehension, she jumped right in, and started swimming. The retrieving instinct is strong in her, and by the end of the day, she was swimming out farther than our adult dog to retrieve sticks. The day went pretty well, aside from a hard lesson learned about red ant hills. Ruca ate (and got bit) by a few before we could grab her. The whole thing caused her to foam at the mouth, which isn't exactly what you'd like to happen at a park full of dogs and their concerned owners.

So, I suppose we can officially declare the pup a second dog, and not just some strange domesticated animal with a partially formed brain. She's beginning to act like a canine, and that's nice, 'cause I'm totally over the puppy phase. They're cute, no doubt, but it's a lot more work than I remembered.

Mt. Evans

Adam

We took a trip to the top of the world.

Gallery: Mt. Evans (7-13-08)

Kansas Rectangle

Adam

As we make our way back across the plains, I can only hope we don't get lost for 30 years. I'm sure there are more boring drives than the one between Denver and Kansas City... okay, I'm not sure.

So, yeah, we're heading back to KC for some work, and for some family & friends. I have to haul a bunch of stuff back, so we rented a giant SUV, since all the vans were unavailable. I feel like monumental douche driving this tank, which exactly why I'm letting Jo drive us. Well, that, and I'm using the nifty Sprint RevA card to browse the web nearly the entire time while she hurtles us across the tundra in 10,000 lbs. of steel. Which brings me to the point of this entry...

I got a private message on Fazed from someone asking about an issue with submission credit not being displayed in the archive. I poked around in the code on a copy of the site that runs on my laptop, and realized there was an SQL error. And, I fixed it. Then, I committed my changes via SVN, and rolled them out on the production site. All from somewhere about 50 miles east of the Colorado border along I-70. Yay technology!

The view from inside.

SimuCon 2005

Adam

Perhaps one of the best weekends the group of us ever had... now with video.

Video & Pictures: SimuCon 2005

Mean Face

Adam

Veruca looks like she's about to bite when she's excited, but it's really her happy face. Strangers aren't sure what to expect.

In other news, I've slowly been exporting pictures from my "old" photography section to my Flickr account. Unfortunately, it all seems to go to the front of my photostream, so recent photos are kind of lost in the shuffle. I've also changed my Flickr page to contain sets under a small number of collections, much like I used to do with Gallery. So far, I like this better.

For now, I'm back in my basement office. We'll see how long this lasts...

Relocation

Adam

The most horrifying spider I've ever seen (I'm serious this time) dropped on to my desk and immediately crawled into my water bottle. I've relocated my computer upstairs, and will not visit the basement again until winter.

The Suburbs Are Scary

Adam

Mouthy

Adam

They say golden retrievers experience the world through their mouths. Now that we're nearing a month with ours, I definitely agree. 'Ruca has to taste everything, which sometimes is a bad thing. Tonight, for example, as we neared the end of our walk, she found what we believe was the end of a cigar. It only took a few seconds before she was gagging, coughing, and foaming at the mouth. She quickly became listless and a little disoriented. We panicked, of course, and called the vet. Luckily, she got very little of the stuff, and we washed her mouth out pretty well, so everything seems to be okay. After a brief nap, she was back to her normal, mischievous ways.

Tonight, she also discovered the mirror.

One Dog Spin

Adam

JoLynn takes Veruca for a little spin. Also, she's a very adept little ankle biter.

Dogfish Eye

Adam

I lied, more dog stuff!

More Puppy Love

Adam

Yeah, I know it's getting old. I can't help it, I adore her! :-)

Veruca's First Bath

Adam

More...

Puppeh!

Adam

Today, we welcomed a new member into our family. Veruca, the golden retriever!

She bit the crap out of me while we were playing in this video. Sharp little puppy teefs!

Walk in the Woods

Adam

JoLynn and I went on a muddy hike through the south rim area of Roxborough State Park today. It was MUCH more scenic than Garden of the Gods. Hiking was a lot of fun, too. We need to gear up a little bit so we're more prepared, but I definitely see a lot more hiking in my future.

Gallery: Roxborough State Park (4-13-08)

JoLynn's pictures are here.

Garden of the Gods

Adam

We took an impromptu trip down south to check out one of Colorado's tourist traps. It definitely lived up to the hype.

Gallery: Garden of the Gods (4-5-08)

High Desert

Adam

So, for the last couple of months, JoLynn and I have been adjusting to our new lives in Colorado. So far, aside from missing our friends, family and familiarity with our old home, this move has been an upgrade in just about every way. Most surprising, perhaps, is the weather. While it still gets cold here, and the snow is more frequent, the incredible number of sunny days, even during the winter has been wonderful. I hear the summers can get hot, but it cools off at night, and the lack of humidity makes the heat a lot more tolerable. Supposedly shade really works, so finding a way to get out of the sun will go a long way toward making the heat less of an issue.

Our poor old cat "Queso" had been sick for a while, and passed away a bit unexpectedly a few weeks ago. He never really seemed sick enough to be put down, but after staying with him as he passed, I'll definitely opt for euthanasia if the time seems right. I'm thankful, though, that we got to be with him during his last few hours. He responded to our presence with purrs and affection, which made us both feel like the cat was happy to have us there. He was a good old cat, and had a happy life up until the very end.

During Queso's last few weeks, JoLynn had been taking him into the backyard so he could get some sun, and explore the outdoors a little bit. He really enjoyed walking along the top of the fence, which separates our yard from an access road. Well, a gust of wind came through and blew the poor cat off, landing him in the wide open access road area. JoLynn ran inside and interrupted my wonderful nap, yelling something about the cat escaping, and needing me to hurry and catch him before he ran off. In a single motion, I threw on my shoes, ran outside and hopped the fence, ready to chase the kitty. As it turns out, being blown into the dirt seemed like a perfect opportunity to poop, so the cat was really easy to catch.

Moving has given me the opportunity to streamline some of life's wonderful little distractions (hobbies, being social, etc.) and has given me the time and motivation to spend more time on projects, as well as keep Fazed more current and topical. I'd taken a long break from being active updating the site, and really missed it. It's a lot of work, but I find if I do it in little chunks throughout the day, it's generally pretty easy to stay ahead of everything. The reaction from the people who read the site has been very positive, which is nice to see.

We're planning to get another dog in a couple of months. Our existing dog has been lonely since the cat passed, and we've both wanted another dog for a while now. We're going to get a female golden retriever with a very light-colored coat, and a longer, more stalky body, like a show dog. We spent a lot of time with both parents, and are hopeful their offspring will be similar. The dog's name will be Veruca. :-)

For the most part, things are going really well here. We've been making friends, exploring the city (downtown is awesome, and there's a light rail station right by our house!), being more active, and enjoying the great adventure of moving to a new city. I'd be lying, though, if I said I wasn't looking forward to a reunion with all our friends in Kansas City. One thing you really can't replace is history, and not having friends around to reminisce with has been a bit of a bummer. Hopefully we'll see everybody at the end of the summer for Lake & Keri's wedding.

Why I Moved To Colorado

Adam

Go West!

Adam

We drove west on I70 until the mountains were visible in the distance, and then called the place home. Denver is the shit. More to come...

The Magnetic Fields

Adam

The 60's pop feel of the new Magnetic Fields is scrumptious! Hear it for yourself:

Auld Lang Syne

Adam

One of the Fazers (Midge McKay) wrote a sang a song about the site for the new year. I feel so honored! :-)

Fazer Midge McKay sings a Fazed versions of Auld Lang Syne

Lyrics:

Should richt auld Spunone be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance pee'n her butt,
And auld lang syne!

Chorus - For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne.
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll pee in her butt
And surely pee in mine!
we'll tak oor quotes from bash.org,
For auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

Oor Christmas gifts huv reached oor friends,
And Haxormax' insane
we've posted mony a lolling cat,
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

JP hae lock'd us oot the threads,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But NB4 the Fazers roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

And there's a Dirrty bunny my fi'r!
Now gies a new tagline!
We'll mak a happy birthday thread,
For auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

Related: Slorum Thread...

In With The New

Adam

In a day, we leave for Denver to find our new home. I think I just grew up.