WEDNESDAY - SEPTEMBER 1, 2004

7:16a - I slept fairly well last night, except for barely remembered dreams; not unusual. However, I got to bed late and I am dragging this morning. This does NOT promise to be one of my more energetic days. Oh.... yesterday I took an IQ test and got a score of 131..

I was impressed! I am not sure how accurate it is, but it seemed to peg me. Even to the point of putting me in the "20th percentile" in math skills. Not so great, but I've never had strong math skills.

8:08a - Time to head out. I would really rather go back to bed...!

I managed to get my hair dyed this evening. A slightly darker shade of blond. (#82)

THURSDAY - SEPTEMBER 2, 2004
DragonCon - Trip Begins

I got up before Skip this morning promptly at 6:00a. I got my shower out of the way and finished packing. Skip was up at about 20 minutes after me. We rode the bus in together and then the train as far as CWE where he left me for work. I got to the airport and check in with Delta (flight 1446) with plenty of time to spare. I had my usual pre-flight breakfast of a banana and milk. I tried to read my book, “The Machine Crusades” but I ended up dozing off and on. That made the flight go fast though.

I landed in Atlanta at about 12:20 and called Tammy. She said she would meet me at the baggage claim area. I found her with no difficulty. We managed to make it from the airport to AmeriSuites Hotel in downtown Atlanta with relative ease. We got checked in and then went in search of food. We ended up at the “Pacific Rim” where I had sushi and she had an Asian style steak (which she chokes on! That was a scare...). We decided to go get some booze after that. She needed a bottle of Godiva Chocolate liqueur for a concoction that she was making. The bottle ended up costing us $50!! We got it anyway and split the cost. After taking that expensive bottle of liqueur back to the room, we then headed over to the Hyatt and had a few drinks. We found out that the registration process was already in progress, so we got in line, got registration out of the way, then went back for more drinks.

We finally came back to the room, ordered pizza and crashed

FRIDAY - SEPTEMBER 3, 2004
DragonCon - Day 1

9:58 – Tammy us all in costume and I am almost ready. Time to get down to the Con!

4:23p – I am back in the room now for a rest. I met several star, but I did not get any autographs yet. Including Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) from Star Wars, Lt. West from Lost in Space, and June Lockhart. The guy who plays Twiggy in Buck Rogers, and Felix Silas, the little person who plays the Chief Ewok in Star Wars. I also met Randall Schwartz, a major player in the world of PERL programming and his associate, Bill Harp, who joined us at our table for drinks. Later, Bill (a very nice guy) got us passes to the "VIP Room" ... but we did not know where to pick them up and never took advantage of them... unfortunately.

7:35p – My nap was refreshing, but Tammy just called me. She has located Sherry and others. I am getting back into gear to head out in a moment.

7:54p – Showered and almost ready. Getting my boots on is the hardest part of getting dressed! I was tired and went back to the room around 4:30p for a nap. I ended up ordering another pizza just for myself, but it was not nearly as good as the one we had on Thursday night.

I headed back to the Con and we spent more time at the bar (again... our favorite hang out!) and closed it down.

SATURDAY - SEPTEMBER 4, 2004
DragonCon - Day 2

We missed the free breakfast in the hotel this morning and ate in the restaurant at the Hyatt. I had a chicken quesadilla... Tammy had 2 pieces of chocolate cake! We spent more time wandering around taking pictures and having pictures taken of us.

Later in the evening, we attended the KAG (Klingon) party (room 932) in the Marriott. It was okay, but not really equipped for the amount of people attending. Too hot, good food, great decor, no bathroom. The drinks were apparently "free" (and weak), so I was putting money in the tip jar. After my third drink, the bar tender commented something about my not having contributed (even though I specifically had inquired) and I felt somewhat unwelcome. I left... wanderer around a bit more. Took more pictures, then went back to the room.

SUNDAY - SEPTEMBER 5, 2004
DragonCon - Day 3

THIS morning we made it down for breakfast at AmeriSuites. I finally met up with Sherry, her mother Wanda and and others (at least breifly). I am surprised we have not seen more of each other, and Karen, Mark, Sonia, her mother... since we are all staying in the same hotel! I went out with Lisa and Farzan to "Tappas" and had a great time! Meanwhile, back "home," Marty and JR are our camping and Marty (having a little TOO much fun) crashes his mountain bike and scapes his leg up REAL bad!

MONDAY - SEPTEMBER 6, 2004
DragonCon - Day 4

I bought my "Animation Master" program this morning. Did not get the autographs I had intended. We stopped at the restaurant and I ordered the quesadillas again.

Happy TWENTY-FIRST anniversary to Calisa & Mitch Selfridge! My Sister & Brother-in-law Modesto, California

I hope Mitch & 'lisa (and family) got moved in to their new place okay. I know they must be going through a strenous ordeal!

Tammy left this afternoon around 4pm. I went back to the room and got ready for dinner. I was watching "Engineering Disasters" on the TV while the cleaning girl straightened up the room (she was from Poland).

Went to Lisa and Farzan's house, drank wine, watched "The Passion" then went to a little Cuban restauraunt and had a great meal.

TUESDAY - SEPTEMBER 7, 2004
DragonCon - Trip Ends

I goto up around 9ish and went down for breakfast. It felt strange going down alone. I took my time and got packed. It was overcast this morning as a result of Hurricane Frances. We were in the outer fringes of the storm here in Atlanta. As I walked down the street to MARTA (the train) I noticed there were lots of leaves and twigs broken and cluttering the ground. The wind must have really been strong last night. I had a bite to eat at the airport. A plate of "Nachos Supreme." I caught my plane on time and headed home. I slept through most of the flight and did not even get a soda & snack when they passed them out. I got back to St. Louis and picked up my baggage. That took a long time, but eventually I got it and caught the MetroLink. Skip called me just moments after I left the airport.

WEDNESDAY - SEPTEMBER 8, 2004
DragonCon Memories

I spent all day playing with my new "Animation Master" program and editing and cleaning up photos from the Con.

THURSDAY - SEPTEMBER 9, 2004
Back to work...

7:32a – I got my journal at least partially caught up this morning. I am sleepy. I was up too late. Then, my alarm went off at 6:00a! I had forgotten to re-set it. <sigh> .... back to the grind...

I spent time this afternoon cutting up vegetables for the shish-ka-bobs for tomorrow's STAFF PICNIC.

FRIDAY - SEPTEMBER 10, 2004
MIR STAFF PICNIC
(Click here to see pictoral collage)

7:50a – I feel yucky this morning. Running late.

Spent much of this morning putting viggies on skewers for shish-ka-bobs. I rode with Bruce and Linda to their house to pick up their dog (Hamlett) and then off to the Staff Picnic. Sonya, with her son Nicholas, gave me a ride home (she is such a trip!). Nicholas was a little monster, but Sonya put the fear of the Gods into him once we arrived at our offices on the way home. She got one of the Wash. U. Security Guards to come down and threaten to handcuff him and cart him off to jail! Poor kid... he was in tears and terrified! Personally, I did not approve of this method of dicipline, but... he is not my child. However, I had about 10 minutes with him alone (before the Security Guard incident) and got him to be very interactive. He was talking to me abuot the trains (MetroLink), demonstrating how he can do push-ups, and we were venturing into astronomy and pointing out stars when he got slapped down by "Da Man" and "Scared Straight" ... so-to-speak. It is at times like this that I know I could have been a fantastic parent and feel more than a little sadness that I never became a parent... and all that is me, shall end with me.

Oh well. I try to console myself with the idea that I am not perfect, but I must be the final product - the ultimate culmination - of millions of years of evolution. This is it... "me" .. the end product. "yay" ... and "yippee" even.

SATURDAY - SEPTEMBER 11, 2004

I spent all day sitting in front of my computer. I didn't even leave the house. I did not accomplish a thing. Not much more to say about THIS day!

SUNDAY - SEPTEMBER 12, 2004

I spent yet another day, mostly on my computer. I am trying to learn the Animation Master program. It has such great potential! However... it is NOT easy! Around 3pm, Skip and I walked over to Walmart. I had to get more vitamins for Kira. I tried to work more on A:M, but my computer was running slow and even spontaneously rebooted. I ran a full diagnostic on it (and bathed Kira while it was running), and then I downloaded updated drivers for my S3 ProSavage graphics card. So far... so good, but I get nervous changing out drivers!

I went to bed about 11:30 and turned the TV over at midnight.

MONDAY - SEPTEMBER 13, 2004

7:35a – I am up. Got my journal mostly caught up this morning. Kira seemed to sleep much more soundly last night having had a bather. Bless her heart... she has been fighting the fleas this year for the first time in years. The flea collar is laughable. I will, for her sake, be glad with the first freeze hits and kills the bug population!

7:41a – I am going to be running late again if don't get up from here and get a move on!

TUESDAY - SEPTEMBER 14, 2004

My stomach was doing weird things all night and I was having all kinds of weird dream, especially about various water parks and swimming. Mom was in one of them. I woke up exhausted and called DM to see if I could take my two hours due to me from Memorial Day today. (I had planned to take them on Thursday).

I fixed some eggs and grits before leaving the house, and caught the 11:18 bus to work.

12:05p - Got to work just a few mintues behind. There is so much construction being done on Euclid that every day it seems there is a new route to get to my office

I called MedCo today about my prescriptions. They want $400 for my 3-month supply! I have been paying $170... that is over DOUBLE what I have been paying! It will cost me $1,600.00 year!! I cannot afford that. I am very distraught over this.

3:39p - I did not have lunch today, so I have been munching chips at my desk. Something I rarely do.

10:54p - I am working on this page... adding the Con pictures.

WEDNESDAY - SEPTEMBER 15, 2004

7:36a – I got up around 5am and noticed the carpet in the bathroom was wet. I think Barnabas pee'd on it. I moved the rug to the edge of the bathtub temporarily. I got up this morning and Skip had put it in the washer. Great. Now I will have no hot water for my bath! It could have waited.

I lay awake much of the early morning hours fretting over the medical cost problem. I cannot switch to the meds Dr. P wants me to take if it is going to cost that much. I am not rich. This is what I have insurance FOR! It's very upsetting. And the AndroGel isn't doing a thing for me that I can tell (except deplete my wallet!).

I walked over to Hon's Wok for lunch today.

Apparently (so I hear) Paul F. began working for us today. He was not introduced to us mere "help desk" folk though, as he was introduced to other. There was (so I am told) a wave of the hand in our direction and "that's the help desk" (that should be "Computer Support Center" ... thank you!).

I have been disgusted all day.

9:58p - It does not help that the program I just spend $200 on just does not run worth beans on my computer. The box specifications state that it requires at least a 450Mhz processor and 256Mb of RAM. I have a 1.66GHz processor and 512Mb of DDR RAM. More than DOUBLE the recommended specifications. It will barely run on my system, I cannot function with it, and sometimes it just "vanishes" and I lost all my work with no error message ... nothing. Just "poof" ... gone. I will have to by a new PC (or maybe a new processor?) to even make use of my $200 investment. I did load it on my computer at work; however, no where did I see it specified that the original CD is required to be IN THE DRIVE to make the program work! ... of course... it is required. I have tried to make a backup copy so I do not wear out my original CD or have to cart it back and forth from home to office, but that is not possible either. There is some sort of copy protection so if this CD gets damaged, I guess I am out of $200!!

10:09p - So far am am very displeased and feel like I made a $200 mistake. I am very impressed with what others have done, the online samples, etc., but I wonder how many of them created their works with something less than a 300Ghz processor? (which is what the tutorials are presented with).

So, between being treated like a peon at work, wasting money on a promising program that does not work, an insurance program that is trying to suck me dry, oh... and Terminix has STILL not responded, my cell phone is broken, ... I am just not a very happy camper. Nope... not very.

10:45p - I put some potato-sausage soup on to cook. Using fresh potatoes and left over sausage from the picnic. My heart is not into it though. My "disgust level" is too high.

11:10p - Skip just got through "explaining" to me that he is going to pay me less "rent" money this payday since is will be going to Chicago on Sunday on a business trip. I was trying to explain to him that he pays me whatever he can every week, I charge him a flat fee (based upon when him moved in to Gentry's over 2 years ago), but my bills fluctuate. If he runs his cell phone bill up a hundred dollars, he still pays me the same rate. I have to pay the bill however! He just doesn't GET it.

11:14p - Oh great... two more bills just in for Water and Sewage. Good timing.

THURSDAY - SEPTEMBER 16, 2004

It was another boring/standard/typical day. Erline (the Cahokia bus driver) appears to have been moved to another route (she still has my book about the Elves in Cahokia). I haven't seen her for days. She normally drives on Friday, so maybe we will see her tomorrow.

FRIDAY - SEPTEMBER 17, 2004
Happy Birthday Nancy Rochette!

Pay checks were deposited over night, so I moved money over to savings. Staring to rebuild my losses after expenses in Atlanta!

Skip did not work today. He leaves for Chicago on Sunday on a business trip and will return on Thursday.

SATURDAY - SEPTEMBER 18, 2004

Yet another boring day. I sat at home ALL day, not even going to the store. The kitchen is a disaster area, vacuuming needs to be done, etc... but I just don't feel like dealing with it.

8:10p - Sitting down to watch the TV movie "DarkLight" ... the previews looked promising.

It was okay... but not as good as I had hoped.

I made burritos from leftover picnic food. I have so much food in the fridge, I have not had to go to the store in over a week. Much of it is left over from the picnic, even after giving JR a lot of it!

SUNDAY - SEPTEMBER 19, 2004

I had such STRANGE dreams again this morning! In one of them, Skip was taking Kira out to the car ... we were going to go for a ride. Kira was (of course) very excited about this and Skip was only holding her by her leash with no collar. She was pulling and straining Skip to his limit. [dream blurs] ...then I have Kira and she is on a leash. however, now she is just a puppy from 11 years ago!

So we get in the car... the old Buick Station Wagon that we had in 1975 and in which we drove from Eltopia, WA to Oklahoma. Doug was driving! I remember he backed into something... and then told me that *I* had some kind of ticket; a parking violation of some kind. Anyway... the dreams were many and chaotic!

Skip called for a cab around 10:00a. His flight was to leave at 12:30p. I knew he should not rely on Cahokia cabs! But... he tried... and ended up missing his flight. He was bumped up to a standby position at 3pm, but that one was full too. Then he was bumped up to 5pm, but it was full and he was again moved up to 6pm. However, somehow he managed to get a seat on the 5pm flight and by a little after 7pm, he called to let me know he was safely in Chicago in his hotel room. (He never listens to me! I always take the bus which is MUCH more reliable).

I took Kira for a walk around 5pm... she really enjoyed it. I don't take her out enough. Then I walked over to Schnucks for the first time in a while and to KFC for some supper.

Chuck called... he is scheduling his flights & visit for this October. I hope it goes well... but I fear he will be disappointed in our place here. I will do my best. 11:48p - Just ate a bite of the chicken... still catching up my journal... I think I will go eat more!

MONDAY - SEPTEMBER 20, 2004

12:10a – It is late and I have to work tomorrow. The KFC chicken was delicious tonight (I am happy the now have the jalapeño peppers). Kira is outside... I need to let her in and we need to crash. (She is really suffering from the fleas... and her scratching keeps me awake. Her tail has a raw spot... very distressing!).

7:22a – I had more wild and bizarre dreams, all with an overtone of ... some negative feeling. Dismay? Distress? Concern? Depression? ... something I can't put my finger on, but I don't like the feeling.

7:31a – Kira just got up (finally) ... she's ready to go out.

1:20p - I ate lunch at Olin Hall cafeteria today for the firs time since this "rotten fruit" incident which occurred on June 2nd. (review) That makes over three months that I have "boycotted" them for this affront. I am pleased with my diligence!

7:14p – My new phone came in today! So far I love it! I was actually able to go to my website, but it's too big to fit on the little screen very well. The camera feature is easy to use. Lot's I don't know about it yet, but I'm learning. Love new toys!

7:16p – I saw "Jimmy Beaton" <sp?> at the Q-Mart tonight. Ii'e she ~aashea, t'be Y'iinkth' ii'e sh' "ufreidtre." Iih' aantwej' uut umk oyerv' uut aim' aos' uut' aav' ums' iirbe, t'be Y'oldt' iime ch'udw' aatn' iib' eye 'utge' aiyiidaaye. Also, he thought I was Tad... he called me "Creekpaum" ... and had to correct him. Then he bummed a dollar off me. I only gave it to him because I knew who he was, but panhandling really turns me off after living at Gentry's Landing downtown!

9:52p – I have been working on the Staff Picnic collage this evening. I finally got it done, uploaded and linked. I am so bored without Skip here... how strange! Now... I guess I need to go make up my mind about something to eat.

TUESDAY - SEPTEMBER 21, 2004

Happy Birthday to Matt Hicks! Co-worker

8:14p – I called in sick this morning. I think the switch-over to the Atenolol is catching up with me. I am tired and drepress. My stomach bothered me all night and (of course) I had mind boggling, exhausting dreams.

9:37p – I rented a couple of movies to day and got some KFC chicken with a bunch of jalapeños and sat down to try to cheer myself up. The first moved, "Dark Hunters," pretty much sucked. The second one was, "Hell Boy." I really enjoyed it! It was a LONG movie too! I started watching it a little after 7:00p and I just finished it a few minutes ago. 9:40p – I slept much of the day, but I am going to go to bed early. Hopefully I will sleep. All I've wanted to do all day is eat & sleep. I am getting depressed again. Hopefully I will be cleared headed and functional in the morning, since when I am at work I don't have time to be depressed (and missing a day of work depresses me more... a vicious circle!).

9:43p – Barnabas really misses Skip. He spends most of his time now, laying on the seat near the door. I think he is waiting for Skip to come home. He has let me pet him a couple of times, but mostly thinks its all my fault I think. 10:05p – I've been going over reviews of "Hell Boy" ... and "oh boy" ... they do not like him much. I thought it was very entertaining, and I followed it very well. It was a typical "comic book" style movie, but it kept the action going and the characters had enough depth that I could believe them. Here is one such bad review (sorry... it's in French):

Skip's "class" in Chicago

Grosse déception. Grand amateur de comics et de Hellboy également je suis vraiment très déçu par cette adaptation de Del Toro (un cinéaste que j'apprécie beaucoup). Le film ne décole jamais. L'histoire bien que restant très fidèle au comics est traité de manière "planplan" et sans panache. Les scènes d'actions sont répétitives (Hellboy VS Samael suivant toujours le même schéma) et la mise en scène bien moins dynamique que dans Blade2 ("brouillon d'hellboy" dixit le réal). -Coté satisfactions: les personnages sont vraiment fidèles au comic. Hellboy est impressionant et Perlman est parfait dans le rôle même si il abuse un peu des vannes à la Schwarzeneger. Mention spéciale pour Abe Sapiens et Kroenen: le premier est parfaitement interprété et le maquillage excellent. Le second a la classe mais est sous exploité (et franchement pas une goute de sang dans les combats ça fait tache ("de sang")).

10:09p – I think I will be off to bed early now.

11:22p – I stayed up later... got caught up in a Tsalagi translation. Off to bed for real now!

WEDNESDAY - SEPTEMBER 22, 2004

Happy Birthday to Mitch Selfridge! My Brother-in-law Modesto, California (who, unfortunately, is feeling sick today!)

7:19a – I feel much better this morning, though I did not get to sleep until about 2:00a. I could still go back to bed and sleep a while! I have got to DO something this weekend. Something other than sit at home. It's really starting to get to me. It was so much easier to go out for the evening when I lived downtown at Gentry's or in Forest Park with Jack. Even if I missed the train, I could call a cab and it would not cost that much. Living in Cahokia is fine in many respects, but I just HAVE NO LIFE!

7:37a – Wow... it is 48° out this morning. Fall is in the air. I am thinking I should wear my light jacket to work.

I spent my bus ride in to work copying my phone numbers from my old phone to the new one. I got over half way through. Later in the day I finished off the remainder.

I got to work this morning and checked my email. I had an email from my Director from yesterday when I was out sick. It was intended to go to my "team leader" and was asking if I had called in and spoken to her. Sadly, our Director is a bit lacking in expertise, considering she is the director of Computer Operations, and seems to have sent the inquiry to ME instead of my "team leader"! (Oops). She DM (my "team leader") did not get a copy of this email, I figured I should respond and copy her on it. I did so.

I hate this. It looks like they are going around behind my back looking for "loop holes." I hate having "health issues" and I seems like persecution or "discrimination" that they are picking on me for being out sick. This is not right. I have jumped through all the required hoops. It is THEY who are now walking on thin ice. I could miss 3 days per month and still be within the guidelines of FMLA. As it is, I have not missed any time in over one month. I am sorry I missed THAT time, but nature has her own agenda.

I bought a new book today, by Orson Scott Card, and began reading it.

I got my voice mail set on the new phone today. Later, I called 'lisa. They are still getting settle into their new home.

11:36p – It's getting late. I fixed a spicey chicken & potato dish tonight, but now I must be off to bed.

11:38p – In about 22 minutes, I will be exactly the age Mom was when she died. Its hard to believe I am THAT age! She seemed old to me... but I don't feel like I am that old. Very disturbing thoughts. I miss her very much... and even more so tonight. Especially with Skip gone and no family here. At least I have Barnabas and Kira... bless their little hearts!!

THURDAY - SEPTEMBER 23, 2004

Happy Mabon Day! Autumn Equinox

7:17a – I woke up around 5:00a and was wide awake until a little after 6:00a. Then I dozed off and started having wild dreams again. One dream was about a computer advertisement for a style of underwear called "Ultra". I was trying to understand what "Ultra" style underwear were (I still don't know!). Then I drempt the LR came to me in my cubicle at work and started to reprimand me about missing a day of work, stating that despite everything that has happened, I do not seem to be doing anything different. I was feeling completely helpless and was going to plead my case with her when I woke up. Then my guilt, shame and fear that I was feeling in the dream turned to mild anger and irritation that I am being put in a position like this that would affect me even in my dreams! I would be nice to 20 again, with all my life ahead of me, healthy, strong and carefree! However, today is Mabon... in more was than one.

8:40p – Another mostly unremarkable day. RD has been mostly off-line with an injured knee and simultaneous cold which has her laid out, so we haven't been chatting as we usually do. Skip called me from Chicago this morning. He is due in around midnight tonight. Devon called me from Oklahoma about 20 minutes ago (she was asking for 'lisa!). I gave her the new number. The had Blinkey (Binkey?) put down; Devon's dog and life-long companion. She seemed non-plussed and said she got a new Doberman Pincher.

Skip came home around midnight. I was still cooking my supper; and a good supper it was! Pork steak, corn, mixed greens, and gravy. I made some of the leftovers for lunch for the morrow. I was up WAY too late tonight....

FRIDAY - SEPTEMBER 24, 2004

8:18a – While waiting at the bus stop, I succeeded in sending my very first picture from my cell phone to my email account.

One of the first pictures taken (yesterday) with my new cell phone's camera. This is the ongoing construction in front of my office at the intersection of Scott and Euclid. I succeeded in sending the pictures from my phone to my email.

I stopped at BJ cafeteria had got a biscuit & gravy, and eggs & cheese. After eating that, then attending a Coor-Com meeting, I was about ready to crash!! Lunch time arrived and I ate my WONDERFUL lunch (leftovers from last night) ... and was even MORE ready to fall asleep! Still haven't chatted much with RD... she is still recovering from her knee and illness conditions. This must be a really bad one to keep her down like this! Hurricane Jeanne is headed to Florida this weekend! Hurricane #4 this year!! I am glad I moved now!!! Skip was just telling me, a little while ago, that he did really well at his training seminar this past week. The company who was providing the training was apparently so impressed with his knowelge and retention, that the are writing him a "Letter of Recommendation" to him management! Sounds impressive!

SATURDAY - SEPTEMBER 25, 2004

12:25a – I am just now getting ready to go eat... ah... weekends! (Kira is whining about something; maybe she needs to go out....)

She did...

12:54a – Supper was just as delicious as last night! Now I am off to bed.

8:18a – I just got up, but I am still half asleep. 8:30a – I see hurricane Jeanne is approaching Florida's East coast. This is the fourth major hurricane this year! (Charley, Ivan, Karl and now Jeanne). Again, I am glad I am not living there any more! 8:33a – Time to let Kira back in. I think I may go back to bed for a while.

I cooked one of the pork sirloins that I bought a while back tonight, along with some brocolli & cheese, and corn on the cob.

Mike called from Deltona. He missed me and spoke to Skip. They are preparing for the latest hurricane.

Marty & JR came by and picked up the cans. We watched the tail end of Hell Boy.

SUNDAY - SEPTEMBER 26, 2004

12:35a – I am off to bed now. Supper was great. Skip is just started his supper! Kira is outside... need to go let her in. 2:24p – I didn't get up until about 11:00a today! Actually, I got up around 7:00a, let Kira out, and we took our pills, then I went back to bed. I got up, spent an hour or two on email, then warmed up leftovers from last nights tasty supper. (Now, I could go back to sleep again!). 2:32p – As can be seen in the picture, hurricane Jeanne has slashed high up into Florida. It has be reduced to "tropical storm" status now.

2:51p – 79° – I just let Kira out and went to put more birdseed in the feeder. That silly squirrel got into the seed again and ate a huge hole in the side of the container! I just poured the remainder of the seed, wevils, worms, and all, into the feeder.

Skip and I walked over to the grocery store. I picked up a couple of chuck roasts and a couple of packages of chicken breasts which were on sale. Then we walked over to the Dollar Store. I got some shampoo and a winter scarf. Cold weather will be on us soon.

I am enjoying my new cell phone. here are a couple of pictures I took of it in very low lighting. I enhanced the picture of Kira (on the left) but that is the actual photo that was showing on the screen 8:56p – I've been in the kitchen fixing supper. Something out of the ordinary. I am taking leftovers from the pork sirloing that I cooked last night, cubed, and placed in a pan. I took some of the drippings and blended this with some milk and eggwhites. I minced up some green onion, which I sprinkled liberally over the cubed pork; then I poured the eggwhite mixture over the meat and onion. I set this in the oven at about 300° and will see how it comes out! I will warm up my left over brocolli & cheese, and make some corn on the side to go with it. This may be lunch tomorrow too.

9:08p – 66° – I have spent much of today working on my October journal page. It has come out very well! I am most pleased. the "banner" is especially colourful and I like it a lot.

10:50p – 55° – I just finished supper and watched the remainder (once again!) of "Hell Boy." I still haven't taken the movies back. The "Hell Boy" tape is not due back yet anyway, but the "Dark Hunters" (the pathetic, boring one) was due back last Thursday.

11:54p – 56° – I am off to bed now...

MONDAY - SEPTEMBER 27, 2004

9:24p – 59° – I had a bad night of it again, even worse than usual. My heart seemed to be pounding all night and I felt out of breath. I was starting to get worried. Then the dreams began to bombard me. I can't remember the dreams all that well now (as usual), but I have to relate some of them here in my journal. First (or somewhere in the middle of it all) I was in bed and someone was lying next to me to my left (but I did not know whom). My hand was lying across this person in a comfortable, familiar way, but I realized I did not know who it was! Then the person stirred and I realized it was someone I knew (though I still don't know who!) and I relaxed. Then my mother was in the dream and laying in bed to my left. It all becomes hazy, but I recall something about some hairs which were in a complex curlyque, and something about waking to realize that I had been dreaming about sleeping and having a dream (but... this was all WITHIN a dream)... oh, it becomes so complex and confusing when I try to put it to words!

Before I got up, I heard the phone ring. I figured it must be Skip calling about something he forgot to bring with him. I got up and turned on my cell phone and called him. It wasn't him who called though! So... I checked the voice mail of the residential phone. It was Aunt Marlene. I braced myself for "bad news" and called her to see what was up. She was trying to contact Ken in NC. Hurricane (f, g, h i ...) Jeanne apparently hit their area fairly hard. She could not reach him... no phone. I tried to call him later in the day and had no luck either.

I went to Olin Hall cafeteria for lunch for the second time since last June today. I got the BBQ sandwich and some fries. Skip's boss (Greg) popped by my table and spoke with me. We discussed Skip's progress and I expressed my pride in my brother's achievements in the past couple of years. Greg concurred and ... well, Skip would have gotten a big head from our mutual support of him!

I got to the bus stop early and rode in, continuing to read my book, "Seventh Son." I arrived around the usual time at CWE and went to Barnes Cafeteria. I met Skip there and he showed me an alternate route out from the cafeteria (It was NOT shorter!). I arrived at the office at precisely 9:30, though the clock on the wall showed 9:35a (it is wrong!). The usual work day plodded by. I made plans with LZ to go to the Asian market at lunch tomorrow so I can stock up (for the winter) on rice, mushrooms, boullion, hotsauce and such. However... I was just thinking... I do not know HOW I will get it home later. I hope she will bring it to the house. I showed Gary the picture I put on my journal page wishing him a happy birthday... he was all upset thinking he will be getting more SPAM and unwanted solicitations. I would think he would know better... <sigh>...

5:57p – I took pictures of the construction along Euclid. One day I hope to show a fantastic result from all this mess!

9:35p – 59° – On the way home, continuing to read "Seventh Son" (almost done), we had to stop for a train at Mildred, and it was also stopped! A couple of people got off the bus to smoke a cigarette while we waiting for the train to move on. The bus driver was reading a newspaper. Finally, the train moved on and the drive did not notice (she was most engrossed in her newspaper article, apparently!). Someone in the back of the bus exclaimed, "you can go now!" ... and she threw her paper down and we got underway again. It was sort of funny.

9:38p – 59° – I got home and got the garbage set out (which I forgot LAST week!). That is about all I accomplished 9:52p – 59° – I have a chuck roast cooking on top of the stove. I don't know for sure what I am going to do with it, but... I will figure out something! (Eating it comes to mind!)

TUESDAY - SEPTEMBER 28, 2004

7:29a – 48.9° – As usual, I slept poorly. I had dark and strange dreams all night. I drempt of of storms, but I also drempt of flying. I remember flying in a storm in what may have been downtown Orlando (though the buildings were thicker and higher). It was dark and though it seemed to be raining, I was not getting wet. I thought about getting struck by lightening, but I knew I would be okay. A reporter took my pictuer and (mostly by accident) and caught his camera between my feet and flew up out of reach. I toyed with him a few moments, then dangled the camera back to him.

In an unrelated dream, I was some kind of "cat man." Sometimes I was this cat person, sometimes I was an observer (one of those kind of dreams). For years people had been searching for him/me and we had eluded them with false trails, traps and pitfalls. This cat guy was some kind of genius, apparently. We went to his home which he had built himself. It was a huge mansion... no, "Palace," which over looked a huge valley. All in some hidden place which no one ever located. I remember the "royal bed chambers" were very high up and had two huge kingsized beds. Everything was amazing and lavish... and all created over the years by this one individual. What a strange dream!

7:43a – 49° – I feel crappy this morning, but the caffein, ginseng and B12 is starting to kick in finally. Time to get ready for work. I was sorely tempted to call in sick this morning, but I think I can make it. It's goint to be a rough day though.

8:55a – I finished my book, "Seventh Son" just as the train arriving at Central

12:35p – Lisa and I headed out for lunch together today for the first time in ages (probably over a year). She took me over to Jan International where I could get some rice and other oddities which are hard to come by. We stopped at Taco Bell on the way back. We were a bit late, getting back around 1:40, but not too bad (Its not like we do this very often!).

I recently receive some comments from the linguistic community which were condescending and a bit derrogatory toward my personal passion, "Esperanto." I will not present their comments here without their permission, but I will post my responses to those comments. First, I should mention, that the comments seemed to insinuate that Esperanto and Esperantists were bent upon some kind of world domination and a "world government." I was, to put it mildly, a bit disgruntled at such commentary, and responded with the following...

I have long agreed with the ideal of a world government. In fact, I think it is an imperative of the human race. It may seem that the world is just too big to be under one government, but when one considers the speed at which we communicate and travel, we live in a much smaller world than they did back in the days of the Roman Empire or the British Empire. In those times, it took months to travel from one end of the “Empire” and back; with communication being no faster nor reliable. Today we can reach any point in the world in a few hours, and communicate almost instantaneously. As a result, the world for us today is relatively smaller than those Empires of yesteryear. However, a world “government” is not the same thing as a world “culture.” If a world culture comes about, it will do so on its own. I don’t think it is something that should be sought after or forced. I strongly believe that our diverse cultures give us human beings, strength and vitality. We are better for such diversity. Having such diverse cultures is a boon to our existence, but having those cultures under separate and independent governments results in more adversity than diversity. Our natural tendencies toward territorialism are often the cause of misunderstandings and have often resulted in wars, with death and destruction, and cultural wounds that have left deep scars on humankind. If/when we eventually attain a world government, this does not mean we must lose our cultural identities (nor should we). Esperanto (or some other “neutral” structured language, devised for simplicity) is a step toward making this possible, since we need a quick, simple, easy, yet flexible, versatile, efficient means to communicate with each other. Existing national/ethnic languages are just too complicated for most people to learn, and by their very nature, they cannot be “neutral.” I believe, if mankind is to survive and reach the stars (which he must do to survive the long term!), then a world government will be an inevitable eventuality. I don’t expect it to happen tomorrow. It will take a long time for us to reach that point, but I think civilization is over half way to that point now, moving in that direction and (if it survives) will eventually achieve a form of world government. All things change; “the only constant is change.” People who do not agree, or do not understand, often laugh at Esperanto and treat it like some kind of joke. Many do not realize it has been around over 100 years now, surviving two world wars and being published in about 130 countries. Far from “dead” it is slowly growing and gaining in popularity. There are around 40,000 publications in Esperanto and several radio programs (Including Radio Peking and Radio Polonia that I listen to). Personally, I think our “shrinking world” and the expansion of the internet has contributed greatly to Esperanto’s growth and continued survival. To these people, who often tout English as the true “International language,” I would point out once Spanish was the international language, once it was French, and Latin held the title for a long time. Things change. In fact, English was once considered a vulgar, backwoods dialect, which no one of proper education and upbringing could be bothered with. Things change... As for Esperanto becoming French-Esperanto, or Japanese-Esperanto, etc... This is another point where Esperanto is not understood. The person who said this may not realize that Esperanto is spoken in Japan (pick up a copy of "Oomoto" and see for yourself) and it is clear and proper Esperanto. I communicate frequently with Japanese in Esperanto who do not speak English (and I could not do this in Japanese). Esperanto has already proven itself, and anyone who took the time to learn a little of it, will realize that Esperanto is uniquely designed to allow itself to adapt to many different linguistic patterns. Granted, there are variances of accent (nothing is perfect, least of all Esperanto), and anyone who has seen Professor Duncan Charter’s demonstration of Esperanto as spoken around the world realizes this (an entertaining and talented performance, I might add!). The examples provided of Yiddish, Papiamento, Russian, and the declaration that “Neither a common language nor a common government will ever become a reality...” etc., is referring to national/ethnic (“wild seed”) languages, not a structured and simple language such as Esperanto. These patois/mixture languages developed as a result of need to communicate, combined the complexity of a nation/ethnic language. Esperanto steps outside of these complications and provides a simple language, easily and quickly learned with clear-cut rules (only 16). There is not need to come up with a pidgin Esperanto because it is so clear, concise and simple to begin with. As for the impossibility of a “common language” ... that (I repeat) has never been the intention of Esperanto. Esperanto is intended only as a secondary, auxiliary language; a tool for communication which has been made freely available to the world. Stating that such things “will never be a reality” is purely ignorant. It was once said that man would never land on the moon; or that transmitting moving pictures through air was mere fantasy. Never say never... things change! When I hear someone state, “that’s reality!” I cringe. If history has proven any one thing, it is that it will rarely follow our precepts of so-called “reality.” I suggest people keep an open mind and take one day at a time. Enjoy life; adapt to change. Once, not all that long ago, the intellectuals of the day *knew* that the sun circled the Earth (which, as everyone *knew* ... was flat). Even our perception of reality changes! Esperanto is not out to take over the world. It is merely a very useful tool which has stood some test of time (over 100 years) and is at our disposal. It is a means by which we can communicate with our fellow human beings and learn to understand each other. It is not some dark movement of mysterious “Esperantists” gathering in cellars to plot world domination (contrary to what Hitler tried to tell people). We’re just common people who want to know, meet and communicate with other people in the world and realize we simply cannot learn ALL of those many and complicated languages. People can say I am wrong; agree with me, or disagree. (Or call me a “bonehead”). That’s okay, “it’s all good!” In fact, I will be in the admirable company of such prestigious personages as Einstein, Ptolemy, Copernicus, Darwin, etc. I can take no offense at that! <grin> These are simply my humble thoughts and feelings on the matter and I am but one insignificant person. History will develop as it will, with little, if any, consideration for our desires, beliefs or ideals. Time will tell, though we may not be here to see it. What will be, will be… come what may. Things change, but that’s good. It’s the opposite of stagnation!

 

6:30p – I called Marlene on the way home tonight and talked a while. It turns out that she stayed with "Lucy" (from Glenn Dabbs book), when she was little. We still have not been able to reach Kenneth. I sent him an email though.

Lisa brought my groceries over around 8pm.

RD made me a neat little graphic today. A "family album" with some of my family pictures in it. A very tedious process, I suspect, and very flattering of her to create this for me...

9:37p – 58° – Chuck called and he is still planning on visiting on the weekend of the 8th. Helen called me while I was on the line with him (trying to reach Ken!).

10:47p – 56° – Still cooking supper. I have rice cooking with the leftover roast from last night. I will have it with some kim chee that I bought today.

11:19p – 54° – That was a very good meal. I will have the same for lunch tomorrow. I am off to bed now.

WEDNESDAY - SEPTEMBER 29, 2004

7:22a – 43° – I slept a little better last night, though of course I had my wild dreams. I remember in one dream I was peering off the side of a bluff that dropped off into a river. I could see fish swimming in the very clear water. I was debating on whether or not it was too far to dive in from my vantage, or should I find a safer, lower location to get in the water. In another dream, S. Walker and other people I know, including Dr. TB were all wrestling in a huge bed. SW was under the covers and someone (I can't remember who, but female) was holding her down. She thought it was me. I thought it was very funny. Then the scene changes, ans SW is trying to fix her hearing-aid (though she does not actually wear one). I have no idea where this dream fragments originated! Weird!

7:30a – 43° – It is chilly this morning!

I met Skip at Barnes cafeteria this morning about 9ish and we went out to eat under at tent that they have set up outside. It was almost too chilly out! I began reading a new book this morning. The one by David L. Eddings about the theif, Althalus. I can't think of the name at the moment.

I walked down to the doctor's office and was there before 10:00a ... my appointment was for 10:30a. I got in almost immediately, so I was ahead of schedule. I got reluctant concurrence from Dr. P to continue my old meds since the new ones are going to cost more than I can afford. I got more blood drawn. We dicussed an alternative to the AndroGel, which is also tier-III medication and too expensive. If I do not show good results, I may start getting an intramuscular injection every 2 weeks. I really do not realish THAT prospect! Ouch!

11:56p – 50° – I just finished a supper of rice & chicken with kim chee on the side. Same planned for lunch tomorrow. Full... sleepy... and ... off to bed now!

THURSDAY - SEPTEMBER 30, 2004

I wore my sleeveless jacket to work this morning. I left early this morning and took my DVD's back to Block Buster. Then went by the grocery store and picked up a can of coffee for the office. I got my headset repaired. I got the lease in the mail.

8:32p – 60° – I have sneezing and sniffling tonight! I just took a double dose (2000mg) of vitamin C.