2018 World Cup wasn’t all that since the USA didn’t even qualify, and no one’s favorites seemed to have made it to the final, but it didn’t stop us from having a banging party. :-) Thanks everybody for making the trek to hang out – especially Rei and Julian riding out on the China Bus.
Category: All My Rowdy Friends
Even parking lot geese deserve a little care and love
Paty my kind coworker called that a family of geese were in distress and I met her to see what we could do. The poor little goslings were too small to get up the curb next to where they were hatched. We got some tape and rocks and made it a bit better for them. Such cute little ones! But don’t get too close or dad will have a word with you. By the end we found that the most wonderful kid working in the Mexican restaurant was their guardian angel and brought them food and water regularly. The wildlife officer came and said there was no need for him to intervene, even though the dad looked like he had a sprained leg everyone agreed their best chance was to carry on. And that they did.
Erik crashed in Raleigh
Chicago birthday party with Cara
Big break time! I took the weekend in Chicago for my birthday, a nice long Friday through Tuesday weekend. On the plane ride out I saw the biggest tablet I’ve ever seen. Envy….
Christian and I had so much fun creating and destroying universes in the Universe Simulator, shooting planets at each other and colliding galaxies. 
Just watch this guy lose his mind and you’ll have an idea of the fun. (Now I have it in VR too, unbelievable…)
Cara and I always have a beautiful time, just existing in the short time and space we have together. She found us a fantastic eatery, David Bowie approves. Heading out with Christian and Christina, we found a whole world of Chinese lantern art, some of it huge. We mostly own whatever city we are in, through walking.
On the plane ride home, I sat next to Melvin, who played football and trades stocks. He saw me coding AbetterTrader, and told me about his system and his “mentor”, Tim. They really have a good thing going – and they live in Raleigh, I’ll have to meet up with them soon.
Camera Yurt
Cara and I love the NCMA Park and have walked it many times, but this last weekend we made a new discovery hidden within: the Cloud Chamber for the Trees and Sky. Basically a huge vertical camera, a pinhole in the roof lets the sun and stars shine through to the floor and walls of the small yurt-like stone hut. We went in the middle of a blazing sunny day, and were rewarded with brilliant laser-like sunbeams. Which we of course used to comic effect. So fun.
Sharing maths with friends
Cara Dan and Erik are sharp non-programming friends of mine. We share life’s trials and tribulations with each other. So I shared a little bit of my recent programming stupidity with them. Oops.
When you try to explain basic things developers take for granted, you realize that they aren’t always intuitive. :-)
Music Stream Scream Cave
Visiting Reiley last weekend was the straw that broke the pay-for-unlimited-streaming-music back. We have AT&T unlimited data now, thank the good lord, and Google music is free for 3 months with my new phone, then $10/mo. And the dam has broken. The stream I just started was White Stripes Beck Cake Dandy Warhols Blur Beasties Weezer Smashing Pumpkins Violent Femmes Pixies back to back. Easy listening.
On the other side of the coin is all the sweet sweet music of the streets of NYC on soundcloud. Start with AnimalShow and step through their following list to more goodness. Don’t miss Dave singing the blues, and Eli’s stuff it’s smart.
Animal Show is live and in the house
I finally got out for an Animal Show in NYC! Landed on Friday and found BKLYN House Hotel, our base of operations for the long weekend that included a Reiley move.
We met Al for lunch/dinner at Loving Hut, which I will always be grateful for. Hi Al! Great to meet you. :-)
First night, Reiley took me out to Bruno’s bar, Cape House, and he took far too good of us. His favorite, Fernet-Branca, a very complex tasty digestif, left me feeling far too happy and DJ’ing until 4am. I regret some song choices.
Saturday started out with recovery – sleeping and Champs breakfast in the afternoon – well worth the 30 minute wait for takeout of scrambled tofu, seitan strips, vegan sausage, hash browns, and coffee, which when combined made a miracle.
Al got a bass string replacement at Johhny Albino Music Center, and we picked up a tuner for Rei too.
We were ready to walk to the gig. Al said we are NOT getting an uber that is NOT Animal Show, awesome oops my bad, rofl… Reiley held out for Julian to skateboard up, and a ride with Dave that we heard rumble up from a couple blocks away. Dave’s southern charm had us all at ease and instantly smiling. This gang is beautiful and thick as thieves, I have to say.
The show was beyond high expectations, the videos speak for themselves. SO GOOD.
The Brooklyn Bazaar venue was crazy fun on multiple stories. Lower level was a barcade with pool and sweet potato fries that Eli and I had been obsessing over (and they payed off). Upstairs was the stage and dancehall. Highlights included the passing of the pink cowboy hat from stage to crowd and eventually landing on my head for most of the night. My first green room experience was full of friendly folks and free water (no drinking for me thank you!) and plenty of free second hand smoke, heh. Met Andy and Dale and Jonathan the MC, lots of band members including introducing myself to headliner Brianna who politely gave me a warm hello, spun on her heel, stepped up two steps to the stage, and crushed the audience within a moment. After the bands played, Jonathan and crew hosted a dance party, with Reiley and the other band members as judges. Reiley called me out to join the dance party! I again proved my cowardice. Next time I’m all in. Dave drove us home, what a gentleman, and I hit the sack at 2am while everyone else carried on.
Sunday started with vegan donuts at Dun-Well the vegan donut Mecca, as I watched the owner pour hand-brewed french presses one after the other into a huge tub from which we filled our silk-creamer-primed cups.
Monday morning allowed for another donut indulgence, you can never get enough and its a good thing I dont live close…. Then Reiley and I went shopping for some basics, and finished up with a game of Palace, before I headed to the airport. Wow!
Cara gets a tattoo
Cara got a tattoo after I said let’s get tattoos and she said OK and I said WHAT REALLY? What a coward! Check it out, it’s beautiful…
Chicago and Perfect Weather
Didn’t think they went together did you? They sure as climate change did this weekend. Cara and I biked and walked all over the balmified windy city, doing yoga betwixt the skyscrapers on 100o F astroturf, getting my feet analyzed at Fleet Sports (and Cara’s new favorite footwear!), to Sweetgreens, through the Chicago Cubs fans exiting on a high (chanting “USA USA” suck it Trump), on to pure-lefty palsy-frisbee… Also: devouring Nepalese food and playing Roblox with Christian, and getting 100% down with Johnny Lang at the House of Blues. Whoo!
