No more Serena, Michelle, and Monica!

Bingo of the day so far:

SNORTERS (90 points) - against Angela V.


High-scoring words of the day so far:

ATONIA (110 points) - against Michael M. [4W, two 2W; hooks off PE, SWIVED, and M]
OI (52 points) - against Raymond C. [2W, 4W; hook off UNSEW]
VASE (112 points) - against Shelley R.-B. [4W, two 2W]

I played QI off Wendy L.'s QI, and FUN off my own FUN in a game with Danny - yay for quirkiness!


Alice added me to Facebook - sweet! But I did discover that Serena, Michelle L., and Monica have unfriended me from Facebook... there could be more people, but I really don't know. Wish there was a way to find out, but then do I really wanna know? Hmm. *thinks* Oh well, at least my brother answered the phone - this disproves my theory about people being dead since they didn't answer their phones! Then again, I'm a bit hypocritical since I usually default to "hermit mode" and leave the phone OFF - we discussed Nathan, Jeremy, Dylan, Eric, rollerblading, plans, the Night Market, no gelato, basketball, and more. Should be interesting times tomorrow no matter what, hahaha.

Zodiac Killer mystery solved?!

Bingos of the night so far:

SMOKABLE (110 points) - against Wendy L.
INTERREX (80 points) - against Leslie U. [first time playing against someone who shares my name!]


High-scoring words of the night so far:

FISH (80 points; 4W, 2W), EBONIES (288 points; two 4W) - against Cindy A.
AHEAD (144 points) - against Katie O. [two 4W]
SMOKABLE (110 points) - against Wendy L. [2W; bingo]
FOVEAE (228 points) - against Pat K. [two 4W; hook off BLOND]
ASHEN (138 points) - against Shannon M. [two 4W; hook off MORAINE]

Katie played a QI off my QI - yay for quirkiness! :D [am also glad that Eric is NOT wasting a precious commodity tomorrow; he SHOULD be here with us instead of with K!]


Kaufman / This guy claims his stepdad was the Zodiac Killer - thanks, Corey!

[14:29:38] Corey: someone claims his stepdad was the Zodiac Killer, found pictures of dead people, a bloody knife, a mask, and lots of stuff, handwriting matches, locations match, habits match, etc... :P
[14:31:25] Corey: if you watch the video in that article (first link), they have more videos with this guy talking about things after the regular article ends
[14:35:32] Corey: his site doesn't talk about the hood and stuff that he found (unless I missed that part)... in the article, he says he found it in a PA system his stepdad had borrowed before
[14:36:29] Corey: at the bottom of his site, he also has a picture of one of the guy's real sons who looks similar to a composition in a Zodiac case where the suspect didn't look anything like how he usually did
[14:38:07] Corey: plus, last I heard, the DNA evidence didn't match up on the leading suspect :P the only fishy thing is that the site says he's been in contact with the FBI since like 2001... and in the article, he acts like they're on the case right now getting ready to send in the DNA results. that doesn't take 7 years :P
[14:59:36] Corey: look at the "radian" stuff. there was a postcard with his symbol on a mountain in the area with some vague instructions about radians... and anyway, if you draw radian lines with known Zodiac killings, you end up with straight lines, and there's tons of unsolved murders that match up on all the lines :P plus he says that he was always pinpointing their location on a map when they went camping
[14:59:49] Corey: but, I've also found something that says this guy is full of it and is just trying to make money or hates his stepdad, so who knows :P his website has some pretty interesting stuff though
[15:01:14] Flami: yeah, that's true... where did you find this?
[15:03:30] Corey: Something Awful, where else? :P
[15:04:08] Corey: I don't know if that's public or not, but you can try :P sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't
[15:06:45] Flami: I can access it!
[15:08:25] Flami: what the heck is with Adbot?
[15:09:28] Corey: you get that if you're not registered :P I think it's a bot script that responds to what was actually said in the first post
[15:10:03] Corey: they also filter bad words if you're not logged in.. something about advertisers not liking all the swearing there :P
[15:10:51] Corey: "Wow this guy pretty much has every possible necessary shred of evidence to pin it on his stepdad..

I'm inclined to believe this is really just a "fuck you, dad!" type revenge thing, but maybe not"
[15:11:04] Corey: I'd guess that says "gently caress you, dad!" for you :P
[15:12:26] Corey: well, I looked at it, logged out... and Adbot isn't saying funny things, just showing ads...
[15:12:48] Corey: and showing random pictures of old ladies...
[15:13:42] Flami: yeah, it does say "gently caress you, dad!" for me... and I remember the censoring
[15:13:59] Corey: loving = fucking
[15:14:34] Corey: wow, that's kind of annoying.. ads down the side, and it took me to eBay randomly.... you don't get any of that shit if you're logged in :P
[15:15:05] Flami: oh, okay... I don't get the funny pictures of old ladies, probably because I have Adblock anyway
[15:15:48] Corey: I opened it in IE (I'm logged in with Firefox), which doesn't have adblock :P
[15:16:25] Corey: actually, it might... they have addons now too since IE7 just ripped off all the good things from Firefox.. but I've never bothered to get any since I don't use IE much
[15:18:19] Flami: someone I know asked if IE had something like Adblock, but I wasn't able to give Pat much of a reply!
[15:20:22] Corey: well, they have an add-on site for it..
[15:22:49] Flami: okay, I just got a funny picture of an old lady... the other Adbot posts were a picture of a parking sign saying "Reserved Parking for the World's Best Grandma"

Yogurt, soup, popcorn, perogies, and more!

Just went shopping at Save-On, and was true to my consumer whore tendencies. Found a variety BOX of over 100 perogies from Cheemo, so had to get that! Potato cheddar and potato / bacon / Romano cheese sounds good, although I don't know about potato and onion... might not taste so good without the cheese, hehe. Knorr came out with three new soups, so I had to try those even if they weren't on sale. Yellow soup consists of sweet corn, apricot, and curry; orange soup consists of butternut squash, carrot, and ginger; red soup consists of red bell pepper, tomato, and paprika. Sounds like fall soups mostly, which is good. You'd never know it was the end of August by looking out the window here! Maybe if you were in Kelowna or something... which reminds me, I miss Jeremy! (that reminds me of the time Mom called him "Germany" - what the?!)

Decided to try gooseberries, since they were on sale ($1.28?), and also saved $2 on blueberries. Got one of the last two DIBS containers - ROLO takes me back to the days of Fill-Ins, Nathan Goldman, his brother Jeffrey, and a bit later to Andrew Rollo! Saw a tub of mango-pineapple yogurt, so got that along with a variety "dessert flavor" pack of 12: lemon meringue parfait, raspberry cranberry crumble, cherry delight, and strawberry Chantilly! Was going to get Pringles Szechuan BBQ and some canned tuna, but forgot - CRAP! Oh well, maybe next time! I also decided to get ten bags of extra buttery popcorn: not the healthiest alternative available, but I figure you only live once! (I'll jokingly blame Auntie Fonda for this, since she's supplied popcorn to the toddlers for at least three weeks running by now)

Barry came by and moved the couch for me - yup, there were dead mice! (not to mention the mouse droppings in various places) I didn't know his kids were half-Japanese... interesting! I'll do what David says, and work with him - it'll be better that way, maybe. He knows what to look for and such, and has a refreshing perspective on things! Time to call the numbers he left me, for sure! Also threw out a bunch of other stuff that's just taking up space (mine or K's? haha), and reconnected with people - YAY!

Now he's menacing my SUBCONSCIOUS?!

Hahaha, I find this amusing: I just added some SUNSHINE (sunlight, really) to SUNNY SUN'S garden. Amusing synchronicity! :D (Have also changed my response to tonight's dessert outing: I don't need to be reminded of certain people! Guess I'll have to wait till Sunday to see at least one of my favorites...)


I had a rather timely dream last night! It was set at church, and the first part involved my finding a bunch of missing birthday cards which were then exactly a year overdue. Ian accepted his double birthday cards, and then asked me whether I knew how old he was! Of course I do, my little friend! Then I saw Fidela, whom I wasn't expecting to see since she was supposed to be elsewhere! I asked her what had happened, and she said that she got a bonus week to stay here. Fair enough, so at least she got two birthday cards! Jon alerted me to Grandma's presence, so I passed her some Gatorade over his head.

Then Korey insisted on going into the church, even though we knew he didn't really fit in. He menaced everyone with his fist, so the vulnerable hid in the church office while Tim and Katherine were counting offering money! Eric came in to inform me that Korey really wanted some rings back, so I told him that I didn't have them. Then we barred the door while we all visualized being somewhere else in time - it actually worked!

We seemed to be in an airport lounge of some sort, and I recall being quite distressed that Jon was giving away his newest stereo: it was SO SILVER with GREAT BUTTONS! Mom gave us an autographed yellow book to read while we waited for employees to collect everyone's stuff in black garbage bags. I tried convincing Jon NOT to give away his stereo as well as his knapsack full of school supplies, but to no avail. After Jon's stuff had been collected.... WHOOSH! We were back at the church office AGAIN!

Funnily enough, my parents insisted that I go out with Korey - I emphatically opined that I didn't WANT to! He didn't seem to understand that I didn't HAVE his stupid rings: if I did, I'd gladly give them to Eric for return purposes! Jon asked me why I didn't want to have contact with him, and I told him to chat with me near the lockers downstairs. (don't ask me why the church had lockers - IT'S A DREAM! :P) My parents were waiting near the back door of the basement, in plaid outfits - man, it was RETRO! For some reason, the church sound system piped in some David Archuleta songs along with 80s tunes - oh my. I said that I was tired of people telling me what to do, and definitely tired of someone insisting that I obey him! Everyone thought those were valid reasons, and I woke up when we had Korey barred in an underground dungeon! (we also told him that we wouldn't accept his fifty cents later on!)


Triggers: listening to 80s music in David's car yesterday, reading THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, Billie saying stuff about forgetting her rings, Billie saying she won't pull a Yazmine on me (SHE ended our friendship over fifty cents!), talking about life with David, seeing some Gatorade in my cupboard, realizing that I'm REALLY LATE on August birthday cards (although Ian's birthday is July 4), and certain other reflections. Hmm. I know what I gotta do! (as for the David Archuleta, I guess Korey's preference found its way into the dream - at least it wasn't rap or anything!)

Thank goodness for David! / A letter to the last commenter in my journal

High-scoring words of the night so far:

HORN (112 points) - against Guy M. [two 4W]
ZETA (104 points) - against Shelley R.-B. [4W, 2W]
LIST (82 points) - against Josephine S. [hook on AXION to make LA, SI, and TO]
AIVER (120 points) - against Steve L. [two 4W]


David picked me up, and off we went to various places around Richmond while discussing old school friends / Scott / Tara / Christine / hell / cats / Save-On / other things. Man, I am appalled at the appearance of SOME apartment / townhouse complexes! Some places reminded me of McNair, Palmer, my Chilliwack experience (SO MUCH MESS!), the projects / ghetto, and the time I spent delivering newspapers. He's more optimistic than I am, which helps! We repaired to Quizno's / Orange Julius for a bite to eat afterward. Bleh to misty rain! (my sister's seen my "status" - OH NO, HAHA!) Saw the Citruso truck, too - HAHAHAHA! Just reminds me of that time going to Montana's, and I *have* to tell Danielle! :D


I got this from the latest posts page this afternoon:

Dear (the last person who left a comment on your journal).

I don't really know how to tell you this, but ___1___. I think I realized it ___2___ ___3___ and I saw you ___4___ ___5___. I'm sure you're ___6___ enough to understand ___7___. I'm returning ___8___ to you, but I'll keep ___9___ as a memory. You should also know that I ___10___ ___11___.

___12___, Your name


1. What's the color of your shirt?
Blue - Our romance is over
Red - Our affair is over
White - I'll join the monastery
Black - I dislike you
Green - Our horoscope doesn't match
Grey - You're a pervert
Yellow - I'm selling myself
Pink - Your nostrils are insulting
Brown - The Mafia wants you
No shirt - You're a loser
Other - I'm in love with your sister


2. Which is your birth month?
January - That night
February - Last year
March - When your dwarf bit me
April - When I tripped on sesame seeds
May - First of May
June - When you put cuffs on me
July - When I threw up
August - When I saw the shrunken head
September - When we skinny-dipped
October - When I quoted Santa
November - When your dog ran amok
December - When I changed tennis shoes

3. Which food do you prefer?
Tacos - In your apartment
Pizza - In your camping car
Pasta - Outside of Chicago
Hamburgers - Under the bus
Salad - As you ate enchilada
Chicken - In your closet
Kebab - With Paris Hilton
Fish - In women's clothing
Sandwiches - At the Hare Krishna graduation
Lasagna - At the mental hospital
Hot dog - Under a state of trance
None of the above - With George Bush and his wife

4. What's the color of your socks?
Yellow - Hit on
Red - Insult
Black - Ignore
Blue - Knock out
Purple - Pour syrup on
White - Carve your initials into
Grey - Pull the clothes off
Brown - Put leeches on
Orange - Castrate
Pink - Pull the toupee off
Barefoot - Sit on
Other - Drive out

5. What's the color of your underwear?
Black - My best friend
White - My father
Grey - Bill Clinton
Brown - My fart balloon
Purple - My mustard soufflé
Red - Donald Duck
Blue - My avocado plant
Yellow - My penpal in Ghana
Orange - My Kid Rock collection
Pink - Manchester United's goalkeeper
None - My John F. Kennedy statue
Other - The crazy monk

6. What do you prefer to watch on TV?
Scrubs - Man
O.C. - Emotional
One Tree Hill - Open
Heroes - Frostbitten
Lost - High
House - Scarred
Simpsons - Cowardly
The news - Mongolic
Idol - Masochistic
Family Guy - Senile
Top Model - Middle-class
None of the above - Ashamed

7. Your mood right now?
Happy - How awful I've felt
Sad - How boring you are
Bored - That Santa doesn't exist
Angry - That your pimples are at the last stage
Depressed - That we're cousins
Excited - That there is no solution to this
Nervous - The Middle East
Worried - That your Volkswagen sucks
Apathetic - That I did a sex-change
Ashamed - That I'm allergic to your hamster
Cuddly - That I get turned on by garbage men
Overjoyed - That I'm open
Other - That Extreme Home Makeover sucks

8. What's the color of your walls in your bedroom?
White - Your ring
Yellow - Your love letters
Red - Your Darth Vader poster
Black - Your tame stone
Blue - The couch cushions
Green - The pictures from L.A.
Orange - Your false teeth
Brown - Your contact book
Grey - Our matching Snoopy bibs
Purple - Your old lottery coupons
Pink - The cut toenails
Other - Your memories from the military service

9. The first letter of your first name?
A/B - Your photo
C/D - The oil stocks
E/F - Your neighbour Martin
G/H - My virginity
I/J - The results of your blood sample
K/L - Your left ear
M/N - Your suicide note
O/P - My common sense
Q/R - Your mom
S/T - Your collection of butterflies
U/V - Your criminal record
W/X - David's tricot outfits
Y/Z - Your grades from college

10. The last letter in your last name?
A/B - Always will remember
C/D - Never will forget
E/F - Always wanted to break
G/H - Never openly mocked
I/J - Always have felt dirty before
K/L - Will tell the authorities about
M/N - Told in my confession today about
O/P - Was interviewed by the Times about
Q/R - Told my psychiatrist about
S/T - Get sick when I think of
U/V - Always will try to forget
W/X - Am better off without
Y/Z - Never liked

11. What do you prefer to drink?
Water - Our friendship
Beer - Senility
Soft drink - A new life as a clone
Soda - The incarnation as an Eskimo
Milk - The apartment building
Wine - Cocaine abuse
Cider - A passionate interest for mice
Juice - Oprah Winfrey imitations
Mineral water - Embarrassing rash
Hot chocolate - Eggplant fetishism
Whisky - The Second World War
Other - The Boston Celtics

12. To which country would you prefer to go on a vacation?
Thailand - Warm regards
USA - Best regards
England - Good luck on your short-term leave from jail
Spain - Go and drown yourself
China - Disgusting regards
Germany - With ease
Japan - Go burn
Greece - Your everlasting enemy
Australia - Greetings to your frog Leonard
Egypt - Fuck off now
France - In pain
Other - Greetings to your freaky family


Dear Missy:

I don't really know how to tell you this, but your nostrils are insulting. I think I realized it when we skinny-dipped in your closet and I saw you ignore my avocado plant. I'm sure you're senile enough to understand that your Volkswagen sucks. I'm returning your ring to you, but I'll keep your suicide note as a memory. You should also know that I never openly mocked our friendship.
Greetings to your frog Leonard, Leslie.

HAHAHA. TOO FUNNY! :D

Good times with Billie! / Funny MARIO videos

Bingos of the day so far:

REORIENT (82 points) - against Doug W.
GENTIANS (60 points) - against Kathy T.


High-scoring word of the day so far:

DEITY (156 points) - against Sara H. [two 4W, plus a hook off BLOOD]


Billie and I had lots of fun when she was here: watching various MARIO Youtube videos (Zangief / MegaMan crossovers?!), loving the Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show videos, playing Bubble Blaster, looking at various Facebook photos and discussion boards, laughing about jokes / Forward Garden, telling each other about stupid mispronunciations / people, reading about how others screw up people's names, Persian names, friends, typing, Facebook chat, lyrics, weird dreams, etc. Hey, we do agree that we don't want to look at certain things for reminders! It was GREAT TIMES, haha. Persian names probably WILL get slaughtered quite a lot! We also took some silly pictures since she brought her camera - YAY! Good thing that I do understand her, and my older friends get me as well... nothing wrong with "age-gap friendships," hehe. :D (also added Guy to Facebook!)

Super Mario Fusion: Mario Meets Mega Man
Mario by hand
Many-Worlds Mario: Kaizo level 1
Peter Griffin in SUPER MARIO LAND
Michael Jackson Invades SUPER MARIO WORLD
Asshole Mario Stage 1
Zangief in Mario Stage
Super Mario Super Randomness 3
Super Mario: 2 Sexy
Mario the F***er
M. Bison destroys Mario World 1-1 (literally)

Yes, Mom... I'm cheating on my boyfriend with another GIRL....

Mom sent me an email earlier today, but I didn't get it till now since I was hanging around with Billie. Great Pho, talk about people, and laughing over strange things... good times! So I get on the phone with Mom to tell her that I can't make it to the townhouse tomorrow - something about Shaw technicians and Grandma being too afraid to open the door to a stranger. Can't - got plans with Billie AND David! This is the conversation that follows:

Me: Hi, Mom! I just got your email ten minutes ago!
Mom: Huh?! Why did you just get it now?
Me: Oh, I was hanging around with my friend!
Mom: Who is this friend?
Me: Billie. [because Mom would NOT get her Persian name - TRUST ME ON THIS!]
Mom: ... a GUY?! Do you have another boyfriend? [because what I *obviously* do in my spare time is cheat on people with GIRLS since I've discovered I'm bi... and THAT discovery's happened in the past 24 hours or so!]
Me: No, Mom. She is a GIRL. [y'know... like Billie Holiday]
Mom: Oh. Where did you meet her? Online?
Me: Yes...
Mom: ... is she in a GANG?! {very concerned maternal voice}
Me: ... NO, Mom. She's NOT that kind of person! [thinking, "I'm sure there are Persian gangster triads around, but I've never heard of one... but of course Mom would think that since EVERYONE online MUST be in a gang. Therefore, I myself must be leading a secret double life!"]
Mom: Okay... *very dubious* What are you doing?
Me: Just hanging around. I was calling to say I can't make it tomorrow since we don't know what's happening because she's sleeping over.
Mom: ... does she have a FAMILY?!
Me: ... um, yes. Her mother just called her. [I omit that her mom called her 12 times in a row...]
Mom: Oh, okay. But why is she sleeping over?
Me: Because I slept over at her place before, and I'm just returning the favor. [not to mention it would be a bit mean to kick her out at 10 to transit all the way back three zones to Coquitlam!]
Mom: Well... okay. Bye now!
Me: Bye...


Time to update our respective Facebook statuses, hahaha. :D

Let's wreck form while planning...

Bingo of the night so far:

UNITAGE (106 points) - against Karla M.


High-scoring words of the night so far:

WRECK (224 points) - against Colin W. [two 4W]
FORME (160 points) - against Michael M. [two 4W]
REEVE (136 points) - against Raymond C. [two 4W]
TEWS (123 points) - against Matthew A. [two 4W]
UNITAGE (106 points) - against Karla M. [bingo; 2W]


Found a place for $600, but it's a studio apartment. Corey looked it up for me, and found this nugget of info: "A studio apartment (studio flat in the United Kingdom), or an efficiency apartment or bachelor style apartment, is a self-contained, small apartment, which combines living room, bedroom, and kitchenette into a single unit, barring a bathroom." So... that means a room and a bathroom, and that's it." Maybe I can get David to help me look, haha... he says he'll be happy to, in fact! :D

Billie and I are definitely going to hang out tomorrow here - perfect, since I'll have money! Eric H. thinks I should talk to Nathan as well... sounds good! Sugar, Kelowna, relationships, breaks, prayer, intimidation, Flickr, brilliant hookup ideas, Danielle, Citrus, Norman, Christon, cynicism, love, sleeping in your living room, people, applications, and more... woo! Gotta love GOOD FRIENDS!

It's wonderful to talk!

High-scoring words of the day:

OYEZ (156 points; 2W and 4W), AGOG (384 points; three 4W) - against Karla M.
AGLOW (147 points) - against Shelley R.-B. [4W, two 2W]


Been talking to David about a bunch of stuff - it'll be so good to see him, finally! I know some bits of his story, and TRUST is an excellent thing to have. Catching up with Billie, as well... journal accounts, GJ dying, moving, Myspace, feelings, being Persian, incompetent professionals, etc. Now I can't find SUPER MARIO WORLD - great, Eric's going to kill me. :P

Rent BC

No chocolate sausage for YOU!

I had a weird dream which pretty much consisted of my mom, her co-workers, and Kathy T. as a bride sitting at these picnic tables. They were overseeing their own private enclave in the middle of a forest, while the sounds of a summer camp were going on below. Cindy came up with a few kids - they told each other NOT to step on Box #9, because then the spring on it would catapult them further into the forest. Man, the kids were noisy when they wanted to go to the lake and swim! They eventually settled on a suspension bridge, and had fun with the stairs carved in the trail.

Mom and her friends wouldn't allow me to have more than a few bites of their food on Styrofoam plates. They were going to allow me to have a chocolate sausage, but then decided that they'd be better served by having it themselves. In fact, they told me to go away beyond the boundaries of their spot! Kathy was the only one who was nice to me, and she gave me a chart that demonstrated a family's birth dates - March Perry got married to a nice boy, but then she went crazy and murdered her sister! I was supposed to solve this, but the dream ended before I could.


Possible triggers:

* the I LOVE A MYSTERY old-time radio show that I've been listening to for the past three weeks (Faith "Fay," Hope, Charity "Cherry," Job, actresses, crying baby, Grandma Martin, murder!)
* seeing Kathy's display picture all over the place on certain Facebook discussion boards
* not sure where the rest of it came from - I can't possibly be processing the July hiking program NOW, more than a month after it happened!

Ah well, time to eat now. I think I'm recovered from consuming a LOT of meat the other night at Alan's! Yesterday, I didn't eat much at all: some peanut butter, and three pudding cups left over from some time ago. (vanilla / butterscotch / chocolate!)

---

I posted an ad on Craigslist looking for a place by October 1. Got a response already, thank goodness. Did some preliminary research, and found a couple of places: however, one is on the third floor in a walk-up suite. No elevator?! What if you need to carry laundry up (shared laundry on the ground floor), or have something else that's heavy? As Billie brought up yesterday, I certainly wouldn't want to fall down all those stairs in the event of a power failure! Found one near the Oak St. Bridge, which is still in Richmond! The reply says, "I have a brand new apartment in central Richmond, and they're looking for roommates. It is a 2/2 apartment near Lansdowne Mall, and only 5 minutes to the future Skytrain station. I will move at the end of August." Hmm... maybe if they're willing to wait a month and can agree to arrangements?

Talking to Billie is GOOD TIMES / Computer specs

High-scoring words of the night so far:

ISOTACH (768 points) - against Pat K. [three 4W]
VOILE (128 points) - against Jono M. [two 4W]


Went to the library to get THE TIME-TRAVELER'S WIFE and a book on women's psychology. Should be interesting reading! Talked to Corey and Billie about friends, plans, hanging out, out-of-order reactions, and highlighters. Andrew confirmed that he and Adam are twins - he's two minutes older. HA, I KNEW IT! :P


[19:24:41] Flami: the hamsterette: STUPID COMPUTER!
[19:24:51] Corey: well, FINE, I'll just tell you to make it work and stay here......................
[19:25:45] Flami: actually, it might be useful to have you here since you can look for new computers with me
[19:27:46] Corey: or you can find something you like, and write down the specs and I'll tell you if that's good or not :P
[19:29:43] Corey: here's your checklist:
15.4" (or bigger) non-glossy / shiny screen

1-2gb+ of RAM minimal, 2 for sure if you're getting Vista

No Celeron or Sempron processors, get an Intel Core 2 Duo processor if possible

Media buttons are a plus
[19:29:55] Corey: just make sure it has all that and it should be A-OK, boss
[19:29:58] Flami: should I go for Craigslist or Future Shop?
[19:30:46] Corey: uh, I think Future Shop = Best Buy here, so probably there even though they suck... just don't listen to much they have to say about what you need... they don't know what they're talking about, or they'll just try to sell you more than you need :P
[19:31:01] Corey: Craigslist is probably a pretty crappy place to be making big purchases
[19:32:19] Flami: yeah... although it does seem cheap, but Future Shop does have store policies on returns and repair, I think
[19:33:38] Corey: yeah, they'll sell you a replacement policy if you let them... then when you go to use it, you'll have to have it sent in and fixed like 9000 times before they give in and get you a replacement like you paid for :P
[19:33:56] Corey: but you should at least get a manufacturer's warranty no matter what
[19:34:31] Corey: if you have places like Office Depot or other office type stores.. Staples, Office Max, whatever, they usually have okay stuff too
[19:37:07] Flami: we have Office Depot, and Staples stores are everywhere
[19:38:06] Corey: well, check those. they're probably better
[19:39:08] Corey: Staples carries Dell stuff now. the brands really probably don't matter all that much, but they've worked pretty well for us... they use Indian tech support though, so if that's a concern, it's not the best choice :P
[19:42:24] Flami: is Indian tech support good or bad?
[19:47:31] Corey: Indian call centers suck ass. they have a script they will never deviate from (so you can't really ask anything), you often can't understand what they're saying, and they're trained to wear you down so you'll give up on asking for a supervisor if you want actual help
[19:47:39] Corey: so yeah, they're great :P
[19:49:38] Flami: hmm.. I've read some Dell horror stories, so maybe not...
[19:53:36] Corey: look at any company, nobody likes any of them :P so it doesn't really matter that much
[19:54:08] Corey: oh, Lenovo is supposed to be good these days.. they're the people that designed the IBM Thinkpads or something, and now they have their own Thinkpads or some shit, and they're supposedly good
[19:55:38] Flami: yeah, my sister has one of those Lenovo laptops
[19:59:34] Corey: just find something that looks decent to you, and the keyboard and touchpad seem good :P nobody agrees on brands
[20:00:50] Corey: mine's a Dell and is over 4 years old now with no problems or things breaking... the left mouse button has a spot now where the blue paint or whatever actually rubbed off, so that doesn't look so great, but no issues other than that :P
[20:01:14] Corey: I have a marker the same exact color, and colored the blue back in, but it doesn't stay :P
[20:03:17] Flami: hahaha... should I get you a coloring book for Christmas then? :P
[20:04:24] Corey: no, it's my laptop that needs coloring! and I'm going to try it again right now, dammit
[20:04:43] Corey: this time, I'll use my good alcohol-based markers.. the last time, I tried it with a normal water-based one
[20:07:24] Corey: I haven't been into drawing and art much since high school, but I used to be decent at it and really into comic-style art... so I have a bunch of good quality alcohol markers that don't show streaks and stuff, and you can even blend colors and stuff
[20:10:55] Flami: hey, that sounds really good then!
[20:15:47] Corey: well, it's staying so far and I accidentally put my finger there a couple times before letting it dry :P so maybe it'll work
[20:16:36] Flami: haha, whoops... maybe it will :D
[20:18:16] Corey: probably better at least. those markers kick your ass. I used them for most of the stuff that got into school art shows and they make my stuff look better than anyone else's :P
[20:19:49] Corey: here's a funny church video for you :P
[20:20:31] Flami: what is hyper threading?!
[20:21:26] Corey: it's sort of a way of making a processor act like two... kinda. you don't need to worry about that :P it's not bad, but you don't really need it either
[20:22:02] Corey: it's in most Intel CPUs, so you'll probably get it if you get Intel... it really doesn't matter as far as you're concerned :P
[20:30:32] Flami: the hamsterette: oh, okay... I saw some reference to that on a Craigslist ad...
[20:30:50] Flami: the hamsterette: and how does one processor act like two?!
[20:39:16] Corey: it's just the way it organizes the instructions it needs to do, basically. look it up on Wikipedia... it explains that, and then you won't understand it, and all will be well :P
[20:40:15] Flami: um, thanks... I was looking for a non-tech explanation :P
[20:41:10] Corey: well, there you go! it's how it deals with stuff :P

Rats in books! / The church's website has been hacked?!

High-scoring words of the day so far:

BIZE (120 points) - against Alice P. [4W, 2W]
SMILING (224 points) - against Pat K. [two 4W]
NUDIE (200 points) - against Pearl S. [2W, two 4W]

Pearl S. played JO off my JO - yay for quirkiness! :D


At about 6:30 this morning, I distinctly heard what sounded like someone flipping pages very near my bed. Since there's nobody here except me (and I was in bed), I automatically concluded that the noise was caused by rodents moving around! That is totally the LAST STRAW! Once it was a more reasonable time, I decided to call Barry and set up a time for shopping / tell him my intentions. He said that he hadn't heard of anyone else living here that had experienced that many issues with mice, but I countered that getting Amacon to hire an exterminator would be problematic at best! I know that it'll be difficult finding one in so short a time, but I can always hope! Yes, I also realize that mice don't READ... but that noise was very distinct, and NOT the product of hallucinations / dreamland. :P

Guess I should go on Craigslist and see what I can find for October 1 in a specific price range... and walk to / from the library while the weather's still good. (this led to a Saturday discussion with Corey about college libraries and crazy bedlam!) Apparently, the forecast calls for RAIN till Friday or so - yikes! Have also missed three calls or so - stupid blocked numbers! Guess I'll return the ones from an actual number once I get back / if I feel like it... especially since I wasn't home at 4:40 PM yesterday! (and was sleeping at 9:15 AM today)

The words in my current game with George sorta form a sentence: winged toilet gustily fatal: stagy askers drown five {film at 11} ... I like the first part best! :D


Writer's Block: Music and Moods
How do different types of music relate to your moods?

See this entry from FIVE YEARS AGO!
View other answers.

Writer's Block: Your Online Hot Spots
Where do you spend most of your time on the web?

LJ, Facebook, Craigslist, the Crime Library...
View other answers.

Yesterday, Raymond and I were discussing the church website being hacked. He knew about it because he was trying to download Powerpoint notes earlier in the week. Eric took screenshots, and has posted them on Facebook - I've just Photobucketed them myself. Not surprised that he's shocked - I think a good number of us were!


What do you mean, it's a source of malware?!




Stupid successful infection with a scripting exploit...




VCEFC.org is now an ATTACK SITE?!

Reading about serial killers is perfect avoidance!

Before we went to Alan's, my brother and I stopped by a Steveston organic store for apple pie. Then we hit up Brewery Creek (next door to Bellagio Gelato) for a bunch of beer, including Thomas Hardy's Ale and some stuff which went well with barbecued meats. (I want to say that he bought Anarchist Amber Ale, but that may not be totally correct!) We also laughed over my grandma's reaction at Pho lunch to our eating some unwashed organic watercress: "AIYA! What do you mean, you don't have to wash it before you eat it?!" I think we lacked the language to explain what watercress IS, let alone "no pesticides on this!" Hahaha. Jon put in the Boredoms' POP TATARI - I'd forgotten how cool that noise music can be! :D

We could hear Christon as we knocked on Alan's door after being let in - the apartment looks much as I remember it from the Spanish Banks event YEARS ago. I went into the kitchen and stayed there for a few minutes, but realized I was in people's way - good thing I brought along my SERIAL KILLER FILES, haha! Settled down in the living room with some beer: of course my reading material occasioned some comment! I had to reassure Sonny that I wasn't a serial killer, Christon and Karen thought it was "interesting," Tony wanted to know whether I wanted to profile / catch those people, and Raymond didn't expect that of me!

Discussed Alan and Billy's Bible Study relationship, Tracy, Denise, school, email addresses / IM names, the fireworks, PNE, summer highlights, guy hangouts, 90210, ROMEO MUST DIE, ROMEO + JULIET, politics, relationships, date ideas, duck tongues, salmon (Sonny got some for me!) / zucchini / the changes in the next few months being hard on people who like structure, order, and predictability. (which means that I better adapt...) Raymond noticed some odd sentence structure on the dried fruit chips package, and my brother compared it to German with its past tense and verbs. Christon said that he once had to put some stuff through Babelfish, and his boss actually accepted the German "translation" which Christon was paid for!

We also talked about Andrew's hilarious grad roast for his brother Adam: "Through the years, Adam has changed both positively AND negatively! If you ever want advice on how to HOOK UP with the LADIES, I'll be there!" Some of us always thought they were twins, while some of us insisted that they were just a year apart. Guess I'll ask Andrew later! Sonny was kinda bored, so he wanted to play cards: he found a deck which his brother advised him to put back. He and I were both looking at Alan's music collection; at least now I *finally* know who that "nobody wants to see us together, but it doesn't matter" (had to clean up the ridiculous grammar! :P) song is by (Akon)! I was inwardly critiquing the music collection: Mariah Carey, Akon, Usher, various movie soundtracks, Offspring (YAY!), TLC, etc. Not my cup of tea, but I do realize people have different musical tastes... and Alan IS a good guy! He has a bunch of movies, including TITANIC and THE BLACK DAHLIA which Karen and I were discussing earlier in the context of discussing what to do for my birthday! (Facebook invites?!) Someone brought up the concept of Tony's ideal girl as fleshed out during a small group discussion: the more Karen and I heard about this, the more we wanted to make a "slit throat" gesture! ("She needs to be the one to make time for ME, she has to be content with not a lot of communication, she should keep out of my business...")

Eventually, Sonny asked Alan if he could put in ZOOLANDER - perfect, since I was needing some downtime myself. I'm glad to recognize a fellow non-social person... too bad he's like half my age, haha! We all settled in to watch: Christon and Nathan remembered a joke they made about Uncle Hansel when this movie came out, haha. I told Nathan that I'd forgotten how stupidly funny the movie could be! "HOW CAN YOU TEACH THEM HOW TO READ IF THEY CAN'T EVEN FIT INSIDE THE BUILDING?!?!" "I was NOT at a day spa for a week!" "There's no easy way to say this, Hansel, but Derek's been brainwashed to kill the Prime Minister of Malaysia." "There was a moment last night, when she was sandwiched between the two Finnish dwarves and the Maori tribesmen, where I thought, "Wow, I could really spend the rest of my life with this woman"."

It was definitely a good end to the night! (took Christon's figs on the way home - $6!) Yay for David Bowie and Owen Wilson, haha. Makes me want to get the latest TV system and a bunch of moves, so I can relax too... not like that's ever gonna happen! (Jon and I discussed Jeremy / sleeping earlier as an improvement / Chinese Eric / Steph's comment about dismembered bodies / Nathan on the way home)

Guess I need to grow up!

Hey, Josh S. added me to Facebook - VERY AWESOME! I remember that I trusted him almost automatically as soon as I met him YEARS ago during Daniel Fellowship... very nice and friendly guy! :D

My brother and I signed some late August cards on the way to church, even though we didn't really want to. As I told Connie, Facebook is good! Talked to Phil, Grace, Raymond, and Roy before service started - good thing Dylan canceled his rollerblading event because of ALL THE HEAVY RAIN! (the Grouse Grind hangout was off, too) Discussed Evites, people (not) going to various events, avoidance of people, and other things. Said hi to some of the kids, as well. After service, I asked Eric whether he was going tonight to Alan's since it was still on - he didn't think so, since he was doing stuff with Alistair. I jokingly said that he'd ruined my day, while saying hi to Henry and Benedict. (also said hi to Lily and her daughter Hannah)

Went to the back parking lot, but didn't go down the ramp - NOT GOOD! Joined Johnny, Calla, and Raymond there in a discussion about the weather; when Julie left with Calla, some of us were left without an umbrella to stand under! Dylan and his crew made a quick Lombardo's lunch decision, while I talked to Tony about tonight and his brother needing to meet people instead of staying home. When I heard that Alan had invited a particular person, I was ready NOT to go - I even told my brother, who said I was avoiding the situation. Too true! At least Friday will be easier for me, hehe.

Eventually, I decided to get in out of the rain after I gave Cindy and Kevin their birthday cards. Sunday School was all right - Rachel's grandmother gave us figs to eat, Eric told Auntie Fonda that she needed $150 in Monopoly money to pay for her "food," Amanda added $200 to that, and we had popcorn afterwards. Interacted Interacted with some of the kids later on while talking to Chrystal, Auntie Vivian, and Ada about eating / Awana (training) / secretary role as a change / homemade butter. Sean seems bigger than last week, and Ian talked to me for two minutes about summer. Went upstairs and discussed "expensive" food with Eric T., Sonny, Tony, and Jon - $5 is pushing it in Hong Kong, so $26 for two people is WAY RICH! Tony and Sonny might have gone to Metrotown to play WARHAMMER - Jon and I ate Pho with our family. (tomato beef stew ROCKS!) I debated NOT going tonight, but maybe discretion is the word - besides, I have a new true favorite person! (not in the sarcastic sense, either) Nathan will be so tired from his psychology conference! Guess they'll have random conversations!