I still had the lingering effects of Monday's bug, so I took another day off from work. I didn't want to waste another day though, so between bouts of rest I got a haircut, hung some pictures, fixed a corkboard, and cleaned the house.

I was driving around Alexandria this morning on my way back from getting my car inspected and passed Patrick Henry Elementary School. Someone had rearranged the letters announcing the next PTA meeting to read "gay ass sluts". This is another example of our fine education system at work, although I suppose there's a slim possibility that gay ass sluts were actually on the agenda.

Happy Birthday Mike Stafford and Madeleine!

Friday Fragments

What do you get when you cross a cinchilla with a molerat?

I decided not to do 12 of 12 this month, because I wouldn't get the results up until Monday at which point no one would care anymore, and because today is probably going to be the least interesting day of my week.

I should probably refresh my memory on CPR at some point since I've forgotten most of what I once knew. When I was a teenager, I did not know CPR because it was an essential Boy Scout skill -- I knew it because there was an old Sierra adventure game called Codename: Iceman where you were a CIA secret agent on vacation in Tahiti and you had to perform CPR on some chick at a volleyball game (who got cramps while swimming out to get the ball) before running off to pilot a secret submarine. I still remember typing > SHAKE AND SHOUT and > CALL FOR HELP into the parser . You had to type the exact commands in the right order in the given time or else the woman would die.

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

Because of the neverending rain storms, today was an exceptionally dull day. You're probably better off looking at last month's 12 of 12: Barcelona Edition which everyone missed since it went up so late.

5:06 AM: Waking up a half-hour earlier than usual to the continuing storms which have probably flooded every basement in Arlington by now.

5:22 AM: My bathroom has been remodelled for a year and I still haven't bought curtains yet.

5:44 AM: Today was an onsite day but I left all my security badges in the office over the weekend. I made a quick stop, dodging raindrops like a precipitation ninja.

6:01 AM: HOV Restrictions begin at 6:30, which translates into every solo driver trying to cram onto I-66 at once, bringing it to a standstill. At least the early sunrise through the clouds made it seem later than it really was.

8:55 AM: Returning from Bailey's Crossroad, around mile forty of the fifty I spent in the car today (I also get to go back tomorrow!) At least I wasn't in those lanes going in the opposite direction.

1:48 PM: I deleted the pictures of me at work because the upper corner of the nuclear schematics accidentally appeared behind me. Instead, you get a picture of me driving home after a status meeting.

2:22 PM: A late lunch of leftover Chinese food -- Beef and Broccoli!

3:04 PM: It was rainy and in the forties all day long, so Booty did not move from this spot for the entire afternoon. At least, that is, until food time.

4:12 PM: Relaxing at the computer with a little gaming.

5:33 PM: Had it not been raining, I probably would have gone on a twenty mile bike ride (or at least imagined one). Instead, I stayed inside and burned 104 calories playing DDR.

6:23 PM: Empirical data supports the assertion that I can eat an entire box of Velveeta Shells and Cheese.

7:18 PM: In the home office with a jug-wine glass of Paisano and a cat, doing some composing for tomorrow's web page update.

See other 12 of 12ers at Chad's site .

Happy Birthday Mike Stafford!

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

Today's 12 of 12 will be dull, and not the normal dull of the modest 12 of 12er who insists that their day was boring and then ends up poaching an elephant while on safari with Hugh Jackman. I have some sort of flu-like malady which is manifesting itself in headaches, fevers, and muscle aches (but thankfully, no coughs or overabundance of phlegm).

4:43 AM: After lying in bed, sick and unable to sleep for several hours, I finally got up and took some ibuprofen.	4:48 AM: A temperature of 101.8 (38.8 for the Brits)
5:08 AM: I emailed in sick to work, and then attempted to sleep on the most comfortable couch in the world, which worked out much better than my bed.	6:55 AM: The couch was only comfortable for a couple hours before I was pushed out by its rightful owners.
9:36 AM: I woke up again just after Rebecca left for work, and decided to get a little food in my belly. Only Pepperidge Farm bagels were on the shelves during the last grocery run -- they aren't nearly as good as the Thomas brand. I had to squelch the tastelessness with additional cream cheese.	I spent the rest of the morning asleep, and have not yet mastered the art of sleep-photography, so here is a picture from yesterday of Booty reading Mark Twain.
1:23 PM: Off to CVS to purchase additional drugs.	2:08 PM: Lunch today consisted of chicken noodle soup and a shot of Dayquil. I prefer the chicken soup that DOESN'T have the real pieces of chicken in it, but unfortunately I didn't have any of that in the cupboard.
4:00 PM: After another nap and a bath, I passed my sick day with an old computer game.	5:32 PM: Scanning pictures of wedding cakes for Rebecca.
7:57 PM: Working on tomorrow's web site update.	9:37 PM: In search of symmetry, I end up back at the stove for a late night dinner of Totino's pizza topped with extra pepperoni!

See more 12 of 12ers at Chad's site!

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

6:04 AM: Steam and lenses don't play well together.		6:21 AM: On the way to work.
6:58 AM: Gloomy day at work. Two computers is probably overkill. Lipton's Green Tea has no flavour.		10:49 AM: Down in the conference room, setting up for a presentation on testing.
11:55 PM: Heading home for lunch, behind someone who LUVs their KITY.		12:10 AM: Lunch is a giant sandwich with everything on it that's not a vegetable. I didn't realize at the time of buying how much bigger hoagie rolls are from steak rolls.
1:57 PM: Working from home.		3:32 PM: Mallory is puzzled, probably because she's facing in the opposite direction of travel.
3:48 PM: Dropping the Smiths off at Dulles Airport so they can catch a flight to Oregon.		5:05 PM: Checking the online weather report, to make sure that it is, in fact, thunderstorming.
5:59 PM: After a dinner of chicken bits shaped like Mickey Mouse's head, I play a little Starcraft 2 Beta.		6:08 PM: Rebecca comes home from a cancelled volleyball game to discover that we've somehow gained two extra cats, bringing our total to four.

See more 12 of 12ers at Chad's site!

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

6:08 AM: Fresh from the shower.		6:23 AM: Getting to work, the homebound way.
7:41 AM: Breakfast with Booty, after dropping my car off for inspection and emissions.		8:44 AM: Working in spite of Amber.
10:09 AM: In Rebecca's car, enroute to collect the Accord.		10:17 AM: Inspected and good for another year.
12:45 PM: Working with Booty, after a lunch of Shells and Cheese.		2:29 PM: Working on DDMSence 1.8.0.
6:45 PM: Playing World of Warcraft, in spite of Booty.		7:21 PM: Preparing for Steak Night.
7:48 PM: Grilling and reading.		8:15 PM: Steak Night!

See more 12 of 12ers at Chad's site!

Weekend Wrap-up

On Saturday, we made our first Harper's Ferry trip of the year to go hiking with Rebecca's PTA friend, Hannah. Ambitiously, we opted to purchase the annual pass, which means that we're now on the hook to go back at least two more times this year. We took the Maryland Heights trail this time around -- it was pleasant, but the broad, smooth fire roads made it feel more like a theme park hike than the more nature-y hikes on the Virginia side.

The weather was pleasant throughout the morning, but we could see the thunderstorms approaching from the overlook point, so we tried racing back down the mountain to beat them. This did not work, and we got drenched in a Florida-style deluge that ended just as we returned to the car. Of course, we then drove home at the exact same speed that the storm was heading east. In the evening, we met Frank & Amanda at The V for dinner and frozen yogurt.

Sunday was a quiet day, most of which I spent working on the third week of my functional programming class or learning about Git. In the evening, we took a walk through Sugarland Run and then returned home for dinner on the back porch.

How was your weekend?

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

5:28 AM: Ready for work.

5:39 AM: Arriving in the (home) office.

7:03 AM: Administrative assistants.

7:16 AM: Bagel for breakfast.

10:06 AM: Reviewing slides for tomorrow's class.

12:00 PM: Lunchtime.

2:06 PM: Practicing my lectures.

4:54 PM: Exercising with The Shield.

5:43 PM: Back to Skyrim after a brief Pillars of Eternity stint.

7:00 PM: Leftover hotdogs from the barbeque for dinner.

7:17 PM: Early nappers.

8:37 PM: Watching Game of Thrones while Rebecca eats a giant salad.

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

5:10 AM: Showered and ready for a boring day of proposal work.

5:29 AM: Arriving in the office.

6:32 AM: Writing about how to reduce risks while increasing opportunities.

11:42 AM: Heading home for lunch, playing the "how many people are texting during this left turn?" game. Answer: Over 50%.

11:50 AM: No tomatoes yet.

12:01 PM: Safeway fried chicken for lunch.

1:04 PM: Rebecca leaves for her late shift at work.

2:00 PM: Writing about robust configuration management approaches.

3:30 PM: Quick power nap on the floor with Booty.

4:39 PM: Exercise break with House of Cards, Season Four.

5:54 PM: Done with proposals for now and compiling data for tomorrow's post.

6:45 PM: Incredibly healthy dinner.

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

5:51 AM: Showered and ready for work.

6:12 AM: Jimmy Dean's for breakfast at the office.

7:58 AM: Working.

1:22 PM: Back from a midday grocery run.

1:40 PM: Working from home.

2:00 PM: Cat lunch.

2:34 PM: Apparently, birds have discovered our bird feeder.

4:00 PM: Catnap with Booty.

5:15 PM: Opening our free Amazon Baby Box.

6:00 PM: Making gnocchi and shrimp with a garlic parmesan sauce.

7:28 PM: Dinner with friends.

8:12 PM: Booty claims a guest's scarf.

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

12 pictures of your day on the 12th of every month

6:40 AM: Showered and ready for the day.

6:57 AM: Bagel for breakfast.

7:26 AM: Good morning!

9:23 AM: Off to school.

10:08 AM: Two week check-up.

12:18 PM: Shopping for treats.

12:46 PM: Fine art.

1:00 PM: Applewood-smoked chicken for lunch.

5:10 PM: Finally awake for a bit.

5:24 PM: Dinner from Sweetwater Tavern (with delivery pints).

6:04 PM: Cool enough for a fire.

6:31 PM: Ticket to Ride before bedtime.

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

12 pictures of your day on the 12th of every month

7:38 AM: Showered and ready for the day.

8:33 AM: Getting a "breathing treatment" at Urgent Care because of the sickness that came back after 3 days of getting better.

9:15 AM: McDonald's for breakfast.

9:32 AM: Getting into puzzles.

10:40 AM: Resting on the patio, watching Rebecca and Ian play in our woods.

3:16 PM: After school sudoku.

3:20 PM: I gave the first game a solid C- but Maia is super excited for her very first video game release day experience.

4:17 PM: Beating the first shrine in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

4:53 PM: Putting a lot of care into building Trucktown.

5:11 PM: Rotating through my five drugs.

5:36 PM: Mac and cheese for dinner, with soup for the sick.

7:39 PM: I snuck Maia out of bed so she could beat one more shrine with me. Not sure why this photo ended up with potato quality.