The URI! Domain has finally hit 1000 verified visits today, only two and a half months after opening. Not bad for a cult-followed site...

I spent over five hours yesterday cataloguing ancient music theory treatises; time that could have been spent teaching inner-city children to fly, or better yet, time I could have been composing. No doubt everything I've memorized so far will go out the window by the time the test arrives on Monday. It's tough keeping a bird in a cage when the cage thinks the bird is a waste of time and space.

I've heard that the TC Williams football team lost 56-6 to Robinson on Homecoming. That's called losing with dignity... and other things elsewhere.

My lesson was abbreviated a bit today, but things are progressing nicely on my thesis. I'm about two-thirds of the way through the third section now, and should be well into the fourth section by the end of the month.

The season premiere of Boston Public is on tonight, but it looks like they're losing a few prominent actors from the series who are moving on to bigger and better things. TV shows in general this year seem pretty lackluster. Alias is very good again, and quite possibly better than it was last year. Friends, though still funny, has become pretty one dimensional. It's like the show's writers have taken the most "laugh-invoking" trait of every character and turned them all into caricatures (even moreso than they were before). It'll be interesting to see what happens to Boston Public without the stars -- this season is notable for the television acting debut of Joey McIntire (of New Kids on the Block fame). Good lord...

I lost a day to a migraine so accept my apologies for not updating yesterday.

I registered the name www.urizone.net this morning, and purchased a year-long plan for a recommended web host as well. I got a nice package deal and saved $60 for the whole year. The site name won't be active for a couple of days, and it will still be a couple weeks before I transition over there. I want to get a simplistic forum or news comments working before I make the leap. There were some interesting cases presented for and against www.urizone.net:

For:
It sounds a little like "horizon" or "uri's one" but it could also be an anti-itch medicine for some unknown ailment or body part (like "freezone") so it's the name with the most possibilities.
Against:
The problem is that "zone" is already associated with so many bad things. e.g.:
Kenny Loggins - The Danger Zone
Microsoft - Gaming Zone (has all of like four games)
Reduced Speed Zone - Everyone hates these
ZoneAlarm - Obnoxious Firewall
(O)Zone Layer - We like it, but it's depleted
And hey, everyone loves a zoo. Especially a urizoo.

The Matrix Reloaded was easily the stupidest movie I've seen since Thin Red Line. Don't watch it. You'll be better off.

Mid-life crisis at the bench
Anti-spammers take on automatons posing as humans
Those clever EBay users
High Spiders
The search for Scully's boobs
Short people get paid less
Review of The Matrix Reloaded (spoilers)

Life is pretty slow these days. I've spent a large portion of my time working or learning things for work, so I haven't done much in the way of home improvement or extreme sports. I did get a new GameCube game yesterday, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door which is promising so far, but I'll keep you posted as opinions evolve.

Lost got picked up for a full season.

Friday Fragments

A weekly column promoting ADHD as an alternative lifestyle

I haven't mentioned any cats in a few days. Booty is liking this new cold weather trend because she can hide under the comforter near the heat vent. Underneath that picture is a sample of Sydney pretending to be one of those stick-on Garfield dolls from the 80s. Adding to this feline media smorgasbord is a movie of Amber tackling a toy and then getting tackled by Booty: (605KB WMV)

I think Tom DeLay looks like a used car salesman . He's obviously guilty of all the vices they're pinning on him, but then again, so is every single politician out there. I would like to gain public office so I can release random statements about world events and appear on CNN.com as an expert opinion in stories with a little party ID next to my name. Rep. Brian Uri! (VA-I) said of the fire, "Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this horrific camping accident. I plan on introducing legislature in the Spring to curtail the runaway safety abuses of the propane industry. Unless they pay me more than you." I picked Independent as my party affiliation in the previous sentence because I doubt either real party would pick me. I think there's a Britney Spears song about this, "I'm not a Democrat, not yet a Republican".

Yesterday's search terms:
why are bridges painted blue, spider mam games, nymphomanic hippopotamus, beautiful leg quotes

Newsday Tuesday

Scouts to get advice on safe sex

The Scouts, the youth movement best known for its focus on bracing outdoor activities such as camping, hiking and fishing, is to arm its teenage members with practical advice about sex.

Advocates of the decision see this as a logical extension of existing Scout activities, noting that if you don't brace yourself while boinking out of doors, someone's going to have a very unfortunate head first fall into a latrine.

The movement, whose motto is Be Prepared, has issued new guidelines aimed at Explorer scouts between 14 and 18 in a bid to help them better understand some of the realities about sexual relationships.

The Scouting Association (which is the British equivalent of the Boy Scouts of America) also plans to bring Tom Lehrer out of retirement to release a CD of new songs about hot scouting sex (330KB MP3). Along with campfire ditties like Two Half Hitch Bondage and Orienteering Your Front to Her Back, he will also reprise his classic STD hit, I Got It From Agnes.

The Scouting Association [. . .] says the main aim is for leaders to encourage young people "to resist pressure to have early sex". But, acknowledging that many youngsters are already sexually active from the age of 16 and younger, the movement is hoping to provide help and support to enable teenagers make safe and informed choices.

A similar sexual awareness program was attempted by the Boy Scouts of America, but the final version was a watered-down "Family Life" merit badge, where sexuality was reduced to a single bullet point and given equal importance with "the effect of technology on the family".

One BSA spokesman acknowledged the uselessness of the badge: "We were worried that the Patrols would want to practice their sexual activity on camping trips, and that would mean we'd have to let girls into the Troops if we wanted to avoid all the homosexualishness." It is common knowledge that gays are part of the BSA Axis of Evil, on par with athiests and Girl Scouts whose parents sue over gender equality.

The advice even allows for Scout leaders to arrange a visit to a sexual health clinic or to hand out condoms if they believed a youngster was "very likely to begin or continue having intercourse" without protection. Chief Scout Peter Duncan said: "We must be realistic and accept that around a third of young people are sexually active before 16 and many more start relationships at 16 and 17.

Trips to the red-light district are also part of the curriculum for these randy scouse gits. Scoutmasters use everyday working girls to familiarize scouts with the difference between the Thrupenny Bits and the Elizabeth Regina, and which parts might pass diseases to their Three Card Tricks. Scout leaders also play the popular Internet game which involves replacing the word "wand" with "wang" in various Harry Potter texts and explaining why Hermione is not for humping.

Review Day

There are no spoilers in these reviews.

Defamation of Strickland Banks by Plan B:
I first heard She Said on XM, one of the last songs I wrote down before cancelling the service. This album is the work of a British rapper (British rappers are always funny) and tells a complete story through a mix of rap and soul. She Said is easily the best song on the album, but all of them are pleasant enough to listen to. The timbre of his falsetto gets a little old after a while, and none of the other songs really have a memorable hook, probably because telling a continuous tale is somewhat at odds with developing catchy choruses.

Final Grade: B

Glee, Season One:
Glee is a musical comedy that teeters the line between the absurd and the overdramatic. Each episode tells the tale of a high school glee club (who, of course, look like grad students) which allows them to break out into song and mashups three or four times in an hour. The first two-thirds of the season are easily the strongest, and it kind of peters out into a disjointed free-for-all by the end, but we thoroughly enjoyed watching this season. Jane Lynch's character is easily the strongest, funniest part of the show.

Final Grade: B+

Illusion of Safety by The Hoosiers:
The original Hoosiers CD is still one of my favourite albums, so I had high expectations for their follow-up. I'm not sure how, but the group manages to create a catchy 80s sound while becoming even more indy than ever. There's a good mix of quiet tunes and arena songs, such as Glorious. I forsee this becoming one of my go-to CDs over time, even though it doesn't beat the original yet.

Final Grade: A-

Weekend Wrap-up

• Final lawn mowing of the season


• Homemade salmon fish tacos and steamed mussels for Friday's dinner


• Screening of This is the End


• Further work on Auricle


• Fall Harvest Festival at the Doukenie Winery with the Smiths


• Watched the first half of Homeland: Season Two


• Brie burger at The Counter in the Reston Town Center

Seattle Day

We contribute our screams to the Horror exhibit at the EMP Museum.

Time-lapsed Blogography Day: 20 Years Ago

These pictures were taken 20 years ago today, on October 21, 1995.

It was Homecoming at TC Williams, which meant a brief parade through the parking lot of Bradlee Shopping Center followed by an abbreviated halftime show which was mostly preempted by the popular kids.

I wore white shoes as a drum major, which never really made much sense to me -- the band can't even see the top of my head, much less the bottoms of my shoes (this is also why my conducting makes me look like I'm riding my hog in the first picture: eye-level conducting was too low albeit better for overall body mechanics).

The football team ended up getting a rare win against Annandale (39-20), and people liked the choreographed salute I created solely for Homecoming, so it was a win all around. In the evening, I went to Jack's house with Chris Sharp and played the new computer game, Crusader: No Remorse.

Review Day

There are no major spoilers in these reviews.

Bruxelles by Boulevard des Airs:
The third album by this reggae-skaw-orld band feels very mature, with better produced songs but slightly less fun. None of the albums matches up to seeing them live in a foreign country's summer music festival, but on the bright side, this album is densely packed with over an hour of good-to-better songs.

Final Grade: B

Whitton by Whitton:
This self-titled EP includes the catchy I Fell In Love With You song and is only 15 minutes long. There's enough overlap with the Rare Bird album that it's not worth purchasing -- just get the individual songs a la carte and save some money.

Final Grade: C+

Orphan Black, Season Four:
Orphan Black recovers nicely from its byzantine, meandering plot problems and I enjoyed this season as much as the early ones. A few layers of conspiracy are shaved off the top, and the story goes back to a few leftover holes in the original premise, deepening the plot rather than broadening it. A sense of fun has also come back to the various storylines, even when Helena and Alison aren't onscreen. I'm glad Tatiana Maslany finally got the Emmy for her 50 different characters.

Final Grade: A-

Show Me a Hero:
This new David Simon show tells about the decade-long conflict to build public housing in a white Yonkers neighbourhood. When it originally came out, I recall various newspaper articles explaining why the subject matter was so boring yet so important, which I now recognize as a warning signal that this is not the second coming of The Wire. The plot is boring, there are few characters worth rooting for, there's no payoff, and the production does a really bad job at showing the passing of time. Skip it.

Final Grade: D

Stream of Consciousness Day

an accurate transcript of the things Maia says to herself as she falls asleep

2:07 PM

*door closes* My eyes get better. My eyes get better. My eyes get better. My eyes got better. My eyes get better. My eyes get better. My eyes get better. Sap. Shoot. One dalbation. My eyes got better. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to dog. Happy Birthday to Bunny. Happy Birthday to K'nuffle Bunny. Wall. Walk. I got present. Hingy ing ging. Woom woom. Happy Birthday to you. Nolan is gonna drive! Drive! Happy Birthday to Nolan. Happy Birthday to Nolan. Tickle tickle! Happy Birthday to Bunny. Shoop shoop shoop.

*picks up book, 101 Dalmations* One dalbation! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot! One. Hundress. One Hundress. Live in a big house. 1, 2, 3, 6. 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 6, 7. Get em! Get em! Woof! Woof! Woof. Woof. Woof. Woof! 1, 2, 3. Yip yip! Get up puppies! I found! RIGHT back to the barn. Woof! Woof! The dalbation puppies are found! MEOWWWWWWWW! On his head. On Jax's head. Oh there too many. Yeah. 1, 2, 3, she got em! *closes book* I did dalbation book. Whoa.

2:23 PM

Old McDonald had a fwarm. And there dalbations. 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 6, 7, 8, 9! Spooky old house! 1! 1! Dalbation Old McDonald had a fwarm. Old McDonald had fwarms, he had some kitty cats said, MEOW MEOW. Old McDonald had a -- he has a dog there woof woof woof. Come on, Jax. Old McDonald had a fwarm, had moo men there. Woof! Old McDonald had a fwarm, had some horses there. NEIGH NEIGH NEIGH. Old McDonald had a -- he had some dogs there, Old McDonald had a -- he had some kitty cats there, MEOW MEOW. Old McDonald had a puppies, WOOF WOOF. Old McDonald had a 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 6, 7, 8. Old McDonald had 7, 8, 9, 10, 7, 8, 9, 10, 6. Old McDonald had a fwarm, Old McDonald had a wog wog GAS! Woof woof.

Old McDonald had a fwarm, it said some big doggies said WOOF WOOF WOOF. WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF. WOOF. They send a message, WOOF! Old McDonald puppies, yeah. Old McDonald had a fwarm, it had a horse say NEIGH NEIGH, it had a dog say WOOF WOOF, it had a cat say MEOOW. Old McDonald had a fwarm. He had some puppies. Old McDonald puppies. They raced back to barn, WOOF WOOF. Old McDonald had a fwarm, it had little WOOF WOOF WOOF. Old McDonald had a fwarm, he had the dogs. Oh yeah. Old McDonald had a fwarm, he had some horses there. NEIGH NEIGH. Old McDonald had a fwarm, he had a kitty cat says MEEEW MEEEOW. Old McDonald had a fwarm, he had a doggies. Woof woof. Big woof. Big dog. Old McDonald had a fwarm, he had two big blue men. Old McDonald had a fwarm, he had a kitty cat, hey! He had a langy angy! He had a bird. He had a langy angy kitty catty, it went WING WING WING. This is right there!

2:34 PM

Eeee. Eek! Eek! I said Eek! Eek. Eek. Eek. Eek. Eek. Eek. Eek! Eeks. *peels ancient spine off of 101 Dalmations* Whee! I got a flag! It's racing back and forth. I'm watching the tree! I'm watching the trees! I'm watching with the mice. Old McDadDog had a fwarm. WOHEEEEE THE MICE FOUND THE BONE. Whoa! Way wag around. Way wag around. The dog came. I went up, up, up, up. Dog on rule, puppies. Dog in the room. *shrieks and rolls away from book*

Doo doo dung dung, dinga dinga dung dung dung, dinga dinga dung dung dung, dinga dinga dung dung dung, dinga dinga dung dung dung. Dinga dinga ding. Dunga dunga dung. Dunga dunga dung dingy. Dunga. Dingy dung. I'm walking right in here. *grabs broken spine again* Look my flag waves! It waves! I'm walking. I'm blowing up my teeth. I broke my book. NOW IT IS FIXED. It not fixed. I'm riding on my horse. This is Maia's. That is not mine, that's Bruddah Bear's. I'm riding. Now Sistah Bear's. Bruddah Bear, Bruddah Bear. I'm RIDING around. I'm going in the forest. I'm going in the forest. I'm going in the forest. I'm RIDING a bike. RIDING the bike! RIDING! I RIDING! RIDING MY BIKE! Bike. Bike. BIG BIKE! I can reach up. Oooh oooh oooh oooh. I'm going up. RIDING MY BIKE through the long town. Hum hum. Come come. Shake one foot. One foot, shake shake! I got out! I should shake my -- zee zeeeee zee.

2:47 PM

Run down! Down down. I'm down, down. K'nuffle! I read enough. Swimmer, swimmer, swimmer, swim. Nolan is gonna come. Nolan come over. One dabation. One dalmation. One dabation. One dalmation. Aunt Sena puts. Sena got playdough. Aunt Sena walk. I'mma get some. My mommy. *grabs broken spine and shakes like a rattle* Hello Maia! Glad to see you! Hello dalmation. *puts spine in between toes* I put in my toes. I cut my toes. I'm walking to my toes. I like it. I cut this. Daa da daa da daa da daa! Ooooh. Whistle whistle. Coming out. *plays broken spine like a recorder* Wooooooooo! Woooo! Wooooodooooo! It is a flute! I do cut the fire. I play with the light. I cut it into little pieces. Then I sit. I'mma sing. Anybody need help? They're flying. *curls into a ball and starts kissing her Bunny*

3:05 PM

*asleep*

Memory Day: Snapshots

This picture was taken six years ago, on October 21, 2014.

We were vacationing in Seattle and briefly stopped by McChord Air Force Base to visit Anna's sister, Emily, on our way out of town. I still sport the mark from my pool accident a month earlier in the Outer Banks.

In the evening, we drove south in the rain to Lake Crescent Lodge, where we sat in the old lodge drinking wine, playing Scrabble, and listening to old jazz records.

Review Day

There are no major spoilers in these reviews.

Reservation Dogs, Season Two:
The second season of this show is still very pleasant, but a little more "slice of life" rather than continuous plot. There's a nice wrap-up at the end which could serve as either a series or season finale. On Hulu.

Final Grade: B+

Everybody Hates Chris, Season One:
This show is ancient now, but it's perfect for when you're looking for a classic traditional sitcom to cleanse your palette of edgy, modern stuff. The narration by Chris Rock really doesn't add much -- his little punchlines that were great in stand-up comedy feel very sanitized and "made for TV" here. On Hulu.

Final Grade: B-

Pig (R):
This peculiar movie stars Nicholas Cage as a loner survivalist who dives into the underbelly of the restaurant industry when someone steals his truffle-hunting pig. It never goes quite where you think it will but has a nice arc and well-presented theme. Better than I thought it would be. On Hulu.

Final Grade: B

Sun Joe SPX3000-SJB 2030 Electric Pressure Washer:
I purchased this electric pressure washer after getting tired of borrowing and grappling with my dad's giant gas-powered monster. It's easy to use, has enough pressure to do the things I need (mainly siding and sidewalks), and best of all, the motor only runs when the trigger is held down. No more dealing with a gas motor choking, hoses falling out, or complicated soap controls.

Final Grade: B+