That's a weird Segue

A friend of mind claimed that my previous post contained a "weird segue", I don't think he is one to talk because he has an entire website dedicated to the inner workings of the Galactic Empire.

Got it up and running, and holy hell was I cursing up a storm, one of the memory sticks just did not want to sit right.

Objective Interim

The US military(specifically the Army) likes to use the term "Objective Interim" when they are describing a program that isn't what they really want, but a substantially down graded version of what the goal is because they feel they need a capability now. For example:

This is what the Army wanted in the late '90s early '00s, a new armored personnel carrier to carry soldiers around the battlefield. It would be relatively light(easier to transport in), well armed, armored, have all kinds of neat gizmos and electronics, and be able to go anywhere whilst replacing a lot of infantry who got around in trucks.

What they got as their "Objective Interim" Vehicle was this, a APC used by the Canadians, US Marines, a bunch of other countries, and then they slapped some new electronics in and replaced a bunch of "truck" infantry so there was something relatively secure for them to ride around in in the battlefield. It didn't do everything they wanted it to do(wasn't well armed, had dubious offroad capability), but it was a (relatively!) inexpensive upgrade and new capability.

With that in mind, my DVD-ROM(which has gone through 2 computers) has given up the ghost. I've decided to take the chance to double my RAM to 8 GB and install a Blu-Ray ROM. And so, I present the Objective Interim Computer Modernization:

A home for scared people

As I sit here and think about it, I don't really live in fear of much. Yeah I get scared when certain things happen, such as when I'm camping several miles form the road, and it's late at night when a hiker walks up to my campsite and flashes his flashlight at my tent. That was pretty scary, and yes, I did pull out my swiss army knife and await my role in a slasher film. But I'm not really living in fear of that happening again.

But I am living in fear of one thing, and terrified of it. I'm scared of my cat.

Specifically, I live in fear of coming home or waking up, and Willy is just dead with no warning(well, other than his existing health problem). When I came home from work this morning I fed the animals, did my timesheet, and went to bed. The cats tend to sleep on the bed when I am, so they both followed me in. When I woke up in the afternoon(a family moved into the second floor and they tend to have visitors that just honk the car horns outside the building. I'll let you guess the ethnicity) Willy was completely still. Wasn't reacting to me getting up and moving, and as far as I could tell, wasn't breathing. I started to shake him going "Willy! Willy!" and, thank goodness, he jerked awake. He rarely goes into a deep sleep, so it scared the hell out of me. My heart was racing.

(Mary, by contrast, could sleep through a nuclear attack)

I worry that this makes me sound like an asshole, but I hope that when it is Willys time there'll be some kind of warning so I can take him to the vet. I honestly don't know what I would do otherwise.

I should start carrying an empty Gatorade bottle while I commute.

I have poor decision making abilities. It's the reason why I joined the navy(screwed around in college, flunked out), it's the reason why I have no girlfriend(well, besides being uncomfortable with women I don't know), and why my commutes always turn out so bad.

I saw around 0400 that a tractor-trailer jackknifed on the Inner Loop of the Beltway near my place of work, and I typically leave work at 0700. As it happened my company was doing a "Company Breakfast" at IHOP for the guys on the Mids shift at 0700, so I figured that I had plenty of time for it to clear out. At 0740 the "Left 3 lanes" were open, and like an idiot, I decided that was enough for me to make it home in a timely manner. Sure wasn't, it's 0925 and I figure I got in about 5 minutes ago. So less than 30 miles in an hour and a half. Weee DC!

Valentines Day

Woof, what a night. I'm spending this Valentines Day morning sharing a pint of Boddingtons with my friend Winston.

Scatterbrained

So Eastern Mountain Sports is dumping their winter stuff, so I got a new down jacket which might just be the finest coat ever...if it is cold but NOT wet out. Since the jacket I got was a cheaper one the fabric is not very water resistant, so I wouldn't want to go hiking in it. The Hiker Sweat(tm) would stink up the jacket pretty quick. Ah well, at least it was inexpensive, it's light, and toasty.

Went to the DC Auto show, I am seriously considering getting a new car, to the point that I started investigating what kind of loan I can get from my bank. My car is 11 years old and there is a leak in the brake hydraulics that is getting moisture into the fluid, so whenever it's below 30F or so it freezes. I've had the brake fluid flushed twice this winter, but a permanent solution will very nearly as much the car is worth. I'm looking at getting a Ford Fusion Hybrid, and I would be interested in getting a Chevy Volt if it didn't cost a gazillion dollars and, well, I had some place to plug it in.