Unfavorable Exchange Rate

I like the Black Donnellys. I mentioned it in the last post, but I really do enjoy it. Something about the characters who are sympathetic, in spite of being ill-tempered and not terribly wholesome folk, is interesting. It's like Payback, the '99 Mel Gibson remake of Point Blank. Porter was a bad guy. Technically, not a great guy in any sense, really. However, he was the one you cheered for since he was as "in the right" as anyone in a movie filled with organized crime, crooked cops and a bunch of people deserving defenestration can be.

I love that word.

Anyway...like I mentioned before, I missed the first half of the episode and thus the last half made sense in the way that anything can make sense when you come in late. Not much. Well, unless you factor in what you know about the characters already. Then, at least, you can guess what's going on to a degree. You still miss a lot, though. As such, we were finally able to watch the first half online. Last night. Sadly, we had better connectivity on Easter than we've had the entire preceding week and a half. This is particularly sad because the NBC was dragging like a dog with worms.

If you've seen it, you know what I mean.

So, an hour long episode, minus commercials (except the 14 second ads in between 10 minute segments), which shouldn't have taken more than about 45 minutes (I suddenly realize I have no idea how much time out of a normal hour is devoted to commercials....it's like I don't even know TV anymore...). An hour and a half later, we'd watched 3 and a half segments and I decided to call it since I had a vague memory of the rest of it from last Monday.

If it's not one thing, it's another.

100, 3.5, 1/2, 3, 36

100, 3.5
Well, it happened. Aaron's gotten sick for the first time. Apparently, he has an infection in both ears (how does that happen?) which has made him a little ball of unpleasantness. This is not to say that I've stopped enjoying his company. Just that it's a lot more work keeping him calm. He is, most assuredly, not enjoying himself. I'd checked his temperature before I left for work yesterday, but it wasn't until after work that he actually registered a temperature. 100 is a lot for a 3.5 month old. Of course, I worry about the accuracy of our little digital ear thermometer, but since you can't put a thermometer in a baby's mouth, I'm sure he appreciates this to the more traditional alternative.

1/2
Especially with Heroes gone...again, I've been enjoying the Black Donnelly's. However, I enjoyed it a great deal less last night. About 1/2 the enjoyment was had. This can be attributed to the fact that because of exhaustion, and going with Andria's suggestion that we turn off the tv for a bit before the show, I fell asleep about 20 minutes before it came on and missed half the show. In her defense, she actually intended to sleep. I just passed out. I plan on watching the first half online at home, but that's entirely dependent on our DSL NOT sucking, which it did most of yesterday. I get the feeling that CenturyTel was not entirely truthful when they said we could have DSL at our place.

Or they omitted the fact that we couldn't have it CONSISTENTLY.

3
I've been working on a logo for the children's ministry at my brother's church. What they've got me doing is nothing groundbreaking, but I've enjoyed it. Unfortunately, it's taxing the crap out of my laptop. It's newer than the desktop, but it really isn't appreciating the workload I'm putting on it with the file size. The thing is, I KNOW I could be doing it a different way with one of the other programs I use. I just don't know how to use that program very well and I'm not sure how to learn. Anyway, for your viewing pleasure, here are the 3 versions we've gone through thus far. Note how they're essentially the same with just slight changes. That's what's annoying. If I knew how to use that other program, it'd be 10 minutes of work. Instead, it's a week (given I have other things going on during that time as well).




36
I am, again, at the limits of my pants. As such, I will now endeavor to lose in the vicinity of 36 pounds over the next...however long it takes to get there. The time is entirely dependent on how much will power I have and how many of those wonderful, available only once a year, Cadbury Cream Eggs I ingest over the next couple weeks. I have to admit, losing that much will put me in a size smaller waist, but I can cinch up my belt. There's not a lot you can do when you've out distanced the waistband, though. Walking around with your pants open is socially frowned upon. I need to lose the weight for reasons beside that including, but not limited to:

1. When Aaron becomes mobile, I need to be able to keep up with him
2. I don't want to be an old, fat guy, and the old is coming whether I like it or not
3. The idea of being filmed from behind for a Dateline special on weight in America doesn't appeal to me.

The thing is, I'm not a diet and exercise guy. I can do a diet if need be, but exercise is something I don't even have time for. Unless you count carrying Aaron about, and it's getting warm enough that he doesn't really appreciate my added body warmth. I'll probably have to up the activity level a bit, but I'm not looking to be doing anything particularly spectacular. Maybe run the "Peach Festival" race in...whenever the Peach Festival is. July, perhaps. But I wouldn't count on it. I'm way more broken than I was last time I ran a race like that, and it wasn't like I was in great condition then. Mostly, I'm just afraid that I'll end up doubling the distance for all the times I have to go back and pick something up that fell off.