Change to Cable

Between spring break last week and having 5 teeth extracted this week I have not made any posts in too long.
What can I share with readers this morning?
Switched from DSL to cable this week. I have been debating the pros and cons for several months. I have been a SBC/Yahoo customer for years and they have always provided me with good service. When I moved to Milwaukee I wasn't able to get the high speed package I had been using. Having had a bad experience with Charter cable I was unwilling to go down that road again so I decided to stick with DSL at a lower speed. I game online and download movies and music. The reduced bandwidth was very noticeable. My main aversion to using cable internet was having to pay for cable tv I don't watch. This was the catch that I ran into with Charter. I just wanted internet service and no tv cable, they only offered it as a package. Paying $35 a month for commercials is ridiculas so I went with SBC. The catch with DSL is paying for phone service as well. While I was living in Fond du Lac this was fine, I used my phone. After moving to Milwaukee the only calls I received on the phone were wrong numbers. Everyone calls me on my cell and I use it for all of my calling. Paying $20 a month to answer wrong numbers also seemed ridiculas so I started looking for alternatives. In looking at Time-Warner's website I found that I could subscribe to Road Runner without having to pay for cable, Hooray! So now for $5 less a month than what I was paying for DSL and an unused phone I have 3.33x the bandwidth. Life is good :)

Wiped out

Yesterday was too much. I didn't think it would be that bad but this year really hit me hard. I have been out of sorts and unfocused for the last week. Last not I spent all my time absorbed in writing Forty. Forgot to set up GED tests, which is part of my job. No one made a big deal about it but still. I just don't do things like that. Not sure why this year was so hard. Maybe because Ted's birthday reminds me that I'm getting older. It has been in my head more this year whatever the reason.

Now I find myself 2 days into a commitment to write daily too emotionally spent to write. I am glad I made the commitment though. Getting back to my creative writing has been good. Getting on a regular writing schedule is what I need to do.

Tune in tomorrow same bat time, same bat channel to see if our hero survives the crash!

In loving Memory

Today would have been my little brothers fortieth birthday. I wrote this in his memory:

Forty

And another birthday you have missed

I think of that and cry

Grief hits me like a fist

Thirteenth of March and I reminisced

About a happy, laughing guy

And another birthday you have missed

Thinking of you can make my gut twist

It leaves me wondering why

Grief hits me like a fist

Anger and heartache I never saw you so pissed

More than you could abide by

And another birthday you have missed

That bloody memory I wish to resist

What a horrible way to die

Grief hits me like a fist

Memories can’t be dismissed

Even if I where willing to try

And another birthday you have missed

Grief hits me like a fist

Taking a chance

What Dr. S said in class this morning really hit home with me. "Writing takes a lot of work and taking the chance that you will look foolish." I haven't put the necessary work into this or my writing recently. If I really want to be a writer then I need to write. To give myself incentive, take a chance and fill this blog with something worth sharing I am making a commitment. From here on I will post daily some of my creative writing. I have a story I started and set aside so this will force me to work on it daily.
This gives you, my vast readership, a chance to critique my writing and give me feedback. I really hope you will take the opportunity to be brutally honest. You can only help me become a better writer. So here is the first 500 words or so of The Team

The murk was almost impenetrable, with a wet clingy fog that wrapped its cold tendrils around him like bony fingers seeking the warmth under his clothing. The fetid stench wafting up from the mud made his eyes water, in spite of the black cloth wrapped across his mouth and nose. The damn mud! Knee deep in spots it seemed intent on pulling off boots and leggings.

The mud is what made this excursion possible though. A quarter mile wide by half mile long stretch of bog known as Fegan’s outhouse. It bordered the back edge of the Nelban army encampment. Because of its reputation as an impenetrable barrier the camp was unguarded along its edge.

Rolph swore he could lead a small team through the bog. The right team could do a great deal of damage if it got into the camp undetected. Jimez had that team. He was a part of the team. Ostensibly he was the leader. But he would no more claim the title than any of the others would acknowledge it.

The team was a collection of individuals that had come together over the years for mutual support and benefit. Its current incarnation of 5 members was a strong group with diverse talents. Jimez kept telling himself that he would move on after the next job. Somehow he could never bring himself to leave.

Jimez and Clint were the core of the team. They had met several years back through a mutual friend. During their initial job together a bond had formed that neither seemed willing to break. Clint was size and power to Jimez’s speed and agility. At 6’6” he towered over most people. Even Jimez at 6’ 2” felt small in comparison. Jimez jokingly referred to Clint as “barrel wasted” because of his healthy paunch. Many had died mistaking Clint’s merry blue eyes and ample girth as signs of weakness. Behind Clint’s laughing blue eyes and ready smile was the mind of a veteran fighter. For years arena fans had cheered “Clobberin’ Clint” and his big iron cudgel “Betty”. Betty seemed an extension of Clint, you almost never saw him without it hanging from his meaty fist or resting on his broad shoulder. His battle cry “sing for me Betty” and the accompanying whistle of the cudgel had been the last sound heard by many.

Jimez’s dirty blonde hair was pulled back and tied with a piece of leather. The black cloth around his face only partially hid his aquiline nose. His swarthy complexion made him difficult to spot on most nights. In the dark and fog tonight he was virtually invisible. His worn black leathers only added to the camouflage. Even the hilts of his sword and dagger, worn crosswise on his back, were wrapped in black leather. He was attempting to move silently but the sucking mud made that a difficult task. “I’ll cut out your heart if this doesn’t work Rolph”.

By all accounts Rolph was one of the best scouts and woodsmen in the area. Timo had done his usual thorough job in locating the best source for the information and services he sought. The little man was amazing. Within hours of the team’s arrival in a new area he would show up dressed in local fashion and have a pretty good grasp on the lay of the land. His talent with explosives was the reason the team had taken this job.

Gamblers Hockey

Went up to Green Bay last night to see the Gamblers play hockey. Started out originally as some of my friends from Fond du Lac and up the Valley. Ended up being 28 of us. What a great time! We started out at Curley's Pub for dinner. I think there are few things in life more enjoyable than having dinner with old friends that you haven't seen in a long time. The chance to catch up on what is going on in everyones life. The old jokes and jabs. Knowing you can let your guard down and have a good time.

It was the 8th annual teddy bear night to benifit the children's hospital. Everybody brings a stuffed bear and throws them on the ice when the Gamblers score their first goal.



Ended up being a new record, 5100+ bears. Pictures from my phone don't do it justice I'm sorry to say. The air was filled with flying bears it was cool!
Gamblers won 5 to 3. A good game and good times with old friends. Life really doesn't get much better.

Getting over the hump

I seem to have hit a slump. Personally, creatively, academically I feel drained and lethargic. Perhaps it just the end of winter blaws and me needing a break from school. Whatever the reasons I have decided to share some poetry. Maybe I can jump start my creative energies.

Murder scene

Arrived home to a murder scene

Stood outside the police barricade in the rain

The lights flashing blue and red

The news crew packing up

Their job is done

Who died?

In my backyard, too close to home

Landlord says it was a delivery driver

Just a kid

Also a student at UWM

Too close to home

In my apartment at last

Safe? From the world

Not any more

Reality just kicked down the door and jackbooted in

Doorbell’s ring

Sets my heart racing

Police

Have we got tape from the garage camera?

Just a $6 fake

Funny huh?

Why aren’t I laughing?

5AM Doorbell rings again, again

Wakes me, heart racing

Police again

Have we got tape from the garage camera?

Just a $6 fake

Why aren’t I crying?

Because I am numb

I feel violated

How must the family feel?

Friends?

What a horrible waste, a life ended over nothing

Seems like I should be outraged

Maybe that will come in time

Right now I just wish I could cry

Innocence lost

What I find worth reading

I have come across some really good reading and stuff I find very interesting in my brief exploration of the blogsphere.
Being an atheist and very interested in the issue of keeping ID out of the science classroom I read quite a bit on various sites. A great blog I recently found was the Uncredible Halq. I was pretty physced when I came across this blog. It is well written by a young man who is obviously very intelligent and well read. Sadly todays post announced the end of his active bloging.
Along the lines of those actively fighting the ID FUD is the Pandas's Thumb. A great place to read about the latest ID drivel and opposing commentary from people who know way more about science and evolution than I do.
On a totally different tangent is the Open Source Weblog. This blog is one writers take on the latest open source news. I read a number of sites and receive several different emails on this topic. There is no shortage of ideas or opinions in the open source movement. I think that is part of what I find so fascinating about it.
For intelligent and informed understanding of what is taking place in Iraq and the middle east I read Informed Comment. Juan Cole explains news stories and his interpretation of what they mean. Since I am neither a fan of the current administration nor the corporate media that spins news to support it I like getting a different perspective on the news.

Patience and a little work

Oh the hypocrisy! After all the times I have told people RTFM, I even have a t-shirt that says it, I found my answers by reading. Happy to say that my faith in Kubuntu was not misplaced. Also credit to everyone who contributed to wine. After reading and following the latest how-to for
World of Warcraft on winhq I am on my way to being windows free. A few registry tweeks and everything runs wonderfully. I wasn't even aware that I could use regedit under wine so there's another plus. I have been playing all weekend with no problems. My frame rates are comparable to the rates I'm getting in windows. The only issue I've experienced is a slight sound breakup Sat morning when entering the crowd at the Ogrimarr auction house. Windows will stutter under those conditions so we'll call that a wash. I am even on my way to getting ventrilo set up so I can have voice chat with my guild. That will require a minor sound change, I haven't taken the time to work on it yet.
This weekend I straightened out my printer issues as well. A little digging on the Ubuntu forums and I found a link to HP's Linux support site with drivers and directions. No problems, I can now print and scan. Faxing doesn't work but I haven't ever used the fax so that isn't an issue for me.
While I was playing around and installing software I came across Kmymoney a personal finance management program comparable to quicken and money. It even works with my credit unions online files. This is a real bonus.
A very productive weekend on the computing front. The only issue I am still working on is getting streaming video from CBS to play full screen. This is not a deal breaker for me as the next project is setting up a media server and the Mac mini as the media center.