Week 30, 2006 (weekend edition)

Items of note:

• I said a hip, hop, the hippie, the hippie hippie hip hip hop, you don't stop. [/hidden] Misdirection! [/hidden]
  

Quotes:

• On what else would I call you?
  Be: Aww, you called me a 'woman'!
  
  
• On such and such 2
  Na: If we were to ever live together...
  Br: We'd kill each other?
  Na: Yeah.
  
  
• On finding a discrete place to throw stuff away...
  Br: Are you trying to hide a dead body?
  
  
• On joining the club...
  CF: All right, I'm gonna go find my balls and stop being such a chick now.
  
  
• On being part of the club...
  GA: Wow, you have more self control than me.
  CF: Well... it's either that or I have an intense dislike of anything that can make me happy.
  
  
• On going to see Strangers With Candy...
  CF: What if the stranger says he has candy in his black-tinted-windows, nondescript van?
  KH: If he's cute, go for it.
  CF: I fear for your future children's lives.
  

Contemplations:

• I made a promise. [hidden] Stupid fucking promises... [/hidden]
  I forgot about it. [hidden] And what to do seemed so clear... [/hidden]
  I remember it now. [hidden] Stupid fucking memory... [/hidden]
  
  
• A new recipe for life...
  Ingredients: Bruce (1)
  Instructions: Serve as is.
  
  
• Yes, I know; I'm a hypocrite. [hidden] boo-urns [/hidden]
  
  
• I don't want to hear it. [hidden] Yes I do. [/hidden]
  
  
• I'M the fucking king! [hidden] It's quite sad. [/hidden]

Week 30, 2006

Items of note:

• Research weekend coming up.
  
  
• Second last week of Richmond project.
  
  
• Made a plan of action. It's simple, really. [hidden] screw my contemplations... this makes it simpler. [/hidden]
  

Quotes:

• On but they don't know each other...
  BN: "That's the beauty of the system!"
  
  
• On needing to see the fear in his eyes...
  CF: Wow, [stuff and stuff and stuff...] your guy's a lucky man! Well... except for the dream about choking him in his sleep bit.
  JF: No, not in his sleep.
  
  
• On the plan...
  BN: "Just Bruce. Nothing else required in this recipe."
  
  
• On being self analytical...
  BL: "Sounds like you have things figured out..."
  BN: "Yes, avoiding the issue is quite the good plan."
  
  
• On trains, rocketships, and tugboats...
  CF: Are you following along with my conga line of thought?

Paving Roads to Hell

I'm going to Hell.

Why would you say that?

The road to hell is paved with good inventions, isn't it?

Intentions.

Come again?

The saying is 'The road to hell is paved with good intentions', not 'inventions'.

Oh. Well that's a load off of my mind.

Wait a minute, what inventions have YOU created?

Lots. Remember that time at my apartment?

No.

Sure you do.

... no, dude I really don't.

Dude, the 2 chicks, the free beer, the actor invention?

Buddy, that's not an invention; there's a difference between creating things and making shit up.

Really? Well, what do you call a person who does that second thing?

A bloody lier.

Oh... then I'm still going to Hell?

Probably.

Week 29, 2006

Items of note:

• Searched to achieve: Rascal Flatts' Ghosts
  Instead discovered: Kem the perfect stranger
  
  
• Bachelor; archived July 1996?
  
  
• Banquet; Nine bottles of wine divided by 4 people
  
  
• Beach; I thought I didn't burn
  
  
• If somebody gives you the, "You're like a song... if only I could make an mp3 of you" line... run. Run away now.
  

Quotes:

• On I don't think that last part is going to happen
  B: "It's not about finding somebody 'better'; it's about finding somebody you can care about even more."
  
  
• On you think you know me better than I know myself?
  Bu: "Whatever, I don't care."
  Bo: "Yes you do."
  Bu: "... fuck!"
  

• On wedding traditions...
  DP: I'm trying to figure out the glass tapping code for 'second base'
  
  
• On dude, you're such a drama king...
  DB: "I AM!"
  
  
• On the count...
  BB: So this is the final countdown? Number 11?
  Br: Oh... yeah... pfft, this doesn't count.
  

Contemplations:

• Who was it that said the following?
  "I don't believe a word I say,
  but if I can make you believe it,
  maybe you can make me a believer."
  
  
• Rules are there for a reason. Especially in terms of stag parties. Stop breaking them you idjits!
  // "You do not TALK about fight club!"
  
  
• Who could have thought that a bunch of naked women prancing about could be so unfulfilling?
  

Motivation (return of the meandering rant)

The various titles of this blog revolve around it, but I don't believe I've ever really explained why.

It is my belief that the saying, "it's the thought that counts" is a 1/2 tonne load of bullshit. Not quite a full tonne of bullshit, but close enough. While I do agree that the thought does actually count, too often people throw around this cliché as an excuse. The problem is that it's not an excuse, at least, not a very good one. What it is, however, is a perspective; a perspective that demotes the importance of delivered, actionable results.

If you give a crappy gift, that's your fault. Yes, the receiver can be graceful and show appreciation for the "thought" of the gift, but what "thought" was going through the giver's head? Was it: "I need to find the best and most appropriate gift"? I'd venture a guess that as time passed, the thought morphed from "best and most appropriate gift" to "I need something and I need it now!"

Let's say the gift was given with the best intentions and the giver was fully expecting it to go over like gang busters. It doesn't. What happened here? Were faulty assumptions and/or conclusions made? Doesn't matter. The execution is the key point here, not the intent.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions? Well, smart mouth, so is the road to heaven... Or any road, for that matter. The intent is immaterial to the end result by which it is viewed and judged.

So what does any of this have to do with motivation?

I forget. But I meant well.

Rascal Flatts Ghosts

Motivated.
[hidden] But for how long? [/hidden]

But who the heck is Robi Rosa?
[hidden] Answer 1: Former Menudo member.
Answer 2: He whose lyrics sullen me to no end (unrelated to Answer 1).
Answer 3: "You bore me" [/hidden]

Week 28, 2006

Items of note:

• Why must people feel to need to buy a house in the sticks? (If I have to drive more than 45 minutes, I'm probably not coming over to visit.)
  
  
• Go, go, Flikr pro account!
  
  
• Commence the researching of gentlemens clubs and escorts!
  

Quotes:

• On what are you doing right now?
  BB: "Oh just sitting at work, picking my nose."
  
  
• On a very special kind of friendship...
  BT: "I will let you wash my linen."
  
  
• On oh will you please shut the fuck up...
  BB: Shh... Use your indoor voice.
  

Contemplations:

• I'm not a footnote. Who the heck wants to be a footnote?
  
  
• One call to make you smile 'the fool', two to take it away,
  Three to fill your mind with doubts, four to make it stay.
  
  
• I'm thinking of the long term for once. This is very weird; I should be thinking short term right now instead. [hidden] (Abbreviated names and language learning... shit, I expect to be freaked out by these thoughts... but they're more comforting than anything else. And that kind of freaks me out.) [/hidden]
  

Lessons learned:

• How to install laminate flooring.
  
  
• How to work 4 days in a row without sleep.
  
  
• How to go from chip lead to broke in 3 hands.

This made me chuckle

Apparently, the footage of Zidane's headbutt on Materazzi shown on television was different depending on what country you were in.


Linky: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/13/zidane_headbutt_outrage/

Week 27, 2006

Items of note:

• It's starting. Just like I told you it would.
  
  
• Somebody's finally moving out... sadly it's not me.
  
  
• Finally uploaded all my Europe trip pictures, sorted them, and tagged them... only took me 13 months!
  http://www.flickr.com/photos/bruce_nguyen/sets/
  

Quotes:

• On role reversals...
  Bu: Tell you what, [yadda yadda], then YOU can buy ME that drink!
  
  
• On allergic reactions to mosquito bites...
  Bo: Why's your left hand bigger than your right?
  
  
• On indoor workspaces...
  Cu: Go to the beach.
  Be: It's raining.
  Cu: Really? ... I need a cubicle with a window view

Contemplations:

• My memory sucks. [hidden](it meshes situations together)[/hidden]
  
  
• It makes no sense at all. [hidden](Why? I have no real answer to that)[/hidden]
  
  
• Another drink? Sure! [hidden](make it all go away)[/hidden]

Week 26, 2006

Items of note:

• Jazz Fest ends.
  
  
• Water rafting / camping.
  
  
• New hair style (Yes, again.). It's textured!
  

Quotes:

• On disappearing acts...
  bh: "Does [she] do this a lot?"
  bn: "Only when there's some cute white guy around."
  bh: "So... 'yes'?"
  
  
• On insomnia...
  B1: "No, I didn't sleep with her."
  B2: [raises eyebrow]
  B1: "Well, technically I suppose I did... although I didn't get much sleep..."
  B2: [preps a high-five]
  B1: "She slept like a babe through the whole thing, though."
  B2: [awkwardly inches away]
  
  
• On the turning point...
  B: "It's all in your reactions to arguments. You can feel like yelling at the person, shutting them out, or slapping some sense into them; but so long as you don't imagine yourself leaving the other person, I'd say the relationship is on solid footing."
  J: "Interesting perspective..."
  B: "Imagine killing the other person in their sleep? Sure, perfectly healthy! Imagine leaving them? Never in a long lasting relationship."
  

A Work In Progress

The Gimp + Laptop pointing device = Undue frustration.



We'll see how far I get before I never touch it again.
Instead of a touchpad, I think I work better with a pen.

A pipe dream

I want to start over.

"Hi."

Week 25, 2006

Items of note:

• Did you really delete my posted comment? Seriously. [hidden]Since when were rape jokes off limits?[/hidden]
  
  
• OUENDAN!
  
  
• Vij's, although a tad pricey, gets a thumbs up. Samosa Garden on the other hand...
  
  
• OUENDAN!!
  
  
• Day one: Holy bat-cakes!
  Day four: Yawn... come on now, let's get this over with.
  
  
• OUENDAN!!!

Quotes:

• On flash photography...
  B: (Eww, what a bunch of fugly people.)
  
  
• On I know, I just can't stop doing it...
  b: "Do you know how many things you say that could hurt me?"
  
  
• On I know, I just can't stop doing it... part 2
  B: "Stop hitting on me."
  b: "No, YOU stop hitting on ME."
  B: "I can't."
  b: "I know."
  
  
• On what's your point?
  W: "Where'd you meet them? They look pretty young."
  
  
• On just because it keeps being said, that doesn't make it true...
  B: "I feel very little sexual attraction whatsoever between us."
  

Lessons learned:

• On backtracking a snowball effect...
  First step towards change is aknowledgement. First sign towards aknowledgement is sharing. First requirement for sharing is trusting.
  
  I trust you?
  
  I trust you. [hidden] freak, i'm such a chick :P [/hidden]
  
  
• On self awareness...
  Forget temples, texts, and teachers. All one really needs is a severly pissed off ex-'not-a-girlfriend'.
  
  
• On social interactions...
  Got five sides to me, something like a pentagon
  

Dream theory:
I had a dream last night. I was driving home, got in an accident, wound up in a coma. Two people came to visit me and I floated around outside my body, viewing the interaction.

They talked. They seemed to care. One held my hand and touched my face, even tearing up a little. The other looked sad, but wouldn't do more than stand just barely inside the hospital room, near the exit.

I thought, if they switched places, I would be able to wake up.

Dr Lovejoy prescribes the following:

1) Read the newstory.

2) Watch the video.

3) Feel a little bit better about the kind of people there are in the world.

--

And if you need a little push to actually click the links, here's an excerpt from the newstory to get you in the mood:

"Most kids making a wish through the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Idaho wish to go someplace, to meet someone or to have something special.

Aubrey's request - to "be" something - is the rarest kind of wish, said executive director Marcia Karakas. It's the first time in at least 10 years that a "be" wish has been received in the Idaho office..."

What did she want to be? Click the links above to find out.

Week 24, 2006

"When there's nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire"

--Vocal opening from 'Your ex-lover is dead' by Stars

Quit imagining hidden innuendo in my quotes and posts. [hidden] It's hidden text you should be looking for! And you unformatted text RSS people are cheating. Yeah, I'm looking at you, K! And you too, S! [/hidden]

Items of note:

• DS Lite lite baby (Seven grown men playing Nintendo... Awesome! We need an eigth!) [hidden] No. Just, no. No dual meaning or homoerotic innuendo was meant to be implied here. [/hidden]
  
• So I married an axe murderer. [hidden] More 'a suddenly claustrophobically creepy I-want-to-have-your-babies crazy chick' than 'an axe murderer'. And more' I escaped from' instead of 'I married'. Yes, I could have handled it better, but she also could have been less psychotic about it. [/hidden]
  
• Will I, won't I, will I? It's always all about me. [hidden] No, it's never about me. It's always about the other guy, isn't it? Sometimes I like being 'the other guy'. This isn't one of them [/hidden]
  

Quotes:

• On a shirt I must get:
  S: I'm just not that into you.
  
  
• On reading people like a book:
  B: No, you don't.
  N: No, I don't.
  
  
• On damn you, Brain Age!
  R: Five times four is.... nine!
  

Contemplations:

• If 'avoidance' is a theme in your aspirations, then you really don't have any aspirations... unless you're the type that says flying is really just falling and missing the ground.
  
  
• If at first you don't succeed, try, try again? Sure. But if you still don't succeed, maybe it's time to rethink either your approach or your measure of success.
  
  
• Are people afraid of rejection? Or are they afraid of acceptance because of the ensuing responsibility? [hidden] The answer I'm looking for, if you've been paying attention, is 'neither'. It shouldn't be about avoidance. [/hidden]

Week 23, 2006

Thought of the Week:

“Serendipity. Look for something, find something else, and realize that what you've found is more suited to your needs than what you thought you were looking for.”

-- Lawrence Block

What did I think I was looking for?

Items of note:

• Happy Birthday [various people]!
  
  
• Happy Kwanzaa... I mean, Convocation [various people]!
  
  
• I'm so happy for you, Bobo. We is all growed up now :D
  
  
• Sunday: Boyz II Men @ Plush was filled with nostalgic goodness.
  
  
• I think you're right [hidden]I don't trust it[/hidden]
  

Quotes:

• On short term relationships:
  B: "It's better to end and move on quickly than to drag something out that you know is not going to work"
  J: "Exactly."
  B: "That's the perspective that doesn't make us sound like the dogs we are, so that's what I tell people."
  
  
• On coming home early:
  B: "I had work, ladyfriend has an exam tomorrow"
  M: "The only exams i know of are high school finals. You dog, you!"
  B: "Dude, midterms."
  M: "Suuuuurrre"
  
  
• On charts and graphs that should finally make it clear:
  K: "That is why i'm all for monogamous love but polygamous relationships"
  C: "I think I just had a 'eureka' moment."
  
  
• On did they really just say that?
  b: "And they're like, 'Don't let her go! After she's done with you I want her!'"
  
  
• On what I really want, [hidden]I think... oh shit I don't really know.[/hidden]
  B: "I want us to be great friends."
  
  
• On so many levels of wrongness at stag parties:
  D: "So there were 3 piles of 'toys' to choose from..."

Animator VS Animation

Been a while since I linked something.

Awesome flash animation titled "Animator VS Animation". Check it out.

http://www.theintarweb.org/content/Fun%20Stuff/Animator%20Vs%20Animation.swf

Why don't I listen to my own preachings?

Don't you hate it when you say something to reject another's hypothesis, but on closer examination what you said actually supports them and makes their argument stronger?

What am I getting at? I'm trying to force new experiences into the mold of old ones. We are of our own mold. To try and force us into another is a fruitless endeavour. I'm sorry I keep trying to do this.

Those who don't learn from the past are doomed to repeat it? But what if you want to repeat the past? Where's the implied problem there?

I shouldn't need to spell it out for you, but I will still outline it:

• The variables are never all the same,
  
• Unique opportunites are not leveraged,
  
• Lack of growth

Quotes make people (me) sound smart.

"The most important revelation about the past stems from the realization that it is not important to try and get rid of it, but to realize that we are already, by definition, rid of it. We need not be convinced of the importance of living in the present, but instead realize that we inevitably live in the present, and the only thing to id is to face it. ... Whether we like it or not, we cannot escape the present. The only reality is now."

--George Lawrence-Ell (The Invisible Clock)

Completely off topic

Limits suck when they are there to restrict and confine you.

Limits are good when they provide focus and structure.

The limit this year is 10.

[counting on my fingers]

Oh wait... I mean 11.

I won't be your crutch.

Crutches come in pairs; there's only one of me.