Just in case you didn't realize you had a vague interest in what I'm up to these days
 

It's been a long time since I submitted anything on this site. Or gotten any real fiving work done period (I swear, my last TOS fiver is more done than it was a couple months ago). That's not about to change soon, either. Here's why.

1) I'm getting married in August. Until then, there are quite a few plans to make that are slowly, but surely, being put off until the last minute.

2) Afterward, my fiancee/wife and I will be moving to California. Bay area. This also involves quite a few plans to make that have, indeed, involved procrastination.

3) In the fall I'll be starting work on my MFA. Which should be time consuming. Also awesome. Fortunately, there's nothing to procrastinate on with this one, so I can focus my procrastinations elsewhere.

So, as my life as I know it is in a state of voluntary upheaval, it's probably realistic to expect my dry spell to continue. Don't worry -- I'm not leaving. I'll certainly still post on the forums here and there, possibly whittle away the last of my TOS obligations before the second anniversary of the fourth anniversary blowout, and offer possible opinions on the FBC whenever that takes off. But rest assured, there are reasons for my lack of input lately. I just thought I'd let the community know that.

Also, I'm just really freaking stoked about California and MFA workshops. Mmmm....

First off, congratulations. Yet another member of the Group of People Whose Lives are More Exciting than Mine, or GOPWLAMETM (just try to pronounce it, I dare you!).

And what's an MFA? Masters in Farming Administration? :)

Congratulations, good luck, live long and eat pie etc :)

You're moving?! NO! You can't be moving! What about Florida solidarity? Don't you remember? Geez....

And now you'll be a Californian, which doesn't even insert an extra "i" into its name for no apparent reason like "Floridian" and "Canadian" does.

Seriously though, congrats, IJD. Hope you have a great marriage, a great move, and a great masters. (see that? alliteration...)

...Now if only I had such great excuses for not doing anything on this site.

Nate: What in the world can that be?
Derek (turning around): What, where? I didn't see anything.
Nate (painting a giant target on Derek's back): Oh, I could've sworn I saw something. Heh heh heh.
Derek: What's so funny?
Nate: I'll tell you in a minute. First, let's drink. Me from my, glass, and YOU from yours.
Derek: You guessed wrong.
Nate: You only think I guessed wrong, that's what's so funny! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders. The most famous is, never get involved in a space war in the Alpha Quadrant, but only slightly less well known than this: never go in against a fivist when updates are on the line! Hahahahahaha! Hahahahaha! Hahaha-(thud)

(Please take all of this in good humor, pretty pretty please?)

(CV dances on Inf/Imp's corpse)
:)

MFA = Master of the Fine Arts. It's a writing thing, in this case.

As for Florida solidarity, I really do love this state. My mother is from Connecticut and it would pain her to hear me say that. But I grew up here, she didn't. And I really love the climate and (most) of the people. And there's so much to do here it's crazy.

We're going to California for (her) work stuff and (my) school stuff. We may stay there, we may go elsewhere, we may come right back here. We're not ruling anything out at this point. So now, I'm just focused on enjoying myself in a gorgeous area with a gorgeous climate and a whole 'nother set of so much to do it's crazy... not to mention a high cost of living (arg). California should be fun. But I am still a Floridian.

If it makes you feel better, you and IJD just won the Stanley cup from me, by extension.

It had better make you feel better.

grumble grumble stupid ducks grumble...

I'm so glad I'm not in Ottawa right now. My ex-labmates will be impossible to get along with tomorrow. It's like going to a funeral the day after the Senators get eliminated from the playoffs.

Oh, and when it's a Sens-Leafs series, those people aren't fit to share an office with.

Fiver: To think -- all that time it was your cup that had the procrastination.
Derek: They both had it. I spent the last few years getting used to procrastination from being around Zeke.

You guys were wondering about the target on Derek's back, admit it. Simply put, that's the remnant of another direction I was going with the joke, and I went with something else and was too lazy to delete it.

Congratulations! http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...s/thumbsup.gif
I suppose the "where you're living" part remains to be worked out (if you have any questions about the local geography or what-have-you, let me know; I lived on the Peninsula for quite a few years and may be able to help out), but what school?

I'm going to get heckled for being Canadian and wanting Anaheim to win all along anyway, aren't I? I already did in the Vancouver-Anaheim series...now THAT was unbearable. Not a city in Canada more enthusiastic and less snow-covered that hockey is so popular in.

Never mind half the Ducks are Canadians...

I didn't realise that curling was such a big thing in Canada.

IJD, at the wedding, you should definitely play "California Girls" as your bride goes down the isle. It'll go down a treat, I guarantee it. ;)

(The congratulations go without saying, of course.)

Dusting this one off for a moment.

I bumped into IJD in passing over at the other place and he conveyed the impression that: yes, he is now married and is now in California. It occurred to me, though, that I never did find out exactly where in California that was, nor at which school he was going to be doing his MFA program so, if IJD should happen to pass this way before this thread again drops off of the front page, perhaps he could give us the thumbnail update.

I hope that it's properly trimmed.

FROM HELL'S HEART I STAB AT THEE!

Or, if you're in the mirror universe,

!EEHT TA BATS I TREAH S'LLEH MORF

Remind me to call you Morf from now on. ;)

As you wish...


...Edith.

Where'd "Edith" come from, Morf?

You guys luck out that I just saw an episode of Garfield and Friends that involve sixteen-ton safes. (Or are you?)

Roy the Rooster has quit from the U.S. Acres farm to work with the Buddy Bears as "Big Bad Buddy Bird," the one who demonstrates what "happens" when you disagree with the group. Every time he disagrees, they drop a sixteen-ton safe on him. After a few impacts he is understandably battered. The final time the scenario is what flavor of ice cream to have:

Roy: If I say my line, do you promise not to drop a sixteen-ton safe on me?
Buddy Bears: We promise!
Roy: "I'm Big Bad Buddy Bird, and I don't want vanilla, I want strawberry!"
(He gets whapped by TWO sixteen-ton safes)
Buddy Bear 1 (I could never tell Billy, Bernie, and Bobby apart): You see? We didn't drop a sixteen-ton safe on you.
Buddy Bear 2: We dropped TWO sixteen-ton safes on you!

Yes, I'm married and now living in the east bay area. As for where I'm getting my MFA? Well I have this *thing* about online privacy as my hopelessly out-of-date faq suggests. And since MFA programs are just so damned small... I dunno, it just gives me the paranoia heebie jeebies just thinking about divulging that. Silly, yeah. But there you go.

I can't argue with that. After all, you won't find my real name on this site unless you use the Wayback Machine or something. For me it's not such a big deal, because if you did a search for my real name you'd get a bunch of dead people (apparently this particular first/last name combo was particularly popular two hundred years ago). I am gratified that there are so many Nate Grants it's not even funny. It's way more anonymous than I originally thought.

Okay, I can understand that. Was curious, more than anything, really. I have a brother that lives out in Concord with his wife and son, and I thought that if, by some obscure chance, I might someday be able to pry myself loose down here and go up for a visit, we could meet for lunch or coffee somewhere. I have no idea at this time when or if such a trip might happen, but it could, conceivably. Guess I'd shoot you a PM if that looks likely.

Yeah, that's be fine schedule permitting. Concord's not too far... but then again the whole bay area is small enough such that nothing's too far i suppose. I'm used to things being super stretched out on a peninsular state.

Anywho, did you know Tom Hanks is from Concord? I didn't.

You could use the Wayback Machine, or you can just keep reading *g*

I did know that, actually. In fact, before I moved back to SoCal, I remember seeing that Hanks' old high school drama teacher there was receiving some sort of recognition (I think it was on the occasion of his retirement) and Hanks turned up at the old school to make the presentation. It sounded like a nice gesture and he seemed sincere in giving his teacher a lot of credit for his own success.

Going back a few years earlier, I believe Dave Brubeck is also from Concord.

Huh. Dave Whobeck?

Jazz pianist. You've quite likely heard one or two of his tunes, even if you may not have known who played them.

"Take Five", from an old TV performance

Couldn't find one of Brubeck playing this, so here's "Blue Rondo à la Turk" performed by some other guys.