avoision: May 2006 Archives

May 31, 2006

Bryan, transferring data from his old mac over to the new. Happy and excited don't come close to describing his joy (no more daily computer crashes, no more sobbing quietly in the corner). As a result of Bryan's upgrade, his Mac monitor got kicked over to Ben. And, as... (read more)

Evening

May 30, 2006

Hung out with Liz tonight, and the two of us caught a late dinner at Moonshine. Her apartment is pretty hot overall, and the AC unit installation was delayed by a day. So we swung over to my place, picked up another fan, and tried to get some cross-breeze action... (read more)

Howard's Move

All in all, not too terribly bad. Me, Howard, Justin and Howard's cousin Chris helped out. We loaded up some stuff onto a truck, and unloaded it at a nearby storage facility. Most of Howard's belongings he ended up storing - choosing only the bare necessities for his move two... (read more)

iMac++

Not one, but two! Allison got her new computer today (the Intel-based one, to boot) as did Bryan (whose computer has been crashing at least once a day for some months now). And you know what? Both of them have a little video-cam thing installed, as well. Finally... my... (read more)

Everybody... meet Allison!

Joining us in Chicago, Allison hails from Austin - where she's been working as one of our webmasters, tending to several stations down there. It was cool to officially meet her for the first time, when we were in Mexico. She arrived in town a day or so ago,... (read more)

On the way to work

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Siren Song

May 29, 2006

Of coure, after seeing/hearing this... I started thinking about ambulances again, and the notion of tiers of quality.----- --------... (read more)

Fan++

One downfall with Liz's new place - the heat. Up on the second floor, the heat tends to collect and Liz has found her bedroom (and the kitchen) to be pretty hot. There are no windows back there, so the only hope is to offset the stagnant, hot air... (read more)

Another Move, Rescheduled

Went over to help Howard move today, around 1PM. He's got a pretty big desk that requires several guys to maneuver, and so I offered to help out. Like Justin, he's only moving a short distance as a result of his lease coming up. In fact, Howard is only moving... (read more)

Sudden Realization

Yikes.... (read more)

Updates!

05/28/2006... (read more)

Impromptu Cookout

May 28, 2006

Got an invite from Liz and Steph today, and learned they were to be grilling in the backyard. Liz and I wandered over there around 6:30 or so, with some beers. Firing up the grill... There were additional folks in the backyard, who I didn't really know. Turns out... (read more)

Santa, aren't you a little... hot?

I wonder what the reindeer do, to stay in shape...... (read more)

Updates!

05/25/2006 05/26/2006 05/27/2006... (read more)

Now all I need is to find a pair of pants...

May 27, 2006

Seeing as how I already found the shirt.... (read more)

Stubborn Bunnies and Sweat Stains

Got a call from Liz after I got home. After painting her cage, it turns out Baxter refused to go back in. Liz had been there for over 2 hours, trying everything she could, to no avail. And, Murphy's law being what it is, of course Baxter went back in... (read more)

Justin's Move

On arriving, Justin had most of his items already moved over. I think Dave and Gretchen were helping him out during most of the day. We cleared out some items from his basement, and the three of us loaded up two cars to caravan over to the new place. Between... (read more)

Liz's Move

Right off the bat, things start off poorly. We show up at the truck rental place (Liz got a good deal on a truck through Royal, a friend from work). But when we're there, we discover that they require proof of insurance before they'll give us the truck. Liz's card... (read more)

Pre-Move Moving

May 26, 2006

last night, Liz and I drove to Frankfurt to switch cars. She left her car there, and we took her step-dad's truck back to the city. Today, the two of us took the day off from our respective jobs and spent it loading/packing boxes. All in all, we did about... (read more)

Driving down to Frankfurt

May 25, 2006

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Chronon

Chronon is a new game over at eyezmaze.com. I'm a total fan of this site, and am crazy about a lot of the games - specifically Tontie, and any of the Grow games (Grow v. 3, Grow Cube and Grow RPG). Brilliant stuff. Check out the site if you... (read more)

A Joke That was One Year, Five Months and 28 days in the making...

First, some background information. Let me take you back to October 27, 2004. Ben was working from home, and he had sent out a group email indicating certain materials he needed from some of the folks in the office. And me? Well, not being one to take directions very well...... (read more)

A Day of Publications and Media Attention

May 24, 2006

How cool is this - my friend Gretchen made the cover of the Chicago Reader. I'm a bit late in posting the announcement, but you can take a gander at her writing/piece online. I don't have a good photo from the event, seeing as it took place in Berne,... (read more)

It's *NOT* a porn mag

May 23, 2006

Tonight, while at my place, Liz was looking at my bookshelf. When I asked her what she was looking at, she said: "Dirty?" I pulled out the magazine, and tried explaining how this wasn't a porno mag. Not technically. :P I figured this was a good chance to mention... (read more)

Scooter

Tonight, I ended up riding as a passenger, on the back of Liz's scooter. I found myself pretty anxious for the first few trips, and after talking things through... I think I figured out why. Mostly, I think it's a control issue. I respond poorly to being told what to... (read more)

X-Men 3: Pre-Screening

Thanks to Jeanine at Q101, I was able to score a few tickets to the pre-screening of X-Men 3. Liz and I got there right at about 6:15 (the movie started at 7). By then, we were already near the end of the line, if you can believe that.... (read more)

Tyger

Tyger is a pretty fantastic short film by Guilherme Marcondes. Definitely worth the download - do try and check it out (via Ektopia). And for those of you thinking about Blake right now... swing back a few years, and check out the poem.... (read more)

Coming and Going

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Packing Up the Basement

May 22, 2006

Most of tonight was spent packing up loose items in the basement. Each tenant in the building has their own storage space, and we ended up getting most of the freestanding stuff into boxes. Come Friday, we'll hopefully clear this stuff out and move it over in a few... (read more)

Demolition

Got a call from Liz on my way over, telling me I might want to arrive before the sun fully set. Across the alley from her building, there was a house being torn down. When I showed up, all the crew had gone for the day - and so I... (read more)

Phone Project: Status

May 21, 2006

Good progress this weekend. I may have arrived on a logo concept I'm happy with, and got some work done with laying out the GUI. I also made a rough stab at the XML (which needs to get fine-tuned), and have started to wire up things a bit. Before I... (read more)

Audioplayer Updated

The most recent audioplayer update was heavily influenced by Ben. He passed along a collection of songs from his friend Greg Peterson - a sort of top list of his favorites. Two of the songs on his list ("Is Anybody Going to San Antone?" by Doug Sahm and "Are You... (read more)

Updates!

2006/05/2019 2006/05/2020... (read more)

Triptych

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A Thirteen-Hour Nap

May 20, 2006

It was only going to be for a little bit. We had plans. We were going to go out. It was only going to be for a little bit.... (read more)

An Afternoon of Packing

I went over to Liz's place today, to help out with some pre-move packing. I'm looking to take off next Friday to move a ton of boxes in the hopes that, come Saturday... all we'll have left to move is the big/heavy stuff. Today, we worked on the living room,... (read more)

Geometry Lesson

May 19, 2006

I took a cab home after work and spotted these trails in the sky. The nerd in me instantly thought: geometry lesson! And I couldn't shake the image from my mind. After digging around, Transveral lines aren't exactly what I was thinking about... but it's close.... (read more)

On the way to lunch

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Unexpected Gift

So this arrived in the mail at work today, and it had me completely baffled. I wasn't expecting anything, and had no idea what this was. But - a quick note later, and it dawned on me. Matthew, one of the folks involved with the You Are Beautiful project,... (read more)

Gaki No Tsukai

This is repost from MetaFilter, but it's so good... I needed to share it with you all. Gaki No Tsukai is a Japanese show, set up in a (fake) library. The whole point of the game/show is to not laugh out loud. Six participants are given cards, and each... (read more)

On the way to work

Random bookshelf, alleyway between Wood and Hermitage. I always thought he had a trumpet...... (read more)

Phone Valet Test: Call Me

May 18, 2006

I've hooked up Phone Valet to my Mac successfully. Turns out I had a bunk DSL filter, or I don't know what. At any rate, whatever it was... it's working now. So that's the important thing. I've got a phone line going into my Mac, and the DSL remains up.... (read more)

Hot97 + Power106 iTunes Music Store Launch!

Today we officially launched two of our first station-based iTunes Music Stores! Very exciting stuff - we've been working on this for a really long time, and were able to debut it today on two stations: Hot97 (WQHT) in New York and Power 106 (KPWR) in LA. On top... (read more)

Yet Another Reason Why I Love My Coworkers

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The Portrait

May 17, 2006

by Stanley Kunitz My mother never forgave my father for killing himself, especially at such an awkward time and in a public park, that spring when I was waiting to be born. She locked his name in her deepest cabinet and would not let him out, though I could hear... (read more)

R.I.P. Stanley Kunitz

I saw on MetaFilter that Stanley Kunitz passed away a few days ago. I must confess that I'm not familiar with his work, but I've looked over a few of his poems since his passing. I'm looking forward to picking up a collection sometime soon. I found one (below) that... (read more)

Phone Valet: Some Progress, Some Problems

My copy of Phone Valet arrived today. Very excited. Got to mucking around with it some, and got so far as setting up a voicemail recording... as well as two separate mailboxes, depending on what number you punched in. Awesome! The one downfall is that, apparently, when I try... (read more)

I can see clearly now...

... (read more)

Office construction, done!

The new area. Allison, one of our webmasters in Austin, is going to be joining our corporate team in Chicago. Making room, making room. The new office that Letty and Deb will be sharing.... (read more)

It was a dark and stormy afternoon

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Bryan Haircut Photos: Before and After

Bryan had a haircut today, and went in telling the stylist to "do whatever she wants." This is the before shot. And this is the after. Nice! Sort of makes me wonder if I should get my hair cut again.... (read more)

More people, more cubes

More construction today. I walked in to find a ton of stuff pushed up against my area. Today, Jane got her area adjusted - making way for another desk between her and Bryan.... (read more)

Sweeeeeeet

May 16, 2006

Season 6 of the West Wing was released on DVD today. Guess what I'm going to be doing all weekend?... (read more)

On the way home

Walking from the Damen Blue Line Stop, I noticed a few, occasional bubbles in the air, floating around the North/Damen/Milwaukee trisection. After looking around a bit, I spotted the source: two auto bubble makers, sitting on a second floor ledge on North Ave. The bubbles got picked up by... (read more)

Office Construction

About a year ago, we had a ton of construction at work and moved in to our current digs. We've hired a few folks since that time, and we're looking to hire a few more - so as a result, we're building out new desks. I'm pretty wowed at the... (read more)

On the way to work

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work++

May 15, 2006

Long night of work. Ben was in the office until about 11:30 PM, and Justin and I were at it until midnight. I got a bit of freelance in, as well as work work. Chugging along... it's one of those weeks.... (read more)

Porch Complete!

This was completed while I was away in Mexico, but today was the first decent day to grab a photo. Next up on the agenda: a grill! That, and maybe a big table so I can host a Texas Holdem game or two. Once the weather gets a bit... (read more)

On the way home from work

May 14, 2006

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Phone Valet

May 13, 2006

I made a fairly big purchase today, and got myself a copy of Phone Valet. This software should allow me to turn my Mac into a sort of automated Message Center. Lots of features, though I'm not certain I'll be using it in the way it was originally intended.... (read more)

Photos, LaPorte

Well this was kind of cool. While I was away in Mexico, I got a note from Jason. He was looking to use a few photos I took for his website. Sweet! If you haven't already, check out the LaPorte, Indiana book site. There are some great sample photos... (read more)

Updates!

2006/05/2012... (read more)

After Absenter

May 12, 2006

Driving with Liz last night, we were sneaking through a backroad (I think it's called Southport). I've been through here before, but tonight I spotted a few trucks with their doors open... and decided to snap a few pics. Of course, I'm a symmetry nut - and the tires... (read more)

Dolphin Discovery

Jane and Bryan, watching the "Dolphin Discovery" DVD that Justin and Matt received while in Mexico. Swimming with dolphins was one of the many "Free Time" activities we had, while on our business trip. And after watching these videos, I'm regretting not going. Jane tried to get a screencap,... (read more)

Hello Netscape! Again!

Looking through my referrer logs today, I found that I made it onto Netscape. Again! The last time this happened was about a year and a half ago, and I got a ton of traffic as a result. Pretty cool to get a nod from them, even if it... (read more)

Back home

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¡Estoy en México!

May 11, 2006