acidbasement

I'm feeling an extreme urge to hop on an eastbound train.

Happy birthday, John!

Manitoba is fully rabid about the Jets. I'm going to try not to get sucked into it, but if they advance past Anaheim it might be difficult.

Have a great one, Jeffy!

Happy belated!

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday Tyler!

Happy belated, Doug!

Happy birthday!

I'm reading Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides. I have to read one or two pieces of bona fide literature in a year, despite generally having lower-class taste in books. This one is really good. One hundred pages to go, and then I'm back to my Seanan McGuire binge.

We don't get biscuits and gravy in Canada, because poutine is better so what would be the point? Anyway, I tried my first biscuits and gravy today, because I figured Brent would approve. It was okay. I suspect North Dakota might not be the best place for such a dish. Should have just ordered pie.

Happy birthday, fellow bearded one!

Outstanding, Peter!

Happy birthday Larry!

May I suggest a career change to municipal administration? We kill as many trees as possible. One of the CAOs I worked with recently wrote out all council resolutions, some very long ones, by hand.

Meh, the pen probably cost all of two dollars - I'm guessing it's not worth tuning up. I'll buy a decent new one at some point if I can't get satisfaction out of this one by soaking it. There's a multi-estate auction sale in ten days that I'm thinking of attending. Maybe I'll come home with these:

Maybe I'll try that. The ink still isn't flowing as freely as I'd like. I've got to start each stroke slowly and press firmly to get it moving, or else it leaves the first half-inch or so blank. Of course, it could also be that it's a cheap knockoff pen. My dad loves his impulse bargains when he travels, so he's the ideal mark for junk peddlars.

Our forecast looks awesome. The roads should be clear and dry enough to bike on this weekend, and we've had such little accumulation this winter that the snow might all be gone by the time we get back from California.

No, it's just one of the tricks I read about that can resurrect a nib that probably had some long-dried-out ink residue blocking the fresh stuff from flowing in.

Happy birthday!

Then there's this: Lamy 2000 fountain pen on Massdrop for $115.

Dammit you guys, I'm getting stylus envy from reading this thread. Just dug out the fountain pen my dad brought back from China a few years ago, and put in a fresh cartridge. I also found a nice looking Scheaffer fountain pen, which Eleanor recognised as hers. Apparently I've been hiding it from her for quite a few years. She thought she had lost it. Don't think I'm getting that one back. Update: the Chinese pen actually seems to write very nicely, after flushing out the nib with water to get things moving. I suspect the "Iridium tip - Germany" stamp may not be authentic, but oh well.

Amazing cake! Happy birthday to Bonnie!

Happy birthday, Nate!

I wish concerts weren't so loud. There's so much going on in the treble in metal music, and even "hi-fi" earplugs like Etys filter out more treble than bass, so you end up with a dull, mushy sound. Or, if you don't wear earplugs for a few minutes, you almost immediately get temporary hearing loss in the treble, so all you can hear are the double kick-drum patterns anyway, even during guitar solos. I should go into the lucrative business of being a sound guy.