Talkless Tuesday: Wifi Surprises

Came home tonight and noticed this in the local Wireless Networks.

The Hand

I think I may have discovered the reason The Minion Underfoot does things to wake us at night.

The Hand Knows Where He Sleeps

Potty Policies III

When I was a senior in high school, I entered into an alternate dimension.

Our school was going on a trip to Pensacola, FL, which was about a 20-hour drive. We stopped around 9:30 at night for dinner somewhere in I don't know where. I simply remember that at 9:30 at night, Denny's was closed but Subway was open.

True story: a Google Images search for "Denny's open all night" turned up this image (Mud Bay Blog)

From that night on, my life has been one bizarre mystery after another apparently.

Potty Policies II

A friend posted this on Facebook today, and I thought it well explained my confusion expressed in my original post.

Chicken Subs

I was hoping to have some video of The Minion Underfoot going ape because there's a cat out on the back deck. Sadly, I broke up the altercation before I realized video of it would be intriguing to share.

Instead, I give to you another recipe I made tonight. Originally, I was going to deem it a Chicken Philly, but then I realized that might lure someone from Philly to claim it wasn't. So I'll simply tell you what I cooked and you decide.

Ingredients
2 boneless chicken breasts, thawed
Adobo seasoning
2 slices mozzarella
1/2 white onion, chopped
1 bell pepper or 3 mini bell peppers, sliced
3/4 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
2 hoagie rolls, cut for sandwich and buttered
Garlic bread powder

Adorability

Full of adorable.

Corned Beef and Rice Redux: A Pictorial Love Story

This time, I remembered to take pictures throughout the process of preparing my corned beef with rice.

The Finished product, wife's serving.

Talkless Tuesday: Das Katzenhaus Evidence

IP over Avian Carriers

The Space Monkey and I were watching TV night when the subject of carrier pigeons came up. She thought she recalled that homing/carrier pigeons were extinct or nearly extinct. I didn't think so, so I looked it up. Then I came across this:

The humorous IP over Avian Carriers (RFC 1149) is an Internet protocol for the transmission of messages via homing pigeon. Originally intended as an April Fools' Day RFC entry, this protocol was implemented and used, once, to transmit a message in Bergen, Norway on April 28, 2001. 

In September 2009, a South African IT company, based in Durban, pitted an 11-month-old bird armed with a data packed 4GB memory stick against the ADSL service from the country's biggest internet service provider, Telkom. The pigeon named Winston took an hour and eight minutes to carry the data 80 km (50 mi). Including downloading, it took two hours, six minutes, and 57 seconds for the data to arrive, the same amount of time it took to transfer 4% of the data over the ADSL. —Wikipedia

Wait...what?

Dominical Double-Down: Going Medieval

The reason I failed you yesterday is that I went to an SCA event yesterday. What's the SCA? It stands for Society for Creative Anachronism.

The SCA is an international organization dedicated to researching and re-creating the arts and skills of pre-17th-century Europe. Our "Known World" consists of 19 kingdoms, with over 30,000 members residing in countries around the world. Members, dressed in clothing of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, attend events which feature tournaments, royal courts, feasts, dancing, various classes & workshops, and more. —SCA Website

In other words, we're epic geeks.

Dominical Double-Down: Ice-Road Drivers

It is with tears in my heart and sadness in my eyes that I must confess I missed posting yesterday. So in order to provide you, my loyal readers, with the bloggage you so desire, I am doubling down today. First...

Source: Rhode Island Department of Transportation

While we didn't get that much snow and ice Friday evening, we got enough to leave about an inch of icy snow on top of all vehicles. The picture above is an example provided by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (because Maryland's DOT would probably just tell you about some kind of innovative new ice tax they're levying for your benefit) of what not to do.

IMMD

I don't have anything funny to share today, just something that made my day.

The Spring Semester began on Tuesday, and one of my college students wasn't in class. I sent an e-mail to his school e-mail address, but got no response. He wasn't there again on Thursday, so I despaired of seeing him in class this semester.

As I was organizing my school e-mail account today, I found his personal e-mail address, which he had used to contact me last semester. So I sent him off a revised e-mail letting him know that I missed him in class, and how he could still join us.

Around 6:45 tonight, he called me and said that he had withdrawn from all of his classes this afternoon. Then he received my e-mail and changed his mind about my class. He said, "You reminded me that you were the professor who cared and who I could work with." So he's coming back to my class.

It made my day.

Corned Beef and Rice: Mark II

We had guests over tonight, so I decided to make corned beef and rice...because I can.

I had planned to take a picture of the completed product, but that was all a blur. So all I have is a picture of leftovers.

Wordless Wednesday: SOPA Edition

For more information, click here.

Talkless Tuesday: Frozen Follies

What the...?

Pork Tenderloins

I go back to work tomorrow, so I spent today not being funny. I did, however, make delicious dinner, and I decided to share those with yous.

Phantom Begging

When I was doing my internship several years ago, I went in one day wearing all black with a VeggieTales tie. I explained that I was dressed this way so people might not notice I didn't own an iron.

The next time I came in, two different women gave me new irons.

Impressed with my success, I went in again a few weeks later dressed the same way and explained that I did not have any living room furniture.

A couple donated their old living room furniture to me.

I debated trying it one more time and letting everyone know I didn't have a 46" HDTV.

Sometimes, when I game...I ask higher level players for their swords too.

The Lamentation of the Women

What is best in Mario Kart?

Also strangely true on the Capital Beltway.

If you've never played Mario Kart before or seen Mario Kart being played, then you need to understand. If the Dalai Lama, Gandhi, Confucius, and Nelson Mandela were put into the same metaphysical room and made to play it, the Dalai Lama and Gandhi would be throwing their Wiimotes in frustration while Mandela laughed and Confucius asked them how it tastes.

It's a little intense.

Potty Policies

There's a question that's been bothering me for over a year now, and it's tragically related to bathroom etiquette. Never in my life have I come across this problem before, but I started noticing it first with my wife and then with our tenant and now with my wife again. Let me show you.

Observe the toilet paper not on the toilet paper holder. Ignore the duck.

The problem I've noticed is that when one roll ends, both my wife and our former tenant, the Airport Llama, leave the empty tube on the holder and use alternative methods to support the new roll.

This has happened often.

Frozen Feminine Hygiene Follies

I will start this post by saying something that's going to please my friend, the Simple Lemming. Today I found myself looking in my fridge for feminine hygiene products.

Look for it in your frozen food section.

This is what my life has become.

The Cat in the Purple Tulle Bow

Because I couldn't figure out how to rhyme 'tulle' with 'cat' in a satisfyingly Seussian manner.

The Sugar Packet Diaries: Lip Gloss is a Girl's Best Friend

So I'm up past my bedtime to give you, my loyal followers, some joy.

I bet you're thankful.

~~~~~~~~~~

Another reason I'm up past my bedtime is Blogger's being funny about video uploads, so I had to upload this to YouTube first. Meh.

Das Katzenhaus: Meditations on a Cherry Blossom

When the cold months dwindled away and the One began to open the blinds in the largest room to let in light, Diego discovered the beauty of the world outside his home.

Different room and season, but I never tire of this picture.

Das Katzenhaus: The Black Fabric Saga

On of Diego's favorite things about his new home was that the soft chairs had black coverings. In particular he loved the chair that could only seat one person.

If you sit in this chair and then go outside...dogs will chase you.

Best of all, the One never disturbed him when in this seat or tried to steal it.

Das Katzenhaus: Bad Touch

The days continued to pass into weeks and months since Diego had been brought to this new home from his old one. Gone was the cage, the other cats, the lack of attention. The One—as there was only one who was always with him—gave him as much or as little attention as he desired. And there was even a sufficient mouse problem to keep him occupied.

A strangely persistent mouse problem.

Das Katzenhaus: Origins

In the beginning there was Andrew.

At least, that's what the people who fed him called him. He was all right with this, although his world was a cage that separated him from others like him.

But none were like him.

People like the ones who fed him would come by often and play with the others, but not with Andrew. He lived in his cage with his food and his bed.

He was comfortable with this.

One day, three people came by like normal. Andrew thought nothing of this since they always played with the others.

This group was different though. One of them pointed at Andrew. The people who fed him opened the cage and picked him up. He was placed in the One's arms and began to sense there was something yet more different about him. Although another played with one of the babies nearby, this One insisted on keeping Andrew.

He was placed in a different cage now and taken away from his home.

To a mysterious new world.

The One and the others let him out of the new cage. Timidly, he stepped forward into this new world. There were no others like him there. There were no cages. The floor was soft and there were wide open spaces. The One and the others watched him intently, but he didn't notice. Instead he crept forward inquisitively, casting his eyes and nose about. One paw after another, he crept away from the cage and around a corner.

There he found a new shelter.

It became clear to him over the next few hours that his name was apparently no longer Andrew. He wasn't certain, but he thought his name might now be, "Please come out."

He stayed in that place for hours until the hands had stopped reaching for him and the light had become darkness. When the sounds had mostly subsided, he crept forth slowly, nosing about and smelling the new smells in the new places.

Two of the others came over, one scooping him up while the other sealed up the place he had just been. They took him to another room and began to pet him and brush him and put him at ease.

The next day he learned a new word. His new name.

Diego.

Out of Funny

I'm out of funny for the day.

And I do feel bad about that.

The lesson learned is that I clearly need to write these earlier in the day. Until then, XOXO.

The Evil Dubstep Spirit of Hockey

The following really did happen.

Cookie Monster was unavailable for comment.

Where do I begin?

The Get Off My Lawn Chronicles: Part V

I'm all dried up on funny today for some reason.

Probably has something to do with Mario Kart.

I'll be starting a new series tomorrow or the day after, if'n I can get my motivation going. The only reason I went with The Get Off My Lawn Chronicles for today is that it is yet another holiday week, and the same neighbors have put their recycling out a day too early.

Which is in accordance with prophecy.

Corned Beef and Rice

True story: before we started dating, I had never had traditional (Irish-style?) corned beef; my wife had never had Hispanic-style corned beef. There is a difference!

Like the part where it comes in a can (Goya Corned Beef via Wegmans)

The amusing thing about this is that when we would start talking about how much we like corned beef, she was thinking of a brisket while I was thinking about a stew/sauce.

Resolutely Irresolute

Last night we had a New Year's Eve get-together, because that's what people do. Nary had our friend the Comedy Llama arrived when the D.A.L.A. started tearing the Llama's clothing off.

Because it was highly reflective.

Granted, all I'm talking about here is an airport runway vest. She still had her uniform coveralls on. Why? What did you think I was talking about?

Perverts.