Archive for March, 2007

We were debating when we got home today, whether or not we had time to get to the gym before an appointment about our taxes. I ended up deciding that it was going to be too close, so for tonight we skipped. Instead, Sarah got on the computer and looked at stuff for her class, and I went on a pathetic little run around the block. When I got back we ate, Sarah talked with Kate and I made a client follow up.

On the way out we dropped off some vodka my boss was kind enough to give me, two fifths, to some friends of ours who really like vodka. We still made it over to our appointment early at Rockville road on the west side, and we got to leave at a decent hour. On the way home I got to talk to Teresa in GA about the church’s website, a conversation that we needed to have for a month now but because of conflicting schedules were not able to.

We got back early enough to watch our Monday night shows. We didn’t budge too much from the living room. Sarah tried to shore up plans with Kim and Kate for tomorrow, and I messed around on the laptop while watching tv. I did a lot of emailing and surfing, and then Justin called and we talked for awhile. I was looking for some music before he called, installing iTunes on the laptop and at new stuff from Maroon 5, Linkin Park, and Dolores ORiordan. Then we discovered together that Grouper had been discontinued for personal file sharing and we’d have to transfer files back and forth via some other method, maybe by torrents.

Sarah went to bed right around 11:00, I stayed up for a half an hour or so and did some small freelance work, exporting some images, before I got to sleep.

Got back out into the garage tonight to do some quick things with the Dig Dug. There might be some interest in a trade with the machine, so I took the bezel out (Now that the weather is going to be permanently warm) and put it in, and clipped some wires to the extra buttons that were on the Land Sea and Air control panel, installed a black button where one was missing, and placed the new control panel on the machine. I then took some photos of it, looks pretty cool to see all of the stuff there at least temporarily. Pretty close to being done now that I have the pcb in my possession. Just would take a weekend to get running, which I don’t seem to have right now.

We got “played out” of the contemporary service again today, our little group hanging around and talking a long time after the service had finished.

When Sarah and I got home she went right outside and started to work in the yard. She got a ton done, picking out weeds and leaves out of the west side and all along the front of the house. She worked out there for about 2 hours in total, it was a perfect day to do it, gorgeous.

I was inside surfing, doing email for a bit, and then for just over an hour I got to finally work a little more on my final Kellogg writeup. It felt good to get that on paper, but made me sad to relive everything yet again. I really need to finish it for many reasons.

Within all of this, Dave H. called, the student teacher that is staying with Johnson’s, and asked if we wanted to go with him and Paula to play disc golf somewhere in the city. I was really torn, I needed today to get work done, but everyday I feel like these carefree moments of picking up and taking off are limited. Like I have to live up every chance I can get.

So we agreed, but not until 3, which gave us time to do the aforementioned activities we wanted to around the house.

We went up to the northside to play the game on a park in Noblesville. Apparently in the checking around they did, the ones that were closer were in sketchy areas of the city and this was the safest place to be. However, it was not the most dry. We went through about two holes, before we all went barefoot through the mud on the course. It was a lot of fun, we played around once and then a couple more holes before calling it good. Dave’s a fun guy, grew up in Minnesota, and is really laid back.

Afterwards, since we were so close, we popped into Fry’s so I could buy a laptop case with some of the freelance money I had been earning the past couple of weeks. I really wanted a bag for a laptop yesterday when we went to Lufest, but what I had worked for the day.

Afterwards, everyone was a little hungry, so we went down the road just a little ways to Panera before I remembered we were as close as we were going to be for awhile to a Chipotle. It was a little drive, probably 20 minutes, but it was a road trip and we went for it. Chipotle was worth it, but we felt stupid because after talking at that store, apparently we drove right past one that I was not aware of. There aren’t that many around, and on the way back we drove a little out of the way so I could see where it was and know for the future.

We car pooled together, so we dropped them off and came home. It was after 7:00 already, and being outside and then eating so much we were both tired so we sat on the couch for a little bit to get the second wind. Then, I got on the laptop and did some tracing, and in between shows I went through all the work of gathering up bills for taxes tomorrow, and getting totals and such. This year wasn’t as bad as last year for holes in my bills, but I did have some that I hadn’t printed offline. Sarah spent all of the night doing tax stuff, she had started earlier in the day and she still had a ways to go.

Of course we talked to family and friends in there, she talked to my parents, and then we got a call from a certain someone that got engaged yesterday! Exciting news. I probably shouldn’t be saying anything here because it isn’t my news to tell, but I am sure pretty soon it won’t matter and I can get more specific. Very cool either way, not a complete surprise but we didn’t have a when.

I stayed up pretty late doing different things, working on my Dig Dug, taking some photos of it, and emailing people back and forth about gaming related stuff. It sounds like I may have a great option to finally get a Jr. Pac-man, but we shall see.

We staying over at Wes and Kate’s, so Sarah was up at the crack of dawn for a change and wanting to get home. We had some cinnamon roles for breakfast, and I did some miscellaneous things, paid a bill, did some email and file organization.

Close to 11 am I started doing some small freelance things I should have done yesterday but opted for fun instead. I made a follow up call to the client, and that took me until just about noon. Then, I went out for a rollerblade to take the movie back that we watched last night. I about died, my back hurt so bad, and I think it was only about 2 miles total. The roads are pretty rough going though, rough cement covered in stones, we don’t have the best areas to be going out.

After I got back and showered I had a little something to eat, a chicken salad sandwhich with Sarah. I talked with Kenny for awhile about his email problems, we made one more step, but still haven’t figured out the final goal. I also called Chris, he had wanted to talk to me about some flash related work and how I did some things, and we talked about a lot of stuff for about an hour.

It was getting close to the time to go downtown, so we started to look around the house for something that could work as a laptop bag. We found one that I vaccumed out that worked ok. The top was poking out, but it saved me from buying one tonight and making a trip way up north to get a good deal.

What was Sarah doing all of today you ask? She was getting things organized. I think she went through all of her little stacks of “I’ll get to’s” that she constantly makes all over the house. I think she found stuff from our birth year’s. But seriously, that was good, I got some stuff back that was missing, and she needed to do that for the next step, starting to get together her tax information. She spent most of the day doing that, cleaning, and doing laundry.

Right around 4 we were ready to go and headed downtown to Lufest. It was at the Marriott this year, or so we found out once we got down there. We’re so out of it, I think it was probably in the information I put on the website, but you know, unless it is flashing red in front of my face, most of the time I have a lot of other things on my mind.

Saw Stfy’s, Dave H., and Johnson’s at Lufest, and some other people we knew. I worked most of the time on the laptop, tracing some artwork. Our booth was full of helpers, I didn’t feel like I needed to be in the mix getting in the way. Although things seemed to wrap up fairly early for the silent auction and dinner stuff, we didn’t actually leave until after 10. It was a long day, and I didn’t do barely any work. Sarah was on her feet the whole time, and then helping clean up and get items off when it was all over.

But, we had an invite, and we can’t turn down a fun time, so we headed over to Styf’s afterwards. Journey’s were going to be there, and we were supposed to have a bonfire on the gorgeous night. We didn’t end up doing it at all. The girls hung out inside and chatted about kitchen remodeling, the guys went to the garage and played darts and drank. We went inside just in time for SNL, and some apple cinnabon pie with ice cream. There’s an edible coma.

Peyton Manning was hosting tonight because of his Super Bowl win. He did a pretty good job, two or three really funny scripts, but everything else (not his fault) was so damn stupid. I felt bad for him and the terrible writers, overall I think Tom Brady’s episode was a lot funnier, but hopefully he will be back on and he can have a better go round.

We were beat, we came right home afterwards.

This week Richard sent me a close up photo of the original control panel overlay by itself. Tonight I started tracing it, and got through about 50% of it I believe. I imagine it will be about two weeks before I am able to finish it up. The Jr. Pac-man’s are always tough, the detail in his shoes takes awhile. It should be another cool piece to add to my collection when finished, the final idea being I would have all of the artwork for making an original Jr. Pac-man if I would ever need.

The Mappy auction did end yesterday without any bidders. I emailed the owners yet again, asking to work something out. This time I told them that I could barter my services with them so they could get the total worth out of the machine according to their minimum bid on ebay on this time.

I almost think they aren’t getting the emails, but they should with the subject line being about ebay, and they have been sellers for awhile. I did some research today to find out how much parts might go for when parted out, and I saw even four years ago, $300 for a Mappy was pretty common. The parts didn’t go for much, a Mappy pcb might run $45, and I saw a full size marquee go for less than $20.

We went out to eat at lunch today for work, so I got home a little bit later. I made an exchange at Blockbuster, came home to get Sarah and headed to the gym. We met up with both Brian and Kim for our workouts tonight. This week Brian and I have increased our weight and have done lower reps, hoping to build a little bit. I am really looking forward to that, my chest hurts from Wednesday.

Afterward we went out to dinner with them at Steak and Shake, and we all got to talk some. I don’t think we have ever been to dinner with them, and it was really nice.

On the way to dinner, Sarah called Kate, and she invited us over. The plan was that the girls would then go back to the church and do scrap booking, and the guys would hang out. I brought my laptop, I ran that by Wes first, and we were supposed to watch the Butler game. Well, the girls just did scrap booking at the house instead of going out. Wes and I had drinks and it was a really great night. We watched Intolerable Cruelty, pretty funny movie and just relaxed. Wes and I stayed up a little later than the girls, but it ended up being mostly Wes, I think I zonked right around 1:30.

The Mappy auction ends today in less than three hours. I don’t think it will sell, there are no bidders, but we shall see.

I emailed the guy I met over Christmas with an offer for his original Jr. Pac-man in Ohio. It doesn’t have the sideart, is a touch beat up, and the sides and marquee area are painted solid black. It would be a job to get that off, it is a flat finish paint. I offered him $450 for it. Probably more than I wanted to pay necessarily, but more becuase I knew at his first asking price of $900, and current of $695, there would be little chance my offer would fly. He emailed me back and said “No Thanks.”