Movable Type rules. Now that my installation and database connection problems are behind me (at least for the moment), I can actually begin to start using it. I have a Test Blog up and running and all seems to be working beautifully. Next up: Importing all Blogger posts to Movable Type. Woohoo!
Sometimes having two dogs isn't all that much fun. This week having two dogs has been quite the pain in the ass. If it's not one dog pissing or shitting inside, it's the other. As smart and as good and as housebroken as she is, apparently Stella had some major poo problems in the night, since Jen and I were greeted this morning by quite the pile by the back door downstairs. Happy was in the kitchen, so he was ruled out. On Treasure Island, Stella would always wake us up in the night if she had an emergency, so we wondered why she didn't last night. My theory is that on TI the door to our room was always closed at night, and dogs don't like to stink up small areas in which they're confined. These days, in our own house, the door to our room is always open at night, so Stella's free to roam (and poo) about.
Ben's iProtest.net site is up for beta testing. You won't be able to access it until the beta is over, but I'm happy to announce that I'm officially the first poster to the site. I posted a link to an article about the new budget deficit created by the Bush administration. This is what I said about it:
"This is an issue overlooked by mainstream media. It's ridiculous that no one seems to care that the Bush administration is throwing billions into military "defense" spending and using it on the offense to attack Iraq to secure U.S. oil interests and to put money in top officials' pockets."
Yesterday I sent an email to President Bush via Act for Change, urging him not to invade Iraq, and reminding him that there are more pressing problems here at home. Of course, he doesn't even listen to a group of San Francisco protesters 40,000 strong, so he's surely not going to care about one email. But hey, we've got to try.
Gabe Anderson // 10:46 AM
Hmm...this could be the next big thing for the porn industry.
The Voice of America is news to me, too. Who knew the U.S. Congress approved a $147 million for a government-run news agency?
Yesterday Jen arrived home with my costume for this Halloween: She-Devil. My red devil dress even includes a flaming collar. With red fishnets and my trident, I'm ready to rock 'n roll.
I finally got Movable Type installed, but only after much frustration. And now it's only sort of working. There continue to be database connection problems. But hopefully that will be resolved before long. I've put together a description of my experience doing the installation.
Downstairs, Ben and I heard Jen scream: "Ahhhh! Oh my God!" We both ran upstairs. What we found was Jen standing next to the computer breathing hard and what you'll find in the above URL on the computer screen. Jess certainly nailed her with that one. Click on the URL at your own risk.
Last night Jen and I watched the 1998 documentary Kurt and Courtney, which told the story behind Kurt Cobain's life and explored the conspiracy theory that Courtney Love (or someone hired by her) had actually killed her husband of two years and made his death look like suicide. The documentary was interesting, but didn't leave me feeling convinced either way. It did leave me with a new feeling toward Courtney Love, though: By all accounts, she seems pretty scary and not at all what she appears to be on the surface (at least on the surface of her new wannabe movie-star image).
There was a shooting today on Peter's school's campus (U. of A.). I've left messages for him on his cell and home phones but have not yet heard back. I'm certain he's fine, though, since he's not a nursing student. Still, it's such a scary thing to think how close such a horrible act of violence can touch my family. I'm glad the bastard who did this killed himself. Now he should rot in Hell.
If only people with death wishes would go away and kill themselves instead of feeling the need to take others with them, the world would be a better place.
Gabe Anderson // 3:43 PM
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Sunday, October 27, 2002:
The Giants lost a heart-breaking game yesterday when the monkey-lovin' Angels from Anaheim came from behind to overcome a 5-nothing deficit. Tonight is Game 7 and the Giants will have to give the Angels a serious ass-whoopin' to make up for yesterday. Dad is coming over again for dinner and to watch the game. I really hope our team can bring home the victory.
Before the game yesterday, Jen and I woke up bright and early to head up to Sonoma with Ben and Jess to hit the warehouse wine sale at Sebastiani. It was a hell of a lot more crowded than the similar event Jen and I attended last fall at Kendall-Jackson. But we had just as much fun. After a couple rounds of tasting in between standing in the long checkout line, we ended up with 3 cases of wine, along with a big ol' 3-liter magnum bottle of 1998 Merlot. The cases we got were Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, and a White Maritage/Sonoma Valley Domenici "Old Vines" Mourvedre case we split with Ben and Jess. Before heading home, we had a huge, yummy brunch at Black Bear Diner.
Back at the ranch, we watched a couple hours of season one of Buffy on DVD before doing a beer run and watching the game that started out to be great fun, but certainly didn't end that way. (Beer run link brought to you by the official Everclear Web site, which greets you with a great animation of a hot chick flipping you off. Rock on. Ahh...Everclear...those were the days: Flaming shots, Hi-C mixers, paint curled off the wall of Jonty's room in Jewett.)
Today was good timing for Daylight Savings to go into effect. It was nice to sleep until 10, but awake and have it really be 9. We've used the extra hour to clean the house and do oodles of laundry today (8 whopping loads).
Gabe Anderson // 7:05 PM
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Friday, October 25, 2002:
I just stumbled across an alternative to Blogger called Movable Type, which, from what I can tell so far, seems to be a much more robust version of Blogger for more advanced users. From what I can tell, it would be installed on my own Web server and is integrated with MySQL. And it's free. Rock on! I'm actually quite excited about this, as I wouldn't have to rely on Blogger's site for publishing anymore. This may be just what I need...I know the name sounds familiar, but this is the first that I've really taken the time to read what it's all about.
Gabe Anderson // 5:00 PM
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These ghost dogs are really cute. I can hardly believe that Halloween is right around the corner. It seems like only yesterday that I was partying like a medieval wench (2001) and strutting around the Castro as a French Maid (2000) -- feather duster and all. Perhaps this year I will be a hooker and Jen my pimp. We'll see...
Here's more detail on the bank robbery drama that unfolded yesterday right by my office -- following the robbery of my local Wells Fargo.
Tonight Jen and I will likely be hitting our local theater to see The Ring, which is supposed to be really good and really scary. I like scary movies. (I have to go to the robbed Wells Fargo ATM for some cash this afternoon. Gulp. I hope there's still money left after its being hit yesterday.)
Gabe Anderson // 2:58 PM
Also, I just checked my work email and read a security advisory from earlier this afternoon about a bank robbery that happened at the Wells Fargo I frequent. Eerily enough, when I was standing in the bank earlier this week, I saw someone suspicious and had one of those random "what if" thoughts about what would happen if the guy were to rob the bank while I was in it. Scary stuff. And it explains why, as I left work at about 4:30pm today and was on the phone with Jen, I heard tires screech a block ahead and saw a cop car block a white van entering the intersection through which I was driving. The robbery occurred at 2:45pm.
Gabe Anderson // 9:43 PM
So after all my East Bay outings, I decided to just work from home the remainder of the day. It's now quarter-till five and the Giants game begins soon. I hope they can make a comeback (time to squash the rally monkey!) and don't embarrass themselves like they did in last night's 10-4 loss.
I posted this message yesterday to comp.mail.pine about NNTP services. I have a handful of replies and suggestions already. After posting that message, I created a new email account with Fastmail. It is the address I plan to use henceforth for newsgroups and other times when I need to post my email address online. The new address, which will hopefully avoid spam, is this: ga_nospam_valid_address@fastmail.fm. By publishing it here, I am also performing a little test to see if spammers will pick it up, or if it will remain spam-free.
Gabe Anderson // 4:52 PM
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Tuesday, October 22, 2002:
Dad just sent me this great email about his encounter this afternoon with four Giants legends who just happen to be his boyhood heroes: Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, and Orlando Cepeda. Go Dad! It's surely a sign that the Giants are on their way to victory of the 2002 World Series.
Gabe Anderson // 2:21 PM
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Following a fatal hit-and-run accident at Harrison and Main early this morning by some maniacal asshole still on the loose, Jen had the unfortunate stomach-churning experience of walking by the crime scene on her way to work and seeing the body of the victim, partially covered by a tarp and still in the driver's seat. With sickos like that and the DC-area sniper still on the loose, one doesn't have to look to Iraq or North Korea to realize that the world is a scary, fucked-up place.
At least we'll always have entertainment from the Aussies to distract us. "Puppetry of the Penis" opens October 29 at Theater on the Square. I hope to be there for some appendage-bending comedy.
I had my 9,948-mile oil change this morning. It's hard to believe the Scoobie is about to hit the 10k mark.
Gabe Anderson // 10:34 AM
Friday was the funeral itself. For the first time in my life, I was a pallbearer. I was honored that Jen's mom asked me to be one of the six. There wasn't much to it, but I'm glad I had the experience and that I'm close enough with Jen's family that I would be included in such a way on that important day.
We spent most of Friday night with the family at Jen's uncle's log cabin in the woods (yes, an actual log cabin in the woods with a plethora deer heads, pheasants, bear hides on the wall, and even a taxidermied bear cub in the middle of the living room, who was included in the family portraits by the end of the night). I had a really good time and am glad I got to spend the time with Jen's family. I'm sure I'll feel that much closer to everyone when I see them all again -- most likely at our wedding next year. We hung out with Karen later that night.
Saturday we mostly hung out with Tracy, and later watched the Giants win the first game of the World Series. It was really cool to see Barry Bonds step up to his first World Series at-bat and knock it out of the park.
Yesterday we flew. And flew. The trip was mostly OK, with only three annoyances:
1) Jen and I being in separate boarding groups (she in C and I in B) simply because we checked in at the ticket counter, rather than at the gate (specifically because we thought we would get boarding group A). 2) Because Jen was in boarding group C, she was forced to check her suitcase, even though I had saved a spot in the overhead bin for it. 3) The crotch-rubbing, booger-eating, smelly, falling-out-of-his-seat-into-mine, talking-and-singing-to-himself 16-year-old boy who ended up sitting in our exit row from Kansas City to Oakland. I offered him the wannabe Maxim mag I had found in the seat pocket, but he wasn't interested. Later, during an ear-numbing rendition of "Dancing Queen," I asked him if he took requests; he did not. While dozing off, I had to shove him out of my seat.
This rally monkey cracks me up. One of the lawyers in Bagley's Anaheim office sent it to everyone in Dad's SF office -- talking smack about the Giants (the monkey being the Angels' mascot). As Dad put it, this monkey will not rally; it will get spanked by the Giants in the series!
Gabe Anderson // 3:04 PM
Last night Dad came over to visit for awhile. While watching dogTV, Happy pulled one of his most hilarious moves to date: He jumped straight up in the air (at least 3 or 4 feet), went flying over me (I was sitting on the couch), bounced on the couch cushions next to me, and landed on the floor. I'd say his attempt to escape the wrath of Stella Brie was successful. As if foreshadowing that moment, his new vet had said earlier in the day that Happy must be incredibly fast and able to jump really high. He couldn't have been more correct. Happy also runs at the speed of light. He gives his sister a run for her money, as well as every dog he's met at my office.
We've purchased tickets to head to New York tomorrow morning. We leave bright and early, returning Sunday evening. It will be a quick and exhausting trip, but I'm really glad to be going along.
In a sorry excuse for an "election" yesterday, Iraqi citizens voted an overwhelming "yes" to keep Saddam Hussein in power. Of course, with the other option being "no" and surely a fear of execution for dissenting in the air, what other choice did citizens have?
And in equally important news, this report shows that mistresses are a good way to keep spirits up -- even when talk of war abounds.
I missed the game because I was at a focus group sponsored by Guinness. And my hopes of getting paid to drink beer were shot. Not a glass of beer, Guinness or otherwise, was anywhere in sight. No, the beer company was interested in how 21- to 26-year-old men feel about social groups -- and individuals within those groups. It was an interesting experience, but I do wish I had stayed home and watched the Giants game. Sure, there are always the replays and the photos, but I know that feeling of watching your team win big. And I chose $65 over that priceless feeling. (Although I was chosen at the focus group to do a take-home picture assignment that could get me another $65.) I don't plan on missing the Giants win the World Series. Even if someone were to pay me.
After leaving work early yesterday, I began several loops around the Bay -- first to pick up Jen for our afternoon dentist appointments with Dr. Yee, who offered to provide us both with complimentary teeth polishing before our wedding next year. Rock on, Dr. Yee. Then it was up over the Golden Gate Bridge to drop off Jen at home. Begin Lap 2 across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge toward Berkeley for the focus group. And the rest of the night is history.
The film was inspired by the Columbine shootings in April 1999 and began as a documentary about gun control. But it turned into so much more. The audience journeys with Moore as he explores why America is such a gun-obsessed nation and why our gun-related homicide rate is more than 11,000 people per year -- compared with only hundreds, or, in some cases, fewer than 100, in other countries. Other countries like Canada, he realizes, simply have a different ethic than does America, where we proudly hold a "Fuck Everybody" attitude. We also live in a society of fear that is created and fueled by the media and by Washington. Moore's documentary is incredibly powerful and will hopefully make people question the way this country is run. Jen got to ask Moore a question about why he's a member of the NRA. He explained that his original plan was to take over the organization from the inside, but decided that was too much work and opted instead to make this film. Here's a review of the film in the UK Guardian.
Saturday morning after a quick brunch with Karen and Bill at Easy Street Cafe, Jen and I headed home for a bit and actually managed to squeeze in some house cleaning and laundry. I even was able to begin installation of a new OS on my home computer, too. (It now flies like the wind with a brand-spankin' clean install of Windows 2000.) Then it was off to the city.
We met up with Ben and Jess for the Sixth-Annual (but our first) Consorzio Cal-Italia Wine Tasting, with proceeds benefitting Hands On San Francisco. For a mere 30 bucks a head, it was more than worth it for unlimited food and wine for a full 3 hours. We even walked out with an entire loaf of bread each. The gals were the designated drivers, so Ben and I were having a grand ol' time by the end of the day. Jen did a great job driving the Scoobie up hills back to Ben and Jess' place. We spent the rest of the night kickin' it at their pad, where Ben and I exchanged disbelief that the other also owned a rubber plant.
Sunday we met up with Tiff, Miguel, Aniko, Jeanine, and others at Crissy Field to watch the full Blue Angels show, only part of which we had seen on Saturday. The rest of the evening was pretty chill, mostly watching the Giants advance to within one game of clinching the NLCS. Go Benito!
Tonight is the beer focus group. Before that, it's time for a cleaning at the dentist.
Not that any of this stuff is bad. It just becomes a lot when it all hits at once. And, of course, there's the whole impending prospect of war to deal with emotionally.
I've also been thinking lately about what makes a good blog. Or good writing for that matter. What draws repeat visitors somewhere? Surely it's the content of interest and relevance that draws crowds, but also content that's to the point, perhaps quirky or edgy. And then there's the content that makes people think, challenges their views, or simply pisses them off. I updated my signature file yesterday to include a link to this page. Then I posted to my WRX Mods email group and noticed today that yesterday there was a spike in site traffic -- with a total of 17 visitors, the most to date.
I thought: "Cool. People actually click on links in emails (I know I do). Imagine if I actually wrote about good, interesting shit here that people would actually come back to read." Perhaps I'll get to that point. Or perhaps I'll continue to have the casual visitors.
My quest to bring you at least one funky link per day to keep my fiancee interested in this content brings us to The Candy Page, featuring an ominous yet catchy jingle: "Doughnuts...we love doooooughnuts."
I stumbled across that page in an attempt to remember the name of an old candy Katie was talking last night, Abba Zabba.We went out for drinks at Olive and Tommy's Joynt.
Today is an fittingly foggy and cold day as the House passes a resolution authorizing Bush to use force against Iraq if it does not comply with weapons inspections. This despite the fact that Americans are more concerned about our own country -- the economy, corporate accountability, education. But leave it to Bush and high-powered politicians to be so disconnected from the people that they're more interested in the monetary and political ramifications of their actions.
Gabe Anderson // 2:37 PM
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I neglected to mention in my earlier post that Jen and I had a rip-roaring good time last night watching The Bachelor, the latest in the reality TV phenomenon. And we're actually a mere 3 degrees of separation from Aaron, the star of the show. Jen's coworker Joe is friends with Frances, who walked off the show last night. (I like how the ABC site includes her in a poll of those women who were "sent home" -- as if she wasn't the one to walk off the show herself!) Jen got the real story today from Joe about what happened. Apparently the producers begged her to let them refilm the scene where she left and to stay throughout the rose ceremony, but she and the other woman refused. Go Frances!
Gabe Anderson // 11:43 AM
I'm considering upgrading my account to Blogger Pro. I'm particularly interested in the email and search features.
I know the search feature isn't yet available, but I'm wondering if it can be leveraged to index other areas of my Web site that are not generated by Blogger. That is, I have a number of other HTML and PHP pages on my site that I'd like to make searchable. Would I be able to use the Blogger Pro search to do this, or would the content have to actually be in my blog for this to work?
On that note, does the search extend across multiple blogs, or is there only one search per blog?
Thanks, Gabe -------------------------------
The Giants kicked ass last night in the first game of the NLCS. Woohoo! And next season, we can apparently look forward to seeing something besides that giant Enron "E" in centerfield.
This Game Trading Zone seems pretty cool. Not that I ever really play video games these days, but there also seems to be a community of DVD trading there, too. This may be the place to which Sandy was referring awhile back.
In the continuing search for a new house, I came across a posting yesterday for this great place in Bernal Heights. It's a 2-bedroom, 2-bath place with a private yard, hardwood floors throughout, separate dining room, bay windows, fireplace, granite countertops in the kitchen, and more. At $499k, it's probably too good to be true (that's one of the rules of real estate: if it's too good to be true, it probably is). The place is right on Mission, so even though it's a top-floor condo in a new building, I would guess it's noisy (or sketchy).
In my attempt to encourage my fiancee to read my blog instead of Wil Wheaton's, I've decided to make an effort to link to at least one thing she'll find interesting. Today, I bring you an online reference to ass trumpet, as well as the Google search results for the exact phrase, of which there are a mere 63. Once Google archives this entry, I will be joining an elite crowd of Web publishers who say "ass trumpet." Here's to number 64, baby. (Hey, guess what? Whil Wheaton's site isn't responding right now, so you'll be stuck reading my blog anyway! >:>)
Gabe Anderson // 10:03 AM
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Wednesday, October 09, 2002:
I raced a Ferrari 360 Spider yesterday. I didn't exactly have the chance to square up on the line or even get next to it, but I stayed right on its ass. Not bad, considering the Spider retails for $170,779, a full $144,779 more than I paid for my WRX. Sure, the Spider can do 0-60 in 4.5 seconds compared with my 5.4 seconds, but dollar for dollar, I'd say I got the better deal. Of course, if I could have afforded a Spider, I would've bought one. Some day.
Last night Jen and I watched this great movie on Cinemax called Donnie Darko, which just may be added to my list of favorite movies (the Web site is really cool, too). It had everything that my kind of movie should have: humor, trippy music, interesting characters, discussions of the philosophy of time and time travel, randomness, a demon bunny, and Web sites that extend the story. It was also a movie that makes you think. And that continues after it's over. According to the "Which Donnie Darko Character Are You?" site, I am Gretchen Ross. I knew I liked that character. The description of me is rather accurate, too:
"Congratulations, you are Gretchen Ross. You are very perceptive of the world around you. You are a good person with strong morals. Although your life hasn't been exactly the way you would like it, you still think the world is beautiful. Good for you."
Gabe Anderson // 9:31 AM
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Tuesday, October 08, 2002:
This rocks. I got an email about attending a beer focus group on Monday. Something tells me it's sponsored by Guinness. How cool is that? Getting paid 65 bucks to drink Guiness for a couple hours! And free dinner.
Gabe Anderson // 4:54 PM
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This Not In Our Name campaign is very cool. I will be adding my name to this list. I'm also pleased to see Frances D. Fergusson's name on the list. The president of Vassar makes me proud to have earned my degree there. The president of our country disgusts me in his single-minded black-and-white way of thinking.
Gabe Anderson // 2:57 PM
On a brighter note, the Giants beat the Braves last night to advance to the National League Championship Series for the first time since the quake series in 1989. Go Giants! And speaking of earthquakes, I was talking to my physical therapist yesterday about the '89 quake and our respective experiences. She said that this is "earthquake weather" -- she remembers that October week 13 years ago when the last Big One hit and how the weather was quite similar to how it's been this week (ass hot). Hmm...Giants in the NLCS, it's October, it's hot. Are the planetary forces lining up to rock the Bay Area once again? The only saving grace that does not point to a repeat of 1989 is that the A's got beat earlier this week.
I finally got around last night to uploading a bunch of photos from the last few weeks. This morning I sent out the photos from the dinner party to the FF kids. There are also some funny Stella, Happy, and Enoch photos in there.
I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. Last night Jen and I went to George's amazing hilltop mansion in Novato to talk with the book crew. Jen blew everyone away with her publishing know-how and her samples of Diagnostic Imaging and BioMechanics. (Jen rocks.) So at the end of the meeting, we get to talking about dogs. Here's my casual IM narrative to Jonty this morning about what happened:
GabeVC99: hey, speaking of being self-employed: something really cool happened last night. jyamisha: what's that? GabeVC99: my dad's in the planning phases for writing another book (another version of "100 faces of marin") and he has all these rich marinites who are funding it. jyamisha: woah jyamisha: sounds cool GabeVC99: jen and i are going to do the production. so last night we went to this dude's AMAZING hilltop mansion. GabeVC99: he doesn't say much during the meeting, but afterwards, we get to talking about dogs. GabeVC99: (he has a kennel outside with 4 dogs in it.) GabeVC99: he asks if i like dogs. and i said, hell yeah. jen and i love dogs so much we're hoping to start a kennel here in marin. GabeVC99: he lights up and starts telling me about the 90 or so sled dogs and KENNELS he owns in tahoe! GabeVC99: and says, in all seriousness, let me know if you need an investor!! GabeVC99: pretty cool, eh??
Tonight when we meet with the Captain, I plan on getting advice from him on the kennel front, too.
Yesterday while IMing with my old college buddy Dan Merrill, he pointed me to this great Apple ad wherein the chick is so stoned that Apple had to pull the ad from TV because people complained. I think it's hilarious. "It was......a bummer." Ha!
Gabe Anderson // 8:01 AM
Last night was better. Jen and I had dinner at a yummy burrito joint deep in the Mission. Then we headed to the San Francisco Hilton for a Vassar Admissions info session, led by our classmate and Assistant Director of Admissions Marivel Oropeza '99. The event was quite formal, but enjoyable. Marivel did a great job presenting. It's always fun talking about Vassar. But damn was it hot in that room!
Here's an email exchange I had with The Miscellany News' current Editor-in-Chief wherein I provide some history of the misc.vassar.edu Web servers. It's pretty incredible to think that The Misc. first went online 8 full years ago. And that I was first involved nearly that long ago.
Before falling asleep last night I had this realization that, as of this past Monday (9/30/02), I now own individual stocks for the first time ever. It's a cool feeling. I'm so used to thinking in terms of stock options -- including the thousands of valueless Headlight.com options that I once had -- that it took awhile for it to sink in that I now own several hundred shares of stock with real value. Good stuff.
For some reason, my uneasiness and frustration with working for someone else has been sparking up. It's hard to explain, but, in a nutshell, I have this burning desire to do something I'm passionate about that would generate good income and not involve working for anyone else. I feel like there's something there, right under my nose, but I can't put my fingers on it. I've always felt this way and just worry that as time passes, the harder it will be to identify and pursue.
Tonight Jen and I are meeting Dad and the book people to talk about doing production for the book. We're going to this guy's house in Novato where he apparently has 90 Malamutes. Rock on.
This site rocks. Maybe SUV drivers who commute solo with their big American flag stickers will get the picture some day that oil is a limited resource and they'd be doing a hell of a lot more good for this country by selling their gas-guzzling road hogs than slapping a sticker that says nothing more than "proud to be a resource-wasting American." I'm glad to see someone leading such an important grassroots campaign. These rules of engagement lay the law for what types of SUVs to tag with the "I'm Changing the Climate" bumper sticker. I just sent this email to the guy who runs the site.
I also had an interesting email exchange today with a coworker about that site. Here's my latest reply on the topic.
Gabe Anderson // 11:32 AM
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This isn't necessarily the end of the postings for this month! Refer to the archives for more.
