Toddcast

Reason #623 Why Arizona is a Dangerous Place to Live:

2007-09-28T06:39:23Z

Moms worry too much

2007-09-05T06:10:14Z

Today my mom asked me if everything was okay because I was only one week early on the double payment for my car instead of my usual two weeks.

greenlegacy @ 2007-08-25T12:40:00

2007-08-25T19:40:13Z

I've never hung out with sorority girls before, but last night kinda made my head want to explode.

Also, I made this when I got home from work:

For All My Homies in 809

2007-08-21T04:31:32Z

What I do with my weekends:

2007-08-19T00:25:00Z

I get kind of weird when I spend the whole day alone. Sometimes I wonder if I'm totally autistic or something.

Like yesterday, I spent the whole day inside my apartment. Around 7pm I decided it would be cool if I tried ripping phone books in half.

Now I am out of phone books.

Mind Blowing

2007-08-09T03:31:28Z

Here's a concept we discussed today at work that will blow your mind:

Negative Zero.

Ooh, that sounds like a good hacker name!

Yet another reason why I need to find a new place to live once my lease is up.

2007-08-01T23:16:32Z

There is a white bronco parked right outside my apartment window with a big "Juggalo For Life" sticker across the windshield.

I snapped a picture and enhanced the image so you can see it better:

Also, check out this video: I think the music is pretty great. Possible lindy-jack??

Vernors!

2007-07-30T07:00:30Z

Made in Michigan!!

Today I found Vernors while shopping at Fry's. You have no idea how happy this made me.

This of course means that Michigan Night 2 will have to happen soon.

In other news, I went dancing at the Wrigley mansion on Friday. There was a live singer doing the music of Ella Fitzgerald. Stryder pulled me away towards the end of the night and told me he wants me to help take over for him when he leaves in October. In the meantime this will mean I have a lot to learn about dancing and how to teach dancing. I'm a little nervous, especially about the teaching part, but I'll be able to depend on Krissy for most of that. The part that I'm not worried about is the "community" aspect of it, which, honestly, it sounds like Stryder is the most worried about.

I spent a lot of time my senior year of college about what makes a community and what brings people together and keeps them around--Sam and I even got to try some things that seemed to mostly fail (especially now that Grace Fellowship is probably going to head down the crapper since Deb got fired.) I'm excited to try out some of this stuff I've been thinking about and continue to learn what it means to be in a community.

I wish I could feel the same way about going to church as I do about dancing. (It seems like I used to once.) I've been seeing lots of parallels between my spiritual life and dancing and they are getting all intertwined now, its hard to explain. Not sure what to think about that yet, it could be that God's trying to talk to me in new ways since it seems like I've stopped listening in others.

And as far as work, meh, kinda boring most of the time actually. Right now I see it as a way to fund my dance habit.

I need to start documenting my life again.

2007-07-11T07:06:46Z

Good, I'm glad you're still reading, I always liked you best. I had to make sure all the riff-raff left before I could start posting again. I like my journal the way it is with very few readers. That's why I don't post on facebook where anyone could read it.

Code monkey very simple man, with big warm fuzzy secret heart

2007-05-07T05:23:41Z

I wish I could embed video into livejournal
I love this video, it is pretty much my whole life.
Code Monkey!

New Cell Phone, Same Number

2007-04-29T08:21:14Z

I got a new cell phone today. I also got to keep my number, so no worries there.
It was interesting though, I think I got some strange looks when I asked specifically for a phone that does not have a camera and to have my text messaging disabled.

WOXY!

2007-04-19T02:47:36Z

Since I'm not allowed to bring anything that could potentially hold any data on it to my desk at work (due to security reasons) I've moved on to listening to Internet radio. Lately I've been listening to www.woxy.com and I've been discovering a lot of cool new music. Here's some stuff I'm into this week:

Fujya & Miyagi - Collarbone
Brother Ali - Truth Is
The Lemurs - Berlin
LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - La Costa Brava
65daysofstatic - Radio Protector --> can't find a link for this one but here's their myspace

In other news: I'm going to Vegas.....baby!
Headin' up there tomorrow with some people from Ballroom Dance Club for a competition. Sara and I are going to try our best at the open Lindy event. Styder even showed us an aerial last night so we can look extra flashy and show-offish. Should be a good time.

Fun Fact I Learned Today on Wikipedia

2007-04-08T00:03:51Z

Many children around the nation mail to Santa Claus their wish lists and put the zip code as 12345. That zip code really does exist, and it is in Schenectady, NY. More specifically the zip code belongs only to the General Electric plant. A group of employees has for several years volunteered their time to answer this mail.
--Wikipedia entry on Schenectady.

Quarter Life Crisis

2007-04-01T02:26:12Z

This Wikipedia entry pretty much sums up the past year of my life:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quarter_life_crisis
My symptoms included:

feeling "not good enough" because one can't find a job that is at his/her academic/intellectual level
frustration with relationships, the working world, and finding a suitable job or career
confusion of identity
insecurity regarding the near future
insecurity regarding present accomplishments
nostalgia for university or college life
tendency to hold stronger opinions
boredom with social interactions
loneliness
a sense that everyone is, somehow, doing better than you

greenlegacy @ 2007-03-30T17:50:00

2007-03-31T00:50:13Z

I am ridiculously jealous of Joe Greer right now, who is opening for Anathallo and Sufjan Stevens tonight

The Brass Seal

2007-03-25T07:28:50Z

One of my best friends from high school is a cartoonist. You should watch his newest project: The Brass Seal.

Desert Life

2007-03-18T06:28:47Z

(16:39:05) joehammer stampd: dude
(16:39:15) joehammer stampd: have caught a sandworm to ride yet?
(16:39:16) joehammer stampd: if you do
(16:39:22) joehammer stampd: drive it into work
(16:39:28) AeroAngus: lolol
(16:39:45) joehammer stampd: just make sure you dont' double park it

BadAZ Balboa

2007-03-07T06:36:27Z

I went to Pheonix this weekend for some BadAZ Balboa. It was totally amazing. I was out dancing until like 2 or 3 each night then I crashed in a room that smelled like pot.

All in all Pheonix's swing scene is fantastic. I'm almost wishing I lived up there.

50 Things to Do to Stop Global Warming

2007-02-28T04:56:36Z

I came across this site on Digg the other day.

I must say that I totally disagree with number 31:

Eat less meat
Methane is the second most significant greenhouse gas and cows are one of the greatest methane emitters. Their grassy diet and multiple stomachs cause them to produce methane, which they exhale with every breath.

Clearly the answer is not to eat less meat, but to eat all the meat. We can't let these beasts have another single methane laced breath!

Joel 2:22-26

2007-02-26T04:24:42Z

This is my reaction to posting song lyrics as an entry:

22 Be not afraid, O wild animals,
       for the open pastures are becoming green.
       The trees are bearing their fruit;
       the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.

23 Be glad, O people of Zion,
       rejoice in the LORD your God,
       for he has given you
       the autumn rains in righteousness.
       He sends you abundant showers,
       both autumn and spring rains, as before.

24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
       the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.

25 "I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—
       the great locust and the young locust,
       the other locusts and the locust swarm —
       my great army that I sent among you.

26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
       and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
       who has worked wonders for you;
       never again will my people be shamed.

Basically things are starting to look up for me and I'm feeling more positive about life again for the first time since sometime last year. Probably as good as the pre-not-getting-into-grad-school times if not better. I'm really excited about the church I went to today, Casas Adobes.

Also makes me think a lot of they lyrics by Anathallo, whose name means to renew, refresh or bloom again and whose song lyrics tend to follow that pattern also.

Anata wa mae kara
Ushiro kara,
Watashi o tori kakomi.
Mi te o watashi no ue ni
O kare mashita.

Desmond

2007-02-16T04:08:43Z

I'm feeling quite a bit of connection to the character Desmond on this most recent episode of Lost. All my life I've felt like I've been on a path that I have no control over. Good things have come and gone and no matter what it has all been to lead me here: I sit at a desk in front of a computer pushing buttons that I hope will save the world.

Worst Case Scenario

2007-01-31T06:09:43Z

Sometimes I have a problem with paying attention, but I always try my best to listen and understand because I'm afraid that it's going to come back and bite me if I let something slip through. There must be some old proverb that goes something like "always pay attention or [insert consequence]" but I don't know it. And if I did, I probably would have made it my mantra this past afternoon.

Work is going to pretty well, but there are a lot of times where I don't know what anyone is talking about. Compress those moments into a two hour time block and you have the meeting I attended at 1pm today.

That meeting went something like this in my mind "BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH Todd you wanna do that?"
"Yeah, sure."
What did I just volunteer for?
"Yeah you can get together with Mike Smith on that, have you met him."
"No..., wait, yeah I think so"
Crap, they must know I was zoning out. Shoot, we're on the second page of the agenda, I'm still on the first...What was the line item...ok, I'll just find Mike and ask him what he knows about it. Cade's name is next to is too, I'll ask him like I know what I'm talking about too, whew, dodged a bullet.

"BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH"

What now? Why is Collin pointing at me?

"Todd knows MatLAB he could join in on that."

And so on. Most of the meeting really didn't apply to me, but after volunteering for a mystery project I sure paid attention.

I'm sure I'll do okay on it. I've had a mystery project with unknown requirements before--back when I took The Laser.

Dear Sam

2007-01-28T06:52:18Z

Hey Sam,

I found this tonight, I guess one of the moons of Saturn is called Hyperion, and is thought to have lots of caverns inside of it. Caverns that house Cruciforms!!! Hahahahhahahahha.

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

Anyways, I seem to be getting pretty settled here in Tucson. It only took me like 5 days to make friends here, which is awesome and things at work are starting to make some sense. It looks like I'll be spending my days writing MatLAB code, and possibly some IDL.

I've been to a good coffee shop, and a good bar, so those are possibly staple hangouts for me. I still haven't been to a church yet, I hope I can find one soon. Anyways, gimme an update with you.

I think I might post this email on LJ since I haven't put much up there in a while.

ttyl,
Todd

OMG I need this for work.

2007-01-27T21:43:02Z

USB Rocket Launcher

And don't worry. I'll update soon about my new life in Tucson. I just figure I'd get in the habit of posting again.

2006 in Review!

2006-12-25T02:58:18Z

Continuing what is now a three year running tradition, here is my end of year survey.

1. What did you do in 2006 that you'd never done before?
I finally learned how to lindy!

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
The only resolution I ever make is to make the coming year better than the previous. 2005 was hard to beat, sorry 2006. But 2006 won’t be that hard to beat, especially for what I’ve got lined up for 2007.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My brother and his wife had another kid: Madeline.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Steve Irwin: Crocodile Hunter

5. What countries did you visit?
Lots of different places in the US: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Arizona. But I guess that doesn’t really count, oh well.

6. What would you like to have in 2007 that you lacked in 2006?
Consistency.

7. What date from 2006 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
April 24th…I’ll just keep that one a secret. Also October 13th, that’s when I gave my killer interview for that job I got.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Getting a job, a real job.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Not getting into grad school, but that set a whole lot of other things in motion.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I got depressed a lot after graduating because I had no purpose in life, but I’m better now.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
My Malibu

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
I would say Lian, I'm pretty proud of what she's accomplished this year.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Mine as usual. I’m a terrible person.

14. Where did most of your money go?
The electric bill…stupid apartment and its stupid 100-year-old wiring.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Anytime I got to dance!

16. What song will always remind you of 2006?
Moondance.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Sadder, mostly out of extreme boredom.
ii. thinner or fatter? About the same I think.
iii. richer or poorer? Poorer, but not for much longer.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Spend time outside of Gladwin.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Drinking.

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
Same as last year: in Gladwin with my parents, Kurt and Erin.

21. What was the most embarrassing thing that happened to you in 2006?
Losing my wallet on senior walk, and then having to explain the whole thing to my parents who were there the next day.

22. Did you fall in love in 2006?
Yes.

23. How many one-night stands?
None.

24. What were your favorite TV programs?
Lost…no hesitation there.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nope.

26. What was the best book you read?
Hyperion by Dan Simmons

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Matisyahu

28. What did you want and get?
A real job with a salary that will allow me to be financially independent.

29. What did you want and not get?
I wanted for this job to start before years end.
Also, I didn’t get into grad school.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?
Snakes on a Motherf***ing Plane…oh and Borat.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 22, I baked myself a cake with space decorations on it like stars and rockets. My birthday present from my parents that year was to take us all to Kennedy Space Center while we were in Florida during spring break and my mom let me get whatever I wanted to at the gift shop.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Having a job immediately out of college, or at least at the end of the summer so I wouldn’t have had to spend so much time sitting here in Gladwin with nothing to do and no one around.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2006?
Wishing that I had more track jackets. I really really like the $3 track jacket I got from Wal-mart. 2007 will be the year of the track jacket for me…unless they are too hot to wear in Arizona.

34. What kept you sane?
Sam and Lian.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Barak Obama

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
The gubernatorial election I suppose.

37. Who did you miss?
Just about everyone at college.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
Lian. I didn’t technically know her until this year.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2006.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Mistakes we knew we were making.
Don't think about chances we're taking,
Don't think about rules we were breaking.
Mistakes we knew...
--Mae – Mistakes We Knew We Were Making