Category: Obsessions

As part of my new dental regimen, I’ve started using Listerine as well. I still think it’s funny that the thrust of Listerine’s marketing is “you can endure our product!”

The new sweepstakes campaign for Coke involves GPS somehow, and the slogan for it is

YOU CAN WIN

BUT YOU CAN’T HIDE

which evokes disturbing images of Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery.

I had a busy afternoon. First, I’ve written a few stories for constrained.org, which is as neat as anticipated. I’ve got a couple more in progress, but you know what would be really neat? If you tried one too.

Second, I promised to post about it a long time ago and never did, but there’s a new theme coming up at BlogNomic–it’s still in process, but it would seem that Damanor and I have taken over the world. I’ve been playing since January with only a couple of breaks, and the game remains fun. If you’re interested in getting in at the beginning of whatever happens next, I recommend joining now.

Update 1646 hrs: I should add that Damanor and I may not end up winning, but either way there’s a new Dynasty coming, since the old Emperor has quit. (That’s what I meant by “in process.” I just don’t want to appear overly cheeky.)

I’ve done a lot of work today, but I’ve also spent hours geeking out over my camera that I don’t actually own yet and can’t afford. This is silly, because I have no serious photography equipment or experience, and even if I did I’ll already be putting myself into debt this fall to buy or build a new computer.

Regardless, I’ve been looking at it for a year with absolutely undiminished hunger (so long the price dropped). There are two things I can think of on which I’ve geeked out this long and this hard:

  • The trip to Comic Con this summer.
  • A good camera with which to take pictures on that trip.

The former is rapidly becoming a reality, as I paid for the train tickets a couple of days ago. I hope the latter can too.

Once, the thought of a new computer would have filled me with butterflies. Now it’s more a hassle than anything–I can’t afford one, but I have to get one, because my current box is no longer capable of doing the work I need to do in grad school. The Digital Rebel has taken its place, I think. It’s a specialized technical hobby; it’s highly modular; the value of my investment drops very quickly; and it’s going to take me years to get any good at it, by which time I’ll cringe at the things I inflict on you when I’m starting out. Man, I can’t wait.

Ken, Maria and I rolled down to l’Centre on Saturday to coo over Lisa’s senior show, which was all very massive color-gradient glass pieces, and awesome. I can’t really describe them to you–she has a couple pics up, but seeing them in three dimensions and with more light was much better.

The next day, Maria and I argued over whether or not I am indie–something for which I vaguely hope, but never considered myself cool enough to achieve. She pointed out that in addition to my mild but distinguished collection of obscure t-shirts, I do know two glassblowers, and that’s some solid cred there. I should have known that in the indie world, friends are primarily status symbols and tools to an end. (And for the record, Maria used to date a rock star, so I’m pretty much never going to be indier than she is.)