New Article

Yes, I know, I've been bad. I haven't posted in my journal for far too long. It happens from time to time as those who've been reading my journal regularly well know.

Other than being super-busy with work, I had the opportunity to spend some time writing an article on how to use Mezzanine to turn source tarballs into SRPM/RPM packages. Hopefully it will be a good starting point for those wishing to contribute to cAos Linux and for others who are familiar with Mezzanine but haven't played with specgen just yet.

Posted on Monday, 23 October 2006 [14:47:35 UTC]

No Weddings and a Funeral

What is it about getting married that makes everyone out to kill you? Just over the course of the past 72 hours, I can count at least 4 people who've tried to kill amber jean and/or myself. I realize that there are a lot of stupid drivers out there, but this seems a bit excessive to me.

For crying out loud, people, can't you at least wait until Monday?!

Speaking of the wedding, it's only 5 days away. So please, if you haven't RSVP'd yet, send me a message or e-mail ASAP to let us know whether or not you'll be attending!

Mother Trucker!

Okay, make it 5.

If professional truck drivers are so well-trained, why can't they figure out how not to drive like raging lunatics and assholes? First off, how about not merging right over top of my car? Just because you have more axles than brain cells doesn't mean you're entitled to my lane. Secondly, halfway into the other lane is NOT the appropriate time to turn on your turn signal to let everyone know you're moving over. The purpose of the turn signal is to let other drivers know what you're ABOUT to do, not what you've just done.

And third, stay out of the fast lane. Period. You can be in any other lane, but do not enter the left-most lane for any reason. No, I couldn't care less if you're passing. Regardless of how fast you think you're going, it's slower than the cars on the road with you. (And if it's not, slow the hell down! You're a truck!) There is no excuse for forming a truck road block on the highway to keep everyone from passing you. Stay the hell out of the way. There is no valid reason for a truck to be in the left lane unless it's taking an upcoming left exit. And if you're driving in the left lane when there's room to move over to the right, you're an idiot, and I hope you jackknife.

Posted on Monday, 03 April 2006 [18:30:12 UTC]

Barnum and Bailout

I'm convinced that putting on a wedding is like putting on a circus, only with one less ring. Trying to get everything to come together just right to please as many people as possible without going completely flat-ass broke in the process is harder than you think. I now understand why people who get married a second or third time usually just go to the courthouse and get it over with!

Thankfully we're down into the single digits now. Only a week to go, in fact. I'm going to be thankful when it's all over with and we can get back to our normal lives. It's not like we haven't already been living together for a year and a half....

People Who Need a Nap

Some days it feels like I'm the only one who understands the difference between "criticism" and an "attack." People just seem to take everything personally sometimes. I guess it's an ego thing; those who tie too much of their own self-worth into what they do rather than who they are would naturally feel slighted by someone speaking negatively about something they did. It's just frustrating.

You run into a lot of egos when you deal with software developers. People get too tied to their code, and they can't stand to have it scrutinized...or worse, replaced by something better. Personally, I couldn't care less. The best solution wins in my book, regardless of who did it. But some days I feel like I'm in the minority there.

Posted on Saturday, 01 April 2006 [06:47:33 UTC]

Time Is Ticking

If you haven't peeked at the Marriage Clock recently, our wedding is quickly approaching. 15 days and some change as I write this. And it still seems like there's a lot to do. We ironed out most of the ceremony details last night, which means I have some writing to do in the near future. Not sure when I'll have time for that, but we'll see.

I'm also wondering what on earth I'm going to do with Cat. He really hates being confined to a cage, but I'm not sure he'd do very well being left alone at home either. It's not like we can just leave him with a big bag of Iguana Chow or something. He needs fresh veggies.

So yes, I'm excited. No, I'm not nervous. More than anything else, I'm just busy.

Posted on Friday, 24 March 2006 [04:15:31 UTC]

Driver Reform

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: There are far too many lousy drivers on the roads these days.

The abbreviation "DUI" doesn't stand for "driving while drunk." It stands for "Driving Under the Influence." In my opinion, the following influences should be included amongst those under which driving is illegal:

1. Incompetence
2. Ignorance
3. Stupidity
4. Disregard
5. Discourtesy
6. Apathy

When you're in the left-most lane, and someone comes up behind you going faster than you, you should move over immediately, or at your earliest opportunity if you can't move over right away. Making someone pass you on the right just to get around your slow ass is rude and inconsiderate.

And no, having a handicapped tag does NOT make it acceptable for you to be a jerk. In fact, just the opposite is true: Since you are receiving special consideration for being impaired in some fashion, you should make even more of an effort to be considerate of others!

Posted on Monday, 20 March 2006 [18:24:27 UTC]

Pet Peeves

I really hate those people who worship their pets. You know the ones... They carry pictures around in their wallets and always talk about how great it is that their pet learned some trick or that it looks so cute in a Christmas bow or some hogwash like that. I just want to walk up to them and slap 'em silly. "Nobody gives a rat's ass about your damned pet!" "But...Fluffy is so cool! I taught him how to fetch the newspaper!" "That's great. Now teach him how to NOT DROOL ON MY LEG!" Geez!

So if you're anything like me, stop reading now because I'm about to become one of those people.

Cat, my pet iguana, has successfully been potty-trained. For about the last week or so, whenever he needs to do his business, he hops down from his perch on the counter, crawls into his shower, and does it there. Then he crawls back out and climbs back up to his perch. For an actual feline, being litter trained is no big deal, but apparently it's a lot harder to potty train iguanas. Our vet was pretty impressed that we'd gotten him behaving so well.

Posted on Thursday, 16 March 2006 [19:08:20 UTC]