Yeah, so...

...Comcast came Monday, but I had missed their confirmation call when the tech had gotten to my place, so I missed them, had to reschedule. Tonight, I made sure that things went well.

Some of my family is in town, and it was nice seeing them. The city is all foggy, so it was kind of nice. The boys enjoyed seeing some relatives on my side of the family -- they hadn't seen them since the road trip last year (or was it the year before? Lordy, I lost track) to the mountains down south.

Things are going pretty well, all around. I've been having some odd dreams of late -- various people I know have had walk-on parts in my dreams, to the extent that I kind of jolt in my dream, like my subconscious kinda goes "Whhhha -- ?"

Once the weather gets reliably good, I'm going to bike to work again. I like working in my fitness routine into my commute that way.

FINALLY

Comcast finally came through, replaced their faulty modem, so my computer at home is, again, Net-compatible. I know you've all been worried, wondering when my sparkly self would return. Bahah!

I have to mentally backtrack, since I'm many days behind, obviously!

DSOL

Thanks to some hi-tech glitchery, my DSL connection at home is screwed. So, I decided to make an entry using my iPhone, just out of spite. Love how a problem occurs on a Friday and they cannot get to it until Monday. Woo hoo.

C'est Magnifique!

This is a stitch...

Religious Cleansing

Oh, my. "Yes, a Rolex watch will take away the demons...."

3 accused in Fla. with evil spirit cleansing scam
By Associated Press

Three women are accused in Florida with scamming people out of thousands of dollars by promising to cleanse them of evil spirits.

Federal prosecutors in Fort Lauderdale say 36-year-old Polly Evans, 32-year-old Bridgette Evans, and 22-year-old Olivia Evans are facing federal fraud charges. Court records Monday did not list lawyers for them.

Prosecutors say they promised people they could get rid of evil spirits through religious cleansing. One person was told a Rolex watch was needed to remove demons. Prosecutors say at least $59,000 was scammed from victims in the U.S. and the Caribbean nation of Anguilla.

Bridgette Evans, who is Polly's sister, is being held without bail in South Florida. Polly and Olivia Evans, who are mother and daughter, were arrested in Texas and will be extradited to Florida.

And speaking of evil spirits, the Kardashians are influencing baby names.

iKnow, Right?

I picked up an iPhone today; it's been about three years since I got my first cell phone (I held off for the longest time), decided that I should treat myself, get an iPhone. Like all Apple stuff, it's slick, cool, and incredibly obtuse -- it somehow manages to be easy to use while also stonewalling you. Maybe I'm just so used to PC-based computer tech that I run into a bit of culture shock with Apple products. It's like having a semi-helpful acquaintance who insists "No, really, it's so much better if you go THIS way." and you tell'em "But I want to go THAT way." and the "helper" is like "Well, you COULD do that, but why would you? THIS way is so much better." Seems like all Apple products are like that. I already miss my lil' old phone, although it had been dropped enough times that, while faithfully serving its purpose, it was showing wear and tear. Maybe I'll get used to it, or maybe not. I'm glad I gave the iMac we had to Exene, honestly. So much behind-the-curtain stuff with PCs is more accessible than the cryptic, "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtains" mumbo-jumbo of Apple stuff. We'll see how it goes.

Predatory

Happy Birthday to Kevin Peter Hall!! (he played the Predator)...



His first screen role was the monster bear in "Prophecy" (which scared the hell out of me as a kid -- seriously, I resolved to NEVER be in a sleeping bag like that because of this movie)...



Of course, I can laugh about it, now. But as a 9-year-old, it was scary as hell!

Viva La France

Here's a great shot of the tiny, beautiful, late Marie-France Pisier...

Splinter, Triangle, Pix, Batteries

Just a quiet Sunday night for me -- trucked the boys to Exene's, where they were, as always, reluctant to be. I watched "Splinter" -- an indie horror/monster movie. A nice effort, I have to say, and a nasty monster. Not a perfect story, but it managed to hold onto its tension nicely, despite this. I liked the quiet implications of the monster, without it being made implicit. I think that was a nice move on the part of the filmmakers, and the movie overall was a good effort, although very indie, so small-scale, although well-shot, so you didn't feel it so much. I also watched "Triangle" the day before, which was a UK horror (?) thriller (?) that was perhaps a more intriguing/disturbing movie with a curious plot twist in it that was rife with possibilities. I won't go into it, as it would spoil the movie, but it went into a very odd place, and kept getting more tangled, which compelled me to watch it to get a sense of where it was going. The writer(s) surely had fun with it.

Speaking of having fun, I've mentioned how much I am enjoying my new camera, right? I bought a couple of quads of rechargeable AA batteries, so I can always have the sucker ready to go. The thing uses four AA's at a time, so I went with the rechargeable batteries to keep the batteries out of landfills!

"Herr Schiller! Sie haben eine Möwe auf den Kopf!!"

HMD

Happy Mother's Day to all the good mothers out there, doing their thing. I know our patriarchal culture devalues the hard work you do, but as a hard-working single dad, I get it, I understand. Stay strong!

I bought a new dining room table and chairs for the boys and me. Looks sharp! I also bought a new vase for my clementine sapling, giving it room to grow further.

Peaceful

The other day, I was walking about, had the boys where they needed to be, and it was a lovely, sunny-yet-cloudy day, big puffs of towering clouds breezing through, sun shining, trees budding, and I felt the most wonderful sensation of peace. I had my camera with me, snapped shots as they came to me, and just felt at ease. Weirdly, it's like, post-Exene, at 41 years of age, my true life in Chicago is beginning (despite having lived here since I was 23). There was just this strong sense of rightness and "alrightness" about it. I'm alive, I'm free, I'm healthy. Life is good. I'm more prone to brooding than fretting, anyway, but I was just surprised and pleased by the sense of peace I felt. Things are going to keep getting better for me. I think I was sorely tested the past few years -- a lot came my way at the same time -- and I not only survived all of it, I think I actually emerged better than I was going into it.

I know these shots are, perhaps, kind of foreboding, but they were from that day when I felt such peace, so I'm posting them. The beauty of the sky really did hang brightly over the darkness on the ground, and the contrast heightened the beauty of both.

Trees

I planted some lemon tree seeds with my boys this morning, so my clementine sapling will have some company. B2 insisted on planting a cherry pip, too, although I doubt I can get that to grow. I have a green thumb, but we'll see how it goes. The lemon trees should grow fine. The boys were fascinated by the process, which is cute. I love when kids get all absorbed in stuff like that. And if the seeds sprout, so much the better.

Horoscopic

The ONION's horoscopes always crack me up. Several of these had me laughing out loud...

Aries Sleep will elude you as you wrestle all night with existential questions of mortality and meaning as well as a couple of random wrestlers.

Taurus You'll start to think the people who want you to choose between hugs and drugs have set up a false dichotomy after discovering you can actually have both at once.

Gemini Remember, only you can give yourself permission to be happy, although the people in charge of giving you permission to use the bathroom may have something to say about that.

Cancer You had no idea the love life of the nuthatch was so vigorous, so obsessive, and so likely to result in the death of people like yourself who just like to watch birds do it.

Leo You hate the phrase "We're through the looking glass here, people," but you'll have to use it anyway this week when you and a bunch of people go through a looking glass.

Virgo The stars hate to be the ones to tell you, but the problem with you is certainly not that you love too much.

Libra People will say you've hit a new low even for you, which is depressing, as they clearly haven't been paying attention to a thing you've done.

Scorpio You'll score a bunch of great stereo equipment and furniture from your neighbors, who happen to die when you go into their house and stab them and take all their things.

Sagittarius You'll finally give in to a persistent coworker's desire to, as he puts it, "spread you wide open, throw your feet up on the mantel, and really go to town," but to your great dismay there seems to be sex involved.

Capricorn You knew that moving to the suburbs would expose you to a whole new kind of culture shock, but you had no idea there were people who didn't get drunk to mow the lawn.

Aquarius Romance will bloom in your sign this week, coating everything with a thin layer of pollen and making a mess before germinating into the overripe and rotten fruit of routine.

Pisces There will be no major changes in your life this week, which given the fires and barracudas, is pretty terrible news.