I know, I know, I haven’t been updating at all. I feel bad, a bit. But, well, (1) I’ve had no ‘net connection; I haven’t even been online in the past two days. And (2) I’ve been supporting my customer at work as they audit all our work (including my work), make sure all our “i”s are dotted and our “t”s are crossed. The customer’s great, but it’s just exhausting to constantly tweak documents to fix incorrect version numbers.

But that’s over now. And it’s amazing how good it feels to complete something like that. I feel free.

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My gardening sprint continues. I spent a good chunk of this morning staring at my front yard, trying to figure out how to make it look less bland. For reference, here’s what it looked like three months ago.

I’ve decided to put a low shrub border along the sidewalk, then build several sweeping stone walls to create curved borders going up both sides of the walkway. Then fill those borders with whatever plants make sense.

But before I do that, I need to fill in some of those astilbe (the plants on either side of the walkway; hard to see in the picture). So I bought seven more of them today, plus more shrubs to fill in under the window.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I don’t get the heady rush from digging in the soil that’s reported by so many gardeners. I don’t like to run my fingers through good soil. I’m interested in the higher-level aspects of gardening, the design and the layout and positioning large beds to create impressive sweeps of auburn flowers.

Of course, few people do enjoy all the manual labor. And perhaps that’s part of the package. People are impressed by beautiful gardens not just because of the aesthetic design, but also by the assumed work that went in to creating and maintaining it. One does get credit for the mulching and the digging.

Which is true of most of life, really.

An update on the thrilling saga of my DSL: I don’t have any anymore. The promised tech support phone call on Wednesday never happened, and coincidentally I got a flyer in the mail that day, advertising Verizon DSL for half the price of Earthlink. So I signed up for Verizon and cancelled my Earthlink account on Thursday.

Which was not without its surprises: While on the phone with Earthlink cancelling my account, the Earthlink rep asked me if the tech rep had been by my house yet. I blinked and asked what she meant. She said that they’d already dispatched a tech to check the line at my house. Well, that would have been helpful to know.

But I cancelled anyway. I felt even more justified by that decision when I received an automated phone call this morning, asking me to talk to them about my open trouble ticket. So they haven’t even closed the ticket, despite cancelling my entire account. Great. I have no faith in this company anymore.

I’ve learned two things from this and my experiences with iPower:

• If you get a tech who asks you to repeat things you’ve already done, or who doesn’t appear to know what s/he’s talking about, politely end the call and call back. There are good techs at these companies; you just have to be willing to end a call with the bad ones.
• If there’s a persistent problem, do not hesitate to ask to speak to a manager. Managers have a remarkable ability to resolve your problems magically and immediately. Saalon believes this is partly because managers don’t want to be bothered with these things, so they’ll use their power to get rid of you as quickly as possible.

Getting back to Verizon: Thus far, I’ve been impressed with Verizon’s service. I received my hardware the day after I signed up, and it included Mac instructions as well as PC instructions. I only have two frustrations: their Flash-based installation program had an error at one point, and I have to wait a few days for my account to activate before I can get online. But even those are minor annoyances.

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So I played my first game of Ultimate Frisbee yesterday. And boy, my muscles are tired. I feel like I’ve been hit by a car.

I had fun, though. The rules are relatively straightforward; one team plays defense and throws the disc to the team playing offense, then tries to prevent the offense team from getting the disc to their end of the field. If you catch the disc, you can’t walk or run from that spot; you have to throw it to one of your team-mates. If the disc is dropped, goes out of bounds, or is intercepted, it’s given to someone on the other team and they can now try to score a goal. And that’s about it.

The rules make a big deal about encouraging and assuming a spirit of fair play, which is a nice change. The rules strive to be clear but not complicated, as it’s assumed that players will resolve problems themselves.

We had a total of nine players, so one person switched out. Four per side felt comfortable; enough that each person got the disc at least occasionally. I had a good time, though I clearly lack the strategic and tactical thinking, and my body just wasn’t ready for the workout. We played for a good hour.

I’m looking forward to playing again next week, but boy am I sore now. I’ve been walking like a zombie since yesterday afternoon.

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If you’ve sent me an e-mail in the past day or so, I’m afraid I haven’t seen it. My apologies, but after intermittent internet connection problems over the past few weeks, my DSL router at home has decided to completely die stop transmitting data. So I spent a good chunk of yesterday evening on the phone with Earthlink, trying to convince tech support that, yes, I’d already reset the modem, but yes, I’ll do it again just for you. And boy wouldn’t you know, it still isn’t working.

This is my third Earthlink DSL modem in eighteen months. And, while about half of the tech support people have been great, the other half have been patronizing and condescending. I’m now to the point where I think I’m going to abandon Earthlink and go with Verizon. I’m already paying Verizon for my phone line, so I might as well get DSL through them.

So, I can now only access the internet at work or at coffee shops. A second-tier tech should be calling me tonight to verify that my DSL modem still isn’t working, and hopefully send me a replacement. Which means I still probably won’t get online at home for at least a few days. :sigh:

This was on top of an exhausting day yesterday; it was Errands Day, so I spent all evening getting rid of old stuff and buying new stuff. Got some new socks and a belt at the Outlet Mall, a towel rack from Williams-Sonoma, and some candles from Yankee Candle. Yaaaay.

Came home last night after a busy day at work (that’s become a theme, hasn’t it? And a good thing; keeps me from being deathly bored), tossed some laundry in the machine, vacuumed my bedroom (for the first time in months), and headed outside. I dug up about two square feet of soil, added some good garden soil, and went back inside. Seems odd, but I’m experimenting with spending ten minutes a day in the garden, and I really need to improve the soil in one particular area. That’s all I could get done in ten minutes, so that’s all I did. Should be interesting to see if I continue this, or fall out of the habit.

Anyvay. I finished that, checked the fluid levels in my truck and cleaned the inside, then came back into the house and realized I couldn’t do another thing. So I plopped down on the couch and watched THX-1138, George Lucas’s first film.

I’d bought it as Suncoast last week, when they were selling it for six dollars and I had a five-dollar-off coupon. It was certainly worth a dollar.

I saw THX once before, on Bravo when I lived with my parents. I thought then that it was a visually interesting but over-long and pretentious film. Now, I dislike it less. I don’t exactly like it; it still feels over-long. But it is a stylish and involving film, once you get past the stark visuals. And it was meant to be stark, at least, so that’s not a failing of the movie.

Besides its length, and the long stretches where little happens, my only other complaint is that it was a commentary on the ”hyper consumerism” of the early 70′s. And I have little patience with the concept of hyper consumerism. Most people don’t buy Tide because they saw one ad for it on TV; they buy it because they want clean clothes and it’s worked for them in the past. Now, I dislike ads and people can certainly be affected by them, and some people do buy things to feel good. But that doesn’t mean the entire culture is full of sheep who blindly follow Madison Avenue.

But THX is about more than that, which alleviates the boredom. It’s Brave New World done better than any adaptation of Brave New World I’ve ever seen. There’s a brilliantly chilling shot near the end of children riding up an elevator, their heads shaved, wearing identical clothing, chemical drips on their arms, all with innocent and questioning expressions, all heading for the same drab life.

I also watched the documentary on it, which revealed a few interesting tidbits:

• The first film that Lucas made was a short student film called THX-1138 EB4.
• The short film wasn’t his story. It was written by two classmates, who had abandoned the story in favor of something else. He took it and made the movie because he wanted to do something science fiction-y.
• The short film got him all sorts of awards and recognition, and the friendship of Francis Ford Coppola, who got him the money to make the full film version.
• They were originally going to make the feature film in Japan, and Lucas spent some time there in the early 70′s, but realized that getting approval would be a nightmare. I suspect this is where Lucas was first introduced to anime.
• Coppola insisted that Lucas write the script for the feature film version, despite Lucas protesting that he couldn’t write a screenplay. Lucas eventually did write the first draft of the screenplay and showed the result to Coppola, who then said, “Boy, you were right; you can’t write a screenplay.” Lucas then got one of the classmates who wrote the short film to help him adapt the script. It should be noted that, of all six Star Wars films to date, Lucas had assistance writing two of them: The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
• Much of the film was re-written to take place within the locations that Lucas knew he could get approval to shoot in.
• Lucas shot the film in seven weeks.
• The DVD version has new footage. There’s some additional CG to fill out a few scenes, though nothing changes the story. It’s mostly revamped views from windows to show the underground city and some industrial machinery, plus a few extra shots of those incredibly cool cars when THX escapes in one.

I also watched a bit of This is Spinal Tap, which was fun, but not as much fun as I’d anticipated. I guess I’m not enough of a rock fan to find the parody that funny when I’ve already seen it a bunch of times. Or maybe I just wasn’t in the mood.

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I’ve had a very busy weekend; apologies to various friends for not being as responsive as usual (Mandy, in particular). My parents have been over, installing a new counter top in my kitchen, replacing the faucet, and doing a few other touch-ups around the house.

Since I moved in, I’ve had a bunch of renovations to be done. Now most of them are done (at least, it feels like most of them are done; hard to tell sometimes as the list grows and shrinks). I’ve only three major things left on the list: Tiling the backsplash in the kitchen, tiling the kitchen and dining room floors, and putting a vanity in the upstairs bathroom. There are a few other things to do, but those are the primary tasks.

I hope to have them all done in time for my Halloween Party this year. If you’re reading this, you’re probably invited; you’ll get an e-mail at some point. I have a lot of seasonal food planned, plus showings of old monster movies like the original Dracula and Frankenstein. And I’m inviting practically everyone I know, so it should be interesting.

On a completely different note, I saw Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest tonight. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Like Snakes on a Plane, it’s a perfect summer blockbuster film: fun, visually interesting, and a great ride. About as deep as the glass on a painting, but then nobody watches a pirate movie for depth.

So it’s been a fun weekend, though a tiring one. Can’t complain about that.

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So I saw Snakes on a Plane yesterday evening, and had a truly unique experience.

The film itself was a perfect summer blockbuster. It knew exactly when to be silly, when to have action, when to slip in some comedy, and when to move the plot along. The characters were cardboard and the plot was obvious, but this is a summer blockbuster. It’s not supposed to be Deep; it’s meant to be thoroughly entertaining. And that it is.

Though I suspect I’ll have a tough time watching it alone, without the benefit of an audience full of enthusiastic teens and young adults.

Which brings me to the truly unique experience. Near the end, when Sam Jackson said, “I’ve had it!,” the guys sitting behind me said, “Oh, yeah!” and started screaming the Big Line. And the folks in front of me followed suit. And I ended up screaming out the Big Line with them.

We were all yelling out a line that none of us had seen before. It’s the line they specifically added into the movie because fans requested it.

What does that say about the future of filmmaking? Probably nothing; I doubt that anyone in the film industry is paying any attention to Snakes on a Plane. But that feels like the first tremor in a big quake to me. It feels like the first shot in a war.

Would it really be so bad if Hollywood started listening to fans?

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Just stumbled on A Nice Cup of Tea, a short article on tea making by George Orwell. As always, well-written and thought provoking, even when writing about tea.

I certainly prefer tea to other drinks, and I always take it without sugar or milk (unless I’m ill and want something sweet that will go down easily). But when it comes to style and flavor, I admit that I prefer fruit-flavored tea to the stronger Darjeelings and Earl Greys. At work, I usually drink Blackcurrant mixed with a little Earl Grey, and at home I usually reach for the Twinings Four Fruit. Intense teas just taste bitter to me.

I can say that loose tea has a better flavor than bagged tea, though you can’t beat the convenience of bagged tea. You can also double-up tea bags to intensify the flavor.

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And I still can’t get rid of a nagging cough left over from the Hungarian Death Plague. How long can it take? Guess I shouldn’t be complaining, though; I could have serious complications and be unable to breathe for the rest of my life. There’s always that.

Anyway. A good day. Dropped off some old things at Goodwill, so there are no more piles of clothes laying around my bedroom. (They’re under the bed now.) Picked up some Southern Comfort bourbon whiskey at the nearby ABC store (more on that later). Stopped by Target and picked up miscellaneous useful things, including two desk lamps which now sit on my desk and will keep my face nice and bright for my webcam.

After a long but satisfying day at work, I came home exhausted. So I used the bourbon to make myself what I bought it for: my first mint julep. Following half-remembered, Alton Brown directions, I ground ten mint leaves (from the garden) with sugar in the bottom of a glass until it formed a sort of green paste, then added ice, spritzed in some seltzer water, added the bourbon, and topped it off with a bit more seltzer water.

It was strong and delicious. A little less Southern Comfort next time, I think, and it’ll taste perfect. There were also bits of leaf floating in the drink; I think I need to grind it down more. Still, a success.

That gave me some pep, so I watered and weeded the garden a bit, microwaved some homemade pizza, and checked e-mails and blogs. I even perked up enough to make my own pickles. Another Alton Brown recipe, this was…well, like most cooking. Easier than I’d feared, but requires some practice to do perfectly. Haven’t tasted the pickles yet, and I’m looking forward to it.

So. Um. Very exciting day. In any event, here’s the recipe. I plan to increase it by 50% next time, as I didn’t have enough liquid to fill both jars.

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