Bearded Cap

The Bearded Cap by Vik Prjónsdóttir. This is even more cool than the Jayne hat, and I did not think such a thing was possible. At $125, I think I'd rather try getting one of my crafty friends to knit a reasonable facsimile.

Things I Can't Live Without

Things I can't live without :

Preamble: I don't count people, beliefs, etc., as things and as such will only be mentioning actual physical possessions.

1. My Laptop. I've been a computer junkie since Oregon Trail in grade school, and pretty much grew up with computers becoming more and more important in modern life. High school saw the first years of Web searches, ebay, and by the time I left college I needed a computer and an internet connection to feel complete. I wanted a laptop forever, but the damned things were so expensive it wasn't worth doing. About a year and a half ago, my homebuilt tower system bit the dust, frying the mobo and cpu. One month of research at work later and I had a nice shiny Dell 9300 17" laptop. I will never be without a laptop ever again. I've replaced the keyboard once and am having intermittant power issues, but nothing beats having access to your music, games, movies, internet, etc wherever you go. Many people can work anywhere in the world with a laptop and a cell phone and I hope someday to make that same claim.

2. Swiss Army Knife(SAK). The knife was the first and arguably most useful tool man ever devised. Add in screwdrivers, scissors, bottle openers, etc., and you'll have the tools to MacGuyver your way out of many problems thrown in your path. I prefer the Victorinox Compact model as it doesn't weight down my pocket and has the essentials for me(knife, scissors, bottle/can opener, screwdriver, corkscrew). In the past, I've had a lot of "everything but the kitchen sink SAK's(including one with a torch lighter), but now I prefer smaller and more mobile. The Compact is great quality and only US$20 or so.


3. Bandanna. Endless uses for this little square of fabric, but I mostly use mine as a napkin, tablecloth when eating something messy like a piece of fruit at my desk, wrap my ipod in it to protect from scratches, and as a potholder. If I'm outside and it's hot I'll pour water on it and tie it around my neck for evaporative cooling. I usually try to find a tissue or paper towel to blow my nose, but if not available, I can use the bandanna. Of course, I don't do any of the other uses with it until after it's laundered in that case. Since I have 5-7 of them, I get into a daily rotation. Also, it was a lifesaver in one instance of a roadstop bathroom not having any TP. I'm glad that one was a 99 cent walmart cheapo, 'cause there was no way I was keeping it afterward.


4. Wok. I love my grandmother's cast iron skillet, but a wok is the most useful piece of cookware ever. In addition to stir fry, I've made eggs, soups, curry, fried chicken, and just about any type of cooked food can be made in a wok. I have a carbon steel wok(got it at a thrift store for US$6!), but one day I'd like to get a cast iron wok and lid with no wood parts so I can use it as bakeware. Also, if you get into the wok, make sure you get the necessary accountrements: lid, spatula(s), steamer basket, etc. http://www.thewokshop.com/ is a great resource.

A Late Christmas

Since Lisa and I had so much going on at Christmastime, and I was just starting a new job(read: no paycheck yet) we decided to postpone our own Christmas celebration until later in January. On January 20th, she dropped by my office, we exchanged gifts, and then went out to eat. We set a gift budget of $100, and sent each other wish lists, so we'd actually get something we want.
The gift I want to talk about is my green Lamy AL Star Fountain Pen.

I've had a few fountain pens over the years, but they've mostly been a novelty for me. But hearing the guys at edcforums.com gush over the Lamy Safari in thread after thread made me want to have one of my own to try out. My pen is the same as the Safari, but it has an anodized aluminum exterior instead of plastic and is a little more expensive($32 instead of $23 from pendemonium.com).

Those same guys also gush about a brand of ink called Noodler's. Apparantly, it's designed to be archival quality and be impossible to remove once it has dried on the paper surface. Plus, the graphics on the bottle are fun, the inks come in a lot of interesting colors, and aren't very expensive($12-13 for a 3oz bottle). So I also put on my wish list a bottle of Hunter Green(sadly out of stock) and Legal Lapis(I don't really like blue ink myself, but it is preferred for legal forms, and is the only color of ink we use at the tax office).





If anyone wants to get into fountain pens ever, I highly recommend this combo. You can get a Lamy Safari pen($23), Ink converter($5), and ink of choice($12-13) for under fifty bucks from Pendemonium.com.

My other gifts included a replacement keyboard for my laptop, The Dunwich Horror expansion to the Arkham Horror boardgame(see previous entry), a couple of tshirts, and a christmas ornament. My gifts for Lisa included an iPod Shuffle and a sewing machine box(something she actually really needed). Overall this was a great system, and I'm very happy with the way things turned out.

Tax Time Yet Again

Well, three months with no new entries and now I'm back.

I'm now managing a tax office location for a local income tax prep company. I've worked for the company both full time and part time for five years now, so it was an easy transition. My office is in a good neighborhood, a busy commercial district, and only a mile or so from my FLGS.

I have four employees working for me, all women. I get along with all of them fairly well, and all of them are intelligent enough and friendly enough that things should go very well this tax season.

This year there is a one-time credit to repay tax overpayment on phone bills for the last three years. Phone companies charged a Federal Excise tax on all phone bills long after the government stopped requiring the tax. It would go back more than three years, but the statute of limitations only goes back that far. The credit ranges from $30-60 depending on filing status and dependants. You can read more about it here.

Stupid Car

My car's electrical system is having problems again. I couldn't get the engine to turn over at a restaurant parking lot. Had to leave it for two days and then my dad met me at the car, and we put in a new battery. With the new battery, it would run, but it still has an electrical problem, so we quickly drove it to the mechanic before the faulty electrical system kills this battery also.

Times like this make me wish I lived in a city with better public transportation. Oh well...

Arkham Horror: Crack in Boardgame Form

A few months ago, I was able to play a half-game of Arkham Horror at the bi-weekly Boardgame night at Lava Java. Set in the Cthulhu mythos, Arkham is a long involving boardgame where investigators are drawn to the many peculiar events happening in small town 1920s Massachusetts. Monsters are rising in city streets, cultists are gathering in occultist groups, and whispers are told of ancient old ones, alien monstrous leviathans that desire conquest and consumption of our world. At the beginning of the game, an old one is chosen to be the foe for the players, and it is that old one that is threatening to awaken and causing gates to other worlds to open in Arkham.

The game is a cooperative game, where the players are not competing against each other, but against the evil creatures in Arkham.

Each player is dealt(or chooses) an investigator with various abilities and equipment. Investigators range from a private eye, a student, a photographer, a professor, a psychologist, even a drifter named Ashcan Pete with his trusty dog Duke. The game tends to blur the line between boardgames and roleplaying games, and involves more storytelling than that average boardgame. The game takes a long time to play (3-5 hours is standard depending on the number of players) and can handle 1-8 players. You win by either sealing enough gates so that the old one goes back to peaceful slumber or if the old one awakens first the investigators have one last ditch battle to try and defeat the gargantuan old one.

This game has a high level of replay value, and although it seems overly complicated, the fun factor is worth learning the game. Actually, as long as one player has a good grasp of the rules, they can help the other players.

In the game your character can be a sword wielding motorcycle riding monster slayer, use the Necronomicon to learn arcane spells(although this will sap your sanity), become a town deputy or a member of the mysterious Silver Twilight Lodge.

It's a big chunk of change to drop at $50 msrp, but you will get a lot of value out of the investment, not the least of which is being able to play in Solitaire mode when you're alone with not much to do.

There are two expansions to the game so far: Curse of the Dark Pharoah, and The Dunwich Horror.

If you get a chance, try it out.

Bikes and Groceries

Saw an link to Xtracycle, a company that is hoping to make bicycle travel more common by providing better carrying options than standard saddlebags/trailers. It even adds a "backseat" so you can more easily carry a passenger. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words:




You can also add on an aftermarket power system called Stokemonkey. Thanks, Josh, for pointing that out.

Also, for those of you who want to bring your own grocery bags to cut out waste, go to this site.