This just in: Mercury is still retrograde.

Had a voice lesson last night, which went okay. Had to put gas in the car afterwards, and the damn pump wouldn't shut off. I spewed gasoline all over the side of the car and the pavement of the gas station. Ended up pushing the car a few feet forward so I could get in without stepping in a puddle of gasoline, since I really don't want the floor mats to smell like gas. That seemed mostly successful, and I can also say now that if I ever have to push my car anywhere, it moves pretty easily.

I was then rather distracted for the whole drive from Gaithersburg back to the District, and kept forgetting what the speed limit is on 270. I was getting passed all over the place, and couldn't remember if it was supposed to be 65 there or if people were just breakin' the law (breakin' the law).

Today some moron was in the smart tag lane on the toll road when he realized he shouldn't be, so he came to a stop, then changed lanes into the *other* smart tag lane, then tried to change back into the one he was in originally (where I was rapidly approaching). Then he tried to cut across in front of me to get into the cash lane. Argh. I decided last night that instead of writing people tickets for blocking intersections and causing gridlock, they should just have a fleet of bulldozers that drive around town and if you block an intersection, they just shove your car out of the way and let you repair it at your own expense. Idiots who don't read the signs (posted a mile in advance, and several times as you approach the gates) at toll booths should be subject to the same penalties. Argh. Those people are gonna get me killed.

Tried the "coffee" in the office this morning. I'll be heading to Target over lunch to buy coffee preparation paraphernalia. Ew.

Car's clean (but now has been visited by area birds), taxes still undone, house still unclean (but I carried out some trash last night). I realized last night that I have to get the house clean by Sunday since I won't have a chance to do it next week and Emily gets here Friday night. Eek.

To do:

• Clean house
• Pay bills
• Do taxes
• Get groceries
• Practice
• Practice
• Practice
• Get the wireless gateway working

Oh yeah, I finally caved and decided to order DSL for real. Submitted the order last night. Going through Concentric, since Covad's "order now!" page suggested ScrewUNet, Qwest and CAIS don't have good plans yet, and the options from Northpoint were limited at best. Wonder how long it'll take to get the circuit, and how many hoops I'll have to jump through.

link (2000-02-29)

Bought stuff to make coffee with over lunch (water filter, cordless kettle, french press, a couple canisters for coffee and sugar). Went to Sutton Place to get some ground beans, and was about to check out when my pager started buzzing. I'd forgotten a meeting. D'oh. Mercury is still retrograde. I have two more weeks of this. Urk.

Remembered this evening that the new Steely Dan was out today. Went by Barnes & Noble. Out of stock. They'd received all of seven and were sold out by noon. Went next door to Worst Buy and gave them the first money I'd spent there since August of 1998 when it took me three hours to buy the MagicTV receiver. Didn't have cash, either, so there's a credit card transaction there. Oh well.

Then stopped at Tysons to try to find a spoon for work coffee purposes (done for two bucks at Crate and Barrel) and some sealing pouring thing to keep milk in at work, since if I put cartons in the fridge people will assume they can just use some of that in their coffee and I won't have any left. People are bastards that way. There was the one person at an old job who mysteriously used my whole milk if it was in the fridge, but who only replaced it with skim milk, thus missing the point entirely. Didn't buy any such vessel, but determined if I buy snooty milk at Fresh Fields it'll come in bottles which should serve the same purpose - people will recognize it as belonging to a person and not the floor and will leave it alone. I hope.

There is something wrong with this. I spent nigh 100 bucks on shit for coffee - a drink that makes me burp incessantly, gives me heartburn, and messes with my nerves if I drink too much of it. And I'm already high-strung enough without caffeine jitters to go on top. Ahh, such is the life of a coffee-obsessed geek. Filter water. Boil water. Put coffee grains in french press. Pour water. Wait. Push plunger. Pour coffee. Be slightly less cranky.

I guess that's it. I spend almost a hundred bucks so I can be slightly less cranky. Oh, and it'll give me a good 15 or 20 minutes worth of futzing around in the office, which is always useful.

link (2000-02-29)