serinde

I went running with the band (as pictured). Mom was right: exercise does make you not hurt...UNTIL YOU STOP.

It was strangely warm and, get this, foggy. This turned out to not actually affect what I was doing (other than "Oooo!"). OTOH, the random spots where the ground slopes down to the walkway and mud has washed all over it from the rain--.

The backlight on my watch has inexplicably started working again.

90 sec. run was easier today, but I think that's because I downscaled my expectations; I tried to obey the screed of "you should not be out of breath, you should be able to carry on a conversation" which meant I was moving about as fast as an arthritic hamster.

2.5 lbs down from Monday's horror, so I'm a whole half pound under where I started a week ago. YAY TEH BUS.

Analysis shows that I do, in fact, land differently on my right foot than my left. It really wants to come down on its ball rather than its heel; and when I force it to land heel-first, it's requiring muscles to do what they have not been accustomed, and that is why I have had a funny ache in my right shin only after these exertions.

A vanilla install of OS X Server gives you an admin user (who is not root). This user's vanilla primary group is GID 20, which is group "staff", which is named "Users". You cannot change that group's name(s) without causing some glorious breakage (or else knowing a lot more than I do at present).

o_O

Now maybe (or even probably) I'm just an artifact of But We Always Did Things *This* Way, and I know I'm weaker than I ought to be on sysadmin theory; but it seems to my undereducated brane that 1) you would differentiate between a group that is "staff", i.e. people who are of some degree of elevated privilege, and "all users"; and 2) you would not want your very very privileged user's native group to be the most hoi polloi-ish of your extant options.

There is logic and reason here, it just isn't what I'm used to, and it will probably cost me some time and effort to wrap my head around it. (I found

sweh's comparison to djbware very en pointe--though in that case I understood it, and just didn't LIKE it. Also I find DJB much more irritating than Apple.)

In which I realize the reason I clicked the metaphorical "Do You Want To Know More?" button about the Spanish Civil War is on account of two songs: The Pogues' "Lorca's Novena" and the Clash's "Spanish Bombs".

First of all, I slept very poorly last night. I couldn't fall asleep for the longest time, and then when I did, it was all those sort of waking-dreams. E.g., I dreamed I'd slept through, not only the alarm for running, but through an entire work day, and was quite convinced this had actually happened. So when the alarm actually went off, I really wanted to chuck it out the window. But I didn't.

Up three pounds this morning (could be cycle-related, but--!). Grr.

This week instead of 60 sec. run/90 sec. walk, it's 90 sec. run/120 sec. walk. In which I learn that 60sec is about how long I can comfortably exert myself. 90sec proved much more difficult. But I did it.

Annoyance: the backlight on my brand new stinkin' watch has stopped working. I'd already thrown out the box, so I doubt I can return it.

The really pertinent lesson is: if you go out shopping for a very particular, specific item, you are doomed. DOOMED! Whereas if you just go out shopping, in the I Want New Things sense, you are much more likely to be successful.

I just spent eight hours trying to find a knee-length coat for the 30-40 deg. range, preferably not black, but with a bit of verve and spunk to it. Yes, admittedly, it's awfully late in the season for such a purchase, and I expected to have a bit of difficulty; I did not expect the kind of Bataan Death March that ensued.

I did find something, eventually, at our last stop (Nordstrom's). It was on sale, and the price I expected to pay, hallelujah. It is black, but has shiny gold bits so that's all right. And when I tried it on, Beth cracked wise about how I always shop on Carnaby St. SCORE!~

I found another jacket I was desperately desirous of, and it looks really good on me, but I truly did not need it. It was the right weight for what I wanted, but too short--my main goal was to have something to wear to work, and really, it's my ass and legs that get the coldest; and this only barely covered my butt. I could not justify dropping the not insignificant (but 50% off!!) sum on it. Dammit.

Also, I have finished replacing the zipper on my Not-A-Westwood skirt, and it can re-enter circulation. Hurrah!

The mini-Starbucks in the West Building closes at 2:30pm on Fridays (7:30pm the rest of the week).

Because no student might possibly have a desire for a caffeine jolt on a Friday afternoon/evening.

I've been dorking around with OS X Server as part of my plan for eventual ~~world~~ part-time employee domination off-and-on for the past month; mostly off, due to previously-posted chaos. Today I finally got back to it.

I haven't gotten very far up to this point, not just because of lack-of-time, but because I'm having to learn directory services and how they work and what not. This has not entered my world before, and I was unclear on a bunch of concepts. It's also the first time I've had to build a server that other people are really going to have to use, like in a production situation, as opposed to Here, Have An Account On My Box So You Can Read Usenet. Planning is involved.

So, I determined that when this thing is done and ready to be used, ideally I would like it to pull authentication information for the student employees from the already-extant Active Directory setup they're in; and for the staff members who will have access to it, from the already-extant LDAP that they are in. The fine manual indicates that Leopard can do this. (Though I am still fuzzy on how my existence on the server is going to interact with my user account on my desktop machine. Because it seems like it will be very VERY helpful, and possibly more helpful than I want. I've put that to the side for later meditation.)

So I had a word with Server Admin, and I said "Connect to a directory server".

Obediently, it went and thought about it, and told me it was configured to do that, and told me to use Directory Utility to set up the directory server information. Well, I can't do that yet since I haven't talked to the systems people (which will probably also cause some Drama, as the head sysadmin is allergic to OS X Server after a bad experience somewhere around 10.3 I think), so I figured to just not set that up and play with it locally.

The flaw in my brilliant plan is that now, when I try to log in to the admin account...it's trying to auth me against a directory server that doesn't exist. Oddly enough, it cannot seem to confirm that my username & password are correct. YAY TEH BUS.

Well, I did it. Made somewhat easier by the fact that Steve had to get up even earlier this morning, to be in the office at 7am. (His job sucks. New manager seems to be as psychotic in the over-work department as the old one--he routinely gets there at 5:30am. I ask you--!. I may demand he start seeking other employ, purely for our sake.) ANYways... Happily, not raining or sleeting as was expected; looking at the radar map it looks like that'll roll in about the time I leave for work, O joy.

It's sort of hard to get in a groove when you have to keep looking at your watch (but at least I can see the watch now). I did have enough leisure to actually pay attention to how I am moving, and I think I'm doing it slightly wrong. Next week I alternate 90 sec. jogging with 120 sec. walking, and with that extended run time I believe I can start addressing the issue.

Wikipedia's featured article today is on Aikido. Want!.

...do I want it enough to get up stupid early?

...I'm getting up stupid early for running.

...I'll do what I'm doing now til Australia, to see if I can sustain it, and then decide.

In spite of waking up at fuck-off early for the morning's exertions, I find I'm actually more awake and less dozy than I usually am at this point of the morning (coffee or no). I've heard it said before that taking morning exercise is salubrious in this fashion, but one finds it sort of hard to believe without some hard evidence.

Current Music: Calexico, "Roka"

In some sort of over-compensation, my brane kept waking me up throughout the early morning, so at 5:25 I said "oh fuck it" and got up. 5 min. of brisk walking on the elliptical, 10 min. of stretching, 5 min. of cursing and digging out a hat and jacket because it is POURING RAIN, 20 min. of sixty seconds of running alternating with ninety seconds of walking.

Observations:
1) I really need a ~~watch~~ chronograph with a LIGHT. Because it is TOO DARK TO SEE IT.
2) I'm doing my running around the park behind our house, which has cement walks, which AIUI is the worst thing to run on. I was trying to land as lightly as I could, but I still have a little bit of what feels like jarring ouch in my right shin. I am not sure there's any other option at this time, because though running on the grass may be an option in warmer weather, when it's frozen and uneven (or muddy, like right now) it is even less of a win than cement.
3) Because it was raining, and therefore both warmer and more humid than it has been of late, I didn't have the icy-air-in-my-lungs issue to contend with. I'm sure I will before long. (It occurs to me, whether the saline nasal gel they recommend for Burning Man might not help?)

I have also made a deal with myself, that as long as I keep to my workout schedule, I can eat according to Phase 2 of South Beach (that is, some amount of whole grain bread and some fruit). If I schluff off, it's back to Strict Horrible Time until the next time I run.

I have (finally) finished the Sabres-themed tea cozy for our large tea pot. (That is, I finished knitting it and I sewed the two halves together; I do still have to twist a cord to go through the drawstring top, but it is currently around the teapot and Does What It Should.)

I've also repaired the kludge on my raincoat so the stupid pointless wrist-buckled straps don't come apart constantly, and I am 80% finished replacing the zipper on my Not-A-Vivienne-Westwood skirt.

This burst of needle activity has been brought to you by "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" (which, I admit, is not anywhere near as wretched as I anticipated) and "BBC Crown Jewels" concerts.

Or, "Pollo al Forno col Pomodoro Fresco e la Cipolle". Maybe. I think. I MADE IT UP.

Trying to come up with something that is a) South Beach compliant and b) I actually wanted to eat, I let myself be inspired by Happy New Cookbook. I chopped half a yellow onion and two garlic cloves, and let them slowly cook in a bit of olive oil. When the scent was pretty well filling up the room, I dumped it all over the three boneless, skinless breasts in an 8X8 baking dish, ground some pepper over top, covered with foil and put in a 350 deg. oven.

Meantime, I peeled two vine-grown tomatoes (still a pain in the ass) and chopped them coarsely.

About 5 minutes before I figured it was done, I raised the oven to about 380, removed the foil, and put the tomatoes over top. (Only then it cooked for maybe 10-15 minutes because I got involved with laundry.)

I meant to add basil, but I forgot. It was still pretty good.

Am trying to book hotel space in Melbourne for the weekend of Mar. 29-30th. I'm not saying that it's a Bethlehemic You Are Staying In A Stable situation, but availability is definitely...limited; more so than I would have anticipated this early out. Is there something significant about that weekend that I wot not of? Will we be dodging hordes of $FANGROUP on the streets?

The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Special Exhibitions: Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy

This exhibition will explore the symbolic and metaphorical associations between fashion and the superhero. Featuring movie costumes, avant-garde haute couture, and high-performance sportswear, it will reveal how the superhero serves as the ultimate metaphor for fashion and its ability to empower and transform the human body. Objects will be organized thematically around particular superheroes, whose movie costumes and superpowers will be catalysts for the discussion of key concepts of superheroism and their expression in fashion.

Opens in May. I am on it like white on rice. If they could only find a way to work in rock music, it would be everything I ever wanted. (Well, also if it was by Versace instead of Armani. Details--!)

I set out exercise clothes. I taped the print-outs of the stretches to the wall downstairs. I confirmed that the heart-rate monitor watch has a stop watch function. And I set the alarm for 5:45.

PM.

For some reason, I am approaching my 20 min. of walking/jogging tomorrow morning with the kind of trepidation and ONOZ one usually reserves for firewalking up Mt. Everest. Is this because I need to create drama (because we haven't had BLOODY WELL ENOUGH RECENTLY), or because my lizard brain wants me not to do it?

In other news, during supergroup time tonight we have found an answer to the extreme annoyance of being tell-spammed by idiots advertising Chinese goldfarming sites: we tell-spam them back, either with our insane cries of "Po!" (long story) or by extended Engrish ads for

elibalin's fictional hatfarming creation, MAOHATS.COM. (Which reminds me, we must snarf that domain name before someone else does.)

I have banished the Paperwork Shoggoth, and created a pile of shreddings that is roughly as large as me. (Seriously.) The desk is clean, except for a small tray of things I am keeping for reference. Everything has its (labelled) folder in the filing cabinet. This took me about six hours, all told.

Minor fail: I can't use my laptop at the desk, because it can't get wireless. (Which is odd, since one can get it just fine from the TV room, a few steps away.) Edit:

sweh can get signal just fine from the same location with his Eeeeeeee so I don't know what the hell is going on.

Too tired to post more, or more creatively, at this time.

Current Mood: exhausted

It is clear that there is a time-delay on holiday-induced weight gain. (Duh.) I am Not Amused, and will not stand for these results. And it seems increasingly clear that I won't be able to slot aikido in for the next while. Ergo:

1) I begin another round of South Beach after tomorrow morning's shopping trip. In spite of this wonderful cookbook. I made Spaghetti col Pomodoro Fresco e la Cipolla last night and boy was it good. Well it should be, with SIX TABLESPOONS OF BUTTER.

2) Next Monday, I shall begin a walk-to-run program. I'll jump out of bed at 6am, put on running clothes, and immediately go out into the January cold for half an hour.

(Pause for gales of laughter.)

I post these things here because it's much more likely I'll bring myself up to the mark when the alternative is public Fail.

(I have also signed up for the weekly yoga class the employee-wellbeing program offers at work, but it does not start til late Feb.)

D&D got called on accout of Steve anticipating not leaving work til after 7, so I bit the bullet and started on the Paperwork Shoggoth.

This was not as easy as it sounds. When I got home and was hungry and looked at usual post-trip bleh house mess, I went five rounds with the crazy; but took a big glass of Man Up, You Big Whiner and reminded myself that I have absolutely nothing to feel woeful about compared to 80% of the universe (at least), and snarled myself into a more productive state. Unloaded & reloaded the dishwasher, put chicken-and-rice in the oven (you'll know that one,

shechameleon), put away the load of towels from the dryer, disposed of the cardboard forest that was growing up around the beer/soda receptacle, and cleaned the catbox. Then, on to the shoggoth.

A bit of background: I am (and this upcoming statement is for some reason cause for surprise & disbelief among a portion of my acquaintance), perhaps, somewhat disorganized. (Pause for howls of laughter from

sweh.) Part of it is nature, part is nurture, and part is the fact that I really am trying to juggle about three too many balls at any given time. I have tried various techniques to cope with this, and have clawed my way to at least a bare stability where I don't drop too many things on my foot, but I always have a vague background feeling of Imminent Doom related to this. Upon twin glowing recommendations from

sedai and

spride, I checked out this "Getting Things Done" book & associated method. Mirabile dictu, it seems to actually be working for me. I have not yet achieved full implementation, no, not by a long chalk; but even the initial passes have worked wonders on my brain, my mental state, and my productivity. Mostly I've only done it at work so far, but I'm shifting it to use at home, and the big thing standing in my way initially is the Paperwork Shoggoth. (Which is composed of over a year's worth of bills, statements, and miscellaneous whatever that I've dealt with but haven't stored, so it's all in a giant pile on top of my desk--thus rendering it useless for any purpose at all.) So tonight, I opened and sorted every single piece of un-dealt-with mail, and this weekend I shall file until my fingers bleed and every single item is in its destined location. And then I shall deal with every item as soon as it comes into the house. I shall take it downstairs, I shall pay it (or whatever needs doin'), and I shall immediately rotate a quarter-turn and file it. (Which

sweh has been trying to get me to do for years. I'm sorry, lovey, I'm a slow learner.)

This was not without cost. There is a long slice on my arm now from a particularly vicious catalog that did not want to go gently into the goodnight of the waste bin. But it went.

Current Mood: productive

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