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Phone Music Followup
Oy vey. I ended up doing stuff that ended up taking entirely too long to get a few albums converted and onto my phone.

0. A couple of days ago downloaded and installed the updated versions of Nokia PC Suite and Nokia Music. (2 hours)
1. Used JetAudio to convert OGG to WMA. (30 minutes)
2. Foolishly attempted to let Nokia Music (iTunes equivalent) prettify/standardize the WMAs. It screwed up the tags on a bunch of files and generally took a stupid-long time to do it. (2 hours)
2a. Poked at Amazon to steal cover art.
2b. Deleted all the stuff I'd done on Nokia Music.
3. Used Mp3tag to fix all the tags (reverted filename to tags) and assign cover art (didn't know I could do the latter). Incidentally, this program is dead useful for batch editing of music file tags. (15 minutes)
4. Reloaded corrected files on Nokia Music, and didn't ask for it to update anything. (5 minutes)
5. Transferred files to phone. (15 minutes)

food log
Go, scale, go! More accurately: go, me, go! I've successfully stayed in bounds for 3 days in a row, and I'm going for 4 today. Wow - I haven't done 3 in a row since January, and 4 would be a record for this year (last occurrence was October last year). It's helping a lot to know that I have exactly as many meals left in the fridge as I need before leaving, so I'm encouraged not to waste by going out instead. Plus then I'm going to be eating out every meal for a while, though I'm going to try hard to make good portion size choices.

( food log ) 1240 cal today

Oops - seems I spoke too soon on that first normal paycheck thing. Apparently I was still playing the adjusted overtime game from the pay period before. (We have to fill out our time for Fridays on Thursday afternoons, then go back and fix it, if necessary, on Monday. Stupid system...) Next one! %)

We got both kinds: country AND western!
Oy. On the Savannah hotel's website, they list local dining options. The categories are: American, American Southern, American Chicken, International (which is really American Fancy), Italian (practically American), American Seafood, and American Steaks.

Me, I've noted a nice place to maybe try for afternoon tea. Also, a cemetery (but not for eating at).

Home ATM Locations
Note to self for future reference: Mom's CU ATMs charge a fee. There're free ATMs at Long Lake Grocery (super-convenient!), Fieldstone Market by Moomer's, and Target.

Convergence Agenda
Thursday
5:30 - arrive LAX, take shuttle to QM
settle into room
find people, including touch base with T
head out for food and to Mai Tai Bar (take Passport bus)

Friday
socializing, food, shopping, maybe submarine tour during day, $11
check-in (+$5 for booze wristband) and socializing in the afternoon
find food
get ready for fashion show late afternoon (waiting on further word from T)
6:45 fashion show
dancey!

Saturday
vendors, socializing, shopping, food, maybe tours
2:00 a.g.f swap
4:00 help set up beach party
5:00 beach party
after help clean up beach party
socialize
12:00 Ghost Tour

Sunday
maybe champagne brunch???, $40, 9:30 - 2 (anyone want to get fancy with me?)
or maybe I can find dim sum and drag people with?
vendors, socializing, shopping, food
1:00 meet @ reception bar for ice skating, back by 4
5-6 help break down vendors
dress for dinner
dinner and dancing

Monday
socializing, shopping, food
3:00 grab a shuttle to LAX for 5:40 flight

Tuesday
sleep
unpack
laundry
return library stuff
maybe maybe get a massage

General Goals
- good Chinese food, 'cause it's lacking around here

If anyone on my flist is already on Oracea and wants a couple weeks' worth of 40 mg brand name pills that I'm not going to use, holler and I'll happily send them on. Seems a shame to let something that expensive go to waste just because it didn't agree well with my system.

food log
Hooray - three days of being fairly good and my weight is moving in the right direction again! I know most of that is the flush of the first week, but it's all good and welcome, 'cause I've been feeling so out of control and sick from letting myself eat too much. Tea is my very good friend this week, helping keep my mouth and belly distracted from the decrease in input.

( food log ) 1340 cal today

Phone is a go in Europe!
Cool - I should actually be able to just use my phone in Europe, and don't even need a new SIM card/number.
http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/plans/prepaidrates.aspx

International roaming on prepaid is $1.60/minute (ouch!).
Texts are 35¢ to send, still 5¢ to receive. (4 back and forths = 1 minute of call time.)
Germany: 1800 MHz
UK: 1800 MHz
Italy: 1800 MHz
Ireland: 1800 MHz

Now to figure out how international calling works. I only had a tenuous grasp on it the two times I did it 10 years ago.

Current Mood: it's a small world after all

Postypants
I continue to be confused when people tell me that I'm intimidating, in part because of my self-confidence. I don't really see me and intimidating levels of self-confidence in the same universe. I suppose these are mostly work people, and I'm more confident at work than the rest of my life, but still. Weird.

Perhaps I'm the one with the skewed viewpoint, though. It's hard to tell.

Because I just don't have enough audio software...
WinAmp will play OGGs and MP3s.
Windows Media Player will play MP3s and will play OGGs with some coercion. It will rip WMAs.
JetAudio will play lots of stuff, and rip or convert OGGs and pretty much anything anything _but_ MP3.
JetShell will rip to MP3. It will convert MP3 to WMA or WAV.
RealPlayer is just useless.
I'm allergic to iTunes (and it's also useless).

None of them can do the simple thing I want, which is to turn a few of my OGGs into MP3s so I can use them on my phone without having to rerip the CDs. I really thought JetAudio could do that, and I thought I'd done it with that program before.

On a separate frustrating note, why is the cap on my travel-size shave gel literally twice as tall as it needs to be? That defeats the whole purpose of "travel size." Edit: apply serrated steak knife and duct tape, and the offending cap is now less solid, but 1/2" shorter.

Current Mood: annoyed

What is...normal?
Weird. This week will be my first normal paycheck since before annual raises (beginning of Feb.), and very possibly the first this calendar year. (Except, of course, for the semi-annual contract performance bonus checks coming out this week, but they're small and paid separately from the normal paychecks.) I'm not quite sure what my normal take-home pay even is these days, since the tax changes and a withholding mod took place after my chaotic paychecks started. Not that I'm complaining - this is a great problem to have!

Current Mood: dorky

Conference Prep
Half-hour presentation slots, generally want ~20 minutes for presentation and remainder for questions and crowd shuffling between slots. My first cut at the script was ~21 minutes, which seems awesome, but really means I need to cut about 5 minutes out so that I will talk slower and because things always run longer in front of an actual audience. It's a much better first cut than last year, though!

Edit: second cut was still just over 20 minutes, but I did talk slower. It's probably ready for a first dry run.

Wow - 2:30 and the heat index is only up to 90?! We had lovely rain and gloom this morning, both of which have been sorely lacking for the last few months. I may have to go sit outside for dinner somewhere. Italian Cafe sounds nice, though I should just eat up the food in my fridge. One of these days I need to get a proper patio table, even if it's only a plastic one.

Oy...emotional rollercoaster PMS day.

food log
Wow - I just realized that yesterday was my first glitter star day for food in over a month. I actually didn't feel bloaty and awful at bedtime, either. Gotta keep it up! Also, my blood pressure at the doc yesterday was normal (was slightly high last week), which is a good corroboration that my stress level is dropping. Small victories just need to be allowed to snowball.

( food log ) 1320 cal today

2009 Movies!
#49: Masters of the Universe
This was pretty awesome. I had thought it was going to be a live MST3King of this awful movie, but Tim Uren and Joe Scrimshaw did an excellent job of making it different enough to not be a weak version of the show we grew up with.

#50: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
After the shitty emotional roller coaster of the weekend, I really wanted to watch this, rather than go to closing ceremony. I popped out at 5 to check out the closing ceremony video, but then headed back downstairs to see the end.

#51: The Apple
Dead Dog Party movie. Wow. Crazy, fucked up tail-end-of-70s hippie message movie. Ridiculous, but fun to watch with a group that was as weirded out as we were.

#52: Public Enemies
It's okay. I was really hoping for something a bit more epic or a bit more personal, but it was square in the middle. It was neat to hear the Saint Paul references (about Otto Bremer and William Hamm), and the street they filmed on for the Sioux Falls scenes looks just like downtown Sioux Falls.

Sadly True

see more Funny Graphs

Current Mood: amused

Note to self on Inu Yasha
2nd movie in middle of Season 4
3rd movie after Season 5
4th movie after all seasons

SUNDAY TELEGRAPH PRINTS WRONG HEADLINE

http://www.radiohead.com/deadairspace/index.php?c=491

Contrary to a Sunday Telegraph headline this weekend, we are not setting up a record label. The credit for this venture goes to one of our managers, Brian Message and his company ATC.

Philip

food log
I'm hoping I really did actually hit my self-frustration breaking point this weekend. I just allow myself to eat to much crap for no reason whatsoever. Traveling isn't the time to stick to a strict eating plan, but at least I'll be less likely to run out and get a box of frosted cookies and eat them all in two sittings. More tea, less food, and a whole lot less junk food. I think it did help to have a relatively normal long weekend. The stress of the last 6 months is falling away and I'm taking control of my house back, which is great for my mental health. That should translate to better physical health. Yesterday as an addendum to my packing I actually cleaned up my bedroom for the first time in many months and even did some mending. It's so nice to not have random crap all over the floor! Now, if I could just remember where I stashed all those little yarn bits that come with various sweaters, I could mend the badge clip holes in my gorgeous mulberry-colored silk sweater, too.

( food log ) 1325 cal today

for the rest of the week
- ~~buy nylons, travel-size shave gel(?)~~
- ~~verify I'm not going to bounce anything before Friday~~
- get cash (Friday on way out)
- ~~finish watching Inu Yasha and finish reading Broken Angels (renewed Gilmore Girls), return Weds AM~~
- check out other DVDs when they come in and another book (Academ's Fury)
- ~~research Savannah transit and touristy stuff~~
- ~~research Long Beach touristy stuff and C15 schedule~~
- pack backpack x2
- make sure to get info from Trystan and adjust packing accordingly
- dye hair?
- make some .OGGs into .MP3s for my phone

- boxes to attic
- scope out insulation feasibility on the A/C drain line
- look for wet dog smell source

...and she's gone.
Funeral Wednesday. Amy and I are going up to Menahga Tuesday after work. I've never been a pallbearer before.

food log
( food log ) 1375 cal so far today

Go, public health insurance movement, go! Also, eggplants.
American health care continues to break my brain. I had a blood test earlier this month. The lab charged $107. The allowed charge by the insurance company was $6.76. I've been lucky enough to have health insurance my whole life, but...my gosh! It's no wonder the uninsured simply don't go, when they're being charged a 1500% markup on a stupid blood test!

On an unrelated note, a note to myself: wear gloves next time when cutting up eggplant. It leaves a horrible residue that makes my skin all tight and it only comes off with extensive scrubbing. Anyone know what causes this? Google isn't being helpful. Or is this one of those "it's just me" things like the tingly lips from mango (which seems to have gone away)?

Current Mood: incredulous