Random Traffic Through Nick's Brain

I let a couple of people convince me yesterday that I should take out my earrings (two small hoops in my left ear, for those that don’t remember). I’m wondering whether this is a good opportunity to embrace my new-found minimalism, makes me look better, both, or neither.

Mystery Hunt 2012 is over. It ends both an awesomely fun weekend where I actually got to help run a hunt instead of help solve a hunt. It also ends an amazingly frustrating year of not really being able to write a hunt despite being on the winning team.

The jet lag on this trip back to the US is much better. The secret? Intentionally wake up at 05:00.

I am annoyed that my phone is slow loading a web page while listening to music and tracking my location.

The OCD Chef Cutting Board.

For work…

1. Wake up –> out the door: 6 minutes.
2. Out the door –> train: 12 minutes.
3. Wait at train station: 5 minutes.
4. Train –> airport: 13 minutes.
5. Airport –> gate: 15 minutes, including a stop at the duty free shop.

 

Getting efficient at travel has its benefits. I like that I can wake up 90 minutes before my flight and still have time to wait at the gate. Unfortunately the flight was delayed due to fog in both ZRH and PAR.

Bonus: It was sunny above the clouds / fog. The mountains looked like islands in a sea of white.

 

I have come to the conclusion that I just don’t get parables as a communication mechanism.

When climbing on daddy, no kicking him in the zipper.

Googlefight is banned from my current location. Too bad. I needed to use it for work purposes.

What I thought was the sunrise was exhaust light from the greenhouses.

Yesterday, oddly, I went from wanting an iPad when the iPad 3 came out (actually, wanting five, one for each of home, work, Dina, Alex, and Arianna) to not wanting one until I could find a reasonable use case for it. Still haven’t found one yet.

I’ve been blogging for over 10 years.

I will humour my eccentricities to keep my inner crazy at bay.

I was IM’ing a friend of mine who was (supposedly) helping me with my German. I asked what the plural of Kürbis (pumpkin) was. Her reply:

1 Kürbis, 2 Kürbisse, 3 Kürbissen.

 I was this close to giving up on learning German until she told me it was a joke.

This is your brain. This is you brain on back-pain meds: Hmmm. Something near the stove seems hot. Is it this burner? [Touch burner with flat hand.] No. Is it this burner? [Repeat.] Ouch!!! Oh yeah. I boiled water for coffee on that burner. 8 hours later my hand still hurts.

A combination of, “Use your words.” (us to Arianna), “I’m funny.” (Arianna to everyone) has become:

• Words are funny (Arianna’s invention).
• Words are power (us to Arianna).
• Words are powers (Arianna’s invention. We think she thinks that words are super-powers like in some of her big brother’s TV shows (think “Super WHY!“)).

We’re trying to teach her  ”Knowledge is power. France is bacon.”, but she’s not there yet.

When I was young my father said to me:

“Knowledge is Power….Francis Bacon”

I understood it as “Knowledge is power, France is Bacon”.

For more than a decade I wondered over the meaning of the second part and what was the surreal linkage between the two? If I said the quote to someone, “Knowledge is power, France is Bacon” they nodded knowingly. Or someone might say, “Knowledge is power” and I’d finish the quote “France is Bacon” and they wouldn’t look at me like I’d said something very odd but thoughtfully agree. I did ask a teacher what did “Knowledge is power, France is bacon” meant and got a full 10 minute explanation of the Knowledge is power bit but nothing on “France is bacon”. When I prompted further explanation by saying “France is Bacon?” in a questioning tone I just got a “yes”. at 12 I didn’t have the confidence to press it further. I just accepted it as something I’d never understand.

It wasn’t until years later I saw it written down that the penny dropped.