A conversation earlier today reminded me of the old days of the internet, back when getting a domain name or class C address block required only sending off some mail and waiting a bit. Even went and dusted off some old whois data and found I still had mine--198.133.221.xxx. Pity I'll never be able to get the damn thing routed to me. I ought to go find a home for it with someone who can actually use the thing...
For reasons I don't understand, my updates don't seem to be twigging anything on weblogs.com. I find this mildly disappointing, though I don't actually know why I care. Go figure.
Flirting's one of those odd things that, for the longest time and for a variety of reasons, I never quite got the hang of. Heck, for the longest time I didn't even notice. (Assuming, of course, that there was at least some flirting going on around me. I can be phenomenally dense, but I'm not generally a social leper)
This all comes up because of OSCON/TPC 6.
At this point, I can manage women who flirt. Either they're people I don't know, and thus get gently dissuaded, or they're friends of one sort or another (including the sort I've just met. That's one of the nice things about cons and such--you meet really cool people all the time) and it's just friendly, and it's safe to play with it since there's no way it's going anywhere. And, it turns out, it's fun to flirt when it's safe. I don't do it much, since it's not really my style--I've been old for ages and prefer trading cynical remarks and double entendres around--but it can be fun. Either way, and since going anywhere's just not an option, it's safe and can be fun.
Guys, though, are a different matter.
First, there's the issue of whether there's flirting going on in the first place. My Obliviousness Field tends to kick in really hard here, and generally guys don't flirt with other guys, as that's a bit of a dicey thing. Certainly not a problem at something like OSCON (We're all reasonably cool adults, and certainly capable of saying "No thanks" without a problem if the issue arises) but still not particularly common. And I just don't expect people to flirt with me anyway. All that makes me really likely to completely miss it if someone is.
Then there's the "Are they serious?" question. Which is a good one to ask, as the answer's more important. Are they? Aren't they? If they're serious it definitely falls well out of the "safe" category.
Anyway, I think (but I'm not sure) that at least one guy was flirting at the conference. Maybe not--probably not--but maybe so. It was a bit of a dilemma, as it hit me that we were flirting (maybe) after we were in the middle of things. There was that momentary shock of realization there, then a quick "fuck it" as I decided to leave caution on the winds to which I'd thrown it days earlier. I wasn't going anywhere with anything, so there wasn't a reason to not keep going. (Odd though that might seem)
And... it was fun. Different, but fun. Still, I wonder if I was right or way off-base. Be interesting to know.
The thing I hate most about doing any sort of consulting work is getting people to actually pay for it. Rather, getting companies to pay for it, as people generally pay promptly. I really, really dislike dunning companies to pay up.
In the most recent case, the bill went in back in April. I've been jerked around, lied to, screwed with, and generally ignored. They didn't even bother to get the damn invoice in their system until mid-June, and they've not done a check run since. (Which must be nice--people get cranky at me when I cut checks every other month...)
I probably ought to just fly out and sit on a desk until it's done. I think that might be the only way these twits will pay.
At YAPC this year Nat Torkington, an otherwise unassuming New Zealander (yeah, like that's true. I've seen Meet the Feebles...), got me hooked on the Goon Show. It's a late 50s/early 60s BBC radio comedy with, amongst other folks, Peter Sellers. in the cast. It's absolutely hilarious, and works really well in its medium.
The only downside to it is that it points out exactly how bad most modern comedies are. But, then, I expect most old comedies are absolute crap too, we just don't see or hear them. (Why, after all, show something that's crap when you've fourty or eighty years of material to draw from?)
Been an eventful cooking week. Creme Anglaise, chocolate lollipops, silk buttercream, cupcakes.... Mmmmm!
When the cats come up to the air conditioned room to sleep.
I've been trying to get into shape lately. (I'd love to say back into shape, but alas it's a place I've never been) Things started out reasonably well, as I was away from home for over a week on a business trip. I find it easier to eat right and get exercise when I'm travelling. Since I've gotten back, though... Yowtch. It's damned tough to do any sort of workout when the temperature overnight doesn't drop below 80 outside, and 85-90 inside. (No AC in the house)
This is kind of pissing me off. I want to get into shape. It's well past time--I'm tired of being pudgy.
Things aren't horrible--while I topped out at 215, I'm around 185 now, which isn't bad. (I was down to 175 at one point, but that was during an extended semi-bachelor time when I was out here before the rest of the family moved out) Still... Bleah.
I probably ought to get some sun, too, though the 95+ degree weather's not that enticing for it. Pasty white's not that grand shade of skin color. A bit of tan, if I can manage it without crisping, would help me feel a bit better about the way I look, but, well, dunno if that's even possible, let alone whether I can pull it off.
Insanely hot. Yeah, I know, 101F isn't that big a deal other places, but this is Connecticut--it's not supposed to get this hot. Yech.