My shower in the morning is starting to make me feel like some sort of crazy Swede. Run out nude into the chilly morning air, then turn on the shower and stand there shivering until the water is hot enough for me to jump into. It does not really bother me, I kind of like it. For now. However, my vacation is going to be spent building my bathroom.
I bought myself one of these bad boys offa ebay yesterday.
I really hate talking on cell phones. It feels like I am holding a lego up to my ear. I grew up holding a big knob of plastic that cupped your ear and actually had something you speak into, instead of speaking into thin air. That is how I feel comfortable on the phone. I could never get one of those bluetooth star trek Uhura dealies that stick in your ear and then walk around yakking into thin air. I see people do this all the time; it looks like they are possessed. Strolling around and babbling to their demon lord.
You know, when Sony first invented the Walkman in 1979, it actually came with two headphone jacks on it. They were not sure if anyone would be antisocial enough to walk around in public listening to music themselves.. Oh, how they underestimated Americans.
Tonight I am meeting up with some friends to get noodles. TO be honest, I have no idea what it means to 'get noodles'. They gave me the address of some Vietnamese resturaunt. I do not think I have actually had Vietnamese before. For some reason when they said 'get noodles' I had this odd image of a bunch a people standing around a big community trough filled with noodles. They would be pulling out long strands with chopsticks and chatting socialably. And that would last until the roast dog came out, or whatever the heck Vietnamese people eat.
Saturday morning I am heading over to Harbor Freights to get my dad a Christmas present. It's a cast iron wood stove. My folks bought some land in upstate New York and are having a cabin built on it. So I am getting them a wood stove to keep themselves warm. It's normally over two hundred bucks, but it's on sale this weekend for $117.
I actually gave some serious consideration of buying one of these for myself for when it gets cold out. I would just board up a window and run the chimney pipe out of it. It would keep my entire living room warm and my heating bill down. And I could cook eggs on it as well. And I get to have the fun of tending a fire. However, considering the fact that I live in a wood bungalow home, it's probably not a good idea.
While I am on that side of town I think I'll stop into thirftko. I feel the urge to root through junk once again calling me. ....
Sunday is roller derby. Having never been to one before, it's either going to be Awesome or lame. I can't think of anything in-between
Someone just walked by and flicked my office lights on and off. My teachers in grade school used to do that when the kids were getting too noisy. "Uh oh! Lights are flashing! Teach is gun' be getting pissed off soon!"
Have a good weekend, everyone.
2026 Update
Twenty years ago, Ed was streaking to his own shower and pricing wood stoves for a bungalow. Time machine, engage.
Ah, 2006. A beautiful, naive age when a man could buy a cast iron stove, consider installing it in a wood bungalow, and call that a thought. My kind of thermostat. Since then, eBay turned from a glorified garage sale of frantic auctions into an app with too many filters and subscriptions for faster shipping. Phones have not just become legos; they've become personalities, tracking devices, and little slabs of doom. That demon-lord earpiece Ed mocked now sits in ears everywhere, but it is essentially a tiny computer fused to a human head. Vietnamese food, once a mystery involving a community noodle trough and roast dog, is now as routine as pizza. Roller derby moved out of warehouse chaos and became a respected athletic spectacle. What remains from that era? The shudder of a cold shower, the smell of cast iron, and the eternal urge to root through junk. Modern life would crush Ed under notifications and energy prices, yet he would still be out there, waiting for the water to heat and wondering if the stove was a fire hazard or a lifestyle.
“2006 Ed, were you seriously going to board up a window in a wood bungalow for a cast iron stove instead of buying a space heater? And did you ask anyone for a translation before agreeing to 'get noodles'?” — Beelzebubba the Third
2006 Ed: Well, Beelzebubba, I appreciate the concern, but yes, I was seriously considering it. A space heater is for quitters and folks who enjoy paying the electric company. A cast iron stove is an adventure, plus you can cook eggs on it. The part about boarding up a window was maybe 40% serious and 60% me liking the mental image. Wood bungalow or not, I'm not entirely stupid—just mostly. As for the noodles, nope, didn't ask for a translation. I figured if I showed up and there was a trough of noodles, I'd just dive in. Turns out it's probably soup, which is fine too. I like surprises, especially edible ones. Now if you'll excuse me, someone just flicked my office lights and I'm supposed to look properly shamed.
