Category: photo

Trip

I’m back from Houston. I went down for a long weekend to help my friend Trevan. He had to go in for a minor back surgery and needed some help getting up and around for a few days.

I ended up flying Southwest this time around. Of course, I’d forgotten I was flying out of Oakland instead of SFO until the morning of. I always seem to forget that when taking BART to Oakland, you have to get off and take a shuttle for the last 3 miles. It sounds simple but often this little detour adds 20-30 mins to your commute. Having to leave a bit early, naturally I didn’t allow for said additional delay and ended up being rushed the whole damn way!

As luck would have it, things went exceptionally smooth. Even though MUNI had experienced an earlier backup, they were clearing as I got to the station. Getting onto BART was equally smooth. The hiccup came when I got to the airport stop and had forgotten the shuttle. Not to mention the shuttle doesn’t take my clipper card. [1]Mass transit card that works on several different trains in the bay area. By the time I got to the the airport it was 30 minutes to my flight departure. That means my flight was boarding. I only had one bag to check and already had my boarding pass so only had to get the bag sorted and get thru security. Everyone was so nice when I asked if I could move thru the line. Not one person was contrary or rude when I asked if I could move in front of them in line so I wouldn’t miss my flight.

I ran the concourse to get there just as the B group was starting to board. I even managed to snag an aisle seat! The flight was pretty full but entertaining because an amateur baseball league was headed to College Station to compete and there was no shortage of hotties! One ended up sitting right next to me. heehee Straight as all hell but we cut up an laughed the whole way to Houston. [2]The several cocktails didn’t hurt.

The visit went fine. Trevan had come home earlier that morning from the hospital and was resting comfortably. It was good to see him. We couldn’t run around like we normally do obviously. I hadn’t really planned on anything exciting anyway. Sunday before I left, Trevan was getting a little stir-crazy so we had lunch out and met up with my buddy Darrel. By the time it came for me to leave, he was getting up/down by himself and doing much more stuff solo. He still has to wear the brace for 30 full days but I left not worrying about him.

I did get one welcome surprise though. TFA had a lay-over in Houston so I got to see him too! I haven’t seen him a couple years now and it was awesome to see him and catch up a bit, albeit briefly.

Coming home was a tad exciting. One, I didn’t realize I was flying home on 9.11. That had me nervous because I never underestimate the power of stupidity in the group setting. I got to the airport way earlier just in case. It was actually kinda slow. Everything went smoothly until someone set off the fire alarm. I’d just sat down and plugged in my computer when it went off. At first people were bewildered on what to do. When the automated voice said, “begin exiting the concourse“, everyone started moving. Luckily, our gate agent had the wherewithal to think it over and told us to wait. Then came the battling announcements from the airport proper on what we should do. One minute a male voice is telling us not to worry its a false alarm and the next minute a female voice is telling us to exit the concourse. Once again, our gate agent told us to sit tight. After about 10 minutes, it was determined to be a false alarm. This was after quite a few people from other gates had made a mass-exodus back to the front of the terminal oooh-weeee! They were pissed! They all had to go back thru security. There were quite a few gate announcements for people being called by name. I’d have totally been pissed myself.

On the flight, I got an exit row so had room to stretch. Oddly enough, I ended up next to the acting Chief of the Oakland Fire Dept. lolol She was very nice and gave me two free coupons for cocktails. 🙂 The rest of the flight was pretty smooth. There was one point where we were flying over a thunderstorm. I don’t think I’ve actually ever done that. Watching the lightening from above was kinda cool.

Anyway, I’m glad to be home. I missed my beloved SF. If you want, you can check out a few random pics from my Google Plus feed.

References

References
↑1 Mass transit card that works on several different trains in the bay area.
↑2 The several cocktails didn’t hurt.

Howwie

Is me again. I’m sneaking onto the square box thing while daddy is sleeping. I still don’t understand it but my translator used to seem reawwie busy when I yipped at the bright square flippy thing . . . I think he called it a “scween”.  My translator left the other day. Daddy said he was “raptued” or something like dat. You’ll have to pawdon my spelling, I’m not a vewwie good speller. Daddy has been reawwie proud of me lately. He says I’ve  been extra special good. Even when we walk to the stoe w/o my leash on. [1]Oh ssshh, I’m not supposed to tell that. My other daddy doesn’t like it when I walk w/o my leash on.  Ewyway, my daddy has been wowwied about me. I’m approaching my ninth birfday and my age is starting to catch up with me. Don’t wowwie, nothing is wrong yet, Daddy just likes to wowwie. He notices I can’t run as much as I used to and I get a little tired sometimes real early. Daddy tries to give me a good walk every few days to keep me stwong and limber. When I get tired from my wawks I just take a break for a few days until I’ve regained my stwength. I like long naps. I curl up in my bed, I snore a lot and bury my face in my pillow to block out the sun. On really bwight days I put my paws up over my face to help keep the light out. I sometimes remember how to actually bark when I sweep. I can yip but barking is reawwie hard. When I’m sleeping, I have dreams of chasing birds and cats and I bark in my sleep. Its twue! Just ask my Daddy.  Ewyway, I told Daddy not to wowwie about me. I get lots of love and attention and I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.

I think I like this box thing. It glows pretty colors and seems not to gunk up when I slobber on it. I’m not allowed to chew on it though. I would get in awot of trouble if I did that. Daddy found a new treat for me the other day at some place called Waw-gweens. Its got something called healthy gwanola on the outside and a hard chewy bone on the inside. Its my new fwavorite treat! I slobber and lick all the crunchy stuff off then I bite, chomp, and chew on the boney part till its nice and soft and I swallow it. I’m not supposed to hurry but I get es’ited and I sometimes choke. I try not to choke cause Daddies gets reawwie mad when I barf on my bedding.

I’m tired now so I’m gawna say goow night now. Ya’ll don’t tell that I was on the shiny box thing again ok? High paw!

Dawgs rule!

Spike

References

References
↑1 Oh ssshh, I’m not supposed to tell that. My other daddy doesn’t like it when I walk w/o my leash on.

Progress

From the pic you can see I’m on the mend. Actually, if you look closely, you can still see the broken bone. What you can’t see is all the little splinter pieces he had to move around and position properly so they’d grow back. I didn’t actually know they left the splinters in. I just assumed they would take’em out and the bone would grow back. Not so, the splinters will actually reattach to the bone and grow back to normal.

I’m already back at work on modified duty. [1]Four hour shifts  Everyone is shocked and amazed I’m already out of a arm sling and back at work. Of course, if I was just letting the bone heal on its own I would still have my arm in the sling. It takes 6-8 weeks for the bone to heal up. The metal plate actually takes a lot of pressure off the bone so I’m able to do more faster.

I was a little surprised the day of the accident how many coworkers were checking in on me. Knowing the crews that showed up, they were getting bombarded by terminal messages from my co-workers.  Seeing the call history at work made me understand, it sounds way worse than it was. It also shows how everyone sees something different. I was actually the first call into work regarding my accident but several other people called in as well. One person stated I was run over by a vehicle and trapped under it. lol [2]When I went down, it was in a parking lane and I slid into a parked vehicle. My bike actually wedged itself under the vehicle a bit. 

Anyway, I can’t do everything yet but most daily mediocre tasks are fine. I stretch it every day to help get the range of motion back. I’m about 75% there so far. There are definitely angles that are still difficult. The wound itself is healing very nicely albeit a bit tender.  Today was the first morning I woke up in no pain at all, another good sign.  I go back to the doctor mid December. If everything is ok then he will release me to start working out (pushing weights) again. I’m probably starting back on cardio this next week. I’ve gained a few lbs and need to start working it off. And don’t forget Thanksgiving is just around the corner. lol

A big thanks to everyone who checked in on me. I got emails, messages, comments, etc and I greatly appreciate it. To answer questions, yes I’ll be getting another bike.  I’m just waiting on the insurance people to give me my payoff information. I’m hoping to get another gixxr and my shop is already looking for one for me!

References

References
↑1 Four hour shifts
↑2 When I went down, it was in a parking lane and I slid into a parked vehicle. My bike actually wedged itself under the vehicle a bit.

Smash

In case you missed it, I got into a motorcycle accident this week, 6 blocks from home I might add. The picture is a fuzzy version of my left [1]Ironically, the last accident I broke the right one shoulder wound. Pretty bruises huh? 

I was headed to work on my bike. I’m cruising along when the guy in front of me signals he is going to turn left. No biggie, I’m on his right side and continue on my merry way. Well, that is until he suddenly veers to the right and directly in my path. I attempted to swerve around him but it was too late. He made contact w/some part of my bike knocking my back tire around at an odd angle. Still moving ,I try to recover but quickly see that’s not going to happen. As luck would have it, not only did I go down but I slid up under a parked mini-van. Unlike the last accident, there was no momentarily black out or forgotten consciousness. I, in true Southern fashion, jumped up swearing like a sailor. The guy immediately denied he had his blinkers on. This doesn’t explain why he was turning, either direction, nor does it explain why he felt the need to run over and turn on his hazard lights before the police arrived.

Anyway, as soon as I stood up I knew my collarbone was broken. It had that all too familiar ‘bump’ to it that I had the last time. A quick self-check and I can’t find any other serious injuries. I called Apple guy [2]repeatedly, as shitty AT&T kept dropping my calls to him.  I then called work to have them send help. Naturally, several people I work with showed up and added to my embarrassment. I knew several of the officers as well as two of the medics. Color me embarrassed but glad of their assistance. Apple guy met me at the hospital and sat with me thru the x-rays. Lord only knows what I was saying but apparently, one nurse bumped me and I said “some things” to her. I was high on drugs and things are a little fuzzy.

I saw the specialist today. I have a broken left clavicle, a displaced shoulder joint, and a torn rotator cuff. I’m scheduled for surgery this next Thursday. They’ll put a plate on the left collarbone just like the right one and do some minor stitching on my rotator cuff. I’m eagerly awaiting the surgery as this sitting around w/a broken bone shifting under the skin every time I move is for the fucking birds! Don’t even get me started on the havoc it has caused w/our sleeping arrangement. Ugh!

I don’t know the status of my bike yet. My poor blue beast didn’t look so hot wedged under the mini-van but I am hoping for the best. I really love that bike and I’d hate to lose it. Yes, I’m more upset over the bike being damaged than I am my own injuries. On top of it all, I had literally just switched insurance companies. I can only imagine how happy they are with me right now. Oh well, wasn’t like I planned it or anything. If you’ve ever had a broken bone, you know its not something you look forward to.

Thanks to everyone for the well-wishes and support. I’m just sitting at home until Thursday driving poor Apple guy nuts. Gifts, cash, and random visits bearing free food are appreciated. lolol  Just kidding of course.  I’m on the mend and thanks to modern pharmacology, I’m getting by w/o too much pain. I’ll update w/more details on my bike as I get’em.

References

References
↑1 Ironically, the last accident I broke the right one
↑2 repeatedly, as shitty AT&T kept dropping my calls to him.

Real

I can add one more blogger to my list of “real people”. lol I met the famous Durban Bud today for lunch. Him and his PILLS [1]Partner in life love & sodomy are in town and we conversed over sushi after 4 years of being blog buddies. (That sounds almost dirty. lol)

He was definitely taller than brettcajun for sure. :)~ He was also a very nice guy, easy to talk too, and an all around cool bud to have. We talked mostly about bloggers, our pasts, etc. HIs PILLS is a non blogger but we did our best to include him. hehehe We talked a lot about the changes to the blogosphere since the arrival of twitter, Facebook, etc on the social networking scene. I was really excited to finally meet him and I hope I didn’t talk too much. Lawd knows I tend to blather on at times.

Anyway, there are only a handful of folks left on my list of bloggers I’d like to meet.

References

References
↑1 Partner in life love & sodomy

Fog-ville

Apparently, this is turning out to be one of the foggiest (read chilliest) summer on record for SF. If you’ve ever been to SF, you know we tend to have Indian summers. [1]Summers that are later in the season than you would normally expect. You also know that June/July are known for their chilly evenings. The chill is from the fog that rolls in late afternoon/early evening. We get plenty of sunshine mind you. We also get very little to no rain once the rainy season is over. And speaking of rain, we had an exceptionally long rainy season this year as well.

Anyway, as I said, this year has been especially foggy. Normally by now the fog has begun to decline and the warm weather has set in full force. Ironically, last summer was extremely warm. [2]But global warming is a total myth.  I think poor Apple guy has begun to get a little frustrated with the lack of warmth. Spending a good many years in Florida, and more recently big ole Texas, he has become accustomed to warm weather. He will adapt in time as we all do but I can tell he gets frustrated at times. I don’t blame him either.

I’m hoping we’ll get lucky toward the end of the month that the fog will finally recede and give us a couple months of warm sunny weather before winter sets in. Only time will tell I guess.

References

References
↑1 Summers that are later in the season than you would normally expect.
↑2 But global warming is a total myth.

Tattoo

I’m currently pondering ideas for next tattoo. As previously mentioned, I want one on my inner left forearm. I’m still thinking of doing a chemistry based one to match the physics and biology ones. That said, I’ve been throwing ideas around in my head and a few seem to be resonating so far.

The first being the Caduceus (pictured left). Many people incorrectly associate it with the medical profession. For the unknowing, the Caduceus first reared its head as the Staff of Iris, which if I remember my mythology, was later co-opted by Hermes.

Anyway, I’m thinking of this with a rougher more aggressive snake and wings. One of my coworkers said I should make the snakes bowed back as if about to strike each other. I kinda liked that idea. I also think the lines and curves would look good on my forearm and would go nicely with the flow of my muscle. The design itself isn’t too difficult so I’m confident it would translate well to a tattoo. If anything, I think I’ll end up adding more definition and character if I decide to go with this one. I might do something to the ball on top of the staff as well. As I said, I’m still tinkering with ideas so feedback is welcome (and expected lol).

My other idea was the Wand of Asclepius, which is the true symbol of healing from Greek mythology. [1]I didn’t know the difference between the two until my mythology class in college. Asclepios (as originally spelled) was the son of Apollo. He was also a healer and practiced medicine, hence the medical relationship. I never quite figured out how the two symbols got confused but that’s a post for another day. I’ve also seen it done on a cross. Not surprising considering most of christianity’s fables were taken from early cultures.

Of course, this one is a tad too detailed for my liking, as is. I’d probably clean it up and give it more of a surreal look. Again, I like the lines and curves. I think both would go well as a forearm tattoo. My idea for this one is to maybe have the snake looking outward or open mouth as well. I do love the realistic texture but its a tad rough compared to the vision in my head. The dimensions are off a bit for my liking as well. I’d want the wand and snake to both be thicker.

But wait, I’m not done yet! lol I’m also thinking of getting my name in binary code. [2]text converted to computer speak consisting of 1’s and 0’s.  I think it looks cool but one of the fall outs would be people constantly asking me what it means. A good way to get attention for a tattoo but not necessarily that much.

So those are my current ideas. Whaddya think?

References

References
↑1 I didn’t know the difference between the two until my mythology class in college.
↑2 text converted to computer speak consisting of 1’s and 0’s.

Flat

This is about how I felt over the weekend. LOL [1]I got a bronchial infection related to my allergies. Ugh! I’m still recovering but at least I’m back to being functional today.

Apple guy made me plenty of soup and all around helped take care of me. I rarely get sick but I’m such a baby when I do. Thankfully, I was only down and out for a couple days. I’ve been trying to get full nights sleep and taking it easy the last few days. So far, its helping.

I probably should have stayed home today as well but the boredom might have killed me sooner so here I am at work. Thankfully, its been slow so far.

References

References
↑1 I got a bronchial infection related to my allergies.

Dynamic Duo

For those not on Facebook or twitter, I thought I’d post a pic of Apple guy and I together. Here we are at a BBQ in Golden Gate park hosted by my buddy William. [1]Special thanks to William for organizing and setting it up.  We had a nice time today hanging out with some of the moto boys and friends. Sadly, some of the group couldn’t make it but better some than none.

*

And speaking of, Apple guy is finally here full time! He made it last week after spending two and half days back and forth to the airport. He was flying on a buddy pass from a friend of mine. Normally, not a big deal but because of delays, he ended up trying to get a flight out on a weekend that coincided with the end of spring break. Flights were super booked and he kept getting bumped. He finally got saved when a connecting flight in Houston didn’t show up. Poor thing, he was so tired and cranky when he finally made it, he went straight to bed and slept about 16 hours. Course, now that he is here I’m happier than a pig in slop! lol

*

Now that he is here we embark on a life together. I’m nervous and excited all at the same time. lol  That said, I am optimistic. I think we are starting things off right and with a strong foundation. As usual, our comfort level is pretty good. We just ‘are’ when we are around each other. I really like that and am looking forward to what the future holds for us.

References

References
↑1 Special thanks to William for organizing and setting it up.