The Dentist

So I had my semi-annual dentist appointment today. No cavities I'm happy to report. But did you ever have the feeling that when the dentist tells you to "open" he sees each one of your teeth as a money making opportunity? My dentist is a pretty good guy, but it seems that he's disappointed that he cannot do anything more to my teeth. He's suggested that I could get whitening treatments.... I could get my last mercury filling refilled w/ enamel colored filling. But I'm like, uh, nah that's OK. So I received the "all clear" from the dentist at the perfect time, the day before Halloween!!!!

Not sure why, but whenever people work near my head I get a bit nervous. Maybe it is some age onset psychosis, because I don't really remember being like this all my life, but when the eye doctor shoves that blue probe near my eye, or when I have to do a panoramic dental x-ray with this thing rotating around my head, I can feel my head start to shake. I have to consciously think about relaxing at those moments.



Bottlecap update....

Well, thanks to Lola who told me that 5 Below sells retro candy I was able to get 4 packs of Bottlecaps for $1. I have to say, they are exactly the way I remember. YUMMO!! (Sorry Rachel Ray I ripped you off) I think I could just eat Bottlecaps all day long. Now I have to figure out ways to stay away from 5 Below.

Super Hero stamps....

How cool are these. Thanks US Postal system!! You did something right.



I try to use these sparingly. Only for the special letters. =)

Why going to meet puppies is a bad idea...

So you know when you go to "meet" a new puppy and try to figure out if they are right for you and your family? Let's face facts people, you don't go to "meet" the pup, because once you see the pup, you are pretty much not leaving that place without him/her in tow.

Case in point, I give you the Corgi Puppy:



Now how could you not go home with this little guy? CUTE!!!!!!

Fried Coke? 80's Music in Today's world..

Fried Coke...

So Sharkey and I visit the MN State Fair annually. I need to take a picture of my "Eating Around the Fair" t-shirt I bought this year and post it. It lists the foods w/ check boxes on the back, so you can track what you consumed.

I saw this on Yahoo today. Would I try it? OH YEAH!!!! I'd totally try this one... Fried Coke. Check it out: " View of a new fast food making its debut at U.S. fairs this fall. Ping-pong-sized balls of batter made with Coca-Cola syrup are deep-fried, then served in a cup, topped with more Coca-Cola syrup, whipped cream, cinnamon sugar and a cherry on the top."



So it seems you can deep fry almost anything. Hum...Fried Coke and deep fried candy bars... Fried Coke and deep fried cheese curds. The possibilities are just endless...


Is that Soft Cell??

OK, so JP is a child of the 80's. You know I'm part of the MTV generation. "I want my MTV" and all. Well I was listening to BEN FM and I heard this song by Rihanna...S.O.S.



I really liked it and I realized something. I've heard that background music before. It's Soft Cell's track from Tainted Love:



Go figure... I'm waiting for Gwen Steffani to use a Bananarama track next!! =)

Eye Fi....

So what's the internet really used for by I would guess 70-80% of Americans? Why downloading "p-0-r-n" of course. Well if doing this dubious activity gets you into trouble, you could always get Eye Fi:



The "Eye Fi" downloads images directly to your brain. And it's sooo inconspicuous!! The last guy just kills me. Nothing you have to worry about the kids seeing in this clip, K'? JP is kid friendly. Well, most of the time, anyway. Trust me, it is a pretty funny sketch. Thank you Late Night With Conan O'Brien!!!

Bounty the Quicker Picker Upper

How do you know you have been married and affected by the person you have been married to for 6 years? You know when you stop by the local Target for paper towels and instead of doing the "man" thing and just throwing 2 random rolls of towels in the cart, you spend 5-10 minutes contemplating the "cute" patterns on the paper towels and looking for the right combination.

Yes living with Sharkey has definitely rubbed off. I realized that tonight. I find myself doing hospital corners on the beds, folding towels and sheets into distinct geometric patterns, and questioning my typical "JP" impulse purchases. You know I used to pull that trigger a lot more frequently pre-Sharkey. Now things go through my head..."What do I trade off if I get this? What will I have to give up later? Is there something better worth waiting for?"

Now mind you these are not bad things. They are just things you wake up one day and realize and end up saying to yourself, "What the heck!!!!!!!!"

Is it as good as you remember?

Remember the things you used to watch as a kid? Remember the things you used to eat as a kid? Since everything retro has come around and is brand new again it seems you get to retry some of those things that you had as a kid.

When Sharkey and I were in Minneapolis we went food shopping and Sharkey threw a pack of Razzles into the cart.



Remember Razzles? First it's candy, then it's gum. I liked Razzles as a kid. I have fond memories of them. Well let me tell you, nothing is ever as good as what you remember. This stuff was first sour sand, then it was purple vulcanized rubber.

Sometime I'll have to try Bottle Caps again:



I remember playing Little League baseball and chewing this stuff in the outfield:



One thing I think I may have to pass is the dip:

Fine...... Well, yeah fine...

Today I learned something new. I've been driving for about 20 years now. I think I am a decent driver. Sharkey and I just arrived home from Minnesota again and we logged about 2500 miles this last time around. We drove through 5 states in one day. There are some important things you learn on the journey: don't speed in Ohio, there are tons of state trooper speed traps; allow 2x the amount of time to get through Chicago; Indiana is the cruising state where you can go 80 MPH down the highway without being stopped. So I drove 2500 miles without incident and today I drove .25 miles and received a fine for not obeying a posting highway sign. Here is the deal, on the intersection right down the road from our house is a three way stop:



The stop signs are not right at the intersection. They are 10 feet back from the intersection. So what I usually do, which I won't be doing anymore, is stop a little after the stop signs. Well I don't stop right at the sign because you cannot see the traffic that's coming from the left and right. So the correct thing to do is to stop before the stop sign completely then slowly move up to the intersection before making the turn. I did what I normally do today and before I know it, there's a police car with flashing lights in back of me. So this little mistake in motoring is costing me $100, not a very cheap lesson at all. But I did get my money's worth.

Once the officer was done writing out the ticket and he explained to me the error of my ways I decided I needed more information. So I asked the following questions: So the stop sign, when there's no line on the pavement do you have to stop right at the sign or like 3 feet before the sign? Who do I make the check out to for the fine? What portion of the fine do I return, the whole thing or just a certain piece? What's the EMS stand for on the fine? Why's the fine $25 but the EMS is $10 and the MEDC is $35 and the other fees are $40? I figured if he's going to waste my time with the stop while he punches my info into the crime computer, the least I can do is to try to recoup some of my money that I'll going to pay the local government. I also found that it's interesting how many stupid questions you can ask someone as long as you seem sincere and have a smile on your face. I must have spent a good 10 minutes just asking dumb questions.

Why Is It?

No matter where I go people immediately tap me to fix their computer? Is it because I'm Japanese and that my genetic code predisposes me to be able to naturally figure out technical issues? I mean if you say that then you pretty much box me and say that I probably eat rice and raw fish. Well, OK, I do eat rice and raw fish, and for some reason I can figure out almost any technical issue presented to me. It is pretty funny though being the technical "go to" guy sometimes. I cite three examples to illustrate my point:

Case 1: 9PM, a mission from God....

So I go to plant my butt on the couch w/ a bowl of Edy's Fudge Tracks and watch some mindless show, like Smallville. The phone rings. "JP" the voice says. Immediately I recognize the voice. My pulse quickens, my throat goes dry, and that sinking feeling goes down my stomach. "Yes Pastor how can I help you." "Look my son I hate to bother you, but my internet is down, can you help me out?" Now you have to understand I'm not intimidated by the man of the cloth. Oh no. He and I are buds in fact. I joke around w/ him quite a bit. But what you have to understand that this man's computers do not act the way computers should. I have reformatted and rebuilt 2 of his machines, only to have them mock me and throw up intelligible error codes. I networked the church and have spent hours figuring out why the network went down and why printers are inaccessible. (OK, truth be told, the lightning that hit the church may have had something to do with that) So I get my sneaks on and out the door I go armed w/ my MCSE equipment ready for the next new challenge. I kiss Sharkey and the dog goodbye, because, well if history has taught me anything it is that this job will take a while. I get to his house, found his router jacked up, so I powered it off and on and was done in 5 min.!!!!

Case 2: The Family....

So every time Sharkey and I go to MN, I almost always make sure to pack a few items I may need. You know, MCSE stuff: Extra network cable, some CD's. Again, things usually play like this, "Hey JP good to see you....if you have some time can you take a look at...." So I have networked, hooked internet hubs, replaced OS systems, fixed DVD drives, and corrected some nasty system errors. Until recently I'd actually pack my MCSE CD's with me because I never knew what I might need, but now that both of Sharkey's parents have high speed internet, my need to travel with software has gone way down. So I pretty much have accepted this is the way things are, and hey I found my place in the family!!!!

Case 3: Dinner Tonight...

Sharkey and I went to dinner over one of Sharkey's friend's house. Over dinner, we talked about work. Her friend K'ren happens to work in IT just like we do. Over the course of dinner, we find out that K'ren's wireless internet hasn't worked right since her company gave her a new work laptop. So what comes next??? So I figure out the problem in like 10 minutes, and everything was right in the world. Got a hug from K'ren too!!! Hubba... hubba.... =)

So it would seem no matter where I go, I fix stuff. But hey it is what I do. It has definitely enabled me to make a name for myself in my present job and it seems that it flows into my personal life as well. And helping people out, really isn't all that bad. You do what you can with what's been presented with you and try to make it better for the people around you. That's a bit zen too, right? Heck how would I know? Not like I'm an Asian or anything....

What's New... Well..

Sharkey and I are in Minnesota if you didn't know. We are helping Lurking Lucy recoup. All is well. It's really amazing when you think about it. Amazing how much Sharkey and Lucy are alike that is. Well of course mothers and daughters have similarities, but a lot of Sharkey's little things that make her Sharkey she picked up from Lucy. Think that sheet folding post Sharkey did way back when was an original? Nah.... Lucy taught her... Think the towels in our house line up like soldiers on a parade field by accident? Nah... again.. Lucy and Sharkey have the towel folding down to a science. And the similarities do not just stop at what they do. I swear when Sharkey and Lucy are together the Minnesotan accent starts to possess Sharkey and she reverts back to that midwest speech, "Ya know see.... you betcha!!!"

Unfortunately, they also share the same sucky experience with cancer as well. They couldn't just have cancer 1x. Oh no, they both had to have recurrences. But since the apple doesn't fall far from the tree I'm pretty certain Lucy will fight as hard as Sharkey and I'm hopeful her outcome will mirror her daughter's progress to date. It really sucks that the ones you love have to go through this very sucky time and you can only stand by and watch. But you do what you can. Love and prayers for them people!!! It makes a world of difference, and that's all I am going to say about that.

I downloaded Evanescence's new album, "The Open Door" from iTunes. It is very kick ass!!!



It's a bit dark, sort of gothic, but it has a quality about it that I like. I think the sound is truly unique and very soulful, with a punch. Amy Lee is awesome too! You've probably heard them too on the radio and not known it. Like "My Immortal"



And if you were wondering, I wasn't one of those Asian guys in college who dressed in all black every day of the week. Nah, totally not me. I was the preppy kid w/ the oxford shirts and loafers.

The birthday was pretty good but busy. I had to work late, I had to mow the grass because we were leaving town for a couple weeks, and hey I found out that 4 cycle engines require oil to start. Who knew???!!!!! Duh, JP, DUH!!!!!