The Diary Project

Virus Watch: Week 12

An Inchworm Type Caterpillar hitched a ride on my sock and taking his picture was the price this little guy paid, he is holding his little antenna-hand up, as if clenching a fist, very cute, to the right is my sock, I just lucked out that the background was so monochrome, likely a drive way... or the sidewalk

This Week's Photo Contest Winner

2020-05-29
Friday
Twelve Weeks!

Up Early! So Tired!

I've been told, some Restaurants are open for Outdoor Seating. The Main Drag is closed for just this purpose.

Another Bankruptcy has been announced. Not mine. Not yet.

I was going to go for a walk. But I'm losing the will.

It would be nice to have a backyard. A Lawn Chair facing the sun would hit the spot.

Another Plane! I like watching them fly by. I used to want to be on them. But no more. They really just mean a cramped day of sitting still, now.

There's one of those Maple Seed Spinner Things nestled up on the Front Door's Window Sill... on the door, itself. It's a fairly odd place for it, almost like somebody placed it there.

The Hard Lock-Down is over. The Stay At Home Order has been lifted... though, much is still closed... so, I hear.

Still...

I think this will be the last week before I return to the old layout... or, who knows? I like being talkative and wordy... at times.

{More importantly, I am finding this space to be a good place to hang many a side (tracking) project (DREAM, LEGO, R&R, among others, details to follow). And although not as informationally dense as a dedicated page, this is a pretty good place to hang Ideas, as well. So, a Weekly Journal has all that going for it. And then, Editing Weekly (as I go) is an important logistical concern. So at this point, keeping it weekly is a done deal.}

2020-05-30
Saturday
Let's Enjoy Those Clouds

I never went anywhere, yesterday. I spent the entire day on The Computer. And when not looking at that screen, I gazed at one of two others.

RECORDS! Such a Score! A Banana Box full of 45s... and a lesser amount of albums.

Sitting on a Park Bench discussing the Artistic Merits of Various Photographs with My Darling.

I am told Riots Rage... correction, Protests Propagate.

Some of those Records are worth money. They are dust covered but look scratch free. $5-15 on the titles I checked. Though, that sort of off the cuff pricing is misleading. {I merely looked up a single online retailer's current selling price. I'd get less.} Still, there may be a gem, yet. It looks like a full load. What were they thinking?

Remember those Sports Cards? I got one of The Juice! Score! It's in highly mediocre condition. But still. The Juice!

I want The President to hold a Press Conference (or better yet, a State of Union) to address the Current Unease. If not, he's not much of a Leader.

I predict we are seeing The High Water Mark when it comes to Civil Unrest. The Powers That Be will become increasingly intolerant as it becomes more and more clear only those bent on destruction are showing up for The Party.

In the weeks ahead, it could become increasingly dangerous to have had an account (recently used) on certain Social Media Sites. We are watching videos of Protesters, Rioters, and Looters. And let's just say, everyone leaving that particular store appeared to be dressed the same. It looked planned. And these days, that planning tends to happen online.

The FBI is going to have fun with all that Video Footage.

Interesting Times...

But then, this, too, shall pass.

Oh, I did a little research. The Juice Card is worth Bragging Rights and not a Penny more.

2020-05-31
Sunday
Riot Repercussions

Are we looking at The Summer Of Our Discontent?

I did some quick coding. I've not been doing much of that, as of late.

There are Bad Actors on both sides of the Riots & Rioting. A person can see what they wish. For my part, I desire ALL wrongdoers to be held accountable: Qualified Immunity or not, Lost in the Moment or not, Professional Agitator or not. Full Accountability! Which for me, means a rolling back of the notion of Qualified Immunity. Along with plenty of looters and criminals, I've seen more than a few cops behave very poorly. They should suffer the consequences. No Mercy! It goes all the way down to those throwing water bottles from the back of the crowd. The intent was there. Destroy them.

The Second Wave of Covid will start from the events of this weekend. It will be just as bad as the first.

I was planning on going for a walk. But tales of rioting and misadventure have taken the wind out of my sails. Also, I had things to do. Also-Also, I think part of what drives the desire to walk is a bit of solitary alone time away from the computer. Both of which, I have already achieved.

I'm very-tired very-often. I have far too many complicated problems to solve. Ironically, they are all self created.

The Trains are not going to run tomorrow, in order to forestall further looting. Well, I hear. I mean, at some point I am just repeating what others (sweet though they may be) are saying.

There's a fair bit of activity out there. I wonder what the arrests are going to look like in the weeks to come.

It truly is amazing how little I care about The News of The Day. I'm looking forward to the coverage of The Riots in The Magazines, when I get back to The Library.

Maybe, Americans just don't like cars... you know, on account of all the vehicles they are burning.

I don't know what history will show, but I'm just lying here in bed. It's a normal night. And considering The Country's In Flames, I'm amazingly calm. Though, I am far from Ground Zero. I believe there was an incident (in town, but just the one) involving Spray Paint: The Vandals!

This might not be a good summer for Aloha Shirts. Shame. I've got a closet full.

All The Bridges Are Up! Now, that's good Ground Control. Impressive! {Downtown Chicago!}

2020-06-01
Monday
Is It?

Wonderfully Crunchy Leftover Pancakes for Lunch.

Writing. Month End Maintenance. And the other Normal Activities... like sitting in My Chair and composing a note or two.

I need to get my blood flowing.

I would like more accountability in The Law Enforcement Community... and in every Bureaucratic Workforce. I say no pensions. Though, I could see bonuses for Good Service. And I would target replacement of upwards of 10% of The Force (and/or workforce) on a yearly basis... a high rotation making it all the easier to rotate out The Dead Weight and Rot.

In other words, I have a high degree of desire for Cop to be synonymous with Good Cop and for Bad Cop to be synonymous with Ex-Cop: with the same going for Teachers and all the rest.

Meaning, I believe anything which protects the individual erodes the profession.

Yeah, I care little for Granting Tenure. Do I have Tenure? No. And yet, I am focused on Deliverables and Output. If a Professor would not feel the same in retirement (forced or otherwise), I have no reason to believe they are a very good Professor {and/or Researcher}.

If I keep The Diary Project as a Weekly, I'm sure I can do away with an Ideas Running List, making this my Journal Space. There are, actually, quite a few notes which could be folded into a Weekly Journal. I will have to think on it.

EYES: A bit of a slip, foggier than I would have liked, the right seeming a bit emptier than usual.

MUSIC: Psychedelic Trance Mix

DREAM: I was running late, but the activity was simple enough, an outlining of the object, often in semi-real space. I was to copy pictures from a book. It was a test. The most difficulty I had was in switching problems from #6 to #10, as I needed to write #11 (an error), but it wouldn't take.

DREAM: As I recall, the food was awesome. But there were some little complaints. Instead of a refund or points (as schemingly desired), he got a voucher for a Reno Hotel Room at $100, which was more like a sales come-on than anything else.

This could work. I need to keep current {on basically everything} or the workload becomes too much and errors become unfixable (as I forget what I originally meant). I will trust that scraping for "NAME_TAG:" at the start of a line is easy enough for any would be AI or Researcher.

At the moment, those are the Three Lists, as IDEAS will just be interlaced (i.e. mainlined).

Currently (according to the CDC), 1,787,680 Cases in the USA with 104,396 Deaths. I predict The Second Wave will be worse than the first. So, I expecting 5,000,000 and 250,000 in 12 Weeks: 2020-09-01. So, by the end of The Summer. The Primary Vector will be The Wild Youth of the Day, as they Party All Summer Long, while the Death Toll will come from their Parents and Grandparents. So far, I think all my predictions have been wrong. Whatever. Right or Wrong, that's my guess.

Also, my feeling is that we've hit the High Water Mark when it comes to Rioting. Demonstrations? Probably, not. Those will continue. Rioting? On the wane. The first few days came as a surprise. Now, everyone is on High Alert.

To Combat Rioting, I like the Strategy of Restricting Transportation. Closing Off-Ramps. Residency (or Employment) Checks. So, Check Points. Raising Bridges. And Reducing Public Transportation Options.

LEGO: Test Tower with Sparse Walls. I like the idea of photographing My Creations. But I'm not confident the pictures would be any good. Maybe, if I put any image through The Emerald Eyes Filter? {The Emerald Eyes Filter did not sparkle. But I have three options I like.}

A long Political Discussion. We disagreed. I was right. But the feeling was not mutual. So, some of us (not saying who) are destined to repeat our mistakes.

The few Riot Videos I saw made the whole thing look more like a party than anything else. "You bring the Rubber Bullets. And I'll bring the Tear Gas."

Looks like the Highest Unemployment Rate in the last Seventy Years. It's high.

Covid. Rioting. What's Number Three?

2020-06-02
Tuesday
Heat Wave

DREAM: A Flock of Crows turned to Rain, nice big drops. It was the type of weather that would make The Foreign Crops grow well. Also, puddles. So we started Foot Gliding through them, which is like Roller Skating without the Skates. Soon I was tacking (making cut-backs to slow my descent) down a near vertical Muddy Cliff. It was quite the Athletic Adventure.

DREAM: The Cats enjoyed chasing The Ball. But The Oversized Pork Chops are easier to remember. We should eat those first. They're already thawing.

DREAM: Games can be either tedious or fun in Dream Land. I do seem to like handling the pieces. Miniatures are a favourite. It turns out we had borrowed a bunch {of Miniatures and such}, so I had to ask a Childhood Friend, which pieces were his and which were another Childhood Friend's. We returned the pieces (or more accurately, I did) to the Second Friend's Bedroom {as I am all about the anonymity}, which I happened to share with him on an alternating basis. But I'm going to guess (so, I'm not really concerned about continuity, here) that's when we got off The Bus, without a lot of Waiving or Saying Goodbye. Now that I think about it. The Bus stopped by Two Trees, you know, The Two Trees that came together and squeezed The Road together back in [Home Town] near where I grew up.

Enjoy The Election Season. It's off to quite the start.

Where there is No Police Accountability there is No Law & Order. That said it's a not a simple matter. I sincerely doubt there is as much Accountability as I would like. But that does not mean there is none. And though, in the last few days, I've seen many a Cop behave poorly, I have, also, seen many a Rioter behave poorly, basically showing up for the fight. Conversely, I've seen both Police Officers and Protesters behave Honourably and in ways far beyond my expectations. It's just not simple or one-sided.

I've been working on a new Data Sub-Spur and spent most of the afternoon working on the Judging the Judges Year End Analysis. I think (don't get me started on how hard this is to really know), I'd wanted to Start a Game of CIV-IV. But felt I needed to finish this project, first. Also, I need to work on Taxes. Anyway, The Workday (whatever that means) is over.

MUSIC: Progressive PsyTrance Mix: Travelling To Eternity And Back

I do not like seeing Troops on Picket Line Duty. Field Munitions have no place on City Streets. None. Nada. Zip. It's a mistaken Show Of Force. Do we not remember what happened at Kent State?

MUSIC: Definition Of Reverse Bass

Anger is an easy emotion for me to bring to the surface. It's pretty much always about survival. It serves a purpose. Heed the warning.

2020-06-03
Wednesday
{Ducks Be My Friends}

DREAM: I want to talk about the trip north and lazing in the park (a forest glen) with the locals and how I was taught to blow smoke rings with the rolling fog through my fingers. Those talented at the later being capable of blowing flowery forms. And then, for some reason, there were coffee mugs {mostly shards} buried in the dirt. But the more interesting aspect came later at the hotel, where (with talking cudgel in hand) I regaled the locals with a stand-up comedy set. And what's interesting about that is the only joke I can remember telling (now, hours later, or even minutes) was more akin to a story or an interesting tidbit I'd recently related back in The Real... indicating to me the listening locals were metaphoric representations of brain functions or the like. Anyhow, a good time. And then, I opened the floor to stories from the others present. But I don't think it was my place to do so.

I am not much of an Oven Pre-Heater. Others are. But I like the results. So, I will quietly bite my tongue, make note here, and move on.

EYES: Reading Hard Copy, things are not good. But at least, I still can.

I am doing maintenance, today. Refreshing the Website. Storing Online Back-Ups. And pulling my 1099's. Also, reading a magazine.

Let's change The Rules Of Engagement.

I believe I've mentioned The Hoard of Chocolate Covered Cherry Liquors I put-in back before all this began. I have my favorite. And I am saving the wrapper {for purposes of future identification}. That is the only brand I shall put-in, next time.

Pulling those 1099's went a lot faster than I'd imagined. I will be going for a walk, after all.

TAG: Title: Sentence: I like the idea of adding (highly optional) sub-projects to these Weekly Journal Entries. Are these a thing? {Weekly Journals?} Yes, I think they are, will be, will continue to be. Anyway, back to the TAGS. The real issue is length. Should the entries be a Single Word? Sentence? Paragraph? Or whole new Spur? Of course, as with everything, a variable length will probably be best.

MUSIC: Sefa & Crypton: Nobody Knows {It's very much my favorite song these days. Well, that middle part is.}

I will not record my reaction to every piece of ART {see above and below for clarification}. I do not record every song... maybe, not even most.

{The TAG Discussion (above) originally was intended (before it got changed in the edit) to be regarding a very specific project: ART. I was reading a review for an Artist (whose work I do not respect), and I wondered if such a thing could be rolled into these Weekly Journals, which, of course, it could be. So, the question is one of length and/or complexity for that particular project. When I resume my visits to the Art Institute of Chicago, do I wish to start a generalize Art Criticism Project? And if so, what might that look like?

Come to think of it, if I win The Lottery, this is exactly the type of project I would push off onto another. For instance, I could use a recorder, quickly put down a few words, and let another refine into... whatever. In short, I could see paying others to make me and mine the subject of their art.

Also, as I'm sure I've mentioned countless times, {Curly Brace Comments} come during the edit; and so, by their nature, contain 20/20 Hindsight or Future Perfect Statements. In this case, come next Tuesday (relative to the current entry), We have our Lottery Ticket and We are dreaming of The Big Win.}

MUSIC: Billx & Black Muffin: Irish Legend

Seven Bachelor Ducks!

And One Female... literally, Shaking Her Tail Feathers!

8 to 1... and counting.

2 on 2 (to continue the theme) Minor League Baseball, though, this time.

Bacon Wrapped Dates! I don't know how I failed to mention them earlier.

{I am not a fan of Professional Sports. So please feel free to dismiss anything I have to say about any Sport ever. But when it comes to Sports, I very much prefer watching Amateurs at play.

Per the above note, it was delightful to watch Father & Son play against Father & Son and to notice how the Father's were much more relaxed about the entire thing, while the Sons were keen on keeping score... and how the amount of energy The Boys had varied directly with whether they were At Bat or in The Field.}

2020-06-04
Thursday
{As If In A Dream, Time Drifts By}

DREAM: In a Lucid Dream (or a Lucid Part of a Dream), I walked down some wide square garden steps. But when I reached the bottom, turning around, intending to re-enter the building (because why not), a wind started up (against me), the going got hard (as my legs resisted the movement, which happens in Dream Land to me on occasion), and an Old Lady appeared right before the final ascent (where the steps turned into something more like a wooden bridge), who advised, "You can't go this way," meaning this direction, back inside, and/or similar. And she was right. I easily got past her (ignoring her and walking right by), but The Dream dissolved, before I ever reached the doors.

MUSIC: Sefa & Crypton: Nobody Knows: This is an awesome song. The good part starts around 1:30 and lasts until 4:00, or so. The Space Ranger's Lament. Also, it should be pretty clear, ':' has multiple meanings based on context.

Being who I am, I was just now explaining to my friends {i.e. The Ducks} the difference between a Free Duck and a Food Duck.

Ah, yes. And I should, perhaps, mention a morning spent in debate. I won, but of course. "Do I get tired of being right?" you may ask. But it should come as no surprise that I do not.

I got within four feet of Momma Duck and her four teenage kids.

R&R: Figure it out.

MUSIC: Spirit: Taurus
MUSIC: Led Zeppelin: Stairway To Heaven: There is an association...
MUSIC: The Animals: House Of The Rising Sun

CHARADE: Six of One. Half Dozen of Another.

EYES: My eyes are so bad, I've got vision imperfections that I haven't seen clearly enough to notice in weeks.

2020-06-05
Friday
Bonus Day

It was only by quirk of fate that The Weekly Virus Watch Entries started on Friday (and therefore, ended on Thursday), as the infamous Friday The Thirteenth that started Lock-Down was (as the name might suggest) a Friday. But starting The Week (or at least, my record of it) on Friday seems a bit off. So, I'm changing the start of The Week to Monday. And these next three days are make up time... or whatever a person wants to call it.

Can we accept that I am not responsible for the actions of others... especially the actions of Movie Screen Characters?

I found a Baseball. It is now mine.

Of course, not having much to say on a regular day is one of the reasons The Diary Project was {originally} Hit & Miss... and heavily loaded towards those days when I was out and about.

2020-06-06
Saturday
Fun Day

DREAM: I changed my Identity to better cross The Bridge. The Identity relates to a Verbal Rant from yesterday. I encounter This Bridge (or one similar to it) quite a bit. We must be jumping to a different area of the brain.

DREAM: I could not control the sound on the television. But when I gave up on that and just got ready for a day in The City (or similar adventure), I was able to free-fall with My Sweetie, an excursion filled with kisses. Though this was at a different time (maybe), we descended over The Fog Shrouded Bridge.

{The sound controls were really cool, like how I might imagine such things to be when I was but a small child: complete with flip-out doors, mini-spark plug transformers and the like.

I have a desire to limit the images (to save on bandwidth). But if that were not the case, I'd be tempted to post an image of an Electrical Junction Box Transformer I saw the other day. It does not resemble the Dream Controls in the least. But it is of the same class in my mind.}

DREAM: Programming Job, Car Sales, Childhood Friend, Fruit Cup... fixing a car became code for firearms acquisition. But to be fair, most of that is fading. Upon waking, the Programming Job Interview and The Conference (of a few weeks back) feel highly similar.

I do not get angry when I write... nor for the most, do I begrudge the passage of time.

LEGO: Starting my castle.

MUSIC: Sefa & Mr. Ivex: LSD Problem: I listened to this, along with plenty more Frenchcore, which I will handily define as having more Reverb on the Reverse Bass... Reverbing The Reverb, as it were.

MUSIC: Marilyn Manson: Sweet Dreams

R&R: Both kinds. But I'm really only tracking the one. And even in that, I expect to lose interest in keeping score fairly quickly.

"Death of a Duckling in The Time of The Vid." Yes, my sweetheart. I am stealing your line.

CHARADE: Hot Potato Chips. So, this game is not limited to Gargle Time, as my mouth was filled with the same.

MUSIC: Bomfunk MCs: Freestyler

2020-06-07
Sunday
{Some Tag Here}

DREAM: One of the recurring skits on a comedy show involves The Lead melodramatically exclaiming during rehearsal, "I don't know how to act this from a multitude of angles," even though the action involved is quite simple and his role is quite small. A Guest Star is asked to do the sketch this week and the shtick is that he doesn't know how to act like The Lead not knowing how to act in a painfully simply role.

The Tags for The Day are done more-or-less first thing. So, they can hardly be descriptive.

I start the typical day (and almost every day is typical) with a mug or two of Hot Chocolate, which consists of a medium big mug of milk with a good bar's worth of Chocolate heated and whisked in a saucepan.

It's cool in the shade.

Walks can be hit-or-miss from an anger point of view. I get lost in The Swirling Maelstrom quite easily.

That LEGO Castle I built yesterday is pretty awesome... just adding each piece where it needed to go.

"Overrated! Overrated! Overrated!" {Or so say, the Volleyballers at play, practising their heckles.}

I am enjoying the stilted conversation of children one-upping each other. Hey, they sat down within earshot of me. The in-appropriateness of so many of their stories is hard to describe. Unfiltered Content. Obvious Lack of Parental Control. And then, they become kids again, complete with polite substitution of swear words... just like a Programming Macro.

I will call this tree The Throne. And as I will not bother to sit in it on account of wishing to keep my hands clean, I will call myself Old.

The Tough Talking Boys found The Throne. They're not afraid to get their hands dirty.

Man, that Lawnmower really chews up the Baseballs. There's a Children's Story in there somewhere.

LEGO: Robot!

The Very Very Very Boring Movie

LEGO: Circular Tower Test!

@anonymous: I too appreciate a good Felonious Assault on Other People's Privacy. But then, I'm just in a foul mood.

In a backhanded way, I plan for reincarnation. Self, if you are to do this again, remember {This}... and {This} and {This}.

My Museums stand in support of The Protesters... or at least, that's what I gleaned in the three seconds prior to deleting their emails.