Just Plain Chips

I’ve had a great weekend and I’m looking forward to an even greater week. I’m getting on a jet plane to Austin in the morning. I really need to go to sleep though. I am out of energy. I’ll try to write when I can.

I know it’s only Christmas Eve, but you know me and my posting schedule, so I figured I’d get my Christmas greeting out there.

Brian got into town last night. He, my parents, and I watched some Bond and then played some poker and had a little Scotch to celebrate his homecoming. Oh, there was also some cookie baking and meatball making going on as well…and tasting of both.

Today there will be some wrapping of presents and more chilling out. My aunt, uncle, and a couple cousins are coming over for dinner tonight. Then tomorrow Matt and Jenny and the kids will be around for presents and Christmas dinner. Not too much else. A fun filled, family weekend.

Merry Christmas everyone.

Don’t you hate when work gets in the way of life?

Luke had a Christmas program this morning at his school. But there were a few too many things I had to take care of at work. So I couldn’t go. Even the boss was able to head out. Rats. He’s a little more mature than the last time he had a program, so it will probably be really cute. (not that kids crying for their mom instead of singing isn’t cute)

I hope to get a couple slightly more detailed posts up about the weekend, it was a fun one. I thought I’d try to get this one up right away. The second party of my Saturday night was Linzy’s graduation party. As are all parties at the Eck house, it was very fun. The main activity of the evening this time didn’t revolved around a drinking game though. It was a video game called Guitar Hero. Basically instead of a normal controller you have a guitar in your hands. You strum in time with the music while pressing the correct button on the fret board. It by no means represents anything close to real guitar playing, but it is the best air guitar simulator ever invented. And if you’re like me, it’s easy to get into it. There were some great songs to play, the controls were intuitive, and you basically transformed into a total rock star.

I took a few pictures from the night. But they were all pretty crappy. And the couple that were passable wouldn’t add anything to the pictures I’m going to send you to. Steve was kind enough to send me a couple pictures of me playing.

The first is of me playing Felicia. Early in the evening I won a battle against her and got a little cocky. And then a little later she rolled off about 7 wins in a row in which I believe I lost twice. It was an impressive streak to be sure.

And now, if you enjoy seeing Brenden embarrassing himself a bit (which people seem to enjoy on a regular basis for some reason) you’ll really like this picture. Remember how I said you can really get into the game. This next picture is proof. I wasn’t Brenden Johnson: mild-mannered cabinet maker anymore. I was Brenden Johnson: Legend of Rock and Roll. As Steve says, you really don’t get the full effect of the insaneness if you can’t see my face. So click on the picture for a closer look.

That picture is the first in a series of 5 taken while Tony and I battled. You should go look at the rest and other pictures from the night at Steve’s post here. The pictures are a bigger size over there as well, so they’ll give you an even better look at the action.

Anyway, it was a really fun night.

I’m not going to give a huge review, as it is late, and I am tired. But Andy, his friend Gina (?), and I saw King Kong tonight. It was extremely fun. The movie clocks in at just over 3 hours (Does Peter Jackson know how to make a short movie?) but doesn’t feel that long. There were a couple slower points that actually felt slow. But overall the pace of the movie was excellent from beginning to end. The acting wasn’t really anything to write home about, but enough for a small mention on a little-read blog. The action was great with tons of different situations. Lots of great fights and surprising tactics used by the big ape himself. I would highly recommend any fan of action movies go see it.

But. And this is a big but. This movie had the single most disturbing scene, which included the single most disturbing action, I’ve ever seen in any movie.

I’ve seen the radioactive waste corroded dude get smashed to bits by the car near the end of Robocop. I’ve seen my share of cheesy sci-fi and even a few horror flicks with exploding bodies and what not. I’ve watched Jackass: The Movie. Though I guess I do tend to stay away from the movies in which the main point is to try and gross out or disturb the audience.

Back to the matter at hand. I have never in my entire life turned away or shielded my eyes from a movie screen. Until tonight. The whole audience was squirming and “eww!”-ing along with me. Let’s just say if you have a problem with creepy crawly things, you’ll go through the same feelings I did. Yeesh!

But even with that I still have to strongly recommend the movie.

So straight from my visit to the hospital in Burnsville, I headed west on 42 towards scenic Savage. A contractor that I work with was holding a Christmas party at his house. I stopped in and knew just under two people there. Call it one-and-a-half. I knew the contractor, of course, and I had met one of his workers a couple of times on a job site. Basically it was a nightmare situation for this introvert.

Unfortunately the host knew everyone at the party and he had many other much more important people (paying customers instead of a cabinet maker) to talk to. Alas. I did talk to the worker I knew for a bit until his father showed up and took him away for a chat. I wandered around the house with a Samuel Adams in my hand, admiring pictures and other knick-knacks on the walls. I also ate a few crackers. There was tons of tasty food but no one was eating anything. I’m not usually shy about being the first to eat but I didn’t feel like being the loner wandering around the party with a turkey croissant sandwich and meatballs. I was the weird loner with just a beer in his hand.

After wandering and looking at everything on the walls twice the worker introduced me to his dad and I had a nice chat with him for a little while. Before long though, he took his leave and I was left to wander again. This time I went for the food table and had a couple of tasty sandwiches and a bunch of meatballs. Mmmm.

After wandering around for a while with a plate of food and a beer a coworker of mine showed up with his wife. Hooray! Someone I knew. I chatted with them for a little while before I had to leave for my second party of the night.

Read whole post…

Saturday was quite the day for me. It started out like many other Saturdays of mine: lazy. I slowly got up and got ready for the day. I think I was finally ready about 12:30 or so, after a big bowl of ice cream. My accomplishment for the “day” part of the day was getting my car’s oil changed.

Later in the afternoon I went to visit Paul, Laura, and Evan. My parents were there when I arrived and we all doted over the little man and talked to his mom and dad. Just last May I had visited a zero day old baby for the first time ever. So here I am 7 months later and I get to meet my second newborn. Though this time I got to hold the baby! I was a little nervous, but I have a lot more practice holding babies since Elaina was born. He was such a good little guy and slept and was quiet pretty much the entire time I was there. He hardly made a peep right up until he realized he had soiled his diaper, which is the crying “on” switch. He bawled until the moment his dad sealed the straps on his new, clean diaper. Like a switch. But hey, who likes wearing a dirty diaper? I am pretty sure I wouldn’t.

I stayed for probably way too long until another friend of their’s showed up and I had to leave for my first party of the evening.

Well, not much exciting has been going on in my life. But that doesn’t mean fun stuff isn’t happening in other people’s lives.

Paul and Laura’s baby was born this evening at 5:17pm. A little boy named Evan Paul. We was 8lbs 11oz (!) and 21 inches long.

Hooray for new life and a new family member.

Phew! I’m back.

Back in Minnesota. Back in Eden Prairie. Back at work.

The class was really informative and interesting. I’ll be able to use the software almost as soon as we get the machine in the shop. So it was a good thing to go and learn.

Okay, I should start doing work.

Sorry for the lack of posts. I have been too busy at work and have been staying at my godparents’ house where I haven’t been online a lot.

Right now I am in a Best Western hotel in Brookfield, WI, a suburb of Milwaukee. My mom and I are here for some software training for work. Oh, the excitement! The drive from Minneapolis wasn’t so bad today, sunny and clear. It is a bit chilly though.

The software we’re going to be learning is called ArtCAM, which is a 2D/3D package that will enable us to do some pretty cool things on the CNC Router we are getting in a week or so. It is pretty sophisticated though, so we need a little help getting started with it.

If anything exciting happens I’m sure I’ll let you know. The wireless here at the hotel is pretty fancy.