Busy busy!

Wow, this weekend was crazy busy, and this week isn't looking much better. Friday was vaguely calm, at least. We ran out to get some glass-etching materials from Hobby Lobby after work, then came home and worked on that a bit. it's really cool and surprisingly easy to use. The toughest part is cutting the glass into the proper shape and size and all that. Once you have that done, you just put down some kind of adhesive layer (I used masking tape, but contact paper would be better) then cut out your design with an exacto knife. Peel the pattern pieces off and slather the etching cream on there. Wait five minutes, rinse it off, remove the rest of the tape/paper, then rinse again. Your design should be etched into the glass on a very permanent basis. Sweet! I made a few minor little pieces with simple patterns on them. The masking tape doesn't cut as cleanly as the contact paper, so the edges aren't as sharp as I'd like, but the principle is there. I think this will be a very cool way to make some unique little projects.

Saturday we had our supers game, but we had to help our friends Dave and Jax move a bit before that. We weren't abel to do much, but I did help them get their giant couch and fridge up the narrow staircase to their third floor apartment. Whee. Still, when you know a lot of folks and you have a fair bit of burl, you get used to helping people move. I'm glad I could help, as those two giant items were their main concerns, I think. After doing that, we went back to the house, I grabbed a quick shower just in time to go play our supers game. It's such a good time. I know some of you aren't into roleplaying, but it's honestly just a great way to spend time with friends doing something unique and interesting. My character has been sort of a background dude, story-wise, up to this point. I was cool with it, and was certainly having a good time, but something just happened to him that makes me think there is more going on than I had planned on. In any case, it's all interesting stuff, and I'm excited to learn about what's going on.

Sunday was also very fun. My parents picked us up and drove us north to meet my sisters so all the women folk could do a shopping day for Jenna's long-past birthday. It was just a scheduling thing that made it take so long, but it was super cute that they wanted to take her out, regardless. My dad and I ran around to every sporting goods store in a 10-mile radius and were absolutely amazed to find empty shelves in every firearms department. Most places said they hadn't had new ammo in weeks and as soon as it came in, people bought all of it. People are scared, and it seems like they're hoarding what they can while they can. There haven't been too many overt moves yet to outlaw particular guns, but there have been some subtle nudges in the direction at least. It's enough to worry a lot of folks. We'll have to see how it all pans out, but it's worth thinking about to anyone with a preparatory bent.

Last night I had to work super late so I got hom with just enough time ot eat dinner, watch Heroes and go to bed. Working 11 hours in a day is un-fun, I will say. Hopefully I don't have too many of those. Tonight is supposed to be trivia, and I'm definitely excited about that. We always have a great time when we go, and it's a good chance to see Steve and Ami when they can make it. it's also a good way to get to hang with Adj even more than we do with our gaming on the weekends. He and I make a darned good trivia team, if I do say so myself.

I also got tasked with something interesting this weekend: to find a set of speakers for my sister and bro-in-law that are better and less expensive than Bose. I don't think it'll be that tough. If you have any knowledge in the home audio arena, or have any friends who do, I'd appreciate suggestions, recommendations, etc. Right now, I'm leaning toward this setup: KEF KHT3005SE. They have been reviewed as unadulterated awesome on every site I've found mention of them. They cost about half what the system we saw from Bose did, and the people who own them and Bose say that they are vastly superior in sound quality. not too bad for just a few days of looking, eh? I also like these, but haven't found as much about them: Orb Audio. The only thing I don't like about them is that they seem to be one speaker attempting to do all things, similar to the Bose setup. They're better designed for sure, but I think you need something different from your center speaker than you do from your rear speakers, based solely on what you want that speaker to accomplish. KEF has designed a center speaker specifically to help keep the dialogue clear and even, while the rest are built for music, sound effects, etc. I think that shows forethought, and I'd love to hear the difference between these various systems before I make a full recommendation.

For anyone who wants the skinny on Bose, here's some incredibly technical info: Intellexual on Bose.

Also, here's a picture of our cat in our Kitchen sink, just because it's super cute.