howeird | Amazing - An Entry Before Midnight (Reply)

A not-early day at work, the overnight test passed, as did the follow-up one using one of our torture streams from Belgium. This was one of those days of difficult tests, where I spent as much time trying to decode what was supposed to be tested for as running the actual test. One of those was a test I'd run in 2009, in which I had documented the results well, but not the method of running the test. I had to ask the resident super-genius for a clue, and he figured it out - I was doing everything right but I was using the wrong kind of video input hardware. The test failed to mention that it only worked if the source was an IP multicast, not if it was coming in on a coax cable. The whole day was like that, but I figured all the other ones for myself.

Lunch was at KFC, and that will be my last trip there for the year unless I do take-out. Constant stream of heavily religious Jesus music. They were tuned to KBAY:
Do You Hear What I Hear
Up On the Housetop
(There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree
IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR
Silver Bells
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
Deck the Halls
Do They Know It's Christmas?
Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Holly Jolly Christmas
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
LAST CHRISTMAS
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town
People who like this song:
Angels
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Feliz Navidad
The First Noel
Little Drummer Boy
God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
Winter Wonderland
Sleigh Ride
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
My Grown Up Christmas List
Frosty the Snowman
Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer
I'll Be Home for Christmas

From their web site playlist for the time I was waiting to order, waiting for my order, and trying to eat. A shame, I like the food, lots of choices, clean place with real chairs at most of the tables, and occasional eye candy.

After work it was time to brave the stupid traffic on Lawrence Expressway. They seriously need to change the timing of the lights for rush hour. And it would be nice if CalTrans or whomever is in charge of the diamond lanes visited a proctologist and put the commuter lane somewhere other than the right-most lane. It is a royal PITA to have to try to move through standing still traffic to get one lane over. Not to mention how not-fast traffic is in that lane at every intersection.

All that to get to Lucky's for paper plates, stuffing mix, breathe-right strips, an Ace bandage and ice cream.

I was tempted to go to the Starbucks there, since the car trunk was cold enough to keep the ice cream frozen, but then I remembered they are all about Jesus too. Probably way crowded what with finals week, anyway.

So, home, fed the cats, and here I am.

Last night's curtain hang was a FAIL. the allegedly thermal protection curtains are way thin - I could see the outside lights through them, with the blinds closed. And the gaffer tape did not stick well to the panel I'd put on the patio door. That curtain is pretty light-proof, I just need to affix it differently.

A thought struck me that I have always liked Thai silk curtains. Went online and checked out a place I have been a few times, Thai Silks in Los Altos, but they only have the bolts of cloth, and I'm not set up to build curtains from raw materials. Not that I can sew a straight line. Some more looking kept bringing me back to Half Price Drapes. The descriptions were not as clear as I would like, not because there was anything wrong with the description but because since the last time I shopped for silk the terminology has changed. Used to be heavyweight Thai Silk was this lovely shiny stuff with lots of texture, because it's not really possible to spin it tightly. At least not by hand, which is the way most of the good stuff is done. But that textured look is now called something else, and what is called Thai silk is closer to Japanese silk, more finely spun and tightly woven. Okay, I asked myself, where is this place? Turns out it is in Livermore and it is open Saturdays. So I will take a field trip. I may not be able to afford a 100W84L curtain in that stuff, but maybe something will be on sale.

Plans for tomorrow:
Work
???