Current Mood: Confused

I’m in the market for a new vehicle. Mine is Mellissa’s old one, so I think a fresh start is in order. Also, it’s dying. It can’t idle for a few minutes without blowing blue smoke out the back and it makes “pocketa pocketa” noises. Nobody can do anything for it. It’s a 1997 Toyota Tercel with over 225,000 km on it, so it’s had a good run.

I was thinking about when Puck got his new car and I wondered why he got a hatchback. When I thought about it more I realized that without a trunk it’s much easier to park. Certainly when backing up I have trouble because from the driver’s seat it’s hard to tell how far my bumper is from what’s behind me. If the rear window is at the back it’ll be much easier. That being said, I don’t want less cargo space than if I had a trunk. If it can hold 3 comic longboxes while the back seats are up then I’ll be happy. Also, I don’t want a low car, as I’ve hit my head getting in and out of the Tercel a few times.

So, a hatchback, and I’ll need the following as well:

• Airbags
• ABS (who remembers to pump the brakes when they have to stop suddenly?)
• Air conditioning
• Keyless entry

I’ve got my list down to the following:

• Chevy HHR
• Chrysler PT Cruiser
• Dodge Caliber
• Kia Spectra5
• Mazda 5
• Pontiac Vibe
• Saturn Astra
• Suburu Impreza
• Toyota Matrix

The following were rejected out of hand due to being too small:

• Chevy Aveo
• Honda Civic
• Honda FIT
• Mini Cooper
• Pontiac Wave
• Toyota Yaris
• Volkswagon Golf
• Volkwagon Rabbit

The Mazda 3 looks really nice, but there was a news story on a flaw where if you pushed hard on the locked door it would just pop open. They’ve fixed it, but I’m seeing Mazda 3’s all around town with dents on the doors because the criminals know about it too.

The Ford Focus…well, it’s a Ford. ’nuff said.

The VW Jetta wagon and Toyota Prius start at $30K, half again as much as some of the ones I’ve already priced, so they’re out.

Are there any that I’ve missed?

Current Mood: Playful

Current Mood: Confused

So I had a dream the other night about a scene from No Country for Old Men, where the intense guy with the 70’s hair demands that the shop owner bet on a coin flip but doesn’t tell him what he’s betting on.  I haven’t seen the movie yet, but it seems I want to so much I’ll fill in plot points from the other stories I’ve had in my head recently, most notably the Ender and Shadow series’ of books from Orson Scott Card, as I surmised that the guy was an assassin going around killing all these old men because a war was going to start and they had been part of Ender’s “jeesh” a long time ago, and therefore dangerous to the warmongers.

If you’re very confused right now you probably haven’t read Ender’s Game.  Kindly go do so and come back…I’ll wait.

Current Mood: Cool

So for those who are unaware, I got LASIK’ed a couple weeks ago.  I had been putting it off while I was the breadwinner for the family, but now that I have full control of my money I figured out I could afford to pay $100/month for the next 4 years (ouch though).

It was at Iris in Langley.  The procedure itself only took 10 minutes.  Lara waited outside the operation room, poor girl…she can’t stand to think about things being done to eyes (best not to read further, if you’re the same).

They put numbing drops in, put a shunt under my right eyelid to keep it open, then the machine pushed hard until my sight went out in that eye.  A whirring noise started as it cut a flap of the cornea away, but they didn’t wait long enough for the drops to do their job so I FELT IT…gaaah! Luckily it had numbed somewhat, but it was quite alarming.  When my sight came back I had to stare at a light pattern, which the laser uses to keep properly focused on my retina, then they lifted the flap and it went all blurry.  The lab technician kept telling me how long each step would be, which helped as the laser did its thing (I couldn’t see it, just heard whirring), then the flap was folded back and I could see again.

Then they did the other eye.  The drops had fully taken effect by that point, thankfully.

I could see better almost immediately.  My old eyesight was 6/60 (20/200 for you non-metric folks), which means that anything 6 metres away is as blurry as something 60 metres away for people with perfect vision.  My eyes were understandably sensitive, however, so I donned the shades I was given and sat down in the darkened recovery room.  A half-hour later I was in the waiting room, my right eye feeling extremely scratchy, and my vision in that eye pretty blurry.  They sent me home an hour later.

My right eye continued to be a problem for the rest of the day.  It really felt like I had something on it and I wanted to rub it, but that would have been VERY BAD(tm).  In my post-op appointment the next morning they found that some dust had fallen into that eye and gotten covered with mucous and it lodged itself right at the edge of the healing flap.  It felt so much better after they got it out!

They found that my left eye was better than 20/20 but the right eye continued to lag behind, and became scratchy again.  It wasn’t until about a week later that things settled down, and now all I have to do is keep putting eyedrops in.

So, all in all a successful use of the frickin’ lasers in my eyes.  No more contact lenses, and no more stupid glasses.  Instead of stomping on the glasses I decided to donate them, but it was a close thing.

Mood:

You Are Pretty Happy

You generally have a happy, fulfilling life. But things could be a little better, and deep down, you know it. Maybe you need more supportive friends or a more challenging career. Something is preventing you from being totally happy. You just need to figure out what it is!

Mood:

You Are Pretty Happy

You generally have a happy, fulfilling life. But things could be a little better, and deep down, you know it. Maybe you need more supportive friends or a more challenging career. Something is preventing you from being totally happy. You just need to figure out what it is!

Mood:

Your Kissing Purity Score: 54% Pure

For you, kissing isn’t a casual thing Lip to lip action makes your heart sing

Mood:

Your Kissing Purity Score: 54% Pure

For you, kissing isn’t a casual thing Lip to lip action makes your heart sing

Mood:
What do I do? Guh…so lost…

Mood:
I like to be liked, I love to be loved,
I want to be wanted, I desire to be desired.

I hate to be hated, I despise being despised,
I envy being envied, I’d like to forget being forgotten.

BUT I AM NOT DEFINED BY YOU.
I am my own person.

Still…
I like to be liked…

– Jim Allison