Big, Middle-Aged Guys

Deep in the jungle, in the land of adventure, lives Tarzan!

...but that has nothing to do with this post.

This morning, after much 'round-and-'round re: insurance, I went and picked up my sexy, sexy CPAP machine, which looks vaguely like something Han Solo would wear while crawling around inside a space slug, but is designed to keep shoving air down my throat while I sleep. "Mild obstructive sleep apnea" is the technical term for it, and it's coming soon to a big, middle-aged guy near you.

I'm not looking forward to trying to sleep with a vacuum cleaner blowing air up my nose, even if it's doing it very gently -- but if it will take care of my chronic tiredness and the evil that is mornings, it'll be worth looking like Mr. Snuffleupagus.

Ah well. Time to work!

-The Gneech

Artspots/Jaxpad Pick of the Indeterminate Time Period

Hit the mother lode today!


'Corgi Icon' by Naryu
It's a corgi! Reading and wearing glasses! What more do you need?


'Hex' by iktis
Nice, clean art style. The bone in the nose gives me the jibblies, tho.


'The many faces of cool' by iktis
I see I'm going to have to watch iktis.


'Sekhmet with boa' by iktis
This pick dedicated to sirfox, who should have no trouble figuring out why.


'Pirate Syrus by chlorophyta'
Immediately recognizable, but completely different. Nicely done!


'Lion pose' by Chris Sawyer
More proof that lions are hawt. Like the world needed any!

-The Gneech

Radio Geekboy Is On Da Air!

Listen while you can!

Show's over, please disperse.

-The Gneech

Aunt Iris

It occurs to me I've never written about my Aunt Iris here. My father's older sister (if such a thing is possible without breaking the laws of time and space), but she could easily be 30 years younger than him. She's always been not only my favorite aunt, but everybody I can think of's favorite aunt as well, even her own grandkids... ;) Her defining features are a big smile and sparkling eyes when she sees you -- no matter who you are -- and a sly (but never mean) sense of humor.

It probably sounds like I'm laying it on thick, but it's true. You can search the world and you won't find a brighter, friendlier, more easy-going, or more likeable person. The fact that she also calls my creaky ol' cricket father "Kiddo!" or "Little Bro!" just adds to the effect. Think of Professor Sprout with once-upon-a-time red hair, and you'll be on the right track.

What made me think about her is that we (meaning lythandra and I, my parents, and my sister) all went over to Iris' daughter's house for a Christmas visit on the weekend just before new years', which was the first time for a couple of years that I'd seen her. She is still as bright and energetic as ever ... the only discernible change is that she just keeps on getting more crinkly. :)

However, like my dad, she is getting along in years and I don't want to just realize one day that she's up and gone. And, since we've got an open invitation to go down to her place in Chesapeake sometime for navy bean soup and crabcake, I am working on trying to arrange it. As I was so impressed by Smithfield Inn when we went there this past year, I'm thinking a night at lythandra's parents' house, a night at Smithfield, and a night at Iris's, or some such thing this spring.

I'm not sure what we'd do down there, other than visit relations. Most of my life I've been kinda useless around family, being somewhat eccentric and quite the introvert, but I'll do my best. :)

-The Gneech

PS: Weird bit of trivia: Aunt Iris was taken off and raised by relatives on the Eastern Shore for a few key years during the depression, and picked up the pronunciation from over there. Thus, she says "hoowse" instead of "house" and "yeew" instead of "you" for instance, despite being a Fairfax County native. Her legions of grandkids and great-grandkids are forever nudging her about it. ;)