Okay, so, this isn't really important to anyone out there in Gopher
land, but I think from this post onward I'm going to change how I save
my text files. My directory structure for phlogs is like this:
~ > gopher > log > YYYY-MM > DD-hhmm
hhmm is my local time, and previously I had been changing it once I
completed a file to the completion time right before I went to update my
Gophermap (because why would I take the fun out of Gophering with
automation :p). I think I might stop changing the time afterwards
though, and just use the time that I start writing the file (since I
have it named to begin with). It doesn't really make a big difference -
I've only been doing it because I *started* doing it one way and I guess
it's just an OCD kind of thing where it doesn't *feel* right if I don't
do it. Speaking of which, I should probably stop flipping light
switches, but I'll save that for another day.
Anyway! Seattle! It was fun! Flying for my first time was stressful and
confusing lol. I got lost and had a migraine at the Dallas Airport and
ended up missing my connecting flight and almost losing my luggage. The
airline gave me a distressed customer ticket (you bet your phlog I was
distressed), which got me a discount at a local hotel.
hOWEVER, American Airlines did not CALL the hotel to check for vacancies
so when my extremely confused, very depleted self finally got enough
signal and charge to get a Lyft and got to the hotel, they had no
vacancies. Not eVEN TO MENTION that in order to check in there you
HAD to be 21+. But the dude at the counter (a very gay young
black dude - he was nice) helped me out by just putting me in a room
despite the fact that they had no vacancies and despite the fact that I
was and am only 20. Apparently he cancelled someone else's reservation
or something and put me in there. He also gave me two ibuprofen because
I asked if they sold any (and they didn't, but he had some) to try and
help relieve my migraine. After a few hours of sleep (and a few hours of
not), I got up, took a shower, got to the airport, and got to Seattle. I
also made sure to tip the guy at the hotel for helping me as much as he
did. Like seriously my dude, it meant a lot. Props to him.
aND SEATTLE WAS GREAT. I was so thrown off whenever we went to land and
the pilot said the ambient temperature was 57 degrees F (that's 13C) and
soooo glad. The weather was hella nice the whole time we were there. I
found my way through the airport, got another Lyft (Uber is broken for
me for some reason), and got to the hotel where Rob and Bars were.
We went to the Living Computer Museum that day and hoooooly heck I loved
it. Everything was freaking beautiful - from the 70s living room with
the Red Martian albums to the cold room with mainframes galore. I LOVED
it. Rob and Bars played Oregon Trail on an Apple II most of the time
looool but I ventured around and toyed with all the different computers.
It was INCREDIBLE to get to use them and touch them and see them. And
the museum is so great because it doesn't feel crowded or overwhelming;
it's just wonderful. Thank you, people of LCM, for making my month.
We also went to the pop culture museum before LCM, but I'm not all that
into pop culture lol. It was still cool though! The exhibits were
impressive and nice, although I think the only real thing that stood out
to me was the Dalek (I GOT TO SEE A DALEK HELL YEAH) and the TV in the
horror exhibit that the one woman at the museum told us that she
identified with more than actual people loool (2meirl4meirl).
ALSO I ATE SOME AHI TUNA DISH AT THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY THAT DAY AND
HOLY SHIT THAT'S SOME GOOD ASS SHIT LET ME TELL YOU WHAT (we don't have
a cheesecake factory where I live, and I have wanted to try it for,
like, 2-3 years now. We didn't get cheesecake though, so hold out for
me, Emily).
Saturday was the keyboard meetup :p. It was fun too, but definitely
overcrowded lol. I brought my TI-99/4a Keyboard to show off and my Mac
Standard Keyboard with Alps Salmon Switches. Rob had an Apple extended
keyboard, and we actually daisychained them together and then through an
ADB to USB adapter to my laptop running Mac OS 6.0.8 under Mini vMac.
Rob brought his beamspring keyboards, which got a heckton of attention,
and had them also hooked up through several adapters and USB hubs to his
computer (which reminds me that we had an early morning adventure going
from one end of Seattle to another to find a PS/2 to USB adapter - and
when I asked a younger (but probably older than me) Best Buy employee,
he though I was talking about a PlayStation 2 Controller. We did
eventually finding one though at Fry's Electronics - some giant
electronics retailer that I had never been to).
It was fun looking around at all the different keyboards, and I thought
that the one lady doing stand up comedy with keyboard jokes was pretty
great. The little bit of the campus that I saw also was GORGEOUS;
Millsaps could take a few pointers loool (something something under
construction). I was definitely glad when we went back though. Later we
walked to Hurry Curry of Tokyo and got some hella good curry. And I
think we just relaxed for the rest of the day (I think. I have no more
pictures from Saturday).
Sunday we went to the Space Needle. We never went up it, though, because
there were literally hundreds of people in line (kiiind of sad that one
of America's coolest structures has just become a giant tourist trap.
Then again, what else would it be?). We did walk around the park though,
which was nice. Apparently it was even connected to the Pop Culture
Museum, and we walked right through where we had been two days before.
It was on our way to the Space Needle, though, that was even better -
because we went to the Amazon Go store. For the uninitiated, Amazon Go
is Amazon's attempt at a retail store where anyone can sign in with
their Amazon app, walk in, get any and all items they want, and just
walk right out of the store - with all of their items being automaticaly
charged to their account. The items could be in their hands, in their
pockets, or in a bag - Amazon Go knows. You can even check in mutliple
people on one account. The only thing you can't do yet is hand items to
other people. It's a really cool concept that's just incredible that
it's reality. It's like stepping ten or twenty years into the future
(but it also felt like shoplifting lololol). We sat out on the
really gorgeous area outside the store and ate and then went on our way.
It's a really incredible thing - although, I would just still prefer
that cashiers actually fill up the registers at Walmart instead.
And then that night we went to a little shooting range. I shot a pistol
and some weird $2000 foreign gun. I really liked the second one, but I
don't think I'd ever want to own one lol. Rob and Bars shot a lot of
different guns, but I mostly just stayed behind and texted Tomo, because
I kept not understanding how exactly I was supposed to hold and stand
and stuff like that. I grew up around guns and know basic gun safety and
how to handle a gun, but certainly they knew more than me, and I kind of
just wanted to stay out of it lol. Guns also make me incredibly nervous
sometimes (I dislike holding a deadly weapon - usually just because to
me, it is a deadly weapon made for the very purpose of being a deadly
weapon - whether it be to kill a rattlesnake, a deer, or a human
being), which isn't something that bothers me to a point that I can't
use one and use it safely - it's just an underlying anxiety. I own a gun
for self defense - in the case that someone breaks into my house and has
a gun or weapon of their own, and I heartily dislike it. I'd much rather
live somewhere where I don't have to worry about crime and especially
gun crimes, but while I live in the United States it is just a reality
that I have to face - that whether or not I own a weapon, a criminal
will, and it is in my best interest to have a means of defense.
Anyway, that got sidetracked. Next time Tomo comes to the US I'm gonna
take him to my brother's house to shoot guns because he told me that
that's something he wanted to do in the US and forgot lol. Poor boi.
Anyway, Monday we got texts that our flight was being delayed (to the
point that we would absolutely miss our connecting flight). We decided
to go ahead and go to Dallas and be there and be ready to get home the
following day, so we went to the airport and got our tickets sorted out
and got on the plane (after a VERY long line - holy heck - airports
suck). When we got to Dallas, Rob went to talk to the AA lady about
getting our hotel rooms, and Bars and I went to grab our bags. Natalie,
one of our friends from Millsaps who aPPARENTLY LIVES RIGHT NEAR DALLAS
(I SHOULD HAVE CALLED HER THURSDAY NIGHT) met us there and was going to
drive us. After an hour of us talking, Rob called me and told me that
apparently American said that "it was the airport controller's fault,
not the airlines, so they couldn't do anything for us," which I think
was complete bull from AA. Rob was piiiissed - not so much about the
money but largely just because he stood in line for an hour just for
them to tell him that. Still, though, the fun of having Natalie there
helped cheer him up a bit, and we went to go find a hotel.
When we got to the hotel, they apparently were booked out but their
other hotel down the street had vacancy, so the guy at the counter went
ahead and set up the reservation for us, and all we had to do was check
in. When we got to the other one, Rob made a remark about how it was
actually nicer here because basically the same hotel was half the price
of the other one, and I made him laugh by saying, "Yeah, but, the guy at
the other one was cute." (and hekkin hek he was. Come back to me, hotel
man).
We left and got Korean BBQ together, which was really fun and tasted
gooood. Got back, slept, and parted ways the next day. And bada bing,
bada boom, I am home. And now I have to get ready to go back to college
on Sunday loool (I'm not ready help).
SO that was JEBUG29'S SEATTLE ADVENTURE(TM) WITH THE DALLAS EXPANSION
PACK DEMO. This phost is long enough, so I'll end it here.
Thanks everyone!
P.S. I set up a Gopher server for the Millsaps Computer Club. Check it
out!
gopher://mpcclub.info/
(or g mpcclub.info/ if you have my Gopher Shortcut Tool)
