January: Got laser vision correction surgery. Despite having been given a Valium, during the surgery I was terrified that I was going to move my eyes when I shouldn't and ruin my vision. But I didn't. The day after surgery, I drove without corrective lenses for the first time. February: Went to a convention in Seattle. Got my picture taken... read more »

The Cougar football team did not lose last weekend.

Over on Midwest Bloggin, I tried to post a long comment on why I don't think it makes sense to vote for a third party. (Note to those who voted for Nader instead of the Democratic nominee: please do it again, and encourage all your friends to do so as well.) But my comment was too long to fit, so... read more »

I've spent weeks waiting to find out if one of my stories is a winner in the Phobos contest. I'm still waiting, but I now have something additional to wait for: another story is a finalist in the Writers of the Future contest. (I submitted it back on September 30.) The story is called "In Memory," and the beginning of... read more »

I spent Christmas and the weekend in Seattle. My whole family was there at least part of the time (even my sister Angie, who we thought wasn't going to be there, which was a happy surprise.) It was great to see them all, and I wish I could have spent more time with them.

I've created some new bookmarklets. What are bookmarklets, you ask? Excellent question! Allow me to answer it for you. Bookmarklets are little JavaScript programs that you can "bookmark" in your browser (i.e., add to your favorites list or "Links" toolbar in your browser.) What can you do with them once you've bookmarked them? Well, I'm a lazy sort of guy.... read more »

Well, for a few hours there the server was showing an old backup of the site, and it was not pretty. Apparently the systems guys were doing something behind the scenes that messed things up. I'll have to have a chat with them tomorrow.

The Cowboys clinched a spot in the playoffs this weekend, and are even still in the hunt for the division title (if they win and the Eagles lose next weekend.) Parcells has done a great job in turning the team around. And the BYU Cougar football team did not lose this weekend, bringing their not-losing streak to four.

My fantasy football team, the valiant Klingon Warriors, have triumphed in the league championship game against the mistakenly-named Automatic Win. Going into tonight's game, the Klingon Warriors were up by 38.01. My team had no players left to play, and my cousin Scott's team had two players left. It was theoretically possible for him to win, but it didn't happen.... read more »

Craft writing assignment: Write a scene showing someone leading a double life. Show the strain the character feels in juggling the two lives. The chirp of her cell phone roused Claire from an intermittent sleep. As she fumbled for the phone, she tried to remember where she was. The sweltering unconditioned air of the hotel room reminded her: Tangiers. And... read more »