Pumpkin Eater

I made the cookies. I also made a pumpkin pie, and roasted up (and ate!) the seeds. The cookies are ok, but nothing special. If you decide to make them, I recommend you up the spice quotient. Maybe you should even double or triple it. The chocolate chips were the major source of flavour. The cookies have a cake-like texture, and don't spread out on the pan, so you can really load up the cookie sheet.

The seeds I roasted in the toaster oven after covering them with a very liberal amount of salt, coriander, cumin, and cayenne pepper. They were really good, and so is the pie (which I ate with a dollop of ginger whipped cream). Last night was spent at a "Cyber Social". There was no discussion of cybernetics that I could ascertain, and neither did I hear anyone ask "A/S/L???" What I did see was a whole bunch of suits with a generous sprinkling of nerds (a few of whom are my friends). The food was quite dreadful (deep-fried turnips? Eugh!), so after a bit of chitchat and the obligatory congratulations offered to UNB's victorious computer programming team, I went home to eat some tasty pie and get embarassingly smashed on one cooler and a wee bit of liqueur. I don't know what I did to deserve it, but my night was plagued by a rare bout of insomnia, and when I did sleep, I gnashed my teeth while snoring (poor f00!).

I spent the morning modelling, the afternoon working out at the gym, and the past little while working on my religious studies project. Kung fu is still ahead of me, if I can harvest enough energy.

Here are some links to amaze and revitalize you:

Man Survives Rare Skin-Shedding Disease: I was quite astonished to learn this. I'd been under the impression that Harlequin Ichthyosis (don't look it up if you have a weak stomach) would kill the poor kids suffering for it before they ever passed the toddler stage. And here this guy has become a triathlete. Of course, he has to eat 7,500 calories a day to survive, but I'm impressed all the same.

Trigger-happy surfers pop a cap in Bambi's ass: Want to shoot animals from the comfort of your own computer desk? I don't. This story disturbs me on a few levels. For one, I personally have problems with killing for the sake of entertainment. For food, sure. To protect yourself, sure. But as a step up from playing Quake? I don't think so. Also, what's to stop the cyber-hunters from shooting at inappropriate things which wander across their crosshairs? Could an otherwise sane person be tempted to shoot another person because they feel removed enough to reality to think they're in a game? I don't want to be alarmist, but I just don't know the answer to that. And what about protected species? And what happens to the animals who are shot? Are they just left there to rot? If they're not killed, but just maimed and wander out of range, who will finish them off? No sir, I don't like it (thanks, Buddy Ralph).

Chabio: I think this is the result of an unlikely mating of Fabio and a chicken. You can find more bizarre chicken crossovers here. I don't get it.

Are you a mobe-hating foot fetishist? "Wwhy should those who dislike mobile phones and at the same time get their rocks off to stilletoe-clad feet be denied their own little corner of the web" (thanks, Buddy Ralph)?

Sick Vampire Butcher Kills Himself in Jail: Yeah, it's yet another vampire cannibal story. But what makes this one different is this: "he drank his best pal's blood and ate his skull." He ate his skull? Whoa. How the hell did he do that? They're not exactly chewy, are they?

There is Nothing Wrong in This Whole Wide World: "For one amazing week in November, Adobe Bookshop in San Francisco has agreed to allow its estimated 20,000 books to be reclassified by color. Shifting from red to orange to yellow to green, the books will follow the spectrum continuously, changing Adobe from a neighborhood bookshop into a magical library—but only for one week." And it looks pretty cool, too (thanks, Benoit).

Etch a Sketch: Remember these?

Liver pills turn black man white: Weird.

Gay Fuel: It's an energy drink.

Dance, Voldo, Dance: Just how many hours of gameplay does it take before someone realizes they can make their characters dance in a smooth choreography?

The "Brief Safe": "The "Brief Safe" is an innovative diversion safe that can secure your cash, documents, and other small valuables from inquisitive eyes and thieving hands, both at home and when you're traveling." I believe it would work, too. There aren't too many people who'd want to go rooting through this to find your money.

Someone Call the Somnambulance!

On the way home today I saw a dead pigeon. It lay on its back, its wings slightly outspread. Blood haloed its head on the asphalt. "Oh no!" I said. For a moment, I was afraid it was Scroffy, but the colouration was wrong. Cars whizzed by as I stood and stared at the corpse. A man passed by me on the sidewalk, and he paused to look at me, and then at the dead bird. Then he shrugged and kept on walking.

When I got home, I saw Scroffy fluffed out and perched on the roof. I'm glad he's still kicking around.

My hoped-for rejuvenation is not happening. I'm getting more and more tired. The night of poor sleep is determined to kill my kung fu class tonight. I'm afraid I shall have to retire early to bed.

Guess what?

( I sleep now. )