Baxil [bakh-HEEL'], n.
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Below are the 14 most recent journal entries recorded in the "Baxil" journal:
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01:19 am
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/41140275/240226) [Link] |
Therianthropes' "German moments"
My mind goes in odd directions sometimes ...
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) kinkyturtle just posted some cartoons, one of which pokes fun at Nazifurs. Yes, that's exactly what it sounds like: furries who take great glee in their character violating Godwin's Law, even showing up at conventions dressed up in Nazi regalia. I mention this only because the second panel of the comic (a retelling of an encounter at Anthrocon where an actual German discovered one of the Nazifurs didn't speak the language) threw my brain on a tanget.
The encounter is funny because, well, Nazis. Not speaking German. The cognitive dissonance of it slaps you in the face. If somebody's going to all the trouble to incorporate such a recognizable symbol into their outward identity, you'd think that they'd at least try to get the glaringly obvious bits right.
And here's where my brain left the path: Do us dragons (and Otherkin/therianthropes in general) have our own "German moment"? In other words -- are we (some or many of us) missing out on anything that basic? Is there anything so fundamental to the theri experience that it seems glaringly obvious we would all have exposure to it, even though there are probably swaths of theris running around that haven't given it any thought?
As impolitic as it is to say it, I think there is.
( My own answer's behind the cut; share yours in comments. )
* * * * *
Also, on another topic entirely, I support the upcoming LJ content strike (Friday, March 21). The primary reason I'm here is that it's an accessible social hub, where I can keep track of many friends easily and share semiprivate content with them. When SUP gets progressively nastier to the folks who got free accounts here to keep track of paid members like me, and when they drive my friends off little by little, SUP undercuts my entire reason for sticking around as a paid member.
Current Location: ~/brainstorm
Current Mood:  thoughtful
Current Music: "Zelda's Jazz," AmIEvil, www.ocremix.org
Tags: draconity, hiking
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11:38 pm
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/70878635/240226) [Link] |
Rabbit Hole Day sure got cold.
Per ceruleanst's suggestion to go do something fantastic for Rabbit Hole Day rather than make it up ... I went and had me a good old-fashioned style AdventureTM with roaminrob this weekend.
We gathered our adventuring gear, hiked out into the wilderness, rolled on Random Encounter Table 12A ("Snowy Terrain"), and no sooner had I pulled some nifty +1 sword out of a big drift than ...
Snow zombies!
(*hack hack hack*)
Snowmobiles!
(*hack hack cough*)
Snow gryphons!
(*flee flee flee*[1])
As far as actual scenery, we did get one great panorama before a storm blew in and everything went white-out. Found plenty to take pictures of anyway, and it was a lot of fun. For the full lineup of trip pictures, click on the smiley.
Also, new usericon.
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[1] What, you want we should have attacked these? We're like level 3!
Current Location: ~/brainstorm
Current Mood: quixotic
Current Music: Tori Amos, "Winter"
Tags: hiking, multimedia
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02:00 pm
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Random observation
As a guy who tends to switch back and forth between periods of high activity (such as long-distance hiking) followed by months at a time of largely sedentary desk jobs, I've started to notice something about my body: I have two equilibrium states.
By this I mean ...
Picture a graph mapping exertion (X axis) against comfort (Y axis). The graph obviously flatlines at high exertions (I've pushed my body too hard, and muscle ache grinds everything to a halt), and at extremely low exertions (enforced bed rest weakens everything and the lack of mobility starts to drive your muscles nuts). But there's a peak somewhere in the range of mostly-sedentary activity, where my body adapts to its low demands and I feel okay even though my strength and mobility are crap; and there's a second peak somewhere in the physical-fitness range, where everything's working, and I'm limber and rugged.
If I'm at the sedentary peak and I want to move toward the fitness peak, it hurts during the upward transition (trying to limber up stiff, little-used muscles). And if I'm at the fitness peak and slacking off, it hurts during the downward transition (where all my finely-tuned muscles overcompensate for the trivial work I'm doing, and I have to do a LOT of stretching to keep from spending all day sore). So the graph has a shape resembling an M.
Edited to add: This post would have been both a lot clearer and a lot wittier if I'd just posted the damn picture instead of writing the thousand words. Gotta reinstall Photoshop one of these days. :-p
Current Location: ~yuba
Current Mood: thoughtful
Current Music: "Fogma," Groove Armada
Tags: hiking
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03:57 am
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/3864630/240226) [Link] |
A dragon looks at thirty*
I've got a birthday about to start in just a few hours.** Up until this morning, it was weighing heavily on my mind.
Something in my brain must feel awful betrayed at the rolling of the odometer, because I literally have not been able to think of turning 30 for weeks without the thought flitting past my brain: "It's been a good run." That's not the thought of a man passing a milestone. That's the thought of a man indulging in a little eschatological nostalgia.
Consciously, I know this seems ridiculous; unconsciously, I can't shake it.
It's a contradiction that I've been living with for a while. Take -- for example -- that both of my parents (in their late 60s) are still alive, and my odds at that longevity (the human average) are at least as good. But at the same time, I would already be 12 years dead if it weren't for 20th-century medicine's fortuitous talent for appendectomies.***
That's a sobering thought ... that everything I've made of my adult life is, essentially, time brazenly stolen out from under the nose of a patient and vindictive Death.
And yet ... and yet.
As morbid as my reflection was, it's true. Looking back from 30, it has been a good run. My legacy is one of living, of loving, of creation.**** What more could be done, except to keep giving, and to grow the castle upon that foundation?*****
This morning, something in my subconscious must have come to that realization, too, because I had a dream that threw it all into sharp relief.
It was a simple dream. My family, kadyg and I were all piled in a car, driving through richly forested Washington state, following the Pacific Crest Trail along and occasionally getting out for some day hiking or to offer some trail support to the thru-hikers nearing the end of their journey. The weather was perfect, and I was spending a lot of time basking in the sunshine and taking in the views.
Then the five of us ran across a thru-hiker, and all crammed like sardines into the car in order to take her in to town. "The Rose" was on the radio, and someone turned it up, and we were all singing along. Except the lyrics had been changed.
I am left with the last thing I sang, proudly, full of wonder and contentment, before the alarm clock buzzed: "I have given too many reasons / That bind my soul to life."
And that's it, really. As morbid as I might want to be, honoring the closure of a decade, there's just too much to like here. If something were to happen to me, it has been a good run and I wouldn't have many regrets -- but I would sure regret not getting enough time to take everything in that Earth's got to offer.
Here's to hoping I can say the same for decades to come.
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* Because we just can't get enough of the cultural references here.
** Not true. I wrote the first part of this post in between shifts on what turned out to be a 16-hour workday. I've got another 10 starting in seven four hours. What a way to leave behind my 20s. *sigh*
*** Though packbat brought up this very topic days ago, I wasn't able to catch up on my flist until after I wrote this. Any thoughts of personal mortality are completely my own and not inspired by recent memes.
**** I also, with approximately 15 minutes left to spare, have finally lost my network administration virginity. Yes! For lo, I have hand-crimped my first CAT5 cable.
***** Also, apologies for the halfway-intentional free verse of this paragraph.
Current Location: ~/brainstorm
Current Mood: reflective
Current Music: "Too Young To Die," David Crosby
Tags: birthday, dreams, hiking, lyrics, misc life updates
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11:43 pm
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/41140296/240226) [Link] |
Gatorade: A modern miracle of science
Gatorade Fact No. 1:
I don't know how they did it, I really don't. But it's always been my experience with Gatorade that it tastes really good when you need it, and sort of meh when you don't. So: Useful rule of thumb is, if you're thirsty, you drink Gatorade and it tastes meh, you need more plain water.
Gatorade Fact No. 2:
Gatorade is not properly balanced as an oral rehydration solution. It's quite efficient at dealing with sports fatigue (it is a liquid, and on top of that it has loads of quickly-processed sugars for your body to refuel), but drinking straight Gatorade is Not A Good Thing if someone is into the deep stages of acute dehydration.
If you're out, for example, hiking on a long distance trip, make it a practice to keep a packet of oral rehydration salts in your first-aid kit. If you're really concerned about the ~1 ounce of weight, and you'd rather budget energy drinks than emergency gear, then you can alternate Gatorade sips and water sips, 1 to 1, to dilute it for maximum absorption. But Gatorade is hard to restock and all too easy to drink before you need it. ORS are there to save lives, and do their job invaluably when they're needed.
Current Location: ~/bedroom
Current Mood:  still sick
Current Music: Yngwie Malmsteen, "Wild One"
Tags: american health care is a piece of shit, hiking
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08:41 pm
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/9758701/240226) [Link] |
In which Rob proves his site-finding l33tness
(A DRAMATIZATION)
The scene: Our two heroes are at their tech support job, looking up some technical data vaguely relevant to one of their latest support tickets.
baxil: Huh? That's really bizarre. The most recent iMacs support a maximum of 3 gb of RAM.
roaminrob: What? That's a stupid cap. A longint is 4 gb; why not use that? There has to be some arbitrary limitation that has nothing to do with memory addressing.
B: 4 gb or even 2 gb I could understand. Then you at least have paired SO-DIMMs and can get the speed boost. But a maximum of three gb in two slots?
R: Lame. Speaking of which, did you ever buy that RAM upgrade for your Mac Mini?
B: Hmm. (*google*) "The Intel chip set used inside has limited memory addressing capabilities, meaning 3GB is the most the system can address."* And no, I didn't ... I thought about it a few weeks ago at Fry's, but they had two different sets of PC5300s, one of them labeled specifically for Macs, which were of course more expensive ... I haven't done enough research to find a good deal ... (Blah blah, whine whine.)
R: Ah, but while you have been distracted with the 3gb thing, I have found your RAM, labeled specifically for Mac use, at a price modestly lower than your best deal. Et voila, $78.00 per 1GB chip! (*sends link*)
B: ...
R: ...?
B: You read that wrong. That's $78 for the entire 2gb upgrade kit.
*SOUND OF MULTIPLE JAWS DROPPING*
B: Where's my credit card? And how the hell did you find this?
R: Dealmac. And damn, does it feel good to have my Internet mojo back.
B: You know, your track record of "recommending sites to me that begin with a D and are TOTALLY AWESOME" is now two for two.
R: You're welcome. It's not just Dealmac - check out their RAM side at DealRAM and their generic computer gear side at DealNews.
B: Seeing as how I am off the clock, I plan to. (*surfs*)
R: (*works*)
B: ... !!!
R: ?
B: Dude. (*frantic gesticulating*)
R: (*walks over*)
B: Dealnews. THEY. HAVE. HIKING. GEAR.
R: ... A Marmot Precip for $49?!?!
B: O_O;
R: Wow.
B: Excuse me, I think I just wet myself. (*runs to bathroom*)
Current Location: ~yuba
Current Mood:  impressed
Tags: geekery, hiking, link roundup
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03:48 pm
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/59215336/240226) [Link] |
The things that seem awesome at 2 AM
The scene: Sunday morning, 4-1-2007. Early sunlight shines on an ungainly pile of blankets in a second-story bedroom.
The sounds: Traffic noises, and the moaning of someone trying to block them out with a pillow over the ears.
The cat: Steering well clear of the tipped bottle at the foot of the bed. A patch of dark-stained carpet reeks of wine cooler.
The conversation:
 4-1-07: My second tattoo! It seemed like a good idea at the time. |  The topographic map of my elbow. Note Bonespur Peak at left; Surgery Way atop the scar; and the llama farm. |
Bax: Get off my arm.
Kady: I'm not on your arm.
Bax: Yes you are. It hurts.
Kady: So does my head, sweetie. So please shut up.
Bax: I'm telling you, you're ... oh, never mind.
Kady: (mutters) I knew I should have drank more water.
Bax: What time is it?
Kady: Your watch is on the bedside table.
Bax: *gropes for it*
Kady: What's that on your arm?
Bax: What's what on my arm?
Kady: Oh, shit.
Bax: What?
Kady: You didn't.
Bax: Oh, shit.
Kady: Where did you even find a tattoo parlor?
Bax: I don't know! Rob drove me home.
Kady: ...
Bax: I distinctly remember us laughing about this idea last night. I don't remember anything about actually doing it.
Kady: *giggles*
Bax: What?
Kady: You know, it is still pretty funny.
Bax: ... I sure hope so.
Kady: (still laughing) At least you'll get a good LJ post out of this.
And at least I'm never going to get lost if I go hiking on my elbow. ;-p
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Edited to add: Yes, April Fool's. :)
Current Location: ~calorg
Current Mood:  hung over
Current Music: head still throbbing
Tags: baxwalk pct, best of baxil, hiking, tattoo
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12:34 am
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BaxWalk: Where did this start?
As previously mentioned *, I am going to walk the Pacific Crest Trail this summer. It's a 2,650-mile trek -- some would say a 2,650-mile slog -- and not the sort of thing anyone would do on a whim.
After all, it involves several thousand dollars' worth of expenses and quitting my job; a physical commitment of several months of protracted physical exertion; and a social commitment of several months of isolation from virtually everyone I know. Given all that, what drove me to the idea? What will keep me going when the trail gets harsh?
( On my ten-year goals )
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* And last month wasn't even my first mention! Extremely observant readers may recall that, in fact, I broke my silence on this in November 2004. Not that anyone noticed at the time, thankfully.
** Given the turns my life has been taking -- such as marriage -- #6 is going to end up being stricken from the list. It's the only casualty so far. If I'm feeling ambitious I may find something similar (but less dangerous and isolating) to replace it, but I'd be happy turning in a 5-star performance.
Current Mood: reflective
Current Music: Indigo Girls, "Closer to Fine"
Tags: baxwalk pct, goals, hiking
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12:39 am
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/3864626/240226) [Link] |
BaxWalk: It's on.
They say the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
It's an adage that, right now, I am feeling quite acutely. I've taken some small steps so far -- covering none of the actual distance, but moving forward in my preparations. And if all goes as planned, this summer, I'll be walking those thousand miles.
Actually, about two and a half times that.
Starting sometime in April, I am going to head south to the Mexican border, begin hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, and ... keep going. If I am among the lucky, prepared and persistent few who make it to the other end, I will cross the Canadian border in early autumn. This is known as a "thru-hike," and covers 2,650 miles of the western United States' loveliest terrain.
I've been dropping some hints of this epic adventure here and there in my journal for the last several months. I've been meaning to make a friends-locked post explaining myself, but never found both the nerve and the time to tackle the subject head-on.
But now, the big thing that has kept me from a public announcement is no longer a factor. I have turned in four weeks' notice at the Journal (well, actually, seven, since they asked me to delay my departure a bit), and I don't have to worry about word leaking back to my employers secondhand.
This means two things: One, as the clock ticks down, my journal will become a public chronicle of my planning and of the trip itself. And two, since I'm quitting my job for this ... it's on.
I've been making vague preparations for years, and specific preparations for months, but that one act of giving notice has crystallized the whole trip. It's really going to happen. I'm really going to take this hike.
This post is just another one of the first steps toward my journey. There's too much to be said about the trip to get it down here all at once, but explaining it begins with the basics.
Next step, since there are a dozen questions I've heard already and anticipate hearing again, is a FAQ about the trip. For now, I just want to get this out onto the Internet so that I don't hold back the announcement any longer.
Current Mood:  determined
Tags: baxwalk pct, hiking
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01:22 am
[Link] |
Mount Lola pics
You may recall that a week ago, kadyg, roaminrob and I went for a hike up a mountain. I brought my digital camera.
Pictures are online! Along with snarky and quite possibly amusing, if brief, trip commentary.
SEE the thrill of victory! FEEL de agony of de feet! Then come back here and ask me why I didn't get a picture of the awesome custom RV thing I describe on the first page.
Current Mood:  productive
Current Music: Prop, "Mount Zero"
Tags: hiking
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12:07 am
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/3864503/240226) [Link] |
A winner is me!
Well, that's one of my ten-year goals down, four to go! Next up: Hike the Pacific Crest Trail (ETA summer 2006), or perhaps get that tattoo (ETA undecided).
I'm going to sit back down and finish the novel now -- I validated it after I hit the 50K mark, but there's still a scene or two to wrap up tonight before it's totally done. Will finish uploading it after the final word is written.
And, for the benefit of those who have been patiently waiting all November for me to stop being all riddley with my story link, can someone in the audience point all interested parties at where I've posted the month's work? ]B=8)
I'll post a request for feedback on the novel a little later -- there are a few things I'm specifically wondering -- but in the meantime, you can also consider this an open thread for comments on "Notes from the End of the World."
Edit 7:30 a.m. Nov. 30:
Final word count: 54,586
Dec. 2:
Final rank: #767 out of 5,890 winners and 42,301 participants
Current Mood:  accomplished
Current Music: Queen, "The Miracle"
Tags: goals, hiking, ttu, writing
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06:56 pm
[Link] |
Back
... and busy. Trying to make good use of my last day off before returning to work. Don't have a whole lot of computer time and have a heck of a lot to catch up on.
Trips were good. Came back sunburned from the first and bug-bitten from the second (can't fully bend my right index finger due to a mosquito bite near the joint that has it swollen), and the hiking was grueling as always, but the scenery and the company were inspiring. Got some great pictures and have some writing to transcribe. Got reset somehow into a day schedule -- will have a heck of a time readjusting to my swing-shift job in the next 18 hours.
Went and saw "I, Robot" this afternoon with Rene and Kai. A much better movie than "Chronicles of Riddick." (In other news, water is still wet and a hammer dropped on your foot still hurts.) I'm not certain what it is about the movie that seems to inspire such grumpiness in the apparent minority of folks who have seen it and dislike it -- Will Smith fits pretty well into an unusually serious role; the action flows naturally enough from the plot; and the insulting of the audience's intelligence is kept well to a minimum. It's not a candidate for top 10 best ever, but it's a reasonably solid film for a summer blockbuster.
Also, I <3 my halyn and kadyg, who got along together wonderfully on the trip. Happy birthday to halyn, whose special day tomorrow will be marked by ... um ... my returning to work. ]B=8P
Current Mood:  fatigued
Tags: hiking
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03:50 am
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/8403565/240226) [Link] |
Psssst ....
Don't look now, but I'm finally starting to get organized for the event soon to be known as BaxWalk 2004.
Who all here might be interested in an overnight camping trip in the Sierra Nevada and/or a 3-day, 2-night backcountry hike and mountain ascent [walk, not climb]? I know I've been dropping hints about this since mid-winter.
Basic information behind above link. Full details to come once I can sit down and get a proper Web page made out of what I know. (Suggestions welcome.)
Current Mood: productive
Current Music: Queen, "Bohemian Rhapsody"
Tags: hiking
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12:26 pm
![[User Picture]](http://p-userpic.livejournal.com/3864628/240226) [Link] |
"Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the theater?"
(Reposted from my Tomorrowlands journal as a convenience for those of you who have been following along here.)
Random video game quote of the moment: "We don't see many people wearing pants around here." -- From "Secret of Evermore"
Recent developments in the more mundane side of my life:
- In between my trip to BayCon and a coworker's vacation, I haven't had an actual weekend away from work in literally a month. (BayCon was five days off, but it was a working vacation and doesn't really count.) I've been mostly spending my time either working or recharging. I finally have a few consecutive days off now, and plan to make the most of them.
Tomorrow morning I'm going to throw a bunch of stuff in the car and drive off. Where? To a local Forest Service office, to get directions to a nice backcountry campground. I figure a few miles' hike, settle in for the evening, do some stargazing and reconnecting, get up the next morning, and head home. It may be my only opportunity this season to go hiking, unless I do something similar on one of my subsequent weekends. And I'm virtually guaranteed privacy -- backcountry camping on a Monday night is one of those things only crazy people like myself do.
It's going to be kind of a seat-of-the-pants thing, but I've done much worse on short notice. Like throwing myself into a lake. So, absent any broken bones, it'll just be some nice, simple, enjoyable recreation.
- Among my other lovable quirks, I am a gamer geek. I like role-playing games. I have a tackle box full of dice and miniatures that I lug to games with me, and a small bag of emergency dice that goes everywhere I do.
But when I moved to California, I suddenly entered the wasteland. I live in a little rural community in the Sierra Nevada foothills called Penn Valley. It's eight miles to the nearest McDonald's, half an hour to the nearest Wal-Mart, and 45 minutes to the nearest place where you can buy a hamburger after midnight. (24-hour service? Forget it.) I say this only to illustrate the situation I find myself in -- fairly isolated (not counting the Internet).
This wouldn't matter any if my roommates were gamers -- I could just slip into one of the ongoing campaigns and get my U.S. RDA of hack. But no dice. We're strictly a computer gaming household here. I'm the only one with a jones for die-slinging. So I've tried to ignore the lack of role-playing and take refuge in my other areas of interest.
But what happens this week? One of the guys at work, who I see only occasionally because he works on the press and I work in editorial, wanders by my desk after hours. We'd talked a little before, and I'd complained about the lack of gaming, and it turns out he was a fellow geek, and he's getting a group together starting in July. So I may get my game on again soon. I look forward to it.
- Also, today, while everyone was out of the house visiting the nearest shopping mall, I grabbed Katsuei's copy of "Dance Dance Revolution" and the dance pad, and got my groove on in the living room. I wholeheartedly support the DDR idea (arcade games that encourage fitness and movement? Gasp!), and I love to play, but I've never really had the opportunity, outside occasional forays into arcades, where the games are $1 a pop.
The game basically allows you to set your own difficulty -- songs are rated from 1 to 9 feet (the more, the merrier). Roughly, 1 to 3 are for beginners, 4 to 6 are for amateurs, and 7 and up is strictly professional territory. Not because the game makes you do things that are physically impossible -- but because once you start going up in difficulty, the patterns you have to match are so brutal and come at you so quickly that you literally have to memorize the patterns in order to be able to get through the song at all. In other words, there's a sort of plateau you reach -- up to about 5 feet, you can get by on talent alone; above that, it takes specific training.
I discovered the wonders of Practice Mode today. I sat down with one of the game's hairier songs -- a six-foot deal called "Orion 78." It's got everything -- leaping back and forth between combos (where you have to step with both feet on different arrows at once); crazy syncopation; and four sections where the steps are packed so tightly together that you can't even read what you're supposed to be doing at full speed. The "Practice Mode" lets you play through with the song slowed down, can give you sound cues to when you should step, and lets you review your performance to see which steps give you the most trouble. Between those aids and half an hour of practice, I aced the song (scored an "A" rating) by the time the guys came home. (Before that, I had -- through sheer persistence -- managed to finish the song once or twice, albeit barely scraping by with a "D".) So now I can say that I can make a six-star song look good. I think that means I have to list Dance Dance Revolution on my resume now or something.
Current Mood:  moody
Current Music: Blues Traveller, "Stand"
Tags: hiking, roleplaying
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