Combining logging into work with pre-vacation laundry and housecleaning is not exactly my idea of a great Saturday morning. However, Lifehouse's Between the Raindrops does help. Well, music period. For Christmas, my mother bought me ridic awesome headphones--ones I would never buy for myself, that is how deeply awesome they are, they come with their own hard case and detachable cables, plural--so listening to my entire music collection has been a revelation. Dude, the difference.

In weirder news, Samsung gave me a free copy of Avengers for my phone. I love my phone. I would marry my phone. I cannot imagine watching a movie on my phone. Yet there it is.

Vacation To-Do List
1.) Find beach canopy with the foolish belief amireal and I can actually assemble it ourselves.
2.) Actually move it to an accessible location to take it with us if we lose our minds and think we can actually pull that off.
3.) Finish laundry.
4.) Find bathing suits and wrap skirts.
5.) Find all USB chargers for evaluation.
6.) Select media to bring as cannot bring server.
7.) Reconsider bringing server instead of canopy. I could do a lot of programming at the beach.
8.) Make grocery list with the knowledge me and Ami will break it the moment we walk into Central Market and get trapped in the cheese section.
9.) Find the location of the border checkpoint (falfurrias?).
10.) Get Ami a travelers' Spanish guide.
11.) Send her youtube mariachi so the trovadores at Mitierra don't startle her too much.
12.) Go to Texas Meat Market for hot dogs.
13.) Pack favorite cookbook.
14.) Actually do at least a few things on this list.

Vacation Schedule

So far, we think we have a plan. Hotel and condo reservations bear this out.
Monday - Ami arrives! Dinner at Kerby Lane! Apparently pumpkin pancakes.
Tuesday afternoon - train to San Antonio.
Tuesday through Thursday - Explore San Antonio.
Thursday morning - leave for Port Isabel
Thursday afternoon - stop in Corpus Christi for lunch
Thursday-Tuesday - South Padre! Condo on the beach! Balcony! Loafing! Hot chocolate and fajitas and homemade tortillas on the balcony! Exciting cooking! Pirate cruise! ATVs! Horseback riding! Massages! Last three in the same place!
Tuesday morning - return to San Antonio
Wednesday morning - return to Austin/New York and Real Life. Bah.

If anyone is around at any of these places and wants to meet up, please email me! I'll send you my phone number.

Will finish actually work stuff now. *stares at computer* I will feel inspired if it kills me.

Question - if one were to bring a canopy to the beach, is there anything I can use to put on it to track it by GPS? My mother has said I cannot bring it unless I want to replace it, since the last one was stolen. Any help here would be appreciated.

Why I probably should never consider a career in finance.

While reading House of Cards by William D. Cohan:

By page 83:

seperis: Oh, this is sad.
seperis: [paraphrasing from book] Paul Friedman was exhausted, emotionally and physically. He took the train to his house in Scarsdale, at the end of a cul-de-sac. He collapsed in bed with the help of an Ambien and hoped to get some sleep. It was seven thirty. "At 9:15, I'm asleep and I hear knocking. Susie come upstairs and says "Timmy Greene is on the phone for you". I say, "He's on the phone for me now? What day is it?""
seperis: He's a Bear Stearns exec and has been awake since Wednesday.
seperis: And this is Friday night.
seperis: He says "get the lawyers involved" in a deal with JP Morgan.
amireal: That sounds about right
seperis: And Timmy said that the lawyer had taken a sleeping pill beforehand.
seperis: And fell asleep during the conversation.[end paraphrasing from book]
seperis: Who had also been awake since Wednesday.
seperis: No the fuck wonder Bear fell.
seperis: THEY TRIED TO SLEEP DEPRIVE THEIR EXECS TO DEATH
seperis: Jesus.
seperis: I can't even conceive of these numbers. 400 billion in assets.
Just all non-liquid.
seperis: *blank*
amireal: This is partially why I freaked out with Disney buying Marvel.

By page 99:

seperis: Okay, if I'd been Bear Stearns?
seperis: I would have damn well bankrupted and collapsed the system.
seperis: But I like to blow things up.
seperis: *grins*
amireal: heh
seperis: Okay, definitely.
seperis: I would hold my finger over the nuclear option.
seperis: Possibly just to see who blinked first.
amireal: I think it would matter how much I wanted to hurt people
seperis: *Thoughtful* I would not be good at stock broking, but I would be awesome during Mexican standoffs.
amireal: Or if I was in a mood.
seperis: ...we're both in moods a lot.
seperis: Maybe we should join Wall Street.
amireal: Hmm
seperis: *mulls* We could collapse the finanical district during our next periods.
amireal: it's possible there would much damage
amireal: or we'd end up supreme overloards
seperis: Show them what's too big to fall. Let's test that shit.
amireal: Chase? WHO NEEDS CHASE? Come on fuckers, play ball.
seperis: Two dollars a share? Bring that shit, baby. Game on.
amireal: We could collect stock in companies relating to basic elements. Like Diamonds. Or silicone.

And this is why amireal and I aren't allowed to work with money. Ever. Because we would collapse the financial world the next time Arthur pisses me off during Merlin. Wow, could you imagine what would have happened when SGA got canceled?

amireal: MAYBE CNBC CAN BECOME OUR SLAVES

But I'm tempted.

ETA:

Okay, wow.

p.136

This is from Moldaver, a Bear Stearns exec, to Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, during a meeting between the execs and Dimon. Live, if you will.

Quote:

"I've heard some people refer to this as a shotgun wedding," Moldaver said. "I wouldn't use that term. I'd cll this a shotgun wedding to a rapist. Yeah, yeah, the girl was lying there naked on the ground when you found her, that's true, but you did it anyway."

This was before the deal was altered to $10 a share. I am trying to figure out how you shout that kind of analogy and not, you know, herniate something.

*fond* This is how you know you are loved.

Amireal: - *starts stopwatch to see how long it takes before madelyn posts about you being sad and pathetic and trying to become one with your IV in some hospital*

Also if you text me pictures, I will totally send you some in return.

And the betting begins.

Besides the betting book currently in progress--I did send her pictures? And I did not get one back.

*coughs pathetically*

So everyone else is jumping off a bridge dirtying themselves forever with indecent porn. Why aren't *you*?

Links available to ladycat777 going *epically* different places, green_grrl admirably doing her part.

Come on. You know you want to.

Link to amireal's challenge.

I wonder if underage John counts.

ETA: APPARENTLY YES IT DOES PLEASE JUST PUT ME OUT OF MY MISERY ALREADY.