on second thought...

"ongoing dispute" doesn't retain the same value when you see the local police department wrestling somebody into custody a few doors down.

Don't know what's going on, but I figure hanging around too much trying to figure it out isn't a battle worth fighting at this moment. Taking an order of magnitude more cigarette breaks to get a glimpse here or there, but feeling guilty being a rubbernecker. Seems mostly civil right now...

EDIT: additionally: on the most recent trip outside, a senior officer stopped to talk to me. Asked if I'd heard or seen anything, and I said "Well, other than the basic concern of a half dozen officers hanging about tonight, no, nothing that I could think of." He then said something about domestic disturbance and young love and then drove off. Two units still here and a handful of officers still talking with the people I assume were involved.

What is this?

I was born in 1977, lived in a house my parents built for a few months. Jobs changed, and I lived in Austin, TX for a few years in a place my parents bought. 1980, jobs changed and we moved to Colorado Springs, where we lived for a bit in a place my parents bought. Parents split, house sold, lived for a while in a house that was rented. Situation changed, moved to a house my mother bought in '87. Things changed, move to California to live with my father in '92. Hit the age of majority in 95 and rented a room for several years in a house rented with others. Hit an apartment complex at the beginning of '99. Another in mid-2002. Landed in my current apartment a couple months ago.

So, context aside, here's my query:

I've seen more furniture, seen more neighbors carting off bags of stuff to the dumpster, etc. in the last couple weeks than any other time in my life. When you try to take out the regular trash every week and find the dumpsters full of furniture, is that just a quirk of the locality, or is it an indicator about how fucked-up the economy is getting?

Maybe I should get my cat one of these....

http://view.break.com/293055 - Watch more free videos

(found via BoingBoing)

Navel gazing and other maritime observation.

So, yesterday was my birthday. Some of my friends took to trying to address birthday greetings in as many places online as they could (I'm taking notes of the ones they missed for future reference.)


Boo Already led that charge, and apparently also found a picture of me from my youth. It appears to be circa 8th grade. I was a weird looking kid.

Viscous Platypus offered "Pants on a Stick", with the explicit instructions to watch for splinters. Curious.


The girl made me a cake out of meatloaf and mashed potatoes (with a layer of bacon in the middle) Delicious, and I'll be eating a lot of meatloaf this week.

Otherwise, aside from picking a fight with a librarian, further proving my inability to fly a kite, and receiving somewhat disjoint instructions on how to jump out of a window into a dumpster (thank you, Awed Job), it was a pretty relaxing day.

Quote of the day.

"Viral marketing connects people with nothing to say to people with nothing to do. Ideally, in an abattoir or a deep, tar-filled ravine."

-Merlin Mann (via Twitter)

Ongoing Dispute #10: The end all edition.

One last time.

• Three cars were involved in a crash, and one car was on fire, 5:45pm


• Bees made a hive inside a water meter and started to swarm, 9:27am


• A tree was knocked over, and a car bumper was attached to it, 5:56am


• An alleged drunken driver hit a parked car, then walked across the street and punched out a mirror of another car, 12:48am


• A man who appeared to be intoxicated fell off a skateboard and bled, 10:12pm


• A car and a bicycle collided, and the driver and the bicyclist were seen arguing, 12:40pm


• An employee at the kite store on the pier reported the theft of a unique kite and then saw it being flown between Towers 3 and 5, 12:01pm


• People were seen running and screaming after someone may have arrived at a party with a gun, 12:24am


• Five male juveniles were setting off M-80s and firecrackers in a clubhouse area. The caller said the boys were "rude." 7:25pm


• A man in a four-door vehicle crashed through a fence and into a swimming pool. A caller said the man got out of the vehicle, which was sinking, and he appeared to be drunk. The man was arrested on suspicion of DUI, 4:12pm


• A caller said a man who was walking a small bulldog had kicked the dog five times and threw it against a wall, 1:13pm


• A woman said the 7-year-old boy she was babysitting had run away. She said the boy did the same thing a week ago. An officer noted the woman seemed more upset that he left again than concerned. The boy was found and the babysitter said she was quitting, 12:09pm


• A caller said one male and three female teen "skinheads" were playing "vulgar music" on an mp3 player inside a business, 10:36am


• Bees made a hive on the base of a light post, 7:40am


• A male hotel guest said his 58-year-old girlfriend hit him with an iron and he was bleeding. The woman called and said she picked up the iron because the man was strangling her, 4:27am


• Someone was using a "very loud leaf blower." 2:28am


• A black Mercedes Benz struck a child, 6:45pm


• A caller said two drunken female teens were fighting because one was trying to keep the other from driving and had taken her keys. During the fight, one girl's bikini was ripped off, 4:18pm


• A caller said a small blue car was "going about 2 miles per hour" in the center lane, impeding traffic. An officer stopped the driver and noted her license was suspended, 11:17am


• A man said a credit card company called him and notified him of fraudulent activity on a credit card. He said he left the card and other property under a floor mat in his car. When he went to check for them, he noticed his 1996 Saturn SL1 had been stolen, 9:04am


• A drunken man in his 30s was humping the ground on the beach near Tower 4, 4:58pm


• A caller said a neighbor had been throwing cat feces over a common fence and into the caller's pool, 3:18pm


• A caller said a 15-year-old girl wearing "a small outfit with heavy makeup" appeared to be prostituting herself near the street corner. An officer contacted the girl, who said she had just eaten at Chipotle and was walking to her boyfriend's house, 1:37pm


• A caller said a man took a picture of her license plate and then leaned into her window and began yelling at her, accusing her of stalking him and threatening to hurt her. Officers contacted the man and forced him to delete the photo from his cell phone, 9:53am


• A tan medium-sized dog without tags wandered into a store, 5:45am


• A woman was screaming from her second-story apartment, "Don't strangle me," and "Somebody help me." 10:47pm


• There was a huge swarm of bees on a light pole. The swarm was as big as a basketball, 7:19pm


• A caller said when he returned from vacation, two $800 guitars and a $700 amplifier were missing. The person who was watching his house took them to a pawn shop, 5:43pm


• Someone stole the caller's dog out of her back yard, 3:41pm


• A caller was crying hysterically and said someone was going to come over and bash in her head. The police called the suspect who promised to talk their problems out next time instead of leaving "nasty" messages, 8:39am


• A caller said they received a threatening e-mail that said their life was going to end unless they called a specific number and said a password, 7:38am


• A man who was washing a garbage can said a man in a white pickup truck tried to run him over. The victim said the man in the truck cursed at him and said it was not a good time to be making so much noise, 12:33am

So what have we learned? Shit happens.

By popular request, I won't end OD entirely, but just the scheduled updates. Save it for when I see something really good or have nothing better to post.

(and again, as always, source: OC Register

Ongoing Dispute #9

Penultimate week. Big grand finale next week, unless there isn't. Let's get on with this.

• A man allegedly hit a woman with a weed whacker, 5:52pm


• A digital camera and two pairs of sunglasses were taken from a car, but a putter and an Army jacket were left inside, 5:37pm


• A transient entered a business and ate complimentary hot dogs, 4:54pm


• A woman said her daughter's arm was caught in a grocery cart, 12:53pm


• A business employee said a laptop was stolen from the business. The caller said he did some research and thought he had figured out another employee had stolen it. When the caller confronted the suspect, the suspect denied involvement and then quit, 4:27pm


• A female caller told a Hyatt employee "bombs would go off" if a wedding being held at the hotel was not stopped. The suspect said "14 people in jackets" were going to "blow the place up." 9:48am (note: logged as "Vandalism")


• A group of transients had "set up camp" in some brush, 7:06am


• A 12-year-old boy wearing only one shoe came to a resident's house and asked to use a phone. The resident refused but requested that police check on the boy, 6:30pm


• Lifeguards requested police assistance with crowd control. A man was in full arrest after suffering a heart attack. The subject was transported to a hospital and later died, 1:50pm


• A caller said two pit bulls were off leash and ran up to his son and growled, 9:36am


• Police responded to a burglary alarm on a pet store. An officer noticed a bird had gotten loose and noted the bird may have set off the alarm, 7:45am


• A resident said a man was in a neighbor's back yard and had broken into the neighbor's residence. The suspect fled on a stolen bicycle and police discovered there were two burglary victims. Officers arrested a man after a search, 3:52am


• A caller heard a car slam on its breaks and then hit something. Another caller saw the crash and said a silver Toyota Camry struck a pole and then left. Officers followed a trail of fluid to a nearby residence and located the car, 1:45am


• A caller said a bobcat was in her back yard, 9:35pm


• A man with a hammer was fighting with a woman with a small bat, 9:13pm


• A caller said two women in their 40s were sitting on a bench in front of a video rental store, groping each other. He said he felt it was inappropriate for his children to have to witness the display, 5:21pm


• A woman attempted to cash a counterfeit check for $3,000. When a bank teller asked for identification, the woman left, 1:57pm


• Two males and a female with a Yorkshire terrier were drinking from a bottle of Smirnoff, 1:20pm


• A caller said two males were selling drugs in a parking structure and an older man in a cowboy hat was "supervising" them. Officers searched the two subjects and were unable to find any contraband. The "supervisor" was a transient known as a "cowboy." 12:10pm


• A caller said a large picture frame with nine or more pictures of a "pornographic nature" was sitting on a median, surrounded by broken glass. The caller said she instructed her son to travel a different route to avoid seeing the offensive material, 11:22am (note, filed as "Found Property")


• A caller said two teenage girls were taking off their tank tops and two male teenagers were urinating on walls, 7:00pm


• A caller said a man wearing a "generic police uniform" baring fake-looking badges not specifying a city was inside a store. Officers contacted the man and determined he was a V.A. Hospital police captain, 6:05pm


• A caller said a passenger in a Scion was holding a gun to the driver's head. Officers stopped the vehicle and determined the two were "playing with a replica revolver." 5:32pm


• A caller said a man hit a woman in the face and knocked off her glasses, 4:37pm


• A man said his two female roommates had locked him out of the bathroom. Officers responded and the door was unlocked. The man called later and said they re-locked the door and kicked him in the leg. He said the women were "evil." 6:32am


• A caller said a man was taking pictures of young girls. Officers contacted the man and determined the pictures were taken of the man's wife and surfers, 4:42pm


• A nail went into a child's foot on a playground at Central Park, 1:49pm


• A caller said he saw a man trying to break into his work vehicle with a slim jim. The caller confronted the man, who claimed the vehicle belonged to his girlfriend and then fled. He was later arrested, 9:26am


• An intoxicated U.S. Marine said his friends beat him up in a parking lot and zip-tied him while he was waiting for his girlfriend to pick him up. Officers responded to talk to the man and said he was "uncooperative." 12:07am

What have we learned? Oh, probably nothing. At least nature is bringing in the bobcats to fill the coyote gap.

(oh yeah, in case you hadn't noticed a pattern, the source is the OC Register)

Ongoing Dispute #8

Just going through the motions. Definitely ending at OD#10. Maybe I'll try to do something special for it.

• A caller said 80-100 people were at a party and a gang member was flashing a gun. Someone heard a loud bang and said someone was shot. Officers determined no one had been shot but there was blood in the residence, 1:48am


• A man who had been drinking fell off his bike on some stairs near Hamburger Restaurant. A caller said he was going in and out of consciousness and had a bad injury, 12:12am


• A resident said a 5-year-old girl in a neighboring house was "screaming bloody murder" and she thought it didn't sound right. Officers determined the girl was screaming because she wasn't allowed to have cake for not finishing her salad, 8:25pm


• A woman said she was assaulted in a park on Saturday night. The woman's daughter said her mother had passed out on a field after drinking and she picked her up. An officer determined the woman's eye was swollen from a bug bite, 5:25pm


• A grocery store employee attempted to serve an employee with a restraining order to keep him from continuing to shop at the store and the man refused and kept shopping. Officers arrested him on an unrelated charge and served him the order in jail, 10:47am


• A resident said her 2-year-old daughter was missing from her house and her husband was looking for her in their neighborhood. Officers responded and found the child inside, sleeping under some pillows, 9:34am


• A caller said about six cars parked and "gang bangers" and "hookers" got out of the cars and all walked toward a local business in a group, 1:13am


• Police and firefighters responded to a call about 30 people fighting. Another caller said a woman was screaming and about a dozen young males were carrying a sign. On the scene, a woman said someone threw a bottle at a vehicle, causing damage, 12:14am


• A resident said a man and woman had been fighting and smashing plates in a garage. Officers contacted the couple, who said they were "packrats" and had been breaking bottles to make more room in the garage, 11:23pm


• A swarm of bees had taken up residence in a hole in a light pole. A caller said the bottom of the pole wasn't even visible because there were so many bees, 8:58pm


• An ice cream man made "rude comments" to a man's girlfriend and the man struck the ice cream truck with his fist, 6:57pm


• Nine dogs were running around off-leash at a park, 5:09pm


• A motorist said three teenage girls in a black Ford Focus appeared to be drinking. They pulled over at one point and switched drivers. The caller followed the girls and one of them "flipped him off." Officers caught up with the Focus and arrested someone, 3:07pm


• Two female riders fell off two horses and the horses were loose and running through traffic near the equestrian center, 1:27pm


• A resident said an older man who was on the board of directors for her housing complex was "stalking" her. She said she saw the man hiding down the street and watching her and he was "creepy." 12:16pm


• A large swarm of bees was above restrooms near the beach. A city bee expert responded and said there were "too many bees to handle right now" and "they might go nuts and sting beach goers." 11:21am


• A caller said her husband was wrestling with a "gangster" who he had caught trying to steal the caller's laundry. The man apologized and left on a bike, 1:07am


• A caller and five friends pulled into a beach lot and jumped out of the car to help stop a "really bad water balloon fight," leaving the keys in the car. Participants started to hit them. While the caller and his friends were fighting, his car was stolen, 9:37pm


• A teenage boy was huffing a can of Dust-Off, 6:45pm


• A man in his 50s stole a cart full of groceries and left in a blue Mazda. The man was located at his residence and the groceries were returned. The man was not arrested because he had an "illness." 5:48pm


• A resident said a neighbor threw a balloon full of urine at her house. She claimed the incident wasn't the first and the crimes were "religious harassment." The caller said the police department "participates in covering up the crimes of her neighbors." 4:35pm


• A woman, who had been caught stealing hours earlier at the same store, had returned and was attempting to conceal items in a pillowcase. She requested to go into the restroom with the merchandise, where she was seen smoking from a glass pipe earlier. 1:57pm


• Someone poured paint stripper gel on the entire body of a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe. Damage is estimated at $7,000, 8:15am


• A caller said he got in a confrontation with someone and the other party spit on his truck and threw spaghetti on it, 7:12am


• A man and woman were swimming naked in a community pool. A resident of the complex tried to detain the couple but they left in different directions. The caller and another resident chased the male half in a vehicle. The offenders appeared to be drunk, 7:59pm


• A woman said one homeless person was engaging in lewd activity with another homeless person. Officers responded and a "belligerent" woman began yelling. She refused to allow the officers to investigate. The woman may have been the caller, 2:25pm


• A caller said four young males on their way to school pelted his house with peaches. He said the vandalism was an ongoing problem, 8:11am (WINNER. ONGOING DISPUTE REFERENCE.)


• There were bees covering a bike near the lifeguard headquarters on the service road. The police said if the boy, the owner of the bike, sprays the bees with anything but water they will start stinging people.


• A man was masturbating in the cab of a truck and had been there for about 40 minutes. The caller could see the truck from her kitchen window, 2:30pm


• Near the bike area, a bike and helmet were completely covered in bees. There were about 500 bees, 2:26pm


• A male transient was punching the air and dropped his pants when a woman rode by on her bike, 10:16am


• A woman was stealing cookies and an energy bar from a store. She gave it back when confronted and left yelling and swearing. She was also seen at 7-11, Walgreens and Wal-Mart, 9:30am


• An employee called to say that they have been receiving threats because they did not let a 5-year-old boy used the restroom. The boy was not allowed in the bathroom because of insurance restrictions, 9:08am (you may have read of this elsewhere)


• The caller said her house had been egged and forked and there was toilet paper, mustard and mayonnaise all over. This was the sixth time it had occured in three weeks.The family had installed cameras after the first time it happened, 9:02am

And so it was. Don't get me started on that 5-year-old vs. public restrooms thing. I've been to that place. It's a stinking mall with lots of public restrooms. Definitely nothing to phone in threats over.

As for that whole missing bees debacle the last few years, it looks like they've been found. If anyone asks, I'm going to say the weird coyote (R.I.P.) was helping keep them in check.

(as always, source: OC Register)

Sticking with this.

Something I said today that I really believe:

The problem with hacks and kludges isn't that they're quick and dirty. The problem is that people so often forget the two big things: What is or isn't a kludge, and when a kludge is appropriate.

(hint: skating the deadline for a one-off demonstration might be a good time for a hack. Provided that your spit and bailing wire solution holds long enough to do the job. But don't pretend it's a permanent fix or a substitute for really knowing where the gaps are.)

Impending Ice Cubes.

A bag of over-ripe cherries, a paring knife, an ice cube tray and about ten minutes later...



I should have some slightly-better-than-average ice cubes this summer.

There's also some quickly-aging fresh herbs that I need to take care of in similar fashion.