2008 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

2007 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

2006 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

Attack of the Puffster
(Sunday, December 24th, 2006)
A friend of mine thought it would be funny to put her bird Puffy on my head. Cute bird, fun musical churp. . . very pointy claws. And it was at that point that Puffy decided to clamp down with both claws to (im guessing) let me know he was there. (which explains the goofier than usual look on my face. . .Later, crapped on my leg on his way down -- which amused my dogs when i got home. For some. . . [ more here ]


All NY2006 Trip Posts
(Saturday, December 9th, 2006)
Newyork2006 was a business trip up around Christmas time. I spent most days and night hunched over in a office cube. . . but was able to break out for a few hours to walk around. . . NY2006 -- Skyline at Night(Friday, December 8th, 2006)Finally did figure out how to get to the top of 30 Rock. At street level, it was 30 degrees w/ a light wind. At 70+ floors up, it was 30 degrees and like. . . [ more here ]


NY2006 -- Random Run-in with Keith Olbermann
(Friday, December 8th, 2006)
On the way through the door to 30 Rock, i see Keith Olbermann walking out the other. After shaking off the "what the hell, was that?!?" -- i think to myself that i shouldnt be that idiot who when they see a celeb they throw away both tact & shame as they run & tackle their target in ways that call for both restraining orders & weaponry. And then I realize I had a camera. So I do a quick 180.. . . [ more here ]


November Winter Blast
(Thursday, November 30th, 2006)
Weather around here went from 80 degrees and sunny to 30 degrees and ice the next day. All of the news channels made it sound like the end of the world. Drivers started running into trees before the ice even started, and supermarkets got cleared out. Wasnt as bad as forecasted, but hopefully its a sign of a decent winter this year. . . Forecasts were for a couple of inches. . . but only a light. . . [ more here ]


Me and LuLu
(Sunday, November 26th, 2006)
Lulu and i have come a long way in the last year or so since coming to the property. Back then, she would never have been anywhere near calm enough for me to be able to scratch her nose while sitting down on the ground. But that was then, and this day i spent an hour or so doing this while talking to the friend who took this pic. . .. . . [ more here ]


Random Rocking Climbing Pics
(Sunday, November 12nd, 2006)
Random pics from my latest rocking climbing exploits. . .. . . [ more here ]


Happy Dogs
(Saturday, October 7th, 2006)
Caught up with a long time friend was in town tonight and she had never seen pics of the kids. Took these on the way out the door . . . (Mocksee is the short one thats mostly orange & Dakotah is the big one thats mostly white). As you can tell from their facial expressions, theyre very angry at the world. Thats Dakotahs leadrope hanging from his collar. I can spend some major bank on the . . . [ more here ]


All AK2006 Trip Posts
(Sunday, October 1st, 2006)
Alaska2006 all started with a American Airlines Promo offer celebrating the 25th anniversary of their frequent flyer program. Back in May, they advertised AAdvantage Award trips for 25% less miles – and had something like 360,000 miles hoarded away. It wasn’t hard to do the convincing. . . So I ended up with a first class ticket from Dallas to Anchorage, Alaska for 5 bucks (and a pile of. . . [ more here ]


AK2006 -- Me Trying to Get a Decent Shot at the Arctic Circle
(Wednesday, September 27th, 2006)
Tried to get some pics of myself at the Arctic Circle marker, with varied results. . .. . .doah. . . damn timer. . .. . .i had didnt think i had a gut that day. . .. . .better lighting, still same gut. . .. . . [ more here ]


FAQs from those Damned Forwarded Emails
(Sunday, September 10th, 2006)
How would you describe your sense of humor? Sarcastic (Duh) Do you drink? Sometimes, but only with friends. Ive got a bottle of peppermint schnapps in my freezer i havent touched in over a year What personal goal is most important to you? Happiness How would you describe your political inclination? I dont subscribe to a blanket political stance on paper, but based on the current choices -- id. . . [ more here ]


Downtown Pittsburgh at Night
(Saturday, August 26th, 2006)
Though the job sent me to Pittsburgh for some vendor training (and I was insanely busy with a big project) -- i was able to get out and about on the last night of the trip. Now ive been to Pittsburgh twice in my life. This time, and back on the Roadtrip2002. And it doesnt cease to amaze me that on both times, i managed to get my ass lost. Its not like pittsburgh is an overly complicated town to. . . [ more here ]


Dakotah and Mocksee
(Tuesday, January 31th, 2006)
Dakotah and Mocksee were literally found on the side of the road, laying over the dead body of a third puppy. Now they spend their days tearing up everything my backyard and barking at the neighbors kids. Mocksee is the aggressive one of the pair. Shes given her brother more than a few wounds in their playing -- though as theyve gotten older, the taste of blood is apparently not as sweet.. . . [ more here ]

2005 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

White Christmas at Fort Marcinko (Sort Of)
(Monday, December 26th, 2005)
This was the first white Christmas ive ever seen in Texas, such as it was. Barely any of it stuck, and it was all gone by the afternoon -- but it was a sight. . .Light dusting on the front bushes, about a quarter of an inch deep drift. . .. . .barely stuck to the front yard grass. With the sun, it all melted fast. . .. . . pretty much all that stayed, was what was directly in the shadows. . .. .. . . [ more here ]


James Lipton Personality Test
(Saturday, December 24th, 2005)
1) What is your favorite word? Quirky -- kinda rolls off the tounge2) What is your least favorite word? Castration -- horses or not, i still and will always cover my ears everytime they talk about it at the ranch3) What turns you on? Being able to trully explore something4) What sound do you love? The sound of the wind rustling through an overgrown field or the leaves of a tree. Add a stary night. . . [ more here ]


All SAN FRANCISCO2005 Trip Posts
(Saturday, August 27th, 2005)
I was on a business trip in San Francisco this week. Twelve hour days nearly every day until the last kept me from exploring as much as i wanted. . . but when i could, i definately did. All SAN FRANCISCO2005 Posts SFO2005 -- Alcatraz(Friday, August 26th, 2005)I was able to get over the Alcatraz and explore before my flight left. Somewhat expensive, but worth the money. NPS gives all. . . [ more here ]

2004 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

Christmas Lights: Legacy Town Centre
(Saturday, December 25th, 2004)
Some random shots of the Christmas Lights at the Plano Legacy Town Centre. . .Light covered oak trees against the blue accent lights. . .. . .from a different angle. . .. . .a lightbulb forest. . .. . .closer look at the lit up tree trunks. . .. . .over a peaceful bench. . .. . . the lit up Christmas Tree in the back of the development. . .. . .reflections from across the pond. . .. . .spot lit. . . [ more here ]


Christmas Lights: Richardson Public Library
(Saturday, December 25th, 2004)
City of Richardson has been putting up these Christmas Lights for as long as i can remember. These are the first pics ive been able to take of them. . .Every year, these oak trees are turned into big lightbulbs. . .. . .closeup of the dangling lights. . .. . .with the Santas Wonderland display in front. . .. . .tied to the trunk. . .. . . it was so cold that night, that the part of the. . . [ more here ]


Full Moon over Fort Marcinko
(Friday, November 5th, 2004)
Some random shots of the full moon lighting up the skies and clouds over the house.Moon behind the front of the fort. . .. . .the full moon backlighting the fast moving clouds. . .. . .moonlit watertower with the clouds above.. . . [ more here ]


All AUSTIN2004 Trip Posts
(Thursday, November 4th, 2004)
Austin2004 was just a weekend roadtrip to visit an old friend who had moved down there about a year earlier. Unfortunately it also caused me to miss another friends wedding as i couldnt seem to operate a calendar that weekend (oops). It also helped that i had a rental, as my car was still being fixed after the accident. Whatever the case, it was a relaxing drive down the backroads to and fro.. . . [ more here ]


Lunar Eclipse
(Thursday, October 28th, 2004)
Some random pics of the lunar eclipse from the field next to the fort. . .The pregame. . .. . .gametime.. . . [ more here ]


Car Accident
(Monday, October 11th, 2004)
Got myself into an accident on this day, the first one in 11 years. The other driver had run the red light, admited it to the police and me -- but later tried to (unsuccessfully) tried to tell my insurance company otherwise. If i had about 2 more feet, i would have been able to get around her with some swerving. Lives were saved though, regardless. Had i not swerved, i would have t-boned the. . . [ more here ]


All ARIZONA2004 Posts
(Monday, March 29th, 2004)
Arizona2004 was ultimately an excuse to revisit some stops originally hit on a roadtrip back when i was 15 and only had a learners permit -- and visiting the grandparents i had not seen in a few years. Starting with a flight into Phoenix, i drove to Flag the night i arrived and stayed there overnight. The next morning, i looped through Sunset Crater up through the Painted Desert. . . around. . . [ more here ]


Storm Clouds over Fort Marcinko
(Sunday, March 21st, 2004)
Had some random spring storms roll past the house today. These are some shots of the thunderhead cloud tops.. . . [ more here ]


All FLORIDA2004 Posts
(Wednesday, March 3rd, 2004)
Florida 2004 was a random family overnight roadtrip. After flying in, we drove down coastline to Cape Canaveral, took in some sights, and hit the hotel. Next day, some more sights and back up the interstate. This was actually my first trip to florida. Other than the places noted below, we also walked through the Ponce De Leon Fountain of Youth Monument in St. Augustine. I dont remember why. . . [ more here ]


Snow Around Denton
(Saturday, February 14th, 2004)
Along with the Fort, all of Denton County was also burried in the freak snowstorm. These shots were taken when i got out to explore. University of North Texas was burried. . .. . .somebody has a sense of humor. . .. . .UNT Clocktower covered with snow. . .. . .snow covered UNT trees. . .. . .Old Denton County Courthouse. dusted with the snow . .. . .streets were slick, but not really icy since. . . [ more here ]


Snow at Fort Marcinko
(Saturday, February 14th, 2004)
Nearly 5 inches of snow fell out at the Fort on Valentines Day 2004. Very weird, as it was a somewhat warm winter, and when this stuff comes, it usually ends up being sleet or ice or freezing rain or anything but snow. None the less, this late Winter Wonderland was the most snow accumulation in the last 25 years. Fun as it was, it was mostly gone by the end of the day. The snow covered. . . [ more here ]

2003 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

Ballpark Cheap Seats
(Saturday, July 5th, 2003)
Went out to the Ballpark to catch another game. We ended up in the cheap seats in right field under the scoreboard. View from the cheap seats. . .. . .Storms are moving in from the west (though they never got here). . .. . .sun went down fast. . .. . .but lit up the clouds on the way. . .. . .outbound plane from DFW. . .. . . night game. . .. . .we must have won. . .. . .view of the Ballpark in. . . [ more here ]


Garland Fireworks
(Friday, July 4th, 2003)
These are the 2003 Star Spangled Fourth Fireworks in Garland, Texas. Year after year, its one of the best shows to see. This year lived up to the reputation. Boom. . .. . . boom boom. . .. . . boom, boom, boom. . .. . . [ more here ]


Star Spangled Fourth
(Friday, July 4th, 2003)
Here are a handful of scenes from the Star Spangled Fourth Festival.This oldtime theater in Downtown Garland always seems spiffy in its neon. . .. . .the festival ferris wheel.. . . [ more here ]


DART Stuff at Night
(Friday, July 4th, 2003)
To and from the Star Spangled Fourth, some DART things caught my camera. This is the clocktower at the Downtown Garland Station. . . with the Star Spangled Fourth Ferris Wheel behind. . .. . . different ange, facing the train station itself. . .. . .a very quiet tunnel at Cityplace Station. . .. . .historic Dallas railroad pictures on the tunnel walls. . .. . .Plano Parker Station. . .. . .woosh.. . . [ more here ]


Ballpark in Arlington
(Sunday, June 22nd, 2003)
Went to the Ballpark in Arlington and saw Raphael Palmero hit his 505th career homerun. . .We had seats in the third deck, where we could see damn near everything. . .. . . from the upper walkways, you can get a good luck at the Six Flags Roller Coasters. . .. . .and the ponds just outside the Ballpark. . .. . .night fell. . .. . . there were decent crowds that night. . .. . .good view of home. . . [ more here ]

2002 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

Night over Austin Ranch
(Saturday, December 14th, 2002)
On this night (er, morning) i had just gotten back to the apartment from a christmas party. The skies were clear, and there was a mild chill in the air. The views at night were one of the reasons why i enjoyed living at Austin Ranch. At the time, they were just building the complex -- so there wasnt a whole lot of people out there. And eventually, i ended up in a building on top of a hill facing. . . [ more here ]


All ROADTRIP2002 Posts
(Monday, December 9th, 2002)
Roadtrip 2002 started off as just a trip to Ohio to watch a friend get married. Then work burnout set in. And no vacation time was used in 2002. And i had a new car with only a thousand or so miles on it. And i was working for an understanding manager. It ended up being a roundabout way of taking 3 1/2 weeks off and just seeing the country and friends from here and there. Starting in. . . [ more here ]

1999 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

All TAMU1999 Posts
(Sunday, November 28th, 1999)
Thanksgiving 1999 was spent down in Houston some of those friends, and on the way back up we stopped at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas to pay our respects at the Bonfire Memorial and walk through the George Bush Presidential LibraryAll TAMU1999 PostsTAMU1999 -- George Bush Presidential Library(Sunday, November 28th, 1999)On the way back from Houston, we also stopped and played. . . [ more here ]

1992 [LS] Life Stuff Posts

Waldo Meets Waldo (DMN)
(Wednesday, June 3rd, 1992)
From the Dallas Morning News on June 7th, 1992: "Waldo lookalikes Luke Whithread (left), 7, and Christopher J. Marcinko, 17, talk Monday about the new summer reading club at the Garland Public Library. Waldo is the tital character of the Wheres Waldo? books, a series created by British illustrator Martin Handford. The object of the books is to find Waldo in the elaborate settings of each story.. . . [ more here ]