Office Linebacker Weighs-In

Office Linebacker and Gus "Cole-Train" Cole voice acter Terry Tate offered his opinion on Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin

This Is a Bold Statement

Lots of people like, trust, and watch this guy.
His take on investments in the stock market is interesting.

Doomed to Repeat History

You know the old saying "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it".

Well, it strikes again. Here's George Carlin in 1988.

PRK; One Week Later

OK, some people know, others don't. Last Thursday, I had laser eye correction surgery. It's something I've wanted to do for quite a while, but haven't put back the money, and I don't want to finance it. Well, I put back the money so I moved forward.

First step was the exam. For background, I have been told multiple times that with my needed correction and "eye issues" (astigmatism & myopia) that I was an ideal candidate. For the most part, it was true. Except one minor snag: epithelial membrane disorder. The epithelium is your eye skin. 70% or more of people have a normal one. Mine was "loose". That means that with traditional IntraLasik, the flap may not heal well and cause problems in the future. Still no biggie. I just need PRK. Same lasers are used. However the recovery time is longer - more like 4-5 days as opposed to 1-2 for Lasik. I say go for it.

So I go in Thursday and get to it. A little Valium for nerves and a few dozen different eye drops for numbing...ready to roll! They call me under the laser & I focus on the little green light. They tell me "an instrument" will briefly obstruct my view, but keep focused where I was. The "instrument" can most closely be compared to an electric tooth brush. They use that to remove the epithelium. Sounds freaky. Well, it was a little, but I was high so it didn't matter. Did that to both eyes and it was on the the laser portion of the surgery.

For me, the laser was the all new ALLEGRETTO laser. It was reported to be really fast, really accurate, and good for things like limiting halos and whatnot. Right eye: Less than 12 seconds of actual laser work! Left eye: Less than 15 seconds of actual laser work! Heck yes it was fast. I could sort of smell the burning, but it was mild. Otherwise the procedure really was a piece of cake.

Recovery Thursday I took sleeping pills as to just sleep all day, as that's the best way to heal. Friday was my first follow-up visit. Oddly, I was seeing 20/20 already. This is really rare for PRK, as peak vision isn't attained for a minimum of 8 weeks. Still, they were pleased as was I. Light sensitivity was the worst part. To keep the discomfort to a minimum (not pain mind you, just discomfort), I was taking Vicodin. Good stuff. Saturday was the most uncomfortable. It was sort of hard to rest, and I couldn't see as well. Light sensitivity was REALLY bad. Sunday was better, but I really just wanted to sleep as much as I could. Monday was followup visit #2. Vision had diminished to about 20/60 in the right eye, 20/40 in the left. They sort of expected that. Also at this visit they removed the protective contact lenses. That really helped with the light sensitivity thing.

I stayed home until Thursday (yesterday) with a sick kid. The first day back to work, my eyes were exhausted and somewhat dry. Pretty much everything was a little blurry. Just keep using those eye drops and it does improve.

So today. Well, things are really looking up. I'd say it's about 20/20 again in the left. The right, about 20/40.

Overall, it was well, well worth it. Dr. Gary Tylock did my procedure. He was a real professional. Discussed the surgery with me ahead of time. He had it done to him. He addressed any questions or concerns too. His staff was great also, from start to finish. I didn't know what to expect. Now I do, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I wish Lasik had been an option simply from a recovery standpoint, but it wasn't. Still, after about 25 years in glasses/contacts, it's really cool to not need them anymore.

Scatter Shooting

• --Have you seen the movie STEP BROTHERS yet? You should. I saw it yesterday and it kicks ass. This is the first time I've heard the words "nutsack" and "drum set" so closely related.
  Also, this points to how some movie reviewers don't get it. They get caught up in useless bullshit. The Ft. Worth Star Telegram gave this masterpiece 2 of 5 stars. Meanwhile that POS assfest musical Mama Mia got 4.
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• --Sometimes it's nice to help friends. A buddy came by yesterday to work on his big ass SUV. He's taking his family for a visit to Tennessee (his parent's house) and wanted to make it as fuel efficient as possible. We did lots of little things: cleaned the plenum at the EGR valve, cleaned the throttle body out, cleaned the MAF sensors, put in a K & N filter, put on a new fuel filter, etc. The pain in the ass is that it was 107 in the shade yesterday. Still, I didn't mind. This guy ran the nail gun on my fence project this past March. He nailed every one of the 800 or so pickets.
  After we finished yesterday, we went to eat BBQ. Good stuff.
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• --My boss is a god damned idiot. He thinks forcing us to see students on a walk-in basis will somehow stop them from complaining. Nothing will stop them from complaining except being clear that there is a certain line not to cross. The more he bends, the more demanding they become. They whine, threaten, and pout. And he gives in some more. What he doesn't know is that his position as director is in major jeopardy. Crap I hope they appoint me.
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• --Went on a 3+ hour motorcycle ride Friday night. Man that was great. It had finally cooled of a tad. AND, I got a new seat. A MUSTANG seat. My tailbone has been begging for it since day one. Any of you motorcycle riders with seat issues need to check out the Mustang. They're pricy, but worth every penny.
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• --Had a good fucking time playing Gears Saturday night. Full rooms and very close games.
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• --I farted at breakfest this morning, and it made my eyes water. I like to stop at Chic-Fil-A. Good sweet tea, and they have biscuits & gravy. Today, not so good.
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• --NERDFEST IS COMING. Once again, I have to skip the LAN. Instead, I'll be going to Indianapolis for GenCon, the biggest board game convention in the US. We have a booth there, and last year was my first time going. I don't play board games, but there are 3 of us who ride up together and man the VixenTor Games booth. Nights are a good time. Expect pictures this year.