May 1st, 2008
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Welcome to everyone who got here because of the TWO Perfect Post Awards I was given for this post. Many thanks to Shelli and Miss Britt for awarding these to me.
Thanks so much for coming by! - Karl
The ongoing 100 Things About Karl list continues.
- Knock on wood, I have never broken a bone. That’s pretty amazing, I think, considering some of the things I’ve done in my life. I have, however, torn ligaments in my left foot. I tripped down several stairs when I was in technical school in the Air Force. Wore a cast and used crutches for six weeks, which was kind of nice, since it meant I didn’t have to march to school during that time. Was a pain in the ass bathing, though. I admit I milked it for as long as I could. I hated marching. Really, it’s amazing I made it in the Air Force. I’m so not a conformist in group-think.
My first computer was a Timex-Sinclair 1000. That was 1982, I think. It cost $99 and hooked up to your television. I learned BASIC programming using that sucker. You used a cassette drive to save and load programs. I programmed an automatic Dungeons & Dragons character generator. Very cool. You know, in a completely geeky way.- I’m part Irish, part Italian, and the rest is unknown. My father was adopted at a young age so the Erikson comes from his adopted family (Swedish). Odds are good that he’s Jewish since his birth name was Solomon. So that means I’m a great drinker, have fast-growing hair follicles, and am fully qualified to whine my ass off.
- I started shaving when I was 14. I was forced to. Seems that nobody liked my baby hair mustache. I thought it was cool. Now I hate shaving so much that I only do it a couple of times a week, sometimes less. Some find that sexy in a man; I just find it lazy. Oops, I’m not supposed to call myself lazy, according to half a dozen therapists.
- I have three unfinished manuscripts. The first is my autobiography, which I haven’t touched in years. The other two are novels (one a sci-fi mystery kind of thing, the other a romantic comedy) that I began during National Novel Writing Month. All three are stuck on my old crashed computer’s hard drive. I’m getting itchy to do something with them, but will have to see about recovering the drive first. Yeah, procrastinate much?
- I’m a conservative, politically speaking. Some might say I’m actually a moderate, I don’t know. I just know that in all of the years I’ve been voting (ever since I voted for Reagan when I was freshly 18), I have never voted for a Democrat. Yes, that means I helped to elect the bozo we have in office now. I DID vote for Perot in 1992 because I wasn’t happy with either party and wanted to make a statement. A statement was made, but I still think it was a wasted vote. Third parties never make it in America. Never have, never will. This irks me. I mean, would you be satisfied if you went into a grocery store and only had two choices of cereal or two choices of soda? Nope, me either.
I have frequent nightmares, many of them so intense they wake me up, and I’m a pretty sound sleeper. Sometimes I’ll wake myself up because I’m screaming, not only in my dream but in reality. I’ve also woken up because I fell off my bed a few times, kicking and fighting off my phantasmal attackers. A psychiatrist once asked me if I knew how many nightmares the average person has. I guessed three or four a month. He told me, “One a year.” That number still shocks me. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but regardless, I have at least three or four bad dreams a week. Part of the PTSD, I’m sure.- I hate hearing about other people’s dreams. It bores me to tears. I’d rather watch meat thaw. I hate reading about dreams in people’s blogs. I hate dream scenes in TV shows and movies because dreams don’t freaking matter! You’ll see something happen in a dream and then see the person wake up, which nullifies everything that just happened. The exception maybe being “Nightmares on Elm Street,” when most of the action happens in the dreams.
- I like being early. I used to be terminally tardy, often showing up 10-15 minutes late wherever I went. I didn’t WANT to be early because it seemed like a waste of time to just sit there for 5-10 minutes when that could have meant 5-10 more minutes of Internet time or TV. A friend told me that it was rude to be late and I’d never thought of it that way before. But I agree. When you show up late, you’re a distraction to the meeting or gathering…everyone has to stop and acknowledge your presence, and possibly catch you up on what you’ve missed. Being early is far less stressful for me, too. Yes, there are occasions when I’m late - traffic or whatnot - but I’d much rather show up two hours early for a flight than get there 45 minutes ahead. Gives me plenty of time to check in and relax in the terminal, read, have breakfast or lunch, check e-mail, etc.
- I cannot bear to watch live television most of the time. Ever since I got Tivo a few years ago, I now have to wait until a show is 20 minutes in before I start watching it. Hilly and I share this trait and we call that 20 minutes the “Tivo Buffer.” This is the amount of time that must pass before you can start watching the show and fast forward through all of the commercial breaks without interruption. Exceptions include “Lost” and “Jeopardy” and news.
35 Responses to “100 Things About Karl, Part Six”
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The Timex Sinclair 1000 (or its fraternal twin, the Sinclair ZX81) was a fun piece of machinery to play around with. The notion of a computer for under $100? Inconceivable!
Love the Tivo Buffer. The American Idol buffer is 59 minutes, just so you know.
Ever since we got a DVR a few years ago, I find myself constantly trying to fast forward through live tv. It’s such a disappointment to realize what you’re watching isn’t recorded!
Black Belt Mama - Can’t live without my Tivo.
Barnmouse - I know what you mean. Do it all the time.
“I hate hearing about other people’s dreams. It bores me to tears. I’d rather watch meat thaw.”
OK fine! So I won’t tell you about all my sexdreams that involved you… in your Superman outfit… Fine, fine, fine… You go watch meat thaw.
Wow I remember those Sinclairs! We had the zx Sprectrum (100?) in about 1981 and I remember my Dad trying to teach me “basic” (I was 10 years old). Remember the damn noise the cassettes made as the games loaded? 30+ minutes to load Pacman! My kids think I’m a dinosaur when I tell them stuff like this ;o)
There is nothing worse in the world than people telling you their dreams. Nothing. And when there is a group of people doing it, you just want to put your head in a blender.
You are quite the interesting character. I used to vote Republican, but now I don’t vote at all. I’m a shame and disgrace to America. They should throw me out.
But seriously? I don’t think any of the candidates this time are qualified to run our country. So I can’t, in good conscience, vote for any of them.
With the exception of live sports I Tivo virtually everything else. My Tivo makes me unbelievably happy.
American Idol is just UNWATCHABLE live. I would like to carry my TIVO with me everywhere…wouldn’t that be great? That way when people start telling you about their dreams…..you can FF thru them.
OK fine! So I won’t tell you about all my sexdreams that involved you… in your Superman outfit… Fine, fine, fine… You go watch meat thaw.
I have never broken a bone either. My theory is that you and I are indestructible.
We should form our own Justice Leage of America.
Yep, you and me on dreams…right there, dude. I don’t want to read a post about dreams. I still love that you and I are BFF when I am the opposite of conservative (but I won’t say the “L” word for fear of being associated with the likes of Michael Moore).
I am also chronically early, or at the minimum, exactly on time. I cannot stand it when people are late — THAT’S a waste of my time. My whole family is pretty anal about this, actually. In fact, what might have finally broken Chris and I is the fact that he was late for every single thing in his life — I’m not even kidding — and finally I got to the point where I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Was it the cars? was it the mess? Was it the lack of education or job security?” Nope, you were late one too many times. hahahaha.
Oh My God!!! I could have written this! I am actively scouring your archives to discern if I am you on some other plane… F’n Freaky
oh…. except the conservative part… I’m so left of center you would expect… eh hum… nevermind
Dan - Heh, exactly right.
Miss Anne - I understand where you’re coming from. I can’t NOT vote, though. I firmly believe it’s my responsibility as an American.
Lady Jaye - Agreed. Can’t do without it.
Radiomom - I wish!
Avitable - Wow, I just had a wicked case of deja vu.
Mr. Fabulous - We need to come up with some costumes, but I’m in.
Hilly - That’s just a small part of why I love you. We’re both fully capable of liking anyone despite politics.
Jessica - I honestly don’t think I could date someone who was terminally late. Just bugs me way too much.
Willie - That’s okay. Nobody is perfect.
My first computer was a commador 64. I was like 11 years old. I never learned any programming though.
I had to explain to my mother that is was rude to be chronically late. She had never thought of it that way either. She’s much better at being on time now.
Numbers 7 and 10, me too!
I had no idea that it was unusual to have nightmares so often. Both my sons and I scream, talk and laugh in our sleep. My youngest son sleepwalks and has night terrors. He’s only 4, so I have no idea what he could possible have been through. Oh. Except that his mom had cancer and abruptly stopped breastfeeding him and disappeared to the hospital for weeks at a time when he was a baby. I suppose that could have been traumatizing to his baby self. I seriously never thought of that until I just typed it out.
I can’t imagine!
With the exception of being stuck on a crashed hard drive, I’m right there with you on #5. Add a couple of screenplays, two short stories and a couple of novels, they remain unfinished. Every once in a while, someone that is familiar with one of the novels will ask how far I’ve gotten. I tell them that it’s all in my head still, just need to get chapters 5-26 into some electronic format.
Tori - I’ve had night terrors a few times. They are appropriately named, for sure.
Avitable - Kinda weirded me out, seeing that comment upon waking up. “Haven’t I seen this before?”
Martymankins - We need to start smacking each other for motivation.
Regarding #7. Most people only have 1 nightmare a year? That doesn’t seen possible. I have at least 2 month and I’m fairly normal. (Hahahahah!) In fact, let me tell you about this one dream I had …… Oh, I just read #8.
I like how you’re going about constructing your 100 in methodical segments. Very smart. What I should have done. Except that I’m not very smart. Which is why I didn’t do it. Would like to finish my “56,” but now I’ve already got comments referencing specific numbers in my list, which, if added to, I’d like to re-order but I can’t because of the comments referencing specific numbers. So you see Karl, I’ve fucked it all up. Completely. Cause I’m not very smart.
You don’t need to hate shaving; its just that you probably weren’t taught properly. Shaving went from a painful chore to a pleasant diversion when I “went retro” and started traditional wetshaving, with lather cream or soap, a shaving brush, and a single-bladed safety razor. Checkout my YouTube ‘how to shave’ channel (at website link) and the traditional shaving sub-culture at forums like http://www.badgerandblade.com and http://www.shavemyface.com.
John - I don’t know that it’s smart so much as it is practical. Seems a lot easier to break it down into 10 different 10-item segments.
Mantic - I have both an electric razor and a traditional safety razor. It’s not that I don’t know HOW to shave properly…I just don’t like it. Maybe I’ll have my entire face electrolysized.
“You used a cassette drive to save and load programs”
The one true way
My first computer was a Commodore 64. I used the tape recorder before badgering my parents into buying me a floppy disk drive. Now, *those* were awesome days right there.
I’m with you on #1 - no broken bones here either. But believe it or not, I had the same computer as you did in #2. I took a correspondence programming course THROUGH THE MAIL! When I was done I made an animated daisy that danced back and forth from right to left. I was so freaking proud of myself.
sadly, i am chronically early. but, the invention of a coffee shop on every corner and my ipod touch have made this character flaw much easier to deal with.
Being late IS rude…especially if you are meeting someone. i hate when someone keeps me waiting…if you know you have to be somewhere at a certain time and you know you are always late…fucking just leave the house 10 minutes earlier. is it really THAT difficult?!?!
One nightmare A YEAR? I say BS to that. My mom has Tivo or something like it. It is so nice to find a show at her house and be able to “rewind” it to the beginning. I don’t watch TV at home anymore.
Ali - It’s a big mindset switch, going from being late to being early.
Lynda - I’m a big TV addict.
Katie and I do the same damn thing with the TiVo, if we watch live at all. Zooming through commercials is so nice!
Usually I don’t remember my dreams, but I know I have nightmares All.The.Time. When I was younger I used to force myself to stay awake until sunrise to try to prevent them.