Also starting today: I’m going to start posting at FuzzMartin.com again, at least twice a day, a la Elliot over at FromWhereISit.org. I’ve been slacking too much over here.

…and with that… I’ve got my two in for the day.

For over a year, I was a full-fledged pescetarian (vegetarian who eats fish). Then, midway through this year, I gradually started eating meat again. It’s a lot easier on Tracy and the kids when I eat the same thing that everybody else does. And, I like meat, don’t get me wrong, but I never feel as healthy when I’m on the stuff. So, as of today, it’s back to being a pescetarian. Hooray for tuna steak.

The new version of WordPress (version 2.7) is slick. I love it. Thank you, WordPress.

Does Spongebob Squarepants say, “oh shit,” in this video game? I swear that’s what it sounds like.

Test

http://topten.posterous.com/top-ten-gifts-for-photographer

…especially #’s 2, 5, 8, & 9.

Merry Christmas!

If you haven’t succumb to the Twitter phenomenon, yet, I encourage you to get an account and follow me. It’s a lot of fun, it’s highly addictive, and it’s super easy to use.

http://www.twitter.com/fuzzmartin

While rearranging my office, today, I found my list of what I considered lofty goals for 2008. I created this list in January, and I’ve done pretty good on it so far:

1. Focus on Photography Acheived
2. $3,000 in iStock sales commissions Achieved+
3. Five (5) total photos in flames (100 downloads or more) on iStock 6 files en fuego
4. Monthly TFCD photo shoots Have shot over 12 TFCD models this year (albeit not monthly)
5. 1,200 files uploaded to iStock FAIL (and not possible anymore this year)
6. Attend one minilypse (iStock photo event) Attended Huska’lypse in August
7. Shoot first wedding Shot Zelenski wedding in June
8. Plan out theme schedule on the first of every month FAIL.
9. Obtain silver status on iStock Achieved in July
10. $2,000 in voiceover work – I’m close.

My goals for 2009 will be ‘loftier.’

Please give a cabinet position to supreme leader Doyle. He deserves it. No, seriously, make it so.

In your holy name,

Fuzz

Homer Draper

Hat tip - American Copywriter

I would really like to know if the workers in the Mayville Utilities Department are cheating on their time cards. Yesterday, I scurried off to 400 Kekoskee St. to pay my utility bill. It was 3:45pm. The building is advertised as open until 4pm. As soon as I was driving over the one-lane bridge, however, the curtains came down and the doors were locked.

First, they obviously saw me coming up the driveway. I think that it was ungodly rude of them to lock the door as I approached. Second, if we’re paying these city workers with tax dollars to keep the department open until 4pm, why are they closing at 3:45? If these workers are all packed up early, then they better be punching out early, too.

I’m not a happy camper. I’ll be discussing this with Mayor Heron and anyone else of importance.

This morning, for the first time in nearly three weeks, I was able to shower in my own bathroom. It was outstanding. I was so used to showering in a trashy, plastic-covered, unfinished piece-of-garbage for the last three years. Now I’ve got a classy new setup that is comfortable and clean.

I’ll post photos in a few days. There are a few pieces of drywall that needed some more mud and they aren’t ready for paint yet. I’ll put the photos up when everything is finished.

Carry on.

It’s high time we get rid of the day off for federal employees on Columbus Day. Sure, we get it, he ‘found’ America, but that doesn’t mean that we should be taking off of work.

In fact, here is how I would restructure this:
Tuesday, January 1 New Year’s Day
Monday, January 21 Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Monday, February 18* Washington’s Birthday
Monday, May 26 Memorial Day
Friday, July 4 Independence Day
Monday, September 1 Labor Day
Monday, October 13 Columbus Day
Tuesday, November 11 Veterans Day
Thursday, November 27 Thanksgiving Day
Thursday, December 25 Christmas Day

Don’t get me wrong, all of these people deserve “days,” but I don’t think that federal employees should get a day off on non-major holidays.

Okay, I’m off to my Columbus Day barbecue now. j/k.

Here’s what I accomplished tonight:

(from what it looked like Sunday, to yesterday, to right now)

The new server, that I was moved to about a month ago, experienced some problems over the weekend. My e-mail has been down since mid-way through the day on Sunday. It is actually back up now, but none of the emails that I would have received between about noon on Sunday and 4am Tuesday morning have found their way to my mailbox.

So… if you sent me something, please send it again.

Thanks!

I’m not in line with her politics, but this is friggin’ funny:

The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.

Working in my bathroom, tonight, I came across a rather odd situation. I removed my electrical switch plate, and the switch shorted out. I had intentions of replacing the entire junction box, anyway, with a new three-gang box (I’m replacing the drywall).The wire wasn’t anything that I was expecting, though.

Current Setup
I have one two-gang box. One switch turns on the overhead light and the other turns on the light above the mirror. There is also a dial/timer switch that is separate from the other box that runs an electric heater.

My Plan
Remove the electric heater.
Put the power from that timer switch to a fan in the ceiling.
Install three-gang box and put all three switches into the three-gang box.
Live happily ever after.

Issue
What I ran into was one strand of 12-3 Romex running into the current two-gang box. One hot wire (black) goes to the top of one switch, the other (red) goes to the top of the other switch. A white neutral wire jumps from switch two to switch one and then the white runs back to the main box. The ground wire is grounded to the box.

Questions
1. Do I need to replace the wire with two strands of 12-2?
2. If not, do I jump the new setup the same way that the old setup was jumped? That doesn’t seem code worthy.
3. Any other advice?

Photo
Here is a photo of the switch.

Congrats to friends of the show, Garrett and Laurie, on the birth of their baby girl, Kaitlyn Rose, today! 7lbs 9oz and 19-inches. Both mom and baby are doing great. Congratulations on the new family!

A forwarded e-mail from Big Daddy Martin:

If you had purchased $1,000.00 of Nortel stock one year ago, it would
now be worth $49.00.
With Enron, you would have $16.50 left of the original $1,000.00.
With WorldCom, you would have less than $5.00 left.
If you had purchased $1,000.00 of Delta Air Lines stock you would have
$44.00 left.
If you had purchased United Airlines, you would have nothing left.
But, if you had purchased $1,000.00 worth of beer one year ago, drank
all the beer, then turned in the cans for the aluminum recycling refund,
you would have $214.00.
Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to drink
heavily and recycle.
This is called the 401-Keg Plan.

Twenty minutes into today’s remodeling project. Ouch!