Telemarketers

Nobody calls my house just to hear the sweet sound of my voice these days. If it's not someone asking me to switch to MCI, it's someone doing a survey, or maybe even a recorded message asking me to vote for so-and-so. It's been annoying me so damn much and I had to do something to make myself feel better.

But I thought to myself, you know, it probably doesn't do any good to yell at them, cause they probably get that all the time and they're used to it. I had a friend who worked a summer as a telemarketer and he would tell me how the worst people to get weren't the ones who were rude and hung up right away, cause that saved him the trouble.

So today I when I got a call, I decided to waste as much of his time as I could, just for kicks and giggles. A quick recap of the conversation:

Me: Hello
Telemarketer: Hi Mr. Chen, I'd like to introduce you to a special opportuni-
M: Um, I think you have the wrong number.
T: Is this 910-____? (edited for search engine purposes) (or actually just so random people don't call me from reading my blog)
M: Yes, it is, but my name is Mark Buehrle
T: Ok, Mr. Buerhle, well, I think you may be interested to know about the-
M: Hey, did you know that I'm reporting to Spring Training just over a week?
T: I'm sorry, what was that?
M: It's gonna be a little different, I've never played with Miguel Olivo, but I think we've got a great year ahead
T: Sir, right now is a very exciting time, if you act quickly-
M: Hey, I think Chicago Tribune is better than Chicago Sun-Times, what do you think?
T: .....
M: Oh you know what we should do, let's go to the 509 and craft! Seriously man
T: .... actually, I-
M: Shoot, I think I left my Broodwar CD at Chras's house...
T: (hangs up)

So yes, a telemarketer hung up on me, for once. Hopefully his supervisor was listening in and yelled at him for his ineptitude.

I'm gettin no love from phone callers, that's for sure. Good thing I still got AIM. SarahMSU, SportyJen, and WetMegan really want me bad, I think. I keep blocking them cause I already got a girl, but they change their screen name suffix number cause they can't stay away. NO I DO NOT WANT TO CHECK OUT YOUR WEBCAM YOU FLOCKING HOES SO STOP IMING ME

Oh well. Here's a pic to lighten the mood. It's kind of a crappy pic, only P and Oiy are even looking at the camera. But in honor of the fantastic journalism I just read from mcpheenys, I had to post it. Check out Stork on the left. Man, Stork, I know it was dark but still. ????!!



Currently playing on my Winamp: Norah Jones - The Long Day Is Over
"With no reprise....
the sun will rise.......
The long day is over"
Great song to wind down after work to.

Overtime - Week 2

Up until last week, the word "overtime" had only sports-related meaning to me. It signified something good, representing an exciting game close enough to "go to overtime", or a golden opportunity for my fantasy players to score more points.

Now, it means I gotta stay at work later every day and wake up early on Saturday. It also means I am more tired and less inclined to write blogs.

Less inclined, but of course I still do it.

I made fried rice the other day, it turned out ok actually. Also, I stir fried some spinach, and it was good too. I had no idea what spiznatch looked like before cooking, it looks so different after it's cooked. Anyways, I am trying to learn how to cook. It should be cool, cause eating something you made yourself seems to be more rewarding than eating what someone else cooks.

Within a couple months, I might be leaving Darien and moving up north to Palatine. That would free up more time and make it easier to hang with the northern folks, but then I'm leaving my roots. But this daily drive has been pissing me off lately. Don't know how much more I can take.

Currently playing on my Winamp: Busta Rhymes f. Mariah - I Know What You Want
I've never liked Busta, and I haven't really liked any Mariah stuff in a long time, but this song is P-H-phat. Highly recommended by the Dudo509 Blogspot Music Division.

2004 Maxima

Pictures of the 2004 Maxima were released a couple months ago. In case you haven't seen them, here are some shots:







Don't really like what I see so far, but then again, I didn't like the last generation of Maximas either (2000-2003). I also didn't like the 350Z and Altima at first either, but they have all grown on me. Front looks a lot like the Altima, back like the Z. So keep an eye out.

Me an P lifted a couple days ago, and I am still quite sore. If you see me walk, it kind of looks like how Edward Norton looks in American History X, after he pisses off the prison guys. Not good.

I had a bunch of stuff written for the political blogs I was gonna publish, but I accidentally overwrote that file. So those might be a little slower in coming. In the meantime, enjoy the following short story.

The Awakening

The empty room sits cold, deserted and empty in a silence that is almost deafening in its magnitude. There are no windows, no markings on the walls, nary a hint of life to be seen. To a random passerby, it would likely appear as though this were just another empty room, one no different from any other room you might find.

But this is no ordinary place. For within these walls, great warriors once gathered. From this room, many a soldier prepared himself for battles from which his very return was questionable. To this room, some have fled, weary from the fight, seeking a haven of rest. Others, meanwhile, perhaps came simply to enjoy fellowship, to share wisdom and experience among comrades.

Though the echoes of war cries have long faded, this ground is far from ordinary. Indeed, it is a room with an all-too-real life of its own, a room that a select few still hold sacred. Yes, it is none other than the Battle.net Channel 509.

In the age when fresher, flashier newcomers as CounterStrike or WarCraft III have stepped to the forefront and lured many away, room 509 has sadly fallen to the wayside over time. Its greatness all but forgotten, the room now quietly rests, like a leviathan in deep slumber.

Has this once-revered channel seen its best days pass by? Has time taken its toll? Will the 509 be content to slowly fade into its dying moments? Alas, the answer to all of these questions is a clear and emphatic "no".

Footsteps can now be heard in the distance, approaching quickly. Strong, forceful footsteps, each emanating its own authority, leave no doubt that great men are about to storm into this place. As these footsteps get louder and nearer, they are followed by more and more footsteps like them, but each forceful and authoritative in its own way.

The door flies open, and in steps `sniffles`: mouse in one hand, keyboard in the other, and a fiery scowl on his face. Shortly after, he is followed by Folken32, also arriving with battle gear ready, and game face on. One by one, the great warriors enter in similar fashion. BrotherD... Dudo~509~... and BrianCook34, once known as Dostovi[spoons] and Enis44.

Hardly a word is uttered, but all are aware that something special is happening. It is only a matter of time before ISRmonger, Buddha5000, LOreaLPhiE, wetnight89, tink2000, Shubes~509~, PopiChulo~509~, coksuka, Gujuplaya, and countless others return to their homeland. One would not even be surprised to find the mysterious Poongbunkor's arrival in this place, although it is uncertain whether it will be with the face of xMAdMx or as PazLenchantin[ZWAN].

The tension and excitement in the air is palpable. Years have passed since this many quality craft masters have been found in one place. But the spirit of 509 has undeniably lived on, and nothing short of a full revival is upon us.

Many have wondered, what had caused the crafting spirit to lay dormant all this time? Was it merely the competition from CS and WC3? Was it driven away by competition from "labs" and "exams"? Was it simply a natural progression through time?

Some have said that the problem all along is that they all needed to "mine more minerals", but a true crafter knows that life is not all about minerals. As the Protoss commander so wisely and poignantly says, "You require more Vespene Gas" as well.

Whatever the reason for this extended hiatus, all is now forgiven. With one simple word, "gone", the warriors let out a collective shout and flood out of the 509 to mine, build, and conquer. Will they return, satisfied and invigorated with a "gg"? This is something that only time will tell.

As for now, this room again lies empty, just as it was only moments ago. But this time, it is empty in appearance only; it is hardly empty of life and energy. For the sleeping giant has awakened, and it is ready for battle once more.

Sabbath

"Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work..." - Exodus 20:9-10

An often overlooked commandment, but God definitely knew what he was doing when he declared one day of rest a week. I don't know how people actually work like 100 hour weeks, but I worked about half of that and it left me exhausted. Today after church, I had a 3 hour nap. It was pretty clutch, I must say. After all the working, I really needed that.

Although I guess the 4 hours working Saturday wasn't so bad. Something about the atmosphere is just a lot more chill than weekdays, even though I'm in the office. Maybe it's just because there's barely any people around and it is quiet. Kind of reminded me of summer school, when there's barely anyone around town, and everything is so relaxed.

And I got a taste of what the commute could be like, without traffic. But it's probably better that there is traffic, or else I might have had about 10 speeding tickets already.

You know what though, the G cruises so smoothly at 100+. Not that I condone that type of reckless behavior, but with an open road, and all the tension built up over time from stop-and-go driving, I couldn't pass up the chance. I might even say that short bout of open, free driving was worth the 4 hours at work.

Saturday night I went with Olivia to her med school "Winter Ball", which was aight. Didn't really know anybody there, but oh well. Here are some pics:


This is us at her apartment before leaving. Notice the big blue monster in the background. I'm not sure if I mentioned this story in an old blog, but when me and Olivia went to Fright Fest this year, I won that guy from one of those games where you toss a ring and try to make it land on a bottle. The best part was trying to carry that thing through the crowd at Great America back to my car. Every single person we passed was like "Ohmygod they got the big blue monster!" while some little girl's jaw dropped wide open and she kept staring at it. Good times.


Here's a group picture. I think I was chewing something. When you take pictures of me, ALWAYS count to three and let me know when you are gonna take it. Unless you want me to look like a fool.


Another group pic. Of all these people, I only know Olivia and the guy on the right. You could probably tell I didn't belong by the fact that I am behind everyone else. Maybe it's just cause I had to set the camera, but still.

Ok, gotta sleep.