So I've been sick for the past week or so. The day after Christmas was probably it's peak, but I'm still rather congested, with a bit of a cough. And I have a boil on my thigh, which is a nice way to wrap up the year, a festering sore pretty much sums up 2003. But I have been able to relax a bit, especially this week, not having to work between Tuesday and Sunday. I've read a bit; right now I'm finally reading Al Franken's new book. I'll withhold comment until I've finished it, but it is pretty good so far.

Wednesday I played shuffleboard for the first time. It was a lot of fun. I won't go into excessive detail about how soundly we whipped our opponents, but let's just say it was sad, really, how we schooled them. There was a lot of crying and whimpering, as I recall. Even Tanner was shocked. Actually, I was impressed by how well-behaved Tanner was, not really interfering with the game. We played in Balboa Park, so he got to explore a bit before and after the game, and met several dogs, including a one-eyed poodle. I saw a sign for an upcoming Richard Scarry exhibit at the Fleet Science Center, which sounds exciting.

Today I went to do some shopping, but Costco and another store I went to were both closed for New Year's. I went to the Costco in Mission Valley, hoping they'd have the Johnny Cash boxed set; the Costco by my house had it last month, but no longer does. Since I was in Mission Valley, I stopped by Dave and Buster's, and played games for a little bit. I got a bit mad, playing the sliding game (I don't know its name) that I'm quite good at. I wait until I'm about to quit playing to hit the big progressive jackpot, so I can get as many tickets as possible. Unfortunately, the machine I was playing malfunctioned, so I needed someone to come look at it; while I was waiting, someone came and played the machine next to me and hit the jackpot. So I went and played non-ticketing games after that, some pinball (they only have that bastardized "3-D" pinball--as if all pinball isn't 3-D), and then wasted more credits than I should have playing a horse-racing simulator, just amazed by how seriously people treat it. Especially considering how expensive it is to play.

This evening, I went to the Ken and saw Modern Times. It was alright. I prefer Buster Keaton to Chaplin, but it had its moments. Hadn't been to the Ken in some time, so that was nice.

I spent a bit of time this evening sorting through my summer vacation photos, maybe I'll finally get those uploaded before school starts on Monday.