« July 2003 | Main | September 2003 »
August 31, 2003
I Don't Know, I Just Don't Know
What the fuck is a Boohbah? And why oh why is it so strangely addictive?
My mind can barely fathom the kinds of people who come up with this stuff.
Posted by Samer at 08:28 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
August 28, 2003
Another Stormy Day
There was another storm Wednesday night. Fantastic, fast, furious.
But just as it was overhead I could see a break in the clouds in the distance. The sun was setting. The sky turned a bright orange. It was surreal. Like something out of a painting.
Awe inspiring.
Posted by Samer at 12:36 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
August 26, 2003
Stormy Weather
Some of you might know my weather geekiness, but today surprised me. Two storms, both taking almost the same track. One was at around noon and was fairly quick and small.
The second was a monster.
The sky darkened, the wind was blowing fast. The rain came down so hard you could barely see a couple of blocks. And the lightning. Wow.
Kind of like I would imagine Armageddon, only without the locusts.
Posted by Samer at 08:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 25, 2003
Giving it a Go
Spoke to 'A' at the weekend. We are going to try a long distance relationship. Yeah, I know they are hard. Yeah, I know they often fall apart. Yeah, I know blah blah blah.
I really like her. I want this to work. I know it won't be easy. Far from it. I'm already confused about somethings, while planning to visit her and more. My head is swimming.
Posted by Samer at 10:28 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 21, 2003
Search Terms
Every now and again I look through my logs to see how people find me. Erik does this monthly and posts the results, but I can't be bothered. But what I can be bothered about is spending a couple of hours trying to see where Google ranks me on some of the terms.
It is not all that surprising to see that people find my site by typing "samer" or "farha" or "www.farha.com" into a search engine. Google ranks me third for "samer" and further down for "farha". But why do people search for "www.farha.com"? I mean, can't you just put that into your navigation bar?
On a side note, typing that into Google gets you this page, where you can click on "contain the term" and see a lot of interesting things.
I readily understand why I might be the second entry for "Harry's Tap Room" (after their own website) or the number one entry for "Chez Antoine"*. But why I rank as highly as I do for terms such as "the best laid plans of mice and men" and "bruce dickinson iceland express" is a bit beyond me.
What I really really don't get is why people are searching on terms like "why metro sucks" (number 1 in Google, I should do something with that phrase). Or "souped up defender land rover". Isn't there something more productive they could be doing? Isn't there something more productive I could be doing?
*These rankings are as of today, who knows what they were yesterday or will be tomorrow. We are all at the mercy of the Googlebot.
Posted by Samer at 11:13 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 19, 2003
This Changes Everything
I sent a letter to 'A' yesterday. I don't know how she'll react to the contents. Don't know how she'll feel. If she replies as I hope, then my life might change in a very dramatic way.
I wonder what Portland is like...
Posted by Samer at 07:54 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
August 16, 2003
Electric Air
I went for a ride in the thunder storm. Needed to clear my head, to think.
Simon & Garfunkel playing some of the most wonderful music.
The lightning was everywhere. Powerful. Bright. Immense.
It lit up the night sky. Almost too bright for my eyes. It filled all the gaps in the tree tops, all the gaps between the Earth and the sky, with an eerie light.
The electricity was palpable. The air was electric. These were the forces that kick started life.
But "my mind is distracted and confused, my thoughts are many miles away"*. The air, when she was around, was also quite electric. Almost like something was being kick started.
----
*From "Kathy's Song" by Simon & Garfunkel
Posted by Samer at 11:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 14, 2003
Happy Birthday to Me
I'm 34. Mid-Thirties. Feels good, for once.
Posted by Samer at 08:12 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
If You Love Somebody...
... Set them free.
Or so goes the saying. I finally know what that means. Really means.
Posted by Samer at 08:11 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 05, 2003
Bronchial Pneumonia
Been sick for over week. Finally (despite advice from 'A' and several friends) I went to the doctor.
I've got the early stages of bronchial pneumonia. A couple of chest x-rays, breath test, strep test, two taxi trips, a trip to Eckerd and $180 later, I'm on an anti-biotic, an inhaler and Sudafed for congestion.
On the plus side, the treatment is straight forward and apparently very effective, but it might take until the weekend before I feel better. Washington's 90% humidity isn't helping.
Posted by Samer at 07:41 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
August 01, 2003
The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men...
As Robert Burns said, the best plans often go awry.
The lovely and wonderful "A" was supposed to fly from Tennessee back through BWI on her way to Portland. She was going to have a multi-hour layover at the airport. Tonight.
I fussed and thought and planned and schemed. I booked a room at the Sheraton BWI. I made her some hummus and got her some bagels for her flight -- knowing BWI's catering would be dead during her layover. I even bought flowers! It was all to be a surprise.
Awry the plans went: Her flight from Tennessee to Houston got delayed, and she would miss her connection. So Northwest rebooked her. On a different flight. Tomorrow. Through Detroit. Not BWI.
I'm more than a little heart broken that I wont get to see her.
Posted by Samer at 08:43 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack