RO and I went to the Muckleshoot Casino last night. We were in the area and wanted to do something different-- go to a good all you can eat buffet!

While we were in line for the buffet, RO playing black jack. He ended up winning over $100.00. Nice-- that paid for dinner, drinks, and a good cigar.

While I was finishing my cigar RO gambled some more. He ended up loosing more than he won. When he was down to his last $40.00, he gave me a $20.00 ticket. He wanted to play nickel slots with me. I was lucky. I ended up winning $100.00.

At the end of the night we were only down about $100.00. A fair price for dinner, drinks and entertainment.

I'm sure that's what the casino wants us to believe.

I'm also reviving Binge and purge-- where I review restaurants you normally wouldn't eat at.

I can only do this because I have the stomach of steel.

I've started posting pictures at http://rooktook.blogspot.com/

I amazed at the amount of comment spam that I got.

Friday we saw Red Eye. It's a very good, tight little thriller.

Saturday, RO, Matt, Sandy and I went camping on the coast in the Hoh rain forest. Matt and Sandy are still constantly bickering.

Still, the ocean and the rain forest were beautiful.

The Ameriquest Blimp is in town. It's been flying over head about twice a day for a week.

Blimp! 

RO has a cat. The cat has personality and is spoiled. If the cat sees the bottom of hs bowl, he thinks something is wrong, and starts bugging RO.

I've been working a lot. My whole team has. I'm getting email with them from 10pm at night and 7am in the morning.

We have a big deadline this Tuesday.

back to work.

A co-worker emailed the theam that he "Wrote his bike into work" His manager responded

Dear Bike:

I wanted to thank you today for taking me to work. Together we jump up curbs, dodge SUVs, buzz by mothers with baby carriages and frighten elderly pedestrians. I will always cherish our long rides in the sunset and in the morning fog --- and we’ll always have Paris…

But my gratitude and love comes with some concerns as well. As much as I enjoy spending time with you, you frequently leave me sore – especially on my... well, you know…

A softer touch would help us spend many more intimate years together.

Your rider,
XYXYX

C2 is back from Iraq for a couple of weeks. From talking to him, I think he's happy over there. He likes the structure that comes from working under the military.

His alergies went away in Iraq and have returned in Seattle.

He and I are want to go to Turkey in October. The gang is trying to talk us out of it. RO does like the idea of me going to someplace unsafe. I'm going to go though.

Flashback. Two months ago I got T-Boned at an intersection.

Yesterday was her trial. I was called as a witness.

The summons was for 1pm. When I showed up, about 30 people where in the court-- many cases were being heard. I just sat there for the next hour. Every now and then a lawyer would call out someone's name and the two would chat.

Finally at 2pm things got started. It looks like Traffic Court is commodity law. They try to go through as many cases as quickly as possible. The more complex cases were remanded to a later date.

In a few cases the defendant didn't show up. The prosecutor immediatly added a "Charge of inattentiveness with an associated fine of $101.00"

In one case a good traffic lawyer was there. She managed to get a speeding ticket overturned by showing the radar hadn't been properly calibrated in over a year and by pointing out some irregularties in the paper work.

I should get her number.

Finally, the case I was ther for, came up. The prosecutor and the defense talked a bit. Then the judge said "Is a Mr. or Mrs. Cohen here?" I stood up and the judge addressed me. He said "The defendant has accepted a deferred prosecution so we don't need you. Go to the law clerk's office and they will pay you for your time."

I smiled at the prosecutor. He said "It's not much."

He was right. They paid $10.00.

Last night when I got home from work RO kissed me weirdly, like a fish would. I asked him what that was about.

He said "I told Nigel (the fish) I'd kiss you goodbye for him."
"Why is Nigel kissing me goodbye? ... Did he die?"
"Yeah. He's dead."

Nigel had been struggling with the ick for about a week.

We drank a beer in honor of Nigel and talk about our memories of him. Like the time he ate the two guppies we gave him as tank mates.

Or the way he was so picky and prefered to eat meal worms over fish flakes.

Or the time he jumped out of the thank and fell into the sink. He was in the sink so long that he stuck to it. Vic had to pry him off.

Fish have stupid lives.

Our fish, Nigel, is dead. Long live Nigel. 

Friday night, RO and I had dinner with a few of my co-workers. We had a great time. I need to hang out with these people more often.

Saturday and Sunday we had a home-maintenance weekend-- mowed the lawn, planted flowers, stained the deck.

Deck staining tricks. RO and I stopped using paint brushes to stain the deck; too slow. We used sponges to stain the railings.

We used a cheap herbicide sprayer and a wide broom to stain the deck. I'd spray a layer of stain the herbicide sprayer. RO evened it out with the broom.

We had a "Weather Forcast Failure" here in Seattle. The weather reports were all calling for Partly Cloudy, no rain.

It's been raining like cats and dogs.

My parents were in town for a long weekend. They met RO. Things went well. RO can be a charmer.

We did much together. I took them to Teatro ZinZanni. They had a great time.

We also did streat fairs, the Alki Beach and ate lots of good food.

Poppa Neutrio is an adventurer who built a raft made of garbage and floated it accross the Atlantic.

He's built another raft and has just started sailing accross the Pacific.

Poppa Neutrio is 71.

Saturday RO and I finished the electrical work on the deck. For a year now the hot tub's safety cut-off has been dangling by a nail and some wires too close to the hot tub. We moved the cut-off away and put the wires in conduat. Now everything is up to code.

Sunday Matt and Sandy came over. We ate, talked, drank. They ended up spending the night.

Sunday RO and I want to Kirkland Summerfest. It wasn't bad, but at this point I've been to enough summer festivals that I recogize the vendors.

Last night RO and I watched Sideways. It's a film about an alcoholic wine lover and a friend going on a wine tour of California wine country before the friends wedding. It's pretty good. A bit slow to start but becomes very funny half way through.

Vic came down for the weekend. On Friday Vic, Steven, RO and I went and saw War of the Worlds. The movie is well done, the effects are great, but if you think about it the story has many holes as if the whole point of the plot was to set up the next special effect.

But, the special effects are very good.

Late Friday afternoon RO and I left ofr eastern Washington to camp by the Sun Lakes. It was beautiful, sunny and warm. There were no mosquitoes or rain so we could sleep out under the stars.

We went to the Grand Coulee Damm At night they play a laser show against the damm. It's corney but fun.

We swam and sunned all day Saturday.

We drove back Sunday morning and spent the rest of the day with Mac and Joe on their boat. More swimming. More sunning.

Monday we went to a BBQ at a friends house over in Magnolia.

At the BBQ, RO launched a bottle rocket out of his ass. You read the correctly. When I get the pictures, I'll post them. From hear on, RO shall be known as Rocket Man.

We got stuck in traffic after the fireworks. It took about 90 minutes to drive a couple of miles. Very frustrating. To pass the time, Steven and Rocket Man made fart sounds at pedestrians.