Thursday - June 10, 2010

Bang, bang, bang!

I was taking a shower this morning (as is my wont) and minding my own business (naturally) when there was a sudden LOUD banging on the exterior wall...which scared me nearly to death. Let me explain. My shower is on the 2nd floor of my townhouse. It's pretty darned unusual for someone to be pounding on any wall at my house...much less a wall on the 2nd floor. I realized what was going on pretty quickly (home repairs I have no control over) and kept on with my shower. Then, I toweled off and got dressed. All the while, the banging continued. And, I just kept hoping that nobody would come crashing through the wall. Last week, the guys managed to drill a hole all the way through a stud in my living room (downstairs) that actually buckled the plaster near an electrical outlet and busted the faceplate off the outlet. So, it wasn't too much of a stretch to think they they might do more damage this morning.

Here's the thing. I live in a townhouse complex where the home owner's association takes care of the outsides of the buildings. And, I really don't have any control over what gets done or when it gets done. The siding on my building is currently being replaced (as needed) before the building gets a new paint job. I hadn't seen any workers around in a couple of days, though, since it had been raining. And, didn't hear a thing this morning until the loud pounding. Apparently that was the first bit of repair they decided to work on this morning. Yikes. I stopped as I was leaving to take a quick iPhone photo:

The photo's not that great but you get the idea. That patch of wall with no siding? That's about 4 inches from my shower stall. They scared the hell out of me. Thanks, guys.

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Wednesday - May 12, 2010

Campus Watch #57

This made me laugh when I imagined someone else being the subject of the report:

Townes Hall (727 East Dean Keeton)
Assault by Contact: A UT staff member reported she and another UT staff member had gotten into a verbal argument over the proper way to clean a bathroom. The argument led to the second staff member assaulting the victim. Occurred on: 5-3-10, at 5:35 PM. Reported on: 5-11-10.

I can't help but imagine this report being submitted about a couple of my co-workers. Where the argument about the proper way to clean a bathroom is actually an argument about the proper way to do something else. If I wasn't afraid that one of them might do a Google search on their name and find this some day, I'd be more specific. Alas...

And, yes...it seems to be turning into Campus Watch exclisively 'round here. Sorry 'bout that.

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Friday - April 2, 2010

Campus Watch #56

I don't see that there's any way at all for me to pass this one up:

Engineering Science Building (2501 Speedway)
Suspicious Activity: A UT staff member discovered several poster sized pictures of some of the faculty members had been hung inside a 4th floor hallway. Discovered on: 3-31-10, at 7:47 AM.

Very suspicious, indeed! 'Thought maybe it was gonna have something to do with April Fool's Day but this was a day too early. Hmmm...

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Monday - March 8, 2010

Campus Watch #55

I haven't posted one of these in quite some time. From today's Campus Watch crime report:

Jester West Dormitory (201 East 21st Street)
Public intoxication: Two UT students discovered a third UT student passed out next to an air vent. They brought the subject into the dormitory and requested assistance. During the investigation, the subject began using very salty language towards the officers and towards Austin EMS as he was being treated for alcohol poisoning. The subject was transported to a local area hospital for additional treatment. Charges for Public Intoxication were filed. Occurred on: 3-07-10, at 5:25 AM.

Salty language. Never a good thing, eh? Heh heh.

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Friday - January 8, 2010

Gold box silliness

I was a bit amused at my Quick Pick offerings on today's Amazon Gold Box page. If you scroll down to the bottom of the page, you get "individualized" items in which they offer a slight additional discount on a few items.

These were mine today:

Which one of these is not like the others?

Heh. Six CDs...four (4!) of 'em by Rodney Crowell. And a surge protector.

By the way, this is not the first time I've been amused at my Quick Pick offerings.

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Tuesday - December 29, 2009

Wow

This is for my mom: Peter Callesen. Wow.

PS: Yes, I decided it was about time I start posting here again. Let's see if I can keep it up, shall we?

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Saturday - November 14, 2009

Cool drawing video

'Thought my mom would really like this video of Milton Glaser talking about drawing...while he draws. Very cool.

Posted by Joanna | Permalink

Sunday - October 25, 2009

Janis Ian

'Got to see Janis Ian (yes, the Janis Ian) in person this afternoon at the Bugle Boy in La Grange. Wow. What fun. Karen sent a note to me and Sheri a few weeks ago to say they'd added an extra Sunday afternoon show and did we want to go out? Well, yeah! She was fantastic. 'Twas a great show. I like the Bugle Boy a lot. It's a listening room so...no chatter. No drunks. Just music in a nice small venue. I'm guessing there were 80 or 100 people there...maybe? Dunno. But we got there in time to snag seats in the second row of tables. She played for almost 2 hours with a short intermission. She told great stories and sang her heart out. 'Loved it. Here are a few shots...

I think she was leading the crowd in a stirring (ahem) rendition of the old Sonny and Cher standard "I Got You, Babe" here:

And, singing "At Seventeen":

If you get a chance to see her, don't pass it up.

Posted by Joanna | Permalink