Something I left out of that last post

OW, I BURNED MY HAND!

...at night.

(hopefully the last time I'll have an excuse to say that)

PROTIP #2

If you're pan-searing a steak, and you pre-heated the pan in the oven, and you notice that the oil on the pan has pooled on one side, DON'T TRY TO PICK UP THE PAN AND TILT IT WITH A BARE HAND.

Either I am too stupid to live, or I have a subconscious death wish and am a genius.

Ow.

Unwoot

I almost got a breakfast of champions today, but the server went down when I clicked the link to buy.

PROTIP

When you're putting one of those five-gallon water tanks onto a water cooler, most of the bottom of the tank will come in contact with the cooler. If you had your hand under the tank to help position it, make sure you get all five fingers out of the way before you set the tank down. Getting only four fingers out of the way is not recommended.

Why f.y.e is a better place to buy music than Best Buy

Apartment/condo-hunting dies with business hours, so I stopped by the f.y.e in Woodfield Mall this evening to burn some time. I'd tried to do the same thing at the Schaumburg Best Buy yesterday night, but it didn't go well because I wasn't able to find what I was looking for. More specifically, I wasn't able to find a recommendation-engine-defying collection of albums like this:

• Talking Heads - Talking Heads: 77
• Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
• Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
• Emperor - In the Nightside Eclipse (purchased with reservations about the band's history, but I figured I had to see what black metal sounds like sooner or later)

Unfortunately, the humorless man at the counter refused to acknowledge my deliberately baffling purchase with even a raised eyebrow. He also didn't seem amused when I pointed out that the Public Enemy CD had a plastic sleeve to keep kids from cracking it open and the Emperor CD did not.

Also, the brakes on my new used car may be failing. Or the transmission. I'm not sure which.

In Limbo

I haven't quite decided if short-notice car-hunting or short-notice apartment-hunting is the more frustrating endeavor. Until I reach a conclusion, I tentatively recommend neither.

Here we are again

Suggested slogans for the Michigan State football program:

• MSU Football: Check Back Next Year
• MSU Football: Home of the Near Miss
• MSU Football: Where Hopes Are Raised Beyond Expectation, and Then Usually Dashed

I suppose I shouldn't complain much. The team went into what was essentially a road game, against an obvious mismatch, and managed to keep it interesting for about 57 minutes. Plus, they they showed few signs of being affected by the aftermath of Glenn Winston Brawlfest 2009. A week ago, I would have said that a competitive loss to Texas Tech would be an overall victory for the program.