I was in bed all day yesterday thanks to a very annoying fever and the beginning of a sore throat. It was very nice of Simon to come over with chicken soup, a salad, and the best medicine available. =) I didn't really feel like eating, but he watched over me and made sure I finished everything.

Now I feel much better. Good, because there's much work to be done!

Random Emacs symbol: planner-multi-task-link-as-list - Function: Return the page links of INFO as a list.

I keep daydreaming about a totally split keyboard. Something like the Combimouse, I guess. I hope they commercialize it soon, 'cause I so don't have the hardware hacking chops to do http://www.thecraftstudio.com/bcboy/keyboard.html ...

Random Emacs symbol: quoted-printable-encode-string - Function: Encode the STRING as quoted-printable and return the result.

I went to Michael McGuffin's birthday party. I enjoy spending time with him, his wife Alice, and their kids. There's just that sense of reality, of being human, of making that connection. It's very different from the high-energy tech or event-ish parties I sometimes go to. It feels more intimate, more real. These are the friends in front of whom you can be vulnerable, and because you can show them your weaknesses, you also delight in sharing with them your joys.

Here's an excerpt from the letter I wrote him:

One of the things that helped me get through all the culture shock and the loneliness was that unreserved openness with which you welcomed me. You took me into your life and into your circle of friends. You made me feel at home. And you gave me quite a bit of advice about graduate school, too.

I wish all the best for them. Seeing them reminded me that I need to visit them more often. Maybe I should take Alice out for hot chocolate and another massage... And I should bring back one of those pop song books for her guitar-playing, too. Hmm...

On Technorati: friends

Random Emacs symbol: bbdb-display-message - Command: Do nothing and return nil.