I'm back from, as my sister described it, the "black hole" of communication that is my parents house. Spotty cellphone reception, no internet connection, like 2 tv channels, and an 8 minute drive into a small town or 15 minute drive to the nearest reasonable-sized town. Luckily the electricity didn't go out for any extended periods, like it has in the past. One time in high school it went out for 4 days, just because a branch fell on the power lines on our street and the power company was too busy with problems in more populated areas.

Anyway, it was a pretty quiet, relaxing vacation. I saw a few high school friends, and my entire family including new in-laws and my new niece.

After hearing the song "New York I Love You" in a clothing store, I went and checked out the album (by LCD Soundsystem). Perhaps not surprisingly, that song is totally unlike every other song on the album. Instead of soft and melodic, every other song is a nasty combiation of ska and funk and I can't resist hitting skip after 20 seconds. Deleted.

Happy New Year!

(from a review of the Path of Neo. In the game you get to pick new skills to learn after each stage, but occasionally you're only given one skill option.)
"What is the point of giving me one, I repeat ONE, skill to pick from at the end of a stage? What do the developers expect me to do, not pick it for the sake of variety? It feels like election day in a totalitarian dictatorship."