I received a portable ping pong set (the important part is the net that extends and clips on to a table), but Talore refuses to play with me. Clearly we need to have a game night at some point to try this instead of just playing rock band/guitar hero.
The paddles feel smaller than standard, but my table is significantly smaller too, so I’m pretty sure that would work out, and it does make everything fit in a fairly compact carrying case.
Apparently my GMail account was accessed from South Korea several days ago. Time to change passwords on everything that linked to that email account…
It’s nice that GMail flags unusual activity (and tells you about it highlighted in red at the top of the email page when you log in), but I’d rather have an email sent to me so I get it on my phone instead of having to log in through a browser.
I also like that my bank requires verification when accessed from a new computer even with the correct password (it sends a text or calls the phone number already associated with the account). On the other hand, online access to my bank currently seems to be down.
I’ve been meaning to post updates for over a week now and just never got around to it.
First off, a picture of my complete twisty puzzle collection:
The 7 cube is rounded to keep it at a reasonable size but still have enough overlap while turning to keep edge pieces from falling out. I’m getting a new 3-cube soon (one designed for speed as opposed to just being a classic style rubik’s cube), and it will come unstickered so it may be a few days later when the cubsmith tiles come in. I’ll probably post more details when I get it.
I’m also getting cubesmith tiles (basically clear, textured pieces of lexan with color backing) for the 7 cube to fix the fact that the side that should be white is black. I’ll take it apart and clean/lubricate it when I put the tiles on, but that will take a while so I might not get to it soon.
I also got a usb missile launcher for Christmas. It’s a fancy one with a built-in webcam and motorized base. Talore loves chasing the missiles (nerf style foam darts with foam tips instead of plastic), but she chews on them a bit when she finds where they landed so they might not last too long. I also caught Talore trying to steal the darts directly off the launcher (it’s sitting behind my desk high enough to shoot over my monitors), so if she tries that while I’m not watching her I might find a pile of perforated foam. Luckily, they sell spare darts. I’d like to record a video of it firing from the camera on the launcher (skype picks it up so presumably recording software would too), but I need to find somewhere to put it where it can see where the dart lands and have good lighting.
I’d really like to be able to set it up so I can fire it remotely from my phone. It supports remote control using msn messenger (in theory, I haven’t tried it), but the website also mentions a skype plugin is in the works. If the plugin works for skype on linux then in theory with that I’ll be able to connect it to my server (which is low power, as opposed to leaving one of my higher powered computers running) and bother Talore over the internet. I’d only get 4 shots, but I’d also have a webcame to watch the results of those shots so I could probably make them last.
Talore really seemed to appreciate me getting back for good. For the first few days at least any time I was sitting she was either sitting in my lap (not curled up asleep like she sometimes does, but just sitting there) or lying down with her head on my arm if I was at my computer. She also insisted on following me from room to room keeping me in her sight at first (like she did when I first got her), but that didn’t last very long. Now she still spends a good bit of time within an arms reach of me, but she also sleeps across the room where she can see out the balcony windows.