A New Member of the Family

A few hours ago (around 9p), my sister, Sheena, gave birth to a daughter, Aryana. She is, of course, gorgeous. Her weight was 6 lbs, 2 oz and I believe her length was 18". I am excited about a potential new recruit for my ship and look forward to teaching her about Star Trek, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Dragonlance, Queen, and all that is best in life.

I do have to say though, another female? What is it with my family? I now have a mom, three sisters, an ex-wife, two daughters, and three nieces (and that's not even counting a step-mom, a number of female co-workers, a possible girlfriend, sheesh). It's starting to get lopsided here.

I Hate Cars

Okay, not really, but they can be very annoying. My car (a wonderful 1989 Ford Taurus) died on me on the way home from work today. It's the second time it has done it in the last two weeks. I think (though I am certainly not a car expert) that it is vapor-locking. It has been very hot lately and I don't typically have a lot of gas in the tank. Whatever it is, I was stuck in the middle of traffic until I could push it to the side of the road. I let it sit for ten minutes and was able to restart it. I went straight to the gas station and put a few gallons in.

Why haven't scientists developed a transporter, yet?

Dating Again, part II

Well, I called the girl whose number I got last week. We probably talked for about thirty minutes. It was a nice conversation. The bad part is that we won't be going out for dinner for a few weeks. She is going out of town for a few weeks and will not be back until the first part of August. She must have told me a half-dozen times that she is not trying to avoid me; she does want to go out. I was shaking my head, but I do believe her. Besides, I am not in a hurry or anything. I'm still anxious, though.

The Human Desire for Love and Companionship

I mentioned PostSecret recently. Well, here's a postcard from this week:




This is just one person among many millions in our country drifting through life lonely, looking for love or a companion. They're everywhere; make an effort to reach out to the people in your life and let them know they are not alone.

Constant Companion

I'm a cat guy. Dogs are cool; I have no problem with them (except for small yappers, i.e. my Mom's dog, Mia), but I just identify more with cats. The cat pictured is my buddy, Tiberius (yes, named in honor of the greatest captain ever). I adopted him from the local animal shelter a couple of years ago. He is a little more clingy than the typical cat. He frequently likes to lay on my lap (as he is now), follows me into the bathroom, sleeps with me (usually between my legs), and often just follows me around the house. Just like people, cats have their odd quirks. Tiberius does not like to be touched anywhere other than his head and neck. If you try to pet him anywhere else on his body, he will nip at you. He is amazingly good with kids, too. My niece, Alexis, loves to grab Tiberius' head and plant a big kiss on him. Most of the time he lets her do it. Usually after she does it, she says, "Uncle Shane, Tiberius loves me, doesn't he?" It's funny to watch.

I wouldn't know what to do without Tiberius now.