Is there anything in this planet which is more maddening than waiting for the delivery guy to arrive? I mean honestly. I don’t know if the online updates about the progress of your package are worth it if they leave you in this much anticipation as to whether or not your package is going to arrive in a reasonable amount of time.

Today I eagerly await the arrival of my podcast mic kit which should guarantee a high quality sound to my oh so lovely voice. But DAMN if I don’t jump up every time I think I hear a truck pull up.

To keep myself distracted I reorganized my desk a bit. I’ve gone back down to a single monitor display since I really don’t need the double monitors anymore. The main thing I used them for was programming but since my life as a programmer is largely behind me (aside from web design and such) I opted for more desk space.

Also in preparation for podcasting, I moved the PC tower to the floor to remove it from the desk and hopefully avoid the majority of the noise it might produce. In theory.

Oh a truck! Nope, not them. Sad.

Update: 5:50pm - I had called work to tell them I may be a little late while I was waiting for the package. I ended up only being about an hour late since the package did not arrive I left a note for FedEx to leave the package. I just got notice that the package has been delivered and is waiting on my stoop. That makes my day, it’ll be like Christmas when I get home

Most of you don’t know this as I haven’t publicized it much but I am a proud member of the “What the Cast” podcast team. I’ve only managed to do two episodes with them, missing the rest due to scheduling conflicts (working a night job cramps my style) but they’re always a hoot to listen to. WTC (What the Cast) is a lot like a group of geek guys sitting around shooting the breeze. In fact, that’s exactly what it is. We pick a few news stories or topics and sit there and just shoot the shit back and forth. Good times. Our latest one is still being edited as of this posting, but it is promising to be one of our funniest.

Also, in the next few days, I’ll launch a new podcast all my own. It’s called “Geekure.” A mashup of the words geek and culture as the focus of the podcast is on… geek culture. I describe it as “Inside the Geek’s Studio” and I’m James Lipton. Except not. I’ve got a handful of guests lined up, I am just waiting on my latest purchase (a podcast kit by Samson) and then I’ll be ready to rock and roll. It should be a lot of fun and I’m really looking forward to it.

I had lunch with a friend today. As I waited for her to arrive I was working on the laptop and I happened to see if there were any free wifi networks within range. That was when I happened to spot this jewel…

It’s amazing. I regularly walk around shirtless and barefoot without a thought. Yet leaving the house without my cell phone leaves me jittery. Normally I come home, plug it into the charger and that’s that. I know where it is and can always find it. Last night though it got left somewhere and I don’t know where it is. I’m sure it is in the house or in my car, but I just couldn’t find it this morning.

The cell phone is such an extension of me that I’m sitting her very consciously aware of its absence. I can’t pull it out to text someone or to check the time or even to pass the time with the wonders of Tetris. Thankfully I have my laptop so I can at least be comforted in that I am not completely out of touch with the world.

Perhaps feeling naked isn’t quite right. Losing my cell phone makes me feel similar to having lost my voice, I feel as if I can’t speak and communicate right now.

It’s an odd feeling. I guess I’m a technology addict.

Update 4:54pm - So it turns out that the phone apparently got left at the gas station last night and fell into the hands of some bums. I called it this morning trying to locate it and got an answer, so I assumed I had misdialed. I got no answer when I called again. My friend K called it to see if it was at her place and got an answer.

From what I can piece together, I left the phone on top of the gas pump. Then as I pulled off a bum half waved at me, I pointedly ignored him and now I wonder if maybe he was trying to tell me I had left my phone on the pump in hopes of getting a few bucks. Oops.

So apparently the taxi driver bought it off the bum for $10. This is a Sprint Katana phone, not top of the line, but worth more than $10 in resale value. I’ve got the driver’s phone number and will call him in a little while in hopes of setting up a time to meet somewhere and get my phone. Updates as I have them.

Update 11:45pm - In what must have looked like a drug deal to some, I reacquired my cell phone in exchange for $20 through a van’s window in a very short conversation. All is well.

Here are a few things that excite me, most of them are on the horizon and not here yet.

MyMint.com - It’s promised to be a new Web 2.0 financial website. I’ve only exchanged one brief email with one of the developers but it was still enough to make me excited and eager to see what they come out with.

Spore - This game looks entirely too cool. I’m stoked and very very eager to get my hands on it. Will Wright is brilliant and his dedication has created a series of games which have had a lasting effect on the entirety of the gaming industry.

The Gorb - The idea of online reputation is a powerful thing. It drives the Ebay market but it has hardly reached past that site and the Internet is a much bigger place. We need to find a service which people can latch onto and it will bring into the web as a whole. Where most services focus on registration, The Gorb instead embraces anonymity to allow people to be completely honest. Obviously it leaves the network open to griefers and trolls but their service looks the most promising of the reputation systems out there.

Apollo - It’s like Java, but better. We’ll see if it lives up to the hype but it’s opening the door for development. One of the biggest complaints about Java is its horrid graphics, Apollo is natively HTML, Flash etc.

Slacker - They look to be a bigger, better, more awesome version of Pandora or Last.FM. They made a big big splash a week ago and I’m very eager to see if they fulfill their big expectations and aspirations. They want to be more than Pandora or Last.fm, but that’s where they are starting.

We’ll see how these pan out, but they’re a handful of exciting possibilities.

What leaves you excited right now?