Year: 2006
Disparity
Posted on October 8, 2006 in Addictions Irony & Sarcasm
To be a drug user in this society is an invitation to a life of luxury when it comes to treatment.
The Wrong Label
Posted on October 8, 2006 in Adolescence College Mania
My mother knew something was wrong when I was younger, but chose to couch it in a personally-wrought pop psychology
Manica’s Meme
Posted on October 6, 2006 in Memes
Stole this from the Queen of Mania herself:
1. How tall are you barefoot? 6 3 or 4 inches
2. Have you ever flown first-class? Yes, they bumped me up.
3. One of your favorite books when you were a child? Phantom Tollbooth
4. A good restaurant in your city: Natraj
5. What is your favorite small appliance? My wrist blood pressure and heart monitor
6. One person that never fails to make you laugh? Tough one….I can be pretty intractable when I am down.
7. What’s your favorite Christmas song? Santa Baby
8. What was the first music that you ever bought? Some Disney Stuff
9. Do you do push-ups? Does anyone?
10. What was one of your favorite games as a child? Hiding from the other kids and playing with my Matchbox cars
11. What is the one thing that you cook that always receives compliments? Spaghetti sauce
12. When you were twelve years old, what did you want to be when you grew up? Lawyer. Just like Manica.
13. Your favorite Soup of the Day? Tortilla soup
14. What in your life are you most grateful for? Hell, let’s steal: “My tenuous hold on my physical and mental health.”
15. Have you ever met someone famous? Sure. Wasn’t impressed with Buddy Hackett to tell the truth.
16. Date Of Birth? Oh, that’s nosey.
17. Top 3 thoughts at this exact moment: What’s this crud behind my ear?, When should I get to bed so that I can make the meeting?, and Where is the book Dragon Hunter?
18. Three people you’re thinking about right now: Lynn, Manica (don’t get too prideful girlie), and my brother.
19. Name five drinks you regularly drink: Water, root beer, tangerine-lime, ginger ale, ginger beer.
20. From what news source do you receive the bulk of your news? Bloglines.
21. Current hair? Brown with a salt and pepper beard.
22. Current worry? Will I wake up depressed tomorrow?
23. Current hate? Waking up depressed.
24. Favorite place to be? The red retro chair in the front room.
25. Least favorite place to be? In a Republican HQ.
26. Do you consider yourself well organized? I can find my stuff. You can’t.
27. Do you believe in an afterlife? I’m thinking about this one.
28. Where do you think you will be in 10 years? No idea and the idea terrifies me.
29. Do you burn or tan? Tan then burn.
30. Who was the last blogger you hung out with? That would be Texas Bill.
31. Are you more optimistic or pessimistic about the future? Neither.
32. Last time you had an alcoholic drink? Damn. 17 years?
33. What songs do you sing in the shower? Haven’t done that lately. Instead, I declaim things that I want to write.
34. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a kid? The garbage cans.
35. What’s in your pockets right now? My wallet.
36. Last thing that made you laugh? Something Manica said.
37. Best bed sheets you had as a child? Another steal: “Ones that stayed on the bed and didn’t pull off through the night.”
38. Worst injury you’ve ever had? Broken left arm?
39. Favorite song? Prokofiev’s 2nd Piano Concerto.
40. How many TVs do you own? One
41. In the last calendar year, how many people have you told that you love them? 1 – My wife.
42. Last person that made you blush? Hmmm. Dunno!
43. Best compliment received? I receive compliments? Damn. I know I am depressed! 😉
44. What song is in your head? Katchaturian’s Piano Concerto
45. What is your favorite book? Roget’s Thesaurus?
46. Last meal you cooked for the opposite sex? Um, I usually do things in boxes.
47. What songs do you want played at your wedding? Hey, this must be for kids!
48. What song do you want played at your funeral? Bach’s Brandenberg Concerto No. 4.
49. What were you doing at 12 midnight last night? Sleeping.
50. What would you like to accomplish with the remaining years of your life? Write a novel, visit a few places, and see the Republicans turned into a minority party ad infinitum.
Cheaper Gas Prices on the Way?
Posted on October 6, 2006 in Campaign 2006
Here’s a list of identified Republican sex criminals. Remember that when Clinton did it with an adult woman, they impeached him. Demand nothing less….
Still Deciding
Posted on October 6, 2006 in Humor?
Is it going to be anteaters (pangolins, echidnas included) or pumas, or coyotes?
Hook Bush Up
Posted on October 6, 2006 in Fact-Dropping
Scientists discover that magnetic pulses can curb selfishness. Mandate that Bush and Cheney be hooked up to one of these machines when making decisions that affect all of us?
Egotism
Posted on October 5, 2006 in Attitudes Imagination
I have to confess that the most interesting person I know is myself but only because I can see into my own mind and observe how it works.
No Need to Rise to A Hitler
Posted on October 2, 2006 in Justice War
Clearly — despite the posturings of some Republican supporters — there is no ambition on the part of American forces or their leadership to annihilate the Iraqi people or the Muslim religion.
Lucky Iceland
Posted on October 2, 2006 in Occupation of Iraq
They seem to be the one country which U.S. forces are actually leaving.
Pay as You Smudge
Posted on October 2, 2006 in Security
It seems a cool idea to create a system where we can pay using our fingerprints but a recent Scientific American evaluation found the idea wanting:
As an authentication tool, fingerprints are great–police catch criminals with them, after all. But it is not foolproof: it’s possible to use fingerprint images–derived from gelatin or clay, for instance–to fool readers. Clarkson University researchers found that 90 percent of well-made fakes could pass for real ones. In July, ZDNet quoted a Deloitte and Touche analyst that biometric spoofing is a growing concern, especially considering that we leave fingerprints everywhere. In principle, crooks who know you use Pay By Touch could lift your prints from your cocktail glass, make a mold, and then go on a free shopping spree. Call it the six-finger discount.
I suppose you can make things harder by using an unlisted telephone number or even make up a seven-digit number (as if you need another data string to remember). You might also try using a pinky rather than an index finger, to add a bit of uncertainty. Algorithms that look for signs of life, like sweat or a pulse, might also foil the rubber finger.
But then there’s the germ factor: touching a panel that who-knows-how-many have previously touched. A paper presented today at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy reported a study that found people with colds staying at hotels left the rhinovirus on surfaces they touched 35 percent of the time. Uninfected people picked up the virus on their fingertips 47 percent of the time, even 18 hours after the surface was contaminated. Scanners may be less filthy than hotel rooms, since the finger is on the reader only briefly, but I would not bet on that.
File this under the category of “people who love technology too much for their own good”.
Dream
Posted on October 2, 2006 in Dreams
I am riding with my father when the car and all the lights in the neighborhood suddenly go out.
