Just a short entry today... a few news articles that caught my eye...
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Young journalist sentenced to death in Afghanistan for reading about women's rights on the internet
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=511423&in_page_id=1770
Isn't nice to know that our troops are over there helping to protect these people
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And here's a prime example of the government having their head up their ass...
Pennsylvania takes on online auctions
http://www.philly.com/philly/business/homepage/20080130_Bidding_goodbye.html
Of course, I could fill an encyclopedia with examples of this kind of stupidity
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On a lighter note, too bad this isn't true... it would actually be kinda cool
http://www.serioussportsnewsnetwork.com/2008/01/petty-to-just-play-guitar-hero-iii-for-super-bowl-halftime.html
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Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
More Random Randomness
Temperature yesterday, 50 degrees. Temperature today, 5 degrees, -15 wind chill. Like the cliche goes... Michigan weather... if you don't like it, wait for a few minutes... and you still probably won't like it.
Johan Santana to the Mets... YAY!!! He's out of the Tigers division and even out of the American League. All the better for us :-) Now if we can just manage to keep Brandon Inge happy, things will be looking good for the Tig's
I saw Untraceable a few days ago. It reminded me of a movie version of an episode of CSI or NCIS or something like that. It was ok, not one I would add to my collection though. There's my movie review for the day.
Speaking of TV shows, House was new last night, and it was good, but what's up with it being new and a Christmas show at the end of January? Fox's December scheduling must have gotten messed up a little I'm guessing.
Johan Santana to the Mets... YAY!!! He's out of the Tigers division and even out of the American League. All the better for us :-) Now if we can just manage to keep Brandon Inge happy, things will be looking good for the Tig's
I saw Untraceable a few days ago. It reminded me of a movie version of an episode of CSI or NCIS or something like that. It was ok, not one I would add to my collection though. There's my movie review for the day.
Speaking of TV shows, House was new last night, and it was good, but what's up with it being new and a Christmas show at the end of January? Fox's December scheduling must have gotten messed up a little I'm guessing.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
A Couple Of Random Pointless Questions
1. Super Bowl Saturday
Why isn't the Super Bowl on Saturday? Is it such a big deal that the game has to be on Sunday? If it was on Saturday night, people could stay out at Super Bowl parties all night and not worry about having to get up early and going to work hung over. I bet they are just afraid to mess with a formula that has been working, but I doubt it would hurt the Super Bowl's popularity or ratings if it was held on Saturday.
2. Hello, Newman
Why didn't Newman get a his own show after Seinfeld went off the air? Am I the only on that thinks it would have been a good spin-off? In fact, what ever happened to the spin-off in general? (Besides "Joey", but I was never much for "Friends" anyways). Maybe someday I'll hop into Mr.Peabody's Wayback machine and look at all the cool spin-offs from the 70's and 80's.
Ok, that's enough pointless stupidity... for now, anyways
Why isn't the Super Bowl on Saturday? Is it such a big deal that the game has to be on Sunday? If it was on Saturday night, people could stay out at Super Bowl parties all night and not worry about having to get up early and going to work hung over. I bet they are just afraid to mess with a formula that has been working, but I doubt it would hurt the Super Bowl's popularity or ratings if it was held on Saturday.
2. Hello, Newman
Why didn't Newman get a his own show after Seinfeld went off the air? Am I the only on that thinks it would have been a good spin-off? In fact, what ever happened to the spin-off in general? (Besides "Joey", but I was never much for "Friends" anyways). Maybe someday I'll hop into Mr.Peabody's Wayback machine and look at all the cool spin-offs from the 70's and 80's.
Ok, that's enough pointless stupidity... for now, anyways
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Brrrr...
The weather that was in Green Bay last weekend seems to have made it's way here finally. It was -4 this morning... Mmmm, good old fashioned winter, the way it should be, and the way it used to be before we screwed up our environment. Just think how much better off we'd be, and ultimately how much better off our environment would be, if we took all of the money we are spending right now to send troops to the Middle East (to effectively protect our oil supply) and invested that money into developing alternative energy sources. Oh, wait... we were protecting everyone from those weapons of mass destruction... that's right... that's why we are over there... nothing to do with oil... or big fat governmental contracts with Haliburton...
I guess I kinda hopped up on my liberal soap box there for a minute... I was just planning on talking about the weather, that's all.
Anyways, a few other little notes...
Am I the only one that noticed that Brett Favre kinda gave away that game to the Giants. No one seems to be talking about it much, but he didn't have his best game (It still would have been nice if he were a Lion though). I guess the Packers weren't as destined as I thought. As a result, it turns out that Manning will be playing in the Super Bowl... not the Manning everyone expected before the season started, but Eli has played well. It doesn't really matter though. I expect the Patriots to crush the Giants, so here's an early congrats to all my friends in the Boston area... It was an amazing season. Patriots, Red Sox... even the Celtics are looking good... Hopefully this year the Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons can steal some of the attention the New England area has been getting ;-)... (The Lions aren't in any danger of stealing attention from anyone)
The Winter X-Games 12 start tonight. This is the highest profile snowmobiling event of the season. It's kinda a big deal here at work, so I figured I should at least mention it. The TV schedule, for reference:
http://expn.go.com/expn/story?id=3163738
Update...
T.J. Gulla is my guy... He's my racer from the office pool, so go T.J.!!!... I know, kinda weird... We don't have a Super Bowl board, but we have a Winter X-Games Sno-Cross pool... just for fun, of course ;-)
I guess I kinda hopped up on my liberal soap box there for a minute... I was just planning on talking about the weather, that's all.
Anyways, a few other little notes...
Am I the only one that noticed that Brett Favre kinda gave away that game to the Giants. No one seems to be talking about it much, but he didn't have his best game (It still would have been nice if he were a Lion though). I guess the Packers weren't as destined as I thought. As a result, it turns out that Manning will be playing in the Super Bowl... not the Manning everyone expected before the season started, but Eli has played well. It doesn't really matter though. I expect the Patriots to crush the Giants, so here's an early congrats to all my friends in the Boston area... It was an amazing season. Patriots, Red Sox... even the Celtics are looking good... Hopefully this year the Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons can steal some of the attention the New England area has been getting ;-)... (The Lions aren't in any danger of stealing attention from anyone)
The Winter X-Games 12 start tonight. This is the highest profile snowmobiling event of the season. It's kinda a big deal here at work, so I figured I should at least mention it. The TV schedule, for reference:
http://expn.go.com/expn/story?id=3163738
Update...
T.J. Gulla is my guy... He's my racer from the office pool, so go T.J.!!!... I know, kinda weird... We don't have a Super Bowl board, but we have a Winter X-Games Sno-Cross pool... just for fun, of course ;-)
Friday, January 18, 2008
Find Me A Wormhole...
Well, I'll probably watch a couple of football games this weekend. I have a feeling they might not be too exciting though. It seems that New England and Green Bay are teams of destiny this year. I like San Diego, but it seems like there is no stopping the Patriots this year. Besides, the injuries for the Chargers aren't helping their cause either.
In the other game, the Giants have an uphill battle, and the weather will be just what the Packers like... about five below at kick off. It's always kinda tough to win at Green Bay anyways. Looks like Favre has a good chance to go to another Superbowl...
By the way, Detroit has one playoff win since 1957... Ugh
We are now gonna take a break from reality and slip off into an alternate universe... the imaginary place where the Lions got Brett Favre instead of the Packers... and the Lions had Barry Sanders and Brett Favre in the backfield at the same time... and the Lions won four Superbowls in a row in the 90's... and four more in the 2000's... and I won the Lotto... and it rains donuts and the snow tastes like mint chocolate chip ice cream... sigh...
Now, back to our regularly scheduled program
Well, at least pitchers and catchers report in a little over a month... YAY Tigers!!!
In the other game, the Giants have an uphill battle, and the weather will be just what the Packers like... about five below at kick off. It's always kinda tough to win at Green Bay anyways. Looks like Favre has a good chance to go to another Superbowl...
By the way, Detroit has one playoff win since 1957... Ugh
We are now gonna take a break from reality and slip off into an alternate universe... the imaginary place where the Lions got Brett Favre instead of the Packers... and the Lions had Barry Sanders and Brett Favre in the backfield at the same time... and the Lions won four Superbowls in a row in the 90's... and four more in the 2000's... and I won the Lotto... and it rains donuts and the snow tastes like mint chocolate chip ice cream... sigh...
Now, back to our regularly scheduled program
Well, at least pitchers and catchers report in a little over a month... YAY Tigers!!!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Slip Sliding Away
Winter driving can be an adventure. I don't worry about my own driving... it's everyone else on the road that I get concerned about. The roads were fine today, but I was thinking back a couple years to one of my more memorable trips to work one morning...
It was early one winter morning. We had gotten a few inches of snow, with some ice on the ground below it, so the driving conditions were not all that great. I decided to take the back roads to work, figuring there would be less traffic, so less idiots to try to dodge during my trip. That was probably a mistake.
I had just left town and headed north bound on Stark Road. There were a few cars, but not a lot of traffic, so I figured everything was going as planned. The roads were bad, so I was driving pretty much the same as everyone else... pretty slowly... about 40 mph or so.
As I was going along I noticed ahead of me... coming at me... that there must have been an impatient driver. She was in my lane, and it looked like she was passing the car in front of her. I thought that was kinda odd, given the road conditions. Then I realized that she wasn't trying to pass anyone... her van was fishtailing. She had lost control of her vehicle and was coming straight at me in my lane. The car I had "thought" she was passing was in the other lane, so there was no place for me to go. Nice.
My first thought was "Damn, I just paid off this truck and took full coverage off of it." My second thought was "That's probably a dumb thing to be thinking about right now." I knew I couldn't panic or slam on my brakes, because then I'd lose control of my vehicle too, and then it would really get ugly... so I let off the gas and started to pump the brakes (I know anti-lock brakes are supposed to take care of that, but that's just instinct for me). Then I noticed that the fishtailing van was starting to drift toward the ditch, so I figured this was my only chance... A small space was opening up between the two vehicles. I didn't know if it would be big enough, but I didn't have a lot of options... I aimed right between the two of them. The van continued to drift into the ditch, and I somehow squeezed through with literally less than an inch to spare between the vehicles on each side of me.
I stopped and went back to see if everyone was ok. The van driven by the woman wound up going into the ditch, but she was fine. And no, she wasn't running around in her underwear shouting "Help me Tom Cruise". It wasn't that that bad, but the van was kinda dented up from the ditch and she did look pretty scared. It turns out the guy in the other lane was her husband. They were supposed to be following each other to town to make sure they made it safely, so I didn't have to wait with her for a tow truck to get there.
I kinda thought they might say something like "Thanks for not smashing head first into either of us" but they were a little shook up, so I let it slide.
I'm sure everyone has a story like this, and I have a bunch more, but something just made me think of this one today. So, everyone be careful out there, and keep it between the ditches... and in your own lane whenever possible ;-)
It was early one winter morning. We had gotten a few inches of snow, with some ice on the ground below it, so the driving conditions were not all that great. I decided to take the back roads to work, figuring there would be less traffic, so less idiots to try to dodge during my trip. That was probably a mistake.
I had just left town and headed north bound on Stark Road. There were a few cars, but not a lot of traffic, so I figured everything was going as planned. The roads were bad, so I was driving pretty much the same as everyone else... pretty slowly... about 40 mph or so.
As I was going along I noticed ahead of me... coming at me... that there must have been an impatient driver. She was in my lane, and it looked like she was passing the car in front of her. I thought that was kinda odd, given the road conditions. Then I realized that she wasn't trying to pass anyone... her van was fishtailing. She had lost control of her vehicle and was coming straight at me in my lane. The car I had "thought" she was passing was in the other lane, so there was no place for me to go. Nice.
My first thought was "Damn, I just paid off this truck and took full coverage off of it." My second thought was "That's probably a dumb thing to be thinking about right now." I knew I couldn't panic or slam on my brakes, because then I'd lose control of my vehicle too, and then it would really get ugly... so I let off the gas and started to pump the brakes (I know anti-lock brakes are supposed to take care of that, but that's just instinct for me). Then I noticed that the fishtailing van was starting to drift toward the ditch, so I figured this was my only chance... A small space was opening up between the two vehicles. I didn't know if it would be big enough, but I didn't have a lot of options... I aimed right between the two of them. The van continued to drift into the ditch, and I somehow squeezed through with literally less than an inch to spare between the vehicles on each side of me.
I stopped and went back to see if everyone was ok. The van driven by the woman wound up going into the ditch, but she was fine. And no, she wasn't running around in her underwear shouting "Help me Tom Cruise". It wasn't that that bad, but the van was kinda dented up from the ditch and she did look pretty scared. It turns out the guy in the other lane was her husband. They were supposed to be following each other to town to make sure they made it safely, so I didn't have to wait with her for a tow truck to get there.
I kinda thought they might say something like "Thanks for not smashing head first into either of us" but they were a little shook up, so I let it slide.
I'm sure everyone has a story like this, and I have a bunch more, but something just made me think of this one today. So, everyone be careful out there, and keep it between the ditches... and in your own lane whenever possible ;-)
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
No Post
Sorry, no post today...
Hey, wait... Just by typing something here means that I did make a post... So I guess this is a post... sort of...
This paradox is making my head hurt... just like the pair o' docks I hit my head on while swimming at Higgins Lake
I bet you couldn't have made it through the day without this type of deep, insightful, philosophical diatribe
Oh god, I've known it all along, but now it's official, and it's documented... I'm a dork ;-)
Hey, wait... Just by typing something here means that I did make a post... So I guess this is a post... sort of...
This paradox is making my head hurt... just like the pair o' docks I hit my head on while swimming at Higgins Lake
I bet you couldn't have made it through the day without this type of deep, insightful, philosophical diatribe
Oh god, I've known it all along, but now it's official, and it's documented... I'm a dork ;-)
Monday, January 14, 2008
Front Runners
It's been a while since I've put up a boring tech post, so here goes...
I register all of my domain names for work through Network Solutions (NS), and I've been happy with their service. they even went out of their way one time to help me with an issue, and I've always thought that they were a classy organization. After reading the following article, I'm a little concerned...
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Is-Network-Solutions-Snatching-Domain-Names/?kc=EWKNLBOE011108STR3
NS's website allows people to search domain names to see if they are available. So if I wanted to move my blog from Google to chockssquawks.com I could search there to see if anyone else owned that name. If not, I could register it through them, or through several other registrars like GoDaddy or 1and1. According to this article, whenever a domain name is searched on NS's website, NS automatically reserves it, forcing you to either buy it from them or risk not getting it at all. You lose your chance to register it with one of their cheaper competitors. If this is true, this is a classic example of phishing, and just as devious as spammers that send emails trying to trick people out of their money or personal information. Basically you are coerced into registering through them, because if this is really happening, once they realize you are interested in a domain name, they "steal" it in the hopes of selling it to you without the option of working with a different company.
Until NS clarifies it's procedures on this issue, I know I wont be doing any searches using their website.
I register all of my domain names for work through Network Solutions (NS), and I've been happy with their service. they even went out of their way one time to help me with an issue, and I've always thought that they were a classy organization. After reading the following article, I'm a little concerned...
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Is-Network-Solutions-Snatching-Domain-Names/?kc=EWKNLBOE011108STR3
NS's website allows people to search domain names to see if they are available. So if I wanted to move my blog from Google to chockssquawks.com I could search there to see if anyone else owned that name. If not, I could register it through them, or through several other registrars like GoDaddy or 1and1. According to this article, whenever a domain name is searched on NS's website, NS automatically reserves it, forcing you to either buy it from them or risk not getting it at all. You lose your chance to register it with one of their cheaper competitors. If this is true, this is a classic example of phishing, and just as devious as spammers that send emails trying to trick people out of their money or personal information. Basically you are coerced into registering through them, because if this is really happening, once they realize you are interested in a domain name, they "steal" it in the hopes of selling it to you without the option of working with a different company.
Until NS clarifies it's procedures on this issue, I know I wont be doing any searches using their website.
The Dumbest Smart People…
I’m gonna talk math, and I know some of you are a little math-phobic (wink, wink) but this just bugs me. This happened last week. I don’t remember the contestants’ names, but the show ended something like this…. Going into Final Jeopardy, our three contestants have the following scores…
Suzy 12,900
Fred 12,500
Sam 5,000
Now Fred, let me pull you aside and talk to you for a minute. The ONLY way you can win is if Suzy gets the Final Jeopardy question wrong, regardless of how much you bet. Think about that for a minute... It doesn't matter if your answer is right or wrong... you can only win IF Suzy gets the question wrong. So your strategy should be based solely on the plan that Suzy WILL get it wrong. If Suzy gets the question wrong, you know she will be betting 12,101, and her final amount will end up being 799. How much do you need to bet to ensure that you win when she gets it wrong?.... That’s right, moron, 0!!!! If you bet it all, you are not improving your chances of winning, and you’ve given Sam in third place the golden ticket if both you and Suzy get the question wrong.
Ok Sam, you should know that the only way you can win is if both Suzy and Fred get the question wrong. Sam should know he can still win, and at least set himself up for second place, even if he gets the question wrong. Sam should also know that Suzy will be betting 12,101, and he’s hoping that Fred is a moron and bets it all. Sam should have bet 0, knowing that he has enough to win if everything goes right, and that will still leave him with enough for second place if Fred gets the question wrong.
Well of course, last week’s episode didn’t quite play out like this. Everyone got the Final Jeopardy question wrong. Suzy bet 12,101, so she was left with 799. Fred could have won with 12,500 if he had bet 0, but of course he bet 12,500 and was left with 0. Sam could have won with 5,000, but of course he also bet it all, as was left with 0.
I know, I’m rambling, but isn’t this obvious strategy? I know I’m pretty dense most of the time, so am I missing something here? Or better yet, why do I even care? I'm such a dork :-)
I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen these supposed smart people screw this up.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
A Top 10 Quickie
Top 10 ways to kill 10 minutes at work
10. Ask your boss how his kids are doing
9. Super glue a quarter to the floor and watch people try to pick it up
8. Fark.com
7. Make a stick figure cartoon that dances when you flip through a Post-it notepad
6. Try all of the different wallpaper backgrounds on your computer
5. See how fast you can spin in your chair without making yourself sick
4. Turn a paper clip into a spring loaded paper ball shooter
3. Watch the horizon
2. Sniff a Sharpie
1. Write a Top 10 blog
10. Ask your boss how his kids are doing
9. Super glue a quarter to the floor and watch people try to pick it up
8. Fark.com
7. Make a stick figure cartoon that dances when you flip through a Post-it notepad
6. Try all of the different wallpaper backgrounds on your computer
5. See how fast you can spin in your chair without making yourself sick
4. Turn a paper clip into a spring loaded paper ball shooter
3. Watch the horizon
2. Sniff a Sharpie
1. Write a Top 10 blog
Monday, January 7, 2008
Random Randomness
Spring Has Sprung A Leak
The temperature is supposed to reach almost 60 degrees today. Our snow is gone and it's a wet, sloppy mess outside right now. How depressing... this is just not right...
Speaking Of A Mess
It looks like this Roger Clemens deal has turned into a real mess... he has to prove his innocence, while no one has really proven that he is guilty of anything. No DNA evidence, no receipts or records... just someone who says he did it. I don't know if there's any way to ever actually find out what really happened, so in the mean time, let the Joseph McCarthy Hearings continue. Arthur Miller is turning over in his grave, I'm sure.
Hey, This Guy Is Stealing My Ideas...
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/12/28/Tv/Those_were_the_days__.shtml
If he wanted me to write for his paper, he could have just sent me an email... I'd be happy to. I know... not only am I a dork, but I'm delusional , too.
PSA To The People In My Neighborhood
The holidays are over folks. I don't really care if you don't feel like putting your decorations away, but you don't need to keep turning your Christmas lights on every night. I've already said that we don't need to start the season before Thanksgiving, but we also should end it by New Year's.
Silly Question Of The Day
Why do gas prices end in 9/10 of a cent? How stupid is that?
The temperature is supposed to reach almost 60 degrees today. Our snow is gone and it's a wet, sloppy mess outside right now. How depressing... this is just not right...
Speaking Of A Mess
It looks like this Roger Clemens deal has turned into a real mess... he has to prove his innocence, while no one has really proven that he is guilty of anything. No DNA evidence, no receipts or records... just someone who says he did it. I don't know if there's any way to ever actually find out what really happened, so in the mean time, let the Joseph McCarthy Hearings continue. Arthur Miller is turning over in his grave, I'm sure.
Hey, This Guy Is Stealing My Ideas...
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/12/28/Tv/Those_were_the_days__.shtml
If he wanted me to write for his paper, he could have just sent me an email... I'd be happy to. I know... not only am I a dork, but I'm delusional , too.
PSA To The People In My Neighborhood
The holidays are over folks. I don't really care if you don't feel like putting your decorations away, but you don't need to keep turning your Christmas lights on every night. I've already said that we don't need to start the season before Thanksgiving, but we also should end it by New Year's.
Silly Question Of The Day
Why do gas prices end in 9/10 of a cent? How stupid is that?
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