Confidential to TGS :
What's up with all the self-indulgent whining and moaning? Get your ass our here for some BEER.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
My response to the Dell Service customer satisfaction survey
I recently had to talk to Dell's incompetent service techs on the phone, as my new Dell 700M laptop has an anoying problem: occasionally, and without an easily reproducable set of circumstances, when I cause it to Stand By by closing the lid of the machine, the hard drive keeps spinning. This is really bad, since the fan keeps blowing, and the machine gets REALLY hot while sitting in a stuffy little laptop bag, or other bag. Dell's primary advice? Don't use 'Stand By': it's a bad feature. Oh, and they don't like Hibernate either. He told me that if I'm going to not be using the computer for more than 40 minutes, I should ALWAYS shut it all the way down. Huh??? What the hell are the Hibernate and Stand By features for, then?
And yes, for the curious: the problem HAS occurred when I've had it on Stand By for less than 40 minutes.
Since they send out e-surveys which invite narrative comments on what they can do better, I wrote this:
We'll see if they bother to respond.
I recently had to talk to Dell's incompetent service techs on the phone, as my new Dell 700M laptop has an anoying problem: occasionally, and without an easily reproducable set of circumstances, when I cause it to Stand By by closing the lid of the machine, the hard drive keeps spinning. This is really bad, since the fan keeps blowing, and the machine gets REALLY hot while sitting in a stuffy little laptop bag, or other bag. Dell's primary advice? Don't use 'Stand By': it's a bad feature. Oh, and they don't like Hibernate either. He told me that if I'm going to not be using the computer for more than 40 minutes, I should ALWAYS shut it all the way down. Huh??? What the hell are the Hibernate and Stand By features for, then?
And yes, for the curious: the problem HAS occurred when I've had it on Stand By for less than 40 minutes.
Since they send out e-surveys which invite narrative comments on what they can do better, I wrote this:
Having technicians who know only how to follow problem solving algorithms, but lack in-depth knowledge of the systems they purport to provide service for, does Dell a great disservice.
Further, having technicians who tell me that the "Stand By" and "Hibernate" functions included in EVERY modern Windows based computer are dangerous and should be avoided is ridiculous. It is utter nonsense that "Stand By" should never be used longer than 40 minutes, as the Dell technician told me.
We'll see if they bother to respond.
Zion National Park
Was lovely... except for the obnoxious, stupid, loud, boorish tourists. Most of these were so obnoxious because they couldn't understand that not everyone within a half mile wanted to hear their stupid, stupid conversations. The campground (Watchman Tent site) was pretty great, though, in terms of people being respectfully quiet, that is, after the pickup soccer game being shreikingly played on the road outside the bathrooms.
Confidential to the approximately 75 camera toting Japanese tourists in the large group at the Museum of Man on Sunday morning: what the fuck had you done by 10 o'clock in the morning in your loafers and chinos that it seemed necessary to get into a massage train?
I will say, however, that people badmouthing Springdale, Utah, the town just outside the park's boundaries, seem pretty misguided. We were there on a weekend at the end of high season, and the place was pleasant, easy, and nearly deserted. And The Mean Bean coffeehouse kicked serious ass: friendly, pleasant, politically solid, fun people selling great coffee, and great sandwiches.
We enjoyed our hiking at Zion, limited though it was, and were lucky enough to stumble into doing it at the best possible times: late afternoon (after the loudmouths have gone to their RVs and hotel rooms), and early morning (before the loudmouths have awoken.)
Cedar Breaks National Monument, just an hour away by car, is a world away from Zion in culture and pleasantness. The hiking trails were quiet, nearly deserted (though this could have been partially due to the hailstorm that I hiked through the beginnings of, and the fact that I visited on a weekday.) The views and photography opportunities were fantastic, and the loudmouths seem to stay away.
Current value received from the $50 National Parks Pass in the less than one month we've owned it: $34 ($20: Zion NP; $4 Cedar Breaks NM; $10 Arches NP).
Was lovely... except for the obnoxious, stupid, loud, boorish tourists. Most of these were so obnoxious because they couldn't understand that not everyone within a half mile wanted to hear their stupid, stupid conversations. The campground (Watchman Tent site) was pretty great, though, in terms of people being respectfully quiet, that is, after the pickup soccer game being shreikingly played on the road outside the bathrooms.
Confidential to the approximately 75 camera toting Japanese tourists in the large group at the Museum of Man on Sunday morning: what the fuck had you done by 10 o'clock in the morning in your loafers and chinos that it seemed necessary to get into a massage train?
I will say, however, that people badmouthing Springdale, Utah, the town just outside the park's boundaries, seem pretty misguided. We were there on a weekend at the end of high season, and the place was pleasant, easy, and nearly deserted. And The Mean Bean coffeehouse kicked serious ass: friendly, pleasant, politically solid, fun people selling great coffee, and great sandwiches.
We enjoyed our hiking at Zion, limited though it was, and were lucky enough to stumble into doing it at the best possible times: late afternoon (after the loudmouths have gone to their RVs and hotel rooms), and early morning (before the loudmouths have awoken.)
Cedar Breaks National Monument, just an hour away by car, is a world away from Zion in culture and pleasantness. The hiking trails were quiet, nearly deserted (though this could have been partially due to the hailstorm that I hiked through the beginnings of, and the fact that I visited on a weekday.) The views and photography opportunities were fantastic, and the loudmouths seem to stay away.
Current value received from the $50 National Parks Pass in the less than one month we've owned it: $34 ($20: Zion NP; $4 Cedar Breaks NM; $10 Arches NP).
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Selling your whole life on ebay
This is suspiciously similar to bet between Charles & Ben, and later joined into by me. I have to ask Charles where he got the idea, since it now doesn't appear to be precisely original. Of course, that bet has gone nowhere, but this project is distinctly going somewhere:
allmylifeforsale.net . Here is his ebay site where he's selling all his stuff.
I'm almost tempted to bid on this item, it's so funny:
"pay the Speeding Ticket I got on Tuesday morning"
current price: $1.00
shipping costs: Calculate
time left: 6d 11h 28m
Or maybe I'm just sympathetic due to the $341 (grand total cost) speeding ticket that I got for 42 in a 35 just after i turned 18 (the next day, actually) in Sacramento. My family will remember all the fun (ahem) I had going to Laughs For You And Traffic Too Traffic School, which was a chunk of what made the damn ticket so expensive.
Brian Thompson's allmylifeforsale.net project, which has netted $1054.58 as of 8/13/05, is based on an earlier project, John D. Freyer's AllMyLifeForSale.com (capital letters are mine), which led to a
really cool book of the same name. Freyer's project, according to his book, netted $4,906.52, though I suspect the royalties from the book are paying more handsomely than that. That prior link to Freyer's book has a good description of Freyer's project, and links to booksense.com's excellent engine for finding books through independent bookstores.
What a great couple of projects!
The bet, by the way, had somewhat less artistic intentions: Charles was going to list every single thing he owned on ebay, at a starting bid of $50,000. If any single item sold, he had to pay Ben $1000 or something like that. Obviously, it was an essentially risk-free bet for both of them, except for the significant listing fees that Charles would have incurred on ebay (which seem to be limited to $4.80 per item for basic listing fees, for any item over listed with a starting bid over $500.00.) The kicker for ebay would have been the infamous Final Value Fee, which would amount to roughly $7378, or thereabouts. Then again, since that would leave $42,622 minus paypal or other service fees, the deal would work out okay. I just can really see someone dropping 50 grand for, say, a broken guitar string.
This is suspiciously similar to bet between Charles & Ben, and later joined into by me. I have to ask Charles where he got the idea, since it now doesn't appear to be precisely original. Of course, that bet has gone nowhere, but this project is distinctly going somewhere:
allmylifeforsale.net . Here is his ebay site where he's selling all his stuff.
I'm almost tempted to bid on this item, it's so funny:
"pay the Speeding Ticket I got on Tuesday morning"
current price: $1.00
shipping costs: Calculate
time left: 6d 11h 28m
Or maybe I'm just sympathetic due to the $341 (grand total cost) speeding ticket that I got for 42 in a 35 just after i turned 18 (the next day, actually) in Sacramento. My family will remember all the fun (ahem) I had going to Laughs For You And Traffic Too Traffic School, which was a chunk of what made the damn ticket so expensive.
Brian Thompson's allmylifeforsale.net project, which has netted $1054.58 as of 8/13/05, is based on an earlier project, John D. Freyer's AllMyLifeForSale.com (capital letters are mine), which led to a
really cool book of the same name. Freyer's project, according to his book, netted $4,906.52, though I suspect the royalties from the book are paying more handsomely than that. That prior link to Freyer's book has a good description of Freyer's project, and links to booksense.com's excellent engine for finding books through independent bookstores.
What a great couple of projects!
The bet, by the way, had somewhat less artistic intentions: Charles was going to list every single thing he owned on ebay, at a starting bid of $50,000. If any single item sold, he had to pay Ben $1000 or something like that. Obviously, it was an essentially risk-free bet for both of them, except for the significant listing fees that Charles would have incurred on ebay (which seem to be limited to $4.80 per item for basic listing fees, for any item over listed with a starting bid over $500.00.) The kicker for ebay would have been the infamous Final Value Fee, which would amount to roughly $7378, or thereabouts. Then again, since that would leave $42,622 minus paypal or other service fees, the deal would work out okay. I just can really see someone dropping 50 grand for, say, a broken guitar string.
Salt Lake miscellaney
The free wifi at the library is lovely, but consistently and annoyingly buggy. There are ethernet jacks at every table and all over the place in the floor, but so far from testing, only about 10% work. Pisser, especially when trying to make a camping reservation for Zion National Park for this weekend, and having the stupid stupid stupid wifi drop right at the "Accept" page. Looks, fortunately, like it only went through once.
We made an offer on a house, which turns out to be in short sale, so it'll take a while either way (since all leinholders/banks have to approve any sale.) It's a pretty sweet place, with lots of room for visitors, and probably considerably undervalued, largely since it's filthy, and the dopes don't seem to be aware of the hardwood under the filthy carpet. More when we know, which will likely come in dribs and drabs over the next several weeks.
Momma is taking the train to come see us for four days; should be fun, and she will get the chance (with me) to visit her childhood best friend, who lives in Orem, about 40 miles south of SLC.
Lotsa travel planned for the fall: it's getting a little ridiculous, and a little hard to keep track of. Roughly: Brian Head and Zion NP this weekend; Boston from August 26 to September 1; probably Denver for GABF September 29 to October 1; New York City for a friend's wedding October 6 to 9, then heading up to Boston from October 9-13; fly to the bay area for the beer and cooking class with CKI on October 24, then very briefly back to SLC for dinner with my lovely partner on Oct 26, then on to Seattle, only to drive to Portland for the NLG convention, then drive back to Seattle for another friend's wedding reception; then flying back to SLC November 1. Then to Georgia for the SOAW vigil Nov 17-22; presumptively to Sacramento for X-Giving; then likely to Vermont for X-Mas. Phew!
Okay -- need to check some mortgage rates!
The free wifi at the library is lovely, but consistently and annoyingly buggy. There are ethernet jacks at every table and all over the place in the floor, but so far from testing, only about 10% work. Pisser, especially when trying to make a camping reservation for Zion National Park for this weekend, and having the stupid stupid stupid wifi drop right at the "Accept" page. Looks, fortunately, like it only went through once.
We made an offer on a house, which turns out to be in short sale, so it'll take a while either way (since all leinholders/banks have to approve any sale.) It's a pretty sweet place, with lots of room for visitors, and probably considerably undervalued, largely since it's filthy, and the dopes don't seem to be aware of the hardwood under the filthy carpet. More when we know, which will likely come in dribs and drabs over the next several weeks.
Momma is taking the train to come see us for four days; should be fun, and she will get the chance (with me) to visit her childhood best friend, who lives in Orem, about 40 miles south of SLC.
Lotsa travel planned for the fall: it's getting a little ridiculous, and a little hard to keep track of. Roughly: Brian Head and Zion NP this weekend; Boston from August 26 to September 1; probably Denver for GABF September 29 to October 1; New York City for a friend's wedding October 6 to 9, then heading up to Boston from October 9-13; fly to the bay area for the beer and cooking class with CKI on October 24, then very briefly back to SLC for dinner with my lovely partner on Oct 26, then on to Seattle, only to drive to Portland for the NLG convention, then drive back to Seattle for another friend's wedding reception; then flying back to SLC November 1. Then to Georgia for the SOAW vigil Nov 17-22; presumptively to Sacramento for X-Giving; then likely to Vermont for X-Mas. Phew!
Okay -- need to check some mortgage rates!
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Salt Lake!
Been in town for about 24 hours now, and impressions are favorable. Not a lot of time to write, but there is free wifi (and apprently wired access, and outlets, and comfortable tables) at the gorgeous downtown Salt Lake City public library, with sweeping views of the mountains.
Our new home/condo is beautiful. Three bedrooms, two baths, hardwood floors in the huge main room, dishwasher & laundry in the unit, for starters. And $800/month, with most utilities paid by the owner. Not too damn shabby! The parking stinks, but otherwise it's pretty damn nice. Oh, and did I mention that the building is on the National Register of Historic Places ? Just search down for "Hollywood Apartments".
Okay, time to head back home, to my refrigerator full of Gale Force IPA, and think about feeding myself. With something in addition to the Gale Force, that is.
Confidential to TGS: had to use your previously mentioned gift, but it remains entirely functional. And it's coming in handy: thanks! Call if you desire details. No progress made yet re: other discussons about... ahem. Uncle.
Been in town for about 24 hours now, and impressions are favorable. Not a lot of time to write, but there is free wifi (and apprently wired access, and outlets, and comfortable tables) at the gorgeous downtown Salt Lake City public library, with sweeping views of the mountains.
Our new home/condo is beautiful. Three bedrooms, two baths, hardwood floors in the huge main room, dishwasher & laundry in the unit, for starters. And $800/month, with most utilities paid by the owner. Not too damn shabby! The parking stinks, but otherwise it's pretty damn nice. Oh, and did I mention that the building is on the National Register of Historic Places ? Just search down for "Hollywood Apartments".
Okay, time to head back home, to my refrigerator full of Gale Force IPA, and think about feeding myself. With something in addition to the Gale Force, that is.
Confidential to TGS: had to use your previously mentioned gift, but it remains entirely functional. And it's coming in handy: thanks! Call if you desire details. No progress made yet re: other discussons about... ahem. Uncle.
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Hotlanta eats and drinks
My primary hope for today is that it rains. Now, suspend your disbelief for a second: no, it's not that I'm excited when it dips down to the high 80s during rain, nor do I like the flooding that inevitably results from rain in overdeveloped Atlanta communities.
Rather, it's because they pour $1 house beers at the Park Tavern on rainy days, and I want to try them without paying full price, since they have received somewhat mixed ratings online.
Mostly what we do in Hotlanta in our free time, besides look for places with air conditioning and free wireless, is eat. Last night, we made a serious mistake of eating at R. Thomas Deluxe Grill, which has a fun menu for vegetarian food, but serious, serious problems. Let's start with the vegan burger being cooked on the same grill as the meat. And our server not washing his hands after going to the FILTHY bathroom. And our server being awol for much of our dinner. (It got to where I made sure to be ready to whip out a credit card the next time he came by, for fear we'd be sitting there another 20 minutes.) And no, the place wasn't at all crowded for dinner at 6pm. Then we can pick on the smaller problems, like the wrong food being brought out, but nobody coming by for 30 minutes so that we could try to have it fixed. Basically, the place just sucked for service, and we won't go back. It's fun to have a 24/7 place that serves vegetarian food, sure, but not like that.
This morning, we had better luck at Radial, which definitely provides a preferred alternative to the pricey and ridiculously busy Flying Biscuit location in Candler Park. Radial's menu is better, simpler, somewhat cheaper, and makes it possible to actually eat breakfast with coffee for under $10 after tip. Unfortunately, the $1.95 coffee was abysmal: truly, almost as bad as McDonald's. The decaf I switched to was actually quite a bit better. I was so unimpressed by the horrible coffee that I won't ever order it again. We'll definitely go back: better food, same drive, and parking available as Flying Biscuit.
But we'll get coffee elsewhere, such as one of my favorite places in Atlanta, JavaVino . They have fantastic coffee, a very pleasant and nicely priced wine list (especially the specials!), free wifi, and are super friendly to boot. I'm gearing up to take them up on their Thursday special, the $18 bottomless glass of wine. Hah!
My primary hope for today is that it rains. Now, suspend your disbelief for a second: no, it's not that I'm excited when it dips down to the high 80s during rain, nor do I like the flooding that inevitably results from rain in overdeveloped Atlanta communities.
Rather, it's because they pour $1 house beers at the Park Tavern on rainy days, and I want to try them without paying full price, since they have received somewhat mixed ratings online.
Mostly what we do in Hotlanta in our free time, besides look for places with air conditioning and free wireless, is eat. Last night, we made a serious mistake of eating at R. Thomas Deluxe Grill, which has a fun menu for vegetarian food, but serious, serious problems. Let's start with the vegan burger being cooked on the same grill as the meat. And our server not washing his hands after going to the FILTHY bathroom. And our server being awol for much of our dinner. (It got to where I made sure to be ready to whip out a credit card the next time he came by, for fear we'd be sitting there another 20 minutes.) And no, the place wasn't at all crowded for dinner at 6pm. Then we can pick on the smaller problems, like the wrong food being brought out, but nobody coming by for 30 minutes so that we could try to have it fixed. Basically, the place just sucked for service, and we won't go back. It's fun to have a 24/7 place that serves vegetarian food, sure, but not like that.
This morning, we had better luck at Radial, which definitely provides a preferred alternative to the pricey and ridiculously busy Flying Biscuit location in Candler Park. Radial's menu is better, simpler, somewhat cheaper, and makes it possible to actually eat breakfast with coffee for under $10 after tip. Unfortunately, the $1.95 coffee was abysmal: truly, almost as bad as McDonald's. The decaf I switched to was actually quite a bit better. I was so unimpressed by the horrible coffee that I won't ever order it again. We'll definitely go back: better food, same drive, and parking available as Flying Biscuit.
But we'll get coffee elsewhere, such as one of my favorite places in Atlanta, JavaVino . They have fantastic coffee, a very pleasant and nicely priced wine list (especially the specials!), free wifi, and are super friendly to boot. I'm gearing up to take them up on their Thursday special, the $18 bottomless glass of wine. Hah!
Thursday, July 14, 2005
South
Free wireless has been spotty of late, hence the limited (okay, non-existent) posting. I've been in Hotlanta for about a week, and am wandering now. Today's trip has me in Greenville, South Carolina (a delightful, picturesque town) and continuing on to Charlotte, NC.
Lunch at the Blue Ridge Brewing Company in downtown Greenville (with free wifi all over the place!) has an excellent Total Eclipse XXX Stout: roasty, chocolatey, full, thick, and dark. (And I think it might be $2/pint for Throw Down Thursday!). Better have two. 4.25/4.5 ... YUM!
I visited the Shoeless Joe Jackson statue, and am headed to his gravesite after lunch on my way out of town. Weird, you say? Well, hell, his birthday IS on Saturday.
After that, on to Charlotte, and hopefully tonight's AAA baseball game between the Charlotte Knights and the Indianapolis Indians won't be rained out by the thunderstorms that Hurricane Dennis brought, and Hurricane Emily seems intent on perpetuating.
Then I fly out of Charlotte tomorrow to earn Delta Silver Medallion status with one flight: a ridiculously easy way to gain priority boarding (and in some cases, extra legroom seating and free upgrades). As importantly, though, it was a good justification for a fun road trip.
Greenville is remarkably pleasant so far, at least to my unstudied tourist eye. It's slow, but not dusty, and all the people so far have had (more apparently genuine than in Hotlanta) southern charm. Critically, it's a little cooler than anywhere I've been in Georgia or Tennessee in the last week.
Oh! We went rafting last week with the group on the Ocoee River in southern Tennessee. It was an excellent time, and seven of us had a great time camping the night before in the national forest. Well, it was great until the Russians showed up. A screaming, drunk, tweaking pack of Russians, about eight of them, wandered in to the campsite around 11pm and started wreaking absolute fucking havoc throughout the overflow camping area. They screamed and yelled until about 2am, when they decided to go back to their cars in the (very nearby) parking lot and blast techno music. After a member of our group (too) nicely asked them to turn it off, they did, and retreated to their campsite, where they screamed, yelled, played music, and broke things for another hour or two. Turns out they only sort of vaguely quieted down after one of their group stepped barefoot into some of the broken glass they were creating. Around 4am. Nice.
Anyway, it's more baseball for today, and trying to find some decent beer in the south, always a challenge. This has been a huge score so far: $2 pints of everything, though they are out of the Colonel Paris Pale Ale, so it's another Total Eclipse XXX Stout for me. And the $7.95 oven roasted vegetarian sandwich was excellent, with mounds of goat cheese, and excellent fries. They make their own amber ale ketchup, and apparently their own spicy grainy mustard, both of which are outstanding.
Free wireless has been spotty of late, hence the limited (okay, non-existent) posting. I've been in Hotlanta for about a week, and am wandering now. Today's trip has me in Greenville, South Carolina (a delightful, picturesque town) and continuing on to Charlotte, NC.
Lunch at the Blue Ridge Brewing Company in downtown Greenville (with free wifi all over the place!) has an excellent Total Eclipse XXX Stout: roasty, chocolatey, full, thick, and dark. (And I think it might be $2/pint for Throw Down Thursday!). Better have two. 4.25/4.5 ... YUM!
I visited the Shoeless Joe Jackson statue, and am headed to his gravesite after lunch on my way out of town. Weird, you say? Well, hell, his birthday IS on Saturday.
After that, on to Charlotte, and hopefully tonight's AAA baseball game between the Charlotte Knights and the Indianapolis Indians won't be rained out by the thunderstorms that Hurricane Dennis brought, and Hurricane Emily seems intent on perpetuating.
Then I fly out of Charlotte tomorrow to earn Delta Silver Medallion status with one flight: a ridiculously easy way to gain priority boarding (and in some cases, extra legroom seating and free upgrades). As importantly, though, it was a good justification for a fun road trip.
Greenville is remarkably pleasant so far, at least to my unstudied tourist eye. It's slow, but not dusty, and all the people so far have had (more apparently genuine than in Hotlanta) southern charm. Critically, it's a little cooler than anywhere I've been in Georgia or Tennessee in the last week.
Oh! We went rafting last week with the group on the Ocoee River in southern Tennessee. It was an excellent time, and seven of us had a great time camping the night before in the national forest. Well, it was great until the Russians showed up. A screaming, drunk, tweaking pack of Russians, about eight of them, wandered in to the campsite around 11pm and started wreaking absolute fucking havoc throughout the overflow camping area. They screamed and yelled until about 2am, when they decided to go back to their cars in the (very nearby) parking lot and blast techno music. After a member of our group (too) nicely asked them to turn it off, they did, and retreated to their campsite, where they screamed, yelled, played music, and broke things for another hour or two. Turns out they only sort of vaguely quieted down after one of their group stepped barefoot into some of the broken glass they were creating. Around 4am. Nice.
Anyway, it's more baseball for today, and trying to find some decent beer in the south, always a challenge. This has been a huge score so far: $2 pints of everything, though they are out of the Colonel Paris Pale Ale, so it's another Total Eclipse XXX Stout for me. And the $7.95 oven roasted vegetarian sandwich was excellent, with mounds of goat cheese, and excellent fries. They make their own amber ale ketchup, and apparently their own spicy grainy mustard, both of which are outstanding.
Monday, June 27, 2005
Confidential to TGS :
Oh, I already have such a crackspot scheme, and will be in Atlanta from July 7-24, excepting July 14 and 15 (when I'll be on another crackpot errand to gain Silver Medallion status on Delta, by journeying to Charlotte and flying back to Atlanta, staying just long enough to catch a Charlotte Knights game.)
Start a'lookin'!
Oh, I already have such a crackspot scheme, and will be in Atlanta from July 7-24, excepting July 14 and 15 (when I'll be on another crackpot errand to gain Silver Medallion status on Delta, by journeying to Charlotte and flying back to Atlanta, staying just long enough to catch a Charlotte Knights game.)
Start a'lookin'!
San Dee-egg-e
So I'm down in the land of the eternally humid summer for a little less than 48 hours, to do some federal grand jury work.
I arrived early on United, thought repeatedly why I like them so much as an airline (I walked up five minutes before the flight before mine was boarding, and they gave me a boarding pass for an aisle seat with an empty seat to my right.) I mean, they do plenty wrong, but they, more than any other airline I fly, make it up by doing enough right.
On arrival in PB, I parked the car at the library that didn't open until noon, and walked over to the beach. I was just going to walk down the boardwalk, but then the temptation was just too great: I took my shoes and socks off, and walked in the ocean. It was delightful, bordering on transformative.
This will sound ridiculously cliché, but the immense stress of the last few days seemed to just melt away: moving (again) to SLC after relocating to Atlanta for only the month of July; a tumultuous divorce in the family; coming down here on last-minute notice; the closing the practice stresses. All gone, if only for a short time.
I'm now enjoying the public library's free wifi (at every location!) here in PB, and preparing for a 3p client meeting.
More soon. Tonight, a $35 hotel room via Priceline in the heart of the Gaslamp -- that's right, only $12-$13 more than sleeping in the hostels around the corner!
So I'm down in the land of the eternally humid summer for a little less than 48 hours, to do some federal grand jury work.
I arrived early on United, thought repeatedly why I like them so much as an airline (I walked up five minutes before the flight before mine was boarding, and they gave me a boarding pass for an aisle seat with an empty seat to my right.) I mean, they do plenty wrong, but they, more than any other airline I fly, make it up by doing enough right.
On arrival in PB, I parked the car at the library that didn't open until noon, and walked over to the beach. I was just going to walk down the boardwalk, but then the temptation was just too great: I took my shoes and socks off, and walked in the ocean. It was delightful, bordering on transformative.
This will sound ridiculously cliché, but the immense stress of the last few days seemed to just melt away: moving (again) to SLC after relocating to Atlanta for only the month of July; a tumultuous divorce in the family; coming down here on last-minute notice; the closing the practice stresses. All gone, if only for a short time.
I'm now enjoying the public library's free wifi (at every location!) here in PB, and preparing for a 3p client meeting.
More soon. Tonight, a $35 hotel room via Priceline in the heart of the Gaslamp -- that's right, only $12-$13 more than sleeping in the hostels around the corner!
Sunday, June 26, 2005
Earthquakes and California attitude
being born and raised in California, it has long been a source of amusement to me the fear, dread, and sometimes terror, that many transplants to the Golden State feel about earthquakes. While not foolproof, it's often a way of identifying people not really from California, much like people who say "Cali". (Note to those from California: if you were born here, and raised here for any significant portion of your life, and you still say "Cali", well, you're stupid.)
Many of us from California regard earthquakes, both as potential threat, and when they happen, as something to be fairly glib about. Now, don't misunderstand me here: people who have lived through the 1989 Loma Prieta quake (which interrupted the start of Game 3 of the Bay Bridge World Series), or Northridge quakes, probably feel somewhat differently about them, likely similar to people who live in the high desert of southern California, which gets earthquakes pretty constantly. But those of us in most of California tend to find the idea of earthquakes borderline entertaining.
So this morning, I felt what I thought was an earthquake at 11:47am. I'm going to go ahead and admit the slightly embarassing circumstances that probably made it possible for me to feel this particular seismic event: I had only recently woken up, and was sitting on the toilet, reading.
I felt like the toilet (and, by extension, me) were wobbling forward and backward, and I looked down at a water bottled that was sitting on a perch of several books on the floor, in whcih the water was sloshing around a bit. By the time I looked at my watch, it was basically over.
So, Dr. Smartypants, who likes to follow earthquakes, soon after came upstairs to chat, and I sent her down to check on this potential earthquake. Sure enough, there was a magnitude 4.8 earthquake 5 miles N-NW of Tahoe Vista, California at 11:45:58am, about 95 miles away as the crow flies.
Whoopee! I was right! See what I mean? It's just fun to feel earthquakes here most of the time.
Sure enough,
being born and raised in California, it has long been a source of amusement to me the fear, dread, and sometimes terror, that many transplants to the Golden State feel about earthquakes. While not foolproof, it's often a way of identifying people not really from California, much like people who say "Cali". (Note to those from California: if you were born here, and raised here for any significant portion of your life, and you still say "Cali", well, you're stupid.)
Many of us from California regard earthquakes, both as potential threat, and when they happen, as something to be fairly glib about. Now, don't misunderstand me here: people who have lived through the 1989 Loma Prieta quake (which interrupted the start of Game 3 of the Bay Bridge World Series), or Northridge quakes, probably feel somewhat differently about them, likely similar to people who live in the high desert of southern California, which gets earthquakes pretty constantly. But those of us in most of California tend to find the idea of earthquakes borderline entertaining.
So this morning, I felt what I thought was an earthquake at 11:47am. I'm going to go ahead and admit the slightly embarassing circumstances that probably made it possible for me to feel this particular seismic event: I had only recently woken up, and was sitting on the toilet, reading.
I felt like the toilet (and, by extension, me) were wobbling forward and backward, and I looked down at a water bottled that was sitting on a perch of several books on the floor, in whcih the water was sloshing around a bit. By the time I looked at my watch, it was basically over.
So, Dr. Smartypants, who likes to follow earthquakes, soon after came upstairs to chat, and I sent her down to check on this potential earthquake. Sure enough, there was a magnitude 4.8 earthquake 5 miles N-NW of Tahoe Vista, California at 11:45:58am, about 95 miles away as the crow flies.
Whoopee! I was right! See what I mean? It's just fun to feel earthquakes here most of the time.
Sure enough,
Thursday, June 23, 2005
More on how the Spankeez suck
Phew! I was wondering if I was going to have to post an eat-my-words e-mail after the Spankeez pounded the (lowly) Devil Rays yesterday 20-11, and Centimeter Jeter went 5-6 with a homer, and A-Rod, Twitch, Matsui, and Posada all homered, with a ridiculous 13-run eighth inning (including back-to back-to back home runs.)
Good news! The hated Yankeez (37-35) got spanked today by the even lowlier Devil Rays (26-47). Jeter was 0-5, Williams 1-3, Matsui 0-3, Giambi 0-1 (pinch hitting). Only Twitch Sheffield had a good day, 2-4 with a home run.
The 26 and 47 Devil Rays are now 6 and 3 in their meetings this season with the Yankees. Ha!
Phew! I was wondering if I was going to have to post an eat-my-words e-mail after the Spankeez pounded the (lowly) Devil Rays yesterday 20-11, and Centimeter Jeter went 5-6 with a homer, and A-Rod, Twitch, Matsui, and Posada all homered, with a ridiculous 13-run eighth inning (including back-to back-to back home runs.)
Good news! The hated Yankeez (37-35) got spanked today by the even lowlier Devil Rays (26-47). Jeter was 0-5, Williams 1-3, Matsui 0-3, Giambi 0-1 (pinch hitting). Only Twitch Sheffield had a good day, 2-4 with a home run.
The 26 and 47 Devil Rays are now 6 and 3 in their meetings this season with the Yankees. Ha!
Confidential to The Good Senator:
Wanna go back to the south?
www.javavino.com:
ALL SUMMER: * THUR - $18 bottomless (wine) glass
Here is their wine list.
Oh, and they sell rainforest friendly coffee, and have free wireless.
Wanna go back to the south?
www.javavino.com:
ALL SUMMER: * THUR - $18 bottomless (wine) glass
Here is their wine list.
Oh, and they sell rainforest friendly coffee, and have free wireless.
Saturday, June 18, 2005
nowhere, is where I've been
Blogging opportunities and/or energy have been limited of late, as I've been sifting through 142 file boxes from dad's storage, going through document by document, determining what needs to kept, what needs to be shredded, and what can simply be recycled (the overwhelming majority so far.) It's a god-awful fucking miserable task, and the house looks like shit with boxes stacked everywhere until I complete it, or at least make a dent.
That said, it has provided the opportunity to listen to plenty of baseball games on XM, and play lots of online poker, both of which I can do easily enough while going through files (often all three simultaneously.)
On the note of baseball, I was struck this morning by the San Francisco Chronicle's listing of the top 52 paid players in baseball. Don't ask me why it's 52, other than it might have been neat to them to list 52 since four players are tied for that mark, at $9,000,000 per year, and three of them play for west coast teams: Bret Boone (Seattle), Troy Glaus (Arizona), Ryan Klesko (San Diego), and Greg Maddux (duh: Chicago Cubs).
More interesting about the list though is how clearly it demonstrates the hated Skankeez (oops, Yankees) monetary advantage: they have ten players in the top 52 (the top 39, actually). There are 30 teams in baseball. Do the math.
What is pleasing, though, is that of the 34-32, 3rd place in the Al East, five games behind Baltimore, arrogant, nasty Skankeez overpaid player list, only one of them, Alex Rodriguez, is actually on the AL leader list in more than one category (A-Rod for runs, RBI, and home runs), and only a grand total of three Yankees are on the AL leaders list (as published in the Chron) at all: Hideki Matsui, not on the list with his $8 million salary, is fourth for doubles with 18; Randy Johnson, 15th on the salary list at $15,419,815, is second in strikeouts at 91 (30 behind the AL leading Johan Santana of the Twins, who will earn $4,750,000 this year.) (What a long, nasty run-on sentence that was. So sue me. Or get your own damn blog.)
Let's see what the other Yankees on the overpaid player list are doing, shall we?
4. Derek "Arrogance" Jeter, SS, $19,600,000: hitting .299, 6 HR, 26 RBI, 44 runs, 8 SB
5. Mike "The 19 Million Dollar Moose" Mussina, SP, 19,000,000: 7-4, 3.89 ERA, 61 K, 21 BB, 1.34 WHIP
11. Kevin "Angry" Brown, SP, $15,714,286: 4-6, 5.48 ERA, 45 K, 15 BB, 1.61 WHIP
16. Jason "Steroids" Giambi, 1B, $13,428,571: hitting .242, 5 HR, 20 RBI, 19 runs, 0 SB
25. Bernie "Backup" Williams, CF, $12,357,143: hitting .238, 3 HR, 20 RBI, 16 runs, 1 SB
27. Gary "Twitch" Sheffield, RF, $11,496,689: hitting .300, 10 HR, 41 RBI, 40 runs, 6 SB
30. Jorge "Bare Hands" Posada, C, $11,000,000: hitting .297, 9 HR, 34 RBI, 27 runs, 1 SB
39 (tie). Mariano "Pitched 25 Innings This Year" Rivera, RP, $10,500,000: 3-2, 1.05 ERA, 29 K, 9 BB, 15 saves
What a bunch of overrated, overpaid trash. Only Rodriguez, Sheffield, Posada, and Rivera are even coming close to having respectable seasons, and there is no way I will ever accept that A-Rod, currently placing in only four major AL leader categories (he's third in walks), is worth $25.7 million a year. Not when he also lists above the fold in strikeouts (46) and caught-stealing (3, when he only has 6 successful steals???).
Blogging opportunities and/or energy have been limited of late, as I've been sifting through 142 file boxes from dad's storage, going through document by document, determining what needs to kept, what needs to be shredded, and what can simply be recycled (the overwhelming majority so far.) It's a god-awful fucking miserable task, and the house looks like shit with boxes stacked everywhere until I complete it, or at least make a dent.
That said, it has provided the opportunity to listen to plenty of baseball games on XM, and play lots of online poker, both of which I can do easily enough while going through files (often all three simultaneously.)
On the note of baseball, I was struck this morning by the San Francisco Chronicle's listing of the top 52 paid players in baseball. Don't ask me why it's 52, other than it might have been neat to them to list 52 since four players are tied for that mark, at $9,000,000 per year, and three of them play for west coast teams: Bret Boone (Seattle), Troy Glaus (Arizona), Ryan Klesko (San Diego), and Greg Maddux (duh: Chicago Cubs).
More interesting about the list though is how clearly it demonstrates the hated Skankeez (oops, Yankees) monetary advantage: they have ten players in the top 52 (the top 39, actually). There are 30 teams in baseball. Do the math.
What is pleasing, though, is that of the 34-32, 3rd place in the Al East, five games behind Baltimore, arrogant, nasty Skankeez overpaid player list, only one of them, Alex Rodriguez, is actually on the AL leader list in more than one category (A-Rod for runs, RBI, and home runs), and only a grand total of three Yankees are on the AL leaders list (as published in the Chron) at all: Hideki Matsui, not on the list with his $8 million salary, is fourth for doubles with 18; Randy Johnson, 15th on the salary list at $15,419,815, is second in strikeouts at 91 (30 behind the AL leading Johan Santana of the Twins, who will earn $4,750,000 this year.) (What a long, nasty run-on sentence that was. So sue me. Or get your own damn blog.)
Let's see what the other Yankees on the overpaid player list are doing, shall we?
4. Derek "Arrogance" Jeter, SS, $19,600,000: hitting .299, 6 HR, 26 RBI, 44 runs, 8 SB
5. Mike "The 19 Million Dollar Moose" Mussina, SP, 19,000,000: 7-4, 3.89 ERA, 61 K, 21 BB, 1.34 WHIP
11. Kevin "Angry" Brown, SP, $15,714,286: 4-6, 5.48 ERA, 45 K, 15 BB, 1.61 WHIP
16. Jason "Steroids" Giambi, 1B, $13,428,571: hitting .242, 5 HR, 20 RBI, 19 runs, 0 SB
25. Bernie "Backup" Williams, CF, $12,357,143: hitting .238, 3 HR, 20 RBI, 16 runs, 1 SB
27. Gary "Twitch" Sheffield, RF, $11,496,689: hitting .300, 10 HR, 41 RBI, 40 runs, 6 SB
30. Jorge "Bare Hands" Posada, C, $11,000,000: hitting .297, 9 HR, 34 RBI, 27 runs, 1 SB
39 (tie). Mariano "Pitched 25 Innings This Year" Rivera, RP, $10,500,000: 3-2, 1.05 ERA, 29 K, 9 BB, 15 saves
What a bunch of overrated, overpaid trash. Only Rodriguez, Sheffield, Posada, and Rivera are even coming close to having respectable seasons, and there is no way I will ever accept that A-Rod, currently placing in only four major AL leader categories (he's third in walks), is worth $25.7 million a year. Not when he also lists above the fold in strikeouts (46) and caught-stealing (3, when he only has 6 successful steals???).
Saturday, June 11, 2005
Confidential to TGS :
> 1) Did too, between refills at the airport. It's not my fault you were too
> drunk off your ass to care.
Alright, wiseass, first off, there is a not insignificant difference between "to care" and "to comprehend".
> I was a little surprised you didn't make a bigger deal of it, though.
Well, next time, don't sneak it in around snipey comments about the crazy woman sitting next to me.
> Your response was, if I recall correctly, "WHAAAT?????!!! JEEEEEZUS
> CHRIST, give me that!"
No comment.
> (insert lunge for beer here.)
Talk to my lawyer. And get your own.
> 2. I did go to CVS yesterday and purchased a bright yellow, perfect
> storm-esque poncho for my backpack. You thought the plastic socks looked lame.
HA! HA! HA! What is the hip internet abbreviation for this? Oh, I know: LOFL!!!
> p.p.s. Are ya gonna let me know what it is first?
Hmmmmmmmmm... NO!
See, buddy, it's like this: you disappointed me while in search of (ahem), and so, unless and until I get a detailed report of (ahem), you don't get to know SHIT. ¿claro?
> 1) Did too, between refills at the airport. It's not my fault you were too
> drunk off your ass to care.
Alright, wiseass, first off, there is a not insignificant difference between "to care" and "to comprehend".
> I was a little surprised you didn't make a bigger deal of it, though.
Well, next time, don't sneak it in around snipey comments about the crazy woman sitting next to me.
> Your response was, if I recall correctly, "WHAAAT?????!!! JEEEEEZUS
> CHRIST, give me that!"
No comment.
> (insert lunge for beer here.)
Talk to my lawyer. And get your own.
> 2. I did go to CVS yesterday and purchased a bright yellow, perfect
> storm-esque poncho for my backpack. You thought the plastic socks looked lame.
HA! HA! HA! What is the hip internet abbreviation for this? Oh, I know: LOFL!!!
> p.p.s. Are ya gonna let me know what it is first?
Hmmmmmmmmm... NO!
See, buddy, it's like this: you disappointed me while in search of (ahem), and so, unless and until I get a detailed report of (ahem), you don't get to know SHIT. ¿claro?
Gale Force IPA!!!
Today we bottled our brew-on-premises beer, named Gale Force IPA. See, the recipe we used was called Trade Winds IPA, but, well, we ignored the specified hop bill (Goldings & Galena for bittering, Goldings for "Flavoring", Fuggles and Cascade for aroma, and more Fuggles and Cascade for dry hopping.) Instead, we used Centennial and Galena for bittering, Columbus and Centennial for flavoring, Centennial and Chinook for aroma, and Columbus and Cascade for dry hopping.
Now THAT'S a hop bill. Heh.
Oh, and we put in an intentionally excessive amount of malt extract and specialty grains.
Short story: it kicks ass. Good, good, good stuff. Which the faithful readers of this blog will have first access to, whether I already know you personally OR YOU ARE A LURKER. Just e-mail me, and we'll talk about beer transferance.
Today we bottled our brew-on-premises beer, named Gale Force IPA. See, the recipe we used was called Trade Winds IPA, but, well, we ignored the specified hop bill (Goldings & Galena for bittering, Goldings for "Flavoring", Fuggles and Cascade for aroma, and more Fuggles and Cascade for dry hopping.) Instead, we used Centennial and Galena for bittering, Columbus and Centennial for flavoring, Centennial and Chinook for aroma, and Columbus and Cascade for dry hopping.
Now THAT'S a hop bill. Heh.
Oh, and we put in an intentionally excessive amount of malt extract and specialty grains.
Short story: it kicks ass. Good, good, good stuff. Which the faithful readers of this blog will have first access to, whether I already know you personally OR YOU ARE A LURKER. Just e-mail me, and we'll talk about beer transferance.
Thursday, June 09, 2005
Reader Poll
So, how do you all like (or not) my actually using capital letters to begin my sentences, and for most proper nouns? I decided it's somewhat more readable this way.
And for you lurkers, I know you're out there. This question is directed at you, as an easy way to tell me who you are. Find my email address at the bottom of this page in the links section, take out all extraneous characters, and respond immediately. Or I'll be upset.
So, how do you all like (or not) my actually using capital letters to begin my sentences, and for most proper nouns? I decided it's somewhat more readable this way.
And for you lurkers, I know you're out there. This question is directed at you, as an easy way to tell me who you are. Find my email address at the bottom of this page in the links section, take out all extraneous characters, and respond immediately. Or I'll be upset.
Confidential To The Good Senator:
1) You didn't tell me you were going to fucking florida.
2) But congrats on being smart enough to bring a raincoat. Did you know that raincoats are made for people who live in ridiculous, barely inhabitable areas, e.g., Seattle and Florida, that are actually completely waterproof? You know, the yellow rubber ones that make you look like an extra in the movie version of The Perfect Storm?
3) Have you noticed that our blogs increasingly are almost like an email exchange to one another, with occasional entertainment value for others?
p.s. You are NOT permitted to travel to Cuba until this storm passes. ¿claro?
p.p.s. I still haven't drunk your first present. But I might soon. Like tonight. yum. I'll let you know how it is.
1) You didn't tell me you were going to fucking florida.
2) But congrats on being smart enough to bring a raincoat. Did you know that raincoats are made for people who live in ridiculous, barely inhabitable areas, e.g., Seattle and Florida, that are actually completely waterproof? You know, the yellow rubber ones that make you look like an extra in the movie version of The Perfect Storm?
3) Have you noticed that our blogs increasingly are almost like an email exchange to one another, with occasional entertainment value for others?
p.s. You are NOT permitted to travel to Cuba until this storm passes. ¿claro?
p.p.s. I still haven't drunk your first present. But I might soon. Like tonight. yum. I'll let you know how it is.
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