Sunday, November 25, 2012
The Small Print: Anti-Concurrent Causation Clauses
Many home insurance policies contain so-called anti-concurrent causation clauses. The Consumer Federation of America says this language makes it easier to deny coverage if two factors destroyed a home around the same time. (paraphrased from WNYC-FM)
If two events damage the same structure at the same time and one is covered and one is not, the insurer can deny both. It was an issue that affected some claims after Hurricane Katrina, and there was concern that the same problem would resurface in the aftermath of the nor'easter which followed Superstorm Sandy in areas like Breezy Point where fire destroyed homes after flooding.
Just one more reason why someone needs to learn to read carefully. Many people learned to their regret that there is a difference between flooding and a storm surge.
I'm waiting for the exposés.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Monkey's Paw Biblio-Mat
The Monkey's Paw used bookstore in Toronto, created a Biblio-Mat vending machine to dispense at random books which used to go into their dollar bin.
NPR aired a story about the Biblio-Mat
on their November 18, 2012 broadcast.
Not quite the way I want to get books. I think back many years to a throw-away passage in a story in Playboy magazine. The story, as I remember it, was told in the first person and described an adventure driving in the Mid-East in a Phaeton touring car during the 1930's. Being in Playboy the narrator stayed in a house with several nubile daughters with whom he slept. However because they made love in pitch darkness he couldn't tell with whom he had indulged. At one point he gives the woman a little nip on the neck so he will be able to identify his partner. The next day each of the women weas a scarf.
The big surprise of the story hits after he has left the house when he learns that there is a daughter who is kept hidden because of some disease or disfigurement.
The reason I remember the story has nothing to do with the sex, but what occupied the backseat of the car: a crate or two of books. When the car broke down, something which would be expected with some regularity, he would reach back, pick any book at random and head for a comfortable place to wait and read until assistance materialized.
This fits into the profile of the men in my family: Give us a comfortable place to read and we're content. When heading off to where we might have to wait, we pack reading material. Reading makes the DMV experience almost painless. (Padding the benches would make it painless.)
Not quite the way I want to get books. I think back many years to a throw-away passage in a story in Playboy magazine. The story, as I remember it, was told in the first person and described an adventure driving in the Mid-East in a Phaeton touring car during the 1930's. Being in Playboy the narrator stayed in a house with several nubile daughters with whom he slept. However because they made love in pitch darkness he couldn't tell with whom he had indulged. At one point he gives the woman a little nip on the neck so he will be able to identify his partner. The next day each of the women weas a scarf.
The big surprise of the story hits after he has left the house when he learns that there is a daughter who is kept hidden because of some disease or disfigurement.
The reason I remember the story has nothing to do with the sex, but what occupied the backseat of the car: a crate or two of books. When the car broke down, something which would be expected with some regularity, he would reach back, pick any book at random and head for a comfortable place to wait and read until assistance materialized.
This fits into the profile of the men in my family: Give us a comfortable place to read and we're content. When heading off to where we might have to wait, we pack reading material. Reading makes the DMV experience almost painless. (Padding the benches would make it painless.)
Spared by Sandy
The Frankenstorm Sandy came barreling through the area on Tuesday, October 30, flooding homes, knocking down power lines, and killing a few people.
Everyone had a story. Mine might be the most unusual: we lost cable and Internet access for a day. Other than resetting the clocks on the radios it was a normal day.
For the neighbors and the county, however, the storm lived up to its billing. There were huge trees down in some of the wealthier neighborhoods. Houses on the South Shore of Long Island were flooded or knocked off their foundations.
We'd muddled through about a week without power when hurricane Irene came through last year. I anticipated that Sandy would finally convince me to buy a generator. It has. What Sandy has also done will be seen in subsequent years. I expect:
Everyone had a story. Mine might be the most unusual: we lost cable and Internet access for a day. Other than resetting the clocks on the radios it was a normal day.
For the neighbors and the county, however, the storm lived up to its billing. There were huge trees down in some of the wealthier neighborhoods. Houses on the South Shore of Long Island were flooded or knocked off their foundations.
We'd muddled through about a week without power when hurricane Irene came through last year. I anticipated that Sandy would finally convince me to buy a generator. It has. What Sandy has also done will be seen in subsequent years. I expect:
- People will stock up on gasoline for their cars and generators prior to storms.
- Insurance policies will get another evaluation. Sandy was not technically a hurricane. The damage caused by a storm surge is not damage caused by a flood. Some insurance policies are written so that no payout is necessary for coincident events. Expect the courts to be littered with split hairs.
- Someone who loses everything becoming unhinged and do something terrible to an insurance agent or adjuster. It'll make for interesting reading, a tragedy for those involved, and have no deterrent for insurance companies to write policies accurately described by Tom Waits in his song "Step Right Up" on his album "Small Change":
the large print giveth and the small print taketh away
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Robert Fabbio
Digging through my accumulated debris I unearthed a March 3rd, 2003 edition of Information week. Nothing caught my attention except the headline, "Entrepreneur's Next Big Thing", a story about Robert Fabbio, one of the founders of Tivoli. His newest venture was Veio, an "systems management" appliance.
The article noted his runner up in the Imelda Marcos competition, male division: 100 pairs of shoes, 50 watches, and 30 suits.
Searching the web for traces of Veio I came up with nothing except a link to some nice music videos. Fabbio himself has moved on:
The article noted his runner up in the Imelda Marcos competition, male division: 100 pairs of shoes, 50 watches, and 30 suits.
Searching the web for traces of Veio I came up with nothing except a link to some nice music videos. Fabbio himself has moved on:
In 2006, Mr. Fabbio left the technology industry to focus on healthcare and launched WhiteGlove Health where he is able to uniquely apply his technology background to address the many challenges found in the healthcare industry today. ~http://www.whiteglove.com/about-us/management-team/49-robert-fabbio.html
Sunday, October 21, 2012
I Hate Actors!
I was at a garage sale the other day when I spotted a book, I Hate Actors by Ben Hecht. Ben Hecht is the author of Gaily, Gaily and Front Page/His Girl Friday. I'd never heard of the book before. The $3 asking price was more than I. They accepted $1 and I was on my way.
There's actually more to the story of course. I was driving east on Northern Blvd when traffic came to a halt. I never got to see what caused the problem. If I were enterprising I would have parked the van and taken my trusty camera in search of an answer.
Diverted through Roslyn side streets I came out on Glen Cove Road. (Guinea Woods Road, the original name of Glen Cove Road, was changed in a fit of cultural correctness decades ago. Natives still say "Guinea Woods" to flaunt their primacy.) I was just about to forget about the estate sale when I noticed the sign across the road said Lakeville Estates. The turnoff from Glen Cove Road into the area with the estate sale was Lakeville Drive and sure enough I was headed in the right direction.
Not much of interest there other than the book and the book case. The room looks pretty much as depicted. Hect's book sans dust jacket was located in the area outlined in red.
The novel is written from the perspective of a screen writer brought in to rescue a Hollywood travesty, "Sons of Destiny". Because Hecht was known for his command of the language, especially the vernacular, I was struck by not recognizing several terms:
There's actually more to the story of course. I was driving east on Northern Blvd when traffic came to a halt. I never got to see what caused the problem. If I were enterprising I would have parked the van and taken my trusty camera in search of an answer.
Diverted through Roslyn side streets I came out on Glen Cove Road. (Guinea Woods Road, the original name of Glen Cove Road, was changed in a fit of cultural correctness decades ago. Natives still say "Guinea Woods" to flaunt their primacy.) I was just about to forget about the estate sale when I noticed the sign across the road said Lakeville Estates. The turnoff from Glen Cove Road into the area with the estate sale was Lakeville Drive and sure enough I was headed in the right direction.
Not much of interest there other than the book and the book case. The room looks pretty much as depicted. Hect's book sans dust jacket was located in the area outlined in red.
What is interesting is that the book case rests on a platform. Below the light line that runs underneath the red box is a set of small cabinets. To get to the book shelves you have to go up the steps on the right.
I'm not tall. It was an odd feeling to be staring eye to binder with the books on the top of the bookcase.
The novel is written from the perspective of a screen writer brought in to rescue a Hollywood travesty, "Sons of Destiny". Because Hecht was known for his command of the language, especially the vernacular, I was struck by not recognizing several terms:
- "billingsgate and tears" (p 24) - Billingsgate was a fish market in London and represented course language
- "brilliant didoes" (p 27) - "didoes" is defined as a mischievous or capricious act, usually cut didoes. The original citation with origin unknown is 1807. Odd I thought because the immediate association would be with Dido, the ancient queen who killed herself after being jilted by Aeneas. Hardly a prank. (A late friend used the same spelling, but procounced it Dee-Doh as it was a condensation of her first two names, Diane Dorothea.)
- "false Tarquin" - Merriam-Webster.com was no help. My attempt to to submit my citation was frustrated I because I could not authenticate against Facebook, Yahoo, or AOL. Their loss, but not yours:
I was trying to understand the phrase, "false Tarquin" (p 84) in Ben Hecht's novel, "I Hate Actors", Crown Publishers, 1944. "Go on," the Tweed ace nodded, like false Tarquin, "just tell the truth."
The reference is probably to Tarquin the Proud, the last legendary King of Rome, a vile person if his wikipedia entry is to be believed. His rape of Lucretia is probably reflected in the context of the story where a woman who bore a child out of wedlock by a recently deceased actor is providing the true alibi for a suspect for whom a false alibi has already been provided.
Had I not been so alienated from popular culture I might have thought the reference was to Tarquin Anthony "Quinn" Blackwood, a character in Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles. Saved by my naiveté.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
2012 Presidential Debate #1
The debate spawned a torrent in the Twitterverse. Of the best,(CNN's 25 Funniest Tweets) these were the ones I thought memorable:
Phil Plait -- After reading all the variations of the debate drinking games, I have decided to simply remove my liver and set it on fire.
Phil Plait -- After reading all the variations of the debate drinking games, I have decided to simply remove my liver and set it on fire.
Tara Ariano
-- Frankly, neither candidate is working hard enough to land the
immigrant feminist small business owner non-voting socialist vote.
Fired Big Bird -- If you don't vote Obama, Mitt Romney is going to be eating me by the end of November.
Dave Weigel -- This is like watching a tax law professor debate an investment advice infomercial host
A members of a listserv to which I was added through no fault of my own passed along two famous quotes about economics, both of which were unknown to me:
Thomas Sowell:
A members of a listserv to which I was added through no fault of my own passed along two famous quotes about economics, both of which were unknown to me:
Thomas Sowell:
"The first lesson of economics is scarcity. There is never enough of anything to satisfy everyone who wants it. The first lesson of politics is to disregard the first lesson of economics. "From Frans de Waals' book, "Chimpanzee Politics" :
"...Harold Laswell's famous definition of politics as a societal process determining 'who gets what, when, and how'..."
Saturday, October 06, 2012
Septermber 3, 2009: Hoffer Quote, DeepWater Horizon, Freedom Communications
I finally got around to reading the September 3, 2009 edition of the New York Times. It had been yellowing in the back seat of my car. I figured it was mellowed enough.
It was an interesting read: SEC investigation of its own failures to find Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme, an overview of Ted Kennedy's posthumously published autobiography, the murderous bank robbery in Iraq by security forces, and two bits that caught my eye:
1) An announcement of BP's discovery of huge oil deposits in the Gulf of Mexico with the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. Seven months later BP, the rig, and teh word "disaster" would be linked in the news.
2) This quote from Eric Hoffer, the self-taught "stevedore philosopher": "Faith in a holy cause is to a considerable extent a substitute for the lost faith in ourselves." It is in much the same vein as the atheist claim that atheists are acting on a higher moral level because they are doing good by choice and not be fear of divine retribution.
3) Although not as memorable as the Hoffer quote, there was a note in the financial section that Freedom Communications, founded by the staunch Libertarian, R. C. Hoiles, was filing for bankruptcy. For a firm which had as its founding principle the sanctity of private contracts, bankruptcy protection should have been an anathema. The article points out that debtors who charged a higher rate for understood that their higher rate was predicted on greater risk and a place further back in the repayment queue.
It was an interesting read: SEC investigation of its own failures to find Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme, an overview of Ted Kennedy's posthumously published autobiography, the murderous bank robbery in Iraq by security forces, and two bits that caught my eye:
1) An announcement of BP's discovery of huge oil deposits in the Gulf of Mexico with the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. Seven months later BP, the rig, and teh word "disaster" would be linked in the news.
2) This quote from Eric Hoffer, the self-taught "stevedore philosopher": "Faith in a holy cause is to a considerable extent a substitute for the lost faith in ourselves." It is in much the same vein as the atheist claim that atheists are acting on a higher moral level because they are doing good by choice and not be fear of divine retribution.
3) Although not as memorable as the Hoffer quote, there was a note in the financial section that Freedom Communications, founded by the staunch Libertarian, R. C. Hoiles, was filing for bankruptcy. For a firm which had as its founding principle the sanctity of private contracts, bankruptcy protection should have been an anathema. The article points out that debtors who charged a higher rate for understood that their higher rate was predicted on greater risk and a place further back in the repayment queue.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Meridith Monk @ the Greene Space
I was listening to WNYC's New Sounds program tonight. The most accurate way to describe the sounds is this: voices straining to imitate fire engines screeching over a string quartet.
Jeez, I could just imagine what junk the host had to listen to to have selected the awful stuff he was playing. The song came to an end to applause. What I'd been listening to was not music chosen by the host, but a live performance by Meredith Monk & Vocal Ensemble along with the Todd Reynolds Quartet from the record release party for Monk’s latest album, “Songs of Ascension”.
Right away I thought of a Jules Pfeiffer cartoon in the Village Voice which showed a prototypical 50's early 60's era beat type identifying the film everyone walked out on as a test.
Someone somewhere will claim some wretched excess as art. Between songs the host, John Schaefer said, "You explore the boundary between noise and music." I think she's gone over to the dark side.
I left a post on the page indicating that I'd never heard her music before, but midway through the first piece the Garcia effect kicked in. (I thought that was the most succinct and civil way of saying that I'd never voluntarily listen to her music again.)
Put another way, I'm too old to waste my time for this. When I was younger I watched Antonioni's "Red Desert" twice because I couldn't believe that it was so bad on the first viewing. It was.
I don't intend to repeat the error with Monk. Time has become too valuable.
Jeez, I could just imagine what junk the host had to listen to to have selected the awful stuff he was playing. The song came to an end to applause. What I'd been listening to was not music chosen by the host, but a live performance by Meredith Monk & Vocal Ensemble along with the Todd Reynolds Quartet from the record release party for Monk’s latest album, “Songs of Ascension”.
Right away I thought of a Jules Pfeiffer cartoon in the Village Voice which showed a prototypical 50's early 60's era beat type identifying the film everyone walked out on as a test.
Someone somewhere will claim some wretched excess as art. Between songs the host, John Schaefer said, "You explore the boundary between noise and music." I think she's gone over to the dark side.
I left a post on the page indicating that I'd never heard her music before, but midway through the first piece the Garcia effect kicked in. (I thought that was the most succinct and civil way of saying that I'd never voluntarily listen to her music again.)
Put another way, I'm too old to waste my time for this. When I was younger I watched Antonioni's "Red Desert" twice because I couldn't believe that it was so bad on the first viewing. It was.
I don't intend to repeat the error with Monk. Time has become too valuable.
Sunday, September 09, 2012
Dendritic Arbor
In a Radiolab (http://www.radiolab.org/2007/jun/04/) broadcast on zoos the term "dendritic arbor" was used to describe the growth of dendrites after a monkey was transferred to a more enriched environment.
My immediate thought was to formulate a sentence using the term. After a few attempts, perhaps influenced by having read an article about hallucinogenic mushrooms leading to a gruesome murder I settled for "Drugs were implicated in the pruning of his dendritic trees." Not bad, but something involving topiary would have been better, e.g., "His dendritic trees look like topiary."
My immediate thought was to formulate a sentence using the term. After a few attempts, perhaps influenced by having read an article about hallucinogenic mushrooms leading to a gruesome murder I settled for "Drugs were implicated in the pruning of his dendritic trees." Not bad, but something involving topiary would have been better, e.g., "His dendritic trees look like topiary."
A Found Lyric and a Quote
I came across a piece of paper on which I'd written:
A web search didn't get any useable hits in 4 pages. It did turn up a link to Raymond Hamilton, an associate of Bonnie and Clyde in a Google book, "Go Down Together: The True, Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde". The book contained this quote:
Not murder in the firstIt sounds like a lyric for Frankie and Johnny/Albert. I suspect it came from a performance on Prairie Home Companion.
Not murder in the second or third
That woman brought down her man
as a hunter brings down a bird
A web search didn't get any useable hits in 4 pages. It did turn up a link to Raymond Hamilton, an associate of Bonnie and Clyde in a Google book, "Go Down Together: The True, Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde". The book contained this quote:
Americans have fought one war to win their independence and another to preserve the Union. Now they face a new war, between the men who possess more than they have earned and the men who have earned more than they possess. " ~ former president Theodore Roosevelt in 1910Nice quote, but doesn't seem so applicable to today's situation.
Ripped out a friend's heart and tongue
Under the influence of hallucinogenic mushrooms, mixed martial arts fighter Jarrod Wyatt of Crescent City, California ripped out the heart and tongue of his sparring partner. The story (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48953331/#) and the accompanying comments just left me numb. According to Wyatt the two believe they were in "a struggle between God and the devil".
On Thurday, September 6, 2012 Wyatt agreed to plead guilty before his trial to spare all (his family, his victim's family) from reliving the events. He'll be serving 50 years to life.
What an obvious waste. My father would comment, "This was so unnecessary." in response to avoidable mishaps. The comment was suitable for events large and small. It's applicable here. All they needed to do was not take the mushrooms.
Perhaps it is a curious facet of law that Del Norte County District Attorney Jon Alexander "said it was important to him that Wyatt admitted to killing Powell, and that it was a premeditated murder that wasn't the result of drinking psychedelic mushroom tea".
On Thurday, September 6, 2012 Wyatt agreed to plead guilty before his trial to spare all (his family, his victim's family) from reliving the events. He'll be serving 50 years to life.
What an obvious waste. My father would comment, "This was so unnecessary." in response to avoidable mishaps. The comment was suitable for events large and small. It's applicable here. All they needed to do was not take the mushrooms.
Perhaps it is a curious facet of law that Del Norte County District Attorney Jon Alexander "said it was important to him that Wyatt admitted to killing Powell, and that it was a premeditated murder that wasn't the result of drinking psychedelic mushroom tea".
Sunday, September 02, 2012
Recrudescence
In his 50th anniversary appreciation of Anthony Burgess's Clockwork Orange in the New York Times Book Review (9/1/2012), Martin Amis used the word, recrudescence, an unfamiliar term. I doubt that I'd ever seen it before. the definition is simple enough:
breaking out afresh or into renewed activity; revival or reappearance in active existence.Sounds like a term which could be trundled out to describe the dieting habits of the American public, but Amis used the term in reference to self-punitive guilt.
Beautiful Days
This sat as a draft for 5 months.
The days are lyrically nice. It's early spring, girls are in their summer dresses (more on this in a second), and the weather is delightful warm, sunny with a slight breeze. The fair skinned are slathering themselves with sun block. Those in pursuit of a tan are well on their way. The only fly in the ointment is civilization's implosion in the aftermath of the upcoming environmental collapse - nothing new here.
Girls in their summer dresses: many years ago I found myself staring at a young woman in my chem lab section. I could not tear my eyes away from her. It was embarrassing. I'd been teaching the section for about 10 weeks, but on that spring morning I was staring at her. Why? After a few minutes the realization hit me and I started laughed out loud: She was the first female student I'd seen in a dress in seven months. For at least 8 months every female student had worn slacks or jeans.
The days are lyrically nice. It's early spring, girls are in their summer dresses (more on this in a second), and the weather is delightful warm, sunny with a slight breeze. The fair skinned are slathering themselves with sun block. Those in pursuit of a tan are well on their way. The only fly in the ointment is civilization's implosion in the aftermath of the upcoming environmental collapse - nothing new here.
Girls in their summer dresses: many years ago I found myself staring at a young woman in my chem lab section. I could not tear my eyes away from her. It was embarrassing. I'd been teaching the section for about 10 weeks, but on that spring morning I was staring at her. Why? After a few minutes the realization hit me and I started laughed out loud: She was the first female student I'd seen in a dress in seven months. For at least 8 months every female student had worn slacks or jeans.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Lying Weasel
Jeff Greenfield's analysis of Paul Ryan's acceptance speech on Yahoo! Finance was particularly disappointing. Greenfield pointed out several errors/lies/misrepresentations in the speech and then went on to explain that the Republican/Conservative faithful can dismiss the particulars because they'll attribute the charge to a tainted source, their traditional whipping boy, "liberal media".
That this is now accepted, that demonstrable facts can be dismissed because one doesn't like the source of the information bodes ill for this country. (Is it ironic that Sally Kohn's article on Fox News, Paul Ryan’s speech in 3 words boiled it down to this: Dazzling, Deceiving, and Distracting.)
Alluding to Nazis is now a marker of the point where a debate/discussion goes off the rails. However in this case, my immediate thought was "The Big Lie", perfected by Paul Goebbels, Reich Minister of Propaganda under Hitler. I'm not drawing a parallel between Ryan and Goebbels, but the phenomenon of repeating a falsehood loudly and persistently that others will repeat the statement as given truth.
As for the particulars in Ryan's speech:
The claims that Obamacare cuts $716 billion of benefits from Medicare when in fact the cuts are to payments to hospitals, not benefits.
He pinned S&P's downgrade of U.S. debt on Obama, when S&P itself explained its downgrade resulted from Congressional Republicans refusal to pass measures to increase revenues.
Ryan accused Obama of promising to keep a GM plant open for "hundreds of years" after he was elected, only to have it closed in the first year. In fact, GM closed the plant before Obama even took office.
Sigh.
That this is now accepted, that demonstrable facts can be dismissed because one doesn't like the source of the information bodes ill for this country. (Is it ironic that Sally Kohn's article on Fox News, Paul Ryan’s speech in 3 words boiled it down to this: Dazzling, Deceiving, and Distracting.)
Alluding to Nazis is now a marker of the point where a debate/discussion goes off the rails. However in this case, my immediate thought was "The Big Lie", perfected by Paul Goebbels, Reich Minister of Propaganda under Hitler. I'm not drawing a parallel between Ryan and Goebbels, but the phenomenon of repeating a falsehood loudly and persistently that others will repeat the statement as given truth.
As for the particulars in Ryan's speech:
The claims that Obamacare cuts $716 billion of benefits from Medicare when in fact the cuts are to payments to hospitals, not benefits.
He pinned S&P's downgrade of U.S. debt on Obama, when S&P itself explained its downgrade resulted from Congressional Republicans refusal to pass measures to increase revenues.
Ryan accused Obama of promising to keep a GM plant open for "hundreds of years" after he was elected, only to have it closed in the first year. In fact, GM closed the plant before Obama even took office.
Sigh.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
The Mist of Collecting Data
The email from the editor read:
"We are in the mist of collecting data for our annual best places to work story."I responded:
"I'm available to do prufreeding on a part-thyme basis."I hope he appreciates the humor.
Friday, July 27, 2012
38 Studios Post-mortem
Boston Magazine had a sobering article about 38 Studio, the video game company started by Curt Schilling, the baseball player. In a nutshell, the never-say-die, positive thinking which served him so well in sports doomed his company.
I passed the link to the prof who teaches the entrepreneurship course. It might be required reading for sports stars.
The point is made that fame and expertise in one field does not presage business ability. The article made clear that those in the trenches didn't now how dire things were until checks started bouncing. In one of the tougher ramifications, one employee found himself with two mortgages, a pregnant wife, and no income. (He was hired with the understanding that a firm hired by 38 Studios would arrange for the sale of his house. When 38 Studios stopped paying the firm, the mortgage then became the employee's responsibility.)
All very sad.
http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/2012/07/38-studios-end-game/
I passed the link to the prof who teaches the entrepreneurship course. It might be required reading for sports stars.
The point is made that fame and expertise in one field does not presage business ability. The article made clear that those in the trenches didn't now how dire things were until checks started bouncing. In one of the tougher ramifications, one employee found himself with two mortgages, a pregnant wife, and no income. (He was hired with the understanding that a firm hired by 38 Studios would arrange for the sale of his house. When 38 Studios stopped paying the firm, the mortgage then became the employee's responsibility.)
All very sad.
http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/2012/07/38-studios-end-game/
Thursday, July 26, 2012
A Body at Rest Stays at Rest
Woman charged with cashing mummified friend's checks
In brief (http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/07/26/12970220-woman-charged-with-cashing-mummified-friends-checks?lite):A 72-year-old Michigan woman [ Linda Lou Chase] who authorities say kept the body of her longtime companion [Charles Zigler] in her house for more than 18 months after he died is being charged with cashing more than $28,000 worth of his benefit checksNow the really interesting thing about the case is that she didn't do anything other than cover the body. Cashing the checks was illegal, but:
Most of Michigan’s current laws concerning bodies deal with inappropriate disposition by a licensed mortician or removal to interfere with a criminal investigation.A mental competency exam is scheduled.
“She literally did not move the body – so moving a body before the medical examiner could examine it doesn’t apply,” [chief assistant prosecutor] Blumer said.
Monday, July 23, 2012
50 Shades of Grey Reviews
Gotta love the comments. "50 Shades of Grey", the current erotic bodice ripper favorite, has terrific comments on Amazon:
Identifying himself as "a male senior citizen, a semi-retired gynecologist whose customary literary fare is spy novels and military techno-thrillers", david shobin/thatch pond corp wrote, "At my age, my arthritis flared up just reading about Ana's sexual gymnastics. And for some reason, I kept thinking about her contracting genital warts."
"DS from LA" used the Kindle search function, to tabulate the repetitive physical references to eyes rolling (41), lip biting (35), lips "quirking up" (16 and, no I don't know what it means either), "cocks his head to one side" (17), etc.
edenae pointed out that when " characters speak to each other they have to remind themselves who they are talking to 'Hello Mrs. Steele', 'How was your day Mr. Grey', 'It was fine Anastasia', 'Oh good, mine was great Christian.'"
Elly Abs had some quibbles: "EL James has very limited vocabulary and frankly if a man screamed my name every time he reached climax i would have to slap him into next Tuesday."
DocKaren "dockaren" : "The best thing to come of this book are the multiple cleverly written reviews posted here that describe how repellant this book is much more eloquently than I could ever hope to."
Identifying himself as "a male senior citizen, a semi-retired gynecologist whose customary literary fare is spy novels and military techno-thrillers", david shobin/thatch pond corp wrote, "At my age, my arthritis flared up just reading about Ana's sexual gymnastics. And for some reason, I kept thinking about her contracting genital warts."
"DS from LA" used the Kindle search function, to tabulate the repetitive physical references to eyes rolling (41), lip biting (35), lips "quirking up" (16 and, no I don't know what it means either), "cocks his head to one side" (17), etc.
edenae pointed out that when " characters speak to each other they have to remind themselves who they are talking to 'Hello Mrs. Steele', 'How was your day Mr. Grey', 'It was fine Anastasia', 'Oh good, mine was great Christian.'"
Elly Abs had some quibbles: "EL James has very limited vocabulary and frankly if a man screamed my name every time he reached climax i would have to slap him into next Tuesday."
DocKaren "dockaren" : "The best thing to come of this book are the multiple cleverly written reviews posted here that describe how repellant this book is much more eloquently than I could ever hope to."
Monday, July 16, 2012
I Flunk Celebrity Trivia - Again
There was an article about Lindsay Lohan getting a new half-sibling because her father's girl friend, Kate Major was pregnant. Who is Kate Major?
You may know who Ms Major is, but I'm clueless. Celebrity magazines at the supermarket trace the amorous exploits of bold faced names I don't recognize. It doesn't make a real difference, but I usually feel that there are two stories: the one which is written and the one about the implications of the story.
For example, the latest biggest Hollywood bust up between Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes has fascinating legal plotting behind it. Ms Holmes ability to get sole custody of the child will have matrimonial lawyers doubler checking the custody arrangement clauses in their prenups.
Anyway, about Ms Major: a web search found this mug shot (http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/gallery/kate-major-mugshot/):
It made me wonder if fans argue about which mugshot made the object of their obsession look the most or least wasted. "Oh yeah, the DWI mug shot in Santa Monica was so much better than the DUI in Maryland."
It reminded me of an article in the local college paper from a student who stated that the best way for her to control her drinking was to think of her mother's reaction to her mug shot.
You may know who Ms Major is, but I'm clueless. Celebrity magazines at the supermarket trace the amorous exploits of bold faced names I don't recognize. It doesn't make a real difference, but I usually feel that there are two stories: the one which is written and the one about the implications of the story.
For example, the latest biggest Hollywood bust up between Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes has fascinating legal plotting behind it. Ms Holmes ability to get sole custody of the child will have matrimonial lawyers doubler checking the custody arrangement clauses in their prenups.
Anyway, about Ms Major: a web search found this mug shot (http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/gallery/kate-major-mugshot/):
Kate Major's mugshot from early 2012. Not to be confused with her other recent efforts.
It reminded me of an article in the local college paper from a student who stated that the best way for her to control her drinking was to think of her mother's reaction to her mug shot.
Monday, July 02, 2012
Morse: Before
Yesterday, Sunday July 1st, marked the first American appearance of Endeavour the prequel to the popular Inspector Morse series. The episode had a well turned praise which started as an insult: One of the secondary characters says to Morse, "Poor old Morse. You were never Oxford material. Too bloody decent by half." (http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/endeavour-morse)
A thought about forensics occurred to me. A death appears to be a suicide because of the powder marks on the skull, but nothing was said about gunshot residues on the deceased hand. Is this classic misdirection?
A thought about forensics occurred to me. A death appears to be a suicide because of the powder marks on the skull, but nothing was said about gunshot residues on the deceased hand. Is this classic misdirection?
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Alex's Wedding
This past week Doonesbury has been concerned with Alex's Wedding to Toggle. Sunday's strip in which Mike is stunned to see his little girl in her bridal dress brought an outpouring of posts from men recounting their own emotions on seeing their own daughters marry.
In follow up strips BD tries to explain the rules of marriage to Leo. It brought this response from L. Rodriguez | Guaynabo | Puerto Rico | June 18, 2012:
RULES
Okay, Leo, here you have the Three Main Rules of Marriage, in a nutshell:
- Men always have the last word in a discussion, as long as they say "Yes, dear." (My cousin uses the same line: "I never have any trouble with my women [his wife and daughter]. I just look them in the eye and say, "Yes, dear." Works every time.")
- When men demand hot water, they get hot water. Doing the dishes otherwise is not reasonable.
- No matter what, women always end up kneeling before men. And when they are kneeling, you will hear them say "Get out from under the bed!".
Best of luck.
A few days later this post:
Reminded me of a Benny Anderson poem on Prairie Home Companion.
A few days later this post:
POOF!
CB's Grandma | Baltimore, MD | June 21, 2012
Today's strip is so true. You see a little girl pretending to be a bride and then poof! She is one. One second she's playing with a doll, and then poof! It's not a toy, it's your grandchild.Reminded me of a Benny Anderson poem on Prairie Home Companion.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Monday, June 11, 2012
XXX
As part of a database project I thought I'd demonstrate how entering a fake item in the ITEM table would automatically enable the new item to appear with its image when the user tried to place an order.
My fake item was named "xxx". Can you see where this is going?
I'll chalk it up to being tired. I searched for "XXX" hoping to see something like the Super Bowl XXX logo,
although I imagined silver X's on a blue background.
What I got was thumbnail images of women who thought it was clothing optional day. Nice under other circumstances, but definitely not what I wanted at the time. I spent another fruitless minute looking for a logo for "yyy" or "zzz".
In the end, I made my own XXX image at a make-your-own-logo site:
It's nothing to write home about, but it served the purpose which was to figure out in code how the image should be manipulated to fit the online form.
My fake item was named "xxx". Can you see where this is going?
I'll chalk it up to being tired. I searched for "XXX" hoping to see something like the Super Bowl XXX logo,
What I got was thumbnail images of women who thought it was clothing optional day. Nice under other circumstances, but definitely not what I wanted at the time. I spent another fruitless minute looking for a logo for "yyy" or "zzz".
In the end, I made my own XXX image at a make-your-own-logo site:
Monday, June 04, 2012
Doc Watson
The May 31st edition of the NY Times had a short article by Ry Cooder about Doc Watson in which Cooder described the first time he heard Doc Watson. Watson, Clarence Ashley, Fred Price, and Clint Howard sang "Daniel Prayed" on the UCLA campus.
Cooder remembered thinking, "these men know something about music I'll never know, even if I practice and study all my life. You have to be born into that."
For myself, I remember one memorable moment of a Doc Watson concert. (I've forgotten the guitarists Doc referred to, but you'll see it doesn't matter.) Doc said, "I always like the way the Johnson brothers played. Earl Johnson played like this." Doc played a little. "And Ray, he played like this." Doc played a little more. "And together they sounded like this."
It sounded nice. Then jaws dropped when we realized that what sounded like two guitars was Doc on a single guitar. Most of us laughed and applauded. The poor folkies were probably wondering if they should head off to the bathrooms to cut their wrists right then and there or wait until after the concert because it was at that moment that they realized that they would never, ever, be that good.
He told a joke about a Quaker farmer who owned a cow which would swat him with it's tail and try to kick him or overturn the milk pail. Imitating the farmer patting the cow on the head, Doc said, "I will not beat thee, but in the morning I will sell thee to a Baptist."
I cherish the memory of that concert because I believe it was the first time I heard him sing "Otto Wood the Bandit". I was taken with the way he sang Otto stressing both syllables as"Ot-tow" instead of "Otoh". (I was unaware that that was the way the song was originally sung. See for example The Carolina Buddies recording at http://www.oldtimeherald.org/archive/back_issues/volume-9/9-6/otto-wood.html.)
If you want to get some measure of the man and why he was so revered listen to Terry Gross's 1988 Fresh Air interview with Doc Watson. The interview proceeds as one might expect when interviewing an unassuming legend until Terry respectfully asked him about the death of his son Merle. With the honesty that marked the man, he recounted that he was so devastated that he didn't want to play anymore. If he hadn't been persuaded to keep playing he might have stopped. His wife had stopped singing, being unable to deal with Merle's death. A very moving interview.
There's a good biography of Doc Watson, " Doc Watson: Blind But Now I See (Book Review) on eartymemusic.com which includes this quote from Daryl Anger:
Cooder remembered thinking, "these men know something about music I'll never know, even if I practice and study all my life. You have to be born into that."
For myself, I remember one memorable moment of a Doc Watson concert. (I've forgotten the guitarists Doc referred to, but you'll see it doesn't matter.) Doc said, "I always like the way the Johnson brothers played. Earl Johnson played like this." Doc played a little. "And Ray, he played like this." Doc played a little more. "And together they sounded like this."
It sounded nice. Then jaws dropped when we realized that what sounded like two guitars was Doc on a single guitar. Most of us laughed and applauded. The poor folkies were probably wondering if they should head off to the bathrooms to cut their wrists right then and there or wait until after the concert because it was at that moment that they realized that they would never, ever, be that good.
He told a joke about a Quaker farmer who owned a cow which would swat him with it's tail and try to kick him or overturn the milk pail. Imitating the farmer patting the cow on the head, Doc said, "I will not beat thee, but in the morning I will sell thee to a Baptist."
I cherish the memory of that concert because I believe it was the first time I heard him sing "Otto Wood the Bandit". I was taken with the way he sang Otto stressing both syllables as"Ot-tow" instead of "Otoh". (I was unaware that that was the way the song was originally sung. See for example The Carolina Buddies recording at http://www.oldtimeherald.org/archive/back_issues/volume-9/9-6/otto-wood.html.)
If you want to get some measure of the man and why he was so revered listen to Terry Gross's 1988 Fresh Air interview with Doc Watson. The interview proceeds as one might expect when interviewing an unassuming legend until Terry respectfully asked him about the death of his son Merle. With the honesty that marked the man, he recounted that he was so devastated that he didn't want to play anymore. If he hadn't been persuaded to keep playing he might have stopped. His wife had stopped singing, being unable to deal with Merle's death. A very moving interview.
There's a good biography of Doc Watson, " Doc Watson: Blind But Now I See (Book Review) on eartymemusic.com which includes this quote from Daryl Anger:
I can only add that those who never had the opportunity to see him in person have missed something memorable.“There was a feeling… that Doc was sort of like a spectacular natural feature of the landscape; inevitable, fully formed, iconic. He seemed ageless, and his so-called disability and spectacular transcendence of that along with his folksy manner made him a kind of mythic character, sort of a household god.”
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Quotes "Headhunters" | Christie Brinkley
I picked up some Jo Nexbø paperbacks at a garage sale on the morning of the computer science final two weeks ago. "Headhunters" has yielded two quotes in the first 50 pages:
"The lease had been signed, the extensive decoration work was under way and our financial ruin secured." (p 34)
"An artist who maintains that he has been misunderstood is almost always a bad artist who, I'm afraid to say this, has been understood." (p 41)
Asasellobulgakov made this comment on 5/27/2012 to a YouTube video of Andres Segovia (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9efHwnFAkuA) "Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how it's done, they've seen it done every day, but they're unable to do it themselves.
I like it!
WWJD = "Who Wants Jelly Donuts/Jack Daniels"
Zombies hate fast food.
A comment on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReW9uUYm-DA, John Fahey - Poor Boys Long Way From Home:
"I'll give you a little tip about the blues, folks: it's not enough to know which notes to play. You need to know why they need to be played" - George Carlin
cicerone - a person who conducts and informs sightseers (C18: from Italian: antiquarian scholar, guide, after Cicero, alluding to the eloquence and erudition of these men)
Newsday, the Long Island paper carried a story about a contest over child support payments between Christie Brinkley and her former husband, Peter Cook.
A comment on Ana Popovic's performance at the 2010 Montreal Jazz Festival icarusdescending881 wrote
The words of the Prophet used to be written on the subway walls. Now they're on T-shirts (snorgtees.com/t-shirts):
Wife: What are you going to do today?
Husband: Nothing.
Wife: Nothing? That's what you did yesterday.
Husband: I didn't finish.
"The lease had been signed, the extensive decoration work was under way and our financial ruin secured." (p 34)
"An artist who maintains that he has been misunderstood is almost always a bad artist who, I'm afraid to say this, has been understood." (p 41)
Asasellobulgakov made this comment on 5/27/2012 to a YouTube video of Andres Segovia (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9efHwnFAkuA) "Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how it's done, they've seen it done every day, but they're unable to do it themselves.
I like it!
WWJD = "Who Wants Jelly Donuts/Jack Daniels"
Zombies hate fast food.
A comment on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReW9uUYm-DA, John Fahey - Poor Boys Long Way From Home:
"I'll give you a little tip about the blues, folks: it's not enough to know which notes to play. You need to know why they need to be played" - George Carlin
cicerone - a person who conducts and informs sightseers (C18: from Italian: antiquarian scholar, guide, after Cicero, alluding to the eloquence and erudition of these men)
Newsday, the Long Island paper carried a story about a contest over child support payments between Christie Brinkley and her former husband, Peter Cook.
At one point in the hallway, Brinkley responded to a remark made by Cook's new wife, Suzanne, by putting her hand on her shoulder and telling her, "When you find out he's been cheating on you, I'll be here for you.
"You need to get a new line," Suzanne Cook told Brinkley."I've imagined hypothetical catty exchanges between a hypothetical former significant and current other who refuses to rise to the bait:
Former: "By the time we broke up he wasn't much in bed."
Current: "Maybe he's taken lessons."
Former: "After we broke up I learned how good lovemaking could be."Current: "I must have lower standards."
A comment on Ana Popovic's performance at the 2010 Montreal Jazz Festival icarusdescending881 wrote
"When Ana can roll over Crossroads, I'll sell my house, go find her, and follow her everywhere... Oh, wait, they arrest guys for that now.""Math is like love : a simple idea but it can get complicated." - virang21 (http://www.codeproject.com/Lounge.aspx?msg=4316769#xx4316769xx)
The words of the Prophet used to be written on the subway walls. Now they're on T-shirts (snorgtees.com/t-shirts):
- There's a fine line between Numberator and Denominator.
- If it weren't for law enforcement and physics I'd be unstoppable.
- The name Pavlov rings a bell.
- The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. ... And spiders.
- I survived the Rapture.
- If you can't be a good example be a warning.
Wife: What are you going to do today?
Husband: Nothing.
Wife: Nothing? That's what you did yesterday.
Husband: I didn't finish.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Just Kids Playing With Dynamite
Henry Blodget's article on Yahoo Finance was direct and to the point: "JPMORGAN PROVES IT: Wall Street Is Just Kids Playing With Dynamite".
The story was a reaction to the announcement of a $2 billion trading loss from JP Morgan-Chase. It is well worth a read/listen. (For a Reuters review see, "London Whale took big bets below the surface".)
The part of Blogett's story that will twist people's knickers is the statement that people who do damage do so without endangering their own compensation. The expectation that someone with a multi-million dollar compensation who screws up will lose their job and then get a position at a hedge fund with better compensation.
The term "London Whale" has been attached to this announcement because Bruno Iksil, the trader at the center of the furor, acquired that nickname because of the size of his trading positions. It would be reasonable to expect that working for a bank the size of JPMorgan-Chase that their trades would be larger than average. Iksil had 3 years of success prior to this. I haven't seen a story to determine whether JPMorgan actually came out ahead even with the $2 billion loss. The big deal apparently is that the money which was used for the trading was money which was not supposed to be used for hedging. Ooops. Of course the weasel factor looms large as to whether the money in question was for insurance or a hedge. The former would have been OK. The later a no-no.
Maybe time to check the facts.
The story was a reaction to the announcement of a $2 billion trading loss from JP Morgan-Chase. It is well worth a read/listen. (For a Reuters review see, "London Whale took big bets below the surface".)
The part of Blogett's story that will twist people's knickers is the statement that people who do damage do so without endangering their own compensation. The expectation that someone with a multi-million dollar compensation who screws up will lose their job and then get a position at a hedge fund with better compensation.
The term "London Whale" has been attached to this announcement because Bruno Iksil, the trader at the center of the furor, acquired that nickname because of the size of his trading positions. It would be reasonable to expect that working for a bank the size of JPMorgan-Chase that their trades would be larger than average. Iksil had 3 years of success prior to this. I haven't seen a story to determine whether JPMorgan actually came out ahead even with the $2 billion loss. The big deal apparently is that the money which was used for the trading was money which was not supposed to be used for hedging. Ooops. Of course the weasel factor looms large as to whether the money in question was for insurance or a hedge. The former would have been OK. The later a no-no.
Maybe time to check the facts.
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Poor Writing: Sherlock, Series II - The Hounds of Baskerville
So disappointing.
Masterpiece Mystery's revised updated Hound of the Baskervilles is to be avoided
That may be old thinking. In this day and age, with easy access to video editing tools someone is sure to put all the good bits together (Sherlock elucidating his prodigious powers of reasoning) to reduce the wretched hour and a half to a thoroughly enjoyable couple of minutes.
There was a wealth of confusing, blurry camera work in the manner of Blair Witch Project. (I'm guessing actually. I never saw the film.) Whereas car chases could be relied upon to fill out a TV show's time slot, this episode used blurry sequences.
Perhaps I was bothered by the ease with witch Sherlock and Watson cold so blithely waltz into a super secret super secure facility with Mycroft's security card. (Mycroft is Sherlock's smarter brother.)
Now folks, in the age of cell phones please explain how Sherlock, using his brother's All Access swipe card would not have a picture. A brief glance at the face on the card would certainly arouse some suspicion. I should have switched channels, but I decided to give it a chance. Wrong decision.
Do you think the card Sherlock swiped "some time ago" would still be valid? One would think that after Philby, Burgess and MacLean (and that scum, Anthony Blunt ) the Brits would have stepped up their security. At the very least the cards would expire periodically.
Yes I know one shouldn't take these things seriously, but I'm offended by such stupidity.
Masterpiece Mystery's revised updated Hound of the Baskervilles is to be avoided
That may be old thinking. In this day and age, with easy access to video editing tools someone is sure to put all the good bits together (Sherlock elucidating his prodigious powers of reasoning) to reduce the wretched hour and a half to a thoroughly enjoyable couple of minutes.
There was a wealth of confusing, blurry camera work in the manner of Blair Witch Project. (I'm guessing actually. I never saw the film.) Whereas car chases could be relied upon to fill out a TV show's time slot, this episode used blurry sequences.
Perhaps I was bothered by the ease with witch Sherlock and Watson cold so blithely waltz into a super secret super secure facility with Mycroft's security card. (Mycroft is Sherlock's smarter brother.)
Now folks, in the age of cell phones please explain how Sherlock, using his brother's All Access swipe card would not have a picture. A brief glance at the face on the card would certainly arouse some suspicion. I should have switched channels, but I decided to give it a chance. Wrong decision.
Do you think the card Sherlock swiped "some time ago" would still be valid? One would think that after Philby, Burgess and MacLean (and that scum, Anthony Blunt ) the Brits would have stepped up their security. At the very least the cards would expire periodically.
Yes I know one shouldn't take these things seriously, but I'm offended by such stupidity.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Startups - Where are they now?
I came across the December 31, 2007 issue of NetworkWorld with an article "Start-Ups That Should Matter". I took a look and this is what I found:.
Not too shoddy a track record. I'd count Scalent as a success.
| 3Leaf Systems | RIP | |
| Apatar | It lives | |
| Atune Systems | URL available for $1,195 from hugedomains.com | |
| mValent | Server wasn't responding | |
| NewStep | Owner is listed as a post office box in Vancouver, WA, but the server was not responding | |
| Palo Alto Networks | Looks like a success. Their website displays Gartner's analysis of the company as a leader and visionaries who could execute. | |
| Scalent | Acquired by Dell in 2010 | |
| http://Sipera | It lives! | |
| http://Tango Networks | It lives! | |
| http://http://Xangati/ | It lives! |
Not too shoddy a track record. I'd count Scalent as a success.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Corey Booker Races Through Flames
Corey Booker, mayor of Newark, NJ rushed into a burning building to rescue a neighbor's daughter. Fire officials cautioned that such heroics can often end badly. Here's a link to a CBS News story. (The story contains a typo, "here" instead of "her":
The WNYC news story quoted Corey Booker as saying, "I was chiseled, now I just jiggle." ("When chiseled turns to jiggles" might make good copy in a come-on for a health club. It might be in use already, but a quick search with Google didn't uncover it. )
I would have liked to quote directly from the WNYC site, but it was down for maintenance:
I would have liked to quote directly from the WNYC site, but it was down for maintenance:
Monday, April 09, 2012
Google Cartoon
I went looking for a picture of the 450' x 4' vinyl cartoon mural attached to the scaffolding around Google's New York headquarters at 111 Eighth Avenue. The cartoon went up today. WNYC had some pictures, but I was unable to find an image of the whole thing.
Instead I found this:
It seemed just the thing for people I know who feel that the government is watching them. In their mind, the surveillance is not specific, just business as usual for the government. I quickly fired off a link for our amusement.
Instead I found this:
Stephanie Plum
I was gathering paper to recycle when I came across the name "Stephanie Plum" written on a sheet of paper. The paper was originally a note from the department secretary about a student, but had been annotated with notes about MARIE assembler, a few phone numbers I didn't recognize, but seemed to be local, and some calculations related to computer memory addressing.
A web search quickly found Janet Evanovich's web site and then Katherine Hegl's film, "One for the Money". The film was not released for critical review. Uh oh! A very bad sign.
Setting that aside, Stephanie Plum is the heroine of novels written by Janet Evanovich and I'm sure I got the name from an NPR interview, either for her latest book, Explosive Eighteen or "Stephanie Plum: Trenton's Scrappy Bounty Hunter".
Now with that out of the way I can recycle the paper.
A web search quickly found Janet Evanovich's web site and then Katherine Hegl's film, "One for the Money". The film was not released for critical review. Uh oh! A very bad sign.
Setting that aside, Stephanie Plum is the heroine of novels written by Janet Evanovich and I'm sure I got the name from an NPR interview, either for her latest book, Explosive Eighteen or "Stephanie Plum: Trenton's Scrappy Bounty Hunter".
Now with that out of the way I can recycle the paper.
Sunday, April 08, 2012
I'm So Behind the Times: Social Vending Machines
Stumbling through the May 16, 2011 hard copy edition of InformationWeek I found "Pepsi Takes Vending Machines Social". Who knew? Certainly not me. It's amazing what I miss by not watching TV or listening to commercial media. I seems that you can buy drinks as gifts for other people in the form of
redeemable codes delivered via text messages. It doesn't work in bars.
Might this work in countries where corruption steals from the destitute? the public-private key encryption probably figures into the authentication of the request. If I can think of it, others must be working on it.
(I couldn't find the article on line, but this is similar: http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/retail/229402472?cid=nl_IW_daily_2011-04-30_html.)
Might this work in countries where corruption steals from the destitute? the public-private key encryption probably figures into the authentication of the request. If I can think of it, others must be working on it.
(I couldn't find the article on line, but this is similar: http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/retail/229402472?cid=nl_IW_daily_2011-04-30_html.)
Monday, April 02, 2012
"I'm quite the guru"
While rooting through some papers I found some notes from a staff meeting. A former director had said, "I'm quite the FileMaker guru." She said this shortly after indicating some confusion between a database and a database table. My notation after the quote was "Perhaps she was tired." In truth it's closer to the classic "a legend in her own mind."
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Dreamweaver - PHP: I'm loving it!
I feel like a giddy fan boy.
I resisted using Dreamweaver for some reason. The only help I really need is an editor which will color code some components of the language. Make the comments chartreuse, key words blue, character strings purple, etc. and I'm satisfied.
It only took a brief exposure to Dreamweaver whining that I hadn't closed an open quote - Hey! I'm not finished typing - that I realized the real power of the application.
Just that nagging is enough to get me to do what I usually do, but more consistently. In my configuration Dreamweaver puts a red bar in the margin when there it detects an error on a line. This means that if I start to type a quoted string, I will see the red bar within a few seconds of typing a quoted string unless I have already typed the closing string. Good practice is to start writing the quoted string by typing the opening quote, then the closing quote, and then filling in the actual text.
Is is so affirming to not see the red bar that I've found myself coding more carefully. And of course the predictive features where potential variables are listed in a popup makes it even easier.
And PHP? Ask and the documentation returns clear explanations and easily understood examples. What's not to love?
Contrast that with Python's documentation. Language boosters hurl invectives at any perceived slight of their one true language. I do not want to do anything like that here. If I spent the time to study Python I'm sure it would take less than a week for me to speak rapturously of Python's glories, but I would still whine about the official documentation.
For years I've told students how much better their technology is than the stuff we learned on. Unfortunately it now means that instructors can demand more from their students (Students rarely win. Just recently I saw a student turning in a hand drawn graph. When I asked him why he didn't - I didn't get a chance to finished the sentence before the student answered that that the instructor wanted it hand drawn. I can understand that. Hand plotting gave me a feel for data. But after doing several, why not give the kids a break?)
I on the other hand am just enjoying writing in PHP because the documentation has clear examples and, because I haven't yet run up against the limitations of the language, loving it.
Coding is fun once again.
I resisted using Dreamweaver for some reason. The only help I really need is an editor which will color code some components of the language. Make the comments chartreuse, key words blue, character strings purple, etc. and I'm satisfied.
It only took a brief exposure to Dreamweaver whining that I hadn't closed an open quote - Hey! I'm not finished typing - that I realized the real power of the application.
Just that nagging is enough to get me to do what I usually do, but more consistently. In my configuration Dreamweaver puts a red bar in the margin when there it detects an error on a line. This means that if I start to type a quoted string, I will see the red bar within a few seconds of typing a quoted string unless I have already typed the closing string. Good practice is to start writing the quoted string by typing the opening quote, then the closing quote, and then filling in the actual text.
Is is so affirming to not see the red bar that I've found myself coding more carefully. And of course the predictive features where potential variables are listed in a popup makes it even easier.
And PHP? Ask and the documentation returns clear explanations and easily understood examples. What's not to love?
Contrast that with Python's documentation. Language boosters hurl invectives at any perceived slight of their one true language. I do not want to do anything like that here. If I spent the time to study Python I'm sure it would take less than a week for me to speak rapturously of Python's glories, but I would still whine about the official documentation.
For years I've told students how much better their technology is than the stuff we learned on. Unfortunately it now means that instructors can demand more from their students (Students rarely win. Just recently I saw a student turning in a hand drawn graph. When I asked him why he didn't - I didn't get a chance to finished the sentence before the student answered that that the instructor wanted it hand drawn. I can understand that. Hand plotting gave me a feel for data. But after doing several, why not give the kids a break?)
I on the other hand am just enjoying writing in PHP because the documentation has clear examples and, because I haven't yet run up against the limitations of the language, loving it.
Coding is fun once again.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Passives, Pandas, and Dangling Modifiers
This is about a post, "Passives, Pandas, and Dangling Modifiers", to the The Chronicle of Higher Education Lingua Franca blog discussing a mistake about the passive voice and dangling modifiers. The post contains a joke told by presenter Sandi Toksvig, presenter of a Radio 4 comedy news program:
“Though overweight, uninterested in sex, and notorious for their very poor diet,” she said, pausing for exactly the right fraction of a second while we took this in, “they were still very glad to see the pandas arrive.”I originally thought the "they" would be the Scottish Conservative party, but it was actually the Scots themselves.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Kuduro
Kuduro is a type of African music I first saw mentioned in an interview with a tailor originally from South Africa. Figuring that youtube would be be the best place to look I came across a video which featured a number of stunning dance/acrobatic moves. (As I write this I suspect that the "stunning dance/acrobatic move" may be just ho-hum ordinary for those in the know about the culture, but just new to me.)
About 1:23 seconds into "Buraka Som Sistema - Sound of Kudur"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CkXhtw7UNk a young man takes a step, seems to kick one leg out from under him with the other leg and taking a silent screen worth prat fall twirling his legs as his body spins in mid air so that he lands face forward. (Looking at the sequence over and over the timing varies from 1:23-1:28 minutes into the video.)
While one part of my mind is marveling at their physical ability another part is wondering about monetizing their skill. After watching the sequence over and over a more accurate description is that he seems to be executing a weird low level pole vault where he walked past the bar, and then threw himself backwards over it.
About 1:23 seconds into "Buraka Som Sistema - Sound of Kudur"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CkXhtw7UNk a young man takes a step, seems to kick one leg out from under him with the other leg and taking a silent screen worth prat fall twirling his legs as his body spins in mid air so that he lands face forward. (Looking at the sequence over and over the timing varies from 1:23-1:28 minutes into the video.)
While one part of my mind is marveling at their physical ability another part is wondering about monetizing their skill. After watching the sequence over and over a more accurate description is that he seems to be executing a weird low level pole vault where he walked past the bar, and then threw himself backwards over it.
The price of spending an eternity as a moth
Starting from "'It' Girls Work Both Sides of the Camera" in the Thursday Styles section of the February 16th 2012 NY Times about fashion models taking up the camera I learned about web sites/blogs streetfaces (part of Flickr), Face Hunter, Sartorialist (actually TheSartorialist) and took to the web to see for myself.
One of the first pieces of advice a novice photographer gets is to determine the point of interest. With people, that generally means getting in close. Looking at these fashion sites, I was struck by the fact that most of the photos are full length shots and the photos do not have the "Instamatic look" of amateur photos.
Duh, well the photographers know what they're doing. Perhaps it's just that the subjects aren't full face facing the camera with their hands rigidly by their site, a corpse propped upright.
Do I detect a twist of envy in some of these comments? From a Buddhist perspective, I would gladly pay the price of spending an eternity as a moth for the pleasure of being reincarnated as her boyfriend, even if just for a day. ~ j. crisp October 22, 2007 at 12:11 pmWhile most comments related to the fashion I was surprised that one photo (I can no longer locate) of a young woman on a bicycle in London drew considerable criticism because she was riding without a helmet.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Worried the Kardashians are giving trash a bad rep?
Thrillists subject line was "Kickflip These Onto Your Face", but their lead, quoted above, was clever I thought: the email promoted JackThreads's salvaged wood frame eye glasses.
Recyclers should appropriate the phrase for their own use: "Giving trash a good name".
The Queens SK8 with "vintage ebonised arms" and special hinges for a "highly satisfying skull grab" is shown below.
Recyclers should appropriate the phrase for their own use: "Giving trash a good name".
The Queens SK8 with "vintage ebonised arms" and special hinges for a "highly satisfying skull grab" is shown below.
I remember a snippet of a Sanford and Son episode where Red Foxx, playing the older Sanford dismisses the stuff in the back of his son's truck with, "This stuff gives garbage a bad name." (Maybe it was trash getting a bad name, but you get the idea.)
Thursday, March 08, 2012
Body Double for Video
I stumbled over Roger Penwill, a cartoonist who has some CAD and computer related cartoons www.penwill.com/ and (http://www.cadcartoons.com/cadcartoons_cartoons.html). I'm not sure If I'm violating the terms of service by linking to an image on his site.
This cartoon displays raises the level of deception far above removing zips from images posted to a dating site.
This cartoon displays raises the level of deception far above removing zips from images posted to a dating site.
Monday, March 05, 2012
More Quotes, Turns of Phrase, and Jokes
" I knew that the actual objectives of war were always camouflaged by well-designed lies that exploit collective fear and perpetuate national myths." -
by SINAN ANTOON "Fifteen Years Ago, America Destroyed My Country" https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/19/opinion/iraq-war-anniversary-.html
"... Canonical is still committed to pushing envelopes others are only now learning to lick and fold." From http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10things/10-things-the-linux-desktop-can-be-proud-of/3093.
She: I want to get drunk and do something stupid.
He: I'm something stupid. Do me.
Paraphrased and stolen from Prairie Home Companion:
"... Canonical is still committed to pushing envelopes others are only now learning to lick and fold." From http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10things/10-things-the-linux-desktop-can-be-proud-of/3093.
She: I want to get drunk and do something stupid.
He: I'm something stupid. Do me.
Paraphrased and stolen from Prairie Home Companion:
Friday, March 02, 2012
"the only consolation I can receive"
Vatican secret archive opened in EMC-sponsored exhibition
From yesterday's ComputerWorld:EMC said its sponsorship was part of its Information Heritage initiative, in which it has been digitizing historic documents and making them publicly available.
The letter by Marie Antoinette is thought to have been addressed to Louis XVI's brother Charles Philippe, Count of Artois, who in 1824 became Charles X, King of France.Sentiments being the only consolation is universal. What can others do about our sorrow? (If this were the 60's drugs would be answer proffered for any situation.)
The letter, which is only 10 lines in length, reads, "The sentiments of those who share my pain, my dear brother-in-law, are the only consolation I can receive in this sad circumstance." The letter is then signed, "Your loving Sister-in-Law and Cousin Marie Antoinette.
A Cold Call
A few days ago I received a call at the office. A female voice asked me if I remembered our previous conversation. "No.", I said. "I have no recollection of ever talking to a female stock broker."
It's true. She went on to relate the date she called, her recommendation, and some personal information intended to convince me of her veracity, probably the first car I drove. (In her sales training they probably use the word "truth" instead of "veracity", but that's the way I speak. Also, I usually lie about the car, claiming to drive a much cooler car than I ever drove and because that information is frequently used online to establish identity. ) Would it be possible to pass along contact information from one broker to another?
"Go ahead." I said, "Do your stuff."
"Stuff?"
"Your sales pitch."
She didn't get all huffy, but, like the pro she was, she asked, "Are you familiar with ARM Holdings, ARMH?"
I said I didn't, but just as soon as she started to explain why she thought I would make a killing because Apple was rumored to want to buy the company I interrupted. (A bad personal habit, but beating someone to the punch line to jokes is a blood sport around here.)
"Oh the ARM processor? Yeah it's in cell phones, netbooks, and ..." I went on a bit and then asked her if she knew what percentage of Apple's income came from cell phones.
She didn't know. (I've got a small 3-ring binder with sales calls scripts. Scenarios where the mark has fun with the caller isn't covered.)
Only a few days before I remember seeing a pie chart of Apple's income sources (http://www.zdnet.com/blog/bott/microsoft-apple-and-google-where-does-the-money-come-from/4469). I spent a few minutes giving her the benefit of my minimal analysis of Apple's finances and the limitations of the ARM processor.
It's true. She went on to relate the date she called, her recommendation, and some personal information intended to convince me of her veracity, probably the first car I drove. (In her sales training they probably use the word "truth" instead of "veracity", but that's the way I speak. Also, I usually lie about the car, claiming to drive a much cooler car than I ever drove and because that information is frequently used online to establish identity. ) Would it be possible to pass along contact information from one broker to another?
"Go ahead." I said, "Do your stuff."
"Stuff?"
"Your sales pitch."
She didn't get all huffy, but, like the pro she was, she asked, "Are you familiar with ARM Holdings, ARMH?"
I said I didn't, but just as soon as she started to explain why she thought I would make a killing because Apple was rumored to want to buy the company I interrupted. (A bad personal habit, but beating someone to the punch line to jokes is a blood sport around here.)
"Oh the ARM processor? Yeah it's in cell phones, netbooks, and ..." I went on a bit and then asked her if she knew what percentage of Apple's income came from cell phones.
She didn't know. (I've got a small 3-ring binder with sales calls scripts. Scenarios where the mark has fun with the caller isn't covered.)
Only a few days before I remember seeing a pie chart of Apple's income sources (http://www.zdnet.com/blog/bott/microsoft-apple-and-google-where-does-the-money-come-from/4469). I spent a few minutes giving her the benefit of my minimal analysis of Apple's finances and the limitations of the ARM processor.
Anyway she wanted to establish a relationship right there and then. I suggested that she trust in the Postal Service. (I was once advised to have those things sent via the Postal Service instead of FedEx because sending fraudulent material through the Postal Service is a federal offense.)
I'm waiting.
Andrew Breitbart Dies at 43
My first thought when I saw the headline yesterday was "How nice." Reading that he had a wife and 4 children only made me wonder if he'd bought enough life insurance.
Charles Krautheimer said, "And you know when people die, you say they are irreplaceable as a cliche. But I think in this case, it's true." (http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2012/03/01/krauthammer_breitbart_is_irreplaceable.html) Let's hope he's correct.
There was an obituary some years ago about a guy who'd worked on Wall Street, been convicted of some financial malfeasance, and then spent the rest of his life after prison working with the poor, people with AIDS, and the homeless. The obit had a quote from former New York City mayor Ed Koch saying that the guy had nothing to apologize for. The same could not be said about Breitbart.
Contrary to those who would comfort me with expectation of Breitbart's retribution in the afterlife, he went too quickly for the pain he caused.
Charles Krautheimer said, "And you know when people die, you say they are irreplaceable as a cliche. But I think in this case, it's true." (http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2012/03/01/krauthammer_breitbart_is_irreplaceable.html) Let's hope he's correct.
There was an obituary some years ago about a guy who'd worked on Wall Street, been convicted of some financial malfeasance, and then spent the rest of his life after prison working with the poor, people with AIDS, and the homeless. The obit had a quote from former New York City mayor Ed Koch saying that the guy had nothing to apologize for. The same could not be said about Breitbart.
Contrary to those who would comfort me with expectation of Breitbart's retribution in the afterlife, he went too quickly for the pain he caused.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Captain Travis Patriquin
I'd jotted a note to myself on an envelope: "Travis Patrick Quinn". "XYZ Affair" was also written on the envelope.
A quick web search brought up:
http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/a-tribute-to-captain-travis-patriquin. The Leonard Lopate interview with William Doyle, author of "A Soldier's Dream: Captain Travis Patriquin and the Awakening of Iraq" came flooding back along with Patriquin's famous stick figure PowerPoint presentation: "How to Win in Al Anbar.
A quick web search brought up:
http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/a-tribute-to-captain-travis-patriquin. The Leonard Lopate interview with William Doyle, author of "A Soldier's Dream: Captain Travis Patriquin and the Awakening of Iraq" came flooding back along with Patriquin's famous stick figure PowerPoint presentation: "How to Win in Al Anbar.
The "XYZ Affair" was a 1798 incident in the administration of John Adams in which French representatives made unreasonable demands of the United States representatives. War was narrowly averted, although there were two years in which the nascent American navy captured a number of French privateer vessels.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Patty Hearst at CES?
An email had a link to CES. Following the link I was struck by the striking resemblance of the eye candy to Patty Hearst. (For those too young to remember or too lazy to do a web search, Patty Hearst was the heiress to the Hearst fortune who was kidnapped ("dragged naked and screaming") from her boyfriend's apartment by members of the Symbionese Liberation Army. Go look up the rest.)
Here is the CES image:
and here are pictures of an older Patty Hearst:
Here is the CES image:
Monday, January 16, 2012
More quotes
Blackmail is such an ugly word. Consider it coerced behavioral modification for the stubborn. - from "10 less-than-ethical ways to get ahead" by Alan Norton http://http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10things/10-less-than-ethical-ways-to-get-ahead/2988
I found this scrawled on a business reply envelope to the World Wildlife Fund:
Christina Monet "Sleep It Off" might have been something I liked. Below it there was a quote I haven't been able to place: "The wedding present was a horse named cocaine." It might have been from Bernardo Bertolucci's 4-hour opus, 1900, at least that's what a web search turned up for "wedding present was a horse named cocaine".
Also on the envelope: "Consultant: self-unemployed"
This just in (2/7/2012) from a link from CodeProject ® some DBA jokes (http://www.codeproject.com/Lounge.aspx?msg=4147624#xx4147624xx):
"Give a man a mug, he drinks for a day. Teach a man to mug..."
"The difference between an ostrich and the average voter is where they stick their heads."
And from an article on "21st Century Skills" in the March 2012 issue of Campus Technology: Our schools are still generally organized around answers rather than questions." Michael Wesch, Kansas State University.
I found this scrawled on a business reply envelope to the World Wildlife Fund:
Christina Monet "Sleep It Off" might have been something I liked. Below it there was a quote I haven't been able to place: "The wedding present was a horse named cocaine." It might have been from Bernardo Bertolucci's 4-hour opus, 1900, at least that's what a web search turned up for "wedding present was a horse named cocaine".
Also on the envelope: "Consultant: self-unemployed"
This just in (2/7/2012) from a link from CodeProject ® some DBA jokes (http://www.codeproject.com/Lounge.aspx?msg=4147624#xx4147624xx):
"Give a man a mug, he drinks for a day. Teach a man to mug..."
"The difference between an ostrich and the average voter is where they stick their heads."
And from an article on "21st Century Skills" in the March 2012 issue of Campus Technology: Our schools are still generally organized around answers rather than questions." Michael Wesch, Kansas State University.
Monday, January 09, 2012
Castalon Frying Pans or Looking the Gift Horse in the Mouth
Two Castalon frying pans were offered on a Freecycle site. I didn't recognize the brand. A quick search of the web and well, well, a product recall.
The pans were made in China. A meaningless observation or yet another indication that product from China should be suspect?
Sunday, January 08, 2012
Howard Halpern & "The Other"
In his obit, a letter Howard Halpern wrote to the NY Times shortly after the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 was quoted:
It seemed to work in the short term for the Nazis against Jews and gypsies, Idi Amin against ethnic Indians, Hutu Power Hutus describing the Tutsi as cockroaches (and those of their own who wanted co-existence as traitors), and any Balkin ethnic group of your choice.
How would it be phrased? "Are you trying to paint them as one of Howard Halpern's 'Others'?" Would there be a pause for an explanation?
“we are unlikely to harm a friendly neighbor because she has strong views about equal rights for women, but if we call her a ‘femi-Nazi,’ she becomes ‘the other’ — evil, dangerous, hated.”I'll remember this the next time someone uses a similar term. I doubt it will have much effect, though it may throw someone off their stride to have someone else tell them that their choice of terms is to consciously paint someone they don't like as the other.
It seemed to work in the short term for the Nazis against Jews and gypsies, Idi Amin against ethnic Indians, Hutu Power Hutus describing the Tutsi as cockroaches (and those of their own who wanted co-existence as traitors), and any Balkin ethnic group of your choice.
How would it be phrased? "Are you trying to paint them as one of Howard Halpern's 'Others'?" Would there be a pause for an explanation?
Raindance Imperial 600 Air Showerhead
A link lead to a site on money.MSN for items which are illegal to sell in the United States. Besides Cuban cigars I learned that showerheads in America have been legally constrained from delivering more than 2.5 gallons of water per minute since 1992.
I haven't investigated whether that means that shower heads which exceed that limit can't be manufactured, imported, sold, installed, or used. There's a big difference especially because the Hansgrohe Raindance Imperial 600 Air Showerhead (the "28403001" to the cognoscenti ) currently offered for $3,383.34 at homeclick.com, (in stock and "will ship in 24 to 48 hours").
At that price someone might want to buy the 28403001 as outre sculpture.
I don't remember this generating howls of protest against government regulation, but what with the New Hampshire primary just days away I look forward to this being part of a response to a question about specific regulations preventing America from assume it's rightful position in the world.
I haven't investigated whether that means that shower heads which exceed that limit can't be manufactured, imported, sold, installed, or used. There's a big difference especially because the Hansgrohe Raindance Imperial 600 Air Showerhead (
At that price someone might want to buy the 28403001 as outre sculpture.
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