May 2008
41 posts
Seems High →
Only 27% of voters have positive views of Republicans, according to the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, the lowest level for either party in the survey’s nearly two-decade history.
(Sorry, Ty. This is too good to not post!)
April 2008
47 posts
Malicious Idiots
The White House “upgrades” from Lotus Notes, which has built-in support for archiving all email sent and received, to Microsoft Exchange, which doesn’t. So they implement what they call “journalling” whereby human interns sort email by hand. (That’s not “journalling”. It’s “stupidity”. Or “fire-the-CIO-worthy...
First Interview with James Frey Since the Whole... →
Great piece. Strengthens my suspicions that Oprah is Satan and Frey’s worst mistake was being too niave about the publishing industry and the media.
Last month’s issue was really good, and it looks like this months will be too: I might have to get a subscription to Vanity Fair.
MLB Salary vs Performance →
“This sketch looks at all 30 Major League Baseball Teams and ranks them on the left according to their day-to-day standings. The lines connect each team to their 2008 salary, listed on the right.”
I’m not a baseball fan, so I have to wonder what Arizona, Oakland, and Florida are doing that Boston, the Mets, and the Yankees aren’t.
Weekend Addendum
Also, when you visit us in Fargo bring your Cranium A-game.
Otherwise, Erika and I will destroy you instead of just beating you.
Great Weekend
Brother Paul was in ND for the first time in ages. Had a blast with him and GF Nikki. Mom and Dad came down too. Must sleep. It’s gonna be a long week.
Zen Story
A monk is walking around outside and suddenly stubs his toe. A violent pain shoots up his leg. Hopping around in agony he thinks, “I’ve read that pain is a void. What the hell is this?” Then suddenly he gets it.
When his teacher asks him to explain, the monk said, “I cannot be deceived by others.”
'87 Topps
Ask and ye shall be answered:
The wallpaper in the afore-linked video is the 1987 set of Topps baseball cards.
I love the video even more now that I know.
(thx Dustin)
Polly & the Pirates
I picked up the first volume of Polly and the Pirates this past weekend at the local comic store and just finished it last night.
This book is really, really great. It’s a fun, quick read with a very strong female lead. All of the various inhabitants of this fantasy world are well characterized. The art is fanciful but with very strong line work. The plot is very fast paced. Enough of the...
Nine! Twice!
Amazing and wonderful:
Juan Diego Flórez popped out his nine shining high C’s in “La Fille du Régiment” at the Metropolitan Opera on Monday night, the crowd rose and cheered. Mr. Flórez obliged with something not heard on the Met stage since 1994: a solo encore.
(via NYT)
I’ve listened to the performance and encore(mp3) at least five times already today. Fantastic.
HOWTO Make Your Own Screen-Printed T-Shirts →
The Stalwart Eye Never Rests
My mom is signing her emails with one of my dwarf names. Awesome!
What If ABC Hosted the Lincoln-Douglas Debates? →
So Much Fun
Had a great day playing Magic at the prerelease events today. The new set is very interesting if very complex.
I’m heading back for more tomorrow. I only drafted today since I arrived too late to get in the sealed flight (Tyyylerrrrr! *shakes fist in the air*). Tomorrow’s events don’t start ‘til noon, so I should be able to make them.
The best part of playing with...
_Fight On!_ →
A new magazine covering the original, as in published from 1974-77, version of Dungeons & Dragons.
A great picture series of all the junk we've put... →
Dwarf Names
Here are ten names—five male, five female—suitable for use the next time you play a dwarf in a role-playing game.
Male:
Whurfunt, the iron nobleman
Glorrid, the glittering master
Morierl, the brave father
Aradek, the blood miner
Azauk, the stone crafter
Female:
Marahild, the golden voice
Harana, the stalwart eye
Bazwynn, the grace of the flame
Araaydd, the blood queen
...
RealScoop
RealScoop “utilizes leading voice analysis technology to analyze statements made by public figures.”
This is awesome.
Check out President Clinton saying “I did not have sexual relations with that woman…”
Nothing from President Bush yet, that I could find. I really want to see an analysis of Colin Powell’s infamous speech to the UN.
Top 10 Banned Movies →
Duly noted and added to my Netflix queue. (Should I admit that half of them are already in there? I’m not telling which ones, though.)
“The largest crowd of Bush’s presidency” turns out... →
(via The Morning News)
2008 Eisner Award Nominees Announced Today
The nominees for the 2008 Eisner Awards have been announced.
These are the biggest awards in the comics industry. The like the Oscars, this list is a great place to get a heads up on what you may have been missing.
I’ve been struggling to find a comic appropriate for Elizabeth. Amelia Rules!, nominated for Best Publication for Kids, just might fit the bill.
Twilight Shephard!
Haven’t been inside much because it is finally, really Spring.
When I’ve been inside I’ve been either trying to get a good-for-nothing ebayer to pay up or doing homework to finish a project that has a deadline fast approaching.
I am sooo looking forward to this weekend, when I will pretty much do nothing but play Magic all weekend.
A new set is coming out soon, and...
Does Free Will Exist?
A bunch of nerd gods debate free will.
My take: The actions of an individual human are fundamentally based on the laws of physics.
As the resolution of our tools increases we will be able to see and “predict” the outputs of an individual given a specific input. Yes, we will be able to read minds. We can see 14 billion years into our universe’s past, we will be able to see...
Brother HL-2170W
Erika tried printing some really basic flyers a couple weeks ago. Only instead of a bright page of sharp text and decent spot color it was a pale, streaky mess: the ink was either dried up or low again. We’d printed maybe 100 pages in the six months since I last spent $50 on ink.
Sick of this, I spent $100 on a Brother HL-2170W laser printer that was on sale at Best Buy. It came with a...
My Next Car
Just saw an ad in a magazine for the 2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid.
That’s what I said!
I’m already on the waiting list at the Chevy dealer across the street from my office. Summit White w/ Ebony Black leather interior and the audio and entertainment packages, if you must know.
Sure the monthly payment is more than my mortgage, but it’ll be worth it knowing I’m helping...
Already? I Think You Mean "Finally".
Kottke: “There Will Be Blood is out on DVD already.”
Remember how before the Oscars everyone was wondering if anyone would tune in or care because no one had seen the films?
Seems to me, if the studios really understood how the general public sees their movies—I should say buys or rents—they would have released on disk, downloads, and on-demand immediately after the...
Speaking of Great Comics
Comic Book Resources asked their readers (who I think are generally pretty intelligent and well-read with regard to comics) to nominate and vote for their favorite comic runs of all time.
This is shaping up to be a great resource for casual fans who want to dig into the format’s past but need to know where to start.
Criminal (volume 2) #2
Best single issue of any comic I’ve read in a long time.
Find your local comic shop and pick this up.
Yeah, I'd Say So →
In the meantime, Bush has established himself as the torture president, the basis for his invasion of Iraq has been exposed as a fraud, the Iraq War itself has gone disastrously, the nation’s network of alliances has faded, and the economy has gone into a tailspin–not to mention the bungled handling of relief for victims of hurricane Katrina.
As Kottke noted, “it doesn’t even address...
Zenburn →
I’ve set aside some time this afternoon to apply Zenburn to all of my terminals and editors. Very nice.
Beard Alphabet →
Television Nerdery, Addendum
Oh, also: Heather Havrilesky is the best television critic anywhere.
If you loved her as Polly Esther at Suck you’ll like her at Salon.
Oh my god I miss Suck…
I’m going to go have a stiff drink.
Television Nerdery
Though there are only two shows I really follow, in my opinion Television Without Pity is the best place to indulge in television show nerdery on the web.
Do. Not. Visit the forums before having seen the show. But after you’ve seen it this is the place to visit to talk about Tigh shooting Adama in the face.
(And if everyone is talking about a show you can’t stand, this is the place...
It's Back! Yes!
I hope everyone caught the final season premier of Battlestar Galactica this weekend. Wow!
I didn’t catch the sneak peak stream at noon on Friday because I was working. I didn’t catch the premier on the Sci Fi channel at 9pm because we don’t get cable.
But I did finally watch it on Saturday while Elizabeth took her nap. Watching BSG on Hulu is almost as good as watching it on...
Woo-Hoo
I passed the CISSP exam!
There is still a bit of red tape to cut through before I can put the letters on my business cards, but the hardest part is past.
Paper Certs
For all my complaining about the CISSP exam its difficulty has a reason and purpose. ISC2 desperately wants to avoid their certification being devalued in the competitive marketplace of security certifications.
Case-in-point: Microsoft’s “Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer” was considered at least a decent, if not great, certification when first introduced. But because the...
The Past Half–Decade of Politics & the Economy in...
Dani Rodrik:
“What it shows is the difference that the President’s party affiliation makes to the distribution of income during the four years of the president’s term.
This is a pretty fracking amazing picture. If correct it shows that all income levels would do better financially by voting for a Democrat vs. a Republican for President.
Mr. Rodrik continues:
“When...
Terrible of Me
Reminiscing about the early days of this site, I realized I had not shared the recipe for the Old Fashioned. That terrible oversight has now been corrected.
I feel I must add, too, that I believe the Old Fashioned to be the most masculine of the Four Essential Drinks. Certainly nothing else fits quite so well with my dark-brown leather arm-chair, the latest issue of Esquire, and Bruce...
The Old Fashioned
Ingredients
1 cube Sugar or 1 tsp Sugar
3 dashes Bitters
1 splash Water
2 parts Bourbon
Directions
Combine sugar, water, and bitters in a heavy-bottomed tumbler (a.k.a. an Old Fashioned glass). Stir until sugar is dissolved.
Add bourbon. Stir.
Add 3–4 large ice cubes.
Twist thin-cut orange peel over top & use as garnish.
2007: The Year in Music!!!
Since I mentioned, in my Timbalada post, that I really liked Girls and Boys I thought I’d share the complete list of my favorite albums from 2007:
Girls and Boys (mp3) by Ingrid Michaelson
Kala (mp3) by M.I.A. (Only $6.99 at Amazon? Ridiculous! Buy two at this very moment and give one away to a stranger. The world will be much better for it.)
Once (mp3)by Glen Hansard & Marketa...
Tzatziki Sauce
Made up some excellent Greek-style pita sandwiches (a.k.a. gyros) tonight. The best part is the Tzatziki sauce. Here’s the recipe I used, mostly cribbed from Cook’s Illustrated (subscription required):
Ingredients:
1 Cup (8 oz) plain yogurt
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced fine
Couple Pinches salt
1/2 lemon’s juice
1 Clove Garlic
1 tsp dried dill
Directions:
...