Inklings

It's probably a repeat, but this article on the relationship between J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis and their impact on literature is an interesting read.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: The James Gang: "Walk Away"

King on Rock and Roll

Author and apparent music lover Stephen King opines on what he considers to be the greatest rock songs ever made.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: The Allman Brothers Band: "Midnight Rider"

Kissing Cousins

Maryanne and I were recently discussing with our friends Jamie and Jed the stigma in this country against cousins marrying. I referred to an article I read recently that not only noted that it is a taboo that's almost completely American, but many states don't even have laws about marrying relatives, and those that do merely state you can't marry a relative that's a first cousin or closer. In much of the world, it is not only acceptable, but normal. The only time it poses problems is when it is done repeatedly, as in the case of the European nobility.

Just in time for said discussion was this interesting list of seven notable historical figures who married their cousins, with some other notables, as well.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Boston: "Smokin'"

Hammer of the Gods

Forget the new Eagles album. Forget the Van Halen reunion. The biggest reunion in music -- what could be the reunion of the century -- is Led Zeppelin. In case you're living under a rock and have been completely ignorant of this momentous event, the verdict is in. What could have been the greatest debacle in music history is instead, by most reviews, everything fans have hoped for and more.

Robert Plant's voice isn't what it once was (witness their performance of "Stairway to Heaven"), but it was more than adequate for the definitive Zep song, "Kashmir".

The Hammer of the Gods indeed....

Mood: Pleased
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Kashmir"

Sausages

While driving home last night I heard a commercial for summer sausage.

This got me to thinking, once again -- why do so many people attempt to extol the virtues of all-beef summer sausage?

Whenever Maryanne buys summer sausage for something, she always goes for the beef variety unless I stop her.

A number of sausage companies praise it as superior to other varieties. Commercials compliment it as the best summer sausage ever.

I grew up on the summer sausage made by Kerscher's Foodland in Valmy. The recipe has since passed to the Welsings, the family that bought the Foodland store and converted it into a gas station with convenience store. I've tried other varieties, including Johnsonville, Klement's, Salmon's, and other local varieties, and the Kerscher's/Welsing's recipe remains my favorite.

Could it be because they still use pork in the German tradition?

Partially, I'm sure, but there's obviously something else, too, because it still remains superior to similar varieties from other makers.

If you ever find yourself in Door County looking for a snack, stop at Welsing's in Valmy (the Mobil station) and pick up some summer sausage. You won't be disappointed.

Mood: Annoyed
Music: Jimi Hendrix: "Red House"

Axes

Blender magazine offers this list of the 28 most recognizable guitars.

Somebody's bound to say something's missing, though.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Deep Purple: "What's Going On Here"

Keeping Up

In an effort to try to stay up to date (relevant?) and in touch with people I have joined not only MySpace but Facebook as well. Add this to my membership with other networking sites such as LinkedIn and Classmates.com, and this is four social networking sites I now belong to.

This is in addition to not only having a Blogger account, but an account with LiveJournal (that rarely works) so I can comment on LiveJournal blogs.

While diversity is what makes innovation thrive, it can be a little tough to keep up with it all.

Speaking of MySpace -- why are so many people abandoning their previous blogs with Blogger or LiveJournal in favor of MySpace? Personalized MySpace pages have the feeling of vanity sites from 1996, what with their tiled backgrounds and other gimmicky stuff.

Mood: Annoyed
Music: Led Zeppelin: "When the Levee Breaks"

Choose Your Weapon

ToyFare magazine offers this list of the 50 greatest fictional weapons of all time.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: George Thorogood: "Move It On Over"

Partridges

This is a pretty fantastic a cappella performance.

Mood: Amused
Music: Straight No Chaser: "The Tweleve Days of Christmas"

Sportsman

Sports Illustrated named Brett Favre as their 2007 Sportsman of the Year.

It's a long article, but worthwhile if you're a fan of sports, football, or Brett Favre.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Billy Squier: "In the Dark"

Long

Rolling Stone offers this list of the fifty best songs over seven minutes long.

Let the flamewars begin.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Jimi Hendrix Experience: "Killing Floor"

Traveler

It will be interesting to see if this makes any difference for holiday travelers.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Steppenwolf: "Caroline"

Build It Better

Anyone who's ever played the game Mousetrap will likely find this interesting. Even if you haven't played the game, you might find it amusing.

At least you don't have to collect any cardboard pieces of cheese.

Mood: Amused
Music: Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band: "Was"

Money Talks

It will be interesting to see how this pans out.

Mood: Apprehensive
Music: Kansas: "Carry On Wayward Son"

Kicking Ass

It was a weekend full of things that kick ass.

Friday night I watched most of the Marx Brothers' movie A Night at the Opera. I say most because I wasn't able to stay awake for the whole thing. Aside from being very funny and entertaining, I was struck by the talent of the Marx Brothers themselves. In my opinion it's hard to find such multitalented people today, yet in this movie not only do they act, but Groucho sings and dances, Chico plays the piano beatifully, and Harpo whistles an accompanying part for his harp. It was kind of bittersweet to watch, knowing there aren't any (many) performers like that today. (Jennifer Lopez does not count!)

Saturday saw the Badgers win against the University of Michigan in Big Ten football. It wasn't an ass kicking in the strict sense of the term, as the Badgers very nearly let the Wolverines get back in the game. Still, it was a satisfying performance in an uneven season.

Saturday night VH1 Classic showed two hours of live Led Zeppelin performances. The performances were obviously edited, because some of the songs were only "Parts" -- but also because the versions of "We're Gonna Grove" and "I Can't Quit You, Babe" sounded almost identical to the versions on Coda. It was neat to see them perform songs I'd never heard live before, including "Kashmir," "Bring It On Home," and "In My Time of Dying" among others. To quote an acquaintance from a mailing list, it "kicked my lame ass all over the place."

The biggest kick ass thing of all was Sunday, for Maryanne had managed to get tickets for the Packers game against the Vikings. It was a beautiful day for football, and the drive up to Green Bay was capped by an exciting game. Not only did the Packers win, but they shut out the Vikings in a very decisive win. They still have some challenging games ahead, though.

Mood: Pleased
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Rain Song"

Ending Hunger

It's a long read, but this article about genetically-modified foods and some of their obstacles is interesting. I found the story at once fascinating and frustrating.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Jethro Tull: "Living in the Past"

Impossible?

I don't know what's going to make Americans snap -- what the breaking point will be when gasoline prices are finally too high for too long, that's finally and really going to get things going to the point where the oil companies can't cover up things like this.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Bachman-Turner Overdrive: "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet"

Phillip's (6)66

I had come to the decision a while ago not to ever shop at a Phillip's 66 station for political reasons. (The same company owns Conoco and 76, as well.) After our trip to Colorado I have other reasons, as well.

Needing a place to stop and check Sarah's diaper in Iowa, we pulled into a Phillip's 66 just off US-151 in Dubuque. Not only did the men's restroom not have a baby changing station, but the floor was too dirty to even think about using it instead.

So I took Sarah next door to the Dairy Queen. I kind of wish I had bought something, just a little something to show my appreciation for them actually having a baby changing station in their men's restroom.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: The Guess Who: "American Woman"

Secret Lives

Thanks to America's Puritanical background and prudish views on sexuality, a lot of people in this country in this country have the impression that the sexual revolution was something new, and that some of the open-minded views on sex and sexuality are new as well. Not so! Not only will works of fiction from the likes of Shakespeare, Chaucer, and Bocaccio show otherwise, but even non-fiction period sources will show the truth.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Styx: "Snowblind"

Country

I don't know who created it, or how it was created, but this list of the top 100 country songs of all time is interesting.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Traffic: "The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys"

Skills

Popular Mechanics set forth this list of 25 skills every man should know. Looks like I've got some work to do.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Guess Who: "American Woman"

The Net

Here are 21 things you should know about the Internet.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Foreigner: "Juke Box Hero"

Lepidoptera

If you're squeamish about insects, you might not want to look at this.

On the other hand, it does feature some fascintating photographs of moths.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Vanilla Fudge: "Need Love"

Desert Bear

What happens when a teddy bear joins the 101st Airborne? It goes like this....

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Lynyrd Skynyrd: "Simple Man"

History

Do not join the History Book Club.

I got an offer in the mail from them a few weeks ago. Four books for $1 each, plus shipping, with no obligation to buy any more books. The flier they sent had some intriguing titles, so I figured I'd take advantage of it.

I changed the address, though, hoping the books would be shipped to me at work, which would be more convenient.

Today I received a letter dated October 3 stating that they won't ship to non-residential addresses unless the customer makes a $50 deposit to open the account.

While their literature does state they may require some customers to do this, it does not list any of the reasons why. Had I known, I wouldn't have changed the address.

I thought that maybe I could call them and change the address and still get my order shipped. They had no record of my enrollment order. I no longer had the flier I ordered from, so I didn't know what books I had chosen.

So I told them to take me off their mailing list, because I never want to do business with them again.

Mood: Disgusted
Music: Jefferson Airplane: "Somebody to Love"

Journeys

Carnegie Mellon University has a program for their professors called Journeys, a lecture series where the professors share their thoughts and reflections on the everyday things that make a life, on the premise that this lecture be what they would give if it were the last lecture they would give.

What happens, though, when it really is the last lecture? Professor Randy Pausch, dying of pancreatic cancer, packs an auditorium and gives a moving lecture.

Mood: Pensive
Music: Traffic: "Heaven Is In Your Mind"

Tackling Turnovers

While I couldn't have said I really expected the Badgers to lose on Saturday, it wouldn't have surprised me. After watching them play earlier in the season, I thought they were over-rated in the polls, only climbing up the rankings because the teams ahead of them were slipping. Saturday's loss to Illinois was likely inevitable given the way they've been playing. Their defense has been anemic this season, and it was only their offense that kept them in all the games they ultimately won this season. It was once again a suspect defense that led to their defeat, with poor tackling being one of the biggest problems. I'm hoping that they spend some time on it in practice.

Wisconsin sports fans were expecting some redemption Sunday night, though, when the Packers hosted the Bears. The Packers started out well -- really well -- but it's hard to win games when you lose the turnover battle. Green Bay turned over the ball five times by the end of the game, but most costly were the early turnovers the stalled and ended a pair of decent scoring drives early in the game. Still, they had some fire in the first half of the game, but I don't know if they just lost it in the second half, or the Bears got fire enough of their own to come from behind and win it. In the process Favre tied the all-time interception record, a record thankfully preceeded by his breaking the all-time touchdown pass record. There was no gutsy play-calling by McCarthy this time, and I'm hoping that after examining himself he works on protecting the ball.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: Mott the Hoople: "All the Young Dudes"

Animals

For several years now I've used this website to demonstrate just how out of touch animal rights activists like those at PETA are. I found this collection of quotations that should be extremely enlightening and should further demonstrate what I would describe as a tenuous grip on reality.

Mood: Disgusted
Music: Black Sabbath: "Paranoid"

Ping

From the "too much time on hand" files, here are eight creative ways to play Pong.

Mood: Amused
Music: The Moody Blues: "Ride My See-Saw"

Losing Time

I thought the battery on my watch was running low, because while the digital portion was working fine, the analog part was running slow or stopping altogether.

I took the watch to the Dakota Watch Co. kiosk at the East Town mall, and had the battery replaced. There I discovered my watch was no longer water proof, though I have no way of knowing if the battery replacement did this, since they didn't test it for water proofing before removing the back cover.

The watch ran well most of the day, but then started losing time again. I was very frustrated and disappointed. This was the third or fourth watch I've owned since my old reliable Casio bit the dust after I graduated college. What was it going to take to find a reliable watch with the features I want?

I checked the warranty on the watch and discovered it was still under warranty; the movement will likely be repaired or replaced at no charge. They might also be able to repair the water resistance, though there will be a charge for this.

I guess I'll have to give Dakota another shot to see if they can fix the problem. If not, it might be back to Casio.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Kashmir"

Intriguing

The other night I watched The Freshman on TCM. It's an old Harold Lloyd picture, silent and in black and white. It was entertaining, but also intriguing, seeing how slang has evolved in the last 80 years. I also came to the conclusion that people who can read lips get more out of silent movies than the rest of us, being able to see the dialog that's not included in the captioning.

Also intriguing was a new show on ABC, Big Shots. My curiosity was piqued by the advertising, featuring Dylan McDermott and Christopher Titus playing two of the four titular roles. It's a show that has great potential, and I'm kind of hoping it does well.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: The Rolling Stones: "Sympathy for the Devil"

Rights

Score one for individual freedom.

Mood: Pleased
Music: The Beatles: "Let It Be"

The Arts

In a time when many of our schools are facing budget shortfalls and are cutting the fine arts in order to make ends meet, one should examine things like this and read about things like this.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Misty Mountain Hop"

Digital Antiques

I never would have thought that personal computers were collectible, but apparently they are. This slideshow is fairly interesting, even if they're not all exactly personal computers.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: The Cars: "Just What I Needed"

Autumn

Saturday morning we intended to go into some Madison to find a few things for the house. We finally left the house about an hour after I wanted to get moving, and Sarah's hunger coupled with Maryanne's headache prompted us to return home with some of our errands unfinished. After we fed Sarah and got her down for a nap I left to do the grocery shopping. That night we had Maryanne's dad, Jim, over for supper; I made spareribs and sauerkraut, and it turned out quite well. We watched the Badgers win against (nearly lose to) Iowa, with Jim leaving and Maryanne going to bed at half time.

Sunday was the first day of autumn, and after going to church I mowed the lawn and worked in the basement for a while before the Packer game came on. It was an exciting game, but I wished that Brett could have thrown one more TD pass to break the record at Lambeau and not on the road. Still, it's exciting to see the Packers, as young and inexperienced as they are, start the season 3-0, with all three wins coming against decent teams.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Who: "Magic Bus"

Five Years

Maryanne and I both had off from work because it was our fifth wedding anniversary. While I wouldn't call it uneventful, it wasn't exactly romantic. Maryanne's parents were both out of town, and so we had no sitter for Sarah. We ran some errands in downtown Stoughton, including inquiring about estimates to redo the flooring in our kitchen, before going to the A&W in Stoughton for lunch. We then returned home so Sarah could get a nap.

After Sarah awoke we waited fruitlessly for a call back from one of the local flooring places about an estimate before Maryanne left for an appointment. When she returned we decided to try to go out for dinner at the Maple Tree in McFarland, but with a 30-minute wait we decided to go to Monona Garden instead. We were seated immediately there, and by the time we were done it was time to return home and put Sarah to bed.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Band: "The Weight"

Paint

I'd love to be able to do something like this.

Mood: Impressed
Music: Cat Stevens: "The First Cut Is the Deepest"

Xylophony

One of the things that comes with having a toddler is children's television programming. Maryanne and I try to limit how much TV Sarah watches, and when we do allow her to watch we try to keep it to something educational and appropriate to her age.

This means mostly PBS Kids, for a bit in the morning and a bit in the afternoon. One of the shows in this programming block is "Curious George" based on the movie which of course was based on the books. I'm not sure I'd consider everything George does as curious in the sense it's intended, but it's innocent enough for a toddler.

One of the more recent episodes involved a xylophone and some mishaps with it. The first glaring inaccuracy was that the script referred to using "furry hammers" to play the xylophone. Playing the xylophone requires hard mallets, usually plastic, hard rubber, hard cord, or even rosewood. The second inaccuracy, which wasn't nearly as bad as the first, was that the xylophone only had 15 keys. It didn't even have separate keys for flats/sharps. It had at total of fifteen keys, arranged chromatically. This means that the xylophone only had just over a single octave of notes. Most xylophones are 3 1/2 octaves long; smaller ones are 2 1/2 octaves long.

I know it's a children's show, but would it be so bad to ask for some accuracy?

Mood: Disappointed
Music: Cheap Trick: "Surrender"

Heavy Metal

I know what I want to do for my birthday next year.

Mood: Excited
Music: Black Sabbath: "Iron Man"

Flying Again

In honor of Led Zeppelin's possible reunion, here is a list of 10 of their songs you should know.

Maryanne knows No. 1 as the Viking kitty song.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Carouselambra"

Wurst

So many delicious possibilities....

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Matthew Sweet: "Girlfriend"

Fear

It's terribly sad and disturbing that our culture has not only taught children to fear men, but has thereby caused men to fear children.

Mood: Saddened
Music: Boston: "Smokin'"

Rumpled

It turns out there is a version of "Rumpelstiltskin" illustrated by Edward Gorey.

I hope I still have mine.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Styx: "Come Sail Away"

Gorey

What if Edward Gorey had retold the classic Star Trek episode "The Trouble with Tribbles"? It might have looked something like this.

I could have sworn I once had a version of Rumplestiltskin illustrated by Gorey.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Alan Parsons Project: "Eye in the Sky"

Testing

If only there were some kind of test like this one that people had to take before using the Internet.

Then we wouldn't need anything like this.

Mood: Amused
Music: The Eagles: "Take It to the Limit"

"See you in September..."

Here it is September already. Where does the time go? The summer weather is lingering, but with students returning to school and the knowledge that it is September, it is beginning to feel like autumn.

I've come to like autumn well enough. I miss the long summer days, at first, but the cooler weather is a welcome relief from the heat and humidity of July and August. It's a season of change, and I welcome it with mixed feelings. I'm looking forward to the colors -- the fiery autumn leaves and the last gasp of mums -- before winter sets in and everything fades to brown and is covered in white snow.

I'm reminded of my own returns to school, especially to college, and think of how different things were then.

Mood: Pensive
Music: The BoDeans: "The Strangest Kind"

Many Talents

It's a bit overdue, but Maryanne and I watched the conclusion of America's Got Talent when it aired. We were both very pleased to see that Cas Haley and Terry Fator were the top two acts, and both even more pleased to see that Terry Fator won the whole thing.

That said, though, I was impressed enough by Cas Haley to find it hard to imagine that some record executive somewhere didn't see him and doesn't want to make a contract with him. He's a talented perforer with an "everyman" quality. I think that's what really struck me with many of the acts -- their humility and gratefulness at getting a chance to perform and show what they can do really impressed me.

Good luck to everyone!

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Nazareth: "Love Hurts"

Zippo

This op/ed piece on the famous Zippo lighter may make you want to go out and buy one, even if you don't really need it.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Heart: "Barracuda"

Dirty Mac

No, it's not soiled pasta products, it's a supergroup John Lennon put together for the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus. Never having seen the entire concert show before, this was a pleasant surprise to me. Dirty Mac featured Lennon on vocals and rhythm guitar, Eric Clapton on lead guitar, Mitch Mitchell on drums, and Keith Richards on bass guitar. Check out their performance of Yer Blues.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Dirty Mac: "Yer Blues"

Dog Days

Maryanne, Sarah, and I spent the weekend up in Door County to visit family and friends. While our May and June visits were perhaps better, this one wasn't terrible. Maryanne got her Sonny's fix on Friday night, Sarah thoroughly enjoyed herself at Sunset Park Saturday morning, and we had dinner Saturday night at Weisgerber's in Bailey's Harbor (review). The only dark spots on the trip were the terrible experience at the Galley Café Saturday morning, and the cold, damp weather that permeated Sunday.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Pink Floyd: "Time"

Unfriendly Skies

Note to self: Never fly Continental.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: Night Ranger: "Sister Christian"

Down the Drain

I wonder how long it will take the Army Corps of Engineers to get their act together and fix this.

Mood: Curious
Music: Rare Earth: "Get Ready"

Appeal

The pantsless judge from Washington, D.C., has decided to appeal the ruling against him.

Mood: Disgusted
Music: Kansas: "Dust in the Wind"

Ads

These commercials should take you back....

Mood: Nostalgic
Music: Bad Company: "Rock and Roll Fantasy"

Fist Fight

I had an odd dream last night. For some reason I was at my parents' old house, using an adding machine to tally up some kind of time sheet I had to fill out for work. I kept getting interrupted though, by Ed McMahon. So I got in a fist fight with him.

Then I woke up.

A fist fight.

With Ed McMahon.

What the Hell?

Mood: Confused
Music: Aerosmith: "Crash"

Kid Culture

These are things I'm now going to have to be aware of and consider when looking for children's entertainment.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Who: "Pinball Wizard"

Extinction

This kind of thing makes me ashamed to be human.

Mood: Ashamed
Music: Bob Dylan: "Knockin' on Heaven's Door"

Check!

Besides the obviously requisite brains, I wonder how much guts it takes to do something like this.

Mood: Amused
Music: Extreme: "Tragic Comic"

No Pants, No Job

It looks like Roy Pearson, that administrative law judge who decided to sue a dry cleaners for $54 million, might find that he not only lost the case, but that he's lost his job over it, as well.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band: "Turn the Page"

Toddling

Narf and Pauline decided to go on what was ostensibly a vacation but was more of a delivery of sorts, removing Leanne's possessions from my basement and trucking them to Nebraska. Because of their absence it behooved either Maryanne or me to stay home with Sarah. Given that I had more time off available, it was me, and so I spent the last four straight days home with a toddler.

The time was pleasant enough. She wasn't terribly grumpy or crabby, merely uncooperative at times. Structure not only helps a toddler, but helps a parent get through the day as well, especially if it's been taxing ("Only an hour until her nap!").

I was able to get a few things done with my time at home, not the least of which was reading the final Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. There will be no spoilers here, not even hidden in the full post. Rowling's characters retain their depth and their humanity, where the good and the evil alike are plagued by their own flaws and desires. The body count is indeed high, and a number of main characters are lost in the final conflict. We finally learn the truth about Snape, a topic much speculated upon, and also learn the truth about Dumbledore, Harry, and the demise of Voldemort.

I think I read through the book in around seven or eight hours, though not all at once. Rowling's dialog-driven style reads quickly, bogging down slightly during longer bits of prose or a few awkward "talking heads" scenes, which were fewer in this last book. The book came to a satisfying conclusion, with a few surprises, some pleasant and some unpleasant, and a few things long coming -- I'll say no more lest I give anything away.

One reviewer lamented the lack of a moral decision in the final installment of the series. I disagree. Harry makes what is perhaps his greatest moral decision near the end of book six, choosing to face Voldemort, even knowing he might die, because it is the right thing to do. This is perhaps the main moral decision of the series taken as a whole. That said, though, Harry does have a decision to make in book seven, and it is a moral decision. Though he may make it more quickly than that made in book six, it just as important, if not more so, than his previous one.

It's doubtful it will stand up as great literature decades from now, but it was a marvelous adventure and an entertaining read.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Houses of the Holy"

Minnesota

Last weekend Maryanne, Sarah, and I went to Minnesota. One of Maryanne's roommates from her college days at Viterbo, Kim, was getting married, and it also made a good excuse to see Jenny, another roommate, as well. We left on Friday, almost a week ago now. Maryanne had taken the day off, and I got off work early. The logistics of it were planned well, though there was something lacking in the execution, as there was over an hour delay in the time I was ready to get off work and when Maryanne actually picked me up. The drive to Minnesota went fairly smoothly, and we arrived in good time.

The wedding was on Saturday, and the weather was hot and humid. We made the drive into the Twin Cities (I don't know if we crossed the bridge that collapsed), and for once Minnesota let me down: on all of our previous trips there dealing with road construction, detours and what not had been clearly marked -- this time parts of I-35W were closed, with no detours marked at all. We stopped for directions, though, an arrived at the wedding's venue, a Radisson hotel, on time. The ceremony itself was small, held in a courtyard at the hotel. The reception was larger, though there were still a few empty seats in the banquet hall. The food was adequate, and there was an open bar which we didn't really take advantage of.

Now Kim, the bride, is Laotian, as was the band hired for the evening. They called themselves Moonflower, and they were decent. All of the "slow" songs were Laotian, though, to which the Laotians in attendance danced some kind of circle dance. I didn't get the opportunity to dance with Maryanne as I had promised her.
One of the bright spots, though, was that there was plenty of eye candy: plenty of attractive Asian women, often dancing with each other.
Besides Kim, the only people Maryanne and I knew there were Jenny and her husband Gene. The table we had chosen to sit at was the one occupied by the photographers, a husband and wife team, so after dinner everything was pretty much downhill. I kept waiting for a song that Maryanne and I could dance to, but when ten o'clock rolled around and we still hadn't heard one, Jenny suggested we return home.

Sunday started a bit anticlimactic as I packed up our stuff and loaded the car in preparation for our departure. We left around one, a little over an hour later Maryanne got a call from her friend Andy who reported that I-90/I-94 East towards Madison was full of traffic. We decided that once we reached La Crosse we would take US-14 to Madison instead. We stopped in La Crosse to feed Sarah (she didn't eat much), visiting an A&W, before following US-14 the rest of the way to Madison. It was a longer drive, going through various towns and hamlets along the way, but the scenery was gorgeous, the landscape revealing why so many central and northern Europeans settled in the area.

I was glad to return home, though, and since I would be home with Sarah for the next four days I had plenty of time to recuperate from the weekend's activities and stresses.

Next: Four whole days with a toddler, and Harry Potter 7!

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Rolling Stones: "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"

Ass Sale

I think the first two items in this list are the most amusing.

Mood: Amused
Music: Rainbow: "Stone Cold"

Mayhem

I imagine there are a few people out there that wonder why I'm a fan of Deep Purple.

This is why.

Mood: Excited
Music: Deep Purple: "Mandrake Root"

Funny Business

There's some funny stuff here.

Mood: Amused
Music: Pink Floyd: "The Great Gig In the Sky"

Come On Down!

Apparently Drew Carey has been named the new host of The Price Is Right. I'll be interested to see how that works out.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Styx: "Snowblind"

Things Happen

For anyone that hasn't read it, the web comic Achewood is quite amusing and entertaining, if a bit bizarre at times. From today's strip:

Soccer is popular everywhere but America. Why, you ask? Because Americans like when things happen.

Indeed.

Mood: Amused
Music: Air Supply: "Young Love"

Talent?

Maryanne and I have been watching America's Got Talent. So far among my favorites have been the punked-up rockabilly band Johnny Come Lately and The Glamazons.

So when last night's show was the first one to feature voting, I wanted to get online and vote. NBC made the announcement that voting would begin at 8:25 p.m. CDT. As of 9:35 p.m. last night, voting still wasn't working.

So apparently, America's got talent, but unfortunately NBC hasn't hired any of it for their website.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: The Glamazons: "Hot Stuff"

Latin Mass

It looks like Pope Benedict XVI is trying to single-handedly undo everything established by Vatican II.

Mood: Concerned
Music: Van Morrison: "Into the Mystic"

Ginormous

The editors of the Mirriam-Webster collegiate dictionary have added about a hundred new words to the next edition, and there are some ginormous surprises.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Eric Clapton: "Cocaine"

A Friendship For the Ages

I stayed up much too late last night watching Tombstone. It's a good movie; not exactly 100% historically accurate, but damn entertaining. It's the cast and characters that make it, really (someone called it "The good Wyatt Earp film", no doubt referring to Kevin Costner's bit of epic-length drudge): Kurt Russell, Sam Elliott, Jason Priestly, Thomas Haden Church, Dana Delaney, a nice cameo by Charlton Heston, and Val Kilmer as a truly memorable Doc Holliday:

Sherman McMasters: Why you doin' this, Doc?
Doc Holliday: Because Wyatt Earp is my friend.
Sherman McMasters: Friend? Hell, I got lots of friends.
Doc Holliday: ...I don't.

The movie probably romanticizes the friendship between Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, but it's the memorable romance of a friendship for the ages:

Doc Holliday: ...Say goodbye to me, go grab that spirited actress and make her your own. Take that and don't look back. Live every second, live right on through the end. Live Wyatt, live for me. Wyatt, if you were ever truly my friend, or if ya ever had just the slightest of feelin' for me, leave now, leave now, please.
Wyatt Earp: Thanks for always being there, Doc.

I hope that someday, at the end of a long life, I'll get the chance to tell my best friends "Thanks for always being there."

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Badfinger: "Day After Day"

Brutally Honest

Brutal? Yes. Honest? Yes. Riveting? Yes. Effective? Apparently.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Creedence Clearwater Revival: "Born on the Bayou"

Fantasies

I finally got around to reading Girl Genius, a fantastic steampunk comic with excellent artwork and fantastic storytelling. There are two stories running concurrently, so if you're new to it, read Girl Genius 101 all the way through, first.

There's also a new issue of Cheshire Crossing up. Much of it isn't exactly original, borrowing heavily from Peter Pan, Mary Poppins, the Oz books, and Alice's adventures in Wonderland. It is very imaginative, though, and so far the only inaccuracy is that Dorothy wears ruby slippers like in the movie, rather than silver shoes as in the books.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Aerosmith: "The Farm"

Miserable

Here's a list of seven reasons the 21st Century is making us miserable. It might be from some emo kid, but it's rather insightful.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Dire Straits: "Money for Nothing"

On the Map

Here's another interesting map from the strange maps blog.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Free: "All Right Now"

Vocabulary

Maryanne will probably laugh at me for admitting this, but I'm not sure even I know all of these.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy: "2000 Volts"

Sex Pays

Not only does sex sell, but apparent it pays as well.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: David Bowie: "Modern Love"

Gone

USA Today compiled a list of the top twenty-five things to have disappeared in the last twenty-five years. It's a combination of intrigue and sadness.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Kansas: "Down the Road"

Hero

In honor of the anniversary of D-Day (June 6, 1944), read this and try not to cry. Not even a little. I dare you.

Mood: Sad
Music: Doyle Bramhall II: "Cry"

Top Ten

I found this list the other day:

Top Ten Signs You're a Fundamentalist Christian

10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.

9 - You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.

8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.

7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" including women, children, and trees!

6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.

5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.

4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs -- though excluding those in all rival sects -- will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."

3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.

2 - You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.

1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.

Mood: Amused
Music: Dwight Yoakam: "A Thousand Miles From Nowhere"

Dilbert

Scott Adams brings us Dilbert's Unified Theory of Everything, which, as generalizing as it sounds, could actually be very sound financial advice.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Stray Cats: "Built For Speed"

Booked

Since being promoted to the position of Technical Team Lead in March I haven't been reading as much as I used to. I've been finding other things to do with my downtime at work, and therefore haven't had anything to read at work in quite some time. I have been reading when I've been able at home, completing Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea as well as The Time Machine before starting on Uncle Tom's Cabin.

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea -- The edition I read was a wonderful hardbound edition featuring engravings by "Hildebrand". I'm glad I finally read it, but Verne gets so bogged down in the details that the plot suffers. I thought I was going to need a textbook on marine biology. The story is mostly a "man against man" plot with some "man against nature" subplots, but they're all a bit weak, and even Verne's sense of adventure and his typical perpetual forward motion of the story can't help. My favorite Verne novel remains Around the World in 80 Days.

The Time Machine -- Again, I'm glad I finally read it. I was surprised by how short it is, included as part of a beautiful hardbound omnibus of several of Wells books published by State Street Press and taking less than 100 pages. Wells spends a lot of time on the story about the Morlocks and the Eloi (indeed, the name "Eloi" is evocative of "Elohim") and seems to dwell on the future a lot without spending any time in the past. Wells could have been making a commentary on society and civilization. I'll reserve some judgment on the work until I've read more of Wells' work.

Uncle Tom's Cabin -- I haven't completed the edition published by Readers Digest. So far the story is a bit bogged down by the extensive use of heavy dialect, especially among the black slaves. I can see why it has often been called propaganda -- the book is full of biased words and editorial commentary. Final judgment will be reserved until I've finished it, though.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: REO Speedwagon: "Music Man"

Endangered

Scientific American brings us this slideshow of some of the most endangered species on the planet.

Mood: Sad
Music: Styx: "Lady"

I See What You Did There

Even Slate is getting in on the lolcat action.

Mood: Amused
Music: Uriah Heep: "Lady In Black"

KISS

Gene Simmons of KISS fame opines on the war in Iraq, Hollywood, and racial profiling. It's an interesting read.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band: "Slow Ride"

LOL!!!1!!

This may be one of the funniest Fark threads ever.

Mood: Amused
Music: Squeeze: "Tempted"

FSM

Chris Doyle of Reasonably Clever presents the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster rendered in LEGO.

Mood: Amused
Music: The Yardbirds: "Too Much Monkey Business"

Nice Ass!

Jon Katz (not Dr. Katz) of Slate opines on why he owns donkeys. It's an interesting read.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Deep Purple: "Hard Lovin' Man"

Spidey

Saturday night Maryanne and I went to see Spider-Man 3 at the IMAX. While none of the Spider-Man movies have been 100% faithful to the comics, they have been accurate enough, I think, for most comic book geeks while still being able to tell a story within the constraints of a feature film. There's enough action to keep someone like myself interested, and enough of the human element in the drama to keep someone like Maryanne interested. And thus, like the previous movies, we both enjoyed it. It featured some wonderful casting, including the addition of Bruce Campbell as a maitre d'. Lest I give away any spoilers in my thoughts on the movie, details are in the Full Post.

Spider-Man 3 took on both the Venom and Sandman stories, and despite being shortened to fit into the film, I thought a fair job was done with them. Eddie Brock was portrayed in a slightly different way than in the comics, but I thought it worked well for the movie, and Topher Grace did a good job. There wasn't enough time spent with the related Gwen Stacy storyline compared to what's present in the comics, and I think spending a little more time with it could have made Eddie's need for vengeance a little stronger. The Sandman plot, with Thomas Haden Church in the role of Flint Marko, was convincing, though, and contained that human element that helped set Marvel apart from D.C. in the '60s.

I was a little disappointed in the Harry Osborn plot, though. His drive for revenge was believable. However, his butler's revelation of the truth of Norman Osborn's demise smacked of deus ex machina, and Harry's resulting forgiveness of Peter and helping of Peter was a little cheesy. While Harry's sacrificial death to save Peter was brilliantly foreshadowed, I found it disappointing because we'll never see any further story lines involving Peter's friendship with Harry.

The symbiont story line was handled well, including the introduction of Dr. Connors and the nearly verbatim church bell tower scene where Peter finally rids himself of the symbiont only to have it take over Eddie Brock and turn him into Venom. This, too, was brilliantly foreshadowed earlier in the film.

Maryanne and I both wondered if another film will be made. There are plenty of villains left that a fourth installment wouldn't be out of the question, but I think it behooves Sony/Columbia to make sure they get the same cast back if they want to continue the franchise.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Free: "All Right Now"

Cherry

Last weekend we went up to Door County to see my mom and grandmother and celebrate Mothers Day with them. We left early Saturday morning and returned Sunday afternoon, but as brief as it was we managed to pack a lot into a short time.

We took a lot of pictures. It turned out that the warm spring had had its effects up there, as well. While the early spring flowers were mostly done, and the apple trees weren't quite in full bloom yet, the cherry trees had gone berserk.

May 2007

Mood: Pensive
Music: Steely Dan: "Reelin' In the Years"

Huzzah!

Last week I did a Google Image Search for the word "huzzah." One of the hits was this, which I find amusing just for the clipart alone.

Mood: Amused
Music: Muddy Waters: "Don't Go No Further"

"I Know"

I'm really not sure if you'd be really cool or really geeky (or really cool among geeks?) if you managed to insert one of these Han Solo quotes into everyday conversation.

Mood: Amused
Music: The Yardbirds: "Boom Boom"

Old-Fashioned

Maryanne bought me a sundae from Culver's last night to make up for giving away my birthday cake. Thank you, Maryanne!

I'm sure there's many people out there who have heard of cyberpunk, including myself. However, I didn't learn about the term steampunk until recently, when I saw this.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Moby Dick"

im in ur language

A somewhat academic analysis of the Internet phenomenon of image macros, particularly "lolcats."

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Judas Priest: "Green Manalishi (With the Two-Pronged Crown)"

Birthday

Last Friday Maryanne left for Colorado, to visit my sister and her husband who are expecting their first child at the end of August. She had a nice visit, though short, and returned on Sunday.

Her parents came Sunday evening, bringing supper with them, so that she and I wouldn't have to worry about preparing anything. Also, I'm sure, so that they could see Sarah. They brought a cake with them for dessert, not only just to have dessert, but also in early celebration of my upcoming birthday.

The cake was good. Dense but not heavy chocolate cake with chocolate icing, sold as "Swiss cake." After a long day at work yesterday I was looking forward to having a slice after dinner last night.

When I got home last night Maryanne's parents were there, and left shortly thereafter. It was almost eight o'clock, so I decided to wait until after we put Sarah to bed to have something to eat. In preparation for this, Maryanne announced she had given the rest of the cake back to her parents, to keep temptation out of the house.

"So I don't get any more cake?" says I, admittedly irritably.

She apologized, saying she was sorry, and stated she didn't know I wanted any more, or that I'd be bothered by her giving it away.

Of course she didn't know. I had not been consulted on this decision. I should have, especially since this cake had ostensibly been for my upcoming birthday.

It was gone now. No more cake for me. So I had a beer instead, Leinie's Berry Weiss.

Maryanne had offered to take me anywhere I wanted to go for my birthday. I think perhaps Fat Jack's is in order.

Happy Birthday to me.

Mood: Pensive
Music: Golden Earring: "Radar Love"

The Burning Goat

I'm sure everyone remembers word problems. From grade school through college, anyone who's ever studied math probably had to deal with one at one time or another. Some people hated them (usually students) and others loved them (usually teachers). The fact is, they're a great way to find out if students understand the math they've learned and can apply it to problem solving.

Now, the average geek will simply attack a word problem and solve it. The bored geek will do this.

Mood: Amused
Music: Harry Chapin: "Cat's In the Cradle"

"Kick in the Pants"

Even The Washington Post is getting in on the action regarding that lawyer and his frivolous lawsuit, in the form of this editorial.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Eagles: "Already Gone"

Roleplaying Grant

Where was this when I was in college?

Mood: Pensive
Music: The Steve Miller Band: "The Joker"

Political Censorship

The Wall Street Journal offered an interesting op/ed piece on the bane of political correctness, and just how out of hand it's gotten. Political correctness should have been equal to good taste, but now it's tantamount to censorship.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Who: "I Can See for Miles"

Suits

Things are heating up for that lawyer I posted about. Check this out.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Rare Earth: "Here Comes the Night"

May Day!

It's May 1st.

The first of May, the first of May
Outdoor...

You know the rest.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Kinks: "'Til the End of the Day"

Forward into the past...

Since the 3½-inch floppy diskette is quickly going the way of the venerable 5¼-inch floppy and the ancient 8-inch floppy, I was transferring some old documents to my flash drive. I went through them, since they consisted of various things I've written over the last decade or more. I rediscovered poems I'd forgot I'd written, a short story or two I had forgotten about, and even some old assignments from one of my English classes in college.

I thought about posting some of the material here, if there seems to be any interest in me doing so, but at the same time some of the material, especially the poems, are intensely personal, and I'm not sure I want to face the potential consequences of posting them here.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Free: "A Little Bit of Love"

No Joke

I imagine there are people out there who wonder or are uncertain why lawyers are so often ridiculed or hated, but sometimes there's a good reason, like this.

Mood: Disgusted
Music: T. Rex: "Jeepster"

Fight

Well, I guess a major university actually is standing up to the draconian RIAA: NC State University is actually fighting the lawsuits filed against 23 unnamed students.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Sweet: "Love Is Like Oxygen"

Homesick

I think I've posted before that Maryanne and I are looking for a new house. The search thus far has been slow and often frustrating. We have different tastes, and are therefore looking for different things. Frequently what I see and like in one house is completely overlooked by Maryanne because she's caught up in something else she doesn't like, and vice versa.

One of the houses I liked a lot, a two-story colonial style, is a little older and needs a bit of work to freshen up paint and the like. It's an awesome location on a cul-de-sac. Instead, Maryanne got hung up on aesthetics that she didn't like (but could be changed), and we haven't even bothered to make an offer on it. I'm willing to let it go because of the price, but it's a topic that keeps coming up.

We looked at another house over the weekend. It was a nice enough house, a roomy ranch with a partially finished basement, but the backyard has a pool. I don't want to take care of a pool. For that matter, I don't really want to have to pay for the removal of a pool, either. Yet yesterday Maryanne was quite excited about the house. It's certainly more affordable, but that's because it's smaller and much older. It's also on a corner lot. I like my peace and quiet. I'm not sure that's possible with a corner lot.

Considering the amount of activity on our own house, I'm willing to wait things out and see if we can find something we both can agree on. Maryanne, on the other hand, is growing increasingly pessimistic, becoming afraid that we won't have agreed on anything when an offer comes on our house. I don't find that very likely.

Mood: Frustrated
Music: The Beatles: "The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill"

Godspeed

Among those killed in the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech was Liviu Librescu. If you don't know who that is, you should read this article as well as this discussion thread. The world is a better place for people like Librescu, and worse for having lost him.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Head East: "Never Been Any Reason"

Censored

More literary news, this time in the form of censorship.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: Eric Clapton: "Pretending"

"...You've got to be kind."

American writer Kurt Vonnegut died Wednesday.

I suddenly find myself feeling cheated that the only work of his that I've read is his short story "Harrison Bergeron."

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Thin Lizzy: "Cowboy Song"

Caution: Stubborness Ahead

A mother in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, would like a "Deaf Child Area" sign posted near her home to help protect her daughter.

So far, the city has repeatedly said no, despite vast amounts of public support for the woman.

At this point, the mayor of Sun Prairie just seems like an asshole.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: Emerson, Lake & Palmer: "Jerusalem"

White Easter?

Well, not quite, but a mere three days after the most important festival of the Christian calendar we've been struck with snow. It's a real winter storm, with six to nine inches expected by tomorrow morning. Right now as I type this there are near white-out conditions outside. The drive home should be interesting.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Yardbirds: "Boom Boom"

Whitewashing History

I know I may get a bit of flak for linking to this op/ed piece by Michelle Malkin, but I think she's right. Has political correctness and the need to not offend people gotten so out of control that all sense of reality is being dispensed with, causing American institutions to hold mock terrorism drills using radical Christians instead of Islamic terrorists?

Did you know that some British schools are dropping the Holocaust from their cirriculum to avoid offending Muslims? I didn't until today.

Why should the truth be offensive to anyone?

Mood: Disappointed
Music: Howlin' Wolf: "Killing Floor"

Feisty

It's not exactly civil disobedience, but this guy, in his own words, can be feisty when he wants to be.

Mood: Amused
Music: The Beatles: "Day Tripper"

Irony

No, it's not an April Fool's prank: There really are 32 CCTV cameras within 200 yards of George Orwell's London home.

There's even more irony to be found in the article where I learned this.

I need to read 1984.

Mood: Concerned
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Out on the Tiles"

The First Amendment

I found this interesting op/ed piece regarding a case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Beatles: "I'm Only Sleeping"

Just Say No

It's good to see people stand up to the RIAA and their draconian methods of prosecuting (persecuting?) people thought to be illegally sharing digital media. First, the University of Wisconsin told the RIAA that the only way it would provide student information was under subpeona. Then the University of Nebraska told the RIAA that they are not only unwilling but incapable of providing student computer usage data to the RIAA, and has requested the RIAA reimburse the school for the expenses of dealing with their request.

While I don't forsee the RIAA ponying up any money to the University of Nebraska anytime soon, it makes me wonder what would happen if the University of Nebraska, or any other institution, were to actually sue the RIAA for the expenses of dealing with the RIAA's requests.

Mood: Curious
Music: Procol Harum: "Whisky Train"

Copyright

If you're going to go after someone for a copyright violation, make sure you understand the copyright laws you're going to cite in the process. The NFL did not understand this concept.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Monkees: "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"

Spring Break

The weather over the past couple of days has been spectacular, breaking records all around the state. Unfortunately I'm stuck inside at work today, and yesterday I was still recovering from a cold and watching Sarah while Maryanne suffered her own cold symptoms. I did manage a short walk with Sarah yesterday, allowing us both to enjoy the gorgeous weather, and today I got outside for a bit during my lunch break. The unseasonable warmth reminds me of spring break my sophomore year at Carroll, when the weather on campus was much the same as it is now.

Mood: Pensive
Music: The Moody Blues: "No More Lies"

"In My Life"

Today would have been Dad's 60th birthday.

I was thinking the other night about this, and wondering if anybody else besides me finds their life less interesting than other people's. I don't necessarily mean celebrities. I think about my own life so far, and compare it to my father's life, and my grandfather's life, and wonder why my life frequently seems less interesting than theirs.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Led Zeppelin: "Dazed and Confused"

Sprung

Today is officially the first full day of spring. I guess by officially I should perhaps say astronomically, since many people seem to forget that the seasons are as much astronomical as meteorological events. It's been a bit blustery today, overcast and rainy, but that's what happens in early spring, isn't it?

The house hunt continues. Our current house has shown pretty well so far, though there doesn't seem to be much serious interest thus far. Of the houses we've seen so far there's only one we'd seriously consider. We'll be viewing more on Friday.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Jimi Hendrix: "Bleeding Heart"

Spring?

I took a walk during my lunch break today. The weather was nicer yesterday, being sunny and around 57° compared to today's cloudy and 54°, but the melting continues. Today I saw a woolly bear caterpillar and a tiny little grasshopper. Spring is only about a week away.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Cherry Poppin' Daddies: "Diamond Light Boogie"

Not on the menu

The Consumerist is back with a list of items you might be able to order at various national restaurant chains, despite the fact they aren't listed on the regular menu or even on their "official" secret menu.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Rod Stewart: "The First Cut Is the Deepest"

Treasure

Have you ever wished you could find something on the cheap at a rummage sale or a thrift store that turned out to be worth a fortune? This guy did.

Mood: Envious
Music: The Ozark Mountain Daredevils: "Jackie Blue"

Autofabrik

It's poorly lit and badly filmed, but this video of a factory built from LEGO Mindstorms sets that builds little LEGO cars is still freakin' awesome.

Mood: Amused
Music: Styx: "Suite Madame Blue"

Dear Diary

The other day I was doing some cleaning at home and came across one of my old journals from when I was in college. It didn't have many entries in it, covering only fall semester of 1996 and very early spring semester 1997. The rest of my journals were lost when my parents' house burned in 1998.

Part of me has been playing around with the idea of posting the journal entries here on my blog somehow, though they will need some serious editing in the form of "The names have been changed to protect the innocent." On the other hand, the not-so-innocent will probably be named outright.

Mood: Pensive
Music: The James Gang: "Funk #49"

Miserable

This weekend was full of miserable jobs that needed to be done. Some jobs, like shoveling snow, I knew were miserable, especially when the snow is wet and heavy. Other jobs, like grouting ceramic tile, I didn't know were miserable.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Animals: "House of the Rising Sun"

Art

Children's book illustrators draw inspiration from actual children's art, and come up with these.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Howlin' Wolf: "Killing Floor"

Good Jobs

Steve Jobs is probably going to lose some fans among teachers. Find out why.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: The Rolling Stones: "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"

Dream, dream, dream

I had a really strange dream last night. I dreamt that Greg and Jeneen were getting married (again?), and were holding their reception at Cherry Hills. However, somehow they didn't know that Adam was the chef there. I showed up early and had a laugh with Adam about how much of a surprise it was going to be. We began to worry, though, when only a few of the guests started arriving and everyone else appeared to be late.

Later, he and I went to his parents house, where there was all kinds of furniture sitting in the yard. It belonged to his sister Julie, and it included a triple bunk bed. He explained that it was so Julie could sleep in the same room with her daughters. I thought to myself, "She can afford all this new furniture but she can't afford to move out?" It then started raining, and all the furniture was getting wet, but nobody seemed to care.

Later, we were sitting in the living room, and a girl we went to high school with was there as well, and she was flirting with Adam. However, he didn't want to go out with her because she had once dated Adam's younger brother Mark.

It was all very strange.

Mood: Baffled
Music: The Beatles: "Hey Bulldog"

Benny

I thought this would be an appropriate followup to yesterday's post: a long but intriguing piece about Benjamin Franklin.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Deep Purple: "Into the Fire"

Deities

Just in time for Presidents' Day, here's a fairly academic analysis of George Washington's religious beliefs. I recommend it.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Bad Company: "Burnin' Sky"

Built

The American Institute of Architects presents a list of America's favorite architecture.

Why wasn't I asked about this?

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Who: "The Real Me"

Covered

Graphic design junkies should find this interesting. I did, and I'm not that much of a graphic design junky.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: The Kinks: "You Really Got Me"

Payback

Sick of telemarketers? You too might be able to find a way to make them pay.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Led Zeppelin: "In My Time of Dying"

Prank

Any prank you might have pulled in college will pale in comparison to these, that is unless you were involved with one of these. If you weren't, I bet you wish you were.

Mood: Amused
Music: Electric Light Orchestra: "Tightrope"

Shopping

I found this list of ten shopping tricks that stores hate. It's a good list.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Queen: "Son & Daughter"

False Alarms

If there's a conviction in this case, then there's little hope left for our legal system.

Mood: Disappointed
Music: The Eagels: "Victim of Love"

Food for Thought

Anthony Bourdain opines on the current state of Food Network.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: U2: "Where the Streets Have No Name"

I think...

I found this list of the eleven most important philosophical questions, at least according to this website. Bonus material includes the correct way to pronounce Nietsche, and it's not "nee chee."

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: ZZ Top: "Waitin' For the Bus/Jesus Just Left Chicago"

Analysis

Maryanne and I met with our realtor, Kari, recently to go over the market analysis she had prepared for us. She was very thorough, and while our house's value probably isn't as high as we'd like, I was still fairly optimistic. Our next step will be to talk with our mortgage broker again to see how our house's sale price will affect how much new house we can afford.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Cream: "White Room"

Spread the News

Maryanne commented to me the other night about my earlier post regarding Caly's pregnancy. She felt it was a rather long way of saying congratulations.

The post wasn't just to congratulate Caly, but to help spread the news.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Moody Blues: "Vintage Wine"

Barred

So, for some reason, when I logged in to Blogger this morning, trying to create some posts, I was forced to upgrade to the new Blogger. I had been trying to avoid this, as I was pretty certain it would end up adding the Blogger toolbar you see above. And it most certainly did. I've resigned myself to the fact that unless I buy a domain name and publish to my own site, that the toolbar will now be a part of the main page. It is faster, though, which is good.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: The Beatles: "Back In the U.S.S.R."

Children

I've had to keep the news under wraps for a while to give her time to tell everyone, but I feel I can finally post here my sister's exciting news: she's pregnant.

She shared the news when she came for Sarah's first birthday earlier this month. I thought it might make decent fodder for the website, but knew I'd have to give Caly ample time to make all the phone calls necessary. Now that more than three weeks have passed, I can offer another congratulatory method in a very public way.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Jefferson Airplane: "It's No Secret"

Little House

Of all the bugs to have bitten Maryanne lately, the "new house" bug is the most recent and the most persistent. I think she's finally become fed up with all the frustrations of our current hourse: no garage, small kitchen, one bathroom, high traffic. She arranged a meeting with our mortage broker, and we met with him and found out we can afford a lot more house than we have now.

Clearly excited by all this, she was all gung-ho to look at house listings on realtor websites. She even made arrangements to meet with a realtor to discuss preparations to put our house on the market. In the process she became quite enamored with a very nice house for sale in Stoughton.

She found out, though, that the house in question now has an offer on it that is likely to be accepted. She was cleary disappointed, though still open minded about other houses on the market.

Within the last couple of days, though, pessimism finally struck. Even following the discussions with Kari, our realtor, on what we can do in our house to spruce things up and make it more attractive to buyers, Maryanne has been plagued by doubts. She's been questioning if anyone will buy our house without it looking brand new. Our friend Pauline has even caused Maryanne to question if our house will even sell for more than what we bought it for.

Never mind the fact that we've been in our house almost three years and the values of houses and properties almost always appreciate and not depreciate. Never mind the fact that while it's no longer a seller's market it isn't exactly a buyer's market, either. Never mind the fact that a lot of the cosmetic issues with the house can be fixed with materials we already have. And never mind the fact that while it's no longer the house for us it might be the house for someone else.

It's the simple fact that we can make any offer we make on a new house contingent on the sale of our own house. End of story. If we have to wait a while to get an acceptable offer on our house, so be it, and in that time we will continue to build equity in our house, and will continue to make improvements on the house to make it more attractive for sale.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Jethro Tull: "Nothing Is Easy"

Drive

Here's another list of unusual USB drives from Fosfor Gadgets.

Mood: Amused
Music: Quicksilver Messenger Service: "Fresh Air"

Marvelous

Come May not only will we be treated to Spider-Man 3 which will add the Venom and Sandman storylines, but about a month later we get a new Fantastic Four movie featuring the Silver Surfer. Hot damn!

Mood: Excited
Music: Bad Company: "Wildfire Woman"

Sweaty Uncle Teddy

One of my surprises at Christmas was a book that Maryanne and gotten for me, God, Guns & Rock 'n' Roll by Ted Nugent. It was an interesting surprise, and it turned out to be an interesting read as well. A lot of people might find it a bit over the top, but I think that's because Ted is so passionate about everything he does. A lot of people don't like him because he's passionate about hunting and shooting. It turns out he's also passionate about responsible wildlife conservation, responsible firearm ownership, and one's right to defend oneself, especially against criminals who shouldn't even be walking the streets.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Collective Soul: "Generate"

Shred!

Guitar aficionados will find this interesting: a list of the 100 greatest guitar solos, as determined by the staff at Guitar World.

Mood: Intrigued
Music: Supertramp: "Rudy"

A Year Ago

Sarah turned a year old on Friday, and we held a small birthday party for her on Saturday. It was a small affair, though my sister Caly did fly out from Colorado.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Boston: "Rock and Roll Band"

If the shoe fits...

PETA is in the news again, but this time for a lack of shenanigans in Colorado following the blizzards there. Colorado Governor Bill Owens called them what they are not once, but twice, calling them "a bunch of losers."

Mood: Amused
Music: Steely Dan: "Peg"

Animated

Do you find the animated female form attractive? You're not alone.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Matthew Sweet: "Sick of Myself"

New Year

So here it is, 2007 already. The last year went pretty quickly, and I'm sure a big part of that was Sarah. Having a child really changes your life, and though Maryanne and I have had to make a lot of adjustments and had a lot of frustrations, I can't think of many other things I've done that have been as rewarding.

We spent a quiet New Year's Eve at home, watching the Packers demolish the Bears on national television in what could have been Brett Favre's last ever game. It was a good performance, proving the Favre can still play. He may no longer be the best currently in the game, but he's better than most, and that showed, as this season was much better than last. I could understand if he'd want to retire, but I hope he comes back for another season. The remaining records he can break are easily attainable with one more season. Even if he breaks the all-time interception record in the process, no one will remember him for that. It will be all the other things he's accomplished that he will be remembered for.

If Favre does indeed come back for one more season, then I think the NFL owes it to the fans to make sure that the last game of the regular season, and what could be his final game ever, is played at Lambeau Field.

Mood: Thoughtful
Music: Humble Pie: "I'm Ready"