Saturday, April 30, 2005

School Mistakes Huge Burrito for a Weapon

ABC News (article)


A call about a possible weapon at a middle school prompted police to put armed officers on rooftops, close nearby streets and lock down the school. All over a giant burrito.


Chipotle would be proud.

Today Nicole and I went to the stat club picnic. We talked to Jennifer for a bit about applying to Strategic One, and to Sam and Chris (Sam’s Chris) about dogs. The picnic wrapped up quickly though, because even though it is sunny, it is still cold outside.

Now Nicole and I are off to go watch the Koyotes play the Aviators. I’ll post pics later.

Ben Kweller’s show was pretty good. The place was packed, so there was probally around 700 people or so (I am bad a guessing numbers like that). A lot of the people there knew his songs, so it was fun to watch. After the show Jenette, Chris and I stuck around and watched National Treasure. It actually wasn’t that bad of a movie. If I saw it for $7 somewhere I may be tempted to get it.

Last night before we went to the Ben Kweller show, Nicole, Jenette, Chris and I ate at So Long. It took us awhile to get a table, and to eat, so we didn�t make it to see Ruskabank. But I guess that is ok, because the food at So Long is so good.

Friday, April 29, 2005


I was watching some Australian Rules Football on Fox Sports, and one of the teams were sponsored by Hungry Jack's. And the logo looked a lot like a burger chain here. And in fact they are owned by the same people.

Stallbaumer Surgery Successful

Kansas Koyote Football (article)


Kansas Koyotes' Wide Receiver Travis Stallbaumer underwent surgery last monday night to repair the broken tibia in his left leg. Travis sustained the injury on the first game of the 2005 season against the Nebraska Bears. Doctors at Stormont Vail inserted 2 pins into the bone to aid in it's healing. The procedure went as planned and was considered successful. Stallbaumer is estimated to be on crutches for 3 to 4 weeks with rehab to follow afterwards. The earliest he would be available to play would be the 2005 APFL championship.


That is good to hear. It sucks that he got hurt on a play away from the ball. Hopefully he can make it back for the championship game.... (yes, yes, yes... that is *if* the Koyotes make it... ^_^ )

Park on a downhill slope

43 Folders (blargticle)


Jeffrey Windsor shares a great tip for making it easy to start work in the morning—by always leaving off at a point where it will be easy, intuitive, and interesting to pick things back up. Instead of grinding away until you're drained and out of enthusiasm, quit while you're on a roll.


This is a very good idea. That way when you come back to work the next day there is something that can be wrapped up right away. Then once you got that done doing something else (productive) doesn't sound that bad to do.
This is a good alternative, to my, 'i'll just read the newspaper, and then check my email, and then stare at my desk.' way i normally start the day. :)

Dutch plans for iPod tax could kill MP3 industry

The Register (article)


If this legislation comes into play, the surcharge will be as much as €3.28 ($4.3) per gigabyte. This might put €180 ($235) to the price of a top end iPod.
Already in Germany there is a levy on PC hard drives, that will soon become larger than the entire PC industry revenue if it is left in place. Within two years, as disk drive sizes move to terabyte class on notebooks, and petabyte levels on home DVRs, the tax will come to far outweigh not just the cost of the drive, but the cost of the device. Under this Netherlands law, if it were extended to the PC, the cost of 1,000 GB would be €3,280 ($4,300) and yet drives of this size will be delivered by 2007.


Ok, so who wants to move to Europe? Anyone, anyone?

‘Wabash Cannonball’ began with 14 band members, song about hobos

kstatecollegian.com (article)


There are many stories on how the “Wabash Cannonball” came to life at K-State, but they all point to one truth.
On Dec. 13, 1968, arsonists set fire to Nichols Hall, destroying much of the music department, including the band's instruments and most of the music. Phil Hewett, the band director at that time, had to take action to find instruments and music for the Dec. 16 basketball game against Syracuse University.
He found instruments at area schools and brought the only piece of music he had in his briefcase — the “Wabash Cannonball."


There is your piece of K-State knowledge for the day. What would we do at football games if we did’t have the Wabash?

NHLPA tries to block replacements in Canada

ESPN.com (article)


The NHL Players' Association applied for union certification in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and British Columbia to prevent the Montreal Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks from using replacement players at home during the hockey lockout.


So it looks like the players know that they will not get the deal they want for next year, because the players are taking steps to stop replacements. This means that we will have NHL hockey next year, one way or another. Also, there will be a large pool of highly talented players without work, and if they all don't go off to Europe the talent available for WHA may make the league fly for a while. It'll be interesting to see how this all works out in the next couple of years.

Andyman

Andy gave me a call tonight. He was just checking up on things and the such. Apparently his choice to work for Garden City worked out well, because he just recently has been promoted to the head of GIS for Finney county which includes Garden City. He is arranging some meetings up here for mid-May with the GIS guys for the city of Manhattan, so there is an Andy watch out for the area until the end of May.

To the bed I go.

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Notes From the Subconscious

frivolity (blargticle)

I have been reading frivolity for a while now (even since Newgen mentioned it), and she usually posts good stuff, but i thought her post today was just great:


We are the multitasking generation of impatience and high expectations.
But this stream of consciousness, this effortless creation, is it art? Could it ever be? We need the bright flashes, the quick transitions, image after image after image. We have pop art eyes, except that the repeating images become old even when they're changing colors. We don't have time for Van Gogh; we don't even have time for Warhol. Jackson Pollock, maybe: splash, splatter, look at all the colors and figure that it doesn't mean a thing and move on.
We can't sit by ourselves and contemplate when we've become so painfully aware of the twitchings of our fingers that begin to panic with prolonged inactivity. Flash, flash, flash. We don't have time for postmodernism. The effort lies in the consideration of the art if not in the making of it, and if the interpretation is not shrink-wrapped and simple for us, considering makes us sweat.
[...]


it's so true.

I just got back from filling mine and Nicole’s burrito craving. Chipotle makes Nicole happy. :)

Today for lunch Chris picked me up (and Jenette as well) and we ate at Panera. We were greeted by a chai latte and a smile. (The girl that took our order had just messed up a chai latte, so she gave it to us, since she knew we were regulars.) Jenette had her belly dancing class’ test today, and her shirt did not arrive in time, so she spend lunch sewing beads to a black shirt. But other than that, lunch was just a normal lunch.
After Panera, I taught my 320 class, who, due to the cold weather, were very quiet. So class went very well, and they did their work. And all was good in the world.
I talked to my assistant some more (she is from Nepal), she said that she was impressed by how much people in America care about other people. ^_^ yay us!

Oh yes, and they do not have mini-golf in Nepal.

For game night last night I made a pork tenderloin on the grill. It was good, but it had too much smoke flavor. But it looked really good. Next time I will marinade it longer, and save some marinade to put on the meat while eating. Then it would be some good eats.

We played Apples to Apples, and either Chris or I won, I don’t really remember the scores. But the game was fun. And isn’t that all that really matters?

Schools don't have to help music industry group

CNEWS (article)

good news:

A federal magistrate has ruled that two North Carolina universities do not have to reveal the identities of two students accused of sharing copyrighted music on the Internet.


I really don't like that the RIAA forces ISP's to give up user identities, and at least for now it looks like schools don't have to give reveal the student's identities.

Multiple elements on TV screen are distracting

Boing Boing: Multiple elements on TV screen are distracting (blog)

The news isn’t that interesting, or surprising. But the study was done here (K-State), so i thought it was worth mention. There are numerous quotes from Dr. Tom Grimes, which is a professor I am familiar with. Ok, I'll carry on with the more interesting stuff... ^_^

Arkansas salon requires thumbprint to get a tan

Boing Boing (blog)


And then I hung up and wrote you this email. I think the Arkansas chapter of the ACLU and the Arkansas state attorney general's office need to be contacted... this stuff really gets me steamed.


I, too think it is stupid for the business to require people to get a thumbprint to get a tan, but look, it is the business’s idea, not the government’s!
We live in a capitalist society, so when a company does something you don't like, don't go there! There is no reason for getting the ACLU involved in a stupid company policy.
If the ACLU is interested in this, then I need to contact them about Quizno's limiting my right to get Coke at their place. I don't like that they switched to Pepsi, but the way I show that I don't like the move is by not going there as much. People need to realize that our Rights are protected, for the most part, only from the government limiting them. Companies can try to do it all they want, but they will do so at the cost of customers.

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Wenday

Today has been your run of the mill Wednesday except Wendy Boberg came up from Arkansas to give a talk about her job experience so far. Fer yous that don't know, Wendy graduated from the Stat department last year, and took a job with a medical group out of Little Rock Arkansas (i can't remember who.. i'll post that tomorrow when i get to my office). She had a very good presentation, and the place looks like a fun place to work, and in-fact they are increasing their statisticians over the next couple of years, so that may be a company to look into.
But they are out of Little Rock, so I don't know how southern they are, I did ask if they called soda pop; soda, pop, or coke, and they say coke... which is a pretty southern answer...
Well I'm gonna keep on getting ready for game night tonight.

p.s. Just a reminder: Anything But Joey is ... was :( ... one of the best bands ever! :D

CNN Guerrillas in the Midst: A Viral Marketing Campaign Exposed (or "CNN Spam")

Nick Lewis (blog)


Last week, CNN attempted an unusual marketing campaign in the blogosphere. The campaign combined blackhat search engine optimization techniques, viral marketing tactics, and guerrilla comment spam. Unlike the majority of comment spam, this spam appears to only target blogs that have discussed CNN in the past 3 months. So far, 13 separate instances of the spam have been found. Most alarmingly, CNN may have also left malicious keywords at least 3 out of 13 with the intent of using google's keyword stuffing detectors to censor them.


*If* this is true, it is very disturbing, and another piece of evidence that the media is afraid of blogs. They are purposely sinking posts that criticize them, and that is not a good thing.
If this is not true, and just some conspiracy theory, then it still makes a very good read. And it could very well happen, because it is all very possible to do. If you have a minute read this article, because it is a very current topic in the world of blogging.

Oh yeah, and always delete comments that you think are spam.

Spur buzz

Photo Scavenger Hunt 2005 (blog)

On Newgen's photo scavenger hunt, one of the pictures to get is “someone wearing spurs”.

The buzz surrounding spurs grows. :)


Update: I had forgotten to mention that spurs are cool.

Pirates of the Caribbean to go massively multiplayer

GamesIndustry.biz (article)


Disney Online, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Internet Group, has revealed that it is currently working on a new massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
The game, which is being designed by Disney's VR Studio, will allow gamers to create their own pirate character and team up with others to form a crew, battling both other players and the evil undead pirates roaming the high seas.


There has been a lack of Arrrr! and Yaaarrggh! in the MMORPG universe these days. This should fix that problem. It’s good to see that the video game industry saw when it is lacking in pirates and quickly filled the hole.

As my mother said “A day without pirates is a sad day indeed.”

uGoto.com: Tower Blaster (game)

This game is basically Racko, where you organize you pieces from smallest to largest. It is the kind of game that Nicole could play for hours... and actually so could I...

Update: This is a better place to play the game at.

Arena Football League tackling Japan market

asahi.com (article)


The good news is that the Arena Football League--the indoor, eight-on-eight, March-May indoor variety--will be hitting these shores. We'll have our own honest- to-goodness U.S. sports franchise in Japan. [...]
Now the bad news. We won't have an AFL team until 2007. And we'll have to sit through an all-Japanese AF2 (the AFL's minor league) developmental league in 2006.
But at least those six AF2 outfits will play more games in 10 weeks than an X-League club plays in a whole year. Then, after one year, the best of the Japanese AF2 players will comprise our AFL entry.


..ummm... this is the first i have heard of Japan getting an AFL team. But I will be keeping a very close eye on this. Crazy, fun stuff. ^_^

MLL announces first of four west coast expansion teams for 2006

OurSports Central (article)


The new Los Angeles MLL team will play its games at The Home Depot Center in Carson, CA. [...]
Major League Lacrosse will announce the team name, general manager and head coach for its new Los Angeles team at a later date. The majority of the team’s players will come from the MLL’s expansion draft, scheduled to take place in the fall of 2005.
“This is a major moment in the history of the MLL,” said Gross. “Not only is this our first of four west coast expansion teams for 2006, we have been able to add an incredible partner with AEG. This is truly an historic event for our league. We expect to name the second western expansion organization shortly and have the other two in the fold in the coming months.”
The MLL plans to add four total expansion teams for the 2006 season, to comprise its western division. The league will subsequently add two more teams by 2008, completing the division and its western expansion initiative.


This is good news for a couple of reasons:
First, the MLL is the premiere outdoor lacrosse league, but they only had teams on the east coast, which made my interest low, just because I really had no team to root for.
Second, this gives cities more reasons to build smaller outdoor stadiums like the Columbus Crew Stadium and the Home Depot Center, which are made for smaller sports. These small stadiums help the atmosphere of the game because they can be filled easily.
Thirdly, lacrosse is a good sport, and it is good to see that both the MLL and the NLL are being supported well.

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Project: Best Summer Ever is up to 15 Missions.

I have posted 5 new missions for Project: Best Summer Ever. If you are interested in playing be sure to drop me a line, so that I can add your blog (or wherever you are going to post your completed missions) to the sidebar of the Project:BSE site.

Just got back from BW3. It was a pretty good night for trivia, I won the mini-six and Aaron won the showdown. We had to sit in the bar section because the place was packed when we first got there, so we had the enjoyment of smelling a wonderful bouquet of cigarette smoke... but all-in-all a good time was had.

BW3 in t-minus 17 minutes

Today has gone by rater quickly. I watched the Mummy at home, then taught class and now i am about ready to run off to BW3 for ye old trivia. I know i have done more than that today, it just doesn't feel like it. Oh well, look for a BW3 pic when i get back.

Star Wars to become new TV series

BBC NEWS (article)


Mr Lucas told the Celebration III convention the live action TV series would be similar to Raiders of the Lost Ark spin-off The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.
"Like on The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, we want to write all the stories for the entire first season all at once," he said.
"I'm going to get it started, and hire the show runners and all of that, then I'll probably step away."
He said the live action series would feature stories taking place between movie episodes three and four - Revenge of the Sith and the original 1977 Star Wars movie.


Awesome! I was really hoping there would be something to look forward to after Star Wars Episode III. As long as they do it right, the TV show could really be cool. Maybe even have spin-offs like Star Trek did. Oh happy day.

In other good news:

Away from Star Wars, Mr Lucas added a fourth Indiana Jones movie was "definitely in the works".

APFL standings

Since I gave the news, I might as well also give you the standings:


Team W L PF PA
Missouri Minutemen 1 0 65 18
Kansas Koyotes 1 0 41 33
Iowa Blackhawks 1 0 40 35
Wichita Aviators 0 1 35 40
Nebraska Bears 0 1 33 41
Overland Park Storm 0 1 18 65


Games next week:
Wichita at Kansas
Nebraska at Missouri

APFL news from around the league.

Blackhawks open with victory!

April 23, 2005 – The Iowa Blackhawks opened their 2005 American Professional Football campaign with a convincing 40-35 victory over the Wichita Aviators on Saturday night at the Kansas Coliseum. Quarterback Chuck Wright led Iowa 's offense with 172 yards passing and 4 touchdowns. Wide receiver Yano Jones also had an excellent game with 8 receptions for 86 yards and 2 touchdowns.


Blackhawks announce five-game television deal

The deal includes Cox Communications providing video production for closed-circuit broadcasts and the taping of all five home games for tape delay broadcast on Cox Channel 2 the following Sunday at 6 p.m.


Minutemen 'D' crushes Storm

The Missouri Minutemen scored so many points even the scoreboard couldn't keep up.
By the time the Minutemen's first American Professional Football League game in Sedalia was over, the scoreboard showed 63-18.
Missouri actually won 65-18, drubbing the Kansas Storm in its first-ever APFL game.


Morris Day & the Time in concert immediately following May 14th home opener

Nebraska Bears owner Mike Carter announced today that the hottest funk & soul group of all-time, Morris Day and the Time, will be the featured performers in concert, immediately following the Bears home-opener against the Wichita Aviators on Saturday, May 14th, at 7:00 PM.


One piece of old news that is worth note:

Bears season opener in Topeka to be televised live in Omaha market

Nebraska Bears owner Mike Carter announced today that Cox Cable will be televising "live" the season opening game from Topeka, Kansas, against the never-beaten and three-time champion Kansas Koyotes of the American Professional Football League. [...]
Carter also announced that the live telecast will be replayed Sunday, April 24th at 6:00 PM on Cox Channel 02. Additionally, all of the Bears home games will be televised on a delayed basis every Sunday at 6:00 PM, on Cox Channel 02.


It looks like the Koyotes aren't the only 'real' team in the APFL this year.

Open Media Network

Open Media Network (site)

You may want to keep an eye on this site in the future. They are planning on broadcasting public radio and tv on it, but let you search for what you want to see. So if you need to do some research you may be able to pick up a video or two from here. Right now there is only four clips, but it was launched today so it will take some time to populate it with videos.

Monday, April 25, 2005

I predict a riot

Heaneyland! (blog)

This guy decided to buy a CD that he had tried out first by downloading the music. Since the music was good, and he liked having the actual CDs around he decided to give the RIAA some money. But...


They had stuck an anti-piracy warning smack in the middle of the CD itself! On top of a pretty spiffy design! This...is unacceptable. [...]
This all seems like the dumbest fucking idea in the world. I just want to shake every single moron who works for the RIAA by the lapels and say to them, "Do you understand? The thing that makes me want to buy CDs is that I am a geek who enjoys having physical objects around. If you go around stamping ugly text directly on the artwork in a CD's packaging, you are decreasing my incentive to want to buy it, because you are making it objectively less attractive as an object."


It’s kinda like not wanting to buy games because the actual product is inferior to the pirated version...

I have posted the first ten missions for “Project: Best Summer Ever”.

They are:

Mission #1: Watch the National Lacrosse League Championship game at Buffalo Wild Wings (300pts)
Mission #2: Beat a Nintendo game. (600pts)
Mission #3: See Star Wars Episode III. (350pts)
Mission #4: Beat a Super Nintendo Game. (600pts)
Mission #5: Have a LAN party, and play one game for 10 hours straight. (450pts)
Mission #6: Get a different Route 44 drink from Sonic for 10 days in a row. (600pts)
Mission #7: Buy something crazy at a garage sell, and wear it the next day. (300pts)
Mission #8: Have a picnic. (200pts)
Mission #9: Play Risk. (150pts)
Mission #10: Make and wear five homemade t-shirts. (600pts)

Rules to play along, as well as the details to complete each mission are on the site.

Project: Best Summer Ever

Project: Best Summer Ever (blog)


In my attempt to have the best summer ever I have set up this project. I have listed out all the things that I want to do this summer as missions. I have also assigned a point value to each of the missions. Whenever I complete a mission I will receive the points that the mission was worth. The goal for the summer is to accumulate 30,000 points by the end of the summer.


Here is my project to do over this summer. If you want to have the best summer ever, may i suggest to you playing along as well? It will be a rocking good time. ^_^

Good news. When I was looking outside my apartment this afternoon I spotted a rabbit. I grabbed my camera and tried to get as close to it as I could. The rabbit let me get pretty close before someone else walking by scared it. It is good to see that the stupid cat did not eat all the rabbits.

Today it has been nice and cloudy, with some sprinkles thrown it. It makes for a nice walk to school and back.

Utah team to play in AFL starting 2006

Arena Football League (article)


The Ken Garff Automotive Group officially announced its purchase of an Arena Football League (AFL) franchise at a press conference today. The team will be coached by former Arizona Rattlers coach Danny White and will begin play in the 2006 season.


Salt Lake City has been acting more and more like a large city. It would be interesting to see how the life style there compares to the Front Range and Denver.
(This is just one more piece of evidence that the Oylmpics are not over-rated. ^_^)

Multiply

Multiply (site)

Here is another blogging/life organizing tool. I really like the way everything is laid out, and then integrated together. And there are useful sections such as reviews, recipes, and a calendar, which are all things I wish Blogger had.
If you are in the market for a blog, and you don't like Blogger, check out Multiply.

Vader movie pitch

'boards (vid)

Vader tries to pitch a new movie featuring him, but unfortunately the board is not influenced by Jedi mind tricks. I think it is an ad for a cell phone company Orange, but it is pretty funny.

What more could you ask for on a Monday?

Well, today looks like a nice laid back Monday (the best kind). I have one class to go to and that is it in the ‘have to do’ category. I will work on my project for 722 a bit, but it is not due until the 5th, so I can take my time. Also it is raining out, so I will not take my camera with, so no pictures when I get back, but it will make for a nice walk to school (no, really, I like the rain). So as soon as I finish my blueberry tea I’m off to school.

The Manhattan Mercury

I Wonder (article)

The actual question they are answering isn't that important, what is is this:


The charge you're referring to is a law designed to prevent criminals from using phones, wires, radios, beepers, pagers, computers, computer networks, and so forth to transmit writing, signs, signals, pictures and sounds in selling illegal drugs.


...So if you are doing something illegal (possibly it applies to just selling drugs?), then you can not use phones, computers, radios (?!?), etc...
This sounds very un-constitutional...
Hopefully there is just something i am missing. Because really, that is sort of like arresting someone for drunk driving because they have a car and you see beer cans in their trash can.

Steve's Home Theater

Steve's Home Theater (site)

This is the best home theater that i have ever seen. There is a bunch of pictures to look at. If you have a house, stop on by this place and see what we are gonna do to my mom's room that we call the loft. ^_^

DirecTV Offers Voom Customers $200 Rebate

ecoustics.com (article)


Voom customers, despairing over the loss of their HD service, which goes dark at the end of this month, have been thrown a lifeline by DirecTV. DirecTV is offering a $200 mail-in rebate on its HD equipment exclusively to Voom customers who will be without service when the company ceases operation on April 30, 2005.


Since I have been doing Voom updates lately, i feel that i should mention this. I know it is an attempt to grab the HD crowd that used Voom, but it almost sounds nice of DirecTV to let the Voom people switch over for a reduced price.

Sunday, April 24, 2005


After disc golf, we picked up Nicole and headed on over to Jenette and Chris’. Everyone ordered their own Pizza Hut pizza, so that there would be leftovers for lunches. When the pizzas and Ryan arrived we watched Star Wars Revelations. The movie is the best fan film ever made, and although the acting is a bit rough, it is not horrible, and the special effects are amazing (for a fan film). If you have not watched it you can download it from them here. After watching a couple more short fan films Nicole and I left to come home. Now I am clicking on a keyboard, and Nicole is flipping through the pages of a book.

While we were playing golf, Jenette fished. The only thing that she caught the whole time was a leaf, and that was when she was getting ready to put things away. We would not feast on fish tonight (or leaves, she said it was under the size limit, so she threw it back).

Aaron, Chris and I played disc golf down at Tuttle today. I won, but I don’t know my final score yet. I think I might have been able to get under 75, which for me, is pretty good.

Before we left to go back home Newgen gave Jenette and I our birthday presents. He made each of us an apron that has says “I’ll be plunderin’ yer grub!” Very cool stuff indeed. ^_^

After this we all headed off in our own directions, and when I got home I went to bed. Today has been spent watching a little bit of the NFL draft and playing with pictures from yesterday. Aaron is coming soon to pick me up to go play some disc golf down at Tuttle with Chris, while Jenette fishes. After that the plans are to order some pizza and watch the Star Wars fan film Revelations. Pictures from today’s events are sure to be coming to this blog later today.

I had forgot to mention that Newgen showed up to the game after it was about over.
We went to Steak and Shake after the game to celebrate the Koyotes win. They really do have the best cherry Coke around, as well as really good shakes and single hamburgers. It is a good place to hang out after sporting events. (if you are ever going to a game in Topeka that I am also going to , stop by Steak and Shake afterwards and say hi...i doubt that anyone in Topeka reads my blog.. but just in case...)

After the game the Koyotes let fans on to the, so as we traditionally do, we hung out on the field for about 10 minutes after the game.
I just had to post this picture of one of the football player’s son wearing his dad’s helmet. :)

After Red Lobster we headed on over to the Koyotes game.
We knew that the Nebraska Bears could give us a run for our money when they had completely matching uniforms, and their coaching staff had spiffy matching outfits. They started out a little bit rusty, but as the game wore on they were able to find weaknesses in the Koyotes defense (!!!). The Bears had a chance with less than a minute left in the game to tie the score, but the Koyotes D were able to hold them. So the Koyotes start the season with a win (surprised?). It was good to see that the Bears are an actual team, and in-fact they brought a professional camera crew with them and broadcast the game live to Nebraska (Omaha area?). The final score was 41-33.

Time was getting short, so after the Karate performance we all headed off to Topeka. Since it was Jenette’s birthday we let her decide where to eat, and she chose one of her favorite restraints; Red Lobster. As always the food there was very good, and I splurged a little bit and get a pound and a half of crab legs (I shared some with Nicole) . Here is Nicole eating some of my crab legs... or the crab legs eating Nicole... ^_^

After Subway, we watched a couple of performances in the Union Courtyard. The first was the Japanese 4 students singing the Totoro theme song. Next, was the JSA group performing an awesome dance (pictured). After that was the Karate Club performing some basic moves. A fun time all around.

Seiji is in this picture; he is the guy standing by the folded up, purple umbrellas.

When the talk got over Nicole had a rumbling in her tummy, so we went down to the Union basement and Nicole grabbed a Subway sandwich. While she ate, Aaron and I took on Jenette and Chris in the new shuffle board game that they added to the pool hall part of the Union. Aaron and I ruled the day with a 10-3 win. It is very fun game, and a very cheap source for entertainment. As Aaron put it “"That was the best 38 cents I have ever spent."”

True dat.

Saturday, in pictures:

After watching the first few picks in the NFL Draft, Nicole and I headed on over to the Union for the Japanese Festival. There we met up with Jenette, Chris, and Aaron. We walked around for a bit visiting the various rooms. After playing some video games we went over and got some green tea ice cream and listen to a speaker, Seiji Ikeda, talk about his time in Japan teaching English through the JET program (it was his first time to visit Japan, even though his parents are Japanese). He had a very good presentation and it reminded me how it would be fun to go to Japan for a year and teach English.

Seiji's website is here.

San Diego Chargers draft Sproles

NFL Draft 2005

Well, the chargers got Sproles (130th pick). Hopefully he will become a good running back for the team. While a couple of picks before Sproles (101st) Denver drafted Maurice Clarett. poo. :(

Matrix Ping Pong

eBaum's World (video)

Here is the matrix ping pong video as requested.

Today has been a very fun day, but it is late, so i will upload pics and stuff tomorrow, now i want is to sleep.

Saturday, April 23, 2005


Before I went to bed I was checking up on some of the referrers to my web site. One was a google search for ‘Darkon movie’. And so I went to go see how I was ranked for that. So, umm, I was number one for that search, above G4 (where I got the site from), and above the official Darkon movie site...
Google must really like me. ^_^
(Also, if you know how I got so high on the rankings, please leave a comment and explain it to me.)

Koyotes open third season tonight

cjonline.com (article)


Coach Warren Seitz expects the Kansas Koyotes to face the toughest test in franchise history tonight when the Koyotes open their third season with a 7:05 game against the Nebraska Bears at Landon Arena.


I hope that this game is as good as some people (...Lance...) says it is going to be. It looks like the group that is going to the game tonight is me, Nicole, Jenette (go wish her a happy B-day), Chris, Aaron, Amber, Lance, and maybe we can trick Newgen into showing up. We should have a good time there. Expect a full report of the game late Saturday night (hopefully there will be some pictures as well).

Phantom of the Opera: reviewed

Overall I enjoyed the movie, but it is not great. Let me explain: (If you dont want spoilers you might not want to read this...I dont know where it is gonna go.)
First the good. This movie has some of the most enthralling moments that Ihave see in a movie. The first comes when, after a long stretch of a black-and-white sequence, a very powerful Phantom of the Opera overture is played, andthe opera house is light up with color and sound. This scene captures your attention, and if you werent into the movie yet, you will be engulfed by it after this scene. The second time that the movie was very gripping was when the Phantom sings the heros love theme song after seducing Christine. Man, at that time I just wanted to kick the crap out of the Phantom, they did that scene very well. The last time that I was impressed by the movie was when Christine, the Phantom, and Raoul were in the dungeon all singing different songs arguing their points. (You know when I mean?) It was pretty good.
Now the bad: I had two problems with the movie, the first is that some of the songs were too long, and kind of kicked me out of being evolved in the movie. The most notable example is when Christine is in the grave yard. The song is so long and slow that I started to think about other things, like how thespider webs were placed on the grave stones... The other thing I didnt like was how some of the sung lines really seemed awkward. I know they are trying to make a musical into a movie, but at times when the sung lines could have just been spoken, it doesnt seem to flow.
Overall I liked this movie, and it felt like I spent my time wisely by watching the it. But it is not the best movie ever, and Moulin Rouge is better as a song-y movie. (I preferred the plot, music, costumes, and camera work in Moulin Rouge.) But Phantom of the Opera is worth watching, so if you have not seen it yet, depart and observe.

Today was a pretty full day. Instead of my normal help lab, today I gave make-up tests to people who couldn’t take the test (or didn’t want to...) on Wednesday night. After the students turned in their test I looked through the cheat sheets that they were allowed to have. Well, they were allowed to have one page on hand-written notes and the Z and t tables, but as I found out this is not always the case.
The point of letting the students have the page of hand written notes is so that while they write up their cheat sheet they are also studying. What I found was that other TA’s are giving their students cheat sheets that are done very well (good enough that the students did not really have to study any), which isn’t too bad by itself, but there is another twist to the problem.
The other GTAs grade very easily. So a low B in my class might be an A in their class. Now compile that with a sheet where they have all the formulas given to them, and a student who has no idea what they are doing, can copy a formula from the sheet, and probably get 80% credit for the problem. So a student, who did not study, and frankly does not even need to try, can get a B easily.
The real problem for me though is when my students complain because they have to learn the stuff, when their friends have no idea what they are doing, but have a better grade. And I can’t just say “well you know this stuff better than them” because really, for most of them, stat knowledge doesn’t matter, they just need to get a good grade in my class to keep their GPA up. Oh, I try, and it sucks when I try to be a good teacher I am criticized, and the stupidly easy GTAs are praised by their students...
Anyways, after giving make-ups and grading my tests, I came home, didn’t do anything useful, then Nicole came home and we went off to Cox to grab some BBQ nachos before we went to the Phantom of the Opera for Jenette’s B-Day.
After the movie (review of the movie in next post) we went to Applebee’s. Good times abounded and the tea flowed like milk and honey in the land of plenty (that’s a good thing). Now I am just clicking away on the computer because I am not really tired.

Friday, April 22, 2005


The Scratchpad -A Free Flash Based Drawing Game (site)

Everyone draws at once on this site, and once in a while a good picture comes out, most of the time though it is just people scribbling. This is the best drawing that i helped make.

Guess-the-google (game)

You are given 20 pictures generated from searching a word in google images, and you have to guess what the search word was. So far my high score is 215. Sometimes it is real hard, sometimes it is easy (its always fun). <---lame ^_^

New Del.icio.us popular sites

New Del.icio.us popular sites (site)

This site tracks new popular websites that are linked through del.icio.us. Useful if you want to keep up with the up-and-coming new sites.

The internet discriminates against foreigners.

"Hey listen morons, don't just have only the internet to get through and find the times....you are discriminating against senior citizens and against foreigners who don't have computers, get with it!"

This is from a very funny sound clip of a person who is mad because she has to either press buttons or go to the internet to find the times of movies (?). And apparently she thinks foreigners don't have computers. Take a ten second break and listen to the clip.

Blogs Will Change Your Business

Businessweek.com (article)

This is a good article about blogs from the viewpoint of companies, instead of from a viewpoint of people. The best stuff is:


Hate to get wiggy here. But if the blogs eventually swallow up ad revenue, what's going to happen to us [us -as in the media]?
Yes, we, too, are under the gun. MSM, the bloggers call us. Mainstream media. And many of them delight in uncovering our errors, knocking us off that big pedestal we've occupied since the first broadsheets started circulating.
We have to master the world of blogs, too. This isn't because they're taking away ad revenue, at least not yet, but because they represent millions of eyewitnesses armed with computers spread around the world. They are potential competitors -- or editorial resources.


So there you have it, that is why the newspapers are shaking, and books predict the fall of traditional news. Not because bloggers make better news, but because bloggers will take away ad revenue from the traditional media. Interesting.

Thursday, April 21, 2005

Memoirs of a Monster

The Darth Side (blog)


They could never know what it is like to find out you still have a son, a stranger to you, lost amid the squalid systems of the outer rim and counted as a hero by your enemies.

Tomorrow I may strangle Admiral Veers.


A blog by Darth Vader. Yeah, it's good.

Today started out pretty slow. I didnt have homework to do, so I started to grade tests, after the first page my students aren’t doing too badly. Class went by rather quick, which is good because it is a long class, so if it drags, it takes forever. After class I went home and took a shower, then ate lunch with Chris and Jenette at Panera. After lunch I got a ride to school so that I could teach. My class went fine, and I got out a little earlier than I have lately. After class I did a bunch of upkeep for school and then called Nicole for a ride home.
Soon both of us were hungry so we decided to go eat at Quiznos. After eating some good toasted sandwiches we went off to the mall so that I could pick up some cheap cargo pants from Aeropostale. The pants fit great, and now I have a pocket to carry my camera in (and mp3 player too! ^_^ ). After the mall we just came back home and putzed around, and here we are now. whadda day.

Topeka Hockey

GlassRattler Hockey Forums (forum)


What the number represents is the percentage of people in the city and its surrounding area (based upon the city's 2000 MSA population) that were in attendance at each hockey game this year.

Here is the list (in order from most supportive to least supportive), along with the team's overall attendance rank this year in ( ):

1. Laredo (2) - 3.13%
2. San Angelo (17) - 2.26%
3. Colorado (4) - 2.10%
4. Lubbock (8) - 1.86%
5. Topeka (15) - 1.78%
6. Rio Grande Valley (5) - 1.54%
7. Bossier-Shreveport (3) - 1.43%
8. Odessa (14) - 1.37%
9. Amarillo (16) - 1.33%
10. Corpus Christi (10) - 1.09%
11. Oklahoma City (1) - 0.75%
12. Wichita (12) - 0.70%
13. New Mexico (9) - 0.62%
14. Tulsa (6) - 0.58%
15. Memphis (13) - 0.30%
16. Austin (11) - 0.29%
17. Fort Worth (7) - 0.27%

It looks to me, according to those numbers, that Topeka really has as many, if not more, hockey fans and people willing to support the team, per capita, than most other cities in the CHL. The problem, as I am beginning to see it, is that Topeka is just too small to support a minor league hockey team.


So it looks like Topeka does support the T'Rants, but T-town even needs to support them more if they want to keep them around. Really, if the team would get out more in Topeka and get in the newspaper once in a while for non-hockey stuff, I think the Tarantulas would get even more support from Topeka.

Amazon.com Free Music Downloads

Amazon.com (site)

Good free music, on Amazon. Bands included are Moby, Beck, The Strokes, Dropkick Murphys, Modest Mouse, Alison Krauss, etc...

There are around 200 songs to get. So get 'em while ya can.

Blu-Ray and HD DVD, Cease Fire?

Gizmodo (blargticle)


According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Sony and Toshiba are making steps towards creating a single next-generation format, rather than subjecting consumers to a format war between Blu-Ray and HD DVD.


I really hope so, because i doubt i would buy anything until a clear cut winner was found in the format war, and that may take up to a year or two. Let’s just go with one format, ok?

Operation:Spur

Bliggety Blog! (blargticle)

An email to CafePress from my brother-in-law:

What I have is a suggestion. I know that CafePress prides itself on offering all the latest 'hip' and 'trendy' products for your users to customize. And let me say, you usually do a fantastic job of it. Hence my disappointment at discovering that you don't offer spurs. As I'm sure you know, they are quickly becoming the next big thing. To put it simply, anybody who's anybody is wearing spurs nowadays, and you don't offer them. I can only assume that you have something in the works, and if not, please consider it. I know several dozen people ready to order customized spurs from CafePress. Thank you.
~Chris Turpin, loyal customer


Let's not let this die with just one e-mail. If you would like to see CafePress carry spurs so that you can get your own custom spurs, let them know! As we all know, spurs are now 'in', and we need to have the ability to make custom spurs. So let our voices be heard and email CafePress!

Save Hector

Save Hector (blargticle)


But yes, I will smash Hector if I don't get $3 by Saturday. He's brought much joy to my life, and I don't want to see him die. I simply can't afford to let him just live in my bathroom anymore.


Won't you donate a buck to save hector? He is only a spider, but every creature deserves to live. And Amber needs money...

Four Minutes with Frank Chu

>brain-terminal.com (video)

I have been looking around on brain-terminal.com and Protest Warriors some, and this video just cracks me up. What is atypical about this Bush protestor is that he nice. The reason I say that is atypical is because if you look around on those two sites you see that the protesters are not very happy about counter-protestors, and some react violently.

Anyways, this guy really is crazy, like he should be getting treatment. But it is dang funny!

Wednesday, April 20, 2005

A World of Pain

Blast Radius (blargticle)


Thanks Gary. I have a message for one person in this audience - I'm sorry the rest of you have to sit through this. As you know, my computer was stolen in my last lecture. The thief apparently wanted to betray everybody's trust, and was after the exam.
The thief was smart not to plug the computer into the campus network, but the thief was not smart enough to do three things: he was not smart enough to immediately remove Windows. I installed the same version of Windows on another computer - within fifteen minutes the people in Redmond Washington were very interested to know why it was that the same version of Windows was being signaled to them from two different computers.
he thief also did not inactivate either the wireless card or the transponder that's in that computer. Within about an hour, there was a signal from various places on campus that's allowed us to track exactly where that computer went every time that it was turned on.
...
I am tied up all this afternoon; I am out of town all of next week. You have until 11:55 to return the computer, and whatever copies you've made, to my office, because I'm the only hope you've got of staying out of deeper trouble than you or any student I've ever known has ever been in.


Man, the kid that stole the laptop is probably crapping his pants right then.

Update: the audio of the prof. is here.

New Quizno's

The Manhattan Mercury (classifieds)


QUIZNO’S Sub is looking for quality team members for our new Eastside location. We are currently accepting applications for all positions. If you are looking for a fun working environment, competitive wages, and an opportunity for advancement, this is the job for you! Please stop by and fill out an application at Quizno’s West, 2815 Anderson Avenue, Manhattan, KS.


A new Quizno's is going in huh. I wonder if it is gonna go in by walsmart or across the street by the newly bulldozed stuff. That side of town needs some good eats, so this is a good thing to put in. Thanks Amber for letting me know!

Today I went to class, but I did not get too far on the crossword puzzle. While looking around the newspaper (to avoid having to think about the crossword puzzle, which I was doing to avoid having to think about design of experiments) I noticed an ad for 2.99 pitas down at the Pita Pit. So after class got out, Lance and I walked to the Pit, but the line was almost out the door, so lance left to grab some food from somewhere else, but I stuck to my guns and got a cheap pita. Actually, I got my food in about five minutes, which is about as quick as you would get it anywhere else. After the Pita Pit I walked home and played on the computer for a bit.

Unfortunately I had to call off game night for tonight because Jenette and Chris are sick, and Aaron and I have a test thing to do... so it would have been Nicole cooking dinner for just Amber. Oh well, we will make the food some other time this week.
Ok, now I really need to get on cleaning up my house, it is very messy, with mostly my stuff strung out all over the place.

The Moebius

Improv Everywhere Missions (siteish)

Have you ever had deja vu?

On Saturday, March 22, 2003 Improv Everywhere agents created a living moebius strip in the Astor Place Starbucks. Seven undercover agents meticulously repeated a five-minute slice of time for twelve consecutive repetitions. Starbucks employees and patrons were frightened, confused, and ultimately entertained as they found themselves stuck, without escape, in the middle of a time loop.


Here is an example of what they do:

Agent Kula sits and reads a copy of ESPN The Magazine. After Keech exits he sneezes loudly, waits two beats, and then clears his throat. Moments after his sneeze, Agents Todd and Dippold enter and the loop starts again. Agent Kula is also responsible for placing the cell phone call that makes Agent Barrison’s phone ring.


Reactions:

5:23
Loop repeats. The old couple pay no attention to Agent Todd and Katie. Have they lost interest? No, they notice other things, but like Agent Todd/Katie: "The loud yelling 'Katie!', that's the funny one." Regarding Agent Barrison: "This happened before, too, the 9pm." Regarding Agent King hitting me: "Look! He hit him again!" "You could just stay here all day, and they'd keep doing it. They should charge admissions, to just sit here all day and watch." The old people now notice almost everything, even Agent Kula's sneeze (as it happens right in front of them). Best line of the day from the old people: "You know, there's another Starbucks right over there, I bet this is all happening there, too."


Oh, that is some funny stuff. Each agent has a report on the site, and it is all pretty entertaining. This would be a fun summer thing to do. ^_^

Some see Virgin Mary in underpass stain - Apr 20, 2005

CNN.com (article)


A steady stream of the faithful and the curious, many carrying flowers and candles, have flocked to an expressway underpass for a view of a yellow and white stain on a concrete wall that some believe is an image of the Virgin Mary.


Not really news, but the reason i posted this is because i read about Felix Jung going to see it before i knew that it was national news. Instead of reading the CNN article about it, take a look at Felix's post about going to see it. It's an interesting read. (To CNN's credit their picture looks much more like Mary than Felix's did.)

After teaching this afternoon, I stuck around the classroom for a bit to help students out, who were getting ready for the test tomorrow. Then I played on the computers in the computer lab (actually I was getting recipes for game night food). When the 6pm time rolled around I headed on over to the land of wings and trivia (BW3). As you can see in the picture we (Nicole, me , Jennette, Lance, Amber and Aaron) had a good time eating wings, drinking coke, and living the trivia life. After wings Nicole and I went to Dillion’s to pick up food, and then we came home to watch AOTS (Attack of the Show). Good times.

It actually has been a long day. I go to sleep now.

Tuesday, April 19, 2005

Prime

link (a number)


...58772393398723966644715546359458012...


Bored? Here is the largest known prime number... ummm... it has been loading for a long time, and it is just a txt file... enjoy!

EB Games and Game Stop to Merge

Electronic Gaming News (article)


America's largest videogame retail chains, GameStop and Electronics Boutique, have announced their intention to merge in a $1.44 billion deal which will create the world's largest games retailer, with around $4 billion in annual turnover.


Great, why would we need more than one option to get used games and DVDs?

CDC: Dangers of being overweight overstated

HoustonChronicle.com (article)

Remember the big stink everyone made about people being overweight as a deadly, deadly thing?


The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated today that packing on too many pounds accounts for 25,814 deaths a year in the United States. As recently as January, the CDC came up with an estimate 14 times higher: 365,000 deaths.
The new analysis found that obesity — being extremely overweight — is indisputably lethal. But like several recent smaller studies, it found that people who are modestly overweight actually have a lower risk of death than those of normal weight.


Surprise.

Since Nicole took off school to go to Jayme's tuba concert thing today we didn't have to get to school so early. So we went out to Panera to eat breakfast. It was nice being able to sit around and not rush so much in the morning. After breakfast Nicole dropped me off at school and I finished up my homework before class. Besides Panera my Tuesday has been just a normal Tuesday.

APFL round up

This upcoming season looks a little better for the APFL. The Kansas Koyotes will face two new teams, and both have a possibility of being good. One is the Wichita Aviators, and the other is the Nebraska Bears. I still expect the Koyotes to run the table, but, maybe, just maybe, they may lose a game. (And even though i am a Koyote fan I think that a loss would help the league greatly.)

The biggest step forward that the APFL made this year is a complete set of games for the rest of the teams to play in. This means that not only will the Koyotes play each week, but up to two more game will also be played (amazing, I know ^_^). If the APFL can pull it off, it will help enormously with the credibility of the league.

Here is the Koyotes Schedule: 
APRIL 23 Nebraska Bears   
APRIL 30 Wichita Aviators   
MAY 6 @ Iowa Blackhawks   
MAY 14 Overland Park Storm   
MAY 21 @ Wichita Aviators   
MAY 28 @ Nebraska Bears   
JUNE 4 Missouri Minutemen   
JUNE 11 Iowa Blackhawks   
JUNE 18 Rocky Mountain Thunder (Not part of the APFL, part of the IPFL)   
JUNE 25 Off   
JULY 2 @ Wichita Aviators   
JULY 9 APFL PLAYOFFS (2nd vs. 3rd team, winner plays in championship)   
JULY 16 APFL CHAMPIONSHIP

Here are the links to the other teams schedules (that have posted them on the web):

Iowa Blackhawks
Nebraska Bears
Missouri Minutemen
Wichita Aviators
Overland Park Storm (I can't find their schedule)

Well, here's hoping that the APFL '05 is a good season.

The Famed

Myspace.com (site)

'Your Name In Lights' is now 'The Famed'... nothing new, besides a new name. Thanks to Amber for letting me know.

Monday, April 18, 2005

Search giants court TiVo

CNET News.com (article)


A second person familiar with the talks said TiVo has held talks with both Google and Yahoo about a potential equity investment, including the possibility of an outright acquisition. Any deal would likely be exclusive, this source said, Nothing has been finalized, however, and the talks could yet fall apart.



Although this is interesting, what is even more interesting is that the Epic 2014 film is still batting 100%, and if Google does buy TiVo that would be another thing that they called. GoogleGrid here we come!

My original post about the Epic 2014 movie is here.

Madden Football

EA SPORTS (ummm...ad/post/something?)


Along with finally providing an answer to the question of which player will be picked first in the 2005 NFL Draft, the first hour of ESPN's Draft coverage on Saturday, April 23, will also give the world its first look at the next generation of videogames -- Madden NFL football will make its next generation debut in a TV ad airing within the first hour of the broadcast, which begins at 12:00pm ET / 9am PT.


This is a very good marketing ploy. You sit through the first hour of the draft to watch an ad, but they don't tell you when the ad is, and it will be the *only* time they show it, which prob. means that they got a discount for running the ad.... They have some guys on the ball over there at EA. Good thing the internet will find it for me after the fact. Huzzah for the internet!

ESPN ready for Monday Night Football in 2006

ESPN.com (article)


The NFL's "Monday Night Football," a staple on ABC for the past 35 seasons, will move to ESPN starting with the 2006 season.
And NBC is returning to the NFL after six years away by taking the Sunday night broadcast previously on ESPN.


So NBC is back in the NFL picture, which is good. I'm not all that happy about ESPN getting Monday Night Football, because then i will be forced to have cable when i get a new place... or i guess Monday night could just be BW3 night... :D
OK, deal.

Kitty Cannon (game)

Attack of the Show had this game on awhile ago, but today it just seemed like it needed to get played some. My high score is 1,087. Can you beat that?
(probability...)

Flash / Apple Ayumu Kasuga (flash)

Apple switch ad + Azumanga Daioh = funny.

Hearing "beep beepbeepbeep beep" some how never gets old.

Earth’s gravity may lure deadly asteroid

Times Online (article)

Thought you could rest easy tonight?


A HUGE asteroid which is on a course to miss the Earth by a whisker in 2029 could go round its orbit again and score a direct hit a few years later.
Astronomers have calculated that the 1,000ft-wide asteroid called 2004 MN4 will pass by the Earth at a distance of between 15,000 and 25,000 miles — about a tenth of the distance between the Earth and the Moon and close enough to be seen with the naked eye.
Although they are sure that it will miss us, they are worried about the disturbance that such a close pass will give to the asteroid’s orbit. It might put 2004 MN4 on course for a collision in 2034 or a year or two later.


I'm sure we will get everything figured out by then, but it is interesting to see that this might be a problem in the near future.
(p.s. we might not want to mess up Earth orbit with jump day...)

Generation Next?

1UP.COM (article)


Photorealistic graphics, streaming multimedia content, complete Internet integration and revolutionary new kinds of gameplay are all promises of next generation gaming. Right now, it's all executives blowing hot air and technobabble, but in just a short few weeks, the battle for the living room starts again, as Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony take the wraps off their new babies and show the world their visions of the industry's future.


This is a good article about the three upcoming consoles. I think i am going to put my money on PS3, but Xbox looks very interesting. I look forward to seeing what happens at E3 this year. I hope there is a good amount of screen shots from the new hardware. What’s the chances PS3 will show a shot from Gran Turismo 5? (ha!)

Keyword: cool

DecoderSite.com (site)

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pS,LG75LG]WQvWT7bs77bs51vOsUbsVQvOsY2OsTq3TLG]77mOs
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Sunday, April 17, 2005

Aruba Jam Sprite!

The other day when we were at Walsmart we noticed a new Sprite. Aruba Jam Sprite to be specific. Being the daring person that I am, I decided to get it. Now all i needed was a victim (the p.c. term is volunteer) to try it.
Here one comes now...


Me: Say, would you like to try Aruba Jam Sprite?

Nicole: Sure, why not.

Me: So... how does it taste?

Nicole: Eh, like Sprite, but not as citrusy...
Me: So do you like it?
Nicole: Not really.

There you have it folks, Aruba Jam Sprite, tastes like Sprite, and that (apparently) isn't a good thing.

I tried it, and i actually do like it, if i had to choose between Sprite or it's Jammin' friend I would go Aruba Style (as kids call it these days). But really Coke is putting so much effort into making all these different kinds of Sprites, that really no one wants. I wish that they would start to make Surge again, if only during the summer times. Oh Surge, how i miss thee.


Since Jenette and Chris just got back from Taras wedding in Colorado they had not ate dinner yet. So we went across the street to Jimmy Johns after Cold Stone so Jenette could pick up a sandwich for herself and Chris. (Also I was still hungry, even after eating dinner, and a lot of ice cream.) I got a JJBLT, and I don’t remember what Jenette got.
After this I came home, ate my sandwich, and played on the computer.

Today was spent mostly at home. The two exceptions were when Nicole and I walked to Patch and Crows, and when Nicole, Jenette and I went to Cold Stone to grab some ice cream.

The red ice cream is their flavor of the month; Red Licorice. I tried some, and it tasted just like Twizlers, which is a good job on their part, but there is no way I could ever eat a whole bowl of the stuff. If you live by Cold Stone stop by and try it, it is amazing how well they did in copying the flavor. Nicole and I ended up splitting a bowl of Mocha ice Cream with Heath in it, it was pretty good.

Orisinal.com (game)

Orisinal makes really cute games and this newer game caught my attention. It is pretty fun, and the background music is nice but it almost makes me want to fall asleep.

Talk Like A Pirate Day - September 19

Talk Like A Pirate Day (site)

:D

That sums it up well.

Aaaarrrgh! Pirate candidate wins student election

azcentral.com (article)


Aye, matey! The Pirate Captain is now the student government president at North Carolina State University.
Will Piavis ran under the name the Pirate Captain and won a runoff election, with nearly 59 percent of the vote. As the results were read, his supporters chanted his name and wore pirate hats from Long John Silver's restaurant.
His supporters point to high voter turnout as evidence that he will be good for the school. Others were disturbed by what they saw as a lack of substance.
"He doesn't really have any issues," senior Alissa Tompkins said. "All his quotes in the paper were in pirate language that doesn't make any sense."


Raise ye Jolly Roger! It be a mighty day for pirates world 'round!

My previous posts about this here and here.
His website here.


Update: from the freerepublic.com:

During a short speech to dissenters and supporters alike, Piavis revealed his real name and declared that during "The Year of the Pirate," his main focus would be getting the students involved with Student Government.

Does this mean the year of the pirate is back on? Cause I'm thinking ninja's are getting their butts kicked in every aspect...

VideoGamePianist.com

News (site)

This is the site of the guy who played in this video. He plays Nintendo music on piano, and is really good. You can also download his music here, which rocks.

Update: Also found him on MySpace.

How anonymous do you think the internet is?
Well take whatever you answered and divide it by two... then you probably need to subtract the other half of your answer as well...

It looked like it was going to take forever to get a seat at Coco Bolos, but it worked out that when we got there a bunch of people just left, so we got a seat pretty quickly. I got a Cox boys burrito, and Nicole got some chicken wrap thingy... mine was great, and Nicole reported that hers was good. The best thing is that we have leftovers, so I’ll get to have a good lunch tomorrow.

Today the two major events were disc golf at Tuttle, and Coco Bolos (both with just Nicole). Disc golf went fine, it was slightly breezy, but the wind always seemed to be at your back or side, so it wasnt too bad... of coarse that didnt stop us from getting some quality time fishing for our discs. We did have to pay $6.50 to play this time, since there was somebody sitting in the booth to take our money. :(
oh well, I think it was still worth it.

merchants of cool (part ii)

PBS (article)

PBS showed the show to some teens to see what they thought about it. One exchange really stood out:


Adia: I completely agree. The Internet is too big to control. . . .

Willis: I think what the Internet has done is to diversify the opportunities we have to find something we like. If you look at who complained about Napster and those kinds of programs, it was the big labels. . . . Whereas you see a lot of smaller [artists and labels] supporting programs like Napster, because they can really get their stuff out [to the public]. It allows me to download a band from ex-patriot Americans in Hong Kong or something. I can do whatever I want to, as long as the people are willing to put it out there. And it's the small artists who are doing that.

Tor: With things like Napster, you can't tell people, "This is what you should be listening to." You can't push it. . . .


And there you have it. Why is RIAA fighting P2P so much? Not because of copyright laws. It is because P2P takes all the power that they (RIAA's owners: Viacom, Time-Warner, etc...) have to tell us what to listen to. And if they can't tell us what to listen to, they can't become rich. It's not the artists that will become broke if P2P rules the music scene, it is the RIAA that will become broke. And you know what, they can’t stop fighting P2P. Even if record sales pick up (which they have), they can not stop, because unless they can find a way to tell us who to listen to, they will run out of money. Well holy crap, how's that for a revelation. (At least it’s a revelation for me.)
...man...

merchants of cool

PBS (vid)

"Cool hunters". A very interesting topic. PBS did a show on the people that search out cool, before it becomes cool, so that they can charge companies $20K (!!!) a year to see what may become cool.

Chris may want to contact these people to tell them that spurs are going to be in for next year...
(p.s. pirates are gonna comeback strong next year after the year of the ninja wraps up.)

update: by show's end the PBS program becomes very cynical of the machine that media and corporations are (possibly because the show was made by PBS), if you got twenty or so minutes, watch the program, the second half gets into a good discussion about what companies are doing for (to) youth.

cube (game)

It is my job to find you time wasters, and this is a good one. It is sorta like shuffle board. If you are easily addicted to games you might not want to try this one, cause if you start playing you might have to play all the way through the game...

Execution by injection far from painless

New Scientist Breaking (article)


They examined post-mortem blood levels of anaesthetic and believe that prisoners may have been capable of feeling pain in almost 90% of cases and may have actually been conscious when they were put to death in over 40% of cases.


Now I don't want to sound evil, but...umm... so what if they feel pain? They are on death row for a reason, and no, we shouldn't torture them, but I mean common I’m sure they didn't give anesthetics to their murder victims before they killed them. I think that it is perfectly fine if they feel some pain.

Friday, April 15, 2005

5 Years for Passing a Joint: Stop this Bill Now

TalkLeft (blargticle)


Republican Congressman James Sensenbrenner has launched his next assault on freedom. The full House Judiciary Committee is set to vote as early as next week on H.R. 1528, which creates a new group of mandatory miniumum penalties for non-violent drug offenses, including a five year penalty for passing a joint to someone who's been in drug treatment.


How is this an assault on freedom? It is already illegal... um... maybe we need to tell everybody what it means to be free. Because i think a lot of people have the wrong idea about what it means.

In my attempt to make current T-Shirts, I give you the witty store. Check it out here.

(Front/Back)
Yesterday while eating lunch with Jenette and Chris the topic came up to make a British/American/Japanese group of nations to counter the EU. I totally think this is how we should go about asking Canada to join.

Amazon.com: Books: South Park Conservatives (site)

$16.47, not too bad. I'll keep a look out for it next time I'm at Barnes and Noble.

South Park Conservatives: Snapshot of the Culture Wars


What Is a South Park Conservative?

"In my book", Anderson recently told me, "the term refers to a kind of irreverent post-liberal or anti-liberal attitude or sensibility, one very in tune with popular culture. But it's not a coherent, fully developed political philosophy. You do find this attitude among a lot of younger Americans, as I show in my concluding chapter, which is based on lots of interviews with right-of-center college kids."
Those right-of-center college students, for the most part, aren't Alex P. Keaton-clones, decked out in Ralph Lauren double-breasted navy blue blazers. They're more likely to look like every other college kid: jeans, sneakers, and T-shirts advertising their favorite rock groups. (On the other hand, as Anderson notes in his book, campus South Park conservatives usually smell better than their bathing-optional counterparts on the left). But there's one thing that South Park campus conservatives abhor: "Political correctness drives them nuts", Anderson says. "In interviewing students, for instance, it was clear how much the PC conformities of the campus Left turned them off."


...oh crap... they figured me out.

well time to search Amazon for that book...

Google Search: popapalooza game

Google Search: popapalooza game (search)

oh snap yo.
I've been getting people referred to me bacause of searching for the Pope brackets.
Turns out I'm number one in Google for that search... beating the person that actually made it.

Edit: Aha, it's the 'game' that makes me number one, whew, i thought i was popular. ^_^

Game Night Food

I had forgotten to post the recipes from game night. But i remember now, so here they are:

Strawberry Spinach Salad -We made this following the directions, and it is my favorite salad.
Feta Chicken -We used Shake and Bake for the topping, instead of breadcrumbs, and rolled them in it. Also we used chicken cutlets since Dillon's did not have breasts.

I enjoyed the meal overall, but i wished the chicken had a bit more something. Ah well, it is still a good easy recipe.

MIT students pull prank on conference

CNN.com (article)

Jeremy Stribling said Thursday that he and two fellow MIT graduate students questioned the standards of some academic conferences, so they wrote a computer program to generate research papers complete with 'context-free grammar,' charts and diagrams.
The trio submitted two of the randomly assembled papers to the World Multi-Conference on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics (WMSCI), scheduled to be held July 10-13 in Orlando, Florida.
To their surprise, one of the papers -- 'Rooter: A Methodology for the Typical Unification of Access Points and Redundancy' -- was accepted for presentation.


If you modify this program a little i bet it is very easy to pass that one class that is graded by the computer that looks for key words and phrases.
Think about that... it is rather comic.

Thursday, April 14, 2005


After Planet Sub Nicole and I went to Walsmart to get some living supplies. We noticed that Game Stop is going into the new building next to Walsmart. So now it will have a Great Clips and a Game Stop, with about four spots left... I’m not holding my breath for anything good.

Sorry, Whites Not Protected Under ‘Hate’ Crime Law

La Shawn Barber's Corner (blargticle)

A good short entry, summarized by:

Hate crime laws are designed to punish the thoughts of white, straight, Christian {Christian was struck out in the original blargticle} males. [Lest liberals think I’m calling all white males charged with hate crimes “Christians,” I decided to strike it from the description.] Only blacks, homosexuals, Hispanics and Muslims (women, too, on a good day) are protected under these laws. I’m black, so I guess I qualify for the skin privilege.


I may have to check up on her blog from time to time.

Just got done doing taxes. Wee!

Nicole and I ate dinner with Jenette, Chris and Aaron at Planet Sub. I think Chris liked it... or at least it looks like it in this picture.

What can I say?

Not too much to say about today so far. Class went fine, ate lunch with chris and jenette, and then taught class... which also went fine. I'm getting kinda hungry though....

Don't Shoot the Cat

Don't Shoot the Cat (site)

This site is interesting: It is set up like how the extreme liberals ran the 2004 election campaigns, alot of emotions and a couple skewed facts. Check up on this page, because it almost seems like it is mocking the people that don’t support killing feral cats (they are also known as people that don’t want to protect the local environment).

Can't get enough Futurama

Can't get enough Futurama (site)

Need to know something about Futurama? Here is your site.

Cary Sherman of the RIAA speaks with College Journalists

Spark (article)

Following up the internet2 talk of last night:

Question:Jim Rogers, University of Missouri-Columbia, The Maneater: Is the RIAA considering action against Internet2 itself, rather than simply users of the network?
Cary Sherman:We have no problem with Internet2. It is a neutral network that is capable of outstanding beneficial uses. It just happens to be being misused by some file-sharers who think it's a convenient way to steal music. We hope to work with Internet2 to see if there are technical steps that can be taken to reduce the vulnerability to abuse of the network.


This is from a press conference the RIAA held about suing the i2 users. So what he is saying is that i2 could be used for good, so it is ok. Doesn't this sound the exact opposite of what they are saying about Grokster?

Google Video Search

Google Video Search (site)

Upload and search for video using Google. Yessssss.

I have really enjoyed the browser wars of late (Google v Yahoo v MSN v Ask v AOL). Each company is trying to outdo one another, and it is making the internet great. yea capitalism in cyberspace!

Game night

Last night went fine. We played ‘Battle of the Sexes’ the card game, which i believe the girls won. We ate chicken stuffed with feta cheese and had strawberry spinach salad. If you want the recipes let me know and I’ll post them.

This morning has been spent rushing around to get ready for school. I have graded all my papers though, and now i can get started on my homework that is due next Tuesday. Nothing like getting ahead a little bit.

Well I'm gonna surf the internet for 20 minutes then get on to that homework stuff. Have a good Thursday.

Oh yes, and DayQuil is awesome. ^_^

Wednesday, April 13, 2005

The Pirate Captain moves on to final election

Campus Chronicles

Although none of the four candidates vying for the position of student body president received the majority vote required, candidates Will Quick and The Pirate Captain rose above the fray and will go head to head in a runoff election next week.
This semester's election marked a record high in voter turnout, which totaled almost 27 percent of the student population, according to Pierson.
The fact was punctuated by the almost 150 students present at the announcement, several of whom were decked in anything from full pirate regalia to cardboard pirate hats obtained from the seafood chain Long John Silver's.
'I hear we got record turnout,' the Captain said. 'I be nothing but impressed.'
The Captain also said he was thrilled with the prospect of participating in the runoffs and inspired by the support.
'I couldn't be happier,' the Captain said. 'The wind be in our sails. It warms our souls and carries our boats.'"


Good news for pirates all around the word!
My original post about this is here.
The Pirate Captain’s website is here.

Not Quite What the Doctor Ordered

Like Dr. Pepper but don’t want to give money to the big evil corporations? Here is a website that lists the many, many Dr. Pepper fakes. Can I interest you in a Dr. Bob?