My mother-in-law sent us these toys a little while back with the tagline: "Let the dino races begin." So here you go. Turns out to not be much of a race, although there is a surprise ending. But really not much of a surprise if you live here.
I think maybe the green one wins. Might not be fair though as I think the purple one was frozen in terror.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Dino Races
140 Characters or Less...
- 21:52 9.8 may be the lightest shoe ever, but on a hoops commercial all I can think of is the acceleration of gravity #
- 21:59 @ellenjuhlin we saw those, they're in the running. #
- 22:22 @ebertchicago how did tentpole Super 8 avoid 3-D? Execs thought it was in 8-D. #
- 22:36 Haymaker time again #finals #
- 22:40 Boom! #finals #
- 13:27 @matt_dollinger even on a bad day it's got to be! pretty great. #
- 16:12 High frequency tweeters among you. This is for you: bit.ly/gYVDrz #
Thursday, June 09, 2011
On Apartment Living
This little housing odyssey we're on right now has us in an apartment for a few months. Really it was always part of the plan. There was something about the nature of the market we were in that said to us we should sell our house first and then buy the new one. That brings with it needing a place to be in between.
So we are living in a very nice apartment. It's reminded me of things I guess I'd forgotten. We're in the downstairs of a two story unit. The upstairs neighbors have kids. I think they are training to be world cup soccer players. We get an awful lot of scampering through the ceiling. Once a long time ago I stayed with a friend who lived in a basement apartment under a family with a baby. They has one of those caste red seats where the baby can roll around the room. They also had hardwood floors. My friend, she got hour after hour of rolling casters. The apartment here and our soccer athletes, it's not that bad, but it does remind me how nice it was when we were in our own house.
Sometime after we moved in the upstairs neighbors got a pet. Pets are nice. We have an army of cats. I guess we should be thankful the folks upstairs didn't get cats or a dog. We'd wind up hearing skittering all the time if that were the case. What they did get was a bird. Most of the time we have no notice of their feathered friend. Occasionally though it seems like maybe it's too much for them and they'll put the birdcage in the basement and we'll hear what must be a lonely bird tweeting from downstairs. More irritatingly, they've taken to putting the cage outside on their balcony - right over our bedroom window. We've been doing our best to keep the air off and the windows open. On more than one occasion that's got us chirping at 5:00 am.
And really chirping and tweeting don't really cover it. A little bit it's more like shrieking, if birds shrieked.
Recently we discovered that the new upstairs tenants in the next door unit like to stay up and shoot the shit well into the shank of the evening, and of course this is on their balcony. That gives us chatting until two and the shrieking at five.
All of which is just a real long way of saying I really can't wait for the work on our new place to be done.
140 Characters or Less...
- 20:39 Burgatory fail. 45 minute wait at 8:30. :-( #
- 20:51 @narcosislabs Im sure youll come up with something #
- 21:11 the bottom 80% of filers received about 35% of the cuts. The top 20% received about 65% & the top 1% alone claimed 38% slate.me/lInF6 #
- 21:35 Should I see Melissa in July in New York or August in Maryland; or have I outgrown such things? #
- 21:46 Democrats shouldn't be worried a scandal makes them look bad, they should be worried their ineffectiveness makes them look bad. #
- 12:36 @keeboch was pretty much all pants for a while. #
- 12:58 @giantspatula um, its old #
- 13:02 @aerdin Comcast - virtual monopoly, Amazon - not a monopoly; who did you think would do better? #
- 13:07 @CarnegieMellon Drama CFA 1990 #
- 13:22 Looking for offbeat shelving ideas (fit for a living room) - seen anything special? #
- ! 14:53 @stagedire ctions not finding out much on desks, except that entry is like $800. #
- 14:54 If you are looking for adjustable height desks, search "Sit and Stand Desk" #
Wednesday, June 08, 2011
Ellipses...
Just enabled a mobile format for the blog. Really hadn't had a problem with it on my phone, but I do what they tell me... We know about our troops on the ground in Afghanistan, Iraq, and our involvement in Libya. I wonder about how many places we're involved that we don't know about... Press really down on LeBron today. They're not really wrong, he did fade a little in the last game... Wondering if the Mrs. TANBI thing is over now and I should just say Marisa... They're remounting Charlies Angels as a TV show this fall. Next I am thinking Love Boat... Saw the Weiner money shot today, now its a whole different thing I think... Signed up for the Pittsburgh Ultimate Meet Up group. Only time will tell if I actually get out to play... We went to this cool restaurant for dinner tonight but had to leave - 45 minute wait at 8:30 on a Wednesday, we're just not that cool... Just heard that Pitt was the #1 seed at college ultimate nationals this year. They finished in a tie for 5th. Best we ever did was 3rd... Today our contractor told us we can't get the storm doors in time because the lead is too long, one wonders why they weren't ordered when the actual doors were (the ones that have been on the house for 2 weeks)... With all the Twitter transcripts, I wonder if the Ellipses posts are redundant? Still, it's a staple... I keep going to work even though each day I accomplish a little less. I'm thinking it's the air conditioning... Can anyone explain to me the obsession Republican legislatures have with gay marriage? I can't figure out why they care even a little... Got a new lock on our apartment door today from a guy who just assumed I would know where his shop was. This is a fairly tight neighborhood we're moving into... OPEC cut back production to keep oil prices high. Good thing we have no price controls or anything... One of my five cats refuses to socialize with us. I no longer think that's cute... It looks like Apple is going to build a spaceship for their next headquarters. I'm hoping they tell us it has turbolifts... I bought a monitor today that might be too big, guess we'll see when it gets here... Shania Twain is getting a Vegas show. But I already saw Shania Twain in Vegas... I'm really hoping the Opelio season goes better for the boys on the Cornelia Marie than King Crap did...
140 Characters or Less...
- 20:07 Today I talked. To a CSR on the phone for 5 minutes, confirmed all my info just to be told I had to use the mail. #geethanks #
- 21:04 Anyone getting a 4077 vibe off this new abc combat hospital show? #
- 21:05 @matt_dollinger @mboevers ok we'll wait for next time #
- 21:07 @keeboch @aerdin2 but does it have an elevator? #
- 08:31 @narcosislabs shouldn't you save the iPhone-y stuff for while you're away? #
- 08:34 Waiting for a repairman. #
- 12:45 @jkrall no bullshit #
- 12:46 Is A/C a legit reason to go to the office? #
- 14:43 Val's logic could not be argued against. #
- 14:45 @jkrall I had the same thought. I admire the thought but wonder about the language. No foolin? And no bull? Straight up? Dunno. #
- 14:45 @bpeoples make it small enough you don't have to put anything in it. #
- 14:46 @bpeoples sure thing. got lots of space these days. #
- 15:11 @aerdin Sondheim? #
- 15:38 @PghFilmOffice what's your icon look like? #
- 16:20 @48v and make and break, yes? #
- 16:28 @48v use a weldnut and then a tamper headed machine screw? #
- 16:34 @48v right, a tamper proof snap. security velcro #
- 16:40 @48v might be something here #
- 16:40 @48v bit.ly/mxkzsB #
- 16:46 @48v or here: bit.ly/metjKg last tweet #
- 18:26 Having contractor confidence issues... #
Sins of the Father
Do you watch the American Chopper? For me its one of the "real people" shows I watch: Stagehands Catch Crabs, Stagehands Drive Trucks, Stagehands Cut Trees, and Stagehands Build Bikes. American Chopper of course being the last. I think when I started watching a while ago it was more about the fabrication than the personalities, but the last two seasons they haven't really let it be that anymore.
A while back Sr. fired his son. I can relate to this. When my mother and I tried to work together we could really never make it work. For some folks, working with family isn't the best possible choice. I'm not sure we ever saw what the reality of the environment was and I don't know how much of it was work and how much was family issues, but in the end they couldn't make it work and there was a parting of the ways.
Jr. had a one year non-compete with OCC and so he spent a year kinda foundering and the show really suffered for it I think. This year he's back to building bikes at his own shop and for the first time in a bit the show had back some of what it had lost.
But it's also had this just wrenching, terrible through line of the father/son dispute with all kinds of sniping and lawsuits and politicking. It's been really hard to watch at times. Through the whole thing I've always thought that it shouldn't matter what he's struggling with, it's on Sr. to get it together and repair his family. The things he says about his kids to the people that work for him are just awful, and his take on the whole situation is just unfortunate.
I suppose we need to layer over this the thought that we're seeing something that's been edited and structured by a TV producer, and *maybe* there's been some of this that's just been for show. But my read is that if that is the case it's the greatest TV show in the history of the medium.
This season has climaxed with one client ordering bikes on the same theme from both companies. That show aired last night and Discovery is running a viewer poll so fans can vote for who they think is the better bike builder. If the show isn't a put on the results are going to be shattering for Paul Sr.
It's not very close.
More than the total wipeout on the scoreboard I thought the comments on the page were really telling with fan after fan saying they really wish Sr. would make things right with his son.
I really hope he can.
Tuesday, June 07, 2011
140 Characters or Less...
- 22:49 Genuine positive reinforcement. Almost forgot what that felt like. #
- 11:28 @Mboevers apparently I don't follow anyone that replied. #
- 15:52 The late night Weiner roundup: bit.ly/jeMPyt #
- 17:22 Anyone know anything about desks like these: bit.ly/iWTFNo #
Monday, June 06, 2011
And So It Turns Out He Did It
Can I tell you what most disappoints me in finding out the guy did send a picture of his package to that woman? That when it came out he didn't tell us he sent a picture of his package to that woman.
Would it have been so bad?
"Occasionally I have sent what I believe to be humorous photos to online acquaintances. It's always done out of a sense of play. Sometimes my interactions can be a little risque. Historically those involved have found those particular instances to be the most funny. On this occasion I unfortunately and inadvertently made something that was supposed to be a private message public. I am extremely embarrassed by this error and apologize to anyone else who may have been embarrassed or offended. I will do everything in my power to use better judgement and pay better attention to my actions in the future."It isn't 140 characters, so he wouldn't have been able to tweet it, but I think if that had been the very first thing he said, rather than "I was hacked" it might be over now and we could continue musing about Paul Revere. But he didn't, a little bit he panicked I guess - that's what I heard he said. It's too bad.
The reason I think he could have squelched it is that I believe this is a more common behavior than is perceived, especially among younger people. I read just today that some jurisdiction is working on a "sexting" law that will protect the parties involved from being exposed (ha) to child pornography laws. Like it or not the whole country is a little freaky with their technology. Couldn't hurt us to recognize that within the public discourse.
Also a little bit I just can't stand to listen to people in Washington talk to me about moral behavior. Year after year we hear about scandal after scandal. They could do all of themselves and us a break to just cut everyone a little slack. I don't need to hear from someone on their third spouse about the dangers of emailing a picture of my underwear. There's a line here about people in glass houses, yes? And another about casting the first stone?
Where's Larry Flynt when you need him?
One of my friends asked "what is with these people?" and I think maybe it isn't just about Congressmen. I think what we're seeing play out here is about the intimacy of communication, the speed of that communication, humor, and young people. You know, you have this thing that is theoretically direct and private, and it all happens in an instant without much time for reflection - and there's really no "unsend" button to push. Plus its funny or feels good to be flirty, and often the people on the other end, they just don't have the same consequences to deal with so they're more than willing to go there even when an older person maybe should be having a second thought.
I've felt this in my own experience, especially on chat. When you become friends with someone and you are having these private exchanges you can sometimes see that line there and whiz right by it anyway. And then you are thinking, "wow, maybe I shouldn't have said that" but it's too late. You did, and it's logged and cached and out there forever. I never sent anyone a picture of my package (I did once *tell* someone I was sending her a picture of my tool. Then I sent a picture of my tool belt - not the same).
Mostly this makes me wonder what is fair game now. Are we going to start asking candidates for their internet history? How about asking people if they've run a search on Adult Friend Finder? Are hackers going to crack candidates computers and show us what websites they've been on or who they've been skyping with? Could a candidate in this climate recover from someone disclosing they'd recovered part of "2 Girls 1 Cup" from their hard drive?
You know, I'm not sure that would even be a bad thing. These are the people regulating our media. Maybe scandals like this are good for the government. At least it will educate them a little bit to what's out there (as if they didn't know - freaky little congresscritters).
140 Characters or Less...
- 21:42 Haymaker time #nbafinals #
- 14:02 20% of 56 is 11.2 or more coarsely a little less than 1/4 #sometimesworkishard #
- 15:30 @CBPittsburgh barely got out of the furniture end of the store. Being from Chicago, am so happy to have you here #
- 15:33 archiving email - every day can't be exciting #
- 19:05 @sspuh yuck #
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