Kevin's blOg

moved.

2008-07-03T17:44:00.000-07:00

trying http://posterous.com for a while. checkout http://posterous.com/forkev
though blogger supports posts by email, posterous.com makes better guesses what to do with additional media like links, images, and files. so, we'll give it a go.

sore back?

2007-09-12T14:31:00.000-07:00

1 marriage certificate - check.
1 house - check.
1 massage table - check.

A massage whenever I can convince the other half of the marriage certificate holder - check.

nerd king

2007-09-09T11:42:00.001-07:00

ugly ugly cats

2007-01-11T10:04:00.000-08:00

http://knuttz.net/hosted_pages/Ugly-Cat?1
I have a new appreciation for good looking cats.

lights

2006-12-01T17:29:00.000-08:00

we spent a few bucks after chirstmas for about 4 times as many lights as we needed. we spent another 20$ this year getting power adapters for our outside lights, extention chords, and two more digital timers (which will be weatherized before put into service) and another 5$ on little eye hooks which we opened up and screwed in about 60 of them to hang the lights off of (next year should be easier). I need to balance the top tier, but we'll wait for my hands to thaw out first. we lost about 8 bulbs and one drill bit, so we're pretty happy nothing has burned down, yet. I think we're learning that we should not wait until it's 15 degrees outside before we put up the lights.

economics book

2006-11-06T08:08:00.000-08:00

perhaps alodia can get me this book from the library.

squished cat

2006-10-14T15:48:00.000-07:00

conscent

2006-10-06T09:31:00.000-07:00

funny video.
even the credits were funny.

20#

2006-09-28T08:36:00.000-07:00

It's been almost 11 months since my first paintball gun. I've spent at least 40$ thus far in purchasing CO2. not bad, considering the year of fun I've had. Shortly after I purchased my first gun, I was talking to a friend that had just moved here who was building their house. they said 'when we're all done, you'll have to come out to our place and setup our network for us'. Well, they finished, I showed up, and proceeded to spend about 7 hours last weekend learning the dd-wrt firmware flash for the linksys wrt54gl access points. They have a pretty complicated setup that makes good use of the WDS options, and we setup a little satalite link between to places to push their satalite i-net around their property. They could not be happier. Turns out, they work at OxArc and wanted to say thankyou. You're looking at the proud new owner of a 20 pound CO2 tank, complete with siphen manufactured THIS MONTH and full of CO2. I'll drop a few bucks and get a fill kit for it.

Ok, who has the sandrail I can mount a gattling paintball gun on? I've got the air...

Christ, the Way of Life

2006-09-26T10:47:00.000-07:00

After seeing a picture at an evengalistic seminar, I searched for it for a while.
I found
and promplty purchased a print for about $4 from our local ABC (these guys are great). I also found a cool blog entry about the origional engravings that inspired the work. I then took my salvaged picture frame off the wall (dumpster trip a year ago) and found the print fit perfectly in the frame. I think it was providential.

xbox hack, followup

2006-09-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

the xbox hack was attempted almost 20 months ago. I've been gathering info, and making a few attempts every few months for a while now. as it turns out, I just had a bad action replay stick of memory - and using a 64mb thumbdrive from a friend, formatting it as fatx, hacking the driver using usbview.exe so the action replay software supported the thumbdrive and not just the action replay device I was able to use the action replay software to copy the hack onto the good media in the thumbdrive, and then use mech asault game to softmod my v 1.6 xbox. worked like a champ. I'm about 2 days from copying a new build of xbmc (Xbox Media Center) onto it and turning it into a head for my movies. Now all I need is some network attached storrage and I can get rid of all the computer noise during movies.

pickly

2006-08-30T09:36:00.000-07:00

some may remember the pickle in the dorm.
this picture brings that memory back.

here here

2006-08-07T07:37:00.000-07:00

it was a great weekend.

promo-what?

2006-07-26T16:25:00.000-07:00

I am no longer the 'software and solutions specialist' - which turns out to be a REAL job description from a formal dusty book this organization has. I am now the Assistant Director.

I discovered all of this in a passing conversation and went to administration with probing questions to get to the bottom of it.

As it turns out, what I can earn increases, but they are not describing any accompaying pay increase with the title change at this point.

That's ok, because I'm quite content to now have a shorter signature line in my email.

It's always nice to indirectly find you've been promoted.

All this on the same day my boss leaves for a 2 month 2 week sabatical-vacation and i had to work late to milk his brain for every last drop before he disappears. Oh yea, and we get 3 new employees who of course will need computers and training and what not, and had a hard drive fail in a work station. See ya boss. I got this.

I hope.

tough

2006-07-26T02:15:00.000-07:00

it's 2am and oscar the cat (who is grouchy at times) found a mouse to play with. not kill. play with.

after twenty minutes of watching him chase it around and snarl at it, I started hitting it across the room into the wall with a remaining 18" of shovel handel we put behind the sliding door. not just a wake up hit. a death blow. we're talking bouncing off the far wall hard, and this little mouse keeps walking away from it. I wish I was that tough.

I saw his toughness and raised him one plastic sour cream container in the trash.

we'll just hope alodia does not find him in the trash and start screeming. i'm pretty sure he'll live off the remaining sour cream in there and still be kicking around for several days.

poor oscar is still scouring the house looking for his toy.

snakey

2006-07-12T15:44:00.000-07:00

link

good deal

2006-07-10T11:51:00.000-07:00

this link demonstrates riot control - in turkey.

good video

2006-06-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

check this utube video. it's good.

tourist

2006-05-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

I'm glad i was not a tourist in Key West recently. I've of had to put up with this guy. I'm also glad purple is not my color.

free 20$

2006-05-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

and i get a 5$ referal.

read this, but click on this link to unwiredbuyer so i get 5$. if you signup and bid on ONE item.

When you are done, change your ebay password in case they are harvesting.

so i almost got killed today

2006-05-23T21:47:00.000-07:00

this is by far the funniest thing i've read i a long time.

anthill structure

2006-05-23T09:59:00.000-07:00

this dude poors plaster down antholes to find out what the insides look like
cool pictures.

counterintuitive

2006-05-12T17:29:00.000-07:00

checkout http://www.antipanti.com/ if you need a sharp poke in the eye of presentation or a swift kick in the crotch of good ideas. here is a taster:

and of course, their order FORM
nevermind it's a picture!
here's a piece.

H prize

2006-05-11T09:42:00.000-07:00

the X Prize (and more pics) was just plain cool.
FINALLY we have similar contest for bringing an alternative fuel source into the mainstream for transportation. I question if hydgrogen is the correct medium, but love the idea of the prize.

launchy

2006-05-10T10:37:00.000-07:00

Launchy is just plain good.

today's links

2006-05-09T13:29:00.000-07:00

modern day robin hoods

engine IN your bicycle wheel

1GB free online storage: public sharing too.

nice linux distro on dvd - well, 10 of them at least.

ask a ninja

and

the slingshot

light

2006-04-20T13:03:00.000-07:00

I was talking with a developer whom I have a lot of respect for. We meet up every 2 years or so to swap stories and mostly me get more info out of his head. I was talking about how many people guage a projects 'success' by it's presenttion and really don't care about how roboust it is under the hood. He said 'when that oil light comes on, just nock out the light.'

that amused me greatly.

coupon

2006-04-18T07:48:00.000-07:00

shop4tech.com has another 10% off coupon
AE10
Bummer the last batch of dvds is still holding up. there getting more inexpensive.

free tools

2006-04-03T08:04:00.000-07:00

pdfCreator looks stronger then cutePDF and uses a newer version of ghostscript and offers an alternative engine, complete with security wrappers. functions as a virtual printer.

fast FoxIT pdf reader, free: http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php

LockNote 'secure' notepad stored in stand alone exe. could be usefully for simple encryption that is self contained: http://sourceforge.net/projects/locknote

notepad++ free tabbed code editor. it handles ruby and has some usefull code coloring elements in it. my new favorite editor on the pc: http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/site.htm

netvibes

2006-04-01T19:53:00.000-08:00

like blogger, digg, and delicious, i think http://www.netvibes.com/ is here to stay.
i've tried several web 2.0 'personalized' home page thingies, but i've settled on netvibes. when it can connect to any rss feed, and give me most of what i read everyday on one page, i'm happy.

THIS is precicely why I keep recommending rss as a core solution to some services in the new webpage for my work; people (at least I) just aint interesting in reading all the articles and browsing all the websites and looking at all the pictures any more. they want headlines fast.

work wasters

2006-03-27T09:45:00.000-08:00

http://www.interruptions.org/ claims to custom roll an inturruption matched for your audience. I gave it a whirl, and a few days later I got the following in my email with an 800kb image of a bullet train attched:

Dear Kevin,
How is the engineering going. I wish I was an engineer, but the kind that operates trains. Why are trains so cool? I love walking on the tracks, there is something so peaceful about train tracks. However they are always so dirty, filthy even. Have you taken Amtrak lately? It takes so long, I once had a 5 hour trip take 9 hours because the tracks were too hot and the train couldnt go above 45mph. I visited Japan a while ago and we took trains ever where. They were so cool and fast and comfortable, every seat was like a 1st class seat on an airplane. I attached you a photo of one of the bullet trains I took in Japan. Check it out.

Agent ChrisTwo

----------------------------------
The Bureau of Workplace Interruptions

optical illusions

2006-03-24T14:53:00.000-08:00

more here http://mightyillusions.blogspot.com/

shark vs octopus

2006-03-20T11:41:00.000-08:00

http://www.break.com/articles/sharkvsoctopus.html
shark vs octopus - seatle aquarium keeps messed this on up!

more spam email. see? this one wasn't so bad.

lending

2006-03-01T15:47:00.000-08:00

billed as the ebay of lending.
person to p erson lending, decentralized.
spooky.

http://www.prosper.com/

more spam

2006-02-23T08:06:00.000-08:00

this one was fun to read.

In George Washington's days, there were no cameras. One's image was either sculpted or painted. Some paintings of George Washington showed him standing behind a desk with one arm behind his back while others showed both legs and both arms. Prices charged by painters were not based on how many people were to be painted, but by how many limbs were to be painted. Arms and legs are "limbs," therefore painting them would cost the buyer more. Hence the __expression, "Okay, but it'll cost you an arm and a leg."
**************************************************************
As incredible as it sounds, men and women took baths only twice a year (May and October)! Women kept their hair covered, while men shaved their heads (because of lice and bugs) and wore wigs. Wealthy men could afford good wigs made from wool. They couldn't wash the wigs, so to clean them they would carve out a loaf of bread, put the wig in the shell, and bake it for 30 minutes. The heat would make the wig big and fluffy, hence the term "big wig." Today we often use the term "here comes the Big Wig" because someone appears to be or is powerful and wealthy.
**************************************************************
In the late 1700s, many houses consisted of a large room with only one chair. Commonly, a long wide board folded down from the wall, and was used for dining. The "head of the household" always sat in the chair while everyone else ate sitting on the floor Occasionally a guest, who was usually a man, would be invited to sit in this chair during a meal. To sit in the chair meant you were important and in charge. They called the one sitting in the chair the "chair man." Today in business, we use the _expression or title "Chairman" or "Chairman of the Board."
**************************************************************
Personal hyg iene left much room for improvement. As a result, many women and men had developed acne scars by adulthood. The women would spread bee's wax over their facial skin to smooth out their complexions. When they were speaking to each other, if a woman began to stare at another woman's face she was told, "mind your own bee's wax." Should the woman smile, the wax would crack, hence the term "crack a smile" In addition, when they sat too close to the fire, the wax would melt . . . therefore, the _expression "losing face."
**************************************************************
Ladies wore corsets, which would lace up in the front. A proper and dignified woman, as in "straight laced". . . wore a tightly tied lace. **************************************************************
Common entertainment included playing cards. However, there was a tax levied when purchasing playing cards but only applicable to the "Ace of Spades."&nb sp; To avoid paying the tax, people would purchase 51 cards instead.
Yet, since most games require 52 cards, these people were thought to be stupid or dumb because they weren't "playing with a full deck."
**************************************************************
Early politicians required feedback from the public to determine what the people considered important. Since there were no telephones, TV's or radios, the politicians sent their assistants to local taverns, pubs, and bars. They were told to "go sip some ale" and listen to people's conversations and political concerns. Many assistants were dispatched at different times. "You go sip here" and "You go sip there." The two words "go sip" were eventually combined when referring to the local opinion and, thus we have the term "gossip."
**************************************************************
At local taverns, pubs, and bars, people drank from pint and quart-sized containers. A bar maid's job was to keep an eye on the customers and keep the drinks coming. She had to pay close attention and remember who was drinking in "pints" and who was drinking in "quarts," hence the term "minding your "P's and Q's."
**************************************************************
One more: bet you didn't know this!
In the heyday of sailing ships, all war ships and many freighters carried iron cannons. Those cannons fired round iron cannon balls. It was necessary to keep a good supply near the cannon. However, how to prevent them from rolling about the deck? The best storage method devised was a square-based pyramid with one ball on top, resting on four resting on nine, which rested on sixteen. Thus, a supply of 30 cannon balls could be stacked in a small area right next to the cannon. There was only one problem...how to prevent the bottom layer from sliding or rolling from under the others. The solution was a metal p late called a "Monkey" with 16 round indentations.
However, if this plate were made of iron, the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting problem was to make "Brass Monkeys." Few landlubbers realize that brass contracts much more and much faster than iron when chilled. Consequently, when the temperature dropped too far, the brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannonballs would come right off the monkey. Thus, it was quite literally, "Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey." (All this time, you thought that was an improper _expression, didn't you.)

If you don't send this fabulous bit of historic knowledge to any and all your unsuspecting friends.

Your floppy is going to fall off your hard drive and kill your mouse.

energy and water

2006-02-17T19:35:00.000-08:00

a really good read. http://money.cnn.com/2006/02/16/technology/business2_futureboy0216/index.htm

snakey on steroids

2006-02-10T16:42:00.000-08:00

well, snakey was a real hit last week, but we had to hit it again. so we fed much more length of snakey down there this time.

while were were under the sink, we figured a new garbage disposal from keith and jen would fit nicely.

it loved our apple core on the test run.
alodia joked we should test it with a banana peal. i'm sure it could handle an entire banana and maybe an apple at the same time.

yogurt, anyone?

readings

2006-02-04T15:09:00.000-08:00

a new transmission looked interesting, as well as some more p2p amonominity stuff.

it looks like you can extend xp home to be more like xp pro.

digg.com is fun to read every now and again.

snakey

2006-01-29T07:59:00.000-08:00

we had 19 people over friday night. about 7 of those were kids. there is some birth control for you.

in the fray, the kitchen sink stopped draining and proved to be the only casulaty. after THREE very heavy servings of LYE (NaOH) the sink was not draining any faster 24 hours later. We weighed our options and and opted for a mechanical solution instead of chemical.

Lowes and Home Depot are across the street from eachother, and lowes came through with a 20$ drain snake that allowed hand cranking, drill cranking, and was 25 ft long. it seemed a bit spendy since we could get just the wire part for 12$, but hey, it's a tool and hopefully it'll be usefull next time.

after cramming that baby in about 10 ft, it hit a snag. the drill powered through it in about 4 seconds and we reamed it back and forth for a while for good measure.

Alodia and I wiped the snake off as it came out of the stinky hole and by the time we got to the business end we where both like 'ewww!'. There were bits of semi-disolved hair and lint and who knows what else stuck in the end. the most disturbing thing is that the smell reminded me EXACTLY of norman (the cat) after he hacks on a hairball for a while. now that is some stinky breath.

fast

2006-01-28T15:19:00.000-08:00

check out his face.
this is a very funny video. and exciting too.
http://paultan.org/archives/2005/08/18/top-gear-ariel-atom/

funny ruby

2005-12-28T22:06:00.000-08:00

i've been reading about Ruby off and on for a few weeks.
http://www.whytheluckystiff.net/ruby/pickaxe/ makes for some good reading.
While i found the parent http://www.whytheluckystiff.net/ totally unrelated to programming, it is absolutely histairical.

brain surgery

2005-12-27T14:16:00.000-08:00

here is something to think about, at least until you have a wire sticking out of your brain.

http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=229 discusses some brain expirments that have been going on for over 50 years that COULD replace convential drugs.

christmas party funds

2005-12-15T14:14:00.000-08:00

at work we took up a collection to help one of ADRA's projects this year:

http://savebagh.blogspot.com/

the united states will remove their air transport by dec 23, 2005; effectively cutting off the mountain villages from support. many will die.

meetings

2005-11-28T11:09:00.000-08:00

check out tt_meeting_5_reasons.pdf for an interesting discussion about 5 reasons for meetings. i like davidco.com. it says things nicely.

sara wanted my roberts rules of order pocket reference card.

moose

2005-10-25T08:30:00.000-07:00

they have eaten apples out of the back of a pickup (uninvited) and have been milling around work for several weeks. they sure are fun to follow around.

torrent

2005-10-17T15:10:00.000-07:00

http://www.suprnova.org/?op=showLong&aID=44 was a very interesting read. stuff is growing very fast now adays. i wonder where it will all lead.

sql server ms access replacments!

2005-10-02T21:23:00.000-07:00

ok, they are not quite as good, but the price is VERY attractive.
I've been playing with OpenOffice 2.0 rc1 Base 2.0, an odbc driver for PostgreSQL, and PostgreSQL 8.0.3.

wow, this has some serious potential.

I've even used Base to model a new ERD for a consulting project i'm working on. I find it intersting i can download, install, and learn Base faster then i can dig up sql server from somewhere. i just need a modeling environment!

the attached graphic is todays brainstorm that is far from normalized.

shop4tech

2005-09-26T07:52:00.000-07:00

shop4tech.com fall coupon code, 10% off; FALL10

bookmarking

2005-09-14T21:11:00.000-07:00

there have been online bookmarking services i've looked at before.
http://del.icio.us/forkev may be one i actually start using.
it thinks like i think. bring it on. time to clean out my book marks and not tie me to specific computers.

evangelism

2005-09-11T19:21:00.000-07:00

bittorent gets a little something special today.
tracker: http://thepiratebay.org/details.php?id=3382040
http://www.torrentspy.com/directory.asp?mode=torrentdetails&id=406058
http://isohunt.com/release.php?id=24093
http://www.torrentreactor.net/view.php?id=5186599

anyone want to help seed?

rednova

2005-09-07T14:01:00.000-07:00

one of my new favorite websites: http://www.rednova.com
timely.

update

2005-08-29T09:01:00.000-07:00

shop4tech.com has labor day sale 10% off using LD10 as coupon code.

I took out the old analog (mercury switch) thermostat and put a homedepo thermostat that we got with our giftcard from our realator. we've the standard 8 wires run to the furnace (which piggy backs to the ac, and would include the heat pump im we had one) - well, i took the old thermostat appart (4 wires were used) and the wires were wearing out and not making connectivity once installed in the new one. i got it up and running using the other 4 wires stacked with the existing wires., so effectively i've used 100% redundancy to get it going. odd. i pulled more of the wire out, stripped back both ends, reseat everything, tried the old thermostat (tried many things) and this was all i could get running. oh well, at least we have 7 day programmable and it's digital! cool. i doubt we'll ever get a head pump so my home jobber on the wire from the thermostat to the furnace should not ever need tampering with.

keiths comment'

2005-08-24T07:47:00.000-07:00

http://alodiah.blogspot.com/2005/03/under-where.html amused me.

free books

2005-08-11T15:26:00.000-07:00

check out this website about charles watson who worked with charles manson in killing people.
apparently he's changed his ways, is in prison, and has published some books you can read for free. our conference presiden came back from asi and told his secretary she should get him some of the books.

more traveling

2005-08-04T07:28:00.000-07:00

this weekend we get to travel from spokane to grants pass. on the way (thursday at 4 pm?!) we'll go to angela's wedding in corvallas. it'll be good to see grandma again.

we're on the go for the house purchase. The lender got ticked about a 2500$ deductable on the house insurance, so we bumped that to $1000. The sellers signed the adendum granting us 20% of our realators fee to be used in our downpayment (our agent wrote a letter pleading for them to reconsider, as it was the same amount of money out of their pockets) and it worked out. Jen's dad is awesome.

I'm well on track to finish the video projector after we move in, (i got some more tools, a skill saw, finish blade, and drill) and i believe my next project will be a 3 (maybe 4) axis cnc machine. i think i'll pickup keith's flag from a few years ago: you got any notes for me?

teen proof house

2005-07-27T11:26:00.000-07:00

TEEN-READY HOUSE TEST
By W. Bruce Cameron funny writer dude
http://www.wbrucecameron.com/

(From a pamphlet produced by our government for home buyers)

Dear Prospective Homeowner:

In the event you are considering purchase of a home that is new ("New") or existing ("Not New"), the following tests will help you determine whether the dwelling is structurally appropriate for teenagers. Please note that these steps only simulate living with a teenager; nothing can actually duplicate the experience, though spending five years running with wild dogs might come close.

The "I'm Angry And So Is My Door" test: To determine whether your interior doors can withstand the temper tantrums of teenagers, repeatedly slam a small bedroom door with a force somewhere between "Sledgehammer" and "Train Wreck." If it helps you get in the mood, feel free to shout "I hate you!" while doing so. After twenty-nine such slams (an average week's worth) check the foundation for cracks. If no fissures are evident, you aren't slamming the door hard enough.

The "I DID Clean My Room" test: Take two baskets of dirty clothes and two baskets of clean clothes and distribute them chaotically throughout a bedroom. Can you see carpet? If you can see carpet, add more clothes. When you cannot see any carpet, add more clothes. Then stand in the middle of the room and shout "I can't find anything to wear!"

The "Why Does It Matter If I Can't Hear You I'm Not Going To Listen Anyway" test: Place a CD in a stereo and turn up the volume as high as it will go. Repeat this with more stereos in each bedroom of the house. When the decibel level exceeds that of the launch of a space shuttle, open any unbroken windows and see whether your neighbors complain. If they don't, you need either (a) more stereos or (b) different neighbors. You simply cannot fully appreciate the Living-with-Teenagers Experience if your neighbors don't complain about your children.

The "But I Had To Rinse My Hair" test: Fully drain your hot-water tank, then try to take a shower because you're late to a meeting. Next, place a kitchen timer in the bathroom with a note saying "ABSOLUTELY NO SHOWERS LONGER THAN FIVE MINUTES," then ignore the note and drain the hot-water tank exactly as before and pretend you're late for another meeting. Repeat this test until you become accustomed to cold showers in the morning.

The "Doesn't Anybody Check the Pockets in This Stupid Family?" test: Place a lipstick in the pocket of a pair of pants and then do a load of laundry. If all the clothing comes out stained, It Isn't Her Fault. If the clothing does not come out stained, repeat the test until it does. For the full Teenage Experience, repeat the test every three weeks or so for five years.

The "Why Can't We Just Order a Pizza?" test: Fill the refrigerator with food, then stand in front of it with the door open and shriek "There's nothing to eat in this house!"

The "Why Can't I Stay Out Later than Midnight No One Else Has Such a Stupid Curfew!" test: This test has two stages. In stage one, scream the title of the test loudly and stomp your foot as hard as you can. If this hurts your foot, try simulating the impact by dropping a cement block from a helicopter. In stage two, drive an automobile at high speed through the neighborhood, pulling into your driveway at fifty miles an hour at one minute before midnight. Park the car with the interior dark for half an hour while the father of the house paces frantically in front of the window. Flick lights on and off several times. Repeat this process every weekend for as long as you live in the house.

The "I AM Doing My Homework" test: Turn on the television, then lie on the floor in front of it, talking on the telephone.

The "It Wasn't a Party, I Just Had Some Friends Over!" test: Leave town for a weekend. When you come back, check to see if the house is still standing.

If the structure passes all of the tests, you can live in it with teenagers. The question is, why would you want to?

fun links

2005-07-26T11:13:00.000-07:00

Orb.com stream your own media to yourself
cnczone.com build your own cnc machine: anyone know of any good kits? i have a friend looking for a kit.

stan meyers : radical hydrogen oxygen splitting claims.

carpetbagger

2005-07-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

pardon the crappy palmpilot pic (and zoom in)
we saw this parked across from us at the stoplight. LOADED with carpet. very funny.

tiled desktop wallpaper

2005-07-21T10:17:00.000-07:00

i stumbled across a picture and hacked it into a square (bad job, actually).
tile this baby on your desktop. it's disturbing.

gateway m675 notebook

2005-07-19T19:43:00.000-07:00

my boss decided it was time to upgrade our almost 4 year old notebooks to something more modern for the IT department, since we live on our computers. I told him my Inspiron 7?00 or is that an 8?00 - whatever, had another year on it. pIII, 256mb memory, 900mhz processor. that baby rocked. and it was a solid machine. my boss's noteook got cluttered and even with 512mb memory and a faster processor he was not happy. so, enter the Gateway M765 notebook

built on a desktop chipset, with a fullblown p4 and hyperthreading- and soon to be 2 gig of memory, who needs a page file? (I turned my page file off, and i currently only have 1 gig memory) the wide screen is very pretty, but not as high of resolution as my dell. big deal. i can adjust. built in media reader, interchanble to a floppy, dvd/cd burner, 60gb hd, integrated wireless, a FULL real keyboard with the 10 key (use that relestate the wide screen gets you) AND onboard firewire with about 5 usb2 ports. this baby is a work horse. I think the slowest thing in this is the 5400? rpm hd, but after it spins up I'm good to go. a REAL upgrade.

so, we go to purchase these from gateway, and like 2 days before we place the order gateway stops selling them. odd. i thought everyone wanted a 10lb notebook that has 1 hour of battery life. I know I do! so, we bought two of them off ebay (on with a slighty better screen, i made the boss take it, he is, after all, the boss.) and the average cost of each machine was about 1300$ before shipping. we'll pour another 400$ into each machine by getting docking stations, more memory, and a 3rd docking station for a dock out in our server room. all in all, several thousand less then gateway would have charged us days before, and our slightly used machines have a few scratches - i consider them worn in.

with my modded xbox controller in one hand, and mouse in the other, unreal 2k4 on this comptuer is very pleasant.

today we pulled 250 feet of fiber optics. soon we'll pull the other 200 feet and connect our outbuilding as an offsite backup facilty. i dont have time to play at work, instead i eat insulation!

house pics during inspection

2005-07-18T21:05:00.000-07:00

backyard and deck from master bedroom

stairs leading up to master, two bedrooms, and shared full bath

master bedroom, notice two closets (each side of room), jetted tub, real shower, and short toilet behind pocket door (not a good pic)

main entrance way leads to formal dining room and pass through to kitchen

all newer appliances. all stay, including fridge.

wood buring fireplace, chimy was clean

~500 sqft deck, finish in excellent condition
6" to 8" of loft in atic. above average for this age of home, but 2-4" under par for new construction

upstairs bedroom and shared bath

downstairs 1/2 bath and utilty room off the garage

living room on left, kitchen on extreeme left, walkout basement down stairs, bath/utility and garage on right, extreeme right family room off kitchen
downstairs 4th bedroom all by it's self. been an office for 15 years? no sign of closet doors.

nice pea gravel concrete. behind this pic (wall to back) houses water softner, active system with salt, sump pump area (plumbed for bathroom but never installed, plumbed for central vac, never installed - no water on basement means we don't have to hastle with a sumppump. the gas furnace is 90% effecient, (almost best on market) and is from 1990 - 4 years after house was built. AC is out this pic just to the left. it work. cenral register on full ac was about 54 degrees.

shake roof - original (about 20 years old) has between 2 and 4 years life left without work/treatment. that roof will end up in my FIREPLACE!

under this window is where heavy snow fall has seaped into the basement. notice no gutter on eve.

closeup of problem area - hasn't leaked in 3 years. landscaping could fix the problem, and who knows, that gravel back there may already do that.

shared bathroom on main floor at ankel level - i think we'll keep it.

10 inches

2005-07-17T18:00:00.000-07:00

thursday i pulled 250 feet of pipe at work (we're putting a pull pipe in place and then pulling fiber optics in place). I heard 2k or 3k $ for someone to do it and i volunteered. it'll take me about 10 hours of work, but that is just crazy. 3k?
well, while in the ceiling/floor (it's between floors) i really only have about 18 inches to crawl through, and you have the floor bracing every 2 feet, insulation, pipes, HVAC, ect - and i found out I can skinny THROUGH a space about 10" high by 18 inches wide. is that crazy or what?

today i was volunteering for some HVAC work at the new chuch addition, and we were in a tight spot so the leader dude looked at me and asked me if I wanted to crawl INSIDE the hvac system to put calking on a few holes we could not get to from the outside. this tin tube was BALANCED on an 18"-on-center floor beam, less then the lenght of my foot high (about 9 inches high), and about 2 feet wide - i crawled in. awesome. i'm a snake.

xbox controlloer

2005-07-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

i love my logitech wireless xbox controller as it's very comfortable, has a HUGE number of buttons (two thumb sticks with buttons under them if you press down, your standard nintendo n-s-e-w style 4 direction, two finger triggers, and 6 action buttons plus start and select. ) and is simply the most amazing divice every to accept 2 batteries. i've used it probable 80+ hours before i had to replace the batteries! i've owned it over seven months and it shows no signs of failure.

i'm thinking this could really enhance my pc gaming.
look no further - it's usb-based and it's got a driver!
have a stab at the xbcd (xbox controller driver) and a simple hardware hack of splicing on a usb adaptor (here we come old mouse! i got one at work already parted out AND i kept the chord. cool.)

after reading about the usb standards for wiring (there are only 4 wires) their standard colors, and taking appart my wireless controller (the part that plugs into the xbox) i've got a nice wiring scheme all worked out and quite a few options without having to cut any wires. cool. my nesticle nes emulator should be very pleasant now.

subaru binding in turn

2005-07-10T20:28:00.000-07:00

i think dad and i may have similar symptoms but it may be different problems based on the age of our cars. my subaru is from 96. i think it was from feburary.
check out for an overview: http://www.legacycentral.org/library/torquebind.htm

http://www.legacycentral.org/library/turbo_faq.htm
Q: I get a rumbling noise when I accelerate at low speeds with the wheels turned, what is that?
A: That is most likely what is called "Torque Bind". It happens when the solenoids in the rear section of the transmission fail or are failing, causing the AWD system to not work properly. This is usually an expensive repair, between $500-1000. It's hit and miss on the problem up until 1997, when the problem was fixed. Newer revisions also had problems with wear in that same area of the case, necessitating replacement of that section of the case.
http://www.parttrackers.com/library/1/93/106/
There are, however, some trans and differential situations that you should know about. To begin with, on any 4WD Subaru, regardless of the type of system, tire diameter consistency is crucial. If all four don't have exactly the same rolling distance per revolution, you can have difficulty engaging/disengaging 4WD and torque bind. With AWD, typical results are severe torque steer (this can damage the differentials), momentary lock-up, and permanent fusion of the viscous coupling (with reference to the last paragraph, this must be extremely rare), which will cause torque bind at all times. Even underinflation or uneven amounts of wear can cause this situation. Recommend regular rotation.

kevin read that the center differential is in the tail section of the tranny

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX?14@910.sQ1Md8HmwaN.0@.ef05e94/4906
The binding created a noise that sounded as if it was coming from the back of the car but there was no real problem with the rear end. The binding and noise was coming from the center differential. This last time in, the service manager really didn't know what to do since she felt that they had done everything possible the last time. She explained to me that they started at the rear wheels and traced through to the center differential looking for anything out of spec. She said that something as small as uneven tire pressure could stress the clutch pack and cause it to fail. That was the reason for the axle bearings replaced. There was some wear and they didn't want to ignore anything. The rear end was fine. The housing I referred to is in the center differential. She described the clutch pack as operating within a casing which can be damaged when the pack fails. Keep in mind that the clutch pack hadn't failed the last two times but they replaced the pack and the casing just in case. They also replaced the electronic control module as well as a valve assembly. ... The center diff comes into play on turns as well, so clutch pack binding could cause some wheel hop and smoke

cv joints

2005-04-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

i roll down the window on teh subaru and the clicking sound that i've always heard with the window down coming from the drivers side wheel is a bit louder then usual.
i beleive it's time to replace the constant velocity joint (which keeps power on the wheel AND the wheel can turn)
i can drop in a replacement shaft with all the joints done for me, or do it myslf for a bit more work and proably end up rending to the tools from shucks for 3$ a day. hmmm. anyone with experience in this?

celebreate something

2005-04-25T06:51:00.000-07:00

http://www.butlerwebs.com/holidays/
THere are some goodies in here. bummer i can't remember what happend a month ago and when i was gone so i can fill in my workers report accurately. i pretty much only leave on holidays - and an upcoming CRUISE!

excel

2005-04-19T08:25:00.000-07:00

excel has always been one of my favorite programs.
recently i was having one of those friday night theredoitical conversations with a fellow nerd who showed me a new game called Sets.

He enjoys playing it with his wife, but ocassionally would just like to know all permutations so they can get on with the next hand.
On the way home, i came up with a sloppy algirithm for checking validity of all relevent combinations and decided to try my hand at modeling it in excel. Version 1 was to have no graphics but just descrive the cards with characters.

4 user defined functions later the prototype was complete.
then i found this cool forms editor in the vba backend of excel, so i made a pretty little form.
I think excell will be my new prototyping platform because it's more portable then a webserver for third paries.

Overview: 81 unique Cards are a combination of the 4 areas
Number 1 2 3 1 2 3
Color R G P Red Green Puple
Symbol D W O Diamond Wave Oval
Shading H L S Hollow Lined Solid

12 cards are laid out and each party visually starts matching trios.

EACH Trio combination is Looked at indepently:
is the number the same or all different
is the color the same or all different
is the symbol the same or all different
is the shading the same or all diferent = TRUE (considered a Set)

and our happy excel UDF's.
Function RandLotto(Bottom As Integer, Top As Integer, Amount As Integer) As String
'cook us up some unique random numbers between bottom and top
Dim iArr As Variant
Dim i As Integer
Dim r As Integer
Dim temp As Integer

Application.Volatile

ReDim iArr(Bottom To Top)
For i = Bottom To Top
iArr(i) = i
Next i
For i = Top To Bottom + 1 Step -1
r = Int(Rnd() * (i - Bottom + 1)) + Bottom
temp = iArr(r)
iArr(r) = iArr(i)
iArr(i) = temp
Next i
For i = Bottom To Bottom + Amount - 1
RandLotto = RandLotto & " " & iArr(i)
Next i
RandLotto = Trim(RandLotto)
End Function

Function SplitReturn(txt As String, Delimeter As String, Position As Integer)
'hack up a string and return position.
'used in conjunction with randlotto to push on cell of 12 entries into 12 cells.
Dim x As Variant
x = Split(txt, Delimeter)
SplitReturn = x(Position - 1)
End Function

Function CheckCards(Cards As Range) As String
'check every relelvent combination for validation

Dim Output As String 'string to return
Dim x As Integer 'hold first card
Dim y As Integer 'hold second card
Dim z As Integer 'hold third card
Dim a As Integer 'counter master just for testing

For x = 1 To 10 Step 1
For y = x + 1 To 11 Step 1
For z = y + 1 To 12 Step 1
'IF card(X)Position 1, 2 ,3 4 check out then output card #'s
If ValidateCards(Cards(x), Cards(y), Cards(z)) = True Then
If Output <> "" Then Output = Output & " ! "
Output = Output & x & "," & y & "," & z
End If
'a = a + 1
'If x = 10 And y = 11 And z = 12 Then Output = Output & "!TotalCounts:" & a
Next z
Next y
Next x

CheckCards = Output

End Function

Function ValidateCards(x As String, y As String, z As String) As String
'check 3 cards to see if they validate
Dim toReturn As Boolean
toReturn = False 'default value to return

'check positions 1,1,2,4

If (Mid(x, 1, 1) = Mid(y, 1, 1) And Mid(y, 1, 1) = Mid(z, 1, 1)) Or (Mid(x, 1, 1) <> Mid(y, 1, 1) And Mid(x, 1, 1) <> Mid(z, 1, 1) And Mid(y, 1, 1) <> Mid(z, 1, 1)) Then
If (Mid(x, 2, 1) = Mid(y, 2, 1) And Mid(y, 2, 1) = Mid(z, 2, 1)) Or (Mid(x, 2, 1) <> Mid(y, 2, 1) And Mid(x, 2, 1) <> Mid(z, 2, 1) And Mid(y, 2, 1) <> Mid(z, 2, 1)) Then
If (Mid(x, 3, 1) = Mid(y, 3, 1) And Mid(y, 3, 1) = Mid(z, 3, 1)) Or (Mid(x, 3, 1) <> Mid(y, 3, 1) And Mid(x, 3, 1) <> Mid(z, 3, 1) And Mid(y, 3, 1) <> Mid(z, 3, 1)) Then
If (Mid(x, 4, 1) = Mid(y, 4, 1) And Mid(y, 4, 1) = Mid(z, 4, 1)) Or (Mid(x, 4, 1) <> Mid(y, 4, 1) And Mid(x, 4, 1) <> Mid(z, 4, 1) And Mid(y, 4, 1) <> Mid(z, 4, 1)) Then
toReturn = True
End If '3
End If '2
End If '1
End If '0

ValidateCards = toReturn
'ValidateCards = Mid(x, 0, 1)
End Function

motercycle dude

2005-04-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

coming back from napa yesterday we had a motercycle pass us, weaving through traffic. it veared around us and then jogged back in front of us pretty close to the car in the other lane.

both alodia and myself volunteered we did not view that as really safe. this dude looked to be in his 50's and just tearing it up a bit now that spring is shining.

well, 2 blocks later traffic was gummed up and i looked down between the cars and i could see that he'd rearended a car probably as he tried to swerve around it in the intersection. bike was pretty mangled and forks were bent back almost into the eninge and front wheel was more of a rectangle then a circle. i saw him staggerin away as a nearby roadcrew started directing traffic.

i felt bad for the dude. yeah, he's being stupid, but i seldom find joy in someone getting what is coming to them.

blown computer revisited

2005-04-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

well
today marked another day fighting the computer: i just want it to stay alive long enought to grab me some stuff off bittorrent -
fat chance. it lives anywhere from 5 minutes to 5 hours. then just locks up.
so i started digging around thinking maybe i could upgrade the cmos/bios and fix a few problems. sure, i can get a new processor and mb for 150$, but that's 150$ i'd rather spend on vacation.
so i take it appart and launch bios to check out processor tempature.
74 centegrade at idle. now, i don't know about you, but that seems pretty toasty for idle, especially an intel - and this baby is NOT overclocked.
maybe that clip breaking off means my heatsink is not on square. so i go to take off the other clip and promply break those brackets too. oh well, no big deal.
well, the heat sink is clogged with dust, but it's still sucking air. maybe i'll just clean up everything and zip tie that baby back on the motherboard!
that's done and so far: sp2 is almost installed. i've not checked on the working temp of the processor, but my guess is i've solved the problem.

iso 8601

2005-04-07T09:27:00.000-07:00

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_8601 describes this standard as includeing "By convention, the week starts with Monday. "

I saw this option on HiDownload 6.2 software scheduler. Inturesting.

Maybe i'll create a standard that makes all yellows orange; ya know, so we are all on the same page.

blown computer

2005-04-02T10:02:00.000-08:00

for quite sometime i've tried to install xp sp2 on my computer.
EVERY TIME it has locked up my computer. screen freeses, numlock/capslock/scroll lock don't light up on keyboard, and mouse just looks at you dumb.
about a week ago i decided i wanted to play serious sam, and after launching the game, my compute would freeze. i decied to get to the bottom of this, once and for all.
i backed up and went to do a full reinstall of xp on top of it's self and that would lock up every time the installer from disk was ALMOST ready to start after copying all the files for 5 minutes.
so after trying a clean install and getting the same symptom, i deciede to take the primary hd off line and see if it was a hardware problem. nope - same symptom with second hd set to primary.
as i'm lookint at my 3 hard drives and thinking, i notice this metal clip that had been over the p4 cpu now lying on my VIDEO CARD (i've a tower case) - it had broken off and dropped onto the back of the video card. who knows how long it's been there. what on earth - after having open metal shorting out the video card, this explains the instabilty. odd thing is, it shows up in sp2 install but not just surfing the internet. i've concluded something on the motherboard is fried and have given up trying to solve the issue and HOPE my windows install does not self corrupt as i know there is now no way to install it with the current configuration.
i even went as far to take the existing video card out (and all the other cards) put in aother video card and STILL the symptons existed. chalk one up for dumb luck. this, coupled with subaru made for an inturesting week. i sure am looking foward to that cruise, and happy we're not driving.

jim brickman concert

2005-03-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

last night we went to a jim brickman concert at the spokane opera house.

i had a good time.
my sister in law came with us and managed to take a few photos with the flah ON after it was explicilty indicated that no flash photo's were allowed per house rules. this was an accident - but it still met with some giggles.

i saw some church members there - and the place was FAR from sold out. it was MAYBE 1/4th full. so our seats got upgrated to orchistra pit and we were about 15 rows back in the center. very nice.

church webpage

2005-03-20T21:42:00.000-08:00

for over a year now i've been slated for doing our churches web page.
about 8 months ago I presented to the board my vision (which costs about 15$ per year for the domain name) and told them i would build them anything they wanted under the following conditions:
1. they identify their audience(s) and put mechanisms in place to determine our effictivents of reaching them with the webpage medium.
2. they identify what our content should be
3. they identify and maintain a flow of information extenal of the devloper and commit to keeping the content fresh.
4. the developement is to be documented and cross trained so it does not die if the deveoper (me) is not availble or moves on (like countless chuch webpages in the past)

well, we've almost gotten 1 and 2, and 3 is pretty slim since our secretary is leaving, and 4 is up to me. so i've started as of FRIDAY!

i'm working with another guy doing minimulistic (yet awesome) graphics and page design, and i've comitted to doing a web wysiwyg editor with possibly a dataase backend for a content management system (although version 1 will probably be a straight, flat, html file system with image upload capability by administrators - in adition to the full ftp access put in place.)

There are nice free asp cms systems, but they are all too heavy for what i want, so i'm writing my own stripped down one in the inturest of my minimulistic approach: public sees html files, no scripting anywhere,so anyone can maintain the webpage, just read html file, edit html file, write html file with an asp wrapper for secuirty.

i've reviewed richtextbox.com and it's VERY powerful, yet the price is WAY beyond the budget.
SO that brings me to the coolest tool i've found recently. fckEditor - opensource strikes again. check it out. very cool stuff.

news from the wasteland

2005-03-16T09:43:00.000-08:00

we're going public and it's not bulletproof yet.
oh well, sometimes cleaning up messes is faster then being ready.
the moving goal posts of this project (feature creap x 10) have wore me out so i'm to the point where i really don't care anymore. i have faith in what i've built for 16 months, so if it's going to fail (or break in an area) its because they've amended the business process for the 101st time and i'm not quite on top of it. i guess that is what they get for changing their mind and not truly knowing how their business functions.

insane business rule #200 that cannot be done on paper (my rule of thumb for appropriate) - IT's for all applicants (even inside a group of up to 40) needing to have a medical revision date within the last 6 months and to choose at least 1 allergy even if that allergy is 'no known allergies' - try enforcing THAT with your fax machine and short intructions!

so, here's some code from this morning to keep everyone happy:

Dim aMembers() As String = viewstate("Group") 'pull from viewstate
For x = 0 To (GroupMemberCount() - 1) 'each member
ViewState("GrpMemSel") = (x + 1).ToString 'set active member to one that failed 'the group counter starts at 1 and our array starts at 0
If aMembers((x * 50) + 2) <> "" Then 'group member _First_Name exists
If Strings.IsDate(aMembers((x * 50) + 15).ToString) = "False" Then 'check medicaldate
Errors.Add(New Validation("txtGMedicalDate", "Date must be in MM/DD/YYYY"))
Else
If CDec(DateDiff(DateInterval.Day, CDate(aMembers((x * 50) + 15).ToString), Now())) < 180 And CDec(DateDiff(DateInterval.Day, CDate(aMembers((x * 50) + 15).ToString), Now())) >= 0 Then
'if it's not the same then save
If aMembers((x * 50) + 15) <> Strings.IsDate(aMembers((x * 50) + 15).ToString) Then
aMembers((x * 50) + 15) = Strings.IsDate(aMembers((x * 50) + 15).ToString)
viewstate("Group") = aMembers 'save
End If 'date checks out.
Else
Errors.Add(New Validation("txtGMedicalDate", "Your Medical Record Update Date must be within the past six months.")) ' & CDec(DateDiff(DateInterval.Day, CDate(txtGMedicalDate.Text), Now()) / 365.25)))
End If 'old enough based on context
End If 'valid medical date

If Strings.IsTrue(aMembers((x * 50) + 31)) = False _
And Strings.IsTrue(aMembers((x * 50) + 32)) = False _
And Strings.IsTrue(aMembers((x * 50) + 33)) = False _
And Strings.IsTrue(aMembers((x * 50) + 34)) = False _
And Strings.IsTrue(aMembers((x * 50) + 35)) = False _
And Strings.IsTrue(aMembers((x * 50) + 36)) = False Then 'check allergies
Errors.Add(New Validation("lblGAllergies", "A minimum of 'No Known Allergies' must be selected."))
viewstate("Group") = aMembers 'save
End If 'valid allergies

If Errors.Count > 0 Then 'redraw controls and crash out of loop if they fail.
Call GroupMemberLoad() 'draw them to the screen
Call DrawGroupList() 'draw the group
Exit Select 'bail out.
End If 'errors and we saved and left
End If 'if fname exists
Next 'group member
End If 'no erros so check our members for validation.

homebrew lcd video projector update

2005-03-08T09:42:00.000-08:00

i just got my electronic ballast, uv filter plastic, bulb and socket last nite.
it looks like is all i'm missing is some wires and wood (and mayabe some fuses) to make this a reality.
a trip to home depot should give me the first wave of stuff to slaughter in my endevour. I went slow, purchased things as I undeststood them, and still ended up paying premium as i wanted the better stuff. so far i've about $590 into it all with the shipping and stuff.

yeah, yeah, i culd have ebayed an old projector - but it's the thrill of doing it yourself that has me going. it's becoming quite exciting.

savetoby.com

2005-03-07T21:46:00.000-08:00

http://www.savetoby.com/ Disturbing.
not so much the eating, but the amount that has come in.

the big stuff

2005-03-03T08:41:00.000-08:00

it looks like when you calculate our tithe and daily cost, we're spending about 14k a year. see! i was right! we do live like we're on welfare. that accounts for all travel, food, purchases, gifts, rent, tithe, insurance, out of pocket medical, what have you.

so, where does the rest of the income go? taxes and savings.
at this rate, we'll be able to afford the 20% on a new house (i'm estimated a 160-180k house) by THE END OF THE SUMMER.
it's crazy: last year we leveled the 24k in student loans, got us a 'newer' car for 5k, a new dining room table for 500 smakers, an xbox and some new clothes for that person that lives in my house with me (not near as many as she'd lke i'm sure).

we've only been saving since about october last year for the new house and we're almost half way to 40k (whatever that is). my taxes never felt so good. it allowed to me to sit down and see that we are way ahead of the financial game and COULD live on welfare if we had to.

we ran the numbers last night and played like we worked at mcDonalds - we could afford our current lifestyle (just no savings or new house).

maybe i hsould have gotten in on google's ipo. that would have been nice.
i guess it's time to start looking on the house market. see what's out there.

the little things

2005-03-03T08:07:00.000-08:00

so i have a set method for brushing my teeth: turn on water, get toothbrush, rinse toothbrush, apply a small amount of toothpaste, rinse toothebrush, brush teeth in up and down mothion starting at front teeth, then right, then left, then top of teeth (cutting surface) then back of teeth. rince toothbrush, bang toothbrush on sink to get water out, dry toothbrush on towel. replace toothbrush.

i get annoyed when the cap of the toothpaste is wet (from previous brusher) AND i've taken to drying my toothbrush and NOT letting it go all the way into the toothbrush holder becasue i've found WATER in there (from previous brusher) so i just kinda let me toothbrush hang out the top of the holer at an angle keeping it's handle out of the nasty sludge that COULD be at the bottom. i also started drying my toothbrush on my towel before replacing it so i could rule myself out as the 'water donater' person to the toothbrush holder.

now, this ritual meets with frequent ridicule usually around he banging of the toothbrush part, or the part where i complain about the wet toothpaste cap.
i had the other brusher do a little test with me last night. i instructed her to put her pants on two different ways: once without thinking about it, and the second time with putting the OTHER leg in first. she obliged and I watched her step on her pantleg on the second try. although the brushed it off and said it was ok, i said THAT IS WHAT IT IS LIKE when my ritual for brushing teeth gets changed. it just feels wrong, ok?
she said it was not a fair comparison. i thought it was.

i also told her (after the first pants putting on event) that her favorite leg was her right leg, and it figured. she said 'why'. i said it figured because my favored leg was my left and she was like keith. he favors his right too.

so this mornnig i find her askign me to open the curtains to let light into the plants. i say 'just like my mom, making me do lots of little things when it's faster to do them yourself then descrribe the need to another person'
so she's taken offence: she's like my brother AND my mom. i said she breathes air and has a reproductive organ, so that makes her like most people.

so we get in the car. we talk about friends and how she's more introvert and likes friends and i'm more extrovert and don't recgonoise my need for friends.
i begin rambling about her 'cognitive dissence' for friends and then told her i just made that up, as i don't know what that means.
she said cognitive means conscuios thought, and dissenece is not a word.
SO lets check it out and see if kevin is full of crap:

cognitive
1. Of, characterized by, involving, or relating to cognition: “Thinking in terms of dualisms is common in our cognitive culture” (Key Reporter).
2. Having a basis in or reducible to empirical factual knowledge.

dissonance
1. A harsh, disagreeable combination of sounds; discord.
2. Lack of agreement, consistency, or harmony; conflict: “In Vietnam, reality fell away and dissonance between claim and fact filled the void” (Michael Janeway).
3. Music. A combination of tones contextually considered to suggest unrelieved tension and require resolution.

I wonder if putting an adjactive before a noun is the proper order....

so, there you have it. the recap from the last 12 hours of my life which concludes i'm full of crap in some cases. at least i'm honest about it: we CAN fix what i achnowledge.

edit: on second thought, maybe the fact there is evidence for her having an internal conflict: liking friends but not stepping out to make friends DOES demonstrate i had close to the right words (even though dissoncenc is not a word - but the word like it makes sense...)

HAW have some of that. i can cram my slipperslope logic into off the cuff conversations and defend myself!

x-treme glider, $2.00

2005-02-26T13:46:00.000-08:00

goodwill. asking $10. i ask to look at the peices and the main stick of carbon fiber is broken. i offer them $5. they talk themselves down to $2. explain that.
a bic pen and coat hanger with thin wire to 'pull' the main rod together fix the problem.
oh yeah, and it glides too. i've yet to find it sold on the internet, but the label lists www.xkites.com as the manufacture and that is the ONLY mention. no company address.

streaker

2005-02-17T11:16:00.000-08:00

after reading about Another Golden Palace Streaker (old news) I found this helpful bit of information.

how do i find this crap you ask?
this blog was the starting point.

more spam

2005-02-14T15:06:00.000-08:00

Count the "F's" in the following text:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE-
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIF-
IC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE
EXPERIENCE OF YEARS...

problem statement

2005-02-14T14:46:00.000-08:00

I now this is not fair as you do not have the Entity Relationship Diagram for the database, but it's something to think about.
using SQL, answer the following question.
which camp events (like archery) is a camper allowed to join?
conditions: they can only join events that are not full.
they can remain in a camp that is full during an edit if they do not choose an alternate class.
only return classes the camper may join (or stay in)

solution:
IF @Type = 'U' --we're a user asking the question, not an administrator
Begin
SELECT Event.Event_ID, Event.Event_Name,
(Select Count(@Camper_ID) from Camper_Event where Camper_Event.Event_ID = Event.Event_ID and Camper_Event.Camper_Camp_Event_ID=@Camp_Event_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_ID=@Camper_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_Event_Period_Number=@PeriodID) as camperatclass,
(Select Event.Event_Capacity) as Capacity,
(Select Count(@Camper_ID) from Camper_Event where Camper_Event.Event_ID = Event.Event_ID and Camper_Event.Camper_Camp_Event_ID=@Camp_Event_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_Event_Period_Number=@PeriodID) as atclass
FROM Class_Period INNER JOIN
Period_Event ON Class_Period.Class_Period_ID = Period_Event.Class_Period_ID INNER JOIN
Camp_Session_Event ON Period_Event.Camp_Session_Event_ID = Camp_Session_Event.Camp_Session_Event_ID INNER JOIN
Event ON Camp_Session_Event.Event_ID = Event.Event_ID
WHERE (Camp_Session_Event.Camp_Session_ID = @campsessionid) AND
(Class_Period.Period_Number = @PeriodID) and
(((Select Event.Event_Capacity) > (Select Count(@Camper_ID) from Camper_Event where Camper_Event.Event_ID = Event.Event_ID and Camper_Event.Camper_Camp_Event_ID=@Camp_Event_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_Event_Period_Number=@PeriodID)) OR --capacity!
(Select Count(@Camper_ID) from Camper_Event where Camper_Event.Event_ID = Event.Event_ID and Camper_Event.Camper_Camp_Event_ID=@Camp_Event_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_ID=@Camper_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_Event_Period_Number=@PeriodID)>0) --in class
And -1 < (Select Count(@Camper_ID) from Camper_Event where Camper_Event.Event_ID = Event.Event_ID and Camper_Event.Camper_Camp_Event_ID=@Camp_Event_ID And Camper_Event.Camper_ID=@Camper_ID)
ORDER BY Event.Event_Name
end

conclusion: that is one HAIRY statemtn to write by hand. bummer i dont' know how to do it in a GUI tool.

this kinda makes my modification to the blogger hack look a little less impressive!

Edit: ho ho ho. vs7 reversed it and drew it in the gui for me. nice.

shine that shield

2005-02-14T11:19:00.000-08:00

That person i live with now calls me Spartacus.

she claims her nickname is better then the one i call her (Seniorita and Gertrude).

sooooo, now i'm like 2100 years old and have no shield and am destined to die in a revolt. great.

----------------
Plutarch wrote.

Spartacus, seeing that he could no longer avoid a pitched battle, set his army in array. When his horse was brought to him, he drew out his sword and killed it, saying that if he won the day he would get a better horse from the enemy; and if he lost the day he should have no need of any horse.

coworker darin's rejection letter

2005-02-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

he did not get the job he wanted when he graduated, so he wrote them this letter in response to his rejection:

Thank you for your letter of July 17. After careful consideration I regret to inform you that I am unable to accept your refusal to offer me employment with your firm. This year I have been particularly fortunate in receiving an unusually large number of rejection letters.
With such a varied and promising field of corporate candidates it is impossible for me to accept all refusals for employment.
Despite your company's outstanding qualifications and previous experience in rejecting applicants, I find that your rejection does not meet my needs at this time. Therefore, I will initiate employment with your firm immediately following graduation.
I look forward to seeing you then.
Best of luck in rejecting future candidates.

wife and i joing small group friday nights

2005-02-09T13:35:00.000-08:00

wife wrote to darin to let him know we'd join his small bible study group on friday night:

Kevin and I would like to join w/ you guys in your small group. But if you snub us, weâ€™re outta there. And Kevin says â€œYEAH

And they have to agree with everything I say, AND feed me good food.â€�

So, if you can work with us on this, let us know :)

Alodia

Darin responds with acceptance and the following comments
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>.
Hey great! Most of us are glad to have you!
haha, just teasing, we are ALL glad to have you....
...for now anyway.
This week we meet at 6pm at our gorgeous estate, perhaps you can find it? Natalie will be sending dinner instructions shortly (potluck style), you've met her? She thinks she's quite witty, but just ignore that...
...like the rest of us have learned to do.
Anyway, obviously we will have to negotiate among our group about your "joining the group - contract" requirements.
I cannot speak for the rest of the group, but I would say, since we are being asked to "agree with everything you share, AND feed you good food," then we should be allowed to "make fun of you at ANY time, with no warning, nor apology." Does that sound fair?
Well, I guess it doesn't matter, because that is what's going to happen week after week whether you agree to it or not. That's really what our group is all about. Building ourselves up, through tearing each other down. Some groups build each other up. Not our group. One time I was vulnerable and shared a story of how a bully punched me at school. The simple fact that the bully was a couple years younger than me did nothing to heighten the sympathy of my "friends." They laughed and laughed. They didn't laugh WITH me, they laughed AT me. But it's all in good fun! And over time we heal.
See you there, glad to have you and Kevin's infamous new "Bible" involved!
Darin

the 'bible' darin is referring to is a parafrased bible from england called 'the word on the street' that does not claim to be a bible but rather another way of telling the same story and is VERY contraversial. that's why I have it. it's missing entire chapters for Daniel and i've not even looked at revelation yet. IT wouldn't surprise me to find an entire book omitted. it is fun to discuss though.

more office spam.

2005-02-07T17:30:00.000-08:00

i actually liked this one.

ROMANCE MATHEMATICS
Smart man + smart woman = romance
Smart man + dumb woman = affair
Dumb man + smart woman = marriage
Dumb man + dumb woman = pregnancy

OFFICE ARITHMETIC
Smart boss + smart employee = profit
Smart boss + dumb employee = production
Dumb boss + smart employee = promotion
Dumb boss + dumb employee = overtime

SHOPPING MATH
A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.
A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need.

GENERAL EQUATIONS & STATISTICS
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.
A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

HAPPINESS
To be happy with a man, you must understand him a lot and love him a little.
To be happy with a woman, you must love her a lot and not try to understand her at all.

LONGEVITY
Married men live longer than single men do, but married men are a lot more willing to die.

PROPENSITY TO CHANGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, and she does.

DISCUSSION TECHNIQUE
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

HOW TO STOP PEOPLE FROM BUGGING YOU ABOUT GETTING MARRIED
Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

SEND THIS TO A SMART WOMAN WHO NEEDS A LAUGH AND TO THE SMART GUYS YOU KNOW CAN HANDLE IT

projectors: lcd found.

2005-02-04T21:38:00.000-08:00

here's my little picture sequence of taking it appart (i did not take pics as i put it back together)

alodia sick

2005-02-02T15:48:00.000-08:00

alodia sick for two days. fever between 100 and 102. I guess my cooking finally got to her.

Projector

2005-01-31T15:30:00.000-08:00

It begins.
Lenses 72.53 LumenLab.com standard lens kit
LCD Monitor -iCuePC.com 169.00 (sale) CMV CT-520D - two inputs, analog and digital.

sunset

2005-01-31T15:27:00.000-08:00

when the sun sets is a pretty big deal for many relegions.
check out the 'discussion' that was email from our communications department as they are preparing next years callendar and choosing 'sunset times' to put in it.

I have not got a clear answer on how many degrees they have adopted.

------begin email -----
I came across these definitions for sunset while researching sunset times for the Trust department's sunset calendar. These definitions may come in handy for those who need a few more minutes on Friday to finish washing the car, mowing the lawn, or vacuuming the carpet. :-)

SunriseSunset.com
Sunset Definitions

Civil Twilight
Civil twilight is defined when the sun is 6 degrees below the horizon. This is the limit at which twilight illumination is sufficient, under good weather conditions, for terrestrial objects to be clearly distinguished; at the beginning of morning civil twilight, or end of evening civil twilight, the horizon is clearly defined and the brightest stars are visible under good atmospheric conditions in the absence of moonlight or other illumination. In the morning before the beginning of civil twilight and in the evening after the end of civil twilight, artificial illumination is normally required to carry on ordinary outdoor activities.

Nautical Twilight
Nautical twilight is defined when the sun is 12 degrees below the horizon. At the beginning or end of nautical twilight, under good atmospheric conditions and in the absence of other illumination, general outlines of ground objects may be distinguishable, but detailed outdoor operations are not possible, and the horizon is indistinct.

Astronomical Twilight
Astronomical twilight is defined when the sun is 18 degrees below the horizon. Before the beginning of astronomical twilight in the morning and after the end of astronomical twilight in the evening the sun does not contribute to sky illumination; for a considerable interval after the beginning of morning twilight and before the end of evening twilight, sky illumination is so faint that it is practically imperceptible.

bowl and pitcher

2005-01-29T10:14:00.000-08:00

we're going to the bowl and pitcher after church today.
ya'll are invited.
i almost hit a herron with a rock (hit from a stick like a baseball bat) when dave and i went there last summer. oops. that bird was a long way down there and i did not see it hidden behind a tree. the screeching and flapping after i startled it let me know it was not too happy about the whole ordeal.
it's a good thing dave it not with us this time: poor alodia was so bored with dave and i wondering around and hitting rocks into the water (while continuing trying to one up eachother with a better hittin stick found).

elliptical

2005-01-28T21:51:00.000-08:00

this is a short confession to the masses.
we spent WAY to long looking and not buying. We (the other half and myself) have concluded that haveing an elliptical trainer (like a stairclimber that got in a fight with a treadmill) would be a good idea.
it's quiet, it's low impact, and it'll end up right in front of the tv.
well, leave it to ME to make a simple idea unbearable.
We've been looking for one since the beginig of december. i've searched and read, and searched, and formed theories, and we've even tried a few.
the more i think about them, the more the 700$ ones just don't seem like the one's i want. well, she's ready to settle for a sears sale, and i must say, it's not a bad idea.

BUT, faced with the option of actually spending money today for a tool that does not have me holding down my divit in front of the tv and i buckled. The top two local machines we liked will be off sale by tomarrow evening.

what's a guy to do? strap two milk jugs to his ankles, fill them with 700$ of quarters, and install a chinup bar over the couch as penance?

I fear by the time we get to the bottom of this process the flowers will be out of the ground and exercising indoors with no AC will be VERY warm. Maybe i'll then take the tv outside and walk around it or something.

brator. -who?

2005-01-25T14:25:00.000-08:00

alodia wrote me an email that said:

Keith: â€œvibrator just has a way of waking you up in a meeting.â€� (speaking of his cell phone)

Now, naturally i'm confused, as thisis all it said, and k2h has been talking about c phones for a while so it seems almost appropriate.
after thinking about it for a bit, i realize she's describing the keith at work that wonders by her desk and usually is mumbling to himslf about odd things.

office politic spam

2005-01-24T09:15:00.000-08:00

but at least it's a catchy toon.
http://www.jibjab.com/lowband/default.htm

good site.

2005-01-19T17:30:00.000-08:00

lots of funny pics.
http://go.to/funpic
i think this is my new favorite site for this week.

times have changed.

2005-01-19T09:04:00.000-08:00

more spam.

2005-01-18T15:55:00.000-08:00

email with pics of odd pets doing odd things. i liked this pic.

more corporate spam: Administratium

2005-01-18T08:46:00.000-08:00

New Element Discovered . . . . Administratium

A major research institution has recently announced the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science. This new element has been tentatively named "Administratium." Administratium has 1 neutron, 12 assistant neutrons, 75 deputy neutrons, and 111 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.

These 312 particles are held together by a force called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since Administratium has no electrons, it is inert. However, it can be detected as it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact. A minute amount of Administratium causes one reaction to take over 4 days to complete when it would normally take less than a second.

Administratium has a normal half-life of 3 years; it does not decay but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Administratium's mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization causes some morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes.

This characteristic of moron-promotion leads some scientists to speculate that Administratium is formed whenever morons reach a certain quantity in concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as "Critical Morass." You will know it when you see it.

saw a thing on the news

2005-01-15T18:07:00.000-08:00

saw a thing on the news about assisted care living center in spokane giving the residents an oportunity to have a snow ball fight ... mith marshallows.
it was the best news coverage i've seen in days.
i'm sick of watching people die - marshmallows at least get my spirits up.

LumanLab

2005-01-15T17:59:00.000-08:00

I rolled out the 20$ for their 'guide'.
I must say - it's worth it.
good discussion, good community.
i've got enough reading here before i finalize my plans to last several weeks.
check out lumanlab.com