Your turn!
*rolls eyes*
•July 23, 2009 • 1 CommentIf you’re following the auto news (for some sick reason), today’s news is that Ford is declaring a net profit for the quarter. It’s still an operational loss. It’s progress, but it’s not stop-the-press news like some papers are declaring.
Wisdom from the internets:
•July 21, 2009 • 2 CommentsInteresting business lesson learned on a bicycle: it’s very difficult to improve your performance on the downhills.
I used to dread the uphill parts of my ride. On a recumbent bike, they’re particularly difficult. So I’d slog through, barely surviving, looking forward to the superspeedy downhill parts.
Unfortunately, I had a serious accident a few years ago (saving the life of a clueless pedestrian by throwing myself onto the pavement). Downhill might be fast, but it’s crazy.
Lesson learned. Now, I look forward to the uphill parts, because that’s where the work is, the fun is, the improvement is. On the uphills, I have a reasonable shot at a gain over last time. The downhills are already maxed out by the laws of physics and safety.
The best time to do great customer service is when a customer is upset. The moment you earn your keep as a public speaker is when the room isn’t just right or the plane is late or the projector doesn’t work or the audience is tired or distracted. The best time to engage with an employee is when everything falls apart, not when you’re hitting every milestone. And everyone now knows that the best time to start a project is when the economy is lousy.
Myths about hydration
•July 15, 2009 • 22 Commentshttp://lifehacker.com/5309517/mythbusting-four-myths-about-staying-hydrated-debunked/gallery/
I love this one.
Myth 1 – you should be drinking 8 glasses of water a day.
I’ve had a number of people tell me this one – it’s been shown (check snopes or the article) that unless you’re talking about easily-dehydrated elderly, you’re probably doing your wallet and your kidneys a disservice with 8 glasses of water a day.
Myth 2 – Caffeinated drinks don’t count.
You actually retain at least half the fluid from caffeinated drinks – the only drinks that leave you with a net loss are alcoholic.
Myth 3 – “Being thirsty” is too late
Some people tell you that you should drink before you feel thirsty, maintaining a regular fluid level at all times.
However, most doctors say you should rely on the one thirst indicator that is most reliable – your mouth.
Myth 4 – you need a sports drink to replace the electrolytes and other minerals lost in sweating
For most outdoor exercise, water is just fine – watered down fruit juice is similarly helpful.
On that note, personally I do find that a sports drink helps me to feel restored after a workout or heavy exertion, but only if it was sustained over an hour or more.
This post is mostly for Melanie, who laughed when I said I was going home to go right to bed
•July 14, 2009 • 9 CommentsThere’s this article (NSFW due to her and a pie recipe) in Esquire about Mary-Louise Parker from Weeds (which I’ve never seen) in which the author thanks her profusely, and she in kind writes an ode to men. It put a grin in my face, so I thought I’d reproduce it here:
A Thank-You Note to Men
By Mary-Louise ParkerTo you, whom it may concern:
Manly creature, who smells good even when you don’t, you wake up too slowly, with fuzzy, vertical hair and a slightly lost look on your face as though you are seven or seventy-five; you can fix my front door, my sink, and open most jars; you, who lose a cuff link and have to settle for a safety pin, you have promised to slay unfortunate interlopers and dragons with your Phillips head or Montblanc; to you, because you will notice a woman with a healthy chunk of years or pounds on her and let out a wolf whistle under your breath and mean it; because you think either rug will be fine, really it will; you seem to walk down the street a little taller than me, a little more aware but with a purpose still; to you who codifies, conjugates, slams a puck, baits a hook, builds a decent cabinet or the perfect sandwich; you who gives a twenty to the kids selling Hershey’s bars and waits at baggage claim for three hours in your flannel shirt; you, sir, you take my order, my pulse, my bullshit; you who soaps me in the shower, soaks with me in the tub; to you, boy grown-up, the gentleman, soldier, professor, or caveman, the fancy man with initials on your towels and salt on your chocolates, to you and to that guy at the concession stand; thank you for the tour of the vineyard, the fire station, the sound booth, thank you for the kaleidoscope, the Horsehead Nebula, the painting, the truth; to you who carries me across the parking lot, up the stairs, to the ER, to roll-away or rice mat; to you who shows up every so often only to confuse and torment, and you who stays in orbit, always, to my left and steady, you stood up for me, I won’t forget that; to you, the one who can’t figure it out and never will, and you who lost the remote, the dog, or your way altogether; to you, wizard, you sang in my ear and brought me back from the dead, you tell me things, make me shiver; to the ones who destroyed me, even if for a minute, and to the ones who grew me, consumed me, gave me my heart back times ten; to most everything that deserves to call itself a man: How I do love thee, with your skill to light fires that keep me warm, light me up.
Now that is how to flatter an entire gender!
Hi folks
•July 13, 2009 • 8 CommentsThere’s sorta a meme out there amongst my LJ about typing with your eyes closed without hitting delete, so I’m giving that a shot. For this entire post.
I’ve gotten some great expressions from friends and family when they aske (stupid e) me a question while typing and I look up to chat at them while my fingers do the walking. *smirk*
But that wasn’t really what I was going to post about. It’s about that time, late at night, when one reviews one’s life and the present state of afairs. Lucy spent the weekend with me and is off to her next rotation. I spent time with friends this week. I sang with gusto. I’ve done some crazy-hard work at the office, which will continue into this week, while also doing part of my former boss’ job since he’s on vacation.
Once in awhile, when I’m feeling exceptionally grateful for where my life has been and where it is going, I think of a song from my early teen years (when things weren’t hot at all). I threw together a bunch of photos, ears ago, just to put faces to the felings.
I’ll come back to edit this post with the video, if it is still on the interwebs. Clearly I should make a new one sometime with all the fabulous friends I’ve made since then.
Anyway, how’d I do with my blind typing?
PS It’s the same one, naturally, that I’ve posted three or four times before, but I like to remind myself from time to time.
Weapon evolution based on neural networks
•July 8, 2009 • Comments Off on Weapon evolution based on neural networksI can’t wait for the day that our games evolve like they did in Ender’s Game, so long ago. Well, except for the creepy psychoanalysis and stealing childhood pictures to populate your enemies with faces you know.
Shimmy Shimmy Splodey Pop
•July 6, 2009 • 2 CommentsEarthenwood: what kind of adventure did you get into this morning?
atdt1991: oh boy
atdt1991: it’s a story, that’s for sure
Earthenwood: wow
atdt1991: I’m leaving for work, and the car feels a bit sluggish, and I wonder if a tire is low. I pull into the gas station and confirm my right rear tire needs air, and fill it up all proper-like. I head out and my car has a serious shake. Hoping it’s just a seal that needs to pop into place, I get on the freeway, where it is clear that the Self Destruct Sequence has been initiated. I immediately get off the freeway and call work, telling them I’m taking the car to the dealership.
atdt1991: I get a half-mile down the surface streets and BOOM! – it is clear that my tire has gone splodey.
atdt1991: Pulled into a lot, put on my donut, drove to the dealership, chatted up the lady who sold me my car and waited … for them to tell me to come back at 4 to get my tire replacement.
atdt1991: At least, with my tire warranty, it’s free.
