Notes

So I've promised Greer that I'll write to her more often. Heather has unintentionally lit a fire under my butt, having written something only slightly shorter than The Fountainhead.

I, however, am going to content myself with sending her postcards for the moment.

And the URL to this blog. Hi Greer. :)

A new baby!!

My little niece, McKenzie Jane Maxwell, was born yesterday, Friday, September 26, 2003. She's 8 lbs 5 oz and 21 inches long. And has black hair. And is a very cute little girl.

I'm very happy.

This is from my friend Heather. It's a commentary about technology that I think hits the nail on the head:

Most people: "this is not working, I will call someone to fix it."
me and You: "This is not working. Why? What if I tried this? Maybe if i do this? Let me see if the help menu can help me. Let me check out the support page on the web. Ok. Now I'm stumped. Where's the phone?"

I blame dependency on technology. We're taught to use a calculator, but not how to add or subtract. We're taught how to use our computers, but not how they operate. We don't need to know these things, because somewhere out there a computer or machine can do it for us.

Heather is perceptive. And she rocks.

Monday Night Football

The game was a bust, the Raiders were getting their butts handed them on a platter. It was 31-10 when I left part way into the fourth. Didn't really have much at stake in the game since I don't really follow either team. I like Jerry Rice, though, so I always hope for a good game for him. He wasn't being used to his potential tonight, unfortunately. Gannon looked like a high school QB out there too at times. I'm not quite sure how they made it to the Superbowl but they really started falling apart during that game and I think it's continued.

Next week is Green Bay vs. Chicago. The Bay has fallen on some hard times this season. Brett isn't as strong as he used to be. They're opening the "new" Soldier Field, too. I drove by it when it was nearly done about six months ago. It's hideous. They just bascially kept the outside walls of the old Soldier Field and built a new stadium inside. That's all fine and good except there's no cohesiveness to bind the two together. It just looks like.... well.... they built a new football stadium inside an old one and forgot to take the walls down.

The good thing is that it's a classic matchup of two old NFL teams. They're part of the Black and Blue Division, which Detroit is also in. They tend to play a much more agressive style of football and they have a long rivalry extending back 70 or so years. Plus, they both sort of suck so the matchup will be a little more even. I'll predict Green Bay takes this one. GB 28 - Chi 17.

There are times I just can't figure out how the hell bands come up with names.....
"Dude... what would be a good name for a band?"
"Well... it's a metal band... we'd better have the name 'Dead' in there somewhere."
"Yeahhhh.... and, like, we've got soul, so we should put that in!!"
"Duuuuuude... this is some gooood shit!! Where did you get it??"
"Cut it out.... we're naming the band!.... What else?"
"Well... we're, like, primitive and shit.... Like on Survivor, where that guy ran around naked."
"Yeah, they have two tribes... So we should be a tribe, cause we'd kick their ASS totally!!!"
"Dude... This is some REAL good weed!! Stop bogarting my bong!!"
"Dude!! Shut up and listen!!"
"How about 'Tribe of Dead Souls'?"
"Excellent!!"

***** cut to next day *****

"Dude... I was soooooo stoned last night!!"
"Yeah, we could tell... But only until we got high, too!"
"Yeah... what did we decide on the name of the band?? You guys remember?"
"There was 'Dead' in the title... and I think 'Soul'... and, what, 'Survivor'?"
"No, man... 'Tribe'!! That was mine!! Rock on!!"
"Yeah... "Dead Soul Tribe".... That must have been it."
"Dudes!! We rock!!"
"We're gonna be bigger than Lionel Ritchie!!"
"Dude... you need more weed!!"

Thus is named the Dead Soul Tribe.

So tired. Stupid Monday Night Football. Why does it have to start at 9pm?? Why can't it start at 8pm? That hour would make a world of difference. I know they want to have it start late so the West-Coasties have time to get home/to the bar after work.

Would it be so hard to have it on a one hour tape delay, though? I mean, they did it for the Olympics, and it's likely that the people watching the game wouldn't cheat. But even if they did cheat, so what? That's their problem.

Yep. One hour tape delay to the west coast. Let the 2/3 of the American population who doesn't live there get to bed at a reasonable hour. Last night's game went into OT (A shitty team like the Cowgirls forcing OT. Imagine.) and it was already a longish game. I didn't leave Mitch's place until a little after 1am. I got home, checked my email -- I'm obsessive that way, and went to bed at 1:30. Then got up at 6am. Nope. Not tired at all. Not me. If ABC would dictate that these games start at 8pm EST, I would have been in bed at 12:30. That extra hour can make all of the difference.

To top it off, the damn Cowgirls won it. WITHOUT A SINGLE TOUCHDOWN. *SEVEN* damn field goals. What kind of a team only makes field goals?? The Cowgirls do, I guess.

OK, I'm done now. I need coffee.

You must like to spank or be spanked, because your
romance is remeniscent of Secretary. A truly
modern love story, it shows that you don't need
to be conventional to be normal. You're
probably the type that owns a whole lot more
leather than what's upholstering your car or
sofa. Yeah, you know what I mean.


What Romance Movie Best Represents Your Love Life?
brought to you by Quizilla

I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

Edward Teller Left Mark on Science, Society (washingtonpost.com)

An amazing man who was a brilliant mind, too. I think he is best summed up in the following:

In Teller's autobiography "Memoirs: A Twentieth-Century Journey in Science and Politics," Teller said he was often asked whether he regretted having worked on the atomic and hydrogen bombs.

"My answer is no. I deeply regret the deaths and injuries that resulted from the atomic bombings, but my best explanation of why I do not regret working on weapons is a question: What if we hadn't?"

I've decided that I'm going to be buying my CDs used now. eBay has a lot of them, all for the perusal online. I just bought three Queensryche CDs for a total of $11, including shipping. Less than $4 each. And still the RIAA doesn't get a penny from me.