January 2003 Archives

Bruce Allen succinctly describes the experience of watching the Superbowl on HDTV. His analysis is spot on. The ESPN HD spots did have me drooling, along with the preview for the next Matrix movies. HDTV is a sight to behold and left me wanting more. Although the broadcast had its freshman moments, you could see it had a tremendous upside. The only problem is how do I get my own.

A classic shot (I especially like the guy actually reading the toy from the Cracker Jacks.) of some Raider fans during the loss in yesterday's Super Bowl. At least they chose a calm way to mourn.

If they can make deodorant protect against odor all day, why can't they do the same with toothpaste?

I opened a letter from our landlord yesterday, thinking it was our lease renewal notice. Instead, it was exactly the opposite; the property owner has decided sell the house. We won't have the option to renew our lease. Ouch. Talk about a shot to the gut. That totally screws up our plan. 'Cause we did (kind of) have a plan. We would live there another year, and then start to seek out options for something to buy. We would actually settle down and own (Yikes!) something of value. Rather than relaxing for two years, we have to pick everything up, pack it away, move, and unpack it again. This will be daunting due to the drastic increase in goods received from the wedding. The moving process in downtown Madison is an arduous task that spans more than six months. It just plain sucks. It's a sad day.

While New York is whining about their cold, that's down right balmy compared to the weather here in Wisconsin. Since we got back on the 12^th, it hasn't above freezing, with a severe dive down below 10° for the past week. There's even a wind chill advisory out for tonight, and since I started typing this post, it has dropped from +1° to 0°. Damn Cold.

The RIAA won recent ruling that orders Verizon to give up the name of a user that downloaded 600 songs over the Internet. First, the RIAA having this much power is wrong. Second, how did they know that the user downloaded 600 songs in the first place? If it's a P2P network, how did they get the user's information. Unless, it was their files that s/he downloaded. But then, isn't that entrapment? I wonder if the user even knows that they are being targeted by the RIAA, since Verizon hasn't supplied their information yet.

On our recent honeymoon, we had and overheard many conversations with visitors from England. Always curious about their accent, we picked up on a couple of words used by the British that differ from American spoken word. Some we latched on to right away. For instance, our vacation instantly became a "holiday" and Kris would be returning to "university" rather than school or college after her winter break.

However, not all British words are better. This morning, I learned a new one. J-Ko linked to a British user's guide to snow in response to their recent weather. In it, they referred the readers to an activity called "sledging" that uses "sledges," or what I refer to as sledding and sleds, respectively. Only one letter different, but I prefer the American version here. Here's some more differences from the British point of view.

Our new favorite Island, St. Lucia, depends on two industries to support their economy: bananas and tourism. One of our local guides spoke of the negative impact that the upcoming war with Iraq has had on his business so far, and how we Americans & British will continue to stop traveling as the war continues. Recently, issues have been raised concerning decreases in crop quality and quantity of banana exports. Now they're saying that in 10 years there may be no bananas to export. Ouch. A double whammy.

A recent study reports that 1,500 patients leave the operating table with items left inside each year. With roughly 28 million operations each year, that's about 0.005% of all operations in the US.

While that's an astonishing fact, it's interesting to note that the report and article reported the actual number of incidents rather than the percentage that I calculated. It seems to me that this occurs not because hospitals don't care about the patients, but it's cheaper to settle with the occasional "victim" than to x-ray or scan every patient that leaves the operating table. It's all about the Benjamins, baby.

Returning from the tropics of St. Lucia, everyone on our plane was pleased to hear the captain announce that Chicago was at a balmy 30°. We were all fooling ourselves, really. We had just spent a week relaxing in temperatures that are between 70° to 90° year-round. To be pleased with 30° is like thinking MC Hammer has sound financial skills. Walking to work has now become a frigid day-mare, with this morning's temperature hovering at 0° - (That's a zero, folks.) - without wind chill. A far, far cry from the walk to the beach in 80° and sunny skies. (Pictures are forthcoming.)

PB has introduced BlogFodder: A daily inspiration for blog entries. Here's my first crack:

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Did you miss it? I spent five minutes trying to think of what I could write a book about, and came up with nothing. Nor could my wife. I guess I am a just a simple man enjoying the book of life as the pages unfold in front of me. (Maybe other fodder will be more inspiring.)

Next time you feel like the king of the world, try this on for size:

"So typically, the light we see from nearby stars left during the age of our great-grand-parents, while light from LMC stars started its journey well before the dawn of recorded human history."

Meg provides some insight on how to apply for a job. I remember contacting a potential employer with a simple letter. But it was addressed to the right person (the vice-pres makes a better impression than 'HR Director') and I included a cover letter that referred to jobs they had recently completed nearby and expressed my interest in working for them. The biggest impression I made was the smallest; having custom business cards to leave behind in the interview. Thanks to my dad, a student leaving a card left a memorable impression that set me apart.

Ahhh...the wonders of self-indulgence. For the very first time in my short life, I went tanning. Before you say, "What are you? A freak? (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)", let me explain myself. It's in preparation of our honeymoon to St. Lucia next week. If you don't know St. Lucia is at 13° 54' north of the equator. That's really hot. Practically directly under the sun. So, I needed a crash course in tanning - fake baking if you will.

If you haven't been, the experience is surreal. First, stripping to your skivvies is a bit unnerving, especially when you think of the number and kind of people that have lied on those bulbs before you and took their skivvies off. Sure, they say it's sterilized, but how much can a spray can of water and an underpaid attendant do? But, I had already paid my 4-bucks, so I went for it. I gingerly got myself situated and the goggles in place. Through green goggles, I located the start button and the bulbs of bronze hummed to life. I quickly lowered the top of the electric coffin of fake sun and felt the heat instantly rise. (Wow, this really does work!) The aroma of the ghost of cocoa past filled the room and restored my earlier image of the patrons that have lied here before me. I calmly closed my eyes, listened to the wonderfully rhymed - and reversed - words of Missy Misdemeanor, and thought, "Only two more songs like this, and 10 minutes will fly on by." That's when the commercials came on.

But I made it through and the lamps turned off to allow my escape. But little did I know those lamps are gifts that keep on giving. The first time I sat down while bowling, I felt the first gift. "Why is my back tingling?" Only, to come home and discover my nice white, round belly now looks like a seedless watermelon turned inside out. After 10 minutes? I am supposed to go do this again? And pay for it? I guess it's better now than on the beach on the honeymoon, if you know what I mean. All in the name of love.

Just had to make sure I got an entry on this very special of days: 01/02/03. Wow. Don't you feel better now?