I like daylight saving time.. it saves daylight! Well, I like the longer days anyway. At least it raises the possibility of going for a run in the park after work (naturally, not the actuality of it). What I don't like is the switch -- it throws my inner clock out of whack, and frankly, I'm not a morning person.
If daylight saving time gives us more hours of daylight in the 'live-able' hours of the day therefore saving electricity, sanity and calories.. why the bloody hell don't we just stay on it? Why switch? Let Arizona and those other backwater states stay in their timewarp and the rest of us can enjoy nice evenings full of sunlight.
We live in strange times. A school shooting overshadowed on the news by a case of a woman who is brain dead and should be allowed to die. One would have to live under a rock to escape reading and hearing about this one.. The only real news story here is that our government just made a really bad precedent by intervening in this case. I suppose state rights are for mere decoration and grandstanding takes precedence to constitution.
There is another news worthy item hidden in this messy story. One Dr William Hammesfahr. News stories like this one have been popping up left and right each inevitably quoting the "world renowned, Nobel Prize nominee in medicine". That made me wonder, how can it be that a neurologist of such standing as to be nominated for a Nobel Prize (no small achievement) is all but ignored by not only courts but also his own colleagues? This question let to a google search and in about 15 minutes, me, a programmer with too much time on her hands, was able to discredit the good doctor. Why is the news media even quoting this person?
You too can follow the bread crumbs and see the credibility behind the opinions.
Doctor Hammesfahr has a website, his own neurological institute and an impressive list of services. What he doesn't have is even one published peer-reviewed article in a medical journal. How does one receive a Nobel Prize nomination without ever being published? Good question! One doesn't.
According to the Nobel Prize FAQ the nominees are kept secret for 50 years. That means the nominees don't know they're nominated. So how did our doctor find out? He has a letter to prove it! From the Nobel committee? Well.. no.. from his local congressman to the Nobel Committee recommending Hammesfahr's nomination for the "Nobel Peace Prize in Medicine". No, there is no such thing as a Nobel Peace Prize in Medicine.
Feeling sick yet? All those journalists quoting the doctor (who's doing the talk show circuit right now) and referring to his Nobel Prize nomination are really referring to a letter from a Florida congressman who can't even distinguish between the Nobel Peace Prize and the Nobel Prize for achievement in the field of Medicine. And all it took was a 15 minute google search. Way to go "journalists".
In case you're still wondering if a letter like that has any validity as a nomination.. it doesn't. Here is a list of people who can nominate someone for the Nobel prize in physiology or medicine. A congressman is not on the list. This "nomination" means about as much as if I sent a letter to the same committe recommending Steve Friedl for the Nobel Peace Prize in Windows Reinstalling.
A co-worker and I were reminiscing about schools. We both went to state schools in CT: he to UConn, I to CCSU. The favorite topic of discussion about one's school days is of course, the really funky, weird, annoying, bad or just plain rude and obnoxious professors we had. I had one of those.. the obnoxious and rude kind. He either hated me or just my hair color - at any rate, he loved to pick on me in class and downgrade my work for any non-programming related reason possible. Although to be fair, he did that last one to everyone, but as far as I know, I'm the only one whose hair color he ridiculed in front of the whole class. Just one of those really nit-picky people with something to prove to all those young and fresh CS students. Back to my co-worker.. he mentioned a quirky, weird English professor he had at UConn who would climb on top of a table and disperse inspiration in a loud voice..
"Someone watched 'The dead poets society' one time too many!" - I said.
"Oh yah, heh" - giggle from the co-worker..
"Wait" - he added - "I think that *was* him in that movie"
Well, what do you know.. Sam Pickering, an English Professor at UConn was the inspiration for Robin William's character.
I suppose this goes to prove... one person's inspiration is another person's "weird English teacher"!
Ever wonder just how many radio stations clearchannel owns in your area? I was almost right about CT, guessed 4 or 5, it's in reality 5:
List of words I used to think I made up but turned out to be in wide-use:
When I was about five years old I made up this terrific word game. It was fun, imaginative and occupied my mind for hours. One day, feeling particularly generous towards my (normally hated) older brother I decided to share it with him. You simply took the last letter of the first word that came to you mind and had to think up a word that started with it.. then took the last letter of that word, and so on. I bet he's still laughing at me for thinking I made up a game everyone else in the world already knew. Life is so rough sometimes.
I had a fascinating lesson about the electronic payment processing between banks today. I, as probably most do, have always assumed this happens in (or nearly) real time between banks. It couldn't be further from the truth.
- It is nowhere near real time
- It does not happen directly between banks.
The process is done by central clearing facilities (currently it's The Fed (Federal Reserve) and another processor whose name I can't recall right now) using the ACH Network.
Not only is this done through an intermediary, it's a batch processing system governed by strict timing rules.
So what happens when you send money electronically using your bank to another bank?
- Your bank generates an ACH file and sends it to a processor, like the FED. The FED will only receive these files during certain hours and the cut off time is 10pm. Anything after needs to wait until the next business day.
- After the cut off time, the FED batch-processes all the files it received the given day and credits or debits bank accounts appropriately (each bank has its own account at the FED). Note, at this time they don't know if the money is actually good or bad! That comes later
- After 5am (the next business day), the banks can go in and pick up the files with transactions directed at them from other banks and process it against their customer accounts. Once this is done, they can tell the FED which of the transactions are bad. All transactions are assumed as "good" unless the bank reports otherwise. They have 48 hours to do this.
If you're a programmer or a system architect your first question is probably "so what happens when the receiving bank never recieves a notice that someone wants money from one of their clients but the Fed thinks it sent the debit?" That's where the processor is most useful to the banks, they handle reconciliation and balancing.
This system was designed in 1974 and this is our modern electronic payment processing system. How is it better than checks? You can process debits and credits, that's about it!
Note, there is nothing stopping the banks from going directly between each other for these transactions, but it becomes costly when you consider that each relationship between two banks would need to involve accounting settlements to make sure there were no mistakes in fund transfers and everyone received and paid the money they should have. Currently, the processer (the Fed) does this for the banks.
As noted here I took a drive down to NYC on Saturday to deliver a relative to Staten Island (she really had to be there for Sunday morning). Forecast claimed it would start snowing in NYC around 3pm, well, the forecast was wrong as this image is the entrance to the Verezzano bridge leaving Brooklyn well before 3pm and as evidence shows the snow is thick, heavy, on the ground and the bridge nearly unpassable. Kudos to the NY transit authority for closing the (covered) lower level and leaving the upper level opened during a heavy blizzard! Way to go guys, how many cars did you end up towing from there? For the record, it took nearly two hours to cross the bridge thanks to almost every non-four-wheel-drive getting stuck in deep snow going uphill.
Picture taken through a drity windshield with my camera phone in crummy lighting. But I liked the sign -- it seemed oddly appropriate.
I asked myself today what would he say about Iraq? None of us can know that, but while reading his speeches, I ran across "Beyond Vietnam" from April 1967.
Here is the true meaning and value of compassion and nonviolence when it helps us to see the enemy's point of view, to hear his questions, to know his assessment of ourselves. For from his view we may indeed see the basic weaknesses of our own condition, and if we are mature, we may learn and grow and profit from the wisdom of the brothers who are called the opposition.
Amen
Only in Connecticut (well, that I know of) could you experience something like this..
It's 12:10 am, you're sitting on your couch in your comfortable, warm living room, there is a dusting of snow outside and light snow still coming down.
Suddenly, you hear intermitten police siren-beeps and vague loud-speaker anouncements.. there are blue-and-red lights bouncing off your walls..
No! Don't panic! It's not zee germans coming!
It's just a parking ban and they're (loudly, I should note) anouncing that all cars parked on the street will be towed.
There is about one inch of snow on the ground..
My street gets about 10 cars passing it a day and it's all people who live here..
It's after midnight on a weeknight.
*sigh*.. only in CT will a police siren wake you up at 12am to move your car so they can plow that entire inch of light snow.
(I park in my driveway, doesn't apply to me)
This story opens up an interesting question. Are you still protected by privacy laws after you die and should you be?
On one hand you have the family who lost their son and only wish to have all that remains of his memory, on the other a man's legitimate assumption of privacy, dead or alive. To me, the answer is pretty clear. Had he wanted his family to have these emails, he would have either made the password known or sent the emails to them.
There is a second angle to this story that is not mentioned in the article. The soldier is dead, but what of the people he corresponded with? Do they lose a right to privacy once the recipient dies? Of course, yet another angle is can anyone legitimately claim email is private in the first place.
Before siding with the family, I think everyone should think of their most embarrassing email and then imagine their mom reading it. Yah, I thought so. Go Yahoo.
So it appears our big brothers in Washington have been able to track every color print on certain laser printers for quite some time now.
That's right folks! This is not in communist China, but here in good ol' US of A. The government makes secret deals with printer manufacturers without public disclosure.
According to experts, several printer companies quietly encode the serial number and the manufacturing code of their color laser printers and color copiers on every document those machines produce. Governments, including the United States, already use the hidden markings to track counterfeiters.
Hmm... right, counterfeiters, because after all, historically a government has never abused its power! Let's not forget this is not just the US government we're talking about here, these printers are sold worldwide.
What a horrible precedent and invasion of privacy. Thanks Xerox and Canon, you officially stink for handing over the privacy of your customers. Who exactly pays for your companies to stay in business?
So what else is going on that we have yet to hear about? Special encoding in cell phones to track key words? Let me guess.. to fight the terrorists.
- Four more years of great material for Jon Stewart
- Unhappy liberals are ranting liberals -- and they truly write the best rants.
- State of the union address is more entertaining when you can play the mispronunciation drinking game
- No more lame heinz ketchup jokes
- We can look forward to some great writing in the next four years -- historically, the greatest artists and writers sprouted during economically depressive times
- We won't have to compete with India for jobs once the value of the dollar drops to reflect our growing deficit.
.. and the best point:
- The Internet is still ours.
Hartford's Bradley Airport now has free wireless available to all travellers (well, I guess technically anyone, they provide you the username and password on the login page).
It doesn't completely suck either, it's SNET (local SBC spawn) dsl.
Finally, something I can be happy about when flying out of Hartford!
(On the way to California in case someone's wondering what the hell I'm doing here).
.. and now I also have a power socket (the art of finding power sockets is to look for the geeks with laptops hiding in corners).
Source: Natural Resources Defense Council
JANUARY 20, 2001
White House freezes all rules set at end of Clinton term–including tougher ones for raw sewage
JANUARY 20, 2001
Bush proposes opening Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling
FEBRUARY 12, 2001
Energy Department puts off enforcing new efficiency standards for air conditioners
FEBRUARY 15, 2001
EPA delays new rule protecting wetlands from mining and development
MARCH 7, 2001
Fish and Wildlife Service withdraws report calling for protection of endangered salmonids
MARCH 9, 2001
Bush appoints oil and mining lobbyist as deputy secretary of Interior
MARCH 13, 2001
Bush reneges on campaign promise to reduce carbon dioxide emissions
MARCH 16, 2001
Bush administration refuses to defend in court rule protecting 58 million acres of wild forest
MARCH 20, 2001
Bush withdraws proposed stricter limits on arsenic in drinking water
MARCH 28, 2001
Bush administration rejects Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change
APRIL 9, 2001
Bush budget proposal cuts $500 million from EPA
MAY 10, 2001
Bush administration refuses to name industry participants in Cheney energy task force
MAY 12, 2001
Bureau of Land Management allows continued grazing on endangered-tortoise land in California
MAY 17, 2001
Bush releases energy plan heavily favoring fossil fuels and nukes
MAY 17, 2001
Forest Service reduces citizen and scientific participation in decision-making
MAY 22, 2001
EPA officially suspends stricter limits for arsenic in drinking water
JUNE 19, 2001
States and others sue Energy Department over air-conditioner rules (see FEBRUARY 12, 2001)
JUNE 21, 2001
Timber lobbyist Mark Rey appointed to key post in Forest Service
JULY 2, 2001
Oil drilling off Florida coast proposed by Bush administration
JULY 23, 2001
Bush budget proposes cutting 270 EPA inspector jobs
AUGUST 2, 2001
Army Corps of Engineers kills plan to protect Missouri River wildlife by changing stream flows
AUGUST 8, 2001
Army Corps of Engineers weakens wetlands protections by slackening permit requirements
AUGUST 12, 2001
National forests opened to roadbuilding and logging by Forest Service rule changes
AUGUST 14, 2001
EPA delays tougher rules for toxic power-plant emissions
AUGUST 17, 2001
Federal judge's decision to ban drilling off California's coast appealed by administration
AUGUST 27, 2001
Cattle still grazing on tortoise habitat in California, despite BLM agreement to move them
AUGUST 28, 2001
Bush administration proposes missile-defense test installation in Pacific; environmentalists sue
AUGUST 28, 2001
Bush administration reconsiders ban on recycling radioactive metals into consumer products
SEPTEMBER 13, 2001
EPA lies about Manhattan hazards after 9/11, calls area safe despite extreme toxic pollution
SEPTEMBER 20, 2001
Forest Service proposes further reduction in citizen participation in policymaking
OCTOBER 25, 2001
Interior Department weakens environmental rules for mining operations
OCTOBER 31, 2001
Arsenic flip-flop: Under public pressure, EPA adopts higher standard after all (see MAY 22, 2001)
NOVEMBER 2, 2001
Army Corps of Engineers retreats from policy of "no net loss" of wetlands
NOVEMBER 5, 2001
Bush signs bill to boost spending for national forests, but with harmful logging riders
NOVEMBER 29, 2001
Minnesota's Voyageurs National Park reopens winter lakes to snowmobiles
DECEMBER 3, 2001
Army Corps of Engineers decides not to decommission Snake River dams in Pacific Northwest
DECEMBER 14, 2001
Administration announces weaker standards for nuclear waste storage at Nevada's Yucca Mountain
DECEMBER 14, 2001
Forest Service announces more roadbuilding on undeveloped forestlands
JANUARY 9, 2002
Administration backs hydrogen-car research, but most hydrogen to come from fossil fuels
JANUARY 10, 2002
Study shows big drop in enforcement of environmental laws under Bush
JANUARY 10, 2002
Bush administration fights in court for new oil drilling off California coast
JANUARY 14, 2002
Report shows Interior secretary squelched her own agency's criticism of weaker wetlands rules
JANUARY 14, 2002
Wetlands protections weakened nationwide in flip-flop from Bush campaign promise
JANUARY 14, 2002
Park Service okays more oil drilling in Florida's Big Cypress National Preserve
JANUARY 21, 2002
BLM preliminarily approves gas drilling in Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument, Montana
JANUARY 22, 2002
Forest Service sues to overturn ban on salvage logging in Montana's Bitterroot National Forest
JANUARY 28, 2002
Bush supports Cheney's refusal to release secret energy-task-force records
FEBRUARY 4, 2002
Bush slashes environmental-education spending
FEBRUARY 4, 2002
Bush budget proposes cutting $1 billion from environmental spending
FEBRUARY 4, 2002
Bush budget proposes $404 million to support timber sales in national forests
FEBRUARY 11, 2002
Environmentalists sue Park Service for allowing motorized vehicles in Georgia wilderness
FEBRUARY 14, 2002
Bush gives power plants ten more years to cut mercury and sulfur dioxide emissions
FEBRUARY 14, 2002
White House unveils global-warming plan that lets C02 emissions continue at present rate
FEBRUARY 15, 2002
Bush endorses plan to store 77,000 tons of nuclear waste in Nevada's Yucca Mountain
FEBRUARY 15, 2002
Forest Service approves mining exploration in Missouri's Mark Twain National Forest
FEBRUARY 16, 2002
Bush administration asks court to delay endangered-species protection in California
FEBRUARY 19, 2002
Phaseout of snowmobiles in national parks delayed
FEBRUARY 22, 2002
BLM proposes to let states allow vehicles in previously off-limits federal lands
FEBRUARY 23, 2002
Bush's budget asks that taxpayers pay for Superfund cleanups instead of polluters
FEBRUARY 27, 2002
Top EPA official resigns to protest Bush's effort to weaken rules for polluting industries
FEBRUARY 27, 2002
Federal judge orders Bush administration to release Cheney's secret energy-task-force records
MARCH 12, 2002
Bush administration belatedly complies with court order to protect desert tortoise
MARCH 18, 2002
EPA exempts large category of power plants from lawsuits for Clean Air Act violations
MARCH 25, 2002
Discovery that White House misspent $135,612 of clean-energy funds to print its energy plan
MARCH 29, 2002
Pentagon seeks exemption from environmental laws
APRIL 1, 2002
Deadline passes for administration to set first new fuel-economy standards since 1996
APRIL 11, 2002
Army Corps of Engineers approves mining limestone in 5,400 acres of Florida's everglades
APRIL 14, 2002
White House kills program that funded environmental research for graduate students
APRIL 22, 2002
EPA citizen-watchdog resigns in protest, charging that agency |officials muzzled him
MAY 3, 2002
New EPA rules allow mining operations to dump waste in waterways
MAY 13, 2002
Administration asks judge not to limit waste-dumping from mountaintop mines
MAY 13, 2002
Bush signs farm bill that pays big subsidies to polluting agricultural operations
MAY 21, 2002
Ban on mining in and around Oregon's Siskiyou National Forest ends
MAY 23, 2002
Energy Department cuts air-conditioner efficiency standards
MAY 24, 2002
Bush-Putin summit produces nuclear treaty that puts no long-term limit on nuclear weapons
MAY 24, 2002
Bush administration drops plan |for contractors to put environmental protection into projects
JUNE 3, 2002
Oil drilling leases on more than 500,000 acres in Alaska signed by Interior Department
JUNE 7, 2002
Interior secretary rejects proposal to limit offshore oil drilling in California
JUNE 13, 2002
Missouri River restoration halted indefinitely by Army Corps of Engineers
JUNE 13, 2002
EPA proposes weakening clean-air rules for 17,000 power plants
JUNE 13, 2002
Judge halts Bush administration move to end habitat protection on 500,000 acres in California
JUNE 17, 2002
Judge rejects Army Corps of Engineers plan to allow mine-waste dumping
JUNE 24, 2002
EPA abandons plan to clean up storm-water pollution
JUNE 25, 2002
Bush administration blames wildfires on environmentalists
JUNE 25, 2002
Snowmobiling allowed to continue in national parks, though with some restrictions
JUNE 25, 2002
EPA ombudsman testifies Bush administration pressured him to halt study of radiation standards
JULY 1, 2002
Bush administration cuts funding for toxic cleanups to half of that requested by EPA
JULY 2, 2002
Bush administration rescinds 4 million acres of protection for endangered California frog
JULY 10, 2002
Judge orders administration to protect 400,000 Calif. acres for endangered Alameda whipsnake
JULY 15, 2002
Navy given permit to use low-frequency sonar, a known threat to whales
JULY 17, 2002
Bush administration opposes Senate bill to require 10 percent renewable energy by 2020
JULY 22, 2002
Bush's State Department says it will withhold $34 million from UN family-planning program
JULY 25, 2002
Another top EPA official quits in protest
JULY 26, 2002
Bush administration backs congressional proposal to exempt companies from disclosing hazards
AUGUST 7, 2002
EPA proposes weakened water-cleanups; asks for "voluntary" efforts
AUGUST 15, 2002
Conservatives praise Bush for skipping United Nations summit on sustainable development
AUGUST 22, 2002
Interior Department claims new power plant won't harm air at Mammoth Cave National Park, Ky.
AUGUST 22, 2002
Bush calls for increased logging in name of fire prevention
AUGUST 27, 2002
U.S. opposes targets for renewable energy use at World Summit on Sustainable Development
AUGUST 29, 2002
Interior Department approves billion-dollar plan to store water under Mojave Desert
AUGUST 30, 2002
Foe of ecological restoration Allan Fitzsimmons named head of federal wildfire prevention
SEPTEMBER 3, 2002
White House asks exemption from Freedom of Information Act in energy-task-force suit
SEPTEMBER 4, 2002
Federal officials reject call to add white marlin to endangered list
SEPTEMBER 9, 2002
States' EPA air-quality inspections shown to have dropped by 34 percent
SEPTEMBER 13, 2002
EPA weakens proposed anti-pollution standards for off-road vehicles
SEPTEMBER 15, 2002
EPA deletes global-warming section from pollution report
SEPTEMBER 17, 2002
Bush replacing most scientists on chemical-hazard panel with those tied to chemical industry
SEPTEMBER 18, 2002
Bush executive order cuts citizen involvement in review of road and airport projects
SEPTEMBER 21, 2002
Killing of 34,000 salmonids results from federal diversion of Klamath River water in Oregon
SEPTEMBER 27, 2002
Interior secretary okays gold mining on sacred Indian site in California
SEPTEMBER 30, 2002
New EPA water-quality report shows U.S. waters are getting dirtier
OCTOBER 1, 2002
Fish and Wildlife Service reverses order to increase Missouri River flow to protect species
OCTOBER 3, 2002
Conservationists urge White House to release $36.5 million in conservation funds for farmlands
OCTOBER 4, 2002
Bureau of Land Management approves largest oil and gas drilling exploration ever in Utah
OCTOBER 8, 2002
EPA water administrator says war on terror leaves little money for water cleanup
OCTOBER 8, 2002
Bush stacks panel on lead poisoning with people tied to the lead industry
OCTOBER 8, 2002
Federal workers reveal memo from EPA chief encouraging them to support president when off-duty
OCTOBER 9, 2002
Bush administration sides with auto industry in suit against California's emission rules
OCTOBER 10, 2002
Administration failed to assess vulnerability of chemical facilities to terrorists, GAO says
OCTOBER 15 2002
Superfund cleanups drop to 42 per year from average of 76 under Clinton, report shows
OCTOBER 16, 2002
Judge finds Forest Service violates Endangered Species Act by not protecting spotted-owl habitat
OCTOBER 17, 2002
Bush administration told by federal judge to release energy documents in Sierra Club lawsuit
OCTOBER 31, 2002
EPA halts funding at seven Superfund sites
NOVEMBER 1, 2002
Bush administration threatens withdrawal from historic UN population accord
NOVEMBER 5, 2002
Polluters paid 64 percent less in fines under Bush than in last two Clinton years, report shows
NOVEMBER 11, 2002
Bush administration supports renewed elephant-ivory trade
NOVEMBER 12, 2002
National Park Service proposal would allow 1,100 snowmobiles a day in Yellowstone, Grand Teton
NOVEMBER 21, 2002
Natural-gas drilling at Padre Island National Seashore in Texas approved
NOVEMBER 22, 2002
EPA proceeds with weakening Clean Air Act rules for power plants
NOVEMBER 27, 2002
Forest Service proposes rule changes to increase logging, grazing, mining on 192 million acres
DECEMBER 2, 2002
Bush administration plan for oil drilling off California coast ruled illegal by federal judges
DECEMBER 4, 2002
Bush administration asks for five more years of study before acting on global warming
DECEMBER 12, 2002
Federal court rules against administration, upholds roadless rule for 58.5 million acres
DECEMBER 12, 2002
White House proposes tiny increase in automobile fuel economy: 1.5 mpg in five years
DECEMBER 13, 2002
Federal judge blocks Army Corps of Engineers' Snake River dredging plan in Pacific Northwest
DECEMBER 16, 2002
EPA's new factory-farm rule favors big agribusiness polluters
DECEMBER 18, 2002
White House budget office values elderly lives 63 percent less in environmental cost-benefit analysis
DECEMBER 20, 2002
Federal judge blocks Interior Department from permitting oil exploration in eastern Utah
DECEMBER 30, 2002
EPA proposes two-year exemption of oil and gas industry from storm-water pollution rules
JANUARY 6, 2003
Bureau of Land Management rule change gives states leeway for new roads in wildlands
JANUARY 10, 2003
Bush budget requests $6.4 billion for Energy Department's nuclear weapons activity
JANUARY 10, 2003
Bush administration proposes pulling federal safeguards from 20 percent of U.S. wetlands
JANUARY 13, 2003
Pentagon plans to ask for exemption from environmental laws on millions of acres
JANUARY 16, 2003
Environmental personnel scratched from USAID policy bureau
JANUARY 17, 2003
Interior Department proposes oil exploration on up to 9 million acres of Alaska's North Slope
JANUARY 19, 2003
Pentagon continues lobbying for exemptions from environmental laws
JANUARY 21, 2003
EPA refuses to ban weed-killer atrazine, a possible carcinogen
JANUARY 22, 2003
EPA retains unsafe limits for toxic perchlorates
JANUARY 24, 2003
Manatees get federal protection, thanks to lawsuit settlement
JANUARY 27, 2003
Bush administration proposes privatizing thousands of National Park Service jobs
JANUARY 27, 2003
California's giant sequoia threatened by Forest Service proposal to resume logging nearby
JANUARY 29, 2003
Bush administration wins court ruling that legalizes mountaintop-removal mining permits
JANUARY 30, 2003
Bureau of Land Management proposes rollback of Clinton-era restrictions on grazing
JANUARY 30, 2003
Exemptions to phaseout of ozone-destroying methyl bromide planned by Bush administration
FEBRUARY 11, 2003
EPA drafts new rules to relax toxic-air-pollution standards
FEBRUARY 20, 2003
National Park Service finalizes rules allowing snowmobiles in national parks
FEBRUARY 25, 2003
National Academy of Sciences panel strongly criticizes Bush's global-warming plan
FEBRUARY 27, 2003
Bush's "Clear Skies" plan allows much more pollution than if Clean Air Act were enforced, critics charge
FEBRUARY 27, 2003
Transportation Department speeds up environmentally harmful road projects
FEBRUARY 28, 2003
Oil drilling in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge his "greatest wish," says high-ranking Interior official
FEBRUARY 28, 2003
Wilderness protection for millions of acres in Alaska's Tongass forest rejected by Forest Service
MARCH 4, 2003
National Park Service slaughters 231 Yellowstone bison
MARCH 7, 2003
Paul Wolfowitz tells military leaders to find reasons to exempt military from environmental rules
MARCH 10, 2003
EPA exempts oil and gas industry from President Clinton's tighter water-pollution rules
MARCH 13, 2003
EPA withdraws another Clinton-era water-pollution cleanup rule
MARCH 13, 2003
EPA official testifies in Congress in favor of exempting military from environmental laws
MARCH 18, 2003
EPA allows sludge dumping in Potomac River to continue for seven more years
MARCH 18, 2003
Fish and Wildlife proposes removing protections from endangered wolves
MARCH 18, 2003
Federal judge orders Interior Department to continue protecting manatees
MARCH 18, 2003
GAO again criticizes Bush administration for failing to reduce security risks at chemical plants
MARCH 25, 2003
Park Service adopts plan for Yellowstone/Teton allowing1,100 snowmobiles a day
APRIL 1, 2003
Bush administration drops court battle to allow California offshore drilling
APRIL 1, 2003
Bush administration barely raises SUV gas mileage requirements, to 1.5 mpg more by 2007
APRIL 3, 2003
Bureau of Reclamation again diverts water from Klamath River, where salmonid kill occurred
APRIL 4, 2003
New U.S.—Mexico pollution treaty signed, but lacks funding
APRIL 7, 2003
Bush administration asks UN to remove Yellowstone from endangered world heritage status
APRIL 8, 2003
Protection plan for 76-mile stretch of California coast abandoned by National Park Service
APRIL 9, 2003
Interior Department paves way for new roads on federal lands in Utah
APRIL 10, 2003
U.S. Fish and Wildlife signs off on plan to reopen Imperial Sand Dunes to off-road vehicles
APRIL 20, 2003
Toxic cleanups still lagging: 41 percent fewer Superfund sites cleaned up by EPA, report says
APRIL 21, 2003
Sharp criticism of Bush administration air-pollution policies by independent panel
APRIL 24, 2003
White House unveils pro-industry chemical security bill
APRIL 28, 2003
White House bans EPA from discussing perchlorate pollution
MAY 2, 2003
Vehicle fuel economy drops to 22-year low of 20.8 mpg, says EPA report
MAY 2, 2003
Permits for cross-border power lines from Mexican power plants illegal, says federal judge
MAY 5, 2003
Navy's use of sonar causes "stampede"–and possibly death–of marine mammals in Puget Sound
MAY 7, 2003
EPA drops "senior death discount" calculation (see DECEMBER 18, 2002)
MAY 13, 2003
Fish and Wildlife Service signs off on mining in Montana's Cabinet Mountains Wilderness
MAY 14, 2003
White House's $247 billion transportation plan slashes environmental protection
MAY 14, 2003
EPA proposes easing, delaying smog-control rules
MAY 21, 2003
Christine Todd Whitman, embattled EPA chief, resigns
MAY 30, 2003
Park Service opens Maryland and Virginia's Assateague Island National Seashore to Jet Skis
MAY 30, 2003
Forest-fire plan eliminates environmental review of logging projects under 1,000 acres
JUNE 2, 2003
Energy Department announces$2 billion to $4 billion plan to build new "mini" nukes
JUNE 3, 2003
Energy Department funds study on how to ease effects of global warming for Alaska oil drillers
JUNE 5, 2003
Forest Service plan would triple logging limits in California's Sierra Nevada
JUNE 9, 2003
USDA reverses Clinton ban on most logging and roadbuilding on 58.5 million acres
JUNE 20, 2003
Defense Department reneges on plan to test for perchlorate pollution at U.S. bases
JUNE 23, 2003
Bush administration again deletes references to dangers of global warming from EPA report
JUNE 27, 2003
Federal judge halts timber sale in Montana's Kootenai National Forest
JULY 1, 2003
Autopsies link Navy sonar to porpoise deaths, environmentalists charge
JULY 8, 2003
Federal court rejects Cheney's argument for keeping energy-task-force records secret
JULY 12, 2003
EPA refuses to regulate perchlorate and other drinking-water contaminants
JULY 17, 2003
Energy Department lobbies Congress for law to get around court ruling on nuke waste
JULY 17, 2003
Federal judge rules administration must redo water plan for Oregon/California Klamath River
JULY 22, 2003
Army Corps of Engineers ruled in contempt for defying order to change Missouri River flows
JULY 24, 2003
Bush administration softens demand for outsourcing of federal jobs, including at national parks
AUGUST 8, 2003
Bush administration settlement of timber suit could double logging in Northwest
AUGUST 11, 2003
Bush taps anti-environmental Utah governor Mike Leavitt to head EPA
AUGUST 26, 2003
New EPA rules ignore mercury pollution from chlorine plant
AUGUST 27, 2003
EPA excludes 17,000 facilities from upgrading pollution controls when installing new equipment
AUGUST 29, 2003
U.S. court rules against EPA's loopholes in mountaintop-removal-mining regulations
SEPTEMBER 2, 2003
EPA weakens ban on selling polluted sites by reinterpreting law
SEPTEMBER 2, 2003
EPA refuses to regulate ballast-water discharges from ships
SEPTEMBER 4, 2003
EPA finds 274 violations of laws for dumping mountaintop-mining debris
SEPTEMBER 22, 2003
White House's own study concludes benefits of environmental regulations far outweigh costs
SEPTEMBER 23, 2003
Forest Service estimates $2 million lost in timber sale from Alaska's Tongass
SEPTEMBER 24, 2003
White House recommendations would undermine public participation in environmental planning
SEPTEMBER 25, 2003
EPA proposes deal that would let polluting factory farms avoid prosecution
OCTOBER 1, 2003
Bush fails to renew energy-conservation program that saved government $300 million a year
OCTOBER 6, 2003
EPA rules that farmers can't sue pesticide makers if chemicals fail to meet stated claims
OCTOBER 10, 2003
Interior Department overturns limits on acreage where gold mines can dump waste
OCTOBER 10, 2003
Judge orders Interior Department to stop stalling on owl habitat protection
OCTOBER 10, 2003
EPA proposal to allow warmer waters behind Oregon dams threatens salmonids
OCTOBER 10, 2003
EPA inspector general criticizes agency for lax enforcement
OCTOBER 13, 2003
Bush administration proposes lifting ban on importing endangered species
OCTOBER 13, 2003
$18.6 million Forest Service study says outsourcing its jobs would rarely be cost-effective
OCTOBER 17, 2003
EPA announces it will not regulate dioxins in sewage sludge dumped on land
OCTOBER 31, 2003
EPA declines to restrict use of pesticide atrazine
NOVEMBER 4, 2003
Superfund cleanups lag for third straight year
NOVEMBER 4, 2003
Environmentalists criticize revised everglades-recovery plan for failing to ensure natural water flow
NOVEMBER 13, 2003
Park Service workers charge that Bush policies will "destroy the grand legacy of our national parks"
NOVEMBER 14, 2003
Bush administration loses bid to increase ozone-depleting methyl bromide
NOVEMBER 18, 2003
Administration admits blame for kill of 34,000 salmonids in Klamath River (see SEPTEMBER 21, 2002)
NOVEMBER 18, 2003
EPA proposes looser regulations on dumping low-level radioactive waste in landfills
DECEMBER 3, 2003
Bush signs "Healthy Forests" bill: more logging, less species protection on millions of acres
DECEMBER 4, 2003
EPA seeks to reclassify mercury as "nontoxic"
DECEMBER 5, 2003
Bureau of Land Management proposes weakening rules for grazing livestock on federal land
DECEMBER 9, 2003
Federal violation notices to polluters down almost 60 percent; almost 30 percent fewer fines
DECEMBER 16, 2003
White House abandons plans to weaken Clean Water Act protections for wetlands
DECEMBER 17, 2003
Defense Department urged to protect endangered tortoise during robot race
DECEMBER 17, 2003
Federal judge overturns administration decision not to protect orcas in Puget Sound
DECEMBER 19, 2003
Forest Service opens grizzly bear habitat to snowmobiles in Montana's Flathead National Forest
DECEMBER 23, 2003
Forest Service continues to allow logging in Tongass, world's largest temperate rainforest
DECEMBER 24, 2003
Federal court blocks EPA plan to weaken Clean Air Act by exempting power plants from review
JANUARY 1, 2004
Only 50 companies agree to Bush administration's voluntary plan to cut global-warming emissions
JANUARY 8, 2004
$175 million Superfund shortfall prevents cleanups at 11 sites, slows down others
JANUARY 7, 2004
White House proposes overturning ban on mining near streams
JANUARY 9, 2004
Pentagon to seek more environmental exemptions
JANUARY 9, 2004
Forest Service limits citizens' right to challenge logging plans by appeal or in court
JANUARY 13, 2004
Federal court overturns Bush administration's weakening of energy efficiency for air conditioners
JANUARY, 21 2004
Interior secretary asks to triple number of gas-drilling permits in Wyoming
JANUARY 22, 2004
EPA scales back monitoring of smokestack pollution
JANUARY 22, 2004
Interior Department opens 9 million acres on Alaska's North Slope to oil drilling
JANUARY 23, 2004
Forest Service plans to boost logging on up to 3.2 million acres of Appalachian forests
JANUARY 27, 2004
White House says EPA doesn't have to study pesticide effects on imperiled wildlife
JANUARY 29, 2004
Bush administration proposes letting contractors police federal nuclear-plant safety
JANUARY 30, 2004
Parts of EPA's mercury-pollution plan lifted verbatim from industry memos
FEBRUARY 2, 2004
Bush budget proposes $10 million cut in funds for endangered species
FEBRUARY 5, 2004
EPA admits twice as many children (630,000) in danger from mercury exposure
FEBRUARY 6, 2004
Clean Air Act changes undermining enforcement, says former EPA official
FEBRUARY 9, 2004
Energy development allowed inside Colorado and Utah's Dinosaur National Monument
FEBRUARY 11, 2004
Forest Service plan allows mining, drilling in Alabama's national forests
FEBRUARY 13, 2004
EPA no longer to require "worst case scenarios" from industry
FEBRUARY 15, 2004
Forest Service allows poisoning of prairie dogs in four states
FEBRUARY 16, 2004
White House ignores threat from gasoline additive MTBE
FEBRUARY 18, 2004
U.S. Navy plans to dredge endangered turtle habitat in Key West
FEBRUARY 18, 2004
20 Nobel Prize—winning scientists say administration distorts science for political gain
FEBRUARY 24, 2004
Federal mine-safety official demoted after questioning mine accident investigation
FEBRUARY 27, 2004
Missouri River management plan ignores fish protections
MARCH 3, 2004
Administration proposes to relax rules on killing wolves in Idaho and Montana
MARCH 9, 2004
358 conservation scientists urge administration to halt plan to import endangered species
MARCH 10, 2004
Forest Service hires PR firm to promote Sierra Nevada plan that would triple logging
MARCH 11, 2004
EPA inspector general says agency's rosy drinking-water assessments used false data
MARCH 12, 2004
Forest Service relents: no snowmobiles in grizzly habitat in Montana's Flathead National Forest
MARCH 15, 2004
Court rules BLM illegally opened Montana area to off-road vehicles
MARCH 16, 2004
EPA approves plan to inject toxic waste underground in Michigan wells
MARCH 19, 2004
FDA warnings on mercury in tuna not strong enough, scientists charge
MARCH 24, 2004
NRDC sues Bush administration for withholding records on perchlorate in drinking water
MARCH 25, 2004
BLM suspends plans for energy development at Dinosaur National Monument, Colo. and Utah
MARCH 26, 2004
Delay in phaseout of dangerous methyl bromide pesticide negotiated by United States
MARCH 30, 2004
Federal court orders Bush administration to release forest-planning documents
MARCH 31, 2004
Federal judge orders Energy Department to release more Cheney energy-task-force records
MARCH 31, 2004
EPA prosecution of environmental crimes even weaker under new administrator
APRIL 1, 2004
Bush administration worked behind scenes to weaken European Union chemical safety rules
APRIL 1, 2004
Mining whistleblower accuses Bush administration of cover-up in huge coal-sludge spill
APRIL 2, 2004
Bush administration sells 155 acres in Colorado to Phelps Dodge Corporation for $875
APRIL 6, 2004
EPA weakens safety rules for rat poison at industry's behest
APRIL 7, 2004
White House downplays effects of mercury from coal-fired power plants
APRIL 8, 2004
Interior secretary allows aerial hunting of Alaska wolves to continue
APRIL 9, 2004
Interior Department blocks release of data on oil drilling to Environmental Working Group
APRIL 11, 2004
Bush administration budget asks for $35 million cut in lead-poisoning prevention
APRIL 13, 2004
Administration spending more on nuclear weapons research than in Cold War, report says
APRIL 15, 2004
Fish and Wildlife Service rejects protection for Yellowstone trumpeter swans
APRIL 19, 2004
39 state attorneys general urge denial of Pentagon's request for environmental exemptions
APRIL 20, 2004
Yellowstone Park employees advised to wear hearing protection from snowmobile noise
APRIL 22, 2004
National Council of Churches strongly criticizes Bush's air-pollution policies
APRIL 28, 2004
USDA weakens organic-food standards, allowing hormones, feed raised with pesticides
APRIL 28, 2004
Interior Department limits designations of critical habitat for endangered species
APRIL 29, 2004
Report shows that more than half of all Americans live in areas with hazardous levels of smog
MAY 3, 2004
Power companies have raised $6.6 million for Bush, Republicans, report says
MAY 12, 2004
Scientists say Yucca Mountain nuclear facility could leak far sooner than Energy Department claims
MAY 21, 2004
Whistle-blowing federal biologist quits over politicized decision-making
MAY 21, 2004
EPA officials with timber ties weaken toxic formaldehyde standards for plywood industry
MAY 26, 2004
USDA backs down, keeps organic-food standards (see APRIL 28, 2004)
MAY 27, 2004
U.S. Army retracts order to cut some environmental-protection practices
MAY 28, 2004
Army Corps lets sewers, ditches "mitigate" loss of streams to mountaintop-removal mining
MAY 28, 2004
A dozen major national parks hit by cutbacks to visitor services and staffing
JUNE 1, 2004
Federal court rejects EPA's proposed snowmobile standards
JUNE 1, 2004
Administration delays greater protection for marbled murrelet to benefit timber industry
JUNE 2, 2004
Exemption of military from migratory-bird-protection rules proposed by administration
JUNE 2, 2004
New EPA rules allow more fine-particle pollution from 1,000 industrial plants
JUNE 3, 2004
Bush's 2005 budget zeroes out funding for research on abrupt climate change
JUNE 7, 2004
Bush wins ruling to allow Mexican trucks into U.S. without meeting clean-air standards
JUNE 8, 2004
Reduction in Snake and Columbia River water releases, harming Northwest salmon, announced
JUNE 15, 2004
Administration's pro-oil, pro-nuke energy proposal stalled in Congress
JUNE 24, 2004
Supreme Court ruling allows Cheney to keep energy-task-force secrets until after election
JULY 8, 2004
Bush team pushes one of biggest timber sales in U.S. history under guise of fire protection
JULY 12, 2004
Administration proposes forcing states to pay 2.5 times more for public transit than for roads
JULY 12, 2004
Administration to eliminate Clinton-era roadless rule, ending protections for 58.5 million acres
JULY 16, 2004
Fish and Wildlife Service to end protection for eastern wolves and abandon reintroduction plans
JULY 16, 2004
Bush refuses to release $34 million for international family planning appropriated by Congress
[via: karl who posted it elsewhere]
Since election is coming up, might as well dip into the subject some more..
This is just about the most slimy, disgusting thing ever, but it does explain many things (mainly memes) that have been flying about the net, doesn't it?
It's sad for this country that elections are decided not by educated voters but by slithering pundits who attempt to sway the public opinion with dirty tactics and a false representation of what the voters truly think.
I suppose they don't believe their candidate can win on his own merits . How can anyone vote for Bush when his own guard and party has no faith in him?
... everyone else is blogging it, I won't bother...
It is interesting to read the different view points on the debate from both sides.
"Kerry clearly won!"
"Bush totally kicked Kerry's butt"
Makes me wonder what the definition of "win" actually is?
Today our office is moving from the big, spacious and more-than-half empty building we've been occupying in Wallingford for five years (me, only the last three-and-a-half) to a much smaller, compact and cheaper suite in Meriden.
I'm going to miss my big desk, window and well, space. I'm definitely going to miss space. The cubicles (no more office for me!) are less than 7x7.. and the unfortunate choice of furniture fills them quite completely. I'll be lucky if I don't bruise my knees when rotating in my chair. I think the addition of a keyboard tray will make me sit in a hallway. I'll find out tomorrow.
Perhaps it won't be as bad as it seemed from the floor plan.. but.. I'm not holding my breath.
My area was assigned the number 13 for the move.
I've never been what one may call a "sports fan" , I wouldn't even qualify as an occasional admirer of the finer points of contouring ones body to achieve some impossible timing in some irrational sport, but it's hard to not hear about the Olympics. Even my friend Matt, a programmer of unquestionable geek-quality brought up the Olympics in a conversation earlier today. He did, however, have the right idea. "The Olympics should be in the nude!". And why not, I say.
We took the Olympics back to its place of birth, good old Greece, why not go a step further and take them back to the roots? In the buff, all the way. Forget the silly swimming trunks, clingy costumes and running singlets (it's not like they cover much anyway). Slather the athletes in oil until the glisten and let them shine in a whole new way. After all, if there is anyone who deserves to prance around in the nude in front of thousands of people and camera lights, it's the athletes with their sculpted muscles, tight skin and fine physiques. It would be the ultimate spectator sport -- forget nude beaches with hairy old men and cellulite-covered women -- bring on the olive oil and summer athletes!
Even I would watch the Olympics then, heck, I'd subscribe to cable.
Although, maybe raise the entry age to 18 first.
For those unfamiliar with it, craigslist is a quirky, eclectic and fantastic online community for well, just about anything. I was recently happy to discover they now have a Hartford edition (although it is rather slow in growth.. unless you count the casual encounters section.. but that's a whole other animal) and was looking forward to the Hartford classified section growing in volume. It seems that today Ebay bought a 25% stake in craigslist. What will that mean? I think we can say goodbye to the largely uncensored, quirky community and welcome Yet Another Boring Classifieds Site.
I can hear the accountants and lawyers gnashing their teeth on new posting rules already. How sad.
Craig's post about it.
1. Fewer mosquito bites - you can now outpace them.
2. You no longer scare all the wildlife within a mile radius with your heavy foot pounding.
3. You seriously consider getting a running partner.
4. You feel you earned the right to have sweat stains in embarrassing areas on shorts and now wear them with pride (as opposed to attempting to hide under a long shirt).
5. You finish your run with stretching not curling up into a fetal position and twitching.
6. You can focus on things other than pain and torture mid-run. (Hey, they should have dragon-fly chasing as an olympic event).
7. There are things in the woods that actually smell worse than you for once.
8. That inviting, lush, green meadow? You recognize it for the foul, moss-covered swamp it really is.
9. That tortured heap of twitching mass wrapped around the water fountain at the end of the trail is for once, someone else.
10. The idea of riding your bike (not car) to the trails next time sounds inviting.
Every single time I wanted to purchase some music.. it's not available on iTunes...
There's a song from the "Lost in Translation" soundtrack that i really wanted.. honestly, it's easier to just download it from a sharing service... this is about the third time in a row I wanted a song and couldn't find it short of "sharing".
I have credit cards, I have an iPod, where's the damn music I want? Record companies, are you even listening or too busy suing?
I have four invitations left, so for those who want them just post your name and use a real email address (I don't display them).
(Btw, brilliant marketing scheme for gmail, Google.. )
The previews made it look like a good movie to see in a theater.. Not for the story mind you, I didn't expect much there (and I was right), just the special effects. Special effects were very good.. convincing enough to make me wrap my sweater around and dread going out into the expectant snow outside..
There is one word that truly does not describe this movie: subtle. Don't get me wrong, I like a movie with a strong environmental message just as much as the next tree hugger.. but damn.. lighten up on hammering the point in. They give you the moral within about five minutes into the movie.. then they whack you over the head.. then kick you while you're whimpering and bludgeon you to death with the message. Then, as you lie there bleeding and gasping for (clean) air.. they deliver the message a few more times with what feels like a couple Ford Expeditions falling on top of your head.
Special effects were cool though and the wolves in Manhattan midst new ice age were a particularly nice touch.
Reading Jeremy's entry about the Orkut newsletter reminded me Orkut exists. I haven't logged into the site in ages -- it fell into the same category as other social networks "I've proven my social worthiness by being linked to a whole bunch of people many of whom I never met, now what?".
This resulted in a discovery of over a 100 unread orkut messages (I'm not stupid enough to have them e-mailed). That resulted in a couple of things..
1. I wasted 15 minutes and removed everyone who was a 'friend' and sent a 'friends-of-friends' message. Fuck you, spam your own goddamn friends.
2. I set my orkut settings to not even show me 'friends of friends' messages. Chrrrrist-on-a-lolly-pop. Don't these people have lives? Who the hell needs an Orkut community for abandoned-former-orphans-who-enjoy-caligraphy-while-pooping?
Maybe I should just remove my Orkut account and be done with it, it's not like I'll login again for another few months.
And their damn newsletter didn't recommend me any new friends. Bastards.
Did you notice? Gas prices went up! Right... hard not to notice, that's all everyone is talking about. I'm getting quite tired of it.
Yes, gas is over $2.0 a gallon.. big freaking deal. We've been paying the lowest gas prices for years.. about time we start paying a bit more realistic one and maybe, just maybe reconsider the over-consumption of gasoline in this country. Wouldn't it be nice if we had a decent public transportation system that doesn't stop 2miles outside a metropolis and more transportation of goods by methods like trains rather than costly trucks?
Don't like paying so much for gas? Buy a small, fuel-efficient car, share a commute to work, use your bicycle.. but for Allah's sake, stop whining about the price as you fill up your 15-miles-to-the-gallon behemoth. And when November arrives don't forget who cut the funding for alternative fuel research. If you think that not buying gas on one particular day of the year will 'stick it' to the oil companies.. you've the brain reflexes of a pot smoking snail. Not *using* gas on a day a year might.. buying? No.. you'll have to fill up sooner or later, do you think anyone cares that it's not going to be tomorrow?
It's sad to read articles like this one with quotes like..
TORONTO (Reuters) - A man who used a cellphone to take nude pictures of his girlfriend and then posted them on the Internet has been jailed for distributing child pornography in what officials say is Canada's first criminal conviction involving camera phones. . . "He was obviously very adept at computers and he would have had a bright future ahead of him had he not chosen to use his talent this way."
I thought the press was a bit better about this by now, I mean this is 2004, not 1995. Ability to post pictures on the Internet doesn't exactly require knowledge of computers, heck my mom can do it.
This is obviously one of the symptoms of the computerstupiditis that occurs in a large portion of adult population. In short, they sit in front of a computer screen and their IQ suddenly drops by half or more. Other symptoms include hiring a 9 year old neighbor to fix their dsl problems and opening executable attachments from strangers under the promise of pretty butterflies on their screen.
They failed to deliver a package to me since it was misaddressed -- instead sent me a postcard (credit to my mailman for delivering it to me despite the wrong street address on it).
"You can pick up your package at the local terminal"
Great! I'll do that.. except the address they provided is a P.O. Box..
uhm, yah. Thanks.
While I was making dinner tonight I remembered Jeremy's entry about cooking... and pre-packaged foods.. and realized that what I was making at the moment is not only quite tasty and healthy but also impossibly easy and quick to make so why not share it with the geek world? You'll thank me later.
Broccoli and garlic pasta:
Boil some pasta (angel hair works best for this) -- if you throw in a bit of olive oil in the water, the pasta won't stick, but for this recipe it doesn't matter anyway.
Chop up some garlic cloves - to taste, I use a lot. Easiest way to do it: smash the cloves with a mallet (all of them) and using a chef's knife, just chop them into teeny pieces.
Wash some broccoli and cut it into smaller pieces (frozen broccoli works just as well, but I'm picky).
In a skillet, heat some olive oil, add the garlic & broccoli, saute until broccoli is desired softness, toss it with the pasta, season to taste. Garlic salt & parsley works best, if you like spicy foods, some red pepper flakes.
Serve it with freshly-grated parmesan on top (unless you're Jeremy, then just eat).
For more ease, use minced garlic from a jar, but that's not quite as tasty. Same recipe can be used with variations, zucchini, onions, peppers..
Weather extremes are fun. Left San Jose in 80 degree weather this morning to land in a snow storm in Hartford. Without a coat, of course, just a light jacket.
Now I'll have to catch up on a lot of things, but since my body is now adjusted to California time, it's suddenly really easy to stay up late.
For starters, I have some pictures from a glider ride (actually, two) with Jeremy which was a lot of fun. I also discovered I really need a gps thingy, no real reason, just because it's really cool. Not to mention I lost my Fry's virginity, met some cool people and discovered Napa Valley shuts down at 5pm. On a Saturday.
Why do vacations go by so fast?
Why does every online community in existence need extensive birthday greetings for every member.. in every forum.. on every list.. in every group..
Then every day you see (threads|emails|posts) of
"Happy Birthday X!"
And if the same person is a member of multiple groups, every group needs its separate
"Happy Birthday X!"
With every one of those (threads|emails|posts) full of happy-birthday-themed pictures that you know everyone is just automatically reposting every time they see a thread, email, post titled "Happy Birthday".
If you refuse to participate in this you're labeled "anti-social"..
If I know someone and by some sheer luck remember their birthday, I'll wish it to them in private without the entire universe needing to see it. Really.. And if I don't remember? Then it's just me being my usual forgetful self. I hardly ever remember my own birthday. That doesn't mean I don't wish them a happy birthday, I do, I wish them a happy birthday, a happy unbirthday, a happy whatever-day. I want everyone to be happy, really, I do. I'm just tired of this entire production of requisite birthday greetings.
Let's get this over with wholesale:
You (yes, you who are reading this) were born on some day in some year! Marvelous! Happy event that!
(Yes, I know, don't read them, but I can say the same about this entry).
Sorry, our ISP is having an issue.. they're working on it. I am aware, please stop paging me, IM'ing and e-mailing me, thank you :)
I have nothing against people believing in their favorite deity or practicing their religion under one, clear, simple condition. Please leave me out of it.
We use the term "bible" to describe our site.. Anyone who ever visited the computer books aisle can probably attest that it's a very commonly used term when referring to "a publication preeminent especially in authoritativeness or wide readership"... In fact that's the definition of "a bible" if anyone cares to look it up. That's not to be confused with what many refer to as "the bible". This is the connection to the main topic of this rant.. which is "religious nuts".
We get a ton of nutty feedback, we get a ton of good feedback and sometimes we even get useful feedback.. but imploring us to "find god" and scaring us with fire and brimstone over the use of the term "bible" is a little out there.. but apparently we're all going straight to hell. Which begs for the question.. why would an almighty, all knowing and all understanding god give a damn (no pun intended) over the use of a term in the English language? If we called ourselves "biblia" (Polish) would we still be going to hell? Is every librarian (biblioteka, again, Polish) going to hell? Interesting.. a connection.. bliblia.. biblioteka.. anyone who knows a bit of Latin will recognize this one.. So it's pretty obvious, bible is not a religious term, it's just another Christian appropriation (see major holidays).
As I said above.. I have nothing against Christianity or any other religion (I have a ton of problems with the Roman Catholic church but that's a whole other rant).. but I do have problems with anyone who tries to tell me how to live my life because he feels he's saving my soul. Thanks, but I'd rather burn in hell than spend an eternity among holy nut-cases. Bring on the fire and brimstone it's so cold today that it sounds pretty damn (pun intended) nice.
It's cold in the bowels of Connecticut lately, actually, it's very cold. Three degrees right now (that's not Celsius) and wind-chill of a negative value.I don't like cold weather, technically I don't like hot weather either, but I definitely do not like cold weather. In fact it's so cold I'm sitting under a warm blanket with a warm powerbook in my lap, surrounded by warm cats and refuse to stick my nose outside the nicely-heated indoors. Why bother? I can complain about cold inside.
I was talking with Karl earlier and we both concluded that we hate people who live in the warm climates.. Not all of them, just the ones who make sure we know it's warm where they are while we're freezing our asses off on the eastern seaboard. Here, imagine a big, ascii middle finger.
My server was moved to a different powercircuit and since it was turned back on in the middle of the night while I was sleeping (I know, I was sleeping at night, amazing!) I didn't verify that all is up and running until this morning.. so of course I discovered that several vital services were not in fact in startup..
mysql, apache, spamd *sigh* fixed it now, but in the meantime I was bouncing e-mail all night and site was down.
If you sent me e-mail and it bounced, send it again? Thanks in bunches.
It's a truly wonderful, if somewhat depressing movie. Spectacular cinematography, great acting and a passionate story. No matter what one may think of Polanski as a person, he is a truly gifted director. I do believe that his personal story (he lived through the Krakow Ghetto) has much to do with how well this movie was made.
I grew up in a small Warsaw suburb and went to a Warsaw high school, so I've always seen it as much my home as Piastow (the town I grew up in) was.. In Poland, we all grew up on stories of the Holocaust. I think every Pole has a family story about those who perished in WWII. It would be hard not to, with so many gone. So this movie hits very close to home, even though i am not Jewish.
I loved that it portrayed people without the usual division into roles. There are bad Jews and good Jews, bad Poles and good Poles and amazingly, for a Holocaust movie, even a good Nazi. It all comes down to a struggle for survival when caught in assigned roles none of us get to choose. Shindler's List was well made but it missed that by a mile. It fell into the usual division of "bad" and "good". I was quite upset with how it portrayed Poles as anti-semitic nazi-slaves. Horribly historically inaccurate and very undeserving to those who risked and gave their lives to help. Like with any people caught in extraordinary circumstances.. some live up to their humanity and some don't. It's never black and white.
There was just one part of the story I didn't like, the German officer most likely died without ever knowing that Szpilman did try to help. That's depressing, but such is life and this was a true story after all.
<rant>
- Malls. I have a nice, new winter coat but I still haven't learned to enjoy shopping. House-wives with babies. Little kids running around and screaming. Bored husbands hanging on the outskirts of aisles pretending to be interested. Is it really a wonder I normally grab the first, vaguely interesting thing off the rack and run away?
- The girl at the gym who insists sitting on weight machines reading Vogue. Get a life, it's a gym not a doctor's waiting room.
- Outlet stores, do I even have to say it?
- People who flame perfect strangers for no discernible reason. Anonymously, or so they think.
</rant>
I'm just tired, cranky and have a cold, don't mind me.
Maciej ran the New York City Marathon and lived to blog about. Way to go!
[via: Mark]
(The title means 'congratulations' in Polish in case you're wondering.)
Poland, being a predominantly Roman Catholic country, does not celebrate Halloween -- just all saints day. It's a tradition (really, not sure when it started) to visit your dead and light candles and leave flowers on graves.
Much to my mom's chagrin I'm an atheist but I like the tradition of lighting candles, so, like every year, I visited the cemetery tonight and did just that. I wish I had a better camera or just better photography skills to accurately reflect how beautiful the cemetery looks at night all lit up with candle lights.. I suppose this will have to do until next year and maybe a better camera. Picture.
Finally, of course this is the week from hell so even Friday couldn't possibly have gone without something happening..
This time, a tire.. on my way home from work to give out candy to the neighborhood heathens. Thankfully, some good soul took pity on my desperate attempts to loosen the lug nuts(? is that right?) and helped me out.. He said it's the first time he helped an elf change a tire. I'm Legolas for the day.. we did "Lord of the Rings" theme as a group (the geeky engineers, of course). I like the pointy ears, I may keep those, but the blonde wig had to go.. it looked more like "Legolas the porn years" than the LOTR kind.
So right now I'm sitting on my doorstep, giving out candy to the occasional witch and monster and utilizing my wonderful wireless. It seems we get much fewer kids than we used to, so it's a bit boring to just sit here waiting. Must wonder, what else could possibly go wrong this week? Will a vampire-dressed 5 year old mug me for my powerbook? Of course, there's always tomorrow too..
<Two minute break>
Cute, minature white ninjas. And why is one of my neighbors playing the musak version of "Lean on me" loudly on his doorstep? Not exactly Halloween music..
A common trait among software engineers (really, most engineers) is our logical thinking. It takes a logical mind to enjoy writing software and become proficient at it, half the battle of problem solving is just that.. logic.. Given this trait, my dreams forever amuse me.
I tend to dream very vividly and also tend to remember most of my dreams. It's really a great feature of being me, I know most people don't share this. What is also great is the dreams right before waking up.. You know.. after you've hit the snooze button 20 times already and incorporated the alarm sounds into the plot? Those dreams. I had one of those today.. and it amused me to no end remembering it in the shower..
It went something like this...
I went to a toy store don't remember why, probably Halloween-related given it's the candy-grabbing time of year again. As it turned out, the clerk taking care of me at the store was an author of one of the weblogs I read on regular basis.. someone I've never actually met before or remembered seeing a picture of. I'm sure I must have though, since after checking the person's website this morning it turned out I dreamt the facial features and general look quite correctly. Obviously, there was a conversation involved.. went something very close to this:
Dreaming Kasia: "Why are you working at a toy store, aren't you a programmer?
Dream-blogger: "I had legal problems due to some hacking and I'm not allowed to use a computer anymore".
DK: "Oh, I see, how do you write your weblog then?"
DB: "On my mac, that's okay to use".
This made perfect sense to the dreaming, subconscious mind... but the conscious, close to waking mind was screaming "NO, wait a minute! This makes zero sense!".
Even when sleeping, my logical mind emerges and mocks up a perfectly nice dream. You can see how this can be amusing when remembering later. Okay, maybe just to me, but I thought I'd share regardless.
This week has certainly been fascinating. Monday, I did something braindead on a work machine, yesterday I started a flame war.. I wonder what today will bring?
In other news, Connecticut appears to be under a deluge.. personally, I'm packing all this rain in boxes and shipping it out to California, they could use it.
Looks like Jeremy has SARS.
As I was updating a user's account with an e-mail address today (don't ask) I felt I've seen it before. That's unusual, since it's not a user I normally interact with or really ever remember seeing before.. checked the history and sure enough. This is the second time this year that I've helped with his e-mail address. Same e-mail address.
Last time was back in March.
So, essentially. Back in March I saw an e-mail address for about a minute (that's about as long as it takes to paste it into an SQL statement) and now, seven months later I remembered it perfectly.
Seven months later remembered something I only glanced at very briefly. I remembered *that* but I don't remember where I put my car keys the night before!
Apparently my brain is wired to remember the most inconsequential of things and forget the important stuff. Can I use this as an excuse at work? "I forgot to show up today, sorry.. I was writing a letter to the boy who sat next to me on the second day of kindergarden. He moved to Italy few months later, but I still remember his address and he owes me a lollipop from the field trip we took to Museum of general stupidity on Pratt street in Warsaw."
My quads hurt, my calves hurt, my feet hurt (blisters) and my hamstrings hurt.
I've also been eating lots of beans (protein to rebuild all those muscles) so you can image what other side effects I'm having.. attractive, isn't it? :)
How in the world do people run a full marathon and survive it? Maybe I'll find out next year. I think I need a nice massage.