October 2008
30 posts
An 'Idiot Wind'
To suggest, as Mr. McCain has, that there is something reprehensible about associating with Mr. Khalidi is itself condemnable — especially during a campaign in which Arab ancestry has been the subject of insults.
I can hardly wait for this crap to be over. Tuesday cannot come fast enough.
From The Washington Post.Posted by email from my name is taken (posterous) | Comment »
How To Write Like An Architect
My friend, Jill, is an architect. She is one of the most talented people I know. She also has the coolest handwriting. I am constantly trying to copy her style, with no success so far.
The approach in this video is little over-the-top for me, but there is no question it produces some pretty beautiful text.
From The Dwell Blog.Posted by email from my name is taken...
Leaving Microsoft
As I write this, San Francisco is receding in the distance as my flight wends its way north to Seattle. I woke up at 4:00 am for an early flight. By the time I’m back in Woodinville, home and in bed, it will be after 11pm. What a day it has been. This morning I announced my departure from Microsoft after over 20 years with the company in an email. I sat at the Virgin America gate, finished...
Virgin 751 to SFO
First flight on Virgin America. Impressed so far. Outlets at each seat, cool entertainment systems and an interior that is directly out of a 1967 sci-fi movie.
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The iPhone Effect
Effects of Apple’s hot iPhone are coming in from outside of the US now. Rogers Canada’s profit jumped 84%, driven by sales of 255,000 iPhones in the first quarter:
Rogers, which began selling the iPhone on July 11, said one-third of people buying the smart phone were new customers. Most iPhone subscribers opted for the carrier’s data package that allows them to use email and...
Safety First
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Staggering
Chris Jordan’s Running the Numbers: An American Self-Portrait
I would love to see these pieces in person.Posted by email from my name is taken (posterous) | Comment »
Opposite World
My kids like to play a game called “Opposite World,” where yes means no and no means yes, go is stop and stop is go. I’m sure every child dreams up this experiment at some time. I thought of that game when I saw today’s photo on the Washington Post home page. It shows an electronic board in Tokyo portraying the falling share prices in markets all across Asia....
"...a profound global slowdown."
From today’s New York Times:
Stocks plummeted worldwide on Friday, with severe declines in Europe and Asia and futures contracts on the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index falling to their lowest permissible levels before the start of official trading in the United States…The global rout was propelled by dismal corporate earnings and economic data...
Conquering Google SketchUp
This is a great video that demonstrates the power of Google SketchUp for 3D modeling:
Unfortunately, Google SketchUp’s user interface leaves me continually stumped when I try to create my own models. I’ve tried three times now to lay out designs for our home remodel. Basic shapes and wall forms are pretty straightforward, but more complex components like windows, stairs and roofs...
Mexico
It’s hot. The pool is warm. The drinks are expensive. It’s a nice break. The view from our balcony at the Pueblo Bonito Rosé:
One of the many beautiful flowers in bloom here. Anyone know what kind of flower this is?
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Drobo Apps
Data Robotics announced new applications for their Drobo drives today. Interestingly, the list includes an iTunes server application from Firefly. As an owner of two AppleTVs with over 300Gb of media to manage, this app caught my eye.
Unfortunately, I suspect this will really only be useful if you have the DroboShare add-on that connects your Drobo to your home network. My Drobo is attached to my...
Light Reading
The bathrooms at LAX have more grafitti than any airport I’ve been to.
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37 Days
As a supporter of Barack Obama’s candidacy for President, today’s announcement that he raised $150 million dollars in September is exciting, but it’s also very troubling.
There is no question that he has managed to broadly engage Americans in the democratic process like never before. Obama’s campaign added over 600,000 new donors in September, bringing the number of...
Obama Bucks
The longer this election goes on, the less and less surprised I am by this kind of thing, which makes me very sad.
From The LA Times.Posted by email from my name is taken (posterous) | Comment »
The Right Call
The Supreme Court rules in favor of the Ohio Secretary of State.
The decision has the potential to affect as many as 200,000 of the 660,000 new voters who have been registered in Ohio since Jan. 1, according Social Security Administration and state election officials.
Anyone who ever got married and tried to merge Holiday Card lists with their new spouse knows just how problematic address...
MacBook Uber Alles, Take 2
MacWorld’s Jason Snell echoes my comments about the MacBook yesterday in his excellent first look at the new lineup.
At 4.5 pounds, the new MacBook is half a pound lighter than the old version. With its new complement of previously-Pro-only features and its lighter weight, people who have been considering the MacBook Air will probably want to give that purchase some more consideration. The...
Macbook Uber Alles
Today’s laptop announcement from Apple has made me wonder whether they’ll sell many MacBook Pros and Airs any more. The one major advantage the MacBook Pro had over the MacBook — a larger maximum RAM capacity — has disappeared. The MacBook even sheds its budget plastic case for the same aluminum casing found in the Pro model. For many customers, I suspect that the rationale...
Finally, Proof that CAPTCHA's been hacked
And pwned by the government, it would seem:
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Seattle Turkey Trot
I’m slowly getting back into running after my knee injury in May. To keep myself motivated and making progress, I’ve decided to run in the Seattle Turkey Trot. It’s a 5K run/walk on Thanksgiving morning, giving me about 6 weeks to get ready. Anyone else planning to do this race?Posted by email from my name is taken (posterous) | Comment »
Untitled
I keep going back and forth between OmniFocus and Things for my task management. Both are great apps with unique strengths. I’m completely torn. Sigh.Posted by email from my name is taken (posterous) | Comment »
Swaptree
Over the past week, I’ve been posting many of my books, CDs and games on swaptree.com. I’ve already done my first swap of a movie (Saving Private Ryan) for a CD that I wanted (Bjork’s 1993 Debut, long before the Oscar swan dress). It’s a pretty interesting service. I’ve only posted about 55 items I’m willing to trade and already there are over 18,000 matches...
Googly Eyes
Now featuring x-ray vision!
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Brownies and sunshine
Gorgeous day, home with the kids by myself, since Debra is working a weekend shift. Saturday being “Treat and Movie Night,” we’re off to the grocery store to collect the ingredients for brownies. Half plain (for the kids) and half with walnuts (for me). Our regular recipe makes a slab about the size of a coffee table, so we’ll be cutting everything in half today. I...
Isolationism
The past month has been a harsh lesson that isolationism is no longer a viable economic or foreign policy.
Paul Krugman, Moment of Truth, New York TimesPosted by email from my name is taken (posterous) | Comment »
The Make-Believe Maverick
From Make-Believe Maverick - Rolling Stone
In the end, the essential facts of John McCain’s life and career — the pivotal experiences in which he demonstrated his true character — are important because of what they tell us about how he would govern as president. Far from the portrayal he presents of himself as an unflinching maverick with a consistent and reliable record, McCain has...
“But the hands-off brand of capitalism in the United States is now being blamed...”
– So, let me get this straight: The Iraq war destroyed America’s moral authority in foreign policy matters. The secret capture of prisoners and torture at Guantanamo destroyed America’s moral authority in matters of justice. And now, the collapse of credit and stock markets around the...
I just cut my waffles up into small bite-sized pieces, like I was 5 years old. Yes, I have kids.
WatchDonna Brazille nails it at the New Yorker Festival on Oct. 4, 2008
“In the end, the essential facts of John McCain’s life and career — the...”
– Make-Believe Maverick - Rolling Stone