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Did I mention I race rally cars? Red Rocket Rally

Saturday, October 11, 2003
Resting atop his perch
by brian @ 19:49:30 - [perma-link]
This guys was sitting funny. We're at a wedding. Well, it was funny a
couple minutes ago.

Friday, October 3, 2003
...the hair saga continues...
by Connie__ @ 19:50:50 - [perma-link]
Here I am with Felix sporting my new do. I love it! The only way I
can go blond is like this so I'm going to enjoy it while I can. By the
time we go to New York I should have some roots showing. It should
look cool. I can't wait!
Connie

Wednesday, October 1, 2003
Finally!
by brian @ 13:21:45 - [perma-link]
My G5 finally arrived today. I'll open it up when I get back from lunch.

ARGH!!!!
by brian @ 15:10:32 - [perma-link]
This is so not fair. No, its ridiculous.
My G5 showed up today. I ordered it about 100 days ago, and it arrived
today DAMAGED. On the inside.
The picture shows a closeup of the side of the DVD drive. It looks
like someone installed it, then pulled up on the back hard enough to
pull the bottom panel out and bend it.
I haven't even turned it on yet. This is so infuriating.

Tuesday, September 30, 2003
Lunch at Bertie-Lou's
by brian @ 09:21:47 - [perma-link]
These are a few days old. We're back at Bertie's today for breakfast.
Daisy is barking at everyone. I hope she outgrows that.

Friday, September 26, 2003
After
by brian @ 17:25:32 - [perma-link]
Granted this would be more impressive if I had taken some "before"
photos, but if you know me this should be sufficient.
I spent a couple of days cleaning up the basement. It still needs a
little work (open cabinet doors at your own risk), but its nice enough
to sit downstairs and relax.
I dragged one of the La-Z-Boys downstairs the other night. Its really
nice to sit in and watch a movie on the imac while surfing the web on
the linux box (through the SGI "Early-Adopter Edition" LCD). I'm
definitely going to want a second screen for my G5 when I get it.
I need to raise the desk a few inches. Its a pretty tight squeeze if I
fully recline in the chair. I'm not quite sure how I'll accomplish that,
since the desk is all connected, but it shouldn't be too hard. I hope.

OMG!!! The latest from Jen and Ben!!!!
by brian @ 17:42:07 - [perma-link]
This is huge! Are you sitting down? Take a deep breath, then
read this amazing article!

Can you believe it?!?!?!?! B-Fleck bought a truck! OMG!!!! YEAH!!!
REALLY!!!!

No seriously. Whew! Let me catch my breath. Wow! A truck! He
actually went to a dealer and bought a truck! And J-Lo
was there with him! This is amazing. What will those two wacky
kids do next?

America can be so lame sometimes.

Thursday, September 25, 2003
How does this happen?
by brian @ 10:21:38 - [perma-link]
They carpeted the bonus room yesterday and today. They didn't use a
pet-safe, moisture barrier pad like we asked. I'm so annoyed.

Its not like we just mentioned it one day in passing. I brought it up
several times. I even told a story (go figure) about why we needed it.
Somewhere between us stressing the need for it and the carpet company
filling out the work order, it got dropped.

I just don't get it.

On the good side, the carpet does look great. I'll post a picture later; I don't
want to go up there while the carpet guy is still here... I don't need to "feel his wrath".

Update @ 11:58: Just got a call from the project manager. They're going to replace the pad tomorrow. It was his mistake. Woohoo!

Remodel update
by brian @ 12:26:07 - [perma-link]
Aside from a couple of "minor" glitches, the house is moving along. The
sink cabinet in the garage is done (except for door pulls), and the
sink works. It looks really good, and its at a nice working height.
The home theater (oh yeah, "and exercise room") is almost ready for the
equipment to be installed. We're parking cars and motorcycles in the
big side of the garage, which is nice since its been raining a bit.
We're really happy with the exterior colors. A lot of the trim still
needs paint, but what is there looks really good. Connie dug up an old
picture of the back of the house for comparison. I don't know if the
difference between the grey and the taupe shows up in the pictures, but
the brown trim is much bolder than the old blue-grey. We like it.

Wednesday, September 24, 2003
Attention Telemarketers: Leave me alone. Forever!
by brian @ 13:16:32 - [perma-link]
I found this article about the "do not call" list being blocked.

The U.S. District Court in Oklahoma City said the Federal Trade
Commission overstepped its authority when it set up the popular
anti-telemarketing measure, according to a court decision filed late on
Tuesday.

The FTC has signed up some 50 million phone numbers for the list, which
was due to take effect on Oct. 1.

The Direct Marketing Association sued to block the list shortly after
Congress approved it in January, saying it would violate free-speech
laws and discriminate against an industry that provides millions of
jobs.

Let's think about this for a sec. 50 million numbers are signed up.
That's 50 million households who say they do not want telemarketers
calling them. That represents a fairly significant portion of the 300
million or so people in the US who do not want to receive telemarketing
calls. At all. Whether or not the government has the authority to
implement this, the people who signed up on the list do not want to
be called. The list is a good thing for everyone.

For people on the list (like me), its a way to opt-out of
telemarketing. I currently pay something like $10/month for a "privacy
guard" on my phone line. Any incoming call without a valid caller-id
gets redirected to some sort of menu or something. I now receive no
(zip, nada, zero!) telemarketing calls. From where I sit, its like
extortion; it's like paying "protection money" to the mob so their
thugs don't come trash your place.

For the telemarketing companies, its a list of 50 million numbers they
don't have to waste time calling. They don't have to pay their
employees (er, war-dialers) to waste time calling those 50 million
numbers. It makes their process way more efficient.

And for the poor schlubs manning the phones, its 50 million fewer "no,
I'm REALLY REALLY NOT INTERESTED! LEAVE ME ALONE!" hang-ups they don't
have to hear. It would lower their stress, improve their "hit rate",
and probably improve morale. They wouldn't have to feel quite as
ashamed when someone asks them what they do. (I don't buy the "it
creates jobs" argument anymore than I believe the RIAA is suing people
to "protect the artists".)

The only potential losers in this are the phone companies, who stand to
lose my $10/month for the privacy service. But that would probably
cancel-out with the reduced costs, as they will have some multiple of
50-million fewer unproductive connections to make.

So what's the problem? Why are the telemarketers fighting it?

previous

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Saturday, October 11, 2003
	Resting atop his perch by brian @ 19:49:30 - [perma-link] This guys was sitting funny. We're at a wedding. Well, it was funny a couple minutes ago.

Friday, October 3, 2003
	...the hair saga continues... by Connie__ @ 19:50:50 - [perma-link] Here I am with Felix sporting my new do. I love it! The only way I can go blond is like this so I'm going to enjoy it while I can. By the time we go to New York I should have some roots showing. It should look cool. I can't wait! Connie


Wednesday, October 1, 2003
	Finally! by brian @ 13:21:45 - [perma-link] My G5 finally arrived today. I'll open it up when I get back from lunch.
	ARGH!!!! by brian @ 15:10:32 - [perma-link] This is so not fair. No, its ridiculous. My G5 showed up today. I ordered it about 100 days ago, and it arrived today DAMAGED. On the inside. The picture shows a closeup of the side of the DVD drive. It looks like someone installed it, then pulled up on the back hard enough to pull the bottom panel out and bend it. I haven't even turned it on yet. This is so infuriating.

Tuesday, September 30, 2003
	Lunch at Bertie-Lou's by brian @ 09:21:47 - [perma-link] These are a few days old. We're back at Bertie's today for breakfast. Daisy is barking at everyone. I hope she outgrows that.


Friday, September 26, 2003
	After by brian @ 17:25:32 - [perma-link] Granted this would be more impressive if I had taken some "before" photos, but if you know me this should be sufficient. I spent a couple of days cleaning up the basement. It still needs a little work (open cabinet doors at your own risk), but its nice enough to sit downstairs and relax. I dragged one of the La-Z-Boys downstairs the other night. Its really nice to sit in and watch a movie on the imac while surfing the web on the linux box (through the SGI "Early-Adopter Edition" LCD). I'm definitely going to want a second screen for my G5 when I get it. I need to raise the desk a few inches. Its a pretty tight squeeze if I fully recline in the chair. I'm not quite sure how I'll accomplish that, since the desk is all connected, but it shouldn't be too hard. I hope.

	OMG!!! The latest from Jen and Ben!!!! by brian @ 17:42:07 - [perma-link] This is huge! Are you sitting down? Take a deep breath, then read this amazing article! Can you believe it?!?!?!?! B-Fleck bought a truck! OMG!!!! YEAH!!! REALLY!!!! No seriously. Whew! Let me catch my breath. Wow! A truck! He actually went to a dealer and bought a truck! And J-Lo was there with him! This is amazing. What will those two wacky kids do next? America can be so lame sometimes.

Thursday, September 25, 2003
	How does this happen? by brian @ 10:21:38 - [perma-link] They carpeted the bonus room yesterday and today. They didn't use a pet-safe, moisture barrier pad like we asked. I'm so annoyed. Its not like we just mentioned it one day in passing. I brought it up several times. I even told a story (go figure) about why we needed it. Somewhere between us stressing the need for it and the carpet company filling out the work order, it got dropped. I just don't get it. On the good side, the carpet does look great. I'll post a picture later; I don't want to go up there while the carpet guy is still here... I don't need to "feel his wrath". Update @ 11:58: Just got a call from the project manager. They're going to replace the pad tomorrow. It was his mistake. Woohoo!
	Remodel update by brian @ 12:26:07 - [perma-link] Aside from a couple of "minor" glitches, the house is moving along. The sink cabinet in the garage is done (except for door pulls), and the sink works. It looks really good, and its at a nice working height. The home theater (oh yeah, "and exercise room") is almost ready for the equipment to be installed. We're parking cars and motorcycles in the big side of the garage, which is nice since its been raining a bit. We're really happy with the exterior colors. A lot of the trim still needs paint, but what is there looks really good. Connie dug up an old picture of the back of the house for comparison. I don't know if the difference between the grey and the taupe shows up in the pictures, but the brown trim is much bolder than the old blue-grey. We like it.


Wednesday, September 24, 2003
	Attention Telemarketers: Leave me alone. Forever! by brian @ 13:16:32 - [perma-link] I found this article about the "do not call" list being blocked. The U.S. District Court in Oklahoma City said the Federal Trade Commission overstepped its authority when it set up the popular anti-telemarketing measure, according to a court decision filed late on Tuesday. The FTC has signed up some 50 million phone numbers for the list, which was due to take effect on Oct. 1. The Direct Marketing Association sued to block the list shortly after Congress approved it in January, saying it would violate free-speech laws and discriminate against an industry that provides millions of jobs. Let's think about this for a sec. 50 million numbers are signed up. That's 50 million households who say they do not want telemarketers calling them. That represents a fairly significant portion of the 300 million or so people in the US who do not want to receive telemarketing calls. At all. Whether or not the government has the authority to implement this, the people who signed up on the list do not want to be called. The list is a good thing for everyone. For people on the list (like me), its a way to opt-out of telemarketing. I currently pay something like $10/month for a "privacy guard" on my phone line. Any incoming call without a valid caller-id gets redirected to some sort of menu or something. I now receive no (zip, nada, zero!) telemarketing calls. From where I sit, its like extortion; it's like paying "protection money" to the mob so their thugs don't come trash your place. For the telemarketing companies, its a list of 50 million numbers they don't have to waste time calling. They don't have to pay their employees (er, war-dialers) to waste time calling those 50 million numbers. It makes their process way more efficient. And for the poor schlubs manning the phones, its 50 million fewer "no, I'm REALLY REALLY NOT INTERESTED! LEAVE ME ALONE!" hang-ups they don't have to hear. It would lower their stress, improve their "hit rate", and probably improve morale. They wouldn't have to feel quite as ashamed when someone asks them what they do. (I don't buy the "it creates jobs" argument anymore than I believe the RIAA is suing people to "protect the artists".) The only potential losers in this are the phone companies, who stand to lose my $10/month for the privacy service. But that would probably cancel-out with the reduced costs, as they will have some multiple of 50-million fewer unproductive connections to make. So what's the problem? Why are the telemarketers fighting it?
previous