i found out today that one my random girls at the knoxnews.com is having some of her video footage aired on conan o’brien’s late night show tonight. erin is pretty stoked about that. i have to say that i am too. ken mink is going to be on conan. the footage will be used with that interview.
watch the clip here and then watch conan tonight to see it in a national setting.
update: erin told me later that conan found some other footage and might go with that. tune in tonight to see what footage is used!
16 December 2008
07 December 2008
the whole story
this weekend, i sat down with my friend tara who had only seen the original star wars movie and watched all the movies in story order from beginning to end including the animated (not cg) clone wars.
we started on friday evening with the first two episodes. i came back the next morning to pick up with “the clone wars” which lead right up to episode three. we finally finished up around 10:00p saturday night. i don’t remember every watching the original three (episodes four, five, and six) in one sitting because that would have been too much. this was different since tara didn’t know the back story. watching with someone who hasn’t seen is much more fun. even though “i’m your father” was not a surprise to her, a couple of other aspects were: following palpatine as the emperor and finding lando to betray han.
bacon bread for saturday morning and chili in the afternoon fueled us for the weekend event. and for those who are going to ask (and probably whine about it in the comments), we watched the revised versions of the “new hope,” “empire,” and “jedi.” i do have the versions of those movies in their original theatrical releases. the updated versions include some extra scenes edited in which i tend to favor.
i had a good feeling about this. it was a fun weekend.
26 November 2008
some dog news
this past weekend went back to typical dog problems again. i ended up calling the sheriff’s office twice this weekend due to late night dog barkings. on saturday night, neighbor put dog up. but they left town for thanksgiving vacation it seems on sunday, and they left doggy free to roam outside all night every night since then.
dog woke me up four times sunday night/monday morning. i put a call into animal control again monday afternoon. this would be the fourth call to them. i reported the address and the problem again. then later that afternoon i got a call back from them. they wanted some more information about the dog and its barking behavior. as it turns out, they came by on monday but didn’t see the dog. since it was raining, abby usually stays indoors and rarely wanders out. since she barks at night, it’s also possible she was napping for her big night life. they recognized her to be a night time barker.
i asked them what was next. they had left a note on the neighbor’s door requiring the owner to call them upon receiving it. they would discuss the complaints with the the owner and suggest the use of a shock collar. they would monitor that progress and go from there. worst case scenario for owner is a citation, which looks like it might cost the neighbor over $100.00 for the noise problem. that might get his attention to addressing this problem. (shock collars cost from $25.00 up to $150.00 depending on model.) they will have a nice surprise when they get back from their holiday vacation time.
i have some hope now that my neighbor will be motivated to action. i thought getting the sheriff involved to begin with would be enough. it amazes me that it would not make a difference. i know if i had a neighbor complaining about a dog i owned, it would be enough to deal with it just from that encounter. law officers would only scare me more. doesn’t seem to have made a dent in my neighbor. as my family has expressed, we just don’t get it.
dog woke me up four times sunday night/monday morning. i put a call into animal control again monday afternoon. this would be the fourth call to them. i reported the address and the problem again. then later that afternoon i got a call back from them. they wanted some more information about the dog and its barking behavior. as it turns out, they came by on monday but didn’t see the dog. since it was raining, abby usually stays indoors and rarely wanders out. since she barks at night, it’s also possible she was napping for her big night life. they recognized her to be a night time barker.
i asked them what was next. they had left a note on the neighbor’s door requiring the owner to call them upon receiving it. they would discuss the complaints with the the owner and suggest the use of a shock collar. they would monitor that progress and go from there. worst case scenario for owner is a citation, which looks like it might cost the neighbor over $100.00 for the noise problem. that might get his attention to addressing this problem. (shock collars cost from $25.00 up to $150.00 depending on model.) they will have a nice surprise when they get back from their holiday vacation time.
i have some hope now that my neighbor will be motivated to action. i thought getting the sheriff involved to begin with would be enough. it amazes me that it would not make a difference. i know if i had a neighbor complaining about a dog i owned, it would be enough to deal with it just from that encounter. law officers would only scare me more. doesn’t seem to have made a dent in my neighbor. as my family has expressed, we just don’t get it.
14 November 2008
quantum of nasa
just got through seeing the latest bond movie. i like how they are producing these films. less cheese, less comic book, more action, more character development. as long as they don’t end up back how they were making the movies before, it will continue to be good stuff.
after bond, i went to stir fry café for some sushi and to do a little christmas shopping. and after that, i’m headed home to put up the christmas tree and watch the shuttle endeavour launch.
and that is how my half day off ends up.
10 November 2008
two week goal
ok, i’m well into november, and i have zero christmas shopping done. i like to be done with at least the bulk of it before thanksgiving. my past goals have wanted it done well before, but i’ve always fallen miserably short. perhaps it’s not realistic to make this attempt since history shows i can’t achieve it.
nevertheless, i am going to make the attempt again. for the next two weeks i will endeavor to get as much of if not all of my christmas shopping done. evenings will be spent on the couch with laptop on lap searching and pricing the gifts for my friends and family.
on a side note, my sis has already put up her christmas tree. i’ve been tempted pull down the decorations and go to town too, but i’ve always set it up the week of thanksgiving. now, i wonder if putting it up this early might not capitalize on the work it takes to lug that big, bulky tree-in-a-box out of the attic and assemble it. i might go ahead and get those gears in motion. maybe i’ll try it this year. and next year, i’ll pull it down the day before halloween. if the stores can do it, why not me, right?
nevertheless, i am going to make the attempt again. for the next two weeks i will endeavor to get as much of if not all of my christmas shopping done. evenings will be spent on the couch with laptop on lap searching and pricing the gifts for my friends and family.
on a side note, my sis has already put up her christmas tree. i’ve been tempted pull down the decorations and go to town too, but i’ve always set it up the week of thanksgiving. now, i wonder if putting it up this early might not capitalize on the work it takes to lug that big, bulky tree-in-a-box out of the attic and assemble it. i might go ahead and get those gears in motion. maybe i’ll try it this year. and next year, i’ll pull it down the day before halloween. if the stores can do it, why not me, right?
31 October 2008
sleeping on the floor
sir barksalot was doing her thing last night. she barked continually from 9:45p until sometime after 11:00p. (she might have taken a small break in there somewhere.) i put in a call to the knox sheriff’s non-emergency number again. i don’t know what time they drove by, but the owners weren’t at home when i headed to my sleeping bag around 10:30p.
i rolled it out in my office to get some relief from the noise, although there was no comfort in the location for the night. it was not a good night’s sleep. i am not sure when the patrol car went by since i needed to get some sleep. when i woke up this morning at 5:15a, the owners had returned.
i’ve called animal control again today to continue the process of having them deal with the dog. i still subscribe to the reality that the only permanent resolution to this problem now is to have the dog removed from the owner. their inconsistent addressing of this problem shows that is the only way.
i rolled it out in my office to get some relief from the noise, although there was no comfort in the location for the night. it was not a good night’s sleep. i am not sure when the patrol car went by since i needed to get some sleep. when i woke up this morning at 5:15a, the owners had returned.
i’ve called animal control again today to continue the process of having them deal with the dog. i still subscribe to the reality that the only permanent resolution to this problem now is to have the dog removed from the owner. their inconsistent addressing of this problem shows that is the only way.
30 October 2008
restructuring pay days
a note with attached pdf document including full-color examples was delivered to our inboxes this week to let us know that the semi-monthly pay plan (the fifteenth and last days of the month) are being switched over to an bi-weekly cycle.
first, thanks for the heads up. second, thanks for making life much harder for all.
as gmoney points out, does anyone have bill that aren’t based on a monthly cycle? answer: no. but now i have to take extra steps to make sure enough is allocated for the etched-in-stone pay dates set up by the rest of the world. those were based on specific days in a month not weekly cycles.
i do not know if this somehow makes their life easier. it might, but since i don’t speak accounting i can’t say. gmoney also points out that it is more costly to have a two-week cycle than it is a semi-monthly. and he’s right: paper cost for all the transactions, bank fees, transaction costs, postage fees. they are all on being done 26 times a year rather than 24. not much of a difference, unless your company is big. then the pennies add up.
i suppose i should just be happy i have a job. and i’ll admit to a certain laziness when it comes to personal finance management. nothing like playing payment timing games to keep you on your toes. we’ll see if i can blog about the positives into next year.
first, thanks for the heads up. second, thanks for making life much harder for all.
as gmoney points out, does anyone have bill that aren’t based on a monthly cycle? answer: no. but now i have to take extra steps to make sure enough is allocated for the etched-in-stone pay dates set up by the rest of the world. those were based on specific days in a month not weekly cycles.
i do not know if this somehow makes their life easier. it might, but since i don’t speak accounting i can’t say. gmoney also points out that it is more costly to have a two-week cycle than it is a semi-monthly. and he’s right: paper cost for all the transactions, bank fees, transaction costs, postage fees. they are all on being done 26 times a year rather than 24. not much of a difference, unless your company is big. then the pennies add up.
i suppose i should just be happy i have a job. and i’ll admit to a certain laziness when it comes to personal finance management. nothing like playing payment timing games to keep you on your toes. we’ll see if i can blog about the positives into next year.
28 October 2008
the dog saga continues
on sunday night when i was getting ready for sleep, my neighbor’s dog, abby, was still out barking in their backyard. i feel asleep around 10:30p and was abruptly woken to the sound of sir barksalot’s rousing vocals. i got up and checked out my kitchen window to see if the owners would address her barking, as prescribed in the ordinance. nothing.
i went back to bed. i feel asleep again. around 11:00p, barksalot woke me again. this time i got up, checked for the neighbor to address her barking (prescribed by the ordinance) and found no activity. it was my turn to be active.
i telephoned the sheriff’s non-emergency number and reported the “noise problem.” he got address of neighbor and told me it would be passed on. thirty minutes later, a cruiser swung by his house. dog was put in a flash. it took less than two minutes to put her up.
i went to bed at 11:30p and slept the rest of the night.
at this point, all i have to do keep reporting the dog to animal services, and they will continue to address the problem. i am mostly convinced that the only way for me to find real relief is if the dog is removed from the owner, which is unfortunate. but since this owner has a track record of not being home all night yet leaving the dog out, there is no guarantee this matter can be permanently fixed by the dog staying. history has proven there will be change for a limited time and then a return back to annoyance. i just don’t think he gets it.
so, my plan is go to bed and plan to sleep the night. if the dog barks, i call sheriff’s department and/or report the matter to animal control the next day. they will be able to solve this problem the right way. i’m counting on it.
i went back to bed. i feel asleep again. around 11:00p, barksalot woke me again. this time i got up, checked for the neighbor to address her barking (prescribed by the ordinance) and found no activity. it was my turn to be active.
i telephoned the sheriff’s non-emergency number and reported the “noise problem.” he got address of neighbor and told me it would be passed on. thirty minutes later, a cruiser swung by his house. dog was put in a flash. it took less than two minutes to put her up.
i went to bed at 11:30p and slept the rest of the night.
at this point, all i have to do keep reporting the dog to animal services, and they will continue to address the problem. i am mostly convinced that the only way for me to find real relief is if the dog is removed from the owner, which is unfortunate. but since this owner has a track record of not being home all night yet leaving the dog out, there is no guarantee this matter can be permanently fixed by the dog staying. history has proven there will be change for a limited time and then a return back to annoyance. i just don’t think he gets it.
so, my plan is go to bed and plan to sleep the night. if the dog barks, i call sheriff’s department and/or report the matter to animal control the next day. they will be able to solve this problem the right way. i’m counting on it.
14 October 2008
full moon
full moon, originally uploaded by mocktech.
this is the first time i’ve ever gotten to photograph the moon like this. it was a lot of fun to get these shots. i had some help from my friend aleece who had learned how to do this the night before.
this was taken with 300mm lens. now, i think i would like to photograph the moon with a 500mm lens.
11 October 2008
bacon friday
yesterday was unofficially bacon friday. i took the day and tried various bacon recipes and tried them out to see if they were indeed good or bad ideas. the question exists: can bacon really make other food items better?
my first attempt were the bacon cinnamon rolls. these turned out to taste as good as they sound. if you think they don’t sound good, you have to do a bit of logic: you eat bacon for breakfast, you eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast, both are good, they should be good together. and they are. i approve this recipe.
next was to prep some bacon chili for the evening meal. i couldn’t find a decent recipe for this at foodnetwork.com. so, i modified my old standard recipe and added bacon to the crockpot of chili as it cooked. this turned out well, too, but the bacon flavor wasn’t strong enough. next time, there needs to be a stronger bacon presence. i believe replace one of the two pounds of beef with a pound of bacon will help. breaking the bacon into smaller pieces is also advised.
the final baconized treat was the bacon brownies. these turned out to be fantastic! i recommend this recipe be attempted by all who love brownies and who love bacon. two great tastes together!
my first attempt were the bacon cinnamon rolls. these turned out to taste as good as they sound. if you think they don’t sound good, you have to do a bit of logic: you eat bacon for breakfast, you eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast, both are good, they should be good together. and they are. i approve this recipe.
next was to prep some bacon chili for the evening meal. i couldn’t find a decent recipe for this at foodnetwork.com. so, i modified my old standard recipe and added bacon to the crockpot of chili as it cooked. this turned out well, too, but the bacon flavor wasn’t strong enough. next time, there needs to be a stronger bacon presence. i believe replace one of the two pounds of beef with a pound of bacon will help. breaking the bacon into smaller pieces is also advised.
the final baconized treat was the bacon brownies. these turned out to be fantastic! i recommend this recipe be attempted by all who love brownies and who love bacon. two great tastes together!
27 September 2008
24 September 2008
two shuttles
sts-125 mission is the next shuttle mission for nasa. atlantis is prepped for launch on october 10 to do some repair work on the hubble telescope.
my cousin (first and a half cousin?) sent me some links to photos of the shuttle taken by rod ostoski, a photographer who lives in florida. the set of photos at the link below shows a rare scene of both the atlantis and the endeavour on launch pads a and b in the same shot.
the photographer has some other shuttle pictures in some other galleries if you are interested. check out the links to his galleries at the top of his page (at the link above).
my cousin (first and a half cousin?) sent me some links to photos of the shuttle taken by rod ostoski, a photographer who lives in florida. the set of photos at the link below shows a rare scene of both the atlantis and the endeavour on launch pads a and b in the same shot.
STS-125 Space Shuttle Atlantis Mission to Hubble
the photographer has some other shuttle pictures in some other galleries if you are interested. check out the links to his galleries at the top of his page (at the link above).
18 September 2008
knight transformer
“knight rider” is back…again. the next episode was on hulu this week. interesting. i have a feeling the science behind the car is not all going to be explained away. nanotechnology turns normal car into transformer. i like science that is not real, yet plausible. i’m still waiting to be plaused.
here’s the episode on hulu:
here’s the episode on hulu:
16 September 2008
talk like a pirate day
coming this friday is talk like a pirate day. you have a few days to brush up on your swashbucklin’ accent. make sure you are ready!
13 September 2008
revision3 = techtv: the next gen
back in the day, techtv was the best! “the screensavers” totally ruled the show. after comcast purchased techtv from paul allen, the coolness factor began to decay. now, “attack of the show” on g4 is what comcast turned “the screensavers” into. blah!
time passes and now revision3 has collected all the personalities from the old days into very much techtv-ish programming as vidcasts. check out this line up from revision3:
jim louderback is revision3 ceo. david prager is vice president of special projects and co-founder of revision3. veronica belmont from former c|net’s “buzz out loud” podcast now co-hosts tekzilla with patrick norton.
to put together a collection of these shows is the weekly equivalent of watching “the screensavers.”
(note: some of these shows now fall into an uncensored category due to no longer under the jurisdiction of the fcc.)
time passes and now revision3 has collected all the personalities from the old days into very much techtv-ish programming as vidcasts. check out this line up from revision3:
- patrick norton: systm, tekzilla
- kevin rose: diggnation
- alex albrecht: diggnation, totally rad show
- sarah lane: pop siren
- martin sargent: internet superstar, webdrifter
- jim louderback
- david prager
jim louderback is revision3 ceo. david prager is vice president of special projects and co-founder of revision3. veronica belmont from former c|net’s “buzz out loud” podcast now co-hosts tekzilla with patrick norton.
to put together a collection of these shows is the weekly equivalent of watching “the screensavers.”
(note: some of these shows now fall into an uncensored category due to no longer under the jurisdiction of the fcc.)
09 September 2008
less crack, more science
who knew rainbows were unnatural? does this surprise you at all this warning comes from california? (as seen on the fail blog.)
05 September 2008
comcast needs a break (up)
this article by ars technica covering comcast’s latest shenanigans proves the point that the company is being run by money overlords who really are not in favor of technology:
i feel sorry for you if you are a comcast victim customer. if i were one, i’d feel sorry for me too. fortunately, i’m using knology, which isn’t run by the insane.
i think they need to be broken up like the phone company was many years ago. if anything, maybe some regulation of the internet/cable companies would be in order. oh, and definitely some net neutrality.
Comcast sues FCC, wants P2P throttling order overturned
i feel sorry for you if you are a comcast victim customer. if i were one, i’d feel sorry for me too. fortunately, i’m using knology, which isn’t run by the insane.
i think they need to be broken up like the phone company was many years ago. if anything, maybe some regulation of the internet/cable companies would be in order. oh, and definitely some net neutrality.
04 September 2008
facebook freaky
it’s a little freaky to check out facebook and find this entry in my news line up:
the reason is because facebook wouldn’t call me by my full name in my own feed and also because i don’t remember ever asking or confirming susie kenn as a friend.
this is what i get for accepting the friend invitation of another mark mcintyre in australia. we both admit to the freakiness of being friends with each other.
the reason is because facebook wouldn’t call me by my full name in my own feed and also because i don’t remember ever asking or confirming susie kenn as a friend.
this is what i get for accepting the friend invitation of another mark mcintyre in australia. we both admit to the freakiness of being friends with each other.
03 September 2008
hug a developer
if your software development manager never coded any major project in his life, i feel sorry for you!
02 September 2008
google browser
i wonder if one day we’ll replace the term “internet” with “google”? google is already a verb to indicate search. what if it turns out they become the internet?
they have launched, unlaunched, and will shortly relaunch their own browser which is said to make surfing better with their multiple process tabbed-design app named chrome. (press conference today at 2:00p to maybe give it back to us. synchronize your watches.)
i’m actually eager to see this. as much as i love firefox, i wonder if this tool will improve loading up as many sites in multiple tabs as i end up having.
they have launched, unlaunched, and will shortly relaunch their own browser which is said to make surfing better with their multiple process tabbed-design app named chrome. (press conference today at 2:00p to maybe give it back to us. synchronize your watches.)
i’m actually eager to see this. as much as i love firefox, i wonder if this tool will improve loading up as many sites in multiple tabs as i end up having.
26 August 2008
25 August 2008
“less commercials”?
cable channel tnt (who knows drama) seems to not know english good. their latest promotional when watching their movies boasts of “less commercials.” “less”? are you kidding me? allow me to correct them: it’s “fewer commercials.” it is getting bad when a television station does not know the difference between “less” and “fewer” and usage.
unbelievable.
(need to test your own knowledge? take the quiz.)
unbelievable.
(need to test your own knowledge? take the quiz.)
21 August 2008
history of icanhascheezburger.com
whether you are a fan or not (and you should be), icanhascheezburger.com has become one of my favorite places on the intertubez to visit. on most mornings, the looch and i will take a few mintues to catch up on the kittehs and have a good laugh.
not all the pictures make us laugh, but that is what the challenge is. to date, my favorite picture is this one. i find it funny every time i pull it up.
don’t know what a lolcat is? where did it all start? c|net did a story on the history of icanhascheezburger.com. read it.
my second post was a cheezburger, in case you were wondering.
not all the pictures make us laugh, but that is what the challenge is. to date, my favorite picture is this one. i find it funny every time i pull it up.
don’t know what a lolcat is? where did it all start? c|net did a story on the history of icanhascheezburger.com. read it.
my second post was a cheezburger, in case you were wondering.
20 August 2008
rootclip
a couple of guys i work with came up with this idea to begin a video story and let others finish it. they called it rootclip. a story is started with a clip from the site team and others have to complete each chapter along the way. chapters submissions are made, and the community along with select judges vote for their favorite. the winner’s submission becomes that next chapter and the next chapter builds where the winner left off. after five chapters, only the winners of the first five submit their idea for the final chapter.the winners for chapters two through five include a visa gift card and video related prizes. the grand prize winner of chapter six wins a $2,000 gift card. there is a brief tv spot from wbir on their about page.
the previous story completed about a month ago. watch the whole story from beginning to end: “good luck.”
the next story, “chance encounter,” is still taking submissions to date. chapter three was an ingenious idea.
19 August 2008
baconsalt
this is just plain genius!
> www.baconsalt.com
and where to buy locally? i found out!
if you need to make decisions on whether or not to eat bacon, use this flowchart.
18 August 2008
17 August 2008
new site!
i’ve decided to make my blog a little easier to use. since i don’t use most of the other features in geeklog, finding a easier medium makes more sense.
i’ve also included a link on the right to my latest twitter and facebook status, my last few tracks listened to (scrobbled by last.fm), and latest dugg stories from digg.
older content can be found from a link on the far right.
i’ve also included a link on the right to my latest twitter and facebook status, my last few tracks listened to (scrobbled by last.fm), and latest dugg stories from digg.
older content can be found from a link on the far right.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)