Category Archives: Uncategorized

If you live past 100, since you have awesome genes, it’s likely your last 10-20 years are self-sufficient and independent. Lifestyle does have some bearing on it too.

If you can make it past your 60s without cancer and past 84 without a heart  disease or Alzheimers, things are looking good for you.

Neil Gaiman’s library.

See also:

Better editing would have made it funnier.

Scientists can levitate mice now.

I love getting my annual notice from the Social Security administration telling me they’ll be sending me half what I need to live on when I reach 62 or 67 or 70 and as an added bonus this number is subject to change at any time especially since they’re going to run out of money in 2041. Oh, right when I retire. That’s awesome.  It makes my day.

The Baron more interested in his power than his constituents. How unusual.

Wednesday I read this Lifehacker article about custom colored chalkboard paint (I used the Martha Stewart recipe) which spurred some googling and ended up with me deciding to make the side of my refrigerator a chalkboard. It’s one of the first things you see walking in the door and a little color there wouldn’t go amiss.

On my way home I hit the hardware store and got a sheet of 150 grit sandpaper, a mini-roller, a bag of TSP/90, unsanded tile grout, and a quart of flat, latex paint. Total cost $22 (it was the expensive local store). I stopped by the dollar store for a set of dollar measuring cups/spoons, bringing the total cost to $23.

So, here it is to start with:

I cleaned it with some TSP/90, which is awesome and cuts right through that grease/dust that collects on the top of the fridge. Then I taped the edges up because my rolling skillz aren’t all they could be, really. If you’re careful, you don’t need to do that.

I mixed the paint, per the instructions, and started rolling.

1 cup of paint was plenty to cover the side. It rolled on the same as any other paint. I was a bit dubious when I finished rolling, but as it dried the texture appeared and relieved my doubts.

I let it dry overnight, lightly! sanded (I would rather have gone 180 grit so I could actually put a little pressure on the paper) and applied a second coat (only used 1/2 cup of paint. Thin coat, was plenty) the following day. When that dried I again lightly! sanded it, and coated with chalk. Oh, add $1 to the total cost for chalk (unnecessary parenthesis).

Wipe it down, and done!

It’s obvious that the paint won’t stand up to too much abuse, I can see it would peel off if it was hit or really scuffed. On the other hand, it should be easy to get off when I change my mind or want another color.

Total time: 2 days
Actual work time: ~3 hours
Total cost: $24

Next up,  painting those horrible brown kitchen cabinets.

The Carrington Event. It would be disastrous today (though perhaps not as disastrous as the link predicts, never underestimate the power of suddenly throwing money at a serious problem).

Amazing how far science has come in such a short time.

If you act quick you can get 1 free song from Amazon. Offer ends September 6th.

Global warming is keeping us from sliding into an Ice Age.

7 animal myths debunked. (Cracked, NSFW, but hilarious in parts)

Skipping past Back To School, Halloween and Thanksgiving, retailers are going straight from 4th of July to Christmas. We all knew it was coming.

Soon the Christmas season will be so long it’s meaningless and they’ll have to give it up.

It’s a Windows 7 partay!

I too want a Kindle, but am not about to pay more than $100 for it. And the price of ebooks has to drop dramatically too. If I pay full price I might as well get my share of a tree for it.

Hmm. I’m tempted. Very tempted.

Not that I actually need a computer that runs Mac. What would I do with it? The same thing I’m doing with it now, watch videos, play music, surf the web. Practice my leet Mac skillz, I guess.

It would probably be smarter, PR-wise, to use Joseph Mengele rather than the IRS. Nobody under 60 knows who Joseph is anymore.

On the one hand, at least they aren’t trying to create a new bureaucracy to deal with it. On the other hand, who thought giving the IRS!!! more power to intrude on my life was a good idea?

Do these people not have accountants? I would think it would be a matter of course for politicians to have an accountant and lawyer on tap.

Yet I believe I would do better.

I’m all for keeping asteroids from smashing into earth, but I hope the have other things to do with this idea too, or they’re going to get bored waiting around.

Country evenly split on whether random people picked out of a phonebook would be an improvement for congress. I’d say probably, but I can’t underestimate the stupidity of people and what if there really are dumber ones out there. On the other hand, at least they could get through a few months weeks before they got caught up in the money and power brokering. I’m torn on the issue.

A chart tracking trends in science fiction on TV

The troubles and triumphs of contact lenses with built-in stuff.

Think you’re good at Tetris? Try this game. I don’t have that kind of patience.

Once again, life imitates Yes, Minister!

12 deadly diseases cured in the 20th century. In annoying slide format.

Ouch.

$30 for Snow Leopard. Microsoft should read this and take it to heart.

Everyone’s greatest nightmare the night before going to the DMV.

Some great photography. Of slums, so it’s hard to say beautiful or great, cause that’s tacky.

Great pictures of a trip to Antartica.

I haven’t been paying attention to Wil Wheaton’s new book, until I realized that it was his TV Squad reviews of ST:NG compiled and added to. He now has my attention. Also, that is an awesome cover.

A. Red Dawn remake? Why? The commmies aren’t really a credible threat are they?

B. Let’s save Spokane! It’s not worth it, let the commies have it.

Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either—but right through every human heart—and through all human hearts. This line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates with the years. And even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained. And even in the best of hearts, there remains… an unuprooted small corner of evil.

—Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago

Cracked’s list of horrible bosses (NSFW). Notice how unions were actually a good idea back then.

What’s a couple TRILLION dollars here and there.

Also, this is gold:

The White House tried to argue that the exact opposite is true and the budget deficit is precisely the reason why health care must be reformed. “Given the long-term nature of that problem, we simply can’t afford to wait,” Peter Orszag, the White House’s budget director, said.

Quick, let’s spend the money before the credit card bill comes! I’d expect better thinking from government officials than the average payday loan user, but clearly I’m too optimistic.

Oh look, no more credit for us.

In annoying video format.

When did we decide that Czar was a title we wanted to use regularly? Shouldn’t we have chosen something less authoritarian, like Executive Assistant? Or maybe we pay them less since they have a highfalutin title?

As Jesus often said, “Let’s get the government to do something about it.”

Apparently Great Britian has a ukulele orchestra. Who knew?

I like how they found the one black guy in the audience for that one shot. Also, happiest bass ukulele player ever. Aren’t they supposed to sit in the back in their own world?

Be sure to check out their other videos. Fly Me off the Handel is particularly amusing.

Bad design choices in Star Wars.

Instapundit interviews John Ringo. Not my favorite Baen writer, but it’s still an interesting interview.

Top 50 funniest movie moments with clips. I think they’re a little out of order, and the list is seriously lacking Rocketman (rectified below), but that’s some funny stuff right there.

Oh sure, they can’t streamline the Cash for Clunkers payouts, but health care will be more efficient and cheaper than ever. Hospitals won’t have to take on additional people to fill out the paper work and everyone will be paid in a timely manner.

Also, this article is good.

Back in the misty days of January 2007, he [Obama] warned the Democratic National Committee about us. The “cynics,” he predicted, would fight health care reform. “With such cynicism, government doesn’t become a force of good, a means of giving people the opportunity to lead better lives; it just becomes an obstacle for people to get rid of.

I can’t argue with that last sentence. Although I’m more of a pessimist, or realist as we like to call ourselves, than a cynic. I’m sure they have the purest of motives, it just won’t end well.

In case you get tired of watching dramatic chipmunks and cats, there’s a bunch of fascinating stuff to watch over at TED.

This list fails for not mentioning The Dirty Dozen, Patton, The Guns of Naverone, Midway and 12 o’Clock  High, Hell in the Pacific and Kelly’s Heroes.

The Milky Way over South Dakota badlands.

More info.

Paradigm changing military weapons. Nothing new but in a convenient top ten list.

Pick one. Mark Steyn on Obamacare.

Related.

People that don’t need 8 hours of sleep are genetic mutants that should leave the rest of us alone. Freaks.

Awesome pictures of asteroid impacts with Earth from space.

The information in this book must be spectacular.

I can see why the White House thought they might need to get on those rumors.

Also, geniuses have figured out that going to the doctor more increases costs.

Touchable holograms. Wiimotes are involved.

I’ve read the Foundation novels (the first three, the real ones; I’ve read the other ones, but not nearly as much) at least half a dozen times and I saw the plucky, lightweight, maneuverable underdog beats the top-heavy, bureaucratic government every time.

I don’t know why it would make you want to be an economist. A psychologist or historian or mutant mind-controller, that makes sense.

3-D etch-a-sketch.

A surprisingly understandable look at some flaws with the best theories in physics today by Roger Penrose.

It’s also the best use of overheads I’ve ever seen.

VDH

Frank J. – Not Frank’s best work but a couple nice sentences in there.

I’m shocked and saddened that Google’s calculator can’t convert between MPH and Warp Factors.

VDH with a cold-eyed look at our national debt.

Iowahawk describes the difference between astroturf and grassroots.

29% of Americans horrible at math. Or possibly logic.

China has revitalized the HD-DVD format. Will it actually catch on everywhere else? Strikes me as unlikely.

The whole region and video format thing is so annoying. Can’t we all just get along? Why is it so important to studios to release movies at different times in different areas of the world?

Also, ZDNet’s comment system teh sucks.

NASA has found life on earth. No mention of where though.

No doubt vast numbers of children have developed mental retardation from the lead in the ink in books printed before 1985.

Fortunately, America has a place for them to lead active and full lives. In Congress.

A look at NASA’s sweet new threads for the Orion missions (finally) and beyond.

G.I. Joe may not completely suck.

Send up your own temporary satellite for a measly $8000. Why have I not read any novels based on this concept?

They accept Paypal.

The story of Ben Franklin with a font and picture style that screams “female with issues”.

Comparing British and American traditions in naming ships and then letting Star Trek decide which is better.

While I admit the British have some awesome names, we have a lot more ships to name and they can’t all be home runs.

On the other hand,  Indefatigable: awesome name, too many syllables.

More discussion here. Yes, this warrants more discussion.

The era of Big Voter over?

Enough is enough. It’s time for us to get out our pitchforks and tell the Outside-the-Beltway gang that we’re mad as hell, and we’re not going to take it any more. We are the little guy, the junior senator from some godforsaken Nebraskansaw, just looking to make that subcommittee with the big contributor action. That fresh young regulatory agency head who only wants to test that bank nationalization idea from her Harvard term paper. We are the people who get up every day, work hard, and play inside the rules. Most of the time. And if one of us accidentally plays outside one of those rules, then, by golly, the rest of us will make sure to modify that rule so he’s still playing inside the rules. And we’re tired of getting pushed around the town hall by the likes of you, Big Voter.

The MPAA and RIAA find it unreasonable that you should expect perpetual access to movies and music that you have purchased. I say they’re nuts.

No other product or service providers are held to such lofty standards. No one expects computers or other electronics devices to work properly in perpetuity, and there is no reason that any particular mode of distributing copyrighted works should be required to do so.”

This is the part I particularly like. He compares apples and oranges and leaves the glaring comparison of apples to apples untouched. Like the 50 year old books, 18 year old CDs, 15 year old DVDs I have on my shelf.  You see, I expect perpetual access to “creative works” because THAT’S WHAT I’VE ALWAYS HAD.

Frank J. on the birther controversy.

The other half.

I recently washed my phone again and I thought it was all fine, but it turns out the microphone is shot.  So I have to get another one, and I don’t want to spend any money on it. I’m torn between the simplicity of the Motofone F3 and the more advanced Motorola V197. I really should get the v197 but the F3 calls to me for some reason.

Panasonic makes some decent reliable stuff, but don’t buy their cameras. Not being able to use third-party batteries is kinda lame and would keep me from buying one of their cameras in the first place, but not supplying replacement batteries either? Fail.

Car dealers are awfully trusting of the federal government.

How come they can get car loan approval in 15 minutes, but they can’t work the same sort of thing out with the government? Send in the facts, measure against the criteria, send a yes or no.  Oh, I make me laugh with my simplistic views.

It’s a little known fact (outside the Asus Eee PC forum) that after you install a RAM upgrade you have to go into the BIOS and, well, look at it and it will properly report 2048 or whatever of RAM, and then Save and Exit (F10) before it will recognize that 2nd gig of sweet, sweet RAM.

It has something to do with Boot Booster, which sounds like a exercise gimmick.

But you can’t find this information on Google because the first 5 pages  are all reviews and/or sales and apparently there isn’t a lot of people reporting this on other forums.

Red Shirt cologne.

Hawaii residents again able to be Amazon associates after Hawaii’s governor vetoes the state internet sales tax.

I wonder how it’s going for North Carolina.

If you work in Congress.

A video camera system that lets you watch video in surround mode.

Craig Ferguson explains the downfall of American culture over the last 50 years.

No nuclear energy for you. Despite campaign promises!

Another peer-reviewed study saying that man doesn’t cause global warming. But please go ahead and handicap our economy to try to fix it.

This was cute, but I in no way condone white people dancing. This is further proof that they shouldn’t, I think.

The 2010 Death and Taxes poster is now available for your viewing and comparison pleasure. Be sure to check out how much money isn’t coming in in the lower right corner.

Why the whole “Amazon deletes 1984 and Animal Farm off of Kindles” is so worrying in the larger sense of property rights and freedom of thought/expression. And why a way around DRM restrictions is always a good thing, if you want to hold on to what you paid for.

I still want a Kindle. In case anyone wants to give theirs away in a gesture of defiance or something.

Glenn Beck, John Stossel, and Penn Jillette discuss government health care. Glenn Beck should talk less, but they lay out classic libertarian viewpoint. (Warning: video)

1. North Korea tweets.

2. They’re hilarious.

The coolest poster of computer parts you’ll see today.

Amazon’s weirdest stuff collected for your convenience.

Barbie goes off-planet in the most bizzare Barbie story ever.

Windows 7 family pack surprisingly well priced.  Supposedly.

Free Slurpee tomorrow at a 7-11 near you.

Positive self-talk lowers self-esteem.

That’s great, now fix the economy.

The third Oscar Mayer has died.

bal-oh-nuh?? Really?

Epicurious has their 21 top rated burgers. Some look horrible, but there’s some genius in there.

Difficulty: 21 clicks

If you want to keep your eye out for sofas on the pitch, the Ashes are going on now. It’s kinda hit and miss.

Looks like a nice day standing around for everyone but the bowler.

Google announces an open source operating system coming soon.

The rest of the concert starts here.

VLC 1.0 audio/video player is out. I’ve been using VLC for years now and it’s still fast, light and plays everything, including partial files. And that’s why I like it.

Christopher Hitchens asks if Iraq has had any influence on Iran. The New Republic article linked is also excellent.

Government not guessing correctly how a situation will develop? Unheard of!

Joe Biden told “This Week” that the Obama administration “misread how bad the economy was.”

He also the administration made this mistake because they just looked at the consensus forecasts at the time…and they proved to be wrong.

On the other hand, imagine how much more pork and bloat they would have laden TARP with if they thought it would be worse.

Morgan Stanley on the outlook for the economy.

The rise in federal healthcare outlays under Medicare and Medicaid is the main long-term factor boosting deficits.

A chart depicting how far our TV shows have gotten in space. Further than I thought.

Ironic old ads.

Modern-day promotion schemes run amuck. (Cracked, NSFW) A surprising number involve baseball.

A giant mega-colony of billions of ants has spread over the world and they refuse to fight with each other.

Here’s how to start.

Roger Ebert on kids today. The videos are particularly worth watching.

The new Firefox 3.5 is available. It’s fast. And it supports the new HTML 5 <video> and <audio>  tags.  Sweet.

A 14-year-old tries out a Walkman. Hilarity ensues.

It took me three days to figure out that there was another side to the tape.

But I managed to create an impromptu shuffle feature simply by holding down “rewind” and releasing it randomly – effective, if a little laboured.

When playing, it is clearly evident that the music sounds significantly different than when played on an MP3 player, mainly because of the hissy backtrack and odd warbly noises on the Walkman. The warbling is probably because of the horrifically short battery life; [LOL: ed] it is nearly completely dead within three hours of firing it up. Not long after the music warbled into life, it abruptly ended.

Did my dad, Alan, really ever think this was a credible piece of technology?

Laugh it up kids, eventually you’ll be shaking your head a the ridiculousness of the iPod.

President back-tracking on No New Taxes for the middle class. And the press corps laughs at the tap dancing.

Hedy Lamarr co-owned the patent on freqency-hopping, spread-spectrum invention which became the basis of modern spread-spectrum communication like wi-fi and your cell phone.

From this above-average Lileks B&W movie review.

Note: this is the appropriate length for a SNL skit. Anything longer drags down into epic unfunny.