No, I'm not talking about coffee. When I left the house at 515am this morning, Venus and Mercury were just above the lightening sky announcing the imminent arrival of the Sun. Venus is the higher, brighter point of light, and Mercury is the lower one.
Last January five, Venus, the red star Antares of the constellation Scorpius, and the Moon were all in a horizontal row in the east.
Now if only I had a celestial object capable camera.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Political Correctness Again
This is Agatha Christie's top selling book, about ten people trapped on an island and condemned by a killer who executes them one by one.
It was published in the UK in 1939, but released in the US as Ten Little Indians. Even though this is from a nursery rhyme, even that was considered potentially offensive and changed to And Then There Were None the last line of the rhyme.
The rhyme, though, was still retained inside the book referring to Indians.
Now the question is: did the original composer of the rhyme come up with it out of meanness in the first place, black boys all dying one by one until they are all eradicated?
It was published in the UK in 1939, but released in the US as Ten Little Indians. Even though this is from a nursery rhyme, even that was considered potentially offensive and changed to And Then There Were None the last line of the rhyme.
The rhyme, though, was still retained inside the book referring to Indians.
Now the question is: did the original composer of the rhyme come up with it out of meanness in the first place, black boys all dying one by one until they are all eradicated?
Monday, January 28, 2008
A Fountain of Unabashed Optimism
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Song Lyrics I Like: No Looking Back
No, I'm not talking about the Rihanna song - probably the girl who took over Britney's throne as the person with the stupidest lyrics playing on the radio right now.
But this isn't a negative post. Anyway, this is a song with both a Kenny Loggins and a Michael MacDonald version. It's upbeat, and it has a positive message.
Im fading out of sight
My wheels are the only sound
Runnin at the speed of a light
n I cant slow down now
Out on an open road
Racin to beat the night
No matter where Im goin
I guess Ill get alright
So why dont I understand
Whats trippin me up?
It oughta be a simple thing
Chorus:I cant hold on
n I cant return
Its time to let go
n start to live and learn
I took a one-way flight
Too high to see the ground
Now I know how long it takes
A heart to come down
Alone on the highway now
Takin it mile by mile
Id rather be a lonely man
Than an imprisoned child
So why do I feel the strain
That keeps trippin me up
Will it ever be a simple thing
Chorus:I cant hold on
And I cant return
Rivers will run
n bridges will burn
I cant say just how
But theres no lookin back now
Bridge:When everything fades away
And theres nothing left
Then you got to keep rememberin
Chorus:I wont slow down
n I cant return
Its time to let go
n start to live and learn
So why dont I understand
Whats trippin me up?
Well it oughta be a simple thing
I cant hold on
n I cant return
Rivers will run
n bridges will burn
I cant say just how
But theres no lookin back now
I wot slow down
n I cant return
As night turns to dawn
The pages will burn
I cant say just how
But theres no lookin back now
I cant hold on
n I cant reurn
Its time to let go
n start to live and learn
But this isn't a negative post. Anyway, this is a song with both a Kenny Loggins and a Michael MacDonald version. It's upbeat, and it has a positive message.
Im fading out of sight
My wheels are the only sound
Runnin at the speed of a light
n I cant slow down now
Out on an open road
Racin to beat the night
No matter where Im goin
I guess Ill get alright
So why dont I understand
Whats trippin me up?
It oughta be a simple thing
Chorus:I cant hold on
n I cant return
Its time to let go
n start to live and learn
I took a one-way flight
Too high to see the ground
Now I know how long it takes
A heart to come down
Alone on the highway now
Takin it mile by mile
Id rather be a lonely man
Than an imprisoned child
So why do I feel the strain
That keeps trippin me up
Will it ever be a simple thing
Chorus:I cant hold on
And I cant return
Rivers will run
n bridges will burn
I cant say just how
But theres no lookin back now
Bridge:When everything fades away
And theres nothing left
Then you got to keep rememberin
Chorus:I wont slow down
n I cant return
Its time to let go
n start to live and learn
So why dont I understand
Whats trippin me up?
Well it oughta be a simple thing
I cant hold on
n I cant return
Rivers will run
n bridges will burn
I cant say just how
But theres no lookin back now
I wot slow down
n I cant return
As night turns to dawn
The pages will burn
I cant say just how
But theres no lookin back now
I cant hold on
n I cant reurn
Its time to let go
n start to live and learn
Friday, January 25, 2008
Grey Skies At Blue Coral
This was last Saturday lunch time, before we got our room. Note the new black and red aqua shoe and the Hawaiian (Lito Atienza?) shirt.
The rest of the photos are here. No pics in the water though.
The rest of the photos are here. No pics in the water though.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Zomb Air
I have got to give these b-movie producers credit. Way to ride Samuel L. Jackson's wave, with Flight of the Living Dead: Outbreak on A Plane and have a cameo in the film by a lookalike as well.
Too bad I didn't get to finish the film since it was shown on the bus. But I did get to about halfway through the show where the confined area wasn't immediately overrun by the undead because they preferred to crawl around in man-sized air vents, which I didn't even know existed on the Concord.
Too bad I didn't get to finish the film since it was shown on the bus. But I did get to about halfway through the show where the confined area wasn't immediately overrun by the undead because they preferred to crawl around in man-sized air vents, which I didn't even know existed on the Concord.
I will be looking out for this film in the shops now, just for the laugh value.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Goodbye, Heath
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Culled From Today's Headlines
One pretty good indication that someone feels like they're losing their side of an ongoing argument or running out of reason is when they dig up some other beef about their opponent from the past - and even try to spin it so what they did or didn't do before looks like it was out of some spirit of martyrdom or fair play instead of just not knowing what to do.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Where I Spent the Weekend
Friday, January 18, 2008
The Enemy of My Enemy Is My... ?
Today I'll be reflecting on something a friend told me. In the first place, I told her it's bad enough labeling people as "enemies", but if we start going into the black-and-white area of whether some is "good" or "bad", then you will be obligated to tag someone who clashed with someone you don't like.
Otherwise, we do live in a world with grey areas. If a person confronted someone you consider "mean", you may approve of what they did now, until their brash attitude clashes with you in the future. Then would they become your "enemy" too?
Otherwise, we do live in a world with grey areas. If a person confronted someone you consider "mean", you may approve of what they did now, until their brash attitude clashes with you in the future. Then would they become your "enemy" too?
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Return to the World of "The Prestige"
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Laptop Bag From Cardboard
Just something picked up off the net randomly. Full instructions here. Maybe we'll make it into a contest for Innovation Week.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Appeasing the Metric Police
The convention of prefixing large numbers when it comes to computer counting has been around for decades, but it was only during the last year of the last millennium that they realized it had to be standardized.
Before, 1kilo byte = 2^10 bytes = 1024 bytes, and the difference could be shrugged off.
But with the more common uses of MB and GB, people are getting confused, and sometimes think they are being shortchanged by those who promise to sell a 20 giga byte HD, only to have it show as 18.63 GB on the OS.
Technical people just don't want to accept a different understanding of measurement when dealing with computers and not dealing with computers, especially since talking about MHz still uses 1*10^6 and not 2^20.
Before, 1kilo byte = 2^10 bytes = 1024 bytes, and the difference could be shrugged off.
But with the more common uses of MB and GB, people are getting confused, and sometimes think they are being shortchanged by those who promise to sell a 20 giga byte HD, only to have it show as 18.63 GB on the OS.
Technical people just don't want to accept a different understanding of measurement when dealing with computers and not dealing with computers, especially since talking about MHz still uses 1*10^6 and not 2^20.
Monday, January 14, 2008
No Deep Digging Required
In America, the land of pre-fabrication, this is a growing business, but here they still do this the hard way - that is, with cement and all from the owner's specifications, not from a brochure. It makes for something sturdier - and something kids just can't walk to the edge of, fall into and drown, especially if there is a gate.
It certainly is a growing business in the city of baths.
It certainly is a growing business in the city of baths.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Even God Espouses Free Will
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Volume <> Urgency <> Relevance
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Happy Birthday, Melchior!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Monday, January 7, 2008
Term 3, Week 1, Day 1
This is the last term of the school year, after what felt like a long break. Seeing the same old faces around again, not like next term, where there will be new freshmen around.
And even now there are already some faces that will not be seen around the campus, either having finished all their classes, or are off on their OJT.
And even now there are already some faces that will not be seen around the campus, either having finished all their classes, or are off on their OJT.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Is He Or Isn't He?
This film, Martian Child, has the viewer guessing until the very end whether or not the boy is really from the Red Planet or just one with above average intelligence who has social trauma from being abandoned at a young age.
John and Joan Cusack have their usual chemistry, and Amanda Peet is a welcome presence on the screen. Also great is the bald guy from West Wing as the reviewer from Child Services.
John and Joan Cusack have their usual chemistry, and Amanda Peet is a welcome presence on the screen. Also great is the bald guy from West Wing as the reviewer from Child Services.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
What I Spent Time On This Christmas Break
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