Friday, June 15, 2007
Sunday, June 10, 2007
A Day Trip To Motown
On Friday I transplanted myself up to Detroit. Aside from cruising 8 Mile, the highlight of the day was seeing the Mets play the Tigers at Comerica. The Mets won, 3-0, thanks to homeruns by Wright and Delgado, but mostly thanks to an outstanding pitching performance by Jorge Sosa. The game was a brisk 2 hours and 15 minutes, on a perfect evening in Motown. Here are some photos. Click on them for larger views, and then on this link for the full slideshow of the Mets vs Tigers in Detroit.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Mookie Of The Month - May 2007 Bonus (Meet Maddie!)
Mookie got a late birthday present this year - we've adopted her mom, Maddie! Not sure if Mookie likes her present yet though...
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Gas Prices Are Rising - What To Do About It?
(Updated and Edited)
Over the last four weeks I have received many e-mails forwarded from friends about how to combat the rising gas prices. The first was a suggestion to not buy gas on May 15th. The next was to not buy gas from Exxon or Mobil. Just by doing some simple research, it's easy to find that these techniques will have no effect on gas prices whatsoever.
To me, these two brilliant ideas are an example of exactly what is wrong with America today. We want change, but we refuse to make any real sacrifice to get what we want. I'll show those oil companies! Instead of buying gas on Tuesday, I'll buy it on Wednesday - that'll show 'em!"
I got a third e-mail from a well-meaning friend suggesting that we all call the media and write to politicians and tell them how unhappy we are with gas prices.
I think my friends' feelings are the same as many Americans. We feel powerless as their fuel expenses go up and up and up. can anything be done about it? Aren't we one of the richest, most powerful countries in the world? Doesn't our government have the power to provide us with gas at a reasonable price? What about E-85 Flex fuel? How can the oil companies get away with making hundreds of billions of dollars in profits every year? Are they using middle east conflicts and hurricanes as excuses to just rip us off any more? Isn't there anything that can be done for us?
Well, I have bad news and good news, America. The good news news is that you do have within your own power to lower your personal fuel expense. And it's actually rather simple:
Instead of not buying gas for a day, or boycotting one gas station over another, neither of which require any actual sacrifice, how about USING LESS GAS?
Use less gas, and you will spend less on gas.
It's not as fun as a boycott of Mobil, and not as easy as blaming governments or OPEC, but it will actually work.
Use less gas, and you will spend less on gas.
The only way we can do something about the price of gas is to actually make sacrifices ourselves. Carpool, drive slower, drive less, take mass transportation... these things might not be fun but they are in our control.
Or, you can buy a hybrid - I got 52mpg on my last tank.
Use less gas and you'll spend less on gas.
You may have heard or read some reports in the news about how long it takes to recoup your money by buying a hybrid vs. buying the standard version of the car. For example, buying a Honda Accord at $ vs a an Accord Hybrid at $25k vs. an Accord Hybrid for $31k. These kind of analysis is a total spin-job. First of all nobody knows how high gas prices to go so it's impossible to figure out how long it would take. And the savings also depends on what you are comparing to. It's only if you are really shopping between a regular Civic or a hybrid Civic that those figures are even remotely relevant. If you are going from a truck to a hybrid it's a lot more savings. Is anyone really trying to decide between buying a Kia Rio or a Toyota Prius? Nowadays when people buy a car they buy the best car they can get for the monthly payment they can afford. Under just about any scenario you will absolutely personally save money on gas every month by buying a Prius or Civic Hybrid over whatever you are driving now.
Anyway, it is completely besides the point. The three reasons to buy a hybrid are:
1. Use less gas - lessening the dependence on foreign oil
2. Use less gas - reducing the amount of carbon emissions into the environment
3. Use less gas - say "f*** you" to the oil companies.
But no matter what, it all comes down to what kind of personal sacrifice are you willing to make - how much do high gas prices really bother you? Bother you enough to not buy gas on a particular Tuesday? Or does it bother you enough to buy a car that doesn't have the same torque as a Mustang or hauling capacity as a Suburban?
Here's an article from Newsday that proves my point, that people are complaining, but not willing to actually do anything about gas prices: Vehicle size, not gas costs, drives U.S.
Some excerpts:
I am just wondering how pissed we really are when 90% of us won't change our habits. Hybrids are just one part of the solution, true. Bottom line: unless Americans as a whole start drastically changing our attitudes, gas prices aren't going down - they will go up. We're already getting the "bulk discount" because we buy so much, and the oil companies have absolutely no incentive to lower prices. The government will do nothing about it in the short term and in the long term prices will even get higher as it gets harder and harder to find more of this stuff.
And don't sit around waiting for flex fuel. Ethanol is only cheap because corn is subsidized by the government. That's the same reason High Fructose Corn Syrup is in everything - if you can make it out of corn it's cheap. But once it becomes more popular it will be more expensive that regular gas because they won't be able to keep up with demand..
All you can do is use less gas and then you'll spend less. If you already think you're using as little as possible, that you can't possibly be more efficient than you are, then tell your neighbors to do their part. 95% of the time when I see an SUV there's only one person inside.
Tell your neighbor, because the one chance to really affect gas prices is if everyone reduces their demand. If that actually happens, prices will go down for everyone. See, if demand goes down, there will be more supply, and prices will go down too. That's capitalism. Yes, the oil companies are making hundreds of billions of dollars. That's capitalism.
The only way gas prices are going to change in this free market system is if the profiteers and government leaders see a genuine change in public behavior. An article was published last week that said 46% of Americans felt the rising gas prices was causing a financial hardship and that they would consider a hybrid or compact car . However, at the same time, gas consumption for the week increased over the same period a year ago. The oil companies and the government see demand rising against a finite supply - the laws of capitalism say prices increase!
Why should the gas sellers believe us when we say the gas prices are unreasonable when we still keep buying the hell out of the stuff? They are going to keep raising prices until they figure out the true market value of it. That means the highest price they can charge without causing demand to go down.
Think about that: how high will gas prices go before people really start taking drastic measures? $5.00 a gallon? $8.00 a gallon?
That's capitalism.
In the capitalist system, if we want prices to go down we need to reduce demand.
Of course I totally think it's obscene for the oil companies to be making hundreds of billions of dollars a year in profits.
But I'm a liberal socialist!
The sad truth is that until we, as a public, admit that we are part of the problem, we are just barking at the moon if we think someone else will find a solution for us.
Of course you don't need to buy a hybrid or compact car, sell your SUV or race car, or car pool, or turn down your AC, or move to a smaller living space, or do anything at all to reduce your personal consumption. It's your right to live whatever lifestyle you want to live. But there's also no point in complaining about unreasonable gas prices just because you think they are unreasonable.
We have two choices:
1. Keep consuming and accept the fact that gas prices will continue to rise.
2. Reduce consumption and actually affect change.
And reducing consumption doesn't require buying a new car. Driving slower, driving less (car pooling, taking mass transit, riding a bicycle) reduces your personal consumption too. You may not think these things have an effect and are inconvenient, but they have infinitely more effect than not buying gas on May 15th or staying away from Exxon, actions which of course require no sacrifice at all.
But if you're not willing to make a sacrifice, and keep driving a gas guzzler, then stop complaining - be happy you live here instead of in England, where gas currently costs $7.12 a gallon!
By the way, on the subject of price gouging, last week the House approved a bill outlawing price gouging. The White House threatened a veto, saying it amounted to price controls and would lead to long lines at gas pumps.
No one is looking out for us. We need to take matters into our own hands.
I think I may have lost some friends this week...
To me, these two brilliant ideas are an example of exactly what is wrong with America today. We want change, but we refuse to make any real sacrifice to get what we want. I'll show those oil companies! Instead of buying gas on Tuesday, I'll buy it on Wednesday - that'll show 'em!"
I got a third e-mail from a well-meaning friend suggesting that we all call the media and write to politicians and tell them how unhappy we are with gas prices.
I think my friends' feelings are the same as many Americans. We feel powerless as their fuel expenses go up and up and up. can anything be done about it? Aren't we one of the richest, most powerful countries in the world? Doesn't our government have the power to provide us with gas at a reasonable price? What about E-85 Flex fuel? How can the oil companies get away with making hundreds of billions of dollars in profits every year? Are they using middle east conflicts and hurricanes as excuses to just rip us off any more? Isn't there anything that can be done for us?
Well, I have bad news and good news, America. The good news news is that you do have within your own power to lower your personal fuel expense. And it's actually rather simple:
Instead of not buying gas for a day, or boycotting one gas station over another, neither of which require any actual sacrifice, how about USING LESS GAS?
Use less gas, and you will spend less on gas.
It's not as fun as a boycott of Mobil, and not as easy as blaming governments or OPEC, but it will actually work.
Use less gas, and you will spend less on gas.
The only way we can do something about the price of gas is to actually make sacrifices ourselves. Carpool, drive slower, drive less, take mass transportation... these things might not be fun but they are in our control.
Or, you can buy a hybrid - I got 52mpg on my last tank.
Use less gas and you'll spend less on gas.
You may have heard or read some reports in the news about how long it takes to recoup your money by buying a hybrid vs. buying the standard version of the car. For example, buying a Honda Accord at $ vs a an Accord Hybrid at $25k vs. an Accord Hybrid for $31k. These kind of analysis is a total spin-job. First of all nobody knows how high gas prices to go so it's impossible to figure out how long it would take. And the savings also depends on what you are comparing to. It's only if you are really shopping between a regular Civic or a hybrid Civic that those figures are even remotely relevant. If you are going from a truck to a hybrid it's a lot more savings. Is anyone really trying to decide between buying a Kia Rio or a Toyota Prius? Nowadays when people buy a car they buy the best car they can get for the monthly payment they can afford. Under just about any scenario you will absolutely personally save money on gas every month by buying a Prius or Civic Hybrid over whatever you are driving now.
Anyway, it is completely besides the point. The three reasons to buy a hybrid are:
1. Use less gas - lessening the dependence on foreign oil
2. Use less gas - reducing the amount of carbon emissions into the environment
3. Use less gas - say "f*** you" to the oil companies.
But no matter what, it all comes down to what kind of personal sacrifice are you willing to make - how much do high gas prices really bother you? Bother you enough to not buy gas on a particular Tuesday? Or does it bother you enough to buy a car that doesn't have the same torque as a Mustang or hauling capacity as a Suburban?
Here's an article from Newsday that proves my point, that people are complaining, but not willing to actually do anything about gas prices: Vehicle size, not gas costs, drives U.S.
Some excerpts:
As millions of Americans packed their cars for Memorial Day weekend trips, gasoline prices inched upward again yesterday and a congressional committee contended that consumers could save several hundred dollars a year and thousands of dollars over five years if the federal government raised fuel economy standards.
But, in coincidental timing, Consumer Reports magazine released a survey suggesting that many Americans still are not willing to trade vehicle size, power and amenities to save fuel.
In Washington, meanwhile, New York Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer's Joint Economic Committee of Congress released a report saying the average American household could save about $530 a year and $2,680 over five years if their vehicles averaged 35 miles per gallon instead of 25.4 miles per gallon - the average for new cars and light trucks being sold this year.
"Instead of families sticking a little extra money into their banks, they're sticking lots of extra money into their gas tanks," said Schumer, the committee's chairman.
Yonkers-based Consumer Reports, which polled 1,804 people in late April about gasoline prices, said almost 70 percent would seek a vehicle with better fuel efficiency when they buy their next cars, possibly including a diesel, hybrid or "flexible-fuel" vehicle that can run on gasoline or various gasoline-ethanol blends. But only about half said they were willing to give up vehicle size or capacity, performance or unspecified "amenities."
I am just wondering how pissed we really are when 90% of us won't change our habits. Hybrids are just one part of the solution, true. Bottom line: unless Americans as a whole start drastically changing our attitudes, gas prices aren't going down - they will go up. We're already getting the "bulk discount" because we buy so much, and the oil companies have absolutely no incentive to lower prices. The government will do nothing about it in the short term and in the long term prices will even get higher as it gets harder and harder to find more of this stuff.
And don't sit around waiting for flex fuel. Ethanol is only cheap because corn is subsidized by the government. That's the same reason High Fructose Corn Syrup is in everything - if you can make it out of corn it's cheap. But once it becomes more popular it will be more expensive that regular gas because they won't be able to keep up with demand..
All you can do is use less gas and then you'll spend less. If you already think you're using as little as possible, that you can't possibly be more efficient than you are, then tell your neighbors to do their part. 95% of the time when I see an SUV there's only one person inside.
Tell your neighbor, because the one chance to really affect gas prices is if everyone reduces their demand. If that actually happens, prices will go down for everyone. See, if demand goes down, there will be more supply, and prices will go down too. That's capitalism. Yes, the oil companies are making hundreds of billions of dollars. That's capitalism.
The only way gas prices are going to change in this free market system is if the profiteers and government leaders see a genuine change in public behavior. An article was published last week that said 46% of Americans felt the rising gas prices was causing a financial hardship and that they would consider a hybrid or compact car . However, at the same time, gas consumption for the week increased over the same period a year ago. The oil companies and the government see demand rising against a finite supply - the laws of capitalism say prices increase!
Why should the gas sellers believe us when we say the gas prices are unreasonable when we still keep buying the hell out of the stuff? They are going to keep raising prices until they figure out the true market value of it. That means the highest price they can charge without causing demand to go down.
Think about that: how high will gas prices go before people really start taking drastic measures? $5.00 a gallon? $8.00 a gallon?
That's capitalism.
In the capitalist system, if we want prices to go down we need to reduce demand.
Of course I totally think it's obscene for the oil companies to be making hundreds of billions of dollars a year in profits.
But I'm a liberal socialist!
The sad truth is that until we, as a public, admit that we are part of the problem, we are just barking at the moon if we think someone else will find a solution for us.
Of course you don't need to buy a hybrid or compact car, sell your SUV or race car, or car pool, or turn down your AC, or move to a smaller living space, or do anything at all to reduce your personal consumption. It's your right to live whatever lifestyle you want to live. But there's also no point in complaining about unreasonable gas prices just because you think they are unreasonable.
We have two choices:
1. Keep consuming and accept the fact that gas prices will continue to rise.
2. Reduce consumption and actually affect change.
And reducing consumption doesn't require buying a new car. Driving slower, driving less (car pooling, taking mass transit, riding a bicycle) reduces your personal consumption too. You may not think these things have an effect and are inconvenient, but they have infinitely more effect than not buying gas on May 15th or staying away from Exxon, actions which of course require no sacrifice at all.
But if you're not willing to make a sacrifice, and keep driving a gas guzzler, then stop complaining - be happy you live here instead of in England, where gas currently costs $7.12 a gallon!
By the way, on the subject of price gouging, last week the House approved a bill outlawing price gouging. The White House threatened a veto, saying it amounted to price controls and would lead to long lines at gas pumps.
No one is looking out for us. We need to take matters into our own hands.
I think I may have lost some friends this week...
Friday, May 11, 2007
Mookie Of The Month - May 2007
I know, I know... I skipped April, so I will have a bonus one later this month.
Mookie seemed like she might be having some digestive issues for a couple days so I brought her into the vet just to make sure everything was fine. They took some X-rays just for precaution. The first image is yesterday afternoon, the second was this morning for comparison. Everything looks great!
Mookie seemed like she might be having some digestive issues for a couple days so I brought her into the vet just to make sure everything was fine. They took some X-rays just for precaution. The first image is yesterday afternoon, the second was this morning for comparison. Everything looks great!
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Movies I've Thus Far Seen In 2007
When I first started this blog I intended on movie reviews being a big part of the content. For reasons I'm not sure of, I've posted hardly any reviews this year, even though I've seen quite a few films in theatres, as well as on DVD this first 1/3rd of 2007. Anyway, here are the films I've seen this year, with my letter grade.
Zodiac (A)
Breach (A)
Fracture (A-)
Reign Over Me (B+)
The Good Shepherd (B+)
Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theatres (B)
Night At The Museum (B)
Rocky Balboa (B-)
Dreamgirls (B-)
Here are the DVD's I've seen this year, with their year of release, and my letter grade:
Babel (2006) A
Transamerica (2005) A
V for Vendetta (2006) A-
Sarah Silverman - Jesus is Magic (2005) A-
Half Nelson (2006) A-
Capturing The Friedmans (2003) A-
Word Wars (2004) B-
Patriot Act (2005) C-
The Terminal (2004) D
Suicide Kings (1997) D
Seems Like Old Times (1980) D
Rock School (?) D
Breasts: A Documentary (?)F
Maybe I'll get back on the review horse going forward...
Zodiac (A)
Breach (A)
Fracture (A-)
Reign Over Me (B+)
The Good Shepherd (B+)
Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theatres (B)
Night At The Museum (B)
Rocky Balboa (B-)
Dreamgirls (B-)
Here are the DVD's I've seen this year, with their year of release, and my letter grade:
Babel (2006) A
Transamerica (2005) A
V for Vendetta (2006) A-
Sarah Silverman - Jesus is Magic (2005) A-
Half Nelson (2006) A-
Capturing The Friedmans (2003) A-
Word Wars (2004) B-
Patriot Act (2005) C-
The Terminal (2004) D
Suicide Kings (1997) D
Seems Like Old Times (1980) D
Rock School (?) D
Breasts: A Documentary (?)F
Maybe I'll get back on the review horse going forward...
Monday, April 23, 2007
Fast Food: Ads Vs. Reality
Found this link on kottke:
Someone bought a bunch of fast food items, photographed them, and compared them to the way they were presented in ads. KFC's Famous Bowl is about as disgusting looking as it gets.
http://www.thewvsr.com/adsvsreality.htm
Someone bought a bunch of fast food items, photographed them, and compared them to the way they were presented in ads. KFC's Famous Bowl is about as disgusting looking as it gets.
http://www.thewvsr.com/adsvsreality.htm
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Cool Photography
During our weekend gaunt through New York, we had a chance to visit some photography galleries. Photography, like birding, is one of those things I have a lot of interest in but know virtually nothing about. I'm one of those people who goes all in or not at all when it comes to an interest, so since I haven't taken the time to learn virtually everything about the craft, I have had to be content with learning virtually nothing. When I finally finish my MBA my plan is to buy an SLR and take that photography class I've always wanted to. And I want to learn Spanish too.
Anyway, I had bought New York magazine at Raleigh airport and leafed through it on our flight to into JFK. I usually like to fly into LaGuardia so I can catch a glimpse of my church, but I digress... New York had a listing of photography exhibits and I noticed that we could visit over 20 exhibits in a 10 block area. So, we decided to spend our Friday afternoon doing just that. Most of the exhibits one of us liked and the other didn't, and a few we both didn't like at all, but we were both impressed by the work of Abelardo Morell.
Morell's most notable works are camera obscura, where an entire room is essentially turned into a giant pinhole camera, with an upside down image of the outside world reflected onto the walls floors and ceilings of a room though a small opening of a blacked out window. The image is then captured on film with a camera using very long exposure times (8 hours or more). It's more interesting to see than explain:
A print of Morell's work will cost you between $3,000 and $20,000 but you can buy a book of his work here for $40 or you can gaze at them online for free here, or here. Visit these prints in person at one of these galleries. As for me, I'm going to borrow a book from the library on the technique and learn how to do it myself.
Anyway, I had bought New York magazine at Raleigh airport and leafed through it on our flight to into JFK. I usually like to fly into LaGuardia so I can catch a glimpse of my church, but I digress... New York had a listing of photography exhibits and I noticed that we could visit over 20 exhibits in a 10 block area. So, we decided to spend our Friday afternoon doing just that. Most of the exhibits one of us liked and the other didn't, and a few we both didn't like at all, but we were both impressed by the work of Abelardo Morell.
Morell's most notable works are camera obscura, where an entire room is essentially turned into a giant pinhole camera, with an upside down image of the outside world reflected onto the walls floors and ceilings of a room though a small opening of a blacked out window. The image is then captured on film with a camera using very long exposure times (8 hours or more). It's more interesting to see than explain:
A print of Morell's work will cost you between $3,000 and $20,000 but you can buy a book of his work here for $40 or you can gaze at them online for free here, or here. Visit these prints in person at one of these galleries. As for me, I'm going to borrow a book from the library on the technique and learn how to do it myself.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Hybrid Update - 499.3 Miles On A Single Tank!
OK, my goal was actually 500 miles, but I chickened out as I rolled up to the Texaco Station at 499.3 miles. When it took 10.25 gallons to fill up I was embarrassed to realize I had chickened out with another 2 gallons left in reserve. Still, I had averaged 48.7 miles per gallon on this tank!
After reading about hypermiling on kottke.org, and a guy who has managed 59MPG in a regular Honda Accord and 189 MPG in a hybrid insight, I was inspired to see how much gas mileage I could achieve in my 2006 Civic Hybrid. Now, I didn't go drafting tractor trailers or any of the other insane tricks Wayne Gerdes undergoes, but was just extremely conscious about throwing away gas. My goal is to top 50 miles per gallon.
After reading about hypermiling on kottke.org, and a guy who has managed 59MPG in a regular Honda Accord and 189 MPG in a hybrid insight, I was inspired to see how much gas mileage I could achieve in my 2006 Civic Hybrid. Now, I didn't go drafting tractor trailers or any of the other insane tricks Wayne Gerdes undergoes, but was just extremely conscious about throwing away gas. My goal is to top 50 miles per gallon.
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Finally, A Reason To Watch American Idol
I don't have Sirius service, and I don't watch American Idol, but I do know who Sanjaya Malakar is because we watched the first few episodes this season to see all the lousy contestants. Once the "real" competition starts, we bail on the show. The reason I don't watch American Idol is simple: I've never seen anyone on the show whose music I'd actually want to buy, so why should I care who wins? I remember seeing Sanjaya audition though, mostly because I thought his sister was hot. I remember they both went "on to Hollywood," but I don't know what happened to her since. We watched The Soup this weekend and Joel McHale was making fun of Sanjaya and how he was so bad, yet somehow he kept getting advanced week to week.
Well, last night at a party a friend was telling me the real reason this clown Sanjaya Malakar keeps getting voted through. There's a website called Vote For The Worst that encourages people to keep voting for Sanjaya. Their reasoning is sound: except for the awful singers that Simon Cowell makes fun of, the show is unwatchable. So, keep the worst contestant on and keep the show entertaining. And it seems Howard Stern has gotten on the website's bandwagon and telling his legions of fans to vote for Sanjaya too.
I intend to cast a vote this week for Sanjaya, the first time I've ever cast a vote for anyone on the show. I might even tune in to watch the show this week. So much for this idiot's theory that Vote For The Worst is destroying the program!
Anyway, if American Idol really wants to kill this campaign, there's a very simple solution: only allow one vote per phone. Allowing people to vote as many times as they want is part of the reason the show is so lousy. It's not whomever the best talent is that gets through; it's whomever inspires enough little idiots to stay up all night on the phone. So, restrict the votes to one per telephone number, make the competition more fair, and at the same time negate the sabotage attempt. In the meantime, I'm all over this Sanjaya campaign. Maybe they'll talk to his hot sister this week too.
Well, last night at a party a friend was telling me the real reason this clown Sanjaya Malakar keeps getting voted through. There's a website called Vote For The Worst that encourages people to keep voting for Sanjaya. Their reasoning is sound: except for the awful singers that Simon Cowell makes fun of, the show is unwatchable. So, keep the worst contestant on and keep the show entertaining. And it seems Howard Stern has gotten on the website's bandwagon and telling his legions of fans to vote for Sanjaya too.
I intend to cast a vote this week for Sanjaya, the first time I've ever cast a vote for anyone on the show. I might even tune in to watch the show this week. So much for this idiot's theory that Vote For The Worst is destroying the program!
Anyway, if American Idol really wants to kill this campaign, there's a very simple solution: only allow one vote per phone. Allowing people to vote as many times as they want is part of the reason the show is so lousy. It's not whomever the best talent is that gets through; it's whomever inspires enough little idiots to stay up all night on the phone. So, restrict the votes to one per telephone number, make the competition more fair, and at the same time negate the sabotage attempt. In the meantime, I'm all over this Sanjaya campaign. Maybe they'll talk to his hot sister this week too.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Talentless Twit Jessica Simpson Gives Minivan To Orphanage
The Associated Press is reporting that Jessica Simpson personally delivered a new minivan to an orphanage in Mexico. She won a car on the MTV Video Music Awards and traded it in for a minivan to donate. Apparently she's all about benevolence lately, as my wife told me she also is auctioning off some junk on eBay to raise money for the cause.
I'm a bit torn on the whole idea of celebrity-donates-to-charity as a news item. One one hand, it gives me more hope in humanity when I hear about a celebrity doing charitable work rather than talk about In-N-Out Burger as justification for drunk driving (though, she did have a point). I also understand the argument that celebrities should announce when they do charitable things, because they serve as role models to the rest of us. When the rich and powerful donate, it can inspire the less well-off to do so.
On the other hand, it also gets me sick to my stomach when every good deed a celebrity does serves as a photo op and an excuse to mention the projects the celebrity is working on. It just smells of a publicity stunt. I can't help but wonder why if Jessica Simpson wanted to support the orphanage, why couldn't she just write a check or, God forbid, go volunteer there for a few months?
What do you think?
I'm a bit torn on the whole idea of celebrity-donates-to-charity as a news item. One one hand, it gives me more hope in humanity when I hear about a celebrity doing charitable work rather than talk about In-N-Out Burger as justification for drunk driving (though, she did have a point). I also understand the argument that celebrities should announce when they do charitable things, because they serve as role models to the rest of us. When the rich and powerful donate, it can inspire the less well-off to do so.
On the other hand, it also gets me sick to my stomach when every good deed a celebrity does serves as a photo op and an excuse to mention the projects the celebrity is working on. It just smells of a publicity stunt. I can't help but wonder why if Jessica Simpson wanted to support the orphanage, why couldn't she just write a check or, God forbid, go volunteer there for a few months?
What do you think?
Friday, March 23, 2007
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Oh, Deer
Here's a short anecdote that demonstrates how, two years after moving from Long Island to Greensboro, I'm still a bit of a fish out of water:
My coworkers and I are heading to a local Mexican restaurant for lunch. We're driving on a new road, and I'm looking out the window at
the remnants of what once been a wooded area.
"Hey look, that's funny. There's a treehouse!"
"Huh? No, I think that's a deer stand."
"A deer stand? That's what a deer stand is? I've heard of deer stands, but I guess I always thought they were something you put up to attract deer. I don't know, like a place were the deer would stand, or something?"
"Heh. No, a deer stand is where you stand, or sit, while hunting."
"It's got a roof, and walls. That hardly seems fair."
"As opposed to everything else about hunting that's fair, Mike?"
My coworkers and I are heading to a local Mexican restaurant for lunch. We're driving on a new road, and I'm looking out the window at
the remnants of what once been a wooded area."Hey look, that's funny. There's a treehouse!"
"Huh? No, I think that's a deer stand."
"A deer stand? That's what a deer stand is? I've heard of deer stands, but I guess I always thought they were something you put up to attract deer. I don't know, like a place were the deer would stand, or something?"
"Heh. No, a deer stand is where you stand, or sit, while hunting."
"It's got a roof, and walls. That hardly seems fair."
"As opposed to everything else about hunting that's fair, Mike?"
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Non-Exotic Animal Photos, Part II
Since I live on a small (tiny) pond, I've built up quite a bit of unhealthy hostility towards Canadian Geese. Yet, they do look rather beautiful in these shots, I must say... Perhaps it's time I called a Goose Truce. I'll make Peace With The Geese?
Monday, March 12, 2007
Non-Exotic Animal Photos, Part I
Never thought I'd pass by cows on my commute home from work... (click to enlarge)
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Wesley Willis' Chicken Cow Is Alive and Well
In 1995, Wesley Willis sung about The Chicken Cow, a killer beast who could fly as high as a bird, had killed as many as 100,000 people, and who could also break a glass. Willis has been dead for four years now, but if there is reincarnation, Willis may have come back in India as the chicken cow he sung about. A young carnivorous cow has been discovered eating chickens by the dozens!Rock Over London, Rock On Kolkata - Blockbuster Video. Wow! What A Difference!KOLKATA, India (Reuters) - When dozens of chickens went missing from a remote West Bengal village, everyone blamed the neighborhood dogs.
But Ajit Ghosh, the owner of the missing chickens, eventually solved the puzzle when he caught his cow -- a sacred animal for the Hindu family -- gobbling up several of them at night.
"We were shocked to see our calf eating chickens alive," Ghosh told Reuters by phone from Chandpur village.
The family decided to stand guard at night on Monday at the cow shed which also served as a hen coop, after 48 chickens went missing in a month.
"Instead of the dogs, we watched in horror as the calf, whom we had fondly named Lal, sneak to the coop and grab the little ones with the precision of a jungle cat," Gour Ghosh, his brother, said.
Local television pictures showed the cow grabbing and eating a chicken in seconds and a vet confirmed the case.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Pearl Jam's Biggest Hit Ever?
If you haven't had a good reason to listen to rock radio lately, I can't say I blame you. The same songs over and over again, new crap by Nickelback, idiot DJ's... Hey, I hear you. But I was listening to a local station (96.1 WWMG I think?) while scanning and came across this amazing version of The Who's "Love, Reign O'er Me." The voice was unmistakeable - Eddie Vedder, with a new Pearl Jam cover of teh Who classic. The song sounds as if it was written for Eddie's voice (Vedder is a huge Who fan), and piano on the song is incredible too.
Turns out this song was recorded by Pearl Jam for the soundtrack of a new Adam Sandler movie called, what else, Reign Over Me, which is apparently a pretty heavy drama, also starring Don Cheadle, about a guy who loses his family on 9/11 and is trying to cope. There's no plans to release the song commercially at the moment - it will only be made available to Ten Club members as part of their membership fee, but you can bet that if the song has legs it will be sold on iTunes eventually. Remember, "Last Kiss" was a huge song for Pearl Jam. This could be almost as big. Listen for it!
Turns out this song was recorded by Pearl Jam for the soundtrack of a new Adam Sandler movie called, what else, Reign Over Me, which is apparently a pretty heavy drama, also starring Don Cheadle, about a guy who loses his family on 9/11 and is trying to cope. There's no plans to release the song commercially at the moment - it will only be made available to Ten Club members as part of their membership fee, but you can bet that if the song has legs it will be sold on iTunes eventually. Remember, "Last Kiss" was a huge song for Pearl Jam. This could be almost as big. Listen for it!
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