UPDATE: Someday I'll blog again... I hope.
The good thing about getting called in to work day after day is the Postal Service pays pretty good. The bad thing is, well, getting called in to work day after day. Since I'm not that great at this gig yet, I spend all day and some of the evening getting the stuff done. SO I don't have time to take care of little things like leaking brake fluid.
My sincere apologies for the lack of post-age (get it, that's a pun on my new job. hee hee).
I know this sounds funny coming from someone as underemployed as me, but I've been very busy the last couple of days. And I've been called in tomorrow (seems Jim Regular doesn't want to work his route anymore... actually, it's more dental stuff left over from the previous crisis). So probably nothing until tomorrow night at the earliest.
Please, stop your sobbing. I'll be back soon. Oh, what's that... you were laughing with delight? Oh.
2006-02-28
2006-02-27
headache
has someone ever hammered a railroad spike into your head?
Me either, it just feels like that's what's happening.
Me either, it just feels like that's what's happening.
2006-02-25
at least we agree on something
I've never found much to like in the world of punk music, not the music itself or the personalities behind it.
But I will say this for the Sex Pistols' Johnny Rotten: we do agree on one thing.
He says the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (in my former hometown, Cleveland, Ohio) is "a place where old rockers go to die."
Not only that, but the place is boring enough to kill off any enthusiasm you had for the music in the first place.
This is a much more interesting place at which to waste a few of your hard earned dead presidents.
technorati: i'd put a tag here but t'rati is tickin' me off right now!
But I will say this for the Sex Pistols' Johnny Rotten: we do agree on one thing.
He says the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (in my former hometown, Cleveland, Ohio) is "a place where old rockers go to die."
Not only that, but the place is boring enough to kill off any enthusiasm you had for the music in the first place.
This is a much more interesting place at which to waste a few of your hard earned dead presidents.
technorati: i'd put a tag here but t'rati is tickin' me off right now!
the forest for the trees: entertaining and (sort of) informative
I recently finished reading "The Forest For the Trees: And Editor's Advice To Writers". by Betsy Lerner.
I'd give it an 8 out of 10, purely for entertainment reasons. Lerner is a fine writer, and this was an enjoyable read. She tells stories on a lot of writers she has worked with, but without mentioning their names so we get to enjoy their foibles without that sense of reading a book full of gossip. She also tells a few stories on herself and clearly doesn't want us to think that she is above the temptations toward idiocy that every writer experiences. In fact, I'd love it if she would be my editor, and if she would find me an agent (Betsy, if you're reading this, email me).
What I had hoped for was more practical advice: how to start on the road to getting an agent (who do I call or write to or see?), how might I start putting together a portfolio, if I have a few publication credits and no formal training what should I do next, stuff like that. These things were, I think, beyond the scope of the book but I'm sure she could have included them. With her skills, I'm sure she would still have produced a wonderfully compelling book.
I'd give it an 8 out of 10, purely for entertainment reasons. Lerner is a fine writer, and this was an enjoyable read. She tells stories on a lot of writers she has worked with, but without mentioning their names so we get to enjoy their foibles without that sense of reading a book full of gossip. She also tells a few stories on herself and clearly doesn't want us to think that she is above the temptations toward idiocy that every writer experiences. In fact, I'd love it if she would be my editor, and if she would find me an agent (Betsy, if you're reading this, email me).
What I had hoped for was more practical advice: how to start on the road to getting an agent (who do I call or write to or see?), how might I start putting together a portfolio, if I have a few publication credits and no formal training what should I do next, stuff like that. These things were, I think, beyond the scope of the book but I'm sure she could have included them. With her skills, I'm sure she would still have produced a wonderfully compelling book.
2006-02-23
not that i'm superstitious...
...but I never mentioned how delivering the mail went last Saturday because I didn't want to jinx the next effort.
Well, praise the Lord I got the call to work tomorrow. I'm excited because even if I don't have a good day, it's work and I get paid for it. You dig? I'm hoping for a light mail day tomorrow because I'll be on again Monday and Mondays are never light.
So yeah, I kicked butt last Saturday. Got back to the post office at 3:30, an hour and fifteen minutes before the outgoing mail truck. But every day is different and I've yet to have two good delivery days in a row.
Like I said, I'm not superstitious, but I'm crossing my fingers about tomorrow. Praying too.
UPDATE: I did have a pretty good day today, though I didn't get "to the street" with my mail until 12:45 and didn't make my first delivery until 1. But I made the truck... don't know how, but I did it. More fun on Monday. Maybe then I'll tell you about the mail count we're having (of which today was day one... I was the only sub working today and got a lot of sympathy--usually this is in relatively short supply--from the regulars. I wasn't sure why... at first.)
Well, praise the Lord I got the call to work tomorrow. I'm excited because even if I don't have a good day, it's work and I get paid for it. You dig? I'm hoping for a light mail day tomorrow because I'll be on again Monday and Mondays are never light.
So yeah, I kicked butt last Saturday. Got back to the post office at 3:30, an hour and fifteen minutes before the outgoing mail truck. But every day is different and I've yet to have two good delivery days in a row.
Like I said, I'm not superstitious, but I'm crossing my fingers about tomorrow. Praying too.
UPDATE: I did have a pretty good day today, though I didn't get "to the street" with my mail until 12:45 and didn't make my first delivery until 1. But I made the truck... don't know how, but I did it. More fun on Monday. Maybe then I'll tell you about the mail count we're having (of which today was day one... I was the only sub working today and got a lot of sympathy--usually this is in relatively short supply--from the regulars. I wasn't sure why... at first.)
2006-02-22
another list: this time,he forgot number one.
Business Week brings us The 10 Worst Presentation Habits including such obvious no-no's as reading from notes, and standing at attention plus one or two less obvious presentation killers like avoiding eye contact (with your audience) and fidgeting, jiggling, and swaying (I assume this doesn't apply if you're a dance instructor).
Yet Mr. Gallo forgets the number one rule of presentations: never, ever open a presentation (or an online article) with a smarmy, superior sounding recitation of your awesome credentials, such as:
P.S. Oh, and never forget on your last slide to include a link back to the first.
Yet Mr. Gallo forgets the number one rule of presentations: never, ever open a presentation (or an online article) with a smarmy, superior sounding recitation of your awesome credentials, such as:
"As a communications coach for some of America's most admired companies..."
P.S. Oh, and never forget on your last slide to include a link back to the first.
and number ten: have less of them
43 Folders has a list of 9 tips for running more productive meetings.
It's a fine list, and all based on the idea of honring "your poor colleagues' time."
Great... so when are we going to get a list of 9 ways to avoid meetings altogether. As I am now in a job that doesn't require many meetings, this is not so much a current concern of mine. But I can tell you from experience, churches may be the worst offenders when it comes to scheduling and perpetuating meetings that are a complete waste of time. I'm sure it must be almost as bad in the corporate world... it certainly was when I lived there.
Somebody out there, give us the top x ways to remain (virtually) meetingless!
It's a fine list, and all based on the idea of honring "your poor colleagues' time."
Great... so when are we going to get a list of 9 ways to avoid meetings altogether. As I am now in a job that doesn't require many meetings, this is not so much a current concern of mine. But I can tell you from experience, churches may be the worst offenders when it comes to scheduling and perpetuating meetings that are a complete waste of time. I'm sure it must be almost as bad in the corporate world... it certainly was when I lived there.
Somebody out there, give us the top x ways to remain (virtually) meetingless!
2006-02-20
four things meme
I thought this one would eventually get to my out-of-the-way corner of the b'sphere. Thanks to Randy for tagging me. I haven't done a meme in a while... I hope I remember how this goes :-|
Four jobs I’ve had:
Four movies I can watch over and over:
Four TV shows I love to watch:
uhhhh....
Four places I’ve been on vacation:
Four favorite dishes
Four Web sites I visit daily*:
Four places I’d rather be:
Four bloggers I am tagging
Don't know who's done this already, and a couple of people are away right now... so, tagging blindly...
That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.
Four jobs I’ve had:
- Convenience Store clerk
- Advertising research drone
- Youth minister
- Rural Carrier Associate (the current one, I hope that counts)
Four movies I can watch over and over:
- Contact
- 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Field of Dreams
- Lord ot the Rings: Return of the King
Four TV shows I love to watch:
uhhhh....
Four places I’ve been on vacation:
- St. Thomas Virgin Islands
- Aruba
- France
- Yellowstone/Grand Teton/Rocky Mountain Nat'l Parks
Four favorite dishes
- Smoked baby back ribs (oh, baby!)
- Steak (medium rare)
- Creamed pearl onions (my mother in law makes them at Thanksgiving... they're the best)
- German Chocolate Cake (dessert counts as a dish, right?)
Four Web sites I visit daily*:
- From the Salmon
- The Fire Ant Gazette (except when Eric's on vacation, as he is now)
- Findory
- Ars Technica
Four places I’d rather be:
- Looking at Long's Peak in Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park
- Yellowstone
- in a recording studio producing my own stuff
- meeting with editors at a major publishing house to discuss the details of my book contract.
Four bloggers I am tagging
Don't know who's done this already, and a couple of people are away right now... so, tagging blindly...
- Matt
- Stephen
- Ashley
- Nicole, who will hopefully drop by here and see she's been tagged... I can't find an eail address for her.
That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.
i'm abstaining, but you should not
Stephen at regeneration has a contest goin' on. Now, in the case of this particular contest I feel I must abstain for two reasons.
So, since I'm not blowing away the curve with my amazing sardonic and sarcastic wit, you can start composing your entries with some hope of victory and submit them over at Stephen's place.
- I know that if I submitted an explanation of my hatred.... sorry, my vehement dislike of internet explorer... that I would win with no problem. So I'm being nice and giving the rest of you a chance.
- What on earth would I do with a Sega Game Gear. I who hate video games and hate... I mean, vehemently dislike.... TV even more?
So, since I'm not blowing away the curve with my amazing sardonic and sarcastic wit, you can start composing your entries with some hope of victory and submit them over at Stephen's place.
TV-B-Gone universal television remote - Lifehacker
From Lifehacker, we have this gadget. It's called TV B Gone from Cornfield Electronics.
Says the blurb: it only has a power button that allows you to switch a TV on or off. You control when you see, rather than what you see. Second, the device is so small that it easily fits in your pocket, so that you have it handy whenever you need it wherever you go: airports, bars, restaurants, laundromats, etc.
Heh-heh! I'm making a list of places where I want to use this. Besides my own living room, that is.
I should make a new category called "kill your tv."
technorati: tv b gone
Says the blurb: it only has a power button that allows you to switch a TV on or off. You control when you see, rather than what you see. Second, the device is so small that it easily fits in your pocket, so that you have it handy whenever you need it wherever you go: airports, bars, restaurants, laundromats, etc.
Heh-heh! I'm making a list of places where I want to use this. Besides my own living room, that is.
I should make a new category called "kill your tv."
technorati: tv b gone
2006-02-18
yahoo news: masters of the obvious
Guess they figured it out, finally.
Now for the rest of evangelical christianity can get the same clue.
Now for the rest of evangelical christianity can get the same clue.
no more lazy sunday
Say, remember that awesome video called Lazy Sunday that stormed the web a few weeks ago? I'd post another link to it so you could laugh again, but that's impossible now. The video is gone.
Seems that NBC's lawyers told YouTube, where the video had been uploaded, to cease and desist. YouTube promptly did as they were told.
ARS Technica insists that the legal suits at NBC were within their rights to demand that YouTube pull the video. I have to agree. NBC produces SNL and owns all rights to whatever airs on their network.
But something seems wrong with this (lack of) picture. Or rather, call it lack of seeing the bigger picture. Some kind of (God help me, I'm going to use the word) paradigm shift is needed when it comes to copyright law and issues of ownership. I don't want to pick on NBC's rights to their material, not at all, but c'mon guys. We were having fun watching that video. It was one of the coolest things from SNL in years!
Why'd you have to go spoiling our party like that? Did you think about the consequences to NBC's image in the minds of web users? Will your actions, in the long term, help or hurt the network? How much in terms of future revnenues did the C&D order preserve? How much will it eradicate?
technorati: lazy sunday | youtube
Seems that NBC's lawyers told YouTube, where the video had been uploaded, to cease and desist. YouTube promptly did as they were told.
ARS Technica insists that the legal suits at NBC were within their rights to demand that YouTube pull the video. I have to agree. NBC produces SNL and owns all rights to whatever airs on their network.
But something seems wrong with this (lack of) picture. Or rather, call it lack of seeing the bigger picture. Some kind of (God help me, I'm going to use the word) paradigm shift is needed when it comes to copyright law and issues of ownership. I don't want to pick on NBC's rights to their material, not at all, but c'mon guys. We were having fun watching that video. It was one of the coolest things from SNL in years!
Why'd you have to go spoiling our party like that? Did you think about the consequences to NBC's image in the minds of web users? Will your actions, in the long term, help or hurt the network? How much in terms of future revnenues did the C&D order preserve? How much will it eradicate?
technorati: lazy sunday | youtube
the blog twilight zone
This is a follow up to yesterday's post about Clive Thompson's article on blogs. I found this Slate piece that refers to Thompson's excellent article. It's an okay article, worth a skim. Slate can be a little spotty, I've found.
Anyway the title says it all: Twilight Of the Blogs: Are They Over As A Business?
I certainly hope so.
Daniel Gross who wrote the Slate piece, closes it by saying (in reference to Pajamas Media's blogs)...
Hey, you want a logo? Here's a logo for ya!
technorati: coalition of unpaid bloggers
google search: coalition of unpaid bloggers
Anyway the title says it all: Twilight Of the Blogs: Are They Over As A Business?
I certainly hope so.
Daniel Gross who wrote the Slate piece, closes it by saying (in reference to Pajamas Media's blogs)...
"It looks to me like a bunch of blogs with their own logo."
Hey, you want a logo? Here's a logo for ya!
technorati: coalition of unpaid bloggers
google search: coalition of unpaid bloggers
2006-02-17
back to work
I'm on the job tomorrow. And of course, there's a wind advisory. Wind chills will create the vivid illusion of temperatures in the teens. Not to mention the rapidly moving air will try to rip mail out of my hands at every box. Such fun! Who woulda thunkit? I actually get paid for this. 8-|
By God's grace, I won't be blogging about some mail disaster at this time tomorrow. Wish me an uneventful day.
By God's grace, I won't be blogging about some mail disaster at this time tomorrow. Wish me an uneventful day.
makin' it big bloggin about blogs
New York mag's current cover story is called "Blogs to Riches." It's a well reasoned, well written and long article about blogs that brings insights from power law theory and the scientific principle of homeostasis to bear in explaining the rise of and current, increasingly corporate, state of the medium.
Here's a quote:
And here's another:
Is it bad that I have no idea who either of those guys are?
Anyway, the article is a great read and worth the 30 minutes or so of your time it will require.
But the really cool thing about the article... it's written by my man Clive Thompson. Actually, I don't know Mr Thompson at all, virtually or otherwise, but I do read and enjoy his blog, one which he classifies as C-list in the article. Like I care if it's A, B, C, or Z list. Thompson's Collision Detection is cool, and it's on my roll.
Congragtualtions Clive on a great cover article.
technorati: clive thompson
Here's a quote:
Most bloggers toil in total obscurity.
And here's another:
This is now the model for success: Of Technorati’s top ten blogs, nearly half were created in the same corporate fashion, part of the twin blog empires of Jason Calacanis and Nick Denton.
Is it bad that I have no idea who either of those guys are?
Anyway, the article is a great read and worth the 30 minutes or so of your time it will require.
But the really cool thing about the article... it's written by my man Clive Thompson. Actually, I don't know Mr Thompson at all, virtually or otherwise, but I do read and enjoy his blog, one which he classifies as C-list in the article. Like I care if it's A, B, C, or Z list. Thompson's Collision Detection is cool, and it's on my roll.
Congragtualtions Clive on a great cover article.
technorati: clive thompson
2006-02-16
yeesh
From Wired News:
Yeah. He sounds real joyful.
Lighten up, Francis.
"Sadly, this devalues the thoughtful essayist and the sheer linguistic joy of the exposition. And the language dies a little more each day."
Yeah. He sounds real joyful.
Lighten up, Francis.
ignominious
I got a visit this afternoon from someone who had searched "blown tire situations" on google. I'm the first listing on page two, so I'm thankfully not at the top of that list. I suppose things could change though. Wouldn't that be special.
technorati: SEO
technorati: SEO
the memory of old jack: a book about which i don't know what to think
Acquanitences of mine, both virtual and real, have urged me to read Wendell Berry. When I found myself loose in Barnes and Noble with plastic money burning a hole in my pocket I heard their voices in my head. I bought the least expensive and therefore least risky Berry book on the shelf at the time: The Memory of Old Jack.
By way of review, I'll cut to the chase: I wouldn't pass up the chance to read more Berry. Probably Jayber Crow will be next. Yet there's something about his storytelling, something in the tone he takes as narrator that I find too 'present.' I was conscious of his presence in the story. That in itself is not a bad thing, the guy can write after all and the story was a good one too. The problem (though a minor one) wasn't that Berry seemed to have put himself in the book but that he seemed to be trying not to. Because of this seeming ambivalence of his it felt at times as if Old Jack was a book that just misses being a sermon.
I like good sermons and I like good books. Book length, book form sermons are okay too. I just wish this one had decided to be one or the other. I had the same problem with Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude and eventually I put it aside. If this book had been a hundred or so pages longer, it would probably have suffered the same fate.
There's no accounting for taste, and I'm not even claiming to have any. Some people think Wendell Berry can be life changing. They may be right, after only reading one book, who am I to know? But if Jayber Crow takes the same just-this-side-of-condescending tone with me, Berry won't have another chance at changing my life despite the quality of his prose.
technorati: wendell berry
2006-02-15
one down, 61,999 to go
So the space elevator has made it a mile high. Now there's something to write home about.
Yet it wasn't all pie in the sky by and by:
Oops.
What I want to know is: will this one have to stop at every floor?
technorati: space elevator
Yet it wasn't all pie in the sky by and by:
The company's battery-operated robotic lifters were designed to climb up and down the entire length of the ribbon but only made it about 460 m above ground.
Oops.
What I want to know is: will this one have to stop at every floor?
technorati: space elevator
2006-02-14
suddenly, all hell broke loose!!!!
Here's a great list of writing don'ts from Elmore Leonard, whom I've never read. After seeing his list--which is a fine piece of writing in itself--I may have to start.
and, in other news
Wow. I totally forgot that today was Valentine's Day. I had no idea that our VP shot somebody. I've been in a world of mail.
There's actually stuff going on in the world. Well, I now have the next three days off. I'm looking forward to posting some about things like: the book(s) I'm now reading, the new pre-mastered final mix of this guy's next CD, which I got to help out on just a wee bit. All while hanging out here and there.
There's actually stuff going on in the world. Well, I now have the next three days off. I'm looking forward to posting some about things like: the book(s) I'm now reading, the new pre-mastered final mix of this guy's next CD, which I got to help out on just a wee bit. All while hanging out here and there.
2006-02-13
it went, that's about all i can say
Zalm asked "how'd it go" and Julie says she likes my mail stories as they bring back her past experience working the mail.
Only because you asked am I writing this post. I wasn't going to say anything about today becuase 1. It wasn't that interesting. 2. It was very long and 3. I am ridiculously tired.
Because people generally think the mail just shows up, they don't think much about taking the time to clear a path to their mailboxes. For a rural route this means there has to be a way for a car to get in and out of the area around the curb where your mailbox must sit. On any other route, it means that your walk must be shoveled, etc. If not, we don't have to deliver your mail. In fact, we're not supposed to.
So many mailboxes were obstructed by multiple feet of snow today that I wound up bringing back four trays full of mail. My route is huge and I brought 13 trays out with me. And the trays I brought back were not packed nearly as full as those I brought out. Nonetheless that's a lot of non delivered mail.
However, even though I skipped lots of boxes 'cause I couldn't get to 'em, most of the ones I did get to required quite a bit of stretching over mounded snow, often getting my entire uppper torso out the car window. This also takes more time.
So today, for the first time, I missed the outgoing truck and wound up delivering the last part of the route in the dark.
Really, this feels almost like being hazed.
Only because you asked am I writing this post. I wasn't going to say anything about today becuase 1. It wasn't that interesting. 2. It was very long and 3. I am ridiculously tired.
Because people generally think the mail just shows up, they don't think much about taking the time to clear a path to their mailboxes. For a rural route this means there has to be a way for a car to get in and out of the area around the curb where your mailbox must sit. On any other route, it means that your walk must be shoveled, etc. If not, we don't have to deliver your mail. In fact, we're not supposed to.
So many mailboxes were obstructed by multiple feet of snow today that I wound up bringing back four trays full of mail. My route is huge and I brought 13 trays out with me. And the trays I brought back were not packed nearly as full as those I brought out. Nonetheless that's a lot of non delivered mail.
However, even though I skipped lots of boxes 'cause I couldn't get to 'em, most of the ones I did get to required quite a bit of stretching over mounded snow, often getting my entire uppper torso out the car window. This also takes more time.
So today, for the first time, I missed the outgoing truck and wound up delivering the last part of the route in the dark.
Really, this feels almost like being hazed.
2006-02-12
snowed in
That's pretty much how it is here in Southeastern PA this Sunday morning. We're so snowed in that church was cancelled today. We have what looks to me like 15-18 inches of snow on the ground right now. When I went to bed at 11pm last night we had about 2 inches. Do the math... 14-16 inches in 9 hours.
It would be lovely... if I didn't already hate snow and weren't seeing it through the eyes of a mail carrier.
Tomorrow should be another interesting day.
2006-02-11
as if alive
So, when you report to the post office for work on Saturday, which is supposed to be a light mail day, and then you get more mail than you've worked with ever before and spend an historically long time sorting and "casing" it before finally loading it all on a big "knocker" and taking it to the loading dock so that you can get your car, and in the process of backing up the car happen to glance in the rearview mirror to see your knocker with all your mail moving, as if alive, all by itself across the parking lot before two full trays of mail fall off and, fortunately, stop the motion but unfortunately scatter their contents (that is, the mail which you've just spent 5 hours casing) all over the asphalt...
that is the beginning of a bad day.
that is the beginning of a bad day.
2006-02-10
must...keep...eyes...open
Yesterday afternoon the rural carrier supervisor called me. Apparently, the regular carrier (who is also Jim, by the way. We'll just call him Regular Jim for now), has a dental emergency. So he took a sick day today, which means that his sub (that's me) does the route.
So instead of waiting until Monday I got to try again today. This time however, there would be no subs around to bail me out like before. I'm happy to report that I finished the route and made it back to the PO in time to get my outgoing mail on the outbound truck.
The only bad thing is, Regular Jim will be out tomorrow too (he needs oral surgery, I guess, not just a check up and cleaning), so I'm back at it. It's initiation by fire for me, I guess.
You know what, I am exhausted. How do these people do this day in and day out?
So instead of waiting until Monday I got to try again today. This time however, there would be no subs around to bail me out like before. I'm happy to report that I finished the route and made it back to the PO in time to get my outgoing mail on the outbound truck.
The only bad thing is, Regular Jim will be out tomorrow too (he needs oral surgery, I guess, not just a check up and cleaning), so I'm back at it. It's initiation by fire for me, I guess.
You know what, I am exhausted. How do these people do this day in and day out?
2006-02-08
faith musings ii: muse harder
Out of Ur has a decent follow up to their original post on spiritually mature church leavers.
There are some things I want to say here but I don't want to sound radically anti-church so I'll need to stew on this for a while. For now, I'll simply quote Robert Farrar Capon (from his book The Astonished Heart):
There are some things I want to say here but I don't want to sound radically anti-church so I'll need to stew on this for a while. For now, I'll simply quote Robert Farrar Capon (from his book The Astonished Heart):
"My program would be this. Whoever is in command over the dying institution at the next highest level of corporate church-the diocese, the presbytery, whatever-would take the bull by the horns and kill it: close the church, dissolve its bard, sequester its endowments, and sell off its property, putting the proceeds in escrow just in case the corpse ever rises and finds a use for them. Then the managers would explain to the remaining members of those churches that they were free to do anything they could think of (or nothing at all, if they so chose). A suggestion would be made, however, that they might think about holding a kind of wake the next Sunday, perhaps in one of their homes, or in a restaurant or bowling alley..."
like billy joel said...
honesty is such a lonely word.
Below is some corporate malarkey extracted from this article about Verizon's suit on the hill during congressional hearings regarding net neutrality:
He's talking about the fact that Google et al. get to use his sacred pipes to send their signals, he says, for nothing.
Vinton Cerf counters the argument thusly,
In other words, you and I already pay for the access. Verizon's not talking or thinking about its customers though. Not as if that's news.
However it all shakes out, our cost of access is fixin' to rise.
technorati: net neutrality
Below is some corporate malarkey extracted from this article about Verizon's suit on the hill during congressional hearings regarding net neutrality:
"The only way we are going to attract the truly huge amounts of capital needed to build out these networks is to strike down governmental entry barriers and allow providers to realize profits,"
He's talking about the fact that Google et al. get to use his sacred pipes to send their signals, he says, for nothing.
Vinton Cerf counters the argument thusly,
"In the Internet world, both ends essentially pay for access to the Internet system, and so the providers of access get compensated by the users at each end... suddenly access providers want to step in the middle and create a toll road to limit customers' ability to get access to services of their choice even though they have paid for access to the network in the first place."
In other words, you and I already pay for the access. Verizon's not talking or thinking about its customers though. Not as if that's news.
However it all shakes out, our cost of access is fixin' to rise.
technorati: net neutrality
it's all in the editing
Zalm linked to this trailer for the upcoming Brokeback to the Future.
Excellent work, Z. How do you find this stuff?
technorati: brokeback to the future
Excellent work, Z. How do you find this stuff?
technorati: brokeback to the future
2006-02-06
hard
This new job is hard.
What cliches might I employ tonight: I got my butt kicked. I got my hatt handed to me. This route had me for dinner and didn't leave leftovers.
Or to quote a wonderful old woman from our church who says the same thing every week: "I'm saggin' and draggin' "
That's me alright. I didn't even get to finish the dang thing... two other subs had to come and bail me out. They were quick to tell me that the same thing happened to them when they were just starting out, so I didn't feel quite so completely incapable.
Ugh.
In other news, looks like blogger's got a scheduled outage tonight starting at 10pm. At least we know about this one. I guess you better read this and make any comments soon, since it is anyone's guess whether this post (or the blog for that matter) will be here tomorrow.
What cliches might I employ tonight: I got my butt kicked. I got my hatt handed to me. This route had me for dinner and didn't leave leftovers.
Or to quote a wonderful old woman from our church who says the same thing every week: "I'm saggin' and draggin' "
That's me alright. I didn't even get to finish the dang thing... two other subs had to come and bail me out. They were quick to tell me that the same thing happened to them when they were just starting out, so I didn't feel quite so completely incapable.
Ugh.
In other news, looks like blogger's got a scheduled outage tonight starting at 10pm. At least we know about this one. I guess you better read this and make any comments soon, since it is anyone's guess whether this post (or the blog for that matter) will be here tomorrow.
2006-02-05
the answer to life, the universe, and everything
Today is my wife's birthday. I'm not telling you how old she is, not that she would care if I did, though you ought to be able to figure it out easily enough. She doesn't have a blog but you can visit the guestbook at her knitting site if you want. Heh-heh.
Oh, and blogger is back up. Apparently the post eating phenomenon was a nearly universal experience for blogger users. Some people lost more than just posts. You get what you pay for I guess.
Oh, and blogger is back up. Apparently the post eating phenomenon was a nearly universal experience for blogger users. Some people lost more than just posts. You get what you pay for I guess.
2006-02-04
no time left for you, you need not wonder why.
Here's an article in the Economist that is a classic example of saying absolutely nothing based on factually correct data.
It suggests that people feel overworked but they're not, their time is just overvalued. Huh? Excuse me, but as far as I'm concerned it is nearly impossible to overvalue time, though it is possible to overvalue money. For example, assume I have an income sufficient to support my family and some leisure time on top of that. If offered a choice at that point between more leisure time and more money, I'll take more time, thanks very much.
I'm sure lots of people would choose differently. Yet, the study cited by the article shows (by my reading of the data) that growing numbers of people are choosing time.
So far so good. The overworked American may be a mythical being after all, even if this is due to a deliberate choice.
Here's where the article loses me:
I'm not sure what this is supposed to mean, but I think Mr. Hammeresh is telling us that our time is overvalued, and I think that misses the story that the data is telling, which is that Americans (as well as people around the world, for that matter) are increasingly aware of the true value of time, and it's higher than we supposed.
The article concludes where it should have started:
The problem is that in choosing more time we've tried to continue to choose more money. We feel overworked not because we are necessarily, but because we have tried to simultaneously choose both leisure and work. Which would seem to me to be impossible to do, but there you go. I would have loved to see an analysis of why we make such a choice.
Okay, gotta go. I'm running out of time.
*Mr. Hammeresh is a "well-known work-watcher" according to the article.
It suggests that people feel overworked but they're not, their time is just overvalued. Huh? Excuse me, but as far as I'm concerned it is nearly impossible to overvalue time, though it is possible to overvalue money. For example, assume I have an income sufficient to support my family and some leisure time on top of that. If offered a choice at that point between more leisure time and more money, I'll take more time, thanks very much.
I'm sure lots of people would choose differently. Yet, the study cited by the article shows (by my reading of the data) that growing numbers of people are choosing time.
So far so good. The overworked American may be a mythical being after all, even if this is due to a deliberate choice.
Here's where the article loses me:
"First, thanks to rising real incomes, an American's time is worth more now. A walk in the park is more expensive than it used to be. (When people complain to him about being too busy, Mr Hamermesh* tells them that their real problem is too much money.) Second, economic advances allow people to squeeze ever more possible activities, both work and leisure, into a day, which encourages people to try to do too much."
I'm not sure what this is supposed to mean, but I think Mr. Hammeresh is telling us that our time is overvalued, and I think that misses the story that the data is telling, which is that Americans (as well as people around the world, for that matter) are increasingly aware of the true value of time, and it's higher than we supposed.
The article concludes where it should have started:
"Finally, there is the changing nature of work. Mobile phones and e-mail make people accountable on short notice, and competition may make them less secure in their jobs. So even if they are playing golf or walking in the park, they may feel as if they are working. It is surely nicer to feel overworked in the park than to be overworked at the office, but few Americans seem to look at it that way."
The problem is that in choosing more time we've tried to continue to choose more money. We feel overworked not because we are necessarily, but because we have tried to simultaneously choose both leisure and work. Which would seem to me to be impossible to do, but there you go. I would have loved to see an analysis of why we make such a choice.
Okay, gotta go. I'm running out of time.
*Mr. Hammeresh is a "well-known work-watcher" according to the article.
kill your tv. no, really.
I ran across an article by Christopher Westley entitled Living Without Television. It's quite an effective piece of writing recounting the big leap Chris and his family took during lent of 1995 when they decided to give up TV for a brief time. The expermient turned permanent.
Westley's article is better when he isn't trying to score a political point, as he briefly attempts to do about two thirds of the way through. The strength of his argument is rather in its proving that, contrary to what a cable company hack told him, you can live without TV.
What drew me in to this piece was the fact that I did the very same thing in the very same year. I gave up TV for lent in 1995 and have remained off of the cultural opiate ever since. With the reclaimed hours, I rediscovered my forgotten love: reading. During that lovely Lent, I read Narnia for the first time, The Lord of the Rings for the first time, Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle (except for the final two books, which he hadn't written yet) and a few others. I never went back to TV nor did I leave books behind.
This is not a recommendation, or even a suggestion, that you do the same thing. I have no more than the vaguest idea what most of your TV habits are and wouldn't presume to recommend anything, except maybe that you give Westley's article a read and see what you think.
Westley's article is better when he isn't trying to score a political point, as he briefly attempts to do about two thirds of the way through. The strength of his argument is rather in its proving that, contrary to what a cable company hack told him, you can live without TV.
What drew me in to this piece was the fact that I did the very same thing in the very same year. I gave up TV for lent in 1995 and have remained off of the cultural opiate ever since. With the reclaimed hours, I rediscovered my forgotten love: reading. During that lovely Lent, I read Narnia for the first time, The Lord of the Rings for the first time, Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle (except for the final two books, which he hadn't written yet) and a few others. I never went back to TV nor did I leave books behind.
This is not a recommendation, or even a suggestion, that you do the same thing. I have no more than the vaguest idea what most of your TV habits are and wouldn't presume to recommend anything, except maybe that you give Westley's article a read and see what you think.
and stay out!
Tell me this picture doesn't look like something out of 2001: A Space Odyssey (the greatest film ever made, BTW).
That's Spacesuit 1 (my name for it -- it's actually called SuitSat 1). It is an unmanned but not unfilled space suit that was tossed out of the international space station yesterday. After orbiting the Earth a couple of times, the radio trasmitter, not to mention the old clothes, inside of the suit went silent. Technicians say the batteries probably got too cold. It's chilly out there in space... and no one can hear you scream either.
Nifty, but why didn't they simply send codes to the kids from Earth and claim they were coming from space? Just like NASA did when they faked the Apollo moon landings.
Asked if he would be going to Disneyworld or not following the failure of the suit to perform as expected, mission Commander Bill McArthur remained philosophical, saying:
That's Spacesuit 1 (my name for it -- it's actually called SuitSat 1). It is an unmanned but not unfilled space suit that was tossed out of the international space station yesterday. After orbiting the Earth a couple of times, the radio trasmitter, not to mention the old clothes, inside of the suit went silent. Technicians say the batteries probably got too cold. It's chilly out there in space... and no one can hear you scream either.
"The spacesuit project, known as SuitSat-1, was the brainchild of a Russian ham radio operator. It was supposed to send several words in code for schoolchildren listening on the ground. Radio operators were supposed to pick up the messages for several days by tuning into FM frequency 145.990 MHz."
Nifty, but why didn't they simply send codes to the kids from Earth and claim they were coming from space? Just like NASA did when they faked the Apollo moon landings.
Asked if he would be going to Disneyworld or not following the failure of the suit to perform as expected, mission Commander Bill McArthur remained philosophical, saying:
"You know, that's just life in the big city."
2006-02-03
monday we go live
So I learned today that Monday will be my first day live on the route. That is, the regular carrier will not be in, and I will deliver the whole thing including all parcels, certified letters, express mail, etc... every darn thing, all by myself.
Here's the thing: Monday (which is the regular carrier's day off) is the heaviest mail day of the week since mail travels on Sunday but is not delivered. And this is the longest and heaviest rural route in our post office. He said today, "If you can do this route, you can do any route." Very reassuring. 8-|
Tell me, is it bad that I'm seeing addresses in my sleep? I was just wondering.
Here's the thing: Monday (which is the regular carrier's day off) is the heaviest mail day of the week since mail travels on Sunday but is not delivered. And this is the longest and heaviest rural route in our post office. He said today, "If you can do this route, you can do any route." Very reassuring. 8-|
Tell me, is it bad that I'm seeing addresses in my sleep? I was just wondering.
2006-02-02
it's been a long, long, long... post
I was going to read this post by Devin Reams because he makes such a good point... but it was just too damn long.
(Sorry sir, you had it coming).
(Sorry sir, you had it coming).
educat: the hipster stitcher
2006-02-01
postal tragedy
You may be wondering about my reaction to the news that a former postal employee killed six of her coworkers, a former neighbor, and herself Monday night. If not, then you can skip this post.
I first heard about it when another rural carrier showed up to work yesterday morning and told me about it. Since I had been at my case since 5am, I hadn't heard. The other rural carriers (our cases are all in one area of the building) all had the same reaction, sadness over the loss of life mixed with frustration that it gives people one more reason to hold postal workers in low esteem. Forget that the woman was an ex postal worker who was removed for psychological reasons. Forget too that she gained access to the facility by stealing an ID badge from another worker at gunpoint. All that will be remembered is: another postal worker went crazy and killed people.
The fact is that there are about 700,000 people employed by the USPS, and any time you're dealing with that many people it is statistically impossible not to have a few people who are emotionally or mentally unbalanced.
My own feelings are mainly of deep sadness for the people who lost their lives, and their survivors since as this story indicates, some of them had spouses and children. The real tradegy in all of this is what a few husbands and wives and children now must face.
I first heard about it when another rural carrier showed up to work yesterday morning and told me about it. Since I had been at my case since 5am, I hadn't heard. The other rural carriers (our cases are all in one area of the building) all had the same reaction, sadness over the loss of life mixed with frustration that it gives people one more reason to hold postal workers in low esteem. Forget that the woman was an ex postal worker who was removed for psychological reasons. Forget too that she gained access to the facility by stealing an ID badge from another worker at gunpoint. All that will be remembered is: another postal worker went crazy and killed people.
The fact is that there are about 700,000 people employed by the USPS, and any time you're dealing with that many people it is statistically impossible not to have a few people who are emotionally or mentally unbalanced.
My own feelings are mainly of deep sadness for the people who lost their lives, and their survivors since as this story indicates, some of them had spouses and children. The real tradegy in all of this is what a few husbands and wives and children now must face.
faith musings; i can't help it
UPDATE: I wrote this post last night knowing Randy McRoberts at The Upward Way Press had written something about spiritual formation. Somehow I read straight past his post as I skimmed for it, but now I've found it.
Leadership magazine has a blog called "Out of Ur" that I've been reading lately. Today, they posted "Exit Stage Left" which examines why "spiritually mature" people often leave the church.
The article refers to this book, which I've not read but probably will at some point and which suggests six stages of faith development. I don't know how similar those stages are to those proposed by Fowler in his classic work on the subject, nonetheless the article suggest that during the fourth stage...
It is here that the disconnect with the church occurs for some.
I don't know how much of a generalized conclusion can be drawn from these insights, and I certainly don't want to claim any sort of superior level of spiritual maturity, but I do know that these observations match up with my own experience. My own relationship with the Holy and the Church's approach to ministry are, in a word, divergent. This is true also of my perceptions of the church's attempts to minister to many people who I've witnessed entering a similar stage of faith reorientation.
I've felt for a long time like the Church and I keep missing each other. Maybe Hagberg and Guelich are on to something.
Leadership magazine has a blog called "Out of Ur" that I've been reading lately. Today, they posted "Exit Stage Left" which examines why "spiritually mature" people often leave the church.
The article refers to this book, which I've not read but probably will at some point and which suggests six stages of faith development. I don't know how similar those stages are to those proposed by Fowler in his classic work on the subject, nonetheless the article suggest that during the fourth stage...
"We begin to redefine our impressions of the faith and to some degree even our theology as we mature."
It is here that the disconnect with the church occurs for some.
"It’s especially difficult when people who reach stage four are in positions of influence and leadership. Churches, from the mega to the mini, are designed to help people mature in the external areas of service and discipleship, not the internal struggles of identity and meaning."
I don't know how much of a generalized conclusion can be drawn from these insights, and I certainly don't want to claim any sort of superior level of spiritual maturity, but I do know that these observations match up with my own experience. My own relationship with the Holy and the Church's approach to ministry are, in a word, divergent. This is true also of my perceptions of the church's attempts to minister to many people who I've witnessed entering a similar stage of faith reorientation.
I've felt for a long time like the Church and I keep missing each other. Maybe Hagberg and Guelich are on to something.
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