Month: July 2010
From the mouths of babes
Two weeks ago we had the van professionally cleaned.
Noah, 14 years old, last night: "Hey! The van is clean!"
All this time I’ve been trying to figure out why teen minds turn off; I should have realized they’re just lagged.
Doug’s Mantras
You have two ears and one mouth so that you can listen twice as much as you talk.
Kindle – Killing paper books forever
I’ve declared for some time now that we are in the midst of a revolution and no one realizes it. That revolution is the death of books. Much like CDs replaced LP records in the early 80s, we will look back at this time and say that in the 2010s electronic books replaced paper books. Paper books will become the thing of collectors. It will take 20 years to realize this as the Kindle and the Apple iPad work their way into schools. Once we get one generation of children through the school system primarily reading text books on e-readers instead of paper, traditional books will die.
I was going to buy a Kindle at the beginning of the week but Amazon was conveniently "temporarily out of stock." I did not realize this meant that Amazon was releasing a new Kindle at only $139! They also improved the contrast on their $189 model (the one interesting me but I was reluctant because I wanted the contrast of the $379 model). Amazon is taking pre-orders to ship on August 27th. I can’t wait!
Update: Did you know you can buy the Barnes & Noble NOOK ebook reader (WiFi + 3G) on Amazon? And the Sony Digital Reader? Note that each are a pound while the 6 inch Kindle is 8 ounces. And of course the Apple iPad Tablet (64GB, Wifi) which weighs in at a pound and a half.
Hello hello
Is there anybody out there?
Task at hand
I am going to do all that I can and nothing more
And in the end, all will be done the best that I know how.
The Fixer
Is it normal to spend so much time fixing things? I thought life was to be enjoyed; apparently, life is to be repaired.
A week(end) behind
I had an incredible weekend. Cathy and I sneaked away from the children and played in Marietta Georgia for the weekend. My cousin married Fred. It was a beautiful wedding! Cathy and I experienced an Ikea for the first time. We found the Lost Ark of the Covenant. Did not get lost. Stayed in a very nice hotel but in douche valley (h/t Michael Silence). Enjoyed visiting with family. And somehow now feel like I’m a week behind on everything! (but it was worth it)
Of Grasshoppers
Student: The sadness comes.
Master: Cheer up.
Cows and cows and cows
From the mouths of babes
Me: "Have you ever read a newspaper?"
Noah, enters high school in a few weeks: "No."
Me, rejoicing that my saw actually does cut the angels I need.
Evan, 5 years old: "Did you know you’re talking to yourself?"
Club House Update
Last weekend, a beautiful 3 day weekend, I had hoped to finish the club house. Instead I was programming. This weekend I thought I would take up some slack. It’s now 1:30 and I’m just getting away from the computers. Here’s hoping I can get those hip rafters on!
What do you do with a city that needs a lot of paint?
Old buildings? Beach front property? Rusted Water towers? Make an animation with graffiti of course!
BIG BAG BIG BOOM – the new wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.
53 Years of Nuclear Bombs
How many nuclear bombs have been exploded? Many people would say, "One, over Japan" when it fact it was two, one over Hiroshima and another over Nagasaki. Would you believe that Britain has exploded a nuclear bomb in the United States? Would you believe that in 53 years 2053 nuclear bombs were exploded around the globe? I find the following video unsettling. It left me feeling hollow in my chest and subtly angry.
Happy Independence Day!
It’s a beautiful day out there! If you are in the United States, get out an celebrate the day. Try not to wear your politics on your sleeve. Just enjoy your family, your neighbors and the strangers you see while out and about. If you aren’t in the United States, celebrate the day too! We should always look for reasons to be happy and party.