And to think, my son is studying to be a vet tech!
I like my operating system slightly aged
I have a development server in the house that still runs Windows 2000 Server and has Internet Explorer 6.0.2800 on it. The machine is finally starting to show its age and could not hold up to testing my current project, a web application whose end users will primarily use Internet Explorer 6.0.2900. My server just wasn’t cutting it tonight so I bit the bullet and pulled a laptop which had Ubuntu installed. I pulled out my free copy of Windows XP I got from Microsoft for participating in the Windows XP beta program. After installing it, the network card wouldn’t work so updates were impossible. Fortunately, I used to be a Microsoft Partner and participated in the Microsoft Action Pack program so I had a disc that had XP Service Pack 2 on it. After installing that things were looking better but the NIC still wasn’t working. I dug out a USB drive and used another computer to get the network adapter driver from Dell’s website and suddenly the machine was working. After installing the updated video drivers the laptop with 256MB of ram is running almost better than my workstation I used for development! Best of all, it now has Internet Explorer 6.0.2900 and I can see the website exactly as my clients see it!
Painful Phone Call
The guy on the phone is so slow and following his script so tightly that it makes me want to put hot pokers in my eyes. I haven’t even made my request yet but he’s kindly "checking on something for me real quick" Some of our dialog:
Him: I need your home number
Me: I only have a cell phone.
Him: Okay but I’m required to get your home and business numbers.
Me: I only have a cell phone.
Him: I have to tell you…
Me, interrupting: Yes that a cell phone is not secure. That’s okay.
Him: I have to let you know that communications on a wireless device are not secure. If you are okay with that…
Me: I’m okay with that.
Him: If you are okay with that I’ll need your authorization to continue.
Me: You have my authorization.
Him: Do you authorize me to continue?
Me: Yes.
Him: I need your authorization.
Me: You have my authorization.
The rest of the call was very similar. I called only about one thing and before I finished my request he interrupts me to say, "Let’s do one thing at a time." and at the end of the call he abruptly hangs up on me. So, why do I feel bad?
Of Grasshoppers
Student: I cry.
Master: To wash the dirt from your eyes.
Today is going to kill me
I hate Mondays.
Out of gas
Kroger’s gas was still marked $4.99/gal and I assume they had some. I did not drive by their pumps.
Drilling ANWR
If this is true, then I’d have to agree that drilling ANWR doesn’t seem terrible. I think the fears lay in the "foot in the door." Once the ANWR site is in production, will it make it easier to open many more sites? I sure would like to see some fact checks on this.
See also.
The Next Book I’m Buying!
From a developer’s standpoint, the page turning Flash on that site is awesome!
Thanks for the contact juggling video Rich!
I’m not sure if my comment to Rich’s post got spam filtered or not so I’ll repost it here.
http://view.break.com/511205 – Watch more free videos
That guy is VERY smooth! Quite the inspiration too. The first time you, I or anyone saw contact juggling was in the movie Labyrinth with David Bowie. David Bowie had his hands behind his back and Michael Moschen, a juggler and choreographer, who created contact juggling, did the manipulations while wearing leather gloves. The only special effect used was when the balls floated away.
Michael Moschen taught an apprentice his techniques and that apprentice published the lessons in a famous book titled “Contact Juggling” that just has a black cover and plastic binding like it was made at Kinkos. As the story goes, Moschen was ticked!
The “crystal” balls (acrylic) are actually manufactured for the chemical industry and are used to float on top of vats of chemicals. They are fun to play with! I toy with contact juggling but have not put in the hours that this guy has obviously done in training.
Pound pound pound pound
Enough already! I’ve basically had a headache since last weekend. I finally understand the agony my wife and son must go through when they experience their migraines. I’ve never in my life been prescribed any pain medicines. Not Vicodin, Percoset, or anything. Shoot. I don’t even know how to spell Percoset. But I am coming around to thinking pain medicines should be easier to get. I’m not talking over the counter. Right now I believe pain medicines should be dispensed out of vending machines! Or delivered with your pizza. Wait a minute. Don’t pizza guys already do that? Back to coding.
I’m beat
This is one of those moments I’m thinking a beer on the front porch would be very nice only the mosquitoes are so thick the neighbor’s house looks blurry and I haven’t any beer in this house for months; I’d rather chant anyway.
I been hit and run down and run over and
walked on and knocked around and I’m just
settin’ here now trying to study up what else I
can do to show … that I still ain’t afraid
of hard work. [Source, Arlo Guthrie, Woody’s Rag/hard Work lyrics]
Expect $6/gallon next week
@knoxgirl75 my wife’s uncle, that delivers fuel in NC, said next week is a no go for fuel……some talk of $6 gas
Update: Charlotte NC is seeing problems too.
Update: Southern states warn gas stations against price gouging
Hadron collider live webcams
Knoxville out of gas – Twitter for prices
Apparently Knoxville gasoline supplies have been out since Monday.
"Knoxville has been out of gas since Monday. We’ve been buying gas from Atlanta, North Carolina, Kentucky, anywhere we can get it," said Bill Weigel, head of the Weigel’s chain of convenience stores in Knox, Blount, Sevier, Loudon, Anderson and Monroe counties. [Source, Knoxnews, EPA boosts gas supply in Southeast; Knoxville running low]
When Cathy mentioned this to me yesterday, I was caught totally off guard. How could some significant news slip past the hyperconnected?! I polled Twitter:
djuggler: Hold the phone! Does anyone have a link or verification about a gas shortage in Knoxville?
I then saw that Michael Silence was causing the run on gas! djuggler: Blog post causes run on gas in Knoxville http://twurl.nl/5lbr8z Yea, hurricane Ike might have a little something to do with it too.
Then Twitter kicked in!
@djuggler WIMZ reported a little while ago that gas prices were going up @ 6:00 pm. I don’t really believe things are that coordinated. @djuggler My initial thought was that it was just a rumor that got out of control. I haven’t checked into any more so I could be wrong.
@djuggler goodness…it’s raining here and everyone thinks it’s ike. i’m like people! we’re in central kentucky – ike is still in the middle of the gulf of mexico! buy a couple or three clues. LOL
@djuggler I don’t know about shortages, but wholesale gas prices popped up today. http://tinyurl.com/4bb86p Coming soon to a pump near you djuggler: @barner Didn’t they hear about OPEC? Prices are supposed to plummet! Rock beats scissors. Ike beats OPEC. http://twurl.nl/mxxsab BrianGM: @djuggler that’s the first I heard about a gas shortage! Anybody got any connections with Pilot? djuggler: KNOXVILLE: As you fill up, Twitter the prices please. Heading out to pickup a child. Should I participate in the gas shortage mania?
LissaKay: 3.63 – 3.65 in kodak BrianGM: @djuggler ofcourse! Anybody that’s cool will be doing the ’08 K-Town Gas Shortage Tweetup!!
jenmcclurg: @djuggler I’m all for a good panic, so I filled up behind Kay’s Ice Cream on Chapman for $3.54
Digitarius: @djuggler This *would* break on a day that I coasted in to work on E, wouldn’t it? djuggler: I am participating in the hysteria. Weigel’s rocky hill. 3.69 3.79 and 3.89 every pump full with cars waiting.
overtlytrite: @djuggler it was still 350ish on campbell station I tend to shut my eyes and just feed the machine my card I don’t want to see the total Digitarius: @djuggler 3.699 at pel parkway & hardin valley barner: @djuggler $3.69/gallon on Sutherland Ave a couple hours ago. Up $0.05 this afternoon. LissaKay: Racetrac on Western is out of gas LissaKay: Gas prices jumped 20 cents in 4 hours at exit 407! Still 3.63 at Food City though
vagredajr: about 2 hours ago I filled up the minivan w/$3.69 gas. It is now $3.99 EVERYWHERE in Fountain City.
bobmissy07 People, think! If you only drive to Kroger & church, there’s no need to fill up the Rambler. You’ll be fine. No evacuations here, remember?
pattib22: @bobmissy07 @wbir has reported cummins supply terminal has run out of gas and not expecting next delivery till 9/17 vagredajr: oh boy, here comes the gas run 
lasthome: $4.09 at BP near Fort Sanders West and Kingston Pikelasthome: Anyone wanna place bets whether it will come back down to $3.64 next week?
I heard one person forecasting $5 a gallon but I think they were being snarky. If the Saudis really left OPEC, then prices should come down.
Update: Knoxnews reports Knoxville gas prices push closer to $5 and Michael Silence has more.
Today is 9/11
I remain at a mostly at loss for words. Of course, two very unexpected things happened as a result of September 11, 2001. First, Amy happened. Second, September 12, 2001 happened. September 12 is a day I will never forget for it was the first time I my life, the only time, I can remember looking into the sky and not seeing a single airplane. No flashing lights. No contrails. No engine noise. No whump whump whump of helicopter blades. Only sky, birds, and at night, stars. For such tragedy on September 11th, there was an ironic peacefulness to the skies in the hours and days that followed.
