Sorry for the multiple postings. I’ve got to make some adjustments to my script–it keeps reporting timeouts when it’s actually completed sending the message.
Month: December 2001
Let it snow
It’s been a great weekend. Primarily because I’ve procrastinated.
Friday I got in a solid chunk of work on a project for New Product Development. Then I crapped out. We made an Italian meatloaf — that’s made with ground beef and Italian hot sausage, with hard-boiled eggs in the middle, and some other good stuff that I won’t discuss now, then covered in the tomato sauce that Lisa canned this summer. Saturday I got a little work done — mostly just hung out with Lisa, shopping etc.
Today was the real red-letter day. It was the first snow of the winter last night–supposedly two inches, though the ground was too warm for accumulation. Lots of pretty flakes with no side effects–my favorite kind. We got up early, went shopping. Came back with Lisa’s Christmas present. We definitively decided — she’s a Tiffany girl. Did some cooking afterwards: a killer pork rib roast. Dry rub the pork with salt, pepper, cinnamon, rosemary, fennel… wet roast it in beef stock and wine with quartered oranges… serve it with more sliced oranges and reduced roasting sauce. Oh yeah. I’m delighted to report that two years in business school haven’t killed my cooking abilities.
So this week will be miserable. That’s ok. The weekend was worth it.
virginia justice?
A first: today a Virginian was cleared of charges due to DNA evidence. He’s a local boy, from Hanover County. After 15 years in jail, it turns out he didn’t do it after all. There were charges of racism in the case: the judge, jury, and victim were all white, and he’s black. Was his only crime being black, and having a white girlfriend at the time? What’s wrong with my state that that’s enough to make him look guilty of such an awful crime?
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Friday fun
Fun stuff at work today. I went up to my manager and asked to be trained for a new project. His answer? “Sure thing!” Much goodness. Nothing like making yourself indispensible at the office to make you sleep better at night. I guess my manager’s not mad at me anymore for showing him up in front of his boss.
Other fun: having lunch with a fellow UVa alum, 3 years my junior. Despite our differences (she was in a sorority, while I, um, was not) we had a great time chatting about the old days, and bemoaning how far our tolerances have deteriorated since graduation. Ah, college. “The good ol’ song of Wa-hoo-wa…”
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Praise Bob! Praise Whittards!
I’m working from home this morning. It’s amazing how much more productive I can be by adding two distractions: Bob Dylan‘s Love and Theft on the stereo and a cup of hot tea. I’ve given Lisa a lot of grief for her habit of bringing back a small duffel bag worth of tea every time she goes to London, but I have to admit, Whittard’s Christmas Tea is awfully nice.
Classic installer weirdness
Weird experience just now: I installed the latest classic Mac OS update (9.2.2) while running Mac OS X. I doubleclicked and ran the installer; it quit all processes IN MY MAC OS X session (except the Dock) and then logged out OS X when it was done. Surely it could have just dumped me back into X and made me restart the Classic process. Frankly, though, I’m amazed it worked at all.
“Aid and comfort” rears its ugly head
Free speech must be getting Ashcroft down:
“To those who pit Americans against immigrants, citizens against non-citizens, to those who scare peace-loving people with phantoms of lost liberty, my message is this: Your tactics only aid terrorists for they erode our national unity and diminish our resolve… They give ammunition to America’s enemies and pause to America’s friends. They encourage people of good will to remain silent in the face of evil.”
When being first isn’t good
How embarrassed am I that a story on this site is the top hit for searching Google for “muppets compromising positions”? At least there are only four pages of hits returned, and none of them actually have anything compromising about them. And it’s Esta‘s story, not mine. 🙂
And no, I don’t mean blank checks
Ashcroft finds himself on the stand today before Congress. This is an interesting example of checks & balances in action. Good old Patrick Leahy: even after being an anthrax letter recipient, he can still say things like “I want to make sure after we’re all gone that the Constitution is still here…It’s not always popular upholding the Constitution, but it’s always the right thing to do.”
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Because there’s not enough in non-fiction
This is so inappropriate I have to share it. I didn’t even realize there was a Bad Sex in Fiction Award.
All told, I’d rather be a lizard
My results from the Art Test thingy:
“You are Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
You are extremely popular and widely known. Although unassuming and unpretentious, your enigmatic smile has charmed millions. You are a mystery, able to be appreciated from afar, but ultimately unknowable and thus intriguing.”
Sure thing, hoss. And I gots some real estate in my back pocket for ya.
Changing the subject: has anyone else had trouble recently with Mail Boxes Etc.? They assured me that Tim’s birthday present would be delivered last Friday, but it’s still in limbo somewhere in South Boston. Irate…
Now playing
Currently playing song: “Isn’t It A Pity (Version One)” by George Harrison on All Things Must Pass.
Okay, I confess. I’m one of those miserable bastards whose only knowledge of the Quiet Beatle was from the recordings of the Fab Four, “Cloud Nine,” and the Traveling Wilburys (plus a vague horrified memory of “Gone Troppo”). I’m listening to Isn’t It A Pity for the first time and I’m knocked out.
Isn’t it a pity
Now, isn’t it a shame
How we break each other’s hearts
And cause each other pain
How we take each other’s love
Without thinking anymore
Forgetting to give back
Isn’t it a pity
Emulate away
Virtual PC 5 for Mac OS X is out. Connectix is to be congratulated for showing restraint in not calling it Virtual PC X.
Who said free is dead?
All you folks who want to do the weblog thing but have held back because editthispage.com is full, despair no more! Adam Curry (former MTV VJ, born-again-geek) has opened up diaries.com for free Manila hosting.
Go have fun.
Seven years later, KPMG discovers the Web
This is one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a while. [KPMG] I’ll be sure to go out and get a formal Agreement signed next time I link to someone’s site. [KPMG]
> A recent audit of Web sites, to which KPMG is hyperlinked, has revealed that
> www.corporateanthems.raettig.org contains a link to KPMG’s Web site,
> www.kpmg.com. Please be aware such links require that a formal Agreement
> exist between our two parties, as mandated by our organization’s Web Link
> Policy …However, we
> would ask that you please remove the KPMG reference and corresponding link
> from www.corporateanthems.raettig.org in the meantime.
Oh, and just for the record: [KPMG]