Stuff from August, 2005
This is the archive of tumbledry happenings that occurred on August, 2005.
Tennis Rackets
This is the archive of tumbledry happenings that occurred on August, 2005.
Obscenities uttered by Jesus Christ - Destined to become a classic. Via kottke.org
Effects of stress on the brain - Ouch: those hormones are damaging.
Wedding dancing!
I never thought this design would actually get live. But, here we are, cruising on the newest version of tumbledry. 14.0beta. Why beta? There are still things to add, sections to open, and a lot of coding to be done. I hope to be done in one week. Here is what you can expect:
We are at the very beginning of time for the human race. It is not unreasonable that we grapple with problems. But there are tens of thousands of years in the future. Our responsibility is to do what we can, learn what we can, improve the solutions, and pass them on.
— Richard Feynman
Stop Firefox popups - Noticed some popups in Firefox recently? Evil advertisers have recently been gathering momentum with this new trick: using Flash movies to cause browser popups. Well, there’s a fix, and it is as easy as 1-2-3…4.
Organic Chemistry - Has saved me a couple of times here at summer research, but I’m really putting this up here in order to test out the new RSS feeds (check them out, they’re at the bottom right corner in Firefox).
Fixing your dead hard drive - An “easy” way to fix a dead hard-drive. I would certainly try this if the opportunity presented itself, which I certainly hope it does not. I wonder if this is a joke? I think it is not.
Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman - What is it with me and Feynman lately? You just have to read some of his writing - it is amazingly down-to-earth and funny.
Yesterday, a sizeable thunderstorm passed through Saint Paul, Minnesota. The majority of the day was heavily overcast, and t-storms rolled through mid-afternoon, bringing with them a torrential downpour. Sheets of rain came down, creating clouds of water around roofs as the drops’ splashes rebounded in unison. Cars rolled through puddles up to their hubcaps, throwing up arching curves of spray three feet vertically. Lightning came down in that text-book vertical way, straight from cloud to ground, chased by the rumbling crackle of bass notes. Some reports indicated that over an inch of rain fell during the heaviest hour of the storm. No serious damage, just one of those strong summer storms you dream about when it’s frigid out. Normally, you wouldn’t think twice about the weather, the next day it would be a distant memory … unless you left your car windows wide open all day _ and completely forgot about them_.
This was the most perfect day you could possibly imagine: we just laid outside in the half-shade, half-sun, and soaked up the summertime.
Praying mantis eats hummingbird - “Devil mantis” might be a better description.
Me and You and Everyone We Know Review - Great review of Me and You and Everyone We Know by rogerebert. Meta critic material here. This is mostly to test out tags … stay tuned.
This receiver sounds much better than it looks.
Two images combined to make this one - I think the ones with a tree in them were better.
I have to stop this flower photo kick.
Playstation 3 on Amazon? - Very very strange. 300 dollars, too. Sounds like an underground promotion thing.
Done. The website is done.
I actually do not have the energy to write any more than that. Detailed post come tomorrow.
We snuck into Selby Hall during the final construction stages - looks like it will be a glorious and wonderful place to live.
Holy good lord. Tarnation. Yikes. Gosh golly. Good night that took a long time. I remember saying July 4th this would be done, a deadline I shamefully blew through and which Nils could have yelled at me for. At last, I don’t believe it (you most certainly do not, either), but it is done. The great tumbledry redesign of 2005 is ACTUALLY DONE. I’ve been spending so much time on this that its hard to know where to start. I can say: look forward to one image per day in the imageLog, actual updates, and more.
Payola - Scroll down to the story on “Payola.” Absolutely fascinating look (through the eyes of Semisonic’s drummer) at the mechanisms of corruption in the radio industry. It is absolutely no wonder we have no variety.
I’ve been meaning to write this for a while. It was one of those simple encounters that really leaves an impact on you: I was lifting weights, and dropped down off a bar, my brain in its usual meditative/survival state that it drops into when my heart -rate is up for an extended period. So, it took me a while to absorb what was said when an older man walked past me, saying “ahh, to be young again.” The effect it had on me was surprising: suddenly, I was wondering what it was like to be old, what it means to wake up and think that there is a clock ticking somewhere inside of you.
Best Bad Movie Review - “Schneider was nominated for a 2000 Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor, but lost to Jar-Jar Binks.”
iPod Stand - Having a hard time rationalizing this purchase … but it’s one of the most appealing iPod accessories I have seen in a while.
I will be looking back at this picture in the winter, wondering what green grass and trees look like. The answer is: verdant and wonderful.
We are approaching the beginning of another school year, and to all of you out there, I would like to impress something upon all the students out there: get your “to” right. Seriously.
If there is one aspect of the English language you can master (beyond spelling and basic grammar) please please get the difference between ‘to’ and ‘too.’ Take the correct usage in a recent email from St. Thomas public safety:
Mike had a pool party - and since 8 seconds is too long of an exposure to captuere anybody in the water, you get this picture. You’re welcome.
Over a month after seeing this movie, I finally get time to review the thing. Whew. It was playing only at one theater in the entire Twin Cities area: Uptown Theatre in Minneapolis. While the price was the same as big-box theaters (8 bucks per ticket), the ambience was completely different. The seats were harder, the air a little damp, and you could watch from the balcony. None of this detracted from the movie, in fact it made seeing an ‘indie’ film seem … more indie. The audience seemed a bit less numb to the movie, too: people actually laughed at the funny parts (though this movie isn’t even a comedy).
ROM Exercise - The price of this machine would pay for 12.5 years of a family membership at Lifetime Fitness. Is it worth it? You tell me.
Perfect for movies. I do not own this. Wish I did.
This movie received very average reviews. It is, however, sincere in its message, if a little heavy-handed in the delivery thereof. The message(s)? “People are more important than things.” “Life isn’t worth living if you are not doing what you love.” “True love is giving of yourself.” Do these sound like platitudes? To the jaded viewer, they almost certainly will. To me, at this confusing time in my life (anybody in college know exactly what they are doing? anybody? there you go …), these messages are refreshing and bear repeating.
5 Browns - The 5 Browns sound incredible: 5 siblings, all students of Juliard, play 5 pianos simultaneously. I wish I could have made this concert.
Tell me whom you love and I will tell you who you are.
— Houssaye
My undershirts live in the top drawer of my dresser. The top seven or so are laundered, and land back on top of the pile. To avoid wearing out (haha) these seven, I frequently grab a shirt from the bottom of the pile. This is what I did today, and I have regretted my actions ever since.
I don’t know what happened, but the dang undershirt (from here on referred to as Thing) smells like wood. Some sort of musty pine or pressboard smell has infused itself into the fibers of the Thing. To be honest with you, I smell funny. Think of sticking your nose in a book in your grandma’s basement … now you’re getting there. I considered a couple of options to address the situation:
Mr. Nice Guy - Casual, but funnier than heck. Made it to my “revists” list after I read 3 posts.
“i was so frustrated at one point that i put the baby down, went into my room … and punched myself in the head as hard as i could. i had never done such a thing before. i will not lie to you: it hurt not only my head, but my hand as well.”
For those of you using the “what’s happened since you’ve been gone” feature here, I would like to point out that it was working almost completely worthlessly. The code that made it go was all corrrect, but the conditions under which it worked were bizarre at best.
Think about it this way. Robert Frontpage had to talk to Sally Searchpage. Robert looked at you and decided if you were returning or not. If you were returning, he saved a bit of information about your last visit, and passed it over to Sally. Sally received this bit of information, and then did some quick librarian work: finding what had happened since you had last visited. Under some circumstances, instead of receiving the information from Robert, Sally was left with absolutely nothing to work with. The reasons for this are not completely clear to me. Suffice to say, Sally and Robert had some issues to work out.
72 inch DLP TV - Really stupid pictures. However, a 10000:1 contrast ratio alone makes this awesome. Were I old(er), I would budget for a TV similar to this (imagine what they will be like in 20 years).
Look closely.
Humans have a fundamental problem with driving. We get into our little machines which have way more power than we realize, and toodle around, completely oblivious to everyone else on the road. Take, for example, my recent trek northwards on 35E. A trucker (who should know better) hit the left blinker, and seconds later, I saw 4000+ pounds of steel-encased gravel swinging my way. Perhaps he was used to people swerving wildly around him, in an attempt to save their lives. Tromping on the brakes, I watched the bed continue to follow the tractor into the left lane. It had all the grace and precision of a Toyota Sienna being maneuvered by a Nascar driver. Crazy, I thought, though the incident had handily removed the man who was tailing me. It reminds me of a joke:
A List Apart REDESIGNS - One of the best resources for webdesign on the internet reveals one of the best redesigns on the internet. This one blows the doors off of pretty much anything else I’ve seen.
The Saltine Challenge - Shh. I fully intend to conquer this for use at parties.
The Civic Si is Back, Baby - Check this out - the Si was my favorite cheap fast(ish) car for a while - then came its current horrible hatchback’ness. Now, the 2006 model year rocks the redesigned sheet metal. 200hp, under 20k … absolutely awesome.
What if, everyday, people went outside and did something physical? I bet our workforce would be twice as productive if everyone slaving 9-5 could take a run on their afternoon break. Or even just run around. People’d be happier, healthier, able to cope with stress. Anti-depressant prescription rates would fall. Sleeping pills would drop off the market. Orthoscopic knee surgery rates would soar (or sore, as it were). Everyone’d be happier because they’d be healthier, and healthier because they were happier.
I was cleaning out my planner and found this: it’s what my planner looked like at the end of last semester. I do hope this is not repeated in subsequent semesters - more work, but more organized, perhaps?
Great caricatures - Clint and Einstein are my favorites.
Most people who know me quickly learn I am a great fan of physical comedy: the bus rolls through the camera view, a crash is heard from screen left. Minister of Silly Walks. That stuff makes me laugh. In a departure from that usual style, I would like to formally recommend the following scene be added to whatever Stiller/Wilson/Vaugn/Ferrel movie approacheth from Hollywood’s ever-predictable jukebox stuck on repeat.
Slate, on reality TV - Oh please read this. It’s so full of great turns-of-phrase and insight.
“I hate the way [teens] express personal inadequacy through car accessories and vandalism.”
“…that doesn’t change my instinctive revulsion any more than knowing that sharks eat people because they need the protein.”
It’s as if our entire culture has reached the halfway point in a gigantic bag of Cheetos and just collectively decided to go ahead and finish it off.
— Sam Anderson, in an article about the current reality TV trend
Gameboy Micro is small in the absurd - Smaller than the screen on a PSP. Holy cow. Markoe, you should get one of these!
I am currently crunching some numbers for dental school (approaching rapidly … 2 years and counting). Interesting thing I didn’t know before: there are mandatory summer terms for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year students. Other captivating/gripping/fascinating trivia follows.
A bit ago, in a post called “Firsts,” I spoke of the first bottle of cologne I ever bought. I was cleaning out in preparation for moving, and look - here it is: a no-longer-sold Gap scent for men.
Control iTunes with Global Hotkeys - The lack of global hotkeys is a massive hole in iTunes. It’s good to see a program like this fill it. Personally, I use iTunesKeys: both are still being updated frequently.
This movie was so dirty. Holy man. I know I would have been squirming constantly if I had seen it near anybody 5 or more years older than myself. Or younger. Given that, it was relentlessly funny. The only issue with the humor was going into it expecting so much. I mean, this is Brick, in a starring role. It was one of those “i’m laughing but it might just be because I want to think this is funny things” at the beginning of the movie. Then, I stopped thinking of my expectations and just laughed.
I’d just like the point out that, recently, I was rockin’ down the hall of the chemistry department at the end of a long day of work, passionately mouthing the words to “Hair of the Dog” by Nazareth. It was all going great until I looked over and saw the stockroom manager looking at me with an expression of horror, grief, and pity all rolled into one facial contortion.
Things My Girlfriend and I Have Argued About - Incidentally, this has become a a book. He gets to, perhaps, the crux of whatever small “point” there may be on his website: “As I’ve said before, the secret of a successful relationship is to become irretrievably embroiled in a bitter struggle to the death.”
Yes, I had crab from the crab for the first time. We’re not talking just the legs here. No, we’re talking mallet-pounding, whole crab decimation. Crab shrapnel flying everywhere. This stuff was fresh, less than 24 hours from the coast of Maine to the doorstep in Minnesota. I devoured three.
Sagert (12:31:58 AM): have you ever thought of going into grill-work?
tumbledry (12:32:07 AM): grill work?
Sagert (12:32:13 AM): like, crafting blinging and icey teeth for people?
tumbledry (12:32:22 AM): hahah oh oh
Sagert (12:32:27 AM): you know, once you got your dental stuff done
tumbledry (12:32:32 AM): it would be a natural outgrowth of basic dental training
Sagert (12:32:38 AM): exactly
tumbledry (12:32:47 AM): one would source those specialty items and promote
Sagert (12:32:50 AM): i just started reading your thing about precious metals, and it totally clicked for me
tumbledry (12:32:52 AM): not a bad idea
tumbledry (12:33:01 AM): i like it
Sagert (12:33:45 AM): just a thought
Sagert (12:33:49 AM): just throwing it out there
tumbledry (12:33:51 AM): i wonder
Sagert (12:33:57 AM): you got plenty of time
tumbledry (12:34:01 AM): i know fake vampire teeth can cost a couple thousand
tumbledry (12:34:11 AM): and people do that crap all the time at halloween
Sagert (12:34:19 AM): ummm…
Sagert (12:34:23 AM): i like my idea better
Sagert (12:34:29 AM): unless they’re blinging vampire teeth
Sagert (12:35:00 AM): or a full front set book-ended by vamp teeth that reads “suck this” in diamonds
Sagert (12:35:03 AM): that’d be tight
tumbledry (12:35:17 AM): oh man that’s unstoppably cool
Sagert (12:36:04 AM): again, i’m just planting the seed
Sagert (12:36:10 AM): let what you learn nurture that seed
Sagert (12:36:17 AM): and occassionally give it a bit of sunlight
Sagert (12:36:24 AM): and see where that beanstalk takes you
tumbledry (12:37:49 AM): your metaphor and idea are equally good
tumbledry (12:37:51 AM): would you get this work done?
Sagert (12:38:11 AM): i could probably be convinced
Sagert (12:38:41 AM): although i might opt for a removable model, depending on employment and things like that
tumbledry (12:39:28 AM): haha alrighty we could arrange that
tumbledry (12:39:33 AM): you’d be tough
tumbledry (12:39:38 AM): tough as nails
Sagert (12:40:12 AM): tough as steak
Sagert (12:40:21 AM): and that’s the point, really
tumbledry (12:41:03 AM): well i still have respect for steak
In-N-Out Burger - Probably the best chain to get a burger at in the entire nation.
Guinness Book of World Records: Loudest Burp - Just when you thought this website was getting some class … it was time to dispel that myth.
By the way, 110dB is the sound level of the front row of a rock concert. This guy hit 118.1dB.
Many memories.
This coming junior year, my AIM away messages are going to be the epitome of efficient communication. Through an organized code, they will convey my whereabouts effectively, accurately, and without excess nonsense.
c = class
l = lab
wo = workout
f = dining
s = studying
z = sleeping
hi = socializing (human interaction)X# = where # is the number of times the thing will occur
(#h), where # is a rough time estimate in hours [optional]
- exclamation point is something i’m looking forward to
- pluses indicate concurrent activities
- arrows are discrete activities