Ramblings, opinions, and general meanderings from the Deep South

Thursday, July 31, 2003

Okay, know the links are gone. Working on putting them back. This is a great example of NOT backing up data. Wish my foot would reach my ass!
The do not call link is posted. If you sign up, telemarketers have to stop calling on October 1st. If this works, I will be a happy boy. Also there is a link posted that lists all the names of those supoenaed by the Nazis at RIAA. It was last updated on the 28th. EFF has a search engine that will look up your user name or IP and see if you have been included. It's posted too. After browsing the list I see no familiar names. Cindy Cohn was a guest on The Screensavers last night and supports our use of peer to peer swapping of files. Check out TechTV for this interview.

My back hurts, my feet stink, n I don't love Elvis. Going to take a magic carpet ride via Flexiril n Loritab as a result of a backache that won't quit! Pseudogeek says peace out!


Technology is dominated by two types of people: those who understand what they do not manage, and those who manage what they do not understand.
Putt's Law

____________________________________________________________________________________

Tuesday, July 29, 2003

Weather has affected the connection. This will be short. I will post the 'do not call' addy that stops telemarketers from calling. This process is garbled , but probably due to weather stuff. BTW, the RIAA is at it - as usual. TechTV has posted a list of all the users that will be harassed. For the most part it's KAZAA users. I am sure the apple wormites will turn me in when they get to my peer to peer group. LOL!!!!! Please remember, RIAA, G5s n liberals are LAME!

Pseudogeek out


A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.
Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

Monday, July 28, 2003

Archives are functioning. Sometimes you have to click a second time to make the full archive appear. Thanks Alabama Bob for the tip. Still researching how to post images in here. Yes, there will be an actual picture of the Saltillo Beach House, LOL.

The other day when I was snooping around in the Mississippi Secretary of State site it was completely legal and wasn't a hack. They have a web site that posts a lot of info and anyone can visit it. So, Anonymous email person if you wanted a mention - that mission has been accomplished. Duh!?!? The pseudogeek does not hack. I am too busy mowing my yard.


Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)


Sunday, July 27, 2003

CAVEAT EMPTOR, My potentially sauced "friends"

The following is the opening blurb on Apple's page about the new G5:


The Power Mac G5 is the world’s fastest personal computer and the first with a 64-bit processor — which means it breaks the 4 gigabyte barrier and can use up to 8 gigabytes of main memory. The new G5 processor — available at speeds up to dual 2GHz with a new ultrahigh-bandwidth system architecture featuring AGP 8X and PCI-X — makes the Power Mac G5 a breakthrough in desktop processing power. And models start at just $1999.

Let's see? How do I describe my feelings about this? Do I post a mass profanity warning? Nah! Let's just call it a typical pile of barnyard material spouted by Steviepoo Jobs and ilk. After spending time reading articles from many sites that have reviewed this matter, it seems that they are exercising the right to blow their advertising so out of proportion that it becomes utterly ridiculous and the consuming public will know not to trust such malarky. Caveat emptor - let the buyer beware.

Hey, they start at just $1999. Does that include the power cord? I don't really know, but if Jobs is up to his usual 'let's see how bad we can stick it to 'em' the power cord will cost you your firstborn and have plugs so weird that one has to make their purchase at the fruit orchard. The top end model starts at $2999. Then comes the monitor, all that apple peripheral stuff, horribly expensive software, etc. before you have your "world's fastest computer." Can anyone find software based on 64 bit processing at this time? Now let's see, do I want a $3000 or a $4000+ fruit bowl?

Apple can maintain their market share of between 3% and 4% by charging such outrageous prices. The silliest thing about all this is, for some strange reason that does not make sense in the known universe, the wormites that use apple stuff think they are elite. Yessiree bobtail! I wanna' rush out n pay two to three times the price and buy two year old technology and become a member of this elite group! NOT!

And Jeff Goldblum....I hope they pay you lotsa moola for the voiceover in that silly ad. You are alienating about 90% of computer users on the planet. There are no links posted

Oh, that way madness lies; let me shun that.
William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), "King Lear", Act 3 scene 4


Socialist TV (PBS) aired Soundstage last night 9-11pm. They are in fund raising mode and, I think, actually stretched an hour show to two in order to sell overpriced trinkets and tell us how we need to send money. When C-band satellite stations first scrambled these rocket scientists (PBS) jumped on the band wagon. Won't send them money anymore since they've decided that they will choose their audience. PBS also does not want people to link to their website (heh heh heh! ha ha ha!). Public broadcasting my ass. Anyway, the group tonight was Chicago and their performance was really good. Hard to explain the Chicago thing - sorta big band meets rock. For fans this is a MUST see. Roberet Lamm & James Pankow are still with them and strong in voice and the Peter Cetera/Terry Kath replacements do a great job. Check it out. The link is still posted


The worst solitude is to be destitute of sincere friendship.
Sir Francis Bacon

Saturday, July 26, 2003

Flexiril State of Mind. Sounds like a song, possibly a lullaby. Heard it last night and may listen to it again today. Back aches really, really, really suck. Knew better than to help load a 160 lb server in the back of a truck, but machismo did its number on me. Now I can't even stand up straight. Asleep by 7:00pm drifting in and out of weird dreams and awoke this morning realizing I did not post yesterday.

Reading is one of the great pleasures of life. Here in Lee County we have a library that is A-1. They have a nice roomy facility, smiling pleasant staff, a wonderful computer array that gives people the ability to go online, a 'do-business' web site, 'used books for sale' department, ample parking, and books! Recently, I found out that Elmore James wrote a book titled Tishomingo Blues. Checked out their web site and found it immediately. They also have a page that gives headline news, weather, hot new titles, etc. A tab exists for the calendar of activities, you can personalize the page if you have a library card, and there is a separate Kid's Catalog. Now I understand that not everyone lives in Lee County, Mississippi. Check out your local library. If you don't have an addy then Google search. I encourage people to take advantage of these wonderful institutions. Read on!, my sisters and brothers! A link is posted.

Men’s evil manners live in brass; their virtues
We write in water.


King Henry VIII. Act iv. Sc. 2.
Shakespeare

Thursday, July 24, 2003

The past few weeks have been rough and tonight something happened that made life easier for a few fleeting moments. It's apparent the "The Lifestyle of the Poor and Pitiful" is the soap opera most favored by the Saltillo Beach House. But, watching tv here is a hoot! Onkyo audio/video receiver, Sony dvd n vcr, Infinity speakers w/12" subwoofer, quadzillion comb filtered Hitachi TV, GI digital cable controller and the computer network is interfaced with the system both indoors and outdoors. When you suffer from an extreme case of lackomoola it's a good idea to get the most bang for your buck. I don't go to bars, don't travel a lot, drive an ancient lead sled, have few vices at this age, love music and computers. Hence, these few vices I enjoy.

Soundstage is an old pbs music show that has featured many great artists. It disappeared for a while but is back on Thursday night at 9:00pm Central. Tonight Michael McDonald was the main event. For the uninitiated Mr. McDonald was the keyboard/singer for the Doobie Brothers. On the show was Ashford and Simpson n they were great. Also, Tom Johnston and Patrick Simmons (two of the original Doobie Brothers) played along for several tunes. I will give the old socialist TV station, PBS, credit where credit is due. The sound was really great. Dolby Pro Logic II and the whole room jumped as the bass notes hit! The subwoofer pumped up de volume. Mr. McDonald has a voice that still makes women of all ages swoon. His rock/jazz/blues styling is wonderfully intricate and always amazing. This cat has vocal range that is off the scale. Something else that is important is that all the band members seemed to be enjoying this feast for the eyes and ears. Everyone had to hug Mike and they all smiled. It's no secret that success depends on group efforts most of the time. Being nice helps too. I love to see a cooperative at work. Hats off to these wonderful musicians that have spanned several decades and still can smile as they entertain. A link is posted.

Remember the words of that wizard of moviedom John Barrymore, "Smile you sour bastard. Smile like you mean it and smile until it hurts. Not for you, but for others!"

I am hungry. I've eaten only one meal a day all week. This sucks! And my brother Dan never calls. I even send him snail mail. They hate me. I am not the black sheep of the family, more like the black possum. K, I feel better now, the hunger has subsided momentarily. Must go before I lapse into warp whine.

Wednesday, July 23, 2003

My son-in-law sent this to me.


The following has been attributed to State Representative Mitchell Kaye from GA. The guy should run for President.....

"We, the sensible people of the United States, in an attempt to help everyone get along, restore some semblance of justice, avoid any more riots, keep our nation safe, promote positive behavior, and secure the blessings of debt free liberty to ourselves and our great-great-great-grandchildren, hereby try one more time to ordain and establish some common sense guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt-ridden, delusional and other liberal bed-wetters. We hold these truths to be self-evident: that a whole lot of people are confused by the Bill of Rights and are so dim that they require a Bill of No Rights."
ARTICLE I:

You do not have the right to a new car, big screen TV or any other form of wealth. More power to you if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteeing anything.
ARTICLE II:

You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone -- not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion, etc., but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be ... and like the rest of us you need to simply deal with it.
ARTICLE III:

You do not have the right to be free from harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye, learn to be more careful; do not expect the tool manufacturer to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.
ARTICLE IV:

You do not have the right to free food and housing. Americans are the most charitable people to be found, and will gladly help anyone in need, but we are quickly growing weary of subsidizing generation after generation of professional couch potatoes who achieve nothing more than the creation of another generation of professional couch potatoes.
ARTICLE V:

You do not have the right to free health care. That would be nice, but from the looks of public housing, we're just not interested in public health care.
ARTICLE VI:

You do not have the right to physically harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally maim, or kill someone, don't be surprised if the rest of us want to see you fry in the electric chair.
ARTICLE VII:

You do not have the right to the possessions of others. If you rob, cheat or coerce away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you away in a place where you still won't have the right to a big screen color TV, pool tables, weight rooms or a life of leisure.
ARTICLE VIII:

You don't have the right to a job. All of us sure want you to have a job, and will gladly help you along in hard times, but we expect you to take advantage of the opportunities of part time jobs, education and vocational training laid before you to make yourself useful.
ARTICLE IX:

You do not have the right to happiness. Being an American means that you have the right to PURSUE happiness -- which by the way, is a lot easier if you are unencumbered by an overabundance of idiotic laws created by those of you who were confused by the Bill of Rights,
ARTICLE X:

This is an English speaking country. We don't care where you are from. We welcome you here. English is our language and like the one you left behind, we also have a culture. Learn it or go back to the country and the living conditions you were fleeing.




Monday, July 21, 2003

Monday night and I am off to bed. This was an extremely rough day and it's my hope I'll never elucidate as to why. Lack of money sucks

Sunday, July 20, 2003

On this day in the year 1969 Neal Armstrong walked on the moon. That's a really kewl thing. Several years before that my Mother was born on this day. That's an even kewler thing! She's just absolutely awesome! Happy birthday Mother, I love ya!!
Neat feature of web surfing is to find a pearl amongst the swine. I am definitely in security/privacy mode researching sites to recommend for password development. With the musicnazis at RIAA using strong arm tactics, hacker attacks, the virus creeps and script kitties doing their weirdness - everyone needs to secure their personal confusers and web activities. Good passwords are essential. After exploring known sites, leafing throught the government pages of monotony, I have discovered a site that is easy to use, simple in language and contains a wealth of information. It seems to be English. Andrew Starling bought a CD from Amazon.com and later returned under another identity. Amazon.com kept reminding him that he was originally registered as Andrew and this inspired him to further investigate how they gained such info. This led to the creation of Tinhat.com.

This site offers tips and aspects of cyber-security. He even gives a brief explanation of Echelon and has many links about each topic on the site. It's ad driven, but they aren't that annoying. Still using your telephone number, date of birth, pet's name, Bible name, favorite character from the Lord of the Rings as a password? Be sure and read 'Good and bad passwords' under Personal Data.

Good site, navigates well, a plethora of info, easy to read. A link is posted - Tinhat Security, etc.

Remember the words of that New England Poet, Bobby Frost, in Mending Wall -"Good fences build good neighbors."

Saturday, July 19, 2003

CYBERSOUTH MAKES GOOGLE


I was just in the Mississippi Secretary of State site snooping around trying to find out about some local businesses and was going to Google search about one individual. Just on a whim I entered Cybersouth. Low and behold! Cybersouth - from the Saltillo Beach House is on the first page, down at the bottom!! I feel like Steve Martin in The Jerk when he ran across the parking lot screaming, "The new phone books are here! The new phone books are here!" The email addy is even listed!
WARNING - BEFORE READING THIS POST - please click on the link, Email Manners. Read the whole article. This is very good. It's so good I've put it at the top of the list! BTW, the Geocities popup on this page disappears after a few seconds....




Okay, let's talk about email courtesy. If you send an email to me that is "chained" (asks me to forward to 5 people, etc.) I read it, enjoying the fact that you took the time to send it to me. I will NEVER, NEVER, NEVER forward something that has tried to intimidate me into doing it. I reallly hate the religious ones that tell me that if I love Jesus I'll send it to 'so many people' and if I don't then that means I don't love Jesus. Let's get something straight right here and now. I accept that Christ is the Son of God. He is my personal guardian and salvation from a corrupt, fallen world. He knows this and I don't really give a damn if you like it or not. Those that are busy trying to convince me to worship a particular way - hey get a life! I accept that we are all different and it is not my place to judge others as so many "religions" do. Whatever floats your boat. Now, you are welcome to keep sending such emails, I love to hear from folks. Just understand, I don't send stuff on to others and probably won't send stuff back. If you address me personally, you WILL get a personal reply from me. Any personal news, important info or general cyber info is always welcome. Please bear with me if I take time to reply; my day usually starts at 5:30am and ends around midnight.

If you call on the phone don't even bother with hello - ask if I am busy! Yes, just say the words "Are you busy?" It is very frustrating to be on a scissors lift, 40ft in the air (am a fraidy cat when it comes to heights anyway and wired by being in such an awful predicament) repairing a break in a cat 5E cable and the phone rings with someone on the other end wanting to chew the fat. Folks, last time I did such a repair it took two hands. Besides, even if I had a free hand, I'd be hanging on for dear life with it. If I don't answer the phone at home or otherwise, I am busy and don't have time to talk. Time is precious and I try to rigidly schedule mine. My company provides my cell phone and they pay for the time. Short messages r k, but NOT long conversations. Tom has a thing about personal calls on his cell phone, so please work with me and respect this request. I do not tolerate ass chewings, right or wrong, very well.

Consider all that's been written then you will see that I am only asking for common courtesy. I've toned this down and put off posting these requests since I first started this blog. The air seems better now.

Keep those cards n letters coming! Just don't expect me to do the "chain letter" dance.



Friday, July 18, 2003

It's Friday and I am tired. May be back later.

Thursday, July 17, 2003

Since I am determined to re-install the operating system and applications on this PC after a format, I've brought the Zonealarm firewall on line to relearn it. This freeware (yes, use the free version) program is great for anyone that spends time on the internet and may be worried about intrusions of the hacking kind. That great Roman statesman Julius Caesar once said, "Just because you are paranoid doesn't mean that there's NOT someone after you."

Zonealarm works. It is somewhat of a task to set up. You go through a period of 'training' it to let the programs you use access the internet and vice-versa. Since I've not used this program in a network scenario, I am testing the water. So far so good. Now a lot of folks don't have the patience and time to use a firewall. It is tedious at first. And I have a D-Link router that offers great protection. Routers are 'hardware' firewalls and do other things like routing network traffic. Very easy to install. Anyway, you may ponder if this is overkill on protection? Depends on your needs. If you are a newbie and unsure, this may not be a program that you want to use right now. Please read the tutorials and get a good grip of what is happening when we say firewall.

Don't bring your flamethrower here if you haphazardly go off and install this involved program and it fubars yo' personal confuser. All uber geeks n teckies - I don't care if you think it is simple, it wasn't for me when I first used it. Please remember, the pseudogeek did not show up at your house and force u to download anything. A link is posted

Wednesday, July 16, 2003

New York Jan recently lost popup killer, an older program that has not been supported since March of last year. AnalogX has one called POW and good reviews have been presented about this tool. I have had it stored on my PC for a while and plan to use it when I do a reinstall on this machine. I really like the AnalogX site. It has been around for years and has some very useful tools available for free. Dude has been on The Screensavers and the boys n girls at TechTV rave about this site. Check it out, n i need input and responses! There's a link posted.

Pseudogeek is going to bed and sleep, perchance to dream in hexadecimal, have visions of Crays and multiple Xeons dancing in my..........hey I really do need to snooze at length.

Tuesday, July 15, 2003

Cable modem is back. I delayed any action on it for a few days and they sent Mike Simpson out and he performed cybervudu so now it's back working. So nice to know responsive people that have manners are still around. Mark, your people at Vista III Media are doing a fine job. From the CSR's at the office to the techs that show up at the residence. The most impressive thing is everyone is polite. I've linked to their site if anyone is in northeast Mississippi and needs cable or high speed internet.

MoweringBoy has been doing his thangy. I have to return to work tomorrow and am trying to get caught up on everything that has had to be postponed the past few days. It is summertime in the south. We are breathing as much water as air when outside. Humidity is up, up, up.

Sometime in the very near future I am going to install my server on this network. That will be interesting. I am also planning a weekend of BSD 4.8. Hopefully, this will be a learning experience for us all. All the hammers have been removed from the house.

Your prayers and well wishes are awesome. Thanks everyone for helping me through an extremely hard time.
Thanks to everyone for the concern. Grief is a hard to control emotion. I posted the last entries in the middle of the night and did not proof them. Almost seems like a negative person snuck in and posted. Well, it was me. I am re-filling the half-full glass.

"Can you build me a computer?" - a frequent interrogative. Will I? Now there's the question. If you are looking for high performance no holds barred machine, have money and patience, promise not to torture the machine, will sign an agreement to defrag/do the proper updates/feed it properly, the answer might be yes (evil grin to be inserted here). I have to live with it and the "input" it will receive for a warranty period. Therefore, I will only use what I consider the best components and they will be more expensive. So where can you get the most bang for the buck? There are several manufacturers building linear architecture machines. Dell, in my opinion, is not a good choice. They still make 'big iron' stuff that is good, but their entry level leaves a lot to be desired. Dell's worst crime is bragging about their support. Have you ever gone to their web page and tried to find drivers? Yuck! Worst support page on the planet. Gateway is okay and IBM still makes super machines but get out yo' wallet, you will pay. Hewlett-Packard is my choice. My server is an old dual processor HP machine as is my Linux machine. They usually have great systems at good prices. You can find them at Circuit City, Wal-Mart, Sam's, Staples. etc. Their support page is the best on the planet and they will ship a replacement unit if you have problems while it is under warranty. They have Pentium 4/Celeron units and AMD machines too. I have all Pentium machines, but AMD makes good stuff. That's a topic that will be approached at a later time. One model line even offers Linux as an alternative operating system. Hewlett-Packard has been around a long time. There's a link posted.

Monday, July 14, 2003

The words? "I love you"
I've lost someone that I love deeply. As life goes on and I deal with the small, bitchy people that constantly confront me, it seems I never make enough time for those that really count. Stop today and embrace someone that you care about. Tell them how you feel. Say the words. A piece of my heart is forever gone, ripped out and the wound will never heal. Years ago, promised God that I'd live life as a white hat. Only asked that I not die afraid. When death shows up again I will still be pissed. Why do good people die? Life is not a fair square deal. Death is an even bigger sonuvabitch...

Sunday, July 13, 2003

Windows Guides link is new. Has great tips and tweaks for things windows. For instance, have you ever tried to get rid of the annoying update thangy in Window Media Player? You can learn how to do that here. Trying to brush up on my 'Netmeeting' skills and this site has great info about this sometimes hard to use tool. This page started as Regedit.com and has been around a long time. Sad that they now have popups, but the evil one is everywhere. And it beats having to pay for the privilege of visiting this informative, free site. Check it out, very easy to navigate.

Saturday, July 12, 2003

After a brief scare the blog has returned. I was working on it this morning trying to manipulate the archives and it just disappeared. The archives are working. I have on the MowerBoy uniform and must go get in this hot, muggy weather and cut grass. If it doesn't happen soon, I'll need a bush-hog or a sickle.
Alas, de cable modem she still dead mon. Well, that's life. I need rest and relaxation. My morning would have consisted of torturing a power supply in my Antec tower by installing more hard drives and reinstalling windows. I won't do that now. No way I am going to use a machine that does not have ALL the proper windows updates. Anyone that has done the updates knows it takes days on a dial up modem.

Really not Vista-Media's fault, I just did not listen when they told me how to install the new modem. I absolutely will not call on a weekend and bother a technician. They are probably on call and being paid, but I am a believer in the Golden Rule.

Watching a special on A&E about God and later may nap for while. Then I turn into 'MoweringBoy'. "With the speed of a bullet he leaps across mole trails and fallen branches all the while avoiding the random possum that may run across the yard." MoweringBoy's uniform is not what you think; no tights, leotard or cape. Worn out smelly deck shoes, awful lookin' baggy shorts, any t-shirt with holes in it and a ball cap that smells like it's a relative of the deck shoes. There will be the required towel hangin' out my pocket. Guess the towel is a poor substitute for a cape.

MB says Peace out

Friday, July 11, 2003

Vista-Media called me back before 830am. They were working on it early! Picking up my new cable modem today. This is excellent service!
Those techs need to talk some more. The cable modem is out again. I've just sent an email to the cable company requesting that they swap out the modem. I will have to drive to Booneville and pick up the device. This is real annoying. They are nice enough - so far. This is the second time I will make such a trip. I just hope they respond. Satellite now has local channels and DSL is way cheap. I've just always liked the dependability of the cable modem and hope they don't disappoint me.

This weekend has been scheduled for maintenance on my big windows machine. I am going to archive a lot of data, install 90 gigs of SCSI 10,000 spin hard drive and also install a server (another dual processor machine) on this network. If I can manage it, there will be one more machine added that will use BSD as an operating system. Of course I have to mow the yard and clean out the garage, etc. There is also a second job that needs several hours of work this weekend. Okay, okay. I am not whining. Glad to have the machines, the kewl lawn and the second job. Posting here may be difficult, especially if the cable modem is down all weekend. After all the network improvements are in place, there will be more time to post/publish here and mow my yard!

Being without high speed connectivity has become stressful - pseudogeek out

Thursday, July 10, 2003

The first tech said to the second tech,"Man, dude is pitiful. Wants his tv to work as long as screensavers or call for help or techlive is on."

Second tech said, "So, what's the problem?"

"His cable modem is snafu-ing"

"Ohhhh!"

"The sobbing and incoherent language are hard to decipher," remarked the first tech.

"Wow, get the dude surfing! His whine factor has lapsed into warp. He's speaking something that is a cross between l33t and outright man crying," answered the second tech.


Okay, I am all better now. Had a 'badjones' for a while, but it's working now. I'll give vista-media credit, they rarely fail. So I am trying to catch up on email, forums, and my natural desire to seek out new freeware, going where only geeks boldy go. I really do not like negative connectivity. Needless to say I have my external modem out and will hook it back up as a back up.

No new links now, but they are in the very near future of posting.

Please remember to give Steve Jobs the finger if you see him, smear the RIAA, and hate the French.

Pseudogeek out n connected

Tuesday, July 08, 2003

The bottom link (over there to the right) is a really kewl protection program called win patrol. It guards against unwanted cookies, changes in your web browser, stuff running in the background, etc. This is a very powerful piece of software so be careful and read about it. Don't blame me if you mess up your personal confuser. This program works fine on mine and is in harmony with all other applications running on this machine. It is great protection and I will probably try the shareware version. Shoot for $13.00 it's a buy!

Hope everyone likes the new format. All you have to do to go to a link now is put your cursor on it and click. Got to be easier than copy and paste! I am still working on the archives. I appreciate everyone's patience (not having a lot myself). Please remember to NOT use AOL, do anything to antagonize the RIAA, suffer not the lowly French and accept the fact that Mitch Glazier and Steve Jobs are in league with Satan.

Pseudogeek, peace out!
Trying new look
There are changes coming....
I'd just like to mention to the wormy little european dude that hacked here Saturday that you have been reported. There's quite a trail so you probably will be found. Why do cretins do this? I just don't understand. Probably French and we all know what a bunch of cowards live there. We should have cleaned up Europe and the rest of the middle east when we finished with Saddam.

Monday, July 07, 2003

Sleep is a problem. I remember being awake for hours at a time during the night when just a small, small child. Sleeping all night is out of the question. When I first returned from Vietnam the dreams were horrible. They still show up on occasion. Sometimes I can almost smell things. Not a lot of fun. Thank God these nightmares are more infrequent now. I also dream about flying. Just me, no planes. Weird. I suffer from acrophobia. A fear of heights has something to do with the strange, frightening dreams of soaring. I can sometimes ID these dreams as dreams and they go away peacefully. Any suggestions?

Monday and I've been awake for several hours. Read a book, watched tv and kept my sore foot propped up. Think I'll go back n see if there's another hour or so of rest before being off to work. Can 'they' fire you because your foot mysteriously started hurting? No doubt I need sleep.

Sunday, July 06, 2003

Growing older beats the alternative. Aging has some amazing suprises. Some are well documented; eyesight begins to fail, hearing starts to go, hair thins, harder to lose weight, etc. Some are not so apparent. The way your can harmlessly sit and have your back start hurting is aggravating. And what's with all this new stuff? I never had a problem with my feet short of stepping on something or in something. Now I've got a pain in the bottom of my right foot that discourages mobility. Where did it come from? This being tired stuff is for the birds too. Why is it some foods are just not edible now? Spent most of my life loving a good tuna salad sandwich and now I cannot eat the stuff. Always loved parched peanuts and they've declared war on my digestive tract. I should be thankful I've aged and am a blessed man. God willing, I still have some things to do.

http://www.questia.com/Index.jsp?CRID=aging&OFFID=se1

There are thousands of sites on aging. Google search and take your pick. I found the above site interesting because it has online books and seems easy to navigate.

Well, this has been exhausting. My foot hurts, my back is in spasms, I am not seeing this screen clearly, and the tv volume needs to be turned up. Time to hop to the kitchen, eat some bland food, and watch it put pounds on me while I drift away to la-la nap land. Seems like there was something else I wuz gonna do?!?

Saturday, July 05, 2003

Yesterday was a pretty awesome day. I did not leave the house. I did not mow the yard, but that starts today along with cleaning out from under the magnolia tree. Then I must try and repair a dryer. After that I'll spend 6-8 hours working on a home theater installation for a client.

We've had a slow start concerning the heat this summer, but today it is hot! Yet, I know it is just another day in paradise. I hate the heat but love the south. There is no place like it. It really helps to be from here to live here, but tourists are welcome. Just enjoy your stay then go home. You move here and you'll spend the rest of your life wondering how n why you decided to set up housekeeping in such a humid, muggy place! Then you'll start whining. There's enough whining around here and I certainly don't want anyone infringing upon my whine rights. So come visit! Make sure it's during the months of July or August. Also, we are so far south it rarely snows here. But it does get cold in the winter. We also have huge snakes, mosquitoes the size of crows, black widow spiders abound and the brown recluse spiders are just naturally ill and wanting to kill something. And all critters stay away from the fireants; they'll hurt ya as they try to kill ya! Those cute raccoons you see on tv are mean as the devil and will bite the ever lovin' doo outta you. If you think a possum is cute and just plays "possum" ask the next coondog you see. They are nasty vile animals that play possum long enough to lure a coondog in and then they open a can of possum whupass on the poor hounds. BTW, a coon can whip a possum on any given day. If you think life has not slowed down here, make an appointment - with anyone about anything. They'll be late. Our right as southerners. About the only thing on time down here is the temperature change from winter to summer and it was late this year.

We do have a nice Elvis museum and display. He was born in Tupelo. There's a huge Automotive Museum downtown. We have many lakes, the Natchez Trace, some pretty good restaurants, a coliseum with an arena football team (the Tupelo FireAnts - God, I love that name!). They also play hockey or some yankee sport there during the winter. Tupelo has a Symphony Orchestra and many country and rock bands haunt the clubs in this area. The clubs range from calm, laid back safe-harbors to downright juke joints. Folks here are nice and we speak to each other, even stop to chat sometimes. Brice's Crossroads has an excellent Civil War display, museum and gift shop. The Natchez Trace has many interesting sites, some concerning Native Americans. So there's a lot to see and do here. Remember the heat thangy if you notice that real estate is affordable.

Pseudogeek is leaving the building singing 'hi ho, hi ho, mow lawn then work I go'

Friday, July 04, 2003

Fourth of July is a traditional Parrothead Party. Last night I talked to Parrothead Mike and we are amazed that we are getting so old we are not planning the huge festivity with rum n cooked animals on the grill(listen to "Gypsies in the Palace" by Buffett}. Being ageless friends we both agreed that we'd probably talk before this day is done and shared old experiences and renewed our friendship.

I am having steak for breakfast. Dr John, if you are reading this don't get spastic. I will also mow an acre of lawn today. So chill. And put down those Malboros. I may even eat ice cream before the day is done. So, a great whoop-te-doo is not planned. Last few times I've tried to whoop-te-doo the party has not materialized. It's gonna be nice to spend some quality time with my machines and tv.

The Mississippi Highway patrol has spammed the tv channels with ads about not drinking and driving this weekend. Please heed these warnings. Doesn't matter if you are in New York, Alabama, Florida or Mexico - abide! Stay safe and relax. Time off is precious for everyone. Respect your fellow man/woman/person and drink responsibly. WORD!

My father passed away several years ago. His birthday was the 4th of July. I will reflect on his life and association with me all day. There may not be a lotta people here and I may spend the day alone or with the lawn mower, but positive thoughts shall rule throughout the day. Yep, nice day to be off and celebrate our great nation! Other things too...

Wednesday, July 02, 2003

Digital cameras are awesome. Investing in one of these now may be a good idea. You can use it on vacation, shoot wonderful summer landscapes, or blackmail your friends that imbibe too much on the 4th and Labor Day. All this will lead to better pictures during the Christmas holidays due to familiarity.

Buying the cheapest one will probably lead to frustration and a complete waste of money. Don't make the mistake of not having the LCD readout on the back of the camera!. Megapixels?

http://www.digicaminfo.com/resolution.htm

This site has a concise, easy to read explanation of the mysterious megapixel. At first I decided on a unit with extremely high megapixels. After some research it became obvious that 2 to 3 megapixels would suffice. I made the purchase to capture precious family moments, post pictures on the web, re-learn lost skills, inventory personal belongings, and so forth. One does not need the extreme high end camera to do these things. If you have the wherewithal or are downright insecure and have to make impractical purchases because you think it impresses others buy the high end Sonys, Nikons, Canons and anything with a German-like name.

Stan and Charlotte recently purchased a Sony P-50 series camera and brought back super photos of their trip out west. Buffalo fighting in the road, Old Faithful erupting; it was a hoot to sit down and listen to the stories that evolved from the trip while viewing different pictures.


I opted for a Canon S-200. It's extremely small, does short movies WITH audio, has had consistenly good reviews and has an all metal case. Yes, all metal. It's been a joy to use and it absolutely amazes me when I see some of the shots that have been produced with a camera you can hide in the palm of your hand.


After you take those Pulitzer Prize winning shots the results can be edited to the max. Software abounds that can manipulate photos. Okay, Adobe Photoshop is awesome. It also has an awesome price tag. Before I go any further let me make a simple and important statement. Adobe Photoshop is hard to use. Again. Adobe Photoshop is hard to use. You geniuses out there that want to flame me and tell me how easy it is, please go find some rare chickens or almost extinct mosquitoes to 'save'. There is an alternative.

http://www.ab.wakwak.com/~knight/download.htm

The name of the program is Pixia. It is of Japanese origin and the patches for English need to be installed. The online tutorial will help get you started and it's free! I discovered this program on TechTV's Call for Help when Leo interviewed a dude that does cybercamps. They use this software in their summer programs to help young people get started using digital cameras.

Now for the deep dark purpose of getting a digital cam - the real truth. When those frogs and catfish show up on my veranda wanting out of the rain again, ZAP! Then I'll have my proof...