Had this real neat weekend trip planned. Going to my old stomping grounds, visit with friends, clean off Dad's grave and maybe go fishing. Didn't happen. Had to work. Federal government job that just had to be done by tomorrow (tomorrow is Sunday and those lazy horses asses would croak if they had to work on Sunday). As I left it amazed me that 3 huge A/C units were just whirring away and nobody has even moved into the building. Just thought everyone would like to know that our tax dollars are at work. This trip had been planned since Tuesday. OK, Ima kickin' over the soapbox.

If you are from the south there is a good chance that you've eaten catfish. If you are not from the south and have eaten catfish, there's a good chance that fish was farmed in Mississippi.

http://www.catfish.com

This is America's Catch site. They are located in Itta Bena, Mississippi. Really good recipes and interesting stuff about old Mr. Whiskers. I am a seafood guy, but I will eat my share of catfish fillets. Very healthy and real tasty.

If you wanna know how to do emeril's key lime cheesecake, google for emeril's key lime cheesecake. A google search just produced 182 hits that you can click on and find such recipes. This is a great search engine and VERY easy to use. I needed information on a particular printer today and went to the manufacturer's site and it was cloudy. I stopped, went to http://www.google.com and found a world of info about my particular problem by just typing in my problem. But, don't use question marks. They have a paid service that will answer questions and it's supposed to be great. I just don't like paying for information that exists on the web for free. Has something to do with low funds, etc. So, use this great tool!

http://www.google.com

Please, use this site. They pay me no money and I support them because of the excellent results obtained down through the years. BTW, I am not paid by any site; just tips that have accumulated from using the internet for a while.

After work tomorrow, I am planting day lilies n yes i am secure enough in my manhood to voice such a thangy. Any suggestions will be welcome!

Having a great email round with Chris the Tech from Corinth! I said Booneville the last time I mentioned him and need to correct that error. He's a fellow music junkie and has found a new player that I'll look into soon. Back at work today and actually enjoyed the calls today. Got to see some old friends n that's always great. I must get jiggy with the day lilies, but that is a weekend project now.

Arkansas Mike n Michael r setting up a LAN party. They are Counterstrike gamers and we found a neat site that has a grip on such stuff:

http://www.tweak3d.net

This site is really kewl and informative. Seems to be driven by a bunch of young ppl that know their stuff! It's been around for a while and the explanation about how to set up a LAN party is about as good as it gets. Kudos to these people for sharing information of all sorts. You don't have to be a gamer to like this site, but it doesn't hurt. Tips and tweaks abound and they talk in simple terms. Great site, go visit!

Sorry about missing yesterday. My vision blurred, literally, spots before my eyes and I had pains down the side of my neck. The doctor thinks it's stress related and I have been advised to take time off. I thought he might have me committed when I started laughing and couldn't stop. Anyway, I just got word that I have to go for further tests next Wednesday and am guessing that they are precautionary. I made a prediction on here 5/19/2003 6:31:01 PM. Even though I have opted to stay home this is NOT what I had in mind. I was forewarned the change made in meds will make me dizzy if I get up too quickly and it does. Thank God this will go away. The ringing in my ears is more prevelant and I hope this subsides as well. Most likely all of this is not serious or I would have been sent to hospital yesterday. My doctors and nurses seem genuinely concerned about my welfare and state of mind. I spent several hours with them yesterday and have faith in their abilities. So, this is a minor setback and expected at my age. I must exercise more and lose weight.

Somehow the daylilies have to be finished today. Somehow I have to get this yard mowed again. Somehow I've got to quit obsessing about mowing the yard. Besides, I might hit one of those creatures that are prowling in the savanna between the front door and the truck (it may be sleeping in the back corner of my garage). I know at least one of 'em has spots, at least it did yesterday...

Monday morning and I do not have to attend work! I think all holidays should be Mondays. Chances are I will go to work today. If I stay at home on holidays I seem to always end up there.

I am rereading all the Douglas Adams Hitch-hiker books. Have all 5 of the trilogy (LOL) in one volume; a gift from Kristi n Jay. These books are light, fun and really geeky. Windows Server 2000 Secrets is my other current read. One of the most interesting books I've read lately is The Art of Deception by Kevin Mitnick. This is fascinating stuff about social engineering and hacking. It's also a bit frightening. Lisa gave me this book after watching Kevin on TechTV. He is a geek's geek and spent time in jail for hacking. I think the 'big brothers' were irritated they couldn't keep Kevin out of their gear and incarcerated him out of frustration. Justice is a weird concept.

http://www.freekevin.com

This will redirect you to information about one of cyberworld's most famous hackers.

After the brief interlude involving rain yesterday I hope to regain my current run at organization. I think there is some foul, evil animal residing in the back corner of my garage. This is an area that needs cleaning and is an ideal spawning ground for such critters. I just hope its mate doesn't show up.

Sunday, Sunday! Let me tell you folks, the ribs are awesome. The potato salad is spud nirvana. The baked beans are edible (i made them). Jim brought a pork loin roast and some of Emeril's seasoned bacon and they were fork tender! The privacy fence is up! Thank you Stan!! You are the Man! Lisa, you are too sweet (she helped me all day). And the Laundry Witch showed up after working all day and got our barnyard material together!! Such a nice easy evening and no one left with too much to drink. There were buffett tunes forever and some new stuff too. I must fetch some Eric Johnson music. Holidays are nice.

Mike from Arkansas is having a problem with Windows XP running 'poorly' on his computer. Yesterday Jim and I discussed a new found problem with duplicate fixes on the windows update site. They are having problems with machines that have downloaded service pack 1 - SP1. Of course, Microsmooze is clouding the issue, but it will become apparent when, once again, some individual finds a solution to fix this annoying problem. This problem is not affecting all machines, yet seems to be pretty much a popular topic on the boards and forums.

http://www.pcbuyersguide.com/software/system/WinXP-MoreTips.html

A lot of info here about XP. Still a Windows 2000 fan, but have XP on my laptop. I haven't noticed any change in speed. This problem will pull a lot of results on a google search. There is always black viper's site that will list how to turn off services running in the background that are not necessary or security issues. I will not list the address because this is dangerous stuff and I don't want anyone flaming me again because they entered a realm where only the true geeks need to dwell. We've talked about the black viper site before and I think it is one of the best on the web! He's made several appearances on TechTV and really knows his stuff. Turning off services /processes can be very dangerous stuff so stay away from it unless you are adept.

Any tips or comments about this issue or others are welcome. The email addy is posted above! Everyone please stay safe, responsible and happy during our great holiday.

Today is Saturday and Memorial Day weekend. Let us not forget those that have given their lives for our country. Let us not forget those that have served our country; the healthy, the wounded, and the scarred. Let us not forget those that are serving our country. God knows I love each and every one of them. Thank you Armed Forces for permitting me to live in the land of the free!

Hmmm, been up since 5:30am, washed two loads of clothes, the dishes, finished repairing one PC, working on another. To do list: go to grocer, go to shop for a few minutes, clean grills, put ribs n shoulder on, make potato salad, do baked beans, make salad, ice down drinks, move lawn furniture, mow yard, put up 32 feet of fence in 16 foot sections, go to hardware store, clean house, clean garage, hook up new receiver to outside speakers, move tv and rf sender outside, install intel uber switch, set up LAN party, install Unreal, make nuclear meltdown garlic bread, water plants being careful not to disturb the bird family living in one of my ferns, set up bar outside, make music playlist , get bratwurst, burger, n dogs ready, try not to have stroke, sit down, relax, act like everything is casual and try not to think about why I've had to do a week's worth of work in one day. Anyone want to help? You can bet ur sweet ass the food will be awesome!! I will have help cooking, LOL.

Useful links for this weekend:

http://www.all-about-hangovers.com

http://www.topsecretrecipes.com

http://www.rock103.com

Ok, the first one is self explanatory. Don't go there thinking they have a cure. They don't. The topsecretrecipes site was sent in by ubertech Jim. It is way kewl to see how different folks in the food biz get their respective flavors. Rock103 is outta Memphis, TN (not one of my favorite towns, but I love Horn Lake, Walls, Olive Branch, Covington, Brighton, etc.). This is a really kewl classic rock station that broadcasts over the web. Their site is awesome. Tim Spencer, one of the djs n program directors, developed it years ago and it has some way funny stuff on it. Beware! Not for the timid, faint of heart or children. They are risque.

Going now, gonna get jiggy n try to be productive. Best to stick to a great parrothead philosophy on a weekend of celebration - don't push any fool buttons....

When in Tupelo you must visit the West End Market and Deli. It's on Main St. (Hwy 6) at the western county line. This is a clean, well lighted place. Yessiree you can get gasoline, motor oil, and the usual convenience store items. But, you must sit down at one of the red white n blue tables and partake of the best hamburger for miles around. We ain't a talkin' iceberg lettuce and a soy patty here. They make burgers fresh everyday and use leaf lettuce + red ripe tomatoes. Plate lunches are great and for a fiver and change it's entree, 3 vegetables, choice of roll or cornbread, and a drink. They don't portion out they dole out. Nice to sit down and know you'll be full. New Orleans style sub sandwiches and a variety of desserts are available. There's a plethora of softdrinks and juices. Even if you don't drink beer, check out the beer cave. It's chillin'!

Enjoy reading? There is an online site that has thousands of titles that you can download. It's called Project Gutenberg.

http://promo.net/pg/

This is the official site. The fellow that conceived and initiated this wonderful idea, Michael Hart, was a guest on The Screensavers which aired on TechTV last night. Amiable dude that is all for people reading. They even have a bookmobile that goes all over the country to schools, libraries, etc. This unique vehicle has a printing press and satellite dish in order to print book copies on the spot. Most of the titles are public domain so you won't find the last Danielle Steele (sp?) novel posted. There are literally thousands of selections and you can download them to pcs, laptops and PDAs. I have part of the Bible on my Palm V. It's fun to search through the titles. Many sites mirror this official web site and some of these have much easier navigation. Just Google search for Project Gutenberg; my last one produced 290.000 hits.

Not googling? Did you even get a window in that cave?

http://www.google.com

We've talked about windows washer and ad-aware and their ability to rid you of adware and spyware. Well, get ready boys and girls. There's a new kid on the block and it's just downright awesome. Spybot Search & Destroy is powerful, friendly and thorough! This is freeware but the owner will accept donations. He asks that you pray for him and wish him well!!!!!! Honest n cross my heart, it's in the EULA. Dude is from Germany and the name is Paul Kolla; might be a good idea to remember this name, he's probably not through writing software. Oh yeh, the URL is:

http://security.kolla.de

DOWNLOADER BEWARE! If you use this program and find some applications won't run, do not whine! You have been warned that this is a powerful tool and it has the ability to delete registry keys, etc. Stay in the 'easy mode' when doing your searching and destroying. I really like this program. It's right up there with Mailwasher, Popup Killer and Google. I've noticed it wreaking havoc on Download Accelerator Plus, but if they are up to their old tricks again, then I don't care if spybot rips it to pieces. After all, this is about the art of tearing it all apart!

I hate spyware and adware as much as I hate viruses and the idiots that write them. Satan is saving seats by the fire for the creeps that write such stuff and other foolishness like popups and spam. Thank you Paul Kolla for making the cyberworld a better place to visit. My hat is off to ya! You have my best wishes and prayers.

You little snot nosed weasels writing all this spyware/popup/spam/virus garbage can kiss my Mississippi fish belly white butt!!! Wait I take that back, they probably want to...Sick i tell ya, downright sick

If you are interested in "personal confusers" you will eventually hack in some shape, form or fashion. Not necessarily in a malicious way, but to resolve some issue that cannot be handled by mainstream cures. Mike from Kentucky (one of those radical, die hard, big blue fans) is having trouble retrieving a password in Windows 2k. Well, there are ways.

http://www.codeproject.com/dll/pwdspy.asp?print=true

http://www.atstake.com/research/lc/

K, I know this last one works and it is not freeware, but can be downloaded and used for 15 day trial period. This is actually the old LOpht crew outta the Boston area in a "white hat" reincarnation. Super sharp ppl. This neat program actually attacks in a kewl way (passwords are stored as hashmarks or slashes). A simple password will be cracked in a short period of time. More complex passwords WILL take longer. Be patient. Please don't take these tools and do malicious things. If they are valuable to you then pay the fee. Hope this helps, Wildcat Mike. I spent two days after installing Linux Red Hat 8.0 mentally squeezing my weird, geek mind trying to remember the root password. Sitting at my Windows 2k machine listening to Frank Zappa the light bulb turned on! Before you ask - no it's not dynamo hum or yellow snow.

A prediction; if I don't get time off, finish some stuff, and get badly needed rest, I will stroke out!!! Day lilies to plant (thanks Chester), fences to build, concrete to pour, speakers to install, and the list goes on n on. 'Nuff said - no one is interested in a whine fest.

Received an interesting fix to the grokster problem. It's called groksterlite!! Knew that kazaalite existed, picked up that information from TechTV's Kevin Rose last week, but this is new to me. Haven't tried it yet, so beware. One very informative site, http://www.spywareinfo.com, discourages the use of such programs. Their reasoning is that it sends a message to the guilty site saying that people like the site so much they'll go to these extremes to get rid of ads, spyware, yada yada. Well, liking peer to peer, I will probably try it. I disagree with spywareinfo; to me, it's sorta' giving these sites the finger for their cheesy efforts.
The url is:

http://cleanclients.netfirms.com/

This site will redirect you to the appropriate version of your peer to peer file sharing software. Groksterlite will be down for a few days due to moving from one host to another, but they have assured they will be back up asap. Thanks Molly from Florida for the tip!!!!

The April 2, 2003, airing of The Screensavers on TechTV devotes a whole segment on how to remove Bonzi Buddy. You can go to their site and look up the show notes and find a post of 'how to' rid your PC of this grape ape that sends all your info to various vendors waiting to spam n pornspam you. People that write this junk make me want dueling legalized.

Remember, download at your own risk. If you don't know what you're doing then seek competent help - beware of the geek that knows everything. There are legality issues about file sharing and I have my own opinions. There is much info on this subject, just google search and then read before making a decision. Ahhhhhh, back in the day of FTP n IRC......

I am always interested in what cookies are dropped on my computer when visiting web sites. This annoying, necessary part of web browsing seems to be a constant battle. I use ad-aware to remove spy-ware, ad-ware. Don't let all the cyber-babble fool you, both are annoying and I just don't like the fact that someone is watching my browsing habits or whatever. Too much like 'big brother'. Windows washer is not freeware, but does a good job of cleaning up a machine after it's partook of the web. Here is a really awesome site for freeware:

http://www.karenware.com

Karen has many tools that are way kewl, but cookie viewer, snooper and windows watcher are ++. This is a freeware site, but she won't refuse donations. Check it out.

One of the worst sites to impact your computer with this vile stuff is Grokster. They do a dance in the EULA creepily hiding their guilt. They use Cydoor, Gain, Gator, etc. which were written in hell probably by satan or Steve Jobs. After many hours of searching n probing, I think this load of barnyard material may be worse than virus infections. Bonzi Buddy n Comet Cursor are like evil children compared to this malarky. Do a search on your computer for Cydoor, Gator or Gain. If they don't show up in the search, go to regedit and do a find. This stuff is horrible. I solicit any 'fixes' that will help folks shed these unrequested spy-ware/ad-ware applications. Grokster says they have to use it to stay online, but to place it on your computer in stealth mode is just not right. They even give you boxes to uncheck if you don't want it and it still shows up on your PC. Several folks are working on this and I will keep you posted. If you are using a peer to peer file sharing program to download music, etc. it's almost a sure bet you've got it and it's broadcasting at the speed o light everything it can find out about you. If you have deleted them from your computer, go look again. They are like AOL; they keep showing up even though you have deleted them. If anyone has tips about this puh-leeze let me know!

It's a rainy Saturday morning. I've left the cell phone in the truck on purpose and for a few minutes no one can pull at me. People can be so inconsiderate. Last night was VERY important. I did see my daughter graduate and her friends did come over for burgers n all. Everyone left in a good mood and we had no major glitches. We turned in somewhere around 2:00am and arose at 7:00am. Kristi and Jay are going to visit with my ex-inlaws and then return to Baton Rouge. It's my bet that Mimi will spend part of the day in the super hammock we gave her for graduation.

I wanted more time with my family, but made the best of few hours alloted. Also wish Mom could have made it, but don't blame her for not driving in this awful weather. We installed the fence posts for the patio after Stan came by and corrected the error of my design. Stan can do most anything and is a superior craftsman when it comes to anything wood. In spite of the rain both my sons in law helped me get 'em in the ground. Charlie helped me pick up the material while Kristi n Jay shopped for party food. I finally spent some time alone with Kristi while finishing last minute shopping while Jay put together the new charcoal grill, which is awesome. Serious hustle and joint effort helped us pull off a nice evening for Mimi and her friends. She was certainly entitled (her Benediction last night was strong and well spoken, I swelled with pride). One negative scene was Jan's mother fell after the ceremony, but Dr. Jay seems to think she's ok. We'll know more when he sees her again this morning. She's a super nice lady.

K, all this to explain why I've not answered the phone. God has blessed me with super daughters and they have chosen well as far as their life-partners. They love me and I love them. So, don't call or confront me about not answering the phone for a 16-18 hour time span. Life is too short to take a lotta' barnyard material.

Well, now that I've been pushy on the cyberside, I guess I'll retrieve my cell phone from the truck....

Graduation is over. Mimi did the Benediction, being President of the Honor Society, and looked like a million dollars. The family assembled and attended enmass. Maddie was a perfect angel and everyone is here geeking out!!! A good time is being had by all!!

Concerning the slowdown fix in Office 97 from yesterday Jim has sent the url that resolves a lot of problems in this office suite.

http://office.microsoft.com/assistance/9798/sr1fact.aspx

It seems to be an end all fix all patch. Be sure and turn off all the journal stuff in Outlook. K, I know you probably use outlook express, but if you installed outlook it is saving everything you do in the journal and that is default. Just open up tools (in outlook) click the journal tab and uncheck Access, Excel, Word, etc. Thanks Jim!

Today is graduation and I am snowed under with things to do. Everything has been pushed to the last minute and I will never be able to accomplish all tasks. Time for a priority check. I do know that I will be very proud when my daughter receives her degrees.

Matrix Reloaded? Good? Bad? Well, contrary to what Gene Shallit said, if you are even pseudo geeky GO SEE THIS MOVIE. If for no other reason the FX's are awesome. We went and everyone was nailed. Don't be late. This thing is one continuous action packed romp in cyberworld. The camera work, acting etc. are really good. Lotta closeup shots and fight scenes are uh, uh, just get thee to a theater!

My daughter and son-in-law from Baton Rouge were over last night . Really great seeing them. I did post yesterday but it was from work and the web ramp kicked the network offline just as I published. So it didn't make the trip. Taking a few minutes of my "vacation" time to regroup before I attend work. Sometimes I wonder if reincarnation is real and I was Hitler in a past life. This week is really important and I've had plans for months to enjoy time with my family. Yet, circumstances deem my immediate attention. Really doesn't matter and I am whining - my sense of duty pushes me to act responsibly. Sad to know that no one will acknowledge or appreciate such effort. Folks just don't seem positive anymore. In the words of those sage philosophers King Crimson (from the song 'thela hun ginjeet'), "The world is a dangerous place, a dangerous place."

Anyone that knows why Office 97's Excel program starts taking forever to shut down, or has a "fix" for this problem I'd sure appreciate any info. Thought it was licked yesterday, but the ugly head has risen again. This is on a machine running 98SE OS.

Daddy DAN! If you ever read this I am expecting an email (that's the address to the left right under the title). Daddy Dan is my brother that taught my daughters to call me "Handsome Daddy" when they were both very young! When I hear that now I know there is something 'on the way'. May be blog nepotism but this dude is a musician extraodinaire and one heckuva trivia player. Old movies? He's by far the best ever! So put yo hands on the keyboard n email me!

The CMOS checksum was cured with a new battery. They do fail, though rarely. I have two gorgeous new parrothead pillows, some more parrots (not live), a really kewl picture frame and more neat stuff. Thanks Lisa, u r sweet! Hope Hootchie enjoys the new CMOS battery! (evil grin)

Listening to an old favorite that has been revived. 'Big Yellow Taxi' was a great tune when done by Joni Mitchell (she also wrote it) many years ago. Counting Crows and Vanessa Carlton do a really slick production of this tune. I get chills listening to it. Really pushes my system and kicks the subwoofer in a most righteous way. I'd guess they are not great Republicans, but awesome tune besides all that. Really hate the Dixie Chicks did their number on the "W" because the 'Landslide' cover is awesome. Haven't forgiven em yet. C'mon all you democrats!! Tell me I should! Lord, what have I done? Lapsed into talking music and politics in the same paragraph. Might be time for another dose o' therapy!!! May ask em about all those frogs n catfish that have been showing up on the veranda during bad weather too....

Couldn't sleep during the night and am faced with a CMOS checksum error that won't go away. Defaults in BIOS set, CMOS reset (even removed the battery for a while) and it still nags about the problem. Haven't replaced the battery, that's my next step. La modem was fubar-ed during a recent storm. May have reached out and touched the motherboard. Oh well, these 2:30am awakenings are generated by needs other than a hewlitt packard mobo.

Memorial Day is not too far off. I am planning a very casual parrothead phlocking and LAN party. If my current course holds true I'll end up having to do something weird that will pull me away, but so help me God, there will be fun at the Saltillo Beach House with or without my presence. My youngest daughter graduates this Friday and plans had been made to spend time with my family this week. Family is important to me. Nothing pleases me more than to be with my two wonderful daughters. We've outside duties that have arisen and will make the best of the little time granted. Every person has to put aside selfish pursuits and do that which is right on occasion.

If you are a "Bubba" fan and love parrots, palms n drinks with tiny umbrellas in 'em, here is a site that will connect you with many things parrothead

http://www.islanderz.com/links/