Last Minute Christmas Gift Idea …

Still trying to figure out what to get that special someone on your list?  Dread going to the malls tonight?  Why not give the gift of a laptop?  Make a donation to One Laptop Per Child in your special someone’s name and give the gift of a laptop to a child in a most likely worse situation that yours.  Also checkout the proposed next generation (XO-2) of the laptop.  That’s pretty cool!

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For those still thinking about that trick field goal play the Redskins tried on Monday Night Football, here’s some more information about it.  Here’s the wiki on the Swinging Gate play.

What’s Better: A Glimmer of Hope or No Hope?

Actually A New Hope was pretty good.    What I’m really talking about is the tease we shall call the Redskins.  Excluding the recent Monday Night Football game the Skins have been teasing us with spectacular play.  There was a glimmer of hope.  A twinkle in the eye of all of us Redskin fans; that someday soon they will start playing well and actually win with authority.  Instead what do they do?  Like the Grinch they steal that hope away and leave us in despair by utterly getting destroyed by the Giants.  Even though that gadget field goal play didn’t work I still like it.  Zorn has got a sack of marbles and he’s sticking it to Snyder.  At least they scored two touchdowns for our Papa John’s Pizza deal. 

• How does a 2% mortgage lending rate sound to you?  Yeeeesssss, for those who are near foreclosure here’s a 2% interest rate for you.  Help the unfortunate.  Those who plan and settle for less well you’re just suckers and this is your punishment for not being a risk taker.  Take your 6% 30-year fixed rate and keep paying us on time every month like you have been.  S-U-C-K-E-R-S!!!  For you people who bought bigger than you should have with an adjustable rate which means you already started to paying a low loan to begin with we’ll be generous and give you this 2% fix rate because you might be able to pay this one off.
• Now we know why there’s always roadkill off the side of the road.  The roads are covered with sugar beets!!!!
• And people wonder why all the tech jobs are moving to India.  Ah, there’s always Starbucks and Walmart for people.
• *SMACK*  Hearing stuff like this just makes me sick.  Special interest this.  Special interest that.  It’s like they’re all a bunch of used-car salesmen except I think used-car salesmen should find offensive to being compared to politicians!
• Didn’t know you could call a computer racist but it sure looks that way.  Okay, it has more to do with the lighting than racism.
• I just thought this was funny.  M$ you can’t sell Word until you fix it so it doesn’t use copyrighted code BUT you still have support it. 
• They announced the location and dates for BOTCON 2010!!!!  It’s at Disney World!!!!

22″ …

That’s how much snow our neighbor said we had gotten.  After shoveling that mound of snow at the end of the driveway Plow King came back and dumped more snow there.  But eventually a frontloader came by and moved all that snow off to the side.  After a few hours I finished off shoveling the driveway and our neighbors, the side of the house, the downspouts, and the deck.  I’m tired …

Eh yeah, what’s wrong with this picture …

Our second snow fall of this winter season and they’re calling for a blizzard!  I never knew Sonic would be able to dump that much soft serve and toppings onto the East coast. 

This picture was taken at 7:40am looking out of our kitchen onto our driveway.  What’s wrong with it?  That’s right.  When Plow King came last night they decided to bury our driveway in!!!!  From what I can tell that’s about three to four feet of snow right in front of the driveway that needs to be cleared.  I probably should move it since the weather forecasters are calling for around 16″ of snow today. 

The snow is nice and I guess it’s good it’s happening on a Saturday so no worries about getting to work.  Unfortunately, Chewy is in Boston with her parents (that’s not the unfortunate part silly people) and she’s missing the snow AGAIN!  In the five years that we’ve been married I think she’s missed every snow storm except for one, well maybe two max.

H1N1 SP1 …

Not to fuel any fears but more of an FYI – looks like some doses of the H1N1 vaccine for kids are being recalled due to them losing some of their effectiveness during transportation. 

I found out that I may have access to the H1N1 vaccine.  Still trying to figure out if I should get it or not.  My in-laws are for it.  My parents are not.  I’m leaning on the not so far.  It’s sorta like how when Microsoft comes out with a new operating system.  You can be one of the “cool” kids and stand inline for it on it’s release date and then suffer through all the bugs and issues.  Or you can be one that wait’s til Service Pack 1 (SP1) comes out and suffer through a tad less of the bugs and issues.   And yes, you can avoid it all by just using Linux.  You know Leopard is based upon BSD.

• Same-sex marriage bill approved in D.C. – I wonder when the two angels will be visiting the city.  Maybe I should find a new job that’s in a suburb.  Even the Catholic Church see’s how this is trouble.  I just find it funny that the politicians are saying it’s morally wrong for the Catholic Church to do that it’s not right.  It’s funny how they talk about “what’s right.”  I’m guessing since that Catholic Church does so much for the city with their own money for the city to have the same services they’re gonna have to put out more cash.  Cash they don’t have to spend, even though they expect a decent amount of money to come in from same-sex marriages.  Personally I can see how people think that Christians should just turn the other cheek even when it’s morally against what they believe.  Should Christians continue to surround themselves with the immoral and corrupt?  Same say yes.  Some say no.  And then sometimes God just sends two angels down to judge the city.
• Yet another promise bites the dust.  It’s bound to happen since things are said to get elected.  We knew he wouldn’t be able to keep them all.  It’s just funny how the need of money for reelection outweighs the needs of the many.  Self verse others.

A.B.J.!  A.B.J.! …

In Skins nation people have problems with Jason Campbell.  Yet in Oakland they suffer from A.B.J. – Anyone But JaMarcus.  For the number one overall pick in the 2007 people are saying JaMarcus Russell is worse than Ryan Leaf and Leaf was bad.  VERY BAD.  Yet, another reason to not pay rookies huge amounts of money before having proved nothing. 

As for Campbell it’s good to see him playing better.  It’s just funny how after a few productive games people are so high on the team, Campbell and Zorn.  If they kept everyone will they actually play this well next year?  Probably not.  If you keep Campbell will be play better with a new head coach and new offensive scheme?  If you keep Zorn and let Campbell go will the next QB be any better as well as the play calling?  If you blow it all up we know they’ll stink for at least a year or more.  Unfortunately, I think the only way for the team to actually win is for them to keep Zorn and Campbell.  The team needs some consistency and with the young gun receivers there seems to be some hope.  I just don’t think that’s gonna happen.

Less Than Two Weeks …

Obviously, there’s less than two weeks before Christmas.  Still trying to figure out what to get your favorite buddy, geek or husband?  Here are a few suggestions in no particular order. 

• Tauntaun Sleeping Bag.  Who in their right mind wouldn’t want one of these?  
• Transformers “Snuggie”.  Not a fan of the Tauntaun (not sure why you wouldn’t be) here’s another thing to keep oneself warm.
• Lightsaber Chopsticks.  They’re Japanese style with the pointy ends for those who lack proper Jedi chopstick training.  The Yoda one is slightly shorter since you know, he’s small in stature.  (I’m not gonna tell him that)
• Garden Jawa.  While he’s watching out for any stray droids he’ll be watching your garden as well.  It’s not like they really have plants on Tatooine.
• Device Label Transformers 2GB Ravage USB Stick.  Sure it’s only 2GB but come on it transforms into Ravage!!!  Not only that, it comes with software where Ravage will run rampant on your screen.  How cool is that?
• Going Rogue: An American Life by Sarah Palin.  She’s as much a train wreck as the Gosslins!
• R2-D2 Peppermill.  It’s at least useful.
• Lego Head Lamp.  Useful when trying to fix your computer.
• Lightsaber Laser Pointer.  Not as cool as the Lightsaber chopsticks but nonetheless still cool.

Boy Are They Gonna Be Disappointed …

Interesting study about mixing-and-matching your faith with other beliefs.  I guess with such an ala carte lifestyle why not?  I just don’t get why for those who really study, understand and have faith in Christianity why they would need something else?  Wait, it’s probably because people don’t really study or understand or have faith.  Am I just cynical?

• Can’t see the Northern Lights?  Well just fire a ballistic missile into the sky and create your own!
• Montgomery County is #4 beating out #7 Washington, D.C. for area where motorist go at least 70% slower than the speed limit.  I wonder if those roads had speed cameras on them.   
• For some reason I really want to try some of this 15 year old cheddar cheese.  I like cheese.
• Super-secret Walmart Data Center found by Google.  For us tech geeks, this is pretty cool.  Be even cool if we could see the inside of the building.
• Is this not surprising – Fast-food meat standards are stricter than school cafeterias.  
• Good for you students of D.C.’s public schools! Of course I have to give props to Michelle Rhee since she kept the previous math program going along with supplementing new stuff to help the kids out.  Too bad it’s going to be all down hill next year when Fenty loses his reelection and the next mayor kicks Rhee out because she cares too much for the kids and not the adults.
• It’s sorta sad (or amazing depending on how you look at it) that I’m able to spot which boxes are from Hasbro and which are not.  Can you?
• I couldn’t lay off this one.  Jesse Jackson instead of asking for handouts and obligations like you always do why not push for education, education, education and hard work.  I don’t see many other ethnic groups grumbling about the government not doing enough to help their ethnic groups out.  Well not as much as he does.

T-I-double G-Er!!

That’s probably been used a bit lately with all the Tiger Woods stuff going on.  Nothing but drama for our nations celebrities or wanna-be celebrities.  It’s interesting to see how companies are still holding onto Tiger Woods as one of their spokesmen.  It seems like most of them agree to not air his commercials to sorta separate themselves from Woods bad image but I haven’t really heard of anyone dropping him.  Is it because he’s Asian? 

I remember during the whole Kobe Bryant ordeal in Colorado his endorsers were dropping him left and right.  Granted the original charge was rape along with infidelity but he was acquitted of the rape charges pretty quickly if I remember right.  Either way, I guess Woods has more selling potential than Kobe does even though Kobe speaks like eleven languages or something.  If anything, I thought this OP piece sums up my thoughts about all those people who felt hurt by Tigers “transgressions.” 

Charles Barkley I miss your wisdom, oh great Round Mound of Rebound.