Pumpkins, etc.

I'll be back on Thursday. There are a lot of things going on in the next few days, and I'm not sure how much computer access I will have.

Anyway, I spent the weekend hanging out with friends, and watching them carving jack-o-lanterns.



Unfortunately, the picture doesn't really do their work justice, because you can't really see how intricate some of their designs are. But we had a good time, and now I have about 40 more pictures of myself in really unflattering positions (thanks guys).

In other news, I have been making a bad attempt at getting a jump on Christmas shopping. Usually, by the start of November, I would be wrapping up all of my shopping (excuse the pun), but I have been so much busier this year. But I have been having an unexpectedly hard time finding nice gifts this year.

Case Annual Fund

I love how I'm barely out of school, and I'm already getting hit up to donate money to them.

This week, I got my first solicitation for the Case annual fund [case.edu]. It's crazy. How could I possibly have any money to donate yet? =)

But I'm going to send something in. The hard part is specifying which student group or organization should get the money I am donating. I don't want to just send in a check, because then it'll just go towards paying for upgrades to the dean's air conditioning (but I'm not bitter). Unfortunately, I'm far enough removed that I don't even really know what student programs there are, and which ones aren't an incredible waste of time.

One of my friends suggested that I specify that the money go towards the Graduate Student Senate (GSS) [case.edu]. What's funny/sad about the GSS is that if you had asked me a year ago about them, I would have sworn that they were fictional. That's right, unicorns, Santa Claus, and the GSS were all lumped into the same category in my mind. You know, it's that same category that A Rod [greeleytrib.com] puts winning into.

But anyway, I'm more enlightened now. And that's where my money is going to this year.

Free Sirius

Today is the second day of free Sirius [sirius.com] radio over the internet. So, if you were curious about satellite radio, you can listen all day today.

It's great because there are lots of commercial-free radio stations. In each genre, there are usually several stations (as opposed to FM radio where I live, where there is only one in each genre, which all take their commercial breaks at the same time). For instance, if you are into classic rock like I am, there are several to listen to. There are "normal" classic rock stations that play a variety, and then there are specialized stations, like the one that just plays The Who.

Depending on which radio you get, there are all kinds of nice features of the radios, too. For instance, you can listen to one station while you can read the list of all of the stongs that other stations are playing. And then when you see a song that you'd rather listen to, you can immediately switch the channel.

Automotive Testing Expo 2006

I'm off to the Automotive Testing Expo 2006 [testing-expo.com] today. Hopefully, it will be interesting.

Of course, you wouldn't be able to tell that from their website. You can hardly tell anything from their website, actually. Let's say that you want to go to the presentation on "New developments in multi-axis simulation testing". On their website, it's supposed to be at 10:20AM:



But then there are two different .pdf versions of the program. One has it listed at 10:45AM:



And the other doesn't have it listed at all:



Stupid websites.

Stupid Flying

Oh, I didn't mention my trip in my post yesterday. I had no problems carrying things like my MP3 player and anything else. But on my way back, they selected me for overzealous searching.

Now I know exactly what Bruce Schneier was Saying when he wrote about how the new airport security measures are just security theater [schneier.com]. What I was subjected to was ridiculous.

When my shoes went through the X-ray scanner thingy, they detected something they didn't like, so they decided to swab it (for explosives?). Meanwhile, they told me to go wait over by a line of chairs. And since I had nothing better to do, I started taking crap (like my wallet, cell phone, etc) out of my carry-on so that I could put them back into my pockets.

After a while, they gave my shoes back to me, but said that they would have to pat me down. I submitted, but it was completely ridiculous, because I had huge bulging things in my pockets by that point. I mean, if I had anything on me that could have been found in a pat-down, I could have easily moved it in that time. It was ridiculous.

It was an inconvenience, and it was annoying. But most of all, it is a security failure every time they incorrectly select someone for extra screening just for something inconsequential. Think of how much time and effort is wasted.

Happy Unbirthday to Me

In my group of friends, we have kind of a running inside joke. I don't really celebrate my birthday, and could care less, so I usually don't tell people when it is. Well, my friends didn't really like that, and they decided that if I wasn't going to tell them when my birthday was, they were going to assign me one, and celebrate it on that day, whether I liked it or not.

So... they chose October 25. Now, every year, around this time, I have to endure a bunch of ball-breaking. Luckily, I usually have access to large volumes of alcohol:



With any luck, you won't be able to read my age off of the icing of the cake... (although to give you a clue to how old I am, I used to watch a lot of Fraggle Rock [wikipedia.org] as a child.)

At least the food was yummy, and the cake was an ice cream cake.

Flying

I'll be back next week.

I have some flights this week, so I'll be too busy to weblog. Actually, I haven't flown since I went to Hawaii last December [fluggart.com]. I had heard about increased restrictions on carry-on luggage at airports, but I hadn't actually looked into specifics until a few days ago.

On TSA's website [tsa.gov], they actually outline that any liquids have to fit into a one-quart ziplock bag, and you can't have more than 3oz of any liquid. I was pretty surprised when I actually saw how small 3oz was. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find hair gel in bottles that are 3oz or less in size? (Not to mention that I probably use about a quart of hair gel per day.)

I basically had to go to Target and every other store in this area, walking up and down every aisle, until I was able to find toothpaste tubs, contact lens solution, hand moisturizer, etc. in sufficiently small containers. But hair gel was definitely the hardest one to find. And I never managed to find a shaving cream bottle that was small enough (although I can go a few days without shaving cream).

TSA's website still left me with a lot of questions, though. For instance, they list all kinds of electronic devices and whether they are allowed or not -- except for MP3 players (of which there is no mention). And there is no mention of moist towelettes (or Wet Naps, or whatever those things are called that you can use to clean your hands). Are they not allowed, or do they just have to fit into the one-quart bag?

My Car Needs Paint, Part 2

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that my car was hit while it was parked, and I was going after the person that hit my car.

The situation is far closer to being resolved now. I have received a check for the amount that it will cost to get the bumper repainted, and now all I have to do is drop off the car at the body shop.

The person who hit my car told me that they would write me a check, and that we don't need to file insurance claims. And I think that it worked out. But in retrospect, I don't think that I would go that route again. I think that I took a huge chance in not going through my insurance company.

If the person who hit me decided to stall and stall and stall, I might have gotten into a situation where it was too late to change my mind and go through my insurance company.

Another issue is that when you get an estimate from a body shop and you aren't using insurance, you can never tell whether they are overbilling you or not. I got a couple of quotes from different body shops, and they were very different.

There are a bunch of scenarios in which I could have gotten screwed. Ugh.

Abstract on Proposed New Voting Protocol

On Bruce Scneier's weblog [schneier.com], there was a link to a paper describing a proposed new voting protocol [mit.edu] written by Ron Rivest [wikipedia.org] (who, by the way, is the "R" in RSA [wikipedia.org]).

It is actually really interesting to read (well, for nerds like me). It has checks to prevent several methods of voting fraud, allows a voter to check that their vote was registered properly, allows for recounts (unlike the horrible electronic voting machines deployed currently), and gives the voter a receipt which they can use to file a protest (if their vote wasn't registered) and cause a recount.

Now, I know what you're thinking - if the voter gets a receipt, then it may allow people to be coerced into voting for a particular candidate. But the receipt doesn't give you any way to verify how you voted, only that you voted.

The only real problem that I see is that the process may be too complicated for some voters. I mean, we're talking about people who were confused by the butterfly ballots [cnn.com]. Ugh.

Lost

Last week's season opener of Lost [abc.go.com] was alright. At least it was interesting. One of the reasons I have liked that show is because you never know what is going to happen (i.e. it's not predictable), and the story arcs are usually pretty original. But with the way that every network seems to copy every other network's hit shows, it kind of makes me wonder whether there are going to be a bunch of prime time shows in the future that are just going to feature weird crap happening that is never resolved or explained.

One thing that I noticed in last week's episode was Kate's wrists. She was brought to the breakfast table (to eat with Henry Gale) without being bound. However, when she got there, handcuffs were thrown on her, and those handcuffs stayed there until they threw her into a prison cell. Ok, my first question is, why didn't they take the handcuffs off of her after they were done eating? I mean, they didn't need them on her when they transported her to breakfast, so why was it suddenly necessary afterward? Secondly, I noticed when they threw her in the prison cell, she seemed really upset, and her wrists were raw and bloody. So, I'm wondering if something happened in between breakfast and when she arrived at the cell that will be explained later.

In Lost, one of the things that makes the show interesting is that you usually learn a little about the main characters' backstories. However, one of the reasons that I didn't particularly care about the premiere was because I didn't care about learning about Jack's backstory. It's not that I don't like him or anything, but his backstory really isn't that interesting. He had an alcoholic father? Big deal. And we already knew that. Let's hear about all of the other characters, and why they are the way they are. Hopefully, tonight's episode will be more interesting.

Sun Conures and Cory Cats

While I was looking for stuff for my aquarium, we saw a Sun Conure [centralpets.com] at the pet store this weekend.

A Sun Conure is a parrot, and the one we saw made no noise and was very playful. And it was so beautiful. One of those would definitely make for a great pet (although not for me). I might have considered getting one of them until I did some reading and saw the following on this page [sunconure.com]:

"Screeching is normal for most parrots. It's how they say hi to each other and how they announce that they're happy. So in the morning and the evening, your sun conure will say "I'm here! I'm here! I'm here!" for ten minutes to half an hour."

Ugh. No thank you. Why would anyone want something that is going to screech at them for a half an hour in the morning? Like mornings aren't rough enough.

I actually think that the main problem with having a bird would be keeping it at a comfortable temperature. We haven't been turning the thermostat up very high, and it would probably be too cold in our house in the winter. Not that I really want a bird in the first place...

Anyway, I did pick up some panda cory cats [liveaquaria.com] for my aquarium. Below is a picture of one of them.



It's kind of a poor picture, because they are so small, hide when I get near the tank, and almost never stop moving long enough to get a good shot.

I have a 55-gallon tank, so there is plenty of room for a couple of small catfish like those. I'm just a little worried that right now, they are so small that they are easily bullied by some of the larger fish that are already in the tank. Below is a picture of one of them below a rainbow shark [fishlore.com] (a rainbow shark is actually a catfish, by the way). Unfortunately, the rainbow shark is almost constantly moving too, so he's blurry.



They'll grow quickly, though, so it shouldn't be long until they can hold their own.

I'm Watching Too Much TV

I forgot that Battlestar Galactica [scifi.com] started its new season last Friday. Luckily, my PVR managed to catch it, despite my inattention.

The season finale last year really left a bad taste in my mouth. I mean, the idea that a group of people so out-numbered, out-gunned, out-classed, etc who managed to beat ever odd was going to forget everything they lived for and live in a tent city on a new planet was ridiculous. I mean, they had just spent every second stressing about the cylons coming after them, but as soon as they found a new habitable planet, they just dropped everything and never thought about a plan of action if the cylons found them again? It's ridiculous.

However, the season opener was pretty interesting, so I think that I'm going to hang in there, and try to get past the ridiculous premise. Maybe this season won't be so bad.

So, I guess that's it. I've dropped all of the other shows that I have been following the past few years, and I'm only going to be following Lost and Battlestar Galactica this year (despite the fact that neither was stellar last season). When I have time, I'll probably try to catch an episode of Mythbusters or 60 Minutes.

Blue Man Group and My Weekend

This weekend, one of the things that I will be doing is going to see Blue Man Group [wikipedia.org]. I have wanted to see them for a while, but haven't had the chance to until now. So, I'm really looking forward to it.

Other than that, I plan to catch up on things. For instance, I recently noticed [eldan.co.uk] that Melinda posted pictures from her honeymoon [flickr.com]. They went to Iceland and Istanbul -- two places that I have never been, but would love to see for myself.

I also hope to finally borrow a copy of The Book of Honor : Covert Lives and Classified Deaths at the CIA [amazon.com], which was recommended to me by a friend. It sounds like a good read.

And, as I mentioned yesterday, my eyes will be glued to the TV during the Japanese Grand Prix [bbc.co.uk].

Formula 1: Grand Prix of China

I'm a huge fan of Formula 1 racing, and last weekend [bbc.co.uk], there was one of the most incredible races I have ever seen. It had ever element that you could hope for - two drivers that are basically tied for the driver's championship, scraping for every single point they can possibly get; lots of lead changes; engine blowups; ridiculous crashes that came out of nowhere (including a pileup on the last turn of the last lap of the race); crazy and idiotic strategies that teams were using to gain any advantage they could -- like switching to dry weather tires to use on a wet track (Kubica, what were you thinking??).

Plus, the drivers had to deal with rain and changing conditions. At first, it seemed like the teams using Michelin tires were going to run away with the race. Then as the track dried out, the teams using Bridgestone tires gained the advantage. And then finally, toward the end of the race, as the conditions continued to change, it seemed like the teams using Michelin tires regained the advantage.

It was a thriller from start to finish. There are only two races left in the season, and the top two drivers are literally tied in the points. The next race is this weekend, in Suzuka, Japan, so I'm going to to be glued to my TV on Sunday morning.

Gilmore Girls and Lost

My time is slowly getting freed up, so I have a little bit of time for TV-watching these days. But not much.

Last week, I caught the season premiere of Gilmore Girls [warnerbros.com]. It was the first episode since creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and her husband, Dan, left the show [kansas.com]. And you could clearly tell that they had left, because it was almost a completely different show. I have loved watching that show for the past couple of seasons because it is so witty and sarcastic. It's just cleverly written.

Last week's episode had none of that. It was a more serious episode, but you can have a serious episode that is still written cleverly. The wit and humor was no longer there, so I'm going to take a pass on this season (likely the show's last). I'd prefer to pretend that it doesn't exist, and maybe I'll watch reruns in the future.

Tonight, I will be watching Lost [abc.go.com]. (Lost, by the way, was recently hilariously parodied on PhD Comics [phdcomics.com].)



The first season of that show was amazing, and really hooked me in. And then last season wasn't all that great. Some of the most interesting characters were killed off, and some of the storylines were a little jaded. The first season was so great because the storylines were so unique. So, if tonight doesn't go well, I might be passing on this show too.

Pictures of Austria

Kottke posted some pictures from his recent trip to Austria [kottke.org].

In a lot of the pictures, you can see some of the beautiful architecture that is so distinct. They also apparently took hikes on some of the mountains and visited the glaciers [kottke.org] (those pictures are towards the end of the slideshow). Those are amazing pictures.

Austria is almost completely mountainous. So, wherever you look, you're probably going to see mountains in the background. And if you're in a city like Salzburg, there are so many different mountains in the area that you could spend a week there, and never hike the same mountain twice.

That is one of the things that I loved most about visiting Austria. I loved the hiking on mountains. And they were so close. Where I live now, the drive to the nearest mountains is prohibitively far for a weekend hike.

I've visited Austria a couple of times, but still want to go back again, and I don't know if I'd ever get tired of it.

Diamondback 850Er

A few weeks back, I mentioned that we were looking to buy an elliptical exercise machine to work out on at home.

The one we ended up buying was the one that I mentioned in that post -- the Diamondback 850Er [geartrends.com]. We have only had it for a few days, so the comprehensive review will have to wait.

But so far so good. I was surprised how quiet it is. I guess that all ellipticals are quiet, but I've only seen them in use in gyms (and in the stores), where there is tons of ambient noise. When I used to work out on my bike on rollers, I would have to turn the TV up pretty loud in order to hear it. But the elliptical is almost silent, so I no longer have that issue.

The only thing that I worry about is getting bored working out on it. But I think it'll be a long time before that happens. And it is certainly more convenient and less annoying to work out in my house (compared to going to the gym). I started dreading going to the gym, because the one nearby is always too crowded, and that whole locker room scene is something I hope I don't ever have to deal with again. Why is it that elderly men feel the need to wander around naked and strike up conversations with strangers?