ENG 215

English class is learning about blogs.

T&P

It's official and I have a certified letter to prove it!

"... very pleased to inform you that ... the Board of Regents approved your application for tenure and promotion to the rank of Librarian III ... Thank you for your continued contributions on behalf of your profession and the University."

Why, no, my feet aren't touching the ground today!

Tenure!

Promotion!

Go me!!

Fridge

Do you take your refrigerator for granted?

The next time you go searching for a snack, take a moment to ask yourself how you would fare (pun intended) if your cold food storage unit suddenly decided it was too tired to keep its cool any longer. Do you have a cooler large enough for the basics? What provisions are you going to lose because a cooler is smaller than a fridge? How long does it take to get a new fridge delivered? In my case: No. A lot. 4 days.

On the positive side, I got a 10% discount on an Energy Star unit, can apply for a $125 rebate for replacing the old one, and should start having a lower electric bill each month. And I never really liked the fridge that came with the house anyway...

Space Pages

Some links I want to keep handy...

Powers of Ten

Star Size Comparisons

Student Balloon Mission

Logic Problem

I don't think one needs to be a Vulcan to see the logical inconsistency here:

"I'm Not Willing to Give Up on Any Child In America:" The President's Trip to Miami Central High School

President Obama Cuts RIF's Funding

WTF?!

Have You Ever Noticed?...

...the invitation to the class reunion in Grosse Pointe Blank says "Dress to Kill."

iPod Touch, Part Two

Well, that was easy...

My very wonderful Dad* has a membership at Sam's Club, which was having a "no interest for a year" special - I had to get the 64 GB to qualify, but the payment terms make the higher price worth it.

I spent hours - literally - yesterday getting acquainted and I think this is going to work just as well as I had hoped: I already have a to-do list with several items on it, a shopping list, and a notes program to jot down all the things I want to remember - books to read, movie recommendations, which brand of cheese not to buy. Might sound silly, but I forget if I don't write things down and it's getting worse as I get older. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

Next step: transferring my contacts and calendar from myYahoo - no more forgetting the address/phone book or not knowing what my schedule is when somebody asks if we can meet, because this organizer is going everywhere with me.

I also had some fun in the Apps Store - all for free! Pandora, NASA, BBC News. There was even a free book - title predetermined - with the iBooks download: Winnie-the-Pooh!! The title choice somehow seems like a stamp of approval from the universe, that this was a good choice and not the extravagance it still feels like.

The naming process was especially difficult this time, but in the end I decided to re-use the name from the computer I don't have anymore because I am hoping that this new companion will bring much Serenity into my life.

* He also reads my blog...

Off The Map

Although set "Somewhere in South America" Off the Map is actually filmed in Hawai‘i*.

I know some people who have been working as extras on the show - have you ever watched a TV show trying to find people in the background? It's not easy, for several reasons - extras are usually:

• out of focus

and/or

• in crowd shots

and/or

• only on camera for a few seconds

and/or

• on the edge of the screen

Oh, and it really, really doesn't help that the lead actor is so incredibly distracting.


* Yes, the scenery actually looks like that. Yes, the greens are actually that green and the blues that blue. Yes, I live in the most beautiful place on earth.

iPod Touch

I'm thinking of taking the plunge and getting an iPod Touch. Does anyone have one? Like it? Problems?*

What I really need is a PDA - calendar, address/phone book, to do list, voice memo recorder- but the thief who broke into the house** stole mine and you can't buy PDAs anymore 'cause everything's smartphones now and I most definitely do NOT need a smartphone - I don't need to hike up the cost of my cell phone bill for more minutes that I won't use (my current plan is only 6o minutes/month and I don't even use all of them) and I certainly don't need to then add more $$ for a data plan that I'm not going to use since both work and home have wireless - which the 4th generation Touch can use - and I'm rarely anywhere else.

Make sense? Anyone have a better idea to get me organized? I think the iPod Touch is the way to go, but $275*** is a bit steep, hence my waffling and plea for information....


* My iPod classic - which I love - has recently started giving me static - literally - when I adjust the volume - very annoying. I'd be grateful for any pointers with that, too.
** Thankfully the cats were not harmed and didn't escape out the open window, nothing of great monetary value was taken, and there was no vandalism - it could have been much, much worse.
** * My tech guy, whom I trust, insists that the 8GB isn't worth it, that I need to go with at least the 32GB.

So You Think...

...libraries are irrelevant, unnecessary, and unwanted?

Think Again!

Big Human Chain Helps Small Town Library (video)

Two Videos

Cat vs Printer - The Translation
Of course I laughed at the original video but this version - OMG!

Language by Stephen Fry
This one is longer, but well worth it if you have any love of language.
(Discovered through Phil Plait's Bad Astronomy blog - his post title is "Grammar nazis get Fryed" which is also quite brilliant.)

Dear CBS

PLEASE, PLEASE, I am literally on my knees as I type this, BEGGING you - give Hawaii 5-0 a real chance. Don't cancel it after only a few episodes.

Hawaii is my home and I love it (my dad would say irrationally so). I was skeptical when I first heard about the re-make, but I just watched the pilot and was hooked before the credits started and was a devoted convert soon after. Great actors, great action, great use of scenery and local color (although, really, we make that last part kinda easy, don't we?).

The show is off to a great start. Hawaii and her culture and her people have so much to offer - give us a chance to show you.

Mahalo.

Size 6

Since when is size 6 not considered skinny?

Time Flies Fast Enough

Well said, sister! It's always made me crazy that the dates on the magazines are so far ahead and how we had to make room at Borders for the next year's calendars in August.

Sci-Fi Letdown

I do love me some sci-fi, but it does have its problems.

Too Many Years

This is SO depressing...

Firefly in the 80s

I envy creative people.

House Anniversary

One year ago some very good friends gave up part of their weekend to heave everything I own (a considerable amount that's still difficult to believe) out of the rental house, into a U-Haul, and then into my new digs. It was extremely generous of them and I am still grateful as I sit here, one circle around the sun later, enjoying my first anniversary in my home.

Enjoying the Back Porch

This is another of Dad's big projects that we are all enjoying (although I still need to seal the boards with Thompson's). The old porch was built out of two different types of boards, one of which became the front deck; the other, the cross beams for the new room.

Email Subject Line

One of the best email subject lines I've ever seen:

There Is a Kitten in This Newsletter. You're Welcome.

And there was, and it was adorable, and I was thankful.

Here's hoping your email today will offer you at least something interesting - even if you aren't lucky enough to get a kitten.