Howdy;
Some sorry 24 year old utterly contemptible subhuman decided to drive on the wrong side of the road in Ohio, last night. He had three times the legal level of alcohol in his blood.
This person took the lives of a mother and four children, and severely injured several others. Such monumental irresponsibility is almost unbelievable, but it will undoubtedly be repeated a few times tonight, across the nation.
The english language does not have the words to describe the utter, total, contempt I hold for this little s__t. There simply is not any excuse for this. To end the lives of so many, and to so totally screw up the lives of all the survivors.
Maybe some of you will read this and not over-do the booze, tonight. I hope so. Please.
Happy New Year! to those of you who survive the night....
-Pop
Monday, December 31, 2007
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Holiday Blues
Howdy, Everybody;
Christmas was OK this year, I guess, but somehow it's not the same as when the kids were, well, kids. It seems that it's been so fragmented anymore. Son J is in from New York, for a couple of weeks, and has spent a couple of days with us in that time. We spent the Saturday before Christmas helping Son R assemble a very nice swing set / fort combo for Granddaughter T, which was fun. Especially with the wind gusts to 40 mph.
In the days preceding this, Grandma (my wife) made about 47 batches of 17 different kinds of fudge (I'm exaggerating, but not all that much). After all that stirring I bet she could break a brick with her right hand as long as she hit it in a stirring motion. Wax on, wax off....
When I said Christmas was fragmented, I mean that for every family sub-group, there's a separate opening of presents. This year, apparently the other Grandparents had theirs before ours. Unfortunately, when it was our turn, several of the toys we had purchased for Granddaughter T had already been given to her. Next year we need to coordinate a little better. You live and learn.
Us grandparents have passed the Christmas torch to the kids, so we celebrated Christmas day in the afternoon at R's house. It was pretty nice, but this was the first time we haven't had it at our house since we got married. Nothing wrong with that, that's the way it should be. It's just a transition for us. The times, they are a - changing. Now that I think about it, we did the same thing at Thanksgiving, also for the first time.
We didn't even put up a tree this year, although we did decorate outside.
I spent several days of my vacation / holiday days writing a computer program for use at work, to make it faster to quote pump systems. I love doing this stuff, but still; it would have been better to spend the time with family. But they were pretty much all either working or visiting other people during this couple of days. And the weather was crappy, so I didn't want to be outdoors.
Last night, I had an excellent look at Mars, bare eyes. Probably the clearest I've ever seen it. It was too cold to stay out long, though.
So now we're in the dead zone between Christmas and New Years. There's a campfire going on tonight at the deer lease, which we'll be going to, and that will be nice. Both of our boys will be there, as well as other close friends, and we're looking forward to that. And then Monday we take J to the airport to go back to NY. That's pretty much an all day event, the airport being around 150 miles away.
So, that's how it is at Pop's place at the moment.
Happy New Year!
-Pop
Christmas was OK this year, I guess, but somehow it's not the same as when the kids were, well, kids. It seems that it's been so fragmented anymore. Son J is in from New York, for a couple of weeks, and has spent a couple of days with us in that time. We spent the Saturday before Christmas helping Son R assemble a very nice swing set / fort combo for Granddaughter T, which was fun. Especially with the wind gusts to 40 mph.
In the days preceding this, Grandma (my wife) made about 47 batches of 17 different kinds of fudge (I'm exaggerating, but not all that much). After all that stirring I bet she could break a brick with her right hand as long as she hit it in a stirring motion. Wax on, wax off....
When I said Christmas was fragmented, I mean that for every family sub-group, there's a separate opening of presents. This year, apparently the other Grandparents had theirs before ours. Unfortunately, when it was our turn, several of the toys we had purchased for Granddaughter T had already been given to her. Next year we need to coordinate a little better. You live and learn.
Us grandparents have passed the Christmas torch to the kids, so we celebrated Christmas day in the afternoon at R's house. It was pretty nice, but this was the first time we haven't had it at our house since we got married. Nothing wrong with that, that's the way it should be. It's just a transition for us. The times, they are a - changing. Now that I think about it, we did the same thing at Thanksgiving, also for the first time.
We didn't even put up a tree this year, although we did decorate outside.
I spent several days of my vacation / holiday days writing a computer program for use at work, to make it faster to quote pump systems. I love doing this stuff, but still; it would have been better to spend the time with family. But they were pretty much all either working or visiting other people during this couple of days. And the weather was crappy, so I didn't want to be outdoors.
Last night, I had an excellent look at Mars, bare eyes. Probably the clearest I've ever seen it. It was too cold to stay out long, though.
So now we're in the dead zone between Christmas and New Years. There's a campfire going on tonight at the deer lease, which we'll be going to, and that will be nice. Both of our boys will be there, as well as other close friends, and we're looking forward to that. And then Monday we take J to the airport to go back to NY. That's pretty much an all day event, the airport being around 150 miles away.
So, that's how it is at Pop's place at the moment.
Happy New Year!
-Pop
Friday, December 14, 2007
Why I Will Never Buy Another Microsoft Product
unless I just have to have it for my business.
I have a fun computer rig. I have a Macbook Pro - enough said. I'm running Parallels Desktop on it with Windows Vista Business installed in a virtual machine, for when I just have to do those Windows things.
I upgrade Parallels Desktop whenever an update becomes available. I did this about a month ago, and again last night. Apparently it changed the virtual machine enough that it activated Vista's copy protection, and I got a little warning window that showed up for about three seconds that said if I didn't activate my copy of Vista it would quit working in three days.
So after I finished what I was doing, I cranked up the Windows Validation tool. Of course, it refused to validate automatically, because I had already validated it when I installed it originally. So I had to call the 1-800 number for validation, where I got to read (to a computer over the phone) nine sets of numbers. Of course, this also failed, so it then kicked me over to a Real Live Person. From the accent, probably somewhere in India or China.
This person then had me read several of the same number groups to her over the phone; then she asked me some questions, such as had I activated it before? And, how many computers am I running this copy of Vista on? The answer, by the way, is ONE - I bought this copy of Vista for the purpose of running it in this virtual machine. Whereupon, the lady gave me nine number sequences that I had to enter into the Vista dialog box. And I was activated - again.
It pisses me off that I have to go through all that just to run an OS that I paid $300 for the privilege of using. It is a major freaking hassle to have to go through to reassure Microsoft that no, I am NOT a thief. Blast you, Microsoft!!! I resent the implication. I've paid for every bit of software on any of my computers.
And what if my system updates again, and your validation crap is not available for whatever reason? I get shut down, even though I am totally legal and paid for the product.
I'll probably have to do this again, the next time Parallels Desktop gets updated. It's not their fault - It's Microsoft that doesn't trust their customers, and builds bear traps into their software.
I will NEVER buy another Microsoft product, unless I simply have no other choice.
Macintosh, on the other hand, has OS X - $129 - no hassle, works on the first try, works really well, and they don't threaten to cut me off if, in their opinion, my computer gets changed too much. And you can get spreadsheet and word processing software that is just fine - for $79, not the $400 or so that Microsoft charges.
I have Delphi as a programming environment installed in Vista in a virtual machine on my Mac. The two most expensive programs on my computer - Vista $300 and Delphi (upgrade) $400. Over on the Mac side, X-code for programming on the Mac is (wait for it...) IN THE BOX with OS X. How cool is that?
NEVER, Microsoft, NEVER - it's too late for you - you've already burned your bridges with me. Get the picture???
-Pop
I have a fun computer rig. I have a Macbook Pro - enough said. I'm running Parallels Desktop on it with Windows Vista Business installed in a virtual machine, for when I just have to do those Windows things.
I upgrade Parallels Desktop whenever an update becomes available. I did this about a month ago, and again last night. Apparently it changed the virtual machine enough that it activated Vista's copy protection, and I got a little warning window that showed up for about three seconds that said if I didn't activate my copy of Vista it would quit working in three days.
So after I finished what I was doing, I cranked up the Windows Validation tool. Of course, it refused to validate automatically, because I had already validated it when I installed it originally. So I had to call the 1-800 number for validation, where I got to read (to a computer over the phone) nine sets of numbers. Of course, this also failed, so it then kicked me over to a Real Live Person. From the accent, probably somewhere in India or China.
This person then had me read several of the same number groups to her over the phone; then she asked me some questions, such as had I activated it before? And, how many computers am I running this copy of Vista on? The answer, by the way, is ONE - I bought this copy of Vista for the purpose of running it in this virtual machine. Whereupon, the lady gave me nine number sequences that I had to enter into the Vista dialog box. And I was activated - again.
It pisses me off that I have to go through all that just to run an OS that I paid $300 for the privilege of using. It is a major freaking hassle to have to go through to reassure Microsoft that no, I am NOT a thief. Blast you, Microsoft!!! I resent the implication. I've paid for every bit of software on any of my computers.
And what if my system updates again, and your validation crap is not available for whatever reason? I get shut down, even though I am totally legal and paid for the product.
I'll probably have to do this again, the next time Parallels Desktop gets updated. It's not their fault - It's Microsoft that doesn't trust their customers, and builds bear traps into their software.
I will NEVER buy another Microsoft product, unless I simply have no other choice.
Macintosh, on the other hand, has OS X - $129 - no hassle, works on the first try, works really well, and they don't threaten to cut me off if, in their opinion, my computer gets changed too much. And you can get spreadsheet and word processing software that is just fine - for $79, not the $400 or so that Microsoft charges.
I have Delphi as a programming environment installed in Vista in a virtual machine on my Mac. The two most expensive programs on my computer - Vista $300 and Delphi (upgrade) $400. Over on the Mac side, X-code for programming on the Mac is (wait for it...) IN THE BOX with OS X. How cool is that?
NEVER, Microsoft, NEVER - it's too late for you - you've already burned your bridges with me. Get the picture???
-Pop
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
And a NON Gun Free Zone Shooting
Howdy, Everybody;
About the church shootings in Colorado:
The media seems to want to emphasize that the lady who stopped the murderer was a 'security guard', the unstated implication being that this was someone like you would see working for a security firm, maybe in uniform, with a gun on the belt. In fact she was a volunteer security guard for her church; in reality, a private citizen with a concealed carry permit; something the media hasn't exactly made clear. Liberal (anti-gun) bias in the media, again.
Good Job, Jeanne Assam!!! You are a hero!
Also please note that the killer was stopped at a location that was NOT a gun free zone. If this had been in a gun free zone, and Jeanne Assam was obeying the law by not carrying, how many more would have died at the hands of the murderer before the police (who can be armed in a gun free zone) arrived? The murderer was carrying two handguns, a rifle, and over 1000 rounds of ammo.
This is the reason for concealed carry. To save lives.
This is the reason that gun free zones are worse than useless. Because the sign on the door won't stop a murderer - it will only stop law-abiding victims from being able to protect themselves efficiently.
-Pop
About the church shootings in Colorado:
The media seems to want to emphasize that the lady who stopped the murderer was a 'security guard', the unstated implication being that this was someone like you would see working for a security firm, maybe in uniform, with a gun on the belt. In fact she was a volunteer security guard for her church; in reality, a private citizen with a concealed carry permit; something the media hasn't exactly made clear. Liberal (anti-gun) bias in the media, again.
Good Job, Jeanne Assam!!! You are a hero!
Also please note that the killer was stopped at a location that was NOT a gun free zone. If this had been in a gun free zone, and Jeanne Assam was obeying the law by not carrying, how many more would have died at the hands of the murderer before the police (who can be armed in a gun free zone) arrived? The murderer was carrying two handguns, a rifle, and over 1000 rounds of ammo.
This is the reason for concealed carry. To save lives.
This is the reason that gun free zones are worse than useless. Because the sign on the door won't stop a murderer - it will only stop law-abiding victims from being able to protect themselves efficiently.
-Pop
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Yet Another Gun Free Zone Shooting
Foxnews.com has an excellent article about the shooting at the Westroads Mall in Omaha. Yet another mass shooting in a gun-free zone. When will they learn that only the good guys obey the law? Gun free zones = killing fields for lunatics.
It's hard for me to understand why the owners of a Mall (or any other place) think putting up a sign will keep anybody safe. Doesn't work. Maybe the bad guys can't read?
-Pop
It's hard for me to understand why the owners of a Mall (or any other place) think putting up a sign will keep anybody safe. Doesn't work. Maybe the bad guys can't read?
-Pop
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Death
Howdy, everybody;
There comes a time in every person's life when you know for sure that you will die. I don't think young people can really conceive of this. It comes as a realization one day that you really aren't getting out of this life, alive.
I am a Christian; and it is appointed to every man (person) to die once. This is an intellectual understanding. I have an idea about what comes after, and yes, I believe I will be going to Heaven to be with Jesus. So I'm not really afraid of death. But I'm not in any particular hurry to get there, either. That's for later. My time is not yet. It's just that I now realize that someday it really will happen, to me.
There is a curious freedom in the realization that there will be an ending of this earthly life. Even a sense of relief. Some day, each of us will be called back into the Presence. And those of us who love Jesus will get to stay there. No more pain; much joy. Completion, in the full meaning of the word.
It seems to me that a healthy person will do what they can to prolong life, without being a fanatic about it. There's no point in worrying too much about it - you know for sure that you're going anyway, at some point. Relax, and think about good things in your life. Cherish them, for they have a limit.
I have thought sometimes, over the years, that funerals demonstrate something confused in the belief systems held by most Christians. You go to a funeral and those with an emotional attachment to the deceased will all be crying and feeling bad. And yet, for a Christian, dying is like winning the lottery! We should be congratulating the deceased for graduating, rather than selfishly bemoaning their loss. Curious.
I hope that when I pass on, the survivors have a family get-together and enjoy a good time together, knowing that we will meet again in the fullness of time, Lord willing.
In any case, life has its good moments, and they should be enjoyed to the fullest. It is never a waste of time to sit on the front porch and enjoy the occasional nice day. Make the most of it.
There are two kinds of people - who, being thrown out of an airplane at 30,000 feet without a parachute: one kind will scream all the way down; the other will enjoy the view. I think I am one of the latter group.
I'm 54 years old, and enjoying the view!
-Pop
There comes a time in every person's life when you know for sure that you will die. I don't think young people can really conceive of this. It comes as a realization one day that you really aren't getting out of this life, alive.
I am a Christian; and it is appointed to every man (person) to die once. This is an intellectual understanding. I have an idea about what comes after, and yes, I believe I will be going to Heaven to be with Jesus. So I'm not really afraid of death. But I'm not in any particular hurry to get there, either. That's for later. My time is not yet. It's just that I now realize that someday it really will happen, to me.
There is a curious freedom in the realization that there will be an ending of this earthly life. Even a sense of relief. Some day, each of us will be called back into the Presence. And those of us who love Jesus will get to stay there. No more pain; much joy. Completion, in the full meaning of the word.
It seems to me that a healthy person will do what they can to prolong life, without being a fanatic about it. There's no point in worrying too much about it - you know for sure that you're going anyway, at some point. Relax, and think about good things in your life. Cherish them, for they have a limit.
I have thought sometimes, over the years, that funerals demonstrate something confused in the belief systems held by most Christians. You go to a funeral and those with an emotional attachment to the deceased will all be crying and feeling bad. And yet, for a Christian, dying is like winning the lottery! We should be congratulating the deceased for graduating, rather than selfishly bemoaning their loss. Curious.
I hope that when I pass on, the survivors have a family get-together and enjoy a good time together, knowing that we will meet again in the fullness of time, Lord willing.
In any case, life has its good moments, and they should be enjoyed to the fullest. It is never a waste of time to sit on the front porch and enjoy the occasional nice day. Make the most of it.
There are two kinds of people - who, being thrown out of an airplane at 30,000 feet without a parachute: one kind will scream all the way down; the other will enjoy the view. I think I am one of the latter group.
I'm 54 years old, and enjoying the view!
-Pop
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