tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-168714822024-02-14T06:45:51.644-06:00Grikdog's Blog"Shall I mangle this churl's leg, Hantis?" — Pul the Grik-Dog, final chapter, <i>W.O.K.</i>Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.comBlogger1218125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-55685348765993732712012-12-26T11:37:00.000-06:002012-12-26T11:37:16.897-06:00New Legacy<br />
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Hello, My name is Tara, the daughter of the amazing man that once started this site. My father, David passed away in July, Friday 13th. In the past months my mother and I have been trying to close Dad's accounts that will no longer be active. While in the process I logged on to my dad's blog here, and I can't bring myself to close this blog down. Blogging is something I can't not remember my dad doing and I want to continue in his footsteps and keep this blog running in tribute, and in memory of the greatest man I've ever known.</div>
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Starting today "New Legacy" will be up and running. Well up and running once I know what the password to this account is... the computer automatically logged me in so I need to do some digging. ^_^'''</div>
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And Dad, you are the most amazing person I've ever known. I love you with all my heart.</div>
Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-57240252096613706592012-06-09T08:29:00.001-05:002012-06-09T08:29:35.455-05:00Yes, I still blog!Don't mind me, I just spent three weeks in a hell of brain fogs, and have only now gotten back home. I am euphoric!Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-12440959277609905722012-05-01T02:37:00.000-05:002012-05-01T15:59:48.421-05:00Hmmm... what's going on?<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWIjJE3ulEAuRhzp5MI9xNTzr2S5lTErFt7ns_9i21E5Xh8-5u3DI9zSschupo1qDb5U0GIqQ2WRc6owRXf-vKRJZ1EkCf5pTnkLJW6fJtI7_K_b_PeBMu9FCTjE5iHiaEFJk4/s1600/240px-ED-E-trailer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWIjJE3ulEAuRhzp5MI9xNTzr2S5lTErFt7ns_9i21E5Xh8-5u3DI9zSschupo1qDb5U0GIqQ2WRc6owRXf-vKRJZ1EkCf5pTnkLJW6fJtI7_K_b_PeBMu9FCTjE5iHiaEFJk4/s200/240px-ED-E-trailer.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></i></td></tr>
<tr style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>ED-E (Enclave amnesiac)</i></span></td></tr>
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Enough of this valetudinarian nonsense! But it's given me an opportunity to replay Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas beyond all bounds. Obsessional, almost...<br />
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However, I've hit an imposed limit in FNV. At Level 30, I can't earn perks anymore, so I'm recruiting all the companion characters one at a time, and expunging the generic location markers on my map with the been-there-done-that version.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVEBJTQpO2MxY8KSmiusjcBO0MV_QMyEiZXG1FM2bjXY3xotYB0xQD-ibjY_vDkNezoYjbQOb5ifrM8n_Onaj6qXsnD7ApedYaPBMGM1FJ1oVGal5huwNcrkVceXkmsp27zM11/s1600/240px-Veronica_Santangelo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVEBJTQpO2MxY8KSmiusjcBO0MV_QMyEiZXG1FM2bjXY3xotYB0xQD-ibjY_vDkNezoYjbQOb5ifrM8n_Onaj6qXsnD7ApedYaPBMGM1FJ1oVGal5huwNcrkVceXkmsp27zM11/s200/240px-Veronica_Santangelo.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Veronica Santangelo (BoS)</i></span></td></tr>
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Right now, I'm playing with ED-E and Rose of Sharon Cassidy, even though most of the tour was with Veronica, cooling her heels with Raul Tejada, the ghoul mechanic, in the Lucky 38 Presidential Suite. Rex was upgraded with Violetta's brain in Jacobstown and is back with the King, Lily is in Jacobstown, Boone's in Novac. Arcade Gannon is still in the Old Mormon Fort, a no-show so far.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLRZAiTozwZ8L2r7jTirHxcxLVYQQNprWdIPhrWYIW6CcOoIGysqW2iBAEnwnaKIoN2GV-99U2uud-yLcBEGO4c-SXZ2zlVSLAcl_CzfuGzZ9NzO-3zr4Ijj9jPuCGy04ttiAw/s1600/240px-Rose_of_Sharon_Cassidy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLRZAiTozwZ8L2r7jTirHxcxLVYQQNprWdIPhrWYIW6CcOoIGysqW2iBAEnwnaKIoN2GV-99U2uud-yLcBEGO4c-SXZ2zlVSLAcl_CzfuGzZ9NzO-3zr4Ijj9jPuCGy04ttiAw/s200/240px-Rose_of_Sharon_Cassidy.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Rose of Sharon Cassidy (Ind)</i></span></td></tr>
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Cass is interesting. Nearly indestructible, her perk is Whiskey Rose, meaning if you jolt back a slug before battle, you will feel no pain (and feel invincible too, for that matter).<br />
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With the exception of Dead Wind Cavern, all the deathclaws have been eradicated. It's tough to take them on in enclosed spaces with no way to keep our distance.<br />
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</div>Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-72163767959952886382012-03-20T08:22:00.001-05:002012-03-20T09:30:15.164-05:00A little morbid lately...Bad liver = bad outlook. Normally, I transcend those moments, but every once in a while the clouds descend upon my brow and I am lost in fogs yet again.<br />
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Aye, aye, I!<br />
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I've been playing through Fallout 3 again. At Level 8, my groupie shows up to give me a stimpak or bottle of Nuka Cola and pray these random items will help to keep me safe.<br />
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Thanks. I take it personally, you know... :)Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-29967372421349772412012-02-23T11:24:00.006-06:002012-02-23T11:46:32.209-06:00Two years and counting...<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKitZ3S_99RykU3_cEzuxdunTiLozkKR28dIx6zf5GV1Wyp3naV9Zm7aEtP_cs4zW4_CEqiBtiQbxyqyhuAFJic2mCaTIntUkVolStBc3zXzYZBfpsHC6jd0IqzsDC6mNM3XvC/s1600/Dying-Golden-Wood-Buddha-Panel-36-z-buddha-panel.jpg.gif.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKitZ3S_99RykU3_cEzuxdunTiLozkKR28dIx6zf5GV1Wyp3naV9Zm7aEtP_cs4zW4_CEqiBtiQbxyqyhuAFJic2mCaTIntUkVolStBc3zXzYZBfpsHC6jd0IqzsDC6mNM3XvC/s320/Dying-Golden-Wood-Buddha-Panel-36-z-buddha-panel.jpg.gif.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: right;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Parivirvana</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>One of my crew of doctors informs me that my liver is essentially shot (<a href="http://www.mayoclinic.org/meld/mayomodel6.html" target="_blank">Meld</a> 15), and my odds of living five more years is roughly 10%. More likely, I've got two years left with an outside chance of croaking this year. If that score hits 40, I have three months.<br />
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That kind of information gives one cause to pause and rethink one's options. I've elected not to receive a liver transplant, for example. And I've already had one NASH-related episode of mental confusion (hepatic encephalopathy). An unexpected turn of events. What, no aneurysm? No stroke or heart attack? No car crash? Strange!<br />
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Oh well. My other complications mitigate against wasting somebody's perfectly good (by comparison) liver on yours truly. <br />
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I meditate on these things. "When it's hot, I sweat. When it's cold, I shiver."Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-11011215213320128162012-02-18T10:42:00.003-06:002012-02-19T00:32:26.208-06:00Absurd "features" about Mac OS X LionIf you set up your Mac for several users on the same Mac, and you're using Mac OS X Lion, you have a puzzle. To wit, how to copy your Form 1040A from your side to their side, so everybody has a copy. Not AirDrop, or another Mac. What you have to do is set Finder Preferences... so everybody shows up. That's a gotcha, because the feature is hiding.<br />
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Good luck!Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-50309937033269549112012-02-12T14:25:00.004-06:002012-02-12T14:34:07.703-06:00Consolations of Philosophology<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUVvWtkf_H50WPL7R7JKY2dQVCpRu-RkpE4Bbo2h7xXyTI2kIIqTfOFDp4UN5Uz_Z8khl_ZKRbxE5igyezXzopMKdH38bswdbbTrbVUSgVG_rLdiPAim49L4GoKhiqj7vzesME/s1600/thumbnail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUVvWtkf_H50WPL7R7JKY2dQVCpRu-RkpE4Bbo2h7xXyTI2kIIqTfOFDp4UN5Uz_Z8khl_ZKRbxE5igyezXzopMKdH38bswdbbTrbVUSgVG_rLdiPAim49L4GoKhiqj7vzesME/s200/thumbnail.jpg" width="160" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Milton</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Ok, there are two ways to learn from another scholar, either coolly and dispassionately, or else head first in full immersion. The latter approach is learning by heart; the former learning by humor.<br />
<br />
I think the first rule of scholarship is to recognize that learning from somebody else's book is self abrogation; unless one can raise a Spocklike eyebrow no learning occurs and no reference to the Real has transpired, not even when that reality is a mere hell imagined by clever poets. Dante. Milton. Fun minds who entertain. Or Einstein, unapproachable without years of frozen meditation and no fun at all without epiphany.<br />
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Whatever. The truth is, I'm searching for a good recipe for lentil soup. The rest is inconsequential.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-64994917066345559152012-02-09T08:56:00.005-06:002012-02-09T09:07:39.742-06:00SQLite Manager is back in my good graces<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOBHcCVPkEQl6agP5-qqp5MZvwzIwhJPCUQFVcxp35m7amEO9gn506lB18kM5xorezwPeFDCAenFprteKWB7C8IhueK_e17nlkS7Ciw_m_59Ptzi2u-E4zX8CPSXi_CdlyRKsR/s1600/5817-64.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOBHcCVPkEQl6agP5-qqp5MZvwzIwhJPCUQFVcxp35m7amEO9gn506lB18kM5xorezwPeFDCAenFprteKWB7C8IhueK_e17nlkS7Ciw_m_59Ptzi2u-E4zX8CPSXi_CdlyRKsR/s1600/5817-64.png" /></a><a href="https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sqlite-manager/" target="_new">SQLite Manager 0.7.7</a> is a Firefox add-on that I used to use extensively, mainly because it's free and because it handles a great deal of personal information I really don't want to try maintaining with sqlite3, the CLI.<br />
<br />
I couldn't use SM on Ubuntu for years because of some obscure bug or other. Very nice to see my data back on Mac OS X Lion.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-63358694944249739192012-02-07T12:20:00.002-06:002012-02-09T11:21:48.079-06:00Star Ocean Second Evolution (PSP)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmxWu6CXk92SXXKxa_et89tM2lkI4oTjSM5zuYoFeZaw1JW8UwQYA9uU_hU_wmjc8F_UCZ1RBHrJ8cE_xAyI8BWKb8CHFN3_3-_hHnuh8GgZ6odAdChWOTpWeaVSR_bIngs1Vy/s1600/precis3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmxWu6CXk92SXXKxa_et89tM2lkI4oTjSM5zuYoFeZaw1JW8UwQYA9uU_hU_wmjc8F_UCZ1RBHrJ8cE_xAyI8BWKb8CHFN3_3-_hHnuh8GgZ6odAdChWOTpWeaVSR_bIngs1Vy/s200/precis3.png" width="136" /></a>Lots of replay value in this very retro-seeming game. I finally remembered how to find the idol that sits on the altar in the Field of Courage, where it summons yet another Guardian. On the lookout now for the Symbological Weapons Laboratory...<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Update 2-9-12</b> I accidentally beat Gabriel (and recruited Noel, but missed Chisato and Opera Vector), so I never got back to Virtual Expel or the Maze of Tribulations. A bit premature there...</span>Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-51669204185155603122012-02-06T12:43:00.003-06:002012-02-06T16:04:05.587-06:00Unhappy with TurboTax<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh47J5-Hdu2QxcpgI86YTU-RZ9vYsaOUDQr5xw_gLamgsfz6fUCTSTbf1sOTwcuuILlQsvfLrexu6pek70lw2C7VL4ikyEiAbny1dMmAEqqNjJgMt1Pd5S81b3avppeV2z0Jplo/s1600/www.turbotax.com+2012-2-6+13:38:21.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh47J5-Hdu2QxcpgI86YTU-RZ9vYsaOUDQr5xw_gLamgsfz6fUCTSTbf1sOTwcuuILlQsvfLrexu6pek70lw2C7VL4ikyEiAbny1dMmAEqqNjJgMt1Pd5S81b3avppeV2z0Jplo/s1600/www.turbotax.com+2012-2-6+13:38:21.png" /></a></div>I paid $30 at Best Buy for my copy of <a href="http://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-taxes/" target="_blank"><b><i>TurboTax</i></b></a>. They then dinged me another $30 for the Iowa state taxes download version. I efiled my return(s) -- federal and Iowa -- and they billed me yet again, <i>for a third party to collect charges for efiling</i> -- an amount deducted from my refund!<br />
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Good lord, federal efiling is supposed to be <i>free</i>. I don't know why I had to pay the third party "fee" but it will never happen again.<br />
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TurboTax is a sharp practice artiste. I do not, can not, and will not recommend them to anybody.<span id="goog_922300067"></span><span id="goog_922300068"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a>Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-33923560929454558072012-02-02T11:06:00.001-06:002012-02-02T11:08:24.461-06:00Browncoats<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ZgGw9xJH5Pv-pJi9nvXYS8roUForgv4gAz7PGtPsU9VK4_jAMx0sc9XLOu0KOPK3a3hWqGiVMdxBo65a18DmL1owPfy67jqj_IHtseKTg2UNdBtSzUe4j7Wclx0DjRYtrQc-/s1600/firefly_pulp_novel_by_kyohazard-d31kk1s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ZgGw9xJH5Pv-pJi9nvXYS8roUForgv4gAz7PGtPsU9VK4_jAMx0sc9XLOu0KOPK3a3hWqGiVMdxBo65a18DmL1owPfy67jqj_IHtseKTg2UNdBtSzUe4j7Wclx0DjRYtrQc-/s320/firefly_pulp_novel_by_kyohazard-d31kk1s.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>The novel cover shown is pure fiction, but a lot of us would sure like to read it! (It's at deviant art somewhere. Personally, I think the tv series was tons lighter than the heavy-handed movie, <i>Serenity</i>. I'd be happy with pulp fiction, or well written fan fic if naught else.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-38290850637213608692012-01-23T22:42:00.004-06:002012-01-27T10:54:17.092-06:00Star Ocean Second Evolution (PSP)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigOIN_Wp9NcN_FlBizlsuWxf6pMM-wt9c5cSOuXIvxy0QqMVDzFwiyYpdZt5YUUs1GomC38B7fdfmdfcCPrIjyuHc1XCecESf9rcm9wcGECJNbcvkJQ64nAnxDuhWZj8gt0v-5/s1600/precis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigOIN_Wp9NcN_FlBizlsuWxf6pMM-wt9c5cSOuXIvxy0QqMVDzFwiyYpdZt5YUUs1GomC38B7fdfmdfcCPrIjyuHc1XCecESf9rcm9wcGECJNbcvkJQ64nAnxDuhWZj8gt0v-5/s200/precis.jpg" width="121" /></a></div>Wouldn't you know it? I forgot <a href="http://www.ehow.com/how_8560764_do-star-ocean-second-evolution.html">how to recruit Precis</a>! She's in Linga, and Bowman is there to send you (usually to your death) in the caverns for some weed or other. But not Precis, after the initial foofarah with Robbie! Hmmmm...Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-61589260445306240982012-01-16T18:51:00.004-06:002012-01-19T09:25:05.488-06:00Hospitalized by NASH!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOeTxdkomw6I01zK2sHsUG4U9gG2RHtmLO6PSvr1t_-Jhw4XBkkzzKujm23mHZIG27QcqwyxMg9w21O6u6BD3X169dYYILjzPvNlMRmJxHlCbXHx-TfPnOvoFMfErSX7-Enouf/s1600/futurama_parade.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOeTxdkomw6I01zK2sHsUG4U9gG2RHtmLO6PSvr1t_-Jhw4XBkkzzKujm23mHZIG27QcqwyxMg9w21O6u6BD3X169dYYILjzPvNlMRmJxHlCbXHx-TfPnOvoFMfErSX7-Enouf/s200/futurama_parade.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Hepatic encelphalopathy, i.e., confusion, apparently mild. My mind jitterbugging on the altars of entropy -- I forgot I was going cold turkey from pain patches (Duralgesic.) It's been five days now, and I can sleep without waking up in a space ship.<br />
<br />
Nash is not a get out of a jail free card. It's still liver disease, and bacterial ammonia in your gut will do nasty things to your illusions of Selfhood.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-14997735494478594982011-11-28T08:36:00.002-06:002011-11-28T08:55:22.735-06:00Pithy CommentsWas gonna. Pithed out.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXSpYZfIHLS5dYSwuFetEFh5af_auc6YJTmREkG2ZcirverJUsWcC7hnjYZD9T9fjol6NZOTlc1rITN4msKI5p1fVadjXTxqp0Ex5TLcehJmnuYbJzs-Qomnyo_Nz8GCfgvHz/s1600/PSC__Totoro_with_lightsaber_by_grantgoboom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXSpYZfIHLS5dYSwuFetEFh5af_auc6YJTmREkG2ZcirverJUsWcC7hnjYZD9T9fjol6NZOTlc1rITN4msKI5p1fVadjXTxqp0Ex5TLcehJmnuYbJzs-Qomnyo_Nz8GCfgvHz/s200/PSC__Totoro_with_lightsaber_by_grantgoboom.jpg" width="141" /></a>Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-19086401835551776562011-11-17T10:12:00.002-06:002011-11-17T10:37:38.401-06:00Past dashing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBHrL0qcjIvDxD-FDErP_BEbjCqgAfJn142bigB5cSHIEivouc4L90d5qiqklOgnYxxbEztQpZVLN6CJqYY0Y8O12JRvJFJaZyO04KO8ZhS9h0TVskCQxGjjN-pBDMD1_rns7f/s1600/droids.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBHrL0qcjIvDxD-FDErP_BEbjCqgAfJn142bigB5cSHIEivouc4L90d5qiqklOgnYxxbEztQpZVLN6CJqYY0Y8O12JRvJFJaZyO04KO8ZhS9h0TVskCQxGjjN-pBDMD1_rns7f/s320/droids.png" width="320" /></a></div>I thought I'd mention Aucassin and Nicolette, which like Goethe's Faust, I've never read. Another example of the disenfranchised brain simmering in modern genres. That old stuff makes peculiarly loverly trajjeddies, compared to Penn State locker rooms. Ye shall know them by their fruits.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-35858423088635251682011-11-16T14:27:00.001-06:002011-11-16T14:34:54.261-06:00Quasi War, 1798-1800<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJeN4tvMh89SSkdYNeWhfA_uqgWXxqnUk7Ykd_e5SAUcLVaGTl6ianohRaEupS-pvOiPHoJFqUg8lB79VC1MpuXqiXfDS75Pel9wRMY2hCuMJNYcP1-GC1BOF3RUu6tN_sZ1O3/s1600/FrigateConstellation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJeN4tvMh89SSkdYNeWhfA_uqgWXxqnUk7Ykd_e5SAUcLVaGTl6ianohRaEupS-pvOiPHoJFqUg8lB79VC1MpuXqiXfDS75Pel9wRMY2hCuMJNYcP1-GC1BOF3RUu6tN_sZ1O3/s1600/FrigateConstellation.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">U.S. Frigate <i>Constellation</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Ok, there we are back in history. We fought the Revolutionary War against the British. We fought the War of 1812 against the British. And.....<br />
<br />
We fought an obscure marine conflict called the Quasi War in 1798 to1800 against the ... uh ... French. Our ally, where Benjamin Franklin was our ambassador. I just found out about it last week. I'll be 67 years old next Sunday.<br />
<br />
<i>Just found out about it! </i>What a great school system we've got. Americans are nuts.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-71745835594300429672011-10-30T12:05:00.015-05:002011-11-03T18:37:50.883-05:00Big Bang Theory tie-in<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjan8mwh-K4dUv8jwuojkXemT0llMDhU0mnKnFJzYpGNeqNQ3Z7Jv1DHtK331BPYRqNdrxgGyu16o6czxH0tggA8bccABSEnyIaXm4TwVPbPUQIUfK9C98rndOEn1iU5_B-vrj5/s1600/413843PFpGL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjan8mwh-K4dUv8jwuojkXemT0llMDhU0mnKnFJzYpGNeqNQ3Z7Jv1DHtK331BPYRqNdrxgGyu16o6czxH0tggA8bccABSEnyIaXm4TwVPbPUQIUfK9C98rndOEn1iU5_B-vrj5/s320/413843PFpGL.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>A poster similar to this can be seen on Wolowitz's bedroom wall in the übernerd comedy series <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Bang_Theory" target="_new">Big Bang Theory</a></i>.<br />
<br />
Oddly enough, if you never knew or can't remember the extreme <i>parkour</i> based <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirror's_Edge" target="_new"=">Mirror's Edge</a></i>, the name of the game, there's no way to find the image on the Cortex. I had to browse used ps3 dioramas at our local videogame stores.<br />
<br />
Mirror's Edge is attractive to look at, but at first blush only teenagers have the reflexes to play it. The game is also fast-paced, and needs many iterations and some patience to get through tetchy difficult passages. Running on walls, e.g., is not natural even for real life parkour nuts.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-12245693928396054442011-10-27T10:49:00.001-05:002011-10-27T10:59:05.958-05:00Halloween Costume<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6-rwUJjeZ2lSHnYOUUB5J82yiRXVzZRs_TWjE3udfYvpImMjdbofKMOG6E67zFav9PULpNZ5K4yKAChVrrtckoejp9b2DTb-U-_7bmNeSh7OCsV_IiztWBrwmZZPO3_zE90TZ/s1600/Edvard_Munch_The_Scream-WR400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6-rwUJjeZ2lSHnYOUUB5J82yiRXVzZRs_TWjE3udfYvpImMjdbofKMOG6E67zFav9PULpNZ5K4yKAChVrrtckoejp9b2DTb-U-_7bmNeSh7OCsV_IiztWBrwmZZPO3_zE90TZ/s200/Edvard_Munch_The_Scream-WR400.jpg" width="133" /></a>Maybe I'll go as clone 17 of my 66th annual clone. That would explain the anomalies I've been wondering about lately...Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-13005825444189715002011-10-19T10:47:00.007-05:002011-10-24T08:56:01.927-05:00Professor Layton and the Last Specter<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhchiK3CMrxmMy6ED4Wcbg_mg3NEf77Pfm3vN-fZTz_4a3iWg0cwkK04p2-O-CjSSxjZ5OggLAOREvyg5qJoSKAXwWWLcbwz5ZWhocwPKVKIwR2NXxu-yMqccA1R2KCotn5LBgG/s1600/londonlife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhchiK3CMrxmMy6ED4Wcbg_mg3NEf77Pfm3vN-fZTz_4a3iWg0cwkK04p2-O-CjSSxjZ5OggLAOREvyg5qJoSKAXwWWLcbwz5ZWhocwPKVKIwR2NXxu-yMqccA1R2KCotn5LBgG/s200/londonlife.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">London Life</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Fans of the first three <a href="http://professorlayton.nintendo.com/" target="_new">Professor Layton</a> games may be disappointed by the fourth. <br />
<br />
The new game is a prequel. <br />
<br />
The voice acting is "off" -- Layton is not the original. <br />
<br />
The story is linear. <br />
<br />
The artwork varies from clever to amateurish. <br />
<br />
There is a "London Life" mini game embedded on the same chip as the game proper, which suggests not enough space to develop either game fully.<br />
<br />
So... At first blush, "Last Specter" earns a B- for tedium and lack of effort. Buy the new Terry Pratchett book instead.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-28417225359897283052011-10-14T09:53:00.004-05:002011-10-14T10:08:13.170-05:00Mac "gestures"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzueWAesZnLsuRqn1RniOo7iHK9R-qY_YwAhoyXvaHCv7hicYuu1xShjnEVYzAnDPJMKW9Z8p6J6wzVa2gDR3ufzGfHq2ODYSl28POFtBLwxUQFfgIY_nM3mHgTmNSguooldy/s1600/joy-of-tech-lion-gestures.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzueWAesZnLsuRqn1RniOo7iHK9R-qY_YwAhoyXvaHCv7hicYuu1xShjnEVYzAnDPJMKW9Z8p6J6wzVa2gDR3ufzGfHq2ODYSl28POFtBLwxUQFfgIY_nM3mHgTmNSguooldy/s320/joy-of-tech-lion-gestures.gif" width="233" /></a></div>One thing I despise about the new Lion Mac is the way the screen suddenly slides out of sight to left or right, or else evaporates up or down. I think they call this behavior "gestures".<br />
<br />
I hope so. I have a gesture to add to the Lion repertoire. Middle finger. Straight up.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, the Mouse settings under System Preferences can turn the most obnoxious bits of this "feature" off. Which I blame on Steve Jobs.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-66746251407539422252011-10-10T10:00:00.002-05:002011-10-10T11:44:57.629-05:00Another Pratchett book??!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD1Lj85VBza5daP1v6I55ye2k0izDtzYc2CSY0QEnND1gmcjhVKnZbwZYqNzhpTsAHWGY9sOpCoLE1iQG6bZJ28vqzCrtAjD9c6k-FRrahLymSQyNaQlttvsIk6aym-6WXVpj4/s1600/Snuff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD1Lj85VBza5daP1v6I55ye2k0izDtzYc2CSY0QEnND1gmcjhVKnZbwZYqNzhpTsAHWGY9sOpCoLE1iQG6bZJ28vqzCrtAjD9c6k-FRrahLymSQyNaQlttvsIk6aym-6WXVpj4/s320/Snuff.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>My wish list just got longer...<br />
<br />
Pratchett has an <a href="http://boingboing.net/2011/10/10/an-interview-with-sir-terry-pratchett-on-his-new-novel-snuff.html" target="_new">interview with Neil Gaiman</a> you might like to get into.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-21747008960697949092011-10-09T16:23:00.002-05:002011-10-10T09:58:13.303-05:00The last gorgeous day of Fall<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0qyduSC_22_CnsHqMDk2u2slackrB369k3aNvsDfb09298rTXNfXe1BizCSSH8pqXacADn7nbsn0L-GmYbGRHHgCM2PWZ-W04OjU661YURZTNau2NP_E7nIRuLPx1jUx3KNtn/s1600/Picnic+Oct+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0qyduSC_22_CnsHqMDk2u2slackrB369k3aNvsDfb09298rTXNfXe1BizCSSH8pqXacADn7nbsn0L-GmYbGRHHgCM2PWZ-W04OjU661YURZTNau2NP_E7nIRuLPx1jUx3KNtn/s400/Picnic+Oct+2011.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>We played bocci with friends in Bever Park under a sapphire sky, a gentle breeze flurrying leaves of a topaz maple. I sat in a cloth foldaway chair in the warm sunlight, basking in the inexplicable regard of actual friends and family. (I'm the philosopher with the doofus sunglasses on me fore 'ead.)Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-68138503885095259092011-10-06T11:17:00.009-05:002011-10-06T12:04:34.635-05:00Full fathom five, thy father lies<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrSFtHQJBmqw9T2qlt2mrYrRpaPOslVvHcEIHHvYLWCmfdpMCtZTzpEB64n6KqBUM7fk3FWUMuUcAVVQNIb7T3Z2gZWcoESUe0kxBSNrWB5dgeyftuw5jlu376fm9S7TPULOl/s1600/apple1_00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrSFtHQJBmqw9T2qlt2mrYrRpaPOslVvHcEIHHvYLWCmfdpMCtZTzpEB64n6KqBUM7fk3FWUMuUcAVVQNIb7T3Z2gZWcoESUe0kxBSNrWB5dgeyftuw5jlu376fm9S7TPULOl/s200/apple1_00.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apple Lisa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>As I recall, the Apple Lisa we sold out of Beacon Microcenter in Ames, Iowa shipped with SCO Xenix and our sales staff had to make a big deal about "Yes, Xenix really <i>is</i> Unix." I knew as much when I first heard those SCO daemons chuckling softly to themselves. A new experience for me, but if Linus Torvalds did not exist, it would have been necessary to invent him.<br />
<br />
This was back in the Eighties, after the death of SOS /// (which couldn't support Corvus networks without picking up aviation radio signals and crashing in financial ruin), before <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhsWzJo2sN4" target="_new">the 1984 girl </a>hit our screens with the revolutionary Mac. All Steve Jobs, whose vested interest in <a href="http://www.lisabrennanjobs.net/" target="_new">forgetting about Lisa</a> is a bit murky, at best.<br />
<br />
Unlike the real Apple innovators (Steve "Woz" Wozniak, Andy Herzfeld, <i>at al.</i>), who could be optioned into obscurity, SCO's claims to bits of the Apple venture were owned by the California Board of Regents. Jobs dissociated himself from failure faster than a speeding bullet.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-16034266853713573952011-10-03T11:19:00.013-05:002011-10-03T11:44:57.066-05:00Sanctions against American citizens<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5w05XEL5-Cs-PSOv33ezrIrorIW-opPaWCvHaq73GGWoOGbsTeYQmAIzWECJwunK7EJ7p94hK-OWhTlXHlLWXAQeEpBPBCYSPm6pW8jibSHvnxoUnn56XX69CxB2a86uqxu0A/s1600/20091109_Imam_Anwar_Al-Awlaki.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5w05XEL5-Cs-PSOv33ezrIrorIW-opPaWCvHaq73GGWoOGbsTeYQmAIzWECJwunK7EJ7p94hK-OWhTlXHlLWXAQeEpBPBCYSPm6pW8jibSHvnxoUnn56XX69CxB2a86uqxu0A/s200/20091109_Imam_Anwar_Al-Awlaki.jpg" width="146" /></a>So, we wiped out the fugitive Anwar al-Awlaki, a United States citizen who advocated terrorism and was no fan of his own country.<br />
<br />
There's precedent. We did the same to John Wilkes Booth.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtOASjMnG_OQsSS-y8sdcboFC5XPzY_Mb-N5A5kizvkEdJLYydCHyTPHfRxbj_pBihAYpA79TLZGRcK08khPkYj45SXN2fPds46DLf1r9Pov_4vUXIH-XQNa2f_xKZDiHDzML4/s1600/jwbooth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtOASjMnG_OQsSS-y8sdcboFC5XPzY_Mb-N5A5kizvkEdJLYydCHyTPHfRxbj_pBihAYpA79TLZGRcK08khPkYj45SXN2fPds46DLf1r9Pov_4vUXIH-XQNa2f_xKZDiHDzML4/s200/jwbooth.jpg" width="128" /></a></div>Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16871482.post-12386798098915502112011-10-01T10:23:00.000-05:002011-10-01T10:23:39.160-05:00What a mess!I poured a 12 oz glass of orange juice on my Dell Inspiron laptop's keyboard the other day. The keys are stuck, the motherboard is fried, and I am both livid and depressed by own ineptitude.<br />
<br />
We bought an iMac to replace the laptop, and I am cudgeling my brains to remember various logins and passwords which were, courtesy of Mr. Murphy, not backed up.<br />
<br />
I have to say, I am no fan of Safari, the new dock, or "Spotlight". Years of Ubuntu have trained me to a particular Look & Feel, and this ain't it.Grikdoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16913785744484645627noreply@blogger.com0