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Friday, June 30, 2006

only the lonely 
The question about loneliness is: Why do people do this to themselves? Why do Americans, who reported an average of nearly three close friends in 1985, now report an average of just over two? And why does one in four have nobody with whom to discuss personal issues? This is the age of Oprah and MySpace, of public emoting on television and the Web. Apparently people watch "Friends" but don't actually have many ... the new loneliness numbers appeared Friday in the American Sociological Review.
the article says that americans are forming and keeping fewer friends and confidantes than before. elsewhere, it has been argued that we are too busy. we need more time off to form friendships. that sounds good.


from home security to felony charges 
A NH man has been arrested for videotaping police officers on his own property.

read the story. i don't understand this. people have security cameras all the time and they are often used to help police solve crimes. that's what security cameras are for. even police have cameras in their own cars for this reason. but in this case, it's wrong somehow because the alleged criminals in the case are the police.

there is nothing wrong with videotaping police. they work for us.


Thursday, June 29, 2006

i really hope that 
someone will remember me when i die.


Monday, June 26, 2006

adorable photo of the day #11 
from giant-panda.com

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why 
is it always monday?


Thursday, June 22, 2006

he's so hot it hurts 
many thanks to rob [in the comments] for the link to the pilot episode of Amazon Fishbowl with Bill Maher featuring Rob Thomas!

it's just great.


rejecting spending 
we've heard the news. congress rejects gay marriage, rejects an increase for minimum wage, rejects the withdrawal of troops from iraq...

rejects what would help the average man, the worker, the family. things that could make our economy, our country, stronger.

spending is good for the economy. gay marriage = more spending. more money in our paycheck = more spending. having our boys home may equal more spending, but it would help strengthen the family. or at least make us happy.

i assume the latter two are self explanatory. i will explain what i mean by the first. the average wedding in the US costs upwards of 20 grand. so having more of them would be beneficial as that's more spending. but as it stands now, people are getting married later, and many are not getting married at all. if we allow homosexuals to marry, that's more spending.

just a thought.


adorable photo of the day #10 
ha ha ha ha

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i have no idea how they come up with these things 
[quiz] Inside the Room of Your Soul:

You are a warm hearted and open minded person. It's easy for you to forgive and forget.

You are a grounded person, but you also leave room for imagination and dreams. You feet may be on the ground, but you're head is in the clouds.

You believe that people see you as larger than life and important. While this is true, they also think you're a bit full of yourself.

Your near future is likely to be filled with great successes and accomplishments. You just need to figure out how to get there.

For you, love is all about caring and comfort. You couldn't fall in love with someone you didn't trust.

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Wednesday, June 21, 2006

what does 'stars are blind' mean anyway? 
i am not looking forward to hearing the paris hilton song played on the radio all summer.

[chris isaak should be upset about the rip off.]


Monday, June 19, 2006

tomorrow is my birthday 
i take great satisfaction in the fact that i survived the age of 27.

it may seem silly, but not for janis joplin, jimi hendrix, jim morrison, and kurt cobain.

cause you know i'm a rock star.


according to the birthday calculator 
You entered: 6/20/1978

Your date of conception was on or about 27 September 1977 which was a Tuesday.
You were born on a Tuesday under the astrological sign Gemini.
Your Life path number is 6.

The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2443679.5.
The golden number for 1978 is 3. The epact number for 1978 is 21.
The year 1978 was not a leap year.

You were born in the Chinese year of the Horse.

As of 6/19/2006 10:24:16 AM EDT
You are 27 years old. You are 336 months old.
You are 1,461 weeks old. You are 10,226 days old.
You are 245,434 hours old. You are 14,726,064 minutes old.
You are 883,563,856 seconds old.

Your age is the equivalent of a dog that is 4.00234833659491 years old.

There are 1 days till your next birthday on which your cake will have 28 candles.

Those 28 candles produce 28 BTUs. You can boil 3.20 US ounces of water with that many candles.

In 1978 there were approximately 3.1 million births in the US. In 1978 the US population was approximately 203,302,031 people. In 1978 in the US there were approximately 2,152,662 marriages (10.1%) and 1,036,000 divorces (4.9%). In 1978 in the US there were approximately 1,921,000 deaths (9.5 per 1000). In the US a new person is born approximately every 8 seconds. In the US one person dies approximately every 12 seconds.

Your birthstone is Alexandrite. Alexandrite can assist one in centering the self, reinforcing self-esteem, and augmenting ones ability to experience joy.
Some lists consider these stones to be your birthstone: Pearl, Moonstone, Opal

Your birth tree is Fig Tree, the Sensibility. Very strong, a bit self-willed, independent, does not allow contradiction or arguments, loves life, its family, children and animals, a bit of a butterfly, good sense of humour, likes idleness and laziness, of practical talent and intelligence.

The moon's phase on the day you were born was full.


Sunday, June 18, 2006

i got 21/30 
How Observant Are You? Just a few questions:

On a standard U.S. traffic light, is the green on the top or bottom?
How many states are there? (Don't laugh, some people don't know.)
In which hand is the Statue of Liberty's torch?
What six colors are on the classic Campbell's soup label?
What two letters don't appear on the telephone dial? (No cheating!)
What two numbers on the telephone don't have letters by them?
When you walk does your left arm swing with your right or left leg? (Answer the question where you are sitting!)
How many matches are in a standard pack?
On the U.S. flag, is the top stripe red or white?
What is the lowest number on the FM dial?
Which way does water go down the drain? Clockwise or counterclockwise? (In the U.S.)
Which way does a "no smoking" slash run?
How many channels are on a VHF TV dial?
On which side of a woman's blouse are the buttons? (Women answering--is it the same or different?)
On a New York license plate, is New York on the top or bottom?
Which way do fans rotate?
Whose face is on a U.S. dime? (Keep your hand out of your pocket!)
How many sides does a stop sign have?
Do books have even number pages on the right or left side?
How many lug nuts are on a standard car wheel?
How many sides are there on a standard pencil?
Sleepy, Happy, Sneezy, Grumpy, Dopey, and Doc. Who is missing? (And I don't mean Snow White.)
How many hot dog buns are in a standard package?
On a typical computer key board, is the "Ctrl" key on the right side or left side?
On which playing card is the card maker's trademark?
On which side of a venetian blind is the cord that adjusts the opening between the slats?
On the back of a U.S. dollar, what is in the center?
There are twelve buttons on a touch tone phone. What two symbols bear no digits?
How many curves are in a standard paper clip?
Does a merry-go-round turn clockwise or counterclockwise? [answers via j-walk]


free association #31 
Voice :: over
Us :: them
Passionately :: kisses
Humbly :: accept
Love songs :: mean so much
Dim :: light
Calendar :: year
Careless :: whisper
Block :: party
Goal :: setting

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Friday, June 16, 2006

quizzes! 
How Do You Communicate?: You Communicate With Your Ears

You love conversations, both as a listener and a talker. What people say is important to you, and you're often most affected by words, not actions. You love to hear complements from others. And when you're upset, you often talk to yourself. Music is very important to you. It's difficult to find you without your iPod.

Are You A Sociopath?: You Are 24% Sociopath

From time to time, you may be a bit troubled and a bit too charming for your own good. It's likely that you're not a sociopath... just quite smart and a bit out of the mainstream!

What Breed of Puppy Are You?: You Are a Beagle Puppy

Cheerful, energetic, and happy go lucky. And you're sense of smell is absolutely amazing!

How Obsessive Are You?: You Are 16% Obsessive

You're less prone to obsessive thoughts than the rest of the world... While you do get hung up from time to time, you're excellent at clearing your mind.

Where Should You Spend Your Summer?: You Should Spend Your Summer on a Road Trip

For you, the summer is all about possibilities. And you're not going to be tied down. This is the time for you to embark on an epic road trip, with no ultimate destination in mind. You know you'll have a ton of crazy adventures... at least until you run out of cash!


quote for the day 
'No matter how hot she is, someone, somewhere is sick of her shit.' [via rob]

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Thursday, June 15, 2006

the end of '0606' 
don't be thinking funny thoughts when you hear the 'disconnected' message. it's not that i didn't pay the bill, i've had my home phone disconnected. landline phones are so out.


what do you think of Keanu? 
here are 40 reasons why Keanu Reeves doesn't suck.


hit the beach this summer 
just like i found Virginia Beach in the NYT, i just found delmarva beaches in the WPost.

here's the write up for Chincoteague and Ocean City.

they seemed to have hit everything that is a must-do for OC, but i saw no mention on Steamers in the Chincoteague article. bah.


Wednesday, June 14, 2006

this is no surprise 


but i will pass along what is reported. in follow-up to yesterday's post about violent crime on the rise, here are the increases locally.

anyone who lives here knows that there have been huge, sometimes, even doubled, increases in violent crimes.

story here.

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a ring tone to fall on deaf ears 
here's a new ring tone that kids are using on their cellphones. it's a high-pitched tone that adults can't hear but younger people can. apparently, it's good to use in class. listen here.

can you hear it? i can.


Tuesday, June 13, 2006

drink more coffee 
they now say that coffee is good for your liver (preventing cirrhosis, related to alcohol consumption) and may reduce the risk of liver cancer.

i also remember, from a while ago, that pizza reduces the risk of cancer (it was the tomatoes, if i remember correctly).

how much better can it get than that?


violent crime rises 
'Violent crime in 2005 increased at the highest rate in 15 years, driven in large part by a surge of killings and other attacks in many Midwestern cities, the FBI reported yesterday.

The FBI's preliminary annual crime report showed an overall jump of 2.5 percent for violent offenses, including increases in homicide, robbery and assault. It was the first rise of any note since 2001, and rape was the only category in which the number of crimes declined.'

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Saturday, June 10, 2006

to you know who 
i won't reveal your age, but happy birthday!


Friday, June 09, 2006

did you know? 
this week's LOTW is a site of trivia bits. here's another site listing. anyone know if this one really true?
While it's true that modern Australia was founded by British criminals, all of them were only guilty of jaywalking. To this day there are no crosswalks in Australia.

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Wednesday, June 07, 2006

ask if you wanna know 
How many times does the letter "f" appear in the following sentence?

"Finished files are the result of years of scientific study combined with the experience of years..."

it's not three. count again.


Tuesday, June 06, 2006

ya'll gotta see this 
Teacher Seeks Leave to Serve Prison Time
NEW YORK - A city teacher convicted of stealing from elderly women tried to take a leave of absence from work to serve prison time in New Jersey without properly reporting his arrest or conviction to the right authorities, school investigators said Tuesday.

Thomas Everett will not be welcome back to the classroom, school officials said. But Everett, a disbarred lawyer who taught social studies at Sheepshead Bay High School in Brooklyn, said he hopes to teach again someday.

His strange tale was uncovered earlier this year when he submitted a request for an unpaid leave of absence lasting 60 to 90 days. In the late January request, he wrote that he had "problems with the State of New Jersey Judicial System" and "must fulfill an obligation to the State."

That raised a few flags.

Everett had been convicted in Essex County, New Jersey, of misappropriating entrusted funds and theft by deception. The charges stemmed from allegations that he stole more than $1 million from elderly women who hired him to execute their estates in the 1990s. The investigators' report did not specify the victims' ages but referred to them as elderly and said two had been in nursing homes and had died.
wow.

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it's not the DMV 
the number one place we hate to wait in line.

speaking of, i went to the awful grocery store i always go to yesterday, and for the first time in ten years, i didn't have to wait in line.


happy 06-06-06 
maybe happy is not the right word. maybe it is. happy 06-06-06. may the force be with you.


Monday, June 05, 2006

which city fits me? 
this quiz has been updated from one about a year ago.

Which American Cities Best Fit You?: American Cities That Best Fit You:

65% Honolulu
60% Miami
55% Philadelphia
50% Chicago
50% Seattle

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x-files trivia 
ah, the x-files. love it. i searched my own blog to see what i had written on the subject. not surprisingly, i found a few things, but i do not even remember this post. ah well. time for a mention.

first, though, i like what this girl says about the show: Let's just say that it's an important show in the science fiction genre and, if it weren't for that darn Star Trek, it might've been the most important science fiction program ever.

okay, on with it:

  • david duchovny earned an undergraduate degree from princeton and then a graduate degree in english lit at yale.
  • chris carter named dana scully after the famous LA Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully.
  • annabeth gish was in 'Double Jeopardy' and 'Mystic Pizza.'
  • the end of the opening credits is the tagline: The Truth Is Out There. however, for some episodes, that tagline is changed.
  • mark snow 's first five attempts at a theme song where rejected by chris carter.
  • three reasons why originally the decision was made to film in vancouver rather than LA. 1) lots of forests; 2) cheaper; 3) able to visually approximate almost any city in north mmerica. the address in samantha mulder's x-file, 2790 Vine Street, is the former address of production office in vancouver.

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  • Saturday, June 03, 2006

    come as you are 
    come to the dark side, we have cookies


    Friday, June 02, 2006

    18 days until 
    my birthday. i'll be sure to update the wishlist tonight. :-)


    adorable photo of the day #9 
    cutie kitten in a poptart box

    oh my, the little one will love this picture!

    it's her two favorite things.

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    Shiloh Nouvel day 
    this is about the dumbest thing i've heard. ever: Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s new child, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, was born on May 27th. The politicians of Namibia are seriously considering turning May 27th into a National Holiday.


    VB in the Times 
    stumbled across this article about Virginia Beach in the New York Times. don't believe everything you read.


    executing the mentally ill 
    which, you may have thought was illegal by way of a little thing called the United States Supreme Court, but is not so black and white. the story is here. it's the south, we do what we want, apparently.


    Thursday, June 01, 2006

    snoozing meme 
    1. Do you use an alarm clock to wake up? Yes.
    2. What time does your alarm go off? 7:09, my time.
    3. What sound does it make? the loudest, most annoying sound an alarm can make.
    4. Do you hit the snooze button? yes.
    5. If you have a partner, do they have a separate alarm? yes.
    6. Does your partner get up at the same time, earlier or later? not usually, but each day brings something new. not before my first alarm, for sure.
    7. Is your clock set ahead? If so, by how much? yes, about 8 minutes.
    8. What's the first thing you do when you get up? wonder why.
    9. Do you eat breakfast? If so, what? no.
    10. How long does it take you to get ready? 25 minutes, when i do the whole she-bang.
    11. On the weekends, what time do you get up? it varies. i try not to let it be before 9, but that doesn't always work.
    12. Do you lounge or do you jump into action? on weekends i lounge, on weekdays, i jump.
    13. In an ideal world, what time would you get up? not before 9.
    14. How many hours of sleep do you typically get? 5-6.
    15. How many hours of sleep do you want to get? 8. [via]

























    you made it down here?

    what? you want a reward?