Dragon's Eye News - Musings - Michael

Memorial day

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sat, 31 May 2008 10:09:11 -0700

This is how Chip and I spent part of Memorial day.

Lady McArthur's Fiery Fare

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sun, 11 May 2008 11:15:28 -0700

We went to Scarborough Faire last weekend and one new item is definitely worth an extra mention.

There's a hot sauce shop that's opened up at the faire and normally I wouldn't associate a renfest with peppers but in this case I'm glad it was there.

Lady McArthur's Fiery Fare is a small shop full of jars of various hot sauces from very mild to take-your-head-off hot. Susan and I have been making a dent in the three jars we bought and while each are quite different from each other, they're all excellent.

I highly recommend them if you like hot sauces of any kind.

So what is the Kindle really like?

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Tue, 06 May 2008 18:57:10 -0700

I use my Palm TX all the time for reading books and watching movies and do so because it's small enough to carry everywhere and powerful enough to show full-screen video at full frame rates.

It's useless for note taking thanks to the abomination known as Graffiti 2 (thanks a whole lot Palm) but still functions as an appointment reminder.

So what about the Kindle? It's big. I couldn't put it in a pocket. On the other hand it does one thing and some think it does that one thing quite well.

What's your opinion?

Scarborough Faire

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sun, 04 May 2008 12:21:08 -0700

It was a perfect day for Scarborough Faire on Saturday with temperatures hovering between 55 and 70 degrees and Susan and I got there just after opening at 10am and stayed until past closing. Emmy, April and Andi met us about 2pm and Andres and Luz Amalia arrived about 3pm.

We caught Zilch the Tory Steller,

Elephant riding and feeding by the girls.

A fire-eating juggler whose name I didn't get. He does a very entertaining show.

With final pictures in the rose garden.

Several of us followed up by a late dinner at Maggiano's.

Pictures on the cheap

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sun, 04 May 2008 12:19:48 -0700

Come on, Maggiano's. You can do better than the cheap lights with the cords hanging over the pictures in your entry-way.

*I* could do better than that and I don't charge your prices for dinner.

Sheesh.

Why would I want to?

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:01:47 -0700

sigh Mrs. Rowling

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Fri, 02 May 2008 04:31:58 -0700

Orson Scott Card says it much better than I can.

Why I don't pay attention to reviews

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Thu, 01 May 2008 06:12:52 -0700

There are several movies that people around the office are looking forward to this summer.

One of them is Iron Man.

Yeah, not so much. It could be good. It's also just as likely that the best parts of the movie are in the trailer.

Time will tell and I'll wait to hear from people I know personally.

Here we have one reviewer that all but says the movie sucks.

And here we have another one that just gushes gooey goodness about it.

Yeah, I'll wait.

You've done it to yourselves, you know.

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 06:57:57 -0700

For some time Susan and I have wanted to move to the UK or Ireland. Mostly because of the dancing and also because we really like the people and country over there.

Over the last several years I've lost some of my desire to move to the UK as the number of ways the citizens are monitored have grown since 9/11.

CCTVs everywhere. Cars tagged and tracked on the major roads around London. More and more people behaving paranoid whenever someone pulls out a camera.

Hell, even science geeks are getting paranoid. He's lucky he didn't get shot by some overly paranoid and zealous rent-a-cop.

The terrorists are winning. They can stop their planning now because our governments and news agencies will take care of bottling us up for our own "safety."

Technorati : cctv, orwell, uk

You must be ****ing kidding me

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 19:58:48 -0700

Got this via email today.

The Italia Foundation for basic research
(http://www.fondazionedivittorio.it),has award you the cash
Grant/Donation for your own personal, educational,of the total sum of $7
00, 000 .00.contact our  claims agent for validation. Mr.Jossy Millavic
Email:  fdvclaimsdepartment@myway.com Forward the following
Informations-Full Name,Contact address,phone number
Sincerely,
Mrs. Rachael allen

Is any one really so stupid they'd follow what it says to do?

Yeah, OK. Never mind.

T-Mobile taking advantage of their existing customers?

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 17:15:55 -0700

Nooooo!

Say it's not so!

Let these pictures tell the story...

Continue reading "T-Mobile taking advantage of their existing customers?"

Why I would let my 9-year-old ride the subway alone

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 10:57:17 -0700

I recently discovered this article wherein a mother describes her son's experience of riding the subway and bus home alone. And follows up by describing the fallout from letting him experience a bit of independence that too many parents don't let their children have because they're afraid something will happen to their precious little darlings.

Anyway, for weeks my boy had been begging for me to please leave him somewhere, anywhere, and let him try to figure out how to get home on his own. So on that sunny Sunday I gave him a subway map, a MetroCard, a $20 bill, and several quarters, just in case he had to make a call.

No, I did not give him a cell phone. Didn’t want to lose it. And no, I didn’t trail him, like a mommy private eye. I trusted him to figure out that he should take the Lexington Avenue subway down, and the 34th Street crosstown bus home. If he couldn’t do that, I trusted him to ask a stranger. And then I even trusted that stranger not to think, “Gee, I was about to catch my train home, but now I think I’ll abduct this adorable child instead.”

Long story short: My son got home, ecstatic with independence.

So why am I writing about this when I don't have kids?

Because I know someone who was heavily sheltered as a child (and is still smothered as an adult, living away from home) who barely knows how to take care of herself. She wasn't taught to ride a bike or swim because she might get hurt and rarely tries anything new unless pushed into it by her friends. Fortunately she has friends who don't take advantage of this "condition" and try to get her to do things that will broaden her as a person.

I also see and hear about parents who aren't teaching their kids to take care of themselves but are keeping them ignorant in the interest of "safely". They don't think of it that way but that's what happening.

There are so many parents that try to put a protective bubble around their child, expecting that they'll be able to keep them safe forever. It's impossible. To use the bicycle as an example, they need to learn how to fall so they reduce the chances of getting hurt. Someday, they're going to hit the ground and if they don't know how to recover on their own, they will get hurt. Probably seriously. Teach them that it's going to happen and ways to minimize the hurt and they may just come out of it with a few scratches.

Parents, you can't be there forever. Raise an adult, not a dependent child.

Quote heard today

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 20:15:32 -0700

So wrong, yet so funny.

Continue reading "Quote heard today"

Visit to the CAF museum in Mesa, AZ

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 16:22:32 -0800

While on a recent business trip I had some time to visit the CAF museum in Mesa, AZ. It's a great little museum and I enjoyed poking through the planes (including a great B17) and buying a gift for my dad. A piston from a P-47 engine. How many of you can say you have one of those?

Click on the image to go to the gallery.

Wandering around St. Charles

nospam@example.com (Michael Harrison) — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 18:39:19 -0700

OK, that's what I'll do this evening. I'll wander St. Charles, stop in Picasso's Coffee House, have a latte (who needs sleep?) and maybe hang out long enough to listen to some live music.

I didn't intend to end up in St. Charles but 70 led me this way out of St, Louis and I didn't feel like turning off 270 back to the hotel so I kept driving.

Continue reading "Wandering around St. Charles"