I have been there, it was very high.

I had no idea that that Hot Springs, AR has an obervation tower.
I have been thru Ft. Smith, Texarkana, Little Rock, and Hot Springs today. Arkansas is ok, but Texarkana stinks and the water is stinky. Its near Texas, so I would expect that. Hot Springs was having a horse race today, and Bill Clinton was there, we didn't see either. We did see steaming fountains and falls, and Lo! the Tower. If you want to avoid the locals, go here. Tourists only. It's funny seeing what's called mountains here in AR, coming from CO... but then again, I've lived in south mississippi for 12 years, so I used to not know what a mountain was at all....

Didnt need no welfare state, those were the days.

I'm almost back in the south. Riding past the nucleer plant on I-40 near Russellville, Arkansas makes me think of GWB and his 'Orange Alert'. It's so 'Prisoner' esqe. You are here because you know too much, it's like we are being retro-actively pressed into subservient know-how. Ya, there's something dangerous there, and we want to look around it, not at it. Wow, Archie Bunker was soo racist. It's cool to see a guy with union steel balls actually stand firm on his beliefs, unlike any show since that tries to match Archie Bunker. If that show was made today, I'm certain Edith would be a hot broad, and not the realistic whiny sounding homely wife.

It's like ZZ Top, I like the old television good, the new television, not so much. Velcro Fly, no thank you. Legs, nope. Eliminator, WTF. Tres Amigos, yes, more please.

I approve, yes, keep them coming.

My son asked me why I'm always fixing everything. I've had a difficult time resting since we bought a house a few years ago. Homeownership is a full time hobby one old-timer told me. It never ends. My recent excursions into the uppper attic have dispelled some of the last bits of mystery about my house. My cat, Gibby, she wanted desperately to get up the ladder to explore one of the last areas unseen by feline eyes. Now that I have closet lights, cable and ethernet upstairs, I'm ready for clobberin time. Like Star Trek where something can't be seen until something is phase shifted, we realized that we are losing about 100 sq. feet of space due to poor door layout and closet door choices. So, hack and wack, that's what's next. I'm going to see if I can get a $20 Sawzall at a pawn shop and make a mess, or inspire another 'Dad broke the house' comment from my 3 yr old.

My McGyverness

Q: Does anyone have any string?
A: Would a network cable work? I have a shoestring in my car too.
R: Hmmm, I'm not sure, but I will note your McGyverness.

The new phone solution.

So, if the communication companies are splicing our lines and providing the NSA with open access on all lines, then shouldn't those lines be free? Really, I don't give a flip about how easy or hard it is for someone to snoop on me, I don't give a care if I am being watched. Normally, when my opinion on something is needed, I get paid for it. (surveysavvy, prognostics, et al.) So, AT&T, Qwest, you can split my data lines off to the NSA, but you better not charge me full price for my service. I forget the sci-fi author (probably P.K.Dick) who put it in writing first, but in the future, communications are all free, just subsidised by a short advert at the top of each call. So, instead, imagine, free service that is up front about the monitoring of that service. The way I figure it, in this day and age, if you have something to hide, you had better communicate with pencil, paper, and homing pigeon, and even then, you are going to be on dozens of security camera logs.

Oh yea, another new job.

So, the office I was working in for Maptuit is closing, I'm not interested in relocating, so I started looking for new jobby job. I am now a Deployment Consultant for Gambro BCT. I travel around the country and install data collection appliances in blood centers. It's a wonderful place to work, the best crowd of co-workers ever. My commute to the office is a little long, but I don't mind at all.

Geocaching discovery

I've been on a determined Geocaching mission. I've been using my Moto i850 Nextel/Boost phone with Geocache Navigator. It's great having one device that has instant geocache searching in it. Yesterday, I found myself at a famous grave:

The Adolph Coors grave. Crisp coors banquet beer, yum. I havent had a beer in many months. Anyway, I've been aiming at one or two caches a day for lunch.

I'm alive and I approve this message.

Empty blogs, dead blogs, yup, this is another one.
So, I'm going to start blogging things I like and approve of.
Maybe share a few shortcuts.

Choosing an RV by name, what does it tell about you?

There is an abundance of conspicuous consumption here in Denver. You know, the new Lennar home with the boat (in colorado?) and the R.V. and the pickup truck and the trailer with either ATVs or snowmobiles on it. The smell of debt is strong here. Anyway, this brings around my thoughts on RV / camper naming.
The names are meant to invoke a sense of adventure or excitement. Take a look around, the names are proudly splashed aross all four sides. I look at the name and try to see how much the owner/driver resembles that name. I've never shopped for one of these things, but I would insist on a crazy name first. One that I wouldn't mind being associated with. I can overhear the fictional conversation at the RV park now: "Nice Tradewind you got there. I wanted a SandPiper, but would up with a Tsunami. It represents my chaotic, washed out retiree lifestyle much better."

Why the huge variety of names like this? It has more to do with the image that one word puts into a potential buyers head than the features. It's a box with wheels.
I may expound this article after I get in touch with RV manufacturers about how they choose names...

I suggest you pick one of these names and apply it to your vehicle of choice. Try it out. Here's a list of RV / camper names to choose from: (I've bolded my choices)

DUTCHMEN, FOURWINDS, DENALI, NORTH SHORE, VICTORY LANE, WINNERS CIRCLE, AEROLITE, KODIAK BY SKAMPER, TUNDRA, ADIRONDACK, ECO, ZOOM, WILD THING, T@B, COLORADO, GRAND JUNCTION, MONTE VISTA, NTENSE , BIGFOOT, LEPRECHAUN, COMPANION, EXTREME,
CANADIAN COUNTRY, CLASSIC, COTTAGE COUNTRY, DAKOTA, GEARBOX, LYNX, MALLARD, NITROUS, PIONEER, PROWLER, QUANTUM, REDLINE, RESORT, TERRY, TRIUMPH, WILDERNESS,
BAMBI, CLASSIC TRAILER, INTERNATIONAL, LAND YACHT, SAFARI,
BOUNDER, FIESTA, FLAIR, JAMBOREE, PACE ARROW, SOUTHWIND, STORM, TERRA, TIOGA ,
ALL-AMERICAN SPORT, BRONCO, CARDINAL, CEDAR CREEK, CHARLESTON, CHEROKEE, FLAGSTAFF, FORESTER, GEORGETOWN, GRAND SURVEYOR, LEXINGTON, MAVERICK, PONY, PUMA, ROCKWOOD, ROO, SALEM, SANDPIPER, SIERRA, SHAMROCK, SPINNAKER, SUNSEEKER, SURVEYOR, THOROUGHBRED, TSUNAMI, WILDWOOD, WILDCAT, WOLF PACK, WORK AND PLAY, YEARLING
CHATEAU, DUTCHMEN, FOUR WINDS, FUN MOVER, HURRICANE, INFINITY, WINDSPORT
CANADIAN SPORT, REFLECTION, WINDSONG , ARISTOCRAT, CENTURION ,
CRUISE AIR MINI, ENCOUNTER, EXCALIBUR, IMPULSE, LEAN MACHINE, MAVERICK, REBEL, SUITE, SWINGER, TRANS MASTER, EASY RIDER, INTRUDER, GOLDEN FALCON, ROYAL CLASSIC, TITANIUM, TRAVELAIRE, PRAIRIE SCHOONER, ATRIUM, CENDO, FRIENDSHIP, INDEPENDENCE, SCENIC CRUISER, SUN VOYAGER, TOUR MASTER, ULTRA SUPREME, YELLOWSTONE, AVATAR, CARDINAL, CRANE, EAGLE COVE, ESPRIT, FIRENZA, HAWK, HERITAGE, JAYHUNTER, KING, KIWI, QWEST, SPORTSTER, SWAN ,FREE SPIRIT, FREEDOM, INDEPENDENCE, BEAVER, HOLIDAY RAMBLER, MCKENZIE, MONACO, SAFARI , BLAZE'N, DOLPHIN, ISLANDER, PALLISADES, RAGE'N, SEA BREEZE, SPLASH, TRADEWINDS, JAZZ, MIRAGE, TAHOE, WANDERER

Bang a gong, get it on.

Well, I'm currently in process of setting up a webpage that shows where I'm at, and where I've been.
Raytubes.com
There's some other things on thee, too. But, I'm getting OpenGTS setup. I've got Ubuntu 6.06 LAMP server setup. Using Mologogo on Nextel i850 to upload Lat/Longs to MySQL. Then PHP makes the googlemap. The phone setup is sweet. I bought a used nextel phone, put a boost mobile sim in there, it's $.20 per day for unlimited internet to upload coordinates.
Save yourself some time, and replace the free java that comes with Ubuntu with the official SUN version this way:
sudo apt-get install j2re1.4
it took me way too long to find that little dot of info...

The Hero Household

With all this buzz over SpiderMan and Heroes lately, I was happy luck to find this item at one of the many community garage sales around here this past weekend. This one guy had a garage full of cheap Chinese junk, resincast skulls and faeries, pocket knives, toys, etc... My little son picked this one up, I looked closer, and had to have it. No licensing, China is like the wild west of manufacturing. Note the straight image grab in the bottom right from Batman promo materials, and who the heck are these other heroes? Are they brothers? Is this a whole clan of Spidermen?
The figures themselves have little LEDs in their chests with a button in the back to light them up. Since they went the extra mile puttin LEDs in them , they skimped on the arms and legs, from the back, they are hollow, only the front is solid. Anyway, they are a welcome addition to the Smith household...

I'm back from my vacation

Since my last post, I've changed jobs. My former job at the DirecTV broadcast center expired. I am now working for Maptuit. I'm a support engineer, responsible for support of the Maptuit RealTraffic web app. It's the premeir traffic application on the web. Maptuit's primary business is commercial grade truck routing and location-based fleet management services. We just signed a deal with Qualcomm that will put Maptuit's Navigo app into thousands and thousands of trucks. I really like the company, what they are doing, where they are going, and the people I work with.

The Amazing Energy Machine of Joseph Newman is here!!!

OMG, it's finally here!!! the video is on Google!!! In short, this guy from Wiggins, MS has created a machine that generates more energy than is put in. He is religiously inspired and my hero. Joseph Newman and his contribution to humanity. This is a large file 404MB much better quality.

Metric

This is Emily from the band Metric. Metric rocks and does a mighty fine live show. Check em out. Search flickr for 'metric' for more pics and sets.

Emily Haines of Metric. Cedar Street Courtyard, Austin, TX. 16 March- SXSW 2006.
photo by yellowlinephoto on flickr

August waning.

Stuff I'm into:
Ubuntu Linux. It just works. Totally. Forget Windows (except for running Sonar, that's all)...
Cocteau Twins (BBC sessions are pretty good, all live and that...)
Firefox Verizon Minutes used extension (works for Tmobile too) -keeps easy tabs on usage, no more overages!!)

And as a side note, just to get this on the innernet:
I bought a Kenmore HE4t washer and dryer (he4). Stacked them up. Both front loaders, work great. previously the HE3 , he3t. Damn expensive units. Bought them from scratch and dent place, no warranty (yikes) but, I can fix anything.
So, the washer starts kicking up a 'suds' error then an F2 error and taking forever to finish a load. Open up, remove wet clothes, and see water standing in the bottom. Checked drain path, it's clear. Couldnt find anything on the internet about this. So, I removed the bottom front panel (screws on bottom front). and in the middle there is the pump catchall. This keeps coins and stuff from getting into the drain pump. Well, suprise suprise, I found my son's missing socks! three of them. 2 quarters, and some rocks as well. Totally clogged. I took that stuff out, put the thing back together and that's it. Wash away!!!
My band has added 'wipeout' What fun.

I lost a month in 10 days!

Wow, time flies when you are not paying attention.
Busy is as busy does, so here's a bunch of pics from my super secret hideout.
I've been incredibly busy away from work as well. I went paintballin one day, plenty of hits. I built a rock wall. I hid a geocache. I replaced a bunch of rocks in the yard. I sank a bunch of stepping stones. I cut grass. I chainsawed trees and my porch. I got my truck fixed. I bought an awsome old rolltop desk. I bought a canoe. I'm playing drums in a classic rock band. I rebuilt my home pc. I built a potting bench. I restacked the woodpile. whew.

Oh My Gawd, It's the Flaming Lips!

From the first time I heard Oh My Gawd, I was hooked. Over the years, Wayne and Drozd have certainly been to the edge and brought back wonderful news everytime. So this time, thanks to an 'advance' torrent, I've been listening to the new album for weeks. It's good. Growing on great. It's like they took some of the catchy pop inflections of Yoshimi and went in a time machine and revisited the Beach Boys, then Pink Floyd at Pompeii then took a dose of Mercury Rev's flute stuff.
All in all , it's quite good, plenty of goofy fun to be had.
Go get it.
The Flips and Ween and the Go! Team will be at Red Rocks later this summer.

I never update this anymore...

Isn't this the case with all blogs? Editor laziness....
So, here's a quickie:
Go listen to some Manu Chao. Try any of it:
Manu Negra, Radio Bemba Sound System, or his solo stuff is great.
Trust me, you'll like it.

http://www.manuchao.net

or, go wild and get some super crazy bamako sound from
Amadou and Mariam (manu chao produced)

http://www.amadou-mariam.com/

again, trust me, you've never heard anything like this before.


go check out musicthing

Maximux Taxus Scammum

I hafta post about what I saw last night. It's about the cheapo printer company, Lexmark. Lexmark kindly donated a color printer to every teacher in the entire Douglas county school district. Wow, that's alot of printers. The free printer is the cheapest model Lexmark has. You know, the one they give you free with a computer purchase as 'incentive'. The whole business model behind these printers is to give them away, (it's a $30 printer) and then charge you a premium for the ink ($60 for both inks). Brilliant. Well, this printer is packaged with a folder inside for the 'Teacher program'. Inside this is a letter telling the teacher that Lexmark will 'donate' an ink cart for every three purchased from their website at normal retail prices. The average teacher would be like, wow, that's great and order plenty of ink to get the free one. This is a double bonus for Lexmark, they get pure profit from the sales of three inks, then get to take a tax deduction for the 'donated' ink. I'm sure Lexmark takes a FAT tax deduction for all the donated printers as well. It's what all the great corporations do in America, screw Uncle Sam. Even CokaCola scams us, they have MASSIVE tax dodges just by putting their 'international' offices in Antigua or Antilles so they don't hafta pay taxes and tarrifs to the U.S. for selling internationally. The whole machine pays for itself, the big corps then pay lobbyists to maintain the giant tax loopholes that make the corps richer. It makes me a disgusted American. Only when Washington D.C. is nuked and most of the crooked politicans are gone and then the 'centralized and corrupt' government is decentralized and politicians work from their home districts that voted them into office will any of the crappy american politcal system change signifigantly. Yeesh, at least my crap goes down the toilet somewhere else.....

Marked for life

I know it's geeky, but it's a fun and outdoorsy thing to do, and that's geocaching.
I've been poking away at the ground for a couple of years now. I recently decided to place a couple of caches around Castle Rock. I found a couple of places that are 'hidden' right in town that are pretty cool. One has a bunch of outdoor artwork and a hidden picnic bench, the other has a great view of the town. Take a look.
Old Glory Overlook
The Forgotten Picnic
Both caches are watertight plastic containers wrapped in camo tape, well hidden. It's pretty neat knowing these things will (hopefully) be there forever. It's also interesting the the detrius and flotsam that occupies these things, little trinkets and objects from everywhere.