Oh Snap!

I woke this morning before first light when terrible winds arrived with the cold front howling between the houses staining the windows and the shingles to the limits.

This pole in town broke under the strain.

POSTED: Sunday, December 28, 2008

UPDATED: 12:37 pm EST December 28, 2008

DETROIT -- DTE estimates about 200,000 customers are without power throughout the metro Detroit area Sunday afternoon.

Best Christmas Gifts

I was going to write a big thing about Christmas presents. What was my favorite perhaps or the best of all time etc.

Tanner was running around and reminded me she wanted attention. Rolling around like a puppy playing with her Christmas present. I went around the corner of the couch and found four little yellow feet. They were once attached to this cat that also once had a tail and a “squeak” also. She just looked up at me with this cat in her mouth and a wag in her tail.

With a slobber covered footless cat Tanner reminded me that the measure of a good gift was the joy in which you receive. Both in the giving and the getting. Merry Christmas Tanner.

Mother Natures Folly

Last week it was -23 deg (with the wind-chill). Today it was nearly 60 degrees. It was warm enough to make the snow melt and steam was coming off the snow pack in waves.

There is so much going on in this picture, the river so high, the swan and the ducks above the waterfall, the log that was caught in the undertow that was stuck in the agitation of the water.

It was funny walking through the woods you could feel the cold and warm pockets of air maybe 10 or more deg. difference. It was like walking by an open fridge every couple of steps or so. I am afraid we are going to be paying for this warm spell in a couple of days or so.

Merry Christmas Eve Everyone

Winter River

Today was brutal cold.

With the high of 11 and a low of -1, it seemed fitting the wind would howl and drop the wind chill to -17 to -25 respectively. Besides reminding me what cold really was, it proved to be more of a nuisance than anything else as adding layers of clothes really only makes things more difficult like trying to walk in waist deep water. You will get there but everything takes a lot of effort.

Things still had to get done and one of those things was taking the dog for exercise. It was cold enough to warrant her wool chest protector. I chose the woods instead of the relatively open fields we usually go for some protection from winds and some little protection it did provide, but I still froze my ass off.

The river was as breathtaking as the cold as you can see. Tanner were unaffected, oblivious the to cold and as happy as a puppy.

Anatomy of a End of the Year Business Luncheon.

I have noticed a disturbing trend lately. Political correctness run amuck. Offices that can still afford to have parties at the end of the season are doing so in a way that is so nambsy pambsy so laughably safe that is sickening.

What has the world come to where we can’t say Christmas Party in fear of offending some person or persons? It’s not a end of the year business luncheon, it’s a fickin Christmas party.

I say let the merriment commence, and let the chips fall where it may before we turn into a nation of wimps. Lets stop pandering to everyone else and start living our lives. I mean we got by for hundreds of years having Christmas parties just fine.

Florida Winter Smarts

Brian realized too late that boots were an essential piece of winter
gear.
A for thinking on his feet.
D- for not thinking ahead.
F for thinking I wouldn't make fun of him.

Snow Night Out

Tonight for Chelsey's Birthday we went out to dinner, and the snow proved to be a pretty back drop at the Ann Arbor parking structure on Washington.

Snow

Jessies lone car can be seen in the lot as most people were at least
delayed on the way to work with a heavy snow fall overnight. With more
expected it is gong to be a long day.
(my truck is off to the side out of sight)

The IT Crowd

For The Win. If you don't know check out some YouTube action.

You know your a Redneck when...

My next truck

Coming to a trailer park near you… also … my next truck accessory.

Snowder Web

A few inches of snow last night left a fine powder ok the truck webbing.

Yet more stupidity given out as advise to the public. Just goes to show that the average geek fan is better equipped than the “experts”. I weep for the future.

Thanks Gizmodo for this one:




Consumer Reports Shouldn't Review Cellphones Anymore
By matt buchanan, 12:50 PM on Tue Dec 16 2008, 1,575 views

Consumer Reports' picks for top five smartphones confirms they're woefully out of touch. Four of the five are Windows Mobile phones from last year, and the sole BlackBerry is the worst RIM offers. Uhhhh, WTF?

Here's the list, provided by jkOnTheRun:

1. Samsung Blackjack II
2. T-Mobile Wing
3. Motorola Q9C
4. T-Mobile Shadow
5. Blackberry Pearl Flip

Ignoring for the moment that four out of the five are Windows Mobile phones, they didn't even pick new, actually good hardware. Not one of the phones, except for the Pearl Flip—which is actually the least capable phone in RIM's new batch of devices—is even from this year. Its top phone, the BlackJack II, doesn't even have Wi-Fi or a touchscreen, and is loaded with Samsung's BS proprietary ports, rather than industry standard ones. Beyond that, where the hell are the other good smartphones? If they wanna be dated, where's the BlackBerry Curve? They could shoehorn it in by reviewing one of the newer iterations with Wi-Fi. No Symbian?

Rob at BoingBoing Gadgets said a couple weeks ago (in response to me bitching about Consumer Reports, actually) that even as "a religious devotee of its general coverage," he finds "its gadget reviews are often ambivalent and unsatisfying, like an elderly grandmother trying to explain why she prefers sherry to port."

The heart of the matter—that Rob hints at—why Consumer Reports can tell you what vacuum cleaner or washing machine to buy with unrivaled authority, but apparently knows approximately dick about smartphones, is that they don't get software. And guess what? We've reached a tipping point where software is the most important part of a phone. Hardware is commoditized—read the spec sheet for any current smartphone, they've all got just about the same crap inside. It's all about software now, and it's going to go further in that direction. Why do you think everyone's pushing their own platform and app store, anyway?

My point is that Consumer Reports desperately needs to overhaul the way it reviews phones, before it doesn't just look out of touch and silly, but hopelessly so. [jkOnTheRun, ZDNet]

cold

Sure its not the coldest day ever, but its cold. It may not be that cold but the 50 deg. drop in a few hours makes a bitch.

Current weather:

17°F
Feels Like
3°F

That’s cold for autumn as it still 6 days before winter strikes…ouch. Really I got the fleece lined pants out to take the dog to the park. As usual Tanner was unaffected.

WTF- I HATE PEOPLE

There's a special level of Hell awaiting the folks at Monster Cable.

Best Buy and Circuit City is just keeping their spot warm.

This week, someone close to me was ripped off by Circuit City. In this day and age I can on believe that the company would encourage and reward the practice of RIPPING PEOPLE OFF by selling them “high performance” hdmi monster cables for well over $100.00. In this case they were duped into paying $150.00 for a cable you can buy at a variety of places for less than $30.00.

Are you kidding me?

You are encouraging people to TAKE ADVANTAGE of others. Later in life these same people will think its ok to cheat on there taxes, inflate an insurance claim to cover a deductible, and kill that drifter because he does not matter like a real person….wait, what? Ahem, I digress.

What I mean is I spent all day arguing with people LYING TO ME to save a buck only to find that I cant send my only family out to a store without expecting them to get ripped off and lied to as well. WTF. Nice Christmas spirit assholes. This is only second to the oil companies sticking to the American people, raking in record profits and raking us over the coals so bad we are now GRATEFUL for the less than $2.00 gas we now have the privilege of buying from them. They are laughing their asses off right now because while the rest of us have been going broke they just made bazillions. Nice.

PS BEST BUY AND CIRCUIT CITY if you can even show me one iota of proof that your $150 it worth the money you are selling it for I will show you… what the hell I will show you what ever you want because THEY ARE NOT THEY ARE A TOTAL RIP OFF AND YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES.

Cafe Latte

Mmmm caffeine...

Sometimes I think people take their morning coffee to seriously.

Then there are the times that I know people take their morning coffee to seriously.

Knockers

I have always had a thing for nice knockers.

Cool Gear - The Stick

Just recently, someone asked me what my favorite tool is.

Quickly I rattled off three tools I use most often. These tools were things I use weekly without thought and without I would not know what to do. My table saw, my dedicated mortise press, my pocket knife all jumped out at me.

In my haste I realized I had really not really thought this through… I mean what is my favorite tool REALLY? After much contemplation I think my favorite tool is a stick. A stick you might ask. Sound pretty rudimentary…why not a rock.

Well I will tell you why.

A stick has been mans helper since the beginning of time. Don’t believe me? Think of it this way. In the beginning some caveman found a stick. He used it to get ants from inside an ant hill. Later he sharpened it to a point and used that spear to hunt providing for his family. Later still he formed a club to defend himself and again to hunt. Later he put feather on it to make an arrow, not to mention the bow that flung it. He soaked the end in oil set it afire and used it to light his way. We could find water with it; tapping it we could use it to find our way with out sight.

That was just the beginning. There was no end to the tool possibilities.

Later we made equal marks along its edge and made a yardstick. Put a bubble on it and made a level. We have propped windows open, staked tents with it and cleaned our teeth with it. We roast marshmallow with it and catch fish with it. We chalk the end and play pool with it. We poke, we prod, and pole-vault with it. We skewer, we fondue, we freeze popsicles and place Carmel apples upon it. We have walked softly with it, and our dogs play fetch with it. Orville and Wilbur even controlled a plane with it.

So you see the stick, the lowly stick, has to be my favorite tool. Why? That’s easy because without which we would not be what we are today.

Tree Time

Here is our non-denominational arboreal homage to the holiday festivities.

Shop Update- Christmas Toys

Its that time of year when everyone is full of holiday spirit and the shop fills with projects that need to be done.

Here you see a doll bed I am making for my Niece this Christmas.

Santa is not the only one with workshop you know… and I did not even have any elf helpers.

Ummm ... What?

I am not sure this would be my first choice.

Speaking of Winterizing

Mother Nature saw fit to winterize my truck as well. It was damn cold this morning, damn cold and I forgot my gloves today....

Christmas Elves

...stopped by last night and "winterized" the house.

Santa's GMAIL

BEST.SCREENSHOT.EVER.
click on above to see better

thank Gizmodo