Archive for June, 2005

Reunions & Such

June 19th, 2005 | Category: Soapbox

After attending a reunion last night, I can now say I am officially old or responsible or an adult (bar mitzvah, what?) or something. While it had some serious resemblances to prom (same room, DJ, pictures…), it was actually a blast. A few were noticably absent and several were serving in Iraq, but the rest of us got together and showed we can still party with the young guns. After stories of other reunions, I expected a lot more posturing. But I have to say that I am proud of my old class. Proud that no one - to my knowledge - made a big deal that their car/job/dog was sooo much better than the rest. Proud that, the most oft asked question was "what area do you live?" not "what do you do?". Proud that, as young as we are, many had already left traditional professions and were pursuing something they loved. Life is too short to slave away for just a paycheck. But moving forward, I'd say what I most took away from my reunion was a couple more players for the weekly poker game (suckers!) ;)

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Send More Money

June 12th, 2005 | Category: Finance

Here's a little math/logic quiz for those of you with too much spare time. A college kid was sooo broke that he was only able to mail his parents the following message: SEND +MORE MONEY How much money did his parents send? Thanks Jeremy

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Dance, iPod Man, Dance!

June 11th, 2005 | Category: Fun n Games

You know those single colored people that are always dancing in the iPod commercials? Well, why don't you ever see those people in real life? Well now you can… I especially like the smooth way he recovers after realizes that they super glue those iPods to the dancers for the commercials.

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Illegal Immigrants Charged With Trespassing

June 11th, 2005 | Category: Soapbox

This is great! A small town New Hampshire police chief is gathering national attention for his creative approach to a touchy subject. Illegal Immigration has become a growing problem in this country with over 8 MILLION illegal imigrants — almost half a million of whom are "fleeing" deportation. Opponents point out the large security risk such lax enforcement creates in a post 9/11 world. Proponents claim that enforcing immigration law would create racial/ethnic atrocities and that illegal immigration should be overlooked since most illegals are simply looking for work. This article is great because it shows that small communities can still handle things themselves without needing the Federal Government for every exigency. Which is the true reason the ACLU is concerned. Not fears "that a police chief has the right to set federal policy", but that people might realize that local governments could set their own policy instead of wringing their hands waiting for the feds. The ACLU has been learning that the American people are not as easy to control as the Federal government. …Chamberlain was nudged into action in the summer of 2004, when he stopped a van for speeding along New Ipswich's short main drag. He found 10 Ecuadoran men inside, all of whom readily admitted they lacked legal papers. Chamberlain placed a phone call to ICE. "The feds were, like, 'Whatever. Just give them a ticket and let them go,' " Chamberlain said. "I was shocked." After that, the chief sat down with a local prosecutor and tried to find a legal foothold. They settled on New Hampshire's trespassing law, which states: "A person is guilty of criminal trespass if, knowing he is not licensed or privileged to do so, he enters or remains in any place"…

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Russian Religous Freedom?

June 10th, 2005 | Category: God

Apparently in New Russia, you have the freedom to practice any Christian denomination you choose — just as long as you don't really bring it up much or try to meet in public. If you want a meeting space, well, the Orthodox Church will be happy to welcome you back to the fold — after keeping you from starting that "new" church.

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Affordable Helo

June 07th, 2005 | Category: Links

An inventor has created a new type of Helocopter. It has 2 distinct advantages. 1) It's cheap, relatively speaking, at only $50,000… not much more than a decked out SUV these days. 2) It's much easier to fly. Normal helocopters have only one blade to create lift. This creates the need for the rotor on the tail to counter-act the spin induced by -well- physics. The AirScooter uses a 2 blade system so the spin on the 'copter canceled out as the blades spin in opposite directions. This removes the need to have foot pedals that constantly adjust the power to the tail rotor. So you end up with a flying machine with motorcylce style handlebars and nothing else. One other perk: no pilots license required (again lowering the overall cost). Though my guess is part of the reason you don't have to have a license is that it is a single seater… so if you go off and get yourself killed — well that's really your fault now isn't it? There is a video at the main site.

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Cat Pee Starts Fire

June 03rd, 2005 | Category: Bizarre

Oops! Kitty did an uh-oh! Some cats used a fax as a toilet and set off a house fire. Whew, another reason to be a dog person - there are already so many… Even if my new dog ate my PS controlers… kinda pales in comparison to the whole house.

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Plasma Mug Anyone?

June 01st, 2005 | Category: Tech

That's right, why settle for a boring old mug… or even a mug with simply a witty message on the side. Now you can enjoy the beauty and the glory of real live plasma. Utilizing a cutting-edge battery powered coaster, this wonderful mug can hold a whopping 8 oz of liquid and look right pretty doing it.

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