Spoke to Keith at some length today, and it seems that he’s getting things sorted out as far as his hospice arrangements. I’ll spare you the gory details of his physical condition, but we talked about discrete number theory, genetic algorithms, the Sims, and soluble and insoluble equations, object oriented programming, expert systems, and New Mexico. Some anonymous donor sent him one of the books off of his list, which he was thrilled to get, so thanks for that.
You may think that this is a lame way of declaring an open thread, but I’d like to know what’s going on in your lives, and what you’re thinking about, and what topics you think are interesting that we might have missed here. Thanks.
My meat-space priorities have met with ignoble defeat this summer, so I’ve come crawling back, from time to time.
That’s rather gnomic, TSI, but thanks. Any chance you’d like to contribute some form of post?
You guys weren’t doing a “My OOP language can beat up your OOP language” I hope.
Your meat was what? I don’t think I wanna know. It sounds dirty.
I wish I knew.
I went to another blog today. Debbie Schoozle or something. It was scary so I’m back now.
She thinks Fred Thompson is a jihadi. It was very weird.
I am completely brain dead from sitting through a 10 hour OSHA lecture today. How is shit like that not covered by the Geneva Convention?
I drilled innumerable holes in a 4 x 8 foot by 1/2 inch sheet of aluminum with a number 7 drill. I then proceeded to thread those holes with a 1/4 x 20 tap. I did a little welding. I did some CAD drawings of things I know not what of. Aren’t you sorry you asked?
Are crop circles still a hot topic?
tw; O’Tooles sincerity. Depends on how much he’s had to drink.
Well, explains your name, at least.
As always my best wishes to Keith. I don’t know him, but I like him just the same. Nothing exciting going on here. Thanks for asking.
Is it just me, or is happyfeet being kind of, inscrutable, lately?
Don’t know how mobile burrhog is, but there is a great used bookstore in Albuquerque called “Page One Too”.
No, I think that he’s capable of being scruted, cynn. Rusty: the new place is built into the side of a hill. I bought a display slide from Home Depot and installed it over the railing at the end of the parking lot so that I can slide wood down to the living floor for the stove.
He lives in a town called Cedar Creek, not too far from Corpus Christi, Robin. His family owns a place in the mountains in NM, and he’d like to get well enough to get out there. I’ve no idea where it is in relation to Albuquerque.
It’s very hot here, cynn. I made coffee twice today and didn’t really drink any. I can’t have them fix the a/c unless I figure out where to stash all the little animals I’m not supposed to have. I wrote a comment here earlier that is a paragon of clarity. Kind of, anyway.
Ok, my day. Put up two new outside lights for the two back doors. Then put up two double 40 watt fluorescent lights in part of the basement so I can finally sort through all the boxes there from moving over a year ago (procrastination I’m good at). Sorted some. Made dinner for my wife, steaks, corn on the cob, salad, blueberry cobbler. Now checking the computer before turning in. Typical Saturday.
the trees, they are controversial in texas, illegal where he’s going next…
Wow, geoff You’re welcome to come cook at my place anytime.
happyfeet: don’t understand your situation, but hope you’re OK.
Cynn–his AC’s out. He’s a little delirious from the heat. He’d like to call for a repair, but he’s harboring furry creatures that he’s not supposed to have. So, although he’s made coffee, it’s too hot for him really to want to drink it.
I think he’ll be okay, though.
Sit in the bathtub or one of those little inflatable pools all day. That’s my remedy for our 95 plus heat and all is well.
Oh, and depending on the furriness of the creatures, can’t you hydrate them with you? Nobody needs to know. I know my pet rats love to swim; why not other little guys?
Or just take a cold, cold shower as often as needed.
A rubbing alcohol rubdown can help, too.
If you’re actually so hot that it’s starting to affect your thinking, it’s a bad sign…. don’t ignore it.
I’m sitting here wondering why the Red Sox are in the eleventh fucking inning with the Tamps Bay Devil Rays.
How and when did I wind up in Bizzaro World?
Everything’s ok, thanks you guys. Dan’s on the mark. The turtles love the heat, they are in the last rays of sun, basking, one balanced precariously on the shell of the other. The mini-bunnies are happy in a shady spot. Me, I’m from South Texas, so the heat mostly just means I have to work out later in the day than I’d like, but it does seem to make my head lethargic.
Waitaminute, I don’t buy this. The AC guy wouldn’t know or care what animals he had in his house.
AC guy: I’m here to fix your air conditioning, any small animals to report?
HF: No, just the civets.
HF: And lots of voles.
AC guy: Well, then I can’t help you. Regulations prevent me from restoring AC to people who harbor furry creatures you’re not supposed to have.
HF: What about the chinchillas?
It’s an apartment, cynn. The manager person has to come let the maintenance guy in. She already evicted my plants because of their excessive plantiness.
Never seen this before – may be a kooky, anti-blind SoCal thing, but my lease says NO *animals*, not even on the balcony, but if I lose my sight or hearing or whatever, I can have a helpful puppy if I pay a $5,000 deposit. I kid you not.
Well, that sure sucks. I’m spoiled, living in my own home where I make the rules.
cynn said,
“I’m spoiled, living in my own home where I make the rules.”
Same here, owned since 86′, Don’t want it any other way. Of course when stuff needs fixing I gotta do it. Right now I gotta hit the hay. Night all.
I was doing important stuff like catching up on sleep from going to see the midinght Simpsons Movie (for my regular web gig; oh, the sacrifice.) Drove home through where they’re shooting The Dark Knight — a little disconcerting to see the helicopter wreckage behind the Federal Reserve Bank, but pretty sure it was a prop. Grocery shopping.
But I got somethng for Keith, so I did at least one thing worthwhile.
I just got back from a memorial service for a 41-year-old to read the online obituary of my dad’s 59-year-old cousin. So between all that and Keith, my lesson for the day is to appreciate the time you have in this world, and the time you have with your loved ones.
And, actually, I spent the day remembering a remarkable lady with people I like being with. We sang, we cried, and we laughed. I lived well today.
Well done, Steve.
thinking I should go to sleep since I agreed to sing in my parent’s church tomorrow morning. Only the eleven o’clock service though, being an hour ahead as it is, doing the eight o’clock service was out of the question. well okay, I contemplated it, realized I hadn’t been awake before 11 since I got here and said no. Now there’s just the matter of what I’m gonna sing, which depends on the sound system situation tomorrow morning. Though I have a history of having to resort to plan b when singing at strange churches (two power outages and a tape erasure)
anyhoo, I think y’all have covered what I’ve been interested in. Look forward to hearing “moving stories” from Dan. mainly since there’s (hopefully) cats involved.
Let’s see…
Lesson planning for next week, check
Three loads of laundry, check
oil change for car, check
long weekennd nap, check
several hundred pages of pleasure reading, check
What are you reading, gahrie? (And make it convincing, please).
What I did today:
Worked on my grapes, kiwis, strawberries, and currants, in some cases gently persuading them to grow in better directions.
Ordered some cherry trees.
Harvested some green chiles and garlic.
Discovered that a blackberry I planted a couple of years ago, and had given up for dead, was alive and growing like mad in a neglected corner of the back yard.
Watched some ants at work for a while.
Thought about repairing my tool shed (tomorrow).
Watched the trailer for Paprika and sighed (it looks lovely, but isn’t playing anywhere within a hundred miles — too bad the local “art theatre” would rather play Michael Moore’s latest drivel than stuff like this).
Read most of Scalzi’s The Ghost Brigades.
Made some really bitchin’ curried tuna and Havarti snacks.
Took a nice nap with my wife and our cat.
Started reading Macaulay’s The History of England from the Accession of James II (that’s going to take a while, since I don’t have the awesomely god-like skimming abilities of a Henley or a Caric).
Now I will have myself a Black Bush on the rocks and go to bed.
I am still breathing. Barely.
Question for Dan: “soluble and insoluble equations� Is this why you were poppin’ beers?
I was talking about solvable equations. If problems were soluble, then we’d see even more drunk mathematicians.
FYI:
Favorite Discrete mathematician: Donald Knuth
Anyone who has ever studied Knuth knew that the National Guard papers used against Bush were fakes. The forger used some kind of device that made use of Knuth’s algorithms. Algorithms that Knuth didn’t create for years after the fakes were supposedly written.
Knuth’s “Bible Texts Illuminatedâ€Â,one of my favorite books.
Others: “The World of Poohâ€Â, A. A. Milne
“The Far Fieldâ€Â, Theodore Roethke.
“Dreaming of Babylon: A Private Eye Novel, 1942â€Â, Richard Brautigan (also by Brautigan, “Loading Mecury with a Pitchfork”, poetry)
“Eyelids of Morning; the Mingled Destinies of Crocodiles and Men: Being a Description of the Origins, History, and Prospects of Lake Rudolf, Its Peoples, Deserts, Rivers, Mountains, and Weather … “, Authors: A. D. Graham, Peter H. Beard (Illustrator)
To be continued…so many more…
Also, some really thoughtful person bought me “Mountaineering In Scotland …†off my Wish List. Since this book was only available used it was shipped anonymously. I would really like it if the sender would drop me an email and spill the beans.
Must go to sleep in between Laxis doses…
Peace & Love,
Keith
I just finished a 12-hour shift keeping one little teeny tiny itsy bitsy corner of the internet up and running. And next week, I have a battery of tests preliminary to having a neurosurgeon drill into my skull.
And just in case you were wondering: no, I don’t think the two are related to any problems you may have been having with your internet connection.
Thanks, Keith. I know it’s not easy posting, but it’s great to see you here.
Aye that, lad. Hang in there.
I’m re-reading Stirling’s Dies the Fire series, and Tractman’s The Supremes’ Greatest Hits.
Last week, I flew to Tokyo, got my house packed up and moved out, and flew back out of Tokyo. In a few weeks we’ll move to LA. Somewhere along the line, I think I broke my nose but I don’t remember doing it (and no, I wasn’t drunk).
Russ- what’s this about drilling in your head?
MayBee –
It’s due to hydrocephalus. Usually limited to children, but once in a while it can strike an adult… like me, for instance.
Good luck, buddy. Sounds scary.
Keith:
Bravo to you for posting! Hang in there and know that many of us are praying for you to be strong enough to do what you want to do with the time you have left and that time will exceed all expectations.
As for what I’m doing, I’m reading through Robin Miller’s “Sacred Rage” about Shia terrorism and Iran. It’s the last of my “jihadi” readings that took me through Bernard Lewis, “God’s Warrior’s”, Robert Spencer, Walid Phares Charle Allen’s “God’s Terrorists. I think I am due for a break from all that and plan to immerse myself in some George R. R. Martin.
Most of the weekend has been devoted to straping on the Taylor 614E acoustic and learning “Ashokan Farewell,” which I will be performing in church next Sunday witrh the daughter of a friend of mine. All in all it’s been a work of love although my wife is getting sick of hearing it over and over and over…
Oh, and I’m looking for a new job as the one I have sucks and a hate the guy I work for.
Other than that, nothing much.
Keith! Hang in and take care! For some reason, I’m going to read “Green Mansions” this week…
Think about what you want for Christmas; I should actually have scratch by then. Nothing expensive, just fun for your recovery.
aaaaaw, that’s a nice song. speaking of practicing. yesterday my dad started into Embracable You and my mom let out a big sigh. I giggled about it and RTO is all “What? you do the same thing. Play the same thing over and over and over. it’s what you people do.” Mom has been trying to find dad a new piano teacher. so hopefully he’ll start working on something different soon.
It never ceases to amuse me when people walk up to my wife and I and say, “Oh, it must be so wonderful to live in a house with so much music!” My better’s rolled eyes communicate the mind numbing reality that anything I plan to perform in at venue with be played ad nauseum until it is right.
Such is the burden of those who love musicians.
Maggie, the really cool thing is that i’m going to read the Sullivan Ballou letter just before the fiddler breaks into the melody. My over/under is 50 people crying.
The only music around my place lately has been the sound of power saws and a Paslode nailer as the new porch goes up. It’s a shed roof but with a hip portion directly over the stairs, which meant valley rafters and hip rafters, both of which require angle AND bevel cuts. So my head hurts almost as much as my back.
A couple more pieces of decking and we switch over to straight back pain from carrying bundles of shingles up a ladder to roof the thing.
Keith, buddy. I’d send you something to read, but most of my books have small words, large type, and lots of pictures. So i’ll just send along my best to you and your family, and send another shout out to TBMUS.