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Thursday, December 18th, 2003, 1539
Documentation is my specialty!Ever since I upgraded my firewall on October 15, I've been meaning to clean up my notes and document what I did. For my own uses, and in case anyone cares. I've finally posted my notes on upgrading a Mandrake Linux Firewall, and I welcome comments and suggestions. I realize I need to automate a lot more of it, and I might just work on that over my Christmas break.
Monday, December 15th, 2003, 1645
Battlestar Galactica returns...and this time, it doesn't suck. I watched it everytime it was on, and continue to be impressed with the show. Actual actors. A real plot. Good special effects. Dialog that _wasn't_ hokey. And characters who weren't cardboard cutouts. It had virtually nothing in common with the old show, except for the look of some of the ships. It worked, in a pretty major way.
I hope the ratings were good enough that they'll be able to run this as a series.
Wednesday, November 26, 2003, 0038
Thank god I didn't pay for this...I just caught the last hour of Titan AE on FX, and I have to say: I want my time back.
I am honestly horrified that this film was made. I am flabbergasted that it ever got past a test audience. With the exception of L. Ron Hubbard fiction, I have never encountered such a ridiculous conglomeration of cliches. On a scale of one to ten, I give this movie a negative four.
The animation was okay, and the graphical effects stunning, but there was no coherent plot to back up the film. This really looks like the gents who put together Liquid Television managed to get a science fiction film bankrolled. Filled with spectacular scenes of spaceships ignoring physics while floating through fields of giant ice crystals, I am reminded of any number of mindless action films. The difference here is that we are treated to giant panoramic scenes of space, rather than a numbing cacophany of gunfire.
Perhaps stoners would enjoy this movie. I did not. The dialog was so painfully bad that it was easy to place Ms. Drew Barrymore's voice. After all, she's the same genius who resurrected that little-known tale of female independence in a male-dominated world known as Charlie's Angels.
This movie really, really, really sucked. Worse than Charlie's Angels. Worse than Batman and Robin. Worse than... Worse than Cadillac Man. I can honestly say that no one who values their intelligence should see this movie. I think it shaved fifteen IQ points right off me.
Titan AE categorizes whats wrong with much of American Cinema. It bravely refuses to innovate or explore any new territory, instead recycling a handful of themes from other science fiction films, including Star Trek II. Not Khan--that would have been redeeming. No, it has the Genesis Device. One can only hope that if there is a sequel, a newly rejuvenated Spock will bring some color to the flick. And as for the "humanity is nearly lost" theme, I think that Battlestar Galactica showed just how schlocky that ends up being. For Pete's sake, Titan AE ripped off parts of Battlestar Galactica, which ripped off plenty from Lost in Space and Star Wars and Wagon Train--none of which had any really original ideas with which to begin.
The film was unable to end with anything other than the classic "darkest before dawn" tripe, in which everything is lost until some yahoo flips the magic switch and destroys all the bad guys instantly. Well, history has shown that such things really don't happen. Ask any veteran of the Eastern Front what happens when you've got six million soviet troops versus two million Wehrmacht: The Germans get pounded. They lose. Hands down. That's how war works: He who produces the most men and materials wins. It's how the Chinese overwhelmed the US in Korea, it's how the Allies beat the Germans.
But I digress. Do not, under any circumstances, see this film.
Wednesday, October 22, 2003, 1027
The Measure of a ManI've heard many things used as the benchmark for how good a person someone is. Yesterday, a dear friend taught me the best measure, though he's left us all.
Sixty men, women and children stood as pallbearers for Erik. He touched more lives than he could ever have imagined. If you've ever seen a sculpture from StoryPeople, then you've seen his work. Erik cut virtually all of the wood used in those sculptures. He was a gentle giant, and though a flawed human (like all of us), I rarely saw those flaws. Brian Andreas made a beautiful poem and insert for the service yesterday. It is an appropriate Eulogy for Erik Paul Nils Johnson.
Erik was one of my groomsmen, and I never imagined that he would leave us at such an early age. I have no brothers by my own parents, but Erik truly was my brother from another mother. The number of people that felt this way about him was staggering.
I saw a lot of people I haven't seen in years at the funeral. I got in touch with a lot of old friends. Old arguments forgotten, old injuries forgiven, old differences set aside to mourn the passing of a good man. I cannot imagine a better way to celebrate the life of Erik than the fellowship we all experienced at his service. There were artists a plenty at the service, but there were as many who were not. I saw many men whom I would not have believed capable of shedding a tear, and they all wept at his passing. Former loves from his life, even those who had not left on good terms, wept for him.
But I do not believe Erik would have us weep. I think he would rather that we revel in the memories of him, that we cherish the love he held for all of us, and that we try to treat our fellow man with the kindness and respect that came so easily to him.
I feel deep sorrow for all that mourn him, and can only trust that in time they will come to cherish the memories of him more than they regret his loss. I take great comfort in the fact that he lived more than any man I've ever met, and he lived well. I can scarcely imagine a life better lived than his.
Thursday, October 16, 2003, 2026
You will be missed, my friendOne of the best people I've ever known, Erik Paul Nils Johnson, died this afternoon. I desperately wish this was a prank. But unfortunately, it's not. Erik was one of the last vikings. As Matthew (sitting on the left) said: If anyone is in Valhalla, it's Erik.
Matthew & Erik Johnson (left to right), no relation, Decorah, Iowa, July 2002
Tuesday, October 8, 2003, 1616
Finally, a rationale behind my dislike...The author of this Anti-Microsoft diatribe has done quite a job of succinctly summarizing why MS writes bad software, and why you shouldn't use it.
There's a lot in here that I didn't know before. I certainly didn't realize MS had tried to convince peripheral manufacturers to dump PCI in favor of USB. Hrmph. PCI has its place, as does USB.
Monday, September 29, 2003, 1909
More Baby PicsI used to think I was busy before I had a kid. HA!
Anyway, here are some new sets of pictures from Sept 13th and before and some pics from the 13th to the 19th. I'll take more pictures soon :) Really!
Tuesday, July 29th, 2003, 2152
More PicturesAll I seem to do these days is take pictures of little Thorwald. But we did take time, as you'll see in these pictures, to head out to Dave & Anne's pool, and recreate a bit. There are actually some shots of the little guy with his eyes wide open in here, too! Darn near a first!
Friday, July 11th, 2003, 1849
Wealth is never monetaryHaving the baby is really waking me up to how little monetary wealth matters at all. The real wakeup I've gotten on this has been the outpouring of affection from our friends--some of whom I've been terribly, terribly lax at keeping in the communication loop. Jose & his girlfriend Beth are good friends who we keep meaning to visit, but as of yet have been unable. Thanks to their generous, generous gift, however, I can provide this page of snapshots, and even an avi.
Thanks guys!
Thursday, July 3, 2003, 2030
Thorwald is here!I know I'm a bit late getting these digital pictures up, and they're big, so if you're on a modem, looking at these will suck (sorry mom, dad & Ronda!). After all, Thorwald Gustav was born on July 1st, at 1:02 PM. He was five pounds, five ounces, and eighteen inches long, which isn't bad considering he was _supposed_ to arrive on August 2nd. 31 days early, which I guess is to be expected, since his old man is always in a hurry too. He's doing very, very well. He was born by C-section, and he came into the world feet first.
There are more pictures, but I've been taking some of them with regular film, and some with the digital camera, and I guess all the pictures of my family and most of our friends are on the real film camera. Along with a picture of him as he was pulled from the womb. I'm back to the hospital now, to spend time with mom and baby. He's filling diapers pretty well already, so we're hoping he'll start eating today. He's got a lot of weight to gain before he can handle that VTR250.
And for the curious, Thorwald is pronounced Torvald. The W is like a V, and the H is silent. What will we call him? Thorwald. That's his name, after all, and it's only two syllables, so it's no different than David, or Peter, or William.
Sunday, June 1, 2003, 2127
The patriot isn't afraid to question...A good friend sent me this link, which pretty much sums up most of what the Bush Administration is currently up to. Funny, aggravating. Somewhere between the rabid legions of Earth First, and the Australopithecines lining up to purchase the latest UberSUV is a reasonable compromise. I think basing vehicle tabs on vehicle weight would be a good start to accurately assessing roadwear from those trucks...
Tuesday, May 13, 2003, 1418
The Matrix RehashedWould someone please tell all these Matrix fans to take a deep breath and get back to reality? It's not neo-Christian symbolism, it's not philosophically deep. It's just a story about reality being not quite reality. Jeez...
Monday, May 12, 2003, 1151
Someone wanna loan me about $10k?If someone will loan me the money, I can get one of the new Shrike belt-fed AR-15 uppers. How cool is that? Call Ares Defense Systems to get one today. They make a semi-auto which is legal in MN, too.
Tuesday, Feb 4, 2003, 1640
I agreeFrom: "Dirk Koenig" To: "Jeremy Anderson" Subject: Blog post Between ignorant and stupid, I'll pick ignorant. At least it's curable...
Tuesday, Feb 4, 2003, 1039
Uhhh...DUH?So last night, I stop and help a guy with car trouble. I was driving southbound on 169, and I see a car hit its hazards and pull over. So I pull in ahead of him, and get out of the car and walk back. "I think I'm out of gas since my gas gauge doesn't work." he says. Now, bear in mind, that's the cleaned up version of what he says. I removed about six "Man"s, five "Uh"s, and spiked the volume, because the whole thing was muttered in that "cool speak" that today's kids do--you know, that cool, barely audible voice they like to use. *grumble*
So there's this nice long pause, while the kid keeps muttering about he doesn't have gas, he was going to get gas soon, but it's hard to know when the gauge doesn't work, and he THOUGHT he had enough gas, and I finally say, "Well, you want a ride to a gas station?"
After all, I've had more than my fair share of late night breakdowns, and I know how it sucks to walk three miles in 5F w/30mph winds. So the kid grabs his gas can and hops in my car, and off we go to the station. And in an attempt to sympathize, I tell him about when my old car didn't have a working gauge. He says "Did you run out of gas a lot?" And I said, "No, I kept track of mileage. You know, my gas mileage?"
He gives me this deer in the headlights look, and says "what's that?" So I explain it to him, and then he asks me: "What kind of gas mileage do you think a car like mine would get?" HOW THE DEVIL AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW? All I know about his car is that his friggin gas gauge doesn't work.
Exactly what the *BLEEP* are we teaching kids in high school? It came out that the kid was 21, and he'd had FIVE traffic tickets. Uh, okay, so not only are you incapable of doing basic math, you're also incapable of impulse control? Good god. I fear for the next generation. I explained how to do gas mileage, trying hard not to be insulting, and then dropped him back at his car.
I'll give the kid this: he offered to pay me for his time. Never necessary, I told him, just keep track of your mileage and this shouldn't happen again. So the kid ain't all bad. He's just ignorant. And ignorant is quite near as dangerous as stupid.
Tuesday, Jan 29, 2003, 2040
Hehehe...cat peopleSome people get so upset about things. When I was working at *cough mumble mumble* many years ago, I had a little sign on my window. Instead of saying "Baby On Board", it had a more apropos message: "Missing your cat? Check under my tire!" I didn't really mean it that seriously. In fact, there are cats I distinctly like. There are cats I dislike, too, (just like dogs). But I thought the sign was funny. After coming out from work one day, I found this sign:
underneath my windshield wiper. Note how the woman wrote her phone number. Was she being as sarcastic as I was? Was she expecting my call so she could chew me out? Was this some sort of attempted recruiting into a strange, cat-hating swinger's club?
I've no idea. Now, eight years after the fact, I wish I'd called that number. I did save the paper. But I'll never know what that woman wanted from me. I later lost the sign. Bummer, that.
Tuesday, Jan 29, 2003, 2032
Slacker I amUpdates have been slow while I work on class room stuff, and other administrative tasks (lots of meetings). I was just now updating all my webpages to use this
image instead of my old text@spam.me.com address. Hopefully the automated address harvesters won't decipher that so quickly. I'm losing the spam wars, though. Despite deactivating my jurai.net account entirely (which I was loathe to do), and running spamassassin, I'm still getting 5 or 6 spams every day. Too many.Thursday, Jan 9, 2003, 1042
Now That's a bike!Yeah, I've been on break, and not surfing the web, so no updates. But Kilgour sent me this: Dodge's proposed motorcycle. Given Chrysler's historical transmission problems, I bet this think blows the shaft drive every two hours. But hey, it'll remove all doubt on the part of the neighbor's that you have an incredibly small pecker!