tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73115152024-03-13T22:09:55.636-07:00Guy's SoapboxBecause everyone needs to know what I think.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.comBlogger463125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-85926215997202014552011-10-31T19:17:00.001-07:002011-10-31T19:20:37.188-07:00HalloweenA steady stream of monsters and princesses are ringing my doorbell tonight. One little girl came up with her sister still in mom's arms. I put some candy in her bag and then some in her sisters', and she looked at her bag, then me, and said "Yum yum".<br /><br />I agreed -- after all, it's candy and it's yummy. However, clearly I was just a someone dense adult and didn't really get it, because she held her bag up and a little bit closer to me, and said in a more insistent tone, "Yum yum!"<br /><br />I'm slow but I can take a hint. I gave her more candy and she walked away happy.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-27762655532813829142011-10-13T07:55:00.000-07:002011-10-13T07:57:01.659-07:00Rialto Bridge<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NqxJ_3YjCeg/Tpb8PlkuOWI/AAAAAAAABZs/pZFfy4bfPY0/s1600/photo-721660.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NqxJ_3YjCeg/Tpb8PlkuOWI/AAAAAAAABZs/pZFfy4bfPY0/s320/photo-721660.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662990926179350882" /></a></p>This shot shows the main canal taken from the Rialto bridge. The main canal is the highway through the center of Venice, and carries most of the motor traffic which goes through the city. Smaller specialized delivery barges go through the side canals to drop off and pick up goods and supplies.<p>Venice is a bit of a contradiction - many parts of it, such as the buildings, gondolas, and pedestrian walkways, seem unchanged from what they would have been two hundred years ago. On the other hand walking down one of the main thoroughfares feels like walking through a modern mall - all of the modern shops and brands are represented, and you can get anything from Ferrari logo wear to cell phones to Prada.<p>We mostly walked around the city but also used the Vaparetto to get to and from out hotel and take a tour of the city. The vaparetto is the city bus/ferry system, which stops at points along the main canal and the outside of the city, as well as a couple outlying islands.<p>We also met a number of Italian-speaking Filipinos, who seem to have a lock on the Venice hotel industry.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-17449611197693493652011-10-11T01:46:00.000-07:002011-10-11T01:55:51.107-07:00Living at the AirportDue to an unfortunate pair of connections, we have a seven-hour layover in the Rome airport. It's just long enough to be tempting to leave the airport and do something else, but not actually long enough to go somewhere. So we have some time to kill here. Thanks to a data plan purchase for the iPad, we have Internet access at the airport, but I am approaching "the end of the Internet". I've read up on all my email and current news items, and sadly forgot my barnes and noble password to buy new books with.<br /><br />Joahnna and Luc both have the right idea, as they spent the last couple hours sleeping. Of course Jo is small enough to curl up in an airport chair and Luc travels with his own portable sleeping bag, so they did have a bit of an advantage on me.<br /><br />Doug is supposed to land in a few minutes, and my mom arrives a couple hours later, after which we have a short flight to Palermo. Should be more driving and less walking for the next week.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-86803885895962307862011-10-06T04:04:00.000-07:002011-10-06T04:20:02.535-07:00Driving in RomeJR and I rented scooters last night and took a quick moto tour of Rome, which also gave me an opportunity to experience Roman traffic fifs-hand. Thanks to prior experience on a race track it wasn't too hard to get used to, but it bears little resemblance to driving in the US or Australia. <br /><br />Unlike the US, there are no lanes. Every square inch of pavement is fair game. Whoever is in front has the right of way, so if you can get your nose in front of the other vehicle. There do not appear to be any speed limits other than prudence, however Rome is congested enough and there are enough pedestrians and obstacles to effectively limit speed to about 50mph. This is just a guess, I didn't look at my speedo at any point during our ride.<br /><br />That said, there are rules to driving here. I'm not sure how they are enforced; certainly the Carbinieri are far too busy smoking cigarettes and looking cool in their Armani uniforms to do anything as prosaic as write tickets, but nonetheless rules are followed. Pedestrians are yielded to, although only if they walk in front of your vehicle, red lights are obeyed, and cars do not drive in the opposite direction lane (some fudging is allowed on that last one).<br /><br />Traffic is heavy during commute hours but there are lots of back streets and alternate paths. You can get stuck on back streets because they are frequently only one car wide, and parking in the middle of the street (thus blocking the entire street) is fair game for delivery trucks, or anyone wishing to have a quick chat with a friend.<br /><br />I gave the scooter back at the end of the night unharmed, and with no perceptual gas usage. Fun trip!Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-61961597296629727132011-10-02T23:55:00.000-07:002011-10-02T23:57:46.025-07:00Tired out by tummy time<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRIQmbF-MhA/Tolc6qrXtjI/AAAAAAAABZk/_U4FOYX4SRM/s1600/photo-766026.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRIQmbF-MhA/Tolc6qrXtjI/AAAAAAAABZk/_U4FOYX4SRM/s320/photo-766026.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659156569726105138" /></a></p>Luc takes a quick nap after an exhausting bout of tummy time.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-25538399873277295072011-08-20T16:15:00.000-07:002011-08-20T16:21:34.828-07:00At HomeJust had a chat with Adam and helped him diagnose an electrical problem on his motorcycle. This is a new first for my phone-support checklist. While we were talking we joked about Luc having his own twitter feed. I realized it would go something like this:
<br />
<br /><pre>08:35 -- Woke up, fed, pooped. Took nap afterwards.
<br />10:02 -- Woke up hungry. Looked for boob, didn't find it. Cried.
<br />10:08 -- Found boob. Yay! Yummy lunch and nap afterwards.
<br />10:15 -- Forgot to pee after lunch so did that. Cried for change.
<br />10:18 -- Been crying because of wet diaper for ever now. Where the heck is mom?
<br />10:20 -- Dad finally got up off the couch and changed me. So sleepy...
<br />11:45 -- Time to feed again!</pre>
<br />
<br />Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-8594027743384921802011-05-15T06:58:00.001-07:002011-05-15T06:58:33.780-07:00Dallas<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-y2tSxp-QH9Q/Tc_cCgJIffI/AAAAAAAABVc/IHlSrCPP-4s/s1600/photo-713781.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-y2tSxp-QH9Q/Tc_cCgJIffI/AAAAAAAABVc/IHlSrCPP-4s/s320/photo-713781.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606941996645645810" /></a></p>I'm killing some time between flights at the Dallas airport. Like everything else in Texas, this airport is big - seven runways, five of them parallel.<p>Inside is the usual airport amenities - Starbucks located between my arrival and departure gates. Had over an hour this time so enough time to get some breakfast.<p>There is a kiosk at my gate with power and free Internet, provided you have a cat5 cable. Sadly my little ipad has no ports on it whatsoever so I'm left to post this from my phone.<p>Only one more flight to go!Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-87970514101357623132011-05-12T14:59:00.000-07:002011-05-13T09:43:09.896-07:00Shana's House<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VambFGy5HLA/Tc1fnuADepI/AAAAAAAABVU/cxuO_Orcfh8/s1600/photo-789897.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VambFGy5HLA/Tc1fnuADepI/AAAAAAAABVU/cxuO_Orcfh8/s320/photo-789897.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606242247113931410" /></a></p>I arrived at Shana's house (minus luggage) and Mina promptly investigated my foot.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-46525586888566638482011-05-12T06:23:00.000-07:002011-05-13T13:43:25.434-07:00Shana's GraduationI am queued up to board the plane, having been warned multiple times that this aircraft will run out of overhead space. No worries for me, my only carry on is my ipad today.<p>Full day of flying to get out to Raleigh for sis's graduation from vet school. I had no reading material so I bought three books at the barnes and nobles online site while waiting to board; battery should last all day. If I'm lucky I'll be able to take a nap and it won't have to be my sole source of entertainment.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-78292290341619676592011-04-22T10:48:00.000-07:002011-04-22T10:53:11.072-07:00Turning 27Today I turned 27, at least if you count in hexadecimal. The numbers don't seem that big this way. I don't think I'll make it to FF unless medical science churns out some real miracles in the next few years.<br /><br />This morning Joahnna took me out for a birthday breakfast at our local diner before packing me off to work. Planning on having a quiet dinner out this year, although my parents have said that they are planning something big for next year.<br /><br />We went in monday for our most recent exam, and listened to baby Luc's heartbeat. She also gave us a kick-counting chart for measuring how long it takes him to kick, which we have failed to do with meticulous consistency. I'm sure we'll get to it tomorrow.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-48205174876945516832011-04-17T00:15:00.000-07:002011-04-17T00:16:10.674-07:00Caesar and Shana<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HoIPkowAlc8/TaqTu2L0GqI/AAAAAAAABVM/D0Cl1Lar0Aw/s1600/photo-770675.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HoIPkowAlc8/TaqTu2L0GqI/AAAAAAAABVM/D0Cl1Lar0Aw/s320/photo-770675.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5596447919989594786" /></a></p>Caesar found a new best friend - sacked out on the couch watching movies with Shana.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-32407759104566019822011-04-13T08:28:00.001-07:002011-04-13T08:28:49.375-07:00The blue mosque<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l_GKUuPMYoE/TaXBMfuPa0I/AAAAAAAABVE/yfsx8MfKYG8/s1600/photo-729376.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l_GKUuPMYoE/TaXBMfuPa0I/AAAAAAAABVE/yfsx8MfKYG8/s320/photo-729376.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5595090532495747906" /></a></p>Another trial for post by email, this time from my phone. This is from my recent trip to israel.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-55730598619584667552011-04-12T17:11:00.000-07:002011-04-12T17:15:59.552-07:00Sample post from email<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ze8du7zR_Kk/TaTrQJ_rA1I/AAAAAAAABU8/ZLHPjRR2Q-4/s1600/York%2B019-759553.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ze8du7zR_Kk/TaTrQJ_rA1I/AAAAAAAABU8/ZLHPjRR2Q-4/s320/York%2B019-759553.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5594855299894412114" /></a></p><DIV><SPAN class=674231000-13042011><FONT face=Arial size=2>Trying to figure out if I can create posts from an email with pictures in them. To figure out if it works, here is a post with a picture of a train from the train museum in York.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-10077258754041364162011-03-21T11:19:00.001-07:002011-03-21T11:33:33.001-07:00Using git for revision controlAs a hardware engineer, I spent most of my career designing chips using CVS for version control. It was free, simple, and workarounds for its more obvious warts were well-understood. It left me with a few side-effects, such as a pathological fear of branching, but was otherwise OK.<br /><br />A couple years ago, I decided to try "git", the revision control tool used by the Linux kernel development team, and see if it had any benefits over CVS. Two years down the road, I don't think anyone on my design team would switch back if they had a choice. Fear of branching has been abated, although likely we will carry the scars of CVS for some time, and we no longer need to muck with the respository or have detailed meetings about directory structures due to a directory rename. In short, it's a good thing.<br /><br />The biggest problem we have had with git migration is that git is relatively unstructured. It does not force a central repository to be used, and allows engineers to pull directly from another engineer's repository. For a small design team, we found that this was a drawback rather than an advantage, because it broke the central-repository model we were familiar with, and created confusion about what the "master" version of the code was. We tried electing one member of the design team to be the master, but this caused problems if the team member was unavailable for some time, due to travel, etc.<br /><br />So we changed to using a central repository for git. Now everyone pushes and pulls from the central repository rather than from each other, and there is no confusion about what the mainline source code tree is, or who has to resolve a merge conflict. The CVS model may not have been fair (he who commits first, wins) but it was understood, and the central git repository brings us back to that same place. By looking at public repositories such as <a href="http://www.blogger.com/github.com">Github</a>, it seems that this is now recommended practice for small teams.<br /><br />It turns out setting up git to work like this is not straightforwards. Just as for CVS, there are some magic commands which must be issued to get a properly-functioning central repository. The main requirement for using a central repository is that all members of the design team must be members of the same group. With that in place, the repository can be created by doing (as root):<br /><br /><pre>mkdir proj_name<br />cd proj_name<br />git init –bare –shared<br />cd ..<br />chown -R nobody.group proj_name</pre><br /><br />Replace proj_name by the name of your project, and "group" by the name of the group which all engineers are part of. nobody is a predefined user on Unix, so that repository files are not owned by root.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-90684952453839804782011-03-14T11:39:00.000-07:002011-03-14T11:45:42.296-07:00Don't put near hard diskI just read a <a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2011/03/ipad-2-and-smart-cover-teardown-oh-my-god-its-full-of-magnets.ars">teardown article</a> on the new iPad 2. Apple has integrated a bunch of magnets for its "smart cover", which made we wonder how this new version would fare in the cockpit.<br /><br />The iPad has recently been <a href="http://www.tuaw.com/2011/02/13/ipad-receives-faa-certification-as-an-electronic-flight-bag/">certified as an EFB</a> (for those non-pilots, this means it can replace the briefcase of printed charts you see airline pilots pulling around behind them in the airport). However, magnets are not a good thing in this environment. Already the iPad has a strong enough field to cause a compass to mis-read when it is within a foot of it; magnets could make this even worse (then again, maybe they are no worse than it is already. Someone want to loan me an iPad 2 so I can find out? :).Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-12927734312208616892011-01-08T05:31:00.000-08:002011-01-08T06:07:58.013-08:00The Trek to ManilaOn Thursday we rousted the crew out of bed dark and early for the first part of our bus trip to Manila. We manage to get moving within 20 minutes of our 4AM scheduled departure time. Soon thereafter we learned a practical lesson on taking long road trips in the Philippines - fly. Our plan was originally to drive to manila and then to Bataan, but after a full day of getting pounded by a combination of patched pothole roads and our bus' extra-stiff suspension, we revised the plan to spend some extra time in Manila and skip Bataan.<br /><br />We stopped halfway to Manila at Villa Escudero, where we had a nice lunch under the waterfall, and spent two nights at the Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay, which was a very nice hotel with a beautiful view of the Taal volcano. The volcano is recursive - it is a volcano in a vay of water with a lake in the caldera, with another volcano coming out of the lake. Yesterday we took a quick day trip to the "Castle in the Sky", a palace built on top of a mountain that was partially constructed by President Marcos. <br /><br />Today we loaded up the bus, took a quick stop for Jaiden, Mila and Joey to ride ponies for a couple laps, then made our way into the city to get to our hotel. We switched hotels because our original choice didn't have enough rooms for our party, and ended up instead at the Lotus Garden Hotel. We are in the old part of the hotel, which has beautiful hardwood floors and staircases. An unexpected benefit is that it is located in the red light district. Apparently these would be the Lotus Flowers.<br /><br />Tomorrow we are gathering up early (again? Why do I keep getting up early on my vacation?) to go to Corregidor, the site of some of the fiercest fighting of WWII.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-50698392357470697502010-12-27T16:47:00.000-08:002010-12-27T17:01:17.345-08:00Return to Jurassic ParkToday we are headed out to the hot springs near Naga, which Joahnna and I nicknamed "Jurassic Park" because of the vibrant growth and huge cliff walls directly over the springs. We are looking forwards to it since this was one of our favorite parts of the last trip.<br /><br />Last night uncle Chito treated us to dinner at his house, including his special Bicol Express (very good). I spent some time syncing up with my dad on our favorite topics - guns, cars, and politics - and he also spent some time chatting with Raoul. After dinner we came back to the hotel and watched the kids and adults practice their performances for the reunion.<br /><br />Yesterday Joahnna took a family photo for auntie Irma, which turned out so well that auntie lyn and imbot both asked for photo shoots with their families, which Joahnna is doing this morning. Work is never done!<br /><br />Also different for this trip, last time we took a sub notebook, but this time we left it behind in favor of the smaller iPad. So far it has worked quite well, as long as you are willing to slow down your typing rate a little bit (you have to be a little more careful on the virtual keyboard). The biggest limitation of it so far is that we cant use it to download photos from the camera, so we need to borrow someone's laptop to do that. Not a big limitation here in Naga, where we have tons of family, but could limit its usefulness if you were traveling alone.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-69995638320227549462010-12-09T10:51:00.000-08:002010-12-09T10:54:47.636-08:00How private enterprise saves moneyI was reading <a href="http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/SpaceX_Launches_Recovers_Successfully_203767-1.html">this article</a> from AvWeb about the SpaceX launch and recovery of their "Dragon" capsule. Sometimes you can save a little money here and there by privitization, but sometimes you can save huge chunks (emphasis added):<br /><blockquote><br />It's worth noting that while nuclear-powered aircraft carriers have been dispatched to recover space capsules in the past, <font color="red">an inflatable boat with an outboard motor</font> accomplished the task this time.<br /></blockquote>Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-22318575951388857162010-12-09T10:41:00.000-08:002010-12-09T10:46:30.675-08:00Moral roots of liberals and conservativesI saw an excellent talk on <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/jonathan_haidt_on_the_moral_mind.html">TED</a> about the psychological roots of liberals and conservatives. Makes the point that despite our innate desire to group with like-minded individuals, both viewpoints bring valuable mindsets to the table and if we want to be a whole country again, we need to understand the other half.<br /><!--copy and paste--><br /><object width="446" height="326"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff"></param> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/JonathanHaidt_2008-medium.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JonathanHaidt-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=341&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=jonathan_haidt_on_the_moral_mind;year=2008;theme=how_the_mind_works;theme=unconventional_explanations;theme=evolution_s_genius;theme=what_makes_us_happy;theme=how_we_learn;event=TED2008;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgColor="#ffffff" width="446" height="326" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/JonathanHaidt_2008-medium.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JonathanHaidt-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=341&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=jonathan_haidt_on_the_moral_mind;year=2008;theme=how_the_mind_works;theme=unconventional_explanations;theme=evolution_s_genius;theme=what_makes_us_happy;theme=how_we_learn;event=TED2008;"></embed></object>Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-75077564086553931552010-10-21T09:46:00.000-07:002010-10-21T09:54:22.932-07:00Motivation and Reality ChecksI read <a href="http://aero-news.net/index.cfm?ContentBlockID=cd54dd04-b789-433c-864f-bcf73be12147&#d">this article</a> on aero-news about a "new" aircraft being developed. The concept is a "light attack" aircraft, which is basically an admission that our cold-war fighters and attack aircraft are massive overkill for the missions they are being used on. The other interesting thing is that the pilots are all on board for this idea, since most of them can clearly see that the alternative is having their job replaced by a drone.<div><br /></div><div>The light attack concept is simple: instead of building a massive, jet-powered, state-of-the-art mach 3 fighter to drop bombs on camels, go use something that works a lot more like a WWII fighter. After all, they did a perfectly good job at ground attack then as long as there weren't other fighters to shoot them down, which matches fairly well with the conflicts we fight today.</div><div><br /></div><div>And they're cheap. Prices for these should be close to parity with current drones, if not less expensive, and operating costs are low as well ($600/hr instead of $15,000/hr, per the article). I'm not sure how they managed to get the project going, but I wish them success before someone realizes they're not spending enough money and kills it.</div>Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-55379923773014397672010-10-19T17:08:00.000-07:002010-10-19T17:11:51.890-07:00Evolution of Presidential Eloquence<div style="text-align: center;">The (Uncensored) Evolution of Presidential Eloquence</div><div style="text-align: center;">by Martin Horn</div><div><br /></div><div>"My friends, circumstances render it impossible that you can flourish in the midst of a civilized community. You have but one remedy within your reach, and that is to remove to the west. And the sooner you do this, the sooner you will commence your career of improvement and prosperity." - Andrew Jackson, Addressing Native Americans while discussing his Indian Relocation Policy</div><div><br /></div><div>"Moreover, the negro, unlike so many of the inferior races, does not dwindle away in the presence of the white man...From this point of view the presence of the negro is the real problem; slavery is merely the worst possible method of solving the problem." - Teddy Roosevelt (Source: "Winning of the West" by Teddy Roosvelt)</div><div><br /></div><div>[Spies] are all Jews. Every one's a Jew. Gelb's a Jew. Halperin's a Jew. But there are bad-Hiss was not a Jew. So that proves something. Very interesting thing. - Richard Nixon (link: http://www.poetv.com/video.php?vid=48623)</div><div><br /></div><div>"I'm telling you there's an enemy that would like to attack America, Americans, again. There just is. That's the reality of the world. And I wish him all the very best." --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Jan. 12, 2009</div><div><br /></div><div>"I'll be long gone before some smart person ever figures out what happened inside this Oval Office." --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., May 12, 2008</div><div><br /></div><div>Just for giggles:</div><div><br /></div><div>"Go f*ck yourself," -- Vice-President Dick Cheney, on the Senate Floor</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Found this series of quotes posted in the </i><a href="http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2010/10/psychology_and_politics"><i>comments section of the Economist</i></a><i>, and found it sufficiently amusing that it deserved re-posting. - Guy</i></div>Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-45009045950341891812010-08-19T14:28:00.000-07:002010-08-19T14:30:36.614-07:00Homeward BoundWe are just waking up and getting our final internet time in before heading to the airport for our return leg. Just a quick 14-hour plane ride and we will be back in the good old USA!Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-71876745481905357002010-08-17T17:24:00.000-07:002010-08-17T17:36:33.504-07:00Out and About<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGsoa4F3cVI/AAAAAAAABUA/RTuL9sgWr5E/s1600/LordOfFries.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGsoa4F3cVI/AAAAAAAABUA/RTuL9sgWr5E/s400/LordOfFries.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506539411589263698" /></a><br />Joahnna and I spent yesterday walking around Melbourne, since she has mostly recovered from the plague. I was hungry so we stopped at the Lord of the Fries on the way to the Gallery of Victoria. I admit that I picked it just because the name was clever.<br /><br />At the Gallery of Victoria we walked through their modern artists exhibition. Afterwards we stopped in their gift shop and had tea and carrot cake before heading back.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGsogxo2TYI/AAAAAAAABUI/aFkFot3sBOw/s1600/CityCircleTram.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGsogxo2TYI/AAAAAAAABUI/aFkFot3sBOw/s400/CityCircleTram.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506539512936156546" /></a><br /><br />Rather than walking we decided to catch the tram on the way back. Melbourne has a number of trams criss-crossing downtown, and they also have a free city circle tram which runs around the downtown perimeter. It was a nice ride back, and also the robo-guide pointed out the sights as we circled back.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGsomEpUrTI/AAAAAAAABUQ/xO6nSUDnp1U/s1600/MaxBrunner.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGsomEpUrTI/AAAAAAAABUQ/xO6nSUDnp1U/s400/MaxBrunner.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506539603937766706" /></a><br /><br />In the evening Glenn came by and took us out for dessert. We started out at Portorussells (?) where we Joahnna and I both had the spicy pudding, and afterwards walked to Max Brenner where we finished up with hot chocolate and cheesecake.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-39487091388514632152010-08-16T18:11:00.000-07:002010-08-16T18:19:01.514-07:00The PlagueWe moved from Gladdy's house to Glenn's, located in downtown Melbourne, last sunday. However apparently we took some unintended souvenirs along with us -- Joahnna and Zach came away with a cold. They both spent the day yesterday in bed, and the symptoms are starting to spread to the rest of the clan.<br /><br />I spent the day walking around Melbourne along with Jazylette, JR, and Ning, and later met up with Josh and Kathy. The weather was blustery and cold so we spent a lot of the day wandering through the indoor malls in downtown.<br /><br />Today Joahnna is feeling better, so we are heading out the gallery of victoria.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311515.post-51716300664468766832010-08-13T00:13:00.001-07:002010-08-13T00:15:32.502-07:00The Shuttle Bus<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGTwr5WuyzI/AAAAAAAABT4/hmyYXjIJSYM/s1600/VanSmall.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_TWhgLa8oGk4/TGTwr5WuyzI/AAAAAAAABT4/hmyYXjIJSYM/s400/VanSmall.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504789281474792242" /></a><br />This is a photo of the shuttle bus I have been tasked to drive for the next few days (driver shown for scale).Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07500493389248967742noreply@blogger.com0