Life With Linux

...it would be so much easier if I knew what the hell I was doing.

*goes back to trying to turn off monitor shutdown... and fix startup so that the screen resolution is the right size... and figure out how to get the Windows Emulator to work... and...........*

MSM Science Fail Explained

(h/t to MauiGirl)

Sunset In The Central Valley

I was writing an email to a friend yesterday evening and happened to glance outside just before it got dark. I noticed the sky looked pinkish to the south, so I grabbed my camera, figuring that there would be a good shot waiting. I believe I was correct:This is the way I saw it (meaning I tweaked the colors that came through in the actual photo).

And this is the way the camera saw it.

I like both the light that actually was, and the light that my inexpensive camera caught.

BONUS Mel Brooks Thursday

Did someone say "authentic frontier gibberish"?

Thursday Python EXTRA Random

Because I haven't done one of these in a while (my apologies to Steve)... statii brought this one to mind, so here it is:

A Most Serious And Valid Question

How long do you think it will be before the Republican Party will once again begin functioning as an actual political party and not a high school clique?

Luck-Wishing Update

So I had the "interview" Monday with the language school.

I put the word in quotes because there wasn't much of one.

"Do you have any teaching experience?"
"I was a tutor at a community college about 20 years ago."
"Good! How soon can you start?"

Okay, that's not exactly how it went, but it's not far off, either.

So, I'll be getting a call/email some time next week to work out what my teaching schedule will be. And there you have it. I'm a profesor de inglés.

Yay!!

(adding... I just re-read the post and there's something I forgot to say: Thanks for all the good wishes everyone!!)

Duh Title of the Day

I am a regular reader of Think Progress (and of Matthew Yglesias in particular), but sometimes... well, there's this headline:

Right-Wing Interest Groups Driven By Financial Motives In Attacking Obama’s Court Pick

Now don't get me wrong, I have no disagreement with the post. It's well-written and on target. It's just the title.

I mean c'mon. When was the last time that "Right-Wing Interest Groups" weren't "Driven By Financial Motives" in every single thing they do?

In related news, Water Is Wet and Fire Is Hot

Wish Me Luck

On Saturday, Jen and I went to several language schools in the Heredia area and I left resumes, in the hopes of securing me employment as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language (what used to be called ESL).

Today, one of the schools called back and asked me to come by sometime in the morning for an interview.

So, ... /see post title/ ... 'cause I really want to stay here and need to earn some money.

Daily Alaska for Today

I don't know if my family ever saw Russia -- well, technically the USSR at the time -- while they lived in Alaska, but they did see the famous "midnight sun":
(color-corrected slide image)

Home Cookin'

This was dinner last night. Mashed potatoes, hamburger steak and sweet peas... a meal of which my mom would be proud!

To quote the inimitable Cunning Runt...

'Twas guuuud!!!

A Great Fog Has Lifted

Wow.

I mean wow.

And I'm not talking about politics or anything like that. I'm talking about vision -- my own.

As you may recall from a post at Jen's a while back, we ordered glasses from an online place called Zenni Optical.

They made it to North Carolina early last week, and we had been anxiously awaiting their arrival here ... and frankly a bit worried that they had gotten lost somewhere in transit between East Redacted, Miami and San Jose.

Today, Jen got an email with the subject line "Your package MIA000****** is ready for pick up" (I thought the "MIA" part was amusing, considering we were a bit afraid the specs were Missing In Action) -- and there was great rejoicing! And picture taking!! Please to be especially noting my ZZTop styling in the lower shot. :)

They fit perfectly and the prescription makes my vision (and Jen's) fantastic!!

So many thanks to the regular commenter at konagod's -- I can't remember which one it was, sorry! -- who mentioned Zenni Optical. If you need glasses, and you're not in a terrible hurry (they're manufactured in Hong Kong and cross the Pacific in a ship, so...), I give them a thumbs up.

Graph of the Day

With some text:
Via Matt Yglesias.

"Daily" Alaska (Special Edition)

First up, a winter shot (there are summer pictures, but they haven't been uploaded yet) at the edge of the day... I think morning, but I'm not sure:
Second, a photo of my dad, circa 1958, taken apparently on Easter, as there is also a shot of the rest of the family in their finery. I post this one because today is Dad's 89th birthday!

And Now... The Rest Of The Story

You've all read (or at least heard about) the sad story of how Donald Rumsfeld included Bible verses on the cover pages of DOD reports for George the Lesser, but have you seen... The Rest of the Story!?!?

SCIENCE!!

Google is at it again, promoting science and stuff. Meet "Ida" (Darwinius masillae), who may well be the long-sought "missing link".

It's a Good Thing That Cognitive Dissonance Isn't Flammable

Because otherwise Michael Steele would have spontaneously combusted when he said this:

"Ronald Reagan never lived in the past,” Steele will say. “Ronald Reagan was all about the future. If President Reagan were here today he would have no patience for Americans who looked backward."

I hate to engage in (implied) generalizations, but... are there any intelligent Republicans left in the world?

Pipe Dream du Jour

An egalitarian society.

Random Observation

When writing (or editing) book four of a series, why would you include vast swaths of material from the previous three volumes?

It's an imperfect world, is what it is....

Sunday Funny