It was an evening gala held at Washington DC's Newseum, a museum dedicated to news. It began with hundreds of individuals bused to the Newseum to dine, dance and enjoy the museum exclusively for their entertainment. For starters, I enjoyed a variety of exquisite food, along with my bottle of Dansani water that I brought with me. (It was a cash bar for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages including $4 water.) This was followed by taping a newscast. Then meandering around the museum.
As the evening approached it's end I searched for the exit so that I could board the buses that were heading back to the hotel. The words "Group Exit" appeared at the end of the room. I was with a group and I wanted to exit. Despite no one else heading that direction, I continued on past three wait staff who paid no attention to me. The large steel doors opened easily as I pushed against them. As the door closed behind me, I realized that I was now in a deserted gift shop. The doors I came through were not intended to be opened from this side. I searched around and realized that the only other exit had been closed. Calling out for assistance would be futile with the loud music blaring from the other side of the doors. Visions of being held hostage here until the morning employees came to open the gift shop plaqued me. Feeling helpless, I turned again to the huge steel doors and was able to slip a finger or two between them. With no good grasp, I had to rely solely on the friction my fingers had against the door. It slowly yielded to the point I was able to get my fingers on the other side of the door and pull it open.
I now am thankful that I will be spending the evening on a bed instead of on a floor.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Visit of the Turk
The kingdom of Heir-Olde has been quiet for many risings of the moon. The king was honored to have a visit from the Turk who was traveling from the west. The king proclaimed loudly the presence of the Turk to those in his kingdom. The Turk not wanting to be delayed in his journey continued with haste off to the southern lands and then off to the east.
Moles have again invaded the kingdom and have ravaged it while trying to stay hidden from the eyes of the king. Boldly they approached the castle of the king. The king revealed the doings of one of the moles and entered in combat with him personally and was victorious over his foe. The sentry was again posted in the south east region of the kingdom where he captured and held for execution another mole from the south as well as terminating the life of a third. Their remains returned to the border as a warning to others.
As the kingdom comes to life and it's green bounty pushes forth, the king wishes only for peace.
Thus it is recorded in the allegories of our leader.
Moles have again invaded the kingdom and have ravaged it while trying to stay hidden from the eyes of the king. Boldly they approached the castle of the king. The king revealed the doings of one of the moles and entered in combat with him personally and was victorious over his foe. The sentry was again posted in the south east region of the kingdom where he captured and held for execution another mole from the south as well as terminating the life of a third. Their remains returned to the border as a warning to others.
As the kingdom comes to life and it's green bounty pushes forth, the king wishes only for peace.
Thus it is recorded in the allegories of our leader.
Lying Through Her Teeth
I was perusing the news on FoxNews.com when I saw a link regarding whiter teeth. Seldom do I follow links, but this one claiming success with products found around the home intrigued me to at least follow it one click.
The new page starts out in large print Cathy's Teeth Whitening Success then some sub headings, a before and after photo and then the testimonial. My name is Cathy Anselmo. I live in Mishawaka, IN and I want to tell you...
Amazing! Cathy was from right here in Mishawaka. I became skeptical. I did a quick Switchboard search on the last name Anselmo for Mishawaka. Nothing found. I then did a "view source" on the web page and confirmed my suspicion. Cathy lied. (It's probably not even a woman) The page source showed that it was obtaining the city and state information from a script that retrieved it from information available from where the individual was browsing from.
If Cathy lies to me about where she is from, what else is she lying to me about?
The new page starts out in large print Cathy's Teeth Whitening Success then some sub headings, a before and after photo and then the testimonial. My name is Cathy Anselmo. I live in Mishawaka, IN and I want to tell you...
Amazing! Cathy was from right here in Mishawaka. I became skeptical. I did a quick Switchboard search on the last name Anselmo for Mishawaka. Nothing found. I then did a "view source" on the web page and confirmed my suspicion. Cathy lied. (It's probably not even a woman) The page source showed that it was obtaining the city and state information from a script that retrieved it from information available from where the individual was browsing from.
If Cathy lies to me about where she is from, what else is she lying to me about?
Sunday, March 29, 2009
No Coffee Break
Wellness is a major movement these days. I'm for wellness, but sometimes I think things are taken out of context to support the desired conclusion.
A recent wellness newsletter included a short article about a study. The individuals who participated in the study trained in the morning on verbal memory, motor, and perceptual learning tasks. Then they were split into 3 groups.
* Group 1 got a 60-90 minute nap
* Group 2 listened to a book on tape and received a pill that had caffeine the equivalent of a 10oz cup of coffee
* Group 3 listened to a book on tape and received a placebo (sugar pill)
Then later they were tested on what they had learned in the morning. Results:
* Group 1 (nap group) tested best
* Group 2 (caffeine group) tested worst
* Group 3 (placebo) tested second best
Conclusion: You might want to skip that cup of coffee (The title of the article)
It's interesting to note that the nap group is the only group that didn't have to absorb more material (listening to a book on tape) that might interfere with what they learned earlier.
Why does coffee get the bad rap here? Coffee wasn't even part of the study. It simply has caffeine in common with the pill that was used. Maybe it would have been different had coffee been used.
My conclusion: Naps help performance.
A recent wellness newsletter included a short article about a study. The individuals who participated in the study trained in the morning on verbal memory, motor, and perceptual learning tasks. Then they were split into 3 groups.
* Group 1 got a 60-90 minute nap
* Group 2 listened to a book on tape and received a pill that had caffeine the equivalent of a 10oz cup of coffee
* Group 3 listened to a book on tape and received a placebo (sugar pill)
Then later they were tested on what they had learned in the morning. Results:
* Group 1 (nap group) tested best
* Group 2 (caffeine group) tested worst
* Group 3 (placebo) tested second best
Conclusion: You might want to skip that cup of coffee (The title of the article)
It's interesting to note that the nap group is the only group that didn't have to absorb more material (listening to a book on tape) that might interfere with what they learned earlier.
Why does coffee get the bad rap here? Coffee wasn't even part of the study. It simply has caffeine in common with the pill that was used. Maybe it would have been different had coffee been used.
My conclusion: Naps help performance.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
From Death to Life
It's Friday morning. I'm standing in a farmhouse bedroom where my unresponsive aunt Lil is using all the energy she has on each breath she takes. My father, just back from Florida the day before, sits by her bed talking to her of recent conversations they have had about the tribulations they have faced in life and about who would 'go home' first. Her daughter lovingly strokes her head telling her that it's okay to go home.
Six days earlier in her living room we talked with a 93 year old aunt Lil who looked neither 93 nor looked savaged by the aggressive leukemia that momentarily took a back seat to the two units of blood she had received a day earlier. In fact she had just finished up interviewing a client of hers. She wasn't about to sit on the sidelines of her tax business and let the others shoulder the load.
The mood in the bedroom is now somber. We notice her eyelids have now opened slightly, but that is the only change. Sensing the end is near my father gives up his seat so her granddaughter can be with her in these last moments. Soon she is no longer struggling to breathe, the room falls silent. Her time had come.
Eighteen hours later my daughter calls. The arrival of our new grandchild is anticipated soon. Barb attempts to get some sleep before the final call comes telling us that she is on the way to the hospital. Sixty minutes doesn't provide much time to rest. The call comes. They are on their way. We begin to prepare for the coming hours. We shower, pick out clothes we'll be comfortable in, send e-mails to the family letting them know that by morning we hope to have a new grandchild. The phone rings. It's our son-in-law. He puts our daughter on the line. A crying baby can be heard in the background. It doesn't quite click. But then the words make it clear. We have a new grandson. Even if we would have left the minute we received the call, it wouldn't have been soon enough to get there before Jesten made his entrance into this world. There was only 12 minutes difference from the time they arrived at the hospital until their new son was delivered.
In just over 18 hours I had seen life take it's last breath and saw life taking some of it's first breaths.
Photos and timeline of Jesten's arrival.
Six days earlier in her living room we talked with a 93 year old aunt Lil who looked neither 93 nor looked savaged by the aggressive leukemia that momentarily took a back seat to the two units of blood she had received a day earlier. In fact she had just finished up interviewing a client of hers. She wasn't about to sit on the sidelines of her tax business and let the others shoulder the load.
The mood in the bedroom is now somber. We notice her eyelids have now opened slightly, but that is the only change. Sensing the end is near my father gives up his seat so her granddaughter can be with her in these last moments. Soon she is no longer struggling to breathe, the room falls silent. Her time had come.
Eighteen hours later my daughter calls. The arrival of our new grandchild is anticipated soon. Barb attempts to get some sleep before the final call comes telling us that she is on the way to the hospital. Sixty minutes doesn't provide much time to rest. The call comes. They are on their way. We begin to prepare for the coming hours. We shower, pick out clothes we'll be comfortable in, send e-mails to the family letting them know that by morning we hope to have a new grandchild. The phone rings. It's our son-in-law. He puts our daughter on the line. A crying baby can be heard in the background. It doesn't quite click. But then the words make it clear. We have a new grandson. Even if we would have left the minute we received the call, it wouldn't have been soon enough to get there before Jesten made his entrance into this world. There was only 12 minutes difference from the time they arrived at the hospital until their new son was delivered.
In just over 18 hours I had seen life take it's last breath and saw life taking some of it's first breaths.
Photos and timeline of Jesten's arrival.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Sunday, January 18, 2009
The Case of the Missing Camera:Closed
It was back in October of 2008 when Kodak turned up missing. A report of the missing camera can be found in the December 2008 post The Case of the Missing Camera. What follows is the resolution of that case.On December 27th 2008 at 4:00pm, Harold and Barb entered the airport terminal at South Bend Regional Airport to board a plane for Sanford FL. Their departing flight had been delayed and they were informed to check back at the desk at 8:00pm. Their permanent residence being 20 minutes from the airport, they decided to pass the time at home. While at home Harold watched movies while Barb re-arranged the storage room.
It was during her re-arranging that she noticed that Harold's saddle bag for his bike seemed a little heavier than normal. Barb investigated and found the camera that had been missing for two months inside. When confronted with the location that the camera was found, Harold could not recall how Kodak would have come to be located in the saddle bags which were now in the basement.
Kodak was now packed and accompanied the Rodgers' to FL. Once in FL batteries for Kodak were purchased and it was put to use. It was noticed that Kodak was not it's old self. Even with new batteries, Kodak would not always turn on. Sometimes it took numerous tries and sometimes so many that we just gave up.
With this new information the "Missing Camera Bureau" is concluding that Kodak made it's way from top of the dresser in the first floor bedroom into the bike saddlebags in the storage room in the basement so that it could slip on into the afterlife of cameras. Many will be skeptical that the camera would be able to transport itself off the dresser, down the hall, open a closed door to the basement, down the stairs, around a corner, through another closed door, up on a shelf, unzip a saddlebag climb in and zip the bag back up. Yet, there is no other logical conclusion.
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