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My wife was telling me about a story she read regarding a North Korean defector who fled across the border to China and then eventually made it to the West. The thing that convinced him he needed to leave? A soldier from the other side of the DMZ accidentally dropped nail clippers and didn't care enough to come back and get them later. When he realized that something as "incredible" as nail clippers were basically worthless to the other side's soldiers, he knew he had been lied to about how things were outside of his country.

Take it with the requisite grain of salt, but it's an interesting anecdote, nonetheless.

I wouldn't discount it in the least.

When Boris Yeltsin went grocery shopping in Clear Lake

For a wider perspective:

Grocery stores are a marvel. ...

What you see is a miracle. This is the pinnacle of civilization, in its own way. No king in the history of mankind had access to riches like this. Look - here. (picks u box of special expensive gourmet crackers) This is someone's livelihood. Someone got a loan, started a business, hired people, paid someone to design this, because he or she wanted to make a special cracker, and here it is next to all the other special crackers, and this is just the special cracker department in the cheese department. There's another special cracker section in the cracker aisle. He might fail, he might win, but you can do that here, you can try. And if someone says why do we need so many cracker choices, this is why. Do you want some governing Cracker Bureau to say no, don't make crackers, make pretzels. But I don't want to make pretzels. I want to make crackers. Sorry, we have enough crackers. But I have this new taste. SORRY.

Now apply that to everything here! And the other store that has the stuff this one doesn't! And the other chain that carries a different line of speciality stuff!

And a different perspective:

Bernie Sanders: Don’t Need 23 Choices of Deodorant, 18 Choices of Sneakers When Kids Are Going Hungry

They don't seem to have updated their catalog for newer devices, but what they do offer seems to fit right in with the tablet sized holster you're seeking:
http://lileks.com/institute/dorcus/index.html

If that does not work, you might want to check their computer deals pages, just in case they put it there:
http://lileks.com/institute/compupromo/1.html

Hope that helps!

Fred

They don't seem to have updated their catalog for newer devices, but what they do offer seems to fit right in with the tablet sized holster you're seeking:
http://lileks.com/institute/dorcus/index.html

If that does not work, you might want to check their computer deals pages, just in case they put it there:
http://lileks.com/institute/compupromo/1.html

Hope that helps!

Fred

There is a nice shot of the battered USS Constellation here:

http://www.lileks.com/bleats/archive/04/0904/092404.html

Direct link:
http://www.lileks.com/bleats/archive/04/0904/0904art/st1.jpg

Note that the Constellation is "NCC-1017". The Enterprise is "NCC-1701". I remember when I was a kid, and I had an Enterprise model; it came with a bunch of stickers, so you could build it and label it the Constellation or the Exeter or whatever. There were 12 names in all, and different NCC numbers were available. But maybe when the series was actually on the air the model kits only came with Enterprise stickers, so the numbers used were the same as the Enterprise numbers, but rearranged.

There is a nice shot of the battered USS Constellation here:

http://www.lileks.com/bleats/archive/04/0904/092404.html

Direct link:
http://www.lileks.com/bleats/archive/04/0904/0904art/st1.jpg

Note that the Constellation is "NCC-1017". The Enterprise is "NCC-1701". I remember when I was a kid, and I had an Enterprise model; it came with a bunch of stickers, so you could build it and label it the Constellation or the Exeter or whatever. There were 12 names in all, and different NCC numbers were available. But maybe when the series was actually on the air the model kits only came with Enterprise stickers, so the numbers used were the same as the Enterprise numbers, but rearranged.

It seems in this modern age, we've forgotten about the evil villain Mr. Coffee Nerves!

http://www.lileks.com/comics/coffnerv/coff1/index.html

If the boundaries between the bits are more "discreet", then they are more hidden. If the boundaries between the bits are more "discrete", then they are more distinct, and presumably will interfere with each other less often.

-Your friendly neighborhood Grammar Nazi

For someone nitpicking someone else's lingual mistakes, it's ironic you missed the fact that it *wasn't* an example of incorrect grammar!

BTW, *this* is a grammar Nazi. :-P

It's that long loaf of bread that people on TV are always carrying in their grocery bags when something interesting happens to them.

Wait, I thought that was celery?

http://www.system76.com/

From their website:

Why Linux ?

"Stability, security, no more malicious spyware installing itself on your computer and wreaking havoc. [..] No more blue screens of death when you boot up."

The 1990s called - they want their Win9x systems back. I haven't seen a BSOD or "spyware installing itself" for years on a Windows system. Listen guys, these comments are really, really old and weren't too clever when they first appeared, either.

No, things haven't changed that much. Do a little searching and you dig up all of those great ads for cigarettes that have "Doctors recommend Camel cigarettes" and "Good for your 'T Zone'" bylines. Go back further and you find that radium will cure what ails you even when scientists already knew it caused illness. The case of New Jersey vs Radium Corp (and the slap on the wrist they got even when internal documents and practices showed they knew it was toxic) really stands out.

You've got that wrong. They're acquiring a truly nasty coffee substitute made from burned wheat flour and molasses. Obviously, they're afraid of their geeks getting coffee nerves.

Something for both you and tapecutter.

http://www.lileks.com/institute/gallery/othrwhtmea t/2.html

BTW, if you haven't seen the 'Gallery of Regrettable Food', it's great.

That's an awesome idea. But take it a step further-- serve old ads to go with the old content!

Imagine reading an article in Google News about tobacco regulation, and seeing this ad:

http://www.lileks.com/oldads/30s/3.html

Or you're reading an article from 1948 about the establishment of Israel, and Google makes the connection of Israel -> Jews -> Yarmulkehs, and shows this ad:

http://www.lileks.com/oldads/30s/4.html

That's an awesome idea. But take it a step further-- serve old ads to go with the old content!

Imagine reading an article in Google News about tobacco regulation, and seeing this ad:

http://www.lileks.com/oldads/30s/3.html

Or you're reading an article from 1948 about the establishment of Israel, and Google makes the connection of Israel -> Jews -> Yarmulkehs, and shows this ad:

http://www.lileks.com/oldads/30s/4.html

Whoa, you need to read some funnier stuff. Good god man, this is the information age!

Get started at:

http://www.notmydesk.com/
http://lileks.com/institute/index.html
http://www.ironycentral.com/babymain.html

If gaming articles are more your style and you've played Ultima 7:
http://www.it-he.org/ultima7.htm especially "Further drug experiments" http://www.it-he.org/u7_drugs.htm

Jim Lileks has been touting the solution for a couple of years now - and it's not (as the slashdot article proposes) by attempting to compete where your strengths are not. (We have a newish local paper that's been following that advice for a couple of years now... And it's circulation is growing, at the current rates of growth in that paper and decline of the 'traditional' paper, they'll cross in another few years.) The author of the slashdot article eventually gets around to this point but again confuses newspapers and web boards.

One doesn't have to look far to see bad design manifesting in real life with hilarious effect. The phrase "I'm sure glad I'm already colourblind!" in regards to bad interior design echoes with the sentiment behind "I'm sure glad I never have to work on that project!" in regards to bad software development. In both cases you want to aim the offending subject away from ones' face. However in the case of bad software development not everyone actually walks into the software's spiritual equivalent of the room with the faux fur mauve throw rug in the green-walled room with the gold curtains and the single rusted sink and has a proper around (only to run out screaming).

I recommend buying the book if you like the sampling from lileks.com. I've seen the collection in it's eye-searing completeness and it's a riot.

1. A large display that can handle 1080p x 1920 and doesn't set me back 5 grand or more. TI's xHD-3 DLP looks to be a possibility on that front come the end of this quarter.
   
2. Something to watch. Where I live, there's exactly one HDTV broadcaster and they're broadcasting hog futures. That means satellite but given James Lilek's experience with Direct TV, that doesn't look like a viable option right now.

Now, if someone were to offer a HDTV kit with a 1080p display engine, it wouldn't matter that there's nothing to watch. It'd just be fun to build the thing. Too bad there weren't enough of us to keep Heathkit alive.

Check out Lileks. From his daily bleat, he sounds a bit conservative.

As for myself, I was a Republican up until the 2000 primaries and saw how BushCo. went and savaged McCain. For now, I'm stuck with writing congressmen and trying to get a critical mass of people in Washington to wake up and see what the hell's going on.

Oh yeah, I'm planning on integrating a Mac Mini with 70 Impala big block eco-fiend (in your face ya' farkin' cheese huggers!). And the iGun definitely needs to be invented.

All I have are my pathetic attempts to draw a distinction between private and public - that is, Howard Stern saying those oh-so-naughty! words on the public airwaves vs. Stern saying what he wants on subscription radio, or Hustler Honey sex-shows in the Superbowl half-time vs. private rentals from the satellite hot-mama feeds. I suppose it comes down to this: you should have to seek these things out instead of having them come to you. Otherwise the coarsening of the public arena continues unabated, and the good & decent fathers who fought hard for Howard Stern's right to say shit - literally - find themselves without an argument when the billboard across from their kid's elementary school uses the same words. Today's crusading moderate is tomorrow's prude.

"George Bush's daddy was president too? You're joking me. That's silly."

Let me turn now to chemical weapons (CW). In searching for retained stocks of chemical munitions, ISG has had to contend with the almost unbelievable scale of Iraq's conventional weapons armory, which dwarfs by orders of magnitude the physical size of any conceivable stock of chemical weapons.

For example, there are approximately 130 known Iraqi Ammunition Storage Points (ASP), many of which exceed 50 square miles in size and hold an estimated 600,000 tons of artillery shells, rockets, aviation bombs and other ordinance. Of these 130 ASPs, approximately 120 still remain unexamined.

As Iraqi practice was not to mark much of their chemical ordinance and to store it at the same ASPs that held conventional rounds, the size of the required search effort is enormous.

For the last few weeks I've had this gnawing belief that bin Laden got lucky by attacking during Bush's term. Conventional wisdom says the opposite, because Bush fought back. But he's the enemy now. I ask my Democrat friends what they'd rather see happen - Bush reelected and bin Laden caught, or Bush defeated and bin Laden still in the wind. They're all honest: they'd rather see Bush defeated. (They're quick to insist that they'd want Kerry to get bin Laden ASAP. Although the details are sketchy.) Of course this doesn't mean they're unpatriotic, etc., obligatory disclaimers, et cetera. But let's be honest. People are coming up with websites that demonstrate ingenious technology for spraying anti-Bush slogans on the sidewalks; it would be nice if they sprayed "DEFEAT TERRORISM" or "STOP AL QAEDA" now and then. Wouldn't it?

You do not need to be aware of any information sources not sanctioned by Big Media

Agreed. Once you are getting a bit better it is great fun. For me, it has ceased to be a chore, and feels more like a time to relax, be a bit creative.

Also, this topic is a great opportunity to copy and paste some fun links.

The worst breakfast ever: "Swanson, producers of some of the world's fattiest TV dinners, is seeking to take over the breakfast market with a new line of microwaveable morning meals. It's called the 'Hungry Man All Day Breakfast,' and it's threatening to turn people into manatees."

For those who like Mystery Science Theatre 3000, here is a similar take on edibles; The Gallery of Regrettable Food

Precisely the point of the article. It seems that people of a certain political bent are willing to condemn and set aside ANY goal, no matter how admirable, or how much they would have supported said goal if it wasn't THIS PRESIDENT promoting it.

yeah... just like Rush Limbaugh... or James Lileks... just a couple more lefty Mac lovers.

As James Lileks points out, dubious logo design reveals the true nature of Atkins. (scroll halfway down)

"Winston, wake up. How many breadsticks do you see? Winston!"

Oops, I meant www.lileks.com/bleats.

You'r right. It's not fart jokes and slapstick. It's a celebration of insulting behavior and arrogance.

Well written? Maybe well written as in 'he knows how to ridicule someone who can't conjugate her verbs drunk'. But hardly well written as in actually having any insights into anything interesting, much less any clever ways of expressing same.

For well-written, see www.lileks.com/bleat (Yes, I know it's not post-2000 brashness and insults, and the subject matter isn't frat-boy adolescence, sorry...)

I'm now ready for better returns.

I've been ready for three nubile young women to start attending to my every last desire ever since I hit puberty. Now where the hell are they?

Here's a hint: the stock market isn't an easy game to be played. Go stick your money in a mutual fund that's managed by someone competent, or invest in a well-run company that's got a long history of success.

And if you think you're too good for that, you may as well just cut me a check, because in the end your money's just going to end up in the hands of people less foolish than you; how about we cut out the middlemen? I'll even draw up some stock certificates for you to frame.

FOXNews
Drudge
Rush
InstaPundit
The Bleat
Dilbert
Blue's
jwz
Davezilla

I used to run a frequently updated humor website, and most of my traffic were people I knew from the Badassmofo.com forums and people they knew (this was a few years back, before "blogs" as such). This whole deal is really a word-of-mouth phenomenon based on people who trust the opinion of friends, a popular website, etc.

*gasp* an activist, how horrible! Even worse, a history teacher? The bastard! (obviously part of the intellectual elite, and we know what they can get up to; i.e. communism and whatnot) That's next door to terrorism!

I mean, come on. Aren't people allowed to have opinions anymore? Besides, that guy (the history teacher) makes a lot of sense, (IMO, of course) and that doesn't require a teaching position.

Who is the guy complaining? A newspaper guy and former talk radio-show host. I quote:

"I work in journalism, but I'm not a journalist - that title is best reserved for people who do the hard work of calling up sources, checking leads, and other forms of diligent labor. I make things up, really."

Yeah, lots better than a history teacher.

M-

Here is a guy using google to find out that a journalist's "normal american citizen" source is actually an activist, and a history teacher to boot.

Using google to fact check people is a part of life now - and I love it.

Donut

E/N stood for Everything and Nothing, a "timewaster" page about silly news articles, bizarre Flash movies from Japan, and other amusing stuff the author finds on the web, plus commentary and rants that put them in context. badassmofo.com is a good example, as he's a tech worker who has time to kill scrounging the 'Net. His page used to be considered E/N a few years back, but now would be thought of as a blog.

I want to make it clear that this is extremely clever, and now I want one! But, here's a few ideas I have.

I don't think ceiling ductwork is optimal for the application - in fact, placing everything subfloor may be more optimal for aesthetic value, especially for the CAT5 and electrical. (Rather than have things plug into the ceiling or have the wall outlets run down from there, wire them up from the floor. Less intrusive.) It might help to raise the floor a couple of inches to accomodate everything, but the impact if you remove the ceiling (as it were) should be trivial. on the other hand, if you are required to install sprinklers by your local building code...well, still drop everything else below, but keep a trivial ceiling to accomodate the sprinkler system.

For acoustic purposes, the builder would be advised to place some kind of padding on the walls. Yes, I know, acoustic tiling is expensive and carpeted walls went out when the The Gobbler was torn down, but something should be done, or you won't be able to discreetly make love on the opposite end of the house from your guests with your SO.

Furnace and water should be placed centrally to all used utilities. In the floor plan, you will notice that the builder has the utility closet placed between the pantry and the secondary bath. I think if I were me, I would place the utility closet off of that unused corridor, facing into the center of the oblong there. It takes it a bit farther from the kitchen, but it puts it significantly closer to the master bedroom, and unless you heavily insulate the pipes, heat lossage will be cut down significantly by doing this. The problem can be countered of course by installing secondary heaters as appropriate.

The chimney in the kitchen is a very smart touch, but an exhaust system in the bathrooms would be very optimal to keep those after-use odors down. =O.o=.

Take that secondary bath away from that side corridor. Put another attached to the bedroom/study/zen room branch, and another on that other corridor that is not used in the floorplan. It may seem redundant, but you don't (for one thing) want bathrooms *too* close to the kitchen or pantry, and you'll find a bathroom closer to the bedrooms and common areas of the home to be of significant convenience.

And where's that fireplace in the living room, hmm? =^_^=

As mentioned in another post of mine, make sure you install an electro-osmotic pulse system to keep those walls dry and intact.

How could they miss the Gallery of Regrettable Food?

http://www.lileks.com/institute/gallery/index.html

Agreed on all points above. I always look forward to reading the daily Bleatage on lileks.com.

• Commentary: Phil Agre's Election 2000 wrapup, which was sent Dec. 23, 2000, to subscribers to his Red Rock Eater Digest mailing list. No one tears into political jargon and other dissembling rhetoric the way Agre does, and this post-election contribution was widely forwarded around the Net after its publication.
• Feature Journalism: The Bleat by James Lileks, a daily column that's among the best feature writing in any medium, which is more impressive because his subject matter is nothing -- more specifically, the minutiae of his daily life, like movies, moving and odd yearbook discoveries.
• Commentary: Deb Weiss. Though her columns are hosted by the Drudge Report, Weiss is an amateur commentator who graduated from writing letters to the editor, not a professional. Though I disagree with her on every single political issue that matters, I have to admit that in columns like this Oct. 19, 2000, recap of the first Gore-Bush debate, Weiss rips into everyone to the left of Pat Buchanan with style, intelligence and savage wit.

• Commentary: Phil Agre's Election 2000 wrapup, which was sent Dec. 23, 2000, to subscribers to his Red Rock Eater Digest mailing list. No one tears into political jargon and other dissembling rhetoric the way Agre does, and this post-election contribution was widely forwarded around the Net after its publication.
• Feature Journalism: The Bleat by James Lileks, a daily column that's among the best feature writing in any medium, which is more impressive because his subject matter is nothing -- more specifically, the minutiae of his daily life, like movies, moving and odd yearbook discoveries.
• Commentary: Deb Weiss. Though her columns are hosted by the Drudge Report, Weiss is an amateur commentator who graduated from writing letters to the editor, not a professional. Though I disagree with her on every single political issue that matters, I have to admit that in columns like this Oct. 19, 2000, recap of the first Gore-Bush debate, Weiss rips into everyone to the left of Pat Buchanan with style, intelligence and savage wit.

For the "online commentary" category, consider James Lileks at lileks.com. He's a newspaper columnist from Minneapolis, but his web content seems to be unaffiliated with his day job.

He's got a terrific sense of humor, a fine way with words, a genuine fondness for 20th Century Americana, and is pretty handy with the clipart to boot.

If he wants to live in the 50's, then he needs to visit this page.

I guess I have to say something. Sooo...go visit Lileks. Dogs think we can read their minds!

Oh yea, and a lot of the cookbook criticism does seem disingenuous, but the magazine ads and the miscellaneous pics do harbor some gems...

Oh yea, and a lot of the cookbook criticism does seem disingenuous, but the magazine ads and the miscellaneous pics do harbor some gems...

Oh yea, and a lot of the cookbook criticism does seem disingenuous, but the magazine ads and the miscellaneous pics do harbor some gems...

Oh yea, and a lot of the cookbook criticism does seem disingenuous, but the magazine ads and the miscellaneous pics do harbor some gems...

Back up to the main page . I think the whole site's hilarious. Of course, I haven't slept in a while either.