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Obama Wins Iowa Caucus
Obama won the Iowa caucus .. by a surprising margin. Can't help but recall the dream I had.Kinda weird .. if you consider *when* I had that dream (more than a year ago) .. and what was going on, politically,...
New Years 2008!
2008 Happy New Year. Mine was low-key. (No hangover today.) Spent the evening at Tom's. His wife whipped up a yummy batch of organic veggies (with dijon mustard & lemon) for dinner. Healthy stuff. I like hanging out there cuz...
Andy Budd's CSS Mastery Book Really That Good? Initial Impressions + Web 2.0
Back in August, when I was researching the best book to learn CSS, I was suspicious of all the glowing comments at Amazon.com for CSS Mastery.I mean, they sounded too good to be true. I'm especially suspicious of reviewers who...
EAOS anniversary, First Photoshop Layer & The Bug's First Root Beer Float
I created my first image using layers (in Photoshop) today. If you scroll down to the previous entry, you'll see I put some radEyes in the skull pictured on the pirate flag there. Simple, but the technique is the same, no matter how sophisticated you wanna get. Anyway, the Bug (who has always enjoyed that part of the story) turned and asked, "What's a root beer float, dada?" "A root beer float?!" I says. "You mean to tell me you've never had a root beer float? My son! We must correct this discrepancy immediately!"
Matto's Mantra & Downloading Free Books from Wowio
Back when I was living in Pennsylvania, a friend there (Michael Matto) was fond of saying » "You'll be the same person 5 years from now except for: 1. the books you read, and 2. the people you meet." Along these lines, I stumbled upon a new site yesterday called » Wowio, which offers free books (for download, PDF format). I was skeptical at first, but it actually seems legit. You have to register (via valid email addy), and you can only download 3 books/day (enough for even the most voracious reader).
Thanksgiving 2007
I trust you and yours had yourselves a pleasant Thanksgiving, with lots of bird to eat, and other yummy treats. I spent the day with the Bug (just the two of us), so it was most enjoyable. After tearing up the local playground, the day's highlight came when we took his "froggie boots" to the Newport Back Bay. There we found a feeder-stream he could tromp thru (something new).
The Neck, Web Master Skills & Holy Frijoles
My neck is finally (after 6 weeks!) starting to loosen. I can turn my head side-to-side without pain, tho full range-of-motion remains elusive. Tilting » right-ear toward right-shoulder .. is the movement I now find most difficult. Feels like a steel cable (tendon?) connects my left shoulder to the base of my skull (on left side), restricting this (right-ward ») motion. Forcing this movement causes swelling (the next day) where my neck (left-side) connects to my torso. The swelling (raised ~2 inches) looks scarier than it feels. Nevertheless, I'm hesitant to stretch very far in that direction (.. like they want me to).
Dreaming of the Queen of Hearts
Woke from a dream this morning .. where I was enmeshed in a game of high-stakes poker .. (interesting, seeing I haven't played cards in years). If I lost, that was the end. Adios, me. Everything would be lost. To win the final hand, I needed either a queen, or a heart. Odds were slim, requiring something of a miracle .. and I drew » the queen-of-hearts .. (immediately before waking).
Physical Therapy More Painful Than Original Injury
Second physical therapy session today .. for my neck. Last week, the doc assigned me to one of her therapists (or vice versa). "Today," she said, "you get *my* hands working on you." This made me a bit nervous, cuz last week, the girl working on me suggested the doc applied more pain .. cuz "she's never been on the other side of this table." The doc is tiny, but in good shape. She had me working on range-of-motion exercises. (Last week was more of a deep-tissue massage.)
New Identity » Good Dad + "Break Down the Subjects" (Bourne Ultimatum)
More people than ever told me today that I'm a good dad. Maybe this is something I need to hear. Seems like everywhere I went » the coffee shop, the bank, the library, Mother's market .. I ran into somebody asking, "Where's the little guy?" (Most I didn't even know.) Ironically, the last thing Tom & I discussed that day .. was prompted by a line from the Bourne Ultimatum, where Julia Stiles' character (Nicky) states » "They found they had to break-down the subjects before the training would take."
Feeling Gratitude Amid Trying Circumstances
Feeling a profound sense of gratitude, which is surprising, considering the challenges befallen me recently .. such as the tweaked neck and what-not. I don't understand it myself. Perhaps I'm in denial. Or maybe I sense (intuitively) some good news about to arrive from the cosmos. (Wishful thinking?) The neck is still sore/stiff, but it's the least of my worries right now. And besides, there's nothing I can do to make it heal any faster, other than rest. (Tomorrow will be two weeks since I went sailing over then handlebars and landed on my head.)
Frontline Launches 25th Anniversary Season (PBS)
Frontline begins its new season today (25th anniversary) .. featuring a show titled » Cheney's Law, about the Veep's multi-decade campaign to expand presidential powers, especially following 9-11.
Few Things Worse Than Losing Your Kids
Normally I couldn't care less about Britney's latest escapade (having enough problems of my own). But today's article caught my attention, cuz she lost her kids. One line in particular jumped out (4th paragraph): » The joke's over. At least for now. Because there are few things are worse than losing one's kids. This is an issue (sad to say) I've been preparing for. Naturally, I'm hoping for the best. But the decision is out of my hands. So I need to prepare for the possibility things don't go my way. (Sukus maximus.)
Memories of Another Day
In a few weeks the Bug will be moving far away. While the thought of that may be too horrible to contemplate, I'll always have yesterday as a happy memory I can return to .. whenever I miss him. Last night I had a dream about the Bug frolicking in the fountain at Steinman Park. Mom was sitting at a table nearby, smiling, as she silently ate a salad. What do you suppose it might mean? Yes, life can suk at times. Yet I'm grateful for the memories .. especially when they're all we're left with.
What Drove McCandless "Into the Wild"? » A Film by Sean Penn, based on the book by Jon Krakauer
As with Krakauer (and countless others), the story of Chris McCandless struck a cord in me. I have the book here in my hand. The cover says: In April 1992 a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possesions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. Four months later, his decomposed body was found by a moose hunter...
More Goodbye Tears + "Dada's poops are stinked up!"
Last week I mentioned how the Bug cried when I brought him back to his mom .. and how that threw me for a loop, seeing it was a new development. This week wasn't such a shock, tho yesterday, again, brought more goodbye tears. (The Bug rarely cries. Real tears are rarer still.) Yet surprisingly, I'm still struggling to get a handle on this new twist. As we were leaving, another girl, who I've chatted with several times, walked over and told me she lived nearby, and that she had lots of cool play-stuff (e.g. jungle-gym, etc.) in her backyard, and that I was welcome to stop by with the Bug whenever I wanted (even if she wasn't home). While she scribbled her address on a piece of paper, the Bug shouted, "Dada's poops are stinked up!"
Download Classic Books (for Free) from PlanetPDF + Military-style Mass-Innoculations
Link worth bookmarking » PlantetPDF. Contains 7 pages worth of links to books (all free) .. with authors such as Dickens, Homer & Dostoevsky, and titles like Dracula &
I've never seen those skulls before. Now I see them twice in the same day .. from two seemingly unrelated sources. What are the odds of that? Small, I assure you. Very small. What might it mean? I have no idea. Why would he put that picture on his web site? On the main page, no less?
These weird coincidences don't occur all the time. But when they do (like now), they tend to come clumped together in bunches. I seem notice them most when I'm in love, tho (unfortunately) I'm not in love right now. I have no answers .. only observations and questions. Broke up recent blog entry (about Navy Nuclear Power school) into two parts. The original grew too long for a single page. Also added heading titles (not needed with shorter entries).
Still reading Head First XHTML/CSS book. Learning about CSS. Already know most of this, too, but definitely best chapter yet (far as learning useful info).
Also .. been trying to get off the bean (as you might recall). Not going very well. The mere idea of quitting makes me wanna drink more .. (cuz I can't be sure tomorrow won't be the day I really quit). Far from being coddled, Nuclear officers were taken to task and held responsible.
Do you recall the fiasco at Abu Ghraib prison? .. the one where the officers in charge claimed ignorance? before fingering the enlisted folk? That would've never happened under Rickover's watch. He would've had their officer nuts hanging in his office by sunset.
Nobody told Rickover, "Sir, I uh, didn't know that was going on ..." .. uh, not if they wanted to keep their jobs. In Rickover's Navy, not knowing about something (ignorance) is *worse* than condoning it. The Wikipedia entry for the US Naval Nuclear Power School says » "It is regarded as one of the most difficult academic programs in the world."
The words in the world caught my attention.
Never quite sure how much I can (.. or can't) say .. cuz the curriculum is comprised, largely, of material labeled confidential (big red stamp). Before becoming a dad, I had a job where one of my bosses spoke often & enthusiastically about his kids (teenagers at the time). Despite my best efforts (to suck-up to the boss), I had difficulty relating to his stories.
I remember thinking, "If I ever have kids, I need to realize that people who don't (yet) have kids might have trouble relating." While researching what books might help, two stood out:
Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML, by Eric & Liz Freeman, Dec 2005, 694 pgs
HTML, XHTML, and CSS, 6th Ed, by Liz Castro (Barcelona), Aug 2006, 456 pgs
The Head First book has an Amazon.com Sales Rank of 1154 (at time of this writing, rankings fluctuate constantly). The Castro book comes in slightly higher at 1110. Both are Amazon BestSellers. Synchronicity, Coincidence & the Sedlec Ossuary
Various Topics » Nuclear Nightmare, Learning XHTML/CSS, Trying to Quit Coffee, Dog to Wed in Prague
U.S. Naval Nuclear Power School | An Inside Look - Part II
United States Naval Nuclear Power School | An Inside Look - Part I
Difficulty Relating to an Enthusiastic Parent | Skinny-dipping in the Baptistry
Best Books for Learning the Basics of Web Site Design (XHTML + CSS)
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