Marc's Musings

Porn buddies

Marc — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 01:24:48 +0000

There are not a lot of sitcoms that I rave about, but “Coupling” is definitely on the short list. The writing, the characters and the situations are all brilliant.

Here Jeff describes to Susan the concept of the “porn buddy”. It’s brilliant. And probably practical advice… you know who you are.

Internet Commenter Business Meeting Translating all of the nonsense that goes on in Internet...

The world’s ugliest buildings

Marc — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:06:14 +0000

I checked out this article on the CNN website and have to disagree completely with the premise that the buildings are all “ugly”. The only one that jarred my sensibilities was the Scottish Parliament - it just looks like a tenement with laundry hanging off the balconies.

Admittedly the word “ugly” is a subjective one so it’s all about opinion, but for the most part those buildings seem to me to simply stand out. The term “landmark” could just as easily be used in most cases…

Go Kathy Griffin! I've always been intrigued by the notion of a god...

Space Oddity by Cat Power

Marc — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 04:37:38 +0000

I so far have not been able to find this piece of music anywhere! It’s haunting and sounds like a very cool remake of a classic!

I can’t wait to get a copy for my iPod but so far no venues sell it..

Cat Power • Lincoln MKS Ad • Major Tom
Uploaded by justinetime

No related posts.

Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Hitachi Rear Projection TV 50FX19K - Standby Mode

Marc — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 04:20:49 +0000

Another surprise here. Ishwar suggested putting the Kill A Watt on my TV to see what the power consumption is like when it’s just sitting there waiting for me to turn it on. From what we’ve both heard I had rather expected the TV to consume a fair bit of power in this mode. At least that’s why we’re supposed to unplug such appliances when not in use (yeah, like that’s going to happen).

As it was the TV consumes so little power that it doesn’t even register on my power meter. In fact, after nearly a day (21 hrs) it still had not consumed enough to register any value at all.

Either my 12 year old rear projection TV set is extraordinarily energy efficient or those energy saver guides are using “common sense” rather than actual empirical evidence when they offer this advice…

Anyway, I’ve hooked up my entire entertainment system to check out what a week or so of consumption is like. Coming up soon.

Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Power Consumption Checker I picked up the Kill A Watt EZ P4460 in...
Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Main Computer Results I had the computer set up and it was showing...
Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Testing on a Known Power Consumer I'm quite pleased, after leaving a single 60 Watt bulb...

Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Whirlpool ED25DQ Refrigerator

Marc — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 04:08:24 +0000

I ended up leaving the Kill A Watt on my fridge for a *lot* longer than I intended. But at least I got a pretty good representation of its consumption.

These results were a big surprise to me. I’ve always considered that the fridge should be one of the chief energy consumers in the house and was expecting these numbers to be much greater than this.

RESULTS

Elapsed time: 623 hrs (about 26 days)
Measured Consumption (Watts): 173 <– This is what I spotted when the compressor was running
Measured Consumption (Amps): 2.43
Cost -
     Actual (for duration of test): $6.04
     Daily: $0.23
     Weekly: $1.62
     Monthly: $6.94
     Annual: $84.49

Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Testing on a Known Power Consumer I'm quite pleased, after leaving a single 60 Watt bulb...
Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Main Computer Results I had the computer set up and it was showing...
Kill A Watt EZ P4460 - Power Consumption Checker I picked up the Kill A Watt EZ P4460 in...

The Sex Song

Marc — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 04:54:57 +0000

Yeah… I’m not so sure you’d want them singing this song about *you*. But the melody is very good and frankly the lyrics make me laugh so here it is.

Not really safe for work if you can even stream this to your work machine.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

The Morning After Love it.Whenever I feel a pang of regret for not...
Stealth Cat This is great. It's like time lapse photography without all...
11-Year-Old Girl Assembles Rifle In Record Time I *so* don't have a problem with this. A skill...

Toronto Trip pictures from July

Marc — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 06:03:51 +0000

So, I’ve *finally* figured out what I’m doing and have culled through my Toronto images from our July trip.

Please click here to check them out. I’m going to be posting them over a number of days so check out the flickr app on the left side to see if there is anything new there.

This friendly little guy is a tortoise in the Darwin exhibit that was hosted at the Royal Ontario Museum.

New pictures Posted for August Toronto Trip Just wanted to let you know I've added some more...
Toronto 2006 Summer pictures Posted! Check out this album to see the pictures from our...
Toronto Trip July/August 2007 Pictures have been posted (and thumbnails created finally) just click...

Iron Man - wow!

Marc — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 05:14:55 +0000

Just saw “Iron Man“. Now *that’s* the way a super-hero movie is supposed to be done. A little funny, stretch reality a bit and use top-notch actors and special effects.

When I saw the 2003 version of “Hulk” I thought, “Uh oh… I hope this doesn’t mean all sci fi will flush plot and plausibility down down the toilet like this.”. Unfortunately a lot of movies seemed to follow that path and I found much of the comics to movie genre not that palatable. I’ve never been much of a superhero comic kind of guy so often my first exposure to these are through their Hollywood movies. Dismal examples include “The Fantastic 4″, “Hulk”, “Transformers” - all of which, had I been an afficionado from days gone by, I might have been able to overlook the terrible character development and flimsy plots due to nostalgia. But without that background I found the movies terribly lacking in depth and plausibility (and I’m really not that hard to please that way).

Movies that got it right include “X-Men”, “Batman Begins”, maybe “Superman” and now “Iron Man”.

As a side note I have to say Robert Downey Jr. *really* carries this move. His is an understated presence that just fills ths screen.

Gwyneth Paltrow seems under used, but I am imagining that this is to do with how the character she is portraying is represented in the comic books?

Cloverfield - Wow I finally had a chance to watch "Cloverfield" after having...
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou 2/5 stars Can anybody tell me why I like Cate...
Be Cool 3/5 stars A fun romp. Uma Thurman looks very appealing...

Voting - Holy Crap!

Marc — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:01:27 +0000

I just got back from my sad, sorry attempt to cast my votes for this election. At the advanced voting station, in this frigid weather (showing 34 degrees by my thermometer), there was a line out a couple of hundred yards and 4-5 strong wide outside of the building.

How incompetent a system are we running that it’s going to take me *how* many hours, business hours, to cast my vote?

I’m originally from Canada. A country which, in many ways, is not as sophisticated as the United States. But in some ways - consumer oriented banking and voting. Was VASTLY ahead of us. I cannot recall EVER having to wait more than 20 minutes to get into the polling station and then be on my way again. Maybe I was lucky, but I was then, as I am now, on the outskirts of one of the larger cities in Canada. If anything, I’m now *farther* away from the urban core. And yet we can’t figure out how to do this efficiently?

Come on! It’s not like this is unusual or a surprise. We have a MAJOR election every 4 years! And zillions of minor ones it seems all the time. Who’s the genius who thinks this is acceptable?

*sigh* I’ll try again at 3 pm… and probably again nearer to 6. I’ve invested the time to be aware of the candidates and the issues, I can’t believe I’ll be stymied by bureaucratic incompetence… oh, wait… that’s what bureaucratic incompetence is all about…

** Update 4:00 pm **
Just got back, the line looks a *little* thinner but was longer yet and, at over 2 hundred yards, was still ridiculous. I guess this means that only the retired, the unemployed and convicts are able to vote these days? That could go along way toward understanding the caliber of congress we have…

** Update November 4 **
I have to say that I was impressed. The polling station was open and uncrowded, direction was excellent and it only took me about 15-20 minutes to get in, vote and get out. So I have to take back some of what I said above. I cannot at all understand what the frenzy surrounding advance voting was all about but I’m glad to see the fears were unwarranted.
Kudos. And yes - regardless of who wins the election, this IS THE BEST COUNTRY THIS PLANET HAS EVER SEEN.

Georgia Voter Guide I just took advantage of the AJC's "Georgia Voter Guide"...
Best French Fries I certainly haven't been everywhere in the world, but I...
Yes!! It’s about time!! Real Journalism trying desperately to cut through the crap! I don't watch TV newscasts anymore. But if more people...

Georgia Voter Guide

Marc — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 04:11:57 +0000

I just took advantage of the AJC’s “Georgia Voter Guide” to prep myself for the ballot items I’d be facing for this year’s election. It was great to be able to sit back and review each of the 44 (!) items in the comfort of my home with access to Google to help me look up items with which I was unfamiliar.

I urge anybody who matters to be sure that you a) vote and b) vote for things you understand. If you’re just going to pick the prez without any consideration of the zillions of other more local and, honestly more relevant to you, items then why not just save yourself the time and stay home and watch Nascar or WWE reruns instead…

Voting - Holy Crap! I just got back from my sad, sorry attempt to...