tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70436938278059562862012-01-28T14:22:15.023-08:00An ex-Brit in California, with a wife and two cats.Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.comBlogger2521100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-52011119836806075542012-01-28T14:22:00.000-08:002012-01-28T14:22:05.530-08:00

Today, the LA asked me to check the tyre pressures on her car. All were in spec, but while I was doing this, the couple across the street set out an air compressor, and not just any air compressor but the kind with built-in wheels because it weighs a heck of a lot. Then they put out a sign saying "Free", and I wandered across to ask if it still worked. Not only does it work, they had all the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-81399658998407233972012-01-15T17:49:00.000-08:002012-01-15T17:49:40.898-08:00

I go to conventions. However, after the joy of Big Bad Con last year, coupled with the problematic nature of DunDraCon's and KublaCon's game registration setups, and the costs of attending cons, I'm cutting back. This year, I will NOT, unlike previous years, be attending DunDraCon for the entire weekend; now that the entire seminar schedule is out, I can see that there will be most content of

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-64219524233746276812012-01-12T23:14:00.000-08:002012-01-12T23:14:09.596-08:00

So a friend got me a copy of this fun zombie game recently. It's been out a while, so you've probably played it if you're interested, but if you're not familiar, it's the zombie apocalypse you can play with your friends. Three of your friends, anyway, and you'd best choose them carefully, because... This game has friendly fire. On the lower difficulties, it's less than full damage, but it's

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-26677495618748008552011-12-14T17:08:00.000-08:002011-12-14T17:08:52.954-08:00

Here is a photograph of me as a US citizen, wearing a suit. My passport application and voter registration forms are in the mail.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-27273839803243569652011-12-03T13:35:00.000-08:002011-12-03T13:35:21.401-08:00

The LA and I had agreed that, for my swearing in, I ought to have a new suit, since I've never had one before. So, today it was off to Men's Wearhouse, and it turns out they have a sale on. Buy one suit, get a second suit of equal or lesser value free. So now, I have two new suits on the way; one three-piece (for which the waistcoat needed to be bought separately, and which is having to be a rush

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-71961099745952185312011-12-02T15:52:00.000-08:002011-12-02T15:52:34.373-08:00

I've only ever bought one computer game on release day. That was Half-Life 2; I was working at the Social Security office at the time, and on that cold November day I used my lunch break to go to a game store and buy a copy. Full price. It sat in my bag all afternoon, and when I got home I couldn't play it because the then-new Steam service used to authenticate it had fallen over under the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-46457985768148583602011-11-18T12:21:00.000-08:002011-11-18T12:21:56.703-08:00

Being an examination of the nature of this Evil, what must be done to Combat it, your part in said struggle, &c. Many people have a ready answer to which one thing they'd like to un-invent. It can range from Pokemon (not that I have any use for the little blighters, but I don't begrudge anyone the fun they derive from catching 'em all) through automated phone systems designed to keep you from

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-85745887539119764042011-11-11T16:51:00.000-08:002011-11-11T16:51:27.346-08:00

So, on Halloween, many things happened. Some of them happened to me; for instance, I went into the City and attended an interview with US Customs and Immigration, and (assuming the cross-checking officer approves) I'm in the run-up to becoming a US citizen. Unfortunately, when I got back to my car afterwards, in the time it had been parked, the speedometer had given up the ghost. There was no

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-16774660582946321152011-10-24T16:59:00.000-07:002011-10-24T16:59:47.288-07:00

I had a thought over the weekend. Even though I'm tattooed myself, and ought to know that it didn't change me at all beyond making my arm slightly more interesting to look at, I still find myself pre-judging people with facial tattoos. Not that I ever really meet anyone with them, but it's something I should do less of. For those of you following me on Twitter, that was my thought that was too

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-17185328973497605852011-10-10T23:08:00.000-07:002011-10-10T23:08:03.559-07:00

Or, what I did over Columbus Day Weekend. As I mentioned last time, I was at a convention from Friday through Sunday, and a very enjoyable convention it was too. The organiser is a guy I know, and he works hard to make things go well. This convention, his first full-blown convention as organiser, was no exception, and he did very well. Frankly, I think he got more right than people who've been

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-48242756308008477922011-10-06T15:29:00.000-07:002011-10-06T15:29:52.359-07:00

Not on a motorcycle, or even a bicycle. Not even a stationary one. But I'm eating better, as a result of making sure the LA eats better (it being far simpler to do two portions of good food), and this morning I weighed myself. I'm down a stone from my peak weight. I'm aiming to get rid of another stone, which will likely take a while. (For the Americans in the audience, that's 28lb overall, from

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-10011565628940665472011-09-27T13:46:00.000-07:002011-09-27T13:46:08.653-07:00

You may have heard of Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Much of it is good. Recently, they've been in the news for having decided to introduce a new flavour, inspired by a skit on Saturday Night Live. It should come as no surprise to anyone that the name is a pun, in poor taste. One of the multifarious "everyone else has no morals" pressure groups with which the USA is sadly infested was surprised, and

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-19800728545122885702011-08-23T11:44:00.000-07:002011-08-23T11:44:21.963-07:00

It appears there's been an earthquake, centred in Virginia. Latest reports have it as a 5.9, and the Eastern seaboard is busy saying things like "Ohnoes!" and "Wait, was that it?" because they mostly have no experience of earthquakes. Meanwhile, my instinctive response is to say things along the lines of "Now do you get why I really don't care? Because seriously, that WAS it. I'd far rather have

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-75101901334343490252011-08-15T21:19:00.000-07:002011-08-15T21:19:48.719-07:00

As my mother will no doubt confirm, I have a tendency towards running to fat. The lack of activity in my daily life (due to a combination of lack of need to exercise in doing things and an ever-increasing collection of mobility-impairing health problems) doesn't help at all. The LA, having an office job, also struggles with keeping weight to an acceptable level; so much so, in fact, that she's

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-38931818452183192792011-07-27T12:43:00.001-07:002011-07-27T12:43:10.115-07:00

I had a busy day lined up, and limited tuits, so I decided to front-load the complex part of dinner. So, I made something approximating quiche. It'll be nice cold, today and tomorrow, and all of it is from the larder. This one has about 5 ounces of ground turkey, mushrooms, aged goat cheese, and a shallot in it. I'm not sure if that's four or six portions, but it's more than if I'd cooked the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-79183719435739535812011-06-29T17:26:00.000-07:002011-06-29T17:26:51.792-07:00

It is with some regret that I draw to a close my endeavours to make a business of glowing dice, but the glow is simply insufficient for the necessary price. While they are nicely glowy in darkness, they're nowhere near as wonderful as I'd hoped, and so I shan't be making them available. Not that it's all doom and gloom. I got excited about something, which made the LA very happy, and I got a set

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-9521310144460314632011-06-08T16:30:00.000-07:002011-06-08T17:47:09.095-07:00

As you probably know, I like dice. I also like things which glow, and am not uninterested in radioactivity. I've had the idea to combine the three, but I cannot quite do it independently. Allow me to explain. There is a technology known as tritium illumination. This uses the radioactive decay of a hydrogen isotope to excite a phosphor, which produces cold, visible light with no immediately

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-2153867456935208212011-05-31T14:50:00.000-07:002011-05-31T14:50:54.450-07:00

Always good advice, that. In particular, try to know yourself well enough to avoid falling victim to the Dunning-Kruger effect, from either side. One thing I've frequently been heard to say is that I know just enough about working with natural gas to know I don't know enough about working with it to be safe. This is, from a distant perspective, probably untrue, not least because I know enough to

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-49025219891526215472011-05-08T09:40:00.000-07:002011-05-08T09:40:11.953-07:00

Lately, I've been playing Fallout 3. Reasonably fun, for the most part, but it does have a mechanism called "Karma", which is essentially a measure of how "good" you've been by the game's standards. Sadly, this is a one-dimensional line. You can completely wipe out the effects of, for instance, blowing up an entire town, by repeatedly giving water to certain NPCs. It's also rather broken; I've

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-915683892582028752011-05-01T17:52:00.000-07:002011-05-01T17:52:04.272-07:00

One thing I'm constantly astonished by in the US is the prevalence of what I can only call monster trucks. Pickup trucks in general are far more commonly seen over here than in the UK, no doubt because over here they're available with far more plush interiors and lower registration fees than cars, not to mention laxer controls on emissions and consequently less strangled engines, but a truly

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-9961142762484937332011-04-20T11:32:00.000-07:002011-04-20T11:32:57.933-07:00

I heard on the radio news this morning that the US government is considering getting rid of its much-derided colour-coding for "terrorist threat levels" (the one which never, ever went below orange, and only ever spiked up to red when there was an election the Republican party wasn't sure they could win coming up; and I must insert my joke about the getting rid of it being because the TSA saw the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-62484760404669586572011-04-07T15:48:00.000-07:002011-04-07T15:48:12.176-07:00

Lest you think I'm some kind of automotive genius based on my last post, allow me to remind you that I'm a fool from time to time. This one, well... shortly after buying my car, it became clear to me that the velour seats in a fetching dark grey were going to get distinctly hot over the California summer. So, off I went, and acquired a seat cover, of the large-wood-beads persuasion, and fitted it

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-76703166372147052682011-03-31T13:00:00.000-07:002011-03-31T13:27:24.469-07:00

As you probably know, I drive an older car. Old enough, in fact, that it has a few mildly intractable problems, such as the fuel gauge, which only works intermittently. It's seemingly random, but today I finally figured out the pattern. It had seemed to correlate with cabin temperature, but not during summer; when it was warm in spring, the gauge would work, but for summer it wouldn't. This

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-44310983471904778132011-03-22T21:23:00.001-07:002011-03-22T21:23:43.398-07:00

For some reason, probably to do with the world we live in having been built by extroverts for extroverts, I feel a little ashamed to admit that I am a fairly pronounced introvert. Introversion tends not to be understood by extroverts, but I see a bunch of misconceptions. Let me address some of them. First: introverts don't dislike socializing. What's different is that we find it drains our energy

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-71743026467366897122011-03-16T16:19:00.000-07:002011-03-16T16:19:29.407-07:00

I tend to dislike advertising. No, scratch that, I tend to despise it with the flames of a million suns. On occasion, however, it can happen that I desire it. For instance, one publisher I rather like the stable of is Orbit. They publish, among others, Iain M. Banks, K. J. Parker, and Joe Abercrombie. The last two are the two authors who have earned automatic buys from me; I will buy anything

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-7685890683572883152011-02-28T19:27:00.000-08:002011-02-28T19:27:48.675-08:00

Today and tomorrow are the closest the LA and I get to a wedding anniversary this year. Next year, we actually get abona fide, for-real anniversary, our first, but this year, we only get a sort of celebration, since it's only 3 years since we stood in the LAX courthouse and made solemn promises to each other. I'm cooking Swedish Sailor's tonight, since the LA asked me very nicely. It's a lot of

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-67974324415136495392011-02-17T21:02:00.000-08:002011-02-17T21:02:41.601-08:00

I have become, by choice, a member of a visually identifiable minority, and one which suffers some degree of prejudice. Yup, I got a tattoo. To be fair, this was not a rushed decision. The design and placement have been settled since before I even met the LA, which does date it somewhat; she and I are only just over a year from our first wedding anniversary, and the wedding was not a

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-35633148141582456922011-02-03T23:19:00.000-08:002011-02-03T23:19:18.349-08:00

The UK and the USA share a great deal of heritage, but there are some interesting differences in outlook between us. For instance, I've been at protests in the UK where signs have been held aloft proclaiming: "Come Back Wat Tyler, All Is Forgiven", or "Where is Guy Fawkes when his country needs him?". Both of these figures were rebellious, and a rough equivalent in the US would be along the lines

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-39547992802443509992011-01-28T13:51:00.000-08:002011-01-28T13:51:09.241-08:00

Twenty-five years. I suppose it must be, but January 28th 1986 is one of very few days I know exactly what television I watched. Well, not exactly; I don't remember whether Newsround was still John Craven's Newsround or not, but I do remember the lead story. NASA had lost a Space Shuttle. The first Shuttle loss, and perhaps the one which cut the deepest. I can still clearly see the graceful,

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-89139972846729015882011-01-11T17:16:00.000-08:002011-01-11T17:16:31.843-08:00

First, for background, a link. The one-sentence summary: a marriage commissioner in Saskatchewan has stated that, despite the legality of same-sex marriage in Canada, he will, because of his religious beliefs, refuse to marry gay couples, and "they'll have to fire [him]" despite a court ruling that his views don't excuse him from doing his job. This has ignited some discussion online, of course,

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-45447986000653285992011-01-06T17:28:00.000-08:002011-01-06T17:28:20.782-08:00

I'd have preferred to be listening to Test Match Special, but for various reasons, I couldn't; England have just wrapped up the Ashes series. It's not happened in a manner I expect such things to happen; after drawing the first Test, they've won three and lost one. All of their victories were by an innings,which is to say rather crushing. For the statisticians, this marks quite a few records;

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-62772451786672378632010-12-04T11:27:00.000-08:002010-12-04T11:27:34.551-08:00

My maternal grandmother could draw very well. My maternal grandfather was a good woodworker. Most of my family has some creative talent, in fact. For a while, I felt like I was an exception, as though I was the sole non-creative person in my family. But now that I look at it... I build worlds. I also do a fair amount of work with my hands, such as the installation of the front wing turn signals

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-31795561332347884232010-11-27T19:36:00.000-08:002010-11-27T19:36:00.649-08:00

You've no doubt noticed that I like to cook, and naturally such an activity leads to pans and utensils which need to be washed. Some of these, depending on durability of item and qualities of what's attached, can simply be placed into the dishwasher, but others require a little specialised treatment. Naturally, the best approach is to wash up as soon as possible, but inevitably one becomes

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-87830298219993439892010-11-21T21:45:00.000-08:002010-11-21T21:45:27.374-08:00

It's taken me a while, but I've finally found a gaming group. In addition to the Tuesday evenings at the store, when I play board games, we have a small meetup of five people (we're auditioning a sixth at our next meeting, despite awkward timing due to the LA having a singing engagement that day) on most Sundays. We meet at somebody's house or apartment, warm up by talking for a while or playing

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-53835975236968723102010-11-09T15:39:00.000-08:002010-11-09T15:39:03.102-08:00

I am a migraneur (yes, that's a real word), and have recently been actually formally diagnosed as same; I've been suffering migraine headaches for the past five years, having (I now realise, since reading Oliver Sacks on the subject) been in a constant state of aura from roughly the age of five right up through my early twenties, but in the UK, I never troubled my doctor with them. About three or

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-1043782401586811292010-10-26T14:58:00.000-07:002010-10-26T14:58:31.357-07:00

It's currently election season, and so there are truly stupendous numbers of political signs around. Many of them, I'm ignoring; not having a vote makes the whole election merely a source of annoyance, although I'd be ignoring the signs even if I did have a vote here. However, one sign caught my eye as I drove this morning. I kept looking for the next one, and confirmed it: one candidate in one

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-818938837753626862010-10-05T11:38:00.000-07:002010-10-05T11:38:04.872-07:00

Today's turning out to be quite a big day for me.It started when I picked out trousers - I'd bought them at my peak weight, and they fit quite well then. Now, though, they're rather loose. In fact, they'd fall off if not for the belt. The smaller numbers on the face of the bathroom scale are one thing, but this really brings home just how much weight (and flab) I lost when I started trying. Also

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-34777229608399788022010-09-20T16:39:00.000-07:002010-09-20T16:40:05.528-07:00

As you probably know, our landlord is nominally responsible for fixtures and fittings in the house the LA and I rent. That said, it's usually quicker, easier, and gets better results, if we just take care of things ourselves. For instance, the curtains provided by our landlord are three for three on "breaking", since they were never properly done in the first place. If you're screwing into

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-3470353870222634232010-09-10T11:28:00.000-07:002010-09-10T11:28:48.891-07:00

For most of my life, I've disliked mushrooms. Recently, I've learned to tolerate them, and then a couple of weeks ago, I began actually wanting them. The LA has been a somewhat enthusiastic fungivore for many years, so really, this brings my tastes into closer alignment with hers more than anything else. I've begun adding mushrooms to my pasta sauce, and may well continue to use them in cooking.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-50534462767774735172010-08-20T13:17:00.000-07:002010-08-20T13:17:55.849-07:00

I've decided that it's only fair to the LA for me to inform her well ahead of my spending any money. After all, she's the one that earns it. With that in mind, this morning I pitched next year's con schedule to her. It's mostly unambitious: Dundracon (Feb. 18-21, 2011) Fear the Con (March 17-19, 2011) Kublacon (end of May, 2011; date not yet confirmed) Big Bad Con (Oct. 7-9, 2011) The unusual

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-72388828236081691542010-08-09T20:00:00.000-07:002010-08-09T20:07:00.089-07:00

When I started to knit, I was short of ideas after my first garter stitch scarf, but rapidly realised that with increases and decreases, I could knit shapes. Then I decided, well, I'm a gamer, and I like dice. Why not work out how to knit the faces of dice?The results turned out well:And now, I've released the pattern, so you can work out how to do it yourself. Have fun, and feel free to share

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-34638560732625431632010-07-29T18:04:00.000-07:002010-07-29T21:52:44.542-07:00

The LA has a blog. Its title is "Productivity through Procrastination", and that state, I have today achieved. You see... well, it's a somewhat involved story. It starts with my discovery of Lego, in the mists before I was properly forming memories (and before Lego was ventilated to prevent choking; I remember the introduction, without fanfare, of the swallow-safe Lego cylinders!), and the love

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-25525347636620499502010-07-23T14:57:00.001-07:002010-07-23T15:03:23.070-07:00

When I first began knitting, I had trouble deciding what to knit. I finished up making dice, which at least introduced me to the basic techniques. I documented them on Ravelry, before I pretty much stopped remembering to document projects.Now, someone has found them, and begged me to write up the patterns.Fortunately, I did make good enough notes at the time to extract the formulae needed to let

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-9210180100150852092010-07-22T15:21:00.000-07:002010-07-22T15:31:31.450-07:00

By now, I doubt I have any readers who don't know of my bursitis. To summarise its progress, though, it arose around the 5th or 6th inst., having been heralded by something resembling a large and exceedingly angry zit. I popped that, and the next day, my elbow was swollen, red, hot and tender to the touch, and felt like a highly pressurised bag of water. All in all, a classic presentation of

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-74277814136074448342010-07-21T22:40:00.000-07:002010-07-21T22:42:57.510-07:00

You may have noticed that the theme changed recently. I've also added the "sharing" buttons, should anyone care to use them, and the tickyboxes to say things. The "more please" and "less please" ones will be used to judge what you fine folks enjoy reading about, so that I (hopefully) don't bore you too much.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-34655687351898574282010-07-21T17:35:00.000-07:002010-07-21T17:52:27.484-07:00

Anyone in engineering or technical professions will be familiar with this concept. In brief, it states that the likelihood of failure for a given thingummy will be high when it is new, will see a fairly rapid drop as it's sorted out (because, after all, you cannot test for everything, and the real world has a habit of finding things you didn't test for), and then will stay pretty low until the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-31343106689139058452010-07-17T19:11:00.001-07:002010-07-17T19:26:18.389-07:00

The weather, here in our little corner of Nova Albion, continues hot. Not, admittedly, as hot as Arizona, in which I'm informed by a resident that it is indeed physically possible to fry an egg on the road, but certainly hotter than it normally becomes in, for example, the UK. The current temperature outside, as reported by a local weather station within optimistic stone-throwing distance, is

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-34774532032663051102010-07-16T12:24:00.000-07:002010-07-16T13:02:05.087-07:00

Right now, my shirts are confusing me. Allow me to explain...This began with the initial attempt at antibiotic treatment for the bursitis I've been harping on about ad nauseam (which is, should you desire to know, going down, thankfully), which medication came with a warning to remain out of direct sunlight. Not a problem, said I; I shall simply wear linen trousers and long sleeves. That, however

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-3712828455463486622010-07-15T10:15:00.000-07:002010-07-15T12:47:20.409-07:00

As you probably know, my original move to the US was not intended as a move. It became a move following advice from an immigration attorney that we had one chance to make it work out as it has; we seized that chance.As a result of the unplanned nature of the move, I found that many things I would otherwise have brought with me are still in the UK. My parents are storing most of them, and

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-9528257797654861922010-07-14T13:50:00.000-07:002010-07-14T14:09:14.788-07:00

For certain values of fun, anyway. Remember the bursitis? I took it to my doctor last Friday, and he looked at it, agreed it was a problem, and to go with rest and ice, prescribed a course of a generic for Bactrim DS, which is a nicely effective (at the moment) cocktail of two antibiotics, both from the same general family.Well, over the succeeding days, I took my pills like a good little patient

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-24012198027351556272010-07-09T12:01:00.001-07:002010-07-09T15:00:10.536-07:00

Recently, the LA and I have established a regular routine on the first or occasionally second weekend of every month: we meet up with friends (mostly "my" friends, although we both spend time with them) and go bowling.The June session was interesting; I'd injured my thumb a few weeks before, and so the bowling produced a lovely blood blister. That thumb's healed now.However, I've developed a

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-13679776680585363022010-06-16T14:46:00.000-07:002010-06-16T15:11:24.790-07:00

Last time, I told you of the LA and I getting our friends around to help clear our yard. Now, though... now, it's clear, and we have to decide what to do with it. We'd appreciate some help with that... and so, here's a distinctly cropped screenshot from Google Earth. I made sure it was properly North-aligned, so you can judge sun angles.The projection at the Northerly end is a two-car garage, to

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-12517591752308809072010-06-13T20:51:00.000-07:002010-06-13T21:08:32.366-07:00

The LA and I have been unsatisfied with the state of our backyard for some time, but, well, clearing out the jungle of weeds it had grown was beyond our abilities. We have roughly 600 square yards in this property, and even removing the roughly 1500 square feet of the house (roughly 167 square yards), that's a lot of area, and the weeds were big. We had almost given up... but we decided to ask

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-70608447102091407762010-06-03T17:12:00.000-07:002010-06-03T17:26:04.680-07:00

It seems that in the nearly two years I've been a temporary permanent resident of the US, the rules have changed. Two years ago, an immigration attorney told me that I could apply for citizenship when I applied for permanent permanent resident status (the earliest I can do that, incidentally, is 90 days prior to the expiration of my temporary permanent residency; the start of next week), but now

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-45129258185275180452010-05-29T10:55:00.000-07:002010-05-29T11:08:04.538-07:00

Note: the following post contains thoughts regarding the series finale of Lost. You may not want to read it, whether because you didn't watch Lost, haven't seen the finale yet, or whatever. I'll try to avoid spoiling.I didn't get into Lost immediately. It was just finishing up its first season when I first visited the LA (in fact, I distinctly remember predicting one notable event based on

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-66270930280614047502010-05-22T17:06:00.000-07:002010-05-22T17:11:25.652-07:00

Lately, I've been reorganising bookshelves. The game room looks rather better than it did before. Today, the decluttering spread to the garage; I'd made arrangements to sell one of the old steel wheels my Volvo was no longer using to a chap on the mailing list. He came by this afternoon, picked up his wheel (for use as a full-size spare; I've actually put one of them into the back of my car for

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-84093198434896985152010-05-20T14:57:00.000-07:002011-12-19T14:18:32.326-08:00

Yesterday (by my time, at least; time zones make it more complex internationally) my older sister posted a recipe for Ginger Fairings. Today, I procured the necessary ingredients, and made baking happen. Reproduced is her recipe, with my annotations. 8 oz plain flour (yes, by weight. You Americans only use volume because way back when, accurate scales were hard to come by) 4 oz margarine (really

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-86157861565446179822010-05-13T22:09:00.000-07:002010-05-13T22:22:31.956-07:00

So... how does one end up at the urgent care facility having one's thumb glued together, from installing path lighting? Allow me to 'splain...So, the path lights we bought a dozen of came, as such things do, in pieces. First, you turn them on (or rather to "auto"), then you place in the inner diffuser, then the outer light cover (this to defocus the blue-white LED that is the rather pretty light

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-75491505697741827592010-05-13T13:04:00.000-07:002010-05-13T13:16:56.144-07:00

So far, at any rate. The LA has had trouble remembering to keep herself supplied with soda at the office, and as for me... well, I've been forgetting to get stuff when grocery shopping, and yesterday was a really un-fun day.It started with a cold shower. The water heater's pilot light had gone out. I relit it, and got on with the day... making an emergency soda run to the LA's office, where I

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-11574315108987864282010-05-07T13:27:00.000-07:002010-05-07T13:32:50.410-07:00

I'm rather lucky where I live; ignoring the abusive employer, I have three different supermarkets (US English: grocery stores) within a reasonable distance of my home. I shop at all three; one is good for basics, but doesn't do produce well, one does produce exceptionally well but can be tricky to find basics in, and one has more esoteric stuff (such things as cheese with flavour, beer with

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-84532613386142283622010-04-30T10:27:00.000-07:002010-04-30T10:38:03.727-07:00

There's a discount grocery store chain that has branches in this area. There's one very near me, in fact. They advertise heavily on the annoying radio station the LA and I use to get ourselves out of bed in the morning, and so I hear their advert on a regular basis.It's convinced me regarding my custom there; I'm never going to set foot in that benighted place.You see their one advert is

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-3042792146062038422010-04-28T23:56:00.000-07:002010-04-29T00:02:42.901-07:00

Those of you who've spoken with me will know of my affinity for wordplay, silly turns of phrase, and general tomfoolery with language. I enjoy producing intelligible sentences which express my meaning in unexpected ways.One turn of phrase I particularly like is noting that "his budgie's fallen off" when seeing a particularly pronounced spoiler on a car. It expresses the disdain I feel for someone

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-90866413728130032462010-04-21T15:47:00.000-07:002010-04-21T15:59:50.292-07:00

Last Monday, my younger sister arrived on a plane. She'd decided to come and play tourist, since last time she was over here (almost two years ago; I really have been married for that long!) she was only here for three days, and didn't get to do much. She certainly fixed that this time!We started off with a jaunt to Muir Woods, via the Golden Gate. That was a full day, and very enjoyable; quite

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-1249371786417772802010-04-02T14:01:00.000-07:002010-04-02T14:18:50.321-07:00

I'm rather atypical for a male. Reading the instructions is something I do as a first resort, not the last resort. I'll cheerfully leap into a job and work out how to do it as I go, but if there are instructions, I'll read them, and despite my ancestry, I'll generally make the effort to use the correct tools.In the case of Silas vs. the Alloy Wheels, that meant a torque wrench for setting the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-41876653197723689302010-03-31T12:36:00.000-07:002010-03-31T12:54:34.695-07:00

I've acquired more hobbies than simply knitting, playing boardgames, and fixing my car. Now, I'm painting miniatures, and I've begun jogging. Yes, I've long disparaged joggers, but it's more interesting than running on the spot, and I do need to get more exercise.The miniatures painting is connected with the boardgaming; one of the regulars of my group is running a role-playing game campaign

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-14818497429111513122010-03-24T14:24:00.000-07:002010-03-24T16:39:43.442-07:00

I've been doing quite a lot of work on my car of late. Just last week, things came to a point where the LA authorised the purchase of new parts, and so I ordered (from a well-recommended parts supplier in Connecticut) a pair of struts for the boot lid, a door switch, and several bulbs. The bulbs are a special type, used only by Volvo, and cost $9 apiece from the dealership... from this place, $7,

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-17389437039040827742010-03-18T12:31:00.000-07:002010-03-18T12:40:42.660-07:00

Certainly in this case. Sometimes, other offices in the same building as the LA's office will be throwing out furniture. Usually, it's desks and suchlike, and not that great, but yesterday, while I was sitting quietly in the corner of her office (upside of a family firm) because my car was in the shop, we realised that the table which was being thrown out was actually a good size for gaming upon

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-84441339721309931352010-03-15T21:00:00.000-07:002010-03-15T21:07:20.967-07:00

The LA and I received the form today. For all the usual ballyhoo about how invasive it is, it doesn't want anything like as much as the UK government wanted in 2001. Heck, the LA informs me that it's less invasive than the 2000 census was over here. What it wants is: how many people live at the address the form was sent to, whether they own, rent, or squat, and for each person it wants name,

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-11462817936287152942010-03-06T18:31:00.001-08:002010-03-06T18:39:02.589-08:00

Not something I ever intended to do, but lately I've had great fun playing a board game in which one manipulates the stock market, and today the LA and I were spring-cleaning. Yes, really.We've decided our 5-foot dresser (for UK family: low chest of drawers, not what you'd call a dresser) really, honestly, had to go. It's been broken since LA, it's been a pig to move the last two times we've

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-65314991546261344592010-02-15T17:07:00.000-08:002010-02-15T17:19:21.723-08:00

So, this weekend was DunDraCon, an annual event. Last year was my first year, and thanks to some annoying factors (not having a driver's license, my own car, or a hotel room), I didn't get a really wonderful experience. I also didn't really meet people much. This year, things were different; I'd persuaded friends to attend (by taking care of the upfront cost of the hotel room, and having them pay

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-56696149628732213992010-02-08T20:46:00.000-08:002010-02-08T20:54:08.817-08:00

So apparently there was some kind of sporting event yesterday. There were also a number of exceptionally expensive adverts.Frankly, I'd rather the Six Nations. Pretty much the same game, but there's far more action in Union.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-4692998737372250872010-02-03T15:41:00.000-08:002010-02-03T16:02:29.549-08:00

It would look something like a Volvo 240 - utilitarian, maybe even boxy. It would have a basic, powerful-enough 4-cylinder engine, installed longitudinally, mated to either a five-ratio manual gearbox or a mechanically-controlled automatic gearbox with a locking torque converter, driving the rear wheels (with all-wheel-drive as an option). It would have a slew of airbags, crumple zones, and all

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-67187775998190529062010-01-16T19:36:00.000-08:002010-01-16T19:58:43.013-08:00

Lately, there's been a lot of hoo-ha about "The Mayan calendar ends in 2012, they knew something!", and as always with apocalyptic predictions, plenty of films, TV shows, and other rubbish talking it up. Unfortunately for the doomsayers, it's all a load of hooey.You see, the Mayan Long Count which is running out of numbers in 2012 is actually extensible. It merely needs another digit to continue

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-21767070649188481902010-01-13T12:27:00.000-08:002010-01-13T12:42:24.965-08:00

This has been the first decade I've been an adult (legally, at any rate) all the way through. It's seen a fair bit of change in me, too.At the start of 2000, I was in university, failing a chemistry degree. I changed to a geology degree, but eventually failed at that too, and dropped out in 2004. Along the way, I discovered computers and the internet, became a computer gamer (I even bought games

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-79121112796056553992009-12-24T11:20:00.000-08:002009-12-24T11:27:11.164-08:00

All the gifts are achieved (whether made or bought) and wrapped. The cats are still allowing the tree to stand. The game room table has been cleared, in case people want to play games. Arrangements have been made.I even have everything I need for a special dinner on Sunday which will put me firmly in the LA's good books (and I'm not going to spoil it!)We celebrate Christmas as a cultural thing.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-46610138129671402412009-12-06T10:19:00.000-08:002009-12-06T10:24:52.994-08:00

The LA prefers to sit in the front seat. She gets a better view, she avoids motion sickness, and in my car, that seat has a heating grid under the seat squab and in the lower backrest, which she makes use of. Unfortunately, the front passenger seat of my car is currently out of commission. The seatbelt latch has given up the ghost.Yes, you read that correctly. A part related to safety has worn

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-30839517545922353792009-11-28T12:22:00.000-08:002009-11-28T12:46:06.079-08:00

It's been a good year, and for Thanksgiving, the LA and I were invited to a friend's house. We decided to accept; the serving of goose was not a small factor in that decision. We spent the day playing games, and had a great deal of fun.Then, on Friday (traditionally the day on which you Don't Go Shopping if you have any sense; America starts its January sales the day after Thanksgiving, for the

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-65453514486254677152009-11-13T14:13:00.000-08:002009-11-13T14:20:59.194-08:00

I haven't been saying much. It seems that how much I have to say here is inversely proportional to how much time I spend with people out in the real world - and that has significantly increased lately, as I've taken to attending the regular Tuesday night board games sessions at the local gaming store. It's generally an older-feeling crowd than Magic or D&D seem to attract (which does mean that I

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-91905962794632215762009-10-22T09:43:00.000-07:002009-10-22T10:03:11.747-07:00

It seems a lot of people have trouble understanding insurance. However, I'm pretty sure everyone understands the concept of a bet, and that's all insurance really is. You say to the insurance company, "I bet that I will need money to repair my car after an accident". The car insurance company looks at your driving record, and at the records of other drivers similar to you, and at their books, and

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-75560796816830292732009-10-16T12:13:00.000-07:002009-10-16T12:18:29.820-07:00

Small details that make the difference.In general, food shopping here is very similar to in the UK. However, some things differ. For instance, vegetables. I cannot find runner beans here. It's as if they don't exist. On the other hand, celeriac is easy to find, if only I had a really good use for it.Sausages; I can't find sausages such as I grew up with. Nor can I find back bacon.Lamb is very

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-35874632924201160252009-09-29T13:23:00.000-07:002009-09-29T13:28:48.500-07:00

It would seem that this has occurred. Today is not as hot as it has been of late (today's forecast high: 70°F/21°C) and so I'm moping around, complaining of it being cold, with long trousers, socks, and a tucked-in t-shirt. I'm even contemplating putting on a light sweater.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-85979885359196681852009-09-27T13:26:00.000-07:002009-09-27T13:35:41.053-07:00

One of the things Americans will often claim is that cricket is boring. This is almost always based on a lack of understanding. Yes, a cricket match can last for up to five full days, but that does not mean it's slow. It doesn't mean nothing's happening.The other day, I was in a restaurant, and upon their multiple televisions there was a baseball match. Now that truly IS a boring sport;

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-29839037013122911482009-09-21T21:53:00.000-07:002009-09-21T21:55:56.111-07:00

So now, I've actually got something I can put on my resume. I'm volunteer tech crew with Actors' Ensemble of Berkeley, who are currently working on a production of As It Is in Heaven.This'll mean a few more miles on the old brick, and some fun times. I'm very much looking forward to it.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-24899385492618688622009-09-14T19:33:00.000-07:002009-09-14T19:48:58.380-07:00

My birthday falls on the 26th of next month. I wish to emphasise at this point that gift-giving is entirely voluntary; if you don't want to, or don't have the money to, that's entirely OK by me. I have everything I need at the moment, so gifts are just a bonus.With that said, if you do want to give me gifts, I maintain an Amazon wishlist. Receiving things from that list, and probably suggestions

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-41103359325397245342009-09-12T10:36:00.000-07:002009-09-12T10:38:19.215-07:00

Now would be a very good time to check and correct your tyre pressures. Rainy weather and bad inflation pressures are a nasty combo. If you're under, I have a nifty little electric pump that runs off the lighter socket, and anyone within a reasonable distance is welcome to borrow it!

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-76433235838876882342009-09-01T15:40:00.000-07:002009-09-01T15:43:37.011-07:00

Last time I went to the Big Shop, I got some basil and chives to grow in the kitchen. The chives are as I expected, but the basil is... well. This is how things currently look:I'm wondering if I should repot it, remove the smaller seedlings, or what.It's not harvestable yet, but I'm very much looking forward to when it is...

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-25174164653236425442009-08-31T15:28:00.000-07:002009-08-31T15:35:23.566-07:00

My local game store is a great place. The owner's cool, and the staff have been uniformly excellent. Despite that, he's struggling. Struggling to the point of putting coupons in Valpak, which is a blue envelope full of mostly useless coupons that drops into the mailbox about once a month.I applaud his effort, but I think he's made a slight mistake: giving gamers access to money-off coupons. We

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-19353370769865623352009-08-27T15:23:00.000-07:002009-08-27T15:26:55.487-07:00

Yes, I did have my camera with me, and I'd pulled in to the side of the road for this, on a residential street. Nobody passed me while I was taking photos of my odometer.Really, that reading is no more significant than any other, but on the other hand, it's aesthetically pleasing to see a row of twos.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-75096139073753585392009-08-15T17:52:00.000-07:002009-08-15T17:58:36.424-07:00

So, I have quite the collection of recorded music. Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of my actual CDs are still at my parents' home, and so I only have intangible versions. All well and good until I want to listen to an album in the car, at which point (thanks to the demise of the remote control for my mp3 player) I'm rather less than well-off. However, this Windows box does have a CD

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-3615167271604158252009-08-14T18:17:00.000-07:002009-08-14T18:26:35.595-07:00

Yes, I've been back to Ikea. Now I have my own pans, a wok, and suchlike.I also have... little better understanding of the roads surrounding it. They were the cause of a minor row between the LA and me last time, and this time, well, I got lost. Eventually I found myself on the right freeway, but heading the wrong way. Fortunately, I had a plan for that, and wound up taking the scenic route home.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-70329990812977526352009-08-13T09:05:00.000-07:002009-08-13T09:17:54.866-07:00

Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. The three allies of the entrenched, the vested interests, when they know that they are in the wrong, and on the losing side. It frankly sickens me to see the amount of FUD being spread in the health care reform debate.The thing that's really gotten to me is the "death panels" rubbish. Leaving aside for a moment the fact that the legislation contains no provision for

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-76095423828057500572009-08-08T16:58:00.000-07:002009-08-08T17:15:53.156-07:00

In the dark, you can't see. This is a problem when driving, which is why we have headlights, illuminated instrument panels, and illuminated shift gates.Except that the shift gate light in my Volvo has burned itself out.Now, I'm rather a fan of the Swedish Bricks mailing list's 700/900 maintenance FAQ, and it does cover this situation. The procedure listed is quite simple:Shift Indicator Bulb

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-11475366603040129402009-07-31T20:23:00.000-07:002009-07-31T21:06:06.321-07:00

Now, some of you may remember that about all I watched by way of television before the Move was Top Gear. Since the Move, I've not seen a single episode, and I don't miss it. What I have been missing, though, is Time Team. Time Team has been around for a long time in the UK.The British readers will undoubtedly be familiar with Time Team. For those readers who aren't, however, here's a summary:

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-45192945040413021682009-07-25T14:06:00.000-07:002009-07-25T14:37:38.593-07:00

So, my local gaming store has Gamescience dice in stock. Their pitch is precision.Which is why, when you buy a set, you get free use of a marker to fill in the numbers, and free use of a file to remove the burr from the injection moulding.Also, their d6s are interesting. Not only are they left-handed, they're spindown. The 3 and 4 are adjacent. This really upset Michael - he has a serious thing

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-28173796075279648632009-07-24T11:04:00.000-07:002009-07-24T11:10:15.075-07:00

The LA and I thought that the big slab of cement outside the back door needed to be shaded. So we got a cheap gazebo.This turned out not to be all that good. We couldn't secure it, and so the wind moved it. This caused parts to break. Today, I finally took it down and packed it into its box.This involved a LOT of swearing, and quite a few nipped fingers.

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-24298732428600375542009-07-23T11:48:00.000-07:002009-07-23T12:09:00.036-07:00

Healthcare reform is all the rage here in the US. However, people keep talking about it in the wrong terms. There's talk of building a "safety net". We actually already have a safety net - they're called emergency rooms. However, a safety net is like the airbag in your car - it's there for when things go very wrong, and ideally, you want to never, ever use it. I will be extremely happy if I never

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-60499539401426208752009-07-10T13:58:00.000-07:002009-07-10T14:13:40.630-07:00

ARGH.Here is what happens, folks. Assumptions made in the following:- The treadmill is automatically controlled to operate against the plane's speed, and is perfect in said control.- Friction can be ignored.Case #1: plane's speed defined by body and wings of plane with respect to undisturbed surrounding air.The plane is started up, and as it increases power, it moves forward as the treadmill

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-10220569999059643692009-07-07T18:11:00.000-07:002009-07-07T18:29:44.029-07:00

Everyone seems to be concerned about such things as drilling for oil, logging, air pollution, light pollution... the big, high-profile things. What I find more annoying are small effects on the environment.For instance, take car alarms. Please, take them far away. They're annoying enough when they're themselves (loud, piercing, and less useful than the nipples on a man's chest, since everybody

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-88488457017515833052009-07-05T20:40:00.000-07:002009-07-05T20:49:34.992-07:00

As those of you with a calendar will have noticed, this weekend was the 4th of July. Notable for any number of events, but of course the one which got all the attention was in 1776, when the United States of America declared their existence and their independence from the rule of the United Kingdom. This act rather upset the British, and there was a somewhat nasty war over it, but in the 200 and

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043693827805956286.post-28252019862345657862009-06-27T14:14:00.000-07:002009-06-27T14:22:27.035-07:00

I can't promote them either. However, I CAN note URLs and use them, and I recently did for one that appeared in response to my posting about my Volvo's busted turn signal. Their local BBB gave them a good rating, and so I invested $30 in a new turn signal (as opposed to $75 plus shipping for a junkyard part) and was expecting it to receive it by about Thursday next week. It arrived in the mail

Silashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639832677140104872noreply@blogger.com0