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December 26, 2006
You can practically type in any major corporation and add the word 'sucks' to get their gripe site.
PayPal froze my bff's account... learn the dark side of the eBay machine.
December 15, 2006
Ten days from Christmas, and it's 60º outside.
December 7, 2006
Recently finished reading Time To Make The Donuts , by William Rosenberg. It's a much better book than say, Rich Dad, Poor Dad . One book is a good read full of practical advice and applications, while the other is a collection of anecdotes.
November 20, 2006
Levels of Excellence:
Level 1 - Conscious Excellence
Level 2 - Unconscious Excellence
Level 3 - Conscious Competence
Level 4 - Conscious Incompetence
Level 5 - Unconscious Incompetence
Level 0 - Over-Conscious Incompetence
November 14, 2006
What's 7+5? Apparently these days in NYC, kids are taught it's not simply 12, but 7+3=10 and then 10+2=12. This method of computation is useful in applications for larger numbers. For example, what is 698x5? So we know 700x5=3500. But instead of using straight multiplication, since 698 is 2 short of 700, we can take 3500-(2x5) to get 3490. While conceptual thinking may be effective at solving more complex problems later in life, I hardly think it's suitable nor necessary in elementary school. It just makes math harder to teach and learn.
Similarly, a few weeks ago we were wrangling with some math word problems at Katy's place where we couldn't use variables in our calculations. While it's conceivable that some problems can be solved abstractly, or even without variables, it very difficult to actually conceptualize the solution, especially for kids.
Today's NYTs came out with an article on this topic: As Math Scores Lag, a New Push for the Basics
I think teachers who set the curriculum in our nation's schools are somewhat out of touch with reality and the circumstances in which teachers teach their students. We always try new idealistic ways to teach our kids, but often it just comes down to the basics. Kids in 2nd grade can't be expected to all conceptualize in an adult way, especially with the level of teachers we have and the tough teaching environments they face. Frankly, I don't like how administrative teachers dictate our city curriculum to emphasize writing at the expense of math and other basic subjects. As one reader commented; "it seems like another self-regulatory body holding the mirror and telling everyone what's best."
November 9, 2006
I'm debating the need to get a new computer. The old reason was smoother divx5 playback. The new reason is the insanely bloated anti-virus software out these days. I can't believe how unwieldy Norton Antivirus has become... It's still capable of doing everything as always, but need it be several hundred megs and part of a "suite" if all I'm paying for is anti-virus?
October 29, 2006
Tag-board is down. Looking for a replacement.
October 20, 2006
Excellent customer service at Zappos.com. They took my shoe back; no shipping or return fees, and the 24/7 telephone support was outstanding.
October 13, 2006
When Cingular says they have better coverage, it really means that they just suck in more places.
October 9, 2006
We live in a dangerous world. We have developed ourselves to be incredibly advanced, and yet also, incredibly destructive.
October 6, 2006
Wow, Google in talks to buy YouTube . That's a little scary. I suppose Google is in its growth phase, just like Microsoft was when it was 8 years old.
September 26, 2006
A great feature for AIM would be polling. Users would have the ability to set up quick polls associated with their sn. A symbol or something in the buddy list would indicate "anybuddy" with an open poll. You'd right-click that buddy's sn and then pull up a small dailogue window where you can cast your vote and see results.
I'm only thinking of this because I was wondering how many of my friends are using Firefox and I'm too lazy to ask each person individually =)
September 10, 2006
I hate Cingular. All that advertising about "fewest dropped calls" is absolute BS. I think Cingular has wider coverage, but not necessarily better quality. I had T-Mobile for 26 months and it gave me problems only 3 days out of over two years, and their customer service was decent too. (T-Mobile dropped about 5 calls on me in two years, and I've gotten more than that w/Cingular in the three months I've had it. And it's not my phone; it's new and got good reviews.) Perhaps I'll switch back to T-Mobile when I finally get rid of Cingular, or maybe get Verizon. Bottom line: don't get Cingular, it's pisspoor. They should spend less money on commercials and more on improving the quality of their network.
September 1, 2006
That was one of best tennis matches I have ever seen.. Marcos Baghdatis and Andre Agassi playing past midnight in Arthur Ashe Stadium in an engaging five set thriller. At first it seemed Agassi would have a relatively easy night after going up two sets to love and up 4-0 in the third. But then Baghdatis battled back, winning the third and fouth sets. And then came the final set, which included an eight deuce game that lasted seemingly forever. It was very intense, and utterly enjoyable.
Just an incredible display of tennis skill throughout the match. And of course the exceptional physical fitness of Andre Agassi, which no doubt was a key factor. It was just amazing last night to see a 36 year old Agassi, with 21 US Open appearances, playing someone the same number of years old who is ranked 8th in the world. Truly inspiring... I hope it doesn't rain too much this long weekend; I really need to play handball =D
August 31, 2006
"Bigger is better" certainly holds true for computer displays and resolution. I bought an LCD flat panel a short while ago, and one of the main criteria was that it could comfortably display two document pages side by side. Most computer users know high resolution enhances productivity, and this article substantiates it with some research: Jakob Nielsen - Screen Resolution and Page Layout
August 23, 2006
I don't like it when radio DJs talk during the instrumental intro for songs... it really ruins the listening experience and infringes on the most important of three criteria with music I like: good sound.
A lot of people wonder how I listen to the same 400-something songs all the time. Well, I have to admit that when it comes to music, I am extremely picky. Basically, I need the piece to have pleasing sound, a great voice, and finally, good lyrics. Few songs satisfy all three ideals, but I value sound/instruments above the other two. This helps explain the numerous soundtracks, foreign songs, and misc pieces in my collection. There are a lot of songs out there where I'm listening and it's all good until someone starts singing. Unless the beginning is so good that the song's worth keeping, I usually start looking for the instrumental version or firing up the mp3/wav editor.
Though I haven't seriously listened to radio for a while now. And it's probably because of a similar experience my friend had the other day:
(my friend) "Hey, I like these songs..."
(radio station) ~*You're listening to Long Island Oldies, music all the day, all the time*~
(my friend) "CRAP!"
August 21, 2006
Dictionary.com just changed their webpage. It certainly looks much slicker. And though ads are placed in the same orientation they were before, they seem more noticable.
August 18, 2006
Yay! The beach again this weekend.. Perhaps the landscape is just very different from normal, so it feels more like getting away.
August 12, 2006
Wow, these earphones make it seem like the music is in your head instead of coming into your ears: Sennheiser CX 300B. Highly recommended for commute, just watch your volume and be safe =)
July 31, 2006
Have you ever noticed how stupid stuff you write seems 5 minutes after you send it out?
July 21, 2006
I think the horns on the newer buses don't sound authoritative enough.
June 16, 2006
OK, my take on toilet paper positioning, whether toilet paper should hang so the paper unrolls down the front or down the back.. has now changed to 'down the back'. My reasons before for down the front was mostly aesthetic and hygiene: it looks better hanging down the front and there's less of a chance for people to touch anything else if TP is easily accessible from the front. So why the change? Well, by hanging it so that TP rolls down from the back, it's easier to tear off with a one hand motion for reasons of torque because the roll itself acts as a weight. Poor tearing performance had been bugging me lately.. often resulting in getting more TP than needed. I'm sure I'd switch back to 'front down' if I install a device that exerts a level of resistance when you want to tear off your TP regardless of how little/light the roll is. O wells, statistically, more people prefer it hanging down the front.
June 10, 2006
I use colored pencils at work.
April 21, 2006
The GT500..
April 6, 2006
These days are mostly cloudy. Treasure your scattered sunshine.
March 9, 2006
Hurray! I saw an ant today.. that means spring is right around the corner =)
February 14, 2006
— Sixty-six percent of dog owners said they wouldn't consider dating someone who didn't like their pet.
— Fourteen percent admitted they might continue dating someone they didn't like all that much, just to spend time with that person's dog.
— One in seven dog owners said their partner is jealous of their relationship with their dog. Reasons included: spending so much time with my pet (43 percent); the dog likes me better (33 percent); prefer to cuddle with my dog rather than my mate (12 percent); and I did more for the dog's birthday than my significant other's (3 percent).
Source: American Kennel Club
February 11, 2006
Snow! Just when I felt spring approaching, a nice Nor'easter comes..
February 10, 2006
Nostalgia is a powerful feeling. Everyone longs for old times and what-ifs. It's certainly driving our purchases... A good example is the auto industry. While Japanese manufacturers are gaining market share, the only hits from Detroit are 'updated' icons that are decades old. The Ford Mustang and Chrysler 300 are two cars that middle-aged people wanted when they were our age. Now that they can afford it, it seems a small price to pay for that rush of youthful horsepower. I wonder when we're 50, will we be buying 'updated' Maximas, Imprezas, and RSXs? Haha.. still, as WINs says, "not old.. classic!" =)
February 1, 2006
Those security guards at the Flushing branch Queens Public Library are so "vigilant". They should all be promoted and tasked for more important work.. like guarding Russia's nuclear stockpile.
January 29, 2006
*woof*
January 1, 2006
Happy New Year everyone! Tomorrow morning, school children everywhere will turn their pencils around and erase... because they wrote '2005' in the heading by accident =)
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