November 13, 2003
Panther growls
Panther installation - As I wrote Tuesday afternoon, Apple released a "dot one" update for Panther, their recent major operating system release, bringing it up to 10.3.1. I've been working in engineering support for a few years now, so I always feel better when there's a "dot one" update. Every engineering company I've ever seen is always in a rush the final weeks before product ship. Shipments must be made because management has already committed the company to a schedule/timetable. But a "dot one" release comes some unspecified time later and fixes the major "show stopper" bugs. It's a bit like the risk in buying a new model US automobile in its first year of production. Although I had read numerous positive reviews of 10.3 (Panther), I just wanted to wait it out a few weeks. The computer techie website, Ars Technica, did a thorough review of Panther here in case your interested in getting a peek at the non-Windows side of the computing universe. My own install went reasonably well, if not a bit slow due to all the checking the installer does of what you already have. It tries as much as possible to not ruin what you already have setup and configured. So far, I like it... I like it a lot!
In-N-Out Burgers - I forgot to mention that while I was in Santa Cruz, I kept my eyes open for an In-N-Out burger shop. While it is a franchise, it has not made it out much past California, Nevada, and Arizona. Still, it brings back the kind of fond memories for Michelle that Gene N' Judes hot dogs, Russell's barbecue beef, or Squab's gyros brings to a native of River Grove. On my last night in California, my co-worker and I drove up to Malpitas to visit a former co-worker for dinner at a nice Thai restaurant. After dinner I stopped in at the nearby In-N-Out to pick up Michelle a couple of their T-shirts. (Actually you can buy a bunch of their stuff via their online store, nevertheless...) Michelle has a bunch of old In-N-Out T-shirts from when she lived in California, but most are pretty faded by now. When I surprised her with the new T-Shirts, I swear she seemed more excited than when I picked up her replacement wedding ring last month. Maybe it's just my perception... *grin*
8 Crazy Nights - After the kids went down for the night, Michelle and I tried to watch 8 Crazy Nights. Theoretically it's an animated holiday season comedy starring Adam Sandler from late 2002. I'm a bit skeptical of Adam, despite his NH connections. I really liked his work in the remake of Mr. Deeds, but have been a bit wary of seeing things like Big Daddy, The Waterboy, etc. A lot of his other stuff gets too raunchy, overflowing with toilet humor. This movie fits that mold. At least the first 20 minutes or so does. That's about all we could take of it. Every once in a while you watch a movie and keep hoping that it'll take a turn for the better. If this movie ever does, it certainly took too long to get there. I know he's supposed to portray someone who is obnoxious and in need of reform, but it just kept going on! We refuse to sit through that many crude jokes. I'm taking it back first thing tomorrow on my commute into work.
Hey Scott-
I havnt seen that movie- but I have never heard anything good about it- so I dont think I'll be renting it!
Its really busy for me now- its so funny, and maybe you can understand this- i have 3 papers and 4 tests all in a two week period- and I'll talk to my "undergrad" friends, and they'll say "oh, thats not a lot, thats how much i have and I'm an undergrad!"- and I always want to yell "it is NOT the same!"- they grade us so much more critically now- the A's I easily got last year are a joke- its nothing like that now- so having 3 papers due is hell- because i can work my butt off, and i still can't walk away with confidence that i'll get a good grade- and i am not used to that-
by the way, thanks for sending me the articles!
and put up some pictures of Timbo when you have some time!
For years I have been saying that Adam Sandler is incredibly UNfunny. The Wedding Singer wasn't too bad but other than that I don't understand what's funny about just saying things in a stupid voice (which is really all he does).
Alyssa and I watched Charlies Angels Full Throttle last night. For mindless entertainment I suppose it fit the bill but I gotta tell ya it made the Matrix look realistic in its stunts.
Kyle cried for an hour last night before he passed out, then woke up at 3 and cried for a half hour before succumbing, fun night was had by all.
Tom
Posted by: Tom at November 14, 2003 09:40 AMI guess Adam Sandler must just appeal to a certain group of people who like that style. In a similar way certan people love Python humor and for others it doesn't resonate at all. Now that I hear British accents everyday (ARC was founded in the UK), I'm trying to re-acquaint myself with Python humor. I enjoyed Life of Brian and hope to see the Holy Grail soon.
Michelle and I rented Full Throttle last weekend. I even let Claire watch the opening scene after agreeing beforehand that those first few minutes would be it. The opening sequence had among the most unreal of their situations. Lots of stop motion, lots of obnoxious camera angles, lot of computer generated imagery. "This is youth hostel, ya?"
Timbo's sleep schedule is getting a bit annoying. He was doing so well for a few days there and now... ugh! I'll try to get some more pictures of Timothy and the rest soon, but there haven't been as many "photo ops" as there were before. I tend to hate indoor pictures. Everything always looks so dark! The pictures get so contrasty - pale faces in apparently dark rooms.
The winds are still gusting intensely today. Last night's gusts hit about 60mph in some areas. Some places had temporary power outages. Knock on wood, but we haven't had a major outage that lasts more than a few seconds since we've moved to our current house. I think having underground utilities helps a little in that regard. With all the trees in our area I think it helps prevent the smaller localized outages.
Michelle and I still talk about getting a wood pellet stove next autumn. We like having log fires in the fireplace, but they're kind of a pain and a waste. You have to watch them every 15-30 minutes or they die out. They create a lot of ash waste and most of the heat just goes up your chimney. The next several months will be focused on paying off the piano (and Christmas, of course).
Thanks for the feedback Suzy and Tom. Have a nice weekend. Enjoy the new CRX tires, Suzy, and have a good time with mom and dad when they visit.
Posted by: Scott at November 14, 2003 10:22 AM