Another mystery of the universe, solved by Yahoo

Dear Yahoo!: What are you supposed to do with the wine cork at a restaurant?

http://ask.yahoo.com/20060227.html

"It mainly has to do with tradition. The patron is supposed to confirm that the label on the cork matches the one on the bottle. If they don't match, you may be dealing with a less-than-reputable restaurant. Of course, inspecting a cork can make you look like kind of a dork."

And now we know :-) I guess I really wasn't supposed to chuck that cork across the room. Oh well. Don't sniff that cork buddy! AAahhhhh an other urban myth dispelled. Thank you Yahoo!

GGGGrrrrrrr..... My nerves!

Ok, its been too long since I have meditated. I need to at lunch today, after dinner at the latest! I have no patience today. Heck, I am irritated at too many people today for my / their own good, LOL. Maybe its the lack of sleep, maybe I'm fighting the cold my kids have or maybe they are just being really aggravating today. Not sure yet. However, I do know it's just easier to fix me and my mindset than to fix many other people. Soooooo, wish me luck :-)

Myles set for Doctor Who spin-off

Welsh actress Eve Myles is to play the lead female role in the Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood.

Myles will play the role of Gwen opposite John Barrowman in the 13-part serial, to be screened later this year.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4744942.stm

Can't wait for this! However I bet it will never see the US in my lifetime :-) Oh well, long live bit torrent! That's the only way I'll get to see it. Maybe it will be out on BBC DVD in the next two or three years, lol.....

Linux: The Day After

Well I made a lot of progress yesterday. I seem to have all my major bases covered. Hardware is still my largest obstacle. I still can't see my webcam, I need a firmware update for my scanner and pocket PC is a no show at this point. On the plus side of the scale, I have full access to my iPod which is great, but for some reason I can't sync it. Sigh, oh well at least I can get stuff on to it :-)

I will be spending most of today in Windows. I need to move a lot of files around then convert my drives back to FAT32. The NTFS ones really make SUSE cringe. If all goes well I will be able to take my 10GB Linux partition and make it 60GB to just let it go hog wild. I'm sure Windows will make me jump through a few hundred hoops firs to make that happen.

My impressions after a full day as Linux only? Yes it will work for me and I predict I will be M$ free in a few weeks. Once I have my PC where I want it, then its off to my laptop. I am betting that will be a much harder setup, but who knows maybe SUSE will suprise me again :-)

Let the Linux Revolution Begin!

Well its official. My wife doesn't seem to be too happy about it, but I am going to ban Windows from my PC. How, well... not very easily. I have tried a lot of distros out over the last year or so and have settled on Open SUSE. It seems to be the best out there for me. It recognises 99% of my hardware during the install. That's something even M$ Windows doesn't do for me. I am still having some setup issues, but I think I can either work around or live without. My scanner needs to be manually configured, but heck Win only sees it 50% of the time :-) My sound is a little flaky, but should be easy to tweak. I found iPod software but haven't attempted to set it up yet and my logitech video camera 1/2 works. LOL, actually that's not bad for a first day :-) However since its not Windows I expect these problems but all shall be well eventually :-)

www.opensuse.org

Einstein digs my blog!

Thanks Al. Your words are touching and truly made my day! :-)

LOL, actually this fun tool can be found at http://www.hetemeel.com/einsteinform.php . Go vist and have some fun!

Weekly Words of Zen Wisdom from Master Sheng Yen

"Sentient beings are interrelated in every way. We live in the same world and breathe the same air. Why then, do we find it so difficult to experience compassion for each other, for all sentient beings?"

Master Sheng Yen

Decided on my new tattoo

I finally decided on my next tattoo. It will look something like the picture on the left. It may be just the knot, but as a Buddhist the whole design has significance to me. Especially the lotus flower. There are a lot of interpretations on the lotus image, but it shows up in most traditions in Buddhism. My interpretation is more literal than most. The lotus is this beautiful flower that grows best out of mud and dung. So, to me it’s a representation of the wonderful person we can become if we just try. It also shows me that we can all rise above all the crap this world dishes out to us on a daily basis. And that is the essence of the Buddha's teachings. The world is suffering but we can overcome it. I get a lot of strength and hope from this and boy do I need all the help I can get :-)

Pig Manure Flood..... EEEWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!

BERLIN (Reuters) - A Bavarian village was flooded by liquid pig manure after a tank containing the fertilizer burst, German police said Wednesday.

Sewage rose to 20 inches in the courtyards and streets of Elsa after gushing from the tank, which held some 240,000 litres of pig manure.

"The village was swamped with green-brown liquid and it was pig manure -- the mother-of-all muck," said Rainer Prediger, a police spokesman in the nearby town of Coburg.

I have no comment. I am speechless!

New "Monty Python" Specials Slated To Premiere In 2006 Only On PBS

http://www.pbs.org/aboutpbs/news/20050713_montypython.html

"EXCLUSIVE NEW 'MONTY PYTHON' SPECIALS SLATED TO PREMIERE IN 2006 ONLY ON PBS"

Just came across this today at boingboing.net . All I can say is YEAH!!!! "New" Python stuff is coming soon. I have yet to make it through the complete box set, but i am on DVD 8 out of 12. Hopefully I will finish before the new material is released this spring.

Spamalot - The coolest show ever!

BBC has a short article on Spamalot's UK opening. I saw this in NYC with my wife recently. Honestly, this is the funniest show I have ever seen! Go see it... any where... any way you can! Thanks to my wife for the heads up on the article:-) Love ya hun!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4736680.stm

Rather than a formal question and answer session, Python star Eric Idle, who created the musical, treated his audience to dancing girls, sketches and songs.

As the show features flatulent Frenchmen, a legless knight and killer rabbits, it was no surprise that Idle went for the unconventional.

Taking to the stage at the West End's Palace Theatre, he introduced the plans for the musical with a mixture of stand-up comedy and excerpts from the show.

In keeping with Python's black humour, every attempt at promotion ended with deliberate anti-climax.

Amid the joking, Idle repeatedly stressed the musical's American success.

"With 83% of all musicals failing on Broadway, Spamalot is a hit," he said. - Source news.bbc.uk 2/21/06

Angry Old Guy

So, I stopped for a cup of coffee and bagel on my way into work today. I went into my favorite convenience store and hit up the ATM for some money. I noticed that the line was kind of long so I figured "OK, just grab a quick salad for lunch later." I get in line and notice there are now 15 people ahead of me. As I am staring at the floor I heard a loud bang. Then another. It was the cashier AKA Angry Old Guy. He was beating up his cash register and cursing up a storm. Not a good sign. So I watched and laughed for a bit to see if he would stroke out until I realized that I was going to be late for work. I dropped my salad back in the cooler and left. Sigh, well the show was fun, but I guess I have to go out later for lunch. Hopefully Angry Old Guy has taken his meds by the time I have to go back so I can actually get food this time.

President's Day Sux!

This is how I feel today. It's a holiday and everything is supposed to be quiet at my job. Ha! I work at an IT helpdesk and we have had more high priority fires to put out this morning than 1/2 of last week combined. Soooooo, I am running on 4 hours sleep and just barely surviving due to the caffeine drip of bad coffee we have here. But at least they didn't take away my lunch. That happens now and again.......

Welcome to my blog....

Hello to anyone who stumbles across these random mumblings and grumblings. I have decided to record here my observations on humanity or lack there of and the things that intrigue me. Anything could be here from bad drivers, to my kids, to movies and books. Basically anything that comes across my mind :-)

The Geek