Randy Pausch - RIP
July 25th, 2008Randy Pausch - RIP
October 23, 1960 – July 25, 2008
Randy Pausch died today.
Dr Pausch was more than a great man. He was, and is, a role model. His courage and leadership were inspirational to millions of people around the world, and will continue to be so, even without his physical presence.
I wanted to post my favorite Randy Pausch quote here in this post, but there’s no way I could narrow it down to just one. However, after much deliberation, I was able to narrow it down to three.
In no particular order:
“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.”
“It’s not about how to achieve your dreams. It’s about how to lead your life. If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself. The dreams will come to you.”
“He said, when you’re screwing up and nobody’s saying anything to you anymore, that means they gave up. And that’s a lesson that stuck with me my whole life. Is that when you see yourself doing something badly and nobody’s bothering to tell you anymore, that’s a very bad place to be. Your critics are your ones telling you they still love you and care.”
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If you have never experienced Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture - Achieving Your Childhood Dreams, do it now. It will be the most rewarding 80 minutes you’ll experience for quite some time, and just very well may change your life, as well as the lives of those most important to you.
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Orlando Time
July 25th, 2008Orlando Time
Time For A Visit
I think it’s time to get away from work for a while.
Over the past year I’ve been having cravings to visit the big mouse in Orlando. You know the one. Maybe spend some time with the princess and play some Orlando golf, relax, and enjoy some drinks.
My last trip to Orlando was business-only, so there was no time for golf or relaxation. I need to make up for the missed opportunity.
Data Center
July 25th, 2008Data Center
Technology Overload
My house is slowly becoming a major data center.
Aside from the three laptops and five desktops that we - my wife and kids – use for “daily living”, I’ve just added a second Linux server and a new media server. They live right beside the Windows server in my little office. Thank God for KVM switches.
Now I just wish I could add some solar panels to my roof to help power everything. Actually, I think a windmill would be even cooler, plus would have the added benefit of pissing my neighbors off.
The Time For Liberty
July 25th, 2008The Time For Liberty
Now
It’s worth far more than a thousand words. Watch it. Listen to it. The message is clear.
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Best Summer Vacation
July 17th, 2008Best Summer Vacation
New England!
I’ve been afforded the opportunity to do quite a bit of travel in my life, both for business and pleasure. This is something that I wouldn’t trade for anything.
Ironically, one of my favorite cities to visit, and the location of my greatest spring vacation ever, is Boston, Massachusetts. The ironic part is that it’s also the closest major city to Vermont, where I was born and grew up, before moving to Atlanta.
Boston is a vibrant city with more history, arguably, than any other city in the United States. I’ve actually visited Boston at least a dozen times so far, and still haven’t seen everything. From Boston Harbor and the New England Aquarium, to Beacon Hill, the Boston Freedom Trail and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts – there’s just too much to see and never enough time to enjoy everything.
Now that I live over 1,000 miles away, my next visit to Boston would have to be better organized. Trusted Tours & Attractions has an excellent website to assist anyone with limited time while visiting many major cities. They provide discounted tickets to the best online travel guides in 23 cities (currently) throughout the U.S. – definitely better than wandering around aimlessly, which up until recently had been my personal strategy.
If you plan to visit an American city in the near future, or you’re just looking for things to do in Las Vegas, you should definitely have a plan in place if you want to make the most of your visit.
So, what do you do when you’re not on a sightseeing tour? Well, go back to wandering around aimlessly. But, bring you iPod with you just in case - at least you’ll enjoy yourself while wandering around aimlessly. Sign up for the Trusted Travels eNewsletter while visiting the Trusted Tours & Attractions website before July 31, 2008 and you can enter to win a $150 iTunes gift card!
Fontly Yours
July 17th, 2008Fontly Yours
Are You Loyal To Your Font?
Many years ago, back in the early days of selectable computer fonts, I had a decision to make…
What would be my primary font of choice?
To most people – or as I refer to them, “normal people” – this wouldn’t be much of an issue. Just select the font you like and go with it. But, that’s also how you end up with something retarded like Comic Sans MS as your default font.
And, let me tell you, I have received resumes from job applicants written using the Comic Sans MS font. They weren’t hired, nor considered.
But, I did spend a lot of time considering my default font back in the day. I quickly narrowed the possibilities down to Arial or Verdana, both of which were developed specifically for computers – and therefore better for display on monitors.
When I began web development, I finally chose Verdana for a number of reasons, with Arial as the backup font.
And everyone was happy for the next 15 years, with Verdana and me living together in harmony in the land of rainbows, unicorns, and free gasoline, blissfully happy with one another.
That is, until about a month ago.
For one reason or another, I have found myself using Arial more and more. I can’t put my finger on why that is though. But, with increasing frequency I’m finding myself selecting Arial instead of Verdana.
I feel guilty doing this behind Verdana’s back, after 15 years of loyalty. I feel dirty and cheap.
But I just can’t resist the temptations of Arial.
That irresitable slut.
Heat Exhaustion
July 15th, 2008Heat Exhaustion
Is It Hot In Here?
You know what makes traffic in Atlanta a thousand times worse than its usual level of awfulness? Having a broken auto air conditioning system, that’s what.
Now, my AC works perfectly in my car, but I had the need to ride across town with my coworker recently, and his BMW AC compressor is dead. Of course, it was rush hour (when is it not rush hour in Atlanta?), and we had to keep all of the windows open. Nothing like crawling along at 5 MPH with 6 million other cars spewing their exhaust into our open windows – I probably just shortened my life by about 5 years.
Trust me, if your car’s AC is not working properly, go to Discount AC Parts (discountacparts.com) and that new air conditioning compressor, or whatever auto ac parts you may need, and install them.
Baby Pictures
July 12th, 2008Baby Pictures
New Daughter: Pumpkin
She actually has kind of an interesting background story…
Back in May several tornadoes swept through the Atlanta area, one of which hit downtown Atlanta.
After the tornadoes, a worker at a construction site found 8 kittens - which can only be assumed that they are from the same litter - in a storm drain. The mother was found dead in a nearby pond.
He brought the 8 kittens to the shelter, then went back to complete the work on the storm drain, welding the cover on as he had originally planned to do before the discovery.
The next day he went back to check on the drain to make sure everything was OK before moving on. When he did, he saw this kitten (above) in the drain.
He spent the next two hours with his crew, removing the welded-on cover, to get this ninth kitten out, then brought it to the same shelter.
The vet at the shelter found her to be dehydrated, but otherwise fine.
A month and a half later, she’s part of our family.
Thanks Mr. Construction guy. It’s a reminder that there are still good people out there.
Hot Tub Covers
July 12th, 2008Hot Tub Covers
Not So Ugly
OK, so this definitely falls into the “Why didn’t I think of that?” category…
My wife and I have spent a great deal of time and money this year creating an awesome little “nook of serenity” in an area that was previously known only as “the junk pile under our deck”.
When we had our new deck constructed this year, we opted for an underdeck ceiling system which allows for a clean, dry, patio below the deck. We had new concrete poured below the deck, added ambient lighting, two ceiling fans, a trellis for privacy, and most importantly, a new hot tub.
This has proven to be a great investment, providing plenty of opportunity for relaxation and fun.
But, despite the work we put into making this the perfect little area, with consideration for all visual aspects from each angle, there remained one problem. When you use the hot tub, and lift up the cover, you end up with a big ugly gray panel beside your head.
I thought there must be a better solution for hot tub covers available, so I began searching. Not surprising to myself, I was right. The best part, I didn’t even need to purchase a new hot tub cover!
I found SpaScenes (SpaScenes.com) and discovered their awesome waterproof vinyl murals designed specifically to transform the ugly gray underside of hot tub and spa covers into a beautiful tropical paradise.
These chemical resistant murals are very easy to install – my wife installed it without calling for my assistance, so it was easy for me at least – and they require no special tools or anything. You just trim-to-fit, and you’re ready to go. Surprisingly, they are also very affordable.
Really, would you rather look at this:
Or this:
Traveling
July 12th, 2008Traveling
And Staying Healthy
Here’s an important lesson in life – and one that you should learn the easy way if possible…
If you’re traveling outside of the country, consider getting travel health insurance specifically for your trip.
I’ve learned that my health insurance company, which is actually very good otherwise, is a pain when it comes to anything outside of the United States.
