Ooh bloody hell, yes. That was weird. It was really intense. She must be a strange girl. I mean, well it was nice and, she’s good but, well erm, y’know, it was kind of strange, I mean really weird.
Damon Albarn on Emm Gryner’s lounge
version of Song 2
I have gotten into the habit of not reading lyric liner notes in CDs/albums/whatever because it drives me nuts if they aren’t singing exactly what’s written….
From recent e-mail
I’ve been watching Monk recently, and realized I identify with him slightly more than I find comfortable. But this evening I received e-mail containing the text quoted above, and it’s made me feel somewhat comforted that, although I suffer from a similar affliction
, so do others.
And I do recognize that writing this post is neurotic in itself. Isn’t that ironic? (No!)
My SETI@Home clients haven’t discovered any statistics of note since August 2001. Previous to that I was getting personal-best
spikes, gaussians, and pulses once every couple of months on average. I know they’ve been recycling work units for some time, but I’d expect to get similar results–the analysis hasn’t changed, because the client has been the same version (3.03) since December 2000.
I’m not complaining, just curious.
Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us.
Bill Watterson, Calvin and Hobbes
Today is a national holiday–meaning no banks are open–but I received a personal followup message from Bank of Montreal. Unfortunately it was informing me that the inquiry we have received from you was blank
. I’m not sure exactly what that means–mail doesn’t just go blank–but I resent my original message with their tracking number attached. I suspect their mail server erroneously tossed the entire message because of its suspicious
attachment: my S/MIME signature.
Still no response from the virtual banks
.
[Updated late afternoon: Got another similar response from BMO. I’ve replied once more, this time sans signature… if it doesn’t work this time, BMO’s off the list.]
You want to turn on the room and not the devices.
Peter Lucas, Maya Designs Inc. [via CNN]
Maya and CMU are working on a truly universal remote control. It will control not only your TV and stereo, but your lights, heat, home security system, lawn sprinklers, dog door, etc.
I’d just like to say, “Finally!” I’ve looked a bit at home automation solutions
recently and been mostly unimpressed. Things don’t seem to have progressed much since the days when I was learning about programming and technology on my family’s Commodore 64, except that the new company that had these cool remote light switches is now one of the most hated on the web because of their evil ubiquitous pop-up ads. (Thank heaven for Mozilla.) That’s a period of (eep!) twenty years, for those of you keeping track.
To be honest, though, I’d settle for a plain old universal media remote that can actually replace the six I have now (including three that claim some level of universality). I’ll wait for the rest.
I took my first steps in changing banks yesterday, by contacting several banks to find out if they support current browsers and alternative
operating systems. Initial contact was made via direct e-mail to Bank of Montreal, Citizens Bank of Canada, and ING Direct; banks that provide only form-based communication to their customer service departments were immediately ruled out. The only response I’ve received so far is an automated one from the Bank of Montreal, who promise that Every effort will be made to respond to your inquiry within 48 hours.
Granted, I sent my queries on the Friday afternoon before a long weekend, but I had hoped for better, particularly from the two banks that offer only online service. Contrast with the question I asked to E*TRADE Canada, which garnered a detailed personal response within half an hour.
More to come….
I’d been hearing rumours of a new Dayna Manning CD almost since her first disc was released in 1997. After five years of those rumours, Shades
is finally coming out in October. If the clip they’re using on her website is any indication, the long wait has been worth it.
With recent news of a new Loreena McKennitt disc in the works, now all I need is a new hit of Spirit of the West, who also haven’t released a disc of new material since 1997.
A slightly modified excerpt from e-mail to Donna of Sirens:
London seems to have an inferiority complex of sorts, which I find at odds with the city’s ultra-conservative reputation—nothing local is good enough, and we have to beg to get anyone to come here. I’m reminded of Chester, the yippy little terrier from a couple of Warner Brothers cartoons who tries to be best buddies with bulldog Spike: the powers that be keep saying look at us, approve of us
until it comes across as desperation. The exception is things that have toughed it out long enough to become familiar—the Grand Theatre and the Home County festival seem to be doing well in spite of the environment.
If a groupie
is a girl who follows male bands around, is a guy who follows female bands a grouper?
I’ll be here until Thursday. Please tip your waitress.
Today is not N.’s unbirthday. By an amazing stroke of luck, it’s also exactly 182.5 days away from her half-birthday. (Ladies do not divulge their age, and a true gentleman does not ask. So don’t even think about it!)
To celebrate, I plan to eat a lot of broccoli and drink a lot of beer. Since she hasn’t spoken to me in two months, I’m guessing she won’t be partaking.