Intellectual Poison

Came across this gem of educational software called Kid Recognize that had recently been reduced in price (I can't imagine why). Take a peek (click for full size) for about a half a second and you'll see why this is a major App Store FAIL. Come on, Apple, you're supposed to actually check this garbage before it goes on sale in your store. This is beyond pathetic and should immediately be removed from the Educational offerings.

Look, I don't have a problem with people trying to make a buck off of an app but I do have a problem with someone who has a minimal command of the language basically stealing money from people with this kind of poorly executed crap. Hire an editor to make your words make sense, Yuxin Chen. If I'd paid for this junk, I'd be screaming at Apple to refund my money. Your sample graphic actually says "Which one of the 3 farms is goat?"

It is clearly apparent that this steaming pile of code should never have been approved for sale in the App Store. I hope and expect Apple will remove it in short order.

Labels: edumacation, iphone

Contained herein are my predictions for tomorrow night's UFC 102 fights. Where I have strong feelings and/or knowledge I will provide my reasoning for making the prediction, if there's no reason then I'm going with either my gut or the bookies (likely the bookies).

265 lbs.: Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Prediction: Couture by decision
Reason: Couture is still going pretty strong and comes into fights both in the absolute best condition he can but also with a winning game plan. Time is catching up with Noqueria quickly.

205 lbs.: Keith Jardine vs. Thiago Silva
Prediction: Silva by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Jardine is tough as hell but Silva is a caged animal in the ring and I think his hyper-aggressive style is going to just be too much for Jardine to deal with.

185 lbs.: Nate Marquardt vs. Demian Maia
Prediction: Marquardt by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Maia is scary awesome on the ground but Marquardt's a cagey fighter who will have an answer to Maia's jiu jitsu. I think Nate will keep it off the mat and will wear him down with his better striking until Maia gets a little desperate and goes for a takedown when he'll get caught.

205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Brandon Vera
Prediction: Vera by TKO Rd. 3
Reason: This fight will turn on how "on" Vera is. If he's on his game then Soszynski is going to have a very tough night. If he's off his game then Soszynski will pick him apart.

185 lbs.: Chris Leben vs. Jake Rosholt
Prediction: Rosholt by Submission Rd. 2
Reason: I like Chris Leben but he isn't evolving with the sport so much. He gets in the cage and throws fists and, sometimes, gets lucky with his heavy hands and knocks the other guy out. Rosholt is well aware of Leben's style and will have a plan to counteract it. He's got great wrestling and will use it to take Leben down and out.

185 lbs.: Ed Herman vs. Aaron Simpson
Prediction: Herman by Unanimous Decision
Reason: I don't know Aaron Simpson but I've seen a whole bunch of Ed Herman's fights. He's a tough dude with a good camp and a strong will to win. If he can do it, he will even if I tend to think Ed Herman, the person, is a bit of a douchebag.

265 lbs.: Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Prediction: Gonzaga by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Gonzaga's a monster, he's a great character who has big power, big skills and a will to win. I'm not familiar with Tuchscherer so we'll see what happens but I think Gonzaga's going to be fired up for this fight and he's like a pissed off bull.

265 lbs.: Mike Russow vs. Justin McCully
Prediction: Russow by Unanimous Decision

265 lbs.: Todd Duffee vs. Tim Hague
Prediction: Hague by TKO in Rd. 1

205 lbs.: Nick Catone vs. Mark Munoz
Prediction: Catone by Unanimous Decision

155 lbs.: Marcus Aurelio vs. Evan Dunham
Prediction: Aurelio by Unanimous Decision

So there we go. The rundown looks like this: Couture, Silva, Marquardt, Vera, Rosholt, Herman, Gonzaga, Russow, Hague, Catone and Aurelio. Check back to see how I ended up doing. And hey, if you're making predictions, leave a comment and I'll come and check yours out.

Update: I got 6 out of 11 fights correct on the winner and did quite well in the UFC Fantasy scoring in the top 100 (#90) with 167 points. Not bad but I would have been happier calling a few more fights the right way.

Labels: mma, UFC

Because I've got no time right now to write out a "real" post, here are some good links or blog posts I've come across recently.

XKCD Tech Support Cheat Sheet

Sakhr's Blackberry app puts spoken word Arabic/English translator in your pocket - now if they could just do the same thing for Spanish and put it on my iPhone.


Pointless Babble Is In The Eye Of The Beholder - Twitter may be pointless to many but there are a whole bunch of us who find it to be both useful and often highly entertaining. And, by some measure, the vast majority of spoken human interaction is "pointless babble" so what's the point of denigrating Twitter as mostly pointless babble?

Scalia says there’s nothing unconstitutional about executing the innocent. - this absolutely ridiculous statement from one of the Supreme Court Justice's presiding over our nation made the rounds recently and will likely never go away. It is, quite possibly, one of the dumbest things ever uttered. Part of the fundamental basics of our legal system is that it is better to let a hundred murderers go free than execute one innocent man. That Scalia has no problem with executing a known innocent man is the clearest sign I've ever seen that he should step down from the Supreme Court immediately, he's not upholding the law any longer.

The real US healthcare issue: compassion deficiency - initially read over on Confessions of a Libertine.

Hemcrete: Carbon Negative Hemp Walls - they are, among many other positive attributes, fireproof so please keep your jokes about smoking your walls to get stoned to yourself. Hemcrete is "waterproof, fireproof, insulates well, does not rot [when used above ground] and is completely recyclable. In fact, the manufacturers say that demolished Hemcrete® walls can actually be used as fertilizer!"

Labels: links

Slamnesia - when you can't remember if you've slept with someone or not. Can also be called Bangnesia.

Slimnesia - when you can't remember ever having been thin.

Cross posted, as always, to the Fictionarium. Rate them here, rate them there, rate them everywhere!

Labels: nwotd

"Whether You Think You Can or Can't, You're Right" - Henry Ford

Very Yoda-esque of ol' Hank Ford, eh? Of course, he's completely right. We succeed or fail not because of our ability or inability to do something but because of whether we think we can or can't.

Or, to quote Yoda, “Do or do not... there is no try.”

While leaving a comment over on one of John's Where's My Plan posts, I remembered something I learned a number of years ago while working out with some powerlifters. The body is capable of so much more than our minds think it is. It isn't whether or not I can benchpress 300 pounds but whether or not I think I can. And, after building up my strength to do it, I did. At a fairly mere weight of a few notches under 170 pounds I benched 305 three times. My body could do it, it was just my mind stopping my from doing it. Once I convinced myself I could do it, I did.

To a point, of course. I'm not saying you can make your mind up to throw a rock to the moon and do it.

But it isn't a stretch to say that you are far stronger, faster, smarter, more powerful and just plain better than you think you are. And the more you believe that, the truer it will be.

Labels: achievement, mentality

Phooty - a fake booty, taken from phooey booty, indicating a misrepresented backside via slimming girdle or butt cheek implants or even taped up cheeks.

More new words over here.

Labels: nwotd

I think today will be the last day I post every little thing I eat. Not only because it makes for a boring post but because I spaced it for most of yesterday and had a tough time remembering what I did eat.

The good news is that I started today weighing 179 pounds so, without too much effort on my part I've whittled three pounds off my body in about a week. And that's without multiple long bike rides as I've only been able to get one ride in this week of any consequence.

On to the food diary.

Breakfast:
Kyani Sunrise
Coffee with Italian Sweet Cream creamer

Later:
Two slices Double Fiber Wheat Bread with
Chipotle Hummus spread on them

Lunch:
Turkey meatball sub with string cheese and garlic parmesean marinara sauce
Half a can of Santa Cruz Organic Lemonade (the fizzy kind).

Dinner:
Steak with spicy spices grilled
Sauteed fennel with garlic
Amaranth cooked in vegetable broth
Simple Limeade, two glasses
Margarita
Smooze Coconut Mango partially frozen popsicle thingie

No hfcs at all today, I don't think. Plus, tonight's dinner was gluten free as well. I feel pretty good although I'm rather full.

Late night snack:
Pina Colada yogurt with granola - yes, I was pissed to realize that the pineapples in the yogurt get a dose of HFCS.

So, dammit, I did actually ingest some HFCS today. Not much but some.

Thus endeth the publicized portion of the experiment. Posting everything I eat doesn't make for good blogging.

Current weight: 181, it was a big dinner.

Labels: diet, experiment, hfcs

I just posted my submission for Specialized's Trail Crew contest over on NorCal Bikers, you can read it here if you like. It would be pretty cool to win an opportunity to ride the new Stumpjumper FSR, its a beautiful bike and the add-on schwag wouldn't be too bad either.

And the wicked bike outings over the course of the year would be pretty flippin' great too.

I wish there were some way to vote me up for it but I guess I have to make it on the merits of what I wrote and hope that its the attitude that they are looking for.

Labels: contest

Breakfast:
Kyani Sunrise
Coffee with Italian Sweet Cream creamer
Everything Bagel with butter

Lunch:
Drawing a blank on what I had for lunch.

Dinner:
Salmon burger with jalapeno and artichoke topping
Cous cous with dried fruit and feta

Late Night Snack:
Double fiber whole wheat bread with some jalapeno and artichoke topping on it

Labels: diet, experiment, hfcs

I've been thinking about my hard stance in regards to Michael Vick and his return to the National Football League. I think that I am going to give him a short term benefit of the doubt to see if he really has changed his spots or whether he said the right things to get his ass a big paycheck in the NFL again.

If its the former and he really does speak out against animal abuse and really work hard to undo some of the egregious harm he's inflicted on animals then I will forgive him. If it becomes apparent that it is the latter and he really couldn't give a damn then I'll go back to the pitchforks and torches and fervent prayers for a career ending injury.

But for now, I'm going to adopt a wait and see because the proof, as they say, is in the pudding and I'm curious to see what kind of pudding he'll make.

Labels: animal abuse, football

Third day of the experiment. My weight fluctuates, as always, but seems to be trending downwards. I don't know if this is so much a result of the removal of hfcs from my diet or just my being more aware of what I'm eating. Either way, I'm happy to be moving the scale back towards my natural weight of around 170.

Breakfast:
Kyani Sunrise
Coffee with Creme Brulee flavored Coffeemate
Sara Lee Everything Bagel with butter

Lunch:
Al Pastor burrito from Tacos Morenos in Santa Cruz with fresh hot salsa. These things are the freakin' bomb!
Water
And I had the rest of the bottle of Mexican Coke when I got home.

Dinner:
Turkey sandwich on double fiber wheat bread with mozzarella, tomato and avocado topped with dijon mustard.

Evening snack:
I admit it, I fell a little off the wagon and did eat some ice cream. I'm not perfect but I did make sure I took the time to really enjoy it.

Weight: 179

Labels: diet, experiment, hfcs

Day two of my week of trying to avoid the toxic goo that is high fructose corn syrup.

Morning:
1 ounce shot of Kyani Sunrise
Banana

No Pop Tarts anymore, aside from the HFCS in them, they are also made with hydrogenated oils which we are also working to cut out of our diet.

Late Lunch:
Angel Hair pasta with butter, garlic and parmesean
Broccoli salad with apples, raisins, sunflower seeds and a poppyseed dressing.

Dinner:
White Cheddar Mac & Cheese with pangko crumbs mixed in
Coconut ginger rice with cilantro on top (which was just so-so, it was an experiment).
Mexican Coke - made with sugar and not HFCS.

Evening Snack:
Fuji apple
Almond butter
3 Kyani Sunset Omega-3 gelcaps

I almost (corrected that, it had said "also" but I hadn't cracked yet) cracked and ate some ice cream tonight but it had the nasty hfcs and even some of the good ol' corn syrup. But I was good, I stayed strong and had an apple with the almond butter (which is another new experiment food as the CostCo Skippy Peanut Butter contains hydrogenated oils). Overall, I had a pretty good day. I wish I'd gotten a ride in or a workout but it wasn't in the cards. Hopefully tomorrow will work out a little better.

Weight: 180.5

Labels: diet, experiment, hfcs

There were some unexpected changes in our neighborhood yesterday and I'd be hard pressed to say that I'm really all that sad about the more major of the changes. You see, our neighbor's maladjusted pit bull was playing a little too vigorously and accidentally broke the back of their old cat.

The old cat was close to 20 years old and was in declining health and had become less and less able to get out of the way. The other three dogs were pretty respectful of the old cat. But the pit bull had, well, it had attitude issues.

I learned last night that the pit had accidentally bitten one of the other dogs a couple of days prior. The bite was bad enough to need some surgery and a drainage tube installed.

The pit bull always creeped me out, it always looked at me with an expression of "Yeah, I could probably kill you if I wanted to" and would skulk around. I don't doubt that the dog was badly treated very, very early on its life and, as a result, had permanent issues. But that doesn't mean I enjoyed being around him. The pic there is of him as a puppy, already kind of spooked by much of his new world. But he was a pretty cute pup.

Oh yeah, side note, it probably didn't help that he hadn't been fixed and was swaggering around with a set of balls.

Anyway, the cat got its back broken and had to be taken to the vet to put him down and out of his misery. Already a really tough day. And then the mother next door made the decision that the pit had to go as well. Which, I think was the right thing to do.

But that doesn't make their hearts any lighter or their house any less emptier for the dual loss of both a long cherished cat and a dog that they had come to love but knew things were not going to improve and could get much, much worse.

I should also note now that the pit bull was not, as was first reported (and I posted here about) to me, responsible for the death of the other neighbor's chihuahua. The chi pup was accidentally stepped on by the largest of the four dogs next door and its back was accidentally broken. Which is a tragic accident for all concerned since the big black lab next door is just an over-sized sweetheart.

For my own part, I'm kind of relieved that this dangerous dog is no longer next door. That there will be no more battles through the fence with my dog. That I won't have to keep a close eye on my kids when we happened to be out front when the pit was around. I feel bad for my neighbors but I am happy that the maladjusted and unpleasant dog is no longer around.

Labels: accident, cat, death, dog

Employtation - an exploited employee is an employtation. See, Wal-Mart for so many examples of employtations that there are dozens of lawsuits in process at any given time to force Wal-Mart to pay workers for mandated break time and for being forced to work off the clock.

Yep, this word is stored over in the Fictionarium like all the others.

Labels: nwotd

Morning:
1 ounce Kyani Sunrise
1 - 2 ounces Coffeemate Creme Brulee non-dairy creamer
Coffee

What I didn't eat:
Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Tarts - hmm, maybe these should be renamed Brown High Fructose Corn Syrup Cinnamon Pop Tarts?

Morning Snack:
Carrot sticks
Celery sticks
Cheddar cheese squares
Ham rolls
Turkey rolls
Wheat thins - damned things have HFCS in them, ARGGGG!
Apple wedges
This seems like a lot but I had just a couple of pieces of each

And I just found out that Wheat Thins contain HFCS so I've already busted out of my experiment challenge. Which kind of sucks but I'm going to keep on anyway.

Lunch:
Caprese salad of homegrown tomatoes, avocado, mozzarella cheese, basil and some spices along with a dash of balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

Afternoon Snack:
Butter Snap Pretzels dipped in
Chipotle Hummus

Dinner:
BBQ chicken
Madras Lentils with
Tortilla chips
Cuba Libre - Rum and Diet Coke with two lime wedges.

The only failure here is that the BBQ sauce does contain HFCS. Though, in my defense, I started marinating the chicken breast like four days ago, well before this no HFCS experiment had become a reality. Still, I'm a little bummed that I have ingested HFCS twice today without wanting to.

Scary how pervasive the stuff really is.

Late Evening Snack:
Apple slices
Almond butter.

Exercise today: 10 mile mountain bike ride on the slough paths.
Weight: 181.5

Reflections: I'm annoyed that, despite my efforts, I ingested two food stuffs containing high fructose corn syrup. But an unforeseen benefit of this experiment is that I'm much more cognizant of what I'm eating and am pretty sure I ate less today than I did yesterday.

Labels: diet, experiment, hfcs

I've been thinking about trying out an experiment to eliminate the disgusting goo that is High Fructose Corn Syrup from my diet. Do you have any idea how amazingly, sickeningly pervasive this sweetener is? Go look in your pantry and fridge right now. Not just at sweet stuff, this goop is in everything, from pasta sauce to saltines to Rice Krispies and more.

So, my idea is to go for an entire week (and maybe longer) where I absolutely refuse to ingest anything containing HFCS. If I can't read an ingredient label to make sure then I will not eat it (excepting, of course, fresh fruits and vegetables that I can be pretty sure aren't being injected with HFCS to sweeten them up).

I plan on posting the food I ingest everyday here along with foods I might have eaten but contained the dreaded syrup. I will also try to include my weight, mood and attitude during the week to see if cutting out HFCS makes me a happier and/or healthier person

I don't know how hard it will be, I don't how interesting it will be but I'm going to do it starting tonight at midnight. We'll see how it goes from there.

Current weight: 182 pounds.

Labels: diet, experiment, high fructose corn syrup

I figured that I'll never get what I want unless I make my desires known a little more plainly. So.....

Would readers mind doing me a favor and rating my posts with the five stars under each post? It would help me figure out which posts are so much mental masturbation for me and which ones are actually useful reading for others.

Thanks!

Labels: request

I heard something interesting on the radio earlier today. It was a hypothetical question that the Bible humpers like to invoke when it suits them. What would Jesus do? Well, let's apply What would Jesus do? to the current healthcare reform debate in America.

Would Jesus want every man, woman and child in America to have access to medical care and not leave the decision in the hands of faceless profit whore bureaucrats in insurance offices? Hmmmmm. That's a tough one.

No wait, no it isn't, its simple. Fucking hell yeah Jesus would want everyone to be able to go see a doctor.

Would Jesus want the current healthcare reform legislation currently on the table? Maybe not but its a damned sight better than letting insurance companies make decisions about who lives and who dies.

And let's quickly touch on the "death panel" fear-mongering by the Republican obstructionist cabal. Despite what the High Priestess of Ignorance, Her Resignedness Sarah Palin has said, there are no death panels, no mention of something like them, no discussion whatsoever of panels that encourage hospice over care. And yet, in April of 2008, the same High Priestess of Duh proclaimed a need to educate elders about their "options". The very same options that have inflammatorily been labeled as "death panels" today were something she pushed just over a year ago.

Now, back to the What would Jesus do? that we started out with. Would Jesus want a faceless bureaucrat deciding who gets funded for a life-saving operation or who gets put off another month in the hopes that the victim patient will just die and no longer need the care they've paid the insurance company for in the first place? I'm not much of a Jesus interpretist but I'm pretty confident he'd say "Hell no".

Do I pretend to understand the intricacies of healthcare reform? Nope. Do I think providing access to healthcare for all Americans is a long term good idea that will extend lifespans and, be still my heart, save money in the long run because prevention is way cheaper than cure? Yes. I think the current situation is a joke but its a joke without a punchline. Yes, this is a personal thing with me. I got laid off in June and am about to lose my health coverage. Yes, I can spend some of what meager unemployment income I will have on COBRA. And yes, I have been looking for a job, there aren't many offered in my fields and what jobs there are get inundated with applicants.

But all of that is beside the point. Universal healthcare is the right thing to do. It is the right thing for the United States to do. Maybe the current proposal isn't the right one but the concept of coverage for all Americans is the fundamental good that this nation should be focused on. Not the ridiculous rhetoric from the GOP that does nothing but attempt to derail the process and keep the power in the hands of insurance bureaucrats with a clear and obvious conflict of interest (you know, the one between caring for customers and not spending money so that it can be given to shareholders? yeah).

What would Jesus do? He'd want people to be cared for regardless of age, race, sex, social class or religious belief. Because that's the kind of man he was and that's what he stood for. Which is, to be truthful, pretty righteous.

It is the religious interpretists that pervert his message to their own ends that would have you believe Jesus wouldn't want all people everywhere to have access to healthcare, yes, not just Americans. It wouldn't be inconceivable to me for the US to provide healthcare to anyone who wants it and needs it.

Let me wander off topic for a just a moment and wax poetic about what I'd like to see America mean again. I want America to be a shining beacon of truth, justice, harmony, kindness, intelligence, morals, ethics and caring for all men, women and children. We could also stand to cut down on being so goddamned wasteful too.

Okay, I'm taking off my hat, I think its starting to cut off the blood supply to my brain. And yes, bust my nuts with your logic about why universal healthcare is the devil's handiwork. I'll still believe that universal healthcare is a universally good thing.

* Note: That graphic up there was liberally borrowed from What Would Jack Do? Go read his blog, he kicks ass all day, every day.

Labels: healthcare

Yesterday was, for me, a good day. It was, for Grady and my wife, not such a good day.

For me it was good because I got not one but two packages in the mail, my new cycling shoes and an iPod stereo unit to replace the boom box I sold at the yard sale. I also got a call from the EDD and got my unemployment claim straightened out which means I'm going to start getting checks. And, to top the day off, I presented Kyani at my friend's house, signed him up as a distributor and also signed up his father as his first customer. What his signing up means is that my wife has moved up a notch, achieved a new title with new benefits, pay levels and other good stuff. It also means that I get to now start working directly on signing up people directly below me. And that is something I'm very excited about. I also had a good long conversation with my mom about all kinds of stuff.

And Grady had his first dentist appointment that included the drill as he has a few cavities to take care of. He was not happy or comfortable about the whole thing. And part of the discussion about how to approach this better included being told that we'd have to drop another $1000 to sedate him which is money that we really don't have right now. Which put my wife in an unhappy mood.

And I can understand it but there was just so much positive stuff that happened yesterday.

Right now I'm getting myself ready to head to the pre-school for a four hour orientation. There's also another meeting tonight but my wife will be going to that. I'm hoping that I will be able to get a bike ride in today as I haven't been able to ride at all this week which is tough after I got four rides in last week.

Labels: bad day, good day

Atternity - a permanent attorney or being tied up by lawyers in perpetuity.

Yes, yes, yes, all the new words are cross-posted for storage, posterity and easy theft by the Washington Post over in the Fictionarium.

Labels: nwotd

Over the course of my time on Twitter, most of it highly enjoyable interactions with friends and new friends around the world, I've created a growing lexicon of Twitter words. Here is that list of words as it grows. These new words are also logged in with all my other new words in my Fictionarium.

Tweeterhea - an explosion of tweets on Twitter after a prolonged period of no tweets at all.

Twignorant - not knowing about Twitter or not knowing about some of the culture of Twitter including txtspk abbreviations like LOL, WTF and BFF.

Twitterati - the creme de la creme of the Twitter world.

Twitbag or Twithole - someone who follows you on Twitter in order to get you to follow them back and then they unfollow you.

Faillow - follow fail, i.e. someone follows you on Twitter in the vain hopes that you'll automatically follow them back. For whatever reason, you do not follow them back and that is the very definition of a faillow.

Twurfing - astroturfing (Wiki - neologism for formal public relations campaigns in politics and advertising which seek to create the impression of being spontaneous "grassroots" behavior, hence the reference to the artificial grass, AstroTurf) via Twitter but includes the marketing wonks/SEO "experts" who use Twitter to expand their network of contacts.

More to come as I come up with them.

Update: There's more.

Twetiquette - Twitter etiquette

Twammer - Twitter spammer

Probably many more still to come.

2nd Update: Still more.

Twut - Twitter slut

Labels: nwotd, twitter

J.R.R Tolkein reminds us that "All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost."

I had a dream last night that is sticking with me longer than usual. And it has gotten me to thinking about where I am in my life, where I have been and where I am going. Why I'm in California when my family is all back in New England (I mean the family I grew up with, not my wife and my kids who are all right here with me).

Other people's lives may seem perfect on the outside, they may seem to lack for nothing or may have seemingly limitless financial resources. But the reality is that no one's life is without struggle, nothing is perfect. Sure, some folks don't face the financial challenges I face but they have their own battles to fight.

It is important to remember these things when feeling envious of other people and their situation. Would I trade my current situation for someone else's? Not if there were other trade offs involved. Say financial security for the sharp decline of my health or my children's health. Financial security for intellectual inferiority?

What would you trade to not have to worry about money anymore?

Update: My crack of internet researchers have alerted me to the fact that I cheesed the quote. It has been corrected and now your comments look silly, so there! Nyah, nyah, nyah! Just kidding, thanks Chuck and John for helping me out!

Labels: ponderings, tradeoffs

Nicknamania - (nick-na-mania) the manic use of nicknames, either through addiction or because you can't be bothered to actually learn people's names.

More new words here.

Labels: nwotd

Just a little peek inside my busy little mind of the things that are going on in there.

State Park closures - I was speaking a lady over the weekend who mentioned that some of the pending State Park closures California is considering would include some of our rather magnificent beaches that are run by the state. I think this would be an absolutely horrible idea to try and shut down the beach. But then, I think its a ridiculous idea to allow our forested State Parks to turn into massive hobo camps if they close them to the public.

Seniority and Bumping - its great to be a part of a bureaucracy if you are sufficiently high up the totem pole to be doing the bumping. It sucks if you are fairly new and easy to bump. I checked with my school district's HR office the other day and found out that I'm 6th on the totem pole of site techs to be called back. I'm not holding my breath.

Fictionarium - I've been on a roll creating new words lately. From my recent post about the development of a Twitter lexicon to random new words, I think I'm running at about two or three new words a day right now. Which means my brain is working pretty well.

Cycling - I've been making more of an effort to get out on my bike lately. I've averaging about two rides a week right now and am trying to push that number up to three per week. I find my body is happier, my brain is happier and it just makes me a more balanced guy. The one or two downsides are that my bike is in bad need of a major (and expensive tuneup) and I need to get some good cycling shoes with stiffer soles. My feet are starting to get really sore during the long descents down the backside of Nisene Marks. But I'm still loving my rides more and more.

Kyani - Our business is starting to really get going which makes the likelihood of my having to go back to a full time job less and less which is just fine by me. You are welcome to check out my blog that I've started about my experiences with Kyani and network marketing.

More to come as I'm headed out the door with Nande and the boys to go for a walk at the dog park.

Labels: catchup, cycling, Kyani, work

Douchebootery - putting up with a douchebag to get at that booty. Either the booty is the douchebag or there is a gatekeeper to the booty who is a douchebag. Either way, you deal with a douchebag to get yourself some.

Get thee to the Fictionarium to slap a rating on this and all of my other words I've created.

Labels: nwotd

BJ Penn vs. Kenny Florian
Prediction: Florian by TKO in Rd. 4
Reason: While I have great respect for BJ Penn and his natural talent, I think Kenny Florian is hungrier and has aggressively worked on every aspect of his game. Florian is the more complete fighter right now.

205 lbs.: Forrest Griffin vs. Anderson Silva
Prediction: Silva by Submission in Rd. 3
Reason: We all know why Forrest is being pitched against Silva. Forrest is going to fight him unlike Silva's last two opponents who wouldn't engage. Forrest is game and he works very, very hard to get in great shape but I think he's going to be over matched by an extremely talented striker in Silva. At least this fight won't be boring like Silva's last two.

170 lbs.: Amir Sadollah vs. Johny Hendricks
Prediction: Sadollah by Submission in Round 2
Reason: I don't know much about Hendricks but I do know a little about Amir Sadollah. He's a very tough, very game and very wily fighter who finds a way to win. He may be rusty but, if he can last through the first round, I expect he'll slip in a nice arm bar or guillotine choke for the win.

185 lbs.: Kendall Grove vs. Ricardo Almeida
Prediction: Almeida by TKO Rd. 3
Reason: Just taking the bookie's line on this one. I like Kendall and think he might end up pulling this out but the odds-makers are all pushing Almeida here and they usually know quite alot that I don't know.

155 lbs.: Kurt Pellegrino vs. Josh Neer
Prediction: Neer by Unanimous Decision
Reason: Josh Neer is a tough sumbitch, he's also experienced and unflappable. I don't give him too much of an edge over Pellegrino but I do give him an edge and think he'll pull out the win.

170 lbs.: John Howard vs. Tamdan McCrory
Prediction: McCrory by Submission in Round 3
Reason: I like Tamdan, he reminds me alot of my cousin, Eli. He's a tough kid with excellent ground skills.

170 lbs.: Matt Riddle vs. Dan Cramer
Prediction: Riddle by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Matt Riddle has the size and skill to be a really good fighter. If he's been applying himself, I think the combo of his talent and youth are going to put Dan Cramer on his back.

155 lbs.: George Sotiropoulos vs. George Roop
Prediction: Sotiropoulos by Unanimous Decision
Reason: I'm not a fan of Sotiropoulos and I do rather like Roop. But every fight of Sotiropoulos I've seen, he's shown a very cagey and skilled fight game. Roop is tough and has a big heart but Sotiropoulos has the edge in skill.

170 lbs.: Danillo Villefort vs. Jesse Lennox
Prediction: Villefort by Unanimous Decision
Reason: Don't really know either fighter here so I'm taking the bookie's insights and putting them to work for me.

185 lbs.: Alessio Sakara vs. Thales Leites
Prediction: Leites by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: The oddsmakers are strongly in Leites' camp on this matchup. They have been known to be wrong but its hard to refute where they think this fight will go.

155 lbs.: Shane Nelson vs. Aaron Riley
Prediction: Nelson by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: I've flipped on this one, I had been taking Riley but I now think Nelson is going to work it and beat him. We'll see what happens on Saturday.

So there we go. The short version is Florian, Silva, Sadollah, Almeida, Neer, McCrory, Riddle, Sotiropoulos, Villefort, Leites and Nelson. Eleven picks, let's see how it rolls!

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC