Tim Cook recently spoke at Auburn University as he received the Lifetime Achievement Award. I hope everyone hears the words of his speech.
Ponderings and Musings
Vintage.
So this grocery store was just a little over a mile from the house I grew up in. Sometimes it seemed like we were there once a day, tagging along with mom as we picked something up for supper that night (that might be a slight exaggeration). I always had one of those Hostess Apple Pies as a treat. As an adult I wish I still had the ability to burn all those calories.
I always liked the original sign on the front of the building. While they used to be common in communities around where I grew up (there were quite a few “Red and White”s, most of these signs are long gone. It’s great to see these in such good shape.
It’s a shame that the store has closed down. A victim of a shrinking community, it just couldn’t hold its own anymore.
At least the sign is holding up.
Memory.
I think I have a better average memory. I have a hunch that I inherited this from my father, as a retailer, he could tell a customer that he hadn’t seen in 10 years that they had purchased a pound of 10-common nails a decade earlier. He had the entire inventory of the family business in his head.
While my memory kind of works like my dad’s, I don’t know that I remember the same things that he does. I got to thinking about my memory this morning while I was taking a shower and I decided that I am a very visual person. I have to see something to remember it. Writing it down and/or reading something helps me remember it better. Lately, when I’m told something, I don’t remember it that well. I don’t think this is unusual in any way.
The problem with my memory is that I remember dumb things. For example, in one of the applications I have written, I “salt” a user’s password by adding insignificant characters to it. This makes the password harder to decrypt. That’s good. The “salt” used is the SKU for a candy bar from Ames, followed by a dash, followed by the department # for a greeting card at Hills, followed by a colon, followed by the name of the department store on Arsenal Street in Watertown, New York before it was called Jamesway. I think the fact that I can remember all of these things several decades later makes me some sort of freak.
The good thing about having a good memory is that I remember lots of happy things and recalling happy moments makes me smile, even if I’m having a bad day. The bad thing about having a good memory is that I can also remember things that made me not-so-happy. These events, at key moments in my life, linger on later in life and probably contributed to a few of my idiosyncrasies. For example, I remember being told that I had to leave my fourth grade classroom for a new school program called “Enrichment”. It would be an exciting new program for all involved and I would be going twice a week. As a young lad that already felt different because of my gay wiring and all, it was kind of devastating to me that I had to leave the classroom, because I was the only one in the entire class that had been selected for this new program. All eyes were on me as I made my way from room 202 to room 210 (more random numbers I can remember). This reinforced a feeling of being different. Luckily the Enrichment teacher had a student teacher accompanying him that I found wicked dreamy so that made everything a little more manageable. In fifth grade, I remember being told that “I was a damn fool” by the teacher (ex-military from Yonkers) when I tried to leap off my chair like a superhero. I didn’t get hurt, no one got hurt, but she was cranky and somehow I filed away that taking risks could result in people with horrid accents yelling at you. She called quite a few students a “damn fool”. I don’t think she’s teaching anymore.
I’d be such a hoot in therapy.
While my memory is mostly visual, there’s a good helping of muscle memory in there too. All of my icons on my smartphone, whether it’s an iPhone or an Android device, have to be in the same place. I remember phone numbers by rapping my fingers on a flat service as if I was dialing a phone. I do the same with credit card numbers and the like.
As I mentioned before, I have a lot of junk in my head. Not only do I remember the license plate number of my Dad’s ’71 Heavy Chevy, I also remember the license plate numbers of that era of my grandparent’s car, my aunt and uncle’s car and my godparents’ car. Those old plates have been gone for at least 30 years but I still remember 819 OST. Useless fact.
I’m counting on the combination of muscle memory and visual memory being an asset as I become a pilot. I’m paying very close attention to what I’m learning and trying to do things the same way so that it becomes intuitive. If I’m ever in an emergency situation, it’ll be calming techniques and instinctive recall that will help get the plane to safety, so I guess when it all comes down to it, I’m blessed with having this sort of memory.
Image randomly selected from the Brain Excel website.
Snark.
So if you were following my Twitter feed on Thursday night, you probably noticed that my contribution to the Twitterverse blew up starting at 8:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m. Central) in tandem with “The Sound of Music Live!” on NBC. In a way I was excited to see what NBC would do with this perennial classic, but another side of me was wondering why on earth they were trying to redo another perennial classic. Because I have a brain made of Swiss cheese, I had forgotten that it was on until Earl was flipping through channels on the television in search of “The X-Factor”. I suggested we watch this exciting live performance.
I was kind of snarky on Twitter during the presentation. Ok, I was probably more than “kind of” snarky, but the truth of the matter is, I was smart enough to refrain from posting the very inappropriate joke I made about “The X-Factor” when Earl and I decided that we needed to flip away from “The Sound of Music Live!” for a little while.
On Friday there were a bunch of people posting bunches of things about “The Sound of Music Live!” and I added my two cents to the discussion. I think this conversation was taking place on the CNN site, but it basically boiled down to this:
1. The sound mix was horrible. There was this ridiculous hissing throughout the program and I firmly believe that technology today is at a point where we should be able to get the hiss out of the sound mix before going live before millions of viewers.
2. Audra McDonald was phenomenal.
3. Carrie Underwood can certainly sing but her acting was so wooden that it was making me uncomfortable.
4. In some scenes the costume choices were quite odd. Looking at the photo at the top of this entry, you’ll notice that Maria looks like she’s singing to the children before the dash off to join her on her latest TWA flight.
5. The fact of the matter is, you either have the chops to pull off a live performance like this or you don’t. Honestly, while Carrie sounded lovely and I’m sure she put all of her heart into her performance, I don’t know that she was ready for this live play on television experience.
6. Overall I was happy that NBC tried something different and I was hoping that they would do it again sometime.
Now, a couple of folks have sent me emails telling me that I am a horrible man and who did I think I was for writing such horrible things about “The Sound of Music Live!”.
First of all, I think it’s extreme to call me a “hater”. Those that called me this pointed out that Carrie and the rest of the cast should never be compared to a Broadway show because on Broadway they have months to prepare and apparently the cast had a week (after the set was completed). Well, I’m sorry, but that NBC’s fault, not my fault. If you’re banking your Thursday night lineup on remaking a definite classic in American theatre, well, you better have your stuff together and not give yourself just a week to prepare. That just shows a lack of commitment to the production.
Secondly, I’m not the only one that thought Maria turned into a flight attendant in some sort of weird time warp of the show.
Third, I was attacked on several occasions about the play being based on “the original music, not the movie!!!!!” (with multiple exclamation points). Fair enough, if that’s the case, why was “Something Good” included in the musical numbers, when that was a song written for the movie?
And lastly, I think that someday Carrie Underwood may certainly win some sort of theatre award for her acting. I just don’t think that her first foray into this arena is award worthy. Unlike many in contemporary society, I don’t believe that everyone deserves an award for doing their job or what they’ve elected to do. I believe that you have to go above and beyond and show qualities clocking into four digit percentiles to be worthy of an award. “Participation awards” are one of the concepts that is going to be the death of this country. I refuse to applaud mediocrity and I don’t expect someone to applaud me when I am just doing what I’m suppose to do. Call me old-fashioned.
The truth of the matter is, I was excessively snarky in my Twitter stream and this is something that I recognize as a fault of mine. It’s fun to bash on that which we have no control of and people titter occasionally when we say something snarky but this is an item on my personal improvement list: I need to be less snarky. I stand by my criticisms of the show but as has been pointed out to me, I probably should have just enjoyed it for what it was.
So let me state for the record, I enjoyed “The Sound of Music Live!” for it’s spirit. I might not have thoroughly enjoyed the execution of the project, but I certainly enjoyed the heart behind it.
Perhaps I should have just focused on that.
Winter Wonderland.
Once upon there was a place in Oriskany, New York called Trinkaus Manor. I never went there but I drove by at Christmastime every year that Trinkaus Manor was around. They called the display “Winter Wonderland.” It was awesome and so intense that it increased their monthly electric bill by $6000. Follow the link in this paragraph for a bunch of photos or just live with this little tease (I recommend the link).
Image courtesy of trinkausmanor.com
When Trinkaus Manor burned down, many thought it was the end of the Winter Wonderland display. Luckily the decorations survived and were donated to the City of Rome, where they live on year after year. Earl and I just drove by the big “Merry Christmas” sign. It’s installed on the side of the parking garage facing Fort Stanwix. Down the street are a bunch of the other decorations that used to make up the Winter Wonderland.
Here’s a little tease.
Seeing this display year after year always help me get into the festive spirit. I’m “feeling it” now.
Wages.
So I was going to write a blog entry about the fast food workers that were striking in cities across the United States today. I wrapped the blog entry around an anecdote about a Burger King in Acton, Mass. that was self-serve was back in 1989 but the whole thing wasn’t going where I wanted it to so I just bagged the entry.
So what was I trying to say? I don’t know. Work hard. Fight for what you believe in. But always keep in mind that you can always be replaced by automation. Small chunks. Grow in a steady, upward motion.
See? I got nothing.
Wonder?
So this is Gal Gadot, the actress selected to play Wonder Woman in the untitled movie coming out in 2015. Said movie also features Henry Cavill returning as Superman and Ben Affleck as Batman.
I’m sorry, but I don’t see how Ms. Gadot can fill what many have affectionally called the “bullet tits”. Ok, maybe I’m the only one that’s called Wonder Woman’s costume that.
Here’s the thing, a lot of people remember Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman from the 1970s television show. That’s what the general public knows as Wonder Woman. Yes, she’s done a whole lot more in her comics, but when Joe Blow thinks of Wonder Woman, he thinks of Lynda Carter.
Someone needs to give Ms. Gadot directions to the closest Krispy-Kreme. Stat. Personally I don’t think this is a good choice but what do I know? I know that I would rather see Jennifer Lawrence or Lucy Lawless in the role, but again, what do I know?
I’ll probably wait until the end of 2015 when the movie comes out on iTunes.
Home Sweet Home.
Earl and I were scheduled to go away on a four-day weekend starting tomorrow night after work. Our target destination was the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area. Last weekend we decided to cancel the trip for a number of reasons, the primary one being that we just weren’t “feeling it”.
While I would have enjoyed a trip to Dallas to see friends and to explore a bit, the timing felt a bit off. At this time last year Earl and I went to Houston and New Orleans for a week and that was quite lovely, and our trip to Dallas was along that same idea, travel during the holidays just to get into the swing of things. The thing is, we’re already swinging.
I’m starting to feel settled in a bit for the winter months. Our home feels cozy, we are surrounded by friends and family up here and we have some fun meet-ups coming up over the holiday season. The trip to Dallas would have been too short and honestly, probably a little too pricey (even though we were cashing in airline miles all over creation) for the budget right now.
I’ve done a little rearranging of my remaining vacation time so I have two three-day weekends in a row. Not surprisingly, I’ll be using some of that time to go flying again (everyone cross your fingers for good weather!). We’ll also be finishing up our holiday shopping and the like. I think we’ll have to spin the “Mall O’ Choice!” wheel again this year to see what mall deserves our holiday dollars. Last year we ended up at Danbury Fair and met Kevin and Brian in person for the first time. This year, who knows where we’ll go.
I just know that at the end of the day (even if it’s 2 a.m. after a 12 hour drive), we’ll be home as snug as a bug in a rug in our beds.
Home sweet home. Perfection.
Thanks.
So today is Thanksgiving in the United States. Today is the day when we take a moment to gather ourselves with those that we call family, enjoy a delicious meal in some manner and give pause to remember what we are thankful for. At least, that is my understanding of the holiday. Judging by some of the behavior observed through various media outlets, today is the day where one sits in the cold and waits for the closest big box store to open up many hours before Friday so customers can maul and punch one another in an effort to get the cheapest laptop on the block.
I am thankful that I am a Mac boy and I am thankful that I have the means to be a Mac boy.
Earl just prepared us a fantastic dinner that the three of enjoyed immensely. I helped with the preparations and I think I might have shocked the others in the house when I went ahead and washed the dishes by hand. Up until now I have always subscribed to one of the many things my mother taught me: “why wash the dishes by hand when you can run another load?”
In the photo shown above you might notice a beautiful centerpiece at the end of the table (because we’re cockeyed like that). The centerpiece is a lovely gift from our neighbor Bradley, who has a certain flair for that sort of thing.
I am thankful for good hearted people in the world.
While Earl and I were shopping at Hannafords last weekend, picking up our Thanksgiving groceries and the like, we ran into our friend Dana and two of her daughters. Dana has always made me smile because she has such a zest for life. It’s been over a decade since we worked in the same place together and our career paths have taken us both in different directions, but Dana still makes me smile. Her positive nature is contagious.
I am thankful for positive people in the world.
I spoke to my Mom and my sister this morning before the dinner preparations were solidly underway. It was very good to talk to them, even if it was a brief conversation. Because of the whirlwind paced life we have been living lately, we haven’t seen them as much as we usually do.
I am thankful for family, both that which we’re born into and that which we choose.
For the first time in a few years I am off from work tomorrow. Work is “BAU”, or Business As Usual tomorrow, but I took a PTO day so that I could enjoy a long weekend for Thanksgiving this year. I’ve seen a couple of Facebook updates from co-workers and it looks like they are enjoying their Thanksgiving holiday.
I am thankful for co-workers that I feel comfortable enough to add as Facebook friends. While I’m at it, I’m thankful for my job as well. It’s a good gig.
All in all I think I’ve found the sweet spot in life. And it is my intention to stay in this sweet spot. After all, I am thankful for recognizing that life is what you make of it.
No. (Updated)
So the FCC is considering lifting the ban on cell phone conversations and texting during flights on your favorite airline. When I saw this story on the news this morning it made my heart rate jump up by 10 points (I was working out at the time).
Honestly, I only need one word as a response to this asshattery: “NO”.
I tweeted earlier that I would seek out the airline that does not allow cell phone calls during a flight. Texting wouldn’t really bother me, because that’s something that can be done in relative silence, but the phone calls? Absolutely not.
Let’s think about this for a moment. We have all been in that situation where a person is screaming some really inappropriate things into their phone whilst standing in the middle of the mall/grocery store/museum/restaurant/etc. Do we really want to be essentially trapped in a inhumane 17-inch wide space next to a person carrying on in such a manner for four hours? Really? People can’t even be bothered to take off their damn pajamas for a cross-country flight nowadays and we think that they’re going to be courteous on their telephones?
No.
This is such a bad idea. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am willing to pay extra to fly the airline that doesn’t allow cell phone conversations on their flights. I don’t care about mileage points, MQMs, MQDs or anything like that, if you can guarantee me a relatively peaceful flight without having to listen to someone yak on and on on their phone, I’ll pony up the extra dough to do so.
Ideally, this same airline would institute some sort of dress code, barring passengers in flip flops, sweat pants and clothing otherwise reserved for the bedroom. Am I snob? You bet your sweet beverage cart I am. If I wanted a MegaBus experience I’d take my chances and ride a MegaBus. If you want to yak on your phone, by all means get on a MegaBus. Ride it down the Onondaga Lake Parkway for all I care, but do not talk on your cell phone after the main cabin door has been closed on any flight I’m on. Oh hell no.
There’s a part of me that wonders if the cell phone carriers are pushing for this, because they’d have to charge more for these calls what with upgrading plane communication systems and the like.
Whatever the reason, the fact of the matter is this is a bad idea. It compromises safety (talking passenger doesn’t hear in flight safety information) and it compromises passenger comfort.
Do you want to talk on your phone during a flight? Feel free to do so, whilst sitting on the wing.
22 Nov 13 1317 ET Update:
Delta Air Lines has emphatically stated that they will not allow the use of cell phones for voice calls even if the FCC changes its policy. Congratulations, Delta, you officially get all of my airline travel budget.
Ultimately, it’s not the FCC’s job to control etiquette matters and I get it if they say the science is sound that a cell phone conversation isn’t going to crash an airliner. It’s ultimately up to the traveling public as to whether they want this sort of behavior on a flight and the airlines to provide a safe and relatively stress free atmosphere. I commend Delta for taking a stance on this.
