You know, sometimes the right tool for the job makes problems remarkably simple to solve. For a lot of my small computer problems, the right tool is sed. I remember the first time I encountered it, and I estimate it’s saved me around an average of about an hour a week since then–which works out to something like 117 working days.
Author: Mr. McLaren
The power of lowered expectations
What you’re seeing there is the first panel from a strip in Feiffer’s Explainers. Click to read the rest of the strip. Then marvel at how exactly on point is appears to be for the current world (OK, that reference to the Soviets needs to point to China or somewhere, but setting that aside), considering that it was published in… Read more →
Making Excuses
I see that the people over at Rotten Tomatoes have compiled a list of the worst reviewed movies so far this millennium. I was pretty worried about how many of these I’d have seen–I’ve seen some pretty dodgy things this decade–but apparently I have only seen four of the 100 on the list. Here are my excuses for those: #79… Read more →
Aside
A completely unsolicited endorsement: the combination of St. Ambroise Stout and Sartori Reserve Raspberry BellaVitano cheese is ridiculously yummy. That is all.
Aside
I note with some interest that the winner of this year’s Canadian Brewing Awards in the Stout category is the St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout from McAuslan. Not news to me. I’ll have to look into Hockley Valley Brewing, and that Imperial Stout from Grand River Brewing as well–more reasons to look forward to the Ontario move.
Missed Opportunity: Quantum To Cosmos
If I had been moving back to the KW area at the end of September, rather than the end of November, I certainly would have been hitting some of the events at the Quantum To Cosmos conference. I hope some of my pals in the area are planning to check it out. I’ll be able to stream the lectures, and… Read more →
Proud and Unrepentant: Part 4
A couple of years back I ran through several variations on the Lucifer character / story that appeal to me. You may recall Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. In doing some reading last night in The Eldritch Dark‘s archive of Clark Ashton Smith‘s poetyI do that sometimes., I found another interesting variant. Or rather, two interesting variants. The… Read more →
Friday Night Links
Collected from here and there about the networks, for your amusement or edification, I would really like to believe the story of Denny & Peach is a vignette that accurately captures a bit of the wonder of the world. But even if it’s a fiction, it’s a lovely little one. Also, SWORD CANE! Same thing with this “big catch” story.… Read more →
Aside
Yeah, so they’re making an A-Team movie. The more I think about it, the more I like Declan’s theory that Hollywood is clutching after any tiny remnant of things associated with a mass audience. I sadly also admit that I believe this is more effective on my generation than previous ones, because we are total suckers for anything that reminds us of our childhood.
Metatextual Wonder
Alice at R’lyeh. You know you want to go look already Here’s a snippet of Lovecraft and Alice talking to convince you: “But this monster is merely the mask of what’s worse — “The faceless monstrosity of the cold universe! “The meaninglessness of our bleak situation “The smallness of Man amidst dark obfuscation!” “What you say,” ventured Alice, “may be… Read more →
Aside
I have enough Australian friends that I usually don’t bother to trot out the tired old “nation of criminals” joke/insult (although I do like Moran’s “it’s a jail” line–but I can’t deliver it like he can). I’m tempted to do it this once, though, just to provide some kind of segue to linking to some vintage Sydney mug shots. Look at those shots–those are some characters, man.
We have met the enemy
What you’re looking at there is an attempt to visualize the results (so far) of a workshop run last year in Stockholm that attempted to define the boundaries of a “safe operating space” in which the ecosystem of the planet can operate without veering towards catastrophe. The 28 scientists worked out nine categories that they were comfortable setting some safe… Read more →
Aside
To add to the list of things I’m really unhappy with the Obama administration about: letting the torturers get away with blatant destruction of evidence. It’s one thing not to prosecute, it’s a completely different thing to de facto endorse the obstruction of justice, and consequently send the message that it’s OK for things to operate this way; business as usual. Gordon Hewart must be rolling in his grave.
Parasitic Homes
Now here’s an SF idea from the post-cyberpunk era–something out of Sterling, Stephensonalthough his would be built from nanofabricated diamond or something., or the Metatropolis guys: parasitic homes. There’s lots more images and details over at Inhabit.com, but the basic idea is that the ongoing rise of urban density (presumably driven by increased fuel prices and the hollowing of the… Read more →
Links On A Saturday Night
Between this whole house-selling/house-buying thing, and the relatively insane week I’ve had at work, I have been neglecting the blog. Let’s catch up on a few things that have popped up in the meantime. I may have mentioned here before that I enjoyed Farmer’s Riverworld books (for getting me into Burton, among other things), and I certainly have mentioned my… Read more →
