ursangnome

It is a mind-bogglingly beautiful day in Cambridge, MA. Sunny. Warm, but not hot, with a gentle on-again, off-again breeze to provide a little variety. The sky a lovely shade of blue, with nary a cloud....

The most clear indication that our culture is screwed up lies in how, when provided such a day, we do not shoo all non-essential personnel out of their offices, classrooms, and work-halls to enjoy the day, and compensate all those essential people handsomely for what they have missed. For, if there is anything at all that humans work for, it is enjoyment of such days.

I managed to take my lunch outside, under a tree, with a good book, at least. So there is something.

I seem to be a chatterbox today...

A couple interesting-looking books coming out in September (stolen from io9):

The Moon Maze Game by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes (Tor)
LARPers on the Moon! Seriously. In a nutshell, it's the year 2085, and humanity is living all over the solar system — and a lunar colony is seeking independence. When the young heir to a small African country, Ali Kikaya, visits the Moon for a Live Action Role Playing event, a man who grew up on the Moon comes along as a bodyguard. But soon enough, terrorists target Ali — and how do you tell the terrorists from the LARPers?

Slow Apocalypse by John Varley (Ace)
What if all the oil was just gone? It's a particularly provocative take on the apocalypse — and possibly, an especially relevant one, if the Peak Oil theorists are correct. A scientist named Eddie Parker develops bacteria to clean up oil spills, and then works on a method for increasing oil production by boosting the pressure — but Eddie has a secret agenda, to punish Saudi Arabia for 9/11 by getting rid of all the Saudi oil. Unfortunately, Eddie's plan works too well, and soon all the oil in the world is becoming a thing of the past. Screenwriter Dave Marshall, in Los Angeles, discovers that his disaster-movie script is coming true — and he has to find a way to safeguard his family.

Scientific American and ScienceDebate.org partnered to get Obama and Romney to answer 14 questions on major scientific and technological challenges facing the nation. You can read their answers at the link, and decide what you think of them yourself.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=obama-romney-science-debate

From NASA.gov:

"Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission, has died. He was 82.

His family has released the following statement:

“We are heartbroken to share the news that Neil Armstrong has passed away following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures.

Neil was our loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend.

Neil Armstrong was also a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. He served his Nation proudly, as a navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and astronaut. He also found success back home in his native Ohio in business and academia, and became a community leader in Cincinnati."

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/people/features/armstrong_obit.html

For those of you in the Boston Area who are interested in showing up to cheer for my Lady and her compatriot as they walk the 3-Day for the Cure, information on the public cheering stations is below. A couple of notes:

I cannot, at the moment, tell you exactly when Becky will be coming by a given station. She may call me to give me an estimate of her pace on Friday, from which I could get an estimate - that worked pretty well last time, but is really a *very* inexact thing, and it can be kind of easy to miss them going by if you try to cut it close. I would generally expect them to be coming by a given station earlier, rather than later, but that'll vary with weather and such.

Posters and decorations are welcome. I may be doing some poster-making Friday evening - if you want to join in (Hey, arts and crafts are fun!), or want me to make an extra for you, I can do that. Please contact me.

In general, if you want updates or to check in with me to see if the ladies have passed a given station, drop me a line (LJ message, e-mail, or what have you), and I'll get you contact information.

Unfortunately, most folk work on Friday - the public cheering stations close before 5 PM, largely because the walkers are back in camp before then. But, if you have the time, showing the ladies you care would be awesome!

Friday, July 27

9:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
St. Paul's Church
502 Washington Street
Wellesley, MA, 02482

12:00 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.
DCR Boat Launch
53 Woerd Street
Waltham, MA, 02453

Saturday's the prime cheering day - the stations are in Arlington and Lexington - at these, you may look for me hanging out with a cooler of drinks and a camp chair.

Saturday, July 28

7:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
Robbins Farm Park
51 Eastern Avenue
Arlington, MA, 02476

10:45 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Depot Square, Massachusetts Avenue & Depot Square
Lexington, MA, 02420

There are also cheering stations on Sunday - I won't be at these, as getting to them and then to the closing ceremonies (where I pick the ladies up) is exceedingly inconvenient. So, anyone interested in going to these could give the ladies a needed boost when they're really, really tired, as those last miles are tough. I know they'd appreciate it!

One of these is down in the Boston Public Gardens, which are lovely this time of year.

Sunday, July 29

8:15 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
Cambridge City Hall
795 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA, 02139

9:15 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Boston Public Garden (between Paul Revere and Swan Boats)
Intersection Commonwealth & Arlington Street
Boston, MA, 02127

I will be going to closing ceremonies, and traditionally we head to dinner (somewhere - we don't plan this ahead too much) afterwards. Anyone interested in coming to closing ceremonies - again, me with the camp chair.

Closing Ceremonies
Sunday, July 29, 4:30 p.m.
University of Massachusetts
100 William T. Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, MA 02125

I don't post such things often, but it is so horrible when we risk losing part of our nations natural heritage....

I speak, of course, of our critical need to save the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus...

After reading that, what more could I possibly say? You know what you need to do...

So, CNN and ORC International (the gamer in my loves that name) did a poll*, with lots of questions. The answer to one, and the historical trend of answers, I find interesting...

The Question: Do you happen to have a family member or close friend who is gay or lesbian?

Year	Yes	No
1994	32%	66%
1998	41%	57%
2007	45%	55%
2009	49%	51%
2010	49%	50%
2012	60%	40%

*Insert standard disclaimer about statistics here - yes, I know the issues surrounding such polls.

Several sources now reporting, classic Sci-Fi author Ray Bradbury has passed away, at a ripe age of 91.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/06/author-ray-bradbury-dies-at-91-daughter-says.html

And I'd just finished re-reading, "Fahrenheit 451" a few days ago. Thank you, Mr. Bradbury.

It is stories like this that make me feel our species is doomed.

From "Lowering the Bar":

Hot on the heels of this weekend's news that somebody tried to run over another person for canceling a taco order comes this report that a 23-year-old man crashed his truck into a Taco Bell after it failed to fill his taco order. (Both the Taco Bell and the taco-canceler suffered superficial injuries but neither was seriously harmed.)

According to a police report posted by the Smoking Gun, a 23-year-old Ohio man allegedly rammed his vehicle into the entrance of the restaurant and then fled, making this the first hit-and-run involving a Taco Bell of which I have been made aware. Unfortunately for the perpetrator, his truck was leaking fluid and police were reportedly able to follow the trail to the man's home.

Police said the man admitted "intentionally striking the building after realizing he did not get one of the tacos he ordered," which suggests the threshold for Taco-Bell-related violence may actually have dropped slightly. Last year, it took an unexpected fifty-cent price hike on each of seven Beefy Crunch Burritos to cause a San Antonio man to open fire, leading to a three-hour standoff at the end of what the local newspaper termed a "burrito-triggered spree."


Good gods, people, it's a taco.

So, as I'd planned here, I've gotten myself a new laptop. Many thanks to those who gave advice. It led me to what seems to have been a good choice.

And now, the follow-up question: Is anyone planning to play Diablo III multiplayer, and is going to want teammates?