I'm not that suprised I read this pretty terrible account about how things can go wrong at the Portland Airport. A story like this makes you think twice about "Homeland Security".  ¶ 8:40 AM

  Using the Roomba So I got Megan a iRobot Roomba for Christmas. So we got the chance to actually try him out this weekend. Now notice, right off the bat I have personified him. The Roomba is definately not an "it", and for some reason it feels like a "he". The way that he moves around and cleans make him so animate that you can't help personifiying him. I am not sure exactely why the Roomba is a he, but I guess it is probably because floor cleaning used to be my job (this is only a guess).

So the big question I get from everybody that I talk to about the Roomba is, does it work? Well, yes indead it does work. In our apartment we have mostly hardwood floors with linoleum in the kitchen and tile in the bathroom. On all of these surfaces he does a great job picking up all the dust, hair and dirt that I can see. He has a little trouble in very tight corners. I don't know how he works on carpet first hand, but iRobot claims he can be used on any carpet that isn't deep-pile or shag. Am I happy with Mr. Roomba? Yes. Do I have some concerns? Yes. Read below my list of things I like/don't like so much:

Things I like about Roomba
-He cleans the floors, so I don't have to
-He doesn't need much supervision
-He makes the apartment look great

Things I don't like so much about Roomba
-He is a bit noisy (hard to have a conversation or watch TV in the same room)
-Now I get to help with dishes more often :)
-He takes about 45 minutes to clean a medium sized room
-He can't quite reach all the corners

I will continue to post my Roomba stories as I collect them.  ¶ 1:02 PM

  Well, I had a very good Christmas. My favorite present was my new Timbuk2 messanger bag from my wonderful girlfriend Megan. It is grey with a yellow center panel. It even has a place for my iPod. Megan and I also got a very nice knife set from her parents. Spending Christmas with her family was wonderful. Great company, great food. Could I ask for anything more? So in the holiday spirit, no lists of things I like/don't like so much today. Hey, for me it is Monday and Friday all rolled into one!  ¶ 9:17 AM

  I'm Happy I'm Not the Only One! I was happy to hear today on Morning Edition that I was not the only one that couldn't stand the crappy ass, stupid "radio play" I'd Rather Eat Pants that they aired all last week. I think this was my favorite quote:

"How much do I have to pledge to keep you from doing anything like this ever again?"

My thoughts exactely. This had to be one of the biggest wastes of time and money I have heard in a long time. I will give it credit for making me want to get out of the house as soon as possible.  ¶ 12:05 PM

  Guess I have to be carefull about what I write. Free Speech -- Virtually; Legal Constraints on Web Journals Surprise Many 'Bloggers' - Washington Post

Well, they don't suprise me. Although I did find this quote from Pam Farr (president of a human resources consulting company) particularly troubling:

"With the advent of cyberspace, we've had to evolve these policies," Farr said. "Somewhere between First Amendment rights and total repression there is a practical middle ground."

Well, it sure is nice to know that I don't have to deal with total repression of my constitutionally granted right to free speech.  ¶ 11:56 AM

  Hmmmm . . . I am reading about these Creative Commons licenses and it sounds really cool, but maybe I am just a bit stupid today. I just don't quite get it. I even watched their friendly flash presentation (starring the White Stripes). I mean, I like the idea of not having all of my work copyrighted for eternity and a half, but I am not sure if I get how this will work. Maybe I just need to read more.  ¶ 1:47 PM

  Time for some good causes First, my friend Alan is having a legal fight with Northwest Airlines and he has a little page all about it. It is well worth a read, especially Alan's grammer correction of a letter from a Northwest paralegal. Give 'em hell Alan!

Second, a friend in the library told me that the Portland Public School Board voted to end the Outdoor School program. This program sends 6th graders to camp and learn about science and nature for a week. It also provides an opportunity for high school students to learn leadership skills as camp counselors. I went to outdoor school both as a 6th grader and as a high school counselor and I credit it for both my interest in nature and my interest in education. I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for Outdoor School. Outdoor School involves more than 2,200 6th graders and 1,500 high schoolers. The Outdoor School needs to raise $425,000 in the next month or the program will be cancelled. Call the School Board, call local outdoors companies, call your rich Uncle Moneybags. Give what you can to save this program! Read or watch more at KGW. If you are interested in making a contribution, send it to:
Lincoln High School
1600 SW Salmon
Portland 97205
attn: Outdoor School  ¶ 9:46 AM

  I did some Christmas shopping over the weekend. It wasn't so bad, but I was reminded of a few things:

Things I like:
-Buying gifts for the ones I care about
-Trying to find that perfect gift
-Finding a good parking spot near NW 23rd

Things I don't like so much:
-Parking at "THE MALL"
-Being in "THE MALL"
-Oh, hell, I just hate the god forsaken mall. Bah Humbug!  ¶ 9:34 AM

  Thanks to Sharma for telling me about the Time Magazine 2002 Best Inventions website. This gives me the theme for my like/not like list for the day:

Time 2002 Best Inventions I like:
-Hy-Wire Car: This is the best concept car I have seen. Ever. It doesn't just take the car in a evolutionary step forward, but changes the way we think about cars. I hope this is how cars look in 10-20 yrs.
-Date Rape Drug Spotter: I think it is really sad that it has become so bad at bars that this product is neccessary, but if it makes women safer from the jackass with ketamine, then all the better.
-Roomba Vacuum: I admit that this is probably a bit of a over kill, but since cleaning the floors is my chore, I have to like this.
-AeroGel: The lightest solid on earth. Wow.
-Here are some others I like.

Time 2002 Best Invention I don't like so much:
-Dog Translator: What a load of crap and a total waste of money. We all know the dogs are just saying "Hey!".
-Tooth Phone: Ok, I know that cell phones are getting small, but this just creeps me out.
-SputMik: It is a cute microphone. Too cute. I just can't imagine this being passed around a city council meeting.
-Tomato Vaccine: One small step for pharms, one giant leap towards Attack of the Killer Tomatoes!  ¶ 1:49 PM

  I sure am having fun surfing around this afternoon. I have found a couple of great sites in the Mac intelegensia / smart application developer / greeat web designer circle. Here are a few important and interesting stories.

A warning to Mac OS X users of Photoshop and Photoshop Elements - Steven is one of the developers at Panic, makers of the best FTP program for Mac (Transport) and the best not-free MP3 player for Mac (Audion).
A Critique on the Mac OS X "Finder" - Now, if you aren't a current or former Mac OS 9 user then this probably won't mean much to you. What John Gruber says is at once very true, and very unlikely to change.

I noticed that a lot of people are using Moveable Type. It must be pretty cool if all these very smart and talented people are using it.  ¶ 2:33 PM

  God bless K10K. Here is a Lorem Ipsum Generator.  ¶ 2:04 PM

  A good icon creation tutorial.  ¶ 2:01 PM

  "Failure is not an option. It comes bundled with your Microsoft product
by default".
- David Duncan

I don't know who this David Duncan guy is, but damn, that is a funny quote.
  ¶ 2:55 PM

  I am not having a very good day. Can't really put my finger on the reason why . . .

Things I Like:
-Hmmmm . . . get back to me on that.

Things I don't like so much:
-Portland Police Chief Kroeker (read what he did to provoke my anger here)  ¶ 11:48 AM

  OK, I'm not sure whether I should post this, but here is one of the most unfortunately named people I have ever heard of. No offense to anybody, especially Vivek. Am I a culturally insensitive troll or just immature?  ¶ 4:38 PM

  Well, I had a good Turkeyday. My girlfriend and I flew down to Sacramento to visit my family in Chico and Yuba City. I got to see my mom's wine shop all decorated for the holidays. Unfortunately I was at the shop on Buy Nothing Day, so I wasn't able to buy any wine. Oh well. Thanksgiving dinner was good, but we only had one pie! Oh, the humanity. My girlfriend was horrified. Her family is used to haveing a pie:person ration of about 1.5:1. Thats right one and a half pies per person! Then I went to Yuba City and visited my dad, my step-mom, kid sister and baby brother. Aarin (my sister) is nearly 7 years old and is just as fun as can be to see. Alex (my brother) just turned 1 and while he is cute, he cries a lot. I am definately not quite ready to have kids. On with the show:

Things I Like:
-Turkey, mayonaise, cranberry sauce and salt sandwiches (don't discount the heavy usage of salt, it MAKES the sandwich)
-iPods on a plane ride
-Volunteering to get bumped from my return flight (got a free ticket anywhere Alaskan flies [including Mexico] and they put me up in a hotel!)

Things I don't like so much:
-Steel-toed shoes at Airport security
-Waking up at 3:30 am to catch my flight
-Not having turkey leftovers :(  ¶ 11:46 AM