The Workermonkey

     

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Turn it back! 






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1 comments

Ah yes, the dirty south. I wonder what thats like....

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 9:22:00 AM  

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AIM alternatives? 

Quick question: Are there any AIM alternatives that will still work with AIM?

My group in work wants to start using AIM during work hours for quick access to eachother. I despise anything AOL, but also know that other programs are better with more features. Any feedback would be appreciated.

9 comments

ICQ

check Download.com for others, theres a ton out there and a bunch that can cross all platforms. ICQ is king

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Wednesday, November 30, 2005 5:58:00 PM  

muffdiverbrian returns!

By Blogger ron, at Wednesday, November 30, 2005 7:37:00 PM  

Gaim can do more protocols than you thought existed and behaves quite nicely without those ads and crap that Aim uses. Note though that file transfer and that kind of thing is a lot less likely to work than when using official clients.

http://gaim.sourceforge.net/

I used to use Trillion also, but haven't tried it in a few years.

By Blogger Damon, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 1:41:00 AM  

1) ICQ is owned by AOL. Those bastards.
2) Muffdivr will probably not make a return seeing as how I'll be using this at work.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 9:29:00 AM  

yes AOL owns ICQ, they bought up the only competitor AIM had at the time. i think they bought netscape too. i give you full permission to use imgoingtocutyou.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 10:43:00 AM  

Update: Decided to go with "Trillion". Its really nice so far. Just what you need and thats it. Death to AOL, those add sucking sellouts.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 11:56:00 AM  

i guess my opinion here isn't really valid, i can honestly say i haven't IM anyone/thing in at least 3 years

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 1:55:00 PM  

Yeah, you lost all respect when you threw out that ICQ comment.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 2:09:00 PM  

Y!IM, yahoo's instant messanger is great, plus its international, unlike AIM. I have Yahoo email so it also tells me when i get mail and such, i love it! YA!

By Blogger wyldshaman, at Friday, December 02, 2005 8:47:00 AM  

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Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Auto....matic....just for my people.......auto...matic.....just for my crew 

My car's forward catalytic converter shit the bed. Oxygen sensors, too. Now my fuel mixture is inefficient and stuff. It'll be almost $900 for repairs and with almost 162,000 on the Mazda Protoge. At this point these types of repairs will be coming more and more often, so I can figure that I'd spend at least $4000 more on fixups before I have to ghost-ride this thing off a cliff 40,000 miles later. I don't want this car very badly.
Now here's the specs for something new:
$2000 bank.
Used car from 2003 or before, most likely.
Not crappy.
Possible $1000 on a trade-in if I get a new Mazda.
No full-time job yet, but I'll get something temporary very soon. DJing on weekends. I may instruct snowboarding starting mid-december. I also finally heard back from the Legislature. I got an interview in a week for a position under the gold-dome for the Feb-May 2006 session.

So it's on these assumptions that I rest my case for a new car. Hot-to-lukewarm models preferred. I now open the floor to suggestions.

5 comments

as far as top models on my list. Charlize Theron

By Blogger ron, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 6:17:00 PM  

I'd recommend a 92-95 Civic VX like I sold to a very lucky guy for $1600 about a month before the hurricanes sent gas prices through the roof. I usually got 40mpg, and some consider it the cheapest car to operate, though a Metro might be, but the VX has more power and AC too. Anyway, car decisions are very subjective, so we are useless in suggesting things.

By Blogger Damon, at Wednesday, November 30, 2005 4:56:00 AM  

Can't go wrong with Honda or Toyota. Although you have a tight budget without much coming in (as is). If you get a job that would help. You can usually find decent civics in the 2-3K range. Of course there always borrowing money. If you did that, I wouldnt purchase anything more than 7K, that way your loan won't be that much. Just keep your eyes out i suppose. Theres a pretty good used car place (with Nissans, Toyotas, Hondas and more)on the Turnpike. I forget the name of the place but it was small and he had fair prices. Let me know if your interested and i will try to remember.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Wednesday, November 30, 2005 4:57:00 PM  

its about time one of us gets a big assed truck so we can all go 'wheelin on the weekends.

By Blogger ron, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 12:20:00 AM  

hmmmm....

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Thursday, December 01, 2005 11:00:00 AM  

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Monday, November 28, 2005

Into the fray? 

Damon hit on something that i have recently been struggling with in my life and thought it would be a good post discussion.
"It's funny that I don't want to work in Sweden because of the same reason you point out: changing VT will not make a difference, they are too clean already"
He doesn't want to work/ live somewhere where he won't make a difference. Its already happening in those places- the battle is already won (ideally speaking).

I face this challenge within my field too and it recently came up in conversation. As a person who strives for environmental responsibility it would make sense for me to work somewhere that needs help. Somewhere on the front line of the battle. Florida is one of those places. Florida is the California of 30 years ago with a booming population. There is no better place to work towards conservation and protection of biodiversity than here. This is the place and this is the time to make a difference.

HOWEVER, I am alone out here in battle. I have few allies and many enemies. Its crushing and depressing at times with little victory. I do not like the place where i live. The fucked up religious culture, the dumbass rednecks, the non-progressiveness. I see raping and pillagings of the land I love. It drains me and wears me down. This is not my home, these are not my people, this is not where i belong.

Or is it? I could live in a place with many friends. I could be one of many like minded, progressive, blue stated wonderfull, smart, individuals. I could surround myself it all that i stand for and work to make good places better. But I would no longer be on that front line fighting for what i hold true.

So there is the dilemna. I suppose i could make myself happy here, but its hard. I yearn for my own kind, i despise the other. I won't get everything I want here, i know that. Carreer vs personal life. I suppose a balance can be struck, but you will have to give something up either way.

Thoughts?

8 comments

admittedly, i do not know the intimate details of all of your work, but it seems to me that places like nyc, bridgeport, hartford, etc are still shitholes, compared to other regions. true, florida may be close to ideal for your field, but that's not to say places closer to your real home dont need assistance either. you said it yourself, its not the place for you. and that's ok.

but no place is perfect, nor will it be when you're done with it. it seems like a good compromise would be to work in a place you love that still isnt environmentally sound. sure, it may not be the place in the most dire need, but there's always some need.

any faults you might find in my suggestion could possibly stem from the fact that i dont believe in your plight as much as you do, however, i dont believe in it as little as jw. i guess compromise is what i'm about right now.

By Blogger josh, at Monday, November 28, 2005 8:18:00 PM  

Did Frodo stay in the goddamn shire? No! He went to the fucking volcano, man! Let it consume you. Let it wrap its warm tendrils of magma arounnd youu. Go to Hawaii and fight luxury liners.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Monday, November 28, 2005 10:33:00 PM  

John, when you speak of elite to the level of a private jet, you are not generalizing about the Northeast or CA, just really rich people wherever they are from. Of course it would be hypocritical to live in that situation and preach environmentalism. Just think of my awful senior design project adviser. That bastard preaches sustainability and has air conditioning in his 2 meter diameter earthen hut. Although it's not grid connected, so he only has it when it's windy or sunny, or has good charge in the batteries. I like how GW does the opposite. Although his mansion uses renewable energy (because he can personally afford it) America as a whole needs subsidized oil and gas.

Brancibeer has a tough decision. It's so easy here, in a country that cares, in a program about sustainability to get so excited about what can be done, and all these new ideas and their benefits. There is infectious optimism being in a place like this. Yet, this is not where it is needed. Precisely because of the widespread progressive view that is so inspiring. Conversely, he points out so well how hard it is to accomplish something in the places that need it. It wears you down. The place where you can have an impact is the place the kills your passion. It blows, I'm glad I don't have to think too much more about that for another 10 months while I enjoy my time here.

Macunas gives a good analogy and, I think, a good suggestion on a place that may be a good mix. Stockholm's air is so clean, the two issues they are now working with is not allowing cruise ships to run their generators or engines in port, and the air underground in the subway tunnels apparently isn't clean enough. So maybe there are analogous issues in nice places elsewhere.

Damn, I'm wordy, why can't I write a two sentence response?

By Blogger Damon, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 2:26:00 AM  

Good thoughts, but I was trying to make the discussion more universal rather than just 'my plight' or about the environmental field. I mean, its not just about carreer choices. Its about life choices. Its about marriage and kids, xbox's, friends, passion and ignorance. Its about the meaning of life damn it.

Hard to express in a 10 minute post on lunch break i suppose...

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 12:17:00 PM  

if you are looking to have the biggest impact on the most people, go to africa and dig wells. or get really rich and change things. either way, if it doesn't make you happy, fuck it.

if your looking at staying in FL because you need to make a difference, first think about how much of a difference you've already made. has anything really changed? my guess is that it hasn't and things wouldn't change all that much with or without you. (no offense, i'm just being kind of blunt (he..he.. blunt)).

and the northeast is at -1 brancifort.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 1:08:00 PM  

well, if the post is about life in general, then fuck florida, do what makes you happy. i think in this situation there's good reason that they saying "life is short" is so cliche.

our lives wont even be visible on the timeline of existence, and when it's over we'll all be 6ft under. being generous, there's no assurance of any sort of afterlife, so what would be the point of having an unhappy existence only to rot in the ground? maybe that's just me. that's why i think pretty much everything is funny. sure, there are times to be serious. but, if we cant enjoy what we have now, when will we? never.

By Blogger josh, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 2:10:00 PM  

You guys say ignore your impact so that you'll have a good life, but what if he, like I, get a lot of satisfaction from having a positive effect? That is why it's part of the equation. And people do have effects, maybe not a measurable % every year, but especially through leadership and inspiration. Think about it, you know many people who have personally affected you life, and many also who have affected the nation and the world. How can you ignore that just so you can have good nights out with some old buddies?

By Blogger Damon, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 3:44:00 PM  

i think you misinterpret my comment. if you and he get a lot of satisfaction by having a positive effect, then that is living a good and enjoyable life for you. or at least it's one factor. one which might be stronger for you than for others.

people come in different forms. not everyone is set up to have such a vast influence (e.g. over the country or world). i am not. i dont know if it's something in my makeup or if its just my desire, but i'm not. i will/may have an effect on my smaller sphere of influence, and i'm ok with that. i dont seek notoriety, fame, popularity, or large scale change.

yes, the world does need those people. but in the wise words of judge smails, "the world needs ditchdiggers too" (i couldnt resist). my advice comes from my perspective, and everyone else's comes from theirs. and i think that's why branciteam posed the question on mw, to get responses from a variety of povs that he would otherwise not experience.

my point was do what makes you happy because there is no assurance of afterlife or anything else, so be happy while you know you can. but different things make different people happy. if having a larger impact in an area that needs it would make him happier than coming to a place he loves living but doesnt need as much help, then he should stay where he is. if not, then he should consider alternatives.

By Blogger josh, at Tuesday, November 29, 2005 4:50:00 PM  

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TEXAS TRUTH 


While suturing a cut on the hand of a 75-year old Texas rancher (whose hand was caught in a gate while working cattle), the doctor and the old man struck up a conversation about George W. Bush being in the White House.

The old Texan said, "Well, ya know, Bush is a 'post turtle'." Not being familiar with the term, the doctor asked him what a 'post turtle' was.

The old rancher said, "When you're driving down a country road and you come across a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a post turtle."

The old man saw a puzzled look on the doctor's face, so he continued to explain, "You know he didn't get there by himself, he doesn't belong there, he doesn't know what to do while he's up there, and you just want to help the dumb bastard get down!"

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Sunday, November 27, 2005

back in the lizzle 

hey, for those of you whom i saw this week, it was great seeing you. matt, red lobster was a great call. for everyone else, i'll see you in december after a week of class and 2 of finals. it was definitely good to be home for a little, back among familiar faces and surroundings. hope the next 3 weeks go quickly and smoothly for you all, and see you again soon.

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Stockholm stay extended 

Hey all, I've just decided, after speaking with the coach of Djurgården IF about joining the Amerikansk fotball team, that I will stay in Stockholm until at least September, when the season ends. This means I need to immediately put on weight and muscle and will be rather busy when practice starts in February if I continue work. I also now need to either frame my thesis such that I can do it here, or delay it until fall. Any topic suggestions? I am considering the feasibility of large scale biodiesel distribution in Vermont if there is enough diesels to justify this (unlikely.) But given that more than 70% of the state's emissions are from transporation, it seems a nice solution, maybe ethanol instead? And if rural VT could get biodiesel to a wide variety of filling stations, anywhere could. Really though, any suggestions on a research topic "within the domain of Sustainable Energy Engineering?" Also, now you can start saving for airfare to come visit in summer when there's 18 hours of daylight, and I'll probably playing football part time (3x/wk), working part time (16hr/wk), and chilling full time.

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I like those ideas. They're down to earth and not abstract, meaning they're potentially applicable as soon as written.

"The Sweedish Anomaly: Why it Helps the Environment when Sweedish Girls Fart"

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Monday, November 28, 2005 10:17:00 AM  

I bet 100% of VT's emissions arent even 5% of California's. I'd swing at some better pitchs. If VT switched to biodiesel, it wouldnt be anything more than a political statement (which wouldn't be bad at all).

some quick ideas.
- impact of carbon sequestration
- how to bring clean diesels to the US so I can drive a Lupo
- feasibility of SOFC fuel cells for home use.
- the wood burning car. 10 miles/log
- lightening, the untapped potential.

By Blogger ron, at Monday, November 28, 2005 12:33:00 PM  

Very good Ron. It's funny that I don't want to work in Sweden because of the same reason you point out: changing VT will not make a difference, they are too clean already. True, but with over 60% of the electricity supply emission-free and soon to expire, they could get dirtier. Also, VT has the wind, hydro, and boimass to become a power exporter to Boston, NYC, and Montreal, providing the whole Northeast with clean power.

I am not sure about manufacturers' plans, but many European models cannot meet US emissions demands with the high sulfur fuel in the US. Since there are new fuel requirements in '06, it is expected that more diesels will be available. I hope consumers take advantage and prove to manufacturers, now is the time for diesel. I'd like a Polo. (They don't have Lupo's here, so I haven't fallen for them.)

I'll do the feasibility for home SOFC right now: It cost even more than PV! Dear lord are you joking!!

Wood logs are even more difficult for transport than H2, but people used to do it, have wood fuel gasifiers onboard when all the oil was going to World Wars.

Ah lightning, every engineers' wet dream. How oh how to harness such violent release of our highest, best type of energy?

Thanks for the input.

By Blogger Damon, at Monday, November 28, 2005 2:39:00 PM  

if you're looking for something that is specific to VT try farms. the amount of manure hanging around is incredible. Small wind farms in the fields can power anything they may need to run. think smaller. Tractors are going to be running on oil for a long time, as are big rigs. making them more effcient would be a huge boost, they are in constant service and cause a ton of damage to roads. Shipping things is a huge life line in america since we are so spread out.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Monday, November 28, 2005 3:29:00 PM  

SOFC's are pretty awesome. I'd love to see them not only provide some electric juice but replace the furnace, hot water heater and chiller units. If they were mass produced (therfor cost less), I bet it would be feasible. The natural gas infastructure is in place in alot of areas.

I came to terms myself about alternative energy a year or two ago. It wont happen until we run out of oil or the cost of oil competes with the cost of alternatives. There simply is no reason to switch, other than being conscious minded about environment issues. Its just like your said, it all comes down to a cost feasibility.

fuckin' a, why would I heat my home for say... 4000$ a winter when oil would cost me 1200$. (costs may vary, I dont own a home and have no idea but you get the point, it just costs too much)

By Blogger ron, at Monday, November 28, 2005 5:25:00 PM  

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Saturday, November 26, 2005

Let there be darkness, and there was 


Nifty picture eh? From a NASA sat, it is interesting to see population centers. Really look for the US/Canadian border the see how close most of them live. The US looks more evenly populated than I thought it was. Or maybe they just have lots of streetlights on empty streets in the midwest and west. Look at India's even light coverage, and China's lack of light. Anyway, cool pic I came across on another day I came home at 3:30 and thought it was dinner time because it was dark. The sun sets at 3. Then by now, 6:30, I feel like it's late, because it's already been dark for so long. The sun rises at 8, and there is one more hour to lose before the minimum of 6 hours of daylight just before Yule.

4 comments

Wow India is really even. China still has little development in thier rural areas - only along their coast. Tokyo looks pretty banging. I'm wondering if that's the trans-siberian railway across russia. I thought it was higher...
And what are those bright ones off Mozambique? A military base?

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Saturday, November 26, 2005 12:53:00 PM  

Yeah those are the same kind of things I was thinking and that's why it is interesting. And of course, "How did they get the whole planet in the dark at once?" How did they get a sat to stay opposite the sun, not roating with earth, but following earth's orbit. Those ones that stay over one spot on the surface are easier to imagine.

By Blogger Damon, at Saturday, November 26, 2005 2:04:00 PM  

nice pic.

as for how they did it. i guarantee that its a composite pic stitched together from thousands of individual shots like all nasa pictures.

can you imagine how dark it would be without light pollution. When i go upstate to NY i'm amazed how much more dark it gets and thats still pretty bright according to this pic.

By Blogger ron, at Saturday, November 26, 2005 3:02:00 PM  

Yes of course it's composite, since the camera taking a photo of New Zealand is nearly facing the camera taking a shot of New England. I am just wondering about the satellite orbit, but I'm thinking how they could do it in a day, but it probably took much longer so many more orbits could be used. I like the terms light pollution and light trespassing used in some Vermont government paper I was reading, and there too, on top of that mountain in Newfane, it gets very dark and there seems to be many times more stars than can be seen from CT. Oh and forget it in Sthlm, but damn me for skipping a party out in the archipelago, as all those drunken fools got to see a brilliant display of the Northern Lights taking up that whole third of the sky at 2am.

By Blogger Damon, at Sunday, November 27, 2005 2:43:00 AM  

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Thursday, November 24, 2005

Happy Thanksgiving 

Pink turkey anyone?

eat, drink and remember all we have to be thankful for.

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Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Life Stage 

You are not the thinker of your thoughts;
You are the hearer of your thoughts

The thinker of your thoughts
is a subsidiary mechanism within you,
which attempts to put some of your feelings into words

Not looking at the matter this way,
most individuals tend to identify themselves
as the author of the words in their head,
and consequently are biased in favor
of believing and defending these thoughts

I'm moving into one of those New Age stages again. I'm getting into astrology and have found some cool books that make me have these deep thoughts. One is a simple book called "The Alchemist". I find it amazing how simple, quick reads can make you think so much. The above is taken from a book i picked up in the local goodwill. Its called "Mind Magic". From what little i've read, its all about removing the conditioning that has taken place in our lifetimes to free your mind. "The ectasy of feeing creative power". The thing that attracted me to it is that its not like a cover to cover book. Every page only has a couple verses on it (like the above would be 1 page). Brilliant. I think its supposed to be one of those books that is actually an exercise while you read it (eg. visualize your thoughts are like a senate; each thought coming from a different senator...). Then when you are done with the excercise, hopefully you will have learned something.

I also found this horiscope for Aquarius that fit me like a T. That started things a bit. Am I the age of Aquarius? I always thought i was something special...

I havent posted in a while. Things have been mostly fine. Its funny to look at your life from a distance sometimes and to laugh at what you are going through. "look at me now... oh boy its one of those weeks...you stupid asshole". I had one of those hard reality checks last night too. I was writing my gramma a card (which ive been meaning to do for a long time). I finished the card and was thinking about her and how i should keep better in touch. Then i thought about myself and the big house i was in and all my stuff in it. The music that was playing, the job that i was working, the age i was, where i was in life, what my friends were doing, what i was dealing with personally, the past. Slam! Whoa!@ When did this all happen?! Ha ha, kinda freaky, im sure you all know those feelings.

There is no right or wrong. No black and white. All you are is what you are. You are what you are being and that is all that is too it.

2 comments

Will you be around in DEC/JAN? Let me know, id like to get together some time.

By Blogger wyldshaman, at Saturday, November 26, 2005 10:37:00 AM  

Ah Ha! I knew if anyone would respond it would be you. I'll be home around Xmas. Limited time only though. Thurs through Tues. I would also like to get together.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Monday, November 28, 2005 9:25:00 AM  

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Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Calling on Matt (and maybe Ron) and what the hell - any of you 

Would anyone else like to get in on this just-beginning clean energy industry? Now is the time, and the place is Vermont. Vermont gets 36% of its electricity from Hydro-Quebec, and 35% from the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. The contract with Hydro-Quebec expires in 2015, and the permit for the nuclear plant is done in 2012. As it stands now, neither will be renewed (the reactor cannot be.) Vermont has an electrical capacity of about 1GW, so that's 710MW of new capacity that will be needed in the next 10 year! (With the dubious assumption of constant demand.) So if they decide to build a new reactor, it could do that by itself, case closed. But that is unlikely. There is up to 194MW of commercial wind power in some state of planning, and there is 330MW of hydropower available at existing dam sites (72MW at one site.) And clearly, that still leaves a major need, (also you can only count wind as something like 25% of its capacity since it flucuates so much.) So you see there is a lot of work to be done right now. There will be a substantial job market in energy and hopefully the market forces and politics make it clean energy. The current fuel prices are doing well in that regard, and if we get a really cold winter and everyone goes broke paying for oil, we should be in excellent shape to build alterntives. Honestly I'm a bit disappointed in my MSc program so far, so you other ME's would be at no disadvantage getting good jobs or starting projects in this market.

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The luck marches on, two emails from the football team encouraging me to meet with them and join. The head coach is American, so my lack of Swedish is not considered a problem, and neither mentioned my light weight. The season actually starts in May so I could probably put back at least half of the missing muscles by then. The team was 7-1 in the second highest division in Sweden last year.

Another email relates to my disappointment in my Sustainable Energy Engineering degree, which was because too much time was spent on convential energy sources. The email says that the nuclear portion of my Sustainable Power Generation class has been shortened, and hence 3 of the remaining 6 lectures have been cancelled.

And my fantasy team overcame a massive Monday deficit for a miraculous victory over a top team to keep me in the playoff hunt, and to provide the trifecta weekend with wins by all my football teams.

But where, oh where, is the Swedish girl that will complete the picture to make me doubt that my atheism can answer such an uninterrupted and highly unlikely string of positive twists and turns?

By Blogger Damon, at Tuesday, November 22, 2005 6:00:00 AM  

-18 jigawatts!!!
-doc, we won't make it.
name that movie

damon, I got a call from UTC power last friday. I'd be working on PEM fuel cells for transportation. I'm really crossing my fingers on that. Other than that its probably going to be typical CT aerospace stuff for me. I havent gotten one response about microengineering jobs. I really should be an electrical or materials engineer for that stuff so I can understand why.

By Blogger ron, at Tuesday, November 22, 2005 11:55:00 AM  

88 mph, Ron. Turn back the clock.

88 days w/o a fulltime job, Macunas. Turn back the paycheck.

For awhile I wanted to get employed with some sort of lobbying for quicker transitions to sustainable energy economies, but I still don't have the clout yet. Politically.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Tuesday, November 22, 2005 3:42:00 PM  

Ron, I thought you knew the hydrogen economy is nonsense, and it is especially unlikely that fuel cells will be used in cars. Stationary fuel cells, especially high temp ones that can cogenerate seem to be good for industrial or large residential projects and grid-independent installations, but when H2 takes several times the volume that gasoline does, it is going to take some major storage breakthroughs to use it in cars, nevermind the infrastructure, and the fact that renewable hydrogen costs 4 times gasoline. And if it's not renewable, then are people going to pay the major price premium for a fuel cell when all it buys is a little more efficiency? Most hybrids' small price premium doesn't even payback within the vehicle lifetime unless gas goes even higher. For transportation my favorites are ethanol and biodiesel, both of which can run with only minor engine and infrastructure modifications. And ethanol allows for major turbo compression because it's something like 105 octane. But it still has to be blended with gasoline for now, so that's the problem to solve there, and biodiesel's cloud point is 40 degrees F or so, so that's a huge problem there.

Oh course which technologies you believe in and doubt is a matter of what you heard from whom, and for me it was Joseph Romm's The Hype About Hydrogen," that caused a virtual 180. Here, I've sat through lectures of researchers who are working with hydrogen, and therefore trying to be optomistic, but even then, it's not just that using renewable hydrogen in cars is a long time off, we don't even know how to start on the way there.

By Blogger Damon, at Wednesday, November 23, 2005 3:58:00 AM  

Be sure to check out Romm's other titles including such educational books as: "The Atom, from A to booooom!" and "What's the deal with metaphysics?" and who could forget the classic bestseller "Diagnosing the global industrial use of beta-ions with carbon quirks of babylon".

Sorry...

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Wednesday, November 23, 2005 11:09:00 AM  

woohoo metaphysics! now you're speaking my language...

By Blogger josh, at Wednesday, November 23, 2005 12:20:00 PM  

BB tries with creativity and no research to discredit my source. Google "joseph romm," and you may find: first he didn't write anything similar to those books; he was part of the management of the DOE's program on hydrogen and fuel cells during the Clinton Administration; he held high positions at the National Renewable Energy Lab, where I have applied twice for a job; and he initially thought about writing a positive book about hydrogen but the multipart agrument and long list of obstables presented in the book, combined with media hype and Bush's massive support (really doesn't that alone justify a hard look at it?) made him write the opposite. I highly suggest to read it at least for Ron if it's a career interest. There is an updated edition just published in September, which I hope to get the time to refresh myself with, and to see if the numbers have improved. By no means am I saying it should or would persuade you to work elsewhere but it brings up many good points, like why using hydrogen in an IC engine is a bad idea, which a couple of years after reading it, still makes me cringe when automakers do just that. Anywho, he's an expert in the field, and I saw him give a presentation to a group of maybe 60 people, many of whom worked in hydrogen, so you can imagine their pointed questions, but he could quickly and articulately counter every argument.

By Blogger Damon, at Wednesday, November 23, 2005 1:05:00 PM  

I just came across an interesting point of view in a article about fuel cells in my Energy Management textbook:

"One has to accept that an electric engine costs just as much as a petrol engine, so fuel cells must in fact compete with petrol tanks (i.e. assemblies of bent and welded metal sheet). Electric vehicles with fuel cells will therefore never be able to compete with petrol and diesel-powered vehicles in the foreseeable future; they have to be treated on different economic terms, which can be justified as fuel cells are non-polluting."

Of course to be non polluting, the hydrogen has to be from renewable energy sources, which then means the price of fuel will not be able to compete.

By Blogger Damon, at Wednesday, November 23, 2005 1:42:00 PM  

Damon, what kind of classes are you taking? classical stuff like elastacity, fluid dynamics and mechanics or special topics stuff like fuelcell chemistry and say.. wind turbines, i dont know. I'd like to get a better idea of your program consists of, it seems interesting.

By Blogger ron, at Wednesday, November 23, 2005 1:59:00 PM  

Special topics of course, otherwise I would just be repeating my BS.

Renewable Energy Technology
Energe Management
Sustainable Power Generation
Sustainable Energy Utilization
Energy and Environment
Applied Energy Technology - Project Course

Thermal Comfort and Indoor Climate
Applied Refrigeration and Heat Pump Technology

The last two are specific to my 'major' Sustainable Energy Utilization in the Built Environment as opposed to Sustainable Power Generation or Nuclear Power Techonlogy

The course titles aren't very descriptive but the main technologies they focus on are wind and biomass, but also things like combined cycles with natural gas or even gassified coal.

By Blogger Damon, at Thursday, November 24, 2005 2:13:00 AM  

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Monday, November 21, 2005

When is it going to end? 

Ok what first?

A friend of one of my housemates, who used to live here, and was the reason the housemate moved in, has returned to Stockholm from Austria and is staying here until they find another place. Well another Swedish girl in the mix is a-ok with me. In fact, she has only been here a few days, and she is my favorite. Yeah she's blonde, of course, but she pops into my room:

"Hey there's some apple pancakes and ice cream left if you want them."
"You want me to finish these?"
"Yes"
"Tack så mycket" [thank you very much]
"Varsågod" [you are welcome (also an offering "please have some")]

Then I ask her if she's busy and up for a laugh. No and yes, so she checks over and corrects my Swedish essays due tomorrow. The teacher will certainly notice, how could I produce gramatically perfect papers with modern pop culture terms?

An hour later, I set out into the kitchen, and she is under the sink, clearing out the drain, while my housemate cleans the top of the cabinets and mops the floor. She's awesome.

So then I check my email, and it's time I find a gym and start eating more meat, Sunday I am trying out for a local Amerikansk fotball team, and I weigh a measly 68kg, while during my bone crushing hockey career at PSU I was 75kg. So I may have to quit that sweet job, at which I am now averaging $30/hr of real time, since recording an hour takes more than an hour. But I can and will work my whole life, but I'm already probably a bit old for American football, and where else can you find a full contact league that a post-college geezer like me could play in?

Oh yeah, and Giants win, PSU wins - Big Ten Champs - #4 in country, Bowl game on Jan 1

and 3 consecutive wins at Friday poker night, including such amazing hands as four jacks, and many many full houses, then one on one, I won at least the first ten hands without a thoughtful bet or bluff, just better cards

Ok, I have been lucky; a few weeks ago, I posted because I felt extremely lucky; tonight I post because tomorrow I will get hit by a bus or something, because it has to end somewhere.

4 comments

At least you ended it on a metric note.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Monday, November 21, 2005 4:41:00 PM  

if you keep telling yourself it can't possibly get any better then this, then life will surprise you with how good it can get. you need to jinx the negative side.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Monday, November 21, 2005 4:56:00 PM  

this plaaaaaaace issss freeeeakin sweeeeeeeeeet


glad to hear all is well. and cuz miami lost, PSU is actually #3 in the bcs, and (i think??) that's the one that matters. if only fresno st held on against usc saturday night.

By Blogger josh, at Monday, November 21, 2005 7:00:00 PM  

Yeah, the BCS wasn't out when I had last checked, but I'm not sure that is matters. Because some of the bowls automatically take the champ of some certain conference, or they just pick whichever team they want. In that sense, PSU gets better bowls than it should really because it has a big fan base. But in the highly event USC or Texas get spanked, it's possible PSU could land #2 in the BCS, which would get them to the Rose Bowl for the national title. They could also drop with good wins by the teams behind them.

By Blogger Damon, at Tuesday, November 22, 2005 2:41:00 AM  

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Friday, November 18, 2005

Call for Details 

I'm going to be drinking tonight.

not just a few beers and then off to bed. oh no.

I'm talking 30 pak. with shots. midnight is a good goal. i'll shoot for that. I've preped my liver with vitals all day, water, vitamins, i popped a vit. C pill a lttle while ago, maybe a little red bull to get the juices going.

Who's with me?

updates to follow from the ER.

3 comments

You better get extra tinfoil because god damn it, your going to need it.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Friday, November 18, 2005 3:45:00 PM  

maybe we should upgrade to drunken paper machette

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Friday, November 18, 2005 4:18:00 PM  

PS: indeterminable amount of alcohol consumed. i blacked out and woke up on the couch. no one was here. this place is still a black hole

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Saturday, November 19, 2005 10:41:00 AM  

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Thursday, November 17, 2005

Last call FOLKS! 

And so the drunken mayhem continues...just because im not in town does not mean you guys have to pick up the slack. Trust me I work in a bar and there is always a keg of beer on tap in the House. I do agree that your apartment is a black hole. Clean it up, get yourselves together and go to the bar. You spend more money but you all have jobs and I know one thing the bar has that your apt does not. You guessed it- Ladies. I have no delusions of being some sort of casanova, when it comes to women 'i have no idea whats goin' on' (towelly's voice from SP), but things just kind of fall into my lap.

I know you're all just thinking that I have no standards and its easy to get laid when you dont care about who you fuck. 75 percent of the women this summer were not as bad as some of you may think, physically. they were however all out of there minds-except the doogle.

So get out of the house and onto the prowl. take kellyn with you, that way other girls will be fooled into thinking that you are not insane and are nice normal guys...?

IN OTHER NEWS:

We have installed the keg er ator in the new house. Fridge in garage, hole drilled through wall into kitchen, beer stays cold we stay warm -all are happy

Not working as a bartender, i am bouncing at another bar- good job, tips, free beer (on and off the clock) check id's and look like i know what im doing.

Ski shop is good, just finished grinding, stoning and edging all the rental skis, 500 or so, and had today off, me and fellow worker hiked half way up the mountain and skied down. an hour or so of hiking and about five minutes of skiing, but it was worth it. getting a great deal on last years demo skis w/bindings. If i were to buy them new it would be about 900 dollars for just the skis and im saving about 650 dollars on the purchase-Fuck Yeah!

No ladies on the horizon yet, buddies girlfriend trying to set me up with someone but we havent me yet. Other buddies girl trying to set me up with this crazy broad working at the ski mountain-havent me her either but you know how I love ' em crazy.

All and all were having good times, working alot making some loot
just livin

Miss all yall east coasters, dont kill each other-embrace the fact that we've been able to stay friends for this long. All bullshit aside take care of yourselves till we meet again. My door in Montana is always open for the folks needing some time away from reality. Come and ski and drink and bed loose women.

Murphy

5 comments

What ski shop 'ya working at? I worked at Chalet for 3ish years..

PS, that tag board is giving your site wicked bad popups... Shoutbox.com does the same thing with no popups..

By Blogger jesse parker, at Friday, November 18, 2005 12:24:00 PM  

i use mozilla... no pop-ups. i'll check shoutbox, i think i've seen it used and it looks a lot better

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Friday, November 18, 2005 1:43:00 PM  

workin at bridger rental shop

By Blogger murphy, at Saturday, November 19, 2005 12:58:00 PM  

Lookin good Murph. I might be snowboard instructing at Powder Ridge this season.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Sunday, November 20, 2005 4:14:00 PM  

Whoa, who'd of thought time at a ski resort would become a connecting bond for us? Though powder ridge might not do it (just for it's lack of living-at-the-mtn staff - not anything about the mtn,) a season at a ski resort certainly has a unique character. I frequently look back at mine with a little tear and sniffle, as do my housemate (Shawn), and many of the staff, and my favorite "direct report." By the way, lifties own the mountain and the bars! Instructors are a buch of conceited hacks (or am I proving the opposite of this by preemptively attacking them!?) Anyway, enjoy the resort life!

By Blogger Damon, at Monday, November 21, 2005 12:59:00 PM  

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some things considered 

1. When buying a mercedes dont get the C class, seriously who are you fooling.
2. I can't find one nipple shot in the holiday Victories Secret catalog, how dissapointing.
3. beaujolais nouveau wine is here, anyone besides me excited?
4. I truly hate it getting dark at 4:30.

I'll be honest and say that being unemployed sucks. I like my life to have a certian schedule and right now the schedule is empty. Getting up at noon, cooking an omlet, doing a quick internet job search, walking the dog and then heading off into the night isnt that fullfilling. tonight i'm going to try to cook a chicken. I'll let you all know how that goes.

2 comments

cooking the chicken went very well.

By Blogger ron, at Thursday, November 17, 2005 9:52:00 PM  

I know how you feel, but cherish you last hour of daylight, as the sun sets here at 3:30, and by the time I am finishing exams, it will be 2:45. I recommend you make use of all your newfound time to do something you normally could not. I read a ridiculous amount when I was unemployed. Maybe find a trumpet and see what you remember?

By Blogger Damon, at Friday, November 18, 2005 1:00:00 AM  

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Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Rules To Live By: The Atheists Ten Commandments 

2 comments

so this is what you do at work all day?

By Blogger ron, at Wednesday, November 16, 2005 2:35:00 PM  

when ever i feel like killing a few minutes i use the Stumble program matt found and this was one of the sites that poped up

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Wednesday, November 16, 2005 3:05:00 PM  

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Tuesday, November 15, 2005

it smells like fresh vagina in here 

sexual harassment in the workplace is something to be taken very seriously. you should all brush up on it by watching this video.

2 comments

I got some kind of Win Media error. Whenever I listen to Josh I feel like a dick.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Wednesday, November 16, 2005 4:45:00 PM  

try it somewhere else...a few others had problems with it too, but when it works, its glorious

By Blogger josh, at Thursday, November 17, 2005 10:24:00 AM  

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Saturday, November 12, 2005

Debauchery 


ron is batman

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we need more aluminum foil

11 comments

I hope you are recycling that when you are done.

By Blogger Damon, at Sunday, November 13, 2005 2:11:00 AM  

What the hell is wrong with you all?

By Anonymous Anonymous, at Sunday, November 13, 2005 4:07:00 PM  

whats the matter, afraid to put your name on your comment?

Also, there's nothing wrong, we're having fun.

By Blogger ron, at Sunday, November 13, 2005 5:45:00 PM  

I think you guys need to lay off the booze. Seriously. Theres a fine line between having fun and regressing to idiotium. Why dont you start a book club or something.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Monday, November 14, 2005 11:50:00 AM  

it could be like the oprah book club, only not. here are some recommendations to get you started: penthouse, playboy (great articles), barely legal

By Blogger josh, at Monday, November 14, 2005 12:56:00 PM  

i can't happen. ever. when was the last time three or more of us were in a room togeather and we weren't drinking? its been years, and every attempt has led to drinking and setback. Our apartment is a fucking blackhole. nothing escapes it.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Monday, November 14, 2005 1:11:00 PM  

arggg, you make thor god of whiskey mad.

By Blogger ron, at Monday, November 14, 2005 1:52:00 PM  

I answered DUI in the poll even though that was not why I cut back, but a part of it. During my affair with alcoholism, which you guys would not even have believed, I drove wasted at least twice. One of the times, I repeatedly passed out and thankfully I woke as big snowbanks nudged the car back onto the road. I recall this happened at least three times and it happened on both sides of the road. But the real reason I stopped is because I began to have trouble reading, understanding spoken English, and sometimes speaking. I found out that dementia can be caused by excessive drinking and there ya go, I stopped. Now, 15 months, and probably less than 30 drinks later, the effects are gone, as is my desire to drink. Anonymous because you have heard those times people lose jobs because of online comments and such right?

By Anonymous Anonymous, at Tuesday, November 15, 2005 6:07:00 AM  

don't be so righteous. this stage will certianly pass. with the exception of me (who is interviewing) all parties involved hold jobs, and get up on time. on a night when we do drink, none of use go bouncing off light poles around middletown either. We dont drive. If we do head to a bar, we use discression. Everyone of us knows that a DUI, accident or possibly killing somone with the car is going to fuck things up. And another thing about descression, dont check the blogger at work. how simple of a solution is that?

By Blogger ron, at Tuesday, November 15, 2005 1:04:00 PM  

its too late to worry about internet privacy, we're all fucked. the phone company has your IP address and can see everything you do.

i read a good artical a while back about how all this crazy shit that people are writing on blogs will eventually come back to haunt them. if (god forbid) any of us ever try to run for office of anything, there is a ton of public information that we've written out there in the ether. the younger people are more screwed because they've written more stuff then we have and grown up with all this tech.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Tuesday, November 15, 2005 6:07:00 PM  

Say goodbye to First Selectman Macunas....

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Thursday, November 17, 2005 4:33:00 PM  

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yes this has happened more then once

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Friday, November 11, 2005

A different kind of family thanksgiving 

I think i've talked with a few people about this but the sunday after thanksgiving some of us are looking at putting togeather a nice dinner for a bunch of our friends. I was talking to megan and greg the other night and they said it would be fine to do it at thier place since they have more room and are better equiped to handel a bunch of people. Megan offered to cook if i get the people. What i'm trying to gauge is how many people will be around and who can make it. The perliminary numbers show about a dozen or so people in attendence at about 2:00 that sunday afternoon.

If there are a lot of people interested in this it might be worth our while to book part of a restaurant or get a hall or something better suited to having a nice dinner with a bunch of friends. any ideas/suggestions? Who's in? Who's out? Anyone going to have a big house we could do this in? it would certainly be more condusive to our type of partying (wink, wink). Feedback people, feedback

7 comments

for now i'm in, however the later on sunday it gets the less likely i can go cuz i have to drive back to pa on sun.

By Blogger josh, at Friday, November 11, 2005 4:48:00 PM  

Count me and Kristen in. I'll scout for others.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Friday, November 11, 2005 5:33:00 PM  

Obviously I'm not there. I will be home Dec 21 to Jan 4. And how's this for luck, last night I had 4 Jacks (3 community) in our weekly Texas Hold 'em game. I won the last two games and three of the last six. But the buy-in is only about $4 and some people absolulely won't risk more.

By Blogger Damon, at Saturday, November 12, 2005 2:06:00 AM  

seriously, i need more responses here. i've talked to some people in person but still don't have many ideas or "solids".

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Tuesday, November 15, 2005 4:07:00 PM  

my idea would be for sat afternoon instead. but that's just me, and i know everyone's plans cant revolve around it.

By Blogger josh, at Tuesday, November 15, 2005 7:22:00 PM  

i fugured sunday because i thought most people would have stuff to do. or in my case i might not be back until sunday. (josh, i'm working on my mom)

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Wednesday, November 16, 2005 1:09:00 PM  

yo i'm in

By Blogger ron, at Wednesday, November 16, 2005 2:36:00 PM  

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Thursday, November 10, 2005

People are strange... 

a few weeks ago i did this odd job from a guy at work that was basically a pain in the ass. he had me crawling around the pipe racks looking for a shinny piece of stainless that i could sell him " at a discount". he wanted 12 diferent size and thickness triangles, so i had them cut on the burning table. i gave him a decent price afteri blew him off for a week and i hoped it was over with.

Yesterday this guy showed up again. i was walking to the back of the shop and three of the shop guys were talking, one of them stopped me and pointed towards the wall and said someone was looking for me. i turned and looked at the wall, didn't see anyone and said "ok guys, lay off the crack." icontinued walking to the back of hte shop, told tom what i needed and on the way back up front they stopped me again and were all laughing, the again said there was someone waiting for me and point to the wall. i wasn't in the mood for jokes because my project is totally fucked, (different story) but they said there really was someone waiting for me over there. It was this same guy from before, he was standing behind a pile of scrap. apparently he had been standing there for the better part of an hour, waiting for me. i was taking a dump.

he took me outside to look at his truck. ok whatever, he wanted a bunch of perferated stainless steel plates molded to the bed of his truck. i brought the foreman out to look at it and asked what he tought we shoudl do. the foreman went back inside and i was talking to the strange man about something off topic, when he pulled out a joint.

the fuck?!? he asked me if i wanted a hit. i couldn't, not at work. what a fucking strange situation to be put in. i'm not going to hit that at work, but who hte fuck offers that? son of a bitch.

3 comments

you took a dump for the better part of an hour? you need some fruit in your diet. or ex-lax.

By Blogger josh, at Friday, November 11, 2005 12:01:00 AM  

I've been eating my fiber in the form of frosted mini wheats. they kick ass. Half of hte hour i was still at lunch and thte other half i was reading a magazine on the toilet. I get lost when i find stuff to read. The problem with magazines by the toilet is that i'll read them and ignor what i'm in there to do.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Friday, November 11, 2005 8:22:00 AM  

Yeah sometimes I start reading on the can and lose the urge altogether. Then I stop reading and bam its back.
I was one of the regulars in the bathroom at the Chamber. Too much coffee.

And yeah that's an awkward situation. Yours.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Friday, November 11, 2005 5:32:00 PM  

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my first shootoot 

so i sat down and watched the end of a hockey game tonight. i just have this to say: i LOVE the shootout format. it was awesome. the crowd was way into it, it was exciting, and best yet: the game didnt end in a tie. i can sleep well tonight.

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I think my drinking team has a setback problem 

I wont say that this happens every night, but its all too often that things get a little out of hand . The cause, I would say, is the theory of critical mass. 30pack + 4 or more close friends = tinfoil helmets and 2am high fives. Further supporting this theory was an example last night in which the count was 3. Chaos did not insure despite the copious amount of available alcohol.

7 comments

I'm proud to say there were 4 people wearing D.E.P. shirts that night.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 2:31:00 PM  

i like the sunflowers poster. very.......out of place?

By Blogger josh, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 2:31:00 PM  

The sunflower poster (among atleast 3 others) were my gifts to the apartment. Nice hi fives. DEP in the house!

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 2:49:00 PM  

mat was going for a rocketeer lookd and I the flash. i think the next helmet should be batman.

By Blogger ron, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 3:33:00 PM  

norse god of thunder, THOR! complete with hammer. I'm going to need tequila, STAT!

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 3:42:00 PM  

BTW- Best title ever

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 4:51:00 PM  

wow

By Blogger murphy, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 7:17:00 PM  

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a-political a-hole, eh? 

so tuesday was election day. there was lots of preserving and defeating of gay rights. a democrat took governor in virginia. the only good thing was an entire school board who tried to get intelligent design into schools in pa was ousted. but the moral of the story: i dont give a fuck.

lately, i've found myself ever more a-political. i just dont care. fuck it. no matter who's running the country things are gonna be 1 of 2 ways: bad or worse. and you know what? i can't honestly say that anything has really changed these last 5 years. yeah i think a lot of stupid shit has gone on with our country and others, but when it all comes down to it, very little has affected me. maybe that's cuz i'm still in school, so i dont feel the full force of everything. sure i mean gas prices suck, etc, and global warming, but you know what nature's done for me lately? it's given me a cold and santos a parasite. fuck it.

it's a very cynical view. some might call it selfish. i disagree (to an extent (i feel we're all selfish, we've talked about this in previous posts)), but i dont care what you call it. it takes forever to accomplish stuff, and very little gets done. and of the stuff that does, very little has practical impact. you may disagree, but i dont feel anything different. nothing has affected how i live. until it does, i ask, why should i care?

2 comments

Jesus. Much like the nature of politics you are swinging one way for a while. In time you will swing back to caring and feeling, then back again. Its different everytime but always the same. I've been there, i may be there now in some way or another. You know it too dont you?

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 12:52:00 PM  

i could see that. it's been a terrible week. atrocious. when that happens suddenly things like politics dont matter as much for a while.

By Blogger josh, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 2:29:00 PM  

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March on Wall Street 

So i heard about this "National Day of Absence" on December 1st and i plan to take part. Its basically an anti-war protest but the idea is to show solidartity with those devastated by Katrina.

For more info: www.troopsoutnow.org

I would be willing to take three people to the New Haven train station, from there we can all ride down to NYC and take part in the march. I think it would be a cool trip, for a good cause. We could even spend the night if people are down?

1 comments

We could give the administration flack for trying to tie together Al-Queda with Iraq, sure. But no one is more excited than the Left when it comes down to tying issues together. I've seen this alot back in my protesting years.
"We should get out of Iraq because the Republicans are tied up with Enron!"

I would be at marches for campaign finance reform or World Bank debt issues and they'd all be chanting "Free Mumia Abu-Jamal!" which has NO relevance to economics. He shot a cop like 20 years ago. That's it. When you go, Jesse, just make a sign for whatever cause you want. A protest march is a good springboard for that.

"Free Gerber baby food!"

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Thursday, November 10, 2005 2:49:00 PM  

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Tuesday, November 08, 2005

Lifes little surprises 

you never know when you're going to hear from someone you haven't talked to in a while or a name from the past pops up in an unlikly place. Today i got a call at work from an employment agency in Rocky hill. The lady asked me all about where i work and what i do here and my title and i finally asked where she got my name from to be calling me. I was listed as a refence on the resume of the CAD guy we had who quit here a few months ago. I was a little shocked that he felt i was the only one he could still count on to say something nice. i kind of know the feeling, when i was applying for jobs this time around i didn't want to use the names of the pople i worked with in the office of JFD as references so i used my guy Tom's name instead. he did recieve a few calls about me but he was totally cool with it. i guess PJ felt i was nice enough to him to think the same about me. If only he knew i was one of the people who said we should fire his ass. I did say some nice things about him but i felt i had to refer this nice lady to TJ (my hot boss) because she handles all the H.R. stuff. She isn't going to be so nice. PJ really pissed her off.

A few minutes later i checked my voice mail and there was a message that started out as a minute of silence. i listened to see where it was going and it turned out to be the Employment agency lady i had just talked to. She had thought she was on hold so she was talking to someone else she worked with the whole time. First it was a strange debate about the effectiveness of dayquil, then she asked the other guy why they were working on PJ again. The other worker said PJ was getting upset at his new place and wanted out again. The lady said "there must be something wrong with this guy, he keeps bouncing around". I laughed. A lot.

It was a very candid conversation that was never ment for my ears but it was a real quick and dirty form of catch up for someone i once worked with. Apparently he's not doing so well still and i'm not the only one to notice. This odd encounter made my day.

2 comments

that is AWESOME. the best thing that happened to me today is a buddy from usc told me he wished i was still there. that was kinda nice. 2nd best thing was the nap i just took. slow news day.

By Blogger josh, at Tuesday, November 08, 2005 5:10:00 PM  

Mad funny. I wish I got messages like that. I bet most folks I used to know are just losers now playing thier computers at thier...parents......places......
*cough*

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Wednesday, November 09, 2005 4:51:00 PM  

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Monday, November 07, 2005

this is a must read. especially the last one.

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I'm a lucky bastard 

Here are some things happening around me that make me feel far too lucky.

1. The dollar is higher against the Swedish crown than it has been in over two years.
2. This helps me to buy a fresh baked loaf of Swedish limpa bread and 4 Kanelbulles (sweet rolls) for $2.45 at my local subway station from a baker's truck.
3. Wednesday I start a job as a narrator for recorded text books. My boss would like me to record 10 hours a week at least, for which he will pay me $439.34 (exchange hurts there, but now I can spend these crowns here, and then the rate doesn't matter.)
4. Now that I have a job a Swede could not do, I am allowed to stay in Sweden as long as I want. Note also the sick amount of money that job would pay if done full time.
5. PSU is #6 in the country.
6. Giants are on top of NFC East.
7. This week or next, our new DSL connection will be on. It takes them 3-5 freakin weeks to connect it but it's 24Mbit/s, and the same company is testing 100Mbit/s in Stockholm right now.
8. I am skiing at the biggest ski area in the world the second week of January with a French friend assuming he didn't fail our last exam and needs to retake it then, and that I don't break myself skiing at Mad River the two weeks before that - a problem further complicated that my insurance only works in Europe.
9. Oh yeah, and (yeah I'm a dork) I got Mac OS to run on my computer, which I think is pretty nifty, one system tri-booting Linux, WinXP, and OSX.

But I am not getting anywhere with Swedish girls.

8 comments

Sounds good damon. So your voice will be recorded in Swedish history. Keep working on the chicks. I hear they like kanelbulles.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Monday, November 07, 2005 11:29:00 AM  

recorded text books? try not to fall asleep while recoding them. i have a hard enough time getting the information out of hte mthat i need, let alone reading every word. maybe the job has a high suicide rate or something and thats why they pay so sweet. either way i guess it's a good fall back career.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Monday, November 07, 2005 1:36:00 PM  

Soon Damon will be dead by my hands, and I will have taken over his life...

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Tuesday, November 08, 2005 12:16:00 PM  

if you eat his flesh, you can have his powers.

true story.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Tuesday, November 08, 2005 2:22:00 PM  

Oh no! How did you find out that I am a warlock with magic powers!? Who of you read that romance novel by Su Kopil about me? (I'm not making this up google: "damon lane" "su kopil") But good of you to remind me of the situation. The excepts of the novel on the net say I have been stripped of my powers until I help a mortal woman find true love. Dammit, no messing around eh? And for this to happen with all the potential of living abroad in a nation famous for nothing other than beautiful woman. To think I was speaking of luck - now this to deal with! At least I am an expense plane trip away from those of you who know how to bbq me and gain the powers. It shall not be long until I regain them though...

By Blogger Damon, at Tuesday, November 08, 2005 3:10:00 PM  

Giants are kicking ass, sounds like your going to be skiing some sick terrain. I just started my job at Bridger Bowl in MT. It snowing like crazy and their talking about opening early-First time in 10 years, big winters a comin' Yeeeeeehhaaaaaa

Good luck in Sweden-im sure the swedish chicks will melt in your mouth not in your hands

By Blogger murphy, at Tuesday, November 08, 2005 7:53:00 PM  

Snow! I scoff at thee! Its still in the high 80's here. Yup warm and boring...nothing ever changes. Atleast it doesnt fuck with my sinus'

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Wednesday, November 09, 2005 11:04:00 AM  

ohh geesus my alla geees
glauyvin!

By Blogger murphy, at Wednesday, November 09, 2005 8:26:00 PM  

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Friday, November 04, 2005

A week of highlights 

i love the spending the company dime. this past weeek was fan-fucking-tastic. Monday morning i drove to my boss's house and we drove into new haven to the train station. apparently there was some kind of security scare there and we couldn't get in for about an hour. fine. we took the train in to grand central and stopped by the hotel (Sheriton; New York). Then over to the convention center to set-up. me, my boss, my hot boss and her husband were there until about 4 and then back to the hotel bar for a few drinks. 2 cocktails down and off to dinner.

we went to Ruth Chris's steak house which happened to be around the corner. we all had killer steaks and a few more drinks. at this point i'm starting to keep track of who's drinking what and at what level of intocication they seem to be on. remember, this is still business/work for me because i'm the new guy and i really don't know these people personally yet. plus i wasn't going to be drinking any more then they were and getting drunk. of course after my older boss ( i think he's late 50's) had 2 vodkas and 2 glasses of wine it all started to go out the window as he became visibly shaky. it was a great meal. We then returned to the hotel bar for more drinks which i was excited for.

after the first round, my older boss decided to head up to bed, it must have been around 9 or so at this point. i was left with my hot boss and her husband, who are 31 and 29 respectivly, and we ordered another round. then another guy i work with (who happenes to be the hot bosses' husbands brother, both of whom are the children of the guy i'm supposed to be replacing here (wow this is getting confusing)) showed up with his girlfriend. at this point me and JR were dead even with alcohol consumption and MR was a few behind.

I'm not sure if it's a contest with out spoken confermation, but i had been challenged to a gentelmanly drinking duel. MR proceeded to pound 2 in order to catch up, so JR and I ordered another. TJ (hot boss) doesn't need more then 3 (she's tiny) - a non-factor. long story short, we ran up a sizeable bar tab and i out drank JR by 2, MR gave up, and i was the only one able to make it to breakfast or the show the next morning. JR wasted the whole next day recovering and MR was a few hours late. I WIN!

Day one of the show was cool, it was very busy and we got a lot of good contacts. i was busy enough that i didn't have time to wonder the floor and see what else was out there. once again after the show it was cocktail time. we all had two and went back to our rooms until dinner time. since i had an hour to kill i decided it would be nice to take a quick puff and relax. unfortunetly, i was still ripped when dinner rolled around. fortunetly, KB (older boss) had stayed at the bar and had a few more drinks and MR was putting then back at a fairly impressive clip, faster then i was. So MR and KB were flat drunk by dinner time so my nervous paranoia was eclipsed. i ordered shepards pie. it was fantastic. after that KB stumbled back the the hotel room and the rest of us went to little bar down the street for a few more beers until we all went back. i just couldn't bring myself to get too loaded in front of these people because i would have had to drink about twice as much as they did. At this point i still haven't spent a dime of my own money, every drink was piad for on the Co. sweet.

one more show day and some more leads. i took some time to wonder the floor and i sort of surprised. i got blown off by two different booths who really didn't believe i build heat exchangers. i must have been the youngest person there that actually works, anyone else even close to my age was working for the larger companies and had shit jobs doing booth setup or some crap. i was surprised.

That night 4 people from one of our good suppliers took myself and our sales man BA out to dinner. TJ wasn't feeling good all day and MR and KB had already come home for various reasons. The guys from Haynes must have been a little surprised that i was going but i squashed those fears quickly. two of these guys are like professional con-goers. they do these bussiness dinners all the time. This one was on thier dime, so i had scotch. they took us to Smith and wolinski's, supposedly one of hte top 3 steak houses in NYC. AMAZING! we got this two teired seafood appatizer that was huge - lobster, crab, jumbo shrimp - fantastic. then we all had 50$ steaks. i will never forget this steak. ever. it must have been 20 oz. at least and i made sweet mouth love to every last bite.

After that we went back to the hotel and it must have been about 10:30, so i finished off my fatty and kicked back, i wanted to go out but i was ripped and tired. at this point i had some serious doubts about my manhood when (very stoned) i rubbed one out to the sweet rememberances of my fantastic steak. it was that good. i love you steak, i'll never look at another steak like that again. i promise.

the last day of the show was very slow and we left by 3:30. Hopped a quick train back to NH, picked up my car and headed home where ron and tino were waiting. kolpak soon arrived and 40 beers later i passed out. a fitting end to a great week.

I learned alot about business and work edicate and the such this week. it was fucking fantastic. total out of my own pocket- 12$, two cab rides to the convention center so i could sleep a little later in the morning. thats it. i tried to pay for the cab when we went out with the Haynes guys but they laughed at me and put a 20 in my pocket. i ended up making money on that one. and drinking some great scotch. mum..mum...

3 comments

hahaha that's hilarious, and awesome. sounds like a good week. i'm glad.

sidenote: the companies only get to deduct 50% of all those dinners/entertainment as business expenses. i'm such a fuckin nerd, but i love it! tax is the shiz.

By Blogger josh, at Friday, November 04, 2005 6:58:00 PM  

me and the guy that went to dinner with Haynes at Smith & Wolinskis were trying to figure out how much that must have cost. we decided it must have been around 700$.

By Blogger Supreme Monkey Overlord, at Saturday, November 05, 2005 11:13:00 AM  

Ah yes, the traveling workermonkey. Thru my bit of traveling experience, I can really see how crazy shit happens on the road (cheating, lousing, etc). Something comes over you when you sleep in a hotel room and go out to fancy steak dinners. Livin the restless traveling hi life.

Funny that your boss's didnt make the meeting (because of a hangover) and you had to grab the reins.

I kept waiting for the orgy story with the hot boss though....

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Monday, November 07, 2005 11:32:00 AM  

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God, i love this site 




01. classic mullet: this specimen is a clear demonstration of a classic mullet. Note how this mullet proudly displays his exotic plumage while in a menacing stance. Classic indeed. The mesh tank-top, digital watch, silver chain, and molester mustache all add points to this fine specimen's overall look and mulletude.






Mulletude: 10


Aggressiveness: 10


Hobbies: football games, wife beating, picking fights.


Sightings: everywhere, there's no escape (see: eyes).


Favorite Band: Steve Miller Band


Credit to MulletsGalore.com


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Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Thumbs Up 

So I go to this Halloween party in Ivoryton (exit 4 off rt. 9) at the residence of a couple newlyweds whom Kristen has known for years. Kris was Officer Naughty. I just donned some sparring gear and my kungfu outfit. With my gloves on I kept crushing every beer can while I was drinking them. It was fun stuff for awhile; good folks.
Around midnite Kris and I are lounging in the back bedroom for some reason or another (...). Jenny's brother Nick (Headless Man) comes in and asks if we want to smoke. Of course we do.
"Well, either of you got any?"
"......."
Kris packs hers up. I participate. Then Nick bounces.
A few minutes later Colleen (neo-wife, Bunny) comes in and verbally lays down the law. Neither of the couple smokes anymore so it's not cool in thier house. Okay, cool. Apologies around. A couple minutes later Jason (neo-husband, Lucifer) comes in absolutely raging, with mask off but smeared red paint all over him.
"WHATTHEFUCKDOYOUTHINKYOUREDOINGTHEFUCKYOUTHINKYOUCANDOWHATEVERYOUWANTINMYHOUSE"

So I'm like "easy, buddy," trying to placate him. I'm a natural diplomat usually, plus I didn't want to test the fact he's in the army.
"THERESAFUCKINGFANINTHEGARAGEGETTHEFANANDBLOWTHISSHITOUTOFMYHOUSE"

As soon as I set foot in the garage he's behind me like
"Well, do you see the fucking fan!? DOYOUSEETHEFUCKINGFANITSRIGHTFUCKINGTHERE!!!!!

Whoakay - Lucifer's getting out of hand. I'm not sure what happened in between but he ended up rushing me a bunch of times and we had some rolling fights thru the house and into the front yard. Expecting to go to bed I was taking off my sparring gear but still had my helmet on, luckily. I remember getting brought to the ground but finding his face with my bare foot a few times in quick succession. At some point my hand must've been near his face (jab w/ no recoil?) and he took my thumb in his mouth and bit it. I thought he'd let go must he just kept gnawing in there. The outside's mostly fine since that's bone, but he really sunk into the inner flesh. My digit's been supersized for the past 4 days. It's a Kolpack thumb.

In between rushes, other party monsters tried jumping in and stopping Lucifer from devilry. A few girls caught damage by trying to actually pigpile him. I started worrying about his friends stepping in against me so I heeded thier suggestions to leave.

"Kristen, you fine to drive?"
"Nope"
"Get in the car anyways!"

Kristen started arguing but the sound of smashing glass from inside convinced her too. Turns out the dude put his hand thru the window thinking it was a door or something. Pissed off wife, now. So we left some stuff there that others collected for us. Better than sticking around. All this for just being in the room and trusting that the others (who knew the hosts better) had tacit permission.

Just as weird, later that night, 3am, Jenny felt the rage too and bit her brother (headless Nick, who received no blame for the smoking incident.) He decides to drive home but gets lost in the same 1 block area and calls his mom to pick him up, fearing Jenny. At 3am.

So Jason and Colleen call Kristen to apologize Sunday night. She told them to call back after the Simpsons we're busy. So anyways he said his sorrys and I also apologized but he realized that I had very little to do with what he saw as disrespect. Although the thumb throbbed for a few days I think I came out on top with this one. I broke one of his ribs and gave him a fat lip and loose tooth. He doubts he even landed punches on me. Owes me a steak dinner too, if I ever decide it's worth taking up.

The morale: You don't need a year of kungfu to be a fighter. Just wear the tunic and you'll think like a champ! Guaranteed!

P.S. I bought Civ 4 everybody watch out now.

4 comments

hahaha that's awesome. h-town represent!

By Blogger josh, at Wednesday, November 02, 2005 10:02:00 PM  

Yeah those military guys are fucked up in the head. Kill kill kill!!! He's been reconditioned.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Thursday, November 03, 2005 10:00:00 AM  

that guys jason is an asshole, i almost fought him a couple of times when i was with jenny

By Blogger murphy, at Thursday, November 03, 2005 2:15:00 PM  

sounds like a good husband eh? you know with all the raging and breaking stuff.

By Blogger ron, at Thursday, November 03, 2005 3:56:00 PM  

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Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Biggest, Loudest Bartender in Bozeman, MT 

Looks like everyone had a blast on hollows eve. Nice pics josh those chicks would definately pass for 'gardiner hot', I feel your pain.

Bozeman Montana, on the other hand, has a concentration of hot women that you would not expect. I might be getting this job as a bartender in this place called Spectators, 'were sports is not the only thing you watch'. Its like Hooters but not a chain. All the waitresses are hot, very hot, an no cheesy uniforms. Each girl is free to wear any outfit they like as long as it gives the middle age drunks something to look at. The girls apparently have been drinking too much on the job and the management feels that a man's presence behind the bar to keep them in line is just what the dr ordered. Thats where i come in... Manager/bartender.

My roommate Eric is good friends with the owners and he recommended me so Im good as in...But we'll see. My job at the ski mountain may be in jeopardy as a result but the girl that interviewed me said its not uncommon to walk out with 400 dollars on a good night. Im going to still try and work part time at the mountain if they let me. But I'll be making 3 times as much money at this bar so its definately worth it.

The House we live in is sweet. Its the nicest place I've ever lived, except the Neck house. The hot tub did not come with the house which sucks but ill get by.

Sorry i did not stay in town as long as predicted but Im broke and needed to get back to work. I had to borrow money from ma to even have enough to get back out here. I wish I could have spent more time with you guys but thats life.

Went to Montana State Univ.'s football game last Sat. and it was awesome. They won and I got to sit in the student section for free(students get in free and i borrowed an Id). The ROTC fired a cannon every time we scored. A local bar gives away free hamburgers and sausages on game day outside the stadium which was also sweet.

Last Friday we went to a local semi pro hockey game, Bozeman Icedogs. Notorious in their league for fighting and we saw too, they won 4-0. We smuggled in a 750 of seagrams and drank it before the end of the first period. Only five bucks to get in and you get a free soda and popcorn with purchase, so naturally we made seven and sevens with the booze (seagrams and seven up for you non booze hounds).

For now I spend my days watching illegal cable, my roommate knows a guy, and the occasional binger-though im out of green that the wolf gave me for the ride, thanks again teen wolf

Hope you guys are doin fine and rest assured that im having good times as always

This message brought to you by Justin Murphy, swear free for your sake Damon.

keep fighting the good fight

Murph

2 comments

Yes nice post, thank you, but the owner thinks the girls will be drinking less when working with you!? Haha, smooth, your fame must not have reached him yet, and this move will only increase it. Get a contract or work it subtly, so you'll become a Western legend after leaving the mythological birthplace of the East Side.

By Blogger Damon, at Wednesday, November 02, 2005 11:48:00 AM  

Ahh, specs... I've had many a drink between classes in indergrad...

By Blogger jesse parker, at Thursday, November 03, 2005 12:49:00 PM  

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5000 words 








more to come if/when i get them. funny thing is, the redneck girl is good looking.

3 comments

Shit, she's good lookin as is in this town! Heee yuck!

Nice stach BTW. You greasy grease bag.

By Blogger Brancibeer, at Tuesday, November 01, 2005 3:59:00 PM  

You should build the bunnies a cake.

By Blogger DJ Booze Piñata, at Wednesday, November 02, 2005 1:24:00 PM  

these chicks are whores!

By Blogger murphy, at Wednesday, November 02, 2005 5:07:00 PM  

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Just for the hell of it 



1 comments

yea baby!

By Blogger ron, at Tuesday, November 01, 2005 2:11:00 PM  

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