Last Days at Convergent

My last day at Convergent was Jan 26. I had a nice 3 year run there. Work had been a little scarce for some time. So I put the word on the street. And Jeff IM'd me if the rumor was true. We setup an interview and the rest is history. Here is my letter of resignation. I had always said, if I get a chance to work for/with Jeff again, I would take it. He is an all-around great guy. The future looks bright.

Quality of Gasoline?

As I understand it, it's not so much which refinery the gas comes from that determines the "quality", but the additives used and the condition of the station's holding tanks. Quality is marginally affected by the amount of water and other contaminants in the gas, which is in turn affected by the filtration. Each pump has filters which need to be changed regularly, and often are not, and the tank as a whole I believe has a filter as well. I don't think this follows brand lines so much as it does owners of particular stations.
http://ask.metafilter.com/mefi/23613

Selecting the best gasoline for your needs
http://advanceautoparts.com/english/youcan/html/ccr/ccr20030201fs.html

Quality of gasoline declines as prices billow
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3306/is_5_115/ai_n14867128

Before You Buy Gasoline or Petrol
http://chemistry.about.com/library/weekly/aabyb100401.htm

The price and quality of gasoline
http://www.cockeyed.com/citizen/gasoline_prices/gasoline_info.html

Brand Autopsy
http://brandautopsy.typepad.com/brandautopsy/2004/07/the_gas_we_pass.html

Misc info
http://www.partsource.ca/doityourself/TIPS_fuel-efficiency-emission.asp

My top 18 chick flicks

Big (1988)
Love Actually [2003]
Thelma & Louise [1991]
Notting Hill [1999]
Smokey & the Bandit [1977]
Trust the Man [2005]
Bridget Jones's Diary [2001]
Under the Tuscan Sun [2003]
About a Boy [2002]
Dave [1993]
Steel Magnolias [1989]
When Harry Met Sally [1989]
Chasing Amy (1997)
Romancing the Stone [1984]
You've Got Mail [1998]
Pretty Woman [1990]
Four Weddings and a Funeral [1994]
Terms of Endearment [1983]

Free Online Games

SnowRush
http://www.fingertime.com/snowrush.php
LepreKong 2
http://www.bravozulu.com/About_Us/Fun_n_Games/LepreKong_2/
Jedi Trainer
http://www.fingertime.com/jeditrainer.php
Game Sites
http://www.milkandcookies.com/links.php?op=viewlink&cid=14
http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/content/games/
http://www.kidsgames.org/
Math Games for grades 7-9
http://www.cemc.uwaterloo.ca/wired_math/english/index.shtml

Cutting it all off, part deux

Yep, it was finally that time again. I couldnt stand my long hair anymore. Hair all in my face. It was August 2004 when I got it all cut off last time. I donated it to: http://www.locksoflove.org/
Not to mention I save so much money on haircuts.
More juicy info here:
http://nuke.kungfuonline.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=249

Joke of the Day

Chuck Norris
http://chucknorrisfacts.com/
Everything at Zombo
http://www.zombo.com/
BING BONG BROS
http://www.youtube.com/watch.php?v=HpMIMORw_cg
Quagmire - Family Guy
http://youtube.com/w/family-guy?v=QwJ8zfZNDfo&search=family%20guy
Stewie - Family Guy
http://youtube.com/w/stewie?v=ZxwDV5UGeWE&search=family%20guy


Tom Cruise Kills Oprah



http://mirror.randomfoo.net/memes/2005/06/Tom_Cruise_Kills_Oprah.mov

Shining Redux
http://www.ps260.com/molly/SHINING%20FINAL.mov

What does a kiss taste like?
One day a teacher had a taste test with her students.
She picked a little boy to do the first test.
She blindfolded him, put a Hershey kiss in his mouth and asked,
"Do you know what it is?" "No , I don't" said the little boy.
Okay, I'II give you a clue.
It's the thing your daddy wants from your mom before he goes to work.
Suddenly, a little girl at the back of the room yelled,
"Spit it out! It's a piece of ass!"


Life is too short not to laugh atleast once - everyday.

american idiot

This is an interesting little rant i found on a site while looking at prices for SD cards:

A 4 Gig Ipod Nano cost $250 but 4GB of New SD memory costs around $250 by itself.
How can that be? Who is ripping who off? It all comes down too how much WE are willing to pay. People have too much money and still want more. This is why everything from Ipods to Houses costs way too much. Spread your wealth.

If you don't want to pay arms and legs for stuff follow our 3 step plan.
1) Stop spending money on foreign products, invest in american made products even if they are from foreign companies because they employ american workers and pay american taxes. This also helps our economy because they also export to other countries (keeping the dollar in check with global inflation)

2) Support antiwar (which spends billions on supporting and revitalizing other countries which helps to raise the national debt where in turn we end up owing other countries huge amounts of monies which we try to pay off by giving them inscentives to import here but not export there.)

3) Reduce your dependency on petroleum products. This is most difficult but you can atleast try. Buy glass or metal products instead of plastic or styrofoam. Check out this page we found: http://www.gravmag.com/oil.html

(We don't have any affiliation with any of the people listed above but do want you to be informed and not be an American Idiot as they say.)
http://www.geek.com/news/geeknews/2005May/bpd20050517030484.htm

The Prize : The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power
http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=30111255&loc=106&sp=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0671799320/qid=1136139578/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/002-6223039-8053652?n=507846&s=books&v=glance

The Commanding Heights : The Battle for the World Economy
http://www.buy.com/retail/searchresults.asp?querytype=home&qu=The+Commanding+Heights+%3A+The+Battle+for+the+World+Economy&qxt=home&dclksa=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/068483569X/ref=pd_bxgy_text_b/002-6223039-8053652?%5Fencoding=UTF8

Russia 2010 : And What It Means for the World
http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=30118913&loc=106&sp=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679759220/ref=pd_rhf_f_1/002-6223039-8053652?n=507846&no=%2A&s=books&st=%2A&v=glance

GPX2 or GP2X

Have you seen this LINUX machine?!?















$180 (SD card not included)
USB 2.0
2 AA batteries needed
3.5" TFT LCD - 320x240
MP3, WMA, OGG, MPG 1-4, WMV, DIVX, XVID, AC3, JPG, BMP, EBOOK, GAMES (MAME, SNES)
Plays 720x480 movies without any re-encoding as the GP2X scaling chip will resize automatically to fit the screen

Here are the specs:
http://www.gp2x.com/product/product_spec.asp

$160 for a 2GB SD card
http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?products_id=7793&lsaid=219793

More info:
http://www.gp2x.com
http://www.gbax.com/indexgp2x.html
http://wiki.gp2x.org/wiki/Main_Page
http://gp2x.us/
http://www.gp32x.com/
http://gp2x-emulation.dcemu.co.uk/
http://www.emuboards.com/invision/index.php?showtopic=24174
http://newbie.gp32x.de/gpx2/images.htm
http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2005/09/_gpx2_or_gp2x.html
Interface:
http://www.lik-sang.com/news.php?artc=3708
Info:
http://www.mygp2x.com/faq/

MAC OSX Tiger 10.4.3

I have been away from the MACOS approx 6 years now. And here it is, my first day with the Apple Tiger OS and it is beautiful. However, below is a list of probs I have so far. Any advice is greatly appreciated!
-cannot toggle to a docked finder window, you HAVE to click on it to open
-cannot rename files/folders within dialog window of an application
-i drag and drop a file 2 folders in from that directory (in column view), and the last two columns go blank! why?
-problem with burning a DVD with Apple OSX - doesnt tell you how much over you are on the DVD
-why do you have to hit apple+delete to delete a file? why not just 1 button delete key?
-No cut and paste option for files (takes longer to move files).
-Browsing for files from Safari to upload to a website is not intuitive. The folder structure is weird.
-Apple+tab to change between apps only switches to that app - not directly to the doc that is open with that app (text edit, safari and prolly more).
-Applications stay open even after you close the main window - Safari for example. The app is still hogging ram. Why?
-Cannot toggle between windows by Apple+tab. Example: 2 word docs open.
-There is no refresh option for Finder windows.
-Finder windows do not have a memory of overall size or column sizes?
-Do we have to type a password to install any application? Really great if it was an option and not a have to.
-The 2 delete keys do not have the same functionality. Why is this?

*Im not sayin that WIN XP is any better, and I have yet to try LINUX. The problem is that several of my friends have bragged about how much better the MAC OS is. So far, I greatly disagree.

Scoop: The Inside Dope on Steve Jobs' Weird Keynote
http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/cultofmac/index.blog?entry_id=1385976
Microsoft to end Mac support in Windows Media?
http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?RSS&NewsID=13577
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/player/flip4mac.mspx
Apple close window/app
http://www.macdevcenter.com/pub/a/mac/2001/08/03/osx_java.html
MAC OSX on PC
http://osx86.theplaceforitall.com/howto/
MAC OSX keyboard shortcuts
http://homepage.mac.com/frakes/MOSXPT/content/keyboard.html
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75459
http://quicksilver.blacktree.com/
http://www.edot-studios.com/webgroups2/index.php?menu_item=39
http://www.acquisitionx.com/
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=67
mac osx modify finder window
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=mac+osx+modify+finder+window&btnG=Google+Search
Steve Jobs (Apple CEO) movie posters
http://www.mikeindustries.com/blog/archive/2005/12/ipod-giveaway-7-steve-jobs#8428

LIVE BANDS (ive seen)

Bands Ive seen live (almost in chrono-order)
01 Sugarcubes @Six Flags
02 New Order @Six Flags
03 Duran Duran
04 Pink Floyd
05 NIN @Masquerade
06 Lenny Kravitz
07 Sting @Lakewood
08 Lucious Jackson @Roxy
09 Smashing Pumpkins @Philips Arena
10 Kiss @Philips Arena
11 Fishbone
12 2 Skinny J's @Masquerade
13 Orbital @Tabernacle
14 the Crystal Method @Tabernacle
15 Whitey Ford AKA Everlast @Tabernacle
16 Sugar Ray @ Tabernacle
17 Rahzel @ Variety Playhouse
18 the Roots @ Roxy
19 Rage Against the Machine @ Phillips Arena
20 John Mayer @ Eddies Attic
21 LIVE @ Lakewood
22 Counting Crows @ Lakewood
23 Chris Robinson & the New Earth Mud @ Variety Playhouse
24 Uknown Hinson @ Smiths Olde Bar
25 Gogol Bordello @ 40 watt
26 Coldplay - 09/28/05 @ Phillips Arena
27 Electric Eel Shock - 10/03/05 @ Earl
28 Iron & Wine w/Calexio -12/16/05 @ Variety Playhouse w/Joy,Lisa,Todd
and various local ATL bands
*thanks to Lisa for jogging my memory, and to HopDog for all the music goodness

Snow flurries?

So I still dont have a car. Damnit!!! Well this time I found a couple of 2002 Honda Civics that met my requirements. I went back to the Honda because I was burned on my 1st two trials at picking various cars that I thought may do. Both turned out to be lemons. A 95 Nissan Maxima and a 98 Subaru Forrester.
The first Civic, and what I thought was the best option - was sold before I could get a carchecker to run diagnostics on the car. Im not spending $3k or more without getting a pro to examine the car. The second Civic, I went to the dealership, put $2k down contigent on the car checking out perfectly on the diagnostics. It didnt check out perfectly - even tho they assured me twice that it would. I patiently await their return call to work out this problem...

But for now - I smile and begin packing, because I'll be snowboarding tomorrow at Hunter Mtn in upstate NY.

Car status update

Well I dontated my 1992 Honda Civic to the Kidney Foundation. They came and picked it up and sold it for $550. The repairs she needs mechanically are more than she is worth. And I dont think she has much left in her. My friend Rob and others have said that I have been driving on borrowed time. Ive had her for over 12 years, 255k miles.

Im currently driving an 88 jeep wrangler that a coworker is selling for $3500. He is really cool and let me borrow it, even tho Im not going to buy it now. I have to put $60 worth of premium gas in this baby every 3 days. Its real fun to drive cuz its been raised 7 inches, has the 32in tires on it and is wide open. A jeep was always my dream car and for $3500 - this thing would be a good deal. But the gas guzzlin is a deal breaker. LOL.

So I was looking at a used TOYOTA Prius (hybrid) $10k. Its 4 doors and sips gas at about 50mpg. And a lot more practical. But it has too many miles. The battery system ($6k) is only warranteed for 8 years or 100k miles. The Subaru 2000 Forrester is $9k* EPA Mileage 21/28 - Rob recommends the newer/lighter trunk model. 2001 Honda Insight - $11k - but its only a 2 seater. I have a Vespa that is being repaired in the shop. That will be my ideal commute vehicle. http://www.hybridtraderonline.com

I like the Honda CR-V at the moment. For the price, value, etc - I think it best suits my needs. But this Civic aint bad either.

Dreams

112605 - I had a dream last night that I ran into some up and coming movie actor, bonded, started running around town - and we busted into Jennifer Annistons place. Brad Pitt was there. They were heading to dinner and invited us. We suggested that they invite more of their friends. We goto the restaurant, eat drink and be merry - and start to head out. Paparazzi were everywhere. I sneak around and take them out, one by one. It becomes a game with Pitt and Anniston give hand signals, pointing out others, running, laughing and going to another public location. There the game continues as I take out more Paparazzi. They decide to call it a night and go home. I wish them well. It seemed as tho I inadvertantly got them back together - if only for a night.

Rousseau, Thoreau, Mill - cared a lot more about your well-being

...stock-market capitalism is today's coin of the realm, consumerism its handmaiden, and technology is the great enabler. You think technology benefits you because it gives you an easier row to hoe? Bollocks. The ease it provides is illusory. It has trapped you, made you a slave to things you don't even need but suddenly can't live without. So you rot in a cubicle trying to get the money to get the stuff, when you should be out walking in a meadow or wooing a lover or writing a song.

Look around. Our collective humanity is dying a little more every day. Technology is killing life on the street -- the public commons, if you please. Chat rooms, text messaging, IM are all, technically, forms of communication. But when they replace yakking over the back fence, or sitting huggermugger at the bar or simply walking with a friend -- as they have for an increasing number of people in "advanced" societies -- then meaningful human contact is lost. Ease of use is small compensation.

The street suffers in other ways, too. Where you used to buy books from your local bookseller, you now give your money (by credit card, with usurious interest rates) to Amazon.com. Where you used to have a garage sale, you now flog your detritus on craigslist. Almost anything you used to buy from a butcher or druggist or florist you can now get online. Handy as hell, to be sure, and nothing touched by human hands. But little shops lose business and close, to be replaced, if at all, by cookie-cutter chain stores selling One Size Fits All. The corporations have got you right where they want you.
..>http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,68742-2,00.html?tw=wn_story_page_next1

AIRTRAN & WENDY'S

A Medium drink is $1.09 (in Alpharetta GA). Buy 64 drinks from Wendy's and get a free round trip ticket anywhere AirTrans flies. A grand total to $139.52 for 128 medium drinks. Which equals 2 round trip tickets. But why not DD (dumpster dive) for free cups?

On MON I only got a total of 25 cups.

On FRI I scored a total of 79 cups from 3 locations!

I was too lazy to DD on THURS.

I went DD on WED. I scored a total of 59 cups from just 2 of the locations! At one of the locations, the fence around the dumpster was locked. So I had to crawl over the top of the wood fence.

I went DD on TUES. I went to 3 locations near my house and within an hour, I had a total of 38 cups! I started my rounds at 11pm. All 3 Wendys drive thrus were still open. I did not park my car in the Wendys lot - just in case. The dumpster(s) were enclosed in a fenced off kinda contraption - but I could walk into all of them. I then pulled out my first bag. I turned it all around to see the cups that were in the bag. I then ripped a hole in the bag so I could reach in and get the cups. I stacked the fairly clean ones. The messy ones and the ones with liquid I set to the side. Repeated the process for the next several bags. I then used the fluid in some of the cups to rinse the messy cups. I then put all the bags back in the dumpster and picked up any other trash. I would recommend that you cover your tracks so that they dont lock the dumpster, guard it, or just cancel the contest, because of us - the innovators.

I wore a hat, just to keep anything out of my hair.
Clothing: windbreaker, and similar pants - so that any food and fluids run right off.
I recommend thick rubber gloves. But I used some
Towel and/or wetnaps. Just in case ya get messy.
I did not take my wallet.
I kept my cellphone in my car.
No flashlight needed on my run.
Its also good to document when you go, and your results - so that if you do this for several weeks - you know when and where to go.

First stop: 5297 Jimmy Carter Blvd, Norcross, GA
One dumpster was empty, the other was half full.
Second stop: 6130 Jimmy Carter Blvd, Norcross, GA
Only one dumpster, 25% full
Third stop: 1935 Indian Trail Rd, Norcross, GA
Only one dumpster, 60% full
http://www.google.com/local?q=wendy's+loc%3A+Lilburn,+GA+30047&ll=33.912950,-84.192352&spn=0.049195,0.076484&f=l&iwloc=E&hl=en

1100 N Point Dr, Alpharetta, GA
Dumpster was empty on TUES around noon.

Keep in mind they have to be mailed in a #10 envelope. So either you will fit all of the proofs in one envelope, or you will be mailing a lot of envelopes (w/ certified mail im assuming).
You still have to pay taxes (no clue how much). You have blackout dates(no clue what they are).
Rules say that you can only order 5 cokes at a time (but it doesnt hurt to try and ask for more). Today I got 10 cups just sitting at the table by the trash and waiting for people to go to discard their cups. My suggestion is to rinse the cups out as soon as possible so they don't get sticky or attract flies.
http://www.ajc.com/search/content/auto/epaper/editions/yesterday/news_34e9d6b327a9b1b4005b.html
http://www.airtran.com/wendys_offer.aspx
http://gtmcknight.com/log/archives/2005/11/01/wendys_cups_are_the_new_pudding.php
http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.php?start=160&catid=63&threadid=535918
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=149810&page=33

House Chaos

I got new carpet installed in my house on FRI - and I wasnt really prepared for it. The house was still a mess from the painters - painting the inside of my house. But the carpet guy really wanted to do it on FRI. And they did it. Nothing was broken, but they just shoved everything out of the way. The kitchen, bathrooms, garage and back deck were filled with items that were in the house. They did leave all the heavy furniture in the general area of where it was. The place is really starting to look ready for selling.

New Roomie

So I got a new roomate! The man, the myth, the legend. Ladies and Gentlemen: Seth Joiner. Oh, and did I mention that he has some form of ESP? Just ask...

Cellphones & Carriers

Ok, you can get a Motorola RAZR & headset for $180 (free after rebate (ya have to wait 6 months in to apply)), with 2 year service agreement.
You can get this deal thru tigerdirect, buy.com, or amazon.com - and probably others. The service is with Cingular, but I think T-Mobile may be offering the same deal now - or very soon.
First, I still cant believe how long cell phones have been around - and all the interfaces that I have used still are stupid - or still have really stupid things about them. The RAZR is no exception. The interface is clunky and counter-intuitive in areas.
Second, just because your friend says they like a particular carrier (like T-mobile) - doesnt mean that its great for you. The problem here is that you need to talk with someone who you work with and visits the same geographic areas that you do around town, etc. That way you can be more sure about which carrier best suits your needs.
Third, overall - I believe Verizon may be the best one for me. I have tried Verizon, T-mobile and Cingular. Cingular also sux cuz they still make you pay for (real world) text messaging.

Local Haunted Houses

Joy, Lisa, Bernie, Sara and I went to the Nightmare Haunted House. There was another house next to it also. The cost for entry for 1 house is $15 or $24 for both. The line was short and we went right in. The costumes and various themed areas were well done. It was a warehouse-mazelike setup. The best part was when Joy pissed her pants.

I also went to The Manor with Aimee. It too had another haunted house next to it - CREEPERS. These were in theatres. Very nice and surreal as well, but I think that Nightmare Haunted House was the best freakin for the bucks. FYI - the line was almost 2 hours long on Halloween night!

http://atlanta.about.com/cs/artsentertainment/a/halloween.htm

Local GA Auto Auctions

Call auction before you go and get details like - How many cars are for sale that day?
http://www.giada.org/auction_directory.htm?bhcp=1
http://www.verastar.com/WebSite/VehicleList.aspx?source=auctionsites&poolid=GA01&ploc=Atlanta%20South&vehicletype=&vehicletypelist=
http://www.auctionaccess.com/customers/auctionlist.asp
http://www.niada.com/Auto_%20Auction/states/georgia.htm
http://www.atlantaautoauction.com
http://www.autonewsdirectory.com/Southeast_03b6d0d5/page_2.html
http://home.earthlink.net/~budan/autos/georgia.htm
Oakwood Auto Auction - 770-532-4624 - 4712 Flat Creek Road Oakwood GA 30566 - Thursday 6pm Public & Dealer Sale
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=from%3A+190+bluegrass+valley+parkway+alpharetta+ga+30005+to%3A+4712+Flat+Creek+Rd,+Oakwood,+GA+30566&f=d&hl=en
Ga. Carolina Auto Auction - 884 E Ridgeway Road, Commerce GA 30529 - Friday 6pm Dealer & Public Sale
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=from%3A+190+bluegrass+valley+parkway+alpharetta+ga+30005+to%3A+500+E+Ridgeway+Rd,+Commerce,+GA+(Atlanta+International+Dragway)&f=d&hl=en
Gwinnett Place Auto Auction - 770-623-0577 - 300 Buford Hwy. Sugar Hill GA 30518 - Last SAT each month 1pm Public & Dealer Sale
BISHOP BROTHERS AUTO AUCTION - 404-767-3652 - 2244 Metropolitan Parkway, Atlanta, GA 30315 - Thursday 7pm Public Sale
http://www.bishopbrothersautoauction.com
Auction Express - 770-887-5959 - 1171 Atlanta Hwy, Cumming, GA 30040 - TUES & SAT 7pm Public & Dealer Sale
Days Auto Auction Inc - 770-974-3838 - 3611 N. Cobb Pkwy, Acworth GA 30101 - Thursday 7pm Public & Dealer Sale
ATLANTA AUTO AUCTION - 4900 Buffington Road, Red Oak, GA 30272
GEORGIA DEALERS AUTO AUCTION - 7205 Campbellton Road, Atlanta, GA 30331
http://www.governmentauctions.org/?ref=google&camp=8&keyw=repossessed_cars_for_sale_
http://www.your-everything-automotive-site.info/default.html