begin rant

ow

2008-05-11T18:35:31Z

Nothing stitches a brain back together like two cups of coffee.

you know what irony is?

2008-05-06T18:53:01Z

Irony is being bitten by mosquitoes while working in a wooden shed that has been riddled by termites... a storage shed that is completely full of pesticides.

also on the web this month

2008-05-05T17:07:31Z

A little less than a month later, and the article is finally published. They really should have retouched the image they used to give it better color depth and contrast.

It is additionally amusing to note their awareness and acknowledgement of Florida as one of the invasive species capitals of the world. It is a state with many ports which see considerable traffic from the world over. This is where the invasion begins - but not with a bang, or a whimper. Just the steady whine of airplane engines or the gradual heave of an unending supply of container ships. When combined with Florida's steady warm and humid sub-tropical atmosphere, it provides a near-ideal home and inevitable point of establishment for some of the many and diverse things which normally crawl or fly through other more alien skies.

making the best of your situation

2008-04-25T15:15:37Z

"The more people I meet, the happier I become. From the meanest creature one departs wiser, richer, more conscious of one's blessings. Even you will have added to my store."
- Pozzo, Waiting for Godot

time

2008-04-24T03:11:34Z

There aren't nearly enough hours in the day to get the things I would like to get done accomplished. Perhaps another reminder to be learned from graduate school: nearly everything takes far longer than you expected. The same could be said for many of the important events of life; if you don't budget for accidents or interruptions, you'll never arrive on time. Of course, it never seems to matter when I plan anything. Reality is resistant to this. On the other hand, having occasionally tried to fly by the seat of my pants, I find that having some form of plan is better than no plan at all. At least then you have something to complain about when everything falls apart.

publication?

2008-04-10T14:54:38Z

Greenhouse Canada has requested permission to use your image. This photo will accompany a May feature by Graeme Murphy, IPM specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

Well, while I am not certain that this constitutes a traditional scientific publication that will go on my CV or resume, I do have to admit that I am thrilled to hear that someone is making use of the photo. I took them so that someone might make use them. Kudos to the University of Georgia and their Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health for hosting and sharing the images, and kudos to the Creative Commons licensing that helps to make such sharing possible.

All of this just makes me want to take more and better photos.

speaking of science fiction...

2008-03-25T23:16:14Z

If you spend a lot of time at your job performing endlessly monotonous and dull things, like counting the number of flowers produced by a plant (or the population of thrips crawling inside those same flowers), you will often find yourself turning to some sort of interesting background distraction just to keep your mind awake and focused. The music served up by my iPod has always been great, but sometimes I need something a little different. Something to make that brain time that is spent hanging while counting a little more useful, more refreshing.

As such, one of my recent favorite distractions has been Steve Eley's Escape Pod. Graduate school has not left a lot of time or energy leftover for pleasure reading, and I miss my occasional dose of speculative fiction. Mr Eley's podcast gives me a chance to escape from my humdrum surroundings for a slightly longer than half an hour, and provides the perfect accompaniment to mindless labour or car rides into the distance.

The quality varies, and is mostly dependent upon your individual preferences, but I haven't found or heard anything that I really disliked, and thus far there has been much to enjoy. The tales range in nature from fantastic WWII adventures in (meta)physics to cynical comic books, traditional tales of Area 51 skunk-works, and the alien quest for identity and meaning. Santa might even be able save Christmas from the heat-death of the Universe.

And hey, my old friend Jeremy Tolbert might even have a story or two on there to listen to.

Check it out.

a very lightsaber sequel

2008-03-23T13:58:51Z

Okay, I've mentioned these guys before. It seems that since last we spoke, both Fanboys Productions and RvD have unleashed a sequel to their earlier projects upon the web. Both sequels would have been impossible without the community of support that they have developed since releasing their products out into the wild. The creative endeavors of these guys survive entirely upon the generosity of their fans.

Six in the Morning continues to emphasize both aspects of responsibility as well as unadulterated geekery as their tale stretches on. While not entirely sophisticated drama, it is a thoughtful analysis of what it means to have power - and to be legally liable for the use of that power. It also delights in toying around with whirling and glowing sticks. RvD2 does not bother with the pretense of story. This is solely a display of fight choreography distilled to its purest. Both pictures are strong at what they do best, and while both remain far less polished, they are also inarguably better and far less disappointing than any of the last three Star Wars films.

Kudos to the independent filmmaker.

I wish them well, wherever their respective futures carry them.

eenie meanie jelly beanie

2008-03-21T13:58:58Z

While I can not be one hundred percent certain, I suspect that if I were ever to get serious about my plans for world domination, a bowl of jellybeans would be sufficient to distract me and unravel all my evil plans.

All except the popcorn-flavored ones. Those have got to go.

in his own words:

2008-03-21T01:07:23Z

Until a few minutes ago, I had only heard excerpts and soundbites from Mr. Obama's speech on race. The chattering classes had provided summaries and commentaries on the event, all of which completely failed to capture the power and intelligence behind the text of his announcement:

Whoever wrote this piece was brilliant, placing Mr. Obama's words within a compelling historical context. One way or another, I would like to believe that this man will change America - and for the better.

milestones

2008-03-20T14:49:03Z

And sometime late last night as we pulled out of the parking lot, my car finally rolled past a hundred thousand miles. It took far less than the two to three weeks that I had expected. Congratulations: we're alive, but it was still quite an experience.

What does the future hold?

Time will tell.

Time always does.

yes, I really am that bad

2008-03-17T00:54:51Z

For what little it is worth, I am much better with a sword.

getting older

2008-03-15T21:20:14Z

Some time within the next two to three weeks, my car will turn one hundred thousand. So begins the end of the journey. My "new" 2002 racing stallion was purchased towards the end of 2001, which makes it almost seven years old. That is a little less than 15000 miles per year, which is a respectable bit of driving. We have come a long way together, and I would love to see it get another hundred thousand miles going forward. I have confidence in the engineers of Toyota, and some of my friends' old models lasted well over a hundred and fifty thousand miles before finally giving up their much beloved ghosts.

We shall see.

righteous indignation

2008-03-13T14:45:28Z

compromise:

käm-prə-mīz, n. Middle English, mutual promise to abide by an arbiter's decision, from Anglo-French compromisse, from Latin compromissum, from neuter of compromissus, past participle of compromittere to promise mutually, from com- + promittere.
A settlement of differences by arbitration or by consent reached by mutual concessions.

Something intermediate between or blending qualities of two different things.
A concession to something derogatory or prejudicial; a compromise of principles.
- from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

I am going to be charitable and assume that this billboard refers to the second definition of "compromise", but I suspect that they think that they are being clever by implying that the former is essentially the latter. If this is so, then I must admit that I find an inability to see alternative viewpoints dangerous in a world otherwise free of absolutes. The unwillingness to make some concessions to an opponent changes one from an individual who holds a contrary opinion that can be discussed or debated to an implacable foe.

If you wish such an enemy, then so be it - but I'd like to think that there is always room for an exchange of views, and to find common ground between disparate worlds so that everyone might live together in tolerance, if not acceptance.

ow, ow, ow

2008-03-12T17:38:13Z

You know what hurts more than you think it would?

Imagine plucking a rosebud, and driving one of those small and needle-sharp thorns that hides just beneath the sepals into the soft and fleshy pad of your thumb, and another just beneath your nail. There is no blood, and at first there is no pain. Now imagine that you have been rinsing these roses in alcohol (you know: to get the thrips off?), and savor the sting for a little while.

Almost better than coffee when it comes to the mid-afternoon wakeup call.