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Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Ahh, Eminent Domain Rears its Ugly Head Again

Is this the wrong way to engage in civil protest? Sure, it is radical and, from far away, a bit comedic. However, the fact that this action helps bring the issue further into the spotlight, not allowing it to fade away, is positive. People living in areas bordering commercial properties, in particular, should work to ensure that state legislatures try to do the right thing for everyone.

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Coffee of the Week...

...for my coffee press at work is Ethiopian Harrar, courtesy (well, not really since I bought it) of River City Coffee and Tea. I made the first pot just after lunch; it was pretty good, definitely the dry-processed variety--pretty dry grounds, very earthy, some chocolate overtones, but not as much as I expected. I think I will chalk that up to the water not being quite hot enough, but I am afraid that the roast is just not dark enough to bring out the best in the coffee. We shall see.

Monday, January 16, 2006

The Quest for Democracy

In tiny Arab state, Web takes on ruling elite | CNET News.com. It is refreshing to see some of the citizens of Bahrain have a go at creating a democratic movement, even in the face of a certain government's hypocrisy.

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

The RIAA Makes Me Laugh

I was never a Grokster user, but the RIAA's feeble attempt at trying to threaten Grokster users makes me laugh and laugh and laugh some more.

So Wrong It Hurts

Computer Monitor Jacob's Ladder. Good luck with this if you try it.

Monday, January 02, 2006

Wikipedia

Joho has an excellent entry in the discussion regarding how Wikipedia has become the universal dartboard for traditional media in the us vs. them, finger-pointing campaign that some in the traditional media have embarked on lately. It really is sickening; from the reaction to Wikipedia's public statement about self-monitoring and self-correcting and the recent changes it has made to its creation policy, one would think these journalists work for good editors whose publications are monitored by truly honorable ombudsmen. But who are we kidding?

Sunday, January 01, 2006

Finally!

I freaking managed to dismantle the thick code that Blogger and Halo Scan conspired to create for my blog and now have everything working. Who cares that the Permalink link is permanently embedded on the page, even the permalinked page itself? Not I, though I could probably obsess about it like I did the Halo Scan commenting not appearing on my Permalinked pages. ARRRGGGGGGGH! I had forgotten how painful it can be to scour through web code. I thank my lucky stars every day that I am not a programmer/architect. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I Love My Coffee...

...but seriously, some people go a bit too far to enjoy a connoisseur's experience. This is just wrong.

Now for some other coffee stuff. Thanks to my wife Ashley for getting me an iPod for Christmas, I have now officially become a podcast addict (I'll have to post on that later), but one of the podcast discoveries I have made is coffeegeek.com's podcast. Mark Prince knows his stuff and is pretty humorous and sarcastic at the same time, even if he is a coffee snob. I am just getting into the accompanying website, so I will let you know, faithful readers, if the snobbery is too much to stand. Right now I am happy with my pre-ground (gasp) Starbucks and my French Press.

Also, another site I will be checking out is coffeereview.com, a self-described "Wine Spectator for coffee lovers". The site is written and edited by Kenneth Davids, one of the pioneers of the specialty coffee industry in North America (I learned that from listening to episode 11 of the Coffee Geek podcast, which contains the first in a three-part series of interviews with Mr. Davids). He is a big proponent of home roasting, which does not really interest me, but the site is really devoted to reviewing different coffees that are commercially available in North America, which does interest me.

Hmm, time to make some coffee!