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Why watch the Super Bowl?

Okay, I suppose my question presupposes you do in fact watch it. If you do, why? Is it the gladiatorial spectacle of manly men in spandex patting each others butts between attempts to move a bit of leather up a field? Is it hopes for a wardrobe malfunction during the halftime show?

Or is it the commercials advertisers shell out big bucks to air during this oh so pricey time slot? Me, I'm not a big "sit on the couch and watch sports on TV" kinda guy, but I do get a kick out of some of the ads. Here's one from 2004 that blends my interest in medieval history with soccer. ;)

So... what are your plans for Sunday? And if they include the Super Bowl... why do you watch?

Doctor Who Versus Yo Gaba Gaba

Okay, not actually Doctor Who, but David Tennant, the 10th and most recent actor to play the Time Lord, is going to read five children's stories to pre-school age kids for the CBeeBies Channel. Not a channel we get here in America, sadly.

I've spent a fair bit of time lately watching NickJr on cable TV with my young daughter. Unfortunately I expect it may be quite a while before Mr. Tennant spares me yet another episode of Yo Gaba Gaba, and graces American TV with his equally ecclectic, high energy presence; well American children's TV at least.

The actor will be seen for the last time on BBC as Doctor Who in a two-part story over the holidays. And then I understand Tennant is set to make his US television debut in the lead role in the NBC comedy drama "Rex Is Not Your Lawyer".

No mention of whether Rex owns a sonic screwdriver or takes a TARDIS to work.

A Thank You on Veterans Day

Regardless of one's personal feelings about the necessity of today's or any other wars, let's all take a moment this Veterans Day to remember the sacrifices made by generations of our men and women. My wife wrote the following in her blog today, and I could not have said it better. (I just added the family photos)

My Late Grandfather (in helmet)
Shannon wrote: "Thank you to all the men & women who have served our country in the past, and those that are doing it on this very day. The incredible courage and bravery you show by going to work each day, to protect the rights and freedoms of the rest of us - is awe inspiring."

My Late Father
"Please know that your sacrifices for our country are not unnoticed. And though we do not always thank you as often as we should, know that you are in our hearts and minds not just today. And to the families of these courageous men and women - thank you for all the sacrifices you make as well. You are unsung heroes."


May God protect and bless you all on this Veterans Day, and always.

Looking for a place to get a flu shot?

A new Google tool...

Have you decided you want to get a flu shot (either regular or H1N1), but don't know where to go? The CDC has set up a site intended to help, though it's not as easy to navigate as one might hope. That site is here: flu.gov/individualfamily/vaccination/locator.html. Here's an alternative:

Another brand new tool has been made available by Google. Yes, I know Google is taking over the world, but that's a topic for another blog. Right now if you've decided to get a shot (that too is a topic for another blog) here's a way to easily find a location, should they ever get any supply:

Google has created a flu shot locater map that makes it easy (when supply becomes available) to find a location in your area. It shows locations offering both H1N1 and regular flu shots. It's quite simple to use, and indicates both locations and if they have any in stock. The URL is google.com/flushot.

According to the company, users can now visit Google's new flu shot Google Maps page to find out if there is any vaccine available in their area. It partnered with "the U.S. Department for Health and Human Services, their Flu.gov collaborators, and the American Lung Association on the flu shot finder," the company wrote in a blog post.

Google says they are currently working with the Centers for Disease Control, state and local health agencies, and other organization to add more vaccination locations to its maps. So far, it has received "data for locations of flu vaccine directly from 20 states and counting." Texas does not appear to be one of them.

To expand its coverage, Google is also working with chain pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS to add more vaccination-availability information for all 50 states. And here in Texas those two pharmacies are the only sites currently shown on the Dallas map above.

Do you plan to get either flu shot? Regardless, here's wishing you a safe and healthy flu season.

Texting & Driving - What's the Big Deal?

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NOTE: At least one person thought I was being serious below. To be clear, this was written with my tongue firmly lodged in my cheek. NOBODY should text while driving. I strongly recommend headsets for talking, as well. Okay... now enjoy my clearly ineffective attempt at the use of irony & sarcasm:

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Okay, the traffic light is red... gotta type fast. Texting while driving has been in the news quite a bit lately. Honestly I don't see what the big deal is. Sure 93% of Americans in a recent poll are against it, but I bet they polled only really old people... you know, like more than 25 years old. Old people just don't have the multi-tasking skills of today's youth. Oops, the light changed... [STOP HONKING... I'M BLOGGING HERE]... I'll be back in a minute.

Where was I? Oh, yeah. Kids these days grew up texting with one hand, killing bad guys (or good guys, depending on the game) on their X-Boxes with the other, and typing on the computer with their toes. It's just us old folks who can't focus on multiple things at once. Sure we've been driving longer, but they've practiced jacking and racing cars on video games since they were three. So it's old folks with Blackberries at whom these laws should be aimed.

Next thing you know they will make it illegal for school bus drivers to text while driving. And then what? They are adding internet access to planes; are we going to ban pilots from updating their Facebook pages while flying? This is America! What's the country coming to, restricting our basic human rights like this! So what if texting dramatically increases the odds of an accident. It probably won't be your family in the car they hit, right? Txt if ur with me!

Oops, the light's green. Gotta go.... that idiot is honking at me again.

I'm Not in My Right Mind

When you look at image above, what do you see? A girl spinning? Which way is she spinning... clockwise or counter-clockwise?

Supposedly if you see her spinning clockwise it means you are right brained, and if you see her spinning counter-clockwise you are left brained. And if you see both, I suppose it means you are schizophrenic? Here are the purported characteristics of people with dominate right or left brain hemispheres:

Left Brained: Counter-Clockwise = "Rational"

• Responds to verbal instructions
• Problem solves by logically and sequentially looking at the parts of things
• Looks at differences
• Is planned and structured
• Prefers established, certain information
• Prefers talking and writing
• Prefers multiple choice tests
• Controls feelings
• Prefers ranked authority structures

Right Brained: Clockwise = "Intuitive"

• Responds to demonstrated instructions
• Problem solves with hunches, looking for patterns and configurations
• Looks at similarities
• Is fluid and spontaneous
• Prefers elusive, uncertain information
• Prefers drawing and manipulating objects
• Prefers open ended questions
• Free with feelings
• Prefers collegial authority structures

So, what do you see? Does the direction you see her spin and the corresponding description above describe you? Post your comments below. And if you ask real nice, maybe I'll tell you how to see her spin the other way. Oh, and if your wondering what the direction really means, I'll be happy to tell you that, too... later.

But first... what do you see?

Okay, here's my opinion on all the above
(added Friday, September 25, 2009)

A few thoughts on the graphic. First of all, it really isn't rotating at all. It's a 2-dimensional set of still images, that when viewed in sequence (as an animated GIF) are translated by our brain as 3-dimensional movement. And it could be viewed by ones brain as rotating in either direction.

In fact, one person said they saw it rotate half-way one direction, stop and rotate back the other direction and repeat each time. I'm a bit concerned about what that says about that person's brain, but it's an entirely possible and valid way of seeing the image.

As Shannon said below in the comments, it is (or at least may be) possible for most of you to control which direction the image turns. The best way to do this is to focus on the lower foot only. Imagine it going the other direction, and you will likely see it do so.

Once that's happened, the entire image should rotate the other direction, of course. If you have trouble seeing this, put your hand over all but the lower foot and focus just on it. Then once you see it change direction move your hand. See it now?

As for whether this says you are left or right brained... I doubt it. In fact, the generalizations of characteristics for those with brain hemisphere dominance on one side or the other is... well... a generalization. We all, unless brain damaged, rely on cooperation between both halves.

So... can you do it? Can you change directions? Post a comment and let us know.

The French Kiss is Dead

I'm not talking about that type of French kiss, though I suspect it may be impacted as well. No, I'm referring to the effect the virus formerly known as Swine Flu is having on the French custom of "la bise". You know, the way the French greet their friends, family and coworkers. La bise starts by bringing one cheek close to the others cheek and simulating a kiss on the cheek. After the first kiss on the cheek, the maneuver is repeated at least once on the opposite cheek.

Anyway, Swine Flu has a new casualty: "la bise". Not only do the French need to remember to cough into their elbows, but now they need to skip "la bise". The bise ban was first implemented in the town of Guilvenec in Brittany where the mayor told teachers and students not to kiss anymore. "I felt the protections sought to wash hands regularly, not throw used handkerchiefs around, and not cough any old way had no meaning if we let the kids keep kissing," the mayor said.

To help the populace cope with this deep cultural change, they are being encouraged (for health purposes only) to smoke more cigarettes and drink more wine. Okay, I made that last bit up. So, should we ban kissing in our schools?

How to Create a Good Password

My work email system has been bugging me for a few days that my password is about to expire. I hate changing my password, but do realize in today's world it has become quite critical to come up with secure passwords and change them often. But how do you create a good password?

Without giving anything specific away, do you have a method you recommend? I used to think I was clever. Here's what I DON'T do any more: make passwords from common words or names and simply swap out some letters with characters that look similar, like "sh@nn0n".

So a while ago I did some research on ways to come up with a better password. I'm certainly no expert, and would love you to share any good ways you've heard of creating and remembering a good one. Since I have to change my password today, I thought I'd share my process.

What I do now is come up with a sentence that I can remember, for example: "Three blind mice see how they run." This I turn into "3Bm$#tr." Okay, it's certainly not the best password, but it's much better than most I used in the past. Of course, don't use a common quote.

Make up your own sentence. Something you can remember, e.g. "My baby girl Sally is one year old" becomes "MbgSi1y0". Have a favorite book? Use the third sentence in the third paragraph in the third chapter to create your password. Just be sure you can remember or look it up easily.

Once you've picked it, make one or two letters upper case. Then change one or two letters to be numbers. And insert one or two non-alphabetic characters, e.g. .(period), !, *, %, &, or #. A few sites restrict use of non-alpha characters, but if they allow it, they increases security greatly.

A few other suggestions:

The longer the password the better; with at least eight characters a minimum. Do not tell anyone, do not write it down, do not save it in a file, etc. Even if someone can guess the words, it will still be hard to guess your password. Putting it on a sticky note on the front of your computer, though, is a very bad idea.

Clearly, don't construct a password from your name, family names, addresses, phone numbers and such. Also don't use words one would find in the dictionary, as some password cracking software starts there. Oh, and writing words backwards doesn't help. If you can think of it so can they.

And don't use the same password for different sites. If you do and one site is compromised they all are. I know it's a pain, but they all need to be different. At least if you must use only one, make it a good one, and add a site specific letter, e.g. insert an extra "f" for Facebook or "y" for Yahoo.

If a website uses password recovery questions, if possible create your own. Don't use things like your mother's maiden name or what city you were born in, etc. Too easy for people to find! And use different questions on different sites, so if one is compromised, they all aren't.

Okay... enough stalling. I need to go create a new password for my email. Do you have any recommendations on a good method?

Are You a Hat Person?

Have you ever noticed how some people look great in hats, and on others they simply look silly? I'm not really sure if I'm a hat person or not, as I've never much had the desire to cover up my lovely head of hair with a hat. Oh, did that sound vain? Sorry, but knowing and accepting the good and bad about oneself is healthy. Can I help it if I've been blessed with so much good stuff to accept?

As usual, I digress. The point of this blog is not to discuss my glorious mane of flowing blond hair, nor the fact that J.K. Rowling based Professor Gilderoy Lockhart's hair upon mine. No, the point of this blog is to gratuitously post photos of my baby girl wearing hats. For she, as one can clearly see, is a hat person! So without further ado or unnecessary elaboration let the oohs and ahhs begin:

So... Molly can definitely work a hat. Am I right? These photos are all pretty old, as it's not been hat season lately, of course. Though, you best prepare yourself for the onslaught of new Molly-in-hat photos as the weather starts to cool. ;) So, how about you... are you a hat person?