What’s Gotta Go

I am trying to decided whether this post should be in WGS or here.  Well….all things considered, WGG felt the more appropriate place for this rant.  Now on with my Merry Christmas Rant!!!!

My hubby and I don’t buy gifts anymore. We don’t do it for Christmas, Birthday’s, Anniversaries, or even Valentines Day.  We have decided as a couple that we won’t tourcher ourselves with these decisions throughout the year.   We have decided to let our kids pick out the gifts we give to each other.  They are more creative than we have ever attempted to be…like when the kids swing off their closet door and end up in a heap with said doors on top of them we look at each other and say “Happy Anniversary”. When we are picking out the new dryer that isn’t covered (inside and out) with red crayon we look at each other and say “Happy Birthday”, when we pick out the dinning room set that miraculously doesn’t have white paint all over the chairs and legs we say “Merry Christmas.” Yep DH and I don’t “Do” gifts, nah, we let the kids pick out our gifts!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Honestly, I am no Britney Spears fan, but geez, we all gotta give her a break.  This lady is not the sharpest tool the shed, and it is readily apparent that her parenting skills are lacking, that is no question.  Driving abilities?  Let’s just say I am happy to not be sharing the road with her down in Southern Cal.  All I am saying is that with the scrutiny she is under, I am sure most of us would fail the test.

Today it is front page “headline” news that she ran a red light while driving in Hollywood.  Sheesh.  Ok, that is bad driving, but come on, who out there hasn’t accidentally done this at last once in their life.  Yes, it is terrible that her kids were in the car and that she might have caused an injury ridden accident, but isn’t that true of when anyone runs a red light or stop sign?

I went and looked at the video, and yes, she did in fact consciously push through that light.  Did you happen to notice photogs gathered around her car in the middle of traffic with flashes constantly firing?  Literally in front of her car and right in the traffic.  In the very same tape you can hear her honking at these pap’s to get out of the way.  I would venture to say that all that activity was a bit distracting for safe driving habits, perhaps?  Seems a bit hypocritical to be pointing the finger of scorn so vehemently when such actions are considered just part of the job for those that are pushing this very report.

Again, I am no fan of the lady, definitely no Chris Cocker with a tearful rant about leaving her alone.  Really I just get more exasperated over lame news being featured on a global news network.

Over a year ago I jokingly noted that I had apparently “arrived” with my blog because spammers had found me and began regularly trying to post comments to the site.  I am proud to say that to date no comment spam has successfully made it to public viewing, but unfortunately that has taken a little effort along the way.

First, staying ahead of the abuse curve requires always installing the latest version of the Wordpress software I am using for this blog.  This may not seem like a big deal, but because I have customized things a bit to my liking, updating to the latest version of things often requires me to enter again my customizations.  On more than one occasion I have broken things with the upgrade and had to take the time to research and fix the errors.

Second, though Wordpress includes a rather effective plugin called Askimet that autodetects comment spam, the spam is placed in a queue that can be reviewed for false positives.  Though there are very few misses, I feel obligated to wade through this large queue regularly to make sure no valid comments are missed; another big waste of time due to some lazy spammers ‘bots keeping my in their attack list.

I recently tried to install a hidden programming trick that didn’t work, much to my chagrin.  I have been hesitant to use other methods because they require you as users to read a funny image and type in the text (CAPTCHA), but now that appears to be my best solution.  So, at this point I am testing out a CAPTCHA installation on the comments to see if that will cut down the hundreds of comment spam entries per day wasting the resources of my server and me personally.  I apologize for the extra step on your part, but hopefully you can bear with me.

You do have the option of skipping the CAPTCHA if you are a regular poster and would like to register as a user on this site.  Registered users are not required to do this step.

Spam is definitely something  that’s gotta go, but the reality is we can only hope to stay one step ahead.

Tags: anti-spam, captcha

Generally speaking I have my own vehicle to drive to work.  I feel fortunate to have this, but of course I am very used to it as well.  I drive the truck, my wife drives the van.  It is not something chauvinistic or anything, it just works out because my wife does most of the “bus duties” with the kids throughout the day.  Periodically she needs the truck though so I end up driving the van.

So why does this bother me you ask?  Ok, maybe you didn’t ask, but I am going to tell you anyway.  It is not a guy thing over driving a van.  I am comfortable in my manliness which is not harmed by being seen driving the family mobile.  Heck, I drove a Miata for a number of years, so obviously I can take the heat for not driving a “guy” car.  Actually, the Grand Caravan we have is comfortable to drive and has a little pep in it’s V6.

No, what bothers me is the sounds, smells and general disarray our kids create in the vehicle.

Sounds

Yes, the sounds.  I am not sure what all the kids do to cause this, but the van ends up having more squeeks and rattles than my brain can handle.  It is kind of a funny thing because I do not have the best hearing in the world, but I take acute notice to any sounds that are not normal for the car to be making.  This “ability” if we can call it that has been good to me over the years, often helping me catch car problems before they get to be something too serious.  In the family van, my “something is wrong” sensors are in overload with all the sounds.

Today I was driving along, playing the music a bit loud as I am often found doing when driving alone in a vehicle; I do enjoy my music.  I start hearing a buzz from one of the rear speakers that my problem radar tells me is a busted cone in the speaker.  I have been there before, so I have a pretty good idea what one sounds like.  After parking I check it out.  Busted speaker?  No, candy wrapper shoved between the slots of the speaker grill, rattling only with just the right amount of volume and bass.  Yes, only something you get with idle kids riding in the back of a family mobile.

Smells

I am not sure if I need to expound on this one much.  Kids spill things, leave things on the seat and for some reason pill up the food products between any nook and cranny that happens to be within reach.  That food, left in the hot car for any number of days weeks produces the not so pleasant odors that combine for an even less than pleasant smell to the car.  My wife and I do our best to keep this cleaned out and teach our kids to be a bit more careful in the car, but we fight a losing battle.  So, we have the “kids car” smell.  At least it isn’t complimented by the I-forgot-a-dirty-diaper-in-the-back smell as we have never done that before.

General Disarray

Disarray is putting it nicely of course; kids just make a mess.  They leave everything where they drop it, figuring they have slaves (read that parents) to take care of it for them.  I am not the king of clean these days, but I do like a clean vehicle.

Perhaps what gets me more that when I drive the van for a time, that means the kids end up riding in the truck.  Kids in the truck means the truck is now the family mobile, so all the same things happening to my precious domain.  Ah well, time to clean it again anyway.

One of the many lesser known joys of parenthood.

Tags: cars, kids, leaving a mess

I admit this is a trivial topic today, but isn’t that the theme of this site?  :)  This is one of those little things that bug me whenever I experience it, and this morning was one of those times.  So first thing that comes to mind is to come on over and share.

I like a clean windshield in my vehicle.  Clear sight is a big part of safe driving, but I really like a clean window.  Nothing in my line of sight, no smudges or previously squashed bugs last very long with me.   Call it a fault if you must, but I just like my windshield to be free of any distracting blemishes.

With that in mind, I am one that cleans my windshield at the gas station every time I fill up.  Those courtesy squeegees that have become a staple to most gas stations have become a critical part in my choice of where I fill my tank.  I am selective of my stations because I really hate when a station doesn’t keep a fresh, high performing squeegee at every station.

If you have ever decided to clean your windshield with one of these squeegees only to have it leave more streaks with every swipe than it cleans off then you know exactly what I am talking about.

Though it may be a freebie, if I repeatedly deal with a cracked or warped squeegee that doesn’t do it’s job, I will end up finding a different gas station to fill up.  Right along that, if the station doesn’t keep the cleaning solution full and clean along with the paper towels stocked, I’ll end up somewhere else.  Of course price per gallon is my first reason to choose a station, but that squeegee station leaves an impact.

Yes, this may seem petty to some, but for me it is a part of the fill station experience.  It’s those little things in life that help it go smoothly or leave me grumbling about not going back until they get their services right.  I am sure there is a little life lesson in there somewhere you could draw out, but I’ll just rant a little and let you apply the warm fuzzy part yourself :)

Tags: clean windshield, gas station, service

Please note that I am trying out a new comment security to block spam.  If you have difficulty submitting a comment, please send me an email (wgg at whatsgottago dot com) so I can try and fix it.  I have jumped up to several hundred spam comment posts a day and would like to figure out a way to get rid of all these.  Not only is it a waste of bandwidth and resources, but also my time as I try to quickly sort through them to find any “false positives” of people actually posting comments.

If you would like to make sure it is working for you, feel free to leave a comment on this post.  Thanks.

Growing up we spend most of our time complaining that people don’t take us seriously enough.  I know most teenagers think they know it all and no one realizes it or respects them for it.  As an adult, most of us get over this though plenty of others do not.

Most adults I deal with on a day-to-day basis understand and even have a sense of humor.  I know this may not seem like a novel concept, but it is harder to come by than I would have thought.  Some people just take things too seriously, and jump at the chance to take offense at even the smallest thing they can find.

I see this a lot in online discussions.  Forums, comments on articles, and especially sites like Digg and Slashdot where commenting is a major portion of the community on which they are built tend to drive me crazy.  I used to read through comments purely for entertainment, but the common types that appear bug me too much that I have given up reading anything other than the source article unless I am really intrigued by what others might have to say on the subject.

I have discussed before how the anonymity the ‘net gives people tends to bring out the worst in so many.  So many people lose all practical inhibitions, meaning the good ones, when it comes to social grace or simple respect for fellow human beings.  They will jump on even the smallest error in a post as an opportunity to belittle the individual and invalidate any point that the individual might have been trying to make.

Here are a few of the common “types” I have observed when perusing such comment threads:

•  Those with a valid point to add to the discussion – a small minority
• The spell checkers – those that flame any user that happens to let a typo through before submitting their comment
• The grammer checkers – just like the spell checkers, but these believe they are the only ones with a mastery of the English language and consider it a shame that apparently no one else does.
• The oppositional ones – they will take the opposite point of view on every discussion
• The rule enforcers – those that report anyone they don’t like to the moderator for apparent rules violations.
• The butt kissers – those that will gush with appreciation and compliments for the site administrators and moderators whenever an official announcement is posted.
• The loyalists – the ones that want to be recognized for their long standing loyalty and obvious prowess because they “have been there since the beginning”
• The experts (aka know-it-alls) – whenever long debate ensues, these users jump in with the “official speak” and a list of references backing their position.  Sometimes these types are right, other times they are just annoying.
• The agree-ers – these just cannot see a thread and not participate.  They will post “me too” or “yes” on every thread.
• The I-can’t-search-for-myself types – will ask the same question that has been covered a hundred times before rather than search out the answer from the previous posts.
• The propagandist – No matter what the topic, George Bush is at fault (or other conservative/liberal depending on your preference).  Even if they think they are being funny, they will constantly throw in degrading comments showing their obvious slant.
• The spammer – the idiot that acts like they care with some half-baked post and a huge signature line with all their products/sites they are advertising.

There are oh so many more “types” out there, but that is a good start.  Any other types you would like to add to the list?

Tags: comments, forums, stereotypes

I love it. This family takes a little justice in their own hands in a way that no one can fault them. Sure you may argue the gun aspect of the story, though I am personally in favor of our right for some personal protection, but you cannot fault the choice to not harm the criminal. Perhaps seeking a little immediate retribution, or simply because they wanted their house cleaned back up, the couple put the man to work.

“My husband Adrian caught the thief red-handed in our home,” she said. “And what is even crazier, the man even had my husband’s hat sitting right on his head.”

Adrian McKinnon held the suspect, 33-year-old Tajuan Bullock, at gunpoint and told him to sit on the floor until he decided what to do.

“We made this man clean up all the mess he made, piles of stuff, he had thrown out of my drawers and cabinets onto the floor,” Tiffany McKinnon said.

When police arrived, Bullock complained about being forced to clean the home at gunpoint.

“This man had the nerve to raise sand about us making him clean up the mess he made in my house,” she said. “The police officer laughed at him when he complained and said anybody else would have shot him dead.”

It’s always satisfying to read a story of a criminal caught; even more gratifying to read that the criminal was forced to undergo some humility training along the way.

Original Story:  http://www.whatsgottago.com/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=245

Tags: stupid criminal

If you are reading this article there are a few simple assumptions I can make.  First, you are online therefore you have an internet connection and a computer.  Second, you like were involved at some point in the purchase of the computer or have purchased some extra gadget for the computer some time in the past.  Third, because you have purchased something to do with a computer you likely have set foot in a computer store of some kind, at some point.

With that unnecessary background, on with my rant.

I hate computer stores.  Ok, maybe hate is a strong word, but I dislike dealing with the sales staff at most computer stores (or electronics stores with computer departments) such as CompUSA, Circuit City, Best Buy, etc.  The problem is I can never get a knowledgeable answer from the staff when I need it.  Fact is I know more than they do.

I know that may sound pompous and arrogant, but frankly your dog may know more about the products being sold there than the staff does.

Being in a technical field, I try to keep myself fairly well read on current technology.  I dare say I read more about technology than I do about current events.  I actually consider that a fault when I write that, but facts are facts.  When I am considering purchasing something, I take researching to the extreme.  I read online, I ask around and I talk to people about my conclusions and ask them to weigh in.  I am fairly sure that I annoy the heck out of people in this process, but in the end I rarely end up with buyers remorse after my purchase after such long deliberations.

With that in mind, when I end up in a store I usually have a decent idea of what I want.  My time in the store often amounts in racing to the point where I know the product is, grabbing it and making my way through checkout.  Sure, I may check out what else is on an unadvertised special, but when that staff member comes wandering my way I usually quickly make my evasive moves and get out of there.

The staff does scare me, really; I just hate being engaged in idle chit chat by someone that is really just trying to talk you into a warranty upgrade on whatever you end up buying.

In the occasions I have had to drop in for a purchase where I am not prepared with details and a specific model in mind, I am typically disappointed with the results.  Recently we purchased a color laser printer for work at CompUSA.  I had done enough quick research to see their pricing was competitive enough compared to online options that we headed in to see what might fit our needs.  While browsing through the options with a business sales rep (supposedly more knowledgeable and specialized for businesses) in tow, we requested to see samples from the three printers we were considering.  For the one with the “demo” kit attached he had no problem.  The second printer he struggled with, and the third he just had no idea.  Not that I am a printer expert, but most have a menu system or key combination you can push to get your demo.  Relieving him of his dilemma, I figured out getting the samples with a few simple attempts.

This is but a small example of course for many situations where I have instructed the sales staff on the finer points of products vs them informing me of things I don’t know.  No don’t get this picture of me acting like a Cliff Claven and spouting off all my knowledge and generally making a fool of myself.  But, when a staff tries to read off the box on the sly the features and act like they already knew it, I just can’t help but know they really are not capable of helping me.  I can read the box on my own, thank you very much.

The other day, before purchasing my new Canon 40D upgrade to my 20D, I happened to be at Circuit City for a purchased and made my way through the camera department.  I was ogling the 5D they had on display when I managed to get accosted by the guy assigned to that department.  He had a 30D around his neck and a big goofy smile on his face.  After the pleasantries he dove right in trying to expound on his vast knowledge of photography and revel me with his enthusiasm.

Now I love talking to fellow photogs and learning from their experiences and skills, but this guy just didn’t have it.  What he lacked in actual knowledge he tried to cover with eagerness, and it only managed to come across at pushy and annoying.  Without trying to one up him with my experiences I simply let him know I was planning on purchasing a different camera, was simply browsing and moved on.

In the end, I typically purchase most of my gadgetry online both for the typical cost savings and to not deal with under trained, poorly paid sales staff.  At least online I can read specifications and reviews without interruption and without pressure to pick up that worthless three year warranty.

Tags: annoying, purchasing, sales, stores

When the whole ‘net boom was growing, everyone thought we would be a paperless society in only a matter of years.  The idea sounded feasible as numerous services went online offering secure options for managing accounts and delivering information.  Years later we are using more paper than every along with our massive consumption of information online.

So what happened?  Why are we not sticking to electronic options exclusively instead of printing out physical copies of everything.  I don’t fully know the answer, but I do know that most companies still rely on a physical storage of information.

Perhaps it is the fact that hard drives fail, a painful experience most of us have had at one point or another.  Digital data can be lost.  Secure online accounts sound great until there is another big hacking breach publicized in the news.  Email delivery of monthly statements is not always something you can rely on to avoid late payments on a credit card or loan payment.  There are a number of insecurities we all harbor, and our protection is to stick to the old fashioned postal delivery of our reminders.  The reality, granted in my opinion, is that we feed our lack of personal organization by sticking to getting things delivered by mail.

Nearly every financial institution offers options to go paperless with your statements and regular communication; some even offer incentives for you to do it because of the cost savings it provides them.  If email delivery is an issue, consider changing your email to a good free service such as Gmail.  Google can offer a high reception success on your email along with super spam filtering due to sheer number of subscribers they monitor for problems.  Plus, with Gmail you get nearly 3GB of storage that is automatically backed up for you.  You are not going to lose those important emails with a solid service.

Concerned that you may not remember to pay those bills without a physical reminder?  First off, consider checking your email at least once a day if you don’t already.  It’s a good thing to stay in communication with people, plus with the regular habit you can insure you will see important missives quickly.

Second, consider paying bills right when they come in.  I know, we all like to squeeze out every day of interest we can by holding our money into our account until the last possible moment.  Come on, I have thought like that too, but the reality here is that we are just procrastinators that like to cover ourselves with believing we are sound financial thinkers.  If you pay bills right off, you never have to remember the due date with a growing anxiety of missing it.  If your finances are tight this may be a difficult transition to make; but, once done, it is no different than your normal routine, just moved up in the month.

Finally, if you are really bad about remembering things – as I am – use electronic reminders.  If you use a mobile phone use the built in task list or calendar option to put in date/time reminders to do important tasks.  If you are not that electronically savvy, carry a small date book and get good and looking at it regularly to see what important things need to get done on any given day.

Really going paperless is not a matter of security, privacy or availability.  Going paperless is a matter of breaking our current habits and establishing new, better ones.

Tags: blog action day, environment, Habits