Some time ago I created a website for Scott and Carol Kellermann highlighting their work among the Batwa people. The Batwa are conservation refugees, meaning they were forcibly removed from their ancestral home in the Bwindi Inpenetrable Forest to create a preserve for the mountain gorilla. Scott recently completed a very infomative video, which has been added to the site. Check it out.… Read the rest
Category: <span>Art • Design • Culture</span>
Well, it finally arrived! About a week ago, I began the rigorous process of having my old 867 MHz Titanium PowerBook certified as a bona fide Apple System and today I received the coveted brushed aluminum certification plaque. It wasn’t easy, but you could never put a price tag on the prestige that accompanies such recognition from Mr. Jobs himself. I’m a little nervous going to Macworld in San Francisco this week… I mean, what if he calls me up during the keynote address and makes a big deal out of this whole thing?… Read the rest
Levi and Suzanne had us over for lunch today. She and Rosalyn made Denise and I the most wonderful po’boy, er, I mean, disenfranchised person sandwich I’ve had in a long time. Lily and Jack joined us for this splendid repast, garnished with potato chips, Fritos© and the food of the gods (small ‘g” deities), Crunchy Cheetos©.
Levi and I kept the code chatter to a minimum, choosing instead to engage in the topics of interest entertained by the other luncheon guests. We discussed the elements of the “poorboy” or “po’boy” sandwich, which is nearly identical to the “hoagie” or “fresh italian” sandwich, until we realized that those descriptions may seem insensitive to our less fortunate brethren.… Read the rest
Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!
Well, it starts here… Thanks to Levi for explaining Mac file structure, while passing along PHP/MySQL installation and configuration secrets. To show my appreciation, I am in the process of bidding on some obscure CDs on eBay.
Kudos to GoDaddy. After reading all the horror stories in preparation for installation, I can honestly say your MySQL activation and configuration instructions were absolutely simple. I can close the 40 tabs I have open to various GoDaddy/WordPress discussions and installation nightmares. The big problem it seems is hosting on a Windows server vs Linux.… Read the rest
Back in February of this year, I began this blog in a fit of pragmatism. With youthful exuberence I set out to set the blogging world on fire about a year ago:
That brings me to this blog. It was supposed to be designed in WordPress and I intended to learn PHP/MySQL to exercise full control. But, I found that I am not prepared for that level of commitment yet. The dream of designing and implementing a beautiful, functional blog continues to live on and it will be realized, as time permits. But, I cannot bear to put off blogging and publishing a moment longer.… Read the rest
Okay, I’ve had a bunch of people ask me what I’d like to see under the Christmas tree this year… so, here’s the wishlist. This list is over at amazon.com and they have some cool stuff, but don’t feel like you have to shop there. You are welcome to locate the little treasures anywhere you like and if you’re feeling particularly generous, go ahead and upgrade the electronic items. I’m not picky either — these treasures may be pre-owned.
Update 2016: We have this Chanticleer CD now. Now, if you move down the list, you will see Chanticleer’s We Sing Christmas — another splendid choral collection.… Read the rest
Sorry kid, but you’re out of a job! Time to fire up a blog!
BREITBART.com /Nov 13 9:53 AM US/Eastern :
Dark days are ahead for American newspapers, as sales tumble, a warp-speed news culture leaves lumbering dailies behind and scandals over flawed reporting taint heavyweight titles. US papers are battling an explosion in online information, a news agenda powered by bloggers and 24-hour cable news, and they can’t seem to connect with young readers. Credibility questions hang over several papers and journalists are under more scrutiny than ever in the highly polarised US political climate. Doomsayers say changes in modern lifestyles mean the days when American homeowners open their front door every morning and haul in a thick multi-section paper may be numbered.… Read the rest
My pal Dan reminded me this week that November 12 was the 390th birthday of Richard Baxter. I can’t believe I didn’t have that marked on the calendar. I am known to refer to Baxter as “my old friend, Dick Baxter,” because I feel that I came to know him personally over the past fifteen years.
Back around 1990, a friend asked me to research and write a brief biography of Richard Baxter for his publishing company, highlighting the puritan’s abilities as a pastor and evangelist. He was looking for a book, which could be read in one or two sittings, spurring church leaders on to energetic, effective ministry in their local congregations.… Read the rest
Start your day on a lighter note with this touching rendition of a popular romantic ballad: tow chinese boys:i want it that way*
*Yes, that’s their title.… Read the rest
What an exhausting week. I actually stuck around work for a couple hours to catch up and now I’m listening to the Cowboy Junkies at a respectable volume. I’m one of those oddballs who, after a stressful day, will relax by hammering myself with some really loud music… it feels like getting tenderized.
The week started out well enough with barbecued ribs and beef brisket. Our trip to North Carolina inspired us and we had a hankerin’ for our kind of barbecue. I suppose I would classify it as Kansas City Barbecue or something along those lines. I’m not an expert… I just know I like it all.… Read the rest
I just got home and my head feels pressurized… like it’s about to explode. So, I don’t have anything too profound except that in my meanderings this morning when my head felt like it was imploding, I came across these funny jpegs. The first one was found at Nacional sos el Decano del Futbol Uruguayo, which appears to be some sort of soccer fansite. The Salisbury’s always felt a certain kinship with the Simpson’s… perhaps that was all in my head.
Next, I found this jpeg titled “We found Nemo!” at Middle Age Madness. It made me hungry… a Philadelphia Roll, perhaps?… Read the rest
We heard this one was good, but didn’t find it until the day before we had to fly out of Durham. Fortunately, our flight left at 1:15PM and Allen and Sons opened at 10AM. This family owned barbecue has all the amenities… a faded out, old Pepsi sign by the roadside with a burned out bulb. It’s located right next to the railroad tracks, which is always a good indicator of authentic Carolina barbecue.
The cinder block building is down-home and the sign needs paint. Out buildings include the rusting hulk of an old ice cream truck and mobile barbecue trailers, once used at fairs and stock car races and such; now, replaced by a fleet of white catering vans, they sit mute, tires flat, holding up boxes of napkins and stuff.… Read the rest
Sunday evening Denise and I got together with a community of Christians meeting in downtown Durham, Emmaus Way. This is a missional church, a plant of the Chapel Hill Bible Church. From what I can tell, it’s an emergent church… following that philosophy or bent. Tim Conder led us in a discussion of the dichotomies present in Jesus’ suffering with the two thieves on Calvary. Our reflection on the crucifixion began with Marilyn Ormsbee-Strother speaking about the inspiration for a watercolor she painted and the thoughts that were going through her mind as she created it. Then, Wade sang a wonderful song he had composed after reading The Dawntreaders titled Strip My Skin.… Read the rest
The girls and I were returning from our drive in the country, flying down NC Hwy 421, loaded down with apples and keeping our eyes peeled for barbecue joints (down by the lake? T Bone Burnett, anyone?) A sign caught my eye: “Books 75% Off.” It was hoisted prominently over the 421 Flea Market.
This flea market (or “swap meet” in southern California vernacular) was deceptively ginormous. There were tables and pickup trucks laid out over a large field, selling used treasures from clothes to martial arts weapons and country home décor to GUNS! What appeared to be storage or industrial buildings at the rear of the property housed the actual flea market!… Read the rest
We’re on the road in North Carolina, visiting Emma and sampling a little bit of Carolina barbecue.
bar·be·cue Pronunciation Key (bärb-ky) n.
1. A grill, pit, or outdoor fireplace for roasting meat.
2. A whole animal carcass or section thereof roasted or broiled over an open fire or on a spit.
3. A social gathering, usually held outdoors, at which food is cooked over an open flame.
The term itself comes from Haiti: “1657, from Amer.Sp. barbacoa, from Arawakan (Haiti) barbakoa “framework of sticks,” the raised wooden structure the Indians used to either sleep on or cure meat. Originally “meal of roasted meat or fish,” modern popular noun sense of “grill for cooking over an open fire” is 1931.”… Read the rest
Newsday.com: Anesthesiologists Take Pride in Music: “Anesthesiologists Take Pride in Music
By LINDSEY TANNER
AP Medical Writer
October 2, 2005, 4:03 PM EDT
CHICAGO — General anesthesia or local? Hip-hop or Sinatra? These are among the decisions facing Dr. Frank Gentile in his double-duty job as anesthesiologist and self-styled DJ of the OR. He doesn’t use a microphone or speak in a fake baritone. But the eclectic range of CDs he loads onto the anesthesia cart headed for the operating room would impress any bona fide disc jockey. Gentile’s collection is between 50 and 100 CDs, and his iPod holds about 5,000 songs.… Read the rest
Okay, so why does a hip, swingin’, fashion-conscious guy like me shop at Ross?
Obviously, there’s the value angle. Your clothing dollar will go much further at Ross than at some boardshop boutique or Harajuku mercantile where a sullen raggedy Ann or Andy, with black lipstick, scans your purchases while singing along with Green Day’s American Idiot. For me, it’s all about fashion. Where else could you hope to find a stylish RATT* t-shirt like the one I’m wearing in the photo? The moment I pulled it off the rack, my right arm involuntarily thrust it’s self heavenward and my butane lighter ignited.… Read the rest
By E&P Staff
Published: September 20, 2005 4:37 PM ET
“NEW YORK The New York Times Co. announced a staggering staff reduction plan Tuesday that will likely mean some 500 job losses at the company’s many properties, including an expected 45 newsroom positions at The New York Times newspaper and 35 at The Boston Globe.
In a memo to staffers, company chairman Arthur O. Sulzberger, Jr. and CEO Janet Robinson wrote: ‘We regret that we will see many of our colleagues leave the Company; it is a painful process for all of us. We have been tested many times in our 154-year history as we are being tested now.’… Read the rest
Now, here’s something you don’t often find. But, our friend, (we’ll call her “Jay” to protect her identity from blog trolls and design stalkers), is always showering us with bits of thoughtful vintage technology. This is a rare 1958 prototype of the device, which would iterate and reiterate into the modern PalmPilot. Most people are unaware that personal digital assistants or PDAs (as those of us in the industry refer to them) have been around for some time. Originally, “personal” referred to the fact that you could keep them in a purse or pocket and “digital” denoted the method of searching through the tiny contact cards with your fingers or “digits.”… Read the rest
… Read the rest
From The Telegraph Online:
Two of John Wayne’s best films from the 1950s – “The High and the Mighty” and “Island in the Sky” – have been missing in action for decades… the films, directed by William Wellman (“Wings,” “A Star Is Born”) and produced through the Duke’s own company, had fallen into disrepair… Already, “High and the Mighty” ranks No. 4 on Amazon.com’s presale orders list… Originally released in 1954, “The High and the Mighty” was one of the top-grossing films of the year and was nominated for six Oscars, including best director for Wellman and supporting actress nods for Jan Sterling and Claire Trevor; it won for Dimitri Tiomkin’s memorable score.
To those serious Star Wars fans out there, please believe me when I say I mean no disrespect and I admit up front that there are some days I just shouldn’t go see a film (like the ill fated, rainy evening I viewed The Thin Red Line: but, that’s another blistering post). Here’s the problem: I usually don’t recognize I’m in one of my “moods” until about ten minutes into the movie and by then, it’s too late.
I’m sure the Revenge of the Sith is a fine film, but there were so many elements of the movie that I just found distracting or annoying and I couldn’t get past them.… Read the rest
I’d like you to meet my new mates from Australia: Adrian the sound man and Malcolm the cameraman. They were sent to our home by Beyond International to film a vignette for the television program Medical Incredible on the Discovery Health Channel. Since my miraculous healing and recovery from necrotizing fasciitis, the flesh eating bacteria, I’ve been contacted a number of times by producers of similar programs, but our plans always fell through. So, I didn’t want to broadcast this adventure until it actually materialized.
It was so much fun. They shot me running over the hill to our house about five times, up and down our street a few times, and the entire length of Gethsemane St.… Read the rest
I promised Zombieslayer a post about my short venture into the world of record producers, fusion guitarists, “shred-heads” and, of course, those vultures who bring all fun to a halt — lawyers and record distributors. Dear ZS… I hope this meets with your approval.
One day sometime in 1990, I believe, I came home from work and Denise told me she had met some new neighbors and they were real nice. She said that “Mark” produced and recorded music – he was working on a children’s CD. I remember thinking to myself, “So, what’s new… everyone in Nevada City is recording a CD.”… Read the rest
Denise knows where to shop… when she heard there would be a flea market at a local Lutheran church, she charged right over there. “The churches with the older congregations have all the really cool stuff.” She came home with the most beautiful Christmas tree skirt I have ever seen, as well as some retro Christmas ornaments and… a little “special occasion tree” like my Grandma Louise used to have. Actually, it was a manzanita branch that looked like a tree, about a foot tall. She would decorate it for every season or special occasion. Now, we have one.
The biggest treat was this beautifully illustrated Barbecue Book by the publishers of Sunset Magazine.… Read the rest
If a movie won’t be playing at a theater, will its fans still line up outside that theater for days and days? If we’re talking about “Star Wars” fans, the answer is a resounding “of course!” It says so right here: Star Wars Fans At Wrong Theater
Former Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne donned his Emperor Palpatine getup and joined other diehard Star Wars fans outside the wrong theater, Grauman’s Chinese, for the latest installment of the legendary franchise. There was just one small problem: 20th Century Fox plans to open the film at the ArcLight theater, just a few blocks away.
Okay, so it’s not really Ozzy, but you have to admit there’s a real resemblance.… Read the rest