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GRAFFITI -- May 28, 2007 thru June 03, 2007 >> Link to the Current Week << Last Week << Mon   Tues   Wed   Thu   Fri   Sat   Sun >> Next Week Search this site : Welcome to Orb Graffiti, a place for me to write daily about life and computers. Contrary to popular belief, the two are not interchangeable.     About eMail - I publish email sometimes. If you send me an email and you want privacy or anonymity, please say so clearly at the beginning of your message.

MONDAY    Tues    Wed    Thu    Fri    Sat    Sun   
May 28, 2007

0839 - Good morning. Shortly after I posted yesterday, I saw a window of opportunity in front of me. It was either mow the lawns, or go haring off to Balticon to see if I could track down Jerry, say "Hi.", and natter for a while. Clear choice there, eh? So I called Scott Kitterman, as I knew he was interested in going ... and we went. We walked the floors of the show, saw all the cool books, the neat fantasy sculpture booths, and did lots of people watching, as 'cons are full of interesting people. Saw Terry Pratchet going up an escalator as we went down. Finally spotted and said hello to Larry Niven, and got the hint that Jerry was under the weather and maybe wasn't on the show floor. So I went to an organizer and asked, as Jerry had inquired if I could make it up to the show. They looked. We looked. Finally, Scott found him in a panel on Inferno. When it was over, we did get to say hello, but Jerry was clearly whacked by travel and some bug or another. He went off to take a nap, and we wandered into the dealer room just in time for that to close ... saving our bank accounts a serious drain. Oh, well, at least we found him. As a footnote, a couple hours later, he called on my cell, and asked if I could join them for dinner. Of course, I was now an hour or more driving time away from the show (back at home). So that didn't work out right, but such is life.

There was an Apple Security Update for OS X the other day. After its application, I was reminded on one behavior that I really, really dislike - it appears that Apple system updates reset *some* personal preferences. In this case, I use NeoOffice to handle DOC files and other MS-Office-type formats. NeoOffice is a Java-based GPL fork of OpenOffice. It's reasonably Aqua-native in appearance and interface with the system, and it does all the nice OpenOffice stuff that I like. So early on, I'd set NeoOffice to be the default application for .doc files. Some time later, that default was gone. Huh? I set it again (at least the second time, I didn't have to hunt for how to do that). Yesterday it was reset again ... right after the Security Update was applied. What??? Default document application preferences are (or should be) personal, not system wide. And system updates shouldn't touch those. Grrrrr!

Today I must do some yard stuff. I want to get another few plant cages, to get some larger ones on a couple of the tomatoes, and a few more small ones for the pepper plants. I'd best be off to the garden center to get those. See y'all later.

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Mon    TUESDAY    Wed    Thu    Fri    Sat    Sun   
May 29, 2007

0744 - Good morning. One good bit of news to accompany Memorial Day - I finally heard back from my friend Trang - her husband Bruce is back safe and sound from an 18 month deployment to Iraq. I'm happy for them.

It was warm and sunny yesterday. I finished up in the yard at about 1430, having moved a few plants in front to cooler homes. I also put in some more heat- and lack-of-water-tolerant decorative grasses. Then I edged and mowed, front and back. Ooooh, and we got six strawberries out yesterday, too. Yum.

Back to the grind. Happy Tuesday.

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Mon    Tues    WEDNESDAY    Thu    Fri    Sat    Sun   
May 30, 2007

0651 - Good morning. But not a great morning. I learned yesterday that the world became a poorer place when we lost Laura Ellen Hopper. Laura rocked! One of the core people at KFAT radio during my important formative years between late high school and the first few years of college, Laura died on Monday. You want a sense of KFAT, listen to the stream. They were only on the air for 5 years or so, but had far too much fun to be a success in the matters that matter most in radio - advertising demographics. More fun than a barrel of monkeys, though. Carried on in a sense by KPIG today, but with less irreverence... and more longevity. Anyway, my condolences to her loved ones, and to the extended KFAT family.

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Mon    Tues    Wed    THURSDAY    Fri    Sat    Sun   
May 31, 2007

1931 - Good evening. Oh, yeah. Yesterday was our ninth wedding anniversary. We went out to supper and have a lovely meal up on the deck at the Old Bowie Town Grille. We both had fish - Marcia got the rockfish, while I settled for seared tuna in a ginger and scallion sauce. Yummmy! The weather out was perfect, not too warm, not too many bugs - nearly a perfect late-spring evening. I suppose we deserve that for our anniversary.

I've been busy "helping" to configure fibre switches, SAN arrays, and Solaris 10 Zones. That is, I've been mostly watching and kibbitzing while others do the work. My sense of how this gear works together is good, but it's better on production gear to get experienced hands doing the work and documenting it for me and future generations. Now to do some of this on my own...

We harvested a couple of baskets of strawberries out of the garden today. By that, I mean perhaps the size of two of the normal supermarket-size baskets full. Only all perfect, juicy, just-picked-sweet ... more yummy for us. Now I should do something useful with my time. Have a nice evening.

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Mon    Tues    Wed    Thu    FRIDAY    Sat    Sun   
June 1, 2007

No Post.....

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Mon    Tues    Wed    Thu    Fri    SATURDAY    Sun   
June 2, 2007

1352 - Good afternoon. Really, it throws our schedules all the way off... We've friends flying in tonight from California for a visit. So we did our shopping for the next week today. Confused me, confused the dogs ... Marcia maintained her cool, of course. Strawberries are still waxing (increasing in harvest quantities, day by day) - I took out over half a gallon of perfect fruit last night when I got home.

In the interim, I'm going to sort through some older optical media, to see what needs to be transferred into the new order of backups and archive, and what needs to be destroyed and/or discarded. Just as well, since it's over 90 outside and I *like* air conditioning. Later...

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Mon    Tues    Wed    Thu    Fri    Sat    SUNDAY  
June 3, 2007

1238 - Good morning. Guests are in. We just finished breakfast: Neuske's Applewood Smoked Bacon, eggs, bagels, and a boatload of strawberries that I picked this morning. This afternoon is for relaxation and conversation (and possibly shopping). So I'll be brief, here. But I'll not neglect my self-assigned duty to recognize the sacrifice made by our fallen soldiers ...

• Cpl. Victor H. Toledo Pulido, 22, of Hanford, Calif., died May 23 in Al Nahrawan, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Cpl. Jonathan D. Winterbottom, 21, of Falls Church, Va., died May 23 in Al Nahrawan, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Sgt. 1st Class Robert E. Dunham, 36, of Baltimore, Md., died May 24 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Staff Sgt. Russell K. Shoemaker, 31, of Sweet Springs, Mo., died May 24 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Cpl. Mathew P. LaForest, 21, of Austin, Texas, died May 25 in Taji, Iraq, of injuries suffered when his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations.
• Spc. Alexander Rosa Jr., 22, of Orlando, Fla., died May 25 in Muqdadiyah, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Spc. William L. Bailey III, 29, of Bellevue, Neb., died May 25, in Taji, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Spc. Erich S. Smallwood, 23, of Trumann, Ark, died May 26, near Balad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Sgt. Clayton G. Dunn II, 22, of Moreno Valley, Calif., died May 26 in Salah Ad Din Province, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Cpl. Michael J. Jaurigue, 20, of Texas City, Texas, died May 26 in Salah Ad Din Province, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Spc. Gregory N. Millard, 22, of San Diego, Calif., died May 26 in Salah Ad Din Province, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
• Sgt. Nicholas R. Walsh, 27, of Millstadt, Ill., died May 26 from wounds suffered while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq.
• Lance Cpl. David P. Lindsey, 20, of Spartanburg, S.C., died May 25 from a non-hostile incident in Al Anbar province, Iraq.
• Spc. Mark R. C. Caguioa, 21, of Stockton, Calif., died May 24 at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., of wounds suffered on May 4 in Baghdad, Iraq, when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device.
• Spc. Francis M. Trussel Jr., 21, of Lincoln, Ill., died May 26 in Tahrir, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his position.
• Lance Cpl. Emmanuel Villarreal, 21, of Eagle Pass, Texas, died May 27 from a non-hostile vehicle accident at Kuwait Naval Base, Kuwait.
• Cpl. Clinton C. Blodgett, 19, of Pekin, Ind., died May 26 in Baghdad, Iraq, when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device.
• Staff Sgt. Thomas M. McFall, 36, of Glendora, Calif., died May 28 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his position during a dismounted patrol.
• Pfc. Junior Cedeno Sanchez, 20, of Miami, Fla., died May 28 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his position during a dismounted patrol.
• Pfc. Charles B. Hester, 23, of Cataldo, Idaho, died May 26 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device.
• 1st Lt. Keith N. Heidtman, 24, of Norwich, Conn., died May 28 in Muqdadiyah, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his OH-58D Kiowa helicopter crashed after receiving heavy enemy fire during combat operations.
• Chief Warrant Officer Theodore U. Church, 32, of Ohio., died May 28 in Muqdadiyah, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his OH-58D Kiowa helicopter crashed after receiving heavy enemy fire during combat operations.
• Staff Sgt. Joseph M. Weiglein, 31, of Audubon, N.J., died May 29 in Ilbu Falris, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his position during a dismounted patrol.
• Sgt. Richard V. Correa, 25, of Honolulu, Hi., died May 29 in Ilbu Falris, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his position during a dismounted patrol.
• Pfc. Robert A. Liggett, 23, of Urbana, Ill., died May 29 in Rustamiyah, Iraq, from injuries suffered in a non-combat related incident.
• Pfc. Matthew A. Bean, 22, of Pembroke, Mass., died May 31 at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., of wounds suffered on May 19 in Lutifiyah, Iraq, when he was struck by enemy small arms fire.
• Cpl. Jonathan A. Markham, 22, of Bedford, Texas, died May 29 in Abu Sayda, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his dismounted position.
• Pfc. Matthew E. Baylis, 20, of Oakdale, N.Y., died May 31 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered on May 30 when his dismounted patrol encountered enemy small arms fire.
• Sgt. Bacilio E. Cuellar, 24, of Odessa, Texas., died May 30 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device.
• Spc. James E. Lundin, 20, of Bellport N.Y., died May 30 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device.
• Pfc. Joshua M. Moore, 20, of Russellville, Ky., died May 30 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device.
• 1st Lt. Kile G. West, 23, of Pasadena, Texas, died May 28 in Abu Sayda, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.
• Sgt. Anthony D. Ewing, 22, of Phoenix, Ariz., died May 28 in Abu Sayda, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.
• Cpl. Zachary D. Baker, 24, of Vilonia, Ark., died May 28 in Abu Sayda, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.
• Cpl. James E. Summers, III, 21, of Bourbon, Mo., died May 28 in Abu Sayda, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.
• Spc. Alexandre A. Alexeev, 23, of Wilmington, Calif., died May 28 in Abu Sayda, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.
• Sgt. Chadrick O. Domino, 23, of Ennis, Texas, died May 31 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when he encountered enemy small arms fire while on dismounted patrol.

It would appear to these ignorant eyes (being mine, of a non-military background) that the opposing force strategy of attacking the helicopters to put the troops back into ground vehicles is paying off for them, at a great cost in American lives. Or am I mis-interpreting the data that I've been seeing over the last few months?

My condolences to the families and unit mates of the fallen. Thank you for your sacrfices and your unflagging devotion to duty and Country. I am awed and humbled.

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Visit the rest of the DAYNOTES GANG, a collection of bright minds and sharp wits. Really, I don't know why they tolerate me <grin>. My personal inspiration for these pages is Dr. Jerry Pournelle. I am also indebted to Bob Thompson and Tom Syroid for their patience, guidance and feedback. Of course, I am sustained by and beholden to my lovely wife, Marcia. You can find her online too, at http://www.dutchgirl.net/. Thanks for dropping by.

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