They've moved my polling place the last three times. I have a theory
that it isn't Creative Voting Regions, but that they are running out of
machines to cannibalize for parts to keep the others working.

So, yeah. I voted. Not only did I vote, I got to do it "Old School".
And by the way: They really do still go Ker-CHUNK!

PHYSICAL BOOK: I'm at work, so this is going to be booring.
The same principle applies to the May-Contain attribute.
Windows 200 Active Directory, G. Lowe-Norris, O'Reilly

MAGAZINE:
Just one more way the x3550 Express keeps downtime down.
IBM Server Advertisement, some marketing drone, eWeek v25 no25

VIRTUAL BOOK: The ebook I have open would be the closest.
But this was the custom of creatures on this planet.
Planets of Adventure, Murray Leinster, Baen

Consider this a test. Is it nifty?

Precognitive Character Generation 15pts

The first 10 points are the true cost of this advantage. The GM then gets to pick where the last 5 points are spent for you, based on what is planned for the campeign and your character will ***REALLY*** ***NEED*** to be able to do! This is deeper than the GM specifying that everyone needs to be able to swim and ride horseback, this is for selecting something that you will DESPERATELY need later on. Yes, you can just guess and not waste a huge 10 points. But then again, maybe you wasted all 15 of those points instead of getting that skill in advanced potterymaking that will enable you to save the whole town AND campeign 3 months down the road.

From CNN with the AP and a couple CNN reporters contributing.

In its ongoing air assault, Israel's military targeted Beirut, hitting a vehicle in the city's Christian neighborhood -- shocking residents who overall do not support the Islamic militant group.

From FOXNEWS listed as only AP-written.

Israeli bombers, previously focusing on Hezbollah strongholds in southern Beirut, hit a Christian suburb on the eastern side of the capital for the first time. The target was a truck-mounted machine used to drill for water that could have been mistaken for a missile launcher. The vehicle was destroyed, but nobody was hurt.

In grade school a child that told the CNN version would have been labeled a liar and a instigator.

Toward that end, Discovery's astronauts and flight controllers kept close watch on a slightly leaking power unit that tested out fine a day earlier in orbit.

NASA did not know whether harmless nitrogen gas or flammable hydrazine was dripping from the auxiliary power unit, one of three needed to drive the hydraulic landing systems. The leak was small, managers said. If it worsened during re-entry — considered unlikely — the unit would shut down automatically and Discovery would become the first shuttle to land with only two functioning auxiliary power units.

If memory serves me correctly (appologies to Kaga) ALL, did I say that emphatically enough? Make that * * * A L L * * * critical shuttle systems are triple redundant. As in there are THREE wires leading to everything. If one wire says something different from the other two, that wire is henceforth IGNORED. There are THREE hydrolic systems to move each flap on the wings and tail, each with enough oomph needed to move said flap. If one of the three wants to push the wrong way, the other two will easily muscle it to the right position.

So. If one of the power units to drive the hydrolic landing gear is crap... the other two will still do the job. Easily.

Oh. And I failed to stress one more thing. This was the *AUXILIARY* power unit.

I consider this the equivalent of reporting that someone on the shuttle gave the guys on the ISS the spare roll of toilet paper that they keep hidden in the back of the cupboard. Cause, you know, they just CONCEIVABLY MIGHT NEED THAT SPARE ROLL OF TOILET PAPER.

Stupid reporters.

The confused "looker" at the time said that I either didn't have one or it was invisible / blocking. Me, I like to think my Guardian Angel said "Homey don't play dat!" and shut the port down. :>

Your aura colours are overlapped. Your most likely colours are:

Red.

Reds are cowboys. They are physical, bold, lusty, rugged, realistic, tactile, literal and confident. They can be rough around the edges.

Crystal.

Crystals are healers. They are private, spiritual, readers, socially awkward, rehearsed, shy, retiring, proper, misunderstood and unappreciated. They can seem fragile.

Find out what colour your aura is.

Crystal? Well, I guess crystals do have powers. You can make a decent clock out of one. A little cutting and polishing and you have a mirror or window without having to make perfect glass; like they did in reliquaries so you can see the bits inside.

But like I said, they cancel each other other. Only good enough for a "heh", no more.

What kind of pirate am I? You decide!
You can also view a breakdown of results or put one of these on your own page!
Brought to you by Rum and Monkey

Hurm... perhaps I will wind up not raking the leaves this year after all! Is it my fault that it's been too wet since they really started falling to try and collect them? I think not!

My daughter has cautioned my son to "Be quite! Tata scream!" Of course that doesn't mean much. They seem to be collaborating now. She appears to have taken down gates to let him go up the stairs with her.

And I have heard my son look at me and say "Die!". That's Polish for "Give!" Die? "Die!" Oookay... so I hand him a bit of cracker. Happyness is had by all. It would be nice if we could teach them more than a couple of phrases of German and Polish... but there's really only one person in the house that speaks either language. They really need to listen to conversations to start to speak them.

But that's not what I saw. I saw a prefab concrete slab building with a layer of heavy-duty carpet on it. I didn't see a really fancy dinner, I saw conference food served up on the usual round conference center tables. The stage was a steel monstrosity with some fancy burlap covering up the crossties and cloth clipped to the tables so you don't have to watch the feet and legs of the people sitting in the place of honor. There was nothing there to inspire me about the importance of the event.

I had the opportunity to go to two conferences in Orlando, FL. Universal! Disney! Downtown! There should have been PLENTY to see down there! Not really. I went to several theme restaurants, and they were all fake. Fiberglass props, industrial seating, blaring music and yet another hamburger or chicken with special sauce does not a memorable evening make. I went to a Cajun place, all decorated with garish crabs, grass and rusty toys on the walls. The only thing of any note in there was that you could order fried Conch. The rest was your standard theme restaurant.

I got to go to the Universal theme park and Disney's "Downtown" street thing. Both were more of the same, just painted fiberglass over steel rods and I-beams. It was all rather sad. Here I was in one of the vacation spots of the world, and it was all fake. At least at Kennywood Park there is some history and wonderful topiary alongside the fiberglass junk. But the rest is just... cheap.

With all of this put together, I really can't find it in myself to really get excited over most of the usual vacation or outing destinations. But, all is not lost. For I DID find something real to visit in Orlando.

You see, it is foolish to think that you can send me within 100 miles of Cape Canaveral and not have me disappear for a day! *THAT* was real. Stopping at the Hoover Dam was real. Taking the children out to pick apples at a local orchard was real. Real sticky, that is! (10-month old + apple fresh off tree = STICKEY BABY SLIME)

So what does it take? Is it possible for me to be wowed by a meal that isn't at the Waldorf Astoria? But don't expect me to enjoy New Year's Eve there, because it's the same old stage setup. I don't know. Maybe I should just stick with home cooking and historical sites.

So I eat my "fast food". Suddenly I realize something. The three-yr-old is STILL eating with the chopsticks. In fact, I think she is doing better than I can! Who showed her this? When? I know Sesame Street shows chopsticks in use, but that can't be enough for the level of SKILL I saw!

On another note I have yet more proof that children, while still too young to read, definately acquire skills in modern heraldry. She can recognize the blazons for McDonalds, Taco Bell, Chuck E. Cheese's (even though we have never set foot in one) and two purveyors of toys; Toys R Us and Babies R Us. She even recognized a box of Dora the Explorer gram crackers through a mostly OPAQUE plastic bag. Unless there were commercials she could not have ever seen them before, because this is the first time I have ever seen them. But the dancing cries of "Dora snacks! Dora snacks!" are undeniable.

Lets post some more child definitions, shall we?

• Any caricature with a tongue sticking out is Hungry


• Any caricature with it's eyes closed is Asleep. That includes ones where someone is smiling so hard that his eyes are crinkled closed;


• Chop sticks are Chopped Sticks


• A bicycle is a Bikeable


• Apple pie is Apple Cake


• Anything she doesn't want to eat is YuckyThis word can be used in a matter-of-fact cheerfully frank tone. No spitting, just a pronouncement.






And in yet other news, my towel is infinitely more towel-like than hers. A paragon of towelosity of which all others are poor imitations with lackluster drying abilities and questionable cleanliness. The venerable archtype of all towels that will ever be. Yea, this is the epitome of towel-kind.


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