Amateur Megalomania » Grab Bag

Thrill Of A Lifetime

Todd W — Sat, 14 May 2011 01:04:55 +0000

What a video. Had me grinning like a fool. Imagine how she must have felt.

Hijacking Language

Todd W — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:06:36 +0000

Jeff Goldstein has a wonderful post up here about the resignification of language and the dangers thereof. Yeah, it is a bit long, but what else do you have to do on a Sunday?

Speaking of Sparta

Todd W — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 13:11:16 +0000

The History Channel, as expected, is airing a 2 hour show on Thermopylae. It actually aired this week and I missed it, but the repeat is on the 30th.

can’t wait!

Todd W — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 02:33:49 +0000

I’ve been walking around muttering “THIS IS SPARTA!!!” for about a week now.

Uncut preview here. (Some brief nudity, so be warned).

getting organized

Todd W — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 20:32:58 +0000

I’ve always had an organization problem. It’s starting to become a problem with all the stuff I have going on right now. Between my main job at Pfizer, the Papa Johns thing, working on AudioMonk, helping a friend with a web project, blogging, and remodeling a basement, the strain is showing.

My brother mentioned Vitalist to me. You might have come across the “Getting Things Done” frenzy on the web right now, and Vitalist is billed as GTD web-based software. While I’m not doing GTD yet, this already has some potential.

Essentially, Vitalist is a task list application. Yeah, I know Outlook can do the same thing, but I work on two or three different machines per day. The more I can move to a web based system, the better off I’m going to be in the long run.

With my Vitalist, I can fire off quick emails to my account, where they will wait for me to log in and organize them, assigning due dates, categories etc. Even my wife can email things there and I don’t have an excuse to forget about it.

In addition, it ties into RSS, so my Netvibes page now has my task list floating in the corner, admonishing me for surfing blogs instead of working on my list.

It’s still early, but I already think this is going to be useful.

Smart Kid

Todd W — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 15:23:45 +0000

I’m delivering a pizza last night. The total comes to something like $19.80. I knock on the door, and an eleven-year-old kid answers and yells, “Mom!”.

He vanishes for a second and I hear a woman say, “Give him this and get the pizza.” By the sound of it, she has her hands full with a toddler.

The kid pops up again with money. He looks down at a $20 and 3 $1 bills. Without hesitation, he jams the $3 in his pocket and hands me the $20 with the hint of a smile.

The kid just tipped himself.

I’m torn between anger and admiration.

My second reaction is to yell “Mom!!!”. (No, I didn’t…but it would have been funny.)

Blogging Again

Todd W — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 14:59:47 +0000

My brother is blogging again. I hope he is okay with me posting this link.

Speaking of Heinlein…

Todd W — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 14:57:02 +0000

I opened up the latest mailing from the Science Fiction Book Club and saw they are offering all of the Heinlein Juveniles in a four volume hardbound set for around $50. For all twelve novels, plus Starship Troopers, it isn’t really a bad deal.

I’ve been a member of the Club for nearly 15 years now, and it is still the best value when it comes to SF/Fantasy. I’d highly recommend it, even if you only buy a couple of books a year.

Awkward Moment While Folding Boxes At The Pizza Joint

Todd W — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 16:02:21 +0000

“You’re from Toledo?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m thinking about going to Grad School there.”

“Oh? U of T is a good school. What’s your degree in?”

“Dual major. Philosophy and Literature.”

“…”

“How long have you been working here?”

“Since 1996.”

“…”

“I’m going to go wash some dishes.”

Got Mocha?

Todd W — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 16:22:14 +0000

Is you are a Starbucks fiend, take note.