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daily journal
New Medical News I don't think I even have to write a joke for this one. The Stink in Farts Controls Blood PressureI'm thinking my kids won't ever have to worry about having high blood pressure. posted by Brendan | 6:55 PM | permanent link |
Where's My Bailout? The United States Government’s bailout of insurance giant AIG has me perplexed. For a country that is bills itself as the shining example of not only a democratic government, but a free-market economy, I don’t fully understand why over the last few weeks our Federal government has deemed it necessary to step in and save failing businesses. That sort of behavior seems economically antithetical.  What the government did for Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac and Bear Stearns, while slightly distressing, at least amounted to only trying to find a way to keep those organizations upright. It was a slightly perverted form of corporate mediation, if you will. The AIG deal, from where I sit, looks like a straight up hand out of cash to keep the company afloat. But in all cases the steps taken by the U.S. Government amount to governmental intervention to the private business sector.This sort of government meddling certainly seems to run counter to the ideals of a free-market, but if these few bailouts helps the overall economy from a total meltdown then I am more inclined to go along with the decisions. Except for one thing – the $85 billion loan to AIG. The Mayor of Chicago, Richie Daley, is known for eccentric and off-kilter press conferences and public appearances. Even after almost 40 years in public service (almost 20 of those as the Mayor of Chicago) he still has a way of speaking that calls to mind somebody’s crazy uncle. Despite all that, I thought his recent comments offered in response to the AIG bailout reflected my own thoughts on the subject. What frustrates me the most about this situation is the news that the SEC allowed five firms – I’ll let you guess who – to be exempt from rules that would have prevented these companies from leveraging themselves into the holes they have ended up in. The SEC exempts a select few companies from certain regulations designed keep financial institutions from sitting on too shaky of ground, and when those same firms threaten to bring the U.S. economy to its knees as a result, the government rushes in to prop them back up with tax payer money. I hope that two years from now, when I no longer have money to buy fuel, milk, or clothes because of an economy in shambles that AIG and these other firms will step in to reciprocate the help I unwilling provided them last week. posted by Brendan | 4:46 PM | permanent link |
Leave the Lion, Save Yourself I've been following the stories coming out of Texas in the wake of Hurricane Ike and have seen and read some amazing stuff. But this little snippet is probably the most outragous that I've read to date: "(Rescue task force leader Chuck)Jones did not have information on whether anyone had died on (Galveston), mainly because leaders still don't know how many people stayed through the storm that struck early Saturday.Holy crap. I am sure the guy loves his pets and didn't want to see them needless killed; but locking yourself in a basement with a lion during a hurricane with no guarantee of when you will be able to get out. That's just crazy stupid. Leave the lion and save yourself. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:14 PM | permanent link |
Rain, Rain, Go Away After more than 48 hours, I think the rain has finally let up here in Aurora.  Friday was overcast when I woke up in the morning, but the rain didn't start in earnest until about 2pm in the afternoon. But then the rain just kept coming and coming and coming. The showers would vary in intensity at time - sometimes a light drizzle, sometimes a moderate/high shower - but the storm pretty much maintained an even downpour the entire time. No big storms. No breaks in the rain. Just rain all the time.I knew that Illinois was set to be hit by the remnants of Hurricane Ike, but I didn't realize that that meant two days of straight rain with no interruptions. It was amazing. It never stopped raining. Water fell out of the sky constantly. By hour number 30 of the non-stop rain I understood why the suicide rate is so high in Seattle (supposedly). How depressing to see nothing but gray skies and falling water all the time. Heather and I watched the water collect between our house and the neighbor's houses. When it was raining harder, the lever would rise. When the rain let up, the water level would drop. Lucky for us our house isn't near any river, creeks, or lakes and we've got a strong sump pump. We've stayed dry indoors. I don't know if I can say the same of some of the houses we saw during our drive to Church Sunday morning. We saw one house where the retention pond that their yard backed into was so over-filled that it almost reached their back porch. I can only imagine what their basement might be like. The worst Heather and I will have to deal with is the grass in our yard. I swear that I could actually see the grass growing this weekend under the influence of all this rain. The lawn has to be an inch taller now that where it was Friday morning. Warm muggy air with lots of rain - it was a like rain forest out here. We will probably have to mow the yard two or three times this week to keep things in check. But as I said. The rain seems to have finally stopped. The forecast for tomorrow is cool and dry. We can all start drying out. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 7:13 PM | permanent link |
What We Buy The kids at the New York Times really know how to find fun and creative ways to present data. Their latest is a fantastic interactive feature that helps you understand how people around the world spend their discretionary income.  I learned that in the US we spend a lot on recreation. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 4:06 PM | permanent link |
Whoops Not sure if this is an indication of the power of the Internet or how skittish Wall Street is. For reasons that I am not clear on, this morning Bloomberg News Service ran a story first published by the Chicago Tribune 6 years ago about United Airlines filing for bankruptcy as if it was a brand new development. Unit shares dropped 75% before the situation was cleared up, or at least United was able to assure everyone that they were not filing for bankruptcy - again. The story isn't clear - actually I don't think anyone knows yet - how a reporter with Bloomberg thought a story from 2003 was a new story or why he didn't double check that a development as big as United Airlines filing for bankruptcy was true before running the story on the Bloomberg Income Security News Service, but it's kinda amazing how quickly one story had impact on the financial health of United Airlines. I suspect at least one person might lose their job over this. Possibly a few people. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 1:05 PM | permanent link |
Google Chrome You'd probably think the last thing we need is another web browser, but you might be wrong. Between Microsoft's inferior but popular Internet Explorer, the technically superior Firefox, and the third-party candidate Opera (not to mention all the little custom browsers), everyone should be covered when it comes to their web browsing needs. But that hasn't stopped Internet uber-company Google from developing and launching their own browser: Chrome. It's set to be released sometime today as a Beta for Windows machines, and was built from scratch from the bottom up to make the most of what the Internet has to offer today - not 1998 when the browsers wars started. One of the more interesting points of this browser project is that Google brought in comic creator / theorist Scott McCloud to create a comic explaining / demystifying what it is that the Google engineers did when putting together Chrome.  The browser isn't out yet, but when it does launch I will be installing it. Google has produced some amazing web applications over the last few years, and after reading through this comic I am excited about giving their web browser a try. They might actually win me away from Firefox. posted by Brendan | 1:04 PM | permanent link |
New Face for the Tribune? Sam Zell and Team are working up redesigns for many of the Tribune Company's newspapers to combat sagging sales. The Orlando Sentinel was the first paper to go under the knife, and apparently also acted as a guinea pig for trying out some unconventional design approaches for a daily newspaper. Now it looks like it might be flagship paper, The Chicago Tribune, to get a new face. Editor & Publisher leaked this design today as one of many new designs being considered for the Trib.  I'm trying to reserve judgment until I can see a larger version of the mock-up and possibly some interior pages, but my initial reaction is "ugh." This design seems to put the Trib more in line with tabloid papers like the Chicago Sun-Times or the New York Daily News with their flashy graphics and large fonts. To me this sort of presentation is about making a newspaper more interested in style and getting noticed than on the quality and substance of the stories. If the quality of the content remains but the packaging is spruced up, then I really won't care too much about what they do to the Trib. But if the new design/style starts to cramp on the quality, then Heather and I might be ending our subscription. But that's getting ahead of ourselves. We need to give the Trib some time to finalize a design posted by Brendan | 12:38 PM | permanent link |
Dean Peterson is My New Hero  Dean Peterson is a mail carrier in the Seattle area who is trying to get approval to wear a kilt while he lugs phone bills and catalogs up and down neighborhood streets.A couple years ago his wife bought him a kilt as a gift from a trip she took to Scotland. He tried it on and Peterson’s love affair with the garment was born. In his letter to the National Letter Carriers' Association, who have to approve his choice of work attire, he wrote, “Unbifurcated Garments (i.e. kilts) are far more comfortable and suitable to male anatomy than trousers or shorts because they don't confine the legs or cramp the male genitals the way that trousers or shorts do." Amen brother! Dude shouldn’t have to ask permission to wear a kilt. We (and by “We” I mean men) should all be wearing kilts. Pants are for dullards. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 10:19 PM | permanent link |
U.S. Dollar Finally Good for Something With the U.S. economy as weak as it is right now, it’s refreshing to see that the U.S. dollar can still do something for us. “Paper money contains high traces of cocaine, regardless of whether or not the paper money came into direct contact with the drug. And U.S. bills take the top spot, covered in the greatest amount of the illegal powder, while Spanish notes are the most highly contaminated in Europe, a new study finds.”Maybe if we grind it up and snort it, we will forget about the credit crisis, housing crisis, unemployment, rising food prices, rising fuel costs, etc. posted by Brendan | 11:41 PM | permanent link | Beijing Smog Phil Hersh is a reporter for the Chicago Tribune who is in Beijing to cover the upcoming Olympics. In addition to the stories he will be filing about the Olympics, he is also chronicling with his camera the air quality as he sees it each day from his hotel window. The quote for this photo, “The view from the hall window next to Phil Hersh's Beijing hotel room at 10:30 a.m. Aug. 5. Phil says: ‘White air again. Ugh.’”  Who has “white” air? It looks like they are having a snow storm. I get the feeling that if China doesn’t kill the rest of the world with the lead-laced toys and consumer products, then they will eventually block the Sun from warming the Earth with the ever-growing cloud of out-of-control industrial expansion produced smog. posted by Brendan | 11:36 PM | permanent link |
Things I'm Thinking About Today Enough With the Drugs Already The American Academy of Pediatrics released a set of guidelines today that recommends starting children as young as eight years-old on cholesterol-fighting drugs. The kids don’t have to be suffering from high cholesterol, in the opinion of these doctors. These second and third graders can simply be at-risk kids. Meaning they come from a family that has a history of cholesterol disease or early-age heart disease.Cool Art Room How could any kid in first grade NOT love taking art classes in this classroom?Who Wants a Reheated Breakfast Anyways? I read today that JC Penny is basing its back-to-school clothing campaign on the 1985 uber-teen flick The Breakfast Club. posted by Brendan | 10:42 PM | permanent link |
Your Depressing (Gas) Story for the Day The Chicago Tribune website has created a Gas Gouge-o-Meter. Enter the amount of miles you plan to drive, the current cost of fuel, and your car’s M.P.G. rating, and the calculator spits back how much it will cost you to take that trip. I learned that with gas at $4.15 a gallon (which it is around by us) it will cost Heather and me about $51.80 to drive to see her parents in Findlay, OH. And that’s before I factor in the price of the tolls in Indiana and Ohio A year ago, when fuel prices hovered around $3.15, it would have only cost us $39.31 Oy. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 10:45 PM | permanent link | Your Depressing (Medical) Story for the Day After reading this essay published in today’s New York Times I challenge you to have anything but a pessimistic view of the U.S. health care industry. As a physician, I could empathize. I too often feel overwhelmed with paperwork. But my friend’s discontent seemed to run much deeper than that. Unfortunately, he is not alone. I have been hearing physician colleagues voice a level of dissatisfaction with medical practice that is alarming.And that’s the happy part at the beginning of the essay. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 10:42 PM | permanent link |
Flooding in Iowa I can’t even begin to imagine what it must be like for the people in Iowa. Especially after seeing this AP photo showing houses - houses - bunched up against a railroad bridge like trees in a log jam.  What do you do when you house literally floats away? Labels: News posted by Brendan | 11:07 PM | permanent link |
HOLY CRAP!  A car collides into cyclists participating in a race in Mexico's northern border city of Matamoros, Sunday June 1, 2008. At least one person was killed and 14 injured when a drunk driver slammed into a bicycle race. (AP Photo/Jose Fidelino Vera Hernandez) Labels: News posted by Brendan | 9:46 PM | permanent link |
The Hidden Tribe This blows my mind. Survival International released photos they took of a tribe of Indians living in the Amazon River basin area that have never had contact with the outside world. In the photos where the tribesmen can be seen, they are almost always aiming bows and arrows up at the aircraft that was being used to photograph them with.  It is hard to fathom that in a worldwide civilization so heavily connected and exploited that there can be pockets of people who have no idea that a whole other sort of civilization exists outside of their own. And on a similar note, can you explain to me how a woman can live in your house for a year and you not know it? According to an AP news report, a homeless woman in Japan snuck into a man’s house almost a year ago and proceeded to live/sleep in his closet. And the dude knew nothing about it. Police found the 58-year-old woman Thursday hiding in the top compartment of the man's closet and arrested her for trespassing, police spokesman Hiroki Itakura from southern Kasuya town said Friday.She was sleeping in his closet and he never found her? Unbelievable. And she was showering and everything in his house while he was away. posted by Brendan | 8:27 AM | permanent link |
Who Doesn’t Have 13 Minutes to Spare? The Journal of Sexual Medicine gave a whole bunch of husbands in America a little more ammo - as it were. A survey of sex therapists concluded the optimal amount of time for sexual intercourse was 3 to 13 minutes. The findings, to be published in the May issue of the Journal of Sexual Medicine, strike at the notion that endurance is the key to a great sex life.Read the rest of the story. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 10:07 PM | permanent link |
Ha! Ha! The Chicago Sun-Times, the perennial number two newspaper behind the Chicago Tribune, held a "Zell No!" video contest. Contestants were asked to post a video of their response to the new Tribune Company head-honcho Sam Zell indication that he would sell the naming rights to historic Wrigley Field (The Tribune Company owns the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley). The winner ended up being a Chicago Tribune intern; Katie Hamilton, from Glen Ellyn, Illinois. I think that’s rich. Katie plans to donate the $1,000 prize to Chicago Tribune Charities. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 10:34 PM | permanent link |
Gary Gygax Dies at 69 It has been reported today that Gary Gygax, co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons, passed away this morning at his home in Lake Geneva, WI.  Back in the day I was a fairly active D&D player. In fifth and sixth grade I was part of a group that two or three times a week played during our lunch hour. I wrote some on my own game modules. I even suckered my Dad into playing (foreshadowing, in a sense, my son Ian’s own wrangling of his mother and father into play Pokemon). D&D wasn’t everything to me, but I sure enjoyed playing it a lot when I was young.In the early 1980’s Gary Gygax’s name was as familiar to me as my best friend’s name. I looked for Mr. Gygax’s name on the books and accessories I bought for playing D&D and wondered what inspired a guy to invent such a cool game. However, it’s been almost 25 years since I last rolled a twenty-sided die, and during that time I’d forgotten about Mr. Gygax. Reading about his passing was saddening none the less. It reminded me of the fun I had playing the game he created, and of some of the fun I had in general when I was ten and eleven years-old. posted by Brendan | 3:36 PM | permanent link |
There, He Said It. Let's Move On. "Billionaire Warren Buffett said Monday that the U.S. economy is essentially in a recession even if it hasn't met the technical definition of one yet.If Warren Buffett says we're in a recession, I think we can all agree that we are in a recession. Sure, economists will hold strong to their "two consecutive quarters of negative growth in the nation's gross domestic product" rule, but I think Buffett understands that not everything fits into a nice little box. Ignore the GDP for a second and look at every other economic strength indicator - real estate, strength of dollar, wholesale prices, energy costs, stagnant salaries, inflation - it's clear that U.S. economy is in a mess. Let's acknowledge it and move on. No more hand wringing and debating on whether or not the U.S. is headed for a recession. It's here. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 4:24 PM | permanent link |
Now, That's a Graph! I don't know why The New York Times spent time graphing all of this data out and making a really cool interactive feature on their website, but I like it. The NYT takes the box office receipts for all major films released from 1986 - 2007 and created a interactive graph detailing each films theater revenue over time from when they were released.  Amounts are adjusted for inflation.It's painfully clear that the majority of cash is generated during the summer. But it's interesting to see how quickly those summer blockbusters drop off. Stuff I think anyone who pays a passing attention to entertainment industry knows instinctively, but a fact that is made very apparent when charted like the NYT's has done. posted by Brendan | 12:26 PM | permanent link |
My New Hero Go watch this video snippet from when new owner/CEO Sam Zell met with Chicago-based employees of the Tribune Company. He talked to them for almost 60 minutes, but this six minute segment showcases his answer to an employee who questioned Zell on some of his comments and use of language in the first weeks of his ownership. When you're done watching Zell response you'll understand why I think this guy is fantastic. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:27 PM | permanent link |
We Have a Winner For what it's worth . . . Toshiba Quits HD DVD Business Go out an shop accordingly. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 8:35 AM | permanent link |
The Snub I didn't watch any of the President's State of the Union Address. I was stuck in Hinsdale because the train I was riding on hit a car. So I missed the big news that came out of the speech. Nothing about what the President said, it was Obama and Hilary who have everyone talking thing morning.  Obama was standing next to new BFF Senator Ted Kennedy. Teddy leaned over to greet Hilary, but Obama cooly turned his back to Mrs. Clinton and never acknowledged her. Some are calling it childish or proof that the man running a campaign on a theme of unity is nothing but a fake. While some other commentators have pointed out that Hilary didn't seem to seek out Obama at the SOTU either. So maybe the blame of incivility goes both ways. Frankly, I think it's fantastic. Dude doesn't like Hilary right now because of the nasty nasties being thrown back and forth, and decides he just isn't up to being civil with her at that moment. Doesn't make him a bad guy, just human. posted by Brendan | 8:41 AM | permanent link |
Anthony Bourdain on Sound Opinions I didn't really know about Anthony Bourdain until I saw an episode of his show, No Reservations, on the Travel Channel when he visited Cleveland, OH and hung out with underground comic creator Harvey Pekar, but since that episode I've been mildly fascinated with the guy.  I like his warped sense of humor, his presence on the screen, and his up-front approach to whatever it is he's doing. Where ever Bourdain shows up, I find myself being entertained.That's why I am looking forward to his appearance on Sound Opinions this weekend. Sound Opinions is a weekly radio talk show program hosted by Chicago music critics/writers Greg Kot (Chicago Tribune) and Jim DeRogatis (Chicago Sun-Times) that I've been listening to for years. I used to listen to the show live when it aired on WXRT Monday nights, and since it moved to public radio and Saturday nights (station list), I dutifully download and listen to the podcast every Monday. I don't always agree with Kot's and DeRogatis' opinions, but I am always entertained. Add Bourdain's out-spoken voice to the mix and I expect a knock-out of a show. I highly recommend listening to Kot and DeRogatis, and with Anthony Bourdain thrown in for this episode, this Saturday's Sound Opinoins show could be a perfect time to jump in and give them a try. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 8:31 AM | permanent link |
My Weather Report I thought I detected a slight nip in the air this morning.  Labels: News posted by Brendan | 11:00 AM | permanent link |
Heath Ledger Found Dead Heath Ledger, whose was nominated for an Oscar for Brokeback Mountain and plays the Joker to Christian Bale's Batman in the this summer's The Dark Knight, was found dead of an apparent drug overdose in a New York City apartment It's kinda hard to tell, but it looks like The Dark Knight will be the last film Heath worked on. It doesn't look like he was working on, or had finished, any other film projects. Which means seeing him in this summer's The Dark Knight is going to be a little unsettling. Like watching Brandon Lee in The Crow. I wonder how Warner Brothers will handle the marketing of the film in light of these tragic events. So far the Joker (i.e. Heath's image) has played heavily into the marketing campaigns. posted by Brendan | 4:51 PM | permanent link |
Best News Headline Ever Editors dream of the day when they are given the opportunity to write the sort of big headline that everyone remembers. The headlines can't all be "Dewey Defeats Truman", but this one is no less memorable. The editor should be proud. Flaming Squirrel Ignites Car in BayonneYou can read the whole story at NJ.com. But let's be honest, you really only need the headline to learn everything you need to know. posted by Brendan | 4:02 PM | permanent link |
National Chocolate Cupcake Day  How'd I miss this?Today is National Chocolate Cupcake Day I need a damn cupcake to celebrate with. Or, maybe I can spend time reading over this blog dedicated to the cupcake. No. I need a cupcake. Heather? Update: Heather made cupcakes!! posted by Brendan | 12:51 PM | permanent link |
Al Gore: Nobel Peace Prize Co-winner  It was announced this morning that former U.S. Vice-President Al Gore and the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change jointly won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to raise awareness and combat man-made global warming.Certainly, Gore has been on a tear for the last two years. Between documentaries, books, and other appearances, it was hard to go more than a few weeks without Gore popping up somewhere talking about how we are damaging the Earth. The Nobel committee got it right when they said, "He is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted." I applaud his efforts and congratulate him on his award, though I think winning the Nobel Peace Prize will end any ideas he had about running for President in 2008. Why put yourself through that sort of meat grinder when you are finding success campaigning for a cause you are passionate about. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 8:49 AM | permanent link |
DVD's for BVD's Dad, you've worked a long time as lawyer and judge in DuPage County. What the hell's going on? Policemen of the year hiding DVD's in their pants at Costco? A Wheaton police officer who was named Officer of the Year in 2006 will appear in court next week with his career in jeopardy after being charged with stealing DVDs costing $85 from a Naperville Costco.Found this story in today's Chicago Tribune. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:41 PM | permanent link |
KidsWB No More The CW network announced today that starting in the fall of 2008 the network’s Saturday morning programming will be out-sourced to 4Kids, which already does the kids’ programming for FOX Saturday morning shows. This means that the KidsWB is getting shut down and will be no more.  Considering that the KidsWB has drawn their animation inspiration heavily from Warner Brothers studios and DC Comics (Tiny Toons, Animaniacs, Batman, Superman, Legion of Superheroes), I’ve always been a fan of most of the shows aired on KidsWB. They always provided something I wanted to watch Saturday mornings before college football kicked off.Ian, Emma, and Zoe have also become fans of the KidsWB because of the before mentioned shows and because of programs like the new interpretations of Scooby-Doo and Tom & Jerry, both of which can be found on KidsWB.  So I was disappointed to hear this news. I’ve never paid much attention to 4Kids, but after looking at their website it appears they run a bunch of re-heated anime and cartoons based on video games. Not very inspiring.I don’t know what this change means for the future of shows currently on KidsWB. The shows are popular (KidsWB is the second highest watched Saturday morning block of programming for kids) so I’d hate to see them canceled out-right. But considering the situation I don’t see why 4Kids wouldn’t cram their own programming in. posted by Brendan | 4:45 PM | permanent link |
Tuesday's Rant Heather says that my views on over-weight people can be too negative, possibly even discriminatory. While I will admit that I give no quarter to fat people complaining about squeezing into public places or the food at McDonald’s, I don’t think I’m discriminatory. However, my stance isn’t going to soften when I read reports like this: Obesity may push U.S. health costs above Europe: studySo you will excuse me if I don’t feel compassion for the growing – pun intended – segment of the U.S. population that by their own chosen lazy lifestyle is contributing to skyrocketing cost of health care which makes my daily fight to make ends meet more difficult. posted by Brendan | 12:46 PM | permanent link |
Ban the Crocs and Wheelies I usually find Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass to be a sorry Mike Royko wannabe. However, I liked his column today concerning the ill-effects Crocs and wheelie shoes can have on kids. Kass talked to people from the fitness industry about how Crocs and wheelie shoes can contribute to childhood obesity and poor physical development. Plus, I think those types of shoes are just annoying and make you look sloppy. Go ahead and read it. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:42 PM | permanent link |
Jim Henson's Birthday  Just read that today is Jim Henson's birthday. He would have been 71 years old today if he hadn't died suddenly of organ failure due to a infection in 1990.The amount of work he was responsible for in his fifty-two years, and the amount of rewards he received for that work, is staggering. I don't believe there is a single person from my generation or younger who hasn't learned or been entertained by the genius of Jim Henson. He was a unique voice for humanity. His work goes on through his production companies and his children, but it doesn't quite feel the same without Jim Henson there pulling the strings. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:51 PM | permanent link |
Hmmmm This is interesting. May/December Couples Boost Human LifespanLearn all the details at the LiveScience website. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:54 PM | permanent link |
Politicians Talking Sense I didn't realize this when the Do Not Call registry was announced, but discovered it about a year ago and set a calendar reminder for myself two years into the future. All numbers entered into the National Do Not Call Registry expire (i.e. are deleted from the list) five years from when they were entered. So if you entered your phone number in the list back in 2003 when the registry was first started (like I did) than you could start receiving exciting calls for new credit cards, window coverings, or exciting investment opportunities in the spring of 2008 after the DNC drops your number. Rep. Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania doesn't think that's fair. He's introduced legislation that would make entries in the National Do Not Call Registry permanent. Rep. Doyle understands that in the last five years people haven't warmed to the idea of having their dinner interrupted with an uninvited phone call on mortgage refinancing. I'm sure the telemarketer association won't be too pleased with this bill, but I would think that with a big election year around the corner that this little bill might stand a good chance at turning into a law. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 4:38 PM | permanent link | They're Gettin' the Band Back Together Which band? Zeppelin, man!
posted by Brendan | 4:30 PM | permanent link |
Happy Birthday Big Mac! Hey, it's a little late, but everyone should wish Mcdonald's Big Mac a "Happy Birthday" today. The sandwhich was first introduced 40 years ago today.  I know it's fast food and Mcdonald's and all, but I love 'em. If I had known about the birthday earlier I would have gotten one for lunch to celebrate. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 9:01 PM | permanent link | Enough of the Rain Already Even though we have not been hit particularly hard where we live in Aurora, I’ve had enough of the rain. It’s been raining nearly every day for over a week now. I was able to get out and cut the grass last Saturday morning – when it wasn’t raining – but that is the only non-raining time I can remember at my house in the last nine days. Things have been nastiest this week. Our house sits up on higher elevation and has a good sump pump, but with the volume of rain that has been coming down since Sunday I still find myself walking down in to the basement ever few hours when I’m at home. I’ve even got up in the middle of the night and ventured down to stand over the sump cover and stair at it. Just to make certain no water is seeping in to ruin our new basement.  Rain and basements have not been good to our family this week. Heather’s mom and dad live in Findlay, OH, which made national news when the Blanchard River crested at 18 feet – 7 feet above floor stage. While watching helicopter-shot video footage of downtown Findlay covered in deep water – Heather tried to get in touch with her parents without much early luck. Eventually, though, she did reach her mom and learned that they were alright, just busy cleaning up their basement. They took in about two and half feet of water in their basement, but only because the circuit breaker that the sump pump was on tripped and they didn’t notice until water had started filling up the basement.It doesn’t sound like they lost too much to the water, though they will have to wait and see what damage was done to the chest freezer, washer, dryer, and spare refrigerator that they run down in the basement. Hopefully the appliances dry out fine and are still operational. Otherwise I don’t know where I will go to sneak beer when I visit for family get togethers. Last night I received a call from my mother. She lives up in Wheaton, about a 30 minute drive from our house. She has had some problems with basement flooding in the past, mainly because the house was built with a deep basement on land that extends over an underground lake and is a stone’s throw from a protected wetland marsh. She has two sump pumps – one of which is connected to a battery backup with 6 hours of juice.  She called at 8:30 last night to inform me that they had lost power out by her house and that she had begun the countdown on her six hours of battery life for the back-up sump. I told her to give me a call if there were problems, then went downstairs to check my basement again. When I didn’t receive any phone calls from her overnight and none early in the morning, I figured that power had been restored and the sumps were being pumped.But that was not to be. I returned to me office from some morning meetings to find all manner of phone messages from Heather. My mom had been in contact with her. Power had not been restored and she was looking for a generator to hook her sump pumps up to (Understandably, there were none to be found in Wheaton). Heather, being a right resourceful lass, had found one of the last gas-powered generators available at an Aurora-based rental center and had them load it into the back of our mini-van. The plan then became for me to kick out of work early so I could transport the generator up to my mom’s house to start clearing her basement. However, when I called to discuss my intentions with my mom, I learned that her next-door neighbor had power – the only house on the entire block – so they were stringing extension cords from his house to her house so that they could power up the sump pump. I will still need to go up and check on my mom and her basement, but now at least I know something is being done about getting the water out. I might just have to help with cleaning some things up. Two out of three parental units have experienced flooding problems this week. Lucky for my dad that he lives in a condo on a slab – no basement. No fears of water in the basement, he just has to worry about tornado warnings at the DuPage court house. But if we can just get through tonight, then the outlook for the next four days look good. No rain, plenty of sunshine, but with temperatures slowly building back up into the 90s. Sure, it might become miserably hot, but at least the rain will have stopped. [Pictures are of flooding in Findlay, OH] posted by Brendan | 12:47 PM | permanent link |
Mr. Freeze Creator Dies  I consider myself pretty well versed in Batman trivia and lore, but every once and a while I discover there is still plenty more to learn.Take for example the news that Max Hodge, veteran TV writer, passed away at the age of 91 late last week. He wrote for a slew of shows in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, including Mission: Impossible, Ironside, The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan, The Waltons and CHiPs. But he had a strong connection to Batman mythology as well. As a brief writer for the Adam West-helmed Batman campy TV show, he took a little used villain from the comic books – Mr. Zero – and turned him into the freezer-suit wearing arch-villain Mr. Freeze who relied as much on sub-zero temperatures to commit his crimes as he did to keep himself alive. The re-imagined Mr. Freeze jumped back into the pages of comic books where he has remained one of Batman’s more popular foils. posted by Brendan | 4:56 PM | permanent link | Making Roads Safer in Illinois  Yesterday Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich signed into law new teen driving rules that will hopefully not only make the road safer for teens, but also everyone else sharing the road with these teens.The new rules, which go into effect January 1, 2008, include a nine-month learner's permit period, lengthier passenger restrictions and extended night-driving limits for teens. The Chicago Tribune provided a nice graphic showing how restrictions on teen driving will change in Illinois, which I've included in my post. I think these new regulations are smart legislation. Not only does it force kids to spend more time learning how to drive a car before venturing out on their own, but it also makes parents even more responsible for young drivers. Although I consider it a sad commentary on our society when parental involvement has to be legislated, if that's what it takes to make for safer teen drivers than I'm all for it. Labels: News posted by Brendan | 12:23 PM | permanent link | | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"$85 billion, that's your money. I mean, it's all of our money. I don't know where they get it. It's really interesting. They just print it or something.
