I like to run. Not that anyone would confuse me with a real runner these days, as I'm older and slower-much slower- than I used to be. However, I move a little bit faster "running" than I do walking, so running it is.

Anyway. I have narrow foot (B width) and have had difficulty in the past finding a shoe that (a) fits and (b) provides sufficient cushioning and support to run in. I've been extremely satisfied with New Balance shoes and have been wearing them for more than 15 years. However, as others are likely to attest, New Balance suffers from the same diseased mentality that infects other running shoe manufacturers: "Hey, we've got a popular running shoe that everyone wants to buy. Let's discontinue it and make another less comfortable, uglier shoe!"

No, I'm not bitter. Much. I've merely learned over the years to buy at least two pairs of shoes when I'm in the market. If I don't, and I really like the shoe, I'll get pissed off when I can't get it anymore. Regardless, I've been buying my shoes from Road Runner Sports in San Diego for the last 20+ years. They usually have a good selection and decent prices. However, they've been awful lately in terms of running out of stock on shoes that I can wear. I don't pronate or supinate my feet; I don't need special support; I don't buy trail shoes; and I need a B width shoe, especially if I'm going to fork over $100 or more. And recently, when I went online to buy another pair of shoes, not only had they discontinued the shoes I'm currently wearing, they didn't carry any B width shoes in the style that had replaced my shoes. The shoes that RRS had that I COULD wear were horribly expensive and freakishly ugly. I mean, really: do they employ the blind and stupid in their marketing department? Eesh.

Regardless, I started searching around the web and stumbled across, via Amazon, If the Shoe Fits. not only did they have the style that I was searching for, the M881, they had it in my size. And it was marked down 25%. Yay!. So I ordered two pair of shoes. The next day, I received an email from customer support saying the following:

Dear ________,

We regret to inform you that we are out of stock in New Balance running shoe M881, in the width that you requested, 11B. However, if you are interested, we have the shoe which replaced it, the M882, in your size and would be glad to ship them to you and no extra cost. Please let us know if this would acceptable to you.

So I get the improved version of the shoe that I like best for a price substantially less than I would have had to pay anywhere else, delivered right to my door. I'm quite pleased with the customer service at If the Shoe Fits. I highly recommend them if you're in the market for running shoes.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 08:49 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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QandO celebrates its 4th anniversary today. Very cool. Here's to many more years.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 08:58 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Look at the title of this article and tell me what's wrong with it? Take your time; no rush.

Okay, time's up. Here's the title: Stanford EyePassword Protects PIN Numbers.

How stupid do you have to be to print a headline like that? What's worse is I will guarantee you that no one even thought about the abject stupidity inherent in the title. For the last time, PIN stands for Personal Identification NUMBER!. A PIN number is a Personal Identification Number Number. I mean really, WTF?! Does that even look remotely sensible to you?

Don't even get me started on the "VAT Tax" commenters. They're too stupid to have their own sign.

Update: Arrrggh! I just read the comments and someone mentioned another one: ATM machine.

Shit, I really picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue.

Update: Heh. A friend of mine just emailed me this:

My pet peeve is the “word” coconspirator. Do I have “coclassmates” or “cofriends” as well?

Final update: I watched Monk last night. Entertaining as usual, except for one thing: the police kept referring to the VIN number of the car. The vehicle identification number number.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to pour Chlorox into my brain to remove the memory.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:55 AM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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Via McQ comes a tale of delicious irony. I won't bother to excerpt; you simply have to read it for yourself.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:37 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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No, not the fact that I own some Debbie Gibson compact discs. What I'm referring to is the fact that I gave up playing the cello after putting in 8 years of practice, practice, practice. I'm considering picking up an inexpensive one and have seen several within my price range at Amazon. I might nudge the spouse into putting one under the Christmas tree for me.

My current employer has an electronic bulletin board wherein us worker bees can post classified ads. Someone recently posted that she had some reconditioned violins, violas and cellos for sale. As it turns out, she was a professional violinist for 20 years and only deals in absolutely the highest quality instruments. Her prices for cells started at $15,000. After I pulled my tongue back out of my throat, I wrote her a thank you, but no thank email.

Yes, I'm aware that a better instrument will cost more. It's also true that I was a pretty fair cellist at one time; I went to NC Governor's School because of it. However, I wasn't the best at the time I quit playing, and I'm willing to bet that the decades long layoff hasn't improved my skill any. I'm simply looking for something serviceable.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 02:50 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Sorry about the sporadic posting lately. Between caring for my wife and kids, a quarantined dog and 5 more pets besides, I've been cramming for some challenge tests to prevent my having to drive waaay the heck out to the middle of nowhere for classes. So far, so good: I've passed my first 3 tests. One more and I'll have a break for a couple of months which will allow me to do some actual work. Regardless, I'm appreciative to all who still drop by.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:20 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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