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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Paraskevidekatriaphobia. If you're hiding under your bed today, you may suffer from this affliction.

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So, IMAO is 5 years old today. Very cool. And apparently Frank J. and the lovely and talented Sarah K. will be moving to Texas soon which means, of course, that you should send them money.

Or monkeys. Whatever you've got the most of.

Anyway, here's hoping for 5 more.

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A belated 4th of July post includes a relatively large excerpt from an article about Isaac Asimov and The Star Spangled Banner.

Were you aware that there are 4 verses to our national anthem? And do know the words? If not, read this article and become aquainted with both the background to the song- which you probably do know- and all of the words. If you already know the entire anthem, sing it aloud. Piss off a moonbat.

So now let me tell you how it came to be written.

In 1812, the United States went to war with Great Britain, primarily over freedom of the seas. We were in the right. For two years, we held off the British, even though we were still a rather weak country. Great Britain was in a life and death struggle with Napoleon. In fact, just as the United States declared war, Napoleon marched off to invade Russia. If he won, as everyone expected, he would control Europe, and Great Britain would be isolated. It was no time for her to be involved in an American war.

At first, our seamen proved better than the British. After we won a battle on Lake Erie in 1813, the American commander, Oliver Hazard Perry, sent the message "We have met the enemy and they are ours." However, the weight of the British navy beat down our ships eventually. New England, hard-hit by a tightening blockade, threatened secession.
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The British reached the American coast, and on August 24, 1814, took Washington, D. C. Then they moved up the Chesapeake Bay toward Baltimore. On September 12, they arrived and found 1000 men in Fort McHenry, whose guns controlled the harbor. If the British wished to take Baltimore, they would have to take the fort.

On one of the British ships was an aged physician, William Beanes, who had been arrested in Maryland and brought along as a prisoner. Francis Scott Key, a lawyer and friend of the physician, had come to the ship to negotiate his release. The British captain was willing, but the two Americans would have to wait. It was now the night of September 13, and the bombardment of Fort McHenry was about to start.

As twilight deepened, Key and Beanes saw the American flag flying over Fort McHenry. Through the night, they heard bombs bursting and saw the red glare of rockets. They knew the fort was resisting and the American flag was still flying. But toward morning the bombardment ceased, and a dread silence fell. Either Fort McHenry had surrendered and the British flag flew above it, or the bombardment had failed and the American flag still flew.

As dawn began to brighten the eastern sky, Key and Beanes stared out at the fort, trying to see which flag flew over it. He and the physician must have asked each other over and over, "Can you see the flag?"

After it was all finished, Key wrote a four stanza poem telling the events of the night. Called "The Defence of Fort M'Henry," it was published in newspapers and swept the nation. Someone noted that the words fit an old English tune called "To Anacreon in Heaven" --a difficult melody with an uncomfortably large vocal range. For obvious reasons, Key's work became known as "The Star Spangled Banner," and in 1931 Congress declared it the official anthem of the United States.

Now that you know the story, here are the words. Presumably, the old doctor is speaking. This is what he asks Key

Oh! say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
W hat so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro' the night that our flag was still there.
Oh! say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

"Ramparts," in case you don't know, are the protective walls or other elevations that surround a fort. The first stanza asks a question. The second gives an answer

On the shore, dimly seen thro' the mist of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep.
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream
'Tis the star-spangled banner. Oh! long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

"The towering steep" is again, the ramparts. The bombardment has failed, and the British can do nothing more but sail away, their mission a failure.

In the third stanza, I feel Key allows himself to gloat over the American triumph. In the aftermath of the bombardment, Key probably was in no mood to act otherwise.

During World War II, when the British were our staunchest allies, this third stanza was not sung. However, I know it, so here it is

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footstep's pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The fourth stanza, a pious hope for the future, should be sung more slowly than the other three and with even deeper feeling.

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation,
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the Heav'n - rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, for our cause is just,
And this be our motto--"In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

I hope you will look at the national anthem with new eyes. Listen to it, the next time you have a chance, with new ears.

And don't let them ever take it away.

--Isaac Asimov, March 1991

Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:48 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I see via Jeff that Michele has cast a reincarnate spell on her former blog, instead of a resurrect spell. The results? The blog A Big Victory. I love Faster Than the World, but I'm glad to see Michele back with her very own place.

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I smell Harvey all over the comment thread in this one.

If you'll excuse me, I have to clean up some flaming manure.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:28 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Well, time to slow my trickle of traffic to an even smaller trickle: I'm headed out of the country on vacation tomorrow. The kids are coming with me and the wife this time, which means that the trip will be more fun. It also means that I won't get much rest until I come back to work. Such is life.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:14 AM | Comments (18) | Add Comment
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I've noticed some things over the last few years while clicking through the blogosphere:

1) There are some pretty smart people. And freaking stupid ones.

2) The political divide on blogs is vast, even more so than I anticipated.

3) Bloggers tend to help each other out when the chips are down.

Some of you may remember other bloggers requesting help/money these last few years: Dean; Misha; Lileks; Kevin; Jeff; and other who I cannot remember right now. People came out of the woodwork with donations. It was touching and, more importantly, the donations helped.

Why do I mention this? Because Rick Moran has made a similar request. He would like to keep writing for a living, but he also wants to keep him and his wife fed, clothed and housed. This fund drive could provide Rick with the wherewithal to keep on blogging, pissing off amusing readers on the right and left. Anyway, please go here and give, if you're so inclined. Every little bit helps.

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Ever go shopping and see something that looks like a good deal? You decide to buy the item and take it home. Later that day, you see the exact same thing for about 20% less somewhere else. However, you've already unwrapped and installed/used the item in question, so you're pretty much screwed.

Well, be screwed no longer (except for, umm, in the good way). I give you Frucall. Excerpt:

"It seems like a great deal, but maybe it's cheaper somewhere else?" I've said those words a lot, maybe not out loud but certainly in my head. The thing I love about shopping online is that I can instantly see if something is cheaper at another store. But, when you're out and about, how do you do the same thing? How do you keep your advantage? Well, if you take your cell phone with you, FruCall may just be the answer.

FruCall works off a very simple premise - barcodes. Almost every product has one. And if you were smart enough to set up a database, matching products to every published price available, well you'd have a database with which to comparison shop, just like the online sites we all use. FruCall has such a database.
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The automated voice takes a little getting used to. It's a cross between a human and a speak 'n' spell. But once you get used to her strange voice, you soon get the lowdown on the bargains out there. She'll tell you the price range of the item you're currently looking at, new and used, and where to buy it. So, if you see a cool TV for $1000 and find out someone else has that same TV for $800, not only do you know of the deal, you can actually order it right there and then through your cell phone. You can also use the service using text messages and mWeb. Handy.

Did I mention that the Frucall account is free? Now go forth and save money.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:31 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Lileks offers some analysis of the immigration bill like only he can:

I. (7) (3.14) There shall be a fence stretching 356 miles. The fence shall be three feet high. Paper mache crocodiles shall reside on the other side, arrayed in a threatening manner ($400,000 shall be appropriated to determine the optimum angle of the opened jaw; the final crocodile shall represent a consensus among herpetologists, and reflect a crocodile who is defending his position but showing his teeth to warn off, and not necessarily threaten violence.) Every nine miles, there shall be a sign that reproduces the FBI warning that precedes all DVDs and videotapes and warns of criminal liability for breaking the copyright law. (It has worked so well thus far the language might as well be used intact.) The fence shall be raised to four feet in the event the population of any state becomes 51% undocumented Xenonationals. The fence shall be raised to five feet in the event GOP presence in the Senate drops below 4 seats. The fence shall be raised to ten feet after a nuclear device is smuggled in from Mexico, providing the yield of the bomb is at least 4 (four) kilotons. A bomb with a yield between 3 and 3.99 kilotons will be a sufficient trigger to raise the fence only if the attendant radiation is carried by prevailing winds a distance greater than 20 miles.

Even better, Lileks reivews the season finale of 24:

UPDATE: THERE MAY BE A MOLE IN CTU. There might also be a prize in each of these specially marked boxes of Lucky Charms. I suspect the rotting corpse of Edgar, using neural implants from the graveyard.

UPDATE: Stupidest question of the year, or ever, from Nadia. “Jack escaped? How?” By using the Power o’ Bauer, lady. If they were smart they’d spell Power P-A-U-E-R. But they don’t, because the covert community is institutionally incapable of public manifestations of gratitude, man.

Update: Dave Barry also reviews the last 2 hours of 24.

UPDATE: Hard to believe such a foolproof, well-thought-out plan could have gone wrong.

UPDATE: "It blew!" Yes, it did.

UPDATE: Just to recap: CTU, the nation's crack counterterrorism unit, which has a huge staff and vast computer capacity as well as helicopters and satellites, and which knew exactly where the bad guys were going to strike, was once again easily defeated, this time by two guys in wetsuits and a motorboat.

UPDATE: I still can't believe Melinda got voted off American Idol.

UPDATE: Another White House scene. Padpadpadpad.

UPDATE: The old Bloomfield Oil Platform! That's IT.

UPDATE: Three Hummers! He's still in the plot!

UPDATE: If anything bad goes down on the oil platform, the actors can just grab chunks of dialog and use them as flotation devices.

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Glenn Reynolds, the easiest-going puppy blending fool on the planet, has finally had enough of Excitable Andy's incessant caterwauling and arguing in bad faith. In short, he's finally come to the same conclusion that the rest of us reached a long time ago:

I've tried, honestly, not to get in these pissing matches with Andrew, but apparently he can't help himself with this stuff. But to be clear: I'm against torture. I'm also against moralistic, dishonest, self-righteous preening about torture. Andrew is a repeat offender in the latter category, and it's gone beyond embarrassing to pathetic.

Various people in and out of the blogosphere have wondered exactly when, how, and why Andrew lost it. But lost it he has.

Dan Collins wonders when the rest of us thought that Andrew had lost it. For me, I think it was the incessant Andrew vs. Andrew posts, wherein he completely contradicted himself in ways that allowed him to screech hysterically about things of which he once approved. I'd be glad to have given him a pass because everyone's allowed to change his or her mind. But the dishonest prick would simply pretend that he'd never taken his prior position and that the rest of us were simply lying.

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Allah reported earlier in the day that Falwell had been found non-responsive in his office. Apparently, he has passed away.

I'll be honest: I always found Falwell a little bit disturbing and creepy. And I say this as one of those evangelical types in good standing with my church. He deserves the credit, as James Joyner rightfully acknowledges, for helping bring religious conservatives into the realm of politics And I actually met the man once, on the day of my graduation from college. It turns out that his daughter was graduating from VCU/MCV's medical school that day and he had parked right next to my sister's car; we all arrived back at our vehicles at the same time.

What's the point? I don't really have one. He seemed nice enough in person, but I never much cared for him. However, he has left family and friends behind who love him and I know that they're grieving. They have my condolences.

Update: Not surprisingly, the sinestrophe side of the blogosphere is popping champagne corks and celebrating. I haven't seen that much happiness from the perpetually aggrieved since Reagan died which, I guess, shows how completely vile, heartless and full of shit those people are.

Update: I know that John Cole, much like me, never liked Falwell, but he's taken the high road:

You all are better than that. And the thing that people need to remember is that despite what we may think of him, a number of people are grieving. If you canÂ’t muster the sympathy to behave decently for their sake, well, I got nothing.

Sadly, not everyone can be bothered to extend sympathy for those who've just lost a loved one. Sadly, but not surprisingly.

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And it's on May 15 this year. The only two flavors are Cinnamon Dulce de Leche or Sticky Toffee Pudding, the latter of which is really delicious. So go next week to your local Haagen-Dazs.

Update: Date corrected to May 15.

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Okay, it was only about 35 minutes, not a whole weekend, but I had my role as navigator revoked as a result. I'm still not certain if the revocation is permanent or not.

Anyway. My buddies and I drove down to Raleigh recently for the World Beer Festival. The weather was pretty much perfect for an outdoor festival: it was sunny and the temperature was in the low 70s. And there were lots of breweries, most of which had beers which ranged from good to great. Abita, Sierra Nevada, Chimay and lots of others besides. Also, there was a lot of good food, which proved useful in washing down the beer.

So we sipped and supped for a few hours, being careful to not become drunk because we had to drive back home to Richmond, and then we hiked back to the car and got started on our return journey. And this is where the... fun began.

I remember getting into the front seat and relaxing, closing my eyes a bit while the three of us started some chit chat about Highlander cards and-

I DID mention that they were friends of mine, right? You shouldn't be surprised at nerd games being discussed. Probably none of you are.

- then everything kind of blanked out for a while. For me. To me, I was asleep. Oddly, and unfortunately for my friends in the car with me, I continued to speak. According to them -and I have no reason to doubt- I even waved my hand in front of the driver's face a couple of times to see if he was awake.

I know what you're thinking: this sounds like something that I could be mocked about, but no real harm done. That's where you'd be wrong. In my somnolent, yet conversant, state, I apparently replied a couple of times to, well, here's a sample of what was said:

Driver: Are you sure that we're going the right way?

Me: Sure, you're fine.

Well, the statement was true as a point of fact. Jeff was fine and dandy. Physically. However, we were NOT going the right way. In fact, we were going in what would best be described as the opposite of the right way. We wanted to go north and we were seeing signs for US-1, south, which sort of tipped us off. And by us, I include myself because I finally woke up. Despite assertions to the contrary, my higher brain functions were not working during that period. You could make the argument that they never work, but that's a different argument. In any event, we stopped at a Quickie Mart or something and asked the guy how to get to I-95. He wasn't sure, but he did laugh out loud when we told him where we wanted to go.

To the backseat I went. Being fully awake now, I made some comments about which exit to take, which lane to be in; my sister lives in Raleigh and I'm more than little familiar with the area. To each comment, Jeff asked, "So other guy not named Physics Geek, which way do we go? Or is the cause of our 1-1/2 hour delay in getting home actually correct this time?"

The mocking is certain to follow me to my grave, but it's well deserved. I'm still curious as to how I managed to give the appearance of being awake while not actually being so. It would allow me to catch up on my sleep at work. Then again, sleeping next to the Big Red Button would get me fired, so maybe I'll think on it a little more.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:29 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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If you haven't been reading Annika lo, these many years, you've been missing out. Anyway, her blogging is circling the drain as she heads towards her new career- after the bar- as a lawyer. I'll miss her posts, her pictures and her sense of humor. And I'll never forget that she was the first blogger to leave a comment or add me to her blogroll. Not because I deserved the attention, mind, but just because she's cool like that.

In any event, here's a post in which she links to the Round Mound of Retard, and then makes a pretty cogent observation about SloMoRo:

There is no convincing one who has abandoned all reason and logic in exchange for fear and superstition.

I think that she left out the part about the parasite attacking Rosie's tiny brain, but otherwise the comment was spot on.

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